Catchfence

Millington, TN (October 24, 2009) — With four races remaining in the 2009 NASCAR Nationwide Series campaign, Eric McClure and his Team Rensi Motorsports (TRM) team came to Memphis hoping to continue their momentum towards a Top 25 finish in Owner Standings. Starting the race from the 42nd position McClure had advanced to the 22nd position before being involved in an accident on lap 163. Despite the finish the 30-year-old driver remained 17th in NASCAR driver standings and the TRM team advanced to the 27th position in NASCAR Owner Standings.

Due to the severity of the accident, McClure was taken to the infield care center for a possible injury to his left foot. He was then taken to a local hospital for an x-ray that showed no broken bones, only a bone bruise and ankle sprain. The driver will follow up with his regular doctor before returning to the track at Texas Motor Speedway.

“I am really disappointed with our finish. We struggled in practice on Friday and then in qualifying, but was lucky to find the clutch was failing prior to the start of the race. After making the change we were running respectable in the race, save for staying out on the wave around rule earlier. We had just taken our last set of sticker tires and were really decent on the get go before the No. 1 car side-slammed the 10 car and slowed down considerably in turn three. I went to the inside of the No.1 car then he cut down on us and I turned and got loose, breathed the throttle, and was tagged from behind (No. 96). I don’t know, he had just cut us off the lap before and was bouncing off of everyone. That’s what I get for trying to be a nice guy. “

“I can’t say enough about the safety equipment NASCAR has developed and implemented; it definitely did its job. Tailgate and the guys on this team do a great job with the safety aspect as well. Also I want to commend the safety crews at the track because they got to me very quickly, even before I could get my window net down. I was taken to the infield care center and then driven to the local hospital after the race for an x-ray of my left foot. Thankfully it wasn’t broken, just severely bruised, so we’ll follow NASCAR’s policies and I will be back in Texas.”

When the final stand-alone race of the 2009 season began, McClure advanced his position, ran his fastest lap of the race weekend, and was shown in the 36th position when the first caution occurred on lap seven. With the car’s handling being “tight” in the center of the turns and “snappy loose” on the exit, crew chief Chris Wright brought the No. 24 Hefty® Odor Block™ Ford to pit-road for fuel, a track-bar adjustment, and to remove tape from the front grille. By the time the second caution occurred McClure was shown in the 23rd position. After visiting pit-road for fuel and another track-bar adjustment, the TRM team restarted the 250-lap event in the 27th position.

When the fourth caution occurred on lap 61, the car was brought to pit-road once again to receive its first set of tires with an air-pressure adjustment, a wedge adjustment and fuel. Restarting in the 28th position the driver maintained in and around this position before losing a lap to the race leader on lap 115. When the seventh caution occurred one lap shy of the half way mark, Wright decided to take a gamble and stay on the track, putting the team back on the lead lap as a result of the wave-around rule.

Restarting the event in the 24th position, McClure worked his way up to the 22nd position by lap 130 before he fell to the 27th position and lost a lap to the race leader. Running on old tires the car’s handling wasn’t to the liking of the driver so when the eighth caution occurred on lap 154, the Hefty® Ford visited pit-road for fresh tires with an air-pressure adjustment and fuel. Shortly after the restart the Virginia native was sent hard into the outside retaining wall, after being hit from behind in turn four. The damage to the car was too severe to repair so in the end the TRM team was credited with a 30th-place finish in the Kroger on Track for the Cure 250.

The next event for the Hefty® Racing™ team is Saturday, November 7, 2009 at Texas Motor Speedway.

- Team Rensi Motorsports Press Release