Early Christmas presents were provided by NASCAR driver Juan Pablo Montoya and wife Connie when they surprised the Early Beginnings Academy Northshore to donate K’NEX toys to the children attending the school. 

The Montoya’s presented the children with the toys on December 14 on behalf of K’NEX and their foundation Formula Smiles. 

The Academy is a charter school for children with special needs, located near Miami Shores, FL.  It is part of the non-profit organization: United Cerebral Palsy of South Florida.  The school serves approximately 80 children, ranging from ages birth to six years old.

While attending the school the children are provided educational and therapeutic services.  The school serves children with varying exceptionalities including but not limited to: Cerebral Palsy, Down Syndrome, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Language Delays, Global Developmental Delays, Genetic Disorders, Blindness and Orthopedic Impairments.

Results from Homestead-Miami Speedway

1.     Carl Edwards, No. 99 Ford

2.     Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Chevrolet

3.     Kevin Harvick, No. 29 Chevrolet

21.  Jamie McMurray, No. 1 Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Boats Chevrolet

35.   Juan Pablo Montoya, No. 42 Target Chevrolet

Late Race Incident Results in a 35th- Place Finish for Montoya at the Season Finale

Homestead, Fla. (November 21, 2010) – The 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup season came to a close over the weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Juan Pablo Montoya and the Target team worked their way up from the 40th starting position to the top-15 when an on-track incident with the No. 20 would change the fate of the teams finish. The No. 42 Target Chevrolet suffered major damage and would end the race in the 35th-place position.

Homestead-Miami Speedway not only marks the final race of the season, it is also considered Montoya’s “home track” as he and his family reside in Miami. It’s also the site of Montoya’s first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start four years ago. The Target team unloaded and looked to better their best finish of 17th from 2007. The No. 42 would go on to qualify 40th for the race due to an early qualifying draw and Montoya set his sights on maneuvering the Target Chevrolet to the front.

When the green flag waved Montoya worked his way up 14 positions by lap 20. The crew worked on some handling concerns throughout the day and was displayed in the top-15 with 67 laps remaining. Under caution on lap 203, the No. 42 Target Chevrolet was involved in an on-track incident with the No. 20 that sent Montoya back to the garage for repairs. Montoya was able to return to the track with heavy damage and finish out the day in 35th.

Montoya’s 2010 season was highlighted by his second career win at Watkins Glen in August. The win marked the first for Target in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and it also added Montoya to the record books as the only foreign-born driver to win two races in NASCAR’s elite series. The Target team ended the year with three pole awards, one win, six top-five and 14 top-10 finishes.

Homestead-Miami Speedway Advance Notes

Race: Ford 400 on Sunday, Nov. 22

Track: Homestead-Miami Speedway (1.5-mile oval)

Location: Homestead, Fla.

Record Breaking Year:  2010 has been a historic year for Chip Ganassi Racing Teams.  The following are highlights of on-track success across all three sanctioning bodies (NASCAR, IndyCar, GRAND-AM)

·         Chip Ganassi became the first owner in history to win what has become known at the Triple Crown of American auto racing - the Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400 in NASCAR and the Indianapolis 500 in the IndyCar Series.

·         He became the first owner to win both IMS events in the same year – the Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400.

·         Ganassi’s teams won 2010 championships in both the GRAND-AM Rolex Series (Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas) and the IZOD IndyCar Series (Dario Franchitti) – his 11th and 12th championships.

·         All five of his teams and all six of his drivers found victory lane in 2010 to score a team record 19 victories (previous best was 14) – 4 in NASCAR, 9 in GRAND-AM and 6 in IndyCar

·         The four wins by Chip’s NASCAR Sprint Cup operation, is the most in the organization’s history breaking their  2002 mark of three (Marlin 2, McMurray 1)

·         Only Earnhardt Ganassi Racing, Gibbs, RCR and Roush-Fenway have had multiple drivers win races in 2010

·         Only Jimmie Johnson and Denny Hamlin have won more races in 2010 than Jamie McMurray (Harvick and Kyle Busch also won 3)

·         Earnhardt Ganassi Racing leads all teams with the most Coors Light pole awards in 2010 with seven (McMurray 4, Montoya 3)

NOTES

Juan Pablo Montoya and No. 42 Target Team

Home Sweet Home:  Juan Pablo Montoya will return home to close out the 2010 season this weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway.  Not only do the Montoya’s call Miami home, this weekend’s start will mark four years since Montoya climbed behind the wheel of a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series car.  In his inaugural race, Montoya started 29th and finished 34th due to an accident.

Homestead History:  Juan Pablo Montoya will be making his fifth NSCS start at Homestead-Miami Speedway this weekend.  Montoya’s career best weekend at HMS came at the 2007 season finale when he started 11th and finished 17th.  He has only one DNF in his first visit to the 1.5-mile oval.

About Phoenix:  Juan Pablo Montoya and the Target team headed out west for the final time in 2010 to Phoenix International Raceway. The No. 42 Target Chevrolet found itself in contention for a win in the closing laps of the Kobalt Tools 500 until the team’s luck turned on them. Montoya was displayed in the second position chasing down the leader when the No. 42 ran out of fuel on the final lap and coasted across the finish line in the 16th position.

