CAT RACING EVENT PREVIEW
LOWE’S MOTOR SPEEDWAY
COCA-COLA 600
Track: Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. (1.5-mile oval)
Race: Coca-Cola 600 Date: 05.28.06
LOWE’S MOTOR SPEEDWAY NEWS AND NOTES
Coca-Cola 600 Car…The #22 Caterpillar car Dave Blaney is scheduled to drive this weekend in the Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway is chassis No. 65. The team was satisfied with the way the car handled in race trim last week during the NEXTEL Open and made the decision to bring the same car back this weekend.
Backhoe Beauty…The Caterpillar #22 car will sport a special paint scheme for the Coca-Cola 600 this weekend. It will feature the new Caterpillar E-Series Backhoe Loaders. Three models from the Backhoe Loader Line have been updated, including the 416E, 420E and 430E. The newly styled Cat 416E Backhoe Loader has been worked into the design of Bill Davis's #22 car for the Sunday night race. To learn more about all the features of the new Caterpillar E-Series Backhoe Loaders, visit www.CAT.com.
All-Star Race Rewind…Blaney’s 23rd-place starting spot for the NASCAR NEXTEL Open was too far back in the field for him to pilot the Caterpillar car to the front of the field in the 30-lap sprint, but the car ran well during the event and Blaney finished in 15th.
Keeping the Streak Alive…Blaney’s 27th-place finish in Darlington two weeks ago adds to his streak of races without a DNF. Blaney has been running at the end of 29 consecutive races, the longest current streak in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series.
Blaney’s Career Stats …Blaney will make his 211th career NEXTEL Cup Series start when the green flag waves Sunday evening. He made his first career NASCAR Cup Series start in October 1992 at [Rockingham] North Carolina Speedway and after experiencing engine problems finished 40th after qualifying in 30th in his first Cup Series start at Lowe’s in 2000. Like this weekend, Blaney was aboard a Bill Davis Racing-owned machine.
History at Lowe’s…Blaney has made 12 starts on the 1.5-mile Concord, N.C. track, starting as high as 8th (2003) and posting a top-10 in 2002. Blaney fared even better during his Busch Series days earning the pole position twice (1998 and 2000) and starting inside the top-10 five times.
BDR at LMS…Competitors driving Bill Davis Racing-owned cars have been racing at Lowe’s Motor Speedway since 1993 and have made 35 starts. Those drivers have posted three top-five finishes and 11 top-10 efforts and combined have led a total of 167 laps.
Double Duty Dave…Blaney is scheduled to make his debut for Braun Racing in the Busch Series this weekend driving the No. 32 machine in Saturday evening’s event.
Get There Early…Blaney is scheduled to sign autographs at the Caterpillar merchandise trailer beginning at 2:30 p.m. Saturday afternoon. Check with the merchandise trailer for updates and more information.
Lowe’s Broadcasts…Qualifying for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Coca-Cola 600 is scheduled to start at 7:10 p.m. EDT Thursday, May 25. The 400-lap (600 miles) event is scheduled to start at 5:30 p.m. EDT Sunday, May 28, and will broadcast LIVE on FOX (TV), PRN and XM Satellite Radio Channel 144.
Dave Blaney on the 600…
“Our car was much better in race trim than it was in qualifying trim last week for the Open, so I think if we would have had a longer race, like we will this week, we would have had a better chance at finishing up front. We were good on the bottom but couldn’t really pass anyone because the car was tight on the high side and we just ran out of time. The good news is, just like everyone else, we’ve got a little bit better idea of how our car is going to react on the new surface especially with these new tires. Obviously, and you could see this last week, the key is to be to be around at the end, a small task any year during the 600, but as tricky as this track has become on these tires, it’s really going to take more effort than normal to be there at the end of 600 miles. There will be some interesting decisions to be made during the race too since we’ll have to stop for fuel more often than we’ll need to change tires. It was good to be able to get a little bit of racing in last week before we embark on 600 miles. Everyone is really going to have to be on top of his game in order to make sure to be there at the end.”
