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  • J.R Fitzpatrick Talks NASCAR Canadian Tire Series and NASCAR Nationwide Series

    J.R Fitzpatrick Talks NASCAR Canadian Tire Series and NASCAR Nationwide Series

    This past year, J.R. Fitzpatrick took on running the entire NASCAR Canadian Tire Series schedule, with his goals set on winning the championship.

    He was in the thick of the battle all year long, though after a bad finish at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve and a broken clutch at Riverside Speedway, he ended up second, 40 points behind champion D.J. Kennington.

    “It’s good,” Fitzpatrick told me on Sunday. “I took all of last year off as I was racing stuff in the States. But after taking a year off, the series has definitely grown quite a bit. It does need more cars but competitive wise, it is doing very well. To finish second in the championship after taking a year off, I am pretty pleased about that.”

    In 2006, NASCAR took over rights to the series, which was formally known as the CASCAR Super Series. Since NASCAR has taken it over, it has been debated as to whether that was a positive move or not for the series.

    Fitzpatrick said he’s seen the influence, though thinks it’ll still take time.

    “It’s helped in a way,” he said. “But I think it’s going to take some time to get some more people in the series because it does cost a lot to run that deal. The series is slowly going and it’s going to take a few years for it to grow to its full potential.”

    While running the NCAT schedule, Fitzpatrick also ran three Nationwide races for JR Motorsports. The three races resulted in two top 10s (Road America and Montreal) and an 11th place finish at Walkin’s Glen after being spun.

    “I really enjoyed it,” he said of the experience. “I was really fortunate enough to run with JR Motorsports for three races. We’re still talking about more events that are coming up and also next year and if it doesn’t work out, they’re going to give me some leeway on where to go and a good connection of some sort. I’m definitely going to be in more races this year.”

    And then when time allows, Fitzpatrick hits the local tracks and races at the grass roots level where it started.

    “I support it 100% anyway I can,” he said of grass roots racing. “At the end of the day, that’s where we all started and guys that don’t feel like coming back, I don’t get it. I wish I had a late model as that’s where I started but super stocks are a lot of fun.”

    For this year, he put a Super Stock racecar together with some friends.

    “Its fun,” he said of running the car. “It’s definitely a different kind of car for me. Me and my friend built this car and it’s been working fairly well. We’re starting ninth out of 45 cars so we’re pretty happy about that.”

    For this past weekend at Autumn Colors at Peterborough Speedway, the biggest short track event in Ontario, Fitzpatrick started ninth, got up to fifth, and then blew the right rear tire.

    J.R got started in racing at the age of six running a Jr. Late Model.

    “I got started through Jr. Late Models when I was six year olds at Sauble Beach,” he said.

    “Then I moved on to Delawere (Speedway) and when I was 13 years old, I got a late model and then from there, I just stayed in heavy stock cars.”

    Fitzpatrick then moved up to the CASCAR Super Series, were he finished second in the Rookie of the Year standings in 2004 at the age of 16.

    At the age of 17, he scored his first win and got three top-fives and five top-10 finishes.

    Then in 2006, he became the youngest Canadian Tire Series National Champion with a win, five podium finishes and two pole awards at the age of 18.

    Over the next three years in the Canadian Tire Series, Fitzpatrick would earn a total of four wins, 10 top-fives, 14 top-10s and five pole awards.

    Fitzpatrick made his first in the NASCAR Busch Series (now Nationwide Series) at the Telcel-Motorola Mexico 200 at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City, where he finished 33rd due to an ill-handling car.

    Fitzpatrick made his first start in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in 2009 where he finished fourth, driving the No. 7 Mammoet Chevrolet Silverado at Daytona International Speedway for TRG Motorsports.

    For 2011, Fitzpatrick plans to run more Nationwide races.

    “For the Nationwide stuff, nothing is fully planned yet,” he said. “Like I said, I’m still with JR Motorsports as of right now so hopefully we can get more races with them. If not, we will just go somewhere else. And maybe do NASCAR Canada but like I said, nothing is set in stone right now.”

    He considers his racing heroes to be Jr. Hanley and Pete Shepphard II.

  • Jason Leffler ready for battle under the lights of Charlotte Motor Speedway

    JASON LEFFLER QUICK FACTS

    No. 38 Great Clips Toyota Camry

    Charlotte Motor Speedway

    Dollar General 300

    October 15, 2010

    • Braun Racing looking for more hardware from Charlotte Motor Speedway… Braun Racing has two trophies from Charlotte Motor Speedway (CMS) in their display case and they are hoping to add to that collection this weekend. Dave Blaney gave the team their first win at the track in October, 2006. In May of 2008, Kyle Busch gave the team their second trophy when he drove the No. 32 Dollar General Camry to victory lane.

    • Leffler at Charlotte Motor Speedway, by the numbers… In 14 Nationwide Series starts at CMS, Leffler has one-top five and four top-10 finishes. He has led laps in seven of those events for a total of 80 laps led. His best performance at the 1.5-mile track came in the spring of 2004 when he started from the ninth spot and finished fourth, leading for 36 laps

    • Fourth race for the Nationwide Series’ “New Car”… Drivers and teams will participate in an extended test session on Wednesday afternoon at the Concord, N.C.-based track. This will mark the ‘new car’s’ fourth and final appearance of the season before it is introduced full-time in 2011.

