I arrived at the track just before qualifying was to begin at 3:30 p.m.,. Shopping is usually my first routine. I noticed that Mike Wallace was going to sign autographs at his souvenier trailer at 4:00. Around 3:30, the sounds of racing engines and the announcer called me in to watch qualifying.
Bobby went out fairly early and put it on the provisional pole. But now I had a dilemma. What if Bobby was going to sign autographs? I hadn't found his trailer. Should I continue watching qualifying or go find his trailer? My mind told me to go find that trailer.
I noticed Kenny Wallace had a tent set up and was going to be signing souveniers. This was St. Louis after all and the Wallaces are local royalty.
As it turned out Bobby didn't have a trailer. Neither was any of his merchandise for sale in what may have qualified as the "Busch" souvenier trailer. The souvenier trailers were dominated by merchandise for the Nextel Cup elite.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. stuff was going cheap though. There will be no use carrying that Bud 8 stuff over to next year. Nope, that won't sell. Best dump it now, the souvie trailer salesmen are thinking.
I went back in to finish watching the qualifying. Bobby's provisional pole didn't hold. But it was fun hoping it would stay in the top 10 and give him a good start. In the end, he just missed the top 10.
McDonald’s NASCAR Busch Series driver Bobby Hamilton, Jr. continued his march through the summer racing season on Saturday Night. The Gateway International Raceway was the site of race number 21 of the 2007 season. Known for its long, tight straightaways and flat turns, Gateway is a challenge for even the most experienced of drivers. On this night, Hamilton would start from the 11th position in the field of 43 cars.
It seemed from the start that Hamilton had a top 15 or top 20 car. He slipped back early. Then he got lapped.
However, he continued to fight valiantly and the pit crew made good adjustments and had good stops. Bobby was later awarded with a lucky dog. He went on to make the most of it.
Saturday night’s race found Hamilton contending for a top-ten finish at the end of the night. The McDonald’s Team worked long and hard to improve the handling on Hamilton’s car over the 200 lap race. In the end, Hamilton dashed under the checkered flag for a 13th place finish. Hamilton remained in 7th place in the point’s championship, just 88 points out of fourth, 74 out of fifth and 69 behind sixth.
“We wanted to finish better here tonight and gain a few more points on some of these guys,” Hamilton said. “We are really looking forward to next Saturday night in Indianapolis. We need to leave there with a top five or top ten finish and head into the two road course races with some momentum.”
Watching the race live Bobby just didn't seem to have top ten equipment. It was evident he was racing hard. It appeared he drove an excellent race. The pit crew was excellent. Therefore, I am led to conclude that the Team Rensi equipment just isn't up to standard.
Falcon, How come none of the big teams haven't taken Bobby Jr under them ? He has shown with the right set under him he can drive with the best. I think its a click thing. Half of the rookies in that race never drove a busch car or they just got out of there PJs.
Bobby seems to be one of those guys who just can't catch a good break. Really honest, down to Earth sort of bloke but never gets the lucky chance you need to vault yourself into the spotlight.
Nice piece, Falcons, and glad you enjoyed the race.
Falcons: Lets take out the damed Busch wackers with their High dollar equipment that gobble up all the big buck winnings. Now lets see where he places. Ok, most inpressive considering he does not have the high dollar equipment the wackers have to race with. You can consider Ambrose and a few other drivers too in that category.
Hamilton does not fit in the clique group of racers born ith a silver spoon in their mouths. He and his dad earned their way the hard way with using what you could afford to race with. No deep pocketed sponsors and owners for them back then.
I really hope Hamilton can get some breaks soon. Certainly is a level headed driver and realistic about his chances. One of the few drivers left with down to earth personality.
Bobby had a chance to drive the #4 Kodak car for Morgan McClure in 2003 I'd say it was but wisely turned it down. He knew the team did not really have its act together because his dad had driven for them and he had driven several races for them in 2002 I believe it was. Still, it took guts to turn down the millions that went with the ride.
