Category: XFINITY Series

CORNELIUS, N.C. — No. 99 Pastrana-Waltrip Racing driver Ryan Truex returns to Nationwide Series action Saturday night at Nashville Superspeedway after sitting on the sidelines two weeks recovering from wrist surgery.

Saturday marks the 19-year-old’s first trip to the 1.33-mile concrete track and his 12th Nationwide Series start. The 2009 & 2010 K&N Pro Series East Champion is scheduled to race at least 10 races in 2011 while action sport star Travis Pastrana will drive the No. 99 in seven races beginning at Indianapolis in July.

Truex underwent corrective surgery to repair a fractured right wrist on March 29. He injured his wrist on a dirt bike about two years ago. The left-handed Truex said, “in these longer Nationwide races it started becoming more and more of a problem. It was time to get it fixed. It’s really not that big of deal.” David Reutimann substituted for Truex at Texas and Michael Waltrip raced the No. 99 at Talladega last week.

QUOTES

RYAN TRUEX ON HIS WRIST: “My wrist is starting to feel a lot better. I am not feeling any pain and I can tell it’s getting better each day. I am starting to get back in the gym and doing as much as I can to get the strength back in it. I will still have a cast on it in Nashville but it won’t effect my driving at all. The doctor built my cast around the steering wheel and we’ve been working with NASCAR so I won’t have any problems gripping the wheel or anything like that. It’s been tough watching the No. 99 on the track without me behind the wheel so I am ready to drive again at Nashville.”

ON RACING AGAINST CUP DRIVERS: “I like racing against the cup guys every week. If you want to be the best you have to compete against the best. However, we need some momentum on our side right now so I am looking forward to only having five fulltime cup drivers in the field at Nashville this weekend. We have a really good chance to score my first top 10 in the series this weekend.”

NOTES OF INTEREST

· Michael Waltrip Racing, Gary and Blake Bechtel and Travis Pastrana own Pastrana-Waltrip Racing that fields Toyota Camrys out of the MWR shop in Cornelius, N.C. The Bechtels have owned cars in the Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series since 1990. The Morgan Hill, Calif. residents’ teams have visited victory lane 10 times in the Nationwide Series.

· Truex is the only teenager to win back-to-back K&N Pro Series East, titles (2009 & 2010) and he is the first driver to bring a title to Michael Waltrip Racing.

· Pastrana will race in the K&N Pro East Series race and Denny Hamlin’s “Short Track Showdown” charity race at Richmond International Speedway on April 28th.

· Truex will sign autographs at the Nashville Superspeedway Expo area outside Gate 3 on Friday from 1-2 p.m. local time.

RCR’s NCWTS History … In 166 NCWTS starts, RCR has earned 22 wins, 67 top-five finishes, 104 top-10 finishes and 24 poles, along with the inaugural series championship in 1995 with Mike Skinner. The organization has an average starting position of 10.3 and an average finish position of 10.3.

RCR at Nashville … In two previous starts at Nashville, both with Austin Dillon in 2010, RCR has an average starting position of 7.5 and an average finish position of 8. The organization’s best starting position and finish position of second place came in August 2010.

99.7 percent … RCR has completed 299 out of 300 laps attempted in two previous Nashville appearances with zero DNF’s.

Social Media …To keep up-to-date with the latest news and information and to view exclusive content, visit RCR’s Twitter page – @RCRracing, RCR’s NASCAR Camping World Truck Series team Twitter pages – @RCR3ADillon and @RCR22JCoulter, RCR’s NCWTS driver Twitter pages – @AustinDillon3 and @JoeyCoulter, and the Official Austin Dillon Facebook fan page -http://www.facebook.com/adillon3.

Catch the Action … Flag-to-flag coverage of the Bully Hill Vineyards 200 at Nashville Superspeedway will be televised live on SPEED beginning at 8 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on Friday, April 22, and broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and Sirius XM Satellite Radio beginning at 7:15 p.m. EDT.

Austin Dillon

No. 3 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet Silverado

Race Notes and Quotes

This Week’s Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet at Nashville … Austin Dillon will pilot chassis No. 008 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Camping World Truck Series stable in the Bully Hill Vineyards 200. This is a brand new addition to the RCR stable that will make its first paces this weekend at Nashville. Although this Chevrolet has no previous race history, the Danny Stockman-led No. 3 team has acquired extensive data on this chassis through wind tunnel testing and time on the seven-post.

