Author: SM Staff

So, it’s now finally official. The winner of the Carl Edwards sweepstakes is Jack “The Cat In The Hat” Roush.

[media-credit name=”Barry Albert” align=”alignright” width=”287″][/media-credit]The big announcement from Roush Fenway Racing came on Thursday morning that said they had signed a new contract with Edwards. This new agreement was simply described as “a new multi year agreement that begins in 2012.” No official terms of the contract were released and that’s the way it should be. However there was speculation that the agreement was for a period of three to four years which was described as being typical of a Roush Fenway agreement with their drivers.

If this entire process had to be described with just one word, speculation would be a great choice. There was plenty of it especially when we realized that Edwards’ next step in his career had become a bidding war between Roush Fenway Racing, (RFR) and Joe Gibbs Racing, (JGR).

The NASCAR silly season, the annual period of time when speculation runs wild regarding potential driver changes, started early this year because of Edwards. He absolutely topped the list of silly season candidates. That’s only natural. On the track Edwards is one of the best in the business. He currently has a better than great chance of winning his first NASCAR Sprint Cup championship and halt that five year title streak held by Jimmie Johnson. Off the track he has a huge fan base and that translates into some impressive revenue from the sale of souvenir merchandise. When it comes to promoting his sponsors he considered to be a public relations gold mine. He makes the multi detailed process of participating in sponsor advertising campaigns look incredibly easy. There’s not a team in the entire NASCAR garage that wouldn’t want this driver’s services.

The fires of speculation got super hot in the late spring when it was revealed that JGR was “courting” Edwards in an attempt to sign him. That speculation said he would be taking over the JGR #20 Home Depot Toyota beginning next year. There was also speculation that said JGR had offered Edwards an $8 million salary base plus a $10 million signing bonus. Do the math. That’s $18 million in the driver’s pocket for the 2012 racing season.

Seemingly alarmed that there may an element of truth to the JGR offer, the Ford Motor Company stepped into the Edwards contract negotiation. On July 31st there was some confirmation from Kevin Kennedy, Director of Ford Racing Communication, that said Ford had taken “unprecedented measures to keep Carl Edwards at Roush Fenway Racing adding “we’ve helped out with an offer we have never done before for another driver. We’ve been in racing for 110 years and I don’t think we’ve ever done this before.” Kennedy, as expected, offered no details regarding what the offer exactly was but did say that they considered Carl Edwards to be “the face of Ford Racing” and wanted him to remain at RFR.

Meanwhile, back at the JGR headquarters, there was speculation that said Home Depot was more than one hundred percent behind any and all efforts to get Edwards in the seat of their race car. That speculation also said that Home Depot was more than tired of taking a NASCAR back seat to their largest competitor Lowes Home Improvement Centers the sponsor of Jimmie Johnson’s five consecutive Sprint Cup championships. It seems that Home Depot was especially tired of being referred to as: “that OTHER home improvement center of NASCAR”. One even has to think that Home Depot officials winced a little as they watched Paul Menard win his first ever Cup race in a car sponsored by Menard’s Home Improvement Stores, one of their larger regional competitors.

Eventually the bony finger of speculation pointed at Joey Logano, the current driver of the JGR-Home Depot #20 Toyota. From the very beginning of his NASCAR Sprint Cup career, the media dubbed him “the best thing since sliced bread.” But in recent weeks there was some mean spirited speculation that claimed “the bread” may have developed some mold and Logano’s days with JGR might be numbered. All during this time Logano, and crew chief Greg Zipadelli, continually stated that no one had said a word to them regarding a change in their status for next year. That was quickly reinforced by J D Gibbs, JGR President, who said Logano would remain an integral part of their new four team operation if indeed they did sign Edwards.

But the speculation theorists reminded us that a fourth JGR team would require signing a major sponsor. At the end of July came a rumor that stated Napa Auto Parts was going to terminate their long term association with Michael Waltrip Racing and were going to spend their “Napa Know How” money with JGR as the sponsor of their fourth team driven by Logano. That speculation was quickly quashed by a spokesman from Waltrip Racing who reminded us that their contract with the auto parts chain was through the 2012 season and Napa was fully committed to honoring the deal.

