From Peterson Media
Competing in Las Vegas, NV and Chico, CA last week, Rico Abreu had a week that was eventful from start to finish; though the events are ones he hopes are behind him.
Taking on the World of Outlaws in Sin City, Las Vegas, NV, Abreu and his Abreu Vineyards team got off to a strong start as the Rutherford, CA driver timed in 13th quickest in time trials, putting him on the front row of his heat.
Sharing the front row with Sammy Swindell, the duo traded the top spot several times over the first two circuits, with Abreu ultimately settling for the second spot, and earning a dash berth.
Starting on the front row of the dash with five-time series champion, Donny Schatz, Abreu would make a couple subtle mistakes, and slip back to finish fifth.
Starting the feature in the fifth spot, Abreu held strong in fifth as he and Joey Saldana began battling for position.
While battling with Saldana, Abreu got into the back of him, and made contact with the wall, which resulted in nose wing trouble.
When it finally collapsed, Abreu decided to end his night early, and was credited with a 21st place finish.
“We had a strong car on Wednesday, I just made a few mistakes, that unfortunately resulted in a DNF,” he said.
Back in action on Thursday night, Abreu improved his qualifying effort as he timed his Abreu Vineyards/ButlerBulit/FK Rod Ends machine in 10th fastest.
A second place finish in his heat again put him in the dash, where he lined his Brown and Miller/FK Shocks machine up in the third spot.
Just a few laps into the race, mechanical issues forced Abreu pit side, and he would be scored ninth, lining up for the feature in the fifth row.
The mechanical issues followed Abreu into the feature, as he would pull of early in the race, and end up being scored 24th.
Following the race, Abreu and his team loaded up, and headed home for California to compete in the Silver Cup in Chico, CA.
Reaching Sacramento at 8:30 AM, the team hit the car wash, and made the swap to their 360ci engine, before resting and making the 90-mile drive north.
Timing in 10th quickest, Abreu would proceed to score a third place heat finish, locking him into the feature, where he would line up in the ninth spot.
On the heavy, rough track, Abreu had his elbows up as he worked up into the fourth spot, as he entered a very entertaining battle with his Keith Kunz Racing teammate, Christopher Bell.
As the duo bounced over the track, troubled ensued on the 21st lap, as Abreu bounced and made hard contact with the front stretch wall, ending his night, and ultimately ending his long week.
“It was eventful for sure,” he said. “We were plenty fast all week, just had some things not go our way. I can’t thank Paul Silver and my guys for all their hard work this week, it was tough.”
Rico and his team would like to thank Abreu Vineyards, ButlerBuilt, FK Rod Ends, Schoenfeld, Keith Kunz Motorsports, Brown and Miller Racing Solutions, and Factory Kahne Shocks for their support.
2013 BY THE NUMBERS: Starts-14, Wins-0, Top 5’s-2, Top 10’s-4
ON TAP: Rico will head to the Thunderbowl in Tulare to meet up with the World of Outlaws this weekend.
STAY CONNECTED: Stay updated with Rico by visiting his website at www.ricoabreuracing.com, ‘liking’ him on facebook at www.facebook.com/
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