THE EVENT.
EVENT: Nashville 300, Round 7 of 34 in the 2011 NASCAR Nationwide Series
DATE / TIME: Saturday, April 23, 2011, 2:00 PM CT
VENUE: Nashville Superspeedway, Lebanon, TN (1.33-Mile Oval)
DISTANCE: 225 Laps, 300 Miles
TV (PRE-RACE): NASCAR Countdown, ESPN (Live-2:00 PM ET)
TV (RACE): ESPN (Live-3:00 PM ET)
RADIO: MRN Radio / Sirius NASCAR Radio (Live)
THE HEADLINES.
THE STORY: For the first time in the team’s brief history, Rusty Wallace Racing will field a third car for this weekend’s event, with Toyota Sprint Cup veteran, David Reutimann at the helm of the No. 64 Flatout Flatbread Toyota Camry. The No. 64 team is currently scheduled to compete in at least seven 2011 Nationwide Series events; Reutimann will split driving duties for those races with former No. 64 driver, David Stremme and 2011 NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown winner, Jason Bowles. Aspen Dental will sponsor four of the seven events.
CARTER IN COMMAND: RWR General Manager and former Sprint Cup crew chief, Larry Carter will return to the pit box to lead the No. 64 team in its limited schedule. In his most recent crew chief role, Carter guided Steve Wallace to a lead-lap top-20 effort in this year’s Daytona 500-the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series debut for both Wallace and RWR.
DAVID REUTIMANN AT NASHVILLE: Reutimann has been a force with which to be reckoned at Nashville Superspeedway, with three top-five and six top-ten finishes in his eight career starts there. His average finish of 11.6 at Nashville is third best among drivers entered in Saturday’s race. Reutimann won Nashville’s August 2005 NASCAR Truck Series race and has three top-ten finishes in his three Truck Series starts there.
A HELPING HAND: RWR’s fleet of No. 62, No. 64 and No. 66 cars-along with the other Toyota factory teams-will carry graphics supporting the American Red Cross’s Japan Disaster Relief efforts again this weekend in Nashville. Toyota has a strong connection to Western Tennessee, with engine blocks and automatic transmission parts being manufactured at a plant in nearby Jackson. Donations to support the Japan relief efforts can be made online at redcross.org.
THE MACHINES.
TEAM 64 PRIMARY: RWR-064-A car usually assigned to Steve Wallace’s No. 66 5-Hour Energy team, chassis 064 made its Nationwide Series debut several weeks ago in Texas. In that race, Wallace manhandled an extremely loose race car to salvage a top-20 finish.
GOING FLATOUT.
WELCOME FLATOUT FLATBREAD: Rusty Wallace Racing is pleased to welcome Flatout Flatbread to its stable of partners. Flatout will serve as primary sponsor of David Reutimann’s No. 64 team in this weekend’s event.
ABOUT FLATOUT FLATBREAD: Flatout Flatbread is a Michigan-based company selling healthy and tasty flatbreads across America. Started in 1998, Flatout is the fastest growing alternative to sliced bread. Its line includes Flatout Flatbreads, Artisan Foldit and Edge On Baked Flatbread Crisps. Flatout appeals to the whole family with fun and easy recipes from wraps to pizza to Panini. Flatout products are sold in deli bakery sections of all major grocery retailers and drug chains. For more on Flatout Flatbread, please visit flatoutbread.com.
JUST SAYIN’.
RUSTY WALLACE ON THE ADDITION OF A THIRD TEAM: “We’re very excited about this new addition to our program. Not only does it allow us to grow partnerships with companies like Aspen Dental and Flatout Flatbread, but it also allows us to evaluate our race cars even further. It’s not a secret that we haven’t run as well as we expected in 2011 and having a veteran like David Reutimann giving additional feedback may help speed up our COT learning curve. At the same time, David Stremme did a great job for us in 2008 and I really feel like Jason Bowles has the potential to be fast at the Nationwide level. I’d like to thank Aspen Dental and Flatout Flatbread for supporting us, as well as the folks at MWR and Toyota for allowing David Reutimann to help us a bit.”
