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  • Todd Szegedy Lucky in Lime Rock and Hopefully in Loudon

    Todd Szegedy Lucky in Lime Rock and Hopefully in Loudon

    Todd Szegedy, driver of the No. 2 Wisk Detergent/A&J Romano Construction Ford in the Whelen Modified Series, was given a penny that brought such good luck at this past weekend’s race at Lime Rock Park that he not only started on the pole but also ended up in Victory Lane.

    [media-credit name=”Photo Credit: hometracks.nascar.com” align=”alignright” width=”262″][/media-credit]Without a doubt, Szegedy is hoping that his precious penny will continue to bring good luck at this weekend’s race at the ‘Magic Mile’ in Loudon, New Hampshire.

    Szegedy got lucky at Lime Rock when he met Mrs. Griffin, a fan participating in a hospitality event prior to the running of the Whelen Modified 66/99 Presented by Town Fair Tire at Lime Rock Park.

    “We went to a meet and greet and they asked me and my crew chief questions,” Szegedy said. “At the end of the meet and greet, she came up to me and gave me a penny.”

    “She said this was a lucky penny and she had given it to another driver and he won the race and won many more after that.”

    “I’m a superstitious guy so it’s tough for me to accept those kinds of things,” Szegedy continued. “But I took it and put it in my pocket and left it there for the race.”

    “Maybe it brought me good luck, I don’t know,” Szegedy said. “But I still have that lucky penny and I’m going to hold onto it.”

    It actually took more than just luck to pull off this race win, from an uneventful start to a crazy late race restart.

    “The first half was somewhat uneventful and I just got into the early lead and that set a nice pace,” Szegedy said. “Basically we knew that we were going to have a fuel stop at Lap 20. So, I just hit my marks and tried not to make any mistakes until we had that first caution.”

    “When we had a late caution, that’s when a lot of the action began,” Szegedy continued. “We had a great pit stop and came out in fourth.”

    “Some guys took two tires but we took four,” Szegedy said. “So, on the restart, a lot of the mayhem happened.”

    “There were a lot of cars going through the dirt and I went through the dirt a few times,” Szegedy continued. “It was pretty exciting and I’m sure it was fun for the fans to watch.”

    “Eventually we went on to win, but it was a tough effort,” Szegedy said. “We definitely overcame a lot in that race.”

    Szegedy said of all of his races this season, this was his toughest, especially since it was on a road course where discipline is king. Yet in spite of worrying about his fuel pressure, which was dropping at the end, his luck held out to that checkered flag.

    “In road racing, it’s very easy to make mistakes,” Szegedy said. “I went off the track twice.”

    “When I put new tires on the car, it was really tight and when I tried to take a turn, I just went straight like I had a flat tire,” Szegedy continued. “I had to keep my cool and pass these guys when I could.”

    “At the end, we started losing fuel pressure so I was thinking ‘Oh my God, we’re going to run out of fuel,’ Szegedy said. “I didn’t know if I was going to win until I took that checkered flag.”

    “It was a very nerve-wracking race for sure,” Szegedy continued. “Without a doubt it was quite a release when I crossed that finish line. It was a well-earned win for sure.”

    With Lime Rock behind him, Szegedy now turns his attention to racing at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon. And he has his work cut out for him and his team, changing out his road race car to one that can tackle an oval so he can take on the ‘Magic Mile’  mayhem.

    “First of all, it’s a lot of work to turn the car around, from a road course to an oval track,” Szegedy said. “So, we’ll be working pretty hard until Wednesday.”

    “Loudon is another nail-biting race because you never know who is going to win until that last lap,” Szegedy continued. “In every race, I’ve ever been in at Loudon, there are always late race passes and last lap crashes and exciting finishes.”

    Szegedy actually won at the last Loudon race, however, it came at the expense of Ryan Newman, who was disqualified after a ‘flagrant foul’ was called by NASCAR for illegal engine issues in the car.

    “The first Loudon I ran this year, I finished second but I ended up winning because Newman was disqualified,” Szegedy said. “We got the trophy and we got the cash.”

    “Everybody runs in the grey area but if it’s blatant, it should have been definite disqualification,” Szegedy continued. “NASCAR made the right call on that.”

    “I felt bad for Ryan though as he didn’t know,” Szegedy said. “But, hey if it’s blatant, then disqualification fits the crime. I think it should be that way with anybody.”

    Will Newman be Szegedy’s biggest competition this week at the New Hampshire 100 at Loudon this weekend? Szegedy actually thinks that there many who can give him a run for his money, including Newman, as well as some of the other Whelen Modified Series regulars.

    “There are quite a few guys that are my competition,” Szegedy said. “I cannot even name them all.”

    “I couldn’t even tell you who will be the top dog because it’s always different,” Szegedy continued. “You just never know at Loudon.”

    “I’m excited to go there.”

    With his luck at Lime Rock and hopefully more of the same at Loudon, Szegedy acknowledged that he has had one of his luckiest seasons ever.

    “Without a doubt, we’ve accomplished what we wanted to accomplish and more,” Szegedy said. “We’ve won races. We’re now in the points lead.”

    “It’s been an absolutely amazing season,” Szegedy continued. “Whatever happens from here on out, happens. We’re happy with what we’ve got right now and we’re going to continue to do what we’re doing.”

    In spite of that confidence, will Szegedy have his lucky Lime Rock penny with him at Loudon?

    “I definitely will have it in my pocket,” Szegedy said. “Without a doubt.”

  • The Chase is On – Here’s What the Drivers are Saying

    The Chase is On – Here’s What the Drivers are Saying

    The NASCAR Sprint Cup Chase field has been set and the contenders have been all over the country in a media blitz. Each of the 10 tracks that are included in the Chase hosted one of the 12 Chase drivers. They participated in everything from go-kart races to pep rallies to golfing and more.

    [media-credit name=”CIA Stock Photo” align=”alignright” width=”251″][/media-credit]The media has made their picks and the fans have weighed in.

