Race 2 Win: Busch Series Race Notes

NASCAR Busch Series

Sam's Town 250 - Raybestos Rookie Notes

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

David Ragan was the Raybestos® Rookie of the Race in the October 12 Dollar General 300 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway (Concord, N.C.). Ragan posted a sixth-place finish, his eighth top-10 finish this season and claimed Raybestos® Rookie of the Race honors for the ninth time in 31 races. He scored the fourth consecutive top-10 finish by a Raybestos® Rookie in the fall race at Lowe’s Motor Speedway and is the fourth different driver to claim top rookie honors in the last four races.

Ragan leads Marcos Ambrose by 24 points (215-191) in the Raybestos® Rookie standings entering the October 27 Sam’s Town 250 at Memphis (Millington, Tenn.) Motorsports Park.

THE STREAK CONTINUES: At least two Raybestos® Rookies have been in the top-10 in the NASCAR Busch Series championship standings for 16 consecutive races, dating back to Kentucky (race No. 16).

Ragan is fifth in the Busch Series championship standings, best of any Raybestos® Rookie. He is 152 points behind fourth-place Jason Leffler and 35 ahead of sixth-place Bobby Hamilton Jr.

Ambrose is ninth in the standings, 59 points behind eighth-place Stephen Leicht and six ahead of 10th-place Matt Kenseth.

Ambrose has captured WIX Filters Lap Leader of the Race honors twice this season: Montreal (race No. 23) and Las Vegas (race No. 4). Other Raybestos® Rookies to capture the honor: Brad Coleman (Talladega, race No. 10 and Kentucky, race No. 16) and Juan Pablo Montoya (Mexico City, race No. 3).

DID YOU KNOW? TWO Raybestos® Rookies have won pole positions this season: David Ragan at Texas (race No. 8) and Brad Coleman at Talladega.

Danny O’Quinn Jr. was the Raybestos® Rookie of the Race in the 2006 Sam’s Town 250, scoring a ninth-place finish.

DID YOU KNOW? A Raybestos® Rookie has finished in the top-10 in all EIGHT races at Memphis.

DID YOU KNOW? Kevin Harvick is the only Raybestos® Rookie to win the Sam’s Town 250. Harvick captured the 2000 race by .475 seconds over Elton Sawyer.

The most Raybestos® Rookies to finish in the top-10 in the five previous races at Memphis is THREE in 2000: Harvick, Jimmie Johnson (seventh) and Jay Sauter (ninth).

The best qualifying effort by a Raybestos® Rookie in EIGHT previous races at Memphis is second by Harvick in 2000 and Johnny Sauter in 2002.

Top-five finishes by Raybestos® Rookies at Memphis:
1999: Adam Petty, fifth
2000: Kevin Harvick, FIRST
2002: Kerry Earnhardt, fifth
2004: Clint Bowyer, fourth
2005: Carl Edwards, fifth

Top-10 finishes by Raybestos® Rookies at Memphis:
1999: Adam Petty, fifth
2000: Kevin Harvick, FIRST
2000: Jimmie Johnson, eighth
2000: Jay Sauter, ninth
2001: Scott Wimmer, eighth
2002: Kerry Earnhardt, fifth
2003: David Stremme, ninth
2004: Clint Bowyer, fourth
2005: Carl Edwards, fifth
2005: Denny Hamlin, seventh
2006: Danny O’Quinn Jr., ninth

No Raybestos® Rookie has led the most laps at Memphis. In fact, only two first-year drivers have led a lap in eight races at the .75-mile speedway:
2000: Kevin Harvick (led once for 71 laps)
2004: Kyle Busch (led twice for 59 laps) RAYBESTOS® ROOKIE HISTORY

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

Danny O’Quinn Jr. narrowly edged John Andretti to win the 2006 Raybestos® Rookie of the Year title in the NASCAR Busch Series. O’Quinn Jr. finished one point higher than Andretti in the final standings, the closet margin in NASCAR national series history. He also became the second driver in series history to win the award without completing the full schedule. The 2006 Raybestos® Rookie of the Year title was the second consecutive and third overall for Roush Fenway Racing in the Busch Series.

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
David Ragan 215
Marcos Ambrose 191
Kyle Krisiloff 175
Juan Pablo Montoya 165 
Brad Keselowski 161
Brad Coleman 156 
Robert Richardson Jr. 99
Justin Diercks 51 

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
Sharpie Mini 300 Ragan, 13th 
Pepsi 300 Coleman, 15th 
O’Reilly 300 Ragan, fifth
Bashas’ Supermarkets 200 Montoya, 21st 
Aaron’s 312 Ragan, fourth
Circuit City 250 Montoya, 11th 
Diamond Hill Plywood 200 Ragan, 13th 
CARQUEST Auto Parts 300 Ambrose, 20th 
Dover 200 Ambrose, sixth
Federated Auto Parts 300 Ragan, seventh
Meijer 300 presented by Oreo Coleman, second
AT&T 250 Coleman, fourth
Camping World 200 Ragan, 18th 
Winn-Dixie 250 Krisiloff, 20th 
USG DUROCK 300 Keselowski, 14th 
Busch 250 Ragan, fifth
Kroger 200 Keselowski, 10th 
NAPA Auto Parts 200 Krisiloff, sixth
Zippo 200 at The Glen Coleman, fifth
CARFAX 250 Keselowski, 13th 
Food City 250 Ragan, sixth
Camping World 300 Ragan, 10th 
Emerson Radio 250 Ambrose, 15th 
RoadLoans.com 200 Keselowski, seventh
Yellow Transportation 300 Krisiloff, 28th 
Dollar General 300 Ragan, sixth