Category: Other Series PR

[media-credit name=”texasmotorspeedway.com” align=”alignright” width=”400″][/media-credit]FORT WORTH, Tex. (June 9, 2012) – Ryan Briscoe’s third-place finish led Team Penske’s solid showing Saturday night in theFirestone 550 at Texas Motor Speedway (TMS).

All three of the team’s drivers finished among the top eight after running near the front for much of the race, including laps 186-194 which saw the three Team Penske cars running 1-2-3. Helio Castroneves finished seventh on the night, while Will Power wound up eighth as he maintained his lead in the series championship standings.

The race was the first that featured a new formula designed to eliminate pack racing at high-banked superspeedways. The result was a more spread-out field, with drivers lifting off the throttle through the corners while driving loose race cars.

Briscoe, who started 10^th in the No. 2 Hitachi Team Penske car, ran among the top-10 for most of the race, which was the first on a 1.5-mile oval with the new Chevrolet/Dallara package. The result was a podium finish for Briscoe, to mark his third third-place and his fifth podium finish overall at TMS.

“All the drivers put their heads together and said, ‘We’re going to run with less downforce,’” said Briscoe. “We knew it was going to be hard. I thought it was a good result for the Hitachi team. (The formula) spread the field out, and you had to have a good-handling car. I had the track position at the end but, unfortunately, just didn’t have a good enough car to get to the front.”

 

Castroneves, who struggled in qualifying and started 15^th in the 25-car field, also raced among the leaders before finishing seventh in the No. 3 AAA Insurance Team Penske Dallara/Chevrolet. The three-time winner at TMS fought hard most of the race to register the top-10 effort.

“What a race, the AAA machine was great,” said Castroneves. “We passed a lot of carsand were able to drive through the field. Unfortunately we had a lot of vibration and lost a lot of rear-wheel grip towards the end, we just couldn’t hold the top three and finished seventh. It’s upsetting because when you have a set up like that…it really gives you a great opportunity. But I will take seventh with a big smile on my face because I’ve crashed many times out there and so I’m happy we were able to finish in the top 10.”

Power’s No. 12 Verizon Team Penske car was leading the race when he was penalized for blocking Tony Kanaan’s car with 34 laps remaining. After leading 24 consecutive laps, Power served a drive-through penalty but rallied to finish in eighth place.

“Tony (Kanaan) took me by surprise and I feel bad for him because I ruined his day,” saidPower of the incident. “We had one of the best cars out there, but I have to say this is the best racing I’ve ever had on an oval.  You had to lift, you had to look after your tires, you had to really drive the thing – it was moving around.  That is just the sort of racing that we need at these sort of tracks. I feel bad for the Verizon guys. I feel as though we could have quite easily won this race.”

Justin Wilson won the race after Graham Rahal hit the wall while leading with two laps remaining. Rahal held on to finish second.

Power continues to lead the IZOD IndyCar Series championship after seven races in the 2012 season with 256 points. Teammate Castroneves is 53 points behind in fourth place with 203 points and Briscoe remains in eighth, now with 177 points.

The series resumes next weekend with the Milwaukee IndyFest at The Milwaukee Mile. Live coverage begins on Saturday, June 16 at 1 p.m. ET on ABC-TV.

[media-credit name=”texasmotorspeedway.com” align=”alignright” width=”400″][/media-credit]FORT WORTH, Texas (June 9, 2012) – Service Central Chip Ganassi Racing (SCCGR) driver Graham Rahal’s second-place finish at Texas Motor Speedway (TMS) was a career best in five starts at the track which also marked the best finish of his 2012 IZOD IndyCar Series season to date. The result comes in his 84th IndyCar Series careerstart. His previous best finish on the 1.5-mile oval occurred in last season’s Firestone Twin 275 double-header, where he finished ninth.

Going into Saturday’s race, Rahal showed strength early on by posting the third-quickest time in the qualifying session on Friday night. Running at the front of the pack for the majority of the race, he ran among the top-five for 153 laps. Rahal nabbed the lead on with only 28 laps remaining and led the second most laps (27 of 228). With just two laps remaining, the No. 38 Service Central Honda made contact with the wall coming out of turn four while Rahal battled understeer. He managed to keep the car going to finish second.

Rahal’s previous best finish of the season was fourth at Barber Motorsports Park in the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama. The result also marked Honda’s third consecutive 1-2 result this season (Dario Franchitti/Scott Dixon; Indianapolis 500 and Dixon/Franchitti; Belle Isle Detroit Grand Prix.)

With the result, Rahal moves from 15th position to 11th in the IZOD IndyCar Series point standings with 149 markers, -107 points out of the top spot.

Up next, Service Central Chip Ganassi Racing will compete in the Milwaukee IndyFest presented by XYQ, in West Allis, Wisconsin at the Milwaukee Mile on Saturday, June 16 (1:00pm ET on ABC).

SCCGR Quoteboard

Graham Rahal: “I just made a mistake. The car was pushing through the center of turns three and four pretty well the last stint, and it would kind of grip up for me late in the corner and I kind of stayed with it because they told me Justin [Wilson] was coming. So, I was trying to pick up the pace a little bit, and honestly it just never gripped up and I didn’t give myself enough of a margin for error. I own up to it and we’ll come back and we’ll win one here, and I certainly feel like it should have been today. Obviously, for the entire NTB/Service Central crew, this is going to bother us, but we know we can run with these guys, we know we can win and hopefully we’ll do it next week in Milwaukee.”

