Thursday, June 28, 2012

Kentucky Chassis Selections




Not all teams announce their weekly race chassis'. Here is a list of those teams that do reveal the chassis in the teams race preview:
#1- Jamie McMurray - Manion and the No. 1 McDonald’s team will bring Chassis #1208 to Kentucky this weekend. This chassis has raced this season at Las Vegas, Kansas and Charlotte finishing eighth, 14th and 21st respectively. Most recently, this chassis raced at Michigan International Speedway, finishing 14th.


#2- Brad Keselowski - The No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger team will race chassis PRS-822 during Saturday’s Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Speedway. Keselowski last drove this chassis to an 11th-place finish at Kansas Speedway in April. 


#5- Kasey Kahne - Crew chief Kenny Francis has selected Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 5-717 for Saturday’s race at Kentucky. Kahne has recorded a pair of top-10 finishes in this car, crossing the line eighth at Kansas Speedway in April and ninth at Dover (Del.) International Speedway in June.


#9- Marcos Ambrose - The No. 9 RPM team has prepared chassis No. 693 for this weekend's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race at Kentucky Speedway. This Mac Tools Ford was run previously this season in the All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.


#10- David Reutimann - Reutimann will pilot chassis No. 356, purchased from Richard Childress Racing in the off-season. Teammate Blaney drove the chassis last at Pocono Raceway. Reutimann drove the chassis at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Auto Club Speedway, Texas Motor Speedway, Kansas Speedway and Dover International Speedway this season. He had his best showing in the chassis at Texas Motor Speedway when he drove from the 31st starting spot to finish in 26th place. His best qualifying effort was at Kansas Speedway where he qualified in the 16th spot.


#14-Tony Stewart - Chassis 14-640. This car debuted in May 2011 at Darlington  Raceway where it enjoyed a solid outing, qualifying ninth and leading six laps before finishing seventh. It spent time in the wind tunnel afterward and made its second career start at Pocono  Raceway in June. There, it qualified 15th and moved its way into the top-five by lap 124, only to be felled two laps later when Stewart reported that he had lost third gear. The balky transmission prevented Stewart from getting up to speed quickly on restarts, which conspired to leave Chassis No. 14-640 in 21st place when the checkered flag dropped. The car returned to Pocono in August where it rallied from its 28th-place starting spot and a flat left-front tire on lap 92 that at one point had Stewart a lap down to finish on the lead lap in 11th. Chassis No. 14-640 broke through in the first race of the 2011 Chase for the Sprint Cup at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill., when it started 26th and led four times for 35 laps en route to the win. The car received a new body during the offseason and participated in a Goodyear Tire Test Feb. 7-8 at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth. Its first race of 2012 and fifth overall came at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in March, where Stewart drove from seventh to lead three times for a race-high 127 laps to score his first Sprint Cup win at Las Vegas. Chassis No. 14-640 raced at Texas in April, but unlike its past performances at intermediate tracks, the car struggled, qualifying 29th and finishing two laps down in 24th. Numerous trips to the wind tunnel, along with a single-day test June 14 at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, have the car better prepared for its seventh career start Saturday night at Kentucky.


#16- Greg Biffle - Primary Chassis: RK-803 Last ran All-Star – finished 22nd; Backup Chassis: RK-786 Last ran Homestead – finished 35th


#17- Matt Kenseth - This weekend at Kentucky, Kenseth will pilot the No. 17 Fifth Third Bank Ford Fusion. The primary chassis is RK-741.  Last ran at Charlotte.


#22- A J Allmendinger - Allmendinger and crew will be racing their "PRS-823" Shell-Pennzoil Dodge Charger this weekend at Kentucky. This car made its debut for the team in Kansas back in April. Dinger won the Coors Light Pole Award and led 44 laps before secondary linkage woes put him 10 laps down and relegated him to a 32nd-place finish. The "PRS-819" chassis will serve as the backup Shell-Pennzoil Dodge for this weekend. This was the car Dinger drove to a second-place finish in the April Martinsville race.


#24- Jeff Gordon - Gordon and the #24 team will race HMS chassis 24-712 at Kentucky. The car  finished 26th at California, fourth at Texas, 35th at Darlington and 13th at Dover in 2012.


#27- Paul Menard - Paul Menard will pilot Chassis No. 328 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. This No. 27 Chevrolet was last utilized in competition at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May where Menard started ninth and finished 15th. This chassis was also used at Phoenix International Raceway in March.


