Burney Lamar In People Magazine and To Be A Dad

Wow, one more NASCAR driver makes it to the big press and does it in style with many men in the NASCAR realm being jealous in how he's done it!

Niki Taylor and husband Burney Lamar is expecting their first child.   They were married in La Jolla, CA in December of 2006 and are the little one is due in March.

Believe it or not, they met when they were slated to sit at the same booth to sign autographs for a charity event.  Lucky bastard!!  I wonder if they've pondered sending that charity coordinator a thank you card?

In lieu of gifts, they're that asking donations be sent to Victory Junction Gang Camp.

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Turn Your Clocks Back - A Reminder

Don't forget that Sunday morning at 2 AM, to turn your clocks back 1 hour!

FCC Chairman - Put On Da Digital Spot

The chairman of the FCC, who was given $5 mil to get the word out about the digital transmission change, used a tad over $355k to sponsor the No. 38 car for three races to help get the word.

Because he's using the NASCAR medium that can potentially reach millions (If the networks give the car the proper exposure in the next few races) he's being called a reckless spender for blowing the money on a NASCAR sponsorship.

Maybe they should take a peek at the $37 million spent by McCain on his campaign LAST MONTH alone!

On Feb. 17, 2009, television stations will start broadcasting in digital instead of analog signals. The effective result, so they say, will free up valuable airwaves for both public safety announcements and wireless providers.

After Feb 17 (Which is two days after the Daytona 500) televisions that are using "rabbit ear" antennas will need a converter box to receive signals after that.

I've read in places that we (The U.S.) are just trying to play catch up to Japan, but that could just be hearsay.

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Driver Points Standings, The Top 5

As we head into the final races of the season, it seems almost like a certainty to most that Jimmie Johnson will be collecting his third CONSECUTIVE championship NASCAR Cup Title.

I'm a cautious one at times and say "Hold on there folks. There's a few races to go."

In fact, 7 races ago, everyone was all but certain that the championship was going to Kyle Busch. Yet with bad luck, fates and my unlucky hat, that isn't going to happen anytime soon. (I'll be explaining my "unlucky" hat in a later article.)


What I'm trying to say is that with three races to go, anything is still possible: engine or tire failures; getting caught up in someone else's wreck or bad pit road driving.

If something were to happen to Jimmie, Carl Edwards, Greg Biffle and even Jeff Burton are ready to pounce. So I'm not getting ready to buy my championship Jimmie Johnson diecast just yet.

Here's a gander at the top 5 in the points standings and you'll see what I mean.

RANK	+/-	DRIVER	POINTS	BEHIND
1	--	Jimmie Johnson	6248	Leader
2	2	Carl Edwards	6065	-183
3	-1	Greg Biffle	6063	-185
4	-1	Jeff Burton	6030	-218
5	1	Kevin Harvick	5941	-307

(Photo Credits: Jonathan Ferrey / Getty Images for NASCAR)

Curious About the Manufacturers Championship?

NASCAR scores the championship race for manufacturers in a very interesting process.

The winning car earns that manufacturer 9 points.
The second-highest manufacturer receives 6 points.
The third-highest manufacturer receives 4 points.
The fourth-highest manufacturer receives 3 points.

I find that interesting that the lead car of that manufacturer gets points, but subsequent cars behind it doesn't.

Food for Thought:
What if a Chevy wins, followed by 5 Fords, then 3 Toyota's and then a Dodge and then more Chevy's? Obviously the Chevy's would be at the bottom of the pack in points.

On the other side of the coin:
But this system does seem to buffer the fact that Chevy makes up a large chunk of the field so possibly this levels the math a bit. Or maybe they should divide the points by the number of cars of that make in the field. That would statistically help smooth out the numbers advantage.

Manufacturer Points As They Stand Now

RANK	MAKE	POINTS	BEHIND	WINS
1	Chevrolet	198	Leader	10
2	Toyota	197	-1	10
3	Ford	193	-5	9
4	Dodge	138	-60	4

Looks like Dodge needs some work. Oh yea, we already knew that! But at least this year, with Toyota in the mix, there would appear to be parity in this points table!

TV Action From Texas and ABC's Squandering Ratings

This weekend, all three series will be coming to us from Texas!

ALL TIMES PACIFIC!! HA!!
On Friday, we have the Craftsman Truck Series on SPEED at 5:30 PM.
Saturday sees the Nationwide Series on ESPN2 at 12 PM.
And Sunday has the Sprint Cup Series on ABC at 12 PM.

The real question though remains: Will ABC actually pick up the pace and improve on their coverage? Despite exciting developing stories with driver changes and 4 drivers in contention for the Cup (At the moment), ratings are flat lining for the free telecasts on ABC as folks head to other sources for their race info. The Daly Planet touches on this issue while I have to ponder why ABC has it's crack staff ask such redundant questions every week instead of trying to mix it up a bit.

If you stop to digest what the reporter is asking, you'll see what I mean. How many times can you ask a driver how a wreck felt? (That elicited my ever popular response: Smack them upside the head with a piece of car hood and say: "Like that.")

Why not ask if they were expecting it, or what was the very first thought you had as it started, or when it ended. Do you hang on to the steering wheel or let go. Do you close your eyes or keep them open. Are you glad you at your Wheaties this morning? Will you have to answer for this come Monday morning?

But no.

It's true, there is very little that you can ask that's different, but you can at least try to mix it up. In my other media job, I've interviewed folks and asked about their intentions, or hey, I have a few questions, but first, is there anything on the table you want to address? Let them start the conversation and bounce off what they say.

ABC - We know how a wreck feels. In fact, before the director sends the reporter to ask that fateful question, maybe we should introduce him to the car hood!

Owners Points Scramble Going To Texas

We have a good scramble of close knit owners points going on. Only 3 more races before the top 35 are locked in for the front part of the 2009 season.

I don't see the No. 10 car getting in.
The No. 77 Dodge is beleaguered as it is... I wouldn't be surprised if they don't make it.
OK, I'm clueless as to what the No 347 is, but he's only 80 points back from 35th.
The No. 84 has been dabbling above and below the magic 35th spot for weeks.. almost months it feels like.
I fully expect to see Robby Gordon pull his car out of the Mikey Waltrip reserved spot... and be in the top 35 for next year.
I have no read on the No. 22 car. I'll let you know what I think after the last race!!!

RANK	+/-	CAR	OWNER	POINTS	BEHIND	STARTS	+/- 35th
29	--	#55	Michael Waltrip	2667	-3581	33	141
30	2	#01	Teresa Earnhardt	2656	-3592	33	130
31	-1	#41	Chip Ganassi	2652	-3596	33	126
32	-1	#66	Joe Custer	2628	-3620	32	102
33	--	#22	Bill Davis	2606	-3642	32	80
34	1	#7	Robby Gordon	2551	-3697	33	25
35	-1	#84	Dietrich Mateschitz	2526	-3722	30	0
36	--	#347	Rob Kauffman	2446	-3802	32	-80
37	--	#77	Roger Penske	2396	-3852	32	-130
38	--	#10	George Gillett, Jr	2295	-3953	28	-231
39	--	#96	Jeffrey Moorad	2182	-4066	29	-344
40	--	#45	Kyle Petty	2136	-4112	29	-390

Mark Martin to HMS Early?

Did anyone else catch the little tidbit on Speed Channel last weekend?

Oh, it wasn't anything too big... just that Mark Martin might finish out the last three races of the season in the No. 5 while Casey Mears could possibly start driving the No. 33 Chevy for RCR at Homestead.

It was a quick snippet Larry McReynolds put out there.

That's a lot of swap ups for drivers, cars and contracts / sponsors. Is this possible? Will this happen? We only have to wait a few days indeed.

(Photo Credit: Chris Graythen / Getty Images)

Kyle Petty's Replacement: Chad McCumbee. How'd He Do?

Atlanta was Chad McCumbee's debut in the No. 45 Petty Enterprises car, where he is expected to replace Kyle Petty next year.

So how'd he do?

How's 6 laps down in 36th sound to you?  Yea.  What a resounding success of a replacement!

Kyle's take on the matter was that the company that bought into Petty Enterprises, Boston Ventures, has not done anything to help the team become more competitive. Kyle also made note that none of the mergers have done much to help the other teams who have merged either, in as much as performance goes.

Personally, I never expected improvement in any team after being absorbed.  For me, mergers just meant the new entity gets exposure to the NASCAR fanbase while helping the merged team stay afloat.  It's almost a pure marketing ploy if you ask me.  But that's just me.

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Another Sponsor Is Departing: Kodak

After a 22-year relationship with NASCAR, Eastman Kodak Co. is taking it's leave of NASCAR and increasing it's marketing presence into professional golf.   ... Golf?

Their reasoning is that they feel they have a better fit with golf while highlighting their digital brand and hope to engage more overseas customers, since 60% of their sales is overseas. 

Along with the sport, they are, of course, severing their ties with Penske Racing also.

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Atlanta, Tires and Tired Drivers

A peer of mine was pondering out loud about the Atlanta race this last weekend.

Working the Steering Wheel
My peer Scott called it an "ice rink" or "skating rink" affect that we were seeing this last weekend at Atlanta Motorspeedway for the Pep Boys Auto 500.  After the first few laps after a stop, drivers were literally skating all over the place as we watched them "saw" their steering wheels to keep the cars under control.

So I wondered the following thoughts:

Is this yet another function of the Goodyears issues with blowing out as much as they did in the previous races or an expected result of just good racing?   I'd think is just good old fashion tire wear and racing for once and it probably is not any side affect of tire issues, perse.

Goodyear has been hammered enough as it is.

Not to mention it's fun to see just who can handle their cars under these conditions and who can't.  I hate to bang on Mikey (Michael Waltrip) but we had at least three cautions from his car disintegrating for one reason or another throughout the day.  If it weren't for bad luck, he's have no luck some days!


Surprising Performances
Non Performance:  You know who surprised me?  Tony Stewart finishing 17th in The Home Depot Toyota No. 20 on the tail end of the lead lap.  I've always thought of him as a wheel man of sorts and thought this kind of condition would be right up his sleeve.  Are we seeing a short timers perspective / attitude from his team or Tony?  Or were they literally that lost on a track condition we've seen them conquer before?

Good Performance: Kudos goes to A.J. Allmendinger for bringing the No 10 Sears Auto Center / Valvoline No. 10 into 14th.  I'm glad he's out from under his old team and getting a chance to show just what he can do.  And A.J. is doing it under a new team in an infrastructure he's not ingrained in, not familiar with.

Wow.  When Jimmie Johnson was busted for speeding on pit road and he had to take his medicine under green, my only thought wasn't that he's doomed his championship, but how will the team manage to salvage the day.  From a lap down to 2nd ain't a bad way to salvage it.  That's for sure.

