News

Sam Hornish Jr. – No. 77 Mobil 1 Dodge Charger
Centurion Boats at the Glen
Watkins Glen International
August 10, 2008

News and Notes
• Sam Hornish Jr., driver of the Penske Racing No. 77 Mobil 1 Dodge Charger, had a successful return to Pocono Raceway last weekend, finishing in 26th place after running steadily in the top-10. The No. 77 Mobil 1 team remains 34th in the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series owner point standings heading to Watkins Glen International.
• This will be Hornish’s first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start at the 2.45-mile road course. However, he has a total of three IndyCar Series starts at Watkins Glen International with a total of one top-three and two top-10 finishes with a best finish of second (2007).
• Hornish is currently in second place in the 2008 Raybestos Rookie of the Year standings. He trails leader Regan Smith by a five points and leads third place driver Patrick Carpentier by nine points.
• Hornish and the No. 12 Penske Truck Rental Nationwide Series team are preparing to return to the series this weekend at Watkins Glen International for the Zippo 200 on Saturday, August 9, 2008.

Upcoming Events
8/9/08: Hornish is slated to return to Nationwide Series competition at Watkins Glen International on Saturday, August 9, 2008, in the No. 12 Penske Truck Rental Dodge for the Zippo 200.
8/10/08:  Hornish will be on hand to sign autographs at Watkins Glen International at the Mobil 1/Penske Racing souvenir trailer on Sunday morning. He will appear from 9:45 to 10:15 a.m.

Chassis Chatter
PRS-508: The primary car for the No. 77 team this weekend was last raced by Hornish at Infineon Raceway earlier this season.
PRS-511: The back up car for the Centurion Boats at the Glen served as the back up car earlier this season in Sonoma.

Sam Hornish Jr. on Watkins Glen International
“In my Indy car days, Watkins Glen was always better to me than Infineon Raceway. I am excited to return for my first Sprint Cup Series race at the Glen and am hopeful that we will have a strong run in the Mobil 1 Dodge.

“We recently tested at a road course in preparation for this weekend’s race, and didn’t quite get the testing in that we wanted. However, with the opportunity to compete in the Nationwide Series race this coming weekend, I think we will gain a lot of experience that will help us out on Sunday afternoon.”

Crew Chief Chris Carrier on Watkins Glen International
“As we approach the second and final road course race of the season, I am cautiously optimistic heading into Watkins Glen. Earlier this year at Infineon Raceway, the Mobil 1 team had a decent run but we didn’t feel that we accomplished all that we set out to achieve.

“Last weekend at Pocono, we made great strides at a track that we struggled at earlier this season, and that’s encouraging for Watkins Glen. As we return to road course racing, we have made our mind up as a team to improve and run methodically. I think we might surprise some people this Sunday.”

2008 Rookie-of-the-Year Standings
Position   Driver                Points
1.           Regan Smith        176
2.           Sam Hornish Jr.    171
3.           Patrick Carpentier 162
4.           Michael McDowell  146
5.           Dario Franchitti      97