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Author: Official Release

  • Germain Racing, Bodine Going Pink for Kroger 200 at Martinsville Speedway

    – Bodine Leads the Truck Series Championship Battle by a 262-point margin

    – No. 30 Germain.com Tundra Will Sport Special Pink Scheme for October NBCA

    – Germain Racing has 22 Truck Series Victories and Eight Pole Awards

    – Bodine Owns 21 Truck Series wins with Germain Racing and 36 NASCAR career wins

    October 19, 2010 (Mooresville, N.C.) – Taking a record-setting point lead into Martinsville Speedway for Saturday’s Kroger 200 is no reason for the No. 30 Germain.com Tundra team to throw caution to the wind. Instead, driver Todd Bodine and crew chief Mike Hillman Jr. have some plans in place for how to deal with the endless variables presented by racing in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series on one of the toughest short tracks in NASCAR.

    “Martinsville is a tough little short track. Anything can happen and we know we have to come out of there with a good finish. Do we want to win? Of course we do! We are going to Martinsville with high expectations, and, at the same time, we realize what our finish needs to be,” explained Bodine, the 2010 Truck Series championship points leader, who has collected four wins behind the wheel of the No. 30 Tundra this year.

    When Bodine says the Germain Racing team is heading to Martinsville Speedway to collect the team’s first short-track win, he’s serious. The team returns to the track with TRD-122, which ran at Martinsville in the spring, and has since been to Darlington’s winner’s circle. It also passed a recent testing session with flying colors.

    “We tested at Little Rock and we think we have the right truck for Martinsville. I expect that the Germain.com Tundra will still be tight in the middle of the corners, but we have a game plan to fix it,” said Hillman.

    Bodine further explained the philosophy behind the testing session.

    “We didn’t go to Little Rock to find a chassis setup for Martinsville. We went to Little Rock to improve on our short track program and we are now going into Martinsville with a little extra optimism. We have a direction to go. We went to Little Rock to figure some other things out and we did. We should be fine,” said Bodine.

    At Bodine’s insistence, the Germain Racing team took their typical effort to promote October as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month a step further. In addition to sporting pink ribbons, the No. 30 Germain.com Tundra will be very pink.

    “For a lot of reasons, promoting Breast Cancer Awareness has been an important mission for Germain Racing since our first year in the Trucks. All Germain Racing vehicles have pink ribbons in October. The Germain.com Tundra will be very pink at Martinsville. Everything on the truck that would normally be red is going to be pink. It’s going to look great. I can’t wait to see it,” said Bodine.

    Watch for Bodine in the pink Germain.com Tundra on Saturday, October 23, at Martinsville Speedway. SPEED will cover Truck Series practice on Friday, the 22nd, at 1:00 PM ET, and live racing on Saturday at 12:30 PM.

    Follow Germain Racing on Twitter @GermainRacing or on the web at Germainracing.com or become a Facebook fan.

    When shopping for your new or used car or truck, head directly to Germain.com to find the perfect vehicle or visit your local Germain dealer in Ohio, Florida, or Arkansas. Germain.com is part of Germain Motor Company, a top-25 automotive retail network with 21 dealerships and more than 60 years of experience.

  • AN EVEN DOZEN FOR GORDON AT MARTINSVILLE?

    MARTINSVILLE, Va. (October 19, 2010) – In this Sunday’s TUMS Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway, can Jeff Gordon continue a streak of top-five finishes at the 0.526-mile track that began with one of his most memorable “drives” in a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series car?

    AN EVEN DOZEN FOR GORDON AT MARTINSVILLE? Gordon, who will drive a specially-painted No. 24 DuPont/National Guard Chevrolet Impala this weekend, has posted 11 consecutive top-five finishes at the Virginia track. To put that in perspective, Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson was a no-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champion when the streak began, and ESPN analysts Dale Jarrett and Rusty Wallace did not call the action that day – they were part of it. It all began with a win – a hard-earned win – in April of 2005.

    Gordon, who started 16th that day, reported a vibration in the car less than 50 laps into the 500-lap race. The 82-time winner lost three laps to the leaders while repairs were made to damaged right-front wheel studs. While NASCAR’s “free pass” rule allows the first car scored one lap down back onto the lead lap if a caution waves, Gordon benefited from that rule only once. On two occasions, he “unlapped” himself by passing the leader of the race. Just past halfway, Gordon was back on the lead lap.

    On lap 464, he maneuvered into the lead and paced the field the remaining distance.

