Author: Michelle Lippold

Paul Menard Captures his Second Career Nationwide Series Win at Michigan

Paul Menard was in the right place at the right time Saturday afternoon and captured the win in the Ollie’s Bargain Outlet 250 at Michigan International Speedway. Menard took the lead with only four laps to go after race leader Joey Logano was forced to pit due to a cut tire. It was his second victory in the Nationwide Series, his first since June of 2006 when he won at Milwaukee.

A happy Menard in Victory Lane stated, “At Indianapolis I didn’t have enough fuel to make a whole lap so I was going to enjoy it this time.” It had been a while since his last win and he wasn’t sure how to get to Victory Lane. “I didn’t know where the hell to go,” Menard said, “they told me to go to pit road, come on the track, I wasn’t really sure.”

“I’m really proud to be a part of RCR (Richard Childress Racing),” Menard said after the race. “This is a brand new car, a brand new motor that we’re trying out and it’s proved itself, I think.”

He explained his strategy in the final laps of the race saying, “I kinda thought that I gave the race away by trying to go three wide on the restart to get to the inside. That worked out a couple of times early in the race but it didn’t work out that time, we got freight trained and just kinda ran out of time to close up on Joey. Then I guess he had a flat tire and that’s how we got the race. Would have liked to have lined up nose to tail to Joey for the last five-10 laps and see what would have happened, it would have been a hell of a race.”

Logano clearly had the car to beat during the second half of the race but his right rear tire went down and he had to pit on lap 121, giving up the lead to second place driver, Menard. Logano, who led 43 laps, had to settle for a disappointing 16th place finish.

“I ran over something at some point. It pretty much sucks. I could tell it was going down on the back straightaway and had to take it in.” Loano said. “I hate giving it away like that. The silver lining is we had a fast race car and should’ve won the race. You win some like that, you lose some like that.”

Sam Hornish Jr. overcame a spin on lap two to finish in second place. Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished third and also had tire problems, stating on Twitter, “Solid result for the @ebay car. Left front tire going flat last 20 laps. Great fuel strategy by the crew. Proud of @JRMotorsports.”

The big caution of the day came when Dylan Kwasniewski lost control of his car and collected Trevor Bayne, sending them both of them into the wall.

“I need to start driving smarter, I need to stop making these mistakes.” Kwasniewski said.

Notable: At the beginning of the race it looked as if it would be the Kyle Larson show. He was on a rail but had a few challengers at different points. Chase Elliott and Kyle Busch were just two of those that attempted to take the lead away from Kyle. Caution came out and Larson and his crew decided to stay out and keep the lead but this strategy would prove to be their downfall. On the restart Elliott took the lead and shuffled Larson to the middle of the pack. Kyle Busch finished the race in fourth place, Chase Elliott (the highest-finishing rookie) in sixth and Larson finished in eighth.

Regan Smith remains the series points leader with 485 points followed by Elliott Sadler who is 11 points behind. Chase Elliott (-20), Ty Dillon (-35) and Trevor Bayne (-50) round out the top five in the points standings.

The NASCAR Nationwide Series heads next to Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin for the Gardner Denver 200 Fired Up by Johnsonville on June 21 with coverage on ABC at 2:30 ET.

The top 10 finishers are:
1) Paul Menard
2) Sam Hornish Jr,
3) Dale Earnhardt Jr.
4) Kyle Busch
5) Brian Scott
6) Chase Elliott
7) Regan Smith
8) Kyle Larson
9) Ty Dillon
10) Chris Buescher

June 14, 2014
NASCAR Sprint Cup Rookie Kyle Larson Wins the Pocono ARCA 200

Today was time for the ARCA Racing Series to tackle the tricky Pocono Raceway and it was time for Kyle Larson, one of NASCAR’s newest young guns, to show us what he has and he did not disappoint. Larson brought home the win in only his third start in the series. He became the 34th different driver to win at Pocono and the 17th different driver to win in the last 17 races. He is also the fifth different winner in the ARCA series this season.

“I was nervous for a while there,” Larson said after the race. “He was real aggressive and got the lead, then started to pull away.”

He continued saying, “We had a good car, a dominating car,” Larson said. “We definitely wanted to win. I was glad that we had to work for it there in the end. I learned something in all of this. In the end, it was a lot of fun.”

