News

Sam Hornish Jr. – No. 12 Penske Truck Rental Dodge Charger
Heluva Good! 200
Dover International Speedway
May 31, 2008

News and Notes
• Sam Hornish Jr., driver of the No. 12 Penske Truck Rental Dodge Charger for Penske Racing, will compete in both the NASCAR Nationwide and Cup Series events at Dover International Speedway this weekend.
• Last weekend in the Carquest Auto Parts 300, the No. 12 team qualified in the 13th position before an incident ended the race early for Hornish Jr. He finished the race in 39th place.
• The Heluva Good! 200 will mark Hornish Jr.’s sixth Nationwide Series start of the 2008 season. So far this year, he has an average start position of 22 and an average finishing position of 19.4. His best finish in 2008 was an 11th place at Darlington Raceway (May 9).
• In a total of four short track starts in Nationwide Series competition, Hornish Jr. has an average starting position of 28 and an average finishing spot of 33.3.
• Penske Racing is just one win shy of reaching the milestone of 300 victories since 1966 across a variety of racing series including the NASCAR Cup Series, IndyCar Series, American Le Mans Series and more. 

Upcoming Events
5/31/0 - 6/1/08: Hornish Jr. will pull “double duty” at Dover International Speedway, competing in both the Nationwide and Cup Series events.

6/1/08: Hornish Jr. will be signing autographs at his souvenir rig on Sunday, June 1 from 9:45 to 10:15 a.m.

Chassis Chatter
PBC-017: This weekend’s car was last driven by Hornish Jr. at Las Vegas Motor Speedway earlier this season. Unfortunately, he spun during qualifying and did not make the race.
PBC-008: The backup car for this weekend was driven by Kurt Busch at Dover in 2006.

Sam Hornish Jr. on Dover International Speedway
“I like Dover International Speedway and am looking forward to competing in both the Nationwide and Sprint Cup Series races this weekend.

“The No. 12 team is having a strong season even though we are only running select races. Of course, the Nationwide Series race will hopefully help me as I prepare for the Cup Series on Sunday in understanding the line and getting comfortable on track. But, I think that this team is capable of a top-10 finish and perhaps that will come this weekend at Dover.”

Crew Chief Matt Gimbel on Dover International Speedway
“I’m happy to be going back to Dover with Sam (Hornish Jr.). We attempted last year’s second Cup race there and unfortunately drew the first qualifying position. We didn’t make the race and I kind of feel that Dover owes us one.

“To have a successful run, you need to get the race car to roll through the center and off of the corners. We hope to have a good day in the Nationwide Series race, but the priority is to get Sam seat time to aid him in the Cup Series race on Sunday.”