Happy Hump Day! 

Today In Nascar History

June 3, 2001: Jeff Gordon leads 381 of 400 laps and wins the MBNA Platinum 400, establishing a record for most laps led in a 400-lap race at Dover. After running 500-mile Cup races from 1971 to June '97, the race lengths at Dover are cut to 400 miles. Richard Petty sets the record for laps led in a 500-mile race at Dover in '74 when he leads 491.

Thanks to Anthony for the heads up on these…

Two really cool events going on at the moment.  Please let your fans know about www.vest4k9. com and www.smokescamaro.com.  Greg and Tony are doing some great work for their foundations, and allows fans some fun opportunities.

Comments from the Peanut Gallery

Wow!  Lots of comments today…and all on this little blurb I put in… Lord help us all if that woman comes to NASCAR.  I can’t stand that woman or what she stands for.  “I might go to NASCAR, after all, my contract is up and I need more money.”  I can see it now, the first time she pushes one of the drivers on pit road cuz they got in her way, she’ll end up with a black eye…(I can dream you know). 

From Lou

Hi Momma,

This is a comment about your comment about Danica Patrick. It made me chuckle because, as you know, most NASCAR drivers wives or girl friends sit on the pit boxes during the race.

Danica weighs about 100 pounds. I don't believe she wants to tangle with one of these women, which is what would happen if she messed with one of their men.

Might spice things up though.

The Old Man of NASCAR,

Lou Elliott

From Pops

I think Danica would be a real boost to the falling NASCAR ratings..just think what the rednecks and hillbillys would say if Danica shows up driving the Hendrick N# 88 Amp Chevy with a all girl pit crew in bikini's..Heck! Lou and I might even start going to a few more races per year to watch a winning 88...LOL

Pops

Pops, what you are saying is blasphemy! Blasphemy I say! Danica in the 88...NEVER, I say, NEVER!  LOL

From Andy

I can't stand her go daddy commercials...cheesy

From Dana

Hi Momma,

All I have to say to this "Lord help us all if that woman comes to NASCAR.  I can’t stand that woman or what she stands for.  “I might go to NASCAR, after all, my contract is up and I need more money.”  I can see it now, the first time she pushes one of the drivers on pit road cuz they got in her way, she’ll end up with a black eye…(I can dream you know).  IS AMEN!!!

We have enough Billy Bad Butt's right now thank you!

Dana

Wow, and to think I thought everyone was sleeping on me!!!

Bits and Pieces

NASCAR appeals board upholds Carl Long’s suspension

Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

Carl Long says he is disappointed with the ruling of a NASCAR appeals board that he says limited his recent 12-week suspension to the Sprint Cup garage, but kept the $200,000 fine for an engine that was deemed too large during May 15 practice for the Sprint All-Star Race.

A NASCAR spokesman would not confirm the ruling of the National Stock Car Racing Commission, which heard the appeal Tuesday morning.

Long, who works as a mechanic and spotter for Front Row Motorsports, said he was unsure if he would go through the final appeals process to National Stock Car Racing Commissioner Charles Strang.

Long’s engine blew during practice and since he changed engines, NASCAR officials took the original. After inspection, officials deemed that engine was 0.17 cubic inches beyond the 358-cubic inch limit.

The part-time driver/owner was suspended for 12 weeks and docked 200 points and his crew chief, Charles Swing, was fined $200,000. It is the largest fine in NASCAR history.

On weekends when he’s not racing, Long typically is in both the Sprint Cup and Nationwide garages working for Front Row.

“I work on a Sprint Cup team and my job is running back and forth,” Long said Tuesday. “They might be trying to give me a Band-Aid to help me but it doesn’t. • How do you go up and spot for your Nationwide car and then you’ve got to find somebody else to take over for you? It still knocks me out of a job.”

Long had bought the engine from a reputable engine builder and was told that the heat generated when the engine blew up possibly could have caused the change in the size.

The next Sprint Cup race Long had planned to compete in was Bristol in August, but he will be under suspension.

“I still love the sport, I still love to race and love to be part of it, but it gave me a real, real sour taste in my mouth,” Long said. “I don’t think it’s fair at all.”

And…

Long loses appeal of penalty: NASCAR driver #46-Carl Long says he has lost his appeal of a 12-race suspension and penalty. The National Stock Car Racing Commission denied Long's appeal at a hearing Tuesday, the driver said. The commission isolated Long's suspension to the Sprint Cup Series, meaning he can find work in one of the sport's lower levels. However, Long's full-time job is working with the Front Row Motorsports #34 Chevy in the Cup series. The commission also told Long the $200,000 fine levied against crew chief Charles Swing would not fall to Long if Swing can't pay it. Long was penalized for having an illegal engine at Lowe's Motor Speedway last month. The 12-race suspension, 200-point penalty and $200,000 fine are NASCAR records. He said he plans to research how to go about appealing the penalty further. "I'm now suspended only from the Cup garage for 12 weeks," Long told ESPN.com. "At the end of year, though, they're still sitting there with their hands out. So my crew chief still doesn't get his 2010 license if it hasn't been paid. I'm very disappointed in them."(ESPN/AP) MORE: As the realization that the National Stock Car Commission on Tuesday upheld the record 200-point, $200,000 penalty against him sunk in, Carl Long became increasingly frustrated. Frustration turned to anger. In minutes, he was livid. "Big Bill [France, NASCAR founder] and Bill Jr. ruled the sport like a father -- at the end of the day they took care of their family," Long said. "These guys don't care. They don't have any heart. Basically, it seems like they don't care about the sport, they just want to make a dollar. I truly have a sour taste of the management in our sport. They've forgotten the roots of how this sport was created, and who are the people buying the tickets, sitting in the stands. The people in the stands are me." Multiple calls to NASCAR for comment were not immediately returned. When Long had to change engines prior to the Sprint Showdown, NASCAR surveyed the first engine and determined it to be illegal. He was confident entering Tuesday's appeals hearing. He thought he'd go in, plead his case, and come out with nothing more than a revamped concept of the lucrative engine-building-and-selling business in NASCAR. Not so. More at ESPN.com.

