October 2010

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Brandon McReynolds to make his NASCAR Nationwide Series Debut at Gateway International Raceway

Mooresville, NC (Oct. 18, 2010) – Brandon McReynolds will make his NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) debut this Saturday at Gateway International Raceway with Team 42 Racing. The 19-year-old driver will make his entrance in the NASCAR ranks piloting the No. 42 Dodge in the 5 Hour Energy 250.

“I am excited for this opportunity to compete in the NASCAR Nationwide Series,” McReynolds said. “I grew up in the NASCAR garages, so it is thrilling to be able to compete this weekend at Gateway. I’m honored to have opportunity to compete against the best in the sport. I have to thank Eddie Smith and everyone at Team 42 Racing for their support. It means everything to me to have the shot to compete in the Nationwide Series. ”

The 2010 season marks the team’s second year in the NNS. In 2009 the team competed in 15 events, scored three top-15 finishes and qualified in the top-10 five times.

“I couldn’t be more excited to have Brandon McReynolds in our car,” team owner Eddie Smith exclaimed. “We have a car that is more than capable of running up front, and I’m thrilled to have Brandon race with us. He is a level-headed young man, and we want to give him every opportunity in his first shot in the NASCAR circuit.”

McReynolds will be promoting the NAPA Brakes Adaptive One brand on his Dodge Charger this weekend. Adaptive One is a revolutionary brake pad design that achieves the perfect balance of consistent friction performance with virtually no noise. By using two different ceramic formulas in the same set of friction, Adaptive One adapts to all stopping conditions. Pairing the industry’s best ceramic formulas with the features of the Advanced Noise Reduction System blends consistent braking performance with no noise and low dusting.

“NAPA Brakes is excited about its partnership with Brandon McReynolds,” said Mike Gaffney, Vice President-Marketing, NAPA Brakes. “Anytime we have the opportunity to be a part of the next generation of NASCAR talent breaking into the sport, we are excited to do it.”

McReynolds is the son of Larry McReynolds, two-time Daytona 500 winning crew chief with Davey Allison and Dale Earnhardt, and current NASCAR TV analyst on SPEED, Fox Sports and TNT. The young driver spent his childhood at the track with his father and continues to make a name for himself in the racing industry.

This season, McReynolds competed in the UARA Series and clenched two wins, both at the historic Rockingham Speedway.

Also in the 2010 season, McReynolds competed in select events in the ARCA Racing Series. Piloting the No. 6 Eddie Sharp Racing car at Salem Speedway, Talladega Superspeedway and Pocono Raceway, McReynolds gained valuable experience on a short track and NASCAR-circuit tracks. In his highest finish in the Series, McReynolds came home with a top-10 finish at Pocono Raceway after battling a cut tire early in the event. Last weekend, McReynolds competed in a double-header at Rockingham Speedway, collecting his UARA Series win, and then competed in the No. 92 Ricky Benton Racing machine.

The green flag drops on the 5 Hour Energy 250 on Saturday, Oct. 23, 2010 at 2:30 p.m. CDT (3:30 p.m. EST). The race will be broadcast live on ESPN2 and MRN.

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FYI WIRZ: NASCAR’s Top Charlotte Finishers Talk Before and After Race
FYI WIRZ is the swift presentation of pertinent motorsports topics compiled and condensed by Dwight Drum @ Racetake.com. Quotes provided by NASCAR and Sprint Cup team media.

Jamie McMurray won Saturday night’s Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson, Denny Hamlin and Greg Biffle completed the top five.

All top five finishers expressed their thoughts before the green flag and after the checkers for race 31 of 36 in the long but fast NASCAR season.

Jamie McMurray (No. 1 Chevy) Finished first

Before:
“I’m truly excited to be returning to Charlotte,” McMurray said. “We’ve got Bass Pro Shops on the hood, and so far this season, we’ve had some great finishes with them. It is always fun to come back to Charlotte!”

After:
“It was just our night,” McMurray said. “Our car was unbelievable those last like 25 or 30 laps. It was effortless to drive and it had a lot of speed in it. It was just a really good night for us.

“I’ve grown up a lot in the last eight years. I’m married and expecting a child. My life has changed a lot. I feel like I’m a lot smarter of a racer.”

Kyle Busch (No.18 Toyota) Finished second

Before:
“Charlotte’s a tricky track because we practice during the day and then we race at night so all the practice time you get, the track’s really hot, it’s really slick and pretty slow.” Busch said. “A lot of stuff changes when you go into the night time — the way the track is, the way the loads are, the way the speed is. For us, it’s fun, I enjoy Charlotte.”

After:
“It’s very, very disappointing,” Busch said. “Had the best car all night and gave it up. Just flat out gave it away and it’s real, real frustrating to not come out of here with a win at a track that I have yet to win at and have been so fast at. Then again tonight was really fast. It’s my job to come out here and get a win for these guys and I’m the one behind the wheel ultimately and didn’t make the right adjustments and gave it up.”

Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Chevrolet) Finished third

Before:
“I’m looking forward to Charlotte,” Johnson. “I always like racing there. We looked at the balance of the car and the directions we were working on; there was enough that went wrong that we knew not to go down that road any longer.

“I’m optimistic and I feel that we’ve come to a good conclusion with things. But we’ve got to get on the track and really prove it and be in the hunt. There are only six races left, but that’s a lot of racing.”

After:
“We had a really loose race car and I was trying to run the middle lane down in one and two and lost it,” Johnson said. “Then I had to drive backwards and out the side window and everything to keep it off the inside wall and luckily I did that. We stayed on the lead lap and just went to work from there. The track slowly started coming our direction and that is when we got fast and was able to drive up to the front.”

Denny Hamlin (No. 11 Toyota) Finished fourth

Before:
“We do have some great race tracks coming up for us,” Hamlin said. “We’re putting those guys in a position where if they make one mistake, we’re going to be right there. At California our car was definitely better than what the finishing position was. I go to Charlotte thinking I can win the race and lead the most laps. I feel pretty good about that.”

After:
“I’m happy with our day – a top-five,” Hamlin said. “You look at our average finish over these last few weeks and we’ve been up and down and some people think mediocre, but that’s been good enough to win the championship for probably two or three or four of the last four years. We just have to do what we have to do and try to win races. I’m not disappointed at all – I’m proud of our FedEx team for fighting today.”

Greg Biffle (No.16 Ford) Finished fifth

Before:
“This is our last night race of the season and it would obviously be awesome to win in Charlotte,” Biffle said. “I feel pretty confident that we should have a good run this weekend with the way we’ve been running at the mile-and-a-half tracks.”

After:
“It was a really good night,” Biffle said. “We didn’t qualify very well, so we had to work our way to the front. We made a pretty big change and had to restart all the way at the back and got all the way back into the top five.”

The opinions expressed in this articles are solely those of the author and not this website.
Photo credit: Dwight Drum @ Racetake.com