Drive For Diversity And Rev Racing Open K&N Pro Series

NASCAR Drive For Diversity And Rev Racing Open K&N Pro Series East Season

Successful NASCAR Initiative Revs Up For Ninth Season

 

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (March 14, 2012) – NASCAR Drive for Diversity and Rev Racing will open its K&N Pro Series East season at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday, March 17, building off a 2011 season highlighted by unprecedented on-track success.

Four Rev Racing drivers will participate in the season opener of NASCAR’s top developmental series during the upcoming NASCAR Sprint Cup weekend at Bristol. 

“The NASCAR Drive for Diversity program and Rev Racing set a high bar, winning half the races in the K&N Pro Series East during the 2011 season,” said Marcus Jadotte, NASCAR vice president of public affairs and multicultural development. “We are looking forward to focusing our efforts on a strong roster of drivers in the K&N Pro Series East and are eager to see their growth and development.”

The team is coming off the most successful season in the history of the NASCAR Drive for Diversity, which is entering its ninth season as one of NASCAR’s leading on-track initiatives. Rev Racing collected six wins in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East and had three drivers finish in the top 10 in series points.

The drivers (Twitter handle in parentheses) who will compete at Bristol Motor Speedway include:

Jorge Arteaga (@JorgeArteaga46) – Arteaga, 25, from Aguascalientes, Mexico, will run his first full season in NASCAR K&N Pro Series. He competed in NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Late Models for Rev Racing last season, and also participated in the NASCAR Mexico Series, where he was voted Most Popular Driver by the fans.

Ryan Gifford (@RyanGifford2) – The 23-year-old driver from Winchester, Tenn., will return to the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East for his third full-time season in the series. He became the first African-American in series history to win a pole award in 2010 and has finished in the top 10 in the standings in each of his two seasons with Rev Racing.

Kyle Larson (@KyleLarsonRacin) – The 19-year-old open-wheel standout from Elk Grove, Calif., will move into the NASCAR K&N Pro Series ranks after he became the first driver to win a World of Outlaws race and score victories in all three USAC divisions in the same season last year.

Bryan Ortiz (@BryanORacing) – The Bayamon, Puerto Rico native will move up to NASCAR K&N Pro Series from Late Models in his second season with Rev Racing. The 23-year-old has a strong road-racing background and will also compete in select events in the Grand-Am Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge.

The Twitter hashtag throughout the season is #D4D2012. Please follow these drivers as they embark on this new season and more exhilarating on-track activities.

Toyota, Sprint and Goodyear are the primary partners supporting Rev Racing and NASCAR Drive for Diversity. Complete information on the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East and NASCAR Whelen All-American Series is available at NASCARHomeTracks.com or by following @NASCARHomeTrack (hashtags: #KNEast & #NWAAS); Rev Racing’s official website and Twitter is RevRacing.net and @RevRacin; information on the NASCAR Drive for Diversity can be found at NASCARDiversity.com or on Twitter @NASCARDiversity.

Outstanding Competition Giving Series Fans Plenty To Love

Outstanding Competition Giving Series Fans Plenty To Love

In the new era of the ‘select-a-series,’ the 2012 season has kicked off with three winners who haven’t "checked the box" for NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points, a first since 1996. The competition levels keep rising and the first three weeks of 2012 have given everyone plenty to talk about.
James Buescher, a full-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver, won the season opener at Daytona in dramatic fashion, taking the lead on the last lap as a caution came out.
Week two in Phoenix was not to be outdone. Elliott Sadler posted his sixth victory in 166 NASCAR Nationwide Series races, ending a 91-race winless streak that dated to Oct. 31, 1998, at North Carolina Motor Speedway in Rockingham. Sadler has commanded the series standings since week one. His lead is 15 points over Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidate and fellow Richard Childress Racing teamate Austin Dillon.
In week three, in the shadow of the famed Las Vegas Strip, 2011 series champion Ricky Stenhouse Jr. captured the checkered flag at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, complementing his third career win by moving up two spots in the standings to third, 17 points behind Sadler. 
Meanwhile, Danica Patrick (Daytona) and Sadler (Las Vegas) have captured two of the first three Coors Light poles.
Only three drivers who were in the top 10 in the standings after three events last year are among the current top 10  – Stenhouse, Justin Allgaier and Trevor Bayne, of Knoxville, Tenn.

