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  • CHEVY NSCS AT PHOENIX TWO: Jeff Burton Press Conf Transcript

    NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES

    KOBALT TOOLS 500

    PHOENIX INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY

    TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT

    November 12, 2010

     

    JEFF BURTON, NO. 31 CATERPILLAR CHEVROLET met with media and discussed the altercation with Jeff Gordon last weekend at Texas, Chevrolet and IndyCar, what it takes to win at Phoenix, and more. Full Transcript:

     

    ON RACING AT PHOENIX:

    “Obviously we need to have a good weekend. We haven’t had the kind of results we’ve needed and that’s obviously been frustrating. But this is a track that’s been really good to us and we’ve been able to come here and turn things around a few times in my career and hopefully we can do that again this weekend. We’ve run really, really well as a team here. I think we finished second the last two races and this has been one of our stronger race tracks. Certainly we look forward to coming here and seeing if we can turn the ship around a little bit.”

    ON CHEVROLET GETTING BACK INTO INDYCAR RACING IN 1012 AND DO YOU THINK ANYBODY IN THE NASCAR GARAGE MIGHT DO THE ‘DOUBLE’ AGAIN?

    “Chevrolet is such a huge part of American motorsports. To not have an American manufacturer at Indy for the 500 is a disappointing thing. It’s great for the 500 and for Chevy to be back as an engine manufacturer back in the 500 I think is a really good deal for American motorsports. Chevy is so committed to motorsports and I think it’s a great idea. Chevy’s involvement here obviously is really, really respected. They’ve had a lot of championships and done a great job. I think it’s really cool. Some might say well, I wish they were spending that money here in NASCAR but the fact of the matter is that we need an American manufacturer for the Indy 500 and I think it’s cool that Chevrolet has stepped up to the plate.

    “As far as doing the double thing, it’s just really hard to do. I think the guys that have the best chance of winning the Cup race on Saturday night, it would be a big distraction for them, you know what I mean? You just don’t hop into somebody else’s ballpark and go beat them. It takes a lot of preparation and a lot of work and effort to win an Indy race and it would just be really, really difficult to win both of them, obviously. But you never know what can happen. You would have to work on the scheduling some, for sure, to make it so it can happen. But I would be surprised to see it happen”

    THIS IS THE TIGHTEST POINTS CHASE RACE EVER. I KNOW THE NO. 48 OF JIMMIE JOHNSON ISN’T AS STRONG THIS SEASON, BUT IS THERE ANY REASON WHY IT’S THIS SEASON AND NOT ANOTHER SEASON?

    “I don’t know if it’s that the No. 48 isn’t as strong or if just other people have stepped their ball game up. Honestly, I think that the COT thing is starting to take affect; I think that the idea that NASCAR had about taking a lot of the things away from the teams to keep things a little more similar and create more chance for more people to win races, I think that’s started to take effect. There’s a lot of stuff going on that’s made the racing more equal. Last week after that incident (with Jeff Gordon), I went in the trailer and sat down and watched the race.

     

    “And I’m watching the speed monitor and I’m looking at the top 20 cars. And the top 20 cars, there was like a tenth of a second difference between the fastest guy and the 18th place guys. I mean it was just so crazy close and that’s a factor of multi-car teams. That’s a factor of people becoming more familiar with the car. It’s a factor of Goodyear bringing better tires and making the cars drive better. I think it’s all those things. It’s more people coming to similar results on the race track and that’s made for a tighter Chase.”

    YOU ARE AN ARTICULATE DRIVER IN THE GARAGE AND CONSIDERED ONE OF THE MORE INTELLIGENT DRIVERS OUT THERE. DID IT REALLY KIND OF SURPRISE YOU THAT YOU WERE IN A PHYSICAL ALTERCATION LAST WEEK?

    “I wasn’t surprise I was in a physical altercation; I was surprised I was in the initial altercation. When it all happened, I thoroughly expected to be in a physical altercation. The thing obviously got out of hand really quickly prior to the physical altercation and it is what it is. I hate to be 43 years old and still learning, but I am still learning. Jeff (Gordon) and I have raced together for 20 years and obviously we’ve had issues. If you race with your best friend in the world for 20 years you’re going to have issues. It’s just competition. I left the facility Sunday surprised I was in all of it, not just the physical altercation.”

    WE’VE SEEN THAT BEFORE FROM JEFF GORDON AT TIMES DURING HIS CAREER. DID YOU EXPECT IT?

    “I could tell by the gait in his walk and by the look in his eye that he wasn’t coming down there to talk (laughter). It’s all funny now.”

    THE INCIDENT BETWEEN YOU AND JEFF GORDON MADE MANY, MANY RACING AND NON-RACING TV NEWS SHOW, FIRST IS IS OVER OR WILL IT REPLAY HERE AND THEN DO YOU THINK THAT IS GOOD FOR NASCAR? “For the first part of the question, I feel like it is over. Like I said earlier, it is a learning…it is a chance for me to learn. A chance for both of us to learn. I took the brunt of the responsibility and I will continue to do that, but as far as I’m concerned and I’m not going to speak for Jeff (Gordon), but as far as I am concerned it is race on. We’re here this weekend to win this race and obviously tensions have a possibility of being a little high because of what happened last week. But the reality is, we are here to win this race and so is he. I don’t feel like this thing will continue on.

    “The whole debate about what’s good for NASCAR, what’s not good for NASCAR, I don’t know. I know that fans on the back straightaway thought it was cool. I could hear that. I’m torn between what is good for NASCAR and what is not good for NASCAR. I try to conduct myself in a way that will make me and my kids and my sponsors and everybody proud of me even when things aren’t good. You can certainly cross a line. I come to the race to race. I don’t come to the race to be part of the show. When I hear people describe these events as show, that perturbs me a little bit; I’m here to race. I understand that this is entertainment for people. I get it. I’m a sports fan. Sports are entertaining for me. But, I’m not here to create a show. I’m not here to be involved in that stuff. I’m here to race. I want the race to be the show. That’s my take on it.”

