Texas Weekend

[Darnell99Fan]

~Race2Win

Dickies 500 - Carl Edwards Notes

Carl Edwards
NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series: Dickies 500
Sunday November 4
3:00 PM Eastern – ABC/PRN

Fast Facts

Carl Edwards is currently fourth in the ‘Chase’ for the NEXTEL Cup with 5940 points, 261 points behind the leader, Jeff Gordon
Edwards will make his fifth Cup start at Texas this weekend. In his previous starts, Edwards has achieved one win, one top five and one top 10
Edwards’ average running position is 12.0, sixth best among active drivers. His driver rating is 94.3, eighth best
Edwards captured his fourth NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series victory at Texas Motor Speedway in November of 2005
Office Depot Store No. 493 from Williamsville, N.Y. is this week’s sales winner and will ride along on the No. 99 this weekend at Texas

Carl Edwards
Team: No.99 Office Depot Ford Fusion
Crew Chief: Bob Osborne
Chassis: RK-320 Last ran in Fontana in September of this year, started 19th, finished second.

Edwards on racing at Texas Motor Speedway:
“Texas is a very technical track – to be fast your car has to be perfect. So this weekend I’ll be depending a lot on the engineering and setup of my Office Depot Fusion. We won Texas back in 2005, so I know my Office Depot team has what it takes to get the job done. It’d be great to get another win there and be able to shoot those Berettas in victory lane.”

Crew Chief Bob Osborne on racing at Texas Motor Speedway:
"I am looking to forward to returning to Texas. We’re bringing a good Office Depot Ford to Texas, the one that Carl raced in Fontana and got a second-place finish. It's not a brand new car, but we’ve made some significant chassis adjustments to it and worked on several different set-ups, so hopefully we’ll be fast from the start. Carl and the entire Office Depot team have really been focused this year and are doing a fantastic job. I feel very confident in my guys heading into Texas.”

[Darnell99Fan]

~Race2Win

O'Reilly Challenge - Carl Edwards Notes

Carl Edwards
NASCAR Busch Series: O’Reilly Challenge
Saturday November 3
3:00 PM Eastern – ESPN2/PRN

Carl Edwards
Team: No.60 Dish Network Ford Fusion
Crew Chief: Pierre Kuettel (P.K.)
Chassis Number: RK-419 Last ran at Dover; finished first

Edwards on racing in the Busch Series at Texas Motor Speedway:
“It will be great to head to Texas Motor Speedway this weekend. The track is very fast and lots of fun. I like the multi-grooves which makes passing easier. After a rough finish at Memphis, our Dish Network team is determined to finish well. We have run well the last few weeks, but our finishes have been disappointing. It’s time to lock this Busch Championship down. Our goal is to go into Texas and win and everything else will come with it.”

Crew Chief Pierre Kuettel on racing at Texas Motor Speedway:
“Our Dish Network team is really looking forward to Texas Motor Speedway. It’s been very frustrating lately. We are going to try to avenge these past few weeks of great runs and poor finishes. The team is looking forward to wrapping up this championship at Texas.”

[Darnell99Fan]

Edwards and Office Depot Team Overcome Obstacles to Wrangle a 26th-Place Finish at Texas

 With Two Races Remaining in the ‘Chase’ for the NEXTEL Cup, Edwards Holds on to Fifth Place in the Standings
Carl Edwards and the No. 99 Office Depot Ford Fusion Racing Team
Texas Motor Speedway/November 4, 2007

JUSTIN, Tex. (Nov. 4, 2007) – After clinching the NASCAR Busch Series Championship on Saturday afternoon at Texas Motor Speedway, Carl Edwards headed into Sunday’s Dickie’s 500 with confidence – focused on another Championship, the NEXTEL Cup. Though Edwards and the No. 99 Office Depot team would have a competitive race car capable of running in the top five, a sway bar malfunction early in the race would prove to be a major setback. Despite the obstacles, Edwards and the Office Depot team never gave up and ultimately brought home a 26th-place finish.