Martinsville Recap … Dillon started fourth and raced anywhere from first to 16th at Martinsville Speedway, finishing seventh in the Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet. He led the field for 37 circuits but was passed by Kyle Busch during a lap-219 restart, and was shuffled back to sixth in the running order. Dillon finished seventh and is now seventh in the series point standings heading into Nashville.

Dillon at Nashville… In two previous appearances at Nashville, both as a NCWTS rookie in 2010, Dillon has posted a 14th-place finish (April) and a second-place finish (August), completing 299 out of 300 laps attempted at the concrete speedway. His best qualifying attempt was second in August.

Getting Loopy … Dillon has posted some impressive loop data statistics so far this season:

First in the category of average running position with a 6.268 average

First in the category of average starting position with a 3.0 average

First in the category of laps in top 15 (636 laps run in the top-15/ 97.8 percent of the time)

Fourth in the category of driver rating, with a driver rating of 100.2, a formula combining wins, finishes, top-15 finishes, average running position while on the lead lap, average speed under green, fastest lap, led most laps, lead-lap finish

Fourth in the category of fastest drivers early in a run (first 25 percent of laps run since a pit stop)

Fifth in the category of percentage of laps run on the lead lap (643 out of 650 laps/98.9 percent)

Sixth in the category of fastest drivers late in a run (last 25 percent of laps run since a pit stop)

Eighth in the category of fastest on restarts (speed of first two laps run under green)

Meet Austin Dillon … Dillon will be at the Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World in Nashville, Tenn. (323 Opry Mills Dr

Nashville, TN 37214) from 6-8 p.m. local time on Thursday, April 21. The No. 3 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet will also be on display.

Double Duty … Following Friday’s NCWTS race, Dillon will make his debut in the No. 33 Rheem Chevrolet for Kevin Harvick Inc. in Saturday’s NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Nashville Superspeedway. Dillon made his Nationwide Series debut in September, 2008 at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway, and has seven career starts with one top-five and one top-ten finish. Flag-to-flag coverage of the Nashville 300 will be televised live on ESPN2 beginning at 2 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on Saturday, April 23, and broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and Sirius XM Satellite Radio beginning at 2:30 p.m. EDT.

AUSTIN DILLON QUOTES:

Give us a recap of your race at Martinsville …

“We led laps and I had a lot of fun. I wish we would have done just a little bit better, but we accomplished our goals. I feel like we have made our short track program a lot better, so I’m looking forward to going to more short tracks this year.”

You’re bringing a brand new truck this weekend …

“Yeah, Danny Stockman and all of the guys work hard to make sure we have good equipment at the track. I can’t say enough about those guys. The Chevrolets I bring to the track each week are just amazingly fast. This is a brand new truck that hasn’t been to the track yet, but the guys have taken it to the wind tunnel and the seven post several times so I know we’ll be good. Now that it’s our second year in the Truck Series, we actually have a notebook to work off of, and that helps a lot.”

Are you a country music fan?

“Oh yeah, I love country music. It would be awesome to get the guitar (the Nashville Superspeedway trophy). I like old country, new country, a little bit of everything. I listen to classic country with my grandfather. I don’t know how to play the guitar, but I told my crew chief Danny Stockman that if we are ever fortunate enough to win the Gibson Guitar at Nashville, we will enlist my buddy Tim Dugger (country music singer) to help us learn.”

Joey Coulter

No. 22 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Silverado

Race Notes and Quotes

This Week’s RCR Chevrolet at Nashville … Joey Coulter will pilot chassis No. 009 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Camping World Truck Series stable in the Bully Hill Vineyards 200. This is the same Chevrolet that Coulter drove to a ninth-place finish after starting 10th at Phoenix International Raceway in February.

Martinsville Recap … Coulter started 23rd and finished 17th at Martinsville after running as high as second during the 250-lap race, his highest career running position in the NCWTS-to-date. The NCWTS rookie fell back in the running order late in the race after getting shuffled to the outside line and then developing a tight-handling condition.

Coulter at Nashville… Coulter has no previous starts at Nashville.

Getting Loopy … Coulter has posted some impressive loop data statistics so far this season:

Eighth in the category of fastest drivers early in a run.

12th in the category of green-flag speed.

13th in the category of quality passes.

14th in the category of fastest drivers late in a run.

17th in the category of average running position with a 19.675 average.

20th in the category of driver rating with a driver rating of 63.6, a formula combining wins, finishes, top-15 finishes, average running position while on the lead lap, average speed under green, fastest lap, led most laps, lead-lap finish.