In the final days of July, heading into early August, the speculation really became amped up. There was a rumor that said Edwards had actually been seen in a bright orange racing shirt participating in a publicity photo shoot inside of an undisclosed Home Depot store.

There was also speculation that said Edwards planned to announce his future plans in September during the NASCAR weekend at the Atlanta Motor Speedway. That’s when the speculation theorists went into overdrive. They quickly pointed out that the Edwards announcement would be made at this time because the official corporate headquarters of Home Depot is located in -you guessed it-Atlanta-Georgia.

All through this maze of speculation, Carl Edwards remained tight lipped about his contract negotiations and made it crystal clear that his focus was placed on winning more races this season and capturing the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup championship. Good for him. Contract negotiations should conducted in the private offices of a racing team and not in some public arena such as a track media center. Edwards also made it clear that the only contract he has signed was with Jack Roush three years ago.

Also very quiet through this process were officials from AFLAC Insurance, Edwards’ long time primary sponsor. Their contract with RFR also ends this year and is the next major focal point of the negotiating process. It’s widely believed that AFLAC wants to remain with Edwards and were patiently waiting for his decision. It’s also widely believed that they were prepared to move to JGR with him if that’s what he decided. Even the seemingly unflappable AFLAC Duck had nothing to say concerning Edwards’ next career move.

Now it’s all over. The decision has been made and Carl Edwards can move on to the most important piece of business of all: winning the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup championship. But wasn’t it fun to examine all of these clues while trying to determine how this story was going to end? I know I enjoyed it. It was almost like watching an episode of “Law And Order.”

There’s one remaining piece of speculation that needs to be cleared up. That would be the rumor that said the AFLAC Duck, this past Thursday, flew over the Joe Gibbs Racing headquarters and dropped some “pellets” on their front porch. That untrue speculation was the handy work of my long time racing buddy, “Six Pack Eddie” who likes to spend the wee hours of the morning sending “Twitter” messages when he should be getting some sleep.

The tricky triangle to the second power simply means that NASCAR’s Sprint Cup teams will be making their second visit of the year to one of the most challenging tracks on their schedule: the Pocono Raceway and Sunday’s running of the Good Sam RV Insurance 500.

[media-credit name=”Ed Coombs” align=”alignright” width=”225″][/media-credit]Located in Long Pond-Pennsylvania, this 2.5 mile three turn, triangular shaped, speedway can easily tax the patience of both the drivers and the crew chiefs. For the drivers, 500 miles around this track is physically demanding. Over the years there has been well versed opinions among the Sprint Cup drivers that said the distance of the two annual Pocono events should be shortened to 400 miles. The other element the drivers will have to deal with on Sunday is the unique shape of the track. It has one extremely long straightaway with two shorter straights in between the nearly flat three turns.

The Pocono Raceway is equally tough on crew chiefs because the track’s massive size and unique shape will be extremely demanding on their car’s engines and transmissions. A proper gear selection is a must for these crew chiefs because they’re only going to have one shot getting it right. The crew chiefs will also have to deal with handling issues all day long because it’s virtually impossible to get a car’s set up perfect for the entire track. They will have to decide which part of the track where their drivers will need superior handling and where handling sacrifices may have to be made.

Track position is always going to be important at any NASCAR Sprint Cup venue. On a massive 2.5 mile track this element is going to be crucial. Drivers will have to push their cars to the edge during qualifying to gain the best starting position and best pit stall selection possible. During the race there will be additional pressure on the pit crews to get their driver out as quickly as possible in order to gain track position.

Any one of the drivers and teams who can master all of these elements, and get them as close to perfect as the track will allow, will develop “Pocono Power” and will have a genuine shot at parking in victory lane. For the teams who struggle with these elements it could turn out to be a long day in Long Pond.

THE LAS VEGAS BREAKDOWN

This week we turn to the professionals from “The Las Vegas Insider”, (LVI), to take a look at their numbers so we can determine who may have “Pocono Power” and who may have that unfortunate long day in Long Pond.

