Happy Monday everyone!

 

 

Today In Nascar History

January 12, 1933: Walter Ballard, the 1971 Cup Series rookie of the year, is born on this day. Ballard started one race in 1966 and didn't return to NASCAR until 1971 when he started 41 of 48 races and finished 10th in the points standings. He posted 11 top 10s and three top fives his rookie year, including a career-best third in the Space City 300 in the only Cup race run at Meyer Speedway in Houston. Ballard finished his career winless with four top-five finishes and 34 top-10s in 175 races.

 

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:

 

 

 

34 Days and counting to the Daytona 500

 

34: The winning car number in the first NASCAR race, June 19, 1949, at Charlotte Speedway. Jim Roper got the win when Glenn Dunnaway in the No. 25 was disqualified for using illegal shocks. Dunnaway took the checkered flag three laps ahead of Roper, which is why records show Roper completing 197 laps on the three-quarter-mile dirt track.

 

 

 

Bits and Pieces

Labonte to #8? Target to #42? UPDATE: There have been numerous Bobby Labonte sightings at Earnhardt Ganassi Racing, but the latest twist places the 2000 Cup champion in the #8 Chevy where he would be reunited with his former Petty crew chief Doug Randolph. Randolph moved to DEI last year to become crew chief for Paul Menard. Labonte worked with Jeff Meendering on the #43 Petty Dodge in 2007. Meendering has since left to be the car chief for Tony Stewart. It's also been rumored that the Target sponsorship will move to the #42 Dodge and Juan Pablo Montoya.(Fox Sports) BUT: Announced in mid-November, Dale Earnhardt Inc. and Chip Ganassi Racing agreed to merge creating a Chevy-powered, four-car stable with Almirola in the #8 car, Martin Truex Jr. in the #1 car, and Montoya in the #42 car. The fourth driver in the #41 car could be Bobby Labonte with Target's support but then again team leaders told Almirola he may slide into the car as well. "It is something they have kicked around and talked about," Almirola said. "But really and truly we want to run four cars. That is the goal because everybody knows to be competitive you have to have a multi-car team. They have said if we have to run three cars it may be a possibility but it is not our goal."(NASCAR.com) UPDATE: Bobby Labonte in the #8, Juan Pablo Montoya in the #41, Martin Truex Jr. in the #1 and Aric Almirola in a part-time role. That is the scenario officials at Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing are discussing, sources close to the situation told ESPN.com. Almirola was slated to drive the #8 vacated by Mark Martin this season, but the company was having trouble finding sponsorship for the untested driver. Labonte ... according to sources, has drawn interest from several sponsors. Montoya drove the #42 during his first two years with Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates. But with that car only half sponsored by Wrigley's and the #41 fully funded by Target, officials are looking to make the switch for what had become the top driver at Ganassi. Almirola would drive the fourth car in next month's opener at Daytona and a select number of other races unless officials find a way to fully sponsor that car for the season.(ESPN.com)

 

Deadline for team drug testing nears: NASCAR Sprint Cup, Nationwide and Camping World Truck teams have one more week to file an initial list of crew members who have passed a drug test and are eligible for a NASCAR license. NASCAR issued a memo to teams last month, setting a Jan. 16 deadline for crew members, which includes all over-the-wall pit crew members, the crew chief, car chief, pit crew support, including team members that are responsible for tires, fuel, and pit crew operation, as well as spotters and race day support, including engineers, engine tuners, shock specialists, chassis specialists and tire specialists, to have the test results. All tests must be conducted by a laboratory certified by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Teams do not need to submit the names of crewmen who don’t pass. NASCAR plans to oversee the testing of drivers itself, beginning the week of Jan. 20, NASCAR spokesman Ramsey Poston said Thursday. According to NASCAR policy, any driver who fails a test will be indefinitely suspended.(Scene Daily)

 

Siegel close to leaving DEI: A NASCAR team source told ESPN's Kelly Naqi that Dale Earnhardt Inc. president of global operations Max Siegel is close to leaving the team. Siegel said he's talking to DEI chief executive officer Teresa Earnhardt about his future plans with the team, which was part of a merger and has been renamed Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates. When contacted, Siegel said, "This has been a great opportunity and I have always been committed to doing what's in the best interests of the sport and the company. I am currently in discussions with Teresa about how I can have the most positive impact on the future of DEI."(ESPN.com)

 

Petty would like to find Cup ride: [Kyle] Petty's plans for the 2009 season include driving in some Grand American races and continuing his television work. He also would like to obtain a Cup ride, but he knows that his efforts could be harmed by the economic downturn.(Associated Press/ESPN)

 