The race started with Larson leading the field to the green flag after winning the pole in only his third ARCA start. The first caution flew on lap seven when Tim Means gets loose and barely kept it off the wall. After that it was the Kyle show and not Kyle Busch but a driver just as dominant. The top three cars of Larson, Mason Mitchell, and Justin Allison stayed that way.

Another great battle for sixth spot ensued between Will and Frank Kimmel. Green flag stops went underway around the halfway mark. Kyle Larson pit did not stay under the yellow line on his way out of his pit earning himself a drive-through penalty but because he had a large lead on the field was still the leader after serving the penalty. The biggest loser during pit stops was Austin Wayne Self who was penalized for speeding. On his drive through for speeding, he was caught speeding again.

It still was the same show after the caution, with the top three drivers staying in their spots. Not many noticed that John Wes Townley, who started in the rear, was creeping up closer to the front.

With 21 laps to go the caution flew for debris but Justin Allison didn’t pit as he was stuck in 4th gear which would prove to be a complication on the restart. The caution came back out with 16 laps to go as everyone was trying to get around Allison who was trying to get up to speed which resulted in an accident sending Matt Tifft and Justin Boston into the wall.

Things got interesting when, with less than 10 laps to go, Larson had a bad re-start and Mitchell took the lead. For a while he appeared to be leaving everyone behind but with three laps to go Larson caught up. The battle for first was short as Larson reclaimed the lead and would be the victor today at Pocono.

The biggest mover of the day was John Wes Townley who had a solid third place finish after starting at the rear of the field due to missing practice and qualifying on Friday.

The top-five at the finish were:

1) Kyle Larson                  No. 4

2) Mason Mitchell               No. 98

3) John Wes Townley         No. 15

4) Will Kimmel                   No. 69

5) Justin Allison                 No. 88

June 7, 2014
NASCAR – More Than Just A Sport

This is the year of change in the NASCAR World. This year the No. 3 came back and fans have been, and still are, very vocal about that. We have the change to “The Chase” again with much talk and disagreement as to if it is a good thing or bad thing. We have many fans that want the “old NASCAR” back and new fans that have no idea what the “old NASCAR” even is as that was before their time.

NASCAR, whether you think it’s going downhill, or having the best year ever, one thing remains consistent and that’s the charitable ways of the NASCAR family. NASCAR drivers, teams, and NASCAR itself gives back, there is no arguing that. Some of the charity you may never know about or see, but it’s there. What we don’t always see is how it helps the fans. This is the story of just one fan that NASCAR has touched without even knowing.

This is where I want to introduce to you a very special teenager. His name is David Heller and I met him on social media. Like most NASCAR fans we flock to social media for NASCAR news, but also because that is where much of our NASCAR family is. This is where we debate what is going on in the world of the sport we love. It is also where we develop friendships, more so than any other sport. I like to think we care about each other, we truly feel like family.

Heller and I started talking and at first I had no idea he was a teenager until he became extremely excited about his upcoming 15th birthday. He was new school; I was old school. He was impressive with his knowledge of NASCAR and where he thought it should go in the future. He knew the sport like very few teens do, and his attitude was amazing. If he has bad days you never see it. He is always positive and I must say he actually changed my view of the sport.

He was too young to remember Dale Earnhardt racing, all he knows is the NASCAR as it is now. I was so impressed by this young man that I asked him to manage one of my social media sites that had been just sitting there. Heller agreed and he went on the site to introduce himself and that is when I was floored. Heller is autistic but if he had not stated this in his introduction, you would not have known.

I spoke to Heller’s father Terry Heller who told me that his son at age 4, could tell you what driver drove what car number. Heller wasn’t diagnosed as autistic until he was nine years old. Today he can tell you driver and car number for all three series, the Sprint Cup, Nationwide, and the Camping World Truck Series. His favorite driver by far, is none other than young gun, Austin Dillon. David believes he is capable of being the first driver to win the championship for all three NASCAR series.

