Happy Friday.  Habbajeeba, we made it through the week!  

Today In Nascar History

January 9, 1959: Happy 50th birthday, Mark Martin, who returns to full-time racing in the Cup Series in 2009. Martin will be in the No. 5 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. Martin has 35 Cup wins in 722 races in 26 seasons. His 48 victories lead the Nationwide Series.

Number of the Day

We are counting down the days until the 51st running of the 2009 season-opening Daytona 500 on February 15. Each day we are highlighting a number that corresponds to the countdown number:

37: Career Cup victories for 1970 champion Bobby Isaac. In 308 career races (1961-76), Isaac had 134 top-fives and 170 top-10s. He won 49 poles. In Isaac's championship season, he won 11 races and finished in the top five 32 times and the top 10 38 times. He won 17 races in 1969 when he finished sixth in the standings. In 97 races in those two seasons, Isaac had 61 top-fives, 71 top-10s and 32 poles.

37 Days and counting to the Daytona 500

Bits and Pieces

Sadler back in the #19: UPDATE: The Elliott Sadler Saga took another strange twist Thursday. Days after rumors began circulating that Sadler was set to be replaced at Gillett Evernham Motorsports by AJ Allmendinger and the threat of a lawsuit, Sadler will return to the GEM #19 Dodge, multiple sources have confirmed. Sadler's return coincides with the official news that GEM and Petty Holdings had reached a deal to merge.(Fox Sports) AND: When contacted for comment, GEM officials said they hoped to address Sadler's situation in the near future.(NASCAR.com) AND: How about Allmendinger, impressive as a late-season fill-in in GEM's #10, stepping in as Sadler's replacement? I [Tom Bowles] had a good conversation with his agent, Tara Ragan, [Wednesday] that cleared up a few things. Here's the most important one to know: Allmendinger is NOT under contract with GEM, and remains looking for a ride. And according to Ragan, under no circumstances were there any sort of negotiations that revolved around Allmendinger trying to kick Sadler out of his ride. A free agent since being released from Team Red Bull in September, the Dinger's simply been looking for a good fit with several teams, trying to align with one where he can race competitively over the long-term. While GEM was one of those opportunities out there, negotiating with the concept of kicking out a driver like Sadler was never on the mind of someone who just went through a similar experience not too long ago.(Sports Illustrated)
UPDATE: Gillett Evernham Motorsports and driver Elliott Sadler have reached an agreement that enables Sadler to retain his position as driver of the team's #19 Dodge, thereby moving AJ Allmendinger to a part-time ride, multiple GEM sources told ESPN.com. It seems Allmendinger will drive a fourth GEM Dodge on a limited basis.(ESPN.com)

Goodyear tire test at Texas: Just like usual in early January, #2-Kurt Busch was back in the cockpit of a car at a track doing testing. Except this was different. Busch was at Texas Motor Speedway instead of Daytona and taking part in a Goodyear tire test rather than an open test for Penske Racing. With NASCAR's new ban on testing at all of its sanctioned tracks, including the traditional "preseason" Daytona 500 testing that usually would be taking place about now, the tire test at Texas provided a now-rare chance to run test laps on a track where Sprint Cup races will be held. #00-David Reutimann, who drives the primary car for Michael Waltrip Racing, said sponsorship for his car is lined up for only half the season. Despite the lack of sponsorship, Reutimann is confident that he will be able to run a full season and that limits on testing help ease some of the financial burden. Busch, Reutimann, #31-Jeff Burton and #28-Travis Kvapil participated in the Texas test, the first official session this season for Goodyear and likely the only NASCAR test of any kind on the 1 1/2-mile high-banked track that will host two Cup races this season.(Associated Press)

Marc Davis to attempt some early NNS races, Cup later: Here they come already: the Davises. Driver Marc, 18, and his father, Harry, are doing it the old-fashioned way. They're fielding a family-owned, barely sponsored, one-car team, fighting the odds and the big money. Marc and Harry Davis hope to open some sponsorship wallets with a part-time, family-owned venture in 2009. Marc Davis will try to qualify for six Nationwide races in a row, beginning just after Daytona, this winter. He'll run two Toyotas his father has acquired. Then later this year they plan to enter a handful of Cup races. They're still friends with Joe Gibbs Racing, where Marc has been a developmental driver and maintains a relationship, and with Randy Moss Motorsports and Roush Racing -- all of whom tried to find major sponsorships to run Marc regularly in Nationwide or Trucks this season, but failed. But no more waiting. The Davises will do it themselves.(ESPN.com)

Petty, GEM complete deal, will run four cars in 2009

By NASCAR.COM

STATESVILLE, N.C. -- Richard Petty will remain a prominent figure in the garage. However, Petty Enterprises -- a 60-year staple in the Cup Series -- has closed its doors.

