Reed Sorenson, No. 41 Target Dodge Talladega Advance...

Media Contact: Patrick Rogers, Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates,
704-662-9642, progers@ganassi.com

 

 

Reed Sorenson, No. 41 Target Dodge

UAW 500 - Talladega Superspeedway Advance - 10/8/06

To view the 2006 Target Racing Media Guide, please visit

www.target.com/pressroom  

 

Target Team Fast Facts: 

         Looking for a Talladega Turn Around:  Sorenson has three starts
at Talladega Superspeedway (1 Nextel Cup, 2 Busch), with a career-best
finish of 17th (Busch, Apr. '06).  He's had impressive runs at the
track, only to fall victim to accidents in two of his three races at the
2.66-mile restrictor-plate track.  After wrecking on lap 18 last weekend
in Kansas, Sorenson and the Target team are looking to get back on track
with a strong performance this weekend.

 

        Chassis:  Crew Chief Jimmy Elledge and the No. 41 Target Team
have selected chassis #604 for this weekend's NEXTEL Cup event at
Talladega.  This is the same car the team used in the Apr. 30 race,
where Sorenson raced up to as high as third place in the closing laps,
prior to getting swept up in an accident with 15 laps remaining
(finished 26th). 

  

        NEXTEL Cup Points Report:  Sorenson and the No. 41 team dropped
two positions to 23rd in the overall standings after cutting a tire
early and finishing 43rd in the last event at Kansas.  With a total of
2891 points, the team is only 56 points out of 20th.  

 

        Rookie Round Up:  Sorenson is currently third in the Raybestos
Rookie of the Year standings with 191 points.  He trails leader Denny
Hamlin by 73 points and second place Clint Bowyer by 28.  Sorenson has
captured rookie of the race honors in five of the 29 races run thus far
in '06 (Atlanta - 10th, Martinsville - 12th, Michigan - fifth,
Chicagoland - seventh, Michigan 2 - eighth).

 

        Target VIG Night:  On Tues., Oct. 3 Sorenson stopped by the new
SuperTarget in Kannapolis, N.C., to shake hands and sign autographs for
employees and other important guests to celebrate the store's opening on
Oct. 4.  For more information about Target and SuperTarget stores please
visit www.target.com <http://www.target.com/> . 

 

        Autograph Seekers Alert:  Reed Sorenson and David Stremme will
be signing autographs next Thurs., Oct. 12 from 10-11:30 am at Chip
Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates' Concord, N.C. location.  Wristbands
are required and can be picked up at the gift shop or can be reserved by
calling 866.888.6388.

            

     *Casey Mears and IRL driver Dan Wheldon will be on hand Fri., Oct.
13 from 11:30-1 pm to sign autographs.                   

      Wristbands are required and can be picked up at the gift shop or
can be reserved by calling 866.888.6388.

 

       Busch Series Update:  Sorenson moved up one position to ninth in
the overall Busch Series driver standings with his seventh-place run at
Kansas.  He is 242 points out of eight with five races remaining. 

 

Reed Sorenson on Talladega...

"My goal for this weekend is to get through unscathed.  We've had really
good cars in all three restrictor-plate races we've run this year in the
Target Dodge, but something has happened to us in the final laps.  We
cut a tire in both Daytona races and got caught up in a wreck at the
first Talladega race.  The thing is, we were running in the lead pack
each time.  If we can make it to the finish line without something
happening I think the final result will be very respectable.

 

"Our restrictor-plate cars don't always qualify well, but they are very
competitive in the draft.  Qualifying doesn't really mean all that much
at superspeedways, so we're not too concerned with it.  The most
important thing is having a car that drafts well and is stable in the
big pack.  We're taking the same car we ran in the last Talladega race.
It drove comfortably and I was able to race up to the front with it.  I
expect it to be good this weekend.

 

"We had a tough go of it in Kansas last week, so it would be nice to get
solid finish this weekend.  We're still shooting to finish 15th or
better in the final point standings, but we definitely want to get
inside of the top 20.  That goal is easily attainable it we stay out of
trouble and our cars keep performing the way they have."  

 

 

 

        Sorenson's Talladega Superspeedway Stats (2.66 miles)

Date           Series                 Race
Start     Finish         Laps            Status                Winnings

5/1/06         Nextel Cup         Aaron's 499
41           26           177/188        Accident           $89,825

4/29/06       Busch                 Aaron's 312
13           17           117/117        Running            $20,000

4/30/05       Busch                 Aaron's 312
20           32           75/120          Running            $29,375

 

 

                                2006 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Results

Date

Race

Start

Finish

Winnings

Pts. Pos.