Expected or Not:  Despite driving the bastard child of the Penske garage, Ryan Newman got his No. 12 Kodak Dodge up into 16th on the lead lap at the end of the day.  Admittedly, I was busy doing other things during the race, but I'm not sure just how much or little media exposure Ryan got on Sunday.  Maybe he did - I was just busy writing, but near the end of the race, you can see he repainted his car with the colors of the wall and still managed a 16th place finish.  Nice...  and kudos to Ryan once again for taking decently supported equipment from KHI and putting it in the winners circle for his debut in the Truck Series race on Saturday!

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Brothers in NASCAR

Do you know who the brothers are with the most wins in NASCAR? Richard and Maurice Petty. Confusing as it seems, Maurice made 26 starts in NASCAR, but even though he never won a race, Richard's numbers propel them to the front!

See the new article over at my new site, Brothers in NASCAR.

Cousin Carl Gets Another Win at Atlanta

It wasn't as exciting as when he rub passed Jimmy Johnson in previous years, but with Jimmie Johnson getting fresh tires with 8 to go, and after having sped on pit road earlier, Johnson showed why they are in contention for the Cup by finishing 2nd as Carl Edwards fought his Roush Fenway Ford up to the win in the Pep Boys Auto 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Johnson almost got taken out by Denny Hamlin when Hamlin slid up the track sideways a bit into Johnson, but Hamlin saved it and Johnsons day!

Matt Kenseth was 4th,
Kyle Busch was 5th.

It wasn't a good day for some of the Cup chasers.

On lap 302 we saw a multi-car crash with Jeff Burton slipping up a notch and bumping Dave Blaney, but that was all it took to start the incident that collected Juan Montoya, Reed Sorenson and Joe Nemechek.

Michael Waltrip just disintegrated through out the day with a tire issue and then ensuing debris calls from car parts flying off his call. Mikey was the yellow flag on three different occasions.

We saw a lot of coverage of the chasers and a lot of coverage on the wrecks with good lists of who was involved in the incidents.

The chaser finished in the following spots:

• Edwards - 1st
• Johnson - 2nd
• Hamline - 3rd
• Kenseth - 4th
• Ky Busch - 5th
• Jeff Gordon - 9th
• Biffle - 10th
• Earnhardt Jr. - 11th
• Harvick - 13th
• Stewart - 17th
• Burton - 18th
• Bowyer - 20th

What this did was keep Jimmie Johnson in first in the standings by 183 points,
Carl Edwards moved up 2 posts into 2nd,
2 points behind Carl is Greg Biffle,
Jeff Burton slipped a spot into 4th, 218 points behind Johnson.
Harvick moved up one spot into 5th - 312 points behind Johnson.

Though nobody is mathematically eliminated yet, it seems that unless something happens to the top 5 drivers in each of the next 3 races, inevitability is starting loom on the horizon. For one moment, after Jimmie Johnson got nailed for speeding on pit road and had to take a green flag drive through penalty, it looked like a chink in the championship armor but the Hendricks No. 48 Lowes Chevy team proved why they are in first place in the standings today.

Today, the track that was acting more like a large version of Martinsville than a speedway.

Cup Series Results
Cup Series Standings

First Time Winners and Race Ending Squabbles

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series

What happens when you put a good driver in good equipment? You get a first time winner, that's what you get. In the past I've noted how the Penske shop seems to never quite get the No.12 car in a consistent performance mode. In the long run, we see the driver, the face of the team as the icon of the performance. I've been a tolerant and patient fan of Ryan Newman since his 2nd year scene on Cup and it's nice to see that when he gets put into decent equipment, he takes advantage of it.

Today (Saturday, Oct 25) in Ryan Newmans first start in the Craftsman Truck Series, he took the win in the E-Z-GO 200 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Newman took the race lead with 8 laps to but Ron Hornaday Jr still had something to say about it as they swapped the lead one more time. Newman stayed in the high line and thus, had the momentum in the corners.

Behind it all, Denny Hamlin came in third, Todd Bodine fourth and the spirited Scott Speed rounded out the top 5.

This win puts the count for Ryan Newman at 21 victories in the top three series in NASCAR.

• 13 wins in Sprint Cup.
• 7 wins in the Nationwide Series.
• And now,
• 1 in the Truck Series.

Being a first time starter / winner makes him the fourth driver to win his Truck Series debut. The other drivers are Mike Skinner, Robert Pressley and Kasey Kahne.

Does this bode well for Ryan? Getting this win is his first in a Chevy. He's moving to a Chevy in the Cup Series driving for Stewart-Haas Racing next year. (2009)

NASCAR.com:
Truck Results | Points

(Photo Credit: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

Related Links
The 12 Car Gets Yet A New Driver
Rumors: Stremme to the No. 12

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NASCAR Nationwide Series

At a time when he needs it most, Carl Edwards won the Kroger 250 at Memphis Motorsports Park. The race ending was pretty exciting and was an exemplary demonstration of good clean racing.

With a green / white / checkers restart, David Reutimann was on Edwards bumper but never tried moving him with his bumper... good clean racing. In a post race interview, it seemed that Reutimann was regretting not moving Edwards for the win but reconciled himself that he races clean.

Edwards and Reutimann were two of the seven cars left on the lead lap as they were followed by Kenny Wallace in third, Austin Dillon finished fourth and Joey Logano was fifth.

Even though the finish up front was exciting, the action was back in 13th when Bobby Hamilton Jr. spun off the bumper of Landon Cassill, relegating Hamilton to 21st. After the checkers, Bobby cut Cassill off on pit road, got out and had a chat with Cassill in his window. It looked like Bobby reached in the window but I'm not sure what came of that. According to Cassill, Bobby's head was in his window and bobbed up and down and left and right, but since Bobby never lifted his face plate, he didn't know what he said. LOL.

We'll see what comes of this later on, early next week.

Don't forget:
Tomorrow (Sunday, Oct 26th) the Cup Series race is at Atlanta, on ABC at 1 p.m. ET.

NASCAR.com:
N'wide Results | Points

(Photo Credit: Dak Dillon for NASCAR)
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New Dad Finishes Sixth Last Weekend

Do you know who this is? It's Casey Mears.

Do you know what he's doing?

Getting ready to finish 6th in the TUMS QuikPak 500 at Martinsville.

He was the lowest finishing Hendricks driver in the field. Hendrick cars have won nine of the last 12 races at the classic paper clip shaped race track.

You know what else he is? A new poppa!!

He and his girlfriend Trisha Grablander welcomed a baby girl on Oct. 7th., named Samantha Mae Mears who weighed in at 8lbs. 7oz.

He's finishing out his last 4 races with Hendricks on what looks like might be a good run.

Congrats and good luck Casey!

source
Photo Credit: Streeter Lecka/Getty Images

A Speedy NASCAR Cantina in Turn 2?

Here's something that'll make your car Tight in Turn 2!

Offbeat / Fun Stuff

SPEED Channel is opening a new cantina next to Phoenix International Raceway and should be ready for business by the time NASCAR hits the track next month.

SPEED wants to connect with the fans and offer more to them via the cantina so that when people go home, they have fallen victim to the marketing scheme and turn on SPEED when they get home.

The cantina will open on November 7th, the night of the truck race and network personalities will have a presence there. (Now if someone could buy them a lot of drinks, you might get some inside scoops!)

I think this is nice, and not.

From a fans perspective, I'd love a NASCAR themed "joint" to hit up in my local town. Even a SPEED Channel themed place. Staff it with Hooters girls, and the divorce rate would skyrocket in that town!

Fans are a helter skelter collection of hubs on the internet, tracks and the occasional diecast store.

I've hit up Twitter a few times asking folks from my region of The Bay Area in Northern CA if anyone knows of such a "joint" and no one comes up with an answer, so they are lacking. And when I say joint, I don't mean a place with peanut shells on the floor and one hood hanging form the ceiling. I mean a fully NASCAR committed, NASCAR decorated establishment. In fact, they have to have more stuff on their walls than I do at home!

The SPEED Cantina sounds like just the venture. Yet, I have to travel to Phoenix to get it? Nah.

On the dour, business side of things, I get the lack of licensing for such a venture from NASCARs side of things as they want to have quality control over their image and product. They would also probably swing some serious licensing fee$ out of the whole deal too. That in itself is probably a hefty pill to swallow.

And what happens in the off season? Unhappy hour until Daytona kicks in again? At least that's my take.

Charlie, you got anything on NASCAR bars... I mean "joints". Damn... I bars... I meant "cantina". Didn't I? (source)

~

Charlie Turner from ON PIT ROW: Well I've been to the NASCAR Cafe in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina a couple times. A Google search of "NASCAR Cafe" turned up one in Vegas at the Sahara Hotel and another at the Universal City Walk in Orlando, Florida. I think there may be more, but I'm not sure.

Personally, I'm partial to the Toledo Speedway Bar and Grill right here in my town.

It's a real racers' place, loaded with authentic memorobilia, including the coolest kind - a real race track right outside the back wall of the place. We broadcast ON PIT ROW live every Tuesday all year long, from the place affectionately known as the BAG. During racing season we also do the INSIDE ARCA show on the same night. One night this season, while we did the show, Brad Kesolowski's no. 88 Navy Chevy could be loudly heard during the show as he tested the JR Motorsports ride, right outside.

There's nothing like a racing bar.

