Michigan Race Report
source: Red Bull Cheever Racing Despite some early difficulties, Red Bull Cheever Racing extended its string of top-10 finishes today at Michigan International Speedway in the Firestone Indy 400. Both Alex Barron and Patrick Carpentier began the day with a 30-minute final practice session, but a gearbox malfunction caused the motor in the #83 car to give out on the last lap in the session. The crew then rolled up their sleeves and pulled off a quick engine change, but the failure forced Carpentier to begin the race at the back of the field. Carpentier didn't let the early adversity stand in his way and worked his way up the field steadily. On lap 144, trouble came to the #83 crew when the #33 car lost a tire, which came sailing into the pit box and took out the outside rear tire changer, Josh Junge. The accident didn't affect Carpentier's position on the track (12th at the time), and Junge was taken to a local hospital for further observation. With a quick final pit stop and strategic driving, Carpentier then was able to guide his car to a ninth place finish. This marks his third consecutive top 10 and his seventh on the season. The result also continues his IndyCar Series lead in laps completed. "We made an engine change right before the race, and it seemed to make the car faster. I kept trying to hang with the leaders, but the car was sliding a bit. We made some improvements in the pits, but not enough to run with the front guys. We're still missing some speed, so we'll just have to look into what we can do to make the car faster for the upcoming races. Overall, though, I'm happy to get another top 10. It's good for the team, and it just shows how hard we're working," Carpentier said.
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