The Bass Pro Shop/MBNA 500

Heavy rains postponed the running of the Bass Pro Shops/MBNA 500, but it was Mark has a bad day in Atlanta

early mechanical failure that finally brought an end to the weekend for Mark and the Viagra® (sildenafil citrate) Racing Team at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Mark lost an engine during the first lap of practice on Friday and was forced to start the race from the back of the field. The veteran driver had maneuvered his Ford Taurus from 43rd to 24th, before additional engine problems forced Mark and the team out of Monday’s race. Mark would end up taking home a 39th-place finish.

"I’m just really proud of this Viagra® team,” said Mark. “They just fought this thing all weekend. Our car was pretty good today. We just had to start in the back there because we had trouble on Friday with breaking an engine part. We haven't had any trouble with our engines since this race in the spring, so I really don't know what's up. The guys fought hard all day. We got caught a little short on a gas-mileage deal and I got a lap down, but we had a competitive car. It was pretty decent. I was proud of our race car and I'm real proud of our team."

The race actually started on Sunday, before heavy rains forced it to be postponed after only 39 laps. During those 39 laps, Mark was happy with his car, as he moved from the rear of the field to 26th place. Mark radioed that the car was ‘perfect’ just before the rain halted the race. Excellent work in the pits, including a 13.884-second stop helped Mark make his way up the field on Sunday.

After 33 laps caution was issued for rain and six laps later the field was red-flagged. When the rain refused to let up, NASCAR officials announced that the race would be postponed until the next morning. By late Monday morning the rain let up and was replaced by a cool breezy front that settled over the Atlanta area.

Mark was running in 25th place when the race resumed on lap 44. By lap 61, Mark had moved further up the field and in 18th position, before the car started to become loose. As the field began to pit under green conditions, Mark came into the pits for four tires and fuel on lap 100. The team posted another quick stop (14.86 seconds), but bad luck struck again moments later as caution was called on lap 102. All of the cars that had yet to pit were a lap ahead and Mark was caught a lap down. The No. 6 team stayed out on the track and Mark restarted the race at the tail end of the lead lap and in 30th position when the race went green on lap 113.

Running the low line, Mark quickly moved to 22nd place and was able to fight off the leaders for several laps, before finally going down a lap to the leader on lap 124. As the car become ‘loose’ again, Mark fell back to 25th place, where he was running when caution was issued on lap 151. The team came in for tour tires and to put wedge in to help tighten the car’s handling. Mark returned to the field in 24th place when the race went green on lap 157. Two laps later Mark radioed that he had lost the motor. The team retired to the garage and was forced to settle for a 39th-place finish.