    • “Tech Talk” with Jason Leffler and Joe Balash… Jason Leffler will join NASCAR Nationwide Series Director, Joe Balash, at the Nationwide Insurance display on Friday at 2pm for “Tech Talk” with the fans at CMS. “Tech Talk” is designed to tell fans about the “new car” that will be introduced full-time in 2011.

    • Dollar General Serving as Title Sponsor at Charlotte… Longtime Braun Racing marketing partner, Dollar General, will serve as title sponsor for this weekend’s race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

    • Did you know? Great Clips is the longest-running sponsor in the Nationwide Series…Minneapolis-based Great Clips, Inc. came onto the scene in 2001 as a primary sponsor of Akins Motorsports No. 38 entry, then driven by Christian Elder. Kasey Kahne drove the car from 2003-2005, before Leffler took over the wheel in 2006.

    • Braun Racing acquired by Turner Motorsports… Recently it was announced that Turner Motorsports acquired select assets of Braun Racing. The team will continue to operate as Braun Racing for the remainder of the 2010 season. Plans for Turner Motorsports in 2011 include fielding three entries in both the Camping World Truck Series and the Nationwide Series (NNS). The NNS driver lineup will be announced in October.

    • Leffler on SIRIUS’ Morning Drive every Wednesday… Don’t forget to tune in to SIRIUS Radio’s “Morning Drive” with Mike Bagley and Pete Pistone every Wednesday at 10:30am to hear Leffler’s take on recent events in the Nationwide Series and what you can expect from the week’s upcoming race.

    Leffler on racing at Charlotte Motor Speedway

    “Charlotte Motor Speedway provides some really fun racing. With the fast speeds and three-wide racing, it’s a lot of fun. We all consider Charlotte to be our hometown track and, even though most of us are not from here, this is a place we have all made our home. This will be the first time we have raced the ‘new car’ here and I’m looking forward to it. This Great Clips team has run pretty well in these ‘new cars’ so I feel like we have a shot to be a strong contender on Friday night. Braun Racing already has two wins here and we are hoping to make it three this weekend in the Dollar General 300.”

    Equipment Information

    The No. 38 Great Clips team will unload chassis #104 in this weekend’s Dollar General 300. This is the same chassis Leffler piloted at Michigan Speedway, where he started fourth and finished 34th (engine), and Richmond international Raceway, where he started ninth and finished 14th.

    Jason Leffler Statistics

    Charlotte Motor Speedway Career NASCAR Nationwide Series

    No. Starts: 14

    Best Start: 5th (spring, 2008)

    Best Finish: 4th (spring, 2004)

    Average Start: 25.4

    Average Finish: 19.2

    Top-Fives: 1

    Top-10’s: 4

    Laps: 2541/2778 (91.5%)

    Laps Led: 80

    DNF’s: 4 No. Starts: 253

    Wins: 2

    Top-5 Finishes: 39

    Top-10 Finishes: 91

    Poles: 8

    Average Start: 17.2

    Average Finish: 17.1

    Laps Led: 604

  • Richard Petty Driving Experience Announces Additional Kansas Speedway Dates

    Stock Car Rides and Drives Available On Remaining October Weekends

    (Concord, NC) October 11, 2010 – Richard Petty Driving Experience (RPDE) and Kansas Speedway announced that the world leader in NASCAR-style Driving and Ride-Along Experiences will be on the 1 ½ mile track October 15-17, 23, 24, 30 and 31, offering fans the opportunity to strap into a NASCAR race car for as low as $59.

    “We’re thrilled to add these dates at Kansas Speedway,” said Mike Bartelli, Chief Marketing Officer of Petty Holdings and Richard Petty Driving Experience. “It is certainly one of our favorites among the 24 tracks we visited in 2010, and we love how people come from all over the Midwest to join us whenever we’re there.

    “We’re happy to announce that RPDE has added additional dates at Kansas Speedway,” said Kansas Speedway President Pat Warren. “RPDE offers fans an opportunity to see what drivers experienced in the Price Chopper 400 presented by Kraft Foods on Oct. 3 as they chased the checkered flag.”

    RPDE also announced that its famous Ride-Along Experience will be available for only $59 on these October dates. Regularly $109, the Ride-Along puts the guest in the passenger’s seat with a professional instructor driving at speeds of up to 155MPH.

    The Ride-Along can be purchased from RPDE at the race track on the above dates.

    For more information, call 800.237.3889 or visit www.drivepetty.com.

    -end-

    About Richard Petty Driving Experience:

    Richard Petty Driving Experience, a motorsports entertainment and automotive services company headquartered in Concord, N.C., produces and facilitates NASCAR-style stock car drive and ride-along experiences, auto manufacturer ride and drive programs, safe driving programs, mobile marketing events and production services to the film industry. The company offers rides and drives at more than 20 major speedways around the country and has permanent facilities in Las Vegas, Orlando, and Concord, NC. For more information, call 1-800-237-3889 or visit www.drivepetty.com

    About Kansas Speedway:

    Kansas Speedway is now offering single event tickets for each of our races in 2011, including both NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events. Season tickets, which include a Track Pass that allows fans to watch the pre-race concert and driver introductions from the infield, are also available. Tickets are on sale now by calling 866.460.RACE or logging onto www.kansasspeedway.com. Parking is always free at Kansas Speedway and fans can bring in one 6x6x12-inch soft-sided cooler with their favorite food and beverages.

