Fort Worth, Texas (November 8, 2010) – Texas Motor Speedway’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Challenge produced a middle-of-the-road day for Michael Annett and the No. 15 Germain Racing team. Fighting an ill-handling racecar that wouldn’t respond to changes, Annett worked hard on the track to secure an 18th place finish in Saturday’s race.

Despite a 35th place starting position, Annett worked his way just outside the top-20 in 21st on lap 38. The first of five cautions came out on lap 43. Reporting that his car was free through the corners, Annett came to pit road for service on lap 44. The No. 15 Germain Racing pit crew was on top of their game on pit road, moving the No. 15 Pilot Flying J Coffee Toyota Camry four spots, pushing Annett to 17th for the restart on lap 48.

Still battling a car that was aero tight and wouldn’t turn in traffic, Annett made his second trip to pit road under the second caution on lap 82. This time losing three spots on pit road, Annett restarted 18th on lap 85.

Lap 140 brought the No. 15 Pilot Flying J Coffee Toyota Camry to pit road under green flag conditions for four Goodyears, fuel and air pressure adjustments to help free the car’s tight condition. The third yellow flag soon came out on lap 147. Annett returned to pit road for four tires, fuel, track bar and air pressure adjustments. Back to green on lap 152, he restarted 16th.

Still fighting a challenging racecar, Annett reporting being loose in the center and tight off. The caution was back out on lap 184. Knowing that there would be only 10 laps to go on the restart and that the car wasn’t responding to changes, crew chief Ryan Fugle did his best to help Annett with track position by opting to change only right side tires on the stop, advancing Annett to sixth for the restart on lap 190.

Unable to battle with cars that had four fresh tires, Annett was shuffled back to 17th when the yellow flag was brought back out on lap 197. Coming in one last time for four tires, fuel and a track bar adjustment, Annett was back on the track for a green, white, checkered flag finish. He earned a hard-fought 18th place finish in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Challenge.

With only two races remaining, the Nationwide Series will head west to Phoenix International Raceway for the WYPALL 200 powered by Kimberly-Clark Professional on Saturday. The 200 lap race will preview the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway that takes place on November 20. Tune to ESPN2 and MRN Radio for live coverage of the WYPALL 200 powered by Kimberly-Clark Professional beginning at 4 p.m. ET on November 16.

For more information on Michael Annett and Germain Racing’s No. 15 NASCAR Nationwide Series team, check out www.MichaelAnnett.com and www.GermainRacing.com. Get live updates on Twitter @MichaelAnnett.

About Pilot Flying J:

Pilot Flying J is headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee, and has more than 550 locations in North America. The company employs more than 20,000 people and is the largest retail operator of travel centers in North America.

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Contact: Maggie Martin, Rising Star Management Group, mmartin@risingstarmg.com

Mooresville, N.C. (11-06-2010) - When the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series heads to Texas, there's one thing the competitors count on: chasing Todd Bodine around the race track. Friday night's race was no exception. Bodine put the Valvoline Tundra out front for 23 of 147 laps and earned his 16th top-five finish of the season when he crossed the start/finish line in fourth-place.

“Our Valvoline Tundra was awesome. The Germain Racing pit crew was awesome. We pitted for four tires and came out in front for the final restart of the race. I chose the outside line for the restart. I figured momentum would carry the Valvoline Tundra to the lead. Instead, I went down into the first turn and even getting up to speed the truck just bottomed out and pushed," explained Bodine of how the final restart of the race was a preview to the finish results of the 23rd race of the 2010 Truck Series season.

Crew chief Mike Hillman Jr. added some perspective and explained the fourth-place result for the Valvoline Tundra was a fine end to another outstanding trip to Texas Motor Speedway for the No. 30 team of Germain Racing.

"Todd Bodine said it best in his post-race interview with SPEED. Germain Racing did a great job again. Texas is our track. We came here with the Valvoline Tundra and did what we expected to do. We led laps, had a great Toyota Tundra, worked well as a team and we got another top-five finish. It was a good points night and it gives us something to build on heading into Phoenix and Homestead," said Hillman, who was very proud of performance of the Valvoline Tundra.

Bodine explained to SPEED's pit road reporter after the Winstar World Casino 350K that the consistency in his results this season is due to the hard work and never give up attitude of the No. 30 Germain Racing team. That consistency has allowed Bodine to score the best statistics of his Truck Series career - 16 top-fives and 19 top-10’s in 23 events to-date.

