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Sunday, May 3, 2009

Keselowski in Phoenix Racing car at All-Star event: Phoenix Racing plans to field a car for Brad Keselowski in the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race in two weeks, crew chief Marc Reno said Saturday at Richmond International Raceway. Keselowski became eligible for the main event when he won the Aaron’s 499 last week at Talladega Superspeedway. Although he won in a Phoenix Racing car, Keselowski indicated Friday that he wasn’t sure who would enter a car for him in the all-star event. But Hendrick Motorsports Vice President Doug Duchardt said Saturday that Hendrick would not field a fifth car in the event for Keselowski. NASCAR spokesman Kerry Tharp said that the team could have a fifth car since it was a non-points event and it would not count against Keselowski’s seven races for the team as a development driver. Phoenix Racing had hoped to buy a car from Hendrick Motorsports for the race, but the re-certification process would take too long, Reno said. Instead, Phoenix will use the car that it had planned to use for Keselowski at Richmond. Keselowski’s Nationwide team wanted him to concentrate on that series because it was a one-day show Friday, so Mike Bliss competed in the Cup event Saturday.(SceneDaily.com)

Army official defends NASCAR sponsorship: The U.S. Army will pay Stewart-Haas Racing $11.6 million to sponsor Ryan Newman's No. 39 car for 23 races this season, and the Army official who oversees it says the money is worth it. Army and National Guard were the only branches of the military that served as primary sponsors for cars in Saturday's NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Richmond International Raceway. Lt. Gen. Benjamim Freakley said the Army looks at different ways to determine if the sponsorship is worthwhile but admits it comes down to one thing. "At the end of the day, for the Army, it's does someone join the Army or not," Freakley said. He said 41 people agreed Saturday at the Army's booth at the track to be interviewed by an Army recruiter. "That's powerful," Freakley said. Army sponsorship is a year-to-year agreement. Because Congress controls the money that goes to the military, the budget can fluctuate from year to year. That, Freakley says, makes it challenging to do multi-year deals. He said he won't know his budget until this summer. He said he and his group have started to assess the sponsorship and what they want to do for 2010 but no decisions have been made. (Hampton Roads)

Saturday, May 2, 2009

Chrysler tells Penske support will continue: Roger Penske denied on Saturday a report that Chrysler will pull its support from NASCAR after this season. The Sports Illustrated report came on Friday after Chrysler announced it would file for bankruptcy protection and form a partnership with Italian automaker Fiat SpA. "Chrysler guys contacted us and said they were going to continue to support NASCAR," said Penske, the owner of Penske Racing and several Chrysler dealerships. "Hopefully, they can do that based on what the government allows them to do. We're cautiously optimistic right now.'" (ESPN.com)

Dodge to pull out of NASCAR? Interesting story being reported by Sports Illustrated's Lars Anderson about a possible Chyrsler pull out of NASCAR.... Chrysler was quick to issue a statement on Thursday reaffirming their commitment to NASCAR. "NASCAR is a strategic part of our marketing plan and the Dodge brand," said Mike Accavitti, Chrysler's director of brand marketing and strategy for Dodge motor sports. "We plan to continue our Dodge sponsorship and relationship for the foreseeable future." But how long, exactly, is the foreseeable future? Several people I talked to involved with NASCAR on Friday morning, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, strongly believed that Chrysler would pull its NASCAR funding in 2010. (The company already slashed its motor sports budget by 30 percent this year.) Then the question would become this: What would happen to the seven teams that Dodge supports? (SI.com)

David Poole honored by NMPA with Spirit Award: David Poole is the first quarter recipient of the National Motorsports Press Association Spirit Award for his efforts to help a family burdened by medical bills. The award comes three days after Poole died of a heart attack. The NMPA Spirit Award is designed to recognize character and achievement in the face of adversity, sportsmanship and contributions to motorsports. Each year, quarterly winners are selected, and an overall winner is determined by a vote of the NMPA membership. The 2009 overall winner will be announced during the NMPA's annual convention and awards ceremony in January 2010. Also receiving votes were Denny Hamlin and Bristol Motor Speedway. Poole, who wrote for The Charlotte Observer, started the foundation called Pennies for Wessa after writing a story about Wessa Miller in February 2008. Miller, who suffers from spina bifida, gave Dale Earnhardt a penny that he attached to the car’s dashboard before he won the 1998 Daytona 500. After the story, Poole kept in contact with the family, saw their struggles and sought to help them. The program and family gained more attention in March at Bristol when Miller and her family were invited to the track. The NASCAR Foundation held an online auction with proceeds going to Pennies for Wessa. Along with contributions from those in the sport, more than $10,000 was raised.(NMPA PR)

