Bench Racing with Steve and Charlie

Bench Racing’s top 18 Budweiser Shootout countdown

OK, Kurt Busch is on the pole for Saturday’s Budweiser Shootout but does that mean anything?  It might.  Check out our countdown of compelling Bud Shootout factoids and impress your friends at the 2008 NASCAR kickoff party.

70 - Total laps in the race, up from the 20 run the first year of the event in 1979

44 - No, not DJ’s UPS truck car number. It's the most laps led in a single Bud Shootout, by Greg Biffle in 2005

22 - Largest field in event history in 2002 also the number of career starts by Awesome Bill from Dawsonville

19 - Dale Earnhardt Jr’s starting position in ‘03, the farthest back anybody has started and won also the number of consecutive starts by Mark Martin, most by any driver also..... Go to the new home of the Bench Racing blog for the rest of this post.

Live Blog - NASCAR Awards Show

Watching NASCAR's year end awards banquet and show from the Waldorf in New York City is, to me, a painful experience.  But doing what I do, I feel compelled to watch it. That's kind of funny actually because I don't always feel compelled to watch the races.  Anyway, since I have to do this, I was hoping that some of you would join me in my pain. 

Steve and our producer/photographer Beth Anne have promised - under threat of me making their email addresses public on MySpace - to show up at some point and I have dropped pleading hints around the NASCAR blogosphere as well. 

So with the help of this great Cover it Live software we'll try our best to resurrect Joel, Tom Servo, Betsy and Crow of Mystery Science Theatre 3000 fame and totally de-construct NASCAR's most ludicrous night.

Rusty visits "ON PIT ROW"

Rusty Wallace spent some time ON PIT ROW on Tuesday night.

Rusty talked about his ownership and design of Iowa Speedway and the new Riverside Motorsports Park to be located outside of Fresno California.  The 7/8ths mile oval will have a replica of the old Riverside road course inside the oval; much like Iowa Speedway has its 2.5 mile road course inside.

The ESPN/ABC broadcaster told of his relationship with his broadcast partners, Jerry Punch and Andy Petree and how they have progressed through the NASCAR season.  Rusty believes the team will be even stronger in 2008.  He said is now a broadcaster first and his many other responsibilities are able to be juggled around that.

Rusty Wallace Inc. Racing will be expanding to two teams to compete on the Nationwide Series in 2008 with David Stremme and 18 year old, Chase Austin sharing the new #64 Atreus Homes/Jimmy Johns Chevrolet.  Wallace's son, Steven, will continue as the full time driver of the #66 with similar sponsorship.  The move from Dodges in 2007 to Chevrolet in 2008 will mean Richard Childress Racing will supply engines for the team.

The CoT was on Rusty's mind as he agreed with Fox Sports and Speed's Larry McReynolds:

"The cure for the CoT is stickier tires.  That's all it will take.  Call them stickier or softer or whatever; when you have equal cars with  hard tires there is no chance for good racing.   Let the tires wear faster  like they do at  places like Darlington and  you'll get some great racing--in multiple grooves."

Rusty gave is views on The Chase and how it has affected Jeff Gordon and NASCAR.

To hear the entire interview with Rusty and the rest of ON PIT ROW; tune in to www.racetalkradio.com on Thursday night 11-29-2007 at 7pm ET.

photo: BethAnne Heisler/ ON PIT ROW-Bench Racing Productions, LLC

Hendrick sets Gordon and Johnson apart

It is reported that Rick Hendrick has offered Jimmy Johnson and lifetime contract with his Hendrick Motorsports organization.

Not a bad gig there Jimmy.  Merry Christmas.  You earned it but the following quote found on Scene Daily makes it sound like it's not a done deal. Jimmy reportedly said.....

"This is home to me. Hendrick Motorsports is home to me. I don't need a lifetime contract to say that. I know where my home is. I know where I want to drive and who I want to work for. I have a contract through 2010. And after that we'll figure out what is in store for us for the future. But this is home for me. It's family, it's great."

Does that sound like "Hell yes! Sign me up!" to you?

Whatever - that's not the point that I want to make.  What I'm looking at is Dale Earnhardt Jr.

If Johnson signs his lifetime deal - that would put both Jeff Gordon and Jimmy under the same contractual umbrella and that's fine.  Good for everybody involved.  Junior is a different deal.

For one thing, Jr just joined the team and hasn't run a race for HMS.  Success on the track is expected -  how much is yet to be seen.  Wins and championships on pace with the #24 and #48 teams will be awfully tough to  achieve though.

The other thing I see is the conflict that exists between DEJI - that is Dale Earnhardt Junior Inc. (not to be confused with TEI) - and the Hendrick marketing machine.  As big as Johnson is with his two straight Cup titles, his popularity still pales compared to Gordon's.  And even Jeffy isn't in Junior's ballpark.  Dale Earnhardt Junior is Jeff Gordon without the Haters, when it comes to selling stuff.

