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Tag: Martinsville Speedway

  • Auto Club 400 Review: Stewart Smokes The Competition Once Again

    Auto Club 400 Review: Stewart Smokes The Competition Once Again

    [media-credit name=”Simon Scoggins” align=”alignright” width=”225″][/media-credit]2011 champion Tony Stewart led twice for 42 laps in the Auto Club 400(or should we say Auto Club 322?) and went on to win his second race of the season in California. After raindrops started to hit the track on Lap 124, Stewart, who was leading the race at the time, faked a move toward pit road to play with the competition’s pit strategy. He stayed on track just before the commitment cone, giving him the lead when NASCAR called the rain delayed race on Lap 129.

    Stewart has moved three positions in points standings and is now in fourth position, 18 points behind the leader. This is Stewart’s second win at Fontana and his 46th career win, tying him with Buck Baker for 14th on the career victory list.

    It is quite an accomplishment for a driver to win seven times in the last 15 races, and that is exactly what Stewart has done. Typically Stewart isn’t much of a contender in the first half of the season, but this season the veteran is taking off like a rocket. In the first five races of the 2011 season, Stewart only scored one top five finish and didn’t win his first race until the 27th race of the season, the first race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup.

    Greg Biffle Remains The Points Leader

    Greg Biffle may have flown under the radar at Auto Club Speedway on Sunday, but he still flies high on top of the points standings so far this season. Biffle qualified his 3M Ford Fusion in fourth position and rode in the Top 10 for most of the race.  Biffle now has four top-10 finishes in five races so far this season. Biffle’s consistency this season is sure to put him in victory lane. Biffle’s last win was at Kansas Speedway in October of 2010.

    As for the rest of his Roush Fenway Racing team, Carl Edwards finished in fifth position, his second top five of the season. Edwards gained three spots in the standings to rest in 12th position. Matt Kenseth finished in 13th position and dropped two positions in points to reside in fifth.

    Dale Earnhardt Jr Continues Consistency; Unlikely Finishes for Rest of HMS

    Dale Earnhardt Jr has been at the top of the leader board this season and continued his consistency with a third place finish in the Auto Club 400. Earnhardt was running in fifth position when caution for rain came out on Lap 123. This allowed him to pick up two spots when two cars ahead of him pitted under the caution. Earnhardt has finished in 15thposition or better so far this season, including two top five finishes. He is currently third in points, after gaining three positions with his top five finish in Fontana.

    The rest of Earnhardt’s Hendrick Motorsports team didn’t suffice as well as he did. While running in fourth position under caution on Lap 129 , Jimmie Johnson’s No. 48 Chevrolet began leaking oil from the rear of his car. Thanks to the caution and rain shortened race, Johnson was able to limp around the track on the apron and finish in 10th position.

    All Kasey Kahne needed at the Auto Club Speedway was to finish the race in a conservative fashion. He did just that, finishing in 15th position, his best finish of the season. Before the race at Fontana, Kahne was 34th in owner points. After the race, he has moved himself up to 26th position and gave himself some breathing room heading to Martinsville next weekend, where the owner points will be reset.

    Jeff Gordon had a miserable day after suffering two pit road penalties, moving him from the top five all the way back to 26thposition. His first penalty of the race came on Lap 107 for equipment leaving the pit stall; Equipment being the gas can, along with his gas man. The final blow of the day came on Lap 126 when the team had a tire roll outside of the pit box.

    Who Will Win At Martinsville Speedway?

    Next weekend we head to the short track of Martinsville Speedway, known for it’s hot dogs and most importantly the grandfather clock trophy awarded to the winner of every race. Hometown boy Denny Hamlin knows how to get around the place, with four Cup wins at this track. However, teammates Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon always fair well here with 13 wins between the both of them. As always, you can’t count out Tony Stewart who won the last race here in October and has won at Martinsville three times in his career.

  • Matty’s Picks: Vol. 26 – Texas – November 6, 2011

    Matty’s Picks: Vol. 26 – Texas – November 6, 2011

    I am a fan of old western movies, (some of my favorites include High Plains Drifter, The Outlaw Josy Wales, and North To Alaska) and this week couldn’t be any more of a cliché storyline showdown if you asked for it.

    [media-credit name=”texasmotorspeedway.com” align=”alignright” width=”300″][/media-credit]First, the race takes place in the Lone Star State, the most cliché western setting on the face of the Earth. Second, The Chase for the Sprint Cup is boiling down to a two-man showdown between points-leader, Carl Edwards and two-time Sprint Cup Champion Tony Stewart. The lead has been shaved to eight with just three weekends remaining in the 2011 campaign.

    Third, the video and graphics posted on Texas Motor Speedway’s homepage tells it all. President of Texas Motor Speedway, Eddie Gossage might be dubbed the Don King of NASCAR after this weekend’s hype of the Stewart/Edwards saga.