#29- Kevin Harvick - Kevin Harvick will pilot Chassis No. 381 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable in this weekend's Quaker State 400. Harvick drove this Chevrolet to a 13th-place finish at Texas Motor Speedway in June of 2011. It was also driven earlier this season by Brendan Gaughan at Las Vegas Motor Speedway as a No. 33 RCR Sprint Cup Series entry. 


#31- Jeff Burton -  Jeff Burton will race chassis No. 367 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. This No. 31 Chevrolet, originally built in 2011, has been utilized twice during the 2012 Sprint Cup Series season at Kansas Speedway in April (started-12th, finished-22nd) and in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May (started-22nd, finished-19th). This chassis has seen significant track time in 2011 including visits to Indianapolis Motor Speedway (started-13th, finished-35th), Atlanta Motor Speedway (started-27th, finished-13th) and Kansas (started-31st, finished-21st). Burton also tallied a top-10 finish at Homestead-Miami Speedway, finishing 10th after starting 31st with this Chevrolet.


#36- Dave Blaney - Blaney will drive the No. 293 chassis, which he drove four times this season and five times during the 2011 season. The Harford, Ohio native’s best start with the No. 293 chassis was 17th at Richmond and best finish was 23rd at Phoenix this season. TBR purchased the chassis from Richard Childress Racing, where Jeff Burton drove the chassis prior to its debut with TBR.


#39- Ryan Newman - In six previous starts, Chassis No. 39-686 has one-top five and three top-10 finishes. The chassis already has five starts this season, including most recently in the Pocono 400 at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway. At Pocono, Newman had a strong car and looked to be a lock for at least the top-10. But a wild restart just 30 laps from the end of the race saw Newman drop from sixth to 11th place, which hampered his efforts in the closing laps. He finished 12th. In the non-points-paying All-Star Race at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway, Newman finished 10th after battling with a loose-handling car throughout the 90-lap event. Prior to the non-points race, Newman used Chassis No. 39-686 at Kansas 
Speedway in Kansas City and at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. At Kansas, Newman ran in the top-15 for most of the race but, with less than 70 laps to go, he was forced to the pits for an unscheduled stop with what he thought was a deflating tire. He exited the pits one lap down to the leaders, ending his shot at a top-10 finish and relegating him to 20th  place. At Las Vegas, Newman qualified a disappointing 18th  but made a strong drive into the top-10, where he ran for most of the race. He drove from eighth to a solid fourth-place finish in the final four laps at the 1.5-mile oval.  Last season, chassis 39-686 made two starts at intermediate racetracks during the 2011 Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship, which resulted in one top-10 finish. The chassis made its debut in the Bank of America 500 at Charlotte in October, where Newman started sixth, led six laps and finished a solid 10th. In the second start for the chassis, at the AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Newman recovered from a loose wheel and came back from two laps down to finish a respectable 16th


#42- Juan Pablo Montoya - Crew Chief Chris “Shine” Heroy and the No. 42 Target team will bring Chassis #1205 to Kentucky this weekend. This chassis raced to a 12th-place finish at Kansas this season and a 20th-place finish in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway


#43- Aric Almirola - The team has prepared chassis No. 783 for the Kentucky race. Almirola earned the pole position in this car at Charlotte in May, and also ran the chassis at Texas and Las Vegas earlier this season.


#48- Jimmie Johnson - Chassis No. 714 serves as the primary for Johnson at Kentucky. Chassis No. 669 serves as the backup. #714 last ran at Charlotte finished 11th. It also ran at texas, finished 2nd.


#51- Kurt Busch - Chassis No. 557: Saturday night’s Quaker State 400 will be the second race of the 2012 season for Chassis No. 557. The team last used this chassis in May at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway, where it competed in the top-10 for the majority of the event before a late-race issue relegated it to a 21st-place finish. The team also used this chassis during the mid-April tire test at Dover (Del.) International Speedway. Prior to the 2012 season, the car was used as a road-course car. Hendrick Motorsports built this chassis with a universal clip, which allows for greater adjustments with the geometric points on the chassis. As such, the team converted the car from a road-course car to an intermediate track car for this season.


#55- Michael Waltrip - CHASSIS: 722 - Brian Vickers finished fifth at Bristol in this chassis while Mark Martin finished 21st in the All-Star race in Charlotte. Backup - 708 - has not raced in 2012. 

