Bobby Labonte will be behind the wheel of the No. 71 TaxSlayer.com/TRG Motorsports/Chevrolet Impala SS for this weekend's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500 to be run at Pocono Raceway on Sunday, August 1.
Pocono, known as The Tricky Triangle, presenting a unique challenge to driver and crew. The shape of this fast track is unlike any other on the Sprint Cup Series schedule. Labonte, the 2000 Sprint Cup Champion, has posted three wins at Pocono.
"I had a span of about four years there where we just hit on the right set-up of combinations at Pocono," Labonte said. "I like the race track. It is one of the most challenging tracks we go to because the three corners are different. It is hard to set the car up for Pocono. It is unique. My success there is based upon having the just right set-up on the car."
Labonte points to the Turn Three as the key feature on the track for the set-up his TaxSlayer.com Chevy.
"Everyone points to Turn Three as the corner where you really need the car to handle. I don't disagree with that point. If you get Turn Three right it helps you to carry speed down the long front straight. Turn Three is the most important corner followed by turns two and one."
Drafting plays a role, but handling will rule the day on Sunday.
"The field tends to get spread out in the race. The draft will play a role down the front straight. It is not like Daytona or Talladega as far as drafting goes. If you fall back it is hard to get caught back up. If you are close enough to somebody it will help you a little bit. You just have to have the right set-up on the car. We need to be fairly close with the handling package when the race starts. I have been able to make some changes during the race work, but with these new cars is it is harder to fine tune it, especially during the race, than it was with the old cars."
Kevin Buckler, team principal, is ready for his team to have a strong weekend.
"I am looking for Bobby to help us have a very strong run at Pocono this weekend," Buckler said. "We have done a good job in qualifying the last couple of races and we need to carry that speed over to the race and get a good result. Bobby has a lot of miles at Pocono and really knows how to get around that crazy layout. Dan (Stillman, crew chief) and the guys will put the best piece we have under Bobby this weekend. We have had our sports car programs in high gear this season. We won last weekend at Lime Rock and are leading the points in the American Le Mans Series GTC class. We are also in the hunt for the championship in the Grand-Am Rolex GT Series. We are hungry to have our Sprint Cup program leading the charge with our sports car teams. It is great to have the TaxSlayer.com group back onboard again this weekend."
The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500 will be televised live on ESPN starting at 1:00 p.m. ET, pre-race stating at noon. Qualifying will be live on the SPEED Channel, Friday, July 30 at 3:30 p.m. ET.
TaxSlayer Pro's computerized tax return system, which was introduced to professional tax practitioners in 1992, is the first chapter in the company's story. The second was in 1998 when they used the basic technology from the professional package to develop their own individual version for online preparation and e-Filing. Growing out of an established firm with a solid reputation of over 30 years in the Tax Preparation business, TaxSlayer.com has the full expertise of a professional tax service behind every return. The TaxSlayer.com individual program is a fully featured online tax preparation step-by-step system that is designed for the individual taxpayer. This program provides all of the forms, calculations and communication links to allow you to prepare and e-File a tax return electronically with the IRS. Additional information can be found at www.taxslayer.com and www.taxslayerracing.com.
TRG Motorsports is based in Mooresville, North Carolina. Currently the team fields a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series entry as well as a limited Camping World Truck Series effort and an ARCA RE/MAX Series team. The Racer's Group was founded in 1993 and has been competing at the top level of sports car racing. TRG's Porsche sports car program is run out of the company's headquarters in Petaluma, California. The team has the most wins of any team in the Grand-Am Rolex Series with 30, including the 2005 and 2006 Rolex Series GT championship trophy to go along with wins in the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona (three) and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
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