Stock Car Gazette, Monday, June 9, 2008
|
by Mike Irwin ~ June 9th, 2008 @ 6:22 am. Filed under: Stock Car Gazette. 447 reads |
Article sponsored by
|
See what’s happening in the world of NASCAR and ARCA RE/MAX by reading today’s Stock Car Gazette.
____________________________________________________________
T H E * S T O C K * C A R * G A Z E T T E
by MotorSportsNews.Net
Do you know for sure?
motorsportsnews.net/you-can-know-for-sure
____________________________________________________________
The Stock Car Gazette is sponsored by:
Hasco Collectibles
Div. Hasco Services, LLC
701 Mantooth Ave.
Lufkin, TX 75904
www.hascodiecastcars.com
www.diecastcars.net
hasco@diecastcars.net
866-66-HASCO (866-664-2726)
NEW PRE-ORDERS:
Dale Earnhardt Jr. 2008 Defending Freedom Digital Camo Impala,
Dale Earnhardt Sr. And Johnny Cash “Man In Black” Monte Carlo/Hauler,
Dale Earnhardt Jr. 1/24th Mesma Chrome/Color Chrome AMP And NG,
Ashley Force 2008 NHRA Castrol 1/24th Funny Car, John Force Castrol 40th,
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Nationwide #83 Navy Jr.’s Division Monte Carlo,
Jr., Gordon, Martin, Keselowski, Bowyer LIQUID COLOR Salute The Troops,
Dale Jr. Whiskey River, Dale Jr. All Star 3 Doors Down Citizen Soldier,
Dale Jr. Mountain Dew Retro Scheme, Including The 1/64th Scale In A
Mountain Dew Soda Can. We Also Have The Kyle Busch Toyotas,
Visit Our Pre-Order Web Site At: www.diecastcars.net.
We Have 2008 AMP/NG/Dupont/Lowes/Cheerios/Home Depot, Bud,
Jack Daniels, Wells Fargo, Bass Pro, Fed-Ex, Nicorette, And
More At Our In-Stock Web Store www.hascodiecastcars.com.
Dale Jr. ARC Bud Cars Still 60 Per Cent Off, RCCA/Revell 35 Per Cent Off.
All Drivers Clothing Items Also Are Still Discounted 50 Per Cent Off.
www.hascodiecastcars.com.
Hasco Collectibles
Div. Hasco Services, LLC
701 Mantooth Ave.
Lufkin, TX 75904
www.hascodiecastcars.com
www.diecastcars.net
hasco@diecastcars.net
866-66-HASCO (866-664-2726)
___________________________________________________________
E d i t o r ‘ s * N o t e s
___________________________________________________________
Today’s note is “me”, which is a name I call myself. Tomorrow… the great mystery of “fa” is revealed.
___________________________________________________________
Stock Car Gazette Columnists Speak Out!
___________________________________________________________
Keselowski Wins Nationwide Nashville Race
by: Thomas Chemris
Sophomore driver Brad Keselowski took the checkers in the NASCAR Nationwide series Federated Auto Parts 300 at the Nashville Superspeedway.
MORE of this article: motorsportsnews.net/archives/1311
More of Thomas’ articles can be read at
motorsportsnews.net/archives/category/nationwide-series
__________
How About A “Senior Circuit” For NASCAR?
by: John Kokolski
Seeing Texas Terry return to the driver’s seat gave me pause for thought. How about a “Senior Circuit” for NASCAR? It works in golf and tennis, why not racing?
MORE of this article: motorsportsnews.net/archives/1312
__________
Track Trash – PicMyNose (aka Pocono)
by: Racing Maniac
A good race in the middle of nowhere (mid-Pennsylvania). It’s surprising how a little asphalt can change the structure of this race. And it was comforting to know that it wasn’t a fuel race at the end.
MORE of this article: motorsportsnews.net/archives/1313
(Hope you’re not superstitious, RM!)
More of RM’s articles can be read at
motorsportsnews.net/archives/category/track-trash
___________________________________________________________
N A S C A R * S P R I N T * C U P * S E R I E S
___________________________________________________________
Courtesy of www.Catchfence.com
Kasey Kahne Wins The Pocono 500
www.catchfence.com/Speeds/08POCONO500Results.html
___________________________________________________________
Courtesy of Heather
Pettys near deal to sell majority share of the family business
JIM UTTER
The Charlotte Observer
Saturday, Jun. 07, 2008
LONG POND, Pa. - Petty Enterprises is finalizing a deal to sell majority ownership of its Sprint Cup Series organization to one of the leading private equity firms in the country, Boston Ventures, The Charlotte Observer and ThatsRacin.com have learned.
A formal announcement of the deal, which is also likely to include a contract extension for one of the team’s drivers, Bobby Labonte, could come as early as Wednesday, multiple sources confirmed.
Boston Ventures has invested six funds totaling $2.6 billion in capital commitments in its 22-year history. According to its Web site, some of Boston Ventures previous portfolio companies include American Media Inc., Motown Records, Six Flags Entertainment and Continental Cablevision.
Petty Enterprises has 268 wins and 10 championships in 60 years of racing but the last win was in 1999 at Martinsville, Va., with driver John Andretti. The last time one of its drivers finished in the top 0 in points was 1995, with driver Bobby Hamilton, who is now deceased.
Earlier this season longtime sponsor of the Pettys’ No. 43, General Mills, announced it was leaving at the end of the season and that the organization’s No. 45 car still lacks a full-time primary sponsor.
“I think Petty Enterprises is not in an impossible situation, but a hard situation,” Kyle Petty said in April. “You’re trying to stay a part of the sport and catch up to the sport.
“We’re talking to investors. We’re losing sponsors. We’re trying to find sponsors. We’re trying to get drivers.
“We’re trying to keep drivers. We’ve got so many balls in the air. … I don’t think it’s impossible, but we’ve got to have the right direction and we’ve got to stay in the right direction.”
