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Jimmie Johnson: More of the Same, Yet Different

NASCAR Championship week in Las Vegas has culminated yet again in the crowning of Jimmie Johnson as the Sprint Cup Champion. And while it might feel like more of the same old same old with Johnson as the now five time champion, there is still a feeling in the air that this year is somehow different.

[media-credit name=”Barry Albert” align=”alignleft” width=”300″][/media-credit]Sure, Johnson’s consistency and resiliency have served him well, as it has since he won his first championship in 2006. Amazingly, his statistics during that period, from race wins, poles, top five, top ten and average finishes have all remained steadfastly and almost eerily consistent, especially with the resultant championships.

Johnson’s partnership with crew chief Chad Knaus has been another source of sameness and constancy and is in fact the only driver/crew chief relationship that was not changed for next year by team owner Rick Hendrick. Their partnership has garnered the pair an absolute place in the NASCAR history books and whispers of the greatest driver and crew chief in the sport today abound.

Throughout it all and in spite of all the pressure, there is one other thing that also has remained the same throughout Johnson’s championship runs, that of his laid-back, California-style personality. Even in the midst of the most hotly contested Chase this year, including some heavy-duty trash talking from his competitors, the five-time champion never flinched, keeping his focus clear and his emotions in check.

Yet in spite of all of these similarities, resulting in yet again another championship for an historic fifth time in a row, this 2010 Chase and Johnson’s participation in it has somehow also been very different.

Perhaps the biggest difference is that, unlike other years where Johnson literally ran away with the season leading up to the Chase and the Chase itself, he and his team actually struggled. No one knew that or acknowledged it any better than Chad Knaus, who had the best view of the struggles from atop the pit box.

“This year, we didn’t have the product that we had in previous years in terms of race cars,” Knaus admitted. “So we had to find other ways to win.”

Johnson admitted similar feelings, particularly when it came to the speed of his race cars. He did, however, note one important and somewhat new mitigating factor, that of the blood, sweat, and tears that he and his entire team had to put into the season to accomplish the same results as in the past.

“I think this year we showed what this team is made of,” Johnson said. “We may not have had the most speed, but we had the most heart.”

In addition to the most heart, Johnson and especially his crew chief also had an incredible measure of courage and some would say cojones. This was most evident when, in the middle of a race when Johnson’s crew was not performing well, Knaus replaced them quickly with Jeff Gordon’s crew, who became available after the much-heralded wreck between him and Jeff Burton that took Gordon out of the race.

Given these struggles, Johnson, Knaus and company found themselves in another different and unusual place, that of not being on the top of the points defending their championship during the final race of the season. Instead, the No. 48 driver and team were in all-out, having to win the race mode in order to secure their next place in the sport’s history.

The prime example of this is the fact that Knaus, who had had at least a draft of his speech ready going into Homestead in prior years, admitted that he was completely unprepared and still tweaking his banquet speech.

“In the past, I’ve had about a week or so to start thinking about my speech,” Knaus said. “This time it was like Lap 267 in Miami.”

Probably the biggest difference this year for Johnson as he accepts yet another shiny Sprint Cup trophy, is that he now has not only his wife Chandra but also baby girl Genevieve with whom to share it all. In fact, a common sight during this week’s Championship festivities in Las Vegas has been Johnson, lugging his baby’s car seat, if not cuddling with the princess herself, all over town.

“I am trying to be much more responsible since I have the baby,” Johnson said. “It means a lot to me to have her here and it’s a great experience to share it with my family. She will never remember it but we will have photos.”

All of these things combined, especially the new baby, have led Johnson to a most different championship year, in spite of the same old result. Yet one thing will remain the same, at least from Chad Knaus’ perspective, and that is the need to get back to it quickly in preparation for the 2011 season.

“Here’s the facts. We have started preparing at Hendrick Motorsports for next year,” Knaus said. “We are full force to make sure that we take a better product to the race track next year and it’s going to be so. We are hard at it.”

Johnson will be hard at it himself as well. After enjoying his first Christmas with his new baby girl, he will shortly be back on the track, from testing for the upcoming Daytona 500 to racing in the 2011 Rolex 24.

“Really, I just want to be home and enjoy what we’ve accomplished,” Johnson said. “It’s going to go by quick.”

December 3, 2010
Dale Jr, HMS working on contract extension

Even though Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s current deal isn’t expected to expire until 2012, Rick Hendrick has confirmed to ESPN.com’s David Newton that the two parties are working out a new contract extension already.

Shortly after finishing their first full season together at the No. 88 Amp Energy/National camp, Lance McGrew and Earnhardt were one of three teams to be involved in the latest swap at Hendrick Motorsports. Next year, Earnhardt’s cars will be built in the same shop as five-time and reigning Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson. The Kannapolis, N.C.-native will also have Steve Letarte calling the shots atop of his pit box, his third crew chief change since he joined the organization in 2008.

“We’re looking at extending it,” Hendrick told ESPN.com. “I really like him. I think the world of him. I know he can do it. We just have to get the right combination in, and I think we’re going to have it.

“I hope we get to race together until he retires … until I retire. I’ll retire first,” he said.

Earnhardt will be looking to make the chase in 2011, to prevent missing his third consecutive chase. He pinpointed his confidence as his biggest problem and that he can help himself more than anyone else can help him.

“The only person that can truly help me get where I need to go starts with me, then it goes to Rick, Steve [Letarte] and those guys in your inner circle every week and in your corner every week,” Earnhardt said.

“My biggest problem, I think, is my confidence.”

Earnhardt was awarded the Chex Most Popular Driver award for an eighth straight year on Thursday. He finished 21st in the Sprint Cup Series points standings and is in the midst of a 93-race winless streak.

December 3, 2010
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Wins Most Popular Driver Award & Talks about his Future

Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the NMPA Hamburger Helper Most Popular Driver Award for the 8th consecutive year. He accepted the award on Thursday in Las Vegas at the NASCAR NMPA Myers Brothers 2010 Awards Luncheon.

Earnhardt Jr. began by saying that receiving the award was “a great honor” but first he wanted to congratulate his teammate Jimmie Johnson. He joked about forgetting to congratulate him last year adding that Rick Hendrick had already sent him a text message to remind him to do so.

[media-credit name=”Dale Earnhardt Jr. accepts his eighth consecutive Hamburger Helper Most Popular Driver Award during the NASCAR NMPA Myers Brothers Awards Ceremony on Thursday. Photo by CIA Stock Photo” align=”alignleft” width=”300″][/media-credit]He went on to congratulate General Mills, NMPA, his sponsors and his team but his most heartfelt thanks went to his fans.

“They really make everything about this sport, about this very moment here, possible for all of us,” said Earnhardt.

After the luncheon, Earnhardt Jr. spoke with the media about the 2011 season with new crew chief Steve Letarte.

He described learning about the crew chief change saying, “It’s like knowing what you’re getting for Christmas, but not being able to mess with it until that morning.”

But he also acknowledged that the real change will begin with the driver himself.

“The only person that can truly help me get where I need to go, obviously, starts with me, Earnhardt Jr. said. “Then it goes to Rick (Hendrick), Steve and those guys that are your inner circle every week and that are in your corner every week.

“My biggest problem, I think, is my confidence. I know what I’ve done in the past. I know that I’ve out run and beat these guys that I compete with each week before and I just have to remember that the potential is there.”

Earnhardt Jr. also believes “there’s a swagger that you have to have,” and the only way he will be able to get that back is to put together some tops five runs.

“To convince myself to get back to where I need to be confidence wise, I need to see it happen on the track. I can’t just talk myself into going to the track thinking the way I need to think. I’m going to go there and mash the gas and it needs to happen. When it happens, then I’ll go, ‘Yeah, this is what it’s supposed to be like’ and then you kind of get the swagger back and the confidence comes back and everything is rock solid. You win battles, little battles throughout the day with that confidence that you normally don’t win whether it’s with yourself or your competition out on the race track. There are thousands of battles happen throughout the race.”