  • Joey Logano / No. 20 GameStop Toyota Preview – Dollar General 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway

    No. 20 GameStop Toyota News, Notes & Paint Scheme:

    • STILL NO NEW CAR BLUES… NOT FOR LOGANO & NO. 20: The Dollar General 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway with mark the fourth and final NASCAR Nationwide Series “new car” race of the 2010 season. The new car, which will be run in all of the events in 2011, has been good for the No. 20 team this year. Logano finished second and sixth with the new car at Daytona and Michigan respectively, and Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny Hamlin ran sixth at Richmond during one of Logano’s off weekends. The car is designed to be safer and more similar to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series current car. The car is also more economical for the teams and branded better for the fans.

    • ROCKING OUT IN CHARLOTTE… WITH GUITAR HERO: The No. 20 GameStop Toyota will have a “rocking” paint scheme this weekend in Charlotte. The sixth installment of the ever-popular Guitar Hero series, named Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock, will adorn the side of the No. 20 Toyota this weekend. Delivering the quintessential rock music collection that focuses on guitar shredding hits from bands such as Black Sabbath, Slipknot and Megadeth and larger-than-life band anthems from Queen, Muse and KISS, players can unleash more rewards and unlockable content than ever before in Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock’s Quest Mode, the franchise’s first ever story-based mode, and Quickplay+, which invites challenge-starved fanatics to test their rock skills. Running on the powerful Guitar Hero engine that has been expanded and refined and with encores from the addictive, award-winning gameplay features that made Guitar Hero one of the most popular franchises of all-time – such as Party Play, Competitive modes and any combination of up to four instruments –the game offers a complete interactive and connected experience bringing friends and foes to the stage in the ultimate rock music experience.

    • EVERYTHING YOU LEARN MAKES YOU STRONGER: The No. 20 GameStop team has been busy in the past few weeks testing at a number of different tracks in preparation for this weekend’s Dollar General 300 at Charlotte and the final Nationwide Series “new car” event. The team tested at the half-mile Gresham Motorsports Park in Jefferson, GA several weeks ago and then tested at the one-mile Rockingham Speedway in North Carolina late last week. Each time, the team tested several different setup packages under the new car to get a better idea of what makes the new cars faster. While the team didn’t test the exact chassis that they are taking to Charlotte (#20107, which also ran in Michigan), crew chief Kevin Kidd says the team learned a lot and has a better baseline to start.

    • GET WELL “WAHOO”: It’s been a tough ride for recent Joe Gibbs Racing hire Charles “Wahoo” Sampson. Sampson, who took over for the No. 20 GameStop team as truck driver in Dover, worked for just a couple of weeks before being admitted to the hospital and having surgery this past weekend while the rest of the team traveled to California. Sampson is recovering at home and will be back at the shop and with the team as soon as possible. So the entire GameStop team wishes “Wahoo” a speedy recovery.

    • STAT OF THE WEEK: 18. Joey has recorded an amazing 18 straight top-10 finishes this season in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. In fact, his 18 races would rank Joey third on the all-time list of consecutive top-10 finishes in the Nationwide Series. However, since Joey has taken several races off in the middle of his streak, they will not count towards the record. Sam Ard holds the record for the most consecutive top-10 finishes with 42 straight.

    • FEATURED ON THE No. 20: GameStop #2366 in Huntington Beach, CA will be the featured store on the lower rear quarter panel of the No. 20 GameStop Toyota this weekend in Charlotte.

    Logano’s Season-To-Date NASCAR Nationwide Series Stats:

    Starts Wins Top 5 Top 10 Poles Laps Led Earnings Avg. Start Avg. Finish

    21 2 12 20 6 567 $800,450 5.0 5.0

    Logano’s Career NASCAR Nationwide Series Stats:

    Starts Wins Top 5 Top 10 Poles Laps Led Earnings Avg. Start Avg. Finish

    62 8 30 50 13 1299 $2,397,429 7.5 7.2

    Logano’s Career NASCAR Nationwide Series Stats at Charlotte Motor Speedway:

    Starts Wins Top 5 Top 10 Poles Laps Led Earnings Avg. Start Avg. Finish

    4 0 2 2 0 59 $104,293 9.8 9.0

    Joey Logano Quotes:

    “Charlotte is always a different weekend all around. First, you are right here at home, so there are always a lot of friends and family that come out to the track. Also, this is just Charlotte and a place everyone wants to win. Charlotte is a tough place to race. The track seems like it would be just like so many other of the 1.5-milers that we run, but this place has a lot of different characteristics that you don’t see anywhere else and is really sensitive to the weather, so that makes Charlotte a challenging but fun place.

    “I’m really anxious to run the new car here. Not only have we been testing the car and making grounds on what we need to do to make them faster, but Charlotte has been one of my better tracks in the Sprint Cup Series and since we’re running the new Nationwide car here, hopefully some of the experience will come over here. Charlotte is one of the few tracks I’d say my Sprint Cup finishes have been regularly better than my Nationwide finishes. So, I think we have a lot to gain this weekend and I’ve got a lot of confidence in my team.