So if, down the road, Junior piles up wins and Sprint Cup Championships to an extent that Mr. Hendrick might feel tempted to offer up the same lifetime deal, I wonder how it would go.  With Junior - DEJI - it would be more of an offer of merger - and a totally different reality.  I don't see it working.  Mostly, I don't see the Earnhardt's advantage there.

Even with all of the mutual respect and admiration expressed by Mr. H and Jr, their relationship within HMS may always be different  than that between Hendrick, Gordon and Johnson.  There's nothing wrong with that.  But will it affect long term performance on the track?

Picture credit: Sandy Macys - AP

Quit complaining - at least there's a race this week

I understand that you are depressed.  If you hate Jimmy Johnson you probably hate Jeff Gordon too. If you're not a fan, watching Johnson the last four weeks could deflate Al Gore at a PETA convention.  It’s over.

But the season isn't over - yet.  One race to go before we lapse into two and a half months of testing news and silly season reports.  And the banquet.  And no races.  At all.

So enjoy this week.  Bitch about Jimmy and Jeffy to you heart's content.  Or cheer them on if you're one of those NASCAR fans.

Do yourself a favor though.  Watch the race this time.  It's gonna be a while before the next one.

Picture credit: Butlermotorspeedway.com

Johnson takes fourth in a row and seals champ bid

Jimmy Johnson makes another late race push to the front and moves to a commanding points lead.

Greg Biffle, Matt Kenseth, Ryan Newman and Tony Stewart all made late race runs at JJ but none seriously threatened to take the lead.  Johnson and Chad Knaus seem to have it figured out and nothing short of a disaster at Homestead next week can derail this train.

The best finishing Toyota was Brian Vickers in 21st.  The desert wasn't a kind place for the Toyota group as none of Michael Waltrip Racing's entries made the field.

With Dale Jarrett not making the race and Mark Martin and Ken Shrader not entered - there has now not been a driver who has participated in all the Phoenix Cup events.

The Buzz ON PIT ROW is:

Is America's love of the underdog strong enough to make Gordon haters root for him to win the Championship?

The Fast Lap this week asks:

1)  Will the 48 team continue their "race to win strategy" at Homestead or will they race for 18th?

2) Is Homestead the best place to finish the season?

3) Should Petty Enterprises merge/partner with Gillett-Evernham?

4) Will any of the three 2008 open wheel rookies not make it to the end of the season?

Let us know how you feel about these questions, or anything else that happened at in the desert.  If we like your comments, whether we agree or not, we may use them on the air during Tuesday's ON PIT ROW.  Leave us a comment on the blog or call the show--toll free at 1-877-502-8255 between 5-7pm edt on Tuesdays.

photo: Jason Smith/Getty images/NASCAR

Johnson wins again after a battle with Kenseth

Kenseth had a shot but JJ proved to be too much for Matt to handle.

This weeks fast laps will come at you quick and to the point, as this ON PIT ROW reporter deals with a nasty bug and has me doing some bus driving.  Here they are.  Take your best shot.

The Buzz ON PIT ROW is:

Now that Jimmy Johnson is in the points lead will Jeff Gordon catch him?

The Fast Lap this week asks:

1)  Bruton Smith has purchased New Hampshire Speedway.  Should NASCAR allow one of their races to move to Las Vegas?

2) Even though Jimmy Jonson won at Texas; was it a good decision to race Matt Kenseth for the win?

3) Who will do better in 2008; Junior at Hendricks or Kyle Busch at Gibbs?

4) What should NASCAR do to change the Busch (Nationwide) Series for 2008?

Let us know how you feel about these questions, or anything else that happened at Texas.  If we like your comments, whether we agree or not, we may use them on the air during Tuesday's ON PIT ROW.  Leave us a comment on the blog or call the show--toll free at 1-877-502-8255 between 5-7pm edt on Tuesdays.

Photo: Jamie Squire?Getty Images/NASCAR

Hamlin finds water at drought plagued Atlanta

Jimmy Johnson wins again at Atlanta to sweep the season series in Georgia.

A late race wreck fest led to opportunities lost for Kurt and Kyle Busch and Martin Truex Jr.  Johnson only led eight laps but they were the last eight to gain the victory and close the points deficit on team mate and the co-owner of Johnson's car, Jeff Gordon.

The last caution and the one that led to an attempted Green-White-Checker finish was caused as Denny Hamlin, who was leading at the time, couldn't get up to speed.  Original thoughts had Hamlin running out of fuel on the restart but it was later determined that Hamlin and at least one other car - that of Dave Blaney - had water in their fuel cells. 