Stewart looks to defend Prelude to the Dream title

By Reid Spencer, Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

Here’s the hook: a roster of top stars from NASCAR Sprint Cup racing and other speed sports driving the wheels off 800-horsepower dirt late model stock cars all for the pride of winning a race.

Now, here’s the purpose: to raise money for military-themed charities in an era where American troops are still in harm’s way in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Tony Stewart’s Prelude to the Dream, which will celebrate its fifth running Wednesday night, is an event that has grown exponentially in stature since its inception in 2005, both in its ability to attract the best stock car drivers in the world and in its ability to raise money for charity.

The 2009 Prelude at Rossburg Ohio’s Eldora Speedway, which Stewart owns, will feature 26 drivers, including Stewart, Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards and Jimmie Johnson, to name a few. From the results of the previous four years, it might appear the track owner has a home field advantage — Stewart won the event in 2006 and 2008 and finished second to Kenny Wallace in the inaugural event in 2005.

Edwards won the 2007 Prelude, the first time the event was carried live on HBO Pay-Per-View. Available to anyone who has pay-per-view service through a dish or cable provider, HBO Pay-Per-View will begin its live coverage of the 2009 Prelude at 7 p.m. Wednesday. Ordering information is available at www.hbo.com.

Stewart says, weather permitting, he’d like to have the dirt surface at the high-banked, half-mile track hard and slick for the Prelude. The attributes slow speeds down and deprive drivers with a dirt-track background of some of the inherent advantage they might otherwise have.

“It gives guys who aren’t quite as comfortable running those cars at that track a little bit of a reprieve, because they’re not having to run a second-and-a-half or two seconds quicker when the track’s got a lot of grip in it, but a lot of that’s dictated by Mother Nature.

“But we do everything we can to make it like that every year, to where it cleans off and gets slick to where it slows down the pace enough to where guys don’t have to run faster than they’re comfortable running.”

Over the past four years, the Prelude has raised more than $2 million for charity, with the lion’s share going to Victory Junction Gang Camp, founded by Kyle and Pattie Petty. With the U.S. Army sponsoring teammate Ryan Newman’s No. 39 Chevrolet at Stewart-Haas Racing this year, Stewart has chosen the following charities as the beneficiaries of this year’s pay-per-view proceeds: Wounded Warrior Project (www.WoundedWarriorProject.org), Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund (www.FallenHeroesFund.org), Operation Homefront (www.OperationHomefront.net) and Fisher House (www.FisherHouse.org).

Drivers who have committed to the 2009 event are: Stewart, Newman, Busch, Gordon, Johnson, Edwards, Kevin Harvick, Kasey Kahne, Matt Kenseth, Denny Hamlin, Clint Bowyer, Brian Vickers, Robby Gordon (last year’s runner-up), David Reutimann, Bill Elliott, Dave Blaney, Aric Almirola, Wallace, Ken Schrader, Ron Capps, Cruz Pedregon, Ray Evernham, Joey Logano, Red Farmer, David Stremme and Casey Mears.

Tire Testing at Indy: Goodyear is back at Indianapolis Motor Speedway this week with several Sprint Cup drivers and teams, conducting a sixth test since last year's tire meltdown at Indy during the Allstate 400 at The Brickyard. The Allstate 400, seven weeks away on July 26, is NASCAR's second-biggest event of the year. Only the Daytona 500 ranks higher in terms of prestige and importance. How serious is it? Serious enough that Goodyear invited its biggest critic in the past -- Tony Stewart -- to make some laps on Monday at Indy. As did #12-David Stremme, who was pleased with the progress Goodyear has made. "They brought a tire that has really even wear," Stremme said. "We got to a full fuel run [about 30 laps]. Goodyear has done their homework." Twelve Cup teams will participate in a seventh test later this month. The three-day test this week is closed to the media.(ESPN.com). scheduled to test are #14-Tony Stewart, #42-Juan Pablo Montoya, #9-Kasey Kahne, #7-Robby Gordon, #36-?, #12-David Stremme, #16-Greg Biffle, #21-Bill Elliott and #31-Jeff Burton. The public can view the testing from the infield grandstands in the South chute.

