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Happy Tuesday. I’m back! Boy, I had some crud the last week and a half. Sorry for not keeping up, but I didn’t have any energy at all. I’m going to try to just pick up with fresh news, and go from there. Sorry if I’ve missed a lot. I’m still not at 100%, but will try to keep up this time!
Hope everyone had a safe and happy Memorial
Day.
Today In Nascar History
May 27, 1979: A record 59 lead changes highlight the World 600. Darrell Waltrip
gets the win, leading the final 19 laps. Waltrip leads 19 times for a race-high 173 laps. Dale Earnhardt (121 laps), Richard Petty (29) and polesitter Neil Bonnett (28) lead 11 times each. Petty finishes second, Earnhardt third and Bonnett 25th.
Number of the Day
3: Of Dale Earnhardt's first five NASCAR races, three were the World 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Earnhardt's first and second races were the 1975 and 1976 World 600s, since renamed the Coca-Cola 600, as was his fifth race in 1978. In fact, four of his first five NASCAR races came at Charlotte. The only race he ran in 1977 was the NAPA National 500
in October at Charlotte. The one race in his first five that wasn't at Charlotte was the 1976 Dixie 500 at Atlanta.
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Large Photo section. There are now more than 300 photos there. And more added almost daily.
NASCAR Fantasy Leagues are here too. Join and enjoy them for the racing season.
Large Photo section. There are now more than 300 photos there. And more added almost daily.
NASCAR Fantasy Leagues are here too. Join and enjoy them for the racing season.
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You want to know about America?
It’s in the squeal of rubber, the scream of the engine and the roar of humanity seeing one of its own triumph against the odds. It’s there in a last lap
duel. Joyous as Victory Lane, devastating as hitting the rail. Here, life lessons are learnt and man it’s as obvious as the number of the car in pole position.
It’s simple – NASCAR born in America.
Check it out! A great place to meet and get it off your chest!
Sprint _ Cup_Lounge (Formerly Nascar Sprint World Order)
We're growing, and we've changed our name to reflect the laid back format.
Welcome NASCAR Fans! A new fresh approach to all things Nascar has arrived.
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Quote of the Year
"NASCAR ain't doing nothing I like right now." "I don't like the rules they are doing...you can bump somebody and they want to fine you for it." Pearson saw the look on Carl Edwards face and made sure to say he knew that Edwards could not speak-up or he would get fined.
--David Pearson
In one weekend, Kyle supplanted Ulysses S. Grant as "the most-hated person in the history of Richmond."
--Mark Aumann In his Power Rankings comments
Comments from the Peanut Gallery
From Pops
Humpy Wheeler has been a major spoke in keeping the NASCAR
wheels turning in my book.
Everyone will miss his annual shows because no one knew what he would come up with next..
Pops Bits and Pieces
Passing At Lowe’s Motor Speedway: Most In Three Years: There was a total of 2,850 green flag passes during the 2008 Coca-Cola 600, up almost 900 passes from last year's 600. During last season's Coca-Cola 600, there was 1,985 green flag passes, 865 less than this season. That's an increase of 44%. Additionally, there were 30 Green Flag Passes for the Lead – a Loop Data statistic accounting for lead changes all around the track. During last season's 600, there were 27 Green Flag Passes for the Lead.(NASCAR Statistics)(5-27-2008)
Soldiers
Salute Wheeler Goodbye: Devoted military supporter, president and general manager of Lowe’s Motor Speedway Humpy Wheeler was presented with an honorary flag on Saturday at the Nationwide Series Carquest 300. Two of Americas finest, Ssg. (Staff Sergeants) Julian W. Bridges and Sgt. (Sergeant) Michael Jennings in association with Fitz Motorsports met with Mr. Wheeler to personally thank him for all of his dedication toward the military each race weekend. Wheeler's Memorial pre-race festivities have been known to include flyovers of Apache, Blackhawk and Kiowa Warrior helicopters in addition to parachuting demonstrations, landing directly on the speedway’s infield. Ssg. Bridges and Sgt. Jennings presented Wheeler with a flag that flew over Camp Alamo, Afghanistan right outside of Kabul. The flag was presented in a shadow box that read, "Flown over the face of the enemy over the American
Compound. On behalf of the officers, NCOS and soldiers of the 218th BCT tag during "Operation Enduring Freedom" on the 25th of December, 2007." Wheeler, humbled by the award, asked the two men if he could take the flag home with him to add to his personal collection. He also awarded the two men and employees of Fitz Motorsports with contingency coins to show his gratitude. Wheeler also received SOS (Show of Support) bracelets from Ssg. Bridges and Sgt. Jennings to pass out to friends and employees. Sgt. Jennings made the bracelets in Iraq in 2005 to bring awareness and show pride to the troops and their families after the passing of his best friend Sgt. Shawn Hill.(PR)(5-26-2008)
Bootie says brackets have been the same all year: Crew chief Bootie Barker said he's been running all season the same wing mount setup on Scott Riggs' #66 Chevy that was confiscated on Saturday after NASCAR officials decided it was illegal. He reminded that the car passed two inspections on Thursday and wasn't impounded until somebody in the garage fingered Riggs' team and Haas CNC racing teammate #70-Johnny Sauter. "I'm not going to make any excuses," Barker said before Sunday's Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe's Motor Speedway. "The car is my responsibility. But if you knew the whole story it would be like, 'Hmph.' I do myself more harm than good if I say anymore." Series director John Darby said NASCAR began
looking into the allegations on Thursday night. "All I know is the mounts were not in the same place as they were Thursday morning when they went through inspection," Darby said. Darby said both teams are likely to face a punishment similar to what Dale Earnhardt Jr's team did last season after problems were discovered with the wing mount at Darlington. Earnhardt was docked 100 championship points and crew chief Tony Eury Jr. fined $100,000 and suspended for six races. Barker believes he knows who turned the team in. "I wish I could tell you some stuff," he said. "It would probably work against me until I know everything. The person I think that did it, and what we really did, it's pretty ... I've never done it. I'll put it that way."(ESPN.com)
Former teammates Gordon, Busch displeased with one another
By Lee Montgomery - Associate Editor
CONCORD, N.C. – Former Hendrick Motorsports teammates Kyle Busch and Jeff Gordon had a
brief conversation after the Coca-Cola 600 after Busch was apparently upset with how hard Gordon was racing him.
