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| Two of Darlington's best drive Chevy's, Gordon and Johnson |
NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
BOJANGLES SOUTHERN 500
DARLINGTON RACEWAY
DARLINGTON, SOUTH CAROLINA
APRIL 8, 2014
TEAM CHEVY IN NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES (NSCS) COMPETITION:
· Chevrolet has won 37 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) Manufacturers’ Championships
· Team Chevy drivers have scored 721 wins and 649 poles in NSCS competition
CHEVROLET ON THE TRACK—DARLINGTON RACEWAY:
Chevrolet drivers have won 40 of 110 races at Darlington Raceway. Victories by current Team Chevy drivers are:
Jeff Gordon, No. 24 Drive To End Hunger Chevrolet SS, has seven (7) wins at Darlington Raceway (’95, ’96 – TWICE, ’97, ’98, ’02, & ’07)
Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 KOBALT Tools Chevrolet SS, has visited Victory Lane at Darlington Raceway three (3) times (’04 – TWICE & ’12)
A Chevrolet driver has won two (2) of the last three (3) races at Darlington Raceway
A Chevrolet driver has sat on the pole at Darlington Raceway 20 times
Team Chevy drivers have scored 175 top-five and 363 top-10 finishes at Darlington Raceway
A Chevrolet has led 12,278 laps (33.2% of possible 37,037 laps) at Darlington Raceway
TEAM CHEVY FOR THE FANS AT DARLINGTON RACEWAY:
· Fans can check out great Chevrolet vehicles including: Corvette, Tahoe, Silverado High Country, Silverado Double Cab, Silverado HD 2500, Malibu, Cruze, Traverse, Equinox, Camaro and Impala. At the display fans can also take an up-close and personal look at the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet SS race car.
· Other activities at the Team Chevy Racing Display include a variety of interactive games for adults and kids
Fans can see a sample of engines, parts and accessories in the Team Chevy Display available for purchase from Chevrolet at their local Chevrolet dealer
DRIVER FAN Q/A APPEARANCES:
· Friday, April 11th – Richard Childress Racing teammates Ty Dillon and Cale Conley will visit the Team Chevy Stage at 12:30 p.m.followed by an appearance from Paul Menard at 4:00 p.m.
· Saturday, April 12th – Jamie McMurray will kick things off at the Team Chevy stage at 2:30 p.m. followed by Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Kyle Larson at 3:00 p.m.
· Hours of operation: Fri. April 11th – 9:00 a.m. – 7:30 p.m. and Sat. April 12th – 10:00 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.
TEAM CHEVY FROM THE DRIVER’S SEAT:
JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DRIVE TO END HUNGER CHEVROLET SS – POINTS LEADER
The first time I drove there, it reminded me of a couple of sprint car tracks – tracks like Winchester (Ind.) Speedway – that are super-fast but you have to respect it or it could ruin your day. Darlington is just a cool, fast place – you get that sensation of speed there because you run right up next to the wall. And the track ‘drives’ you.
“At other places, we are typically trying to put the car in specific spots on the track. At Darlington, the track naturally ‘feeds’ you to a certain area which is right up next to the wall.
“Success always starts with the race team and the race car, and I’ve had good ones here. Another key to success at Darlington is being able to push the limits of the car and the track, and keeping it on that ‘edge’ without going over. At Darlington, it’s very easy to go over the edge.”
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 KOBALT TOOLS CHEVROLET SS – 7TH IN STANDINGS
“Darlington has been a great track for us over the years. The most memorable was winning the 200th for Hendrick Motorsports a few years ago. From a track standpoint, Darlington has character so track position and strategy will be pretty important. There is a ton of history and a great race for the fans to watch. It’s a high speed track – it’s one of my favorites. Texas was disappointing for us – we had such a fast car and had some bad luck so I’m looking forward to this weekend and getting back after it.”
PAUL MENARD, NO. 27 CERTAINTEED/MENARDS CHEVROLET SS – 10TH IN STANDINGS
“Darlington Raceway is a very unique track with the way it’s laid out. We race right up against the wall in the turns, which is even more challenging with how the cars transition out of Turn 2 for the backstretch. Tire wear isn’t as tricky as it was after they repaved it a few years ago, but it still offers a challenge because of how the asphalt has weathered so quickly. We get to race under the lights on a Saturday night and drivers and fans seem to enjoy these types of race. Being one of the original tracks on the NASCAR circuit means there is some great history to the Lady in Black. We just hope we get to add our name to the history books this weekend.”
RYAN NEWMAN, NO. 31 CATERPILLAR CHEVROLET SS – 11TH IN STANDINGS
“Darlington Raceway is my favorite NASCAR Sprint Cup Series track. It’s so challenging. You have to race the track in order to get to the end. It’s a challenge to pass there. When you go into Turn 1, you lift on the straightaway and then you are pretty much wide open all the way through Turn 1 and 2. You drive it like no other track on the circuit. I don’t know what it’s going to be like with the new rules package or the tire combination they come up with. Regardless, it’s such a fun racetrack to drive because you have to hustle the car around. Plus, the history of the track is what makes it so amazing. The racetrack was designed to race on the apron and not on the banking. It’s amazing how much it hasn’t changed, but yet, it still produces great races.”