    “That was one of my more memorable drives in NASCAR,” said Gordon. “To be down that many laps, and then race our way back onto the lead lap and back into the lead is something I’ll never forget.

    “And the ‘free pass’ may have been the hardest thing to earn. The leader kept lapping cars, so they kept telling me someone new that I had to go pass to stay in position to earn it.”

    In 35 starts at the short track, Gordon has seven wins, seven poles, 23 top-fives and 29 top-10’s. In fact, he has finished outside the top-12 only three times – in the spring of 1994 and both events in 2002.

    “I always love going to Martinsville – the track seems like a natural fit for my driving style,” said Gordon, who is fourth in the point standings and 156 behind leader Johnson.

    “I just love the challenges of this race track and what it presents to a driver— how hard to drive into the corner without over driving the corner, what you have to tell the team to get the car to work through the corner and off the corner to try to go out there and win the race. It’s a fun track to tune the car on.

    “Our race cars always seem to be fast here, so this is a track we carry a lot of confidence into.”

    And confidence could help Gordon secure a dozen consecutive top-fives at Martinsville – and his 12th of the 2010 campaign.

  • Toyota NASCAR Notes & Quotes I Martinsville-Gateway

    Here Are the Headlines: Busch Best Camry at Charlotte Martinsville Memories for Toyota Camrys Competing in St. Louis

    RACE REVIEW: Camry driver Kyle Busch crossed the finish line second in Saturday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) race at Charlotte Motor Speedway (CMS). Busch started sixth in the Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) No. 18 M&M’s Toyota Camry and led six times for a race-high 217 (of 334) laps, looking poised to win his first NSCS race at CMS. However, a debris caution with 24 laps to go bunched the field and Busch was passed by eventual race-winner Jamie McMurray on the ensuing restart. He held off a charging Jimmie Johnson to earn a second-place finish. Camry drivers Denny Hamlin (fourth), Joey Logano (seventh) and David Reutimann (ninth) also earned top-10 results at Charlotte.

    CHASE CAMRYS: Hamlin’s fourth-place finish, coupled with Johnson’s third-place result, extended Johnson’s lead in the unofficial NSCS Chase standings to 41 points over Hamlin (second in points) after five of 10 races in the Chase. Busch climbed four spots to fifth in the standings, putting him 177 points behind the leader.

    DENNY TO DEFEND: Hamlin has been victorious the last two times the NSCS visited Martinsville Speedway — in March 2010 and October 2009. The Chesterfield, Va.-native led a race-high 206 (of 501) laps last fall, and another race-high 172 (of 508) laps earlier this year, to capture both checkered flags. Hamlin has earned a total of three NSCS wins at Martinsville. He scored his first win driving a Toyota in March 2008.

    MARTINSVILLE MAGIC: The half-mile Martinsville Speedway is one of the most successful tracks for Toyota racers in both the NSCS and NCWTS. In NSCS competition, Martinsville (three wins) is second only to its fellow Virginia track Richmond International Raceway (four wins) for the total number of NSCS victories by Camry drivers since 2007. The track has been just as successful for Tundra drivers who have earned six wins since Toyota entered the NCWTS in 2004, which is second only to the eight victories that have been earned by Tundra racers at Texas Motor Speedway. Tundra drivers who have visited victory lane at Martinsville include David Starr (March 2006), Jack Sprague (Oct. 2006), Mike S kinner (March and Oct. 2007), Johnny Benson (Oct. 2008) and Timothy Peters (Oct . 2009).

    ST. LOUIS SUCCESS: This October’s race marks the third year Toyota Camrys have competed at Gateway International Raceway in the NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS). Last July, Busch won the race from the pole position, and two years ago Logano led 42 laps in the Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) No. 20 entry en route to a runner-up finish in his first start at the 1.25-mile paved track located near St. Louis. Braun Racing’s Jason Leffler earned back-to-back fourth-place finishes at Gateway in 2007 and 2008. Earlier this year, Toyota drivers combined for four top-10 finishes in July — Reed Sorenson (second), Trevor Bayne (third), Steve Wallace (fifth) and Brian Scott (sixth). Bayne also started from the pole position and led 19 laps.

    TIMOTHY’S TURF: Tundra driver Peters scored his first career NCWTS victory last October at Martinsville Speedway. The Danville, Va.-resident led the final 84 laps en route to victory lane at his ‘home’ track. Before joining Red Horse Racing midway through the 2009 season, Peters ran his NCWTS operation out of his home 30 miles from Martinsville. This season, Peters is teamed with veteran crew chief Jeff Hensley, a Ridgeway, Va.-native and former NNS driver. The duo saw immediate results, winning the season-opening race at Daytona.