MSRP Motorsports plans Daytona 500 attempt: Phil Parsons was on Tradin' Paint on SIRIUS NASCAR Radio with Rick Benjamin and Chocolate Myers Friday and said he intends to put a car in the Daytona 500:
Rick Benjamin: "Chocolate and I had speculated a little - and you were one of the guys I had in mind - you might see some ARCA teams, some truck teams, some Nationwide teams go out - and we know there are ways you can acquire a Cup car. You can lease one, borrow one, buy one, whatever is takes and go put a car on the grid there. You do that with Randy Humphrey in the Nationwide Series. You had two cars last year. Are you thinking about doing that in the Cup Series in '09?"
Phil Parsons: "We are. We are strongly considering that. We're going to kind of let the chips fall where they may and see how many cars are going to be there but our intention is, right now, is to race the Daytona 500. Not park and start in park but race the Daytona 500."(Sirius PR) AND hearing that the car will be a Toyota and truck series regular Terry Cook will be the driver. MSRP, owned by Phil Parsons, Randy Humphrey, and their wives, competed full time in the Nationwide Series in 2008 with two cars, #90 & #91. The #90 was primarily driven by Johnny Chapman and competed in 31 races with a best finish of 35th. The #91 had a variety of drivers, mostly Larry Gunselman and Justin Hobgood, was in 30 races, and had a best finish of 38th.

 

New crew chief for Sadler: The Gillett group is looking to re-establish Elliott Sadler's winning ways by enlisting the help of his former crew chief, Kevin Buskirk. Although Buskirk, 55, is not a household name, as a team engineer he led Sadler to his last two wins at Robert Yates Racing in 2004 — the only season the driver qualified for the Chase. Buskirk's diligence and leadership earned him employee of the year honors at RYR that season. In fall of 2005, he became interim crew chief for Sadler after Yates moved Todd Parrott to the #88 Ford. Buskirk moved to Richard Childress Racing in March of 2006 to work with Kevin Harvick and crew chief Todd Berrier. After making the commute to Welcome, N.C. — about an hour north of Charlotte — for several months, Buskirk returned to RYR. Most recently, Buskirk was hired by Dale Earnhardt Inc. to oversee the test team after Tony Eury Sr. left for JRMotorsports. Buskirk is expected to start with the team on Monday.(Fox Sports)

 

Sorenson will drive #43: Tom Reddin, CEO of Gillett Evernham Motorsports, spoke to Sirius NASCAR Radio's The Morning Drive Friday morning:
David Poole: "Will Reed Sorenson be in the #43 car and, if you make the deal with A.J. [Allmendinger] for the fourth car would that be the #10? Is that the plan?"
Reddin: "Yeah, pre-merger Reed is in the #10 but post-merger Reed will be in the #43 for next year."
Poole: "What's the sponsorship situation on that car?"
Reddin: "We've got the majority of the races sold but we still have some races to sell. So if anybody's out there listening please give us a call. (laughs) But we've got the majority of the races sold and we're going to be announcing a sponsor in a few weeks on that car. And, again, that was the #10 and it will become the #43. And then our fourth car, we're working on the number right now, which number that will be, and we'll probably have an answer on that within a couple of weeks."(Sirius NASCAR PR)

 

R3 Motorsports plans several Cup races: R3 Motorsports owner Robert Richardson Sr. said his team has entered the Daytona 500 and could compete in a handful of other Sprint Cup races in the 2009 season. R3 plans to compete full time in the Nationwide Series this year with drivers Robert Richardson Jr. and Ken Butler III, with sponsorship from Mahindra Tractors and Aaron’s rentals. Richardson Sr. said his son as been approved for Cup tracks 2 miles and less in length, and the team has five Cup cars purchased from Dale Earnhardt Inc. “We’re expecting the Cup fields to be short as well this year, so in addition to our Nationwide car fleet, we’ve got five ... cars sitting there ready to go,” Richardson Sr. said. The team will watch car counts in Cup races throughout the year, and if the fields are small enough, R3 will enter. Richardson Sr. said the team is talking to two veteran drivers about competing in the Daytona 500.(Scene Daily)

 

  

 

New GEM-Petty organization off to uneasy start

By Reid Spencer, Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

 

 

It’s official. Gillett Evernham Motorsports and Petty Holdings are merging — but into what?

The belated announcement of the deal came Thursday night — barely two hours before the opening kickoff of the BCS championship game between Florida and Oklahoma — without mention of the new organization’s name.

It’s a good thing “Keystone Cops” is already taken.

The first steps toward combining the two companies has been about as smooth as the old racing surface at Darlington. In addition to deciding on a name, owners George Gillett, Richard Petty, Boston Ventures and Ray Evernham still must reveal their full driver lineup and which cars the drivers will be driving.

That’s not as simple as it might appear, given Gillett Evernham’s recent on-again, off-again relationship with driver Elliott Sadler.

Sadler drove GEM’s No. 19 Dodge to a 24th-place finish in the final NASCAR Sprint Cup standings last season, after signing a contract extension with the team that was to keep him behind the wheel through 2010.

Enter AJ Allmendinger, hired as a temp to drive GEM’s No. 10 car for the final five races of the season, after the team parted with Patrick Carpentier. Allmendinger posted an average finish of 16.4 over those five events. Sadler’s average finish over that same stretch was 31.8.

With ample food for thought, the brass at GEM decided Sadler was expendable. The driver’s lawyer, John Buric, acknowledged publicly that the team had sought to negotiate a buyout of Sadler’s contract.