    Not to add insult to injury but fourth, Tony Stewart’s comments in Victory Lane last weekend at Martinsville Speedway was the quote heard ‘round the world: “Carl Edwards had better be real worried. That’s all I’ve got to say. He’s not going to sleep for the next three weeks.”

    This race has certainly gained the attention of race fans across the globe, and may be more hyped than the “Thrilla in Manila” before all is said and done.

    Martinsville Recap

    With qualifying rained out last Saturday, Denny Hamlin would start the No. 11 FedEx Freight Toyota 11th, and quickly made it known that I had made a solid Winner Pick. An early incident would force Hamlin to Pit Road for fresh slicks, restarting him at the rear of the field. The fresh Goodyear’s were all he needed to hit the point by lap 63.

    As all race fans know, 500 laps at Martinsville is an eternity…Hamlin, the favorite at the historic short track knows that the key to winning at the paper clip is staying out of trouble. Caution by caution, the race drew on until Hamlin regained the lead at lap 320.

    With 81 laps remaining, Hamlin was shown fourth on the leaderboard, but could not find the speed to run with eventual race-winner, but enough to fend off the lower-half of the Top-10, finishing in 5th. My Winner Pick mentioned the chaos last week after the checkered flew: “For Martinsville for sure. People just have no regard. I would get into guys and then I know it’s coming — I’m going to get slammed in the next corner. It’s just one of those things where it’s frustrating to watch because you see some of these cars getting torn up on accidents. Accidents happen and some these drivers need to realize that.”

    As for my Dark Horse Pick, I was at a severe disadvantage when I submitted my column last week before ANY on-track activity at the paper clip. After starting 20th, Juan Montoya drove his way into the Top-15, overcame two costly penalties on Pit Road, but still finished outside the Top-20 in 22nd.

    I said last week that I was going out on a limb by picking the Colombia native, and that’s exactly the result I received when the hoodless No. 42 Target Chevrolet crossed the finish line in 22nd last week.

    Texas Picks

    Dark Horse Pick

    Marcos Ambrose is my guy this week.

    Ambrose is starting to get the hang of these fast 1.5-mile intermediate tracks. His performances this season Texas and her two twin sisters, Charlotte and Atlanta, has proved that Ambrose is a threat when the haulers pull into Fort Worth. Ambrose finished 6th in our first trip to Texas Motor Speedway this spring, he matched that finish at Charlotte in the Coke Zero 600, and one-up’ed himself just three weeks ago in the Bank of America 500, finishing 5th.

    His only finish outside the Top-10 out of the three sister tracks was Labor Day weekend at Atlanta where he finished 21st. Prior to this season, Ambrose hadn’t scored a Top-10 at Texas Motor Speedway. Ambrose will bring the same chassis that has finished so well this season (No. 735) at Texas, Charlotte, and Atlanta,

    He is coming off a fairly dismal, 29th-place finish last week at Martinsville and looks forward to Sunday’s AAA Texas 500: “I enjoy going to Texas Motor Speedway. I have run well there in the past and it’s always seemed to be a good track for me. We’ve been good on 1.5-mile tracks this year and I think we’ve got the intermediate track setup figured out. We are taking the same car we finished sixth with earlier this year back to Texas this weekend, so I’m optimistic about our chances and I expect to see the DEWALT Ford finish in the Top 10 Sunday.”

    Winner Pick

    Its only right that I pick one of the two drivers taking part in the Showdown In The Lone State State this week. That being said, I’m going with the driver of the duo that has yet to score a win in this 2011 Chase for the Sprint Cup.

    After this spring’s trip to Texas, Carl Edwards was shown 3rd on the leaderboard behind race-winner Matt Kenseth, and non-chaser Clint Bowyer.  This was the first trip to Texas since 2008 that Edwards scored a Top-5, following a drought that lasted the 2009 and 2010 seasons.

    Edwards swept the races at Texas in 2008, and scored his first victory at Texas in the fall of 2005. Edwards has finished outside the Top-10 just one time during this 2011 Chase for the Sprint Cup, his 11th place finish coming at the roulette wheel, Talladega Superspeedway.

    It’s almost a lock for a Top-5 this week for me, and with Edwards’ attitude working for me, my confidence level couldn’t be any higher: “We couldn’t be coming to a better race track. This track has been great for us. Practice went really well. We’ve got two Fords one and two and we’ve got as good a car and engine as we’ve ever brought here, so that’s good and I’m just ready for qualifying tonight. We’d like to qualify well and get a good starting position. It would be really nice if we could qualify on the pole and get that first pit box. That would be spectacular, but this race is one of the most fun races we go to.” 

    That’s it for this week, stay tuned next week as The 2011 Chase for the Sprint Cup heads to the desert…

    Until next week…You Stay Classy NASCAR NATION!