Jeff Gordon comments on MRI: During Friday's Q&A with media members at Richmond International Raceway, Jeff Gordon commented on his recent MRI.. "I had another MRI, one that was more detailed this week and I've got some information that I'm just not ready to release yet or admit to yeah we found some things and have a better diagnosis of it. When I know how I'm going to treat it I'll let you guys know. I don't believe it's anything serious. It's just something that's causing the pain. There's a little bit of arthritis which is not totally unnatural but there's also some other things that come from what they can understand from trauma or a crash or maybe just years of beating it up. Heck I don't know I might have picked up my luggage or something and then tore something up in there. So I don't know, but we have a better diagnosis of it and I've got some experts that are giving me all the best scenarios."(GM Racing PR)

Friday, May 1, 2009

Newman: Small gain made in Goodyear Tires test: Ryan Newman said he got a maximum of 18 laps on a set of tires during Wednesday's test that also included Matt Kenseth, Kasey Kahne and Brian Vickers. Goodyear is hoping to get that number to the 32 needed for a full fuel run. "Last week it was 10 laps," Newman said. "So it was a gain in number of laps." (ESPN.com)

Edwards, Roush met with NASCAR concerning Edwards remarks: Carl Edwards and his team owner, Jack Roush, met with NASCAR officials Thursday in Daytona Beach, Fla., to discuss Sunday's race at Talladega Superspeedway and Edwards' comments afterward. "I guess we'll do this until someone gets killed and then we'll change it," Edwards said after his car got airborne and hit the catch-fence between the track surface and grandstands, injuring several spectators. "It was really a good talk, and I think that we're all on the same page and that we want to do whatever we can to make these races as safe as they can be for everybody - the fans and the drivers and all that," Edwards said Friday at Richmond Inernational Raceway. (ThatsRacin.com)

Keselowski evaluating next year's options: Brad Keselowski wants to race full-time next season in the Sprint Cup Series, he's just not sure where he'll find the seat. His first choice, he said Friday, is Hendrick Motorsports. NASCAR's newest Cup winner is exclusively negotiating with Hendrick on a long-term contract. He currently races full-time in the Nationwide Series for JR Motorsports, and has a developmental deal with Hendrick that runs through the end of the year. "The key part of it is to stick with what got you where you're at," Keselowski said at Richmond International Raceway. "Having competitive cars and support from Hendrick Motorsports is what got me to Victory Lane at Talladega."It's hard to run from that, but at the same time there isn't a clear opportunity. So we have to see how that works out." (AP)

Teams plan to carry decal honoring David Poole: Several NASCAR Sprint Cup teams are carrying logos honoring the late David Poole this weekend at Richmond International Raceway. The four Hendrick Motosports cars are carrying a logo that has "DCP" for David Carl Poole and is in Carolina blue in honor of his alma mater, the University of North Carolina, in remembrance of the reporter who covered NASCAR for The Charlotte Observer and also hosted a program on Sirius XM Satellite Radio. Stewart-Haas Racing’s cars are also carrying a decal honoring the writer. The logo on the Stewart-Haas cars reads, “In Memory of David Poole 1959-2009” and includes images of a fountain pen and a microphone. Cars for Roush Fenway Racing, Penske Racing and Richard Childress Racing are among others also carrying decals.(SceneDaily.com)

MRI results for Jeff Gordon shows he's suffering from arthritis: Jeff Gordon says his back is still bothering him and the four-time series champion had an MRI this week. Gordon says doctors found a bit of arthritis and possible trauma from past racing accidents. But he says he's not ready to reveal any more details about his back until a proper treatment plan has been set. At this point, Gordon says he doesn't believe the problem is too serious. (AP/ESPN.com)

Biffle expects seamless change from Roush to Yates: Roush Fenway Racing has to eliminate one of its five Cup cars next season in order to meet NASCAR's limit of four cars per team. "I don't know if it makes it easier or not, but we've known for some time that we're going to have to reduce the number to four teams," Greg Biffle said. "We've worked hard on putting in place an alliance with Yates Racing that our teams can still communicate and still share technologies with all of us being Ford teams, so I think we've positioned ourselves well (enough) that it's going to be a seamless change between moving one of our teams or selling one of our teams over to Yates. I would imagine that would be what's going to take place. I don't know that for a fact, but I would anticipate that's what would happen -- to move a team over there and have those guys run it over on their side." (USA Today)

