Results from Indianapolis Motor Speedway

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

2.     2.    Kevin Harvick, No. 29 Chevrolet

3.     3.    Greg Biffle, No. 16 Ford

32.  Juan Pablo Montoya, No. 42 Target Chevrolet

Dominate Run at the Brickyard Cut Short; Montoya Finishes 32nd

Speedway, Ind. (July 26, 2010) – Former Indianapolis 500 winner Juan Pablo Montoya looked to make history Sunday afternoon at the Brickyard 400. Montoya was well on his way when he grabbed his second Pole Award of the season and led 86 out of 159 laps before a late race incident sent him to the garage with 15 laps remaining. The Target team finished out the day in the 32nd position.

Montoya and the Target team looked to redeem themselves after last year’s late race speeding penalty denied them of a victory at the Brickyard. The team unloaded the same chassis they tested at Indianapolis Motor Speedway earlier this year and Montoya was quick right off the truck. The No. 42 posted the quickest times in Friday’s practice sessions and then went on to grab the Pole Award Saturday morning. The Pole Award marked the second for Montoya this season and the fifth for the Earnhardt Ganassi Racing organization. .

Sunday afternoon the green flag waved for the 17th annual Brickyard 400. Montoya led the field to the green and became a permanent fixture up front. The No. 42 Target Chevrolet pitted a total of six times, recovered from a shredded right front tire under green flag conditions and led a total of 86 laps to be credited as the WIX Lap Leader of the race. The fate of the team would change drastically in the closing laps of the race. Montoya made his final pit stop of the day on lap 139 for four tires and restarted in the seventh position. The Target Chevrolet became a handful in traffic and Montoya found himself making hard contact with the wall in turn 4. The car sustained heavy damage and Montoya was forced to the garage 15 laps shy of the finish.

Teammate Jamie McMurray went on to win the Brickyard 400. With McMurray's victory, team owner Chip Ganassi became the first to win the triple crown in American auto racing: winning the Daytona 500, Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400 in the same year.

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series returns to Pocono Raceway this weekend for the Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500. The race will air live on ESPN at 1:00 pm (ET) on Sunday, August 1st.

Indianapolis Motor Speedway Advance Notes

Race: Brickyard 400 on Sunday, July 25

Track: Indianapolis Motor Speedway (2.5-mile oval)

Location: Speedway, Ind.

Brickyard 400 History:  Montoya has a strong record at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway.  Last season saw Montoya dominate the better part of the Brickyard 400, starting with the outside pole and leading 116 of the 160 laps before a late race pit road speeding penalty brought Montoya home 11th.  Montoya drove to a runner-up finish in his first stock car start at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the 2007 Brickyard 400.  He started on the outside pole and ran in the top 10 for the entire 160-lap event before bringing home the second-place finish.  In 2008 Montoya started in the 13th position but his chances at victory were cut short after a right-rear tire exploded on lap 28.

A Familiar Place:  In 2007 Juan Pablo Montoya made history by becoming the first driver to compete in all three major events at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (the Indianapolis 500, the United States Grand Prix and the Brickyard 400.)  Montoya has six starts in the Grand Prix with a top finish of fourth, one start and win in the Indianapolis 500 and three Brickyard 400 starts with a best finish of second in 2007.  Montoya currently sits sixth on the all time laps led rankings at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. In addition, he is the only driver to have competed at the historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway for 10 consecutive years across three different series.  If he wins Sunday’s event, Montoya will become the first driver in history to win both the Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400.

10-Year Anniversary:  Montoya took the checkered flag in his first and only attempt at the Indianapolis 500 ten years ago in 2000 driving for current Team Owner Chip Ganassi.  His margin of victory over runner-up finisher Buddy Lazier was 7.184 seconds. He also became the first Colombian driver and rookie since Graham Hill in 1966 to win the 500-mile race.

Formula for Success:  Chip Ganassi, Target and Juan Pablo Montoya have all found the formula for success at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.  Ganassi has four wins at IMS (Indy 500 –1989, 2000, 2008 and 2010), Target has three wins (Indianapolis 500 –2000, 2008 and 2010), and Montoya has one win (Indianapolis 500 –2000).

Chicago Recap:  Juan Pablo Montoya and the Target team were a steady fixture in the top-10 at Chicagoland Speedway until a loose left rear wheel and a late-race tangle with the No. 5 car. Montoya raced hard until the very end and brought the No. 42 Target Chevrolet across the finish line in the 16th position.

Welcome Manuela: Juan Pablo Montoya and wife Connie welcomed a new addition to their family this past Monday- a baby girl, Manuela.  Manuela was born near the Montoya’s residence in Miami, FL. This is the Montoya’s third child joining brother Sebastian, age five and sister Paulina, age three. Mother and daughter are both doing fine.

Talk with Montoya:  Come to the Team Chevrolet Stage located inside the track between turns one and two next to the IMS Museum where Montoya will participate in a Question and Answer Session.  Montoya will be at the stage on Friday, July 23 from 12:00 p.m. – 12:15 p.m.