 

About Chip Ganassi Racing Teams, Inc.

Chip Ganassi has been a fixture in the auto racing industry for over 25 years and is considered one of the most successful as well as innovative owners the sport has anywhere in the world. Today his teams include four in the IZOD IndyCar Series, two cars in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, and one Daytona Prototype in the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series. Overall his teams have 14 championships and 147 victories, including four Indianapolis 500s, a Daytona 500, a Brickyard 400 and four Rolex 24 At Daytonas. Ganassi boasts state-of-the-art race shop facilities in Indianapolis and Brownsburg, Ind. and Concord, N.C., with a corporate office in Pittsburgh, Penn.

For more information log onto chipganassiracing.com

[media-credit name=”texasmotorspeedway.com” align=”alignright” width=”400″][/media-credit]FORT WORTH, Texas (June 9, 2012) – Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing (NNCGR) driver Charlie Kimball finished 23rd at Texas Motor Speedway (TMS). The finish came in his 24th career IZOD IndyCar Series start and his third start at TMS.

The Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing team started the race from the 16th position. After holding the spot for a total of eight laps, Kimball would battle for position on the 1.5-mile oval before an early on-track incident would cause him to retire from the race on lap 29 of the 228-lap race. Within the first 30 laps, the No. 83 FlexPen Hondamade a half-spin, and took Kimball into the SAFER Barrier off of turn four resulting in contact with the car’s left-side.

Kimball has top-10 finishes in four of the seven IZOD IndyCar Series races this season, which already doubles his previously tally of two top-10 results in 2011.

As a result, Kimball moves from 11th position to 14th in the IZOD IndyCar Series point standings with 132 markers, -124 points behind the leader.

Up next, Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing will compete in the Milwaukee IndyFest presented by XYQ, in West Allis, Wisconsin, at the Milwaukee Mile on Saturday, June 16 (1:00pm ET on ABC).

NNCGR Quoteboard

Charlie Kimball: “It’s disappointing. The car was going to get better and better, especially in clean air. I had really good pace but the No. 5 car of E.J. Viso was all over the road in front of me. I had no idea what he was going to do for five laps in a row. I’d go low and then he’d chop me, and I’d take off toward the fence. Then I went on the high-side that lap and coming off the corner he moved right up, I got a face full of dirty air and the thing snapped around. It’s real unfortunate for the guys because I think toward the end of the race we were going to make the car a lot better and be in good shape.”

About Chip Ganassi Racing Teams, Inc.

Chip Ganassi has been a fixture in the auto racing industry for over 25 years and is considered one of the most successful as well as innovative owners the sport has anywhere in the world. Today his teams include four in the IZOD IndyCar Series, two cars in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, and one Daytona Prototype in the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series. Overall his teams have 14 championships and 147 victories, including four Indianapolis 500s, a Daytona 500, a Brickyard 400 and four Rolex 24 At Daytonas. Ganassi boasts state-of-the-art race shop facilities in Indianapolis and Brownsburg, Ind. and Concord, N.C., with a corporate office in Pittsburgh, Penn.

For more information log onto chipganassiracing.com

[media-credit name=”texasmotorspeedway.com” align=”alignright” width=”400″][/media-credit]FORT WORTH, Texas (June 9, 2012) – Target Chip Ganassi Racing (TCGR) driver Dario Franchitti finished 14th in the Firestone 550 from Texas Motor Speedway (TMS), while Target teammate Scott Dixon finished 18th after leading the most laps.

Dixon started fourth but immediately began working his way to the front of the field, taking over the lead on lap 21. Within three laps, the driver of the No. 9 had opened up a 2.6-second lead over second. Dixon was happy with the balance of the car for much of the race, taking only minoradjustments. He would remain on point for the majority of the 228-lap event, leading 133 of the opening 174 laps. As a late run wore on, Dixon began to lose the handle on the No. 9, battling a loose race car. Dixon would make contact with the wall on lap 174, forcing him to retire from the race. The No. 9 would be credited with 18th.

Franchitti rolled off second, but fought the handling on the No. 10 Energizer Honda from the drop of the green. On lap 21, Franchitti pit under green-flag conditions in order to make major adjustments to the front wing. He returned to the track in 23rd, one lap down. More major adjustments would come during Franchitti’s second pit stop of the day. This time, under the yellow flag, the No. 10 crew disconnected the rear bar. Franchitti managed to avoid the attrition that impacted a large portion of the field, finishing the night in 14th.

With the results, Dixon remains second in the IZOD IndyCar Series point standings with 220 points, -36 points behind leader Will Power. Franchitti drops two positions to sixth in the standings with 192 points, -64 behindPower.

Honda is second in the manufacturer point standings with 51 points, three markers behind Chevrolet. Lotus remains third with 28 points.

Up next for Team Target is Round 8 of the IZOD IndyCar Series with Milwaukee IndyFest from the Milwaukee Mile on Saturday, June 16 at 1:00 PM ET on ABC.