Special scheme for Sorenson at Pocono: There aren’t many guarantees in racing but this weekend in Pocono, #43 Valvoline Dodge driver Reed Sorenson will carry a guarantee on the hood of his Dodge. Sorenson will drive the “Valvoline Engine Guarantee” Dodge for Richard Petty Motorsports. The paint scheme is part of Valvoline’s new engine guarantee program. Anyone can go to Valvoline.com and signup and Valvoline will guarantee the engine for up to 300,000 miles. The guarantee program couldn’t come at a better time. The front stretch at the 2.5-mile triangular shaped track is the longest one of the toughest on engines in the sport. Sunday marks TNT’s first race telecast of the 2009 season.(RPM)

Martin looks for his first win at Pocono: In 44 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Pocono Raceway, #5-Mark Martin has scored 19 top-five finishes, 31 top-10s and three pole positions, but has yet to win a Sprint Cup Series race there. Pocono is one of only six active tracks where Martin has yet to visit Victory Lane. Martin has finished in the runner-up position at Pocono six times -- a stat that ties his personal best at Dover and Darlington [tracks where he also has wins]. Martin's 31 top-10 finishes and 36 lead-lap finishes at Pocono are the most for the NASCAR veteran at any active racetrack. Meanwhile, his 19 top-fives rank second for Martin, just behind the 21 he has recorded at Dover. His average start of 8.6 and average finish of 10.7 at the Long Pond, Pa., triangle make Pocono the only non-road course track where both stats are in the top 10.(HMS)

Interesting Stewart Stat: #14-Tony Stewart overtook #24-Jeff Gordon (26th) in the Cup standings. For the first time, Stewart-Haas Racing holds the points lead. The last time Stewart led the standings was after the Homestead race in 2005 -- his last championship season. In every season Stewart has led the standings, he has gone on to win the championship (2002 and 2005).(NASCAR)

Biffle’s Team Grabs Tissot Pit Crew Award in Dover: Greg Biffle’s #16 crew captured the Tissot Pit Road Precision Award in Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Dover International Speedway. It was the second Tissot win of the season for Biffle’s crew, which also won the award at the March Cup race in Las Vegas. By claiming its second pit road win of the season, the #16 crew takes over sole possession of second place in the Tissot standings. Jeff Gordon’s #24 crew leads with three victories while eight teams are tied for third with one win. Biffle’s crew won the award in Dover as a result of the team’s #16 Ford Fusion spending the least amount of time on pit road – 320.935 seconds. The quick work by the crew helped lift Biffle to a third place finish in the 400-mile race. The #16 over-the-wall crew consists of: Todd Zeigler (front-tire changer), Colin Pasi (front-tire carrier), Kyle Power (rear-tire changer), Kevin McDowell (rear-tire carrier), Rodney Fetters (jackman), Billy Manchester(gasman), Ryan Dextraze (catch can) and Chris Elliott (windshield). The team's crew chief is Greg Erwin and the pit crew coach is Andy Ward. The #16 team will receive $5,000 for the pit road win. The team with the most Tissot Pit Road Precision Award victories at the completion of the 36-race schedule will earn a $100,000 bonus plus Tissot watches for the crew and driver.(Tissot)

Knaus Named Wipers Crew Chief of the Race at Dover: Chad Knaus, crew chief for the #48 Kobalt Tools Chevy driven by Jimmie Johnson, has been named the Wypall Wipers Crew Chief of the Race following Sunday's Autism Speaks 400 at Dover International Speedway. Johnson climbed from eighth to first by lap 49 of the 400-lap race, eventually leading a total of nine times for 298 laps. Knaus and crew worked effortlessly to help guide their driver to yet another victory at the famed "Monster Mile". Atop the leaderboard, Knaus summoned his driver to pit road with 36 laps to go for a four-tire change. Unfortunately a faulty exchange by the crew slowed him down, dropping him back in ninth place. Luckily, Knaus was able to calmly coach Johnson back to the front of the pack, passing Tony Stewart for the lead with just two laps to go. In addition to the $1,000 check, the winning crew chief will receive signage to announce the win on their pit box the following week. The crew chief with the most weekly wins will be honored as the Wypall Wipers Crew Chief of the Year and will be presented a $20,000 check at the season finale in Homestead.(Wypall Wipers PR)

NASCAR asks to move Mayfield case to federal court: NASCAR on Tuesday moved Jeremy Mayfield's challenge of his indefinite suspension to federal court, a move that could keep the driver out of his car another week. The notification came a day before a North Carolina Superior Court was scheduled to hear arguments pertaining to Mayfield's suspension for failing a random drug test. NASCAR's action automatically stayed that proceeding. Mayfield had hoped a judge would reinstate him in time to compete this weekend at Pocono Raceway in Pennsylvania. His attorneys will now have to either fight the suspension in federal court, or petition the case be moved back to the state level. "Administration of NASCAR's substance abuse policy extends to every state in which it races, which is why the logical forum is federal court," NASCAR spokesman Ramsey Poston said. NASCAR has not revealed what substance Mayfield tested positive for, but his attorneys said in court he tested positive for amphetamines. Bridges warned both sides not to discuss Mayfield's test results.(Associated Press)

