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Sunoco 150 Race Weekend Updates

NOTE: This is what we posted throughout the weekend on the front page of EastSeries.com throughout the Dover weekend. If you were at the track or not able to get to the site over the course of the weekend, this will give you some idea of how the event progressed from our first arrival on the grounds Thursday morning until we packed up to leave Friday evening. This is probably best read from the bottom up.


Almirola Wins Sunoco 150; Kobyluck Clinches 2008 Championship

quick and dirty finish from scoring monitor: 8 18 40 35 59 9 4 88 3 99 2 39 06 16 52 7 11 44 32 71 1 63 26 30 95 80 41 37 21 15. 40 Kobyluck gets the championship and I bet there might be some partying. Can't see anything on the track because of the double smoke show. And with that we sign off for the day, we'll have all the recaps and results and points in the next day or so.

FINISH: 8 18 40 35 59 9 4 88 3 99 39 2 06 16 52

lap 147: 8 18 40 35 59 4 9 88 3 39 99 2 06 16 52

lap 145: 40 looking again under 18 while 8 has driven away. 59 under 4 for fifth, side by side through 3, now 59 gets the spot

lap 144: 40 loking under 18 but no go

lap 143: 8 18 40 35 4 59 88 9 3 39 2 99 16 06

lap 142: 8 then 18 with 40 all over his back bumper

88 closes the door on the 59, now 59 takes that spot. 32 reminded that he's multiple laps down

lap 140: 8 18 40 35 4 88 59 9 3 39 2

59 looking high around 88, now switches to low groove but can't get by

lap 138: 8 18 40 35 4 88 59 3 9 39 2

lap 137: 8 18 40 35 4 88 59 3 9 39 2

GREEN lap 136 and the Oreo Cakesters are really starting to kick in: 18 8 enter 1 side buy side, now 8 gets the lead from the outside

under caution: 18 8 40 35 4 88 3 59 9 39 2 16 99 and eventually 06 on the lead lap, then 7 1 44 11 32 63 71 26 30 95 80 41 37 21 15. 1 Bayne is pushed to the Cup garage as we get one to go, so green at lap 136

pitting: 1 which has not had a good day, and that's it. 06 gets a free pass

CAUTION #6 lap 131: 1 Bayne high in turn four with a flat right front tire, he's limping down the frontstretch into turn one

lap 131: 18 8 40 35 4 88

lap 130: 18 8 40 35 4 88 3 with 59 inside

lap 129: 8 under 35 for second, 40 now inside 35 coming to frontstretch

lap 127: 18 35 8 40 40 now 8 looks inside 35, can't make it stick

GREEN lap 126: first two rows stay in fomration through 1 but 18 comes out of 2 with the lead. 35 now second with 8 third

restarting on lap 126

under caution: 18 4 35 40 8 88 3 39 9 2 16 59 99, then 06 52 1 7 11 44 63 32 71 26 30 95 80 41 37 21 15

pitting: 59 11 2 1 16 44 7. 59 gets right-sides which could make for a cool finish

it's the 63 that clipped the outside wall exiting turn 2 and spun down to the inside wall. 99 gets the free pass

CAUTION #5 lap 120: car spun to the inside of the backstretch, can't see who just yet

lap 120: 59 says 11 is puting down oil

lap 119: 11 passes 4, don't know why

lap 117: 18 4 59 (11) 35 40 8 88, now 11 passes 59 for pretty much no reason

4 takes second from 59 as 11 is now looking high to go around 35 Park, 11 gets that spot, er, non-spot

lap 114: 18 59 4 35 40 8 88 39 3 2 9 99 16

lap 113: 118 sneaks under 59 exiting turn four and takes the lead. 11 warned to use his head while racing lead lap cars

lap 112: 59 18 4 35 40 (11) 88 8 39 3 2 9 16

18 looking inside 59, doesn't make it stick

lap 110: 59 18 4 35 40 88 39 8 2 3 16 9 63 06 99

lap 109: 59 18 4 35 40 88 39 2 3 8

GREEN lap 107: 95 gets lead but 18 hans tough on the outside. 18 falls in line in second with 4 88 35 40 39, now 40 under 88

under caution: 59 18 45 88 39 40 35 2 3 16 9 8 63 52 06 99 1 11 7 44 32 26 71 30 95 80 41 37 21 15. Going green lap 107

