Meijer 300 News and Notes

NASCAR Nationwide Series News & Notes - Kentucky

Is Kentucky In Store For Another Surprise Party?

Another first-time winner or an eighth different winner in eight races?

Either way, Saturday night’s Meijer 300 at Kentucky Speedway promises to bring more surprises for the usual packed house at the 1.5-mile track.

Over the last two years, this race has produced a surprise winner. Last season, Stephen Leicht held off his best friend, Brad Coleman (No. 27 Cottonelle Ford) for his first career victory.

One year earlier, David Gilliland, a relatively unknown driver running for a part-time team, shocked the racing world with a win that completely turned his life — and career — around. Gilliland now competes full-time in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

Leicht currently runs a limited schedule for Richard Childress Racing and will be the all-important substitute for double-duty driver and series standings leader Clint Bowyer (No. 2 Camping World/RVs.com Chevrolet) this weekend.

Kentucky is one of only three tracks in the NASCAR Nationwide Series that has yet to produce a multiple race and multiple pole winner. Four other tracks share Kentucky’s distinction of different winners for each race while three have yet to award a pole to a driver more than once.

Three former winners of this race — Bobby Hamilton Jr. (No. 25 Curly’s/John Morrell Ford), reigning series champion Carl Edwards (No. 60 CitiFinancial Ford) and Kyle Busch (No. 18 Farm Bureau Insurance Toyota) — are entered and will attempt to break the one-winner string. Edwards is the lone former pole winner entered who also has a shot to become the first to double in that category.

Keselowski’s First Win Creates Havoc In Standings

Brad Keselowski’s (No. 88 U.S. NAVY Chevrolet) first career win last week at Nashville Superspeedway has not only increased the buzz around the young series-only driver, but has also thrown the standings into that same hot-topic category for the first time in three years.

Clint Bowyer continues to lead with a 166-point margin over David Reutimann (No. 99 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota). That difference between first and second place is the closest at this stage of the season since Reed Sorenson led Martin Truex Jr. by 51 points in 2005.

Bowyer’s lead is comfortable, but so was Kyle Busch’s on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series side prior to last weekend’s race at Pocono Raceway. He finished 43rd and coughed up a 142-point lead that now stands at 21.

Keselowski’s victory resulted in positions 2-5 being separated by only 26 points. Reutimann leads third-place Busch — who will again run all three national series races this weekend (also the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and NASCAR Sprint Cup at Michigan International Speedway) — by 22 points.

Carl Edwards is fourth, 24 points behind Reutimann, while fifth-place Keselowski lurks only two points in back of Edwards.

Keselowski is aiming for his 50th career start in the series Saturday.

Bluegrass State Goes Green

Mark Green (No. 70 Foretravel Chevrolet) returns to his old Kentucky home this weekend on an upswing.

Green, from Owensboro, Ky., moved to the Mooresville, N.C., area in 2000 but still has close ties to the Bluegrass State. “(It) will be special,” said Green, who hasn’t raced at the 1.5-mile oval with his Indiana-based ML Motorsports organization. “I have a lot of family and friends there, and its close for the team, too. It’s always fun to show off in front of the people you grew up with.”

The veteran of 238 series starts has been a perfect fit for the part-time team that plans to compete in 21 races this season. At Talladega Superspeedway, Green drove the mother-daughter-owned car to a fifth-place finish, tying his career best set in 1997. A week later, he qualified fourth at Richmond International Raceway, his best start since 2002 and in his last outing, he finished 14th at Nashville. Green has had to qualify the No. 70 on time in each of the eight team’s races, including five at combination events where as many as 16 double-duty drivers were entered.

Clauson, A Year Later

Last year at this time, Bryan Clauson (No. 40 Fastenal Dodge) was at Kentucky Speedway, but not to race.

He was there to observe his then-Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates teammate David Stremme (now driving the No. 64 Atreus Homes & Communities Chevrolet) and also be greeted with a cake celebrating his 18th birthday (June 15). He would make his first series start three months later at Richmond.

