THE RACE
GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway (2.66-mile superspeedway, Talladega, Ala.)
No. 2 Redd’s Wicked Apple Ale Ford Fusion driven by Brad Keselowski | No. 12 SKF Ford Fusion driven by Ryan Blaney |
No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Ford Fusion driven by Joey Logano
Sunday, October 19, 2:00 pm ET
THE NEWS AND NOTES
THE Q & A
The No. 2 Redd’s Wicked Apple Ale Ford Fusion
· THE BIG ONE: Talladega is the track where Brad Keselowski earned his first-ever NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) victory in 2009. He earned the landmark win after leading just one lap, the most important one in the race.
· TWO FOR THE NO. 2 DRIVER: NASCAR’s longest circuit has been the backdrop for two of Keselowski’s 15 NSCS victories. His most recent win at the 2.66-mile superspeedway came in the second Talladega race of 2012 as Keselowski raced his way to the Sprint Cup title.
· THIRD TIME IS A CHARM: Sunday marks the third race of the Contender Round and Keselowski and the No. 2 Redd’s Wicked Apple Ale team need to have a big weekend to advance. Winners of five races this season but currently ranked 10th in the standings, the team will look to earn its way into the Eliminator Round with a strong performance on Sunday.
· RACING WITH REDD’S: This weekend the No. 2 Team Penske Ford will be back in black, white and red as it features the Redd’s Wicked Apple Ale colors and branding. In its two previous outings this season, the Redd’s Apple Ale machine has a 1.5-average finishing position with a second-place result at Pocono and a victory at Loudon.
· EVERYONE LOVES A PARADE: Keselowski will take part in Friday night’s “The Big One” parade at Talladega Superspeedway. The parade starts at 6:30 pm local time. Keselowski will also appear at Montana Saloon and Grill located at 75023 Hwy 77 in Lincoln, Ala., beginning at 8:00 pm CT on Friday.
BRAD KESELOWSKI, NO. 2 REDD’S WICKED APPLE ALE FORD
YOU’VE HAD A COUPLE OF DEFINING VICTORIES AT TALLADEGA, WHAT IS YOUR OUTLOOK FOR THIS RACE?
“There have been some big moments at Talladega. My first Cup Series victory definitely stands out in my mind, and then winning there again in 2012 was a significant part of the No. 2 team earning the championship that year. This weekend is going to be interesting for sure. Talladega is a big place, and we need to have a big weekend. We have our work cut out for us. I know this team is going to give it their all as will I, and that’s all we can do.”
PAUL WOLFE, CREW CHIEF, NO. REDD’S WICKED APPLE ALE FORD
THIS IS A CRITICAL RACE FOR THE TEAM’S CHASE HOPES. HOW DO YOU APPROACH THIS RACE?
“We approach it just like we do every week. The preparation on this Redd’s Wicked Apple Ale Ford has been going on since the last Talladega race. Team Penske’s superspeedway cars are top notch. When we unload at the track most of what we can control has already been accomplished. Qualifying is going to be different again this race and that will be interesting. After that, we will see how the race plays out and do what we can to be there at the end. We are more than capable of winning and we’ll do our utmost to make that happen.”
THE NEWS AND NOTES
THE Q & A
The No. 12 SKF Ford Fusion
· BUSY END OF THE SEASON CONTINUES: Ryan Blaney will continue his busy end-of-the-season driving schedule this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway as he makes his second career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) start. Blaney has raced in the last two NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) events for Team Penske and is scheduled to compete in the next NNS race at Texas Motor Speedway. Blaney also has four more NASCAR Camping World Truck Series starts scheduled for the remainder of the season.
· FAMILIAR FACES IN THE GARAGE: While the No. 12 NSCS team does not compete on a full-time basis for Team Penske, the crew leading Blaney at Talladega is certainly experienced. Blaney will have the No. 22 Discount Tire/Hertz Ford NNS team working with him this weekend, much like he did earlier this year when he made his NSCS debut at Kansas Speedway. Crew chief Jeremy Bullins will lead the team with the regular No. 22 NNS team over-the-wall pit crew servicing the car on Sunday.
· TALLADEGA TALES: Earlier this season, Blaney raced for Team Penske in the Nationwide Series event at Talladega Superspeedway. He had a dominant car, running up front most of the race, and was battling for the lead late when contact with another car forced him into the wall and led to an eventual 21st-place finish. Blaney has two career Camping World Truck Series starts at the 2.66-mile track with a best finish of sixth place in 2012.
· TESTING: Not only are Team Penske teammates Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano spending the early part of this week testing at Martinsville Speedway, Blaney will be joining them at the half-mile track. He will be getting ready for the upcoming Truck Series event at Martinsville.
