NATIONWIDE SERIES PREVIEW FOR MID-OHIO
By Max Papis Racing | August 13, 2013 at 1:30 pmMAX PAPIS JOINS RCR FOR THE NNS RACE AT MID-OHIO SPORTS CAR COURSE
Race: Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200
Date: Saturday, August 17, 2013
Location: Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course
Richard Childress Racing’s NASCAR Nationwide Series History at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course …The NASCAR Nationwide Series will make its inaugural appearance at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course this weekend, as will Richard Childress Racing. However, the Welcome, N.C., organization has a long history of making right and left turns, with 46 total road course starts in the Nationwide Series. RCR has three road course wins (Jeff Purvis at Pikes Peak International Raceway on July 28, 2001, Kevin Harvick at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, on August 4, 2007 and Watkins Glen International on August 11, 2007), among 10 top-five and 22 top-10 finishes.
RCR in the NNS ... In 933 Nationwide Series starts through the last 15 years, Richard Childress Racing has earned 65 wins, 48 pole awards, 314 top-five and 520 top-10 finishes, with a 12th-place average starting position and an average finishing position of 12.4 among all races contested. RCR earned the Nationwide Series driver point championships in 2001 and 2006 with Harvick, and in 2008 with Clint Bowyer. The Welcome, N.C.-based team earned the owner’s title in 2003 with Johnny Sauter and Harvick and again in 2007 with Jeff Burton and Scott Wimmer.
The Season So Far … In the 21 races contested this season, RCR has earned one win in the Nationwide Series, with Tony Stewart at Daytona International Speedway, along with 16 top-five and 33 top-10 finishes. Austin Dillon has earned six pole awards at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Dover International Speedway, Iowa Speedway, Michigan International Speedway, Kentucky Speedway and Daytona International Speedway, setting the all-time pole award record in the Nationwide Series with four-consecutive poles. The organization has led 649 laps in 2013.
Get to the Points … Dillon leads the Nationwide Series driver championship point standings by three points over Sam Hornish Jr, while Brian Scott is seventh, 56 points out of the lead. In the Nationwide Series owner championship point standings, the No. 3 Chevrolet team sits third, while the No. 2 team is ninth and the No. 33 team is 13th.
Social Media … To keep up-to-date with the latest news, information and to view exclusive content, visit RCR’s Twitter page – @RCRracing, RCR’s NASCAR Nationwide Series team Twitter pages – @RCR2BScott, @RCR3ADillon and @RCR33NNS, RCR’s NNS driver Twitter pages – @BScottRacing, @AustinDillon3 and @MaxPapis and the official Facebook fan pages – facebook.com/BScottRacing and facebook.com/austindillon3.
Catch the Action … Flag-to-flag coverage of the Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200 will be televised on ESPN beginning at 2:30 p.m. Eastern Time on Saturday, August 17 and broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Satellite Radio channel 90.
Brian Scott
No. 2 Shore Lodge Chevrolet Camaro
This Week’s Shore Lodge Chevrolet at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course … This weekend, Brian Scott and Richard Childress Racing’s No. 2 Shore Lodge team head to a new road course on the NASCAR Nationwide Series schedule. For the first time, the series will turn left and right at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. The No. 2 Shore Lodge crew will bring chassis No. 135. This is a new chassis from the Richard Childress Racing Nationwide Series stable.
Scott’s Road Course Stats … Scott has 11-career Nationwide Series road course starts to his credit. This past weekend he started 10th and brought home an 11th-place finish at Watkins Glen International.
Patient Champion Peyton … In conjunction with Nationwide Children’s Hospital, the No. 2 Shore Lodge team will dedicate their hood to patient champion Peyton Ostrowsky. The 13-year-old Winston Salem, N.C.-native suffers from Diabetes Insipidus, a rare condition that is caused by irregular development of the pituitary gland. Those with Diabetes Insipidus cannot regulate their water intake, and can suffer from severe dehydration and blurred vision. Today, Peyton takes daily medication and went from being the smallest kid in pre-school to one of the tallest in his seventh-grade class.
