R. Sorenson No. 41 Discount Tire Dodge Advance for the Meijer 300 @ Kentucky Speedway 06.17.06
Media Contact: Angie Copen, Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates, 704-662-9642, acopen@ganassi.com Reed Sorenson, No. 41 Discount Tire Dodge Meijer 300 Presented by Oreo - Kentucky Superspeedway - 06.17.06 To view the 2006 Discount Tire Media Guide, please visit www.discounttiremotorsports.com <http://www.discounttiremotorsports.com/> No. 41 Discount Tire Team Fast Facts: * Like Father, Like Son: Prior to focusing his attention on his son's racing career, Brad Sorenson was a racer himself. He began at the age of 15. Competing on two wheels instead of four, Brad cut his racing teeth in motocross and competed professionally in the AMA ranks for a short period. From there, he began racing late models around the Atlanta area and even competed in one Busch Series race in 1992 at Lanier National Speedway (13th-place finish). After that, his passion turned to seeing his son, Reed Sorenson, succeed. * Sorenson's Shuffling Not Once, but Twice: This is the second weekend in a row Sorenson will be splitting his time between the NASCAR Busch and NEXTEL Cup competitions that will be taking place in different states. This Friday, he will start off in Brooklyn, Mich., practicing and qualifying the No. 41 Target Dodge at Michigan International Speedway. He will then jump on a plane to fly to Kentucky Speedway to pilot the No. 41 Discount Tire Dodge in the final Busch practice of the weekend. After that, Sorenson will fly back to Michigan to practice the Target Dodge Saturday morning, and will then turn around to return once again to Sparta, Ky., to qualify and race the Discount Tire Dodge in the Meijer 300 Saturday night at Kentucky Speedway. * Helpful Hamlin: Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates (CGRFS) development driver Kevin Hamlin will again help the No. 41 Discount Tire team prepare to go racing for the second week in a row. He helped out last week at Nashville Superspeedway, running the No. 41 Dodge during both Saturday morning practice sessions at the Tennessee track. He will do it again this weekend at Kentucky Speedway, practicing the car during the early-evening practice session. Hamlin joined the CGRFS Development Driver program in 2005. His first NASCAR Busch Series start came at Pikes Peak in July of that same year. He finished 17th and went on to compete in 13 more Busch races that season, in addition to competing in one NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (NCTS) race at Kansas Speedway. He started this 2006 season competing in the NCTS season-opener at Daytona International Speedway for Bobby Hamilton Racing and finished 11th. To learn more about Hamlin, go to www.kevinhamlin.com <http://www.kevinhamlin.com/> . * Keeping Up at Kentucky: Sorenson's history speaks for itself when it comes to racing at Kentucky Speedway. Sorenson's first start at Kentucky was an ASA (American Speed Association) race in May 2004. Although an accident in practice forced him to pull out his back-up car, he went on to finish eighth (started 29th). He then returned to the Sparta, Ky. area track later that same year to post a solid top-five finish in the September ASA race (started sixth, finished third). In 2005, he made his first Busch Series start and overcame a tight-handling race car to post another top-five finish (started eighth, finished fourth). Altogether, in three career starts at the Blue Grass State track he has three top-10 and two top-five finishes. * They Took Three: A very challenging night at Nashville Superspeedway last Saturday resulted in a 23rd-place finish for Sorenson and the Discount Tire team. Although, they experienced a less than stellar night on the track, after an early-race accident seemed to sideline the No. 41 Dodge's overall handling, the team and driver still managed to take a total of three steps up in the NASCAR Busch Series championship standings. Sorenson and team moved up one position in the driver standings and two positions in the owner rankings. They now stand 11th and 13th in driver and owner points respectively, and are only 41 points out of 10th. * CGRFS NEXTEL News & Updates: Sorenson and the Target team slipped to 24th in the overall standings after their 36th-place effort in the last event at Pocono. The team is 57 points out of 20th and 160 points out of the top 15. * NEXTEL Rookie Ranks: Sorenson is now tied for fourth place with Martin Truex Jr. in the Raybestos Rookie of the Year standings. They both have 119 points and trail rookie leader Denny Hamlin by 45 points. * Chassis: Brian Pattie and the No. 41 Discount Tire team selected chassis #557 to take to Kentucky Speedway