    “We’ve got Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock this weekend on the car and that is really cool. I’m a huge music fan. I listen to pretty much anything from rock to pop to country to classic rock. So having Guitar Hero on the car is really cool. I’ve looked at some of the songs that are on the new game and there is some really good music on there. And that game is for people like me; those who wanna have some fun, but aren’t very gifted when it comes to playing instruments.”

    Kevin Kidd Quotes:

    “We are coming into Charlotte with a lot of great expectations because we’ve had some successful tests with the new Nationwide Series car the last couple of weeks. We didn’t light the world on fire, but sometimes, that isn’t what you want in tests. You want to learn what works and what doesn’t work. Sometimes, it’s just as good to learn some ideas that don’t work, because you don’t have to worry about going down that direction on race weekend. So, our tests were real successful, and I think we’ve got a better idea on what it is going to take to make our new Nationwide Series cars be as good or maybe better than our old-style cars.

    “Charlotte is a very important race for us as an organization, as it is for everyone, because it is hometown for the team. Everyone wants to run good in Charlotte because you normally have a lot of extra people there that visit since the shop is just 20 minutes away. So we are going to do what we can to go out there and get this No. 20 GameStop Toyota back in Victory Lane. We want to win one of these new car races this year as an organization, and I think the No. 20 guys have a shot this weekend.”

    No. 20 GameStop Toyota / Joe Gibbs Racing Team

    Crew Chief – Kevin Kidd Car Chief – Tony Hamm Engine Builder – Mark Cronquist

    Lead Engineer – Mike Lorusso Engine Specialist – Dan Bajek Spotter – Mark Robertson

    Jackman – TJ Ford Front Tire Changer – Nick Krizmanich Front Tire Carrier – Aaron Shields

    Gas Man – Chris Webb Rear Tire Changer – Chris McMullen Rear Tire Carrier – Matt Tyrell

    Catch Can – Brian Larson Truck Driver – Charles Sampson & Ashley Brotherton

    Tire Specialist – Ryan Martin Shock Specialist – Joel Weidman

  • Robert Richardson, Jr. to drive No. 23 Pink and Blue for Two Chevrolet at Charlotte

    R3 Motorsports donates entire car to cause championed by Emerson and Olivia-Newton John

    CHINA GROVE, N.C. (October 12, 2010) – Robert Richardson, Jr. and R3 Motorsports are teaming up with a worthwhile cause for the NASCAR Nationwide Series race on Friday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway. This will be the fourth, and final, race with the new-style Nationwide Series cars this season.

    Richardson will drive the No. 23 Pink and Blue for Two (PB42) Chevrolet to help raise awareness for breast and prostate cancer testing. Pink and Blue for Two is an initiative started by Emerson Newton-John and is fully supported by his aunt, world renowned entertainer Olivia Newton-John, to raise cancer-testing awareness for men and women. Later this month, the group’s second PB42 fundraising event takes place on Wednesday, October 27 at Busch Gardens Theme Park in Tampa, Fla.

    The main goal of PB42 links the strikingly similar statistics between breast and prostate cancers and encourages couples to help remind one another to go to their Dr.’s for screenings. Also on the car will be a decal highlighting Olivia’s self-breast examination kit for women called Liv Aid.

    “This is great that R3 Motorsports has been kind enough to donate their entire Chevrolet to our cause for the Charlotte races this weekend,” said Emerson Newton-John. “We have been working hard to launch this campaign into a high-visibility market, and this opportunity with R3 to showcase our campaign in NASCAR is a great step in that direction. I thank them for this.

    “The No. 23 car is going to look awesome under the lights and I know this will greatly help raise awareness for PB42, Olivia’s self-screening kit and our fundraiser later this month. When I called to tell her what was going on for the Charlotte race and what R3 Motorsports did for us with www.PinkandBlueforTwo.com on the car she was very, very pleased.”

    Fast Facts: Richardson, 28, will be making his 67th NASCAR Nationwide Series start, 21st of the season and fourth at the high-banked oval of CMS. In his three previous Charlotte starts, his best qualifying effort was 28th in 2008 and best finish was 23rd, which occurred in the spring race this year.  For the season, the native of McKinney, Texas has completed 3,596 of 3,726 laps contested (95.8%) in those 20 races this year.

    Crew Chief Fill-In: For this weekend, veteran crew chief and engineer Walter Giles will be helping out R3 Motorsports and the No. 23 NNS team. Giles spent time with the team last year for a few races.This will free up regular crew chief Steve Plattenberger to oversee both the Cup and NNS cars this weekend for the team.

    Car Facts: Giles and regular engineer Jeff Kirkendall will have chassis No. 54 at their disposal this weekend. This will be the first time the car has seen any on-track action and was newly built for this race.

    Robert Richardson, Jr. quotes

    This is the final race with the new-style NNS cars this year: “Yeah, we’ve tried to get used to it and better with it every time. We had that new car at Michigan and it got destroyed right at the end of the race. So, we did what we know how to do best and built this one from the chassis up. I just hope we get a good reading about everything and get the car dialed in during the test day on Wednesday. Then, come Thursday and Friday, we can work on getting it faster and faster for qualifying and the race.”