To no real surprise Jimmie Johnson, and the #48 Hendrick Motorsports team, tops the LVI list this week at 4 to 1 odds. Johnson is second in the current championship standings only 11 points away from first and is also a previous race winner. With only six races remaining, before the cut off date that determines the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Chase for the Championship, his starting berth in the Chase seems to be assured and his determination to win a sixth, consecutive, championship also appears to be on track. This is also a racing organization that will arriving in Pennsylvania this week with “Pocono Power.” Johnson’s numbers there are very strong and includes two wins, seven top five finishes, 13 top ten finishes and a very healthy average finish ratio, (AFR), of 9.3.

Second on the LVI list this week is another Hendrick Motorsports driver. Jeff Gordon, at 5 to 1 odds, is literally loaded with “Pocono Power.” He’s a five time winner at the tricky triangle and, over the years, has collected 17 top fives, 26 top tens along with an AFR of 10.3. His Chase status also appears to be locked in. He’s a two time race winner this year and is currently seventh in the championship standings. Like his team mate, Johnson, he’s a rock solid wager consideration.

Denny Hamlin is ranked third by the LVI this week and backed with 6 to 1 odds. Despite a surprisingly rough start to the 2011 season, Hamlin worked his way to tenth in the points standings only to fall back to 11th following a disappointing outing at Indianapolis last Sunday. He’s a previous race winner this year and if he can find a second win it could possibly lock him into the top ten and a Chase berth or at least guarantee him one of the two wild card berths. That could happen this Sunday because Hamlin also has “Pocono Power.” He’s a four time winner there with seven top fives, eight top tens and a healthy AFR 9.2.

At 7 to 1 odds you will find Tony Stewart. A top ten last Sunday moved him to ninth in the points standings but he needs that elusive first win of the season to make a Chase berth a little more secure. That could happen at Pocono because he’s a two time winner there and has nine top fives, 18 top tens and his AFR is 11.9. Stewart is a very solid wager consideration this Sunday.

At 8 to 1 odds is current points leader Carl Edwards who is another previous race winner this year who also has “Pocono Power.” His driver stats there includes two wins, five top fives, six top tens and a 14.3 AFR. One might think that Edwards may be somewhat distracted by the drama of his contract status and what team he’s going to drive for in 2012. But it appears that whenever he puts his racing helmet on the distraction goes away. At 8 to 1 he’s a solid wager consideration.

In the LVI’s 10 to 1 group you will find the tandem of Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick both, of whom, are three time race winners this year and certainly are bound for the Chase line up. Kyle Busch’s numbers at Pocono are not that strong. He’s still looking for his first win there, only has three top five finishes and a marginal AFR of 18.6. The difference maker here is this driver’s talent and that’s why he’s ranked at 10 to 1. Harvick is also seeking his first Pocono win. In the past he’s logged five top five finishes and has an AFR of 14.0. Both of these drivers are very good long shot wager considerations.

The LVI has Kurt Busch ranked at 12 to 1 odds for the Pocono race and he could also become a good long shot wager. At sixth in the points standings, with a win, his Chase standings appear to be solid and he’s free to concentrate on collecting more wins. His “Pocono Power” includes two wins, eight top fives, 11 top tens and a 16.1 AFR.

The LVI’s middle tier is led by Matt Kenseth at 15 to 1. He’s fifth in the points with two wins meaning he’s also virtually free to pursue victory lane without worrying about his Chase status. Kenseth is still seeking his first Pocono win but he does have three top fives there and a 14.1 AFR.

Listed at 18 to 1 odds are drivers Greg Biffle and Clint Bowyer who are 13th and 12th respectively in the points. Biffle is the defending race champion. However, he’s still win less this year and if he’s going to make the Chase he needs a win right now. In fact two wins over the next six races would be a big help. The same scenario applies to Bowyer.

At 25 to 1 you will find the trio of Dale Earnhardt Jr, Ryan Newman and Jamie McMurray. Earnhardt’s free fall from third to tenth in the points has been well documented. He badly needs a win, or at least a very strong finish, to insure he doesn’t fall out of the top ten and hamper his Chase position. Unfortunately Pocono may not be the track for him. He’s win less there but does have five top finishes. His Pocono AFR is 17.4. Newman is in much better shape in terms of the Chase. He’s eighth in the standings with a previous win. He also has good Pocono numbers that includes a win, six top fives, eight top tens and a 13.1 AFR

In the next LVI group is Joey Logano at 30 to 1. At 35 to 1 are a quarter of drivers featuring Mark Martin, Juan Pablo Montoya, Jeff Burton and Kasey Kahne who is a former Pocono winner. From this group Mark Martin stands out as being the most interesting. He’s never won at Pocono but he has finished second there six times. He also holds the series records for most top five finishes at 19 and most top tens at 33. This is backed with a healthy 11.2 AFR. If you have a tendency to stretch your wager budget to include a legitimate long shot then Martin is your driver.

