As the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup season commences, Paul Menard prepares himself for what he hopes will be a standout year in his racing career. Menard will pilot the No. 15 Menards Chevrolet full time in ’08 as the sophomore racer in the Dale Earnhardt Inc. stable of drivers .

Menard, who is entering his third full year of competition under the DEI banner, also continues his representation of Johns Manville, Turtle Wax, Moen, Sylvania , Quaker State , Pittsburgh Paints, Peak, and Energizer. Menards remains the primary sponsor for the No. 15 Chevrolet carrying the neon yellow paint scheme around the track and across the country.

Menards sanctioned racing career began to take shape at just eight years old when Menard won the Briggs Junior Class Championship in his hometown of Eau Claire , Wisc. He later won the Briggs Medium Class Champion before working his way up the proverbial racing steps. Menard began ice racing when he was 15-years-old and went on to win 10 International Ice Racing Association events in his career. To date, Menard continues to compete in IIRA events during the NASCAR off season.

Menard made his foray into NASCAR competition in 2003 and has since proved to be a rising star. The DEI driver posted his first NASCAR Nextel Cup Series top-10 finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway in the spring of 2006.  Still a full-time NASCAR Busch Series driver, Menard continued to show strength by earning great finishes including his first NASCAR Busch Series victory at the Milwaukee Mile in June of 2006. Overall, Menard earned one win, 10 top-fives, 16 top-10s and a sixth-place finish in the 2006 championship standings. 

The 2007 season faced several significant challenges for the driver of the No. 15 team. Not only was Menard required to qualify on speed for the first 19 races of the season, but with as many as 55 cars showing up to each event, qualifying was nearly as notable as winning in ‘07. In addition, many consider the competition among the Raybestos Rookie class to have been at an all time high last year and Menard was awarded Raybestos Rookie of the Race honors at four events throughout the season.

Despite these and other challenges, Menard remained focus on finding on track success and returns in 2008 with a more veteran outlook on competition.

“I guess I'm a "veteran" now,” Menard reasoned. “Having been to all of the tracks before, if you look at it that way.  Really, though, everyone at this level has so much experience in so many different types of vehicles that everyone is a veteran in their own regard. I’m just happy to have the rookie stripe off the back of my car.”

Career Highlights

2007 Menard scores Raybestos Rookie of the Year honors in four NASCAR Nextel Cup events 2007 Menard records six top-20 finishes in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series 2007 Menard records five top-10 finishes in his 11 NASCAR Busch Series starts

2006 6 th in NASCAR Busch Series points. One win, seven top-five, 16 top-10 finishes

2006 Recorded first NASCAR Busch Series win at Milwaukee

2006 Recorded first NASCAR Nextel Cup Series top-10 at Atlanta Motor Speedway 2005 6 th in NASCAR Busch Series championship standings.  five top-five, 13 top-10 finishes

2005 Earned second career NASCAR Busch Series Pole Award at Talladega Superspeedway

2004 Captured first NASCAR Busch Series Pole Award at Kansas Speedway

2003 Scored first ARCA win at Talladega Superspeedway

2003 Recorded first NASCAR Busch Series Top-10 finish (9th) at Indianapolis Raceway Park

2003 Finished 12th in NASCAR Busch Series debut at Nashville Superspeedway

2002 Winner of Phoenix NASCAR Southwest Tour event

2001 Scored first NASCAR ReMax Challenge Series event win at Road America – Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin

	Hometown: Eau Claire, Wisconsin Birthdate: 8/21/80 Hobbies: Riding Dirt Bikes, Sudoku, Working Out, Playing Video Games Favorite Moments in Racing: Winning the Milwaukee Busch race in my home state and also the ARCA Race at Road America in 2001