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Author: Official Release

  • Team Lowe’s Racing – Jimmie Johnson – Texas Motor Speedway Preview

    Jimmie Johnson 

    2010   Starts: 33   Wins: 6   Top 5: 15   Top 10: 20 

    Current Driver Point Standing: 1st 

    Finish in Talladega: 7th    November 2009 Finish at Texas: 38th 

     

    RACE NOTES
    Texas Motor Speedway

    • Johnson has made 14 Sprint Cup Series starts at Texas Motor Speedway, where he has earned one win, seven top-five and 10 top-10 finishes.
    • Johnson has completed 95.6% (4482 of 4686) of competition laps at the 1.5-mile quad-oval and has led 117.
    • He has an average start and finish of 8.8 and 10.1.

    Chassis

    • Johnson will pilot chassis No. 623 in Sunday’s Sprint Cup Series race. He has only driven that car once – to a third-place finish at Charlotte Motor Speedway in October.
    • Johnson finished third in backup chassis No. 580 at Auto Club Speedway in October.


    QUOTES
    IN THE PAST GOING IN THE LAST THREE RACES OF THE YEAR YOU’VE HAD ONE GUY CHASING YOU. NOW YOU HAVE TWO. HOW DOES THAT CHANGE THE DYNAMIC FOR YOU?     “For me we’ve always really approached each race with the mentality that we needed to win. You can go back to the Texas race a few years back where I worked hard to get by Matt. We’ve been able to win at Phoenix. Our Homestead performance has been getting better and better each year. I felt last year we had a chance to run with the lead group of guys and didn’t need to, played it smart.

    “It’s really the same mentality. We need maximum points. Of course, it’s a little bit more forgiving or easy on your team and yourself with a big points lead. But we don’t have that this year. We’re going to have to race, and we’re ready for it.”

    YOU’VE SAID ALL ALONG FOR THE LAST THREE OR FOUR WEEKS, LET’S GET THROUGH TALLADEGA AND WITH THREE TO GO I’LL DEVELOP A STRATEGY. WHAT IS YOUR STRATEGY NOW? “All out. We need to be as competitive and as fast as we can possibly be at this point. We’re going to three tracks that are good for all three competitors. As Kevin (Harvick) was saying earlier, you’re going to have to run in the top five to stay in the game. Then obviously take advantage of things and win if you can. Ten extra points from first to second are going to be important. Leading laps, leading the most laps, you’re going to have to be on your A game from here on out.”

    SPRINT CUP SERIES CAREER NOTES
    Career Wins

    • Johnson has 53 wins in his Sprint Cup Series career, his most recent coming at Dover International Speedway on Sept. 26, 2010.
    • The El Cajon, Calif.-native is currently 10th on NASCAR’s all-time wins list, one victory behind Lee Petty.
    • He is second in total wins among active drivers, behind Jeff Gordon (82).
    • Johnson needed only 296 starts to hit the 50 mark. Only three drivers have reached 50 victories quicker – Gordon (232), Darrell Waltrip (278) and David Pearson (293).
    • Johnson has won at least three Cup races a season since he posted his first victory in 2002. He is the only driver in the modern era to win at least three races in each of his first eight full-time seasons.
    • Johnson has won Sprint Cup Series races at all but four (Michigan, Chicago, Watkins Glen, Homestead) of the 22 tracks on which the series competes.
    • Johnson was the first driver to win three of the first five races in The Chase.
    • Johnson’s 10 wins in 2007 was the highest number recorded in a single season since Jeff Gordon posted 13 victories in 1998.
    • The four-consecutive wins scored by the No. 48 team in the 2007 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup ties a modern-era NASCAR record.

    Career Poles

    • Johnson has collected 25 poles in his Sprint Cup career.
    • The championship driver has earned at least one pole a year since his first full-time season in 2002.
    • He had a career-high six poles in 2008.
    • Johnson’s most recent pole position was at Dover International Speedway on Sept. 24, 2010.

    Career Starts

    • In 33 2010 starts, Johnson has collected six wins, 15 top five and 20 top-10 finishes.
    • Johnson has finished in the top five in the Sprint Cup Series point standings each year since his first full season in 2002.
    • Johnson is the only driver to qualify for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup every year since the format was adopted in 2004.
    • In 324 Sprint Cup Series starts, Johnson has posted 132 top-five and 200 top-10 finishes.
    • He has a top-five finish at every track on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series circuit.
    • Johnson has led a total of 10,994 laps (of 93,315) in his Sprint Cup career, covering over 125,043 miles.
    • He has finished on the lead lap 250 times.  

  • MIS featured on upcoming episode of NBC’s ‘School Pride’

    Students receive rewarding experience at MIS; episode airs this Friday at 8 p.m. ET

    BROOKLYN, Mich. ­(Nov. 2, 2010) — “Pride” is a word Michigan International Speedway is very familiar with, as thousands of race fans show their pride and passion every summer race season at the Irish Hills track.

    When NBC’s new show “School Pride” was looking for a perfect field trip location to treat the students to after working hard to rebuild their school, MIS was the perfect fit.

