• Robert Hight, driver of the AAA of So. Cal. Mustang, won Sunday’s NHRA race in Sonoma, Calif. Hight moved up one spot to second place in the standings.
• Carl Edwards, was the top Ford driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup race in Indianapolis, finishing second in the No. 99 Fusion. Edwards dropped one spot to fifth place in the standings.
• Colin Braun was the top Ford driver in the NASCAR Nationwide Series race in Indianapolis, finishing second in the No. 16 Fusion. Braun was also the top qualifier in the race.
• Erik Darnell was the top Ford driver in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race in Indianapolis, finishing third in the No. 99 F-150. Darnell moved up one spot in the standings to seventh place.

DEARBORN, Mich., July 27, 2008 – Robert Hight put on a show for Ford Racing fans with a victory in the NHRA race in Sonoma, Calif., while the Fords competing in the NASCAR events in Indianapolis came away with strong performances on a busy weekend for Ford Racing.

Hight became the third consecutive Ford driver to come away from Infineon Raceway with a win, following John Force’s victory last year and Eric Medlan’s in 2006.

The win was Hight’s second victory of the season and his first since the season-opening race in Pomona, Calif.

“It’s unbelievable,” Hight said. “This is the third year that a John Force Ford Mustang has been in the winners’ circle here at Infineon Raceway. [Since I’ve been driving], it’s always been a dream of mine to win at this race track. I actually have been at every event contested here, every national event.”

Hight’s performance pushed him up one spot in the standings to second place, 150 points behind leader Tim Wilkerson.

His teammate, Ashley Force, was the top-qualifier coming into the race and defeated Tommy Johnson Jr. in the first round before losing to Wilkerson in the second round. She remains fourth in the standings.

The NASCAR Sprint Cup race was held at the historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend, but unfortunately the biggest story in the race wasn’t the race itself. It was an issue with excessive tire wear on the all of the cars. The tires would only last about 12 laps before needing to be changed. NASCAR even had to implement competition yellows so that everyone could come into the pits after 12 laps to change their tires.

Carl Edwards had one of the fastest cars in the race at and ended up finishing second in the No. 99 Ford Fusion. Jimmie Johnson came away with the victory.

“Well, Jimmie and I were about the same speed,” said Edwards. “I just couldn’t do anything with him. He did a really good job. We didn’t come here to run second you know, so that’s a little frustrating, but considering everything that happened today, I thought my guys, today, did a great job, a really great job. We’re going to win this eventually. We get one shot a year, and we get better every time so it’ll be fun to come back.”

Jamie McMurray and Greg Biffle each joined Edwards in the top 10, finishing sixth and eight, respectively.

The NASCAR Nationwide Series and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series races were held across town at O’Reilly Raceway Park. In only his sixth race in the Nationwide Series, Colin Braun took the pole and spent the majority of the race contending for the lead before eventually finishing second.

“You know, [team owner Jack Roush] has been telling me for a long time to race long and race clean and get good finishes,” said Braun. “I’m sure if we didn’t have those conversations, I would have been a little more aggressive there, but I just wanted to bring this one home and get a good finish for all the guys at CitiFinancial and Ford.”

David Ragan also finished in the top 10, coming in with a ninth-place finish. Ragan remains fifth in the standings. Edwards finished 11th and is third in the standings, 180 points behind leader Clint Bowyer.

Another Ford driver took the top qualifying spot in the Truck Series race as Bobby East’s No. 09 F-150 was the fastest truck during qualifying. Erik Darnell, who spent most of the race running in the top five, was be the top Ford driver in the race, coming in with a third-place finish.

“If you look at our last five races, four of those finishes have been in the top five,” said Darnell. “We’ve been running very strong as of late. We may not have had a truck to finish third tonight, but we were able to finish third, which is what you’ve got to do as far as the championship goes.”

Brendan Gaughan joined Darnell in the top 10 with a sixth-place finish.

Next weekend, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will head to Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pa., while the NASCAR Nationwide Series and the Grand-Am Rolex Series will be competing in Montreal, Quebec.

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.