    Now it’s time to hear from the drivers.

    It’s no surprise that five-time champ Jimmie Johnson is on everyone’s mind.

    Although some have suggested that he may be more vulnerable this year, Kevin Harvick is not buying it.

    “I heard the same conversation last year. They’re still the team to beat. They’ve won it so many different ways.”

    But the other drivers are still hoping that Johnson will falter.  Brad Keselowski quipped, “He is human, right?”

    Jeff Gordon is looking forward to the Chase and thinks this could be the year he captures his fifth championship.

    “I’m excited about going to the race track every weekend,” said Gordon. When I won my four championships, it was under the old format. You had to be consistent, and yeah, you had to win, but at the end you were trying to beat two or three guys. With this format you’re going up against 11 other guys. But I do think this is the best chance we’ve ever had at winning the championship [in the Chase].”

    And while many consider Dale Earnhardt Jr. an underdog going into the Chase, he feels like he has a shot.

    “I’m going in with the attitude that we have as good a chance as anybody. The opportunity is on the table. We’re going to make the most of it.”

    One sentiment echoed by many of the drivers is that there is nothing to lose and everything to gain. This is what they have been working toward all season long and each race will bring them one step closer to their goal.

    Kurt Busch, who has been in the spotlight lately because of his rivalry with Johnson, is ready to leave the past behind and focus on winning a second championship.

    “The Chase is intense. Every year you have your rivalries. I have a sibling rivalry with my brother Kyle, too. But you have to put that stuff away.”

    Tony Stewart thinks this is the toughest group of drivers we’ve ever seen in the Chase.

    Stewart went on to add that “Realistically, there’s seven guys who really have a shot at winning this thing.”

    In no particular order, Stewart’s top seven picks include Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Kevin Harvick, Ryan Newman and Brad Keselowski.

    It should be noted that he doesn’t include his name on the list of potential championship winners and says “I feel like we’re the underdog right now.”

    The reigning champ, Jimmie Johnson, heads into the Chase feeling confident that the possibility of a sixth consecutive championship is within his grasp.

    “We’re in a good spot,” said Johnson. “Our win total isn’t what it’s been in the past, but we’ve had opportunities.”

    As the first race approaches this weekend at Chicagoland Speedway, it’s time to get down to business.

    Stay tuned for Round One of the Chase. The real fun is about to begin.

  • Bristol Chooses Fall Champions

    Bristol Chooses Fall Champions

    The week at Bristol was like Disneyland for a race fan. There were 4 races from 4 different classes of cars. There was smoke from tires. The aroma of high test fuel hung in the air. The scent of E15 lingered just long enough to tingle in your nose. The roar of lions and tigers and bears oh my echoed through out the valley of thunder. This was heaven. This was racing at its best.Bristol displayed her pageantry much like an old time joust. Contestants came from all over the country to bide for her hand. But only a few would be chosen as crown princes for 2011.

    [media-credit name=”Brad Keppel” align=”alignright” width=”245″][/media-credit]Bristol’s week was sectioned up differently than other weekends. The Whelen Modified and the Camping World Trucks run on Wednesday. The reason for this difference according to Lori Worley, Public Relations official for Bristol Motor speedway is, “The reason we don’t race on Thursday is that Food City, who sponsors our March Cup event and August Nationwide event, has a huge fan experience in downtown Bristol on Thursday night. More than 25,000 people attend the event, which features driver autograph sessions, live music, free food, etc. and it’s very important to them that the event is successful. So that’s the reason we race Wednesday instead of Thursday.” Little do they know that Bristol’s race fans win all the way around, not only do they get an extra day of vacation for the race weekend, the racing is top notch and the fan experience is icing on the cake.

    Wednesday saw a hard fought Whelen modified race that was for the most part dominated by Ryan Newman. Newman who had his win in New Hampshire revoked by NASCAR for an unfortunate mistake by engine builders Earnhardt Childress Racing Engines, when they mistakenly placed the wrong gaskets on the engine for the Kevin Manion entry, was out to prove that win was not because of the illegal engine.

    “This is a little bit of a redemption for us, to come out here and redeem ourselves a little bit in respect to people’s opinions after Loudon,” Newman said, “It was just a really fun race, the yellow flags at the start kind of slowed everybody’s thoughts, but getting back to green flag racing, I thought we saw some really good racing. It was a lot of fun.”

    Justin Bonsignore finished second followed by Todd Szegedy who came from a lap down to finish third after being in multiple on track incidents and losing a spark plug wire. James Civali and Patrick Emerling rounded out the top five. The highest placing series regular was Frank Fleming. Series icon Teddy Christopher did not compete in the race due to the lack of ride.

    The Camping World Trucks put on an equally exciting show, with Kevin Harvick winning his third truck race in a row.Bristol is Bristol however and the race was not without its controversy. Elliott Sadler driving the 24 truck for the Joe Denette Motorsports team this week had contact with Kyle Busch when Busch moved up the track too soon having not cleared Sadler’s truck. Sadler clipped the 18 in the Right rear corner and turned Busch into the wall. Busch then slowed on the track waiting for Sadler to come back around and hooked Sadler causing minimal damage to the 24. Busch retreated to the garage where efforts were made to repair the badly damaged KBM entry were unsuccessful. Post race comments were heated with Kyle Busch insinuating that Sadler took him out because of “where his paycheck comes from.”

    Friday, would bring the one day show of the Nationwide Series into the spotlight. The pole would be the familiar Joe Gibbs entry of Kyle Busch. The outside front row would be occupied by Gibbs team mate Joey Logano.  Logano would make the firm announcement of ‘No more Mr. Nice Guy’ before the race began.

    The field hosted its normal cup regulars with the exception of Brad Keselowski who was still nursing a fractured ankle and was replaced with Parker Kligerman in the Discount Tire/Ruby Tuesdays Dodge Charger.

