After four years and millions of tears, Jr. nation sees victory lane again
[media-credit name=”Dan Sanger” align=”alignright” width=”246″]
[/media-credit]Well after 143 races, rumors of conspiracy, alien abduction, and sabotage, Dale Jr found victory lane again today at Michigan International Speedway. As big a story as that is it is questionable whether it is the biggest story of the weekend. But it is without question a much bigger story than what his girlfriend thinks of his win or the fact that he kissed her in victory lane.
Let’s take a look at the other stories the weekend brought to us. The first and probably the most important was the tire situation. Although Goodyear tested tires on the new surface at MIS in April the tire compound that they brought to Michigan was not suitable for the new surface in the heat of summer. The speeds and the ambient air temperature and the heat of the new pavement caused the tires to blister badly.
A tire builds heat inside. That heat has to dissipate. If it has a thin enough face, or the surface of the tire that is on the track, the heat dissipates harmlessly through the face. If the face is too thick it dissipates through the face and blisters the layers of rubber, or it dissipates through the side walls. A tire that face blisters is at risk for blowing out. A tire that dissipates through the side wall will blow out.
Goodyear recognized the problem on Thursday afternoon. They instructed teams to scuff in the tires and put them through a heat cycle in order to harden the surface of the tire. It was a logical solution and sound in principle. NASCAR was sure the speeds would drop as the weekend progressed and that would cool the tire down.
But the speeds didn’t drop. In the heat of the day on Friday, Greg Biffle turned a mock qualifying lap of nearly 205 mph. The tires on his car were badly blistered. With qualifying to be the next afternoon, Goodyear could chance waiting no longer. They announced a tire change would take place on Saturday and there would be an emergency practice session on Saturday after the Nationwide Series race.
The practice session was a chaotic mess of drivers who were limited in practice time because of engine concerns, drivers whose cars were vastly changed because of the new tire, and drivers who damaged engines seriously by practicing on the new tires. The outlook was bleak to say the least. The drivers were reduced from skilled pilots to helpless bystanders as crew chiefs and engineers scoped engines and designed changes and researched performances and histories. Many were unnerved and unhappy about it. But it was the same for all of them. No one would truly know what they had until the green flag dropped on Sunday.
When the green flew there were a lot of cars that simply wouldn’t adjust to the new rubber. Then came the shock, the new tires fixed the left side of the car but not the right. Teams were blistering right rear tires now instead of the left side tires. After two competition cautions, the cards had been dealt. You had what you had or what your crew could give you.
It was familiar faces that rose to the top of the mountain, Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth, and the days super hero Batman. Dale Jr climbed to the top of the mountain after falling back to 37th and he never looked back. Tony Stewart would challenge but would fall short in the long run.
The Nationwide race was story number 2. Although they had no tire problems they seemed to have difficulties in getting cars to handle at those speeds. Danica Patrick would spin 3 times finally causing large amounts of damage to the Go Daddy car after spinning while being passed by Austin Dillon. Although there was no contact between the two cars the aero pull, pulled Danica into a spin when she sought the lower line while Dillon was going by on the low side.
The three spin day prompted response from her crew chief Tony Eury Jr saying she wasn’t getting respect from other drivers because they didn’t like getting beat by her. He endorsed the Dale Earnhardt School of driving and response for his driver to take the respect he felt she deserved.
Sadly, the skills needed for that school of competitive driving are severely lacking on the part of his driver whose statistics do not show her to be a proficient driver nor a good judge of competitive driving skills. A driver who claims to not be able to read a tachometer and to not know whether stock cars can roll over is probably not going to be accepted in the school or on the track until those skills are improved.
The final story of the weekend was a bit sadder. When a TV broadcaster makes inappropriate comments about a driver’s girlfriend/wife/significant other on live TV, the professionalism of the journalism becomes zero. When a professional print journalist asks a question of a highly competitive driver who has just finished second if he is happy he finished second so another driver could win. The intelligence factor involved in that just hit the zero mark. When the driver being asked is known for being the king of deadpan humor and sarcasm what answer would you expect to get? For fans and journalists to then react negatively to that driver is unimaginable.
First of all, as a journalist the lack of bias involved was phenomenal. Much more so than someone clapping and shaking a first time winner’s hand at the Daytona 500.
