Race 2 Win: Telcel-Motorloa Mexico 200

NASCAR Busch Series

Telcel-Motorloa Mexico 200 - Raybestos Rookie Notes

NEWS AND NOTES FROM THE RAYBESTOS® ROOKIE CONTENDERS – NASCAR BUSCH SERIES

Todd Kluever was the Raybestos® Rookie of the Race in the February 25 Stater Bros. 300 at California Speedway. Kluever finished 12th and took top rookie honors for the first time in 2006.

Burney Lamar enjoys a four-point lead (29-25) over Kluever in the Raybestos® Rookie standings entering the March 5 telcel-MOTOROLA 200 at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City, Mexico.

DID YOU KNOW? For the second consecutive race, TWO Raybestos® Rookies rank in the top 10 in the Busch Series championship standings: Kluever is fifth, just ahead of Lamar, who ranks sixth. Just three points separate the two drivers.

Carl Edwards placed third in last year’s inaugural event at Mexico City, logging a third-place finish. He was the only Raybestos® Rookie to score a top-10 finish.

RAYBESTOS® ROOKIE HISTORY

Kyle Busch posted a record-setting year on his way to the 2004 Raybestos® Rookie of the Year title. In 34 starts, Busch won five times, captured five poles and scored 16 top-five and 22 top-10 finishes. His second-place finish in the Busch Series championship standings is a record for a Raybestos® Rookie. Other Raybestos® Rookie records Busch owns or shares: most starts (34), most wins (tied with Biffle), most top fives (tied with Biffle), most top 10s, most money won ($2,027,050), most championship points (4,943), most laps led (1,108) and most races led (21).

David Stremme holds the record for fewest starts by a driver to win Raybestos® Rookie of the Year. In 2003, he started just 18 of the 34 races and was the top rookie finisher in 16 of those starts. He was the only Raybestos® Rookie to score three top-three finishes and had more top-10 finishes (seven) than any other first-year driver. He led six races for a total of 86 laps.

David Green was the first Raybestos® Rookie to win a race, at Lanier, Ga., in 1991. Green captured the Nestle 200 by 1.58-seconds over Jeff Gordon, a fellow Raybestos® Rookie. A third Raybestos® Rookie, Todd Bodine, placed eighth in the race.

Dennis Setzer was the first Raybestos® Rookie to win TWO or more races in a season. In 1994, he won the Ford Credit 300 at South Boston (Va.) Speedway and The Pantry 300 at Hickory (N.C.) Motor Speedway.

Park was the first Raybestos® Rookie to win THREE or more races in a season. In 1997, he won the BellSouth Mobility/Opryland 300 at Nashville Speedway, the Detroit Gasket 200 at Michigan Speedway and the Autolite Platinum 250 at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway.

Kenny Wallace was the first Raybestos® Rookie to win a pole in the Busch Series. Wallace grabbed the top starting spot for the 1989 Goody’s 300 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway, the first race in the history of the Raybestos® Rookie of the Year program.

RAYBESTOS® ROOKIE CONTENDER POINT STANDINGS
DRIVER POINTS
Burney Lamar 29
Todd Kluever 25
John Andretti 16
Danny O’Quinn Jr. 14 
Mark McFarland 14 
Tracy Hines 13 
Anthony Foyt IV 9
Joel Kauffman 8
Chris Wimmer 2
David Gilliland 1

HIGHEST FINISHING RAYBESTOS® ROOKIE BY RACE
EVENT HIGHEST FINISHING ROOKIE
Hershey’s Kissables 300 Burney Lamar, second
Stater Bros. 300 Todd Kluever, 12th