August 19, 2008

WISE NETS ANOTHER SOLID FINISH AT MICHIGAN

BROOKLYN, Mich. – Josh Wise drove the Supercuts No. 22 car to another solid finish in Saturday’s Carfax 250 NASCAR Nationwide Series event at Michigan International Speedway, finishing the 125-lap affair in the 14th position.

Wise’s 14th-place run Saturday marked the second-consecutive top-15 finish for the Riverside, Calif., racer, and the third top-15 result for the Supercuts No. 22 in the last four Nationwide Series events. Ryan Newman drove the car to a 12th-place finish Aug. 9 at Watkins Glen International and Wise garnered a fine 5th-place effort July 26 at O’Reilly Raceway Park in Indianapolis.

Armando Fitz, owner of the No. 22, is impressed with the progress Wise and the Supercuts team have made in recent weeks.

“We’re very pleased with Josh’s performance since he’s been in the car,” said Fitz. “The team is working well with him and we’ve had good results over the last few races. We hope to keep it going this week at Bristol.”

Fitz is referring to the next race on the Nationwide Series schedule, the Food City 250 at eastern Tennessee’s high-banked, half-mile Bristol Motor Speedway.

The Supercuts No. 22 is currently 22nd in Nationwide Series owners point standings after 25 of 35 scheduled races. The car has two top-five and three top-10 finishes to its credit so far in 2008.

August 12, 2008

NEWMAN RUNS UP FRONT, FINISHES 12th IN WATKINS GLEN ZIPPO 200

WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. – On Saturday afternoon in the Finger Lakes region of Central New York, Ryan Newman made the best of his first NASCAR Nationwide Series start of 2008, qualifying the No. 22 Supercuts Dodge ninth and running in the top five for most of the Zippo 200 Saturday at Watkins Glen International.

While running in the top 10 late in the race, Newman wheel-hopped the Supercuts Dodge while attempting to make a pass for the eighth position and spun out in Turn 1, relegating February’s Daytona 500 champion to a 12th-place finish.

“It was a lot of fun driving for Fitz Motorsports,” said Newman. “We had a really good car. We got the left-front fender knocked in before the last fuel stop and it changed the balance of the car. I was trying to over-compensate there and get some more out of it and overdrove the car and spun. We ended up 12th; it was a pretty good day for the Supercuts Dodge.”

The Fitz Motorsports No. 22 Dodge is currently 22nd in Nationwide Series owners point standings after 24 of 35 races.

Following two-consecutive road course races, the Nationwide Series will return to an oval Saturday for the Carfax 250 at Michigan International Speedway. The series will remain on oval tracks for the duration of the season.

August 5, 2008

RYAN NEWMAN TO DRIVE SUPERCUTS DODGE FOR FITZ MOTORSPORTS AT WATKINS GLEN

MOORESVILLE, N.C. – 2008 Daytona 500 champion Ryan Newman will pilot the Supercuts Dodge this weekend in the Zippo 200 NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Watkins Glen International. It will mark Newman’s first start of the season in the Nationwide Series and his first-ever driving duty for Fitz Motorsports.

Newman has a strong record in the Nationwide Series at the 2.45-mile 11-turn road course, garnering a win in 2005 and never qualifying out of the top five.

“We are very excited to have Ryan driving our Supercuts Dodge this weekend,” said team-owner Armando Fitz. “He has developed into a great road racer. This is going to be a good situation for all of us; as a team we will be able to tap into his road course knowledge and hopefully he will learn some things that can translate to success for him on Sunday as well.”

Newman echoed Fitz’s statement regarding their alliance for Saturday’s event.

“Driving the Supercuts Dodge on Saturday serves many purposes. The main goal is to win the race, but it will also provide me with additional seat time at the track that will sharpen my skills for Sunday’s Sprint Cup race. I’m looking forward to the race and to working with the Fitz team,” Newman said.

Qualifying for the Zippo 200 will be at 10:10 a.m. EST, and the race will begin at 2:00 p.m. EST. This is the second consecutive road course event for the NASCAR Nationwide Series.

August 4, 2008

TOP FINISH FOR RANGER LOST IN THE FOG AT MONTREAL

MONTREAL – Quebec native Andrew Ranger qualified the Supercuts/Tide/Wal-Mart No. 22 Dodge 15th for the NAPA Auto Parts 200 NASCAR Nationwide Series event at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve Saturday. The 21-year-old former Champ car racer was on his way to a solid finish in wet conditions before the rainy weather caused heat buildup inside the cockpit of the car. The excess heat resulted in condensation and a fogged windshield which forced Ranger to make an unscheduled pit stop while running inside the top 10.

