Back to the Beach. No, it's not vacation time yet. First we take care of some business on the high banks at Daytona. The Pepsi...er, Coke Zero 400 will have some fireworks of it's own Saturday night. Highlights and downlows...
I'm a big believer in a free market and survival of the fittest, but seeing Coke on this race instead of Pepsi is damn hard to get used to. Pepsi has been with NASCAR at Daytona since day one. About a half a century (HR13's got neckties that old). Of all the #### that Brian France has pulled, this irks me the most for some reason.
Some breaking news from earlier today (Thursday). Kurt Busch had the fastest time in Cup practice at Daytona. That would have been great, except he totaled the car and will go to the backup. MartinTruex Jr's #1 DEI Chevy failed inspection twice. NASCAR kept the car, and Truex, also will be in a backup. Randy Moss has bought half of Mogan Dollar Motorsports CTS team. It will be renamed Randy Moss Motorsports and sport #81 on the Chevy Silverados. Their first race will be at Kentucky in two weeks. Sponsors and divers will be announced soon. Excuse me if I don't hold my breath waiting on the sponsor announcement.
On to this week's silly season updates. Hendrick Motorsports has a press conference scheduled for noon Friday, July, 4. They will be announcing that Mark Martin will be driving the #5 HMS Chevy full time next year. Bad idea. Tony Stewart is scheduled to make his big announcement when NASCAR hits Indy later this month. Expect Tony to take over CNC HAAS Racing with Office Depot as a sponsor. RyanNewman is still rumored to be Tony's teammate/employee in the second car. I don't see that. These two do not get along at all.
Heard that General Mills wants Casey Mears in RCR's new fourth car, #33, next season. Petty Enterprises may have to drop one of their cars next year due to lack of sponsorship. But wait, Jamie McMurray may go to the #45 with a sponsor in his pocket. Or, Michael Waltrip may bring the one sponsor he'll have left, when his three car team goes under, to his best friend, Kyle Petty's team.
Aric Almirola has been named as the full time driver of DEI's #8 Cup car for next year. Double A, don't be surprised when you show up at Daytona next February, and you're the only one from DEI there. Current DEI driver, Paul Menard, may take his sponsor to #26 at RFR next year. Funny, his family's name is the same as his sponsor. BAM Racing says they'll be back with Ken Schrader driving at Indy. Guess when 43 or less cars show up, BAM can make a race.
New sponsor/paint schemes for this weekend. Kevin Harvick will be in an orange, Reece Cup Chevy Saturday night. Dale Earnhardt Jr's #88 HMS Chevy will have a special camo paint job to celebrate the 4th of July. Truex's #1 will have the new movie 'Swing Vote' on board . The #96 of J.J. Yeley also features a new movie, 'Journey to the Center ofthe Earth'. Polaroid will be on Reed Sorenson's #41. JamieMcMurray's car will have Irwin on it. Irwin was on the car last year when J Mac won this race. Don't expect lightning on Saturday night. KerryEarnhardt will be in the DEI #8 in the NNS race Friday night. Just wondering, is Kerry part of the Nation?
Chip Ganassi Racing shut down the #40 team this past week. Rookie driver Dario Franchitti is among the 70 some employees out on their ####. Lack of sponsor was the official cause of death. Chip has offered Dario a NNS ride, or become Chip's third driver in the IRL. That's a tough choice. Learn stock cars in a lower series, like he should have to start with, or go get shown up by Scott Dixon every week. On the bright side (besides Ashley) he's got a $30 million contract with Ganassi. So expect him to be somewhere in a Ganassi car.
Just like the other major racing series, it takes a tragedy for the NHRA to begin closing the barn door. After Scott Kalita's senseless death the NHRA is evaluating, and analyzing the implementation of potential changes. In the meantime they have reduced the race track length from 1/4 mile (1,320 ft) to 1,000 ft for Top Fuelers and Funny Cars. Do they really think Kalita would have survived if the track had been 320 feet shorter?
Finally, a holiday weekend right in the middle of the long hot summer. Thank you Continental Congress. Stay thirsty, and keep an extra fifth for the Fourth.
You've got questions, I've got answers. A look back at the major American racing series from the last weekend in June.
Q. Who would have won the Lenox 301 Cup race if it had not rained?
A. Kurt Busch. There were enough slow cars between he and Mears, Hamlin, and Stewart. There also would have been at least three cautions in the last 25 laps. Just like every other Cup race. Hard for cars to improve their posititions under caution.
