Carl Edwards Advance
Phoenix International Raceway
November 11th-13th Nextel Cup Series
Checker Auto Parts 500k, Sunday 3:40
Carl Edwards
Team: No. 99 Roush Racing Ford Taurus
Crew Chief: Bob Osborne
Chassis Number: RK-270 (won at Atlanta in the spring)
Edwards on racing at Phoenix International Raceway:
“It’s always fun to go to Phoenix. I ran my first pavement race there back in 2001 when I ran in the Copper World Classic. The track itself is a complex shape and has variations in the banking and radii that make it a lot of fun. We came from two laps down there in the spring to finish seventh so I know we have ability to run well. The last two weeks have been awesome and our goals have definitely evolved throughout the year. My primary focus right now is to win this championship. Both Tony and Jimmie will be tough to beat but this Office Depot team isn’t out of contention just yet. We’re going to do everything we can to go out there and run up front and try to win this thing."
Crew Chief Bob Osborne on racing at Phoenix International Raceway:
“Phoenix is a unique track. It essentially has three straight-aways and is shape that’s different from any other track we race at. We are taking RK-270 this week which has been a great car for us this year. We’ve had a lot of success the last two weeks so we want to keep that momentum going forward. I think the No. 20 and No. 48 will be tough to beat but it’s not out of the question. I think Carl has shown that he has the ability to win races and run up front all year. As long as we can continue to give him fast race cars, I think we might still be in the hunt at the end of this thing.”
Fast Facts
After last week’s win at Texas, Carl Edwards moved up one spot in the overall point standings to third. Edwards, who has 6,178 points, sits just 77 points away from first place Tony Stewart. Edwards is just 39 points back from second place Jimmie Johnson.
With Edwards’s back-to-back wins at Atlanta and Texas, he is now tied with Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon with four wins each in 2005. Only Biffle and Tony Stewart have more, with five each.
At Phoenix in the spring, Edwards came from two laps down to finish seventh, his best Cup finish there.
Four short years ago Edwards made his pavement debut at PIR in the 2001 Copper World Classic.
