Sebastien Bourdais looks for success with KVSH Racing
After spending last season with Dragon Racing, Sebastien Bourdais makes the move to KVSH Racing in 2014, and so far, the move has been a great experience.
“Really feeling very fortunate because I got a great group of guys around me. They’ve been working really hard all winter. It’s really paying off,” Bourdais commented. “I think it’s needless to say that work is rewarded. As far as we’re concerned, it’s been the hardest winter in terms of work that I’ve seen my team go through in a long time. It makes you feel great because you know the level of preparation is quite high. We’ve been able to test four times. Another one at Barber before the season starts.”
Bourdais added that the progress has been great so far, but it may not be totally right off the bat. However, Bourdais is fine with that as he looks to build with the team over the next two years.
Though so far, Bourdais has impressed in testing as he has been in the top three in speed charts so far. The success has caught hte attention of many people in the paddock and questioning why he wasn’t picked up by a bigger team.
“The common thread in racing is short-term memory,” Bourdais commented. “I don’t look at what people say, write or think of me. I try to be myself, do the best I can, and hopefully eventually it pays off and works out.
“For sure this year I do feel like there is a lot of potential, unexplored potential at KV. Last year was an eye-opener when Tony (Kanaan) won the 500. I think it’s pretty much to the credit at KVSH. They worked very hard. They have a great group of guys who really love racing, which is not so easy to find. I could not put a strong enough point on saying that this group can win, that’s for sure.”
Bourdais is hopeful that he can win some races this year and hopes it happens with the hard work that the team has put in so far.
“Every time we’ve unloaded the car, it’s been a bit of a struggle at times, but we just kept digging in, kept digging in,” he commented. “As long as we know and understand what actually makes the car faster, I think we’ve done just that during all these tests this winter, we end up finishing the test in good shape. That’s making me feel very hopeful.
“It’s not a moving target. You might struggle a little bit to find the answers and solutions, but we do find them eventually. They know what they’re shooting for and why they work so hard. It’s great. I haven’t felt that way in a long time. I feel like there’s something pretty awesome to do and am really pumped about it.”
The french driver will start off his season off with the rest of the gang in the city that he resides in – St. Petersburg, Florida. Bourdais says he’s lived there since 2003.
“It was my very first race in open-wheel in the U.S., started out on the right foot. Great memories from that. It’s been really a great place for me to spend time, obviously bring the family over,” he commented. “When I arrived in the U.S., I was a kid kind of. I evolved from being married, having a child, then another one. We’re raising the family in St. Pete in a great neighborhood. Starting the season at home is a great feeling. Hopefully we can get things going right and have a great weekend in St. Pete, because it’s not been so great so far since I returned to IndyCar.
“Hopefully we can have a better showing this year.”
Brad Keselowski comes up just short of the win at Daytona
Brad Keselowski knew his car was “really strong” and considers it the “best car” he’s ever had down in Daytona. However, he would come up short in his quest for his first Daytona 500 victory as he finished third behind Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Denny Hamlin.
“A strong night, for sure. Didn’t get the win, which is most disappointing as a racecar driver. You don’t get cars like that all the time, at least most of us don’t,” Keselowski commented. “ We had the opportunity tonight. Came up a little bit short there on that last restart, but really proud of the effort and happy for my friend.”
Keselowski got his break in racing, courtesy of Earnhardt Jr., when Earnhardt Jr. hired him to run his Nationwide Series car. The success in that car eventually led to Keselowski racing for Penske in the Sprint Cup Series.
“He’s been right there. He’s knocked on the door. He runs restrictor plates as an elite driver, probably in the top three,” Keselowski commented. “Hasn’t got the win that he probably deserved a couple times from a whole bunch of circumstances out of his control.
“He was due. Today was his day. So I’m happy for him and happy for all those guys. A lot of great people over there on that team that I really like. Really like Steve.”
Looking back on his Daytona 500, Keselowski doesn’t feel there’s anything that he could’ve done different to win.
