Martin Truex Jr.

Qualifying Report - Dover International Speedway

2010-09-24T13:33:00.000-07:00

Martin Truex Jr. — No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota — qualified fourth.

Friday Recap

• Jimmie Johnson won his second Coors Light Pole Award of 2010 with a time of 23.116 sec/155.736 mph
• Non-Chase drivers AJ Allmendinger and Mark Martin rounded out top three.
• Point leader Denny Hamlin will start fifth
• JTG-Daugherty’s Marcos Ambrose will start 24th
• Sunday’s race begins at 1:00 p.m. (Eastern) on ESPN-TV, MRN Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio channel 128.

MARTIN TRUEX JR. — “It was a decent lap. You can always do better. You can always find more wrong with your lap versus what you did right. Today it’s been a decent practice day. Our last run ended up being our best we had been all day. It wasn’t quite good enough and we needed to make a few more changes. It was a good pick up for us. That might end up being one of the biggest pickups of the day when considering making adjustments and going back out running. All and all, it was a good pick up for us. It was perfect and we’ll still try and make it better yet. It was a good lap for the NAPA Toyota. It’s been awhile since I’ve been in victory lane, but the last time was here. I love coming up here to Dover. It’s been a great week we had two Martin Truex Jr. Foundation events that included my third annual golf tournament. It’s been a really good week and I would like to top it off with a win.”

Martin Truex Jr. Dover 2 Preview

2010-09-20T13:35:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — No. 56 NAPA Toyota driver Martin Truex Jr. kicks off a week-long fundraising initiative in his home state of New Jersey before Sunday’s AAA 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Dover International Speedway. Truex won the pole at Dover in May and the mile-oval is the scene of his lone Sprint Cup victory in June 2007. It’s a busy week of events before Dover:

On Tuesday fans are invited to the Martin Truex Jr. Fan Event at the Holiday Inn in Manahawkin, N.J. for an autograph session, dinner with Truex along with entertainment, raffle prizes and auction items.

Wednesday is the day for the third annual Martin Truex Jr. Foundation Golf Tournament presented by NAPA. This year’s tournament at the Sea Oaks Country Club in Little Egg Harbor Township, N.J. will feature 144 golfers including NAPA Racing’s crew chief Pat Tryson. The event will be followed by the 19th Hole Dinner Celebration presented Sea Watch International. The highlight of the dinner will be the unveiling of the first Martin Truex Jr. Foundation “Humanitarian of the Year Award.” Proceeds finance the Martin Truex Jr. Pediatric Unit at Southern Ocean County Hospital in N.J. and fund the Iredell County (N.C.) Backpack program at Troutman Elementary School.

QUOTES

MARTIN TRUEX JR. ON HIS FUNDRAISING EFFORTS: “I’m really proud of what my foundation has accomplished since Sherry and I launched it back in 2007. So far, we’ve raised more than $400,000 for a bunch of community programs. We’re getting ready to build a children’s wing at Southern Ocean County Hospital. It’s the local hospital where I was born. It’s going to be a really cool place where kids can go and get treated. This month, we’ve launched a backpack program for kids who go to the Troutman Elementary School in Troutman, N.C. We chose that school because it’s not far from where I live. Each Friday, kids who participate, will get a backpack filled with food. We heard stories about some of the kids coming into school saying they were hungry and didn’t have much to eat on the weekends.”

ON RETURNING TO DOVER: “It’s a track that has been very good to me and my family. I won races there in both the Nationwide and Cup Series events. Back in May, I won the pole with my NAPA AUTO PARTS team and that was pretty cool. Now we want to get our first win there as a new team.

“Since the first time I took a lap on it, I have loved the place. When you find a track like that it usually makes it easier to be good there. I like the fact that the concrete is very unforgiving. The speeds are high and the banking makes it intimidating. It’s pretty fast. I find it to be a track that you really have to attack, but at the same time, respect that it is very unforgiving. You have to be willing to put it right there on the edge and have the discipline not to cross over it.”

NOTES OF INTEREST

Sunday marks Truex’s 181st NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.

Truex owns nine starts at the 1.058-mile concrete oval. He’s earned one top-five, three top-10 and eight top-25 finishes. His average start is 19th and average finish is 15th.

Truex made his NASCAR Nationwide Series debut at Dover driving for his father in 2001. He went on to win two more Nationwide races at the “Monster Mile” in 2004 and 2005.

Join the 23,000 fans who signed up for NAPA’s free Track Pass offer and listen to Truex’s in-car audio during the race. Register at www.nascar.com/napatruexscanner or www.NAPAonline.com. The offer is good through the remainder of the season.

Martin Truex Jr. New Hampshire Race Report

2010-09-19T14:36:00.000-07:00

Martin Truex Jr. Race Summary: The No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota driver Martin Truex Jr. earned a 20th-place finish Sunday in the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Truex saw his Toyota come to life at the halfway mark and nearly climb into the top 10, but late-race cautions and handling issued slowed his charge to the front. Truex remains 20th in points as the series visits Dover International Speedway on Sunday. Only nine races remain in the 2010 season.

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota

Started 16th and finished 20th.

Ran in the top 20 in first half of race. Struggled with chattering tires and not turning well.

By halfway, car started turning good lap times and by lap 194, it started running times similar to the leader’s.

Dodged wreck on lap 222 when Kurt Busch and Jeff Burton made contact.

Raced in 12th, telling crew car was loose in top groove.

Late race handling issues kept him from climbing higher in the closing laps.

TRUEX QUOTE: "We got pretty darn good there for awhile. I don't know what happened at the end on the restarts. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me. We were extremely loose on the restarts and the tires chattered. Then on the final green-flag run, it ended up plowing. We took a chance by staying out and it didn't quite work out like we needed it to. Glad to see it worked out for David though."

RACE NOTES:

Clint Bowyer won the first race of the 2010 Chase for the Championship and is now second in points.

Denny Hamlin finished second and Jamie McMurray third. Tony Stewart and Jeff Burton were racing in the top-five, but ran out of gas in the closing laps.

Denny Hamlin now leads Clint Bowyer by 35 points

The race last 2 hours and 58 minutes. Cautions slowed race slowed race eight times for 34 laps.

Twenty-one lead changes among eight drivers.

NASCAR estimated attendance at 95,000.

Martin Truex Jr. New Hampshire Preview

2010-09-14T14:40:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — New Hampshire Motor Speedway is the site of several firsts for Martin Truex Jr. and the Truex family. The No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota driver made his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series debut on Oct. 31, 2004 as relief driver for Dale Earnhardt Jr. In June, younger brother Ryan won his first race at NHMS and become the third Truex to score a K&N Pro Series East victory on the “Magic Mile.” NHMS is also the site of Martin Truex Sr.’s lone East Series victory in 1994. This weekend the Truex family returns to the mile oval with the potential of adding two more NASCAR victories to the Truex resume as Martin Jr. races in Sunday’s Sprint Cup race while Ryan seeks to clinch a second-straight K&N Pro Series East championship on Friday.

QUOTES

MARTIN TRUEX JR. ON HIS SPRINT CUP DEBUT AT NEW HAMPSHIRE: “It wasn’t the way I wanted to make my first start obviously, but it was a big deal for me to drive Dale Jr.’s car. Everybody was going crazy. I had to wear his fire suit and all that. It was kind of wild. I had a good weekend. I practiced the car and qualified it in third position. New Hampshire was a cool place to get my Cup start. It’s my home track because my family has raced there forever.”

ON WATCHING RYAN SCORE HIS FIRST NHMS WIN IN JUNE: “It was awesome. I was so proud of him. When I stand up on that trailer and watch him race, it really brings me back to my younger days of going to the track with my dad. And to see how happy my dad was when Ryan won made me appreciate the times I had with my father doing the same thing. At times it feels like Ryan is my son because he is so much younger than me. We have never actually raced together except on computers. Even then it gets pretty competitive. Believe it or not, I will be more nervous this weekend watching him try to win and clinch the championship than racing against him in the future.”

ON RACING AT NEW HAMPSHIRE: “The pressure is off of us now because we didn't make the Chase. But what we do have is the opportunity to still win races in the NAPA Toyota. This weekend we can take a few more chances and try a few more things. New Hampshire is like my home track and to be honest, I just want to get back to victory lane. It’s been way too long and we’re trying really, really hard. We just need to make it happen and put it all together. I love that place and know how to win there.”

NOTES OF INTEREST

• Martin Truex Jr. is 11 years, 8 months and 19 days older than Ryan Truex.

• Truex competes in his 180th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Truex has nine starts at the 1.058-mile oval. His best start is second (Sept. 16, 2007) and best finish is third (July 1, 2007). He’s earned three top-five, four top-10 and eight top-25 finishes. His average start is 12th and average finish is 15th.

• The Martin Truex Jr. Foundation will host its third annual MTJF Golf Tournament presented by NAPA AUTO PARTS on Sept. 22 at Sea Oaks Country Club in Little Egg Harbor Township, N.J. The 19th Hole Dinner Celebration presented by Sea Watch International will be immediately following the tournament: www.martintruexjrfoundation.org.

• Time is running out to sign up for the NAPA Belden Spark Plug Wire “Take the Lead” Sweepstakes. Ten lucky winners will ride with Truex at Charlotte Motor Speedway. To enter, visit NAPABELDEN.com or NAPAonline.com now through Sept. 20.

• Over 19,600 fans signed up for NAPA’s free Track Pass offer and you can too. To listen to Truex’s in-car audio, register at www.nascar.com/napatruexscanner or www.NAPAonline.com. The offer is good through the remainder of the season.

Martin Truex Richmond Post Race Report

2010-09-11T21:13:00.000-07:00

Martin Truex Jr. Race Summary: No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota driver Martin Truex Jr. and his Michael Waltrip Racing team finished 22nd Saturday night at Richmond International Raceway. Truex crashed just minutes after Friday’s practice started. The accident forced him to use a backup car during qualifying and Saturday’s race. Truex suffered bad luck during the race when a caution came out on lap 145 seconds after he made a green flag stop dropping him two laps behind the leaders. With only three cautions there were no chances to regain the lost laps. Truex and the Sprint Cup Series returns to action Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota

Started 29th and finished 22nd.

Fell down a lap to leaders on lap 137.

Pitted around lap 145— seconds before caution flag flew dropping him two laps behind leaders.

Took wave around before lap 153 restart.

Lap 225 caution enabled him to make up one of the two laps.

Fell down a second lap with 81 laps remaining.

Truex crashed early in Friday practice forcing him to qualify and race the backup car.

TRUEX QUOTE: "This was an all-around rough weekend for the NAPA AUTO PARTS team. We wrecked a car in practice and we never seemed to get the handling during the race. I am really proud of my guys for the job they did all weekend. Hopefully the next 10 races we can use to make our cars better for next year."

RACE NOTES:

Denny Hamlin won Saturday night’s race at Richmond.

Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson, Joey Logano and Marcos Ambrose rounded out top five.

Race took 2 hours and 54 minutes with three cautions for 28 laps and none after lap 242.

Six leaders exchanged the lead 14 times with only 14 cars on the lead lap when checkered flag fell.

Richmond concluded regular season. Ten-race “Chase for Championship” among a dozen drivers begins Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

Qualifying Report - Richmond International Raceway

2010-09-10T16:24:00.000-07:00

Richmond International Raceway Qualifying Results

Martin Truex Jr. — No. 56 NAPA BRAKES Toyota — qualified 29th.

Friday Recap
Carl Edwards won the Coors Light Pole Award
Juan Pablo Montoya and AJ Allmendinger rounded out top three.
Point leader Kevin Harvick will start 20th
MWR's David Reutimann starts fifth
JTG-Daugherty’s Marcos Ambrose will start 12nd
Saturday’s race begins at 7:30 p.m. (Eastern) on ABC-TV, MRN Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio channel 128.

MARTIN TRUEX JR. — How was your qualifying lap?
“It was not very good. We were pretty decent in that second practice there in race trim. Our car just doesn’t have good speed on new tires right out of the gate. It takes a few laps for it to come around and pretty much what it did right there. Just the front tires just never hooked up. I’m disappointed in the lap, but I’m proud of the guys and the job that they did after the problem we had in the first practice.”

What happened to force you to go to a backup car?
“The throttle stuck wide open going into turn one. It was unfortunate and a bit of an error on our part back at the shop as far as getting the car prepared. It had a little trouble with the throttle pedal assembly in the car. A bit of a mistake that set us back, but they recovered well -- the guys did on the NAPA Toyota. I’m just real disappointed on that lap right now.”

Martin Truex Jr. Richmond Race Preview

2010-09-08T08:04:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — Martin Truex Jr. reminded NASCAR fans how good he and his Michael Waltrip Racing team are Sunday night at Atlanta Motor Speedway when he raced in the top five throughout the 500-mile race before finishing 12th. His pit crew came within a tenth of a second of winning its third Tissot Pit Crew award. Truex expects that momentum to carry into Saturday night’s race at Richmond International Raceway where he finished seventh in April. Truex’s No. 56 will have a silver look for Saturday’s race. The NAPA Brakes paint scheme adorns Truex’s ride to help kick off NAPA’s Great Breaks on Great Brakes promotion. Customers can receive up to a $50 mail-in rebate with purchase of qualifying NAPA Brakes products at any participating NAPA AUTO PARTS store or AutoCare Center through Sept. 30.

QUOTES

MARTIN TRUEX JR. ON RETURNING TO RICHMOND: “Richmond has been one of those tracks that’s been up and down for me. I’ve had great runs and some disappointing deals. It’s short-track racing where a lot of stuff happens. It’s a fun place to race and for the NAPA team, we had a good run during the spring race. We finished seventh. We didn’t qualify very well, but we were able to drive our way up through the field for a top-10 finish.”

ON RACING AGAINST DRIVERS TRYING TO MAKE THE CHASE: “A few weeks back I was one of those guys. I was a contender. I won’t race them any differently or cut them any slack because they don’t cut me any breaks. I race them clean anyway so my focus is on winning races in the NAPA Toyota. And to be honest, it’s Clint Bowyer’s deal to lose. He’s been running well and Richmond is a good track for him. I don’t see him dropping out unless something really crazy happens.”

ON NEW NAPA BRAKES PROMOTION: “The NAPA Brakes Toyota is an awesome looking car. I am looking forward to driving the scheme this weekend. NAPA knows how to create great promotions for customers and this one is no exception. I hope fans will go to www.napaonline.com and take advantage of the offer. I’m hoping this new look with change up our luck a little bit. Maybe we’ll get a good break too in the last few laps on Saturday night to end up in victory lane.”

NOTES OF INTEREST

Truex will appear on SPEED-TV’s Trackside Friday at 11 p.m. EDT

The No. 56 team tested at Gresham Motorsports Park in Georgia on Tuesday in preparation for Saturday’s race.

Saturday marks Truex’s 179th Sprint Cup start and 10th at Richmond. His best start is second (Sept. 12, 2009) and best finish is fifth (May 3, 2008). He owns one top–five and two top-10 finishes at Richmond with and average start of 14th and average finish of 24th.

The Martin Truex Jr. Foundation will host its third annual MTJF Golf Tournament presented by NAPA AUTO PARTS on Sept. 22 at Sea Oaks Country Club in Little Egg Harbor Township, N.J. The 19th Hole Dinner Celebration presented by Sea Watch International will be immediately following the tournament: www.martintruexjrfoundation.org.

Sign up for the NAPA Belden Spark Plug Wire “Take the Lead” Sweepstakes. Ten lucky winners will be chosen to ride with Truex at Charlotte Motor Speedway. They’ll also get to drive a few laps with the Richard Petty Driving Experience and take a behind-the-scenes tour of Michael Waltrip Racing. To enter, visit NAPABELDEN.com or NAPAonline.com now through Sept. 20.

Take advantage of NAPA’s free Track Pass offer. To listen in to Truex’s in-car audio, register at www.nascar.com/napatruexscanner or www.NAPAonline.com. The offer is good through the remainder of the season.

Truex Atlanta Race Report

2010-09-05T21:53:00.000-07:00

Martin Truex Jr. Race Summary: No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota driver Martin Truex Jr. and his Michael Waltrip Racing team finished 12th Sunday night at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Truex started sixth and ran in the top 10 throughout the 500-mile race running as high as second-place late in the race. The team’s 17th top-20 finish in 2010 keeps Truex 20th in the points race with 11 races remaining in the season. The Sprint Cup Series returns to action Saturday night at Richmond International Raceway.

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota

Started sixth and finished 12th.
Like most drivers battled a loose condition on long runs during the 325-lap race.
Quick pit stops during the race gained Truex several spots.
Ran in the top 10 throughout the race and climbed to second with 61 laps to go.
Restarted race in ninth with 25 laps remaining and moved to 8th with 18 laps to go.
Fell to 12th fighting a tight handling condition on the final green flag run.

TRUEX QUOTE: "The NAPA Toyota ran half the race in the top five so to finish in 12th is a little disappointing. We battled a tight condition on the short run and that hurt us on the final restart. On the long runs, we were loose. The NAPA Know How crew did a great job for me tonight; I just wish we would have gotten a better finish."

Qualifying Report - Atlanta Motor Speedway

2010-09-04T15:47:00.000-07:00

Atlanta Motor Speedway Qualifying Results

Martin Truex Jr. — No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota — qualified sixth.

Friday Recap

• Denny Hamlin won the Coors Light Pole Award—his first of the season and first at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
• Ryan Newman and Kyle Busch rounded out top three.
• Point leader Kevin Harvick will start 29th
• JTG-Daugherty’s Marcos Ambrose will start 32nd
• Saturday’s race begins at 7:30 p.m. (Eastern) on ESPN-TV, PRN Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio channel 128.

MARTIN TRUEX JR. — “It was a good pickup from practice. We had a long day. Two hours and 45 minutes was a long day. We made a lot of changes from practice. We struggled off the trailer and we continued to work on the NAPA Toyota all day. It was a really good lap for us. At the end of the second practice we felt good. We did some race runs to start it and a couple qualifying runs at the end of it. We had a good lap and we should be in good shape for the race tomorrow.”

Martin Truex Jr. Atlanta Preview

2010-08-31T12:17:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — In the NASCAR world, Labor Day weekend means it’s time for the Sunday night Sprint Cup race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, but to families across the country, the holiday signifies the start of a new school year. No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota driver Martin Truex Jr. wants to help out about 200 of those school kids near his North Carolina home.

Truex will host the third annual Martin Truex Jr. Foundation Golf Tournament presented by NAPA on Sept. 22 at the Sea Oaks Country Club in Little Egg Harbor Township, N.J. Proceeds from the golf tournament will help build the Martin Truex Jr. Pediatric Unit at Southern Ocean County Hospital in N.J. as well as assist Troutman (N.C.) Elementary School students. Through the Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina’s Backpack Program, Truex plans to pass out backpacks to the children stuffed with food.

QUOTES

MARTIN TRUEX JR. ON MTJ FOUNDATION AND BACKPACK PROGRAM: “A few years ago, Sherry and I wanted to start a foundation because as kids, we knew we were lucky and there were a lot of kids out there that weren’t has fortunate. In 2007, we were able to launch the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation. Over the years we have been introduced to a lot of great organizations and one that has become important to us is the Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina. We wanted to help after hearing how children who participated in its Backpack program said if it wasn’t for their backpack food, they wouldn’t have had anything to eat. Hearing that harsh reality, we wanted to get involved. This year we’ll be assisting students at Troutman Elementary.”

ON RETURNING TO ATLANTA: “I absolutely love racing at Atlanta Motor Speedway. It’s one of my favorites and that’s a good thing considering the track is in NAPA Headquarters backyard. Both Pat Tryson and I have had good runs there. Pat won there last year with Kurt Busch. I’ve come close to winning several times including this past spring. We simply got caught up in the wreck on that green-white-checkered finish. I feel like you can really drive the car hard there. The track is really wide and you’ll see guys running up top, in the middle and down low. I like the fact that we won’t be fighting for one lane. If you are faster than a guy, you can find a way to get around him. I like my chances this weekend in the NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota. We’ve got a lot of NAPA folks joining us so it would be great to end up in victory lane.”

NOTES OF INTEREST

Sunday is Truex’s 178th Sprint Cup Series race and 12th at the 1.533-mile track. His best start is first (Sept. 6, 2009) and best finish is eighth (Oct. 30 , 2005). During his career, Truex has earned two top-10 and five top-25 finishes at AMS. His average start is 18th and his average finish is 24th. He has led 204 laps in competition.

In just two years, the MTJ Foundation has raised more than $400,000 for various community programs and initiatives such as the Backpack Program and building the Martin Truex Jr. Pediatric Unit at Southern Ocean County Hospital in N.J. To find out more, visit www.martintruexjrfoundation.org.

Don’t be left out. Over 10,000 fans have taken advantage of NAPA’s free Track Pass offer. To listen in to Truex’s in-car audio, register at www.nascar.com/napatruexscanner or www.NAPAonline.com. The offer is good through the remainder of the season.

Martin Truex Bristol Race Report

2010-08-21T20:34:00.000-07:00

Martin Truex Jr. Race Summary: No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota driver Martin Truex Jr. and his Michael Waltrip Racing team recorded its 16th top-20 finish of the season at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday night. Truex started ninth and finished 17th. Truex raced in the top 10 for the first 200 laps but handling issues midway through the race halted progress. An inopportune caution put the team a lap down. Truex is now 20th in points. The Sprint Cup Series enjoys an off weekend before traveling to Atlanta Motor Speedway on Sept. 5.

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota

Started ninth and finished 17th.

Climbed as high as fifth on lap 132.

Reported difficulty turning and dropped to 18th after the lap 200 restart.

Raced 17th at the lap 300 mark.

Pitted under green on lap 401, but nine laps later the caution came out dropping him down a lap.

Marked his 16th top-20 finish in 2010.

TRUEX QUOTE: "Our car was so unpredictable tonight for some reason. It would bounce so bad that I didn't know what it was going to do. It was just confusing. It went wrong for us somewhere after such a strong start. We'll figure it out and keep working on it."

AAA MID-ATLANTIC & MICHAEL WALTRIP RACING ANNOUNCE PARTNERSHIP ON MARTIN TRUEX’S NO. 56 TOYOTA

2010-08-20T06:47:00.000-07:00

AAA MID-ATLANTIC & MICHAEL WALTRIP RACING ANNOUNCE PARTNERSHIP ON MARTIN TRUEX’S NO. 56 TOYOTA

DOVER, Del. – Michael Waltrip Racing announced today AAA Mid-Atlantic will join Martin Truex Jr. ’s No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota as an associate sponsor at the Sept. 26 NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Dover International Speedway.

