Reed Sorenson, No. 41 Target Dodge Homestead Advance...
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Target Team Fast Facts:
Gum Anyone?: The Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company announced on Sun., Nov. 12 that it will make its NASCAR debut with a partnership with Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates (CGRFS) that features Wrigley's Spearmint, Doublemint, Big Red, Juicy Fruit and Winterfresh brands. Wrigley will sponsor rising stars Reed Sorenson and David Stremme, who will drive the No. 41 Dodge in the first 25 NASCAR Busch Series races in 2007, and former Indianapolis 500 champion and Formula One driver Juan Pablo Montoya, who will drive the No. 42 Big Red(r) Dodge in three NEXTEL Cup races for the 2007 NASCAR season.
Racing, Inc.: Chip Ganassi Racing will be the focus this week in a PEED TV special called Racing Incorporated which will take viewers inside the business of racing with a close-up look at the motorsports operations of team owner Chip Ganassi. The pair of one-hour specials will air this Wednesday, Nov. 15 and Thursday, Nov. 16, at 8 p.m. ET & PT (re-played at 11 pm ET). Racing Incorporated was given unprecedented access by the team to its race shops in Indianapolis, Ind., and Concord, N.C., over a several weeks this past summer for a behind the scenes look at the inner workings of Ganassi's IndyCar, NASCAR, and Grand American Sports Car Series operations.
Energizer-Cars Promotion: Sorenson participated in an event hosted by Energizer on Nov. 14 at the NASCAR SpeedPark in Concord, N.C., to help extend the release of the Cars DVD. Reed Sorenson arrived at the SpeedPark with the Energizer Bunny to make a special delivery of Cars DVDs for children from the Victory Junction Gang Camp. The camp is designed to help children with chronic medical conditions and serious illnesses. After some karting, there was a special screening of the movie hosted by Sorenson and the Energizer Bunny. Complete details on the Energizer-Cars promotion and the SpeedPark event are available upon request.
Chassis: Crew Chief Jimmy Elledge and the No. 41 Target Team have selected chassis #612 for this weekend's race at HMS. This car most recently competed at Texas two weeks ago where Sorenson ran as high as fifth place before finishing 17th. It has also run at Atlanta 2 (29th), Kansas (43rd) and Fontana 2 (21st).
NEXTEL Cup Points Report: Sorenson and the No. 41 team maintained their 25th position in the overall standings after finishing 29th in the last event at PIR. The team has a legitimate shot at finishing the season off as high as 22nd (-90 points). Additionally the team is only 28 points out of 24th and 48 points out of 23rd.
Rookie Round Up: Sorenson sits one point behind third-place holder Martin Truex Jr. in the Raybestos Rookie of the Year standings heading into HMS. He has captured rookie of the race honors in five of the 35 races run thus far in '06 (Atlanta - 10th, Martinsville - 12th, Michigan - fifth, Chicagoland - seventh, Michigan 2 - eighth).
Busch Series Update: Sorenson remains 10th in the Busch Series driver standings after finishing seventh in the last event at Phoenix International Raceway, and he is only 27 points out of ninth heading into the final race of the season.
Reed Sorenson on Homestead...
"Part of me is ready to get the season over with and get a fresh start, and they other part wants to keep on going. The Target team has come a long way this season and we're getting to the point where we're showing up each week with fast race cars that can compete for top 10 finishes. That's what you have to have in order to win races and I kind of don't want to stop that momentum. At the same time, we're all ready for a break and I know this team will pick up right where it left off.
"I like racing at Homestead and we had a really good test there a few weeks ago. In fact, the Target Dodge was at the top of the sheet after one of the sessions. The car is really good on the longer run, and typically races at Homestead have long green flag runs, which should benefit us. Hopefully the car will unload as fast as it was at the test and we'll just have to make some minor adjustments to get it ready for Sunday."
Sorenson's Homestead-Miami Speedway Stats (1.5 miles)
Date Series Race
Start Finish Laps Status Winnings
11/20/05 Nextel Cup Ford 400 15 28
265/267 Running $61,100
11/19/05 Busch Ford 300 15
33 167/200 Running $27,505
11/20/04 Busch Ford 300 7
4 202/202 Running $43,275