Coke Zero 400 Powered By Coca-Cola Report

JON WOOD PERSERVERES IN HIS SECOND CUP START THIS SEASON 

DAYTONA, FL — Jon Wood was able to bring home the No. 21 U.S. Air Force Ford Fusion in tact after the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway. With no involvement in the race cautions, Jon was able to bring the No. 21 from almost the end of the longest line to a 33rd place finish.

Wood was able to qualify his family's car in the 22nd starting position. However, he went to the garage on lap two to change from the qualifying setup to the race setup in order to run the 400 miles. The team took eight laps to make the adjustments and sent Jon back to the track on lap 10 in the 43rd position. There were still 152 laps left to complete, and the team expected to gain some laps back.

On lap 20, the first caution flag of the evening waved. Jon was the only car at least one lap down and was granted the “lucky dog”, a free pass to gain one lap back. During the caution, his team called him in to pit and put on four fresh tires and add fuel.

Within the next several laps, Jon assessed the handling conditions of the car and reported it was tight when it was behind another race car, but loose in the turns. However, he was able to hold off the race leaders to keep from going back down a lap while fighting these conditions. The yellow flag flew again on lap 44, which gave the team the opportunity to make adjustments to the No. 21.

Crew Chief, Mike “Andretti” Smith called for front shock adjustments, four tires and fuel. The pit crew quickly made the changes and sent Jon back to the track. Wood restarted the race on lap 47 in 42nd. Within the next 10 laps, Jon noticed the handling was much better. He said, “The shock adjustment was the biggest improvement but could use a little more, it’s still a little loose.” However, under a long green flag run, the Fusion started to lose its handling once again.

The team had another chance to make changes when the caution flag flew on lap 70. They made more front shock adjustments, a chassis adjustment and took on four tires and fuel. Jon restarted the race in 42nd on lap 74.

On lap 80, Jon reported that the race car was finally driving decent. He said, “Okay, now this thing is driving like a race car.” He moved to the 40th position as other teams retired from the race early due to accidents.

Caution flew again on lap 113, and the team called Jon in for 4 tires and fuel. When they sent him back to the track, Wood was not responding to any radio communication. As the race resumed on lap 116, the team tried to get radio transmission to the driver. Jon made the next few laps on his own with no spotter until lap 119 when he got his radio working again. He continued to relay information about the handling conditions, stating the No. 21 was still loose and getting worse. He felt that the last adjustments went too far and needed to be reversed. The team did just that when caution came out on lap 124.

Wood restarted the race on lap 128 in the 38th position. As cautions continued and the attrition rate increased, the Wood was able to stay out of trouble and made laps until the end. Jon brought the U.S. Air Force Ford Fusion home with a 33rd place finish under a yellow/checkered flag scenario.

Wood Brothers Racing will travel to Chicagoland Speedway next week with Bill Elliott behind the wheel of the U.S. Air Force Ford Fusion for the Life Lock.com 400.Contributed by Christina Cicci, Wood Brothers Racing

Coke Zero 400 Powered By Coca-Cola Results:
1. Kyle Busch
2. Carl Edwards
3. Matt Kenseth
4. Kurt Busch
5. David Ragan
6. Robby Gordon
7. Kasey Kahne
8. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
9. Clint Bowyer
10. Mark Martin
33. Jon Wood

2008 Final
Point Standings:
1. Jimmie Johnson — 6684
2. Carl Edwards — 6615
3. Greg Biffle — 6467
4. Kevin Harvick — 6408
5. Clint Bowyer — 6381
6. Jeff Burton — 6335
7. Jeff Gordon — 6316
8. Denny Hamlin — 6214
9. Tony Stewart — 6202
10. Kyle Busch — 6186
11. Matt Kensteh — 6184
12. D. Earnhardt, Jr. — 6127
36. M. Ambrose* — 2655
*Listed by Owner Points for Michael Waltrip Racing/
JTG Daugherty Racing