Nashua, NH (10/16/06) NASCAR Busch East Series driver John Salemi is excited to cap off his sophomore season in the NASCAR ranks by making his second appearance in the annual Toyota All-Star Showdown in Los Angeles, CA. Salemi earned his spot with a 14th place points finish in the Busch East Series and heads west to the track where he got his NASCAR career started.

“I enjoy racing at Irwindale a lot,” says the Nashua, NH driver. “The track is so wide that you can run side by side easily. The top and bottom grooves tend to work well, so it makes the racing great. I made my first NASCAR start in the West Series out there in 2004 before running in the East Series.” Salemi made his third appearance at the 1/2 mile California oval last November in his first Showdown.

“Last year’s Showdown was a tough deal for us,” recalls John. “I did my best to stay out of trouble, but we got caught up in someone else’s mess just after the halfway break. Cars started spinning and the next thing I knew, we hit head-on and ended our night. This track owes me something and I am hoping that this time out we can cash in on it”

Salemi’s plan for this year’s Showdown will be survival for the first 100 laps. “You have to be there at the end,” says John. “Yellow flag laps do not count in the second half, so you have to keep the nose clean and stay on the track. Even if you have to pit for repairs, do everything you can to stay in the race. We are bringing a different car that we ran at the short tracks earlier in the year. I am excited about Irwindale. The entire Willoughby Motorsports team has worked very hard getting this car ready for me.”

For this year’s event, John teamed up with Maryland driver Dion Ciccarelli to share the travel cost for the ride out. “Dion and I have raced each other on the track at just about every race this season and he raced me clean every time. Larry Jamerson, Dion and I were talking about Irwindale a few weeks back and came up with a plan to head out west together.” John’s #15 Waste Management/BG Environmental/Dennis Ciotti Racing Products Chevrolet and equipment will make the trip to California in the #84 Jamerson Motorsports hauler along with Dion’s car and equipment.

John will look to have his redemption at Irwindale this coming Saturday night October 21st. The Toyota All-Star Showdown will take the green flag live on Speed Channel at approx 12:00am EST. Sponsorship opportunities are available with John for the event. For more info please call Scott Collins @ 978.987.7844 or visit the team website at http://www.johnsalemiracing.com