Q. Why isn't Jr Nation calling for Jamie McMurray to be executed, or at least suspended?
A. They are more concerned with some backmarker standing up to that bully, Kyle Busch. Plus, they know deep down that Jr was at least partially to blame.
Q. You're crazy. How was it Jr's fault?
A. When coming into the pits the driver should be waving his hand going down the backstretch, and the car should be down on or below the line in between turns three and four. Jr did neither of these. He was trying to enter pit road at the last instant so he could keep his speed up for as long as possible. He pulled down out of the racing groove, and cut across J Mac who was running his line. Jr's spotter also deserves some of the blame.
Q. OK, who was at fault in the Juan Pablo/Kyle Busch clusterbomb?
A. That was a 50/50 deal. Two hard headed, hard driving, ####s. Both of them have never been wrong or caused a wreck. One of them is the Cup points leader though. While the other one will be looking for a job soon enough. JPM did get the last word in. Rowdy should leave it at that. Cut your losses when dealing with Juan. It's like wrestling a pig. You get all muddy, and the pig likes it.
Q. Did anyone not know that Casey Mears was getting the axe this year?
A. Yes, that same guy that actually thinks that Jamie McMurray will be back with Roush/Fenway next year.
Q. Who will win at Daytona Saturday night?
A. Tony Stewart will win. It's time. Heaven help anyone who gets in his way. Teammate or not.
Q. What was the IRL thinking by starting 26 cars at 3/4 mile Richmond International Raceway?
A. They must have thought that they could handle the 200+MPH laps, and that half the cars wouldn't crash out. Didn't happen, but they must have thought it.
Q. How was your first trip to Memphis Motorsports Park Saturday to watch the NASCAR CTS race?
A. It was fantastic. One of the finest facilities I've ever been to. I would recomend a visit to MMP for anyone. TV does not do it justice. Check it out when the NNS is there in October.
Welcome to the new game show that is taking the nation by storm, 'Name that Blogger'. It's easy to play. You get clues to identify your fellow bloggers. Clues go from easy to hard. Easy answers are worth 10 points. Hard answers are 25 points. Keep your own score at home, and no cheating.
Easy ones, 10 points apiece....
1. "Hello is this thing on?"..............Name thatBlogger!
2. He will blow up the comments on your blog with pics of hot women..........Name that Blogger!
3. She alledgedly burnt down her own kitchen............Name that Blogger!
4. USC Superfan. Bigger Homer than Marge's husband..........Name that Blogger!
5. Tony Stewart/Joey Logano would be her perfect man/boy..........Name that Blogger!
I told you they were easy. The clues, not the women bloggers. Ready for some harder ones? Here we go, 25 points apiece......
6. "Thank you. Try the veal, I'll be here all week."............Name that Blogger!
7. This blogger's screen name could be mistaken for the city of Chicago's nickname............Name that Blogger!
8. This blogger with the quirky middle initial reps the new Title Town.........Name that Blogger!
9. This folically challenged blogger has been MIA for a few months..........Name that Blogger.
10. The incredible shrinking blogger................Name that Blogger!
11. Oh God, not another contest..............Name that Blogger!
12. Simply the best..............Name that Blogger!
Special, and I do mean special, bonus clue for 50 points......
Bonus. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!?????????...............Name that Blogger!
We have one last clue as a potential tie-breaker. It's a visual clue, and it's worth 100 points.......
Tie Breaker.
.............Name that Blogger!
How'd you do sportsfans? There were a possible 400 points, including the bonus clue. Plus 100 for the tie-breaker. If we still have a tie, there will be a sudden death playoff Name that Blogger.
***Note: this is an entry into Jokerswild's humor contest, so don't get your granny panties in a ####. If you can't take a joke just think about what your significant other has to put up with on a daily basis.***
Anyone else out there hungover from NASCAR's yearly trek to wine country? With Sonoma in our rear view mirror we cross the country once again for the show in Loudon, NH. Highlights and downlows, with that New England flavuh.
NASCAR's TV ratings have been up all year. Until now, that is. Last week's race broadcast on TNT from Sonoma was down 8% from last year. Kyle Busch stinking up the show could have had something to do with that. Then again, TNT is terrible. They need to find a way to fill time during those long #### caution laps at Infineon besides commercials.
Jeff Burton has four wins at Loudon to lead all drivers. Burton has 16 top 15 finishes in 16 races this year. His #31 Chevy will be sporting special colors and sponsorship from Lenox this week.