Many believe Earnhardt Jr.’s problems on the racetrack began with the introduction of the COT and he admits that it “has been challenging.”

“But I think the potential for the car to get the grip and get the feel of the race track that I need is there because I’ve had it before. We just missed it. The cars are just not into the track to get the speed and get the grip that I feel like I need to get. We haven’t been able to find what that combination is, whether it’s a package in the springs or the sway bars, which it probably isn’t. We’re missing something for the car and the feel that I need to feel. It could be anything related to the car even before it comes into the crew chief’s hands, we just have to see.”

Although the last few years have been difficult for Dale Jr., he’s not looking for your pity. Instead, he is looking ahead to the future and the opportunity to prove himself.

“I don’t think I should win any sympathy votes. We need to perform. We need to be hard on ourselves to how poorly we ran at times last year. We need to force ourselves and push ourselves to improve and that’s what we try to do every offseason. Physically and mentally it can be kind of tough on you but you just kind of rebound and renew yourself in the offseason and renew your faith in your abilities.”

December 3, 2010
Rick Hendrick: The Artwork of a NASCAR Champion and Someone To Always Respect

When it was announced last year at the Sprint Cup Series banquet that Rick Hendrick would be receiving Bill France Award of Excellence, nobody was surprised.

[media-credit name=”CIA Stock Photo” align=”alignleft” width=”300″][/media-credit]Everybody understood why Hendrick was receiving the award, as his actions through his 26 years in the sport speak for themselves. Hendrick has proven himself on-track as he’s made Hendrick Motorsports the best team in NASCAR.

Though beyond that, he’s been through a lot of personal battles and stayed strong as he fought a battle with leukemia in 1997, and fought through the death of 10 of his closest friends in 2009.

The success for Hendrick through the 26 seasons has been great, considering where it started and how it could’ve not even taken place. Hendrick and driver Geoff Bodine went into the Martinsville race in 1984 with one thing on their mind—run well or else they’d be done soon.

“It was a pivotal race for us,” Hendrick later told The Sporting News in a 2004 interview. “I know exactly what some of these guys feel like who have an unsponsored car—we did not have a sponsor. We had a small associate on the car, All-Star Racing and City Chevrolet, my store in Charlotte. We were running the deal out of our pocket and needed some success to sell a sponsor.”

Bodine would do more then just run well and lock in some sponsorship—he’d win the whole show as he took the lead with 48 laps to go and never looked back.

“The race just unfolded,” Bodine said. “We were running good. I knew you had to pace yourself at this track; brakes were really important. I was doing that throughout the race. At the end, it was just perfect. The neat thing about the race was it was Rick’s first win, my first win; but no one fell out of this race. None of the good cars were out.”

Hendrick wasn’t there for the race as at the time, he was in church with his wife. After the race was over, he called his mother and asked him how they had done. His mother told him, “Bodine blew up…no seriously! Nobody has told you! He won!”

That year, Hendrick and Bodine finished the year with a total of three wins, seven top-fives, 14 top-10s and three pole positions.

Since then, the success has only grown for Hendrick as his drivers have won 194 Cup races and 10 Cup titles.

In the process, he’s also set records. In 2010, driver Jimmie Johnson became the only driver ever in NASCAR history to win five championships in a row (2006-2010) and Hendrick now ranks at the top of the all-time winners list.

Last year, Hendrick also became the only driver to have his cars finish one-two-three with Johnson first, Mark Martin second and Gordon third. The size of the organization has also grown along the way as he went from a small shop of approximately 20 people to now employing more than 500 people.

Though when it came to Betty Jane France’s speech to announcing the award to Hendrick, it was not the stats she brought up; it was the other elements of Hendrick.

“NASCAR has had many iconic figures throughout its rich history, and Rick Hendrick certainly falls into that category,” France said. “Through the years, he has not only won our respect but our hearts as well.” These words from France were preceded also by praise from two of his drivers during their speeches at the banquet.

“You taught me to live big and small—live big in your passion for what you do, what you believe in and in your successes, but be humble and appreciative and give thanks for all those things,” Jeff Gordon said during his speech.

Martin said in his speech he sees “a little bit of Rick Hendrick in each and every one of” the employees of the team and went on to add, “You just win everything there is in NASCAR. You made history, win all these championships. You’re a big winner. Congratulations and thanks for letting me be a part of it. But that’s not the most impressive part of it. To me, you’re a true champion as a person, such an incredible individual that affects so many people in a positive way. I’d like to be more like you.”

These elements that both Gordon and Martin speak about go towards the way that he treats the people around him.

During discussions about the sport, you hear people getting talked about in a negative way somehow. Though in the midst of those discussions, nobody has anything negative to say towards Hendrick, as most people respect him and always regard him as a positive person. This is because he always treats people—no matter who they are or what their background is—positively and with respect. Hendrick is a person that you never see talk bad about people, even when others may.

One example would be Kyle Busch,

a driver whom Hendrick released in 2007. Everybody speaks of Busch in a negative light, due to how he’s reacted on track with his attitude. Everybody thought Hendrick let him go and did it due to that attitude and didn’t want to deal with him.

Though according to Busch’s manager Jeff Dickerson, it was Hendrick who gave Busch and Dickerson the best advice in choosing a new team for Busch to go with. Dickerson recalled going to Hendrick numerous times to ask him questions and Hendrick would always be open to answering them. Dickerson credited Hendrick for being one of the main players in the changing of the teams. Busch also went on to add that nobody was to sit and blame Hendrick for letting Busch go, as that was partly the fault of Busch.

The reason Hendrick had let him go and hired Earnhardt Jr. was because Busch was hinting that he was looking around, when actually he was liking the scenario at Hendrick Motorsports.

So why does Hendrick have the theory to go out and be nice to everybody, even if they’re on an opposing team? Simple—it’s all about the people for him. When speaking of the success of his organization, he always feels the need to bring up the people first.

“I think our people are the biggest asset,” he says. “If you can keep it together and tweak it, it’s much better off than tearing it down and rebuilding it every year. It slows you down.

“I’ve seen this happen in my career here. You can have all stars together; there’s no guarantee they’ll work. I mean, you can guess the best so called crew chief and best driver in the garage area and put them together, and that’s not necessarily going to work. You know, what I’ve tried to do is promote tweaking it rather than rebuilding it. I’m a fix it kind of guy rather than a strip-it-and-rebuild-it kind of guy.”

This attitude is what drives the employees to work so hard and why you’ll see Hendrick employees putting that extra effort in, according to Johnson, Alan Gustafson and General Manager Marshall Carlson.

“It starts with Rick and his vision and what he has given us all to work with in his 25 years in the sport,” Johnson says. “He’s just done an amazing job. I’m happy to make him happy, I’m happy to make him smile.”

“The way that he goes about keeping us going, he’s got one requisite, and that is that we race together, and that’s absolutely imperative,” Carlson adds. “Beyond that, he gives everyone a lot of flexibility and a lot of autonomy, a lot of—as far as the X’s and O’s, these guys figure that out, and these guys bring their game to the track.

“And I think that competitive people who want to win are attracted to that. I think that’s why Jimmie was attracted to the organization and Chad and why they continue to want to be there. …There’s 500 teammates back at Hendrick Motorsports who have built that place, and every single one of us owes an incredible debt of gratitude to Rick for his leadership, for his commitment and dedication for giving us the resources to have these opportunities.”

“I don’t think there’s any person that I’ve ever met who was more compassionate and who treats fellow human beings better than Rick Hendrick,” Gustafson says. “And I think that’s the key for me personally, and that’s all I can speak on.

“…There’s not any magic. The fact is he’s willing to do more for people, for his people, than basically anybody else is. And he’s willing to put himself second time and time and time again for his company and for his people, and we all sincerely appreciate that, and we want to return the favor to him because he treats us so well.