NOTES

– For the second week in a row, Dixon led the most laps (133 of 228).
– Dixon has led at least one lap in six of the seven races this season.
– In 13 starts at TMS, Dixon has one win (2008), one pole, six podiums and has led 256 laps.
– In 119 starts on oval tracks, Dixon has 17 wins, 15 poles, 46 podiums and has led 3,281 laps.
– Franchitti has participated in 128 oval races, earning 16 victories, 12 poles, 40 podiums and leading 3,305 laps.
– In 10 starts at TMS, Franchitti has one win (2011), two poles, two podiums and has led 236 laps.

TCGR Quoteboard:

Dario Franchitti: “That was a long, long night for the Energizer team. My car was really bad to start with after thinking the car was really good last night in final practice. From about lap 15 on I crashed about three times and the guys brought me in to disconnect the rear bar. We lost some laps from that and then struggled without grip all night. We just fought as hard as we could for every single point after that.”

 

Scott Dixon: “We just got loose. We had been getting loose at the end of stints. For the last 10 laps of that final stint, I was just really fighting to hold on. That time there, I kind of got into the middle of few people we were trying to lap and I was trying to get back up to (Will) Power. I turned in and the rear just started to slide, and I kind of dipped down onto the apron and shot around again. I feel bad for the guys. We had a really good car and I think we had a good chance to win here tonight.”

About Chip Ganassi Racing Teams, Inc.

Chip Ganassi has been a fixture in the auto racing industry for over 25 years and is considered one of the most successful as well as innovative owners the sport has anywhere in the world. Today his teams include four in the IZOD IndyCar Series, two cars in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, and one Daytona Prototype in the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series. Overall his teams have 14 championships and 147 victories, including four Indianapolis 500s, a Daytona 500, a Brickyard 400 and four Rolex 24 At Daytonas. Ganassi boasts state-of-the-art race shop facilities in Indianapolis and Brownsburg, Ind. and Concord, N.C., with a corporate office in Pittsburgh, Penn.

For more information log onto chipganassiracing.com

[media-credit name=”texasmotorspeedway.com” align=”alignright” width=”400″][/media-credit]INDIANAPOLIS (Monday, June 11, 2012) – INDYCAR, the sanctioning body of the IZOD IndyCar Series, announced today penalties stemming from post-race technical inspection of the June 9 Firestone 550 at Texas Motor Speedway.

The No. 18 car Dale Coyne Racing car driven by Justin Wilson was fined $7,500 and docked five entrant points for not complying with the sidepod top deck aerodynamic element of Rule 14.6.4.13.

14.6.4.13 Texas Aero Summary (Updated June 3, 2012 via bulletin)

The following parts may not be used at Texas Motor Speedway:

· Sidepod Top Deck IR1225195RH/LH – IR1202A031/32

 

The No. 20 Ed Carpenter Racing car driven by Ed Carpenter was fined $5,000 and penalized one entrant point for not complying with Rule 14.6.1.3.

14.6.1.3. Texas Race Event (updated June 8, 2012 via bulletin)

A rear wing wicker up to a maximum of 1/8 inch height and full span may be used.

 

The members may contest the imposition of the penalties pursuant to the procedures and timelines detailed in the protest and appeal procedures of the IZOD IndyCar Series rulebook.

[media-credit name=”INDYCAR/LAT USA” align=”alignright” width=”300″][/media-credit]FORT WORTH, Texas (Saturday, June 9, 2012) – Justin Wilson charged from 17th on the starting grid to overtake Graham Rahal’s mishandling car on Lap 226 of 228 to win the Firestone 550 at Texas Motor Speedway

It was the first IZOD IndyCar Series oval victory for Wilson, who led Rahal across the start-finish line by 3.9202 seconds. Ryan Briscoe finished third and James Hinchcliffe was fourth. All four led multiple laps in the fast and furious race.

“It’s just fantastic,” said Wilson, driver of the No. 18 Sonny’s BBQ whose previous best IZOD IndyCar Series oval finish was seventh. “(Team owner) Dale (Coyne) has put so much into making us competitive, so this one is for him and the team. I just can’t believe we managed to pull this off. The car was fantastic, and on the long runs, it just got better and better.”

Rahal appeared to be on his way to his first oval victory, but the No. 38 Service Central Chip Ganassi Racing car brushed the Turn 4 wall as he was fighting understeer.

Earlier in the weekend, IZOD IndyCar Series drivers lobbied sanctioning body officials to put the race in their steely hands on the 1.5-mile, high-banked oval instead of relying on an aerodynamic package that has produced the pack racing everyone was attempting to avoid following the devastating accident in October on a similar configured oval.

It worked to produce an entertaining race for competitors and spectators.

“I have to say this is the best racing I’ve ever had on an oval,” said championship points leader Will Power, who also appeared to be on the way to strengthening his championship points lead until he was assessed a drive-through penalty for blocking on a Lap 184 restart. “You had to lift, you had to look after your tires, you had to really drive the thing, it was moving around. That is just the sort of racing that we need at these sort of tracks.”

