Pre-Race Notes and Quotes
Memphis Motorsports Park
MemphisTravel.com 200 presented by O’Reilly Auto Parts
Saturday, June 27, 2009
START POSITIVE, STAY POSITIVE: Exide Batteries will be the primary sponsor for the No. 5 Randy Moss Motorsports Toyota Tundra this weekend at Memphis Motorsports Park. Exide, whose headquarters are located in Atlanta, has been the primary sponsor for Mike Skinner for a total of four races so far in the 2009 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season (Daytona, California, Atlanta, and Texas). Also, the familiar black and blue colors will be on board the No. 5 Tundra for a total of six more races, with the next being at O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis in July. In addition to their role as a sponsor of RMM, Exide is the official battery of NASCAR. For more information about Exide and how you can start positive and stay positive, please visit www.exide.com.
SKINNER AT MEMPHIS: Skinner has competed in five NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races at Memphis Motorsports Park. In those five NCWTS races, Skinner has claimed one top-five finishes and three top-10 finishes. The 1995 Truck Series Champion has completed 968 of 1008 laps competed (96.0%) and led a total of 16 laps at the Tennessee short-track. Skinner’s average starting position is 9.8 and his average finishing position is 15.0.
BIRTHDAY BOY: This Sunday (June 28), Mike Skinner will celebrate his birthday, as he turns fifty-two (52) years old. His first win at Memphis Motorsports Park, along with the one-of-a-kind Elvis trophy, would be great birthday presents for this wily veteran.
TEN DOWN, FIFTEEN TO GO: The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series has completed 10 of their 25 races so far in 2009, as this week’s race is number 11 on the schedule. So far, Skinner and his team have captured one win (Kansas), four top-fives, and seven top-10 finishes. He has completed 93.2% (1411 of 1514) of the laps competed and has led a total of 105 laps. Skinner’s average starting position is 6.4 and his average finishing position is 9.7.
CHASSIS CHOICE: This weekend, crew chief Eric Phillips and the No. 5 Exide Batteries team will unload Randy Moss Motorsports chassis MDM-106. This is the third race of the 2009 season for this Toyota Tundra, as Skinner drove it to a third-place finish at Martinsville Speedway and a 19th-place finish last week at The Milwaukee Mile. Prior to Martinsville, this Tundra was brand new.
PREVIOUS RACE RECAP: Last week, Skinner and his No. 5 Doc Bailey’s Toyota Tundra team had bad luck strike as a caution flew three laps after the Daytona Beach, Florida resident came to pit road twice for fuel and tires, putting the Randy Moss Motorsports team two laps down. Skinner was unable to regain position on the lead lap, relegating the team to a 19th-place finish. This was only Skinner’s third finish outside of the top-10 this season. The veteran is currently fourth in the NCWTS championship point standings, 89 points behind leader Ron Hornaday Jr. and only one point behind third-place Todd Bodine.
CATCH THE ACTION: The MemphisTravel.com 200 presented by O’Reilly Auto Parts from Memphis Motorsports Park will take the green flag this Saturday, June 27th at 6 P.M. Eastern. Race coverage will be televised live on SPEED, beginning at 5:30 P.M. Eastern, and heard live on select affiliates of MRN Radio and Sirius-XM NASCAR Radio Channel 128, beginning at 5:30 P.M. Eastern.
SKINNER (On racing at Memphis Motorsports Park): “Memphis Motorsports Park is a neat track to race at. It’s one of those tracks that the Truck Series goes to that is always a great atmosphere for the teams. Memphis also has the greatest fans that come out to watch an exciting race and the fact that it reminds me of Elvis is really cool. The Elvis trophy that the winner gets is just awesome. I would love to take one of those home with me and add it to my collection. Eric (Phillips) and all of my guys on this No. 5 Exide Batteries team are doing a fantastic job of giving me competitive trucks every week that can run up front and contend for wins. It would be awesome to end our weekend in Victory Lane, especially since my birthday is this weekend too.”
ABOUT EXIDE TECHNOLOGIES: Exide Technologies, with operations in more than 80 countries, is one of the world's largest producers and recyclers of lead-acid batteries. The Company's four global business groups – Transportation Americas, Transportation Europe and Rest of World, Industrial Energy Americas and Industrial Energy Europe and Rest of World – provide a comprehensive range of stored electrical energy products and services for industrial and transportation applications.
Transportation markets include original-equipment and aftermarket automotive, heavy-duty truck, agricultural and marine applications, and new technologies for hybrid vehicles and automotive applications. Industrial markets include network power applications such as telecommunications systems, electric utilities, railroads, photovoltaic (solar-power related) and uninterruptible power supply (UPS), and motive-power applications including lift trucks, mining and other commercial vehicles.
Further information about Exide, including its financial results, are available at www.exide.com.
ABOUT RANDY MOSS MOTORSPORTS: Randy Moss Motorsports ownership consists of Randy Moss, New England Patriots All-Pro Wide Receiver; and David Dollar, a long-time participant in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. The team fields the No. 81 Toyota Tundra and the No. 5 Toyota Tundra full-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. For more information about Randy Moss Motorsports, please visit www.randymossmotorsports.com.
-RMM-