Dollar General Stores Team Takes A Gamble and Finishes In the Top-10

Bobby Labonte returned to the No. 77 Dollar General stores Chevrolet for the fourth NASCAR Busch Series event of the 2007 season. After practicing in the mid-20s Friday afternoon at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Labonte qualified the Chevrolet Monte Carlos SS 30th on the starting grid. For the start of the Sam’s Town 300, Labonte quickly moved through the field moving into the top-15. At the end of the 200-lap event, Labonte had steered clear of trouble and earned an eighth-place finish for the Dollar General stores team.

The Dollar General stores car hit the newly reconfigured track for the practice sessions Friday morning. Labonte would report that the car had a loose in and tight off handling condition. To round out both practices, the Dollar General stores team would end up 27th on the speed charts.

Busch Series teams lined up Friday evening for qualifying. The No. 77 Dollar General stores Chevrolet qualified 30th on the starting grid. Teams returned Saturday morning to line the cars up on the grid for the start of the race. As the green flag waved over the field, Labonte quickly moved up six-positions on the first lap.

The caution flag flew on lap four and Labonte had already moved up to the 22nd-position. Labonte reported that the car was loose in the center of the corners. The field restarted on lap 11 and would quickly be slowed again by the caution flag on lap 13. Labonte’s No. 77 had sustained minor damage to the right rear as it swerved to miss an incident. Wally Rogers, crew chief of the No. 77 Dollar General stores Chevrolet, called Labonte down pit road to assess the damage, take fuel and make a track bar adjustment to tighten the car’s handling. As the team reported to Rogers, he relayed the news to Labonte that the car would be fine and it only sustained cosmetic fender damage. Labonte restarted the No. 77 Dollar General stores car 17th in the field.

Within four laps of the restart, Labonte had moved up to the top-15. The field would run a 30-lap green flag run and Labonte reported to the Dollar General stores crew that the car was really loose-handling on entry to the middle of the corner. The caution flag flew on lap 50 and Labonte ducked down pit road on lap 52 for four tires, fuel and a track bar adjustment. As Labonte took the green flag for the restart on lap 54 he reported to the crew that the adjustments were going in the right direction and the car was tighter-handling.

Just past half-way in the 200-lap event, Labonte had worked his way up to the second position, his highest running position as the field started a round of green flag pit stops. Labonte would come down pit road on lap 109 for four tires and fuel. The field would be slowed on lap 117 for a caution flag. Labonte, running in the 13th-position, came back down pit road to top off with fuel and return to green flag racing in the ninth-position.

On lap 156 while running 12th in the field, Labonte came down pit road for fuel only. As Labonte returned to the track, Wally came over the radio and suggested to Labonte that he should save as much fuel as he could under the caution flag conditions. As the green flag waved over the field on lap 159 Labonte was running third. The field raced for a 20 lap green flag run when the caution flag came out on lap 182 for debris. Wally called over the radio to Labonte that he was going to take a gamble and stay out as other cars came down pit road for tires and fuel.

A red flag on lap 190 stopped the field so that the track workers could clean up the track from a multi-car accident. The green flag waved on lap 193 for a final sprint to the end where Labonte crossed the stripe in the eighth-position. The No. 77 Dollar General stores Chevrolet moved from 31st in the NASCAR Busch Series Owner Points Standings to 17th leading into the fifth race of the season.

Bobby Labonte will return to the seat of the No. 77 Dollar General stores Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS at Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway. Cars will hit the track Friday, March 16, 2007 for the NASCAR Busch Series practice sessions. The Nicorette 300 can be seen live from Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway on ABC at 3:00 p.m. ET on Saturday, March 17, 2007.