Deal in place for ‘Dinger team through mid-September

A.J. Allmendinger will have at least have a shot at making The Chase this year and Hunt Brothers Pizza is the latest company he and the No. 44 team have to thank. Richard Petty Motorsports officials announced this week that the pizza chain will sponsor the team for six races, giving RPM’s fourth Cup team sponsorship through the September 12th race in Richmond, the last race before The Chase begins.

This development is a big break for a team that originally was supposed run only eight races this season, but since has seen companies such as Valvoline, Charter Communications, Harrah’s, Super 8 Motels, and Paralyzed Veterans of America step up their commitments to fund the team. Allmendinger has done his part to help the cause, guiding the No. 44 Dodge to two top 10s and 20th in points. This is a big improvement for a team that floundered outside the Top 35 for the past two seasons with drivers Scott Riggs and Patrick Carpentier. Hunt Brothers Pizza sponsored both Hass CNC entries for several races last season and had been rumored to be in the running for sponsorship slots on several teams this season.

EGR’s No. 8 team sinks the 8 ball early, ceases operations until further notice

A prospect that had been feared by Earnhardt Ganassi Racing officials has come to fruition. On Tuesday, EGR sources confirmed to the media that the No. 8 team, once the most recognizable entry in the Cup Series, will not run in Phoenix and will stay on the sidelines until it secures sponsorship. This leaves driver Aric Almirola, once a young driver with a bright future, without a ride and could lead to the layoffs of up to 50 EGR employees.

The U.S. Army left the No. 8 in favor of Ryan Newman’s No. 39 Stewart Hass Racing team, after spending one year on the car. That sponsorship came to EGR when then DEI bought out the Ginn Racing operation. Mark Martin drove the No. 01 Army Chevy and the No. 8 Army Chevy part-time in 2007 and 2008, but left the team in favor for a full-time Hendrick ride before the start of this season. A down economy and an unproven full-time driver in Aric Almirola left the team with little sponsorship for 2009. One-off deals with Guitar Hero and other companies have not provided enough commitment for EGR to keep fielding the team, which has had a miserable year and sits 37th in points, with only one top 30 finish.

The No. 8 team had started every race since the beginning of the 2000 season and was the home of Dale Earnhardt Jr. until after 2007, when he bolted from DEI to drive the No. 88 at Hendrick Motorsports. The red No. 8 Budweiser Chevy was the most popular car of the decade and one of the most recognizable in NASCAR history. With only two full-time teams in the EGR stable (the No. 34 Front Row Motorsports is inside the Top 35 in points, benefiting from the use of the No. 41’s points from last year, but is not an EGR team), rumors have popped up about Martin Truex Jr.’s No. 1 team.

Some published reports have stated that Truex Jr.’s contract has a clause that states that he can opt out of the agreement, if EGR fields less than three full-time teams. EGR officials have denied this and Truex says he remains committed to the team. The same reports also state that Bass Pro Shops, sponsor of the No. 1, can also leave if this happens, but the company denies that as well. This rumor has reportedly linked Truex and/or Bass Pro Shops as possible candidates to go to either Joe Gibbs Racing (possibly as a replacement to the struggling rookie Joey Logano, which JGR denies) or Stewart Hass Racing. None of these rumors have proven to have legs, but they do prove one thing – Silly Season is starting early in 2009. And speaking of Truex…

Truex’s junior sibling gearing up with new MWR deal

Add another Truex surname to your racing vernacular. Ryan Truex, the 17-year old younger brother of Sprint Cup driver Martin Truex Jr., has signed an agreement with Michael Waltrip Racing to run full-time in the Camping World East Series with the Toyota team. That series’ season begins this weekend at Greenville-Pickens Speedway.

Truex has had a fast rise through the racing ranks, beginning his racing career at age 13 in Bandolaros. He soon graduated to Legends cars and then Late Models, before making his Camping World East Series debut last season, finishing 11th at Stafford Speedway.

Sprint Cup and Camping World Truck Series title sponsorships up for grabs?

Another sign of the ailing economy: there are rumors abound that Comcast is in talks to buy Sprint, which could mean that the cable giant could end up the title sponsor of NASCAR’s biggest series. Sprint’s buyout of Nextel prompted the Cup Series to change names before last season. There has been no comment from parties involved about the possible buyout or name change.

A year after Craftsman dropped its title sponsorship of the Truck Series a published report earlier this week stated that replacement sponsor Camping World was looking to do the same thing. Camping World officials quickly debunked the report, saying that they are actually looking to replace their title sponsorship of both the NASCAR Camping World East and West Series, not the Truck Series.

Several spots of testing this week for NASCAR teams

Goodyear scheduled a tire test at New Hampshire Motor Speedway for Tuesday and Wednesday this week, but rain washed out most of the Tuesday test, except for one hour of track time. On Wednesday, 25mph winds and cool temperatures altered the data that drivers Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch, David Ragan, and David Stremme and their teams tried to gather for Goodyear.

