CASEY MEARS NETS 23RD IN BRISTOL; JUMPS A SPOT IN OWNER STANDINGS

GEICO Team Continues Roll In Bristol Night Race

Player Management International Release

BRISTOL, Tenn. (August 27, 2011) – There are few sporting events that can outshine the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series night race at Bristol Motor Speedway. On Saturday night, 156,000 fans surrounded the half-mile track, while the roar of the engines was so loud one could barely hear.  In store were 500 laps of jam-packed action. As the saying goes, ‘It’s Bristol, Baby!’ and the Irwin Tools Night Race lived up to the expectation.
 
Casey Mears and the GEICO team were excited for short track racing under the lights. After two practice sessions and qualifying on Friday, the 500-mile race was at center stage the following night. As the green flag waved shortly after 7:30 pm ET, Mears looked to move forward quickly from his 29th starting position. However, a loose handling condition on entry and exit plagued the driver.
 
The first caution slowed the field on lap 33, as debris was spotted on The World’s Fastest Half-Mile. Mears reported that the GEICO Toyota was “faster than these guys, but the car is just really loose.” Crew chief Bootie Barker brought Mears to pit road for four tires, fuel, and an air pressure adjustment. Varying pit strategies began early, placing Mears in 31st-place on the lap 38 restart.
 
By lap 60, Mears had driven up to the 27th position, but contact with another competitor forced the GEICO machine to lose a couple spots on the track. The second caution was shown on lap 105 with Mears holding 29th-place as the California native still faced a very loose handling condition. Barker brought his driver down pit road for four tires, fuel, and adjustments. Mears restarted from the 31st position on lap 111.
 
Twenty laps later the third caution for debris was displayed as Mears told his GEICO team that the Toyota was a lot looser than the first two runs. Barker took the opportunity to bring Mears back down pit road for four fresh tires, fuel, and air pressure adjustments. Mears took off from the 34th position on lap 136.
 
The next 165 laps were caution-free, forcing teams to pit under green flag conditions. Mears, who clocked his fastest lap times of the race during the long run, moved all the way into 16th-place before coming to pit road on lap 253 for four tires and fuel.
 
Mears drove his way into the 28th position by lap 299, when the fourth caution came for a multi-car accident. Barker and the GEICO team decided to take the wave around instead of pitting to regain one lap. As the field went back racing on lap 311, Mears quickly began to move forward. In a short 50 laps, the GEICO Toyota Camry was inside the top-25.
 
Another multi-car accident took place on lap 362, forcing the fifth caution to slow the field. This was the break the GEICO team was looking for in order for Mears to come to pit road for fresh rubber. The veteran driver did just that, pitting for four tires and fuel. Mears restarted from 23rd-place on lap 369. 
 
By lap 400, Mears had moved into the 22nd-place and was battling David Ragan for the Lucky Dog position. Just as Mears was a car length from completing the pass, the sixth caution came for a competitor hitting the wall. As tires played a key role the entire race, Barker called the GEICO machine to pit road for four tires and fuel, despite others behind Mears taking the wave around to return to the lead lap.
 
Mears took off from the 24th position on lap 421. Within 15 laps, the No. 13 GEICO Toyota had moved up to 23rd-place and was in the Lucky Dog position if a caution were to come out. However, the final 80 laps went caution-free and Mears crossed the finish line in the 23rd position, recording his eighth Top 25 of the 2011 season.
 
“The guys on this GEICO Racing team did a great job during the race,” said Mears. “Bootie made a really good call for us to take the wave around. The car had a lot of speed and I think we would have been able to move up even more if we would have gotten a caution. But nonetheless, the pit crew did a nice job and my spotter Jason Jarrett really let me know everything that was happening around me.”
 
Aside from netting yet another Top 25, Mears and the GEICO team jumped to the 32nd position in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Owner Point standings.
 
Next Sunday, September 4th, Mears and the GEICO team will head to Atlanta Motor Speedway for another race under the lights. The green flag will wave shortly after 7:30 pm ET and all the action can be seen live on ESPN. PRN Radio and Sirius XM Satellite Radio will also have the live 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