Crew chief Jerry Kelly – the car chief for regular crew chief Paul Wolfe, who had prior obligations that caused him to miss the weekend – says Ranger’s experience in the wet at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve allowed him to gain a number of positions when it began raining.

“We were running pretty well in about 15th when it started raining,” says Kelly. “We put the rain tires on and Andrew made it up to seventh in a hurry. He’s raced at the track in the rain before so he definitely had an advantage there. The steaming in the car which made the windshield foggy just got too bad and he had to pit and that lost the track position and we ended up finishing back there a ways. The result wasn’t what it should’ve been, but it was a great showing for Andrew and the entire Fitz (Motorsports) team.”

Ranger, who won the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series race earlier in the day at Montreal, officially finished the Nationwide event in 28th position.

Another road race is on tap this weekend as the Supercuts Dodge will travel to the Finger Lakes region of New York state for the Nationwide Series Zippo 200 at Watkins Glen International on Saturday. A driver announcement will be made later this week.

The Fitz Motorsports No. 22 is currently 22nd in Nationwide Series owners point standings after 23 of 35 scheduled 2008 races.

July 29, 2008

WISE GARNERS BEST-CAREER FINISH IN 5TH-PLACE RUN AT ORP

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Josh Wise, driving the Supercuts No. 22 Dodge, drove to a fifth-place finish in the Kroger 200 benefiting Riley Hospital for Children NASCAR Nationwide Series event Saturday night at O’Reilly Raceway Park in Indianapolis, Ind. The top-five run marked the first of Wise’s career in the Nationwide Series and the second of the season for the Supercuts No. 22 Dodge.

Wise, a native of Riverside, Calif., qualified seventh in the 43-car field and battled inside the top 10 for the duration of the 200 laps to garner his best-career finish at the five-eighths mile oval.

The run came one week after Wise drove to an impressive 16th-place finish at Gateway International Speedway, just outside of St. Louis. The performance of the Supercuts Dodge with Wise as its driver has steadily improved since Wise took over the driving duties May 24 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Wise, a former open-wheel champion with limited stock-car experience before this season, has become more comfortable in the car while competing mostly at tracks he has never seen prior to this season.

With the top-five effort, the Fitz Motorsports No 22 moved closer to the top 20 in Nationwide Series owners point standings; the team is currently 22nd after 22 of 35 scheduled races.

The next race on the Nationwide Series schedule is Saturday’s NAPA Auto Parts 200 presented by Dodge at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, a 2.71-mile 15-turn road course in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

July 22, 2008

WISE RECORDS BEST FINISH OF SEASON SATURDAY AT GATEWAY

MADISON, Ill. – Josh Wise recorded his best result of the season Saturday night in the Dodge Dealers 250 NASCAR Nationwide Series event at Gateway International Speedway, finishing 16th in the Supercuts No. 22 Dodge. Starting 17th in the 43-car field, the Riverside, Calif., native raced competitively within the top 20 for the entire 200-lap affair.

Crew chief Paul Wolfe was impressed with Wise’s composure and driving throughout the event.

“Josh did a really good job. He stayed out of trouble throughout the night, kept the car clean, and came out of it with his best finish of the season. We didn’t have the best car in the field, but we were fairly happy with the progress we made at Gateway. Right now, it’s all about Josh finishing races and getting more seat time. We’ll go to ORP and try to improve on this positive result,” Wolfe said.

The 16th-place run marked Wise’s third top-20 finish of the season since taking over the driving duties for the Supercuts No. 22 on May 24 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

With the result, the Fitz Motorsports No. 22 moved up one position to 22nd in Nationwide Series owners point standings after 21 of 35 races.

Next on the schedule for the Supercuts Dodge is a trip back to the Midwest, this time for Saturday night’s Kroger 200 benefiting Riley Hospital for Children at O’Reilly Raceway Park in Indianapolis, Ind.

For more information on Josh Wise or Fitz Motorsports, contact 704-799-3500 or visit www.fitzmotorsports.com.

WISE BATTLES TO TOP-25 FINISH AT CHICAGOLAND

JOLIET, Ill. – Josh Wise drove the Supercuts No. 22 Dodge to a 25th-place finish Friday night in the Dollar General 300 powered by Coca-Cola NASCAR Nationwide Series event at Chicagoland Speedway.

Starting the 200-lap affair in 34th, Wise claimed a top-25 finish while battling a car that was loose on entry and tight in the center of the corners. The Supercuts crew improved the handling of the car throughout the race.

Interim crew chief John Rachels notes the rainout of the second and final practice session as being a bad break for the Fitz Motorsports team.