"I think the consistency just shows how good our guys are and how good (Mike Hillman) Jr. (crew chief) and the team have been getting the truck setup.  I’ve said quite a few times, the first five races we struggled with making the trucks drive good and then went to work and figured it out and since then these Tundra trucks have been driving great. That’s what allows us to keep that consistency. It just shows how good the 30 team really is,” explained Bodine.

Todd Bodine has led the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship standings since the conclusion of race no. 7, in May, at Charlotte Motor Speedway. He has a 230-point margin over second-place and looks to lock in his second series title in the final two weeks.

Next up for Bodine and the No. 30 Germain.com Tundra is Phoenix International Raceway.  Watch qualifying and racing on SPEED at 4:30 and 7:30 PM Eastern on Friday, November 12^th, or tune into the race on your local MRN affiliate.

Follow Germain Racing on Twitter @GermainRacing or on the web at Germainracing.com or become a Facebook fan.

When shopping for your new or used car or truck, head directly to Germain.com to find the perfect vehicle or visit your local Germain dealer in Ohio, Florida, or Arkansas. Germain.com is part of Germain Motor Company, a top-25 automotive retail network with 21 dealerships and more than 60 years of experience.

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Fort Worth, TX (November 5, 2010) – A week removed from having his day ended prematurely on the count of a negligent move by a fellow driver, ‘Mad’ Max Papis arrived in the Lone Star state looking to rebound.  A week ago in Talladega, Papis piloted the #9 GEICO Toyota Tundra solidly at the front of the field and aimed to achieve the same at Texas Motor Speedway on Friday night.

Papis and the GEICO team quickly took to the 1.5-mile quad-oval and appeared comfortable through the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series’ two practice sessions on Thursday.  The opening session saw the #9 GEICO Tundra 14th on the speed charts, while the final practice session saw Papis as a respectable 19th. 

With practice in the books and only qualifying remaining, Papis solidified his position in the field when he qualified the #9 GEICO Tundra 23rd for Friday night’s WinStar World Casino 350K NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race.  He toured the facility in just 30.608 seconds, at a rate of speed of 176.424 miles per hour. 

While his teammate, Todd Bodine, is on the verge of winning his second NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship, Papis has his mind set on 2011.  His final races of the 2010 season are preparing him for his own run at the Truck Series championship in 2011.

Cool temperatures and the smell of thousands of campfires blanketed the racetrack on Friday night, as the green flag waved under clear skies. Starting 23rd, Papis quickly jumped to 20th on the opening lap before a Johanna Long spin brought out the event’s first caution flag of the night.  Just one lap into the race, there was no reason for Papis to bring the #9 GEICO Tundra down pit road. 

Papis would restart 19th on Lap 5 and ride solidly in the Top 20 before the evening’s second caution flag was displayed on Lap 41.  Just one lap later, Papis traveled down pit road where the Germain Racing pit crew outfitted the #9 GEICO Tundra with four fresh tires, a full tank of fuel and a right rear air pressure adjustment. While Papis entered pit road in the 20th position, the Germain Racing pit crew turned him around in astounding time, sending Mad Max back out onto the racing surface in the 14th position. 

The race would once again go green on Lap 49, but just three laps later the caution lights were flashing at Texas Motor Speedway for a crash involving Ron Hornaday, Tayler Malsam and Miguel Paludo.  After just three laps of racing, it was not necessary for the #9 GEICO Tundra to visit pit road.

Papis restarted the race in the 14th position on Lap 60 and by Lap 97 the Gecko was sitting 12th. The #9 GEICO Tundra entered the Top 10 on Lap 98, but the following lap would cause Papis’ demise. 

As he exited Turn 4, Papis’ truck appeared to run out of fuel. By the time he entered the front-stretch it was a certainty.  Papis managed to coast around the 1.5-mile quad-oval and make it to pit road where the GEICO Racing pit crew would provide him with the necessary fuel.  Unfortunately, the GEICO Tundra had stalled and because there was no fuel pressure it would take time to build up the pressure.  Once Papis had the truck re-fired, he returned to the race, but he would do so five laps down in the 26th position; a far cry from where he was running in 10th just a few minutes earlier.

Despite the setback, Papis continued to pick up positions and when the checkered flag was displayed, he recorded a 23rd place finish. The final result was clearly not indicative of his performance throughout the evening. 

