NASCAR finishes 2nd
in ratings, although ahead of MLB playoffs: In the
battle of the repeats, CBS once again came out on top
with a 5.8 ratings/11 share on Saturday. NBC and FOX
followed with a 4.8/9 and 4.2/8, repsetively, with ABC
trailing with a 2.8/5. The coveted 18-49 demographic
went to NBC for the night with a 2.7, followed by CBS'
2.2, FOX, 1.9, and ABC, 1.2. At the 8 o'clock hour,
NBC's 4.9/10 for NASCAR coverage just edged out CBS'
4.8/9 for a "Cold Case" repeat. FOX took third with a
3.9/8 for its Major League Baseball coverage, while ABC
once again took up the rear with a 2.6/5 for its
Wednesday repeat of "Lost." (zap2it)
Race was close to
being called? NASCAR officials were so concerned
with the rash of blown tires Saturday at Lowe's Motor
Speedway that they contemplated calling the event early
due to competitor mechanical problems for the first time
in the sport's history. "I cannot remember a precedent,"
NASCAR spokesman Jim Hunter said. "I think that was a
first." Hunter said discussion of a cancellation
began near the midway point of the UAW-GM Quality 500.
But president Mike Helton instead opted to send pit road
inspectors to the teams' pit stalls to send warning that
NASCAR would gauge their tire pressures, and if those
pressures failed to comply with NASCAR specifications
the teams would be subject to penalty -- including
points deductions. "There was serious discussion about
stopping the race, period," Hunter said. Helton
reiterated Hunter's statement, saying the night's
uncharacteristic circumstances warranted
uncharacteristic response. (NASCAR.com)
Rusty gets road named
after him: Lowe's Motor Speedway President H.A.
"Humpy" Wheeler renamed the road into the Turn 3 tunnel
"Rusty Wallace Way" before last night's race. He also
cracked a joke as he announced the change during the
drivers meeting. "I can see some people in here who will
not like driving down this road," Wheeler said with a
smile, looking out at a crowd of drivers and crew
chiefs. (Times-Dispatch)
Menard engines sold?
Word from England is that billionaire home improvement
magnate John Menard, whose engine company has been
building racing engines for Robby Gordon's team, has
sold his racing and engine-building shop to Honda. Does
that mean Gordon will have to start looking for another
engine supplier? (Yahoo!
Sports)
Ganassi waiting on
driver to replace McMurray: Penske South officials
remain optimistic that Kurt Busch will replace Rusty
Wallace in 2006, but they say it will not happen unless
Jamie McMurray is released to join Roush Racing. That
would open the door for a three-way deal in which Penske
would get Busch, Roush would get McMurray and Chip
Ganassi Racing would get a driver to replace McMurray.
"Jamie has to get free first," said Penske Race
president Don Miller before Saturday night's Nextel Cup
race at Lowe's Motor Speedway. "That's the only way it's
going to work." Roush president Geoff Smith agreed. "For
us, that's step one," he said of McMurray, who is signed
for the 2007 season to drive Busch's No. 97 car. "They
know what our criteria are. I believe there are
discussions with Chip from Penske." Ganassi, who has
insisted for months that he would not release McMurray,
softened his stance this weekend, saying he would be
willing to listen. "I need a solution, not a pile of
money," he told reporters. "I need a driver to replace
Jamie." (The
State)
Terance Mathis teams
with Morgan-McClure Motorsports: Terance Mathis,
former NFL All-Pro Wide Receiver, and NASCAR's newest
minority owner, has formed an alliance with
Morgan-McClure Motorsports to unveil Victory Motorsports
Racing, LLC. "I am very excited about the new venture
between teams. Morgan-McClure has experienced great
success in the NASCAR arena, and they bring years of
experience to the table. This new venture will allow
Victory Motorsports Racing, an opportunity to be a
competitive team in the 2006 NASCAR Nextel Cup Race
season," says Terance Mathis, Majority Partner of
Victory Motorsports Racing. The mission of Victory
Motorsports Racing is simple, WIN. Victory Motorsports
Racing is a new breed of racing, which will bring
excitement, entertainment and fun to NASCAR. One major
goal is to bring the minority community to NASCAR, and
in turn bring NASCAR to the minority community. Not only
will Victory Motorsports Racing be standing in the
Winner's Circle, but they will also stand there with
integrity, equality and respect. Morgan-McClure
Motorsports, based in Abington, Virginia, is a 14-time
winner in the NASCAR Nextel Cup series, including three
victories in the prestigious Daytona 500 event in 1991,
1994 and 1995. (Origins Public Relations)
Johnson wins at
Lowe's 4th straight win: The alternator failed, the
battery had to be switched mid-race and the entire
electrical system was on the fritz. Add all that to a
constant fear of having a tire explode at any second and
even the most veteran driver would be rattled. Not
Jimmie Johnson at Lowe's Motor Speedway. Johnson
overcame every problem thrown his way - including tire
troubles that turned Saturday night's event into a
laughingstock - to win his fourth consecutive race at
Lowe's and move into a tie with Tony Stewart in the
Chase for the championship. "I don't have a clue what
took place tonight," Johnson said. "We had problem after
problem. If it's meant to be, it's meant to be." Johnson
started 41st because his engine failed before
qualifying. Then his alternator went mid-race. He cut a
right rear tire. And then he had overtime. In the end,
he proved that no one can beat him on the track his
Lowe's-sponsored team considers its own private
playground. Johnson has won five of the past six events
at the suburban Charlotte facility. (ABC
News - Results - Points)
Benny didn't know:
Benny Parsons, NBC's analyst, said he knew nothing about
the network's decision to bow out of NASCAR coverage
until he read it in the newspaper.
