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Kelly Bires No. 33 KHI Copart Chevrolet: Memphis Motorsports Park Race Preview

Monday October 19, 2009

 

Kelly Bires

No. 33 Copart Chevrolet Impala SS

Team Race Preview

NASCAR Nationwide Series Race 32 of 35 – Memphis (Tenn.) Motorsports Park

 

MEMPHIS BLUES: This weekend the NASCAR Nationwide Series will roll into Memphis for the Kroger On Track for the Cure 250 at Memphis Motorsports Park where Kelly Bires will make his final start of the season for Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) in the No. 33 Copart Chevrolet. In two previous starts this season for KHI, Bires earned one top-five (fourth-place at Nashville Superspeedway) and two top-10 (Nashville and 10th-place at Kentucky) finishes. His fourth-place finish at Nashville (Tenn.) Superspeedway marked his career-best finish in NASCAR’s top three series of competition.

 

In two previous starts at Memphis, Bires has earned a 14th and 18th-place finish.

 

AUTOGRAPH SESSION: Bires will participate in the NASCAR Nationwide Series autograph session on Friday night from 6:15 to 7:15 p.m. EST following the final Nationwide Series practice session. The autograph session is open to all season ticket holders.

 

FINAL FOUR: With four races remaining in the 2009 Nationwide Series schedule, Bires will climb in the driver’s seat this week at Memphis (Tenn.) Motosports Park, followed by team co-owner Kevin Harvick at Texas Motor Speedway and Phoenix International Raceway before Ryan Newman closes the season at Homestead-Miami (Fla.) Speedway.  

 

BEFORE THE RACE: QUOTES WITH DRIVER KELLY BIRES:

Knowing that Ron Hornaday has won the last two Truck Series events at Memphis Motorsports Park in Kevin Harvick Inc. equipment, do you approach this track differently or with higher expectations? “I really don’t approach it with higher expectations, but I feel like we have a definite advantage to be able to use the notes that the truck teams have built and apply it in any way we can to the No. 33 Copart Chevrolet.  Ernie (Cope, crew chief) and the guys do an outstanding job with the NNS program, so I expect us to keep the ball rolling for KHI at Memphis.”

 

What are your expectations this weekend as you make your final start of the year for KHI? “Expectations are very high.  Kevin, DeLana, and everyone at KHI have given me everything I need to get the job done.  We have had two good races already and really look forward to putting everything together and executing on all ends.  If we do that, I believe we have a great shot at bringing home a victory.” 

 

What makes Memphis Motorsports Park a unique track? “The track is worn out, bumpy and there’s a lot of beating and banging. Sometimes, it’s more of a survival race. It’s also an opportunity track for new racers in the series. You see a lot of cars run the Memphis race that don’t race with the NNS every weekend, so you have to figure out how to race those people as well.”

 

CHASSIS HISTORY: This weekend the No. 33 Copart team will unload chassis No. 042 for Bires at Memphis Motorsports Park. This chassis was last on track at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway where Kevin Harvick had a strong second-place finish after starting the race from the 18th position. Prior to Richmond, this chassis raced at Michigan International Speedway where Harvick started the race from the ninth position, ran in the top 15 all day and earned a fifth-place finish. Other appearances by this chassis this season include Kentucky Speedway with Bires behind the wheel (preparing to qualify the car, Bires lost control in turn four getting ready to take the green and was forced to a back-up car for the race) and Lowe’s (N.C.) Motor Speedway where Harvick started the race from the eighth position and finished 23rd in the rain-shortened May event (170 of the scheduled 200 laps were complete). Earlier in the season, Harvick piloted the chassis at Auto Club Speedway where he started the race from the ninth position and finished second followed by Las Vegas Motor Speedway where he started from the second spot and led 41 laps before getting caught in a multi-car accident on lap 105, dropping the team to a 29th-place finish.

 

PREVIOUS RACE RECAP: The NASCAR Nationwide Series was last on track at Lowe’s Motor Speedway where Ryan Newman returned to the driver’s seat of the No. 33 Hungry-Man Chevrolet. Newman started the race from the 15th position and ran most of the race in the top 15 before making his way as high as second late in the race. Fighting a tight car, Newman slipped several positions in the final 20 laps to cross the finish line in the seventh spot. The finish marked Newman’s third top-10 finish in the No. 33 KHI Chevrolet in four Nationwide Series starts this season.

                    

ARE YOU A FOLLOWER? Twitter users can now keep up-to-date with Kevin Harvick Inc.’s NASCAR Nationwide Series by following at http://twitter.com/KHI_NNS. In addition, you can follow KHI’s Truck Series teams at http://twitter.com /KHI_TruckSeries. Want more from KHI? Follow KHI’s co-owners Kevin and DeLana Harvick at http://twitter.com/kevinharvick and http://twitter.com/delanaharvick.

 

ONLINE MEDIA KITS: Media members can now access KHI media kits online at KevinHarvickInc.com. Included on the site are driver bios, driver and team images, KHI history and statistics, team profiles and schedules. Please contact Alicia Deal (adeal@kevinharvickinc.com) at KHI for access to the new site.

 

QUICK NOTES

 

October 24, 2009

Memphis (Tenn.) Motorsports Park             

Kroger On Track for the Cure 250

 

Race length:  250 laps/187.5 miles

Banking: 11-degrees in turns

                    4-degrees on straight-a-ways

Track layout: .750-mile
Shape: Oval

 

Pre-Race Schedule:

Friday:

First Practice: 2:30 p.m. – 4:00 p.m., ET

Final Practice: 4:30 p.m. – 6:00 p.m., ET

 

Saturday:

Qualifying: 10:35 a.m., ET

 

TV: The Kroger On Track for the Cure 250 can be seen live on ESPN2 at 3:00 p.m., ET.

 

Radio: The Motor Racing Network (MRN) will broadcast the race live at 3:00 p.m., ET.

 

No. 33 Copart Chevrolet Specs:

 

Chassis: 042

Engine: ECR

 

Kelly Bires

Nationwide Stats at Memphis

 

Year       No.          Team     Start       Finish

2008       47           TG           17           14

2007       47           TG           26           18

               

*TG: Tad Geschickter

 

About Copart

Copart, founded in 1982, sells more than 1 million vehicles each year online for insurance companies, banks, finance companies, fleet operators, dealers, the general public and others. Copart’s extensive inventory allows buyers to browse more than 50,000 vehicles each day.

 

About Kevin Harvick Inc.

Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI), established in 2001, is a 70,000 sq. ft. facility located in Kernersville, N.C. KHI houses two full-time Truck Series teams, including the 2007 series champions.  The No. 33 team is led by three-time Truck Series champion Ron Hornaday and the No. 4 team is comprised of Ricky Carmichael, the most successful motocross racer in American history, and a variety of NASCAR Sprint Cup stars. KHI is also home to the No. 33 Nationwide Series team competing full-time with drivers Kevin Harvick (a two-time Nationwide Series champion), 2008 Daytona 500 champion Ryan Newman and Ron Hornaday. The 2009 season marks KHI’s sixth year of full-time competition in NASCAR’s elite divisions. Visit www.kevinharvickinc.com for more information. 

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This report was provided by an outside PR source and posted by Beth Lunkenheimer.

 

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