Race: Tums Fast Relief 500 on Sunday, Oct. 24
Track: Martinsville Speedway (0.526-mile oval)
Location: Martinsville, Va.
Earnhardt Ganassi Media Contacts at Martinsville Speedway
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS)
Jarrod England No. 1 Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Boats Chevrolet
Shayna Keller No. 42 Target Chevrolet
NOTES
Jamie McMurray and No. 1 Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Boats Team
Martinsville and McMurray: McMurray has 15 starts at the Martinsville Speedway, with three starts from the outside pole all occurring during the Spring NSCS events at Martinsville. In his 15 starts at the paper-clip shaped oval, McMurray has brought home nine top-10 finishes, including a best finish of second in 2004. McMurray has only one DNF at the challenging half-mile which came during his first Martinsville race when his day ended with a blown engine.
Charlotte Winner Recap: Jamie McMurray and the No.1 Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Boats Team continued to add to their already impressive 2010 resume by bringing home their third victory of 2010 in this past Saturday night’s Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. McMurray, who shocked the racing world by winning this same race in his first NSCS start for team owner Chip Ganassi while filling in for an injured Sterling Marlin in 2002, did just the same for his owner by winning the same race for Ganassi in his first year back with the organization, eight years and three days later.
Continuing Consistency: The No. 1 Team’s victory at Charlotte helped to continue their impressive trend over the last 13 races, which includes two victories (Indy & Charlotte), two poles (Chicago and Fontana), eight top-10 starting positions, five top-five, six top-10, and nine top-15 finishes. The team also carries an average start of 11th and average finish of ninth after the last 13 races dating back to Chicagoland in mid-July. Since the mid-point of the season (Chicagoland) McMurray currently stacks up with the Chase contenders in the following statistics:
– Two victories (Indy & Charlotte) – (Tied for 1st)
– Two poles (Chicago & Fontana) – (Tied for 1st )
– Five top-five finishes – (Tied for 2nd)
– Six top-10 finishes – (Tied for 4th)
– Nine top-15 finishes – (Tied for 4th)
– Average start of 11th – (Tied for 2nd)
– Average Finish of 9th – (Ranks 2nd)
McMurray vs. the Chase: While not in the Chase, McMurray and the No. 1 team haven’t given up on being one of the most impressive race teams on the track. The team has been on a hot streak during the first 5 races of the Chase. Compared to the top-12 Chase drivers this is how McMurray and the No. 1 Team currently stack up:
– Average start of 12th – (Tied for 4th)
– Average finish of 9th – (Ranks 4th)
– Tied for 3rd for the most points gained in the chase with 736 points gained
Crew Member Grand Marshal: For this Sunday’s NSCS event, Martinsville Speedway will have 43 Grand Marshals, one crew member per team. The speedway has asked each team to nominate a crew member to be part of the TUMS Fast Relief 500 Grand Marshall line up. The crew member selected to represent the No. 1 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats Team will be Benjy Grubbs. Grubbs is a native Virginian who fell in love with NASCAR after a trip with his parents to the old Richmond Fairgrounds in 1983. Grubbs started as a welder building race care for Darrell Waltrip and has been with Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing since 2005 as chassis fabricator during the week and gas man on the weekend. “It’s really something to see raw tubing on a shop floor and the next thing you know, there’s a race car sitting there. I really love the competition on Sundays, especially when you win the Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400 like we have this season.”
Juan Pablo Montoya and No. 42 Target Team
Montoya at Martinsville: Montoya has six starts at the Martinsville Speedway. He has accumulated 46 laps led, zero DNF’s, one top-five and two top-10 finishes at the .526-mile oval. His best finish of third came in this event last season.
About Charlotte: Juan Pablo Montoya and the Target Team started from the 33rd position and raced their way to the front to finish out the Saturday night race in the 11th-position. The top-15 is the second consecutive one for the Target team and marks the 17th one of the season. With five races remaining in 2010, the No. 42 Target team has two pole awards, one win, five top-fives and 13 top-10 finishes.