Other sponsor news for New Hampshire. The Boston Red Sox will be splashed all over the #6 of David Ragan. Will Smith's new action movie, 'Hancock', will be featured on Elliott Sadler's Dodge. Robby Gordon is apparently sponsorless again this week. Last week he picked up Camping World at the last minute. Marcos Ambrose makes his first oval start in a Cup car driving the #21 Honey Buns Ford. Carl Edwards will pilot the Under Armor #60 in the NNS race on Saturday.
There have been reports that DEI may shut down the #01 team of ReganSmith due to lack of sponsorship. I haven't heard any rumors as to who will buy DEI at fire sale prices, but rest assured it will happen, sooner rather than later. Martin Truex Jr. is looking for a lifeboat to jump on. Other teams are courting Paul Menard, and Mark Martin. Nice legacy you're destoying there, Theresa. Maybe Mr. Hendrick will help Dale Jr. put the E back in DEI.
Silly Season never ends. Several drivers are waiting to see where the dominoes fall before they resign with their current teams, or move to greener pastures. Tony Stewart is keeping the other free agent drivers in park until he announces his plans. Greg Biffle, Ryan Newman, MarkMartin, Martin Truex Jr, JamieMcMurray, and Casey Mears are all waiting for a Smoke signal. Ouch. These drivers have one thing in common. With the exception of Newman's lone win, none of the drivers listed has a victory this year.
Kyle Busch has finished in the top 5 in half of his starts at Loudon. Which leads us to stat of the week...Rowdy has led 17.45% of all laps in the Cup series this year. Everybody loves a winner. No?
Continuing on with beloved drivers, Danica Patrick is under fire from fellow driver Scott Dixon. At the last IRL race in Iowa, Dixon said Danica was a "menace" on the track. She replied that she doesn't care what Dixon or her fellow competitiors think as long as, "I have the respect of my teammates and that, to be honest, is the only thing important to me." All righty then.
Formula One added a new race to next year's schedule. Abu Dhabi gets a race, but the greatest country in the world is still not on the schedule. Brilliant idea alert...Forget Indy. Work on bringing F-1 to Daytona for a night race on the road circuit during October. I'd even settle for a Miami street course F-1 race.
Finally, online voting is underway for drivers to the Talladega-Texaco Walk of Fame. In the active driver category Bobby Labonte is leading Ken Schrader and Mike Waltrip. Go here http://www.talladegawalk.com/ to place your votes. Only one vote per day, Moseby. They also have a category for inactive drivers. One of each will be inducted in October.
Well, we're waiting. We're still waiting for the Busch bashers to try and explain away Kyle Busch's win Sunday as luck, or dirty driving, or a fluke, or something. Instead all we hear are crickets chirping. Could this be the performance that finally opens everyone's eyes?
I'll be the first to admit that I never saw this one coming. Never expected the rowdy one to lay the wood to a road course. Come on now, how many of you did? How many of you had him on your fantasy team this week? Not me.On a day when the road race ringers stayed busy hitting each other and running off the road, Rowdy got busy. Rowdy got his race on. Rowdy stepped it up.
At a track where he had one top 10 in his three previous starts, most fans expected the points leader to play it safe. Instead he goes out and leads 78 of 112 laps. At a road course, no less. 112 laps. 11 turns per lap. Left hand and right hand turns, at that. No mistakes. Where was the reckless 'wild child' that the haters love to hate?
This performance was so dominating, on a track where he wasn't expected to contend at, that it served notice to everyone that Busch is the man to beat this year. Of course anything can happen in that contrived Chase for the Championship, but it appears that the other eleven drivers will be contending for second place.
NASCAR goes NO CAL this weekend. Ah yes, Northern California, they've got your deadheads, they've got your potheads, and for this week only, they've even got your Saidheads. Stay tuned to this site all weekend for live updates from the lovely and talented, Kristen Valus. She promises to throw the Fox Sports gang sign from Victory Lane if Kurt Busch wins. Highlights and downlows......
Rusty Wallace is an ####. After Dale Earnhardt Jr's win last Sunday Rusty stated that the #88 team is not "championship caliber". Compared to what, Rusty? He has as many top 10s as anyone. That's how you win championships. After winning at Michigan, on Father's Day, Lil E dedicated the victory to his Daddy and all the Dads at DEI and HMS. Funny how he mentioned DEI first.
