Dave Blaney
No. 07 Jack Daniel’s Chevrolet
Event Preview Fact Sheet
Event/Date: MBNA 400 – June 5, 2005
Venue: Dover International Speedway – Dover, Del.
NOTES:
This Week’s Race Car at Dover International Speedway … Dave Blaney will pilot chassis No. 140 from the Richard Childress Racing (RCR) stable. Built new for 2005, this is the same car Blaney raced at Bristol (started second, finished 20th) and Darlington (started 30th, finished 29th).
No DNFs for the Bullet … Blaney has been running at the finish of every NEXTEL Cup Series race this season.
Double Duty … Blaney will also be competing in the MBNA 200 NASCAR Busch Series race Saturday, June 4 at Dover. Blaney returns to the seat of the No. 31 Whelen Chevrolet for Marsh Racing.
Blaney Heads to Sharon Speedway … Friday night, following NEXTEL Cup qualifying, Blaney will fly to Sharon Speedway when the World of Outlaws makes its only appearance of the season at the three-eighths mile dirt oval. Sharon Speedway is owned and operated by the Blaney family and is located in the 1995 World of Outlaws champ’s hometown of Hartford, Ohio.
Meet the Driver … Blaney will sign autographs at the Jack Daniel’s souvenir trailer Sunday, June 5 from 9-9:45 a.m. A limited number of tickets are available and can be obtained at the trailer.
Meet the Driver, Part Two … Blaney will also appear at the Jack Daniel’s Experience Sunday, June 5 from 10-10:30 a.m. The Jack Daniel’s Experience will be located outside the speedway in Turns 1 and 2. Autographs will be available on a first come, first serve basis.
Up to Speed … The MBNA 400 at Dover International Speedway will be televised live Sunday, June 5 beginning at 12:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on FX and be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network (MRN) and XM Satellite Radio. Qualifying for the 13th of 36 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series events will air live on SPEED Friday, June 3 at 3 p.m. EDT and will also be broadcast live on MRN and XM Satellite Radio.
DAVE BLANEY QUOTES:
After a rough last couple of weeks, what’s your mindset heading into Dover?
“We just need to have a smooth race. Bad stuff has been happening to us every week so we just need to have a smooth one and come out of there with a top 10 and we’ll be loving it. Dover is probably one of my favorite race tracks. I really like how it gets on race day. You can run up the track, in the middle or on the bottom. In think the set-ups we’ve been using this year will work really well at Dover.”
Is Dover the kind of track where you need the handling to be loose, tight or neutral?
“During the race, you’re generally fighting tight on the long run. You really have to focus on trying to keep the car turning good.”
Will the shorter spoiler make a big difference at Dover?
“It’s made a big difference everywhere – you can feel it. Anywhere that’s bigger than a half-mile you can really feel the difference. We’ve compensated with the car so I’ve gotten used to it. It won’t be any different than anywhere else other than Bristol or Martinsville.”
Is give and take on your mind this weekend?
“For sure. There’s not a lot of room at Dover, especially on the straightaways. If you get in a little bit of trouble, even on the straightaway, you’re crashing hard. It gets tight early in the race and on restarts it gets really tight. Really, it’s the same everywhere – you have to go when you can. It’s cool because the straightaway’s are narrow but you can race two and sometimes three-wide in the corners especially during the second half of the race.”
Do you expect long green-flag runs?
“In the past, there has been but it seems like there are no long green-flag runs anywhere this year. The cars are more of a challenge to drive this year because of the shorter spoilers and the softer tires.”
Is it pretty hard to get on and off pit road at Dover?
“I guess you can miss it at Dover. During green-flag stops, you’re going so fast that it’s hard to get slowed down and get out of the way. The apron gets pretty slippery too. Getting on and off pit road at Dover tends to get a little dicey.”
