Jeff Green No. 66 Samsung Four Seasons of
Hope Chevrolet Las Vegas Speedway Preview
NBA Legend Earvin “Magic” Johnson
to serve as honorary crew chief of No. 66 Chevrolet this
weekend
-Special Paint Design Promotes Samsung’s
Four Seasons of Hope-
The No. 66 Haas CNC Racing Chevrolet Monte Carlo is carrying
a special paint design this weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
The No. 66 car features logos promoting a national Best Buy
retail promotion for Samsung’s Four Seasons of Hope,
which is helping to raise thousands of dollars for the Magic
Johnson Foundation, founded by basketball legend Earvin “Magic” Johnson.
Johnson will attend the race as a guest of Samsung and Best
Buy, and will serve as the honorary crew chief for Green and
the No. 66 team.
Samsung’s Four Seasons of Hope is an innovative philanthropy
program that combines the forces of major national retailers
with sports, music and civic personalities, to benefit children,
families and communities in need.
From March 4-24, Samsung will donate a percentage of each
qualifying unit sold at Best Buy stores to the Magic Johnson
Foundation. Established by basketball legend, Earvin “Magic” Johnson,
the foundation is committed to making a positive impact on
families in inner city communities, one child at a time.
Eligible categories for the promotion include Consumer Electronics
(television, audio & video), Home Appliances (refrigerators
and microwaves), and Information Technology products (monitors
and printers).
Best Buy customers will also receive a free Best Buy gift
card for purchasing select Samsung products during the promotion.
This card allows eligibility for a chance to win a VIP trip
for two to the April 21 NASCAR race in Phoenix, AZ.
Best Buy, which is in its second year as the primary sponsor
of the No. 66, is supporting the promotion in several ways.
Last month, Jeff Green traveled to Los Angeles to participate
in a photo and video shoot with Magic Johnson and the No. 66
Samsung Four Seasons of Hope car. This past Sunday, a photo
of Johnson, Green and the car appeared on the cover of Best
Buy’s weekly advertising circular, which is inserted
into millions of newspapers across the United States.
A special promotional video featuring Johnson and Green is
airing on TV screens throughout all Best Buy retail locations
for the duration of the promotion.
For more information on Samsung’s Four Seasons of Hope,
visit www.fourseasonsofhope.com. To find out more about the
Magic Johnson Foundation, log on to www.magicjohnson.org.
Jeff Green- “This is really what I consider
a ‘special’ paint scheme. Both Best Buy and Samsung
are not only great companies to work with, but everyone I’ve
met from both organizations are good, caring people. Giving
back to the community is very important to me personally, so
it’s an honor to help my sponsors raise awareness and
funds for this program.”
“Magic is just a really cool guy. We did a video and
photo shoot with him out in L.A. a few weeks ago, and I found
him to just be a normal guy. He’s meant a lot to basketball
for sure, and he’s got a lot going on in terms of his
business dealings with his restaurants and theaters, but he’s
just a cool guy.
“We got along really well and it was cool to be able
to hang out with a guy like that. To be able to spend the day
with him and just shoot the breeze was a really neat experience.
I’m looking forward to seeing him again on Sunday.”
CHASSIS INFO – HAAS CNC RACING CHASSIS NO. 012 – This
is the same chassis Jeff Green and the Best Buy team tested
with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in January, and the same car
Green finished 30th with two weeks ago at California Speedway.
Green led 16 laps with this car and finished 12th at the Coca
Cola 600 last May at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.
TEST SUCCESS: Jeff Green and his No. 66 Best Buy team
posted the third-fastest time recorded by a Chevrolet team
during Preseason Thunder testing at Las Vegas Motor Speedway
in January. Green’s time of 28.907 seconds, at an average
speed of 186.806 miles per hour, was the sixth-fastest time
during the afternoon session on the second day of testing.
Overall, only Paul Menard and Green’s Haas CNC Racing
teammate, Johnny Sauter, were faster among the Chevrolet teams.
Jeff Green – “We tested well. We tested
a lot in race mode and felt like we had it figured out, then
they went and switched the tires (tire compounds) on us. There
were some whiny drivers who felt like we were going too fast.
I think we’ll be able to figure it out and get the car
where we need it, though.
