Englishtown: Dave Connolly final summary

Slight Loss of Traction Slows Connolly at SuperNationals

ENGLISHTOWN, N.J. - Dave Connolly didn't need a long time to recap his first-round finish at Sunday's K&N Filters SuperNationals at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park.

After qualifying ninth, Connolly's Torco Gear Chevrolet Cobalt spun the tires at the starting line, sashayed a little and went down the track in 6.730 seconds at 206.32 mph. His rival, Rickie Smith, took advantage of his momentary loss of traction and drove to the win in 6.707 seconds at 205.35 mph.

"We struggled all weekend and never did get a handle on it," Connolly said. "We made five runs and only had one good one. We have no one to blame but ourselves."

Connolly did, however, leave the starting line first, .029 seconds to .040, but he wasn't able to hold on very long.

"Dave did his job," said crew chief Terry Adams, who criticized himself for overestimating the track conditions. "Rickie was beatable, but we were in the right lane and it was pretty finicky."

Lane choice did make a difference in the opening round. Drivers in the preferred left lane won seven of the eight races.

The Torco Gear team returns to action at St. Louis, June 24-26, in the Sears Craftsman Nationals.

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