Catchfence

Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates

The Great American Race: McMurray will make his eighth Daytona 500 NSCS start, and 15th overall start at the big track on the beach when the No. 1 Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Boats Chevy takes to the track this weekend. The driver from Joplin, MO owns two victories from Superspeedway tracks, including a victory in the Pepsi 400 at Daytona in the summer of 2007. McMurray also has two top-five and three top-10 finishes at Daytona, with an average starting position of 22 and an average finish of 25.6.

What a Shootout!: Jamie McMurray, returning to Earnhardt Ganassi Racing as the driver of the No.1 Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Boats Chevrolet drew the ninth starting position and looked to be the class of the field as the green flag dropped on the 2010 Edition of the Budweiser Shootout. The driver quickly raced his way inside the top five during the opening 25 lap session. The caution flew for the final time on lap 69, and Crew Chief Kevin “Bono” Manion would call him down pit road for a two-tire stop. McMurray would take the green flag on lap 73 in the third position hoping to make a charge to the front during the green white checkered finish. However, fellow competitors Kasey Kahne (second) and eventual race winner Kevin Harvick would prove to be too much.

McMurray Drops Anchor with Angler Roland Martin: McMurray spent one of his off days; Monday, Feb. 8, fishing with World-Renowned angler and nine-time BASS Angler of the Year Roland Martin. The trip, arranged through Jamie’s role as the new driver of the No.1 Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Boats Chevrolet, allowed Jamie to spend some serious quality time with the fishing legend. The duo spent the day filming one of Roland’s fishing shows on the Walt Disney World Lake system. The show will air on the Versus Network in the coming weeks.

Fishing for a Cause: On Friday, February 12, McMurray will be participating in the Fourth Annual Hot Rods and Reels fishing tournament hosted by Darrell Gwynn. McMurray finished third in the last round of the tournament which was held at the Homestead-Miami Speedway in November of 2009. The first edition of the 2010 season begins at 8:00 am on Friday, Feb. 12 and will take place on Lake Lloyd in the infield of Daytona International Speedway. All money raised will benefit two charities, The Darrell Gwynn Foundation and Speediatrics. Fans are encouraged to attend.

Haiti Earthquake Relief Effort: After co-hosting the NASCAR Haiti Relief Effort special, McMurray went home and picked out ten firesuits from his personal collection, autographed them, and with the help of the NASCAR Foundation he is now auctioning them off on the NASCAR Foundation’s website. Fans interested in bidding on the items can visit nascar.com/foundation and follow the link to start their bidding! All proceeds will be donated to the American Red Cross.

Get Your McMurray Gear: New for 2010. Earnhardt Ganassi Racing will have a merchandise trailer located on souvenir row for the 2010 season. Get your Jamie McMurray and Juan Pablo Montoya gear trackside or visit www.earnhardtganassi.com to place an order online.

Juan Pablo Montoya and the No. 42 Target Team

The 2010 Season: The start of the 2010 season marks Montoya’s fourth full-time year in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with Target returning as the primary sponsor. Montoya and Team Target capped off a 2009 NSCS campaign with two pole awards, seven top-fives, 18 top-10 (50%) and 22 top-15 finishes, with a trip to the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. Montoya finished out the season eighth in the point standings and their attention now turns to a successful 2010 season.

The High Banks of Daytona: Juan Pablo Montoya will be making his seventh NSCS point’s race start at Daytona International Speedway this weekend. Montoya has an average starting position of 20.3 and an average finishing position of 24 in his six prior NSCS starts. Montoya’s best finish of ninth came at last year’s July race. He has completed 96.8% of the possible laps at Daytona; 1003 out of 1036.

Superspeedway Success: Montoya matched his best finish of second at Talladega Superspeedway on August 27, 2008 by bringing home a second place finish at Pocono Raceway on August 3 – his highest finish of 2009. In his 11 Superspeedway starts, Montoya has never finished outside the top-20 with two top-fives, five top-10s, and eight top-15s.

About The Bud Shootout: Montoya made his inaugural appearance in the Bud Shootout last weekend. Team Target drew the 20th place starting position and worked their way up to the sixth position in the final 50 lap segment. A final caution flag would fall on lap 74 and would determine the results of the race. Montoya was in the 10th position when the yellow was displayed and would be credited with such as he took the checkered flag under caution.

Hometown Stop For Two: Crew chief Brian Pattie and spotter Tab Boyd are former residents of the “Sunshine State”. Pattie grew up in Zephyrhills just outside of Tampa Bay and Boyd is from the Pensacola on the panhandle of Florida.

Get Geared Up!: New for 2010. Earnhardt Ganassi Racing will have a merchandise trailer located on souvenir row for the 2010 season. Get your Juan Pablo Montoya and Jamie McMurray gear trackside or visit www.earnhardtganassi.com to place an order online.

CHASSIS INFO

No. 1 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats Chevrolet (NSCS): Chassis #1001. Crew Chief Kevin “Bono” Manion and the No. 1 Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Boats team are bringing chassis #1001 to Daytona International Speedway this weekend. This is a brand new chassis.

No. 42 Target Chevrolet (NSCS): Chassis #902. Pattie and the No. 42 Target team are bringing chassis #902 to Daytona International Speedway this weekend. This is a brand new chassis.

- Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates, Press Release