There are always driver changes for the road courses, but it doesn't seem like as many this year as in previous seasons. Ron Fellows sits in for Regan Smith in the #01. Good guy, Marcos Ambrose, is in the Honey Buns #21. Reed Sorenson is out Sunday for Scott Pruett in the #41 Dodge. Max Papis takes over the #66 for Scott Riggs, who in turn pilots the #70 for the same team, CNC HAAS. I guess they couldn't find a replacement driver who would climb in the #70. Riggs DNQed here last year in the #10.
Boris Said will be back behind the wheel of his #60. From the "it's a damn shame" department, Robby Gordon has no sponsor this week. He led the most laps at this race last year, and now can't get a sponsor. Coolest sponsor of the week...CHP...Travis Kvapil's #28 Ford is designed like, and sponsored by the California Highway Patrol. Supposed to help with their recruiting drive. Travis is Jon, so I guess JPM would have to be Ponch?
Caterpillar has left BDR for RCR effective next season. CAT will be on the hood of Jeff Burton's #31, as A####mp;T leaves. CAT was with Bill Davis for 10 years, and was the sponsor for Jeff's brother, Ward, when he won the Daytona 500, and the Southern 500. Also hearing that Army probably won't renew their year to year deal with DEI. They're talking with Mike Waltrip Racing, or could be part of a new Tony Stewart team.
Joey Logano became the youngest NNS winner ever last Saturday at Kentucky Speedway. I hear his fan club is based somewhere in Alabama. Kyle Busch announced this week that he will not run every NNS race this year after all. Somehow I think these last two items have something to do with each other.
Chrissy Wallace makes her second CTS start at Milwaukee this weekend in the #03 Toyota. Landon Cassill and Colin Braun both are running the NNS and CTS double at Milwaukee. This is a nice, safe, track, where these three youngsters should get a chance to show what they can do.
The best actual NASCAR quotes from the weekend. Along with my commentary to help the Kool-Aid drinkers figure them out.
This first one is the best NASCAR quote of the season so far. Tony Stewart's response to a question after the Michigan Cup race on Sunday.....
"Ask Mike Helton. I don't know what we're allowed to say....It's just a priviledge for us to be here and according to (a closed door meeting) Friday, we've all got it a lot better than a lot of us think. We're not allowed to have opinions now....We've all got it great. At least that is what we've been told."
NASCAR only thought they wanted their subject's honest opinions. Four months of letting the drivers 'keep it real' was a long time for NASCAR to bite their tongue. Was it a coincidence that NASCAR cracked down on honesty right after the lawsuit came out?
*
Jeff Burton on NASCAR being diverse and welcoming....
"Whether we've had success at that or not, I don't know."
Which is worse, to lie and claim not to know if NASCAR is diverse, or to lie and claim that, yes, they are diverse? Or, should you just tell the well-known truth that they're not?
*
NASCAR spokesflunkie, Jim Hunter, had an interesting take on Dale Jr. passing the pace car......
the driver must maintain a "reasonable speed" under caution. "It's a judgement call."
Well, that certainly settles it. Can't argue with that brilliant explaination as to whether or not it's legal to EVER pass the pace car.
*
Dale Jr. on being pushed to Victory Lane....
"It might have cranked, I thought it would be a better story to be out of gas."
Hmmmm. With that kind of gas mileage, go on and count on 3 or 4 more wins for Jr. this year.
*
New kid in town Joey Logano....
"I expected to win here. I have to win races. (Losing) is not even an option."
Oh yeah, he sounds a lot more mature than Kyle.
*
Kyle Busch on Ron Hornaday....
"I just got into him. Sorry about that."
What an ####. Always has to make everything about himself.
*
Ron Hornaday on Kyle Busch....
'I don't know if I have to give up this championship to teach him a lesson. I hope I don't hurt him."
Wow, if only Horny was 23 years old, we could say he was an immature brat, who only thinks of himself.
Another short edition of Right Sides Only. I've tried to post a longer version but it will not go through. So, just a couple of thoughts on the bombshell stories from earlier this week. Sorry, no Jamie McMurray updates, but if you search the NASCAR category I'm sure you can find 10 or 12 this week.
Petty Enterprises has sold a majority interest to an investment group, Boston Ventures. This is the best thing that could happen to the Pettys if they want to stay in racing. The Pettys have shown over the last two decades that they have no clue how to run a winning race organization. They always were famous for taking big money from their sponsors and putting little of it towards winning. The playing field changed in the early 1980s, and they didn't change with it. I'm surprised that they have survived this long.