    “School Pride” is a proactive, alternative series that tells the stories of communities coming together to renovate their aging and broken public schools. While transforming the school, the community also restored its sense of value and school pride. The cameras followed students, teachers, parents and community members as they rolled up their sleeves and rebuilt their own schools, concluding with the unveiling of a brand-new, completely transformed school.

    In the November 5 episode, students, staff and community members from Communication and Media Arts School in Detroit visited MIS for a day of fun during the week-long renovation and rebuilding of their outdated school. Longtime track sponsor Chevrolet provided Camaros to give the students a once-in-a-lifetime high-speed thrill ride on the high banks of MIS.

    Speedway president Roger Curtis greeted the group and offered up some positive motivation for the students during their visit.

    “It was a lot of fun hosting the show here,” Curtis said. “The students that were able to visit with us were tremendous individuals who truly cared about their school and did show great pride in wanting to make it a much improved place for them to learn. We were happy to have them here and I hope they enjoyed their visit to MIS and the thrill ride they received courtesy of Chevrolet.”

    “School Pride,” from Horizon Alternative Television, airs on Fridays at 8 p.m. ET on NBC. Local affiliates include WILX TV 10 (Lansing), WNWO TV 24 (Toledo, OH), WDIV TV 4 (Detroit), WOOD TV 8 (Grand Rapids), WEYI TV 25 (Flint) and WPBN-WTOM TV 7&4 (Traverse City). The episode featuring MIS will air this Friday, Nov. 5.

    Nestled in the lush Irish Hills of Southeastern Michigan, Michigan International Speedway is the Great Escape, a venerable NASCAR national park where fans can get away and enjoy the very best in racing and camaraderie. It’s the love of racing and the thrill of a great time for race fans and drivers alike.

    The best, guaranteed lowest prices in 2011 will go to renewal customers and new customers who make a $30 goodwill deposit. Renewals are under way for 2010 ticket holders. New customers can log onto www.MISpeedway.com or call 800-354-1010 to leave a deposit. That deposit ensures race fans get the best pricing for 2011.

    Michigan International Speedway’s 2011 Schedule

    Saturday, May 21 Great Lakes Wine Fest

    Friday, June 17 ARCA Racing Series RainEater Wiper Blades 200

    Saturday, June 18 NASCAR Nationwide Series

    Sunday, June 19 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips 400

    Friday, Aug. 19 Gatorade Pole Day

    Saturday, Aug. 20 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series VFW 200

    Sunday, Aug. 21 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series

  • Erik Darnell — NNS Texas II Advance

    Erik Darnell – NNS ADVANCE
    Team:        No. 16 3M/ACE Brand Ford Fusion
    Race:        O’Reilly Auto Parts Challenge
    Crew Chief:        Chad Norris
    Chassis:        RK- 354
           
    FAST FACTS: DARNELL MAKES FIRST SERIES START AT TEXAS – While it’s hard to
    believe, as his series career has spanned three seasons, Erik Darnell
    will make his first NASCAR Nationwide Series start this weekend at Texas
    Motor Speedway.  Darnell has previously scored one top-10 finish in six
    Camping World Truck Series starts at the 1.5-mile speedway. 

    LAST START FOR 2010 – This weekend is Darnell’s final start of 2010
    with the No.16 team.  In his two previous starts (Richmond II, Dover II)
    Darnell’s best finish was a 14th-place effort at Dover International
    Speedway in September.  Colin Braun will be back behind the wheel of the
    No. 16 Con-way Freight Ford for the final two events of the 2010 season.

    SPEEDWAY STATS – In 19 career Nationwide Series starts, all of
    Darnell’s top-five and top-10 finishes have come at tracks
    measuring between one and two miles in length.  This is good news
    heading into the 1.5-mile Texas Motor Speedway where Darnell owns six
    Truck Series starts with one top-10 finish,

    ROUSH FENWAY RACING AT TEXAS – In 90 starts at Texas Motor Speedway,
    Roush Fenway Racing has notched seven wins, 25 top-fives, 40 top-10s,
    and 1816 laps led.  The wins were tallied by Matt Kenseth (3), Greg
    Biffle, Kurt Busch, Carl Edwards and Mark Martin. 

    TEXAS CHASSIS SELECTION – Crew chief Chad Norris has selected RK-354
    for this weekend’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Challenge at Texas Motor
    Speedway.  This is the same car Darnell drove to a 14th-place finish at
    Dover International Speedway in September. 

    Darnell, on racing in Texas:
    “Texas is a track that I had some decent runs at in the Truck Series,
    but unfortunately, the finishes didn’t always reflect that.  I’m
    hopeful we can put together a complete race here in my first Nationwide
    Series start at Texas.  I’m excited to have 3M on board again in my
    final start this season.  I know Chad [Norris] and the guys have been
    working hard getting our car ready, so I’m looking forward to a great
    weekend.”

    Crew chief Chad Norris, on racing in Texas with Darnell:
    “Erik has had some pretty good results at Texas in the past in the
    Camping World Truck Series.  We look forward to continuing that success
    this weekend in his first Nationwide Series start at the track. We have
    worked really hard on the car, as well as getting the pit crew geared up
    for this weekend. We expect great things for Erik and hope for a solid
    finish for 3M.”