Busch refused to answer a question about it in his postrace news conference, saying the conversation would remain quiet. But Gordon, who finished one position behind Joe Gibbs Racing’s Busch in fourth, didn’t.
“He’s got an issue because he gave me the finger, and you know what?” Gordon said. “That’s not necessary for a guy he just didn’t like racing him the way I did.”
Gordon and Busch were teammates at Hendrick before Busch left for JGR this season.
“Kyle and I never had any issues,” Gordon said. “But I raced him hard tonight just like I did everybody. And when track position is as important as it is here, you’ve got to race every single car for every single position.
“And I wasn’t going to give anybody an inch, and I was racing for position.”
Busch refused to answer a question about it in his postrace news conference, saying the conversation would remain quiet. But Gordon, who finished one position behind Joe Gibbs Racing’s Busch in fourth, didn’t.
“He’s got an issue because he gave me the finger, and you know what?” Gordon said. “That’s not necessary for a guy he just didn’t like racing him the way I did.”
Gordon and Busch were teammates at Hendrick before Busch left for JGR this season.
“Kyle and I never had any issues,” Gordon said. “But I raced him hard tonight just like I did everybody. And when track position is as important as it is here, you’ve got to race every single car for every single position.
“And I wasn’t going to give anybody an inch, and I was racing for position.”
Biffle battles back from tire issues to finish second at LMS
By Jared Turner - SceneDaily Staff
CONCORD, N.C. - Greg Biffle rallied from a lap lost during an early unscheduled green -flag pit stop to finish second in Sunday's Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe's Motor Speedway.
The outcome marked Biffle's sixth top-10 finish of the season and his best result since a third-place finish at Las Vegas in March.
"We ran fast lap times, but we just never could get track position," the Roush Fenway Racing driver said. "Every time we’d lose track position. I was too loose in traffic, too tight in traffic. Once it got strung out about 20 laps in, I would come on."
And come on Biffle did after losing a lap when he gave up fifth place to come to pit road for tires on lap 133 of the 400-lap race. The stop, which Biffle made to remedy what felt like a tire going down, sent the No. 16 Ford back out onto the track a lap behind the leaders. But Biffle used timely
cautions and his car's improved handling to battle back into contention.
"We had to work our way back from getting a lap down – got the 'lucky dog' and got back on the lead lap and just kept chipping away at it," he said. "It seemed like it was hard to pass and lapped cars are difficult because they’re just fast enough to make you aero-tight and it’s hard to get a run on the guys.
"I was a little bit too loose up on the top some times, so it was hard for me to get up there and get a run at some of the lapped traffic. I was kind of stuck to the bottom.”
With a few more laps, Biffle believes he might have had a shot at chasing down and passing race winner Kasey Kahne, who took the lead for good when Joe Gibbs Racing's Tony Stewart came to pit road with a cut tire with three laps remaining.
"We just kept passing cars and passing cars and passing cars," said Biffle, who also finished second to Kahne in last weekend's Sprint All-Star Race at Lowe's Motor Speedway. "Guys would take no tires and gas and get back in front of us again, so it was a little bit frustrating. But, overall, I was probably more frustrated last week not getting the win because I felt like I had the fastest car. Tonight, I didn’t feel like I had the fastest car.
"I had a really good, solid car and just kept passing and got the track position where we were at the end. But I would have liked to have a chance to race Kasey."
Earnhardt Jr. rallies for top-five Coca-Cola 600 finish
By Lee Montgomery - Associate Editor
CONCORD, N.C. – After Dale Earnhardt Jr. smacked the Lowe’s Motor Speedway wall with 103 laps remaining in the Coca-Cola 600, his fans probably figured the race was a lost cause.
But Earnhardt Jr. and his No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports team persevered, and he battled to a fifth-place finish Sunday.
"We ran good tonight, and I was proud of my team,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “We tore the car up pretty bad when we blew the tire going in to [Turn 3]. I thought we were done then I got motivated again, but the car wasn't as fast, we were just trying to hang on.
“We got lucky, the same way those guys did last year. We were running second last year and Casey [Mears] and those guys stretched it out and won the race. We were on the other side of the fence tonight, so we will take it."
Earnhardt Jr. led the most laps, 76, and was out front on lap 296 when the tire went down. The No. 88 Chevrolet rode the wall in Turn 3 before J.J. Yeley rammed him from behind.
Earnhardt Jr. stayed against the wall all the way to the frontstretch, sustaining damage along the way. But Earnhardt Jr. hustled back to pit road, and after speeding on the entry, he stayed on the lead lap. NASCAR originally penalized him for speeding past safety equipment but rescinded the call.
