Home Blog Page 6445

Gordon looking to break winless streak at Indy

By
SM Staff
-

Former Sprint Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon is looking to finally break his winless streak, which has accumulated to 48 races as the series heads to Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The “speedway” is like a home away from home for Gordon, who is the only NASCAR driver to have claimed four wins at the historic 2.5-mile racetrack. The first of those four victories came in the inaugural Sprint Cup Series event at the track in 1994.

While Gordon’s hometown is Vallejo, Calif., he spent many years living and growing up in Indiana and says his win in the inaugural race is among his highest accomplishments.

“Living in Indiana, racing around Indiana, Indianapolis Raceway Park, the fairgrounds, Bloomington, all over the place, it was every short-track, open-wheel, (NASCAR) Sprint Cup driver’s dream to race at Indianapolis one day,” Gordon said. “To be able to do that in the very first ever NASCAR stock-car race there in 1994, win it, then go on to win it three more times is some-thing that I probably put up as the highest accomplishments of my career.”

Gordon currently sits second in points, trailing points leader Kevin Harvick by 103 points as the start of the Chase for the Sprint Cup and the final race to qualify for the top-12 sits seven weeks away.

In 16 Sprint Cup Series starts at Indianapolis, Gordon has nine top-five and 13 top-ten finishes, holding an average finish of 8.6.

According to NASCAR’s loop data reports, Gordon is the best closer in the last five races at IMS, which means he has gained more positions in the last ten-percent of the race than drivers with more than five starts. Gordon is also fifth in the field in the driving rating category, with a 96.2 average rating over the last five races at the track.

Gordon is looking to keep his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson from capturing his third straight victory at IMS, and from earning his fourth career victory at the track, which would move the two into a tie for most Cup Series wins at Indy, with four each.

“Everybody goes all out for this event,” Gordon said. “I believe this DuPont team has a great package for this event. We’ve been working really, really hard on every aspect to find speed. “We’ve got some things up our sleeve for Indy.”

Despite going winless thus far in 2010, Gordon has scored more top-five finishes than any other driver, currently with ten. Gordon finished ninth in his event last year.

Notebook:

— Juan Pablo Montoya and wife Connie welcomed the birth of their third child this weekend. Their second girl, Manuela Montoya Freydell, was born on July 19 and joins their other two children, Sebastian, age five and sister Paulina, age three. Montoya’s spokesperson said mother and baby are doing well.

— Chip Ganassi could become the first team owner to perform a triple crown by winning the Daytona 500, Indy 500 and Brickyard 400 all in the same year. Ganassi owns two cars entered in the field this weekend. The No. 1 car driven by Jamie McMurray (who won the Daytona 500) and the No. 42 car, driven by Juan Pablo Montoya.

— Jacques Villeneuve will attempt to qualify for the Brickyard 400 with Braun Racing’s No. 32 Toyota. Villeneuve is a winner of the 1995 Indianapolis 500 in the IndyCar Series.

— Bobby Labonte is making his 600th consecutive Sprint Cup Series start this weekend at Indianapolis. Labonte also announced this week that he will be returning to TRG Motorsports for four Cup Series races — Pocono, Michigan, Atlanta and Texas. All four races will be sponsored by TaxSlayer.com. Labonte will drive the No. 09 Phoenix Racing Chevrolet this weekend.

Quotes:

— Dale Earnhardt Jr: “When somebody asks me what it would feel like to win here, I think about the open-wheel history of this track, and I think about drivers like (Mario) Andretti and (A.J.) Foyt and the guys even before them. I think about the history of this track and how it’s survived the war and closed down and opened back up and everything that it’s been through. When they first brought stock cars here to practice, it was a realization for a lot of people, including myself, being an aspiring driver at the time, that I may have a chance one day to race at Indianapolis that I otherwise didn’t think that I would have unless I was to go in the open-wheel series.”

— Denny Hamlin: “There is so much history here and I think every driver wants to win here and be a part of that history. I had the chance to visit the museum here a few years ago and to see all of the race-winning cars and the people who made racing here what it is today was really cool. This track has seen it all. Indy is a lot like Daytona because winning means so much at those places that it almost lives outside of the schedule and points, and thinking about the Chase. I know I how I felt winning at Richmond, and I know from talking to Tony (Stewart) and Mike (Ford) what Indy means to them. This is definitely one I want to win for this team.”