General Motors to stay in auto racing: For now, bankruptcy won't park General Motor Corp.'s long and successful involvement in auto racing. As the Detroit carmaker began retooling after filing for bankruptcy protection, a company spokesman said Monday he did not expect further cuts to GM Racing's budget, which supports NASCAR, NHRA, ALMS and short-track racing activities around the country and adheres to the "win on Sunday, sell on Monday" mantra. "Racing equals good ROI (return on investment)," said Steve Janisse, group manager for Chevrolet Communications. "There are no expected budget cuts right now."(Detroit Free Press)

Mayfield Motorsports mulling sponsorship options: The #41 Mayfield Motorsports car did not pull out of Dover because of sponsorship issues, Mayfield Motorsports' team manager Bobby Wooten said. But it sounds like things are a bit in flux, as you'd expect. Wooten said that they withdrew from the race to give themselves time to organize and catch their breaths a little bit. He said the team would like to get J.J. Yeley back in the car, but very vaguely said that's in the works. "Everything's on hold," Wooten said. Of course, Mayfield has filed suit against NASCAR to lift his suspension [see story below on the lawsuit] at least until the conclusion of a court case. If he succeeds, he can get back in the car. Asked about sponsorship, Wooten said the team is still trying to figure out options. He wouldn't give any names of companies the team is involved with and said previous sponsors "may or may not be" associated with the team in the future. This season Mayfield Motorsports has been sponsored by All Sport, Big Red Soda and Smallsponsor.com. (Orlando Sentinel). Also hearing that the team has been looking for partners or to sell the team, one team being contacted was the #51 team of Dexter Bean.

The Voice of Vito

Kyle Busch: Who Else Is Sick and Tired of His Act Besides Me?

Vito Pugliese · Frontstretch.com

It has happened again. The destructive force that may ruin NASCAR as we know it has reared its ugly head once more.

No, I am not referring to General Motors joining Chrysler in bankruptcy – though that is another matter altogether that I will be addressing here in the coming weeks – but rather another episode in the saga of Kyle Busch, resident crybaby of motorsports and burgeoning NASCAR bad guy.

What has precipitated this latest installment of The World Versus Kyle was the perceived last lap incident between he and teammate Joey Logano at Dover, in the final laps of the Heluva Good! 200 Nationwide Series race. Heading into the final restart, Logano got a much better restart than he had in recent attempts. Busch spun his tires, which helped Logano get to his back bumper entering turn 1. Logano made an effort to keep from running into his teammate, as the nose of his GameStop Toyota visibly dove towards the ground while Logano jumped on the brakes to avoid the No. 18. But he still made contact with Busch, sending him wobbling up the track as Brad Keselowski sailed by both of them on the low side to score his first Nationwide Series win of the year.

After the checkered flag had fallen, the radio transmission from crew chief Jason Ratcliff was a directive to exercise restraint for both driver and crew. He probably didn’t need to tell his driver that, though … since he wasn’t around to hear it. The scene shown next was a familiar one: Kyle storming away from an abandoned vehicle, refusing to comment on what happened or offer an opinion on how another Nationwide Series race slipped through his fingers in the closing laps.

Key point here: Nationwide Series race. Not Sprint Cup. Not Formula One. Nationwide Series – i.e., not your main focus.

If this was 2004, and he was driving the Lowe’s No. 5 and Lance McGrew (ahem…) was his crew chief, I’d understand. However, it’s 2009 and Busch has most recently been likened to Dale Earnhardt, (Sr.), christened the driver most likely to dethrone David Pearson from second place in career victories. Instead, he is pissing and moaning and stomping off like Danica Patrick following a botched Double-A series engagement because – imagine this – a Goodyear tire went flat. It’s too bad that Busch no longer sponsors NASCAR’s junior series, because the best analogy ever would be to call this Busch League behavior; however, that would do much to discredit everybody’s favorite watered-down swill that tastes like horse urine.

Or, at least what I imagine it to taste like. I have no frame of reference… but I digress.

Yet while a Roadrunner-esque dust cloud was seen trailing the golf cart that drove Busch from the garage area to his hauler — all so he could swap out uniforms, compete in another Camping World Truck Series event, and blow another tire — Joey Logano was beside himself, shaking his head, his voice quivering like a 10-year-old kid who just hit a line drive through a neighbor’s bay window. At the time, he didn’t know that yet another Goodyear tire had liberated itself of air at precisely the wrong moment, and neither did the majority of the fans in attendance, those listening on the radio, or the ones watching on television.

Of course, with Busch extenuating circumstances never seem to matter anyway. Be it Nationwide, Sprint Cup, or Truck Series, should Busch lose as the result of his own actions or something beyond his control, he runs away. Literally. The second the checkered flag falls, he pulls in, unbuckles, and breaks out like Usain Bolt to get away from anyone with a microphone or a tape recorder. It’s the same scenario we’ve become as familiar with as celebratory burnouts and post-race donuts – the Kyle Busch “Icing.”

All of this hiding actually began early on in Kyle’s career. Remember back when he won his second career race at Phoenix in 2005, the same weekend his older brother Kurt was arrested for refusing a breathalyzer test and benched by Roush Racing? Somebody asked him about what happened with Kurt one too many times, and he stormed out of the press room.

