Reed Sorenson
Brickyard Advance
Race: Brickyard 400, July 29th
Track: Indianapolis Motor Speedway (2.5-mile oval)
Location: Indianapolis, Ind.
Reed Sorenson and the No. 41 Target Dodge Team Facts:
Seeing Double: Celebrating an 18-year partnership and rich racing history together that includes a win (2000, Montoya-IRL) and a pole (2004, Mears-NNCS) at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS), Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates will be running two Target Dodges in the Brickyard 400. Sorenson and the No. 41 crew will be sporting their usual paint scheme, while David Stremme and the No. 40 team will run the exact opposite color scheme.
Record-Breaking Ride: The Target team will be using the same chassis (#402) that Casey Mears used to break, and still holds, the track record with at IMS on Aug. 7, 2004. He turned a lap of 48.311 secs/186.293 mph. He scored the pole at Pocono Raceway with the same chassis the week prior. Sorenson has not raced the car this season, but he ran it twice in 2006 finishing inside of the top 10 both times (Chicagoland – seventh, Michigan – eighth).
Sorenson Wins at Gateway: Sorenson snapped a 61-race winless streak by capturing the victory in the NASCAR Busch Series race at Gateway International Raceway on Sat., July 21. Sorenson’s last victory in the series came at the track in 2005.
Indiana Hoosier: Target team mechanic and rear tire changer Jason Sheets hails from Indianapolis. He has been with CGRFS for 3½ years and previously worked for Andy Petree Racing. Sheets’ brother Tim aka “Pop Tart” also works in the NEXTEL Cup Series changing front tires for the No. 43 car.
Six Wins in 30 Days: Chip Ganassi Racing Teams, Inc. (CGR) recorded six wins over the past 30 days in NASCAR NEXTEL Cup, Busch, IndyCar and Grand-Am Series competition. Starting with Juan Pablo Montoya’s historic NEXTEL Cup Series win at Infineon Raceway on June 24, CGR Teams have gone on to win three-consecutive IndyCar races with Scott Dixon (Watkins Glen – July 8, Nashville – July 15, Mid-Ohio – July 22), a Grand-Am race with Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas at Iowa on July 15 and a NASCAR Busch Series event with Reed Sorenson at Gateway International Raceway on July 21. This is the organizations best stretch since its inception (1990-2007).
Lauletta Joins CGRFS: On Tues., July 17 CGRFS announced Steve “Jake” Lauletta as its president, overseeing all aspects of Ganassi Racing’s business and marketing operations including both its Concord and Indianapolis facilities. Prior to joining CGRFS Lauletta enjoyed a successful 11-year career at Miller Brewing Company and most recently served as president of Radiate Sports, the sports marketing division of Omnicom’s The Radiate Group.
Points Update: The Target team is currently 28th in the overall NEXTEL Cup Series standings. The team is 51 points out of 25th and 217 outside of the top 20.
Be Sure to Tune In: The Brickyard 400 is set to go green at 2 p.m. ET and will air live on ESPN, IMS Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio channel 128.