 

FIRESTONE 550 POST-RACE QUOTES:

JUSTIN WILSON (No. 18 Sonny’s Bar-B-Q Honda, winner Firestone 550): “It’s just fantastic. I have to thank Bill (Pappas)and everyone who works at Dale Coyne Racing.   They work so hard and some long hours trying to get ready. Dale has put so much into it. I just can’t believe we managed to pull this off. The car was fantastic. And on the long runs, it just got better and better. I saw people sliding around and knew I just had to hit my marks.   (About Graham’s accident): I saw him sliding more and more every lap, and I didn’t think there was no chance, but when I saw him hit the wall, I thought “OK, now it’s time to go.” It was four-wheel drifting all the way into Turn 3 and all the way out of Turn 4. You were having to hang on out there.”

GRAHAM RAHAL (No. 38 Service Central Honda, finished second): “I just made a mistake, you know, I mean the car was pushing through the center of 3 and 4 pretty well the last stint, and it would kind of grip up for me late in the corner and I kind of stayed with it because they told me Justin was coming. So I was trying to pick up the pace a little bit, and honestly it just never gripped up, and I didn’t give myself enough of a margin for error. You know, I own up to it, and we’ll come back and we’ll win one here, and I certainly feel like it should have been today. Obviously for the entire NTB/Service Central crew, this is going to bother us, but we know we can run with these guys, we know we can win and hopefully we’ll do it next week in Milwaukee.”

RYAN BRISCOE (No. 2 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet, finished third): “It was tough. Certainly you needed to work on the set up all night, the balance changed a lot from the beginning of this stint to the end, and man you just had to hang on. It was hard work. My car, the last two sets of tires just went off really badly in the back, so I was battling a loose car, which is hard work. I’m glad the race is over, you know, the guys put me in position to win tonight, I had the lead I just didn’t have the car to bring it home and stay in front. It’s disappointing, but I had a huge moment out there at one point tonight and I’ll take third.”

WILL POWER (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet): (About the penalty for blocking Kanaan): “I had (Ryan) Briscoe on the outside and Tony (Kanaan) took me by surprise. I feel bad for him. I ruined his day because he had to come in and change the front wing, and we ruined our own day by getting the penalty. I do have to say, that’s the best racing I’ve ever had on an oval. The car was moving around. And that’s the sort of racing we need at places like this. Feel bad for the Verizon guys. Feel like we could have won the race.”

DARIO FRANCHITI (No. 10 Energizer Honda): “That was a long, long night for the Energizer team. My car was really bad to start with after thinking the car was really good last night. From about lap 15 on I crashed about three times and the guys brought me in to disconnect the rear bar. We lost some laps from that and them struggled without grip all night. We just fought as hard as we could for every single point after that.”

MIKE CONWAY (No. 14 ABC Supply/A.J. Foyt Racing Honda): “Really long night. Thought we’d have a good car after yesterday, but it was a real handful from the start. A lot of under steer and we put more front wing into it. Then the circuit changed. We had a problem with the weightjacker, and it got really loose. Had some big moments and so I had to come in and took out front wing. It got better but the track kept picking up front grip even we were taking wing out. Just trying to hang on and count down the laps. Really wanted a good result here but it just wasn’t to be.”

JAMES HINCHCLIFFE (No. 27 Team GoDaddy.com Chevrolet): “We obviously had a good car, we ran fast early behind Graham and Scott and then just behind Scott. The guys were awesome in the pits man, I mean we’ve had our problems, my mistakes and other things over the year, but every stop today was on it. We stayed out one time when Dixon was in, and we tried to play it a bit different. We had a tire situation that we weren’t sure if it was going to go our way, and ultimately that might not have been the best call, but you know, happy for the Go Daddy car. Thanks to all the fans that came out and congrats to Justin, that’s an awesome drive from him.”

JR HILDEBRAND (No. 4 National Guard Panther Racing Chevrolet): Starting from 23rd or 24th or wherever we started, I’m definitely happy to come home with a top five. This is place that Panther’s always done well at, so there’s always a little bit of expectation for me coming here that we can work our way up to the front and the boys will give us a good car. The last few stints it was super loose, but we’re able to keep the speed up enough to not lose a lot of laps or positions, and when the car was good we could just hammer on it and catch it all back up. We would have liked for the car to be a little more competitive at the end of the runs, but shoot man, we’ll take it.

SIMON PAGENAUD (No. 77 Schmidt Hamilton HP Motorsports Honda): “Man, I enjoyed it actually. I didn’t think I would that much. But once I got the hang of it, I had a really, really good race car. It was blindingly fast. I kept adjusting all race long. Unfortunately, I made a big mistake in the pits early, which cost us a lot. Otherwise, maybe, we could fight for the win. The car was that good. But, I’m catching on. I learned alot tonight. I made some good passes. Hats off to the guys. We didn’t start the weekend off that good, and they gave me a really, really, really fast car which allowed me to race well.” (About passing on the outside in Turn 1 twice): “I love the high side when it works. It’s cool. I was very comfortable in Turn 1. But, we had to tune the car to do it because I didn’t have the grip to run high early in the race.”

