Misfortune Strikes Bayne, Aaron’s Racing Team at Bristol

Bristol, Tenn. (Aug. 21, 2009) – A top-10 showing for Trevor Bayne and the Aaron’s Racing team was dashed when contact with another competitor on lap 136 of 250, strapped the No. 99 Toyota with a 24th-place finish in the Food City 250 at Bristol Motor Speedway.

As the Knoxville, Tenn.¸ native was battling for the 10th spot when he was tapped from behind, sending him into the outside retaining wall. The 18-year-old driver visited pit road several times to repair the damages and he ended up restarting 26th, two laps down to the leaders.
At the end of the day, it cost Bayne and Company a top-10 finish but all was not lost as Bayne received valuable seat time and boasted his starting average to 7.7 over 10 NASCAR Nationwide Series races.

In qualifying early Friday evening, Bayne wheeled the No. 99 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota around the .533-mile oval to its best lap of 15.950 seconds (120.301 mph), which was good enough to line up fifth for the 250-lap event.

Bayne remained in the top 10 during the opening 100 laps. However, a car that was a little loose to his liking dropped him to 12th on lap 120.

Unfortunately, 16 laps later, Bayne was tapped from behind and received heavy damage to the No. 99 machine. The Aaron’s Dream Machine was able to continue making laps but crossed the finish line 24th, four laps down to the leaders.

David Regan grabbed his second NASCAR Nationwide Series victory followed by Carl Edwards, Brad Keselowski, Kevin Harvick and Matt Kenseth.

Next week, the NASCAR Nationwide Series heads north of the border to Montreal for round 25 of the 35-race tour.

Patrick Carpentier will be behind the wheel of the No. 99 machine for the third running of the NAPA Auto Parts 200 from Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Race coverage will be televised live on ESPN2 Sunday, August 30, beginning at 2 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. The race will also broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and Sirius/XM satellite Radio. Qualifying will air on ESPN2 Saturday, August 29, beginning at 9 p.m. EDT.

TREVOR BAYNE QUOTE:
“I was hoping for a good finish this weekend in front of the hometown crowd. We were running pretty well until I got hit from behind which sent me into the outside wall. I think we had a car capable of finishing in the top 10. However, the damage was just too severe to compete with the leaders.”

Trevor Bayne Previews Bristol Motor Speedway

NOTES:
· This week’s No. 99 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota at Bristol Motor Speedway … Trevor Bayne will pilot Chassis No. 046 from the Michael Waltrip Racing NASCAR Nationwide Series stable this weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway. Built new for 2009, this is the same car Bayne raced to a 27th-place finish at Gateway International Speedway in St. Louis, Mo. in July. Additionally, Scott Speed drove this car to an eighth-place finish at Bristol Motor Speedway in March and to a 13th-place finish at Darlington Raceway in May.
· What a Start … In eight starts behind the wheel of the No. 99 Toyota Camry, Bayne has tallied a 5.75 starting average. Additionally, he grabbed his first NNS pole at O’Reilly Raceway Park in June and crossed the finish line seventh. His highest NNS finish to date.
· Where it all Began … This Friday Bayne will return to the site of his first NACAR Nationwide Series start. The 18-year-old driver drove the No. 52 Jimmy Mean’s entry to a 23rd-place finish in March 2009.
· Hometown Kid … Bayne hails from Knoxville, Tenn., which is located approximately 120 miles southwest of Bristol. Since joining the MWR racing ream, Bayne has grabbed one pole, one top-10 and four top15 finishes.
· Vote, Vote, Vote … Go to http://www.nascar.com/ and cast your votes for Bayne as the 2009 Most Popular Driver of the Year Award. Fans may vote or submit a write-in candidate once per day and are encouraged to vote throughout the season. Voting ends Oct. 31 for the NNS. Results will be announced at each of the respective series’ season-end banquets.
· Bayne on the SPEED Stage … Bayne will be a guest on this week’s addition of NASCAR Trackside. NASCAR Trackside will shoot this week’s installment live from the SPEED Stage Fri. Aug. 21 from 7-8 p.m. local time. The SPEED Stage will be located in the Bristol Motor Speedway FanZone.
· Racing to Read … Bayne will visit Cherokee Elementary School in Johnson City, Tenn. on Thursday, August 20 to help promote positive reading habits. The rookie driver will talk with the students and then sign autographs for them.
· After 23 … Over the season’s first 23 races, the No. 99 team has notched four top-10 and 12 top-15 finishes. The MWR team sits 16th in the owners’ point standings. They are only 73 points behind the No. 62 entry owned by Rusty Wallace in 15th.
· Meet the Driver … Bayne will sign autographs from 5-7 p.m. on Thurs. Aug. 20 at the 2009 Food City Family Race Night. The Food City Family Race Night is located on State Street in Bristol, Tenn.
· Online with the Times … To keep up with the latest news and information about Bayne visit his official website at http://www.trevorbayne.com/. For minute-to-minute info about Bayne and the rest of the MWR crew, check out www.twitter.com/aaronssports.
· Race Broadcast Information … The Food City 250 will be televised live on Friday, August 21 beginning at 7:30 p.m. EDT on ESPN2. PRN and Sirius/XM Satellite Radio will begin their live race coverage at 7:15 p.m. EDT. Qualifying for the 24th event of the 2009 NNS season will air live the same day beginning at 4 p.m. EDT on SPEED. PRN and Sirius XM Satellite Radio will also broadcast live updates of time trials.