Meet Joey Coulter … Coulter will join NCWTS and NASCAR Nationwide Series drivers in an autograph session from 1-2 p.m. local time at the Nashville Superspeedway Expo area located outside of Gate 3.

JOEY COULTER QUOTES:

Give us a recap of your race at Martinsville …

“Overall, it was a really fun day, especially running up in the top 10 and top five. I was bummed about those late caution flag periods because I felt like we had a great truck on long green-flag runs. We just got hung out in the outside lane on those final restarts and ended up battling to a solid top-20 finish.”

Are you a country music fan?

“Yeah, I like country music a lot, especially Tim McGraw, Alan Jackson and Toby Keith. I listen to pretty much everything, usually on SIRIUS XM Radio.”

How does a rookie prepare for Nashville?

“I’ve been watching a lot of past races and talking to my teammate Austin Dillon a lot about the different characteristics of the tracks and the things he learned the first time he went there. I’ve also been playing with my racing simulator, trying to get used to how the garages work and getting on and off pit road. That’s pretty much it.”

Jason White Express Notes, No. 23 GunBroker.com Chevrolet

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series

Nashville Superspeedway, Race No. 5 of 25

Race Info:

Event: Bully Hill Vineyards 200

Date: Friday, April 22

TV: SPEED, 8:00 p.m. ET

Radio: SIRIUS NASCAR Radio

Distance: 150 Laps/200 Miles

Track: 1.333-mile Oval

2010 Winner: Kyle Busch (4-02-10)

Fast & Fun Facts:

Jeff Jarrett, a third generation wrestler who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action (TNA), and his wife, Karen Jarrett, an American professional wrestling valet and personality, will be “Honorary Crew Members” for Joe Denette Motorsports at Nashville Superspeedway this weekend. Jeff, a Hendersonville, Tennessee native who started wrestling at 18, is known for his multiple runs in World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) during the 1990’s. Jeff has won seventy championships in various promotions throughout his career, and is a fifteen-time world heavyweight champion. Jeff and Karen both currently work for TNA Wrestling.

Before heading to Nashville, Jason White will test a late model at Richmond International Raceway on Wednesday, April 20, in preparation for Denny Hamlin’s fourth annual Short Track Showdown on Thursday, April 28. This is the first time White will be behind the wheel of a late model.

Nashville News: White has five NASCAR Camping World Truck Series starts at Nashville Superspeedway. In those five starts, White has an average finish of 22.4, an average start of 23.6, has led six laps, with two DNF’s and has completed 74.1% of laps run (559 of 754). White, a Richmond, VA native, is ranked 10th in average running position, 9th overall in laps led and 7th among mile leaders at the 1.333-mile oval according to NASCAR’s loop data.

Last Time Atop The Charts: Crew Chief, Chad Kendrick, has one pole to his credit at Nashville Superspeedway. Kendrick called the shots for Timothy Peters in 2009 at Red Horse Racing when Peter’s lapped the concrete oval in 30.122 seconds (159.312mph).

This Week’s No. 23 GunBroker.com Chevrolet: White will pilot chassis “JDM06” in this weekend’s Bully Hill Vineyard 200 at Nashville Superspeedway. This is a brand new chassis from the Joe Denette Motorsports stables.

Points Check: While a 22nd-place finish at Martinsville missed the mark of expectations for Joe Denette Motorsports, the team moved up four positions to 26th in the 2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series owner point standings, a mere one point outside the top-25. White is currently 22nd in the NCWTS driver point standings.

Rearview Mirror-Martinsville: White was on the fast track to being the biggest mover in the Kroger 250 at Martinsville Speedway on April 2 until a flat tire with three laps remaining in the 250-lap event derailed the freshmen team to a 22nd-place finish in the fourth event on the 2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series schedule.

We’re Guessing He Signs His Name Fast Too: White will join other NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and NASCAR Nationwide Series drivers for an autograph session on Friday, April 22, at 1 p.m. in the Expo area located outside Gate 3 at Nashville Superspeedway. The session will run from 1 to 2 p.m.