___________________________________________________________
Courtesy of Insider Racing News
www.insiderracingnews.com
Kahne Wins At Pocono
Jimmie Johnson and Kasey Kahne both had strong cars to start the Pocono 500 on Sunday. Johnson took the lead on the first lap but relinquished it seventeen laps later to Kasey Kahne. The two driver took turns on the point until Johnson’s crew chief, Chad Knaus, decided to try a different fuel strategy. It put Johnson out of sync with the rest of the field. “We were really in a great situation until that last caution came out and hurt us, but all in all it was a great day,” said Johnson. “That was a workingman’s sixth place. Strategy worked against us there and we still got a top 10 out of it. I’m very proud of the team and very proud of the efforts and the pit stops. We’ve made a lot of progress with this Lowe’s Impala.
Starting from the pole, Kasey Kahne won his second points paying race of the season at Pocono Raceway on Sunday, moving from 12th to 9th in the NASCAR Sprint Cup point standings, but not before a mid -race pit stop nearly ruined his day. Kahne had a speeding penalty when the team stopped for four tires but changed their mind half-way through the pit stop and took only two. Problem was some of the lugnuts on the left side of the car had been removed and Kahne was forced to pit to replace them. It put Kahne back in 38th place and he spent the rest of the race battling his way back to the front. Kahne retook the lead for good with fifteen laps to go and won the race by a 3.693 second margin over Brian Vickers. Kahne took the penalty in stride.
“When I left the pits, I was like, ‘Great call, Kenny way to go, two tires,’ because we came out second and I was like, “Man, perfect.’ And then he was like, ‘Well, you’re going to bring that back in, you’ve only got two lugs on the left front’ or rear or whatever. I never really said anything. — Kenny was pretty down and I was like, ‘Man, that’s the way it is, we’ll do what we can and get back up there and hopefully we will have no problems,’ Kahne said. It was Kahne’s ninth career victory and the fifth win from the pole position.
Denny Hamlin also battled his way back to the front and finished third. Dale Earnhardt Jr. put his Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet in the fourth spot and Jeff Burton was fifth. Rounding out the top ten were Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth, Kurt Busch, Carl Edwards and Mark Martin. The next event on the Sprint Cup schedule is the June 15th LifeLock 400 at Michigan International Speedway. The race begins at 12:30 p.m. EDT with live, high-definition coverage provided by TNT beginning with its pre-race show at 12:00 p.m. The race will also be broadcast live on SIRIUS Satellite Radio Channel 128.
___________________________________________________________
Courtesy of Jayski
www.jayski.com
Kahne wins at Pocono: #9-Kasey Kahne won the Pocono 500 at Pocono Raceway for his 2nd win of the season and 9th of his career and his 5th from the pole. Kahne led 69 or 200 laps, the most of any driver. #83-Vickers finished 2nd, followed by #11-Hamlin, #88-Earnhardt Jr., #31-Burton, #48-Johnson, #2-Busch, #17-Kenseth, #99-Edwards and #8-Martin. #84-Allmendinger finished 12th, his career best. Drivers who ran well but had problems late include #20-Stewart [speeding penalty], #16-Biffle [speeding penalty], #99-Edwards [flat tire]. Points leader coming into the race, #18-Busch wrecked early in the race and finished 43rd [last], even after the crew worked to get the car back on the track but with not much attrition in the race, Busch made up no spots and Busch lost it late in the race and spun, then parked the car. The best finishing rookie was #00-McDowell at 27th. There were 23 lead changes among 12 drivers and 10 cautions for 38 laps.
For race results, awards and more, see my Pocono Race Results Awards Page
www.jayski.com/stats/2008/results/14poc2008results.htm
UNOFFICAL Drivers Points Standings [after Pocono race 14 of 36]:
1) #18-Kyle Busch 2084 [4 wins]
2) #31-Jeff Burton 2063 -21 [1 win]
3) #88-Dale Earnhardt Jr. 1939 -145
4) #99-Carl Edwards 1856 -228 [would be 3rd without 100 pt penalty][3 wins]
5) #11-Denny Hamlin 1800 -284 [1 win]
6) #48-Jimmie Johnson 1799 -285 [1 win]
7) #16-Greg Biffle 1781 -303
#24-Jeff Gordon 1767 -317
9) #9-Kasey Kahne 1719 -365 [2 wins]
10) #29-Kevin Harvick 1690 -394
11) #07-Clint Bowyer 1679 -405 [1 win]
12) #20-Tony Stewart 1614 -470
other chase contenders
13) #6-David Ragan 1607 -477 [7 pts out of the chase]
14) #12-Ryan Newman 1604 -480 [-10][1 win]
15) #17-Matt Kenseth 1580 -504 [-34]
16) #1-Martin Truex Jr. 1558, -526 [-56]
Points Standings on my Drivers/Owners Points after Pocono page.
www.jayski.com/stats/2008/points/14poc2008points.htm
Top-35 in Owner Points and guaranteed a starting spot at Pocono:
the big change is #66-Riggs is back in the top 35 and #55-Waltrip is out
The teams are NOT locked in past the next race as the owners points change after each race.
31) #01-Smith/Dale Earnhardt Inc 1,120, +56
32) #41-Sorenson/Ganassi Racing 1,118, +54
33) #00-McDowell/Waltrip Racing 1,105, +41
34) #66-Riggs/Haas CNC Racing, 1,086, +22
35) #77-Hornish/Penske Racing 1,076, 12 points ahead of 36th
these teams/ drivers must qualify by speed:
36) #55-Waltrip/Waltrip Racing 1,064, -12 points out of 35th
37) #84-Allmendinger/Red Bull Racing, 936, -140
38) #96-Yeley/Hall of Fame Racing, 901, -175
39) #40-Franchitti/Ganassi Racing 888, -188
40) #78-Nemechk/Furniture Row, 752, -324
For the owner points standings, see my Drivers/Owners Points Standings page.(
www.jayski.com/stats/2008/points/14poc2008points.htm#OWN
Win #200 for Dodge: with #9-Kasey Kahne’s win in the Pocono 500 at Pocono Raceway, it was Dodge’s 200th all-time win in NASCAR Cup racing with is third best of all the manufacturers since the sport began in 1949. Lee Petty won the first race for Dodge at Palm Beach Speedway in Feb 1953. Dodge last won the manufacturers championship in 1975 and was out of the sport from 1978 thru 2000.
