CASEY MEARS WOWS TALLADEGA CROWD WITH MASTERFUL DRIVE
Player Management International Media Release
Talladega, AL (October 23, 2011) – Casey Mears knows well the nuances of navigating the high banks of NASCAR’s restrictor-plate tracks, so one could notice how visibly excited he was to take his shot at Talladega this weekend. After the racing world suffered through a long week of reflecting on the loss of IndyCar driver Dan Wheldon, drivers were eager to get back to work and take their minds off of reality for a few days.
While Mears and the #13 GEICO Camry entered Talladega with high hopes, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series practice sessions did little to stoke the team’s enthusiasm. Mears ended up 40th on the board once first practice was complete, and then he chose to join Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick and a host of others in sitting out the final practice session altogether.
As life sometimes imitates art, qualifying imitated practice for Mears and the GEICO team. Mears pedaled around the 2.66-mile tri-oval in 54.262 seconds, making him the slowest car on the racetrack at the conclusion of Sprint Cup Series qualifying. Despite his misfortune, Mears’ demeanor left people scratching their heads, as the Bakersfield, CA, native strolled the garage area with a quiet confidence that would leave people thinking he knew something they didn’t.
When race day arrived, Mears and the GEICO team seemed strangely confident and tended to the #13 GEICO Camry on pit road while chatting and sharing laughs before the pre-race ceremony got underway. Everyone would soon learn that their laid back demeanor before the race was for good reason; their driver had a plan.
When the green flag turned the field loose in front of a large crowd and clear, blue skies, Mears launched a full-out assault on the field. Before the race had logged even a single lap, the #13 GEICO Camry had moved from its 42nd starting position into 26th.
By the third lap, Mears was running in the 18th position and found his drafting buddy from Daytona, Landon Cassill. The pair were able to lead the Daytona race in July before succumbing to a final lap crash that collected the car of Mears and relegated him to a 32nd place finish. Today would be different and the duo picked up where they left off on that hot summer evening in July.
Lap five saw Mears and the GEICO Camry move into 10th place, netting 32 positions from his starting spot in just the opening laps of a 188 lap event. Throughout the day, Mears would act as Cassill’s spotter, notifying him of all activities in front of the pair, as Cassill had limited visibility of what was ahead while acting as the pusher.
Mears and the #13 GEICO Camry continued their hard charge to the front and found themselves eyeing the leader on lap 40 when they moved into the third position. They spent the bulk of their afternoon in the Top 5 and Top 10 until lap 174 saw them lose their drafting partner when Cassill was collected in a turn two crash involving Bobby Labonte and Kurt Busch. Mears’ spotter Jason Jarrett quickly turned into a politician, lobbying other spotters around him to partner with the GEICO Camry on the restart. He ultimately secured a commitment from the #78 car of Regan Smith.
When the race returned to green flag conditions with just 10 laps left of the advertised 188, Mears restarted from the 20th position. While Casill no longer appeared in his rearview mirror, the #78 car of Smith did and the pair quickly made a mad dash for the front of the field, landing the #13 GEICO Camry in the Top 10 on the restart lap.
Unfortunately, just three laps later, the #78 car also fell victim to a crash when Denny Hamlin got into Mark Martin, causing a chain reaction that sent Smith hard into the outside retaining wall. This marked the second time that Mears narrowly avoided peril and was able to continue on.
Just two laps remained and Mears would be forced to take the final green flag of the afternoon without a drafting partner. The #13 GEICO Camry restarted 8th and fought a losing battle in the closing laps. Despite being forced to dance alone, Mears managed to fight to a 17th place finish when the checkered flag concluded 500-miles of racing on Sunday afternoon.
Upon crossing the finish line, an enthusiastic Mears radioed to his crew: “Boys! We survived Talladega!”
“We had a great run in the GEICO Camry and I’m really glad we were able to run up front all day,” Mears said with a smile as he stood outside his hauler debriefing with crew chief Bootie Barker. “We were really fortunate to survive both of those crashes that took out our partners today. I can’t thank Landon Cassill and Regan Smith enough for working with us. Landon and I were able to be up front most of the race and I was hoping that me and Regan would have a shot at the win towards the end. We ended up alone with two to go and that is never good here, but I drove as hard as I could and we’re happy with 17th. I’m thankful for the guys on this GEICO pit crew who worked hard to keep me up front all day.”
Mears, a teammate of Dan Wheldon when they won the 2006 Rolex 24 at Daytona, reflected on a tough week.
“Dan and I were teammates at Daytona in 2006 and we got to spend a lot of time together. He was a good guy and I have a lot of great memories of winning the Rolex 24 Hour race with him. We are keeping his wife Susie and their two sons in our thoughts and prayers.”
Aside from recording a Top 20 finish, the Germain Racing team jumped a notch from 34th to 33rd in the Owner Point standings, further solidifying their status in the Top 35.
Next week, Mears and the GEICO team travel to Martinsville, VA, for race number 33 of 36 on the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series schedule.
Mears and the #13 GEICO Toyota Camry will hit the 1/2-mile paperclip-shaped oval of Martinsville Speedway for the opening practice session on Friday, October 28th, at 12:30 PM (ET). Qualifying will follow on Saturday, October 29th, at 12:10 PM (ET).
The Tums Fast Relief 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race is on Sunday, October 30th, and it will be televised live on ESPN beginning at 1:30 PM (ET). The Motor Racing Network (MRN) will carry the live radio broadcast.
To learn more about the GEICO Racing program, please visit: www.geicogarage.com
You can also follow GEICO Racing on Twitter: www.twitter.com/geicoracing
Please visit the Casey Mears Facebook fan page: www.facebook.com/caseymearsracing