~

Bruce sneaks in a counter-reply: Have I mentioned I hate this guy? I'm officially jealous now!

~~~~~

Over on Charlie's site, On Pit Row, he asks:

Is there any good reason that you see for a Petty Enterprises and DEI merger?

Piddles and Puddles at Atlanta

If David Poole of The Morning Drive on SIRIUS is anywhere close to being a better weatherman than most weather forecasters on TV, then we should be expecting the track to be a wash out for today, Friday, the 24th at Atlanta.

It would seem it's coming down pretty good right now, at the time of this post.

-Bruce
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Toyota, Red Bull Team In A Heap Of Trouble with Fines and Suspensions

What happens when you play so hard with the NASCAR rulebook that the gray area is no longer in play? You lose a chunk of points, a chunk of money, get suspended and screw over your driver. That's what happens.

After the Martinsville race, the No. 83 Red Bull Toyota was one of the additional cars that was randomly selected to have further tests / examinations conducted on it. It's kind of like an anti-lottery.

After Brian Vickers 11th place finish, the car was taken to the Research and Development Center in Concord, N.C. where they found the issue.

The issue being that the team altered the sheet metal on the car to make it thinner than required. The sides of the car —the doors, fenders and quarter panels — were too thin. And changing the sheet metal, changes the weight of the car. This makes it lighter. More maneuverable in the corners.

The vapor pages of the NASCAR rule book says a car must use a minimum of 24-gauge (0.025 inch thick) sheet steel for their car bodies.

The process of thinning metal is called the practice of "acid dipping" or "chemical milling,". This is specifically forbidden. (Like I said, they booted the gray area to the curb with this one.)

The fallout?

• Brian Vickers was penalized 150 driver points
• Crew chief Kevin Hamlin fined $100,000
• Car owner Dietrich Mateschitz docked 150 owner points
• Kevin Hamlin will be watching the race from his couch. (Suspended indefinitely)
• Car chief Craig Smokstad will be watching with him on the same couch. (Suspended indefinitely)

I think Red Bull is pissed too.

Red Bull Racings general manager Jay Frye, accepted responsibility and will not appeal the penalties.

Frye also said: "This approach to racing is against the values of the Red Bull Racing Team, and the necessary steps will be taken to rectify the situation ensuring it does not happen again."

For now, the teams research and development manager Randy Cox would act as interim crew chief this weekend at Atlanta.

dOh!

source
Photo Credit: Chris Graythen / Getty Images
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Atlanta Motor Speedway Driver Ratings

Curious about some numbers from Atlanta for the upcoming PepBoys Auto 500? Check 'em out here:





Atlanta Motor Speedway Data
Race #: 33 of 36 (10-26-08)
Track Size: 1.54 miles
Race Length: 325 laps/500.5 miles

• Banking/Corners: 24 degrees
• Banking/Straights: 5 degrees
• Frontstretch: 2,332 feet
• Backstretch: 1,800 feet

Driver Ratings at Atlanta
Jimmie Johnson 113.4
Tony Stewart 104.4
Dale Earnhardt Jr. 103.6
Carl Edwards 102.8
Greg Biffle 102.3
Jeff Gordon 96.6
Matt Kenseth 94.1
Jeff Burton 92.8
Clint Bowyer 89.4
Kyle Busch 88.5
Note: Driver Rating compiled from 2005-2008 races (7 total) at Atlanta.

Qualifying/Race Data
2007 pole winner: Greg Biffle, 192.453 mph, 28.807 secs.
2007 race winner: Jimmie Johnson, 135.260 mph, 10-28-07)
Track qualifying record: Geoffrey Bodine (197.478 mph, 28.074 secs., 10-21-05)
Race record: Bobby Labonte (159.904 mph, 11-16-97)

Estimated Pit Window: Every 48-52 laps, based on fuel mileage.

Image and data source: NASCAR Press Release
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Truck Series Gets Their New Sponsor

NASCAR announced today that Camping World will be taking over the title sponsor spot of the Truck Series starting in 2009. Camping World takes over from Craftsman, who's been the series title sponsor since the Truck Series was conceived in 1995.

The title contract will be for a seven-year span, giving Camping World the exclusive rights to sponsor the series.

The 2009 Camping World Truck Series (Feels weird writing it.) will feature 25 points races at 23 tracks in North America.

All the Camping World Truck Series races will be broadcast live on SPEED or FOX which will result in over $100 million worth of exposure for the new title sponsor.

source: NASCAR Press Release
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Atlanta Weekend TV Coverage

NASCAR is going to be spread across for different venues on your cable box this upcoming weekend and if you still have just an antenna, you're S.O.L..

You have SPEED, ESPN Classic, ESPN2 for coverage and Cup coverage on ABC.

For my 1 regular reader, if you want a detailed account of what's on where when, check out The Daly Planet. They have a very comprehensive listing of the details of the different shows happening.

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Owners Points Scramble for Atlanta Weekend

The season is wrapping up and we've got ourselves a tight points race going on at the 35th spot as a few teams are scrambling to get the automatic starting spot for the first 6 races in 2009.

Right now, there are 15 points between 34th and 35th. Part of this was due to an early exit at Martinsville by Robby Gordon, but nonetheless, he needs to make sure that doesn't happen anymore... somehow.

The No. 22 car seems to be confidently in 33rd, BUT if anything happens to them in the next 4 races, that could be a different tale of stress for the Bill Davis team. The same could be said for the 01, 66 and 41 cars. They need to make sure they don't DNF a day away.

The No 00 car is only 75 points behind 35th. They need to be more dependent on someone having a bad day as much as a lucky top-10 finish to get them up there in contention. Or do they? Actually, no. Keep in mind that Michael Waltrip Racing swapped car numbers and points around so they're looking pretty for the upcoming '09 season. That means he'll be applying the No. 44 car owner points to the No 00 Toyota. The No. 44 car is 26th in points right now and Waltrip is returning the car number to Petty Enterprises. So there's no real pressure on Michael McDowell, except to pad his resume with the best results possible!

30	-1	#41	Chip Ganassi	2606	32	161
31	1	#66	Joe Custer	2594	31	149
32	-2	#01	Teresa Earnhardt	2583	32	138
33	--	#22	Bill Davis	2566	31	121
34	1	#84	Dietrich Mateschitz	2460	29	15
35	-1	#7	Robby Gordon	2445	32	0
36	--	#00	Rob Kauffman	2370	31	-75
37	--	#77	Roger Penske	2305	31	-140
38	--	#10	George Gillett, Jr	2174	27	-271

Owner Points Table on NASCAR.

Ford Cutting NASCAR Budget

Even when Ford renewed their deal with Roush Fenway Racing, they've looked at other corners to shave dollars out of their out-flow of cash.

In so sticking with Roush Fenway, they've cut their overall NASCAR marketing budget to keep things viable.

Despite the big cuts with their marketing program, they are also going to continue supporting Yates Racing and Wood Brothers Racing in the Cup series in 2009. They will also continue to lend its support to the Nationwide and Craftsman Truck series teams with contingency programs and engineering assistance.

This mix of budget decisions says a lot of what the execs at Ford think of Roush Fenway Racing versus their presence in the NASCAR realm as a whole. And I think it should be. Lots of fans don't flock to the TV to see the sport, NASCAR. They flock to the tracks and TV to watch their preferred drivers and teams.

Ford needs to keep a competitive balance in the field with the momentum that Toyota has added to the manufacturers race now that the manu race has 4 name tags in it. Ford needs to step up in the statistically ladened field of Chevys.

Good for Roush.

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Weather for Hampton, (Atlanta) Georgia

At the moment that I wrote this, rain is predicted for Hampton on, guess what day? Friday. A 70% chance of rain.

Then partly cloudy for Saturday and Sunday.

See Wunderground Weather for more details.

Why Wunderground? Because places like AccuWeather confuse me while they report light rain on Tuesday when there's nothing but blue skies above me! I couldn't help myself. I took screen shots and outside pictures just say "Hey!"

A Look at the Next and Final 4 Races of the Season

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Oct. 20, 2008) – Jimmie Johnson has proven he and his team can perform under playoff pressure. It's what's made him a two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion.

He has more wins during the Chase – 13 – than any other driver. The No. 48 team statistically shows that they operate at their best in the Chase. And that can't be good news for anyone else in the Chase.

Johnson has some pretty solid ratings at the Chase tracks.

But with four races remaining in the Chase, drivers Greg Biffle, Jeff Burton and Carl Edwards – all within 200 points of Johnson, have a chance to take their shots at Johnson.

Greg Biffle trails Johnson by 149 points in 2nd place. Since the current points structure was implemented in 1975, the biggest comeback to date with four races left in a season is 144 points. In 1992, eventual champion Alan Kulwicki trailed Bill Elliott by that many with four to go.

This doesn't mean it's impossible.

Biffle and Edwards, both from the Roush Fenway stable, have some pretty good opportunity since this garage is good at the 1.5 mile tracks, which make up 3 of the next 4 races. But can they pull it off? Edwards has four wins and a Driver Rating of 101.5. Biffle has four wins and a Driver Rating of 99.5.

There's just one teeny, tiny statistical problem: Jimmie Johnson has six wins and a Driver Rating of 109.6.

Source: NASCAR Public Relations
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Teams to Come Together From Where to Where?

In the Tight in Turn Two article with Charlie Turner, I was joking about multiple teams coming together and forming a team called Hendrick-Roush-Childress-Evernham racing. I really was!

But there's chatter going on that there is some chatter going on between Petty Enterprises and DEI to explore joining forces to some degree.

Loomis was quick to point out that there's no decisions yet and there's chatter with other organizations.

They're comparing what teams are considering, or pondering, with banks merging in these economic times.

Like I said, I was joking. I don't know anything, even if I'd like to say I have a scoop!

source

Allmendinger Showing His Resume, When It Counts

Putting A.J. Allmendinger in a decent car at Martinsville was a good thing. Even if Martinsville wasn't his first choice of tracks to show his wares.

He finished in 15th after a long day in the Gillett Evernham Motorsports No. 10 Dodge. Way to go A.J..

Right now he's in a bit of a limbo for 2009 but will be finishing off the 2008 season in the No. 10 car, keeping the seat warm for Reed Sorenson when he comes on board in 2009. Hopefully driving a quality backed team like the No. 10 car will help him as he pads his resume with results like the one he got at the TUMS QuikPak 500.


Article source,
Photo Credit: Sam Greenwood/Getty Images

The NASCAR Foundation Calls On Fans

The NASCAR Foundation is calling on you, the NASCAR fan, to join more than three million Americans expected to volunteer for USA WEEKEND’s Make A Difference Day on Saturday, Oct. 25. It is America’s largest day of service and an estimated 25 million people benefit each year on this annual “day of doing good.”

For 2008, The NASCAR Foundation Volunteer Network is supporting USA WEEKEND’s Make A Difference Day by featuring messages at selected racetracks and at NASCAR.com/foundation

Paul Newman supported Make A Difference Day for 14 years. His legacy continues through his food company, Newman’s Own, which will fund this year’s awards.

“In a world that’s changing so fast and leaving so many people in need, the caring actions that take place on Make A Difference Day are more crucial than ever,” says Marcia Bullard, president and CEO of USA WEEKEND. “For 18 years, Americans have reached out on this day to help others and make our communities better places to live. The Day is an inspiring and reliable reminder of the best of this nation’s spirit.”

Thousands of projects are being planned by corporations, communities, non-profits, entire states and everyday Americans. Below are a few examples of projects. For more, go to makeadifferenceday.com.

• On Oct. 26, the NASCAR Foundation Volunteer Network Track Walk at the Atlanta Motor Speedway concludes a week of charitable efforts, including outreach to hospitalized kids and an online auction at NASCAR.com/foundation featuring driver memorabilia.
• In our nation’s capital, volunteers from USA WEEKEND, Greater DC Cares, First Book and Washington Parks & People will clean Marvin Gaye Park in the northeast section of the city. In addition, volunteers will make the first distribution of what will total 25,000 donated books — Hoop Kings and Hoop Queens — to students in D.C. Public Schools.
• In Minneapolis, 250 volunteers — fueled by a breakfast of Newman’s Own Sweet Enough cereal and led by Volunteers of America-Minnesota — will be fanning out to multiple sites across the city. This is one of 10 projects and thousands of volunteers nationwide receiving a cereal donation from Newman’s Own.
• In 10 states and Washington, D.C., staff and residents in 180 AvalonBay Communities, led by chairman and CEO Bryce Blair, will support volunteer efforts from Long Island, N.Y. to Bellevue, Wash.
• In Nashville, Broken Bow recording artist Randy Owen — lead singer of the legendary group Alabama — teams up with Clear Channel’s The Big 98 WSIX and Hands On Nashville, to lead hundreds of volunteers in multiple school-based cleanup projects. He’ll conclude the day with an acoustic concert at Hall of Fame Park. Owen’s debut solo album, One On One, and his memoir, Born Country, hit stores in early November.

About USA WEEKEND Magazine
