Ready to Rebound in the Hawkeye State

9/4/2013 Ready to Rebound in the Hawkeye State

JOEY COULTER
Ready to Rebound in the Hawkeye State

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (September 4, 2013) – After a dismal weekend north of the border, Joey Coulter would like nothing more than to rebound from last Sunday’s 26th-place finish in the Inaugural Truck Series event at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park and harvest another solid finish at Iowa Speedway in Newton – a track he considers his favorite.

It’s been a mere 58 days since the Truck Series last raced in the cornfields of Central Iowa and as one of only three tracks the series visits more than once on the schedule, Coulter and the No. 18 team are looking forward to the repeat event. In the team’s last visit to the 7/8-mile tri-oval, Coulter finished ninth after running as high as fourth to score one of his five top-10 finishes of 2013. In fact following the July race at Iowa Speedway, Coulter went on to capture two of his three top-five finishes, at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio (4th) and Pocono (Pa.) Raceway (4th).

The Miami Springs, Fla. native also gained valuable points in the 2013 driver point standings preceding Iowa. In a three race span from Iowa (7/13/13) to Pocono (8/3/13), Coulter was tied with Timothy Peters for the most points gained with 116. Matt Crafton our current series point leader only gained 110 points, while second-place James Buescher gained a mere 90 points and third-place Ty Dillon totaled  82 points. Currently, Coulter is 12th in the championship point standings and a mere nine points separate four driver’s from a spot comfortably inside the top 10.

Another solid run at Iowa this weekend will give Coulter and the No. 18 KBM team the boost they need to secure a position inside the top-10 in points with only eight races to go before the fields are plowed over and the 2013 NCWTS season comes to an end.
                 
Joey Coulter, Driver of the No. 18 Darrell Gwynn Foundation Toyota Tundra:
Is Iowa a track you enjoy racing at?
“When people ask me what my favorite track to race on is, I always say Iowa Speedway. There are a lot of reasons why, but two are more important. One, the race track is the perfect size – it’s just big enough to really carry a lot of speed and give you the sensation of being on a large intermediate track, but at the same time the corners are short and banked enough to give you the feel of a short track. The racing that goes on during an event there is similar to that description as well - we are really going fast but racing as hard as we would and as close as we would if we were racing at Bristol or Martinsville.  The other main reason that Iowa is my favorite is that the fans that go out to that track are probably some of the most enthusiastic and loyal that I have ever seen. People out there eat, sleep, and breathe all kinds of racing. It is hard not to like a track that has that kind of support from its fans.”

Iowa is one of three tracks we visit twice in one year – is that something that you look forward to?
“I am a big fan of most tracks, but Iowa has always been just a little more special to me than the rest. Going there once a year is great, but getting to go back ta second time is even better. We race there at two different times of the year in two different climates, so we end up racing on the same track but with completely different characteristics both times.”

What has been your biggest challenge this season?
“Our biggest challenge this year has been consistency in our results. For the most part we have had fast trucks and run up front at one point or another, however, the finishes are not there. Winning the championship this year is going to require top-five finishes for pretty much the rest of the year – the remaining seven races. I think that some consistency in our finishes would turn our season around.”

Harold Holly, Crew chief of the No. 18 Darrell Gwynn Foundation Toyota Tundra:
The Truck Series raced at night when we were at Iowa earlier this year. How will the track change for this race considering its run during the day?
“The track will have less grip during this race compared to when we were there in July. We raced at night earlier this year and the track temperatures were lower and the trucks had more grip. So, racing during the day the track is going to be slicker and it will be harder to balance the truck because the track naturally has less grip due to the surface being hotter. It will definitely make for a good race for all the fans.”

 

Joey Coulter’s No. 18 Darrell Gwynn Foundation Toyota Tundra:
Chassis KBM12: Coulter will pilot KBM05 in this weekend’s Fan Appreciation 200 presented by New Holland at Iowa Speedway in Newton. This particular chassis has made eight starts since 2012 and will make its fifth start of 2013 this weekend. This Toyota Tundra was last seen at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway when Coulter advanced more positions than any other driver in the field- gaining 24 spots – to finish 11th in just his third start at the half-mile oval.