DuPont considering pulling out of NASCAR? DuPont, the giant chemical company, last week reported a 59 percent decline in first-quarter earnings, citing the global economic downturn. It said reduced demand will force additional cost cutting measures and require a broader range of restructuring proposals. But a company spokesman declined to say how this latest news will affect its sponsorship agreement with Hendrick Motorsports and Gordon's No. 24 Chevrolet. DuPont expects to scale back its full-year outlook, saying it expects conditions to continue to decline in the coming months, but not as steep as they did in the first quarter. Hendrick Motorsports and DuPont last year agreed to a two-year extension through the 2010 season. While DuPont officials decline to comment on the possibility of future deals, there's speculaton the company might consider pulling its NASCAR deal when it expires, following GM Goodwrench, Tide and Kodak. Aflac, 3M and Crown Royal are considering splitting their sponsorship deals with Roush Fenway Racing next season. (Richmond Times-Dispatch)

Daytona Intl. Speedway rolls back Coke Zero 400 ticket prices: A limited number of tickets in the Oldfield and Lockhart Grandstands will be rolled back from $55 to $40 for the 51st annual Coke Zero 400 Powered By Coca-Cola on Saturday, July 4, Daytona International Speedway President Robin Braig announced in a press release.The $40 tickets for the Coke Zero 400 Powered By Coca-Cola, which go on sale Friday, May 1, is the lowest ticket price for the Independence Day holiday classic since 1998.“Witnessing the stars of NASCAR under the lights on the famed 31-degree high banks is an Independence Day holiday tradition for many race fans,” Braig said. “These adjustments in ticket prices for this year’s Coke Zero 400 will make it even more affordable for race fans to celebrate their July 4th holiday at ‘The World Center of Racing.’ In addition to the rollback in ticket prices, parking is always free and race fans can continue to bring their coolers with food and beverages.” Tickets and great camping packages for the Coke Zero 400 Weekend Powered By Coca-Cola on July 2-4, which includes the Daytona 250 NASCAR Nationwide Series race on Friday night and the Brumos Porsche 250 Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series event on Saturday, can be purchased online at www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com or by calling 1-800-PITSHOP. (PR)

Former track promoter Humpy Wheeler developing drivers: Ten drivers from ages 16 to 22 have been selected to take part in a new development program designed by H.A. Wheeler, the longtime president and general manager of Lowe's Motor Speedway. The program will begin May 3 and culminate with the introduction of the top driver to the racing world. "The program is a comprehensive educational experience preparing young drivers to make the transition from local short-track racing to NASCAR's big three series," said Wheeler, who retired last fall from his position at the Charlotte track. (The Windsor Star)

Kurt Busch points leader first-time since March '05: Kurt Busch, piloting the No. 2 Dodge for Penske Racing, is back on top of the point standings for the first time since March 13, 2005. The 2004 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion has a five-point lead over four-time Cup champion Jeff Gordon. "I really enjoy racing at Richmond," Busch said. "Both of the races there are pure excitement. They call Richmond the 'action track.' We can race low, we can race in the middle or you can race in the high groove. There's always some good action on the racetrack at Richmond." (Richmond Times-Dispatch)

Thursday, April 30, 2009

Earnhardt's No. 88 crew wins Pit Road Precision award: It’s the 4th Pit Road Win for Hendrick Motorsports Team in Last 5 Races Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s No. 88 pit crew won the Tissot Pit Road Precision Award in Sunday’s Sprint Cup race at Talladega Superspeedway. It was the fourth pit road win in the last five races for a Hendrick Motorsports team. The other recent Hendrick winning teams were: Jimmie Johnson’s crew (at Bristol) and Jeff Gordon’s crew (at Martinsville and Texas). The quick work on pit road by the No. 88 crew in Talladega helped Earnhardt Jr. to a second-place finish at the 2.66-mile oval. The team’s Chevrolet Impala SS spent the least amount of time on pit road – 255.440 seconds. Earnhardt’s pit crew consists of: Kip Wolfmeier (front-tire changer), Ben Fischbeck (front-tire carrier), Greg Burkhart (rear-tire changer), Matt Myers (rear-tire carrier), Mark Jacobs (jackman), Chris Fasulka (gasman), Jason Dalrymple (catch can). The team’s pit crew coach is Mark Mauldin. The No. 88 team will receive $5,000 for winning the Tissot Pit Road Precision Award. After nine of 36 Sprint Cup races Gordon’s No. 24 crew leads in the Tissot standings and the chase for the $100,000 season bonus which will go to the team with the most pit road wins. Along with prize money, members of the season pit crew championship crew and driver will receive a Tissot watch.(Tissot PR)