TONY KANAAN (No. 11 Mouser Electronics/GEICO – KV Racing Technology Chevrolet): “I have to thank my sponsor Mouser, this was their home race and I feel bad that I couldn’t bring home a good result. I also want to thank my crew guys, we had a problem on the first pit stop and they managed to get it sorted and send me back out. Will Power then did the biggest block on me ever. We have been talking about safety and that wasn’t cool. I did go and talk to him after the race and we talked it out. I had a busy night, it was unfortunate that happened because I think we had a pretty good car and hopefully we put on a good race for the fans.”

E.J. VISO (No. 5 CITGO-PDVSA KV Racing Technology Chevrolet):  “We had a strong performance today. We started with a car that was not in the best shape, however stint by stint we made it better. By the third stop we had a pretty good car that gave me the tools to fight my way into the top-six. At that point we had a problem that cut all the power on the car which ended my race. I am very proud of the work my crew had been doing week after week. Unfortunately, our results don’t reflect how strong our performance has been in every race. We all know this a tough sport, so we have to just keep fighting and good times will come very soon.”

ORIOL SERVIA (No. 22 Panther/Dreyer & Reinbold Racing Chevrolet): “We started to have a fuel pressure alarm on the wheel and every lap was just all of a sudden getting worse. I was running full throttle and it just wouldn’t carry any speed. We think we have an injector problem or something, which is rare, but it happened today.”

ED CARPENTER (No. 20 Fuzzy’s Vodka/Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet): “It’s disappointing because we made our way to the front. We had a vibration during a couple of stints that cost us a lot of time. It was just a weird race. I know we are all worried about pack racing but I prefer the way we raced at Texas before. And I may be on an island in that sentiment. Hopefully the fans enjoyed the race never the less. We worked our way to the front and that we had a good chance to stay there. Obviously, we were hoping better than 12th tonight. We had a little tough luck on our green flag pit stop because, about two or three laps later, the yellow came out when Scott Dixon crashed. But that is racing. We’ll regroup and get ready for Milwaukee next week.”

RYAN HUNTER-REAY (No. 28 Team DHL/Sun Drop Citrus Soda Chevrolet): “Injector problem, I don’t know just lost power. We slowly but surely were losing power. It’s unfortunate, it’s really unfortunate. We had a really good start to the season going, really good in points. Now with three straight mechanical issues it’s so unfortunate. These guys work so hard and I think we had a good race car going tonight. I think it might be time for me to cut off the facial hair. I don’t know what to do.”

JOSEF NEWGARDEN (No. 67 Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing Honda): “We didn’t quite get our set-up right tonight but I think the fact that we were able to finish the race shows how hard SFHR worked as a team. We’re going to continue to work hard and our time will come eventually.” (About racing at TMS): “I think this was a very difficult track for all of us to race on tonight. The track was very sensitive to how people went about things and certain set-ups. It was difficult for us to get a grasp on things tonight but we finished the race, which was great. We were trying to run as fast as we could without hitting the wall and I’m just really happy to finish.”

HELIO CASTRONEVES (No. 3 AAA Insurance Team Penske Chevrolet): “What a race, the AAA machine was great. We passed a lot of cars and were able to drive through the field. Unfortunately we had a lot of vibration and lost a lot of rear wheel grip towards the end, we just couldn’t hold the top three and finished seventh. It’s upsetting because when you have a set up like that because it really gives you a great opportunity. But I will take seventh with a big smile on my face because I’ve crashed many times out there and so I’m happy we were able to finish in the top 10.”

 

IZOD INDYCAR SERIES POINT STANDINGS

1. Will Power       256

2. Scott Dixon      220

3. James Hinchcliffe        208

4. Helio Castroneves        203

5. Simon Pagenaud (R)    199

6. Dario Franchitti192

7. Ryan Hunter-Reay       181

8. Ryan Briscoe   177

9. Tony Kanaan   160

10. Justin Wilson   156

 

IZOD INDYCAR SERIES MANUFACTURERS CHAMPIONSHIP

Chevrolet         54

Honda  50

Lotus   28

 

SUNOCO ROOKIE OF THE YEAR STANDINGS

Simon Pagenaud   199

Josef Newgarden  104

Katherine Legge   76

Bryan Clauson     13

Wade Cunningham           13

Jean Alesi             13

 

***

The next IZOD IndyCar Series race is the Milwaukee IndyFest presented by XYQ on June 16 at The Milwaukee Mile. The race will be televised by ABC at 1 p.m. (ET) and broadcast by the IMS Radio Network on SiriusXM (XM 94 and Sirius 212). The next Firestone Indy Lights race is the Milwaukee 100 on June 15 at The Milwaukee Mile. The race will be televised by NBC Sports Network at 5 p.m. (ET) on June 21

[media-credit name=”ARCA Racing Network” align=”alignright” width=”170″][/media-credit]POCONO, Pennsylvania (June 10, 2012) – – Let the good finishes continue to roll in. Even under threatening skies, Chad Hackenbracht in his sponsorless No. 58 Chevrolet delivered an outstanding second-place effort at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway in the Pocono ARCA 200 Saturday afternoon.

 

The 80-lap shootout would fill a lot of voids for the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards since the track dubbed as “The Tricky Triangle” had been completely repaved since the off-season which produced new speeds and a lot of unanswered questions. It was evident to the field at the beginning of the weekend that the CGH Motorsports team led by veteran crew chief Kevin Reed would be one of the teams to beat.

