ALL-STAR: Reutimann Welcomes First Time

Sprint Cup

ALL-STAR: Reutimann Welcomes First Time

David Reutimann will compete in the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race for the first time May 22...

Tom Jensen | Posted May 13, 2010 Charlotte, NC

David Reutimann will make his first start in NASCAR's Sprint All-Star Race on May 22.(Photo: Getty Images)

While plenty of NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers are in the unhappy position of trying to figure out how they will make it into the May 22 Sprint All-Star Race, David Reutimann has no such worries.

Reutimann, the Zephyrhills, Fla., native qualified for his first All-Star race by winning last year’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, the same track that hosts the All-Star event. SPEED will broadcast the Sprint All-Star Race live on May 22, beginning at 7 p.m. ET.

It could be a big night for Reutimann, who has run well this season, but doesn’t have the finishes to show for it year. In fact, Reutimann has been downright snakebitten so far in 2010, which accounts for his 24th-place in the points standings. Three DNFs will do that to you.

“Not only have we not caught a break, we haven’t caught anything resembling a break,” said Reutimann, who has been the top points producer at Michael Waltrip Racing every year since joining the team in 2007.

Despite his bad fortune, Reutimann is encouraged by the performance of his MWR Toyotas.

David Reutimann has said he will return to Michael Waltrip Racing next season. (Photo: LAT Photographic)

“The good thing is, we’ve had speed and we’ve had things going in the right direction, until something bad has gone wrong,” said Reutimann.

“At the end of the day, that’s all you can look back on: ‘Well, we’re running good,” said Reutimann. “The guys are doing a good job.’ ... Performance-wise, we’re well ahead of where we were last year as far as how the car is performing and the crew is performing.”

Reutimann said Wednesday that he and the management at MWR are continuing talks for a new, multi-year contract, and that he is not negotiating with any other teams at the moment.

And he’s definitely excited about the prospect of his first Sprint All-Star Race.

“It’s something that didn’t even really register with me until we sat in there at the press conference after the race (the 2009 Coca-Cola 600),” said Reutimann. “They were like, ‘Yeah, you’re guaranteed a spot in the All-Star race.' And that was about as big as winning the race itself, just because you try so hard to get into that race.”

After missing the event in his first three full seasons in the Sprint Cup Series, now Reutimann is in. And he likes it.

“You know getting in on the (fan) vote is a long shot and you know everything’s got to go right for you in a short distance (in the Sprint Showdown) in order to race your way in,” he said. "Watching the race on TV the last couple of years and just being sick of doing that and wanting to be a part of that, now knowing that when you show up you’re going to be in it, that was something that was a big plus. That was almost as big as winning the race, I thought.”

Tom Jensen is the Editor in Chief of SPEEDtv.com, Senior NASCAR Editor at RACER and a contributing Editor for TruckSeries.com. You can follow him online at twitter.com/tomjensen100 and e-mail him at Jensen is the author of “Cheating: The Bad Things Good NASCAR Nextel Cup Racers Do In Pursuit of Speed,” and has appeared on numerous television and radio shows. Jensen is the past President of the National Motorsports Press Association and an NMPA Writer of the Year.

2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series All-Star Week • The Stars Come Out. The Gloves Come Off. • Saturday, May 22nd at 7 pm ET

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Tom Jensen

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