Lodging in Idaho … Shore Lodge will serve as primary sponsor for Scott and the No. 2 team in Saturday afternoon’s Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200. Set on the southern shore of Payette Lake in McCall, Idaho, four seasons of adventure await at this idyllic location. A family favorite since 1948, the travel destination allows guests to enjoy the spectacular views, friendly service and generous accommodations at the lake front resort. Shore Lodge serves as the perfect mixture of adventure and luxury featuring 26 spa adventures, fitness studio, golf privileges at Whitetail Club, jet skiing, and a private beach for guests.
Racing the kids … In preparation for this Saturday’s 90-lap event at Mid-Ohio, Scott and teammate Austin Dillon made the trip to Nationwide Children’s Hospital last week to challenge kids in a pinewood derby. The RCR duo built and raced wooden versions of their Camaros while competing against hospital patients to help promote Saturday’s race. Later that afternoon, the teammates threw out the ceremonial first pitch at the Columbus Clippers AAA game.
BRIAN SCOTT QUOTE
Usually it doesn’t take long to figure out a new oval on the schedule, but how long does it take to figure out a new road course? “Luckily we’ll be in the same boat as a lot of the NASCAR Nationwide Series competitors. There are relatively a few guys that are road course racers that have been there. It’ll be a welcomed challenge, it’s been awhile since I’ve been to a track that I’ve never even seen before, so I’m looking forward to the challenges that present itself going to a place for the first time. This team will be able to figure it out relatively quick and put together another solid road course race. I’ll lean on our teammate Max Papis since he’s had a lot of success there and is an accomplished road racer, as well.”
Austin Dillon
No. 3 AdvoCare Chevrolet Camaro
This Week’s AdvoCare Chevrolet at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course … Austin Dillon will pilot Chassis No. 133 in the Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. This is the same Chevrolet that Dillon drove to a 12th-place finish at Watkins Glen International last weekend.
Dillon at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course … Although this weekend marks the Nationwide Series’ first appearance at Mid-Ohio, Dillon tested at the 15-turn road course last year. He has several Nationwide Series road course starts to his credit, including a 12th-place finish on Saturday at Watkins Glen.
The Season So Far ... According to NASCAR’s Loop Data Season-to-Date Statistics, Dillon leads the Nationwide Series in Average Starting Position (5.2), ranks second in laps in the Top-15 (90.1 percent), has led the second-most laps (481), maintains the fourth-best Driver Rating (101.5), ranks fourth in Fastest Laps Run (260), fourth in Average Running Position (9.195) and is the fourth-Fastest Driver on Restarts (8.333).
Point Leader … Dillon maintained his lead in the Nationwide Series driver championship standings with his 12th-place finish at Watkins Glen International on Saturday. He currently leads the series by a three-point margin over Sam Hornish Jr.
Riding with Noah … The No. 3 AdvoCare Chevrolet team will help support Nationwide Children’s Hospital and the inaugural Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200 by dedicating the hood and decklid of the No. 3 Chevrolet to Nationwide patient champion Noah Nickodemus this weekend. Now 17-years old, the Raleigh, N.C., resident was diagnosed with Muscular Dystrophy when he was just two years old and currently travels to Columbus, Ohio four times a year to be cared for by Dr. Jerry Mendell, the Director of the Center for Gene Therapy at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. Noah plans to study genetics at a college in Ohio to be close to his doctor. He enjoys water skiing on Lake Norman, fly fishing with his dad, and playing video games. To make a $10 donation to Nationwide Children’s Hospital, text KIDS to 50555.
Spark your Engines … Dillon and the RCR team will sport the colors of award-winning premier health and wellness company AdvoCare on the No. 3 Chevrolet at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. AdvoCare offers nutrition, weight loss, energy and sports performance products of the highest quality developed through comprehensive research and backed by a Scientific and Medical Advisory Board. Dillon trains with AdvoCare products throughout the week and is a distributor as well. For more information about Dillon’s favorite products, including Spark, Rehydrate, meal replacement bars and Post-Workout Recovery, visit http://www.AdvoCare.com.
AdvoCare Supporting the Childress Institute for Pediatric Trauma … If Dillon wins this weekend’s Nationwide Series race at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, AdvoCare will make a $5,000 donation to the Childress Institute for Pediatric Trauma. The health and wellness company will pledge $2,000 to CIPT for a top-five finish and $1,000 for a top-10 finish. So far this season, the No. 3 team has raised $20,000 towards the cause. The Childress Institute invests resources in research, education and awareness to improve the treatment for critically injured children in the U.S. and AdvoCare’s generous donations are aimed at helping to raise awareness for pediatric trauma, the No. 1 killer of children in America. You can help save the lives of injured children by making a contribution to the Childress Institute in two ways: donate $33 in honor of Dillon via his website, or text WIN to 80077 to make a $10 donation.