  • David Ragan – Texas Advance

    David Ragan – NSCS ADVANCE

    Team: No. 6 UPS Ford Fusion

    Crew Chief: Drew Blickensderfer

    Chassis: Primary: RK-711 Brand new chassis

    Backup: RK-620 Last ran Vegas – finished 23rd

    Ragan, NSCS at Texas Motor Speedway:

    Date Event S F Laps Led Status Money

    4-19-10 Samsung Mobile 500 13 15 333/334 0 Running $125,775

    11-8-09 Dickies 500 17 17 332/334 0 Running $114,575

    4-5-09 Samsung 500 4 37 334/293 1 Engine $94,025

    11-2-08 Dickies 500 18 11 334/334 0 Running $124,875

    4-6-08 Samsung 500 7 13 338/339 0 Running $131,125

    11-4-07 Dickies 500 33 37 222/334 0 Accident $130,825

    4-15-07 Samsung 500 19 39 239/334 0 Running $117,025

    Races Wins Top-5s Top-10s Poles Led Money

    Spring 4 0 0 0 0 1 $467,950

    Fall 3 0 0 0 0 0 $370,275

    Cumulative 7 0 0 0 0 1 $838,225

    Ragan on racing at Texas Motor Speedway:

    “After two weeks of racing on short tracks and speedways it will be fun to get back to an intermediate track, especially one we’ve had success at the in the past. Texas is one of my favorite tracks. It’s a very fast track which makes for an exciting race for all the dedicated Texas fans that come out to watch us. I’m looking forward to getting a good run in our UPS Ford this weekend.”

    Crew chief Drew Blickensderfer on racing at Texas Motor Speedway:

    “We are looking forward to Texas after running well at Kansas and Charlotte. David has had some success in the past at Texas and it’s a place that the Roush cars are generally pretty good. We’re taking a brand new chassis this weekend and we hope to get a good finish in our brown and gold UPS Ford.”

    FAST FACTS

    • Ragan has visited Texas Motor Speedway seven times in the Sprint Cup Series, with his best finish being 11th in the fall of 2008.

    • Ragan has competed seven times in the Nationwide Series at Texas Motor Speedway. He claimed the pole in the spring of 2007 and has three top-five and five top-10 finishes.

    • Ragan also has three Camping World Truck Series starts at Texas Motor Speedway. Ragan has two top-10 finishes in just those three starts. His best finish was sixth in the fall of 2007.

    • UPS Maximum Center Recognition—Texas Motor Speedway:

    The Mesquite Feeder Department (SLIC 7519) has been selected as the Maximum Center for the November 7 race in Texas as part of UPS’s Center Recognition Program. The Mesquite Feeder Department will have its number on the C-post of David Ragan’s UPS Ford throughout the weekend.

  • Robert Richardson, Jr. returns to home state track of Texas with high hopes

    CHINA GROVE, N.C. (Nov. 1, 2010) – Robert Richardson, Jr. likes many things about racing at Texas Motor Speedway including the fast speeds, the layout of the track and his overall fondness for competiting on the 1.5-mile oval.

    But, most of all, it’s probably the fact he only has to travel 20 miles from doorstep to cockpit to compete in the No. 23 North Texas Pipe Chevrolet.

    As a graduate of nearby McKinney (Tex.) High School, the team’s former starting quarterback now resides a short distance away in Denton where horse farms are prevalent. For this Texas native, being around any kind of horsepower suits him just fine. But this weekend, he’ll trade one for 100s when he saddles in for the race weekend.

    Fast Facts: Richardson will be making his 68th NASCAR Nationwide Series career at his home track of TMS. During that span, his best finish took place at the short track of O’Reilly Raceway Park earlier this year of 15th. This will be his 22nd start in 2010, the most he’s made in any of his three prior seasons, where he’s accumulated an average finish of 27.5 this year.

    Track Facts: Through his previous six starts at TMS, Richardson has completed 994 of 1,200 laps (82.8%) laps contested. That would have been better if not for an electrical problem in one race and engine problem in the other for his two DNF’s. His best start was Spring ’08 when he qualified 29th and his best finish was 23rd, which he earned in this year’s April event.

    Car Facts: Steve Plattenberger and team will roll out chassis No. 30 to take on the fast Texas track. This car was last used at Kansas Speedway last month, Chicagoland Speedway in July, Charlotte Motor Speedway in May and Texas Motor Speedway in April. The team finished 23rd at both CMS and TMS with this car.

    Decklid Donation: Through a charity fundraiser for Communities in Schools, R3 Motorsports donated their decklid space for the Texas race to be auctioned off to the highest bidder. Included in the package was a Meet and Greet with the team and driver, photos on the starting grid and four garage passes. Turner Construction was the highest bidder and will have a “Turner – Building the Future” decal on the car.

    Where is Robert?: Richardson will be busy on Thursday as he takes part in two different charity events. The first will take place at Ross Perot Jr’s house for a Celebrity Clay Shooting contest. Being the avid hunter he is; Richardson is hoping to put his aiming prowess to work at this function. Later that evening, he’ll be a featured guest at Sam Hornish, Jr’s Celebrity Bowling Tournament at the Main Event in Grapevine, Texas to benefit the Speedway Children’s Charity.