Dodge staying in NASCAR despite Chrysler bankruptcy: Chrysler CEO Bob Nardelli made no secret of the fact that the company would have rather not had to merge with Fiat and file for bankruptcy. Nardelli said there will still be a budget for NASCAR. "Obviously in response to treasury we reduced that to the contractual limits that we had," Nardelli said. "We reduced everything over and above what we were obligated to support to the driver, owner teams. We did reduce the number of cars significantly on the track this year." (NASCAR Nuts & Bolts)

Larry McClure sentenced to 18 months in prison for tax fraud: Morgan-McClure Motorsports co-founder Larry McClure was sentenced Monday to 18 months in prison for tax fraud, according to a news release from the U.S. district attorney’s office. McClure will also serve a one-year term of supervised release and pay a little more than $125,000 in fines, restitutions and costs associated with the case. McClure pleaded guilty Jan. 15 to federal tax fraud charges. He could have been sentenced to up to 15 years in prison and fined more than $1 million. According to the indictment, McClure did not report $325,000 of income obtained for the use of race cars in the Automobile Racing Club of America series. (SceneDaily.com)

NASCAR announces Hall of Fame Nominating committee and Voting panel: NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France has sent letters of invitation to 50 people asking them to serve on the NASCAR Hall of Fame Nominating Committee and/or Voting Panel. The hall’s inaugural class, consisting of five members, is scheduled to be enshrined in May 2010. That class will be selected by the Voting Panel from a list of 25 candidates assembled by a 21-person Nominating Committee. The Voting Panel will consist of the members of the Nominating Committee and 29 others from throughout the NASCAR industry. There also will be one more ballot, decided by a nationwide fan vote, for a total of 51 Voting Panel ballots. Prospective members of the Nominating Committee represent NASCAR, the NASCAR Hall of Fame, major race track ownership groups and operators of historic short tracks. Voting, to include a fan vote, will be completed by October 2009 with the results announced soon after.(NASCAR PR)

Teen soap box derby driver defeats NASCAR champion: 15-year-old Tyler Shoff defeated NASCAR champion Greg Biffle by more than three car lengths in the Fuel Max Challenge, a quarter-mile soap box derby race held at the world famous Derby Downs raceway in Akron, Ohio. Both Biffle and Shoff lined up at the starting line on the hill using identical soap box racers. (Goodyear Tire & Rubber PR)

Earnhardt Jr. not taking any unnecessary risk because of points: Even though Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s main goal is to break a 30-race losing streak, he intends not to take any unnecessary chances because he is outside the top 12 in points. "We're definitely going to go in there trying to win the race," Earnhardt said. "But we are in dire need of some top-five finishes. ... I'm not saying that we are going to take a second-place car and finish fourth with it. I'm just saying, like last weekend, every lap I'll be concentrating on not putting myself in a precarious situation that might not allow me to finish in the top five, if I've got a car that can. "If we have a real good car, we're going to take care of it so if we are not allowed to win the race in some way, we can at least get the points we need to dig ourselves out of the hole we are in." (High Point Enterprise)

Chrysler to file for bankruptcy: Chrysler, one of the three pillars of the American auto industry, will file for bankruptcy today after last-minute negotiations between the government and the automaker's creditors broke down last night, an Obama administration official said.U.S. officials had offered Chrysler's secured lenders $2.25 billion in cash if they would agree to writedown the $6.9 billion in secured debt that the company owed. But a small group of hedge funds refused the 11th-hour deal, forcing an imminent bankruptcy. An administration official this morning expressed disappointment, saying the holdouts had failed to "do the right thing," but that "their failure to act in either their own economic interest or the national interest does not diminish the accomplishments made by Chrysler, Fiat and its stakeholders, nor will it impede the new opportunity Chrysler now has to restructure and emerge stronger going forward." President Obama is scheduled to address the issue at noon today at the White House. (Washington Post)

