ATLANTA MOTOR SPEEDWAY RACE PREVIEW
Michael Annett• No. 43 Pilot Flying J Old Wisconsin Ford Mustang
Michael Annett will be making his fourth career start at Atlanta Motor Speedway
Annett enters this weekend’s event in sixth place in the Nationwide point standings
Annett will have a new branding partner on the Pilot Flying J Ford this weekend
Michael Annett on Having a New Branding Partner in Atlanta: “I’m excited to welcome Old Wisconsin aboard my Pilot Flying J Ford this weekend. It’s great to partner with a family-owned organization that sells so many varieties of snacks in Pilot Flying J stores around the country. Richard Petty Motorsports prides themselves on family values, so Old Wisconsin fits perfectly with my race teams values. I know we will have plenty of snack bites on the hauler this weekend to enjoy, and hopefully we’ll have plenty in Victory Lane at the end of the day on Saturday.”
Michael Annett on Racing in Atlanta: “We are excited to go to Atlanta this weekend and hopefully we can gain some valuable championship points. We’ve been sitting in sixth place for awhile, and it’s time to start moving up. We’ve been strong at the 1.5-mile tracks this year, and I’m looking for similar results this weekend. We’ve been really consistent at the oval tracks as of late and have been knocking on the door of a win. We just need to pull all of our efforts together and convert our top-10 and top-five finishes into a wins.”
Crew Chief Philippe Lopez’s Thoughts on Racing at Atlanta: “Atlanta is a very neat race track it’s similar to Charlotte and Texas. The tires fall of very quickly at Atlanta making for multiple racing grooves. The cars can really move around during a run. The drivers enjoy running at Atlanta because it’s fun to drive and they can move all over the place, and the crew chiefs like it because we don’t get stuck in a little window of handling. If the car gets a little off, the driver can move to a different racing line to improve their run. We have a really stout 1.5-mile program and our long-run speed is great. We’ve raced really well at all these big tracks earlier in the year, and that will pay big dividends if it can carry over to this weekend.”
Chassis History: The No. 43 RPM NASCAR Nationwide Series team has prepared chassis No. 648 for the 195-lap race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. This Pilot Flying J Old Wisconsin Ford Mustang was run previously at Texas, Michigan and Indianapolis.
Notes: Annett will head to Atlanta Motor Speedway for this weekend’s race with a new branding partner on board his Richard Petty Motorsports Pilot Flying J Ford Mustang. Old Wisconsin will debut its popular Snack Bites products on Annett’s No. 43 machine for this weekend’s 300-mile event.
Pilot Flying J currently carries a variety of the family-owned Old Wisconsin products in its 600 retail locations across North America. Featured products include the 1.5 ounce Snack Sticks, available in flavors: Bold, Teriyaki, Beef, and Pepperoni and 4 ounce Snack Bites, available in flavors including Bold, Beef, and Turkey. Another tasty favorite is the 2.5 ounce Smoke Stacks in Beef & Cheddar Cheese, BOLD Sweet Heat & Chipotle Cheese, and Beef & Jalapeno Cheese, a perfect hearty and hardwood-smoked treat for on-the-go snackers.
Looking for a Pilot or Flying J store near Atlanta? There are 19 Flying J or Pilot Travel Centers within 100 miles of Atlanta Motor Speedway. The nearest store is 24 miles away from the race track. (Flying J (I-75& Exit 201) 1-75 and Exit 66 Bucksnort Rd., Jackson, GA, 30233.) There are 76 stores within 250 miles of the track. Go to http://www.pilotflyingj.com/locations to find the nearest locations.
Race Information
Track: Atlanta Motor Speedway
Laps: 195 Laps/300.3 Miles
Track Size: 1.54-Miles
TV Information: 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPN
Radio Information: 6:30 p.m. ET on PRN
Be sure to follow Richard Petty Motorsports on Twitter @RPMotorsports for behind the scenes updates, driver appearance information and qualifying and race updates. You can also check us out on our Facebook page at Richard Petty Motorsports.