Sam’s Town 250 - Kelly Bires Notes

BIRES CARRIES NEW LOOK AND ENTHUSIASM INTO MEMPHIS

KELLY BIRES, No. 47 CLOROX FORD RACING TO HELP ST. JUDE CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL

Kelly Bires’ No. 47 Clorox Ford will have a new look for Saturday’s Sam’s Town 250 at the Memphis Motorsports Park. But underneath a new paint scheme will be a very familiar Ford Fusion.

The design was created by a patient named Will at St. Jude Children’s Hospital in Memphis. Wood Brothers/JTG Racing is one of a dozen Busch Series teams participating in the program called Design a Dream to benefit the children’s hospital. Bires also will visit the hospital on Thursday.

For Bires and the Clorox race team, Saturday’s race offers an opportunity to take St. Jude’s message all the way to Victory Lane. Beneath the new paint will be a new and improved race car the team believes can make a breakthrough at the three-quarter-mile track. The team is coming off a ninth-place finish at the Lowe’s Motor Speedway and it used the bye week to fine-tune their fleet of cars.

Bires said Wood Brothers/JTG Racing plans to use the final four races of the season as a springboard into the off-season. The team has dedicated the past two months to re-configuring their cars for the late-season push. Every car in the shop has a new look under the hood. On Saturday, that new look will extend to the paint scheme as well.

WHAT THE TEAM HAS TO SAY
Kelly Bires, Driver of the No. 47 Clorox Ford Fusion:
“We’re proud to be part of the Design a Dream program,” he said. “Clorox and this entire race team has been committed to important issues and it says a lot about Clorox to be involved with St. Jude Children’s Hospital.

“For us, it’s a win-win situation. The car we’ve got for Memphis is one of the best we’ve got in the shop. We’ve changed our cars in the past couple months and they all share the same baselines. When we make a change, every car now reacts in the same manner. The changes elevated our program to being a Top-10 team. All that’s left are to make the small changes that will take us into the Top Five.”

Scott Zipadelli, Crew Chief of the No. 47 Clorox Ford Fusion:
“We’ve had good cars for a month and the one for Memphis is one of our best,” he said. “We’ve come a long ways with our cars and we’re essentially caught up in the shop. We’re ready for the last four races and we’re going with a lot of confidence. Although we’re caught up with our cars, it’s still important that we bring them home in one piece. That’s the only way we can make the little changes that can make a difference.”

FAST & FUN FACTS:
What – Sam’s Town 250 NASCAR Busch Series race
When – Saturday, Oct. 27, 3 p.m. ET
Where – Memphis Motorsports Park
Networks – ESPN2, Sirius Satellite Channel 128