Testing SpeedwayMedia.com

Tag: Robin Pemberton

  • Scott Miller Taking Over as NASCAR Senior VP of Competition

    Scott Miller Taking Over as NASCAR Senior VP of Competition

    A new face is joining the NASCAR executive hierarchy.

    NASCAR announced today that Scott Miller will take over as the Senior Vice President of Competition. He takes over the position from Robin Pemberton, who announced yesterday that he was leaving the post at the end of the 2015 calendar year. The Senior Vice President of Competition is responsible for managing all competition efforts related to technology, inspection, rule development and officiating across all NASCAR racing series.

    Miller will be subservient to NASCAR Executive Vice-President and Chief Racing Development Officer Steve O’Donnell and will be based at the Research & Development Center in Concord, N.C.

    Prior to accepting the position, he spent the last four years as the head of competition at Michael Waltrip Racing. Under his leadership, the organization put at least one car in the Chase in 2012 (two), 2013 and 2015.

    “I’m looking forward to using the experience I’ve gained working within teams in an entirely new way at NASCAR,” Miller said. “Our sport has evolved quickly over the last several seasons through advanced technology and its creative application in the garage area. We will strive to continue this forward momentum while assuring a level playing field and competitive racing. It’s a challenging opportunity and a logical next step for me. I can’t wait to get started.”

    His résumé includes motorcycle racing in AMA Motocross, being an owner/driver in the NASCAR Winston West Series from 1983 to 1990, five seasons as a chief mechanic in the Verizon IndyCar Series and TriStar Motorsports in 1995.

  • NASCAR BTS: Petty Charity Ride Turns 21

    NASCAR BTS: Petty Charity Ride Turns 21

    With the Charity Ride Across America celebrating its 21st anniversary, this week’s edition of NASCAR Behind the Scenes focuses on Kyle Petty, who founded the unique motorcycle event that raises money for a charity near and dear to his heart, Victory Junction Gang camp.

    According to Petty, the ride began very simply 21 years ago, with a few NASCAR friends and avid motorcyclists joining together to share a trip across country. And then it took on a life of its own once charity came into play.

    “We had done a ride before with a couple friends, Eddie Gossage and Robin Pemberton, and we talked about it then and not long after that we rode from North Carolina to Phoenix,” Petty said. “We just started picking up people along the way. So, we thought, what a cool idea if we just rode across country and picked up people as we went like a bike-a-thon.”

    “Well, that didn’t go over too good because I was driving a race car at the time and you only get two off-weekends a year. So, everybody got mad because you didn’t want to spend one of your off weeks riding motorcycles across country.”

    “So then we came up with the idea to do it for charity, stop at children’s hospitals and give money away, and try to help local communities. That first year, we thought it would never get any better than that and we were never going to do it again.”

    “We got close to the next year and some people said, hey why don’t you all do that again? So, we did it again and again and again and again and here we are 21 years later and it has evolved into what it is.”

    As Petty reflected on the 21 years of the ride, there were so many highlights to remember. But it was really the people involved that has made it so very special to him and his family.

    “The highlight in the beginning was the ride,” Petty said. “Riding is just a highlight unto itself.”

    “But besides riding, the highlight was stopping at some of the children’s hospitals and seeing the kids. Coca Cola has always been a big sponsor of the ride and they’ve got motorcycles that have side cars that look like Coca Cola bottles. The kids would come out and they would love that. I think that was a big part of it in the beginning.”

    “As we all got older and we rode more, I think the big part of the ride is the people that ride and meeting people along the way.”

    “We met so many race fans and so many cool families, kids and people along the way. They come out along the way or at a gas stop and just talk about motorcycles, racing and camp. I think the highlights have been the people. That is what has made it special.”

    Of course, in 21 years of riding across the country, there have been a few challenges and funny stories with the trek as well.

    “The first year, the very first fuel stop, there were only 35 of us. When we pulled into this gas station, there was a lady running it and she cut off the power and locked the doors. She thought we were a motorcycle gang,” Petty said. “She would not sell us any gas. So, we had to work our way back through traffic.”

    “Also, that first year, we had a couple that went with us that left San Francisco and were going to ride to Huntington Beach and then turn around and go home,” Petty continued. “When we got to Huntington Beach, they were having so much fun that they decided to ride to Vegas and then go home.”

    “When we got to Vegas, they asked where we were going next and they said they would go with us to Phoenix and then go back to California. And the next thing I know, they’re in North Carolina with us.”

    “Every night they would go to Walmart or Kmart and buy more clothes. They just kept riding with us. Their name is Dave and Renee Bartell and they’ve been with us for every ride.”

    “This will be their 21st ride. They’ve been with us every year.”

    “One of the strangest things, we were somewhere in New Mexico and we had ridden about 70 miles and we hadn’t passed a house or seen anything in miles,” Petty said. “Terry Labonte was with us on this ride. We came to an intersection and there was a family standing in the back of a pickup truck with all their Terry Labonte T-shirts on and Terry Labonte hats on.”

    “They had driven three and a half hours just to one intersection because they knew we would be coming through there in hopes they would get a glimpse of Terry Labonte. So, we stopped and all of us had pictures taken with them. We spent about twenty minutes alongside the road and then left and went on.”

    “There has been some strange stuff that has happened but it has been fun.”

    The 21st anniversary also includes some special tributes, one to Richard Petty, ‘The King’ who will be riding for a portion of the event, as well as to Don Tilley, who has mapped out the ride every year until this year when he was killed in a motorcycle accident this past summer.

    “The King bought me my first motorcycle when I was five and we’ve been riding ever since,” Petty said. “He’s always ridden and has always had bikes. When he has time, he goes and I think this year he is only going for three or four days because he has to be at the race track. But he goes as often as his schedule permits.”

    “For twenty years, we’ve had a gentleman named Don Tilley, who owns Tilley Harley Davidson in Statesville, North Carolina and he’s always drawn our route out,” Petty continued. “He told us what were the pretty roads and he knew more roads than Rand McNally, I’ll tell you that. He would draw out maps and he drew one out for this year.”

    “But last summer, he was in a motorcycle accident and passed away. For 21 years, Don Tilley has drawn the route so this will be the last year and our last ride that he will route.”

