Jamie McMurray started 14th, was knocked to the back of the field and then rallied for an impressive seventh-place finish in Sunday’s STP 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup contest at Kansas Speedway. Following the race, McMurray’s crew chief, Kevin Manion, was selected as MOOG Steering and Suspension “Problem Solver of the Race” for directing the No. 1 McDonald’s Chevrolet team’s comeback.
Presented by global vehicle components manufacturer Federal-Mogul Corporation, the MOOG Problem Solver of the Race Award is presented following each Sprint Cup event to the crew chief whose car posts the greatest improvement in average lap time over the second half of the race while finishing on the lead lap. The MOOG-equipped No. 1 Chevrolet SS was tops at Kansas with a 0.294-second improvement over the final 134 laps.
“Jamie, Kevin and the Earnhardt Ganassi team are putting together a really solid season,” said Federal-Mogul Motorsports Director Tim Nelson. “They had a little bad luck out there in the first half but Kevin nailed their chassis setup, which gave Jamie the speed and handling he needed to drive back into the top 10.”
McMurray was running just outside the lead pack when he was tapped from behind and nearly lost control on a Lap 115 restart. The No. 1 fell back to 35th but immediately began its journey forward thanks to excellent steering response and tire grip. The team has three top 10 finishes on the season and improved one spot, to 11th, in Sprint Cup points.
MOOG, the automotive service industry’s “Problem Solver,” is the preferred brand of professional technicians and NASCAR crew chiefs. Federal-Mogul’s MOOG steering and suspension product engineers work in partnership with Sprint Cup teams to develop and test innovative designs that help provide race-winning performance and durability. Many of these same technologies are featured in MOOG ball joints, tie rod ends and other components available for today’s passenger vehicles.
For more information regarding MOOG steering and suspension parts, visit the brand’s technician-focused www.moogproblemsolver.com website or contact your MOOG supplier. To identify the right MOOG part for virtually any application, use the convenient, free www.FMe-cat.com electronic catalog.