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Dale Earnhardt Jr. 2012 DiecastLIONEL NASCAR COLLECTABLES ANNOUNCES
THE TOP 10 DIE-CAST CARS OF 2012

Earnhardt reigns in die-cast sales while the new champ makes a strong showing.

CONCORD, NC. (December 20, 2012) – When it comes to die-cast sales in 2012, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is king per a top 10 list released today by Lionel NASCAR Collectables, The Official Die-Cast of NASCAR.

Earnhardt’s No. 88 Diet Mountain Dew Chevrolet was the best-selling 1:24 scale die-cast of the year. In addition to the top spot, Earnhardt also claimed spots two and four.

“Dale Jr. is still the most influential personality in the sport, so we weren’t surprised to see his Diet Mountain Dew car pop to the top of our bestsellers list,” said Howard Hitchcock, Vice President and General Manager of Lionel NASCAR Collectables.

“Plus, when Dale won in ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ car at Michigan, it really delivered a knockout punch from a sales perspective. The Raced Win version of that die-cast clinched our runner-up spot.”

Danica Patrick’s No. 10 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet die-cast was also a hit in 2012, ending the year at third place on the list. An authentic replica of Patrick’s first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series ride, the die-cast was in high demand.

“The great thing about our business is that when you look at our sales at the end of the year, it really tells the story of what happened in the sport,” Hitchcock said.

“The popularity of Danica’s first Cup car is a great example of that, and so is the fact that Brad Keselowski’s champ die-cast made our top 10. It just shows that fans are excited about the energy Brad has brought to NASCAR.”

For the second year in a row, a NASCAR Classics die-cast also made the cut. Released in April, Dale Earnhardt’s No. 3 Goodwrench Chevrolet Monte Carlo, which he wheeled in 1989, took the eighth spot.

The Top 10 Die-Cast Cars of 2012 are listed below. For images and a slideshow detailing the story behind each car, please visit www.lionelnascar.com/top10.

  1. Dale Earnhardt Jr. No. 88 Diet Mountain Dew Chevrolet
  2. Dale Earnhardt Jr. No. 88 Diet Mountain Dew/“The Dark Knight Rises” Chevrolet – Michigan win car
  3. Danica Patrick No. 10 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet
  4. Dale Earnhardt Jr. No. 88 Diet Mountain Dew/“The Dark Knight Rises” Chevrolet – standard car
  5. Jeff Gordon No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet
  6. Kasey Kahne No. 5 Farmers Insurance Chevrolet
  7. Jeff Gordon No. 24 AARP/Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet
  8. Dale Earnhardt No. 3 Goodwrench Chevrolet Monte Carlo
  9. Kevin Harvick No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet
  10. Brad Keselowski No. 2 Miller Lite/NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion Dodge

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Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Richmond International Raceway 2012Cargill to Serve as a Primary Sponsor for Trevor Bayne’s 2013 Nationwide Series Championship Run

Championship Partner, Crew Chief Mike Kelley to return to No. 6 team next season

CONCORD, N.C. (Dec. 18, 2012) – Roush Fenway Racing’s No. 6 Ford Mustang will have a familiar look when Trevor Bayne takes the reins of the Championship team in 2013. The organization announced today that Cargill will return as a partial-season primary sponsor for the No. 6 NASCAR Nationwide Series team next year, starting with the season opener at Daytona International Speedway. Crew chief Mike Kelley will return to lead the team.

“I’m really excited about the opportunity to work with Mike and this team and run for the Nationwide Series Championship in 2013,” said Bayne, who in 2010 became the youngest winner of the famed Daytona 500. “And it’s great to have Cargill Beef back on board with the No. 6 next season. I’ve enjoyed learning about their business and meeting a lot of their people through their partnership with Roush Fenway, and I look forward to representing them on the track and hopefully in victory lane.

“I’ve developed a bit of a reputation at the track for grilling out a lot,” continued Bayne. “Maybe Cargill can give me a few tips on the best way to grill hamburgers for big groups so I can cookout for Mike and the rest of the No. 6 Cargill Beef team for some post-race celebrations.”

“Our partnership with Roush Fenway and the No. 6 Ford Mustang has been a great one for our business,” said Tammy Shaw, VP of Cargill Beef. “We’re thrilled to see Ricky Stenhouse Jr. transition to the next level after winning two championships for Cargill Beef, and look forward to continuing to grow our business, while interacting with customers at the race track.”

“We still have room for one or two more primary sponsors next season on the remaining races with Trevor and the No. 6 team,” added Roush Fenway president Steve Newmark. “It’s an unusual but exciting opportunity for a potential partner to join a proven team seeking its third consecutive championship in the Nationwide Series, and with a driver who is one of the most popular in the sport.”

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kristen-beat-headshot3SHOW #232 – Guest: Miss Sprint Cup Kristen Beat – We also countdown the Top 10 NASCAR Moments of 2012, News of the Week (cue the music) and more. Hosted by Kerry Murphey and Toby Christie (47:52 mins)

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home_makeoverCORNELIUS, N.C. – Michael Waltrip and the employees of Michael Waltrip Racing teamed up with ABC’s “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” builders and designers to surprise a Lincolnton, N.C. family in a holiday-themed episode of the popular home makeover show. Waltrip makes a special appearance in two segments of the episode to air Monday, Dec.17 at 8 p.m. ET. on ABC.