After receiving the contaminated fuel samples from the two teams, John Darby, Nextel Cup competition director conferred with Sunoco officials:

"What you don't know is when the water got introduced," Darby said. "What doesn't make sense about it, if you look at the 22 and 11, you're dealing with a Chevrolet team and a Toyota team. It's not like three teams out of one organization have the problem.

"We're trying to backtrack to see where this came from. There's no reason to think about conspiracy, going back to the fact you have a Chevrolet team and a Toyota team. There's no connection there that would make anybody think of some evil spirit trying to sabotage somebody's race car. Our focus is on trying to understand where the water came from, especially in one of the largest drought states."

The Buzz ON PIT ROW is:

Is NASCAR becoming like the NBA-you only need to watch the ending?

The Fast Lap this week asks:

1)  Is Chad Knaus the best crew chief ever?

2) Is there anything to the Dale Jr. cospiracy theories?

3) Who is to blame for the tire problems, then wrecks, at Atlanta; Goodyear, NASCAR or the crew chiefs?

4) Does the GREEN -WHITE-CHECKER finish need adjusting?

Let us know how you feel about these questions, or anything else that happened in front of half empty stands at Atlanta.  If we like your comments, whether we agree or not, we may use them on the air during Tuesday's ON PIT ROW.  Leave us a comment on the blog or call the show--toll free at 1-877-502-8255 between 5-7pm edt on Tuesdays.

NASCAR changes according to Hammond

My favorite part of being involved with ON PIT ROW is the people that I get to work with.  Last night, Jeff Hammond was one of our guests.  Jeff has been a pretty regular part of our show for three or four years now and there is more than one good story attached to his appearances with us.

We weren't sure that we were going to get him yesterday.  The craziness of trying to do a live radio show and actually hook up with busy NASCAR people to participate is tough.  Steve had been trying to make the Hammond connections all afternoon and we had resigned ourselves to failure.  Then at about 6:30 pm we got a cell phone call from an out of breath Jeff Hammond - who said he had run in from somewhere on his property, to do the show.  Pretty cool stuff for us.

Earlier in the show, we had as a guest, Michelle Thierault - Busch East and ARCA ReMax Series driver and participant in the Toyota NASCAR All Star Challenge over the weekend. Michelle is a big talent and is on track to get to one of the major series in NASCAR soon - maybe even the Cup Series. I asked Jeff what he thought was going to happen with all of the new, young talent entering the NASCAR ranks.

Hammond predicts a large turnover in the driver ranks of NASCAR's top series.  No real surprise there.  But he also told us that he thinks that drivers like Tony Stewart , Jeff Gordon and others will go the Mark Martin route - opting for more part-time participant status in the Cup Series.  He feels that the importance of winning the Cup Series championship will revert to more of what it was in the old days - less important than winning races - especially the high profile races like the Daytona 500, the Brickyard and Bristol night race.

No body is better connected in the NASCAR garages than Jeff Hammond.  We don't see him as much as when Fox Sports is the lead dog in NASCAR TV coverage.  Even so, Jeff is very visible on Speed doing the Trackside show.  He is also a big part of the Direct TV Hot Pass programming.

I had a chance to watch some of the Hot Pass stuff recently.  If you are a NASCAR geek, it is a fantastic way to experience a race.  Currently, you have five different drivers to choose from each race and you essentially become part of the crew for that driver.  There are multiple split screens, in-car camera views, full scanner audio and commentary by guys like Jeff Hammond and Larry MacReynolds.  It's frickin' awesome.  Get a dish and buy it.

Update:  The Black Flag Blog has a very cool contest running where the creative creature in you can win Direct TV Hot Pass prizes!  Check it out.

Gordon and Johnson were surgical at Martinsville

I was watching mid-pack action at about the 100 lap mark of Sunday's Subway 500 at Martinsville Speedway.  Denny Hamlin was banging off of everyone in sight, locking his brakes going into turns.  Smoking his tires.  I wondered about his sanity.  There were nearly 400 laps  left in the race.  What was he trying to accomplish?  He finished sixth, which is good - but man it looked like a struggle.

Meanwhile, up towards the front of the race, Jeff Gordon and Jimmy Johnson were smoothly in command.  Surgical. That's the word that popped into my head.  The two of them - it is becoming harder for me to separate them this season - have been dissecting their competition all year.  Sunday was a continuation. 

Now Marc is sure to slam me with some "old guy" reference, but it reminded me of the movie version of *M*A*S*H*.  The movie starred Donald Sutherland and Elliott Gould as Hawkeye and Trapper John.  They referred to themselves as the "Pros from Dover".  I've always remembered that.  Gordon and Johnson will make me think of it from now on too.