#88- Dale Earnhardt Jr - Crew chief Steve Letarte will unload Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 88-668 for this weekend’s Cup event at Kentucky. Earnhardt last raced this chassis to a sixth-place finish in the 600-mile event at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway. Earnhardt also won the Sprint Showdown in this car during the Sprint All-Star race weekend in May.


#99- Carl Edwards - aThe No. 99 UPS crew will be unloading chassis 811.  Edwards last raced this car at the Coke 600 in Charlotte where he finished ninth.


- Reported in Team News/Press Releases

NASCAR Driver Press Conference Schedule - Kentucky


Press Conference Schedule, Kentucky



NASCAR schedules driver press conferences at every race weekend event. These normally include the Top 12 drivers in championship points in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, along with other drivers of note. The press conferences will last approximately 15 minutes each and may be viewed at NASCAR.com. Times listed are local time. 


June 28:

2:15 p.m. – Brad Keselowski (No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge) – Media Center

3:15 p.m. – Nelson Piquet Jr. (No. 30 Majic Brasil Chevrolet in NASCAR Camping World Truck Series) – Media Center

3:30 p.m. – Elliott Sadler (No. 2 One Main Financial Chevrolet in the NASCAR Nationwide Series) – Media Center

4 p.m. – Michael Waltrip Racing Announcement – Media Center

5:30 p.m. – Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (No. 6 Sam's Club/Cargill Ford in the NASCAR Nationwide Series) – Media Center

5:55 p.m. – Kevin Harvick (No. 29 Budweiser Folds of Honor Chevrolet) – Media Center
June 29:

10 a.m. – Clint Bowyer (No. 15 5-Hour Energy Toyota)  Media Center

10:15 a.m. – Matt Kenseth (No. 17 Fifth Third Ford) – Media Center

10:30 a.m. – Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe's Dover White Chevrolet) – Media Center

10:45 a.m. – Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88 Diet Mountain Dew/National Guard Chevrolet)  Media Center

12:40 p.m. – Carl Edwards (No. 99 UPS Ford) – Media Center

1:30 p.m. – Danica Patrick (No. 7 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet in the NASCAR Nationwide Series) – Media Center
3 p.m. – Tony Stewart (No. 14 Office Depot/Mobil 1 Chevrolet) – #14 hauler
3:15 p.m. – Greg Biffle (No. 16 ARC Ford) – #16 hauler
3:30 p.m. – Aric Almirola (No. 43 Eckrich Ford) & Richard Petty – #43 hauler
3:45 p.m. – Jeff Gordon (No. 24 Drive To End Hunger Chevrolet) – #24 hauler
4 p.m. – Kyle Busch (No. 18 M&M's Red, White & Blue Toyota) – Media Center


- NASCAR 

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. To Drive For Roush Fenway In Sprint Cup Series In 2013


Roush Fenway Racing announced today that 2011 NASCAR Nationwide Series champion Ricky Stenhouse Jr. will compete for the team full-time in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series competition beginning in 2013, while Matt Kenseth and Roush Fenway will part ways at the conclusion of the 2012 season.


“Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has more than proved his abilities on the race track,” said team co-owner Jack Roush.  “We feel that he is not only a key piece of our team’s future, but a key piece of the future of the sport.  Roush Fenway is an organization with a wonderful past and present, as well as an extremely promising future, and I can’t think of a better candidate than Ricky to usher in the next era of success for the team.


“Of course, I’d like to thank Matt Kenseth for his many years of loyal service,” added Roush. “Matt has been an integral part of this organization for well over a decade, and we are extremely appreciative of his accomplishments and contributions to the team, and will always consider him a part of the Roush Fenway family.


“We’re fortunate that we were able to tap into Matt’s potential and bring him on board many years ago, and I’m proud that together we were able to combine the tools and the resources of Roush Fenway with his talent and determination to forge a partnership that yielded a championship at the Cup level and all of his 22 Cup victories, including two Daytona 500 wins,” continued Roush. “The No. 17 is positioned extremely well this season, and I’m committed to providing the team the best resources to continue their run for the 2012 championship. I have no doubt that Matt will do his part.”


“Matt and I broke into this sport together, learned the ropes and were able to bring home a championship,” said Roush Fenway general manager Robbie Reiser, who as crew chief of the No. 17 guided Kenseth to Roush Fenway’s first Sprint Cup title in 2003 before moving into his current role. “Over the 20 years we have worked with each other, Matt has been a fierce competitor and become a close friend, not only for me, but as a mentor to young drivers like Ricky.  I wish Matt nothing but the best for the next phase of his career, and know that we’ll remain close.”