Homestead-Miami Ticket Package: This week Juan Pablo Montoya and Homestead-Miami Speedway announced they have once again partnered to offer fans a special Montoya ticket package for the NSCS season finale Ford 400. The “Race Day with Juan” ticket package will support the Montoya’s foundation- Formula Smiles. The ticket package is available for $142, with $42 going towards Formula Smiles Foundation and includes the following:
– – Race Ticket to NSCS finale Ford 400 located on the front-stretch West in rows 11-21- JPM Section
– – Private pre-race meet-and-greet with Montoya in the infield Driver’s Meeting Room
– – No. 42 Target Chevrolet commemorative hat
– – Pre-Race Track Pass, providing access to the track’s front-stretch to take pictures, sign the start/finish line and enjoy autograph and Q&A sessions with NASCAR personalities
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To purchase “Race Day with Juan” or to upgrade to this package if tickets already have been purchased please visit HomesteadMiamiSpeedway.com/Montoya or call (866) 409-RACE.
Crew Member Grand Marshal: For this Sunday’s NSCS event, Martinsville Speedway will have 43 Grand Marshals, one crew member per team. The speedway has asked each team to nominate a crew member to be part of the TUMS Fast Relief 500 Grand Marshall line up. Ryan Quann will be the crew member representing the No. 42 Target Team. With parents having connections to NASCAR and serving the sport in various roles, Quann has been around stock car racing his entire life. The graduate of the Bobby Isaac Motorsports program at Catawba County Community College in Hickory, N.C., took his chassis-building skills to the Sprint Cup team owned by Chip Ganassi and Felix Sabates. Through a friend, the avid golfer and snowboarder received an invitation to work for the organization and presently helps the team in various capacities. “During the week I’m in the composite-component shop building carbon-fiber parts for the cars. On Sundays, I work in a pit support role. I was in the right place at the right time when I started with this team, and I love being here.”
TUMS appearance: Race fans attending this Sunday’s TUMS Fast Relief 500 should be sure to visit the TUMS exhibit located outside the racetrack where Montoya will be signing autographs prior to the 500-lap event. Montoya will be on-site Sunday, October 24 from 9:50am – 10:05am (ET).
CHASSIS INFO
No. 1 Bass Pro Shops / Track Boats Chevrolet (NSCS): Chassis #1007. Bono and the No. 1 team will bring chassis #1007 to Martinsville Speedway this weekend. This chassis was used just last month at Richmond where McMurray finished 17th. The team also used this chassis earlier in the season at the first Richmond event finishing 19th and first Martinsville where McMurray battled handling issues after an on track altercation forcing a 30th-place finish. McMurray and team tested this chassis at Gresham Motorsports Park in August.
No. 42 Target Chevrolet (NSCS): Chassis #1005. Pattie and the No. 42 Target team are bringing chassis #1005 to Martinsville Speedway this weekend. This chassis was last run in September at Richmond where Montoya started second and finished seventh. The chassis was also used at the first Martinsville event where Montoya had a tire expire forcing a 36th-place finish.
2010 STATS
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Starts Wins Poles Top 5s Top 10s Ave Start Ave Finish Pts. Pos./(Prev)
Jamie McMurray 31 3 4 9 11 13.8 16.0 13/14
Juan Pablo Montoya 31 1 2 5 13 10.7 17.6 16/16
CAREER STATS
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Starts Wins Poles Top 5s Top 10s Ave Start Ave Finish
Jamie McMurray 289 6 7 39 91 19.7 19.0
Juan Pablo Montoya 140 2 4 17 40 17.4 19.8
TEAM ROSTERS
Tony Glover – Team Manager
Steve Hmiel – Director of Competition
No. 1 (NSCS) Hometown Hometown
Crew Chief: Kevin Manion Boylston, MA Rear Tire Changer: Chris Taylor West Plains, MO
Chief Mechanic: Gary Putnam Vernon, CT Rear Tire Carrier: Adam Mosher Fort Mill, SC
Front Tire Changer: Cory DeMarco St. Louis, MO Gas Man: Benjy Grubbs Richmond, VA
Front Tire Carrier: Doug Riepe Danbury, CT Catch Can: Eric Hoyle Asheville, NC
Jack Man: Tracy Duncan Lincolnton, NC Spotter: Keith Barnwell Hudson, NC
No. 42 (NSCS) Hometown Hometown
Crew Chief: Brian Pattie Zephyrhills, FL Rear Tire Changer: Chris McMullen Troutman, NC
Chief Mechanic: Heath Silver Asheville, NC Rear Tire Carrier: Chip Goode Statesville, NC
Front Tire Changer: Trevor Lysne Fergus Falls, MN Gas Man: Mike Bodick Norwalk, CT
Front Tire Carrier: Eric Bilyeu Waterford, MI Catch Can: Heath Silver Asheville, NC
Jack Man: TJ Ford Charlotte, NC Spotter: Tab Boyd Pensacola, FL
