Tuesday
Kasey Kahne, No. 38 Great Clips Chevrolet Impala Darlington Race Preview
Press Release
No. 38 Great Clips Impala
Darlington Raceway
Royal Purple 200
May 6, 2011
No. 38 Great Clips Chevrolet News and Notes
· Kasey Kahne behind the wheel of the No. 38 Great Clips machine at Darlington Raceway… In this weekend’s NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) race at the famed Darlington Raceway, Kasey Kahne will return to the seat of the No. 38 Great Clips Chevrolet Impala for Turner Motorsports. Kahne drove the No. 38 Great Clips machine from 2003-2005, before becoming a star in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Kahne will drive the No. 38 Chevy in eight races throughout 2011 with Jason Leffler completing the remaining balance of races.
· Darlington Raceway, by the numbers… In eight NNS starts at Darlington, Kahne has one top-five and three top-10 finishes with a total of four laps led. He has an average finish of 12.9 and an average start of 15.5 with zero DNF’s.
· Kahne a recent visitor to Darlington Raceway’s Victory Lane… In March, Kahne captured the win in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) race at Darlington after a dominating performance in which he started from the outside pole and led for 95 laps.
· Who’s on the pit box? Stewart Cooper will call the shots for Kahne and serve as crew chief for the No. 38 Great Clips team in the eight races that he is behind the wheel.
· This week’s Impala… The No. 38 Great Clips team will hit the track with chassis TMS-124. This chassis last saw track time at Texas Motor Speedway, where Kahne started ninth and finished 11th.
· Thanking the Father of Mother’s Day - This weekend is a big one for Turner Motorsports marketing partner the Fraternal Order of Eagles (FOE). The international nonprofit organization is credited with leading the charge to found Mother’s Day. Past Grand Worthy President of the Fraternal Order of Eagles, Frank E. Hering, made the first known public plea for “a national day to honor our mothers” in 1904. In 1914, President Woodrow Wilson officially proclaimed Mother’s Day the second Sunday in May and in 1925 Hering was introduced as the “Father of Mother’s Day”.
· Kahne brought Great Clips their first win! From 2003-2005, Kahne and his sponsor, Great Clips, Inc., reached momentous milestones, including capturing Kahne’s first Nationwide Series victory in 2003 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. It was also Great Clips’ first win as a primary sponsor. In 2005, Kahne captured his second career win at Texas Motor Speedway before leaving the Nationwide Series to allow more time for his Sprint Cup Series efforts.
· Start of a new era for Turner Motorsports… The 2011 season marks the start of a new era for Turner Motorsports. The team has expanded in 2011 from a two-truck operation in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) to become the largest stand-alone multi-series team in NASCAR’s top-tier touring series, fielding three entries in the NCWTS and four entries in the NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS). Three of the team’s regular NNS drivers (Jason Leffler, Reed Sorenson and Justin Allgaier) have been pegged as viable contenders to win the 2011 NNS driver championship.
· Happy 10-Year Anniversary, Great Clips… This season marks Great Clips’ 10-year anniversary as a primary sponsor in the NNS. The Minneapolis-based Great Clips, Inc., which is currently the longest-running primary sponsor in the series, came onto the scene in 2001 as a primary sponsor of Akins Motorsports No. 38 entry, then driven by Christian Elder.
Kahne on Darlington Raceway
“Darlington is a track that can sneak up on you. It’s just a really fast track with a good amount of banking. You run right by the wall, every lap. If you lose just a little bit of focus you can get in the wall very easily. Most cars get a famed Darlington stripe on them before the race is over. It’s one of my favorite tracks because it’s demanding, it’s technical and things can happen really quick. My goal these last two seasons has been to take Great Clips back to victory lane and I hope we can get it done this weekend.”
Follow the No. 38 team on Twitter! Twitter.com/No38TurnerNNS
Follow KaseyKahne on Twitter! Twitter.com/Kasey Kahne
Follow Turner Motorsports on Facebook! Facebook.com/TurnerMotorsports
About Turner Motorsports:
Turner Motorsports, LLC, established in 1999, is in the midst of its sophomore season of NASCAR competition. Owned by Texas-native, Steve Turner, the racing organization has expanded in 2011 from a two-truck operation in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series to become the largest stand-alone multi-series team in NASCAR’s top-tier touring series. Turner Motorsports operates out of an 110,000 square-foot state-of-the art facility in Mooresville, N.C., and will house three entries in the Camping World Truck Series and four entries in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. The team boasts an all-star driver line-up that includes Kasey Kahne, Mark Martin, Jason Leffler, Reed Sorenson, Justin Allgaier, Ricky Carmichael, James Buescher and Brad Sweet.
The Chevrolet-backed team has created alliances with General Motors powerhouse teams Hendrick Motorsports, who will provide engine support for both its NNS and NCWTS programs, Kevin Harvick Inc. for body and aero support, and Earnhardt Technology Group for drive train and suspension technology assistance. Turner Motorsports’ marketing partners include Dollar General, Great Clips, Monster Energy, BRANDT, Rexall, Exide, AccuDoc Solutions, Wolfpack Rentals, Fraternal Order of Eagles and ABF Freight. For more information on Turner Motorsports, visit www.turnermotorsportsllc.com
- Turner Motorsports Press Release
Article Tags: Brad Sweet, Darlington (S.C.) Raceway, Hendrick Motorsports, James Buescher, Jason Leffler, Justin Allgaier, Kevin Harvick Inc., KHI, Mark Martin, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series, NCWTS, NNS, No. 38 Great Clips Chevrolet Impala, Reed Sorenson, Ricky Carmichael, Royal Purple 200, Stewart Cooper, Turner Motorsports