    Did you know: The fall race at TMS has never been won from the pole. However, Kyle Busch holds the mark as the only driver to ever win a TMS race from the pole (Spring 09) and been the farthest back at 31st to go to Victory Lane (Spring ’08).

    Busy day on Friday: Two practice sessions will be held on Friday morning with qualifying done later in the day. Race action is on Saturday at 12:55 ET on ESPN2, PRN Radio and Sirius/XM Radio Ch. 128.

    Robert Richardson, Jr. quotes

    What makes this track more special than the others: “First off, I’m not going to have to catch a plane and rental car to get to this race. When you travel as much as we do to do what we do, it’s nice to be able to get in your own car and drive to the track, then drive back to your house.

    “The other thing that makes it special is number of friends and family that will be around this weekend. When we go to places like California, nobody knows me from Adam – which is fine. But, it’s nice to race in front of your hometown crowd on your home track like Texas.”

    What about the track and its layout: “They say all the 1.5 mile tracks are the same, or cookie cutters. I can definitely tell you each of them is different in their own way. Texas has the banking (24 degrees) that allows you to run the high speeds to get around here better. You have to be real good into Turns 1 and 3 if you want to be good out of Turns 2 and 4. If you’re not, you’re spending the rest of the lap trying to make up for what you lost on entry.

    “I like this car (chassis No. 30) we’re using this weekend and hope to be as good, if not better, than we have in the past. I’m ready for a good weekend of racing at Texas Motor Speedway. We only have two to go after this and we’d like to close out the season on some high notes.”

  • Elliott Sadler Truck Series Advance: Texas Motor Speedway

    NUMBER 10: Elliott Sadler returns to the No. 2 this weekend for his Truck Series debut at Texas Motor Speedway. The race will be Sadler’s 10th-career start in the Truck Series, and his seventh in a Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) truck. In his nine previous Truck Series races, Sadler has one win, one pole (both achieved at Pocono Raceway earlier this season), two top-five finishes and three top-10 finishes. He has led a total of 104 laps in the Truck Series, all of which were led this season in a KHI truck.

    GONE HUNTING: The No. 2 is going hunting for a win this weekend, sporting Realtree camouflage at Texas Motor Speedway. Realtree is the world’s leading camouflage designer, marketer, and licensor with over 2,000 licensees utilizing the Realtree camouflage brand. Additionally, Realtree is one of the nation’s leading contributors to conservation groups such as Ducks Unlimited, the National Wild Turkey Federation and the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation.

    GUNS BLAZING: Sadler comes into this weekend with all the arsenal he needs to win the famed cowboy hat and guns awarded to Texas Motor Speedway winners. Although he has never started a Truck Series race at the track, he has 17 Cup Series and six Nationwide Series starts at Texas Motor Speedway. In those starts, Sadler has earned one Cup Series win (2004) and one Nationwide Series pole (1998) on the 1.5-mile quad-oval. In his 23 combined starts at the track, Sadler has racked up three top-five finishes and six top-10 finishes.

    THOUGHTS FROM THE DRIVER: Elliott Sadler

    How do you feel going into this week’s race at Texas Motor Speedway?

    “Texas is one of my favorite tracks on the schedule. I’ve won there before and it’s one of the fastest places we race all year. I’ve got a win under my belt in the truck, and of all the things I’ve accomplished in my career, knowing that I’ve won in all three series is something I’m very proud of. Hopefully we can get a win, a cowboy hat and that cool trophy from Texas this weekend.”

    What have your Cup Series win and Nationwide Series pole at the track taught you about what it takes to be successful at Texas Motor Speedway?

    “Obviously, at any mile and a half, horsepower is a big deal. But when you look at Texas, you’re in the corner for a long time so it’s important to have the truck turning well. We’ll focus on race trim during practice and get the No. 2 Realtree Chevrolet ready for a good weekend. Hunting season in Texas will be in and I’ve been bow hunting back in Virginia, so it’s really cool to represent the Realtree brand.”

    PREVIOUS RACE RECAP: Last weekend at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, Ken Schrader broke his streak of six top-10 finishes in the No. 2 truck after fender damage received in “the big one” ended his chances of earning a KHI victory in 2010. After leading his first lap in a KHI truck, heavy fender damage sustained in a multi-truck wreck on lap 93 brought Schrader down pit road for repairs before the green-white-checkered restart, affecting the truck’s aerodynamics and costing him track position. Schrader crossed the finish line 11th in the Moore’s Marinade Chevrolet Silverado, but was assessed a post-race penalty for passing before the restart and was ultimately scored in the 14th position.

    CHASSIS HISTORY: The No. 2 team will utilize chassis No. 047 this weekend at Texas Motor Speedway. Chassis No. 047 made its debut at Las Vegas Motor Speedway where it was driven by Ron Hornaday to an 11th-place finish after starting in the seventh position.

    ARE YOU A FOLLOWER? Twitter users can now keep up-to-date with Kevin Harvick Inc.’s NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Teams by following at http://twitter.com/KHI_TruckSeries. In addition, you can follow KHI’s Nationwide Series team at http://twitter.com /KHI_NNS. Want more from KHI? Follow KHI’s co-owners Kevin and DeLana Harvick at http://twitter.com/kevinharvick and http://twitter.com/delanaharvick.

