Late crash costs Danica Patrick at Pocono

Danica Patrick cut a left front tire on lap 138 and hit the turn-three wall, ending any chance of a good finish in Sunday’s Pocono 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.

Patrick, driver of the No. 10 GoDaddy Chevrolet SS for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), finished 37th in the race, two laps down after repairs had to be made.

The green and orange GoDaddy car was running second at the time, but was scheduled to make another pit stop before the end of the race for a splash of fuel. Even though a top-10 was probably out, a top-15 was what the team was aiming for when the accident occurred.

“I just went into turn three, and the car just shot to the wall,” said Patrick after only her third Sprint Cup start at Pocono. “It looks like the left front lost air for some reason. I believe Harvick had the same thing happen to him. Goodyear said our cars had similar left front tire issues – lost air in tires and sidewalls bowed out. It’s disappointing, because I think we could have had a good finish.”

Kurt Busch, driver of the No. 41 Haas Automation Chevrolet SS for SHR, started second and finished third to score his third top-five this season and his 11th top-five in 26 career Sprint Cup starts at Pocono. It was also his 103rd top-five in 485 career Sprint Cup starts.

Tony Stewart, driver of the No. 14 Mobil 1/Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet SS for SHR, started 12th and finished 13th after leading four times for 24 laps.

Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Budweiser Chevrolet SS for SHR, started fourth and finished 14th.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the Pocono 400 to score his 21st career Sprint Cup victory, his second of the season and his first at Pocono.

Brad Keselowski finished .439 of a second behind Earnhardt in the runner-up spot, while Busch, Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson rounded out the top-five. Jimmie Johnson, Ryan Newman, Jeff Gordon, Martin Truex Jr. and Jamie McMurray comprised the remainder of the top-10.

There were seven caution periods for 26 laps, with three drivers failing to finish the 160-lap race.

With round 14 of 36 complete, Harvick leads the SHR contingent in the championship point standings. He is 12th with 403 points, 95 behind new series leader Gordon. Stewart is 18th with 368 points, 130 out of first. Busch is 27th with 283 points, 215 out of first. Patrick is 28th with 246 points, 252 out of first.

The next event on the Sprint Cup schedule is the Quicken Loans 400 on Sunday, June 15 at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn. The race starts at 1 p.m. EDT, with live coverage provided by TNT beginning with its prerace show at noon.

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