  • Underdogs of the Tums Fast Relief 500

    Underdogs of the Tums Fast Relief 500

    Jeff Burton:  Burton was the top finishing non-chase driver at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday with his sixth place finish.  This is his second consecutive top-10 in a row after finishing second in the Good Sam Club 500 at Talladega Superspeedway.  The first caution of the race occurred on Lap 7 when Dale Earnhardt Jr ran over a curb, spinning out and causing a pile up.  Burton received sheet metal damage to the left-rear corner of his race car, but his pit crew was able to fix the damage and keep him on the lead lap.  He quickly raced his way back to the front of the pack and ran as high as seventh in the first 100 laps of the race.

    Halfway through the race, Burton was running in ninth and ran in the top-15 for the next 150 laps.  On Lap 398 Burton was involved in a pile up involving Ryan Newman and Kurt Busch.  Burton backed his Chevy into the outside wall, resulting in minimal rear-end damage and restarting in 16th position.  Burton did not pit when the majority of the field pitted under caution on lap 457, moving him up to second place for the restart on lap 463.  Racing on old tires, Burton was eventually passed, but still came home with a top-10 finish.

    Martin Truex Jr:  Unlike a majority of the field on Sunday, Truex had a relatively uneventful day at Martinsville Speedway.  Due to qualifying being rained out, Truex started the race in 24th position.  By Lap 110, he had broken into the top-10 and remained near 10th place throughout the rest of the race.  In the final three laps, Martin raced from 11th to eighth position to secure his top-10 finish.  This is the No. 56 team’s second consecutive top-10 finish and tenth top-10 of the season.

    AJ Allmendinger:  AJ started the race in 16th position and wasted no time letting his team know that he was happy with his race car.  In fact, he was so happy with it that crew chief Greg Erwin elected not to bring the No. 43 Ford down pit road during the first three caution’s of the race.  Staying out under yellow, along with having a fast race car allowed Allmendinger to drive into the lead of the race on Lap 55.  Allmendinger continued to lead until Lap 66 when a caution came out, allowing him to pit for an air pressure adjustment, four tires and fuel.  Several teams did not to pit under this caution period, forcing Allmendinger to restart in 16th place.

    Still pleased with his car, Allmendinger was able to take the lead again on Lap 117.  As the race wore on, the No. 43 car started to lose grip and positions on the race track.  Lap 407 Allmendinger sustained left front fender damage due to a multi-car pile up.  He was forced to pit to repair damage on Lap 409 and restarted in 22nd position on Lap 413.  Being the last car on the lead lap, Allmendinger race his way through the field and was in the 14th spot by Lap 441.

    On Lap 444 Allmendinger made contact with the No. 78 car sending him sliding into the wall, causing minor right side damage.  He yet again found himself at the tail end of the lead lap with 50 laps to go.  Allmendinger once again raced his way to 15th position with six laps remaining in the race.  To Allmendinger’s benefit, caution came out for the final time on Lap 494.  This caution allowed AJ to gain four spots in the final three laps of the race, securing his 11th place finish.

  • Matty’s Picks: Vol. 25 – Martinsville – October 30, 2011

    Matty’s Picks: Vol. 25 – Martinsville – October 30, 2011

    What more fitting of a facility than Martinsville Speedway to travel to on this Halloween weekend. Martinsville Speedway has been known to create some very wild and down-right ere finishes.

    [media-credit name=”Barry Albert” align=”alignright” width=”225″][/media-credit]Known for their extraordinary culinary excellence in the field of Hot Dogs, Martinsville is a popular destination for 70,000+ NASCAR fans each spring and fall. I have not yet had the pleasure of visiting Martinsville Speedway, but it is one of those classic tracks that I would like to visit in the near future.

    We go from the largest track on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series schedule (Talladega at 2.66 miles), to the shortest (0.526) this weekend in Southern Virginia. Being built in 1947 by H. Clay Earles, the first NASCAR sanctioned event was held at Martinsville Speedway on Independence Day of 1948. NASCAR has continued to visit the half-mile paper clip ever since. It is the only racetrack that has remained on the NASCAR circuit since its beginning in 1948, so yes there is quite a bit of racing history in Henry County, Va.

    Its slight 12-degrees of banking in the corners makes passing a bit difficult without the use of the front-bumper. Jumping off the bottom groove and into the top-lane could cost you two, three, and sometimes even four positions. It’s a one groove racetrack that is fun to watch, but could be a driver’s worst nightmare this Halloween weekend.

    Talladega Recap

    The 2011 Chase for the Sprint Cup is not being very kind to me as a sports guru that is supposed to know what he’s talking about. After the first 6 races of The Chase, my winner picks have a combined average finish of 19.6, I have two Top-5’s thrown in that mix as well. It’s not every day that a Long Shot finishes in front of the favorite…(unless you happen to be my Dark Horse of the week).

