NASCAR Sprint Cup Series - Sylvania 300
September 22, 2013 – New Hampshire Motor Speedway
Starting from the seventh position, Paul Menard and the No. 27 SYLVANIA/Menards team faced handling issues throughout the 300-lap event, earning a 22nd-place finish when the checkered flag flew at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. After slipping back several positions in the early laps of the race, Menard was scored in 13th on lap 25 when he communicated to crew chief "Slugger" Labbe that the No. 27 machine was tight on entry and loose exiting the corners. The pit crew made a variety of adjustments during pit stops on laps 32 and 109 in hopes of remedying the issue. The Eau Claire, Wis., native maintained a position within the top-20 and at lap 156 he was scored in 19th, running lap times as fast as the leader. A two-tire pit stop on lap 202 allowed Menard to gain valuable track position, lining him up 15th for the ensuing restart. The Richard Childress Racing driver methodically worked his way up to 11th before coming to pit road one final time on lap 246 for left-side tires, fuel and wedge and air pressure adjustments. Restarting in 11th, Menard was caught in the middle going three-wide into the corner and shuffled back to 19th at lap 263. Struggling with a tight condition for the remaining 37 laps of the event, Menard ultimately finished 22nd at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Menard maintained his position in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver championship point standings and sits in 16th heading to Dover International Speedway.
It was a rough day for the No. 27 SYLVANIA/Menards crew. We struggled with handling issues for the majority of the day, especially there at the end. That last set of tires made us really tight and we just couldn't gain any track position. My guys never gave up and made a variety of adjustments all day to try and get the car to handle better. We'll keep our heads up heading into Dover (International Speedway) next week. - Paul Menard
Race Notes
- Started - 7th, Finished, - 22nd, Laps led - 0, Points - 16th
- Following the event at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Menard is 16th in the driver championship point standings.
- Menard completed 62 Green-Flag Passes during the 300-lap race.
