HOMESTEAD-MIAMI SPEEDWAY RACE PREVIEW
Michael Annett • No. 43 Pilot Flying J Ford Mustang
Annett has four career starts in the Nationwide Series at Homestead-Miami Speedway
Annett enters Homestead in fifth-place in the Nationwide Series driver point standings
Annett’s best finish (19th) came last season at the 1.5-mile speedway
Michael Annett on Going to Homestead-Miami: “We’ve had a great season this year and going to Homestead is bittersweet knowing such a good season is coming to a close. We’ve come a long way as a team since Daytona, and we’re still looking for a win. We’ve got one more shot this weekend and I’m going to try my best to get the Pilot Flying J Ford in Victory Lane on Saturday. Homestead is another one of those 1.5-mile tracks that we tend to run well at. Our intermediate track program has been great this year, so I always enjoy going to the 1.5-mile tracks because I know we’ve got a shot to run up front. We’ve accomplished a lot this season, with top fives and top 10’s, and we’ve put ourselves in a points battle for fifth. Justin (Allgaier) has been a great competitor all year, we gained some points on him last weekend in Phoenix and we intend to clinch fifth-place in the points this weekend in Miami.”
Crew Chief Philippe Lopez’s Thoughts on Racing at Homestead: “The last race of the year is here and we have put ourselves in a great position to end the season. We set a goal in the beginning of the year to end the 2012 campaign in the top-five in points, and we are currently fifth. Seven points separate us from the No. 31 (Allgaier). We feel really confident that if we execute and do our job, and don’t worry about what the No. 31 is doing, we will clinch the fifth spot coming out of Homestead. The Homestead, Fla., track is one of those 1.5-mile tracks that we have run well on all season. We don’t expect anything different this weekend. We started the season wanting to give Richard Petty Motorsports a great showing for their first year with a Nationwide Series team, and I feel like we have accomplished that. We’ve had a lot of top fives and top 10’s and we’d love to finish out the year with a win. If we can get top five in the points we feel like that’s a great foundation to build on for years to come. It will also give Michael a chance to get on stage at the banquet and get recognized by his peers, which is recognition he truly deserves after his great runs this season.”
Chassis History: The No. 43 RPM NASCAR Nationwide Series team has prepared chassis No. 621 for the 200-lap race at Homestead-Miami Speedway. This Pilot Flying J Ford Mustang has been run previously this season at Bristol and Dover.
Notes: Annett has four NASCAR Nationwide Series starts at Homestead-Miami Speedway. His best finish (19th) and his best start (15th) at the 1.5-mile track came in 2011. Annett heads into the season finale at Homestead in fifth position in the NASCAR Nationwide Series driver point standings. He has a 7 point advantage over sixth-place Justin Allgaier. If he can maintain his position in the points Annett will earn a coveted spot on the stage for the NASCAR Nationwide Series banquet.
Annett heads into the final race of the season with stellar stats. He’s earned six top-five finishes and 17 top-10 finishes in his first season with Richard Petty Motorsports. In 32 races he’s only had five events where he’s finishes outside of the top 15.
Don’t miss out on your chance to meet Annett! Michael will be stopping by the Ford Display on Saturday at 1 p.m. for a 15 minute Question-and-Answer session.
Looking for a Pilot or Flying J store near Miami? There are 10 Pilot or Flying J stores within 250 miles of Homestead-Miami Speedway. The nearest store is 167 miles away from the race track. (Pilot Travel Center (I-75 Exit 139) 6050 Plaza Dr., Fort Myers, FL 33905.) Go to http://www.pilotflyingj.com/locations to find the nearest locations.
Race Information
Track: Homestead-Miami Speedway
Laps: 200 Laps/300Miles
Track Size: 1.5-Mile
TV Information: 4 p.m. ET on ESPN2
Radio Information: 4 p.m. ET on MRN
Be sure to follow Richard Petty Motorsports on Twitter @RPMotorsports for behind the scenes updates, driver appearance information and qualifying and race updates. You can also check us out on our Facebook page at Richard Petty Motorsports.
