N’WIDE: Marks Misses Out At Montreal After Rear Gear Loss

Justin Marks picked up the 1st last-place finish of his NASCAR Nationwide Series career in Sunday’s NAPA Auto Parts 200 Presented by Dodge at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve when his #43 Future Electronics Ford lost its rear gear during the opening lap of the 77-lap race. The finish came in Marks’ 22nd series start.

Marks qualified 28th at a speed of 93.575 mph, besting nine other teams that were not locked-into the field based on Owner Points. However, Curb Motorsports’ turbulent season continued when his car was apparently spun on the back half of the course during the opening lap, then failed to restart. Marks’ rear gear had failed from the spin, sending him behind the wall by way of a nearby access road. Last week’s last-place finisher Jeff Green, who started last, called it a day the next lap.

Aside from the #26 of Parker Kligerman, who scored a solid 8th-place finish in one of his few funded efforts this season, K-Automotive Motorsports was absent from the Montreal event as both the #96 of Brian Keselowski and the #92, still the leader of 2010's LASTCAR Nationwide Owner’s Standings, withdrew from the entry list earlier in the week. This prevented current Driver’s Rankings leader Dennis Setzer from qualifying, though his #92 was likely going to be driven by either Andy Ponstein or Dan Brode, road racers who drove the car to 42nd-place finishes at Elkhart Lake and Watkins Glen, respectively.

N’WIDE STATS AND FACTS
*Marks is the first Nationwide Series driver to finish last without completing a single lap since Chrissy Wallace’s #41 was involved in a multi-car crash on the opening lap of this year’s season-opening DRIVE4COPD 300 at Daytona.
*The #43 had not finished last in a Nationwide Series race since Aaron Fike’s RFMS, Inc. / Curb Records Dodge lost an engine 5 laps into the 2006 Diamond Hill Plywood 200 at Darlington. Fike was also driving for owner Mike Curb at the time. Thus, the #43 had never before finished last at Montreal as the track held its first Nationwide event in 2007.
*Curb’s team had most recently finished last at Daytona this past July after teammates Jennifer Jo Cobb and Johnny Chapman tangled in a lap 6 accident during the Subway Jalapeno 250.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
43) #43-Justin Marks / 0 laps / rear end
42) #36-Jeff Green / 1 lap / brakes
41) #89-Brett Rowe / 3 laps / overheating
40) #11-Brian Scott / 8 laps / crash
39) #27-Andrew Ranger / 13 laps / engine

N'WIDE DRIVER RANKINGS
1st) Dennis Setzer (9)
2nd) Jeff Green, Mark Green (2)
3rd) Willie Allen, Michael Annett, Johnny Borneman III, Matt Carter, Johnny Chapman, David Gilliland, Jennifer Jo Cobb, Brian Keselowski, Kevin Lepage, Justin Marks, Danny O'Quinn, Jr., Chrissy Wallace (1)

N'WIDE TEAM RANKINGS
1st) #92-K-Automotive Motorsports (10)
2nd) #36-Mark Smith (2)
3rd) #15-Germain Racing, #27-Curb Motorsports,#41-Rick Ware, #43-Curb Motorsports, #49-Jay Robinson, Inc., #70-Mary Louise Miller, #82-MacDonald Motorsports, #83-John Borneman, Jr., #90-D'Hont Humphrey Motorsports, #91-D'Hont Humphrey Motorsports, #96-K-Automotive Motorsports, #04-Johnny Davis Motorsports, #05-Wayne Day (1)

TRUCKS: Andrews’ First Last-Place Finish Moves #95 Team Into Tie For 2010 Lead

Tim Andrews picked up the 1st last-place finish of his NASCAR Camping World Truck Series career in Friday’s EnjoyIllinois.com 225 at the Chicagoland Speedway when his unsponsored #95 Team Gill Racing Dodge fell out with overheating problems after completing 2 of the race’s 225 laps. The finish came in Andrews’ 5th series start.

Andrews qualified 27th at a speed of 167.806 mph, nearly half a second faster than the #72 of Johnny Chapman and the #99 of John Jackson, who were the only two trucks to miss the race. These newer teams were also the only two not locked-into the field; Andrews was locked into the show and his truck was no longer a post-entry.

Still, lacking sponsorship, Andrews was the first behind the wall. Current LASTCAR Truck Series Driver leader Mike Garvey fell out after 15 laps with transmission problems and finished 33rd. Although continues to lead the 2010 Driver’s Rankings, the four combined finishes by Carl Long, Dillon Oliver, and Andrews have moved the #95 team into a tie with Garvey’s #93 for the lead in the Owner’s Rankings with eight races still to go.

TRUCK STATS AND FACTS
*Dodge now has five consecutive last-place finishes in the Truck Series, four of which all belonging to Team Gill Racing’s #95. The fifth was Jason White’s finish in last week’s O’Reilly 200 at Bristol. G.R. Smith’s #50 was the only other Dodge to finish last in a Truck Series race this year when Smith lost the engine after 27 laps.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
36) #95-Tim Andrews / 2 laps / overheating
35) #85-Brent Raymer / 4 laps / handling
34) #89-Mike Harmon / 7 laps / overheating
33) #93-Mike Garvey / 15 laps / transmission
32) #87-Chris Jones / 17 laps / electrical

TRUCK DRIVER RANKINGS
1st) Mike Garvey (3)
2nd) Carl Long (2)
3rd) Tim Andrews, Landon Cassill, Johnny Chapman, Mike Harmon, Chris Jones, Narain Karthikeyan, Chris Lafferty, Dillon Oliver, Shane Sieg, G.R. Smith, J.C. Stout, Jason White (1)

TRUCK TEAM RANKINGS
1st) #93-Shane Sieg, #95-Danny Gill (4)
2nd) #89-Chris Lafferty (2)
3rd) #16-Rick Ware, #23-Steve Urvan, #50-Mark Beaver, #60-Jeff Wyler, #72-Mario Gosselin, #87-Rick Jones, #98-Duke Thorson (1)

TRUCKS: Past LASTCAR Champions

(excludes non-points races)
** Indicates more than one driver had the most last-place finishes that season. These ties were broken by researching which driver had the most "Bottom 5" finishes that season, the most "Bottom 10" finishes, and so on in 5-position increments until the tie was broken.

