Benson On NAASCAR Brickyard 400
The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is one of #10 Pontiac driver Johnny Benson’s favorite tracks. Benson led 70 laps in 1996 plus two more in 1997 and has three top-8 finishes in his eight races at Indy. Benson and his team tested at Indianapolis on July 14-16. Benson On Indy’s Importance To NASCAR: “I think it is pretty important for NASCAR to be at Indy. It’s a place that obviously has a lot of history and a lot of tradition. It’s hard to believe this is the tenth year. That is pretty amazing. Every time we go there it always feels like it’s the first time I was there. There is something about the atmosphere at that place.” First Impression: “I remember my first time here in 1996. We came up there to test and it was a big place with lots of seats, but it was really just kind of like any other race track. We came back in August and on the first day there were a lot of people who showed up just for qualifying. There was more the next day and that was impressive. Then race morning they had all the drivers take a lap in the pace car and I was like ‘you got to kidding.” I couldn’t believe the number of people. It was like the whole city decided it wanted to see a race. I have never witnessed anything like that. It was overwhelming.” Favorite Memory: “My best memory is leading 70 laps in 1996 my rookie year. We had a great car and were up front there at the end. Near the end we didn’t have a good stop and I kind of stalled the car and we didn’t make it out like we wanted we to. We were disappointed but it was still a good day for us.” Victory At Indy: “To win a race there would mean a ton to us not just because we would win another Winston Cup race but the fact that it is at Indy. Indy has such a huge following and not just for NASCAR. If I had to pick a place to win, Indy would be at the top of my list. This place pays a lot too, but the trophy would look good in my trophy case.” Indy Success: “I like flat, fast racetracks. For whatever reason that just fits with my style of driving. We have come pretty close to winning three times at Indy. Plus, I’ ve been pretty fortunate to have some good crew chiefs who made the right calls at the end of the race. James (Ince) gave me two tires on that final stop last year and that put me up there and we held on for third. When it comes down to the final laps it’s nice to know you are going to get that kind of support out of the pits.” Weather Impact On Track: “The weather has such an effect on the track. In the morning you can post some pretty good speeds but when the afternoon comes you slow down like you wouldn’t believe. When evening comes you produce some pretty good times again. Why is that? I think it’s because Indy is such a momentum race track that if you lose even just a little bit in the corners that shows down those long straight-aways. There are other tracks that are similar. But Indy is not a track where you can slip and slide very much because you can’t make up that time. To run well at Indy you have to be right on the money.” Valvoline Informed Sources - Story Ideas Winning On Dirt: Justin Wells, of Crane, Mo is leading the IMCA Late Model National Points race driving a James Ince Motorsports built chassis. Ince, the #10 Valvoline Pontiac crew chief, has built eight dirt late model cars for racers across the country. The Rogersville, Mo business has 18 victories this season. For more information contact: 417-753-7500. Our New House #10 Valvoline Pontiac team moved into its new Featherlite race hauler on July 13. The team carries everything it needs on the hauler that crisscrosses the country going to race tracks. What's the owner doing at testing? At testing events, the car owner normally would be as ignored as a busboy at Hooters. Why are Valvoline representatives a key part of pre- and in-season testing for the No. 10 Valvoline Pontiac and No. 9 and 19 Dodge Dealers Intrepid R/Ts? That's because Valvoline uses the Nascar Winston Cup tests to try out its new qualifying oils, gear oils, radiator wetter that go into the engines of Johnny Benson, Bill Elliott and Jeremy Mayfield. Now Hear This and See This: Johnny Benson audio is now available. If you would like a mp3 file of Johnny Benson previewing an upcoming race or talking about a specific subject please email me and I will send you the audio file of Benson. If you would like weekly pictures of the #10 team and Benson please email me and I will give you the pass code so you can download pics every Monday. Media only please. The Business of Racing is Business: Half of the stories written about Nascar Winston Cup racing are business related these days. Jim Rocco - Senior Vice President at the Valvoline Company - is one of the listed car owners of Johnny Benson's #10 Valvoline Pontiac and an excellent interview for stories dealing with team owners, sponsorship or economics of racing. For Sale? Want to know how much it costs to be on a Winston Cup racer? Valvoline has a color graphic in jpg form that gives rough costs estimates of every spot on a Winston Cup car. Home Grown Racing Valvoline as well as Benson and his Crew Chief James Ince value local racers across the country. Benson races a pavement late model and Ince owns and races with his dirt team in the Midwest. Valvoline supports local racers by giving money through a competition called the Valvoline Cup open to all American racers. --------------------------------------------------------------- Benson Career at Indy Year S F 2002 11 37 2001 26 3 2000 13 25 1999 39 19 1998 39 25 1997 20 7 1996 14 8 Benson 2003 Record S F Daytona 40 19 Rockingham 2 13 Las Vegas 16 12 Atlanta 23 11 Darlington 22 25 Bristol 20 19 Texas 13 32 Talladega 17 41 Martinsville 28 32 California 32 36 Richmond 13 15 Charlotte 10 24 Dover 30 5 Pocono 25 24 Michigan 26 25 Infineon 25 30 Daytona 22 27 Chicago 36 18 Loudon 26 26 Pocono 29 20 THE RACE: Brickyard 400 Winston Cup Race #21 of 36 for the 2003 Winston Cup season Race: Sunday, August 3, 2003 in Speedway, IN TV: NBC - 2:30pm/et Pre-Race Show: NBC - 2:00pm/et - hosted by Bill Weber Scheduled Race Re-Air: NOTE: Speed Channel has changed their lineup starting in August - so there will be a one-hour recap of the race on Wednesday, August 6th at 7:00pm/et and again on August. 7th; a full three-hour race show will re-air at 3:00pm/et on Thursday, August 7th Announcers: Allen Bestwick, Benny Parsons, Wally Dallenbach Pit Reporters: Bill Weber, Matt Yocum, Marty Snider, Dave Burns War Wagon: Bill Weber and many guests Purse/Race Awards: was $7,423,979 in 2002 2002 Race Winner: Bill Elliott, 125.033mph, started 2nd Race Record: Bobby Labonte, August 2000, 155.912mph Track/Race Length: 2.5 quad-oval, 160 laps, 400 miles Pit Road Speed: 55mph Practice Practice: Friday, August 1st, 3:00 - 5:00pm/et; and Saturday, August 2nd, 3:00 - 3:45pm/et Happy Hour Practice: Saturday, August 2nd, 4:45 - 5:30pm/et on TV-Speed Channel live. Qualifying Qualifying Draw: Friday, August 1st, 2:00pm/et First Round Qualifying: 2 laps for positions 1-36, Saturday, August 1st at 11:05am/et, TV-TNT live, and live via IMS Radio Network Second-Round Qualifying: there is no longer a 2nd round of qualifying (since the 2001 season) Track Qualifying Record: Tony Stewart, August 2002, 182.960mph Last Year's Pole Sitter: Tony Stewart, 182.960mph, finished 12th. Track Specs: Superspeedway: 2.5 mile quad-oval Banking: turns: 9 degrees, 12 minutes Straights: Front/Back - 3300 feet, Short Shute(between turns 1 and 2/3 and 4) - 660 feet Attendance: ~350,000 PREVIOUS BRICKYARD 400 WINNERS YEAR CAR# DRIVER MANU AVE SPEED STARTING POS 1994 24 Jeff Gordon Chevy 131.977 3rd 1995 3 Dale Earnhardt Chevy 155.206 13th 1996 88 Dale Jarrett Ford 139.508 24th 1997 10 Ricky Rudd Ford 130.814 7th 1998 24 Jeff Gordon Chevy 126.772 3rd 1999 88 Dale Jarrett Ford 148.194 4th 2000 18 Bobby Labonte Pontiac 155.912 3rd 2001 24 Jeff Gordon Chevy 130.790 27th 2002 9 Bill Elliott Dodge 125.033 2nd 10 Valvoline Pontiac Team Television Information Pit Contact: James Ince or Drew Brown Owners: Valvoline (Jim Rocco)/MB2 Motorsports (Tom Beard, Nelson Bowers, Read Morton) Crew Chief/Car Chief: James Ince Engine Builder: Hendrick Motorsports Spotter (Race Day) Jay Guy Spotter (Practice Only) Russell Hoekwater Engine Tuner John Kendrach Over The Wall Pit Crew Front Tire Changer Rick (Fuzz ) Burgdoff Front Tire Carrier Shane Cooke Rear Tire Changer Greg Burkhart Rear Tire Carrier Steve Genenbacher Gasman Jimmy Watts Tire Specialist Skippy Johnson Catch Can Steve Mann Jackman Brian Perry Other Crew Members Truck Driver: Gale (Bandit) Wilson Mechanic: Jerry Hess Mechanic: David Baum Shocks: Mike Cluka Tires: Jeff (Skippy) Johnson Engineer: Tim Turner Computers & Gas Runner: John Hayes Scorer: Terry Lane Pit Stop Coach: Gary Smith PR Rep: Drew Brown