Catchfence

2011 NSCS Joey Logano - Photo Credit: Chris Graythen/Getty Images for NASCAR

Goody’s 500 at Martinsville Speedway

The Home Depot Team Notes of Interest

• The Home Depot Team and Joey Logano return to Martinsville Speedway where they earned their best finish of the 2010 season. Logano finished second in the Goody’s 500 one year ago to his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny Hamlin and went on to earn another top-10 finish in the fall event.
• About last weekend: It was another tough race for Logano and The Home Depot Team at Auto Club Speedway on Sunday.  A solid qualifying effort by Logano put the No. 20 Toyota inside the second row, but an engine change race morning forced Logano to the rear of the field. With track position and clean air a key to success at the two-mile track, Logano battled the handling of the car most of the race.  A late-race pass through penalty dropped Logano from the top-15 back to the 25^th position when the checkered flag waved.
• The Home Depot Team is currently 29th in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series standings following last weekend’s event at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif.  The team has accumulated 93 points so far this season and sits 64 points out of the series top 10.
• Welcome aboard The Home Depot associates from store #6377 from Destin, Fla.  The store number will ride along with Logano this weekend on the rear quarter panel of The Home Depot Toyota at Martinsville Speedway.
• Meet Logano! Fans in the Greensboro, N.C. area can meet Logano at The Home Depot Store on Thursday, March 31 from 6 – 7:30 p.m. The store is located at 4425 Wendover Ave. There will be photo opportunities with the No. 20 Home Depot Toyota and an autograph signing by Logano.  Wristbands will be distributed starting at 5 p.m. to the first 700 fans.
• There are two Virginia natives on The Home Depot crew roster, spotter Mark Robertson and second engineer Mike Lorusso.  Robertson hails from Richmond and has been with the No. 20 team since its inception.  Lorusso joined the Home Depot Team this season and is from the north east corner of the state in Ashburn.
• The No. 20 Home Depot Team is taking chassis #303 to the paperclip this weekend for the 500-lap race.  This is a new short-track chassis for the team. The back-up chassis is #275 that Logano most recently drove to a sixth-place finish at Martinsville in October.
• To access information on The Home Depot Team visit: www.joegibbsracing.com and follow twitter.com/homedepotracing, twitter.com/joegibbsracing and twitter.com/jlogano.

Logano Quotes on Martinsville Speedway:

“The first race I ran there was tough, but I feel like I’ve gotten so much better.  It’s one of those tracks where the more you get used to the type of braking it takes the better off you are.  I also know now how I want the balance to be on the car because it’s a tricky track.  Typically I’ve been better there on the long runs, but you have to be decent on the short run too or else you lose a ton of spots initially and they are tough to get back.  The track and handling changes so much over the course of a run it’s unreal. I just need to stay out of trouble, try not to hit anything and bring home a solid finish.”

Logano NASCAR Sprint Cup Martinsville Speedway Stats

Logano Career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Stats

No. 20 Home Depot Team

Primary Team Members:

Crew Chief – Greg Zipadelli                             Car Chief – Jason Shapiro                                Engine Builder – Mark Cronquist

Lead Engineer – Jacob Canter                        Engine Specialist – Michael Johnson             Spotter – Mark Robertson

Tire Specialist – Jerold Shires                          Shock Specialist – Dusty Boyd                         Second Engineer – Mike Lorusso

Mechanics – Scott Geerts, Todd Foster         Pit Support – Bill Byrne                                      IT Support – Nathan Boone

Truck Drivers – Tom McCrimmon, Scott Crowell

Over-The-Wall Crew Members:

Jackman – Jason Tate                                       Front Tire Changer – John Royer                    Front Tire Carrier – Brett Morrell

Gas Man – John Eicher                                     Rear Tire Changer – Coleman Dallarhide     Rear Tire Carrier – Eric Groen

- Elevation Group of Companies for The Home Depot Racing, Press Release