In the bottom tier of this week’s LVI rankings you will find drivers David Reutimann, Brian Vickers, Martin Truex Jr, David Ragan and A J Allmendinger at 40 to 1. All by himself, at 50 to 1, is Brad Keselowski who will be playing hurt on Sunday. Keselowski was at Road Atlanta on Wednesday for a test session when he slammed nose first into a retaining wall, without a SAFER barrier, at approximately 100 MPH. Penske Racing engineers said an apparent brake failure was responsible for the incident. He was airlifted to an area hospital with abrasions and a badly swollen right foot. The X-rays on the foot foot were negative. Keselowski said he will be in the car at Pocono on Sunday.

Closing out the list this week is Paul Menard, last Sunday’s first time winner, at 60 to 1 followed by Marcos Ambrose at 80 to 1, Bobby Labonte at 100 to 1 and Regan Smith at 150 to 1. If you don’t see the name of your favorite driver on this listing that means the LVI has placed them in their all others category at 50 to 1 odds.

Now for the disclaimer: NASCAR wants to remind you that these posted numbers are for informational and entertainment purposes. They neither encourage nor condone the placing of wagers on their events. But if you’re going to do it anyway, and many of you are, then you at least have the opinions of the professionals from the “Las Vegas Insider” to help you make an informed opinion.

If you do change your mind about placing a wager, then you might want to consider sending a contribution to NASCAR Nationwide Series veteran Morgan Shepherd and his Faith Motorsports team. The word from the garage says that, unless something turns around within the next two races, Shepherd may have to put his team up for sale. This 69 year old inspirational man should leave NASCAR racing because he decided to retire and not because he was forced to quit.

THE RACE BREAKDOWN

The Good Sam RV Insurance 500 is 200 laps/500 miles around the Pocono Raceway’s mammoth 2.5 mile triangle shaped track.

The race has 47 entries. 12 of those entries are on the go or go home list meaning they are not guaranteed a start in the race because they are currently outside of NASCAR’s top 35 in owner’s points. These teams will have to rely on qualifying speed to earn a berth in the starting line up.

Believe it or not, the Pocono Raceway opened in 1968 as a three quarter mile oval. The mammoth facility we now today ran its first race in 1971.

The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was held there in 1974 and was won by Richard Petty. Since that time there has been 66 Cup races at Pocono that has sent 29 different winners to victory lane. Bill Elliot holds the track record for most wins at five. Hendrick Motorsports holds the track record for most team wins at 11.

Track position is extremely important while racing on a facility of this size. The track qualifying record, 172.533 MPH, was set by Kasey Kahne back in June of 2004. Of the 66 Sprint Cup races held at Pocono, 13 of them have been won from the pole position while 47 of 66 has been won from staring positions within the top ten. Only four races has been won from starting positions outside of the top 20.

The Pocono Raceway is known as the tricky triangle but, if you look at an aerial photo of the track, it actually resembles a giant coat hanger. It’s basically a three turn flat track. There’s 14 degrees of banking in turn one, eight degrees in turn 2 also known as the tunnel turn and six degrees in turn three. The track’s primary straightaway measures 3,740 feet. The Long Pond straight, between turns one and two, is 3,055 feet long while the North straight, between turns two and three, only measures 1,780.

The pit road speed is 55 MPH. The estimated pit window is 32 to 34 laps. The speedway presently has seating for 100,000 fans.

The weather could become an obstacle during the NASCAR weekend at Pocono. The Long Pond-Pennsylvania forecast calls for a 30 percent chance of rain and thunderstorms on Saturday evening and a 40 percent chance of precipitation on race day Sunday. The Pocono Raceway has a fleet of ten jet dryers that can completely dry the track in about two hours.

