Blown Tire, Wreck Hamper
Sauter’s Effort at Richmond

Richmond, Va. – Johnny Sauter finished 33rd in Saturday night’s Crown Royal 400 at Richmond International Raceway.

Sauter was back behind the wheel of the No. 70 Haas Automation Chevrolet and like his previous attempt (Phoenix) to put the team back into the Top-35 in owner points a wreck not of his own doing thwarted his effort.

Sauter started the race in the 38th position after successfully qualifying on time. Shortly after the race began, Sauter reported that his car was very loose. Crew Chief Dave Skog planned air pressure and chassis adjustments for the first pit stop, but before the changes could be made Sauter’s right front tire blew, sending the No. 70 against the outside wall.

After several trips down pit road for repairs under caution Sauter re-started the race from the tail end of the field three-laps down but with plenty of time left to make up ground. Sauter, however, was caught up in an 11-car wreck on Lap 231 of the 400-Lap race and the No. 70 was towed to the garage for repairs. With the field under the red flag for more than 20-minutes, the No. 70 team examined the racecar and came up with a strategy to repair it but they could not work on the car until the red flag was lifted.

Sauter returned to the field in his heavily damaged car and was still able to post competitive lap times. The hard work by the No. 70 team in getting the car back onto the track paid off as Sauter was able to gain several positions before the end of the race as other cars fell out.

“I feel bad for the team,” Sauter said. “It seems as though they can’t catch a break. Even after the wreck the car still felt like it had a lot of speed. It’s unfortunate.”

The No. 70 team remains 37th in owner points following the Richmond race, 109 points away from 35th.

The team next heads to Darlington for a Saturday night race. It will be broadcast live at 7 p.m. on Fox and local MRN radio affiliates.

Other Team Notes: Johnny Sauter is driving the No. 70 Haas Automation Chevy at Darlington. Johnny Sauter and Brad Keselowski are testing the No. 70 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway this week.