“We had a nice run going tonight in the #9 GEICO Tundra, but the fuel problem really ended it for us,” said a dejected Papis.  “I battled a tight truck all night, but we kept fighting and this GEICO pit crew did a great job of getting me in and out. We’re building for next year, we have a new crew chief and right now everything is looking great.  The things that happened in Talladega last week and then what happened tonight is just misfortune, not mistakes. We’re doing a good job and you will continue to see us be competitive and run up front.”

Papis and the GEICO team will take a week off before traveling to south Florida for the final NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race of the 2010 season.

Papis and the #9 GEICO Toyota Tundra will hit the 1.5-mile oval of Homestead-Miami Speedway for the opening practice session at 5:00 PM (EDT) on Thursday, November 18th.  Qualifying will take place on Friday at 5:05 PM (EDT).

The Ford 200 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race is on Friday, November 19th.  The race will be televised live on SPEED beginning at 7:30 PM (EDT), while the Motor Racing Network (MRN) will carry the live radio broadcast.

To learn more about the GEICO Racing program, please visit: www.geicogarage.com

You can also follow GEICO Racing on Twitter: www.twitter.com/geicoracing

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Contact: Doug Barnette, Player Management International

Email: dbarnette@pmifirm.com

Fort Worth, Texas (November 4, 2010) – Behind the wheel of Germain Racing’s No. 15 Pilot Flying J Coffee Toyota Camry on Texas Motor Speedway’s 1.5 mile tri-oval, Nationwide Series driver Michael Annett is ready to duel for a successful finish in Saturday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Challenge, one of the final three races in the 2010 season.

Annett has three starts on the Fort Worth track and holds an average finish of 16.3. The second year Nationwide Series driver secured an 11th place finish in his first ever attempt at Texas’ Great American Speedway in 2009, and in his most recent performance in the Lone Star State he produced a 16th place finish.

“As an organization, we’re continually showing our strength on mile and half tracks. I’m excited to get back to intermediate track racing this weekend at Texas. We’ve definitely got what it takes to lock in a good finish on Saturday,” said Annett.

Annett will once again be contending with the Pilot Flying J “Best Coffee on the Interstate” paint scheme adorning his Toyota Camry and will continue the promotion of their coffee brand off the track as well.

Fans can visit the Pilot Flying J display in the Texas Motor Speedway fan zone on Friday from 3:30-4:30 p.m. ET to get Annett’s autograph and try samples of Pilot Flying J coffee.

With all three of NASCAR’s top-ranked series linked together for the final three race stretch, the Nationwide Series will hit the Texas Motor Speedway track on Friday for practice from 10-11:15 a.m. Final practice will follow from 11:40 a.m.-12:55 p.m. Both practice sessions can be seen live on SPEED. Nationwide Series qualifying begins at 6:35 p.m. on Friday.

Saturday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Challenge starts at 12:55 p.m. with live coverage on ESPN 2 beginning at 12 p.m. All times are ET.

For more information on Michael Annett and Germain Racing’s No. 15 NASCAR Nationwide Series team, check out www.MichaelAnnett.com and www.GermainRacing.com. Get live updates on Twitter @MichaelAnnett.

About Pilot Flying J:

Pilot Flying J is headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee, and has more than 550 locations in North America. The company employs more than 20,000 people and is the largest retail operator of travel centers in North America.

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Contact: Maggie Martin, Rising Star Management Group, mmartin@risingstarmg.com

June 9, 2010 (Mooresville, N.C.) - NASCAR Camping World Truck Series points leader Todd Bodine is set to steer the No. 30 Germain.com Tundra around Michigan International Speedway in search of another NASCAR career victory at the track. Bodine has two victories in NASCAR’s number two division at the Brooklyn, MI, facility. He and the Germain.com Tundra team have finished fifth or better in seven of eight races this season.

“Racing a truck at Michigan is a lot like running a speedway. The draft is huge. You really have to pay attention to it and understand it. At the same time, handling is critical because the corners are so long, the race track’s worn out and the grip isn’t good, so the handling of the truck has to be perfect. It takes every aspect to be perfect in order to be fast at Michigan. The way this Germain.com Tundra team is working, I’m looking forward to us having another good race weekend at Michigan,” said Bodine.