Second, for fans of a driver who is known for his level of respect for other competitors and fans of those competitors to react with such venom and ugly was completely uncalled for.
Third, for anyone to believe that every driver in that garage was not happy to see Dale Jr win is ridiculous. If for no other reason than they wouldn’t be asked if he was going to win anymore.
Was the win of NASCAR’s legacy the biggest story of the weekend? Maybe but it certainly wasn’t alone on the top of the mountain, any more than Dale Jr was alone in victory lane.
That said, to all the competitors in all the series thanks for giving us everything you have to give, you are our heroes. Most importantly, thanks to all the families who shared their loved ones with us so we could cheer our favorite driver and favorite teams. You are the true heroes of the sport and we are forever in your debt.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. brings home the win for Junior Nation
[media-credit name=”Dan Sanger” align=”alignright” width=”244″]
[/media-credit]Sometimes it is fun to step out of the shadows of media objectivity and tell it like it is.
I don’t just enjoy writing about NASCAR, I’m a fan of the sport.
I love the smell of exhaust fumes mingled with gas, the noise that makes the casual observer resort to ear protection, the drivers with all their idiosyncrasies and the zealous fans. The intensity of 43 cars roaring around the tracks at speeds of over 200 mph is an excitement no other sport can provide.
There’s one other thing you should know. I’ve always had a soft spot for Dale Earnhardt Jr.
When Earnhardt Jr. won the Quicken Loan 400 at Michigan International Speedway on Sunday, the fans of NASCAR’s most popular driver were ecstatic. He broke a four year winless streak and also came one step closer to proving he is a viable contender to win a Sprint Cup Championship.
I was a little surprised at my reaction. There was a big grin on my face but I wasn’t on my feet screaming as he crossed the finish line in first place like most of his fans. It was more a moment of quiet satisfaction. Maybe it’s because I knew the win was coming sooner rather than later.
I’ve had the opportunity to see Earnhardt Jr. a few times this season during sessions with the media and there has been something different about him. He seemed more relaxed, his confidence was apparent and there was an eagerness about him that I had not seen in a while. His smile was bigger and his gaze was more direct as he answered questions.
After the win, Earnhardt Jr. was asked about the significance of winning on Father’s Day and he admitted that he had not even thought about it.
This was just another indicator of what I have come to believe. For perhaps the first time in his career, Earnhardt Jr. is finally coming to terms with the fact that he is more than Dale Earnhardt’s son. Perhaps he has finally realized what his fans knew all along. Earnhardt Jr. belongs in the sport, not because of who his father was, but because he has the talent to back it up.
Ryan Hunter-Reay Delivers Andretti Autosport First Victory of 2012 Season
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[/media-credit]After finishing 21st last weekend at Texas Motor Speedway, Ryan Hunter-Reay delivered Andretti Autosport their first victory since Hunter-Reay’s victoy last August at New Hampshire. Hunter-Reay’s win in the 225-lap Milwaukee IndyFest Presented by XYQ marked his sixth career win and the second time he had won at Milwaukee following a CART victory in 2004.
To everyone watching, it seemed fitting that an Andretti Autosport car won after Andretti Sports Marketing came to the rescue of the IndyCar Series, promoting the event. Michael Andretti announced on Saturday night that the race would return in June 2013.
“What a race. The script is perfect,” Hunter-Reay says. “Michael (Andretti) loves the sport and does a lot for it. Milwaukee and INDYCAR go hand-in-hand. This is the oldest racing facility in the country and we just won. It’s awesome.”
Hunter-Reay drove his No. 28 Team DHL/Sun Drop Citrus Soda car around Helio Castroneves for the lead on lap 142 in turn three after starting the race from the second position.
“It was one of the most physical races I’ve ever driven,” Hunter-Reay adds. “You’re always on edge, always busy in the car.”
He would lead Tony Kannan across the start-finish line by 5.1029 seconds. Kanaan started his No. 11 EICO/Mouser Elctronics/KV Racing Technology car in the sixth position and was able to finish second for his second podium of the season.
“I didn’t have anything at the end for Ryan, but great event,” Kanaan says. “I love to see the stands as full as I’ve ever seen here. Thanks to Michael and his people who put this event back together. I love this place. It was a long day, but this is typical Milwaukee. That’s why I love this place. You’ve got to drive it. If you don’t drive it, you never get it, so I’m extremely happy.”
