NOTE: Carl Edwards was penalized 25 points after the race for a shock violation.

NOTE: Carl Edwards was penalized 25 points after the race for a shock violation.

NOTE: Carl Edwards was penalized 25 points after the race for a shock violation.

NASCAR Busch Series News and Notes – New Hampshire

“The Magic Mile” was just that last year for Carl Edwards.
Edwards won last year’s NASCAR Busch Series race at New Hampshire International Speedway’s 1.058-mile oval, the third of his four 2006 victories that propelled him to a final finish of second in the series standings.

Coming into Saturday’s Camping World 200 presented by RVs.com, Edwards – the current series point leader – is an obvious favorite, again.

History is not on Edwards’ side, however. History at NHIS is apparently immune to things like point standings and past victories: In 20 previous NASCAR Busch Series races at NHIS, there have been 20 different winners – and, to boot, 17 different Busch Pole winners.

Edwards heads to New England with four wins, 11 top fives, and 14 top 10s this season.  He’s posted finishes of second and first, respectively, over the past two years at New Hampshire International Speedway.

Edwards isn’t the only driver with a chance to erase the 20-race no-repeat streak as three others will also have the opportunity to be the first.

Matt Kenseth (#17 Fenway Sports Group Ford), Edwards’ Roush Fenway Racing teammate, has posted three top-10 finishes at the track including his win in 2004.

Bobby Hamilton Jr. (#35 McDonald’s Ford) will also be going for his second win at New Hampshire. He has four top 10s including his win in 2002.

Jason Keller (#11 CJM Racing Chevy) has the most experience of the four drivers going for the repeat. In 14 starts at New Hampshire, Keller has five top-10 finishes including his victory in 2001.

Mood Swing: Despite Recent Rise, Ambrose Hardly Satisfied

Marcos Ambrose (#59 Kingsford Ford) is nicknamed the “Devil Racer” due to his Tasmanian heritage.
Lately, the NASCAR Busch Series rookie is showing some of that nickname in his attitude despite a solid seventh-place ranking in the point standings, a second-place showing in the Raybestos Rookie rankings and three top-15 finishes in his last four races including a career-best sixth at Dover International Speedway earlier this month.

Ambrose, in his second season racing in NASCAR’s national series after winning consecutive V8 Supercar titles in Australia in 2003-04, isn’t content with his finishes and voiced his opinion following his finish last week at The Milwaukee Mile. “Six months ago I would have been happy with a 15th-place finish, but today I’m not,” he said.

Ambrose has some experience at New Hampshire where he finished 23rd last year in NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series competition.

• In The Loop: Reigning Series Champ Harvick Driver To Beat Despite Layoff
  
  Defending NASCAR Busch Series champion Kevin Harvick returns to the #21 AutoZone Chevy this weekend at New Hampshire International Speedway.

  If there’s any rust from being away from the NASCAR Busch Series for the past three races, it probably won’t show. Harvick has past success to call upon – lots of it. He’s won three Busch Poles at New Hampshire and hasn’t finished outside the top 10 since his first series start at the track in 2001.

  Since then, he’s had four top fives, including three runner-up finishes. Over the past two years – which were finishes of eighth and second – Harvick has put up some of the top numbers in the series.

  He has the top Average Driver Rating at 127.7, the second-best Average Running Position (3.701), the second-highest total of Fastest Laps Run (46) and is one of only two drivers who have run each of their laps in the top 15. Denny Hamlin (#20 Rockwell Automation Chevy) is the other.

  Hamlin, who teamed with Aric Almirola  to win last weekend at The Milwaukee Mile, is another driver to watch at New Hampshire. He’s finished third in both of his NHIS races and posted impressive stats in the process.

  Hamlin has the second-best Driver Rating at 123.3 and the top Average Running Position at 3.517.
  Last year’s winner, Carl Edwards, has also excelled at New Hampshire. He has a Driver Rating of 118.8 and an Average Running Position of sixth.

  However, Edwards comes to The Magic Mile in a mini-slump – for him, anyway – having finished a season-worst 33rd at Kentucky then eighth at Milwaukee. Those consecutive finishes are the “worst” for Edwards since he was 10th and 13th, respectively at Richmond International Raceway and Talladega Superspeedway.

  NBS ETC.
  