1995 John Kinder (3)**
1996 Mike Hurlbert (5)
1997 Doug George (2)**
1998 Bryan Reffner (2)**
1999 Phil Bonifield (6)
2000 Ryan McGlynn (3)**
2001 Lance Hooper (3)
2002 Loni Richardson (3)
2003 Kenny Hendrick (3)
2004 Loni Richardson (4) - second title
2005 Tracy Hines (2)
2006 Robert Richardson, Jr. (4)
2007 Wayne Edwards (3)**
2008 Butch Miller (5)
2009 Nick Tucker (3)**
2010 Mike Garvey (4)
2011 Mike Garvey (6) - second title
2012 Dennis Setzer (3)**
2013 Chris Lafferty (6)
2014 Caleb Roark (3)
2015 Caleb Roark (4) - second title
2016 Caleb Roark (6) - third title
2017 Mike Senica (3)**
2018 Joe Nemechek (3)
2019 Joe Nemechek (4) - second title

2020 Norm Benning (2)**

2021 Jack Wood (2)

2022 Spencer Boyd (3)

XFINITY: Past LASTCAR Champions

(excludes non-points races)
** Indicates more than one driver had the most last-place finishes that season. These ties were broken by researching which driver had the most "Bottom 5" finishes that season, the most "Bottom 10" finishes, and so on in 5-position increments until the tie was broken.

1982 John Linville (2)**
1983 John Linville (3) - second title
1984 Glenn Jarrett (2)**
1985 Joe Thurman (2)**
1986 Ed Berrier (3)
1987 Tommy Ellis (3)
1988 Tommy Sigmon (3)
1989 Brandon Baker (3)**
1990 Davey Johnson (4)
1991 Jack Ingram (2)**
1992 Mark Whitaker (3)
1993 Shawna Robinson (3)
1994 Doug Heveron (3)
1995 Randy Porter (3)
1996 Jeff Green (3)
1997 Stevie Reeves (2)**
1998 Dick Trickle (2)
1999 Lyndon Amick (2)**
2000 Lyndon Amick (2)** - second title
2001 Brad Teague (3)
2002 Brad Teague (3)** - second title
2003 Jeff Fuller (7)
2004 Jeff Fuller (11) - second title
2005 Jeff Fuller (3) - third title
2006 Shane Hall (2)**
2007 Morgan Shepherd (5)
2008 Kertus Davis (4)
2009 Johnny Chapman (8)
2010 Dennis Setzer (10)
2011 Jeff Green (10) - second title
2012 Jeff Green (12) - third title
2013 Jeff Green (15) - fourth title
2014 Blake Koch (8)
2015 Jeff Green (23) - fifth title
2016 Matt DiBenedetto (14)
2017 Jeff Green (13) - sixth title
2018 Jeff Green (12) - seventh title
2019 J.J. Yeley (5)

2020 Stephen Leicht (4)

2021 David Starr (3)

2022 Bayley Currey (2)**

CUP: Past LASTCAR Champions

(list excludes non-points races)
** Indicates more than one driver had the most last-place finishes that season. These ties were broken by researching which driver had the most "Bottom 5" finishes that season, the most "Bottom 10" finishes, and so on in 5-position increments until the tie was broken.

1949 Glenn Dunaway (2)
1950 Gayle Warren (2)
1951 Lloyd Moore (3)
1952 Joe Staton (3)
1953 Donald Thomas (3)**
1954 Blackie Pitt (2)
1955 George Parrish (4)
1956 Ralph Liguori (3)
1957 Jim Paschal (4)
1958 Neil Castles (3)
1959 Bob Welborn (2)**
1960 Junior Johnson (3)**
1961 Jimmy Pardue (5)
1962 Larry Thomas (3)**
1963 Curtis Crider (4)
1964 Jack Anderson (4)
1965 Jimmy Helms (5)
1966 Buddy Arrington (3)**
1967 Dick Johnson (3)**
1968 J.D. McDuffie (4)**
1969 Wayne Gillette (5)**
1970 Cecil Gordon (4)**
1971 J.D. McDuffie (3)** - second title
1972 Dick Brooks (2)**
1973 Richard D. Brown (2)**
1974 Richie Panch (2)**
1975 Coo Coo Marlin (2)**
1976 Joe Frasson (4)
1977 Earle Canavan (3)
1978 John Kennedy (3)
1979 Dick May (3)
1980 D.K. Ulrich (3)
1981 Cecil Gordon (3)** - second title
1982 Joe Ruttman (3)**
1983 Morgan Shepherd (3)
1984 J.D. McDuffie (2)** - third title
1985 J.D. McDuffie (2)** - fourth title
1986 Joe Ruttman (2)** - second title
1987 J.D. McDuffie (3) - fifth title
1988 Jimmy Means (4)
1989 Phil Parsons (4)
1990 Rick Mast (2)**
1991 Larry Pearson (3)**
1992 John McFadden (4)
1993 Jeff Gordon (2)**
1994 Ward Burton (3)**
1995 Hut Stricklin (3)**
1996 Derrike Cope (3)**
1997 Chad Little (3)**
1998 Kenny Wallace (3)**
1999 Ricky Craven (4)
2000 Bobby Hamilton (4)
2001 Andy Houston (3)**
2002 Ward Burton (3) - second title
2003 Derrike Cope (5) - second title
2004 Todd Bodine (5)**
2005 Mike Skinner (3)
2006 Derrike Cope (6) - third title
2007 Ward Burton (4) - third title
2008 Joe Nemechek (3)**
2009 Dave Blaney (8)
2010 Joe Nemechek (7) - second title
2011 Michael McDowell (7)
2012 Michael McDowell (5)** - second title
2013 Michael McDowell (8) - third title
2014 Mike Bliss (5)
2015 Landon Cassill (4)
2016 Josh Wise (4)**
2017 Jeffrey Earnhardt (5)
2018 Corey LaJoie (5)
2019 B.J. McLeod (3)**

2020 Timmy Hill (5)

2021 Joey Gase (3)**

2022 B.J. McLeod (4) - second title

CUP: McDowell, PRISM Rejoin Battle For Last-Place Lead After Bristol Engine Trouble

Michael McDowell picked up the 6th last-place finish of his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career in Saturday’s Irwin Tools Night Race at Bristol when his unsponsored #55 PRISM Motorsports Toyota fell out with engine troubles after completing 16 of the race’s 500 laps.

