BIFFLE WINS SECOND STRAIGHT; FORDS FINISH 1-2-3 IN NASCAR SPRINT CUP RACE AT DOVER

  • Greg Biffle, driver of the No. 16 Fusion, won the NASCAR Sprint Cup race in Dover, Del., his second consecutive victory. He is now tied for second in the Chase standings, just 10 points behind teammate Carl Edwards for the lead.
  • Carl Edwards was the top Ford driver in the NASCAR Nationwide Series race in Dover Del., finishing fifth in the No. 60 Fusion and remains second in the standings. Erik Darnell was the top Ford driver in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race in Las Vegas, Nev., finishing second in the No. 99 F-150. Darnell moved up two spots in the standings to fourth place.
  • John Force, driver of the Castrol GTX Mustang, made it to the semifinal of the NHRA race in Dallas, moving up two spots in the standings to eight place.
  • Ian James, John Pew and Raphael Matos, drivers of the No. 6 Ford-Riley Daytona Prototype, won the Grand-Am Rolex Series season finale in Tooele, Utah. Billy Johnson and Ray Mason were the top Ford drivers in the Grand-Am KONI Challenge race in Tooele, Utah, finishing third in the No. 52 Mustang FR500C.
  • Andrew Caddell clinched the inaugural Ford Racing Mustang Challenge for the Miller Cup championship this weekend in the series season finale in Tooele, Utah.

DEARBORN, Mich., Sept. 22, 2008 – For most of the NASCAR Sprint Cup series race in Dover, Del., it looked as though Ford Racing fans were going to be celebrating as a Ford driver entered Victory Lane at the end of the race. The question was, who would be the driver? Greg Biffle, Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards dominated the race and ended up sweeping the top three positions, with Biffle leading the way across the finish line on a busy weekend for Ford Racing.

  • Biffle won his second consecutive race and has now won the first two races in the Chase for the Sprint Cup. With the victory, Biffle moved into a tie for second place in the standings and sits just 10 points behind Edwards for the lead.

“We’ve worked hard this season to get our cars and team to where they need to be,” said Biffle, “and I guess if you want to use the term ‘peak at the right time,’ I feel like we have worked very hard all season and now our hard work is starting to show up. What we worked so hard for was to get a great pit crew, great race cars, great engine and then we’ve been able to wheel the car into Victory Lane.”

Kenseth, who finished the race in second place, led more laps than any other driver in the race, 136. It was the third straight fall race in Dover where Kenseth led the most laps. He moved up two spots in the Chase standings to 10th place. Edwards was right behind in third place and remains first in the standings. Through 28 races, Edwards has compiled 21 top-10 finishes, four more than any other driver.

Edwards was the top Ford driver in the NASCAR Nationwide Series race, which was also in Dover. He finished fifth and remains second in the standings, 186 points behind leader Clint Bowyer, who finished 10th.

“We’ve got to finish in front of Clint every week,” said Edwards. “I’d really like to just race him and beat him.”

Jamie Mc Murray and David Ragan joined Edwards in the top 10, finishing eighth and ninth, respectively. Ragan remains fifth in the standings.

The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series was in action in Las Vegas, Nev., where Erik Darnell took second place in his No. 99 F-150, just being edged out by Mike Skinner. Darnell led for a race-high 56 laps and lost the lead in the final two laps of the race, finishing just 0.02 seconds behind Skinner. Though he wasn’t able to grab a victory, Darnell did move up two spots in the standings to fourth place, 224 points behind leader Johnny Benson.

In the NHRA race in Dallas, John Force made it all the way to the semifinal before losing to eventual race winner Tim Wilkerson. En route to the semifinal, Force defeated Cruz Pedregon in the first round and daughter and teammate Ashley Force in the second round. John Force moved up two spots in the standings to eight place, while Ashley remains sixth, 93 points behind Wilkerson for the lead.

In addition to both John and Ashley, two other Ford driver made it into the second round. Robert Hight defeated Jim Head in the first round, while Bob Tasca III beat Del Worsham. Hight remains fourth in the standings, but is just 50 points out of the lead.

Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah, hosted several Grand-Am sanctioned races this weekend. Ford drivers Ian James, John Pew and Raphael Matos won the final race of the Rolex Series Daytona Prototype season. It was the fourth time that a Ford vehicle won in the last five races of the season, moving Ford into second place in the final engine manufacturer standings.

“The car was very strong at the end of the race and that's why I was able to pull a gap,” said Matos. “I love this series and I love the cars. I love driving them. I had a great team - Mike Shank did an amazing job, and John Pew and Ian James did a great job.”

Brian Frisselle, Mark Wilkins and Cristiano da Matta, drivers of the No. 61 Ford-Riley Daytona Prototype, crossed the line sixth and finished the season fifth in the driver standings, the highest of any other Ford team.

In the KONI Challenge race, five Ford Mustangs finished in the top seven spots. Billy Johnson and Ray Mason were the top Ford driver in the race, finishing third for their second podium appearance of the season.

James Gue and Bret Seafuse, who entered the race with their team tied for first place in the standings, finished sixth in the No. 37 Mustang FR500C. Joe Foster and Scott Maxwell were just two points out of first in the standings coming into the race and finished fourth. The final race of the season takes place in Alton, Va., in two weeks.

The inaugural season of the Ford Racing Mustang Challenge for the Miller Cup came to an end this weekend with two races at Miller Motorsports Park. Andrew Caddell clinched the inaugural Miller Cup with a second place finish in the first race and led the standings during the entire length of the season. Terry Borcheller won the first race in the No. 4 Mustang FR500S, and Ted Anthony Jr. took the second victory to close out the season.

Next weekend, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and the NASCAR Nationwide Series will head to Kansas City, Mo., while the NHRA will compete in Memphis, Tenn.

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.