Green Out-duels Harvick for New Hampshire 200 Win

Concord, NH (July 19, 2003) ... David Green out-dueled Kevin Harvick to win the New Hampshire 200 at the New Hampshire International Speedway on Saturday afternoon. The win was the second of the 2003 season for Green and his seventh career victory. The win also enabled Green to retake the Busch Series point lead over Scott Riggs by 36 points. Riggs, who led Green by 23 points entering the race, finished fourteenth.

During a caution period for debris on lap 152, all of the leaders came to pit road for tires and fuel. Green, running eighth at the time, took only two right-side tires and was able to restart the race second on lap 155. In fact, the top five on the restart, including leader Kevin Harvick, took only two tires during this caution. One lap after the restart, Green worked his way around Harvick to take the lead. Green would fight off several charges by Harvick in the final 55 laps, but held on for a .474-second victory.

“The whole weekend was a picture of what Team Brewco and our Timber Wolf guys are all about,” Green stated. “Their never-give-up attitude and the ability to change our car to how the Loudon track was different than in years past was the key. Our first practice was not what we had hoped for, and with all the rain, Jason (Crew Chief Ratcliff) and Stewart (Car Chief Cooper) made a lot of changes for a very productive ‘happy hour’. The team did a great job of dialing in some minor adjustments during the race that turned out very good. We were consistent all day and, when Jason made the call for two tires on our final stop, it was time to flex our muscle. Great pit stops again put me in position to race for the win.”

After only ninety minutes of practice Friday morning, rain interrupted the session and, eventually “washed out” qualifying. With the field set by the NASCAR Busch Series rulebook, Green would start in the fourth position based on car owner points. However, late Friday afternoon, Mother Nature gave the racers a break in the clouds and the Busch Series competitors were able to get a much-needed “Happy Hour” of practice.

During the early stages of the New England 200, Green’s Timber Wolf Pontiac was a “little tight in the center of the turns” and resulted in the Owensboro, Kentucky driver dropping back to sixth position by lap fifty. When Green made his first trip to pit road on lap 66, the Timber Wolf crew serviced him with four new tires, fuel, and an air pressure adjustment to assist with the handling concern. Quick work by the crew enabled Green to gain one position in the pits and restart fifth on lap 69.

Within five laps of the restart, Green radioed to Crew Chief Jason Ratcliff to “not put any more stickers (new tires) on this car today." The new tires made the Timber Wolf Pontiac too loose and had no grip in the turns. Green was able to maintain his position in the top ten as he ran between sixth and eighth until his final pit stop of the race on lap 146. This was the stop for two tires that put Green in position for the win.

“It’s so satisfying for me to see how good this team is and how they can go up against the Winston Cup-affiliated teams that run in the Busch Series,” Green concluded. “Team Brewco made a statement this weekend on how focused they are to win more races and the 2003 Championship.”

Green now leads Scott Riggs by 36 points and third-place Brian Vickers by 66. Fourth-place Ron Hornaday Jr. trails by 72 with Jason Keller only 91 points behind in fifth as the Series heads “down the stretch” in the battle for the coveted Busch Series title.

Green will attempt to win two in a row when he travels to the Pikes Peak International Raceway for the TrimSpa 250 next Saturday afternoon, July 26^th. Qualifying will be held on Friday afternoon at 6:05 p.m. EDT with the 250-lap race set for a 3:30 p.m. EDT start on the 26^th. NBC will provide live television coverage with MRN handling the radio broadcast of the event.