James Hinchcliffe was third, followed by Oriol Servia and E.J. Viso.
Power would finish 12th after his 10-grid starting spot penalty for an illegal engine change to keep the points lead, now 31 points ahead of Hinchcliffe.
The race didn’t go without controversy as Scott Dixon was given a drive-through penalty on lap 122 for jumping the start. However, after the race, IZOD IndyCar Series Race Director Beaux Barfield acknowledged that Dixon got the penalty in error.
“Due to a glitch in technology, there was a discrepancy between the official race clock and the clock on the replay machine,” Barfield says. “Therefore, the review of the jumped start was one lap off, leading Race Control to make the call on the wrong lap.”
Dixon had worked his way up to the fourth position after starting 21st due to a 10-grid spot penalty for an unapproved engine change. He was cited for jumping the start, however it was waved off and the green was given the next lap.
Barfield added that his team will meet on June 18th to review the issue and explore ways to make sure it doesn’t happen again. It was added that he met with Scott Dixon, team owner Chip Ganassi and managing director Mike Hull to talk about the issue.
“I take responsibility for it being the wrong call,” Barfield says. “It was a perfect storm with the video that led us down the wrong path. The Ganassi team was very gracious. They appreciated my candor explaining what happened. Once a penalty is served, I can’t jump back in there and undo it. It’s one of those strange things that happen, and hopefully we never hear of happening again.”
HOORAHS & WAZZUPS: THE “F” WORD NOW STANDS FOR “FINALLY” !
[media-credit name=”Credit: Wesley Hitt/Getty Images for NASCAR” align=”alignright” width=”242″]
[/media-credit]So, the long drought is over. All is well in the world of the Junior Nation tonight. NASCAR’s most popular driver has found victory lane again.
HOORAH to Dale Earnhardt Jr for winning the Quicken Loans 400 at the Michigan International Raceway and finally getting rid of the way too often discussed win less streak that dates back to 2008 and 143 races ago. Ironically, his last win came at Michigan.
HOORAH to Earnhardt for a dominating performance in this race. On the way to his 19th series win, he led a race high 95 laps and came under the checkers with a whopping 5.3 seconds margin of victory over runner up Tony Stewart. Of equal importance, Earnhardt moved to second in the championship standings and is now only four points away from first.
HOORAH for the irony that had Earnhardt’s Chevrolet painted black to promote the new movie: “Batman-The Dark Knight Rises.” Everybody is well aware of the famous black Chevy the race winner’s famous father drove.
HOORAH to the irony that Junior won this race on Father’s Day. NASCAR Hall Of Famer Darrell Waltrip probably put it best when he sent a “Twitter” message that read; “there are a lot of fathers proud of their sons today. I know one that is looking down and smiling.”
HOORAH to team owner Rick Hendrick who has been enjoying an amazing run that dates back to May 12th when driver Jimmie Johnson gave the organization its 200th win at Darlington. Following that win Hendrick threw a celebration party and hired country music superstar Brad Paisley to play. Wouldn’t it be cool if Hendrick threw the party, for the Michigan win, at Whiskey River, the Charlotte based night club owned by Earnhardt? That way Earnhardt could be the guest of honor at a party in his own club and make yet another pile of money.
HOORAH to Rick Hendrick never losing his faith in Dale Earnhardt Jr’s capabilities as a driver during those long four years. Hendrick was at home watching the race and said he literally did laps around his living room couch because he was so nervous over the prospect of a late race yellow flag. “That was the longest 15 laps ever,” he said.
HOORAH to that Rick Hendrick bobble head doll that was placed next to the Quicken Loans trophy in victory lane.
The same HOORAH goes for the Junior Nation who also never stopped believing.
WAZZUP with that eerie silence during the last five laps of the race? It was almost like the 80,000 plus in the grandstands were holding their breath to see if Earnhardt was going to win.
HOORAH for Hollywood. Jimmie Johnson won the Dover race while promoting the movie “Madagascar” on the hood of his car. Earnhardt won at Michigan while promoting the new movie “Batman-The Dark Knight Rises.” Do we see a trend coming here?
