NO.1 TEAM FINISHES 8TH AT LVMS

Results (starting pos.) from Las Vegas Motor Speedway
1.     (7) Tony Stewart, No. 14 Chevrolet
8.    (19) Jamie McMurray, No. 1 McDonald’s Chevrolet
25.  (29) Juan Pablo Montoya, No. 42 Clorox Chevrolet

McDONALD’S TEAM BRINGS HOME AN EIGHTH-PLACE FINISH IN LAS VEGAS

LAS VEGAS (March 11, 2012) – As the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) made its annual visit to “Sin City”, the No. 1 McDonald’s team  looked to reverse their fortunes from the first two weeks of the 2012 NSCS season in hopes of bringing home a solid finish.  The hard work of the No.1 team and a determined Jamie McMurray, who competed with a stomach illness on race day, would battle to bring the No. 1 McDonald’s Chevrolet home in the eighth-position.

After posting the 19th fastest time in qualifying on Friday afternoon, crew chief Kevin “Bono” Manion and team, would turn all efforts to race set up for the final two practice sessions Saturday morning.  The results would show Jamie McMurray as one of the fastest cars in race trim following “happy hour” practice and the team would set sights on a successful race for Sunday.

After some challenges near the beginning of the race McMurray quickly began to make up any lost ground and drove the McDonald’s Chevrolet toward the front of the field, running over 72% of the race among the top-15 cars.

The No. 1 crew varied the strategy for the remainder of the event taking only two tires under caution on two separate occasions, along with a gas-and-go on the teams’ final pit stop of the day.  The result of the strong run netted the team its best finish in the early going of the 2012 NSCS season, coming home in the eighth-position.

After the event, an exhausted McMurray stated, "I am really proud of this McDonald’s team.  To come out here and run this good on a mile and a half track is encouraging.  Everyone in this organization has been working hard to get us going in the right direction and this is the result of that effort.  I just want to thank everyone involved.  They deserve this kind of result”

Notes:
- - In 10 career starts at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, McMurray has finished in the top-10 four times
- - McMurray has no DNF’s in his 10 career starts at Las Vegas Motor Speedway
- - The No. 1 team jumped up 11 spots in the NSCS point standings to 25th
- - Crew chief Kevin Manion was awarded the Moog Chassis Parts Problem Solver of the Race – presented to the crew chief whose car posts the largest increase in average lap speed from the first half to the second half of the race while finishing on the lead lap

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will be at Bristol Motor Speedway next for the Food City 500 on Sunday March 18, 2012. FOX and PRN affiliated radio stations will have live coverage.