ANTELOPE, California — Bill McAnally was honored by being inducted into to the 2012 class of West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame. The event kicked off activities at Sonoma Raceway which featured the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West. Bill McAnally is the youngest living inductee into the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame.
"The Pick-n-Pull/Racing to Stop Hunger “200” at Sonoma Raceway will be televised on July 12th on SPEED Channel at noon PST. "
McAnally was introduced by two-time Daytona 500 winner and team owner of Michael Waltrip Racing, Michael Waltrip.
The NAPA Toyota Team
The No. 20 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota team with driver Eric Holmes weekend started off with Holmes putting the NAPA entry fastest at practice and qualifying on the inside of row two for the 64-lap race on the 1.99-road course of Sonoma Raceway(formerly known as Infineon). NAPA AUTO PARTS joins forces with Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund and the familiar blue and gold No. 20 NAPA Toyota Camry was sporting a black-n-white paint scheme to honor this worthy cause. The Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund serves United States military personnel wounded or injured in service to our nation, and their families.
The fund begun in 2000 under the auspices of the Intrepid Museum Foundation and established as an independent not-for-profit organization in 2003, the Fund has provided close to $120 million in support for the families of military personnel lost in service to our nation, and for severely wounded military personnel and veterans. These efforts are funded entirely with donations from the public, and hundreds of thousands of individuals have contributed to the Fund. To donate to the fund and for more information, please visit their website at www.fallenheroesfund.org.
Holmes took the green flag looking for his first win at Sonoma Raceway. Holmes recorded five top-five finishes in recent trips to the 1.99-mile road course in the heart of the California wine country. He brought the No. 20 NAPA Toyota to pit road during the second caution of the Pick-n-Pull/Racing to Stop Hunger “200” to take fuel and minor adjustments. At lap 24, the No. 20 was in the second position at lap 31, took over the lead. At lap 43, he radioed in to the BMR/NAPA team that he was losing power. He switched over ignition boxes with no improvement. A lap later, Holmes would declare the car terminal as the No. 20 NAPA Toyota suffered an engine problem.
“I was babying it”, said Holmes. “We could have won this. We had a comfortable lead. I was watching that I was maintaining a consistent distance between myself and David Gilliland (the eventual winner of the race). She just blew up. That was disappointing.”
“We had great support from our sponsors, family and friends this weekend. The team can’t thank them enough. We wish we could have been celebrating with them at the end of the day but we’ll go get a win at Evergreen.”
Holmes is fifth is the 2012 NASCAR K&N West Series Championship chase with seven races left of the season. The next race event will be the NAPA AUTO PARTS “150” presented by Gene Price Motorsports on Saturday, July 14th. The race will be at Evergreen Speedway in Monroe, Washington. For tickets and more information, please visit www.evergreenspeedway.com.
The No. 24 Cabinets by Hayley Toyota Team
The No. 24 Cabinets by Hayley Toyota team with rookie driver Cameron Hayley was in the top-ten on the time charts for both of the practice session in spite of off and on again misty rain on the track. The road course heated up and young Hayley put the No. 24 Cabinets by Hayley Toyota on the outside of row 4 to start the race.
By lap 18, the No. 24 Cabinets by Hayley Toyota was sixth on the scoring pylon. Hayley brought the car to pit road for a scheduled fuel stop at lap 22, returning to competition in 18th. Heading the words of his crew chief, Mario Isola “Hot Rod, easy on the throttle”, Hayley was in a fuel conservation mode yet was able to gain six positions during the next 15 laps. He would move into the top ten with seven laps to go. Hayley would take the checkered in tenth. This was his first NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race at Sonoma.
“That was fun,” said Hayley. “Our strategy was to conserve our tires and be there at the end. We were fighting a tight race car as conditions kept changing the track throughout the weekend. All in all, it was a great experience. This weekend really humbled me and made me realize yet again that I still have a ton to learn. The Cabinets by Hayley Toyota Camry had a strong run and was really happy with the amount I learned. I want to thank the team for hustling all weekend long. We have a great group of guys from BMR that give me a great Toyota Camry car week after week.”
“We’re on to another new track for me. It’s a short track and more of what I’m used to. The team is focused on getting our first win and team owner Bill McAnally his 50th at Evergreen.”
Hayley is leading in the Sunoco Rookie of the Year points is currently eighth in the chase for the championship and is tied with the seventh place driver.
Cameron Hayley was recently named one of the Next 9 of NASCAR. Hayley is one of nine drivers that are 21-and-under running in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series who represent the next wave of young talent set to make an impact on the national series scene. To read the full article, please visit www.hometracks. nascar.com/Next-9_See-The-Future_NASCAR_NKNPS.
The Pick-n-Pull/Racing to Stop Hunger “200” at Sonoma Raceway will be televised on July 12th on SPEED Channel at noon PST. Please check your local listings.
For more information on Bill McAnally Racing and our race partners, please visit our website at www.BMRNAPA.com. Bill McAnally Racing is now on Facebook. Become a fan and stay up to date with the latest happenings with your favorite race teams. Also follow the team on BMR_NASCAR on Twitter.