USA WEEKEND Magazine is a national weekly magazine distributed through more than 600 newspapers in the United States. Awarded for its journalism and design, USA WEEKEND focuses on social issues, entertainment, health, food and travel. The magazine provides Newspaper in Education classroom guides to partner newspapers. Its website, usaweekend.com, provides enhanced content and interactive magazine features. USA WEEKEND is a Gannett Co., Inc., publication.

About The NASCAR Foundation
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing Inc. (NASCAR) launched The NASCAR Foundation in January 2006. The Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit entity that embodies the compassion of the NASCAR Family and its commitment to serving communities. The Foundation supports a wide range of charitable initiatives that reflect the core values of the entire NASCAR Family. The NASCAR Foundation will use the strength of the sport and its people to make a difference in the lives of those who need it most. For more information on The NASCAR Foundation, please visit the website at www.nascar.com/foundation.

source: NASCAR Foundation Press Release
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Upcoming NASCAR TV Schedule for Oct 25th

The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series will be at Atlanta on SPEED at 1 p.m. ET on Sat.
The Nationwide Series at Memphis will be on ESPN Classic at 3 p.m. ET on Sat.
The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series from Atlanta at 1 p.m. ET Sunday on ABC

JTG-Daugherty Racing to Cup in '09

JTG-Daugherty Racing, owned by Tad and Jodi Geschickter with Brad Daugherty, will be tackling the Cup series in 2009.

They have formed a technical alliance with Michael Waltrip Racing and Toyota Racing Development.

JTG-Daugherty Racing will be operating out of the MWR racing facility in Cornelius, North Carolina. In this agreement, they will receive cars, engineering, mechanical and other technical support from MWR.

Considering how "well" MWR is, or isn't doing, I'm not sure this is going to be much of a benefit to everyone except to possibly share expenses. Do you have a take on this?

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SMI Loses More Staff, Suspicions Arise

When Humpy Wheeler left SMI, rumors had it that a rift between Wheeler and Bruton Smith became more apparent during his exodus.

With so many at SMI loyal to Wheeler, three top executives in the company leaving has eyebrows raised, and minds wondering.

Smith is down playing the departure and says it's business as usual.

Some tidbits: When Wheeler left, Smith put his son in Wheelers position when many thought that Lauri Wilks, who's been with the company since the early 90's should have been promoted.

She ended up resigning last week. See! Eyebrows raised yet?

Well, if you're interested, you can read more of the gory details of the article over on NASCAR.
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Sprint Car Driver Passes Away

In Australia, where they have over 100 sprint car tracks, they haven't had a fatality in racing since 1971. That streak of good fortune came to an end Monday night when Scott Darley's car veered off the track and crashed into a concrete wall in a qualifier.

Officials are initially thinking his throttle stuck open, leaving him helpless to control his car.

His fiancee and father were there at the time.

Our condolences to his family and friends in this tragic moment.

source
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MWR Switches Up Car Numbers

Here's a real switch up of a surprise for me:

Michael Waltrip Racing (MWR) is picking up the car No. 47 for the last 4 races of the 2008 Cup season, and Marcos Ambrose will be driving the car at Atlanta with Little Debbie as their primary sponsor.

MWR will be returning the No. 44 car number to Petty Enterprises and the owners points that the No 44 accrued this year will be switched over to the No. 00 for the 2009 season. It kind of works out for everyone, right?

Does this have something to do with the talks that Petty and DEI are having?

source
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Ford Re-Ups With Roush Fenway Racing

Ford has signed a five year deal with Roush Fenway Racing.

That's the good news.

The flip side of the coin is that Ford is pulling it's financial support of the Truck Series support next season.

That's the bad news.

Unlike Dodge though, they will still provide technical and engineering support.

source
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Carl Edwards: This Isn't Politics.

Carl Edwards, this isn't politics where you pitch the attitude of the moment, depending on constituent opinion polls. You need to pick a character and stay with it.

You've threatened Matt Kenseth with air punches, and now you've TRIED to start something with Kevin Harvick and failed miserably.

You keep pitching this good guy aura in your interviews, but the jaw grinding tension you cover up is evident if one looks close enough during those same interviews. And that's fine. It's the edge needed to want to win and help you win.

Dude, the pictures that seemed to have taken an oddly long time to get released kind of tells the story. You aren't the best scrapper in the bucket. Stick to back flips.

Let Jimmy Spencer and Tony Stewart do what they do best, or at least better than you. But pick a character and quit pitching this good guy thing.

Thanks.

A great piece by Jeff Wolf at Review Journal inspired this bit. Source
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Carl Edwards is Engaged

On NASCAR Victory Lane on SPEED Channel, Kenny Wallace announced, in a conversational tone, that Carl Edwards announced that he's getting married.

With that bone to chew on, I found out the following information:

It's being reported at drinkthis that he is engaged to Dr. Katherine Downey.

She's 28 and from Columbia, Mo, like Carl. She's presently an asst. professor of Clinical PM&R working with patients suffering from traumatic brain injuries and other general rehabilitation. (drinkthis)

The below slide show is also from DrinkThis. Interesting site, indeed.



Carl Edwards (Photo Credit: Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
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Tums QuikPak 500 - All About The Brakes and Tires

Martinsville was as I expected with the occasional spin, bump and spin, spin and bump, tire issues, brake issues and brake and tire issues. But the tires seemed to be the attention getter again this weekend.

The last few weeks the right side tires have been the issue of focus. With the brakes baking the tire beads, I don't think we should be too quick to castrate Goodyear, but it's hard not to.

Eh, let's!

The broadcast booth from ESPN says the heavier cars are harder on the brakes, and hence, more brake heat. More stress on the tires from that heat.

The early part of the race saw an array of normal race issues:
Electrical system issues for Kasey Kahne on lap 62;
Brake fluid leak on the RR for Kurt Busch on lap 70. His day gets worse;
Jamie McMurray got spun off of the front bumper of Dale Earnhardt Jr. on lap 82. Jr seems to be using his bumper with a liberal ease of use as he moved up through the field.
On lap 89 Regan Smith spun it and his RF tire / brake combo erupt in flames.

The interesting tire behavior kicked in around lap 162 when Kyle Busch, Sam Hornish, Tony Raines all got flat RF flat tires in the same lap, same corner. Wacky. Then Kyle's luck got worse as he was held 2 laps for intentionally bringing out the yellow flag.

Lap 196: Elliott Sadler makes like a top and spins out.

Lap 351: being 4 laps down, Kyle Busch has to pit for a RF flat.
Lap 362: RF for Stewart
Lap 380: RF for Kurt Busch 3rd time for Kurt today and he wants to park it.
Lap 437: Another LF for Kyle Busch?

It's a bad day to be a Busch.

Lap 453: RF for Stewart, again.

Green flag with 8 to go saw Jimmie Johnson lead them to the green, followed by Dale Earnhardt Jr., Carl Edwards and Jeff Gordon. Jimmie pulled away while Dale and Carl played tag spot for 2nd then Ragan spins with 3 to go, setting us up for the Green/White/Checkered finish.

Jr didn't even have a chance. Jimmie just pulled away, end story.

This is Jimmie Johnson's 5th win at Martinsville. He led the most laps today. 339 laps. The most he's ever led in any race in his career. (The Sprint girl was different than the usual one and wasn't nodding in the background as if she was in a conversation she didn't understand.) That was a nice change.

In a post interview question, Dale Earnhardt Jr. said he wanted it to go green the rest of the race with 100+ to go, but he said that wouldn't happen with how NASCAR tends to find cautions near the end of the race to make it exciting. Huh?

I'm thinking there might be some interesting media on that one, and Brad Dougherty pointed it out in addition a few minutes later, so ESPN wasn't going to let that rest either!

Let's see if we get public retractions or explanations, depending who has to speak up first. (Gee, I wonder who that will be.)

TOP 10 TODAY at Martinsville:

1 Jimmie Johnson
2 Dale Earnhardt Jr.
3 Carl Edwards
4 Jeff Gordon
5 Denny Hamlin
6 Casey Mears
7 Kevin Harvick
8 Matt Kenseth
9 Martin Truex Jr.
10 Clint Bowyer

Complete, unofficial Cup Series Results

(Photo Credit: Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images)

NASCAR Official Found Dead the Morning of the Martinsville Race

We had a moment of silence before the race for NASCAR official Steve Lawson.  He was found dead in his hotel room the morning of the race at Martinsville.

The cause of death has not been released yet for the 51-year-old.

source

Line Up for the TUMS Quik Pak 500 at Martinsville

With qualifying having been rained out, the line up at Martinsville is lined up by driver points. That would mean that the favorite driver at Martinsville wil be leading the pack to the green flag... if there is no rain and weather reports say it will be fine. Clear and a high of 61 degrees.

1	48	Jimmie Johnson	Chevrolet	Lowe's	N/A	N/A	N/A
2	31	Jeff Burton	Chevrolet	AT&T Mobility	N/A	N/A	N/A
3	16	Greg Biffle	Ford	DISH Network Turbo HD	N/A	N/A	N/A
4	99	Carl Edwards	Ford	Office Depot	N/A	N/A	N/A
5	07	Clint Bowyer	Chevrolet	Jack Daniel's	N/A	N/A	N/A
6	29	Kevin Harvick	Chevrolet	Shell / Pennzoil	N/A	N/A	N/A
7	20	Tony Stewart	Toyota	The Home Depot	N/A	N/A	N/A
8	24	Jeff Gordon	Chevrolet	DuPont	N/A	N/A	N/A
9	18	Kyle Busch	Toyota	M&M's	N/A	N/A	N/A
10	88	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	Chevrolet	AMP Energy / National Guard	N/A	N/A	N/A

See the rest at NASCAR.com
Weather: Wunderground

Photo Credit: Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images for NASCAR
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Kroger 200 Truck Race at Martinsville

With just a few caution periods the Kroger 200 truck race had a few ill timed petrol shortages at the worst possible time by the Kevin Harvick Inc teams.

First, after leading for 154 laps, Ron Hornaday with 3 to go, and then Kevin Harvick himself with 2 to go ran out of gas.

Effectively giving Johnny Benson the win.

With Benson winning, the points race swapped up some spots in the Truck Series giving him a 65 point lead over Ron Hornaday.

Truck Series Results
Truck Series Standings

Photo Credit: John Harrelson/Getty Images
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Are We Ready For Scott Speed?

At the moment, I'm thinking that Scott Speed is going to

• Have a rough initial year in NASCAR
• Will get on a first name basis with the jury in the NASCAR Trailer
• Will fit right in, with the old school mentality of police your own

Why do I say that?

Cause in the ARCA series he had a bit of a tiff with another competitor.

All Speed had to do was finish the race to take the championship. He got wrecked by the 2nd place points contender, Ricky Stenhouse Jr.. Stenhouse would have taken the championship but Speed got his car back out and instead of riding laps to take the title, Speed intentionally takes out Stenhouse so he doesn't take the championship.

Speed will fit in just fine. Now if NASCAR would just stick to their word and let the drivers police themselves, next year could be fun.

source

Image: Photo by John Harrelson/Getty Images for NASCAR

The FCC Wants To Remind US About Digital TV

Just in case you aren't aware, or remember, the FCC has taken it upon itself to remind us of the impending switch to digital airwaves next February in 2009.

The FCC is sponsoring the No. 38 Ford Fusion of David Gilliland in the Cup series for 3 races.

They are banking on the draw of the NASCAR being the No. 2 rated regular-season sport on television and being the leading spectator sport to help get their message across to those they hope haven't seen it yet.

Surprisingly to some of the critics of the moonshine origined sport, NASCAR is one of the 17 of the top 20 highest-attended sporting events in the U.S. annually.

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The Tight in Turn 2 Team Looks at: Wall Street, NASCAR and Other Venues

At the moment, the market crash has stopped swirling completely around the drain but that doesn't mean we're out of the woods yet. And if we're not out of the woods, how are mainstream sport entities faring?

NASCAR has situated itself in a pickle of bits. They've grown the sport in a reasonable fashion and in so doing, are asking comparable prices for such exposure and popularity. But can NASCAR sustain the return on the advertising dollar?

It may no longer be the prudent financial decision to sponsor a team from $10 to $25 million a season. That kind of advertising is pricey these days, especially when you can probably get a better deal with a direct ad on television itself. Or can they? If there is continued meltdown, future financial expectations will be affected. As it was, we can see swaths of empty seats at some of the NASCAR venues.

In other spectator sports, some venues with the largest stakes to lose are those that have heavy debt financing for acquisitions or stadiums and other sports that don't have the income from national TV deals and income producing components like long-term lease agreements on luxury suites in stadiums.

Even the NFL is pondering a limit on teams' access to an NFL managed line of credit.

Here's an eye opener: Britain's soccer leagues have amassed $6 billion debt for their venues as a whole. WOW!!