According to the elder Heller, being so knowledgeable in racing and sports in general has helped his son with conversations and has also helped him with his spelling. It’s also helped him with his coordination as now he watches television, runs the computer, runs the laptop, and runs his iPad all at the same time. He has a confidence about him that is unmatched. He will tell you that NASCAR has made him smarter and he has become one of the biggest fans. He has come to love all sports and will be the first to tell you, “Sports has helped me overcome autism and has helped me become the biggest sports fan of this generation, of this country!”

His enthusiasm is contagious but he doesn’t see the effect he has on others. On bad days he will make you smile and his sports knowledge is impressive. One of his other hobbies is weather so do not be surprised if you see him come on Facebook with a severe weather report, as he will let you know if anything bad is coming your way. I also must give credit to his parents Terry, and mother Joyce, for encouraging his love of sports, no doubt adding to his confidence.

My point in all this is to tell fans we all have disabilities, it’s just some are easier to see, so as fans let’s embrace each member of the NASCAR family. Instead of wishing for NASCAR past or worrying about NASCAR’s future, let’s take a page out of this young man’s book and take it one day at a time.

May 14, 2014
Kevin Harvick wins Bojangles Southern 500 Pole; Almirola set track record

It was a great day for qualifying as several drivers broke the existing track record with Kevin Harvick taking home the bragging rights for beating them all as he picked up the Coors Light Pole Award for the Bojangles Southern 500. It marks Harvick’s seventh career pole and his first at the egg-shaped oval. Harvick lapped the field with a lap of 26.802 seconds in the third round of knock-out qualifying.

Joey Logano qualified second, followed by Aric Almirola. Almirola set a new track record during round two of qualifying with a lap of 26.705 seconds. It is the sixth track record in eight races this year.

Qualifying today for the Bojangles’ Southern 500 was done in three rounds. In the first round, the top 24 cars would move on to round 2, where the top 12 will then move on to round 3, and round 3 will determine your top 12 starting position and most importantly, the pole position.

Here is the round by round by round recap.

ROUND #1

Round #1 was a very fast round with several drivers breaking the current track record. Few drivers that were on the bubble for that last spot to get to the next round but for the most part the lineup stayed the same, your 24 drivers that moved on to round #2 are 1) 27 Menard 2) 11 Hamlin 3) 1 McMurray, 4) 43 Almirolan 5)41 Kurt Busch 6) Newman 7) 24 Gordon 8) 9 Ambrose 9) 99 Edwards 10)22 Logano 11) 18 Kyle Busch 12) 16 Biffle 13) 3 Dillon 14) 5 Kahne 15) 2 Keselowski 16) 4 Harvick 17) 47 Allmendinger 18) 55 Vickers 19) 14 Stewart 20)51 Allgaier 21) 78 Truex Jr 22) 88 Earnhardt Jr 23) 15) Bowyer 24) Larson

Of note, last year’s race winner Matt Kenseth qualified 25th with six-time Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson in 26th. Johnson commented after his run that the car was too tight.

ROUND #2

Round #2 proved to be even faster than round #1 with Almirola setting another new track record of 184,145.

The following 12 drivers would move on to the 3rd round to go for the pole Almirola, Logano, McMurray, Harvick, Ambrose, Menard, Keselowski, Newman, Gordon, Hamlin, Truex Jr, and Kyle Busch. Martinsville race winner Kurt Busch just missed the top 12 in 13th, followed by Brian Vickers and Dale Earnhardt Jr.

ROUND #3

This would be the round for the bragging rights, which ended up with Kevin Harvick taking home the pole and setting the top 12 starting positions. Logano qualified second, followed by Almirola, Ambrose, Keselowski, McMurray Newman, Kyle Busch, Gordon, Hamlin, Menard, and Truex Jr.

In the end only one driver would not make the race and that was Reutimann who was 39th fastest, 46th in owner points.

April 11, 2014
Remembering a Champion-Alan Kulwicki

Today is April 1st, a day that for many is a fun and prank filled day with friends. For some it is a sign that spring is right around the corner. However, for some long time NASCAR fans it’s bittersweet, as we remember a Champion, a friend and someone who we lost too soon, Alan Kulwicki.

I remember hearing the news, hoping it was an April Fool’s Day joke, one in poor taste. But deep down we knew the truth, we just didn’t want to hear it. We didn’t want to believe that our reigning NASCAR Winston Cup Champion’s plane had crashed as he was coming into Bristol for the race that weekend.

