Race 2 Win: Busch Series Race Notes

NASCAR Busch Series

Arizona.Travel 200 - Raybestos Rookie Notes

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

Brad Keselowski was the Raybestos® Rookie of the Race in the November 3 O’Reilly Challenge at Texas Motor Speedway. Keselowski scored a sixth-place finish, his best in 32 NASCAR Busch Series races. He collected his second consecutive top-10 finish and fifth of the 2007 season. Keselowski grabbed top Raybestos Rookie honors for the fifth time in 25 races.

David Ragan leads Marcos Ambrose by 31 points (233-202) in the Raybestos® Rookie standings entering the November 10 ARIZONA.TRAVEL 200 at Phoenix (Ariz.) International Raceway.

THE STREAK CONTINUES: At least two Raybestos® Rookies have been in the top-10 in the NASCAR Busch Series championship standings for 18 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 137 points behind fourth-place Kevin Harvick and 142 ahead of sixth-place Bobby Hamilton Jr.

Ambrose is ninth in the standings, 31 points behind eighth-place Greg Biffle and 37 ahead of 10th-place Mike Wallace.

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 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.

Todd Kluever was the Raybestos® Rookie of the Race in the 2006 ARIZONA.TRAVEL 200 at Phoenix, scoring an 18th-place finish.

DID YOU KNOW? In 11 NASCAR Busch Series races at Phoenix, Greg Biffle and Carl Edwards are the only Raybestos® Rookies to win. Biffle edged Jeff Green and Kevin Harvick to win the 2001 race, an event that ended under caution.

THREE Raybestos® Rookies have led the most laps in 11 previous Busch races at Phoenix:
2001: Greg Biffle (twice for 112 laps)
2004: Kyle Busch (four times for 151 laps)
2005: Carl Edwards (twice for 103 laps)
2006: Stephen Leicht (once for eight laps)

THREE Raybestos® Rookies have won pole positions in Busch Series competition at Phoenix:
2000: Jason Leffler
2004: Kyle Busch
2005: Carl Edwards

DID YOU KNOW? Only once in the eight previous fall races have TWO Raybestos® Rookies finished in the top-five at Phoenix. In 2000, Jason Leffler placed second while Ron Hornaday grabbed a fifth place finish.

Top-five finishes by Raybestos® Rookies in fall race at Phoenix:
2000: Jason Leffler, second
2000: Ron Hornaday, fifth
2001: Greg Biffle, first
2004: Kyle Busch, second

Top-10 finishes by Raybestos® Rookies in fall race Phoenix:
2000: Jason Leffler, second
2000: Ron Hornaday, fifth
2001: Greg Biffle, first
2001: Scott Wimmer, seventh
2002: Johnny Sauter, seventh
2002: Kerry Earnhardt, 10th
2004: Kyle Busch, second

Raybestos® Rookies to lead a lap in the fall race at Phoenix:
2000: Jason Leffler (three times for 43 laps)
2000: Ron Hornaday (led once for four laps)
2001: Greg Biffle (twice for 112 laps)
2003: David Stremme (once for one lap)
2004: Kyle Busch (four times for 151 laps) 2006: Stephen Leicht (once eight 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 233
Marcos Ambrose 202
Kyle Krisiloff 180
Brad Keselowski 179
Juan Pablo Montoya 169 
Brad Coleman 163 
Robert Richardson Jr. 114
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
Sam’s Town 250 Ragan, third
O’Reilly Challenge Keselowski, sixth