News

Justin Allgaier, No. 12 Penske Truck Rental Dodge Charger

Dollar General 300 Notes & Quotes

For Immediate Release – October 7, 2008

• Justin Allgaier will be making his debut in the No. 12 Penske Truck Rental Dodge Charger for Penske Racing, his first start ever in the NASCAR Nationwide Series and his first race at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.
• On September 17, Penske Racing announced the signing of 22-year old Allgaier to drive in the NASCAR Nationwide Series.  Allgaier will drive a limited Nationwide Series schedule in 2008 and 2009.
• Allgaier currently ranked third in the in the challenging ARCA/ReMax series, a mere 105 points from first place.  In the 2008 season, Allgaier has posted five wins, 13 top-five and 15 top-10 finishes.
• Last weekend at the Talladega Superspeedway ARCA event, Allgaier started in 25th spot, overcame a radiator puncture and worked his way into first spot on the last lap.
• With his victory at Talladega, Allgaier has won on every type of ARCA track - speedway, superspeedway, short track, road course and dirt track.
• On October 1, Allgaier tested an ARCA race car at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, turning his first laps around the 1.5-mile oval

Justin Allgaier Quote Re: His First Race at Lowe’s Motor Speedway:

“I’m definitely excited about going to Charlotte.  It’s a race that has a lot of prestige to it.  There’s a lot of big names who have won the Nationwide race there.  So I’m really looking forward to that.

“I’m also looking forward to our new venture at Penske Racing, getting to know everyone on the crew and make sure that everything goes well. Just finishing the race for me on Friday is the goal and getting used to the car and crew.”

Crew Chief Matt Gimbel on Lowe’s Motor Speedway:

“We’ve always had good cars at Charlotte.  Penske Racing in terms of Nationwide competition have either led laps or won there, so we feel like we’ve got a good baseline setup for the track.”

On Justin Allgaier’s debut: “We tested Justin at Lowe’s on October 1 and he did a great job.  He took to the track very quickly and I was happy with his performance.  I think he’s going to do well in his first Nationwide Race there this week.”

Penske Racing President Tim Cindric Quote Re: Justin Allgaier:

“We’ve had our eye on Justin for some time, and Penske Racing is fortunate to be in a position to bring him on board.  Roger always enjoys the opportunity to grow people within our system and we are looking forward to helping him achieve his career goals.”

Justin Allgaier Fast Facts/Stats:

• 22 years old (DOB June 6, 1986).
• Hometown - Riverton, Ill.
• Married - wife Ashley.
• 2008 ARCA wins: Salem Speedway (Ind.), Cayuga Speedway Park (Ontario, Canada), Pocono Raceway (Pa.), New Jersey Motorsports Park (N.J.), Talladega Superspeedway (Ala.).
• 2007 ARCA record (23 of 23 events): Fourth in championship standings; one win (Salem Speedway), four top-five and 10 top-10 finishes.
• 2006 ARCA record (21 of 23 events): 10th in championship standings; one win (Illinois State Fairgrounds, Springfield, Ill.), seven top-five and eight top-10 finishes.
• NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series record: 2005 - four races, best start 22nd (Texas), best finish 27th (Las Vegas, Texas); 2006 - three races, best start 26th (Milwaukee), best finish 21st (Kansas); 2008 — one race (Kentucky), started 34th, finished 24th. 
• Five-time national quarter midget champion, more than 100 feature wins.
• Chili Bowl records: 2007 - third (A Main); 2006 -  24th (A Main); 2005 - 10th (First C Main); 2004 -  12th (First B Main); 2003 - eighth (Second C Main); 2002 - DNS (Second G Main); 2001 - youngest driver ever to make an A Main race at 14 years old (DNF).

Upcoming Races for Justin Allgaier:

Nationwide Series:

• 10/10: Dollar General 300, Lowe’s Motor Speedway
• 11/01: O’Reilly Challenge, Texas Motor Speedway
• 11/15: Ford 300, Homestead-Miami Speedway

ARCA/ReMax Series:

• 10/12: Hantz Group 200, Toledo Speedway

Chassis Chatter:

• PBC-019: This weekend’s race car is making its competition debut at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.  It was the backup car for Sam Hornish Jr. at the May 24 Nationwide Series race.
• PBC-016: The backup car for this weekend was driven by Hornish earlier this season at Texas Motor Speedway (started 28th, finished 15th).

No. 12 Penske Truck Rental Dodge Pit Crew:

• Crew Chief:              Matt Gimbel (Northampton, Pa.)
• Team Engineer:       Jonathan Hassler (Greencastle, Ind.)
• Car Chief:                Tom Clavette (Methuen, Mass.)
• Front-tire Carrier:      Jayson Wong (Brooklyn, N.Y.)
• Front-tire Changer:   Nick Giambruno (Long Island, N.Y.)
• Jackman:                Braxton Brannon (Mooresville, N.C.)
• Rear-tire Carrier:      Steve Bailey (Brevard, N.C.)
• Rear-tire Changer:    David Woodhead (Montoursville, Pa.)
• Gasman:                 Chris Moore (Tampa, Fla.)
• Catch Can:              Jesse Baker (Radford, Va.)