 

After qualifying third, which rewarded the Mooresville, North Carolina-based team five crucial points towards the championship chase, the seventh race of the season would take the green flag shortly after 2:00 p.m. local time.

 

Within the first 10 laps of the event, Hackenbracht’s automobile would mount similar lap times to leader Brennan Poole – but with a competition caution on the horizon courtesy of the ARCA officials, Reed informed his driver not to “push” the issue until they could survey the tires.

 

That “free” caution would waive on lap 16, which allowed Hackenbracht to bring his machine to pit lane where Reed called for four tires, fuel, two rounds up on the track bar and an air pressure adjustment.

 

On the impending restart on lap 20 and a few cars electing to use a different strategy, Hackenbracht lined up sixth but was able to climb back into the top-five just two laps later and was preparing to make the move on fourth place runner Josh Williams when, the yellow flag was displayed for an incident on the track.

 

Restarting the race on lap 32, Hackenbracht made quick work of Williams moving into fourth then coming to the start-finish line moved into third for lap 33 and then moved into the runner-up position on lap 36 trailing leader Brennan Poole.

 

Through the halfway point, the New Philadelphia, Ohio native would continue to hoist the runner-up position as coaching from spotter Tim Fedewa would inspire him to do whatever he could to decrease the gap between himself and the lead machine.

 

The final caution of the event occurred on lap 59 which offered the prime opportunity for Reed to bring his protégé down pit lane for their final stop which would consist of four tires and fuel – good enough to make it to the end. An uncharacteristic fumble during the pit stop cost them a few seconds inside their pit stall which had the team lining up third for the lap 62 restart.

 

Encouragement from the cockpit by Hackenbracht informed his team not to worry about the hiccup and that he would pass second-place competitor Ryan Reed quickly. Indeed he quickly passed the Reed machine on lap 64 putting him back into the runner-up position and producing quicker times than the leader.

 

As the final run set into play, Hackenbracht’s racecar would post quicker lap times than Poole’s Toyota before the 20-year old would have to settle back into his race-pace which had him seeing Poole through his windshield but unable to latch onto his rear bumper. For several of the closing laps, Cunningham Motorsports driver Alex Bowman put pressure on Hackenbracht trying to overtake him for the coveted number two spot – but the combination of driver and spotter would have none of it as the two would play defensive and keep Bowman at bay and eventually cruise away from Bowman and finish second for the second time in 2012.

 

Earlier this year, the race at Mobile (Ala.) International Speedway, Hackenbracht nearly collected his first career victory but came up a little short to hometown runner Cale Gale. In all, it was the team’s third top-five effort of the year and fifth top-10 in seven starts in 2012. Last month, the team drafted their way to a third place finish at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, their previous best speedway finish.

 

“We had a real good car all weekend long, we just didn’t quite have the whole package, but I’m super proud of everyone on this CGH Motorsports team,” said Hackenbracht. “We learned a lot about this car, the track and when we come back in August, I think we’ll be even a little better. I want to thank PME (Pro Motor Engineering) for giving us a good engine; we had some power under the hood. I think we’ve proven this year that even without a sponsor we can get the job done – if we could just find someone to jump onboard – the possibilities I think would be like endless. We are just going to keep digging and hope that with time something will come along. We’ll dig for a win next Friday afternoon at Michigan, I feel confident about our chances!”

 

Next up for the ARCA Racing Series is the RainEater Wiper Blades 200 at Michigan International Speedway (MIS) set for Friday, July 15. This will be the second consecutive race that the teams will embrace brand-new asphalt on a racetrack. The two-mile oval was also completely repaved during the off-season. Last June, the team finished fourth after starting eighth at the track nestled in the Irish Hills.

 

Unofficially, Hackenbracht will enter the eighth race of the season this upcoming week third in the championship standings 75 markers behind Brennan Poole but only 20 points behind second place holder Chris Buescher.

 

CGH Motorsports still has marketing partnerships available for the 2012 ARCA Racing Series season. Interested parties can contact Jordan Dahl atJordan@cghmotorsports.com or 570.234.5449.

For more information on Chad Hackenbracht and CGH Motorsports, please visit ChadHackenbracht.com and CGHMotorsports.com.

To purchase the popular “What’s A Chad Hacken-Something” tee-shirt, please log on to store.cghmotorsports.com or CGHMotorsports.com.

Connect with Chad Hackenbracht and CGH Motorsports through Facebook by clicking here.

Tweet with Chad Hackenbracht through Twitter at @ChadH58 or CGH Motorsports @CGH5858.

 

About CGH Motorsports:

CGH Motorsports (CGHMotorsports.com), established in 2007 by Ohio entrepreneur Greg Hackenbracht is located in a 10,000 sq. foot facility located in Mooresville, North Carolina. CGH Motorsports is home of rising sensation Chad Hackenbracht, who competed in nine ARCA Racing Series races in 2010 after an aggressive ARCA testing schedule in 2009. Chad Hackenbracht is the 2008 National Asphalt Legends champion, winning 33 percent of his races and finishing in the top-10, 85 percent of the events he competed in. The team has stepped up their commitment from a partial schedule in 2010 and ran a full-effort in 2011, and will attempt another full season of competition in 2012.