GEM wanted to replace Sadler with Allmendinger, but when push came to shove, Sadler pushed back. Full-time Cup rides and sponsorships are precious these days, and there’s no guarantee an ousted 24th-place driver could find a comparable situation elsewhere.

Accordingly, Sadler filed notice of intent to sue for breach of contract. Buric insisted his client wanted the car he was contracted to drive, not a buyout.

Sadler’s recalcitrance was a complication the merger deal didn’t need, and Gillett capitulated. Sadler is back behind the wheel of the No. 19 Dodge. Allmendinger’s agent, Tara Ragan, said Friday that driving for GEM is an option the Allmendinger still is considering.

Now that GEM has agreed to keep Sadler — like a mole you decide to live with rather than having it surgically removed — the “making nice” process has begun.

“We are a family,” GEM CEO Tom Reddin said Friday in a statement confirming Sadler’s status as the driver of the No. 19. “Sometimes in a family you have differences. We have resolved all differences. We are moving on and excited about heading to Daytona.”

Predictably, Sadler was equally gracious.

“I want to drive,” he said. “I’m a racer and that’s what I do. We are all on the same page now, and I think you will see that show on the track.”

The other pieces of this deal are slowly being revealed. Reddin said Friday on Sirius NASCAR Radio that the merger would put new hire Reed Sorenson, who signed on to drive the No. 10 Dodge this season, in the No. 43 instead.

“Yeah, pre-merger, Reed is in the No. 10 but post-merger Reed will be in the No. 43 for next year,” Reddin said Friday in response to a question from The Charlotte Observer’s NASCAR writer David Poole.

Kasey Kahne, who has driven the No. 9 Dodge for his entire Cup career, is staying put. By the process of elimination, that would leave Allmendinger with a part-time ride in a fourth car, should he sign with the new team.

In all fairness, a lot of good can come from this merger. If it helps to revive a moribund Petty organization and helps preserve, perhaps even elevate the stature of seven-time champion Richard Petty, NASCAR racing will be better for it.

If it’s a wake-up call for Sadler, that won’t be a bad thing either. Since 2004, when he won twice for Yates Racing and qualified for the first Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, the Virginia driver’s performance hasn’t risen to the level of his undeniable talent.

Maybe the forestalled ouster will provide Sadler with the motivation he needs.

The merger is set to close by the end January, a week before the new organization’s cars will compete in the Budweiser Shootout.

By then, it may even have a name. 

 

 

Top-30 NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers

Kasey Kahne, 14^th

Rea White/scenedaily.com

Kasey Kahne looked like a guy on the rise when he won two points races in a three-race span in a stretch that started in late May.
 
At that time, the Gillett Evernham Motorsports driver, who also won the non-points-paying all-star race, moved up to 12th in the series standings. He went on to climb to as high as seventh and seemed certain to return to the field for NASCAR's Chase For The Sprint Cup. But a series of struggles started by back-to-back DNFs ended any hopes of a championship run.
 
Kahne, 28, instead settled for a 14th-place finish in the series standings in a year when those two wins were the only ones he captured, though he won more than $7 million in purses.
 
During the offseason, SceneDaily is taking a look at the top 30 in 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup driver points. Here’s how Kahne's season unfolded:
 
By the numbers: Kahne started the season on a high note. He was inside the top 12 for all but two of the first 23 races of the season. He went on to close the year with two wins, four top-five and 14 top-10 finishes.
 
Season highlights: May and June. He won the all-star race, then backed that up with a points victory the following week at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Two weeks later he won at Pocono Raceway and then finished second at Michigan International Speedway the following week. He climbed to as high as seventh in the standings.
 
Key setbacks: Kahne can truly point to a couple of DNFs as breaking his season apart. He suffered an engine failure in the second Michigan race, dropping from eighth to 11th in the standings. The following week he was caught up in an accident and fell to 14th overall. He never made it back into the top 12 and Chase position.
 
Newsworthy moment: Clearly, the two weekends of Charlotte racing put Kahne in the headlines. That hot streak vaulted him from the role of a driver trying to gain some footing among the top tier of drivers to a championship favorite in news reports.
 
In his words: “We’ve got some work to do heading into next year. I don’t think that we’re far off when you look at some of the other cars that are out here; I really don’t think that they’re a whole lot faster than our Budweiser Dodge. We have to keep working on our car and try to make it better….faster. If we can find a way to make the front end of our cars better, I think that we’ll close the gap on the teams competing for the championship.”

Sporting News’ 60 Most Beautiful People

 

No. 36, Scott Speed

Tyler Nelson/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. 36, Scott Speed.

Scott Speed represents the new generation of stock-car drivers.

This California native is addicted to his iPhone, loves M&Ms, rock climbs in his spare time and bleaches his hair.

But the driver who spent a portion of last season in the No. 22 Bill Davis Racing Toyota in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series has talent, too.

The flashy Speed fit exactly what Red Bull was looking for when the giant Austrian beverage company began its nationwide search with hopes of placing an American-born driver in Formula One. Speed claimed that honor in 2003 at the tender age of 19.

After gaining experience, he saw his dreams realized in 2006, becoming the first U.S. driver in Formula One since Michael Andretti.