The Good Sam RV Insurance 500 will be broadcast live by ESPN beginning at 1 pm eastern time. The re air will be Wednesday, August 10th, at 12 pm eastern on the SPEED Channel.

by Steve Samples

It was a warm fall day in Mount Airy, NC, in late September of nineteen sixty two.

I was eleven years old. In 1961 I had attended my first stock car race. It was the inaugural event at Bristol International Speedway. Like most young boys that age my interest in sports was just beginning. I’d recently moved from West Virginia to North Carolina. My seldom combed blonde hair and pronunciation of the word “on” was not being well received by new classmates. I suppose I’m stubborn. To this day I’ve never turned a light “own.”

The significance of this particular Sunday was a NASCAR race in Martinsville, Virginia. One year earlier I had discovered a love for racing. Two years before my dad had begun listening to stock car races on the radio which ignited my interest. In those days people rooted for makes of cars not drivers. Most people anyway. In my case I always liked the underdog. And since my family drove Fords, there were plenty of them to choose from. In ‘61 the Pontiacs of Fireball Roberts, David Pearson, Junior Johnson and others were the terror of the speedways. Their larger displacement engines out horse powered the Fords and Chevys. The MOPAR crowd was competitive on the short tracks, but seldom a threat at the superspeedways. So dominant were the powerful Pontiacs that they would often fill the first half dozen or more spots in qualifying. Most of the driver’s had simply accepted this competitive plight, be they Ford or Chrysler. Most, but not all.

Ford had this sandy haired guy who had signed a contract with Holman and Moody the year before. His hair was frequently tousled. He was an outsider. He came from the north. I could identify.

Back in ’61 I had heard him in a post-race interview. “I won this race to show everyone a Ford is just as good as a Pontiac,” he said. The comment was like Davy Crockett announcing he just shot a Mexican at the Alamo. But I liked it. Bravado in the face of the neighborhood bullies.

Before 1961 ended I was a dyed in the wool Fred Lorenzen fan. And so were a lot of other people. As 1962 rolled around the disparity in competition remained. The “Pontiac Pack” as they were called, relied on the brute force of their 421 cubic inch engines, while Ford’s 406 and Chevys 409 struggled to keep up. A repeat of 1961 appeared to be on the way.

There was however one advantage for the underpowered Fords. Handling. And on the half mile turns of Atlanta and the short tracks, the Fords showed their mettle. The promise of a Ford win at Martinsville that September day was thus a realistic possibility.

I had tossed and turned the night before that fall morning excited about the next day’s events. I would be attending this race with my father, my buddy Chuck Early, and his dad Ed. Although the race was not scheduled to start until 1PM, and the track only an hour away, we left at daybreak.

As we negotiated the twisty roads from Mount Airy to Martinsville,Chuck and I took notice of a seemingly never ending series of posters advertising the race. “The Old Dominion 500 Martinsville Speedway –September 25, 1962.”It seemed with every sign the excitement grew. After what seemed to be an eternity we arrived at the track. It must have been around eight AM when we pulled in close to the box office. Tickets had been reserved for us by Chuck’s uncle Clay, who just happened to own the race track. Row six at the start finish line. Six dollars a seat. After picking up the tickets we walked toward the fourth turn gate. Just inside the gate was a man standing in front of a velvet board attached to an easel. The board contained pin on buttons with driver’s photos. They had only eight or so drivers to choose from. One of them was Fred Lorenzen. My dad bought me a button for fifty cents. It was one of my great treasures. I must have worn that pin to school for two months. After we found our seats and settled in, a man selling peanuts walked by. He was a heavy set man in his 30’s. His hair was solid white and he wore thick black horn rimmed glasses. As he walked past us he must have noticed my button. Staring at me he said slowly in a sing song voice, “Feeeearless Freddie, ‘gonna eat up Petty.” There was no expression on his face and he continued to walk. I smiled and sat down. Ed then made an observation. “This will be a great place to be at the start of the race, and a great place to be at the finish. Now all that time in between, I don’t know.” For Chuck and I it was just the place to be. We watched mechanics probing engines in the garage area for hours. We scoured the area looking for our favorite drivers, Fred Lorenzen and Joe Weatherly. At the same time a steady stream of cars was being ushered to the infield. It seemed like an eternity but the race cars were finally rolled out. Right in front of us on the track was a painted grid which marked where cars would start the race. There were white rectangles the size of a car plotted in sets of two. The grid continued from the starting line toward the fourth turn where we lost site.