“When the 11 and 18 broke apart, then the 17 split the 18, that was the end of my night. There was nothing I could do,” he said. “It was just circumstances outside of my control. I could have blocked the 11 and ran second. That’s all that was going to happen if I would have blocked the 11. But I really wasn’t interested in running second. I took a shot at a different move that would have given me an opportunity to win and finished third. That’s just the way it is.”
While most times a driver would be happy with a solid day, that isn’t the case with Daytona because of how special it is to win on the famed 2.5 mile oval. Keselowski adds that a solid points day doesn’t matter anymore with the new Chase format.
“That’s the great thing about this format. There is no good points day, as far as I’m concerned,” he commented. “What matters is a win, especially when you come to Daytona.”
Daytona 500 and Olympics End With Similar Storylines
This past weekend, the 56th running of the Daytona 500 kicked off the 2014 NASCAR season, while the Winter Olympics wrapped up business in Sochi, Russia. Yet, as disparate as the competition was, from stock car racing to ice dancing, there were some surprisingly similar story lines when all was said and done.
Gold Medal Pressure Packed Performances
Both the Daytona 500 and the Winter Olympics undoubtedly featured gold medal performances, including the first US gold medal in Alpine skiing, as well as the Great American race win by NASCAR’s most popular driver.
And yet interestingly enough for both competitors, Ted Ligety and Dale Earnhardt Jr. respectively, their gold medal, award winning performances ended up like weights being lifted off their shoulders.
“This is the event I wanted most,” Ligety, the first American man to win two Alpine skiing gold medals, said. “It’s the event I’ve been putting so much pressure on myself to win, so to pull through is an awesome feeling. I’m super happy.”
“It’s a big race and you want to win it so badly, and your team wants to win so badly,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “You realize at that moment that there are countless people watching on television and there are countless people sitting in the grandstands with your shirts and hats on, and your team is over on the pit wall and your family back home — there are so many people pulling for you and want to see you win.”
“It was a heavy weight that was lifted.”
Silver Medal Disappointments
While the runner up position might feel like a triumph to many athletes, to the US Women’s Hockey team and to Joe Gibbs racer Denny Hamlin, second place was an absolute disappointment.
The US Women’s Hockey team surrendered a two goal lead in the final period of the game, losing to their Canadian rivals, who scored the gold.
“We were up two goals, so it’s heartbreaking and shocking that we didn’t win the game,” forward Kelli Stack said. “It feels like a bad dream.”
Just like the US Women’s Hockey Team, who appeared to have everything going for them until the bitter end, Denny Hamlin, behind the wheel of the No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota, was having a stellar Speedweeks, winning the Sprint Unlimited and one of the Duels.
But then along came the Daytona 500, where the driver had an almost catastrophic situation develop in that he had not radio communication with his spotter. Between the radio issue and the loss of speed, Hamlin finished a disappointing second in the Great American Race.
“Our cars just weren’t as good as the week progressed,” Hamlin said. “Maybe we were the same, but the competition definitely got better. It wasn’t as easy to pass as it was early in the week.”
“It’s a tough business,” Hamlin continued. “Our car was OK. Given the right circumstances, it was a race winner.”
Cinderella Stories
Another similar storyline that emerged from both the Daytona 500 and the Winter Olympics were those inspiring Cinderella stories. In the Olympics, one such story was Mikaela Shiffrin, who became the youngest slalom champ in Olympic history at age 18.
Her run, however, was not completely smooth as she lost her balance a bit going through the gates and also lost her left ski which rose way too far off the course.
She persevered and did not give up, moving from having what she described as a “terrifying” run to an Olympic gold medal run.
“It’s going to be something that I chalk up as one of my favorite experiences for the rest of my life,” Shiffrin said. “But my life’s not over yet.”
In the Daytona 500, another Cinderella story unfolded with rookie driver Austin Dillon, who was bringing the storied No. 3 car back to the track after being driven by the late Dale Earnhardt, Sr.
Dillon actually started the Great American race from the pole position, battled some difficulties and some crashes throughout the race, yet finished in the top-10 as the highest finishing rookie.