    My Dark Horses have fared a bit better in the grand scheme of things, finishing on average 3.3 spots better than my winner picks. So, I may have this Dark Horse thing down, but may be the curse of many Championship hopefuls currently fighting for that Driver’s Championship.

    Last week, I threw all my eggs in one team’s basket and came out a loser. I threw my eggs in the Richard Childress Racing basket last week, but happened to pick the wrong drafting tandem in the end. As we all know, picking the right team results in nothing but a “coulda, woulda, shoulda” outcome.

    I was a curse to my Winner Pick last week in Alabama…

    Kevin Harvick and his teammate Paul Menard were the two fastest cars last week in NASCAR’s EFI testing at Talladega Superspeedway. That fact didn’t help me out when it came down to the Good Sam Club 500 last Sunday.
    The tandem were a dominating force for more than 100 laps, and on a number of occasions dropped back in the field to avoid the mess at the front of the field but quickly powered their way back to the front, showing the power of their Chevrolets. With help from Menard on his rear bumper, Harvick was able to lead the field on 6 occasions for a total of 13 laps.

    On lap 104, disaster struck with my Winner Pick, Menard in tail of course, when a slue of cars started spinning and wrecking directly in front of the No. 29 Jimmy John’s Chevrolet. The wreck collected Harvick, running all chances for me to get a win. Harvick limped home 32nd, and left my Dark Horse Pick, Paul Menard without a dancing partner.

    Menard’s help would come in the way of Australian native, Marcos Ambrose. The tango of Menard and Amrbose systematically picked their way through the field for 80 or so laps until the final restart. It was then when Menard paired with fellow Chevrolet driver, Tony Stewart to run the final 3 laps of the Good Sam Club 500 nose-to-tail. The two scrambled to finish strong, but Menard would be the 6th pusher of the field, coming home in 12th place.

    Martinsville Picks

    Winner Pick

    There’s one guy I think of when I think Martinsville, and that’s Virginia-native, Denny Hamlin. Hamlin has finished outside the Top-10 just twice in the last 12 races at the paper clip, and that race being this April in the Goody’s Fast Pain Relief 500. Before his 12th place finish in April, Hamlin had won the prior three races at Martinsville, a track where he loves to race.

    Hamlin is a bit of a forgotten Chase driver, but really could make a statement in his 13th visit to Martinsville Speedway. The driver of the No. 11 FedEx Toyota has a .333 win percentage at Martinsville, with all four victories coming in the Car of Tomorrow.

    “It’s such a short race track that when you find a technique that works for you where you pick up a little time, that’s what you do,” Hamlin said Friday. “No matter what vehicle you’re running. Aero and horsepower don’t mean much – it’s more about how you technically drive around it and how good the car is. Rules changes don’t matter, whether it’s a wing, a spoiler, the Car of Tomorrow or the car of yesterday. Those same techniques work. That’s why you see the same guys running up front. It’s their technique and what works for them.”

    Dark Horse Pick

    Going out on a limb with this pick, I’m going with a guy that might be overlooked when it comes to Short Track racing.

    Juan Montoya is a guy that might be overlooked on every track but Infineon and Watkins Glen. He started 27th in April, and drove his No. 42 Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet to 4th when the checkered flag flew.

    His average finish isn’t too shabby for a Short Track at 13.9, but with no practice sessions today in Southern Virginia, I have nothing but past stats to guide my picks. Both of Montoya’s career Top-5’s on Short Tracks have been at Martinsville Speedway, and I think he has the finesse (and front bumper) it takes to finish strong at the paper clip. He has also finished 97.6% of all the laps run at Martinsville since his first start in 2007.

    The No. 42 Target Chevrolet team will bring Chassis #1110 to Martinsville, the same Chassis that aided Montoya to a 4th place finish, overcoming his 27th place starting spot. Chassis #1110 also started 31st in September at New Hampshire and finished in 9th. This chassis knows how to work through traffic.

    That’s it for this week so until next time, You Stay Classy NASCAR NATION!!

  • Cole Whitt: ‘We’re Trying Really Hard’

    Cole Whitt: ‘We’re Trying Really Hard’

    [media-credit name=”Barry Albert” align=”alignright” width=”250″][/media-credit]Red Bull development driver Cole Whitt has been tearing up the tracks in his No. 60 truck for his rookie season in the NASCAR’s Camping World Truck Series. He has had one pole, led 30 laps and currently leads the Sunoco Rookie of the Year competition.

    To date, Whitt has three consecutive top-10 finishes, with an average start of 11.2 and an average finish of 8.5.  The young driver is currently tied for third in the point standings, just seven points behind leader Johnny Sauter.

    To what does Whitt credit his success so far this season in the Truck Series?

    “Everyone has just been working hard is the main thing,” Whitt said. “We’re not the biggest team and we’re not the most expensive team in the world but we get good results with what we got.”