CHASSIS INFO

No. 42 Target Chevrolet (NSCS):  Chassis #1011.  Crew chief Brian Pattie has elected to bring chassis #1011 to Indianapolis Motor Speedway.  This is a brand new chassis that Juan Pablo Montoya tested with at IMS in April.

TEAM ROSTER

Tony Glover – Team Manager

Steve Hmiel – Director of Competition

Crew Chief:  Brian Pattie

Rear Tire Changer:  Chris McMullen

Chief Mechanic:  Heath Silver

Rear Tire Carrier:  Chip Goode

Front Tire Changer:  Trevor Lysne

Gas Man:  Mike Bodick

Front Tire Carrier:  Eric Bilyeu

Catch Can:  Heath Silver

Jack Man:  TJ Ford

Spotter:  Tab Boyd

Results from Chicagoland Speedway

1.     1.    David Reuitmann, No .00 Toyota

2.     2.    Carl Edwards, No. 99 Ford

3.     3.    Jeff Gordon, No. 24 Chevrolet

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

16.  Juan Pablo Montoya, No. 42 Target Chevrolet

Montoya Rallies Back for a 16th-Place Finish at Chicagoland

Joliet, Ill. (July 12, 2010) – Juan Pablo Montoya and the Target team were a steady fixture in the top-10 at Chicagoland Speedway until a loose left rear wheel and a late-race tangle with the No. 5 car. Montoya raced hard until the very end and brought the No. 42 Target Chevrolet across the finish line in the 16th position.

Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates drivers were on top of the board in the final practice session with Montoya leading the way followed by teammate Jamie McMurray. In qualifying later that day, Montoya drew an early draw and placed the No. 42 Chevrolet 10th on the starting grid. Teammate McMurray would head out onto the track with a later draw and place the McDonald’s Chevrolet on the pole.

Saturday night the green flag dropped for 267 laps of on-track action. Montoya spent the better part of 150 laps of the race up in the top-10. On lap 151, Montoya would radio into his crew, “I have a vibration. Possible loose tire.” The No. 42 Target Chevrolet stayed out on the track until the caution flag flew on lap 178. Montoya brought the 42 down pit road three times for fresh tires and to repair the damage to the wheel from the loose tire. He would rejoin the field in the 25th position and battle his way through traffic to run in the top-15. On the final lap, Montoya and the No. 5 fought for position causing the No. 42 to get loose and lose two positions to finish out the evening in the 16th position.

“I gave him room out of turn 4 and we got into turn 1 and he got into my door. He nearly wrecked me and I nearly wrecked him in the process – we both lost,” remarked Montoya. “We’ve been pretty good here in the past and we needed a good performance. I hate that this is how it ended.”

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will enjoy an off-weekend and will resume racing next weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The Brickyard 400 will air on ESPN and radio stations affiliated with IMS on Sunday, July 25 at 1:00 pm (ET).

Chicagoland Speedway Advance Notes

Race: LifeLock.com 400 on Saturday, July 10

Track: Chicagoland Speedway (1.5-mile oval)

Location:  Joliet, Ill.

Juan Pablo Montoya and No. 42 Target Team

Chicagoland History:  Montoya will make his fourth start at Chicagoland Speedway this weekend.  In three previous starts Montoya has an average start of 23rd and an average finish of 14th at the 1.5-mile oval.  Montoya’s best weekend at the track came last year when he started 19th and raced his way to a 10th-place finish.  He has never finished lower than 18th and has finished all races and laps (801).

Last Weekend:  Juan Pablo Montoya and the Target team led 11 laps and looked to be on their way for a repeat top-10 performance at Daytona International Speedway until a 20-car pile-up collected the 42 team. The damage sent them to the garage early and Montoya had to settle for a 27th-place finish when the checkered flag flew.

McDonald’s Headquarters:  McDonald’s, primary sponsor on the No. 1 Chevrolet and an associate sponsor on the No. 42 Chevrolet, has their headquarters located in nearby Oak Brook, IL.  This Thursday, July 8th, Montoya will be visiting the headquarters and participating in a meet and greet with McDonald’s staff and executives.

Target Employees Fun Fact:  Did you know the sponsor of the No. 42 Chevrolet, Target, employs 351,000 people across 49 states?  In order to accommodate all of those employees at the Chicagoland Speedway, the track would need to almost quintuple their seating capacity of 75,000.

CHASSIS INFO

No. 42 Target Chevrolet (NSCS):  Chassis #1003.  Crew Chief Brian Pattie will bring chassis #1003 this weekend to Chicagoland Speedway.  Montoya last ran this chassis in the Coke 600 where the Target team finished 38th due to an accident.

TEAM ROSTER

Tony Glover – Team Manager

Steve Hmiel – Director of Competition

Crew Chief:  Brian Pattie

Rear Tire Changer:  Chris McMullen

Chief Mechanic:  Heath Silver

Rear Tire Carrier:  Chip Goode

Front Tire Changer:  Trevor Lysne

Gas Man:  Mike Bodick

Front Tire Carrier:  Eric Bilyeu

Catch Can:  Heath Silver

Jack Man:  TJ Ford

Spotter:  Tab Boyd

For more information log onto:

www.earnhardtganassi.com