Meijer 300 - Raybestos® Rookie Notes

· David Stremme was the Raybestos® Rookie of the Race in the Trace Adkins Chrome 300 at Nashville Superspeedway. Stremme finished third, his first top-five and third top-10 finish of the season. His performance at the Nashville event was the best finish by a Raybestos® Rookie this season. Stremme joins Chad Blount as the only Raybestos® Rookies to score a top-five finish this season. He has now taken home top finishing rookie honors in five races this season and his three top-10 finishes are more than any other Raybestos® Rookie (Blount and Coy Gibbs each have two).

· Coy Gibbs leads the chase for Raybestos® Rookie of the Year standings entering the Meijer 300 at Kentucky Speedway. He holds a 35-point advantage (157-122) over Blount. Gibbs ranks 18th in Busch Series points, best of any Raybestos® Rookie.

· Stremme and Blount are the only Raybestos® Rookies that have led a lap in the Busch Series this season. Blount has led once in one race for 56 laps (74.48 miles). Stremme has led once for 32 laps (32.00 miles).

· Blount owns the best qualifying run by a Raybestos® Rookie this season, a seventh place effort at California Speedway.

· All five Raybestos® Rookies that entered the Nashville race qualified for the event. Three were running at the finish of the event: Stremme, Jason White (17th), and Joey Clanton (27th). Regan Smith (29th) parked his car with engine failure while Coy Gibbs (31st) was sidelined by an accident.

· 2002 Raybestos® Rookie of the Year Scott Riggs was the top rookie in last year's Kroger 300 at Kentucky Speedway. Riggs finished fourth after starting from the pole and leading the most laps (four times for 91 of the 200 laps). He was the only Raybestos® Rookie to lead at least one lap in the race.

· Kerry Earnhardt had a good race at Kentucky. Earnhardt started 35th but finished seventh on the lead lap. He and Riggs were the only two first year drivers that finished on the lead lap.

· Six of the seven Raybestos® Rookies that started the race at Kentucky were running at the finish: Riggs, Earnhardt, Shane Hmiel (19th), Casey Mears (20th), Johnny Sauter (24th), and Dan Pardus (27th). An alternator problem sidelined Brian Vickers after 181 laps, leaving him with a 32nd place finish.

· A Raybestos® Rookie has won a race each season in each of the past three seasons, dating back to 2000: Kevin Harvick (2000, three wins), Ron Hornaday (2000, two wins), Greg Biffle (2001, five wins), and Scott Riggs (2002, two wins). Other first year drivers to score a win in their first season: Steve Park 1997, three wins), Johnny Benson (1994, one win) and Hermie Sadler (1993, one win).

· A Raybestos® Rookie has won at least one pole position in each of the past three seasons, dating back to 2000.

RAYBESTOS® ROOKIE CONTENDER POINT STANDINGS

DRIVER            POINTS
Coy Gibbs            157
Chad Blount          122
Regan Smith          113
David Stremme         85
Chris Bingham         82
Chase Montgomery      62
Joey Clanton          60     
Damon Lusk            50
Jason White           24         
 
HIGHEST FINISHING RAYBESTOS® ROOKIE BY RACE

EVENT                           HIGHEST FINISHING ROOKIE
Koolerz 300                     Chad Blount, 11th  
Rockingham 200                  Coy Gibbs, 14th 
Sam's Town 300                  Coy Gibbs, 14th 
darlingtonraceway.com 200       Coy Gibbs, 14th 
Channellock 250                 Chase Montgomery, 22nd 
O'Reilly 300                    Chad Blount, fifth
Aaron's 312                     Coy Gibbs, ninth
Pepsi 300                       David Stremme, seventh
californiaspeedway.com 300      Coy Gibbs, 13th 
Hardee's 250                    David Stremme, 14th 
Charter Pipeline 250            David Stremme, 14th 
Goulds Pumps 200                David Stremme, sixth
CARQUEST 300                    Coy Gibbs, 24th 
MBNA Armed Forces Family 200    Regan Smith, 16th 
Trace Adkins Chrome 300         David Stremme, third  

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