Joe Denette Motorsports Media Contact at Nashville:

Jessica Caulder, 803-240-5807, Jessica@JoeDenetteMotorsports.com

Team Website: www.JoeDenetteMotorsports.com

Team Twitter: www.twitter.com/TeamJDM23

Jason’s Twitter: www.twitter.com/JasonWhite23

Austin Dillon

No. 33 Rheem Chevrolet Impala

NASCAR Nationwide Series Race 8 of 34 – Nashville Superspeedway

AUSTIN DILLON SET TO MAKE KHI DEBUT: Driver Austin Dillon will make his Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) debut this weekend in the NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Nashville Superspeedway. Dillon, a full-time driver in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series for Richard Childress Racing (RCR), will pilot the No. 33 Rheem Chevrolet Impala in what will also be his first Nationwide Series start of the 2011 season.

NEW TO NATIONWIDE AT NASHVILLE: While Dillon has no previous series starts at the 1.333-mile concrete Tennessee track, he has two Truck Series events under his belt. The driver competed in both Truck Series races last season with a best finish of second.

Dillon made his Nationwide Series debut in 2008 at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway in September. He has seven career starts with one top-five and one top-ten finish.

KHI GOING FOR ANOTHER GIBSON: With KHI co-owner Kevin Harvick behind the wheel the No. 33 team captured the win at Nashville Superspeedway last spring, the second of three victories for the team during the 2010 season. After starting from the outside pole, Harvick led 52 of the 225 laps en route to collecting the infamous Gibson guitar trophy. The win was the two-time series champion’s second in four starts, but first win in his own equipment at the facility.

CHASSIS HISTORY: The No. 33 Rheem team, led by crew chief David Hyder, will unload chassis No. 069 this weekend at Nashville Superspeedway. Kevin Harvick was in the driver’s seat the last time this chassis saw competition at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in February. Harvick started the race from the fourth position but was relegated to a 28th-place finish after sustaining damage in a late-race incident.

PREVIOUS RACE RECAP: Clint Bowyer piloted the No. 33 Rheem Chevrolet Impala last weekend at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. Bowyer, in the same chassis the team finished second with in the season-opening event at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway, qualified on the outside pole for the start of the event, but fell victim to the notorious “big one” at the 2.66-mile track. The Rheem team ultimately brought home a 22nd-place finish.

THOUGHTS FROM THE DRIVER: AUSTIN DILLON

What are your thoughts heading into the NASCAR Nationwide Series race since you haven’t run in that particular series at Nashville?

“It’s going to be a learning experience for sure. I went to Gresham Motorsports Park with the No. 33 team and tested in order to prepare for this race, but it will no doubt be different when I’m in the car under race conditions. The good thing is that I can lean on Kevin Harvick and Elliott Sadler. Both have always been very willing to help me, and I plan to use their input a lot throughout the weekend.”

What does it mean to race for KHI in the NASCAR Nationwide Series?

“[Kevin] Harvick has always been one of my heroes, so it means a lot to me to be able to race for him. He’s always been able to get it done in a race car. I admired him growing up, and I think I can learn a lot from him. Kevin Harvick Inc. has really good equipment, so I’m just excited to go to Nashville and be able to drive the No. 33 Rheem Chevrolet.”

Are you a country music fan?

“Oh yeah, I love country music. It would be awesome to get the Gibson guitar. I like old country, new country, a little bit of everything. I listen to classic country with my grandfather.”

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 Tiffany Breaux at KHI at tbreaux@kevinharvickinc.com.

About Rheem:

Rheem Manufacturing Company (www.rheem.com) is privately held with headquarters in Atlanta. In its 86th year of operation, the company manufactures a full-line of eco-friendly, technologically advanced residential and commercial heating and cooling systems; tank, tankless, solar and hybrid heat pump water heaters; whole-home standby generators, controls, swimming pool and spa heaters; indoor air-purification products; and commercial boilers throughout North America and world markets. The company’s premium brands, including Raypak, Ruud and Rheem, have been recognized with countless industry and consumer awards for reliability, innovative design and high quality. Rheem is the official heating, cooling and water-heating supplier to Richard Childress Racing (RCR), Kevin Harvick, Inc. (KHI) and is a primary sponsor of RCR’s No. 29 Sprint Cup Series car and KHI’s No. 33 Nationwide Series car and Camping World Truck Series No. 2 truck. Harvick was named Nationwide Series “Driver of the Decade” in 2010.