Alan Kulwicki, born December 14th, 1954 was lost to us on April 1st, 1993. He was from Greenfield, Wisconsin which was the stomping ground for many of NASCAR’s finest drivers such as Dick Trickle and Matt Kenseth. He drove in the mid-west ASA Series, winning championships at Slinger and Kaukauna, which are two of the best tracks in Wisconsin, prior to packing up and moving south to make his NASCAR dream come true. He was looked at differently from some of the other drivers, showing up to the track carrying a briefcase. He was the first college graduate to go into NASCAR as a driver, graduating college with a degree in engineering.

One of Alan’s favorite songs was Frank Sinatra’s my way, and that is how he did it. He was NASCAR’s” Rookie of the Year” in 1986. One of the most endearing thing’s about Kulwicki was the comb he always had on hand, even keeping one in the car so that when he took off his helmet he could comb his hair. He was always camera and picture ready.

The one thing that still lives on today is when he won his very first NASCAR race at Phoenix International Speedway in 1988. He turned his car around so that the driver’s side window faced the grandstands and he did what he called the “Polish Victory Lap.” This backwards lap is still done by drivers today in his honor. He was the underdog in NASCAR and became known as NASCAR’s Mighty Mouse, even having cloth patches with AK7 and Mighty Mouse on them. I still have mine.

The year was 1992 and it was a wistful, exciting feeling going into the last race of the year at Atlanta Motor Speedway, formerly Atlanta International Raceway. It was Richard Petty’s last Cup race of his career and Jeff Gordon’s first. The Championship could have gone to three different drivers; Davey Allison the front runner, along with Bill Elliott and Alan Kulwicki. Allison’s hopes ended in a crash which took him out of the race but Elliott and Kulwicki ran hard races. It was coming down to a tight finish and the bonus points for leading the most laps pushed Kulwicki 10 points ahead of Elliott to win his first, and sadly his only, championship. In Victory Lane you could not have seen a happier man and even more so he did it “his way”.

Alan was only 38 when he passed and there is no doubt he would have made an even bigger mark on NASCAR had he lived. I ask that you take a moment and remember Alan Kulwicki. He was a clean driver, a determined driver and any future driver in NASCAR could learn a lot from him. So today it’s bittersweet thinking of the past, but I think of him next to his Hooters No. 7, lifting that trophy over his head and reflect; a better champion we could not have asked for.

April 1, 2014
Kyle Busch Wins the Pole for the STP 500 at Martinsville Speedway

It seems rain is going to play games with NASCAR this season. Luckily the rain moved out and by the time it was ready for NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers, the track was good to go.

When qualifying was all done, Kyle Busch scored his 14th Coors Light Pole Award with a lap of 18.998 seconds, 99.674 mph. It also marks the third straight pole for Joe Gibbs Racing.

“It feels good to put the M&M’s Camry on the pole here at Martinsville is something that doesn’t happen very often — at least with me behind the wheel,” Busch commented. “It certainly is a great day for us and the whole team — Dave Rogers (crew chief) and everybody. They did a great job. We unloaded with a fast car and we tried to dial it in as best we could with race trim and then right there at the last second we did a qualifying run and that was about all we got.

Here is a round-by-round recap of qualifying.

ROUND #1

Prior to taking to the track for his qualifying run in round one, Carl Edwards commented on having the first garage stall, which he got due to being the points leader. Edwards stated that having the first garage stall is pretty nice, and is a testament to how hard his team has worked to get where they are. He also said regarding the qualifying, “Hopefully we will be good in qualifying. I wasn’t going to be mad if it rained all day, but it didn’t so we have to go earn it now.” Edwards qualified in the eighth position for Sunday’s running of the STP 500.

Based on round one, it looked at if Joey Logano would be on the pole as he posted the quickest time in round one with a speed of 100.201 mph (18.898 seconds) to set a new track record. Most drivers ran three laps, with a few opting to run four.

Phoenix race winner Kevin Harvick’s car did not show a lot of speed in practice and he wasn’t happy with the car as they weren’t able to tighten it up.