Zippy thinks Stewart has made his decision: While #20-Tony Stewart continues to play coy about his future, at least one person believes the two-time Cup champion already has decided what he plans to do. “I honestly think the decision’s made, I just don’t think we all know yet,” crew chief Greg Zipadelli said. Stewart and Zipadelli are in their 10th season together at Joe Gibbs Racing in the longest active driver-crew chief combination in the garage.(ESPN/AP)(6-9-2008)
Did Not Finish Streak and stats: #29-Harvick has been running at the finish in 58 consecutive races, the longest current streak, next up is #07-Bowyer at 51 consecutive races.(6-8-2008)
DNF [Did Not Finish] Record: The all-time record for the longest streak of NOT having an DNF is 84 races held by Herman Beam from April 30, 1961 thru March 10, 1963. Kevin Harvick holds the modern era (1972-present) record at 58 (10/3/2002-8/1/2004) then Jeff Gordon at 56 and Dale Earnhardt at 53 [Indy in 1996 thru Martinsville in the spring of 1998.
Petty expects Labonte back in 2009: Kyle Petty answering a viewer question submitted on NASCAR.com on what car Bobby Labonte will race next year: "This year Bobby Labonte drives the 43 car, which is obviously a teammate to the 45 car. I think Bobby Labonte will end up in the 43 car (next year). We feel very confident in where we've been and where we're going (with Bobby this year) and some of the things that Bobby has helped us do...Bobby is an integral part of Petty Enterprises, what Petty Enterprises is and where Petty Enterprises is going."(TNT PR)(6-9-2008)
Leffler back at MIS: Jason Leffler said he would run the [#70 Chevy] car next week at Michigan, while competing for Braun Racing, his regular team, in the Nationwide race at Kentucky.(SceneDaily)(6-9-2008)
More on Villeneuve; Davis still interested: Barry Green, business manager for Jacques Villeneuve, said the former Formula One champion definitely wants to be in the Sprint Cup series in 2009. Green, who denied reports last week that he and Villeneuve planned to start their own Cup team, said Villeneuve has turned down several offers to race in Europe. “He wants Sprint Cup,” Green said. “We are far from having a deal for 2009 put together. We would like to see him do a handful of races this year.” Green said “it’s a given” Villeneueve will compete in the Nationwide race in Montreal on Aug. 2, but was not prepared to say which team he will be with. Villeneuve entered this season with Bill Davis Racing. He did not qualify for the season-opening Daytona 500 and never attempted another Cup race because he had no sponsorship. Villeneuve split shortly after with then-business manager Craig Pollock. Davis said he is interested in continuing the relationship with Villeneuve. “Barry is trying to salvage something,” Davis said. “We’ve got a good relationship with Barry and Jacques, and if they get something worked out, we would be all ears.”(ESPN.com)(6-9-2008)
Race and Commercial Breakdown of the Pocono 500
Total number of commercials: 151
Total number of companies or entities advertised: 78
Total number of brief promos of products/services during the race broadcast: 36
Start time to record race/commercial periods: 2:00 PM
End time to record race/commercial periods: 6:27 PM
Total minutes: 267
Minutes of race broadcast: 198
Minutes of commercials: 69
Number of missed restarts: 1
Number of ‘mystery cautions’: 1
See the full report at CawsnJaws.com.
Newman talking future with Penske, but sponsorship could affect it UPDATE: #12-Ryan Newman already has been in discussions about his future with Penske Racing, and now the issue is complicated with the uncertainty over sponsor Alltel. Alltel and Verizon announced Thursday that Verizon has agreed to purchase Alltel, with the transaction completed by the end of the year pending approval from industry regulators. Verizon plans to drop the Alltel brand, and NASCAR officials are adamant that Verizon cannot replace Alltel on the car because Verizon was not grandfathered in when NASCAR signed Nextel as its premier series sponsor in 2003. Will the uncertainty of the sponsor impact negotiations? “Long term, yeah, it’s going to have an influence,” Newman said on Friday after qualifying at Pocono Raceway. “I don’t know what that influence is yet. Obviously, it’s new news to everybody, including most of the people at Alltel. I’ll keep doing what I usually do and see what happens.” Penske Racing has a long-term deal with Alltel beyond this season, and its status might not be determined until late in the season or early next year depending on when the deal is completed and when Verizon drops the Alltel name. Newman could sign a contract without a committed sponsor but that is rare for marquee drivers. “I don’t know,” Newman said when asked if he would sign without a sponsor commitment. “I have no idea how long things are going to take and what the situation is going to be like.”(SceneDaily)(6-7-2008)
UPDATE: Team owner Roger Penske said he does not believe uncertainty surrounding primary sponsor Alltel will affect negotiations with driver #12-Ryan Newman. Communications company Alltel last week indicated it has agreed to sell to its business Verizon in a deal that should conclude by the end of this year. Verizon will not be able to replace Alltel as a sponsor on Newman’s car, NASCAR officials said, citing the ATT/Cingular issue involving Richard Childress Racing and Jeff Burton’s car last year. “We have not had any discussion strategically how that [sale] will affect the brand at this point,” Penske said Sunday at Pocono Raceway. “They have a number of options. It’s way too early for me to speculate what’s going to happen with the sponsorship. We’re waiting to see when the transaction, if it happens, when it gets executed and what’s going to be the brand strategy.” Penske said his team could absorb any financial issues if Alltel has to withdraw. “We have a long-term commitment with Alltel, and I’m certainly sure they wouldn’t leave us high and dry,” Penske said. “We’re a team that can operate with or without a sponsor. We have done it in the past.” Newman, who joined Penske Racing with Alltel in 