Driver: Brendan Gaughan

Owner: Michael Gaughan

EVENT: Chex 400k
Texas Motor Speedway - Fort Worth, Tx.
Friday, June 10, 2005 - 8:15 p.m. (CDT)
Qualifying: Thursday, June 8, 2005 - 6:00 p.m. (CDT)
1.5-mile oval, 167 miles/250.5 laps

Notes of Interest:

It’s undeniable; Texas Motor Speedway is Brendan Gaughan’s playground. The records support that strong statement as in Gaughan’s five total NCTS outings on the 1.5-mile D shaped oval his worst finish, which came in 2001, was second place. Following that showing Gaughan went on to score four consecutive victories at the famed Texas Motor Speedway in 2002 and 2003.

Even with his strong showings at TMS the Orleans Racing team is putting maximum effort into Gaughan’s shot at extending history, to five consecutive runs that finish in victory lane.

Gaughan’s remarkable accomplishments at TMS have been peer recognized, and his 2003 acceptance to the Texas Motorsports Hall of Fame only solidify his role in Texas racing lore.

The Trucks --- T1 – Lonestar (tentative) --- T13 backup (tentative)

Gaughan on Texas Motor Speedway:

“I’m not undefeated. My first year there in 2001 I finished second with TKO Motorsports. So I’m not quite undefeated but I’m on a four-in-a-row streak with one second and four firsts. I spoke to NASCAR’s Owen Kearns and he told me that according to NASCAR’s official statistics I’ve still won four in a row at Texas. Even according to NASCAR official stats if I win it will be five in a row at Texas. So that’s really cool and with how well the Orleans Team has been gelling together right now and all the new stuff that we have I feel really good about it because heading into the Texas Motor Speedway race I think we can go there and probably get that fifth win.”

IS THERE ANY ADDED PRESSURE TRYING TO KEEP THAT STREAK ALIVE? – “No, it’s just fun. Pressure is another word for fun. It means you’ve been doing something right. So I’m excited about it. I’m hoping that with any luck we can go there with a great piece of equipment and end up trying to catch that fifth win in a row and do the same thing.”

ABOUT TEST AT TEXAS WORLD SPEEDWAY LEADING INTO THE CHEX 400K – “We always go to Texas World Speedway on the way to Texas Motor Speedway. Every time we won at Texas Motor Speedway we always went to Texas World Speedway first and it was just the thing. It’s not a superstitious thing. I know where we have to be at to win at Texas Motor Speedway by what we do at Texas World Speedway. If I can get to that time – and Rambo knows what it is – if we can reach that same time we’re going to be happy.”

WHAT IS DIFFERENT ABOUT TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY AND OTHER MILE AND A HALF D-SHAPED OVALS? – “Atlanta, Charlotte and Texas are all very similar designs but I love the whole state of Texas thing – the cowboy thing. There’s a cowboy side to me and my family and we’ve just always done well at Texas Motor Speedway ever since the TKO race, the NAPA truck that won twice, the Orleans truck that won twice. I really don’t know what it is. We love having(Tough Headman) when he shows up to the race track with us. It reminds me that I still get to claim cowboy status once in awhile and that just reminds you a little bit.”

WHAT TRUCK ARE YOU TAKING TO TEXAS? – “We’re going to test Texas World Speedway and we may change. I may not take Lonestar back. I’m not superstitious. If Lonestar isn’t the best truck I’m not going to take it. Charlie Wilson (crew chief of the #62 Orleans Dodge) and Rambo Liberati (crew chief #77 Jasper Engines Dodge) seem to think that the work that the boys in the shop have been doing to Lonestar that it’s ready to win. So we may be taking the four time Texas winner back to Texas Motor Speedway but one again, I’m not superstitious. If it’s not the best truck at our shop I’m not going to take it. God bless ol’ Lonestar’s soul but if it’s not the best we’re not doing it. Right now the plan is that Lonestar is our truck.”

CREW CHIEF TONY “RAMBO” LIBERATI’S TMS FORMULA

TALK ABOUT THE PRESSURE TO GIVE YOUR DRIVER THE GEAR HE’LL NEED TO SCORE FIVE IN A ROW AT TMS -- “There’s a lot of pressure there since he’s won four races. I think he’s finished second once and first four times, so that’s a lot of pressure. That’s a hard record to have to go carry on but we’ll just go into it just like we do all the other ones. He’s good there and he likes the place, which helps a lot. We’ve just got to go in there and give him the best stuff that we can give him and hope for the best.”

DOES THE PRESSURE LAND ON YOUR SHOULDERS? – “Oh yeah, definitely. If he finishes third it’s his worst finish there. Everybody talks about finishing 15th and then finishing 7th for a best finish. That’s easy. When you go to a racetrack where he’s finished second, first, first, first, first, that’s tough. That’s a lot of pressure. If we don’t finish first or second I’m going to be pissed.”

WILL YOU BE BRINGING THE BIGGEST, BADDEST BULLET ORLEANS RACING HAS? – “Yes! We’re going to Texas World Speedway to test. Actually we bring our best every week. We don’t say, ‘Oh this is just an OK race, we’ll bring an OK truck.’ Our goal is to bring the best we’ve got every week.”

Meet the Crew:

Name
Hometown
Shop Duties
Race Day Duties

Brendan Gaughan
Las Vegas, NV
General Manager
Driver

Tony Liberati
Bellaire, OH
Crew Chief
Crew Chief

Lance Wilson
Bakersfield, CA
Truck Chief
Rear Tire Carrier

Mike Robinson
Tooele, UT.
Mechanic
Rear Tire Changer

Chris Boller
Prescott, AZ
Truck Driver
Front Tire Carrier

Calvin Gravely
Martinsville, VA
Tire Specialist
Jackman

Scott Witz
Tucson, AZ
Fabricator
Gas Man

Mike Robinson
Toole, UT
Mechanic
Catch Can

Ray Poyner
 
Engineer
Engineer

Listen in on the #77: The team’s primary radio frequency is 451.3371.