    “Someone else will have to do that and we’re looking for somebody. But I think he’s pretty irreplaceable.”

    While there have been so many highlights, funny stories, and tributes in the 21 years of the Kyle Petty Charity Ride, there is nothing more important to its founder than the purpose of the ride, raising money for Victory Junction camp.

    “For camp, the ride is critical,” Petty said. “We’ve raised $16 million the last twenty some years.”

    “The ride is one of the founders of camp. It’s so important to be able to send kids to camp free. That’s the whole point of Victory Junction that these kids with chronic and life-threatening illnesses can come to camp and it doesn’t cost their parents anything to send them.”

    “We’re constantly raising money at camp and to have a fundraiser like the Kyle Petty Charity Ride is really big for camp. The water park, where the swimming pool is, was donated by the ride. So, camp and the ride, even though they are two separate entities, it’s important for camp to continue the ride.”

    Petty hopes that all race fans will participate in this year’s 21st anniversary ride, which kicks off May 2nd, in whatever ways they can. But most importantly, he hopes that fans will actually come out and cheer the riders on in person as well as making any kind of contribution.

    “Fans can follow us on Facebook (www.facebook.com/KPCharityRide) and Twitter (@KPCharityRide), which everyone has now,” Petty said. “But if we come close to your area, we want people to come out to the gas stops or the hotels at night and say hey, get autographs from Harry Gant, Herschel Walker, myself, my father when he is with us, and just hang around and talk camp and racing.”

    “And please make a donation to the ride because that money goes right to camp.”

    So, just what does this ride mean to Kyle Petty personally?

    “I think that’s hard to put into words,” Petty said. “In the beginning it started as a fluke and it has turned into something far beyond my wildest dreams and imagination.”

    “It’s kind of like camp. You build a bunch of buildings at camp and you think, what a cool looking place. But it’s really nothing until the kids come.”

    “And then it has a spirit and it picks up a heartbeat of its own. It becomes alive.”

    “And I think the ride is the same thing,” Petty continued. “You take one bike and then there’s two and four and eight. And the next thing you know, you have 140 or 150 riders and everybody believes in the same thing, giving back and caring.”

    “And the ride takes on a life of its own. I think it is just the spirit of the ride and the people of the ride.”

    “The caring and the giving of the ride is what it means to me. That’s what it represents.”

     

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Monster Mile FedEx 400

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Monster Mile FedEx 400

    With Miles the Monster rearing his ugly head in more ways than one, here is what was surprising and not surprising from the 45th annual FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks at Dover International Speedway.

    Surprising: The winning crew chief, usually the one of the most up-tight people in the garage area as even he admits, must have been inspired by Pharrell’s ‘Happy’ song that played pre-race at the Monster Mile.

    Chad Knaus, crew chief for two-time 2014 winner, nine-time Dover winner, and six-time champ Jimmie Johnson, was surprisingly animated in expressing his happiness in the media center after the race.

    “Quite honestly I’m at the best point in my life,” Knaus said. “I’ve been very fortunate to have been in this sport for a long time.”

    “I’ve seen it grow and change, and it’s been a weird circuitous route to get to where we are now, but quite honestly, I’ve never been happier in my life – with my personal life, my performance at the racetrack, what we’ve got going on, and Jimmie has helped a lot with that,” Knaus continued. “So has Mr. Hendrick as far as making me understand that I’ve got to take time away from the facility and understand that there’s life outside of motorsports.”

    “I’ve tried for a long time to deny that fact, but I’m really, really enjoying it all the way around,” Knaus said. “It’s fun. It’s busy as ever, but we’re in a good spot right now.”

    “Everything is great.”

    Not Surprising: Clint Bowyer did his best impression of Miley Cyrus’ ‘Wrecking Ball’, at least in the minds of Joe Gibbs Racing, hitting Kyle Busch and knocking him out of the race early on and then getting into Matt Kenseth on the last restart, after Kenseth spun his tires a bit.

    “It was a day alright,” Bowyer said. “I hated to be in that situation with the 18 (Kyle Busch). It’s one of those deals where I thought I was clear and obviously wasn’t and ruined his day and certainly didn’t help mine.”

    “I had a pretty good run at him (Matt Kenseth) and he was still spinning when I hit him and I knocked him into the wall and I was like, ‘Not another (Joe) Gibbs (Racing) car.’ But what a day. Frustrating day.”

    Bowyer did swing back, however, scoring a fourth place finish in his No. 15 Cherry5-hrEnergySpecialOpsWarriorFnd Toyota.

    Surprising: For only the third time in the past few years, including Martinsville and Daytona, the track itself became part of the headline as a piece of concrete two to three inches deep and six to eight inches wide dislodged, damaging Jamie McMurray’s car as well as the Monster Mile walkway.

    The red flag was displayed for 22 minutes and 22 seconds as NASCAR and the track officials made repairs to the hole in the concrete as well as the shattered area of the walkway.

    “We have equipment and we have product at every facility,” Robin Pemberton, NASCAR’s Vice President of Competition and Racing Operations, said. “It is an epoxy type filler that we use, and it’s basically the same filler that’s used any time we make a repair at the track, whether it be asphalt or concrete.”

    “The track doesn’t want things like this to happen any more than we do or the competitors do,” Pemberton continued. “You always have to be ready for the emergencies and everybody wants to have the same perfect race day as they can.”

    Not Surprising: Jamie McMurray was not the only one impacted by unexpected objects encountered on the race track. Martin Truex Jr.’s car was hit by a bird in practice on Friday at the Monster Mile, causing damage to the left headlight area.

    For once, however, the driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row Chevrolet, was able to overcome the adversity, scoring his best finish to date in 2014 in the sixth position.

    “All in all, it was a good day,” Truex said. “You can just feel that we’re heading in the right direction.”

    “And all the dumb luck we’ve had didn’t bite us today,” the New Jersey native said. “Dover has been good to me over the years and it was also a great feeling to bring home a strong effort at what I consider my home track.”