Bodine raced chassis TRD-122 at Michigan last year. This year TRD-131 gets the nod for duty on the 2-mile oval. Chassis TRD-131 made its Germain Racing debut at Nashville, scoring a fifth-place finish. The truck then was raced at Kansas (third-place), Dover (fifth-place), Charlotte (second-place) and Texas (win).

“We’ve had several race trucks over the years that have been winners and workhorses in our truck inventory. We haven’t had a clear-cut favorite chassis in the last couple seasons that’s given us the consistent performances that TRD-131 has. This truck has delivered top-five performances each time it’s been put on the track and we’re confident it’s the right truck for Michigan,” explained crew chief Mike Hillman Jr. of the truck that won last weekend in Texas and will race Saturday at Michigan.

Bodine captured the 2010 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship points lead following race seven at Charlotte. After eight races, he has a 65-point lead over second-place Aric Almirola. In the Truck Series owner’s standings, Germain Racing took the lead over Kyle Busch Motorsports by 12 points following last week’s win at Texas.

Watch the Germain.com Tundra at Michigan International Speedway on SPEED. Racing coverage begins Saturday, June 12th at 1:30 PM on SPEED or tune in to your local MRN affiliate. Follow Germain Racing on Twitter @GermainRacing or on the web at Germainracing.com or become a Facebook fan.

When shopping for your new or used car or truck, head directly to Germain.com to find the perfect vehicle or visit your local Germain dealer in Ohio, Florida, or Arkansas. Germain.com is part of Germain Motor Company, a top-25 automotive retail network with 21 dealerships and more than 60 years of experience. 

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 Mooresville, NC (06-07-2010) – Todd Bodine might need to change his nickname from “The Onion” to “The Lonestar Legend.” Bodine, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series points leader, kept the No. 30 Valvoline Tundra out in front of the Truck Series field for 106 of 169 laps, collecting his sixth win at Texas Motor Speedway, the 18^th victory in his Truck Series career. Germain Racing now has seven Texas victories as part of the team’s total count of 19 wins. The No. 30 Valvoline Tundra team leads all Tundra teams in total victories. A great race truck and strong teamwork were the key ingredients in Friday’s winning performance.

 “Tonight’s win felt great. We’ve been struggling all year to make the trucks drive well and (Mike Hillman) Junior and the team went to work and figured it out. The No. 30 Valvoline Tundra was driving well and it was fast. It was wide open. It was fun to drive, it really was.,” said Bodine, who’s struggles have resulted in top-five finishes in seven of eight Truck Series races this season.

 Just past halfway, Bodine was struggling with a tight handling condition when he was running in second-place. The crew helped Bodine fix the problem the best way possible.

 “The difference that got us back up front in clean air where we could run well late in the race was our last pit stop. The crew did an unbelievable job. They beat everybody out by a second or two. You have to have everything go right and that’s what happened tonight. We had a great Tundra and with it being the first race for Valvoline with the team…to come out of here with a win…I think that’s the second time we’ve done that with a new sponsor. It was an awesome night all the way around,” said Bodine.

 Winning at Texas has become a bit of an annual tradition for Germain Racing. Since opening shop in 2004, the team has only been winless at Texas one season, 2008, but in that season, the team still earned a pole award and the No. 30 Tundra scored two top-five finishes.

 “It’s great to come out of Texas with the win, obviously. Everybody talks about momentum and what it does for your team. Our guys, it wouldn’t matter if we came out of here finishing 30th, they’re going to go home and work just as hard for the next race and prepare the best they can. That’s the one good thing about our race team -- we don’t ever give up. To come out of here with a win for the stretch, it’s awesome but it’s just one win, it’s one track and we have to go to Michigan next week and beat them up there,” said Bodine.

 While “everything in Texas is big,” winning in a Toyota Tundra in Texas is huge. The state is home to Toyota Motor Manufacturing of Texas (TMMTX), a production facility located in San Antonio that produces the Toyota Tacoma and Tundra pickup trucks. The facility directly employs nearly 2,000 Toyota team members and indirectly another 2,000 people are employed at area suppliers.

 “Germain Racing puts a lot of pride into preparing our race vehicles every weekend, but when we send the No. 30 Valvoline Tundra to a place like Texas Motor Speedway, there’s extra pride and there’s a lot of extra pressure we place on ourselves. We know what we are capable of so we work that much harder. The fans at Texas are great, the folks at the race track are wonderful and we love winning in the state that’s the home state for the Tundra manufacturing plant,” said crew chief Mike Hillman Jr.