[media-credit name=”ARCA Racing Network” align=”alignright” width=”170″][/media-credit]LONG POND, PA. (June 10, 2012) – For the fifth consecutive week, Frank Kimmel and the #44 Ansell/Menards Toyota team secured a top ten finish after a sixth place finish at Pocono Raceway. Competing over the course of 80 laps on a newly resurfaced racetrack proposed many additional variables for teams to manage, most notably, tire wear. After running in the top five for most of the event, Kimmel’s strong run towards the front was foiled by a flat tire, but recovered for his fifth top-ten finish of 2012.

After qualifying fifth, his second best qualifying effort thus far in 2012, Kimmel began the 200 mile affair solidly in the top five throughout the first ten laps of the event. At lap 15, ARCA officials gave the teams an opportunity to check tire wear on the brand new asphalt with a competition caution period. The Ansell/Menards team made air pressure adjustments to address Kimmel’s tight condition on corner exit and restarted 7th.

On the ensuing restart, a multi-car accident deep in the field in turn 1 brought out the event’s second yellow. The caution period slowed the race for 11 laps and restarted on lap 33. Kimmel advanced back into the top five by lap 34, and was running fourth when bad luck stuck just past the halfway mark. Kimmel radioed his crew about a bad vibration and brought the Thorsport Racing Toyota down pit road with a flat left front tire.

Kimmel rejoined the action a lap down and found himself racing for the Lucky Dog position, vying to work his way back on the lead lap. A caution at lap 59 gave the Ansell/Menards driver the break he needed and allowed Kimmel to take advantage of the Lucky Dog award and gain a lap back. After pitting under the yellow for four tires and chassis adjustment, Kimmel restarted 13th with 17 laps to go on the lead lap.

Just four laps after the restart, Kimmel worked his way up to 6th and was poised to crack into the top five. Closing in on the checkered flag, Kimmel reported another vibration which threatened his position in the top ten. Kimmel was forced to conservatively guide his Toyota to the checkered flag in 6th, due to excessive right rear tire wear. The finish was Kimmel’s fifth top-ten finish of the season, all of which have occurred in successive races. Kimmel remains fourth in ARCA Racing Series points, 45 points behind series leader, and Pocono race winner, Brennan Poole. “I thought we had a top five car much of the day”, Kimmel said. “Even though we had a flat tire, some consider that bad luck, we probably had a good luck day by getting the Lucky Dog, getting back in line, and getting back to sixth. I think the mark of a good team is, through adversity, you run on and do the best you can. We could have run third or fourth, but came home sixth and salvaged a good day that could have been much worse.”

Race Recap: Date: June 9th, 2012 Track: Pocono Raceway Race: 7 of 20 Started: 5th Finished: 6th Driver Championship Points Standings: 4th   NEXT ON THE SCHEDULE:   Michigan International Speedway is the next stop for the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards on Friday, June 15th. The RainEater Wiper Blades 200 at MIS will be the second straight race on brand new asphalt. After being repaved after last August’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event, the track is expected to feature the highest speeds on the ARCA circuit. The race will begin at 5:15 pmET, with live coverage on SPEED at 5 pmET. ARCARacing.com will feature live timing and scoring from the two mile oval, beginning with practice on Thursday, June 14th. 2012 is the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards’ 60th Anniversary Season, featuring 20 races at 18 tracks. The complete 2012 event schedule is available at ARCARacing.com.

[media-credit name=”ARCA Racing Network” align=”alignright” width=”170″][/media-credit]Concord, NC (June 11, 2012) — One week after capturing the checkered flag at Elko Speedway in Minnesota, Brennan Poole once again flexed his muscle dominating the ARCA Pocono 200, leading 77 of 80 laps – including the final 60 en-route to his third ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards career victory.

Poole, driving his No.25 Adcetera – Mallory Ignitions Venturini Motorsports Toyota set a new track qualifying record on Friday, breaking Kyle Busch’s 2003 mark with a fast lap of 173.554 mph, nearly a quarter of a second faster than second starter and teammate Kevin Swindell (No. 55 Curb Records/Venturini Motorsports Toyota).

Poole’s second consecutive victory extends his series point standing lead to 55 points over Chris Buescher.

“I can’t tell you how happy I am,” Poole said. “It’s a great feeling to win here. It’s a historic track, and being the first winner on the new paved asphalt is pretty awesome. I’m proud to be a part of it.”

Poole credited his Venturini Motorsports team and an engine from Joe Gibbs Racing in his victory.

“I can’t be thankful enough to be a part of their family, and I’m proud to say I drive a car that’s powered by Joe Gibbs Racing,” Poole said. “I can’t thank Venturini Motorsports enough. Billy Venturini, my crew chief, did an incredible job and set up an awesome race car for us and it carried over in the race.”

Ever a team player, Poole recognized his Venturini Motorsports crew for their work in the pits.

“My guys in the pits were amazing. It takes a total team effort to win at this level. Our pit stops were lighting fast and kept us out front and got us into clean air and that’s what it seemed to be all about throughout the day,” he said. If you could have clean air, you could run quicker. With the tapered spacer, you really had to keep your momentum up.”