McDowell qualified 35th for Saturday’s race, beating 9 other teams not locked-into the field based on Owner Points from a competitive 50-car entry list. For the first time since Pocono in August, McDowell would also be joined on race day by his PRISM Motorsports teammate in the #66. This time, the driver was Scott Riggs, who successfully rebounded from a DNQ at Michigan, scene of his first attempt for the team. The two unsponsored Toyotas fell out in 16-lap intervals from the green flag with McDowell falling out first.

Absent from the starting field was current LASTCAR Cup Series leader Joe Nemechek, whose #87 failed to make the race for the first time since Darlington in the spring. Nemechek was second-fastest of the six cars that missed the race, behind defending LASTCAR Cup champion Dave Blaney who was brought on board owner Tommy Baldwin’s #36 at the last minute. Blaney’s ride opened up after Casey Mears made his debut in Germain Racing’s #13 a week early due to a driver switch with Max Papis between Friday’s practice sessions.

With the finish, both PRISM Motorsports teams currently sit two finishes behind NEMCO Motorsports with twelve races remaining. While Dave Blaney and Max Papis may have been eliminated from last-place contention, McDowell also sits two finishes behind Nemechek in the Driver Rankings.

CUP STATS AND FACTS
*Neither McDowell nor the #55 had ever before finished last in a Cup race at Bristol.
*PRISM Motorsports has now finished last in three of the last four Cup races at Bristol. Joe Nemechek finished last in the fourth, which was back in this spring’s 2010 Food City 500.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
43) #55-Michael McDowell / 16 laps / engine
42) #66-Scott Riggs / 32 laps / transmission
41) #64-Todd Bodine / 47 laps / rear gear
40) #07-Robby Gordon / 50 laps / electrical
39) #13-Casey Mears / 58 laps / electrical

CUP DRIVER RANKINGS
1st) Joe Nemechek (6)
2nd) Dave Blaney, Michael McDowell, Max Papis (4)
3rd) Aric Almirola (2)
4th) Robby Gordon, Johnny Sauter, Reed Sorenson, Scott Speed (1)

CUP TEAM RANKINGS
1st) #87-NEMCO Motorsports (6)
2nd) #13-Germain Racing, #55-PRISM Motorsports, #66-PRISM Motorsports (4)
3rd) #09-Phoenix Racing (2)
4th) #7-Robby Gordon Motorsports,#32-Braun Racing, #36-Tommy Baldwin Racing, #82-Team Red Bull (1)

N’WIDE: Jeff Green 5th In Series Rankings After Brakes Go Bust At Bristol

Jeff Green picked up the 10th last-place finish of his NASCAR Nationwide Series career in Friday’s Food City 250 at the Bristol Motor Speedway when his #36 Long John Silver’s Chevrolet fell out with brake problems after completing 4 of the race’s 250 laps. The finish moved Green into a three-way tie for 5th in the all-time LASTCAR Nationwide Series standings along with Mike Harmon and the late John Linville.

Green qualified 27th for the race at a speed of 118.510 mph, besting 10 other teams that were not locked-into the field based on Owner Points. He pulled behind the wall during the opening green flag run, followed two laps later by LASTCAR Nationwide Series leader Dennis Setzer. Setzer was driving Brian Keselowski’s #26 in place of his typical #92 while his owner focused on his qualifying attempt for the Sprint Cup race. As a result, the #92 was not entered in the Nationwide Series race at all. The D’Hont-Humphrey cars of Chase Miller and David Gilliland finished 40th and 41st with neither team scoring a single last-place finish since Gilliland’s at Dover, 14 races ago. All-time LASTCAR leader Derrike Cope finished 39th.

Although Brian Keselowski failed to qualify for Saturday’s Cup race, Jeff Green successfully got owner Bill Jenkins’ #26 Air National Guard Ford into the Irwin Tools Night Race at Bristol and finished a respectable 24th. The event was Green’s first Cup start since the 2007 Subway 500 at Martinsville.

STATS AND FACTS
*It was Green’s second last-place finish in a Nationwide Series race at Bristol. Green also finished last in the 1992 Food City 250 when his #16 31-W Insulation Chevrolet lost the engine after the opening lap. The car was owned by Wayne Day, whose #05 car finished last a week ago with current driver Willie Allen.
*The #36 had never before finished last in a Nationwide Series race at Bristol.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
43) #36-Jeff Green / 4 laps / brakes
42) #26-Dennis Setzer / 6 laps / brakes
41) #91-David Gilliland / 22 laps / brakes
40) #90-Chase Miller / 25 laps / electrical
39) #73-Derrike Cope / 30 laps / brakes

N’WIDE DRIVER RANKINGS
1st) Dennis Setzer (9)
2nd) Jeff Green, Mark Green (2)
3rd) Willie Allen, Michael Annett, Johnny Borneman III, Matt Carter, Johnny Chapman, David Gilliland, Jennifer Jo Cobb, Brian Keselowski, Kevin Lepage, Danny O’Quinn, Jr., Chrissy Wallace (1)

N’WIDE TEAM RANKINGS
1st) #92-K-Automotive Motorsports (10)
2nd) #36-Mark Smith (2)
3rd) #15-Germain Racing, #27-Curb Motorsports,#41-Rick Ware, #49-Jay Robinson, Inc., #70-Mary Louise Miller, #82-MacDonald Motorsports, #83-John Borneman, Jr., #90-D’Hont Humphrey Motorsports, #91-D’Hont Humphrey Motorsports, #96-K-Automotive Motorsports, #04-Johnny Davis Motorsports, #05-Wayne Day (1)

TRUCKS: White’s First Last-Place Finish Since 2001 Comes After Bristol Engine Trouble

Jason White picked up the 2nd last-place finish of his NASCAR Camping World Truck Series career in Wednesday’s O’Reilly 200 at the Bristol Motor Speedway when his #23 GunBroker.com / Outdoor Channel Outfitters Dodge fell out with engine trouble after completing 28 of the race’s 206 laps.