— Joey Logano: “Indy is a tough place to pass, that I remember well. We started dead last in 2009 because we changed engines in The Home Depot Toyota and it was not easy to move through the field. I finished 12th, but did all my passing on the restarts and luckily had a good enough car to do that. I don’t know what the spoiler is going to do to the cars this year, but I am sure qualifying is going to be really important again. We need to get some momentum going, and I think we have some solid tracks for the team coming up starting with Indy. I know we finished 12th last year, but I felt like our car was better than that.”

The Race: Brickyard 400
The Place: Indianapolis Motor Speedway (2.5-mile rectangle)
The Date: Sunday, July 25
The Time: 1 p.m. (ET)
Race Distance: 160 laps/400 miles
TV: ESPN, Noon (ET)
Radio: IMS & Sirius NASCAR Radio Channel 128.
2009 Polesitter: Mark Martin
2009 Winner: Jimmie Johnson
Schedule Prior To Race Day: Friday—Practice, 2-3 p.m. and 3:30-4:30 p.m. Saturday — Qualifying, 10:10 a.m.; Practice, 2-3 p.m. and 3:30-4:30 p.m.

Edwards and Keselowski – Seen through a Child’s Eyes

By
Angie Campbell
-

It suddenly occurred to me that the Edwards/Keselowski situation reminded me of two guys fighting at school surrounded by a crowd of excited onlookers. Half of them are screaming “Let the boys fight,” while the other half are saying “Someone stop them please. “

I really felt like I was a kid again when I started reading the varied opinions and I couldn’t help but reflect back to lessons learned as a child.
The arguments have gone something like this.
“There’s nothing wrong with what happened.”
“Why?”
“Because.”
“Because why?”
“It’s just racing.”
“But couldn’t someone get hurt?”
“Yes but everyone is doing it.”
“Well if everyone jumped off a cliff, would you?”
“No, but Brad hit Carl first.”
“Don’t you know that two wrongs don’t make a right?”
“But I have to stand up to the bullies or they won’t respect me.”
“Haven’t I told you to treat others like you want to be treated?”
“But what about the “have at it boys” policy?”
“Everything in moderation.”
“Well now I’m confused.”
“Don’t feel bad, we all are.”

Pretty Boy Carl Edwards Escapes Jury Again

By
SM Staff
-

On Wednesday, NASCAR laid down their penalty for Carl Edwards after Saturday’s Nationwide Series race at Gateway. Edwards was penalized 60 points and $25,000 plus probation till the end of the year.

When will he get what he deserves?

This is the second time in a row he’s purposely wrecked, Brad Keselowski. The first incident was Atlanta back in March where Keselowski flipped.

He also has a track record as recall a pair of incidents with Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Atlanta 2004 and Michigan 2006) and when he tried to choke Kevin Harvick in the garage.

A lot of people say though Keselowski deserved it, including Edwards, due to what happened before that incident.

If you back towards the turn one contact, that was a result of Keselowski running the corner too hard. He slid up and made slight contact – rubbin’ is racing. Edwards could’ve easily got back at Keselowski with his own slight rubbin’ in turns three and four.

Instead, he purposely spins Keselowski, collecting other cars. People who do these moves are beyond rubbin’ as they’re changing a lot of people’s lives. What if someone had seriously gotten hurt? Steve Arpin already reported via his twitter, “Just got my neck snapped back into place from that wreck Saturday, man does that feel better” as a result of his contact with Keselowski.

Plus, what about those teams’ who were collected and their financial situation? Some of those teams collected are already on a tight budget.

The perfect revenge for Keselowski would be to ruin Edward’s chase chances, but nope, NASCAR has protected Edwards again. They also put Keselowski on probation until the end of the year.

This is a result of favoritism as a result of a marketing and money perspective. Edwards is sponsored by big sponsor Aflac and drives for Jack Roush in Ford. Meanwhile, you’ve got Keselowski driving for Penske Racing, who has seemed to be the outcast right now via being the only Dodge team. Suspending or harming Edward’s image in comparison to Keselowski would be bad from that perspective. Now if Edwards wrecks Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, or Kasey Kahne, you’ll see a different story.

Also, suspending Edwards would be bad against their ‘have at it’ policy as they said they’d let the drivers handle their disputes themselves. But isn’t this above that line?