“I think he genuinely enjoys bringing good things and happiness to people’s lives, and he does a great job of it. So he’s just a super special person. The world would be a worse place without Rick Hendrick in it. He’s just a great guy and somebody you will do anything for because he will treat you the same way.”

So when it came towards choosing someone whom to look up to, I did not have to look far past Rick Hendrick in including him on the list.

Rick, you showed so many qualities that showcase a top quality of person. Your dedication and the success of your team have shown me that hard work pays off and even though it may get hard at times, I need to keep at it. The qualities you showcased well in getting through the hard times have showed you’re a fighter and that giving up is not an option. Though the heart you have is what brings you to the front of my mind. The friendship you have shown and how much you care about others is what makes you stand above others when looking for someone to look up to.

December 2, 2010
2010 NASCAR Nationwide Series Review in Quotes

When Robin Pemberton uttered those now infamous words, “Boys, have at it” it was anyone’s guess what type of a season the sport was in for. Looking back at the 2010 Nationwide Series season, it became quite clear that the drivers lived by those words each weekend.

From Brad Keselowski, Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch, to those like Jason Leffler, the season was nothing short of a success. There was the debut of Danica Patrick and the reemergence of Dale Earnhardt Jr. and rise of the sports next stars.

In the end it was Keselowski that took home the NNS championship, the first for both him and team owner Roger Penske. Here’s a recap of a season that was nothing short of history making.

Daytona: “You don’t want to flip one upside down and it not be spectacular. You don’t want to waste your opportunity, right?” — Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Running his self-owned No. 88 Chevrolet, Dale Earnhardt Jr. made a rare but welcomed appearance in the season opening race at Daytona. Like he does at most restrictor plate tracks he was running in the top three when Carl Edwards started another big wreck at a big track. Contact from Edwards sent Brad Keselowski into Earnhardt Jr.’s right rear quarter panel sending him flipping down the backstretch.

California: “I don’t know what his deal with me is, but for some reason, in California, he feels like putting me in the fence or hitting me toward the end.” — Joey Logano

Logano called it another necessary wreck. Greg Biffle called it a mistake on Logano’s part. The past history the two shares at California, coming last year when Biffle tagged Logano and sent him sliding along the wall, carried over into 2010 when the two made contact on a restart.

Las Vegas: “I get mad, and they [the crew] know how I am and what I expect of them. … But you can only gripe about it so long, and then you have to go back and drive the car.” — Kevin Harvick

There is one constant that can always get Harvick fired up on the radio and that’s his pit crew. Never one to mince words, Harvick will let them know how he feels about them when they don’t perform how he expects.

Bristol: “We had a great car and I screwed up qualifying and didn’t get the run we really needed and had to start 30th.” — Justin Allgaier

In order to win his first career race Allgaier not only had to start from the 30th position at the toughest track on the schedule, but he had to pass his teammate with 17 laps to go to get the lead. Mission accomplished on both ends and for Allgaier the win almost mirrored that of Keselowski’s at Bristol when he started 37th and won back in 2008.

Nashville: “I’m sure his girlfriend’s dad will write another check and he’ll be back next week.” — Jason Leffler

It may have been the first example of “boys, have at it” when Leffler and James Buescher got together in Nashville. Leffler returned to the race and paid back Buescher before being penalized by NASCAR for his actions. Afterwards he took at shot at Buescher, who drives for Turner Motorsports and is currently engaged to Kris Turner.

Phoenix: “All I know is I paid NASCAR back by winning.” — Kyle Busch

It might have been the first run in with NASCAR this year for Busch, but it certainly wouldn’t be the last. Busch had to serve a pass through penalty after NASCAR deemed that he didn’t restart in the designated areas on the track, which caused Brad Keselowski to beat him to the line and a 10-car crash to start behind him. Busch came roaring back through the field over the final 10 laps for his second win of the season.

Texas: “I don’t know, guess he’s got a lot to prove in this series.” — Clint Bowyer

When teammates get together on the racetrack it results in some of the best writing material of the year and Bowyer did not disappoint after having a run in with Kevin Harvick. The two made contact when Harvick made it three-wide and as a result Bowyer’s right front tire eventually blew and he ended up in the wall.

Talladega: “To go from that moment where I thought, ‘I just lost the championship; I’m not going to get to run,’ to getting in the car and winning the race – an exciting race – it’s just amazing.” — Brad Keselowski

Upon joining Penske Racing for the 2010 season, Keselowski was set to run the full NNS schedule and compete for the championship. When the Talladega race was pushed to Sunday afternoon, following the Sprint Cup race, Keselowski almost didn’t get in his car. His carbon monoxide levels were too high from a wreck in the Cup race but came down just in time for the Keselowski to get to pit road and his No. 22 Dodge.

Richmond: “Man, this is awesome to watch you, Brad.” — Roger Penske

Signing Brad Keselowski and luring him away from JR Motorsports proved to be the right move for team owner Roger Penske. The Captain saw both his drivers, Keselowski and Allgaier, win races in 2010 and Keselowski delivered his first championship in NASCAR. At Richmond, Penske complimented his driver after another victory.

Darlington: “My parents sacrificed a lot when I was growing up … now they get to live the life that they should.” — Denny Hamlin

When Hamlin won on Mother’s Day weekend, it was special not just for his mother Mary Lou, but also for his entire family. As Hamlin tells the story, his parents didn’t get to spend their hard earned money on fancy things because they were putting it all toward building him racecars. Now when that he’s racing in NASCAR they get to travel the circuit with him and enjoy all the victories.

Dover: “We’ve been really lucky in this car though, everything has just gone our way and I’ve been involved in racing a long time and have had things all go the opposite way.” — Jamie McMurray

It might be hard to make a case against the 2010 season being the year of McMurray. After have less than stellar seasons in the Sprint Cup Series and leaving Roush-Fenway, McMurray landed back at Ganassi where he won the season opening Daytona 500. Then Dale Earnhardt Jr. came calling for McMurray’s services in a few NNS races. McMurray became a weekly contender and would win a race later in the season after noting that he’s suffered through a lot in his career.

Charlotte: “I’m going to miss him not running next week. We bring out the best in each other – and sometimes the worst.” — Brad Keselowski

The best battles in the NNS in 2010 either came between Keselowski and Carl Edwards or Keselowski and Kyle Busch. Charlotte was another great example where Busch got the best of Keselowski who afterward talked about how much he enjoys the competition.

Nashville: “The people around here of middle Tennessee, they don’t give up when adversity strikes so we got two laps down and we fought all night long … top 15, tickled to death.” — Willie Allen.

A career best finish had Allen over the moon in his native Tennessee track and when talking about his efforts made sure to give praise to the citizens of the state that were fighting hard to recover from flooding in April.

Kentucky: “I would never have thought 2-for-2 or 3-for-3, poles and wins, it’s impressive. I’m pretty stoked right now.” — Joey Logano

If Martinsville in the Cup Series is Denny Hamlin or Jimmie Johnson and if Daytona was Dale Earnhardt, then Kentucky is quickly becoming Joey Logano. Since debuting in the series in 2008, Logano is undefeated at the track and all of his wins have come from the pole.

Road America: “I’m trying not to cry right now because I’m really heartbroken, but it’s tough.” — Brad Coleman

Road course racing has never been Brad Keselowski’s strong suit and it was painfully obvious at Road America where he tangled with Coleman late in the race. Keselowski said he didn’t do it intentionally, he just doesn’t know what to do on road courses. Coleman said Keselowski cost him a victory.

Loudon: “It was a bummer to get lapped so many times.” — Danica Patrick

Kyle Busch may have won the most races in 2010 but he was still overshadowed in the media by Patrick who was making her first starts in the NASCAR world. It was a tough learning curve for the open-wheel driver who felt more frustration this season than she had her entire racing career.

Daytona: “Man, you know we lost everything here and to come back with that number and do this, it means everything.” — Tony Eury Jr.