A year later, Clauson is one of the top up-and-comers in the series. He finished sixth at Daytona International Speedway to start the season and following last Saturday’s race at Nashville, moved past his GCRFS teammate Dario Franchitti to claim first place in the Raybestos Rookie of the Year standings.

RCR Makes Headway In Owner Points

It’s taken six weeks but Richard Childress Racing’s No. 2 Chevrolet has crept back into the owner standings race.

Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 20 Toyota had a season-high 159-point lead prior to the race at Nashville, but a 31st-place finish by the JGR car coupled with a fourth-place result from the RCR entry lowered the deficit to 64 points, the closest since a 55-point spread after JGR first took the lead from RCR following Talladega.

In The Loop: Coleman Hopes To Go One Position Better This Year At Kentucky

Kentucky Speedway has earned its identity as the track that makes careers.

Can it happen again?

If it does, look for the honor to go to Brad Coleman. He almost won last season finishing second in a hotly contested late-race battle.

Coleman’s statistics that day speak for themselves. He had a Driver Rating of 124.8, an Average Running Position of 4.3, 23 Fastest Laps Run and ran all 200 Laps in the Top 15.

If not Coleman, Marcos Ambrose (No. 59 Kingsford Ford) may be the guy.

Ambrose finished just outside the top 10 (11th) last year, his first trip to the track. His stats, though, were some of the best with a Driver Rating of 103.6, an Average Running Position of 7.3 and all 200 Laps in the Top 15.

Also watch for a strong performance from Steve Wallace (No. 66 Atreus Homes & Communities Chevrolet), who also is looking for his first series win. Unlike Coleman and Ambrose, Wallace has run two races at Kentucky – with finishes of 11th and 22nd, respectively.

His stats there are solid with a Driver Rating of 94.4, an Average Running Position of 8.8, 73 Green Flag Passes and 86.5% of the Laps in the Top 15.

Who can end the reign of the ‘newbies?’ Clint Bowyer will certainly give it a go – and could very well succeed.

In Bowyer’s two races since 2005, he has a Driver Rating of 108.8, an Average Running Position of 9.4, 20 Fastest Laps Run and has run 87.8% of the Laps in the Top 15.

Bowyer also has momentum on his side. He is coming off a Nashville race in which he scored a Driver Rating of 129.4, second only to race winner Brad Keselowski.

For the record, Keselowski has yet to compete in a series race at Kentucky, but finished 18th and 30th there in 2005 and 2006 in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. His Driver Rating over those two races was 64.6.

Keselowski Gets The Honors As In-Race Reporter At Kentucky

ESPN2s season-long coverage of the NASCAR Nationwide Series continues with a live telecast from Kentucky Saturday beginning at 8 p.m. ET with NASCAR Countdown.

The race also airs in high definition on ESPN2 HD and will be simulcast on ESPN360.com, ESPN MobileTV and ESPN Deportes.

Marty Reid is the lead announcer, joined in the booth for analysis by 1989 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Rusty Wallace and two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champion crew chief Andy Petree. Jamie Little, Mike Massaro, Shannon Spake and Vince Welch will report from the pits, while two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champion crew chief Tim Brewer will be in the ESPN DISH Tech Center.

Fresh from his breakthrough win last week in Nashville, Brad Keselowski joins ESPN’s coverage team as In-Race Reporter. He will talk to Wallace on the races pace laps and during caution periods.

Allen Bestwick will host NASCAR Countdown with analysis by Wallace and Brad Daugherty, a former winning team owner in the NASCAR Nationwide Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, in the ESPN pit studio.

ESPN2 also airs coverage of final practice for the event Friday at 7 p.m., and qualifying Saturday at 5 p.m.

Additionally, ESPN has announced that two NASCAR Nationwide Series races originally scheduled to air on ESPN2 have been moved to ESPN.

The July 26 race at O’Reilly Raceway Park and the August 22 event at Bristol Motor Speedway will now be broadcast on ESPN.