All the other teams that want to survive have had to go to outside investors. When even Jack Roush had to do it that served as a wake up call to any others who had not done it yet. I believe Richard Childress was the first to do this. About 4 or 5 years ago RCR sold off a large minority percentage of itself to outside interests. It remains to be seen if this will be good for NASCAR or not.
I'm already sick of reading about it, but I'll throw my oppinion out there as to Mauricia Grant and her $225 million lawsuit. I feel that NASCAR has to settle this out of court and quickly. There is no way for NASCAR to come away from this smelling good. Her lawyers know that. I'm not saying who is right, and who is wrong. I don't have the facts. I do know the Duke lacrosse team went through a couple of years of hell just because of public perception. No facts were needed. NASCAR will go through much worse.
At the very least, NASCAR is once again viewed as a bunch of backwards ####, ####, hillbillies. Some of the posts I've read on Grant do nothing but confirm that as fact. People, no matter what we think, we don't know all the facts. NASCAR management does not look very professional at all if only one of her claims is true. In today's business world you have to be professional. You have to keep detailed records and reviews of your employees. You must have documentation that shows how you reacted to your employee's concerns.
This will be my only post on Grant, unless another bombshell happens. We can argue this to death, but it doesn't matter, unless NASCAR does have all that documentation, they're going down.
Welcome to the snooze button edition of RSO. We're in Pocono, and we promise to wake you back up every eight minutes. Please keep your hands and arms inside at all times, as we're passing those safer barriers at over 200 miles per hour. I'm on vacation, so this will be a rain-shortened entry. Highlights, downlows.
We bid the gopher network a heartfelt AMF, as TNT takes over the Cup broadcasts for the next six weeks. Kyle Petty gets to do the job he was born to do----we already know what he wasn't born to do----analyze the races from a rear-of-the-field perspective. For some reason TNT is introducing it's own cartoon character, Race Buddy. Russian roulette, anyone?
Tony Stewart won his own charity race Wednesday night. Then he presented Kyle Petty with a million dollar check for the Victory Junction Gang Camp. Denny Hamlin has led 40% of the total laps in the four races he has ran in Pocono. Jason Leffler will attempt to qualify the CNC #70, again. Attempt is the key word. Robby Gordon has no sponsor on his car this week. Dario Franchitti makes his Cup return this Sunday. Welcome back, Ash.
Jeff Burton has been in the top 12 in Cup points for the last 77 weeks. Two RFR drivers, Greg Biffle and Jamie McMurray, make their 200th Cup starts at Pocono. Regan Smith and Sam Hornish are tied in the Rookie of the Year standings. Tery Labonte brings his past champion's provisional to the moonlighting Kyle Petty's #45. Why Terry, why?
Penske sponsor, Altell, has agreed to a purchase offer from Verizon. NASCAR has a rule about new communications companies sponsoring Cup cars. Altell is currently grandfathered in. No word on how this may affect Ryan Newman's #12 Dodge. Little help, KLV?
Jeff Gordon tested at Pocono last week. When asked about the new car's stability, he said he hasn't felt so uncomfortable in a car since his rookie year. Great. 500 miles at Pocono is already about 100 or 200 too many.
Attention Busch bashers, Public Enemy #Won*, Kyle Busch, will attempt---not the key word---to become the first driver to race in all three of NASCAR's major series, on different tracks, in one weekend. Rowdy starts Friday deep in the heart of Texas in the #51 CTS entry. Then he'll be strumming along in Nashville, Saturday in the NNS event. Sunday, he heads for the mountains in the M&Ms Most Colorful Fan Toyota in the Pocono Cup race.
Ashley Force
Finally, the NHRA has produced three first time winners in different classes this year. Don't yawn, they're all women. Ashley Force won in Funny Car back in April. Melanie Troxel already had four Top Fuel wins when she won in a Funny Car in May. Hillary Will became the NHRA's fastest woman last week when she made a winning Top Fuel pass at 334.65. That's MPH, not KPH. I love fast women.
*thanks, Yee Mum
***I really am on vacation, with a crappy wi-fi connection, so if I dont reply to your comments, please know that most of them are appreciated. You know which ones you are.***
We have seen a lot of Toyota bashing and whining on these pages all year. I wasn't here last year, but I wonder if the anti-Toyota outcry was quite as loud when Toyota wasn't winning. Or, is most of the blubbering because Kyle Busch is winning races that their favorite driver can't win? They aren't man or woman enough to admit that Busch is beating their drivers through skill and guts, so it must be the make of car. They paid off NASCAR, their engines make too much horsepower, cry me a frickin' river.
