Talladega Driver Chassis Selections: 2015 Geico 500

Earnhardt Jr. using third-place Daytona 500 chassis this week

#3-Austin Dillon will pilot Chassis No. 493 in the GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. This Bass Pro Shops / TRACKER Boats Chevy was built new for the 2015 season and was utilized earlier this season at Daytona International Speedway, where Dillon finished 14th in the Daytona 500 and 15th in the Duel at Daytona.

#4-Kevin Harvick: will pilot the #4 Outback Steakhouse Chevrolet SS built on Chassis No. 4-814 in the Geico 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Sunday at Talladega. Built in 2014, Chassis No. 814 finished fifth in the 2014 Sprint Unlimited and served as the backup for both races at Talladega in 2014. Chassis No. 814 finished second in the 2015 Daytona 500 at Daytona and fifth in the 2015 Budweiser Duel at Daytona.

#5-Kasey Kahne: Crew chief Keith Rodden has selected Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 5-856 for Sunday's race at Talladega. Notably in 2014, Kahne drove the car to finishes of eighth place and 12th place in two races at Talladega. Most recently, Kahne raced the chassis in the Daytona 500 in February, where he finished ninth.

#15-Clint Bowyer: Chassis No. 790 serves as the primary chassis for Clint Bowyer at Talladega. Bowyer drove the chassis at the Sprint Unlimited in February where he finished 20th. Chassis No. 811 serves as the back-up. The chassis served as primary for Bowyer at the season opening Daytona 500 where he finished seventh and last year at Talladega in October where finished third.

#24-Jeff Gordon: Crew chief Alan Gustafson has selected Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 24-916 for this Sunday's race. The chassis has been raced once to a seventh-place finish in this year's Sprint Unlimited at Daytona International Speedway. Gordon will drive the #24 Drive to End Hunger Chevy in this Sunday's race, and AARP's "Real Possibilities" will again be featured on the car. AARP and its Foundation are helping to combat hunger by coordinating with local agencies and food banks and sponsoring innovative teaching programs and more.

#27-Paul Menard will utilize chassis No. 492 this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway. This Quaker State/Menards Chevy was utilized earlier this year at the Sprint Unlimited event in Daytona where Menard started first and finished 21st after being collected in a late-race incident.

#31-Ryan Newman will drive chassis No. 494 on Sunday at Talladega. This Chevy was utilized earlier this season at Daytona International Speedway for the Duels (Start: 12/Finish: 12) and the Daytona 500 (Start: 22/Finish: 38). Thompson Tractor Company, Inc., Puckett Machinery Company and Louisiana Catwill be featured on the #31 Caterpillar Chevrolet this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway.

#33-Brian Scott is scheduled to pilot chassis No. 495 in Sunday's GEICO 500. This is a new chassis that was utilized for the first time during Daytona 500 practice sessions and the Duels at Daytona International Speedway in February.

#41-Kurt Busch will pilot Chassis No. 758 in Sunday's Geico 500 at Talladega. Formerly a #10 chassis for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) teammate Danica Patrick, Chassis No. 758 made its debut during 2013 Budweiser Speedweeks at Daytona, where Patrick qualified the car on the pole for the Daytona 500 with a speed of 196.434 mph. She led five laps in the "Great American Race" before finishing eighth - the best finish ever for a woman in the Daytona 500. Patrick next drove Chassis 758 in May 2013 at Talladega, where she started 23rd and finished 33rd after being involved in a late-race accident. The car was rebuilt and wind-tunnel tested before returning to Talladega in October, when she again finished 33rd after a pit-road speeding penalty took her out of contention. Chassis No. 758 was then raced in the 2014 Sprint Unlimited at Daytona, when Patrick was caught in a multicar accident and finished a disappointing 16th. In its next outing, Patrick led six laps early at Talladega in May 2014 before finishing 22nd. She then finished eighth in the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona in July, driving Chassis No. 758 to her third-career top-10 finish to date. In the final restrictor-plate race of the 2014 season, Patrick again led laps at Talladega but was shuffled back in the draft and was credited with a 19th-place finish. Since then, the car's body was updated for 2015. It was wind-tunnel tested Jan. 15 in preparation for the season-opening Daytona 500 in February and was driven to a 16th-place finish by Regan Smith.

#48-Jimmie Johnson: For this weekend's event, crew chief Chad Knaus has selected chassis No. 48-915 which is a brand new car. The backup car is 48-853, which last raced in the Sprint Unlimited in Daytona.

#55-Michael Waltrip: will drive primary chassis 789 won pole and finished 20th at Talladega in October with Brian Vickers behind the wheel. Finished 25th with Waltrip in Daytona. The backup: 748 chassis finished 41st in 2014 Daytona 500 & 25th at Talladega in May with Waltrip.

#88-Dale Earnhardt Jr.: This weekend at Talladega, crew chief Greg Ives and the No. 88 team will unload Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 88-872. Earnhardt most recently raced the chassis to a third-place finish in the Daytona 500.




- complied by Jayski.com