    Surprising: Brett Moffitt made his debut in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for Jay Robinson Racing and scored a very respectable 22nd place finish in the No. 66 Land Castle Title Toyota. The 21 year old, who tests for Michael Waltrip Racing and Toyota Racing Development, combined that relationship with the Robinson team for the opportunity.

    “Hopefully this will open up more opportunities,” Moffitt said. “Obviously I hope this leads to more races…it’s just about having the right people beside you telling you, ‘Look man, you can do this, just keep digging.’”

    “That’s what I’ve been doing.”

    Not Surprising: Starting at the back of the pack due to an engine change did not deter this young driver one bit. Kyle Larson, behind the wheel of the No. 42 Cottonelle Chevrolet, weaved and bobbed his way through the field to finish as the highest placed rookie yet again.

    Larson finished eleventh and is nineteen points ahead of Austin Dillon in the Rookie of the Year standings to date.

    Surprising: Team Penske had what looked like a good race weekend at the Monster Mile, with Brad Keselowski starting from the pole position and Joey Logano starting third. Both drivers finished the race in the top-10, with Keselowski in the runner up position and Logano in eighth but were surprisingly disappointed after the race, especially about their performance in the pits.

    “Yeah, we just had an up-and-down day,” the driver of the No. 2 Miller Lite Ford said. “I started up front and faded to the back pretty early in the race. We just weren’t where we needed to be in the car.”

    “I thought we were going to get a crack at Jimmie (Johnson) and then that last caution came out and we just kind of whiffed on pit road, came out way behind.”

    “I drove back up there, and with the help of the restart got up to second but we just never could really get in front of him.”

    “We weren’t very good today,” the driver of the No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford said. “Some runs we were and some runs we weren’t. We had a tough day on pit road in the beginning.”

    “We were chasing the car all day and that is what screwed us up.”

    Not Surprising:   Team Penske was not the only one having trouble in the pits. Kevin Harvick, who has been vocal in the media about his disappointment in his team’s performance, struggled yet again.

    The driver of the No. 4 Budweiser Chevrolet had eight stops on pit road, for a total average of 42.074 seconds. Harvick and company finished 17th one lap down, after starting the race in the eighth position.

    Surprising: In spite of his difficulties, including getting hit by the No. 47 of AJ Allmendinger, crashing hard into the wall, and being in the garage for an extended period for repairs, Greg Biffle and his Pit Bulls were able to keep their streak of completing every race going, the longest in the sport since 2011.

    “I didn’t really know what happened,” the driver of the No. 16 3M Ford said. “I just knew that the No. 47 got into us pretty hard and turned us into the fence. They were racing hard back there and he stuck it into a hole that maybe there wasn’t room for, I guess and he slid off the bottom, got his right-rear caught by the No. 17 and up into us.”

    “It was a chain reaction,” Biffle continued. “This place is tight and fast and when you get racing that hard back there on a restart, stuff like that is going to happen.”

    Not Surprising: Although four-time champ Jeff Gordon seemingly had a good car early on, he faded late in the race to finish 15th, which not surprisingly handed the points lead off to third place finisher Matt Kenseth.

    Kenseth now leads by just two points over Gordon, with Carl Edwards third, Jimmie Johnson fourth and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. rounding out the top five in the point standings after the Monster Mile.

  • Jimmie Johnson Stole the Monster Mile Show to Make it Two in a Row

    Jimmie Johnson Stole the Monster Mile Show to Make it Two in a Row

    For the ninth time, Jimmie Johnson, driver of the No. 48 Lowe’s/Kobalt Tools Chevrolet stole the show at the Monster Mile, making it two race wins in a row and virtually guaranteeing himself a place in the Chase for the tenth consecutive year.

    “It was an awesome race car,” Johnson said. “The first run I wasn’t sure we were really going to have the normal Dover magic here. Once the track ‘rubbered’ in our car came to life and it was so good.”

    “It’s amazing that we can stay on top of things here with the different generation car, different rules, different tires,” Johnson continued. “This place just fits my style and Chad Knaus’ style.”

    “I don’t even know where to begin,” Chad Knaus, winning crew chief, said. “We came in here with high expectations and things went really well for us right out of the gate. We were pretty optimistic at that point. Qualifying went well and we were excited to get into the event today.”

    “At that point, we tried to manage the race and it turned out to be a pretty good day.”

    Both Brad Keselowski, who started from the pole, and Matt Kenseth, who remains winless for the season, attempted to hang with the six-time champ, but finished second and third instead.

    “We just had an up and down day,” the driver of the No. 2 Miller Lite Ford said. “We started up front and went to the back early in the race.”

    “Then we took back off and had some strong runs,” Keselowski continued. “We were probably going to get a crack at Jimmie and then that last caution came out. We drove back up to second with the help of the restart and we were pretty even with Jimmie but it was just a matter of being out front.”

    “It was a solid day for us,” the third place finishing driver of the No. 20 Dollar General Toyota said. “I did a poor job qualifying and so good adjustments and pit stops moved us forward. There was just that one group of cars that we couldn’t quite run with. We just need to be a little bit faster.”

    Kenseth, who looked like he had a shot to win, actually struggled on the final restart with six laps to go, spinning his tires and then getting into the wall.

    “The 48 spun them and I spun them a little bit,” Kenseth said. “I just need to do a better job and let the rear tires quit screaming so I could get going. And then Clint (Bowyer) hit me I guess trying to give me a push there.”

    In addition to being a factor in the final restart with Matt Kenseth, Clint Bowyer was a factor in another incident early in the race with Kyle Busch, who looked strong as he tried to achieve the sweep of the race weekend after winning both the Truck and Nationwide races.

    Bowyer and Busch tangled on Lap 126, putting Busch out of the race. Bowyer went on to salvage a good finish, bringing home his No. 15 Cherry 5-Hour Energy Special Ops Warrior Foundation Toyota home in the fourth position.

    “I hated to be in that position with the 18,” Bowyer said. “I thought I was clear, obviously I wasn’t. Ruined his day.”

    One of the other major incidents of the race involved AJ Allmendinger, Greg Biffle and Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., the latter of whom sustained hard hits on Lap 135.

    “Inside of the car I didn’t really know what happened,” the driver of the No. 16 3M Ford Fusion said. “I just knew that the 47 got into us pretty hard and turned us into the fence. After watching the replay I see what happened.”