The 12 cars to advance to round two were: 1) Joey Logano, 2) Denny Hamlin, 3) Kyle Busch, 4) Jamie McMurray, 5) Matt Kenseth, 6) Jeff Gordon, 7) Jimmie Johnson, 8) Carl Edwards, 9) Clint Bowyer, 10) Greg Biffle, 11) Danica Patrick, and 12) Tony Stewart

.ROUND #2

In the second round Logano and Kyle Busch seemed like they were going to be the ones to beat for the pole position. For the first time all of the Joe Gibbs cars made it into Round Two. In the second round many drivers’ qualifying times did not change much due to the tire wear after the first round.

There seemed to be one driver that had something left for the final round and that driver was Kyle Busch. He would take his first ever pole at Martinsville Speedway, and his first pole in 23 races. One of Kyle’s comments was, “It’s Martinsville, we get to sit on the pole so that is pretty cool. There is a first for everything, I guess, so this is pretty neat.”

Here are your top 12 starters for Sunday’s STP 500

1) Kyle Busch, 2) Denny Hamlin 3) Joey Logano 4) Jimmie Johnson 5) Jeff Gordon 6) Matt Kenseth 7) Tony Stewart 8) Carl Edwards 9) Jamie McMurray 10) Danical Patrick 11) Greg Biffle 12) Clint Bowyer

Noteworthy: Danica Patrick’s 10th place starting position is her best non-restrictor plate starting spot.

March 28, 2014
Why NASCAR fans love Bristol

Ask any fan what their favorite NASCAR track is and usually you will get multiple answers; however, almost always, Bristol is on that list. Fans flock to Bristol, those that have been there cannot wait to get back, and for those that have never been there it’s usually on their “bucket list”.

The beginning was in 1960 when two men, Carl Moore and Larry Carrier had gotten the idea when traveling to North Carolina to see the first race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, built by a local businessman turned race promoter O. Bruton Smith and the legendary driver Curtis Turner. Charlotte Motor Speedway would become the inspiration, however, they had decided they wanted a track that was smaller, more intimate, and the fact it would take up less land was a plus. In 1960, Moore, Carrier, and R.G. Pope began work on a half mile track that would become Bristol International Speedway. The track itself was a perfect half-mile, measuring 60 feet wide on the straightaways and 75 feet wide in the turns, which were banked at 22 degrees.

Although, the track ran weekly races, the first NASCAR driver to take to the track in practice was Tiny Lund on July 27th, 1961. The first NASCAR race, The Volunteer 500, at the then renamed Bristol Motor Speedway was on July 30th, 1961 with another well known driver Fred Lorenzen on the pole. When the Volunteer 500 was over, a driver named Jack Smith would be written into the history books as the first winner. However, with the heat blistering his feet badly after 290 laps, he would request a relief driver named Johnny Allen to finish the race in his place. A total of 42 cars started the first race at BMS but only 19 finished. For the next several years Bristol quickly became one of the most sought after wins for drivers, as it was one that was hard earned.

Fast forward to April 5th, 1992, a new sponsorship would come to the track “The Food City 500” and actually is still the sponsor to this day. That day, Alan Kulwicki would dominate the race and it would be the final race on an asphalt surface, as well as the last one to be run on bias-ply tires. With the increasing tire traction and other factors, the track was beginning to need to be resurfaced or patched after every few races. The track owners were looking for a solution to the problem and the answer came on August 29, 1992 for the “Bud 500”. Bristol became the first speedway to host a NASCAR Cup event that boasted a track surface of all concrete.

Bristol is also known for some of the most horrific crashes fans have ever seen, despite its size. August 27th, 1988 during practice, driver Rusty Wallace slid into the fourth turn wall and ended up barrel-rolling about five times down the front straightaway. He escaped any major injuries and was kept overnight in the hospital for observation.

It was 1990 when driver Michael Waltrip also survived unscathed from a horrific crash during a NASCAR Busch Series (now known as the Nationwide Series) race. He hit a turnout gate at the corner exit, breaking the gate and went head on into the end of the wall literally destroying his car to the point that no one believed anyone could survive that impact. To his brother Darrell Waltrip’s relief not only had Michael survived but like Wallace, had only suffered minor injuries.

