TALLADEGA, Ala. (April 7, 2003) – Todd Bodine and the No. 92 Herzog Jackson Motorsports racing team experienced a wild day at Saturday's Aaron's 312 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. A wreck on the ninth lap of the race took out 18 cars and sent Bodine and the No. 92 Chevrolet Monte Carlo to the garage for repairs. While others were not so lucky, Bodine was able to return to the race on lap 60 after the Herzog Jackson Motorsports team made repairs in the garage, allowing him to finish 27th and gain valuable points in the Busch Series driver's points race.

Bodine headed to Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway as a NASCAR veteran. Running at the "fastest track in the world" eight times previously in the Busch Series, Bodine has racked up four top-10 finishes, three top-fives, and also sat on the pole in April of 2000.

On Thursday's qualifying for the Aaron's 312, Bodine posted a lap time of 52.480 seconds, which landed him in the 29th starting position. In Friday's final practice, the No. 92 ran a time of 52.330 seconds, giving the crew and Bodine plenty of confidence that their car could run at the front of the pack on Saturday.

When the green flag dropped for the start of the Aaron's 312, Bodine made his way up to the 18th position in just six laps. After getting lost in the draft, which cost the No. 92 track position, Bodine continued to be patient around the 2.66-mile Superspeedway. The No. 92 had made his way to 16th position when on the ninth lap, the dreaded "Big One" occurred. A wreck on the backstretch started a chain reaction, causing damage to almost half of the field.  

After confirming that Bodine was okay, crew chief Tony "Rambo" Liberati instructed the No. 92 to come to pit road under the yellow flag to assess the damage. After two consecutive trips to pit road to remove sheet metal and make adjustments to the damaged car, Bodine left pit road three laps down. When the green flag flew on lap 19, Bodine was running in 26th position when Liberati made the call for Bodine to enter the pits once again. Liberati then instructed the crew to bring the Herzog Jackson Chevrolet to the garage for repairs.

With 57 laps to go, Bodine and the No.92 Herzog Jackson Motorsports Chevrolet re-entered the race, more than 40 laps down. Finishing the remaining laps at a pace consistent with the leaders, Bodine completed the race in the 27th position, allowing him to maintain the 2003 NASCAR Busch Series driver's points lead.  

"You definitely have to be smart when running at a place like Talladega," stated Bodine. "When you have that many cars in the field and many drivers not experienced with Superspeedway racing, it can make for a dangerous combination. Today we just happened to be one of the unlucky cars involved in the "Big One". My guys did an outstanding job in the garage to get me back on the track so I could finish. We'll come back next week at Nashville and continue the good run we're having and hopefully get the Herzog Jackson Chevrolet Monte Carlo back to victory lane."  

Herzog Jackson Motorsports and Todd Bodine will travel to Nashville (Tenn.) Superspeedway this weekend for the running of the Pepsi 300. The event will be broadcast live on FX on Saturday April 12 at 3:30 pm EST. MRN Radio will also broadcast the event live beginning at 3:30 pm EST.  
 

Holly Heidenwirth / Eclipse Management Co, Inc.