    WHAT’S THE MOST DIFFICULT ASPECT OF RACING HERE AND THEN WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO GO FAST HERE AT PHOENIX? “The difficult thing is that both ends of the race track are so different. You can see the front straightaway is downhill. If you look right there, you can already see that you are sitting perpendicular to the turn one wall. That is a very very sharp corner. That turn one happens really, really quickly. You have to transition your car from going straight to turning very, very quickly in one. In three and four you have a really, really long sweeping corner. So both ends of the race track are completely different. You brake completely different. It is a real challenge to get the driver in sync with both corners and to get the car in sync with both corners. That is the most challenging thing about the race track. That is what makes it hard. That is what makes it fun. That is what makes the people that run well here, that is their advantage is that they can do well in both corners.”

    AFTER THE ACCIDENT YOU SAID YOU WERE GOING UP TO ACKNOWLEDGE JEFF (GORDON), THAT YOU KNEW WHY  HE WAS MAD, BUT THEN DURING THE TELECONFERENCE AT ONE POINT, IT SOUNDED LIKE YOU SAID YOU WERE ANGRY WITH HIM TOO: “To be perfectly honest, when the whole thing went down on Sunday, it all happened so quickly that I didn’t 100% know what happened. I obviously didn’t mean to wreck myself and obviously didn’t mean to wreck him. When Jeff came and he let me know that he didn’t like the way I raced him, I went to accelerate, like I did say Sunday, I went to let him know ‘Hey, I got it’. But also I didn’t understand why he was as mad as he seemed to be. That was just frustration. Then the rest of it was just…I honestly don’t know how to explain what happened after that, I really don’t. That is really it.”

    I DON’T KNOW IF YOU HEARD THE COMMENTS THAT MIKE FORD MADE LAST WEEKEND, KIND OF THROWING IT IN THEIR FACE, KEVIN (HARVICK) WAS KIND OF OUTSPOKEN ABOUT IT SAYING THAT’S JUST NOT THE RIGHT THING TO DO, HOW GOOD IS HE AT PLAYING MIND GAMES? “I think Kevin is very prepared. I think Kevin is ready to win a championship. I think Kevin is in a great position to win a championship. I think he is ready to go. I don’t if Kevin is playing mind games; I think he is just telling you how he feels. That is the cool thing about Kevin is you know exactly where you stand and exactly how he feels. I don’t think Kevin is playing games. I have no idea what the comments were but know Kevin well enough to know that he’s just telling you what he believes to be true. He’s not a mind game kind of guy. He’s just straight at you; this is how it, this is how I feel and what you are getting from Kevin is what he honestly feels.”

    HOW DOES THE FALL AND SPRING RACES DIFFER WITH THE SUN GLARE AND VISIBILITY? “This track historically has been a difficult track for visibility with the sun setting, and getting into Turn 1. It’s very difficult. It is really, really hard to see. I know it sounds silly, but I can’t remember if it is the spring race or the fall race where it is the worst. I’ll have to go back and look through my notes. I just don’t remember. But, when the sun is setting, getting into turn one, it is very, very difficult to see even in qualifying, it is hard to see getting into turn one. That is an issue. You have got to be able to see the corner. When that sun starts to set, it is very hard to do that.”

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  • Ford Phoenix Friday Advance (Kenseth and Biffle)

    Ford Racing’s three Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers held
    their weekly Q&A sessions at Phoenix International Raceway on Friday.
    Transcripts from Matt Kenseth, Greg Biffle and Carl Edwards follow:

    MATT KENSETH – No. 17 Valvoline Ford Fusion – HOW MUCH ARE YOU PAYING
    ATTENTION TO THE OVERALL POINTS BATTLE?  IT’S CLOSE FROM 1-3 AND THEN
    4-10 IS PRETTY TIGHT AS WELL.  “You kind of look at it when you get
    home and see where you moved up to in points or moved back to in
    points, but, other than that, I don’t pay a whole lot of attention to
    it.  You just try to finish the best you can every week and hope to
    finish as high as you can in the points at the end of the year once
    the championship is not attainable. 

    WHAT ABOUT WITHIN THE ROUSH
    FENWAY TEAM.  ARE THERE BRAGGING RIGHTS FOR BEING THE TOP FINISHER?
    “Not for me.  Greg and Carl would have to answer for themselves, but I
    want to do the best I can for our team every week.  If we had it our
    way, we’d be 1-2-3 in points and battle it out.  I want those guys to
    finish as high as they can, but just like everybody else in the top 12
    I want them to finish behind me.  You want to do the best you can for
    your respective team and car.” 

    WHAT ELSE DO YOU WORK ON THESE FINAL
    TWO RACES THAT YOU CAN USE AS A SPRINGBOARD FOR 2011?  “You do this
    during the year as well, but every off-season you try to look at all
    aspects of your program from personnel to equipment to driving to pit
    stops – everything.  Certainly, the more recent races are always the
    freshest in your mind, so you want  to get some momentum and you want
    to get the best finishes you can the last few weeks, so you’ve got
    something to look at and evaluate over the winter.  Like I say, you
    want to try to win the races – you want to try to win every week – but
    it’s important for us to finish strong.  We did move up to fifth in
    points, so it’s important for us to finish as high as we possibly can
    and get some momentum going into the off-season.” 

    WHAT’S THE MOST
    DIFFICULT PART OF RACING HERE?  “The hardest part is both ends are
    quite a bit different, so to be good down in one and two without being
    too loose off of turn four is probably the biggest thing.  There’s a
    little bit of a compromise, but you want to get your car to work as
    well as you can at both ends that are a lot different.” 

