Ted Musgrave No. 59 Team ASE Toyota Tundra Chevy Silverado 250 Race Preview

Ted Musgrave on Racing at Daytona: 
“I always have mixed emotions about running at Daytona.  It’s a track where it’s more about the luck you’re having that day then about how you’re driving.  Having a good truck is one thing, but it takes being in the right place at the right time and getting help from others to be out front.  As a driver, you’re on the edge all the time because you’re constantly being shuffled from the front to the back because of the draft.  I just try to keep patient and not get frustrated so we can be in the right place at the finish when it counts.” 

Ted Musgrave on Pre-Season Testing:
“Pre-season testing was decent for our team.  We were able to work on the truck more and concentrate on certain areas.  We weren’t that fast alone, but we did work a lot on how the truck drove and drafted in the middle of the pack with traffic and going three-wide, which gave us good feedback to find the best set-up for our truck.” 

Ted Musgrave on Recording his 501st career NASCAR Start:
“It’s pretty unique to have that many starts in my career.  It shows that, as a driver, I have been in and around the sport for a long time.  It’s a great milestone to hit, and proves that I have been a fixture in the sport for many seasons.  I hope to continue learning and to keep competing for as long as I can.  I’m looking forward to starting my 501st race with the Team ASE Toyota Tundra.” 

Ted Musgrave on Joining HT Motorsports:
“I was approached about testing for HT Motorsports in Daytona since I did not have anything solid and the team was still working on some deals.  We ended up being a victim of someone else’s mess there at the test and I was very impressed with how the guys on this team reacted and just never gave up.  They worked to fix the truck and actually make it better and as a racer it is a great feeling when the guys on your team have that attitude. Then a few weeks later things just progressed and we were able to put together a deal for the season.  I am very excited about the upcoming season and with what I have seen so far this team has the potential to do some great things this season.”

Ted Musgrave 2008 Season Outlook: 
“Getting out of the gate this season, I’m hoping for a good start.  For us to go out there and get some top-five’s so we can move up in the points standings.  We just need to have good consistency each week.  We’ve been good in pre-season testing and hopefully that will carry over in to the season.” 

Ted Musgrave’s NASCAR Stats at Daytona International Speedway:
Veteran driver Ted Musgrave is set to make his 25th career NASCAR start this Friday night in the Chevy Silverado 250.  With 18 starts coming during his days in the (then) Winston Cup Series, Musgrave earned two top-five and five top-ten finishes, with an average finish of 18.1.  In seven consecutive Truck Series starts, Musgrave has accumulated three top-five and four top-ten finishes, including one pole in 2002 where he battled to a second place finish.  Musgrave returns to Daytona International Speedway to make his first start with HT Motorsports in the No. 59 Team ASE Toyota Tundra where he hopes they have what it takes to put Team ASE in victory lane.    

Ted Musgrave’s Truck Series Stats at Daytona International Speedway:

 7 starts, 597 of 712 laps completed (83.8%), 37 laps led

Win:     0 (  0.0%)     Average start:  11.4     Total Winnings: $182,470

Top 5:   3 ( 42.9%)     Average finish: 13.7

Top 10:  4 ( 57.1%)     DNF: 2

(racing stats courtesy of www.racing-reference.info)

Introducing the 2008 Team ASE Over-the-Wall Crew:

Led by Crew Chief, Danny Rollins.