"I was so upset with the car at the first of the race, so upset,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “We got better, better and better, and I was happy then. We were the best we needed to be, just that good to win. I thought we were going to be able to put up a good fight.
"I was behind Jeff [Gordon] and I wasn't trying to lap him. I didn't want to lap my teammate if I didn't have to, so I was just cruisin’. I had been in to that corner, 250 times before that, and I just rolled down in there and it went straight in the wall.
“The right rear tire was blown out after I hit the wall. I am assuming it went flat getting in the corner, but it went straight in the corner like a right front goes flat. Odd."
The damaged was patched about as well as crew chief Tony Eury Jr. and his team could, and Earnhardt Jr. soldiered on. The team gambled on stretching their fuel, and the No. 88 made it to the checkered flag.
"It was gas mileage man, I was working that throttle – or not working the throttle actually and made it work,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “Made it last more than it should. We were about two laps short, we saved and saved and come home good."
But Earnhardt Jr. and his No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports team persevered, and he battled to a fifth-place finish Sunday.
"We ran good tonight, and I was proud of my team,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “We tore the car up pretty bad when we blew the tire going in to [Turn 3]. I thought we were done then I got motivated again, but the car wasn't as fast, we were just trying to hang on.
“We got lucky, the same way those guys did last year. We were running second last year and Casey [Mears] and those guys stretched it out and won the race. We were on the other side of the fence tonight, so we will take it."
Earnhardt Jr. led the most laps, 76, and was out front on lap 296 when the tire went down. The No. 88 Chevrolet rode the wall in Turn 3 before J.J. Yeley rammed him from behind.
Earnhardt Jr. stayed against the wall all the way to the frontstretch, sustaining damage along the way. But Earnhardt Jr. hustled back to pit road, and after speeding on the entry, he stayed on the lead lap. NASCAR originally penalized him for speeding past safety equipment but rescinded the call.
"I was so upset with the car at the first of the race, so upset,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “We got better, better and better, and I was happy then. We were the best we needed to be, just that good to win. I thought we were going to be able to put up a good fight.
"I was behind Jeff [Gordon] and I wasn't trying to lap him. I didn't want to lap my teammate if I didn't have to, so I was just cruisin’. I had been in to that corner, 250 times before that, and I just rolled down in there and it went straight in the wall.
“The right rear tire was blown out after I hit the wall. I am assuming it went flat getting in the corner, but it went straight in the corner like a right front goes flat. Odd."
The damaged was patched about as well as crew chief Tony Eury Jr. and his team could, and Earnhardt Jr. soldiered on. The team gambled on stretching their fuel, and the No. 88 made it to the checkered flag.
"It was gas mileage man, I was working that throttle – or not working the throttle actually and made it work,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “Made it last more than it should. We were about two laps short, we saved and saved and come home good."
Loose wheel ruins Vickers' promising Coca-Cola 600 finish
By Lee Montgomery - Associate Editor
CONCORD, N.C. – Brian Vickers led the Coca-Cola 600 four times for 61 laps at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, but his race ended with a piece of his Red Bull Racing Toyota in the infield.
Vickers was running in the top five when the left-rear wheel worked loose, sending his No. 83 spinning into the Turn 1 wall on lap 185. The wheel and tire bounced off the SAFER barrier and across the track, narrowly missing an ambulance before going over a chain-link fence into the infield.
The tire hit a camper, but no one was injured. Track security personnel later confiscated the tire.
“We knew we had a problem the last two runs, and we had the left-rear wheel work loose toward the end of a run, but it stayed on,” Vickers said. “At the beginning of that run, it started vibrating a little bit. The first time it happened was gradual, and the last time it happened, it was very, very sudden.”
The crash came a year after Vickers led 76 laps in the 600 but finished fifth after struggling without power steering.
“We were the fastest car on the race track and we were really moving, and that was with the left-rear loose,” Vickers said. “It’s a couple years now where we’ve led a lot of laps and haven’t been able to close one. Hopefully, we’ll get one soon.”
Vickers ended up 42nd and fell three spots to 20th in the Sprint Cup points standings.
Vickers was running in the top five when the left-rear wheel worked loose, sending his No. 83 spinning into the Turn 1 wall on lap 185. The wheel and tire bounced off the SAFER barrier and across the track, narrowly missing an ambulance before going over a chain-link fence into the infield.
The tire hit a camper, but no one was injured. Track security personnel later confiscated the tire.
“We knew we had a problem the last two runs, and we had the left-rear wheel work loose toward the end of a run, but it stayed on,” Vickers said. “At the beginning of that run, it started vibrating a little bit. The first time it happened was gradual, and the last time it happened, it was very, very sudden.”
The crash came a year after Vickers led 76 laps in the 600 but finished fifth after struggling without power steering.
“We were the fastest car on the race track and we were really moving, and that was with the left-rear loose,” Vickers said. “It’s a couple years now where we’ve led a lot of laps and haven’t been able to close one. Hopefully, we’ll get one soon.”
Vickers ended up 42nd and fell three spots to 20th in the Sprint Cup points standings.
Reutimann records
solid finish at Lowe's Motor Speedway
By Lee Montgomery - Associate Editor
CONCORD, N.C. – David Reutimann had five top-20 finishes in his first 30 races in NASCAR’s Cup series. But in his last nine starts, Reutimann has finished in the top 20 six times – including his best career finish Sunday night.