    DO YOU LIKE
    TO STAY INVOLVED IN RACING DURING THE OFF-SEASON OR JUST GET AWAY
    ENTIRELY?  “I don’t really know of many races, except for the Snowball
    Derby, which my son is running that again this year and it’s the same
    weekend that we’re out at the banquet in Vegas, so I don’t know of any
    other off-season races before we start in February.  It’s not like
    we’re off a real long time and not in a car.  It’s only about a
    month-and-a-half.” 

    ANY THANKSGIVING TRADITIONS FOR THE KENSETH’S?
    “For the last eight or nine years we’ve been spending Thanksgiving at
    our cabin up in Wisconsin, so we get both of our families together and
    hang out there for a few days and relax.  We eat a lot, watch some
    football and play some football and that’s about it.” 

    DOES THAT
    RECHARGE YOU IN A BIG WAY?  “I don’t know that I really need any
    recharging.  I’m good.  I could keep racing or I could have a month or
    two off, so I’m not sure I really need recharging.  I feel as good
    right now as I did when we came out here in the spring, to be honest
    with you.  I don’t really need recharging, but I always look forward
    to spending time with my family whenever I can.” 

    DO YOU SEE JIMMIE
    COMING BACK AND WINNING THE TITLE?  “Well, everybody is different.  I
    wouldn’t beat against those guys until they lose one.  I wouldn’t have
    bet against them the last four year and I wouldn’t do it this year
    either until it’s over, but it’s interesting.  The three guys up there
    are all quite different, their teams are different, their driving
    styles and approach, I think, are different, so, in my opinion, the
    chase for the championship is pretty interesting this year to see
    which one of those three guys is gonna be on top when it’s all over
    next week.”

    ARE YOU ENJOYING THIS BRAVADO COMING OUT OF
    THE 11 CAMP?  “Not really.  I wish Denny would have been careful last
    week and let me win (laughing).  I would have enjoyed that more than
    their bravado and winning and doing all of that.  I was happy to be up
    there racing for a win last week, but, like I said, I think it’s an
    interesting chase and there are a lot of good storylines for everyone
    to follow.  When I get home it’s interesting to check it all out and
    see what all went on.” 

    HOW DO YOU FEEL AT THIS POINT IN THE SEASON?
    “I feel the same I felt probably the first time here.  I don’t really
    feel any different.  I’m not really wore out and I’m not necessarily
    ready for a break, although you always look forward to an off weekend
    and the holidays to spend some time with your family, but I feel good.
    We just came off a good run last week, which was encouraging, and put
    a little spring in all of our step, so, hopefully, we can finish the
    last two weeks like that.”

    GREG BIFFLE – No. 16 3M Ford Fusion – WHAT’S THE MOST DIFFICULT ASPECT
    OF RACING HERE?  “Probably the difference in the corners.  It’s like
    two different race tracks, almost and it kind of makes it challenging
    but fun.   Turn one and two are completely different than three and
    four.  One and two is like more of a short track corner and then three
    and four seems like it’s a lot more larger and faster because it’s a
    little bit wider and sweeps.  That’s probably the most challenging
    thing.” 

    WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO GO FAST HERE?  “It takes a car that
    turns really well and you can get the balance between the two ends
    right.  That’s the main thing.” 

    WHAT’S THE VISIBILITY LIKE?  “It’s
    terrible.  It’s the worst race track we go to for visibility because
    the sun goes down right over the top.  There’s a hole between the
    grandstands and however it works out, it seems that the sun is in your
    eyes for the longest period of time.  That makes it really difficult
    to get your braking zone and get side-by-side.  It’s really, really
    hard.” 

    DO YOU LIKE RACING HERE?  “Oh yeah, I love it just because I
    grew up in the northwest and I’ve raced here a few times in the
    southwest tour.  It’s a fun race track.” 

    WHO DO YOU THINK WILL WIN
    THE TITLE?  “I think Jimmie can do it.  I think that Kevin can do it
    and I think Denny can do it.  It’s whoever makes the least amount of
    mistakes these next two races.  The least amount of mistakes on pit
    road, racing room on the race track with other drivers, whatever it
    comes down to – pit decisions – it’s gonna come down to obviously the
    best finish, but a lot of times it’s minimizing spots on the race
    track.” 

    EVERYBODY IS LOOKING AT THE TOP 3 BUT 4-10 IS TIGHT AS WELL.
    HOW CLOSE ARE YOU PAYING ATTENTION TO IT?  “Fourth through tenth we’re
    paying attention to because that’s where we’re racing for our spot in
    the points.  It’s clear they’re paying attention to the top three
    because we led 234 laps last week and they didn’t even interview us,
    so it’s obvious they’re paying attention to the top three, which they
    should – that’s the championship – but if we would have won we would
    be fifth in points right now.  We were clearly on our way to winning
    that race.  There was no doubt and then the shifter broke and all I
    had was third and fourth gear.  That was unfortunate, but we still
    finished fifth with the problems that we had, which is really good,
    but to think I was 10th or 11th or 12th in points, and if I would have
    won last week we’d be fifth, that’s a huge difference, so I do pay
    attention to how tight the points are because we are that close.”

    WHAT ABOUT AMONG THE ROUSH FENWAY TEAMS?  “We’re really tight as well
    and probably the one thing that I saw that surprised me the most is
    it’s like the top three and then the rest of the field.  I’m surprised
    to see that it’s not kind of staggered out a little bit.  It’s the top
    three within 50 points and then fourth through whatever is almost 50
    points, so it’s kind of odd that there’s that big of a separation and
    everybody is still so tight.”

    WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF THE BRAVADO FROM THE 11
    TEAM?  “I don’t know.  I look at last week, if you want to take last
    week, we were better than all of them.  We kicked the 11’s butt.  We
    kicked the 48’s butt.  All day long nobody could even challenge us
    until the shifter broke and then they challenged us because,
    obviously, I didn’t have all my gears to get up to speed.  Now, can we
    do that every week?  That’s a different story, but you’ve got to play
    some games with them and I guess that’s why I say that because last
    week was last week and we spanked them the entire race.  But that’s
    only one week and you’ve got to do it for 36 to win a championship and
    get spots in the points and get talked about.  But if I was in that
    position I’d be doing the same thing and it’s self-confidence as well.
    ‘We’re better than the 48.  We’re gonna beat them.’  Those kind of
    things, that’s confidence.” 