A nine-year veteran of the police department and foster mother to over 30 children, Devonda Friday and her husband James Friday didn’t think twice when they received a call to provide temporary care to a boy who was being transferred to a group home. They had no idea, though, that this call would change their lives. The teenage boy showed the Fridays a video of his siblings and begged them to help keep the five of them together.

Before they knew it, Devonda and James were making room for the five youngsters to join their own two children. When the request was denied because their modest ranch home didn’t have enough room, the Fridays converted their carport into two makeshift bedrooms and sold their van to offset expenses. The adoption was final in 2011, and Monday’s episode will celebrate the spirit of Christmas by giving the Friday family a new spacious home for the holidays.

The show’s design team has just seven days to make this home even more of a haven for the family. The Friday family has been whisked away on a dream vacation to Jamaica, while “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” team leader Ty Pennington, designers Michael Moloney, Jillian Harris, Ed Sanders and Paige Hemmis, local builder Bellamy Homes, as well as well as community volunteers, build the structure.

Waltrip is a two-time Daytona 500 champion and owner of MWR that competes in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. MWR fields Clint Bowyer’s No. 15 5-hour ENERGY Toyota, Martin Truex Jr.’s No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota and the Aaron’s Dream Machine driven by Mark Martin, Brian Vickers and Waltrip. MWR Toyotas won three times, earned five poles and finished second, 11th and 15th in owner points in 2012.

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2012 No. 34 Ford David RaganFront Row Builds on Strength in Stability, Returns
with Ragan, Gilliland, Wise, Ford, Roush Yates in ’13

Team Draws on Long-Time Partnerships to Build off History-Best Finishes

Statesville, N.C. (December 13, 2012) – Renewals of long-time partnerships will have Front Row Motorsports poised to run its most competitive NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season ever in 2013, with the team announcing new agreements with drivers David Ragan, David Gilliland and Josh Wise. The team will also continue its relationships with manufacturing partner Ford Racing and engine builder Roush Yates Racing Engines.

Front Row Motorsports enters its fourth year teaming with Gilliland, Ford and Roush Yates – relationships that have brought stability and growth to the still-young team entering its fifth full-time season in the Sprint Cup Series. Race winner Ragan joined the line-up for the 2012 season, helping the team earn its best average finishes and the best year-end point rankings for the Nos. 34 and 38 entries in Front Row history.

The 2012 season saw Ragan and Gilliland combine for one top-five, two top-10, four top-15 and eight top-20 finishes, and an average finish of 27th. Ragan finished the season 28th in the driver point standings and Gilliland ended the season in 30th. The team continued to show its strength on superspeedways, where Ford and Roush Yates power helped Ragan and Gilliland earn their best results of the season. The 26-year-old Ragan will return to the cockpit of the No. 34 entry and the 36-year-old Gilliland will once again pilot the No. 38.

Wise will return to the No. 26 Ford for all 36 Sprint Cup races with sponsorship from MDS Transport after completing the 2012 season in a part-time capacity with Front Row. The team plans to increase the 29-year-old driver’s time on track in 2013 with a more competitive schedule of race entries.

Team owner Bob Jenkins sees how the stability of key partnerships helps the team improve each year.

“You often see a lot of young teams going through a lot of changes trying to make it in the Sprint Cup Series,” Jenkins said. “We’ve been fortunate that we’ve had a lot of stable partners, people who believe in our approach and are seeing year-to-year improvements as a result of that approach.

“David Gilliland has been a rock for us for three years and David Ragan brought race-winning experience to us last year and returns for 2013. That stability is huge for a young, developing team, and I know we’ll continue to improve and have even better results this upcoming season.”

Jay Guy will return as crew chief for Ragan’s No. 34 team and Derrick Finley will continue to lead Gilliland’s No. 38 crew. The drivers recognize and appreciate the importance of continuity from year to year within the organization.

“There’s always a learning curve whenever something new is thrown into the mix, whether it’s a new driver, new crew chief, new car or new team members,” Ragan said. “We have a new Ford Fusion for 2013, which I’m really excited about, so it will be really important and really helpful that all the other variables aren’t changing. My crew chief, Jay Guy, and I built a great working relationship last year and that will help us be better this coming year.”

“I’m excited to start my fourth year with Front Row Motorsports,” Gilliland said. “We’ve gotten better each and every season and I’m eager to get the season going with Derrick (Finley) again. Bob Jenkins has put a lot into this team since he started with a part-time team back in ’05. He’s growing it the way he should and the results are showing.”

Front Row Motorsports will be on track for the first time in the new Sprint Cup Series Ford Fusions Jan. 10 to 12 when the team participates in Pre-Season Thunder, the annual three-day test session at Daytona International Speedway to prepare for the season-opening Daytona 500 in February.

The team is finalizing sponsorship agreements for the 2013 season with announcements expected soon.