
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Smith's 350
September 29, 2012
Justin Lofton Las Vegas RACE REPORT: Lofton Ends Night with a Late-Race Incident After Running Near the Front
No. 6 Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet Silverado
> Justin Lofton and the No. 6 Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet finished 20th on Saturday night at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. While running inside the top five with 30 laps to go, Lofton was involved in a multi-truck incident on the front stretch resulting in heavy damage to his Silverado and eliminating him from contention.
Lofton rolled off eighth in the Smith's 350 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. A series of cautions early in the race kept the field close and allowed Lofton to pick up positions on the 1.5-mile oval. Lofton was running seventh when the caution flag waved on lap 30. With his truck handling perfectly, Lofton brought the No. 6 Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet down pit road for four tires and fuel. Several competitors in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) opted to take just two tires beating Lofton off pit road and relegating him to the 12th position.
Pleased with the Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet, Lofton utilized the bottom groove of the race track to maneuver through the field and pick up positions on the 1.5-mile oval. Lofton came back down pit road on lap 76 for another four-tire stop. By lap 80, Lofton had moved into the fifth position and picked up two additional positions to be scored third by lap 100.
Lofton was racing inside the top five on lap 115 when he made contact with the No. 32 trying to navigate around lap traffic. The Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet wiggled as Lofton tried to correct the steering, but the truck hooked to the left and Lofton went spinning across the track. With nowhere to go, the No. 13 made heavy contact with the left side of Lofton's Chevrolet sending the Imperial Valley Full Plate Silverado airborne. Lofton's truck landed with all four tires on the ground and the two spun through the tri-oval. Lofton climbed unhurt from his Chevrolet and was checked and released from the infield care center. By the conclusion of the Smith's 350, Lofton was credited with a 20th-place finish.
"We had a really good truck for the No. 6 Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet team tonight," commented Lofton. "I felt as though we had a truck that was good enough to win. We've just had a little bit of bad luck lately, and I'm hoping that we can turn that around soon. I was disappointed for all of the supporters that came out from my home community in the Imperial Valley. I really wanted to get a solid finish in front of them."
The NCWTS will take on Talladega Superspeedway on Saturday, October 6th. Live coverage of the Coca-Cola 250 powered by fred's will begin at 3:30 p.m. ET on SPEED, MRN Radio and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio, channel 90. Fans can also tune in to qualifying on Friday, October 5, at 5:00 p.m. ET on SPEED. Visit www.twitter.com/jlracing, www.facebook.com/jlracing, www.loftonracing.com or www.j6ink.com for the latest news and updates about Justin Lofton and the No. 6 Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet Silverado team.
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Smith's 350
September 29, 2012
Justin Lofton Las Vegas QUALIFYING UPDATE: Lofton Starts 8th
No. 6 Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet Silverado
> NOTES:
Eddie Sharp Racing's Justin Lofton and the No.6 Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet Silverado truck team will start the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Smith's 350 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway from 8th on the grid
> TV COVERAGE:
Live coverage of the Smith's 350 will broadcast live on SPEED, MRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio, channel 90, tomorrow, Saturday, Sept. 29, at 8 p.m. ET.
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Smith's 350
September 29, 2012
Justin Lofton Las Vegas PRACTICE REPORT
No. 6 Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet Silverado
> NOTES:
There were no incidents involving the No. 6 or No. 33 entries during the practice session.
Justin Lofton and the No. 6 Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet team spent the two-hour practice session at Las Vegas Motor Speedway focusing on refining the handling of their truck. Lofton started the session with a fast truck, but needed his Silverado to handle better over the bumps. As the session progressed, the Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet team had their truck handling well in the top groove and the driver continued to work on his line around bottom groove of the 1.5-mile track. Lofton closed out the session with two mock qualifying runs.
> QUOTES:
Justin Lofton, No. 6 Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet: "The truck was pretty good during practice. We worked on a few things and we feel that the No. 6 Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet will be strong in the race tomorrow night. I've got 60 guests from my home community here at the track with me; I'm excited to show them a good time."
> TV COVERAGE:
Live coverage of the Smith's 350 will broadcast live on SPEED, MRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio, channel 90, tomorrow, Saturday, Sept. 29, at 8 p.m. ET.