Reutimann finished 10th in the Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, topping his previous best of 13th at Michigan last year.
“It was a good effort for everybody at Michael Waltrip Racing, and Toyota did a great job,” Reutimann said. “[Thanks to sponsor] UPS for sticking with us through this whole program. We haven’t really done much to deliver any good finishes.
“I think this is maybe a start for things to come and I appreciate them sticking with me and everybody at the shop. I managed to run the top side of the race track all night without knocking the right side off, so that’s a good start.
“I enjoyed it – the guys did a great job and the pit stops were good. All in all our team’s coming together, and I can’t wait until the next race.”
Reutimann couldn’t pinpoint one change that has made his team better as he ran his seventh race in MWR’s No. 44 Toyota after replacing the retired Dale Jarrett.
“We’re doing what we should be doing right now,” Reutimann said. “It’s not any one thing – it’s a bunch of little things we’re doing better. It just goes to show how tough this business is when a team like Hendrick [Motorsports] can struggle for a race or two or whatever. It just shows you how competitive and how tough it is and there are no sure things in this business.”
Reutimann finished 10th in the Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, topping his previous best of 13th at Michigan last year.
“It was a good effort for everybody at Michael Waltrip Racing, and Toyota did a great job,” Reutimann said. “[Thanks to sponsor] UPS for sticking with us through this whole program. We haven’t really done much to deliver any good finishes.
“I think this is maybe a start for things to come and I appreciate them sticking with me and everybody at the shop. I managed to run the top side of the race track all night without knocking the right side off, so that’s a good start.
“I enjoyed it – the guys did a great job and the pit stops were good. All in all our team’s coming together, and I can’t wait until the next race.”
Reutimann couldn’t pinpoint one change that has made his team better as he ran his seventh race in MWR’s No. 44 Toyota after replacing the retired Dale Jarrett.
“We’re doing what we should be doing right now,” Reutimann said. “It’s not any one thing – it’s a bunch of little things we’re doing better. It just goes to show how tough this business is when a team like Hendrick [Motorsports] can struggle for a race or two or whatever. It just shows you how competitive and how tough it is and there are no sure things in this business.”
Engine woes spoil Johnson's shot at another LMS victory
By Jared Turner - SceneDaily Staff
CONCORD, N.C. - For a portion of Sunday night's Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe's Motor Speedway, it appeared that Jimmie Johnson might wind up in the winner's circle he's frequented at the 1.5-mile track.
Instead, he wound up behind with wall with a blown engine that ended his night 51 laps early and with a 39th-place finish.
"Something with the motor went," the two-time defending Cup champ said. "About three laps before I came to pit road it lost a cylinder and I gave up a few spots. At that point I knew it was just a matter of time before it blew the bottom out of it, and it did."
Before his engine began to sputter, it as seemed if Johnson might speed away from the field. After winning the race off pit road with a fuel-only stop under the race's 11th caution, Johnson got a good jump on the restart and began to put some distance between himself and his pursuers as they jockeyed for position.
But almost as quickly as Johnson began to build a cushion, it went away as smoke began billowing out the back of his Chevrolet.
Eight laps into the green flag run, he lost the lead to Joe Gibbs Racing's Kyle Busch. Five laps later, Johnson's night was over after leading five times for 35 laps.
Despite his disappointment, the Hendrick Motorsports driver was pleased with the performance of his car - especially after struggling earlier this season at Las Vegas and Atlanta Motor Speedway, venues with characteristics similar to
Charlotte.
But that may be about to change.
"We've made same big gains," Johnson said, in reference to his team's progress with NASCAR's new generation car. "So all-in-all I'm going to sleep well tonight knowing that these guys at Hendrick Motorsports are working really hard and we've found some
speed."
If Johnson loses any sleep, it'll likely be because he dropped three positions to ninth in the Sprint Cup standings on a night when he stood to make up some ground.
"It hate to lose points," said Johnson, who was seeking his sixth points win at Lowe's Motor Speedway. "I'm very disappointed in
that. But at the same time, I'm very pleased with how comfortable the race car was all night long."
Kasey's house: Kahne wins again at Lowe's Motor Speedway
By Jared Turner - SceneDaily Staff
CONCORD, N.C. – Kasey Kahne inherited the lead when a cut right front tire forced Tony Stewart to pit road with three laps to go and hung on to win the Coca-Cola 600 Sunday at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.
Stewart, who had taken the lead three laps earlier at the end of a cycle of late green flag stops for fuel, hit the wall before nursing his Toyota into the pits. He finished 18th.
Kahne’s win backed up his victory in last weekend’s non-points paying NASCAR All-Star Race at Charlotte and marked his first triumph in 53 points races.
Kahne’s last points win came at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in the fall of 2006.
“This race track’s so good to us,” the Gillett Evernham Motorsports driver said. “It’s a big night.”
Roush Fenway Racing’s Greg
Biffle finished second, followed by Joe Gibbs Racing’s Kyle Busch in third. Hendrick Motorsports teammates Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr. came home fourth and fifth, respectively.
A relatively tame affair for most of the first 150 laps, the race slowly began to take a chaotic turn just before the midway point as a host of frontrunners saw their hopes of victory spoiled by a range of issues.
For Earnhardt Jr. it was a cut right front tire that sent his Chevrolet into the Turn 3 wall after leading 76 laps. Damage to the right side of his car appeared poised to blunt a possible rally before a pit stop for fuel with 62 laps left allowed Earnhardt Jr. and Gordon to go the rest of the distance without stopping while most of the leaders were forced in for a late splash.