August 22nd, 2002 during a practice session for the Busch Series, driver Mike Harmon had something break in the car sending him into the wall and into a crossover gate where his car would be virtually destroyed. It would come to rest on the track where it would be hit again by driver Johnny Sauter. Harmon was uninjured and walked away.

That is the history of Bristol, but that is just a few of the reasons that fans are in love with Bristol. Fans love it because it is by far one of the toughest and most exciting tracks that NASCAR runs. It is side by side paint swapping racing, and the noise is said to be deafening as the cars race. It has been stated that Bristol is the equivalent of running fighter jets in a gymnasium. Bristol can make the most refined level headed driver lose his cool. We have seen helmets thrown, drivers going at each other, often creating feuds that will last throughout the year. At times there is so much going on that fans have a hard time keeping up with all that is happening. It tests the drivers’ skills and their ability to not let tempers get the best of them.

We head into Bristol Motor Speedway this year with even more excitement now that NASCAR has put the emphasis on winning more than points. How will the drivers respond? Will it make for even more aggressive driving? One thing with Bristol is that it is anyone’s guess who will win or who will lose their temper, but either way the fans love it so bring it on as we can’t wait.

March 14, 2014
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Driver Brennan Newberry Tells His Story

As with a lot of drivers, Brennan Newberry’s story started very similar but Newberry himself wasn’t the typical young aspiring driver. Newberry lived in Bakersfield, California where his father, Bob Newberry, drove late model race cars. As a young boy, Newberry was around racing a lot but he did not start out thinking about racing, he was more into showing off the car in the garage to his friends. There were not many young boys in the neighborhood that could top having a real race car in the garage.

Around the age of 8-9, while his dad was working on the race car one day, Newberry asked his dad if he could drive a race car. His father looked at him funny and said, “Nah I don’t think so.” Newberry was not satisfied with that response and said, “C’mon dad I really want to do this, I think this is something I could do, and it looks like fun.” His dad later decided if this was what his son wanted to do then they would to do it right and start with go-karts.

Newberry’s idea of go-kart racing was on dirt and jumping hills, so he was not too thrilled with his father’s idea. The following weekend, his father took him to race go-karts. Newberry thought it was pretty fun and cool, but wasn’t thinking that this was a possible career.

Newberry raced go-karts for fun until the age of 15 when he decided that he wanted to be more serious, he wanted to race for points, be a champion, and most of all he wanted racing to be a career.

Being a racer wasn’t easy though. In school he liked to swim, but was not able to go very far on the swim team because of racing. He missed out on normal school things such as dances, football games, or time with the buddies because his time was spent racing or working on the car. He has no complaints about it though, it was what was needed to be done for his career. His family has been very supportive of him and did without things in order for him to race and further his career.

In 2010, his father formed a team for Newberry to start his career in a limited schedule in the K&N Pro Series. Suddenly Newberry was racing at tracks like Irwindale Speedway, Phoenix and Sonoma. These were tracks where another Bakersfield driver used to race, Kevin Harvick. He raced in his first Toyota All Star Showdown and a limited schedule in the series.

In 2012, with support from his family they decided in order to go further they needed to go all in. With his parents and both of his sisters blessing, he decided to run 10 races in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS). His first race was at Martinsville, then Charlotte and on to Michigan to name a few. The NCWTS was a learning experience for Newberry due to the differences in aero packages on the trucks and how they were different than what he had been driving. During this time he also raced in the ARCA series to help him gain confidence as a driver.

In 2013 Newberry moved to where the center of NASCAR is, he moved to North Carolina. He moved by himself, to fulfill his dream.

2013 was the year of ups and downs for Newberry. He was racing in the NCWTS full-time and started off strong by winning the pole at Daytona in his first attempt there. He was with a new team and everything was new and different.

For the most part it was a year of firsts and so many big moments. He was very well aware of just where and who he was and that he, a young man from Bakersfield, was taking it all in like a sponge. Everyone in his family had made sacrifices and he was going to take in as much as he could knowing his family was behind him 100 percent.

This season Newberry is running full time in the K&N Pro Series and sharing the NCWTS duties with a new teammate. Newberry will be in the NCWTS for 12 races. He has nothing but praise about his teammate, 16 year-old Gray Gaulding. He says that they mesh well together and each of them has different strengths and they will be able to learn a lot from each other.

