News

SAM HORNISH JR.
No. 77 Mobil 1 Dodge Charger
Daytona International Speedway – Coke Zero 400     
July 4, 2009

Mobil 1 Team News and Notes of Interest
• Sam Hornish Jr., driver of the Penske Racing No. 77 Mobil 1 Dodge Charger, captured his fourth career top-10 finish in the NASCAR Cup Series with an eighth-place showing last weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. After starting in the 26th spot, Hornish ran inside the top-20 for much of the race, moving as high as fourth on the leaderboard. He was poised for a top-five finish when rain caused the race to be declared official with just over 30 laps to go. Hornish is 26th in the 2009 driver point standings, 109 points out of 20th place.
• Hornish and the Mobil 1 team were on course for a solid result in the season-opening Daytona 500 before excessive debris on the grille of the race car forced Hornish to drop out of the draft to avoid overheating. Hornish finished the rain-shortened event in 32nd place.
• Hornish will celebrate his 30th birthday on Thursday, July 2, 2009 while at Daytona International Speedway preparing for the Coke Zero 400.
• Fans can now follow Hornish on Twitter at www.twitter.com/SamHornish. Hornish provides followers with a glimpse inside his everyday life while keeping fans updated on the latest news from the No. 77 team.

Sam Hornish Jr. on Daytona International Speedway
“I always look forward to racing at Daytona International Speedway due to the heritage of the track and the fact that I love restrictor-plate races. There is an element of excitement that comes with being at Daytona because it is such a historic place for our sport.

“I feel that Penske Racing as a whole has made some decent gains in its speedway package with new race cars and the addition of the R6 engine. The Mobil 1 Dodge was strong at the Daytona 500 earlier this season, but we had to fall out of the draft when debris on the grille caused our engine temperatures to rise. I’m looking forward to getting back on track at Daytona this weekend.”

Crew Chief Travis Geisler on Daytona International Speedway
“Going to Daytona in July marks the start of the second half of the season. We had a very good car for the Daytona 500 and I look forward to getting back to the beach for Saturday night racing. 

“The weather is always hot and the track gets pretty slick compared to the first race in February so handling becomes much more important.  Daytona is a restrictor-plate track that feels more like an intermediate race as the weather gets hotter. Sam has had strong runs at superspeedways this season, but did not get the finishes to show it. I think this weekend could be a breakout restrictor-plate race for this Mobil 1 team.”