Daytona Beach, FL (2/10/09) - Based on John Wes Townley's 4th place performance in the ARCA RE/MAX Series Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 on Saturday, February 7th the Raybestos Rookie of the Year contender has been approved to run in the NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Daytona.
Townley started the 200-mile event in the 28th position in a back-up car after his primary entry suffered a cut left rear tire during a five hour practice session on Thursday. By driving smart and avoiding on track incidents, Townley was able to bring home his career best finish in ARCA RE/MAX competition, and also gained NASCAR's approval to compete on the 2.5-mile superspeedway.
"I got word from NASCAR this afternoon that I had been approved for the race on Saturday," said Townley, whose four career restrictor plate starts in the ARCA RE/MAX Series and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series resulted in finishes of fourth, seventh, 11th and 18th respectively.
"I'm really pleased with NASCAR's decision to let me run the Nationwide race at Daytona. I'm going to take advantage of this opportunity and hopefully prove to NASCAR that they made the right decision."
Townley will be steering the No. 09 Zaxby's Ford fielded by RAB Racing. Sprint Cup driver Travis Kvapil was previously announced as the driver of the RAB Racing entry this weekend at Daytona. Kvapil graciously agreed to step aside after hearing the news.
"Travis was a tremendous mentor for me last year in the truck series," stated Townley, who is now scheduled to run the entire Nationwide Series schedule this season. "When we called him this afternoon with word that I had received approval, he was very happy for me."
The NASCAR Nationwide Series Camping World 300 will air LIVE on ESPN2, MRN and Sirius/XM at 1:15 p.m. ET on Saturday, February 14th. Practice for the event is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. ET on Wednesday, February 11th and 9:30 a.m. ET on Thursday, February 12. Qualifying is slated for 3:10 p.m. ET on Friday, February 13th.
For more information on RAB Racing log onto http://www.teamrab.com/
For more information on Zaxby's log onto http://www.zaxbys.com/
Jessica Caulder
Public Relations Representative
RAB Racing