What is it going to take for NASCAR to step up? Following the step above of a particular driver involved or somebody getting hurt. Hopefully, we don’t see the lather.

Joe Gibbs Racing Looks to Rebound at Indy after Gateway

By
SM Staff
-

Last weekend’s race at Gateway turned into a nightmare for Joe Gibbs Racing as both of their cars crashed on the same lap.

On lap 152, DiBenedetto blew a tire after contact earlier in the race, which sent him up the wall. After making contact with the wall, he rolled down the track directly in front of his teammate Brad Coleman. The JGR cars ended up 29th and 30th at the end of the race.

Looking to rebound at O’Reilly Raceway Park, both Joe Gibbs Racing Nationwide Series cars will have new sponsors aboard.

Rookie Matt Dibenedetto has Game Plan For Life/I Am Second onboard his Toyota for this Saturday’s Kroger 200.

Game Plan for Life is the title of team owner’s Joe Gibbs’ most recent book which debuted one year ago while I am Second is a movement meant to inspire people of all kinds to live for God and for others.

This will mark DiBenedetto’s fourth start of the year and the fifth of his career.

Kyle Busch, meanwhile, will have FleetLocate on board his Nationwide car as he tries to sweep all of NASCAR’s top three Series races in the same weekend.

“FleetLocate Powered By Joe Gibbs Driven provides companies a cost-saving device for keeping track of their mobile fleets in the field,” according to JGR PR. “It not only can track the location of each member vehicle with state of the art mapping and instantly communicate when vehicles leave predetermined boundary limits, but it also measures and provides detailed reports on excessive engine idling and fuel consumption.”

Busch won’t be doing all the work in all three cars this weekend as Brad Coleman will qualify the Nationwide car for Busch while he practices his Cup car.

“Last year we qualified outside pole and I will do everything I can to give Kyle a great starting position for the Kroger 200 this year,” said Coleman in the team press release. “You always want to be the guy behind the wheel when they drop the green flag but it is also an honor anytime you are in a JGR car and able to work with one of the best all-time drivers in the sport.”

In five previous starts at ORP, Busch has two wins, three top fives, and three top 10s.

Currently, the No. 18 car sits second in the owner’s points, 49 points behind the No. 22 of Penske Racing, while the No. 20 sits third, 146 points behind.

NASCAR still reviewing Edwards/Keselowski accident

By
SM Staff
-

ESPN.com is reporting that NASCAR officials are still reviewing the incident involving Carl Edwards and Brad Keselowski from Saturday’s Nationwide Series race and could announce a penalty Wednesday. The report by ESPN’s David Newton cites multiple sources with knowledge of the situation.

Edwards turned Keselowski after the two exited turn four and headed towards the checkered flag. Keselowski had made contact with Edwards in turn one while the two were racing for the lead and the win. Edwards responded by clipping Keselowski’s right rear in the middle of the Gateway International Raceway frontstretch.

Edwards admitted that the move was intentional and was a reaction to Keselowski’s bump and run in his victory lane interview with ESPN and later in his post-race press conference with the NASCAR media.

NASCAR issued a three-race probation for an incident in an Atlanta Sprint Cup Series race earlier this year to Edwards, when the driver intentionally wrecked Keselowski in the middle of the front straightaway, sending his rival into the air. Keselowski landed on his roof before the car eventually rolled on to all four wheels.

Keselowski appeared to be dazed but would go on to be checked and released from the infield care center after each of the incidents.

“He turned left into me and wrecked me on purpose,” Keselowski said after he was released from the infield care center at Gateway International Raceway. “I gave him the lane, and he still wrecked me. . . . I figured out a way to beat him. He wasn’t happy with me, so he wrecked me. Wrecking down the straightaway is never cool, whether it’s at 200 mph or 120. I’m sorry that’s the way it had to end.”

Keselowski’s father, Bob, who is a former racer himself, said on ESPN’s national television coverage after the wreck that he isn’t going to let Edwards “kill my boy” and that he will “get my own damn uniform back on and take care of this.”

In March, NASCAR president Mike Helton said that the sanctioning body would step in and issue penalties if they believed a line was crossed.

“We made it very clear to (Edwards) that these actions were not acceptable,” Helton said. “We believe (Edwards) understands our position at this point.