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 DOW CHEVROLET SS – 12TH IN STANDINGS
“We’re going to get some time at Darlington Raceway running right by the wall. It’s a fun place. You can really have some exciting racing there. I’m looking forward to competing there in a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race. I’ve never been there in a Cup car, so it will really be a learning experience there and at all of these short tracks that we are going to in the Sprint Cup Series car for the first time. Bristol Motor Speedway treated us well and hopefully Darlington Raceway will also.”
TONY STEWART, NO. 14 MOBIL 1/BASS PRO SHOPS CHEVROLET SS – 14TH IN STANDINGS
“Absolutely. As much as we know about the history of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, I think people underestimate how much we know about Darlington and the history of that track, and how hard it is to win races there. I guess that’s why a Sprint Cup win at Darlington is something that’s really important to me.”
KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 TARGET CHEVROLET SS – 15TH IN STANDINGS
“I’m looking forward to going to Darlington because the groove is right on the wall so it kind of suits my driving style. I like going to the top, and it seems like the closer you get to the wall there the faster you go. The track is also pretty rough so the times slow down a lot. After a few laps when times slow down it’s a little bit easier to pass because you can move around more and it just seems like there are more lanes on these worn out tracks. I did well there last year in the Nationwide car (finished sixth), so it should be good going back to race the Target Chevy.”
KASEY KAHNE, NO. 5 GREAT CLIPS CHEVROLET SS- 19TH IN STANDINGS
“We were really good in the Darlington race last year. We ran inside the top four through the majority of the night. We were by far the best car at the end of that race, but just didn’t get the win because of circumstances when I was hit by another car as I was making my move for first. I’m looking forward to going back there this weekend. It’s a track I’ve always wanted to win at, and I definitely think we’re capable of doing so this weekend.”
AJ ALLMENDINGER, NO. 47 CLOROX CHEVROLET SS – 20TH IN STANDINGS
“It’s one of those things where you go into the night at Darlington Raceway with your No. 47 Clorox Chevrolet SS knowing you’re going to earn your money. I feel like it is one of those places if you get around it well, you have accomplished something. At the same point if you struggle there, there is nowhere to hide. The history of the track and what it means to the sport of NASCAR makes it really cool to drive through the tunnel there. Again, it is one of the races I actually missed last year. Even though I haven’t really been that good there in the past, I really enjoy it.”
CASEY MEARS, NO. 13 GEICO CHEVROLET SS – 23RD IN STANDINGS
“We tested our No. 13 GEICO Chevrolet SS at Darlington last week and things went really well, so we’re looking forward to getting there on Friday and seeing how we unload. The sensation of speed there is tremendous and it’s one of my favorite places to race. It’s going to be interesting to see how much faster everyone is compared to last year. Darlington is such a historic racetrack, so it’s always fun to race there under the lights and put on a good show for the fans.”
KURT BUSCH, NO. 41 HAAS AUTOMATION CHEVROLET SS – 25TH IN STANDINGS
“The biggest moment at Darlington I ever had was finishing second to Ricky Craven in 2003 – everyone knows that race. It’s one of the best finishes in NASCAR history. But probably the next biggest moment would be during my championship run in 2004. I had an ill-handling car and still managed to finish sixth with it due to good pit stops. That was a perfect moment because it was our championship to lose with where we finished that day in 2004. That was back when Darlington used to be in the Chase.”
KEVIN HARVICK, NO. 4 BUDWEISER CHEVROLET SS – 26TH IN STANDINGS
“Well, any lap around Darlington is a lap where you have got to be paying attention to what’s going on because you can get yourself in trouble at any point on the race track. You carry a lot of speed into Turn 1 and you run right up the banking right up next to the wall and right back into the throttle. As you come back down the hill you might have to breathe the throttle a little bit, but it’s a lot of fun coming out of Turn 2 as it kind of shoots you down the backstretch. Turns 3 and 4 are probably the hardest because you carry so much speed off of (Turn) 2 into (Turn) 3 and the line kind of moves around a bit there. It’s probably the easiest place to get in the wall. Well it’s pretty easy to get in the wall anywhere, but definitely the easiest place to get into the wall is the middle of (Turns) 3 and 4.”
MARTIN TRUEX, JR., NO. 78 FURNITURE ROW CHEVROLET SS – 27TH IN STANDINGS
“I absolutely love Darlington Raceway. It is probably my favorite track on the whole circuit. I’ve always run well there and really enjoy the challenge of it. I’ve led a lot of laps at Darlington and been in position to win but never could put together the strategy to be at the front at the end. It’s a fun track — you can attack her (Lady in Black), but she can also reach out and bite you whenever she feels like it. It’s a delicate situation, and you sure don’t want to be on the wrong end of it. You’re living on that edge at Darlington, putting the car against that wall all night long. Having to be aggressive, and at the same time be perfect within a half-of-an inch from the wall. It does make for a really fun race.”
JUSTIN ALLGAIER, NO. 51 CHEVROLET SS – 28TH IN STANDINGS
“Darlington is one of the tracks on the schedule that you like to see because it’s unique. It doesn’t really seem to matter if you are a rookie or a veteran; the chances of getting a Darlington stripe are pretty good. I’m looking forward to getting there and making laps in a Sprint Cup car.”
About Chevrolet:
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, doing business in more than 140 countries and selling more than 4.9 million cars and trucks a year. Chevrolet provides customers with fuel-efficient vehicles that feature spirited performance, expressive design, and high quality. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.
- Team Chevy
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