Stenhouse Jr. is one of three drivers currently in development for Roush Fenway Racing. Trevor Bayne, the 2011 Daytona 500 champion and Chris Buescher, who has won seven races in only 42 starts in ARCA competition are also being groomed for Sprint Cup competition for Roush Fenway in the future.


“We take great pride in the depth of the bench here,” noted team president Steve Newmark. “The organization’s ability to identify and develop new talent is part of our DNA and a cornerstone of our success. I’m excited about the opportunity to bring Ricky into the Sprint Cup Series and get him into victory lane. He has an incredible opportunity to continue his winning ways, just as Matt did nearly 15 years ago.”


- Roush Fenway Racing Press Release

Monday, June 25, 2012

Kentucky Speedway History and Notes



At Kentucky Speedway:
History:· In 1998, the track broke ground in Sparta, Kentucky, and opened as a 1.5-mile speedway in 2000.

· The original owners, Jerry Carroll and four other investors owned the track until 2008, when current owners, Speedway Motorsports Inc. purchased the facility.

· Since 2000, the track has hosted 11 NASCAR Nationwide Series (2001-2011) and 13 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races (2000-2011).

· The first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race was held in 2011.

Notebook:
· There has been one NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Kentucky Speedway (2011).

· The first NASCAR Sprint Cup qualifying at Kentucky was cancelled due to weather. The starting line-up was set per the NASCAR Rule Book.

· Kyle Busch won the first NASCAR Sprint Cup race; he started from the first position.

· The 2011 event had 20 lead changes among 20 leaders.

· Of the scheduled 267 laps, Kyle Busch led the most with 125, followed by Brad Keselowski with 79 laps led.

· 23 cars of the 43-car field finished on the lead lap, with 34 cars running at the finish.

· The margin of victory for the first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky was 0.179 seconds.

· Youngest/Oldest NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Kentucky Speedway winner: Kyle Busch (07/09/2011 – 26 years, 2 months, 7 days).

· Jimmie Johnson leads all drivers in wins at 1.5-mile race tracks (16 wins).

Kentucky Speedway Data:
Race #: 17 of 36 (06-30-12)
Track Size: 1.5 miles
Race Length: 267 laps / 400.5 miles
· Banking/Turns: 14 degrees
· Banking/Frontstretch: 8 degrees
· Banking/Backstretch: 4 degrees
· Frontstretch: 1,662 feet
· Backstretch: 1,600 feet

- NASCAR STATISTICS

Waltrip and Aaron's to Honor University of Kentucky


 When Michael Waltrip climbs in the No. 55 Toyota at Kentucky Speedway’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race on Saturday night, he and his Aaron’s Dream Machine will sport University of Kentucky colors to honor his – and probably most of the local fans’ – favorite college basketball team.

The blue-and-white paint scheme and the Owensboro, Ky. native’s driver’s uniform will pay tribute to UK’s 2012 NCAA National Champion basketball team. 

“This might be my all-time favorite paint scheme,” said Waltrip, a two-time Daytona 500 champion and Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame member. “I’m so proud of all the people in Kentucky for not only their world class race track, but we have the best college basketball team in the country again. To race in Kentucky and wear the UK uniform will be a heck of an honor for me.”

Waltrip will have many high profile supporters.

“We’re honored Aaron’s and Michael Waltrip have chosen to don our colors during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Race at Kentucky Speedway,” said UK basketball coach John Calipari. “Michael is a championship-caliber driver, and I can’t think of anyone better to race our colors to victory.”

Kentucky athletics director Mitch Barnhart will visit the track Thursday to help Waltrip unveil the special paint scheme.

“It’s so exciting to be hosting a NASCAR Sprint Cup race in the Bluegrass state and we can’t wait to watch Michael race in the blue and white,” Barnhart said. “We thank Aaron’s for making this possible and will be cheering Michael on in his home state.”

Waltrip thanked Aaron’s for permitting him to combine two of his great passions in life.

“Like everyone in Kentucky I grew up watching UK basketball. That’s just what we did. We raced cars and watched basketball. I guess it’s part of the culture,” he said. “I can’t tell you how thankful I am to Aaron’s for combining NASCAR and UK basketball for the weekend. I think they’ll bring the national championship trophy to the Aaron’s display at the track. I’d love to give the UK folks another trophy to take back to Lexington after the race.”

Aaron’s said it wanted to do something special for the fans at Kentucky Speedway.

