Phoenix II: Ken Schrader race report

Schrader Stays Out of Trouble, Finishes 27th at Phoenix

In a race that no one was quite sure would ever end, Ken Schrader dodged several accidents and finished 27th in Sunday's Checker O'Reilly Auto Parts 500k NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Phoenix International Raceway.

Schrader, driver of the No. 96 DLP HDTV Toyota Camry for Hall of Fame Racing, started 32nd and fought an ill-handling car for much of the 313-lap event, which was extended one lap due to a green-white-checkered finish.

The race was also interrupted by two red flags, which lasted a combined 42 minutes.

The first red flag was for a rare rain shower that came through the Avondale, Ariz., area just past the 35-lap mark. The second was for a nine-car accident in turn three on lap 275. The multi-car accident was one of four throughout the last half of the race that Schrader avoided in order to finish relatively unscathed.

"We dodged a few things today and brought it home," Schrader said. "We couldn't quite get the handle on it, but we missed everything out there."

With the 27th-place finish, the No. 96 Hall of Fame Racing remained 39th in the series' owner standings with 2,337 points, 158 markers behind the 35th-place No. 47 entry of Michael Waltrip Racing.

-credit: hofr