Gilliland a candidate to win at Talladega, 100/1 odds offered

Gilliland finished second last spring; he's 100/1 to win Sunday

Love’s Travel Stop Ford Pushed Teammate to Victory in 1-2 Finish in 2013

STATESVILLE, APRIL 29, 2014 - David Gilliland, driver of the No. 38 Love’s Travel Stops Ford, comments on racing at Talladega Superspeedway, where he pushed teammate David Ragan to Front Row Motorsports’ first victory in a 1-2 Ragan-Gilliland finish one year ago:

“We learned a lot at Daytona in February. I felt like I had one of the best speedway cars I’d ever had. So I have a lot of confidence going back to Talladega. Obviously, it was a big race for us last year for sure. David (Ragan) and I and our whole Front Row Motorsports team have had this one circled on our calendar for a long time. We’re looking forward to going back with Love’s Travel Stops again and seeing if we can’t pull off another 1-2 finish but with the 38 in front this time.

“With the speed we had in Daytona, if we can duplicate that same speed in Talladega in comparison to the field, it’s going to be wide open for us. The opportunity is definitely going to be there to be in Victory Lane.

“Love’s has a new partner on the car with them this week: Trucking Moves America Forward. It’s a new initiative to promote the benefits of the trucking industry — something that we know a lot about and something that’s obviously close to Love’s Travel Stops. We’ll try to keep that quarter panel with their logo nice and clean so we can show it off in Victory Lane.”

JUST THE FACTS: Gilliland has 13 Sprint Cup career starts at Talladega Superspeedway … His top finish at Texas is 2nd (2013) … He has one pole, and two top-five and four top-10 finishes at the 2.66-mile oval … Love’s Travel Stops returns as primary sponsor at Talladega, with the addition of Trucking Moves America Forward to the car (www.truckingmovesamerica.com).

About Front Row Motorsports
Front Row Motorsports is a race-winning organization competing in NASCAR’s premier Sprint Cup Series, fielding the No. 34 of David Ragan, the No. 38 of David Gilliland and the No. 35 Ford. The team is owned by Bob Jenkins and is headquartered just outside of Charlotte, N.C. FRM was named to INC Magazine’s “INC 5000″ list in 2012, recognizing the 5,000 fastest-growing private companies in the U.S. The team’s partnership base is representative of more than $200 billion of the U.S. economy and includes organizations such as Ford Motor Company, CSX Transportation, Love’s Travel Stops, Farm Rich, Taco Bell and Long John Silver’s. Visit teamfrm.com.

- Breaking Limits Marketing for Front Row Motorsports

David Gilliand become a contender this Saturday at Daytona

David Gilliland is 75/1 to win Saturday night 

STATESVILLE, N.C. (July 2, 2013) - Everyone jokes that David Ragan owes David Gilliland a victory. After Gilliland pushed his teammate to Front Row Motorsports’ first win at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway for a 1-2 finish in May, it’s only natural to rib Ragan about returning the favor this weekend at Daytona International Speedway. Gilliland is very much in favor of that role reversal.

In the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series’ first return to restrictor plate racing since that Talladega race, Gilliland knows that Victory Lane is once again in sight for this young team. The No. 38 Long John Silver’s crew is taking the same car that earned that runner-up finish at Talladega to Daytona Beach, Fla., for Saturday night’s Coke Zero 400.

In 10 Cup career starts, Gilliland has a pole position, one top-five and two top-10 finishes at the 2.5-mile superspeedway.

Comments from Long John Silver’s team driver David Gilliland heading to Daytona:

“Our 38 team is excited to get to Daytona. We’re taking the same car. Both of us are, the 34 and 38 teams. Daytona in July drives a little bit different, but overall I think we’ll be close and we’re definitely anxious to get back there. We obviously have confidence in those cars and what they can do, and I think you can probably see us working together again.

“It’s just so much hotter in July than in February. The track just has so much less grip. It’s actually more similar (for the two races) now than ever since they repaved it, but it still definitely goes through quite a big swing. But I have a lot of confidence in my crew chief, Frank Kerr, and my team, and also our Ford engines, so I think we can be just as competitive as we were at Talladega. Only this time maybe we’ll flip-flop who finishes first and second.

“Obviously, superspeedway races are wild cards – you never know what’s going to happen. You can have the fastest car out there and get caught up in someone else’s wreck on Lap 1. All three Front Row cars got wiped out in one wreck in the Daytona 500 this year through no fault of our own. So, you could say that plate racing is certainly not ‘fair.’ There’s some strategy involved, but there’s also some luck. We had both on our side in Talladega and we’ll hope for it again this weekend.”

- Breaking Limits Marketing for Front Row Motorsports

Strong Plate Runs at Daytona and Talladega Make Gilliland Contender This Week

Gilliland finished third in Daytona 500

Statesville, NC (June 28, 2011) - David Gilliland should have no problem finding plenty of “dance partners” when he returns to the two-car draft at Daytona International Speedway this weekend. The driver of the No. 34 Taco Bell Ford gained plenty of respect among his competitors after his third-place finish in the season-opening Daytona 500 and a ninth-place finish at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway in April. After those two impressive superspeedway runs, Gilliland is ready for a third with Saturday night’s Coke Zero 400 at the storied 2.5-mile tri-oval in Daytona Beach, Fla.