Rain hampers Goodyear tire testing at Indy: Rain again disrupted a Goodyear test today at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, but once the track dried shortly after noon, four NASCAR teams were able to get in nearly six hours of tire testing. The purpose of the one-day session, which was a continuation of last week's rain-plagued test, was to settle on the tire compound Goodyear will bring to a final test June 15-16. That session will involve about a dozen teams as Goodyear works to avoid the embarrassing problems that marred last year's Allstate 400 at the Brickyard. (Indy Star)

Montoya not second guessing his jump to NASCAR: Juan Pablo Montoya is sounding every bit like the guy who was born to race on ovals and in an recent interview he talked about how after two complete seasons in NASCAR he's starting to look at upcoming tracks like old friends instead of strange beasts. "I think if you look overall, our performance has been really good (this season)," he said. "Myself, I had five bad races. This week (at Phoenix) was a bad race for us because I screwed up in the pits. I think Vegas and Atlanta were bad races for us. And even with that, we're 15th in the points. We're not that far off the Chase. I think we're in a position that we can challenge for the Chase. "I think consistency is going to be the key to being able to make that, and we know that. I think if you look, there are a lot of things that have been talked about within the team, in the media, talking about how you end up going to the same car, both teams. I think Phoenix was the first step towards getting everybody on the same page. It really helped. (Martin) Truex was competitive. I was competitive. It's exciting. I think the future of the company looks really, really bright and it's positive."(Kingston Whig-Standard)

Primary Sponsorship for Prilosec OTC on Two RCR Cars in 2009: Prilosec OTC, the No. 1 doctor and pharmacist recommended over-the-counter acid reducer, will be the primary sponsor of two of Richard Childress Racing teams for three races during the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season. Prilosec OTC will be the primary sponsor of the No. 31 Prilosec OTC-Walmart Chevrolet driven by Jeff Burton at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway in May and Indianapolis Motor Speedway in July. Primary sponsorship will then be featured on the No. 33 Prilosec OTC-Walmart Chevrolet driven by Clint Bowyer at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif., in October. Prilosec OTC has been an associate sponsor of RCR’s No. 31 team since 2006. “Over the last four seasons, we’ve engaged millions of race fans, educating them on how Prilosec OTC can treat their frequent heartburn and get them back to enjoying NASCAR to the fullest,” said Robert Cleveland, Prilosec OTC Brand Manager. “Our partnerships with RCR and NASCAR play an important role in showcasing Prilosec OTC’s product benefits and its ability to treat frequent heartburn all day and all night with one pill a day.” Throughout the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season, Prilosec OTC has been featured on the rear quarter panel of the No. 31 Caterpillar Chevy as well as the uniforms and firesuits of Burton and the entire No. 31 team. (RCR PR)

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Jeff Gordon wins first-quarter Driver of the Year balloting: Jeff Gordon, off to a fast start in the NASCAR Sprint Cup season, has won the first-quarter voting in the 2009 Driver of the Year balloting. The four-time Cup champion, who is the only four-time winner of the Driver of the Year award, ended a 47-race winless string earlier this month at Texas and led the series points last week when the panel of motorsports writers and broadcasters cast their votes. Gordon, who slipped to second in the standings after crashing and finishing 37th last Sunday at Talladega, narrowly beat fellow NASCAR star Kyle Busch, 111-107, in the first-quarter balloting. "We've had a strong start to the season and it was nice to get that win in Texas,'' Gordon said. "While it's the Driver of the Year Award, the No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet team gets a lot of the credit. They have given me strong cars every weekend and the pit crew has been solid.'' Gordon received eight of 18 first-place ballots and was on every ballot, while Busch, who has won races in Cup, Nationwide and trucks this season, got seven first-place vote. (SI.com)

Logano: Unsure how victory lane works if he wins this weekend: If Joey Logano wins the Crown Royal Presents The Russ Friedman 400 on Saturday night at Richmond International Raceway, he'll gladly take the check and trophy. But he won't take a celebratory swig of whiskey. At 18, the Sprint Cup and Nationwide driver can only pour down a bottle of milk or water. "It's the law I guess," said Logano, who isn't old enough to drink alcohol. "We'll try to win the race and deal with it later. I don't have an idea how it works." (Richmond Times-Dispatch)