As one o’clock approached the driver’s climbed in their cars and drove to the middle of the second turn. The PA announcer introduced them one at a time and each car proceeded around the track to their place on the marked grid. I remember asking my father if I could go down to the fence and ask Freddie for his autograph. He put his hand on my shoulder and said,

“He’s a bundle of nerves right now. Let’s wait till after the race. We’ll find him and you can get an autograph then.” When the commentator eventually said, “start your engines,”I felt like I had been there a month. But it was a good month. A never ending trove of racing treasure to view. A never ending series of questions directed to my father.

When the green flag fell the noise was deafening. I had been to Bristol, but viewed the race at a distance. Although we attended the spring Martinsville race and the Firecracker 250 in Daytona during the summer, the sound seemed to resonate at an even higher level. I remember watching the cars circle the track for what seemed like days. At one point I looked up and saw lap 80 on the board. Could that be right? All this time and only 80 laps went by? In those days there was a scoreboard on top of turn one. It showed laps completed and the top five drivers’ in a horizontal listing. If the car you were following was out of the top five, you had better be keeping a keen eye on its place in the field. That day Freddie and Joe seemed to be running between fifth and tenth all day. Each would appear on the board from time to time, and then drop off. As the laps progressed Fireball Roberts took the lead in his gold Pontiac. Coming up behind was Lorenzen. Soon the two began to rub. Fred banged the bumper of the big GM car in his white Ford. The crowd loved it. You could hear their roar over the racing engines. Finally the banging got too severe. Lorenzen knocked a hole in his radiator and the Holman-Moody Ford began to smoke. A lap later it was over for the Golden Boy. But damage had occurred to the Pontiac as well. Roberts would soon end his day with damage sustained in the incident. Nelson Stacy would go on to win the race in a Ford.

True to his word my father took us to the pits to run down Fred Lorenzen for me, and Joe Weatherly for Chuck. There seemed to be driver’s everywhere, but those two had escaped us. In frustration we finally left for the short drive back to Mount Airy, listening to the race wrap up on a small transistor radio. As we reached the fourth turn exit I noticed someone that looked familiar. It was a young race driver with blonde hair carrying a large suitcase. The case had side by side duel handles. He held one handle with his left hand, while someone on the other side gripped the matching handle. To this day I have no idea what was in that case, but it must have been heavy. Chuck and I followed them a short way, with our parents trailing. Finally I managed the nerve to stop them. Approaching from behind I said, “Mr. Lorenzen can I have your autograph?” Both men stopped. As he turned toward me I handed Fred a picture post card I had brought to the race. It was a card of his ’62 Ford taken at Daytona. My father quickly walked up and handed him a fountain pen. Fred knelt to use his knee to rest the card as he wrote. He asked my name. As he signed the card, I mentioned a post-race interview I had just heard from Fireball. During the interview Roberts remarked how,“the only thing that banging incident with Lorenzen proved is that the back end of a Pontiac is tougher than the front end of a Ford.”Fred replied in a somewhat monotone, yet slightly cynical voice, “Did he say that?” I confirmed the comment and then quickly changed the subject. “I’ve been a fan of yours since 1961.” That was all of a year, but it seemed like forever for an 11 year old. Fred responded, “That’s as long as I’ve been running Ford’s.” We finally parted company and went our separate ways. I had no idea he would go on to re-write the NASCAR record book. Just five years later when he retired at 32, Fred Lorenzen had become the all-time superspeedway winner with a dozen victories at Daytona, Charlotte, Atlanta, Darlington, and Rockingham.He was the first driver to win races at all five of the South’s original superspeedways. And the first driver to win $100,000 in a season. He would also win three straight Atlanta 500’s, and five consecutive major races. All records at the time. And the firsts will stand forever.

I couldn’t help but think about that September day when I was informed recently Fred Lorenzen had been hospitalized with dementia. His long term memory is still keen, but recent events seem blurred. That blond headed hero to thousands of kids. NASCAR’s version of the,“Lone Ranger.” Always chasing the bad guys in his familiar pearl white Ford, and seemingly never losing a battle. So young and full of energy. So talented. It seems like only yesterday.