NNS and NSCS...

11/22/2009

WRAPPING IT UP IN MIAMI..

+ SOUTH FLORIDA PUTS A STAMP ON IT ALL

The Homestead 400 put an end to “the grind” for two months. Speed finally got to get rid of that yellow stripe on his rear bumper.

Rookie Scott Speed in the No. 82, came home in 27th after starting second for the second consecutive race at the 1.5-mile track.

Speed began the Miami weekend with a ninth-place finish in Saturday’s Nationwide Series race, driving Michael Waltrip Racing’s No. 99 Red Bull Toyota. In a ride built for the 26-year-old former open-wheel driver to gain experience, Speed finished in the top 10 in eight of 13 races, including a pole in his debut race at Las Vegas in February.

A day later and in the final race of his rookie Sprint Cup season, Speed started alongside pole-sitter and eventual series champion Jimmie Johnson. It was the second time Speed had started on the front row at Homestead.

As 400 miles ticked away and day turned to night, Speed once claimed the handling of his No. 82 was like “driving a dirt car off the corners.” He settled into the 20s in the middle stages of the race and stayed there, finishing 27th.

Speed’s first full season at the Sprint Cup level ended with an average start of 23.7 and average finish of 29.0. His best showing was a fifth-place run in the spring race at Talladega.