“I think the yellow stripe on the bumper (signifying a rookie) showed a little bit tonight, but we made it through it,” Dillon said. “It was fun. I had a blast. The car was fast.”
Agony of Defeat
Every Olympic athlete, as well as every NASCAR driver, goes into competition with the full intent on doing their very best. Unfortunately, things sometimes go awry and the defeat can be a most bitter pill to swallow.
Both Shaun White, infamous snow boarder, and Martin Truex, Jr., behind the wheel of his new ride in the No. 78 Furniture Row Chevrolet, shared their own versions of the agony of defeat.
White lost out on a medal after crashing in the halfpipe competition, ending his ‘three-peat’ effort.
“I didn’t really get to break out everything, which is frustrating. Tricks were still in my pocket,” White said. “I definitely knew what run I wanted to put down, and my dream scenario was I was going to land that first run and then maybe have the opportunity to do something that hadn’t been done before. I tried to win. I went for it.”
Martin Truex Jr. had a similar experience to White in that he started out with high hopes on the outside pole for the Daytona 500, only to crash out in the qualifying race, relegating him to the back of the starting field in a backup car.
Then on lap 32, Truex’s backup car blew an engine and his hopes and dreams went up in smoke with the car.
“It’s definitely a tough break for the team,” Truex said. “I went to bed the night before the race thinking this was my best chance to win the Daytona 500.”
Just Happy to Be in the Show
In both the Olympics and the Daytona 500, there are competitors that are just happy to be part of the even itself, no matter where they finished. And for the Jamaican bobsled team as well as for Michael Waltrip, sometime racer and broadcaster, that was just the case.
“It’s a great race for the fans and it was really fun to be out there and to be part of it,” Waltrip said after finishing 41st in his No. 66 Blue-Def/AAA Toyota.
The Jamaican Bob Sled team finished 29th in their two-man competition, yet remained as upbeat as ever, channeling their inner ‘Cool Runnings.’
“We have the athletic ability. We have shown we can do it,” Chris Stokes, president of the Jamaica Bobsleigh Federation, said. “We just have to pull things together in Jamaica itself.”
In the End, It’s All About Family
Whether in NASCAR or the Olympics, the athletes and teams who compete only do so with the support of their families and extended families.
For Olympic Skeleton racer Noelle Pikus-Pace, it was all about her loved ones as she slid to a silver medal, all with her family by her side. In fact, the mother of two, a 6 year old daughter and a 2 year old son, said that her children were her inspiration as she trained for the international competition.
“After all of the hard work that not only I but my family put in to achieve this dream, it came in those minutes, those seconds,” Pikus-Pace, 31, told PEOPLE of her Sochi success. “It really was a fairytale ending.”
The same fairytale ending was true for the Hendrick family in NASCAR, with Hendrick Motorsports driver Dale Earnhardt, Jr. in victory lane and HMS teammates Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson in the top-five.
“Oh my God, I am so excited for the Hendrick family and Hendrick Motorsports right now,” Jeff Gordon said. “This team did an amazing job and gave me a great race car at the end of the show.”
And so as the Olympic flame was extinguished and as the confetti flew at the end of the Daytona 500, the competitions ended with very similar storylines.
For the Winter Olympians, there will be a four year hiatus and wait until the next big event. But for the NASCAR competitors, the next race is simply around the bend at Phoenix International Speedway next weekend.
NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Daytona
Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.
1. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt withstood a long rain delay and held off numerous challenges to win his second Daytona 500, beating Denny Hamlin to the line. The win ended a 55-race winless streak and instantly qualified Earnhardt for the Chase For The Cup.
“That six hour, 22 minute rain delay didn’t bother me at all,” Earnhardt said. “What’s 6:22 when I’m used to waiting 55 races for a win? And what better way to celebrate such a huge win than to join Twitter. By the time you read this, I should have 750,000 followers, and the best thing is, none will require a restraining order.”
2. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin topped off a successful Speedweeks with a runner-up finish in the 500, making a bold move at the front befire finishing behind Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Hamlin won the first Gatorade Duel and led 16 laps in Sunday night’s race.
