BUSCH WILL BE “EXTRA PREPARED” FOR SUNDAY’S WATKINS GLEN RACE
Miller Lite Dodge Driver Pulling “Double-Duty” Again This Weekend On New York Road Course

WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. (Aug. 8, 2006) – No other team in motorsports is better known for their preparation for competition than Penske Racing. As a matter of fact, the credo long associated with teams owned by Roger Penske has been “effort equals results.”

A supreme example of “Penske Preparation Philosophy” can be found in the groundwork laid by Kurt Busch and his Roy McCauley-led Miller Lite Dodge team entering this weekend’s NASCAR NEXTEL Cup race at Watkins Glen International.

Busch, the 2004 NEXTEL Cup champ, could be found on Monday afternoon at the 2.3-mile Carolina Motorsports Park road course in Kershaw, S.C., shaking down the team’s brand new NBS car, the PBC-009 Chassis No. 39 Penske Truck Rental Dodge.

It was all part of a plan the team devised last December, according to crew chief McCauley.

“In one of our very first conversations with Kurt when our team was coming together last December, we asked him if he thought he had any weak tracks on the schedule,” said McCauley, who has done a masterful job in his rookie season as a NASCAR NEXTEL Cup team leader. “He thought about it and almost immediately pointed to Watkins Glen.

“From that moment on, we’ve had a bull’s-eye on the upcoming weekend’s race at the Glen,” McCauley said. “We looked at it as a challenge to get Kurt as prepared as possible for this Sunday’s race. No bones about it, that’s the biggest reason he’ll be racing the 39 car (Penske Truck Rental Dodge) there on Saturday.

“If you ask me, I’ve seen no weak links in Kurt Busch as a driver -- not even on the road courses,” said McCauley. “You saw what he could do out at Sonoma (Infineon Raceway) and we feel that he can be just as strong this weekend at Watkins Glen. But, if he thinks he needs to get better at any track, rest assured that we’re going to utilize every resource we can to help him do so.

Busch put his Miller Lite Dodge on the pole for June’s Dodge/Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway and he finished fifth. He led the first 29 laps and ran among the top five cars the entire race. The 110-lap race around that 1.99-mile road course came down to track position, fuel economy and execution in the pits. Jeff Gordon had the dominant machine and he came home the winner. Ryan Newman emerged from the final green-flag pit stops ahead of Busch and he claimed the runner-up spot. Terry Labonte stretched his fuel mileage to claim the third spot and Greg Biffle, who also gained track position during the final round of stops, finished fourth.

The Watkins Glen road course has historically not been as kind to Busch as has the California track. His Watkins Glen career Cup record sports one top-10 finish in five starts. His best start was fifth in last year’s visit to the sprawling New York road course and his best finish, a 10th, came in the 2004 race. Overall, he has an 11.4 average start and a 26.2 average finish at the Glen. He also competed in one Craftsman Truck Series race there, starting seventh and finishing second on June 24, 2000.

But according to McCauley, Busch’s participation in Saturday’s Zippo 200 will carry more benefits than just allowing his driver additional track time.

“Watkins Glen is unlike Sears Point (Infineon) or any other track in that you pit the car backwards from normal,” McCauley explained. “You gas the car on the right side, so your tire changing procedure goes from left to right instead of the other way around. That’s unique in our sport and will be the reason we use our Cup guys in pitting the car there on Saturday. It will give them additional practice for Sunday’s race.

“Then you have to look at all the similarities between Saturday and Sunday,” McCauley continued. “The downforce difference between the two cars is not as significant at Watkins Glen as it is elsewhere. We can actually work with the No. 39 car on Friday and Saturday and learn things about shock packages and tire pressures that we can apply to our Miller Lite Dodge for Sunday’s Cup race.”