After some ups and downs in Formula One, Speed decided to tackle NASCAR and showed plenty of promise this past season. In just his sixth race in the Truck series, he won. Next year, he'll race full time as a rookie in the Sprint Cup Series for Red Bull Racing.

 

 

 

Latest round of mergers more debacle than success

By Joe Menzer, NASCAR.COM

It appears that Merger Mania is almost complete, at least for the foreseeable future.

Of course, these days in NASCAR, the "foreseeable future" translates to about two weeks from now. It has been an ever-shifting landscape since about May of last year, and that likely will continue to be the case as teams scramble to find sponsorship dollars that simply don't appear to be there in a faltering economy.

The latest so-called merger involved Gillett Evernham Motorsports and Petty Enterprises, and was more of an absorption of the No. 43 team made famous by Richard Petty than an actual merger in the true sense of the word.

Much has been written and said about the sad end of Petty Enterprises as NASCAR has known it for 60 years. Many fans wonder aloud why it wasn't able to be saved, even if NASCAR itself would have had to prop it up somehow.

The fact is, especially in this economy, there wasn't much NASCAR could do. So at least the famed No. 43 survived, with a promise from the King himself that he will continue to come to the track to spread racing goodwill as only he can.

Dust swirls again

As the dust began to settle from that agreement, however, more unpleasant particles were kicked into the air when officials at GEM badly handled the supposed planned departure of driver Elliott Sadler from one of their other cars -- the same No. 19 that they had inexplicably awarded a contract extension for Sadler to drive through 2009 and beyond just last May.

After hearing through the grapevine that GEM planned to release him and put A.J. Allmendinger in that driver's seat instead, Sadler threatened to sue for breach of contract. He had every right, to be honest; and that assertion was validated when GEM officials backed off in the long run and said Sadler would remain employed as driver of the No. 19 after all.

Where does this leave the affable Allmendinger? In limbo, with which he should be familiar after spending much of last season mired in the same miserable place.

He can drive the No. 10 car out of the GEM stable, but it placed 37th in owner's points last season -- meaning he might have to qualify on speed to get into the first five races in '09. Plus he's guaranteed only eight tries at that unless additional sponsorship can be lined up.

The organization and Sadler both released statements in the aftermath of the fiasco claiming that they remain one big, happy family that merely had a disagreement. But do you think Sadler will be happily sharing much information with Allmendinger when they're together at the track this season? Should he, knowing Allmendinger nearly took his job and might still be in position to do so if GEM lawyers find a way to make it legally work?

And also, how about the mindset of Sadler and the No. 19 team after all this has been aired in public? Think they'll be in the right frame of mind and truly on the same page heading into the Daytona 500 in a month?

Frankly, it's a mess. Ray Evernham, who originally founded the organization but sold majority interest in it to George Gillett two summers ago, is a smart man to say that he more or less is walking away from the so-called new joint venture.

And while we're at it, who thinks Reed Sorenson is a good selection to drive the No. 43 that Richard Petty made famous? The guy who once failed to show up for a primary sponsor's big shindig, one attended by none other than his own car owner, is supposed to step into the 43 and represent all that is right and good about NASCAR?

I'm not feeling it on about 43 different levels.

And another thing ...

Speaking of Sorenson's former car owner, what the heck is going on at Earnhardt Ganassi Racing? Supposedly the former Dale Earnhardt Inc. and Chip Ganassi Racing operations merged to make each other stronger. Supposedly they will field four full-time Cup teams in 2009.

But now it's '09 on the calendar and much uncertainty swirls around the new, combined organization.

Martin Truex Jr. in the No. 1 Chevrolet is the only driver whose team has secured full sponsorship for the upcoming season. Aric Almirola is ready to roll in the No. 8 car, but has no primary sponsorship as yet. Juan Montoya is set to pilot the No. 42 car, but has only half his season covered by sponsorship green.

That leaves the No. 41 that used to be driven by Sorenson (and pretty poorly at that) lurking out there without a driver or a full-time sponsor. Although Bobby Labonte, the former driver of the No. 43 for Petty, has long been rumored as the top candidate for the 41, you have to wonder if the so-called Earnhardt Ganassi Racing will even be able to field a full-time fourth team as they previously projected.

Mergers are supposed to leave those involved stronger than they were when they stood alone. But it doesn't appear to be unfolding that way, at least not yet, for either GEM or Earnhardt Ganassi.

As the 2009 season inches closer and more uncertainty looms ahead for everyone involved, one gets the sinking feeling that Merger Mania looks a whole lot more romantic on paper than it does in reality.

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer.

 

 

 

Let's just stop beating these poor old, long-dead ponies

By David Poole/charlotteobserver.com

 

 

We're heading into another year of NASCAR, and if you've been a fan anywhere nearly as long as I've been covering the circuit (this will be my 13th season) then we've got some baggage we need to deal with.

Let's face it, there's something about this sport that makes us cling to lost causes. We stand on racing's shores, scanning the horizon pointlessly for ships that sailed long ago with no real opportunity for a return voyage.