    BACK STORY: Background and images on the Toyota NASCAR program are available at www.toyotamotorsportsmedia.com.

    TOYOTA 2010 NASCAR STATISTICS: Series Races Starts (Drivers) Wins Top-5s Top-10s Poles Times Led Laps Led NSCS 31 396 (30) 10 34 70 5 170 2,412 NNS 31 331 (33) 16 66 130 16 165 3,110 NCWTS 20 190 (26) 12 46 97 9 91 1,696

    WEEKEND RACE SCHEDULE: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series @ Martinsville Speedway, Sunday, Oct. 24 @ 1:00 PM (ET), ESPN — Race 32 of 36

    NASCAR Nationwide Series @ Gateway International Raceway, Saturday, Oct. 23 @ 3:30 PM (ET), ESPN2 — Race 32 of 35

    NASCAR Camping World Truck Series @ Martinsville Speedway, Saturday, Oct. 23 @ 1:00 PM (ET), SPEED – Race 20 of 25

  • Justin Allgaier, No. 12 Verizon Dodge – Gateway International Raceway Preview

    Justin Allgaier

    No. 12 Verizon Dodge Charger

    Gateway International Raceway – 5-Hour Energy 250

    October 23, 2010

    Verizon Team News and Notes

    · This Week’s Verizon Dodge … Justin Allgaier will pilot Penske Racing chassis PRS-017 in Saturday afternoon’s 5-Hour Energy 250 at Gateway International Raceway. This is the same Dodge Charger that Allgaier used to record his first career Nationwide Series pole at Memphis Motorsports Park in October of 2009. It then raced at Richmond International Raceway in April, where the 2009 Nationwide Series Rookie of the Year started ninth and finished 15th. Most recently, Allgaier raced this chassis to a 25th-place finish at Gateway in July, where he was involved in a late-race incident.

    · Welcome Home, Justin … Allgaier, a native of Riverton, Ill., grew up just over 100 miles northeast of Gateway International Raceway. He began his career racing quarter midgets in his home state at the age of five. Since then, he has claimed two poles, one win, 10 top-five and 30 top-10 finishes in 70 Nationwide Series starts; two poles, eight wins, 31 top fives and 45 top 10s and the 2008 championship in 86 ARCA Series starts; and two top-25 finishes in eight Camping World Truck Series races.

    · Through 31 Races … With 31 races of the 2010 season in the record books, Allgaier has accumulated one pole, one win, seven top-five and 18 top-10 finishes, an average starting position of 12th and an average finish of 11.9. Allgaier has led 133 laps of competition and has completed 97.4 percent of the laps contested (5,536 of 5,684) so far this season.

    · Get to the Points … Allgaier ranks fourth in the NNS championship point standings heading into this weekend’s event at GIR. He trails current point leader and Penske Racing teammate Brad Keselowski by 851 points, and third-place contender Kyle Busch by 336 points.

    · Best in Class … Allgaier’s fourth-place position in the point standings is best among full-time, Nationwide Series-only drivers. Allgaier leads fellow Nationwide-only driver Trevor Bayne, currently ranked eighth, by 600 points.

    · Allgaier at Gateway … In two NNS starts at GIR, Allgaier has a best finish of 11th, which came in his first start at the 1.25-mile oval. Additionally, the 24-year-old driver has an average starting position of 14.5, an average finish of 18th and has completed 98.5 percent of the laps contested (394 of 400).

    · Penske Racing at Gateway … In three previous NNS starts at GIR, Penske Racing entries have recorded two top-15 finishes. Penske Dodges have been atop the leaderboard for 136 circuits in their time at Gateway, and have completed 594 of 600 laps contested.

    · Penske Racing in 2010 … With 31 races completed in the 2010 season, Penske Racing’s two NASCAR Nationwide Series entries have recorded six poles, six wins, a combined 29 top-five and 43 top-10 finishes. Penske Dodges have completed 11,219 of 11,368 laps contested, and have been atop the leaderboard for 1,196 laps with drivers Allgaier and Keselowski.

    · Are You Experienced? … In addition to his two previous NNS starts at the 1.25-mile venue, Allgaier has competed in four ARCA Series races at Gateway, posting his track-best finish of fourth in August of 2007.

