R. Sorenson No. 41 Discount Tire Advance for the Carfax 250 at Michigan International Speedway 08.19.06
Media Contact: Angie Copen, Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates, 704-662-9642, acopen@ganassi.com Reed Sorenson, No. 41 Discount Tire Dodge Carfax 250 - Michigan International Speedway - 08.19.06 To view the 2006 Discount Tire Media Guide, please visit www.discounttiremotorsports.com <http://www.discounttiremotorsports.com/> No. 41 Discount Tire Team Fast Facts: * Meet Reed in Ypsilanti: Reed Sorenson will stop by the Discount Tire store located at 3780 Carpenter Road, Ypsilanti, Mich., to meet area race fans and sign autographs from 4:30 to 6 p.m. Thursday, August 17. * First at Michigan: Reed Sorenson claimed his first ARCA win at Michigan International Speedway in June 2004, which was only his second-career ARCA series start. He lined up on the outside pole and then went on to lead 59 laps of the 100-lap competition to drive away with the win. * Still Standing Strong: Although the Discount Tire team didn't get the results it was looking for at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International last weekend, it maintained its 11th-place stance in the NASCAR Busch Series owner standings. The team has a running tally of 2,572 and is just three points out of the 10th. Sorenson did drop one position, to 12th, in the overall Busch Series driver standings, but is only 88 steps out of 10th. * Mears is Going for No. 2: Casey Mears, carrying the number and logo of his NEXTEL Cup car-the No. 42 Texaco/Havoline Dodge, is going for win number two this weekend at Michigan International Speedway in the NASCAR Busch Series Carfax 250, as he continues his limited run in Busch Series competition. Mears' most recent Busch run concluded victorious at Chicagoland Speedway this past July, when he earned his career-first NASCAR victory after leading the last 45 laps of the race. The No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates (CGRFS) Busch car made its debut at California Speedway in late February, and has since also run at Atlanta, Texas, Phoenix, Lowe's Motor Speedway (LMS), and Chicago. In six starts, Mears and team have scored one win, three top-five and four top-10 finishes. This weekend will be the seventh time Sorenson and Mears have teamed up in Busch Series competition this year. The No. 42 Busch car is scheduled to return to compete at California and LMS to conclude its 2006 program. * Now in NEXTEL Cup: Sorenson and his No. 41 Target team still stand 23rd in the overall NEXTEL Cup Series rankings, after their 12th-place finish at The Glen this past Sunday. With a total of 2,187 points, the team is only 28 points out of 20th and 179 out of the top 15. * Rookie Race: Sorenson is currently third in the Raybestos Rookie of the Year standings with 173 points. He trails leader Denny Hamlin by 60 points. Sorenson has captured rookie of the race honors in four of the 22 races run thus far in '06 (Atlanta - 10th, Martinsville - 12th, Michigan - fifth, Chicagoland - seventh). * Chassis: Crew chief Brian Pattie and the No. 41 Discount Tire team are bringing chassis #555 to compete at Michigan International Speedway this Saturday. Its most recent run was at Chicagoland Speedway in July, when Sorenson and team grabbed their fifth top 10 of the 2006 season (started fourth, finished eighth). Before that, chassis #555 was run at Texas Motor Speedway in April and helped the No. 41 Busch team grab the outside pole along with a top-15 finish. In 2005, chassis #555 had a very busy season, running at both Charlotte races in addition to Las Vegas, Texas and Chicago. It helped Sorenson and team post two top-five and four top-10 finishes, with its best run being at Texas where the team started 15th and then wrapped up the day in third place. Sorenson comments on heading to michigan international speedway: "I like racing at Michigan. I've had some great runs there in ARCA, Busch and