Race 2 Win: Busch Series Race Notes

NASCAR Busch Series

Sharpie Mini 300 - Raybestos Rookie Notes

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

Juan Pablo Montoya was the Raybestos® Rookie of the Race in the March 17 Nicorette 300 at Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway. Montoya finished eighth, his second top-10 finish in nine career Busch Series races. He took Raybestos® Rookie of the Race honors for the second time this season and was the only first-year driver to finish inside the top-10.

For the first time this season, Montoya took the lead in the Raybestos® Rookie standings. He holds a five-point edge over Marcos Ambrose (58-53) entering the March 24 Sharpie Mini 300 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway.

FACT OF THE WEEK: Montoya is the only driver to simultaneously lead the Raybestos® Rookie standings in both the NEXTEL Cup Series and the Busch Series since the rookie program was created in Busch in 1989.

DID YOU KNOW? TWO Raybestos® Rookies rank inside the top-10 in the Busch Series championship standings. The most recent race where two or more rookies were in the top-10 was the 2006 Stater Bros. 300 at California Speedway (Todd Kluever was fifth followed by Burney Lamar in sixth).

Ambrose is seventh in the series championship standings, best of any Raybestos® Rookie. He is 13 points behind sixth-place Tony Stewart and is 16 ahead of eighth-place Mike Wallace.

Montoya is 10th in the Busch Series championship standings, a gain of five positions. He trails ninth-place Jeff Burton by two points and leads 11th-place David Reutimann by 11.

Ambrose (Las Vegas) and Montoya (Mexico City) have each earned WIX Filters Lap Leader of the Race honors this season.

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

John Andretti was the Raybestos® Rookie of the Race in the 2006 Sharpie Mini 300. Andretti placed ninth, the only first-year driver to place inside the top-10.

DID YOU KNOW? The best finish by a Raybestos® Rookie in 18 previous spring races at Bristol is second by David Green in 1991.

DID YOU KNOW? The most Raybestos® Rookies to finish inside the top-10 in the Sharpie Mini 300 is THREE in 2005: Reed Sorenson (third), Carl Edwards (seventh) and Denny Hamlin (ninth).

DID YOU KNOW? TWO Raybestos® Rookies have finished in the top-10 in the spring race at Bristol just once. In 2002, Scott Riggs placed ninth just ahead of Shane Hmiel scored a 10th-place finish.

DID YOU KNOW? Scott Riggs is the only Raybestos® Rookie to win a pole position at Bristol. Riggs won his first career pole at the 2002 Sharpie Mini 300 in just his fifth career Busch Series start.

Top-five finishes by Raybestos® Rookies in the Sharpie Mini 300:
1989: Kenny Wallace, fifth
1991: David Green, second
2004: Kyle Busch, third
2005: Reed Sorenson, third

Top-10 finishes by Raybestos® Rookies in the Sharpie Mini 300:
1989: Kenny Wallace, fifth
1990: Joe Nemechek, ninth
1991: David Green, second
1991: Tracy Leslie, eighth
1993: Hermie Sadler, sixth
1995: Curtis Markham, ninth
1997: Steve Park, eighth
1998: Wayne Grubb, seventh
1999: Tony Roper, 10th
2002: Scott Riggs, ninth
2002: Shane Hmiel, 10th
2004: Kyle Busch, third
2005: Reed Sorenson, third
2005: Carl Edwards, seventh
2005: Denny Hamlin, ninth
2006: John Andretti, ninth

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
Juan Pablo Montoya 58
Marcos Ambrose 53
David Ragan 43
Kyle Krisiloff 39
Brad Keselowski 29
Sam Hornish Jr. 25 
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 
Nicorette 300 Montoya eighth