    MEDIA ACCESS: Members of the media can now log on to www.kevinharvickinc.com to gain access to press kit information online. For more information, please email Jessica Trippy at KHI: jtrippy@kevinharvickinc.com.

    About Realtree

    Realtree is the world’s leading camouflage designer, marketer, and licensor with over 2,000 licensees utilizing the Realtree camouflage brand. Thousands of outdoor and lifestyle products are available in Realtree camouflage patterns. In addition, Realtree is committed to supporting individuals and groups that work to ensure our outdoor heritage, the conservation of natural places, and the wildlife that resides there. In fact, Realtree is one of the nation’s leading contributors to conservation groups such as Ducks Unlimited, the National Wild Turkey Federation, and the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. Realtree promotes its products and relationships widely on ESPN2, Outdoor Channel, and other television networks, as well as through Realtree.com and many other outlets. For more information on Realtree, visit www.realtree.com.

    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.

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  • Kevin Harvick Texas Motor Speedway Preview (No. 33 NNS)

    LOOKING TO EVEN THE SCORE WITH A HIGH FIVE: With Kyle Busch winning the the rain-delayed Nationwide Series race earlier this season at Texas Motor Speedway, he moved ahead of two-time Nationwide Series champion Kevin Harvick as the all-time leader with five Nationwide Series wins at the track. Now, Harvick looks to even the score and win his fifth Nationwide Series race in the Lone Star State.

    Piloting the No. 33 Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) Jimmy John’s Chevrolet, Harvick will be making his 13th career start in the series at the 1.5-mile track. In his 12 previous starts at the track, Harvick has earned four wins, five top-five and nine top-10 finishes. His average starting position is 8.0 with an average finish of 9.3. Harvick has led 527 laps and completed 98.8 percent of laps attempted (2295 of 2322 laps). In addiiton, Harvick has one pole and has started inside the top seven for 10 races with one start of 23rd and most recently, a 16th-place starting position.

    On the Sprint Cup Series side, where Harvick and his No. 29 Richard Childress Racing (RCR) No. 29 team are in the hunt for the 2010 Series championship, Harvick has 15 starts, three top-five and seven top-10 finishes.

    Flipping to the Truck Series, Harvick has three starts with one top-five and one top-10 finish.

    LAP LEADER: This week Harvick will drive chassis No. 061, a chassis that has been on track for three races earlier this season and in all three, Harvick has led laps. At Chicagoland Speedway when the chassis made its race debut, Harvick won the pole and went on to lead nine laps. He followed by leading 52 laps at Atlanta Motor Speedway and leading 86 laps at Auto Club Speedway. Chassis 061 has led a total of 147 laps with finishes of seventh (Chicagoland), fourth (Atlanta) and third (Auto Club).

    BEFORE THE RACE: QUOTES WITH DRIVER KEVIN HARVICK:

    What is it like to race at Texas Motor Speedway? “Texas Motor Speedway is a fast race track. Besides Dover, it’s possibly the biggest sensation of speed other than a qualifying lap at Atlanta Motor Speedway. When it comes to the track itself, the transitions up off the corners at Texas are a lot different than tracks like Charlotte. The banking comes out of the corners and it really flattens out as you exit the corners. It is really hard to get a hold of turn two. A lot of times you are tight up off turn two or you’re pushing the front-end really bad. It is a fine line to get your car to work around the entire track.”

    You’ve been very successful in the Nationwide Series at Texas Motor Speedway, why is this? “Texas is a track that I’ve found success at from the get go. My first start there in the Nationwide car we had a top-10 finish and since then managed to pick up four wins. I always look forward to going back to Texas and competing for a win.”

    CHASSIS HISTORY: This weekend the No. 33 Jimmy John’s team will unload chassis No. 061 for KHI team co-owner Harvick at Texas Motor Speedway. Most recently this chassis was on track at Auto Club Speedway where Harvick started the race from the second position and led the most of laps of the field (86 laps) before coming up a few positions short with a third-place finish. Prior to Auto Club Speedway, this chassis was on track at Atlanta Motor Speedway where Harvick started the race eighth and led 52 laps before finishing fourth. This chassis made its race debut at Chicagoland Speedway where Harvick earned his 21st-career pole and finished the race seventh.

    PREVIOUS RACE RECAP: Most recently Mike Bliss made his final appearance of the season in the No. 33 car for KHI. Debuting new sponsor Mad Croc Energy, Bliss had a fast car from the time the team unloaded for the final scheduled Nationwide Series race at Gateway (Ill.) International Raceway. After running in the top three for both practice sessions, Bliss secured the fourth starting position and led 10 laps before coming up one position short with a solid second-place finish.

    ARE YOU A FOLLOWER? Twitter users can now keep up-to-date with Kevin Harvick Inc.’s NASCAR Nationwide Series by following @KHI_NNS. In addition, you can follow KHI’s Truck Series teams @KHI_TruckSeries. Want more from KHI? Follow KHI’s co-owners Kevin and DeLana Harvick @KevinHarvick and @DeLanaHarvick.

    ONLINE MEDIA KITS: Media members can now access KHI media kits online at KevinHarvickInc.com. Included on the site are driver bios, driver and team images, KHI history and statistics, team profiles and schedules. Please contact Alicia Deal (adeal@kevinharvickinc.com) at KHI for access to the new site.