 Germain Racing puts the No. 30 Tundra back on track this weekend at Michigan International Speedway, a track where Bodine has two victories in NASCAR’s number two division and two top-five and four top-ten finishes in the Trucks.  Watch Saturday’s race live on SPEED starting at 1:30 PM Eastern.

 When shopping for your new or used car or truck, head directly to Germain.com to find the perfect vehicle or visit your local Germain dealer in Ohio, Florida, or Arkansas. Germain.com is part of Germain Motor Company, a top-25 automotive retail network with 21 dealerships and more than 60 years of experience.

 Germain Racing competes in each of NASCAR’s three national divisions as well as the K&N Pro Series East. A variety of sponsorship opportunities are available. Visit Germainracing.com for more information. To keep up with team news, follow on Twitter @Germainracing or become a fan on Facebook.

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Mooresville, NC (June 7, 2010) - Germain Racing clinched its seventh Texas Motor Speedway victory on Friday night when Todd Bodine drove the No. 30 Valvoline Tundra to the winner's circle in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. The win was Bodine's sixth at Texas.

Saturday was race day at Nashville Superspeedway for Michael Annett and the No. 15 Pilot Travel Centers Camry. Annett started 20th and finished 14th in the 225-lap event.

Sunday in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series  race at Pocono Raceway, Max Papis started 20th in the No. 13 GEICO Camry and finished 34th.
Also on Sunday, Zach Germain drove the Germain.com Camry to a 15th-place finish at Martinsville Speedway in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East.
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Concord, NC (05-22-2010) – After a three hour delay for rain, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series took to the track for 134 laps of racing at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Germain Racing’s Todd Bodine started ninth, worked his way to the lead and after a series of late-race caution flags, finished second to race winner and fellow Tundra driver Kyle Busch. Bodine’s second-place effort moved him back to the top of the Truck Series championship standings.

“We had a good run. We were too tight in practice and we fought it all practice. We were still too tight in the race and that’s why we just couldn’t quite carry the momentum that Kyle (Busch) could. But our Germain.com Tundra was good tonight. For us, as a team, it was a great night because we’ve struggled all season with this new generation tire that Goodyear’s got and the way our trucks are driving with it. The team worked hard looking through notes and looking through data trying to figure out how to get the 30 truck to where I could drive it and they did. They got it fixed. Tonight we ran with the leaders and it was great to have fun and be so competitive tonight,” said Bodine.

The Germain.com Tundra crew has delivered fast trucks to the track each week, which is why the team has six top-five finishes in seven races this season. The fast trucks and fast pit work came together at Charlotte for a very strong team effort.

"We were there tonight. With the changes we were able to make for Todd to the truck, the great pit stops – we had the Germain.com Tundra where we needed it to be and we were fighting for the win. When the green flag waved for the green/white/checkered finish, it was anyone’s race to win between Kyle, Todd and Ron. This Germain Racing Tundra was in championship form tonight and Todd Bodine drove a great race,” said crew chief Mike Hillman Jr.

Bodine explained that his return to the top of the points standings was a team effort.

“We were in the points lead and we came out of Martinsville with the one finish we’ve had this year outside the top-five and that finish, 30^th, cost us the points lead. This Germain Racing team has been working hard. Like at Dover last week, we didn’t have a truck to win the race, but we still got a fifth. That’s how you win points championships is to take a truck that can’t win but still finish in the top-five. Here at Charlotte tonight we had a good truck and finished second. It was a good night,” said Bodine, obviously proud of the work he and the Germain.com Tundra crew have put into to return to the top of the Truck Series standings.

The next race on the Truck Series schedule is Friday night, June 4th, at a track where Germain Racing has been to victory lane six times, five with Bodine - Texas Motor Speedway. Watch the exciting action live on SPEED starting at 8:30 PM ET.

When shopping for your new or used car or truck, head directly to Germain.com to find the perfect vehicle or visit your local Germain dealer in Ohio, Florida, or Arkansas. Germain.com is part of Germain Motor Company, a top-25 automotive retail network with 21 dealerships and more than 60 years of experience.

Germain Racing competes in each of NASCAR’s three national divisions as well as the K&N Pro Series East. A variety of sponsorship opportunities are available. Visit Germainracing.com for more information. To keep up with team news, follow on Twitter @Germainracing or become a fan on Facebook.

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