The Director’s Take: Series-Only Teams Look For Third Straight Win

Joe Balash, the NASCAR Nationwide Series director, isn’t just a nuts and bolts guy. He understands where stats have a place in his garage. “Is this the weekend that another full time series driver completes a ‘Kentucky trifecta’ with another first win?,” he asked.

“With as many full time series regulars posting some of their best finishes in recent weeks, the race at Kentucky is shaping up to be one of the best of the season,” he said.

“A very tight points battle will force the crew chiefs to double- and triple-check their notes for this 1-5 mile track.

“Every week, series-only regulars are battling for every point they can get and this is another opportunity for them to distance themselves from some of the double-duty drivers.

“We talk about development as one of the key elements of the NASCAR Nationwide Series and at this point in the season, it shows how strong that development is with the number of drivers who have scored points and are in the running for the top 10 positions.”

Kentucky Speedway

Most Wins: Seven drivers with one win
Most Poles: Seven drivers with one pole
Quick Fact: Brad Coleman won his first ARCA race at Kentucky in 2006 with current crew chief Shawn Parker in that same position.

NNS Etc.

In addition to Stephen Leicht for Clint Bowyer, other substitute drivers this weekend at Kentucky are scheduled to be: Jeremy Clements for Kyle Busch; Jason Hedlesky for Carl Edwards (Hedlesky normally serves as Edwards’ spotter); Chad Blount for Jason Leffler (Leffler seeks his second consecutive start in the No. 70 Haas Automation Chevrolet); Auggie Vidovich for David Ragan (No. 6 Discount Tire Ford) and Josh Wise for David Reutimann. Wise will handle Friday’s first practice and Reutimann is expected for final practice and qualifying. Wise will then move to the No. 22 Supercuts Dodge for the race.

Standings leader Clint Bowyer looks to collect his 125th career NASCAR Nationwide Series start Saturday. In his first 124 starts, Bowyer has accumulated six wins, six poles, 47 top fives and 77 top 10s.

Landon Cassill (No. 5 National Guard Chevrolet), will make his first series start at Kentucky but has experience there having tested for Hendrick Motorsports’ R&D team in 2007-08. He has added experience with Owensboro’s own David Green, the 1994 series champion, who will spot for Cassill. Cassill, 18, registered his first career top 10 finish at Nashville. He’ll pull his own version of double duty Sunday at a dirt race in his home state of Iowa.

Nationwide Insurance hosts another of its “Driving While Distracted” programs Thursday at 5 p.m. at the Meijer store on Houston Road in in Florence, Ky.

Brad Keselowski and Eric McClure (No. 24 Hefty Brands Chevrolet) will speak to the community on the dangers of driving while distracted.

The race is a “home” event for Nationwide; its headquarters is located in Columbus, Ohio.

Raybestos Rookie Of The Year

Rank Driver Points
1 Bryan Clauson 101
2 Dario Franchitti 100
3 Cale Gale 63
4 Landon Cassill 60
5 Chase Miller 53
6 Brian Keselowski 48
7 Patrick Carpentier 31

Results following the Federated Auto Parts 300 at Nashville Superspeedway.

Bill France Performance Cup

With its win at Nashville last weekend, Chevrolet completed a season sweep at the track and also did what no manufacturer had been able to do in the pervious eight races — defeat Toyota.

Chevrolet (four wins) and Ford (three wins and defending race winner) are the only two manufacturers to post victories at Kentucky. Dodge had two cars among the top 10 finishers last year; Toyota’s best finish was 14th.

Up Next: Camping World RV Rental 250 at The Milwaukee Mile

The NASCAR Nationwide Series moves on to West Allis, Wis., for the Camping World RV Rental 250 at The Milwaukee Mile on June 21.

Aric Almirola won last year after starting the race, but teammate Denny Hamlin took over on Lap 58 and actually crossed the finish line.

Almirola also won his second consecutive pole there last year.

Kentucky Full of Surprises
Racingone.com

Kentucky Speedway has built a reputation as a track where first-time winners shine and a large group of drivers hope to keep that tradition alive in Saturday night's NASCAR Nationwide Series Meijer 300.