Red Bull Racing’s Brian Vickers had his own tire issues earlier in the race - on lap 185 - in the form of a loose left rear wheel that came flying off of his Toyota,
sending it hard into the SAFER barrier. Vickers led 61 laps before the accident ended his day.
“It was like one lap it started with the vibration and a couple guys got by me and the next lap it just completely came off," he said.
Hendrick’s Jimmie Johnson found trouble in the form of a blown engine that
ended his night 48 laps from the finish after appearing to have one of the strongest cars.
Earnhardt Jr. a 'happier person' this season with Hendrick
By Jared Turner - SceneDaily Staff
CONCORD, N.C. – Looking at his results on the track, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is clearly performing better this season than last.
Better equipment doesn’t appear to be the only reason.
NASCAR’s most popular driver said on Thursday that his inaugural campaign with Hendrick Motorsports has been less stressful than his final one at Dale Earnhardt Inc., the company his father founded and the organization Earnhardt Jr. left at the end of 2007 after eight Cup seasons.
“I sat at home last night and talked to a friend of mine and he's like, ‘Man, you're such a happier person and you're a whole lot nicer to everybody,’” the driver of the No. 88 Chevrolet said at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, site of Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600. “'You're different and it’s better. You've got less things on your mind,' and I feel that. I go home and I don't have the worries I used to have. I know that when we show up to the race track I'm gonna have a great chance to run good. That used to worry me to death, like not knowing how we were going to be when we rolled off the trailer because you never knew we were so hot and cold.
"It's more miserable obviously to be cold all the time, but to be hot and cold was pretty stressful, too. The struggles at DEI were such a heavy burden and I feel a whole lot more calm and relaxed."
Calm. Relaxed. Happy. No wonder Earnhardt Jr., who was plagued by inconsistency at DEI and failed to make NASCAR's title Chase in two of his final three seasons with the company, is third in the Sprint Cup points standings after 11 races, with four top-five and eight top-10 finishes.
He’s also the highest driver in the points standings from the powerful Hendrick stable that includes two-time defending Cup champ Jimmie Johnson, four-time series champ Jeff Gordon and Casey Mears.
A late-race crash at Richmond International Raceway three weekends ago may also be all that stands between Earnhardt Jr. and snapping what is now a more
than two-year winless streak as well.
“I feel pretty blessed and humbled to be part of the team and doing well and have the opportunity that I have. It's a great opportunity,” said Earnhardt Jr., who left DEI after failing to reach acceptable contract terms with the company run by his stepmother Teresa Earnhardt, with whom he has admitted his relationship isn't "a bed of roses."
“I hope [my Hendrick teammates] feel glad that I'm there, they have me as a teammate and I hope that continues.
"It's awesome to come in right off the bat and make things great. I guess the best thing for me is to try to continue that over a long period of time, over the entire length of the contract so they'll want to have me back."
Thinkin’ Out Loud
Coca Cola 600
Matt McLaughlin · Frontstretch.com
The Key Moment – Tony Stewart cut down a tire with three laps to go, allowing Kasey Kahne to streak by him for the win.
In a Nutshell – It might sound like damning it with faint praise,
but the World 600 was nowhere near as awful as last week’s All-Star race hinted it might be.
Dramatic Moment – Tony Stewart looked to be cruising to the checkers when he began slowing dramatically, handing the race to Kahne.
With the new car making passing so difficult, every restart caused an all out land rush for positions in the first five laps after the green.
What They’ll Be Talking About Around the Water Cooler This Week
Does anyone else think that with this new car, the World 600 ought to be run as two full, points-paying 300-mile events?
NASCAR keeps saying they’re going to crack down on the driver in the lead if he brake checks the field coming to a green flag, but they continue to swallow their whistle even when a driver does exactly that — like Stewart did Sunday.
What’s it going to take for stock car racing fans to be able to enjoy the same side-by-side coverage during commercial breaks open wheel racing fans get?
Is there anything more frightening than watching a tire / wheel combination separate from a race car and head into an area populated with fans? Once again, we dodged a bullet Sunday night.
Is anyone else hearing increased rumors Sprint would like to bail on NASCAR?
Farewell and thanks to Humpy Wheeler, the sports’ leading prophet and visionary, not only an extraordinary businessman but an extraordinary gentleman as well. Wheeler’s decision to leave came about awfully quickly, and there’s rumors of some sort of discord between Wheeler and his former boss, Bruton Smith. But I doubt that discord tells the whole story. Wheeler has always been blessed with a clear vision of where our sport is heading. It may just be the prophet sees what’s coming down the road and doesn’t want to ride along for the downhill slide.
Speaking of Smith, ol’ Bruton raised some eyebrows this week with the purchase of the Kentucky Speedway. Before the ink was even dry on the contract, Smith told those on hand he planned to hold a Cup race there — potentially as soon as 2009. Not so fast, NASCAR officials responded, claiming no such race is in the cards. But what Bruton Smith wants, Bruton Smith typically gets. Smith is also allegedly interested in purchasing two of the last three independent race tracks to hold Cup races — Pocono and Dover — and is said to still be interested in opening a track in the New York City area. Hmm… seems to me with all the race tracks this guy owns, he could conduct his own stock car racing series very easily and not have to go to NASCAR and the France family looking for
race dates.