    · Driver of the Week … Nationwide has selected Allgaier as this week’s Driver of the Week. As part of the program, he will participate in an on-line chat with NASCAR.com this Wednesday at 12 p.m., where he will answer questions from race fans.

    · In-Race Reporter … Allgaier will serve as ESPN’s in-race reporter for Saturday’s live broadcast of the 5-Hour Energy 250. Fans will see live in-car camera shots from the Verizon Dodge and listen as he and crew chief Chad Walter give live updates throughout the race.

    · Cast Your Vote … Some 30,000 fans have cast their votes since July 6, and Allgaier is currently ranked among the top-five in the NNS Most Popular Driver award voting (through Wednesday, Sept. 15). Fans can visit www.nascarnationwideseries.com to vote for their favorite NASCAR Nationwide Series driver. Voting continues through Saturday, November 13.

    · Meet the Driver … Fans can meet Allgaier on Thursday, October 21 from 6 – 7 p.m. at the Verizon Wireless store located at 1108 Collinsville Crossing Blvd. in Collinsville, Ill. The following day, he will sign for fans at the Penske Racing souvenir trailer, located in the midway at GIR, from 12 – 12:30 p.m. He will return to the trailer on Saturday from 11 – 11:30 a.m.

    · High Above Clear Lake Avenue … As a part of breast cancer awareness month, Springfield, Ill.-based St. John’s Hospital unveiled a “Real Men Wear Pink” billboard featuring Allgaier. The billboard will remain above one of the busiest sections of Springfield for the month of October.

    Justin Allgaier on Gateway International Raceway

    “There’s always a compromise at Gateway, and I’ve always been a believer in making the car better at one end or the other. You know when the car unloads off the truck which corner you’re going to be better at. Turns 3 and 4 for me always seem to be where I hit it. It’s wider than the other end of the track, which lets you build a lot of speed to carry down the frontstretch. That being said, the last time we raced at Gateway, it seemed the cars that were able to get off Turn 2 better were at an advantage. Our goal for this weekend is to find a decent balance, knowing that we’ll have to sacrifice at one end to be better in the other.”

    Crew chief Chad Walter on Gateway International Raceway

    “Gateway is a challenging track with very different corners at each end. It’s like a paperclip in Turns 1 and 2, and has long, sweeping turns at the other end of the track. Getting our Verizon Dodge loose enough to turn in 1 and 2 while still being able to put the power down through Turns 3 and 4 is what will make our race a lot more enjoyable. This track means a lot to Justin; it’s one of his favorites. We know that he’ll be up on the wheel to get a good finish for his hometown crowd.”

  • Team 48 Martinsville Speedway Preview

    Jimmie Johnson

    2010 Starts: 31 Wins: 6 Top 5: 14 Top 10: 18

    Current Driver Point Standing: 1st

    Finish in Charlotte: 3rd October 2009 Finish at Martinsville: 2nd

    RACE NOTES

    Martinsville Speedway

    Johnson has made 17 Sprint Cup Series starts at Martinsville Speedway, where he has earned six wins, 12 top-five and 16 top-10 finishes.

    Johnson has completed 99.4% (8465 of 8519) of competition laps at the .526-mile venue and has led 1551.

    He has an average start and finish of 11.5 and 5.4.

    Chassis

    Johnson will pilot chassis No. 540 in Sunday’s Sprint Cup Series race. He last drove that car to a 25th-place finish at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in September. Before that, he took it to Victory Lane in New Hampshire in June.

    Back up chassis No. 520 has collected four wins in five starts – the most recent coming at Martinsville Speedway in March 2009.

    QUOTES

    WE TALK TO DRIVERS ABOUT THEIR SHORT TRACK BACKGROUNDS. YOU HAVE AN OFF-ROAD BACKGROUND YET YOU ARE AMONG THE ONES TO BEAT AT MARTINSVILLE. TALK ABOUT THAT. “It took a while to get there. And when I came into the sport, I had two years in ASA and thought that the short tracks would fit well for me and it was quite the opposite. It took a long time to understand the big car, the radial tire, the extra power, and how to maneuver around on a short track. But the track at Martinsville, especially when the rubber is laid down, reminds me of some of my off-road stuff where we would have barrels or tractor tires stacked up as the turn-marker, but it was that tight of a radius. And when the rubber lays down, especially the right-side rubber on corner exit at Martinsville, you have to change your line to not run through the rubber at the wrong spot. “And that rhythm really helps all dirt drivers. It doesn’t matter if it’s Tony (Stewart) in a Sprint Car or Dirt Late Model, or Kasey Kahne for that matter. I think certain guys have an eye for where the slick spots are on the track and how to change their lines and I think all of our dirt backgrounds really help that.”

