Sorenson, Lopez Look Forward to a Strong Performance and Good Racing in Texas
CONCORD, N.C. (April 9, 2013) - The NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) is coming off of a two-week hiatus going into the O’Reilly Auto Parts 300 at Texas Motor Speedway (TMS). It will be the first night race of the season for the series and the second one-and-a-half mile track to appear on the schedule.
Reed Sorenson and the No. 43 Pilot Ford team have regrouped and are ready to wrangle the “asphalt circus” during the 300-mile race at the Fort Worth, Texas track. Sorenson made his first start of the season with Richard Petty Motorsports in the NNS at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, another one-and-a-half mile oval track, earlier this year. With limited practice time due to weather, he posted a top-20 finish.
A 10-year NNS veteran, Sorenson has nine starts at TMS. His best start is second (2006) and his best finish is third (2010 and 2005). Sorenson has an average finish of 13.8 and compiled five top-10s at the mile-and-a-half track in the NNS.
Comments from the No. 43 Pilot Ford Mustang driver Reed Sorenson:
“Texas is probably one of my favorite mile-and-a-half tracks. The track itself has a lot of character. The asphalt is pretty aged, so there isn’t a lot of grip but you can still be fast on new tires. Usually, when the new tires start to fall off is when you’ll see the best racing. The fact that it’s a night race will make it even better, and we’ll be able to run multiple grooves. It’s going to be a fun race.”
Comments from Crew Chief Philippe Lopez on Texas:
“I’m really looking forward to Texas. It’s my home state and it’s always a fun place to race. The pavement is old, which gives the drivers a lot of different ways around the corners. It reminds me of Atlanta because there are so many different grooves, it’s good racing for the drivers and the fans.
“We kind of lump all of the bigger tracks into one group, and we were really happy with our mile-and-a-half program last year. We’ve been able to pinpoint a few problems that we’ve been having this year and are really looking forward to picking up strong in Texas.”
Chassis History:
The No. 43 team will debut chassis 752 at Texas Motor Speedway.
About Richard Petty Motorsports
A performance and marketing driven company, Richard Petty Motorsports, co-owned by NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty and successful business entrepreneurs Andrew Murstein and Douglas Bergeron, is one of the most recognized brands in all of motorsports. With a history of over 200 wins and business partnerships with national and global leaders, today the race operation fields two teams in competition in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Aric Almirola pilots the famous No. 43 Ford Fusion with primary partners Smithfield Foods, U.S. Air Force and STP and Marcos Ambrose drives the No. 9 machine with primary partners Stanley and DEWALT. In addition, Michael Annett wheels the No. 43 Pilot Flying J Ford Mustang full-time in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. The team is headquartered in Concord, N.C.