    You’ll have Walter Giles on the pit box again this weekend: “Walter has a ton of experience and we only got to work together for a few races last year. I’m looking forward to him being up there, working with me and the team and seeing what he can do to help us. Steve (Plattenberger) needs to be freed up to work between the Cup and Nationwide garages this weekend, so this works out great for everyone.”

    Pretty cool paint scheme you have for this weekend: “This is a pretty special deal for R3 Motorsports and the folks with Pink and Blue for Two. When this came up, we quickly realized we could help more people by raising the awareness for breast and prostate cancer testing by having them on our car. The colors look great on our Chevrolet, and helping Emerson and Olivia-Newton John with their cause and their fundraiser later this month is pretty special, too.”

    For more information about PB42, see www.PinkandBlueforTwo.com online.

  • Ryan Truex and Martin Truex Jr., OUT! Pet Care Toyota Charlotte Preview

    CORNELIUS, N.C. — For the second time in three weeks, brothers Martin Truex Jr. and Ryan Truex will drive OUT! Pet Care Toyotas for Diamond-Waltrip Racing in a NASCAR Nationwide Series race.  Ryan, 18, climbs in the No. 99 Toyota for Friday night’s race at Charlotte Motor Speedway joining older brother and two-time series champion Martin who will pilot a reversed paint scheme No. 00 Toyota. In the brothers first race together at Kansas on Oct. 2, Martin finished fifth in the No. 00 and Ryan finished 15th in the No. 99. 

    QUOTES

    Ryan Truex on Martin:  “My brother has had a huge impact on my career.  He has taught me so much about racing.  I think the best advice he has given me is to be patient.  He has also taught me to take what the car will give me and not try and get a win out of a 10th-place car.  If you try and get too much from the race car the chances of you wrecking are pretty high.  My brother has been an awesome role model to me and I really look forward to racing against him again this weekend.”

    On Charlotte:  “It’s the new car and we’ve ran well with that so far. I think Charlotte will be more my kind of race track. It’s fast, high-banked and it looks like a lot of fun. I’ve never run there but I’m looking forward to it. It’s going to be good to work with Jerry (Baxter, crew chief) again. I feel like we learned a little bit about each other and made some steps at Kansas.”

    Nationwide Goals:  “I want to go out there and get some good finishes and log all the laps I can.  The more seat time I can get the better I will be prepared for the 2011 season.  I want to go out there and earn respect from some of the veteran drivers.  I also want to continue to build on what the No. 99 team has done so far this season.  They have a lot of momentum on their side and they have been really competitive.  I would also really like to grab a few top 10 finishes before the season is over.”

    Martin on Charlotte:  “I’ve had some really good races at Charlotte. It’s pretty cool to race against my brother again this weekend.  I would much rather race against him then watch him race.  I get really nervous watching him race for some reason.  I can’t imagine what my dad goes through watching us both race.  He has to be a nervous wreck.”

    NOTES OF INTEREST

     

    • Gary and Blake Bechtel along with Michael Waltrip Racing own Diamond-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, California residents’ teams have visited victory lane 10 times in the Nationwide Series.

     

    • Casey Mears will drive the No. 00 during the open practice session on Wednesday.

     

    • Martin Truex Jr. is 11 years, 8 months and 19 days older than Ryan Truex.

     

    • Longtime crew chief Mike Greci will serve as Martin’s crew chief on the No. 00.

     

    • Martin Truex Jr. won Nationwide Series titles in 2004 & 200 with 13 wins in 97 starts.  

     

    • Martin Truex Jr. owns six series starts Charlotte—best finish of fifth came in May 2006.

     

    • Ryan Truex is the only teenager to win back-to-back K&N Pro Series East titles and first driver to bring a title to Michael Waltrip Racing.

     

    • Ryan Truex will race the No. 99 for the rest of 2010 except in Texas where Martin will drive.

     

    · Martin Truex Sr. competed in 15 Nationwide Series races 1989-1998. His best career finish of 12th came at Nazareth Speedway in 1994. He won an East Series race at New Hampshire in 1994.

  • WESTERMAN COMPANIES ON BOARD WITH MIKE BLISS FOR CHARLOTTE; CRICKET SW3 ELECTRIC SPORT VEHICLE SIGNS ON AS ASSOCIATE SPONSOR FOR DOLLAR GENERAL 300

    Mooresville, NC (October 11, 2010) The Key Motorsports Chevrolet Impala driven by Mike Bliss will carry the colors of Westerman Companies in Friday night’s 300-mile NASCAR Nationwide Series event at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Cricket SW3, a product of Rick’s Specialty Vehicles, is making their first venture into motorsports as an associate sponsor of the No. 40 for the Charlotte race.

    The familiar Westerman Companies green paint scheme that has appeared on the Key Motorsports Chevrolet at several venues this season, has brought two top-15 and four top-20 finishes to the Key Motorsports organization in 2010, including 13th place finishes at Richmond in April and O’Reilly Raceway Park in July. With six of the eight race sponsorship completed, Westerman will return to the No. 40 for the season-closing event at Homestead in November.

