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Edwards Placed On Probation For Three Races
posted by Jay Pennell
Tuesday March 9, 2010
NASCAR President Mike Helton addressed the media Tuesday afternoon following Sunday’s late-race incident between Carl Edwards and Brad Keselowski at the Atlanta Motor Speedway. Well over 100 laps down, Edwards intentionally spun Keselowski through the tri-oval while Keselowski was running sixth. The No. 12 car lifted in the air and slammed the outside wall with the driver’s side window. NASCAR parked Edwards for his actions and ordered him to the NASCAR hauler for further discussion on the matter. Tuesday, Helton explained Edwards would be placed on probation for the next three races and the drivers and their teams would meet with NASCAR about the situation. “Following that incident we asked the driver of the 99 to visit us in the hauler, and we made it very clear to him that these actions were not acceptable and did go beyond what we said back in January about putting the driving back in the hands of the drivers,” Helton said. “We believe the driver of the 99 understands our position at this point.” For NASCAR, the biggest issue emerging from Sunday’s incident was the fact the No. 12 car lifted into the air. “But the bigger topic is the 12 car getting airborne at a mile-and-a-half track which we typically don’t see,” Helton said. “It’s been years since we’ve seen that. So a lot of our effort yesterday, today and until we find resolve to it is figuring out how it happened, why it happened and what we can do to prevent it from happening in the future.”
Keyed Up and Key Motorsports split
posted by Doug Turnbull
Saturday March 6, 2010
If missing the first three races to date was not enough drama for the No. 90 Keyed Up Motorsports Chevy team and Casey Mears, organizational upheaval may tip the scales. A member with the team tells Frontstretch.com that Raymond Key’s Cup operation, originally formed with ties to Curtis Key’s teams in the Nationwide and Truck Series, has become its own entity. As of Monday, the team began a move into Tommy Baldwin Racing’s old shop while planning to continue trying to qualify on Cup races. However, if sponsorship for the team fails to pan out, Keyed-Up may vie for a partial schedule similar to that of the Wood Brothers and only run about 12 races the rest of the year.
Wood Brothers running FR9 for now, Roush says no big problems with new motor
posted by Doug Turnbull
Saturday March 6, 2010
Ford’s new FR9 motor has not made a speedy entrance to the Sprint Cup Series, mainly because the Ford teams need adequate supplies from the engine parts vendors and not because of performance problems, says team owner Jack Roush. Claiming the engine will perform well over the long-term, he still expects the new design to be “the Ford engine of the future” and fully in use by the end of 2010. While his four Ford teams are not running the revamped engine, Roush revealed that the Wood Brothers Ford team will run the FR9 this weekend at Atlanta and in April at Texas. Beyond that, either Roush nor Ford officials have announced a set schedule for full or future implementation of the power plants.
Crawford says truck team is 'close' on sponsorship
posted by Doug Turnbull
Saturday March 6, 2010
While never a standout in the Camping World Truck Series, Rick Crawford has experienced moderate success over his long career in NASCAR’s third-tier. After losing sponsorship at the end of 2009, his Circle Bar Racing team finds itself on the ropes, wondering how many races the future may hold. The veteran Crawford, though, remains optimistic a deal is imminent. “I would say we’re pretty close on signing a sponsor for the 2010 season and 2011 and beyond. [Not starting 2010 with a sponsor] was a matter of losing a sponsor late last year and [the prospective sponsor] getting its marketing efforts done. We’ve got the contracts ready; we’re waiting to get that signed.” Crawford started 2010 with a DNF at Daytona, placing 28th.
Justin Marks Wins The ARCA Race!
posted by Thomas Bowles
Saturday February 27, 2010
Justin Marks won a rain-shortened event at Palm Beach Saturday, collecting his first ever win in the series. Robb Brent, Blake Koch, Tom Hessert III, and Steve Arpin rounds out the top 5. Stay tuned to Frontstretch.com for plenty of post-race coverage on both the website and our Newsletter.
Looking For ARCA Coverage? We Got It!
posted by Thomas Bowles
Saturday February 27, 2010
While the ARCA race at Palm Beach may not be televised … we’ve got you covered. Our own Bryan Davis Keith is at Palm Beach all weekend and will be posting news, commentary, and features from the Florida road course both on the website and in our newsletter. Don’t miss out! And don’t forget, our own Tom Bowles is spending the weekend in Vegas, too … so we’ve got you covered from all angles. Just another reason why we’re the best seat at the track and the best view on the ‘net!