Gillett Evernham Motorsports and Petty Holdings announced Thursday an agreement in principle to form a new Cup team co-owned by Richard Petty, Petty Holdings (owned by majority shareholder Boston Ventures) and Gillett Evernham Motorsports.

Richard Petty and Petty Holdings will continue to own and operate the Richard Petty Driving Experience as an independent entity.

"I want to get back to winning and together we will bring the resources, technology and infrastructure to do that," Petty said.

The team will field four Dodge entries in the 2009 Cup season: Nos. 9, 10, 19 and 43.

NASCAR.COM's David Caraviello says a change to the team name, which will reflect Petty's, will come at a later date.

"This is pretty exciting stuff," said Kasey Kahne, driver of GEM's flagship No. 9. "I've gotten to know Richard over my five years working with Dodge and I look forward to being around him more.

"This is pretty awesome. The Gilletts have done a fantastic job of putting this together. I think you can see their commitment to winning. We could have kept on the same path, but they made a pretty bold statement that they are here to win."

The No. 10, which finished outside the top 35 in owner points in 2008 and thus is not guaranteed a starting position through the first five races this season, will complete in the Budweiser Shootout with additional races contingent on sponsorship.

Details of the transaction are expected once the deal is closed. Petty and GEM officials anticipate a final agreement by the end of January.

"This was a big decision for us but it's something we really wanted to do," said Petty, a seven-time champion and owner of 200 Cup victories. "We hope everyone in the sport embraces what [GEM co-owner] George [Gillett] and I are doing.

"Nothing is going to change for me. I'm going to be at the track every weekend and really involved with the teams and drivers back at the shop. We are very happy. George and I have a lot of work to do, but we have a plan and we'll be ready for Daytona."

Petty Enterprises is the winningest team in NASCAR history with 268 Cup victories since 1949.

Gillett said it is a privilege to help write a new chapter in the Petty family history.

"To join with Richard Petty and Petty Holdings is such an honor for me and my family," said Gillett whose business interests also include ownership in the NHL's Montreal Canadiens and the English Premier League's Liverpool FC.

"Richard and I have gotten to know each other well over the last few years and both of us believe we have formed something that NASCAR fans will support. We plan to keep the Petty name in the forefront of NASCAR. We ask that all of the King's fans join with us. Our goal is to get the cowboy hat and sunglasses back in Victory Lane."

GEM has its own role in the history of NASCAR.

Ray Evernham, named by the media as the sport's greatest crew chief of all time in 2006, created Evernham Motorsports in 1999 spearheading Dodge's return to NASCAR. In 2007, Evernham partnered with Gillett to form GEM -- and Evernham retains a minority ownership role with the new team.

"A lot has changed over the years in NASCAR but success still boils down to that cat holding the steering wheel and how he conducts himself both in and out of the car," Petty said. "I really want to help these guys with their driving and their careers."

Petty employees Robbie Loomis, Dale Inman and Brian Moffitt also will have active roles with the new team, which will use the GEM race shops in Statesville, N.C. and engine shop in Concord, N.C.

• Meanwhile, Elliott Sadler's tenure in the No. 19 car may not be over yet.

Sadler, who has driven the No. 19 car for the past two seasons, may return to the vehicle for the 2009 campaign, NASCAR.COM has learned.

Top-30 NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers

Martin Truex Jr., 15^th

David Exum/scenedaily.com

Sporting News’ 60 Most Beautiful People

No. 37, Troy Aikman

Matt McKenzie/scenedaily.com

In 60 years of NASCAR racing, the sport has been filled with colorful characters. This year, Sporting News decided to craft a list of the sport's 60 Most Beautiful People.

