Busch’s Season Ignited By Cali Two-Fer

Series standings leader Kyle Busch, the defending winner of this event, started off his stunning 2009 season at Auto Club Speedway back on Feb. 21. He won the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race, followed by the NASCAR Nationwide race, which were run on the same day. Saturday’s event presents an opportunity for him to register three straight wins at the track.

Since the February victory, Busch has climbed to the top of the standings, fended off a few serious challenges to his lead and comes to the West Coast with a 245-point advantage over second-place Carl Edwards. His six wins, 21 top fives and 25 top 10s all lead the series and with six races to go he’s still chasing two season records: most wins (10) and most top fives (25).

Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup: Race 4, Auto Club Speedway

THE RACE:Pepsi 500

WHEN: Sunday, October 11

TV: ABC (2:30 p.m. ET)

THE CHASE STANDINGS: Mark Martin 5,551, Jimmie Johnson 5,533, Juan Pablo Montoya 5,500, Tony Stewart 5,484, Kurt Busch 5,460, Denny Hamlin 5,452, Jeff Gordon 5,448, Greg Biffle 5,437, Ryan Newman 5,387, Carl Edwards 5,386, Kasey Kahne 5,361, Brian Vickers 5,301.

Continue reading “California – Race #4 in the Chase”

Allgaier, Wallace Headline Standings Battles

With six races left, there are three key battles within each race to watch, beginning with the fifth-place wrestling match between Justin Allgaier and Steve Wallace. Allgaier, in fifth, has the upper hand heading to California; he’s 13 points ahead of sixth-place Wallace. Drivers who finish in the top 10 in the standings will be honored at the season-ending Awards Banquet in Miami, Fla. The top five will be recognized on stage.

Brad Keselowski is still pushing Carl Edwards for the second position; he’s third, 62 points behind Edwards. But Auto Club Speedway hasn’t been one of his best tracks – Keselowski has an average finish of 32.7 in six starts there.

Not only is Mike Bliss keeping his top-10 hopes alive, he’s pushing Jason Keller in the process. Bliss, in eighth, stands only 29 points behind Keller, who’s seventh. Those two are among eight series-only regulars ranked in the top 10.

On Sunday, the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup continues with the fourth of its 10 championship-deciding races, at Kansas, with the following developing storylines:

· Close Competition Heightened By The Chase: This past Sunday at Kansas Speedway, nine of the top-10 finishers were Chase drivers – a record for the six-year-old format. And that was no fluke. In the first Chase race at New Hampshire, seven of the top-10 finishers were Chase drivers; the next week at Dover, it was eight of the top 10.

Clearly, the drivers who qualified for the Chase are racing to win, leaving nothing on the table.

Said Jeff Gordon: “That’s why they made the Chase.”

Added Tony Stewart: “It shows how competitive the Chase is.”

Continue reading “Story-Lines heading into California”

San Bernardino County, Calif. (Oct. 2 , 2009) – Auto Club Speedway announced today that Dancing with the Stars celebrity contestant Kelly Osbourne will serve as Honorary Starter for the Copart 300, NNS race on Saturday, Oct. 10, at 1:30 p.m.

From the top of the flag stand on the Speedway’s start/finish line, Osbourne will wave the Green Flag to get the Copart 300 underway – the prelude to Auto Club Speedway’s inaugural Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup race – the Pepsi 500, on Sunday, Oct. 11.

Osbourne, 24 has achieved in the last 24 months what many artists fail to accomplish throughout their entire careers. In September 2007, Osbourne made the bold decision to take on four completely different projects in television, radio, musical theatre and fashion – and went on to win awards and recognition for each one.

Continue reading “Dancing's Kelly Osbourne to wave NNS Green”