    GOING TO MARTINSVILLE WHO DO YOU NOT WANT TO SEE SITTING NEXT TO YOU ON A RESTART? YOUR BOSS SEEMS TO THINK THAT THE DOUBLE-FILE RESTARTS ARE WHAT IS GOING TO EVENTUALLY FIGURE OUT THE CHAMPIONSHIP. “Yeah and we had a really exciting finish there in the spring with the double-file restart. First and foremost, you would have to assume the front-row outside driver—the old theory of eight wheels are better than four is going to come into play—and whoever the inside car is going to lean on him pretty heavily. There we can turn people around pretty easily. It could. I’ve heard Jeff [Gordon] make those comments on how double-file restarts could affect things. I naturally think that he’s speaking more to the mile-and-a-half and two-mile tracks because the cars are really out of control in low-air situations. You have more control over your car at Martinsville than at any of the other tracks on a double-file restart. We’ll see. Who I wouldn’t want next to me—man I guess whoever would be second in points. We’re going to be gouging for every single point at that part of the race and the way the points are stacked up, the top-five are all guys that are really good at Martinsville. It could be exciting.”

    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 31 2010 starts, Johnson has collected six wins, 14 top five and 18 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 322 Sprint Cup Series starts, Johnson has posted 131 top-five and 198 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 10,992 laps (of 92,627) in his Sprint Cup career, covering over 124,280 miles.

    He has finished on the lead lap 248 times.

  • Ricky Carmichael: NCWTS Martinsville Race Preview

    PREVIEW: RICKY CARMICHAEL (NO. 4 MONSTER ENERGY CHEVROLET)

    VENUE: MARTINSVILLE SPEEDWAY (.526-MILE OVAL)

    CIRCUIT: NASCAR CAMPING WORLD TRUCK SERIES (RACE 21 of 25)

    EVENT: KROGER 200 (200 LAPS, 105.2 MILES)

    DATE: OCTOBER 23, 2010

    CARMICHAEL AT MARTINSVILLE: Ricky Carmichael will be making his NCWTS debut at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

    CARMICHAEL ON TRUCKS: Carmichael’s last race came at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, where an early spin in the race relegated him to a 29th-place finish. So far this season, Carmichael has scored two top-five and three top-10 finishes.

    CARMICHAEL ON COMPETING AT MARTINSVILLE: “I’m looking forward to going back to Martinsville. We ended up 10th there in the Spring, despite a long day and a few problems, but we worked hard to get where we needed to be in the end to put ourselves in the top-10. I know we’re going to go back there with a better piece of equipment and I’m looking forward to improving on that finish.”

    BEHIND THE WHEEL: Crew chief Doug Randolph has chosen chassis No.13 for Carmichael to pilot at Las Vegas. This truck was previously on-track at Chicago and Kentucky, where he finished 28th and fifth, respectively.

    NO BREAK IN THE ACTION FOR CARMICHAEL: While most of his NCWTS competitors were taking the last few weeks off, Carmichael was busy making his NASCAR Nationwide Series debut at Kansas Speedway and followed it up with his second race at Auto Club Speedway in California. He finished 18th and 31st, respectively.

    RIDING WITH RICKY: The Monster Energy Chevrolet will be hosting The Apple Mart and Kroger stores on the rear quarter panels this weekend at Martinsville. Fans can get a first-hand look at the Monster Energy Chevrolet when the show truck appears at the Apple Mart store in Danville (4168 Franklin Turnpike) on Thursday from 2 pm -6 pm and at the Kroger in Martinsville (240 Commonwealth Blvd.) on Friday from 2 -6 pm

    HIT THE POLLS: It’s time for NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver fan vote! Carmichael won the award last season and is hoping his fans will help him win a repeat. Go to NASCAR.com (http://www.nascar.com/news/features/2010.truck.mpd/index.html) to cast your votes today.