Parsons then called his bosses, who confirmed that the
network had pulled out of the bidding process for the
contract that begins in 2007. "They just weren't
prepared to pay the kind of money NASCAR wanted," said
Parsons, a former champion driver. "I'll be 65 when this
contract ends in 14 months," he added. "I don't think
it's as important for me as it is for some of the
younger guys on our broadcasts. They'll be scrambling."
(Gaston
Gazzette)
Oct. 15, 2005:
Bowyer in, Blaney out
Jack Daniels renews: Richard Childress Racing (RCR)
and the Jack Daniel Distillery announced today that Jack
Daniel's has extended its primary sponsorship of RCR's
No. 07 Chevrolet through 2009. At the same time, both
organizations announced that Clint Bowyer, a native of
Emporia, Kansas, will drive the No. 07 Jack Daniel's
Chevrolet for the 2006 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series
campaign. Bowyer, currently second in the NASCAR Busch
Series championship chase, will be accompanied by crew
chief Gil Martin as the proven duo pursue the 2006
NEXTEL Cup Series Raybestos Rookie of the Year Award.
Bowyer will also race for the 2006 NASCAR Busch Series
title returning to the seat of RCR's No. 2 ACDelco
Chevrolet. "RCR is very pleased to take our partnership
with Jack Daniel's to the next level," commented Richard
Childress, President and CEO of RCR. "Clint Bowyer has
done an exceptional job driving the No. 2 ACDelco
Chevrolet in the Busch Series and has certainly proven
himself worthy of this opportunity. I have no doubt he's
ready to take the next step and move to the NEXTEL Cup
Series. Clint and Gil (Martin) have great chemistry and
have demonstrated they are a winning combination. We
have very high expectations for this program and are
confident that both Clint and Gil will be excellent
representatives for Jack Daniel's both on and off the
track." "I would also like to thank Dave Blaney for
everything he's done, not only for RCR but for all he's
done for Jack Daniel's as well," added Childress. "Dave
is a first class driver and I'm proud to say he drove
for RCR. We were lucky to have him and wish him nothing
but the best." (RCR PR)
Tracy, RCR deal not
likely: If Champ car driver Paul Tracy gets a shot
in NASCAR, it doesn't look like it will be with the
Childress operation. Childress gave Tracy a two-day test
at Michigan in August and said he would let him race at
that track if the session went well. The two ultimately
decided not to enter the race. Now Childress says there
have been no further discussions. "Paul and I haven't
talked in about a month," Childress said. "We're just
trying to get our in-house program put together for next
year." (USA
Today)
LMS to be
repaved, possibly rebanked: Plans are in place to
begin repaving Lowe's Motor Speedway by March, track
president Humpy Wheeler said Friday. Wheeler said the
decision to repave the track already has been made.
Details such as the type of surface to be used and
whether to redesign the bankings are unsettled. "And
there's colors," Wheeler said of the possibilities that
exist now that didn't when the track was paved 15 years
ago. Asked if he would considered going with his school
colors, the former South Carolina football player said,
"That's a great idea. The first groove black, the second
groove garnet." Wheeler said the repaving process would
take 2-3 weeks. That would give Goodyear, the official
tire sponsor of NASCAR, the 30 days it requires to
schedule testing before the all-star race and Coca-Cola
600 in May. Wheeler said the decision to repave
basically had been made before drivers began complaining
about the surface, which had been ground twice to smooth
out rough spots, during a test session last month. "It's
been 15 years since it's been paved," he said. "And
that's about the end of (the life of the pavement)."
Wheeler admitted speeds have increased more than he
imagined with the grinding process.Every driver that
made the Cup field on speed broke the 188 mph barrier.
None did before this race a year ago.(The
State)
Evernham picks up new
sponsor: Car owner Ray Evernham has
sponsorship for his third car all but locked up, signing
Stanley Tools to a 10-race deal for next season. What's
interesting about the deal is that for a secondary
sponsor, Stanley landed some of the biggest races on the
schedule. The toolmaker will be featured at Daytona in
July, the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis, and three of
the 10 races in the Chase for the championship. (USA
Today)
Rusty, France on
CNBC: Rusty Wallace will be a special featured guest
on Monday's edition of CNBC's "The Big Idea with Donny
Deutsch." Hosted by Deutsch, chairman of Deutsch, Inc.,
the $2.8 billion marketing company that has won numerous
ad-agency-of-the-year awards, the show is well known for
its provocative, spontaneous and real look at
celebrities in various industries. Other guests on
Monday night's program include NASCAR chairman Brian
France. "The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch" airs nightly
on CNBC at 10:00 p.m. Eastern. (Duluth
News)
Roush makes argument:
Car owner Jack Roush - who owns five teams that all
qualified for NASCAR's Chase for the championship - was
told of the plans second-hand, and his management group
spent a large part of this week preparing the five-page
document they placed around the garage area at Lowe's
Motor Speedway. "We were taken by complete surprise by
their remarks last weekend," said Geoff Smith, president
of Roush Racing and author of the document. "We felt
like we wanted to make it an intellectual issue if we
were allowed to." The document argues that multicar
teams have improved the level of competition in the
sport; have given new drivers an opportunity to break
into the sport; and made it easier for new teams to
enter NASCAR competition. It also maintains that
potential team restrictions represent a significant loss
to every owner, while arguing that Roush's five-car team
and Rick Hendrick's four-car operation are not even the
largest in NASCAR. The Roush camp alleges that Toyota's
Craftsman Truck Series operation is the biggest team
owner because the carmaker provides all chassis and
engines to eight teams. All of NASCAR's top teams are
multicar operations, and France said their success is
viewed as an obstacle to people contemplating coming
into the sport. Roush, who has won the past two
championships, is having a hard time believing the cap
isn't directed at his organization. "Is it a
coincidence? We don't know," Smith said. "It's just hard
to believe that it is." (USA
Today)
N.Y. Times
reports ESPN-ABC to sign NASCAR Television contract:
ESPN and ABC Sports are expected to announce soon that
they have acquired the July-to-November package of
Nascar races that has been carried by NBC and TNT since
2001, said executives involved in the talks who insisted
on anonymity because the contract had not been
completed. The six-year ESPN-ABC deal is worth an
estimated $280 million annually and will last through
2012, the executives said. At $280 million annually, the
ESPN-ABC pairing will pay 40 percent more than the $200
million a year that the NBC-TNT joint venture has paid
since 2001 and will pay through next season. (New
York Times)
Oct. 14, 2005:
NBC pulls out of TV
Renewal talks: NBC has withdrawn from negotiations
to continue as a NASCAR television partner beyond the
2006 season, opening a door through which ABC/ESPN may
walk to return to the sport, The Charlotte Observer has
learned. NBC informed NASCAR just more than a week ago
that the network felt NASCAR's asking price for rights
to Nextel Cup and Busch Series races was higher than the
value of the package, a source told the Observer.