THE IMPERIAL VALLEY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA SUPPORTS LOFTON IN NCWTS
Business Owners & Neighbors form The Imperial Valley Full Plate Group to Sponsor team at Las Vegas Motor Speedway |
DENVER, N.C. (September 25, 2012) - Justin Lofton's No. 6 Eddie Sharp Racing (ESR) Chevrolet will have a new look this weekend as the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) takes on Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Lofton will have The Imperial Valley Full Plate Group as the primary sponsor on his Silverado as a group of business owners and neighbors from Southern California come together to sponsor the championship contender.
"I think it's pretty cool when I can walk into a grocery store here in North Carolina and see a bag of onions that I know came from my home in the Imperial Valley," commented Lofton. "It's exciting to have the opportunity to promote my home and all of the products that come from the Imperial Valley on my truck in Las Vegas."
The business owners from the Imperial Valley of Southern California began looking for ways to promote their local goods and services. Realizing the national reach and fan power of NASCAR, the owners decided to form The Imperial Valley Full Plate Group and get involved in the sport by supporting their local NASCAR talent-Camping World Truck Series driver Justin Lofton. Several farmers, ranchers, electricians, bankers and car dealers began making donations and contributions to back Lofton's race effort at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, while also spreading the word of their products and services.
"It means a lot to me to have the support of my hometown," Lofton continued. "We are going to have a lot of my neighbors join us as guests at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. For many of them, it will be their first time at the track and I'm looking forward to introducing them to the Camping World Truck Series. We're still in the fight for the championship with the No. 6 Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet, and to know that I have my hometown and my ESR team standing behind me in that battle is a really cool feeling."
|
|
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Smith's 350
September 29, 2012
Justin Lofton Las Vegas Motor Speedway Event Preview
No. 6 Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet Silverado
> New look with the Imperial Valley Full Plate on board... The No. 6 Eddie Sharp Racing (ESR) Chevrolet will have a new look this weekend with the Imperial Valley Full Plate Group on the truck. The group is composed of several business owners from the Imperial Valley of Southern California. Looking for ways to promote their products and services, the group decided to utilize the national reach and fan power of NASCAR while supporting their local NASCAR talent-Camping World Truck Series driver Justin Lofton. With the donations and contributions of these local business owners and neighbors, Lofton will race the No. 6 Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet this weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
> Rolling the dice in Las Vegas... Justin Lofton will make his third career NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Saturday, September 29. Lofton has one top-10 finish at the 1.5-mile Nevada facility from September 2010. Last year, Lofton was racing in the fifth position when he was involved in an accident, which resulted in terminal damage to his truck.
> Changing it Up... Eddie Troconis will call the shots as crew chief for the No. 6 Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet this weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Troconis joined ESR in January 2012 after spending nearly three years at Kevin Harvick Incorporated as the head engineer. This season, Troconis has served as the team engineer for Eddie Sharp Racing, acted as the crew chief for the No. 8 Chevrolet at Daytona International Speedway, and has been on top of the No. 6 pit box for the NCWTS events.
> Fighting for the Championship... With just six races left this season, the battle is heating up for the NCWTS championship. Lofton enters the Smith's 350 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in the seventh position, just 54 points out of the championship point lead, and eight points behind fifth place. The 26-year-old led the standings through three events earlier this season, and notched both his first career win and first career pole during a career-best year.
> Meet Justin Lofton...Lofton will participate in the NCWTS autograph session on Friday evening at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Fans are invited to the Neon Garage in the infield where Lofton, ESR teammate Cale Gale and other NCWTS drivers will be signing autographs from their garage stalls at 6 p.m. PT.
> Follow Justin... Follow Justin Lofton, driver of the No. 6 Lofton Cattle Chevrolet Silverado, on twitter (@jlracing) and facebook (facebook.com/jlracing), and visit loftonracing.com for the latest news and updates. Find out the latest news and updates about Lofton's business, J6INK on twitter (@j6ink) and online at www.j6ink.com.
> Get the Inside Scoop on ESR... Follow Eddie Sharp Racing on twitter or become a fan on facebook to get real-time updates and behind-the-scenes information: @TeamESR or facebook.com/teamesr.