The Earnhardt family will always be synonymous with the Daytona International Speedway so when Dale Earnhardt Jr. wins at the track it’s emotional. But when he wins at the track in his father’s number and paint scheme, there’s no keeping back the tears as crew chief Tony Eury Jr. didn’t hide when he talked about the victory.

Chicago: “Apparently those Dodges make good horsepower but they suck a lot of fuel.” — Kyle Busch

He still needed to beat teammate Joey Logano on a green-white-checkered finish but Busch benefited from Brad Keselowski, who was leading, running out of fuel on the caution lap. Busch said had that not happened he probably would have finished second.

Gateway: “He ain’t gonna kill my boy.” — Bob Keselowski

It was another page of the Brad Keselowski and Carl Edwards history book and this time it didn’t have a pretty ending. When racing for the win on the last lap, Keselowski rubbed Edwards in turns one and two. Coming off turn four Edwards turned right and put Keselowski in the fence, who was hit by a few more cars coming to the finish line. Interviewed afterwards, father Bob Keselowski said he was going to get his old driving gloves out and take care of Edwards himself.

Indianapolis: “It was a fun night and I can’t wait to do it again.” — Aric Almirola

In his first race with JR Motorsports, Camping World Truck Series driver Aric Almirola led laps and finished third. Impressed with his performance, crew chief Tony Eury Sr. and owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. decided to give Almirola a few more shots behind the wheel. It then turned into a full-time ride for 2011.

Iowa: “We’ve got the trophy in the plane but the wrong’s guys got it … We beat Kyle’s [Busch] truck today but he got us this afternoon.” — Kevin Harvick

Harvick and Kyle Busch not only race against each other, they pit their own teams against each other. Before the race in Iowa it was Elliott Sadler winning the truck race driving for Harvick’s team over Kasey Kahne who was the Busch owned truck. Later that day in the Nationwide race it was Busch going to victory lane and Harvick finishing second.

Watkins Glen: “We’ve got another job to do [Sunday], so I won’t have too many beers tonight.” — Marcos Ambrose

For the third consecutive year it was Ambrose celebrating in victory lane at Watkins Glen. The big prize though, the Sprint Cup race, has always seemed to get away and even though Ambrose didn’t drink it away this season, he still finished second to Juan Pablo Montoya the following day.

Michigan: “I don’t need no stinking clutch,” and “The cake didn’t bake.” — Brad Keselowski

In winning his second consecutive race at his home track, Keselowski did so without a clutch. In fact, it didn’t affect him at all on the racetrack, just pit road, as he dominated the event. Afterwards he was asked about racing his rival Carl Edwards so closely but without incident and Keselowski noted that they both were well behaved.

Bristol: “I just told him he’s going to be around here a long time not to make a tool out of himself.” — Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Before Brad Keselowski became the Nationwide Series champion with Penske Racing he was a no-name driver that was given a shot by Dale Earnhardt Jr. It ended up putting Keselowski on the map and in 2008-2009 he finished third in points. At Bristol, Keselowski was racing Kyle Busch for the lead when Busch spun him out. Earnhardt Jr. went over to offer Keselowski a little advice on dealing with the situation.

Montreal: “This is what I can do in a good car and I’m really proud.” — Max Papis

NASCAR fans were given a special treat when two of the best in road racing had the win come down to a duel between them. Boris Said and Max Papis came to the checkered flag in a photo finish, with Said getting the win. For Papis, getting to drive a Kevin Harvick Inc. car was a victory in itself.

Atlanta: “I think Jamie is showing everybody how good he is this year.” — Carl Edwards

Besides making the Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship, it’s hard to imagine what else Jamie McMurray could have wanted this season. He wins two of the biggest races of the season in Cup and then gets to drive for the most popular driver in the sport, Dale Earnhardt Jr. In his eighth start with the team, he drove to victory lane in Atlanta.

Richmond: “I was making fun of Kyle (Busch) and he said he was going to fix me up and make sure I was going to get one. I told him I was not getting a pink fire suit, but unfortunately I’m getting a pink fire suit.” — Jason Ratcliff

Kevin Harvick may have won the race in Richmond, but NASCAR fans may not remember it. That’s because all eyes were on Kyle Busch and his No. 18 Toyota as he drove the Kittens, Bunnies, and Little Baby Seals car from a Toyota commercial. Along with the pink car came the pink firesuit that he dawned as well as his crew chief.

Dover: “Six second place finishes this year, I want to win one of these things eventually.” — Joey Logano

Once upon a time it was Kyle Busch asking what it would have been like if all his second place finishes were wins. At Dover, after finishing second to Busch, it was teammate Logano who was asking the same question. On this day it was poor restarts that kept him out of victory lane.

Kansas: “Really happy, went to the back and went to the front … Just really happy, I think I proved myself today.” — Ricky Carmichael

Coming to NASCAR and four wheels compared to the two that were on his motocross bike, has been a transition for Carmichael. However, he’s adjusted well as he competes in both the Camping World Truck Series and the Nationwide Series. At Kansas, Carmichael’s big task was learning what getting his lap back meant and how he had to pass all the same drivers he had previously done so in the race.

California: “If they can’t stand the pressure they’re going to have to go find something else to do.” — Kevin Harvick

Another race, another dominate car and another win given away on pit road by the pit crew. Frustrated, Harvick made it clear that the following week there would be a new team jumping over the wall.

Charlotte: “I want to win again and I’m going to win again, just came up short tonight.” — Martin Truex Jr.

Second is the first loser and Martin Truex Jr. was the man in that position to Brad Keselowski at Charlotte. What made it hard was how good Truex Jr. said his car was and how badly he wants to get back to victory lane, whether it’s in the Nationwide or Sprint Cup Series.

Gateway: “It was nice, they’ve got really nice equipment.” — Mike Bliss

He was another driver that had the opportunity to get behind the wheel of a KHI car and take advantage of it. For Bliss it resulted in a second place finish to Brad Keselowski at Gateway.

Texas: “Does it f**king matter?” — Kyle Busch

To say that Kyle Busch was unhappy in Texas during both the Nationwide and Sprint Cup events would be an understatement. In the Nationwide race he was livid that Carl Edwards jumped the restart and won the race and wasn’t penalized by NASCAR. In his radio interviews he dropped a few “F” bombs before saying that it didn’t matter if NASCAR reviewed the tape now because the race was already over and Edwards was in victory lane.

Phoenix: “After three of four laps, I could do whatever I wanted with it.” — Carl Edwards

Having fast racecars makes a driver’s job a lot easier. Edwards’ car was so fast that he sat out the final practice session for the Wypall 200 at Phoenix. The following day he was in victory lane and couldn’t believe how fast his car actually was.

Homestead: “To end up with a top five here with Roush-Fenway is exciting and it’s kind of a milestone because now we know we can do it again and we go into the offseason knowing that. We’re just going to work toward next year and be really excited to get there.” — Trevor Bayne

When Bayne signed with Roush Fenway Racing, many didn’t think it would benefit the young driver that had impressed so many with Michael Waltrip Racing. However, the team finished no worse than 17th in seven of the eight races they ran with Bayne behind the wheel. The best finish came at Homestead, a fifth, and Bayne spoke about looking ahead to the 2011 season.

Next week will be final installment of the quotes review, a look back on the 2010 Sprint Cup Series.

December 2, 2010
Petty Is Among The Greats That Can’t Manage

We have seen this problem throughout the world of sports. You have a fantastic athlete that makes a name for himself and then retires to become an owner. How many times in sports have we seen this happen and end in failure? Sadly, Richard Petty has fallen under the curse as well. The seven-time NASCAR champion is struggling to keep his Richard Petty Motorsports racing team afloat after going from a four car operation down to two and the stunning news of Petty putting together an investment team to take control. Petty will became the chairman of the new ownership group and will oversee RPM’s day to day operations.

