NATIONWIDE O'Reilly Challenge
Final
for this game
O'Reilly Challenge Preview
Oct 29, 2008 - 10:37 AMNovember 1, 2008
Texas Motor Speedway
Fort Worth, Texas
Race 33 of 35 on the Nationwide Series circuit
TV: ESPN2, 3:00 p.m.
Laps: 200
Track length: 1 1/2 mile
Race length: 300 miles
Qualifying record: Jeff Green, Chevrolet, 193.493 mph, 2002
Race record: Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 144.212 mph, 2007
DRIVERS TO WATCH
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Clint Bowyer
Team: Richard Childress Racing
Car: No. 2 Chevrolet Monte Carlo
2008 Earnings: $949,145
Remains the series leader though he has just one victory this
season - when he gambled and stayed out during a rain delay to
win at Bristol; followed with second at Nashville and third at
Texas; is 116 points ahead of Carl Edwards after finishing
16th at Atlanta; through first 32 races has 12 top fives and 26
top 10s; started the year with a 25th at Daytona, then rebounded
with a ninth at California; ran a full Busch series slate in
2005 and 2006, finishing second and third, respectively, in the
final standings; finished 12th overall last year after running
just 22 races, winning at Phoenix and Richmond; ran fourth here
last season.
Carl Edwards
Team: Roush Fenway Racing
Car: No. 60 Ford Fusion
2008 Earnings: $1,091,670
Followed up win at Richmond by running fifth at Dover and fourth
at Kansas; remains second in the standings and trails Clint
Bowyer by 116 points after win at Atlanta; had a disappointing
37th-place finish at Bristol - his worst showing of the year
excluding Darlington, where a wreck left him in 43rd; defending
series champion has five wins this year; won for the second time
this season at Gateway; also won at Milwaukee and ran second at
Dover; opened defense of his series title with a 10th at Daytona
and fifth at California; clinched last season's title at Texas,
three races before the end of the season; was the runner-up to
Kevin Harvick two seasons ago; despite late struggles still had
a series-best 21 top-10 finishes and 15 top fives last season;
led in the series standings for 33 consecutive weeks prior to
Daytona this year; in 35 starts last season had four wins,
trailing only Harvick, who had six; posted a 11th-place finish
here last year.
Brad Keselowski
Team: JR Motorsports
Car: No. 88 Chevrolet Monte Carlo
2008 Earnings: $1,084,281
Second-year driver sits third in the standings, 289 points
behind Clint Bowyer after running 17th at Atlanta; had moved up
to second in the standings after winning at Bristol, but
followed that effort with his worst performance of the year -
placing 33rd in Fontana; followed up his first series win at
Nashville by running fourth at Kentucky and eighth at Milwaukee;
through first 32 races has 18 top 10s and 10 top fives; finished
third at Lowe's and posted consecutive fourth-place finishes at
Bristol and the first Nashville race; has only five finishes of
20th or worse this season; finished 25th in points last season
and third in Rookie of the Year standings; joined Dale Earnhardt
Jr.'s JR Motorsports team in July last season; finished sixth
here last season.
Joey Logano
Team: Joe Gibbs Racing
Car: No. 20 Toyota Camry
2008 Earnings: $570,068
Finished fifth at Atlanta after running 14th at Lowe's; young
phenom had his car fail post-race inspection at Michigan when a
magnet was found underneath the gas pedal in order to influence
dyno test; finished 17th at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve; won his
first race and second pole at Kentucky in his third series
start; captured the pole at Nashville in just his second series
start; was tapped by Greg Biffle early in that race and wound up
a disappointing 31st; finished sixth at Dover in his highly
anticipated debut in one of NASCAR's top series a week after
turning 18; won the 2007 NASCAR Busch East Series championship
as a rookie; signed a development deal with Joe Gibbs Racing in
2005; was dubbed the "Real Deal" by Mark Martin when he was 15;
is Tony Stewart's Sprint Cup replacement in the No. 20 Toyota
next season.
David Ragan
Team: Roush Fenway Racing
Car: No. 6 Ford Fusion
2008 Earnings: $778,565
Sits fifth in the standings after eighth-place finish at
Atlanta; has only two finishes higher than ninth in past 12
races; is running both series this year; ran 25th at Bristol;
through first 32 races has six top fives and 20 top 10s; ran
ninth at Daytona and 12th at California to start the season,
then posted a 10th at Las Vegas, ran 16th at Atlanta and was
eighth at Bristol; was eighth at Texas and fifth at Phoenix; had
an impressive rookie season, finishing fifth overall and winning
the Raybestos Rookie of the Year by 27 points over Marcos
Ambrose; scored four top-five and eight top-10 finishes in 2007,
but also had eight finishes of 30th or worse; finished 17th as a
rookie here last year.
David Reutimann
Team: Michael Waltrip Racing
Car: No. 99 Toyota Camry
2008 Earnings: $817,725
Has pulled "double-duty" in 2008 after finishing second to Carl
Edwards in the standings last season; moved up to sixth in the
standings after running second to Edwards at Atlanta; had
back-to-back eighth-place finishes at Bristol and Fontana; is
winless this year with 13 top 10 finishes and seven top fives;
ran 15th at Michigan; placed 26th at O'Reilly after finishing
13th at Kentucky; started season with a 14th at Daytona and ran
fourth at California; ran 25th at Las Vegas, 10th at Atlanta and
third in the Sharpie Mini 300; last year had better finishes
than Carl Edwards in 10 of the last 15 races and scored the most
points in the series after the midseason point; earned his first
series win at the second Atlanta race; finished with five
top-fives and 12 top 10s; ran 18th here last year.
2007 Top 10
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1. Kevin Harvick (21), Chevrolet
2. Kyle Busch (5), Chevrolet
3. Denny Hamlin (20), Chevrolet
4. Clint Bowyer (2), Ford
5. Matt Kenseth (17), Ford
6. Brad Keselowski (88), Chevrolet
7. Tony Stewart (18), Chevrolet
8. Jeff Burton (29), Chevrolet
9. Tony Raines (33), Chevrolet
10. Stephen Leicht (90), Ford
Past Champions
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2007 Kevin Harvick (21), Chevrolet
2006 Kevin Harvick (21), Chevrolet
2005 Kevin Harvick (21), Chevrolet