Now I could lecture you about your lost causes without admitting to mine, but that wouldn't be fair. And even though I remain firmly convinced that "fair" is where you go to get funnel cakes, I don't want to look for the splinter in your eye while ignoring the telephone pole sticking out of mine.

So I've picked three of the most familiar lost causes that race fans can't seem to let go of, and I've identified three of my own. For every one of yours I'm going to ask you to let go of, I am going to promise to let go of one of mine. It's time for us to stop beating these horses. They're dead, and we're not going to change that.

Fans' lost cause - The top-35 rule

It's probably not going to be an issue this year because it doesn't look like there will be 35 fully funded teams in the Cup series. But NASCAR has shown no sign of eliminating the rule or changing the number of teams guaranteed starting spots in each week's race.

Some of you want to believe that the top-35 rule is to blame for there being fewer fully funded teams this year, but there is simply no direct link. There are several teams that don't have sponsors and probably won't race this year that finished 2008 in the top 35.

The sponsorship crisis in the sport is largely a function of timing. If your deal was up after 2008, or if your performance has been such that you weren't able to land more than a one-year deal to start with, the timing of the economic meltdown that reaches into all aspects of American business was such that you're lucky if you came through the offseason intact.

Fans keep talking about how they want to go back to when the fastest 43 cars in each week's qualifying made the race, no matter who that sends home. The problem with that is that is has never, ever been that way.

Even before the era of "provisionals," NASCAR had all kinds of sponsor or promoter options it used to make sure the biggest names that showed up went racing.

It does nobody any good to send home a Dale Earnhardt Jr. or a Jimmie Johnson, and that's not going to happen. Ever.

Let it go.

My lost cause - Sending home cheaters

I believe the only way NASCAR will ever change a culture that seems to cherish rules chicanery as opposed to honoring integrity is to send cars home when they can't pass inspection. If they fail postrace inspection, they should have their points and money taken from that race AND be suspended for the next race.

But that's not going to happen, either, and it's primarily for the same reason the top-35 rule isn't going away. If NASCAR sends a car home once, every time there's an infraction of any kind thereafter fans will expect that car to be sent home, too.

NASCAR has no interest in having Jeff Gordon fans who bought tickets six months ago to see Gordon race show up only to be told the No. 24 Chevrolet was sent home because a bolt didn't hold or a quarterpanel was an eighth-of-an-inch out of whack.

Fans' lost cause - Doing away with the Chase for the Sprint Cup format

It baffles me to this day how some of the same fans who used to hate the points system as ardently as they did now long to see it reinstated. I also don't understand - at all - how fans can say the Chase narrows the focus on too few teams in the season's final 10 races. More teams have a chance to win a championship and stay in the spotlight later into the season than they ever did under the old system.

I think a lot of fans hate the Chase because they believe it was done specifically to suit television and "new" fans, which in their minds means the sport is being run for the interests of others and not them. But folks, it doesn't matter.

The Chase hasn't produced a lot of dramatic, down-to-the-wire championship finishes. Neither has it created a huge boost in TV ratings. But we don't know how bad the championship races would have been under the old system, and we don't know that the ratings wouldn't have fallen off even more without it.

NASCAR is not going to abandon the Chase format, at least not anytime soon.

My lost cause - The 500-point win rule

My problem with the Chase system is the same one I had with the old system. Winning races ought to be a bigger deal. My idea is to give a 500-point bonus to a driver for his first win (not each win, just his first) in the regular season and then to repeat that in the Chase. Drivers would know they'd most likely need a race win to make the Chase and would most definitely need one in the final 10 races to win a title.

People just can't get past that 500 number, though, even if in reality it could be 50,000 and still have the same impact. It's too far out there to ever be adopted.

Fans' lost cause - Let's go back to 'stock' cars for stock car racing

This is partly an offshoot of a general distaste for the car of tomorrow and partly the kind of nostalgia we all fall victim to. The best music ever made was, for most of us, was popular when we graduated from high school. Even some fans who didn't follow racing three decades ago somehow believe that the race cars of the 1970s and 1980s were "cooler" because they were more like cars their parents could drive off the local car lot.

That's partially true, I guess. Race cars of that era did differ more in shape and size than now. To make a "level playing field," NASCAR constantly finagled its rules for each make and fans and race teams griped long and loud about that process, too. But even as far back as the 1960s most of the cars that raced at NASCAR's top level were purpose-built race vehicles with only a distant relationship to their street-ready cousins.

Today's race cars are safer than any car that came before and, if things go the way they should, not nearly as safe as they will be a decade for now. Some seriously misguided race fans seem to believe that making a car safer takes something away from racing - that somehow racers should be expected to forfeit safety and accept more danger to make the sport more "exciting."

That's barbaric, plain and simple. Racing may always be a dangerous undertaking, but it should never be one bit more dangerous than it absolutely has to be.

My lost cause - Double-file restarts with lead-lap cars up front

NASCAR could make this happen right now and the racing would be better.

Let all the lead-lap cars start, two wide, ahead of all lapped cars. Keep the "lucky dog," but put the lapped cars two wide behind the lead-lap cars and let them race for the next free pass. Let the leaders start two abreast, with the race leader choosing inside or outside, and maybe pass each other on the track more and on pit road less.

