Busch Series — Race No. 24 — Zippo 200
Watkins Glen International (2.45-mile road course) — Watkins Glen, N.Y.
Fast Facts for August 10-11, 2007
Tire: Goodyear Eagle Road Course Radials
Number of Tires: 1,200
Tire Codes: D-4112
Tire Circumference: 87.4 in.
Technical Inspection Inflation: Left Front — 23 psi; Left Rear — 20 psi; Right Front — 23 psi; Right Rear — 20 psi
Minimum Recommended Inflation: Left Front — 22 psi; Left Rear — 17 psi; Right Front — 20 psi; Right Rear — 17 psi
Estimated Pit Window: Every 36-38 laps, based on fuel mileage.
Notes: Busch Series teams will run the same tire code (D-4112) on all four tire positions at Watkins Glen International this weekend . . . this is Goodyear’s road course tire for the Busch Series in 2007, and is slightly different than that run on the Nextel Cup cars . . . Busch teams have run this tire at Mexico City earlier this season and at Montreal last weekend . . . Goodyear will bring 600 wet weather tires (D-5648) to Watkins Glen this weekend, in case NASCAR decides to run in rainy conditions . . . as on all NASCAR road courses, teams will not run inner liners in their tires at Watkins Glen.

*Required to qualify on time

Nascar Busch Series News and Notes – Watkins Glen

The season’s third and final road-course race brings with it arguably the most anticipation ahead of a NASCAR Busch Series event this year.

One look at four key players explains why.

In March at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City, Juan Pablo Montoya (#42 Wrigley’s Big Red Dodge) made history by becoming the first Hispanic driver to win in any of NASCAR’s national series. That he accomplished the feat on a road course wasn’t a complete surprise.

But the way he raced his Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates teammate Scott Pruett (#41 Wrigley’s Juicy Fruit Dodge) was. Montoya moved Pruett out of the way on Lap 73 to take the lead and ultimately the win.

That duo returns to race against each other for the first time since then at Watkins Glen International.
But the intrigue doesn’t stop there.

Last week’s inaugural series event at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal yielded another late-race get-together that prompts heightened interest this week.

The Marcos Ambrose (#59 Kingsford Ford) – Robby Gordon (#55 Verizon Wireless Ford) competition also will resume at The Glen. Ambrose was seemingly en route to his first career win when an incident with Gordon with two laps to go removed him from contention for the victory.

“I think we showed a lot at Montreal and had as good a pace as anybody,” Ambrose said. “That we didn’t take our first victory was not our own doing but the beauty of NASCAR is that when you race every weekend, you don’t have much of a chance to look back because the next race is always around the corner.”

Carpentier Returns To NASCAR For “Double Duty” Racing At The Glen

Montreal’s native open-wheel son is back for more NASCAR racing following his stunning debut last week at his home track.

Patrick Carpentier (#22 Supercuts Dodge) is entered in Saturday’s race for Fitz Motorsports and also in Sunday’s NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series event, driving the #10 Valvoline Dodge in place of Scott Riggs.

Last week, Carpentier won the Busch Pole in his first NASCAR national series qualifying attempt, then promptly set the pace at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, leading the first six laps – 14 overall – before finally drag-racing two-time series champion Kevin Harvick (#21 AutoZone Chevy) for the victory. Carpentier finished second.

In The Loop: Top Road Course Stats Add To “Round Two” Rivalries At Watkins Glen

This weekend at Watkins Glen International should be entitled “Round Two.”

The bell rings once again for two pairs of drivers.

The first is the story of Robby Gordon and Marcos Ambrose. Their “rivalry” started last weekend in Montreal, as Gordon took Ambrose  out of the race.

At the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve road-course, Ambrose had race-best stats in a number of categories: Driver Rating (133.4), Average Running Position (2.9), Fastest Laps Run (14) and Green Flag Speed (94.332 mph). Figure those stats to translate well at Watkins Glen.

Gordon, likewise, has impressive road course numbers – especially at The Glen. He was runner-up in each of the last two NASCAR Busch Series races there and racked up impressive stats in each. Over the past two years, Gordon has a Watkins Glen Driver Rating of 125.8, an Average Running Position of 6.1, 32 Fastest Laps Run and has spent 146 of 165 laps in the top 15.

Gordon also has 52 Quality Passes – passes of cars in the top 15 under green – which is more than any other driver.

Then there’s the rivalry between teammates Juan Pablo Montoya and Scott Pruett. Montoya got into the back of Pruett at this year’s Mexico City race, and eventually went on to win.

At Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, Montoya earned a near-perfect Driver Rating of 149.2 (150.0 is the maximum), an Average Running Position of 3.9 and led all drivers in Fastest Laps Run with 33.

Pruett, a road-course ace, usually runs up front at Watkins Glen. At the upstate New York road course over the last two years, Pruett has a Driver Rating of 93.9, an Average Running Position of 12.9 and 117 Laps in the Top 15.

NBS ETC.