I’ll say this for Danica Patrick: She sure does know how to throw a major league hissy fit. Nobody is even suggesting that Tony Kanaan might switch to stock cars, but this Memorial Day weekend he gets the nod for showing class in the face of overwhelming disappointment.
Team owners and drivers have pleaded with NASCAR officials for some changes to the new car to make them handle better and improve the quality of racing. But NASCAR
officials have refused to budge, stating the car “is what it is,” and it’s up to those teams to find a way to make them handle better — there weren’t going to be any rules changes. So, some teams found that messing with the rear wheel alignment made their cars faster and handle better, even if they did look a bit odd dog-trotting down the straights. So, what do NASCAR officials do? They go ahead and change the rules, like they said they wouldn’t, to limit the off-kilter rear alignment. You know, maybe a new stock car racing series isn’t such a bad idea after all.
Tony Stewart was forced to get rid of his pet monkey recently, as the animal was growing more aggressive (like owner, like pet, I guess). Hey, who knew primates made poor pets? But now, can we say Stewart finally has the monkey off his back?
Some people ask me why I keep commentating on this sport when it so clearly annoys me sometimes. My landlord and buddy showed up Sunday at the wheel of a Grumman Kurbside step
van he won on eBay this weekend. Johnny, you are now officially insane (and need to get that roach coach out of my yard). Being a race fan keeps me out of trouble.
The Hindenburg Award For Foul Fortune
Dale Earnhardt, Jr. led 76 laps and was leading the race when an apparent cut tire put him hard into the wall.
Jimmie Johnson led the race with less than one hundred miles to go, but
lost an engine in dramatic fashion while running second.
Brian Vickers clearly had one of the fastest cars in the first half of the race, but a broken wheel on lap 185 put him hard into the wall. David Gilliland was unable to avoid the loose wheel and wrecked as well.
Carl Edwards ran out of gas on the final lap and had to coast to a frustrating ninth place finish.
Kurt Busch led laps early in the race, but saw his chances at a win evaporate when he and the wall had a close encounter of the wrong kind.
The “Seven Come Fore Eleven” Award For Fine Fortune
With a win in the All-Star race and the World 600, it was a pretty good week for Kasey Kahne.
Kyle Busch had electrical problems, and made an unscheduled pit stop mistakenly thinking he had a flat tire — but still managed to pull off a third place finish. Apparently, Busch also had to dodge several beverage cans thrown at his car; even if you loathe the guy, that crap has
got to stop.
When Dale Earnhardt, Jr. slapped the wall, it looked like his night was over — but fuel strategy in the final segment allowed him to escape Charlotte with a Top 5 finish.
Jeff Gordon’s car looked like a garbage scow once again, struggling to stay on the lead lap for much of the event — but he left Charlotte with the fourth place check in his pocket.
Worth Noting
- The Top 10 drivers piloted two Dodges, two Toyotas, three Chevys, and three Fords.
- Sam Hornish, Jr. in thirteenth was the best finishing ROTY candidate.
- Kahne’s win was also his first Top 5 finish in a points race this year. The victory was his first
since Charlotte in the Fall of 2006.
- Greg Biffle’s second place finish was his best result of 2008.
- Kyle Busch (3rd) has compiled Top 3 finishes in the last four races.
- Jeff Gordon (4th) enjoyed his third consecutive Top 10 finish.
- Dale Earnhardt Jr. (5th) managed his ninth Top 10 finish in this season’s twelve Cup points races.
- Jeff Burton hasn’t finished outside the Top 12 since Daytona.
- Elliott Sadler (8th) scored his first Top 10 finish since the Daytona
500. And as Johnny Mathis might say, that’s a long, long time.
- David Reutimann’s tenth place finish was his best of the season, and just the third Top 10 finish any member of Michael Waltrip Racing has managed in the team’s history. Pathetic, isn’t it?
- Bobby Labonte’s eleventh place finish matches his best of the season. Labonte also finished eleventh in this year’s Daytona 500.
- Sam Hornish’s thirteenth place finish was his best in fourteen career Cup car starts.
- Kevin Harvick has scored just one Top 10 finish in the last seven Cup points races.
- Jimmie Johnson failed to finish a race for the first time since last year’s Brickyard 400.
What’s the Points?
Kyle Busch maintains his points lead, and is now 94 ahead of Jeff Burton, who remains second in the standings.
Actually, the Top 5 hold serve with Earnhardt, Hamlin, and Bowyer maintaining their positions.
Jimmie Johnson’s blown engine cost him big time in the points standings; he fell three spots to ninth. Behind him, David Ragan fell out of the Top 12, dropping a spot to thirteenth behind Kasey Kahne.
Kevin Harvick advanced two spots to seventh in the standings, while Carl Edwards moved up a spot to sixth. Matt Kenseth moved up four spots to sixteenth.
Kyle Busch is now at least a full race worth of points ahead of everyone from fourth place Denny Hamlin on back. If the new points system costs Busch a title, it might just be NASCAR’s last chance to get the fans to Embrace the Chase.
Michael Waltrip really needs to step things up at Dover next week. The No. 55 team only has a three point advantage over the No. 77 outfit clinging to 35th place, which guarantees teams automatic entry into each race.
Overall Rating (On a scale of one to six beer cans, with one being a stinker and a six pack an instant classic) : Frankly, I thought this was going to be an incredibly putrid race, but it was only a minorly putrid race. A lot happened over the final ten laps, so I’ll give it four cans of icy cold Colorado Kool-Aid for exceeding expectations.