> Watch and Listen...The championship battle moves to Las Vegas Motor Speedway this weekend as competitors from the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series take on the 1.5-mile oval on Friday, September 29. Live coverage of the Smith's 350 will air on SPEED, MRN & SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90, beginning at 8:00 p.m. ET.
| QUOTES: |
From the Driver's Seat: Justin Lofton Quotes...
On racing at Las Vegas Motor Speedway: "I'm very excited to race in Las Vegas this weekend. It's on the west coast and close to my hometown, so it's one of the few races where I'm able to get a group of my family and friends to come out to the track and see me race. We're taking chassis no. 60-my favorite truck-which we used to get another top-10 finish last Friday night in Kentucky. I hear the weather is going to be hot, and I love racing at Las Vegas when the track surface is hot and slick."
|
|
On having the support of his hometown: "I'm honored to have several supporters and friends from the Imperial Valley of Southern California coming out to the track this weekend. It's really cool how a group of my neighbors, business owners and friends came together to support the No. 6 ESR team. It's exciting to have the opportunity to promote my home and all of the products that come from the Imperial Valley on my truck in Las Vegas." |
Justin Lofton By the Numbers |
| Justin Lofton's NASCAR Camping World Truck Series at Las Vegas Motor Speedway |
Date |
Race |
Start |
Finish |
Laps |
Status |
10/15/2011
|
Smith's 350 |
14 |
19 |
122 / 146 |
crash |
9/25/2010
|
Smith's 350
|
17 |
8 |
146 / 146 |
running |
Total / Average
|
2 Races |
15.5
|
13.5
|
268 / 292 (91.8%) |
| Justin Lofton's NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Career Stats |
Races |
Wins |
Top-Fives |
Top-10s |
Poles |
Money Won |
66
|
1
|
8
|
22
|
1
|
$912,087 |
| Justin Lofton's 2012 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Stats |
Races |
Wins |
Top-Fives |
Top-10s |
Poles |
Money Won |
| 16 |
1 |
4 |
11 |
1 |
$254,265 |
|
|

| ESR NASCAR RACING UPDATES |
NCWTS: Smith's 350
Las Vegas Motor Speedway, September 29, 2012 |
| FINAL RESULTS |
| Car |
St |
Fin |
Driver |
Laps |
Status |
| 33 |
12 |
7 |
Gale |
146 |
Running |
| 6 |
8 |
20 |
Lofton |
114 |
Accident |
| QUALIFYING |
| Car |
Pos |
Driver |
Speed |
Time |
| 6 |
8 |
Lofton |
175.182 mph |
30.825 sec |
| 33 |
12 |
Gale |
174.622 mph |
30.924 sec |
| FINAL PRACTICE |
| Car |
Pos |
Driver |
Speed |
Time |
| 33 |
10 |
Gale |
174.576 mph |
30.932 sec |
| 6 |
17 |
Lofton |
173.511 mph |
31.122 sec |
No. 6 The Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet Truck Information
The No. 6 Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet team will compete with chassis no. 060 as their primary truck at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. It is the same chassis that Lofton utilized last weekend at Kentucky Speedway. In that event, Lofton rolled off in the 14th position and drove to a solid seventh-place finish. It is also the same chassis that Lofton used to earn his first career NCWTS win at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May and his first career NCWTS pole award at Chicagoland Speedway in July.
No. 6 Imperial Valley Full Plate Chevrolet / Eddie Sharp Racing Team
| Driver: |
Justin Lofton |
| Crew Chief: |
Eddie Troconis |
| Owner: |
Eddie Sharp |
| Truck Chief: |
Steve Dietrich |
| Mechanic/Suspension |
Jesse Brooks |
| Mechanc/Tire Specialist |
Anthony Jilson |
| Mechanic / Gasman |
Kevin Kerr |
| Hauler Driver |
Jason Taggart |
| Shock specialist |
Miles Copenhaver |
| Engine Tuner |
Matt Beaver |
| Front Tire Changer |
Kenyatta Houston |
| Front Tire Carrier |
AJ Heister |
| Jackman |
Nick Sutton |
| Rear Tire Changer |
Jeremy Fuller |
| Rear Tire Carrier |
Jake Brzozowski |
| Spotter |
Eddie Sharp |
| PR Rep/Business Manager |
Brent Brush |
|
|