McMurrray earns first Chase berth
Sept. 12, 2015
By Seth Livingstone
NASCAR News Service
RICHMOND, Va. – Jamie McMurray has accomplished things in NASCAR that more-heralded drivers will never match.
He
went to Victory Lane in just his second career Sprint Cup start –
earlier than any other driver in his career. He was the NASCAR Sprint
Cup Series Sunoco Rookie of the Year in 2003. And in 2010, he joined
Jimmie Johnson and Dale Jarrett as the only drivers to win the Daytona
500 and Brickyard 400 in the same season.
But until Saturday night, McMurray had never earned a place in the Chase for the Sprint Cup.
McMurray
crossed that off his bucket list by simply starting the Federated Auto
Parts 400 at Richmond International Raceway, becoming the 12th driver to
lock down one of the 16 coveted places in the Chase.
“I’m
relieved,” McMurray said after his 13th-place finish. “I’ve been the
guy on the outside, trying to fight my way in, and also been in this
(battle) a couple times and been knocked out at Richmond. … It’s
awesome. I’m thrilled to be a part of it.”
“For
Jamie, I couldn’t be more pleased,” said team owner Chip Ganassi. “I
don’t think there’s anyone in the Chase more deserving to be there. He’s
worked so hard and tirelessly over the years and been under the
limelight.”
Although
hardly enjoying his finest season, making the 2015 Chase seems like a
matter of justice served for McMurray. In that 2010 season, he and crew
chief Kevin Manion won three times (adding a victory at Charlotte Motor
Speedway to those at Daytona and Indy) and posted nine top-five
finishes, yet failed to qualify for a position in the Chase.
"It seems like when they took 10, we were 11th; when they took 12, we were 13th," Ganassi said.
But
McMurray’s high-profile 2010 season for Earnhardt Ganassi Racing,
combined with his inability to compete for the sport’s championship, was
something NASCAR took a hard look at when it decided to expand the
Chase format by adding wild card spots.
A
year ago, winless-driver Ryan Newman took full advantage of the
expanded field to challenge for the Sprint Cup Series title at
Homestead-Miami Speedway. Now, McMurray and his team at Chip Ganassi
Racing with Felix Sabates are in a similar boat.
Not
only is McMurray winless entering the Chase, last night’s race marked
his 56th consecutive race without a victory. He last went to victory
lane in the Chase race at Talladega in 2013. The team has led just 14
laps this season, compared to 368 laps last season and 346 during his
memorable 2010 campaign.
McMurray
has struggled in the second half. His No. 1 Chevrolet has finished no
better than 11th in the last 11 races. He’s managed only two top-five
finishes all season, the last of which coming in the April 26 race at
Richmond. As a result, he slid from sixth in the point standings after
the July race at Daytona to 11th in the standings prior to the Federated
Auto Parts 400.
All of this doesn't mean that Ganassi and McMurray are not without optimism for the Chase.
“I think we can give it a shot here. I think we can drill ourselves deep into it,” Ganassi said.
“We’ve
had speed at times. Like Jimmie (Johnson) said (about the Hendricks
Chevrolets), the components are there to win a race – all the same
components of the guys who can (win). So, we just need to make a better
mousetrap out of what we have to work with.”
Frustration
with a consistent lack of speed looked like it might continue at
Richmond, where the Cessna Chevrolet – so strong in the spring race –
struggled in practice and qualified 31st. But McMurray, who was 28th in
Friday’s final practice, had the No. 1 Chevrolet as high as fifth place
just after the midway point of the race.
Any
chance he might have had to mount a serious charge took a hit when he
was penalized for speeding on entry to pit road on Lap 291, dropping him
to the tail end of the lead lap, in 13th.
“We
have some work to do,” said McMurray, who is working with Matt McCall,
his third crew chief in as many seasons." (But) Matt has done a
phenomenal job for being a rookie crew chief and I'm super-proud of him
and the whole team."
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