John Wes Townley, No. 99 Zaxby’s Toyota Camry, Bristol Preview

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In: Xfinity Series News

News & Notes:

    • This Week’s Zaxby’s Toyota … John Wes Townley will pilot RAB Racing with Brack Maggard Chassis No. 39 in Friday’s Food City 250 at Bristol Motor Speedway.
    • Zaxby’s Returns … RAB Racing’sToyota Camry will sport familiar colors this weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway when the red and yellow paint scheme of Zaxby’s adorns the No. 99. The Athens, Ga.-based chain was the primary sponsor of RAB Racing’s NASCAR Nationwide Series and ARCA Racing Series entries with Townley from 2008 through 2010. Zaxby’s was also on the hood when RAB Racing scored their first Nationwide Series victory at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in 2010, with Boris Said behind the wheel of the No. 09 entry.
  • Townley at Bristol… In four Nationwide Series starts at the .533-mile oval, Townley has posted one top-20 finish, in 2009’s Scotts Turf Builder 300. Additionally, the 22-year-old driver has competed in one Camping World Truck Series race at Bristol, in 2008’s O’Reilly 200, where he posted a 35th-place finish after being involved in an early incident that eliminated him from competition prematurely.
  • RAB Racing at Bristol… In six NASCAR Nationwide Series starts at the Tennessee track dating back to 2009, RAB Racing entries have earned two top-20 finishes and have completed 1,314 of the 1,954 (79.4 percent) laps contested in those events. 
  • Bristol Flashback … Last time RAB Racing competed at “Thunder Valley,” in the third race of the Nationwide Series season, Wallace and the Mac Tools Racing Team had a strong run going in the early part of the race, but an engine failure left the team with a 33rd-place finish.
  • Get to the Points … RAB Racing currently holds down the 19th slot in the NASCAR Nationwide Series owner point standings. In 22 races this season, RAB-prepared Nationwide Series entries have notched one top-five and two top-10 finishes. RAB-prepared Toyotas have completed 3,428 laps with drivers Patrick Carpentier, Victor Gonzalez, Jr., Brett Moffitt, Travis Pastrana, Townley, Ryan Truex and Kenny Wallace.
  • Zipadelli at Bristol … Scott Zipadelli, crew chief of the No. 99 Toyota Camry, has sat atop the pit box at Bristol Motor Speedway ten times in his Nationwide Series career, garnering three top-ten and five top-20 finishes, with drivers Kelly Bires, Jason Leffler, and Wallace.
  • Double Duty … Townley will be pulling double-duty for RAB Racing this week at Bristol, driving the No. 09 Zaxby’s-sponsored entry in Wednesday’s UNOH 200. Live coverage of the event begins Wednesday, August 22 at 7:30 p.m. EDT. The race will be televised live on SPEED and broadcast on the Motor Racing Network.
  • Get Well, Torie … In recognition of his 16-year-old daughter Torie Costa’s battle with childhood rhabdomyosarcoma, a soft tissue malignant tumor of skeletal muscle origin that accounts for approximately 3.5% of the cases of cancer among children aged 0 to 14 years, crew chief Scott Zipadelli and the members of RAB Racing’s Nationwide Series team are wearing pink bracelets in support of Torie. A CaringBridge site has been created where Torie and her family post updates as she battles her disease. Family and friends are able to visit the site, stay informed and leave supportive messages. To keep up with Torie’s journey, visit http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/toriecosta
  • Catch the Action … Friday’s Food City 250 at Bristol Motor Speedway will be televised live Friday, August 24th beginning at 7 p.m. EDT on ESPN and broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network. NASCAR Nationwide Series qualifying will be televised live Friday, August 24th beginning at 3:30 p.m. EDT on SPEED.

     

John Wes Townley Quotes:

“I’m really looking forward to heading to Bristol Motor Speedway this week. I’ll be pulling double duty, racing in both the Camping World Truck Series and Nationwide Series races. With Thursday being an off day, it will give us the time to dedicate to each of our Toyotas without going back and forth from one to the other. Wednesday, we will be focused on our Tundra, and Friday will be dedicated to our Zaxby’s Camry. This will be the first time most of us will get to try out the new surface, other than the Cup drivers that participated in the tire test. So, I think it may give us a little bit of an advantage on the Nationwide side with the experience I’ll get on Wednesday night.”

 

Scott Zipadelli Quotes:

“Bristol is one of everyone’s favorite race tracks to go to. It’s the best short track on the schedule. We will have a bit of a new challenge this time because of the track configuration change since the spring race, and we will be racing on a different left-side tire, the one that was also used at Richmond. The racing groove all the way up against the wall has been ground down, so cars have to run the middle or the bottom. In the past few years, the very top groove was faster because the car could keep the RPMs up and carry more momentum and speed off the corner. Now, that won’t be an option anymore. Cars will race side-by-side and there will probably be more contact than the past few races there. So, you better leave your feelings at the gate when you walk in, because this is going to be a physical race.”

 

RAB Racing PR

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