CORNELIUS, N.C. — No. 99 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota driver Trevor Bayne’s goal is to be in attendance at the 2010 NASCAR Nationwide Series banquet at the end of the season. He knows in order to get a formal invitation he must finish in the top 10 in the championship point standings. As of late, the youngest-fulltime competitor in the series has made a huge jump toward this goal.
Over the last six races, the 19-year-old driver has scored the fourth most points of any driver, gaining two positions to rank ninth in the championship point standings. The only drivers to score more points are Carl Edwards (1010), Brad Keselowski (883) and Steven Wallace (802). The Knoxville, Tenn., native has also grabbed two pole awards, three top-fives, four top-10s and led 74 laps of competition.
QUOTES
TREVOR BAYNE ON BEING NINTH IN POINTS: “It’s our goal to make it to the banquet, however; I think it’s way too early to focus on them. I have never really been a person to pay attention to the points. I know solid finishes equal good standings in the points. We have run really well the past couple of months and have a lot of momentum on our side. I think if we keep running like we are capable of doing, we could end up in the top five.”
BAYNE ON IOWA SPEEDWAY: “Iowa is probably one of the easier tracks that we go to on the schedule. The biggest challenge is not over driving the corners. The corners look huge until you get to the middle and realize they are almost like a short track. Iowa reminds me of a mile-and-a-half track just down sized. It’s a great place to race. When I was getting ready to race there for the first time, I thought it was huge since I grew up racing on short tracks. After racing Daytona and Talladega, Iowa is almost like a short track to me.”
BAYNE ON JOHNNY BENSON: “I think having Johnny Benson on board is going to be very helpful. I talked with him before we went to IRP and he gave me some really good tips on how to get around the racetrack. This weekend will be the first time he is coming to the track with us. I think he will be able to help me get adapted to the track quicker. I also think he could provide some benefit to the entire team. He can help communicate to Jerry Baxter what the car is doing around the race track.”
ADDITIONAL NOTES OF INTEREST
• Bayne has two starts at Iowa Speedway. His first start was in 2008 where he started sixth and finished third in the K&N Pro East Series race. Last season, Bayne started fourth and finished 26th in the NASCAR Nationwide Series race.
• Starting last week, Diamond-Waltrip Racing hired Johnny Benson as Bayne’s driving coach. Benson will attend a large majority of races with the No. 99 team. Benson owns a championship in both the NASCAR Nationwide Series and Camping World Truck Series.
• Bayne owns 35 NASCAR Nationwide Series starts. He has three poles (Indianapolis –2009, 2010 and Gateway—2010), three top-fives and seven top-10s and has led 108 laps. His best finish (third) came at Gateway International Raceway on July 17.
• Diamond-Waltrip Racing is owned by Gary and Blake Bechtel along with Michael Waltrip Racing. It fields Toyota Camrys out of the MWR shop in Cornelius, N.C. The Bechtels have owned cars in the Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series since 1990. The Morgan Hill, California residents’ teams have visited victory lane 10 times in the Nationwide Series.
• Bayne continues to remain consistent in his qualifying efforts over his first 35 starts. Over his short career, the Knoxville, Tenn., native has grabbed three poles (Indianapolis –2 and Gateway - 1), 10 top-five and 19 top-10 starting positions. He boasts a 11.3-starting average and has only started 10 races outside the top 15.
• Aaron’s, proud sponsor of the No. 99, will give away an autographed hat to a lucky race fan through Facebook and Twitter following any top-10 finish. Follow Aaron’s on Twitter (@aaronssports) and become a fan on Facebook (Facebook.com/AaronsSports).
• Bayne is ninth in points, but fourth among the non-Sprint Cup drivers in the Nationwide Series.
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