For Immediate Release: Gary Lewis Racing LLC Media Relations

Return to Montana 200 comes at just the right time for Lewis

SNOHOMISH, Wash. (July 15, 2013)-As a four-time winner of one of the biggest late model races in the country, Gary Lewis knows how important the Coors Light Montana 200 is to any race team. Looking to rebound from a string of misfortune, this weekend's 200 comes at a perfect time for the driver of the Leary Shock Shop Chevrolet.

"We've had a tough couple of outings that's for sure," Lewis said. "Running in the Summer Showdown (June 29) with a car capable of winning only to be sidelined with a broken trailing arm was not the way we wanted the night to end. We'd lost a motor the race prior in Wenatchee so this weekend's 200 is the best place for us to turn our fortunes around."

While calling Western Washington home, Lewis has made Montana Raceway Park his home away from home race track. Lewis has not finished outside the top-10 in any of his Montana 200 starts and has victories on the NASCAR Northwest Tour and ARCA Late Model Challenge Series to his credit from the high-banked Kalispell quarter-mile.

With MRP winnings approaching $60,000 since 1998, the Snohomish native knows what it takes to be successful when it comes to racing in the Flathead Valley.

"This team always has a good car when we race there. Some of our biggest wins have come in Montana and it would be nice to get another one this weekend. To do so we'll work on our handling in both grooves and be sure to stay focused on one step at a time from qualifying all the way through to the end of the 200 laps," Lewis said.

Lewis followed up his string of four straight Montana 200 victories with a top-3 finish in 2011 and a top-10 last year. Each of those runs came in different cars and the four-time late model champion will be in a new car again this weekend.

That challenge will not be a distraction, according to Lewis.

"Our Lefthander chassis has been on the track enough this season that the team and I have a good baseline developed for what it needs to be able to run in the front. That's shown in our strong qualifying efforts and good finishes until we ran into this little bump in the road. We have no doubt that this is a car capable of winning the Montana 200 and as a team have the experience needed to battle to the end for that goal."

Being part of the great history of the Montana 200 is what drives Lewis to aim for a fifth title, he added.

"This race is one of the biggest in the United States. Many of the best drivers in the country want to win it and when you look at an entry list from recent years they (drivers) come from all over to try. With NASCAR experience, track champions, touring champions and guys who just know how to race hard, the 200 is something that when you win it you know as a driver you've had an opportunity to be there at the end against the best racing has to offer.

"That's what drives me to win the 200 again."

Qualifying for the Montana 200 is set for Friday night with positioning races to follow. The 200-lap finale gets underway Saturday night with coverage at RacingWest.com