Fifth Third Bank to partnerwith Roush Fenway Racing and Matt Kenseth for
Sprint Cup Series Sponsorship
Cincinnati – Fifth Third Bancorp (Nasdaq: FITB) today announceda
multi-year marketing partnership with Roush Fenway Racing, beginning
thisseason with four races as the primary sponsor of Matt Kenseth’s No.
17 FordFusion in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. A similar number of races
for thefollowing years will be announced at a later date.
Fifth Third will be theprimary sponsor of Kenseth’s Ford at four Sprint
Cup Series races in 2012 including:
-Sprint All Star Race in Charlotte, NC on May 19
- Quaker State 400 in Sparta, KY on June 30
- Crown Royal’s “Your Hero’s Name Here” race in Indianapolis, IN on July
29
- Pure Michigan 400 in Brooklyn, MI on August 19
Not only did Greg Biffle win his first race since 2010, crew chief Matt Puccia won his first race…period.
Just about every time Biffle opens his mouth to talk about his white-hot start, he credits Puccia. The praise makes sense. Their careers have taken similar paths.
Like Biffle, Puccia has worked his way up. Biffle started his NASCAR national series career in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, then graduated to the NASCAR Nationwide Series – winning a championship in each.
Puccia’s first job at Roush Fenway Racing was in 2006 as crew chief for the No. 50 team. In 2008, he led the No. 99 truck team with Erik Darnell to a victory at Michigan and a final points position of fourth. In 2009 he moved to the NASCAR Nationwide Series as crew chief for a partial schedule with Paul Menard before the team raced full time in 2010. Mid-season last year, he was promoted to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with Biffle.
SHOW #198 – Guest: Ricky Stenhouse Jr. We also recap Texas and Rockingham, cover NASCAR’s Top 12 visit to The White House, Preview Kansas and all the news of the week. Hosted by Kerry Murphey and Toby Christie
(About 47 mins)
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. flies past the checkered flag to collect his fourth-career Nationwide Series victory. Photo Credit: Chris Graythen/Getty Images for NASCAR
Has anyone come further in this sport in the past three years than Ricky Stenhouse Jr.? Early in his rookie season (2010) his stock was so low, that many were wondering when – not if – Jack Roush would send him packing back home to Mississippi.
Roush insisted that he believed in Stenhouse, and this confidence is all Stenhouse seemingly needed to turn things around. In the second half of his rookie season he did a 180-degree turn. Friday night in Texas he continued to write the 2012 chapter of what looks to be a promising NASCAR career.
Nearly all night long in the O’Reilly Auto Parts 300, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. had the car to beat. There was a 100 lap stretch in the middle of the event where Paul Menard had the race in his grasp, but by the end of the 300-mile race Stenhouse would put the rest of the field in a headlock, and he wouldn’t let go. Stenhouse led a total of three times for 68 laps during the 200 lap race, and he held off a late charge by Denny Hamlin to win the race. In victory lane Stenhouse talked about holding off Hamlin.
“Yeah, Denny is a great race car driver and I know when I am up there racing with those guys that I have my work cut out for me. They raced me clean and Paul Menard raced me clean all night long and it was a lot of fun up there racing with those guys. You can learn a lot from them. Whew! We finally got a cowboy hat at Texas. I love coming here. We finally finished off a race.”
Biffle’s Top-Three Streak Ends But Veteran Retains Points Lead
Biffle, 13th at Bristol after running among the top 10 most of the afternoon, left Thunder Valley with a pair of successes. His 10th career Coors Light Pole puts him in field for the 2013 Shootout At Daytona. The Vancouver, Wash., driver also retains the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points lead by nine over Harvick. Daytona 500 winner Kenseth is third followed by Truex and Phoenix winner Denny Hamlin.
No Surprise, It’s Hendrick Vs. Roush In Fontana
Will this be the weekend Rick Hendrick and company get its milestone 200th victory? History is on the side of HMS, which leads all organizations with nine wins at Auto Club Speedway. HMS newcomer Kasey Kahne won in Fontana in the fall of 2006 as the driver of Ray Evernham’s Dodge.
That 200th milestone will be out of reach if Roush Fenway Racing has anything to say on the subject. RFR drivers have won seven times at the Southern California track most recently in the spring of 2009 with Kenseth. All three of the team’s current drivers have victories at Auto Club headed by Kenseth’s three trips to Victory Lane. NASCAR Sprint Cup Series standings leader Greg Biffle has one win (2005) as does Carl Edwards (2008).
LAS VEGAS — Ricky Stenhouse Jr. dominated the last 50 laps of Saturday’s Sam’s Town 300 NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, pulling away from Mark Martin during a 39-lap green flag run the finish.
The victory was Stenhouse’s first of the season and third in the series — and his first on a 1.5-mile intermediate speedway, the staple of NASCAR’s top three touring series.
Points leader Elliott Sadler came home third, followed by Trevor Bayne and Las Vegas native Brendan Gaughan. Cole Whitt, Austin Dillon, Justin Allgaier, Sam Hornish Jr. and Kasey Kahne completed the top 10.
Blue Oval vs. Bowtie at the Diamond in the Desert
Matt Kenseth, Jimmie Johnson and Carl Edwards have won eight of the last nine races at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with Chevrolet’s Johnson winning half of those and Ford’s Edwards and Kenseth joining former Roush Fenway Racing teammate Jeff Burton as the only other drivers with two wins at the track.
The Final Lap with Kerry Murphey featuring NASCAR News, Rumors, Opinions, Interviews, and more. Check out our nationally syndicated Radio Shows, free NASCAR Podcasts, and Videos
Fifth Third Bank to partnerwith Roush Fenway Racing and Matt Kenseth for
Not only did Greg Biffle win his first race since 2010, crew chief Matt Puccia won his first race…period.
March 10, 2012
Blue Oval vs. Bowtie at the Diamond in the Desert