• Series Regulars Hot Heading To NHIS: The first combination event in four races means double-duty driver entries, however it’s the NASCAR Busch Series regulars who may continue to steal the spotlight. Four regulars, including newcomer Stephen Leicht (#90 CitiFinancial Ford – 10th) are ranked in the top 10 in the point standings. Jason Leffler (#38 Great Clips Toyota) has two top-five finishes in his last two races and has vaulted from 20th to sixth in the points over his last five events. Shane Huffman (#88 U.S. NAVY Chevy) has registered consecutive top-10 finishes and sits 12th in the points, his best since he was eighth following the April race at Nashville Superspeedway. And full-time double-duty drivers David Reutimann (#99 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota) and David Ragan (#6 Discount Tire Ford are second and third in the points, respectively, career-best standings for both.
• RCR Heats Up Owner Championship Race: Scott Wimmer’s (#29 Holiday Inn Chevy) second-place finish at Milwaukee last Saturday advanced the #29 Richard Childress Racing team 23 points in the NASCAR Busch Series owners’ championship standings. Wimmer and Jeff Burton have the team in second place, 188 points behind the #60 Ford of Roush Racing.  This is the second straight week the #29 RCR team has advanced in the owners’ point standings.
• Juan Pablo Returns: After a three-race absence from the NASCAR Busch Series, Juan Pablo Montoya (#42 Texaco/Havoline Dodge) is entered at New Hampshire and comes in after capturing his first NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series win last Sunday at Infineon Raceway. Montoya is already a winner in the NASCAR Busch Series having won at Mexico City in March. Montoya will make his first start at NHIS but he’s fared well on tracks from 0.5 to 1.5-miles thus far, posting five top-15 finishes in nine starts. Kevin Hamlin has been handling duties in the #42 during the recent three-race string of series stand-alone events.

  Labonte An NHIS Veteran: Bobby Labonte (#77 Dollar General Chevy) makes his ninth start at New Hampshire this weekend. He was one of the first drivers on the speedway when it opened its gates in 1990 and hosted its first NASCAR touring event. He also raced in the first NASCAR Busch Series event there but an accident on Lap 134 relegated him to a 41st-place finish in the New England 250. He did finish second in the fall race later that season. He also captured the Busch Pole in 1994.

• Seems Like Old Times For Keller: Jason Keller is getting his groove back – quickly. After not having strapped in to a race car from last October at Memphis Motorsports Park until regaining rides with Brewco Motorsports and CJM Racing at Nashville last April, Keller is making like old times in the NASCAR Busch Series. The 37-year-old – who is the only driver other than series leader Tommy Houston (417) to crack the 400 start barrier and is also the series’ all-time money winner with over $11 million in earnings – has two top-five finishes in his last two races and has finished outside the top 20 in only one of his six races this season. His fifth-place finish at Milwaukee last weekend was his best since a fourth-place finish at O’Reilly Raceway Park in 2005.
• Of Note: JR Motorsports’ shock specialist Katie Muir comes home to New England this weekend. Muir is a native of Rutland, Mass. … After his 18th-place finish at his home track at The Milwaukee Mile last Saturday, Todd Kluever (#16 3M Ford) led the first annual “Todd Kluever Ride To Cure Diabetes” motorcycle event and raised $19,500 to benefit the American Diabetes Association and Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Over 150 riders participated in the 75-mile event.

  New Hampshire International Speedway Quick Facts

• Only one owner has more than one victory at New Hampshire International Speedway. Jack Roush has wins with Matt Kenseth (2004) and Carl Edwards (2006).
• Two drivers have won races from the Busch Pole at New Hampshire – New England native Ricky Craven (1991) and Tim Fedewa (2000).
• Waterloo, N.Y. native Mike McLaughlin had a tremendous history at NHIS. He won in 1997, captured the Busch Pole in 1995 and is tied for the all-time lead in top fives (four). He has the most top 10s of any driver (nine) and leads all drivers with 17 starts at the track in series competition.

Rookie Spotlight: Ragan Enjoying Rookie Lead; Career-Best Ranking In Series Points

• Ragan’s On A Roll: David Ragan finished 12th at The Milwaukee Mile last weekend for his ninth top-15 finish this season and extended his lead in the Raybestos Rookie of the Year standings. He leads second-place Marcos Ambrose (#59 Kingford Ford) by 12 points and third-place Kyle Krisiloff (#14 Lilly/Walgreens Ford) by 31 points.  Ragan has also jumped three spots in the series standings to third, the highest ranking in his short series career. He’s got some experience at  New Hampshire having started twice in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series with a best finish of 11th last year.
• Santos Comes Home: Bobby Santos (#91 Riley-D’Hondt Motorsports Toyota), the 21-year-old third-generation driver from Franklin, Mass., looks to start at his home track this weekend for Riley-D’Hondt Motorsports. Santos has made two NASCAR Busch Series starts this season for the team at Richmond International Raceway (where he started seventh) and at Nashville, finishing 30th and 37th, respectively. Last week, Santos posted a third-place finish in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour race at Thompson (Conn.) International Speedway. In 2006, he won his first USAC Midget race at Concord Motorsports Park and just six days later captured the prestigious 61st Annual Coca-Cola/Night Before the 500 Classic USAC Midget Race at ORP in Indianapolis.           