Joey Logano / No. 20 Harvest Investments Toyota Preview

Nashville 300 at Nashville Superspeedway

No. 20 Harvest Investments Toyota News & Notes:

. LAST MINUTE CHANGE. HERE COMES JOEY & THE NO. 20 TEAM: Due to a lack of sponsorship, the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota and driver Joey Logano were not originally scheduled to run this weekend at Nashville Superspeedway. However, a number of factors following this past Saturday’s event at Talladega Superspeedway changed that. First, with Logano’s second-place finish at Talladega, the No. 20 JGR team extended its points lead in the NASCAR Nationwide Series Owner’s standings to 13 points over its JGR teammates, the No. 18 team. Second, a new sponsor jumped on board Sunday evening to make the trip possible. Harvest Investments, LLC & Harvest-Properties.com have signed on with Joe Gibbs Racing for a one-race sponsorship to allow the No. 20 team and Logano to head to Nashville to continue the strong start to the season and continue the chance to run for the Nationwide Series Owner’s Championship, which Joe Gibbs Racing has won three years in a row (No. 20 team in 2008, No. 18 team in 2009 & 2010). The team was originally scheduled to run the first seven races, with Nashville being the first without sponsorship and not on the schedule. Now, with Nashville back on the schedule, the team will run through Dover. As of now, the team doesn’t have sponsorship for Iowa, but is still looking for interested companies.

. THANKS HARVEST INVESTMENTS: Harvest Investments, LLC and Harvest-Properties.com will serve at Logano’s primary sponsor for this weekend’s event at Nashville Superspeedway. “Loyalty goes both directions and this is our way of showing our appreciation to Joey and the entire Logano family for their continued support in Harvest Investments,” said founder Mark Paley. Harvest Investments was established in 1992 to acquire and manage multi-family apartment properties as a means of generating significant cash flow, a consistent return on capital and long-term capital appreciation. Harvest Investments main office is located in Wethersfield, CT. For more information about Harvest Investments, call (860) 529-5158. Harvest-Properties.com is where coming home is the best part of the day. Harvest-Properties.com offers lovely and affordable housing with locations throughout the United States, offering efficient, one bedroom, two bedroom and three bedroom apartment homes. Harvest-Properties.com can assist anyone in finding the perfect place to call home. For more, visit http://www.harvest-properties.com/ www.harvest-properties.com.

. FROM TIME OFF TO OVERTIME FOR NO. 20 TEAM: Members of the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing team had a number of different plans for the coming Easter weekend. Some were going to local racetracks to check out the action. Others were going to take a vacation during one of their few off weekends. Others were going to spend time with family. However, when word came down Sunday that the team would now be competing at Nashville Superspeedway instead of taking the race off due to a lack of sponsorship, the team got right to work. Starting Sunday afternoon, the team had to start preparing a car that had just been sitting in the shop previously in an effort to get it ready to head to Nashville on Wednesday evening. The team had to go over the car, scale it, set it up and decal it all in just a few days.

. CHASSIS: The JGR team will take chassis #20113 to Nashville this weekend. The chassis was built new at the JGR shops this past off-season and was run for the first time earlier this year at Phoenix. In that race, Logano qualified the car third and finished sixth.

. STAT OF THE WEEK: 1.3 In three-career starts at Nashville Superspeedway, Logano has a career-average starting position of 1.3 and Logano has never started worse than second at the track. Those stats include two poles, coming in 2008 and 2010. His pole in 2008 marked his first-career NASCAR Nationwide Series pole, coming in just his second-career start.

. THE RACE: The Nashville 300 at Nashville Superspeedway (Lebanon, TN; 1.33-mile banked oval) is set for Saturday, April 16, 2011. The race will be broadcast on ESPN at 3:00 p.m. EST, with radio coverage on MRN starting at 2:30 p.m. EST.

Joey Logano Quotes:

“More than anything, I really need to thank Harvest Investments and Harvest-Properties.com for coming aboard to sponsor the event. That is huge, because this team has been running good all year long and to let the owner’s championship points lead slip away because we didn’t have sponsorship would have been tough to swallow. Times are tough now and everyone is having trouble finding sponsorships, so to be able to have a company step up at the last minute because they want to see this team continue and chase that title is huge. So I can’t thank Harvest Investments and Harvest-Properties.com enough. Hopefully, we can repay them for doing this with a win and an even bigger points lead.

“I’m excited to go to Nashville because I’ve always run well there, but more than anything, I’m excited for the guys on the team. They were really bummed at not going to Nashville, especially after the way we’ve been improving week-to-week with a pretty much brand new team. After Talladega, when we looked at the points and saw we had increased the points lead, it was a downer. Then, when things came along, I told them ‘let’s get it done.’ So this is a big shot in the arm for those guys and might just give them the added push to get this No. 20 Toyota back into Victory Lane.

