Ricky Stenhouse Jr – Oral-B USA 500 Advance
Team: No. 17 Fifth Third Bank Ford Fusion
Crew Chief: Mike Kelley
Primary Chassis: RK- 914 – last raced at Dover– finished 41st.
Backup Chassis: RK- 877 – last ran at Loudon – finished ninth.
ADVANCE NOTES
· Stenhouse Jr. at Atlanta Motor Speedway
o Last year, the two-time NASCAR Nationwide champion earned his first career Sprint Cup pole at Atlanta.
o Stenhouse has one career Sprint Cup start at Atlanta finishing16th after overcoming being one lap down.
o The last time Mike Kelley was crew chief for Stenhouse Jr. at Atlanta, they went to victory lane to claim their fourth of six wins in the 2012 Nationwide Series season.
· The Car
o Chassis RK-914 is the same chassis that the 2013 Sprint Cup Rookie of the Year raced at Dover where the No. 17 team was battling for the lucky dog position, but was caught up in a wreck on lap 131 and was unable to repair the car, forcing Stenhouse to settle for a 41st-place finish.
· Fifth Third Bank
o To find the nearest Fifth Third Bank branch near you – visit www.53.com/atm/branchatm
Stenhouse Jr. on racing at Atlanta:
“Atlanta is one of my favorite tracks on the circuit. It’s an older track that is rough but fast. We’ve been improving each week, so I feel confident heading to Atlanta. We have been testing a lot of mile-and-a-half tracks, so I feel we should have a good package for Atlanta. After coming off a top-10 finish at Bristol, I am looking to continue the top-10 streak at Atlanta.”
Mike Kelley on racing at Atlanta:
“Atlanta really suits Ricky’s driving style. We have been testing a lot, working on our intermediate track packages. I think we have learned some things at each test session that have helped us the last couple of weeks. I feel confident that we can get another top-10 finish this Labor Day weekend.”