Newberry also talks about fitness. It’s a must to be a driver if you want the stamina to finish races and keep your mind on the race. He did a triathlon a couple of years ago and really hopes to get the chance to do another one. But juggling a busy race schedule with an event like that is easier said than done. He takes pride in being fit; he takes pride in all his accomplishments.

Newberry never dreamed that first day in the go-kart that he would be where he is today. He owes much to a very supportive family, but doesn’t really take much credit for himself for being where his is today. In his eyes he is living a dream, a dream he didn’t know he had until one fateful day when he realized this is what he was destined to do.

Newberry doesn’t know where this road will take him, or the ups and downs still to come, but one thing that is for sure is that he is living a dream, this is his story and it’s only the beginning.

You can follow Newberry on Twitter at twitter.com/brennannewberry or his website at www.brennannewberry.com.

February 25, 2014

Budweiser Duels Set the Field for the Daytona 500

Duel #1

The first Budweiser Duel was a fairly uneventful race. Austin Dillon took the lead at the start and most drivers lined up behind him in more of a “freight train” race. Kevin Harvick and A.J. Allmendinger were on the move with Allmendinger being fairly aggressive in his racecar. Reed Sorenson ended his race after a flat tire caused by issues with a brake caliper that sent him to the garage by halfway.

Matt Kenseth took the lead from Dillon and pretty much never looked back. Dale Earnhardt Jr. gambled on not taking any tires on his pit stop, even though he slid pretty good getting into his pits and flat spotted his tires, hanging on to see if the tires would hold out until the end of the race. The race itself was caution free, with an exciting finish between Matt Kenseth, Kevin Harvick, and Kasey Kahne, with Matt Kenseth coming out the victor of the first duel.

It was announced after the race that Kevin Harvick’s car had failed post race inspection which will send him to the rear of the field for the Daytona 500.

Duel #2

Brad Keselowski took off in the lead and for a while it looked like he was going to be the driver to beat. For the most part the drivers once again were pretty much single file. Kurt Busch had a good run along Landon Cassill and Casey Mears, however Mears would run out of gas with two laps to go. Pit stops took place with 24 laps to go out of the 60 lap race. This would put the end to Brad Keselowski’s good run as he was caught leaving pit road too fast and had to make a drive through penalty.

When pit stops were done, Denny Hamlin emerged as the new leader and took control of the race. As the final laps neared the drivers started to jockey for position and it was only a matter of time before something happened. On the last lap Jimmie Johnson was in the outside lane and ran out of gas triggering a seven car pile-up which would send Clint Bowyer upside down but luckily landing on all four tires instead of flipping more. Other cars involved were Michael Waltrip who took a pretty hard hit into the inside wall, Jamie McMurray, Carl Edwards, David Ragan, and Martin Truex Jr. After the smoke cleared Denny Hamlin was declared the winner.

In closing, seven out of the eight rookies did make it into the Daytona 500. Failing to make the field was Eric McClure, Ryan Truex, Joe Nemechek, Morgan Shepherd, and Michael McDowell. Several cars from the second duel will more than likely need to go to their back up cars sending them to the rear of the field for the Daytona 500 Sunday.

Official Starting Lineup for the Daytona 500 per nascar.com

Drivers marked with “#” signifies a rookie; a “(i)” signifies a driver is not eligible to earn points

