• Carl Edwards, driver of the No. 99 Fusion, won the NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Gateway International Raceway in Madison, Ill. Edwards moved up one spot in the standings to third place, 201 points behind leader Clint Bowyer.
   
• Joe Foster and Scott Maxwell, drivers of the No. 55 Mustang FR500C, won the Grand-Am KONI Challenge race at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Ala.
   
• Ian James and John Pew were the top Ford drivers in the Grand-Am Rolex Series race in Birmingham, Ala., finishing third in the No. 6 Ford-Riley Daytona Prototype.
    
• Robert Hight, driver of the AAA of So. Cal. Mustang, and Mike Neff, driver of the Old Spice Mustang, both made it into the second round of the NHRA race in Seattle.
    
• Jon Wood was the top Ford driver in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race in Sparta, Ky., finishing 11th in the No. 21 F-150.

 

DEARBORN, Mich., July 20, 2008 - Carl Edwards took a hometown win at the NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Gateway International Raceway in Madison, Ill., while Mustangs dominated the Grand-Am KONI Challenge race at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Ala., to highlight a strong weekend for Ford Racing.

Team owner Jack Roush definitely had his cars set up well for the NASCAR event at Gateway.

In addition to Edwards coming away with the victory, teammate Jamie McMurray was the pole-sitter in the No. 17. He eventually encountered engine trouble and finished 27th. David Ragan rounded out the top 10 in another Roush car, the No. 6 Fusion.

Edwards, a resident of Columbia, Mo., had one of the more dominant cars during the race and took the lead for good with 49 laps remaining.

"There's only been a couple of times I've had a car that dominant at the end of race," Edwards said. "I was just cruising around at the end, and the car was so good. I was really proud of the guys for making the adjustments like that. I couldn't believe how fast it was."

Edwards' win was his second at Gateway, capturing his first victory there in 2006. His win moved him up one spot to third place in the standings, 201 points behind leader Clint Bowyer. David Ragan also gained a position in the standings, moving up to fifth place.

Mustangs swept all thereof the podium spots in the Grand-Am KONI Challenge Series race at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Ala. The win went to Joe Foster and Scott Maxwell in the No. 55 Mustang FR500C, their second victory in the last three races.

"It's not normal that we would lead in the beginning, but we decided to just try and race it clean," said Foster. "We were strong in the beginning, but I could tell the tires weren't going to last us.  It felt a little like we were driving in the rain in terms of trying to find grip and keep the car pointed in the right direction. We just tried to manage the car and not do anything stupid. It turned out to be the right call."

Second place went to Bret Seafuse and James Gue in the No. 37 Mustang FR500C, while Jack Roush Jr. and Dean Martin captured the final spot on the podium in their No. 59 Mustang FR500C.

Barber Motorsports Park was also the host of the Grand-Am Rolex Series race and the Ford Racing Mustang Challenge race.

Three Fords landed top-five performances in the Rolex race. Michael Shank Racing's No. 6 Ford-Riley Daytona Prototype, driven by Ian James and John Pew, took third, while Shank's second car, the No. 60 of Oswaldo Negri Jr. and Mark Patterson, finished fourth. Burt Frisselle and Ricky Taylor rounded out the top five in the No. 47 Ford-Dallara Daytona Prototype.

Terry Borcheller, driver of the No. 4 Mustang FR500S, won his first race of the season in the Ford Racing Mustang Challenge. Andrew Caddell took the pole for the third time in four races.

In the NHRA race in Seattle, John Force Racing Mustang teammates Robert Hight and Mike Neff each made it into the second round before being defeated. Hight dropped one spot in the standings to third place and is currently 188 points behind leader Tim Wilkerson and just one point behind Tony Pedregon for second place.
Jon Wood landed a top-10 finish in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race in Sparta, Ky., when he finished 10th. Rick Crawford was 14th and moved up one spot in the standings to fourth place, just 92 points behind leader Johnny Benson.

Next weekend, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series will compete in Indianapolis, while the NHRA will head to Sonoma, Calif.

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Ford Racing Technology
Ford Racing Technology, based in Dearborn, Mich., is responsible for major racing operations in North America, including NASCAR (Sprint Cup, Nationwide Series, Craftsman Truck), Grand American sports car racing, NHRA drag racing, USAC midget car racing and the Ford Racing Mustang Challenge for the Miller Cup. Ford Racing also oversees the development and marketing of Ford Racing Engines and Performance Parts, the outreach programs with all Ford Clubs and Ford enthusiasts, and the marketing of the Ford Racing brand through initiatives such as Team Ford Racing. For more information regarding Ford Racing's activities, please visit www.fordracing.com.