Current television partners had an exclusive negotiating
window in which they could work with NASCAR on a new
deal. (Ohio.com)
Final
Kansas TV ratings up 7.1%: NBC's broadcast of last
Sunday's Banquet 400 Nextel Cup race earned a 4.5 rating
and a 9 share from Nielsen Media Research, Street &
Smith's SportsBusiness Daily reports. The final rating
is up 7.1 percent from last year's 4.2 rating and 25
percent from the 3.6 overnight figure from this year. (NASCAR
Scene Daily Newsletter)
6 in 10 in Charlotte
area say they will NOT likely visit NASCAR HOF:
We're now in the midst of the big fall race week and if
local leaders get their wish there will eventually be
another major attraction for NASCAR fans. Charlotte is
competing for the NASCAR Hall of Fame, but a new poll
shows the majority of locals may never step foot inside.
In this year's Carolina's poll 6NEWS asked the question;
if the hall of fame is located in Charlotte, how likely
is it that you will visit this attraction once it's
completed? Six out of 10 people surveyed said they would
likely "not" attend. Is this a bad sign? Mayor Pat
McCrory says that number actually sounds good. In a
region where 24,000 people work in the racing industry
and where 1.25 million racing fans visit each year
McCrory says the NASCAR Hall of Fame "just makes sense."
"This is going to be something that is extremely
interactive and it is going to be an experience,"
McCrory said. But is it one people who already live in
the region will support? The Carolinas poll revealed 61
percent of the 923 people surveyed would not visit the
hall among them, Gerald Oldiges. (WCNC)
Oct. 13, 2005:
Sadler wins Pole:
Elliott Sadler set a track record in winning the pole
Thursday night at Lowe's Motor Speedway in a qualifying
session that placed six drivers in the Chase for the
championship in the top 10. Sadler, who is not
eligible to race for the Nextel Cup title, posted a lap
at 193.216 mph to break the track record of 192.988 mph
set by Ryan Newman in May. "My whole body is shaking
right now," Sadler said. "This is such a fast track. It
was very nerve-racking, but very fun." Newman, who is
second in the Chase standings, also broke his track
record in qualifying second. He turned his lap at
193.126. "I am disappointed because I know our car was
faster and I am placing some blame on myself for not
getting two good laps," Newman said. "If you are
disappointed after finishing second here at Charlotte,
you have real high expectations." Jimmie Johnson, fifth
in the points, qualified third. But he'll have to
forfeit his spot because the engine in his Chevrolet
blew up during the afternoon practice session. His
Hendrick Motorsports team changed it and he'll be forced
to drop to the rear of the field at the start of
Saturday night's race. (NASCAR.com)
J.D. Gibbs likes team
cap move: Joe Gibbs Racing team president J.D. Gibbs
said Thursday he believes at least part of the reason
for NASCAR's planned limits to the number of teams a car
owner can operate is a concern powerful team owners
could overly influence the direction of the sport. "You
don't want the owners running this thing," Gibbs said.
"It might be part of (the new limitation). Also, I think
just from a healthy, competitive environment, you would
rather have more guys out there than six guys with eight
teams apiece."Gibbs said whatever the final number of
teams owners are limited to, JGR would "play within
those rules." "You do it for what's best for the future
of the sport," he said. (Star-Telegram)
Earnhardt, Jr. turns
31: Dale Earnhardt Jr. celebrated his 31st birthday
on Monday without much fanfare. Earnhardt, like most of
the Cup stars, loves racing at Lowe's, the track in
suburban Charlotte. "It's home. That alone makes it one
of my favorites. It's late in the season, so there ain't
a whole lot that beats sleeping in your own bed," he
said. As for turning 31, Earnhardt said his celebration
was "just the usual hell-raisin' me and my buddies do
any other week. That's usually better than what most
people do on their birthdays, anyway." (KFMB.com)
DFW NASCAR ratings on
the rise: The interest in NASCAR NEXTEL Cup
Series racing in the Dallas-Fort Worth television market
continues to skyrocket leading into the Dickies 500. The
area has moved to the number one position past San
Francisco in the increase of NEXTEL Cup TV ratings for
the top 20 U.S. markets. DFW maintained the top spot for
the increase in average number of households watching
events compared to 2004. The DFW area broadcast ratings
for NASCAR NEXTEL Cup races have increased 18% this
year, 5.8 compared to 2004's 4.9. The average number of
DFW households watching NEXTEL Cup action this year is
133,000, an increase of 20%. Both figures lead the other
19 U.S. major markets. Year to date, DFW has more total
households watching NEXTEL Cup racing on average than
New York, Los Angeles or Chicago. (TMS PR)
J. Gordon raises
money for charity: For the fifth straight
year, NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon held a benefit dinner to
help fight leukemia. The event, sponsored by Time Warner
Cable, took place Wednesday night at the Westin hotel in
uptown Charlotte. News 14 Carolina's own Mike Solarte
served as master of ceremonies. Gordon's interest in
helping others fight the disease stems from his own
personal experience. "The awareness came through
personal friends, like Rick Hendrick, who dealt with
leukemia," he said. "He really opened up my eyes,
through his illness, of the need out there for bone
marrow transplants and for donors to help out the
recipients that can't find donors within their immediate
family." One marrow donor got a special gift at the
dinner. Jim Wallace, who had signed up to be a donor at
a Hendrick Motorsports event, met Gloria Dunford - the
recipient of his gift - for the first time. (Video &
Photos highlights available at
News 14)
J. Johnson blows
engine in practice: Jimmie Johnson blew an
engine in the final minutes of the second practice
Thursday, and the No. 48 Chevrolet will have to go to
the rear of the field in the UAW-GM 500. The team will
qualify in hopes of securing a good pit stall for
Saturday night's 500-mile event. Johnson has won the
past three Nextel Cup races at Lowe's Motor Speedway.
