Catchfence

Who: Scott Speed (82 Red Bull Toyota), Brian Vickers (83 Red Bull Toyota)
What: Checker O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 (Sprint Cup)
When: Sunday, Nov. 15, 2009
Where: Phoenix International Raceway, Avondale, Ariz.
Results: Scott Speed (start 37, finish 33); Brian Vickers (start 19, finish 38)

+ 3,400-POUND PINBALLS

Brian Vickers and Co. used the first half of Sunday’s race to dial in the No. 83 and crack the top 15. Teammate Scott Speed and the No. 82 crew were executing the same game plan with hopes of staying a twentysomething.

Cue lap 171 of the Checker O’Reilly Auto Parts 500.

With all of the lead-lap cars on fresh tires after a round pit stops, Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s No. 88 slipped exiting turn four and turned sideways. The accordion effect was on in a tight part of Phoenix International Raceway, and fifth in line was BV’s 83. Tony Stewart rear-ended Vickers, who in turn rear-ended Bobby Labonte before 10 cars formed a junkyard near the start-finish line.

Included in that 10 was Speed’s 82. He saw trouble ahead, mashed the brakes and when the smoke finally cleared was facing the wrong way. Despite heavy damage to the right rear, Speed soldiered on. He pitted multiple times for repairs, but the race went green to the end and Speed was in ride-around mode before finishing nine laps down in 33rd.

Vickers wasn’t as fortunate. After he climbed out of his 3,400-pound pinball, his day was done. He finished 38th — his worst showing since a wreck sent him home in 39th in the season-opening Daytona 500.

Nowhere to go,” Vickers said. “Track position was really, really important today. It was very difficult to pass out there. And I think it was so hard to pass that no one was willing to give anything up. On the restarts it got pretty dicey. I saw the 88 get sideways. I tried to lift, tried to get out of it but the whole track was blocked. It was just one big jam-up.”

Speed concurred.

Smoke, that’s about all I saw,” he said. “I was on the brakes and the next thing I know we’re looking the other way. Obviously, I got hit from behind is the biggest thing. That’s what ruined our car.”

We had a great car in the middle of the race. We started off way too tight, but we fixed it and then we started going pretty good so from that perspective I’m happy because we made progress. We were competitive, we had good lap times so maybe next time we can stopped getting wrecked.”

Entering this weekend’s finale in south Florida, Vickers remains 12th in the Chase standings — 146 points behind Carl Edwards in 11th. Speed still has 114 points to make up on the top 35.

+ UP NEXT

Ford 400, Sunday, Nov. 22, Homestead-Miami Speedway

- Red Bull Racing Team, Press Release