Rookie battle heats up; Koch named Rookie of the Race in Michigan

June 25, 2011 - PRLog -- BROOKLYN, MI– NASCAR Nationwide Series Rookie of the Year contender Blake Koch of West Palm Beach, Florida took a giant leap forward toward reaching his goal of becoming the NASCAR Nationwide Rookie of the Year Saturday afternoon in Brooklyn, Michigan. Driving the Daystar Television Network #81 Dodge for MacDonald Motorsports, Koch took home a 25th place finish to earn the Sunoco Rookie of the Race Award during the Alliance Truck Parts 250 at Michigan International Speedway.

Saturday’s accomplishment was the fourth time this year that Koch has been named the Rookie of the Race. Currently the battle for the NASCAR Nationwide Rookie of the Year title is nearly as contested as the series championship, and Koch is among three drivers that are in the heat of the battle. Entering Michigan, Timmy Hill led the rookie point standings while Koch sat second in the standings ahead of Ryan Truex.

After fighting a loose car early in the race, the MacDonald Motorsports Team followed Koch’s communication to make the necessary adjustments to the #81 which gave Koch a powerhouse of a car for the final laps of the race. After qualifying an impressive 18th earlier in the day, the team was ready to charge forward in their battle for the Rookie title all the way to checkered flag. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xjPw4_KEk4



After chasing Hill for much of the race, Koch used the final circuits to overtake the leader of the rookie standings late in the race. The effort results in a top 25 finish for the team and gave Koch the well deserved Rookie of the Race Award.

“This was a good weekend overall,” said Koch. ”We had a great qualifying run and worked really hard for that top 25. Earning the Rookie of the Race was a plus for sure.”

Next weekend, Koch will face the road course, an area where he has performed well thus far in his career with top runs in the NASCAR West Series and ARCA. Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin will be the first of a straight 13 week run for Koch in the NASCAR Nationwide schedule. The Bucyrus 200 on Saturday will be broadcast live on ESPN at 5:30 p.m. EST.

Koch carries the primary sponsorship of the Daystar Television Network. This Emmy award winning faith based network is dedicated to spreading the Gospel 24 hours a day, seven days a week all around the globe through all media formats possible. Daystar is the fastest growing, and one of two of the largest, faith-based networks in the world today and can be viewed on all major and secondary satellites and cable systems. Daystar programming reaches over 200 countries into more than 91 million homes in the United States and 680 million homes globally.

To learn more about Blake Koch and his Daystar Racing Team, visit their official website at www.daystarracing.com. When visiting the site be sure to enter to win a day with Blake Koch and the Daystar Racing Team. You can also find up to date statistics, photos, unique video and new apparel on the site, all of which goes back to supporting the efforts of Koch and team Daystar.

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Daystar Television Network is the fastest growing faith based network in the world, reaching over 91 mil homes in the US and 680 mil homes worldwide. The network features popular original programming, live events, and sponsors NASCAR driver Blake Koch.