Making History on Dirt … This week the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, N.C., debuts a special display featuring three artifacts from Dillon’s historic NASCAR Camping World Truck Series win at Eldora Speedway, including the jar of dirt that Dillon scooped up near the finish line with the Eldora golden shovel, his winner’s trophy and the No. 39 American Ethanol Chevrolet Silverado. Dillon made history with the Eldora win, becoming the first driver to win a NASCAR National Series race on dirt in four decades. Tickets to the NASCAR Hall of Fame can be purchased by calling (877) 231-2010 or at nascarhall.com. Admission is $19.95 for adults, $17.95 for seniors and military, $12.95 for children 5-12 and free for children younger than five. Memberships are available starting at $25 for children and $50 for adults. The NASCAR Hall of Fame is open daily 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. and is closed on Christmas Day. For more details, visit nascarhall.com. Up-to-the-minute updates are available at facebook.com/nascarhall or @nascarhall on Twitter.
AUSTIN DILLON QUOTES
What are your thoughts on Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course? “We tested at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course at the end of last year, right before NASCAR announced that we would be racing at the track. It was a pretty good test and I am looking forward to going there. The track is really technical compared to Watkins Glen International, and a little bit slower. I think that will help me as far as having a few less shifts and having slower speeds, which I like. It’s just a little more technical.”
Do you look at road courses as survival races? “The road courses are definitely survival races due to having guys competing that don’t run with us every weekend. We just have to pick up where we left off at Road America. We had a top 10 finish there. If we can knock down another top 10 finish, I would be happy with that and then move on to tracks that I know we have historically excelled on – ovals.”
Max Papis
No. 33 Rheem/Menards Chevrolet Camaro
This Week’s Rheem/Menards Chevrolet at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course … Max Papis will pilot chassis No. 095 in the Nationwide Children’s Hospital 200 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. This No. 33 Chevrolet Camaro ran previously this season at Road America where Papis finished 17th. It was also utilized last year at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve where Brendan Gaughan drove it to an 11th- place finish.
Papis at Mid-Ohio … This week’s 90-lap event marks the first time the NASCAR Nationwide Series will compete at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Although the Series is new to the 2.4-mile road course, Papis is familiar with racing at Mid-Ohio. The Italian road-course veteran has four starts in the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series with one win and one pole award to his credit in 2004. Papis has also competed in eight Champ Car World Series races at the Ohio track with his best start of sixth and best finish of fourth, both coming in 2000.
Gotta Have a Rheem … Rheem Manufacturing Company (www.rheem.com) is privately held with headquarters in Atlanta and U.S. operations in Alabama, Arkansas, California, Indiana, North Carolina and Texas. In its 88th year of operation, the company manufactures a full-line of eco-friendly, technologically advanced residential and commercial heating and cooling systems; tank, tankless, solar and hybrid heat pump water heaters; whole-home standby generators, controls, swimming pool and spa heaters; indoor air-purification products; and commercial boilers throughout North America and world markets. The company’s premium brands, including Rheem, Raypak, Ruud and Richmond have been recognized with countless industry and consumer awards for reliability, innovative design and high quality. Rheem is the official heating, cooling and water heating supplier to Richard Childress Racing, and is a primary sponsor of RCR’s No. 29 Chevrolet in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and RCR’s No. 33 Chevrolet in the Nationwide Series.
Race Rewind … Papis last turned laps in a Nationwide Series entry at Road America in June, where he started 10th and fished 17th after being involved in a late-race incident.
MAX PAPIS QUOTE
What are your thoughts on Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, a track you’ve been successful at in the past? “Mid-Ohio (Sports Car Course) is going to be great. It’s a fun road-course and I’ve raced there many times. I think it’s going to be very exciting to have the NASCAR Nationwide Series race there for the first time. I’m honored to be able to be in the No. 33 Rheem/Menards Chevrolet for this inaugural race, and I’m looking forward to getting a win this weekend for Richard Childress Racing. I’ve had success at Mid-Ohio in the past with a win in the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series and I hope my past experience in other series will translate into more success this weekend.”