2002, continues to negotiate with Penske Racing. Newman, whose contract expires at the end of this year, said he is not concerned about this future. “I know that once you’re in this place [Sprint Cup racing], you’re pretty much locked in unless you screw up,” Newman said. “There’s no point in being emotional about something that doesn’t require emotion.” Newman also said he is talking to other teams. “I have to do that to be fair to myself,” Newman said. “I’m not leading the points, and if I was, it would be a no-brainer. It’s not like marriage. It’s not like we’re locked in for life. You can stop with whoever you’re dating and date someone else. You can have more than one phone number in your phone.” Penske said the negotiations with Newman have been “very open.” “I’ve talked to drivers, and drivers have talked to us,” Penske said. “[Newman] and I have had very open conversations for several months. It’s good that everybody gets a chance to see what’s out there and what are the opportunities and at the time we’ve got to make a decision, we’ll make it.” Penske also addressed a rumor that he is interested in buying Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates, saying there is nothing to it. “Chip’s been a friend of mine for a long time, and I think that all came out of a comment, ‘How can we work together to get better?’ ” Penske said.(ESPN.com)(6-9-2008)
Some Pocono images added: #28 DISH Network, #8 Steak0umm, #7 Back in Black and #12 Kodak to the Paint Scheme Gallery. Also added five images of the #19 Best Buy/Garmin/Autism scheme for Dover to the 2008 Cup Schemes page.
www.jayski.com/schemes/paintschemes.htm
www.jayski.com/schemes/2008cup.htm
Petty Investor to be announced soon: Petty Enterprises’ yearlong search to find an investment partner seems to be in the final stages, with an announcement tentatively planned for next week to announce a deal with a private equity firm. Boston Ventures is expected to take over a controlling interest in the company, which has fallen behind NASCAR’s top organizations and needs a boost to become competitive. Richard Petty declined to discuss the deal Saturday. “We’re not even going there,” he said. Robbie Loomis, vice president of racing operations, said Petty Enterprises is an attractive partner to any potential investors. “The Petty brand is such a clean brand and stands for so much, and we want to take it to the next level with the right company,” Loomis said. Boston Ventures has invested six funds totaling $2.6 billion in capital commitments in its 22-year history. Some of Boston Ventures previous portfolio companies include American Media Inc., Motown Records, Six Flags Entertainment and Continental Cablevision.(ESPN/AP)(6-8-2008)
No plans to shut down the #01 team: #01-Regan Smith isn’t listening to rumors about his team’s future. He’s just focusing on getting better. Smith’s team doesn’t have full sponsorship and is running a DEI logo on the hood this weekend. Smith is 32nd in driver points and the team is 32nd in owner points. The team changed crew chiefs in mid-May and Dan Stillman is entering his second week as the full-time crew chief. “The past five weeks, [we] have really started getting some good consistency down and especially the past couple of weeks here, we’ve actually run better than where we’ve finished,” Smith said Friday. “For a team coming from where we came from at the beginning of the year to now that’s a good thing. And for me as a driver that’s a good thing because I was beating myself up, and you question if you can do it or if everything you’re doing is wrong or what’s going on. It’s good for all of us. It’s just rumors,” Smith said about talk that DEI might shut down the 01 team. “They’ve been out there all year long and I’m sure they’ll be out there to the end of the season and all that stuff. That’s fine. We know what the situation is and I’ve talked to Teresa [Earnhardt] and management numerous times and I know the situation. The race car is going to be on the race track and that’s all that matters.”(SceneDaily)(6-8-2008)
Montoya gives Ganassi an earful; JGR looking at Montoya? UPDATE denied: #42-Juan Pablo Montoya requested a face-to-face meeting with his boss and got it the day before the Indianapolis 500, when owner Chip Ganassi flew to North Carolina to talk with his emotional driver. The early morning meeting Saturday let Montoya express his frustrations over the race team’s direction, including the firing of crew chief Jimmy Elledge, a move Montoya vehemently opposed. “I told him everything I was thinking and how it was,” said Montoya, who finished 30th. “The hope of the meeting is that everything that has happened turns into results. I need to run better. That’s what will calm me down.” Meanwhile, there is speculation that Joe Gibbs Racing may make a run at Montoya to fill the seat Tony Stewart is expected to leave at the end of the season.(Chicago Tribune)(5-29-2008)
UPDATE: #42-Juan Pablo Montoya, who is on his third crew chief this season, says he is getting more settled with new crew chief Brian Pattie. A few weeks after venting frustration over his crew chief situation, Montoya said don’t translate that frustration into his looking to leave Chip Ganassi Racing, which brought him into Sprint Cup racing full time last year. “People have got to understand that I’ve got a long commitment to Chip [Ganassi],” Montoya said Friday after qualifying at Pocono Raceway. “This is where I am and this is where I am going to be for a couple of years.”(SceneDaily)(6-8-2008)
Kyle Busch’s Triple Race Weekend:
Truck Series [started 17th/last, finished 2nd] at Texas, J.R. Norris practiced & qualified the #51 Miccosukee Resorts/NOS Energy Toyota in the 17th spot, Busch had to fall to the rear of the field before the race, and was able to finish 2nd to Ron Hornaday. See more on my Truck Series site.
Nationwide Series at Nashville Superspeedway: [started 5th, finished 20th] Willie Allen practiced the #32 Dollar General Toyota of Braun Racing 21st fastest in Happy Hour on Friday. Busch was able to get to Nashville in time to qualify the #32 car in the 5th starting position. Busch finished 20th at Nationwide.