“How about that piece of black plastic that clung to Dale, Jr.’s grill?” Hamlin said. “Some say it was the ‘Man In Black,’ Dale Earnhardt, Sr., making his presence known. NASCAR made an even more outlandish claim—that it was proof that their ‘Drive For Diversity’ program is actually working. Here’s the most interesting part: ghosts are a lot like NASCAR drivers—-mostly white.”
3. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski, in the No. 2 car with the classic Miller Lite paint scheme, challenged for the win at Daytona and finished third behind Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Denny Hamlin.
“I hear that Danica Patrick exceeded 1,000,000 Twitter followers,” Keselowski said. “That’s a lot, maybe too many for one web site to handle. I can see this ending in one way only—with a ‘crash.’”
4. Jeff Gordon: Gordon finished fourth at Daytona as Hendrick teammate Dale Earnhardt, Jr. powered to the win. Gordon gave Earnhardt a boost on the final lap, helping Junior hold off Denny Hamlin at the end.
“Dale deserved to win,” Gordon said. “His No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet was by far the strongest. This could very well be the year Junior wins the Sprint Cup. In other words, it could finally be when ‘A Little E Goes A Long Way.’”
5. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson started 39th after going to a backup car and finished fifth after leading 15 laps. Last year’s Daytona 500 winner joined race winner Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Jeff Gordon as Hendrick Motorsports took three of the top five spots.
“That rain just wouldn’t stop,” Johnson said. “And, trust me, I know long ‘reigns.’
“I’m on a quest for my seventh Sprint Cup championship. It would be awesome to be mentioned in the same sentence with Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt, Sr. Contrary to what Tony Stewart says, six titles give you the right to ‘challenge’ Petty, not two.”
6. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth started third after winning Thursday’s second Gatorade Duel and finished a long day at Daytona with a sixth-place finish. Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch finished second and 19th, respectively.
“Did you see Kyle cross the finish line?” Kenseth said. “He did it in reverse. But that’s really no surprise. Just look at the sponsors on the No. 18 car—it’s got ‘good backing.’”
7. Austin Dillon: Dillon survived involvement in three accidents at Daytona and put the Richard Childress Racing No. 3 Chevy in the top 10 in the return of the “3” made famous by Dale Earnhardt, Sr.
“That ‘3’ on the side of my car means a lot,” Dillon said. “At Daytona, it indicated the number of crashes I caused.”
8. Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.: Stenhouse led the way for Roush Fenway Racing with a seventh at Daytona, joining teammate Greg Biffle, who finished eighth, in the top 10. It was Stenhouse’s best finish ever in the 500.
“That was one of the best Daytona 500’s of all time,” Stenhouse said. “I can’t wait to catch a replay of the race, and neither can Dale Earnhardt, Jr. fans. That’s the only way their favorite driver will have multiple wins this season.”
9. Greg Biffle: Biffle battled Dale Earnhardt, Jr. over the final laps at Daytona before the mad scramble relegated him to a finish of eighth.
“How about Madison Rising’s performance of the national anthem before Saturday’s Nationwide race?” Biffle said. “They claim to be America’s most patriotic band. I certainly agree. Their music is best listened to with a hand over the heart, and two over the ears.”
10. Kevin Harvick: Harvick finished 13th at Daytona in the No. 4 Chevrolet, the highest finisher among the Stewart-Haas Racing stable.
“Tony Stewart challenged Richard Petty to race Danica Patrick,” Harvick said, “and the ‘King’ accepted. But really, what does King Richard stand to gain with a win? The last thing he needs is another feather in his cap.”
The Final Word – Earnhardt wins at Daytona and all is right with the world
Jeff Gordon is correct. Now that Dale Earnhardt Jr has claimed his second Daytona 500, all is right with the world. Now, what on earth has made a 20 race winner, one who has won exactly three races in the past 279 events, all that popular?