Lucky Seven For Leicht: Stephen Leicht (#90 CitiFinancial Ford) had his second-best career finish (fifth) at Montreal last Saturday and looks to keep his season-long momentum going at Watkins Glen. The 20-year-old moved up one spot to a career-best, seventh-place ranking in the NASCAR Busch Series standings thanks to his finish at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, a marked improvement from his 27th-place result in Mexico City last March.

Five members of Leicht’s team went directly from Montreal to Watkins Glen – one of numerous teams handling preparations on their cars there due to the limited turnaround time for a second consecutive road-course race – a first in the NASCAR Busch Series. Ryan Fugle, an engineer and shock specialist on the #90 team, returns home to New York this weekend. Fugle is a native of Livonia, 45 minutes from Watkins Glen.

Back for More: The Watkins Glen entry list has a similar flavor to last week’s entries in Montreal, especially on the road-course “ringer” side. In addition to previously-mentioned aces Boris Said (#9 Ingersoll Rand Dodge), Patrick Carpentier, Juan Pablo Montoya, Scott Pruett and Robby Gordon, others are back to try their hand for the second week in a row. Fourth-place Montreal finisher and three-time Watkins Glen winner Ron Fellows (#33 RoadLoans.com Chevy) returns along with Andy Pilgrim (#88 U.S. NAVY Chevy), Jorge Goeters (#27 Brewco Motorsports Ford), Andy Lally (#47 Clorox Ford) and Scott Gaylord (#52 Means Motorsports Ford). Also back is last week’s Montreal winner and reigning series champion Kevin Harvick.

Pilgrim’s Pride: Andy Pilgrim may be a darkhorse at Watkins Glen. After running solidly in Montreal in his first stock-car outing (15th), the native of Nottingham, England who became a U.S. citizen in 1998 has 28 career starts at The Glen in seven different racing series, most recently in June, when he won the pole for the SCCA SPEED World Challenge GT race, finishing fourth. All told at The Glen, Pilgrim has three wins, five poles and 17 top-five finishes. After gaining experience in Montreal, Andy Lally is another driver to watch this weekend. The three-time Grand Am GT Sports Car champion also has turned plenty of laps at Watkins Glen and has won twice there.

Wisconsin Natives Gather at The Glen: Former NASCAR Busch Series regulars Paul Menard (#15 Menards Chevy) and Johnny Sauter (#28 U.S. Border Patrol Chevy) renew their old series and state  rivalry at Watkins Glen this weekend. Menard (Eau Claire) and Sauter (Necedah) are Wisconsin natives who have raced against each basis in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series this season, but will be meeting for only the second time in 2007 in NASCAR Busch Series competition. Menard finished sixth in the series standings last year, Sauter eighth. Both have raced twice before at The Glen in the NASCAR Busch Series, with Menard’s eighth place in 2005 the best among the two drivers.

The Director’s Take: The Glen

INSIGHT FROM JOE BALASH,
NASCAR BUSCH SERIES DIRECTOR

“Watkins Glen, being the second of back-to-back road-course events, presents a unique challenge to the NASCAR Busch Series teams.

“Teams have either had to build a third road course car to be prepared, or they’re spending extra time driving from Montreal to Watkins Glen so they can get to the garage early to do the maintenance on their cars from last weekend.

“A number of NASCAR Busch Series teams arrived early Monday to change engines, rebuild brakes, switch out transmissions and restore sheet metal on the road-course cars.

“This is the third of three road-courses in 2007 which gives our drivers a broad experience to build their road course talents.

“The Glen is a wider track with more sweeping turns. It races more like a speedway than the tight chicane-like turns of Montreal.

Rookie Spotlight: Current Class Has Been Solid In Road Course Competition

• Krisiloff’s Charge: Lost in the fallout from last Saturday’s finish at Montreal was the sixth-place result posted by Kyle Krisiloff (#14 Lilly/Walgreens Ford), tops among Raybestos Rookies. His was the second-best finish of his short 26-race career, after the fifth at Talladega Superspeedway last April. Krisiloff, like the bulk of the 2007 class, has fared well at both road courses thus far. He posted a solid 16th-place at Mexico City in March. Krisiloff’s finish in Montréal propelled him to third in the rookie standings ahead of Juan Pablo Montoya, who returns to the series for the first time since the July 14 race at Chicagoland Speedway.

• Rave Road Reviews for Rookies: Krisiloff’s result at Montreal was only one rookie success story there – three of the four Raybestos Rookies entered finished in the top 10. Krisiloff’s sixth place led the way with Marcos Ambrose in seventh and Brad Coleman (#18 FedEx Express Chevy) in eighth. Rookie standings leader David Ragan (#6 Discount Tire Ford) was 19th. The foursome is entered at Watkins Glen and is bolstered by Montoya’s return – both of his NASCAR national series wins this year have been on road-courses, beginning with his historic victory in Mexico City.