It never gets old, does it?
Busch started the season hot, and he's stayed hot all year. Some of you can't believe he's still the man to beat every week. So you started attacking him personally. His ears are big, he's mean to his crew, nothing's ever his fault, he won't appologize, he's arrogant, wah, wah, wah. He kept on winning, and none of the above has any effect on his driving skills, by the way. Damn! It must be the car. Yeah, Toyota's engines---that are the SAME SIZE as everyone else's---make too much horsepower. Just another rumor, probably started by the #### in the Hat.
So, I did some research on Toyota's supposed advantage. The only advantage Toyota has is that Kyle Busch is driving for them. The numbers are below. Some of you Clemson and Va Tech grads may need to get a 12 year old to help you figure them out.
Who's number One?
Toyota has 5 total wins with Kyle. Only 2 if they didn't have Kyle. I moved Tony Stewart up from 2nd place at Atlanta to account for a Toyota win if Kyle hadn't been racing. Without Kyle, Dodge goes from 2 wins to 3. Chevy stays at 3, and Ford goes from 3 to 5 wins. Two out of the other three makes would have more wins if Kyle Busch had never been born.
There are four manufacturers in the NASCAR Cup series. The regular season is halfway over. Wouldn't it be fair if all four makes had around 25% of the top five finishes so far? There have been 65 top five finishes to date. Toyota has 17 of them, or 26%. Take away Busch's 9 top fives and big, bad, Toyota only has 12%. Top 10s are similar. Toyota 22% this year with Kyle, 12% without him.
It isn't Toyota folks. It's a one man gang named Kyle Busch that's ruining your NASCAR season. It's probably going to get a lot worse for you fans of other drivers before it gets better. As a not-so-great American once said, "I feel your pain." So sit back and enjoy the show the kid's putting on. It doesn't happen every year.
Howdy, race fans. All three of NASCAR's national touring series are in Dover at the Monster Mile this weekend. RSO has picked up a new sponsor this week---Cowboy Wayne the Rodent Wrangler. Wayne is a specialist in gopher extermination. So if you have any pesky gophers popping up on your TV give him a call. Highlights and downlows? OK.
Congrats to Dale Earnhardt Jr. He makes his 300th consecutive Cup start this weekend. He has one win and four top fives at Dover in 16 Cup starts. Jr is also part of a remarkable streak at Hendrick. At least one HMS car has finished in the top ten in 77 straight Cup races.
Be patient, Nation, be patient
A few driver updates for Dover. Jeremey Mayfield gets a start in the #40 Dodge. While the 40's regular driver, Dario Franchitti, is scheduled to be in the Nationwide race Saturday. Jason Leffler will be in The HAAS Racing #70 this week. Robby Gordon will miss Cup practice and qualifying on Saturday, as he will be way out West in the Baja 500. Kyle Busch is pulling triple duty, racing in all three series at Dover. ChadMcCumbee is in the #45 for Kyle Petty as KP takes his annual seven race summer vacation. Just what we need in Charleston, seven weeks of Kyle holding up traffic on the way to his Isle of Palms beach house.
Craftsman Truck Series TV ratings on SPEED TV were up 41% over last year at LMS. Their year to date ratings are up 18%. I don't believe Mike Waltrip has been on every CTS broadcast this year, and the ones he has been on, I've noticed he's turned his schtick down a notch or twenty. Taking notes, F__TV?
The Monster Mash
Twenty of the 33 starters at Indy this year were foreign born. Not a great trend when trying to build your brand on American TV. Joe GibbsRacing, among others, are reaching out to Juan Pablo Montoya about filling a seat for them next year. No one can say that JGR hires robots to drive their cars. Paul Tracy was scheduled to test a truck for GermainRacing on May, 28 at Chicagoland Speedway.
Finally, the Cup race Sunday will mark the halfway point of their regular season, leaving 13 more to go before the Chase begins. So, here's a little RSO poll.........
What is the biggest surprise in the 1st half of the Cup season so far...
