ALWAYS A BRIDESMAID: Ron Hornaday has finished second in the last three truck series events at Atlanta Motor Speedway (AMS).  Most recently, Hornaday finished second to NASCAR Sprint Cup star Ryan Newman who won his first NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race in his first Truck Series start for Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI), becoming the 19th driver to win in all three of NASCAR’s elite series.

DID YOU KNOW?: Hornaday recorded his first victory for KHI at AMS in 2005.    

IN THE LOOP: Over the past four seasons Hornaday leads all active drivers in laps led at AMS, leading 261/520 laps (50%). Hornaday also leads the fastest laps category, recording 102 of the quickest laps turned.  

CHASING NO. 40: Hornaday is chasing his 40th career win.  One more victory will bring his Truck Series career wins to 40, adding to Hornaday’s total as the most successful Truck Series driver in history.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY RICK REN: Rick Ren will be celebrating his birthday Tuesday, March 10th.  Ren, the most successful active crew chief in the NCWTS, with 21 victories, has never recorded a win at AMS.

Notes from the Professor: Quotes from Ron Hornaday:

YOU HAVE THREE SECOND-PLACE FINISHES IN A ROW AT ATLANTA, WHAT IS THE KEY TO BEING SUCCESSFUL AT AMS? “Atlanta has been one of our best tracks. We have two poles there and started second last fall. We have led a lot of laps, but finished second three times. I’m not sure what it is going to take to get us to victory lane. Atlanta Motor Speedway is a very fast track, probably one of the fastest tracks we run on. The turns have a lot of banking and you can carry some really good speed into the straight-a-ways. We’re going to go to Atlanta this time and try to seal the deal.”

Notes from Atop the Pit Box: Quotes from Rick Ren:

WHAT IS IT GOING TO TAKE TO FINALLY GET THAT WIN AT AMS?

“Atlanta is a good, smooth track and you have two grooves you can run in. Our last three races at Atlanta have been successful runs, but we weren’t able to get the finishes we wanted when we had the strongest truck in the field. This time around, we will have a really good truck. It’s the same truck we ran here last year and nearly caught our teammate Ryan Newman for the win, but fell inches short on the last lap. It’s a good piece and will no doubt be there at the end to contend for the win. I think we should be able to pick up where we left off back in October and hopefully be in victory lane at the end of the day.”

CHASSIS HISTORY: The No. 33 team will bring truck 030 to AMS. Truck 030 last competed at Homestead-Miami Speedway in November, where Hornaday drove the truck to an eighth-place finish.  Chassis 030 also competed last season at AMS in the fall event, where Hornaday finished runner-up to KHI teammate Ryan Newman.

PREVIOUS RACE RECAP: Two weeks ago in sunny California, Hornaday and the No. 33 team scored their second top-10 finish of 2009 at Auto Club Speedway.  Hornaday currently sits fifth in points, 85 markers behind leader Kyle Busch.

ABOUT VETERANS OF FOREIGN WARS (VFW):

Headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, the VFW (Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United State) is a non-profit organization dedicated to honoring the sacrifice and ensuring the rights of America’s veterans through advocacy, support and community service, while promoting patriotism.  The VFW offers a wide array of services to support veterans and their families throughout their military career, from active duty to honorably discharged.  For more information, visit: www.vfw.org or call (816) 756-3390.