Penny Aicardi wants to go on record as saying that 39 Delaney was the dark horse entering this race. He's up to fifth, on the lead lap, so we bow to her mad prognosticating skillz. 9 Hirschman is on pit road again and having some trouble getting away, and he may have lost a lap because of it

We should be out of the routine pit stop business by now.

8 gets free pass to get back on the lead lap, hope he didn't use up his stuff passing guys for no reason. 40 pits along with 9 35 2 16 44 1. 40 gets right-sides along with 9 as 35 gest gas

CAUTION #4 lap 102: 99 Chew spins off turn four, winds up facing the wrong way on frontstretch but doesn't appear to suffer any contact and he's away

lap 102: smoky 11 passes 40 for no reason

lap 101: 59 laps 06 still with a comfortable margin over 18 40

lap 100: 8 passes 18 for no position

lap 99: 4 ahead of 9

8 is laps down but way fast, just passed 40 on the track for no position

lap 96: 59 18 40 (8) 9 4 35 2 99 88 3 39 16 06 and that might be it for lead lap

"11 car's going to cause a problem"

lap 95: 11 smoking but still fast, just passed 9 although it's not for position as he's laps down

lap 93: 59 18 40 9 4 99 2 35 88 3 39 16 06

lap 93: 59 18 40 while 11 is back on track and still smoking

lap 91: 59 with 18 under 9 for second, 40 also gets by to relegate 9 to fourth

lap 89: 59 9 18 40 4 99 2 35 06 88 3 39 16

lap 88: 11 comes to pit road

lap 86: 59 9 18 40 4 11 99 2 06 35 88 as 11 comes to pit road

lap 85: 11 black-flagged due to smoking

lap 84: 30, 80, 37, 95, 41 all out due to accident

lap 83: 590 9 18 40 99 4 11

lap 81: 59 9 18 40 99

lap 80: "deinitely oil, you can smell it"

lap 79: 59 9 18 40 99 06 4 and now they're saying the 11 smells like oil

lap 78: 59 9 18 06 40 4 and 11 that is still smoking

GREEN lap 77: 9 gets a great restart and 59 pounces on 06 and takes second. 59 looks low under 9 into 3, 59 takes lead

one to go so restarting lap 77: 99 06 59 18 99 4 11 40 88 2 3 16 35 39 on lead lap, then 52 63 8 7 1 26 44 32 30 95 80 41 37 71 21 15

35 now gets left side tires

some cars that were trapped on pit road are getting laps back, and maybe then we'll be able to bring you a full rundown. Halfway home, lap 75 goes on the scoreboard

back under the hood of the 35, and now he's away again. Many pit stops by that crew under this caution, just like the 1 who might be setting a record

running order: 9 06 59 18 99 4 11 40 88 2 3 35 39 52 16 on lead lap, then 63 8 26 1 7 44

35 returns to pit road along with 63 and 16

35 on pit road along with 39, under the hood of the 35 and right back down, he's away

63 has a tweaked right rear corner that might match p pretty well with the 16's tweaked left front

NO MORE RED 5:42 p.m. - Replay shows that 41 Pritchard also hit the 95 as it spun down the track

on pit road under red: 3 1 71 8 16 (with dinged up left front) 39 7 32 26. We'll guesstimate the running order: 9 06 59 18 99 2 35 11 88 40 4 3 39 16

some cars are on pit road beyond the start-finish line so the scoring monitor shows what is not on the track.

