TEST SPEEDS NOT ALWAYS ACCURATE PREDICTOR OF BRICKYARD SUCCESS

INDIANAPOLIS, Thursday, July 13, 2006 -- When NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series rookie
driver Reed Sorenson talked to reporters July 12 after setting the fastest
lap in testing at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, he wasn't terribly excited.

"It's not really a big deal," said Sorenson, the 20-year-old driver of the
No. 41 Target Dodge, as the clock wound down on testing. "We've got to have a
car that will run good on long runs, and right now we don't really have that."

Sorenson's top speed for 2006 testing at IMS was 181.892 mph. Rounding out
the top five for testing July 10 and 12 were Kurt Busch, Scott Wimmer, Ken
Schrader and Elliott Sadler.

Granted, no money and no points are awarded to the teams and drivers that
turn the fastest laps in testing at the legendary 2.5-mile oval. But most
importantly for Sorenson and his Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates team,
they know from history that high speeds in July testing at IMS offer little
more than false hope on Allstate 400 at the Brickyard weekend if the team
doesn't return with a game plan to go even faster.

The statistics on success in finding speed at the traditional July NASCAR
tests at Indianapolis Motor Speedway versus finishing well at the race a few
weeks later are striking, and the moral of the story is: You may run well in
July, but if you don't do your homework between then and early August, you
may get run over.

In fact, from 2000 to 2005, only five drivers have posted top-five speeds in
July testing and then managed a top-10 finish in the race: Dale Earnhardt and
Mike Skinner in 2000, Rusty Wallace in 2002-03, Matt Kenseth in 2002 and Kyle
Busch in 2005.

Conversely, the race winners have often barely registered a "blip" on the
radar screen during testing. 2002 Allstate 400 at the Brickyard winner Bill
Elliott had the 35th and 36th-fastest cars in testing that year, and in 2004,
when Jeff Gordon won for a record fourth time and led a record 124 laps of
the race, he was ninth-fastest in testing.

That trend could change this year, as the top five drivers in testing have
the backing of successful, experienced teams. In particular, Busch is the
2004 NEXTEL Cup champion, Schrader has two career top-10 finishes at IMS, and
Sadler was the 2005 Allstate 400 at the Brickyard pole winner.

The science of speed isn't always focused on being the speediest team on the
track on a given day. NEXTEL Cup Series teams take a regimented approach to
testing at Indy and all other tracks.

"Just trying a lot of things, really," said defending Allstate 400 at the
Brickyard champion Tony Stewart, in describing his Joe Gibbs Racing team's
approaching to testing July 10. "You don't set your benchmark strictly on the
test itself and speeds you run. You set it more on what you're trying to
accomplish and trying new things is what we're here for."

An intriguing wrinkle of this two-day test was the disparate weather
conditions teams faced July 10 and 12. July 10 was sunny and hot, creating
slick track conditions; July 12 was perfect racing weather: cloudy and cooler.

The difference in track conditions is apparent on the speed chart, as the
drivers that tested July 10, were rained out on July 11 and didn't run again
on July 12 fared no better than 21st on the overall 2006 testing speed chart.
The driver occupying that spot is Dale Earnhardt Jr., who ran 177.518 in the
No. 8 Budweiser Chevrolet.

For four-time event champion Hendrick Motorsports, Brian Vickers was the
team's fastest driver in testing, placing 19th overall at 177.637. Kyle Busch
and Gordon were 30th and 31st, respectively, and current NEXTEL Cup Series
points leader Jimmie Johnson was 36th out of 51 drivers.

With his record four victories at the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, Gordon
is a perennial favorite to win the race. Vickers finished an IMS career-best
third in the race last year, and Busch finished 10th in 2005, his rookie year
at the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard.

But Johnson and the No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet team haven't fared as well at the
Speedway. In his four starts at the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard from
2002-05, Johnson has finished ninth, 18th, 36th and 38th, respectively.

"It would be nice just to run halfway competitive," said Chad Knaus,
Johnson's crew chief. "We've never run very well here, and it's always been
kind of a sore thumb to us, to be honest."

Johnson's assessment of 2006 testing was a mixed bag of disappointment and
resolve.

"We didn't have the test we wanted, but (we) got some very important
information, very useful information that helps us go home and make
adjustments," Johnson said. "We've got a little work ahead of us, so we're
not too fired up yet."

Practice for the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard starts Friday, Aug. 4, which
is Chevy Day at the Brickyard. Qualifying is set for Saturday, Aug. 5, with
the 160-lap race Sunday, Aug. 6.

***

Tickets: Tickets are on sale for the 2006 Allstate 400 at the Brickyard,
scheduled for Sunday, Aug. 6 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Fans can order tickets online at www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com, by
calling the IMS ticket office at (317) 492-6700 or (800) 822-INDY outside the
Indianapolis area, or at the ticket office at the Indianapolis Motor
Speedway. Parking and camping information also can be obtained through the
ticket office.

Hours for phone orders and the ticket office are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. (ET)
Monday-Friday, while online orders can be made at any time.

Reserved seats start at just $35.

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