LEBANON PA (12-16-09) - Bobby Gerhart Racing announced today that it has re-signed with Lucas Oil for the 2010 ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and Menards season. The partnership marks the seventh consecutive year that Lucas Oil has supported Gerhart in a title sponsorship role.

Gerhart, renowned for his record five wins at Daytona, will drive the no. 5 Lucas Oil Slick Mist Chevrolet at Daytona in the 47th running of the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 February 6, 2010, live on SPEED.

"The 2010 season marks our seventh consecutive season with Lucas Oil," said Gerhart, whose five Daytona wins include three consecutive in '05, '06 and '07. "We're very proud of our association with Lucas Oil, a company whose longstanding race heritage speaks for itself. We feel like we've given them a good home. Our stuff is very competitive; it's racy looking and provides the right image to promote their products. The wins at Daytona are obviously paramount to the overall success of the partnership."

Currently, the contract calls for a 10-race package in 2010 to include all the ARCA Racing Series events aired on SPEED.

"Lucas Oil products, Inc. is proud to announce continued sponsorship in 2010 with Bobby Gerhart Racing," said Tom Bogner, Director of Motorsports for Lucas Oil. "It's a high-profile deal to be associated with Bobby Gerhart Racing and the ARCA Series at Daytona. It's even more exciting because many of the new Lucas Oil products have been developed in Bobby's car over the years, which makes our success at Daytona even more gratifying. 2010 will be our seventh season with the BGR team and we look forward to the challenge at Daytona in the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 as we attempt win our sixth."

In addition to the record five wins at Daytona, the BGR team's stat sheet on the storied 2.5-mile superspeedway is impressive to say the least.

Gerhart, along with his brother and crew chief Bill Gerhart, also won a record four consecutive pole awards at Daytona from 2003 through 2006, and led in 10 of the last 12 races at Daytona. The Gerhart's also qualified on the front row six times and have started no worse than sixth since 2004, giving Lucas Oil four front row starts since coming on board since '04.
 
"We welcome Lucas Oil back as our sponsor for the seventh straight year," said BGR crew chief Bill Gerhart. "We will be testing all their lubricants in our Chevrolets. The crew has worked very hard in preparation for the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200, and it starts with the test this weekend."

The annual open test at Daytona has proven critical, if not paramount to the Gerhart's success.

"We always come out with some very positive info," added Bobby Gerhart. "We know our set-up is very solid for the race. We understand our baseline very well; but there are so many small adjustments anymore on these cars that translate into on-track performance. It's those several incremental adjustments that we gain on going to these tests.

"Overall, the information we've gleaned from the tests has worked for us, so we're not going to try and fix it."

With increasingly competitive fields at Daytona mixed with ARCA's best and a good share of fulltime Cup teams, victories at the historic superspeedway are factually harder to achieve. Gerhart is well aware of those challenges.

"It's amazing really. It went from just a few teams that took it serious to a bunch of teams that took it serious. I think everyone in ARCA is coming to terms with just how important Daytona is, and I think our success there had a lot to do with that. There are a lot more ultra-competitive restrictor plate teams now than there were five years ago. I think we helped make everyone realize what we've always had at Daytona and how important it is for the teams, the sponsors and the series."

Gerhart, whose ARCA tenure reaches back to 1988, has always fielded his own team.

"I've been swinging my own bat for a long time. I'm obviously very involved financially myself. And with my businesses at home, all with their own challenges, it's tough to keep everything going. Having said all that, we should be as strong as we've ever been at Daytona. I can't wait to drive the rig through the gates. It's just what I need right now.

"I've always looked at our team as underdogs. Maybe that's part of our success; I don't know. I'm very realistic, especially when I'm looking at the budgets we have to work with compared to the Cup teams. I'd say we're tremendous underdogs.

"I mean if you look at the sheer facts...the amount of resources and engineering depth they have compared to what we have, it's a long shot that we'd even be in their league. I mean, we've never even been to the wind tunnel.

"Right now, our sole focus is Daytona. This is, and always will be, the most important race to me. And it has been for a long, long time. I know my team will do everything they humanly can to put me in a position to win. They understand how important this place is to me. I've been so blessed to win there five times. To win once is a blessing in itself, but five? It still blows my mind to think we've done that."

When asked about the possibility of winning a sixth time at Daytona, Gerhart said, "I'm not going to Daytona to run second."