News

Justin Allgaier
No. 12 Verizon Wireless Dodge Charger
Daytona International Speedway – Subway Jalapeno 250
July 3, 2009

No. 12 Penske Racing Dodge Charger News and Notes
• This week’s Charger… The No. 12 Penske Racing team will race chassis PRS-552 during Friday night’s 250-mile superspeedway NASCAR Nationwide Series event at the World Center of Speed. PRS-552 is a brand new chassis to the No. 12 Verizon Wireless Dodge team’s fleet.
• Rookie Sensation… Driver Justin Allgaier might be a rookie in the Nationwide Series, but he is no stranger to Daytona International Speedway. The 23-year old has competed in three races at the 2.5-mile speedway with a career-best finish of second last spring in the ARCA RE/MAX Series race.
• Come and See Me… Allgaier will be signing autographs at the Penske Racing souvenir trailer on Friday, July 3 from 11:00 -11:30 a.m.  The trailer is located on souvenir row outside of turn four.
• Rookie Race… With another top-15 finish on Saturday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Allgaier is still battling for Nationwide Series Rookie-Of-The-Year honors. The Riverton, Ill. native is currently one point behind rookie leader, Brendan Gaughan, after 16 of 34 events.
• Superspeedway Tested… Allgaier has seven starts at “plate”-style tracks. In addition to his three starts at Daytona, the rookie racer has also competed in four races at Talladega Superspeedway, where he has captured one win, one top-five, and one top-10 finish.
• Listen and Watch… The Subway Jalapeno 250 can be seen Friday, July 3 live on ESPN with coverage beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET. The event can also be heard live on MRN radio as well as Sirius Satellite Radio channel 128.

Justin Allgaier on driving at Daytona International Speedway
“Daytona is a place where I have raced before in an ARCA RE/MAX Series car. You have to be patient and survive until the final third of the race and then start to make your move. The cars really bounce around a lot down there so you have to have a setup that is both fast, but also gives your car the ability to handle. The differences between this race and the event in the spring are the temperature. It is going to be hot and slick.  There is going to be significantly less grip which means everyone is going to be sliding around a lot more. We just need to keep our nose clean all day and stay out of trouble. I know Chad Walter and all the guys on the Verizon Wireless Dodge have been working extra hard making this car fast and I am looking forward to Friday night’s race. ”

Crew chief Chad Walter on Daytona International Speedway
“Daytona is a place where if you do all of your homework you will be fast right off the truck. I know we have worked hard all year to make sure our cars are as aerodynamic as possible and feel like we have a car that is going to be competitive. Hopefully we are only going to have to make a couple of minor adjustments to dial it in for the race. The key to success at Daytona is finishing every lap. I preach to Justin [Allgaier] every week that in order to finish first, you first must finish. There are so many variables at a track like Daytona that you cannot control. If you are in the middle of a three-wide pack, you are at the mercy of the people around you. Justin has to make smart decisions and put himself in a position where he can bail out if he senses there could be a problem.”

Justin Allgaier Nationwide Series Career Totals
Races      Wins      Top-Fives       Top-10s      Poles       Money Won
   20              0                3                       7                 0             $532,103

Justin Allgaier 2009 Totals
Races      Wins      Top-Fives      Top-10s      Poles      Money Won
  16              0                 3                      7                 0           $458,253