BUSCH Dollar General 300
Final
for this game
Dollar General 300 Preview
Oct 12, 2007 - 10:23 AMLowe's Motor Speedway
Concord, North Carolina
Race 31 of 35 on the Busch Series circuit
Laps: 200
Track length: 1 1/2 mile
Race length: 300 miles
TV: ESPN2, 7:30 p.m.
Qualifying record: Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 187.735 mph
(October, 2005)
Race record: Mark Martin, Ford, 155.996 mph (May, 1996)
DRIVERS TO WATCH
----------------
Carl Edwards
Team: Roush Fenway Racing
Car: No. 60 Ford Fusion
2007 Earnings: $1,092,685
Finished 38th at Kansas, his worst finish of 2007 and first DNF
since this upcoming race at Lowe's last year; lead in the
standings is now 696 points over David Reutimann, down from 852
after Indianapolis nine races ago; prior to debacle at Kansas
finished sixth at Dover, his second top 10 in the last eight
races after running second at Richmond; finished 11th at Bristol
and 28th at Michigan following consecutive poor showings on the
road courses where he ran 32nd at Watkins Glen after a 30th at
Montreal; has just two top-fives and four top-10s over last 12
races; despite recent struggles still has a series-best 19
top-10 finishes; has led in the standings for 28 consecutive
weeks, and has been in the top five following the last 57 Busch
races; in 30 starts this season has four wins, trailing only
Kevin Harvick who has five; has posted 14 top-five finishes; has
five Busch starts at Lowe's, with two top-10 finishes including
a win in the spring of 2006; finished 17th here earlier this
year.
Kevin Harvick
Team: Richard Childress Racing
Car: No. 21 Chevrolet Monte Carlo
2007 Earnings: $957,895
Reigning series champion finished 13th at Kansas; did not
compete at Dover, dropping him from second to third in the
standings behind Reutimann; was 24th at Richmond, his worst
finish of 2007; finished seventh at California after a 16th at
Bristol; has 17 top-10 finishes, two behind Edwards despite
eight less starts; won at Watkins Glen for his third straight
victory and fourth in the last nine races; also finished second
at Daytona over that dominant stretch; despite racing in just 21
races, has a series-best five wins (Daytona, New Hampshire,
Chicago, Montreal, Watkins Glen); only other finishes out of
top-10 was an 11th at Texas and 12th at Charlotte; has 13
previous Busch starts at Lowe's with seven top-10 finishes.
Jason Leffler
Team: Braun Racing
Car: No. 38 Toyota Camry
2007 Earnings: $1,000,266
Ran 21st at Kansas, to remain fourth in the standings; finished
30th at Dover, 11th at Richmond and 14th at California,
following a second-place showing at Bristol after leading a
race-high 81 laps; placed 12th at Michigan after running 27th at
Watkins Glen and 26th at Montreal; the two poor showings on the
road courses came after earning his second career Busch series
victory at Indianapolis, which gave Toyota its first series
victory; started the season with four DNFs in the first six
races, but has none since; has been inconsistent with eight
finishes of 30th or worse in 30 races this year; finished 31st
here in the spring.
David Ragan
Team: Roush Fenway Racing
Car: No. 6 Ford Fusion
2007 Earnings: $670,157
Dropped into a fifth-place tie along with Bobby Hamilton Jr.
after running 34th at Kansas following a 32nd at Dover and a
39th at Richmond; ran 10th at California for his second straight
top 10 after a sixth at Bristol; struggled prior to that with a
pair of 21st showings at Michigan and Watkins Glen; finished
fifth at Gateway nine races ago; scored three top five and seven
top-10 finishes in 2007; best finish this year was third at
Talladega; won the pole and finished fifth at Texas; also has
seven finishes of 30th or worse this season; leads the Raybestos
Rookie of the Year standings by 24 points over Marcos Ambrose;
ran 25th at Lowe's earlier this year.
David Reutimann
Team: Michael Waltrip Racing
Car: No. 99 Toyota Camry
2007 Earnings: $946,187
Finished 17th at Kansas, remaining second in the standings; ran
10th at Dover, moving past Harvick in the standings; ran 23rd at
Richmond and finished 15th at California; ran third at Bristol;
has better finishes than Edwards in eight of the last 10 races,
yet still trails by 696 points; had consecutive third place
finishes at both Indianapolis and Gateway; has 11 top-10
finishes in 2007 including his career best finish of second
place at the first Nashville race; has also finished 30th or
worse four times this season; finished 43rd here at Lowe's in
the spring, completing only four laps due to engine troubles.
2006 Top 10
-----------
1. Dave Blaney (32), Chevrolet
2. Michael Waltrip (99), Dodge
3. Stacy Compton (59), Ford
4. Matt Kenseth (17), Ford
5. Danny O'Quinn Jr. (50), Ford
6. Johnny Sauter (00), Chevrolet
7. Jon Wood (47), Ford
8. Clint Bowyer (2), Chevrolet
9. Kevin Harvick (33), Chevrolet
10. Mike Skinner (12), Dodge
Past Champions
--------------
2006 Dave Blaney
2005 Ryan Newman
2004 Mike Bliss
2003 Greg Biffle
2002 Jeff Burton
2001 Greg Biffle
2000 Matt Kenseth
1999 Michael Waltrip
1998 Mike McLaughlin
1997 Jimmy Spencer
1996 Mark Martin
1995 Mark Martin
1994 Terry Labonte
1993 Mark Martin
1992 Jeff Gordon
1991 Harry Gant
1990 Sterling Marlin
1989 Rick Moroso
1988 Rick Moroso
1987 Harry Gant
1986 Dale Earnhardt
1985 Terry Labonte
1984 Darrell Waltrip
1983 Sam Ard
1982 Darrell Waltrip