    “We are pleased with the performance of the Key Motorsports team,” said a Westerman Companies spokesperson. “2010 marks our fourth year with Key Motorsports and they have stepped up to the plate this season. We look forward to Charlotte this weekend and to being back for Homestead in November.”

    Rick’s Specialty Vehicles, featuring the Cricket SW3 Electric Sport Vehicle, has signed with Key Motorsports as an associate for the Dollar General 300. The Georgia based company manufactures and retails the Cricket SW3 ESV, an all electric, portable personal transportation vehicle that weighs about 300 lbs. and folds to fit under motor homes and other vehicles for easy storage and relocation.

    “The Cricket SW3 is a great way for race fans to get around at the track,” said a company official. “It is a very unique vehicle that provides a number of solutions to race fans, RV’ers and anyone who attends horse and car shows. We are excited to partner with Key Motorsports for our introduction to NASCAR racing and the many loyal NASCAR fans who have made the sport what it is.”

    Key Motorsports driver Mike Bliss and crew chief Gary Showalter are prepared to continue the momentum they have established in 2010. Fresh from a ninth place finish at California last weekend, Bliss and the team are confident their efforts will command a repeat appearance in the top-10 Friday night.

    “Gary and the crew are on their game,” shared Bliss, a two-time winner at Charlotte Motor Speedway. “They are doing a great job in the shop getting these cars ready and they have put a lot of effort into our pit stops. Everything is coming together and we should be in the hunt Friday night. We want to thank Westerman Companies for being with us at Charlotte this weekend, they have been a good luck charm for us this year. We also appreciate the support of the Cricket SW3, that is one neat little vehicle that race fans will love.”

    Longtime crew chief Gary Showalter has led the Key Motorsports team to 20 top-20’s, eight top-15’s and two top-10’s to date in 2010, including 13 top 20’s in the past 14 races.

    “We have a good car for Charlotte,” said Showalter. “The guys on the team have done a great job and we have everything we need to get the job done. Curtis Key (team owner) has provided our team all of the components needed to be successful at this level and we are looking forward to a good run with Westerman Companies and the folks at Cricket SW3.”

    The Dollar General 300 will be broadcast live from Charlotte Motor Speedway Friday, October 15, 2010 at 7:30 pm on ESPN2.

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

    TAMING THE BEAST OF THE SOUTHEAST: Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) co-owner Kevin Harvick turns his attention this week to the ‘Beast of the Southeast’ where he will be making his 19th-career Nationwide Series start at the 1.5-mile track of Charlotte (N.C) Motor Speedway.

    In 18 previous Nationwide Series starts at the track, Harvick has recorded two top-five and 10 top-10 finishes and has an average starting position of 12.9 with an average finishing position of 12.3. He has led 125 laps and completed 99. 3 percent of laps attempted (3554 of 3578 laps). Harvick looks for his first-career Nationwide Series win this week at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

    In addition to running the Nationwide Series, Harvick has also completed 19 Sprint Cup Series races and three Truck Series races at the track. His only win across all three of NASCAR’s elite divisions at Charlotte Motor Speedway came in 2007 when Harvick won the All-Star Challenge, a non-points paying event.

    WINNING WAYS: Having scored 37 Nationwide Series wins so far in his 12-year career, Harvick still has six tracks where he has yet to score a win on the series’ current schedule, including this weekend’s venue, Charlotte Motor Speedway. In addition to Charlotte, Harvick still looks to tackle wins at his home track of Auto Club Speedway, Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, Darlington (S.C.) Raceway, Dover (Del.) International Speedway and Road America (Wisc.). For the 2010 season, Harvick has the opportunity to mark Charlotte Motor Speedway off the list this weekend, but the others will continue to elude him into the 2011 season.

    BEFORE THE RACE: QUOTES WITH DRIVER KEVIN HARVICK:

    On racing at mile-and-a-half tracks in the Nationwide Series:

    “I think for KHI, the mile-and-a-half tracks like Texas, Las Vegas and Atlanta have been good to us. The No. 33 Nationwide Series team has really stepped up and we were able to win at Atlanta at the end of last season and then at Las Vegas earlier this year. We had an opportunity to win at Kansas and California the last two weeks had it not been for some issues on pit road, so overall I’m pretty pleased with our mile-and-a-half performances. All I ask for is the shot to contend for the win every week and that is what this team has been able to do this year. I’m hoping the momentum will continue this week and we can get another solid top-five finish and maybe be there at the end to battle for the win”

    What are your thoughts on racing at Charlotte Motor Speedway? “Besides the All-Star win in 2007, Charlotte Motor Speedway is a track where I haven’t had the finishes I would like. We’ve run good there, but just can’t put all the pieces together to get the finishes we deserve. If we can find a way to keep everything together, then I think we can leave Charlotte with a top-five finish.”

    DRIVER OF THE WEEK: Nationwide has selected two-time Nationwide Series champion Kevin Harvick as the Driver of the Week for this week at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

    CHASSIS HISTORY: This week the No. 33 Kevin Harvick Inc. team will unload chassis No. 063 for the fourth and final Nationwide Series new car race of the season before implementing the new body style full time in the 2011 season. This chassis was brand new when it made its first appearance of the season at Michigan International Speedway. Team co-owner Kevin Harvick started the race 15th and battled back from a pit-road penalty and handling issues to finish the race 10th.