Colorado House OKs incentives to lure NASCAR track: Colorado took a big step closer to being able to attract a NASCAR racetrack when the House approved a legislative proposal Wednesday that would allow the first-ever state-funded package of incentives geared toward attracting major tourism projects. Senate Bill 173 won final approval on a 46-19 vote one day after extensive floor debate over whether it was an economic-development tool or corporate welfare. Twenty-three Republicans and 23 Democrats backed the measure, while 15 Democrats and four Republicans opposed it. The proposal allows city and county governments to enter into agreements with the Colorado Economic Development Commission to set up special enterprise zones around potential locations for tourism-generating projects.A main goal of bill backers is bringing a NASCAR track to the Aurora area, but the enterprise zones also could be used to build everything from Winter Olympics facilities to museums that might draw visitors across state borders. “I think that NASCAR is probably already aware that we passed this bill,” Rice said after the final vote Wednesday. “As the economy starts to recover ... hopefully they will move quickly.”(Denver Business Journal)

NASCAR stars slow to tweet: Bobby Labonte has been Twittering for a month, and the 2000 Sprint Cup champion's followers have grown from 50 to 1,600. "It makes a fan say, 'He puts jeans on one leg at a time like I do,' " says Labonte, the only full-time Cup driver Twittering on his behalf. "It helps them relate." NASCAR's emphasis on fan access makes Twitter growth likely, says Larry Weintraub, CEO of Fanscape, a Los Angeles agency that spreads awareness for athletes and celebrities through social media. "A couple of major drivers will do it, and then everyone will," Weintraub says. "If Dale Earnhardt Jr. starts Tweeting a couple of times a day, he'll have 50,000 followers, and it'll change the game in NASCAR." Earnhardt doesn't have a Twitter account because he says "there's a bunch of imposters … I would never get into social networking. It's dangerous." Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart and Jimmie Johnson, all Cup champions, also have passed. (USA Today)

Many of Richmond's hotel rooms are vacant: Hotels across the Richmond region have dropped rates to lure NASCAR fans to Saturday night’s race at Richmond International Raceway. But even at lower prices, hotel managers expect to have plenty of empty rooms. “Quite honestly, I think the economy has really impacted people’s decision to come to the race this year,” said Fritz Schwartz, general manager of the Westin Richmond in the West End. Schwartz said there has been very little response to Westin’s special offer; the hotel is offering rooms for $179 during NASCAR weekend, about 5 percent off the regular rate. (Richmond BizSense)

Earnhardt Jr says penalties are tough enough: Dale Earnhardt Jr. says NASCAR officials don't need to be stricter in determining penalties for aggressive driving. Earnhardt made his comments Tuesday, a day after NASCAR officials suggested that they might start calling penalties more closely for blocking and aggressive driving, particularly at Talladega and Daytona. "I would advise against doing anything extra or being stricter," Earnhardt said. "You run the risk of taking the race out of the drivers' hands. I think we do a good job of policing it pretty much on our own now. I mean, it is a race." (Virginian-Pilot)

Injured fan receives call from Carl Edwards:One fan who was hospitalized after the crash at Talladega Speedway receives a call from NASCAR driver Carl Edwards. Blake Bobbitt, 18, from Rogersville is expected to be released from UAB Hospital Wednesday. Terry Bobbitt, Blake's father, says Blake received a call from Carl Edwards, who was checking to see if she was doing well. (MyFoxAlabama)

NASCAR plans moment of silence before Saturday's race: David Poole, who covered racing for the Observer, died of a heart attack Tuesday at his Stanly County home. He was 50. A native of Gastonia, N.C., Poole became the Observer's NASCAR writer in 1997. He built a national following through ThatsRacin.com and a daily program he hosted on Sirius NASCAR Radio. The National Motorsports Press Association four times named him its writer of the year. He wrote about the sport with the enthusiasm of a fan and the critical eye of a journalist. "He could be controversial from time to time but he always wrote and spoke what he believed," said Richard Childress, president and CEO Richard Childress Racing. "He didn't pull any punches with anybody and that's what people respected about him. He was good for the sport." To honor Poole, Sirius plans to broadcast a tribute this morning. NASCAR plans a moment of silence before Saturday's race at Richmond. (ThatsRacin.com)

Kyle Busch to race in Nashville on Sunday: Kyle Busch, one of the NASCAR's hottest young drivers, is scheduled to roll into Music City Sunday to run the Budweiser All-American 150 at Fairgrounds Speedway. Busch will compete in Saturday night's Cup race in Richmond, Va., then fly to Nashville for Sunday's event. Ron Lawler will practice and qualify Busch's car in Saturday afternoon's time trials. (Nashville City Paper)