“Aaron’s is a proud sponsor of the University of Kentucky athletic program, and we’re thrilled to have an opportunity to honor the school in this exciting and unconventional way,” said Ken Butler, Aaron’s chief operating officer. “We know how much this means to the people of Kentucky. We hope to give the University of Kentucky something to smile about on Saturday night with a Wildcat-themed car in Victory Lane.”

- Michael Waltrip Racing Press Release

Friday, June 22, 2012

Sonoma NASCAR HotPass Lineup









Ride Along with Stewart, Biffle, Montoya and Truex at Sonoma on DIRECTV 
Event:     Toyota/SaveMart 350K
Previous Winner:   Kurt Busch (beat Jeff Gordon by 2.685 seconds on June 26, 2011) 
Date / Time:    Sunday, June 24, at 3 p.m. EDT 
Track:     The Road Course in Sonoma, Calif. 
Configuration:    1.99-mile road course (110 laps = 218.9 miles/350 kilometers) 
Number of Turns:   10 
First Sprint Cup Series Race:  June 11, 1989 – Banquet Frozen Foods 300 (Winner – Ricky Rudd) 
Grandstand Seating Capacity:  N/A


NASCAR HOTPASS on DIRECTV is back, and it’s FREE to all DIRECTV customers. Four dedicated driver channels offering viewers multiple camera angles, real-time statistics and audio of the network broadcast augmented by live communication between the drivers and their pit crews are available for all 36 points-paying races during the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season. 
 The NASCAR HOTPASS lineup for the Toyota/SaveMart 350K in Sonoma, Calif., is as follows:
DIRECTV Channel 795: Tony Stewart and the No. 14 Office Depot/Mobil 1 Chevrolet team of Stewart-Haas Racing.

DIRECTV Channel 796: 
Greg Biffle and the No. 16 3M – US Stationary Ford team of Roush Fenway Racing.

DIRECTV Channel 797: Juan Pablo Montoya and the No. 42 Target Chevrolet team of Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates.

DIRECTV Channel 798: 
Martin Truex Jr., and the No. 56 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota team of Michael Waltrip Racing.

About NASCAR HOTPASS on DIRECTV:NASCAR HOTPASS is available free to all DIRECTV customers. More information is available at www.directv.com/hotpass.

TrueSpeed Communications Press Release

Thursday, June 21, 2012

Sonoma Chassis Selections



Not all teams announce their weekly race chassis'. Here is a list of those teams that do reveal the chassis in the teams race preview:
#1- Jamie McMurray - Crew Chief Kevin “Bono” Manion and the No. 1 McDonald’s team will bring Chassis #1012 to Sonoma this weekend.  This road course chassis will make its third Sonoma appearance and fifth race, overall.  This chassis has finished 15th at Sonoma twice, and earned sixth and 17th place finishes at Watkins Glen in 2010 and 2011, respectively.


#2- Brad Keselowski - The No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger team will race chassis PRS-806 during Sunday’s Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma. This is a brand-new chassis to the No. 2 fleet.


#5- Kasey Kahne - Crew chief Kenny Francis has selected Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 5-674. Mark Martin drove this car in both 2011 road course races, finishing 19th at Sonoma and 25th at Watkins Glen International.


#9- Marcos Ambrose - The No. 9 RPM team has prepared chassis No. 772 for this weekend's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race at Sonoma. This Stanley Ford was previously tested this season at Virginia International Raceway. 


#10-Tomy Drissi - Drissi will pilot chassis  #802. David Reutimann drove the chassis at Brisol Motor Speedway this season, and Blaney drove the chassis last season at Bristol, Phoenix, Vegas, Chicago, Charlotte and Kansas. Geoffrey Bodine also drove the chassis at Homestead and Texas.


#14-Tony Stewart - Chassis No. 14-731: This is a brand-new race car that has never turned a wheel on the racetrack. The Toyota/Save Mart 350k on the road course at Sonoma, Calif., will mark Chassis No. 14-731’s on-track debut.


#15- Clint Bowyer - Primary chassis No. 632 previously raced as the No. 47 at Sonoma. Chassis No. 690 is the backup and previously raced as the No. 56 in California and Michigan in 2011.


#16- Greg Biffle -  Chassis: Primary: RK-764 Last ran Watkins Glen – finished 31st.


#17- Matt Kenseth - Primary chassis for Sonoma is RK-771. Last raced at Watkins Glen.


