Casey Mears Event Preview Atlanta Motor Speedway

No. 07 DIRECTV Chevrolet Impala SS - Event Preview Fact Sheet - 
Event/Date: Kobalt Tools 500 – March 8, 2009 - Venue: Atlanta Motor Speedway – Hampton, Ga.

> NOTES

* This Week’s DIRECTV Chevrolet at Atlanta Motor Speedway … Casey Mears will pilot Chassis No. 269 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable in this weekend’s Kobalt Tools 500. This is a brand new DIRECTV Chevrolet Impala SS. 

* From Black to Blue … Mears’ No. 07 Chevy will feature a blue and white DIRECTV paint scheme this weekend in Atlanta. DIRECTV, the nation’s leading satellite television service provider, presents the finest television experience available to more than 17.3 million customers in the United States and is leading the HD revolution with more than 130 HD channels. Each day, DIRECTV subscribers enjoy access to over 265 channels of 100% digital picture and sound, exclusive programming, industry-leading customer satisfaction (which has surpassed national cable companies for eight years running) and superior technologies that include advanced DVR and HD-DVR services and the most state-of-the-art interactive sports packages available anywhere. Jack Daniel’s, the team’s customary primary sponsor, will be featured on the car’s lower-rear quarter panels and deck lid. 

* Tale of the Tape … In 12 NSCS races at AMS, Mears has a 12th-place finish to call a career best. The 30-year-old finished 12th last October in the division’s most recent stop at the famed Hampton, Ga., race course. He owns a 21.6 starting average coupled with a 21.3 average finish. Over those 12 starts, the seventh-year Sprint Cup racer has led 37 laps, completed 3,862 of the 3,904 laps contested (98.9 percent) and earned just over of $1.1 million in purse money. 

* A Look Back at Last Week … A flat right-rear tire in the early goings of last weekend’s Shelby 427 cost Mears and his Gil Martin-led team three laps, ultimately leaving RCR’s No. 07 team with a 30th-place finish at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. While he spent most of the afternoon racing three laps down, the Bakersfield, Calif., native was still able to run with the leaders and post lap times competitive with teams running inside the top five. Meanwhile, Mears slipped from 20th to 27th in the Sprint Cup Series point standings but only sits 30 points outside the top 20. The 30-year-old driver is just 44 back from 15th-place Juan Pablo Montoya, 64 behind Michael Waltrip in 12th and a scant 78 markers behind Bobby Labonte’s 10th-place tally. 

* Looks Can be Deceiving … Despite the fact that Mears has finished 15th, 24th and 30th in the first three races of 2009, RCR’s No. 07 team bounced back nicely after a rough start last year. Martin & Co. finished 24th, 19th and 28th, respectively, in the first three races of 2008 but followed that up with seven consecutive top-10 finishes, including one win and three top fives. Over that same stretch, the team rocketed from 23rd to fourth in points. 

* RCR in the ATL … In 105 starts at AMS, RCR has earned four poles and nine wins including Kevin Harvick’s emotional victory in the Cracker Barrel 500 on March 11, 2001. Prior to that, Dale Earnhardt won eight times at AMS. Additionally, RCR boasts 25 top-five and 45 top-10 finishes at Atlanta. Meanwhile, RCR- prepared race cars have led 2,747 laps at the ultra-fast 1.54-mile quad oval. Richard Childress, a former driver on NASCAR’s senior circuit, recorded his best finish at Atlanta with a ninth-place effort in the Atlanta Journal 500 on Nov. 2, 1980.

* Up to Speed … The Kobalt Tools 500 from Atlanta Motor Speedway will be televised live on FOX Sun., March 8 beginning at 1:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. The Performance Racing Network and Sirius XM Satellite Radio will also provide live lap-by-lap coverage. Qualifying for Round 4 of the 36-race Sprint Cup Series championship will be televised live on SPEED Fri., March 6 at 6:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. PRN and Sirius XM Satellite Radio will broadcast qualifying updates live.

> CASEY MEARS QUOTES

• It seems like Atlanta is a place where you’ve gotten progressively better. Do you feel like this is a weekend where you can crack the top 10?

“We’ll just have to wait and see. We led a bunch of laps with the old car and probably should have won the race but we blew up. I’ve had really good races at Atlanta and really bad races, too. With the current car, I’ve been in situations where we had a really hard time getting the track sorted out in terms of handling and speed. It’s really bumpy and really fast so trying to find a combination that works well over the bumps and gives you enough support to drive the car off into the corner very hard is difficult. We’re constantly learning as we go. I felt like we were lost when I was at Atlanta last year. I think my new team with Gil Martin and all the guys on the DIRECTV Chevrolet will be very well prepared.”

• Tires seemed to be an issue at Atlanta last year and made for a very difficult race. What did you go through last year?

“Obviously, the new-style car is heavier and a little harder on tires so Goodyear has to build a harder tire that’s going to be more durable. Without having a whole lot of testing, they had to go ahead and make something that was going to be really durable but, the more durable the tire, the harder it’s going to be and that makes for less grip for the drivers. Goodyear is in a tough spot right now. You have a combination of the car being heavier and a little harder on tires and drivers complaining about not having any grip. We just had way too hard of a tire last year which made the cars very difficult to drive. There just wasn’t any grip and everyone was having a hard time getting a hold of the race track. When we went back the second time, it was much better. I would venture to guess this weekend is going to be more like the second race last year than it was the first.”

• You’re three races into the season. How are things gelling between you and the team?

“I think things are gelling awesome. I’m really happy with the communication we have between Gil (Martin) and I and the team. I really enjoy working with everyone on the team, not just everyone on the 07, but on all the RCR teams. It seems like everyone gets along pretty well. We’re not really happy with our performance but we’ve also has some things happen that were outside of our control.”

• Gil seems like a pretty laid back guy and that seems to transcend his team. Does that make your team an easy group to work with?

“It does. I’m pretty laid back so we’re on the same page from that standpoint. I just like the way our communication works. I tell him what’s going on, he comes back with some answers and ideas, I give him some of my ideas and before we know it, we have something we want to do. I’ve worked on totally different ends of the spectrum when it comes to working with someone you don’t click with and someone you do. I think Gil and I have gotten on the same page much sooner than I have with anyone else, given the scenario.”