TOLEDO OH (12-26-08) - Given today's current economic climate, it was certainly a blessing to hear Daytona Int'l Speedway President Robin Braig announce that Lucas Oil will be the sponsor of the season-opening ARCA RE/MAX Series event at Daytona on February 7th.

The 80-lap, 200-mile race, which serves as a prelude to the Budweiser Shootout NASCAR Sprint Cup Series All-Star event, will be known as the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 At Daytona.

And when you connect Lucas Oil with Daytona in the ARCA RE/MAX Series world, it very well may remind one of another Lucas Oil connection at the "World Center of Racing"; because for several years now, Lucas Oil has been the title sponsor on Bobby Gerhart's no. 5 Chevrolet.

In a race that boasts a long list of high-profile winners such as Iggy Katona, Benny Parsons, Lennie Pond, Kyle Petty, Tim Richmond, Joe Ruttman, Mike Wallace, Ryan Newman and Kyle Busch, only Gerhart has five wins at Daytona. The Lebanon, Pennsylvania veteran will be shooting for an unprecedented sixth Daytona triumph.  

Gerhart's BGR team recently tested a combination of five different cars at Daytona with four different drivers. Gerhart's team was also one of the first to drive through the gates and one of the last to leave Sunday night when the three-day test ended.

"If there were five days, I would be here for all of them," said Gerhart. "We try to get here first and we're always the last to leave. That lesson was taught to me a long time ago."

Gerhart, who also has one victory at Talladega, works tirelessly on his restrictor plate program and says that every year the field of drivers only gets tougher.

"The field is great," Gerhart said of the 2009 entry list. "I know when I come here I become a very unpopular guy. In a way, it's going to sound odd, but that's a pretty big complement. That really goes to the level of exposure that this place has brought to this race.

"I've always felt that coming here to Daytona is a huge privilege for anybody. Just coming to the garage and be a part of this thing let alone get on the race track and in my case be unbelievably fortunate to win one (race) and looking back on it to be where we're at today. I never could have envisioned that."

Gerhart won his first Daytona ARCA 200 in 1999. After repeating as victor in 2002, Gerhart checked off three consecutive Daytona triumphs in '05, '06 and '07. Gerhart is also the only ARCA driver to ever earn four consecutive Daytona poles '03 through '06. In the 2008 race, Gerhart qualified fourth and finished fourth.

"We want that sixth win at Daytona just as bad as we wanted our first. We threw everything we had at the test; and I'd say it was very successful," added Gerhart. "More than likely, we're going to take the same car we ran in last year's race. We understand the car very well, and feel it's our best shot to get back to victory lane."

Gerhart estimated that the BGR team logged approximately 350 laps testing over the three days at Daytona with a variety of drivers including veteran AJ Henriksen and rookies' Jonathon Gomez and Joey Coulter. The BGR team is also planning another test in late January.

Tickets to the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 and the Budweiser Shootout are available at http://www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com/ or by calling 1-800-PITSHOP.