Sirius at the Glen - Brian Vickers Notes

SECOND ROAD-COURSE START FOR VICKERS: Brian Vickers will be making his NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series debut at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International this weekend. The 20-year-old rookie made his first career NASCAR road-course start at Infineon Raceway in June, finishing 22nd in the No. 25 GMAC Financial Services Chevrolet.

HMS CARRIES MOMENTUM TO WATKINS GLEN: With Jeff Gordon's triumph at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, Hendrick Motorsports has earned eight victories and seven pole positions in the last 14 NEXTEL Cup events dating back to the 500-lapper at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway on April 18. During that stretch, a Hendrick team has either finished first, earned the pole or won from the pole in 12 of those 14, with the only exceptions being Dover, Del., in June and Loudon, N.H., in July.

'25' TESTS 'THE GLEN': After the team's July 26-27 test at Watkins Glen was canceled because of rain, the GMAC team was able reschedule and complete a one-day prep session on Aug. 2. Vickers did make several laps on the 2.45-mile road course in the rain on July 26 -- driving a rental car. The Thomasville, N.C., native spent much of that rain-soaked day behind the wheel and in the passenger seat, as road-course specialist Boris Said provided insight.

NEW YORK HOMECOMING: New York serves as the home state for several members of Hendrick Motorsports' No. 25 team. Scorer Karen Belden claims Schenectady as her hometown, while Doug Meyer, a fabricator, hails from Salamanca. Al Nelson, responsible for delivering the team transporter to every race, grew up on Long Island, and Ray Schepler, a mechanic, is from Rochester, only 75 miles from "The Glen." Crew chief Peter Sospenzo grew up in the borough of Brooklyn.

'25' AT WATKINS GLEN: In 18 all-time starts at Watkins Glen, the No. 25 Hendrick Motorsports team has collected one win (Tim Richmond, 1986), one pole, three-top fives and eight top-10 results. In 2003, the team finished 17th.

CHASSIS NO. 2555 FOR VICKERS: At this weekend's road-course event, GMAC Racing will field Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 2555 for the second time in 2004. The same car was used to compete at Infineon Raceway in June, and most recently during the team's one-day test Aug. 2.

KRISILOFF EARNS TOP-10 AT LAKE ERIE: Hendrick Motorsports developmental driver Kyle Krisiloff added to the team's ARCA Series success Saturday with a top-10 finish at Lake Erie (Pa.) Speedway. In his first-ever attempt on the circuit, the 18-year-old started third and finished ninth in the ditech.com Chevrolet. In seven ARCA starts in 2004, Hendrick's developmental drivers -- Blake Feese, Boston Reid and Krisiloff -- have turned in seven top-10 performances, including Feese's April victory at Nashville (Tenn.) Superspeedway. Krisiloff will make his second career ARCA start this weekend when the team returns to Nashville.

BRIAN VICKERS, DRIVER OF THE NO. 25 GMAC FINANCIAL SERVICES CHEVROLETS: (ON MAKING HIS SECOND CAREER NASCAR ROAD-COURSE START.) "I look forward to the challenges road-course racing presents. It's obviously a change from the normal oval-track stuff we deal with every week, but I like that. With the exception of qualifying at Infineon, I think we had solid outing and I learned a lot. Something to build on for Watkins Glen."