Raines Holds on at Richmond to Score Top-10

RICHMOND, VA (September 6, 2003) - There seems to be a pattern developing for BACE in the Busch Series. At Chicagoland Speedway in July, driver Tony Raines took the checkered flag in the eighth position after running in the top-10 for the entirety of the event. Just two weeks ago at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, Raines finished eighth after being passed by several cars with five laps remaining as he was battling an ill-handling car.

This week the Busch Series battled it out at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway in the Funai 250. After starting 34th, as the field was set according to Owner Points due to inclement weather, Raines finished - you guessed it - in the eighth position.

Characteristically, Raines bolted from the rear of the field with the drop of the green flag charging up ten positions in only ten laps. But uncharacteristically, Raines' Outdoor Channel Chevrolet was not handling well. A tight handling condition developed in the car early in the event, especially apparent to Raines, through the center and exit of the corners.

The second caution flag of the race fell on lap 35 for a car stalled on the backstretch. Raines brought his Outdoor Channel Chevrolet down pit road for service. The BACE crew bolted on four fresh Goodyear tires and filled it with fuel. Additionally, they adjusted the track bar and removed wedge from the car to help correct the tight handling condition.

Raines took the green flag for the restart on lap 41 from the 26th position. By lap 75, the Indiana native had moved into the 17th position. The third caution flag fell on lap 103 for a spin by the No. 72 car. Raines took the yellow flag from the 15th position. Still fighting a tight handling condition, Raines brought his Chevy down pit road under the direction of crew chief Mark Tutor. The BACE crew changed four tires, fuel and made another wedge adjustment.

The BACE pit crew blistered a 14.9-second stop to return Raines to the track in the 12th position, picking up three positions on pit road.

The green flag fell on lap 109 and Raines quickly moved into the 11th by passing the No. 48 car of Shane Hmiel on the restart. Hmiel quickly made the return pass on Raines on lap 113. Raines fell to the 15th position by lap 175. When the caution flag fell on lap 179, Raines radioed the car was still extremely tight.

"All the changes, we've made tonight don't seem to be making a difference Mark," said Raines. "It's just as tight as when we started."

During the caution period, Raines would bring The Outdoor Channel Chevrolet down pit road for the final stop of the race. The BACE crew would out-do their last stop by changing four tires, adding fuel and making a track bar and wedge adjustments in just 14.0-seconds. The quick start allowed Raines to pick-up two positions on pit road moving him into the 13th position on the restart.

With the restart on lap 184, Raines maintained the 13th spot but just seven laps later he fell into the 14th position. A poor handling car would not stop Raines from continuing his charge for a third straight top-10 finish. Raines retook the 13th position on lap 207 and within the next five laps advanced into 11th position.

The No. 48 car re-entered the picture by passing Raines on lap 224 but he would not be a player for long as he became the reason for the final caution flag, which fell on lap 245. NASCAR would call for the red flag and Raines would bring The Outdoor Channel Chevrolet to a stop on the backstretch in the 8th place.

After a brief delay for clean up, the cars were re-fired and Raines took the green flag restart with three laps remaining. He took advantage of restart to move past the No. 1 Chevrolet and finish in the eighth position.

"Our Outdoor Channel has been absolutely awesome every time that we've taken the track this season but for some reason this race we couldn't seem to get the car to loosen up," said Raines. "I'm sure only getting twenty or thirty minutes of practice the entire weekend because of the weather did not help our cause but we're glad to get out of here with a top-10 finish. I'm really looking forward to going to Dover in the Busch car in a couple of weeks."

The next Busch Series event for BACE Motorsports and The Outdoor Channel Chevrolet is the Stacker 200 presented by YJ Stinger at Dover International Speedway on September 20, 2003. The race will air live at 1:00 p.m. EDT on the TNT Television network and MRN affiliates.