this weekend. The only other time the team has run chassis #557 was at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in early March, when an overall consistent performance resulted in a 10th-place finish (started 27th). Q&A with Sorenson This is your second week in a row you will be splitting your time between the Busch and NEXTEL Cup competitions, traveling between states. How did last week go and anything different going into this week? "Last week went very smooth. We really couldn't have asked for it to run any smoother. So, as far as the base plan nothing is going to change. [Kevin] Hamlin and all of the guys did a good job getting the car ready for me to run. It was a little too loose during qualifying, but we knew it would tighten up come race time that night. Unfortunately, we got caught up in that early-race accident and never really got to see what we could truly get out of the car that night. "The competition schedules this weekend provides us with a little more time to play with, so we decided to take advantage of it. We are going to practice and qualify the Target car on Friday, and then I am going to head over to Kentucky to run the Discount Tire car in the final Busch practice. There's time to do it, so why not do it. It will also help me get better acclimated with the setup before qualifying it on Saturday." Sorenson on Father's Day ... "I owe a great deal to my dad. He's been a tremendous supporter of my racing career and without his help and guidance I wouldn't be where I am today. He put his racing career on the shelf to allow me to chase a dream and that means the world to me. He's not as involved as he used to be, but I appreciate everything he has done for me. It sure would be nice to get a win in one of these races for him this weekend." Reed Sorenson Kentucky Speedway NASCAR Busch Series Stats (1.5-mile tri-oval in Sparta, Ky.) Date Race Start Finish Laps Completed Total Laps Status Winnings 06.18.05 Meijer 300 Presented by Oreo 8 4 200 200 Running $48,700 Total/Average: 1/8 1/4 200 200 $48,700 Track Summary: 1 Start 0 Wins 1 Top 5 1 Top 10 0 Poles Reed Sorenson 2006 NASCAR Busch Series Results Date Race Start Finish Winnings Rank/Pts. Date Race Start Finish Winnings Rank/Pts. Feb. 18 Daytona 13 9 $60,900 9th/138 July 8 Chicago Feb. 25 California 35 11 $33,275 8th/130 July 15 Loudon March 5 Mexico 25 36 $44,640 15th/55 July 22 Martinsville March 11 Las Vegas 27 10 $42,708 11th/134 July 29 St. Louis March 18 Atlanta 28 42 $17,505 16th/37 Aug. 5 Indianapolis March 25 Bristol 18 27 $21,850 19th/82 Aug. 12 Watkins Glen April 8 Texas 2 13 $23,750 17th/124 Aug. 19 Michigan April 15 Nashville 4 19 $14,150 17th/111 Aug. 25 Bristol April 21 Phoenix 5 2 $55,900 11th/175 Sept. 2 California April 29 Talladega 13 17 $20,000 12th/112 Sept. 8 Richmond May 5 Richmond 9 36 $14,215 13th/55 Sept. 23 Dover May 12 Darlington 23 23 $14,700 14th/94 Sept. 30 Kansas May 27 Charlotte 22 21 $16,050 14th/100 Oct. 13 Charlotte June 3 Dover 16 10 $18,975 12th/134 Oct. 28 Memphis June 10 Nashville 36 23 $16,275 11th/94 Nov. 4 Texas June 17 Kentucky Nov. 11 Phoenix June 24 Milwaukee Nov. 19 Homestead June 30 Daytona Starts Wins Top 5 Top 10 Poles Pts. Total Winnings 15 0 1 4 0 1,575 $414,893 Reed Sorenson NASCAR Busch Series Career Totals Starts Wins Top 5 Top 10 Poles Laps Led Money 55 2 14 26 2 468 $1,823,815 Reed Sorenson Highlights First Busch Series Start (Indianapolis, Aug. 7, 2004) First Busch Series Win (Nashville, March 26, 2005) First Busch Series Pole (Nashville, March 26, 2005) First NEXTEL Cup Series Start (Atlanta, Oct. 30, 2005) First ARCA win (Michigan, June 2004) 2003 ASA Rookie of the Year 1998-2002 Legends Cars: 84 wins, 152 top fives and 166 top-10 finishes in 183 starts 1997 Quarter Midgets National Champion No. 41 Discount Tire Crew: Name Crew position Hometown Name Crew position Hometown Brian Pattie Crew Chief Zephyrhills, Fla. Jody Hall Pit Support Concord, N.C. Tony Glover Team Manager Kingsport, Tenn. Adam Cooke Shock Specialist Zephyrhills, Fla. Lorin Ranier Spotter Prestonburg, Ken. Dan Chivari Swing Mechanic Erie, Pa. Trevor Lysne Front Tire Changer Fergus Falls, Minn. Bruce Jones Rear Mechanic Lakeland, Fla. Adam Mosher Front Tire Carrier Fort Mill, S.C. Brian Taylor Front Mechanic Cuthbert, Ga. Daryl Lockyer Rear Tire Changer Los Angeles, Ca. Tim O'Brien Engineer Lebanon, Ohio Doug Riepe Rear Tire Carrier Danbury, Conn. Todd Hamm Engine Tuner Kutztown, Pa. Shaun Peet Jack Man Nanaimo, B.C Brandon Stafford Tire Specialist Taylorsville, N.C. Tim Coffey Gas Man/Transport Driver Greenwood, Ind. Shane Bourgeois Pit Support Peachtree City, Ga. Ryan Quann Catch Can/Pit Support Richmond, Va. Claude Collignon Scorer Charlotte, N.C.