JEROME, IDAHO (June 18, 2013)- Brett Thompson, driver of the #61 RTTI Chevrolet in the
NASCAR K&N Pro Series, is looking to put the (bad) racing luck behind him this weekend at Sonoma (CA) Raceway.
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| Brett Thompson's RTTI sponsored NASCAR K&N Pro Series Chevrolet. |
Thompson, who likes roadcourse racing, knows the Carneros 200 on Saturday, June 22 will be a pivotal race for the team.
The 1.99-mile road course at Sonoma is considered one of the most challenging in North America and is set in the picturesque wine country of Northern California. Thompson has made 14 career NKNPS starts on roadcourses since he first joined the series back in 2001. His best finish to date is a fourth place performance at Portland (OR) Int'l Raceway back in 2009.
"We have had really good race cars for each race this year but we have had horrible luck the last two races," Thompson said. "We are optimistic about this weekend. We are just going to run our own race and hopefully we will be among the top five or six late in the going. The strategy we use will depend on how and we are running."
Over the years, teams have used various strategies to score the victory at Sonoma. Conventional wisdom would have teams pitting early, as soon as they reach the fuel window, giving those drivers the edge in track position late in the race. Others have pitted for fuel early and then ducked in late in the race for tires gaining a grip advantage but losing out on track position.
"Will (Harris - crew chief) and the entire team have worked hard all season and a solid run on Saturday will go a long way," Thompson offered. "Track position at Sonoma is usually what you look for late in the race since it is so hard to pass but we have used both strategies," Thompson said. "The big variable is always the restarts heading up the hill at turn one and two. If they get stacked up, it just accordions all the way back and it can ruin your day in a hurry. Once things get single file then you can really make some moves."
Thompson is currently 19-points out of fifth place in the standings and only 57-points back from the top spot with ten races to go in the 15-race schedule. "If we can put a solid string of races together and some among the top five have some trouble then we would be right back up there," Thompson said.
16-year old
Hannah Newhouse who drives for the Thompson Motorsports team in the
CarbonX Rocky Challenge Series posted a ninth place effort this past Friday in round three of the 2013 RMCS championship. Newhouse maintains the fifth place in the standings just 19-points behind fourth place. She also is locked into a tight battle for the A-1 Rookie-of-the-Year title with Meridian, Idaho's Chris Fenton.
Newhouse also competed in the Southern Idaho "200" on Saturday finishing in the 14th position at the conclusion of the 200-lap special event.
"I learned so much this weekend and I am so proud of the Thompson Motorsports Team," Newhouse said. "While our finishes were not what we had hoped, we ran all the laps and had a clean race car at the end of the weekend."
Newhouse will be back in action this weekend in the first ever dirt race for the
ASA Pro Truck Series as the series visits
Atomic Speedway outside Blackfoot, Idaho. Newhouse is currently second in the championship standings just six points out of the top spot.
Newhouse will be back in her RTTI Dodge for the RMCS on Saturday, July 6 at Rocky Mountain Raceways located in SLC, Utah.
From NASCAR Media:The Race: This event is the sixth of 15 events on the 2013 schedule for the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West.
The Procedure: The starting field is 40 cars, including provisionals. The first 36 cars will qualify through NASCAR Road Racing style (group) qualifying. The remaining four spots will be awarded through the provisional process. The race will be 64 laps (127.36 miles).
The Track: Sonoma is a winding 12-turn, 1.99-mile road course, with varying elevation.
Records: Qualifying: Greg Pursley, June 23, 2012, 92.641 mph, 77.331 seconds; Race: Andrew Ranger, June 19, 2010, 69.155 mph, 1 hour 50 minutes 30 seconds. (64 laps)
History: The NASCAR K&N Pro Series West has visited the track 32 times, since 1969. In addition to the track hosting 23 stand-alone events, drivers and teams competed in nine companion events with the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series between 1989 and 1997.
The NASCAR K&N Pro Series West will begin its second swing through the central part of the country with a visit to Colorado National Speedway, just north of Denver, on Saturday, July 27.
Brett Thompson's Career NASCAR K&N Pro Series Statistics: *One win, one pole, 23 top fives, 66 top 10s in 122 career series starts *14 series starts on road courses
*One top five, three top 10s on road courses
*Best finish on a road course of fourth at Portland in 2009 *15th place finish in last visit to Sonoma (2011)
| Race: | Carneros 200 |
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| Place: | Sonoma, Calif. |
| Date: | Saturday, June 22 |
| Time: | 1 p.m. PT |
| TV Schedule: | SPEED, July 18, 3 p.m. ET |
| Track Layout: | 1.99-mile road course |
| 2012 Winner: | David Gilliland |
| 2012 Polesitter: | Greg Pursley |
| Event Schedule: | Friday: Practice 10:30-11:50 a.m., Final Practice 2-3:20 p.m.; Saturday: Qualifying 9:30 a.m. |
| Track PR Contact: | Diana Brennan / Jennifer Imbimbo (707) 938-8448 dbrennan@racesonoma.com / jimbimbo@racesonoma.com |
| Twitter: | @racesonoma |
| Event Hashtag: | #Carneros200 |
| NASCAR IMC Contact: | Kevin W. Green (707) 689-5533 kgreen@nascar.com Twitter: @KevinW_Green |
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