The selections were made as a result of nominations sent in by readers and NASCAR fans to the Sporting News' publications and Web sites.

The list was finalized and published in a special edition, which is now available on newsstands and at the online store at streetandsmiths.com. SceneDaily is running the list, with one person from the top 60 to be featured each day.

Today's installment features No. 37, Troy Aikman

Troy Aikman was introduced to NASCAR in 1994 when he was a guest of Sterling Marlin at the Daytona 500. Marlin won that race, and little did the NFL Hall-of-Famer know he would one day become a team owner.

In 2003, the former Dallas star quarterback and three-time Super Bowl winner partnered with fellow Cowboy QB and NFL Hall-of-Famer Roger Staubach to form Hall of Fame Racing. The team began competing in 2006 and has featured drivers such as Ken Schrader, Terry Labonte, Joey Logano and J.J. Yeley.
   
Aikman's status shifted to minority owner in April after a group led by Arizona Diamondbacks executives Jeff Moorad (whose sports agency represented Aikman during his playing days) and Tom Garfinkel bought controlling interest in Hall of Fame Racing.

"I enjoy it," Aikman told the Dallas Morning News when the deal was announced. "I think, moving forward, my role will be to help facilitate sponsor relationships, like I do now. I want to do whatever I can to help this team get better."

Driver Review

Scott Riggs

Mike Ravesi · Frontstretch.com

2008 Ride: No. 66 Haas CNC Chevrolet
2008 Primary Sponsor: State Water Heaters
2008 Owner: Joe Custer
2008 Crew Chief: Bootie Barker / Matt Borland (during six race suspension to Barker)

Stats: 34 Races, 0 Wins, 0 Top 5s, 1 Top 10, 31st in points.
Best Finish: 7th (Talladega – Fall).

High Point: Riggs’ lone Top 10 finish of 2008 at Talladega in the Fall was the high point for the Bahama, NC native. The veteran put his State Water Heaters Chevrolet in the 11th starting spot, led some laps, and came home in seventh position after avoiding several wrecks. That run proved to be the high point for him for a couple of reasons. One, it came at a time when his team was just barely inside the Top 35 in the owner standings. As such, the organization used it as a springboard, following it up with finishes if 19th and 21st over the next two weeks to put themselves solidly amongst the cars with guaranteed starting spots.

Secondly, with the great run Scott posted, he showed he was able to focus on racing despite the whirlwind of uncertainty surrounding his future. Many other drivers might have just packed it in for 2008, but Riggs’ free agency motivated him to be successful as the season wound down.

Low Point: The low point for Riggs was a seven day span in late Spring. During a routine NASCAR inspection at Charlotte, both Haas teams were found to have illegal mounting brackets for wings on the cars. With a backup machine, Scott could only muster a 28th place finish at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, struggling to bounce back from the accusations labeled against him. Then, a few days later, NASCAR fined the team 150 driver and owner points for their infractions, as well as suspending crew chief Bootie Barker for the next six races. The penalties made an impact immediately, as the team went out and finished a horrid 39th at Dover. Within a week, the team went from 26th in the owner standings to 36th, and had to qualify for races on time for several races — a position Riggs became all too familiar with while racing for Gillett-Evernham Motorsports in 2007.

Summary: The 2008 racing season showed Scott Riggs is clearly capable of being a solid driver — despite having less than a solid team around him. For the most part, he went quietly about his racing in the midst of internal chaos at Haas CNC. Starting and finishing around the 25th position, not ruffling a lot of feathers with other drivers, and not complaining about his team or any other varying circumstances surrounding him was a consistent marker of Riggs’ season. Still, he took a slightly below average team on his shoulders, and kept it in the Top 35 until the big penalty in May. Then, he stepped up and drove his way back into the Top 35 after their appeal was denied, meaning the 2009 driver replacing him would have a guaranteed starting spot for the first five races of this upcoming season. And his thanks for all this was – nothing. No contract offer for 2009 from this or any other team. So, Riggs sits, and waits for a call to drive in 2009. And with Bobby Labonte and Elliott Sadler both available, it may be a long wait for Riggs by the phone … but you won’t hear him complain, because Scott Riggs is a race car driver, not a whiner.