“I love Nashville. It’s just a great place to go. I really wish the Cup cars would race there, but since they don’t, I would hate to miss a race there in the Nationwide deal. I won my first pole there and one of my Nationwide wins came at Nashville, so it’s pretty special to me. I’ve already got one of those guitars, but I’m ready for another one. And we’ve run well there every year we’ve been there. My first year, we got wrecked, but we were running in the top-five when we did. And last year, we were one of the cars to beat, but pit strategy came back and bit us. So the results might not show how strong we are, but it’s probably one of my better tracks. That makes me even more confident going into the weekend as well.”

Adam Stevens Quotes:

“Everyone is pumped at the shop right now, but we know we’ve got a lot of work to do to get this car ready to go to Nashville later in the week. These guys were really down in the dumps on missing out on a race, but when things panned out, then didn’t have any problems getting right to work and doing what needed to be done to make this race happen. They knew they would be putting in some long hours to get this car ready, but none of them had any problems doing so. That is the type of people we have here at Joe Gibbs Racing and that’s what makes this deal so special. A big thanks to Harvest Investments and Harvest-Properties.com for making this all happen. We wouldn’t be doing all this without them.

“Interesting thing about Nashville is that this will be the first time I’ll be going there in race conditions. Working with the Cup team, we’ve never raced at the track. But Joey’s been good there and had a lot of success, so I think we’ll be alright. The concrete surface always throws a little bit of a wrench into the situation and makes things different, but it’s nothing we can’t handle.”

No. 20 Harvest Investments Toyota / Joe Gibbs Racing Team

Driver – Joey Logano Crew Chief – Adam Stevens Car Chief – Mike Sibley Race Engineer – Curtis Ratzlaff Shock Specialist – Joel Weidman Front-end – Nick Fuller Rear-end – Dave Rudy Tire Specialist – Chris “Yoshi” Jones Engine Tuner – Roger Purcell

Truck Driver – Tim Clancy Jackman – Jason Tate Gasman – John Eicher

Front Tire Changer – John Royer Front Tire Carrier – Brett Morrell

Rear Tire Changer – Coleman Dollarhide Rear Tire Carrier – Eric Groen

TALLADEGA, Ala. (April 17, 2010) – Sam Hornish Jr, driver of the No. 12 Alliance Truck Parts Dodge Challenger,  finished 13th Saturday in the Aaron’s 312 NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) race at Talladega Superspeedway. The event marked the third NNS race of the 2011 season for Hornish and his second consecutive start driving the Alliance Truck Parts Dodge.

Hornish started the race in the 12th position after posting a qualifying time of 53.792, with a speed of 178.019, during Friday’s qualifying session. Once the green flag flew to begin the race, Hornish found a drafting partner in the No. 6 car driven by Ricky Stenhouse Jr. The two quickly began to work their way toward the front of the field. 

After the first caution flag of the race fell on lap 23, crew chief Chad Walter called Hornish down pit lane for two new right side tires and two cans of fuel. The No. 12 crew also cleaned the front grill of the Alliance Truck Parts car. Hornish emerged from the pits in the fifth position and quickly found Stenhouse again as his drafting partner. The two continued to work their way to the front and by lap 28, Hornish was battling Dale Earnhardt Jr. for the lead. After a spin on course on lap 44, Hornish once again brought the Alliance Truck Parts car down pit road for four new tires and fuel before he restarted the race at the tail end of the field. Another caution flag flew on lap 55, which brought the cars down pit road once again. Hornish found himself exiting pit road behind Penske Racing teammate Brad Keselowski. The duo worked together to make their way back to the front of the field by lap 75, as Hornish pushed Keselowski to the race lead.

Over the course of a physical afternoon of racing in the two-car draft, the No. 12 car’s rear bumper had taken a considerable beating and needed some repair. During a caution period that occurred on lap 82, Walter called for a fuel-only pit stop and repairs were made to the car’s rear bumper. With 24 laps remaining in the race, Hornish again found himself teamed with Keselowski as they ran at the front of the field, looking for a 1-2 finish for Penske Racing. But as Hornish was being pushed from behind by Keselowski into the lead, the rear bumper of the car finally gave way which caused Hornish to go spinning onto the apron along the front stretch. Walter called the black and yellow Dodge Challenger down pit lane twice to fix the damage and Hornish rejoined the race.

