MOORESVILLE, North Carolina-- After heavy campaigning to race the No. 99 Aaron’s Dream Machine at Kentucky Speedway, David Reutimann has been given the green light by Michael Waltrip to compete in the Meijer 300 NASCAR Busch Series (NBS) event Saturday evening.
"After our Nashville run in the No. 99 Aaron’s Dream Machine, we have a some momentum and we would like to keep that going," Reutimann said, who finished sixth in the most recent NBS event. "It’s hard to get that sometimes. Even before the Busch race at Nashville, I was lobbying Bobby Kennedy (Director of Competition for Michael Waltrip Racing) to let me run the race at Kentucky Speedway. At first glance on paper, it’s something that we thought would logistically impossible to pull off. After we finished in the top-10 at Nashville, they started taking a closer look at the possibility of me running the race. I’m thrilled that we are going to be able to do that.”
Once the 100-lap NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race concludes at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn (Mich.), Reutimann will have to immediately depart the two-mile oval for Kentucky Speedway in Sparta (Ky.). The NCTS race is slated to begin at 3:15 p.m. Eastern at Michigan and the NBS event is scheduled for 8:05 p.m. Eastern at Kentucky. With no time to waste, Reutimann is up for the challenge.
"The logistics of it all is mind boggling," Reutimann stated. "Everything has to be choreographed and has to go according to plan to make this deal happen. Right after the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Michigan International Speedway, I’ll get out of the No. 17 Team Tundra Racing Toyota and beeline it to a helicopter and then get on the team plane to fly to Kentucky. Next, we’ll jump on another helicopter to Kentucky Speedway when we arrive. There can’t be any hiccups. It has to be seamless and it’s a tall order. I’m so impressed that Michael Waltrip Racing is willing to line up all the necessary transportation needs for me to drive the Aaron’s Dream Machine. A lot of people are working hard to make this happen and I’m pretty overwhelmed by it all taking place.”
A cut off time will be determined for departure and if Reutimann doesn’t make the deadline, Michael Waltrip will leave the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series SPEED Channel commentators booth to take his place.
“If rain or a red flag occurs because of an accident and we are not able to leave when we need to, Michael will run the race,” Reutimann stated. “Last year, the truck race was about an hour and 17 minutes. Right now, we’ve got a couple plans in place. I haven’t heard who will practice and qualify the car yet, but I know they are working on it as we speak.”
Reutimann finished third in the No. 17 Toyota at Kentucky Speedway last year and has experience in a NASCAR Busch Series entry at the 1.5-mile tri-oval.
"I love Kentucky Speedway," Reutimann stated, who occupies third-place in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. "It’s one of my favorite tracks to race. We ran third in the truck race last year and we were the team to beat. We ended up having a problem in the pits that cost us some positions there at the end. We came up a little short. I also had a good run going there in the NASCAR Busch Series entry until I had a motor failure.”
Live coverage of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Con-way Freight 200 on Saturday, June 17th begins at 3 p.m. Eastern and will air on SPEED Channel. Live pre-race coverage of the NASCAR Busch Series Meijer 300 starts at 7:30 p.m. Eastern on FX. MRN Radio will broadcast both events.
About Aaron’s:
Aaron Rents, Inc. (NYSE: RNT), based in Atlanta, currently has more than 1,225 Company-operated and franchised stores in 46 states, Canada and Puerto Rico for the rental and sale of consumer electronics, computers, residential and office furniture, household appliances and accessories. The Company manufactures furniture, bedding and accessories at 12 facilities in five states.
Aaron’s stores offer customers access to high quality furniture, appliances, electronics and computers for sale or on a lease-ownership arrangement. Customers have the option of buying their merchandise for an attractive cash price, or opting to lease their merchandise for even greater flexibility. With a lease option, customers make modest monthly payments and have the immediate use of the items they need without waiting for credit checks or other delays. Plus, Aaron’s will take care of delivery, set-up, repairs and more for the duration of a customer’s lease.