He had a great year in 2003 and no Cup ride emerged for him. Honestly, I believe his short fireplug like stature hurts him. He just is not a marketers dream. Unfortunately, today you have to drive the wheels off of the car and charm the pants off of the sponsors to get a top Nextel Cup ride.
Bobby, like his dad, is also apt to say what he thinks. It's gutsy, but doesn't always serve you well.
When late in 2004 the Tide ride became available, he knew it was probably his last shot and took the ride. He had his year in Cup in 2005. Unfortunately the team sucked. So now he has that horse collar around him too.
His best shot is a seat at Yates if he can show Robert he deserves it. Rensi runs Yates power and therefore has a relationship with Yates. So I am sure he has his eye on the 88. Unfortunately for Bobby, Stephen Leicht is doing really well as a Yates development driver and has the edge for the 88 seat at this time.
A bloke, yeah, that's the ticket, he's a good old bloke.
They interviewed Marcos during qualifying at the track. So I thought about you. They said something stupid to him about the barbie. But he took it in stride and said, yes and we always use Kinsford Charcoal. He is pretty smooth.
Thanks for the complement.
Photo and I are not interested in a race team. We are looking to buy up tracks and start our own league.
There is a caption the photo contest on the message board at bobbyhamiltonjr.com with a similar pick of Bobby and his lovely wife Stephanie if you would like to enter.
Yes Bobby and his dad were blue collar, grease under the fingernails type racers. Bobby Jr. probably didn't have it too bad though. When he first started Busch Racing he wasn't that good. I remember him and Adam Petty just sucking bad at one Busch race in St. Louis. They both stunk.
I am sure Bobby's dad helped him a lot. But as I watched him from year to year, he grew and he got better. That was awesome to see. I have really enjoyed watching some of these younger guys emerge like Hamilton, McMurray, Edwards and Bowyer.
"Falcons: Lets take out the damed Busch wackers with their High dollar equipment that gobble up all the big buck winnings. Now lets see where he places. Ok, most inpressive considering he does not have the high dollar equipment the wackers have to race with. You can consider Ambrose and a few other drivers too in that category."
I'm here to help.
The car is currently 13th in owners points. Out of the twelve cars ahead of him, nine are owned by Cup owners (three by Roush, two by RCR, one by Evernham, one by MWR, one by Gibbs and one by Ganassi).
The other cars ahead are Harvick's 33, which is fifth Todd Braun's 38, which is ninth, and Armando Fitz' 22, which is tenth. By my count, that is fourth out of 13 like cars (Busch only-owners, regardless of driver), which is pretty good. (And that DOESN'T include Ambrose, because he drives for the Wood Brothers, remember? High-dollar or not, they are still Cup owners.)
OTOH, the fact that his best finish in ANY race is ninth reflects poorly on that team. There are several Busch-only teams that have better finishes, like the 10 team which has finished third twice, and the Yates 90 that got a win at Kentucky.
I think the best way to judge how his year is going to put his finishes up against David Gilliland's in the 25. That team hasn't had any better finishes than the 35 (it's best result is a 10th-place finish), and head-to-head Bobby Jr. has 285 more points than Gilliand, although in finishes they are pretty even (Gilliland has beaten him 8 out of 15).
Last edited by JayJayDean on July 25th at 7:18 AM.
I think Bobby is a decent driver. Using my points he'd have won the 2003 Busch title instead of Brian Vickers. If he was in the 38 Cup car I'd suspect they would have more points but the same overall level of finishes.
Right now, he is unfortunately caught in this weird time in NASCAR. With the mainstays in Cup like Terry Labonte, Bill Elliott, Rusty Wallace, and Sterling Marlin moving on, it should by all rights be guys like Bobby Jr. and Jason Leffler, and Scott Wimmer, all in their early 30s, who have paid their dues in Busch and won races, moving into those rides. Unfortunately for them, NASCAR owners have largely skipped their generation and went right to guys like Reed Sorenson and Kyle Busch who are still in their early 20s.
Your welcome to help any time. Unlike some bloggers who think only they can answer questions on their post, I welcome comments from anyone and want to encourage that on my blogs.
