Richard Childress Racing in Wine Country … In 63 starts at the 10-turn stadium course, Richard Childress Racing owns two wins, with Dale Earnhardt in the 1995 Save Mart Supermarkets 300 and with Robby Gordon in the Save Mart 350 in 2003, one pole award (Earnhardt, 1995), 14 top-five and 25 top-10 finishes. The Welcome, N.C.,-based team has led 137 laps at Sonoma, completed 6,564 of the 6,610 laps contested (99.3 percent) and recorded just one DNF (Did Not Finish) over that stretch (1989-2016).
RCR in the NSCS … In 2,673 Sprint Cup Series starts dating back to 1969, RCR has amassed 46 pole awards,105 wins, 471 top-five finishes and 1,016 top-10 finishes, with an average starting position of 17.8 and an average finishing position of 16.0. RCR has earned 15 total championships (six Sprint Cup Series championships with Earnhardt in 1986, ’87, ’90, ’91, ’93 and ’94, six NASCAR XFINITY Series titles, two NASCAR Camping World Truck Series titles and one ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards title) and was the first organization to win titles in NASCAR’s three national series.
The Collective RCR … RCR’s three full-time Sprint Cup Series drivers rank 12th (Dillon), 15th (Newman) and 22nd (Menard) in the driver championship point standings.
Catch the Action … The Sonoma 350 is scheduled to be televised live on FOX Sports 1 beginning at 3 p.m. Eastern Time and broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, Channel 90.
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This Week’s Dow Chevrolet SS at Sonoma Raceway … Austin Dillon will pilot chassis No. 469 in the Sonoma 350 at Sonoma Raceway. This is the same Chevrolet SS that Dillon raced in the Sprint Cup Series’ two road course events in 2015.
Dillon at Sonoma Raceway …. Dillon has two previous Sprint Cup Series start at the 10-turn, 1.99-mile Sonoma Raceway road course, finishing 17th in 2014 and 2015.
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AUSTIN DILLON QUOTES:
What are road course weekends like for you? Do you view them as a break from the norm or more of a pain because you have more to think about?
“There’s definitely a lot to think about at road course races, but I view them as exciting. I want to do my studying beforehand so that I’m prepared. I’ve had some good runs at Sonoma Raceway. It’s not one of those places where you have to catch your breath every corner so it is kind of nice because you can really finesse and work on speed and approach. Hopefully I can tap my old buddy Max Papis for a little bit of additional information.”
Sonoma Raceway is often referred to as the short track of road racing. How much can you risk your car there and still have it be able to drive to the front?
“You can risk certain things at Sonoma Raceway. I’ve been driving through the grass there in both races I’ve been in, so I’m sure I’ll drive through the grass at some point. In that big jump before you turn right, I usually hit it a little too hard, so there’s a lot of curves, a lot of grass.”
This Week’s Richmond / Menards Chevrolet SS at Sonoma Raceway … Chassis No. 470 was selected for the first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series road course event of 2016. This Chevrolet SS finished 13th at both Sonoma Raceway and Watkins Glen International in 2015 with Menard behind the wheel.
Sonoma Stats … In eight NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Sonoma Raceway, Menard has captured one top-five finish with two top-10 starting spots, including one top-three qualifying effort. The Richard Childress Racing driver has completed 99.9 percent of laps around the road course and has an average starting position of 20.0 and finishing position of 18.2.
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PAUL MENARD QUOTES:
Do you like road course racing?
“Sonoma is a very tough place to pass, so that’s where you’ll see a lot of the bumper cars coming into play. At Watkins Glen, there are better passing zones so you don’t have to be as aggressive. The tires fall off a lot in Sonoma and we really slow down about three or four seconds a lap throughout the course of a run. Tires are very important and you’ll see a lot of different strategies play out towards the end. I love road course racing. It’s a lot of fun. We’ve had some good runs at Sonoma in the past and I’m looking forward to getting back out there.”
How long does it take you to get acclimated with turning both left and right in the race car?
“It actually happens pretty quickly. It’s almost like you just got out of the car from last year. We’ve done so much that it picks up pretty quick.”
This Week’s WIX Filters Chevrolet SS at Sonoma Raceway … Ryan Newman will pilot car No. 477 in the season’s first road course event at Sonoma Raceway. The Sonoma 350 marks the first time this year that the No. 31 team will utilize this Chevrolet in competition.
Newman at Sonoma … In 14 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events at the 10-turn, 1.99-mile road course, Newman owns two top-five and six top-10 finishes. He has led 11 laps and completed all 1,547 laps of competition. The South Bend, Ind., native has an average start of 12.4 and average finish of 12.6. In the last 10 races at the road course, the Richard Childress Racing driver ranks sixth in most points earned.
WIX Filters … WIX Filters provides technical support for both RCR and ECR Engines by supplying air and oil filters as well as providing research and development support. RCR’s relationship with WIX Filters started back in the late 1960s and in 2011 at Bristol Motor Speedway, the No. 1 filter in motorsports began its association with Ryan Newman.
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RYAN NEWMAN QUOTES:
What is the key to success at Sonoma Raceway?
“It’s usually all about forward drive and then braking and then strategy. Obviously having good track position is key as well because it is difficult to pass there. Forward drive seems to be the premium and it seems like getting off of what I call, Turns 6 and 11 are the most important parts of the track and just having a good launch and keeping the rear tires under you are keys to running a good lap. It seems like you can so easily abuse the rear tires and make the car loose for the rest of the track. If that happens then you can’t go forward.”
What’s the toughest part of the track for you to figure out?
“It seems like every time we go there, it’s a different tire or something is a little bit different and you have to find the balance in strategy … do you pit twice and stay out, max out your windows and stay out on old tires or do you come in and get new tires? In my opinion, it’s the strategy part that is the toughest to figure out. Driving the car there isn’t that difficult except for keeping the rear tires on it. That’s difficult to do, but I think what’s most difficult is figuring out the right strategy.”
What is your favorite part about that track?
“I just like driving the car at road courses. They are fun to hustle around. You are using the brake pedal and it lends itself to better racing.”