    BET YOU DIDN’T KNOW: Fans can get a behind-the-scenes look at Carmichael’s home in Tallahassee, Fla., by picking up the current issue of Architectural Digest magazine. The issue, on newsstands now, features the home’s interior design which was created by his wife Ursula’s interior design company, CDecor (www.cdecor.net). The article can also be viewed online at http://www.architecturaldigest.com/homes/homes/2010/11/ricky_carmichael_article

    MONSTER MANIA: Fans can log onto www.monsterenergy.com for a chance to win race tickets, garage passes and a meet & greet with Ricky Carmichael during the 2010 season. The promotion will run throughout the remainder of the season and a winner will be awarded at each venue the Truck Series visits. Fans can always stay up to date with Ricky and the Monster Energy team via Twitter @RickyCarmichael, @MonsterEnergy and @TurnerMotorspts or online at www.rickycarmichael.com and www.teamturnermotorsports.com.

    DON’T MISS A LAP: The Kroger 200 will take the green flag this Saturday, October 23rd at 12:30 PM Eastern. Viewers can watch the race live on SPEED. Additionally, Motor Racing Network (MRN) and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio (Channel 128) will have the live radio broadcast.

  • Ricky Stenhouse Jr/No. 6 CitiFinancial Team Advance – Gateway

    Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

    No. 6 CitiFinancial Ford Fusion

    Gateway International Raceway (1.25-mile Oval)

    5 Hour Energy 250 (200 laps/250 miles)

    Saturday, Oct. 23, 2010

    Nationwide Series Driver Points Position – 17th (after 31 of 35 races) 

    No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing News and Notes Heading Into St. Louis:

    The Driver…Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who leads the Raybestos Rookie of the Year standings by six points, will make his third NASCAR Nationwide Series start Gateway International Raceway on Saturday. In July, Stenhouse started 15th and finished 9th. In 2009, Stenhouse started eighth and finished 30th while driving the No. 16 Roush Fenway Racing Ford.

    The Organization…Roush Fenway Racing has four wins, nine top fives and 16 top 10s in 21 Nationwide Series starts at GIR. Stenhouse joins teammates Carl Edwards, Paul Menard and Trevor Bayne in the 5 Hour Energy 250 on Saturday afternoon. Edwards won at GIR in July.

    The Machine…Stenhouse’s Ford Fusion will carry the familiar red, blue and silver colors of CitiFinancial again this weekend. CitiFinancial is the primary sponsor for 24 races in 2010 with Stenhouse. The team will use chassis #RK-296 at Gateway. Stenhouse raced this chassis four times in 2010, most recently in September at Atlanta Motor Speedway where he started 13th and finished 10th.

    On Air…The 5 Hour Energy 250 can be seen live on Saturday, Oct. 23, 2010 on ESPN2 with coverage beginning at 3:00 p.m. EDT. The event can also be heard live on MRN affiliates beginning at 3:00 p.m. EDT.

    Now Appearing…Stenhouse will be at the CitiFinancial Branch on 94A North Port Dr., Alton, Ill. 62002 from 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. local time. This appearance is open to the public.

    Ricky Stenhouse Jr. on racing at Gateway International Raceway:

    “I can’t wait to get to Gateway this weekend. Even though we didn’t get the finish we wanted in Charlotte last Friday, we still had a fast car and I know that we will be fast in Gateway as well. Since I have been there before, I feel like I know the line around there and am confident we will be competitive on Saturday. We had a decent run earlier this year at Gateway so we’re expecting to improve on it this weekend. We have been running well lately and the fact that I have experience on the track, makes me and this entire CitiFinancial team excited about the weekend.”

    Crew Chief Mike Kelley on racing at Gateway International Raceway:

    “Gateway is relatively flat and Ricky (Stenhouse) has been good on these types of tracks this year. He has also been there before so his learning curve will not be as steep this weekend. Our CitiFinancial team has been giving Ricky fast cars every week and I don’t expect anything different this weekend. We’ve got to focus on making the car turn in the center of the corner so our race set-up will be top priority during practice.”

    Ricky Stenhouse Jr. NASCAR Nationwide Series Career Totals

    Races

    Wins

    Top-Fives

    Top-10’s

    Poles

    35

    0

    3

    8

    1

  • McMurray Gives ECR its Eighth Sprint Cup Series Victory in 2010

    WELCOME, N.C. (October 18, 2010) – Jamie McMurray and Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing’s No. 1 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet team’s victory in the Oct. 16 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Charlotte Motor Speedway was the eighth points-race win of the 2010 season for Earnhardt-Childress Racing Engines.