Stenhouse Proving 2011 Championship Was No Fluke

Some say timing is everything, and this past weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. took the time to show his competitors that last season was not a fluke and that he is a serious series contender in 2012.
Las Vegas runner-up Mark Martin gave all the credit to Stenhouse. "That was a serious beat-down he put on me that last run," Martin said, describing how Stenhouse grabbed the lead with just over 50 laps to go en route to winning his first race of the season and first on an intermediate track. "I’m not ashamed to say it wasn’t even close." Click here for the audio.
Stenhouse finished a disappointing 19th in the season-opener at Daytona then rallied to a third-place result at Phoenix. His Las Vegas win escalated him from fifth to third in the standings heading into Bristol. Stenhouse has made four starts at Bristol, where he sat on the pole in last year’s spring race and finished 14th. His pre-race Driver Rating (88.7) is ranked 12th in the series and his average finish at Bristol is 18.0.

St. Patrick’s Day Race Boasts Big Names

Watch for a larger-than-usual number of photo flashes during the driver intros at this year’s NNS race at Bristol, because some of the biggest names in NASCAR are competing on the ‘World’s fastest half-mile’ on St. Patrick’s Day. 
JR Motorsports drivers Danica Patrick and Dale Earnhardt Jr. are both entered and will garner much attention. Patrick has made one series start at Bristol, finishing 33rd last spring. This will be Junior’s 11th start at Bristol, making it second only to Daytona (21) as the track on which he’s raced the most in his NNS career. Earnhardt has one win (2004), six top fives and eight top 10s, including a third-place finish in this race last year.  He also leads the series among active drivers in average finish at Bristol with a 6.5.
Richard Childress Racing will have no shortage of prominent names, fielding standings leader Sadler, 2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion Dillon and Bristol’s all-time NNS winner Kevin Harvick. Harvick has five wins in 21 series starts at Bristol.
Turner Motorsports will have Kasey Kahne behind the wheel of its No. 38 this weekend. Kahne has made 14 series starts at Bristol, posting one win (2007) and four top fives.
Owner/driver Kyle Busch also is entered this weekend. Busch’s four NNS wins rank second to Harvick. Busch leads the series in pre-race Driver Rating with a 113.3.
Joe Gibbs Racing driver Joey Logano and Penske Racing’s Brad Keselowski round out the remaining NSCS drivers pulling double-duty (six total) this weekend. Of the two, Keselowski has had the most success, posting two series Coors Light poles and one win (2008) at Bristol. 

NASCAR Nationwide, Etc.

Milestone Watch: Morgan Shepherd, 70, will attempt to make his 325th NNS start this weekend at Bristol. Mike Bliss will attempt to make his 250th NNS start and Eric McClure will attempt to make his 175th NNS start. Eric and his wife Miranda welcomed their fourth daughter, Merritt Hetteigh Mae McClure, on March 12. Merritt’s name honors the driver’s paternal grandmother, Hetteigh Mae McClure, who passed away a few days before Daytona. Kyle Busch will attempt his 150th NNS top-10 finish. Busch is currently tied with Greg Biffle for 12th on the NNS all-time top-10 finishes list. … Eleven-time X-Game gold medalist and future NNS driver Travis Pastrana will be making his Bristol Motor Speedway debut in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series – East following Saturday’s NASCAR Nationwide race at 6:15 p.m. He’s targeted for his NASCAR Nationwide debut at Richmond in April. … Two-time NASCAR K&N East champion Ryan Truex will run at Bristol in the No. 20 Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing.