*RED FLAG* 5:33 p.m. - time for a bathroom break. 30 is being pushed back towrasd the garage area with its nose pretty well killed

two jet driers (dryers?) have been dispatched to turn two and we'll be seeing the red flag in a second

lookig at the replay, it seems that perhaps the 2 did not hit the 95, but it must have been by inches. 30 might have missed hiim but the 37 wasn't as good as slowing and clipped the 30 before piling into the 95, then the 30 hit. Track is oiled down well in that turn so we'll have to do more clean-up. 11 pits for left-sides, 40 gets his right front lugnuts tightened and that's it

40 gets left side tires, 11 tgets right sides, 35 gets gas, 4 gets right-sides. 9 Hirschman stays on the track and inherits the lead

95 was hit buy 2 first, then 37 and 30. 41 slid through the accident scene but looks to have made it through OK. 30 on pit road but it's hurt bad up front. 40 11 35 3 4 on pit road

CAUTION #3 lap 67: 95 Andrews spun in turn one and got collected by a handful of cars before everything stopped. 37 is stopped low withhurt right front.

lap 67: 40 11 9 35 06 95 59, now

lap 66: 40 11 9 35 06 3 and 59 still loking to pass 95, now 95 looking outside 3

lap 65: 40 11 9 06 35 3 59 inside 95

lap 63: 8 returns to the race but down laps. 40 11 9 06 3 35 99 95 59 17 30 4 2 88 16. 21 out: accident

lap 62: 40 11 9 06 3 35 99 95

8 car is off the pace high in turn three, now ducks onto pit road

GREEN lap 60: 40 leads into 1 as 11 falls into line. 8 goes high in first turn but recovers

one to go so restart on lap 60 (16 got free pass): 40 11 9 06 3 8 30 35 4 99 18 95 59 2 39 88 16 on the lead lap

more pitting as track clean-up goes on at the exit of turn four: 18 gets left-sides. 40 is shows as leader followed by 11 9 06 3 8 30 35 4

more pitting by the leaders as 21 is carted away on the hook: 8 gets gas, 35 gets right sides along with 18 while 40 stays out

35 gets gas, 40 gets right side tires this time by. 8 is first off followed by 18 40 11 35 95 59 4 30 9 99 39 06 2 3 88

Jonathan Smith is out of the car. Pit road opens and here they come

CAUTION #2 lap 54: 21 Smith turned it around in turn four and hit the inside wall with the nose of his Dodge. Spun it while on the high side and hit the pit wall, 9 did a heckuva job avoiding it

lap 55: 8 18 11

lap 54: still lots of smoke from 11 but he's on 18's back bumper

lap 53: 8 18 11 40 35 95 59 9 99 4 2 30 3 06 39

lap 51: 11 reported to have a tire rub, which we've observed since about five laps into this race

lap 50: 8 18 11 40 35 95 59 9 99 4 2 30 3 06 39

lap 49: 44 earns a pass through penalty due to entering pit road too fast

lap 48: 44 Sellers returns to race but down laps. 15 is out due to engine

lap 47: 8 18 11 40 35 95 59

lap 46: 44 on pit road with flat right rear tire

lap 45: 44 slow on backstretch as 8 tries to lap 80 with the race lead

lap 44: 8 on 18's back bupmer as they approach 80 and 41 running side by side on backstretch. 8 under 18 into 3, 8 takes lead

lap 42: 18 8 11 40 35 95 59 99 9 4 44 30 2 3 06 39 88 63 16 41 and 80 as 8 looks under 18 for the lead

lap 41: 1 gets lapped, joining 26 7 and 32 off the lead lap

lap 39: 18 8 11 40 35 95 59 99 9 4 30 44 3 2 06 39 88 63 16 41 21 80 1 and that's it

lap 37: 18 8 11 40 35 95 59 99 30 9 4 44 3 2 06 39 63 88 16 41 21 80 1 52 26 and that's it on the lead lap

lap 36: 15 being pushed back towards garage

lap 34: 18 8 11 40 35 95 59 99 30 9 4 44 3 2 06 39 63 88 16 1 41 21 as 32 comes to pit road