    “That’s what’s kind of cool is everyone knows what we’re working with,” Whitt continued.  “We’re trying really hard.  Everyone puts so many hours in. It’s pretty cool to have guys that care about it that much.”

    Whitt likes to lead by example, going to the race shop every day.

    “I’m there from 7:00 AM in the morning to 4:00 PM in the afternoon,” Whitt said. “I like to go in and show them that I care and give back to them what they give to me.”

    Whitt also credits his team’s chemistry with the success that they have all enjoyed in the early goings of the 2011 season.

    “I’m a firm believer in chemistry and that your team has to be all gelled together,” Whitt said. “I try really hard at making the team work together. Everyone needs to communicate and everyone needs to get along. That’s how our team operates.”

    “We’re having fun racing and we’re loving it,” Whitt continued. “It’s been enjoyable.”

    One of the races that Whitt was not looking forward to, however, was the one now in his rear view mirror, the Kroger 250 at Martinsville. In spite of his apprehension about that race, Whitt qualified second and brought his truck to the checkered flag in sixth.

    “I wasn’t looking forward to Martinsville”, Whitt said candidly. “I feel like I run pretty good everywhere, but Martinsville is not the kind of track I look forward to.”

    “But to qualify as well as we did and race all day like we did and be fast all day was really exciting,” Whitt said. “We passed the most trucks, I think 53, by the end of the day so it was a long day but our truck was good.”

    With that good finish, Whitt is now ready to tackle the next race, the Bully Hill Vineyards 200. As is the case with many rookies, this will be Whitt’s first time ever at the Nashville Superspeedway in Lebanon, Tennessee.

    “I’ve never seen the place so I don’t know how it’s going to be,” Whitt said. “I’m usually good at places I’ve never seen though like Darlington, which was one of the best races of the year and I’d never seen that track a day in my life.”

    “We’ll spend time making sure our truck is the way we want it to be,” Whitt continued. “Other than that we’ll get our feet wet in the first practice session, learn the track the best we can and put the hammer down.”

    Whitt has only one wish as he heads into the Nashville race weekend.

    “I want to go win the race,” Whitt said. “That’s the way we approach every race. We go to run good and we’ll take what we can get, but we go to every race to win.”

    With that confidence comes a great deal of pride in his accomplishments to date. Whitt also revels in the increased attention that he and his team have garnered thanks to their performance.

    “I’m proud of everything and the way that it’s all gone down,” Whitt said. “I feel like our team deserves it.”

    “It’s kind of funny because we’re not a team that’s expected to run really good,” Whitt said. “But hopefully by the end of the year, we can change everyone’s minds and make it where everyone thinks of us as a winning team.”

    “I think a lot of people are now thinking that we’ve run well this far, but how long will they last?” Whitt said. “We’re looking to doing it all year.”

    Whitt will get that chance to run the full season and is especially excited about a new sponsorship deal that has just been announced. Fuel Doctor will be an associate sponsor for the next eight races starting with the Nashville race.

    “We’re pretty excited about that,” Whitt said of his new sponsorship deal.

    “Hopefully when we roll through the gates, everyone will worry that we’re there. That’s what we are working towards.”

  • Chase Elliott, Johanna Long and Dakoda Armstrong Prove Racing is a Family Affair

    Chase Elliott, Johanna Long and Dakoda Armstrong Prove Racing is a Family Affair

    [media-credit name=”Barry Albert” align=”alignright” width=”250″][/media-credit]Up and coming NASCAR racers like Chase Elliott, Johanna Long and Dakoda Armstrong may have loads of talent but they also have one other thing in common, the love and support of their family. And each one of them has proven that racing is truly a family affair.

    Thanks to the coaching of his NASCAR champion father Awesome Bill Elliott and the unfailing support of mom Cindy, Chase Elliott is already proving that racing for him is filled with family. The young racer also recently signed with one of NASCAR’s most famous team families, Hendrick Motorsports.

    Elliott raced this past weekend at Greenville Pickens Speedway in one of NASCAR’s developmental series under the banner of HMS. With that start, Chase officially became the youngest driver ever to start a K&N Pro Series East race at the tender age of 15 years.

    Elliott followed in his most popular father’s footsteps from the moment he pulled into the historic race track in South Carolina. Fans lined up well into Turn Four to get the youngster’s autograph and the line remained until the session finally had to be ended so the race could start.

    Elliott, in his No. 9 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet, qualified for the Kevin Whitaker Chevrolet 150 in the 26th position. His qualifying lap, at a speed of 85.531 miles per hour, was a definite improvement over his practice time but he still started the race deep within the field.

    Elliott had to not only pick his way through the field gradually but also had to overcome a spin on lap 97 to soldier forward. With 23 laps to go, the young driver, with his father in his ear as spotter, manhandled his way to eighth, eventually finishing the race in the fourth spot.