CAMPINGWORLD TRUCKS NOTEBOOK

3/13/2012

Truck Freshman, Duke Senior Harraka Comments On ‘March Madness’

Pretty much everyone in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series garage has an opinion about the NCAA men’s basketball tournament – and a bracket? – as "March Madness" gets underway this week. Sunoco Rookie of the Year contender Paulie Harraka will have an even more intense rooting interest in the tournament.
Harraka is a graduating senior at Duke University, which is seeded second in the South Region and plays Lehigh University on Friday at Greensboro, N.C.
He won’t be the only driver with ties to a tournament team. Brendan Gaughan played for the Hoyas while a student at Midwest Region’s No. 3 seed Georgetown University, which meets Belmont in Columbus, Ohio, also on Friday.
Harraka answers four questions about Duke and this year’s road to the Final Four:
1. Your impression of fan fervor on Tobacco Road: – "Now is a fun time, for sure! The entire regular season is about preparing for March Madness and it’s definitely the talk of campus."
2. Duke's chances in the tournament: "Duke has shown that we have amazing talent this year. We’ve had a few rough starts, but I believe that as long as we get the game started on the right foot, we’re unstoppable. Go Devils!"
3. Your picks for Final Four: "Duke, Duke, Duke and Duke."
4. Have you ever met coach Mike Krzyzewski: "I have had the opportunity to get to know Coach K through friends that I have on the team. He’s provided some assistance to me in my own career, which I’m grateful for. He’s certainly an amazing guy and a role model of integrity and intensity for all of us. I’ve met a lot of people who had strong feelings about Duke, some positive and some negative, but the one constant is that everyone I’ve met respects Coach K."

Excitement Builds As Rockingham Adds Finishing Touches For NCWTS Debut

    With last week’s Goodyear tire test successfully completed, it’s "bring on the race" at Rockingham Speedway.
    The popular North Carolina sand hills facility, a mile in length, is set to run its inaugural NASCAR Camping World Truck event – the Good Sam Roadside Assistance 200 Presented by Cheerwine – on Sunday, April 15. The race is the first for a NASCAR national series since February 2004.
    Owner Andy Hillenburg said the excitement is palpable and building.
    "Seeing the NASCAR Camping World Trucks out there on the race track, I can’t really imagine where we’re going to be in April because it’s so exciting with only having three trucks (testing) out there," said Hillenburg. "I can’t really imagine multiplying it by more than 10 when we have 36 trucks take the green on April 15."
    Painting continues and the track is completing installation of timing and scoring loops. Hillenburg also has moved Victory Lane to the front stretch "so fans can now participate with the winning team and see the emotion of that driver when they get out of the truck and the emotion of the crew."
    Fans also will be able to attend the drivers’ meeting, walk the track, get autographs signed and have their pictures taken with their favorite drivers.

Gale, Sharp, Crawford Big Winners In ARCA Event

    During a bye week in the NCWTS schedule, Cale Gale made sure to keep his driving skills fresh by competing in a March 10 ARCA race at Mobile International Speedway.
    Oh, and he won, too.
    Gale, who is embarking on his first full truck series season in 2012, led 76 of the race’s 203 laps in a car entered by Eddie Sharp, his NCWTS owner. Sharp also spotted for Gale and told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio earlier this week, "It’s tough to win in any series and any win is special."
    Gale won before a packed grandstand, a promotional triumph for longtime NASCAR Camping World Truck veteran Rick Crawford. The race was Crawford’s largest to date as the track’s operator.
    A Mobile, Ala., native, who turned 27 last week, Gale will return to the wheel of his No. 33 Rheem Silverado when the series returns to action on Saturday, March 31, at Martinsville Speedway.

NASCAR Camping World Trucks Series, Etc.

    Daytona winner John King hit it big in his hometown of Kingsport, Tenn., as well – his name going up on the marquee of the city’s famous hamburger restaurant Pal’s. … Gaughan had an outstanding performance in his hometown over the weekend, finishing fifth in the NASCAR Nationwide Series Sam’s Town 300 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. NCWTS grads and current NNS rookies Cole Whitt and Austin Dillon finished sixth and seventh respectively. Both drivers rank among the top five in series points.

NATIONWIDE SERIES

NASCAR NATIONWIDE SERIES – FORD ECOBOOST 300, ESPN, 1 P.M.

Identity Crisis? Hardly.
A series long known as a steppingstone for young drivers, as a career destination for some of its veterans and as another racing opportunity for established NASCAR Sprint Cup stars is now known for something else: its own identity.