White was locked-into the field based on Owner Points and qualified a solid 17th at a speed of 121.090 mph. The Daytona polesitter hoped for a good finish, but he lost the engine early in the race and dropped oil, bringing out the third caution of the race. It was White’s third consecutive engine failure in as many races.

Six laps later, LASTCAR Truck Series leader Mike Garvey fell out with rear gear problems. It was the second time in the five races since his most recent last-place finish at Iowa that Garvey finished next-to-last in the field.

TRUCK STATS AND FACTS
*The finish was White’s first in more than nine years, dating back to his rookie season in 2001 when he lost the engine on his #93 Troxell Motorsports Dodge four laps into the 2001 O’Reilly Auto Parts 250 at Kansas. This race is more well-known as the sole Truck Series victory of the late Ricky Hendrick.
*The only other time the #23 finished last in a Truck Series race at Bristol was in 2003, when Phil Bonifield’s ignition failed four laps into the 2003 O’Reilly 200 Presented by Valvoline MaxLife.
*The #23 had not finished last in a Truck Series race since Jamie Aube’s Motor State Performance / Red Line Oil Chevrolet fell out with brake failure 10 laps into the 2003 Virginia Is For Lovers 200 at Richmond. This race immediately followed Bonifield’s aforementioned last-place finish at Bristol, after which Aube took over Bonifield’s ride. Bonifield finished next-to-last in his own truck at the Richmond event.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
36) #23-Jason White / 28 laps / engine
35) #93-Mike Garvey / 34 laps / rear gear
34) #60-Stacy Compton / 59 laps / engine
33) #31-James Buescher / 84 laps / crash
32) #48-Hermie Sadler / 90 laps / engine

TRUCK DRIVER RANKINGS
1st) Mike Garvey (3)
2nd) Carl Long (2)
3rd) Landon Cassill, Johnny Chapman, Mike Harmon, Chris Jones, Narain Karthikeyan, Chris Lafferty, Dillon Oliver, Shane Sieg, G.R. Smith, J.C. Stout, Jason White (1)

TRUCK TEAM RANKINGS
1st) #93-Shane Sieg (4)
2nd) #95-Danny Gill (3)
3rd) #89-Chris Lafferty (2)
4th) #16-Rick Ware, #23-Steve Urvan, #50-Mark Beaver, #60-Jeff Wyler, #72-Mario Gosselin, #87-Rick Jones, #98-Duke Thorson (1)

CUP: Nemechek Climbs To 4th All-Time With Ignition Failure At Michigan

Joe Nemechek picked up the 23rd last-place finish of his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career in Sunday’s Carfax 400 at the Michigan International Speedway when his unsponsored #87 NEMCO Motorsports Toyota fell out with ignition problems after completing 14 of the race’s 200 laps. The finish was also Nemechek’s 29th across all three of NASCAR’s top divisions, moving him to 4th in the all-time standings, breaking a tie with part-time teammate Jeff Fuller.

Nemechek was once again stellar in qualifying, running a very aggressive lap near the outside wall and scraping up the right-rear of his Toyota en route to a 22nd-fastest time with a speed of 184.876 mph. The speed was 3rd-fastest among the teams not locked-into the race based on Owner Points.

On race day, it first appeared that P.J. Jones would pick up his first last-place finish since last year at Sonoma when he trailed the field in Robby Gordon’s #7. However, it was Nemechek who pulled behind the wall first, followed by both Jones, Robby Gordon himself in the #07, and PRISM Motorsports’ Michael McDowell in #55. After Kurt Busch’s spectacular engine failure on lap 31, Gordon and Jones returned to the track 14 laps down and turned a few more laps. This moved both cars past McDowell, Busch, and Max Papis, who also went behind the wall on lap 27. Jones and Gordon finished 37th and 39th, respectively.

Nemechek and his #87 team now have a two-finish lead on defending LASTCAR Cup Champion Dave Blaney’s #66 and Max Papis’ #13, but it is now unlikely that either will contend in the final part of the season. Dave Blaney was released from PRISM Motorsports last Thursday and replaced by Scott Riggs, who failed to make the show in his first qualifying run since Phoenix in April. Papis will also leave the #13 team after next week’s race at Bristol, after which Casey Mears will run the car starting at Atlanta. Both teams may still contest the Team Rankings, but there is no word as to if either driver will land another Cup ride before the season is out: Papis has already committed to running in the Truck Series.