Johnson was third in the first practice and backed that
up by running a lap of 193.216 mph in the second
practice. That speed was better than Ryan Newman's track
record of 192.988, set here in May. Speeds were up
sharply in Thursday's second practice, with Johnson
unofficially becoming the second driver to break the
28-second barrier at Lowe's. (NASCAR.com)
Sprint NEXTEL Drivers
join Fl. Highway Patrol: Sprint Nextel will join
with the Florida Highway Patrol, Leon County Schools and
NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series drivers Kyle Busch and Travis
Kvapil to announce the national kickoff of Focus on
Driving, Sprint Nextel's Attentive Driving Education
Program. As part of the announcement, Sprint Nextel will
unveil series of television public service
announcements that promote the program and the
importance of attentive driving. The PSAs feature Busch,
Kvapil and fellow NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series driver Kasey
Kahne. Immediately following the announcement, Busch and
Kvapil will meet with Leon High School students to
promote the program. The drivers will sign autographs
and pose for photographs with students and a NASCAR
NEXTEL Cup race car. The drivers also will be available
for one-on-one media interviews. (Sprint-NEXTEL PR)
Jeff Gordon going
non-smoking for two races in '06: Friday at Lowe's
Motor Speedway, however, GlaxoSmithKline will announce
that four-time Cup series champion Jeff Gordon, one of
the sport's most high-profile drivers, will drive two
races in 2006 with Nicorette as the primary sponsor of
his No. 24 Chevrolet. The stop-smoking product also will
be an associate sponsor all year for Gordon's team.
"NASCAR has done great things for us, and we're trying
to take it to the next level," said Steve Kapur, senior
brand manager for NASCAR programs for GSK. "The more
people the program is visible to and the more people we
have talking about it, the better connection we'll have
with NASCAR fans." GSK made its first sponsorship deal
in NASCAR earlier this year, teaming with seven-time
champion Richard Petty to start a "quitting crew" and
with Chip Ganassi Racing as an associate sponsor on its
No. 41 Dodges. GSK will continue its relationship with
that team as well, Kapur said. (Miami
Herald)
RCR Bowyer
announcement Saturday: Richard Childress Racing
Busch Series driver Clint Bowyer will move full-time to
the Nextel Cup series next season and drive RCR's No. 07
Chevrolet. An official announcement of the Bowyer move
is scheduled Saturday at Lowe's Motor Speedway. Bowyer
will replace current driver Dave Blaney, while Jack
Daniel's will remain as sponsor. Bowyer, 26, currently
drives RCR's No. 2 Chevrolet and will continue to drive
that car next season as well, sources said. (That's
Racin')
Gordon to test new
Corvette: Four-time NASCAR Cup champion Jeff Gordon
gets behind the wheel of the new Chevrolet Corvette Z06
at Road Atlanta with SPEED Channel's popular Test Drive
program and host Tommy Kendall on Oct. 22 at 6 p.m. ET.
"I had never been to Road Atlanta and I got the
opportunity to drive one of the best Corvettes they've
ever brought out," Gordon said on SPEED's NASCAR This
Morning. "(The Z06) has a lot of power, handles
fantastic and looks great - I had a blast." Footage was
also shot at the famed Le Mans road course in France
with Corvette factory driver Johnny O'Connell. "This
program brings together two great Chevrolet champions -
Jeff Gordon and Corvette," said Ed Peper, Chevrolet
general manager. "There is no better example of the
interaction between racing and production than the
advanced technology that is shared by the
championship-winning Corvette C6.R race car and the
award-winning Corvette Z06, a 505-horsepower supercar
that you can drive every day." In addition to the new
Corvette, SPEED Channel's Test Drive program also has
looked at the Pontiac GTO, Mitsubishi Eclipse, Ranger
Rover Sport, and Jeep's Grand Cherokee and Commander.
Still on tap for SPEED this season are Test Drives with
the Mercedes AMG cars and the Chrysler SRT line. (SPEED
TV)
ISC opens ticket
website, to tracks and events: International
Speedway Corp. has launched Racetickets.com, an online
site for tickets and travel packages to its race tracks
across the United States. Racetickets.com is the
official ticket and travel provider of California
Speedway, Darlington Raceway, Daytona International
Speedway, Homestead-Miami Speedway, Kansas Speedway,
Martinsville Speedway, Michigan International Speedway,
Phoenix International Raceway, Richmond International
Raceway, Talladega Superspeedway and Watkins Glen
International. Providing a one-stop shop for tickets and
travel arrangements will help race fans, said Craig Neeb,
ISC chief information officer, in a news release. "We
want to ensure our tickets get into the hands of race
fans as easily as possible. Since Racetickets.com is the
official source for tickets and travel to ISC events,
fans will not have to worry about brokerage fees,
surcharges or counterfeit tickets sometimes associated
with third-party ticket brokers." Fans can buy tickets
to NASCAR Nextel Cup, Busch and Craftsman Truck series
races on Racetickets.com, as well as ARCA, Indy Racing
League and Grand American Road Racing Series events at
ISC facilities. Racetickets.com also offers
comprehensive travel packages, including hotel,
transportation and admission, for several events,
including the 2006 Daytona 500.