lap 33: 18 8 11 40 35 95 59 99 30 9

32 black-flagged, will be held forfour laps

lap 31: 18 8 11 40 35 95 59 99 30 9 4 44 3 2

lap 30: 18 8 11 40 35 95 59 30 99 9 4 3 44 2 63

smoke out of the 8 going into turn one, possible tire rub

lap 28: 18 8 11 40 35 95 30 59 99 3 9

lap 26: 71 returns to the race as there's smoke seen coming from the 11. Under the hood of the 37 while officials say the 32 has taken two unapproved tires. 15 comes to pit road under green, under the hood

lap 25: 18 building a lead as 37 comes to pit road

lap 24: 18 8 11 40 and 35 inside 95 then 3 0 3 59 with 37 slowing on backstretch

lap 23: 18 then 11 inside 8, then 40 95 35

GREEN lap 22: 18 leads 11 with 8 coming around 11 on the outside leaving turn 2

"tell the spotter on the 21 that he got his only chance of the day". 32 pits on one to go

one to go when they get here which puts the restart at lap 22. 44 rejoins the field and now 1 and 15 do as well

under caution: 11 18 40 8 35 95 99 30 9 32 3 4 59 2 06 39 21 88 63 52 41 26 with 1 80 1 44 15 and 37 pitting

piting: 1 44 15. 1 is krinkled on nose. 7 Duff gets free pass. Also pitting: 52 88 41 63. 80 is encouraged to come to pit road to check a right rear tire rub as 15 and 44 leave pit road leaving 1 behind

15 shows damage on right front corner

CAUTION #1 lap 17: as the leaders were trying to lap 21 Smith, 44 spun, 1 hit him, 44 came up track and squeezed 15 into backstretch wall

lap 15: lapped traffic for leaders 15 44 1 11 18 40 8 35 95 99 30 37 9 32 3 4 95

going under the hood of 71 MacDonald

lap 12: 15 44 1 11 18 40 8 35 95 99 30 37 9

lap 11: 15 44 1 11 18 40 8 35 95 99 30 3 9 as 71 is slow and approaching pit road

lap 10: 44 15 1 11 18 40 , now 15 inside 44 into one, 15 has lead

lap 8: 44 ahead in high line but 15 coming back down low, now 44 clears 15

lap 6: 15 inside 44, side by side into turn one, out of two, 44 ahead by a nose down backstretch, side by side into 3, still through 4, down frontstretch, back into 1 still door to door

lap 5: 44 15 1 11 18 40

lap 4: 44 15 1 11 18 40 now 80 caught wall exiting turn 4 and sending some scrambling to avoid, they're all still rolling at speed

lap 3: 44 15 1 11 18 40 95 8 35 99 30

lap 1: 44 15 1 1 11 18 40 95 1 35

GREEN: 15 44 side by side then 1 11 18 40 8, 15 44 still side by side into 3, now 44 comes out of 4 with the lead

One to go at the line

Cars are rolling onto the track 30 strong as the 12 of Johnny Sauter did not make the field. 41 Pritchard has been repaired after its fuel pump broke in qualifying and will start tail. Pit road speed is 30 MPH.

Mr. Sunoco says to fire 'em up

Two minutes till engines are fired

Five minutes to the command. Think the Cup guys aren't interested in what happens here today? Kate's on pit road and says Kyle Busch is hanging out in Brian Ickler's pit stall.

The cars are lined up on pit road, we're about five minutes away from praying and singing, and then we'll get 150 laps of high-banked action. We've got a TV to our left, scoring monitor to the right, and a race with fast cars and plenty of pit strategy. We'll do our darndest to cover it all as it happens from the media center located outside turn one.


