NASCAR Cup

Atlanta: Sam Hornish Jr preview

* Sam Hornish Jr., driver of the Penske Racing No. 77 Penske Truck Rental Dodge Charger suffered a disappointing race last weekend in Las Vegas after a solid showing in final practice. Hornish Jr. was on his way to pit road for a green flag stop on ...

Published: Mar 5, 2008, 8:39 PM

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* Sam Hornish Jr., driver of the Penske Racing No. 77 Penske Truck Rental Dodge Charger suffered a disappointing race last weekend in Las Vegas after a solid showing in final practice. Hornish Jr. was on his way to pit road for a green flag stop on lap 50 when he blew a right front tire and hit the wall. The team spent over one hour and 100 laps in the garage area making repairs. Hornish Jr. finished the race in 41st place and is currently ranked 38th in the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver point standings.

* Hornish Jr. is currently third in the Raybestos Rookie-of-the-Year standings, trailing only Dario Franchitti and Regan Smith.

* Hornish Jr. has one Nationwide Series start at Atlanta Motor Speedway. In March 2007, he qualified in the fifth position and finished the race in 15th place.

* Hornish Jr. also has one IndyCar Series start at Atlanta Motor Speedway. In April of 2001, he started in the sixth position and captured a fourth-place finish at the 1.54-mile quad-oval.

Chassis Chatter

PRS-553: This weekend's racecar is a brand new chassis.

PRS-508: The back-up car for this weekend was last driven by Kurt Busch at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in July 2007. Busch started on the outside pole and ultimately finished the race in 21st place.

Sam Hornish Jr. on Atlanta Motor Speedway

"I really don't know what to expect at Atlanta Motor Speedway. It's such a fast track and there are several lanes you can run from the white line to the wall. I think it will be a good weekend for us. This is a pivotal weekend. We need to finish the race in order to gain as many valuable owner points as we can in order to be in the top 35. This is especially important for me as we start going to tracks where I have never raced. Having guaranteed starting positions changes everything at those tracks."

Crew Chief Chris Carrier on Atlanta Motor Speedway

Atlanta is a fast track and one of the best we run because it has multiple grooves and you can really slide around. I'm really encouraged for Atlanta. Sam had his best Nationwide Series finish there last year. Our team made progress during practice and qualifying in Las Vegas, even though the race didn't go our way. I feel that progress will help us in Atlanta because both tracks are similar with high speeds and multiple grooves. A lot of what we learned in Las Vegas will have a positive impact in Atlanta."

-credit: pr

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