The company’s decal will adorn the No. 56 Toyota’s lower quarter panels during the AAA 400 at the Monster Mile.

In addition, AAA will be conducting the AAA Ultimate Monster Mile Sweepstakes which will include heavy involvement from Michael Waltrip Racing, especially Truex. The winner of the month-long sweepstakes will receive four tickets to the AAA 400, a meet and greet with Truex along with garage access passes, a pre-race tour of the No. 56 hauler, a pre-race meal with the Michael Waltrip Racing Team and participation in the pre-race driver introductions. Truex will record radio spots and AAA plans to feature the No. 56 Toyota in promotional collateral.

AAA Mid-Atlantic is based in Wilmington, Delaware, and serves nearly four million members in New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia and the District of Columbia, with personal insurance, financial, automotive and travel services through 53 retail branches, regional operations centers and the Internet, at aaa.com/community

Company officials said it is no coincidence Truex, a Mayetta, N.J. native, will carry the AAA Mid-Atlantic decals.

“Our area of the country is very passionate about racing particularly NASCAR,” said Matthew Haas, Director, Partnership & Event Marketing, AAA Mid-Atlantic. “Sunday’s race in Dover is one of the biggest sporting events of the year and we couldn’t pass up an opportunity to add to the excitement of the AAA 400 by supporting one of our own in Martin Truex Jr. We have a lot of AAA members in the area who are big supporters of the Truex family.”

Truex said he appreciated the support.

“A lot of people don’t realize the amount of interest in racing in this area,” said the 30-year-old Truex whose father Martin raced and whose younger brother Ryan is a champion driver for MWR. “Dover is as close (about 150 miles) to my hometown in New Jersey as we get so it’s always a special weekend for me when we go there.”

MWR fields fulltime NASCAR Sprint Cup teams for Truex and David Reutimann as well as a K&N Pro Series entry for Ryan Truex. MWR along with Gary and Blake Bechtel co-own Diamond-Waltrip Racing that fields a fulltime Nationwide entry for Trevor Bayne.

ESPN will broadcast the race at 1 p.m.

Contact: Eric Goldscher, Aquarius Sports & Entertainment 240-547-3483

Contact: Matthew Haas, AAA Mid-Atlantic 302-299-4434

Martin Truex Jr. Bristol Preview

2010-08-17T12:50:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — Martin Truex Jr. and the NAPA Know How team visit Bristol Motor Speedway Saturday night for one of the most exciting races of the NASCAR Sprint Cup season. The No. 56 Michael Waltrip Racing team’s string of recent success includes scoring the 12th-most points in the last five races including two top-10 finishes in the last three events. Truex said nearly every driver and all fans enjoy races on the half-mile track that celebrates its 100th Sprint Cup race this weekend.

Truex is busy off the track as well this week. Today, he launched the Martin Truex Jr. Authentics website www.mtjauthentics.com for NASCAR fans and outdoor enthusiasts. The website includes hunting and fishing tips from Truex plus recommended products.

QUOTES

TRUEX ON RACING AT BRISTOL: “Bristol is one of those tracks that I think all of us like no matter where we grew up racing. The NAPA team had a good run there back in March and in 2004, I won my first Nationwide Series race there. I’ve always enjoyed racing there especially after they redid the concrete and the banking. It’s a lot of fun to race on because you can go two, three wide. You can also run the top groove now so it’s a lot more fun to drive. I just enjoy having options. If your car isn’t working right on the bottom, you can try going high and maybe pick up three or four-tenths a lap. Who wouldn’t like to be able to do that? It also creates great racing for the fans.”

CREW CHIEF PAT TRYSON ON BRISTOL: “Bristol is a little harder on crew chiefs because we don’t have as much time to think about things. My job is to watch and base decisions on what is right for the team and what most teams will do. Lately, Bristol has seen a lot of long, green-flag runs. It has changed a lot as far as how the race is run. Our NAPA team has been really running well starting in May. We should have more points, but there were some races where something happened that was out of our control. Our goal for this race is to win, obviously, or at least leave with another top-10.”

ON MTJAUTHENTICS.COM: "I'm really excited to create a place for people like me who enjoy NASCAR, hunting and fishing. It should be a good place to interact online. I'll be visiting the site a lot to upload my personal hunting and fishing pictures, give fans a few tips and feature products that work for me."

NOTES OF INTEREST

Saturday night is Truex’s 177th Sprint Cup Series race and 10th at the 0.533-mile track. His best start (March 16, 2008) and finish (Aug. 25, 2007) is 11th. During his Cup career, Truex has earned three top–15 and five top-25 finishes at BMS. His average start is 19th and his average finish is 24th. In Nationwide Series competition, Truex has one victory, one top-five and four top-10 finishes.

Crew Chief Pat Tryson called the winning race at Bristol back on March 25, 2001 with driver Elliott Sadler.

Martin Truex Jr. Michigan Race Report

2010-08-15T15:58:00.000-07:00

Martin Truex Jr. Race Summary: Martin Truex Jr. and the NAPA racing team finished eighth in Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Michigan International Speedway marking the sixth top-10 finish in 2010 for the Michael Waltrip Racing team. The Mayetta, N.J., native started ninth and raced in the top 12 for most of the race. During a caution with about 45 laps to go, Crew chief Pat Tryson kept Truex on the track while most of the frontrunners pitted. The NAPA Toyota restarted second then quickly took the lead on the restart and stayed at the front of the field for five laps. Truex pitted during the following caution and battled his way to eighth when the checkered flag waved. Truex remains 20th in the point standings. The Sprint Cup series returns to action Saturday night at Bristol Motor Speedway.

MARTIN TRUEX JR.: "Overall it was a good day for the NAPA Toyota. Pat (Tryson, crew chief) did a really good job calling the race. We stayed out that one time and got track position and then were able to get our four tires and we were able to stay up there. We had a really good car on the long run. It took us a while to get going on the short run and that hurt us. We were as good as anyone on the long run. It just took us too long. It's something to work with. We were a lot better than we were here last time. The guys are working good and making the cars better and we feel good about that."

Truex Notes:

Truex started ninth and finished eighth—now 20th in points.

The No. 56 climbed from ninth to fifth in the early going.

On lap 83 the No. 56 dropped from ninth to 20th due to a loose handling condition.

The NAPA team tried several adjustments over the next 75 laps to tighten the car.

On lap 154 Truex stayed out under caution and restarted second.

Truex grabbed the lead on the restart then led laps 160-164— upping his total to 13 for the 2010 season.

Owns six top-10 finishes in 23 starts completing 96 percent of the laps.

Martin Truex Jr. Michigan 2 Preview

2010-08-10T12:09:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — NAPA Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. visits Michigan International Speedway after enjoying three days of smallmouth bass and salmon fishing at one of his favorite fishing holes in Grand Traverse Bay in Traverse City, Mich. The welcomed break comes after last weekend’s 15th-place finish at Watkins Glen International, his 10th top-15 of the season, and a trip to Philadelphia to throw out the first pitch at the Phillies-Mets game.

The 30-year-old Mayetta, N.J. native likes his chances this weekend and expects to improve upon his 17th-place finish at MIS on June 13. He and Crew Chief Pat Tryson should excel as the pair visit tracks for the second time together this season. Twelve of the final 14 races are at venues that have hosted a NASCAR Sprint Cup race in 2010.

QUOTES

TRUEX ON FISHING IN MICHIGAN: “This is the second time this season that I have come up here to take a break from it all and just fish. I absolutely love it because I enjoy the challenge of catching fish. Since I was a little kid I loved to fish. For me, it’s all about the catch and the challenge of finding the fish and making them bite when they don’t want to bite.”

ON ATTENDING SATURDAY’S PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES GAME: “I have thrown out a pitch before, but I did it along with five or six other guys. This time it was just me and it was a real honor to do it. It was a packed house at the Citizens Bank Park. I did not realize it, but it was Toyota Phillies Alumni Night! I literally walked out onto the field with 40 players from the Phillies past and it included Hall of Famers Mike Schmidt, Steve Carlton and Jim Bunning! It was such an added bonus for me to experience that.”

ON RETURNING TO MICHIGAN: “I absolutely expect the NAPA team to be even better now that we are returning to tracks for a second time. We’ve learned a lot as a new team and are bringing back even better NAPA Toyotas. Sometimes it’s not a matter of what to do but what not to do based on what we’ve learned. I expect nothing but good things because with this being me and Pat’s first year together, we finally have a book of notes to work off of so it will be an advantage for us.”

NOTES OF INTEREST

• Sunday is Truex’s 176th Sprint Cup Series race and 10th at Michigan International Speedway. His best start of fifth came last season (Aug. 16). In 2007, he recorded back-to-back second-place finishes at the two-mile oval. He’s earned two top-five, two-top 10 and seven top-25 finishes. His average start is 14th and average finish is 17th. He has run 1,726 of 1,735 laps of competition (99.5%) and has led a total of 54 laps in competition.

• In his first race at MIS driving the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota, Truex started 13th and finished 17th.

• Sign up for the NAPA Belden Spark Plug Wire “Take the Lead” Sweepstakes. Ten lucky winners will be chosen to ride with Truex at Charlotte Motor Speedway. They’ll also get to drive a few laps with the Richard Petty Driving Experience and take a behind-the-scenes tour of Michael Waltrip Racing. To enter, visit NAPABELDEN.com or NAPAonline.com now through Sept. 20.

• Don’t be left out. Over 10,000 fans have taken advantage of NAPA’s free Track Pass offer. To listen in to Truex’s in-car audio, register at www.nascar.com/napatruexscanner or www.NAPAonline.com. The offer is good through the remainder of the 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season.

• Check out Martin’s trip to the Philadelphia Phillies game: http://tiny.cc/l526n

Martin Truex Watkins Glen Report

2010-08-08T14:52:00.001-07:00

Martin Truex Jr. Race Summary: No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota driver Martin Truex Jr. overcame a mid-race spin to post a 15th-place finish Sunday at Watkins Glen International in the second and final road course race of the 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup season. Truex started 25th and worked his way into the top 15 by lap 23 of the 90-lap race. He raced midpack through the race’s middle stages but spun on lap 48 dropping to 33rd place. Truex charged from the back moving into the top 20 on lap 69. Truex kept moving up the scoring chart and ended the race with a top-15 finish—his 10th of the season. The Michael Waltrip Racing team returns to action Sunday at Michigan International Speedway.

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota

Truex started 25th and finished 15th.

Broke into top 15 by lap 23.

Truex told team he was loose off in the right-hand corners.

Spun on lap 48 and fell to 33rd.

Charged from back of the field climbing into the top 15 on lap 69.

Owns 10 top-15 finishes in 2010.

Truex threw out the first pitch at the Philadelphia Phillies game Saturday night.

TRUEX QUOTE: "It was okay. We battled hard. Obviously, we struggled in qualifying on Friday and made a lot of changes for the race. It wasn't bad once we got started. I could only run about five or six laps before we had a lot of fade in the front brakes. That made it really hard to pass. We fought our way up there once and spun out because the brakes went away. I was inside the 77 (Sam Hornish) trying to pass him, and instead of spinning him out, I just spun myself out because I didn't want to take him out. The car wasn't where we needed it, but we battled and got a decent finish with it."

Martin Truex Jr. Watkins Glen Preview

2010-08-05T12:05:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — As a youngster, Martin Truex Jr. dreamed of two professions— race car driving and playing baseball. He’ll live both dreams this weekend. The No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota driver plans to take batting practice and throw out the first pitch before the Saturday’s Philadelphia Phillies-New York Mets baseball game. The 30-year-old Mayetta, N.J. native is an avid Philadelphia sports fan supporting the Eagles, Flyers and Phillies. Truex attended Games 3, 4 and 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals as well as the Flyers’ conference final against Montreal hours after the May Dover race.

The Michael Waltrip Racing driver also has plenty of racing business to take care of this weekend. The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series visits the historic road course of Watkins Glen International where Truex owns two top-six finishes in his four career starts. Last week at Pocono, Truex finished ninth—his fifth top-10 of the 2010 season.

QUOTES

TRUEX ON ATTENDING SATURDAY’S PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES GAME: “It’s going to be a lot of fun and I am looking forward to throwing out the first pitch. I’ve got a good arm so I’m not really nervous and as of right now, I’m not going to practice. I’m willing to take the risk. I’m very aware that if I don't throw it across the plate or in the strike zone, I’m going to get booed. It’s just part of the deal. I also really can’t wait to see the Philly Phanatic. He’s hilarious! I’ve been to a lot of Philadelphia Phillies games over the years and two years ago I got to attend Game 5 of the World Series. It was rained out so I didn’t get to see them finish the deal off, but I still had a great time.”

ON RACING AT WATKINS GLEN: “I’ve had some great runs at Watkins Glen in the past. Of the two road courses we go to, Watkins Glen has produced better results for me. Earlier this year, the NAPA team ran really well at Infineon Raceway. We had a top-three going until we got wrecked so we didn’t get the finish we wanted or deserved. But we had a very strong car and I think Michael Waltrip Racing’s road course program is really strong. I think a lot of that credit goes to Marcos Ambrose. He’s done a lot of testing and the experience he has brought to the table with the setups and feedback have been great. I am really looking forward to the race. I think our NAPA Toyota will be good. I really love the track so hopefully it will be a really great weekend. I think we have a good chance at being up front and challenge for the win.”

ON THE NAPA TEAM’S TOP-10 FINISH AT POCONO: “It is so nice to get a top-10 under us because the last few weeks we have had really strong cars, but haven’t delivered the good finishes. If we can continue to do this and take advantage of having really good cars then this NAPA team will be in good shape.”

NOTES OF INTEREST

Sunday is Truex’s 175th Sprint Cup Series race and fifth at Watkins Glen International. His best start is 12th (2007) and finish is fifth (2008). He’s earned one top-five and two top-10 finishes. His average start is 22nd and finish is 28th. He has run all 308 laps in competition.

Martin Truex Jr. Watkins Glen Preview

2010-08-04T06:45:00.000-07:00

QUOTES

NOTES OF INTEREST

• Sunday is Truex’s 175th Sprint Cup Series race and fifth at Watkins Glen International. His best start is 12th (2007) and finish is fifth (2008). He’s earned one top-five and two top-10 finishes. His average start is 22nd and finish is 28th. He has run all 308 laps in competition.

• Sign up for the NAPA Belden Spark Plug Wire “Take the Lead” Sweepstakes. Ten lucky winners will be chosen to ride with Truex at Charlotte Motor Speedway. They’ll also get to drive a few laps with the Richard Petty Driving Experience and take a behind-the-scenes tour of Michael Waltrip Racing. To enter, visit NAPABELDEN.com or NAPAonline.com now through Sept. 20. The enhanced spark plug wires give customers the perfect fit and patented technology to guarantee advanced protection and ultimate power.

• Don’t be left out. Over 10,000 fans have taken advantage of NAPA’s free Track Pass offer. To listen in to Truex’s in-car audio, register at www.nascar.com/napatruexscanner or www.NAPAonline.com. The offer is good through the remainder of the 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season.

Truex Jr. Previews His Return To Pocono

2010-07-27T14:07:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — For the second time this month, NAPA is offering race fans a chance to get closer to Martin Truex Jr. and the NAPA Know How Crew. Fans are taking advantage of NAPA’s free Track Pass offer to listen to the No. 56 team radio during the race. Now, NAPA is giving fans the chance to take a ride with Truex in the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota. It’s part of the NAPA Belden Spark Plug Wire “Take the Lead” Sweepstakes. Ten lucky winners will be chosen to ride with Truex at Charlotte Motor Speedway. They’ll also get to drive a few laps with the

Richard Petty Driving Experience and take a behind-the-scenes tour of Michael Waltrip Racing. To enter, visit NAPABELDEN.com or NAPAonline.com now through September 20.

Truex and the NAPA team return to Pocono Raceway where earlier this season, a top-10 run ended during a last-lap crash. The 30-year-old from Mayetta, N.J. believes his team in on the verge of a breakthrough and the 2.5-mile tricky triangle is the perfect place to accomplish it.

QUOTES

TRUEX ON NAPA PROMOTIONS: “I have never been associated with a sponsor who really activates its NASCAR promotions like NAPA. I think it’s great that NAPA gives fans as much access as possible. We’ve had fun with the Track Pass promotion. Dave Moody put me up to a bet to sing the NAPA Know How jingle on a warm-up lap if 1,000 fans registered. After doing some research, we found out the team radio doesn’t go live until the green flag drops so the bet couldn’t be totally pulled off. We’ve got another plan so tune in to Sirius Speedway next Monday at 3:40 p.m. As of Chicagoland, over 8,500 fans have signed up. That’s impressive. I thought 1,000 was a safe number because here’s the honest truth, I am not much of a singer. I’m not the most outgoing guy or even a big talker for that matter. I have no idea why anyone would want to hear me sing NAPA Know How. If that many people signed up to hear me sing, I cannot image how many people will register for the “Take the Lead” Sweepstakes. I expect big numbers as I look forward to driving with the race fans and not scaring them by singing NAPA Know How.”

ON RETURNING TO POCONO RACEWAY: “We had a really good run at Pocono earlier this year.

Unfortunately it came to an end on the last lap when we got caught up in a wreck. That’s been pretty

much the story for this team this year or at least the past two months. We had a strong car there and

we plan to go back with a similar setup, but the summertime race at Pocono is a lot different than the

June race. This time when we go back, we’ll be searching for more grip and since the track changes,

we’ll have to go there with an open mind. We’ll fine tune our NAPA Toyota. Pocono is one of those

places where we get plenty of practice so we’ll be ready to work on the car like we do every weekend.

I feel like our TRD engine program and the way our engine performed at Chicagoland and Indy, will

be a big help too when we hit the track this go around. I really look forward to going to this race.

“We are really close to breaking through and getting that first win for the NAPA AUTO PARTS team. For our first year together, I think we forget just how new we are together as a group. Pat and I are new together as well as our entire crew. We’ve never worked together before. I feel like we are doing

a great job, but are still coming into our own as a team. We’ve had really good performances and I feel like we are getting close to getting our first win. Hopefully, it will happen for us this weekend.”

NOTES OF INTEREST

· Sunday is Truex’s 174th Sprint Cup Series race and 10th at Pocono Raceway. His best start and finish is third (June 10, 2007). He’s earned one top-five, and six top-20 finishes. His

average start and finish is 17th. He has run 1,709 of 1,710 laps of competition (99.9%) and has led a total of four laps in competition.

· NAPA Belden enhanced spark plug wires give customers the perfect fit and patented

technology to guarantee advanced protection and ultimate power.

· NAPA continues to make the Michael Waltrip Racing team’s in-car audio available free o
charge to fans who register at www.nascar.com/napatruexscanner or www.NAPAonline.com. The offer is good through the remainder of the 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season.

Martin Truex Brickyard 400 Report

2010-07-25T15:12:00.000-07:00

Martin Truex Jr. Race Summary: No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota driver Martin Truex Jr. saw a sure top-10 finish spoiled in the final quarter of Sunday’s Brickyard 400 in Indianapolis. The Michael Waltrip Racing driver suffered front end damage on a restart that took him out of contention for the victory. A late race pit stop for a loose wheel dropped him off the lead lap. Until then, the No. 56 looked to be the strongest Toyota and one of the strongest of all cars in the race never venturing outside the top 10 except during pit stop cycles. The 26th-place finish keeps Truex 20th in points. The Sprint Cup series returns to action Sunday at Pocono International Raceway.

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota

Truex Jr. started 12th and finished 26th.

Truex raced in the top 10 throughout the race as the highest running Toyota.

Raced in seventh when caution fell with 42 laps remaining.

Restarted the race in 13th after a problem with the jack during the pit stop.

Truex fell back to 22nd after making contact with another car on the restart causing extensive front end damage.

After repairs, a loose wheel forced Truex to pit in the final five laps dropping him off the lead lap.

TRUEX QUOTE: “It's a shame. We had a top-five Toyota and got back in traffic after a jack problem on our pit stop with about 40 to go. The restart bit us again when the cars started getting bunched up. We got damage to the nose and right side. The NAPA Know How crew did all they could. It just didn't handle competitively after that and then we had to pit late in the race for a vibration (loose right front wheel). I just hate it that our good runs are being taken away like this. I'm so disappointed.”
RACE NOTES:

Jamie McMurray won the Brickyard 400 (17th Running), his fifth victory in 278 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.

Kevin Harvick, Greg Biffle, Clint Bowyer and Tony Stewart rounded out the top five.

There were 14 lead changes among 10 leaders and six cautions for 25 laps. Twenty five cars finished on lead lap.

Kevin Harvick leads the point standings by 184 points over Jeff Gordon.

Chip Ganassi became the first owner to win the Daytona 500, Brickyard 400 and the Indy 500 in the same year

Martin Truex Jr. Indy Preview

2010-07-20T13:38:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Crew Chief Pat Tryson and driver Martin Truex Jr. hope to replicate what teammate David Reutimann did two weeks ago in Chicagoland and make it two wins in a row for Michael Waltrip Racing. Sunday’s running of the Brickyard 400 is one of the most prestigious races on the schedule. For the 30-year-old from Mayetta, N.J., kissing the bricks would rank up there with winning a Daytona 500.

Truex spent the off weekend around his home in North Carolina and tuned in to ESPN2 to watch little brother Ryan make his Nationwide debut Saturday night at Gateway International Raceway. The younger Truex raced from mid-pack to eighth before an accident ended his race about 20 laps before the finish.

QUOTES

Martin Truex Jr. on Running at Indy: “The Brickyard 400 is a big deal. You really feel the history when you walk in there and think about all of the Indy 500s and Brickyard 400s and all of the great finishes and great drivers winning. It’s one of those key races of the year where everybody wants to go there and win it. It reminds me of the Daytona 500. Obviously we’re coming off a big weekend with David winning and we had a great night so things are going well at Michael Waltrip Racing. I’m looking forward to running the NAPA Toyota again. It’s funny. You get these weekends off and you think, ‘Oh yeah, a weekend off is coming up.’ Then you get to the weekend and you feel like you should be doing something. I can’t wait to get back to the track. I’m really looking forward to it.”

Truex on NAPA Team’s Indy Preparations: “Our team preparation for this big race is not that much different than what we do all year long. It’s not like we have to build a special car to go there like we do at Daytona and Talladega. It’s a flat track with long straight-aways. It’s somewhat similar to Pocono. I think a lot of guys look back at Pocono and judge from that race as to what they need to work on and prepare for Indy. I feel confident that we can use some of what we learned from Pocono for this event. Obviously we also want to take our best engine and TRD gave us something to work with at Chicago for sure.”

