Okay Day for Bean at The Glen
Okay Day for Bean at The Glen
Toyota driver close to clinching spot in Chase
Date: Sept. 4, 2008
Event: Centurion Boats at The Glen (Round 22 of 36)
Series: NASRAC A-1 Series
Location: Watkins Glen International Raceway in Watkins Glen, NY (2.45-mile road course)
Start/Finish: 8th/11th (Running, completed 90 of 90 laps)
Winner: Adam Lyons (Toyota)
Aaron Bean came to the Watkins Glen International Raceway looking to solidify a spot in the Chase for the Cup and may have done so with his 11th-place finish on the 2.45-mile road course in upstate New York.
“It wasn’t pretty, but I’ll take it,” said Bean after parking his No. 108 Toyota at his team’s hauler. “We put ourselves in a position to really take a deep step into (the Chase), but I just couldn’t keep it in the Top-10 at the end.”
Bean, still 4th in A-1 Series points, ran in the Top-10 for most of the event until a caution with 22 laps to go saw the driver take to the pit lane for the final round of stops. When green flag racing resumed for the final 16-lap sprint to the finish, Bean immediatley slipped outside of the Top-10. When the checkered flag finally fell, Bean found himself just 0.15 seconds shy of 10th-place Tim Reeve’s Ford and what could have been Bean’s 14th Top-10 of the season. But the driver remained upbeat about his position in the end.
“It could have been 12th…13th,” said Bean. “At this point in the season, I’ll take as many points as I can. If 11th is where I finish, it means I got more points than I would have gotten if I finished 12th. I want to be one of those twelve guys (in the Chase) when we roll in to New Hampshire again.”
With four races reamining until the chase is set, Bean remains fourth in A1 Series point-standings, but has increased the cushion between himself and 13th-place Dylan Choquette to 388 points.
“I don’t plan on giving up what I’ve battled for,” said Bean. “I’m not throwing away all that work since the (Daytona) 500.”
The NASRAC A-1 Cup series Cup Series heads next to the 3M Performance 400 at Michigan International Speedway where Bean finished 9th earlier this season.