After a two attempts at a green-white-checkered flag finish, Hornish fought his way back to a 13th-place result.

“It was a strong day for the No. 12 Alliance Truck Parts Dodge Challenger,” said Hornish. “I can’t thank Chad (Walter) enough for the super, super fast car that he gave me this weekend. It is shame we didn’t get the finish that we deserved. The No. 12 crew really did a great job all day during pit stops and really stepped up when it came to the last few stops and fixing the rear bumper. It was great to work with Brad (Keselowski) and I wish I would have had the chance to get back up to the front. Overall, it was a good day for the Alliance Truck Parts Dodge.”

“It was a really encouraging weekend from the start for the No. 12 Alliance Truck Parts Dodge Challenger,” said Walter. “We had a great car and there were a lot of people who were willing to work with us when it came down to the draft. It was nice to see Brad (Keselowski) and Sam work together and lead a few laps. I can’t say enough about the No. 12 crew as well. To come back from the last spin and put ourselves back in position is fantastic. For a team that isn’t running full time this season, we all gel well and the communication between us is good. Sam did a spectacular job this weekend as well, from practice to qualifying to the race –he gave it everything he had. “

Hornish will next compete in the No. 12 Olympic Paints Dodge at Richmond International Raceway on Friday, April 29 in the Bubba Burger 250. Coverage will begin at 7:30 pm EST on SPEED. The race will also be heard on the Motor Racing Network and Sirius XM Satellite Radio Channel 128.

Elliott Sadler

No. 2 Hunt Brothers Pizza Chevrolet Impala

NASCAR Nationwide Series Race 8 of 34 – Nashville Superspeedway

VETERAN ROOKIE: Despite being a 16-year NASCAR veteran, this weekend Elliott Sadler will encounter the 1.333-mile D-shaped oval of Nashville Superspeedway for the first time since the complex opened in 2001. Although he has yet to make a lap at the intermediate track, by the time he hits the concrete for Saturday’s Nashville 300, he will have already taken a green flag at the Music City track. In addition to this weekend’s NASCAR Nationwide Series event, Sadler is participating in Friday night’s Bully Hill Vineyards 200 in Kevin Harvick Inc.’s (KHI) No. 21 Truck Series entry, giving him 150 laps of racing action in preparation for the Nationwide Series event.

ANYONE ORDER A PIZZA?: The No. 2 Chevrolet Impala is going green this weekend with Nashville, Tenn.-based primary sponsor Hunt Brothers Pizza. With more than 6,000 locations in 28 states and growing, Hunt Brothers is the No. 1 convenience store pizza brand on the market.

AUTISM AWARENESS MONTH: During the month of April, Sadler and the rest of the NASCAR community will celebrate Autism Awareness month. Sadler, whose niece was diagnosed with Autism a few years ago, started the Hermie and Elliott Sadler foundation which raises funds to help educate those who have children that are affected by the spectrum disease which reportedly affects 1 in every 110 children in the United States.

CHASSIS HISTORY: The No. 2 Hunt Brothers Pizza team will utilize chassis No. 064 this weekend at Nashville Superspeedway. This is the same chassis that Sadler raced to a fourth-place finish at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway in March. Chassis No. 064 was also the car that KHI co-owner Kevin Harvick drove to victory lane at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway last fall.

PREVIOUS RACE RECAP: Polesitter Elliott Sadler made it through the season’s most notorious “wild card” race, Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, to earn his fourth straight top-five finish. After losing his drafting partners to early-race incidents, Sadler persevered to finish fifth, gaining one position in the Driver Point Standings, now sitting only five points out of first place.

THOUGHTS FROM THE DRIVER: Elliott Sadler

How do you approach going to a racetrack that you’ve never raced before such as Nashville Superspeedway?

“A good way to approach a track that you’ve never been to before is to watch races and in-car camera feeds from the track before you get there. I also like to talk to different drivers who have experience at that particular track. I’ve already talked to a couple different guys, leaning on them a little bit as far as going to that track and being successful. One of them is Clint Bowyer who has always had success in Nashville. I’ve also got to lean on my crew chief a little bit to learn what the track is going to do as it rubbers up, because I do not have that experience.”

How do you feel going into this weekend?

“I feel really good. We’ve got plenty of practice time, and KHI has been very successful in Nashville in the past. They’re always competitive at the track and we’re the defending winners at the spring race. I think this weekend is going to come down to track time and getting used to the racetrack. I honestly love going to a new place for the first time. It brings a lot of excitement because you feel like you’ve got to bring you’re A-game and really adapt to the track as fast as you can as a driver to really have a competitive edge.”

