Justin Marks to Compete in NASCAR XFINITY Series Races at Mid-Ohio and Road America in the No. 42 for Chip Ganassi Racing
Katerra to Return As Sponsor on the No. 42 Chevrolet Camaro for Both Races
CONCORD, N.C. (Aug. 1, 2017) – Chip Ganassi Racing (CGR) announced today that Justin Marks, 36, will return to pilot to the No. 42 Chevrolet Camaro in the NASCAR XFINITY Series (NXS) road-course races at Mid-Ohio (Aug. 12) and Road America (Aug. 26). Katerra, a Silicon Valley commercial construction company, will serve as a primary sponsor for both races.
NOTES OF INTEREST:
· Looking to Defend his Crown: Marks won last year’s memorable NXS race at Mid-Ohio, where he led 43 of the 75 laps. In six prior XFINITY Series starts between the two tracks, Marks has one win, one top-five and three top-10 finishes.
· No Stranger to CGR: Marks made two NXS starts for the team in 2015 and competed in 17 of the 33 races in the No. 42 car in 2016, which he shared with Kyle Larson. He will also continue to work with veteran NXS Crew Chief Mike Shiplett, who has led the team since 2015.
· Ready to Seize the Opportunity: Marks has competed in many forms of road-course racing as well as in all three of NASCAR’s national series, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS), NXS and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS). He was also part of the winning team in the 2009 Rolex 24 At Daytona in the GT division. This year, Marks has competed in three endurance races (Daytona, Sebring and Watkins Glen) in the WeatherTech Sports Car Championship, scoring a podium in the GTD division at the Six Hours of the Glen in July. Marks has two MENCS and 37 NCWTS starts in his career. He has four top-10 finishes and two poles in the NCWTS.
· Off the Track: An accomplished entrepreneur, Marks is the owner of The Drylake Group, a sports and entertainment development company, GoPro Motorplex and KartSport North America. In 2014, Marks partnered with Kyle Larson to form Larson-Marks Racing, a World of Outlaws sprint car team. He also won two-consecutive championships as a car owner in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East in 2015 and 2016.
CGR QUOTEBOARD:
· Steve Lauletta, President, Chip Ganassi Racing: “We’re excited to have Justin rejoin CGR for the two standalone road-course races. His victory last year at Mid-Ohio was tremendous for not only our team, but a testament to his abilities behind the wheel. We’re also thrilled to have Katerra back, who have been a great partner to the organization for the last two years.”
· Justin Marks, Driver No. 42 Katerra Chevrolet Camaro: “It goes without saying that to be able to compete at this level for a team like Chip Ganassi Racing is the stuff of dreams. Going back to Mid-Ohio to try and defend our win from last year is a challenge I’m ready to accept and have been working hard towards. We obviously had a great car at both Mid-Ohio and Road America in 2016, so I think being able to build on both of those experiences are going to give us a tremendous opportunity to put the 42 back in victory lane where it belongs”
About Katerra:
Katerra is redefining the construction industry to create commercial and residential structures more quickly and inexpensively. With a global scope and vertical integration from design to delivery, Katerra makes state-of-the-art buildings accessible to everyone. Its mission: Build better. Modernize the building supply chain worldwide by reshaping the multi-trillion dollar construction industry with the innovative use of technology. Founded by leaders in Silicon Valley and the real-estate industry with proven track records of revolutionizing products and services, Katerra has offices in Menlo Park, California; Scottsdale, Arizona; Seattle, Washington; Shenzhen, China; and Guadalajara, Mexico.
To learn more, please visit katerra.com.
About Chip Ganassi Racing:
Chip Ganassi has been a fixture in the auto racing industry for over 30 years and is considered one of the most successful as well as innovative owners the sport has anywhere in the world. Today his teams include four cars in the Verizon IndyCar Series, two cars in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, two cars in the NASCAR XFINITY Series, two factory Ford GT’s in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, and two factory Ford GT’s in the FIA World Endurance Championship. Overall his teams have 18 championships and more than 190 victories, including four Indianapolis 500s, a Daytona 500, a Brickyard 400, seven Rolex 24 At Daytonas, the 12 Hours of Sebring and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Ganassi boasts state-of-the-art race shop facilities in Indianapolis and Concord, N.C., with a corporate office in Pittsburgh, Pa.
For more information log onto www.chipganassiracing.com