Over the last two years, this race has produced a surprise winner. Last season, Stephen Leicht held off his best friend, Brad Coleman for his first career victory.

In 2006, David Gilliland used his shocking Kentucky win as a springboard into a full-time Sprint Cup Series career.

Will 2008 keep the streak alive?

Coleman hopes so.

"We were well out front and had the race won when two yellows came out near the end," Coleman said of last year's run. "Stephen's (Leicht) car was better on the short runs and he was able to pass me at the end for the win. I have wanted to return to Kentucky ever since that checkered flag fell."

Coleman has visited Kentucky's victory lane before with an ARCA win in 2006. He held off nine-time ARCA Champion Frank Kimmel in a double green-white-checker restart for his first big stock car win and introduced the NASCAR world to the "Brad Coleman Bow" which became part of his signature post-race victory celebration.

"I've had good success here in the past and I remember how close I came to winning last year," said Coleman. "I am hungry for that first win and know I am capable of getting it at Kentucky."

The competitive 1.5-mile speedway is one of only three tracks in the NASCAR Nationwide Series that has yet to produce a multiple race and multiple pole winner. Four other tracks share Kentucky's distinction of different winners for each race while three have yet to award a pole to a driver more than once.

The track is also known for its amazing fan support with another full house expected Saturday night.

"We go up there and have about 65,000 Nationwide Series fans in the stands," said Scott Wimmer, who will pilot ther Richard Childress No. 29 Chevy this weekend. "It's a great place to race and it's been a great track for RCR. The Holiday Inn Chevy finished third last year despite not qualifying very well. The folks at Kentucky Speedway do a good job of giving us everything that we need to put on a great race. I hope to go there and finish as well as we did last year, if not better."

Kyle Busch hopes to have a better weekend than he did seven days ago when he finished 20th in the Nationwide visit to Nashville.

"The last time I raced there two years ago, I had a shot to win the race and missed out on it after I won my first race there back in 2004," said Busch who will again run in all three of NASCAR's top divisions this weekend. "We'll compete in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Michigan and get right down to Kentucky and get in the Farm Bureau Insurance Toyota and see what we have there. It's going to be a busy day for me, but days like that almost feel normal to me now.

"It's going to be fun to get back in a JGR car and back with Jason Ratcliff and the guys on the 18 team. I know we have good equipment, so before I even get to Kentucky, I know we're going to have a shot at winning the race. Kentucky is just a fun place because it's wide and it's fast. You can run these cars so hard into the corner and still get through the corner pretty quick. It's gotten bumpier over the past several years, so it's definitely getting some character to it, which I like. It's always been a good track to me and I really like going there."

Nationwide youngsters eager for Meijer 300
June 13, 2008

SPARTA, Ky. (AP) -Maybe it's only fitting that in the middle of horse country, long shots tend to come up big at Kentucky Speedway.

The 1.5-mile tri-oval located about halfway between Louisville and Cincinnati has developed a reputation for producing unlikely winners during the Nationwide Series' annual visit. David Gilliland picked up his first career win at the track in 2006, and Stephen Leicht raced to victory lane for the first time in last year's Meijer 300.

With the majority of the Sprint Cup drivers who dabble in the Nationwide Series choosing to stay in Michigan for Sunday's LifeLock 400, Saturday's Meijer 300 is a chance for the series' unknowns to make a name for themselves.

``This is the place for young guys to shine,'' said Brad Coleman, who finished second behind Leicht last year.

It certainly worked for Gilliland. Two months after winning in Kentucky, Gilliland earned a ride in the Sprint Cup with Robert Yates Racing. Six months after that, he was on the pole for the Daytona 500.

``You see what it's done for David's career, so if you win here, it's great,'' Coleman said.

There won't be a full field of Sprint Cup regulars, though Sprint Cup points leader Kyle Busch and Cup stars Carl Edwards and Clint Bowyer - currently atop the Nationwide Series standings - are expected to race in the Meijer 300.

