FEDEX RACING EXPRESS FACTS
WATKINS GLEN INTERNATIONAL

RACE INFO:
Event: Centurion Boats at the Glen
Date/Time: Aug. 12, 2007 / 1 p.m. ET
Shape: Road Course/ 11-turns
Distance: 2.45 miles
2006 winner: Kevin Harvick
2006 polesitter: Kurt Busch

EXPRESS NOTES:
Hamlin at Watkins Glen: This will be Denny Hamlin’s second start at Watkins Glen in a NASCAR NEXTEL Cup car. Last season Hamlin started and finished tenth at the 2.45-mile track in his debut, but ran in the top-five for much of the day. In the end, Hamlin fell victim to track position and was forced to restart back in the field through a combination of cautions and pit strategy. Dropping as far as back as 20th-place with less than thirty laps to go, Hamlin pushed the #11 forward to grab a tenth-place finish on the final lap.

“Road course races always seem to be decided by fuel mileage and some luck and that was the case at Watkins Glen last season,” said Hamlin. “So much is determined by where you are when the cautions come out. You do what you can to make the right decision for your car and your team but you can’t control what the other 42 cars are doing. Last year, we had to pit for fuel and tires and we got caught by a caution. We had to race our way back into the top ten at the end but it would have been nice to race the leaders. I felt like we had a car that could run with them.”

Watkins Glen Chassis – JGR 176 and JGR 181: Car of Tomorrow chassis 176 will make its second start of the season this coming weekend at Watkins Glen. Hamlin started this car from the 36th spot on the grid at Sonoma and drove it into the top-ten by the end of the race. The car performed very well, leading three laps on the day, and the #11 team looked to have the fuel mileage figured perfectly for a top-five finish. As it turned out, several teams gambled, and won, on fuel mileage at the end leaving the #11 team to settle for tenth on the day. Chassis 181 also served as the back up at Sonoma.

Hamlin Third at Pocono, Second in Points: With a pedigree that includes two wins in three starts, the FedEx team saw Pocono Raceway as the ideal opportunity to regain the momentum that catapulted them to second place in the standings. On a day when it seemed everyone was racing for second place, Hamlin and team combined for a good day both on the track and in the pits and it added up to a third-place finish for the #11.

FedEx Express Fact: Watkins Glen is the only track on the Nextel Cup schedule that Hamlin has visited only once in a Cup car.

Double Duty at the Glen: After passing on the opportunity to run at Montreal last weekend in favor of focusing solely on the Cup race at Pocono Raceway, Hamlin returns to his Busch seat this weekend at Watkins Glen.

QUOTES:
Hamlin on Road Course Racing in NASCAR: “I think it definitely has a place on the schedule. The way I look at it, we are out there trying to win a championship, to claim that we are the best in this series. To be able to do that, you need to prove that you and your team can run competitively on a variety of tracks. Look at the Cup Series and you’ll see a number of drivers who are really good on these courses and take a lot of pride in that fact. Even though we only race them twice a season, it challenges us all to show we can run more than ovals. Personally, I like going to road courses. I’ve had some success in the Busch Series and some good runs in the Cup Series. I enjoy the technical part of it; it forces you to approach the whole weekend differently. You are still trying to set up the car to handle the turns, carry momentum and be able to drive off the turns the same as an oval, but you are finding the middle ground for the whole track – in the case of Watkins Glen, eleven different turns. That’s a big challenge for the crew but JGR puts a lot of work into our road course program. Tony has set the bar high through his success and we are all trying to keep it up.”

Hamlin on Racing at Watkins Glen: “The first thing that jumps out is the fact that compared to Sonoma, the Glen is certainly faster and not as technical. At Sonoma there is more braking, more shifting and the speeds are down. At the Glen, speeds are up. You are coming off the corners and are right on the throttle where at Sonoma it seems you are always looking for grip and have to be a little more cautious. Like Sonoma, you are also dealing with fuel strategy. You’ll see guys coming in right away to take fuel to set themselves up for the end, while others wait. It really comes down to hoping you are in the right place when the caution comes.

On the Car of Tomorrow: “The COT performed well at Sonoma. In our test we tended to carry the front tire off the turn and back to the throttle and that was the case in the race as well, though not quite as bad. Like any road course you’re doing what you can to take care of the brakes and transmission. Running faster at Watkins Glen, I am sure the car will be more aero sensitive that it was at Sonoma but I don’t expect any problems.”