Event/Date: STP 300 – July 21, 2013
Venue: Chicagoland Speedway
News & Notes:
- This Week’s Toyota … Alex Bowman will pilot RAB Racing Chassis No. 42 in Sunday’s STP 300 at Chicagoland Speedway. This chassis last saw action at Kentucky Speedway last month, when Bowman piloted this Toyota Camry to a 10th-place finish. Additionally, this chassis won the pole at Texas Motor Speedway in April.
- Welcome Back … St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital will serve as primary sponsor of the No. 99 Toyota Camry this weekend. Founded in 1962 by Danny Thomas, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is a pediatric treatment and research facility focused on childhood diseases.
- I’ve Been Here … Bowman’s Nationwide Series debut came at Chicagoland Speedway in September of 2012 when he finished 17th in the Dollar General 300. Bowman has also found success here in the ARCA Racing Series, finishing eighth in 2012’s Ansell ActivArmr 150.
- RAB Racing at Chicago … RAB Racing with Brack Maggard has competed in seven Nationwide Series events at Chicagoland Speedway since their inaugural year of competition in 2009. RAB Racing has amassed one top-five, two top-10 and five top-20 finishes, including a best showing of fourth, which came with driver Kenny Wallace in 2012.
- Rice at Chicago … Crew chief of the No. 99 Toyota Camry, Chris Rice, has sat atop the pit box at Chicagoland Speedway five times in his Nationwide Series career, garnering two top-20 finishes with drivers Stacy Compton and Scott Wimmer.
- Flashback … Last weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Rice made the call to pit for fuel as the laps were winding down, insuring that the No. 99 Toyota Camry team had enough to last through three green-white-checkers, finishing tenth and taking home the Sunoco Rookie of the Race contingency award.
- Get to the Points … As we head into the 18th race of the 2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series season, Bowman currently occupies the 11th position in the drivers’ point standings, only 51 points out of the top 10. Robby Benton continued to hold down the 15th position in the Nationwide Series owners’ point standings.
- Rookie Battle… Following his 10th place finish at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Bowman remains in the second position of the Rookie of the Year point standings, 57 points behind leader Kyle Larson.
- Catch the Action … Sunday’s STP 300 at Chicagoland Speedway will be televised live Sunday, July 21st beginning at 3 p.m. EST on ESPN and broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network.
- Get Social … Don’t miss any updates from Bowman and RAB Racing. Follow them on Twitter @AlexBRacing and @RAB_Racing.
Alex Bowman Quotes:
“I’m really excited to be coming back to Chicagoland Speedway, home of my very first NASCAR Nationwide Series start. It’s a track that I became fairly familiar with in 2012. I ran my first Nationwide race here and finished in the top 10 in the ARCA Racing Series. The sensation of speed has always been my favorite part of Chicago. With its wide turns, a driver is able to adjust their line depending on how the car is performing. Chicago is also a track that has lost a fair amount of grip, and at the end of a tire run the driver is forced to drive a loose race car which coming from my open wheel background is something I always enjoy doing and excel at. I’m looking forward to getting back to mile and a half race tracks and with the help we receive from Toyota Racing Development our cars always run good at big fast tracks.”
Chris Rice Quotes:
“I think we’re all excited to be getting back to mile and a half tracks, especially a place like Chicago where there’s such a balance between outright speed and downforce. The track surface has become progressively slicker and rougher since its opening and that’s put a much bigger emphasis on car setup. Thankfully we will be spending a full day at Toyota Racing Development with our primary car for Chicago to try different car setups, and see which one offers the best balance. Also looking forward to bringing chassis No. 42 to the race track this weekend, it’s the car we sat on the pole in Texas with and finished in the top 10 at Kentucky three weeks ago and always offers us a great chance at running upfront.”