“The clear message, I think, we sent in January was that we were willing to put more responsibility in the hands of the driver. But there is a line you can cross and we’ll step in to maintain law and order when we think that line’s crossed.”

During a national media teleconference on Tuesday, four-time Sprint Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon said that he believed Edwards’ actions in the Nationwide Series race Saturday were “over and above what needed to be done.”

“I think it’s been well-documented this year that NASCAR is allowing the racing to be more in the drivers’ hands, to try to stay out of some of those incidents that are judgment calls,” Gordon said. “… But just looking at the incidents, looked to me like Brad got into him a little bit getting into one, but was just racing hard for the position, for the win. Then what Carl did I felt like was definitely out of line. I felt like it was over and above what needed to be done.”

Harvick also said that he believed Edwards’ reaction was over the top.

“I just think that’s way, way out of bounds as far as hooking somebody in the middle of the straightaway,” Harvick said in a telephone interview with Dave Despain on Sunday.

The wreck Gateway cost Keselowski’s points lead to drop from 227 to 168 points. Keselowski finished 14th.

Edwards wins; Keselowski’s blood boils

By
SM Staff
-

Carl Edwards nudged Brad Keselowski on the final lap to win Saturday nights Nationwide Dodge Dealers 250 at Gateway International Raceway.

A late accident involving Justin Allgaier, Tayler Malsam and Joe Nemechek, set things up for a green-white-checkers finish.  

On the final lap, Keselowski nudged Edwards entering turn one.  Edwards fought back on the backstretch and pulled to the outside Keselowski entering turn three. Exiting turn four Keselowski was on the inside and almost clear with the lead heading to the finish line.    Edwards got into the back of Keselowski and turned him first into the outside wall and then he drifted back into the inside wall, bringing out a huge crash on the front stretch.  

“I was really proud how we were racing each other. He was holding me tight and getting me a little loose which was cool. I was rubbing on him a little bit. It was just great racing. I figured out a way to beat him. He wasn’t happy with me, so he wrecked me. Wrecking down the straightaway is never cool whether it’s at 200 mph or 120. I’m sorry that’s the way it had to end.” Keselowski said.   “I think he’s trying to figure out how he can win the points when he hasn’t run very well all year. I don’t think that was cool at all. We had a great Discount Tire Dodge all day long and I think we were the car to beat. It just didn’t happen.” Keselowski later added.  

Edwards did not agree.   “The deal is he’ll eventually learn he can’t run into my car over and over and put me in bad situations. In every situation, there’s an aggressor and there’s someone who reacts. I was not the aggressor in this situation.” Edwards said.   Keselowski said the contact in turn 1 on the final lap was incidental.  

“The way it went, he bumped me and he finished wherever he finished and I still won the race. That’s the only way I could see the race turning out fair.” Edwards said.   Edwards won, Keselowski finished 14th.  

Unofficial Results Missouri-Illinois Dodge Dealers 250, Gateway International Raceway July 17, 2010 – Race 19 of 35

Pos. St. No. Driver Make Pts. Bon. Laps
1 8 60 Carl Edwards Ford 190 5 200
2 13 32 Reed Sorenson Toyota 170 0 200
3 1 99 Trevor Bayne Toyota 170 5 200
4 5 98 Paul Menard Ford 160 0 200
5 9 66 Steve Wallace Toyota 155 0 200
6 6 11 Brian Scott * Toyota 150 0 200
7 2 16 Colin Braun * Ford 146 0 200
8 34 7 Josh Wise Chevrolet 142 0 200
9 15 6 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. * Ford 138 0 200
10 22 34 Tony Raines Chevrolet 134 0 200
11 33 15 Michael Annett Toyota 130 0 200
12 12 70 Shelby Howard Chevrolet 127 0 200
13 26 88 Steve Arpin Chevrolet 124 0 200
14 3 22 Brad Keselowski Dodge 131 10 200
15 21 5 Willie Allen Chevrolet 118 0 200
16 10 33 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet 120 5 200
17 4 62 Brendan Gaughan Toyota 112 5 198
18 20 10 Tayler Malsam Toyota 109 0 198
19 39 40 Mike Bliss Chevrolet 106 0 198
20 32 28 Kenny Wallace Chevrolet 103 0 198
21 41 21 Morgan Shepherd Chevrolet 100 0 197
22 37 1 Mike Wallace Chevrolet 97 0 197
23 24 38 Jason Leffler Toyota 94 0 196
24 42 23 Alex Kennedy Chevrolet 91 0 196
25 16 12 Justin Allgaier Dodge 88 0 194
26 43 24 Eric McClure Ford 85 0 193
27 17 87 Joe Nemechek Chevrolet 82 0 189
28 19 100 Ryan Truex Toyota 79 0 178
29 18 20 Matt DiBenedetto Toyota 76 0 163
30 7 18 Brad Coleman Toyota 73 0 150
31 38 9 Landon Cassill Ford 70 0 102
32 29 27 Kelly Bires Toyota 67 0 62
33 40 43 Brad Baker Ford 64 0 61
34 23 35 Jason Keller Chevrolet 61 0 44
35 31 156 Kevin Lepage Chevrolet 58 0 26
36 11 91 Chase Miller Chevrolet 55 0 24
37 28 90 Danny O’Quinn Jr. Chevrolet 52 0 20
38 27 26 Brian Keselowski Dodge 49 0 13
39 14 37 Kevin Swindell Ford 46 0 8
40 35 89 Johnny Chapman Chevrolet 43 0 6
41 25 136 Johnny Sauter Chevrolet 40 0 4
42 36 92 Dennis Setzer Dodge 37 0 3
43 30 49 Mark Green Chevrolet 34 0 2

