CORNELIUS, N.C. — Sunday’s 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway marks Michael Waltrip Racing’s final weekend of full-time competition.
Waltrip, a two-time Daytona 500 champion, began the team in the mid-1990s at his house in Sherrills Ford, N.C. competing in the XFINITY Series. In 2007, MWR began fielding fulltime Sprint Cup entries as the flagship team for Toyota Racing Development, USA.
MWR is the only original Toyota team still in competition.
MWR owns seven Sprint Cup victories and four Chase berths. Going into Homestead, MWR cars have made 780 starts, earned seven poles and posted 73 top-five finishes.
MWR victories by driver: Clint Bowyer, 3, David Reutimann, 2, Martin Truex and Brian Vickers with one each.
In the XFINITY Series, MWR won four times with Waltrip behind the wheel and once with Reutimann. MWR also fielded entries in eight Camping World Truck Series races.
Sunday also marks the final appearance of Aaron’s as a fulltime Sprint Cup Series sponsor with MWR. Aaron’s joined MWR’s XFINITY Series program in 2000 and sponsored all but one race on the No. 55 Toyota in 2015 Sprint Cup competition. Aaron’s scored its first win with MWR in 2009 when Reutimann won the rain-shortened Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Vickers also took the Aaron’s colors to victory lane at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in 2013.
DAVID RAGAN: “This is obviously going to be a tough weekend for everyone at MWR. I’ve been here less than a year, but I’ve spent a lot of time in the shop and gotten to know a lot of employees and families who’ve made great sacrifices to make this team one of the best both on and off the race track. I also can’t say enough about Aaron’s. They have made their mark on the sport. Everyone still calls the free pass the ‘(Aaron’s) Lucky Dog’ when they get it. Aaron’s and its customers have been loyal to the sport for a really long time.”
NOTES:
· No. 55 CREW CHIEF BRIAN PATTIE: Brian Pattie, 40, joined MWR in 2012 when it formed the No. 15 team, leading driver Clint Bowyer to three victories and a second-place finish in the 2012 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. The Zephyrhills, Fla., native began crew chief duties in the XFINITY Series for Joe Nemechek’s NEMCO Motorsports in 1997 before moving to a similar role at Earnhardt Ganassi Racing in 2004. In May 2008, he moved to the Sprint Cup Series with driver Juan Montoya. The duo earned a berth in the 2009 Chase and a win at Watkins Glen in 2010. Pattie owns four Sprint Cup and 10 XFINITY Series victories as a crew chief. The father of four is an avid golfer and supporter of the Florida State Seminoles. In June 2015, MWR paired Pattie with Ragan on its No. 55 team.
· 55 CREW:
Brian Pattie
Crew Chief
Ryan Langley
Front Tire Changer
Chris Hall
Front Tire Carrier
Shannon Myers
Rear Tire Changer
Blake Haugland
Rear Tire Carrier
Wes Evans
Jack Man
Jeff Kerr
Gas Man
Steve Channing
Car Chief
David Cropps
Interior Mechanic
Roman Pemberton
Spotter
Brandon Pope
Engineer
Tim O’Brien
Engineer
Jeremy Sharpley
Shock Specialist
Billy Curwood
Engineer
Kevin White
Front Mechanic
Joe Zanolini
Rear Mechanic
Scott Swift
Tire Specialist
Kirk Butterfield
TRD
Tim Bruce
TRD
Stump Lewis
Truck Driver
Al Nelson
2nd Truck Driver
· CAREER STATISTICS:
MWR
DAVID RAGAN
BRIAN PATTIE
· MWR DRIVER ALUMNI
A.J. Allmendinger
Bill Elliott
Brett Moffitt
Brian Vickers
Buckshot Jones
Clint Bowyer
Dale Jarrett
David Ragan
David Reutimann
Elliott Sadler
Jeff Burton
Jerry Nadeau
Johnny Benson, Jr.
Kenny Wallace
Marcos Ambrose
Mark Martin
Martin Truex, Jr.
Michael McDowell
Michael Waltrip
Mike Bliss
Mike Skinner
P.J. Jones
Patrick Carpentier
Terry Labonte
· TELEVISION
Friday, Nov. 20
9 a.m., NASCAR Camping World Truck Series final practice, FS1
Noon, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series practice, NBCSN
1:30 p.m., NASCAR XFINITY Series final practice, NBCSN
4 p.m., NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Keystone Light Pole Qualifying, FS1
5:30 p.m., NASCAR America Live, NBCSN
6 p.m., NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying, NBCSN
7:30 p.m., NCWTS Setup, FS1
8 p.m., NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Ford EcoBoost 200, FS1
Saturday, Nov. 21
4 a.m., NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Ford EcoBoost 200 (re-air), FS1
10 a.m., NASCAR Sprint Cup Series practice, CNBC
11 a.m., NASCAR XFINITY Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying, CNBC
12:30 p.m., NASCAR America Live, NBCSN
1 p.m., NASCAR Sprint Cup Series final practice, NBCSN
2 p.m., NASCAR America Live, NBCSN
2:30 p.m., NASCAR XFINITY Series Ford EcoBoost 300, NBC
6 p.m., NASCAR America Live, NBCSN
Sunday, Nov. 22
11:30 a.m., NASCAR RaceDay, FS1
1:30 p.m., NASCAR America Sunday, NBC
2 p.m., NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Countdown to Green, NBC
3 p.m., NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Ford EcoBoost 400, NBC
3 p.m., NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship Second-Screen Experience, NBCSN
7 p.m., NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Post-Race, NBCSN
8 p.m., NASCAR Victory Lap, NBCSN
10 p.m., NASCAR Victory Lane, FS1