“We worked through the first session and made some improvements,” Rachels said. “We made a bunch of changes in anticipation of the second practice session and then it started raining and we never got a chance to go out again before qualifying. The rain really hurt our chances, but we’re now looking ahead to Gateway and I’m confident we’re going to give Josh a great car to race out there.”

Wise and the Supercuts No. 22 team will travel back to the Midwest later this week for Saturday’s Missouri-Illinois Dodge Dealers 250 at Gateway International Raceway in Madison, Ill., just outside of St. Louis.

The Supercuts No. 22 Dodge is currently 23rd in Nationwide Series owners point standings after 20 of 35 races.

For more information on Josh Wise or Fitz Motorsports, contact 704-799-3500 or visit www.gofitzmotorsports.com.

WISE PRIMED FOR SOLID FINISH BEFORE MECHANICAL TROUBLE AT MILWAUKEE

WEST ALLIS, Wis. – Josh Wise was on his way to a solid finish in the NASCAR Nationwide Series Camping World RV Rental 250 at The Milwaukee Mile Saturday night when his No. 22 Supercuts Dodge started experiencing an issue in the engine that caused him to pull behind the wall in an effort to diagnose the problem.

The problem occurred just past the halfway point in the 250-lap race while the Riverside, Calif., native was running inside the top 20 in the 43-car field.

Fitz Motorsports team manager, Bill Farnsworth, believes Wise would have earned a respectable finish based on the progress he’d made from his 28th-place starting position and the lap times he was turning around the time of the problem.

“It’s hard to say where Josh would have ended up, but he was turning times that were certainly capable of finishing within the top 15. Milwaukee is such a tough track to pass on, but we had good pit stops and Josh was doing a good job driving the car,” Farnsworth said.

Farnsworth is impressed with Wise’s progress after not racing at all in 2008 prior to the May 24 event at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

“Josh has come a long way in only a few races with us. He’s giving the team good feedback and we’re improving on the cars during the races. You can see Josh getting more comfortable each week. We’re looking forward to going to New Hampshire this weekend,” Farnsworth added.

Wise finished the race 33rd, completing 164 of 250 laps.

The Supercuts No. 22 is currently 22nd in Nationwide Series owners point standings after 17 of 35 races.

The next Nationwide Series race is Saturday’s Camping World RV Sales 200 presented by RVs.com at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, N.H.

WISE FAST AT KENTUCKY, BAD LUCK RELEGATES SUPERCUTS DODGE TO 23RD

SPARTA, Ky. – Josh Wise, driving the Supercuts No. 22 Dodge, started 19th and finished 23rd Saturday in the NASCAR Nationwide Series Meijer 300 at Kentucky Speedway.

Wise, 24, turned top-15 caliber lap times while running inside the top 20 when he had to make an unscheduled pit stop because of tire problem on a Lap 25 caution. The pit stop put the Riverside, Calif., native on a different sequence, which allowed him to lead seven laps at one point in the race.

The breaks didn’t fall Wise’s way as the team needed the aid of a caution to put the No. 22 back on the proper pit sequence. The caution didn’t come and Wise was forced to make a pit stop that caused the team to lose a lap.

Wise continued to run fast lap times around Kentucky’s 1.5-mile oval on the way to a 23rd-place finish in the 43-car field.

Wise drove the Fitz No. 22 for the fourth consecutive race Saturday. With Wise behind the wheel, the car frequently turns competitive speeds, but mechanical issues and tire problems continue to relegate the team to results just outside the top 20.

The Fitz No. 22 will be in action again Saturday as the Nationwide Series travels to The Milwaukee Mile in West Allis, Wis., for the Camping World RV Rental 250.

After 16 of 35 scheduled races, the Fitz-owned, Supercuts-sponsored No. 22 is currently 22nd in Nationwide Series owners point standings.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Josh Wise’s promising run in the NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Nashville Superspeedway ended prematurely as a result of a Lap 154 accident. He finished 33rd.

Driving the Fitz Motorsports Supercuts No. 22 Dodge, Wise qualified 23rd in the 43-car field. Wise and the Supercuts crew continued to make adjustments throughout the first half of the 225-lap affair and had the car inside the top 15 when the accident occurred.

“It’s unfortunate,” Wise said after Saturday’s race. “We’re disappointed because we made the car better throughout the race and were in line for a good finish. I just feel bad for the Fitz Motorsports crew and the folks at Supercuts because we really did have a pretty good car.”

The Fitz Motorsports No. 22 is currently 23rd in Nationwide Series owners point standings after 15 of 35 scheduled races.

The next race for the Supercuts Dodge is Saturday at Kentucky Speedway’s 1.5-mile D-shaped oval.