Joey Logano / No. 20 GameStop Toyota Preview
Dollar General 300 Miles of Courage at Charlotte Motor Speedway
No. 20 GameStop Toyota News, Notes & Paint Scheme:
. “BEAST OF THE SOUTHEAST” A FEAST (OR FAMINE) FOR LOGANO: Joey Logano has said it before. Ask him on any given weekend and he’ll tell you the same answer. What is his favorite track? It’s Charlotte Motor Speedway. Logano will make the seventh NASCAR Nationwide Series start of his career at Charlotte on Friday night in the Dollar General 300 Miles of Courage. Logano’s previous track record at Charlotte has been feast or famine. In six previous starts, Logano has scored three top-five finishes and three top-10s. His best career finish came in the spring race last season where he crossed the line in third place. Logano also has finishes of fourth and fifth at the track. In the spring race this season, Logano started 11th and finished 11th. His other two finishes at the track have both been 14th place efforts.
. “BIG GAME HUNTER” FOR THE BIG RACE: Cabela’s Big Game Hunter 2012 will ride with Logano and primary sponsor GameStop on track at Charlotte Motor Speedway. With the world as their playground, players will explore a vast expanse of mountains and valleys with unprecedented choices in direction never before seen in a Cabela’s hunting game. Players can climb an area to get a better angle for the shot but risk being spotted, or they can take a low elevation route with poor visibility but plenty of concealment. In order to bag the trophies, players will have to avoid detection through cunning, skill, and deception. They must also utilize master hunting skills such as advanced stalking techniques so they can quickly move through cover and close in on their targets. With new multiplayer modes, gamers can enjoy playing with friends and family. Up to four people can take turns, work together or challenge each other in different arcade shooting galleries. With new modes such as Reflex and Target Shooting, Cabela’s Big Game Hunter 2012 has enough fun to keep players hunting with friends for a long time! The game was released on Sept. 27 and is available for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Wii video game consoles.
. EPIC REWARD FOR GAMESTOP EPIC REWARD WINNER: Joey Logano and the No. 20 GameStop team will have a special guest this weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Shari and George Stettner of Texas will head to Charlotte for winning the NASCAR experience as part of GameStop’s PowerUp Rewards program. The PowerUp Rewards program rewards the most passionate of GameStop gamers by offering savings on purchases while also providing members-only specials, discounts and news emailed directly to users. Shari and George will come to Charlotte, have a private tour of the Joe Gibbs Racing shops, go go-karting with Joey and the entire No. 20 GameStop team, visit the NASCAR Hall of Fame, attending Joe Gibbs Racing’s Fan Fest, and get a chance to watch the Dollar General 300 Miles of Courage up close by sitting on the pit box of the No. 20 team for Friday night’s event. Other Epic Reward winners have gotten tank driving experiences, trips to Rome, a behind the scenes look at Comic-Con and private tours of various video game companies.
. BACK HOME AGAIN. WITH THE No. 20: Logano spent the last three NASCAR Nationwide Series events behind the wheel of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota in an effort to help that team win the Nationwide Series Owner’s Championship. This weekend, Logano returns to the seat of the car he’s most accustomed to driving in the Nationwide Series, the No. 20 GameStop Toyota. He will also be back with his regular crew, led by Crew Chief Adam Stevens, who last week guided rookie Ryan Truex to a 10th place finish at Kansas Speedway.
. CHASSIS: The JGR team will bring chassis #127 to Charlotte for the Dollar General 300. The car has raced just one other time this year, coming back at Michigan International Speedway, where Logano finished sixth. Chassis #132 will serve as the team’s backup.
. STAT OF THE WEEK: 17,000. In all likelihood, Logano will surpass the $3,000,000 career earnings plateau this weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Logano needs a little more than $17,000 to become a $3,000,000 man.
. THE RACE: The Dollar General 300 Miles of Courage at Charlotte Motor Speedway (Concord, NC; 1.5-mile tri-oval) is set for Friday night, Oct. 14, 2011. The race will be broadcast on ESPN2 at 7:30 p.m. ET, with radio coverage on PRN starting at 7:30 p.m. ET.
Joey Logano Quotes:
“Charlotte is always a crazy week. Not only is there a lot going on at the track, but being ‘home’ for everyone, there are plenty of things going on away from the track and that really keeps you busy. This is one of those weeks that you need to find a good balance between doing your stuff away from the track and also focusing on the job at hand when you get in the car. And it’s not just like that for me, it’s like that for all of the guys. It’s a lot of fun to be close to home and to get to sleep in your own bed at night, but you’ve got to focus more this week than any other really.
“As a driver, you always get asked by fans and media what your favorite track is and Charlotte is always my answer. A lot of guys will say it’s a track they’ve won at a lot or a track they are always running up front or maybe a track that is close to their hometown, but I just love Charlotte. The track is unique and it changes so much during the course of a race. There are always several different lines and grooves that work their way in during the race and you’ve got to be able to move your car around to match the way it’s handling. It’s fast, but you really need to focus on handling here. The restarts can be crazy too. Overall, it’s just a fun track to race on and we have such great fan support here.
“One of my off-track activities this week will be visiting with the GameStop Epic Rewards winner which will be a lot of fun. Last year, the guy that was here had a blast doing all of the stuff they got to do. This year, we’re doing the same thing. Getting to race against them in go-karts is a lot of fun. Plus, I love racing karts and I’ll take all of the extra track time I can get. But really, it’s just great to be able to bring someone to the track who doesn’t really get the chance to see what goes on behind the scenes and watch them enjoy it all. It’s a great reward if you ask me. When I was a kid, I would have loved to have won something like that.”
No. 20 GameStop Toyota / Joe Gibbs Racing Team
Driver – Joey Logano Crew Chief – Adam Stevens Car Chief – Mike Sibley Race Engineer – Curtis Ratzlaff Shock Specialist – Joel Weidman Front-end – Dave Rudy Rear-end – Chris “Yoshi” Jones Tire Specialist – Glen Wheeler Engine Tuner – Roger Purcell
Truck Driver – Tim Clancy Jackman – Jason Tate Gasman – John Eicher
Front Tire Changer – John Royer Front Tire Carrier – Brett Morrell
Rear Tire Changer – Coleman Dollarhide Rear Tire Carrier – Eric Groen
