Dollar General 300 - Adrian Fernandez Notes

ADRIAN FERNANDEZ
NO. 5 LOWE’S / HITACHI POWER TOOLS CHEVROLET
LOWE’S MOTOR SPEEDWAY PREVIEW

THIS WEEK’S DRIVER: ADRIAN FERNANDEZ- Adrian Fernandez will make the third start of his NASCAR career in this weekend’s Busch Series race at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

In March, Fernandez made his first start in a stock car at the Busch race in Mexico City. Starting 40th, Fernandez led four laps on his way to a 10th-place finish. His first stock car race on an oval came at California Speedway in September, where he finished 28th. He is scheduled to drive the No. 5 in three more races this season, at Texas Motor Speedway, Phoenix International Raceway and Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Fernandez tested at LMS on Sept. 27 and 28 where he crashed on the first day but ran throughout the afternoon and evening of the second day posting respectable times just two-tenths behind teammate Jimmie Johnson.

DRIVER ADRIAN FERNANDEZ QUOTES:

On Racing at Lowe’s Motor Speedway: “Of course I am excited. We tested here two nights and during one night I walked around the infield and couldn’t believe how beautiful of a track it is at night. I can’t wait to see what it looks like when it is full of race fans. At our test I crashed about 10 laps into the first day of testing. But things went really well on the second night. Our fastest times were about two-tenths of a second off of Jimmie (Johnson) and Ryan (Newman) which I think is pretty good for your first time there. But, I still have lots to learn and I have to develop more consistency.”

On Receiving Advice from Team Lowe’s Racing Drivers: “We tested with Jimmie and Kyle (Busch). They were a great help. I talked with Jimmie about everything I could think of and I asked him to help me with my car since I did not know where to start after the crash. I needed the laps and Jimmie set a baseline on the car. I really thank him for that. He is a good friend. If you are going to learn from other drivers I think it will be hard to find any two better than Jimmie and Kyle. I think those two seem to win every race here. What I am trying here in NASCAR is pretty hard, but Hendrick Motorsports has made my job a lot easier by giving me the resources I can use to learn as much as I can.”

On His Goals: “They are no different than what they were in Mexico and California. We want to race all night and learn as much as I can. This is totally different than anything I have ever done. Things move a bit slower in these cars and the feel is something totally different. Everything about this is new and I think Lowe’s Motor Speedway is going to be different than the California track. As many cars that crashed during testing, it looks like just surviving to the checkered flag is the key to the race. But, I definitely want to do a lot better then I did in California and give a good result to everybody at Lowe’s because this is their home track.”

CHASSIS INFORMATION- Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 318- This chassis was added to the Hendrick Motorsports stable last season. Kyle Busch drove this chassis to a victory at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in May, and a 36th-place finish at Chicagoland Speedway in July. Most recently, Adrian Fernandez drove this chassis to a 28th-place finish at California Speedway in September.

FERNANDEZ: Fernandez is a familiar name to race fans, as the Mexico City native has spent the past 12 years at the top levels of open-wheel racing. A lack of sponsorship has kept Fernandez from driving full-time in the Indy Racing League (IRL) this season, but he did compete in the Indianapolis 500 in May, and owns Fernandez Racing, the team that fields IRL entries for drivers Scott Sharp and Kosuke Matsuura.

Fernandez began motocross racing at the age of eight in Mexico. He raced open-wheel cars in Mexico and Europe before joining the Championship Auto Racing Team (CART) series in 1993, posting eight career victories and 21 podium finishes through the 2003 season. In 2004, Fernandez joined the IRL, where he won three races, including two of the series’ final three events.

Fernandez is Mexico’s premiere driver, and was nominated for Mexico’s National Sports Award – the 2004 Premio Nacional del Deporte – for his career achievements in auto racing. Fernandez has received numerous awards, including “Athlete of the Year,” in Mexico. Most recently, he was recognized at the Premios Fox Sports Awards for his contributions to Latin American auto racing.

MULTI-DRIVER TEAM: The No. 5 Team Lowe’s Racing crew is competing for the 2005 NASCAR Busch Series owners’ points championship with seven different drivers.

Kyle Busch has driven the No. 5 in 10 races, including a win at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in May. Boston Reid and Blake Feese have six starts apiece in the Lowe’s entry, with Reid’s best finish being a 17th-place result at Nashville Superspeedway in June, and Feese’s best finish being a 23rd-place result at Atlanta Motor Speedway in March.

Jimmie Johnson drove the No. 5 in three races, scoring the team’s first pole position of 2005 at Darlington Raceway in May, and qualifying eighth the following weekend at Richmond International Raceway. Johnson’s best finish was a fifth-place result at Dover International Speedway in June.

Kyle Krisiloff made his Busch Series debut in the No. 5 at The Milwaukee Mile in June, and finished 40th in the Lowe’s Chevy at Michigan International Speedway in August. Krisiloff’s next start in the No. 5 is scheduled to come next weekend at Memphis Motorsports Park.

In his NASCAR debut, open-wheel star Adrian Fernandez drove the No. 5 to a top-10 finish in the Mexico City Busch Series race, and finished 28th at California Speedway in Sept. Fernandez is also slated to drive the No. 5 in the final three Busch races on this season’s schedule.

Brian Vickers’ only scheduled start in the No. 5 this season came at Watkins Glen International earlier, where he finished third.

STATS AND FACTS