Off-Track News: With the high number of rained out qualifying attempts this year, Scott and crew chief Bootie Barker were able to spend Saturday afternoons from 1-3 PM visiting with team owner Gene Haas at the Federal Corrections Institute near Vandenberg Air Force Base. Haas is in jail for tax fraud, and won’t be released until the middle of 2009 at the earliest.

2009 Outlook: Simply put, there are none for Riggs at this time. As of right now, all Cup, Nationwide, and Truck options have been filled for him — despite the stellar resume of the five-year Cup Series veteran.

2006 Frontstretch.com Grade: B.
2007 Grade: D.
2008 Grade: B-.

Driver Review

Elliott Sadler

Nikki Krone · Frontstretch.com

2008 Ride: No. 19 Gillett-Evernham Motorsports Dodge
2008 Primary Sponsors: Best Buy, Stanley, McDonald’s
2008 Owner: Ray Evernham
2008 Crew Chief: Rodney Childers

Stats: 36 Races, 0 Wins, 2 Top 5s, 8 Top 10s, 0 Poles, 24th in points.
Best Finish: 4th (Indianapolis – August).

High Point: Sadler started the season with a sixth place run at Daytona, but, unfortunately, the highlights were few and far between after that. However, his best run of the 2008 was a fourth place finish at the Brickyard, running with and finishing just behind championship contenders Jimmie Johnson, Carl Edwards, and Denny Hamlin. Clearly a Top 5 car throughout, Sadler picked a great time to contend for the win during one of the most important races of the 2008 season. However, those proved to be two of a select few bright spots in Sadler’s nightmare year.

Low Point: For Sadler, who has not visited Victory Lane since 2004, most of the 2008 season was a low point. And while it seemed like luck was not on the side of any of the Gillett-Evernham Motorsports drivers, Sadler seemed to be hit the hardest. Many races, Sadler just wasn’t even competitive, and when he was, an unfortunate situation – like involvement in an on-track incident or a mechanical failure – would ruin what looked to be a decent day.

Summary: All-in-all, 2008 was a continuation of the bad fortune and bad finishes Sadler has experienced since moving to Gillett-Evernham Motorsports midway through the 2006 season. While he and his race team showed promise several times throughout the year, it seemed like something was always shutting them down. Twelve times, Sadler qualified in the Top 10, including a second at Phoenix. However, it seemed he and the team were never able to continue that momentum through the actual race itself. Seeing as all three of the GEM teams struggled throughout the season, one has to wonder if the changes that occurred in ownership during the middle of 2007 — a shift that coincided with Ray Evernham’s slow but steady departure from the organization — affected everyone’s performance.

Off-Track News: It hasn’t all been bad news for the Emporia, Virginia native. In July 2008, Sadler announced he was engaged to his girlfriend, Amanda Prince. He also continued his very close involvement in the Hermie and Elliott Sadler Foundation, helping kids affected by autism — an initiative that had him pairing him up with Emmy Award-winning FOX NASCAR director Artie Kempner on several occasions.

Team Ranking: Second out of three drivers/teams at GEM.

2009 Outlook: With the recent news that Sadler has just been released from his GEM ride in favor of A.J. Allmendinger, his current outlook for 2009 looks pretty bleak. With not many “quality” rides still available in any of the three NASCAR series, Sadler may very well be sitting on the sidelines in 2009. Sadler has filed notice in a North Carolina court stating that he plans to file a claim for breach of contract against GEM, so depending on how quickly George Gillett and team want to move past this, the lawsuit could be Sadler’s “job” for the season. (Along with Gillett and GEM, the filed notice also lists Allmendinger and Ray Evernham Enterprises as defendants.) It is possible that Sadler’s only involvement in NASCAR in 2009 will be as a panel member on SPEED Channel’s “Trackside.” So, for now, this is still a developing story…

Editor’s Note: As of Friday morning, published reports put Sadler back behind the wheel of the No. 19 for the 2009 Sprint Cup season. Stay tuned!

2006 Frontstretch.com Grade: D.
2007 Grade: B-.
2008 Grade: D.

Remembering Dale – Heroes Never Die

JimMcCoy/bumpdrafts.com

February 18, 2001- It is one of two days that we will never forget from 2001. I wasn’t much of a NASCAR fan in those days. I’ll admit to watching an NBA game that day when I got the news. A newsflash interrupted the program and NASCAR President Mike Helton uttered four shocking words: “…we’ve lost Dale Earnhardt.”

