THE RACE
The Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway (two-mile speedway, Fontana, Calif.) – March 24, 2013
THE RESULTS
The No. 2 Miller Lite Ford Fusion
The No. 22 Auto Club of Southern California Ford Fusion
Driven By
Brad Keselowski
Driven By
Joey Logano
THE RACE REVIEW
· Brad Keselowski and the No. 2 Miller Lite Ford Fusion team qualified third for the event with a lap of 38.472 seconds around the two-mile oval. However, the team had to move to the rear of the field at the start of the race for changing engines prior to qualifying.
· Keselowski wasted little time in maneuvering his way through the field after the green flag flew on Sunday. By Lap 15 he was scored in the 15th position.
· The speed shown by the Miller Lite Ford Mustang early in the race was hampered when Keselowski made slight contact with the outside wall after fluid from another car coated the track on lap 37. As a result, the handling of the No. 2 tightened up.
· While entering pit road at lap 92, Keselowski was issued a speeding violation that forced him to the rear of the field again when the race resumed on lap 96.
· Following a two-tire pit stop at lap 132, Keselowski finally had the track position he needed to take advantage of the clean air. As a result, he was able to maintain a presence inside the top-10 cars until the final few laps.
· While running in the fifth position late in the race, the Miller Lite Ford began to overheat. Keselowski nursed the car to the finish line in 23rd place. With the result, he’s now second in the series standings after five races.
· Joey Logano and the No. 22 Auto Club of Southern California Ford Fusion started the race in the sixth position for Sunday’s Auto Club 400.
· Early on, Logano proved to have one of the fastest cars on the track, as he moved into the top three and secured the lead for the first time on lap 44.
· All afternoon long, the Auto Club Ford was one of the top-three cars on the track. Logano led the race on three different occasions for a total of 41 laps, the second most of any driver in the race.
· Logano took the lead late in the race and held it until the white flag waved. Racing side-by-side with the No. 11 machine driven by Denny Hamlin, the two cars made contact in turns three and four. Logano hit the outside wall following the contact but the No. 22 Auto Club Ford Fusion was able to cross the finish line in third place.
· With his top result of the season to date, Logano improved to 9th in the series standings.
WHAT THEY ARE SAYING
“I think we went from the back to the front three times today, which really showed the speed we had in the Miller Lite Ford. We aren’t sure yet what caused the overheating issue, but we almost made the entire race with it running hot. These Roush-Yates motors are incredible and they showed it today. Joey (Logano) had the same problem so it has to be a related issue. We’re still in a good points position after a tough day, though.” – Brad Keselowski summarizes his day at Auto Club Speedway.
“Really proud of the effort the guys on the Miller Lite Ford team have put in to start the season. I would’ve liked to have kept the points lead heading into the Easter break, but that doesn’t overshadow the great start we’ve had. Some of my best tracks are coming up soon. If we can continue to build cars as fast as we have for the first five races of the season, I’m confident we’ll win our share of them soon.” – Brad Keselowski on the team’s strong start to the 2013 season.
“I think our Auto Club Ford was very strong all day. I was very happy with the car we had. We were super fast (and) led a lot of laps. Nothing to hang our head down about, that’s for sure. We were very proud of that. Doug Yates, thank you so much for the motor. That thing ran the last seven, eight laps with no water in it, just pushing water over 300-degrees. So it’s really amazing for those guys. So thank you guys – everyone in the engine shop to get a solid run out here today. I look forward to (getting) back to the race track and try it again.” – Joey Logano on the car’s performance, especially late in the race.
“I’m really proud of my team. They have given me great cars all year long. Today, we finally got to show what kind of cars they have been giving me. We were up front, leading laps and showing how good this No. 22 Ford is. Once again today, my team showed they have my back and that will only make us better going forward.”- Joey Logano on the strong run all afternoon long.
MEDIA RECAP
· Wednesday, March 20: Keselowski attended the broadcast of “American Idol” and took part in post-event media opportunities.
· Thursday, March 21: Keselowski did interviews with FOX 11-Los Angeles, ESPN “Sports Nation” and the West Coast edition of SportsCenter.
· Friday, March 22: Keselowski participated in two media sessions in the Auto Club Speedway media center.
· Sunday, March 23: Keselowski was interviewed by Wendy Venturini for SPEED’s NASCAR Raceday.
· ESPN SWAT event: Logano taped a segment for “NASCAR Now” with local SWAT team members.
· ESPN Interview: Logano was interviewed on Friday morning.
· ESPN Interview: Crew chief Todd Gordon was interviewed on Sunday morning.
· ESPN Nationwide Series race: Logano was in the broadcast booth for 40 laps of Saturday’s race.
· Pre-race: Logano did interviews with SPEED Raceday, ESPN and MRN.
· Post-race: Logano did interviews FOX, SPEED, MRN, ESPN and bullpen print and radio.
WEEKEND APPEARANCES
· March 20: Keselowski attended “American Idol” and the Los Angeles Clippers NBA game for NASCAR.
· March 24: Meet and greet with Miller Lite guests at the hauler on race day.
· Thursday, March 21: Logano attended the Shell “Fuel For Success” SWAT event
· Thursday, March 21: Logano attended a AAA team dinner
· Sunday, March 24: Logano participated in a Q&A session on the AAA Stage
· Sunday, March 24: Logano met with AAA guests at the hauler
· Sunday, March 24: Logano met with NASCAR guests at the 22 hauler
· Sunday, March 24: Logano made an appearance for the Shell 22 Crew
