David Levine
No. 59 Gary Yeomans Ford
Talladega Superspeedway
May 1, 2015
Ready for Superspeedway racing… After back-to-back top ten finishes in the last two ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards events at short tracks, David is ready to race for his first top ten at a Superspeedway. As an added incentive, Talladega is the first of the four races that will decide the ARCA Racing Bill France Four Crown award winner, the title recognizing the best driver throughout the diverse schedule of speedways, road courses, short tracks, and dirt ovals. Another David, Davey Allison, won the first Bill France Four Crown championship in his rookie season in 1984. David Levine would like to do the same, and as an experienced sports car road racer that has proven he can run well at short tracks, Talladega may be the wild car race in his pursuit of his own Four Crown championship.
Set to take on the Calypso Short Track Challenge too… Currently 4th in ARCA Racing driver points standings, David closed the gap on third from 70 points to just 30 after his CGS Imaging Hard Charger award winning run from 25th to 9th in the Federated Auto Parts 200 last weekend at Salem Speedway. David maintained his lead in the Scott Rookie Challenge standings, and broke into the top five in the Calypso Short Track Challenge standings.
Going to Graduation… David will replace the familiar driver’s suit and helmet he’ll be wearing Friday in Talladega for a cap and gown next weekend, as he graduates from college. David has earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications Studies from Furman University in Greenville, SC. “This race happens to fall right in the middle of my finals week at college,” David commented. “After the race, I have to go back to school to take a few more finals, and then graduate on May 9th. Finishing college is something that is important to me. Of course my goal is for racing to be my full-time job, but I’m realistic in understanding how hard it is to make that happen. My college degree is the backup plan if I cannot race for the rest of my life.”
Gary Yeomans Ford keys to victory… The key to winning at Talladega for David, as it is for most every driver in every series that races there, is to avoid ‘the big one’. Big wrecks that can take out a huge portion of the field are an unpredictable part of racing on the 2.66-mile tri-oval. Although last year the ARCA Series race at Talladega only saw one caution for a two car incident, in the previous two years there were 14 car wrecks in each race, in addition to other caution periods. Communication between David and his spotter, Jamie Skinner, will be a big part of avoiding any incidents on the track. Avoiding ‘the big one’ is the Gary Yeomans Ford key to victory at Talladega.
David Levine on Talladega Superspeedway: “I am really looking forward to racing at Talladega. My experience superspeedway racing at Daytona was a lot of fun, and I think our no. 59 Lira Motorsports Gary Yeomans Ford / TraqGear / AttorneyAtLaw.com Fusion will be fast. I learned a lot working with both Lira Motorsports and Kimmel Racing at Daytona in February, and I think we’ll have a shot at winning this weekend! This race will still be tough. With graduation coming up, I have a lot of things going on this week. Thankfully, everything for Talladega is packed into one dayon Friday!”
Details… Practice for the International Motorsports Hall of Fame 200 is on Friday, May 1st from 8:30-10:20am. Qualifying begins at 2:30 in the afternoon, followed by the green flag at 5:00pm (all times Central Daylight Time). The race will be televised live on Fox Sports 1.
Learn more… To find out more about David, visit www.DavidLevineRacing.com or www.LiraMotorsports.com. You can also catch up with David on facebook at /DavidLevineRacing and on twitter @DaveLevineRacin.