``I think there's more pressure to perform when you are racing in Charlotte or a place like that (because) the Cup drivers are in the races,'' Coleman said. ``You want to show everyone you can do good against the Cup drivers. That's who you're going to be racing in the Sprint Cup Series.''

Easy for Coleman to say. He's already scheduled to run in seven Sprint Cup races for Hall of Fame Racing at the end of the year. The circumstances are quite different for Nationwide Series semi-regular Cale Gale, who splits time while racing for Kevin Harvick Inc. Gale finished 13th here last year, his best finish of the season and is currently in the middle of a three-race stretch behind the wheel.

``It lets you try to get in a rhythm,'' Gale said. ``That's all that matters. When you've got a limited schedule, you've got to go out and prove yourself real quick.''

Sometimes, proving yourself just isn't enough. Leicht, who passed Coleman with 13 laps to go to take the checkered flag last year, is out of a job after Robert Yates Racing dropped its Nationwide program.

``This is the only sport where talent guarantees you nothing,'' Coleman said. ``You've got to have financial backing from a sponsor or a rich ancestor or something, whatever it takes.''

The kids have got to step up this year, because opportunities could be fewer and further between at the tri-oval in the future. The track is in the process of being sold to Speedway Motorsports Inc., and SMI owner Bruton Smith has said repeatedly his goal is to bring a Sprint Cup race to the track in the near future, perhaps as early as 2009. The Speedway is the largest track in the Nationwide Series that doesn't also host a Cup race.

Just when the big boys arrive remains uncertain. NASCAR officials have already told Smith the 2009 schedule is full, though it's possible - but unlikely - that Smith could move a date from one of SMI's seven NASCAR-sanctioned tracks to Kentucky. The sale is expected to be completed by the fall.

Complicating matters is an antitrust lawsuit filed by the track's current ownership group, led by Jerry Carroll, against NASCAR and International Speedway Corp., alleging they worked together to create an unfair monopoly and prevent Kentucky from securing a Cup race.

The lawsuit was dismissed this year, but the speedway has appealed. The Nationwide Series' younger drivers though, think they'll be back at Kentucky in the Sprint Cup one day.

``It's one of the tracks I have the most fun racing as a driver,'' said Brad Keselowski, who won the first Nationwide race of his career in Nashville last week. ``It's wide, forgiving. I like the layout a lot. It has a wide front stretch and lets you run side-by-side. That's what everyone comes to see.''

Logano wins another pole
Sat 14th, June 2008

Sparta, KY (Sports Network) - In just his third start, 18-year-old Joey Logano won his second pole of the year, capturing the top spot for tonight's Meijer 300 at the Kentucky Speedway. The No.20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota circled the 1.5-mile tri-oval in 30.759 seconds.

The pole victory was Logano's second consecutive pole win.

Starting alongside Logano will be Jason Keller who posted a time of 30.883 seconds.

Marcos Ambrose (30.883) and David Stremme (30.902) will make up row two.

While Clint Bowyer, starting 25th, has moved out to a commanding 166-point lead in the Nationwide Series standings, there are still four drivers with legitimate chances to make it a "race."

Three of the four are "Cup" drivers (David Reutimann, Kyle Busch and defending series champion Carl Edwards), but the fourth name on the list is a youngster worth watching.

His name is Brad Keselowski, a 24-year-old from Rochester Hills, MI. Keselowski signed with JR Motorsports's Nationwide Series team in 2007 and struggled for most of 2007.

Things have turned around for Keselowski in 2008. After another slow start (16th at Daytona and 32nd in California), Keselowski was leading the race in Las Vegas when a rare Mark Martin error knocked both he and Edwards out of the race.

After the run in Nevada, he finished sixth, fourth and fourth in the next three events. Last Saturday in Nashville, Keselowski was even better, collecting the first Nationwide Series win of his young career. He will start 13th.

The race is schedule to drop the green flag at 8:30 p.m. (et).