On Watching Brother Ryan’s Debut at Gateway Last Weekend: “I stayed home because I get really nervous watching him. I was still a little bit nervous following practice on the computer. I obviously watched qualifying and the race. He ended up doing probably better than I thought. He did a great job, and I think I’ll be OK to go to the next one. I just didn’t want to go there and put any extra pressure on him. I know he had a lot of people watching him and he had a lot of pressure on him, so I didn’t want to add to that. He did a great job and what impressed me was his ability to stay pretty calm both on and off the track. He did good with it. He ran a really good race all but the last 20 laps. I think he learned a lot and I think he earned respect from the other drivers and had a good first outing. I’m proud of him.”

Crew Chief Pat Tryson on Indy Challenges: “Qualifying can influence how well you run there. If you get a bad draw, it can get you behind because it is so tough to pass there unless you have a really, really good car. If you go back to last year, Juan Pablo Montoya had the best car there and was driving away with it until he got a pit road penalty. He came out 12th and could only pick up one spot on the track. It’s a tough track because it is so hard to pass. To have a chance at the win, you need a good motor and a car that can really turn well.”

NOTES

NAPA AUTO PARTS continues to bring Martin Truex Jr. fans a little bit closer to the action. On Sunday at Indy and lasting through the remainder of the season, NAPA is making the Michael Waltrip Racing team’s in-car audio available free of charge to fans who register at www.nascar.com/napatruexscanner or http://www.napaonline.com/. Tune in and enjoy the race!

Sunday’s race is Truex’s 172nd Sprint Cup Series start and sixth at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. His best start of 13th came last year and in 2007, he recorded his best finish of 12th. During his career, he has two top-15 and four top-25 finishes. His average start and finish is 22nd. He has led three laps in competition.

Truex Chicagoland Race Report

2010-07-10T22:15:00.000-07:00

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry - 11th finished – 20th in points.

Martin Truex Jr. Race Summary: It was all about finding the right air pressure combination during tonight's 400-mile NASCAR Sprint Cup event at Chicagoland Speedway for NAPA Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. The early stages saw the 30-year-old from Mayetta, N.J. run as high as second. Approaching the halfway mark, Truex remained comfortably in the top-10, but needed a few tweaks to climb back into winning contention. Unfortunately a problem with an air gun socket during the team's stop on lap 183 dropped the NAPA Toyota from ninth to 13th position. Truex was able to climb back to 11th place before his teammate Reutimann scored the victory. This coming weekend the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series is off, but will return the following week to the hallowed grounds of Indianapolis Motor Speedway on July 25.

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota

• Truex Jr. started eighth

• Truex and Johnson raced for second place when Johnson spun and brought out the third caution of the night

• On the Lap 22 pit stop, the NAPA Know How Pit Crew picked up three spots on pit road

• Truex fought a extremely loose-handling race car in the closing laps and finished the race 11th

• Truex remains 20th in the NASCAR championship point standings, 226 out of the top 12

TRUEX QUOTE: "I am so happy for David. We should have been up there with him. At night our car just got really loose off. We could have been better than that but we may have missed it a little on air pressure. Regardless, we got a decent finish and our teammate got the win. I hope he enjoys the celebration tonight. He deserves it."

RACE NOTES:

• David Reutimann won the LIFELOCK.COM 400 at Chicagoland Speedway

• Carl Edwards (second) posted his second top-10 finish in six races at Chicagoland Speedway

• Jeff Gordon, Clint Bowyer and Jamie McMurrary rounded out the top-five

• The race lasted two hours 45 minutes and 34 seconds and featured 10 lead changes among seven drivers

• The race was slowed by four cautions for at total of 21 laps

• The next race is July 25 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Martin Truex Jr. Chicagoland Preview

2010-07-07T10:27:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — NAPA AUTO PARTS wants to bring Martin Truex Jr. fans a little bit closer to the action Saturday night at Chicagoland Speedway as well as the remaining 18 races in 2010 season —and you won’t even have to leave your couch. To honor the one-year anniversary of signing Truex to drive the No. 56, NAPA will make the Michael Waltrip Racing team’s in-car audio available free of charge to fans who register at www.nascar.com/napatruexscanner or www.NAPAonline.com As an added bonus, Truex has vowed to sing the popular “NAPA Know How” jingle during a pace lap if 1,000 fans sign up.

QUOTES

Martin Truex Jr. on NAPA’s in-race scanner offer: “I think it’s cool that NAPA is doing this for our fans because when they watch a race, they don’t always understand what is going on or the emotion that goes in it. If they listen to the in-car scanner of the NAPA Know How Crew, they’ll get a real sense of what we are doing and why it is happening. They’ll hear why we gained or lost a position during a pit stop. Why we took four tires versus two. They’ll hear the excitement when we do a fast stop. They’ll hear how mad I can get when things go bad. Now, they’ll get a sense of the passion of this team over the course of a race and now, the entire second half of our season.”

Truex on the one year anniversary of the NAPA announcement: “Time flies when you are having fun. Things have been really going well if we could just get rid of the bad luck. I am really happy with my decision to join Michael Waltrip Racing and am excited about the future. Just a few weeks ago, we were in the top 12 in points. To be in that position and contending for a Chase spot is pretty good with an entirely new team. We continue to get better all the time and this past weekend was the first time we have revisited a track. What a difference it made for us. We went out with a set up we knew was going to work and after 15 minutes of practice, I felt like we could park the car and prepare for the race. We have learned a lot and it’s great to see how far we have come as a group and to now understand what these MWR Toyotas need to go fast.”

Truex on racing at Chicagoland Speedway: “I really enjoy racing there. It’s been a good track for me over the years. It’s really unique because the front and back straightaways are curved. The track has also been weathered a bit so it has some bumps. It’s real wide and has multiple grooves. I like Chicago because you can race from the yellow line to the wall and go fast. It’s also a tough place to set up a car especially during long green flag runs because the track changes. It is not uncommon for you to have a good practice run, but when you go to race, your car won’t be that good any more. It makes for an interesting challenge for us to figure out that balance on set up and how it will change with the track. Some guys will run well with fresh tires and some will run better on older tires. You just have to be able to do both to have a chance on Saturday night.”

Notes

Watch Truex on this week’s edition of Showtime’s Inside NASCAR: http://tiny.cc/5v5tu

Saturday’s race is Truex’s 171st Sprint Cup Series race and fifth at Chicagoland. His best start is second (July 15, 2007) and best finish is ninth. (July 12, 2008). During his career, he has one top-10 and three top-20 finishes. His average start is 18th and his average finish is 20th. He has led 14 laps.

Truex Daytona Report

2010-07-04T00:48:00.000-07:00

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry - Finished 35th - 20th in points.

Martin Truex Jr. Race Summary: It was the case of being at the wrong place at the wrong time for No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota driver Martin Truex Jr. on Saturday night at Daytona International Speedway. The Michael Waltrip Racing Camry climbed into the top five early in the race, but his luck ran out when a piece of metal from Kyle Busch’s wrecked car damaged Truex’s splitter on lap 103. He returned to the track in the back of the pack where he couldn’t avoid a lap 116 multicar accident that severely damaged the NAPA Toyota. Truex returned to the track on lap 144 and finished the race in 35th. Truex is now 20th in points as the Sprint Cup Series travels to Chicagoland for Saturday night’s race.

Notes
• Truex climbed as high as fourth on lap 22.

• On lap 103, a piece of metal from Kyle’s Busch’s wrecked race car damaged Truex’s splitter forcing him to pit road.

• The No. 56 restarted at the back and couldn’t miss a multi-car accident triggered by David Ragan on lap 116.

• Truex went to the garage for repairs and returned to the track on lap 144 then finished the race.

TRUEX QUOTE :"( Lap 116 accident) I'm not quite sure what happened. They all spun in front of me. I saw (David Ragan) up in front of me sideways. He was coming down the track. You just can't slow down. We had a good car. The NAPA Toyota was running really well. When Kyle wrecked, we hit some of his debris and pitted twice because we were afraid the splitter would drag. It got us mid pack around 18th. We then found ourselves in a wreck. We have good cars, but we just can't catch any breaks. It's a shame because the NAPA Know How crew is working hard. The NAPA Toyota was really good and we were running up in the top 10 most of the race.”

RACE NOTES:

• Kevin Harvick won the race in a green-white-checkered finish. Kasey Kahne and Jeff Gordon rounded out top three.

• A 16-car accident with 12 laps remaining brought out the red flag for just over 19 minutes.

• The race lasted two hours 37 minutes and 19 seconds and featured 47 lead changes among 18 drivers

• The race was slowed by nine cautions for a total of 34 laps

• Rain cancelled qualifying and NASCAR determined the starting order by the point standings.

• Rain also delayed the start of the race more than two hours Saturday night.

• The next race is Saturday at Chicagoland Speedway.

NAPA and NASCAR.com Offers Track Pass Free to Truex Fans

2010-07-03T05:36:00.000-07:00

One of the exciting features on NASCAR.com is the Track Pass Scanner. Track Pass Scanner enables fans to listen in live to the in-car audio on race day, keeping track of the strategy shared between the driver and the pit crew. Thanks to NAPA AUTO PARTS, fans of the No. 56 team will be able to share the high-demand Track Pass Scanner of Martin Truex Jr. FREE of charge! That’s a savings of $60 per year!

Beginning at tonight’s Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway and continuing for the rest of this season, NAPA race fans can hear the race and live audio of Martin Truex Jr. and the NAPA Know How Crew.

Just go to www.nascar.com/napatruexscanner or visit NAPAonline.com and link from there. All you will have to do is register as a new user and you will have access to the in-race scanner between Martin and the No. 56 team.

Enjoy the race!

2010-06-29T09:36:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota driver Martin Truex Jr. celebrates his 30th birthday today (Tuesday) and couldn’t be happier with his life. He’s coming off a Truex-family win last weekend when younger brother Ryan won the K&N Pro Series East race at New Hampshire and Saturday big brother gets another shot at Daytona International Speedway —site of a career-best sixth-place finish in the Daytona 500. The Michael Waltrip Racing driver looked strong at both Daytona and Talladega restrictor plate tracks this season and should be a contender Saturday. Truex owns a victory at the historic 2.5-mile track winning the 2005 Nationwide race.

QUOTES

Truex on Returning to Daytona: “I cannot wait to go back to Daytona. We had a shot to win the Daytona 500. That’s all you can ask for when you go to those plate races. It’s all about making it to the end and having a shot. Our NAPA Toyota was really good throughout the whole race. I felt like we were one of the best handling cars out there. It’s all about handling when we go back there.”

On the Differences Between the February and July races: “I think it is going to be a lot different. We have a bigger plate and a spoiler now. It’s going to be really hot as usual. The slicker it is the harder it is to get a hold of the track. With the bigger plate and the new spoiler, if you can get your car handling, you can really make some things happen. We’re really not sure how the spoiler is going to change things. We ran it at Talladega. We saw what it did there, but Daytona is such a different track. Talladega is all about speed and not about handling. Daytona is the opposite. We are going to go there with an open mind and work on it in practice. I feel good about our NAPA Toyota and the package we are taking. It should be a lot of fun.”

On the Truex-Family Victory: “It was a neat deal last Friday. There are now three Truexs on the winners list in the K&N Pro Series East at New Hampshire. I think it was really special for my dad. I was a nervous wreck. I want him to do well and enjoy what he is doing. It’s an exciting time for Ryan. He’s leading the East championship and is preparing for his Nationwide Series debut at Gateway.”

Notes

Saturday’s race is Truex’s 170th Sprint Cup Series race and 11th at Daytona. His best start at the superspeedway is first (Feb. 15, 2009) and best finish is sixth. (Feb. 14, 2010) During his career at Daytona, Truex has earned a pole, a top-ten and six top–20 finishes. His average start is 16th and his average finish is 20th.

In Nationwide Series competition at Daytona, Truex has driven in seven events. His best start is first (Feb. 14, 2004) and best finish is first (July 1, 2005). During his career, Truex has earned three top–five and five top-10 finishes. His average start is 11th and his average finish is ninth.

Truex on Turning 30: “Time flies when you are having fun! It feels like yesterday that I moved down to North Carolina to run the Nationwide Series car. I was just 22 or 23 years old. Age is just a number. I don’t feel 30 so I am doing all right. Yesterday, I opened a present from NAPA. It was a framed picture from our announcement last year and that really means a lot to me. It’s going up in my office. They’ve really welcomed me into the NAPA family and it’s meant a lot.”

Martin Truex Jr. Daytona Preview

2010-06-29T09:28:00.000-07:00

QUOTES

Notes

Martin Truex New Hampshire Report

2010-06-27T16:23:00.000-07:00

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry - Finished 22nd – 18th in points.

Martin Truex Jr. Race Summary: It was a challenging afternoon for Martin Truex Jr. at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race. After 301 laps, the NAPA AUTO PARTS TOYOTA came home with a 22nd-place finish leaving him 18th in points. Truex survived the long green flag runs in the first two-thirds of the race and a flurry of late cautions in the final stages that saw him return to the lead lap after falling down two laps. Truex reported his biggest challenge was the temperamental handling of his Toyota throughout the race. The NAPA AUTO PARTS TOYOTA returns to action Saturday night at Daytona International Speedway.

Truex Jr. started 26th and finished 22nd

Truex Jr. battled a car that went from loose to tight throughout the race

No. 56 Toyota went a lap down to the leader at lap 217

No. 56 fell a second lap down to the leaders on lap 236 when it was caught on pit road trying to short pit

The NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota took the wave around to gain a lap back on lap 241.

Truex Jr. raced as high as 16th before pitting on lap 291 for four tires and adjustments.

TRUEX QUOTE:"We definitely need to be better when we come back here in the fall. Qualifying definitely hurt us because it was so hard to pass. It seemed as if nothing really worked out in our favor. I think that last caution really hurt us. If it would have stayed green, we would have been OK. I'm looking forward to returning to all the tracks now. (Crew Chief) Pat (Tryson) and I have notes now to work off of so I am hoping everything will work out."

RACE NOTES:

Jimmie Johnson won for the fifth time in 2010.

Tony Stewart, Kurt Busch, Jeff Gordon and Kevin Harvick rounded out the top-five

JTG-Daugherty driver Marcos Ambrose finished 13th.

Point leader Kevin Harvick leads second place Jimmie Johnson by 105 points

The race lasted two hours forty-eight minutes in front of an estimated crowd of 91,000

The race featured 14 lead changes among nine drivers

The race was slowed by four cautions for a total of 19 laps

The next race is July 3, 2010 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla.

Martin Truex Jr. - New Hampshire Motor Speedway Preview

2010-06-25T14:26:00.000-07:00

• Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry - Qualified 26th

Sunday afternoon’s race from New Hampshire Motor Speedway gets underway on TNT, PRN Radio and SiriusXM Satellite Radio 128 starting at 1 p.m. ET.

Friday Recap

• Juan Pablo Montoya won the Coors Light Pole Award with a time of 28.781 sec.
• Kasey Kahne, Kurt Busch, Mark Martin and Ryan Newman rounded out the top-five
• Current point leader Kevin Harvick qualified 24th
• JTG-Daugherty Racing driver Marcos Ambrose qualified the No. 47 Toyota 12th

MARTIN TRUEX JR., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry, Qualified 26th
“It just wouldn’t go. The rear tires chattered pretty bad. We’ve been battling that since we’ve gotten here. I’m disappointed with qualifying and I’m sure the draw didn’t help. We went out early again. But for me, where you start here is not as important as it is at certain tracks. We’ve got two more practices tomorrow and I’ve got all the confidence in the world that Pat and the NAPA crew will get it all worked out.”

Martin Truex Jr. New Hampshire Preview

2010-06-22T09:33:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota driver Martin Truex Jr. has a simple plan for forgetting last weekend’s Infineon Raceway disappointment — win Sunday’s race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Truex saw a top-five run end after contact with Jeff Gordon dropped him back in the field exposing him to a multi-car accident that ended his race. The Mayetta, N.J. native hopes for a more pleasant outcome Sunday on the mile oval where he won in NASCAR’s K&N Pro Series East driving for his father Martin Truex Sr. The younger Truex also scored his first Nationwide Series victory there in 2005. In the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Truex has scored the ninth most points in the last eight races at the Loudon, N.H. track.

QUOTES

Martin Truex Jr. Keys to Running Well at New Hampshire: “It is a pretty flat, fast and hard braking track. You need good brakes. You need to carry a lot of entry speed to be able to roll through the center. That’s the main thing. Usually if you can turn better than everybody else through the center, you’ll be really good. When it comes to qualifying, I don’t think your qualifying spot is as important as it is at certain tracks. A lot of times the race there seems to come down to tire strategies. Do you get two tires, four tires or no tires? It’s just the way it plays out. You just need to be on the right pit cycle at the end of the race. If you have a good car there at the end and you can pit for two or no tires, the chances are good to get a decent finish.”

Truex on why New Hampshire fits his Driving Style? “I kind of cut my teeth there. It was my first big track I ever raced on. I raced in the Busch North (now K&N Pro Series East) Series and won some races in that division when I was driving for my dad’s team. I’ve even raced a modified there. My first big NASCAR win came at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in the Nationwide Series and it led to a championship. It’s an important place in terms of my career. It’s a place I have raced a lot. I have always enjoyed it. When you like a place, usually you do better at it.”

Thoughts on the Infineon Raceway Incident: “It’s very frustrating that we put so much effort in what we do and it takes one guy’s mistake to screw it up for you. It is really going to hurt our chances to make The Chase. The 42nd-place finish is going to kill us. The NAPA team continues to do a great job. Our cars are running fast. It was by far the best car I have ever driven at Infineon Raceway. We had a great run going. I really thought it was going to be a good day for us. It just stinks when someone screws it up for you. I wish in our situation that things were different. I wish that we were in a position where what happened to us on Sunday wouldn’t cost us a chance to make the Chase. All we can do is go back to work and keep working hard. Hopefully this kind of stuff doesn’t happen again. We’ve had a couple of bad weeks. We didn’t run as well as we should have at Charlotte. We got in the late-race wreck at Pocono. At Michigan we didn’t run as well as we should have. This past weekend we were really good and were wrecked. It just seems like when we run well, we still do not get the finishes. That’s what we are missing right now. We still need to work on that.”

Notes

Truex Jr., Truex Sr. and younger brother Ryan Truex will hold a media availability session in the New Hampshire Motor Speedway media center on Friday at 1:30 p.m.

Truex competes in his 169th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Truex has eight starts at the 1.058-mile oval. His best start is second (Sept. 16, 2007) and best finish is third (July 1, 2007). He’s earned three top-five, four top-10 and seven top-25 finishes. His average start is 11th and average finish is 14th. He has completed 2,266 of 2,365 laps (95.8%). He’s led 47 laps in competition.

Take advantage of a great NAPA promotion this month. Consumers can visit a NAPA AUTO PARTS Store or a NAPA AutoCare Center, and get the following mail-in rebates—

$20 rebate on the NAPA Optima Heavy-Duty batteries, $15 rebate on NAPA Legend 84 month battery and $10 rebate on all NAPA LEGEND 75-month batteries.

Martin Truex Infineon Report

2010-06-21T10:29:00.000-07:00

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry - finished 42nd - now 19th in points.

Martin Truex Jr. Race Summary: Martin Truex Jr. showed everyone during today’s running of the Toyota/SaveMart 350 at Infineon Raceway that he is a very good road racer. The No. 56 NAPA Toyota raced in the top-five during the first 60 laps moving as high as second place. But on lap 61, dreams of a top-five finish disappeared when Jeff Gordon spun the No. 56 in Turn 11. The Michael Waltrip Racing driver planned to rally back from the 26th position but a multi-car crash coming to the green ended his day. He was relegated to a 42nd-place finish. The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series travels to New Hampshire International Speedway this weekend.

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota

Truex Jr. started 10th and finished 42nd
The No. 56 NAPA Toyota raced in the top-five the majority of its time on the racetrack.
Jeff Gordon spun Truex on lap 61 dropping him to 22nd position.
Gordon admitted after the race the accident was his fault.
The spin forced Truex to pit road for fresh tires and fuel on lap 64.
On lap 66 and in 26th place, the NAPA Toyota sustains significant damage while taking the green flag. Multiple cars involved forcing NASCAR to throw the red flag.
The NAPA Toyota did not return to the track.

TRUEX QUOTE: “It just comes down to every week we have these double-file restarts and everybody’s head just gets ridiculous. It just doesn’t make any sense. Everything is fine until we have restarts and then it’s like the guys running a tantrum to win the race. It’s uncalled for. The unfortunate part is all the guys from my team worked so hard and we had an awesome NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota and were running top-five all day long. I just hate it for them. We were looking to have a really good day here and a lot of fun.

“We simply got caught up in that wreck and was just the victim of circumstance. We got spun out and that’s what got us in the back and put us in an unfortunate situation. We should have never been in that position. We’ve been running upfront all day long with a great car. Everybody on the NAPA Toyota did an awesome job. We had a shot at running top-three or four and maybe we had a shot at winning if the thing played right.” I guess Jeff (Gordon) figured he couldn’t catch us on the track, he was going to spin us out on the restart.”

RACE NOTES:

Jimmie Johnson won for the first time in his career on a road course circuit.
The win is Johnson’s fourth of the season and 51st of his career moving him to 10th all time.
Robby Gordon, Kevin Harvick, Kasey Kahne and Jeff Gordon rounded out the top-five.
Marcos Ambrose led 35 laps and finished sixth, his fourth consecutive top-10 on a road course.
Ambrose was leading with six laps remaining when flipped his engine on and off as he circled the track. His car stalled as six cars weaved around his unmoving Toyota. Although Ambrose got his car restarted and moved back to the front of the field, NASCAR ordered him back to seventh for "failing to maintain reasonable speed" right before the restart.
The race lasted two hours fifty-six minutes in front of an estimated crowd of 90,000
The race featured 12 lead changes among eight drivers
The race was slowed by seven cautions for a total of 14 laps
The next race is June 27, 2010 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, N.H.

Martin Truex Jr. Infineon Preview

2010-06-15T12:13:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS driver Martin Truex Jr. says he is approaching Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup road course race at Infineon Raceway in a whole new way. He summarizes his new strategy for the 10-turn, 1.99-mile California road course in nine words: “Make the tires last and my car will be fast.”