A. Dale Jr and Jeff Gordon being winless so far?
B. Kyle Busch's breakout season, and points lead?
C. Two JGR drivers have won races, and Smoke isn't one of them?
Q. Why have some NASCAR teams had wheels, and, or lugnuts coming loose in the last few races?
A. I'm no metallurgist, or engineer of any kind, but I have stayed at a Holiday Inn Express. Seriously, I will be the first to blame the offset body setups that a lot of teams have been using with the COT. I'm concluding that the crab walking the cars do, puts undue strain on the weaker parts of the drive line. All the way down to the wheels and lugnuts. I also will say that the special sway bar that Jack Roush got his knickers twisted over was developed especially for the crab walk setup.
Q. Why didn't F--TV show any of the replays that NASCAR supposedly used as evidence to overturn it's original penalty of DaleEarnhardt Jr?
A. I don't know. It's like when the Pro Wrestling 'commissioner' says he's overturning a referee's decision for no apparent reason. I really am glad that it was the #88 car, and not the #18. I couldn't handle all the whining.
Q. What will the penalty be for Danica Patrick leaving her car and walking down pit road, during the race, to confront another team?
A. Penalty? Danica Patrick? HaaaaHaaaaaHaaaa! You are kidding,right? She has laid her hands on at least three other drivers during her 3+ years in the IRL. Penalties to date...ZERO.
Q. OK, smartass, how would you handle Danica if she approached you like some batshit crazy, soap-opera princess?
A. Hopefully I would have a supply of plastic drink bottles at hand. Then spray her in the face with them when she tried to get in my face. She might as well share in the embarrassment that she usually tries to give to the other drivers with her temper tantrums.
Q. How did Petty Enterprises have one driver finsh 11th, on the lead lap, and have their other driver finish 11 laps down?
A. The other driver was Kyle Petty.
Q. Did you know that the 50 caution laps at LMS were the least in the last six races there?
A. Uh, no I didn't.
Q. I bet you heard an interesting story about Wlliam Grover, the first Monaco Grand Prix winner?
A. OK, since you asked. Grover was a spy for the Allies in WWII. He was captured behind enemy lines, and executed by the ####s. He was one of millions, we remembered on this Memorial Day weekend, who made the ultimate sacrifice.
It's the biggest weekend in motorsports. Racing from the most historic racing venues on earth this holiday weekend. Indianapolis, Charlotte, Monaco, and Mansfield, OH. As always this column is Digger free. Let's drop the rag. Highlights, downlows.
Ongoing scientific studies are showing that race car drivers are probably born, not made. Scientists involved in these studies are saying that racers have a complex combination of intelligence, certain inherited brain chemicals and also can be influenced by their environment. They are saying race champions breed champions. I suppose Kyle Petty is the exception that proves the rule?
The Labontes, championship DNA
H. A. 'Humpy' Wheeler has been forced out at Speedway Motorsports Inc. He announced his departure will be effective after Sunday night's race at LMS. He was the Chief Opperating Officer for SMI, and was also the President there since 1980. Wheeler and SMI Chairman and founder, Bruton Smith, have not gotten along for several years. Bruton is the Jerry Jones of NASCAR, while Wheeler was his Jimmy Johnson---the coach, not driver---. Apparently Smith wants his son, Marcus Smith, to take over for Wheeler. Wheeler did more to keep NASCAR alive and relevant than anyone during the 1970s, 80s, and 90s.
NASCAR is saying "that's enough boys." The crab walking down the straightaways is being reeled in a little. Some teams had been offsetting their car's rear ends as much as two degrees. NASCAR is ruling that one degree will be the max. Expect new rules to take effect in 2-3 weeks. Two degrees? It sure looked like a helluva lot more.
AFLAC has signed on with RFR to sponsor Carl Edwards' #99 Ford. The deal is reportedly worth 78 million over three years. Why does my insurance go up every year, and I've never used it? Which is worse, a talking duck, or some horse-face doing back flips?
All the years of Gymboree paid off
Kyle Busch's souvenir sales are up 40% at trackside vendors from last year. His sales have skyrocketed from 26th place last year to 7th this year. Plenty of room left on the bandwagon. Everybody loves a winner. Kyle is making even more new fans by the way he plays along with the fans as they boo him. The theatrical bows, the cupped ear, the raise the roof gestures. This will work in his favor better than if he tried to ignore the boos. Some related fallout over Kyle being Public Enemy # Won, is that his brother, Kurt Busch is getting no reaction from the crowds now. At the intoductions before the All-Star race Kurt had a bewildered look on his mug, as if he couldn't believe it. No boos, no nothing.