At Rockingham Speedway, Dennis Setzer tested a Richard Petty Motorsports car, along with three ARCA teams.

RPM gearing up to run Indy 500

Petty blue will be present in Indianapolis, as Richard Petty Motorsports will partner up with Dreyer and Reinbold Racing, a team that runs the full Indy Racing League. Dreyer and Reinbold will provide personnel and equipment to the team, which will sport the No. 43, driver John Andretti, and sponsor Window World. The type of car fielded will be a Dallara/Honda with Firestone tires. Andretti’s Indy 500 excursion means that he will be absent from the No. 34 Sprint Cup team for about a month. Front Row Motorsports teammate Tony Raines may end up replacing him in the car.

Gordon partnering with effort to build Niagara Race Track

Reports surrounding the building of a new race track in Fort Erie, Ontario, Canada include the name of four-time Sprint Cup champion Jeff Gordon. Gordon’s name reportedly will be used on a signature driving school that would operate at the track and could even be emblazoned on the name of the track itself. The motorsports facility reportedly will cost around $200 million and seat 65,000 people. A 600-acre plot of land is being assembled for the project.

Wallace and Jay Robinson Racing planning a dance with the Lady in Black

Kenny Wallace and Jay Robinson Racing may be planning a run at Darlington in May. Though the team, which fields the No. 28 for Wallace in the Nationwide Series, has not released any information on this, rumors state that the operation has a Cup car prepared and plans to attempt the race.

Black Jack Racing attempts return next week in Phoenix

Driver Dexter Bean and Black Jack Racing’s No. 51 entry plan to attempt the Phoenix race next week with sponsor Live Wire Energy Chews. After failing to make the first three races this season, the team moved out of its Mooresville, NC shop back to Wisconsin, to continue its operations there.

Brian Scott and Kelly Bires get big breaks this weekend in Nationwide Series

Welcome to the Nationwide Series Brian Scott. The Camping World Truck Series driver who has run well in his first two years on that circuit will make his Nationwide Series debut in the No. 10 Toyota for Braun Racing for this weekend’s Nashville race and next weekend’s race in Phoenix, along two others to be determined. Stewart Cooper will serve as crew chief. The team has started and parked for several races it has entered this season with driver Kelly Bires.

Bires, meanwhile, will actually have a chance to compete for victory in Kevin Harvick Incorporated’s No. 33 Chevy and sponsor Charter Communications this week in Nashville. Harvick won at Bristol in that entry a couple of weeks ago.

The Cup Series not being at the same track as the Nationwide Series has also prompted Roush Fenway Racing to tab Ricky Stenhouse Jr. as driver of the No. 16 Ford this weekend. Stenhouse, who ran the full ARCA season last year and scored two wins and 4th in the series points, makes his first NASCAR start in that part-time No. 16 ride.

Other changes on this weekend’s entry list for the Nationwide Series include Mark Green in the No. 0 JD Motorsports Chevy. Green was just released from the No. 70 SL Motorsports ride in favor of Shelby Howard. Nationwide Insurance will also be an associate sponsor on JDM’s No. 01 and driver Danny O’Quinn Jr.

Later this season, Patrick Carpentier makes his NASCAR return with Michael Waltrip Racing and the No. 99 Nationwide Series Toyota. Carpentier is slated to run the Montreal road race and possible the race in Watkins Glen. The Canadian driver was let go from the No. 10 Sprint Cup ride at Gillett Evernham Motorsports late last season.

Ragan’s Cup Texas run ruined; Reed’s struggles resume

David Ragan ran very well in last week’s Samsung 500 at Texas Motor Speedway, but a blown motor late in the race relegated the No. 6 from a top 5 run to 37th place. Finishing just in front of him was Reed Sorenson, whose struggles are significant on 1.5 mile tracks. The No. 43 finished 36th. The two Georgia drivers sit 29th and 30th in points, respectively. Dawsonville’s Bill Elliott has qualified for the three races he has attempted in the Wood Brothers No. 21 Ford this season, but Sunday’s struggles relegated the part-time veteran to a 28th place finish, three laps off of the winning pace set by Jeff Gordon.

In the Nationwide Series race last Saturday, Kyle Busch won, but Ragan ran well without difficulty, finishing 4th. He sits 3rd in points, 146 markers behind leader Carl Edwards. John Wes Townley had an awful weekend in the No. 09 Zaxby’s Ford, wrecking both before and during the race. He finished 36th and sits 34th in points, despite making all five races this year. A points penalty in Daytona really hurt Townley’s RAB Racing team.

Listen to Doug on Captain Herb Emory’s racing show, The Allan Vigil Ford Lincoln Mercury 120 on News/Talk 750 WSB in Atlanta and online at wsbradio.com this Saturday, from 12-12:30 p.m. Doug is also a pit road reporter for the GAS Series. You can hear him next Friday, April 17th, live from Anderson, SC at lanierspeedway.com/gas.