AVONDALE, Ariz. – Robby Benton’s attempt to build a successful NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team hasn’t exactly panned out as he’d hope.
In fact, the struggles to even make the starting grid, have forced RAB Racing No. 29 Toyota team to rethink their Sprint Cup approach, which included withdrawing from Sunday’s CampingWorld.com 500 at Phoenix (Ariz.) International Raceway.
Make no mistake though, Benton refuses to give up on his dream or his team.
Benton told CATCHFNCE.com that the team will return next weekend at Auto Club (Calif.) Speedway with driver Reed Sorenson. The Peachtree, Georgia native attempted to qualify for RAB Racing at Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway and last weekend at Las Vegas (Nev.) Motor Speedway, but failed to qualify for both.
The team also missed the Daytona 500 with former driver Justin Marks.
The team’s withdrawal from the fourth race of the season allows them to focus on the 2.0-mile oval in Fontana, Calif. – nestled near the home of Toyota Racing Development (TRD) in nearby Costa Mesa, California.
Benton said it was “important” for the team to qualify in their manufacturer’s backyard next weekend, but also said it was equally important for Sorenson to make the show, as a “big” sponsor would be announced prior to the Auto Club 400 should the team make their Cup Series debut.
RAB Racing has attempted six Cup races in all. Three last year at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway (July), Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. The team qualified on time at the 2.66-mile oval of Talladega, but a controversial call in post-qualifying inspection disallowed the team’s time and sent them packing.
Regrouping during the off-season, the team came out swinging with Justin Marks at Daytona in both XFINITY and Cup. While the team fell a few positions shorts in their qualifying race at Daytona, a strong run was thwarted in the XFINITY opener when Marks found himself a victim in a late-race accident.
RAB Racing has enjoyed periods of success in the NASCAR XFINITY Series. The team, after all, is a former winner on the tour when Boris Said drove the team’s No. 09 to his only XFINITY Series win at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in 2010.
With a combination of drivers such as Said, Brian Scott, John Wes Townley, Alex Bowman and most recently James Buescher, RAB Racing has shown they don’t lack speed in their racecars, but transitioning that success to NASCAR’s premier level has proved to be frustrating and expensive.
However, Benton’s passion for the sport leads his motivation to turn the page and overcome the growing pains to make RAB Racing a staple at the sport’s highest level – even if does mean altering their plans and running a limited schedule moving forward in 2015.
Follow Chris Knight on Twitter @Knighter01.
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