Talladega: Chase Montgomery race notes

Disappointing end to Montgomery's day at Talladega.

TALLADEGA, Ala. (October 4, 2002) -- It seemed as if nothing could go wrong this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway for ARCA RE/MAX Series rookie Chase Montgomery.

Montgomery was fastest in the first practice session for the Food World 300. After putting the newly painted florescent orange and yellow #27 Montgomery Motorsports Pontiac Grand Prix in third position on the starting grid, he finished out the final practice with the third quickest time.

With quick pit stops, and extreme patience and skill on Montgomery's part, the #27 led 27 laps of the race. He earned the Loctite Halfway Leader award for leading at the halfway point.

"We felt really confident all weekend," Montgomery said. "The crew put a great car under me and they deserve a lot of credit for all of their hard work."

With 20 laps to go, Montgomery was running in second place until he got hit from behind on a late-race restart. The collision sent Montgomery's machine hard into the outside retaining wall ending his day. He was not injured in the accident. As a result, Montgomery picked up the Landrum Spring Hard Luck honors.

"This was really unfortunate. We were running so well and really thought it was our turn to go to victory lane and it just didn't happen. We'll head back home and get ourselves ready for Lowe's."

The ARCA RE/MAX Series will travel to Lowe's for the final event of the 2003 season. The Montgomery remains in fourth place in the driver points. The green flag will fall on the EasyCare Vehicle Service Contracts 150 at 9:00 p.m.

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