    It was the third series victory this year for McMurray, who also took top honors in the February 14 Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway and the July 25 Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Kevin Harvick and Richard Childress Racing’s No. 29 Shell-Pennzoil team also have three victories this season: April 25 at Talladega Superspeedway; July 3 at Daytona International Speedway; and August 15 at Michigan International Speedway. EGR’s Juan Pablo Montoya and the No. 42 Target team earned the victory August 8 at Watkins Glen International and RCR’s Clint Bowyer and the No. 33 Cheerios/Hamburger Helper team took captured the checkered flag September 19 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

    “It was another big win for ECR and congratulations to EGR, Jamie McMurray and the entire Bass Pro Shops team,” said Richie Gilmore, chief operating officer for Earnhardt-Childress Racing Engines. “We’ve been able to win races at a number of different types and lengths of tracks which, I think, shows the overall strength of our organization. It was also the 47th victory for ECR across all the racing series’ we’re involved in. We have some lofty goals over the final few weeks of the season. We’re focused on sweeping the restrictor plate races at Talladega and then finish the season with a Sprint Cup Series championship.”

    ECR has earned victories on seven tracks of different lengths in 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series competition: 2.66 miles (Talladega); 2.5 miles (Daytona and Indianapolis); 2.0 miles (Michigan); 1.5 miles (Charlotte), 1.0 miles (NHMS); and a road course (Watkins Glen).

    Kevin Harvick and the No. 29 team also earned the victory in the Budweiser Shootout all-star event that precedes the Daytona 500. Harvick finished eighth at Charlotte Motor Speedway and is third in the Sprint Chase for the Championship, 77 markers behind leader Jimmie Johnson.

    About Earnhardt-Childress Racing Engines

    Earnhardt-Childress Racing Engines is a high performance engine production and research and development company. ECR provides engines for NASCAR teams like Richard Childress Racing, Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates, Kevin Harvick Incorporated and others. ECR also produces engines used in GRAND-AM Rolex Series racing, SCCA Trans-Am and Club Racing, dirt and asphalt short track, and sprint car racing.

  • New Entrance Ramp Open For This Weekend’s TUMS Fast Relief 500 At Martinsville Speedway

    MARTINSVILLE, Va (October 14, 2010) – Many fans will find it easier to get in
    and out of Martinsville Speedway for the TUMS Fast Relief 500 this Sunday
    while more will find it easier to see the action on the track.

    Work has been completed on a new on/off ramp to the US 58 bypass that will
    allow fans easier entrance and exit from the first and second turn of the race
    track.

    “We believe this new ramp will really help alleviate some of the delays we’ve
    had at the South end of the track,” said Martinsville Speedway President W.
    Clay Campbell. “We really appreciated the Commonwealth of Virginia and the
    Virginia Depart of Transportation working so hard and so quickly to get this
    project finished in time for this weekend.”

    The ramp will utilize an existing access road that has been upgraded to handle
    race weekend traffic.

    To utilize the new entrance and exit ramp, please follow directional signage
    this weekend.

    Fans sitting in the first and second turn areas this weekend will find their
    sight lines improved. An old wire fence, which was in front of the main fence
    separating the grandstands and the race track, was recently removed. The older
    fence became obsolete when the new, start of the art safety fence was added in
    recent years.

    “It should be much more enjoyable now for fans in that area to just have to
    watch through one fence,” said Campbell.

    A three-foot high retaining fence has been added, though, to keep fans from
    getting too close to the safety fence.

    Tickets for the TUMS Fast Relief 500 begin at $25 and range to $77.

    Tickets to the Kroger 200 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race on Saturday
    are $30 in advance, with children 12 and under admitted free.

    Tickets for Farm Bureau Pole Day on Friday, which features practice and
    qualifying for both the Kroger 200 and the TUMS Fast Relief 500, are $15,
    children 12 and under admitted free.

  • Ron Hornaday Advance: Martinsville Speedway Advance

    ONE OF THE FEW: Ron Hornaday has more starts (16) at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway than any other track on the current NASCAR Camping World Truck Series schedule. However, Martinsville is one of only nine tracks on the current schedule in which Hornaday has yet to put a tally in the win column. The other tracks include: Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway, Michigan International Speedway, Iowa Speedway, Pocono (Pa.) International Raceway, Darlington (S.C.) Raceway, Chicagoland Speedway, Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway.

    SHORT-TRACK SUCCESS: Hornaday is the Truck Series leader in short-track victories leading the series with 22 wins on tracks less than one mile in length. Earlier this season, Hornaday scored his 22nd-career short-track win when he visited victory lane at O’Reilly Raceway Park, his only win thus far in 2010.