2007 NASCAR BUSCH SERIES
RAYBESTOS ROOKIE OF THE YEAR STANDINGS

Driver                                  Points
1. David Ragan                    198
2. Marcos Ambrose             179
3. Kyle Krisiloff                    163
4. Juan Pablo Montoya         162
5. Brad Keselowski              118
6. Brad Coleman                  114
7. Robert Richardson Jr.         84
8. Justin Diercks                    51

ESPN/ABC

ESPN2 will have live coverage of the Zippo 200at The Glen from Watkins Glen beginning at 3 p.m. ET on Saturday beginning with NASCAR Countdown.

In addition to coverage of the race, ESPN2 will televise NASCAR Busch Series practice from Watkins Glen at 5:30 p.m. Friday and qualifying at 11:30 a.m. Saturday.

Dr. Jerry Punch will anchor ESPN2’s coverage from The Glen, with analysis by former NASCAR NEXTEL Cup champion Rusty Wallace and two-time champion crew chief Andy Petree. Pit reporters will be Allen Bestwick, Dave Burns, Jamie Little and Mike Massaro, while Tim Brewer will report from the ESPN DISH Tech Center.

2007 At-A-Glance: NASCAR Busch Series Leaders After 23 Of 35 Races:

Traditional Statistics
Driver points – Edwards (3467)
Victories – Edwards, Harvick (4)
Races Led – Edwards (17)
Laps Led –  Edwards (682)
Top-Five Finishes – Edwards (13)
Top-10 finishes – Edwards (17)
Owner points – Roush (#60) – (3467)
Money Won – Edwards ($902,795)
Miles led – Ky. Busch (1015.53)
Busch Poles – Hamlin (4)
Closing in on Top 10 – M. Wallace 10th (2240 pts) (Biffle -66)
Consecutive Weeks in Top 10 – Blaney, Edwards, Harvick (23)

Loop Data Statistics
Driver Rating – Edwards (113.3)
Average Running Position – Edwards (7.9)
Fastest Laps Run – Edwards (451 fastest laps)
Quality Passes – Edwards (833)
Laps In Top 15 – Edwards (3,774 of a possible 4,241)

Consecutive Wins At The Glen Give Dodge Upstate N.Y. Momentum

Chevy snapped a two-race losing streak with Kevin Harvick’s win last Saturday at the inaugural event in Montreal. Toyota (O’Reilly Raceway Park) and Dodge (Gateway International Raceway) had posted victories in the previous two events.

The win pushed Chevy to a 30-point lead over second-place Ford in the Bill France Performance Cup standings. One would surmise that margin could increase due to Chevy’s success at Watkins Glen, where its nine wins lead all manufacturers. Eight of those wins were in succession from 1994-2001 – the last year of series races at The Glen until resuming in 2005.

However, since the series returned two years ago, it’s been all Dodge. Ryan Newman (#12 Kodak Dodge) won in 2005 while Kurt Busch took last year’s event. Both drivers are entered in Dodges for Penske Racing this weekend giving it the logical advantage, especially with other Dodge-equipped road-course aces like Boris Said, Patrick Carpentier, Scott Pruett and Juan Pablo Montoya.

Manufacturers’ Championship
2007 Point Standings

Chevy   171
Ford     141
Dodge  100
Toyota   95

Up Next: CARFAX 250 At Michigan International Speedway

The NASCAR Busch Series stays on its northern path next week with a trip to Michigan International Speedway for the CARFAX 250.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. won this event in 2006, the last time he’s been to Victory Lane in either NASCAR Busch Series or in NASCAR NEXTEL Cup competition. The finish was memorable with Earnhardt bumping Carl Edwards out of the way on the next-to-last lap, denying the Roush Fenway Racing driver a win at his owner’s home track.

Despite last year’s result, Roush Fenway Racing leads all teams in wins at Michigan with three, but hasn’t won there since Jeff Burton’s 1998 victory. Four drivers are tied with two wins to lead that category while there hasn’t yet to been a multiple Busch Pole winner at MIS. Mark Martin, the series all-time leader in wins (47) and poles (30) won the pole last year.

FAST FACTS

The Race: Zippo 200 at The Glen
The Place: Watkins Glen International
The Date: August 11, 20071
The Time: 3:00 p.m. (ET)
TV: ESPN2, 2:30 p.m. (ET)
Track Layout: 2.45-mile road course
Race Purse: $1,114,803
2006 Winner: Kurt Busch
2006 Pole: Kurt Busch

2007 Driver Point Standings

No. Driver           Pts
1    Edwards        3467
2    Reutimann     2680
3    Harvick          2548
4    Leffler            2532
5    Ragan           2486
6    Hamilton       2398
7    Leicht           2340
8    Ambrose       2271
9    Blaney          2252
10  M. Wallace    2174

Schedule: Fri. – 1:30 – 3:00 p.m. – Practice; 5:30 p.m. – Final Practice (45 minutes, time permitting). Sat. 11:35 a.m. – NASCAR Road Race Qualifying  (Impound).