N’WIDE: Jeff Green Scores Fifth Last-Place Finish In Seven Daytona Races

SOURCE: motorsport.com

Jeff Green picked up the 54th last-place finish of his NASCAR Nationwide Series career in Saturday’s DRIVE4COPD 300 at the Daytona International Speedway when his #91 Supportmilitary.org Toyota fell out with a vibration after he completed 3 of the race’s 121 laps.

The finish was Green’s first since last year at Phoenix, two races ago.  It is also the sixth consecutive last-place finish for TriStar Motorsports and the second-straight run for their #91 team, following Michael McDowell’s run in last November’s finale at Homestead.

As in his previous rides with TriStar, Green was outstanding in qualifying.  He put up the 8th-fastest time at an average speed of 190.783 mph, two positions ahead of Truck Series veteran David Starr in Green’s old #10.  It was a huge turnaround for a team that had run just 41st and 18th in the weekend’s two practice sessions, locking him into a race nine other drivers did not make, including Cup driver David Ragan.

At the start of Saturday’s race, Green fell to the back of the field along with another LASTCAR record holder, Derrike Cope.  Cope, the 1990 Daytona 500 winner, had timed in 35th in the #70 Charliesoap.com Chevrolet and lost a lap early to the leaders.  However, it was about this time that Green pulled his #91 off the track, securing him a last-place finish for his fifth consecutive Nationwide Series season.  Cope finished six laps down in 37th, claiming a spot in the Bottom Five.

Joining Green and Cope were Harrison Rhodes, whose blown engine in the tri-oval brought out the first yellow of the day, Robert Richardson, Jr., who exited the race during that yellow, and Josh Wise in the lone entry for LASTCAR competitors The Motorsports Group.

LASTCAR STATISTICS
*This was Green’s third consecutive last-place finish in the season-opening Daytona event, all of them coming with TriStar Motorsports.  It’s also his fifth last-place finish in the last seven Nationwide races at Daytona.
*This was the first last-place finish for the #91 in a Nationwide Series race at Daytona.

THE BOTTOM FIVE
40) #91-Jeff Green / 3 laps / vibration
39) #24-Harrison Rhodes / 8 laps / engine
38) #23-Robert Richardson, Jr. / 12 laps / engine
37) #70-Derrike Cope / 114 laps / running
36) #40-Josh Wise / 114 laps / running

LASTCAR N’WIDE SERIES DRIVER’S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Jeff Green (1)

LASTCAR N’WIDE SERIES OWNER’S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) #91-TriStar Motorsports (1)

LASTCAR N’WIDE SERIES MANUFACTURER’S CHAMPIONSHIP
1st) Toyota (1)