That’s right; after just 41 starts and winning his second race, he pulled the plug on the post-race winner’s interview.

What, I wonder, has Kyle Busch really had to endure in his brief career that would cause him to act this way? Can you picture Mark Martin sprinting away, swatting at microphones or giving an insulting response to something as simple as, “what happened?” Even Dale Earnhardt, Jr., who for the last three years has had to endure constant criticism, indictment, and assailment of his ability, commitment, and relationships within his own family still shows up, says what’s on his mind, and takes it like a man.

Where, I wonder, was the indignation from Busch two weeks earlier, when he took out two Truck Series regulars for the lead at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, when he wrecked – perhaps intentionally – both Colin Braun and Brian Scott? Instead, he made the sarcastic and flippant comment, “Yeah, it’s my fault…I’m the idiot out here running 160mph…”

When, I wonder, did he provide an apology to half the field at the 2007 Daytona 500 when he lost it all by himself and triggered a 30 car pileup? 15 months later, when he took Dale Jr. out at the Spring Richmond race last year, Kyle made nothing more than a half-hearted apology — prefacing it with that he was feeling sorry for himself for taking out the sport’s Most Popular Driver.

Tito, get me a tissue…

These kinds of things have a way of working themselves out, I guess. Call it what you will – divine intervention, karma, or whatever Darwinian nonsense one could subscribe to – but it seems that the more Kyle Busch acts like the spoiled, pouty, 15-year old girl he is often criticized for acting as, the more these unexplainable foils continue to plague him… as they did in the Camping World Series right after the Nationwide race.

I will be the first to say it: The whole, “I just want to win” excuse is tired, trite, and has completely exhausted its usefulness. Every driver wants to win. That’s kind of the whole point of competition and putting numbers on the cars: to keep score.

Next week, the Sprint Cup Series heads to Michigan International Speedway, located in the town of Brooklyn, which is less than an hour from the backyard of the Big Three. (Well, with 2/3 of them now in bankruptcy and owned in part by the U.S. government for a foreign entity, I guess you could technically call them the Big One.) Anyways, the automotive epicenter of Earth was always seen as a major stop on the tour, and with recent events involving the largest company on the planet, this could be the last time it really means something.

So, before Busch does something to really turn the public against him, I would caution him about bringing his act to the Irish Hills. This is an area of the country that has been devastated by the current deteriorating economic conditions like no other. This is a state that is dependent on the auto industry on both coasts; the manufacturers and subsidiaries on the east side of the mitten, with suppliers and parts providers located on the west side of the state. Considering Michigan already has an official unemployment rate nearing 13% – a number that is sure to climb substantially in the coming weeks – having to endure the actions of a twenty-something multi-millionaire who runs away from his problems whenever ANYTHING does not go according to his desires is not going to be warmly received by anybody who follows the sport in this area or may be attending the race that weekend, looking for some escape from whatever harsh realities they have been enduring.

Much was made in the moments following the incident at Dover, since Kyle Busch has provided Joey Logano with tutoring and advice as to how the Car of Tomorrow drives differently than the traditional car still used in the Nationwide Series. Well, perhaps there can be an equal exchange of information and mentoring at Joe Gibbs Racing moving forward. Kyle Busch can continue to help Joey Logano get up to speed as a rookie in the Sprint Cup Series, while Joey Logano can teach Kyle Busch how to conduct himself with some respect, class, and humility. That speaks volumes when you need to learn from a 19-year-old how to act like an adult.

It reminds me of that scene from Goodfellas, when they’re all sitting around at 3 AM eating at Joe Pesci’s mom’s house and she starts telling a story about a man who never says anything to anybody. A word describing the man is translated in Italian, which Ray Liotta doesn’t know, so Pesci clears it up for him:

“It means he’s content to be a jerk.”

Now, before you single me out as a “hater” (God, what a stupid word…anybody who uses that term has voluntarily lowered their IQ by about 20 points), or labels me a Martin myopian or Junior apologist, let me say that I actually really do like Kyle Busch. I think he is a talent unequaled, with a working knowledge of these cars and is not just a wheel holder – not to mention the charitable work he does that often goes unnoticed. Lately, however, he has started to achieve hemorrhoid status and become an inflaming irritant.

In closing, you’re 24, dude…lighten up. Wait until you get to be my age – then you’ll really have something to complain about. In the meantime, take a lesson from your 19-year-old teammate and protégé; lighten up, be happy that you’re there, and realize that you’re getting paid millions to just turn left for a few hours. You aren’t trudging up a mountain pass in Afghanistan humping a 75lb pack, and you haven’t had to dodge IEDs in downtown Fallujah. Instead, you drive a bright yellow clown car with cartoon candy emblazoned all over it around in a circle. If you don’t get done first, handle it like a professional, face the music … and realize that things could be worse.

You could live in Michigan.

Did You Notice?

Long's Last Words, Driver of the Decade, And GM's Rough Road Ahead?

