News

THE RACE

Ford EcoBoost 300
Homestead-Miami Speedway
Saturday, November 15, 4:30 pm ET

THE CARS

The No. 12 Discount Tire Ford Mustang
Driven by Ryan Blaney    

The No. 22 Hertz Ford Mustang
Driven by Brad Keselowski

THE NEWS AND NOTES

The No. 12 Discount Tire Ford Mustang

· A NEW LOOK: Ryan Blaney will return to the seat of the No. 12 Ford Mustang this weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway (HMS) featuring the red, white and black hues of Discount Tire. Normally a primary sponsor on the No. 22 Ford Mustang, this will be the first time Discount Tire has been linked with the No. 12 Ford Mustang team.

· CLOSING STRONG: Two weeks ago, Blaney captured his third top-five of the year while driving the No. 12 Ford at Texas Motor Speedway. The solid result marks his ninth top-five finish overall in just 13 races. Blaney has not finished lower than fourth in his last three starts and looks to improve up on these statistics at HMS this weekend.

· THE LITTLE CREW THAT COULD: This weekend’s Ford EcoBoost 300 will be the fifth race of the season for Greg Erwin and the No. 12 team. In four starts, the team has yet to finish outside the top five with drivers Joey Logano and Ryan Blaney. Following the Texas race two weeks ago, Blaney mentioned how strong the No. 12 team has been all season. The squad has steadily progressed as it finished fifth at Kentucky, third at Watkins Glenn with Logano, fourth at Charlotte, and then third at Texas.

· CREW COMPOSITION: In addition to Erwin, who has five-career Sprint Cup Series wins and one NNS win as a crew chief, the No. 12 team is comprised of guys who work in the shop on a regular basis and also includes members of the Team Penske test team.

· DISCOUNT TIRE BACK TO VICTORY LANE? Discount Tire has been the winning sponsor in two of the last three NASCAR Nationwide Series races at HMS. In 2011, Brad Keselowski won the series closing race after leading 66 laps in the No. 22 Discount Tire machine. Last year, Keselowski raced the No. 48 Discount Tire Ford Mustang to victory after leading 25 laps as teammate Joey Logano drove the No. 22 Ford to the team’s first Owners’ Championship for Team Owner, Roger Penske.
    

THE Q&A

RYAN BLANEY, NO. 12 DISCOUNT TIRE FORD

AFTER THE TEXAS RACE YOU MENTIONED THE PROGRESS THIS TEAM HAS MADE THIS YEAR. WHAT IS YOUR OUTLOOK FOR THIS WEEKEND?

“I am really excited to be back with the 12Ford team this weekend coming into Homestead-Miami and having Discount Tire on the car is a plus. Greg Erwin does a great job interpreting my feedback to make the right calls to adjust the car; we show speed, compete for wins and finish strong.  For a team of guys who work in the shop and on our test team, I could not be more satisfied with our stats. I really hope to get these guys a win to close out the season out strong. They deserve it.”

GREG ERWIN, CREW CHIEF, NO. 12 DISCOUNT TIRE FORD

THIS TEAM HAS JUST FOUR NATIONWIDE SERIES STARTS THIS SEASON, YET HASN’T FINISHED OUTSIDE OF THE TOP FIVE. WHAT MAKES THIS PART-TIME TEAM SO STRONG?

“It really comes down to having great equipment and having the set-up close off the truck. Obviously the shop based guys have helped us a lot as far as preparation of the No. 12 and the No. 22 and the crew is there to lend a hand if we get behind.  Ryan has come a long way in a short period of time as far as his approach to the race weekends and the races. He communicates well, and that helps us make better decisions about how to adjust the car. We like the opportunity to go out and represent our partners while competing for wins with our Nationwide program. A win this weekend at Homestead would be a great way to end the 2014 season and give Ryan even more momentum leading into 2015.”

THE NEWS AND NOTES

The No. 22 Hertz Ford Mustang

· EXTRAORDINARY AVERAGES: Brad Keselowski and the No. 22 Hertz Ford team have 10 starts together this year. In those 10 starts, Keselowski’s has not finished outside of the top-four. He has eight top-two finishes and five victories. These numbers all add up to an incomparable 1.9 average finish in 2014 NASCAR Nationwide Series competition this year.

· HERTZ SO GOOD AT HOMESTEAD-MIAMI: The Team Penske flagship in the Nationwide Series, No. 22 Ford Mustang will once again fly the bright yellow colors of Hertz this weekend at the season finale. This will be the seventh time this year that Hertz, one of the worlds’ leading car rental and transportation companies, will be on the Ford.

· STRONG STARTING STATS: In his 10 NASCAR Nationwide Series outings this season, Keselowski has eight front row starts. Four of those eight are pole positions. This gives the veteran driver a 3.9 average start, thus far, this season. He also has completed every lap in each of his 10 starts with 1827 of 1827 laps completed. Keselowski has led over 36% of those laps.

· LOOKING FOR A THIRD SWEEP: The No. 22 Team Penske Ford team with driver, Brad Keselowski have been a part of two weekend sweeps this year. At Las Vegas Motor Speedway, they started second and then led 144 of 200 laps on the way to the checkered flag. At New Hampshire Motor Speedway they led 152 of 200 laps flag to flag.

· CLOSING IN ON ANOTHER CHAMPIONSHIP: The No. 22 team sits 29 points to the good with one race to go in the 2014 NNS season as they seek their second-straight Owners’ Championship. For Keselowski, it will be the third time he’s been part of a Team Penske NNS Championship. He took top honors as the NNS Champion Driver in 2010 and made strong contributions to the 2013 NNS Owner’s Championship with seven victories in 16 starts.

THE Q&A    

BRAD KESELOWSKI, NO. 22 HERTZ FORD

THIS RACE WAS A LATE ADDITION TO YOUR SCHEDULE, HOW DOES THAT FACTOR IN ON THE WEEKEND?

“This is one of those deals where the team knew going into the weekend that we’d have to be flexible. The way it worked out, I get a chance to win another race and, ideally, sew up Team Penske’s second Nationwide Series Owners’ title. This No. 22 Hertz Ford team prepares Mustangs that are capable of winning each time we race. We’ve been strong every time I’ve been in the car, and they’ve been solid all year long. I am looking forward to this race. I was fortunate enough to win the last two Nationwide Series races that I’ve run here, and making it a three in a row is a perfect way to cap off the year.”

JEREMY BULLINS, CREW CHIEF, NO. 22 HERTZ FORD

THIS TEAM HAS HAD ANOTHER SOLID SEASON. WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS AS YOU HEAD INTO THE SEASON FINALE?

“It’s hard to imagine that we are headed to Homestead for Ford Championship Weekend; it seems like we just got the season started. That said we are really excited to sport the Hertz colors this weekend on our Team Penske Mustang.  It’s been a great season for this team, and hopefully we can cap the year off with another good finish and bring home another Owners’ Championship for Roger, Team Penske and all of our partners.”