Instead of being fast for only a few laps as he has done in years past, Truex explained he will focus on making the tires on his Toyota last on the long runs. The new mantra comes after working with JTG-Daugherty Racing driver Marcos Ambrose at Virginia International Raceway on May 11 and 25. Ambrose, whose team is in a technical alliance with Michael Waltrip Racing, is one of the best road course racers on the circuit. Truex believes the Aussie will be instrumental in helping him steer the NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota to a good finish on Sunday.

QUOTES

Martin Truex Jr. on Working with Marcos Ambrose: “Marcos has been really good on the road courses and we have done some testing this year. Marcos is really, really good. I am going to lean on him. I am going to pick his brain as much as possible. He is just unbelievable and it’s amazing how fast he can go around those places. I think his experience can help us. He is really smart about his cars when he races there. He knows how to get them to roll the right way. He knows how to get the feel in them that maybe he won’t be the fastest guy, but it will stay under him during the longer runs and keep the tires on it. I think that’s what I have struggled with. I’ve just worried about going fast. I am able to go fast, but the car won’t stay with me. I think Marcos is going to be able to help us a lot. I think if we can make the car last, we will be OK. This race is also a lot about pit strategy and being at the right place at the right time. If the NAPA team can do all the little stuff right and keep the car under me, I think we can have a great day.”

On Differences Between Infineon and Watkins Glen: “I have really enjoyed Watkins Glen. I have been really fast there. I’ve run in the top five, top 10 pretty much every time I have been there. Infineon hasn’t been that kind of place for me. Infineon is very narrow, slow and slick. Watkins Glen on the other hand is the complete opposite. It is wide, fast and has a lot of grip. It’s like comparing Daytona to Martinsville. Infineon is difficult because it has some tight, first-gear corners that’s tough to get the power down.

“I think my biggest challenge at Infineon is I have always struggled with burning the rear tires off. Last year, I qualified sixth and passed Tony Stewart on the first lap. I was running like third and in three laps, I had no rear tires left. It was like I was out there with oil on my rear tires. I went straight to the rear. Infineon is one of those places where I’m going to work with Marcos to figure out what it will take for me to race well there.”

ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST

The driver of the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota will be competing in his 168th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Sunday at Infineon Raceway.

Truex has four starts at the 1.99-mile course. His best start of sixth and came last season on June 21. His best finish is 15th (June 25, 2006). He’s earned one top-15, and four top-25 finishes. His average start is 22nd and average finish is 20th. He has run all 445 laps in competition.

Take advantage of a great NAPA promotion this month. Consumers can visit a NAPA AUTO PARTS Store or a NAPA AutoCare Center, and get the following mail-in rebates—
$20 rebate on the NAPA Optima Heavy-Duty batteries, $15 rebate on NAPA Legend 84 month battery and $10 rebate on all NAPA LEGEND 75-month batteries.

Truex Michigan Race Report

2010-06-13T18:14:00.000-07:00

• Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry - finished 17th - now 16th in points.

Martin Truex Jr. Race Summary: Martin Truex Jr. and the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS team overcame a number of obstacles before catching a timely caution in the closing laps Sunday to salvage a 17th-place finish at Michigan International Speedway. With less than 25 laps remaining, Truex Jr. and the No. 56 team were a lap down due to poor handling and an extra pit stop because of a loose lug nut. Tryson kept Truex on the track hoping for a caution that came with 19 laps remaining when NASCAR spotted debris on the backstretch. The caution allowed the No. 56 to come to pit road for adjustments and return to the lead lap in 18th-place. Truex gained a spot over the final 16 laps to finish 17th. Truex Jr. and the Michael Waltrip Racing team next travel to Infineon Raceway in California for Sunday’s race.

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota

• The No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota started 13th, but struggled to find grip early and fell to 25th by lap 20.

• The “NAPA Know How” pit crew picked up seven spots during the lap 49 pit stops.

• Truex raced in 25th position at the halfway point.

• Truex pitted on lap 139, but returned five laps later because of a loose lug nut dropping him to 31st.

• By lap 160 his lap times were the same as the leader and returned to the lead lap on final caution at lap 180.

• Finished 17th and is now 16th in the point standings.

TRUEX QUOTE: "What a way to recover and survive. It was going to be an ugly day if that caution (lap 181) didn't come out. We got behind and lost a lap when a tire was left loose and had to come in and pit again under green. I wasn't going to get on my guys because they have done a great job for me all season. I just told them on the radio to keep their chin up. We got the break we needed and it put us back on the lead lap. I thought we were going to be better today because we had good practices yesterday. I could have spun out a 100 times, but we just stayed smart. By halfway we were a lot better. We were tight in traffic but really good in clean air. That made it tough on restarts because I had chances to pass, but (the car) just plowed in traffic. We just need to keep getting better because the opportunity is there for us. I think we got ourselves some points and I am real proud of all my guys for hanging in there and rallying together for a respectable finish."

RACE NOTES:

• Denny Hamlin won for the second consecutive week and the fifth time in 2010

• Kasey Kahne, Kurt Busch, Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart rounded out the top-five

• The race lasted two hours thirty-three minutes in front of an estimated crowd of 95,000

• The race featured 18 lead changes among nine drivers

• The race was slowed by four cautions for a total of 14 laps

• The next race is Sunday at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif.

Martin Truex Jr. Michigan Preview

2010-06-08T12:19:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — NAPA Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. will spend a few days of rest and relaxation with family this week before he heads to Michigan International Speedway for Sunday’s 400-mile NASCAR Sprint Cup race. After racing and fishing, Truex’s great passion in life is his Philadelphia Flyers who hope to avoid elimination in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals against Chicago on Wednesday. The Mayetta-N.J. native attended Games 3 and 4 of the finals in Philadelphia last week as well as a conference final against Montreal hours after the Dover race.

Truex is excited about more than just his Flyers. His Michael Waltrip Racing team enjoyed some great runs in May and ran well in Pocono before a last lap crash ruined a chance for a top-10 finish. Truex likes the two-mile, D-shaped oval in Michigan where he finished second in both 2007 races.

QUOTES

Martin Truex Jr. on Philadelphia Flyers: “I remember going to the old Spectrum when I was four or five years old. I’ve been a fan for a long time. They are an awesome team to watch and they play with a lot of energy and so much heart. To comeback they way they did when so many wrote them off says a lot about The Flyers. They won all three big games that Sherry and I went to so I will feel awfully bad if they lose on Wednesday night.”

Truex on Michigan: “Michigan is one of those tracks that I like. I didn’t like it much last year because I didn’t run well, but in the past I’ve has some really good runs. One of the things that makes Michigan fun is it’s really a wide racetrack and has a bunch of grooves available. You can run all the way down to the white line and up to the fence. It’s probably one of the widest tracks we go to. Because of that, I don’t think where you qualify is indicative to your chances to win the race. If your car is good, you can usually catch guys pretty easy.”

Crew chief Pat Tryson on Michigan: “Hopefully we have a shot to win it or a top-five. We’ve been running well lately, but still don’t know what happened at Charlotte. Other than that, we have been good so it’s important for us to get some points back this weekend after the wreck last week. To me, you need to be able to run the top at Michigan, but you also have to be able to run the middle and the bottom to pass people. A lot of guys end up going to the top including Martin. When I won the race with Kurt Busch (2007), we could run the top, but move to the middle and bottom to pass. I think to win, your car has to be able to move to the middle and bottom in order to get around guys.”

ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST

The driver of the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota will be competing in his 167th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Sunday at Michigan International Speedway (MIS).

Truex has eight starts at MIS. His best start of fifth came last season (Aug. 16). In 2007, he recorded back-to-back second-place finishes at the two-mile oval. He’s earned two top-five, two-top 10 and six top-25 finishes. His average start is 15th and average finish is 18th. He has run 1,526 of 1,535 laps of competition (99.4%) and has led a total of 54 laps in competition.

Take advantage of a great NAPA promotion this month. Consumers can visit a NAPA AUTO PARTS Store or a NAPA AutoCare Center, and get the following mail-in rebates—

$20 rebate on the NAPA Optima Heavy-Duty batteries, $15 rebate on NAPA Legend 84 month battery and $10 rebate on all NAPA LEGEND 75-month batteries.

Martin Truex Jr. - Pocono Race Report

2010-06-06T18:39:00.000-07:00

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry - Finished 25th - now 15th in points

Martin Truex Jr. Race Summary: Martin Truex Jr. had a solid run spoiled after a last lap incident caused major damage to the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota. Truex started 27th but was quick to report a loose-handling Toyota. The first caution flew on lap 15 and Truex hit pit road for service. He restarted 26th and began slowly working his way through the field. By the halfway point he was in the top 15 and then was listed in the top 10 with just under 50 laps remaining in the 500-mile event. With pit strategy starting to play out near the end of the race, crew chief Pat Tryson summoned Truex to pit road for fuel only on lap 168. Truex was forced to restart deep in the field with only 30 laps remaining in the event because some teams opted to stay on the race track. The veteran driver sliced and diced his way through the field and was in the top 12 when a caution flag flew with just two laps remaining in the race forcing a green, white, checkered finish. Unfortunately, Truex was involved in a massive incident on the final lap and he limped the No. 56 Toyota to a 25th-place finish.

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota

Truex finished 25th and is now 15th in championship point standings. He is 65 points out of 12th.

Fought a loose handling No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota for the majority of the event.

Worked his way into the top 15 by the halfway point

Truex reported the car was starting to come to life on lap 125

Listed in the top 10 with just under 50 laps remaining in the race

Ran as high as eighth at one point in the race

Truex pitted on lap 168 for fuel only

Truex was involved in a massive incident on the last lap of the race and limped to the finish line

TRUEX QUOTE: “There’s not a whole lot I can say about today. It’s a shame to race your way up into a top-10 position and have the race unfold the way it did. We got back up to 14th and then we got involved in the last lap crash. To have a good run taken away like that is tough. I don’t like races like this . We has a good NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota and the guys did a great job. We didn’t deserve a 25th-place finish today.

RACE NOTES:

Denny Hamlin won the race under caution over teammate Kyle Busch

The win is Hamlin’s fourth of the season.

Kyle Busch, Tony Stewart, Kevin Harvick and Jeff Burton rounded out the top-five

The race lasted three hours and forty-four minutes in front of an estimated crowd of 105,000

The race featured 14 lead changes among seven drivers

The race was slowed by eight cautions for a total of 27 laps

The start of the race was delayed nearly two hours due to rain and track drying

The next race is June 13, 2010 at Michigan International Speedway.

Martin Truex Jr. - Pocono Raceway Qualifying Report

2010-06-04T16:29:00.000-07:00

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry - Qualified 27th
Summary
Michael Waltrip Racing drivers Martin Truex Jr. and David Reutimann both experienced issues during Friday’s qualifying effort for the Gillette ProGlide 500 at Pocono. Martin Truex Jr. experienced some sort of mechanical issue that caused his car to skip down the front stretch and caused the No. 56 team to qualify 27th with a time of 53.824 sec.
Meanwhile, David Reutimann also experienced difficulty, but his came in the way of a handling issue caused by bottoming out over a difficult racing surface. Reutimann said that as the splitter would hit the track over a particularly rough stretch between turns one and two it caused the nose of his Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota to take off on him and lose speed. Reutimann qualified 29th with a time of 53.855 sec. This week’s qualifying effort snaps a streak of four consecutive points races where an MWR driver has started from a top-five position.
Both teams practiced well in race trim on Friday’s only practice and should be able to gain positions throughout Sunday’s 500 mile event at the 2.5 mile Pocono Raceway.
Sunday afternoon’s running of the Gillette ProGlide 500 presented by Target gets underway on TNT, MRN Radio and SiriusXM Satellite Radio 128 starting at 1 p.m. ET.
Friday Recap
Kyle Busch won the Coors Light Pole Award for the second time in four weeks with a time of 53.102 sec.
Clint Bowyer, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kurt Busch and Denny Hamlin rounded out the top-five.
Points leader Kevin Harvick will start 22nd
Bowyer is making his best Cup start (second) of 2010
JTG-Daugherty Racing driver Marcos Ambrose qualified the No. 47 Toyota 16th

MARTIN TRUEX JR., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry, Qualified 27th

What happened with your car during your qualifying lap?
“I’m not real sure. We only have one box and one battery for qualifying so I can’t switch. It was strange. Just all of the way down the front straightaway was skipping real bad and it wouldn’t turn any RPM. Then it mysteriously went away off of turn one and down the backstretch. Not real sure, but the NAPA Toyota was driving real well. I thought it was going to be a good lap without that. The guys did good. We’ll just have to go back and figure out what happened and race them all Sunday.”

Martin Truex Jr. Pocono Preview

2010-06-01T11:50:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — NAPA Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. and crew chief Pat Tryson are ready to take on Pocono Raceway—the next stop on the NASCAR Sprint Cup circuit. The Michael Waltrip Racing duo knows the 2.5-mile tri-oval known as the “tricky triangle” presents teams with unique challenges. After just 13 points races together, Tryson and Truex are building a chemistry sure to pay even bigger dividends as the season progresses. Both have enjoyed success at the Pennsylvania track. Truex finished third in this race in 2007 while Tryson, a native of nearby Malvern, visited victory lane at Pocono in the fall of 2007.

QUOTES

Truex on running long races back-to-back at Charlotte and Pocono: “They are both very long races, but the race at Charlotte is different because it starts in the day and ends at night. Charlotte is one of the places that changes the most when taking the track temperature and weather conditions into consideration. It’s really tough. At Pocono, it is a long race, but it starts and ends in the afternoon. Teams deal with the same conditions all day long so it’s really not like Charlotte at all.”

Truex on which turn is the toughest to tame at Pocono: “The hardest thing about Pocono is it’s not really just one corner that is hard. All three corners are very different. That’s what makes the track challenging. If I had to pick one, I would say Turn 1 is the most difficult. It’s really slick and the bumps are really, really bad in Turn 1. They also put a new strip of asphalt down in Turn 3 a few years ago and that has really made things a handful. The rest of the track is all worn out. With the brand new strip of asphalt in Turn 3, you are constantly fighting a tight condition. In Turn 1, you are super loose. It is very challenging. You are all over the place there.

“I’ve seen drivers run well in all three corners. The key is to be a little bit better in each corner than the next guy. It is so competitive out there that you can’t just focus on one turn or throw a turn out. If you do either one or both of those, you won’t stand a chance. You’ve got to make some compromises, but you still have to be good everywhere. You need good grip and drive off in all of the corners. And it needs to turn well through all of the turns. It’s all tough to do, but I think we can get it accomplished this weekend.”

Crew Chief Pat Tryson on keys to running well at Pocono: “For me, I like to focus on Turns 2 and 3 more so than Turn 1. That’s because the straightaway is so long that you do most of your passing on the straightaway. If you can go through the Tunnel Turn pretty easily, then you should be good and good enough to compensate Turn 1. To me, it’s more about getting your car to handle well in Turns 2 and 3 to have a chance to win at Pocono.”

ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST

The driver of the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota will be competing in his 166th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Sunday at Pocono Raceway.

Truex has eight starts at Pocono Raceway. His best start and finish is third (June 10, 2007). He’s earned one top-five, and six top-20 finishes. His average start and finish is 17th. He has run 1,505 of 1,506 laps of competition (99.9%) and has led a total of four laps in competition.

In the last eight races at Pocono, Truex ranks 14th in the most points earned amongst the drivers. In the last five NASCAR Sprint Cup races, Truex ranks 12th in the most points earned.

Take advantage of a great NAPA promotion this month. Consumers can visit a NAPA AUTO PARTS Store or a NAPA AutoCare Center, and get the following mail-in rebates—

$20 rebate on the NAPA Optima Heavy-Duty batteries, $15 rebate on NAPA Legend 84 month battery and $10 rebate on all NAPA LEGEND 75-month batteries.

Martin Truex Jr. - Coca-Cola 600 Qualifying Report

2010-05-27T19:04:00.000-07:00

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA Batteries Toyota Camry - Qualified third, Inside Row Two

Summary

For a short time on Thursday afternoon it looked like it could be an all Michael Waltrip Racing front row to start the Coca-Cola 600, as Martin Truex Jr. and David Reuitmann were sitting one-two after more than half the field had attempted their qualifying laps. But, as the track cooled in the late afternoon some of the later qualifiers were able to drop the pair out of the front row. Both Michael Waltrip Racing Camry’s will start in the top-six.

Martin Truex Jr. paced the Michael Waltrip Racing Camry’s with a time of 28.848 seconds on Thursday afternoon at Charlotte Motor Speedway and will start Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 in the third position. David Reutimann also posted a top-six lap of 28.904 seconds to start Sunday’s race in the sixth position. Sunday night will be the fourth consecutive points race that MWR has a Camry starting from a top-five position. (Truex won the pole award at Dover, Reutimann 2nd at Richmond, 4th at Darlington).

Sunday afternoon’s running of the Coca-Cola 600 gets underway on FOX, PRN Radio and SiriusXM Satellite Radio 128 starting at 5:45 p.m. ET.

Friday Recap

Ryan Newman won the Coors Light Pole Award for the second straight Coca-Cola 600 with a time of 28.793.
This is Newman’s first pole and seventh top-10 start in 2010.
This is Newman’s ninth pole in 19 races at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Kurt Busch, Truex Jr., Kasey Kahne and Jimmie Johnson round out the top-five.
JTG-Daugherty Racing driver Marcos Ambrose qualified the No. 47 Toyota 34th

MARTIN TRUEX JR., No. 56 NAPA BATTERIES Toyota Camry, Qualified Third
Is this qualifying run momentum from the All-Star race? “Business is picking up. The NAPA Toyota is really good here. It was good last week, obviously. It was good to get some momentum through the All-Star race, the Showdown win and all that kind of stuff. The big thing is that these guys are just doing a phenomenal job. Pat (Tryson, crew chief) and all these guys bring me good race cars and we’re really starting to click. I’m starting to have fun again and it’s been cool.”

How do you feel your car has been today in practice and qualifying? “It’s been a good day. We had a good practice, but like we talked about earlier, it was tough to gauge exactly what you had because the track was so hot. You knew you were going to have to pick up seven or eight tenths of a second. It was difficult to really know what you had, it was just going out there and looking for that feel and a good balance with your race car. We were able to get that this afternoon and go out there and lay down a good lap. I was proud of the team and all their work. Charlotte has always been a tough track for me, but I’m really starting to come around and warm up to it.”

How do you think the Coca-Cola 600 will progress? “I think you’ll see comers and goers. Fortunately for us we were able to run in the Showdown this past weekend and that started about the same time our race is going to start Sunday. That will be a little bit of experience for us as far as the conditions and we were pretty good in the Showdown and then went on to be the best we were at the end of the All-Star race. I think we understand a little bit of what it takes to go through that transition of what our car is going to need. I think we will have a little more of a heads-up on what the conditions are going to be like and the kind of adjustments we’re going to need to do. It’s going to be a big help for us having that experience. It’s going to change drastically for everybody and the guys who can stay on top of it and have a car that is able to be adjusted. Sometime you have a car that you can try all night long and it doesn’t cooperate with what you are trying to do. So if you have a car that you’re able to adjust on, which we were able to do last weekend then it will help you. I’m looking forward to that and I think it will be a good positive for us.”

How much progress have you see your team make in recent weeks? “This has been a lot of momentum in progress for us. We have been constantly chipping away at it and been coming together as a group. Still an awfully new team. Pat (Tryson, crew chief) is doing a great job with the cars and we’re just constantly building and getting better each week. If we continue to do that, we’ll be challenging for race wins every week.”

Do you have a top-five car for Sunday? “I think we do. It seemed like in race trim, we weren’t the quickest car. We were right up there with the good cars. It just seemed like on the longer runs we were really good. That’s where we were pretty good the other night. Obviously, the best we were all night were in the last 10 (lap) segment, but we did some adjusting for the short run. It seemed like for most of the night, actually the long run is where we were our best. I think we do. I think we got a car that can run in the top-five all night, hopefully. It’s just about being around at the end when it’s time to go. With the pit crew I have on pit road and Pat (Tryson, crew chief) calling the race. He does a super job with that. And the guys on pit road are flawless. Hopefully, we’ll just hang around the top-five all night, lead some laps, have some fun and when it comes time to race, we’ll be there with them.”

Martin Truex Jr. Coke 600 Preview

2010-05-25T10:25:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — So far Charlotte Speedweeks has been very good for NAPA Racing’s

Martin Truex Jr. He’s coming off a Sprint Showdown victory and a runner-up finish in the All-Star Race. This weekend all eyes will continue to be on the Michael Waltrip Racing driver. He’s good with the attention especially since his NAPA ride will sport a special look for the Coca-Cola 600. The well-known NAPA shield will be joined by NAPA Batteries. The high-energy paint scheme kicks off a great promotion for consumers. In June, visit a NAPA Auto Parts Store or a NAPA AutoCare Center, and get the following mail-in rebates— $20 rebate on the NAPA Optima Heavy-Duty batteries, $15 rebate on NAPA Legend 84-month battery and $10 rebate on all NAPA LEGEND 75-month batteries.

QUOTES

Truex Jr. on momentum heading into Coca-Cola 600: “We felt good coming into last week’s events a Charlotte because of the test we had and what we learned. The last few weeks we seemed to be getting better and better. We thought we were going to be real good coming here, so it wasn't unexpected. It wasn't like we just came out of the blue and won the Showdown. We've been competitive. But momentum is a big thing in this sport. You see it all the time. It worked for us a couple years ago. It seemed to just give us that confidence in each other and know that we can get it done. Hopefully it will do the same thing. But time will tell. I am looking forward to the 600 this week. I think we'll have a good car. The NAPA guys will obviously work on it and work on the issues we had during the All-Star Race. We’ll get it better. We'll come back and try to do what we can do. It should be fun.”

Truex on the challenges of the event: “The Coca-Cola 600 is different in that it is so long. It starts in the daytime and ends at night. Charlotte is one of the most notorious tracks for changing with the weather conditions and even throughout the day. There are so many changes. You almost get to the end and forget about the beginning of the race. It feels like it’s just a night race because it is so long. You just go out there and try and stay on the race track. Just keeping up with its changes are what makes it one of the most difficult tracks on the circuit.”

Truex on the Charlotte track: “I got my best finish at Charlotte last weekend. It’s not been one of my better tracks. The last couple of years we have had some really good runs. I feel with Pat Tryson and the guys on the NAPA team, they have been giving me great cars – but really, Charlotte is just different. It is very fast and I enjoy the challenge. Turns 3 and 4 and Turns 1 and 2 are completely different. That’s what I think is the biggest challenge with it besides the fact that it changes more than anywhere we go.”

ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST

• The driver of the No. 56 NAPA Batteries Toyota will be competing in his 165th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Sunday at Charlotte.

• Truex has nine starts at Charlotte Motor Speedway. His best start is 12th (Oct. 17, 2009) and best finish is seventh (May 29, 2005). He’s earned two top-10 and seven top-25 finishes. His average start is 25th and average finish is 19th. He has run 3,041 of 3,166 laps of competition (96.1%) and has led a total of eight laps.

• Truex has scored the seventh most points of all drivers in the last five NASCAR Sprint Cup races. As driver of the No. 56 NAPA Toyota in 2010, he has earned one pole, one top-five, four top-10, and 10 top-20 finishes.

• MEDIA AVAILABILITY: Truex will be stopping by the media center at 5:10 p.m. on Thursday as part of NASCAR’s Top-12 driver press conferences.

Martin Truex Jr. Sprint All-Star Preview

2010-05-18T12:15:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — It’s a no-holds-barred race weekend for Martin Truex Jr. and his NAPA Know How Crew as it’s finally time for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series All-Star Race. Truex has not been shy about campaigning for the Fan Vote as he’s made it known he’s not watching the event from his couch. Truex likes his chances of racing his way in through the Showdown after coming off his first Coors Light Pole Award at Dover as well as two top-10 and four top-15 finishes in the last five races.

QUOTES

Truex Jr. on the Sprint Showdown: “I think the Showdown will be an awesome race for fans to watch. The drivers in the Showdown over the last few years have made it tough to earn one of the two transfer spots. There are drivers who have won multiple races in a season, but for some reason, they haven’t won in awhile. To earn a spot this year will certainly be an accomplishment in itself. It just shows you how hard it is to win a Sprint Cup race. I am really looking forward to it.

“I really want to be in the Sprint All-Star race. The reason why I want to be in it so bad is I think we can win it. The NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota has been really fast lately. We had a really good test at Charlotte (March 23 & 24). The performance of my NAPA Know How Pit Crew has been excellent and they are getting recognized for it so I like our chances.”

Truex on the Fan Vote: “I think for an event like this, it really is important to get the fans involved. It’s cool how they’ve gotten into it. The amount of votes that have come in already is pretty astonishing. I’ve even had a lot of fun this year campaigning for the Fan Vote. Kyle Petty and Rutledge Wood helped me when Pat Tryson and I were contestants on NASCAR Smarts. Then we did a bunch of You Tube Fan Vote videos and they’ve gotten a lot of play on the internet and television. The fans even Twittered about it and that’s the whole point of why we do this. I know some drivers want race their way in and not lobby for the Fan Vote, but heck, if the fans want to vote me in, I would be proud to represent them. It’s great what Sprint and the fans do for us so the Fan Vote should be a part of the All-Star deal.”

ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST

• The driver of the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota has earned starting positions in the Sprint All-Star race all three ways — The Fan Vote (2006), the Sprint Showdown (2007) and a Sprint Cup victory (2008, Dover 2007).

• Truex has scored the seventh most points of all drivers in the last five NASCAR Sprint Cup races. As driver of the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota in 2010, he has earned one pole, one top-five, four top-10, and 10 top-20 finishes.

• The NAPA Know How Pit Crew will be competing in Wednesday night’s NASCAR Sprint Pit Crew Challenge at the Time Warner Arena in uptown Charlotte. It will be broadcasted on SPEED starting at 9 p.m. ET

• MEDIA AVAILABILITY: Truex will be stopping by the media center at 2:10 p.m. on Friday as part of NASCAR’s Top-12 driver press conferences.

Martin Truex Jr. Dover Preview

2010-05-11T12:54:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — The “Monster Mile” of Dover International Speedway doesn’t scare nearby Mayetta, N.J. native Martin Truex Jr. who earned his first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory as well as two Nationwide wins on the concrete oval. The No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota driver carries the momentum of four straight weeks of impressive runs with his new Michael Waltrip Racing team. Truex wouldn’t be surprised if this weekend produces another solid run bumping him up from 13th-place in the championship point standings.

QUOTES

Truex Jr. on Dover: “I have always enjoyed going to Dover. I usually run well and I love it. I have been fortunate enough to have visited victory lane there in the Cup and Nationwide Series. It is just a special place for me. I am hoping this weekend will be a great one. I think it’s one of the toughest tracks we race. I think that’s why there are so many mixed feelings from the drivers about Dover. It’s one of those places where if you have a bad day, it’s usually really, really, bad and difficult. At most tracks, if you are having a difficult time and are a little off, you can usually work through it. That’s not the case with Dover. It’s a place where if the car is just not right, it’s really, really difficult to fix it. When your stuff is right, it is a lot of fun and you can do a lot with it. It’s also one of those places where it is hard to get a feel for what you need, but at the same time, even when you know what you need, sometimes it is very hard to get it. Hopefully we will be able to get it because if we do, we’ll race for the win.”

Crew chief Pat Tryson on the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS team: “The biggest thing about this NAPA AUTO PARTS team is we continue to make progress. We had one of the fastest cars at Darlington and didn’t quite get the finish we deserved after having a transmission problem. But we left Darlington with enough points to continue to move up in the standings. If we keep running like we’ve been, I believe we will be in really good shape. Now we’re off to Dover, a track that both Martin and I enjoy. It’s a place where we both know how to win and I am expecting another good run from this NAPA AUTO PARTS team. I think we’ve got a real good shot at a win if everything falls into place.”

ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST

• The driver of the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota will be competing in his 164th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Sunday at Dover. This will be Truex’s ninth race at the one-mile concrete oval. His best start is fifth (Sept. 23, 2007) and best finish is first (June 4, 2007). During his career, Truex has earned one top–five, three top-10 and seven top-25 finishes. His average start is 21st and his average finish is 15th. He has led 216 laps in competition.

• Truex has scored the ninth most points of all drivers in the last eight Dover Sprint Cup races.

• TRUEX BUYS DOVER TICKETS FOR KIDS: Truex and his foundation are hosting over 50 kids and family members on Sunday at Dover. The kids are from Ocean County, N.J. and are representing organizations such as Oceans of Love and Big Brothers Big Sisters. Truex will be meeting his guests prior to the Autism Speaks 400. They will be sitting together in the Family Section of the grandstands cheering Martin on to a victory!

• TUNE IN TO TRUEX: Martin will be a guest on Friday night’s edition of Trackside on SPEED. It airs at 7 p.m. and will be broadcasting live from the SPEED stage at Dover International Speedway.

• HELP MARTIN: The first annual Catwalk for a Cause: A Celebration of Fashion benefiting the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation takes place May 18 at River Run Country Club in Davidson, N.C.

For more information on Truex’s foundation: http://www.martintruexjrfoundation.org/

Martin Truex Jr. Darlington Preview

2010-05-04T09:09:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — Martin Truex Jr. heads to his favorite track for this weekend’s running of the Showtime Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. A win at the Lady in Black would lead to a huge payoff for Michael Waltrip Racing’s new driver. The obvious reward is a win for his new team and sponsor NAPA, a cool $285,000 for his Martin Truex Jr. Foundation thanks to the DIRECTV Head2Head Knockout competition and a guaranteed starting spot in the Sprint All-Star race.

QUOTES

Truex Jr. on Darlington: “Darlington is a special place because of the history and the things that have happened there over the years. Especially when you think about all the guys that have won. It’s also a special place to me because I clinched my first championship there in the Nationwide Series. I think there were two or three races to go in the season and we had the Wrangler colors and the Dale Earnhardt paint scheme on my car. It was a very cool day to have won the championship. I have a lot of pictures from that day hanging in my shop.

“What I like about Darlington — it’s one of the most challenging tracks on the circuit. I really, really like it. It is really a fun place to race. I have had some great runs there. I haven’t won there, but I feel like some of my best performances as a driver have come at that track. It really challenges you as a driver. You really have to be up on the wheel and concentrate all day and all night long.”

Truex Jr. on DIRECTV Promotion: “I am so excited to have made it to the final four. Thanks to DIRECTV, I have already won over $30,000 for the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation. That means a lot to my foundation as it will help many children in need. This weekend, if all goes well, we could walk away with an additional $250,000. That money will go a long way as we’ve got a lot of projects going on now so I want to thank DIRECTV for making this promotion possible.”

Truex Jr. on Mother’s Day Activities at Dover: “My parents have been a huge part of my racing career. It’s going to be nice to bring my mother out to the pre-race festivities. She’ll get to see what it’s like to be out there as a driver with all the fans watching. She’ll probably get a little bit nervous, but I look forward to taking her out there and ride around the truck with me before the race.”

ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST

The driver of the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota will be competing in his 163rd NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Saturday night at Darlington. This will be Truex’s fifth race at the 1.366-mile oval. His best start is 16th and best finish is ninth. Both occurred last year on May 9. During his career, Truex has earned one top–five and four top-15 finishes. His average start is 26th and his average finish is 11th.

In the last four races, Truex ranks ninth in NASCAR Sprint Cup Drivers’ Statistics at Darlington Raceway. And just out today, the ESPN Power Rankings rates Truex 13th heading into Darlington.

The DIRECTV Head2Head Knockout promotion enters the Fastest Four round. Truex will now compete for the final prize of $250,000 against Kevin Harvick, Clint Bowyer and Denny Hamlin. Truex is competing to raise money for the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation. The head-to-head “races within the races” launched at Texas and concludes this weekend at Darlington. In classic “bracket-tournament” fashion, fans entered their own bracket predictions at www.DIRECTV.com/NASCAR for the chance to win $1 million or a car.

HELP MARTIN: The first annual Catwalk for a Cause: A Celebration of Fashion Benefiting the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation takes place May 18 at River Run Country Club in Davidson, N.C.

For more information on Truex’s foundation: http://www.martintruexjrfoundation.org/ .

Martin Truex Jr. Talks About Racing For His Foundation in Darlington

2010-05-03T12:59:00.001-07:00

Martin Truex Jr. Richmond Advance

2010-04-27T13:37:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — The Sprint All-Star race is just three weeks away and NAPA Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. is hot on the campaign trail seeking votes from race fans. Truex is officially launches his “Tried and TrueX” campaign this weekend at Richmond International Raceway (RIR). He’ll appear Saturday at the Sprint Experience as well as film segments for SPEED-TV’s NASCAR Race Hub, NASCAR Smarts and NASCAR Race Day asking fans to vote. Truex says he wants nothing more than to be a part of NASCAR’s no-holds-barred extravaganza.

QUOTES

Truex Jr. on the Sprint All-Star Fan Vote: “We are going to have fun with the “Tried and TrueX” campaign. We wanted to obviously include all the fans and let them know that we appreciate their votes. I have had the privilege of making it into the All-Star race all three ways, but the year I won the Fan Vote, I obviously didn’t know I had won the vote when we were running in The Open. I was out there trying to win. I could kind of tell how the race was going. My team was competitive, but we didn’t have a shot at winning it. When I took the checkered flag, my team told me that we were voted in. I couldn’t believe it. My day had gone from, ‘I hate that I have to drive home and watch it on TV’ to ‘Wow, I’m in!’

Truex Jr. on racing at Richmond: “I’ve had good runs at Richmond in the past and I like racing there. But right now, Pat and I are really focused on figuring out the MWR cars. We just aren’t where we need to be right now with that. We’ve lost some valuable track time over the last couple of weeks with Saturday practices being rained out. I think that’s hurt this new team when it came to places like Phoenix and Texas — places Pat and I normally run very well. We tested on Monday at Gresham Motorsports Park (Jefferson, Ga.) to prepare for Richmond and I hope the extra track time will bring us up to speed so we can run Richmond like we both are accustomed to.”

Martin Truex Jr. Talladega Advance

2010-04-20T11:31:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — Talladega Superspeedway has produced mixed results for NAPA Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. The Michael Waltrip Racing driver has always been fast, but for some reason he’s found himself in the wrong place at the wrong time when racing in the Cup Series. Truex hopes the success he had in his first outing in his NAPA Toyota in the Daytona 500 (sixth) will be replicated at Talladega. However, Truex points outs even though they look alike, the two restrictor plate tracks drive dramatically different.

QUOTES

Truex Jr. on Talladega: “In the Nationwide Series, we have always seemed to find a way to get ourselves in contention to win at Talladega. I enjoy racing there. For some reason, Cup Series racing at Talladega hasn’t been good to me. I have had good runs going, but I always seem to get caught up in the big wreck. It’s been kind of a crap shoot. It’s a lot of fun to race, I just need some luck.”

Truex Jr. on Daytona versus Talladega: “At Daytona, we had a good NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota, but Daytona and Talladega are completely different. Daytona is all about handling. We weren’t the fastest car there. We actually struggled a little bit for speed throughout the week. As the track got slicker and slicker, it became more of a handling track. It really came to us.

“Talladega on the other hand is completely opposite. It’s all about speed. Everyone handles well. It’s about how good your body is on your car and how good your motor is. It’s all about raw speed. We’ll just have to wait and see what happens. We had a test there (March 16). We weren’t really fast by ourselves which was like Daytona, but in race packs, it really was good and fast. I am looking forward to going back and getting a good finish.”

ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST

The driver of the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota will be competing in his 162nd NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Sunday at Talladega Superspeedway.

This will be Truex’s 11th race at the 2.66-mile track. His best start is third (April 26, 2009)and best finish is fifth (Oct. 8, 2006).

During his career, Truex has earned one top–five, two top-10 and three top-25 finishes at Talladega. His average start is 20th and his average finish is 28th.

He has completed 1556 of 1897 laps (82%) and has led 29 laps in competition.

The DIRECTV Head2Head Knockout promotion enters its second week. Truex advanced after finishing ahead of Jeff Burton at Texas. He now takes on AJ Allmendinger at Talladega. The head-to-head “races within the races” plays out over the course of the next three NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events, and in classic “bracket-tournament” fashion, fans can enter their own bracket predictions at www.DIRECTV.com/NASCAR for the chance to win $1 million or a car. Drivers are competing to raise money for their favorite charities. Truex is racing for the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation.

Next Monday (April 26), the NAPA Racing team will be testing at Gresham Motorsports Park in Jefferson, Ga., in preparations for the upcoming NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Richmond International Raceway.

HELP MARTIN: The first annual Catwalk for a Cause: A Celebration of Fashion Benefiting the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation takes place May 18 at River Run Country Club in Davidson, N.C. For more event information, visit martintruexjrfoundation.org or lavendarboutique.com.

Samsung Mobile 500 NAPA Preview

2010-04-13T12:40:00.000-07:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — Martin Truex Jr. is looking to get his numbers back up. A top-20 finish at Saturday night’s Phoenix International Raceway was not what he had in mind especially at one of his favorite tracks. Despite his disappointment, this weekend’s stop at the 1.5-mile Texas Motor Speedway has the driver of the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota ready to rebound.

QUOTES

Truex Jr. on Texas: My driver ranking heading into last season was third. But somehow I struggled at both Texas events and I don’t know why. I really like racing there. I expect to turn things around. What I like about Texas is it takes a complete package. You have to have a great motor, a great aero package and a great chassis. Downforce is also important. It is one of the fastest places we go to and you have to like to go fast. That’s what I like about Texas. You spend a lot of time in the throttle and during the race, the key is to get your car turning well.

Truex on the Texas spoiler: I think Texas will be the ultimate test for the new spoiler since it is one of the fastest tracks we go to. It will also come into play with all of the side-by-side racing we do. We’ll definitely see how this new change effects all of us and obviously, the teams that can figure it out should do well and I hope that is us.

Crew Chief Pat Tryson on success at Texas: Last year Michael Waltrip Racing had good cars at Texas and I look for more of the same. We had a really good test at Charlotte (March 23 & 24) which I think will really help us with the new spoiler. It’s just a matter of me understanding what will make Martin happy with the combination of what I used to run and what we learned at the Charlotte test. I think we have the potential to have a really good weekend.

Tryson on the keys to Texas: You have to be able to really turn well in the center. It makes your exit a lot easier so you don’t get too loose off.

ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST

• The driver of the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota will be competing in his 161st NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway.

• This will be Truex’s 10th race at the 1.5-mile track. His best start is first and best finish is third. Both took place on Nov. 4, 2007.

• During his career, Truex has earned one top–five, four top-10 and eight top-25 finishes at TMS. His average start is 19th and his average finish is 15th.

• At TMS, he currently ranks 12th amongst drivers in performance over the last nine races.

• He has completed 3004 of 3016 laps (99.6%) and has led 20 laps in competition.

• The DIRECTV Head 2 Head Knockout promotion kicks off this week. In round one, Truex will take on Jeff Burton. The head-to-head “races within the races” will play out over the course of the next four NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events, and in classic “bracket-tournament” fashion, fans can enter their own bracket predictions at www.DIRECTV.com/ NASCAR for the chance to win $1 million or a car.

• The first annual Catwalk for a Cause: A Celebration of Fashion Benefiting the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation takes place May 18 at River Run Country Club in Davidson, N.C. For more event information, visit martintruexjrfoundation.org or lavendarboutique.com.

Michael Waltrip Racing Phoenix Post Race Report

2010-04-11T10:47:00.000-07:00

· Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry - finished 17th - now 19th in points.

· David Reutimann, No. 00 Best Western Toyota Camry - finished 20th - now 25th in points.

Martin Truex Jr. Race Summary: Martin Truex Jr. and the No. 00 NAPA Toyota team endured about everything that could ruin a Saturday night for a race team at Phoenix International Raceway. A slow start then a penalty along with an unscheduled pit stop plus contact with another car were some of the issues encountered by the Michael Waltrip race team. And that was just in the first half of the race. The team never stopped working on the car and enjoyed a relatively calm second half of the race until about 60 laps remaining. On a restart, Truex dropped from 12th to 22nd telling crew chief Pat Tryson he’d lost all forward bite. But, Truex rallied to climb to 15th in the closing laps. Truex survived the wild scramble in a green-white-checkered finish to cross the line in 17th. The result moved him to 19th in points.

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota

Truex Jr. started 8th and finished 17th

Truex started slowly in the opening laps falling from eighth to 13th with a loose race car.

NASCAR sent him to the back of the field on lap 19 for entering pit lane too early dropping him to about 36th.

A loose wheel caused by a lug nut lodging between wheel and brake rotor forced an unscheduled, green-flag stop on lap 77 dropping Truex down a lap to 39th place.

The new tires enabled him to turn the quickest laps on the track over the long green flag run that followed.

Kurt Busch’s crash at lap 136—a few laps after the leaders pitted but before Truex pitted—allowed Truex to pit under caution and return to lead lap in 19th.

While running 14th, Truex and Brad Keselowski made contact on lap 198. Keselowski spun into the wall.

Truex then began a climb moving as high as 10th after a pit stop on lap 254.

Truex raced in 12th with 60 laps remaining, but on a restart he dropped to 22nd telling Tryson he had lost all of the car’s forward bite: “I can’t touch the gas.”

A caution with two laps to go saw the field come to pit lane and Truex move from 19th to 15th taking four tires.

Truex came home 17th after the final two-lap shootout.

TRUEX QUOTE: "We rallied back from adversity after having that loose wheel and had a top-10 finish going, but the handling really went away after our second to last stop. It killed us. I don't know what happened -- maybe we had a bad set of tires. We got ourselves back to 15th on the final stop, but it just didn't handle right. It's frustrating because this is one of my favorite tracks."

David Reutimann Race Summary: Except for a slight encounter with the turn four wall, No. 00 Best Western Toyota driver David Reutimann enjoyed a fairly quiet night at Phoenix International Raceway posting an 20th place finish. Like most of the 43-car field, Reutimann fought handling issues on the slippery, flat, mile oval. After starting 39th, Reutimann charged through the field climbing into the top 15. A punctured right rear slowed his progress midway through the race but the Florida native resumed his charge until the brush with the wall at lap 253 damaged the rear of his Camry. He stayed on the lead lap the remainder of the race climbing as high as 15th before a late caution forced a green-white-checkered finish. Reutimann crossed the finish line in 20th. The finish moves Reutimann to 25th in points.

David Reutimann, No. 00 BEST WESTERN Toyota

Reutimann started 39th and finished 20th

Reutimann looked to be one of the fastest cars on the track working his way in to the top 20 by lap 30.

A punctured right rear tire slowed his progress near the halfway mark and he fell to about 24th.

At lap 253 Reutimann spun and made contact with the wall causing body damage to the rear of his Toyota and dropping him to 26th.

He spent the rest of the race on the lead lap turning very competitive lap times climbing to 15th.

A caution with two laps to go saw Reutimann line up 17th for the green-white checkered.

REUTIMANN QUOTE: “We kind of had an up-and-down race. We started at the back and had to race really hard in the beginning. We made up a ton of spots early, but then the car kind of went away from us. We had a tire issue and that hurt us. There on the wreck I was just trying too hard to hang on to it and it just got away. My guys got it fixed and we were pretty good after that. That green-white-checkered cost us a couple spots.”

RACE NOTES:

Ryan Newman, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Mark Martin and Juan Montoya swept the top five spots.

A green-white-checkered jumbled the field at the end of the race and saw leaders Kyle Busch and Jimmie

Johnson line up seventh and eighth for the two-lap shootout.

Newman, who took only two tires on the pit stop, beat Jeff Gordon on the restart then held on to beat Gordon by .13 seconds and snapped a 77-race winless streak.

The race saw 20 lead changes among 13 drivers. There were nine cautions for 59 laps.

The average speed was 99.372mph.

Race promoters added 63 laps (now 375 laps/miles or 600 Kilometers) to Saturday night’s race to insure the final laps could be run under the lights. The race took 3 hours, 48 mins and 13 secs.

NASCAR allowed the teams an extra man over the wall to service the windshields because of all the bugs at the track.

NASCAR estimated the attendance at 70,000.

Aaron's To Sponsor Michael Waltrip's Return to Sprint Cup Racing

2010-03-10T18:55:00.000-08:00

Aaron’s To Sponsor Michael Waltrip’s Return to Sprint Cup Racing

Two-Time Daytona 500 Champ To Race PRISM’s No. 55 Toyota in Talladega

ATLANTA, GA. – In celebration of its 55th year, Aaron’s, Inc. will sponsor PRISM Motorsports’ No. 55 with driver Michael Waltrip in the Aaron’s 499 at Talladega Superspeedway April 25.

