Stars Fell On Alabama
Juan Pablo Montoya and No. 42 Target Team
MEDIA ALERT: Juan Pablo Montoya will be available in the media center for a brief media Q&A session on Friday, Oct. 30 at 11:50 a.m. ET. (18:50 МСК)
The Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup: Montoya rebounded nicely after a disappointing 35th-place finish at Lowe’s Motor Speedway the weekend prior. Montoya resumed his top five charge for results and finished third at Martinsville Speedway. The strong finish enabled Montoya to move up one position in the Chase driver standings to fifth. He’s 200 out of first place and only eight points behind Stewart who sits in fourth.
The Chase Stats: Six races into the 10-race Chase, Montoya is tied with Johnson for the most top-five finishes with five, has the second highest percentage of the fastest laps run during a race, and the second highest driver rating at 114.
Talladega History: Juan Pablo Montoya will be making his sixth NSCS start at Talladega Superspeedway this weekend. This marks the seventh race of the Chase. Montoya has an average starting position of 17.2 and an average finishing position of 18.6. He has completed 97.7% of the laps and has led 17 laps. His best finish at Talladega came in the spring 2008 race where he finished in the runner-up position and garnered his only top-five finish at the superspeedway. Talladega also marks the first place Montoya won a pole in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series which occurred in the spring.
About Martinsville: Stats wise, Juan Pablo Montoya had the strongest average finishing position at Martinsville Speedway out of any other track on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series schedule. The performance this time around would not disappoint, Montoya was frequently displayed as the fastest car out on the track and maintained a top five position throughout the closing half of the race. In a green/white/checkered finish, Montoya found himself in familiar territory battling it out with Johnson, Gordon and Hamlin. From the fourth position, Montoya gained one spot and gave the Target team a third-place finish. The top-five finish marked the fifth one out of six Chase races thus far.
Get Geared Up!: Fans should be sure to visit www.earnhardtganassi.com to get their Exclusive and Official 2009 Juan Pablo Montoya Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup gear. Fans that spend $42 will receive free shipping. Sprint Cup gear is also available trackside for Juan Pablo Montoya. Please visit an Americrown Event Merchandise kiosk or a Chevrolet Merchandise trailer for your items.
New Addition to the Target Family: Pit crew coach and rear tire carrier for the No. 42 Target team welcomed a new addition to the family. Chip Goode and his wife, MacKenzie, are the proud new parents of a healthy baby girl. Quinby Tate Goode was born on October 20.
2009 In Numbers: Montoya and the Target team have accumulated two pole awards, seven top fives, 17 top-10 (53.1%) and 21 top-15 finishes this season. In the 32 Cup races run this season Montoya has earned 25 top-20 finishes. He has led 385 laps and averages a starting position of 12.3 and a finishing position of 12.8 for the season. They have completed 9367 of out 9388 possible laps (99.8%) this season which ranks third for active drivers and have no DNF’s (did not finish).
CHASSIS INFO
No. 1 Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Boats Chevrolet (NSCS): Chassis #074. The No. 1 Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Boat team will bring chassis #074 to Talladega Superspeedway this weekend. This chassis was last used for first Talladega race in April, where Truex qualified third, and the 2009 Daytona 500 when he qualified on the pole.
No. 42 Target Chevrolet (NSCS): Chassis #902. Pattie and the No. 42 Target team are bringing chassis #902 to Talladega Superspeedway this weekend. This chassis has run at all three superspeedway races this season with the highest finish coming from the July Daytona race, finished ninth. This is also the same car that Montoya was awarded the pole with at Talladega in the spring.