Catchfence

PREVIEW – Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 5 Degree V12 Chevrolet)

EVENT – Degree V12 300 (195 laps / 300 miles)

TRACK – Atlanta Motor Speedway (1.5-mile quad-oval)

DATE – Saturday, Sept. 5, 2009

TV/ RADIO BROADCAST INFO – ESPN2 (coverage begins at 6:30 p.m. EST) / PRN (broadcast begins at 6:30 p.m. EST)

A DEGREE V12 FIRST – The No. 5 Chevrolet will be sporting the yellow, black and white colors of Degree V12 this weekend. Degree V12 has been on board the No. 88 Chevy three times this season, but this is the first and only Degree V12 scheme for Dale Earnhardt Jr. and the No. 5 team this year.

JUNIOR’S KIND OF TRACK - Earnhardt Jr. has three Nationwide Series starts at the 1.5-mile Atlanta Motor Speedway with two top-three finishes. He has led 126 laps and earned an average start of 10.0 with an average finish of 6.7. In 2008, he finished 15th in his only start at Atlanta driving a JRM Chevrolet. On the Sprint Cup side, Atlanta was home to one of Earnhardt Jr.’s six victories in 2004.

DEGREE V12 300 – In addition to sponsoring the No. 5 Degree V12 Chevrolet this weekend, Degree V12 will also be the title sponsor of the 300-mile race at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

JUNIOR IN THE 5 CAR: Saturday’s Degree V12 300 is the seventh and final race for Earnhardt Jr. in the Nationwide Series this year. In his first six races, he scored a pair of top-five finishes (fifth at Las Vegas and Talladega) and an additional top 10 (seventh at Daytona). He led eight laps on the season and earned an average finish of 15.0.

VETERAN OF THE NNS – Earnhardt Jr. has 112 starts in the Nationwide Series. His career includes two championships (1998 and 1999), 22 wins, 51 top fives, 71 top-10s, nine poles, and 3,260 laps led. His average start is 11.5 with an average finish of 11.7.

FLURRY OF EURY: Hendrick Motorsports’ Tony Eury Jr. will lend support to JR Motorsports this weekend. Eury Jr., who has years of experience working with Earnhardt Jr., will assist crew chief Brian Campe and the No. 5 team in Saturday night’s race. Eury Jr.’s assistance gives JR Motorsports an arsenal of Eurys for the weekend, as his father, Tony Eury Sr., is crew chief of the No. 88 Chevrolet, and his uncle, Barry Eury, is a full-time shop mechanic. Eury Jr. plays a key role in Hendrick Motorsports’ research and development program.

CHASSIS INFO – The No. 5 Degree V12 team will run chassis 402 this weekend. The team finished 22nd at Chicagoland and sixth at Michigan with this chassis in 2009.

“DALE JR’S GREAT GIVEAWAY” – The latest JR Motorsports online contest, “Dale Jr.’s Great Giveaway,” is now in its fourth week. Fans can register at www.DaleJrsGreatGiveaway.com to win one of 60 prize packages. Prizes will continue to be distributed each week until the contest ends on Sept. 18th. Prizes include gift certificates, product packages, autographed merchandise, personal driver meet-n-greets, and race-weekend giveaways which were donated by 12 of JR Motorsports’ sponsor partners. For complete rules, regulations, and a list of all 60 prizes please visit www.DaleJrsGreatGiveaway.com.

EDUCATION FOR ELI: With the effort and support of the entire NASCAR community, a college fund has been set up for Eli Ross, the 2-year-old grandson of late motorsports journalist David Poole, who passed away on April 28. Anyone interested in contributing to the “Education for Eli” fund can do so by sending donations to the following address:

Eli Samuel Ross
Bank of Stanly
Attn: Misty Nordan
P.O. Box 539
Oakboro, NC 28129
(Please make checks payable to “Eli Ross Account” at Bank of Stanly.)

For more information, please call the Bank of Stanly at 704.485.3435.

DEGREE V12 CHALLENGE – NASCAR fans can now team up with Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Brad Keselowski in the Degree V12 Challenge. The Degree V12 Driving Challenge features five road races that give players a unique and exciting online race experience. Players compete against each other for a chance to win a variety of prizes including a trip to the Degree V12 300 in Atlanta on September 6, 2009 and a chance to meet Dale Jr. Visit www.DegreeRacing.com to register for the Degree V12 Challenge and begin racing to win. (No purchase necessary. Must be 18 to enter. Void where prohibited. Ends 12/27/09. Visit www.DegreeRacing.com for complete rules.)

EARNHARDT JR. (on pulling double-duty this weekend) – “Saturday is going to be a long day, no doubt about it. It starts at 8 a.m. and doesn’t really stop until after the Nationwide race that night. But we’ve got an opportunity to really give our sponsor, Degree V12, a lot of publicity, so that’s a good thing. They’re the title sponsor of the race, and sponsor of my car. If the fans didn’t know what Degree V12 is before the race, they will when it’s over.”

EARNHARDT JR. (on racing at night at AMS) – “I think the lap times will be really fast on new tires, but will slow down a good bit on long runs. I think there is a lot to be learned in the Nationwide race Saturday night that can apply to Sunday, like where the fastest grooves are on the track and how it changes as the temperatures drop. We’ll see what everybody does and what everybody chooses to run late in the race, if they’re toward the bottom groove. And you’ll get a good idea how much more grip you’ll see on Sunday night.”

- JR Motorsports Press Release