I sat speechless in disbelief. “How is it possible?” I’d watched “Ironhead” walk away from crashes that looked 10 times worse than the sequence that played before my eyes. The old racers knew. Retired racing legend Bobby Allison said the crash reminded him of the one that took his son Clifford nearly 9 years earlier. Though his focus was divided between the crash that took Dale Earnhardt and watching his brother Michael wins his first Cup race, you could see the concern in the eyes of Darrell Waltrip.

Some would say racing died that day. As I have become much more serious about racing in the last couple of years, I understand much better than I did then the devotion fans had towards the “Man In Black” and why it is so hard to accept NASCAR as it is today. There’s a lot of good men donning fire suits and taking to the tracks these days, but if there’s another one truly like Earnhardt- I’m unaware of him.

In interviews for the movie Dale an unlikely source of insight explains. NBC Evening News  anchor Brian Williams talks of the connection the 7-time champion had to the common people, the foundational fan base of NASCAR. Fan after fan whose roots to the sport go back a decade or more will tell you they felt they lost a father or a brother that day.

I’m not sugar coating the fact that Dale Earnhardt rubbed a lot of quarter panels and and a lot of people the wrong way throughout his career. I was once one of those people. On Sports Center, I’d see “The Intimidator” punting Labonte, not knowing that Texas Terry got into Earnhardt a little earlier. I’d heard of Waltrip’s complaints about the North Carolinian’s racing style, not realizing that earlier in that fateful 1986 Richmond race, Waltrip had been trying the bump and run himself. I was also unaware of the survivalist mentality he had in those earlier, always concerned he may lose his ride.

The legacy of Dale Earnhardt not only lives on in his fans, it lives on in safety innovations we see today. That tragic Daytona crash was the most notable of a series of crashes the ended the lives of other racers such as Adam Petty, Kenny Irwin Jr., and ARCA driver Blaise Alexander. The optional HANS (head and neck) device became mandatory. Open face helmets are gone, and we have the new generation “Car Of Tomorrow.” I understand fans’ impatience with the period of uneven racing we’re going through right now as teams adjust to the new car, but I can’t help but think that Michael Mc Dowell and Jeff Gordon, to name a couple, wouldn’t be here today if not for the new car.

It’s strange, but the passing of Dale Earnhardt also caught the attention of the non-NASCAR world. The outpouring of grief and affection reminiscent of the death of Elvis and JFK turned heads. Who was this man that inspired such emotion? What was it about this thing called NASCAR that produced such loyalty? Outsiders would learn that Dale Earnhardt was auto racing’s Michael Jordan, their Joe Montana, their Cal Ripken.

New fans and old Earnhardt fans found themselves pulling for “Lil’ E”- Dale Earnhardt Jr. They’d also find themselves attaching feeling for Kevin Harvick- the driver who’d assume the spot Dale Sr. vacated at Richard Childress Racing. Wisely, the legend’s best friend and employer would have the number 29 re-assigned to the team, and Harvick’s car would reverse the color scheme out of respect for Earnhardt.

In a script even Hollywood would find unbelievable, racers with attachments to Earnhardt would help bring at least some measure of healing to NASCAR nation. Steve Park, the young driver Earnhardt brought to drive for DEI, would win the race following the Daytona 500 at Rockingham. Shortly afterwards, Harvick would achieve victory in thrilling fashion over Ironhead’s last great arch-rival Jeff Gordon. Dale Jr. provided the biggest thrill of them all, winning at the track where his father lost his life that July.

His name is etched in the record books alongside “The King”- Richard Petty as both hold the record for NASCAR Cup titles with 7 each. It will be record virtually impossible to break. Fans still speak of him as if he just died last week.

They say heroes never die, and provided we remember him and his contributions, Ralph Dale Earnhardt Sr. will live on. We learn from his life that it is possible, with hard work, determination, focus and commitment, a man or woman starting with virtually nothing may achieve great things.

This is why I have devoted the last week to remembering Dale. I want my children (one whom was born after Earnhardt’s passing) to know who he was, and others throughout the world of NASCAR.

NASCAR ON TV THIS WEEK