1:30 p.m. - Brian Ickler was the fastest man in the opening practice session, and now he's the fastest man in Coors Light Pole Qualifying at Dover International Speedway. While Ickler did not eclipse Sean Caisse's track record, his 152.620 MPH lap (vs. Caisse's 152.782 MPH effort in 2006) puts him atop the starting field for this afternoon's Sunoco 150. Following Ickler to the line will be Peyton Sellers, Trevor Bayne, Jesus Hernandez, and Matt Kobyluck. Complete qualifying results are Here. We'll be across the track to catch the race later, with coverage going live in this space at or around 4:30 p.m. assuming it's wired over there. In the meantime, there's a mandatory autograph session to take in.

11:22 a.m. - Not much to report. All cars have gone through inspection and are staged in the garage area under the watchful eye of our elite officiating crew. They'll head down the hill for qualifying in this order: 99 44 15 12 41 52 26 06 32 80 63 59 2 30 9 71 16 88 4 37 95 8 7 18 1 40 21 11 3 39 and 35. Tune in to this space around 12:40 and we'll bring you qualifying times as they're run.

8:55 a.m. Friday - We're back at the track after a brisk top-down ride from home and currently defrosting in the media center. The garage officially opens in a few minutes but we already saw a number of crew milling about in advance of that happening. On-track activity starts at 9:30 a.m. with Nationwide Series practice and it continues straight through until just before Camping World Series qualifying which begins at 12:40 p.m. We'll take a wander through the garage once cars become uncovered and see if anyone's got any thrashing to do after yesterday's incident-free practice sessions and report back if we hear anything pertinent.

5:08 p.m. - Making his first Camping World Series appearance, Aric Almirola set the fastest time in the second and final practice at Dover International Speedway. He timed in with a 24.174-second lap (148.920 MPH), followed by Brian Ickler, Peyton Sellers, Trevor Bayne, and Alex Kennedy. Complete results are Here. The second practice was also incident-free. That wraps up on-track activity for the day, so we'll sign off as well only to return bright and early tomorrow morning in advance of qualifying which happens at 12:40 p.m.

3:20 p.m. - The first of two Dover practices has been concluded with no stoppages. Brian Ickler is the fastest man on the mile after posting a fast lap of 24.438 seconds (147.312 MPH) with Matt Kobyluck, Peyton Sellers, Marc Davis, and Dale Quarterley following. First practice session results are posted Here. There's a quick turnaround before the second session starts at 3:50 p.m. and continues to 5:00.

1:20 p.m. - We're forty minutes from things getting loud here and everyone's been through inspection and ready to practice. Matt Kobyluck addressed the rookie meeting with some sobering words:

- The spotters is the most important member of the team
- "We need to keep coming back to places like this, and in order to do that, we need to put on races that are professional. We need to look like we know what we're doing and not having stupid wrecks in practice and in the race."
- "What we did at New Hampshire last week has nothing to do with what we're doing here."
- "No take, it's all give here."
- "Assume your driver sees nothing."

Adding to Kobyluck's points was Jeff Spraker, who advised drivers that when they are told to slow down, slow down now because by the time they're told to slow and the time they actually get down to a safe speed, they may have already found the original incident.

12:10 p.m. - It's still a couple hours away from things getting loud here, but before it does, we'll pass along happy birthday wishes to James Pritchard, Jr. who gets to spend his special day working on and then driving his No. 41 Mannings USA Dodge.

11:25 a.m. - The entry list has been posted Here, showing 31 cars on hand to try for 30 starting spots in tomorrow's race. Seen for the first time this year, aside from the previously-mentioned Almirola, include old friend Ryan Seaman, Johnny Sauter, Jason Patison, and 2006 Dover winner Tim Andrews.

10:30 a.m. Thursday - We're live and in person here at the Monster Mile, having successfully negotiated our way inside in our nice shiny new-to-us Miata (yes, another one). Cars are going through inspection as we speak so we'll be heading outside shortly to ascertain who's here. We've been told that Jeffrey Earnhardt is not in the DEI No. 8, replaced by Aric Almirola, for reasons that are beyond us. We saw plenty of new faces and some old ones we hadn't seen in a while during our brief walk through the garage, but we'll find out for sure once we make a couple passes through.


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