Carter Simo still plans 2010 Cup races
posted by Doug Turnbull
Friday February 19, 2010
One story lost in the shadow of Speedweeks in Daytona was the absence of Carter Simo Racing’s No. 08 car. Much of the team’s equipment was put up for auction Tuesday; however, a source tells Frontstretch.com the operation still plans to field a car in 2010, with a limited schedule of races TBD. CSR may also try and field a car for the Talladega ARCA race in April; until then, most of the team’s employees have been temporarily released and are working for other teams in the sport. In mid-2009, team owner John Carter bought the assets of beleaguered owner/driver Jeremy Mayfield, using the newly purchased equipment and Toyotas to field entries in five races with two-time champion driver Terry Labonte. Equipment issues kept the team from cracking the top 30 in those races. Road course ringer Boris Said also wielded No. 08 Fords last year at both road course races, scoring the team’s season-best finish of 24th at Infineon. Later on that season, Said and longtime partner Mark Simo split, creating the newly-named Carter Simo racing with Labonte behind the wheel. On Tuesday, CSR only placed the equipment purchased from Mayfield on the block, including five Toyotas, a race hauler, and other pit equipment and tools. However, the source says that the team still owns three old Yates chassis and an old Ganassi piece (all of which they converted to Dodges last year) in the shop, with plans on returning to the track midseason pending sponsorship. The move is similar to what happened with Carter Simo last year, in which they took a four-month break between Daytona and Infineon while preparing to race at specific tracks. CSR, which still splits its time between its shops in Charlotte and in Toccoa, Georgia, just has to modify the top of the noses on their cars before returning to the track, due to a minor, lightly-discussed rules change before the season. As for CSR’s 2009 drivers and whether they will return to the team, Boris Said currently is driving the No. 26 for Bill Jenkins’ Latitude 43 Motorsports, and is working on a long-term deal that should remove him as an option. Terry Labonte is also out of the running; he and former owner Bill Stavola formed Stavola Labonte Racing in 2009, but are currently sidelined due to a lack of sponsorship. According to sources, Labonte was offered but initially turned down a return to the No. 08. A John Carter-owned car did participate in the ARCA race at Daytona on February 6th. Former CSR driver James Hylton borrowed a car from Carter, then leased it to driver Jill George for the race. But George infamously crashed the No. 48 roof-first into the wall just 25 laps into the 80-lap Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200, finishing 31st in the 43 car field.
Parrott In As Crew Chief For Kenseth
posted by Jay Pennell
Wednesday February 17, 2010
Less than a week into the 2010 season and Roush Fenway Racing has already made a switch at the crew chief position. News broke on Wednesday that Todd Parrott would take over atop the pit box for the No. 17 team with driver Matt Kenseth, replacing Drew Blickensderfer. The Kenseth-Blickensderfer combination won last year’s Daytona 500 and backed it up by winning the next weekend at the Auto Club Speedway. Despite their strong start out of the box, the No. 17 team failed to live up to expectations in 2009, scoring seven top-5s, 12 top-10s and failing to make, along with missing the Chase. Now after an 8th place finish in Sunday’s Daytona 500, Blickensderfer is headed to the Roush Fenway Racing R&D Department and Parrott is taking over as crew chief.
Danica Out in Daytona
posted by Mike Lovecchio
Saturday February 13, 2010
A lap 79 crash abruptly ended Danica Patrick’s first career NASCAR start Saturday in Daytona. Patrick went a lap down early in the race and later got back on the lead lap on lap 55 via the “Lucky Dog” rule. As she began moving through the field, she was collected in an incident that involved 12 cars. “I’m just going to take away the fact that I know what it’s going to be like out there come next year,” she said. “I felt we would’ve finished strong if we would’ve finished, but as you can see it’s easier said than done.”
Truck Series Race Postponed Until 7:00 PM Saturday
posted by Thomas Bowles
Friday February 12, 2010
It’s official – Friday track activities were washed out by the weather. Not only was Nationwide qualifying pushed back, but the Truck race was postponed, too – they’ll run at 7:00 PM Saturday night. Be sure to come back tomorrow for the latest news ‘n’ notes from the track! |
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Each week, the Frontstretch hosts a live blog during the Sprint Cup race. It’s a great way for readers to interact alongside their favorite Frontstretch writers with videos, live commentary, and live polls. Four of this week’s “Five Points” were polls taken during the Martinsville live blog.
