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NASCAR Busch Series News & Notes - Daytona
* Most anticipated NASCAR Busch Series season ready
to begin
* Inaugural event in Mexico event highlighted Thursday at
DIS
* Determining race lineups, impound procedure new for
2005
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Feb. 16, 2005) –
In past seasons, the fact Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 81 Ritz/Oreo
Chevrolet) is seeking his fourth straight NASCAR Busch Series
season-opening win – and his fourth straight series win at Daytona
International Speedway – would dominate all headlines.
Indeed,
Earnhardt is vying to reach a Daytona plateau achieved only by his father,
Dale Earnhardt, who won five consecutive NASCAR Busch
Series season-openers at the famed venue.
But as the 24th season of NASCAR Busch Series competition
prepares to begin with Saturday’s Hershey’s Take 5
“300”. Earnhardt Jr. is just one of many intriguing storylines
in what is arguably the most anticipated year in series history.
To start, the season begins with the most lucrative race
purse ever in the NASCAR Busch Series – over $2.4 million.
Next, Martin Truex Jr. (No. 8 Bass Pro Shops
Chevrolet) – whose team is owned by Earnhardt Jr. –
returns as the defending NASCAR Busch Series champion. Truex made a
stunning debut in his first series visit to Daytona last year when he won
the pole for this event. Now, he’ll attempt to become the first
series champion to repeat since Earnhardt in 1998-99.
Truex, 24, headlines a talented group of young drivers who
will compete fulltime in the NASCAR Busch Series this season. Clint
Bowyer (No. 2 ACDelco Chevrolet), Ryan Hemphill (No. 4 GEICO/Pet Brands
Dodge), Justin Labonte (No. 44 U.S. Coast Guard Chevrolet), Paul Menard
(No. 11 Menard’s Chevrolet), Reed Sorenson (No. 41 Discount Tire Co.
Dodge), Jon Wood (No. 47 Clorox/Wisk Ford) and J.J. Yeley
(No. 18 Vigoro/Home Depot Chevrolet) are just a few of the drivers
prepared for this next step.
Team and manufacturer changes have reinvigorated key NASCAR
Busch Series veterans. David Green (No. 27 Kleenex/Scott Brand
Ford), the 1994 series champion, switches from Chevrolet to Ford
while remaining in the BREWCO Motorsports camp.
Kenny Wallace takes his Stacker 2
sponsorship to a new team – ppc Racing – and
also switches to Ford. Jason Keller (No. 35 McDonalds
Ford) joins with Ashton Lewis Jr. (No. 25 U.S. Marine
Corps Ford) to give Team Rensi Motorsports a
viable duo.
Green, Wallace, Keller and Lewis all return after posting Top
10 finishes in the 2004 point standings. Another top-10 finisher
David Stremme (No. 14 U.S. NAVY Dodge), also returns along
with 2001 series champion Greg Biffle, who will split time
in the No. 66 Duraflame Ford with Aaron
Fike.
The NASCAR Busch Series will make history this year when it
travels to Mexico City’s famed Autodromo Hermanos Rodgriguez for the
March 6 Telcel Motorola 200 presented by Banamex. It’s a road-course
event that marks the series’ first points race held outside the
United States and also the return of the series to road-course racing for
the first time since 2001 at Watkins Glen.
The NASCAR Busch Series will hold its second road-course
event at The Glen in August.
International stars such as Adrian
Fernandez, who will drive Hendricks Motorsports’ No.
5 Lowe’s Chevrolet in the race, and Michel Jourdain
Jr. (No. 10 ppc Racing Ford), who comes to the NASCAR Busch Series
from Champ Car competition, will compete against NASCAR Busch Series
regulars and select drivers from the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series. Jourdain Jr.
will compete fulltime for ppc Racing in 2005, becoming the first Hispanic
driver to run a full schedule in the NASCAR Busch Series.
Last season, the NASCAR Busch Series produced 15 different
winners, 18 different races with finishes under one second and an average
of 11 lead changes per event. Some 2.5 million fans attended NASCAR Busch
Series events in 2004, while 70 million viewers tuned in to series races on
television.
NEWS & NOTES, PART II
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Daytona entries number 55
… The first race of 2005 – along with its record
purse – has lured 55 entrants for Saturday’s NASCAR Busch
Series opener. Defending race champion Dale Earnhardt Jr.
returns as a favorite while last year’s NASCAR Busch Series champion,
Martin Truex Jr., wants to improve on his 28th-place
finish in 2004 after starting on the pole. In addition to Earnhardt, four
other former winners of the season-opening Daytona race are entered –
Randy LaJoie (No. 34 Dollar General Chevrolet), a
three-time event winner and the last driver to win other than Earnhardt
back in 2001; Matt Kenseth (No. 17 Waste Management Ford),
the 2000 winner; Joe Nemechek (No. 87 Cellular One
Chevrolet), the 1992 NASCAR Busch Series champion, who won the
1998 season-opener and Steve Grissom (No. 49 Advil Ford),
the 1993 NASCAR Busch Series champion, who won in 1996. Michael
Waltrip (No. 99 Aaron’s Chevrolet), a three-time Daytona
winner in NASCAR NEXTEL Cup competition, is seeking his first NASCAR Busch
Series win at the track. Shawna Robinson (No. 23 Vassarette
Chevrolet) makes her return to the NASCAR Busch Series at Daytona
while Kim Crosby (No. 24 Boudreaux’s Butt Paste
Chevrolet) will attempt to join Robinson as one of only three
female drivers to run a fulltime schedule in the series. Michel Jourdain
Jr. moves from a 10-year career on the Champ Car circuit to make his NASCAR
Busch Series debut at Daytona.