    PREVIOUS RACE RECAP: Most recently the Nationwide Series teams were on the West Coast for the CampingWorld.com 300 at Auto Club Speedway. Harvick started the race second, led the most laps of the field with 86 laps and rebounded from several pit road mishaps to finish the race third. The finish marked Harvick’s 13th top-10 finish at the track.

    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 Charlotte

    Year No. Team Start Finish

    2010 33 KHI 18 6

    2009 33 KHI 8 23

    2008 33 KHI 6 6

    2008 33 KHI 41 19

    2007 33 KHI 25 10

    2007 33 KHI 25 12

    2006 33 KHI 8 9

    2006 21 RCR 5 8

    2005 21 RCR 13 24

    2005 21 RCR 13 11

    2004 21 RCR 8 11

    2004 21 RCR 4 3

    2003 21 RCR 1 9

    2003 21 RCR 1 9

    2001 2 RCR 9 4

    2001 2 RCR 1 26

    2000 2 RCR 8 24

    2000 2 RCR 39 8

    *KHI: Kevin Harvick Inc.

    *RCR: Richard Childress Racing

    About Rheem:

    Rheem Manufacturing Company (www.rheem.com) is a privately held company with headquarters in Atlanta, Ga. In its 81st year of operation, the company distributes throughout North America and world markets an award-winning line of eco-friendly, technologically advanced residential and commercial heating, cooling, water heating, whole-home standby generators, controls, pool and spa heaters, indoor air purification products and commercial boilers. The nation’s leading consumer products review magazine recently reported that Rheem products have been rated most reliable among all leading brands by tens of thousands of consumers. The premium brands of Rheem Manufacturing Company include Ruud, Raypak and Rheem. Rheem Manufacturing Company is the primary sponsor of Kevin Harvick Inc.’s No. 33 Chevrolet Nationwide® Series car and is an associate sponsor of KHI’s No 33 truck in the Camping World Truck Series.

    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.

  • REXALL BRAND TO ENTER THREE NASCAR NATIONWIDE SERIES RACES THIS FALL

    Rexall car makes its NASCAR debut at the Dollar General 300

    GOODLETTSVILLE, Tenn. (October 11, 2010) – The Rexall® brand is gracing the No. 11 Braun Racing entry in three races this fall.  David Reutimann will return to the NASCAR Nationwide Series to drive the orange and blue Rexall Toyota in the Dollar General 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on October 15, Texas Motor Speedway on November 6 and Homestead-Miami Speedway on November 20.

    “We are excited to enter the Rexall Toyota in the NASCAR Nationwide Series,” said Rick Dreiling, chairman and CEO of Dollar General, which licenses the brand.  “We recently introduced Rexall products in our stores, bringing our customers the dependable quality and value that Rexall is known for. We look forward to cheering on the Rexall car in celebration of the brand’s debut at Dollar General.”

    The Rexall car makes its entrance into NASCAR in conjunction with Rexall health care products arriving on the shelves at Dollar General.  Now available at Dollar General stores, Rexall products have been trusted by generations of customers for more than 100 years.  The brand’s time-tested quality and commitment to caring continues at Dollar General.  Customers will now find a broad assortment of Rexall brand products at Dollar General, including over-the-counter medications, first aid, foot care and dental care.  

    Team owner, Steve Turner, echoed Dreiling’s sentiments. “We are looking forward to joining our friends at Dollar General as they celebrate the Rexall brand’s debut in their stores and it will be a pleasure to have David Reutimann return to the team to drive the No. 11 car in these races. It is with the tremendous support of great sponsors like Dollar General that we take to the track each week, and we are very proud to carry their names.”

    Reutimann has been a familiar face in the Nationwide Series since 2002. In 118 cumulative series starts, the Zephyrhills, Fla. native has collected one win (Memphis Motorsports Park, 2007), 17 top-five and 43 top-10 finishes. Reutimann has also claimed three pole awards, including the 2007 pole position at Texas Motor Speedway. Currently, Reutimann drives full-time for Michael Waltrip Racing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, piloting the No. 00 Toyota.

     

     

    The Rexall No. 11 Toyota debuts at the Dollar General 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on October 15.  LIVE coverage of the race starts at 7:30 p.m. EST on ESPN 2 with the green flag dropping at 8:00 p.m.

      

    About Dollar General Corporation

    Dollar General Corporation has been delivering value to shoppers for more than 70 years. Dollar General helps shoppers Save time. Save money. Every day!(R) by offering products that are frequently used and replenished, such as food, snacks, health and beauty aids, cleaning supplies, basic apparel, house wares and seasonal items at low everyday prices in convenient neighborhood locations. With more than 9,000 stores in 35 states, Dollar General has more retail locations than any retailer in America. In addition to high quality private brands, Dollar General sells products from America’s most-trusted manufacturers such as Procter & Gamble, Kimberly-Clark, Unilever, Kellogg’s, General Mills, Nabisco, Hanes, PepsiCo and Coca-Cola. Learn more about Dollar General at www.dollargeneral.com.