    HOW MUCH DO MIND GAMES PLAY A ROLE IN
    THIS SPORT?  “You can only do so much, but you can get under
    somebody’s skin a little bit, I guess.  I don’t really pay attention
    to it.  I worry about my car and how fast my car is gonna go today and
    qualifying good so we get a good pit spot and we’ll let them talk
    about whatever they want.”

  • Ron Hornaday to Return to Kevin Harvick Inc. in 2011

    KERNERSVILLE, N.C. (November 12, 2010) – Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) announced today that four-time Truck Series champion Ron Hornaday has signed a multi-year agreement to compete for the team’s Truck Series program in 2011. Hornaday will return to pilot the No. 33 Chevrolet Silverado and compete for his fifth-career Truck Series championship.

    “We are very excited and proud to have Ron Hornaday back behind the wheel of the No. 33 truck,” said KHI co-owner Kevin Harvick. “Ron has been an integral part of our Truck Series program since he joined KHI in 2005. He has driven our organization to two Truck Series championships, and I firmly believe that we will continue to compete for Truck Series championships with Hornaday as our driver.”

    The 2011 season will mark the 52-year-old Palmdale, California native’s seventh full-time season competing in the Truck Series for KHI. To date, Hornaday has made 273 starts in the Truck Series, and is the series’ winningest driver with 47 victories. Hornaday has earned four Truck Series championship titles (2009, 2007, 1998 and 1996), the two most recent of which were achieved with KHI in the No. 33 truck.

    “I couldn’t be happier to be back driving for KHI in 2011,” said Hornaday. “I can’t thank Kevin and DeLana enough for the opportunities that they have given me over the past six years. We’ve had a lot of success together in the Truck Series. This season hasn’t been exactly what we wanted, but that just gives me more drive than ever to go after a fifth Truck Series championship with the No. 33 team in 2011.”

    Program details regarding sponsorship of the No. 33 Chevrolet Silverado will be announced at a later date.

    About Kevin Harvick Inc.

    Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI), established in 2001 by Kevin and DeLana Harvick, is an 80,000 sq. ft. facility located in Kernersville, N.C. Home of the 2009 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship team, KHI enters 2010 in its seventh full year of competition with two full-time Truck Series teams and one full-time Nationwide Series team. Four-time Truck Series champion Ron Hornaday returns to the helm of the No. 33 Truck team looking for his fifth title and third championship for KHI (2009 and 2007), while Sprint Cup series stars Kevin Harvick and Elliott Sadler guide the No. 2 Truck team. Two-time NASCAR Nationwide Series champion Harvick will again shine as the lead driver of the No. 33 Nationwide Series team as he continues to make his mark in motorsports and establish KHI as one of the top teams in NASCAR competition. For more information about KHI and its teams, please visit www.KevinHarvickInc.com.

  • Kevin Harvick Inc.’s Lucky Charm Returns for 2011 Season

    KERNERSVILLE, N.C. (November 12, 2010) – Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) has a lucky charm with the Armour® Vienna Sausage paint scheme. KHI co-owner Kevin Harvick has driven in three NASCAR Nationwide Series events where the Armour® Vienna Sausage paint scheme has adorned the sides of the No. 33 KHI Chevrolet. Harvick has visited victory lane with the Armour Vienna Sausage paint scheme all three times. Harvick and Armour® raced to victory at Nashville (Tenn.) Superspeedway and Richmond (Va.) International Raceway in 2010 and also partnered for Harvick’s history-making win in 2009 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway when he recorded his first-career victory in a KHI-owned Nationwide Series entry.

    Most recently Armour® Vienna Sausages rode along for another historical win as four-time Truck Series champion Ron Hornaday won his first-career Truck Series victory at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway in October 2010.

    The “lucky charm” paint scheme will return to KHI in 2011 to serve as primary sponsor for four race events in both the Truck and Nationwide Series. The Armour® Vienna Sausage colors will be represented in Truck Series events at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway on the No. 2 Truck and Atlanta Motor Speedway on the No. 33 Truck. Armour® Vienna Sausage will have representation in the Nationwide Series at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway with driver Kevin Harvick and Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway with driver Elliott Sadler. Armour® Vienna Sausage will also serve as an associate sponsor on the No. 33 KHI Nationwide Series and the No. 33 Truck Series entries when they are not the primary sponsor.

    “We are very pleased and excited to extend our partnership with KHI for another year,” said Eric Hintz, Vice President of Marketing for Pinnacle Foods. “Kevin and DeLana Harvick and their entire team are absolute professionals and represent our brands like Armour Vienna Sausage and Vlasic Pickles so well.

    We’ve been very fortunate to visit victory lane with the Armour Vienna Sausage car/truck every time we’ve raced,” Hintz continued. “Is it lucky? I’d like to think that the hard work by everyone on the KHI team coupled with some great driving sets up the team for success. Maybe there’s a little Armour Vienna Sausage magic too.”

    KHI co-owner Kevin Harvick also looks forward to enjoying the benefits of the Armour® Vienna Sausage relationship. “I’m very proud that Armour® Vienna Sausage and Pinnacle Foods are going to continue their relationship with KHI. The paint scheme has gone undefeated in the Nationwide Series, and now they’re undefeated in the Truck Series as well. At KHI, we are proud to not only help them grow their brand awareness, but we are even happier to help them expand their business with the relationships we have been able to foster within the program. It will be a lot of pressure on the drivers who get to run the paint scheme next year, but I’m sure they will all be up to the challenge.”

