Brendan Gaughan No. 33 South Point Hotel & Casino Event Preview Fact Sheet
This Week’s South Point Chevrolet at Darlington Raceway …Brendan Gaughan will pilot Chassis No. 103 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Nationwide Series stable. Built new for competition in 2012, Gaughan drove this entry twice this season at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Auto Club Speedway earning a fifth and 10th-place finish, respectively.
He’s Back … As the Nationwide Series travels to Darlington Raceway, the Las Vegas native will return to the driver’s seat of the No. 33 RCR Chevrolet for his third of 10 scheduled Nationwide Series appearances of the 2012 season. In his first two Nationwide appearances with RCR this season, Gaughan has earned one top-five and two top-10 finishes.
Get Your Motor Running … Friday’s VFW Sport Clips Help a Hero 200 will mark Gaughan’s 74th career Nationwide Series start and third Nationwide Series appearance at the famed South Carolina track. Over the course of his four years of competition in the Nationwide Series, Gaughan collected one pole award, seven top-five and 19 top-10 finishes and led 45 of the 12,771 laps completed.
The Darlington Experience: Gaughan made a combined total of seven starts at the 1.366-mile track spread across each of NASCAR’s top-three series. The K&N Pro Cup Series champion has completed 1,325 of 1,401 laps (94.6 percent) and has earned one top-five and one top-10 finish in the Camping World Truck Series.
In the Loop … According to NASCAR’s Season-to-Date Data Loop Statistics, Gaughan maintains an average starting position of 8.5 and an average finishing position of 7.5. So far in the 2012 Nationwide Series season the 36-year-old driver has completed 85 green-flag passes, has made 82 quality passes and has run 384 laps within the Top 15 (99.4 percent of total laps completed).
To the Points … The No. 33 RCR Chevrolet team sits fourth in the Nationwide Series owner’s championship point standings, 29 points behind the No. 6 team. The No. 33 team earned four top-five and seven top-10 finishes between four different drivers (Tony Stewart, Kevin Harvick, Gaughan, and Paul Menard) thus far this season.
Off-Road Racing South of the Boarder … Gaughan managed to stay busy during his time away from RCR competition by heading to Mexico with his father, Michael Gaughan, to participate in the National Off-Road Racing Association (NORRA) General Tire Mexican 1000. The senior Gaughan captured the overall victory for the vintage class with the help of his son and two other co-drivers/riders over the course of the four day rally.
South Point Hotel & Casino … South Point Hotel & Casino will serve as Gaughan’s primary sponsor for the No. 33 Chevrolet this weekend at Darlington Raceway. Located in the heart of the premiere southwest Las Vegas valley, minutes away from the famous Las Vegas Strip, South Point Hotel & Casino amenities include a 16-screen century theatre movie complex, 64-lane bowling center and a handful of restaurants that cater to all appetites and tastes. The casino features a large selection of table games and the latest slot and video poker machines. The distinctive hotel features spacious rooms and suites with 42-inch LED televisions, Point Plush mattresses and wireless fidelity throughout. A unique feature to this property is its Equestrian Center, which is the finest horse facility in the country. South Point also has a fabulous 400-seat showroom that features headliner entertainment and dancing to live bands on weekends.
In the Rearview Mirror: Talladega Superspeedway … After starting the Aaron’s 312 from the third position, Harvick settled near the back of the pack in efforts to preserve his No. 33 Armour Chevrolet from rising engine temperatures throughout the early laps on Saturday afternoon. He was making his way towards the front of the field before he was involved in the “Big One” during the final scheduled lap of the event, relegating the Richard Childress Racing team to a 22nd-place finish at Talladega Superspeedway.
BRENDAN GAUGHAN QUOTES:
What are your thoughts on driving the No. 33 South Point Hotel & Casino Chevrolet this weekend at Darlington Raceway?
“I’ve been anxious to get back in the No. 33 South Point Hotel & Casino Chevrolet; I have had great runs with the team at the start of this season, and I wish I didn’t have such a long break between races, but it allowed me to race with my dad for the first time so it was worth it. Ernie (Cope) and the crew have provided all of the drivers with great Chevrolets so far this season so I feel like we will be fast right when we unload. I absolutely love Darlington (Raceway) so I’m excited to get back in the car.”