Bench Racing with Steve and Charlie

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.

Round 2 of the Chase to the Nextel Cup, ding ding

Jimmy Johnson is on the pole.  Denny Hamlin won Saturday's Busch race.  Juan Pablo Montoya is on the front row.  Clint Bowyer, Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards were fast in practice.  Oh, and Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart are entered too.

Take your pick NASCAR fans.  According to the Channel 12 weather  forecast at  the Ryan Newman Fan, it should be a perfect day.  Who do you like to win this one and kick off the Chase talk for the week?  I think it is tough to go against Martin Truex Jr.  In the second race of the season at any given track, I look at the winner of the first race - Truex this time.  Then I look at the Busch race winner, if the Buschies are at the same venue - a sick Denny Hamlin yesterday.  Hamlin may have been used up by Joe Gibbs Racing and Rockwell Automation, if he is as ill as reported.

Hey, maybe Gibbs will start Hamlin and then sub the driver sure to be in the fourth JGR Toyota before too, long - NASCAR Busch East Series champ Joey Logano.  Won't happen, of course, but what a story that would be.  Maybe we should start a rumor or something?

Enjoy the race and the rest of your Sunday.

Picture credit: Logano - Getty Images for NASCAR - Ring Girl - I don't know, does it really matter?

3 drivers to watch for NASCAR Chase's chasers

There is sure to be excitement at the front of tonight's Sharp Aquos 500 at California Speedway.  The Nextel Cup contenders will pull out the stops for the win and precious ten bonus points that come with it.  For Dale Earnhardt Jr and Ryan Newman fans, the drama will be at the back of the pack.  They hope.

Three drivers hold the keys to a chance at ultimate success - or relative failure  - for the #8 and #12.  Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr or Kurt Busch have big leads over their pursuers for the Chase's top twelve - roughly 160 to 180 points -  but catastrophe lurks.  Just ask Brad Kesolowski.

Kurt Busch has looked, to me, like a solid contender for the championship - if he can just get in the Chase.  Truex Jr had a couple non-descript races but has come on lately.  Harvick has faltered a bit. 

On the chaser side, Earnhardt Jr and Newman have been pretty solid for most of the last dozen races.  The problem has been that their respective team-mates have outshone them.  Not by much - just enough, it seems, each race to stretch the deficit to where it is today.  And it is their team-mates that they chase.

It shapes up to be an interesting race.  Could it be that if a Harvick or Truex Jr falls laps down, allowing Dale Jr to claw back into points contention, that NASCAR leaves the debris caution flags furled?  Lucky dogs be damned?

Picture credit: Beth Anne Heisler - ON PIT ROW

The Chase is changing NASCAR race strategy

With about twenty laps to go today in the gloom of the Irish Hills, Jeff Gordon's team made a choice to fore go a final pit stop for tires - in effect going for broke for the win, and the ten bonus points that count in the Chase for the Nextel Cup.

A few laps later, maybe inevitably, the Dupont #24 slid back through the pack and eventually spun out of the lead lap and win contention.  Gordon's team had nothing to lose.  Their points position is way safe.  Now it's all about the wins - and bonus points. 

In the final laps of the race that was really dominated by Kurt Busch, several Chase qualifiers were hangin' it out trying for the win.  In the old days, drivers in the top five or six in the championship might have been a bit more conservative and run for points - or not to lose points.  Not any more.

Other than Martin Truex Jr, who is hovering around the 12th spot and needs all the points he can get,  the other front running Chase contenders were after it.  Jimmy Johnson, Denny Hamlin, Matt Kenseth and Tony Stewart all contributed to exciting, fast racing at the finish.

Congratulations to Kurt Busch for another pressure performance.  He'll be dangerous if he makes the Chase.  We have a nice interview with Kurt from Friday on tonight's ON PIT ROW.  If you miss the show, check out the re-broadcast Thursday at 7 pm on RaceTalkRadio.com.

Gordon's gamble didn't pay off today.  On to Bristol.  The last 50 laps of the night race may to be better than ever.

The painting is another of Rob's.  See them all at Car a Day.

So how does that DEI driver line up look now?

The big splash of the Dale Earnhardt, Inc. merger with Ginn Racing has passed.  Ripples remain but they aren't exactly rocking any boats.

Three weeks ago, excitement reigned.  DEI fans welcomed Mark Martin as Dale Jr's new team-mate.  Martin Truex Jr was on a six race roll and looking capable of leading the team in the new era.  Paul Menard, Aric Almirola and Regan Smith were being touted by Martin and others as future stars, emmerging from prior shadows.  Rumors circled that a Kyle Busch or Kasey Kahne would certainly sign soon to form the super team.