Waltrip, a two-time Daytona 500 champion and former winner at Talladega, will return to NASCAR Sprint Cup Series racing with a long-time sponsor in Aaron’s and a long-time friend in PRISM co-owner Phil Parsons.

“This is cool. I’m ready to race again and Talladega is a place where I know we will be very competitive,” said Waltrip who owns four restrictor plate victories including a Talladega win in the fall of 2003.

Parsons said Waltrip was a natural choice for the Talladega high banks.

“Michael brings a tremendous amount of experience to our race team,” Parsons said. “He knows what he is looking for in our cars, in our race setups and what we need to do to make our team better on these types of tracks. Plus he’s a very dear friend and I’m excited we’re putting him behind the wheel. We’re going to Talladega with every intention of winning the race.”

Waltrip owns 760 Sprint Cup starts and finished 18th in the Daytona 500 on Feb. 14 in his lone 2010 start.

“Phil and (co-owner) Randy Humphrey are getting started at PRISM Motorsports and I hope I can help them move through the learning curve a little bit faster,” Waltrip said. “I think it is going to be a lot of fun. Talladega is some of the best racing in the world and I’m glad I’ll get to be part of it in the Aaron’s 55th Anniversary Toyota.”

“Having Michael Waltrip drive the No. 55 in honor of Aaron’s 55th anniversary celebration is special to everyone at Aaron’s.” stated Robin Loudermilk, President and Chief Executive Officer of Aaron’s, Inc. “There is no better ambassador for our brand than Michael and no better way to celebrate 55 years of offering quality home furnishings to our customers than having the No. 55 Anniversary Dream Machine racing at the front of the pack during the Aaron’s 499.”

Aaron’s Chief Operating Officer Ken Butler continued, “Talladega will mark the first time that Michael has driven for Aaron’s on the Cup side and we are thrilled to have him pilot this commemorative 55th anniversary paint scheme. We have a long history together and are glad we have the opportunity to support him in his second Cup Series start of 2010.”

This season Waltrip has devoted more time to ownership of Michael Waltrip Racing which fields Toyotas for David Reutimann’s No. 00 Aaron’s Dream Machine and Martin Truex Jr.’s No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS entry. In addition, Waltrip’s time is spent as an analyst on Showtime’s “Inside NASCAR” and SPEED’s weekly talent show “Fast Track to Fame” as well as joining Parsons as a television commentator in SPEED’s coverage of truck series races.

The Aaron’s 499 at Talladega is the only race Waltrip has planned in the 2010 season.

PRISM Motorsports will field the No. 55 for Waltrip and the No. 66 for Dave Blaney at Talladega. Since its inception in 2009, PRISM Motorsports has purchased race cars from Michael Waltrip Racing.

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About Aaron’s, Inc.

Aaron’s, Inc. (NYSE: AAN), the nation’s leader in the sales and lease ownership and specialty retailing of residential and office furniture, consumer electronics, home appliances and accessories, has more than 1,700 Company-operated and franchised stores in 48 states and Canada. Founded in 1955 by entrepreneur R. Charles Loudermilk, Sr. and headquartered in Atlanta, Aaron’s has been publicly traded since 1982. For more information, visit www.aaronsinc.com.

No. 56 Crew Becomes First Multiple Tissot Winner of Season

2010-03-09T19:11:00.000-08:00

The over-the-wall crew for Martin Truex Jr. claimed another victory, earning the Tissot Pit Road Precision Award in Sunday’s (March 7) Kobalt Tools 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

The No. 56 crew’s performance places the team in first place in the Tissot standings with back-to-back wins (Las Vegas, Atlanta) after four races in the 2010 season.

Truex’s NAPA Auto Parts Toyota, out of the Michael Waltrip Racing team, spent the least amount of time on pit road – 349.623 seconds – during the overtime race, which was extended from 325 laps to 341. Race winner Kurt Busch’s No. 2 Dodge was second (352.887) and Paul Menard’s No. 98 Ford was third (353.488).

“My pit crew is absolutely unbelievable,” said Truex. “I think when all is said and done, they’ll all have a Tissot watch in about five more weeks. They are that good. In Atlanta, my car wasn’t handling the way we needed in the first part of the race. We were a top-15 team, but after each stop, they got me close or put me in the top-10. They really have made an impact on our performance, and I appreciate it. They deserve this award, and I am glad Tissot and NASCAR provide the pit crews with this kind of recognition.”

Truex’s over-the-wall crew consists of: Cory Quick (front-tire changer), Craig Curione (front-tire carrier), Shannon Myers (rear-tire changer), Mark Kennerly (rear-tire carrier), Brian Chase (jackman), Doug Newell (gasman) and Keith Koppenal (catch can). The team’s crew chief is Pat Tryson and the pit crew coach is Greg Miller.

The winning pit crew in each Sprint Cup race will earn $5,000 and a Tissot V8 Quartz Chronograph watch. The team with the most Tissot Pit Road Precision Award wins at the completion of the 36-race schedule will receive a $105,000 bonus plus Tissot watches for the over-the-wall crew members and driver.

Tissot has been the official watch and timekeeper of NASCAR since 2006. The company is also the official timekeeper for a number of other sports, including the MotoGP World Championship, the Ice Hockey World Championship and the Cycling World Championship.

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Michael Waltrip Racing - Kobalt Tools 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway - Post Race Report

2010-03-07T19:14:00.000-08:00

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry - Finished 27th - now 24th in points.

David Reutimann, No. 00 Mitsubishi Electric/Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota Camry - Finished 40th - now 18th in points.

Martin Truex Jr. Race Summary: No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota was en route to a top-10 finish during Sunday’s Kobalt Tools 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, but the first of two green-white-checkered-flag finishes took Martin Truex Jr. out of contention when he was struck by Mark Martin and Denny Hamlin on lap 332. Crew chief Pat Tryson gambled and kept his driver out on the final restart. However, the damage was too much for Truex to keep up the pace. He was forced to limp home in 27th place, after an impressive run that saw him race in the top 10 for the final 100 laps of competition.
Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota

• Ran in top-20 during the first half of the race as the car was “pushy loose”

• Final 100 laps saw the No. 56 come to life and charge into the top-10

• Was running sixth in the closing laps before being caught up in a wreck on lap 332 during the first of two attempts at a green-white-checker finish

• The No. 56 Toyota was damaged, but limped home 27th to finish the race

• The NAPA AUTO PARTS pit crew won the Tissot Pit Crew Precision Award for the second consecutive week.
• The NAPA team turned in all sub 13-second stops

TRUEX QUOTE: “Pat Tryson and the guys worked on the car all day and got my NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota in contention for a great finish. The restart on lap 331 got ugly and we did all we could to miss a wreck in front of us, but we got caught up in it. It’s a shame this happen to us. We deserved a lot better finish than what we actually got.”

“I have to hand it to my pit crew again. They were unbelievable on pit road. They won the Tissot Pit Crew Precision Award last week and they deserve it again.”

David Reutimann Race Summary: Tough luck spoils what was looking to be an outstanding day for David Reutimann and the No. 00 Mitsubishi Electric/Aaron’s Dream Machine. Reutimann started the Kobalt Tools 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway in ninth and experienced a difficult handling condition that dropped the No. 00 to the 26th position within the first 30 laps. When Reutimann came to pit road on lap 36 Rodney Childers called for several adjustments that made the car come to life on the restart. Reutimann soon found himself back among the top-10 and battling to crack the top-five on the restart on lap 164. Reutimann soon began to experience overheating which eventually ended his day prematurely.

David Reutimann, No. 00 Mitsubishi Electric/Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota

• Reutimann started ninth and finished 38th

• Reutimann battled a handling issue that dropped him to 26th

• The No. 00 pit crew made adjustments under caution on lap 36 that helped the condition

• The No. 00 raced it’s way back through the field up to the sixth position by a restart on lap 164

• The No. 00 experienced overheating on lap 166 and retired from the race

• Today marked Reutimann’s first “Did Not Finish” since Oct. 5, 2008 at Talladega—the longest such streak in the Sprint Cup Series (44 races)
REUTIMANN QUOTE: “It’s just a real frustrating deal. We had a good Mitsubishi Electric/Aaron’s Dream Machine and we were starting to have a pretty good day. The car wasn’t where we wanted it at the start of the race, but Rodney Childers and the crew kept working on it and got it up into the top-10 and we were closing in on the top-five. It turned what could have been a great day into a very disappointing day.”

RACE NOTES:

• Kurt Busch won the Kobalt Tools 500 over Matt Kenseth in the second attempt at a green-white-checkered finish

• Kenseth, Juan Pablo Montoya, Kasey Kahne and Paul Menard rounded out the top-five

• Kevin Harvick leads the point standings by 26 points over Matt Kenseth

• The race featured 11 cautions for 53 laps and lasted four hours

• NASCAR estimated the race attendance at 85,000

• The Sprint Cup Series is off next weekend and will return at Bristol Motor Speedway on March 21, 2010

Michael Waltrip Racing - Kobalt Tools 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway - Post Qualifying Report

2010-03-05T19:20:00.000-08:00

David Reutimann posted the fastest lap of the two Michael Waltrip Racing Toyotas during today’s Coors Light qualifying at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Ga. He’ll line up ninth. Meanwhile, Martin Truex Jr. will start 19th. Sunday’s running of the Kobalt Tools 500 gets underway on FOX, PRN and Sirius XM Satellite Radio 128 starting at 1 p.m. Eastern time.

Friday Recap

• David Reutimann, No. 00 Mitsubishi Electric/Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota Camry - Qualified 9th
• Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry - Qualified 19th
• Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the Coors Light Pole Award for the KOBALT TOOLS 500 with a lap of 28.761
seconds, 192.761 mph
• Earnhardt's pole speed set a record for fastest in the new NASCAR Sprint Cup Series car. The
previous fastest was Jimmie Johnson's speed of 192.376 mph at Charlotte Motor Speedway in October
of last season.
• Kyle Busch will join Earnhardt on the front row.

DAVID REUTIMANN, No. 00 Mitsubishi Electric/Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota Camry, Qualified: Ninth

Are you happy with your qualifying run?
“That’s about as much as we had. I think we picked up about seven-tenths so it was a pretty good pick up for the Mitsubishi Electric/Aaron’s Dream Machine. We gave up a little bit in one and two. We were pretty good in three and four but one and two we lost some. All in all it was a good effort for the guys. It’s not a pole but hopefully it will hold up for a top-10 and give us a good starting position and a good pit selection and all of the things we need for the race.”

Did you ‘bottom out’ during your qualifying run?
“Actually it got on the race track just a little bit but not as much as anticipated. Not only with the tape up on the nose but the track temperatures being down. We’re talking some guys picking up close to a second on lap time and if you pick up that much speed you’re going to have trouble getting on the race track. But it wasn’t bad. Rodney Childers (crew chief) and the guys did a good job anticipating what was going to happen so it was okay.”

MARTIN TRUEX JR., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry, Qualified: 19th

How was your qualifying lap?
“It was okay. I thought we would’ve been a little bit better than that. I think a lot of the guys run 29 flat so we were just on the wrong end of that. I really have been pretty happy with the car all day especially in race trim so hopefully tomorrow will be great. I thought we’d have went a little quicker than that tonight. We had a really good run right at the end of practice but it was on an older set of tires. We probably just got the car a little bit too free for tonight.”

Martin Truex Jr. Atlanta Preview

2010-03-03T19:22:00.000-08:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — New NAPA driver Martin Truex Jr. loves the Atlanta Motor Speedway. On Jan. 12-13, his Michael Waltrip Racing team participated in a Goodyear tire test that boasted impressive results. He and crew chief Pat Tryson hope lessons learned at the test propel Truex to his second-straight pole award on the 1.5-mile ultrafast track and put him in contention for victory on Sunday. With NAPA headquarters just 41 miles north of Atlanta Motor Speedway, Truex will have a lot of supporters cheering for the No. 56 Toyota.

QUOTES

What is it that you like about the Atlanta Motor Speedway? “The biggest thing is the groove is so wide. Even at the Atlanta Motor Speedway test that we did for Goodyear, I could run up towards the wall. I can just run all over this track. That’s what makes it fun for me. Some guys like to run the bottom. Some guys like the top. Some guys can run anywhere. That makes for great racing when you can choose. If there is a guy in front of you and you can’t pass him. You just find a different lane and pass him. That helps a lot and makes it fun for all of us.”

Can you use the Goodyear test to prepare for the March race? “It’s going to be a lot different when we come back. This is the first time I have done a tire test here. Just from practice and testing and to the race, this place changes a whole lot. There are some things that we will be able to use. There are some trends that we can look at that work for our NAPA Toyota. As far as getting the optimum set up for this week, it will probably not help us when we come back to the race.”

What is the key to clinching your second-straight pole at Atlanta? “Being in the gas. It is a fast track and obviously your car needs to handle well. Being able to stay on the bottom for a fast lap is the key. For the race, you will need to be able to move around. You have to be able to be in the gas for a long time.”

Where does Atlanta rank in your list of career favorite tracks? “I really enjoy this track. This is one of my favorites. I have had some great runs here. I came close to winning here. We won the pole here back in the fall. It is a place where I feel comfortable. I enjoy racing here. It is definitely one of my favorites.”

ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST

This month, NAPA is offering two great promotions for race fans. The popular NAPA Racing Cap giveaway is happening now. Fans can pick up a free NAPA Racing Cap with any purchase at participating NAPA AUTO PARTS stores while supplies last. And, NAPA’s Buy It. Install It. Protect It promotion allows consumers to receive 40 percent off the regular price of a NAPAGold Filter for their car or light truck at participating NAPA AUTO PARTS stores. Or they can visit an authorized NAPA AutoCare Center or installer and get a $20 mail-in rebate when they buy a NAPAGold Air Filter or Cabin Air Filter with a NAPA Filter oil change.

The driver of the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota will be competing in his 157th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Sunday at Atlanta Motor Speedway. He will be starting in his 11th race at the 1.54-mile track.

His best start is first (Sept. 6, 2009) and best finish is eighth (Oct. 30 , 2005). During his career, Truex has earned two top–10 and five top-25 finishes at AMS. His average start is 18th and his average finish is 24th. He has led 204 laps in competition.

MEDIA ALERT: Truex will be a guest on Friday night’s edition of Trackside. It airs at 8 p.m. ET on SPEED.

No 56 NAPA Crew Claims Tissot Pit Road Award in Las Vegas

2010-03-03T19:21:00.000-08:00

The over-the-wall crew for Martin Truex Jr. won the Tissot Pit Road Precision Award in Sunday’s (Feb. 28) Shelby American NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Truex’s NAPA Auto Parts Toyota, out of the Michael Waltrip Racing stable, spent the least amount of time on pit road – 207.012 seconds -- during the 267-lap, 400-mile race. Carl Edwards’ No. 99 Ford was second (207.769) and Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s No. 88 Chevy was third (211.931).

“The No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS team has really improved this year,” said pit crew coach Greg Miller. “All of the guys are on board with our program and they are really into what we are teaching and preaching this season. We are very fortunate that the crew we put together has had chemistry. Having good chemistry just helps with everything we do and it paid off on Sunday.”

Truex’s over-the-wall crew consists of: Cory Quick (front-tire changer), Craig Curione (front-tire carrier), Shannon Myers (rear-tire changer), Mark Kennerly (rear-tire carrier), Brian Chase (jackman), Doug Newell (gasman) and Keith Koppenal (catch can). The team’s crew chief is Pat Tryson.

The winning pit crew in each Sprint Cup race will earn $5,000 and a Tissot V8 Quartz Chronograph watch. The team with the most Tissot Pit Road Precision Award wins at the completion of the 36-race schedule will receive a $105,000 bonus plus Tissot watches for the over-the-wall crew members and driver.

Tissot has been the official watch and timekeeper of NASCAR since 2006. The company is also the official timekeeper for a number of other sports, including the MotoGP World Championship, the Ice Hockey World Championship and the Cycling World Championship.

_________________________________________

2010 Tissot Pit Road Precision Award Winners

Daytona, 2/14 Juan Pablo Montoya Team

Fontana, 2/21 Jeff Gordon Team

Las Vegas, 2/28 Martin Truex Jr. Team

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Michael Waltrip Racing - Las Vegas - Post Race Report

2010-02-28T19:23:00.000-08:00

• David Reutimann, No. 00 TUMS Toyota Camry - Finished 13th - now ninth in points.

• Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPAGold Filters Toyota Camry - Finished 20th - now 21st in points.

David Reutimann Race Summary: David Reutimann continued his exciting start to the 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup season posting a 13th-place finish Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Added to his fifth and 15th-place finishes in the first two races, today’s finish moves the Michael Waltrip Racing driver to ninth in the 2010 points race. The TUMS Toyota never ventured far outside the top 15 throughout the 267-lap race on the 1.5-mile oval. A blazing pace set by the leaders saw Reutimann fall off the lead lap in the final 60 laps of the race. But a timely caution with about 40 laps remaining enabled the Florida native to claim the Aaron’s Lucky Dog and return to the lead lap. Reutimann and the No. 00 return to action Sunday in Atlanta.

David Reutimann, No. 00 TUMS Toyota

• Leader Jeff Gordon lapped Reutimann—who was tenth at the time he was lapped—on lap 211—only ten cars were on the lead lap at that point.

• He earned the Aaron’s Lucky Dog on lap 232.

• The No. 00 pit crew turned the second quickest time of all the cars pitting around the 200-lap mark.

• Sunday marked Reutimann’s 102nd Sprint Cup race. He finished fourth here in 2009.

• David Reutimann and the No. 00 TUMS Toyota were named the Mobil 1 Command Performance Driver of the Race

REUTIMANN QUOTE: “We just seemed to be off today. There were times we got the TUMS Toyota pretty decent but it seemed like track position was everything. The guys did a great job on pit road. We had some great pit stops. We worked on the car and made it better. We just couldn’t get up to where we needed to be. We’d give up something at the start of a run then gain it back in the end. At the end of the race, we didn’t have the amount of laps we needed to try to put together anything that would have been pretty good so we ended up 13th.”
Martin Truex Jr. Race Summary: Martin Truex Jr. battled a cooling track and some ultrafast competitors Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway before finishing 20th. Truex started at the back of the field after a mechanical issue hampered his qualifying run on Friday. He climbed into the top 15 but struggled to get his NAPAGold Filters Toyota to handle in the corners. He fell down a lap to the leaders on lap 170. He and Crew Chief Pat Tryson took some big swings to improve the handling throughout the race. Truex is now 21st in points.
Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA Gold Toyota

• Truex and Crew Chief Pat Tryson worked on the No. 56 NAPAGold Filters Toyota’s handling throughout the race.

• Truex battled in the top 15 most of the race but fell down a lap to leader Jeff Gordon on lap 170 while racing in 17th.

• The No. 56 regained lost lap by taking the wave-around pass with about 30 laps remaining and stayed on the lead lap for the duration of the race.

• Pat Tryson told the crew: “If you keep doing that on pit road each week we are going to win some races.”

• Truex said Las Vegas was the toughest track for him while next week’s track in Atlanta is his best.
TRUEX QUOTE: “It wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t great either. Vegas is by far my toughest track so we’ll just keep working on it. We were just a little off all weekend. We struggled to find grip all day and then I’d get tight in the middle. My guys kept me up there. We were awesome again on pit road. Atlanta is one of my favorite tracks so we’ll rebound for sure.”
RACE NOTES:

• Jimmie Johnson passed teammate Jeff Gordon in the closing laps to win his second consecutive race.

• Kevin Harvick finished second and Gordon third followed by Mark Martin and Matt Kenseth

• Leaders lapped all but 12 cars in the first 200 laps.

• A caution with 35 laps remaining saw nine drivers take the wave around pass and get back on lead lap.

• Several drivers served pass through penalties for speeding on pit lane.

• Race experienced two cautions for malfunctioning caution lights. Track cooled throughout the race posing handling challenges to the race teams.

• The race featured 18 lead changes among nine drivers

• The race lasted approximately two hours, 50 minutes

• NASCAR’s estimated race attendance was announced at 150,000

Michael Waltrip Racing - Shelby American at Las Vegas Motor Speedway - Post Qualifying Report

2010-02-27T19:25:00.000-08:00

David Reutimann posted the fastest lap of the two Michael Waltrip Racing Toyotas during today’s Coors Light qualifying at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Las Vegas, Nev. He’ll line up 17th. Meanwhile, Martin Truex Jr. struggled during his attempt due to a mechanical issue. He’ll start 35th. Sunday’s running of the Shelby American 400 gets underway on FOX, PRN and Sirius XM Satellite Radio 128 starting at 3 p.m. Eastern time.
Friday Recap

• David Reutimann, No. 00 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota Camry - Qualified 17th
• Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPAGold Filters Toyota Camry - Qualified 35th
• Kurt Busch established a new track record with a time of 28.614 sec./188.719 mph
• Jeff Gordon will join Busch on the front row.
• 18 drivers ran times faster than the previous track record
• The increase in speed is being attributed to a new Goodyear tire.

DAVID REUTIMANN, No. 00 TUMS Toyota Camry, Michael Waltrip Racing Qualified: 17th

Were you happy with the way your car handled during qualifying?

“We were just tight. We didn’t get a really clean qualifying run (in practice) and that hurt us. You go out there not really knowing what to expect. The car was pretty good. I should have been able to run quicker that with it. It was a little bit too tight and we just really didn’t get that qualifying run in to be able to work on it, and let the car be up to its full potential. Overall, it wasn’t bad. It didn’t drive bad. This place is so fast it doesn’t take much to be off a little bit, as far as speed goes. This is kind of what we had.”
MARTIN TRUEX JR., No. 56 NAPAGold Filters Toyota Camry, Michael Waltrip Racing Qualified: 35th

How was your qualifying lap?

“The car was pretty good. We really had a good car all day. Just the ignition switch cut off on me coming to the green. So, that pretty much killed my lap. That’s pretty much it.”

Martin Truex Jr. Las Vegas Preview

2010-02-24T19:26:00.000-08:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — This weekend Martin Truex Jr. and his No. 56. NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Crew Chief Pat Tryson plan to compete in more than just Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (LVMS). On Thursday Truex, along with several NASCAR celebrities, will take part in the Martin Truex Jr. Charity Poker Tournament at the Monte Carlo Resort & Spa. On Sunday the Michael Waltrip Racing duo hope to repeat their strong run last weekend at Auto Club Speedway minus the mechanical troubles that ruined what appeared to be a top-10 finish.