Date Site Driver Start Finish Laps Laps Led Status
8/21/13 Bristol Coulter 34 11 200/200 0 Running
8/17/13 Michigan Coulter 9 14 100/100 0 Running
7/13/13 Iowa Coulter 9 9 200/200 0 Running
5/31/13 Dover Coulter 24 8 200/200 0 Running
10/13/12 Las Vegas Mayhew 3 9 146/146 0 Running
8/31/12 Atlanta Busch 4 2 130/130 75 Running
6/28/12 Kentucky Leffler 18 8 150/150 0 Running
6/8/12 Texas Leffler 18 6 167/167 0 Running

Notes of Interest:
Joey Coulter – Iowa Speedway:
• In four NCWTS starts, has compiled one top-five and three top-10 finishes
• Best Start: Second (2011)/Best Finish: Fifth (2011)
• Completed 99.9% of laps attempted (799 of 800)
• Average Start: 9.2/Average Finish: 8.8
• Has two ARCA Racing Series starts, including one pole (2009)

Joey Coulter NCWTS Performance Profile-Iowa Speedway:
Series Date Start Finish Laps Laps Led Status
NCWTS 7/13/13 9 9 200/200 0 Running
NCWTS 9/15/12 14 13 199/200 0 Running
NCWTS 7/14/12 12 8 200/200 0 Running
NCWTS 7/16/11 2 5 200/200 0 Running
ARCA 7/10/10 4 14 198/200 0 Running
ARCA 7/11/09 1 3 200/200 47 Running

Joey Coulter 2013
• Ranks 12th in the NCWTS driver point standings with 417 points; eight markers behind 10th-place Johnny Sauter, 47 points behind fifth-place Miguel Paludo and 115 points behind series points leader Matt Crafton
• Recorded a season-best second-place finish at Kansas Speedway (4/20/13)
• Recorded a season-best fifth-place start in the UNOH 225 at Kentucky Speedway (6/27/13)
• In 14 starts in 2013, Coulter has led 17 laps en route to three top-five and five top-10 finishes
• Has completed 92.7% of laps attempted (1987/2144) and has an average start of 14.4  and an average finish of 14.4
• Third full-time season in the NCWTS
 

Kyle Busch Motorsports’ No. 18 Toyota Tundra: 
• In five starts at Iowa since 2010,  has collected three top-10 finishes
• In 2013 has an average start of 14.4, an average finish of 14.4 and has led 17 laps en route to three top-five and five top-10 finishes
• Currently 14th in the 2013 NCWTS owner’s point standings
• Finished fifth in the 2012 NCWTS owner championship standings
• Over the final 18 races of the 2012 season, collected 683 owner’s points, the most among Truck Series teams during that span
• Led the NCWTS with 17 top-10 finishes in 2012, including nine straight to end the season, while collecting seven top-five finishes and one win (Brian Scott 11/9/12 at Phoenix International Raceway)
• All seven drivers that made a start in 2012 posted a top-10 finish (Ku. Busch, Ky. Busch, Hamlin, Herring, Leffler, Mayhew and Scott) and six of the seven led at least one lap
• Since debuting in the Truck Series in 2010, has compiled 17 wins, 8 poles, 42 top-five and 61 top-10’s across 83 starts
• Led the Truck Series in wins in each of its first two seasons: 2010 (8) and 2011 (8)
• In 2010, became first team since the NCWTS originated in 1995 to win the owner’s championship in its inaugural season

Last NCWTS Event-Inaugural Truck Series 250 at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park:
Entering the 14th race on the 2013 NCWTS schedule there was a lot of unknowns for the Truck Series garage.  However, after four practice sessions and qualifying, Coulter lined his Monster Energy Toyota Tundra up on the inside of row 10 in the 19th position for the 64-lap feature - confident that patience and pit strategy would be the key to a successful finish in the historic event. Unfortunately, on lap 10 of 64, Coulter was unable to control his “bucking” Toyota Tundra and found himself in the tire barriers in Turn 8. After spending numerous laps in the garage for repairs, Coulter was able to make it back out onto the track but was relegated to a 26th-place finish.

Keep on Running:
Although Joey Coulter has suffered from major incidents which have forced him to the garage for a number of laps this season at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway, Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth and Canadian Tire Motorsports Park in Bowmanville, Canada, the No. 18 Kyle Busch Motorsports team has rallied to get the Toyota Tundra back on track to finish the race every single time. Coulter has been “Running” at the end of all 14 NCWTS events this season.