With these kinds of tidbits of info floating around out there, I have to wonder just how well NASCAR can fare the financial storm that not only just plowed through everyone's wallets, but next year while we still deal with the after affects?

Bruce: As it stands, there are around 26 teams that right now have full time sponsors and others like are juggling multiple sponsors to cover a year, like Stewart Haas Racing is doing with Ryan Newman, and the Army only sponsoring his car for a partial year.

Sadly, I think the monster teams will survive better than the smaller teams and in a fantasy worse case scenario, it's all going to end up under one garage roof: The Hendrick Childress Roush Evernham .... well, you get what I'm saying.

NASCAR may have very well priced itself out of some sponsors markets and wallets and it will be interesting to see how the teams will fare and if NASCAR will have to actually step in and lend a helping hand. It's hard to predict, but if we take another market hit like we just did a few weeks ago, you can bet we'll see something in our beloved sport affected by it.


Hey Charlie Turner, over there at On Pit Row. What's your take?

Charlie: Well, NASCAR doesn't exist in a vacuum. The current economy has affected the teams and the sponsors in the sport. Things will change. But it's a cycle. And a cycle that NASCAR has weathered before.

The sport is just too strong to fail as a system. Individual teams and sponsors will undoubtedly fail. Remember all the "dot com" sponsors of just a few years ago? Remember Ginn Racing? It happens.

Maybe the current climate will cause the topic of franchising to re-surface in a big way. I'm sure that it's proponents will sieze the day, if they think that they can.
But NASCAR will go on. The casual fan will probably not notice anything has changed. It's the fanatics like us, the hardcore fans that will note the passing of manufacturers and familiar paint schemes. For about a month.

Remember how tramatic it was for Junior to leave DEI and the Budweiser #8? What number and sponsor was Mark Martin inseparable from? Life goes on. NASCAR will too.


Charlie does have a point about how the sport will go on, but I don't have the confidence in sponsors that maybe I should have.

Over on Charlie's site, he asks:

According to various reports, Felix Sabates and or Chip Ganassi are predicting that NASCAR will reduce the size of starting fields in the three top series to as few as 36 cars. Do you agree?

Go see what we have to say on that issue over On Pit Row.

Bank of America 500, A Real Quick Take: ABC and Tires

CONCORD, NC - OCTOBER 11: Jeff Burton, driver of the #31 AT&T Mobility Chevrolet, heads for Victory Lane after winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Bank of America 500 at Lowe's Motor Speedway on October 11, 2008 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jerry Markland/Getty Images for NASCAR) Jerry Markland 2008 Getty Images

Congrats to a very popular win when Jeff Burton powered his ride across the line first after a grueling 500 mile race.

Do you realize it only takes them roughly 3+ hours to pump out 500 miles? That would be like an 18 hour drive to go from coast to coast! Just thinking out loud.

The news of the night for me was

ABC showing a football game that ended early enough, but then switching over to another game that was drawn out and overlapped the beginning of the pre-race show. For just one quick moment, I thought we'd see timely coverage, but naw! ABC took care of that.

It was also reported over on the Daly Planet that many ABC markets, for whatever reason, didn't show some of all of the pre-race show.

They saw local news, inserted local programming, a local charity telethon, college football highlights of local teams.

When I first heard back when ABC /ESPN got the NASCAR TV contract, I thought awesome! I could not imagine them treating NASCAR today, like they used to in the past when all other sports overlapped and took precedence to the race event. True, NASCAR is not the only sport out there, but at least give NASCAR it's due coverage like you do other sports. Is that not the case of a good request?

This coverage they're producing just reminds me of the coverage of yesteryear of ESPN and ABC. As JD says over on The Daly Planet, "These ABC stations have proven to be a cagey bunch over the last two seasons where NASCAR coverage is concerned."

Then the wrecks started.

The first one was Jessica Simpson, screeching out a country drawl that is not her own, and getting the words wrong to the National Anthem. Smooth move girl.

Then tires were taking people out, like last week. Dale Earnhardt Jr. was one lap shy of pitting when he was just cruising around and the tire went.

I know the economy is getting thin, but is Goodyear's rubber getting thin too?

But as it stood, the top 10 finishers, or survivors were:

Jeff Burton
Kasey Kahne
Kurt Busch
Kyle Busch
Jamie McMurray
Jimmie Johnson
Greg Biffle
Jeff Gordon
Mark Martin
David Ragan

Check out the official results at NASCAR: Official Results

Pics of Harvick and Edwards "Talking it Out"

The pics that weren't hitting mainstream media due to what ever nefarious reason, are out on the web...  at least I just started seeing them tonight, but admittedly, I didn't look too hard, but here they, are the link:

AP Google

The Army Joins Ryan Newman

Nice... Someone actually coughed up the money for a three year sponsorship deal on the No. 39 Chevy of Ryan Newman under Stewart-Haas Racing.

The U.S. Army will be adorning Ryan's car from 2009 and onwards.

It's a unique deal. The contract is for 23 races this year. The three year deal is actually a renewable option at the end of each year. This way the Army is not locked into the contract if they feel they're not getting what they need from the business relationship.

SHR said they're real close to finding a sponsor for the remainder of the races this year.

source.

Top 35 Owners Points.... With 6 To Go

What we have here is an interesting disparity!

Robby Gordon's car is in the 35th spot, but he's being bested by teams with fewer starts than him. That either bodes well for the other teams, and / or bad for Robby's team.

Then there's the team that Roger Penske dumped his drivers owners points on in the beginning of the year to give him a fighting chance, the No. 77 Dodge of Sam Hornish. We can see that the owners boost did not, in the long run, help the No. 77 car, but more than likely put Kurt Busch off balance and kept him struggling through the front of the year for no apparent reason.

Remember, Owners Points are just for starting a race, they can help determine garage spots too. That can be pretty helpful to some, while others get stuffed in the undesired spots of the garage that are too far out of the way, inconvenient, etc., etc. I don't know all the nuances, but I bet what there are, can be pretty important.

So the race in the race, we need to keep an eye on the No. 55, 22, 66, 84, 7 and 00 cars to see how they pan out. As the end of the season approaches, this 35th spot is becoming more coveted with each race. Anyone in 35th and up is guaranteed starting spots in the first few races of the 2009 season.

RANK		CAR	OWNER	POINTS	STARTS	Pts around 35th
29		#01	Teresa Earnhardt	2452	30	128
30		#41	Chip Ganassi	2425	30	101
31		#55	Michael Waltrip	2410	30	86
32		#22	Bill Davis	2387	29	63
33		#66	Joe Custer	2383	29	59
34		#84	Dietrich Mateschitz	2341	27	17
35		#7	Robby Gordon	2324	30	0
36		#00	Rob Kauffman	2285	29	-39
37		#77	Roger Penske	2147	29	-177
38		#96	Jeffrey Moorad	1996	26	-328
39		#10	George Gillett, Jr	1986	25	-338
40		#45	Kyle Petty	1935	26	-389

The Pesky Yellow Line Business Makes The Rules Tight in Turn 2

Boy, am I really tight in turn two this week, and I thought I could just share my angst with Charlie Turner of On Pit Row and see if he could inject some sanity in my following tirade!!!

NASCAR: Not Always So
Consistent Around Raceday.

Last weekend we saw a couple of confusing rule interpretations occur in the AMP Energy 500 at Talladega and I'm not talking about the "Big Ones" either. I'm talking about how rules are applied to the sport and how they get created, rescinded or conflicted on the fly.

Does anyone remember the comic strip Calvin and Hobbs? They'd play a game called Calvin-Ball. The problem for Hobbs was that Calvin would make up rules while the ball was in play. This took me back to those days initially and I thought we were looking at Calvin-CAR!!

What added to my mystification was an unusual display of trying to dodge one of the hottest topics to come out of NASCAR that threatens trumping the Chase for the Cup, there seems to be a distinct effort by some media to move on from this event. At least that's what I took away from SIRIUS Satellite last Wednesday morning.

They were telling the listeners that tomorrow they will not entertain your calls if you ask about the yellow line. In the afternoon they were calling it the Bank of America week, pushing the subject to move on to the upcoming weekend. Which is weird because when things like Dale Earnhardt Jr left DEI, no one could shut up about it, but when fans want to vent about this, it's shut up, we're moving on.

When callers hit the airwaves with their questions, one of the personalities was acting more like Tom Leykis and rather than answer the question, fired a question back based on their question, and then faulting them for not answering his question. And it happened on a few calls. It was rather disappointing and I was a bit dismayed at his constant and skillful dodging of answering any question that was gray in nature!

And yet so many people feel ripped off that Regan Smith didn't get the win in the AMP Energy 500 that it's overly compelling to revisit this one scenario, but not in the way you think.

* The biggest point that's been overlooked: A yellow flag should have flown before the checkers. There was a multi-car spin in the back stretch that should have ended the race there, in the backstretch.
* Smith out-faked Stewart superbly coming to the line, forcing the No 20 Toyota to the outside.
* Smith got the line under Stewart
* Stewart did hit the RF of Smith. It wasn't a block at all from where I was sitting. It was a force and if there was a wall there, they and others behind them would have crashed.
* With Smith being forced off the line, he ducked to keep from wrecking or getting wrecked but maintained his momentum.

Right after that, fans and media everywhere were quoting "NASCAR"'s take on the issue.

• "The last lap is a free-for-all",
• "if you can see the checkers anything goes",
• "if you can see the flag stand, it's whatever you can get",

These perspectives stemmed from the Johnny Benson Truck series incident back in February of 2007. And yet they seem to have contradicted not only those statements, but ignored a fleeting moment last year when Dale Earnhardt Jr had gotten forced below the line and was allowed to keep going.

So Jr can get forced below the line, it's OK. A non-name driver can go below the line, it's not OK.
A name driver can force a driver below the line, it's OK, but if reversed?

But none of this makes for exciting television, or racing. Hell, at least the last lap drowned out the pain from the ESPN coverage.

So where am I going with this? What the heck am I actually asking?:

Should NASCAR take the winter off to actually create / print out a rule book for everyone involved?

In all fairness, they've more or less always said that going below the yellow line at Talladega or Daytona and advancing your position is a no-no. With an exception or two, as noted.

When I look for big league sport rules, I can find them in a flash. NBA, NFL, NHL all have the rules right on the web for all to see. Here at work, I'm surrounded by F1 and ALMS (American LeMans Series) fans and it seems that what we are experiencing is not unique to NASCAR at all, but would seem to be a function of Auto Racing in general.

In fact web searches do not turn up any rulebook for some of the auto racing leagues we see on TV.

In fact my office neighbors have touted similar incidents where F1 drivers or what not have created a stir and rules about not leaving the racing surface had to be enacted. Hence, this is really an affect of the medium, not the organization. So what we're seeing here, is something we shouldn't be actually blaming on NASCAR itself.

Sure, NASCAR has their hands full, and sure, they need to be A LOT more consistent. I feel they need to lead the field of auto racing and try to compile a rulebook for us to reference WITH them as they make their calls. Yes, they seem to quote one, but they are very secretive about this "rule" book and we never see it.

For me, right now, their obvious inconsistencies and neglect of previous calls where even the person who said "If you can see the checkers, anything goes", won't comment on his comment has taken the wind out of my NASCAR sails for the moment!

NASCAR needs consistency, needs rules they will actually follow regardless of whom may be breaking or applying them, and let us in on it. They also need to rescind this weeks' stance that the yellow line rule applies to all laps. It should be lifted in the last 1/2 lap of these races so we can see real, god for-saken racing to the finish. That's what they want, right? Let's give it to the viewer!

Oh, now that I'm done ranting, in a word to my own question: Yes.

Other sports rules links:
NBA
NFL
NHL

Charlie? Can you please inject some sanity in my rant?

Charlie: I had to go back aways to find the actual question, but your arguement is compelling Bruce. I just don't think it is the nature of auto racing ingeneral and NASCAR in particular to do what you suggest.

I have always felt that NASCAR likes having some control in their rulings. Not that they want to necessarily manufacture finishes. But black and white is black and white, you know? There's no room for cutting the sport's most popular driver any slack. The France family has been the ultimate promoter of auto racing. They've built a fantastic, ultra popula, money machine. It ain't all skill and it ain't all luck either. They play the controversy/publicity cards as well as anyone ever has. I have to admit, I kind of like it this way.