IRL points leader, Helio Castroneves, is fanning some rumors of him going NASCAR racing. He says he's giving it some thought, and would listen to any offers. Sounds as if someone wants their contract renegotiated.
Derrick Cope's twin nieces were to make their CTS debuts at Mansfield this weekend, but Cope has since withdrawn his two entries for that race. Maybe soon.
Topless girl on the yacht, at two o'clock high
Finally, with all the racing and other recreational activities that we enjoy it's easy to forget why we have a three day weekend this week. The next time you see a veteran tell him or her thank you. If you're out this weekend and see a member of our armed forces, pick up their dinner check, or buy them a round. Just remember..."This is the Land of the Free, because of The Brave!"
All-American
Note: no gophers were harmed, injured, maimed, or killed while making this blog. Unfortunately.
Did anyone out there think that the Sprint All-Star race was even a little bit exciting? Me neither. The Challenge transfer race was not bad, but the drivers, for the most part, don't have the same skill set as the drivers in the All-Star race do. What's the racing going to be like Sunday night during the 600? My one word answer would be boring, based on the All-Star race. I'm on a streak right now of wrong on my predictions, so the 600 might be pretty good.
Last Saturday night it seemed like we had regressed back to those boring days of yesteryear when 'clean air' was the buzzword. It looked like the driver who was out front was much faster than those trying to reel him in. I don't mean just Kyle Busch. Anyone who happened to get the lead was hard to catch, and hard to pass.
The All-Star race only had 25 lap segments. How strung out will the field be after 40-50 green flag laps Sunday? 600 miles at LMS is a loooong race. Especially if there is no racing up front (where a certain network's cameras will be 99% of the time).
A few questions for the commenters before I close......If the racing is as boring as Han thinks it will be, how many 'debris' cautions will fly?.....How many times will the network All-Star team in the booth use the words 'clean air'? Out of the 400 laps, how many will I sleep through?
You are looking live at Lowes Motor Speedway. Well, not really, but just imagine Brent Mussburger saying it. This Saturday night, the SprintAll-Star Race, and the Sprint Showdown will be coming live from LMS. The All-Star Race guarantees excitement and controversy every year. Highlights and downlows to follow.
A little something new this year as part of the All-Star Race pre-show festivities. It's called the Pennzoil Victory Challenge. It is a burnout contest between five Cup drivers. This could either be huge, or fall flat. I think it'll be good. Maybe better in person than on TV. The five drivers and my comments and odds of winning......
Kevin Harvick, even odds. Harvick is the straightline burnout King in NASCAR. Even though this contest will include two donuts, I still say Happy is the man to beat.
Kyle Busch, 5 to1. Busch is lucky that fan reaction won't be part of the score. The score is based on time, with penalties resulting in time deductions. KB does do impressive burnouts though, and faster than Harvick's.
Jimmie Johnson, 20 to 1. JJ certainly has experience at LMS doing victory burnouts.
Greg Biffle, 30 to 1. The Biff doesn't get to practice his burnouts as much as he once did.
Clint Bowyer, 45 to 1. Bowyer has the least victory burnout experience of the group, and he wrecked during the press conference last month, while doing a burnout , to announce this competition.
Comment on your fave, and watch the contest at 6:15, Saturday, on SPEED TV.
Dale Jarrett makes his last NASCAR start in the All-Star Race Saturday night. Let's hope he doesn't get pulled back in by a team desparate for his past champion's provisional.
The All-Star Race is where teams started using special paint schemes to sell more die cast cars. This year's event will feature plenty of special paint jobs. Dale Earnhardt Jr. will race a gray and black Army NationalGuard Chevy. Others with special schemes include, Kevin Harvick, Denny Hamlin, Greg Biffle, and Matt Kenseth.
Dale Jr attended a special event at the Hard Rock Cafe's amusement park in Myrtle Beach, SC May 8th before practice at Darlington. He was asked about Kyle Busch and the incident from five days earlier. Jr said he and Kyle are not friends and do not respect each other on the track. He also said he hopes Kyle will keep from overdriving his car if that situation comes up again. He didn't think Kyle tried to wreck him, and that he (Jr) might have done the same thing if it was the other way around.
Finally, TonyStewart was in Memphis, TN this past Monday night, at Graceland, with his radio show. He raised money for charities and made a little boy's wish come true. He doesn't want anyone to know this. Afraid it might ruin his image.
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