Harvick dominates truck series race at Gateway

By
SM Staff
-

Kevin Harvick dominated at Gateway International Raceway in the “lights delayed” Truck Series Camping World 200 race on Saturday. Harvick led 143 of the 160 laps in route to his third win in just four starts in the series.

The truck race was postponed from Friday night because of a power failure that happened just before the race was started.  

Brad Keselowski finished second, Johnny Sauter third, Todd Bodine fourth and Matt Crafton finished fifth.  

It was a very hot a muggy day and after the race series points leader Bodine was found on the floor of the media center trying to cool down.   “Man, I burned my butt bad and my back even got burned. That’s why I laid down on the cold floor.” Bodine said.  

Bodine leads by 101 points over Aric Almirola in the series standings.  

Unofficial Results

Pos. St. No. Driver Make Pts. Bon. Laps
1 1 2 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet 195 10 160
2 3 129 Brad Keselowski Dodge 170 0 160
3 5 13 Johnny Sauter Chevrolet 165 0 160
4 14 30 Todd Bodine Toyota 160 0 160
5 9 88 Matt Crafton Chevrolet 155 0 160
6 7 17 Timothy Peters Toyota 150 0 160
7 6 3 Austin Dillon * Chevrolet 146 0 160
8 16 51 Aric Almirola Toyota 147 5 160
9 10 18 Brian Ickler Toyota 138 0 160
10 13 5 Mike Skinner Toyota 134 0 160
11 23 23 Jason White Dodge 130 0 160
12 2 31 James Buescher Chevrolet 127 0 160
13 25 81 David Starr Toyota 124 0 160
14 19 12 Mario Gosselin Chevrolet 121 0 160
15 21 9 Max Papis Toyota 118 0 160
16 20 90 Brad Sweet Toyota 115 0 160
17 22 15 Steve Wallace Toyota 112 0 160
18 17 7 Tony Jackson Jr. Chevrolet 109 0 159
19 12 60 Stacy Compton Chevrolet 106 0 159
20 33 10 Jennifer Jo Cobb * Ford 103 0 158
21 31 47 Brett Butler * Chevrolet 100 0 158
22 29 186 Jamie Dick Chevrolet 97 0 158
23 24 63 Jack Smith Ford 94 0 158
24 34 1 Carl Long Chevrolet 91 0 157
25 35 57 Norm Benning Chevrolet 88 0 153
26 8 33 Ron Hornaday Chevrolet 90 5 150
27 4 7 Justin Lofton * Toyota 82 0 127
28 30 46 Clay Greenfield Dodge 79 0 105
29 18 4 Ricky Carmichael Chevrolet 76 0 79
30 32 6 Jeffrey Earnhardt Chevrolet 73 0 79
31 11 39 Ryan Sieg Chevrolet 70 0 49
32 36 187 Chris Jones Chevrolet 67 0 25
33 27 89 Mike Harmon Chevrolet 64 0 21
34 15 93 Mike Garvey Chevrolet 61 0 19
35 26 95 Dennis Setzer Dodge 58 0 3
36 28 172 Johnny Chapman Chevrolet 0 0 1

Dillon dominates at Iowa

By
SM Staff
-

Austin Dillon started from the pole and won his first career Truck Series race on Sunday at Iowa Speedway. Dillon held off Johnny Sauter in a green-white-checkered finish to become the second-youngest driver to win a Truck Series race behind Kyle Busch.