~~~

Over on his site, Charlie asks
Talladega reared it’s wild-card head again Sunday. It was entertaining but is the chancy nature of the plate-race big-ones just too random for ‘Dega to be included in the Chase?

Go on over and check it out: On Pit Row

Harvick Says See Edwards, Edwards Says No Comment

Yep, another greased up garage scuffle happened under the Nationwide side of things.

I guess something went amiss between the two drivers but no one will say anything. They conversed about it, "Amongst themselves".

But one thing is for sure. The dent on the No. 33 Nationwide hood says enough to have had it escalate far enough to ding the paint!

As it was reported, Edwards pushed Harvick. Harvick pushed back. Edwards landed on the hood.

I guess Harvick wins that one. Kudos to them for dealing with it the old fashion way, and kudos for keeping it between themselves. So far.

As it should be.

source

Weather For Charlotte - Will We Be Watching Rain Interviews?

So far, according to Weather.com, we're going to possibly see rain Friday morning, but then no rain for Friday evening or Saturday. Excellent!


.

Allmendinger Has A Ride

A.J. Allmendinger hasn't landed on his feet yet, BUT, he's at least treading water until the end of the season.

A.J. will be in the MWR No. 00 this weekend at Lowe's, but then will finish out the remainder of the year in the Gillette Evernham ride that Patrick Carpentier just got booted from!

Good for A.J.. Is this indicative of Allmendingers future in 2009?

source

TV Schedule for Lowes Motor Speedway

The NASCAR Nationwide Series is at Lowe's, due to air at 7:30 p.m. ET on Friday on ESPN2
Followed up by the
NASCAR Cup Series night race at Lowes, due to air at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday pm ABC

See ya'll there, in spirit at least.

Allmendinger Has a Ride at Charlotte

Michael McDowell was pulled from the Michael Waltrip Racing No. 00 Toyota after failing to qualify in Kansas to try and get the car back up into the top 35 in points before the end of the year.

Kenny Wallace finished the No. 00 Toyota in 12th at Talladega last Sunday and with the top 35 in mind, Michael Waltrip is turning to A.J. Allmendinger to get the job done at Charlotte this upcoming weekend.

I can't imagine how it feels for McDowell, but this is a great, albeit temporary good thing for 'Dinger.

source

The Wall Street Bail Out Package & NASCAR

In the 450 page documentation that represents the Wall Street Bail Out Package that amounts to $700 billion, there's a section that relates to NASCAR.

In that section, it indicates that corporations that own race tracks will be able to write off the cost of running their operations over a 7 year period of time, versus the 15 year time frame they're using now.

This tax break is worth around $100 million in breaks. The organization that will reap the most benefits from this detail will be International Speedway Corp., ISC, the racetrack arm of NASCAR.

Both entities are controlled by the France family.

Source
Additional: NASCAR Article
Bailout 101: What the new law says

NASCAR Statement on That Pesky Yellow Line Thing

This is the text from a handout everyone gets at the drivers meetings at Daytona and Talladega:

The verbatim language is ...

This is your warning: race above the yellow line. If, in NASCAR's judgment, you go below the yellow line to improve your position, you will be black-flagged. If in NASCAR's judgment you force someone below the yellow line (in an effort to stop him from passing you), you may be black-flagged.

It is also of NASCAR's opinion that Smith was not forced below the yellow line... crickets...

Helton also clarified that from this moment forward, below the yellow line and improving one's position is taboo. Hear that gang? This years ruling says that's a no-no.

Here's a recap of the last half lap, sans the wreck that happened just before the controversy that 's going to haunt NASCAR for a few days.

Final Laps: Stewart awarded win

With that in mind, it would appear that NASCAR has indeed turned a blind eye towards Tony Stewart's move that really appears to me to force Smith below the line.

Shouldn't that move him to the back of the lead lap also? Sigh. Old school still runs the game, and it's their game, so as it is, Tony Stewart finally gets the win gang.

source

Hamlin Out Of The Hospital

After an overnight stay in the hospital, Denny Hamlin escaped the Birmingham hospital.

The only concerns from his over-nighter were mentions of a headache.

The tire incident that put him in the wall relegated him to 12th in the Cup Standings.

source

Discontinuity: NASCAR Needs To Make and Follow Their Own Rules

Observation and Opinion by Bruce E. Simmons :

First off: A big congratulations to Regan Smith for "crossing the finish line first". Good job getting past Tony Stewart after being forced down under the line and by NOT actually causing another wreck on that final lap because one multi-car wreck in a single lap is sufficient enough for me!

~

With that said, In Professional Bowling there are written rules. Black and white. In football, there are rules. In baseball, there are rules. The only gray areas are when the the ruling judge / ref or ump has to make a judgment call using his eyeballs, in regards to one of those rules. Then the fun starts.

NASCAR is not Ice Skating where winning depends on a judges opinion of you or where you sit in their eyes in the political scheme of things, or is it?

Sundays Amp Energy 500 at Talladega definitely brought to light the issues of a rule book and how it's interpreted, in a consistent lack of unconformity. Plain and simple. At least to me, it seems that way.

The Last Lap, Backstretch Wreck:
Down the backstretch, there's a multi-car wreck but no yellow flag.
Are there rules for when a yellow can and cannot fly? I get the "common sense" of not throwing the yellow, but were there any cars behind that wreck that needed the yellow to fly? Not sure.

Technically, whoever was in the lead then, should be marked the winner and all cars placed where they were recorded then. Deal done... but then, that wasn't exciting for television now, was it?

The Last Lap, Tri-Oval Dancing:
Tony Stewart is in the lead. Regan Smith feints right, Stewart bites and blocks. Smith then goes low and Stewart reacts by coming back down on him. In the replay, Stewart's LR quarter panel is hitting Smith's RF fender. Smith goes low to avoid a wreck, holding his momentum and passing Stewart. Smith crosses the line first.

Instantly, Stewart is on the radio saying Smith went below the yellow line.

Of course he did Tony. You put him there. For an instant, I started to wonder if NASCAR was going to uphold a statement they've made in the past that is reflected in The Augusta Chronicle from February of 2007 about a similar incident:

OUT OF BOUNDS: Drivers throughout the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series garage were still talking about last week's three-wide finish at Daytona International Speedway.

While they admitted the finish was good for television, most wondered why NASCAR allowed Johnny Benson to drive below the yellow line - Daytona's out of bounds line - to jump from third to second in the final 200 yards.

Benson wasn't penalized because "if you can see the checkered flag on the last lap, anything goes," according to NASCAR spokesman Owen Kearns.