    The race was a hard fought battle between Clint Bowyer and the Gibbs team mates. Bowyer who was on board the Rheem Chevrolet for KHI led a good portion of the race leading for 109 laps.

    But in the end it would be Kyle Busch beating team mate Joey Logano by the smallest margin in track history since the beginning of electronic scoring in 1993. Busch would win his fourth consecutive nationwide series race and 50th victory in the series, by just .019 seconds.

    “It’s awesome,” Busch said of the 50th win, his 23rd in his past 51 Nationwide starts. “We had Mark with us there in Loudon [when Busch tied the record July 16], and it was a phenomenal way to win 49 races and tie Mark Martin. And then to come here and to be able to beat his record here at Bristol, one of my favorite places and one of the team’s favorite places, it was certainly an awesome race.”

    The top five would be Logano, Bowyer, Edwards and Aric Almirola with Almirola being the highest finishing Nationwide regular.

    The Sprint Cup race was a must see event. With Ryan Newman leading the field to the green flag and taking the lead early Newman would consistently run in the top 10 all day. Not so for team mate Tony Stewart who had a very uncharacteristically bad day starting 42nd and finishing 28th 4 laps down to the field.

    The dominant horse in the field would prove to be the 24 car of Jeff Gordon who would lead 5 different times for a race high 206 laps. Gordon who would come out of the pits on the final stop in 4th would climb back to 3rd but was unable to get past Martin Truex Jr for 2nd.

    The race win would instead go to Brad Keselowski in the Miller Lite Blue Deuce of Penske Racing. Keselowski whose race average over the last 4 races is 1.52, took the lead on lap 421 and never looked back. The obvious elated Keselowski said of his victory, “An awesome race car. An awesome race team. Penske Racing. The night race at Bristol! This is the race that Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt win. It’s the race of champions. I can’t believe it. There are races that pay more. There are races that might have a little more prestige, but this is the coolest damn one of them all. We won it!”

    Four teams can now breathe a sigh of relief having clinched their chase spots. Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards all sealed up their chase spots after the race in Bristol.

    Dale Earnhardt Jr, who now has 36 points on 10th place Tony Stewart, could clinch his spot after Atlanta with a strong finish. Crew Chief Steve Letarte said Monday morning that the 88 team would be taking their Kansas/Charlotte car to Atlanta. “That car that always ends up in the front of the race. We want to put on a great show for the fans.” Letarte stated that they feel it is important to keep their chase fate in their hands by racing conservatively and once that chase berth was solidified fans would see a more aggressive and very different 88 team.

    The joust ended, sadly for those in the stands and in front of television sets around the world; with relief for those participants who escaped with their competitive spirits intact.  Bristol choose her champions. They fought their battles with great spirit and with great respect to the lady. Her champions will stand until the spring when again the joust will begin anew.

    ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ * * * * ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

    Congratulations to Ryan Newman on his Whelen modified series victory. For the record, anyone who has followed the series knew the gasket mistake did not win the race in New Hampshire.

    Congratulations to Kevin Harvick on his Camping World Truck Series victory. Three in a row is a statement that KHI takes the owners championship very very seriously.

    Congratulations to Kyle Busch on his Nationwide Series Win. 50 wins in any series is nothing to sneeze at. But 50 in the ultra competitive Nationwide series is a true showing of talent.

    Congratulations to Brad Keselowski on his phenomenal performance not just in his win at Bristol, but over the last few weeks. Some never doubted it would happen. Those that did, don’t anymore.

    That said, to all the competitors in all the series thanks for giving us everything you have to give, you are our heroes. Most importantly, thanks to all the families who shared their loved ones with us so we could cheer our favorite driver and favorite teams. You are the true heroes of the sport and we are forever in your debt.

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Pure Michigan 400

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Pure Michigan 400

    Irish eyes were smiling in the hills surrounding Michigan International Speedway, keeping the rain which had plagued the last two Cup races, at bay. Here is what was surprising and not surprising from the 42nd annual running of the Pure Michigan 400.

    [media-credit name=”Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images for NASCAR” align=”alignright” width=”255″][/media-credit]Surprising:  Carl Edwards, driver of the No. 99 Aflac Ford Fusion, could not have summed up the surprisingly bad day for his manufacturer and team any more succinctly.

    With a surprisingly uncharacteristic engine failure, Edwards was Ford’s worst finisher at Michigan, a track where not only has Ford excelled but where Roush Fenway Racing has traditionally had free reign to play at the front of the field.

    “I thought we would have a Ford in Victory Lane,” Edwards said. “I thought one way or another, we would win this thing.”

    “It was a very tough race,” Edwards said. “We weren’t expecting a failure like that.”

    Edwards lagged behind his Roush Fenway Racing teammates Matt Kenseth, who finished in 10th in the No. 17 Kroger Ford Fusion; David Ragan, driving the No. 6 UPS Ford Fusion, who brought home a 12th place finish; and pole sitter Greg Biffle, behind the wheel of the No. 16 3M Ford Fusion, who finished a disappointing 20th after leading the most laps in the race.

    Biffle was as surprised by his disappointing finish as his teammate Edwards was of his finish and engine failure.

    “I don’t know what happened,” Biffle said. “I have a feeling we kinda got a bum set of tires and then we got off on our adjustments. I really don’t know what happened.”

    Not Surprising:  After being ever so close to Victory Lane at both Pocono and Watkins Glen, it was no surprise that the driver of the No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota outran a five-time champ in a green-white-checkered finish to finally took the checkered flag and made his trademark celebratory bow.

    This victory was Kyle Busch’s first at Michigan International Speedway. It was his fifth top-10 finish in 14 races at Michigan.

    “Today the car was flawless,” Busch said. “We knew the restart would be treacherous but I got a good run on the top-side and I was able to take the lead off Turn Two and set our sights on the checkered flag from there.”

    With his fourth victory of the season, including this win at the Irish hills, Busch was also the first driver to officially clinch his berth in the championship Chase. And with Edwards’ poor finish, Busch now sits alone at the top of the leader board.

