Michael Annett pre-race notes and quotes: Texas

MOORESVILLE, N.C. - Michael Annett and the No. 7 Accell Construction Chevrolet SS race team head west this weekend to Texas Motor Speedway, near Fort Worth, for the second intermediate track race, and seventh event overall, of the 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season.

Annett, a Rookie of the Year candidate, and his Tommy Baldwin Racing team finished 29th at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, a 1.5-mile intermediate track shaped similarly to Texas. In nine NASCAR Nationwide Series starts at Texas, Annett averaged a 16.1-place finish and scored results of ninth, 17th and 14th in his three most recent outings.

Kevin "Bono" Manion, Annett's crew chief, oversaw cars driven by Martin Truex and Jamie McMurray that scored eight top-15 finishes in 16 attempts. Manion-led teams qualified on the front row twice at Texas, in 2007 and 2008 with Truex.

The race airs live Sunday, April 6 at 3:15 pm Eastern on FOX.

Michael Annett: "I was encouraged by the job we did at Las Vegas, which is an intermediate track like Texas. We were running out of gas at the end of that race and didn't get the finish we probably deserved, but the day itself proved to us that we can pass with this package. We learned a lot there that I think can translate to this weekend and all the upcoming intermediate races."

Tommy Baldwin Racing

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