“We’re very happy to win the WIX award and are glad they sponsor the Lap Leader Award contest,” said Mike Dillon, vice president of competition for Richard Childress Racing, owner of Bowyer’s No. 07 Jack Daniel’s Chevrolet. “We had a great night. The 07 was fast all weekend.”

Jeff Gordon sustains a one win lead over Tony Stewart and Jimmie Johnson for the year-end WIX Filters Lap Leader Award $75,000 prize and the series title.

In Busch Series competition, Robert Richardson Jr. claimed his first WIX Filters Lap Leader Award in 2007 by leading one lap, the first lap he has led in nine-career Busch Series starts, in the Winn-Dixie 250 last weekend at Daytona International Speedway. The remainder of the laps in the race were led by NEXTEL Cup regulars, who are not eligible for the Busch Series WIX Filters Lap Leader Award.

“Winning the WIX award definitely builds the camaraderie of the team, and that’s what the sport is all about: teamwork and trusting your teammates, crew chiefs and your crew members,” said Richardson Jr., who is a Raybestos® Rookie in the NASCAR Busch Series. “We will use this as another step up and hopefully start climbing that ladder again.”

Mike Wallace continues to lead the Busch Series WIX Filters Lap Leader Award point standings with four wins this season.

The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series did not hold an event this past weekend.

The WIX Filters Lap Leader Award is part of Affinia Group’s Motorsports program, which includes WIX Filters as the number one filter in NASCAR and an exclusive NASCAR Performance Product, the Raybestos Rookie of the Year Award and Raybestos® brand brakes as the Official Brakes of NASCAR.

The WIX Filters Lap Leader Award is presented to the driver who leads the most laps during each race in NASCAR’s NEXTEL Cup, Busch and Craftsman Truck racing series. The award includes a cash prize presented to the winning driver during a ceremony before the next race and an end-of-year payout and trophy for the driver who earns the most WIX Filters Lap Leader awards over the course of the entire season. Cash awards for the end-of-year honor are: $75,000 for the NEXTEL Cup Series; $20,000 for the Busch Series; and, $10,000 for the Craftsman Truck Series.

In order to be eligible for the WIX Filters Lap Leader Award for a single event, drivers and teams in each series must run the WIX Filters decal on the front fender and use WIX oil or air filters in their vehicles. Additionally, for any year-end payout, teams must run the decal on the front fender for every race they participate in, with an allowance for one race, and they must always use WIX oil or air filters.

Since 1939, WIX Filtration has been an innovator in filtration products. WIX designs, manufactures and distributes products for automotive, diesel, agricultural, industrial and specialty filter markets. Its product line includes oil, air, cabin interior, fuel, coolant, transmission and hydraulic filters for automobiles, trucks and off-road equipment. WIX is the number one filter in NASCAR and an exclusive NASCAR Performance Product. For more information, visit www.wixfilters.com.

Affinia Group Inc. is a global leader in the on and off highway replacement products and service industry. In North America the Affinia family of brands includes WIX® filters; Raybestos® brand brakes and AIMCO® brake products, and McQuay-Norris® and Spicer® Chassis parts. South American and European brands include Nakata®, Filtron®, Urba® and Quinton Hazell®. For more information, visit www.affiniagroup.com.