FEDEX RACING EXPRESS FACTS
CHICAGOLAND SPEEDWAY

RACE INFO:
Event: USG Sheetrock 400
Date/Time: July 15, 2007 / 3 p.m. ET
Length: 1.5 miles
Shape: D-Shaped Oval
Banking: 18 degrees
Distance: 267 laps/400.5 miles
2006 winner: Jeff Gordon
2006 polesitter: Jeff Burton

EXPRESS NOTES:
Disappointment at Daytona: Despite leading laps for the fifth consecutive race Denny Hamlin and the #11 FedEx team left Daytona disappointed with a 43rd-place finish following a lap 14 incident with teammate Tony Stewart. It was Hamlin’s lowest career Nextel Cup finish and only the third time he has finished off the lead lap in 2007. The finish sees the gap between Hamlin and points leader Jeff Gordon stretch to 277 points.

“It was a frustrating night for this team but looking at the big picture it didn’t hurt us too bad,” said Hamlin. “We had a good car and led some laps, but I guess it wasn’t meant to be. Tough to go out at all, but with a teammate it’s worse because it affects everyone at JGR and I hate it for the teams and guys at the shop. Doesn’t really matter how or why it happened and there is no use pointing fingers. It’s behind us now, we’ll get back to do what this team does best, run consistently each weekend.”

Wear Your Heart on Your Helmet at Chicago: Hamlin will be sporting a helmet designed for him by patients at Children’s Memorial Hospital of Chicago when he takes to the track this weekend at Chicagoland Speedway. Hamlin will visit the hospital on Thursday, July 12 to meet with patients and staff, be presented with the special helmet and deliver a donation from FedEx in the amount of $25,000. Hamlin also will race R/C cars with the patients, and all of the patients will have an opportunity to design their own mini-FedEx Racing helmet.

The helmet presented to Hamlin this week will be the sixth of eleven helmets designed by children’s hospital patients and children granted wishes through the Make-A-Wish program as part of the 2007 FedEx “Wear Your Heart on Your Helmet” program. All eleven race-worn helmets will be displayed and auctioned off at the end of the season to benefit the Victory Junction Gang Camp.

Hamlin at Chicagoland: This weekend will mark Hamlin’s second Cup start at Chicagoland Speedway. Hamlin posted 14th-place finish at Chicagoland last season when a loose wheel forced him a lap down late in the race. In two Busch Series starts at Chicagoland, Hamlin has recorded finishes of 14th and 15th, respectively.

Daytona Chassis – JGR 183 and 137: JGR Chassis 183 will make its second start this weekend at Chicagoland. It’s a new car for 2007 that performed extremely well at Michigan, but Hamlin had to settle for a 14th-place finish at Michigan after a pit road incident forced him to drive forward from deep in the field. Back up car JGR 137 has five Cup starts, including finishes of 11th (Fontana) and 19th (Atlanta) this season.

QUOTES
Hamlin on Chicagoland Speedway: “Chicagoland is a great race track. It's a track that has worn better over time than most. As drivers we definitely like a race track where you can move around and Chicago is starting to be more and more like one of those race tracks. If I remember right I think we were running right on the wall a few years ago at that track and it was kind of unheard of. It's great that we get to go back to a track that's aged and nothing's changed and we know what we’re going to have when we get there. Track position is always crucial here. You need to get forward pretty fast and be really good on pit road here because every position matters. Little mistakes can really hurt you. You have to take advantage of the chances you get to pass but you can normally find a place where your car works so you can pass anywhere if your car is better. If you car is handling well you can get good runs there, that’s why the racing is so fun.

Chicago is a good example how different the intermediate tracks can be. They always seem get lumped together because of the distance but they all have different characteristics and that is what’s makes them challenging for the teams. Each one of these intermediate tracks requires something different from the car, so the guys at the shop work to set these cars up for specific characteristics.”