TREVOR BAYNE QUOTE:

What is it like racing in front of the hometown crowd?
“It’s really cool to race in front of people that have watched you through your entire racing career. This weekend there are about 50 people that are taking a bus to come watch me race at Bristol. It’s going to be really cool to have my own cheering section.”

From a driver’s standpoint, what is the night race at Bristol like?
“I really enjoy racing at Bristol. It’s a very physical and very competitive track. It is an emotionally draining race as well as being physically draining. The track is so small and there is never a chance for a break. However, the night atmosphere reminds me of good old Friday night racing.”

Late-Race Skirmish Leaves Bayne 30th at Michigan

Brooklyn, Mich. (Aug. 15, 2009) – Trevor Bayne’s No. 99 Aaron’s Dream Machine was a mainstay in the top 15 in Saturday’s CARFAX 250 at Michigan International Speedway, but an incident with just a few laps remaining relegated the 18-year-old driver to a 30th-place finish.
Bayne recorded the fifth-fastest time in Friday’s final practice session and on Saturday morning ran a lap of 39.155 seconds at an average speed of 183.885 mph to place him second on the starting grid for Saturday afternoon’s race.
At the drop of the green flag, Bayne fell back to seventh before contact with Carl Edwards sent him spinning on lap three. The 18-year-old driver received minor damage to the right-front fender but was forced to hit pit road several times for repairs. Bayne restarted 36thon lap nine.
The Knoxville, Tenn., native quickly worked his way back trough the field and was listed 17th when green-flag pit stops began on lap 41. Fortunately, the caution flag flew before crew chief Jerry Baxter summoned his driver to pit road allowing the No. 99 team to pit under caution and restart the race eighth on lap 49.
Baxter’s adjustments kept the Aaron’s Dream Machine in tune and Bayne remained in the top 15 over the course of the 125-lap event.
As the race neared the conclusion, the No. 14 car spun in Turn 2 and brought out the caution flag at lap 114. Bayne lined up 16th for the lap 118 restart. As the final laps clicked away it looked like Bayne was going to bring home another top 15 for the No. 99 team. Unfortunately, something happened and Bayne hit the outside wall hard and was left with a 30th-place finish.
Brad Keselowski grabbed his third win of the season followed by Brain Vickers, Kyle Busch, David Ragan and Kevin Harvick.
Short-track action kicks in to high gear next weekend for the annual NASCAR Nationwide Series late-summer race at the “World’s Fastest Half Mile.”
The Food City 250 from Bristol Motor Speedway will take the green flag Friday, Aug. 21 at 7:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. The race will be televised live on ESPN2 beginning at 7:00 p.m. EDT broadcast from coast-to-coast on the Performance Racing Network and Sirius/XM Satellite Radio. Qualifying will be televised live on SPEED Friday, Aug. 21 at 4 p.m. EDT. PRN and