Dillon dominated the race by leading the race high of 187 laps.   Dillon, the grandson of owner Richard Childress put the famous No. 3 in victory lane for the second week in a row. Dale Earnhardt Jr. placed the Wrangler No. 3 in victory lane last Friday night at Daytona.  

Dillon appeared to easily have the race in hand, until a late caution flag with 3 laps to go setup one last restart. Dillon took the outside line and easily pulled away in the final laps as the other drivers battled behind him.  

Matt Crafton finished third, Ken Schrader fourth and James Buescher finished fifth.  

Todd Bodine, Brian Ickler and Ron Hornaday were caught up in a wreck around the half way point of the race. Bodine was not pleased with Ickler before the next restart and bumped him from behind. NASCAR black flagged him and he was given a pass through penalty.  

“I don’t know if we had anything for the 3 truck, but we were running pretty good and just got wrecked by the 30 (Bofine) and pretty much rode out the rest of the race. These kinds of races are a little tough to bear, but we’ll be back at it in five days, and that’s a good thing.” Ickler said.  

Bodine finished 17th and holds an 88 point lead over Aric Almirola in the series standings.  

Almirola blew a front tire and hit the wall just 76 laps into the race and finished 28th.   “I blew a right front. It shows you how easy in this sport it is to go from the top to the bottom.” Almirola said.  

Timothy Peters blew an engine halfway through the race and finished 27th.   “The engine just let go. It started popping there about five laps before it actually let go. I can’t complain. Joey Arrington and everybody at Arrington do us a great job week in and week out. That’s racing.” Peters said.    

Unofficial Race Results Lucas Oil 200 presented by SPEED on Mediacom July 11, 2010 – Race 10 of 25

Pos. St. No. Driver Make Pts. Bon. Laps Status
1 1 3 Austin Dillon * Chevrolet 195 10 205 Running
2 5 13 Johnny Sauter Chevrolet 175 5 205 Running
3 10 88 Matt Crafton Chevrolet 165 0 205 Running
4 13 2 Ken Schrader Chevrolet 160 0 205 Running
5 14 31 James Buescher Chevrolet 155 0 205 Running
6 3 60 Stacy Compton Chevrolet 150 0 205 Running
7 15 5 Mike Skinner Toyota 151 5 205 Running
8 6 162 Greg Pursley Chevrolet 142 0 205 Running
9 21 4 Ricky Carmichael Chevrolet 138 0 205 Running
10 23 81 David Starr Toyota 134 0 205 Running
11 7 39 Ryan Sieg Chevrolet 130 0 205 Running
12 22 12 Mario Gosselin Chevrolet 127 0 205 Running
13 4 18 Brian Ickler Toyota 124 0 205 Running
14 16 21 Chris Eggleston * Dodge 126 5 205 Running
15 11 7 Justin Lofton * Toyota 118 0 203 Running
16 20 186 Jamie Dick Chevrolet 115 0 203 Running
17 9 30 Todd Bodine Toyota 112 0 202 Running
18 29 47 Brett Butler * Chevrolet 109 0 200 Running
19 24 46 Brian Rose Dodge 106 0 199 Running
20 33 1 Carl Long Chevrolet 103 0 199 Running
21 31 6 J C Stout Chevrolet 100 0 199 Running
22 32 57 Norm Benning Chevrolet 97 0 198 Running
23 17 23 Jason White Dodge 94 0 172 Running
24 19 33 Ron Hornaday Chevrolet 91 0 171 Running
25 26 10 Jennifer Jo Cobb * Ford 88 0 125 Handling
26 12 7 Donny Lia Chevrolet 85 0 118 Accident
27 8 17 Timothy Peters Toyota 82 0 104 Engine
28 2 51 Aric Almirola Toyota 79 0 75 Accident
29 25 85 Brent Raymer Ford 76 0 40 Brakes
30 18 15 Steve Wallace Toyota 73 0 38 Accident
31 35 48 Chad McCumbee Chevrolet 70 0 27 Vibration
32 36 182 Paddy Rodenbeck Chevrolet 67 0 23 Rear End
33 28 187 Chris Jones Chevrolet 64 0 23 Ignition
34 27 95 Clay Greenfield Dodge 61 0 18 Overheating
35 34 124 Mike Harmon Ford 58 0 15 Overheating
36 30 93 Mike Garvey Chevrolet 55 0 5 Brakes

