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PRESS RELEASE
Denny Hamlin Dodge Challenger 500 NSCS Race Preview
Weber Shandwick For FedEx Racing, Press Release
RACE INFO:
Event: Crown Royal 400
Date/Time: May 10, 2008/ 7:20 p.m. EST
Length: 1.366 miles
Shape: Oval
Banking: 25/23 degrees
Distance: 367 laps/500 miles
2007 winner: Jeff Gordon
2007 polesitter: Clint Bowyer
EXPRESS NOTES:
Domination Denied at Richmond - Hamlin, #11 FedEx Racing Team 24th at RIR: In a heartbreaking turn of events at Richmond International Raceway, Denny Hamlin's dream of adding a Cup triumph to his Nationwide victory was undone by a late tire issue. Hamlin started from the pole in front of his hometown fans and though he led an incredible 380 of the first 381 laps and had not suffered even a semi-serious challenge for position on the night, the cut tire forced him to pit road and three full laps off the pace. He finished a very disappointing 24th and drops to sixth in the points.
Hamlin at Darlington Raceway: Hamlin will be making his 90th career Cup start and his third Cup start at the famous Darlington Raceway this weekend. Hamlin's Nationwide Series record at Darlington speaks for itself - two wins in four starts - but his Cup record may be equally impressive given his limited amount of starts at NASCAR’s highest level. Last season, Hamlin led 178 laps before a dropped lug nut on pit road forced him back to 15th place with only 65 laps to run. He recovered to finish second but it was a race certainly chalked up in the "missed opportunity" category. In 2006, Hamlin ran in the top five for the first half of the race before negotiating handling issues and a cooling track to secure a 10th-place finish in his Cup debut at Darlington. Overall Hamlin has secured top-ten finishes in all six races, both Nationwide and Sprint Cup, he has started at Darlington.
Of special note is the fact this track played a big role in getting Hamlin into a Busch and Cup series ride at Joe Gibbs Racing as well. Just three months after turning in a top-ten debut in the Truck Series at Indianapolis Raceway Park, Denny lined up for his first Busch series race at one of NASCAR’s trickiest tracks. Despite the considerable odds against him, he earned well-deserved acclaim as he posted a top-ten finish in his Darlington debut.
Darlington Chassis 196 & 204: Chassis 196 will be the primary this weekend at Darlington. It last saw action at California in February of this year and sustained heavy damage when Hamlin hit water on the rain-soaked two-mile track and then hit hard against the turn two wall. 204 will also be on the truck this weekend. It finished ninth at Las Vegas earlier this season.
HAMLIN CONVERSATION - DARLINGTON RACEWAY:
Darlington is a place that you've had a lot of success. What is it about this track that you like?: "Darlington tends to reward consistency and I think that's one of my better attributes as a driver. In my first couple of seasons people would say that I tend to disappear during races and then pop up at the end. I think that really comes down to the fact that as a driver, and based on my upbringing, I really try not to put the car in bad situations. And, as a team, we take a steady approach when it comes to making changes. Nothing wild, just small improvements all race long so we have the car at its best when the race is on the line. That's our strategy and Darlington rewards that kind of strategy because it is so easy to get in trouble. All you can do is work to beat the other cars because if you try to beat a track like Darlington, it will beat you right back."
Four practice sessions are scheduled to get you ready for racing there on Saturday night. Having not yet been on this new surface, what are you expecting?: "From everything I have heard, I expect it to be very different. Darlington will always be Darlington in that the places to get in trouble are still the same. It appears that speeds are going to be up but we should have more grip to work with. It will be interesting to see how the tire will perform so to have the extra practices should help a lot. We didn't have the benefit of the tire test here earlier in the season but that doesn't mean we won't know what we are dealing with when we get there."
You were limping at bit during Charlotte testing – what’s going on with your hip?: “Honestly, I just landed on it playing basketball on Sunday and it was a little sore for the first couple of days. It was a case of going up and just getting clipped a little bit and coming down hard on my side. I would like to say I was going up for a dunk but I don’t think anyone is going to believe that. As bad as it hurt on Sunday and Monday, it’s already feeling a lot better and it won’t be an issue this weekend at Darlington.”
Richmond was, all things considered, still a very good weekend for you. Talk about the launch of your foundation: "Richmond had some highlights and one obvious low point on Saturday night, but the launch of the Denny Hamlin Foundation was an important event for me. We raised $50,000 at our charity race last Thursday night and were able to present a check in that amount to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. This sport has given me a huge opportunity and I truly hope that I can build the Denny Hamlin Foundation into a great charity. I have a personal connection, through a cousin that has been diagnosed, to Cystic Fibrosis and it's a great place to lend support - I hope to raise the profile of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation throughout the NASCAR community. FedEx was the first to jump in when I was starting the foundation, both with financial support and advice. I learned a lot through our helmet program and interaction with kids at Children's Hospitals across the country and it made me want to get more involved and get my own foundation up and running."
FEDEX RACING – 2008 TEAM ROSTER:
Crew Chief: Mike Ford – Morristown, Tenn.
Car Chief: Chris “Spider” Gillin – Smithtown, NY
Shock Specialist: Tim Sparkman – St. Louis, Mo.
Engineer: Mike Wheeler – Southholt, NY
Tire Specialist: Patrick Mullen – Brick, N.J.
Motor Specialist: Roger Purcell – Latham, Ill
Mechanic: Shawn Warren – Concord, N.C.
Mechanic: John Furino – Long Island, NY
Spotter: Curtis Markham – Fredericksburg, Va.
Hauler Driver: Jerry Hess – Lancaster, Pa.
Hauler Driver: Frank Hodel – Blythe, Calif.
Jackman: Chris Anderson – Brooksville, Fla.**
Front Tire Carrier: Brandon Pegram – Statesville, N.C.**
Front Tire Changer: Mike Hicks – Salisbury, N.C.**
Rear Tire Carrier: Heath Cherry – Belmont, N.C.
Rear Tire Changer: Jonathan Sherman – Monroe, La.
Windshield: Bobby “Spike” Christenson – Spokane, Wash.
Gas can: Scott Wood – Liberty, S.C.
Catch Can: John Eicher – London, Ky.
Pit Crew Coordinator: Paul Alepa – Vienna, Va.
Athletic Director: Mike Lepp - Charlotte, N.C.
**New team members for the 2008 season
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