GORDON CAN TIE – AND SURPASS – YARBOROUGH AT DARLINGTON

DARLINGTON, S.C. (May 5, 2009) – With a win on Saturday night at Darlington Raceway, Jeff Gordon can tie Cale Yarborough in victories. And, because of a name change, he can surpass Yarborough, too.

Gordon, who has 82 career NASCAR Sprint Cup victories, is one shy of fifth-ranked Yarborough on the all-time NASCAR Cup Series wins list and only two away from tying Bobby Allison and Darrell Waltrip for third.

At Darlington, Gordon has seven wins, three poles, 16 top-fives and 19 top-10’s in 28 starts. Five of those victories occurred in the Southern 500, tying him with Yarborough for most victories in that famed event.

But the Southern 500 has not been held at the historic track in five years. Since
2005, there has been only one Cup race each season at Darlington –  and it has not been
named the Southern 500.

Continue reading “Jeff Gordon looking for Darlington records”

MARK MARTIN TO RUN FULL NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES SEASON IN 2010

CONCORD, N.C. (May 6, 2009) – Mark Martin will return to drive the No. 5 Chevrolets of Hendrick Motorsports for the entire 36-race NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season in 2010. It will be the 22nd full-time Cup campaign of Martin’s career and his second with car owner Rick Hendrick.

Last July, Martin signed a two-year contract with Hendrick Motorsports covering one full Sprint Cup season in 2009 and one part-time schedule of 26 events in 2010. The revised agreement was signed this week.

“Week in and week out, Mark continues to be one of the best race car drivers in the world,” Hendrick said. “He’s already made an incredible contribution to Hendrick Motorsports, and our entire company is excited about running another full season and winning races with him in 2010.”

Continue reading “Mark Martin stays full-time for 2010”

Scott Wimmer Looks To Capitalize On Golden Opportunity

Though not in the title hunt, Scott Wimmer may present the most intriguing storyline to this weekend’s NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Darlington.

Wimmer (No. 5 Fastenal Motorsports Chevrolet) swaps teams for this race, going from his usual No. 40 Key Motorsports Chevrolet to the No. 5 JR Motorsports entry, a car that has two top fives and four top 10s in the five races it has run.

The success of the No. 5 Chevrolet gives Wimmer a golden opportunity to showcase his talents – but it also adds a heaping helping of pressure.

But Wimmer does have some Darlington success on which to rely. He has one top-10 finish in seven races, and performed well in his last visit to the track in 2006 despite a 26th-place finish.

In that race, Wimmer posted a Driver Rating of 83.0, an Average Running Position of 13.3 and a Laps in the Top 15 percentage of 82.3.

Continue reading “Wimmer wants win driving for Dale Jr.”

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The Final Lap CHAT Show #63 – Tue, 5 May 2009
We discuss the Kyle Busch Richmond sweep, is he the best driver out there right now?, What happened to Jimmie Johnson, Will Dale Jr. ever get consistent? What does the Fiat/Dodge merger mean for NASCAR?, Plus a full Darlington preview. Hosted by Kerry Murphey and Paul Northrop

No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Team Returns To Darlington To Continue Winning Streak

The No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota has dominated recently at Darlington, winning the last three races (Denny Hamlin 2006, 07 from the pole; Tony Stewart last year).

This weekend, it is Joey Logano’s (No. 20 GameStop Toyota) turn at continuing the team’s winning streak. The defending car owner champion is currently fourth in the owner rankings, 96 points behind its Joe Gibbs Racing running mate, the No. 18 Toyota driven by Kyle Busch. His crew chief, Jason Ratcliff, is a native of Sumter, S.C.

Continue reading “JGR owns Darlington in Nationwide Series”