    SHOT CALLER: Beginning this weekend at Martinsville Speedway, Hornaday will hear a new voice from atop the pit box. Butch Hylton will move over to the No. 33 truck for the remainder of the 2010 season, calling the shots as crew chief for Hornaday. Hylton previously severed as crew chief for the No.2 Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) Chevrolet. In his 13 years serving as a crew chief in NASCAR’s three elite series, Hylton has accumulated 10 wins and one Nationwide Series owner’s championship with Kevin Harvick and Johnny Sauter in 2003. In 2000, Hylton served as car chief for Bobby Labonte’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship season. Hylton also won the 2008 Rolex 24 at Daytona GT division race serving as crew chief.

    TICK TOCK I WANT A CLOCK: For the fall event at Martinsville Speedway, track officials decided it was time that the Truck Series winner be awarded a special trophy. In the Cup Series, the winner of the Martinsville Speedway event receives a grandfather clock as a trophy. KHI co-owner Kevin Harvick (winner of the 2006 NASCAR Nationwide Series race at the track) proudly displays one of those clocks in his office at KHI. Not only does Hornaday want to mark a track off the list that he has yet to win at, he would really like to be the first Truck Series recipient of the grandfather clock trophy.

    “I’ve been asked a lot in my career what certain wins mean to me,” said Hornaday. “I have to say a win at Martinsville would be one that would certainly stick out, only because it is the track that I have been to the most and haven’t been able to get a win. We’ve been close so many times, and to be able to get the first grandfather clock would be awesome. I don’t race for the money, I race for the trophies, and that would be a prized possession to add to my collection.”

    LUCKY CHARM? This weekend at Martinsville Speedway, Hornaday will carry the Armour Vienna Sausage/Kroger paint scheme. Since joining KHI in 2009, the Armour Vienna Sausage/Kroger paint scheme has raced four times, and four times the vehicle has ended the day in victory lane, including Kevin Harvick’s first Nationwide Series win in a KHI- owned vehicle at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway in 2009. Thus far in 2010, the Armour Vienna Sausage/Kroger paint scheme has been to victory lane twice in the Nationwide Series at Nashville (Tenn.) Superspeedway and Richmond (Va.) International Raceway. Hornaday hopes to keep the streak alive as he looks to take the No. 33 Armour Vienna Sausage/Kroger Chevrolet to victory lane in their Truck Series debut.

    Notes from the Professor: Quotes from Ron Hornaday:

    IS THERE ANY ADDED PRESSURE KNOWING THAT THIS PAINT SCHEME IS UNDEFEATED IN THE NATIONWIDE SERIES?

    (Laughs) “No not really. There is just added pressure to get back to victory lane. We have been running well this year, but for some reason do not have the finishes to show for it. We have a good plan in place and I’m looking forward to the things we have in store for this weekend and the rest of the season. I think we have the opportunity to win all of the last five races in 2010 and I’m going to do my part to make that happen.”

    WHAT WOULD IT MEAN TO YOU TO FINALLY GET IN VICTORY LANE AT MARTINSVILLE?

    “It would mean the world to me. I really have a goal to mark off all the tracks that we race at that I have yet to get a win. They are just places we either have not been to that many times or have had bad luck at. Martinsville is just that elusive track that I have ran so well at, but twice we have stared at Kevin’s [Harvick] back bumper as he takes the checkered flag. There are only a few tracks on the schedule that we can say that KHI has run one-two, Martinsville is one of those. I’m just glad we’ve been competitive there, and it’s a tough track to learn and you have to have an almost perfect day in Martinsville to get a good finish. I’m looking forward to this year’s race to see if we can get that first grandfather clock.”

    CHASSIS HISTORY: The No. 33 Armour Vienna Sausage/Kroger team will take chassis No. 048 to Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. This will mark the fifth time in 2010 that Hornaday will climb behind the wheel of chassis No. 048. Hornaday earned a sixth-place finish at Nashville Superspeedway a pair of third-place finishes at Darlington Raceway and Chicagoland Speedway. Most recently, Hornaday posted a 29th-place finish in the chassis at Kentucky Speedway in September following a flat right-front tire late in the 150-lap event.

    PREVIOUS RACE RECAP: Four weeks ago the Truck Series made their annual visit to Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Hornaday qualified seventh for the 146-lap event, led 23 laps, but lost the handling on the No. 33 truck as the race wound down to finish in the 11th 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 Stroupe at KHI: jstroupe@kevinharvickinc.com.

    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.