Goodyear returns to Indy for tire testing today: The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company will return to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway this Wednesday to continue its testing program for this year's Brickyard 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at the track this July 24-26. This week's one-day session is a continuation from a rain-shortened test at the Speedway last week. Goodyear held three different sessions at Indianapolis last September to begin the testing program, and made some good strides toward this year's tire recommendation at that time. After the long winter, the tire manufacturer picked up where it left off at the historic, 2.5-mile track. Rain slowed the on-track activity last Monday and Tuesday, forcing Goodyear and the four Sprint Cup teams it was working with to stay through Wednesday. Participating last week were No. 17 Matt Kenseth, No. 39 Ryan Newman (Chevrolet), No. 43 Reed Sorenson (Dodge) and No. 83 Brian Vickers.
"The goal was to build upon what we've learned up to this point. We started last week on the control tire from last fall, the one that enabled us to make some 25-lap runs at the time. We went on to evaluate some additional compounds and constructions and we just didn't see the same results," said Greg Stucker, Goodyear's Director of Race Tire Sales. "The one thing we know that changed over the winter was the amount of rubber on the race track. Our test last week was the first on-track activity since our fall tests, and the race track is much greener than we saw at that time. We're not getting the wear levels we'd like to see at this point."
As a result, Goodyear has decided to return to Indianapolis for a continuation test this coming Wednesday. "The track worked with us, the teams have worked with us and our guys at the Goodyear Tech Center have produced some additional development tires in just a few days so we can continue our testing this week," said Stucker. "Even though the wear wasn't the same as we saw last fall, the drivers were happy with the handling characteristics of this set-up. Our challenge right now is to not overreact to last week's results because we know the track will be different after the Indianapolis 500 in May. That's why we have a multi-car confirmation test scheduled in June in preparation for our race in July."
Three of the four teams from last week will return this Wednesday for the continuation test -- those of Kenseth, Newman and Vickers. Sorenson and his team could not make it back this week and will be replaced by Kasey Kahne. "Like all tire testing at Goodyear, this is a process," said Stucker. "Our goal is to always bring the best performing, most competitive tires to the race track. Indy certainly presents a challenge and we are committed to getting it right."(Goodyear PR)

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

NASCAR upset with Lowe's Motor Speedway promotion: A top NASCAR official expressed some clear displeasure Monday about a Lowe's Motor Speedway promotion tying ticket prices to how many cars were involved in the biggest accident at Sunday's Aaron's 499 at Talladega Superspeedway. The LMS promotion was announced last week, a couple of days before seven fans were injured in a spectacular wreck on the last lap Sunday at Talladega. "To be honest, we'd rather not dignify that type of promotion with a comment," said Jim Hunter, NASCAR's vice president of corporate communications, during a news teleconference Monday afternoon. LMS had offered to sell 1,000 tickets combined to May 16th's NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race and May 24th's Coca-Cola 600, pricing them at a dollar per car involved in the most significant on-track incident at Talladega. For years, Talladega has been ripe for significant pileups - sometimes called "The Big One" by media, fans and drivers - in part because of the speeds cars travel and how closely they race on the 2.66-mile track. This year, the biggest wreck came on the seventh lap and involved 14 cars. At noon Monday, LMS began offering the 1,000 tickets for $14. (ThatsRacin.com)

Ambrose likes to hunt for buried treasures: NASCAR Driver Marcos Ambrose pored over books and maps in local libraries, seeking clues to old mining sites and buried treasure he believes he can find somewhere in North Carolina. A modern-day gold prospector, Ambrose searches streams for hours at a time with shovel and pan in hand. "For me, it's not about getting the gold," he said. "It's not having the gold. It's the quest to get it." (NY Times)

Sad News - Motorsports writer David Poole has passed away: Longtime NASCAR journalist David Poole died Tuesday. He was 50. Poole was a writer for the Charlotte Observer and also hosted The Morning Drive from 7-11 a.m. ET weekdays on Sirius. He died at his Stanfield, N.C., home of a heart attack. The Observer reported that Poole's daughter called 911. Emergency crews rushed him to the hospital in Stanly County, where he was pronounced dead. "The NASCAR community is stunned and saddened by the loss of David Poole," NASCAR chairman and CEO Brian France said in a statement. "David was as passionate about NASCAR as anyone and had very definitive opinions about the sport. He served the industry, and most importantly the fans, through his reporting and commentary in the Charlotte Observer and Sirius Satellite Radio. Our thoughts and prayers go out to David's family and friends. He will be missed." Poole is survived by his wife, Katy, sons Matthew and David, daughter Emily and grandson Eli. (NASCAR.com)