    Kevin Harvick

    Nationwide Stats at Texas

    Year No. Team Start Finish

    2010 33 KHI 16 5

    2009 33 KHI 5 6

    2008 33 KHI 2 29

    2008 33 KHI 1 34

    2007 21 RCR 4 1

    2007 33 KHI 23 11

    2006 21 RCR 4 1

    2006 33 KHI 2 8

    2005 21 RCR 3 1

    2002 29 RCR 6 6

    2001 2 RCR 7 1

    2000 2 RCR 4 9

    *KHI: Kevin Harvick Inc.

    *RCR: Richard Childress Racing

    About Jimmy John’s:

    Jimmy John’s Gourmet Sandwiches was founded in 1983 by 19-year-old Jimmy John Liautaud in a converted garage in Charleston, IL. Since its inception, the company has grown to over 1,000 corporate and franchised locations in more than 37 states throughout the U.S. The company is known for its obsession with fresh, quality products and high-speed execution. For more information, visit www.jimmyjohns.com.

    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.

  • Josh Wise to attempt Sprint Cup Series race with R3 Motorsports at Texas

    CHINA GROVE, N.C. (Nov. 1, 2010) – R3 Motorsports has entered this weekend’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway with Josh Wise as their driver.

    Wise, who has competed mostly in the NASCAR Nationwide Series ranks the past four seasons, will be making his first NSCS qualifying effort with the team. This will be the second Cup attempt by R3 Motorsports in 2010, which is fielding the No. 23 North Texas Pipe Toyota at TMS.

    Leading the team’s NSCS effort will be veteran racer Walter Giles, who has been the crew chief for R3 Motorsports No. 23 Chevrolet in the NASCAR Nationwide Series ranks the past few weeks. Giles was a seven-time championship driver in Australia before coming to the USA to continue his motorsports career.

    With that, Steve Plattenberger will return to his crew chief duties with Robert Richardson, Jr. in the NNS race on Saturday.

    Wise, 27, is a native of Riverside, Calif. who cut his teeth in the USAC ranks becoming the series youngest champion at age 16 before making the move to full-fender cars. This year, he started out with the No. 61 Ford of Specialty Racing in Nationwide competition. He was then tapped by JR Motorsports to drive their No. 7 Chevrolet in nine races.

    Through 25 NNS starts this year, he has earned two top-10 finishes, led three laps and made three top-10 starts.

    Josh Wise quotes: “This year has been all about me gaining as much experience as possible driving everything I could at various tracks. When I got the call from Mr. Richardson of R3 Motorsports, I figured this was a good opportunity to learn something else in driving his No. 23 Toyota for the Cup race at Texas.

    “I like a big, fast track like TMS and am looking forward to working with Walter. I know Pops (Tony Eury, Sr.) and Tony Jr. from JR Motorsports worked with him during their DEI days together. So, we’ll go out there and see what we can do to make the show and have some fun.”

  • TIMOTHY PETERS RALLIES TO A SEVENTH PLACE FINISH AFTER BEING CAUGHT A LAP DOWN LATE IN THE RACE AT TALLADEGA SUPERSPEEDWAY

    Peters never gave up and worked his way back to the lead lap and a top-10 finish; marking his 16th top-10 finish of the season.

    TALLADEGA, AL. (Oct 30)- Timothy Peters headed for Talladega Superspeedway hoping for a repeat of his last superspeedway performance. Peters won the season opener at Daytona International Speedway and armed with the same chassis once again, he was looking for similar results. Qualifying 15th for the Mountain Dew 250, Peters had a plan to get himself to the front. When the green flag dropped, he found his drafting partner, and the #17 started moving forward. After nearly reaching the top-10 in the first four laps, Peters noticed the window net had come loose. Peters dropped to the back and rode around until the caution came out and the team could fix it. Once repaired Peters was on the move but radio issues were making it hard to communicate with the team. The crew worked on that problem during the next stop but the green flag waved before Peters caught up to the pack and he lost the draft. Unable to catch up, he eventually went a lap down on lap 73 when the draft caught up to him. Peters got hit from behind and spun on the apron. With no damage but four flat tires, the #17 hit pit road. All fixed up, Peters was hoping to catch a break with the “Lucky Dog” which he received on lap 85. He never gave up and was back in the hunt on the next restart. Exercising patience and good judgment, Peters avoided the “big one” in the final laps of the race and was able to bring home the #17 Red Horse Racing Tundra in the seventh spot after such a challenging day.

    The #17 team had only one practice session on Friday morning to get their Toyota Tundra in race ready condition. Peters did a couple mock qualifying runs then switched over to drafting practice. Confident his truck was still as good as it had been in Daytona, Peters was ready to find his way back to Victory Lane.

    Peters qualified 15th on Friday afternoon but knew he wouldn’t stay there for long once the green flag waved. Under sunny skies on Saturday afternoon, it was finally time to see how the #17 would fair at one of NASCAR’s toughest tracks.

    When the Mountain Dew 250 started, Peters quickly found drafting help and shot up to the 11th spot by lap four. Peters came on the radio and told the crew his window net had come unlatched at the bottom. Forced to drop to the back of the pack and ride around until the first caution, Peters was holding the net closed with one hand and driving with the other.

