Zippo 200 - Matt Kobyluck Notes

Matt Kobyluck To Make Busch Series Season Debut At Watkins Glen

Uncasville, CT (August 5, 2005): Matt Kobyluck of Uncasville, CT will attempt to make his NASCAR Busch Series, Grand National Division season debut at Watkins Glen International road course when the series embarks on the 2.45-mile road course for the Zippo 200. Kobyluck, a three-time winner in the NASCAR Busch North Series this year, tested his Mohegan Sun Casino Chevrolet there on August 1st and feels confident for a solid run.

“It’s going to be a pretty exciting weekend for us,” Kobyluck said. “We left the test session feeling extremely confident. We stayed on course all day, and I hit my marks every time. I’ve always loved running at Watkins Glen so when they took it off the Busch North schedule, it was the first thing that came to our mind when deciding which Busch Series races we’d go to.”

Kobyluck made one Busch Series start at New Hampshire International Speedway last year, and finished 34th after an accident cut his day short. A practice crash at Dover in September of 2004 halted any chances of the Mohegan Sun Casino Chevrolet making it into the field. Both Busch Series attempts last year were coupled with Busch North Series dates.

“We tried to run races last year that fit in with our Busch North schedule, but that just didn’t work out for us,” Kobyluck said. “We couldn’t give 100 percent to either effort and both programs suffered. When we show up this year, the Busch Series effort will get 110 percent of our focus. That’s the way it has to be in order for it to have a shot at being successful.”

Kobyluck will race in a Busch North Series event at Stafford Motor Speedway the Wednesday before the Zippo 200. Kobyluck won his first race of the season at the ½-mile oval in June, and hopes to be carrying another trophy aboard the team’s hauler when they head to Watkins Glen.

“We’ve had a great season so far,” Kobyluck admitted. “When you’ve won half the races you’ve started, it carries the potential of feeling invincible, but so far no one on this team has gotten too carried away with it. You can’t – the competition is way too stiff for that. We’ve won half the races, but we’re not even in the point lead. We celebrate our wins, and move on to the next race as if we hadn’t won at all.”

The Zippo 200 is one of two races that Kobyluck will attempt in the NASCAR Busch Series during the 2005 season. In addition, Kobyluck and the Mohegan Sun Casino Race Team will head to Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Charlotte this fall after the Busch North Series regular season is complete.