    “They were racing hard back there and he stuck it into a hole that maybe there wasn’t room for,” Biffle continued. “There definitely wasn’t room come three-quarters of the way around the corner I guess and he slid off the bottom and got his right-rear caught by the 17 and up into us. It was a chain reaction. This place is tight and fast and when you get racing that hard back there on a restart stuff like that is going to happen.”

    “We were really loose,” Ricky Stenhouse Jr. said. “The 47 jumped to the inside of us there and I tried to stay out of his way and he got me. We met right-rear to left-front and it got him sideways and everything else happened after that.”

    “Our Nationwide Insurance Ford was really, really loose all race long and we were trying to hang on with it,” the driver of the No. 17 Nationwide Ford Fusion said. “We didn’t want it to end that way and we got our teammate caught up in it and tore up a lot of cars.”

    “That is now what we wanted to do. It is a tough end to our day,” Stenhouse Jr. continued. “It is a bummer.”

    In one of the more bizarre incidents and for just the third time in the last few years, once in April 2004 at Martinsville and once in 2010 at the Daytona 500, the red flag was displayed after a piece of concrete dislodged from the race track and hit Jamie McMurray’s car.

    The red flag lasted six minutes and 39 seconds and while McMurray could not work on his car during that time, repairs were made when the red flag was lifted and the driver of the No. 1 Cessna Chevrolet got the ‘lucky dog’ break, soldiering on to a respectable 13th place finish.

    Robin Pemberton, NASCAR’s vice president for competition, addressed the media after the race, advising that NASCAR was not aware of the concrete hole prior to the race and then addressed it immediately after the issue occurred with materials that are utilized regularly for repair work.

    “We do a track walk after every race and in the morning and at the time, that had been a previous patch, but our staff did not see anything wrong with it,” Pemberton said. “The hole was two or three inches deep and six or eight inches by ten inches, so it was pretty substantial.”

    “Our team has equipment and product at every facility in case there is a need for it. It’s an epoxy type filler that we use and is the same material we use whether it be asphalt or concrete.”

    Many of the drivers praised NASCAR’s handling of the concrete repair, including Brad Keselowski.

    “I think NASCAR did a good job or whoever fixed it did a good job of repairing it,” Keselowski said. “It’s hard to come back up there at the end and it was definitely an issue when it happened. You knew it was going to get worse if it wasn’t repaired and a small hole was going to turn into a big hole. I give NASCAR credit to realize that, stop, and fix it.”

    Kyle Larson, behind the wheel of the No. 42 Cottonelle Chevrolet, was the highest finishing rookie yet again. With the third place finish of Matt Kenseth and the 15th place finish by the No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet Jeff Gordon, Kenseth gained the points lead over Gordon and is now in P1 by two points.

    The full race results are as follows:

    2014 NSCS FedEx 400 Race Results

    Fin Str Car Driver Team Lap Pts BPts Status TLd LLd
    1 4 48 Jimmie Johnson Lowe’s/Kobalt Tools Chevrolet 400 48 5 Running 7 272
    2 1 2 Brad Keselowski Miller Lite Ford 400 43 1 Running 1 1
    3 21 20 Matt Kenseth Dollar General Toyota 400 42 1 Running 5 17
    4 10 15 Clint Bowyer Cherry5-hrEnergySpecialOpsWarriorFnd Toyota 400 41 1 Running 2 5
    5 7 11 Denny Hamlin Autism Speaks/FedEx Freight Toyota 400 39 Running
    6 16 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row Chevrolet 400 38 Running
    7 20 14 Tony Stewart Code 3/Mobil 1 Chevrolet 400 37 Running
    8 3 22 Joey Logano Shell Pennzoil Ford 400 36 Running
    9 13 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. National Guard Chevrolet 400 35 Running
    10 15 27 Paul Menard Pittsburgh Paints/Menards Chevrolet 400 34 Running
    11 5 42 Kyle Larson # Cottonelle Chevrolet 400 33 Running
    12 25 43 Aric Almirola Smithfield Ford 400 32 Running
    13 19 1 Jamie McMurray Cessna Chevrolet 400 31 Running
    14 29 99 Carl Edwards Subway Ford 400 30 Running
    15 6 24 Jeff Gordon Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet 400 29 Running
    16 27 9 Marcos Ambrose DeWalt Ford 400 28 Running
    17 8 4 Kevin Harvick Budweiser Chevrolet 399 28 1 Running 2 24
    18 24 41 Kurt Busch Haas Automation Chevrolet 399 26 Running
    19 17 5 Kasey Kahne Farmers Insurance Chevrolet 399 25 Running
    20 23 3 Austin Dillon # American Ethanol Chevrolet 398 24 Running
    21 11 47 AJ Allmendinger Scott Products Chevrolet 397 23 Running
    22 18 66 Brett Moffitt Land Castle Title Toyota 396 22 Running
    23 28 10 Danica Patrick GoDaddy Chevrolet 396 21 Running
    24 38 36 Reed Sorenson Click It or Ticket Chevrolet 396 20 Running
    25 22 13 Casey Mears GEICO Chevrolet 395 19 Running
    26 30 51 Justin Allgaier # AccuDoc Solutions Chevrolet 395 18 Running
    27 31 26 Cole Whitt # Burger King Toyota 394 17 Running
    28 33 98 Josh Wise iRacing.com/Reddit.com Chevrolet 390 16 Running
    29 32 38 David Gilliland The Pete Store Ford 388 15 Running
    30 43 32 Blake Koch(i) supportmilitary.org Ford 388 0 Running
    31 14 31 Ryan Newman Caterpillar Chevrolet 387 13 Running
    32 41 83 Ryan Truex # Burger King Toyota 387 12 Running
    33 42 77 Dave Blaney Ford 383 11 Running
    34 36 40 Landon Cassill(i) Newtown Building Supplies Chevrolet 382 0 Running
    35 39 7 Michael Annett # Pilot Flying J Chevrolet 378 9 Running
    36 34 34 David Ragan Dockside Logistics Ford 350 8 Running
    37 40 33 David Stremme Little Joe’s Autos Chevrolet 297 7 Overheating
    38 12 16 Greg Biffle 3M Ford 292 6 Running
    39 37 44 JJ Yeley(i) Phoenix Warehouse Chevrolet 232 0 Engine
    40 35 23 Alex Bowman # Dr.Pepper Toyota 208 4 Accident
    41 26 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Nationwide Ford 131 3 Accident
    42 2 18 Kyle Busch M&M’s Peanut Butter Toyota 125 3 1 Accident 1 81
    43 9 55 Brian Vickers Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota 73 1 Engine

     

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Fontana Auto Club 400

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Fontana Auto Club 400

    From the unique race command from Muppet star Gonzo to Denny Hamlin’s pre-race trip to the hospital for a sinus infection and vision problems, here is what else was surprising and not surprising from the Auto Club 400 in Fontana, California.