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This weekend’s schedule at Watkins Glen calls for Cup practice on Friday from 11:35 a.m. till 1:05 p.m., followed by NBS practice from 1:15 p.m. till 2:30 p.m. Cup qualifying is scheduled for 3:10 p.m. (live on Speed Channel) and is followed by the final practice for Saturday’s race at approximately 5:30 p.m. Saturday’s schedule calls for Cup practice sessions from 8:30 a.m. till 9:30 a.m. and from 10:05 a.m. till 10:50 a.m. (live on Speed). Qualifying for the Zippo 200 is set for 11:05 a.m. (NASCAR road race format live on Speed), with that 82-lap, 200.9-mile battle getting the green flag at 2:10 p.m. Sunday’s NEXTEL Cup race (90 laps, 220.5 miles) has a 1:35 p.m. EDT starting time. NBC-TV and MRN Radio will provide live coverage of both races.

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Notes of interest:

-- Miller Lite Dodge driver Kurt Busch is back to “double-duty” again this week on the Watkins Glen, N.Y., road course. He will compete in Saturday’s Zippo 200 NBS race, in addition to Sunday’s 90-lap battle around the 2.45-mile layout for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup cars. For KB and his Roy McCauley-led Penske Racing South team, the Zippo 200 is much more than just another race – it’s part of a team “plan” that was developed long before the start of the 2006 season.

-- KB will attempt to continue his impressive foray into 2006 NBS competition this weekend in Saturday’s Zippo 200. After winning in his NBS debut at Texas Motor Speedway on April 8, KB has continued to amount extremely impressive Saturday statistics. Entering this weekend’s race at Watkins Glen International, his five 2006 starts have produced the win, four top-five finishes and five top-10s. His sixth at Chicago last month rates as his only finish out of the top five. He has an unbelievable 3.2 average finish entering this weekend. He has led laps in every race, led the most laps in the Chicago event and has led 22.3 percent of all laps possible.

-- KB, Roy and crew will be racing their PRS-094 Miller Lite Dodge again at Watkins Glen International. The “94 car” is the same “weapon” the team raced at Infineon Raceway back in June. That weekend, Busch claimed his first career road race pole and led 29 laps en route to a fifth-place finish.

-- KB’s Watkins Glen career Cup record sports one top-10 finish in five starts. His best start was fifth in last year’s visit to the sprawling New York road course and his best finish, a 10th, came in the 2004 race. Overall, he has an 11.4 average start and a 26.2 average finish at the Glen. He also competed in one Craftsman Truck Series race there, starting seventh and finishing second on June 24, 2000.

-- KB will be debuting a brand new PBC-009 Chassis No. 39 Penske Truck Rental Dodge in Saturday’s Zippo 200 NBS race. The team shook the new car down on Monday at the 2.3-mile Carolina Motorsports Park road course in Kershaw, S.C.

-- KB’s top-level qualifying prowess continued last weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Even faced with the disadvantage of qualifying 25th of 50 drivers, he still was only .007 off of Jeff Burton’s pole speed and grabbed the third starting spot. His Indy qualifying history entering last weekend’s race wasn’t too promising. He had qualified in the top 10 in only one of five races and had started 34th or worse in three of the races. His average start was 26.0 at Indy. But, that was then…and this is now. His 8.762 starting average rates as the best in the sport. “Professor Friday” has won two poles (California & Infineon) this season and has qualified in the top-10 in 15 of the 21 races. He has yet to qualify outside the top-20.

“It’s a credit to Penske Racing, their great engines, cars and team personnel,” said KB. “Penske cars have always been known for starting up front. Our qualifying effort has certainly been a big bright spot for us this season.”

-- KB’s 12th-place finish at Indy sees him maintain the 13th spot in the NEXTEL Cup point standings and has him within 174 points of eligibility in making the Chase for 2006. With five races remaining to determine the 2006 Chase lineup, KB has 2,438 points and is currently 174 points behind 10th-place Dale Earnhardt Jr. He trails 11th-place Kasey Kahne by 137 points and is 59 points behind 12th-place Greg Biffle. He holds a 58-point advantage over 14th-place Carl Edwards.

-- “Our scientific power has outrun our spiritual power. We have guided missiles and misguided men.” –Martin Luther King Jr.