The pick-a-series rule established in 2011 along with the full integration of the new car also last year certainly has been major bricks in the identity foundation. Danica Patrick’s full-time entry this season also has moved the needle.

But the drivers have done their part. Three races into 2012 have resulted in winners who haven’t "checked the box" for NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points – James Buescher (full time in Trucks), Elliott Sadler and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. That’s a first since 1995. Meanwhile Patrick (Daytona) and Sadler (Las Vegas) have captured two of the first three Coors Light poles. Two Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidates are ranked in the top five – Austin Dillon (second) and Cole Whitt (fifth). Only three drivers who were in the top 10 in the standings after three events last year are among the top 10 now  – Stenhouse (second), Justin Allgaier (fifth) and Trevor Bayne (sixth) – bringing more new names into the spotlight.

Stenhouse Earns Win – And Martin’s Respect
With the lightning-fast start by points leader Elliott Sadler this season (one win, one pole, two third-place finishes); some began to wonder when – and if – Ricky Stenhouse Jr., the reigning NASCAR Nationwide Series champion, would start to surface.

Last Saturday at Las Vegas, Mark Martin had quite the complimentary answer. "That was a serious beat-down he put on me that last run," Martin said, describing how Stenhouse grabbed the lead with just over 50 laps to go en route to winning his first race of the season and first on an intermediate track. "I’m not ashamed to say it wasn’t even close."

Stenhouse finished a disappointing 19th in the season-opener at Daytona then rallied to a third-place result at Phoenix prior to his win. But Sadler’s mojo is in overdrive heading to Bristol. A Virginia native, Sadler loves the .533-mile track. In 10 series starts, he has one win (1998) and has been strong in his last three races with a pole, two top fives – including a fourth-place finish in this race last year – and one top-10 finish.

Is Bristol Kyle’s Remedy?
"Kyle Busch" and "slow start" are rarely used in the same sentence. Since 2009, the year he won the series championship, Busch has won at least one race – actually the second race of the season – among the first three.

Busch is in his first season as a series owner-driver manning his own Kyle Busch Motorsports equipment instead of running for Joe Gibbs Racing, the team for which he’d made all but 11 starts since2008. He’s now sharing the No. 54 Toyota with his brother Kurt with an eye on the series owner championship.

Heading to Bristol, Busch’s team is 15th in the owner standings. He finished 19th at Daytona due to an accident, was 11th at Phoenix and 33rd at Las Vegas, his home track, after an accident forced him to the garage for repairs before returning to finish the race.

But BMS could be the remedy Busch is looking for. He’s the defending winner of this event and has won the last three series races there overall. In 15 starts he has four wins, nine top fives and 12 top 10s.
 

CAMPING WORLD TRUCK S

NASCAR CAMPING WORLD TRUCK SERIES

Harraka Feeling Good About a Final Four Run for Blue Devils

With March Madness kicking into gear this week, current Duke student and college basketball fan Paulie Harraka joins his fellow "Dukies" in cheering on Coach K and the Blue Devils on their road to the Final Four.

Harraka thinks Duke has a solid shot at making it to the Final Four in New Orleans later this month. "We’ve had a few rough starts, but I believe that as long as we get the tournament started on the right foot, we’re unstoppable. Go Devils!" 

Bristol Supports Hometown Hero
You know a racer has hit the big time when he is not racing this weekend, but is still the biggest story in town.
John King – a Kingsport, Tenn., resident – has his name splashed all over the marquee of the famed East Tennessee burger joint – Pal’s.
The Red Horse Racing driver won the season-opening race at Daytona in only his eighth series start.

Gale Wins At Hometown Track
During an open week in series schedule Cale Gale made sure to keep his driving skills fresh by competing in the ARCA race at Mobile International Speedway this past weekend.
And a good thing he did.
Gale – who is embarking on his first full truck series season in 2012 – captured the checkered flag after leading 76 of the 203 laps.
The Mobile, Ala. native – who turned 27 last week – will be back behind the wheel of his No. 33 Rheem Chevrolet for Eddie Sharp Racing when the series returns to action on Saturday, March 31 at Martinsville Speedway.