CUP STATS AND FACTS
*No driver had finished last in a Cup race with ignition failure since the 2000 Winston 500 at Talladega, where Kevin Lepage’s FamilyClick.com / TV Guide Ford fell out after 20 laps.
*Nemechek had not finished last in a Cup race at Michigan since 2007, where his fan-supported #08 Dodge crashed out after completing 92 laps of the 2007 3M Performance 400.
*The #87 had not finished last in a Cup race at Michigan since Gary Myers’ 1972 Chevrolet blew an engine after lap 1 of the 1974 Yankee 400.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
43) #87-Joe Nemechek / 14 laps / ignition
42) #55-Michael McDowell / 20 laps / electrical
41) #13-Max Papis / 27 laps / rear gear
40) #2-Kurt Busch / 30 laps / engine
39) #07-Robby Gordon / 34 laps / brakes

CUP DRIVER RANKINGS
1st) Joe Nemechek (6)
2nd) Dave Blaney, Max Papis (4)
3rd) Michael McDowell (3)
4th) Aric Almirola (2)
5th) Robby Gordon, Johnny Sauter, Reed Sorenson, Scott Speed (1)

CUP TEAM RANKINGS
1st) #87-NEMCO Motorsports (6)
2nd) #13-Germain Racing, #66-PRISM Motorsports (4)
3rd) #55-PRISM Motorsports (3)
4th) #09-Phoenix Racing (2)
5th) #7-Robby Gordon Motorsports,#32-Braun Racing, #36-Tommy Baldwin Racing, #82-Team Red Bull (1)

N’WIDE: Allen Gets Second-Straight Michigan Last-Place Finish

Willie Allen picked up the 3rd last-place finish of his NASCAR Nationwide Series career in Saturday’s Carfax 250 at the Michigan International Speedway when his #05 Cash America / Owens Corning Chevrolet fell out with transmission problems after completing 2 of the race’s 125 laps.

Allen qualified 24th for the race at a speed of 173.548 mph, making his “Second-Generation” Chevrolet the 4th-fastest of the 14 cars not locked-into the field on speed. Unfortunately, Allen was forced to make an extended pit stop just two laps into the race. Even though Kevin Lepage pulled owner John McNelly’s #56 behind the wall during Allen’s stop, Allen was credited with 43rd when he failed to return to the track.

All-time LASTCAR leader Derrike Cope finished 39th when ignition troubles forced him out 10 laps in while Johnny Chapman, still tied with Lepage for 7th all-time and 3rd in the Nationwide standings, had the only car that failed to make the race.

N’WIDE STATS AND FACTS
*Allen had not finished last in the Nationwide Series since the 2009 Kroger On Track For The Cure 250 at Memphis where a vibration sent him behind the wall after 3 laps. It was also Allen’s second-consecutive last-place finish in a Nationwide Series race at Michigan. In fact, his first-ever last-place finish came in last year’s Carfax 250 where another vibration took him out after 1 lap. In both finishes, Allen was driving the same #92 K-Automotive Motorsports team that currently leads the 2010 LASTCAR Nationwide Series rankings. The team was owned by Dusty Whitney when Allen finished last with the team both times.
*Wayne Day’s team and the #05 had not finished last in the Nationwide Series since Casey Atwood’s 31-W Insulation Chevrolet lost the transmission 8 laps into last year’s Heluva Good! 200 at Dover.
*The #05 had never before finished last in a Nationwide Series race at Michigan.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
43) #05-Willie Allen / 2 laps / transmission
42) #56-Kevin Lepage / 2 laps / electrical
41) #07-Danny Efland / 3 laps / engine
40) #27-Josh Wise / 4 laps / transmission
39) #73-Derrike Cope / 10 laps / ignition

N’WIDE DRIVER RANKINGS
1st) Dennis Setzer (9)
2nd) Mark Green (2)
3rd) Willie Allen, Michael Annett, Johnny Borneman III, Matt Carter, Johnny Chapman, David Gilliland, Jeff Green, Jennifer Jo Cobb, Brian Keselowski, Kevin Lepage, Danny O’Quinn, Jr., Chrissy Wallace (1)

N’WIDE TEAM RANKINGS
1st) #92-K-Automotive Motorsports (10)
2nd) #15-Germain Racing, #27-Curb Motorsports, #36-Mark Smith, #41-Rick Ware, #49-Jay Robinson, Inc., #70-Mary Louise Miller, #82-MacDonald Motorsports, #83-John Borneman, Jr., #90-D’Hont Humphrey Motorsports, #91-D’Hont Humphrey Motorsports, #96-K-Automotive Motorsports, #04-Johnny Davis Motorsports, #05-Wayne Day (1)

TRUCKS: First-Timer Oliver Gets Owner Danny Gill His Third Straight at Darlington

Dillon Oliver picked up the 1st last-place finish of his NASCAR Camping World Truck Series career in Saturday’s Too Tough to Tame 200 at the Darlington Raceway when his unsponsored #95 Team Gill Racing Dodge fell out with engine problems after completing 2 of the race’s 147 laps. The finish came in Oliver’s 5th career Truck Series start.

Oliver replaced Carl Long in owner Danny Gill’s #95 for the race as one of five post-entries that completed the 36-truck field. Oliver was the slowest overall, having not registered a qualifying speed, and he remained in the back due to an engine change before the race. These problems accounted for the #95's early exit on lap 2 along with Scotland’s John Jackson, who drove Mario Gosselin’s #72 that finished last with Johnny Chapman at Gateway.

Four of the bottom five finishing positions were occupied by the post-entries, excepting current LASTCAR Truck Series leader Mike Garvey in 32nd. Chris Lafferty’s #24, the fifth post-entry, finished 31st after overheating problems ended his day after 16 laps.

TRUCK STATS AND FACTS
*It was the third consecutive last-place finish by owner Danny Gill and his #95 Dodge. No team nor number had finished last in three consecutive Truck Series races since owner Gene Christensen’s #0 finished last at Michigan, Milwaukee, and Memphis in mid-2008. Three different drivers drove the #0 in that span: Chris Jones, Johnny Chapman, and LASTCAR Truck Series All-Time leader Wayne Edwards.
*The #95 had never before finished last in a Truck Series race at Darlington.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
36) #95-Dillon Oliver / 2 laps / engine
35) #72-John Jackson / 2 laps / brakes
34) #16-Justin Hobgood / 7 laps / overheating
33) #87-Chris Jones / 11 laps / rear gear
32) #93-Mike Garvey / 12 laps / handling

TRUCK DRIVER RANKINGS
1st) Mike Garvey (3)
2nd) Carl Long (2)
3rd) Landon Cassill, Johnny Chapman, Mike Harmon, Chris Jones, Narain Karthikeyan, Chris Lafferty, Dillon Oliver, Shane Sieg, G.R. Smith, J.C. Stout (1)

TRUCK TEAM RANKINGS
1st) #93-Shane Sieg (4)
2nd) #95-Danny Gill (3)
3rd) #89-Chris Lafferty (2)
4th) #16-Rick Ware, #50-Mark Beaver, #60-Jeff Wyler, #72-Mario Gosselin, #87-Rick Jones, #98-Duke Thorson (1)

CUP: Speed Is Last For The First Time After Engine Blows At The Glen

Scott Speed picked up the 1st last-place finish of his NASCAR Sprint Cup career in Sunday’s Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at the Glen when his #82 Red Bull Toyota lost its engine after 28 of the race’s 90 laps. The finish came in Speed’s 62nd Cup Series race.