Oct. 12, 2005:
Tracy's Cup debut not
likely till '06: Paul Tracy's NASCAR debut will
likely have to wait until 2006. With six races left in
the season, Richard Childress says he is focused on
helping Kevin Harvick secure 11th place in the Nextel
Cup standings which comes with a $1-million bonus. As
well, should Clint Bowyer wrap up the Busch Series title
before the NASCAR season ends, he would like to give him
- and not Tracy - a chace at racing in a Cup event,
according to the Indianapolis Star. Tracy tested with
Childress back in August with a goal of competing at the
Nextel Cup event in Michigan. But Childress said there
was not enough time to properly prepare the former Champ
Car champion for his debut. It was speculated that
Tracy might make his NASCAR debut at the Nextel Cup
event in Atlanta on October 30, but that is unlikely to
happen according to the Star. (TSN)
Blaney Out, Bowyer
In? Richard Childress Racing has a press conference
scheduled this Friday afternoon at Lowe's Motor Speedway
and speculation is the team will announce current Busch
Series driver Clint Bowyer as the new pilot for the
team's Jack Daniels No. 07 NEXTEL Cup ride next year. (Racing
One)
Motorsports school
now under one roof: Daniel Dietrich knew since he
was 11 than he wanted to be a motorsports engineer. So
when he started looking at colleges, he compiled a short
list of colleges with motorsports programs. Old
Dominion. Virginia Tech. UNC Charlotte. UNC Charlotte,
he thought, had the best lab space and overall program,
so the Allentown, Pa., student applied there. On
Tuesday, the university unveiled new lab space for
Dietrich and the other 150 students participating in the
motorsports engineering program. For the first time, the
motorsports students and faculty will work under one
roof. They had been scattered at four sites around
campus. "Our program mirrored the industry," said James
Cuttino, UNC Charlotte's program director for
motorsports engineering, which grew out of the
mechanical engineering department in 1998. "It started
as one little, small effort and grew and grew and grew."
School officials hope the $1.8 million facility churns
out even more UNCC students to work at race shops around
the region, while also attracting more area NASCAR teams
to work with students and faculty on collaborative
research. (More in the
Charlotte Observer)
Schrader's plans:
Ken Schrader will run one more full NEXTEL Cup season in
2006 for BAM Motorsports. Schrader will shift to the
Craftsman Truck Series in 2007 joining Mark Martin as
two more former NEXTEL Cup regulars finding homes on the
truck circuit. (Racing
One)
Kenseth changes mind
and says he should of let Busch lead: Matt
Kenseth admits now that he should have allowed teammate
Kurt Busch to pass him for the lead early in Sunday's
race at Kansas so Busch could gain the five bonus points
for leading a lap. Kenseth didn't and even defended his
actions over his team's radio. "When it gets to the
chase, we're all racing each other for the championship,
and I'm not going to get beat by four points at the end
of the year because I gave away a free five somewhere,''
Kenseth said during the race. Tuesday, Kenseth changed
his mind after talking with Busch and Busch's crew
chief, Jimmy Fennig. "I think the thing that probably
upset (Busch), and I understand it, is when we used to
catch each other and you'd be right on somebody - and
not necessarily a teammate but almost anybody - instead
of abusing your car and having them abuse their car,
you'd kind of get out of the way and if they wanted to
lead, let them go lead and slow yourself down so you
don't have a problem,'' Kenseth said. (Virginian
Pilot)
Oct. 11, 2005:
No. 38 M&M's Team
Wins Checkers®/Rally's® Double Drive-Thru Challenge:
The No. 38 M&M's® Team with driver Elliott Sadler won
the Checkers®/Rally's® Double Drive-Thru Challenge at
the Banquet 400 presented by ConAgra Foods® on October
9th at Kansas Speedway with a pit-road-service time of
229.540 seconds. As the Official Burger and Drive-Thru
Restaurant of NASCAR®, Checkers/Rally's recognizes the
NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series team with the best pit road
performance each week with a $10,000 prize. At the end
of the season, Checkers/Rally's will award the $100,000
grand prize to the team that garners the most
Checkers/Rally's Double Drive-Thru Challenge wins
throughout the race season. Checkers/Rally's Double
Drive-Thru Challenge offers one of the richest weekly
contingency awards in NASCAR. The Double Drive-Thru
Challenge focuses on the team element of the race that
is integral to successful performances each week.
Checkers/Rally's Double Drive-Thru Challenge takes place
at all 36 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series point races. To win,
teams must finish on the lead lap while spending the
least amount of time in pit lane. For details visit
the
Checkers/Rally's Double Drive-Thru Challenge . (MARC
Public Relations)
Loomis to take couple
weeks off before joining Petty Enterprise, credit
Richard: Robbie Loomis, Jeff Gordon's former
crew chief, will take two weeks off after the Nextel Cup
season before moving to Petty Enterprises to become vice
president of race operations. Loomis, who has been
Gordon's crew chief since the middle of the 2000 Winston
Cup season, stepped down last month after Gordon did not
qualify for the Chase for the Nextel Cup championship.