    He was so relieved to see the first caution fly on lap 22. Peters hit pit road on lap 26 for four fresh tires, fuel and adjustments. The team also took some extra time to fix the window net so it would stay closed on its own.

    He restarted 23rd on lap 32 and in just on lap had already worked his way to the 16th spot. Using the draft to his advantage, Peters broke inside the top-10 on lap 40. On lap 44, Peters once again came on the radio with bad news. He reported that the window net had somehow come undone again. He dropped back to the 19th spot still having to hold the net himself.

    The caution came out again on lap 60 just before Peters was about to make a green flag pit stop. He hit pit road for four tires, fuel and adjustments. The team also worked to repair the window net. Experiencing radio problems the last green flag run, Peters came back to pit road one lap later to let the team switch out his radio.

    He headed back out on track to catch up with the pack before the restart but the green flag flew before he reached the lead pack. As a result, Peters lost the draft and was left to ride around by himself hoping for another caution. Eventually the pack caught up to him from behind and put Peters a lap down on lap 73. Just as Peters was merging into the lead draft, another truck bumped him from behind and spun the #17 down towards the apron. Peters kept it off the wall and the truck had no damage but all four tires were flat. He hit pit road on lap 74 for four tires and fuel.

    The #17 restarted 18th still one lap down to the leaders but a quick caution gave Peters the “Lucky Dog” on lap 85 and he was back on the lead lap and back in the game. Restarting 18th, he worked his way to 16th before a huge wreck broke out in front of him on lap 91. Able to avoid any contact, Peters snuck through unscathed. The red flag came out to allow officials to clean up the debris. When the track was clear once again, the engines re-fired and Peters lined up to restart ninth for a green, white, checkered finish. Holding his position, Peters used the draft to gain two spots before the end of the race. After the battles he experienced during the race, he was elated with a seventh place finish.

    The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series heads to Ft. Worth, Texas this week. The WinStar World Casino 350 at Texas Motor Speedway is scheduled for Friday, November 5th and will be televised live on SPEED Channel at 8:30pm EDT.

  • TOYOTA NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) Post-Race Notes & Quotes Talladega Superspeedway

    David Reutimann (fourth) was the highest finishing Camry driver in Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) race at Alabama’s 2.66-mile Talladega Superspeedway.  

    Joey Logano (fifth), Martin Truex Jr. (sixth) and Denny Hamlin (ninth) also finished in the top-10 for Toyota.  

    Other Camry drivers in the field included Robby Gordon (18th), Casey Mears (24th), Kyle Busch (25th), Kasey Kahne (26th), Joe Nemechek (27th), Michael Waltrip (28th), Scott Speed (29th), Marcos Ambrose (34th) and Jeff Fuller (43rd).  

    Nine Camrys took turn leading today’s 500-mile race for a total of 63 (of 188) laps.  Lap leaders included Reutimann (14 laps), Logano (eight laps), Truex (nine laps), Hamlin (four laps), Busch (20 laps), Kahne (three laps), Nemechek (one lap), Speed (three laps) and Ambrose (one lap).  

    Hamlin remains second in the unofficial NSCS point standings and trails Johnson by 14 points after seven events in the 10-race 2010 Chase for the Sprint Cup championship playoff.  Busch moved to the fifth position and is now 230 points behind Johnson.

    DAVID REUTIMANN, No. 00 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota Camry, Michael Waltrip Racing Finishing Position:  4th How was your car able to push and lead in the draft today? “It’s just weird, sometimes you get out behind cars and you can push them and you can move forward.  Other times you just can’t.   There’s just no rhyme or reason for it.  Had a great Aaron’s Dream Machine – great pit stops all day.  My guys did a great job – Rodney Childers (crew chief) and everybody did a fabulous job from the time we unloaded until now.  Thanks to Toyota and Toyota Racing Development – great horsepower all day.  That thing was like 280 degrees when we came back around here on water temp and they told me to keep digging.  I don’t know too many motors that will take that all the time so hats off to those guys.  Just happy to get out of here – this is probably our best speedway car and we’ve been using it quite a bit.  Thankfully we haven’t left where it’s been torn up too bad so we’ll be ready to take it back next year.”

    JOEY LOGANO, No. 20 Home Depot Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing Finishing Position:  5th Did you have any plans on who to draft with in the closing laps? “Basically it was whoever was in front of me on that last restart.  We were trying to get all three (Joe) Gibbs (Racing) cars together there for a while and it was working for us.  That caution came out and it split us all up.  At that point the 56 (Martin Truex Jr.) was in front of me, which was cool because it was a Toyota and we just hammered down.  I was just a bulldozer and kept pushing, pushing, pushing.  Was able to get the 56 up there – we were up to fourth and fifth and we were catching the first four cars there.  As soon as we got there Martin had to check up a little bit and that killed our momentum and at that point I went by him.  He tried to get back to me to push me and that was it.  I felt like if we were able to get by those guys there coming to the line there then maybe I could have pushed Martin another lap and tried to make a last lap pass for the win there.  It was fun there at the end.  I had a lot of fun in the Home Depot Toyota.  We had a good car and just had to be patient the whole race – that was the toughest part is trying to be patient and riding behind these guys and waiting to position yourself there at the end.  I was pretty comfortable when I was in the top-seven or eight there with about 20 (laps) to go.  Felt like that was where I needed to be and didn’t do anything stupid.  I just stayed in line and when it came down to it, I needed to go.  We did what the plan was today, but the plan was to win it so we almost did the plan.” Did you want to try to help Denny Hamlin when he went a lap down? “There’s not a whole bunch we could do.  You’re out there trying to get yourself to the front so it’s definitely a challenge there.   Basically if he (Denny Hamlin) was hung out then we would let him in and help him out as much as we can.  Felt like we did a good job helping him out as much as we could today.  I think he had a solid run.”

