Hershey's Kisses 300 - Robert Pressley Notes

Robert Pressley Returns to ST Motorsports to Complete Unfinished Business On the Busch Series for Clorox and Wisk

Even as Robert Pressley was winning races on the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series circuit, one thing bothered him: He had unfinished business at ST Motorsports.

Pressley, a 10-time Busch Series winner, drove for car owner Tad & Jodi Geschickter and ST Motorsports in 1998, and the team enjoyed moderate success with six top-10 finishes in 18 starts. More important, along with crew chief Steve Plattenberger, they laid the groundwork for what’s become one of the most popular teams in stock car racing.

“You think back and you think what could have happened if we had kept it together,” Pressley said. “I truly believe we would have won a championship by now. The pieces for success have always been there, and we were starting to put them together. It’s not often you get a chance to go back and make something right.

“This is one of those rare opportunities, and this time we’re going to make the best of it.”

Pressley returns this year to pilot a second car for ST Motorsports. He will drive the No. 47 Clorox/Wisk Ford Taurus while teammate Stacy Compton will campaign the No. 59 Kingsford/Bush’s Best Baked Beans Ford.

“This is as excited as I’ve been in a long time,” Pressley said. “I’m back together with Steve (Plattenberger). We also have Stacy Compton and (crew chief) Jeff Chandler as teammates. Competition Director and Head Engineer Stacy Johnson was involved in two of the last three Busch Series championships. All of us have put a lot of resources into this two-car team, and I think the possibilities are endless.”

Pressley left the Busch Series after the 1998 season for rides on the Nextel Cup and Craftsman Truck series. He enjoyed success there, including a stirring victory in a truck race at the Daytona International Speedway in 2002.

All the while, Pressley couldn’t forget the work he and ST Motorsports didn’t complete six years ago.

“When I walked into the shop for the first time, it was like I had never left,” Pressley said. “Steve and I picked up where we left off. I think everyone believes there’s a lot of unfinished business to be completed. Everyone is so committed to contending for race victories every week and being in the middle of a championship fight.

“This team is going to win races and compete for a championship.”

Pressley finished third in the 1991 Busch Series standings and fifth in 1992. A change to Ford this year, which includes the use of engines from Robert Yates Racing, was a welcomed change, Pressley said, since it allows the race team to evolve with the technology of a new body style approved by NASCAR for the 2004 season.

“The one thing I’ve learned in my career is racing is about people,” Pressley said. “You have to have people who love what they do because it shows in their work. This team has rallied around the idea of finishing what we started here in 1998. Tad and Jodi have given us everything we need to be successful, and this just might be the best group of people I’ve worked with in my career. We’re all driven by the same thing: To win and put Clorox, Wisk and ST Motorsports back in Victory Lane where they belong.

“I think it’s going to be a fun ride for everybody.”