Menard Ready for Watkins Glen Double Duty

Mooresville, NC – Paul Menard has become increasingly comfortable at Watkins Glen International, the 11-turn 2.45-mile road course in upstate New York. Menard will further solidify his on track talents at The Glen when he pilots the No. 11 Menards Chevrolet in the Zippo 200 and the No. 15 Menards Chevrolet in the AMD at the Glen. The weekend racing action marks Menard’s second NASCAR Busch Series start at the track and his third in NASCAR Nextel Cup Series competition.

Menard, who holds the honor of highest ranked NASCAR Busch Series’ regular (sixth-place), finished eighth in last year’s Zippo 200. It was the first time the series’ had raced at Watkins Glen International since 2001. Menard, however, had made his NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series debut at the track back in 2003. He qualified 43rd, but finished 29th, quietly earning a reputation as a road racing enthusiast.

Menard made his second NASCAR NEXTEL Cup start there the day after his NASCAR Busch Series debut last year, qualifying 42nd and finishing 27th.

Menard is entered for double duty at The Glen again this weekend, where he will attempt to qualify for DEI in Sunday’s race. He is the only NASCAR Busch Series regular entered in that field.

“It’s going to be a busy weekend running both races at The Glen, but I feel like we’re definitely up for the challenge,” Menard said. “Our focus is the NASCAR Busch Series race because we need another top finish to keep our climb in the point standings going.

“But driving the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup car is going to be fun. Having raced a Cup car at The Glen twice now, I feel like it’s reasonable to hope for a top-15 finish in Sunday’s race.”

Menard has gone through a range of results since posting his first career win at the Milwaukee Mile two months ago. The win was followed by a 37th place finish at Daytona and a season-worst 39th at Chicago due to an accident. But with 11 top ten finishes to date, he’s upbeat about his chances at The Glen.

“We had a really good test at VIR (Virginia International Raceway) just before heading to Indianapolis and I think we’ve got the equipment to get it done this weekend,” he said. “We learned quite a bit from Mexico (where he finished fifth), which will help us this weekend, too.

“Obviously, we’d like to get win number two for Menards and it’s a definite possibility; it could happen this weekend.”

Menard’s other competitive showing on a road course this year, came in Mexico City, where Menard started the 80-lap event in tenth and went on to finish an impressive fifth place.

NASCAR Loop Statistics on Paul Menard:
Paul Menard’s second career series start at Watkins Glen last year showed his penchant for patience and mastery of the final three turns at the 2.45-mile road course. NASCAR’s Loop Data statistics from last year’s race – where Menard was eighth – were most telling in the final turns where he built his 109.9 Driver Rating, 11th overall and best among NASCAR Busch Series regulars in the race. In the Fastest Drivers Early in a Run category, Menard was 31st (113.545 mph), but improved to ninth among Fastest Drivers Late in a Run (117.892). He recorded his best speeds in the Late in a Run category in Turns 9 (second), 10 (fourth) and 11 (eighth), and also was third-fastest on the third and final straightway. Likewise, he was 31st in Passes by Turn Number in Turns 1-8, but jumped to ninth in Turns 9-11. His five Green Flag Passes on Turn 11 represented his highest total throughout the course.