Date

Race

Start

Finish

Winnings

Pts. Pos

Feb. 19

Daytona

22

29

$262,908

29th 

July 16

New Hamp.

9

24

$92,550

22nd 

Feb. 26

California

29

21

$97,875

24th 

July 23

Pocono

23

26

$73,625

23rd 

Mar. 12

Las Vegas

36

40

$85,300

32nd 

Aug. 6

Indianapolis

41

30

$147,725

23rd 

Mar. 19

Atlanta

15

10

$89,225

25th 

Aug. 13

Watkins Glen

40

12

$83,975

23rd 

Mar. 26

Bristol

22

22

$92,450

27th 

Aug. 20

Michigan

28

8

$93,035

21st 

Apr. 2

Martinsville

25

12

$85,925

24th 

Aug. 26

Bristol

10

36

$90,315

22nd 

Apr. 9

Texas

13

13

$126,675

19th 

Sept. 3

California

34

21

$98,175

23rd 

Apr.22

Phoenix

34

40

$68,700

24th 

Sept. 9

Richmond

29

14

$79,500

22nd 

Apr. 30

Talladega

41

26

$89,825

24th 

Sept. 17

New Hamp.

31

17

$83,625

22nd 

May 6

Richmond

24

23

$77,025

26th 

Sept. 24

Dover

7

11

$102,125

21st 

May 13

Darlington

16

11

$94,375

24th 

Oct. 1

Kansas

26

43

$84,566

23rd 

May 28

Charlotte

23

10

$119,275

20th 

Oct. 8

Talladega

 

 

 

 

June 4

Dover

39

19

$91,600

21st 

Oct. 14

Charlotte

 

 

 

 

June 11

Pocono

35

36

$68,750

24th 

Oct. 22

Martinsville

 

 

 

 

June 18

Michigan

25

5

$98,350

20th 

Oct. 29

Atlanta

 

 

 

 

June 25

Infineon

41

29

$79,500

21st 

Nov. 5

Texas

 

 

 

 

July 1

Daytona

37

34

$89,600

24th 

Nov. 12

Phoenix

 

 

 

 

July 9

Chicago

18

7

$116,525

21st

Nov. 19

Homestead

 

 

 

 

Starts

Wins

Top 5

Top 10

Poles

Winnings

29

0

1

5

0

$2,894,323

Last updated 10/2/06

	


 

      Sorenson's Cumulative NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Stats:

Starts               Wins                Top 5s              Top 10s
Poles                Winnings

   31                     0                       1
5                    0                    $3,000,674

 

      Sorenson's Career Highlights

-First NEXTEL Cup Series Top Five (Fifth place, Michigan, June 18, 2006)

-First NEXTEL Cup Series Start (Atlanta, Oct. 30, 2005)

-First Busch Series Win (Nashville, Mar. 26, 2005)

-First Busch Series Pole (Nashville, Mar. 26, 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

 

Target Crew:

 

 

 

 

 

Name

Crew position

Hometown

Name

Crew position

Hometown

Jimmy Elledge

Crew Chief

Redding, Calif. 

Doug Spees

Tire Specialist

Toledo, Oh.

Tony Glover 

Team Manager

Kingsport, Tenn. 

Jesse Sanders

Pit Support

Coupeville, Wash. 

Jeff Vandermoss 

Car Chief

Green Bay, Wis. 

Lorin Ranier

Spotter

Prestonsburg, Ky.

Bobby Burrell

Front Tire Changer

Huntersville, N.C. 

Travis Alexander

Engine Specialist

Walla Walla, Wash. 

Marty Forcier

Front Tire Carrier

Superior, Mich. 

Tim Smith

Engineer

Cope, S.C.

Jason Sheets

Rear Tire Changer

Indianapolis, Ind. 

Roger Parkinson

Pit Support

San Diego, Calif. 

Alex Yonchuk

Rear Tire Carrier

Syracuse, N.Y. 

Rod Bussard

Transport Driver

Everett, Penn. 

Shaun Peet

Jack Man

Nanaimo, B.C

Mark Miller

Transport Driver

New Wilmington, Pa.

Randy Hildreth

Gas Man

Charlotte, N.C. 

Shane Bourgeois

Pit Support

Peachtree City, Ga.

Eric Hoyle

Catch Can Man

Asheville, N.C. 

Mike Chance

Pit Support

Hope Mills, NC

							

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Please visit www.chipganassiracing.com
<http://www.chipganassiracing.com/> 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Patrick C. Rogers

Media Relations

Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates

8500 Westmoreland Drive

Concord, NC  28027

Office:  (704) 662-9642 ext 1188

Fax: (704) 663-0848

progers@ganassi.com   

www.chipganassiracing.com <http://www.chipganassiracing.com>