    Surprising:  There are not many drivers who, after winning a thrilling race in green-white-checkered fashion, can combine ‘Days of Thunder’ with faith-filled references right out of ‘Talladega Nights’. But Kyle Busch surprisingly managed to pull it all together in his Victory Lane remarks.

    “Man oh man.  The first thing that comes to mind when the caution came out with just a few laps to go — that was total Rowdy Burns ‘Days of Thunder’ right there,” the driver of the No. 18 No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry said. “There’s a couple laps to go — I’m not pitting.”

    “Everybody has to pit, Cole (Trickle), we’re coming down for four tires because there’s a green-white-checkered coming,” Busch continued. “I knew four tires was going to win the race, so I’m glad Dave (Rogers, crew chief) called that.”

    “I was able to keep Kyle Larson behind me. Man, what a shoe that boy is,” Busch continued. “If he drove it in further than I did, Jesus must have told him to stop.”

    “I just can’t believe it.  I thank the Lord for putting ourselves here and getting us locked in the Chase.”

    This was Busch’s 29th win in 334 Cup races but his first victory of the 2014 season. This was his third victory and 12th top-10 finish at Auto Club Speedway.

    Not Surprising:  What double file restarts and shortening up the length of the race has done for Pocono Raceway, the rough, aged racing surface with multiple grooves and huge bumps has done the same, if not more, for Auto Club Speedway.

    In fact, it seemed like just a few years ago when the track was criticized for boring racing and the grandstands were empty. This Cup race yielded some of the most exciting racing to date, with six and seven cars abreast, in front of a packed house, most of whom barely sat down for the entirety of the show.

    Surprising:  Kyle Larson went from thinking he was pretty much going to have a tough day to finishing as the highest running rookie, in P2 no less. This stellar finish came on the heels of his Nationwide victory over none other than Cup race winner Kyle Busch.

    “I thought we were in trouble or not be able to get to the front,” the driver of the No. 42 said after the race. “I don’t know where everybody went on that last restart.”

    “It went through my mind then that I might sweep the weekend,” Larson continued. “That last run, we got good enough to charge to the front. What a weekend.”

    Not Surprising:  Sam Hornish’s new mantra should be ‘have helmet, will drive.’ Originally, the currently unspoken for driver was on standby to drive for Matt Kenseth in the event that his wife Katie went into labor with their third child.

    In the end, however, Hornish ended up substitute driving for Denny Hamlin, finishing a respectable 17th in the No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota. This was his best finish since his 13th place run in 2012 at Martinsville.

    Surprising:  The normally cool, calm and collected Aric Almirola, driver of the No. 43 Farmland Ford Fusion, had some surprisingly harsh words for competitor No 33 car driver Brian Scott after their accident brought out the fourth caution of the race.

    “The 33 was obviously a dart without feathers and coming across the race track,” Almirola said. “Man, he came from all the way at the bottom of the race track and ran into me.”

    “He’s not even racing this series for points,” Almirola continued. “He’s out there having fun because his daddy gets to pay for it and he wrecked us.”

    Not Surprising:  After tires blew out in practice as well as the race, the debate not surprisingly was on as far as what exactly led to so many tire issues, especially in the left rear.

    Brad Keselowski, a driver that suffered particular tire problems in practice and the race, weighed in after the race to share his perspective.

    “There were a lot of reasons why we blew a tire today or two or five over the weekend and the field did,’’ Keselowski said after finishing 26th. “I don’t know what to really say about it. As a driver you are left between the choice of driving your car to the limit and blowing a tire out or being a wuss and saving it.”

    NASCAR’s most popular driver weighed in with a whole different take on the tire situation.

    “I don’t think there is anything wrong with the tire OR the way we choose 2 use them,” Dale Earnhardt Jr. tweeted after the race. “My bet is it’s the bumps on the backstretch.”

    “Those are more like jumps and ramps.”

    NASCAR representative Vice President for Competition Robin Pemberton shared the more official perspective, saying that some teams were running tires with air pressures as low as 14 pounds, whereas Goodyear had commended tire pressures at 22 pounds for the race weekend.

    And finally, Goodyear, echoing Pemberton’s assessment, advised that the problems were not tire-related but more team-related due to the very aggressive set ups.

    “Every left-side tire that we’ve seen gone down or had issues with is kind of the same characteristics as (Saturday),’’ Greg Stucker, Director of Race Tire Sales for Goodyear, said.  “The common denominator being aggressive on air pressure.”

    “You’re in race conditions, so everybody is running a little bit harder.”

    Surprising:  For the second straight race, NASCAR official human error came into play. This weekend, a NASCAR official actually got his uniform stuck in the fence and he literally could not move to flip the pit road light switch to green.

    Because of this error, Brad Keselowski, Jeff Gordon and Clint Bowyer did not pit because there was a red light instead of a green light.

    All three drivers went on to suffer less than ideal finishes, with Jeff Gordon finishing the best of the bunch in 13th, Bowyer in 16th and Keselowski in 26th.

    “We can’t seem to catch a break,” Bowyer said. “We lead for a while, we came back after confusion with the lights on pit road and were in contention to win at the end.”

    “However, we started feeling a vibration with about four to go and it just didn’t make it,” Bowyer continued. “It just stinks for this team.”

    Not Surprising:   Bosses sometimes do influence the workplace even at the track. One of NASCAR’s most notable bosses, team owner Rick Hendrick, played the encourager role with driver Jeff Gordon, who started from the back not once but twice, passing at least 70 plus cars.