    “It feels awesome,” Busch said of his guaranteed Chase spot. “It gives us an added bonus to just go out there and race for wins. We certainly feel good about it.”

    Surprising:  Brad Keselowski, behind the wheel of the Blue Deuce for Penske Racing, continues to surprise all by starring in his own sequel, ‘Iron Man Part Three.’ Keselowski finished third in the Pure Michigan 400, his third straight top-three finish since breaking his ankle and wrenching his back in a testing crash.

    This was Keselowski’s first top-10 finish in five races at Michigan. With his finish, Keselowski also moved ever so close to Chase contention, moving up two positions in the point standings to 12th.

    “It was a good effort,” Keselowski said. “It was a great day, with great execution and I’m proud of my team.”

    “I think we’re in pretty good shape,” Keselowski said of his Chase chances. “I feel better every week.”

    Not Surprising:  With the Chase race heating up, it is no surprise that the driver of the No. 48 Lowes Chevrolet has found his groove, as well as his lucky horseshoe. Jimmie Johnson, who like Busch has also never won at Michigan, scored a career-best second place finish.

    This was Johnson’s eighth top-10 finish in 20 races in the Irish hills. It is also his 15th top-10 finish in the 2011 season to date.

    “It was a great finish for the Lowe’s team,” Johnson said. “We had a tough start to the race on pit road and on the race track but we got that ironed out.”

    “Good runs put so much confidence in the driver and the team,” Johnson continued. “It felt good to be racing with the leader and have a shot at it.”

    Surprising:  Although Stewart-Haas Racing had a surprisingly good day at Michigan, with Ryan Newman finishing fifth in his No. 39 Wix Filters Chevrolet, and team owner Tony Stewart also finishing top ten in his No. 14 Mobil 1/Office Depot Chevrolet, the latter seemed surprisingly depressed after the race.

    “I don’t know what we got to do to get one balanced for a day but we haven’t figured it out yet,” Stewart said. “We were on both sides of the coin today between tight and loose.”

    “I’ll be perfectly honest at this stage in the deal if we’re going to run this bad, it really doesn’t matter if we make the Chase or not,” Smoke continued. “Our stuff’s so bad right now we’re wasting one of those top 12 spots.”

    Not Surprising:  On the flip side, it was no surprise to see the Hendrick Motorsports gang have a good day on the sweeping turns of Michigan International Speedway. Following closely behind runner up Jimmie Johnson, HMS teammate Mark Martin finished fourth in the No. 5 Carquest/GoDaddy.com Chevrolet.

    “It’s an incredible privilege to drive stuff like that,” Martin said. “We were right there and could see the lead and anytime you can see the lead, you feel like you have a crack at it. I feel very fortunate.”

    HMS four-time champ Jeff Gordon also had a decent day at the office, finishing sixth in the No. 24 Dupont Chevrolet, moving up another spot in the point standings to sixth as well. Gordon also made history, marking over 22,000 laps led in his career.

    “All in all, a solid day for the Dupont Chevrolet,” Gordon said. “I loved the effort and the cars and team that we are bringing to the race track. It was a lot of fun out there.”

    The final driver, piloting the No. 88 National Guard/Amp Energy Chevrolet for Mr. Hendrick, had a fairly good race as well. In spite of pit problems, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. finished fourteenth, keeping himself solidly in the ninth spot in the Chase standings.

    “I had some awesome runs and the car was really fast,” Junior said. “And then I put on some tires and I couldn’t drive the car. We had some bad stuff happen on pit road, but we drove it back up there.”

    Surprising:  With a starting spot of fourth, the driver of the No. 11 FedEx Freight Toyota had high hopes for redemption in Michigan, as well as the hope of keeping his Chase chances alive. Surprisingly, in spite of Denny Hamlin’s new engine, he struggled throughout the race, hitting the wall and heading to the garage to repair significant right front suspension damage.

    Hamlin finished the race in 35th and lost two positions in the point standings, falling to a disappointing 14th, barely hanging on to any chances of a Chase berth.

    Not Surprising:  Coming off his top-10 finish at the Glen, it was not surprising that A J Allmendinger almost pulled off another one at MIS. The driver of the No. 43 Best Buy Ford for Richard Petty Motorsports powered through the field from his 29th place start to finish 11th.

    Surprising:  On the flip side, the Dinger’s teammate Marcos Ambrose, winner of the Cup race at Watkins Glen last weekend and the Nationwide race in Montreal this weekend, had a surprisingly frustrating day.

    The driver of the No. 9 Stanley Ford Fusion started out strong but then was tagged from behind by Kevin Harvick while trying to pit, shoving his car head first into the pit wall, relegating him to a 27th place finish.

    “That was frustrating,” Ambrose said. “We had a good car and we were top-10 a lot of the day.”

    “We just kept getting tighter and tighter,” Ambrose continued. “We had a hole in the grill. That really hurt us and we ended up turned around in the pit there at the end, so that hurt us too.”

    Not Surprising: Although the driver of the No. 33 Cheerios/Hamburger Helper Chevrolet qualified poorly and started 35th, it was no surprise to see him drive as hard as he could to a top-ten finish. With Clint Bowyer’s 8th place finish at Michigan, he has managed to hang on to the 11th spot in the Chase standings.

    “It was a good, hard fought battle all day long,” Bowyer said of his race. “From where we started, starting 35th, getting up there in the top ten, we had a good car all day long.”

    “We gained but not near enough. We’re running out of time but if we keep digging, who knows what’s going to happen.”

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Brickyard 400 at Indy

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Brickyard 400 at Indy

    With Big Machine Records as the presenting sponsor, the Indy pre-race festivities were destined to feature artists such as Reba McIntire and Rascal Flatts performing ‘America the Beautiful’ and the national anthem respectively, as well as CEO Scott Borchetta waving the green flag for the race start.