NASCAR looking at safety measures: The Brad Keselowski and Carl Edwards crash came after Edwards attempted to block Brad Keselowski's winning pass. Keselowski, a 25-year-old with only four superspeedway starts, had pushed Edwards past Ryan Newman and Dale Earnhardt Jr. into the lead on the final lap. But when Keselowski finally tried to pass along the inside, Edwards descended in an effort to cut him off. Instead, he was spun out of the way, his 3,400-pound car shedding metal pieces as it soared toward the grandstand, hit the fence and erupted in flames. "One of our primary goals over the years is to build a retaining fence that keeps the cars and parts and pieces out of the spectator areas. Nothing is bullet proof," NASCAR spokesman Jim Hunter said. "The retaining fence did what it's supposed to do. There was some debris that went into the grandstand that fortunately did not invoke serious injury. If there is something we come up with as we analyze this accident . . . we'll make it as safe as we humanly can." (LA Times)

Roush has mixed emotions about Talladega: The bump-draftin', restrictor-plate racin' gods who wreck so many Roush cars and ruin his title dreams showed him the other side. So naturally, the owner who loves to hate Talladega out loud took the occasion to love Talladega out loud, right? Well, all things are relative. "I hate loving it. I love hating it," Jack Roush said. "I'm really conflicted about Talladega." (Anniston Star)

Monday, April 27, 2009

NASCAR: Keselowski was within rules: NASCAR officials ruled that Brad Keselowski's Talladega victory was legitimate despite his crash with Carl Edwards on the last lap of the race. NASCAR's vice president of competition Robin Pemberton said that even despite the wild finish and Edwards' massive crash, Keselowski drove by the rulebook while making the decisive move that gave him the victory. "It's just the way it works sometimes," Pemberton told AUTOSPORT. "Brad did a good job, he did what he had to do and he didn't go below the yellow line and they just ran out of racing room between him and the #99 (Edwards). "You're coming on the chequered (flag) on this stuff so there's no give or take. That is all gone by then and it's for the drivers to work it out and you know, they're all trying to win the race. Sometimes you have things like this happen." (Autosport.com)

Jeff Gordon still suffering from back pain: Jeff Gordon will chase his fifth Sprint Cup title with a bad back. Gordon expects to drive with some discomfort this season and the pain he felt last week at Phoenix International Raceway has not entirely subsided. The four-time Cup champ said the tracks in Richmond, Va.; Martinsville, Va.; Bristol, Tenn.; and the road courses could affect him later this year. The short tracks would affect Gordon the most because they tend to be more physically grueling. "I'm getting stronger and I don't expect it to happen overnight and go away," Gordon said Friday at Talladega Superspeedway. "It's going to take time." (Napa Valley Register)

Dale Jr. blames the media for hyping crashes at Talladega: This is NASCAR racing at Talladega: There's a fine line between wrecking someone and killing someone. It was the experienced Dale Earnhardt Jr who put the day in perspective -- and put a lot of people to shame. "You have to understand that, like, for years, we have had wrecks like this every time we come to Talladega ever since the (restrictor) plate got here, and for years, it was celebrated. The media celebrated it, the network celebrated it, calling it the Big One, just trying to attract attention. "So there's a responsibility with the media and the networks and the sanctioning body itself to come to their senses a little bit." Tell it to the twisted promoters at Lowe's Motor Speedway. They're offering 1,000 seats for their next NASCAR race at $14 each -- because that's how many cars were involved Sunday in the Big One that didn't come close to killing anyone. (Birmingham News)

GM confirms 20,100 job cuts and elimination of Pontiac brand: General Motors said Monday it will cut 21,000 U.S. factory jobs by next year and phase out its storied Pontiac brand as part of a major restructuring effort needed to get more government aid. The struggling automaker also says it will offer 225 shares of common stock for every $1,000 in notes held by bondholders as part of debt-for-equity swap. The announcements came in a filing Monday with the Securities and Exchange Commission. GM’s plan includes the demise of Trans Am sports car brand Pontiac, 83 years after the first Pontiac car was introduced. Within three years, half a million Pontiacs were sold, and the brand quickly grew in popularity, from early models like the Chief and the Master Six Coupe, to the Bonneville convertible, to the GTO — one of America’s first muscle cars and so popular it inspired Ronny and the Daytonas to immortalize it in song. (MSNBC.com)