Dodge with Keselowski and Hornish seeks sixth win at Michigan

DODGE AT MIS
- Dodge has won nine races at Michigan International Speedway: Charlie Glotzbach, Richard Petty (2), Sterling Marlin, Ryan Newman (2), Jeremy Mayfield, Kasey Kahne and Kurt Busch.

- Kurt Busch earned Dodge its last win at MIS at the August event in 2010. He started 15th and led 36 laps en route to victory.

- Dodge has six wins at MIS since its return to NASCAR’s premier series in 2001.

Brad Keselowski, Penske Racing Dodge

Photo by: Jackie Buys

FROM THE ENGINEER
"This week, for the second time this season, the series revisits one of the tracks repaved for 2012. Qualifying for the first Michigan race in June saw 40 drivers break the existing track record with a 203 mph pole speed. Impressive, but the speed proved to be too much for the tires. We saw numerous tire problems in the race. This race will see a whole new tire combination and hopefully the end of the trouble. Engineers will be busy all weekend trying to adapt their cars to the tire switch without losing any of the impressive speed we know is here at MIS." Howard Comstock, SRT Motorsports Engineering

TALKING TIRES AT MICHIGAN INT’L SPEEDWAY
“They’ve tweaked on the tire a bit. I wouldn’t say that it’s a drastic departure from what we had in June. The tire is an improvement. Some of the right-side issues that we saw during the race in June with blistering are going to be improved by a thinner tread depth. Same tire, just a little less rubber on it so the tire holds less heat and doesn’t blister as easy.

“I think the speeds will still be up there. I don’t think the speeds will be what we qualified at in June with the softer left side but they’ll be faster than what we raced the last time with the hard left side tires.
Travis Geisler, Director of Competition, Penske Racing

INSIDE THE NUMBERS
13 – The qualifying speed at June’s Sprint Cup Series race at MIS was 13 mph faster than it was last August.

DID YOU KNOW?
- Dodge’s Brad Keselowski started fourth in the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge for last week’s Sprint Cup race at Watkins Glen – his highest starting position all season.

- There will be eight jet dryers on hand at MIS this weekend; it takes approximately 120 minutes to dry the 2-mile track.

FROM THE CREW CHIEF
“It’s almost like this is the first race on the new Michigan surface instead of the second. We’re coming back with a different tire than what we raced on in June, which makes our notes obsolete. We did get a chance to test it a few weeks ago and it’s definitely more durable. We won’t have any concerns about it blistering. The key to the weekend is still going to be track position, though. Temps are looking like they will be cooler, meaning the speeds will be up. Increased speeds mean that the cars will become more aero-dependent with no tire falloff, which puts track position at a premium. We’ve worked hard over the last few weeks and we’ve begun to develop a lot of consistency. Another consistent run this weekend should put us there at the end of the race to battle for the win.” Paul Wolfe, crew chief, No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger R/T

DODGE QUOTES:
“While you never like to change tires from race to race at any racetrack, I think this tire will prove to be a good call for the Miller Lite Dodge. It’s similar to the tire we raced on in June and our car was fast during the race. Our car just didn’t like the first tire and we weren’t great off the truck. But the guys on the team worked their tails off and we actually began to make progress, even before the tire change. I definitely think we were better than a 13th-place car. I’m confident that we will have the necessary speed to contend for the win this weekend. A Cup Series win at Michigan would be a big deal for me and my family.”
Brad Keselowski, No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger

“Michigan is my home track and I have many great memories from races there I went to as a kid with my parents. Some of the best days of my childhood were spent there. It’s a track where I have definitely attended more races as a fan than as a driver. Growing up just down the road in Defiance (some 70 miles south of the track in Ohio), MIS is a special place and always will be.”
Sam Hornish Jr., No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Dodge Charger

Source: SRT Motorsports