QUOTES

TRUEX ON HIS CHARITY POKER TOURNAMENT ON THURSDAY: “The last two years I have had a lot of fun hosting poker tournaments in Atlantic City to benefit my foundation. This year, I’ve added another event for Las Vegas. It’s happening at the Monte Carlo Resort & Spa on Thursday at 12:30 p.m. PT. It’s going to be a lot of fun — Michael (Waltrip), Pat Tryson, Marcos Ambrose, Frank Kerr and Kurt Busch are playing. If you’d like more information, please visit my site: www.martintruexjrfoundation.org.”

TRUEX ON RACING AT LAS VEGAS: “I like the track since they repaved it a few years back. It is another one of those tracks that I find challenging because when they paved it, they put a bunch of bumps in it. It makes the racing difficult especially when trying to get your car to turn. It has a lot of grip. It is very fast with the progressive banking. I think it is a lot of fun to race on.”

PAT TRYSON ON KEEPING THE TEAM PUMPED UP AFTER CALIFORNIA: “It’s all good for us right now. The biggest part of it all was we had a fast NAPA Toyota. As long as you are fast, it makes it a lot easier when something like an engine lets go. If we would’ve had a slow car at Fontana, then we might have been a little more disappointed. I think everybody on the team feels if we would’ve been able to have run all day, we would’ve had a shot to win the race. I think that’s all you can ask for.”

TRYSON ON VEGAS: “Vegas will be different in comparison to the Auto Club Speedway. It’s more like Charlotte and Atlanta so I think we’ll be good there. I think we’ll see more pit strategies come into play like two-tire stops. It should be fun.”

ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST

• This weekend, Truex will be behind the wheel of the No. 56 NAPA Filters Toyota Camry. The change in scheme launches NAPA’s Buy It. Install It. Protect It. promotion which happens during the month of March. Consumers receive 40 percent off the regular price of a NAPAGold Filter for their car or light truck at participating NAPA AUTO PARTS stores. Or they can visit an authorized NAPA AutoCare Center or installer and get a $20 mail-in rebate when they buy a NAPAGold Air Filter or Cabin Air Filter with a NAPA Filter oil change.

• The driver of the No. 56 NAPA Filters Toyota will be competing in his 156th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Sunday. He will be starting in his fifth race at LVMS . His best start is 18th (March 2, 2008) and best finish is 12th (March 11, 2007). During his career, Truex has earned two top–15 and three top-20 finishes at the 1.5-mile track. His average start is 24th and his average finish is 20th.

• Monte Carlo Resort & Casino will host a No Limit Texas Hold ‘em event to benefit the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation on Thursday starting at 12:30 p.m. in Las Vegas. Participation is open to the public. Proceeds to benefit the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation and its ongoing mission of helping children in need. For details visit: www.martintruexjrfoundation.org.

Michael Waltrip Racing - California Race

2010-02-21T19:28:00.000-08:00

Michael Waltrip Racing drivers finished the Auto Club 500 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif., as follows:

MWR NSCS Race Results
· David Reutimann, No. 00 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota Camry - Finished 15th now 8th in points.
· Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry - Finished 39th now 20th in points.

NSCS RACE NOTES:
· Jimmie Johnson held off Kevin Harvick over the final 30 laps to take the victory by 1.523 seconds
· Jeff Burton, Mark Martin and Joey Logano rounded out the top-five
· Johnson’s win at Auto Club Speedway is his 48th Sprint Cup victory in 293 starts
· Johnson now matches Herb Thomas for 12th on the all-time win list
· The race featured 26 lead changes among 13 drivers
· The race was slowed by six cautions for a total of 30 lap
· The race lasted just over three and a half hours
· NASCAR estimated 72,000 people attended today’s race

MICHAEL WALTRIP RACING NSCS DRIVER NOTES AND QUOTES:

David Reutimann Race Summary:
The No. 00 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota Camry charges into 2010 with back-to-back top-15 finishes to start the season. Reutimann and crew were impressive in the early going of the Auto Club 500 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif. as he carried momentum from his 11th place qualifying effort from Friday afternoon. Reutimann raced as high as seventh on lap 38 before coming to pit road under green flag conditions. The No. 00 team removed a rubber from the right rear that caused Reutimann to report a tight-handling condition following the stop. The team struggled to return the car to winning form following the adjustment, but managed to continue a solid effort over the remained of the race. Reutimann battled over the last 30 laps to move from 18th into the top-15.

David Reutimann, No. 00 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota
· Started 11th and finished 15th
· Reutimann immediately moved into the top-10 as the race went green and was up to ninth by lap 7
· Lap 29, Reutimann reports minor damage to the right rear after a brush with the wall
· The minor damage caused the No. 00 to be “loose off”
· Reutimann came to pit road on lap 38 under green for four tires and fuel in seventh position
· The No. 00 was back in the top-10 by lap 42 and in ninth by lap 52
· Came to pit road under caution on lap 58 to repair right rear fender, four tires, fuel and removed a rubber out of the right rear restarted 18th on lap 61
· Caution flew again on lap 94 as Reutimann reported a tight handling condition and said the rubber needed to be replaced in the right rear. Reutimann restarted 20th on lap 98
· By lap 125 Reutimann was passing Joey Logano and Kyle Busch for 13th
· Lap 139, the No. 00 comes to pit road for two tires and minor chassis adjustments
· Reutimann brushed the wall again on lap 147, but reported no damage. He reported that the No. 00 would not run the bottom line.
· On lap 151 crew chief Rodney Childers reported rain in the forecast, but still about 50 miles out.
· On lap 167 the No. 1 car runs into the back of the No. 00 causing minor damage, but both cars continue
· Reutimann comes to pit road early under green on lap 180 for four tires and fuel—restarts 24th.
· Rain caused a caution on lap 197 as Reutimann was in 19th
· After a short rain delay the No. 00 restarts 16th and moved up to 11th by lap 206
· On lap 210 the No. 00 and the No. 12 start beating banging as they battle for 12th position
· Reutimann restarted 13th on lap 230, but struggled on the restart to fall to 18th, before working his way back up to 15th.

REUTIMANN QUOTE: "It's just disappointing. We started out OK in our Aaron's Dream Machine. For the better part of the day we were just okay. We made one adjustment there and the car just really, really didn't like it. That just got us behind a little bit. It just seemed like our car wouldn't get going on a restart. It was taking eight, 10, 12 laps for us to get going. A lot of the other guys were able to get out and get away from you. Overall I'd have to call today just a bit of a disappointment. I really felt like we were going to have a better car. We still have our Aaron's Dream Machine in one piece. Not a great finish, but an okay finish and now we'll go on to the next one."

Martin Truex Jr. Race Summary:
The opening laps of the California Auto Club 500 presented by NAPA saw Truex climb from 34th to 12th before the team’s first green-flag stop. However, just 64 laps into the event, the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota suffered an engine failure. Truex, coming off of a top-10 run at Daytona was relegated to a 39th-place finish. He currently ranks 20th in the championship points standings.

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota
· Started 34th and finished 39th after the engine expired on lap 64.
· Truex climbed to 15th by lap 24.
· Crew chief Pat Tryson informed his driver on lap 24 that he was the fastest car on the track.
· Truex, running in 12th, made contact with the wall on lap 46. The car was OK and Truex opted to bide his time as there was plenty of laps left in the race to challenge for the win.
· The NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota was competitive despite needing to turn better. It was tight in traffic, but neutral when Truex ran by himself.
· The No. 56 lost power on lap 64.
· Car owner Michael Waltrip encouraged his driver and told him that he saw quite a few cars hit the wall.
· Tryson said after the race, “We had a car that could’ve won the race. I’ve got myself a wheel man.”

TRUEX QUOTE:
“It’s really unfortunate for the NAPA Toyota. We had a really good car and had something to build on. My best year ever in NASCAR Sprint Cup, the same thing happened. We went to Fontana and blew up. Hopefully this will be good for us too because we have to look at the silver lining in all of this. The sport is too tough not to.

“The guys did a good job all weekend. I am really proud of Pat Tryson. To come from where we did on Friday with the race car was a big, huge improvement. We have something to work on. It is pretty disappointing after starting the way we did last week.”

DIAMOND-WALTRIP RACING NNS NOTES AND QUOTES:

Trevor Bayne, No. 99 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota, finished 11th in Saturday’s Stater Bros. 300 NNS race. Bayne is now 24th in NNS championship point standings.

Trevor Bayne, No. 99 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota
· Started 10th and finished 11th
· Fought a tight-handling race car for the majority of the race
· A great pit stop by the over-the-wall crew on lap 121 allowed Bayne to pick of three spots on pit road
· Raced inside the top 14 for all 152 laps of the Stater Bros. 300
· Grabbed his 8th top-15 finish in only 17 NNS starts

BAYNE QUOTE: “At the beginning of the race we were a little bit tight so we made some good adjustments. We never got the front end turning any better but we just unhooked the rear where I could get it set in a little bit better. That was a good change. We found the high line late after following Brendan Gaughan and Carl Edwards and a couple people that really ran the top well. That rocketed us towards the front. The middle of the race we got on the top and ran down people in front of us by four-tenths of a lap. That was what set us apart in that center section of the race because we could make some moves to get up towards the front. That put us in position to get good pit stops and everything that followed. Very last stop, we were one of the first teams to pit for four tires and I thought we’d be digging to the front and I got trapped in the middle. The 88 (Kelly Bires) barely got his nose outside of us coming to the green flag and that just trapped us in the middle and we had to fight back. We got through turn two and had a big run but they got the high line and got back around us. We’ll take an 11th-place finish, especially after coming out of Daytona. Our Aaron’s Dream Machine is pretty in the garage, no marks on it so that’s a good thing. We can make our cars better because they’re not on a wrecker. We’ll come back next week and try to do even better.”

Michael Waltrip Racing - Auto Club 500 presented by NAPA - Post Qualifying Report

2010-02-19T19:30:00.000-08:00

David Reutimann posted the fastest lap of the two Michael Waltrip Racing Toyotas during today’s Coors Light qualifying at the Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif. He’ll line up 11th. Meanwhile, Martin Truex Jr. struggled during his attempt despite picking up from practice. He’ll start 34th. Sunday’s running of the California Auto Club 500 presented by NAPA gets underway on FOX, MRN and Sirius XM Satellite Radio 128 starting at 3 p.m. Eastern time.

Friday Recap
• David Reutimann, No. 00 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota Camry - Qualified 11th
• Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry - Qualified 34th
• Michael Waltrip Racing’s technical alliance with JTG Daugherty Racing saw Marcos Ambrose record the 26th-fastest lap.
• Earnhardt Ganassi with Felix Sabates Racing swept the front row. Daytona 500 winner Jamie McMurray turned in the fastest time of 39.18 seconds while Juan Pablo Montoya ran a 39.29.
• This marks the first time that Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates has claimed both front row starting positions.

DAVID REUTIMANN, No. 00 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota Camry, Michael Waltrip Racing Qualified: 11th
How was your qualifying lap? “I'm pretty happy with how we qualified. We still have some work to do between now and Sunday on our race setup, but I'm happy with how the Aaron's Dream Machine qualified. Our Toyota wasn't han¬dling the way we wanted to in practice. We haven't quite figured out some things in the front end, so we have to do some work on that, but I'm sure we'll get it right by Sunday and be ready to go."

MARTIN TRUEX JR., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry, Michael Waltrip Racing Qualified: 34th
How was your qualifying lap? “We weren’t very good. It was too tight everywhere so in a way, that’s a good thing. We can fix it. We were tightest off of Turn 2 and in practice, I was spinning out. It’s been a struggle all day so we still have a lot of work to do. Hopefully, we’ll get practice in tomorrow so we can keep working on it.”

Martin Truex Jr. California Preview

2010-02-16T19:33:00.000-08:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — Martin Truex Jr. is coming off his career-best finish in the Daytona 500 with a sixth-place showing in his No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota. Now, he heads to the Auto Club Speedway for the running of the Auto Club 500 presented by NAPA AUTO PARTS. It’s all about keeping the momentum going into the second event of the season and that’s exactly what he and crew chief Pat Tryson have planned.

QUOTES

TRUEX ON KEYS TO RUNNING WELL AT FONTANA: “I think California is a difficult track. It is very fast, yet it doesn’t have a lot of banking. It is getting kind of worn out so it is a challenge to get the NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota to stick good. It is hard to get the car to turn well, but still
be able to get the power down off the corner. The key is just getting your car to turn well, but still be able to get the power down.”

TRUEX ON THE IMPORTANCE OF GETTING A GOOD STARTING POSITION: “Qualifying is always important to me. At a track like the Auto Club Speedway, it is so big and fast. The field tends to get strung out so qualifying up front definitely makes your job easier. Usually if you are fast in qualifying, you can get it in the race also. It is definitely a good thing to qualifying up front there.”

TRUEX ON THE START OF THE SEASON WITH HIS NEW NAPA TEAM: “I am extremely proud and excited about coming out of Daytona with the results we had. I really wasn’t sure what to expect. From the first test, working together with Pat Tryson, I knew we were going to be good. He is a pleasure to work with. He really takes his job seriously, and yet, he likes to have fun. I think the guys on the NAPA team really look up to him because of his experience and knowledge. He is respected and it goes a long way with everyone. For me, I just try and do the best job I can. As far as the communication and getting along with Pat and all that other stuff that goes along with the relationship, it came really easy. Hopefully, we can continue on what we started and win some races.”

ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST

• The driver of the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota will be competing in his 155th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race when the second event of the 2010 Sprint Cup season, the Auto Club 500 presented by NAPA AUTO PARTS, gets underway at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif., on Sunday.

• He will be starting in his ninth race in Fontana. His best start is fifth (Sept. 3, 2006, Oct. 11, 2009) and best finish is sixth (Sept. 2, 2007, Feb. 25, 2008). During his career, Truex has earned two top–10 and six top-15 finishes at the Auto Club Speedway. His average start is 13th and his average finish is 19th.

• In Nationwide Series competition, Truex has driven in four events at Auto Club Speedway. His best start is second (May 1, 2004, Sept. 4, 2004) and best finish is sixth (Sept. 4, 2004). During his career, Truex has earned one top–10 and three top-15 finishes. His average start is sixth and his average finish is 16th.

• Monte Carlo Resort & Casino will host a No Limit Texas Hold ‘em event to benefit the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation on Feb. 25 at noon in Las Vegas, NV. NAPA Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. will be in attendance. Participation is open to the public. Proceeds to benefit the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation and its ongoing mission of helping children in need. For details visit: www.martintruexjrfoundation.org

Trevor Bayne California Speedway Nationwide Preview

2010-02-16T19:32:00.000-08:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — Trevor Bayne and the No. 99 Diamond-Waltrip Racing team endured a rough start to the 2010 season last week at Daytona when their race ended in a lap seven accident caused by another car. Bayne put those bad memories behind him as he prepares to celebrate his 19th birthday on Friday with a good performance in Saturday’s NASCAR Nationwide race at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif. It marks the second start on the two-mile oval for the Knoxville, Tenn., native who finished 19th on Oct. 10.

QUOTES

BAYNE ON FONTANA: “I got to run there last year for CJM Racing. I think it’s going to help me out that I am not going in there blind. I kind of know what to expect at California. I know what the car and the track are going to do as the race goes on. I know that you have to carry a lot of momentum there to run fast laps. It’s also kind of cool how you can feel the draft when there is a car beside you. At Fontana you can defiantly feel the aero and mechanical sides of the car.”

BAYNE ON DAYTONA: “It was a frustrating situation. However, we can’t start chasing our tails now . Daytona is a crap shoot anyway. You expect to go there and wreck and it’s an awesome day if you don’t. It’s just disappointing that we wrecked so early. I was hoping to be able to log some laps there but was only able to get seven under my belt. Kevin Manion (Bono) and Martin Truex Jr. both texted me after the race and said they wrecked at Daytona and won the championship. I still think we have a chance to win the championship. Every team is going to have a bad weekend. It’s the team who has the least amount of bad weeks that will bring home the championship.”

BAYNE ON EARNING REPECT: “It’s hard to get respect when you have rookie strips on your car. I think the best way to get respect from your competitors is to race them like you want to be raced. I think the more races I get under my belt the more respect that I will get from some of the veterans of the sport. “

ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST

· Bayne is the youngest driver competing full-time in the NASCAR Nationwide Series this season.

· Bayne will celebrate his 19th birthday Friday, Feb. 19. He was born in Spartanburg, S.C and moved to Knoxville, Tenn., when he was two months old.

· Last weekend at Daytona International Speedway, Bayne and the No. 99 Diamond-Waltrip Racing team had a car that could compete with the leaders. Unfortunately, early contact by the No. 40 of Mike Bliss sent the young rookie into the outside retaining wall and ended the day for the No. 99 team on lap seven. The team finished 41st in the final rundown.

· Last fall Bayne started the race at Auto Club Speedway in the 11th spot and finished 19th. He worked his way into the top 10 before contact by another competitor on pit road caused damage to the Toyota Camry and forced him to make several up scheduled pit stops.

· The 18-year-old driver’s has driven in 16 NNS races. He has one pole (Indianapolis Raceway Park), two top-10’s (IRP and Richmond) and has led total of 34 laps.

· Sirius XM listeners can tune into channel 128 every Tuesday at 8:30 a.m. to hear Bayne’s weekly visit on Sirius Speedway with Mike Bagley and Pete Pistone throughout the 2010 season.

David Reutimann California Preview

2010-02-16T19:31:00.000-08:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — David Reutimann is off to the best start of his Sprint Cup Series career. Reutimann made a late race charge from 12th to fifth over the final two laps to secure his best-career finish in the Daytona 500. The fifth-place result is a career-best restrictor plate finish and sixth career top-five. This weekend Reutimann is racing in both the Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series races at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif.

QUOTES

ON BEING THE FIRST DRIVER TO 100 CUP SERIES STARTS IN A TOYOTA CAMRY: “Wow, I’ve never really thought about it, but that’s really something to be proud of. All but one of my starts in the Cup Series has come in a Camry. We’ve definitely had our ups and downs since the beginning, but Toyota has always been a great partner for Michael Waltrip Racing and without them I don’t know if we’d be where we are today. We’re just getting started on our fourth-full season on the racetrack and we’ve all got a little better each year. I’m really hoping that this year is going to be my best year yet, because I know of at least one more thing that I’d like to be the first Toyota driver to do in the Sprint Cup Series - win a championship.”

ON CHARGING FROM 12TH TO FIFTH AT THE END OF THE DAYTONA 500: “I thought that was pretty great. To be honest it was all kind of a blur there at the end, but it was a pretty good run through the pack. We struggled a little on the last couple restarts and it seemed that I just couldn’t get in the right line at the right time and I was starting to get frustrated. Then right before the final restart Rodney (Childers) came over the radio and told me that Dale (Earnhardt) Jr. was either going to win the race or wreck the field trying, so stay on his bumper and let’s see what happens. That’s just what I did. I stayed on his bumper and pushed as hard as I could. Maybe if I’d pushed just a little harder Dale Jr. would be wearing a brand new Aaron’s hat this weekend as my new biggest fan.”

ON RACING IN CALIFORNIA: “Don’t get me wrong, I love Daytona and Speedweeks and everything that goes with that race, but it’s hard to tell who’s going to be fast once we take the restrictor plates off. The race in California is that first real test. When we show up at California on a two-mile racetrack to race and practice it’s when you start to see who put on their big boy pants and came ready to race. This race is also a big race for Michael Waltrip Racing, since Toyota Racing Development is based in Torrence, Calif. We want to show everyone that our Toyota Camry’s are going to be some of the best cars on the racetrack every single week.”

ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST

· Reutimann is making his 100th Sprint Cup start in a Toyota Camry this weekend at Auto Club Speedway - the most of any driver. Dave Blaney is second (98) and Brian Vickers is third (96).

· Reutimann has the most starts (259) in a Toyota (Camry and Tundra) since Toyota entered NASCAR competition in 2004. Reutimann has 99 Cup Series, 84 Nationwide and 76 Truck Series starts - and will add two more this weekend as he races double-duty in the Cup and Nationwide races at Auto Club Speedway.

· Reutimann’s fifth-place result last week is his career best in the Daytona 500 and restrictor plate finish. He was the highest finishing Toyota driver placing just ahead of MWR teammate Martin Truex Jr. who finished sixth.

· Aaron’s, proud sponsor of the No. 00, will give away an autographed hat to a lucky race fan through Facebook and Twitter following any top-10 finish. Follow Aarons on Twitter (@AaronsSports) and become a fan on Facebook (Facebook.com/AaronsSports)

· In 2009, Reutimann recorded his first NSCS win (Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway) and established career-bests in pole positions (two, Texas-1 and Dover-1) top-five (five) and top-10 (10) finishes and final championship driver point standings (16th).
· Last season, Reutimann ranked third in the NSCS in laps completed (10,408/10,492, 99.2%). Only Ryan Newman and Tony Steward (tied for the most at 10,468 laps) completed more laps. The No. 00 finished on the lead lap in 28 of the 36 NSCS point races and finished four races just one lap down in 2009.

Michael Waltrip Racing's Reutimann and Truex Jr. Finish 5th and 6th in Daytona 500

2010-02-14T19:34:00.000-08:00

Michael Waltrip Racing drivers finished the 52nd annual Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway as follows:

MWR Race Results
- David Reutimann, No. 00 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota - Finished fifth.
- Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota - Finished and sixth.
- Michael Waltrip, No. 51 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota - Finished 18th.

NSCS RACE NOTES:
- Jamie McMurray won the 52nd annual Daytona 500 over Dale Earnhardt Jr. who drove from 10th to second in the final two laps.
- Greg Biffle, Clint Bowyer and Reutimann rounded out the top five.
- Race ended after two attempted green-white-checkered finishes and ended on lap 207.
- NASCAR red flagged the race for and parked the cars on pit lane around the lap 123-mark for an hour and 46 minutes to repair about an 18-inch hole between turns one and two.
- A second red flag with about 40 laps remaining to repair the hole lasted 46 minutes.
- The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series now travels to Fontana Speedway for Sunday’s 500-mile race.

MICHAEL WALTRIP RACING NSCS DRIVER NOTES AND QUOTES:

Michael Waltrip, No. 51 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota
- Started 43rd and finished 18th.
- Waltrip dodged many accidents throughout the day suffering minor cosmetic damage on the front valence.
- The team worked on handling throughout the race.
- Waltrip reported his Toyota was tight and bouncing in the corners.
- Sunday marked two-time Daytona 500 winner’s 24th and possibly final Daytona 500.
- Waltrip hosted a pre-race hospitality event Sunday for 300 of the 500 Michael Waltrip Celebration ticket holders.

