- CASEY MEARS FINISHES SEVENTH IN MARTINSVILLE -
TOP-10 FINISH MOVES KELLOGG’S/
CARQUEST TEAM TO 29TH IN STANDINGS

MARTINSVILLE, Va. (March 30, 2008) – Casey Mears and the Kellogg’s/CARQUEST team turned a 39th-place starting position into a seventh place finish in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday. With the top-10 finish, the team’s first of the season, Mears advances four positions to become 29th in the standings.

“I can’t thank the Kellogg’s/CARQUEST team enough for giving me the race car that they did today,” Mears said following the race. “That’s the most fun I’ve ever had at Martinsville. We got a top-10, and that’s exactly what we needed.”

On Friday, the team battled a very tight-handling Chevrolet throughout practice. In qualifying, the issue persisted and produced a 39th starting position. When the green flag waved on Sunday, however, Mears immediately moved forward.

When the race’s first caution occurred on Lap 20, the majority of the field remained on the track. Crew chief Alan Gustafson called Mears onto pit road for four tires, fuel and a wedge adjustment to give the Chevy more forward bite.

In the 10 laps that followed the restart, Mears gained 10 positions to claim the 28th position. When the caution flag waved again, Gustafson told Mears to remain on the track as the leaders all entered pit road. The decision gained valuable track position, and Mears resumed the race in fourth place.

On Lap 65, Mears advanced to second place, directly behind leader and teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr. Mears remained on the track throughout two more caution periods. When he finally entered pit road on Lap 107, the team made another wedge adjustment to correct the loose-handling Kellogg’s/CARQUEST Chevy.

He moved into third place, behind new leader Jimmie Johnson and Earnhardt. But the No. 5 team soon experienced a scare when Mears reported a heavy vibration in the Kellogg’s/CARQUEST Chevrolet. With the big picture in mind, Mears started to race conservatively and fell to ninth position before the caution flag eventually waved on Lap 180.

The team made another big wedge adjustment and took four tires and fuel. Mears rejoined the field in 12th place. The adjustments helped, as the handling of the Chevrolet improved greatly.

Mears remained in the top five until an accident on Lap 295. The three-car incident forced the field to check up. As a result, the Kellogg’s/CARQUEST Chevrolet suffered damage to its nose and its right-front and left-front fenders, causing a tire rub.

Mears was forced to enter pit road for repairs. The pit stop was costly and dropped the Chevy to 23rd place. When the caution flag waved again on Lap 309, Mears made two pit stops for further repairs to the Chevy.

Although the Kellogg’s/CARQUEST Chevrolet had moderate damage, it didn’t affect Mears ability to move through the field. Within 20 laps, Mears was back inside the top-15.

Once again, the race fell into Gustafson’s hands. When the leaders entered pit road during a caution on Lap 389, Mears remained on the track. The decision once again moved Mears inside the top five.

Although Mears was on much older tires, he stood his ground on the track. The team anxiously awaited another caution period to change tires, but the caution never came. Mears remained inside the top 10 and passed Carl Edwards in Turn 4 on the final lap to secure the seventh-place finish.

The Kellogg’s/CARQUEST team is now 29th in the point standings.

The Sprint Cup Series will race at Texas Motor Speedway next Sunday, April 6. The race will air live on FOX at 1:30 p.m. ET.