WAZZUP with all of those comic books telling us for decades that millionaire Bruce Wayne is Batman? Crew Chief Steve Letarte is Batman.
HOORAH to Earnhardt’s crew chief for an outstanding job on top of the pit box. When the #88 Chevrolet was running tight at the beginning of the race, Letarte called for the placement of a spring rubber. All of a sudden his car became faster than the bat mobile.
HOORAH to Earnhardt’s team for a flawless final pit stop that helped set up the winning run late in the race.
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HOORAH for some terrific one liners that followed Earnhardt’s win. During a live SPEED Channel broadcast, the always fun Kenny Wallace said: “invest in the stock market tomorrow, Junior wins, stocks are going to be up.” Later, during a live interview, Wallace asked Earnhardt “when are you going to win again?” Earnhardt quickly replied “next week!”
In a “Twitter” message, Indy Racing League driver Ryan Briscoe congratulated Earnhardt and wrote: “America’s national nightmare is over.”
During the final moments of the Michigan race, motorsports writer Sal Sigala Jr posted an observation on “Facebook” that said “the Internet is about to crash, and Elvis will come back from the dead at the end of this race.” In a second comment, Sigala wrote: “the Mayans were right when they predicted the world would come to an end, or Earnhardt would win a race.” Great Stuff !
WAZZUP with that endless ringing in my left ear? When Earnhardt’s car crossed under the checkers the in house girlfriend, now always and forever the card carrying-T shirt wearing member of the Junior Nation, let out an ear shattering squeal. After hearing that extremely high pitched sound, every dog in the neighborhood showed up at our front door. I spent the next hour walking them home. That’s okay, I’m just grateful that the high pitched sound didn’t crack the windshields of the parked cars.
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HOORAH to Jimmie Johnson for scoring a fifth place finish at Michigan. This is significant because the team had to give up a tenth place starting berth, and start at the rear of the field, due to engine problems discovered the day before. His charge back to the front moves him to fourth in the championship standings.
HOORAH to Jeff Gordon’s badly needed sixth place finish. The hard luck driver’s top ten moves him to 20th in the standings. If he can remain in the top 20, and score two wins along the way, he could be in a position for a wild card berth for the final Chase for the Championship line up. One of those wins could be coming his way next Sunday at the road course in Sonoma-California. We all know how good Gordon is at that track.
WAZZUP with the hard luck suffered by all three of the Joe Gibbs Racing Toyotas at Michigan? It started on lap 127 when Joey Logano, last week’s winner at Pocono, was involved in a three car wreck on the backstretch. Logano’s car was severely damaged and that led to a 35th place finish.
Moments later, on lap 134, Denny Hamlin got caught up in a two car incident on turn four and went down on pit road with a massive engine fire. His 34th place finish dropped him to fifth in the championship standings.
The one JGR incident that really raised some eyebrows was Kyle Busch’s engine woes that sent him behind the wall on lap 157. He finished 32nd in the final rundown. This marks the third race in a row where Busch has suffered engines problems. The JGR motors are built by Toyota Racing Development in Los Angles and you can bet TRD was all over this situation the first thing Monday morning.
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HOORAH to the sheer note of irony that saw two high profile NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers, Joey Logano and Dale Earnhardt Jr, end high profile win less streaks on tracks that had brand new pavement. This note of irony occurred within seven days of each other.
WAZZUP with the new pavement at Michigan creating blisters on the race tires? The heat index of the new pavement and the 200 MPH speeds that came with it, combined with the humidity of temperatures in the high 80’s, raised some serious tire concerns.
HOORAH to Goodyear Tires for a last minute shipment of left side tires, with a harder compound, to help alleviate the situation. There were still some issues regarding tire blisters, during Sunday’s race, but the situation was no where near the concern level it was on Friday.
HOORAH to NASCAR for scheduling an extra practice session on Saturday along with two competition yellows, early in Sunday’s race, in the name of driver safety.
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In some final thoughts WAZZUP with mother nature causing a two hour rain delay? The good news is: this race was well worth the wait.
HOORAH to the Father’s Day presentation during their pre race show. There were multiple video clips of NASCAR icons and their racing sons who followed them into the family business. The production was extremely well done and brought back a lot of memories especially for us old school NASCAR fans.
