Dollar General 300 powered by Coca-Cola at Chicagoland Speedway
No. 18 Dollar General Toyota News & Notes:
· IT’S A DOLLAR GENERAL KIND OF WEEKEND: In 2011, music artist Wiz Khalifa came out with the radio hit “Black and Yellow.” That song, which hit number one on the Billboard Music Charts, could be the theme song to Logano’s Chicagoland Speedway weekend. Logano will be behind the wheel of not just one but two Dollar General Toyotas. Logano will pilot the No. 20 Dollar General Toyota in Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event at the 1.5-mile track. He will also once again be behind the wheel of the No. 18 Dollar General Toyota in the NASCAR Nationwide Series event at Chicagoland on Saturday. Even adding to the “Black and Yellow” themed weekend, Saturday’s NASCAR Nationwide Series event is the Dollar General 300 powered by Coca-Cola. That will be a whole lot of “Black and Yellow.”
· LOGANO STILL NASCAR NATIONWIDE SERIES’ HOTTEST DRIVER : Despite only running a limited schedule of NASCAR Nationwide Series events this season, Logano continues to be the series’ hottest driver. In his last Nationwide Series start, coming two races ago at Bristol Motor Speedway, Logano picked up his first-career win at the half-mile track and his series leading sixth of the season. Those six wins have come in just 15 starts, giving Logano an impressive 40-percent winning percentage. Elliott Sadler and Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who lead the series point standings, have each won three races in their 25 starts, along with Brad Keselowski and his three wins in 18 starts, giving them each a winning percentage of 16-percent.
· EIGHT RACES TO WIN A CHAMPIONSHIP: With his impressive stats, Logano would be a superior contender for the NASCAR Nationwide Series Driver’s Championship if he was running full-time in the series. However, Logano is trying to help Joe Gibbs Racing win the NASCAR Nationwide Series Owner’s Championship and will continue that quest this weekend. With just eight races left this season, the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota owns a 13-point lead on the No. 2 Richard Childress Racing team and a 14-point lead on the No. 6 Roush-Fenway Racing team. Of Logano’s six Nationwide Series victories this year, five of them have come behind the wheel of the No. 18 JGR Toyota. And of those five wins, four have come with sponsor Dollar General on the side of his Toyota Camry.
· LOGANO AND OTHER DG DRIVERS TEE UP FOR DG LITERACY FOUNDATION: Joey joined his Dollar General Racing teammates Brian Scott and Darrell Wallace Jr. on Monday to participate in the 20th annual Dollar General Literacy Foundation Golf Classic in Nashville, Tennessee. Since its inception in 1993, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation Golf Classic has raised over $13 million in support of literacy initiatives throughout Dollar General’s operating market.
· THIS WEEK ON THE NO. 18 DOLLAR GENERAL TOYOTA: Dollar General vendor partners Powerade, Venus, Reach, Arrid, Frosted Flakes, Glad, First Quality, Tums, Angel Soft, Sundown and Eckrich will be featured on Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 18 Toyota Camry this weekend at Chicagoland Speedway.
· THE RACE: The Dollar General 300 at Chicagoland Speedway (Joliet, IL; 1.5 -mile oval) is set for Saturday, September 15th. Watch and listen live on ESPN, Sirius XM Channel 90 and MRN Radio starting at 3:00 p.m. ET.
Logano’s 2012 NASCAR Nationwide Series Season Stats:
Starts
Wins
Top 5
Top 10
Poles
Laps Led
Earnings
Avg. Start
Avg. Finish
15
6
8
11
3
549
$483,075
6.5
7.1
Logano’s Career NASCAR Nationwide Series Stats:
Starts
Wins
Top 5
Top 10
Poles
Laps Led
Earnings
Avg. Start
Avg. Finish
103
15
49
80
19
2002
$3,542,409
7.0
7.5
Logano’s Career NASCAR Nationwide Series Stats at Chicagoland Speedway:
Starts
Wins
Top 5
Top 10
Poles
Laps Led
Earnings
Avg. Start
Avg. Finish
3
1
2
2
0
147
$156,510
5.3
7.3
From the Cockpit:
Joey Logano Quotes: “I have a lot of confidence heading back to Chicagoland this coming weekend in the Nationwide Series. Adam (Stevens, crew chief) and all of the guys on this team are really the best team in the Nationwide Series garage these days in my opinion and they bring great cars to the track every weekend. We are clicking on all levels and that shows with our results. We’ve been strong on all types of tracks and I think that shows as well. We’ve won on superspeedways on two-mile tracks and on short tracks. All we are missing is a 1.5-mile win this season and I’d love to knock that off the list this weekend.
“I’ve had a lot of success at Chicago in the past. I’ve got a win there and run really well there in the other couple of races. I am pretty pumped to get back to the Nationwide Series double duty races as well. I’m the type of person that hates just sitting around, especially when there is a Nationwide race at the same track on the same weekend. If there is a race, I want to be in it. Plus, the extra track time it always good. Even my crew chief on the Cup side, Jason Ratcliff, says he loves when I run the Nationwide races because there is nothing better than more seat time. There is always something you can learn out there.”
From the Pit Box:
Adam Stevens Quotes: “Chicago really kicked our butt last year. We have made a lot of progress with our intermediate track program since then. We see a lot of green flag racing here and it is extremely hard to pass, which means track position will be critical. Chicago is what they call a ‘cookie cutter’ 1.5-mile track, but it has some characteristics that make it unique. The back stretch isn’t really straight and you are always turning. There are quite a few bumps all around the track that you need to account for. The high groove opens up as rubber is put down and that can also change your setup and your strategy. Fuel mileage is frequently a concern here. This place takes a little bit of something from all the intermediate tracks, which makes it a crew chiefs dream but also a nightmare.”
No. 18 Dollar General Toyota / Joe Gibbs Racing Team:
Driver – Joey Logano Crew Chief – Adam Stevens Car Chief – Heath Landis Race Engineer – Curtis Ratzlaff Shock Specialist – Joel Weidman Front-end – Dave Rudy Rear-end – Chris “Yoshi” Jones Tire Specialist – Glen Wheeler Engine Tuner – Roger Purcell
Truck Driver – Tim Clancy Spotter: Rocky Ryan
Jackman – Jason Tate Gasman – John Eicher Front Tire Changer – John Royer Front Tire Carrier – Joe Crossen
Rear Tire Changer – Chris Taylor Rear Tire Carrier – Eric Groen
About Dollar General:
Dollar General Corporation has been delivering value to shoppers for more than 70 years. Dollar General helps shoppers Save time. Save money. Every day!® by offering products that are frequently used and replenished, such as food, snacks, health and beauty aids, cleaning supplies, basic apparel, house wares and seasonal items at low everyday prices in convenient neighborhood locations.
Dollar General is committed to the communities it serves and is proud to support initiatives that help others improve their lives through literacy and education. The Dollar General Literacy Foundation awards grants to nonprofit organizations that help individuals learn to read, prepare for their GED or learn to speak English. Find the Dollar General store nearest you or learn more about the company at www.dollargeneral.com or on Dollar General’s Facebook page.
DG at the Track:
Dollar General has more retail locations than any retailer in America, with 10,000 stores in 39 states. There are numerous locations in the Joliet, Illinois area. Here are the three nearest to Chicagoland Speedway:
Dollar General #11508 Dollar General #7222 Dollar General #10872
916 W Jefferson St. 2101 Plainfield Rd. 518 W Mondamin St.
Joliet, IL 60435 Crest Hill, IL 60403 Minooka, IL 60447