It seems pretty clear cut there. But is this a Truck Series only rule? Is it a "television is exciting" rule? Or was it a name-driver rule or an anti-DEI rule on Sunday?

Not sure. But a note to Regan Smith, to others that were in that same boat in the past (Hello Jr.) or for those drivers who will possibly find yourselves in that situation in the future:

Drive through that quarter panel and don't go below the yellow line because that is more exciting for television. Who cares about the wreck, at least from up yonder in the NASCAR booth who can't seem to recognize your concern for causing another wreck.

Kenny Wallace Said It Best
Paraphrased:

Regardless of who crossed the line first, NASCAR deemed Tony Stewart the winner. And now I'm going to go interview the winner of the race.

That's the bottom line folks. NASCAR deemed it so from that mysterious rule book of theirs. Earlier this year, I almost had my hands on that rule-book, but the chance faded with another's change of mind and the elusive beast that NASCAR controls so tightly never made to me for my dissection of said rules. So I can't help you here.

But from this endeavor, I think I have a new meaning for the sports moniker, NASCAR:
Not Always So Consistent At Raceday.

No wonder they gave the contract to ESPN, but that's for another post.

• Related Links
• Augusta Chronicle

UPDATE (10/11/08):

Heck, even Dale Earnhardt Jr. says the same thing as I do, so I don't feel so bad ranting about this.

He basically said that the rule is clear but what needs explaining is what being forced below the line is. Dale Earnhardt Jr. is of the mind that Smith was forced below the line.

Some folk on the morning program on Sirius Satellite says he wasn't, but it's hard not to ponder what exactly is not being forced. They (the morning personalities) think the cars pretty much have to be side by side to be considered being able to be considered to forced down. NOT!

If you have to dodge to avoid being wrecked, that's being forced folks. Done and period.

And previous precedents say Smith should have been the winner.

Dale Earnhardt Jr indicated that Smith's situation was the same as his when he passed Matt Kenseth for a win in 2003 and the move was allowed.

Eh... like I've said before: It's good to be a name driver.

source

Discontinuity: ESPN's Coverage and the Fans Frustrations

ESPN's Coverage Of The Amp Energy Drink 500 - by Bruce E. Simmons.

The coverage of the Amp Energy Drink 500 at Talladega Speedway was interesting at best. 

First, Be Thankful
I must say that we need to be thankful that we have coverage of NASCAR on mainstream television.  If it weren't covered, where would we be?  OK, enough of that.


About ABC's Coverage
The coverage of the event, in fact, of NASCAR racing in general, by "ESPN on ABC" seems interesting at best.  While I was type / covering the event on this blog, I was also participating in a post with live, running commentary over on The Daly Planet titled Sprint Cup Series At Talladega On ABC.

The post generated over 800 comments by a bunch of us watching the show and giving up some of our insights to our experiences while watching the race.

The ensuing article they posted over on the The Daly Planet, Tough Times For ESPN At Talladega, is a good write up as to how they observed the coverage and kudos to the editor for such an even keeled approach to the matter that bears recording.
(See the bottom of the post for links to those articles.)


Live Observations by Fans
Some of the observations about the event was

• The Ill-fated timing of camera angles or commercials and missing the important moments
• The over-liberal use of the bumper cams,
• The blatant lack of non-Chase contender coverage,
• Dr. Jerry Punch's lack of originality, enthusiasm or using the same catch term over and over.
  

And those were just a few of the items.  From the commentary, I took it that many viewers were turning down their TV's and turning up their other available routes to getting information on the race.  IE:  MRN, live driver chatter, XM, SIRIUS, etc.


Bumper Cam Usage
Even though a lot didn't like the over abundant use of bumper cams, I don't mind them as much.  I've already got an insiders appreciation for just how much talent is truly required to keep those cars from wrecking each other every lap, and for me, the bumper cam shows it.  But I think you'd have to understand what goes into the manipulation of the steering wheel to keep the cars from spinning out on the straight-aways to have any appreciation of the angle.   Sure, we don't need to see as much of it, but I was ... OK with it.


Were There Any Non-Cup Contenders Out There??
Another issue was the ill-fated timing of either concentrating on not showing lead changes while the directorial expertise of ESPN focused on a Chase contender in the middle to back of the pack.  Or not breaking into their obviously high valued commercials when an event broke out.

As far as covering non-Chase contenders, it was rather blatant.  Just a few examples here: (Because there are just too many to add)

• When Jeff Gordon wrecked, if you didn't see the replay, you'd never know that Gordon hit and forced Jon Wood in the No. 21 car up into the wall.
• During the 2 big wrecks, it was all about the Cup Chasers and nary a word about the "other" teams that were crushed in the wreck.
• During the 2 big wrecks, not once did they show a list of everyone that was involved each wreck.  I had to go to a completely different source to get that information and if I didn't have the internet available to me, I would never have known who else was involved.
• Did we hear when Joe Nemechek was in 2nd place in the latter part of the race?  No.  Not a word.
• We heard when Kevin Harvick stayed out of the pits to lead a lap though!
• When you show a car driven by Kenny Wallace, you should probably not show McDowell's name as the driver. 
  

Stupid Questions
I know from personal experience that reporters are forced to ask the obvious questions after a wreck because sooner or later, we'll get a response that highlights drama and anguish from the drivers perspective.  Until then, we are forced to hear over and over,
"What did you see?"
"How did it feel?"

I accidentally let slip a non-PC comment in The Daly Planet live running comments section in response to the ESPN pit reporter asking Martin Truex Jr. what he saw and felt during the first big wreck in the race.  I almost didn't post it, but I did and it seemed to generate some popularity amongst the readers and commentors, as it was referenced a few more times through the day:

My comment was as follows:

Gee Truex, what did you see, how did it feel?
Shove a piece of sheet metal in her face, and slap her with a hammer. That should answer the question!

'Nuff said there.


Injury Updates Would be Nice
Denny Hamlin slapped the wall and was taken away in a stretcher.  Then we heard he was alert and awake and being taken to the hospital.  After that, we never heard another word from "ESPN on ABC" afterwards on his condition.  Despite ample opportunity to do such.

The fans had to turn, yet again, to other sources yet again for any information on the issue.  Instead we get Goodyear spokesman interviews and more bumper cam angles. 


End Game Left Out
At the end of the race, there was some controversy, of which I will touch on in a follow up post, but ESPN kept telling us they will continue their coverage over on one of their sister networks.  OK...  I spent about 40 minutes looking for that coverage and I didn't see a dang thing except Women's Basketball on one channel and Baseball coverage on the other channel.  Maybe there was code in between the sentences.


Why The Distinction?
I have to wonder why ABC goes out of it's way to clarify that it's ESPN on ABC.  For the uninitiated, you'd almost think they were different networks and ABC was saying, hey, look, we're letting them broadcast on our channel.

Folks, it's all the same.  Disney owns the whole bit and kaboodle and they might as well just say Disney, on ESPN, on ABC.  Because at times, that's exactly how it feels.  Like Mickey Mouse is covering the race.


In Closing
ESPN, ABC, Disney, whoever:  Thanks for throwing your money at NASCAR and getting the rights to cover the races in the latter part of the season.  We can't tell you how much we not only appreciate it, but we've also come to notice how your coverage has not improved at all over the years, despite plenty of opportunity to learn from fan commentary or other network mishaps.

I do have to give you kudos though.  This year you didn't show Brad Daugherty shaking his fist in triumphant glee while the wreck was happening like you did last year.  (ESPN Race Coverage)  Nice improvement.

I dare toss out the challenge to ESPN that I'd like to take a swing at what they do.  I know I can do a better job from my couch.  But would I be able to actually do a better job within the confines of having a director pushing me in their direction, or scrambling to meet the deadlines of creating filler story during the race itself.  Would I be able to catch the things the regular announcers constantly miss during the broadcast like I do now?  I'll never know, but I think what they do can be rather challenging, and creatively limiting.  Again, from my own experiences of being media in a different entertainment realm.

Did I just defend them?  Crap.  I hope not.  But I do enjoy playing both sides of the coin in the name of being fair.  Fair, that is, when I'm not emotionally wound up about the lack of details or information during a race.

Did I cover everything here?  Probably not, but I think I touched on what was forefront in my mind this morning about this particular matter of media coverage on NASCAR racing by "ESPN on ABC", run by Disney.


Related Links

• NASCAR Bits and Pieces
• ESPN Disses The NASCAR Fan One More Time
• ESPN and Yellow Flag Restarts
• ESPN actually Apologizes for their lack of Coverage
• ESPN Race Coverage

• The Daly Planet:
• Sprint Cup Series At Talladega On ABC
• Tough Times For ESPN At Talladega

Amp Energy 500 at Talladega Race Report (Stewart Wins?)

Travis Kvapil, on his first NASCAR Cup Series pole, leads the pack to the green flag for the Amp Energy 500 at Talladega.

-There have already been 3 leaders by lap 10, Jimmie Johnson being in the back, looks like he's lost the draft, 17 seconds behind the leader. They're thinking that a team mate needs to drop back to help him out. Kenny Schrader has lost the draft and is 11 seconds back while the pack runs 2-wide, 14 rows deep, more or less.
-Lap 23: Schrader and Johnson are drafting now, but the pack is coming up on them fast and lap 26 sees them a lap down now.
-Lap 25: David Ragan is leading the pack in front of Kvapil, Almirola, Menard and Gilliland.
-Dale Earnhardt Jr takes the lead by Lap 26, Ragan behind him now.
~
-Lap 34 Caution for Debris.
Having just been lapped, Robby Gordon is in front of Jimmie Johnson and Robby will be the Lucky Dog.
Ragan gets spun on pit road, no damage. Kenny Schrader, Kenny Wallace: speeding on pit road.
Robby Gordon, lost the lucky Dog bonus for fueling twice.
-Lap 39 Restart: 24, 1, 31, 33, 88.
~
-Lap 46 Caution for Debris in the tri-oval:
Jimmie Johnson gets the Lucky Dog. Yes: THey showed the debris. Oddly, the Lowe's pit crew seemed to tbe the ones who let NASCAR know about it.
Everyone is pitting. Dang, it looks like a bunch of figure-8 races as cars pull in and pull out of their pits. Harvick stays out and leads a lap.
-Lap 49 Restart:19, 5, 18, 24, 11.
Ryan Newman has dropped a cylinder. Dave Blaney: Electrical problems, is in the back of the pack.
~
-Lap 54 Caution:
Jeff Gordon, David Reutimann spinning. Gordon has body damage. His day may be done.
Reutimann's RR tire blows, and Jeff dodges to the right and hits the wall and the 21 car.
That's the 2nd RR tire to just ... blow, that we know of.
Is something wrong with the 48 car? They're working on a splitter brace on the RF in the pits.
Kurt Busch's hood is up. Engine is missing.
Edwards to the end of the longest line. Pitted while the pits were closed.
He's been on pit road a few times.
-Lap 58 Restart: 83, 28, 84, 18, 15.
Kurt Busch to the garage after the restart.
~
-Lap 68 Caution:
No 83 RF tires blows up while running up there in the top 5. Nine cars in all were collected.

