Greenville, SC (April 29, 2007): Matt Kobyluck proved that the Mohegan Sun Casino Chevrolet would be a force to reckon with in the Busch East Series, Grand National Division season opener after qualifying fourth fastest, and being a solid contender in the top-three for the first 25 laps. But things took a dramatic turn quickly for the Uncasville, CT-driver when he got collected in a tangle between two lapped cars. Kobyluck and his crew were persistent in their efforts to turn the day around, but a flat tire with eight laps to go sent him to the pits and relegated him to a 21st place finish.
“It could have been worse,” admitted Kobyluck. “The guys gave me a good car, and they worked really hard tonight to keep us on the lead lap. We were back up as high as 13th with ten laps to go, but we ended up 21st. It’s disappointing when the team works so hard and you can’t seem to catch a break.”
Thirty-eight cars attempted to qualify for the 30-car field with Kobyluck turning a lap of 20.731 seconds (86.826 mph) to for the fourth fastest time of the day.
“We picked up 3/10th’s from what we ran in practice, and I’m happy with that. I think I could have got after it a little bit more, but this place is so easy to overdrive that maybe I would have overdrove it,” Kobyluck said after qualifying. “You have to be patient, because the harder you try the slower you go. We’re up in the front in the top-five and that’s where I wanted to be. We’ve got a good car and that’s what is important. I think it was very balanced when we first unloaded and will be very balanced for the race.”
Kobyluck moved into third by lap three and settled in for the long green flag run. Despite pressure from eventual race-winner Joey Logano, Kobyluck was confident in the car and set-up. At lap 25, everyone’s focus quickly shifted to turn three only to see the Mohegan Sun Casino Chevrolet in the wall.
“We were lapping the 24 and 2. Sean (Caisse) went by, Bryon (Chew) went by, and then I was going by when the 24 drove into the back of the 2 and spun him. The 2 went up the track and collected me. That was pretty much the end of the night for us,” Kobyluck said. “After that, our main goal became staying on the lead lap.”
Kobyluck pitted at every caution. The crew made adjustments to make up for the front end problems that were a result of the wreck. They kept their focus on staying on the lead lap, and by lap 135, were running in 13th.
“We weren’t really passing any cars, but attrition moved us up in the running order,” he said. “We did the best that we could. We made some changes because we had to fix the toe, we had to fix bent tie rods, and we had to keep the thing together.”
On lap 136, things took another turn when the front shock broke on his car. The team could have salvaged a top-20 finish, but when a tire went flat ten laps before the race conclusion, Kobyluck went a lap down in the pits getting it changed.
“As I said it could have been worse, but this crew really pulled together tonight,” said Kobyluck. “They did a great job, and I couldn’t be happier with that. A 21st place finish is disappointing, but you have those nights in racing. You do your best to control the things you can, and move on from the things you can’t.”
Thirty-eight cars attempted to qualify for the 30-car field with Kobyluck turning a lap of 20.731 seconds (86.826 mph) to for the fourth fastest time of the day.
“We picked up 3/10th’s from what we ran in practice, and I’m happy with that. I think I could have got after it a little bit more, but this place is so easy to overdrive that maybe I would have overdrove it,” Kobyluck said after qualifying. “You have to be patient, because the harder you try the slower you go. We’re up in the front in the top-five and that’s where I wanted to be. We’ve got a good car and that’s what is important. I think it was very balanced when we first unloaded and will be very balanced for the race.”
Kobyluck moved into third by lap three and settled in for the long green flag run. Despite pressure from eventual race-winner Joey Logano, Kobyluck was confident in the car and set-up. At lap 25, everyone’s focus quickly shifted to turn three only to see the Mohegan Sun Casino Chevrolet in the wall.
“We were lapping the 24 and 2. Sean (Caisse) went by, Bryon (Chew) went by, and then I was going by when the 24 drove into the back of the 2 and spun him. The 2 went up the track and collected me. That was pretty much the end of the night for us,” Kobyluck said. “After that, our main goal became staying on the lead lap.”
Kobyluck pitted at every caution. The crew made adjustments to make up for the front end problems that were a result of the wreck. They kept their focus on staying on the lead lap, and by lap 135, were running in 13th.
“We weren’t really passing any cars, but attrition moved us up in the running order,” he said. “We did the best that we could. We made some changes because we had to fix the toe, we had to fix bent tie rods, and we had to keep the thing together.”
On lap 136, things took another turn when the front shock broke on his car. The team could have salvaged a top-20 finish, but when a tire went flat ten laps before the race conclusion, Kobyluck went a lap down in the pits getting it changed.
“As I said it could have been worse, but this crew really pulled together tonight,” said Kobyluck. “They did a great job, and I couldn’t be happier with that. A 21st place finish is disappointing, but you have those nights in racing. You do your best to control the things you can, and move on from the things you can’t.”