    Ever the competitor, just like his father, Chase Elliott had this to say after his debut.

    “The weekend wasn’t quite what we wanted it to be,” Elliott said. “But it ended up being a pretty good night for the HendrickCars.com Chevrolet.”

    “Having the support of your family and friends for any first time event in your life is always special,” Elliott continued. “I have been fortunate to have the support of a lot of family and friends that have been with me each step of the way.”   

    Just as family has been critical to Chase Elliott’s rise in the sport, so has the family of Johanna Long been instrumental in her move up as a rookie in the Camping World Truck Series this year. She too is following in the steps of her racing father, Donald, who raced in the NASCAR All-Pro Division back in the day.

    Long, at age 18, admits that she is struggling a bit to get that handle on her No. 20 Panhandle Grading and Paving Toyota Tundra truck. In the first three Truck races, she has finished 32nd, 20th and 31st respectively.

    “It’s going,” Long said of her Truck run to date. “We’ve had a lot of bad luck but every time we go to the race track we’ve been learning a lot.”

    “I’m learning and learning and learning.”

    Long was very excited to race this past weekend at Martinsville in the Kroger 250 this past weekend. She was able to harness her excitement to get her best finish to date, bringing her truck to the finish line in one piece and in the 18th position.

    But she still goes back to crediting her family for putting her in the position to pursue her racing dreams.

    “My mom and my dad and my grandparents and my uncle, they all own my team,” Long said. “They are a big part of my career.”

    “They have given me a great opportunity and I can’t thank them enough,” Long continued. “My mom and dad come to every single race and they would not miss it for the world. It’s really neat for them to come and experience this with me.”

    At age 19, Dakoda Armstrong may be the eldest of this group of up and coming racers, but he too got to where he is today thanks to the nurturing of his family, in his case from down on the farm. Thanks to his family’s support, Armstrong recently signed with ThorSport Racing to run a third team to current powerhouse Truck racers Johnny Sauter and Matt Crafton.

    Armstrong will run the No. 98 Chevy Silverado for a select number of races this year. Armstrong will also continue his ARCA racing, where last year he won the Rookie of the Year honors.

    Armstrong credits his family with jump starting his racing career. He grew up on a farm in the Midwest, born in New Castle, Indiana.

    “When I was younger, we had cattle and we actually had to sell them so we could go racing,” Armstrong said.

    The investment paid off and this racer’s family farming avocation has even led him to several sponsorship deals, specifically with ethanol coming into the sport and the greening of NASCAR.

    “It’s kind of funny how it worked out,” Armstrong said. “My dad’s farming career and my racing career are starting to mesh right now.”

    “It’s been really neat and it’s a great experience for my family,” Armstrong said of his racing. “They really love it.”

    Regardless of their ages or current racing series, there is no doubt that all three of these up and coming NASCAR future stars have succeeded in moving forward in their young careers thanks to the love, support and nurturing of their families.

    And there is also no doubt that the parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles of Chase Elliott, Johanna Long and Dakoda Armstrong could not be more proud.

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Martinsville

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Martinsville

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Kyle Busch: After leading 151 laps and finishing third at Fontana last week, Busch duplicated the feat at Martinsville, leading 151 of 500 laps and coming home third. It was the third time this year Busch has lost a lead late in a race, and although he assumed the points lead after his Martinsville finish, many are left wondering if Busch’s killer instinct disappeared along with his “bad boy” persona.

     “Hey,” Busch said, “they said the same thing about the ‘new’ Kyle Busch as they have recently about a late Kyle Busch lead in a race: ‘It’ll never last.’      

     “They call Kevin Harvick ‘The Closer.’ I guess that makes me the ‘Close(r) But No Cigar.’ It’s amazing. The more things change, the more they stay the same. After winning at Bristol, I was considered the ‘one to beat.’ Now, I’m still considered the ‘one to beat.’”

     2. Kevin Harvick: Harvick was floundering in 27th before a red flag for Martin Truex, Jr.’s wreck allowed the No. 29 Budweiser team time to regroup. With a strategy established, Harvick methodically climbed to the front, and slipped by Dale Earnhardt, Jr. with four laps to go, then cruised to the win. It was Harvick’s second-straight win, and boosted him four places in the point standings to fifth, 15 out of first.

     “That’s right, Junior Nation,” Harvick said. “Kevin Harvick sucks…. the wind out of a potential Junior Nation-wide celebration. But I realize passing Junior doesn’t make you the most popular driver. Being Junior makes you the most popular driver. But racing is not a popularity contest. You don’t win races by collecting the most votes. Junior fans should realize there’s no shame in losing to Kevin Harvick, just as there’s no glory in being named ‘Mr. Congeniality’ at season’s end.  