Why is it a lost cause? I wish I knew, but it's such an obvious fix for some of the sport's biggest problems there has to be a reason it hasn't been done and doesn't look like it ever will be. 

 

 

 

Driver Review

 

Ken Schrader

Mike Neff · Frontstretch.com

 

 

2008 Rides: No. 49 BAM Dodge/Toyota (3 races)
No. 70 Haas CNC Racing Chevrolet (1 race)
No. 40 Chip Ganassi Racing Dodge (1 race — DNQ)
No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet (1 race)
No. 96 Hall of Fame Toyota (10 races)

2008 Primary Sponsors: QTrax.com / Microsoft Small Business (No. 49)
Hunt Brothers Pizza (No. 70)
Kennametal (No. 40)
Camping World (No. 33)
DLP HDTV (No. 96)

2008 Owners: Beth Ann Morgenthau (No. 49)
Joe Custer / Gene Haas (No. 70)
Chip Ganassi (No. 40)
Richard Childress (No. 33)
Jeff Moorad / Tom Garfinkel (No. 96)

2008 Crew Chiefs: David Hyder (No. 49)
Dave Skog (No. 70)
Steve Lane (No. 40)
Shane Wilson (No. 33)
Steve Boyer (No. 96)

Stats: 15 Races, 0 Wins, 0 Top 5s, 0 Top 10s, 0 Poles, 43rd in Points.
Best Finish: 16th (Talladega – Fall).

High Point: Talladega was the site of Schrader’s main highlight in what was a very inauspicious year. Driving for Hall of Fame Racing during the Fall event, he was able to come home in 16th — his only finish higher than 20th all season.

Low Point: Schrader had five races this season where he failed to qualify, but by far the biggest disappointment was failing to make the Daytona 500. Schrader has always been known as a good plate racer, and missing out on the biggest event of the season was definitely a low point — especially since he once won the pole three straight times for the Great American Race.

Summary: Schrader’s season was marked by seat time for four different teams. He began the year by reuniting with BAM Racing, a team he drove for in 2003-05 with modest success. But after sponsorship left to run with Michael Waltrip Racing, the organization suspended operations — forcing him to look for other rides.

From that point on, Schrader was a “super sub” for Cup teams in need. He ran the first Talladega race for Haas CNC, then attempted but failed to make the Spring Richmond race for Ganassi. Schrader then ran the Coca-Cola 600 for Richard Childress Racing, then was shut out for the summer before finally landing at Hall of Fame Racing to finish out the year. Schrader ran 10 races for the No. 96, failing to qualify for an 11th for Hall of Fame.

Off-Track News: Schrader continues to be one of the hardest working men in auto racing. He runs around 100 races per season on short tracks throughout the country, and still wants to run a race in all 50 states. The last one on the list is Rhode Island; and while it doesn’t officially have a NASCAR-sanctioned facility, there is a track that is privately held that runs races from time to time. Supposedly, Schrader is going to make an appearance there to complete his longtime quest during 2009.

2009 Outlook: At this point, Schrader has not made any announcements about racing in the Cup Series this season, although he remains a candidate to drive the No. 96 Hall of Fame car if it does return. If not, he will certainly make a few starts for some teams who are in need of a veteran’s feedback, and will likely run a handful of Truck Series races — either for his own organization or for someone who has a seat available.

No matter what, Schrader will run a handful of ARCA races and be found throughout the country at local short tracks, where he will once again run somewhere in the neighborhood of 100 races this year.

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

 

 

 

Driver Review

 

 

Johnny Sauter

Thomas Bowles · Frontstretch.com

 

 

2008 Rides: No. 70 Haas CNC Racing Chevrolet (9 Races)
No. 08 E & M Motorsports Dodge (9 Races)
No. 21 Wood Brothers Ford (1 Race — DNQ)

2008 Primary Sponsors: Haas Automation / Atlas Copco / Hunt Brothers Pizza (No. 70)
FUBAR (No. 08)
Air Force (No. 21)

2008 Owners: Joe Custer / Gene Haas (No. 70)
John Carter (No. 08)
The Wood Family (Glen, Len, Eddie, Kim) (No. 21)

2008 Crew Chiefs: Dave Skog (No. 70)
Mark Tutor / Tony Furr (No. 08)
Gene Nead (No. 21)

Stats: 9 Races, 0 Wins, 0 Top 5s, 0 Top 10s, 9 DNQs, 53rd in points.
Best Finish: 20th – Loudon (Sept.)

High Point: There wasn’t much to write home about for Sauter this year, but there’s two things he can still take away from 2008 – however small those achievements might have been. At Loudon in September, Sauter briefly recaptured the magic he had with the No. 70 Haas CNC team during the 2007 Cup season. Despite starting shotgun on the field, the Wisconsin driver showed patience and persistence in moving through traffic on what may be the hardest track to pass on the circuit. Staying out of trouble, he came home 20th – on the lead lap – for his best finish of the year and just one of a handful of Top 20s the No. 70 car would achieve all season.