[media-credit id=26 align=”alignleft” width=”300″][/media-credit]Richard Petty won 200 races as a professional NASCAR driver, but after taking over as an owner he has only won four races and three if you count the days from Petty Enterprises. Bobby Hamilton won at Rockingham in 1996 and 1997, but waited another two years until John Andretti found victory lane at Martinsville in 1999. Also, remember that before Hamilton’s victory in 1996 that Petty Enterprises hadn’t won a race since 1983 at Phoenix. The team was bought out in 2008 and became Gillett-Evernham Motorsports before Evernham left the team and Richard Petty Motorsports came to be. They have won 1 race and it was in 2009 with Kasey Kahne at Sonoma and Petty’s first win as an owner in 10 years.

What am I trying to get to here? Look at Wayne Gretzky. He scored 894 times in his NHL career and holds probably every single record in the NHL and tried being an owner/coach of the Phoenix Coyotes. Heck, he did so bad the team never made the playoffs and went bankrupt, which led to Gretzky resigning as Head Coach and now just a spectator. His wife Janet has been accused of betting on games and that has led many to believe that the money won could have been used to help the Coyotes, but that accusation never went to court.

Also, a lot of the greatest owners of all time were actually playing in their sport at one time and weren’t that good. Joe Torre wasn’t the greatest player on the field, but he led the Yankees to 4 World Series rings in 5 years. Freddie Roach was a boxer in his time, never won a world title, and even lost 13 times. Look at what he has done with Manny Pacquiao. Pacquiao is an eight-division world champion. That is a true athlete. Now, I may be dead wrong on this whole thing with Richard Petty, but I just don’t see them having any success this year. The team is struggling in the money column and that is terrible for any team.

December 1, 2010
Is Mark Martin the Place Card For Kasey Kahne at Hendrick Motorsports?

Okay, now that Dale Earnhardt Jr. has been awarded Jeff Gordon’s equipment, team and crew chief, just what does Mark Martin have to look forward to?

Martin will now drive the equipment that Junior has struggled with especially the last two seasons at Hendrick Motorsports. He will also have Lance McGrew as his new crew chief.

McGrew is a technical guy who had a failure to communicate with Earnhardt Jr. Martin is more of a technical driver who is able to give great feedback on how to set up a car.

[media-credit name=”CIA Stock Photo” align=”alignright” width=”300″][/media-credit]With that being said, it sounds like McGrew and Martin are quite the good pairing.

Martin is in his final year at Hendrick Motorsports which makes him a lame duck driver, as the saying goes. Typically a driver in the last year of their contract fails to perform optimally.

McGrew Knows he will move on to other duties at HMS or elsewhere after the 2011 season when Kenny Francis comes on board as Kasey Kahne’s crew chief.

Place cards are placed at the seat a guest is to occupy at the table. You have to wonder if Kasey Kahne’s place card is on Mark Martin at the HMS table.

It would be easy to surmise the new No. 5 car will just continue to make a mediocre showing if Martin and McGrew end up butting heads. If it was a driver other than Mark Martin, it could be easy to assign low expectations to the team.

Martin wants to go out as a winner at HMS. He was second to Jimmie Johnson, the perennial NASCAR Sprint Cup Champion in 2009.

For whatever reason he and his crew chief, Alan Gustafson, just failed to get up to speed this season and lost the momentum from the prior year. Martin ended up just outside the Chase contenders, 13^th in the point standings.

Martin fought hard for months to dissuade the media and disbelievers that he would be the one leaving Hendrick Motorsports to make room for Kasey Kahne in 2011. He said he would stay and drive the No. 5 GoDaddy.com car and that is what he is going to do.

His intent was to finish the last year of his contract as planned, regroup with Gustafson and go for wins in the coming season. The one thing he didn’t count on was the loss of Gustafson, a crew chief he worked so well with.

Now as we wait for the kickoff of the new season at Daytona International Speedway in February, it will be like the toss of a coin before a football game.

Will Mark Martin get the winning side of the coin or will he get the side that makes him the designated place card at Hendrick Motorsports?

December 1, 2010
NASCAR Nationwide Series 2010 Year in Quotes Review

When Robin Pemberton uttered those now infamous words, “Boys, have at it” it was anyone’s guess what type of a season the sport was in for. Looking back at the 2010 Nationwide Series season, it became quite clear that the drivers lived by those words each weekend.

From Brad Keselowski, Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch, to those like Jason Leffler, the season was nothing short of a success. There was the debut of Danica Patrick and the reemergence of Dale Earnhardt Jr. and rise of the sports next stars.

In the end it was Keselowski that took home the NNS championship, the first for both him and team owner Roger Penske. Here’s a recap of a season that was nothing short of history making.

Daytona: “You don’t want to flip one upside down and it not be spectacular. You don’t want to waste your opportunity, right?” — Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Running his self-owned No. 88 Chevrolet, Dale Earnhardt Jr. made a rare but welcomed appearance in the season opening race at Daytona. Like he does at most restrictor plate tracks he was running in the top three when Carl Edwards started another big wreck at a big track. Contact from Edwards sent Brad Keselowski into Earnhardt Jr.’s right rear quarter panel sending him flipping down the backstretch.

California: “I don’t know what his deal with me is, but for some reason, in California, he feels like putting me in the fence or hitting me toward the end.” — Joey Logano

Logano called it another necessary wreck. Greg Biffle called it a mistake on Logano’s part. The past history the two shares at California, coming last year when Biffle tagged Logano and sent him sliding along the wall, carried over into 2010 when the two made contact on a restart.

Las Vegas: “I get mad, and they [the crew] know how I am and what I expect of them. … But you can only gripe about it so long, and then you have to go back and drive the car.” — Kevin Harvick

There is one constant that can always get Harvick fired up on the radio and that’s his pit crew. Never one to mince words, Harvick will let them know how he feels about them when they don’t perform how he expects.

Bristol: “We had a great car and I screwed up qualifying and didn’t get the run we really needed and had to start 30th.” — Justin Allgaier

In order to win his first career race Allgaier not only had to start from the 30th position at the toughest track on the schedule, but he had to pass his teammate with 17 laps to go to get the lead. Mission accomplished on both ends and for Allgaier the win almost mirrored that of Keselowski’s at Bristol when he started 37th and won back in 2008.

Nashville: “I’m sure his girlfriend’s dad will write another check and he’ll be back next week.” — Jason Leffler

It may have been the first example of “boys, have at it” when Leffler and James Buescher got together in Nashville. Leffler returned to the race and paid back Buescher before being penalized by NASCAR for his actions. Afterwards he took at shot at Buescher, who drives for Turner Motorsports and is currently engaged to Kris Turner.

Phoenix: “All I know is I paid NASCAR back by winning.” — Kyle Busch

It might have been the first run in with NASCAR this year for Busch, but it certainly wouldn’t be the last. Busch had to serve a pass through penalty after NASCAR deemed that he didn’t restart in the designated areas on the track, which caused Brad Keselowski to beat him to the line and a 10-car crash to start behind him. Busch came roaring back through the field over the final 10 laps for his second win of the season.

Texas: “I don’t know, guess he’s got a lot to prove in this series.” — Clint Bowyer

When teammates get together on the racetrack it results in some of the best writing material of the year and Bowyer did not disappoint after having a run in with Kevin Harvick. The two made contact when Harvick made it three-wide and as a result Bowyer’s right front tire eventually blew and he ended up in the wall.

Talladega: “To go from that moment where I thought, ‘I just lost the championship; I’m not going to get to run,’ to getting in the car and winning the race – an exciting race – it’s just amazing.” — Brad Keselowski

Upon joining Penske Racing for the 2010 season, Keselowski was set to run the full NNS schedule and compete for the championship. When the Talladega race was pushed to Sunday afternoon, following the Sprint Cup race, Keselowski almost didn’t get in his car. His carbon monoxide levels were too high from a wreck in the Cup race but came down just in time for the Keselowski to get to pit road and his No. 22 Dodge.