     “Early in the season, we were little more than mediocre. In fact, many of my competitors were calling me ‘Happy Medium.’ Now, the 29 car is the one to beat, and I, along with crew chief Gil Martin, have raised our expectations. Collectively, we’re known as ‘Happy Gil More.’” 

     3. Jimmie Johnson: After a caution on lap 465 brought the field into the pits, Johnson emerged as he entered, in second behind Kyle Busch, and a seventh Martinsville win was a distinct possibility for the No. 48 Lowe’s team. However, Johnson was nabbed for speeding entering pit road, and forced to restart at the end of the longest line. Restarting 15th, he picked off four positions, and finished a disappointing 11th.

    “I’ve won here like clockwork,” Johnson said. “Now I can say I’ve lost here by clockwork. I was shafted. There’s no way I was speeding. Obviously, there’s a vast, rite-wing conspiracy at work against yet another season’s-end ceremony honoring the champ, and there’s bias at play. NASCAR doesn’t want to see another Jimmie Johnson championship. It’s called getting ‘five-timed,’ and as was the case when Brooke Gordon got ‘two-timed,’ it’s costing a Hendrick driver dearly.”

    4. Carl Edwards: Edwards struggled at Martinsville, finishing one lap down in 18th and falling out of the top spot in the Sprint Cup point standings. He holds the second spot, five points behind Kyle Busch.

    “By no means am I a short-track expert,” Edwards said. “I’m no ‘ringer,’ but some, Kevin Harvick included, have called me a ‘wringer.’ When people think of Carl Edwards, they don’t think ‘short track;’ they think ‘short fuse.’”

    5. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt led 17 laps in the Goody’s Fast Pain Relief 500, turning in his best performance of the year with a second at Martinsville. After a 24th to start the season at Daytona, Earnhardt hasn’t finished worse than 12th since, and has climbed the point standings to eighth.

    “I’m disappointed I didn’t get the win,” Earnhardt said. “But I’ll say the same thing countless fans have said many times over at the No. 88 merchandise tents: ‘I’ll take it.’ 

    “Now, should I fail to win at Texas, I’ll be the owner of a 100-race winless streak. Sure it looks bad, but I’m finally doing something my daddy never could.”

    6. Ryan Newman: Newman saw a promising day at Martinsville deteriorate quickly when a broken header pipe on lap 328 left his No. 39 Haas Automation Chevy with compromised horsepower. A subsequent flat tire and spin sent him further back in the field, and Newman eventually hobbled home with a 20th-place finish, two laps adrift of the lead lap.

    “A broken pipe, a flat tire, and a spin,” said Newman. “That’s bad for Ryan Newman, but even worse for Jeremy Mayfield.”

    7. Kurt Busch: Busch survived an eventful day at Martinsville, overcoming right-front damage sustained when he clipped Bobby Labonte midway through the race to salvage a 16th-place finish. After four-straight top-10’s to open the season, Busch has finished 17th and 16th in the last two weeks, and after holding the points lead after Bristol, he’s now down to fourth, 14 behind younger brother Kyle.

    “There’s good news and there’s bad news,” Busch said. “The bad news is I’m down to fourth in the point standings. The good news? Kyle’s in the lead, so I like my chances to improve. Brother Kyle holds a Sunday lead about as well as Greg Norman at the Masters.”

    8. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth was penalized on the first lap of the race for changing lanes before the start/finish line, putting him in a hole early. But the No. 17 Crown Royal Black team patiently battled back, and Kenseth regained the lead lap on lap 221. He eventually finished sixth, joining Roush Fenway teammate David Ragan in the top 10. Kenseth is now ninth in the points, 24 out of first.

    “I qualified 24th,” Kenseth said. “As such, you can never underestimate the importance of taking the 23rd position less than a lap into the race. NASCAR officials foiled my master plan. But that’s par for the course in the life of Matt Kenseth. Even my efforts to cheat are just as unspectacular as the rest of me.” 

    9. Jeff Gordon: Gordon posted his first top-5 result since winning at Phoenix in February with a fifth at Martinsville. He led 37 laps on the day, and vaulted four places in the Sprint Cup point standings to 12th, 49 behind Kyle Busch.

    “Hendrick Motorsports placed four cars in the top 11,” Gordon said. “Things are looking up for HMS. Or are they? I haven’t won in four races, Mark Martin hasn’t won in 51, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. in winless in his last 99, and Jimmie Johnson’s hasn’t won a championship in well over 130 days!”

    10. Juan Montoya: Montoya finished fourth in the Goody’s Fast Pain Relief 500, charging late with several key passes to forge his fourth top-10 result of the year. He moved up one spot in the point standings, and is now seventh, 18 out of first.

