John Wes Townley
No. 99 Zaxby’s Toyota Camry
Event Preview Fact Sheet
Event/Date: Dollar General 300 – October 12, 2012
Venue: Charlotte Motor Speedway
News & Notes:
This Week’s Zaxby’s Toyota … John Wes Townley will pilot RAB Racing with Brack Maggard Chassis No. 56 in Friday’s Dollar General 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. This is a brand new Zaxby’s Toyota Camry that will be put through its first paces this weekend at Charlotte.
Townley at Charlotte… In two NASCAR Nationwide Series starts at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Townley’s best finish is 27th, which he achieved in October, 2008. Additionally, the 22-year-old driver competed in the Camping World Truck Series race at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 18, 2012, where he recorded a 16th-place finish.
RAB at Charlotte … In addition to Townley’s two showings at the Concord, N.C.-based team’s home track, RAB Racing with Brack Maggard fielded five additional Nationwide Series entries from 2010 to 2012 with drivers Chad McCumbee, Travis Pastrana, Brian Scott, and Kenny Wallace. The team’s best showing at the 1.5-mile oval is a 16th-place finish, which was posted by Wallace in this race last year.
Zipadelli at Charlotte … Scott Zipadelli, crew chief of the No. 99 Toyota Camry, has sat atop the pit box at Charlotte Motor Speedway ten times in his Nationwide Series career, garnering three top-ten and six top-20 finishes, with drivers Kelly Bires, Jason Leffler, and Wallace.
Homecoming … Robby Benton, owner of RAB Racing, is the only North Carolina native on the No. 99 team. Benton hails from Harrisburg, N.C., graduated from North Mecklenberg High School and attended UNC Charlotte. He began his racing career racing go-carts at Woodleaf Speedway in Salisbury, NC when he was 14 years old. Benton went on to race in the ARCA Series, where he earned one top-five and three top-10 finishes in 11 starts. From there, Benton made a combined seven starts in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and Nationwide Series, before climbing out of the driver’s seat and focusing on team ownership. Benton’s Concord, N.C.-based RAB Racing has earned one win, three top-five and 16 top-10 finishes in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, and one top-five and three top-10 finishes in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
Get to the Points… RAB Racing currently holds down the 19th slot in the NASCAR Nationwide Series owner point standings. In 28 races this season, RAB-prepared Nationwide Series entries have notched one top-five and four top-10 finishes. RAB-prepared Toyotas have completed 4,687 laps with drivers Alex Bowman, Patrick Carpentier, Victor Gonzalez, Jr., Brett Moffitt, Pastrana, Townley, Ryan Truex and Kenny Wallace.
Catch the Action… Friday’s Dollar General 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway will be televised live Friday, October 12th beginning at 7 p.m. EDT on ESPN and broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network. NASCAR Nationwide Series qualifying will be televised live Friday, October 12th beginning at 4:00 p.m. EDT on ESPN 2.
John Wes Townley Quotes:
“I’m looking forward to racing at Charlotte Motor Speedway this weekend. I know that Scott Zipadelli and all of the guys at RAB Racing have spent a lot of time and effort getting this brand-new Zaxby’s Toyota Camry put together. Being out front in clean air is really important, so it’s important that we stay on top of our pit strategy all night.”
Scott Zipadelli Quotes:
It’s always nice to race at home, in our back yard. We get to race close to our homes and sleep in our own beds, there’s not much better than that. To have a good race and a good finish at home means so much to all the teams. To win there would be as big as winning the Nationwide race at Daytona, because your entire team can be a part of the celebration. The Charlotte race has been promoted as one of the best races on the schedule. It has so much energy; it’s really exciting to be a part of it all. Handling and track position are extremely important, because the Nationwide cars are extremely aero-sensitive, so the car out front definitely has the advantage and can pull away from the field. It’s a very temperature-sensitive track, so it throws a bit of a curve when you don’t race in the same conditions that you practice in. We’ve got a brand-new Zaxby’s Toyota Camry that we feel very good about heading into this weekend’s race.”
