What:
Infineon Raceway celebrates the 20th anniversary of NASCAR Cup racing in the Sonoma Valley at this year's Toyota/Save Mart 350. This will mark one of two road-course events on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series schedule.
When/Circuit:
June 20-22. Infineon Raceway is a 10-turn, 1.99-mile road course for all NASCAR-sanctioned events.
Race Length:
The Toyota/Save Mart 350 is measured in kilometers. The race distance is 218.9 miles or 110 laps around the 1.99-mile road course.
Entries:
Fifty-two drivers attempted to qualify for last year's event. The starting field in 2008 will feature 43 cars.
Purse:
Track-record purse of $5,588,135 in posted awards.
Schedule (All times Pacific):
Friday: Sprint Cup Series Practice, 12:30 p.m. - 2 p.m.; NASCAR West Series Qualifying, 2:20 p.m.; Sonoma County Vintners NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Qualifying, 4:05 p.m.
Saturday: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Practice, 9:30 a.m.-10:15 a.m.; NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Final Practice, 10:50 a.m.-11:50 a.m.; Bennett Lane Winery 200, presented by Supercuts, NASCAR West Series Race, 12:30 p.m.
Sunday: Toyota/Save Mart 350, 2 p.m.
For a complete schedule, visit www.infineonraceway.com.
Television (All times Pacific):
Friday: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Practice, 12:30 (SPEED); Sonoma County Vintners NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Qualifying, 4 p.m. (SPEED)
Saturday: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Practice, 9:30 a.m. (SPEED); NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Final Practice, 10:30 a.m. (SPEED).|
Sunday: Toyota/Save Mart 350, 1:30 p.m. pre-race, 2 p.m. green flag (TNT)
Local Radio Coverage (all provided by PRN):
KNBR-AM 1050: Sunday, June 22: Toyota/Save Mart 350 and Post-Race show
KHTK-AM 1140: Sunday, June 22: Toyota/Save Mart 350 and Post-Race show
What To Expect:
Juan Pablo Montoya became just the third foreign-born driver to win a NASCAR Cup race when he took the checkers at Infineon Raceway in 2007. In the process, he reset the track record for greatest winning improvement from his starting position of 32nd.... Jeff Gordon is the undisputed king of Infineon Raceway, with five victories (1998-2000, '04, ‘06) and five pole positions (1998-99, '01, '04, '05) - the most of any driver. Gordon is also the all-time NASCAR winner on road courses with nine victories.... Two-time winners at Infineon Raceway include Rusty Wallace (1990, '96), Ernie Irvan (1992, '94), Ricky Rudd (1989, 2002) and Tony Stewart (2001, '05).... In 2007, seven of the top-15 finishers at Infineon Raceway started farther back than 20th. Gordon and Denny Hamlin, who started 41st and 36th, respectively, both earned top-10 finishes.... Kevin Harvick (2nd), Jeff Burton (3rd) and Clint Bowyer (4th) each posted career-best finishes at Infineon Raceway in 2007.... There have been 50 lead changes combined over the last six years of Cup Series competition at Infineon Raceway. ... If Terry Labonte qualifies for the race, he will become the only driver in the field who will have started all 20 NASCAR Cup races in Sonoma.
Qualifying/Race Records:
Qualifying: Jeff Gordon, June 24, 2005, 94.325 mph/1:15.950
Race: Ricky Rudd, June 23, 2002, 81.007 mph
In addition:
The weekend will also feature the Bennett Lane Winery 200, presented by Supercuts, NASCAR Camping World Series West race on Saturday, June 21 at 12:30 p.m. (Pacific). The race will span 64 laps and a handful of Sprint Cup Series regulars are expected to compete. Sprint Cup Series driver David Gilliland is the defending race winner.
Wall of Fame:
Infineon Raceway will induct East Bay resident Ken Clapp into its Wall of Fame on Friday, June 20. Clapp, who resides in Danville, was instrumental in the creation of then-Sears Point Raceway, and he was also one of the principals who helped bring the then-NASCAR Winston Cup Series to the Sonoma Valley in 1989.
Tickets:
Call 800-870-RACE, visit www.infineonraceway.com or www.ticketmaster.com.
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