PREVIEW: CASEY MEARS (NO. 5 CARQUEST/KELLOGG'S CHEVROLET)
VENUE: RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY (.75-MILE D-SHAPED OVAL)
CIRCUIT: NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES (RACE 10 OF 36)
EVENT: MAY 3, 2008 (400 LAPS, 300 MILES)

NO. 5 TEAM AT RICHMOND: Under the direction of crew chief Alan Gustafson, the No. 5 Chevrolet of Hendrick Motorsports has earned five top-five finishes in the last six NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway. Gustafson's team placed second after leading 248 laps in September 2006 and followed that outing with another runner-up finish at the track in May 2007.

MEARS AT RICHMOND: Casey Mears, driver of the No. 5 CARQUEST/Kellogg's Chevy, led six laps in last September's Sprint Cup race at Richmond before finishing 17th in a Hendrick Motorsports Impala SS. Mears recorded his career-best RIR finish of 11th in September 2006.

SHORT TRACK PERFORMANCE: While Mears historically has earned his best finishes at intermediate tracks, it's his short track performances thus far in 2008 that have shined. Mears finished a season-high seventh at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway in April and narrowly missed the top 10 with an 11th-place finish at Phoenix International Raceway last month.

POINTS PROGRESS: Five races ago, the No. 5 Chevrolet team was in jeopardy of falling out of the top 35 in Cup Series championship points. Mears was ranked 33rd in the standings, 227 points out of making the Chase for the Sprint Cup, but has since posted two top-10 finishes to climb nine positions. Mears now sits 24th in the current standings, just 142 points out of making the Chase. At this time in the 2007 season, Mears ranked 35th in driver points. He rebounded to finish 15th in the final standings.

TURNING UP TESTING: Hendrick Motorsports will spend Tuesday and Wednesday of this week testing at Nashville (Tenn.) Superspeedway. All four teams will test, debrief and share information throughout the two-day session at the 1.33-mile track. Next week, all four teams will test at Lowe's Motor Speedway. The No. 5 team will spend May 14 at Virginia International Raceway.

RICHMOND CHASSIS: Gustafson has chosen Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 464 for Saturday's race at Richmond. Chassis 464 has been raced at Phoenix International Raceway, New Hampshire Motor Speedway and Martinsville Speedway in previous years.

HENDRICK AT RICHMOND: In 48 races at Richmond, Rick Hendrick's teams have combined all-time for nine wins, 40 top-five finishes and 70 top-10s. Jimmie Johnson, driver of the No. 48 Chevrolet, swept the track in 2007. He also claimed the fall pole position, while teammate Jeff Gordon took the May pole at Richmond. Hendrick drivers have finished outside of the top-10 just four times in the 48 events that have been held at the short track since 1984.

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AUTOGRAPHS: Casey Mears will greet fans and sign autographs at the Kellogg's/CARQUEST trackside souvenir trailer at 3:30 p.m. local time on Saturday.

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CASEY MEARS, DRIVER, NO. 5 CARQUEST/KELLOGG'S CHEVROLET (ON THE TEAM'S RECENT SURGE IN THE STANDINGS.): "I know this team is strong enough to make the Chase. We needed a rebound from the first few races. The DNF at Daytona hurt us, but having another one the following week at California really put us in a hole. We've had to dig ourselves out ever since then. The top-10 at Talladega was important for us. It was another spot up in the standings, and as long as we're moving up then we're accomplishing something. I know that I haven't given up on the Chase, and the Kellogg's/CARQUEST team hasn't either."

MEARS (ON TESTING.): "I'm really looking forward to our upcoming test sessions. Especially the one in Nashville this week. I think it says something about how committed Hendrick Motorsports is to excellence to have all four of our teams go out to test, and have Rick (Hendrick) there for support as well. It just says a lot about how bad Hendrick Motorsports wants to win. We'll all get together throughout the two days and share notes, discuss setups, etc. I'm really hoping this helps our intermediate program. We struggled at Texas earlier and none of us wants to do that again. Hopefully we leave Nashville on Wednesday with some good stuff."

ALAN GUSTAFSON, CREW CHIEF, NO. 5 CARQUEST/KELLOGG'S CHEVROLET (ON HIS TEAM'S SUCCESS AT RICHMOND.): "Personally, Richmond is my favorite racetrack. The track is wide enough to allow a lot of passing, so if your car is fast, you're going to pass cars and get to the front. If the handling is off a little bit, the amount of raceable grooves really allows the driver to try out different lines and see what works for him and the car. There's just a lot of opportunity at this track. I look forward to going there every time."

GUSTAFSON (ON IMPROVING THE TEAM'S POINTS STANDING.): "I don't think we're the only team out there that's point racing. Points racing is just part of the sport. It's one of the things in NASCAR that determines success or failure. For the Kellogg's/CARQUEST team, we need to focus on racing better, improving our cars and our finishes week to week. The Chase is not out of the question for this team, but we have no margin for error. I think that the team has dramatically improved from the start of the season, but we have a long way to go. I know the guys really well, and I know that all of us are up to the challenge."

GUSTAFSON (ON TESTING AT NASHVILLE.): "We basically look at what the car goes through in a lap. What kind of loads there are. Speeds. Accelerations. In Nashville it's a little different, a little slower. But you're still on a racetrack, in a race car on Goodyear tires. So, that's a positive thing. We can make the comparisons. The less you can leave to interpretation the better off you'll be."