more recently in the Cup car this past June. I know on the Cup side of things, the Target team is anxious to get back because we were a front runner there earlier this year. We know we can run just as competitive as we did earlier this summer, if not more. "This season, across the board, it seems like we've been making some major progress when it comes to running at the one-and-half-mile and two-mile tracks in both garages. On the Busch side, we had some good runs to build on from last year, too. I know the Discount Tire team was working on at least a top-15 finish at Michigan last August, but our engine checked out on us. This weekend, we're taking a car that has been pretty good to us this year and was really good in 2005 at some of the bigger tracks, so hopefully everything will play out right so we can get back on that top-five roll we were on before we visited The Glen. "I'm feeling really good about the remaining races on the Busch schedule. Including this weekend, we have 11 more to run and we're getting ready to return to some of my favorite places. There's still plenty of time to get in a win or two, and finish inside the top 10 in the championship standings." Reed Sorenson Michigan Int'l Speedway NASCAR Busch Series Stats (2-mile oval in Brooklyn, Mich.) Date Race Start Finish Laps Completed Total Laps Status Winnings 08.20.05 Domino's Pizza 250 4 36 113 125 Engine $19,630 Total/Average: 1/4 1/36 113 125 $19,630 Track Summary: 1 Start 0 Wins 0 Top 5s 0 Top 10s 0 Poles No. 41 Discount Tire Team 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 4 8 $28,750 18th/142 Feb. 25 California 35 11 $33,275 8th/130 July 15 Loudon 7 17 $16,025 19th/112 March 5 Mexico 25 36 $44,640 17th/55 July 22 Martinsville **9 4 $36,825 16th/160 March 11 Las Vegas 27 10 $42,708 13th/134 July 29 St. Louis 14 4 $31,775 11th/160 March 18 Atlanta 28 42 $17,505 18th/37 Aug. 5 Indianapolis 8 2 $32,775 11th/170 March 25 Bristol 18 27 $21,850 21st/82 Aug. 12 Watkins Glen 35 28 $15,130 11th/79 April 8 Texas 2 13 $23,750 19th/124 Aug. 19 Michigan April 15 Nashville 4 19 $14,150 19th/111 Aug. 25 Bristol April 21 Phoenix 5 2 $55,900 14th/175 Sept. 2 California April 29 Talladega 13 17 $20,000 16th/112 Sept. 8 Richmond May 5 Richmond 9 36 $14,215 16th/55 Sept. 23 Dover May 12 Darlington 23 23 $14,700 17th/94 Sept. 30 Kansas May 27 Charlotte 22 21 $16,050 16th/100 Oct. 13 Charlotte June 3 Dover 16 10 $18,975 15th/134 Oct. 28 Memphis June 10 Nashville 36 23 $16,275 13th/94 Nov. 4 Texas June 17 Kentucky 3 39 $17,370 16th/46 Nov. 11 Phoenix *June 24 *Milwaukee *11 *26 *$17,200 *20th/85 Nov. 19 Homestead June 30 Daytona 6 40 $19,485 21st/43 Starts Wins Top 5 Top 10 Poles Pts. Total Winnings 24 0 4 8 0 2,572 $630,228 *Indicates when David Stremme drove the No. 41 **Indicates when Kevin Hamlin qualified the No. 41 Reed Sorenson 2006 NASCAR Busch Series Totals Starts Wins Top 5 Top 10 Poles Laps Led Pts. Total Money 23 0 4 8 0 17 2,487 $613,028 Reed Sorenson NASCAR Busch Series Career Totals Starts Wins Top 5 Top 10 Poles Laps Led Money 63 2 17 30 2 468 $2,021,950 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. Ryan Quann Catch Can Man Richmond, Va. 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, Calif. 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. Angela Copen Media Relations Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates 8500 Westmoreland Drive Concord, NC 28027 Office: (704) 662-9642 ext 1121 Fax: (704) 663-0848 acopen@ganassi.com www.chipganassiracing.com ***Notice of Confidential Communication*** This email may contain confidential or legally protected information that is intended strictly for the use of the individual or entity named in this message. If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any disclosure, copying, distribution or reliance upon the information contained in this email is strictly prohibited. If you have received this email in error, please contact the sender immediately.