Jacques Villeneuve, No. 22 Discount Tire Dodge Preview - Bucyrus 200
Jacques Villeneuve to make his Penske Racing debut this weekend in Road America.
June 21, 2011
• Jacques Villeneuve, driver of the No. 22 Discount Tire Dodge Challenger, will make his first start of the 2011 NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) season Saturday evening in the Bucyrus 200 at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis.
• From 2006 to present, Villeneuve has made a total of five NNS starts. He has scored three top-10 finishes during that time and has also captured three top-five and two top-10 starting positions while competing in a limited NNS schedule over the last three years.
• This weekend will mark the first outing together for Villeneuve, the former Formula One champion and Indianapolis 500 winner, and crew chief, Todd Gordon. This is also the first race for Villeneuve with Penske Racing. He is scheduled to drive the No. 22 Discount Tire Dodge later this season at Montreal as well.
• Villeneuve will make his first start of the 2011 NNS season in Penske Racing chassis No. 219. Saturday's race will mark his first NNS start in a Dodge as well.
• This will be Villeneuve's second Nationwide Series race at Road America. He last competed on the challenging road circuit in June of 2010 when he qualified second and went on to finish in 25th place
• Villeneuve has experienced success at Road America in the past. He won the CART Series Indy car races there in both 1994 and 1995.
• Villeneuve's Dodge Challenger will carry one of the in-car cameras featured during the ESPN-TV race broadcast on Saturday, which begins at 5:30 pm ET.
• On Friday, Villeneuve, along with drivers Ron Fellows and Max Papis, will participate in a press conference to discuss international stars competing in the NNS race at Road America.
• Villeneuve will give pace car rides to select members of the media before the race on Saturday afternoon from 1:30 - 2:00 pm CT.
Jacques Villeneuve's comments on this weekend's Bucyrus 200
"Road America is one of my favorite tracks and I'm super excited to be returning there this weekend to race in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. I was fighting for the win in last year's race so I have some unfinished business at this event, for sure. This will be my first event both in the No. 22 Discount Tire/Ruby Tuesday Dodge Challenger, and with Penske Racing, so I'm really looking forward to getting in the car and seeing what we can achieve together. It's a track I know and love, having won the Indy car races there in '94 and '95, so we should be very competitive."
Crew Chief, Todd Gordon's comments on this weekend's Bucyrus 200
"Road America is the longest track on our schedule with long straights and big breaking zones that give one of the best road racers, Jacque Villeneuve, lots of opportunities to get the Discount Tire Dodge out front. We have tested with Jacques a couple of times and had good speeds as a result of the testing. We feel we have a good package to unload with and build from for this circuit. The challenges of having to turn both ways and stop well are something this whole No. 22 Discount Tire Dodge team looks forward to."