Next Up – The series heads north for a race at Dover next Sunday afternoon. Racing on Sunday afternoon!
What will they think of next? Maybe Harley Davidson will develop a motorcycle with a V-twin engine?
Who's gonna fill them shoes?
Darrell Waltrip/foxsports.com
You know, folks, I have been in Charlotte since last week when I came over for the All- Star Race. It was another great Lowe's Motor Speedway promotion — that's what the speedway has become famous for. From the pre-race show to all the hype to all the promoting they do to make a race there an event, the guy that has been responsible is Humpy Wheeler.
Like a lot of other folks, I was shocked to find out that Humpy was retiring immediately after Sunday's race. My phone's been ringing off the hook with folks asking me what I think. Bottom line, I don't know what to think.
It is ironic how this is working out because we had Humpy on our SPEED Trackside show last Friday. We interviewed him and I was astounded by how quiet and reserved he was. We had all been excited when we heard he was going to be on the show because you just know you are going to
get a great interview. He will give you some insight in the sport plus you know you've got a guy who is always thinking outside the box. He sat next to me and we asked him about all the great ideas and promotions he had done for prerace shows in the past. But he just sat there and nodded his head, smiled and didn't really elaborate. It was totally uncharacteristic of the Humpy Wheeler we all know.
When the show was over, we went backstage and I told Jeff Hammond, Larry McReynolds and Steve Byrnes how surprised I was by how Humpy was acting. Humpy is just never that quiet. It just seemed like his mind was a hundred miles away and not on our interview. Trust me, something is up when Humpy Wheeler
doesn't want to talk about his racetrack or what's wrong with NASCAR. It really bothered me.
Then to hear this week that he was retiring immediately after Sunday's race just worries me. Trust me, I am the king of seeing black helicopters — it's just the conspiracy theorist in me. Mike Joy, Larry and Jeff always kid me about being surrounded by black helicopters. So any time you hear a driver say he's not going anywhere, you kind of wonder about that. Any time you hear a sponsor say they are here to stay, you kind of wonder about that.
If they are having to say those things, then I'm wondering, "What's the rest of the story?" That's what I feel about this deal of Humpy's sudden retirement: What's the rest of the story? There simply has to be more to it than has been told at this point.
I love Humpy Wheeler. He has been the absolute inspiration for so many promoters for so many years. He got his inspiration from so many great promoters. You know all about the drivers and all the owners but do you know about people like Clay Earles, the owner and promoter of Martinsville Speedway? Or do you know Barney Wallace down at
Darlington or L.G. DeWitt at Rockingham? How about Paul "Sow-Belly" Sawyer, one of the biggest characters ever in NASCAR? He dreamed of what that Richmond track could become and saw that dream come true.
I could go on ... Bob Bahre in New Hampshire. Richard Howard, who was here at Charlotte before Humpy took over. Enoch Staley at North Wilkesboro. Larry Carrier at Bristol and just so many more.
They were character after
character after character who just loved the sport, were great promoters and did things to grow the sport. Humpy Wheeler followed in their footsteps. There's a great bunch of guys now following in Humpy's footsteps. Jeff Byrd up in Bristol is doing a great job. So is Eddie Gossage at Texas Motor Speedway, who is probably the guy closest to Humpy. Speedway Motorsports Inc. Chairman Bruton Smith sent Jerry Gappens from Charlotte up to run the New Hampshire track he bought from Bob Bahre.
These are all great promoters at tracks doing really well for Smith, so it's going to be interesting to see who takes over for Humpy here at Lowe's Motor Speedway. Marcus Smith, Bruton's son, is a great guy that I love
a lot. He may be picked to step in.
All I know is that Humpy Wheeler has been a great friend. He and Bruton Smith have taken our sport to another level. They put pressure on NASCAR and they put pressure on Daytona, they put pressure on other racetracks to get better and grow the sport. There will never be another H.A. "Humpy" Wheeler. He is a man that came up with so many different promotions and attractions to get you to buy a ticket.
Naturally, the one I will never forget is when they went down to Myrtle Beach and got a shark, brought it back to the track and hung it from the back of a wrecker. They then stuffed its mouth with a chicken and drove the wrecker all around the track. That's back when Cale Yarborough was calling me "Jaws" and Cale's sponsor was Holly Farms, the chicken processor. Cale and I had just had a couple "moments," shall we say, at Darlington and North Wilkesboro coming into Charlotte. Humpy put all that together and thought it was really something.
They were also the first speedway to light up a 1.5-mile track in 1992, which everyone said was impossible. They tried it and were
successful. People said they were crazy to build condos at the racetrack. Now many racetracks have condos. So many things like that were considered bizarre and outside the box, but they did it, made it work and so many people then followed suit. Humpy and Bruton were quite a duo.
Humpy Wheeler has done a lot and he will absolutely be missed by many people including me and the fans. I am just trying to figure out, like I said, the rest of the story.
Oh by the way
Look for Sunday night's race to be a real grind. Don't expect to see the same kind of race we saw last Saturday night. Everybody knew last weekend they were going to run four 25 lap segments with a 10-minute break in-between. This Sunday's race will be unpredictable. Unlike Saturday, you won't know when the cautions are coming so some of those gambles and tire strategies won't play out. Now you might see some as we come down to the end of the Coca-Cola 600.
