Texas II: Sam Hornish Jr qualifying report

Hornish to Start 11th at Texas Motor Speedway on Sunday

FORT WORTH, Texas (November 6, 2009) - Sam Hornish Jr., driver of the Penske Racing No. 77 AAA Dodge Charger, will start the Dickies 500 at Texas Motor Speedway from the 11th starting position on Sunday afternoon.

With a long history of racing success at Texas Motor Speedway, Hornish has two top-20 finishes in NASCAR competition at the 1.5-mile quad-oval. In addition, Hornish has three victories and seven top-five results at the speedway in IndyCar Series competition.

The 32nd competitor to make a qualifying attempt, Hornish posted a fast-lap time of 28.436 seconds at a speed of 189.900 miles per hour. The effort secured the 11th starting position for the No. 77 team.

"The AAA Dodge felt really good on track today," said Hornish. "I think our qualifying run is a great starting point for us heading into Sunday. We'll just move forward from here and see where we're at once the race starts. I think this weekend is a good opportunity for our No. 77 AAA team to get a top 10 finish."

-credit: pr