A movie script career has as much to do with it as any. The son of a legend who won his first two races in 2000 with the team owner, his dad, joining him in celebration. Then came 2001, his father’s death on the sport’s biggest stage, Junior’s victory in Daytona that summer, his six wins in 2004 including the Daytona 500 to match the Intimidator in just his fifth attempt. Then came the drama and the disappointment of the next decade. His fans, and the driver himself, needing one more flash of sunshine, and ironically it came on a day when the race would go through a six hour rain delay. It came in a race that began with a slant No. 3 leading the way on the pole, its first appearance since that tragic day in 2001. It came as a black sheet of tape left Ryan Newman’s car to find a place on the front grill of Earnhardt’s auto, making it possibly even faster over the final few laps. It came, finally. We long needed a happy ending to the script, and on Sunday we got it.
Earnhardt’s total joy at victory swept along his fans, and maybe a few not part of Junior Nation. Hoots, hugs, and fist pumps for all. Of course, it is just one race, but if you are going to win just one, this is the one to win. For a week, at least, all is right with the world.
Steve Letarte will begin his new career with NBC next season as a Daytona 500 winning crew chief. That has a nice ring to it. The 34-year old leaves an employer he has been with since he was 15 to take a job that will have fewer demands and allows him more time with his wife and two children. In short, he gets to have a life. Now, being known as a season championship crew chief has an even nicer ring to it. To borrow from Robert Frost…
To the broadcast booth he’ll soon leap
But he still has promises yet to keep,
And miles to go before he’ll sleep,
And miles to go before he’ll sleep.
Rick Hendrick had a very good day, as both Six-time and Four-time also managed Top Five finishes. Denny Hamlin won the Sprint Unlimited, won his duel race, but was first loser when it counted, finishing just behind Junior. Brad Keselowski rounded out the Top Five.
Even the pole sitter had a Top Ten, but the No. 3 had a rather interesting day. It is better to give than receive, and Austin Dillon did his best to do unto others. After leading the first lap, he drifted back. With 55 laps to go, the 23-year old got caught up in the same mess that took out Danica Patrick (40th) and Michael Waltrip (41st). With 38 to go, Dillon spun fellow rookie Kyle Larson into a ten car wreck to end the Target car’s day. With seven left, Dillon got team mate Ryan Newman out of shape and seven more cars needed work. Friends? Who needs ‘em? The last guy who drove that number did not seem to have many of his own in the early going.
If Hamlin was first loser, outside pole sitter Martin Truex Jr was last loser, as his engine blew up 30 laps in. He was gone before the 6 hour rain delay. He could have been home before they got restarted. Clint Bowyer stayed at the track, only to blow up 90 laps after they returned, to wind up 42nd. Sometimes good things do not happen to those who wait.
Larson was already in the midst of an adventure before Dillon mercifully ended his race. He had a right front go down as his car bounced off the wall twice within the opening three laps. Not the start the rookie wanted. Then his right rear went soft. Later, Dillon arrived and Larson finished 38th.
Fuel pump issues left Tony Stewart 35th and hoping his 17th Daytona 500 might be the charm. While such contenders as Matt Kenseth and Greg Biffle had Top Tens, Joey Logano (11th), Kevin Harvick (13th), Carl Edwards (17th), Kurt Busch (21st), and Ryan Newman (22nd) are hoping for better things in Phoenix. Kyle Busch won the Friday truck race, was fourth in Saturday’s Nationwide event, but 19th was his fate on Sunday. Then again, a win in Arizona this weekend and all will be forgotten.
Seven years ago my sister and I, and other family members, were in the stands to see Harvick win. On Sunday, she watched the race from the couch with her daughters at her side. They were bored. I mean, even at three and one, the girls know a repeat when they see one. After about ten minutes, so did their mother. Others were not as quick, as FOX covered up their six hour broadcast hole with a replay of the 2013 event. It would appear thousands did not notice the difference, or the fact some drivers were in cars they were not supposed to be in. For the record, the outcome did not change. Jimmie Johnson still won.
A new season has dawned, a familiar face has returned to a familiar place, and all is right with the world. While the fair weather, fickle, big event fans may have wandered off until Talladega, the rest of us have a Sunday date coming up courtesy of Phoenix International Raceway. Qualifying goes Friday night, and that should be something different.