Richmond: “Man, this is awesome to watch you, Brad.” — Roger Penske

Signing Brad Keselowski and luring him away from JR Motorsports proved to be the right move for team owner Roger Penske. The Captain saw both his drivers, Keselowski and Allgaier, win races in 2010 and Keselowski delivered his first championship in NASCAR. At Richmond, Penske complimented his driver after another victory.

Darlington: “My parents sacrificed a lot when I was growing up … now they get to live the life that they should.” — Denny Hamlin

When Hamlin won on Mother’s Day weekend, it was special not just for his mother Mary Lou, but also for his entire family. As Hamlin tells the story, his parents didn’t get to spend their hard earned money on fancy things because they were putting it all toward building him racecars. Now when that he’s racing in NASCAR they get to travel the circuit with him and enjoy all the victories.

Dover: “We’ve been really lucky in this car though, everything has just gone our way and I’ve been involved in racing a long time and have had things all go the opposite way.” — Jamie McMurray

It might be hard to make a case against the 2010 season being the year of McMurray. After have less than stellar seasons in the Sprint Cup Series and leaving Roush-Fenway, McMurray landed back at Ganassi where he won the season opening Daytona 500. Then Dale Earnhardt Jr. came calling for McMurray’s services in a few NNS races. McMurray became a weekly contender and would win a race later in the season after noting that he’s suffered through a lot in his career.

Charlotte: “I’m going to miss him not running next week. We bring out the best in each other – and sometimes the worst.” — Brad Keselowski

The best battles in the NNS in 2010 either came between Keselowski and Carl Edwards or Keselowski and Kyle Busch. Charlotte was another great example where Busch got the best of Keselowski who afterward talked about how much he enjoys the competition.

Nashville: “The people around here of middle Tennessee, they don’t give up when adversity strikes so we got two laps down and we fought all night long … top 15, tickled to death.” — Willie Allen.

A career best finish had Allen over the moon in his native Tennessee track and when talking about his efforts made sure to give praise to the citizens of the state that were fighting hard to recover from flooding in April.

Kentucky: “I would never have thought 2-for-2 or 3-for-3, poles and wins, it’s impressive. I’m pretty stoked right now.” — Joey Logano

If Martinsville in the Cup Series is Denny Hamlin or Jimmie Johnson and if Daytona was Dale Earnhardt, then Kentucky is quickly becoming Joey Logano. Since debuting in the series in 2008, Logano is undefeated at the track and all of his wins have come from the pole.

Road America: “I’m trying not to cry right now because I’m really heartbroken, but it’s tough.” — Brad Coleman

Road course racing has never been Brad Keselowski’s strong suit and it was painfully obvious at Road America where he tangled with Coleman late in the race. Keselowski said he didn’t do it intentionally, he just doesn’t know what to do on road courses. Coleman said Keselowski cost him a victory.

Loudon: “It was a bummer to get lapped so many times.” — Danica Patrick

Kyle Busch may have won the most races in 2010 but he was still overshadowed in the media by Patrick who was making her first starts in the NASCAR world. It was a tough learning curve for the open-wheel driver who felt more frustration this season than she had her entire racing career.

Daytona: “Man, you know we lost everything here and to come back with that number and do this, it means everything.” — Tony Eury Jr.

The Earnhardt family will always be synonymous with the Daytona International Speedway so when Dale Earnhardt Jr. wins at the track it’s emotional. But when he wins at the track in his father’s number and paint scheme, there’s no keeping back the tears as crew chief Tony Eury Jr. didn’t hide when he talked about the victory.

Chicago: “Apparently those Dodges make good horsepower but they suck a lot of fuel.” — Kyle Busch

He still needed to beat teammate Joey Logano on a green-white-checkered finish but Busch benefited from Brad Keselowski, who was leading, running out of fuel on the caution lap. Busch said had that not happened he probably would have finished second.

Gateway: “He ain’t gonna kill my boy.” — Bob Keselowski

It was another page of the Brad Keselowski and Carl Edwards history book and this time it didn’t have a pretty ending. When racing for the win on the last lap, Keselowski rubbed Edwards in turns one and two. Coming off turn four Edwards turned right and put Keselowski in the fence, who was hit by a few more cars coming to the finish line. Interviewed afterwards, father Bob Keselowski said he was going to get his old driving gloves out and take care of Edwards himself.

Indianapolis: “It was a fun night and I can’t wait to do it again.” — Aric Almirola

In his first race with JR Motorsports, Camping World Truck Series driver Aric Almirola led laps and finished third. Impressed with his performance, crew chief Tony Eury Sr. and owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. decided to give Almirola a few more shots behind the wheel. It then turned into a full-time ride for 2011.

Iowa: “We’ve got the trophy in the plane but the wrong’s guys got it … We beat Kyle’s [Busch] truck today but he got us this afternoon.” — Kevin Harvick

Harvick and Kyle Busch not only race against each other, they pit their own teams against each other. Before the race in Iowa it was Elliott Sadler winning the truck race driving for Harvick’s team over Kasey Kahne who was the Busch owned truck. Later that day in the Nationwide race it was Busch going to victory lane and Harvick finishing second.

Watkins Glen: “We’ve got another job to do [Sunday], so I won’t have too many beers tonight.” — Marcos Ambrose

For the third consecutive year it was Ambrose celebrating in victory lane at Watkins Glen. The big prize though, the Sprint Cup race, has always seemed to get away and even though Ambrose didn’t drink it away this season, he still finished second to Juan Pablo Montoya the following day.

Michigan: “I don’t need no stinking clutch,” and “The cake didn’t bake.” — Brad Keselowski

In winning his second consecutive race at his home track, Keselowski did so without a clutch. In fact, it didn’t affect him at all on the racetrack, just pit road, as he dominated the event. Afterwards he was asked about racing his rival Carl Edwards so closely but without incident and Keselowski noted that they both were well behaved.

Bristol: “I just told him he’s going to be around here a long time not to make a tool out of himself.” — Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Before Brad Keselowski became the Nationwide Series champion with Penske Racing he was a no-name driver that was given a shot by Dale Earnhardt Jr. It ended up putting Keselowski on the map and in 2008-2009 he finished third in points. At Bristol, Keselowski was racing Kyle Busch for the lead when Busch spun him out. Earnhardt Jr. went over to offer Keselowski a little advice on dealing with the situation.

Montreal: “This is what I can do in a good car and I’m really proud.” — Max Papis

NASCAR fans were given a special treat when two of the best in road racing had the win come down to a duel between them. Boris Said and Max Papis came to the checkered flag in a photo finish, with Said getting the win. For Papis, getting to drive a Kevin Harvick Inc. car was a victory in itself.

Atlanta: “I think Jamie is showing everybody how good he is this year.” — Carl Edwards

Besides making the Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship, it’s hard to imagine what else Jamie McMurray could have wanted this season. He wins two of the biggest races of the season in Cup and then gets to drive for the most popular driver in the sport, Dale Earnhardt Jr. In his eighth start with the team, he drove to victory lane in Atlanta.

Richmond: “I was making fun of Kyle (Busch) and he said he was going to fix me up and make sure I was going to get one. I told him I was not getting a pink fire suit, but unfortunately I’m getting a pink fire suit.” — Jason Ratcliff

Kevin Harvick may have won the race in Richmond, but NASCAR fans may not remember it. That’s because all eyes were on Kyle Busch and his No. 18 Toyota as he drove the Kittens, Bunnies, and Little Baby Seals car from a Toyota commercial. Along with the pink car came the pink firesuit that he dawned as well as his crew chief.

Dover: “Six second place finishes this year, I want to win one of these things eventually.” — Joey Logano

Once upon a time it was Kyle Busch asking what it would have been like if all his second place finishes were wins. At Dover, after finishing second to Busch, it was teammate Logano who was asking the same question. On this day it was poor restarts that kept him out of victory lane.