Sauter can also look back on Labor Day weekend with pride. Running with a team and equipment that was horrifically undermanned and underpowered compared to his competitors, he somehow squeaked into the California starting lineup in 43rd starting spot – the only time he’d qualify for a race with the No. 08 E & M Motorsports Dodge. In fact, it was the only time the small little independent team would make the field all season despite attempting over half the races. While Sauter finished 42nd with mechanical failure, the experience was still a small victory that reminded him he still has the drive necessary to succeed at racing’s top level.

Low Point: Without question, Las Vegas in the No. 21 Wood Brothers Ford. At the time, Sauter was a free agent looking for a place to call home, and the Woods were desperately hoping to crack the Top 35 in owner points. After failing to make the Daytona 500 with Bill Elliott, a 26th place finish at California left hope that a “locked in” qualifying spot could still be achieved for the team after Bristol. But Sauter pushed it too hard during his hot laps and wrecked the No. 21 Ford, shutting them out of the field at Vegas and effectively ending their Top 35 hopes. The look of disappointment on Sauter’s face – and the faces of the Wood Brothers crew — has stuck with me since then as one of the lasting memories of the 2008 season. Both driver and team knew they had wasted an opportunity, and neither one seemed to get on track during the remainder of 2008.

Summary: After being dumped from the No. 70 Chevrolet at the end of 2007, Johnny Sauter was out of options at the Sprint Cup level. As a result, he hoped to regroup with a full-time Nationwide Series ride instead in 2008, driving for James Finch. But the chemistry never worked out, and after just five races Sauter had left that ride and was on the outside looking in on NASCAR’s top three series. An ill-timed Cup start with the Wood Brothers (mentioned above) put Sauter in sorry shape heading into late Spring; it seemed like his NASCAR career was suddenly stuck in neutral.

But then, there came an opportunity. In April, Jeremy Mayfield parted ways with Haas CNC, and Sauter’s old team came crawling back to ask if he’d fill in for a substitute role. It was a chance to rekindle the magic that led to two Top 10 finishes in 2007; but to the chagrin of everyone involved, it turns out the chemistry left the building once Sauter was fired last November. Despite driving for the team at races where he had the strongest finishes in ’07, Sauter struggled mightily in the car, scoring just one Top 30 finish in eight starts while failing to qualify at Darlington in May. With that kind of track record, it’s no surprise Tony Stewart never considered him for a full-time job when he bought into the team for the 2009 season.

Dealt a bad hand, Sauter was forced to do what he could simply to keep himself visible on the NASCAR circuit. He made nine attempts with low-budget E & M Motorsports, often running with such poor equipment he’d be up to six miles an hour slower than anyone else who attempted to qualify. On the Nationwide Series side, he took jobs with start and park operations, pulling the car into the garage after just a handful of laps in hope a strong qualifying run was enough to spark interest from someone else. It was a sad state of affairs for Sauter, especially when you consider just four years ago he was Richard Childress’ pick for his third car in the Cup Series.

Off-Track News: After such a rough 2008, at least Sauter’s personal life is very much in order. In December of 2007, he married longtime girlfriend and PR guru Cortney Owen.

2009 Outlook: After struggles in NASCAR’s top two divisions, the Camping World Truck Series is where Sauter will look to rebuild his career in 2009. He’ll pilot the No. 13 Thorsport Racing Chevrolet, replacing Shelby Howard on a team that has tremendous upside potential. This will be Sauter’s first full season driving Trucks; he has one Top 5 and two Top 10 finishes in 11 career starts. Hoping to better those numbers significantly in 2009, he can only hope a strong season on that side of the fence will force Cup teams to give him one more look.

Stat of the Year: Sauter qualified shotgun on the field – 43rd – for five of his nine Cup starts in 2008.

2006 Frontstretch.com Grade: N/A.
2007 Grade: D+.
2008 Grade: D-.

 

 

Sadler's GEM performance enough to merit a release

No. 19 in Chase before Sadler; just two top-fives with him

By Jarrod Breeze, NASCAR.COM

In what should've been a red-letter day for Gillett Evernham Motorsports with the announcement it will incorporate the winningest car number in the history of NASCAR into its fold has instead been marred by red-faced embarrassment.

Just as GEM was completing the long-expected and even longer-time-coming merger with Petty Enterprises to add Richard Petty and his famous 43 to its three-car stable, the fiasco of the 19 car was taking yet another turn.

Elliott Sadler, who has driven the car rather unassumingly the past two-plus years, will remain its driver in 2009, less than two weeks after it was reported that A.J. Allmendinger was close to finalizing a deal that would've put him in the 19 car for 2009.

The story has taken some interesting turns since. Allegedly, several GEM employees were informed of the change just before Christmas. Sadler was not among those privy to that information. When word finally leaked to Sadler that he was out -- by sources other than GEM -- he did not take it well.

So he took a course of action that so many follow when they feel they have been wronged -- lawsuit. By threatening such legal lexicons as "breach of contract" and "injunction," Sadler fought to stay where he wasn't wanted. Or so it seemed.

Then came this little gem from GEM CEO Tom Reddin, after it was announced that Sadler would indeed drive the 19 in '09: "We love Elliott. We got everything resolved."

