Race 2 Win: Busch Series Race Notes

NASCAR Busch Series

Nicorette 300 - Raybestos Rookie Notes

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

Marcos Ambrose was the Raybestos® Rookie of the Race in the March 10 Sam’s Town 300 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Ambrose scored a 10th-place finish, his second consecutive top-10 effort. He took top rookie honors for the second time in four races.

Ambrose led once for one lap, the first time he has led a lap in his Busch Series career, and took WIX Filters Lap Leader of the Race honors.

DID YOU KNOW? A Raybestos® Rookie has won the WIX Filters Lap Leader o the Race honors in each of the last two Busch Series races. Juan Pablo Montoya led 43 laps to win the award in the March 4 Telcel Motorola Mexico 200 in Mexico City.

Ambrose holds a two-point lead over Juan Pablo Montoya (46-44) in the Raybestos® Rookie standings entering the March 17 Nicorette 300 at Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway.

Ambrose is fifth in the Busch Series championship standings, best of any Raybestos® Rookie. He is 166 points behind leader Carl Edwards and 12 behind fourth-place Kevin Harvick. Ambrose maintains a 32-point edge over sixth-place Jon Wood and 38 over seventh-place Greg Biffle.

DID YOU KNOW? A Raybestos® Rookie has won at least one race in each of the past FOUR consecutive seasons (2004-2007).

Carl Edwards won the 2005 Nicorette 300 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, scoring his first NASCAR Busch Series victory. Edwards owns the only victory by a Raybestos® Rookie in 15 Busch Series races at Atlanta. He is one of just four Raybestos® Rookies to score a top-five finish at the 1.54-mile Georgia speedway.

Burney Lamar was the Raybestos® Rookie of the Race in the 2006 Nicorette 300, claiming an eighth-place finish.

DID YOU KNOW? A Raybestos® Rookie has finished in the top-10 in each of the last THREE consecutive Busch Series races at Atlanta.

John Andretti was the only first-year driver to lead a lap in the race, holding down the top spot once for one lap.

Top-five finishes by Raybestos® Rookies at Atlanta:
2002: Scott Riggs, fourth
2004: Kyle Busch, second
2005: Carl Edwards, first

Top-10 finishes by Raybestos® Rookies at Atlanta:
2002: Scott Riggs, fourth
2002: Johnny Sauter, 10th
2004: Kyle Busch, second
2004: J.J. Yeley, 10th
2005: Carl Edwards, first
2005: Michel Jourdain, 10th
2006: Burney Lamar, eighth

Edwards is also the only Raybestos Rookie to win a pole position in 15 races at Atlanta.

The 2005 Aaron’s 312 race was the third time in 14 Busch Series races where two Raybestos Rookies® finished in the top-10. In addition to Edwards’ win, Michel Jourdain Jr. placed 10th, his first top 10 effort in the Busch Series.

A Raybestos® Rookie has now led at least one lap in each of the past SIX consecutive Busch Series races at Atlanta.
2001: Greg Biffle (once for 38 laps)
2002: Scott Riggs (twice for 12 laps)
2002: Brian Vickers (twice for 12 laps)
2003: David Stremme (once for two laps)
2004: Kyle Busch (twice for 17 laps)
2005: Carl Edwards (three times for 47 laps)
2006: John Andretti (once for one lap)

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.

Steve 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 (Tenn.) Speedway, the Detroit Gasket 200 at Michigan International 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
Marcos Ambrose 46
Juan Pablo Montoya 44
David Ragan 34
Kyle Krisiloff 33
Brad Keselowski 21
Sam Hornish Jr. 15 
Brad Coleman 11 
Justin Diercks 10
Robert Richardson Jr. 9
Alex Garcia 7 

HIGHEST-FINISHING RAYBESTOS® ROOKIE BY RACE
EVENT HIGHEST-FINISHING ROOKIE
ORBITZ 300 Ambrose, 16th 
Stater Bros. 300 Peters, 17th 
Telcel-Motorola 200 Montoya, FIRST
Sam’s Town 300 Ambrose, 10th