    It seems that regardless of who climbs behind the wheel, when the blue and gold colors of Armour® Vienna Sausage are on the hood and quarter panels of a KHI race vehicle, they somehow always find their way to victory lane. The scheme has become a true modern day lucky charm.

    About Pinnacle Foods:

    Pinnacle Foods Group LLC, with offices in Mountain Lakes and Cherry Hill, New Jersey, is a leading producer, marketer and distributor of high-quality branded food products in the frozen foods and dry foods segments. The dry foods segment consists primarily of Duncan Hines® baking mixes and frostings; Vlasic® pickles, peppers and relish; Armour® canned meats; Open Pit® barbeque sauce and Mrs. Butterworth’s® and Log Cabin® syrups and pancake mixes. The frozen foods segment consists primarily of Aunt Jemima® frozen breakfasts; Swanson® and Hungry-Man® frozen dinners and entrees; Van de Kamp’s® and Mrs. Paul’s® frozen seafood; Celeste® pizza; Lender’s® bagels; and Bird’s Eye ® vegetables and dinners.

    About Kevin Harvick Inc.

    Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI), established in 2001 by Kevin and DeLana Harvick, is an 80,000 sq. ft. facility located in Kernersville, N.C. Home of the 2009 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship team, KHI enters 2010 in its seventh full year of competition with two full-time Truck Series teams and one full-time Nationwide Series team. Four-time Truck Series champion Ron Hornaday returns to the helm of the No. 33 Truck team looking for his fifth title and third championship for KHI (2009 and 2007), while Sprint Cup series stars Kevin Harvick and Elliott Sadler guide the No. 2 Truck team. Two-time NASCAR Nationwide Series champion Harvick will again shine as the lead driver of the No. 33 Nationwide Series team as he continues to make his mark in motorsports and establish KHI as one of the top teams in NASCAR competition. For more information about KHI and its teams, please visit www.KevinHarvickInc.com.

  • Timothy Peters Carrying Momentum To Phoenix

    TIMOTHY PETERS QUICK FACTS

    Phoenix International Raceway

    Lucas Oil 150

    November 12, 2010

    .         Peters at Phoenix.The Lucas Oil 150 will mark Timothy Peters’
    second career start at Phoenix International Raceway. Last fall Peters
    started from the 16th spot and earned a 16th place finish. Despite
    struggling in his first PIR start, Peters is determined to turn that around
    this season.

    .         On The Rebound.After a couple rough weeks at Las Vegas and
    Talladega, Peters seems back on track. Accidents at both tracks left him
    with 26th and 34th place finishes respectively. In the last two weeks Peters
    has been able to turn things around with a seventh place finish at Talladega
    Superspeedway and a 12th place finish at Texas Motor Speedway. Peters’ isn’t
    slowing down yet. He plans to secure top-10 finishes in both Phoenix and
    Miami to firm up his place in the point standings.

    .         Every Point Counts.Just two races remain for Peters to work his
    way back inside the top-five in Camping World Truck Series driver point
    standings. After a 12th place finish at Texas last weekend, Peters moved up
    one spot to the sixth position. He is just 46 points behind fifth place.
    With the goal of getting back inside the top-five, Peters knows he must earn
    as many points as possible before the checkered flag falls at
    Homestead-Miami Speedway.

    .         Lufkin On Board At Phoenix. The Lufkin logo will adorn the #17
    Toyota Tundra as an associate sponsor at Phoenix International Raceway.
    Tough LufkinR measuring products have been providing precise measurements
    for professionals and guys who just know tools since 1869. Back then, Lufkin
    yardsticks and folding rules earned the brand its reputation for quality and
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    Timothy Peters on racing at Phoenix International Raceway “I’m looking
    forward to getting back to Phoenix. We really struggled there last year and
    I came into this season looking at New Hampshire and Phoenix as my “Achilles
    Heel.” We had a good run at New Hampshire so I feel confident we can have a
    good run at Phoenix. Our goal right now is to earn as many points as we can
    and capitalize on the mistakes of others. We were able to do that in Texas
    and we will need to keep doing it these last two races to reach the top-five
    by Homestead.”

    Equipment Information Timothy Peters will compete with chassis #103 in the
    Lucas Oil 150 at Phoenix International Raceway. This is the same chassis he
    last raced at New Hampshire Motor Speedway where he started eighth and
    finished sixth.

    Timothy Peters Seeks Sponsorship Partner Peters is still seeking sponsorship
    for his #17 Toyota Tundra. Red Horse Racing is currently running the #17
    without primary sponsorship. For more information on sponsorship
    opportunities please contact Tom DeLoach at 704-662-0039.

  • Smith, Furniture Row Racing Eyeing 2011

    DENVER, Colo. (Nov. 10, 2010) — As the 2010 Sprint Cup season is winding
    down with the penultimate race scheduled for Sunday (Nov. 14) at Phoenix
    International Raceway, Regan Smith is looking at the final two events as an
    extension to the 2011 season.

    “If you have a bad race during the season you only have to wait four or five
    days before you get back into the car,” said Smith. “That’s not much time
    for reflecting and feeling down. But it becomes a different scenario at this
    time of the year, you want to end the season knowing that you’re gaining and
    picking up speed. If you’re on the other end of the performance spectrum you
    have nearly three long months to think about it. Ouch!”

    The good news for Smith and the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing team is that
    they’ve been closing out the year with their best racing of the season  But
    with two races remaining, Smith wants to make sure the recent performance
    level continues and there’s not a detour.

    “We’re so excited about the future of Furniture Row Racing that sometimes we
    lose a little patience,” explained Smith. “We want the baby steps to become
    giant steps, but we know better that this is not the way the improvement
    meter works.”

    If you take away the Martinsville race (Oct. 24) where Smith got hit and
    shoved into the wall, the team’s performance in the last 10 races is a vivid
    sign of improvement. In nine of the last 10 races, Smith has posted three
    top 13s and five top 20s, including two 12th-place finishes. Smith’s average
    finish during this period is 19.11 compared to an average finish of 26.66
    for the first 24 races of the season.

