and crew chief wizardry propelled the Carroll Racing Team to their fifth Top-10 in six races and moved the Dr Pepper Racing Team up two spots to 17^th in the Owners Points Standings.

The Kroger 200 is a unique race in that the entire competition is held in one day, one very long, hot and humid day.  The teams reported to the track at 6am and prepare the cars for inspection for the one and only practice at 11:30am.  The cars must qualify in a race trim because following a car’s time trial, the car is impounded until the start of the Kroger 200.  Only minor changes, tape removal and air pressure adjustments, are allowed prior to the green flag. 

During the practice session, Ron commented that the Dr Pepper Monte Carlo was extremely tight and felt as if the left front tire wasn’t even touching the track.  The “Thirst Crew” continued to throw various adjustments at the car but at the end of the session the crew were still scratching their heads trying to find a solution. 

Before the time trials Ron commented, “We just can’t get the car to turn, but we’re going to make a ton of changes before qualifying and hope it balances out.  We’re looking to change the springs, shocks, air pressures; you name it and it’ll probably be changed.”

The qualifying lap of the #26 Dr Pepper Chevy ranked 29th on the speed charts, but Ron felt a favorable change in the car’s handling.  Hornaday would be starting in the rear of the field with his work cut out ahead of him to get to the front.

Once again, Ron wasted no time at the start of the race and moved up 10 positions in the initial 10 laps.  The Dr Pepper Chevy began to tighten up more and more however during the run.  The first opportunity to pit came on Lap 37 when the yellow flag flew.  Todd Lohse, Crew Chief, called for four fresh tires with air pressure adjustments, the removal of a spring rubber and fuel.  The “Thirst Crew” made the changes and got Hornaday back on the track in the 25^th position.

The #26 Dr Pepper Chevy had new tires and enabled Ron to take advantage of the low line and pass by the competition on the inside.  Hornaday was battling side-by-side with #47 Shane Hmiel for numerous laps. On Lap 60, Hmiel and Hornaday were still neck and neck when Hmiel thought he had cleared the Dr Pepper Chevy and came down making contact.  Hmiel spun up into the wall and collected five other cars in the wreck, however the Dr Pepper Chevy did not sustain serious damage. 

“I’m not sure if his spotter cleared him (Hmiel) or not.  I was on fresh tires and running down low the entire time, he didn’t see me and we got together,” explained Hornaday.  “I feel bad for him; they say that’s short track racing but that’s not the way I race.  There was nothing deliberate with that incident, I think he was just cleared by his spotter prematurely.”

The incident brought out the red flag and when it went back to yellow, Lohse called for the        Dr Pepper Chevy to be brought down pit road but for fuel only.  The strategic call was a masterful one that bought Hornaday a ton of track position boosting him from 18^th to 4^th.  Ron picked up a spot before a quick caution came out on Lap 72.  The race went green and he picked up another spot before another fast caution flew.  When the green flag waved on Lap 91 Hornaday was riding in 2^nd.  Ron took advantage quickly knowing there were fresh tires behind him and ceased the opportunity and the lead by passing #27 Jamie McMurray. 

The Dr Pepper Chevy led for four laps before the cars that put on fresh rubber during the pit stops on Lap 62 caught it.  Hornaday would then battle a series of cars individually for the remainder of the race.  The Dr Pepper Chevy was a favorite with the television camera during the next 80 laps; the side-by-side battles were shown from every different angle.  Hornaday would hold off his competitors for six or seven laps before having to surrender the position.   A caution came out on Lap 171 when #25 Bobby Hamilton Jr. hit the wall in Turn 3.

Hornaday got his last set of tires and made a track bar and a wedge adjustment before returning for the last 25 laps.  Things got scary on Lap 180 when #14 Larry Foyt bounced off the wall on the backstretch and knocked in the right side of the Dr Pepper Chevy.  The “Thirst Crew” pulled out the fenders and got Ron back on the track to pick up some positions from the 11^th place status he was in with 15 to go.  Hornaday was trying to shake and move his way to the front, but there was a roadblock of cars ahead, many of which were a lap down.  The Kroger 200 ended with a few heated competitions including Hornaday and #33 Tony Raines for the 9^th position which Tony claimed by a millisecond and #60 Greg Biffle barely held off a charging #57 Jason Keller for the checker flag.    

“It was a good race tonight for the Dr Pepper Team,” commented Hornaday.  “We definitely didn’t have the best car but Todd made a couple great calls and we kept fixing this Dr Pepper Chevy to where I could drive it down low.  That is important here because everyone fights for that outside groove.  We’re going to test Michigan this week and work on our Superspeedway set-ups so we can continue this run and end up in Victory Lane soon.”

The Dr Pepper Racing Team will be spending Monday and Tuesday at the Michigan International Speedway testing for the upcoming Cabela’s 250 on August 17^th.  The Busch Grand National Series has an idle weekend this week and will return to action in Michigan with coverage beginning at 1:30 pm EST on MRN and NBC. 

Sponsor Exposure Update:  The Dr Pepper Chevrolet consumed the television broadcast with its intense racing throughout the Kroger 200.  The broadcasters continued to talk about the recent surge in the Dr Pepper Racing Team’s performance.  Ron entertained a large hospitality tent that was hosted by local Dr Pepper Reps before the race signing autographs and meeting the fans.  MRN opened their broadcast of the Kroger 200 by asking Ron to describe how he gets around this short, flat oval.   Following the race, Ron honored numerous interview requests including SPEED Channel and Fox Sports Net.