Under warm, sunny skies Martin Truex, Jr. led the 43-car field to the green flag. Edwards rolled off the starting grid 21st. Quickly, he began to gain track position and by the first caution of the race on lap 14, Edwards was running 14th. Edwards reported that his Office Depot Ford was “pretty good” and crew chief, Bob Osborne called him to pit road for two tires only. Edwards was running fifth on lap 18 when green flag racing commenced.

Over the next 10 laps Edwards gradually lost track positions and reported that the No. 99 was handling “unbelievably tight”. On the next caution on lap 28, Edwards was scored in 24th place when once again he made his way to pit road. Osborne directed the Office Depot team to bolt on four tires with an air pressure adjustment in hopes of remedying the tight handling issues. Edwards was in 30th place when he rejoined the race on lap 32.

Eighty-four laps and two pit stops later, Edwards was still struggling with a tight handling racecar, as no adjustments seemed to help loosen up the No. 99. A caution on lap 118 allowed Edwards to again make his way to pit road. Running one lap down to the leaders in 37th place, Edwards brought the Office Depot Ford into the pits on five different occasions during this caution period. The Office Depot crew found that the links in the sway bar were bound, preventing the car from traveling properly – and creating the tight handling conditions. After repairing the sway bar and returning the Office Depot Ford to its original setup, Edwards rejoined the competition on lap 140 in 36th place, three laps down.

With the Office Depot Ford repaired, Edwards took to the track to gain as much ground as possible. Despite turning some of the race’s fastest laps and holding his own against the top five cars, too much was lost and a 26th-place finish would be the best Edwards and crew could pull off.

“It’s just really disappointing to have such a freak thing happen when you have such a great racecar,” Edwards said. “My Office Depot Ford was great today and though we had our issues, my team never gave up and I’m really proud of their efforts. We had a top five car today, but lost three laps in the pits working on the sway bar. Its just one of those things that happens and it’s unfortunate. I’m just really proud of my team for not giving up and hopefully we’ll move on to Phoenix and have a great run there.”

Jimmie Johnson once again dominated the NEXTEL Cup Series, capturing his ninth victory of 2007. Roush Fenway Racing driver Matt Kenseth was second. Martin Truex, Jr., Kyle Busch and Ryan Newman followed to complete the top five.

Going into next Sunday’s race at Phoenix International Raceway – the next-to-last event of the season – the top six ‘Chase’ contenders still mathematically have a chance of winning the NEXTEL Cup Championship. The Checker Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix International Raceway is scheduled for Sunday, November 11 at 3:00 p.m. (ET). ABC television and MRN radio affiliates will broadcast the race live.

Edwards’ Dickie’s 500 Results:
Start: 21st 
Finish: 26th
Laps: 331/334
Led: 0
Status: Running
Points: 85
Earnings: $108,625

Edwards’ Stats:
Start: 21st 
Mid-race: 35th
High: Fifth
Low: 41st   
Fastest Laps: Four
Laps in Top 15: 13/334
Laps Led: 0
Finish: 26th

Edwards’ 2007 Cumulative Record:
Races: 34 of 36
Points: 6025
Rank: Fifth
Wins: Three
Poles: 0
Top 5s: 10
Top 10s: 14
Top 15s: 23
Earnings: $4,390,787

About Roush Fenway Racing
Roush Fenway Racing is NASCAR’s largest team operating 14 motorsports teams, five in NASCAR NEXTEL Cup with drivers Matt Kenseth, Jamie McMurray, Greg Biffle, Carl Edwards and David Ragan; five in the Busch Series with Kenseth, Biffle, Edwards, McMurray, Ragan, Todd Kluever, Michel Jourdain Jr. and Danny O’Quinn Jr.; and three in the Craftsman Truck Series with Edwards, Peter Shepherd, Travis Kvapil, Erik Darnell and T.J. Bell; and one in the ARCA/REMAX Series with Colin Braun and Darnell.

~RFR