Biffle Takes 11th at Chicagoland in Aflac Ford Fusion
Chicagoland Speedway - Joliet, Ill
Joliet, Ill. - July 15, 2007 - Greg Biffle drove the No. 16 Aflac Ford Fusion to an impressive 11th place finish after being a lap down for much of this Sunday's race at Chicagoland Speedway. Biffle qualified 33rd on Friday but seemed a little more confident after Saturday's practice sessions. On lap 116, Biffle went a lap down during a round of green flag pit stops and struggled with an ill-handling racecar for most of the race. With 44 laps remaining, Biffle got back on the lead lap and fought his way to an 11th place finish. He remains 16th in the NASCAR Nextel Cup point standings.
Shortly after the green flag dropped on Sunday afternoon, Biffle was on the move. He drove his way to 23rd by lap 20 and was running 21st when a round of green flag stops began on lap 46. Biffle brought the Aflac Ford Fusion to pit road on lap 47 for four tires, fuel, a track bar adjustment and an air pressure adjustment as he had reported that the car was way too loose. He was 15th on the board when the round of green flag stops was complete on lap 53.
Biffle quickly reported that the car's handling had not improved and a caution on lap 58 allowed him to pit for a track bar adjustment, an air pressure adjustment and a spring rubber adjustment. The spring rubber adjustment added to time spent on pit road so Biffle restarted 26th on lap 63. He radioed the team to let them know that the car's handling was still not where it needed to be and they began to calculate adjustments.
On lap 108 another round of green flag stops began and Biffle was in the 24th position. He drove the Aflac Ford Fusion to pit road on lap 112 for four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment. When he returned to the track, however, the leaders had already passed and he was one lap down. On lap 123, Biffle reported that he thought he had a tire going down but that was not the case and he raced just inside the top 25 until the next caution on lap 153.
Biffle pitted with the other lapped cars on lap 156 for four tires, fuel, an air pressure adjustment and another spring rubber adjustment. He restarted 23rd on lap 159 and began to gain a little ground. He was running 20th when Dave Blaney struck the wall on lap 201 bringing out the fourth caution of the day. Biffle seemed happier with the handling of the Aflac Ford and took on only fresh tires and fuel when he pitted on lap 204.
When green flag racing resumed on lap 207, Biffle was in the 19th position and was the first car one lap down. He was able to maintain the lucky dog position until lap 223 when Jimmie Johnson cut a tire and brought out the caution. Biffle pitted for four tires and fuel on lap 228 and restarted 17th on lap 230 as Martin Truex had engine trouble and Johnson was in the garage with severe damage.
Biffle was running 13th on lap 245 when a caution allowed him to make his final pit stop of the day. He brought the Aflac Ford for right-side tires, fuel and a minor air pressure adjustment. He restarted 13th on lap 249, broke into the top-10 on lap 257 when he passed Ryan Newman and Denny Hamlin in the same lap and finish 11th as the car's handling seemed to decline in the closing laps.
"We just kept adjusting tire pressure, and track bar, and wedge, and just all kinds of things," said Biffle. "The thing is, the car is so temperamental, and these tires are just so unpredictable. The tires slide, and if you get within 20 car lengths of a car you can't do anything. The car just stalls out. There's no racing on the race track. I was up front and I was running 10th and right there at the end I was 11th. Nobody can do anything. You can't race like we did three years ago."
Biffle and the Aflac team are currently 16th in the Nextel Cup point standings and trail the leader by 945 points. They are only 185 points out of the 12th position in the point standings. The team will return to the track on July 29th at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Roush Fenway Racing is NASCAR's largest team operating 13 motorsports teams, five in NASCAR NEXTEL Cup with drivers Matt Kenseth, Jamie McMurray, Greg Biffle, Carl Edwards and David Ragan; five in the Busch Series with Kenseth, Biffle, Edwards, McMurray, Ragan, Todd Kluever, Michel Jourdain Jr. and Danny O'Quinn Jr.; and three in the Craftsman Truck Series with Edwards, Peter Shepherd, Travis Kvapil, Erik Darnell and T.J. Bell. For more information on any of the Roush Fenway Racing teams, log onto www.RoushRacing.com. For sponsorship inquiries please contact Robin Johnson at 704.720.4645.