    “That’s an increase of seven positions — a nice jump,” said Smith. “Now if
    we can improve another seven positions we’ll be looking at Chase material.
    But we don’t want to get ahead of ourselves, we have a long way to go, but
    we’re on the right track with our Furniture Row Chevrolet.”

    Sunday’s Kobalt Tools 500 will be Smith’s fifth start at the one-mile
    Phoenix oval. At the Phoenix spring race, he finished 26th.

  • David Starr Set for Desert Drive

    The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series will head west to the Arizona desert for the second to last race of the 2010 campaign. SS Green Light Racing’s David Starr currently sits ninth in the NCWTS point standings as the truckers make their annual visit to the one-mile track west of Phoenix Arizona for the Lucas Oil 150.

    Starr has had fast Toyota Tundras in each of the last three races; finishing a solid seventh at Martinsville, before a fuel issue at Talladega and a blown right front tire at Texas and have given the Texas native disappointing eleventh and fifteenth place finishes. “We’ve had faster trucks than our last couple finishes have shown,” Starr explained. “We just have gone through a few growing pains, but this team does not give up.”

    As they did at Las Vegas several weeks back, Indianapolis based building enclosure specialist ASI Limited will back Starr’s No. 81 at Phoenix with support from Zachry.

    It’s not hard for David to get excited about traveling to the Phoenix International Raceway, because it is one of four tracks where he has won at in the NCWTS; winning the Chevy Silverado 150 back in 2004 when he drove for Wayne Spears.

     

    “I’m glad to be here racing. I love Phoenix. It’s awesome,” David said with his familiar smile. “There is no place I’d rather be than out here racing. I’m just real excited to go to Phoenix; I’m visiting a job site for Zachry out in Northern Arizona before we go to the track. I love to visit with all the hard working people in the field.”

    “Jason Miller is a great crew chief and the guys on this team work really hard,” Starr continued. “Our stops have been real good the last few races and I’m glad to have the opportunity to work with them. I think we have an opportunity for a couple good finishes to finish the year.”

    SS Green Light General Manager Bobby Dotter knows how important the last two races are for Starr and the No. 81 team. “So much has happened with this team in just two months. When the team David was with ran into trouble just days before Chicago and he jumped into one of our trucks, we weren’t sure what direction it would take us. We quickly built several Toyotas and the result is seven straight top-fifteen finishes. We’ve shown speed and consistency, but we’re hoping for better finishes the next two weeks. There is a big difference in running fast and finishing good, want to get ASI Limited a good finish this week.”

    David has ten career NCWTS starts at the Phoenix International Raceway; with four top-ten finishes highlighted his victory in 2004. David’s average start is 20.5 and his average finish is 14.6. He has finished on the lead lap in seven of the ten previous starts.

    The Lucas Oil 150 is the 244th consecutive NCWTS start for the SS Green Light Racing team and the 264th career start for Starr in the Truck series.

    There are 36 trucks are on the preliminary entry list for the Lucas Oil 150.

    Practice for the NCWTS Lucas Oil 150 will be Thursday, November 11th from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Qualifying will be Friday, November 12th at 4:30 p.m. The race will be shown live on SPEED TV at 8:00 p.m. on Friday, November 12th. All times Eastern. It will also be broadcast live via radio worldwide on the Motor Racing Network (MRN) and on SIRIUS Satellite Radio NASCAR Channel 128-XM104.

    ASI Limited is a leader in the Building Enclosure and Ornamental Metals industry. Indianapolis based ASI Limited’s ability to take a project from it’s inception to its completion separates them from their competition. In 2003, the Ornamental Division was established as a national supplier of ornate products. Currently the Ornamental Division is supplying materials for many United States Embassies overseas and projects throughout the country. ASI will be partnering with their customers in the NCWTS to continue to build relationship and teamwork.  For more information visit www.asilimted.com.

    For more information about SS Green Light Racing visit www.SSRacingonline.com or email pr@ssracingonline.com.

  • RUSTY WALLACE RACING NEWS AND NOTES: PHOENIX II

    –The Top-Ten Points Battle Heads to the Valley of the Sun–

     

     

    The Event:  Phoenix 200  (Round 33 of 35 in the 2010 NASCAR Nationwide Series)

     

    • Venue:  Phoenix International Raceway (1.0-mile oval)
    • Date / Time:  November 13, 2010 / 4:30 PM ET
    • Distance:  200 laps / 200 miles
    • TV / Radio:  ESPN2 (Live at 4:00 PM ET) / MRN Radio, Sirius NASCAR Radio

     

     

    Steve Wallace, No. 66 5-Hour Energy Toyota Camry

     

    • Points Race Continues:  Steve Wallace and his 5-Hour Energy team head to the Valley of the Sun this weekend looking to clench their place among the top-ten in the year-end point standings.  Assuming Wallace starts the Homestead event, he can clench tenth-place by leaving Phoenix with a margin of 162 points or greater over his 11th-place teammate, Brendan Gaughan.  Wallace currently leads Gaughan by 145 points.

     

    • Pointing Forward:  Wallace is also in the middle of a ferocious fight for seventh through tenth in the standings.  He currently sits a mere 77 points adrift of seventh-place Trevor Bayne.

     

    • Wallace at Phoenix:  Steve Wallace scored his first Phoenix top-ten in last year’s running of this event.  His tenth-place effort set off a streak of five straight top-ten finishes that ran through this season’s event at Las Vegas.  In this spring’s event at Phoenix, Wallace, sporting a broken foot, ran among the top-ten for the first 110 laps, before a tire failure ended his day.