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 at jtrippy@kevinharvickinc.com.

About Hunt Brothers Pizza:

With more than 6,500 locations in 28 states, Hunt Brothers® Pizza is the nation’s largest brand of made-to-order pizza in the convenience store industry. Perfect for today’s on-the-go lifestyle, Hunt Brothers Pizza offers regular, thin crust, and breakfast pizzas with All Toppings No Extra Charge®, plus the Hunt Brothers® Wings in Southern Style and Hot ‘n Spicy flavors. Family owned and operated for over 40 years and headquartered in Nashville, Tenn., the company provides all of the food products, marketing programs, equipment and training for convenience stores to operate their own turnkey pizza program.

The Race Recap: Joey Logano and the No. 20 GameStop team finished second in Saturday’s Aaron’s 312 at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, AL. Logano, who qualified seventh, ran as low as 28th and as high as second while feeling his car out during the early portion of the race. The GameStop team had to fix damage to the nose of the car early on, but through pit strategy, was able to keep the car competitive and near the front. Logano and the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing team hooked up with a number of different drivers during the race and was content on being a pusher. His Toyota allowed him to be a pusher by running cool enough to keep from having to do what has been referred to “the switch.” However, near the end of the event, Logano was finally able to pair up with teammate Kyle Busch, who had survived an earlier accident with just minor damage. Over the race’s final laps, Logano and Busch survived the carnage and made their way to the front of the field, with Logano pushing Busch to the lead. Ultimately, it was Busch going to Victory Lane while Logano and the GameStop Toyota team settled for second, a one-two sweep for Joe Gibbs Racing. With the second-place finish, the No. 20 JGR team retained its lead in the NASCAR Nationwide Series Owners point standings, 13 points up on the No. 18 team and 15 points ahead of the No. 60. However, as of now, the No. 20 team is not scheduled to race next weekend in Nashville.

Joey’s Quotes: “Our GameStop Toyota was solid today. I don’t know if we were the best car, but you don’t need to be the best car here. You just need to put yourself in a position to win the race and we did. Our car was better pushing all day, so that is what we did. Finally, we got hooked up with Kyle there at the end of the race and were able to work together and get up there to the front and push him to the win. I would have really liked to have been given the chance to race back to the line to see what might have happened, but when I saw a car flipping in my mirror I knew it was over. Who knows, if we would have raced back maybe neither of us would have won because the other line was coming with some speed. I wish the No. 20 GameStop Toyota could have won this race because the guys deserved it, but if not us, I guess best for another JGR car to win.

“We fought from behind a lot today. We got shuffled back on the first run and no one would work with us. Finally, we got a caution and got hooked up with a good car and we were battling back to the front. I was able to push Reed (Sorenson) to the lead. Then we went to the back again because we had a hole in the nose and the crew took the proper time to fix it right. But, after another caution, we got hooked up with a good car and was headed back to the front. There at the end, Kyle and I talked on the radio and we were going to work together to get to the front, but then he got in the big wreck. They got his car fixed and we were still able to hook up and head towards the front.

“I think I need to have a new nickname… maybe like the ‘bulldozer’ or something. This is the third-straight Nationwide Series Talladega race that I’ve pushed the eventual race winner to the win. First it was (David) Ragan, then (Brad) Keselowski and now Kyle. I need to get some paybacks and get pushed to the win one of these times. But it was a good day for the GameStop Toyota. Just be nice to win one of these things.”

Adam’s Quotes: “I’m really proud of Joey and the whole GameStop team today. That win for Kyle felt like a win for the whole organization. In fact, after the race, the whole No. 18 team came down to our pit stall to give us high fives. I wish the GameStop Toyota was in victory lane, but if not us, I’m glad it’s one of our teammates.

“We had a wild afternoon. We went back to the front to the back to the front. Joey never gave up behind the wheel and the guys did their job getting the car fixed and getting us out with fast stops. We had some damage that we needed to fix and they got it done and got it done right. I’m really proud of them. This was a total team effort to finish second today. At the end of the day, our car looked like it just finished at a short track and not a superspeedway. But it’s all about getting to the front and with our driver, we were able to do that. I’m looking forward to getting back to Daytona with our restrictor plate program.”

What’s Next: The No. 20 GameStop Toyota has several weeks off before its next race on May 14th at Dover International Speedway.