Sprint Cup: [started 10th/last, finished 43rd] Busch qualified the #18 M&M’s Toyota 10th for the Pocono Raceway at Pocono Raceway. During the 1st practice Saturday, Busch wrecked and will go to a backup car, so he will have to fall to the rear of the field on Sunday. Busch wrecked early in the race, the crew giot him back out, but he could not make up any positions, spun again and finally parked the car, finishing 43rd/last.(6-8-2008)
___________________________________________________________
What if I were to tell you that there’s a tested(by numerous corporate accounts), proven way that you could start using *today* to save 7-19%(that would be from 28 to 75 cents based on today’s $3.95/gal regular price) on your gas bill for filling up your car? And what if you could put money in your pocket by making this product available to others?
There is - and tens of thousands of Americans are using it right now to save money.
It’s been on the news, and there are countless videos on YouTube that prove it, including great pieces by FOX local stations in Dallas and Phoenix. However, surprisingly few people even know about it.
www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=779DCA59F50EA8B5
Used and endorsed by the Unser family, the winningest family in the history of ‘The Greatest Spectacle in Racing’. ‘Little Al’s diesel Ford Excursion mileage has increased from 13 to 17.3MPG. And recently named ‘The Official Fuel Reformulator of the Firestone Indy Lights Series’.
You can check out the details here: snipurl.com/29ohu-gazete
PS: In case you’re wondering, this IS NOT the magic “gas pill” you may have seen on TV. You’ve got to watch the videos to see just what an impact this is having on people’s lives:
(advertisement)
___________________________________________________________
Courtesy of That’s Racin’
www.thatsracin.com
Kahne beats early trouble, pulls away for Pocono win
LONG POND, Pa. - A month ago Kasey Kahne didn’t think his team was capable of winning anytime soon. Now, he can’t seem to give a race win away.
www.thatsracin.com/topstories/story/15275.html
Junior couldn’t watch driver win, but sees the significance
LONG POND, Pa. - JR Motorsports earned its second Nationwide Series victory and first with upstart Brad Keselowski Saturday night.
www.thatsracin.com/topstories/story/15271.html
Long, hot afternoon takes toll, prompts complaints
www.thatsracin.com/topstories/story/15322.html
Pocono patch proves problematic for some
www.thatsracin.com/topstories/story/15291.html
Hornish tangles, time and again
www.thatsracin.com/topstories/story/15290.html
___________________________________________________________
N A S C A R * N A T I O N W I D E * S E R I E S
___________________________________________________________
Courtesy of Jayski
www.jayski.com
Keselowski wins at Nashville: #88-Brad Keselowski won the Federated Auto Parts 300 at Nashville Superspeedway for his first career win in 49 Nationwide Series races (and the first win for the U.S. Navy as a sponsor). He passed #2-Clint Bowyer with 5 laps to go and pulled away to win by nearly 2 seconds. #64-David Stremme finished second, followed by #99-David Reutimann, #2-Clint Bowyer, #6-David Ragan, #7-Mike Walllace, #29-Scott Wimmer, #47-Kelly Bires, #5-Landon Cassill, and #16-Greg Biffle. After starting from the pole and leading the first 60 laps of the race, #20-Joey Logano was caught in a wreck on lap 89 and finished 31st. #32-Kyle Busch, running all 3 races this weekend, finished 3 laps down in 20th after a cut tire late in the race. There were 10 cautions for 41 laps and 8 leaders with 10 lead changes. Complete results are posted on the Nashville Race Page.(6-7-2008)
www.jayski.com/nationwide/2008/next/15nashville.htm#results
Driver Standings: Clint Bowyer expands his point lead to 166 in the standings. David Reutimann moves to second, Kyle Busch falls to third, Carl Edwards moves to fourth and Brad Keselowski remains in fifth, 192 points back. Complete standings are posted on the Nashville Race Page.(6-7-2008)
www.jayski.com/nationwide/2008/next/15nashville.htm#standings
Owners Points: Complete owner standings are posted on the Nashville Race Page.(6-7-2008)
www.jayski.com/nationwide/2008/next/15nashville.htm#owners
McGill Motorsports Selling Equipment: www.gavelauction.com/upcoming.htmGavel Auction will conduct the McGill Motorsports Team Auction on Tuesday, July 8 at 212 Performance Road in Mooresville. McGill Motorsports ran the #36 for several years before a lack of sponsorship forced them out of business during the off season.(6-8-2008)
___________________________________________________________
Courtesy of The Hot Lap
www.TheHotLap.com