2010 Statistics: Montoya and the Target team have accumulated three pole awards, 24 top-10 starting positions, one win, six top-five and 14 top-10 finishes this season.  He has led 411 laps, averages a starting position of 10.8 and a finishing position of 17.5 for the season.  Montoya has set a career best for number of poles, laps led and average start in a season.  He is just one top-five short of his career best set last season with seven.  Along with these statistics Montoya currently sits in the top-10 in the following performance generated categories:

-          Average start of 10.8 (2nd)

-          7141 Laps in top-15 (6th)

-          407 Fastest laps run (6th)

-          Fastest drivers early in a run (7th)

-          Quality passes (7th)

-          Fastest drivers on restarts (7th)

-          Average running position (7th)

-          733.08 Miles led (8th)

-          Driver rating of 91.9 (8th)

-          Green flag speed (8th)

-          411 Laps led (9th)

-          Green flag speed (9th)

Montoya Makes an Appearance:  Race fans attending this weekend’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway should be sure to stop by the Sprint Experience on Saturday, November 20.  Montoya will be visiting the Sprint Experience to participate in a Q&A Session from 11:30am-11:45am (ET).  The Sprint Experience is located outside of the racetrack on souvenir row.

Montoya’s Honor NASCAR Veteran Kyle Petty:  Juan Pablo Montoya and his wife Connie Freydell Montoya will honor NASCAR veteran driver Kyle Petty at this year’s BeLive gala on Thursday, Nov. 18 in Miami.  The former NASCAR driver turned analyst on SPEED will be presented with the BeLive Humanitarian award for his ongoing work and dedication to the Victory Junction Gang Camp. The award recognizes individuals that selflessly work towards helping others in need.   Kyle and his wife Pattie created the Victory Junction Gang Camp in honor of their late son Adam who was killed in a racing incident at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in 2000.  Victory Junction provides life-changing experiences for kids with chronic medical conditions or serious illnesses. Since the doors opened in 2004, the camp has enriched the lives of more than 11,000 children and families and has welcomed children from 47 states and three countries.

CHASSIS INFO

No. 42 Target Chevrolet (NSCS):  Chassis #1015.  Crew Chief Brian Pattie and the No. 42 Target team are bringing chassis #1015 to Homestead-Miami Speedway this weekend.  The No. 42 team has used this chassis three times this season at Charlotte last month and both Michigan events.  Montoya has scored two top-10 qualifying positions of fifth and 10th (both Michigan) and three top-15 finishes of seventh, 13th and 11th (Charlotte).

TEAM ROSTERS

Tony Glover – Team Manager

Steve Hmiel – Director of Competition

Crew Chief:  Brian Pattie Zephyrhills, FL

Rear Tire Changer:  Chris McMullen Troutman, NC

Chief Mechanic:  Heath Silver Asheville, NC

Rear Tire Carrier:  Chip Goode Statesville, NC

Front Tire Changer:  Trevor Lysne Fergus Falls, MN

Gas Man:  Mike Bodick Norwalk, CT

Front Tire Carrier:  Eric Bilyeu Waterford, MI

Catch Can:  Heath Silver Asheville, NC

Jack Man:  TJ Ford Charlotte, NC 

Spotter:  Tab Boyd Pensacola, FL

Results from Phoenix International Raceway

1.     Carl Edwards, No. 99 Ford

2.     Ryan Newman, No. 39 Chevrolet

3.     Joey Logano, No. 20 Toyota

10.  Jamie McMurray, No. 1 McDonald’s Chevrolet

16.   Juan Pablo Montoya, No. 42 Target Chevrolet

Target Team Coasts across the Finish Line in the 16th Position at Phoenix

Avondale, Ariz. (November 14, 2010) – Juan Pablo Montoya and the Target team headed out west for the final time in 2010 to Phoenix International Raceway. The No. 42 Target Chevrolet found itself in contention for a win in the closing laps of the Kobalt Tools 500 until the team’s luck turned on them. Montoya was displayed in the second position chasing down the leader when the No. 42 ran out of fuel on the final lap and coasted across the finish line in the 16th position.

The Target team lined-up in the 35th position for the start of Sunday afternoon’s race and by lap 77 Montoya had driven his way past 20 cars to find himself in the top-15. That momentum would continue throughout the day as the Target team maintained track position during the 312 lap event. Fuel strategy came into play as the caution flag flew on lap 234; Montoya brought the Target Chevrolet down pit road for two tires and fuel. The No. 42 restarted in 11th and with 12 laps remaining was running in the second position. Montoya was chasing down leader Carl Edwards on the final lap when he radioed in, “I’m out of fuel.” The No. 42 coasted across the finish line in 16th.

“We had a great car but terrible luck there at the end,” Montoya remarked. “We were catching Edwards and we knew he was close on fuel too so the ending could of played out several different ways. I hate that things didn’t work out differently for the Target team.”

The 2010 season will come to a close this weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The Ford 400 is Sunday, Nov. 21 at 1:00 pm (ET) and will air live on ESPN and radio stations affiliated with MRN.