    MARTIN TRUEX JR., No. 56 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota Camry, Michael Waltrip Racing Finishing Position:  6th How do you feel about your finish at Talladega today? “We finally finished one at Talladega.  I had fun today driving the NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota.  I had a good car all day.  Here, it is all about surviving.  We were able to survive.  Usually if you can do that, at least for me, I have a shot at winning.  I haven’t been able to get it in a Cup car, but we were close today.  We had a big run coming to the white flag.  We had good help from Joey Logano in the 20 car, but the hole closed up on us.  Logano was pushing me really, really well for the last two laps.  We had a huge run coming. If they didn’t block us, we were going to be the leader at the white flag.  I guess it wasn’t meant to be – what are you going to do?  We had a good race.”

    DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 FedEx Freight Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing Finishing Position:  9th How was your race overall today? “It wasn’t very fun.  I didn’t get to race as hard as I would like to at times and thought I was in a good position there.  I was actually in a great position with two (laps) to go.  I had the 5 (Mark Martin) pushing me, but as soon as we passed the 48 (Jimmie Johnson) he stopped pushing and that’s teamwork.  That’s what I would expect of a teammate.  We were in a bad spot.  We weren’t around our teammates when it counted right there at the end.” How did you feel when you fell to one lap down? “I was a little disappointed.  I knew we could get it back.  I was hoping we were going to stay out and get the pass around, but Mike (Ford, crew chief) wanted to make the safe call and get the lucky dog.  We got that and just had a good car.  Just never ran all day.  I hate that I had to race like that.  Unfortunately with our points format, it’s how you have to race.  It was an up and down day.  It looked like everyone broke even.  I lost a little to the 48 (Jimmie Johnson), lost to the 29 (Kevin Harvick), but still it wasn’t anything detrimental today.” Why were you upset when you got out of the car? “I had the 48 (Jimmie Johnson) by five spots coming off the last corner and when the 5 (Mark Martin) stopped pushing me, it just killed us.  We weren’t going to go forward from that point.” How do you feel being 14 points behind Jimmie Johnson leaving Talladega? “It’s what I asked for.  I asked for nobody to really get killed here this weekend and to let us settle it on the race track where our cars and our teams can make a difference and us drivers can make a difference.  That’s what we got.  We’ve got a tight one and I’m looking forward to the last three (races).”

    ROBBY GORDON, No. 7 Speed Toyota Camry, Robby Gordon Motorsports Finishing Position:  18th

    CASEY MEARS, No. 13 GEICO Toyota Camry, Germain Racing Finishing Position:  24th

    KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 M&M’s Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing Finishing Position:  25th

    DAVE ROGERS, crew chief, No. 18 M&M’s Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing How do you feel about the race today? “This is one of those places where a lot of people leave upset and a few leave happy.  We’re pretty happy with our M&M’s Camry – it was a pretty good car.  We could lead, we could push really good, but circumstances at the end – it just didn’t work out for us.  We got hung on the bottom and the top line just freight-trained us.  We lined up behind the 00 (David Reutimann) and there was a small hole and he was able to get up top.  Then we lined up behind the 20 (Joey Logano) and there was another small hole and he was able to get up.  You can’t blame those guys – that’s what they have to do to finish ahead for themselves.  We could never find that small hole to get up – we got trapped on the bottom and we got freight-trained there.  We got a 28th-place finish out of it.  I think this team is a lot more solid than that.  That’s what’s disappointing.  One of the rewarding things of this sport is at the end of the day you always have a report card – you know how well you performed.  It stinks when your report card says you finished 28th, but you know you were a lot better than that.  We’ll lick our wounds and get ready for Texas.”

    KASEY KAHNE, No. 83 Red Bull Toyota Camry, Red Bull Racing Team Finishing Position:  26th

    JOE NEMECHEK, No. 87 Toyota Camry, NEMCO Motorsports Finishing Position:  27th

    MICHAEL WALTRIP, No. 55 Aaron’s 55th Anniversary Toyota Camry, PRISM Motorsports Finishing Position:  28th

    SCOTT SPEED, No. 82 Red Bull Toyota Camry, Red Bull Racing Team Finishing Position:  29th

    MARCOS AMBROSE, No. 47 Kleenex/Clorox Toyota Camry, JTG-Daugherty Racing Finishing Position:  34th

    JEFF FULLER, No. 97 Heatredefined.com Toyota Camry, NEMCO Motorsports Finishing Position:  43rd