Post race quotes from racewinner Keselowski, Tony Eury Sr. and car owner Dale Earnhardt Jr.Brad Keselowski, driver of the No. 88 Navy Accelerate Your Life Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS, scored his first NASCAR Nationwide Series win in Saturday’s Federated Auto Parts 300 at Nashville Superspeedway. The win was a first for the JR Motorsports No. 88 team and the first-ever NASCAR win for the U.S. Navy. Keselowski’s win in the Navy Chevrolet came in his 49th series start, and snapped Toyota’s eight-race win streak in the Nationwide Series. His mom [Kay Keselowski], dad [Bob Keselowski] and brother [Brian Keselowski] all joined the new winner in Victory Lane at Nashville. BRAD KESELOWSKI, DRIVER OF THE NO. 88 NAVY ACCELERATE YOUR LIFE CHEVROLET ON HIS FIRST WIN IN THE NATIONWIDE SERIES: Q: TELL US ABOUT YOUR RUN – “We had a strong car. There was no doubt about that. It came down to strategy and track position. We pitted with 40 laps to go or something like that. Everyone else had about 30 laps on their tires and we were going to have to dig hard to get by them and we did. We were digging and we were passing them one at a time and it seemed like it was taking forever, but it was working. I’d just caught up to Clint [Bowyer] and the yellow came out with about 12 laps to go. That’s just what we needed to catch up to the 99. It jumbled the field up. I really thought I was going to be able to get by Clint, but I thought David [Reutimann] was going to drive away, but for some reason David didn’t go. I got behind him, took the air off of him and the next thing I knew we were by David and I knew I could take down Clint. It was just history from there. We had a great car and made the right moves on pit road and on the track and that’s what it takes to win in this series and in this sport.”Q: IF THE RACE HAD STAYED GREEN, DO YOU THINK YOU WOULD HAVE HAD ENOUGH TIME TO CATCH DAVID? – “Not a chance. We were catching him, but we would have needed 30-40 laps. I could see him up there. As a driver you put up marks of I’m here and he’s there, and you’re watching the closure rate and kind of calculate it in your head and there was no way unless he made a mistake. I’ve been on the other side of that. I’ve been in that situation where you’re running up front and driving away and the yellow comes out and you’re just like ‘AAHHHH.’ The shoe was on the other foot today.” Q: WHAT ARE THE EMOTIONS OF FINALLY WINNING AND THE CELEBRATION? WHAT’S IT FEEL LIKE TO FINALLY GET THE MONKEY OFF YOUR BACK? – “I don’t know if it’s a monkey off my back. I don’t know that I’ve been here that long. It’s not like I came into this sport winning. I feel like I paid some dues. I did some stuff with lower level teams. When you’re doing that with lower level teams and you’re breaking down every week and you’re blowing up or whatever it is that happens, you always question yourself, ‘Why am I doing this?’ and then when you catch that break like I did to drive for Dale [Earnhardt ] Jr. and the U.S. Navy Chevrolet and that kind of validates or vindicates you. Then I’ve got a team that keeps getting better every week and I keep getting better every week to go with it. I felt like this was just a matter of time.” Q: WHAT KIND OF COMMUNICATOR IS TONY EURY SR.? HOW DO YOU GUYS WORK TOGETHER? – “When you’re a young driver in the sport, you need all the help you can get. You need veteran leadership and that’s what Pops brings for us and brings to me. When you’re a younger driver, you need a stronger crew chief, you need somebody who can whip you into shape and that’s what Pops is for me. Sometimes as you get better it turns into the exact opposite, but he’s what I need for where I am in my career right now.” ” TONY EURY SR., CREW CHIEF OF THE NO. 88 NAVY ACCELERATE YOUR LIFE CHEVROLET FOR JR MOTORSPORTS ON KESELOWSKI’S FIRST WIN: Q: WHY DON’T YOU TELL US HOW THINGS WENT TONIGHT FOR YOUR DRIVER’S FIRST WIN? TONY EURY SR. (CREW CHIEF) – “Well we started the night off. We were pretty happy with our car last night in practice When the race started we were a little tighter than we wanted to be. That was something we weren’t expecting. We were expecting to be loose. When you start the race tight it’s usually pretty hard to free cars up. We worked on it every stop. We just kept adjusting on it until we got it free in. He said it was tight off, but he was getting free in and he said didn’t want us to do anything else to it We made a couple adjustments there for in and off and on that last stop it worked out.”Q: DESCRIBE WHAT HAPPENED WHEN BRAD DIDN’T COME TO PIT ROAD WHEN YOU CALLED HIM IN ON LAP 79? – “I was going to stop for fuel only if those guys stopped. That was our plan. I really didn’t want to pit at all. I was kind of hoping that everybody else would stay out. It’s kind of hard for them to hear you in the car when you’re talking to them anyway and it was a last minute deal to try to get him on pit road for fuel. It was only 13 laps on the tires. At some race tracks it would have killed us, but the way the cautions came out tonight it didn’t hurt us at all. We actually saved a set of tires there at one time. That made those guys do it later on just because they knew other people had tires on pit road. I don’t think it would have hurt us that bad, but when everybody else starts pitting and whenever you’ve got fuel and they stop, you’ve got to stop with them. I think our team car, the No. 5 car, stayed out there too long that first time and he got lapped he stayed out there so long. You’ve got to watch out for that. I don’t really think it hurt us that bad.”
