MBNA RacePoints 400 - Joe Nemechek Notes

NEMECHEK SAYS IT’S TIME TO SNAP DOVER SLUMP

DOVER, Del. (Sept. 20, 2005) – After a not-so-fortunate Nextel Cup race last week in New Hampshire, Joe Nemechek is looking to rebound in Sunday’s MBNA RacePoints 400 at Dover International Speedway.

A pair of accidents at the New England motorsports facility spoiled Nemechek’s start of the 10-race homestretch with a 25th-place finish.

“We had a top-10 or better car in New Hampshire, but got tangled up twice,” said Nemechek, driver of the No. 01 U.S. Army Chevrolet. “We need to make something happen in Dover to get back the momentum.”

Nemechek is hoping that being on the wrong side of the cycle at Dover has run its course. After producing three straight seventh-place finishes, his best Dover result in the last seven races has been 23rd.

“It’s time to snap the Dover slump,” said Nemechek. “It seems like I either run well there or crash hard. But for all the bad things that has happened to me at Dover, I still really like the track and facility. It’s a challenging oval and I have an enormous amount of respect for it.”

With nine races remaining in the season, Nemechek is confident of producing a successful streak and having a shot at finishing 11th in the driver point standings -- the highest attainable position for non-Chase drivers.

“We’ve got the talent, resources and the Army spirit to guide us through the final nine races,” said Nemechek. “I know we can do it. We just need to stay away from trouble. For some reason this has been the year that trouble has found us.”

Nemechek is 16th in the driver standings, 132 points behind Jamie McMurray, who currently holds the 11th position.

“There are plenty of top-notch teams vying for that 11th spot,” offered Nemechek. “And the U.S. Army team is one of them.”