Hamlin named Wypall Crew Chief of the Race in Chicago

Kevin Hamlin, crew chief of the #83 Red Bull Toyota driven by Brian Vickers, has been named the Wypall Wipers Crew Chief of the Race following Saturday night's LifeLock.com 400 at Chicagoland Speedway. The Hamlin-led team gambled on pit strategy all night as Vickers' battled a lose race car. It paid off as the field cycled through green flag stops and the No. 83 team caught a break when the caution came out for debris on lap 143 to put them back on the same pit cycle as every one else. Short pitting and staying out have been calls that Kevin Hamlin has pretty much mastered over the past few weeks to keep Vickers in the top 20 in the Sprint Cup Series standings. The No. 83 team was consistently one of the top cars on the track all night, leading the pack for two laps and eventually finishing in the 6th position.

The 2008 Wypall Wipers Crew Chief Challenge is a season-long contest that will determine the best crew chiefs in the Sprint Cup garage. Following each race, a panel will vote to determine which crew chief demonstrated the most outstanding strategy and leadership during the race. It isn't necessarily the crew chief that goes to Victory Lane, but the crew chief that makes the biggest difference for his team. Representatives from Wypall Wipers, together with FOX/SPEED television analyst Jeff Hammond, and three of NASCAR's top crew chiefs who represent Wypall, including Todd Berrier of Richard Childress Racing's #29 Shell-Pennzoil Chevy team, Bob Osborne of Roush Fenway Racing's #99 Office Depot Ford team, and Kenny Francis of Gillett Evernham Motorsports' #9 Budweiser Dodge team, make up the panel of judges. In addition to the $1,000 check, the winning crew chief will receive signage to announce the win on their pit box the following week. The crew chief with the most weekly top wins will be honored as the Wypall Wipers Crew Chief of the Year and will be presented a $20,000 check at the season finale in Homestead. The Wypall Wipers Crew Chief Challenge will continue throughout the remainder of the 2008 season and spotlight the men behind the machines. For more information, log onto www.Wypall.com. PR