Brad Keselowski · NSCS Driver Preview · Penske Racing NSCS
Brad Keselowski Lenox Industrial Tools 301 Race Preview
The No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger team will race chassis PRS-810 during Sunday’s Lenox Industrial Tools 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway (NHMS) in Loudon, N.H. Keselowski last raced this chassis to a 15th-place finish at Darlington Raceway in May.
No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger in 2012… After 18 points-paying events, Keselowski and the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger team are ranked ninth in the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) driver and owner point rankings. The team is coming off an eighth-place finish in the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway last Saturday night.
Quality Pass Leader… The Miller Lite Dodge has displayed impressive speed throughout the 2012 season, supported by the fact that Keselowski leads the Cup Series in the Quality Pass category with 1,251 passes on the year.
Premiere Pole… Keselowski won his first career NSCS pole position at NHMS on September 17, 2010 with a then-track record run of 28.515 seconds, or 133.572 miles per hour, around the flat, one-mile oval.
Driver Turned Crew Chief… Crew chief Paul Wolfe has an extensive driving history at NHMS. The 35-year-old has one career start in the NASCAR Nationwide Series at the venue, along with 11 starts in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East (KNPSE) competition. In those 11 KNPSE starts, Wolfe accumulated four top-five finishes, six top-10 results and 137 laps led.
It’s Miller Time… The featured tag line on the rear bumper of the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge this weekend in New Hampshire is “It’s Miller Time.” One of the most-recognized marketing slogans in recent memory, “It’s Miller Time” can be found within many popular culture references. MillerCoors decided to bring back the slogan earlier this year.
Have a Beer with Brad… Keselowski will make an appearance at Weirs Beach Lobster Pound, located at 70 Endicott Street in Laconia, N.H., beginning at 8 PM ET on Thursday, July 12.
The Rest is History… In the first-ever race for Penske Racing at New Hampshire, Rusty Wallace started from the 33rd position and finished in Victory Lane on July 11, 1993. In 62 combined starts at the oval, Penske Racing has notched four wins (Ryan Newman – two, Wallace – one and Kurt Busch – one), seven poles, 15 top-five and 30 top-10 finishes. Penske Racing entries have led 928 laps in those races.
Brad Keselowski on New Hampshire: “It’s always a lot of fun when we go up to Loudon to race. The fans really love what we do and they show it by filling the stands. It’s one of those tracks we can go to and almost guarantee that it will be sold out. The racing that we put on at New Hampshire sometimes gets a bad rap, but I think it has produced some of the most exciting finishes over the last few years. It’s a one-mile track, but it races like a short track. There is a lot of beating and banging and bumping and running – all of the things that the fans love.”
Brad Keselowski talks about having three wins on the season: “The three wins are nice, and it means that we are pretty safe in regards to making the Chase, but we are focused on staying in the top 10 so that we can use the bonus points. That’s the way I look at the points right now. To me, we are leading the points because we are in the top 10 with the most wins. I want to be the guy with the most wins and inside the top 10 and I want to make sure that we stay there. Hopefully we can climb up a few more spots to be safe. But wins and being in the top 10, that’s all that matters.”
Crew chief Paul Wolfe on New Hampshire: “Loudon is a unique racetrack. It has aspects of both Richmond and Phoenix all rolled into one. We work really hard to get the car to turn in the center (of the corners) and maintain forward drive for late into a run. It’s a very flat layout, which presents a lot of different challenges. With no banking to catch the car, it can be very hard on brakes because the straightaways are long and you can build up a lot of speed before you get to the corner. It is so hard to pass, you really need the complete package to win there – good brakes, handling and pit stops.”