    About Rexall

    Founded in 1903, Rexall values have stood the test of time, and after more than one hundred years, its commitment to providing families affordable, high-quality wellness products still serves as the foundation for Rexall’s success.  Today, Rexall products span a wide range of over-the-counter medications, vitamins and sunscreens to home health care products. Rexall products are now available at Dollar General stores.

    About Turner Motorsports:

    Turner Motorsports, LLC, established in 1999, is in the midst of its inaugural full season in NASCAR competition. Co-owned by Texas natives Steve and Sandra Turner, the racing organization is operated out of a 30,000 square-foot facility in Mooresville, N.C., which houses two NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Chevrolet entries piloted by James Buescher and Ricky Carmichael. In addition, the team fields part-time entries in the ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and Menards, with Carmichael behind the wheel and a full-time USARacing Pro Cup Series team with driver Logan Ruffin.  Turner Motorsports recently acquired select assets of NASCAR Nationwide Series powerhouse team, Braun Racing, and is expanding to field three cars in the Nationwide Series in 2011. For more information on Turner Motorsports, visit www.teamturnermotorsports.com.

    About Braun Racing: 

    Braun Racing is a leading team in the NASCAR Nationwide Series that was handpicked four years ago by Toyota to help lead their entrance into the series.  The team is proud to have claimed Toyota’s first Nationwide Series pole on February 24, 2007 at California Speedway and their first win at O’Reilly Raceway Park on July 28, 2007.  Founded by team owner Todd Braun in 2002, the team is in its eighth season of competition in the NASCAR Nationwide Series and is expanding into a four-car operation in 2010 with an all-star driver line-up that includes Kasey Kahne, Brian Vickers, Jason Leffler, Reed Sorenson, David Reutimann, Jacques Villeneuve and Tayler Malsam.  Braun Racing’s marketing partners includes Dollar General, Great Clips, Beringer Vineyards, AccuDoc Solutions, Fraternal Order of Eagles, ABF, Iron Horse Jeans, Bigspot.com, Northeastern Supply, SEM and Safety-Kleen. For more information on Braun Racing, visit www.braunracing.com.

  • Kyle Busch Snags Twelfth Nationwide Win; Danica Wrecks But Runs Strong

    Kyle Busch Snags Twelfth Nationwide Win; Danica Wrecks But Runs Strong

    In his usual style and in spite of a pit road speeding penalty, Kyle Busch powered his way to his twelfth race win in the CampingWorld.com 300 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California.

    Busch, who started from the pole position, brought his No. 18 NOS Energy Drink Toyota to the checkered flag, taking his traditional victory bow to the delight and omnipresent booing of the Cali race crowd.

    Busch put it simply in Victory Lane. “To get No. 12,” Busch said. “It’s awesome.”

    With the early part of the race being relatively caution-free, several late race cautions and restarts challenged Busch and the rest of the field. One of the biggest wrecks involved Danica Patrick, fresh off her good IndyCar run and now focused fully on her NASCAR career in her No. 7 Tissot/Go Daddy.com Chevrolet.

    Patrick was running well and was on the cusp of achieving her goal of a top-15 finish when James Buescher got into her from behind, spinning her and sending her car almost airborne before collecting Ricky Carmichael, who just seems to keep ending up on the short end of the luck stick.

    Because of the accident, Patrick ended the race in the 30th position. But she was most upbeat even after the wreck, talking with the media and explaining her run just like a NASCAR pro.

    “I think we’re getting closer. I really do,” Patrick said after the race. “We’re going to have a lot of confidence going into Charlotte, I think.”

    Winning the award for the most angry and frustrated driver was California home boy Kevin Harvick, whose pit crew yet again let him down. Harvick lost the lead not once but twice in large part due to errors on the part of his pit crew.

    Harvick voiced his frustration after the first pit road misstep, saying “Come on guys, can we win a damn race?”

    After the first pit road disaster, Harvick then told his crew over the radio that he was “terrified to come down pit road” after another caution flag flew. Harvick powered his way back to finish in the third position but openly criticized his pit crew after the race, noting that “there would be changes.”

    Brad Keselowski, currently in the points lead in the Nationwide Series, finished in the runner up to Kyle Busch position. The driver or the No. 22 America’s Tire Dodge now has a 384 point advantage over second place in the points Carl Edwards.

    Edwards, however, had a good run in his No. 60 Copart.com Ford. While mixing it up in the top five for much of the race, Edwards finished the race in the fourth position.

    Joey Logano finished in fifth, with Aric Almirola right behind in the sixth spot. Ryan Newman, Justin Allgaier, Mike Bliss and Reed Sorenson rounded out the top ten.

    In just his second start for Roush Fenway Racing, Trevor Bayne continued to show off his stuff by finishing in the 11th position. Two rookies, Colin Braun and Brian Scott, both finished in the top fifteen, claiming the 13th and 15th positions respectively.

    Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., who had just taken possession of the lead in the Nationwide Rookie standings, did not have a stellar day, getting damaged in the Danica Patrick melee. Stenhouse was able to nurse his No. 6 Blackwell Angus Beef Ford to the checkered flag just ahead of Patrick in the 29th position.

    The Nationwide Series will head next to the heart of NASCAR country to run at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. The race will run under the lights on Saturday, October 15th and will be covered on ESPN2 beginning at 7:30 PM ET.