Speed qualified 8th for Sunday’s race at a speed of 123.369 mph, scoring him his second top-10 start of the season (the other being an outside-pole in April’s Subway Fresh Fit 600 at Phoenix). However, during the first round of pit stops around lap 13, Speed’s car stalled and was pushed to the garage area with oil leaking out from beneath. Michael McDowell’s #55 had gone behind the wall by that point, but returned to the track 8 laps down after Speed’s problems materialized. Speed came back out as well, but the car finally quit after 28 laps, after which McDowell also called it a day and ended up 42nd, denying him his 4th last-place finish of 2010.

Joe Nemechek, still the LASTCAR Sprint Cup leader, was involved in a mid-race incident with Bobby Labonte and finished 39th after transmission troubles ended his day. Defending LASTCAR Cup champion Dave Blaney’s ill-handling car failed to make the race for the 5th time in 2010.

The day before the race, Matt Carter finished last in the Zippo 200 Nationwide Series race while also driving the #82 (see the article below). As a result, this was the first time since 2006 that the same car number finished last at the same track on the same weekend in both Cup and Nationwide. On March 11, 2006, Joel Kauffman’s SuperCuts #12 finished last when the driveshaft failed 70 laps into the Nationwide Series’ Sam’s Town 300. The next day on March 12, Ryan Newman’s Alltel #12 crashed out 88 laps into the UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400.

CUP STATS AND FACTS
*This is just the 7th time that the #82 had ever finished last in a Sprint Cup points race: it had not happened since June 27, 1970 when John Jennings’ 1969 Ford, owned by Mack Sellers, overheated 3 laps into the 1970 Greenville 200 at the Greenville-Pickens Speedway. The race had just 29 cars in the field. Three of the other five times the #82 finished last in the Cup Series came with Joe Eubanks from 1956-1959. The number had never before finished last at Watkins Glen.
*Team Red Bull had not finished last in a Cup race since A.J. Allmendinger’s #84 car finished under power, 65 laps down, in the 2008 Chevy Rock ‘n Roll 400 at Richmond.
*Speed’s 8th-place qualifying run is the best scored by a last-place finisher in Cup this season, besting Joe Nemechek’s 11th-place run at Richmond in May. It was the best qualifying run by a Cup last-place finisher since Dave Blaney started 4th in last summer’s Sharpie 500 at Bristol.
*Speed joins Johnny Sauter (Dover) as the only two first-time last-place finishers of the 2010 Sprint Cup season. Speed has never before finished last in the Nationwide Series, nor the Truck Series.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
43) #82-Scott Speed / 28 laps / engine
42) #55-Michael McDowell / 35 laps / electrical
41) #07-P.J. Jones / 36 laps / fuel pump
40) #36-Ron Fellows / 46 laps / suspension
39) #87-Joe Nemechek / 54 laps / transmission

CUP DRIVER RANKINGS
1st) Joe Nemechek (5)
2nd) Dave Blaney, Max Papis (4)
3rd) Michael McDowell (3)
4th) Aric Almirola (2)
5th) Robby Gordon, Johnny Sauter, Reed Sorenson, Scott Speed (1)

CUP TEAM RANKINGS
1st) #87-NEMCO Motorsports (5)
2nd) #13-Germain Racing, #66-PRISM Motorsports (4)
3rd) #55-PRISM Motorsports (3)
4th) #09-Phoenix Racing (2)
5th) #7-Robby Gordon Motorsports,#32-Braun Racing, #36-Tommy Baldwin Racing, #82-Team Red Bull (1)

N’WIDE: Carter Is A First-Time Last-Placer After Brake Problems At The Glen

Matt Carter picked up the 1st last-place finish of his NASCAR Nationwide Series career in Saturday’s Zippo 200 at the Watkins Glen International Raceway when his #82 Mobile-Shop.com Dodge fell out with brake problems after completing 1 of the race’s 82 laps. The finish came in Carter’s 19th Nationwide Series start.

As with the Truck Series race, the Nationwide event was short of entrants on the day the official entry list was posted. MacDonald Motorsports was one of three teams that answered the call by putting Carter in a second Dodge as teammate to Michael McDowell’s #81. Also brought on as post-entries were Kevin Hamlin in owner Mark Smith’s #36 and Joey Scarallo in Jimmy Means’ #52.

Carter qualified in the 43rd and final starting spot for Saturday’s race at a speed of 105.031 mph. He followed Hamlin’s #36 behind the wall after the first lap of the race and was thus credited with his first last-place finish. Dan Brode, a young Californian road racer, made his inaugural start as driver of Brian Keselowski’s #92, but Brode was unable to secure the team’s 11th last-place finish of 2010 when he pulled out after 2 laps. Unlike Keselowski’s #26, Brode’s car appeared to be an intermediate track car which lacked any visible brake ducts.

McDowell, in MacDonald Motorsports’ primary car, had an outstanding 10th-place finish despite receiving tremendous damage to the front of his K-Love Dodge in a grinding 10-car wreck on lap 24. The run was the team’s best finish of 2010, following a 13th-place finish last time out at Iowa.

