TapouT: This weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (LVMS) marks the maiden voyage of the No. 2 TapouT Chevrolet Impala. TapouT, the world renowned mixed martial arts apparel brand company, will make their NASCAR debut this weekend at LVMS with 13 year NASCAR Sprint Cup Series veteran Elliott Sadler behind the wheel. In addition to on track activation TapouT will have a merchandise hauler in the midway area for fans to meet company co-owners Sky Skrape, Punkass, select TapouT sponsored mixed martial art fighters and driver Elliott Sadler as well as purchase TapouT gear.
ROLLING DOUBLES: Sadler returns to LVMS for the first time since 2005 in the Nationwide Series. Sadler has two second-place starts, but has yet to record a win at the 1.5-mile track.
KHI BACK-TO-BACK: Sadler looks to build upon Kevin Harvick Inc.’s (KHI) success from last season’s event at LVMS. KHI co-owner, Kevin Harvick, who will be Sadler’s teammate this weekend, won last year’s race at the track. The win marked Harvick’s second win at the 1.5-mile facility, but the first for KHI at the track.
IN THE LOOP: Despite the lap 24 accident that Sadler suffered at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway which resulted in a 38th-place finish to start the 2011 season, Sadler has spent 207 of the 320 laps completed in the first two Nationwide Series events in the top 15 which ranks him among the top eight drivers in the series.
LUCKY NUMBER 300: This weekend’s race at Las Vegas will mark KHI’s 300th start in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. Since entering the series in 2004, KHI has collected 10 wins, 12 poles, 71 top-five and 129 top-10 finishes. Along with this Nationwide Series milestone, KHI is also celebrating its 10th anniversary. Throughout the 2011 season, all KHI vehicles will carry a commemorative decal as the company celebrates their accomplishments over the last 10 years.
CHASSIS HISTORY: The No. 2 team will utilize chassis No. 070 this weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Chassis No. 070 is a brand-new chassis that has yet to see any on-track activity.
PREVIOUS RACE RECAP: Sadler and the No. 2 team finished 12th last weekend at Phoenix International Raceway. Sadler fought a loose-handling racecar, went one lap down only to rebound and fight his way back to a top-15 place finish at the one-mile oval. The finish moved Sadler from 27th to 15th in the NASCAR Nationwide Series driver point standings.
THOUGHTS FROM THE DRIVER: Elliott Sadler
What are your thoughts going into the race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway?
“I’m ready to go to our first 1.5-mile track of the season and I can think of no better place than Las Vegas Motor Speedway. My teammate this weekend and my boss Kevin Harvick won this event last season so I know we will have a lot of good notes to go off of. I really like 1.5-mile tracks so I hope we can just continue to improve our finishes every week and hopefully score our first win.”
What are your thoughts on your new sponsor TapouT and their debut at Las Vegas?
“I was so excited when I found out about this sponsorship. I have always been a fan of mixed martial arts and TapouT is such an iconic brand in that industry. I think the marriage of TapouT and NASCAR is unique but one that has already shown benefit to the owners. I was hanging out with TapouT co-found Skyskrape in Daytona a few weeks ago and I was amazed at just how many people recognized him. He is truly a celebrity and I’m excited to have them on the car this weekend. Hopefully we can show them victory lane for the first time.”
As the new points system and the “check the box” policy NASCAR has created takes shape, what are your thoughts with where you stand currently in the standings two races into the season?
“I really haven’t given too much thought to it. Obviously, I know that I stand 15th in the driver point standings which is a big jump from where we were after Daytona. But I just think it is too early to start making predictions and getting upset about points. I still think this system is a lot easier to figure out and understand where you end up, but it’s a little early to start worrying. Right now we at KHI are focused on learning each other and continuing to build our program to run in the top three positions week in and week out.”
Media Access: Members of the media can now log on to www.kevinharvickinc.com to gain access to press kit information online. For more information, please email Jessica Stroupe at KHI at jstroupe@kevinharvickinc.com.
Fast Facts:
Elliott Sadler
Nationwide Series Statistics at
Las Vegas Motor Speedway
Starts:4
Wins: 0
Poles: 0
Top 5: 0
Top 10: 1
Laps Led: 0
Average Start: 9.0
Average Finish: 16.2
Race Info:
March 5, 2011
Las Vegas Motor Speedway
1.5-Mile Tri-Oval
200 Laps/ 300 Miles
Broadcast Info:
TV: ABC will broadcast live at 3:00 p.m. EST
Radio: The Motor Racing Network (MRN) will broadcast live at 2:30 p.m. EST
Car Specs:
Chassis: 070
Engine: Earnhardt-Childress Racing (ECR)