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Cat Racing Event Preview - Fontana

Tuesday August 26, 2008

 

Cat Racing/Dave Blaney Event Preview
California Speedway
Pepsi 500

California Speedway Notes
· California’s Camry…The No. 22 Bill Davis Racing team plans to utilize chassis No. 47 for the Pepsi 500 this weekend at California Speedway. This is one of the team’s most utilized cars and was last run at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway, Chicagoland Speedway and Michigan International Speedway.
· Blaney’s Career Stats…Dave Blaney will make his 292nd career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start when the green flag waves Sunday evening. He made his first career Cup Series start in October 1992 at [Rockingham] North Carolina Speedway and finished 38th (qualified 17th) in his first Cup Series start in Fontana in 2000. Like this weekend, Blaney was aboard a Bill Davis Racing-owned machine.
· Blaney at California…Blaney has made 11 Cup Series starts at the two-mile speedway during his career, starting as high as 14th (2007) and finishing as high as ninth (2002). He has scored two top-15 finishes in Cup Series competition at the speedway.
· BDR at Fontana…Competitors driving Bill Davis Racing-owned cars have been racing at California Speedway since 2000 and have made 22 starts. Those drivers have posted two top-10 finishes during those events.
· Frequent Fliers…The No. 22 BDR team spent Monday and Tuesday testing at Gateway International Raceway near St. Louis. It was the team’s second trip to that track in the last three weeks.
· Homecomings and Birthdays…Gabe Barajas, rear tire carrier for the No. 22 BDR team, is from Saugus, Calif., approximately 80 miles northwest of the Fontana area. Tim Clancy, hauler driver and gas man for the team, will spend his birthday Wednesday driving the Caterpillar hauler across the country for this weekend’s race. Clancy left High Point, N.C., Monday evening to make the trip.
· Bring Your Sharpie…Look for Blaney to stop by the Caterpillar/Toyota Racing merchandise hauler to sign autographs on Sunday. Please check with the trailer for exact times.
· Watch and Listen…Qualifying for the event is scheduled to start at 6:40 p.m. ET Friday, Aug. 29. The 500-mile event is scheduled to start at 8 p.m. ET Sunday, Aug. 31, and will broadcast LIVE on ESPN (TV), MRN (radio) and Sirius Satellite Radio.

Blaney’s Thoughts on the Pepsi 500…“I’m not even sure what to say heading into Fontana. It’d be nice to finish the race, you know? We’ve had a rough couple of weeks, and we’ve tore up a bunch of racecars. I was listening to the radio broadcast of the race after we fell out at Bristol and they were talking about some new rivalry between Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch. Well, I’ve got some news: there’s another big rivalry taking place here lately, and it’s the Caterpillar Camry versus the wall. Right now, the wall is kicking our tail. Wall three, Cat Camry zero. It’s tough, and we don’t mean to make light of the situation, but at this point all you can do is shake your head and wonder what you have to do to get a break. We’re fighting for our lives now to stay in the top 35, and we had a pretty comfortable cushion just a few short weeks ago, so it’s really important that we have a good run this weekend in Fontana.”

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This report was provided by an outside PR source and posted by Kim DeHaven.

 

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