#22- A J Allmendinger - Allmendinger and crew will be racing their "PRS-808" Shell-Pennzoil Dodge Charger at Sonoma this weekend. This is the chassis that was raced at Richmond in the April 28 Capital City 400. Dinger started fourth and finished 16th in that race. The car was lightning fast on short runs, but with only five cautions during the entire race there was little time to make adjustments. The "PRS-807" chassis will serve as the backup. It was in the transporter serving as the backup at Phoenix, Bristol and Martinsville, but has never seen any track time to date


#24- Jeff Gordon - Gordon will race HMS chassis #24-730 at Sonoma, this is a brand new chassis.


#27- Paul Menard - Paul Menard will pilot Chassis No. 358 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. Built new in 2011, this No. 27 Chevrolet was last utilized in competition at the 2011 Sprint Cup Series race at the Sonoma, Calif.-based road course.


#29- Kevin Harvick - Kevin Harvick will pilot Chassis No. 395 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. The No. 29 Chevrolet was built new for competition in 2012 and will be put through its first competitive laps this weekend at Sonoma.


#31- Jeff Burton - Jeff Burton will race chassis No. 357 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable this weekend. This No. 31 Chevrolet, built during the 2011 season, was driven by RCR teammate Kevin Harvick last year at Sonoma where he started 26th and finished ninth.


#36-Dave Blaney - Blaney will drive chassis #101 this weekend. The chassis was built in-house at TBR and made its debut at Auto Club Speedway. The chassis was converted to a road course car following a start at Texas Motor Speedway this season.


#39- Ryan Newman - Chassis No. 39-651 has just two starts to its credit last season's road course races at Sonoma and Watkins Glen. Newman started fifth at Sonoma and was in the top-five for the race's first 25 laps. But on lap 38, while entering the final turn on the course, Newman was caught up in a multi-car accident that all but ended his chance of victory. During the accident, Newman spun in the middle of the corner and managed to stay away from the outside retaining wall. But as he was about to put the car in gear and begin driving forward, his Chevy was hit by another car attempting to dodge the melee. After substantial repairs, Newman finished 25th. At Watkins Glen, Newman started fifth. The team had a good strategy going into the race, planning to pit early, but the strategy didn't pan out. Newman recorded a 16th-place finish. After undergoing a face lift for the 2012 season, the car will make its first start this week at Sonoma.


#42- Juan Pablo Montoya - Crew Chief Chris “Shine” Heroy and the No. 42 Target team will bring Chassis #1014 to Sonoma this weekend.  This chassis boasts a victory at Watkins Glen in 2010 and a seventh-place finish in 2011.  It finished 10th and 15th at Sonoma in 2010 and 2011, respectively.  Chassis #1014 has led a total of 80 laps; two of those laps were at Sonoma.


#43- Aric Almirola - The #43 RPM team has prepared a new chassis, #774, for Sonoma with sponsor Medallion Financial. 


#48- Jimmie Johnson - Chassis No. 543 serves as the primary for Johnson at Sonoma. Chassis No. 590 serves as the backup. No. 543 ran the last six road course races and won at Sonoma in 2010.


#55- Brian Vickers - The 55 team will race chassis 690 – first race in 2012.


#88- Dale Earnhardt Jr - This weekend, crew chief Steve Letarte and the No. 88 team will unload Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 88-601. Earnhardt most recently raced this chassis to a 15th-place finish at Watkins Glen in August last year.


#99- Carl Edwards - The Aflac team will be bringing chassis RK-816 this weekend to Sonoma.  It is a new car that the team tested at VIR.


- Reported in Team News/Press Releases

Sonoma Driver Statistics

Not all teams announce their weekly race previews'. Here is a list of those teams that do reveal the information in the teams race preview: 

#1- Jamie McMurray - This weekend’s race will be McMurray’s 10th start at Sonoma.  McMurray has been nearly perfect in Northern California, completing 993 laps out of a possible 994 laps.  He has one top-five, one top-10 and five top-15 finishes.  The driver of the No. 1 Chevrolet qualified on the pole in 2007, and led 30 laps.  His best finish at the track is second in 2004.


#2- Brad Keselowski - In two starts at sonoma, Brad has one top ten and one DNF.


#5- Kasey Kahne - In eight NASCAR Sprint Cup starts at Sonoma, Calif., Kasey Kahne has one win and two top-five finishes. He has earned two pole positions and started in the top 10 in his last six races at the 1.99-mile road course. Kahne has completed 97.7 percent of all laps attempted at the track (865 of 888 total) and led a total of 41 laps.


