Juan Pablo Montoya and No. 42 Target Team

Last Weekend: Juan Pablo Montoya qualified the No. 42 Target Chevrolet on the outside pole for the STP 400 and led the first lap of the race. Montoya would lead a total of 10 laps on Sunday. As the track temperatures rose, the handling of the No. 42 became a concern. The Target crew made adjustments and utilized fuel strategy to get Montoya back up toward the front. With 20 laps remaining, the Target Chevrolet had moved back into the top-10. As Montoya took the white flag, he radioed to the crew that the car had run out of fuel. The No. 42 Target Chevrolet coasted across the finish line in 17th position.

Pocono History:  This weekend Montoya will be making his ninth career start at Pocono Raceway and hopes to better his August 2009 finish of second at the 2.5-mile track with a win.  His best start came last August when the No.42 rolled off of the grid in second. With the second in 2009, Montoya has one top-five and three top-10’s to his credit at the “Tricky Triangle.”

In the Points: Juan Pablo Montoya’s 17th place finish at Kansas Speedway moves the No. 42 Team into a tie for 14th in the NSCS point standings. Halfway through the Sprint Cup Series regular season, Montoya finds himself only 25 points out of 10th place and the Chase for the Sprint Cup.

Getting Less “Tricky”: In his last four starts at Pocono Raceway, Juan Pablo Montoya has racked up one top-five and three top-10 finishes. Prior to 2009, his best finish at “The Tricky Triangle” was a 16th place finish in August of 2007. His qualifying efforts have also improved with Montoya starting inside the top-10 three times out of the last four races at Pocono.

“Front Row Juan”: Last Sunday’s race at Kansas Speedway marked the 16th time that Juan Pablo Montoya started on the front row in his career. His first ever front row start came at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in July of 2007.

2011 in the Numbers: The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series is one-third of the way into 2011, and Montoya has had a whirlwind season thus far. In 13 starts, Team Target has two top-five and four top-10 finishes and has led a total of 57 laps. He also has two poles and has been running at the finish of every race this season. Montoya currently sits tied for 14th in the point standings, 25 points out of 10th.

CHASSIS INFO
No. 1 McDonald’s Chevrolet (NSCS): Chassis #1102. Crew Chief Kevin “Bono” Manion has elected to bring Chassis number #1102 to Pocono Raceway.  This is the same chassis that McMurray drove earlier in 2011 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Texas Motor Speedway and most recently at Dover International Speedway in May.

No. 42 Target Chevrolet (NSCS):  Chassis #1103. Crew Chief Brian Pattie and the No. 42 team will bring chassis #1103 to Pocono Raceway this weekend.  The last time Montoya used this chassis, he finished in the 12th position in the Sprint All-Star Race.  Prior to the race at Charlotte, this chassis started on the pole and had a tenth-place run at Auto Club Speedway in March of 2011.

(source:ERGFS)