No. 22 Discount Tire Dodge Challenger
Ford 300
Homestead-Miami Speedway
November 19, 2011
TV: ESPN2 at 4:30 PM ET Radio: MRN/Sirius 90 at 4:00 PM ET
No. 22 Discount Tire Dodge Challenger News and Notes
· This Week’s Challenger…
Brad Keselowski and the Penske Racing Discount Tire Dodge Challenger team will use chassis PRS-222during Saturday’s Ford 300 at Homestead-Miami Speedway (HMS). Keselowski last drove this chassis to a victory at Kansas Speedway last month.· The No. 22 Discount Tire Dodge Challenger in 2011… After 33 events, Keselowski and the reigning NNS champion No. 22 Discount Tire Dodge Challenger team are ranked fifth in the 2011NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS)owner point standings. The team is coming off a second-place finish in the Wypall 200 last week at Phoenix International Raceway (PIR).
· Keselowski Climbing the Charts… By taking the checkered flag in last month’s Kansas Lottery 300 at Kansas Speedway, Keselowski entered into a tie for 15th place with Jeff Green and Joe Nemechek on the NNS all-time wins list with 16 victories. Keselowski is now four wins away from tying Greg Biffle for 14th place on the all-time list.
· Approaching 350… The victory by Sam Hornish Jr in the NASCAR Nationwide Series event at PIR last Saturday gave Penske Racing 349 all-time race victories. One of the most-successful teams in professional sports, Penske Racing will attempt to grab win No. 350 this weekend at HMS.
· Congrats to the New Champion… This weekend’s race at HMS will be the final event for Keselowski as the reigning NNS champion. He will go into the history books as the last series champion that was allowed to compete for both the Nationwide and Cup Series titles in the same season.
· Keselowski Speedway Stats… In 100 speedway starts in the Nationwide Series, Keselowski has accumulated eight wins, 44 top-five finishes, 63 top-10 results and five pole awards. In addition, he has led the field for 1,577 laps at tracks between one and two miles in length.
· Follow Brad on Twitter… Fans can follow Keselowski on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/keselowski. Followers can get a glimpse inside his everyday life while keeping up-to-date on the latest Cup Series and Nationwide Series news for the Penske Racing driver.
· RubyTuesdayRacing.com… When Brad wins, you win. Visit www.rubytuesdayracing.com following any of his wins, either in the Cup Series or the Nationwide Series, to register for a delicious Ruby Tuesday hamburger of your choice, compliments of Ruby Tuesday and Brad.
“Championships are very special and winning the 2010 Nationwide Series title will definitely go down as one of the highlights of my racing career. It was the culmination of a dream. The fact that it was the first NASCAR championship for Penske Racing just adds another layer to it. I think we’ve built a very formidable Nationwide Series team at Penske Racing over the last couple of years. I think we showed that last weekend at Phoenix where Sam and I ran one-two. It’s a series that really means a lot to me. That’s why I will always race, though maybe not full-time, in the Nationwide Series and I was proud to represent it as its champion this year. Congratulations to the new champion this season, whoever it ends up being.”
Crew chief Todd Gordon on his first season at Penske Racing
“After taking over a program that, from the outside had a lot of continuity, but internally had a lot of new faces, including myself, we have seasoned into a team that is capable of winning every week and we have developed the chemistry necessary to compete for an owners championship. Five DNF’s in the first 14 events put us out of contention for this year, but the focus all of the Discount Tire/Ruby Tuesday guys have kept since then has shown the strength of this group and potential going forward. We want to end the season on a positive note and Homestead would be a good place to do that. I really look forward to getting to another intermediate banked track that is similar in ways to a group of tracks(Chicago, Kansas, Kentucky) that we have had a lot of success on this year. The progressive banking should lead to great racing.”
- Penske Racing Press Release
