Fontana: David Gilliland preview

Gilliland Prepares for Season Debut with Front Row Motorsports with Yates Racing; Team Locked In, 'Feels Like a Bulldozer Lifted off My Shoulders'

Statesville, N.C. (February 16, 2010) - Preparing for his first event of the 2010 season, David Gilliland will step into the No. 38 Taco Bell Ford for his debut with Front Row Motorsports with Yates Racing this weekend during the Auto Club 500 at the two-mile Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif. Gilliland competed with another team during the season-opener in Daytona and failed to make the Daytona 500. Gilliland will race the majority of the season behind the No. 38 Taco Bell Ford owned by Bob Jenkins.

This will also be the first time that Gilliland will work in race conditions with crew chief Randy Seals, who leads the No. 38 crew. Seals worked with Sprint Cup rookie Robert Richardson Jr. during the Daytona 500, finishing 31st.

This week the No. 38 car will also carry an associate sponsorship from Metal Jeans for the Auto Club 500.

Gilliland is a native of Riverside, Calif., and considers the California speedway his home track. He has one top-10 finish at the track in Nationwide competition, while his best Sprint Cup result at the track is 17th.

David Gilliland Comments on Beginning His Season at California and for Front Row Motorsports:

"It's agonizing to miss any race, and having missed the Daytona 500 was just plain heartbreaking. But, California is a brand new start for me, and I'm looking forward to what's going to be a good challenge for me. Front Row Motorsports with Yates Racing is one of the fast-growing teams in the garage, and owner Bob Jenkins asked me to race his third car this season.

"He introduced himself to me last year at Homestead and we spoke over the off-season. They were working on things and I was working on some things. Daytona wasn't going to be in the cards for us, but we had the chance to have a team locked into the top-35 for the first five races and I could get in it. It's a great opportunity with this team because it's almost a reunion with Travis (Kvapil) being there, the folks from Ford and working with Doug (co-owner Doug Yates) again. Doug was the person who first called me to race in Cup, so it's a pretty cool deal to come over here. I'm pretty happy with the progress of things since last November.

"We don't have grand illusions of winning a championship this season, but we have goals of being a consistent team running inside the top-25 each week. That's attainable, and it's a lot easier when you are guaranteed in the race. You don't have to worry about a qualifying setup and then playing catch-up the rest of the weekend. We can just go to the track and know we're going to race. That's a big deal. It feels like a bulldozer lifted off my shoulders.

"And, really, California is a track I want to race well at. I've got a lot of family and friends there who have supported me all my career. I remember racing West races at the track, going into the Nationwide Series and now Sprint Cup. You just want to run well in front of the people who have followed you through your career.

"I'm ready to get going and see what we have. Randy (crew chief Randy Seals) and I have spoken a bunch at the shop. We feel like we have a good game plan. It's going to be important to create that base the next four weekends and stay locked in. I'm just ready to get back into the weekly routine."

-source: front row motorsports