NASCAR ranks Gilliland second in the category of “closers” at Daytona. The statistical category tracks drivers over a six-year period to determine who gains the most positions in the final 10 percent of laps at a track. Gilliland showcased that “closer” status in February’s Daytona 500, surging from ninth to third in the race’s final two laps.

This past weekend, he also showed off his road-racing prowess, earning his third top-15 finish of the season with a 12th-place run at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif.

Comments from Taco Bell driver David Gilliland on going to Daytona:

“Daytona we’re excited about. Peter (crew chief Peter Sospenzo) keeps telling me the car is going to be better than it was for the 500. But we don’t need it too much better, when you think about it. We had a great car in the 500, finished third, and could’ve kept passing cars if the finish line was another hundred yards down. Hopefully, it is a little bit better and we can go and work with some people.

“Running good and having good restrictor-plate finishes for the first two races has really helped us to have people actually coming to us and want to work with us throughout the race. That is really what you need to be able to get to the end and have a chance at possibly winning the race.

“We had a great run with Tony Stewart at Talladega, so we’ve talked to Tony a little bit about working together again. Also, obviously, our teammate Travis’ car is very, very close to what our car is. Our two cars have worked well together in the past, too. We just have to see what happens. The key is you can’t put all of your eggs in one basket and plan on just working with one person throughout the race because anything can happen, and then you can be kind of hung out to dry. So you have to try to keep your options open. Having good finishes in the past has helped us to be able to go in there with more options than we’ve had.

“We had a great run at Sonoma. I’m really proud of our Taco Bell team. We went really prepared and had a great car, and Peter and the guys did an awesome job all weekend. It was fun to race up front all day. We definitely would’ve had a top-10 or even top-five finish if we didn’t have a couple issues toward the end of the race. We lost a lot of grip with our tires and had some trouble with second gear at the end. But I’m still really proud of our team. It was a good run for Front Row Motorsports.”

About Front Row Motorsports:

Front Row Motorsports is a Statesville, N.C.-based race team in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Formed in 2005 by restaurant entrepreneur Bob Jenkins, the team has competed in NASCAR racing in each year since its inception, expanding full-time to the premier Sprint Cup Series in 2009. The team partners with Ford Racing and Roush-Yates Racing Engines to field the No. 34 Taco Bell Ford driven by David Gilliland and the No. 38 Long John Silver’s Ford driven by Travis Kvapil.

- Breaking Limits Marketing for Front Row Motorsports, Press Release

Gilliland Ready To Push His Way To The Front Again at Talladega

Gilliland Finished 3rd at Daytona

Statesville, N.C. (April 12, 2011) - David Gilliland pushed his way to a third-place finish in the 2011 Daytona 500, and he’s confident that same No. 34 Taco Bell Ford can run up front at the Sprint Cup Series’ next superspeedway. The team will bring the same chassis to Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway this weekend that made a dash for the checkers in the season-opening race at Daytona International Speedway.

Sunday’s Aaron’s 499 will be Gilliland’s eighth Cup start at the historic 2.66-mile oval. He’s no stranger to the front of the pack there. He won the pole in his first race at Talladega (2006) and has a career-best finish of fourth (2007).

Comments from Taco Bell driver David Gilliland on Talladega:
“At Talladega, I think you’re going to see a lot of the same thing you saw at Daytona. Hopefully a lot of the same with us up front. We’re taking the same car, and I’m excited for it. That kind of racing is different. If you didn’t like it at Daytona, then you’re probably not going to like it at Talladega. But I liked it and I’m looking forward to doing it again.

“With the change NASCAR made to the restrictor plate, it’s not going to make that much of a difference. Here’s where you’ll see the difference. When you’ve got pairs of cars hooked up together, but one is hung out by himself, it’s just going to make that slow car even slower. I don’t think it’s going to slow the top speeds down too much because, like we saw at Daytona, when two cars get together they really go.

“I think a lot of teams are working on cooling and different things to be able to push as long as you can. I feel like we’ve made some really good gains since Daytona that are really going to help us. We have really good speedway cars and the FR9 motors are awesome. Obviously, FR9s finished 1-2-3 at the Daytona 500, and we’re going back with the same thing.

“At Daytona, a lot of cars could only push for a few laps and then they had to break away to get some clean air, but our Taco Bell Ford Fusion was able to push for a long time, sometimes as many as 20-plus laps. And that got us a third-place finish. If the race had been one lap longer, I honestly believe we could’ve won. We had that kind of momentum. So, I really have a lot of confidence in our engine package and our cars that we’re going to be taking.

“Front Row Motorsports spent some time at the wind tunnel last week, testing our aero package on a superspeedway car. One of the benefits of working with Ford is they give us access to these resources to help make our cars better. It really helps put us a step ahead when we arrive at the track. So, between what we had at Daytona and this new information we just got, I can’t wait to get there.”

About Front Row Motorsports:

Front Row Motorsports is a Statesville, N.C.-based race team in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Formed in 2005 by restaurant entrepreneur Bob Jenkins, the team has competed in NASCAR racing in each year since its inception, expanding full-time to the premier Sprint Cup Series in 2009. The team partners with Ford Racing and Roush-Yates Racing Engines to field the No. 34 Taco Bell Ford driven by David Gilliland and the No. 38 Long John Silver’s Ford driven by Travis Kvapil.

- Breaking Limits Marketing for Front Row Motorsports, Press Release