Reality has dawned.  Dale Junior is leaving.  He always was.  Martin Junior is slumping and in real danger of falling from the Chase.  Mark Martin will  be back -  but only to drive a 2007-like partial schedule.  Kyle Busch is going to Gibbs Racing and  Kasey Kahne is going nowhere.   The latest  hot rumor I've seen for DEI is  David  Stremme.  I wonder if Gannasi would miss him?

Does a line up of Martin Truex Jr, Paul Menard, Aric Almirola/Mark Martin and Stremme/Smith get your heart pumping, DEI fans?

Wood Brothers/JTG Racing big winners in DEI/Ginn merger

“NASCAR's cap of four teams per company meant we had to give something up," said Bobby Ginn. “We felt so strongly about this merger that we surrendered the value of the 13 car. We all were completely comfortable that the benefits of working together far outweighed the value of points.”

By relinquishing those points that Joe Nemechek worked so hard to establish for former boss, Bobby Ginn, Wood Brothers/JTG Racing will move from the outside--looking in, to the inside--looking back.

There is now a 225-point gap between the #70 team from Haas CNC Racing and driver Johnny Sauter in 34th and the Wood Brothers in 35th.  Dave Blaney’s #22 Toyota team from Bill Davis Racing goes into the Brickyard 400 only seven points behind Bill Elliott.  Scott Riggs’ No. 10 Dodge team from Evernham Motorsports is only 67 behind the #21.

The new DEI will field Chevys for Mark Martin in the #01, Martin Truex Jr. in the No. #1, Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the No. #8, supposedly through the end of 2007, and Paul Menard in the #15. With Menard’s team in essence becoming the former #14 team, they will assume the points garnered by Sterling Marlin for Ginn in the season’s first 19 races. All four teams are in the top 35.

DEI/Ginn officials said the merger is all about creating one strong four-car team to compete in the Nextel/Sprint Cup multi car world.

“Our stated goals included an expansion to four cars as quickly as possible and, in order to do that, we had to acquire more shop space,” said Max Siegel, DEI president. “This relationship with Bobby Ginn and his company allows us to accomplish both, which makes this a perfect transaction.”

The immediate future will have DEI operating teams out of both its existing 100,000-square foot complex and the 180,000-square foot Ginn Racing complex. Both shops are located within 5 miles of one another in Mooresville.

“The value of additional square footage is easy to see, but the value that Mark will bring to our company is harder to measure and may be even more impactful,” Siegel said.

Seigel said he considers adding Martin to the lineup a key factor in the deal. Martin and Aric Almirola are scheduled to share the # 01 for the remainder of 2007 and in 2008.

“Mark has pledged his support to our young drivers and our entire company in an effort to make us all better. Given his stature in the sport, this benefit cannot be quantified.”

DEI owner, Teresa Earnhardt also plans to use Bobby Ginn for “strategic development projects that Teresa has been planning for years.”

Regan Smith, who had been sharing the #01 with Mark Martin until the signing of Almirola; and was  headed to the #14 for the rest of this year, will instead move to the Craftsman Truck Series, at least for this weeks race at O’Reilly Raceway Park in Indianapolis.

According to a statement from DEI, specific schedules for Martin, Smith and Almirola will be announced later. DEI/Ginn will continue to field cars in the Busch Series, CTS and Busch East Series through 2007, but changes are expected as those programs are evaluated.

There are still many questions to be answered, including the future of Ginn’s development drivers, including AMA champion Ricky Carmichael.

Congratulations to the Wood Brothers for getting into the top 35 in points; even if it came from off track manipulating.  Now, it is a matter of staying there, and whether Kenny Shrader will return to drive the #21 or will he turn his "one off" at the #49 into something more permanent.

And, how will the pending merger of Robert Yates Racing with Indycar team Newman/Haas racing impact that team and others in the NASCAR garage?  Stay tuned for another episode of "As the Garage Turns"

photo:   news.appstate.edu

Marlin, Nemechek out--Almirola in at Ginn/(DEI)

Barely half way through the Nextel Cup season, Ginn Racing has restructured their driver lineup for the remainder of the year.

  Joe Nemechek has been relieved of his driving duties on the #13 and Ginn has mothballed that operation due to lack of sponsorship.

Regan Smith will assume full-time driving duties in the team’s #14 Chevy, beginning with the Nextel Cup race July 29 in Indianapolis. Smith replaces Sterling Marlin.

Aric Almirola has signed with Ginn Racing and will become Mark Martin’s co-driver in the #01 U.S. Army Chevrolet for the remainder of the 2007 season.  He will also share the ride with Martin in 2008. His first race in the #01 will be Aug. 12 at the road course in Watkins Glen, N.Y. As part of his contractual obligations, Almirola will compete in five remaining Busch races for Joe Gibbs Racing this season.

Almirola was quite miffed with JGR after qualifying on the pole and leading the early laps at Milwaukee, for Denny Hamlin,  during a Busch Series event.  He was removed from the car, by sponsors request, midway through the race.