Thomas Bowles · Frontstretch.com

Did You Notice? … That at the end of a provocative, fantastic
interview by ESPN’s Marty Smith, Carl Long took a swipe at NASCAR worth expanding on. In case you hadn’t heard, Long lost his appeal of an oversized engine penalty on Tuesday, meaning not only is he stuck with a 12-race suspension from the Cup Series, but his crew chief remains responsible for a record $200,000 fine. If the duo doesn’t pay it (Long refuses to let his head wrench, Charles Swing, fall on the sword on his own), they won’t be racing in NASCAR as of February 2010. The fine leaves Swing without a license and Long’s team in irrecoverable financial difficulty.

The decision amounted to a brow-raising move from the NSCRC, especially considering the difficulties small teams are having even staying in business to begin with. But when Smith asked Long about the future of blue-collar, independent organizations like him, he got bluntly honest:

“They want somebody to come and start four teams,” Long theorized. “Or, maybe they’re just trying to weasel all of us out so they can franchise. I don’t know. I’m not a part of their kings of the round table.”

Ah, the “F” word. Not much has been written about franchising over the last 12 to 18 months, even though it’s been a hot topic since mid-2007 and continues to be heavily rumored throughout the Sprint Cup garage. And interestingly enough, from the very first time I’ve heard the franchising rumor, the key date NASCAR was targeting for making that move was at the end of the 2009 season.

Guess what year we’re in right now.

Of course, the merits of franchising have been hotly debated. For years, NASCAR has been the type of sport where any Joe Schmo with a dollar, a dream, and a driving background can get out on the track and make a name for himself. I think that’s why fans identify so strongly with Long’s story, because they feel like he’s one of them. For so long, that’s how NASCAR built its popularity, with people in the stands able to relate to men coming from their own blue-collar, hard-working roots.

But with franchising, that dream dies on the vine. Instead, the sport is taking a big risk in hoping the common fan continues to identify with the superteams led by Childress, Gibbs, Penske, and others who would buy into a system making them the equivalent of owners in the major stick ‘n’ ball sports – with guaranteed participation in the starting lineup. It’d be a collection of multi-car giants not unlike the system in Formula One, where millions in engineering, research, and personnel make the difference in who finishes of front just as much as the talent of the driver behind the wheel. Blue-collar underdogs would be replaced by white-collar privilege, million-dollar machines backing big-money drivers who’d always have all the tools they needed to be successful.

It’s a touch of irony, the concept of franchising, isn’t it? NASCAR, the sport’s world’s underdog story, would cleanse itself of any concept of underdog. To me, it’s the equivalent to competitive suicide; but more than ever, it looks inevitable. For if the powers that be wanted to implement such a system, there’s no better opportunity than right now. At the moment, the top 33 cars in the owner points are owned by just eleven men, with two of those programs “satellite” operations of super-owners Rick Hendrick and Jack Roush. In theory, at least two of those teams are planning to add another car for 2010 (Gibbs and Stewart-Haas), bringing the number of full-time cars owned by those eleven people to 36 (Scott Speed needs to be included here, as his Team Red Bull Toyota sits outside the top 35 in owner points).

That number’s just seven short of the 43 currently needed to fill the field each week. But who says NASCAR needs to stick with that number? If they could get 40 cars or even 38, that’d be plenty to set up a franchising system exclusive to the country club of owners we currently have. And for all the sport’s talk about parity, the CoT, and the rough economy leading to opportunities for others to launch into this business, 2009 has been an unmitigated disaster for any owner fielding less than two cars. None of the single-car operations are fully funded for all 36 events, and the dozen owners that started the season hoping to run full-time have been dwindled to less than half that amount. Those that remain are merely filling out the field, starting and parking for cash while giving NASCAR the opportunity to play good cop and franchise in order to “save the system from these freeloaders.”

Again, there’s no definitive word from anyone that franchising is on the horizon… yet. But Long has a very serious, provocative point; the way NASCAR’s setting up its method of doing business, the only way a new owner is going to be successful right now is to come in and start four teams. And if you’re a small-time guy looking to get your feet wet, why in the hell would you even attempt it if you knew one mistake could lead to a fine like this one? Of course, if NASCAR is heading in that direction it makes it easy to snuff out any and all underdogs and draw a clear delineation between who’s awarded a “franchise” and who is not.

And as we’ve all just discovered, it’s readily apparent Carl Long falls on the wrong side of that line.

In the meantime, for those interested in protesting the decision, there’s a petition circulating here. 50,000 signatures is the goal … last I checked, it already had almost 1,000 and the penalty is just hours old.

Did You Notice? … Who’s the winningest driver of the decade? Jimmie Johnson’s under-the-radar pursuit for four straight championships got me thinking about that on Monday, as his second win of the season had me wondering where the three-time champ stood overall on that list.

Well, turns out in a bit of a surprise it’s not Jeff Gordon or Tony Stewart that’s leads in that category … it’s Johnson himself.