N’WIDE STATS AND FACTS
*The #82 had not finished last in a Nationwide Series race since Kevin Grubb’s Virginia Is For Lovers Chevrolet crashed out 60 laps into the 1997 Winston Motorsports 300 at South Boston. Grubb had started 6th in the 32-car field. The number had never before finished last in a race at Watkins Glen.
*Carter joins Chrissy Wallace (Daytona) and Michael Annett (Talladega) as the only three first-time last-place finishers of the 2010 Nationwide Series season.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
43) #82-Matt Carter / 1 lap / brakes
42) #36-Kevin Hamlin / 1 lap / brakes
41) #92-Dan Brode / 2 laps / brakes
40) #89-Johnny Chapman / 3 laps / overheating
39) #61-Chase Miller / 8 laps / brakes

N’WIDE DRIVER RANKINGS
1st) Dennis Setzer (9)
2nd) Mark Green (2)
3rd) Michael Annett, Johnny Borneman III, Matt Carter, Johnny Chapman, David Gilliland, Jeff Green, Jennifer Jo Cobb, Brian Keselowski, Kevin Lepage, Danny O’Quinn, Jr., Chrissy Wallace (1)

N’WIDE TEAM RANKINGS
1st) #92-K-Automotive Motorsports (10)
2nd) #15-Germain Racing, #27-Curb Motorsports, #36-Mark Smith, #41-Rick Ware, #49-Jay Robinson, Inc., #70-Mary Louise Miller, #82-MacDonald Motorsports, #83-John Borneman, Jr., #90-D’Hont Humphrey Motorsports, #91-D’Hont Humphrey Motorsports, #96-K-Automotive Motorsports, #04-Johnny Davis Motorsports (1)

Special Thanks to MacDonald Motorsports for providing the above-posted photo of Carter’s #82 Dodge prior to Saturday’s qualifying session.

TRUCKS: Long’s Post-Entry 2-For-2 After Overheating At Nashville

Carl Long picked up the 4th last-place finish of his NASCAR Camping World Truck Series career in Saturday’s Nashville 200 at the Nashville Superspeedway when his unsponsored #95 Team Gill Racing Dodge fell out with overheating problems after completing 1 of the race’s 200 laps.

Long entered the race as one of two post-entries, the other being Mike Harmon’s #24, when the Nashville race was short on competitors. The addition of Long and Harmon still kept the field at just 35 trucks, creating the first short field for a Truck race since last fall’s 35-truck race at Las Vegas.

Long qualified 24th at a speed of 148.299 mph, ranking him 4th among the trucks not locked-into the field based on Owner Points. On race night, he pulled behind the wall three laps before Johanna Long crashed out of her Truck Series debut for the first caution of the night. LASTCAR Truck Series leader Mike Garvey fell out after eight laps while Harmon’s post-entry called it a night after 14 laps.

TRUCK STATS AND FACTS
*Long now joins LASTCAR leader Mike Garvey as the only two drivers to score more than one last-place finish in the Truck Series this season.
*Long is the second driver to finish last in consecutive races this season: Mike Garvey was last in this season’s races at Charlotte and Texas.
*The #95 had never before finished last in a Truck race at Nashville Superspeedway.
*The two 2010 races at Nashville were the first ones where Dodge finished last: G.R. Smith’s #50 MAKE Motorsports / Ronald McDonald House Dodge was last in the back in April.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
35) #95-Carl Long / 1 lap / overheating
34) #15-Johanna Long / 3 laps / crash
33) #93-Mike Garvey / 8 laps / vibration
32) #16-J.C. Stout / 9 laps / overheating
31) #24-Mike Harmon / 14 laps / brakes

TRUCK DRIVER RANKINGS
1st) Mike Garvey (3)
2nd) Carl Long (2)
3rd) Landon Cassill, Johnny Chapman, Mike Harmon, Chris Jones, Narain Karthikeyan, Chris Lafferty, Shane Sieg, G.R. Smith, J.C. Stout (1)

TRUCK TEAM RANKINGS
1st) #93-Shane Sieg (4)
2nd) #89-Chris Lafferty, #95-Danny Gill (2)
3rd) #16-Rick Ware, #50-Mark Beaver, #60-Jeff Wyler, #72-Mario Gosselin, #87-Rick Jones, #98-Duke Thorson (1)

CUP: McDowell’s Vibration Ends Pocono Run; PRISM 42nd and 43rd For 4th Time in 2010

Michael McDowell picked up the 5th last-place finish of his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career in Sunday’s Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500 at the Pocono Raceway when his unsponsored #55 PRISM Motorsports Toyota fell out with a vibration after completing 23 of the race’s 200 laps.

McDowell qualified 36th for the race at a speed of 166.979 mph. In the early stages of Sunday’s race, it appeared that Todd Bodine, driving Larry Gunselman’s #64, was on his way to his 17th Cup Series last-place finish when he went behind the wall during the first caution on lap 16. Joining Bodine were both Casey Mears in Tommy Baldwin’s #36 and J.J. Yeley, the top “go-or-go-home” driver in qualifying, in Dusty Whitney’s #46.

However, all three cars returned to the track, including Bodine, who by lap 43 was still running, albeit 18 laps down. By then, both McDowell and PRISM Motorsports teammate Dave Blaney had fallen out for good. McDowell edged Blaney for the spot by one lap, preventing his teammate from tying Joe Nemechek once more for the 2010 LASTCAR Cup Series lead.

It was the fourth time in 2010 that the two PRISM Motorsports cars finished 42nd and 43rd in the same Cup race. They also did so at Martinsville, Phoenix, and in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte.

