This will be the sixth and final Nationwide Series race of the season for DiBenedetto and also marks the first time that he will return to the same track twice in a season. Unfortunately for DiBenedetto the first trip did not end the way he had hoped as he was caught up in an accident with teammate Brad Coleman and forced to settle for a 29th-place finish.

In his five races thus far this season, DiBenedetto has claimed two top-ten finishes including a career-best ninth-place finish in his last outing at Iowa in late July.

Are you looking forward to getting back in the seat this weekend?

“I’m really excited to get back behind the wheel again this weekend. It feels like it has been such a long time, but I just work to stay in shape, remained focused and help the team however I can. It’s really cool to have Bosch on the car with us this weekend. They have been such a big part of racing for so long and hopefully we will get them a great finish on Saturday.”

Gateway will be the first track you will have the opportunity to return to, how will that help you?

“It should help a lot actually. We were running pretty well there in July before the accident with Brad so I’m looking forward to having another shot at it. It’s the first time I’ve had the chance to come back to a track so having that extra time and familiarity will be a big help when it comes to what line to run and just picking up small things that can help you during the race.”

Car  Information

Chassis No. 2085: Last raced at ORP in 2009 with Brad Coleman behind the wheel. It was fast and qualified second but unfortunately an early accident limited it to a 16^th-place finish. In 2008 it had five starts with two wins.

Although DiBenedetto was born in Northern California and currently resides in North Carolina, his sponsor is headquartered in Iowa and will be on board of JGR’s No. 20 Nationwide Series Toyota for this Saturday’s U.S. Cellular 250 at Iowa Speedway. Pizza Ranch has supported DiBenedetto throughout his Nationwide Series career with JGR and this will be the third time they’ve appeared on the car this season.

Although he has yet to race on the track at Iowa Speedway, DiBenedetto has been able attend a race in person and will watch the broadcast of last year’s race to further help familiarize himself with the track. One thing is for sure this week however for DiBenedetto and the No. 20 Pizza Ranch crew, there will be no shortage of home cooking with the opportunity to dine all week at one of several Pizza Ranch locations in the area.

Pizza Ranch specializes in pizza and chicken and has grown steadily with franchises currently in nine states. Pizza Ranch offers a host of dining options to include a pizza/chicken/salad bar buffet, carry-out pizza, or delivery of chicken and pizza to the home. Pizza Ranch puts the customer first with extraordinary hospitality and service that has helped them become the largest regional pizza restaurant chain in Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakotaand South Dakota.

This will be a very special week for DiBenedetto, who not only has the opportunity to race at his sponsor’s home track, but also celebrated his 19^thbirthday on Tuesday, July 27.

This will be the fifth Nationwide Series race of the season for DiBenedetto and just the sixth of his young career. He is looking forward to getting back on the track following a disappointing outing a week ago at O’Reilly Raceway Park in which he was one of several cars to receive major damage upon the drop of the green flag when the outside lane bunched up creating an accordion effect and resulting in significant damage to both the front and rear of several cars. What made it more disappointing is that DiBenedetto appeared set for a strong night at ORP as he showed comfort on the short track with the fastest lap time among cars in race trim during the day’s final practice and then a 10^th-place qualifying effort.

The race from Iowa Speedway will be televised by ESPN2 on Saturday, July 31 with coverage starting at 7 PM ET (race starts at 7:30 PM ET).

Matt DiBenedetto, No. 20 Pizza Ranch NASCAR Nationwide Series Toyota Camry at Iowa Speedway

What have you been able to learn about Iowa Speedway?

“It is a really nice facility and it is a pretty good momentum track. It should suit my driving style pretty well because I’m not hard on the brakes and prefer a sweeping momentum track like Iowa appears to be.

Are you looking forward to racing in Iowa for Pizza Ranch ?

“It will be awesome to represent Pizza Ranch in their home state and have all the folks from Pizza Ranch come and enjoy the race. They have been very supportive of me and I’m looking forward to getting out there a little early and having the opportunity to get out in the local community. Hopefully we can put on a good show for everyone and put their car up front where it belongs. I know their excited and I am too.”

Car  Information

Chassis No. 2093: This will be the second race of 2010 for Chassis No. 2093. It previously ran at Nashville on April 3 with Joey Logano qualifying on the pole before finishing eighth. It ran in five races in 2009 with a victory at the first race in Nashville serving as its top finish. Chassis No. 2099 will be the backup car for the race.

Meet the No. 20 Pizza Ranch Toyota  Joe Gibbs Racing Team

Primary Team Members:

Over-The-Wall Crew Members:

Road Crew Members:

Matt DiBenedetto’s NASCAR Nationwide Series Career

After a relatively caution free first three quarters of the race, the action on the track started getting out of control.  Two laps after a restart on lap 148, Matt’s car got loose in the corner and tagged the outside wall creating heavy damage to the rear of the car.  Matt was able to hold the car together for a lap, but then the car shot down the track and collected JGR teammate Brad Coleman.  Both drivers and cars took big blows from the crash.  Matt and Brad were each treated and released from the infield care center.

The No. 20 Pizza Ranch Toyota would limp back out on the track with rookie driver, Ryan Truex replacing Matt in the driver seat.  Truex was making his Nationwide Series debut for Michael Waltrip Racing and got loose on lap 178 while also running in 10th place.  Truex’s No. 00 sustained heavy damage and would not return, freeing him up to help the No. 20 team try to salvage some owners points.

At the end of the race , Carl Edwards turned Brad Keselowski into the outside wall while going down the homestretch to take the checkered flag during a green-white checkered finish.  This was Edward’s second win of the 2010 season.

We are thankful that all of the drivers were ok.

Check out the video highlights of the wreck between Matt & Brad.

Click here: Gateway Virtual Lap