Pre-Race Notes and Quotes
Memphis Motorsports Park
The MemphisTravel.com 200 presented by O’Reilly Auto Parts
Saturday, June 27, 2009
MALSAM AT MEMPHIS: This Saturday’s race at Memphis Motorsports Park will be Malsam’s first at the 3/4-mile oval. The 20-year-old has visited the city of Memphis before, as he has taken a tour of Elvis Presley’s homestead, Graceland, but Malsam has never ran laps around the Tennessee short-track.
CHASSIS CHOICE: This weekend, crew chief Doug Wolcott and the No. 81 One Eighty team will unload Randy Moss Motorsports chassis No. 40. Saturday’s race will be the first time that Malsam has raced this particular Toyota Tundra.
FRESHMAN LEADER: Malsam currently leads the Raybestos Rookie of the Year point standings, holding a seven-point lead over second-place Johnny Sauter. The Seattle, Washington native has received the Rookie of the Race honors twice this season at Atlanta Motor Speedway and Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Also, Malsam is the highest rookie in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship point standings, as he sits in the sixth-place.
TEN DOWN, FIFTEEN TO GO: As the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series has completed their first 10 races of the 2009 season, Malsam and his One Eighty team have captured five top-10 finishes, along with nine top-15 finishes. He has completed 99.8% (1511 of 1514) of laps competed and has recorded zero DNF’s (Did Not Finish).
DID YOU KNOW?: Malsam is a huge Elvis Presley fan. Also, the top rookie enjoys listening to Johnny Cash, Social Distortion, Jay-Z, and Jeremy Burk. And Malsam likes all Christmas music too.
PREVIOUS RACE RECAP: Last week, Malsam and his No. 81 One Eighty team recorded their fifth top-10 finish of the season at The Milwaukee Mile, with a seventh-place finish at America’s Legendary Oval. Fighting a tight-handling Toyota, Malsam showed patience during his first race at the one-mile track and came home with another solid run. Malsam moved up one position in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship point standings, as he is currently in sixth-place, only 14 points behind fifth-place David Starr.
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.
MALSAM (On racing at Memphis Motorsports Park): “I’m very excited about heading to Memphis this weekend. I know that Doug (Wolcott) and my guys on this One Eighty Toyota team are going to bring a great truck to the racetrack. I’ve never raced at the track before, so I’m going to have to learn my way around the place, but I’m confident that we can finish in the top-10 and maybe in the top-five. We are right there on the edge of finishing in the top-five for the first time and I don’t see why Memphis can’t be the place that we do it at. I’ve been to Graceland before and I really enjoy listening to Elvis’ music, so to have a chance to win that one-of-a-kind trophy is awesome. I would love to have that at my house.”
ABOUT ONE EIGHTY: One Eighty, founded in 1976, encompasses hospitality, senior housing, and international brands, all of which require their customers to “Twist Your Thinking.” One Eighty’s hospitality brand has three divisions – Edibility, PrimeFit, and Twist Travel, which offer a bold take on their individual specialties. Edibility includes retirement community food services, corporate and social event catering, restaurant development and management, culinary classes, and signature food items. Also, PrimeFit and Twist Travel take a similar cover-the-all bases approach. For more information about One Eighty, please visit www.oneeightytwist.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-