Also, you know what folks? I am getting kind of tired of these crew chiefs kicking back on these expensive pit boxes and not going for it. It was clear to me that Kasey Kahne's crew chief Kenny Francis was willing to gamble since there were no points involved. So why not roll the dice, right? Phoenix was where Jimmie Johnson's crew chief Chad Knaus was willing to put it all on the line and gamble on whether they had enough fuel and they won the race.
That's my kind of crew chief. Go for it, man! Make great calls in the pits, do something to help your driver win the race. If you have a driver who is driving his
guts out, you need to help him. Don't follow the other crew chiefs. Think outside the box and help your driver win a race. Right now I have my driver hat on and I want a crew chief like Kenny Rogers. I want him to know when to hold 'em and know when to fold 'em.
The Snake-Bit 600
By Tom Higgins
The temperature was rising quickly on the morning of May 29, 1988 at the racetrack then known as Charlotte Motor Speedway, so Frank Tovornik had an especially important duty.
It was his responsibility to hook up the "cool suit" air-conditioning apparatus in driver Alan Kulwicki's Ford and make sure that it was working properly for the Coca-Cola 600, one of NASCAR's classic races that was scheduled that afternoon.
As crewman Torvornik looked into the car he saw something that he thought to be black tape in the caging of the driver's-side door. He reached for it.
That's when it bit him.
The "tape" actually was a 3-foot black snake.
The reptile apparently had been placed in the racecar as someone's idea of a joke.
Since the reptile was non-poisonous, Torvornik wasn't seriously hurt.
"It got me on the left middle finger," he said. "If I catch who did it, he'll need a doctor worse than I did."
Turns out several drivers and a venerable team owner were to need doctors that day in one of the scariest, wildest and most snake-bitten 600s in the event's history, which dates to 1960.
Among the injured in the race won by Darrell Waltrip were drivers Buddy Baker, Neil Bonnett, Harry Gant, Dave Marcis and pioneer car owner Bud Moore.
Several others miraculously escaped being badly hurt in savage crashes.
Trace most of this to a "war" between tire suppliers Goodyear and Hoosier, who had escalated their competition into an all-out battle to provide the fastest tires, which led to compromises in safety.
Goodyear took the drastic step of withdrawing its products from the 400-lap race on the 1.5-mile track that is now called Lowe's Motor Speedway, where the 49th
running of the 600 is scheduled Sunday. Goodyear officials said they felt their Charlotte tire couldn't take the strain of a hot day when the temperature reached 90, plus the high speeds that were expected.
Forty of the 41 starters mounted Hoosier tires, some of them reluctantly. Only Marcis, ever loyal, stuck with Goodyear, for whom he regularly tire-tested.
There were 10 hard wrecks, a majority of them blamed on tire failure. The trouble started relatively early.
Derrike Cope and Jim Sauter crashed on Lap 58, and Cale Yarborough was swept into the accident. Bonnett wrecked on Lap 114. After Sterling Marlin blew a tire on Lap 169 he was trying to make it back to the pits when his car drifted into the path of Marcis. The two cars collided and Marcis went airborne into the fourth turn wall. Brad Nofsinger crashed on Lap 192.
A six-car crash between Turns 1-2 eliminated Baker and Eddie Bierschwale on 244. Rick
Wilson experienced an accident on Lap 334 resulting from tire failure. Wilson was leading at the time and appeared headed to a first Winston Cup Series victory, a goal he never was to realize.
Overall, 21 drivers wrecked at some point. Only 22 of the starters were running at the finish.
Said seven-time champion Richard Petty:
"It was like Russian roulette out there. Or Hoosier roulette. Both companies (Goodyear and Hoosier) went too far. Goodyear didn't get away with it, but after what happened today, Hoosier didn't get away with it either."
Tires weren't the only major controversy.
A boiling feud between Dale Earnhardt and Geoff Bodine continued with especially strong steam. Bodine had
spun after contact with Earnhardt the day before in a Busch Series 300-miler at the Charlotte track. On Lap 60 in the 600 they tangled again in Turn 2 and bumped each other all the way down the backstretch. Bodine slammed into the wall in Turn 4, heavily damaging his car. NASCAR competition director Dick Beaty ordered Earnhardt onto pit road for a 5-lap penalty.
"This is unjust," fumed Earnhardt. "I wasn't trying to wreck him, I was just trying to race him. This isn't bumper cars."
Said Bodine:
"I'm trying to win races. I'm not out there to settle any old debts or scores. I was concerned about my tires, so I decided to be more conservative. I backed off and several cars went by me. One of them was Earnhardt's. He slowed up. I didn't know if he had a tire problem or not. I moved to the outside in Turn 2. When we got to the third corner he turned right for no apparent reasons."
Said an angry
Rick Hendrick, Bodine's team owner, "I guess we're going to have an all-out war."
Waltrip weighed into the feud, stating, "If they were real men they would go out and settle it behind the garage area."
Waltrip took the lead on the 370th lap and maintained it to the finish, edging Rusty Wallace by a car length. Kulwicki, shaking off the black snake incident, placed third, another car length back. It was Waltrip's fourth triumph in NASCAR's longest event.
Waltrip won at a slow average speed of 125.460 mph as 13 caution flags slowed the pace for 89 laps.
"It was as tough a race as I've ever run because of the tire situation," said Waltrip, who was driving a Hendrick-owned Chevrolet. "I'd see guys run off, their cars going really good, and then I'd come around and see them stuck in the wall.
"Because of the tire problems, every time I went into a corner I'd just draw up (in tension) and hope I could make it to the other side.
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