“We pretty much struggled at California (Speedway) from
day one, and that’s the same car we tested with at Vegas
and we’re bringing that same car to Vegas, so we’ll
see what happens. It’s a totally different deal at Vegas,
though. California’s kind of worn out and slick, and
Las Vegas is new and grippy, so I think we’ll be alright.
I think we’ll be in good shape.”
Q&A WITH CREW CHIEF HAROLD HOLLY:
You had a good test at Vegas, but now you’re going
back with a different tire compound. How long will it take
you to adapt to the newer tire? “I would hope that
we’ll be able to adapt to it fairly quickly. We really
struggled with that left side tire out in California. It
really bit us hard. We were in a situation where we were
trying to keep the number of laps down on the engine, because
California is so tough on them. We’d only make two
or three-lap runs, but the tires didn’t tell the tale
until after about 10 laps.
“Whenever we got into the race situation, we didn’t
have the balance we thought we had. If this left side tire
is like that, based on what we learned in California, we’re
going to have to do some longer runs to try and determine where
the balance on the tires is going to go. Based on the information
we have, we feel like we’re going to be able to get a
handle on it fairly quickly.”
With the new racing surface at Vegas, what do you expect
to see in terms of racing on Sunday? “Well, the
track is so fast that everybody out there is going to try
and be on the bottom. Later on in the race, you’re
liable to see some cars go to the top and start trying to
use the top of the race track, but the tire change is going
to dictate where the groove is going to be.
“The speeds are so high, and were so high during the
test that everybody was glued to the bottom and just didn’t
want to go up there. We saw some laps that were close to 185
miles per hour in the middle of the corner, and that’s
faster than we go anywhere else. It’s tough to run the
middle of the race track or the top of the track at those kinds
of speeds.
So, did they harden the tire in order to make less grip
and slow the cars down? “They made a little bit
of a structural change to the tire, but based on what we’ve
seen, it’s actually going to have more grip. We’ll
just have to see how the tire reacts when we get out there.
The speeds are going to be higher for a short run, but they’ll
wear out and go away for the long run. It could create some
troubles on a long run, but we’re only running 13 gallon
fuel cells, so you’ll see plenty of pit action.”
Are you planning to try and win some money while you’re
in Vegas? “No, I’m not much of a gambler.
After we fly in on Thursday, I think I’m going to head
over to Lake Mead and watch the fish – seriously. The
stripers (striped bass) in Lake Mead will come right up to
the dock and you can just about feed them by hand. I know
it doesn’t sound exciting to some people, but I like
to go look at the fish. If I had time to go out there with
a guide, I’d go after some of them, but I’m not
sure I’ll have the time to make it happen.”
MEMORIES – Las Vegas Motor Speedway is the site
of the Green’s first NASCAR win. In 1997, Green started
from the pole position and led 71 of 200 laps to win in what
was his 100th Busch Series start.
JOINING “THE GANG” – Jeff Green and
his wife, Michelle, are big country music fans, so Best Buy,
Green’s sponsor, arranged for the couple to attend a
concert by Rascal Flatts this weekend. Rascal Flatts, the reigning
Country Music Association, Academy of Country Music and Country
Music Television Vocal Group of the Year, are performing at
the Mandalay Bay Event Center on Saturday night in support
of their “Me and My Gang” release. Best Buy not
only set the Greens up with VIP seating, but also a chance
to meet the trio before the show.
JEFF GREEN’S HISTORY AT LAS VEGAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY: In
five Busch Series starts at Las Vegas, Jeff Green has never
finished outside the top-10. In his very first visit, Green
sat on the pole and led 71 laps on his way to scoring his first
NASCAR career win. In those five races, Green has an average
finishing position of fifth.
In his Nextel Cup career, Green’s best starting position
was a 14th-place qualifying effort with Richard Childress Racing
in 2003, and Haas CNC Racing in 2006. His best finish is an
18th-place result, which came last year while driving the No.
66 Best Buy Chevrolet.
HAAS CNC RACING’S HISTORY AT LAS VEGAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY: In
four Cup Series starts at Las Vegas, Haas CNC Racing’s
best finish came with driver Mike Bliss last season. Bliss
finished 16th in the May 13th, 2005, event. The team’s
best starting spot, a 14th-place effort, was scored by Jeff
Green one year ago.
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