The 2003 Subway 500

Mark and the Viagra® (sildenafil citrate) Racing Team pitted during several cautions for four tires and fuel, while Mark saves it

the majority of the field stayed out. The strategy was for Mark to stay out on a later caution while the leaders would eventually be forced to pit. Several late cautions stifled the team’s strategy, but Mark still managed to move to a 14th-place run in the season’s final short track race of 2003.

“This was an awesome job by the Viagra® Racing Team,” said Mark after the race. “The car was good, it just gave a little at the end and it became too loose. Still, the car was pretty good. It wasn’t the great long-haul car that we needed but it was pretty good. It was just a great job by the team the entire weekend.”

The defining moment of the day came on lap 355 when Mark, about to get passed by the race leader, tangled with the No. 02 car of Hermie Sadler, causing Mark’s No. 6 Viagra Taurus to spin completely around. Ever the consummate veteran, Mark came out of the spin and stood on the gas, just narrowly staying in front of teammate Greg Biffle. The move allowed Mark to stay the first car one lap down and made him the recipient of the ‘lucky dog’ award, thus keeping Mark on the lead lap when the race went green.

Mark started the race 23rd, but broke into the top 20 by lap 50. By lap 70 Mark was running in 15th place and he would run in that area for the majority of the day, as track position would prove to hurt the team’s effort in the end.

Mark had complained of the car getting ‘way too loose’ and was in serious danger of losing a lap to the leader, as he dropped to 22 by lap 355 when the day’s sixth caution was called when he tangled with the No.02. However, Mark was literally able to drive himself out of the dilemma and the team used the caution to come into the pits for track bar and air pressure adjustments to tighten up the car’s handling.

Mark was in 22nd place – the last car on the lead lap – when the race went green on lap 363. Mark used the opportunity to pit for fresh tires and several cautions were called over the next several laps and the leaders stayed out. By lap 440 the strategy had begun to pay off as Mark moved into 14th place. Mark spent the last 60 laps of the race battling for position with the No. 17 car of teammate Matt Kenseth and the No. 21 car of fellow veteran driver Ricky Rudd. Jeff Gordon went on to win the race.

The team returns to action next week at Atlanta Motor Speedway - arguably the circuits fastest race track.