2007 NASCAR BUSCH SERIES
RAYBESTOS ROOKIE OF THE YEAR STANDINGS

 Driver                          Points
1.  David Ragan               172
2.  Marcos Ambrose        160
3.  Kyle Krisiloff               141
4.  Juan Pablo Montoya   137
5.  Brad Coleman              88
6.  Brad Keselowski          87
7.  Justin Diercks              51
8.  Robert Richardson Jr.   51
9.  Sam Hornish Jr.           35
10. Bobby Santos              13
11. Alex Garcia                   7

ESPN/ABC

ESPN on ABC will feature NASCAR Busch Series racing live Saturday, June 30, from New Hampshire International Speedway as the series makes its only appearance of 2007 at the 1.058-mile New England oval for the Camping World 200 presented by RVs.com. The telecast begins with NASCAR Countdown at 2:30 p.m. ET Saturday; the 200-lap race starts at 3 p.m.

This will be the fifth of six races this season ABC is scheduled to air. The next scheduled race on ABC will be from Chicagloland Speedway on July 14.

Dale Jarrett returns to the ESPN booth as analyst for the telecast, joined by two-time NASCAR champion crew chief Andy Petree. Dr. Jerry Punch will handle play-by-play. Pit reporters will be Allen Bestwick, Dave Burns, Jamie Little and Mike Massaro.

Brent Musburger will host NASCAR Countdown from the ESPN Pit Studio, while two-time NASCAR champion crew chief Tim Brewer will report from the ESPN Chevy Cutaway Car.

A Spanish-language version of the race will be televised on ESPN Deportes, ESPN’s domestic Spanish-language network.

2007 At-A-Glance: NASCAR Busch Series Leaders After 16 Of 35 Races:

Traditional Statistics:
Driver points – Edwards (2686)
Victories –Edwards (4)
Races led — Edwards (13)
Laps led – Ky. Busch (536)
Top-five finishes – Edwards (11)
Top-10 finishes – Edwards (14)
Owner points – Roush (#60) – (2686)
Money Won – Edwards ($703,480)
Miles led – Ky. Busch (766.03)
Busch Poles – Hamlin (3)
Closing in on Top 10 – Leicht 10th (1696 pts) Biffle (-49), Huffman (-63)
Consecutive Weeks in Top 10 – Blaney, Edwards, Harvick (17)

Loop Data Statistics:
Driver Rating – Edwards (117.6)
Average Running Position – Edwards (6.955)
Fastest Laps Run – Edwards (389 fastest laps)
Quality Passes – Edwards (699)
Laps In Top 15 – Edwards (2,953 of a possible 3,264)

Chevy  Answers With Another Win To Extend Manufacturer Lead

For the eighth time this season, Chevy crossed the finish line first and in the process extended its lead in this week’s Bill France Performance Cup standings.

Aric Almirola grabbed the pole at The Milwaukee Mile and was officially declared the race winner after Denny Hamlin relieved him on Lap 58 and went on to Victory Lane.

Ford is only eleven points back thanks to the the top-five finish Jason Keller put up at Milwaukee while fourth-place Toyota tightened the race for third with Dodge due to Jason Leffler’s third-place finish at Milwaukee.

With 20 different race winners at New Hampshire, there’s little dominance among manufacturers as well. Ford and Chevy each have seven wins at NHIS with Ford having won five of the last eight races at the Magic Mile.

Manufacturers’ Championship
2007 Point Standings
Chevy     124
Ford       113
Dodge      72
Toyota      65

Up Next: Winn Dixie 250 At Daytona International Speedway

Daytona International Speedway hosts the Winn Dixie 250 presented by PepsiCo on July 6 at 7:30 p.m. ESPN2 will carry the race, the third and final restrictor-plate event for the NASCAR Busch Series this season.

Since the inception of this mid-summer event in 2002, there have been four winners with Dale Earnhardt Jr.  leading the way with two victories, in 2003 and again last year.

Joe Nemechek captured the first event in 2002, followed by Earnhardt in ’03, Mike Wallace in a last-lap thriller in ’04 and Martin Truex Jr. in ’05 (driving for his team co-owner Earnhardt).

The event could mark the final NASCAR Busch Series appearance by Earnhardt with Dale Earnhardt Inc., as he prepares to make his move to Hendrick Motorsports next season.

FAST FACTS

The Race: Camping World 200 presented by RVs.com
The Place: New Hampshire International Speedway
The Date:  June 30, 20071
The Time: 3 p.m. (ET)
TV: ABC, 2:30 p.m. (ET)
Track Layout: 1.058-mile oval
Race Purse: $1,164,835
2006 Winner: Carl Edwards
2006 Pole: Kyle Busch

2007 Point Standings

No. Driver          Pts
1  Edwards      2686
2  Reutimann   1910
3  Ragan         1840
4  Blaney        1833
5  Harvick        1798
6  Leffler          1768
7  Ambrose     1756
8  Hamilton Jr. 1753
9  Smith          1744
10  Leicht         1696

Pre-Race Schedule: Friday—Practice, 9:40-10:50 a.m., 11:20-11:50 (rookies) and 1:45-3 p.m. Saturday—Qualifying, 10:05 a.m.