Dodge Motorsports Notes & Quotes NSCS Race Advance
Quaker State 400
Kentucky Speedway
Saturday, 9, 2011
DODGE NEWS AND NOTES
. Dodge’s Kurt Busch is the only Sprint Cup Series driver who has been in the top-10 in the driver point standings all season (17 races).
. Robby Gordon Motorsports will field two cars this weekend at Kentucky. The No. 7 SPEED Energy Dodge Charger will be driven by Scott Wimmer. The No. 7 is inside the top 35 in owner points and assured a starting berth in Saturday night’s inaugural race. The No. 77 SPEED Energy Dodge Charger will be driven by Robby Gordon during practice and qualifying with a driver TBD taking over the reins for the race on Saturday night.
DODGE AT KENTUCKY SPEEDWAY
. This is the inaugural NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Kentucky Speedway.
. In four starts on 1.5-mile tracks this season, Kurt Busch has four top-10 finishes.
. In four starts at 1.5-mile tracks in 2011, Brad Keselowski has a win – Kansas and three finishes inside the top 20.
. Dodge has won two NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races at Kentucky Speedway – Scott Riggs (2001) and Bobby Hamilton (2004).
THE DODGE BOYS
. Dodge has 209 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victories.
. Dodge’s most recent win came at Infineon Raceway. Kurt Busch led 76 of the 110 laps en route to victory in the Save Mart 350. The victory was the second for Dodge in 2011.
. Dodge teams have posted 49 victories since the manufacturer’s return to NASCAR’s premier series in 2001 after being out of the sport since 1977.
. Dodge has posted wins each season since its return in 2001 including seven wins twice (2002 and 2006).
. Dodge claimed two Sprint Cup victories in 2010.
. A Dodge has started from the pole in four of the last six Sprint Cup races – Brad Keselowski (Charlotte) and Kurt Busch (Kansas, Pocono and Michigan).
2011 DODGE SPRINT CUP REWIND
. Race 1: Kurt Busch wins the season-opening Bud Shootout and a Gatorade Duel at Daytona International Speedway.
. Races 12-15: Dodge earns four-consecutive poles.
. Race 13: Keselowski wins Kansas. First Dodge win of the season
. Race 16: Busch dominates at Infineon. Earns first road course win of his career; his first win of the season.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
. Dodge’s Brad Keselowski is the only current Penske Racing driver to have competed at Kentucky Speedway. In three Nationwide Series starts, Keselowski posted three consecutive top-five finishes and has an average finishing position of 3.3. He also has two Camping World Truck Series starts at the 1.5-mile track.
DID YOU KNOW
. NASCAR has competed at three tracks in the state of Kentucky. In 1954, Lee Petty drove his Chrysler to victory in a 200 lap Grand National (Now Sprint Cup) race at Corbin Speedway. It was the lone visit by NASCAR’s premier series to the .5-mile dirt track. Louisville Speedway hosted Nationwide Series races in 1988 and 1989 and the Camping World Truck Series from 1995 to 1999. Kentucky Speedway has hosted both the Nationwide and Truck Series since 2001.
2011 SPRINT CUP SERIES SEASON BEST
. Kurt Busch Start: 1st (Kansas, Pocono & Michigan) Finish: 1st (Infineon)
. Brad Keselowski Start: 1st (Charlotte) Finish: 1st (Kansas)
FROM THE ENGINEER “It’s a brand new race, but not necessarily a brand new track for Sprint Cup teams. Kentucky has been a favorite testing venue for teams in this series since it opened in 2000. Over the years, the teams have spent countless thousands of hours turning countless thousands of laps here trying not only new parts, but also new setups. As a mile-and-a-half, medium-banked, D-shaped oval, Kentucky has been the perfect clone to many other mile-and-a-half tracks in the series and teams will likely feel pretty much at home when they roll in the gates on Thursday.
“On top of that fact, NASCAR has scheduled a full day of testing before the race weekend officially begins on Friday. That should give teams plenty of time to get re-acclimated to the facility. By race time on Saturday, Kentucky better feel like old hat to any team that hopes to find success here.” Howard Comstock, Dodge Motorsports Engineering
ODDS AND ENDS
. Dodge’s Brad Keselowski and Kurt Busch have each earned a Sprint Cup pole and race win this season.
. Brad Keselowski is one of four drivers outside the top-12 in the driver point standings with a win.
. Kurt Busch has a current streak of 10 consecutive years with a race win – the second longest active streak behind Tony Stewart (12 years).
. Both Sprint Cup races at Daytona this season were extended beyond the scheduled distance.
. There have been 131 cautions for 621 laps in the first 17 races this season.
KENTUCKY SPEEDWAY TRACK FACTS
. Construction on the speedway began in 1998 and was completed in mid 2000.
. The speedway has hosted the NASCAR’s Nationwide Series and Camping World Truck Series, ARCA as well as the IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights Series since the track opened.
. The turns are banked 14 degrees, the frontstretch eight degrees and the backstretch four degrees.
DODGE MOTORSPORTS QUOTES OF THE WEEK “NASCAR has established very specific rules for the manufacturers and race teams in order to keep a level playing field. NASCAR has established common suppliers and each manufacturer will be using the identical EFI components such as fuel injectors. We expect very little change from the vantage point of our fans, but the manufacturers and teams will continue to look for engine power increases with the new fuel delivery system.” Pat Baer, Dodge Motorsports Engine Engineer – On the impact EFI will have on NASCAR Sprint Cup Series racing
DODGE QUOTES “The thing about Kentucky is that negotiating all the bumps is a major factor in getting around that place. What’s so great – and I personally applaud NASCAR for doing it – is that they gave us a ton of track time there on Thursday and that is cool. It definitely won’t offer everything to get us full-time ‘Cuppers’ up to speed with the guys I have mentioned, but it will certainly help out.” Kurt Busch, No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Dodge Charger R/T
“It’s exciting to be a part of a new event. It doesn’t happen that often. There seems to be a lot of excitement in that area, evidenced by the fact that the grandstands are sold out. It represents a large, untapped market for the Cup Series, but it’s one of our better events for the Nationwide Series. The fans are great and they really enjoy racing. Everyone will want to be the first Cup Series winner at Kentucky and I feel like our Miller Lite Dodge will be fast enough to challenge for the win. We had a great tire test there last month and I feel like we learned a lot that will help us this weekend.
“If you can get your car where it’s comfortable over the bumps in Turns 1 and 2, that’s obviously going to be the fast way around Kentucky. Sometimes that is easier said than done so some drivers will choose to enter a bit higher to avoid the bumps. Usually that will establish a second groove around the middle of the race, which can lead to some great side-by-side racing over the final laps. It’s definitely a place with a lot of character, despite the fact that it looks like a lot of the other intermediate tracks that we visit.” Brad Keselowski, No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger R/T
