Matt DiBenedetto set to make first NNS start
HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. (Oct. 20, 2009) - Joe Gibbs Racing's latest young
talent, Matt DiBenedetto, will make his debut in in the NASCAR Nationwide
Series this Saturday when he pilots the No. 20 Pizza Ranch Toyota at
Memphis Motorsports Park.
Pizza Ranch announced this week that they have signed on to sponsor four
NASCAR Nationwide Series races with Joe Gibbs Racing and DiBenedetto
beginning this week with the race in Memphis. In addition, Pizza Ranch and
DiBenedetto will team up at three Nationwide races in 2010 including
Milwaukee, WI (6/19/10); St. Louis, MO (7/17/10) and at Newton, IA
(7/31/10).
DiBenedetto has made quite the impression on the racing community since
signing with Joe Gibbs Racing's driver development program prior to the
2009 NASCAR season. It took just two races in NASCAR's Camping World
Series East to find victory lane, winning at Tri-County Raceway on April
25. In June, he made his first appearance ever on a road course at Watkins
Glen and showed no signs of intimidation, winning the pole and finishing
fifth. Then, on June 26 he went to New Hampshire and led off a weekend
that proved to a be a JGR sweep in Loudoun by winning the Camping World
Series East race on Friday (teammate Kyle Busch would win the Nationwide
Series race on Saturday and Joey Logano captured the Sprint Cup Series win
on Sunday).
Proving adept once again on a road course, he captured his second pole of
the season at Lime Rock and was dominating the race before being wrecked
late while in lapped traffic. In all DiBenedetto made seven starts in the
Series with two wins, three poles, four top-fives and five top-ten
finishes. Even more amazing is that despite starting just seven of the 11
point races, he completed the season as the Wix Filter Lap Leader for the
Series.
"Matt has done a great job with every opportunity we've provided thus far
and we're excited to see what he can do in the Nationwide Series," said
J.D. Gibbs, president of JGR. "He is an exciting young talent that brings
a lot of skill to the track, but he also has a great personality. We
really believe he has a bright future in the sport and will represent
Pizza Ranch well."
Matt DiBenedetto - No. 20 Pizza Ranch NASCAR Nationwide Series Toyota
Camry at Memphis
How excited are you to be making your first start in the Nationwide Series?
"I'm really excited. To have an organization like Joe Gibbs Racing give me
an opportunity like this is awesome. Hopefully driving in top notch
equipment like this will make the learning curve a lot easier on me."
What are your goals for the race?
"I don't want to go in with too high of expectations, but I'm looking for
a solid race and a good clean race. Hopefully I can go out and earn the
respect of the other drivers and get a good finish."
Do you know anything about the track in Memphis?
"I've never been on it, but I'm trying to learn as much as I can about it.
Sounds like a typical short track and shouldn't be a huge change from what
I'm used to.
What does it mean to you to have a sponsor like Pizza Ranch come on board
to sponsor this race and several races next year with you?
"It's really remarkable. I'm just a rookie and to have a company like
Pizza Ranch come on board with me is amazing. I'm glad to be able to have
the opportunity to represent them and hopefully we'll give them a great
race."
About Pizza Ranch
In its 28th year, Pizza Ranch has grown to over 140 locations and has
become one of the leading buffet restaurant chains in the Midwest. Pizza
Ranch has focused its brand around providing a legendary experience
through quality food and service. More information can be found at:
www.pizzaranch.com or www.pizzaranchracing.com.
Matt DiBenedetto Bio
A successful first season in Camping World Series East confirmed what JGR
had suspected and provided the opportunity for DiBenedetto to prove
himself a quick learner ready to make the next step up to the NASCAR
Nationwide Series.
Despite his youth, his journey to this point is years - and a move from
thousands of miles away - in the making. Born and raised in Northern
California, DiBenedetto's interest in racing started at a very young age
when his father was flipping through the channels on television and he
caught a glimpse of a NASCAR race. He made his father go back to the race
and sat focused on the television fascinated by what he saw.
Matt received a four-wheeler on his fifth birthday that he immediately
started to drive as fast as it would go. Unfortunately for Matt, that
wasn't fast enough.
When he was six years old his father was handing out trophies to his
Little League baseball team and introduced his son as his "little Jeff
Gordon who likes baseball but loves racing". One of the other fathers in
attendance approached them afterward and mentioned that his son was into
racing as well and invited him out to mini sprint car race. DiBenedetto
was immediately hooked. His father bought him an older used go-kart at
first to make sure Matt was serious about racing. Once that become obvious
his father invested in a new kart and DiBenedetto responded by winning his
first race in his new ride. From there it was on to the dirt tracks and
Outlaw Karts where he captured five championships before the family
decided to make the move east to North Carolina when he was 13 years old
so he could pursue a career in the sport he loved.
DiBenedetto would add two more championships on the asphalt tracks in
North Carolina. Making an impact at each level of his racing career, he
won just his third Late Model race in March 2007. He was named United Auto
Racing Association Stars Tour Rookie of the Year in November 2007 after
posting two feature wins and finishing fourth in championship points that
year. In May of 2008, DiBenedetto entered the record books as the youngest
driver to win at Bristol Motor Speedway when he captured the UARA Stars
Late Model Tour race.
In the 2009 NASCAR Camping World Series East DiBenedetto made seven starts
in the with two wins, three poles, four top-fives and five top-ten
finishes. Even more amazing is that despite starting just seven of the 11
point races, he completed the season as the Wix Filter Lap Leader for the
Series.
