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Track Facts:
Banking/Turns: 11°/9
Distance: 1.0 miles / 500 laps
Shape: Oval

Subway Fresh 500
Saturday, April 12
Phoenix International Raceway
Avondale, Arizona
Saturday, 8:30 p.m. EST

Schedule
Practice
3:15 p.m. EST, Thursday, April 10
5:45 p.m. EST, Friday, April 11
7:00 p.m. EST, Final Practice Friday, April 11

Qualifying
7:10 p.m. EST, Thursday, April 10, Two laps all positions

Race Day Saturday, April 12
7:30 p.m. EST Saturday
TV: FOX 8:00 p.m. EST
Radio: PRN Radio at 8:00
2007 winner: Jeff Gordon

Check the SPEED Channel schedule (speedtv.com) for various programs on the race this weekend.

Race Preview

“Stewart Cooper is going to take over as my crew chief on the No. 45 Dodge this weekend.  Stewart is that new breed of crew chief that couples a mechanical engineering education with a lot of practical at track experience.  With the success he has had as a crew chief in the Nationwide Series, I know Robbie (Loomis) has been trying to get him in the organization for some time.  The 45 team is a talented race team and we’ll benefit from having a guy like Stewart at the helm.”
 
“Something that should not be lost in the crew chief change is the fact that Billy Wilburn will remain with Petty Enterprises.  Billy’s going to take over as crew chief of our test team and he will be a huge part of improving the product that we take to the race track.  With the addition of Derrick Finley in the off season as our technical director, and the addition of several other talented people in our engineering department, we really have a lot of great information coming out of this group.  Billy’s experience will help validate new ideas at the track and give our crew chiefs more options for the races.  To really learn this new car you need to be on-track as much as possible and we have devoted more resources to track testing this year. It is great to have somebody of Billy’s experience level to lead this team.”
 
Quotes from Stewart Cooper:
“It’s an honor to come onboard a race team like Petty Enterprises.  Everyone here is committed to making this No. 45 Dodge competitive on a weekly basis. If we do that, the points thing will take care of itself. Petty Enterprises has the pieces and they are all in place, we just have to put the pieces to work.  Our first priority is to qualify Kyle into the show this weekend and then perform well on Saturday evening.  Kyle, Billy and the team participated in the test at Phoenix last month so we have a nice book of notes to help us accomplish that. Billy Wilburn and Robbie (Loomis) have assembled a good team here and I’m looking forward to working with these guys.”

Qualifying Results
1. Ryan Newman, Dodge
2. Elliot Sadler, Dodge
3. Carl Edwards, Ford
4. Mark Martin, Chevrolet
5. Kasey Kahne, Dodge
34. Bobby Labonte, Cheerios/Betty Crocker Dodge
44. Kyle Petty, Wells Fargo Dodge

Ryan Newman returned to his old qualifying ways and will lead the field to the green in Saturday night’s Subway Fresh Fit 500 at the Phoenix (Ariz.) International Raceway (PIR). The pole was the 43rd of Newman’s career, tying him with Buck Baker for 10th most in NASCAR Sprint Cup history. Fellow Dodge Motorsports driver, Elliot Sadler, will start along side. Carl Edwards, last week’s winner, rounds out the top-three.

PIR provides a unique challenge to drivers and crews. It is an egg-shaped oval, meaning turns one and two have a different radius than turns three and four. It is commonly referred to as a “compromise” track because you are usually better at one end than you are the other.

Bobby Labonte and the No. 43 Cheerios/Betty Crocker Dodge team will start Saturday’s race from the 34th position. He toured the track in 27.394 seconds. Like many of the drivers in the garage area, Labonte had to deal with a car that was “tight” in the center of the corner. However, Labonte has three top-10 finishes in his last five starts at PIR. This gives him a lot of confidence heading into the race.

“There just wasn’t much grip out there today,” said Labonte. “It wasn’t hot out there, but the sun really beat down on the track. Phoenix has always been one of the most sensitive tracks when it comes sunlight. But we have a lot practice tomorrow. I feel confident that Jeff (Meendering, crew chief) and I can get it dialed in.”

Kyle Petty posted a qualifying lap of 27.697 seconds in the No. 45 Dodge. This was not enough to qualify him into the field of 43.

Saturday night’s race will be televised live on FOX and broadcast live on MRN Radio and Sirius NASCAR Channel 128. Pre-race coverage is scheduled to begin at 8:00 p.m. (EST).

Kyle Petty name and/or likeness used under license by Petty Marketing Company, L.L.C.
Richard Petty name and/or likeness used under license by Petty Marketing Company, L.L.C.