    [media-credit name=”Adam Lovelace” align=”alignright” width=”245″][/media-credit]Here is what was surprising and not surprising from the 18th annual Brickyard 400 presented by BigMachineRecords.com:

    Surprising:  In spite of leading the race at the halfway point, clicking off a position a lap in the final twelve laps of the race, and being the only car assured of finishing the race with enough fuel, it was surprising that the driver of the No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet, Jeff Gordon did not win the race.

    Gordon did, however, come in a solid second, improving his point standings to being just 52 points behind leader Carl Edwards. This was Gordon’s 14th top 10 finish in 18 races at Indianapolis Speedway and his ninth top-10 finish in 2011.

    “Oh my goodness what a day,” Gordon said. “I am so proud of this Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet team. I mean they were just flawless.”

    “It was all we could do to put pressure on those guys and hope they would run out,” Gordon said of his battle with those in danger of running out of fuel. “I passed all of them but one.”

    Not Surprising:  It was not surprising that the one that Gordon could not get past was a driver with a family history as storied as the Brickyard itself. Dedicating the win to his father John, Paul Menard, driver of the No. 27 NIBCO/Menards Chevrolet won his first ever NASCAR race at the track where he had been coming with his family since he was a youngster.

    “You know I’ve been coming here since I was a kid and my Daddy has been trying to win this race for 35 years,” Menard said. “So this is for my Dad.”

    “I can’t believe we won Indy,” Menard continued. “This is just a really special place for my family and myself.”

    Menard made a little history at the Brickyard himself, becoming the first driver to win his first career race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. This is also the first Indy win in a Menard’s sponsored race car.

    This is Menard’s sixth top-10 finish in 2011 and his first top-10 finish in five races at Indy. He also became the fourth different first-time winner for the 2011 NASCAR season.

    Surprising:  One of the biggest surprises of the day was how many drivers pitted under green for fuel directly after a restart towards the end of the race. One of those drivers who did just that was NASCAR’s favorite son Dale Earnhardt, Jr. in his No. 88 Amp Energy/National Guard Chevrolet.

    Junior’s fuel strategy did not, however, play to his advantage. He finished 16th and dropped one more position in the point standings to tenth, just barely maintaining Chase contention status.

    “You don’t want to be hanging around out there on the race track when everybody else is already inside a fuel window,” Earnhardt, Jr. said. “So, yeah I can understand why it turned out like it did.”

    Not Surprising:  Since the Brickyard is considered one of the ‘big’ races on the NASCAR schedule, it was not surprising that two drivers who have won ‘big’ races in the past had good runs. Regan Smith, behind the wheel of the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet and winner of the Darlington Showtime Southern 500, scored the third place finish and Jamie McMurray, Daytona 500 and defending winner of the Brickyard 400 last year, took fourth in his No. 1 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats Chevrolet.

    “It was a great run for the Furniture Row Chevy and my guys worked their butts off all weekend,” Smith said. “This is not a great track for me, so I am happy and if I couldn’t win, the guy in Victory lane is my best friend on the circuit and I can’t wait to congratulate him.”

    “We got a little bit lucky today,” McMurray said. “We’ve had a tough year and a lot of things go wrong and a lot of bad luck. So, it’s very nice to have good luck and a good finish.”

    Surprising:  In spite of an uncertain future for 2012, with his ride for Rick Hendrick ending at the end of the season, Mark Martin in his No. 5 Quaker State/GoDaddy.com Chevrolet pulled off a surprisingly good top-10 finish.

    Martin took the checkered flag at the Brickyard in eighth place, advancing his point standings by two spots up to the 18th position.

    Not Surprising:  It was not surprising that the winner of the final Nationwide race at Lucas Oil Raceway continued his great weekend run over at the Brickyard. Brad Keselowski, behind the wheel of the Blue Deuce, finished top-10.

    “It was kind of an up-and-down day for the Miller Lite Dodge,” Keselowski said of his ninth place run. “At the three-quarter part of the race, I thought we were going to win the Brickyard.”

    “It just didn’t quite work out, but we made our car faster throughout the day and I was proud of that.”

    Surprising:  Even Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 M&Ms Toyota, surprised himself by battling not only track position and fuel strategy but also a tussle with Tony Stewart in the pits to attain a top-10 finish.

    “I definitely had no idea that the day would be so ugly, but yet come out of it smelling like a rose I guess,” Busch said. “We worked our butts of this whole weekend trying to get something out of nothing.”

    Not Surprising:  In spite of a crew chief change, Jeff Burton, RCR veteran and NASCAR statesman, continued his downward spiral. Burton finished 35th in his No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet.

    “We had a little miscommunication on pit road,” Burton said. “The radios blanked out and I couldn’t hear him (Burton’s new crew chief Luke Lambert). I drove by pit road and it just put us in a hole the rest of the day.”

    “We were fast but we just had a lot of crap go on.”

    Surprising:  With so many media pundits predicting a victory at Indy, it was surprising to see how badly Indy 500 champ Juan Pablo Montoya finished. JPM, piloting his No. 42 Target Chevrolet, finished 28th.

    “It sucks when you run good all day,” Montoya said. “We unloaded really bad but at the end, we were a really competitive car.”

    “Right now it’s all about looking at the future.”

    Not Surprising:  After their one, two finish at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, it was not surprising to see the two drivers of Stewart Haas Racing have another fairly good day.  Tony Stewart, piloting the No. 14 Mobil 1/Office Depot Chevrolet overcame adversity on the track and on pit road to finish sixth.

    Stewart’s teammate Ryan Newman, behind the wheel of the No. 39 Haas Automation Chevrolet, also had a decent day, finishing 12th. Both drivers maintained their positions solidly in the top ten in the point standings.

    “I just fought for everything I could get all day,” Stewart said. “We didn’t have the best car by any means.”

    “Whatever you get here, you appreciate it because you had to earn it,” Stewart continued. “You don’t get anything free here.”