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Fernandez, Jourdain Jr. meet the media
Thursday … The March 6 Telcel Motorola 200
presented by Banamex in Mexico City has already become one of the NASCAR
Busch Series’ top events of the season, as evidenced by its $2.3
million purse and drivers outside of the series who will challenge for the
win. Open-wheel star and Mexico City native Adrian
Fernandez, who will drive for Hendrick
Motorsports in the event, will meet the media in the DIS Infield
Media Center Press Conference Room at 8:30 a.m. on Thursday to discuss his
participation in the race. Also scheduled to attend are Michel
Jourdain Jr., another Mexico City native, David
Green and NASCAR NEXTEL Cup driver Jeff Burton.
The latter served as the test driver at the reconfigured 2.518-mile road
course in January, while Green visited Mexico City later in that month to
take part in media events.
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NASCAR Busch Series competition changes for
2005 … The NASCAR Busch Series will see a few key
competition changes in 2005. The highest-ranked 30 positions in the owner
championship points will be assured a starting position in each race, while
the remaining 12 spots will be assigned to drivers with the fastest
qualifying speeds. The 43rd position remains for a former champion. The
season’s first five races, including Daytona, will utilize the 2004
owner point standings; beginning with the sixth race, the current
highest-ranked 30 positions in the owners points will be used. The NASCAR
Busch Series also will impound cars after each events qualifying. Unless
authorized by NASCAR, teams will not be permitted to work on their cars
until race day. NASCAR also has implemented a gear rule where gear ratios
will limit RPMs (revolutions per minute). The rule will be in effect at all
tracks except Daytona and Talladega, where limits already exist due to
restrictor plates. Finally, NASCAR Busch Series teams will be allotted five
sets of tires to be used for practice, qualifying and the race during each
event. The latter three changes are designed to assist in cost-containment
as well as enhance competition.
ON THE RIGHT
TRACK
Michael Waltrip looks to start
his series-leading 20th race at Daytona. … Matt
Kenseth (six) and Waltrip (five) have the most top-five finishes
among active drivers at Daytona while Waltrip and Kenny
Wallace leads all active drivers with seven top-10 finishes.
… Wallace (1989), David Green (1991) and
Martin Truex Jr. (2004) all won their first NASCAR Busch
Series poles in the season-opener at Daytona. … Chevrolet leads all
manufacturers, with 16 in NASCAR Busch Series wins at Daytona.
ETC.
SPEED
Channel’s reality show, “NBS 24/7,” will return for the
2005 season. The show will once again focus on the drivers, owners, crew
chiefs and team members from FitzBradshaw Racing and
Braun Racing. Check listings for broadcast day/time.
… Michel Jourdain Jr. will depart Daytona
International Speedway following Saturday’s race in order to return
home for the birth of his first child. He and his wife,
Nora, are expecting a son. … David
Stremme and Tim Fedewa (No. 12 Supercuts Dodge)
are scheduled to spend an hour flying with the U.S. Navy’s Blue
Angels precision flying team on Feb. 28 prior to the California race.
… The Dodge Charger returns to the NASCAR Busch Series this season
with 12 teams entered to run a Charger at Daytona.
QUOTEBOOK
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“Last year I came here and expected good things but
didn’t even know if I’d be here now. Last year was a pretty
cool deal. This year is going to be a lot more fun.” –
Martin Truex Jr.
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“Impounding the cars is going to be a great thing for
the NASCAR Busch Series. It obviously helps out by cutting certain costs,
but it also cuts down on our workload before qualifying, allowing us to
work strictly on our race set-ups each weekend.” –
Johnny Sauter (No. 1 Yellow Transportation Dodge)
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“All it takes to have friends work with you at a
restrictor-plate track is to have a fast race car. As fast as our car was
in testing, I expect to be very popular this week.” –
Justin Labonte
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FROM THE
ARCHIVES
Joe Nemechek won four
consecutive poles at Daytona International Speedway – from February,
2001, through both 2002 races and again in February, 2003. He is the only
NASCAR Busch Series driver to have captured four straight poles on a
superspeedway and his mark ties David Green for the
all-time series record for consecutive poles at one track. Green won four
straight poles at Hickory Motor Speedway 1994-96.
FAST FACTS
What: Hershey’s Take 5 “300” (Race
No. 1 of 35 in the NASCAR Busch Series).
Where: Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach,
FL.
When: 1:20 p.m. ET, Saturday, Feb. 19.
Track Layout: 2.5-mile tri-oval.
Race
Length: 300 miles/120 laps.
Posted Awards: $2,412,152.
TV: FOX, 1:00 p.m., ET.
Radio: MRN, XM Satellite.
2004 Winner: Dale Earnhardt Jr.
2004 Polesitter: Martin Truex Jr.
2004 Top 10: Martin Truex Jr. 5,173. 2. Kyle Busch
4,943. 3. Greg Biffle 4,568. 4. Ron Hornaday Jr. 4,258. 5. Mike Bliss
4,115. 6. Jason Keller 4,088. 7. David Green 4,082. 8. Ashton Lewis Jr.
3,892. 9. Kenny Wallace 3,851. 10. David Stremme 3,738.
Pre-race schedule (all times local): Thursday –
Practice, 10 a.m., 11:15 a.m. ; Final practice 4:00 p.m. Friday –
Qualifying, 3:05 p.m.; cars impounded following qualifying.
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