News

SAM HORNISH JR.
No. 77 Mobil 1 Dodge Charger
Talladega Superspeedway – AMP Energy 500    
November 1, 2009

Mobil 1 Team News and Notes of Interest
• Sam Hornish Jr., driver of the Penske Racing No. 77 Mobil 1 Dodge Charger, has two career starts at Talladega Superspeedway in Cup Series competition. In April, Hornish secured the fourth starting position at the 2.66-mile superspeedway and, although he was feeling ill, Hornish ran inside the top-15 for much of the race and led a total of three laps. Unfortunately, Hornish was collected in a 10-car accident in the waning laps of the race and was relegated to a 34th-place finish.
• Hornish has a total of six career starts in NASCAR superspeedway competition. A fan of the high-speed venues, Hornish has an average starting position of 26 and an average finishing spot of 29.5 in restrictor-plate events. His career-best superspeedway finish of 15th came at Daytona International Speedway in 2008.
• Hornish will once again host the AutoTrader.com Sam Hornish Jr. Celebrity Bowling Tournament during the upcoming race weekend at Texas Motor Speedway. Open to the public, the tournament will take place on Thursday, November 5, 2009 at Main Event in Grapevine, Texas and will benefit Speedway Children’s Charities. Additional information is available at http://bit.ly/1u1MK.
• Fans can now follow Sam Hornish Jr. on Twitter at www.twitter.com/SamHornish. Fans can get a glimpse inside his everyday life while keeping up-to-date on the latest news for the No. 77 team.

Sam Hornish Jr. on Talladega Superspeedway
“I am looking forward to racing at Talladega Superspeedway this weekend because I really enjoy restrictor-plate racing. Even though our finishes at Talladega don’t necessarily reflect it, this Mobil 1 team has run well there in the past, but issues from blown tires to accidents have prevented us from getting finishes that are reflective of our overall speedway program. There is always a ‘wild card’ element that comes with restrictor-plate racing. You never know what is going to happen out there. You just have to stay alert and focus on driving smart so that you are there when the checkered flag waves.”

Crew Chief Travis Geisler on Talladega Superspeedway
“Talladega is one of the most unpredictable race tracks on the circuit. The three-wide racing is exciting for the fans but it is nerve-wracking for teams as you hope you can miss the ‘big one.’ In the spring, we qualified fourth and led laps during the race only to have an accident take us out of contention. We are confident that our Mobil 1 Dodge will be good this weekend and Sam has shown a lot of skill working the draft. I am excited to get a good finish at a restrictor-plate race because we have run good all year at superspeedways but haven’t got the finishes we deserve.”