Dodge Avenger to debut at Bristol
03/21/07 The Dodge Avenger, which joins the Dodge Charger in NASCAR NEXTEL Cup competition this season, makes its racing debut Sunday in the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway – the first NASCAR Car of Tomorrow (COT) race. Preparing for NASCAR's 16 COT races in 2007 has kept the candle burning at both ends for most NASCAR NEXTEL Cup teams since the end of last season.
The Avenger, Dodge's racing version of the COT, has been tested at tracks throughout the country getting ready for the ultimate test in Thunder Valley, Tennessee this coming weekend. Drivers behind the wheel of the Dodge Avenger will be Ryan Newman, Bobby Labonte, Kyle Petty, Kurt Busch, Elliott Sadler, Kasey Kahne, Scott Riggs, Juan Pablo Montoya, David Stremme and Reed Sorenson "Dodge is ready for the challenge at Bristol, and we think the Dodge Avenger is the car to beat," said Mike Accavitti, Director – Dodge Motorsports and SRT Marketing, Chrysler Group.
"We believe that the Avenger can bring Dodge a championship in the future, and we can't wait to start that campaign this weekend. And, for the first Dodge driver to win a COT race, we will donate an all-new Dodge Avenger to the charity of his choice," Accavitti added. "You can test it all you want, but we're not going to know what we're really dealing with until we race it," David Stremme, driver of the No. 40 Coors Light Dodge said.
"Some of the guys have been complaining about it, but I'm anxious to race it. Anything can and usually does happen at Bristol, so it should be a very interesting race for the competitors and a very entertaining one for the fans."