     

    • Streaking:  Wallace and the 5-Hour Energy squad enter Phoenix with four finishes of 12th or better in their last six races.  They also sport four top-ten starts during that span.  Wallace has been ranked among the top-ten in NNS driver points for 21 straight weeks, the seventh-best such streak in the series; he has been among the top-ten for 47 of the last 55 weeks.

     

    • Flat-Out:  Wallace sports three top-ten finishes (ORP, Iowa, Gateway I) and five finishes of 12th or better (New Hampshire, Gateway II) on flat tracks this season.

     

    • The Machine:  Steve Wallace’s primary car for this weekend is RWR-042.  Car 42 last ran at ORP during the summer, where Wallace’s piloted it to the outside pole, en route to a top-ten finish.

     

     

    This Week’s 5-Hour Energy Shot

     

    • Welcome Aboard:  5-Hour Energy Racing is pleased to welcome Circle K Convenience Stores to its family of partners; Circle K branding will appear on the television panel of Steve Wallace’s No. 66 car this weekend at PIR.  For more than 50 years, Circle K has been one of North America’s most popular and successful operators of convenience stores. Today, there are more than 3,300 Circle K stores across the USA and over 4,000 international locations.

     

    • 5-Hour Energy Show Car Appearances in Phoenix:

     

    • �
      • Friday, November 12, 2010, 12:00 PM-2:00 PM:  Safeway 3151, 9090 South Estrella Parkway, Goodyear, AZ 85338
      • Friday, November 12, 2010, Contact Store for Time:  Safeway 1511, 14175 West Indian School Road, Goodyear, AZ 85448
      • Saturday, November 13, 2010, 11:00 AM-2:00 PM:  Circle K 1130, 11502 West Southern, Tolleson, AZ 85353

     

    • Did You Know?:  The key ingredients in 5-Hour Energy are also available in everyday foods – like broccoli, avocados, bananas and apples – or already in you.  5-Hour Energy contains zero sugar, only four calories and as much caffeine as a cup of the leading premium coffee.

     

     

    Brendan Gaughan, No. 62 Alliance Parts Toyota Camry

     

    • Trucking Along:  Rusty Wallace Racing is pleased to welcome Alliance Parts as the primary sponsor of Brendan Gaughan’s No. 62 team this weekend.  Alliance Parts is a brand of Daimler Trucks North America LLC, the largest heavy-duty truck manufacturer in North America and a leading manufacturer of Class 4-8 vehicles.  The brand offers a range of new and remanufactured reliable parts and accessories at an affordable price to the commercial transportation industry.  For more information, or to locate the nearest Alliance Parts dealer, visit alliancebrandparts.com.

     

    • Double Duty:  Brendan Gaughan will make his first Sprint Cup Series start since 2004 this weekend, as he wheels TRG’s No. 71 South Point Hotel & Casino car in Sunday’s event at PIR.

     

    • Gaughan at Phoenix:  In three career NNS starts at Phoenix, Brendan Gaughan has posted one top-five and two top-ten finishes, including a fourth-place effort this spring.

     

    • Flattening the Competition:  Although he professes not to be a short track expert, Gaughan has shown much prowess on flat tracks this season, with four top-ten finishes (Phoenix I, Richmond I, New Hampshire, ORP).

     

    • The Machine:  Brendan Gaughan will pilot RWR-018 this weekend in Phoenix.  Car 18, a workhorse of the RWR fleet, has made seven 2010 starts, including one with Kenny Wallace at the controls last month in the 5-Hour Energy 250 at Gateway.

     

     

    # # #

     

     

    About Rusty Wallace Racing, LLC

    North Carolina-based Rusty Wallace Racing (RWR) is a professional auto racing team steeped in the legendary history of its founder, Rusty Wallace—one of NASCAR’s top-ten drivers of all-time.  The team currently campaigns the No. 66 and No. 62 Toyota Camrys in the prestigious NASCAR Nationwide Series, driven by Steve Wallace and Brendan Gaughan, respectively.  In 2009, RWR stood as the only team with multiple drivers among the top-ten in the final Nationwide Series driver standings.  For more on Rusty Wallace Racing, please visit the award-winning rustywallace.com.

     

     

    About 5-Hour Energy

     

    Made by Living Essentials, LLC, 5-Hour Energy is the category leader in 2 oz. liquid energy shots.  5 Hour Energy is available nationwide in major retailers in the Grocery, Drug Store, Mass Merchant Warehouse and Convenience Store classes of trade.  Living Essentials sells over 7 million bottles of 5 Hour Energy per week.  For more information, please visit 5hourenergy.com.

     

     

    About Alliance Parts

     

    Alliance Parts offers a range of new and remanufactured reliable parts and accessories at an affordable price to the commercial transportation industry. Alliance brand parts are available at more than 1,000 retail locations, including Freightliner, Sterling, Western Star and Thomas Built Buses dealerships in the U.S. and Canada. For more information, or to locate the nearest Alliance Parts dealer, visit alliancebrandparts.com.

     

    Alliance Parts is a brand of Daimler Trucks North America LLC, the largest heavy-duty truck manufacturer in North America and a leading manufacturer of Class 4-8 vehicles.  Daimler Trucks North America produces and markets commercial vehicles under the Freightliner, Sterling, Western Star and Thomas Built Buses nameplates.  Daimler Trucks North America is a Daimler company.

  • ROUSH FENWAY ADVANCE – PHOENIX

    Kobalt Tool 500 K

    Sun. 11.14.10, 3:15 p.m. EST

    ESPN TV, MRN, Sirius 128

    David Ragan, No. 6 UPS Ford

    Greg Biffle, No. 16 3M /Scotch Ford

    Matt Kenseth, No. 17 Valvoline Ford

    Carl Edwards, No. 99 Aflac Ford

    Wypall 200

    Sat. 11.13.10, 4:30 p.m. EST

    ESPN 2 TV, MRN, Sirius 128

    Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 6 Blackwell Angus Ford

    Colin Braun No. 16 Con-Way Freight Ford

    Trevor Bayne, No. 17 Roush Fenway Ford

    Carl Edwards, No. 60 Copart Ford

    Paul Menard, No. 98 Richmond/Menard’s Ford

    Roush Fenway Looks to Carry Momentum to Phoenix

    After another strong outing at Texas Motor Speedway last weekend, Roush Fenway will look to carry that momentum into this weekend’s race at Phoenix International Raceway, as the 2010 season winds to a close.

