Paul Menard

Birthday: Aug. 21, 1980
Hometown: Eau Claire, Wis.

YEAR-BY-YEAR CUP SERIES RECAP

2008 -- Finished 26th in series points. ... Scored first career pole (Daytona in July) and first career top-five finish (Talladega in October).

2007 -- Finished 34th in series points. ... First full-time series season. ... Season-high finish of 12th came in June at Michigan.

2006 -- Finished 45th in series points. ... Competed in seven events. ... Best finish was seventh at Atlanta in March.

2005 -- Finished 71st in series points. ... Competed in one event, at Watkins Glen. ... Started 42nd and finished 27th.

2004 -- Finished 66th in series points. ... Competed in one event, at Watkins Glen. ... Started 43rd and finished 29th.

PREVIOUS RACING HISTORY

Finished sixth in final 2005 and '06 Busch Series standings. ... Finished with seven top-fives and 16 top-10s in 2006. ... Won his first Busch Series event at his hometown track, The Milwaukee Mile, on June 24, 2006. ... Finished with six top-fives and 15 top-10s in 2005. ... Finished in the top 10 in 15 of final 20 events in 2005. ... Finished 23rd in 2004 Busch Series standings, his first full-time season. ... Competed in 14 events for owner Andy Petree before joining Dale Earnhardt Inc. ... Finished 60th in 2003 Busch Series standings, competing in six events for Petree. Also competed in five Truck Series events for Petree.

NOTEWORTHY

Won an ARCA race in September 2003 at Talladega, his first trip to the facility and only his third ARCA event. ... Competed in NASCAR Midwest Series and Southwest Series from 2000-02, scoring victories at Road America and Phoenix. ... Finished 13th in 2000, ninth in 2001 and seventh in 2002 in Midwest Series before ending the year in the Southwest Series, with the Phoenix win. ... Had four top-five finishes in five Trans-Am Series starts in 2002. ... Won the only two Grand Am events he entered in 2002. ... Began racing go-karts at the age of 8. ... Began competing in ice racing in his native Wisconsin at the age of 15 and still competes. ... Family owns Menards, a regional home improvement store chain.