Tuesday
Jeff Burton Shelby 427 NSCS Race Preview
Press Release· This Week’s Caterpillar Chevrolet at Las Vegas Motor Speedway … Jeff Burton will race chassis No. 271 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable, a brand new Chevy Impala SS for the 2009 season.
· Back-to-Back …
Burton won the 1999 and 2000 Sprint Cup Series races at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. In 11 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at the speedway, he has claimed four top-five and seven top-10 finishes. In addition, the South Boston, Va., native has posted one pole, three wins, five top-five and six top-10 finishes in eight Nationwide Series starts at the track.
· Good Start, Better Finish …
The 21-time Sprint Cup Series winner currently holds an 18.91 starting average coupled with an 10.45 finishing average, has completed 2,741 of 2,821 total laps (97.2 percent) and has been running at the end of every event at the mile-and-a-half race track.
· Since We’re Talking Las Vegas Stats …
Burton is the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series’ third-best Quality Passer – a statistic derived from the number of positions gained while running in the top 15 under green-flag conditions. Burton has gained an average of 42.8 spots over the last four events held at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The South Boston, Va., native has also logged 866 of the last 1,071 laps (80.9 percent) running in the top 15. Burton is ranked third in NASCAR’s Average Running Position category (10.5) and is also seventh in the Driver Rating category (95.4). The Driver Rating is a formula that combines the following categories: wins, top-15 finishes, average running position while on the lead lap, average speed under green, fastest lap, most laps led and lead-lap finishes. The maximum a driver can earn in each race is 150 points. The Driver Rating number is used pre-race as a prediction tool and post-race as a performance evaluator.
· Double Down in Vegas Town …
In addition to driving the No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet Impala SS in Sunday’s Shelby 427, Burton will drive RCR’s No. 29 Holiday Inn/Holiday Inn Express Chevrolet Impala SS in the Sam’s Town 300 NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sat., Feb. 28. This weekend’s race is the second of 12 Nationwide Series races that Burton is scheduled to drive the Holiday Inn Racing Chevrolet. The race can be seen live on ESPN2 beginning at 4 p.m. Eastern Standard Time and will also broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network and Sirius XM Satellite Radio.
· RCR in Vegas …
In 29 overall starts at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, RCR cars have earned four top-five and nine top-10 finishes with four different drivers – Burton, Dale Earnhardt, Kevin Harvick and Mike Skinner. Harvick’s fourth-place run last March is RCR’s best effort at the mile-and-a-half oval.
· Four to Go …
RCR has earned a Sprint Cup Series victory at 18 of the 22 tracks on the 2009 schedule. The only tracks on the current schedule where RCR hasn’t won are Auto Club Speedway, Homestead-Miami Speedway, Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Kansas Speedway. Additionally, RCR has Sprint Cup Series wins at 21 tracks overall, including North Wilkesboro (N.C.), Riverside (Calif.) and Rockingham (N.C.) which are no longer on the schedule.
· Vegas Odds …
According to Vegasinsider.com Burton has a 25:1 chance to win the Shelby 427.
· And the Winner Is …
On behalf of Caterpillar, Burton and team owner Richard Childress will attend the Contractor of the Year reception at Caesar’s Palace Fri., Feb. 27 beginning at 7 p.m. Both Burton and Childress will participate in a question-and-answer session, assist with the award presentation and sign autographs for the attendees.
· Catch the Action …
The Shelby 427 can be seen live on FOX Sunday, March 1, beginning at 3:30 p.m. EST and heard live on PRN and Sirius XM Satellite Radio. Qualifying for the third of 36 points-paying races is set for Fri., Feb. 27, at 6:30 p.m. EST and will be broadcast live on SPEED, PRN and Sirius XM Satellite Radio.
JEFF BURTON QUOTES:
You have a pretty good track record at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. What is it about this track that you like?
“Las Vegas is a track where I’m comfortable racing on. I think we have learned a lot from previous races that has helped us have good starting points every time we unload there. So, based on the data we gathered from last year’s event and off-season preparation, I know we’ll have a competitive Caterpillar Chevrolet. Las Vegas always produces great racing and it’s a race that fans really enjoy watching. It’s a track that is fun to drive on because there are different grooves around the track so you to find the groove that works best for you and your car.”
California was the true test for teams because there was no pre-season testing this year. With that, what is your outlook on this weekend’s race?
“Obviously, we didn’t have the weekend we were expecting in California. With the exception of the No. 29, RCR was off, as a whole. You always want to get your year off started on the right foot and based on our performance in Fontana, we have some work to do. The No. 29 hit on something because they were running in the top 10. We’ll have to work off of that, take our best-laid plans to Vegas and hope that what we brought will be something we can run with the leaders with.”
How important is it to run well on mile-and-a-half tracks?
Richard Childress Racing, Press Release
“Because there are so many mile-and-a-half race tracks on the schedule, it’s really important to be successful on those types of tracks. Some people say the real season starts at California. I don’t believe that. I think the real season starts Saturday in practice (at Daytona) but the way the points are paid and with so many mile-and-a-half and two-mile tracks on the schedule, it’s important to have a solid intermediate program. If not, then you don’t have a chance of competing for the championship. So, it’s a part of the program that we have worked exceptionally hard on and we’ll continue to do that throughout the season.”
Article Tags: Press Release