    “I hear that my former Formula 1 teammate Kimi Raikkonen has signed to drive trucks in the Camping World series. It’s good to see F1 stars gravitating towards NASCAR. Years on the F1 circuit will prepare you for the rigors of any racing series, and Kimi’s vast open-cockpit experience qualifies him not only for a seat with Kyle Busch Motorsports, but as a Southwest Airlines pilot as well. Kimi will be the first native of Finland to race in NASCAR. I’d say that’s a good omen for him, as he’s already crossed the ‘Finnish’ line even before his first race.”

  • Sam Bass Partners with Richard Petty To Do Good with Goody’s

    Sam Bass Partners with Richard Petty To Do Good with Goody’s

    NASCAR artist Sam Bass and the ‘King’ Richard Petty are partnering with Goody’s and BC Powders to do good for two charities, the Wounded Warrior Project and Victory Junction Camp. The special promotion, ‘Pick a Powder’ will culminate at the Goody’s Fast Relief 500 Cup race this weekend at Martinsville Speedway.

    [media-credit name=”Barry Albert” align=”alignright” width=”275″][/media-credit]Throughout this month, fans have had the opportunity to get involved by voting on which powder provided the fastest relief, Goody’s or BC Powders. Richard Petty championed the Goody’s cause benefiting the charity nearest to his heart, Victory Junction Camp, and county singer Trace Adkins was the cheerleader for the BC Powders team with his charity being the Wounded Warrior Project.

    Artist Sam Bass got involved in this special promotion as he was asked to design the paint schemes for each charity that will be displayed on two cars during the Martinsville race. Even more special was that two individuals, one representing each charity, worked with Bass to craft the designs.

    “Well, it’s going to be a very exciting weekend,” Bass said. “These are two tremendous causes brought together by Goody’s and BC Powders.”

    “It’s a unique pairing of a lot of different things,” Bass continued. “BC Powders and Goody’s have been around the sport of NASCAR for a long, long time. Victory Junction Gang Camp and Wounded Warriors Project have been as well.”

    “The idea was what could we do to represent these two charities and make people happy and tie it in to Sam Bass and NASCAR design work.”

    “What I got to do, which was really, really special, was that I got to work with a gentleman named Cory Collins on the Wounded Warrior Project and I got to work with a little girl named Eleanor Bolton from Victory Junction Camp,” Bass said. “Both of them are tremendous NASCAR fans and basically what they did was to work with me to design their race cars.”

    Bass began his collaboration with the two at the first race in Daytona. His work started with phone calls to pick their brain about their interest in the sport and their respective relationships to their charities.

    Eleanor Bolton, a Victory Junction camper, is an eight year old with Spinal Muscular Atrophy. She and her family first attended Camp for a family weekend in February 2010.

    “She is as sweet as she can be,” Bass said. “She sent me some drawings she had done and I just took all of her information, all of her colors, all of her family photos, all of her drawings and then kind of took the logo of Camp and Goody’s.”

    “Her car number was 43, of course with Richard Petty,” Bass continued. “And I just designed a car with her input and came up with something that she would like.”

    “She had peace symbols and hearts and photos of her and her family,” Bass said. “That’s how her car was.”

    The other participant with whom Bass worked was Cory Collins. On his first tour in Iraq in 2005, Collins was injured 27 days after arriving. He and his unit ran over a 500-pound IED  and he was the sole survivor of the attack.

    “Cory is a veteran of the armed forces and had been injured serving this country and ultimately it cost him his left leg,” Bass said. “I could sympathize because I lost my lower left leg to diabetes a few years ago. He and I hit it off from the very beginning.”

    “I worked with him and got his favorite colors and learned that he was a Jeff Gordon fan,” Bass continued. “So, having designed for Jeff since he came into the sport of NASCAR, I quickly related to Cory.”

    Bass took Collins’ favorite color, which was black, and put some flames into the mix a la Jeff Gordon. Bass then featured Collins’ car number, 101 for his unit, the 101st Airborne.

    “We came up with a couple of designs that mirrored the tattoo that he had gotten on his arm over there,” Bass said. “It’s got a flaming skull that looks really cool. And of course the Wounded Warriors logo is prominently featured on the hood.”

    “To keep the cars in symmetry, I had Cory send me photos of his family and his friends,” Bass continued. “So things are meaningful on both cars for both participants.”

    Both Collins and Bolton will get to ride in their respective cars during the pace laps of the Goody’s Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville.

    “Over the weekend they’re going to get to meet Richard Petty and Trace Adkins,” Bass said. “It’s just going to be a blast and I’m going to get to be a part of it.”

    “From dealing with the child in Eleanor to the adult experiences of Cory was very meaningful to me.”

    “It’s going to be a great day for both of them,” Bass said. “To see their reactions and to spend the day with them will warm my heart and I feel very proud to participate in this project.”

    Fans can also get in on the action as Goody’s and BC Powders will make donations to each charity on every box of either product sold. During the Goody’s Fast Relief 500 race at Martinsville Speedway, both charities will be presented checks by their respective powders to continue their missions.