Sterling Marlin had this to say to Dave Moody on "Sirius Speedway" Tuesday afternoon:

"I was planning on cutting back next year but still would have liked to finish the year out like you're supposed to and do everything that was in the contract that we're supposed to do and we just don't look like we're gonna do it."
... I've had some guys call already and we've just got to get this contract worked out. Like I said, I've got a contract with them. We've just got to come together and see what we're gonna do. Let the lawyers handle it and if I want to run somebody's car next year I can run somebody's car [for] 15-20 races next year. Or, somebody's Busch car. I still enjoy racing, still enjoy it a lot. The travel part of it is getting old but as far as firing a car up on Sunday, there's nothing like it. We'll see what happens. I've got a ton of things going on around here but it's still fun to race, too."

This move also ends, for now, speculation that Mark Martin will return full-time in 2008 to chase his first Sprint Cup title.  Martin had been rumored to be looking to make at least one more serious run at a championship in 2008.

Also on the outside, looking in is Joe (Front Row Joe) Nemechek who is known as for his proclivity of putting race cars on the pole.  Nemechek has been given his release and is free to look for other opportunities.

Ginn Racing that was being heralded as quite the up and coming team early in the season has fallen on hard times due to lack of major sponsor commitments.  The #01 car, shared by Mark Martin, Regan Smith and now Aric Almirola was the only Ginn car with a full sponsorship from the U.S. Army.  The #13 and #14 had only partial sponsorship deals to start the season.  That lack of full-time sponsorship has caught up with them now as they try to revert back to the two car team that Bobby Ginn bought into originally.

This also sets up the highly speculated merger/buy out of Ginn with/by Dale Earnhardt Inc.  Rumors have been flying that Ginn and DEI will have a new, combined relationship before their cars hit the track at Indianapolis for the Brickyard 400 in two weeks.

Martin Truex Jr. has said he his committed to DEI in the #1 Bass Pro Shops Chevy.  He, along with the #14 and #01, gives DEI/Ginn three-Fourths of their allotted team lineup.  Where does that leave Paul Menard and the speculation that Kyle "Rowdy" Busch will sign to drive what was the #8 of Dale Earnhardt Jr.?

Look for Menard to be given his walking papers and Busch to sign a long term contract with DEI/Ginn, perhaps as soon as this weekend.  Busch has been doing everything in his power to get fired from Hendrick Motorsports ever since the presser that announced Junior was coming to Hendrick.

The final piece of this puzzle is; where does Budweiser fit for 2008, with Rowdy or Regan?

photos:  scenedaily.com, nascar.com, robiecapps.com,

Loudon's in the mirrors and the last Daytona of it's kind is on tap

Is anybody out there getting all nostalgic about the last restrictor plate race for those melted candles better known as the Current Car?

As hated as plate races generally are in the NASCAR garage, they do make for exciting viewing.  I wonder if that will change at all when the CoT takes to the Talladega high banks this fall.

So, NASCAR is now, supposedly, concerned with banished crew chiefs text messaging strategy to their off limits teams.  I don't know about you but it takes me so long to compose a text message that I can't imagine it helping a Cup team in the fog of battle.  Maybe NASCAR should force penalized crew chiefs to communicate by text.  That would deter me, for sure.

I am having a real tough time talking myself out of picking Truex Jr. to win this week.

Happy Fourth of July NASCARites.  Light a sparkler for me.

Contest Update:  I have decided to extend the deadline to Friday July 6 and 8:00 pm EDT.  You all are close. Here's your last clue.  The picture was taken in 2007.  Good luck.  Hey even if you hated Iron Head, think of all the things you could step in with those Crocs.

Heading for Daytona the DEI drivers are lookin' good for the Chase

With strong runs Sunday at New Hampshire International Speedway Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Martin Truex Jr. are starting to look like locks for the Chase for the Nextel Cup.  That's bad news for Ryan Newman or Jamie McMurray.

Right now, ten of the top twelve in Nextel points are Chevys.  The Roush Fords of Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards are solidly in the Chase, barring catastrophe.  But even with nine playoff races to go, Newman is 127 points out of 12th while McMurray is 57 further back and they are chasing two of the hottest drivers on the circuit.  That doesn't give much hope to the non-bowtie brigade.

Trying to catch the red hot Truex and resurgent Earnhardt will be even tougher at Daytona International Speedway.  DEI has been dominant in the past at the restrictor plate tracks.  This week, the new engine co-developed by the alliance of Richard Childress Racing and DEI is supposed to debut in all six of those team's cars.  They might just get better.

Truex is showing big-time confidence ever since the announcement that Dale Jr. is leaving DEI.  But I won't be surprised if it's the #8 with the checker this week.

Picture credit: Beth Anne Heisler - ON PIT ROW