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: New Hampshire Lenox Industrial Tools 301

    After a week of debate on whether or not NASCAR drivers were athletes, thanks to Golden Tate at the EPSYs, as well as which driver was in desperation mode to make the Chase, 43 NASCAR Sprint Cup cars took to the Magic Mile in Loudon, New Hampshire.

    Here is what was surprising and not surprising from the Lenox Industrial Tools 301.

    [media-credit id=43 align=”alignright” width=”300″][/media-credit]Surprising:  Prior to the race, most of the drivers were praising the new tire that Goodyear had brought to the track. Yet, by the end of the race, several drivers had experienced surprisingly significant tire issues. One of those most affected was the point leader coming into the race, Kyle Busch.

    Busch, behind the wheel of the unusually white No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota, blew a tire and slammed into the wall at turn 3. Even worse than his 36th place finish was his fall from the top of the Chase standings leader board, from first to fifth.

    “We blew a tire,” Busch said. “There was too much brake heat.”

    “I had a pretty fast car and we were getting there,” Busch continued. “But the tire wouldn’t take it.”

    Not Surprising:  With one driver dominating the race weekend, from winning his third straight Whelen Modified Series race to the Coors Light pole, it was not surprising to find Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 39 US Army Chevrolet for Stewart-Haas Racing, in Victory Lane.

    And following right behind him, sporting a big smile, was his team owner and teammate Tony Stewart, who brought his No. 14 Office Depot/Mobil 1 Chevrolet, to the checkered flag in second place.

    This was the first time that Stewart-Haas Racing had finished 1-2. They had also started the race in the same order in which they finished.

    “I’m just really proud of this US Army team and all the people that help out,” Newman said. “It’s a big deal for us.”

    “We had a great weekend at Stewart-Haas Racing and I’m really proud of everybody’s effort.”

    “It was a perfect day for the organization for sure,” Stewart said. “This is big for everybody at Stewart-Haas Racing.”

    Surprising:  In contrast to their Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch’s problems, Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano both had surprisingly good days, even with the beating and banging going on at the Magic Mile.

    Hamlin, driving the No. 11 FedEx Freight Toyota, and Logano, behind the wheel of the No. 20 Home Depot, came in third and fourth respectively.

    “It was a pretty physical race in the sense that guys were really banging into each other,” Hamlin said. “I was banging into guys.”

    “It was one of those days where you just had to do the best you can to keep four fenders on it by the end of the day,” Hamlin continued. “We had three, but it was good enough to get us through and have a good comeback day finishing third.”

    Not Surprising:  Four-time champion Jeff Gordon, driving the No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet, proved he had the mettle to face adversity and still salvage a decent day at the track. Gordon battled electrical issues for much of the race, describing his warning lights as “lighting up like a Christmas tree” at one point.

    Because Gordon had to turn his brake blowers off due to the electrical issues, he had a tire failure at the end of the race, rolling slowing across the line to finish 11th.

    “Oh my goodness,” Gordon said. “What didn’t happen today? It was a pretty crazy day for us.”

    “We had a lot of obstacles thrown at us, but certainly we had a lot to smile about with how great our car was.”

    Surprising:  With all the radio communications possible between driver, crew chief and team nowadays, it was surprising to see one team writing out instructions to their driver on a piece of cardboard during the race.

    Jamie McMurray, driving the No. 1 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker 1 Chevrolet, could not hear his crew so they resorted to old school style of communication. Even that did not help, however, and McMurray and company finished a tough 31st.

    Not Surprising:  Similar to his Hendrick Motorsports teammate, Jimmie Johnson, in the No. 48 Lowes Chevrolet, had a bad day but took it and made it better. Johnson and company had a lug nut issue and then spun, but still recovered to finish fifth.

    “We’ve been working and we’ve been patient as a group trying to mature guys and get stuff ready,” the five-time champion said. “But we can’t have these mistakes anymore.”

    “We are way too close to the Chase and we need to be right.”

    Surprising:  While the Red Bull team has had it troubles, especially with the news that the team would be gone after the season, it was surprising to see teammates Kasey Kahne, in the No. 4 Red Bull Toyota, and Brian Vickers, in the No. 38 Red Bull Toyota, wreck into each other.

    Kahne was able to finish the race in sixth but Vickers, who was most affected by the collision, could only recover to place 34th.

    Not Surprising:  It was not surprising to see the driver of the No. 99 Ortho Home Defense Ford, Carl Edwards, play the fuel mileage game to regain the points lead with his 13th place finish.

    “We had fun,” Edwards said. “It is fitting we have Aflac for a sponsor because I feel like I was buying insurance at the end.”

    “I was letting those guys go by one point at a time thinking that if we had a green-white-checkered, we could win this thing,” Edwards continued. “It is hard to back up like that but it worked.”

  • Ryan Newman Makes Magic with New Hampshire Win

    [media-credit id=43 align=”alignright” width=”213″][/media-credit]Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 39 U.S. Army Chevrolet, went from ‘Rocket Man’, qualifying on the pole for the start of the Lenox Industrial Tools 301 to ‘Magic Man’, scoring his first win of the season at the Magic Mile.

    This was Newman’s 15th victory in 351 NASCAR Cup races and with the win, the 33 year old driver became the 13th different race winner this season. This is, however, Newman’s second win of the weekend, as he also scored the victory in the Whelen Modified Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

    Ryan Newman also made magic for his team, Stewart-Haas Racing, as his teammate and owner, Tony Stewart finished right behind him in second. This was the first time ever that Stewart-Haas Racing, which started first and second in the race, took the checkered flag in the first and second position as well.

    Newman dedicated the race not only to the soldiers but also to his grandfather. In fact, he became very emotional in victory lane as he acknowledged both in celebration of his win.

    “This one is for the soldiers and the U.S. Army,” Newman said. “Thank you guys.”

    “I want to dedicate this to a good friend of mine who we lost 14 years ago this weekend,” Newman said. “That was my grandfather. It’s sentimental for many reasons.”