WALTRIP QUOTE: “I was just so proud of my race team today. There at the end I have to admit it was hard to pay attention to what I was doing when Martin and David were up there battling for the victory. I couldn’t be more proud. As good as they were today I think California will be even better. We kind of struggled today. The car was tight and it bounced the front end. But Bobby Kennedy and those guys just kept working and working and we were our best at the end of the race when it really counted. I enjoy driving the NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota today and thank everyone involved with our team.”

David Reutimann, No. 00 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota
- Started 20th and finished fifth.
- Best career Daytona 500 finish as well as first top-10 on the restrictor plate track.
- Restarted in the top-10 on the final restart and worked his way to fifth in a frantic final two laps.
- Aaron’s team came very close to running out of fuel but Reutimann conserved just enough to finish.
- Raced in 20th at halfway mark.
- Capt. Johnathan Hillstrand of the Alaskan fishing boat Time Bandit from the Discovery Channel’s reality television show “Deadliest Catch” attended Sunday’s race and told Reutimann that Phil Harris, captain of the Cornelia Marie, predicted Reutimann would win the Daytona 500 shortly before Harris died on Feb. 9. Reutimann’s Toyota carried C-post decal Sunday in honor of Harris.
- Sunday marked Reutimann’s 100th career start.

REUTIMANN QUOTE: “It was an up and down day. We weren’t the best we didn’t feel like at various times, but all in all the car drove good and the guys made good pit stops. We just kind of got up there when it counted. Our car liked the outside so we just kept pounding away on it. Low and behold in the end the bottom seemed to be better for us in that last little bit. It ended up working out. The guys did a good job with good pit stops and it’s a good way to start the season. Those restarts were just killing us toward the end and we couldn’t do anything right and I couldn’t get in the right line and things kept getting messed up. Thankfully we got the Aaron’s Dream Machine where it needed to be when it counted and it ended up working out pretty well and I had a good run coming to the start-finish. I’m real proud of my guys. I have to thank Aaron’s, Tums and Best Western, Toyota and Toyota Racing Development because we had some good horsepower today. Top-five is a good way to start the season out.”

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota
- Started 14th and finished sixth.
- Ran in the top 10 throughout the race and posted best career Daytona 500 finish.
- Led with laps 148, 149 and lap 150 to collect five bonus points.
- Restarted second on the first green-white-checkered finish and briefly held the lead before Kevin Harvick nudged him high on the track dropping him a few spots.
- Told team the pit crew’s multiple 12-second stops are “what dreams are made of.”
- Sunday marked Truex’s and Crew Chief Pat Tryson’s first points race with Michael Waltrip Racing.

TRUEX JR. QUOTE: “It was wild, wild, wild. I had a lot of fun today with the NAPA Toyota. I’m proud of the team. The pit stops were amazing for our first race together. If I had to rate it, I would say it was an A++. I had a lot of fun. As for the multiple green-white-checkered finishes, it was what I expected. There were a bunch of tore up cars, but I am sure the fans got their money’s worth. There at the end there was a storm brewing all day and it seemed like every time we took a break our car got even better. It was a lot of fun and a really good race. I thought everyone did an excellent job. We raced super hard up front. The guys used their heads, but never crossed the line. That’s the most fun I have ever had in Daytona.”

MWR Gatorade Duels Race Report

2010-02-11T19:36:00.000-08:00

First Race:
Michael Waltrip finished 25th after an accident in the first of two Gatorade Duels at Daytona. He will start Sunday’s Daytona 500 in 43rd.

Second Race:
Martin Truex Jr. finished sixth and will start the Daytona 500 in 14th.
David Reutimann finished ninth and will start the Daytona 500 in 26th.

FIRST RACE NOTES:
Jimmie Johnson grabbed his first career Gatorade duel win by beating Kevin Harvick by .005 of a second.
Michael McDowell and Max Papis raced their way into the Daytona 500 by finishing 14th and 15th respectively.
Kyle Busch, Clint Bowyer and Regan Smith rounded out the top five.

Michael Waltrip, No. 51 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota
Started 10th and finished 25th
Waltrip has two scary moments early while racing the middle line in the draft and worked his way to seventh by lap 4
Reported over the radio that the car was really pushy followed by real loose on lap 13. Raced in the top transfer spot by lap 17.
Came to pit road in 14th while under caution on lap 27 for major handling adjustments. Restarted 16th on lap 29.
No. 51 narrowly avoided the No. 46 car as it spun in front of him on lap 34 to bring out a second caution.
Stayed out during second caution and restarted 13, remains in top transfer spot with 25 laps to go.
Gets hung out of the draft on lap 37 to fall from 11th to 17th
Raced in 15th position with 10 laps to go, but followed closely by Reed Sorenson and Todd Bodine.
Spun and hit from behind by the No. 78 with seven laps to go causing damage to the front of the NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota when he hit the inside wall.
Scott Speed raced his way into the transfer position on the final lap of the second race. Speed’s performance enabled Waltrip to grab the final starting spot in the Daytona 500.

WALTRIP QUOTES

ON SCOTT SPEED RACING INTO THE DAYTONA 500:
“Scott, we're racecar drivers, and he did his job. I'm so grateful and thankful that it worked out. You know, obviously the teams that won the race were locked in, too. You know, people show up to race. Just because you're locked in doesn't mean you roll over or there wouldn't be a race. So I knew Scott would race. I knew he wasn't gonna think about quitting or give up. I'm just thankful that he had a car there at the end he could do the job with.”

ON SIX CARS BUILT AT MWR MAKING THE DAYTONA 500:
“Well, you know, six cars that we built in Cornelius at MWR that are in the 500. Prism racing with Phil Parsons, they're a customer of ours, as is Germain. Then our four cars there with Brad and Tad. You know, our customers that buy parts and pieces and cars for us made the race. So we got happy customers, and that's good for any business. You know, it's real important to be able to diversify and figure out how to bring money into the company in order to help pay the bills. We have great partnerships with the Germains, Max in the Geico car, and Phil and Randy Humphrey with Prism buy stuff from us, as well. I'm mostly proud of all that because there's a bunch of men and women, fabricators, engineers, that figured out how to make cars competitive for this place. So when those guys send us a check for the cars they bought, you know, it's gonna feel pretty good to them to know that we were able to provide them with stuff to have the success they did down here.”

ON THE EMOTIONS OF MAKING DAYTONA:
Well, I guess I've come to expect it a little bit. I know for some reason, for me, this place, it defines my career. It certainly is my first memories of NASCAR racing, was coming here as a kid. I figured when I woke up this morning I'd be crying before the day was over. I just didn't know if it would be because I was happy or because I was sad. And then I damn sure didn't know it would be both within an hour of each other. To be able to smile now, you know, it really feels rewarding because, you know, we took a part-time car, Bobby Kennedy, my buddy, who has helped me out so, so long, put a crew together and gave me a car on Saturday that we qualified fast enough to make the 500 with.”

ON SUNDAY:
“I was real disappointed today because my car didn't handle right. It didn't handle like it did yesterday. You have a pretty good gauge on if your car's like it was or not. That's the splitter. Yesterday, I was just scrubbing the splitter in a perfect way. Today it felt like it was a foot off the ground, and we didn't change anything. For some reason, the car just didn't go back to the ground like it was supposed to, and it wouldn't drive right. I think it eventually messed up my tires.

“So we'll regroup and figure out what David had, what Marcos had, what Martin had, put that setup into our cars. All three of those cars were really competitive. We seemed to be a notch off. We can't do what Penske or Hendrick cars or even Kasey's car did. So that's a little bit concerning. I know we've got a lot of smart people that will work on that and try to figure out how to get us some speed before Sunday.”

SECOND RACE NOTES:
Kasey Kahne won his first career Gatorade duel win by defeating Tony Stewart
Mike Bliss and Scott Speed raced their way into the 52nd Daytona 500 by finishing 13th and 14th respectively
Speed, racing his way in, opened the door for the fourth-fastest qualifier on time — Michael Waltrip
Michael Waltrip makes the Daytona 500 for the third time since 2007 without a guaranteed starting spot.
The No. 51 is also the seventh MWR car since 2007 to make the field without a guaranteed starting spot.
Six Toyota Camry’s associated with Michael Waltrip Racing will now race in the Daytona 500.

Martin Truex Jr., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota
Truex started 17th and climbed to 9th in the first ten laps.
Truex reported his car was very loose over the bumps and the entry was ‘wild’ up top midway through the race.
The first caution of the race on lap 27 Truex raced in 13th - the crew made air pressure adjustments during stop.
The No. 56 restarted 8th on lap 30.
Truex came close to getting to the front three times but was shuffled back.
The No. 56 battled in the top-10 with 10 laps to go and finished sixth.

TRUEX QUOTE: ““It was a lot of fun. The NAPA Toyota was really good. It was much better than it was in practice. We got to the front a few times – got shuffled back. Would get to the front again and get shuffled back. I was about three or four inches a few times from getting that hole that I needed to get to the front and stay there. It was a lot of fun. I learned a lot. The pit crew was phenomenal. Our pit stop was smoking fast so I was excited about that. We’ve got something to work with for Sunday now.”

WERE YOU ABLE TO GAIN SOME DRAFTING PARTNERS FOR SUNDAY’S RACE?
“A few, but at the end everybody just does what’s best for them. Tried to work with Marcos (Ambrose) and David (Reutimann) a little bit. It seemed like every time we would get near each other, we were in bad positions to help each other. Either they had a run coming and I couldn’t get with them or I had a run coming and I couldn’t push them. I had to go by them because I was coming so fast. It was good, the car was good. Made a lot of changes last night that made it a whole bunch better than it was yesterday – that’s encouraging. I think we’ll be even better for Sunday.”

David Reutimann, No. 00 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota
Reutimann, in a backup car, started at the rear of the field and quickly worked his way to 12th in the first 10 laps.
Reutimann climbed to 10th by the lap 28 caution.
Reutimann reported that the car started slow, but was fast on the bottom later in the run.
The Aaron’s Dream Machine pitted for four tires, fuel and returned to the track in 12th.
The No. 00 Toyota needs work on sucking up in the draft.
Reutimann, Truex and Marcos Ambrose drafted together several times during the race.

REUTIMANN QUOTE: “That was a big race for Michael Waltrip and Michael Waltrip Racing. Congrats to Michael and the No. 51 NAPA guys! I know it means a lot to Michael and to NAPA for the No. 51 to get into the show. Daytona has played such a big part in his career and I know that he didn’t want to go out like that, so I know there is a big sense of relief on their part.

The Aaron’s team also did a great job. Our car wasn’t as good as we’d have liked starting out, but it kept getting better during the longer runs. We need to work on our Camry a little to make sure that we can get it to suck up in the draft to the car in front of it, but I’m sure we’ll get that fixed up and be ready to race on Sunday.”

DAYTONA 500 Starting Lineup (UNOFFICIAL)
1 Mark Martin
2 Dale Earnhardt Jr.
3 Jimmie Johnson
4 Kasey Kahne
5 Kevin Harvick
6 Tony Stewart
7 Kyle Busch
8 Juan Pablo Montoya
9 Clint Bowyer
10 Kurt Busch
11 Regan Smith
12 Elliott Sadler
13 Jamie McMurray
14 Martin Truex Jr.
15 A J Allmendinger
16 Marcos Ambrose
17 Ryan Newman
18 Matt Kenseth
19 David Ragan
20 Joey Logano
21 Jeff Gordon
22 Brian Vickers
23 Greg Biffle
24 Brad Keselowski
25 Denny Hamlin
26 David Reutimann
27 Carl Edwards
28 Mike Bliss
29 Michael McDowell
30 Scott Speed
31 Max Papis
32 Paul Menard
33 John Andretti
34 Robby Gordon
35 Travis Kvapil
36 Sam Hornish Jr.
37 Robert Richardson
38 Boris Said
39 Jeff Burton
40 Bill Elliott [PC2]
41 Joe Nemechek
42 Bobby Labonte [PC1]
43 Michael Waltrip

Results Race One
FIN DRIVER
1 Jimmie Johnson
2 Kevin Harvick
3 Kyle Busch
4 Clint Bowyer
5 Regan Smith
6 Jamie McMurray
7 A.J. Allmendinger
8 Ryan Newman
9 David Ragan
10 Jeff Gordon
11 Greg Biffle
12 Denny Hamlin
13 Carl Edwards
14 Michael McDowell
15 Max Papis
16 John Andretti
17 Todd Bodine
18 Joe Nemechek
19 Travis Kvapil
20 Terry Cook*
21 Mark Martin
22 Bill Elliott
23 Robert Richardson Jr.
24 Reed Sorenson
25 Michael Waltrip
26 Jeff Burton
27 Jeff Fuller

Results Race Two
FIN DRIVER
1 Kasey Kahne
2 Tony Stewart
3 Juan Montoya
4 Kurt Busch
5 Elliott Sadler
6 Martin Truex Jr.
7 Joey Logano
8 Marcos Ambrose
9 David Reutimann
10 Brian Vickers
11 Matt Kenseth
12 Brad Keselowski
13 Mike Bliss
14 Scott Speed
15 Paul Menard
16 Casey Mears
17 Bobby Labonte
18 David Gilliland
19 Robby Gordon
20 Derrike Cope
21 Dale Earnhardt Jr.
22 Aric Almirola
23 Dave Blaney
24 Mike Wallace
25 Norm Benning
26 Sam Hornish Jr.
27 Boris Said

Trevor Bayne Daytona Nationwide Preview

2010-02-09T19:37:00.000-08:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — Trevor Bayne will make his first career start at the famed Daytona International Speedway in the Camping World 300 on Saturday. The 18-year-old driver has never raced on a track bigger than two-miles and knows he has something to prove to his team, competitors and fans. Additionally, the newly-formed Diamond-Waltrip Racing will make its NASCAR Nationwide Series debut this weekend.

QUOTES

BAYNE ON DAYTONA: “Daytona is a place where every kid dreams of racing. It’s going to be a different experience for me. I know I have a lot to learn when I get on the track Wednesday. I think the biggest thing I am going to have to work on is drafting. I plan to get behind some of the veterans and learn from them. My main goal is to survive. If I have to push someone across the line and finish second instead of wrecking that will be fine with me.”

BAYNE ON 2010: “Our ultimate goal is to win the NNS championship for Diamond-Waltrip Racing. I would also love to grab a win or two in the first handful of races. My other goal is to gain the respect of my competitors. I want them to know that I’m going to race them like they race me. I want them to respect the No. 99 machine when they are racing around me. I also want the NNS garage to know we are a force to be reckoned with this year and we plan to be racing for a win in the final laps of every race.”

CO-OWNER MICHAEL WALTRIP ON BAYNE: “Trevor has been fun. He just got in the car last year and started running up front. He kind of reminds me of when Martin (Truex Jr.) jumped onto the scene. His youthfulness, enthusiasm and willingness to listen and learn brings a special spark to this team. He wants to know what he is suppose to do in each situation. He wants the respect of his competitors.

“Also, for being 18-years-old he is respectful and appreciates what we’re doing for him. He has the respect for the sport and life in general which shows a whole lot for the way he was raised. I think his mom and dad should be very proud of him. We’re also very proud to be associated with him and we think he’s capable of competing for a win every weekend.”

ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST

· Bayne will make his 16th NNS start this weekend at DIS. He has a seventh-place finish at Indianapolis Raceway Park (IRP) and at Richmond International Speedway to call a career-best.

· Last season, the Knoxville, Tenn., native had an impressive 10.1 starting average. The young phenom only started two of his 15 races outside the top 12. He grabbed his first career NNS pole position at IRP in only his seventh career start.

· The 18-year-old driver’s only experience on a superspeedway came last season when he tested the new NNS car at Talladega Superspeedway. The Knoxville, Tenn., native was one of eight drivers to participate in this test. The majority of the time the teams worked on single-car runs, but Bayne was able to get in a little drafting practice during the end of the test session.

· Sirius XM listeners can tune into channel 128 every Tuesday at 8:30 a.m. to hear Bayne’s weekly visit on Sirius Speedway with Mike Bagley and Pete Pistone throughout the 2010 season.

Martin Truex Jr. - No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota - Daytona 500 Preview

2010-02-03T05:20:00.000-08:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — Martin Truex Jr. makes his debut in the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry during Daytona Speedweeks. Truex will team up with his new owner, Michael Waltrip, as they both will be running for NAPA AUTO PARTS in the 52^nd Annual Daytona 500.

Truex hopes to start his season just as Waltrip did for NAPA — win.

QUOTES

TRUEX ON EXPECATIONS FOR 2010 WITH NEW TEAM: “It is a new start for me. I have had a couple of tough seasons in the last two years so I am looking forward to a new challenge. We have a great team put together. My team shows great potential from the crew chief to all the guys working on the car. Everybody at MWR – I’ve been so impressed by them. The way they do their business and the amount of effort they put in and the support from Toyota is like nothing I have ever seen. It’s incredible. There are a lot of things I have seen going on during this off season that shows me it’s going to be a big deal. It’s really great. The support from NAPA and driving the NAPA Toyota is a dream come true. This is probably the most excited I have been for a start to a season in a long time because of all the great stuff I am experiencing.”

TRUEX ON PRESEASON TESTING AT ATLANTA AND NEW SMYRNA SPEEDWAY: “We have done some testing and it has gone really well. We have a camaraderie. I don’t think it is going to take a whole lot of effort to get along with the crew we have assembled. We are gelling. We have a lot of good guys and a lot of ambition. It is easy to get along with these guys because they have such great attitudes and are pushing forward and trying to do the best job they can. I think everybody on this team is looking at this season the same way. The opportunity is here to succeed. We just have to do everything we can do to take advantage of it.”

TRUEX ON FAVORITE DAYTONA MEMORIES: “I have a lot of great memories like driving through the tunnel for the first time, and then last year, winning the pole for the Daytona 500. I also won the July Nationwide Series race in 2005. But I think the first time I went to Daytona is what I probably remember the most. I always watched the races but the first time I drove through the tunnel and saw how big Daytona really was – the track, the infield, I was pretty amazed by that.”

ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST

· The driver of the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS driver will be competing in his 154th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race when the season opener of the 2010 Sprint Cup season, the Daytona 500, gets underway at Daytona International Speedway (DIS) in Daytona Beach, Fla.

· He will be starting in his ninth race at DIS. His best start is first (Feb. 15, 2009) and best finish is 11th (Feb. 15, 2009). During his career, Truex has earned five top–20 and six top-25 finishes at DIS. His average start is 16th and his average finish is 22nd.

· In Nationwide Series competition, Truex has driven in seven events. His best start is first (Feb. 14, 2004) and best finish is first (July 1, 2005). During his career, Truex has earned three top–five and five top-10 finishes at DIS. His average start is 11th and his average finish is ninth.

Michael Waltrip - No. 51 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota - Daytona 500 Preview

2010-02-03T05:12:00.000-08:00

CORNELIUS, N.C. — Michael Waltrip hopes to finish like he started with longtime sponsor NAPA AUTO PARTS at Daytona International Speedway by winning his third Harley J. Earl Daytona 500 trophy. Entering his 25th year as a driver, Waltrip is scaling back his schedule but figures they’ll be more trips to victory lane as he is one of the youngest multi-team owners in NASCAR.

QUOTES

WALTRIP ON RUNNING BUDWEISER SHOOTOUT: “We have had a lot of success at Daytona and for this year’s Shootout; I am going to get to work with our new crew chief of the NAPA Racing team Pat Tryson. Rodney Childers will also be on the pit box making it a collaboration since David (Reutimann) did not qualify for the event.

“It means the world to me to have all the support and effort of everyone at Michael Waltrip Racing to give me a Toyota that I can win with. The Budweiser Shootout is a great opportunity to put NAPA in victory lane. It is also an opportunity to learn and be in better shape so that one of our Toyotas has a shot at going to victory lane for the Daytona 500.”

WALTRIP ON DAYTONA: “When I was a kid growing up, Daytona was the only track I really knew. It was the most important track. To me, it defines NASCAR and driver careers. If you can go down there and win. There is no other race more prestigious to win than the Daytona 500. Fortunately for me, I have been able to do it and do it more than once.”

WALTRIP ON EXPECTATIONS FOR MARTIN TRUEX JR.: “I expect him to win races and contend for a spot in the Chase. I think we have put together a very exciting line up for the No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS team. Martin knows how to win and is a two-time Nationwide Series champion. He’s been in the Chase. He’s always been fast. I remember the first day he showed up at Rockingham. Dale Jr. told me that Martin was his guy. I had never heard of or seen him before. He got in the Nationwide Series car and was running as fast as anyone out there. That’s the way his whole career has been. He was fast from the beginning and I expect he’ll do the same in the NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota.”

WALTRIP ON NOT RUNNING A FULL SEASON IN THE SPRINT CUP SERIES: “I’m going to run Daytona -- the Shootout and the 500 -- and that’s the only Cup races I have planned for 2010. I’m comfortable with that. When I think about going to Daytona, I get excited because I know that I know how to win that race. I finished seventh at Talladega this past October and seventh in the Daytona 500 last year. I know I can go win that race and that makes me smile. When I think about California and Vegas, I just haven’t performed at the level that makes me say, ‘I’m going to go out there and do the same thing.’ I don’t miss that, I’m okay with that.”

ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST

· The NAPA AUTO PARTS driver will be competing in his 760th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race when the season opener of the 2010 Sprint Cup season, the Daytona 500, gets underway at Daytona International Speedway (DIS) in Daytona Beach, Fla.

· He will be starting in his 47th race at Daytona International Speedway. His best start is second (Feb. 17, 2008, July 3, 2004) and best finish is first (Feb. 18, 2001, July 6, 2002, Feb. 16, 2003). During his career, Waltrip has earned three wins, six top-five and 13 top-10 finishes at DIS. His average start at is 17th and his average finish is 21st.

· Waltrip is one of only eight drivers to win more than two Daytona 500 titles.

Truex and Tryson on Tonight’s Edition of NASCAR Race Hub on SPEED

2010-01-28T05:57:00.000-08:00

NAPA Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. and Pat Tryson will visit the garage on tonight’s edition of NASCAR Race Hub. They’ll talk about how preseason testing and their expectations for the upcoming NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season as they become the new faces of NAPA’s NASCAR Sprint Cup racing program.

NASCAR Race Hub is SPEED’s new nightly report show that brings viewers closer to the inner workings of NASCAR than ever before. NASCAR Race Hub airs tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET on SPEED.