Given the support Harvick probably gets from Childress, I would eliminate him too. That leaves Braun, Fitz and Rensi. I would think these three teams are the top three "Busch regular" teams. Don't be surprised if Sterling Marlin drives for Fitz next year if sponsorship can not be found to support an effort for Marlin at Furniture Row.
I agree that Rensi can not get top finishes. I wanted to cry Buschwackers on this post. But I could not. Jason Leffler finished fourth for Braun Racing. Todd Bodine finished tenth in Germain Racing's first Busch Series attempt ever.
Therefore I must conclude that Team Rensi can not prepare a fast car. They are reliable though. Consequently, the reliability of the car and ability of the driver to protect the equipment accumulates points in a system that rewards consistency.
Looking forward to the Busch race at IRP. It's always a great show there (better than the Cup show at the Brickyard - too flat a track and bad sight lines for a Cup race).
While I don't really follow Busch racing throughout the season, I've gotten interested in Bobby through your posts - will be pulling for him.
a 10 hr bus trip each way? dayum, that's a fan! A Nascar fan that can't drive...hmmm...I won't ask. But hey, 2 24oz beers for 16 bucks sounds like a helluva deal. How about I just send you 4 cases of pepsi lite and an autographed pic of Alyysa Milano? Would we be square?
So JJ what you are saying in a short summary, Hamilton would be farther ahead in points than most but not all of the other Busch regulars if the Cup drivers points were not counted???
I knew we could count on you to do the math part of this discussion.. Never was a bean counter myself.
I have commented on my situation before. I was sitting on the side of the freeway with my family in our van having a family meeting of some intensity when a vehicle with blue lights pulled off on the shoulder behind us.
I thought that if he was just pulling over to see if we needed any assistance that if I pulled off he might just leave us alone. Nope! Eluding! Loss of license for a year.
"So JJ what you are saying in a short summary, Hamilton would be farther ahead in points than most but not all of the other Busch regulars if the Cup drivers points were not counted???"
Hmmm, good question. I guess he'd be second behind Leffler, because you would basically be eliminating all of the top-10 in owners points except the 38. Except for the 90 team (in 20th) every other team in the top-20 has used a Cup driver at least some of the time.
JJ let me state that I appreciate your comments and quotes so there wil not be any missunderstandings. I personally do not like to see CUP drivers in Busch races any more.
It is sort of like the pro foot ball players going back and playing in the college foot ball leagues. Not really a point if you are a pro ball player. Why go back and play in the school leagues??
Love a good cop story. I'm guessing when you pulled back over, you got wrassled to the ground or tasered too.
If not for the family in the van, might have been a good stock car story, eh? I mean, if you're gonna get cited for eluding, might as well get your moneys worth.
"It is sort of like the pro foot ball players going back and playing in the college foot ball leagues. Not really a point if you are a pro ball player. Why go back and play in the school leagues??"
It isn't really like that at all, though.
1. Drivers earn a cut of the prize money no matter what they drive. More races = more $$$ in their pocket. Stick-and-ball sports pay their players to play for their one team, and that's it.
If an NFL player could make more money by playing in another game on a Wednesday, even if it was in a lower-level league, I'm pretty sure some of them would.
2. You cant run a car without a sponsor. Sponsors want the top guys. The top guys are Cup drivers. That's pretty much the way it is.
Look at the 20 car. Gibbs said Rockwell wanted Hamlin in the car for the whole year, and the team had to make the deal so Almirola could drive some races.
I'm pretty sure the owners would prefer that they didn't have to risk their Cup drivers in Busch races, but it's a necessary evil if you want a Busch team.
jj is welcome to comment here as much as he likes. I don't mind that. You and I just agree on this matter and he has a different opinion that he feels strongly about. That's all.
Falcons : A little reminder.. When the cops have the lights flashing DO NOT drive off. That is a NO NO and ticks the cops off..
JJ fine.. Just goes to show you. If it ain't one thing it is another. But I still think CUP drivers should stay in CUP and leave Busch for development drivers..
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