Check it out: NASCAR Cup Series Wins Since 2000
1) Jimmie Johnson – 42
2) Jeff Gordon – 33
3) Tony Stewart – 30
4) Kurt Busch – 19
5) Matt Kenseth -18
5) Dale Earnhardt, Jr. – 18
7) Carl Edwards – 16
8) Kyle Busch – 15
9) Greg Biffle – 14
10) Ryan Newman – 13

Those stats tell us a couple of things. I think if there’s any doubt as to whether Johnson has surpassed Gordon as the No. 1 driver at Hendrick Motorsports, that list all but erases it. In a head-to-head breakdown, Johnson beats Gordon in wins, championships (three to one), and average points finish (2.5 to 5.2) this decade, leaving little for Gordon to fire back with as to who’s actually been the better driver. And when you look at the hard numbers in the win column — 42 to 33 — to me, that’s not even close. In fact, Johnson has at least twice as many wins as everyone else except for Gordon and Tony Stewart, making it even more amazing that the most dominant driver of the decade continues to be a shell of a marketing tool compared to the other two.

Another interesting comparison is the Busch brothers, both young and old. Yes, Kyle Busch has exploded onto the Sprint Cup scene as of late. But just because he’s a brasher, bolder version of his older brother doesn’t mean he’s that much better. Not only does Kurt have more wins than “Shrub,” he’s also got that 2004 Chase for the Championship trophy sitting on his mantle. And had Kurt chosen to stay with Roush Fenway Racing rather than drive the last four seasons in Penske equipment – admittedly a small step down – his victory total might be bumped up to 20 or 25. Yes, it’s true the younger brother will inevitably pass the old, but it’s not inconceivable to predict that Kurt will win another championship before his far more inconsistent brother wins his first.

And then … there’s the matter of one Dale Earnhardt, Jr. With 18 series wins, only four drivers have won more this decade than the beleaguered wheelman of the No. 88. It’s one of those brow-raising stat lines that show Earnhardt once did more than cling on to his famous name. In fact, as little as five years ago, he challenged for the season championship, won the Daytona 500, and rose to an almost God-like level in popularity. You may not like the fact NASCAR continues to kow-tow to Junior as its most marketable tool; but lists like this one remind you why they at least have a reason to try.

However, this note both starts and ends with the man who always wins on the race track but not with the hearts of the fans. With Johnson creating a dominating lead in this category, it’s hard to argue with an assessment that labels him the driver of the decade by a longshot – which makes it the biggest shame of all that he continues to draw only lukewarm interest. Successes like these should be a good thing, not a bad thing for any sport; instead, Johnson’s been lumped with the type of growth and progress hardcore fans love to hate.

And at this point, that’s never going to change.

Did You Notice? … For fans wondering about why Dover attendance was declining, I’ve got another iron to throw onto the fire: Security. For years, the track has had a reputation of having some of the most stingy, argumentative parking attendants with cops and others so bent on enforcing the rules they’ll go out of their way to make fan’s lives a living hell.

Let me share my own personal common sense experience as an example. On Sunday morning, I needed to get through the back entrance of the speedway in order to access the parking lot for the media. Considering the logjam that is Dover traffic – cars often sit for hours to get into the front entrance – fans that access the back roads to enter the speedway from behind the track often do themselves a huge favor. They’ll either park inside the speedway or in a lot adjacent to the track, paying a small fee but saving them a huge headache once the Cup race is over.

For me, I’ve always gone over the bridge and parked behind the speedway, as the media lot is always right next to the track. But as I prepared to make my turn, much to my chagrin … that back entrance was closed. I stopped and tried to talk to the police, who rudely told me I’d have to go around the front entrance of the speedway in order to access my lot. While they were doing so, cops were pulling cones out of the way for other, track-related vehicles to cross the bridge and get to where they needed to go. It would have been easy for me to make my turn – but the cops stood their ground.

In the end, I and several others in the same boat were left with only two options. We could A) Pay for parking and walk the mile to the track or B) Turn around and go to the front entrance, where the wait to enter and get to the lot would be between an hour to an hour and a half. Since B wasn’t a viable option – after all, there’s a job to do and you can’t waste time – I was forced to pay for parking and walk.

Now, that’s not a big deal – heck, I needed the exercise – but it’s the principle of the thing that bothered me. The traffic flow made no sense, as you’re forcing all the cars to siphon through just one small entrance when you’ve got several different ways to enter the speedway. That causes fans to be further inconvenienced; and no matter how good or bad the racing is, if you wait in line for hours to simply park your car you’re not going to go back to Dover, are you?

If anyone else had some horrific experiences from Dover, please share them below. I hear from fans a lot, and the more you get those comments out in public the more the track is likely to listen up and make the changes they need. Because after all, if you don’t pay, then those mighty CEOs can’t play… and judging by the crowd this weekend, there’s plenty of folks who have simply had enough.

Did You Notice? … In the wake of GM’s bankruptcy filing — in which the manufacturer reaffirmed its support of NASCAR — we heard the same types of comments from Dodge, almost to a T. Rewind to the end of April, and you get the following statement from Chrysler’s Director of Brand Marketing:

“NASCAR is a strategic part of our marketing plan and the Dodge brand. We plan to continue our Dodge sponsorship and relationship into the foreseeable future.”

Now, two months later we hear a federal court is both restricting the amount of money Chrysler can use to market, as well as team owners complaining they’re no longer being paid support money due from the manufacturer for about the last two months.

So with that pattern already established, tell me, please … why would GM be any different? How is it going to avoid this same type of scenario? Especially with the government – directing their attention towards more modern, fuel efficient cars that are exactly the opposite of what NASCAR represents – owning 60 percent of the company?

