Points will not be on the line for Roush Fenway and Sprint Cup Series in this week’s Sprint All-Star Challenge, so RFR will not have to worry about holding on to NASCAR’s top-two position. However, that is not to imply that the on track competition will be any less intense as the team’s take to the 1.5-mile oval of Charlotte Motor Speedway. Once knows as “The Beast of the Southeast” Charlotte can be tough on even the best race teams and inside the confines of a no-holds bard, no points race to the finish the level of intensity can quickly rise to a fever pitch.
“I’m anxious for the guys to go test their limits,” said team founder and co-owner Jack Roush. “To race this 36 times a year for points, you can’t take a chance on stepping outside the box very often. If you are racing as smart as my guys do each week, you have to stay inside an envelop that is conservative. For the All-Star race you can push it to the edges of that envelop, and if it works out bad, it’s no harm, no foul.”
All three of Roush Fenway’s Ford Fusions are qualified for this year’s elite all-star event, making RFR the only multi-car NASCAR team with each of its entries entered into the event.
“The qualification of the Sprint All-Star race reflects how the team has been running and to have all three teams in is a big deal,” added Roush. “It’s what we expect and not a surprise and it would be a huge disappointment if we did not place all our teams inside the Chase for the Championship.”
Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards have each tasted victory in the event, Kenseth in 2004 and Edwards just last season. All-in-all RFR has won the race four times, with Mark Martin doing the honor for the first time in 1999 and again in 2005.
Last season Roush Fenway swept the event, with David Ragan winning the All-Star Showdown and racing his way into the field and Edwards closing out the night with his inspiring performance in the main event.
RFR PR