He is staying on as a consultant for Gordon and car
owner Rick Hendrick until the season ends. 'Right now,
I'm able to take a step back and look at things a little
differently, and that's really good,' Loomis said Friday
after a practice session for Sunday's race at Kansas
Speedway. 'The on-track stuff I'm concentrating on is
all with the Hendrick team, but I can think a little bit
about the big-picture stuff with the Pettys.' At a
sponsor's event Wednesday in Overland Park, Kan., Kyle
Petty said he was happy to let Loomis set the timetable
for the switch - and credited his father with making it
happen. 'Kyle Petty didn't steal Robbie back from Jeff,'
he said. 'Richard Petty stole Robbie back from Jeff.' (Ludington
Daily News)
Cap at three?
NASCAR last week unveiled plans for
incorporating the Car of Tomorrow into current racing
fleets and for setting a cap on the number of
teams--early indications are that it would be
three--that one owner can operate in a series. Jeff
Gordon, who is listed as the owner of the No. 48
Hendrick Motorsports Nextel Cup Chevrolet, says that if
NASCAR's plan is to limit the number of teams,
franchising should be considered. (Sporting
News)
No front runner in
NASCAR HOF site: For those hoping for an
Atlanta NASCAR hall of fame, like the song says, the
waiting is the hardest part. Nearly two months after a
group of NASCAR bosses toured Atlanta's sites and
lunched with Gov. Sonny Perdue, there's been little word
on the city's chances of become racing's Cooperstown,
and no public announcements from racing officials,
who've been frustratingly noncommittal. "We're anxiously
awaiting" a decision, said A.J. Robinson, president of
Central Atlanta Progress, the group that put together
Atlanta's hall of fame bid. "We haven't heard much since
August," when the hall-of-fame decision-makers came to
town. Atlanta is competing with four cities --
Charlotte, Richmond, Daytona Beach and Kansas City, Kan.
-- for racing's hall of fame. Atlanta organizers have
presented NASCAR with a $92 million educational racing
attraction on land owned by Ted Turner near Centennial
Olympic Park. NASCAR's hall-of-fame executive team met
for the first time a week ago in Daytona Beach, but the
committee made no hard decisions, said Kerry Tharp, a
NASCAR spokesman. No city has been eliminated, and
"nobody has eliminated themselves," but there's also no
front-runner, Tharp said. One thing racing officials did
agree on: They're on track to pick a city by December. (Daytona
News Journal)
Oct. 10, 2005:
Tryson Wins
Crew Chief of the Race Award at Kansas: Pat Tryson's
decision to service the No. 6 Viagra Ford with two tires
during the early stages of the Banquet 400 paid
dividends. His strategy put Mark Martin up front long
enough to lead more than half of the event before he
beat teammate Greg Biffle to the checkered flag. Not
only did Tryson bring his team a win, but his efforts
earned him the Wypall Wipers Crew Chief of the Race
award. After starting in 19th place, Tryson improved
Martin's track position with a two-tire stop on an early
round of pit stops. The move catapulted Martin to the
front of the pack, where he stayed for the rest of the
day. "It was early enough in the race for us to take two
tires and see how they did," said Tryson. "We didn't
have a lot of laps on our left-sides and it was a good
opportunity for us to do it. I'm surprised more teams
didn't try the same thing, but I'm glad they didn't."
The panel of voters, including Randy Covitz of the
Kansas City Star, a Wypall Wipers representative and
Tony Eury Sr., all voted for Tryson as the crew chief
that did the best job. Doug Richert leads the Wypall
Wipers Crew Chief of the Year standings with five wins.
Alan Gustafson and Greg Zipadelli are tied for
second-place with three wins. Bob Osborne, Jimmy Fennig,
Robbie Reiser and Robbie Loomis are tied for third-place
with two wins. Tommy Baldwin, Scott Miller, Fatback
McSwain, Steve Hmiel, Greg Erwin, Slugger Labbe, Chad
Knaus, Pat Tryson and Pete Rondeau are tied for fourth
place, each with one win. At the end of the season, the
crew chief with the most weekly wins will receive
$20,000. Fans can also vote for their choice at
wypall.com.
(SMC
500)
#12 Team's Jackman
Injury: Mitch Lash, the jackman for the No. 12
Alltel Dodge driven by Ryan Newman, was injured during a
lap 95 pit stop on Sunday at Kansas Speedway. Lash
received multiple injuries to the muscle tissue in his
right foot, including a severe sprain to his right
ankle. Lash will begin physical therapy in the Charlotte
area this week. Britt Goodrich, former jackman for the
team, will take over jacking duties until Lash can
return. (Penske Racing South PR)
Texas Motor Speedway
Frontstretch tickets available: Texas Motor Speedway
has purchased back 620 frontstretch tickets from
corporations for the Nov. 6 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series
Dickies 500 and will make them available to fans.
Companies regularly purchase blocks of tickets in
advance but do not always use the full allotment. Texas
Motor Speedway has purchased back the unused tickets to
sell to the general public. The available tickets will
go on sale Wednesday, Oct. 12, at 9 a.m. at the speedway
ticket office, online at www.texasmotorspeedway.com, by
calling the ticket hotline at (817) 215-8500, or at
participating Ticketmaster locations. The green flag
drops for the Dickies 500 at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, Nov.
6. Tickets are still available for the NASCAR Busch
Series O'Reilly Challenge (Nov. 5) and the Craftsman
Truck Series Silverado 350k (Nov. 4) as well as
Albertsons Qualifying Days (Nov. 3-4). - (Texas Motor
Speedway PR)
Busch not happy with
teammate:#97-Kurt Busch wasn't happy with his teammate,
#17-Matt Kenseth, early in Sunday's race because he
wouldn't let him lead a single lap - and gain five bonus
points in the championship race. Kenseth said there are
no company orders to help teammates, especially when
that teammate is a competitor in the playoffs. "When you
get in the Chase you've got to get all the points you
can," Kenseth said. "You can't give points away. I'm
sure (Busch) is mad at me." Jack Roush said he doesn't
want his drivers to play favorites. "I don't expect them
to do that," he said. "In fact, I'd be disappointed if
they did that." (Augusta
Chronicle)
NHIS garages flooded:
The weekend flooding affected the garage area at New
Hampshire International Speedway, which was covered with
several feet of water due to a backup in Gues Brook
south of the track. "I doubt that there was any serious
damage," NHIS spokesman Ron Meade said yesterday. He
said track officials will assess the situation today
after the water has receded.He said the brook is
channeled beneath the garage area in large culverts that
were installed when the garage area was expanded to more
than double its original size in 1994.
