Race 2 Win: Sprint Cup Series Race Notes

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Samsung 500 - Dodge Motorsports Notes & Quotes

Dodge Motorsports Notes & Quotes
Samsung 500 at Texas Motor Speedway

Sunday, April 6, 2008
Texas Motor Speedway
Samsung 500

THE DODGE BOYS

Ryan Newman won the 50th running of the Daytona 500. He is the second Dodge driver to win The Great American Race since Dodge returned to NASCAR’s premier series in 2001. Ward Burton won in 2002 in a Dodge Intrepid.

Chad McCumbee will drive the No. 45 Marathon American Spirit Motor Oil Dodge (normally driven by Kyle Petty) this weekend. McCumbee competed in two Sprint Cup Series races for Petty Enterprises last year. His best finish was a 25th at the Pocono spring event.

Juan Pablo Montoya has put together five straight top-20 finishes in the No. 42 Dodge Charger with each an improvement over the previous race. He finished 13th at Martinsville, best among the Dodge drivers.

DODGE AT TEXAS

Dodge has two wins at Texas. Ryan Newman was the 2003 winner while Kasey Kahne took the victory at the spring event in 2006. Kahne had a series-high six wins that season.

Kurt Busch has seven top-10 finishes in 10 starts at Texas. He has the fifth best driver rating at TMS (compiled from six races from 2005-2007).

Both Bobby Labonte and Ryan Newman have started from the pole twice. Newman swept the pole for both events in 2005. Labonte was the pole winner in 2003 and 2004 when the track hosted only one race each year.

Bill Elliott put the No. 9 Dodge Dealers Dodge from Evernham Motorsports on the pole for the 2002 event and finished ninth.

Elliott Sadler had a win at Texas before he joined the Dodge Motorsports family. He was the 2004 winner, the final year for one race at the .1.5-mile track. He edged out Kasey Kahne, now his teammate, for the win. Kahne led 148 laps that day. He had 13 top-five finishes during the season.

Kasey Kahne is the only driver to win from the pole in 14 races at TMS. He accomplished the fete in 2006.

DODGE ROOKIE CONTENDERS

Dario Franchitti – The reigning Indianapolis 500 and IndyCar Series champion has his best NASCAR Sprint Cup Series finish (22nd) of the season at Martinsville in the No. 40 Dodge Charger from Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates. Franchitti is outside the top 35 in owner points and not guaranteed a starting spot at Texas. He must qualify for the race on speed for the second consecutive week.

Sam Hornish Jr. – The three-time IndyCar Series champion and 2006 Indy 500 winner had 15 IndyCar Series starts at Texas with three wins, seven top-five and eight top-10 finishes. He will be looking for that experience to pay dividends as he is outside the top 35 in owner points and must qualify for the race on speed.

Patrick Carpentier – The driver of the No. 10 Dodge Charger is also in a must-qualify on speed situation. Carpentier finished 29th at Martinsville.

ROOKIE STANDINGS

Dario Franchitti is tied for the top spot in the Raybestos Rookies of the Year standings with Regan Smith. Both have 60 points.

TEXAS TRACK FACTS

Construction on Texas Motor Speedway began in 1995 and the first NASCAR race at the 1.5-mile facility was a Nationwide Series event in April, 1997.

The original track configuration had a dual banking system with 24 degrees of banking for stock cars and eight degrees for open-wheel cars. The dual banking was eliminated in 1998, giving the track its current configuration.

DID YOU KNOW?

There have been 23 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races in the state of Texas – 14 at Texas Motor Speedway, eight at Texas World Speedway and one at Meyer Speedway (Houston). Dodge has visited victory lane six times (twice at TMS, three times at TWS and at Meyer Speedway). Bobby Allison was the winner at Meyer Speedway (1971) while Bobby Isaac (1969), Buddy Baker (1972) and Richard Petty (1973) were the Dodge winners at TWS, a two-mile track in College Station.

111 drivers have competed in Sprint Cup Series races in Texas with 89 competing in more than one race.

Kasey Kahne has 287 quality passes (passes of cars in the top 15 under green) this season, fourth best among drivers. He has four top-10 finishes, best among Dodge drivers.

Quotes of the Week:
“Chad McCumbee is going to step into the No. 45 Marathon American Spirit Motor Oil Dodge this weekend at Texas. Texas is a good track for him. He had a strong run going in the truck race there last year. At Pocono, he did a great job filling in for me when I went into the booth. Everyone at Petty Enterprises believes in Chad and his abilities. Texas gives us a chance to get another good look at Chad without throwing him to the wolves. He should be relaxed because he knows he can get the job done there.”
KYLE PETTY
Petty Enterprises

“I feel comfortable around the No. 45 team. Billy Wilburn and I work well together. We had a great race last year at Pocono. I’m hoping for more of the same this weekend. Kyle is going to be there, giving me advice and pointers. That means a lot to me. I’ve learned a lot from him already.”
Chad McCumbee
No. 45 Marathon American Spirit Motor Oil Dodge

“I enjoy racing at Texas Motor Speedway and have done very well there in the IndyCar Series with wins and poles. Even though I know the track at Texas, there are differences between Indy Cars and stock cars. Understanding what the car is doing and what it needs to be better is the most important thing. We have been improving our intermediate program with each race and I am confident what we will qualify and run strong at Texas”.
Sam Hornish Jr.
No. 77 Mobil 1 Dodge Charger