|
July 31, 2007
HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. – Michael Waltrip returns to the driver’s seat of the No. 55 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry for this weekend’s Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono Raceway. Although it was tough to sit out Indy, Waltrip appreciated the experience and took away from it a wealth of new-found knowledge that should help strengthen his organization.
Entering Pocono, Waltrip feels strongly about his chances of making the race this time around as well as earning a very respectable finish. Throughout his career, the NAPA driver has earned one pole, three top-five and six top-10 finishes at a track he considers one of his favorites.
NAPA AUTO PARTS driver Michael Waltrip:
Mikey’s thoughts on being back in the car at Pocono
“I can’t wait. We’ve made a lot of strides of the competitiveness with our NAPA car. I honestly cannot wait to get back into the car. Chicago we qualified well, but we did not run like we had hoped. We felt like we learned a lot so we are going to take all that information we learned with us. We certainly did not perform the way we would have liked at Indy with Terry Labonte, but we have a lot of information to work with since we were on the track. Now, we will go to Pocono and apply all that knowledge. I sat on the pole there a few years ago and ran in the top five a few times so I am hoping to have a good run. I just can’t wait to go back up there and get on track.
“I am not taking my Indy car to Pocono because we weren’t planning on it. We thought if it had done really well, we’d consider it. Since it didn’t, we are going to take my Michigan car (chassis 27) that we ran in the top 10.”
Has stepping out of the car given you a better perspective on your NAPA team?
“Well, certainly. Indy gave me the chance to bounce between my three cars and listen to what all the teams were doing as well as help share the knowledge. It’s given me the sense that we could use someone specifically in that role when I am not able to do it. Bobby Kennedy does a great job, but right now he has to be focused on the 55 car. When I was there, I was on the radio listening to what the 55 was saying and then went down and told the 44 team. We need to make sure that we are buttoned up on the competition side. Bobby came on board to do that and we have had to clear a lot of hurdles to get where we are right now. It’s just nice to know that we are finally getting where we need to be. We are going to be fine so I am very happy with the progress this team is making.
“Indy was fun for me to watch David Reutimann and Terry improve all day long. They both kept getting consistently better and they missed all the wrecks. It was looking like we were going to get two top-20 finishes and then they both had engine failure. I think we broke pistons again, like David did back in Chicago. Regardless of what our engine issues were, I know we will get a solution to our problem.”
Michael Waltrip Fast Facts
NAPA AUTO PARTS driver Michael Waltrip will attempt to qualify for his 680th NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series race when the 21st event of the 2007 season, the Pennsylvania 500, is held at Pocono Raceway on Sunday.
Waltrip will attempt to start in his 43rd Cup race at the 2.5-mile track. His best start is 1st in the NAPA machine (June 12, 2005) and best finish is 2nd (June 19, 1988). In total, he has three top-5 and six top-10 finishes at Pocono.
Earlier this season, the NAPA team recorded the 32nd-fastest time during qualifying for the Pocono 500, but due to NASCAR’s Top-35 rule, Waltrip missed the field by a mere .008 seconds.
Waltrip has completed 7,330 of 8,308 laps (88.2%) at the track and has led a total of 63 laps in competition. His average start is 21st and average finish is 20th.
Entering this weekend’s NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series event, Waltrip is 53rd in the driver standings and 47th in owner standings. The NAPA team will need to qualify for the Pennsylvania 500 on time since the No. 55 car is outside the top 35 in owner point standings. A total of 47 cars are entered in the Pocono event. Of the entrants, 12 are go-or-go-home teams. Waltrip will be competing for eight qualifying spots, one of which may be used as a past champion’s provisional by Bill Elliott, if needed.
Waltrip is a two-time Daytona 500 champion. He was victorious in 2001 and 2003.
| DATE |
START |
FINISH |
DATE |
START |
FINISH |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
6/8/1986 |
28 |
39 |
7/21/1996 |
24 |
13 |
|
7/20/1986 |
27 |
11 |
6/8/1997 |
32 |
13 |
|
6/14/1987 |
22 |
16 |
7/20/1997 |
25 |
22 |
|
7/19/1987 |
19 |
37 |
6/21/1998 |
29 |
14 |
|
6/19/1988 |
30 |
2 |
7/26/1998 |
10 |
10 |
|
7/24/1988 |
24 |
17 |
6/20/1999 |
13 |
37 |
|
6/18/1989 |
12 |
14 |
7/25/1999 |
16 |
12 |
|
7/23/1989 |
28 |
28 |
6/19/2000 |
12 |
43 |
|
6/17/1990 |
19 |
19 |
7/23/2000 |
21 |
17 |
|
7/22/1990 |
28 |
23 |
6/17/2001 |
17 |
30 |
|
6/16/1991 |
5 |
18 |
7/29/2001 |
23 |
19 |
|
7/21/1991 |
20 |
38 |
6/9/2002 |
17 |
8 |
|
6/14/1992 |
15 |
15 |
7/28/2002 |
3 |
18 |
|
7/19/1992 |
28 |
26 |
6/8/2003 |
13 |
18 |
|
6/13/1993 |
27 |
21 |
7/27/2003 |
17 |
4 |
|
7/18/1993 |
16 |
14 |
6/13/2004 |
22 |
33 |
|
6/12/1994 |
10 |
11 |
8/1/2004 |
11 |
36 |
|
7/17/1994 |
41 |
14 |
6/12/2004 |
1 |
5 |
|
6/11/1995 |
23 |
9 |
7/24/2005 |
24 |
26 |
|
7/16/1995 |
21 |
21 |
6/11/2006 |
36 |
28 |
|
6/16/1996 |
14 |
14 |
7/23/2006 |
39 |
40 |
|
|
|
NAPA in ARCA RE/MAX race in Pocono and Inaugural Busch Race in Canada
Michael Waltrip Racing development driver Josh Wise will be driving the No. 22 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry in Saturday’s ARCA RE/MAX race at Pocono Raceway. The event is being televised live on SPEED starting at 1 p.m. EDT. Additionally, David Reutimann will be behind the wheel of the #99 NAPA Camry at the Inaugural NAPA 200 Busch race Saturday at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal. The Busch race will be covered on ESPN2 at 3:30 p.m. est.
NASCAR NEXTEL Pennsylvania 500 Broadcast Coverage
Live coverage of the Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono Raceway begins Sunday, August 5 at 1 p.m. EDT on ESPN. It can also be heard on your local MRN Radio affiliate at the same time.
|