#9- Marcos Ambrose - Ambrose has four NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at the 1.99-mile road course and his best starting and finishing positions (third) came in 2009. He also has two top fives, three top 10s and an average finish of 14.0.


#14-Tony Stewart - Stewart has one pole, two wins, two second-place finishes, four top-fives, eight top-10s and has led a total of 82 laps in his 13 career Sprint Cup starts at Sonoma. His average start at the 1.99-mile, 10-turn road course is 10.1, his average finish is 11.5 and he has a lap completion rate of 98.5 percent.


#15- Clint Bowyer - Bowyer will make his seventh NSCS start at Sonoma on Sunday. In his previous six starts Bowyer has three top-five and four top-10 finishes. His best finish is fourth, which he has done three times including his most recent trip in 2011. Bowyer has led two laps in his six starts, averages a 19th place starting position and finish of 11th. Bowyer has completed all 165 possible laps raced over his career. Bowyer has scored 693 points at Sonoma – fourth most of any driver during the last six seasons.


#16- Greg Biffle - In 9 races at Sonoma, Biffle has earned two top 5's and three top 10's with only one DNF. Biffle's best finish at Sonoma was 4th in 2006.


#17- Matt Kenseth - Kenseth has an average starting position of 20.2 and an average finishing position of 21.5 at Sonoma.  Kenseth’s best finish at Sonoma came in 2008 when he earned a top-10 finish at the road course.


#18- Kyle Busch - Busch has one win, one top-five, one top-10, and has led a total of 88 laps in seven career Sprint Cup starts at Sonoma. His average Sonoma finish is 18.9


#22- A J Allmendinger - In four career races on the Sonoma road course, Allmendinger has one top-10 finish, with an average start of 19.5 and an average finish of 17.5. He has only three unfinished laps (442 of 445=99.326 percent completion average). Add his stats from Watkins Glen International (four starts, one top-5 & two top-10s, with no uncompleted laps) and Dinger's eight-race Cup road course career boasts one top-five finish and three top-10s. He has a 17.4 average start and 13.3 average finish on the road courses. He has a 99.628 percent lap completion average (804 of 807) on road courses entering this weekend.


#24- Jeff Gordon - Gordon leads most performance statistics at the 1.99-mile track. In 19 starts, his five wins are three more than any other driver while he ranks first in poles (five), top-five finishes (12), top-10’s (15) and laps led (437). In fact, Gordon has eight more top-fives than any driver competing in Sunday’s race and he has led 266 more laps than anyone else at the 10-turn track.

#27- Paul Menard - Menard has four starts at Sonoma with a best finish of 11th last year.


#29- Kevin Harvick - In 11 races at Sonoma, Harvick has three top 5's and four top 10's with a best finish of second in 2007.


#31- Jeff Burton - This weekend’s 110-lap event marks Burton’s 19th start at the 1.99-mile facility and 635th-career Sprint Cup Series entry. Burton garnered one top-five and five top-10 finishes at the track. He also led three laps at the Sonoma, Calif.-based 


#36- Dave Blaney - Blaney is winless in eleven starts at Sonoma, with a best finish on 19th in 2005. Blaney has three DNF's at the road course.


#39- Ryan Newman - The Toyota/Save Mart 350K will mark Newman’s 384th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start and his 11th Sprint Cup start on the road course at Sonoma, Calif. Newman has two top-five finishes and five top-10s in 10 starts at the 1.99-mile circuit.


#42- Juan Pablo Montoya - The date of this year’s race at Sonoma marks the five year anniversary of Montoya’s first NSCS win on June 24, 2007.  Montoya worked his way up from 32nd to lead seven laps of the 110 possible laps on his way to victory. He also has one top five and four top ten's at Sonoma.


#43- Aric Almirola - Almirola has only one previous Cup start at Sonoma, finishing 28th on the course in 2008.  He brings additional left-and-right-turn experience from his Nationwide Series career, in which he made four road/street-course starts and earned a top finish of eighth (Watkins Glen, 2011).


#48- Jimmie Johnson - Johnson at Sonoma: One win in 10 starts. No poles. Three top-five finishes (30 percent) and five top-10s (50 percent). Average finish of 14.7. One DNF in June 2002.


#55- Brian Vickers - Vickers has one pole in six starts at Sonoma and is still searching for a top ten finish. His best finish was 14t in 2006 and 2008.