Spectator vs. Spotter: LifeLock.com 400 Edition from Chicagoland

By
SM Staff
-

For an age Route 66 has been a legend among motorists that travel this great nation. Once a year those “kicks” seeking fans of the famed highway join NASCAR spectators in Joliet IL., for the thrill of stock car racing.

The fan friendly facility ,that was built as an answer to the demands of the fans that had cried out for more of the popular and exciting sport, has been a yearly stop on the circuit since 2001. Seven drivers have had the honor of winning in the nine race history at the 1.5 mile oval, among them only two have been able to repeat their success.

This week’s guest has been to Chicagoland Speedway for each of its Cup Series events. Mike Calinoff, spotter for the No. 17 Crown Royal Black Ford of Matt Kenseth, hopes he can guide his driver to the long awaited first victory here.

Kenseth is ranked seventh among all active drivers at the Illinois track, finishing as high as second. The team hopes that this is the year they pull off the win.

“Chicagoland is really good. A relatively newer track, but it’s got a lot of room.” Calinoff began.

“The spotter stand gets a little loud here sometimes. The tracks P.A. system is really close to us and it gets a little scrappy sometimes because you can hear the race broadcast in the background when we speak.” Calinoff explained.

“I like spotting here a lot. I know we run well here, so that’s a plus.” He continued.

Kenseth has run well at this track. Since the inaugural race he and his team have recorded two top five’s, four top ten’s, and seven top 20 finishes. His average finish is 11.22 and he has finished as runner up twice. With no DNF’s and no finish here worse than 23rd it is a good track for Kenseth and crew.

With statistics like those of the Roush-Fenway Fords there was no surprise that Calinoff had a firm grasps on the unique challenges this track poses to a team as a whole.

“The track changes a lot with temperature. When we first started out here it was a one-groove racetrack. It took it a while to become two-groove. Now we have two really good distinct grooves which make for really good racing now.” Calinoff said.

Just like most tracks on the circuit Chicagoland Speedway is all about the right set up for the pending weather.

As a veteran spotter coming to a place like Chicagoland, I asked Calinoff about his personal favorites about the area, and the track.

“I like the restaurants in the area. There are a couple really good steak places downtown we like to go to.  I really like coming here I hope they get a second date. I know Kansas might get a second date and Kansas is a really similar track with very similar night life. I always look forward to coming here.” Calinoff said. Competitively speaking his favorite thing about the track in Joliet, “we run well.” Calinoff said. “Not just us,” Calinoff continued, “but a really good track for all the Roush guys. We all know we have a pretty good fighting chance when we get here.”

“You can’t really say anything negative about this place.” Calinoff said. “I like that it’s a Saturday night race, get Sunday all to myself. The racing is good; the stand is good with a good view, no real blind spots. I really don’t have any least favorites when it comes to being out here.” Calinoff looks forward to the weekend ahead as he guides Kenseth and the Crown Royal Black, Roush Ford are the 1.5 mile oval at Chicagoland.

Keep an eye on the No. 17 as it tries to best it’s runner up finishes of the past and see if Kenseth with be this year’s “Romeo” in Joliet.

This Week In NASCAR: NASCAR pondering changes to Chase

By
SM Staff
-
Photo Credit: Chris Graythen/Getty Images

At a press conference in Daytona last weekend, Brian France confirmed that NASCAR is looking at the going-on six-year-old Chase for the Sprint Cup 10-race playoff system the series implemented in 2004.

France, NASCAR chairman and CEO, said that while looking at the chase is something that isn’t uncommon, the series is looking at even closer it this year.

“We’re (NASCAR) looking at the Chase format very, very carefully, as we always do – maybe even more carefully,” France said.

[media-credit name=”Chris Graythen | Getty Images” align=”alignright” width=”400″]
[/media-credit]The goal for NASCAR?  To create more “impact moments” and push the emphasis on race wins to a higher level.