TREVOR BAYNE QUOTE:
“Our car was a little loose at the beginning of the race. Jerry Baxter (crew chief) and the crew were able to make it better and better all race. Something happened to the car on the last few laps and I hit the outside wall pretty hard. It wasn’t the day we wanted but we will take what we learned and move on from here.”

Trevor Bayne - Carfax 250 Preview

NOTES:

• This week’s No. 99 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota at Michigan International Speedway … Trevor Bayne will pilot Chassis No. 054 from the Michael Waltrip Racing NASCAR Nationwide Series stable this weekend at Michigan International Speedway. Built new for the 2009 season, this Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota was put through its first paces at Kentucky Speedway in June where Bayne drove it to a 12th-place finish. Since then, the Knoxville, Tenn., native drove this No. 99 machine to a 12th-place effort at Chicagoland Speedway in July.


• MIS Debut … Bayne will make his first start at MIS Saturday afternoon.


• What a Start ... In seven starts behind the wheel of the No. 99 Toyota Camry, Bayne has tallied a 6.2 starting average. Additionally, he grabbed his first NNS pole at O’Reilly Raceway Park in June and crossed the finish line seventh. His highest NNS finish to date.


• Welcome Back, Bayne … Bayne returns to the season of the Aaron’s Toyota after a one-race hiatus. During this time, teammate Scott Speed captured a 10th-place finish at Watkins Glen International.


• Ninth Nationwide Series Start … Bayne will make his ninth-career NNS start this weekend at MIS. In eight previous starts, he boasts one top-10 and four top-15 finishes, an 8.8 starting average and 18.4 finishing average. He has completed 93.0 percent (1,698 of 1,825) of the laps contested.


• Vote, Vote, Vote … Go to www.nascar.com and cast your votes for Bayne as the 2009 Most Popular Driver of the Year Award. Fans may vote or submit a write-in candidate once per day and are encouraged to vote throughout the season. Voting ends Oct. 31 for the NNS. Results will be announced at each of the respective series’ season-end banquets.


• After 20 … Over the season’s first 22 races, the No. 99 team has notched four top-10 and 12 top-15 finishes. The MWR team sits 16th in the owners’ point standings. They are only 70 points behind the No. 62 entry owned by Rusty Wallace in 15th.


• Online with the Times … To keep up with the latest news and information about Bayne visit his official website at www.trevorbayne.com. For minute-to-minute info about Bayne and the rest of the MWR crew, check out www.twitter.com/aaronssports.


• Race Broadcast Information … The CARFAX 250 will be televised live on ESPN2 Sat., Aug. 15 beginning at 3 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. The race will also broadcast worldwide on the Motor Racing Network and Sirius XM Satellite Radio beginning at 3 p.m. EDT. Qualifying for the 23rd event of the 2009 NNS season will air on SPEED, the same day, at 10:30 a.m. EDT. MRN and Sirius XM Satellite Radio will also air live updates of time trials.

TREVOR BAYNE QUOTE:

You have five races left on your Nationwide Schedule for this season what are your goals?
“I think my number one goal is to just go out and learn as much as I can. I just want to get as much as I can under my belt so hopefully I can be in the championship hunt next season. I would really like to win a race but if that doesn’t happen I won’t be too upset.”

What have you heard to be the key to being successful at Michigan?
“Well I heard that you can race from the white line to the wall. You can pretty much get your car to go anywhere on the race track. I have also heard that Michigan is one of those places that you need the entire package to compete for the win. Being successful has a lot to do with horsepower and how well your car handles all over the track.”