FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 28, 2007
Team ATTO and Joey McColm Open Season Strong in First NASCAR Start
(Nelles Corners, Ontario) – A new era in Canadian Stock car racing kicked off Saturday night at Cayuga Speedway, as the NASCAR Canadian Tire Racing Series raced under the lights at the 5/8th-mile track. Joey McColm, of Ajax, Ontario, was looking for a solid run to kick off the season, his first as a full-time National touring driver in the Team ATTO / Lang Michener / Performance Racing News Dodge Avenger. The red #50 was meticulously prepared, and ready to compete for the checkered flag during the Dodge Dealers 200.
The day started with practice for McColm, but the team struggled to find speed in the early going. McColm explained, “We didn’t get out to test, so this was our first time on the track. We were very loose in practice, so we made a number of changes, and the good news is that we got faster.” Team ATTO were able to knock their lap times down, while only a small number of other teams improved through the practice session.
The crew continued to try and improve the car before qualifying, climbing under the machine and swapping parts. “We were chasing a loose race car all day, so we put some more wedge in to tighten it up and get it handling better. We also felt we had more speed in the motor and put more gear in the car.” McColm took to the speedway for his qualifying lap, and put up the 16th-fastest time of the qualifying session. “The car is a lot better than it was when we unloaded it this morning. We want a top-ten finish tonight, and I think we’re on our way.”
Following a packed autograph session, McColm strapped into his car and rolled to the green from the outside of row eight. While fighting in heavy traffic early in the event, McColm made contact with another car coming out of turn four and spun on the frontstretch. “We got hit and turned, which wasn’t the way we wanted to start the race.” McColm would struggle for the first 50 laps of the day, getting in a couple other mix-ups, and winding up with the toe of his car knocked out. “That wasn’t the way we wanted to start the race, but the guys all stayed calm and we focused on getting our lap back.”
McColm would battle back, passing a number of cars, and being eligible for the ‘lucky dog’ award, allowing him to get back on the same lap as the leaders.
Team ATTO went to work a number of times through the first half of the race on pit road, swapping tires, filling the fuel tank and making suspension adjustments to improve the handling of McColm’s ride.
During the second half of the race, McColm drove a smart pace, and kept the fenders on his Dodge Avenger, climbing to 15th with 75 laps to go. As the race reached the 150 mark, McColm made a bid for 14th, and as the attrition mounded, he continued up the leaderboard, picking up seven positions to be shown seventh when the last yellow flew. McColm lost one spot during the final two-lap sprint to the finish for an eighth-place finish. “That’s a great way to start the season. Our goal was a top-ten and we did it.” McColm was also very quick to share the credit with the men behind the wrenches. “My guys were awesome today. Our car got better with every adjustment and they didn’t give up on me. We had some great pit calls that allowed helped us to get a lap back, and put me in position to have a solid finish.”
The inaugural race for the NASCAR Canadian Tire Racing Series saw D.J. Kennington take the pole, but his car would fail him early. Don Thomson Jr. took over the lead and would exchange it with Kerry Micks, Mark Dilley, and Ron Beauchamp Jr. throughout the night. At the end, he was forced to hold off both Peter Gibbons and Dilley to win the inaugural series race. Dilley finished second, and Gibbons third.”
1. Thomson Jr., 2. Dilley, 3. Gibbons, 4. Andrew Ranger, 5. Derek Lynch, 8. Joey McColm.
The next event for Joey McColm will be Father’s Day weekend as the pilot of the Team ATTO Dodge makes his first road course start. “Our team is going to test there on June 7th, with a number of other teams, so I’m going to follow and learn. John Fletcher is going to help me through the day, so that should help us out as well. We’re going to focus on finishing the race. There is usually a lot of attrition there, so we’re just going to try and keep it on the track, and get a lot of laps in for the weekend, learn some things, and be better at the next road course event.”
The NASCAR Canadian Tire Racing Series is the most prestigious stock car circuit in Canada. The nationwide tour races 12 times during the season, with all the events televised on TSN.
For more information on Joey McColm, Team ATTO, Atto and Associates Insurance Brokers Inc., NASCAR, or the NASCAR Canadian Tire Racing Series, please contact:
Jason Lawson - Team Coordinator
Email Jason_atto@rogers.com
Phone: 1-800-263-9683 Ext. 272
Or visit:
www.nascar.com,
www.nascarlocalracing.com, or
www.attoinsurance.comLinkback: https://www.canadianracingonline.com/smf/index.php?topic=6090.msg25312#msg25312