Kansas: “Really happy, went to the back and went to the front … Just really happy, I think I proved myself today.” — Ricky Carmichael

Coming to NASCAR and four wheels compared to the two that were on his motocross bike, has been a transition for Carmichael. However, he’s adjusted well as he competes in both the Camping World Truck Series and the Nationwide Series. At Kansas, Carmichael’s big task was learning what getting his lap back meant and how he had to pass all the same drivers he had previously done so in the race.

California: “If they can’t stand the pressure they’re going to have to go find something else to do.” — Kevin Harvick

Another race, another dominate car and another win given away on pit road by the pit crew. Frustrated, Harvick made it clear that the following week there would be a new team jumping over the wall.

Charlotte: “I want to win again and I’m going to win again, just came up short tonight.” — Martin Truex Jr.

Second is the first loser and Martin Truex Jr. was the man in that position to Brad Keselowski at Charlotte. What made it hard was how good Truex Jr. said his car was and how badly he wants to get back to victory lane, whether it’s in the Nationwide or Sprint Cup Series.

Gateway: “It was nice, they’ve got really nice equipment.” — Mike Bliss

He was another driver that had the opportunity to get behind the wheel of a KHI car and take advantage of it. For Bliss it resulted in a second place finish to Brad Keselowski at Gateway.

Texas: “Does it f**king matter?” — Kyle Busch

To say that Kyle Busch was unhappy in Texas during both the Nationwide and Sprint Cup events would be an understatement. In the Nationwide race he was livid that Carl Edwards jumped the restart and won the race and wasn’t penalized by NASCAR. In his radio interviews he dropped a few “F” bombs before saying that it didn’t matter if NASCAR reviewed the tape now because the race was already over and Edwards was in victory lane.

Phoenix: “After three of four laps, I could do whatever I wanted with it.” — Carl Edwards

Having fast racecars makes a driver’s job a lot easier. Edwards’ car was so fast that he sat out the final practice session for the Wypall 200 at Phoenix. The following day he was in victory lane and couldn’t believe how fast his car actually was.

Homestead: “To end up with a top five here with Roush-Fenway is exciting and it’s kind of a milestone because now we know we can do it again and we go into the offseason knowing that. We’re just going to work toward next year and be really excited to get there.” — Trevor Bayne

When Bayne signed with Roush Fenway Racing, many didn’t think it would benefit the young driver that had impressed so many with Michael Waltrip Racing. However, the team finished no worse than 17th in seven of the eight races they ran with Bayne behind the wheel. The best finish came at Homestead, a fifth, and Bayne spoke about looking ahead to the 2011 season.

Next week will be final installment of the quotes review, a look back on the 2010 Sprint Cup Series.

December 1, 2010
Determined and Motivated: Five-Time Championship Crew Chief Chad Knaus

Through the history of NASCAR, there are only few driver-crew chief relationships that are capable of creating dynasties. One of those would be the combination of Johnson and Knaus.

[media-credit name=”CIA Stock Photo” align=”alignleft” width=”300″][/media-credit]The strength of their relationship, plus Knaus’ desire, are two of the keys to that make them as good as they are. Knaus’ desire was seen even before he became the crew chief was Johnson; it was shown to Phillippe Lopez when Knaus worked for Stanley Smith as a shop-foreman.

“Chad wasn’t there for the check,” Lopez said. “He wasn’t there for the glory. He was a racer. He did everything the right way. Nothing was half-assed. But you knew right away he had big dreams. He told me he wanted my job. He wasn’t kidding.

“But he would do whatever it took to make himself better. He was great with working on bodies and Bondo (putty used in fabrication), but he wanted to learn about shocks. He was consumed with learning about it, mastering it and then doing it better.

“It wasn’t unusual for me to have to tell Chad at two or three in the morning that it was time to go home.”

It was Knaus’ attitude, however, that almost broke them up.

Johnson’s description of the breakdown at the end of the 2005 season was they both wanted it so bad that they were “butting heads in the process.” So Hendrick pulled them into his office, ready to discuss things between them and if needed, separate them.

“It was getting to the point where Chad and Jimmie were having more bad days than good days,” Hendrick said. “I called them into my office … and said ‘If we’re going to act like kids, we’re going to have cookies and milk and we’ll have some down time where we can talk about what you don’t like about each.”

With a play on what was seen as “childish behaviour”, he set the room up as if it was a kid’s room and served them Mickey Mouse cookies and milk. This meeting allowed both Knaus and Johnson to get all their feelings about each other.

“The meeting was supposed to be how we split the guys up,” Hendrick said. “But in this meeting, these guys really put their heart on the table and they talked specifically about what they didn’t like. Instead of holding it in, they were able to become closer friends and still respect each other’s professional position in the team.

“I’m real proud of them because I would have bet money that we couldn’t fix it. I think both of those guys would be successful in their own right, but I think they’re stronger together.”

“It took a lot of effort on each other’s parts,” Knaus later on said in a different article. “At that point, we were both tired and very frustrated. We were on the cusp on winning a championship for the first three years and we weren’t able to pull it off. Expectations were high. We weren’t able to deliver. There’s a lot to wanting to deliver for Rick and Jimmie and I felt that I laid down a little. I didn’t make the right decisions.

“It takes maturity, wisdom and you have to learn. We learned over a period of time. You have to go over life experiences and race car experiences to get what you really need. There was a point there that we had to make a decision whether we wanted to do this or not.

“We just had to learn to rededicate ourselves to the cause—and that’s what we did.” This conversation with Rick helped their relationship a lot, allowing them to now be the driver-crew chief pair to beat.

“Jimmie and Chad have something very, very special together,” Gordon said in the article “One More with Feeling.” “I know everything that goes into their cars and everything about their set-ups, and they’re still beating us. It’s frustrating but you’ve got to give them credit. They’re the best right now.”

“My relationship with Chad has been unlike any relationship I’ve had before with a crew chief,” Johnson stated in November of 2008. “We’re close in age, which is a first for me, and we share a lot of things in common. We have two completely different personalities, and his strengths fit my weaknesses and my strengths fit his weaknesses. So I think the pairing of us both has been really good.”

Knaus still has that desire, though now it is pointed in a direction that benefits them all and has equaled record material. Since that discussion, they have gone on a roll, winning the last five championships (2006-2010).

His motivation and hard working style at times has got him in trouble in the process as he has been caught in a sense cheating and has been suspended.

In 2006, Knaus was suspended for making an illegal adjustment to the rear window after Daytona 500 qualifying, which resulted in a four week suspension. Despite this, the No. 48 team still came out on top, winning the Daytona 500 with interim crew chief Darian Grubb.

In 2007, Knaus was suspended for six races as a result of the shape of the fenders in between the template points being in question by officials.

In 2009, Knaus was warned about getting close to breaking the rules of with regards to the height rule as he was only a 1/16 of an inch within the window allowed.

A lot of people have labeled him with the label of a “cheater”, though he says that it’s him doing his job to push the limits and find an advantage for his team.

“I don’t cheat,” Knaus told Jenna Fryer in 2009. “I think it’s easy for me to be labeled that way. We’ve done a lot of things to help the sport transition and develop new rules, but that doesn’t mean we are cheating. We are pushing the limits.

“Look at Tiger Woods, because he trains more and practices more and pays more attention to club selection and studies the greens, is he cheating? That’s not true.

“Look back at the things I’ve been in trouble for, and that was maybe two times that something was actually outside the rules. I think it’s a bad label, a bad label for the team. But it doesn’t bother me a lot because I know deep down it’s not the case.

“The fenders on the cars on Sonoma? Those were not illegal. The casual fan doesn’t understand it. It’s easy for someone to label that a person is a cheater, when in reality it wasn’t cheating, it was just not done the way it should be.”

Knaus is referring to the last piece of the art of “creative interpretation”, which is reading the rules and interpreting them in the way you feel, though also maybe a way that they were intended to be. It’s about finding that grey area.