“The main reason is we want to make sure it’s giving us the biggest impact moments it was designed to do,” France said. “That means, it is over a 10-race schedule in itself. Everything to us means pushing the winning envelope to mean what it needs to mean in our sport.

“It’s different because there’s 43 teams, not 1 or 2, 2 or 3, some tournament thing here. We’re in a situation where, you know, in some cases winning can’t be possible. So we can’t have a winner-take-all, per se, like some of the other playoff systems.”

The chase has only undergone two major changes since its debut six years ago.  Debuting with a ten-driver field that competed over a ten-race playoff to decide the series’ champion is now a 12-driver field.  As always, points are rest to 5,000 points after 26 races, but NASCAR has since added ten additional bonus points for every win to a driver’s point total.  Thus “seeding” the drivers based on race wins.

Further decisions on changes to the chase will take place after meetings inside NASCAR over the next few months.

“It wouldn’t be surprising for us to take back the original objectives,” France said. “We’re happy with the Chase. It just means that if we can enhance it in a pretty significant way, we may do that. So that will be the thing that we decide in the next couple of months.”

Changes that have been rumored include an addition of the road source and a change that would make the Chase an elimination type playoff, with positions being eliminated from contention every week or two.

Jimmie Johnson, who has won four-consecutive titles under the Chase format, said that he doesn’t mind some sort of elimination process, but he doesn’t think a winner-take all setup would be fair.

“I don’t mind some type of elimination process, but I think that when you come down to crowning the champion, it can’t be about one race and that option has been thrown around as well,” Johnson said. “I just think that’s unfair.  I think it takes away from the history of our sport and we’re already down to 10 races to crown a champion, to have things reset after nine and winner take all—I just don’t think it reflects and respects what our sport is about.  But I’m just one opinion; I’m sure there are many other out there.”

In the end, however, making sure the chase sticks to the history of the sport is the most important thing to Johnson.

“The thing I keep questioning them on is making sure that it follows the history of our sport and a champion is crowned in a way that respects the past and past champions” Johnson said. “Some of the ideas I’ve heard are absolutely crazy—it’s more of a craps shoot than anything.  That side of it, if it comes down to it, I wouldn’t agree with, but it’s not my series and I don’t get to make those decisions, so we’ll just role with it and see what happens.”

One thing that isn’t likely to change is the number of teams at Stewart-Haas Racing.

According to Tony Stewart, co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing and driver of the No. 14 Chevrolet, there is a “zero-percent chance” of a third team next season.  Well, maybe not a zero-percent chance, as it all depends on sponsorship and funding.

“I would say there’s probably a zero-percent chance we’ll expand to a third team for next year,” Stewart said during a national media teleconference this week. “We’re still trying to fill the void when Old Spice changes this year.  We’re talking to a lot of great people.  There’s a lot of good opportunities out there.  It’s just a matter of finding a pack a package that works for somebody to fill out spot.  There’s still races we’re trying to take care of on Ryan’s car.

“The hard part about it is, it just takes funding.  We could be up to a four-car team very quickly.  But it takes funding to get it done.”

News ‘N’ Notes, Chicago

  • Curtis Aldridge, crew chief for the No. 49 team, was fined $10,000 and placed on NASCAR probation until December 31, 2010 for an improperly attached weight that caused a crash during a Nationwide Series practice session at Daytona last week.
  • Gary Showalter, crew chief for the No. 40 team, was fined $5,000 for a venturi height that was not dimensionally correct.
  • Jeff Gordon is set to make his 600th start of his career.  Amazingly, every one of those starts are consecutive.
  • Jimmie Johnson is a new father.  His wife, Chandra, gave birth to their first child — a baby girl.  Both mother and baby are doing fine, according to a spokesperson for Johnson.  A name has not yet been decided, however Johnson referred to her as “Baby J” in a statement. She weighed 6 lbs., 14 oz. and measured 19.5″ long.  She was born on July 7 at 1:44 p.m. ET in Charlotte, N.C.
  • Johnson is also searching for his first Cup Series win at Chicago — the home track for his crew chief, Chad Knaus.  Chicago joins Homestead, Michigan and Watkins Glen as current tracks that Johnson is winless at.
1...6,4446,4456,446...6,448Page 6,445 of 6,448

© SpeedwayMedia.com. All rights reserved.

Site Map

Archives

Popular Category