Nov 16 2008 Montoya Finishes 2008 Season with Top-20 Finish
Results from Homestead-Miami Speedway
17.  Juan Pablo Montoya, No.42 Juicy Fruit® Slim Pack™ Dodge
31.  Reed Sorenson, No.41 Target Dodge

HOMESTEAD, Fla. (Nov. 15, 2008) – Juan Pablo Montoya and the No.42 Juicy Fruit Slim Pack Dodge were running in the top 10 at Homestead-Miami Speedway with 60 laps remaining, but Crew Chief Brian Pattie was forced to call Montoya down pit road with 12 laps to go for a splash of fuel to get to the finish line.  Montoya finished the 2008 season with a 17th-place finish in the race and a 25th-place standing in the final NASCAR Sprint Cup driver points.

Despite an early qualifying draw that put him on the track mid-day in the Florida heat, Montoya was able to post a lap quick enough to earn an 11th-place starting spot for the 267-lap race.  The first 68 laps were run caution free and included a round of green-flag stops.  Montoya held onto the 11th position and pitted on lap 71 for fresh tires and fuel.  Several cars elected to take right-sides, so Montoya restarted the race in 15th place.

A second round of green-flag stops began on lap 123 with Montoya 13th.  He brought the Juicy Fruit Slim Pack Dodge down pit road on lap 126 for an air pressure adjustment, four tires and fuel.  The No. 42 Dodge was slow at the start of a run, but became one of the quickest cars on the track after 20 laps.  Montoya continued to run in the top 15 and broke into the top 10 on lap 162.  He told Pattie the car was getting tight as the sun set over the 1.5-mile track.

Montoya raced up against the Chase contenders most of the race.  The car was turning well into the corner, but was just a little tight off the corner.  He pitted again on lap 200 for a chassis adjustment, tires and fuel.  Racing resumed on lap 203 with Montoya in 12th.  The caution waved again on lap 206, and several cars pitted for fuel to gamble on fuel mileage before the restart on lap 211.  Pattie elected to keep Montoya on the track because they were not within the car’s fuel window to make it to the end of the race.  Unfortunately, the caution flag didn’t wave again while several cars got better fuel mileage than the No.42 Dodge.  Montoya was running in the seventh position when he had to bring the car down pit road on lap 251.  He returned to the track in the 22nd position and a lap down to the leader.  Five cars ran out of fuel before the end of the race moving Montoya up to 17th when the checkered flag waved, but back on the lead lap.

Montoya Quote:  “The last few weeks have been very encouraging.  Today, we ran in the top 10 with the same guys that were running for the championship.  It’s been that way on all the mile and half tracks recently.  Although we haven’t been getting the results, it defi