(Union
Tribune)
Bruton Smith parkway
opens: At 3 p.m. today, the Bruton Smith Parkway
(the newly realigned GA Hwy. 20) officially opened.
Named after Atlanta Motor Speedway Chairman Bruton
Smith, the four-lane parkway spans approximately ten
miles and runs from exit 218 off I-75 directly to the
speedway. Smith, Governor Sonny Perdue and DOT
commissioner Harold Linnenkohl participated in the
ribbon cutting ceremony to open the highway to vehicular
traffic. Linnenkohl has been involved with the road
construction project since its inception. "It is not
only a great day for Henry County, it is a great day for
this race track and it is a great day for Georgia," said
Linnenkohl. "This is a project that people have been
working on for as long as 12 years. Groundbreaking and
ribbon cutting are the two best days in the life of a
commissioner. We love to see a project when it has been
completed." (Atlanta Motor Speedway PR)
Oct. 9, 2005:
Martin car #6 drivers
to easy victory: Mark Martin bounced back from
a costly crash with a dominating victory Sunday at
Kansas Speedway, keeping the veteran racer's slim
championship hopes alive. But to get the 35th victory of
his career and stay in the hunt for the Nextel Cup,
Martin had to hold off his teammates. A lot of them.
Martin and teammate Greg Biffle led Roush Racing's sweep
of the top three spots, and Roush cars took four of the
top five. It was the 46-year-old Martin's first since
Dover in June 2004. But the last laugh might belong to
Tony Stewart, who finished fourth and extended his Chase
lead from four points to 75. It was Stewart's 15th top
10-finish in the last 16 races Biffle, another of the 10
drivers in the 10-race Chase, passed Stewart for second
place 30 laps from the end of the 267-lap Banquet 400
and went after Martin, cutting a lead of about 20
car-lengths to less than half of that. (TSN
-
Results -
Points)
Ford Fusion debuts as
pace car: Ford's new Fusion, which will
replace the Taurus as the company's Nextel Cup entry
next year, will debut as the pace car today. Setting a
different pace: If the pace car looks a little different
this weekend, that's because it is. The Ford Fusion,
which will replace the Taurus next year as the
manufacturer's racing entry for Nextel Cup and Busch
events, made its on-track debut before Saturday's United
Way 300 in the Busch Series and will also be the pace
car for Sunday's Nextel Cup race, the Banquet 400. "We
got a great response from the public when we unveiled
our NASCAR Fusion race car in Charlotte earlier this
year," said Burt Diamond, the global marketing manager
for Ford Racing Technology. "We've got high hopes that
this car will be a winner on the track and in dealer
showrooms." The new Fusion also will serve as the pace
car next month at Homestead - in the Ford 400,
naturally. (Ford Racing PR)
France on NASCAR HOF
in Kansas City: (Brian) France was asked if
the fact that Sprint, which has merged with Nextel to
become NASCAR's title sponsor, is based in Kansas City
would sway the decision of where to put the hall. "It's
going to be on the merits," he said. "That's shaping up.
Who can put best financial package together, best ideas
together to house future, past and all those things. One
consideration: If it was just that, we have more
sponsors based in Atlanta by far. It's going to be who
can do the best job with the enterprise of the hall of
fame. It's getting down to by the end of the year we
should know where we're at." (Kansas
City Star)
New television deal
near complete before '05 season: Negotiations for a
new Nextel Cup television contract could be completed
before the end of the season, NASCAR chairman Brian
France said. The current $2.6 billion, six-year
contract, with Fox and NBC splitting the season, expires
at the end of the 2006 season. "We're getting down to
the wire," France said Saturday at Kansas Speedway.
"Looks to be in the next four to six weeks or sooner
there will be some firm announcements of where we'll
land." France would not comment on which networks are
part of the negotiations, but speculation has centered
on ESPN and ABC, its parent company, joining Fox and
NBC, each of the entities taking one-third of the
season. FOX would get the Daytona 500 and the first
third of the season, ESPN and ABC would divvy up the
middle third, including the Brickyard race, and NBC
would televise the 10-race Chase for the championship.
"It's competitive," France said of the bargaining. "But
the last three, four weeks we've been very surprised at
all the interest in network to cable. "The package may
change and look a little different, but we're very
convinced we'll get proper value. We're more concerned
about getting the right partners. We've got great ones
now, but we want to make sure whatever happens we get
partners who treat us like our current partners do." (ESPN.com)
Childress likes
Bowyer over Tracy: The Paul Tracy experiment in
NASCAR is on hold, according to team owner Richard
Childress. Childress, who tested the Champ Car driver in
August, is focused on helping Nextel Cup driver Kevin
Harvick win the $1 million bonus for finishing 11th (his
current position) and Clint Bowyer win his first Busch
Series title. Bowyer is 49 points behind Martin Truex
Jr. following Saturday's United Way 300 at Kansas.
Childress said he would rather give Bowyer -- and not
Tracy -- a chance in a Cup race before the season ends.