A year ago Brennan Poole was in prime position to win the Pocono 200 at Pocono Raceway. In similar fashion Poole won the pole and dominated the race early leading 23 of the first 53 laps, but walked away with a fifth place finish after fog rolled in blanketing the race track causing officials to stop the race after 59 of 80 laps.

Leading the 2011 race Poole pitted on lap-53, relinquishing his top spot to eventual race winner Tim George Jr. just as the fog rolled in causing the abrupt ending to the race.

There was no such misfortune Saturday. Poole, showcasing his talent, dominated the race becoming ARCA’s first repeat winner in seven races this season.

In just eleven ARCA Series races since making his debut in 2011 with Venturini, Poole has compiled an impressive stat line earning (3) wins, (5) top-5 and (8) top-10 finishes.

Pocono Magic for Venturini Motorsports

Poole’s record setting Ansell Pole award Saturday at Pocono is Venturini Motorsport’s third consecutive pole award at the “Tricky Triangle”, Brennan Poole (2012), Brennan Poole (2011-June) and Max Gresham (2011-August).

Poole now joins former Venturini driver, Joey Logano, as the only team drivers to win at Pocono Raceway. Joey Logano won at Pocono in 2009 driving the No.25 Home Depot Toyota.

During the last (6) ARCA events at Pocono Raceway, Venturini drivers have led an impressive 247 of 399 total laps.

With momentum on their side the 25-team now looks ahead to next weekend’s ARCA event, the RainEater Wiper Blades 200 at Michigan International Speedway. Live television coverage will be provided by SPEED at 5 pm EST. ARCARacing.com will feature live timing and scoring of all on-track events Thursday and Friday.

About Venturini Motorsports 
Venturini Motorsports (VMS), fielding cars in the ARCA Racing Series, is one of the premier NASCAR driver development programs in the country. The 2012 season marks the teams 30th Anniversary of competition in the ARCA Series. Multiple team championships and consistent on-track success, VMS has evolved into one of the most recognizable names in motorsports.

Since 2007, VMS has assisted in the career development of notable NASCAR drivers such as Joey Logano, Justin Allgaier, Steve Arpin, Brian Scott, Max Gresham, Miguel Paludo, Josh Richards, Ryan Blaney, and Scott Lagasse, Jr.

Official: www.VenturiniMotorsports.com  |  Twitter @VenturiniMotor  |  Facebook: Venturini Motorsports

[media-credit name=”ARCA Racing Network” align=”alignright” width=”170″][/media-credit]Concord, NC (June 11, 2012) – Nelson Canache entered the 2012 ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards season with the desire and determination to hone his craft and become a successful driver at the highest levels of American stock car racing.

On Saturday, the 34-year old driver from Caracas, Venezuela, took a giant step forward as he earned a career best 14th place finish in the ARCA Pocono 200 at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania.

The former Venezuelan racing champion qualified his No.35 Venezuelan Tourism Toyota 10th for the event, also a career best, at one of the most difficult tracks on the ARCA circuit. Known as the “Tricky Triangle” for its un-orthodox track configuration, Pocono Raceway has been a mainstay on the ARCA and NASCAR circuits for almost 40-years.

With just seven ARCA series races under his belt, Canache has shown dramatic improvement week after week.

Battling the unfamiliarity of each track along with becoming more comfortable with his new team (Venturini Motorsports) and a 3,400lb stock car has been a daunting effort for the rookie driver.

With the help of his experienced race team and driver teammates, Canache is gaining confidence week after week.

“I’m really feeling good about where I’m headed at this stage in the ARCA career,” said Canache. “My crew chief and teammate Brennan Poole have helped me a lot so far. It’s a nice team to be with and I’m getting more comfortable every week. I think the upcoming races at Michigan, New Jersey and Chicago will be better because those are the type of tracks I’ve adapted to quicker.”

In his first four races of the 2012 season Canache has averaged a 20th place starting position to go along with a 26th place finishing average. However, in the last three races Canache has improved his qualifying efforts to 16th and his finishes to 15th.

The obvious progression shows the driver is starting to become more familiar with his new environment and leads to a bright future as the ARCA series schedule is starting to heat up. Starting at Elko Speedway in Minneapolis, Minnesota last week the series now enters the core of its racing competition.

Next up for Canache will be the newly paved and super-fast Michigan International Speedway on June 15th.The RainEaters Wiper Blades 200 event will be televised live on SPEED Channel on Friday evening at 5:00 pm est.

About Venturini Motorsports 
Venturini Motorsports (VMS), fielding cars in the ARCA Racing Series, is one of the premier NASCAR driver development programs in the country. The 2012 season marks the teams 30th Anniversary of competition in the ARCA Series. Multiple team championships and consistent on-track success, VMS has evolved into one of the most recognizable names in motorsports.

Since 2007, VMS has assisted in the career development of notable NASCAR drivers such as Joey Logano, Justin Allgaier, Steve Arpin, Brian Scott, Max Gresham, Miguel Paludo, Josh Richards, Ryan Blaney, and Scott Lagasse, Jr.

Official: www.VenturiniMotorsports.com  |  Twitter @VenturiniMotor  |  Facebook: Venturini Motorsports