That should make Sadler happy. It should also make GEM happy if only for the fact it will appease those sponsors which allegedly made threats of their own upon hearing of Sadler's impending dismissal. What GEM won't like in '09 is more of the same they have received from Sadler since he took control of the car in August 2006.

In the 86 starts in the No. 19 Dodge, a car that was in the Chase in 2004 and '05, Sadler has two top-fives and 12 top-10s. He's had nearly as many finishes of 30th or worse (31) as top-20 finishes (33).

Since the schedule expanded to 36 races in 2001, Sadler has had his two worst average finishes the past two years and has dipped in points from ninth in 2004 to 13th, 22nd, 25th and 24th last season. But Sadler and his lawyer contend the driver didn't do anything adverse to his contract to merit a release or buyout.

Except, that is, to perform up to expectations.

Too often in today's business world, performance alone is not a prerequisite for dismissal. Heck, questionable character can be overlooked, unless it is followed by egregious action. Then ... maybe. But Sadler, one of the most outgoing and amicable drivers in NASCAR, certainly doesn't fit that profile. For him, the bottom line is figuratively and literally on the track, and GEM shouldn't stand at fault for wanting a change.

Rather, GEM erred early last season when it awarded Sadler with a contract extension through 2010. Of course, the organization has been known to make some bad moves. Patrick Carpentier didn't work out, as many had surmised. The winless Reed Sorenson, he of the 13 top-10s in 109 starts and 25.8 career average finish, is expected to take over in the 43, a car that hasn't been in Victory Lane since 1999.

And what of Allmendinger? Well, if you believe the reports in this on-going saga, he will drive the 10 car, which becomes the fourth car in the GEM/Petty stable. He'll race it in the Bud Shootout and be entered in eight points races -- any other races will be contingent on sponsorship. Just two weeks ago he was facing the prospect of making 36 starts.

Can you say "breach of promise suit?"

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer. 

 

 

NASCAR ON TV THIS WEEK

 

NASCAR PreSeason Thunder	Tue Jan 13	06:00 p.m.	SPEED
NASCAR: Reviewing the 60th Season-April	Wed Jan 14	12:00 p.m.	SPEED
NASCAR PreSeason Thunder	Wed Jan 14	06:00 p.m.	SPEED
NASCAR: Reviewing the 60th Season-May	Thu Jan 15	12:00 p.m.	SPEED
NASCAR PreSeason Thunder	Thu Jan 15	06:00 p.m.	SPEED
NASCAR PreSeason Thunder-Daytona Fan Fest	Sat Jan 17	01:00 p.m.	SPEED
NASCAR Angels	Sun Jan 18	08:00 a.m.	Hallmark
SportsCentury: Tony Stewart	Mon Jan 19	09:00 a.m.	ESPN Classic
Trackside at Daytona	Mon Jan 19	07:00 p.m.	SPEED
NASCAR PreSeason Thunder	Mon Jan 19	07:30 p.m.	SPEED
Trackside at Daytona	Mon Jan 19	11:00 p.m.	SPEED
NASCAR PreSeason Thunder	Mon Jan 19	11:30 p.m.	SPEED
Trackside at Daytona	Tue Jan 20	07:00 p.m.	SPEED
NASCAR PreSeason Thunder	Tue Jan 20	07:30 p.m.	SPEED
Trackside at Daytona	Tue Jan 20	11:00 p.m.	SPEED
NASCAR PreSeason Thunder	Tue Jan 20	11:30 p.m.	SPEED
NASCAR: Reviewing the 60th Season-June	Wed Jan 21	12:00 p.m.	SPEED
Trackside at Daytona	Wed Jan 21	07:00 p.m.	SPEED
NASCAR PreSeason Thunder	Wed Jan 21	07:30 p.m.	SPEED
Trackside at Daytona	Wed Jan 21	11:00 p.m.	SPEED
NASCAR PreSeason Thunder	Wed Jan 21	11:30 p.m.	SPEED
SportsCentury: Dale Earnhardt Jr.	Thu Jan 22	09:00 a.m.	ESPN Classic
NASCAR: Reviewing the 60th Season-July	Thu Jan 22	12:00 p.m.	SPEED
Trackside at Daytona	Thu Jan 22	07:00 p.m.	SPEED
NASCAR PreSeason Thunder	Thu Jan 22	07:30 p.m.	SPEED
NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown Qualifying	Fri Jan 23	10:00 p.m.	SPEED
ROLEX Sports Car Series: 24 Hours of Daytona, Part	Sat Jan 24	04:30 p.m.	SPEED
NASCAR Toyota All-Star Showdown	Sat Jan 24	10:00 p.m.	SPEED
ROLEX Sports Car Series: 24 Hours of Daytona, Part	Sun Jan 25	07:00 a.m.	SPEED
NASCAR Angels	Sun Jan 25	08:00 a.m.	Hallmark
NASCAR PreSeason Thunder	Mon Jan 26	07:00 p.m.	SPEED
NASCAR PreSeason Thunder	Mon Jan 26	11:00 p.m.	SPEED

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