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Driver Brennan Newberry Tells His Story
As with a lot of drivers, Brennan Newberry’s story started very similar but Newberry himself wasn’t the typical young aspiring driver. Newberry lived in Bakersfield, California where his father, Bob Newberry, drove late model race cars. As a young boy, Newberry was around racing a lot but he did not start out thinking about racing, he was more into showing off the car in the garage to his friends. There were not many young boys in the neighborhood that could top having a real race car in the garage.
Around the age of 8-9, while his dad was working on the race car one day, Newberry asked his dad if he could drive a race car. His father looked at him funny and said, “Nah I don’t think so.” Newberry was not satisfied with that response and said, “C’mon dad I really want to do this, I think this is something I could do, and it looks like fun.” His dad later decided if this was what his son wanted to do then they would to do it right and start with go-karts.
Newberry’s idea of go-kart racing was on dirt and jumping hills, so he was not too thrilled with his father’s idea. The following weekend, his father took him to race go-karts. Newberry thought it was pretty fun and cool, but wasn’t thinking that this was a possible career.
Newberry raced go-karts for fun until the age of 15 when he decided that he wanted to be more serious, he wanted to race for points, be a champion, and most of all he wanted racing to be a career.
Being a racer wasn’t easy though. In school he liked to swim, but was not able to go very far on the swim team because of racing. He missed out on normal school things such as dances, football games, or time with the buddies because his time was spent racing or working on the car. He has no complaints about it though, it was what was needed to be done for his career. His family has been very supportive of him and did without things in order for him to race and further his career.
In 2010, his father formed a team for Newberry to start his career in a limited schedule in the K&N Pro Series. Suddenly Newberry was racing at tracks like Irwindale Speedway, Phoenix and Sonoma. These were tracks where another Bakersfield driver used to race, Kevin Harvick. He raced in his first Toyota All Star Showdown and a limited schedule in the series.
In 2012, with support from his family they decided in order to go further they needed to go all in. With his parents and both of his sisters blessing, he decided to run 10 races in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS). His first race was at Martinsville, then Charlotte and on to Michigan to name a few. The NCWTS was a learning experience for Newberry due to the differences in aero packages on the trucks and how they were different than what he had been driving. During this time he also raced in the ARCA series to help him gain confidence as a driver.
In 2013 Newberry moved to where the center of NASCAR is, he moved to North Carolina. He moved by himself, to fulfill his dream.
2013 was the year of ups and downs for Newberry. He was racing in the NCWTS full-time and started off strong by winning the pole at Daytona in his first attempt there. He was with a new team and everything was new and different.
For the most part it was a year of firsts and so many big moments. He was very well aware of just where and who he was and that he, a young man from Bakersfield, was taking it all in like a sponge. Everyone in his family had made sacrifices and he was going to take in as much as he could knowing his family was behind him 100 percent.
This season Newberry is running full time in the K&N Pro Series and sharing the NCWTS duties with a new teammate. Newberry will be in the NCWTS for 12 races. He has nothing but praise about his teammate, 16 year-old Gray Gaulding. He says that they mesh well together and each of them has different strengths and they will be able to learn a lot from each other.
Newberry also talks about fitness. It’s a must to be a driver if you want the stamina to finish races and keep your mind on the race. He did a triathlon a couple of years ago and really hopes to get the chance to do another one. But juggling a busy race schedule with an event like that is easier said than done. He takes pride in being fit; he takes pride in all his accomplishments.
Newberry never dreamed that first day in the go-kart that he would be where he is today. He owes much to a very supportive family, but doesn’t really take much credit for himself for being where his is today. In his eyes he is living a dream, a dream he didn’t know he had until one fateful day when he realized this is what he was destined to do.
Newberry doesn’t know where this road will take him, or the ups and downs still to come, but one thing that is for sure is that he is living a dream, this is his story and it’s only the beginning.
You can follow Newberry on Twitter at twitter.com/brennannewberry or his website at www.brennannewberry.com.
