Roush Fenway hopes to continue strong start to season this week in California
CONCORD, N.C. (March 24, 2011) – Fresh off a strong showing last weekend in Bristol, Roush Fenway Racing will look to continue it’s fast start in 2011 at one the team’s most successful race tracks, Auto Club Speedway. The organization placed three teams in the top eight in last week’s Sprint Cup race and if history means anything, improving on that feat this weekend at California may be quite likely.
“The mile-and-a-half and two-mile race tracks have historically been our strong point,” said team owner Jack Roush. “Even in the worst of times that’s a place when we’ve still been able to muster a great effort and in a good time like this, I think there’s certainly as much hope and expectation of a good result as there was at Las Vegas.”
Roush Fenway boasts a total of 15 NASCAR wins at California, with seven coming in the Sprint Cup Series. A total of five drivers have won for Roush Fenway at Auto Club Speedway, with four of the five having won races in multiple series at the two-mile oval located in the heart of the Inland Empire. Mark Martin won races at all three levels for Roush Fenway at the track.
In addition, Matt Kenseth is one of only three drivers in NASCAR history to win multiple times in the Sprint Cup Series at California. Kenseth’s checkered flag there in Feb. of 2009, was his third win at the track.
Roush’s history of winning at Fontana dates back to 1998, when the team placed four teams inside the top 10 of the venue’s second-career Sprint Cup race.
In addition to his three Cup wins at Auto Club Speedway, Kenseth has one win in the Nationwide Series, giving him a team-high four wins at the track. Greg Biffle has won three times in NASCAR action there, with two Nationwide Series wins and a Cup win in 2005. Carl Edwards has three wins as well, with two NNS victories and a 2007 Cup win.
Roush Fenway swept the two Nationwide races at California in 2004 and 2005. In addition, the team also won both the Nationwide and Cup races there in the spring of 2005 and 2006.
Roush Fenway has started the season having finished first or second in three of the first four races and in six of the last seven, with Edwards having won three of the last six Sprint Cup events. In addition, Roush Fenway has won the pole in three of the four events this season, including Kenseth’s record-setting run in Las Vegas.
With that in mind, Roush is optimistic about his team’s start to the season.
“This is my 24th year of being in NASCAR competition, and I don’t recall a year when we were stronger than this,” said Roush, who’s teams have won over 120 Sprint Cup events and took home championships in 2003 and 2004. “I think if it’s not our best year, it’s certainly our best year to this point.”
Roush Fenway Racing is NASCAR’s largest team operating seven motorsports teams. Four in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with drivers Matt Kenseth, Greg Biffle, Carl Edwards and David Ragan; and three in the Nationwide Series with Edwards, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., and Trevor Bayne. For more information on any of the Roush Fenway Racing teams, log onto http://www.roushfenway.com/ www.RoushFenway.com. Become a fan of Roush Fenway Racing on Facebook by going to http://www.facebook.com/roushfenway http://www.facebook.com/roushfenway and follow us on Twitter @roushfenway. For sponsorship inquiries please contact Robin Johnson at 704.720.4645.
