Catchfence

Brian Scott Post-Race Recap

Royal Purple 300 at Auto Club Speedway

March 26, 2011

Race Highlights:

* Brian Scott started the Royal Purple 300 from the 11th position after his qualifying effort on Saturday morning.

* Scott was happy with the No. 11 Shore Lodge Toyota through the first few runs of the 150-lap race on Saturday.

The car was a little aero-sensitive, but overall the car handled well following crew chief Kevin Kidd’s first adjustments. Scott ran in the top 10 until the car began to get extremely loose around lap 50 and complained of a lack of right-side grip.

* The No. 11 Toyota continued to be loose for Scott, especially off the corners. Following the caution flag on lap 92, Kidd made a wedge adjustment to help the handling, but a slower stop dropped Scott to the 16th position. He worked his way back into the top 10 on lap 122 and made a green-flag stop on lap 130. With 13 laps remaining, Scott reported a vibration and said the water temperature gauge was pegged. Fearing the engine would expire with two laps remaining, Scott backed off the throttle and crossed the stripe in the 13th position, the final car on the lead lap.

* There were just five cautions for 19 laps in the Royal Purple 300 with 21 lead changes among eight drivers. Scott’s Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch won his third Nationwide race of the season, while Joey Logano finished seventh.

* Scott continues his advancement in the NASCAR Nationwide Series standings following his 13th-place run at Auto Club Speedway. Scott is now ninth in points, just 18 points out of the top three and 43 points out of first.

Scott Quotes:

“The car started out pretty good, but at one point it was so loose I felt like I was Sprint car racing. We just couldn’t get the car tightened up enough today and we struggled in the pits a little. Kevin and the guys worked hard all weekend, the race just didn’t go a smooth as we wanted.”

- Joe Gibbs Racing Press Release