Houston, Houston, Houston! We’ve got some serious, serious problems … and not even Danica and double-file restarts can solve them.

Kyle's feelings understood when it comes to Junior

By David Caraviello, NASCAR.COM

For every action, so states Isaac Newton's third law of motion, there is an equal and opposite reaction. And in NASCAR, when that action has to do with Dale Earnhardt Jr., the equal and opposite reaction usually comes from Kyle Busch.

That's certainly the way it seemed last week at Dover International Speedway, when the current and former Hendrick Motorsports drivers traded barbs through the media, then briefly exchanged words in the drivers' meeting prior to the Autism Speaks 400, and added an entire new level of intrigue to the saga involving Earnhardt's change of crew chief. Who knew that when Rick Hendrick hired NASCAR's most popular driver, he was also laying the groundwork for NASCAR's most intense feud.

This latest chapter began Friday, when Busch was asked what he knew about Lance McGrew, whom he's worked with briefly in the past, and replaced Tony Eury Jr. atop the No. 88 pit box last weekend. "He's got his hands full having to deal with what's going on," Busch said, "and if Junior doesn't run well, then he's going to be the problem again. It's never Junior. It's always the crew chief."

Within minutes, that comment was splashed across the Web, routing Junior Nation into another state of anti-Busch fury. And yet, Busch taking potshots at Earnhardt's somewhat disproportionate popularity-to-performance ratio is nothing new. He's done it before. He'll surely do it again. And in all honesty, it's hard to blame him when he does it.

Now, you may not like Kyle Busch. You may think he's childish and whiny and immature. Fine. But if there's anyone in NASCAR who has the right to feel wronged, who should and does take every opportunity to point to his sport's equivalent of a scoreboard so everyone can see what the tally shows, it's the driver of the No. 18 car. No, he didn't fit at Hendrick. In retrospect, that much seems obvious, and you have to wonder how much longer he might have remained there even if Earnhardt had not become available. But the bottom line is that Earnhardt's free agency and subsequent move to the Hendrick stable is effectively what led to Busch's ouster, and Busch has thoroughly outperformed his successor in every way since the move was made.

That's not a knock against Earnhardt or Hendrick, whose closer-than-we-realized personal history -- going back to Robert Gee, Earnhardt's maternal grandfather and a longtime Hendrick employee -- made their association a natural. But since the switch, Busch has 11 race wins on NASCAR's top series, and has firmly established himself as a championship contender. Earnhardt has one victory and is trying to "rebuild Rome," as he aptly puts it. If you worked in a public arena like NASCAR, and you were outperforming the guy who had effectively caused you to lose your last job, wouldn't you take every opportunity to remind people of it, too?

That's what Busch is doing, and it's completely understandable. But who, really, is the target here? Clearly, Busch and Earnhardt are not friends; in those rare times when they've both been in the media center together after a race, there's a stony silence between them. But is Busch really taking digs at Earnhardt, who in all fairness has rarely had a bad thing to say about him publicly? Is he taking shots at Hendrick? Or is he needling all those fans who see him as public enemy No. 1, who gave Busch holy hell after he and Earnhardt spun out while racing for the win at Richmond early last year, who never give the kid enough credit for his talent and seemed to ignore the lopsided performance results of the last year and a third? Busch told me last year that he has much bigger issues with Junior Nation than Junior himself. And we all know the guy loves to poke the beast from time to time, whether that beast is NASCAR or folks with No. 88 tattoos.

And yet, exchanges like this probably don't help Busch in the long run -- especially when he backs them up by running 23rd as he did at Dover, fighting tire and splitter problems and placing 11 spots lower than you-know-who. For all his issues on-track, Earnhardt remains a smart, savvy guy capable of seeing the big picture. His public responses to Busch's barbs have always been measured and mature. Now, that may be because he hasn't had the performance results to back up any mud-slinging he might really want to do. But in the public eye, he gets a lot of credit for not taking the bait, which he refused to do at Dover.

"He's always had a chip on his shoulder for me," Earnhardt said when informed of Busch's remarks. "I expect anytime he gets an opportunity to throw a jab in there, he's going to do it. That's just his personality. We're working toward trying to figure out how we can make our deal work and that has nothing to do with Kyle. We'll see how this weekend goes and then move forward next week."

That ability to take the high road is one of Earnhardt's more impressive traits. Of course, we still don't know what he said to Busch in the drivers' meeting Sunday. Questions on that subject were immediately shut down by Earnhardt's public relations man after the race, so the extent of the conversation remains unknown. It seems very doubtful that the two were making dinner plans for Pocono.

And so, the mystery remains. And if Earnhardt keeps struggling and Busch keeps winning, it seems only a matter of time before the driver of a certain yellow Toyota takes advantage of an opportunity to remind everyone of that fact. Maybe that's not exactly the classy, mature thing to do. Maybe it's not helping Kyle Busch make any new fans. But it's understandable, coming from an uber-confident 24-year-old who's been through the experience of getting canned. And until Earnhardt steps his performance up to Busch's level -- definitely possible, but far from guaranteed -- all those Busch bashers are really left with nothing to say in response.

Driver vs. Driver

Finishes for Busch and Earnhardt since 2008