"I think he's ready," he said. (Indy
Star)
Labonte denies
joining Hall of Fame racing: Native Texan Terry
Labonte said he is not a candidate for the Cup ride at
Hall of Fame Racing, the start-up team co-owned by
former Cowboys quarterbacks Roger Staubach and Troy
Aikman. "I've got a job," said Labonte, a two-time Cup
champ who plans to retire in 2006. "I'm going to run 10
races for Hendrick Motorsports next year. That's for
sure." Labonte's name surfaced here as a good fit for
the Staubach-Aikman ride. The native of Corpus Christi
carries with him a champion's provisional that would
guarantee the team a starting spot in the season-opening
Daytona 500 -- NASCAR's Super Bowl. (Ft.
Worth Star Telegram)
Oct. 8, 2005:
NASCAR plans to limit
muti-car teams: NASCAR plans to limit the number of
teams a car owner will be able to field in the Nextel
Cup series, chairman Brian France said Saturday.
"We're going to make some adjustments in policy to
balance the playing field a little better and really go
after new ownership in the industry, really benefit and
help the teams like the Wood Brothers, the Pettys, Cal
Wells, independent teams that are finding themselves in
ever increasing difficulties to compete," France said.
He said the limit would be phased in over the next few
seasons. "It won't happen tomorrow," France said. "But
it would phase down from five to four to some other
number." All of the top teams currently in NASCAR are
multicar teams, with Roush Racing and Hendrick
Motorsports leading the way with five and four cars,
respectively. The benefits of running more than one car
are clear: additional tests under current testing
limits, information sharing among the teams, multiple
sponsorships that provide great resources and,
sometimes, on-track cooperation among teammates. But
France said the success of the big teams is also viewed
as an obstacle to people contemplating starting a new
Cup team. For example, Jack Roush's team has won the
last two Cup titles and all five of his cars are in
NASCAR's 10-race Chase for the championship. "We don't
like the fact that the independent teams, or in
particular a new owner looking at coming in the door,
have a daunting task to compete, and the concept of
having to have five teams, three teams ... that's why
you haven't seen a lot of new ownership like a Ray
Evernham come into the sport," France said. "That means
the opportunities aren't there for young drivers. It
means opportunities aren't there to create the next Rick
Hendrick and have the success. "It ultimately means that
we don't field as many competitive cars as we'd like to
field. We're going to have to address that." (Newsday)
Kenseth sets new
track record, to win the pole: Matt Kenseth set a
track qualifying record in capturing the pole for the
Banquet 400, hoping it will put him in position to win
Sunday and get back into the race for the Chase for the
Nextel Cup championship. Kenseth is seventh in the
standings, 111 points behind leader Tony Stewart. The
last time Kenseth won a pole, he took the checkered
flag, too. Now he'd like more of the same at the 1˝-mile
tri-oval at Kansas Speedway. The 2003 Winston Cup
champion, whose uneventful title run led NASCAR to
overhaul its title format, recorded his only victory
this year on Aug. 26 at Bristol. This is his third
career pole. "We had a good car lately, and it's been a
lot of fun to drive them," said Kenseth, who turned in a
lap of 180.856 mph in his Ford on Saturday. "We haven't
had good cars until last couple of months." The top five
qualifiers all broke Jimmie Johnson's track record of
180.373 mph, set in 2003 -- but no other title
contenders made it into the first two rows, and only
half of the Chase field will start in the top 10. Carl
Edwards, sixth in the standings, will start fifth on
Sunday. Greg Biffle, sitting fifth, will start eight.
Stewart will start ninth, and defending champion Kurt
Busch -- 10th in the standings and all but out of
contention to repeat -- qualified 10th. (CBS
News)
Lester's Cup debut on
hold: Bill Lester's bid to become the first
African-American driver to compete in NASCAR's top
series since 1986 will be delayed until next season.
Mike Brown, general manager for Bill Davis Racing, had
said the team hoped to have Lester compete in select
races this season, depending on sponsorship. Brown said
Friday at Kansas Speedway that Lester's debut likely
will take place early next year. It could happen at
Atlanta Motor Speedway, a track Bill Davis Racing
excels. "We do have some plans for Lester in '06,''
Brown said. "Right now, it's hard to say what it will
be, one or two races or as many as 10. "It just hasn't
really come together as fast as we hoped. The key is we
want to do it right. Another six months is not going to
make a huge difference to try to do it the right way.''
The 44-year-old Lester competes in the Craftsman Truck
series for Bill Davis Racing. He ranks 18th in the
points. (Roanoke.com)
Harvick's father
in-law ill: Kevin Harvick will be leaving the Kansas
Speedway as soon as he qualify's his Busch car later
this afternoon to be at his wife's side. Delana
Harvick's father, John Linville, is nearing the end of a
long battle with cancer. Harvick plans on being back
tomorrow. However, if he doesn't come back Jeff Burton
will drive the #21 Reese's Chevrolet in the Busch race.
RCR Busch Series driver Clint Bowyer will practice a few
laps in the #29 GM Goodwrench Chevy this afternoon in
case he has to be Harvick's qualifying stand-in
tomorrow.
New Series?
NASCAR's game plan for the 2007 car of the future is
slowly becoming clearer. When the new, larger car is
phased in in 2007, the current Nextel Cup cars would
become Busch tour cars, and the current Busch cars
(which have a smaller 105-inch wheelbase than the
110-inch Cup cars) will become part of a new Grand
National series in Mexico, Canada, the Western U.S., and
possibly England, according to NASCAR sources. (Salem-Journal)
Wimmer to stay with
Bill Davis Racing: Mike Brown said Friday that Scott
Wimmer will remain with Bill Davis Racing next season.
Wimmer's contract goes through next season. There had
been speculation that Wimmer, 33rd in the point
standings, might not remain with the team after this
season. (Roanoke.com)
Norris back in
garage? Ty Norris, the veteran team manager
who has been working for Bruton Smith's Speedway
Motorsports since leaving Dale Earnhardt Inc., may be
returning to the NASCAR garage as manager for Michael
Waltrip's own stock car teams. (Salem-Journal)
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