THE BIG ONE happens while off to commercial...
Martin Truex looks a bit daffy, holding his head walking back to the medical center.
Red Flag Out.
Those involved
Vickers, Gilliland, Truex Jr., Kahne, Skinner, McMurray, Labonte, Raines & Almirola.
18 minutes later:
-Lap 73 restart: 88 15 31 29 42
~
Despite the wreck, the pack gets back together and is back to being racey.
Stewart finally gets the front spot in the race, making him leader # 23 after 35 lead changes.
-Lap 81 Caution: Mike Wallace loses a right side tire... again.
-Lap 87 Restart: 18, 88, 42, 20, 17.
~
-Lap 99 Caution: Denny Hamlin RF tire puts him in the wall. 2 debris, 4 tire cautions.
They're carting Denny away on a stretcher, but I believe as precautionary.
-Lap 105 Restart: 66, 15, 8, 18, 20.
Denny is awake and alert and headed to the hospital for further evaluation.
-Lap 133: So far, pretty uneventful in as much as any additional cautions.
29, 6, 20, 8, 18.
~
Caution with 50 to go: Jeff Gordon blowing and slowing. Engine fried.
Edwards spins exiting pit road.
When the No. 00 car led the race, ESPN noted McDowell was leading, but truth in fact: Kenny Wallace is driving that car.
Everyone trying to top off on fuel
Restart with 44 to go: 18, 6, 28, 20, 48.
Now it's going to start getting racy!
25 to go: We're getting three wide now. 88, 31, 42
The 55 car is up in the top 5.
~
Caution with 24 to go: Harvick gets sideways into the grass off of Ragan's bumper... but it doesn't look like he took damage.
Restart with 19 to go: 42, 5, 15, 07, 88
~
-Lap 174: the other BIG ONE hits the field!
Carl spun Biffle and this collected the rest of the field.
Wow, a lot of Cup Chasers involved.
The 2nd red flag today.
Restart with 10 Laps to Go: 20, 78, 5, 19, 6
Stewart and Nemechek bolt out in front of the pack. Go Joe, Go.
The draft bailed on Nemechek.
Sadler locked on the back bumper of Stewart.
Subway leads McDonalds around the track!
5 to go: 20, 01, 15, 8, 31
~
Caution with 4 to go: RR tire on the No. 26.
I suspect Tony may pull this off but DEI is lurking on Stewart's bumper in the next three positions.
Restart with 3 to go:
20, 01, 15, 8, 19.

On the last lap, in the tri-oval, with Regan Smith passing Tony Stewart below the yellow line, he passed and crossed the line first, but NASCAR gives the win to Tony Stewart.

Smith may argue with the issue that Stewart forced Smith below the line.
We'll see how it pans out before the afternoon (evening?) is over.


The Winner is Tony Stewart, the cars crossed the line in the following order:
01, 20, 15, 6, 31, 07, 43, 66, 7 & 48.
This is the unofficial order.

To be continued in a later post!
Thanks for coming by and be sure to check for updates on the drama of the end-race scenario.
Does NASCAR stay with who won, or do they use the same rule of application when a driver can see the checkered flag, anything goes rule?

Intense Truck Race Finish - Mountain Dew 250 Fueled by Winn-Dixie

The Mountain Dew 250 Fueled by Winn-Dixie Truck Series race at Talladega was a fairly common place event for Talladega.  For Talladega.  That is until the last few laps, when Kyle Busch led the pack into the final turn and Todd Bodine moved him a bit and they ended up going 4, 5 or 6 wide, depending what angle you were looking from.

After all was said and done, Todd Bodine pushed past Kyle Busch and won the race.  Followed by Ron Hornaday and Kyle Busch rounding out the top 3.

The finish was literally "on the edge of your seat" racing, for the viewer.

Truck Results | Points

NASCAR race article.

Casey Mears to Be A Dad

Speed Channel just noted on the telecast that Casey's girlfriend, Trisha Grablander, is pregnant and expecting any second now.
Congratulations Casey! You dog, you!

Interesting Disparity With Qualifying on Speed Channel

I was watching Qualifying for the Talladega race on Speed.  It's live, and I was looking at 5 cars that had completed their laps.  I had to go into my office to work on something, and fired up my SIRIUS Satellite radio, NASCAR Channel 128.

My confusion came from something I was not expecting.

While Speed's coverage had only 5 cars completed, SIRIUS was rattling off 15 or more cars that have already qualified.  Huh?

So much for "live".  Speed seems to have one heck of time delay for their "live" telecast!

Dale Jr. Having a BAD Weekend

And it hasn't even started yet.

He's blown a motor, and then in the 2nd practice, he blew a tire 8 minutes in, wrecking the car and catching a few others.

So now I have to wonder, it's usually the case that sometimes when team goes to the back-up car, the special paint scheme is not carried forth.

My question, are the 73,000 names going to be on the back-up car?

TV Times Coming At Ya for Talladega

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at Talladega is on at 3:30 p.m. ET Sat. on SPEED
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Talladega is on at 1 p.m. ET Sun. on ABC

I'm Riding Along With Dale Earnhardt Jr!

A few months back, AMP Energy Drink put out a call to those who "Want to ride along with Dale.".

I said hell yea!

I went to the AMP website, signed up and now I get to "sit" on the hood of Dale's No. 88 Chevrolet during the whole race.


In the main pic above, I'm 6 lines up, center page!

If I back way out on the image, you get a better idea of where on the hood I am.

Yea, me and 50,000+ other names are on there and I bet if something were to happen to the car in the race at Talledega this weekend, I bet that hood will be much sought after.

Don't tell the wife anything... but then again, if the hood does end up on Ebay, I'm not sure how I'm gonna hide it!

Look honey!! I "painted" my truck hood!! Whad'ya mean it doesn't look like my Ford hood??

AMP Energy 500 site.

Helio Castroneves, A Surprising Twinge of Greed; And Being Indicted

The former Dancing With the Stars star, and race car driver, Helio Castroneves, has been indicted for trying to conceal his income and not pay taxes on over $5 million in earnings.

The charges brought against himself, his sister Katiucia Castroneves and his lawyer, Alan Miller are

• Conspiracy to Defraud
• U.S. and Tax Evasion.

They had set up an offshore Panamanian shell corporation to conceal Helio's income. Brilliant people. You're already making more money than most can ever dream off in a career most people covet and you get greedy with it.

Eesh... greed can be such an ugly trait.

source

The New Budweiser Shootout

Cruisin' the internet, I came across a great little perspective on the "New" format of the Budweiser Shootout, and how's it's not focused on cars, not drivers, and how this came about.

The change to the number of laps and how some drivers feel about it, and how

Basically, it's about Coors sponsoring the pole award and needing to make a distinction.
It also touches on the obvious inequities in qualifying top cars within the brands.

It's a great read. Go check it out at SportingNews.com.

Reid Spencer also touches on an interesting tidbit about A.J. Allmendinger that I missed through all this noise about his leaving the Red Bull Team, but I won't blow that... I'll let you go see for yourself.

What Needs to Change to Close the Deal with the No. 88 Team?

Over on the Inside Racing News. com site, Allen Madding points out a fascinating and keen observation about the crew chiefs for the No. 1 of Martin Truex Jr., and Dale Earnhardt Jr..

Both crew chiefs might be able to start out with an excellent set-up, but their ability to keep up with changing track conditions leaves something to be desired.

From Dale Jr. having harsh words with Tony Eury Jr. a few weeks back to this last weekend when Martin Truex Jr. was asking for some changes, and being told to shut up and drive by his own crew chief, Kevin Manion.

Allen says Manion needs to be swapped out for someone who will respect the driver more and expects Dale Jr.'s chief to be able to adapt, much like their garage mates do repeatedly every weekend.

What I see is a common denominator between the two teams: Despite their present teams, they both come from the DEI stable where I suspect they've develop this way from exposure to certain attitudes that have trickled down from the business end of the deal.

DEI has alienated everyone around them from the garage and in their own shop and they just don't see it. Rather than understand the problem and work it, they hire new blood from outside. As if that can still help the core of the issue.

Yes, I've been saying for a long time that Tony Eury isn't a bad crew chief. They've managed to get in the chase and stay in the top 5 most of the season. But they can't close the deal. I think it's a learned mentality that needs to be fixed because the old school system isn't working in the closing laps anymore.

As far as Manion goes, he needs to understand who breads his butter and who he needs to communicate with. Shut up and drive is not an acceptable adjustment for a changing track condition and sounds like he doesn't think it's his fault or his problem.

That's all I've got to say for the moment.

Mike Bliss Fan Base Quadruples!!

Last weekend in the Nationwide race at Kansas, I'm guessing that Mike Bliss might have ticked off one particular driver, (But then again, when isn't he ticked off and fuming) and in the process, garnered some fans on his side when contact from Mike Bliss' Chevrolet sent Kyle Busch's Braun Racing Toyota into the Turn 4 wall (watch video).

I sat there slack jawed as I watched Kyle Busch's car paint the outside wall with his Braun colors and still, Bliss didn't mean to do it and it showed, if you remember how bad his hood looked after jacking up the back end of the Busch mobile.

Regardless of the fan favorite move of the race, Denny Hamlin went on to win the race, beating Clint Bowyer to the line.

This year, Kansas surprised me with the racing. I don't remember it being as entertaining, then again, this is the first time the Nationwide cars were tapered off in their engines, and if I'm not mistaken, isn't this the first time the new Cup chassis raced here?

There's my thought for the day and you can see the results and other details over at the NASCAR site.

Kenny Wallace To Run the AMP Energy 500

Hey, Kenny Wallace Fans! We're gonna get to see Kenny run in the Cup series this Sunday in the Michael Waltrip Racing's No. 00 car, replacing Michael McDowell for this event.

The car is outside the owners' points bubble so they need to qualify on time, and they think Kenny can get the job done.

This isn't the first time they've drawn in the experienced driver to get the car back into the top 35.

Let's hope Kenny can do it!

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Allmendinger Is Now Free To Look

After putting on one heck of a show and giving his season best performance last weekend, A.J. Allmendinger has been let go from his Red Bull Racing Team and the remainder of the year, the No. 84 car duties will be split between Mike Skinner and Red Bull development driver Scott Speed.

Not a surprise to see A.J. being set free from the No. 84, but I think, unless he already has a ride set up, that it would have been nice for Red Bull to let him drive for the rest of the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season so he can show off his wares some more.

But, it is what it is.

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