    “It was a great day for Stewart-Haas Racing.”

    It was all about family in Victory Lane for the Newman family, with his dad, wife Krissie and daughter Brooklyn joining him in Victory Lane. Newman’s daughter was definitely celebrating with both of her parents on the impressive win.

    “We’re really lucky and blessed with a good baby,” Krissie Newman said. “And to have the ARMY on the car and for SHR as a whole to finish one, two was a great day for the entire organization.”

    Tony Stewart, behind the wheel of the No. 14 Office Depot/Mobil 1 Chevrolet, scored his 15th top-10 finish in 25 races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. It is his seventh top-10 finish in 2011.

    “One hell of a day boys — one hell of a day,” Stewart said to his team after the race. He finished just .773 seconds behind teammate Newman.

    “I just needed a weekend where we didn’t do anything stupid,” Stewart said succinctly.

    Denny Hamlin, piloting the No. 11 FedEx Freight Toyota, took the checkered flag in the third position.  Hamlin had to battle his way back through the field to recover from a lap 171 spin after A.J. Allmendinger got into his bumper, turning him.

    “We got caught mid pack and we weren’t good on short runs,” Mike Ford, Denny Hamlin’s crew chief said after the race. “We ended up getting spun and were in the back.”

    “We made adjustments and the car came to life,” Ford continued. “Denny did a good job staying calm in the car and it just worked out.”

    “You always have to give back some track position during the day to be in the sequence to have track position at the end of the day.”

    This was Hamlin’s eighth top-10 finish in 11 races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

    Joey Logano, driver of the No. 20 Home Depot Toyota, finished fourth and five-time champion Jimmie Johnson, behind the wheel of the No. 48 Lowes Chevrolet, made an amazing recovery from a spin on lap 240, where he hit the wall on turn two, as well as a lug nut issue on pit road to finish fifth.

    Several drivers, including Kyle Busch, who went into the Loudon race as the points leader, had tire issues. Because of the tire issue, the driver of the No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota, finished a miserable 36th and fell to fourth in the point standings.

    “Blew a tire,” Busch said. “There was too much brake heat.”

    “I had a pretty fast car and we were getting there,” Busch continued. “But the tire wouldn’t take it.”

     

  • Ryan Newman Works Magic for Third Consecutive Whelen Modified Series Win

    Ryan Newman worked his magic at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway by winning his third consecutive Whelen Modified race. And Newman did so in style, taking the No. 7 Aggressive Hydraulics/Menards Chevrolet from the pole position to victory lane in the F.W. Webb 100.

    [media-credit id=62 align=”alignright” width=”213″][/media-credit]This was Newman’s 8th career Modified Series start and his 4th career win. Three of those victories have come consecutively at the New Hampshire track known as the ‘Magic Mile.’

    “We had a really good car today and I’m proud of this team,” Newman said, holding his daughter in Victory Lane. “We didn’t know what was going to happen if a yellow came out. But it all worked out.”

    “I didn’t really know what to expect with the race and how it was going to unfold,” Newman said. “Typically we have multiple cautions here.”

    “Our car was really loose and I really had to manage the steering wheel,” Newman continued. “It seemed like the track wasn’t like it was in practice and we struggled a little bit with that part.”

    “We were the tightest of the loose guys and that was all it took,” Newman said. “We had a lot of fun.”

    Kevin ‘Bono’ Manion, Newman’s team owner and crew chief, echoed his driver’s thoughts on the historic win.

    “It’s really special,” Manion said. “We won here as a team in the early 90’s and as a kid to come up and race with the Cup guys was really cool.”

    “So, to come back here and learning the aspects of owning a car, it’s really special.”

    Newman and Bono both reiterated their desire to see more Cup and Whelen Modified race combination dates, naming Richmond, Phoenix and Martinsville as just a few possibilities.

    “The one mile tracks for sure fit this car,” Manion said. “I think Richmond would be an incredible Modified track. This is a great Series and they put on a great race.”

    “We just like it when it’s convenient,” Newman said. “And at the same time, it’s good for NASCAR Whelen Modified Racing to have quite a few people sitting in the grandstands. So, it works out good.”

    Runner up Todd Szegedy, driver of the No. 2 Wisk Detergent/A&J Romano Construction Ford, secured his fourth top-five finish in six races of the 2011 season.

    “Second to me was kind of a win,” Szegedy said. “We beat all the regulars.”

    “We’ve had some bad luck here for the last three or four races so this was definitely a good run,” Szegedy continued. “We had a great car.”

    “At the end, I went into fuel conservation mode, so I started backing out of it a little bit,” Szegedy said. “I could run up on Ryan a little bit but I’d get free off so I never could make a good move on him.”

    “Ryan made it interesting,” Szegedy continued. “So, good for him anyways.”

    “I think we’ve got some work to do,” Szegedy said. “We’ve got to drive the track different and set the car up different. He’s not unbeatable. We’ll just have to work harder.”

    Ron Silk, driver of the No. 6 T.S. Haulers/Calverton Tree Farm Chevrolet, scored the third position. This was Silk’s fourth podium finish in six races this year.

    “I was surprised how long it went green,” Silk said. “All my guys did a great job all weekend and we made about a thousand adjustments since we got here.”

    “I got a little bit close to Newman on the last lap but I just got up in the loose stuff,” Silk continued. “And once you get up there, you just can’t get out.”

    Matt Hirschman, driving the No. 3 Cape Cod Copper/Riverview Chevrolet, finished fourth. And Doug Coby, behind the wheel of the No. 52 Reynolds Auto Wrecking Chevrolet, rounded out the top five.

  • Ryan Newman Compares Pole Run to a Good Mac and Cheese

    Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 39 US Army Chevrolet, not only scored the pole for the Lenox Industrial Tools 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, but he also set a new track record at a speed of 135.232 mph  and a time of 28.165 seconds.

