Little Trees 300 - Brian Vickers Notes

VICKERS TO MAKE CUP DEBUT: Brian Vickers will attempt to make his NASCAR Winston Cup Series debut in the UAW-GM Quality 500 at Lowe's Motor Speedway on Saturday, driving the No. 60 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. Lance McGrew, Vickers' NASCAR Busch Series crew chief, will call the race-day shots for the 19-year-old, who is also scheduled to compete in the final four races of the 2003 Winston Cup season in the No. 01 entry.

TOUGH LUCK FOR GMAC AT KANSAS: GMAC Racing's performance at Kansas (32nd-place finish) marked the worst result for the team since finishing 42nd at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway in February.

CHAMPIONSHIP COUNTDOWN: With six races remaining, Vickers ranks third in the Busch Series championship standings, 46 points behind leader David Green. The separation between Green and fifth-place Jason Keller is just 59 points, making the 2003 title chase the closest in Busch Series history at this stage of the season.

5 TEAM FASTEST IN LOWE'S TESTING: GMAC Racing joined more than 20 Busch Series teams for two days of testing last month at Lowe's Motor Speedway in preparation for Friday night's Little Trees 300. The team built a brand new car for the Sept. 29-30 test, but during the first day, Vickers lost control of his No. 5 Chevrolet and made contact with the Turn 2 wall. Another car was used for the second day and posted the fastest overall lap of the two-day session at 181.537 mph, unofficially.

CHASSIS NO. 232 FOR GMAC RACING: The No. 5 GMAC Financial Services team will once again field Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 232 on Friday -- the same car that most recently finished first at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway on Aug. 30. The team shook down the same chassis during the second day of a two-day test at Lowe's Motor Speedway last month, posting the fastest time of the more than 20 Busch Series teams that participated.

BRIAN VICKERS, DRIVER OF THE NO. 5 GMAC FINANCIAL SERVICES CHEVROLET: (ON FINISHING 32nd AT KANSAS.) "Our car was evil from the start. It was like it was possessed or something -- I can't explain it. It just wasn't our day. Those weren't the results we had planned on, but tomorrow is another day. The crew did a great job getting me back out there and it made a huge difference."

VICKERS: (ON SLIPPING TO THIRD IN THE POINTS.) "You hate to lose ground at this point in the season, but things could have been a lot worse for us. Everyone on the team busted their butts to get me back out (on the track) for points. We've battled back from bigger deficits than what we have now. Our team hasn't given up all season and it's way too late to start now. We'll fight back at Charlotte."

VICKERS: (ON THE TEAM'S RECENT TEST AT LOWE'S MOTOR SPEEDWAY.) "It started out badly and ended up pretty good. I hate that I crashed and tore up a new car, I really do. Especially when everyone at Hendrick Motorsports worked so hard to build the new car for the test, but it all worked out. Sometimes things happen for a reason."

VICKERS: (DO YOU THINK RUNNING THE WINSTON CUP CAR WILL HURT YOU IN THE BUSCH CAR THIS WEEKEND?) "Not at all. We tested our Winston Cup car at Charlotte a few days before our Busch test and I really felt like it helped me when it came time to get in the Busch car. It's all about getting as much track time as I can."

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