    Kurt Busch, who finished third, was also quite emotional about racing with his boss Tony Stewart. “The amount of emotions running well today and we were face and then to race your boss for the win,” Busch said. “Neither one of us got the win but it was a genuine moment for us to race.”

    The Cup Series heads next to Martinsville Speedway for the STP 500.

     

     

  • NASCAR Announces Minor Changes to New Qualifying Procedures

    NASCAR Announces Minor Changes to New Qualifying Procedures

    NASCAR announced minor adjustments to its new qualifying procedure Thursday morning at Daytona International Speedway. The changes resulted after feedback received from teams in all three national series.

    NASCAR had previously stated that adjustments would only be allowed during breaks between the qualifying rounds but that has been amended.

    “Starting in Phoenix,” Pemberton, vice president of competition, explained, “the teams will be able to adjust during their qualifying rounds and in the breaks of their qualifying rounds.  If it’s during the round when the track is hot, there will be one crew member over the wall that must wear a helmet and he can perform the adjustments which are tape, tire pressures and wedge.  And then during the breaks, it will be three crew members when the track is cold, and they’ll go over to perform those duties.”

    Pemberton announced one more tweak to the new qualifying procedures. The road courses will now follow the short track procedure, which means that they will have two rounds of qualifying, instead of three.

    “So, as it remains same,” he continued, “there will be three rounds of qualifying on our larger than mile-and-a-quarter racetracks.  There will be two rounds in the mile-and-a-quarter and less.  The difference will be our five road courses will move into the short track version.  Through feedback, they felt like the second or last round needed to be a little bit longer to get multiple laps in on the track, so this should optimize their track time.”

    The new qualifying procedures will take effect in the Nationwide and Camping World Truck Series next week at Daytona. The Sprint Cup teams will follow suit the following week at Phoenix.

     

     

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Richmond Federated Auto Parts 400

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Richmond Federated Auto Parts 400

    With everything on the line as far as Chase berths, here is what was surprising and not surprising from the 56th annual Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond International Raceway.

    Surprising:  The very technology that attracts fans to the sport because of how up close and personal they can be with their drivers and teams, including in-car audio and race scanners, was surprisingly what doomed Michael Waltrip Racing at Richmond.

    After the race, the in-car audio and video of Clint Bowyer, driver of the No. 15 5-Hour Energy Toyota, seemingly indicated that his late race spin, which sent his teammate Martin Truex, Jr. into the Chase, may not have been so accidental.

    To complicate matters, the audio of the race scanner chatter between MWR driver Brian Vickers and his spotter Ty Norris also seemed to indicate some shenanigans about pitting to allow Truex Jr. into the Chase as well.

    In a surprising Monday after the race weekend press conference, NASCAR announced significant penalties to address these issues which they deemed detrimental to the sport, including points penalties, the largest monetary fine ever imposed, and the indefinite suspension of key MWR leader Ty Norris.

    Even more surprising, because of the reduction in the points, Martin Truex Jr. was moved out of the Chase and Ryan Newman was placed into the Chase.

    “Based upon our review of Saturday night’s race at Richmond, it is our determination that the MWR organization attempted to manipulate the outcome of the race,” said Robin Pemberton, NASCAR vice president of competition. “As the sport’s sanctioning body, it is our responsibility to ensure there is a fair and level playing field for all of our competitors and this action today reflects our commitment to that.”

    Not Surprising:  While the major issues with MWR may have been surprising, it was not surprising that the last race of the regular season yet again involved a restart controversy. And this time it involved the ultimate race winner Carl Edwards, driver of the No. 99 Frosted Flakes Ford.

    “What happened on that last restart is Paul (Menard) had two tires,” Edwards said. “I knew he was going to be at a big disadvantage with grip.”

    “He took off and I waited until he went to go,” Edwards continued. “As we were going, his car actually touched my door.”

    “I heard his engine speed up and he spun the tires,” Edwards said. “At that point, I really had no choice.”

    Edwards scored his 21st win in the Cup Series, his second victory of the season and his first win at Richmond. He is now seeded fifth in the Chase, just nine points behind the leader.

    Surprising:  Jimmie Johnson, fresh off the birth of his second daughter Lydia, continued his slump, finishing outside the top 25 for the fourth straight race. Johnson’s previous worst slump was three straight finishes of 36th or worse in August 2004.

    Johnson endured mechanical problems and a late-race spin to finish 40th at Richmond in his No. 48 Lowes/Kobalt Tools Chevrolet. In spite of his struggles, he is still seeded second in the Chase, just three points behind the leader.

    “Yeah, that was a tough night,” Johnson said. “Just a bummer we ended the regular season like we did.”

    “We will go to Chicago and get this Chase started off on the right foot.”

    Not Surprising:  The current lame duck drivers had positive results when it came time to decide the Chase, with one making history, one solidly in, and the third catapulting in thanks to the MWR penalties.

    Kurt Busch, current driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row/Beautyrest Chevrolet who will be moving to Stewart-Haas Racing in 2014, made history by finishing second at Richmond and taking his one-car team into the Chase. He is seeded 10th in the Chase standings at present, 15 points behind the leader.

    “It’s an amazing feeling to go up against these big teams and to put a little lone Chevrolet from Colorado into the Chase against the big boys,” Busch said. “This feels incredible.”

    Kevin Harvick, who has run consistently all season and will also move to Stewart-Haas Racing in 2014 along with Kurt Busch, closed the deal on his Chase berth, finishing the race in 11th and taking the fourth seed position in the Chase, just nine out of first.

    “We’re as good as we’ve ever been over the years,” the driver of the No 29 Budweiser Chevrolet said. “Hopefully we can take our team and get better over the next few weeks.”

    Ryan Newman, the other lame duck driver, who just confirmed that he will be leaving Stewart-Haas Racing for Richard Childress Racing in 2014, ended up in the Chase after NASCAR levied its decision regarding Martin Truex Jr.

    “I am proud that NASCAR took a stand with respect to what went on Saturday night at Richmond,” Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 39 Quicken Loans Chevrolet, said. “I know it was a tough decision to make.”