#88- Dale Earnhardt Jr - Earnhardt has scored five top-15 finishes in 12 Sprint Cup starts at Sonoma, Calif. He has completed 93.4 percent of all the laps he's attempted (1,241 laps of 1,329 total) at the 1.99-mile California road course.


#99- Carl Edwards - Edwards will make his eighth Cup start at Sonoma this weekend.  In his previous seven starts, Edwards has one top-five and three top-10 finishes, and has led 14 laps. His average start is 20.9 and his average finish is 16.6.



- Reported in Team News/Press Releases

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

NASCAR Driver Press Conference Schedule- Sonoma


Press Conference Schedule, Sonoma


NASCAR schedules driver press conferences at every race weekend event. These normally include the Top 12 drivers in championship points in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, along with other drivers of note. The press conferences will last approximately 15 minutes each and may be viewed at NASCAR.com. Times listed are local time. 


June 22:
10 a.m. – Marcos Ambrose (No. 9 Stanley Ford) – Media Center

10:15 a.m. – Kevin Harvick (No. 29 Rheem Chevrolet) – Media Center

10:30 a.m. – Juan Pablo Montoya (No. 42 Target Chevrolet) & Jamie McMurray (No. 1 McDonald’s Chevrolet) – Media Center

11 a.m. – Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet) – #48 hauler

11 a.m. – Matt Kenseth (No. 17 Ford EcoBoost Fusion Ford) – Media Center

11:15 a.m. – Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88 Diet Mountain Dew/National Guard Chevrolet) – Media Center

1:30 p.m. – Tony Stewart (No. 14 Office Depot/Mobil 1 Chevrolet) - #14 hauler

1:40 p.m. – Carl Edwards (No. 99 AFLAC Ford) – Media Center

2 p.m. – Greg Biffle – (No. 16 3M/US Stationary Ford) – Media Center

2 p.m. – Denny Hamlin – (No. 11 FedEx Ground Toyota) - #11 hauler

2:15 p.m. – Jeff Gordon (No. 24 Drive To End Hunger Chevrolet) – Media Center

3 p.m. – Kasey Kahne (No. 5 Farmers Insurance Chevrolet) – Media Center

- NASCAR 

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

SRT Motorsports Presents THE NUMBERS for Sonoma

THE NUMBERS for the Toyota/Save Mart 350
Sonoma (All 23 Sprint Cup Races)
2 – fewest laps led by race winner (twice, most recent 5/7/95)

2 – races won from outside a top-20 starting position (Juan Pablo Montoya – 2007,
Kyle Busch – 2008)

3 – wins by Dodge in last five races at Sonoma (Juan Pablo Montoya – 2007,
Kasey Kahne – 2009, Kurt Busch – 2011)

3 – fewest cautions (four times, most recent 6/23/02)
3 – fewest leaders (6/11/89)
3 – fewest lead changes (6/11/89)
4 – drivers with more than one pole
5 – most wins (Jeff Gordon)
5 – most poles (Jeff Gordon)
5 – drivers with more than one win
7 – fewest caution laps (6/7/92)
8 – wins from the front row; five from the pole
9 – most cautions (6/10/90)
9 – most leaders (three times, most recent 6/26/11)
12 – most lead changes (twice, most recent 6/26/11)
14 – different pole winners
15 – different race winners in 23 races
14 – fewest cars on lead lap at finish (twice, most recent 5/16/93)
26 – most caution laps (6/27/99)
32 – worst starting position for race winner (Juan Pablo Montoya – 6/24/07)
33 – fewest cars running at finish (5/16/93
36 – most cars on lead lap at finish (6/21/09)
42 – most cars running at finish (twice, most recent 6/26/05)
92 – laps led by race winner (Jeff Gordon – 6/27/04)


2012 Caution Update
1 – fewest cautions this season (Fontana)
4 – races extended beyond scheduled distance (Daytona, Martinsville, Talladega
and Darlington)

10 – most cautions this season (Daytona)
88 – cautions in the first 15 races of 2012; includes 36 for accidents, 28 for debris
and nine for spins

472 of 4,648 – laps under caution in 2012
652.571 of 6,033.118 – miles under caution in the first 15 races


BONUS: Two California tracks (Sonoma and Auto Club Speedway) continue to host NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events. There have been 23 events at each track. Riverside Raceway, which was the site of 48 Sprint Cup events between 1958 and 1988, leads the list of 13 other tracks that previously hosted NASCAR’s premier series.


- Darnell Communications for SRT Motorsports Press Release