Pos	No.	Driver	Sponsor
1	3	Austin Dillon #	DOW Chevrolet
2	78	Martin Truex. Jr.	Furniture Row Chevrolet
3	20	Matt Kenseth	Dollar General Toyota
4	11	Denny Hamlin	FedEx Express Toyota
5	5	Kasey Kahne	Farmers Insurance Chevrolet
6	24	Jeff Gordon	Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet
7	9	Marcos Ambrose	Stanley Ford
8	41	Kurt Busch	Haas Automation Chevrolet
9	88	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	National Guard Chevrolet
10	27	Paul Menard	Peak/Menards Chevrolet
11	98	Josh Wise	Curb Records Ford
12	33	Brian Scott (i)	Whitetail Chevrolet
13	43	Aric Almirola	Smithfield Ford
14	21	Trevor Bayne (i)	Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center Ford
15	47	AJ Allmendinger	Kroger/USO Chevrolet
16	42	Kyle Larson #	Target Chevrolet
17	38	David Gilliland	Love’s Travel Stops Ford
18	40	Landon Cassill (i)	Hillman Racing Chevrolet
19	31	Ryan Newman	Caterpillar Chevrolet
20	15	Clint Bowyer	5-hour Energy Toyota
21	14	Tony Stewart	Bass Pro Shops/Mobil 1 Chevrolet
22	1	Jamie McMurray	McDonald’s Chevrolet
23	26	Cole Whitt #	Speed Stick Gear Toyota
24	32	Terry Labonte	C&J Energy Services Ford
25	16	Greg Biffle	3M Ford
26	52	Bobby Labonte	Phoenix Construction Chevrolet
27	10	Danica Patrick	GoDaddy Chevrolet
28	13	Casey Mears	GEICO Chevrolet
29	23	Alex Bowman #	Dr. Pepper Toyota
30	99	Carl Edwards	Fastenal Ford
31	55	Brian Vickers	Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota
32	48	Jimmie Johnson	Lowe’s Chevrolet
33	2	Brad Keselowski	Miller Lite Ford
34	17	Ricky Stenhouse Jr.	Nationwide Insurance Ford
35	22	Joey Logano	Shell Pennzoil Ford
36	7	Michael Annett #	Pilot/Flying J Travel Centers Chevrolet
37	18	Kyle Busch	M&M’s Toyota
38	4	Kevin Harvick	Budweiser Chevrolet
39	36	Reed Sorenson	Golden Corral Chevrolet
40	51	Justin Allgaier #	Brandt Professional Agriculture Chevrolet
41	30	Parker Kligerman #	Swan Energy Toyota
42	66	Michael Waltrip	BlueDEF/AAA Toyota
43	34	David Ragan	CSX – Play It Safe Ford

Failed to qualify: No. 35 Eric McClure, No. 83 Ryan Truex, No. 87 Joe Nemechek, No. 93 Morgan Shepherd, No. 95 Michael McDowell

Withdrew: No. 77 Dave Blaney

February 21, 2014

Give Austin Dillon a Chance

Sunday afternoon most of us waited for one thing and one thing only and it wasn’t about winning the pole for the Daytona 500. We waited with bated breath for the one thing fans have argued about for a while, the return of the No. 3. Many fans were happy to see it return to the track while just as many felt the hurt and sting as it took to the track.

For many fans, they never wanted to see it back. Actually remembering the promise made by Richard Childress that it would not come back. At the time not realizing there were loopholes with that statement that has brought us to where we are today, fans divided and the car carrying the No. 3 is back. Some fans watched with tears as it went around the track feeling betrayed by Richard Childress Racing, but it was back and fans had no say in it.

Now not only did the car come back but it is sitting on the pole for the biggest race of the year. Some fans are finding that a little hard to swallow, going as far as saying it was fixed by NASCAR for ratings. Which at this point does not even matter. It’s back and not going anywhere. Now it’s time to focus on the things fans can do, which is give Austin Dillon a chance.

Now many fans will not give Austin a chance but hopefully some will. If you think about it from his perspective, there is a lot on his shoulders. How would you like to be the driver and sit in that car knowing the legacy that goes with it? He will have to find a way to create his own legacy in a car that already has a legacy of its own. He needs to figure out how to forge his own path in the racing world and not be in the shadow of the man that made magic in that car, Dale Earnhardt Sr. He needs to prove to fans he deserves to sit behind the wheel of that car and that he will make everyone proud. That is a lot for a young driver to deal with.

My point is this; like it or not the No. 3 is here and Dillon is driving it. We need to think with our heads and not our hearts. Dillon may rise to the occasion and earn the respect of the fans or he may become his own worst enemy sitting in the biggest shoes in NASCAR to date. He won’t be able to do any of that if he isn’t given the chance by the fans.

Dale Earnhardt would want Dillon to be given the chance to prove what he’s got, but he would also expect Dillon to live up to his potential. The jury is out right now, so let’s do the right thing and give Dillon the chance to prove everyone wrong. Let Dillon prove that he deserves to be where he is today, carrying the famous number 3.

February 18, 2014