Race 2 Win: Nationwide Series Race Notes

Nationwide Series

O’Reilly 300 - Bobby Labonte Notes

Bobby Labonte
No. 21 Prilosec OTC Wal-Mart Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS
Event Preview Fact Sheet

Event/Date: O-Reilly 300 – April 5, 2008
Venue: Texas Motor Speedway – Fort Worth, Texas

NOTES:

This Week’s Prilosec OTC Wal-Mart Chevrolet at Texas Motor Speedway … Bobby Labonte will race chassis No. 062 from the Richard Childress Racing (RCR) NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) stable. This is the same chassis Kevin Harvick drove to Victory Lane last fall at Texas Motor Speedway. Additionally, Harvick drove this No. 21 Chevrolet to a third-place finish at Michigan International Speedway in August 2007 and to Victory Lane at Chicagoland Speedway in July 2007. Scott Wimmer drove this chassis to a 15th-place finish at Kansas Speedway in September 2007 while Timothy Peters raced to a 19th-place finish in April 2007 at Nashville Superspeedway. Furthermore, Harvick drove this Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS in the 2006 season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway where he started from the pole and finished sixth. Since then, the car has been outfitted with all the 2008 updates.

Home Sweet Home … Bobby Labonte will return to his home state this weekend to compete in the NNS and Sprint Cup Series events. Labonte’s hometown is Corpus Christi, Texas, which is a six-hour trip from Texas Motor Speedway (TMS). Labonte began racing quarter-midgets in 1969 and by 1970 had won his first national quarter-midget race. By 1978, Labonte had moved up to compete in go-karts and eventually moved from Corpus Christi to North Carolina in 1979.

Labonte in the Nationwide Series Loop at Texas …

Stat Facts … In six NNS starts at TMS, Labonte has posted one top-10 and three top-15 finishes. The 1991 Nationwide Series champion competed in his second TMS Nationwide Series race driving RCR’s No. 21 ESGR/Army National Guard Reserve Chevrolet where he started ninth and finished 11th.

The Texas Report … The Corpus Christi, Texas native currently holds a 19.8 starting average coupled with an 18.5 finishing average and has completed 1,190 of 1,200 total laps (99.2%) at the 1.5-mile track.

Since We’re Talking Texas Stats … According to NASCAR’s loop data statistics, Labonte is currently the sport’s fourth-best Quality Closer – a statistic derived from the number of positions improved over the last 10 percent of each race. Labonte has gained an average of 1.3 spots over the last four events ran at TMS and has improved a total of five positions over the closing 10 percent of those same races. Additionally, he is the sport’s 11th-best Quality Passer – a statistic derived from the number of passes made while running in the top 15 under green flag conditions. Labonte has made 71 quality passes over the last four Nationwide events ran at TMS, an average of 17.8 passes.

And Now a Word From Our Sponsor … Prilosec OTC’s major associate sponsorship kicks into high gear this weekend in Texas as Labonte and the No. 21 team will sport a purple and lightning-themed Prilosec OTC Wal-Mart racing machine for the O’Reilly 300. Prilosec OTC, marketed exclusively by Procter & Gamble, is available in food, drug, mass, and club stores in the U.S. Prilosec OTC is available over-the-counter for the treatment of frequent heartburn, with one pill taken every day for 14 days and is the No. 1 selling over-the-counter heartburn medication. RCR Nationwide Cars at Texas … In 24 NNS starts at TMS, RCR boasts one pole (Jeff Green – April 2002), four wins (Kevin Harvick, March 2001, April 2006, Nov. 2006 and Nov. 2007), seven top fives and 15 top 10s. RCR-prepared race cars have also led 545 laps at the mile-and-half Fort Worth racing complex.

Six Races, Two Wins … In six NNS races this season, RCR-prepared Nationwide Series entries, have notched two wins (Bowyer – Bristol, Wimmer – Nashville), six top-five and nine top-10 finishes. RCR cars have also led 265 of the 1,066 (24.8 percent) of the totals laps run this season.

Double Down in the Lone Star State … In addition to racing the No. 21 Prilosec OTC Wal-Mart Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS in Saturday’s O’Reilly 300, Labonte, a 10-time Nationwide Series race winner, will drive the No. 43 Cheerios/Sam’s Club Dodge for Petty Enterprises in the Samsung 500 at Texas Motor Speedway on Sunday, April 6. The race can be seen live on FOX beginning at 1:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) and will also broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network (PRN) and Sirius Satellite Radio.

Help Chevy Help Autism … Autism Speaks and Chevrolet announced a month-long promotion to help generate up to $1 million for the non-profit organization and create greater awareness of autism, a disorder that is now diagnosed in one in every 150 children. During Autism Awareness Month, people who visit the Autism Speaks website, www.autismspeaks.org, can click on the “Help Chevy Help Autism” icon and take a free virtual test drive of the 2008 North American Car of the Year – the all-new Chevy Malibu. Chevrolet has committed to a minimum contribution of $500,000, but every virtual test drive taken gets Chevrolet closer to its goal of donating up to $1 million to Autism Speaks to support its mission of increasing awareness of autism and raising money to fund autism research. Those who participate in the virtual test drive will be offered a free 30-day online trial of XM Satellite Radio.

Catch the Action … Flag-to-flag coverage of the O’Reilly 300 from Texas Motor Speedway will be televised live on ESPN2 Saturday, April 5 beginning at 2:30 p.m. EDT. The seventh of 35 races on the 2008 calendar for NASCAR’s junior circuit will also be broadcast live PRN and Sirius Satellite Radio.

BOBBY LABONTE QUOTES:
Kevin Harvick drove to Victory Lane last fall at Texas driving the chassis you will be competing in. Does that give you confidence going into this weekend’s race?
“The history of this race car is very impressive and I look forward to hopping into it this weekend. I have yet to win a Nationwide Series event at Texas and it would mean the world to me, and to my family, if I can do it at Texas. We haven’t had the finishes this season we would have liked but the wheels are bound to turn and I’m really looking forward to running the Prilosec OTC Wal-Mart Chevy for Richard (Childress) this weekend.”

What is the secret to getting around Texas Motor Speedway?
“The low line is definitely the way to get around Texas Motor Speedway. But since the track has been ‘pumped up’ in turns one and two that could change some driving styles. The low line is faster around the track and has the most grip.”