RYAN BLANEY, NO. 12 SKF FORD
WHAT ARE YOUR EXPECTATIONS HEADING INTO TALLADEGA THIS WEEKEND?
“I want to go out there and win. But I also want just to gain some experience, especially for next year. Racing in the draft, and especially with these Cup cars, is so different. It’s just a lot different than what we do in the Nationwide Series or even in the Truck Series. So the more seat time I can get, the better off I will be for the Daytona 500 when it comes around next year with the Wood Brothers. But I also don’t want to go out there and do anything to affect the Chase. I don’t want to make a mistake and have it cost the guys that are racing for the Championship. So seat time and a solid finish is what I’d really like to get out of the weekend.”
JEREMY BULLINS, CREW CHIEF, NO. 12 SKF FORD
AS A CREW CHIEF, IS IT HARD TO HANDLE A RACE LIKE TALLADEGA WHERE ADJUSTMENTS TO THE CAR DON’T ALWAYS MEAN AS MUCH AS SOME OTHER TRACKS?
“I wouldn’t say it’s hard to handle the race, but you know going in that there isn’t as much to do on the car as another given weekend. In practice, you go out there and make sure the car is driving good in the draft and make a few small adjustments to get it as comfortable in the draft as you can. After that, you just make sure you have no leaks and no rubs, and you wait for the race. This is a track where the race is left a lot more into the driver’s hands.”
THE NEWS AND NOTES
THE Q & A
The No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Ford Fusion
· A RECORD START TO THE CHASE: Despite the fact that Joey Logano struggled with the handling of the No. 22 car last weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway, the 24-year-old was able to race his way back with a strong final restart on fresh tires to grab a fourth-place finish in the Shell-Pennzoil Ford. Logano has now finished in the top five in the first five Chase events, the first time in the 11-year history of the Chase for the Sprint Cup that a driver has finished in the top-five in the first five races. Currently leading the series championship standings, Logano has already secured a spot in the Eliminator Round of the Chase thanks to the team’s victory at Kansas.
· MORE AND MORE TESTING: This week, Logano and the No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Ford team, along with teammate Brad Keselowski and the No. 2 team, will test at Martinsville Speedway in preparation for the upcoming Chase event at Martinsville.
· SEE LOGANO RACE IN MIAMI WITH AUTOTRADER.COM: Starting Monday, October 13, followers of AutoTrader.com on Twitter (@AutoTrader_com) have a chance to win a trip to Homestead-Miami Speedway to attend the Sprint Cup Series Championship race. The entry process will be simple – followers will tweet to win using the hashtag #Chase22ToMiamiSweeps. A winner will be selected at random on Tuesday, October 28, and will be presented with a prize pack for two including airfare, two-night’s stay in a Miami hotel, all-inclusive track experience on race day and a few potential surprises along the way.
· FEAST OR FAMINE: Logano’s career numbers at Talladega Superspeedway started out strong as he earned four top-10 finishes in his first five races at the track. Since then, however, Logano has fallen victim to “the big one” several times, with a best finish of just 16th in his last six starts. Logano does own a NASCAR Nationwide Series win at Talladega in 2012.
JOEY LOGANO, NO. 22 SHELL-PENNZOIL FORD
JUST HOW MUCH OF A RELIEF IS IT TO BE RACING AT TALLADEGA KNOWING YOU ARE ALREADY LOCKED INTO THE NEXT ROUND?
“I think everyone would like to be in the position that we are in and that Kevin (Harvick) is in and know that you don’t really have anything to worry about here other than going for the win. That was one of the first things that went through my mind and my crew’s mind when we crossed the line at Kansas was how it made this weekend’s race easier and less pressure packed. We know now that all we need to do is to go out there and win. We don’t have to worry about riding around and staying out of the wreck. We can get up there and go for the win. But we also want to get a good finish out of it. We have five straight top-five finishes to start the Chase, and we’d love to keep that streak going and make it six in a row at Talladega.”
IS THERE ANYTHING YOU CAN DO THIS WEEKEND TO HELP YOUR TEAMMATE BRAD KESELOWSKI ADVANCE TO THE NEXT ROUND OF THE CHASE?
“The restrictor-plate tracks like Talladega and Daytona are different than most other tracks for sure. You can do more at these tracks to help out other drivers, be it your teammate or someone else, because of the draft. It’s easy to get in a line and get with a fast car and help push them to the front of the field or have someone help push you. So of course, if there is an opportunity to work with Brad and both of our cars are fast, we will work together to get to the front. Any team cars that are in a good position will try and help their other teammates get up to the front. We always work together at these tracks anyway.”
