The 2003 Sylvania 300

Mark and the No. 6 Viagra® (sildenafil citrate) Racing Team ran to a 28th-place The gold color scheme for Marks 500th start

finish in Sunday’s Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway. Mark made his landmark 500th consecutive Winston Cup start at the race, a streak that dates back to Feb. 18, 1988 and is the third longest current streak in NASCAR. The team ran a special gold paint scheme commemorating the event.

However, despite the occasion, Mark struggled for the majority of the race as the team was never able to find the right combination of handling and speed. Midway through the race Mark radioed the car was handling better, but that he was struggling to run off the corners as fast as the car’s around him. In the end, the team was never able to find the proper adjustment to make the car faster.

With the car loose, Mark battled for several laps to remain on the lead lap. The team came into the pits on lap 81 to take four fresh tires, take on fuel and attempt to tighten the car by taking wedge out. The move worked for the short term, but Mark eventually succumbed to lead traffic and fell off the lead lap on lap 103. Mark was never able to gain his lap back.

The team continued to work on the car, making several adjustments, including additional wedge adjustments and adding a spring rubber, during a series of pit stops under various cautions. The team took four tires and made a track bar adjustment on lap 128. On lap 162 Mark entered the pits again for four tires, to take three rounds of wedge out and add a spring rubber to the right rear. He returned to the field in 31st place and the sixth car one lap down.

Eventually the car’s times became more competitive, and by lap 198 Mark had moved the field to 27th place – the second car one lap down. However during a long green-flag run, Mark’s lap times slowed and eventually he lost another lap. The team would go on to finish 28th, two laps down to the leader.

The Viagra® Racing Team returns to action next week at Dover Raceway.