“I think that’s our job, to find those areas of interpretation, the gray areas, and do just that,” ex-crew chief Robbie Loomis said in an article. “Interpret. There is a lot less room in there to find an advantage than there used to be, but that’s part of the challenge.”

Knaus is not the first of his type, too. There were others before him who pushed the rules and have been recognized as some of the best.

Smokey Yunick was one of the most famous people for doing this as he always was looking to see what he could do within the rules. There’s a story where in tech inspection, NASCAR removed his fuel cell and Smokey turned around, asking, “Are you done yet?” and they told him. He then proceeded to drive away from the officials, but how’d he do that?

He had a fuel line of 11 foot coils of two inch diameter (equaling five gallons) and had enough fuel still in the car. He did that to therefore gain more fuel millage but most importantly, because the officials forgot to write that rule. Now if you read the rulebook, you notice there’s a length specified.

Then there was Ray Evernham, who came out with the car T-Rex at the 1997 Winston, dominating the show. After the show, Evernham was pulled aside and NASCAR specifically told him that he was not to bring that car back.

“We went through the rule book and wherever there was a real gray area or no specifics regarding certain components, we worked hard in that area with new things,” Eddie Dickerson, manager of Chassis Engineering at Hendrick Motorsports, said in an article on NASCAR.com. “There are no major changes you can make to components on these cars. So we worked hard in different little areas. It was a combination of things. … [But] we did not do anything illegal with the car.”

Richard Petty was quoted in a NASCAR.com article saying, “I always told my guys, ‘Cheat neat and you’ll get by with a bunch of stuff.’ I don’t particularly tell my guys to cheat. I just tell them not to get caught.”

It’s all about the art of the teams trying to find that advantage.

“Every team out there is trying to do something to be faster than the next,” Knaus told Ed Hinton in 2009. “If they’re not, they’re not running competitively. I can promise you that.

“And if the crew chief is not trying to push something to make his car faster, then he’s not doing his job and he’s not living up to his responsibility.”

Johnson feels that Knaus has this motivation due to his own fear of losing.

“I think it’s a fear of losing that motivates him more than anything,” Johnson said. “He is more motivated by dominating, in a sense. We’ll have what we consider the best car in practice and look at lap tracker and we might have a tenth on the field and he’s like, ‘We need more.’ That’s just his mindset. It’s more, more, more. We’ve got to be better. We’ve got to be better.

“I feel that he’s afraid of losing. When he loses, something goes on in his head and I don’t know if it comes from being a kid and racing and working his way up through the ranks or watching his dad race or whatever, but there’s something there that he is afraid of losing. And that’s why when he wins, he’s kind of chilled and relaxed because it satisfies what that fire is inside of him.”

“I don’t want to lose,” Knaus said. “I don’t. There’s some validity to that. Everybody wants to be good at something and this is what I want to be good at. I don’t want to let anybody down. I’ve not had a lot of other stable things in my life and the race car has always been there.”

December 1, 2010
HOORAHS AND WAZZUPS: Left over Turkey

During the gap between the conclusion of the 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup season and the beginning of champion’s week in Las Vegas we thought there might be a shortage of interesting story lines. Surely time off for Thanksgiving dinner with families would have curtailed any and all NASCAR activity. That didn’t turn out to be the case.

[media-credit name=”FMCM” align=”alignleft” width=”300″][/media-credit]Over the past several days we watched a king reclaim his kingdom. We welcomed a new member to the NASCAR nation from a racing team that seemed to have a lot of babies this year and we even got to see Danica Patrick fuel the fantasy of Homer Simpson. With those thoughts in mind let’s begin with:

HOORAH to King Richard Petty for pulling off a major coup that many of us thought was not possible. Petty, along with new partners Medallion Financial Corporation and DGB Investments put up the funding to completely purchase the assets of Richard Petty Motorsports from former majority owner George Gillett. Under the troubled Gillett regime, Richard Petty Motorsports, (RPM), was named after the king of stock car racing primarily for marketing purposes. Petty was, in fact, a minority owner reported to have only four percent of the team. Under the new program he is now the Chairman of RPM and will oversee day to day operations.

Since Monday’s announcement we are starting to learn more details. It seems that the new partnership has relieved RPM of an estimated $100 million in troublesome debt which completely clears the slate for the team to focus on the 2011 season. Considering the state of the overall national economy, it’s also quite remarkable how fast Petty was able to put this investment team together.

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A HOORAH and GOD BLESS goes to Christy and Jamie McMurray who welcomed the arrival of their first child on Thanksgiving day. Carter Scott McMurray became the newest member of the NASCAR nation weighing in at seven pounds, 12 ounces and measuring a full 20 inches. Mom and son are reported to be doing terrific.

As we all know McMurray is the driver of the #1 Chevrolet for Earnhardt Ganassi Racing. The arrival of young Carter McMurray marks the eighth child that has blessed a member of this racing team in 2010. It suggests that it may be time for team owners Teresa Earnhardt and Chip Ganassi to check the water that’s being distributed to their buildings.

Another HOORAH and GOD BLESS goes to Regan Smith, the driver of the #78 Chevrolet fielded by Furniture Row Racing. Smith and his long time girl friend, Megan, officially announced their engagement last weekend and we wish them the very best.

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HOORAH for a very animated Danica Patrick who made a guest appearance on the Fox Network’s popular program “The Simpsons” last Sunday night. During the episode Homer Simpson wandered off to one of his frequent fantasies. That’s when Danica Patrick appeared saying “I have a sponsor obligation to appear in men’s fantasies whenever they tell me to.” It was a very cute and funny moment.

However, WAZZUP with Homer’s wife, Marge Simpson, appearing in the middle of the scene and calling Danica Patrick “a garage bimbo?”

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From our 2011 forecast department, WAZZUP with all of the speculation we’ve been seeing and hearing regarding Hendrick Motorsports’ #48 team winning a sixth, consecutive, Sprint Cup championship in 2011? It’s even been designated as “Jimmie Johnson’s six pack.”

It’s way too early for that speculation. We should wait until he’s officially presented with the fifth championship this Friday night before we starting engraving his name on next year’s trophy. The only “six pack” we should be discussing at this point in time should be about beer.

As many fans are aware, NASCAR officials are considering making some adjustments to their Sprint Cup Chase For The Championship format. One of those changes could involve elevating the Chase line up from the top 12 drivers in the points standings to the top 15.

That leads to a WAZZUP for some of the names the NASCAR bloggers have devised for this possible change. They seem to be calling it “the Dale Earnhardt Jr. rule” and, in some cases “the Dale Earnhardt Jr. pension plan.” I must admit that second one is pretty funny.

HOORAH for some pre 2011 season bravado, along with the power of positive thinking, displayed by driver Carl Edwards. When recently asked if he felt that Jimmie Johnson was en route to becoming the greatest driver in NASCAR, Edwards, without so much as a blink of the eye, quickly responded “no, I feel like I’m better than him.”

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HOORAH to Tony Stewart for spending a portion of the Thanksgiving holiday weekend winning the first round of the Las Vegas Sprint Car Nationals. Already scheduled to be in town for the upcoming NASCAR champion’s week, Stewart arrived early and climbed into one of his self owned sprint cars to sling some mud at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway’s dirt track. The result was his first ever win in the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series.

It also confirms something that I’ve said for many years now. “Smoke” can drive, and win, in literally any form of racing he chooses to participate in.

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The final HOORAHS of the week goes to some humorous NASCAR notable quotables observed on “Twitter”.

The first HOORAH goes to Darrell Waltrip and his “Twitter” report on Thanksgiving dinner where he wrote “we’ve done it again, this time (it was) honey baked ham, carrot cake and more pumpkin pie. My stretch pants won’t stretch anymore. I need a restrictor plate.”

When it comes to creative “Twitter” messages, NASCAR wife and team owner Delana Harvick is really good at it. On Thanksgiving day she wrote “dog decided to eat every piece of s**t out of the litter box. Cat litter everywhere. My fun meter is pegged.”

November 30, 2010