___________________________________________________________
C R A F T S M A N * T R U C K * S E R I E S
___________________________________________________________
Courtesy of Jayski
www.jayski.com
Hornaday wins at Texas: With a green-white-checkered finish, the master-of-the-restart, #33-Ron Hornaday Jr. held on to the lead to win the Sam’s Town 400 at Texas Motor Speedway. It was Hornaday’s 35th series win, his first win at Texas and his second win in 2008. Hornaday set a new track record for the most laps led by the winner leading 140 laps, previous record was held by Greg Biffle with 119 laps. The win put Hornaday back on top in the driver point standings. Rounding out the top ten were #51-Kyle Busch, #23-Johnny Benson, #2-Jack Sprague, #30-Todd Bodine, #8-Chad McCumbee, #88-Matt Crafton,#09-Bobby East, #5-Mike Skinner, #21-Jon Wood. There were 14 lead changes among 7 drivers; 5 caution flags for 23 laps. Complete race results are posted on the Texas Race Page.(Unofficial)(6-6-2008)
www.jayski.com/cts/next/2008/9texas2008.htm#results
Hornaday leads driver point standings: #33-Ron Hornaday is once again leading the driver standings with a total of 1302 points, 45 ahead of second place #88-Matt Crafton. Rounding out the top ten were #23-Johnny Benson, #30-Todd Bodine, #2-Jack Sprague, #14-Rick Crawford, #5-Mike Skinner, #8-Chad McCumbee, #60-Terry Cook, #11-David Starr. Complete standings are posted on the Texas Race Page.(Unofficial)(6-6-2008)
www.jayski.com/cts/next/2008/9texas2008.htm#standings
Owner point standings: Complete owner standings following Texas are posted on the Texas Race Page.(Unofficial)(6-6-2008)
www.jayski.com/cts/next/2008/9texas2008.htm#owner
NASCAR impounds unapproved part from #4 BHR-VA Dodge UPDATE: Ray Dunlap reported during the SPEED Report that the rear end of the #4-Bobby Hamilton Racing Dodge driven by Stacy Compton was impounded by NASCAR following the Texas race and that there will likely be a penalty that comes down for BHR-VA as a result.(6-8-2008)
UPDATE: NASCAR has confirmed that the inspectors confiscated an unapproved rear end. Any penalties will be announced on Tuesday.(NASCAR PR)(6-9-2008)
JTG Racing shuts down #20 team: JTG Racing’s Craftsman Truck Series team has shut down, team owner Tad Geschickter confirmed Friday night. Driver Scott Lagasse was 28th in the series points standings, with a best finish of 19th at Auto Club Speedway. JTG had fielded trucks for the previous two seasons under the Wood Brothers/JTG Racing banner, but JTG and the Woods split this season. “The Lagasse’s have been friends of mine for a long time,” Geschickter said. “They brought a sponsor to the table. We had our struggles, that’s for sure. We were gaining on it, and Scott’s a good driver. “In the end, we just all decided we weren’t making progress as fast as they wanted. They didn’t feel like the team was. So we decided just to cease operations.” Lagasse and JTG did not enter Friday’s race at Texas Motor Speedway. The sponsor, Nicholson Group Real Estate, is in the housing market.(SceneDaily.com)(6-8-2008)
___________________________________________________________
Courtesy of TruckSeries.Com
www.truckseries.com
Hornaday Wins at Texas
www.truckseries.com/cgi-script/NCTS_08/articles/000009/000930.htm
___________________________________________________________
A R C A (Automobile Racing Club of America)
___________________________________________________________
Courtesy of ARCA
www.arcaracing.com
Top-10 ARCA RE/MAX Series Points After the Pocono 200 at Pocono Raceway (6-7-08):
1) Ricky Stenhouse Jr 1790; 2) Matt Carter 1720; 3) Scott Speed 1690; 4) Justin Allgaier 1660; 5) Tom Hessert III 1655; 6) Frank Kimmel 1630; 7) John Wes Townley 1600; Tayler Malsam 1520; 9) Patrick Sheltra 1475; 10) Ken Butler III 1445.
Rookie Stenhouse Stellar at Pocono
LONG POND PA (6-7-08) – ARCA RE/MAX Series point leader Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. survived a late-race restart and a last-lap charge from a Red Bull to win the wild Pocono 200 Saturday afternoon at Pocono Raceway.
“It was pretty tough,” said Stenhouse, who also earned the SunTrust Rookie of the Race award. “My restarts – I’ve been getting better. You had some people shifting; you had some people not. We were almost three-wide there going into turn one so I’m sure it was pretty exciting for the fans. I didn’t like it but we ended up pulling through it and ended up with the win.”
Stenhouse, in the no. 99 Roush Fenway Racing-Con Way Freight Ford, also became the first repeat winner in 2008 after eight events.
“I’m pretty excited about that (winning two races). Hopefully we’ll be the first to win three next week at Michigan. That’s what we’re shooting for.”
Speed, in the Red Bull Toyota, battled back from two cut tires to get within striking distance of Stenhouse, only to fall short by five lengths at the final stripe. The Manteca, California driver also made up more than 20 positions inside of 10 laps from the end to earn his second place finish.
“We were 25th with seven laps to go, and finished second,” said Speed, who was also the Aaron’s Lap Leader of the Race for leading the most laps (39). “I mean I definitely didn’t make too many friends out there but that was definitely an epic end to the race. Period. To be honest it was very surprising to be able to catch the 99 as much as we did. I mean we must have caught him a second a lap for the last two laps.”
SunTrust Rookie of the Year contender Tayler Malsam finished a career-best third in the Dodge Driver Development Dodge.
“I saw quite a bit from my view in the car,” said Malsam. “Definitely didn’t expect to finish in the top-three but I sure am glad it worked out the way it did. I’m hoping for some of the same at Michigan next weekend.”
Malsam was referring to the final restart with two laps remaining when Justin Lofton, looking for his career-first win, was positioned second behind Stenhouse with Robb Brent also in tow. But Lofton’s machine got loose in turn one following a mad scramble among the top-10 cars on the frontstretch. With Brent hard on the brakes to avoid Lofton, who eventually spun down into the infield grass, a hole opened for Malsam and Bobby Gerhart, both of whom charged underneath for position. Gerhart, in the Lucas Oil Chevrolet, ended up fourth.
“It’s been kind of a rough start this year, so this finish is especially gratifying,” said Gerhart. “We were tight all day. I’ve not run as good as I would have liked to this year and then on top of it, we’ve just been at the wrong place at the wrong time on several occasions. Either got fed up or been victimized by other people’s issues.”
Justin Allgaier, without first, second and fourth gears, somehow finished fifth in the AG Tech-Hoosier Tire Midwest Chevrolet.
“I really feel like we let this one slip away,” said Allgaier. “Felt like we had them covered today but you can’t win on a track you shift on with a broke transmission. In the end we were fortunate to finish fifth.”
Prior to his transmission issues, Allgaier posted the Accel Fastest Lap of the Race after leading 20 laps and was the Klotz Halfway Leader.
SIM Factory Pole Award winner Speed led the first 12 laps before Allgaier took control. Once Allgaier got out in front, the Springfield, Illinois driver opened up a big advantage before giving up the top-spot on lap 29 when he and the rest of the front-runners came down pit road for first-round pit stops.
