Misfortune Strikes Hamlin, D.H. Griffin Racing Team at Thunder Valley

Event/Date:                       Scotts Turf Builder 300/March 21, 2009
Venue:                                 Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway
Starting Position:              41st (unapproved changes – had to drop to back of field)
Finishing Position:            33rd    
Points Position:                 27th (Owners)

Bristol, Tenn. (Feb. 21, 2009) – A competitive run for Kevin Hamlin and the D.H. Griffin Racing team was dashed Saturday afternoon when the Snohornish, Wash., native blew a right-front tire and broke a shock on lap 18.  This left Hamlin with a 33rd-place finish in the Scotts Turf Builder 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway. 

Despite the unfavorable result, the No 81 team only fell one spot, to 27th, in the season NASCAR Nationwide owners’ point standings.   The D.H. Griffin team is only six markers out of 26th. 

After starting the 300-lap contest 41st in front of an announced crowd of 101,000 because of a steering box change, Hamlin set sailed toward the front of the pack.  He grabbed five positions before the field slowed on lap eight for a single-car incident in turn four.
Reporting that his No. 81 D.H. Griffin machine was tight through the middle of the turns, Hamlin was in need of some adjustments.  Crew chief David Ingram brought the young driver to pit road for a routine four-tire pit stop that included a slight chassis adjustment.  Hamlin was back on the racing surface 37th for the restart on lap 13. 

Hamlin began his climb back through the field when disaster stuck.  On lap 18, the right-front tire blew while Hamlin was entering turn two.  The No. 81 machine suffered extensive right-front fender damage including a broken shock.  After the D.H. Griffin Racing team made the repairs, Hamlin was 13 laps down in the 38th spot. 

Despite the damages, Hamlin was able to run times as fast as the top 10 but was never able to get any laps back, he crossed the finish line 33rd. 

Kevin Harvick captured his first victory of the season and was followed to the line by Carl Edwards and Clint Bowyer.  Roush Fenway Racing’s Mark Kenseth finished fourth and Justin Allgaier rounded out the top-five finishers. 
After a one week hiatus, the NASCAR Nationwide Series travels to Texas Motor Speedway for its fifth stop on the 35-race tour. 

The O’Reilly 300 from Texas Motor Speedway will be televised live on ESPN2 Sat., April 4 beginning at 2 p.m. EDT and broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network and Sirius/XM Satellite Radio. 

KEVIN HAMLIN QUOTE:

“The No. 81 D.H. Griffin machine was capable of finishing in the top 25.  We had a flat tire and a broken shock early in the race that we couldn’t overcome.  I just need to thank Randy (MacDonald) for the opportunity to driver his race car at Bristol.”