    “With that being said, myself, Matt Borland (crew chief) and this entire No. 39 team are looking forward to competing for the 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship.”

    Surprising:  Roush Fenway had a surprisingly good night at and after the Richmond race, locking up two of its drivers in the Chase and having its rookie driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr. score a top-10 finish.

    This was the tenth time in ten seasons that Roush Fenway Racing has placed multiple teams into playoff contention. The event also marked the seventh time that RFR driver Carl Edwards made the Chase in his career.

    Roush Fenway Racing has achieved another milestone, that of placing five of ten entries inside the Chase since 2005, including both Carl Edwards and teammate Greg Biffle.

    “As I look at the racetracks in front of us in the Chase, I think that we’ve got more momentum than we’ve ever had as we look at it going forward,” team owner Jack Roush declared.

    Not Surprising:   The ever understated Matt Kenseth not only made the Chase with his ‘new’ team Joe Gibbs Racing but is seeded in the top dog position of P1, with all the other contenders literally chasing him for the championship.

    Kenseth, behind the wheel of the No. 20 Home Depot Husky Toyota, finished sixth at Richmond.

    “We ended up finishing the night decent,” Kenseth said. “The last couple cautions fell our way and the last restart fell our way.”

    “I feel good going to Chicago – it will be alright.”

    Surprising:  Considered a short track, it was surprising that there was not one caution caused by anything other than debris or a single car incident at RIR under the lights.

    In fact, the first one hundred laps of the race were completely caution free and there were only five yellow flags for a total of 29 laps.

    Not Surprising:  The disappointment, not surprisingly, of two past champions was absolutely palpable after seeing their Chase hopes disappear.

    Both reigning champ Brad Keselowski and four-time champion Jeff Gordon failed to make the Chase for 2013. Keselowski finished in 17th and Gordon finished 8th in the final race before the Chase.

    “I don’t really have any emotions right now,” Brad Keselowski, driver of the No. 2 Miller Lite Ford. “We weren’t good enough to make it and we didn’t.”

    “That is the reality.”

    “It’s disappointing to miss it that close,” Jeff Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet, said after barely missing the Chase. “I love the effort this team put in.”

    Surprising:  Two drivers who made it into the Chase were surprisingly disappointed after their Richmond run. Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 American Heritage Chocolate Toyota, and Kasey Kahne, behind the wheel of the No. 5 Farmers Insurance Chevrolet, were both unhappy after their 19th and 14th place finishes respectively.

    “We made it I guess,” Busch said. “We’ll just have to work and lay all the pieces out and see what needs to be better.”

    “So I’m not pleased with where we’re at,” Kahne said. “But I’m still very confident and feel that going into the Chase it’s a clean sheet of paper for everybody, and we’re going to be where we need to.”

    “People can speculate and wonder all week long, but I really look forward to getting to Chicago and showing people what this team has in it.”

    Not Surprising:  Ironman Mark Martin, substitute driver for the recuperating Tony Stewart, not surprisingly brought home the No. 14 Bass Pro Shops/Mobil 1 Chevrolet for his first-ever top-10 performance in that race car.

    “Really proud of all the guys on this Bass Pro Shops/Mobil 1 team,” Martin said. “They improved the car throughout the race and made some great calls.”

    “We got our first top-10 together,” Martin continued. “We’ll take that and build on it.”

  • NASCAR Drops Penalty Hammer on Michael Waltrip Racing; Newman Heads to Chase

    NASCAR Drops Penalty Hammer on Michael Waltrip Racing; Newman Heads to Chase

    In an unprecedented Monday evening news conference after the wild Richmond race on Saturday night, NASCAR dropped the penalty hammer on Michael Waltrip Racing.

    “Based upon our review of Saturday night’s race at Richmond, it is our determination that the MWR organization attempted to manipulate the outcome of the race,” said Robin Pemberton, NASCAR vice president of competition. “As the sport’s sanctioning body, it is our responsibility to ensure there is a fair and level playing field for all of our competitors and this action today reflects our commitment to that.”

    Although NASCAR could not determine if the late race spin by MWR driver Clint Bowyer was intentional, that combined with the unusual pitting by MWR teammate Brian Vickers, which was documented on the radio transmissions between him  and spotterTy Norris, added up to what the sanctioning body considered a violation of Section 12-4, Actions detrimental to stock car racing.

    As a result, NASCAR levied the following penalties:

    *The three MWR teams, including the No. 15 of Clint Bowyer, the No. 55 of Brian Vickers, and the No. 56 of Martin Truex Jr. were penalized with the loss of 50 championship driver and 50 championship owner points, respectively.

    *NASCAR also fined MWR $300,000, the largest fine that the sanctioning body has ever levied.

    *Ty Norris, the Executive Vice President & General Manager of Michael Waltrip Racing and the spotter for Brian Vickers, has been suspended indefinitely from the sport.

    *The three crew chiefs, Brian Pattie on the No. 15, Scott Miller on the No. 55 and Chad Johnston on the No. 56 car have also been placed on probation until the season end.

    The controversy started after in-car audio and video revealed what appeared to be some sort of exchange in code between Bowyer and his team, leading to a late race spin and caution that changed the entire complexion of the finishing order and the Chase setting.

    “(Newman) is going to win the race,’’ spotter Brett Griffin told Bowyer in audio first aired by ESPN.

    About 30 seconds later, crew chief Brian Pattie asked Bowyer if his arm was hurting and if it was “hot in there” and then was told to “Itch it.” Shortly after that, Bowyer seemed to have jerked the wheel, sending his No. 15 5-Hour Energy spinning and his teammate Martin Truex Jr. into Chase contention.

    Even Dale Earnhardt Jr., who was right behind Bowyer, commented after the race that the spin was suspicious.

    “He just spun right out,” Junior said. “That’s the craziest thing I ever saw.”

    “He just came right around,” Junior continued. “We were going into (Turns) 3 and 4 … he was hemming around on the brakes and jerking the car around, and then the thing just spun out.”

    “It was crazy.”

    Because of the point penalties, which were assessed following the Richmond race and not after the Chase seeding, the point total for the No. 56 car piloted by Truex Jr. was reduced to 691, eliminating him from the second Wild Card berth.