    Roush Fenway Success at PIR

    Roush Fenway has started 190 combined NASCAR races at PIR, collecting 14 wins (5 Cup, 7 NNS, 2 CWTS), 61 top fives and 102 top 10s, while leading 3,395 laps.

    PIR Winning Formula

    Roush Fenway has won at Phoenix in all three of NASCAR’s major divisions, with the organization’s first win coming in the fall of 1993. Roush Fenway won the second-ever Nationwide race at PIR in 2000, and the organization has won the last three NNS events at PIR. In addition, Greg Biffle won Roush Fenway’s 100th overall Nationwide win at Phoenix last season and Carl Edwards won there in the fall to give Roush Fenway the sweep. All in all, six drivers have won NASCAR races for Roush Fenway at PIR.

    RFR Phoenix Wins

    1993 Martin Cup

    2000 Burton Cup

    2001 Burton Cup

    2002 Kenseth Cup

    2005-1 Busch Cup

    2000 Burton NNS

    2001 Biffle NNS

    2005-2 Edwards NNS

    2006-2 Kenseth NNS

    2008-2 Edwards NNS

    2009-1 Biffle NNS

    2009-2 Edwards NNS

    1997-2 Ruttman Truck

    2001 Biffle Truck

    Sprint Cup Effort at PIR

    Roush Fenway has started 106 Sprint Cup races at Phoenix, while finishing inside the top 10 with almost 50 percent of the entries (45.1 percent). In addition, Roush Fenway cars have led 1,897 laps and drove to victory lane on five occasions; the last coming in 2005. Last fall Roush Fenway failed to place an entry inside the top 10 at a Cup race at PIR for the first time since 1991.

    Nationwide Effort at PIR

    Phoenix is one of the strongest tracks for Roush Fenway’s Nationwide program. In 48 starts, RFR has won seven times, while finishing inside the top 10 almost half of the time (13) and inside the top 10 an impressive 69 percent of the time (33), while leading 1,164 times.

    Pointing Up

    All three of Roush Fenway’s Chase drivers advanced multiple positions in the Chase standings last weekend. Carl Edwards moved up two positions to fourth and he is now joined in the top five by Matt Kenseth, who moved up three spots to fifth. In fact, Kenseth has now advanced five positions in the last two races. Greg Biffle used one of his most dominating performances of the season two move to spots to 9th in the standings. With only two races remaining in the 2010 season Roush Fenway is the only organization with three teams in the top 10.

  • Trevor Bayne – Phoenix Advance

    Trevor Bayne – Phoenix Advance

    No. 17 Roush Fenway Ford

    Wypall 200

    Sat., Nov.13, 2010

    4:30 p.m. EST

    ESPN2, TV, MRN, Sirius 128

    Bayne in 2010

    Starts: 33

    Top 5s: 5

    Top 10s: 10

    Top 15s: 19

    Poles: 3

    Avg Start: 13.7

    Avg. Finish: 16.4

    High Finish: 3 (twice)

    Bayne Excited for Short Track Run at Phoenix

    After making his Sprint Cup debut last weekend in Texas, Trevor Bayne settles back into the Nationwide Series this weekend at Phoenix, where he will welcome the return of a shorter track to the schedule.

    Bayne at Phoenix

    Trevor Bayne will make his third Nationwide Series start at Phoenix this weekend. In two previous starts, Bayne has averaged a 23rd-place finish. He finished 14th in this race last season, but got caught up in an accident and finished 32nd in the spring.

    Sprint Cup Debut in Mirror

    Bayne finished 17th in his Sprint Cup debut last weekend at Texas Motor Speedway, turning all 334 laps of the race and staying on the lead lap. Of the 12 drivers that make up the 2010 Chase for the Sprint Cup, Baynes 17th-place finish was higher than the debut of eight of the 12, and only two of those 12 were able to finish the race on the lead lap.

    Roush Fenway at Phoenix

    Roush Fenway has won seven times in the Nationwide Series. All-in-all Roush Fenway has made 48 starts, while turning in 19 top fives, 33 top 10s and five poles in Nationwide action at PIR. Four different drivers have won in the Nationwide Series at Phoenix, with the first win (Jeff Burton) coming in 2000 and the last win coming in last year’s fall race (Carl Edwards). Roush Fenway swept the Nationwide Series at Phoenix last season, with Greg Biffle winning there in the spring.

    Bayne at Phoenix

    Starts: 2

    Top 15s: 1

    Poles: –

    Avg Start: 35

    Highest Finish: 14

    Avg. Finish: 23

    On Phoenix:

    “Phoenix is not really comparable to any track we go to. It actually reminds me of Concord Motor Sports Park, which is a short track here in North Carolina and one of my favorite race tracks.

    “(Turns) three and four are obviously different, but (turns) one and two are very similar at the two tracks. At Phoenix you can hit the bottom, run up to the wall and turn down again for the little dog leg. I love that corner at Phoenix. That section is probably one of my favorite sections of any track we go to. So If I can just get (turns) three and four down where it’s really flat and really sweeping, I think we can have a good weekend.

    “I love turns one and two, I just wish that three and four had a little more banking and a tighter corner, because it makes your car drive totally different at both ends of the track.”

    Crew Chief Ricky Viers:

    “We are taking back the same car the team raced at Phoenix earlier in the year and qualified eighth. After coming off a solid week at Texas, Trevor (Bayne) and the No. 17 team feel we have a great opportunity to score our best finish of the season at Phoenix.”