Mooresville, NC -- Travis Kvapil, the 2003 Craftsman Truck Series champion, was named to replace Brendan Gaughan in the No.77 Kodak Dodge for the 2005 Nextel Cup season.

Gaughan finished second to Kasey Kahne in the 2004 Raybestos Rookie-of-the- Year competition collecting four top-10s in 36 starts. His best finish was a fourth at Talladega in October.

Kvapil won the Craftsman championship in 2003 and then jumped into a Toyota truck last season. He earned two wins and 10 top-10s to finish eighth in the points standings. Kvapil made three Nextel Cup starts at the end of the season with a best result of 21st at Martinsville.

"Travis showed solid potential and demonstrated the skill and determination it takes to be a winner and we look forward to building on this foundation with our sponsor partners Kodak and Jasper." Roger Penske said.

The opportunity to drive for Penske-Jasper Racing is more than a dream come true. I have been a fan of Roger Penske since I was a little kid watching Rick Mears. It's a once in a lifetime chance for a young driver and I'm excited to get that opportunity," Kvapil said.

The 2005 Daytona 500 opens the Nextel Cup racing season on Sunday, February 20th.