    This change, which put Truex Jr. in 17th position in points, moved Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 39 car for Stewart-Haas Racing, up into the Chase field.

    “Obviously, we’re very pleased with NASCAR’s decision to provide Ryan Newman’s rightful place in this year’s Chase,” Tony Stewart, Co-Owner of Stewart-Haas Racing, said. “NASCAR was put in a very difficult position Saturday night at Richmond and we commend the sanctioning body for taking the time to do the necessary due diligence to ensure that the right call was made.”

    “I am proud that NASCAR took a stand with respect to what went on Saturday night at Richmond,” Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 39 Quicken Loans Chevrolet, said. “I know it was a tough decision to make.”

    “With that being said, myself, Matt Borland (crew chief) and this entire No. 39 team are looking forward to competing for the 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship.”

    As with any penalty, Michael Waltrip Racing can appeal, however, that still will not re-instate Martin Truex Jr. back into Chase contention. Shortly after the penalties were announced, MWR advised that they would not be appealing the decision.

    “What occurred on the No. 55 radio at the end of Saturday night’s race in Richmond was a split-second decision made by team spotter Ty Norris to bring the No. 55 to pit lane and help a teammate earn a place in the Chase,” a statement from Michael Waltrip Racing read. “We regret the decision and its impact.”

    “We apologize to NASCAR, our fellow competitors, partners and fans who were disappointed in our actions,” the MWR statement continued. “We will learn from this and move on.”

    “As general manager, Ty Norris has been an integral part of Michael Waltrip Racing since its founding and has my and (co-owner) Rob Kauffman’s full support.”

     

  • Pocono 400 Review: Logano Tames the Triangle

    [media-credit id=43 align=”alignright” width=”268″][/media-credit]After starting on the pole on Sunday, Joey Logano claimed his second Cup win in 125 starts. The Joe Gibbs Driver broke a 104 race win-less streak to become the youngest driver to win at Pocono, at 22 years and seven days old. This is crew chief Jason Ratcliff’s first Cup win of his career and the No. 20 team became the 10th different winner of 2012.

    “You work so hard to do this, and them teaming me up with Jason has been an awesome experience,” Logano said. “We’ve been growing together a lot lately and able to make our cars better. To get a victory, it meant so much, and pulling the Home Depot car into victory lane at a Sprint Cup race and winning it the right way was just an amazing, amazing feeling that you can’t replicate and you can’t explain what it means.”

     

    Earnhardt Oh So Close to Victory

    Dale Earnhardt Jr. earned his Cup-best 11th top-10 finish of 2012, taking over second in points. Earnhardt led 36 laps on the 2.5 mile track and looked as if he would break the 4 year win-less drought looming over his head.

    The driver of the No. 88 Chevrolet was leading with 35 laps remaining when a caution flag flew, leaving his crew chief Steve Letarte with a tough decision to make. If the race went green from that point on, Earnhardt would have been about five laps short on fuel. With this information, the team pitted twice in the remaining 35 laps to guarantee they would make it on fuel.

    “We had a really, really good car,” Earnhardt said. “That was fun. That was the funnest car I’ve had all year and the best car I’ve had at Pocono in a long, long time. So, I’m just really trying not to be too upset about it because we did a lot of good things today and we’ve got a lot to look forward to.”

    Although the team did make it on fuel, Earnhardt’s domination throughout the race ended with an eighth place finish. Earnhardt now resides in second position in standings, just 10 points behind leader Matt Kenseth.

     

    Controversy Over Pit Road Penalties

    The talk of the race surrounded the outstanding amount of infractions that occurred on pit road. There were 22 speeding penalties, the most in documented infraction history since 2006. Travis Kvapil was penalized four times for speeding on exit; David Reutimann was penalized three times – two for exiting and one entering; Jimmie Johnson, Brad Keselowski, AJ Allmendinger were each penalized twice.

    Many drivers blamed the scoring timers on pit road for the speeding penalties. However, according to NASCAR’s vice president of competition, the problem was with the drivers.

    “This track’s gone under a lot of reconfiguration since last year,” Robin Pemberton said after the race. “It’s a brand new pit road, all brand new loops, positions have been changed since last year. Sections were smaller than they were last year throughout pit road and, actually, the last section is a little bit bigger.”

    Brad Keselowski, who finished in 18th position after the penalties, had a different opinion on the infractions.

    “It was obvious that the section had some kind of issue because I know both times I got busted I was under the limit with my tools that I have available,” said Keselowski. “I was consistent down pit road, so if I was speeding in that sector, I would have been speeding in the others — but it didn’t show that. I think there’s plenty of evidence to show that there is something wrong with that section timing.”

    Johnson, who fell back to 22nd after the penalties, rebounded to finish in fourth position.

     

    Quicken Loans 400 Predictions

    [media-credit name=”NASCAR.com” align=”alignright” width=”300″][/media-credit]This weekend we head to Michigan International Speedway and all eyes will be on the No. 88 team where they captured their first and only point’s win for Hendrick Motorsports in 2008. After dominating most of the race at Pocono and finishing in the top 10 for the 11th time this season, expectations are high for the Cup veteran. Along with his win four years ago at this track, Earnhardt has four top-5 and eight top-10 finishes at Michigan and is looking to drive to victory lane once again.

    Denny Hamlin is another driver who knows how to get the job done at MIS. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver has two wins at this track, with five top-5 and seven top-10 finishes. Hamlin is currently fourth in Cup standings and has two wins so far this season.

    Kevin Harvick is another driver to keep an eye on, with one win in 2010 and seven top 10 finishes. Harvick resides in sixth position in points, 53 points behind the leader. The Richard Childress Racing driver has yet to win a race this season, but has been very consistent with three top-5 and seven top-10 finishes.

    Carl Edwards is itching to get his first win of the season, and MIS may be the track that he drives to victory lane at. The Roush Fenway Racing driver has impressive stats here, with two wins, nine top-5 and 12 top-10 finishes. Edwards is also looking to break into the top 10 in points, sitting in 11th position, 100 points behind leader and teammate Kenseth.

     

    All quotes via NASCAR.com.