NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown News & Notes for Oct. 3
After each clinched a championship this season in the NASCAR Grand National Division, Joey Logano (No. 10 Joe Gibbs Driven Chevrolet) and Mike David (No. 2 Bennett Lane Winery Ford) have turned their attention to this year’s NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown.
David, who wrapped up the Grand National West Series title by a 114-point margin in the season finale on Sept. 15, is a series veteran making his fourth appearance in the prestigious post-season event.
The Race: NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown
The Event: 150-lap Super Late Model race and 250-lap Grand National Division race
The Date: Friday, Oct. 19 and Saturday, Oct. 20
TV: SPEED (live)
Track Layout: half-mile oval
Race Purse: $467,980
Schedule:
Friday: Super Late Model Practice, 10-10:45 a.m. Grand National Practice, 10:55-11:55 a.m. Super Late Model Practice, 12-12:45 p.m. Grand National Practice, 12:50-1:50 p.m. Super Late Model Time Trials, 2:30 p.m. Grand National Time Trials, 5 p.m. Super Late Model Race, 6:15 p.m. Grand National ‘Open’ Qualifier (50 laps), 7:30 p.m.
Saturday: Grand National Division Race, 7:30 p.m.
Track Contact:
Kevin O’Brien
(626) 358-1100; kobrien@irwindalespeedway.com
Logano, David among NASCAR champions headed to Showdown
After each clinched a championship this season in the NASCAR Grand National Division, Joey Logano (No. 10 Joe Gibbs Driven Chevrolet) and Mike David (No. 2 Bennett Lane Winery Ford) have turned their attention to this year’s NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown.
David, who wrapped up the Grand National West Series title by a 114-point margin in the season finale on Sept. 15, is a series veteran making his fourth appearance in the prestigious post-season event.
As a 17-year-old rookie who clinched the Busch East Series title by 166 points in the final series race on Friday, Sept. 21, Logano will be making his first trip to the All-Star event.
This year’s NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown, slated for Oct. 19-20, will be returning to Irwindale (Calif.) Speedway for the fifth consecutive year. Designed to bring together the top drivers in the Grand National Division, the Showdown has quickly become known as “the Daytona 500” of the NASCAR Developmental Series.
“Everyone who’s been there says it’s awesome; that you can run well anywhere on the race track,” Logano said. “We’re looking forward to going there.
“I didn’t have any idea when I was watching the race on TV last year that I’d be driving in it this year. I watched it because it was a race on TV and it looked exciting.”
David was in that race, finishing third behind Busch East drivers Matt Kobyluck and Sean Caisse. David was 15th in 2004 and 14th in 2005.
“The first couple years, we didn’t have any luck at all,” David said. “We normally do well at Irwindale. It will be a fun time.”
David was fifth when the West Series ran at Irwindale July 4. He discounts any advantage, though, from previous experience.
“It’s the same routine,” David said. “You don’t have to be as conservatie because you’re not running for points. Other than that, it’s business as usual.”
Champions from each NASCAR Developmental Series are elgible for “protected spots” in the starting lineup. In addition to the Busch East Series and West Series in the Grand National Division, invitees include the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, the NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour, the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series, the NASCAR Mexico Series and the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series.
In addition to the champions, drivers who won NASCAR Grand National Division events in 2007 also locked up starting spots in the Showdown.
This year’s event will feature time trials and the last-chance “Open” race on Friday, Oct. 19. Also new for 2007 is the addition of a $10,000-to-win, 150-lap NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Super Late Model race on Friday night, providing an opportunity for some of the nation’s best short-track drivers to shine on a national stage.
HOW CHAMPIONS FARED
A look at how the Grand National Division champions have finished in the NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown:
2004
Andy Santerre (Busch East) 28th
Mike Duncan (West) 4th
2005
Santerre (Busch East) 6th
Duncan (West) 23rd
2006
Mike Olsen (Busch East) 25th
Eric Holmes (West) 19th
Showdown stats
12 drivers locked in: Twelve drivers have locked in a spot in this year’s NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown by winning a Grand National race (see details chart on page 3). In addition to those drivers, champions of the NASCAR Developmental Series will be locked in to the field.
All-Star experience: Eight drivers have competed in all four previous Toyota All-Star Showdown events. Two of those drivers – Mike Duncan and Matt Kobyluck – have already secured a spot in this year’s event by virtue of winning a Grand National Division race this season. In addition to Duncan and Kobyluck, others to compete in all four previous events were Bryan Chew, Scott Gaylord, Mike Johnson, Joey McCarthy, Mike Olsen and Jack Sellers.
Four races, four winners: None of the first four winners in Toyota All-Star Showdown competition have been able to repeat. The four post-season events featured four different winners – Austin Cameron (2003), Mike Johnson (2004), David Gilliland (2005) and Matt Kobyluck (2006).
Finishing up front: Matt Kobyluck has the most top-five finishes in Showdown competition, with three. He is tied with Brian Hoar and Joey McCarthy for the most top-10 finishes, with three each.
Best average finish: Matt Kobyluck has the best average finish of 4.25 among drivers with three or more starts in Toyota All-Star Showdown competitition. His win last year and runner-up finishes in 2004 and 2005, followed a 12th-place finish in the inaugural event in 2003.
Leading the way: David Gilliland has led the most laps in Toyota All-Star Showdown competition. The Riverside, Calif., competitor – who since graduated to the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series – led a total of 133 laps, 91 circuits in 2004 and 42 in 2005.
Race distance: The race distance for the NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown has varied. The inaugural event in 2003 was 125 laps. The race distance for events from 2004 to 2006 were 150 laps. This year’s event is slated for 250 laps.
Last to lock in: Eric Holmes was the last driver to lock in a spot to this year’s event by winning a Grand National West Series race, taking the victory in the season finale. Holmes won the Elite portion of the Showdown in 2004.
TICKET INFORMATION
Tickets for the 2007 NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown, which will take place Oct. 19-20 at Irwindale (Calif.) Speedway, are available for purchase at the Irwindale Speedway ticket office, by calling (626) 358-1100 and online at www.irwindalespeedway.com.
Showdown coverage on TV
SPEED’s coverage of the NASCAR Grand National Division this season culminates with live coverage of the NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown for a fifth consecutive year.
The cable network televised 22 Grand National events this season as part of its Racing Across America series.
About SPEED
SPEED is the nation’s first and foremost cable television network dedicated to motor sports and the passion for everything automotive. From racing to restoration, motorcycles to movies, SPEED delivers quality programming from the track to the garage. Now available in more than 74 million homes in North America, SPEED is among the fastest-growing sports cable networks in the country.
Sources: Jason Christley/Toyota All-Star Showdown PR