STATS AND FACTS
*McDowell had not finished last in the Cup Series since his #66 Toyota overheated in this year’s Subway Fresh Fit 600 at Phoenix. At the time, McDowell and Blaney were driving each other’s cars: Blaney finished last in McDowell’s #55 the next week at Texas.
*The #55 had not finished last in a Cup race at Pocono since Michael Waltrip’s NAPA Toyota blew an engine 24 laps into the 2008 Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500. These two races are the only time the number has finished last since Pocono came on the Cup circuit in 1974.
*This was only the second time in 2010 a Cup Series driver finished last because of a vibration. Aric Almirola’s run in James Finch’s #09 at this year’s Shelby American at Las Vegas was the other time it happened.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
43) #55-Michael McDowell / 23 laps / vibration
42) #66-Dave Blaney / 24 laps / transmission
41) #09-Landon Cassill / 32 laps / vibration
40) #87-Joe Nemechek / 42 laps / brakes
39) #47-Marcos Ambrose / 46 laps / engine

CUP DRIVER RANKINGS
1st) Joe Nemechek (5)
2nd) Dave Blaney, Max Papis (4)
3rd) Michael McDowell (3)
4th) Aric Almirola (2)
5th) Robby Gordon, Johnny Sauter, Reed Sorenson (1)

CUP TEAM RANKINGS
1st) #87-NEMCO Motorsports (5)
2nd) #13-Germain Racing, #66-PRISM Motorsports (4)
3rd) #55-PRISM Motorsports (3)
4th) #09-Phoenix Racing (2)
5th) #7-Robby Gordon Motorsports,#32-Braun Racing, #36-Tommy Baldwin Racing (1)

N’WIDE: For First Time Since 1996, Jeff Green Finishes Last In Nationwide Series

Jeff Green picked up the 9th last-place finish of his NASCAR Nationwide Series career in Saturday’s U.S. Cellular 250 at the Iowa Speedway when his #36 Long John Silver’s Chevrolet fell out with transmission problems after completing 2 of the race’s 250 laps.

Green qualified 29th for the race at a speed of 130.289 mph, besting eight other drivers whose teams were not locked-into the field based on Owner Points. The race marked just the third start of the season for owner Mark Smith’s #36. Just one lap before the race’s first caution fell on lap 3, Green was behind the wall.

2010 LASTCAR Nationwide Series leader Dennis Setzer in K-Automotive’s #92 did not fall out with handling problems until lap 9, continuing a trend where Setzer has finished last in every other Nationwide Series race since Kentucky in June.

STATS AND FACTS
*Jeff Green had not finished last in the Nationwide Series since the 1996 Kroger 200 at IRP when his Dale Earnhardt, Incorporated-owned #3 Goodwrench Service Chevrolet crashed 8 laps into the race.
*The #36 had not finished last in the series since Brent Sherman’s BIG LOTS Chevrolet was involved in a multi-car crash after 10 laps of the 2007 Roadloans.com 200 at Dover.
*Johnny Borneman III’s last-place finish in this year’s Stater Brothers 200 at the Auto Club Speedway marked the only other time in 2010 that a Nationwide Series driver finished last because of transmission trouble.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
43) #36-Jeff Green / 2 laps / transmission
42) #92-Dennis Setzer / 9 laps / handling
41) #91-Chase Miller / 16 laps / brakes
40) #52-Tim Schendel / 18 laps / transmission
39) #43-Brad Baker / 20 laps / brakes

N’WIDE DRIVER RANKINGS
1st) Dennis Setzer (9)
2nd) Mark Green (2)
3rd) Michael Annett, Johnny Borneman III, Johnny Chapman, David Gilliland, Jeff Green, Jennifer Jo Cobb, Brian Keselowski, Kevin Lepage, Danny O’Quinn, Jr., Chrissy Wallace (1)

N’WIDE TEAM RANKINGS
1st) #92-K-Automotive Motorsports (10)
2nd) #15-Germain Racing, #27-Curb Motorsports, #36-Mark Smith, #41-Rick Ware, #49-Jay Robinson, Inc., #70-Mary Louise Miller, #83-John Borneman, Jr., #90-D’Hont Humphrey Motorsports, #91-D’Hont Humphrey Motorsports, #96-K-Automotive Motorsports, #04-Johnny Davis Motorsports (1)

TRUCKS: Long Overheats In Inaugural Pocono Event

Carl Long picked up the 3rd last-place finish of his Camping World Truck Series career in Saturday’s inaugural Pocono Mountains 125 at the Pocono Raceway when his unsponsored #95 Team Gill Racing Dodge fell out with overheating problems after completing 2 of the race’s 55 laps.

Long qualified 21st at a speed of 156.497 mph, giving owner Danny Gill his best qualifying run since Geoffrey Bodine qualified 8th at Atlanta. Long fell out of the race after two laps, followed by Michigan last-place finisher J.C. Stout. Current 2010 LASTCAR Truck Series leader Mike Garvey and his #93 did not fall out until lap 14, leaving him 33rd.

STATS AND FACTS
*Long had not finished last in the Truck Series since the 2003 New Hampshire 200 at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway, his lone start of the 2003 season. Long’s Rick Ware-owned #51 Dodge fell out with rear end problems after 4 of the race’s 200 laps.
*This was the first time the #95 had ever finished last in the history of the Camping World Truck Series.
*The last time a Truck Series last-place finisher fell out with overheating problems was the 2009 Ford 200 at Homestead, the first Truck Series last-place finish of current 2010 leader Mike Garvey.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
36) #95-Carl Long / 2 laps / overheating
35) #16-J.C. Stout / 4 laps / electrical
34) #07-Butch Miller / 10 laps / rear gear
33) #93-Mike Garvey / 14 laps / electrical
32) #6-Bobby Hamilton, Jr. / 26 laps / crash

TRUCK DRIVER RANKINGS
1st) Mike Garvey (3)
2nd) Landon Cassill, Johnny Chapman, Mike Harmon, Chris Jones, Narain Karthikeyan, Chris Lafferty, Carl Long, Shane Sieg, G.R. Smith, J.C. Stout (1)

TRUCK TEAM RANKINGS
1st) #93-Shane Sieg (4)
2nd) #89-Chris Lafferty (2)
3rd) #16-Rick Ware, #50-Mark Beaver, #60-Jeff Wyler, #72-Mario Gosselin, #87-Rick Jones, #95-Danny Gill, #98-Duke Thorson (1)