When racing resumed, Bryan Silas and Dexter Bean, both electing not to pit, exchanged the lead for three laps before Speed reassumed command on lap 33. Speed led up through lap 47 before giving it up for an unscheduled pit stop to get four new tires – mainly a left-front, which had gone flat. Then a caution came in the nick of time for Speed, who was able to stay on the lead lap as a result. Speed quickly charged back into the lead on lap 53 but gave it up again on lap 65 for the same problem. Brent then led for a couple laps before Stenhouse emerged as the final leader on lap 67. Stenhouse then led the final 20 circuits, which included six overtime laps to accommodate the ARCA-mandated green-white-checker finish.
Brent, Bean, Dominick Casola, Michael Phelps and Gabi DiCarlo completed the top-10 respectively.
Speed’s crew chief Patrick Donahue earned the Cometic Crew Chief of the Race honors. Brian Kaltreider started 29th and finished 13th to earn the Casite Hard Charger award.
Top-10 ARCA RE/MAX Series Points After the Pocono 200 at Pocono Raceway (6-7-08):
1) Ricky Stenhouse Jr 1790; 2) Matt Carter 1720; 3) Scott Speed 1690; 4) Justin Allgaier 1660; 5) Tom Hessert III 1655; 6) Frank Kimmel 1630; 7) John Wes Townley 1600; Tayler Malsam 1520; 9) Patrick Sheltra 1475; 10) Ken Butler III 1445.
Next up for the ARCA RE/MAX Series: Michigan Int’l Speedway
The ARCA RE/MAX Series will follow up their appearance at Pocono with more superspeedway-style action when the series makes its annual appearance to Michigan Int’l Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan’s Irish Hills for the Racing for Wildlife 200 on Friday afternoon, June 13th. The Racing for Wildlife 200 is LIVE on SPEED at 5:00 PM Eastern. Arcaracing.com will feature live timing and scoring beginning at 5:15 p.m. on Friday.
___________________________________________________________
C O L U M N S / C O M M E N T A R I E S
___________________________________________________________
Insider Racing News
insiderracingnews.com/Writers/BB/060708.html
It’s Time for Tony Stewart to Start Smokin’
by Brenda Benedict
Insider Racing News
insiderracingnews.com/Writers/KR/060808.html
Love Him or Hate Him, Kyle Busch is Working Hard
by Kim Roberson
Insider Racing News
insiderracingnews.com/Writers/RF/060908.html
With A Strong Performance, Kahne Takes Pocono Win
by Ron Felix
Whispers From Heaven
Banned for Being Autistic
by Carol Einarsson
Several months ago when FOX SupPORTS announced their joining with Autism Speaks to raise money for research and awareness, I remember feeling proud to be a viewer of a network that has stepped out to help an organization that is near and dear to so many.
www.racejournalonline.com/index.cfm?Pagename=column&id=468
Monday Night NASCAR TV Match-Ups
dalyplanet.blogspot.com/2008/06/monday-night-nascar-tv-match-ups.html
TNT Turns A New Page In TV History
dalyplanet.blogspot.com/2008/06/tnt-turns-new-page-in-tv-history.html
___________________________________________________________
T V * L I S T I N G S
___________________________________________________________
Courtesy of Jayski
www.jayski.com/pages/tv.htm
Mon June 9
2:00 am Drafting Partners GAC
4:00 am NASCAR Victory Lane SPEED
8:00 am NASCAR Victory Lane SPEED
9:00 am Wind Tunnel with Dave Despain SPEED
9:00 am IndyCar Series Texas ESPNC
12:00 pm NCTS Set-Up SPEED
1:00 pm NCTS: Sam’s Town 400 SPEED
5:30 pm NASCAR Now ESPN2
8:00 pm This Week in NASCAR SPEED
Tue June 10
12:00 am This Week in NASCAR SPEED
12:30 am NASCAR Now ESPN2
8:00 am This Week in NASCAR SPEED
6:00 pm NASCAR Now ESPN2
Wed June 11
12:00 am NASCAR Now ESPN2
6:00 pm NASCAR Now ESPN2
9:00 pm Drafting Partners GAC
Jayski does not list all the programming offered by SPEED; for complete listings go to their website, www.speedtv.com/schedule/
Always CHECK YOUR LOCAL LISTINGS!
___________________________________________________________
The Stock Car Gazette
Copyright 2002-2008 by MotorSportsNews.Net
All Rights Reserved
SUBSCRIBE / UNSUBSCRIBE INFORMATION
lists.motorsportsnews.net/mailman/listinfo/stockcargazette
IF YOU DO NOT HAVE YOUR PASSWORD, you can have it e-mailed to you from the above SUBSCRIBE/UNSUBSCRIBE link.
Miss an edition of the Stock Car Gazette? Visit the E-ZINE ARCHIVE:
motorsportsnews.net/archives/category/stock-car-gazette/
IMPORTANT PRIVACY NOTICE: The Stock Car Gazette mailing list is maintained completely by MotorSportsNews.Net. Therefore, we can tell you we have not and will not ever share your e-mail address with anyone for any reason.
IMPORTANT LEGAL NOTICE: ALL broadcast, publication, retransmission to e-mail lists, WWW or any other copying or storage, in any medium, online or not, is STRICTLY PROHIBITED without PRIOR written permission from the editor. However, you MAY manually forward an issue by e-mail to your friends IF 1.) The text is forwarded IN ITS ENTIRETY including all subscription and web page information, and 2.) NO FEE is charged. We ALWAYS appreciate readers who report violations of the copyright to webmaster@motorsportsnews.net.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Mike Irwin, Owner/Webmaster
E-mail: Mike@MotorSportsNews.Net
AIM: motorsportsnews7
www.MotorSportsNews.Net
P. O. Box 668
Nicholasville, KY 40340-0668
859-750-1973
By the way, do YOU know for sure? You can. Click the link.
motorsportsnews.net/you-can-know-for-sure
___________________________________________________________
|
TV Times »
|
Loading ...
