• Carl Edwards, driver of the No. 60 Fusion, won Sunday night’s NASCAR Nationwide Series race in Richmond, Va. Edwards moved up one spot to second place in the standings, 207 points behind leader Clint Bowyer.
• Edwards was the top Ford driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup race in Richmond, finishing 13th in the No. 99 Fusion. Edwards will begin the Chase from second place, just 30 points behind leader Kyle Busch. Greg Biffle and Matt Kenseth also made the Chase and will begin 80 points behind Busch.
• Erik Darnell was the top Ford driver in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race in Madison, Ill., finishing sixth in the No. 99 F-150. Darnell remains seventh in the standings.

DEARBORN, Mich., Sept. 7, 2008 – Although Carl Edwards didn’t have his best performance in Sunday afternoon’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race, he did have Ford Racing fans flipping in Richmond, Va., after winning Sunday night’s NASCAR Nationwide Series race.

The unusual two-race performance came after heavy rains washed out Friday and Saturday’s action. Edwards’ Nationwide victory continues his bid to defend his series title, moving him up one spot in the standings to second place, just 207 points behind leader Clint Bowyer.

The win did not come easy for Edwards as Bowyer led 195 of the 250 laps, but Edwards took the lead with only 27 laps to go and never looked back on his way to victory. It was his fourth win of the season and his second in the last four races.

David Ragan and Greg Biffle also joined Edwards in the top 10, finishing fifth and sixth respectively. Ragan moved up one spot in the standings to fifth place, while Biffle remains 20th despite driving in only 14 of 28 races. Biffle has now finished in the top 10 in eight of the last nine races.

The field in the Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship was set earlier in the day at the conclusion of the NASCAR Sprint Cup race in Richmond. Three Ford drivers made it into the 10-race playoff as Matt Kenseth joined Edwards and Biffle as three of the top 12 drivers in the standings.

Edwards, who was the top Ford driver in the race, finished 13th in the No. 99 Fusion and will begin the Chase as the second seed, just 30 points behind leader Kyle Busch. Biffle was right behind Edwards in 14th place and will begin the Chase 80 points behind Busch.

“I’m excited to be back in the Chase after missing it for two years,” said Biffle. “We certainly worked really hard. We haven’t got any wins this year, so that’s been a little bit of a struggle for us, but we’ve had really, really, good solid runs and that’s what we’re gonna need in the chase to get up there in points.”

Kenseth had a tough day, finishing 39th, but still clinched a spot in the Chase, starting the playoff 80 points behind Busch. Kenseth is one of only two drivers to make the Chase in every season since its inception.

Ragan entered the race just 17 points behind Clint Bowyer for the final Chase spot, but the second-year driver finished 32nd and dropped to 14th in the standings after a couple of on-track incidents produced damage on his No. 6 Fusion.

“It’s very disappointing,” said Ragan. “I felt like the first 100 or so laps we had a top five car and the AAA Ford seemed to be pretty quick. It just seemed to turn a corner sometime after lap 100 there we didn’t have they speed.”

The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series was also in action this weekend at Gateway International Raceway in Madison, Ill. Erik Darnell led the way for all Ford drivers, finishing sixth in the No. 99 F-150. He remains seventh in the standings.

“We had a really good truck,” said Darnell. “Our Northern Tool + Equipment Ford was pretty good today. I think we knew that after practice yesterday. We didn’t qualify where we wanted to but we knew we had a really good truck in race trim. The guys did a great job today.”

Rick Crawford and Colin Braun joined Darnell in the top 10, finishing eighth and ninth respectively. Crawford ran in the top-10 during the whole race and remains sixth in the standings, while Braun remains 15th in the standings. Braun leads the Rookie of the Year standings.

Next weekend, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series begins the Chase for the Championship, joining the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series competitors in Loudon, N.H., while the NHRA begins its Countdown to 1 playoffs with its first race in Concord, N.C. In Europe, Mustangs will be in action in the FIA GT3 European Championship and the GT4 European Cup at Brno Masaryk Circuit in the Czech Republic.

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.