    And all he could compare it to was making a good batch of macaroni and cheese.

    [media-credit id=62 align=”alignright” width=”220″][/media-credit]“I’ve always been blessed with really good cars here,” Newman said. “It’s like making good macaroni and cheese. Sometimes, it just tastes good.”

    Other than macaroni and cheese, Newman is not sure why he has had such good runs at NHMS. But for his qualifying effort, he believes the new tires played a part in his first pole of the 2011 season.

    “I don’t know what the chemistry is, but I like it,” Newman said. “It’s a new tire, which is one part of it. But even with the tire change, we’ve made the cars better.”

    “It’s a combination of things,” Newman continued. “The tires are the only things touching the race track, so when they change it’s a big change. But it works.”

    “I didn’t know exactly what to expect,” Newman said. “It wasn’t a perfect, perfect lap, but the car had a lot of speed.”

    With this pole, Newman now sits alone in tenth on the all-time poles list. This was the driver’s 47th pole in 351 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.

    Newman was also quite proud as not only did he claim the Coors Light pole, but his team owner and teammate Tony Stewart scored the outside pole position.

    Stewart, piloting the No. 14 Office Dept/Mobil 1 Chevrolet, for Stewart-Haas Racing, posted his fifth top-10 start in 2011 and his 16th in 25 races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

    “It’s awesome,” Stewart said. “We have a great group of guys at SHR.”

    “We’ve got great engines and great chassis from Hendricks and I’m just really proud of our organization,” Smoke continued. “They keep focused and they keep working. This is for all our guys at the shop.”

    Stewart not only had high praise for his own crew and the entire Stewart-Haas Race team, but he also had high praise for his pole winner.

    “I’ve got a pretty good driver over there,” Stewart said of Newman. “He’s gotten two poles in two nights so he’s doing a pretty good job.”

    Newman will also start from the pole in the Whelen Modified Series race, also running at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.  He will be competing for this third straight win in that event.

    David Reutimann, driver of the No. 00 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota Camry, continued riding the momentum from his runner up finish at Kentucky Speedway last weekend. The Michael Waltrip racing driver qualified third, with a time of 28.263 seconds and a speed of 134.763 mph.

    “It didn’t feel that good at all,” Reutimann said of his qualifying lap. “But thankfully the Aaron’s Dream Machine has been pretty good since we unloaded and it ended up being okay there.”

    “The lap itself didn’t feel all that good, but in the end it was good enough for third.”

    This was Reutimann’s third top-10 start at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.  It is his fifth in 19 races this season.

    Penske Racing teammates Kurt Busch, in the No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Dodge, qualified fourth and Brad Keselowski, piloting the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge rounded out the top five in the time trials.

  • Ryan Newman Sides with the Boss, Says Not a Fan of Blocking

    Ryan Newman Sides with the Boss, Says Not a Fan of Blocking

    Stewart-Haas Racing’s Tony Stewart and Ryan Newman are making it clear, they don’t think blocking is cool. Last weekend Stewart took matters into his own hands by expressing displeasure with the way drivers, specifically Brian Vickers, were racing.

    [media-credit name=”www.HaasCNC.com” align=”alignright” width=”226″][/media-credit]Stewart sent a message, one he reiterated in Daytona: from now on if you block, you’re getting wrecked. Now Newman is offering his opinion and like his boss and teammate, feels blocking is unnecessary.

    “I’m not a fan at all of blocking,” said Newman. “If you don’t block on an oval, you shouldn’t block on a road course; and there are a lot of guys who get in the bad habit of blocking on a road course. Especially in turn 7 and turn 11 at Infineon.”

    The pair’s frustrations carry over from last weekend’s first road course race. Stewart drilled Vickers into the tire barriers in turn 11 and admitted it was intentional. It wasn’t just last weekend however, Stewart hasn’t been happy with the way his competitors has been racing for a while.

    Newman found out what Stewart was talking about last weekend. Just as Stewart did before him, Newman tried to take matters into his own hands but it didn’t work out for him either.

    “I had guys that blocked me and I let them know about it and I got turned around twice in turn 11,” he said. “So, the blocking part is not cool at all. And it’s something that we as drivers have to address and gain a little more respect out of each other so that we’re not doing that. We can have great racing and great passing there without the blocking.”

    The problem according to both Newman and Stewart is that blocking doesn’t just take place at road courses or restrictor plate tracks. Although Stewart did acknowledged that with the new two-car drafting you don’t see much blocking anymore. Newman however, says there’s a fine balance between road courses and ovals.

    “There are times when I’m blocked at Dover or Charlotte or places like that and it’s much less often than it is at the road courses,” he said. “The road course is the most you’ll ever get blocked or blocking is a part of what we do as whole. Go back to 1979 when Donnie [Allison] ran Cale [Yarborough] down. He was block of sorts. You saw what happened because of it.”

    But unlike the 1979 Daytona 500, the incident that has Stewart so upset didn’t happen on the last lap.

    “But it’s every lap is like a last lap,” explained Newman. “You look at the way our competition is, we race every lap like it’s the last lap. There are times when it does slow down a little bit. California and Michigan, big places, Pocono, where you can only do so much. There comes a point where you have to save your racecar and save your tires and save your brakes.”

    As Newman explains, double-file restarts have changed everything. It might be exciting for the fans but the drivers have gotten more aggressive or in Newman’s words, more demanding.

    “We’re literally going for everything we possibly can,” he said. “And if that means somebody else’s throat, that’s part of it sometimes. Going for their throat and ripping their throat out are two different things.”

    The term respect is one that is often thrown about. Though it’s been more thrown out when it comes to actions on the track some drivers might say. General theory being race how you would like to be raced. Instead, drivers are getting better at taking and having a hard time receiving – payback.

    Stewart and Newman are two that aren’t going to take it any longer. If drivers aren’t willing to come together and come to an understanding than what occurred in Sonoma might just continue and it means “boys, have at it,” has only just begun.