Five Points to Ponder:
ONE: How many teams have a shot at the title after six races?
With yet another top 5 finish in the Chase, Jimmie Johnson has opened a healthy 118-point lead over teammates Mark Martin and Jeff Gordon this weekend. His unbelievable consistency has now awarded him a gimme, which could be used in the Chase’s wild card race next weekend at Talladega. IF Johnson can survive the madness next Sunday, I would say it’s pretty safe to start etching his name on the Sprint Cup. But because he does have to survive the wild card next week and there are two drivers within 150 points, I’ll go ahead and say that Mark Martin (118 points back) and Jeff Gordon (150 back) are the only two guys who have a realistic shot at slaying the giant if he indeed slips up.
TWO: Is starting and parking bad for the sport of NASCAR?
Fan Vote – YES: 80%; NO: 20%
Brought up as this week’s field of start and parkers started falling by the wayside, fans and Frontstretch panelists involved in the Frontstretch live blog voted that the recent epidemic of start and parkers is indeed bad for the sport. The question is, what hurts the credibility of the sport more: not having full fields, or having cars start and park to collect a few dollars? Both are signs of a troubling economy, but if I had to pick my poison I’d much rather see a field of 35 or so cars actually competing. Will NASCAR ever address the issue? Not in the near future; but for its sake, they better hope the number of start parkers does not get out of hand and dip into double digits next season.
Most fans would say short tracks provide the best type of racing. And among the short tracks, Bristol is King according to our live blog poll.
THREE: Which short track do you most enjoy watching?
Fan Vote – Richmond: 33%: Martinsville: 0%; Bristol: 67%
In the midst of a fairly entertaining 500-lapper at the paper clip in Martinsville, fans were asked what their favorite short track was. Surprisingly, Martinsville didn’t get any votes, with Bristol topping Richmond 67 percent to 33 percent. Again, I have to agree with the fans. Martinsville has on occasion the tightest racing and Richmond is one of the more unique tracks on the circuit, but the high banks and blistering lap times at Bristol make it one of the more exciting short tacks in the country. You certainly can’t go wrong with any of the three, and I wish we had more tracks shorter than one mile of length on the schedule.
FOUR: Should Martinsville get two dates in 2011?
Fan Vote – YES: 75%: NO: 25%
Adding to my claim above about wishing there were more short tracks on the schedule, I think it would be a travesty for Martinsville to lose a date when the 2011 calendar is released next season. NASCAR lost a number of fans when North Wilkesboro was taken off the schedule, again when Rockingham lost its dates, and once again when Darlington lost a date. Taking a Martinsville race off the calendar would be the tipping point for another wave of NASCAR purists, but the fate of the half-mile may rest in the wallets of those Virginians who pay to go to the races. If you put butts in the seats, there is no way NASCAR would ever take Martinsville off the schedule; however, I saw too many openings on Sunday for my liking.
FIVE: Should NASCAR do more to police pit road speeds?
Fan Vote – YES: 25%; NO: 75%
In the mid-part of Sunday’s race, Chase contender Juan Pablo Montoya claimed the points leader was speeding on pit road. It sparked an interesting conversation in both the ABC booth and the Frontstretch blog. With the way NASCAR currently detects pit road speed limits, there are small areas where drivers can push the limit and make up critical ground getting on and off pit road, and Jimmie Johnson appeared to be doing just that — speeding in between the timing lines before slowing down to the limit. Is it just me, or does it seem like there should be enough technology to track each car’s speed from line to line on pit road? NASCAR fans tend to be conspiracy theorists, and it’s “gray area” rules like this that spark controversy. Remember, this isn’t the first time the pit road speed limit has been brought up this year…
Notes to Ponder:
Tagliani in Texas: Open-wheeler Alex Tagliani will make his first start at Texas in a Nationwide car later this season. He’ll be back in the same No. 81 MacDonald Motorsports Dodge that he drove to a 26th place finish in Montreal.
Virginia homecomings: Virginia natives Timothy Peters and Denny Hamlin both won at their home track this weekend at Martinsville.
McMurray’s audition?: Quick question: who was the highest running Roush Fenway car this weekend? Surprisingly, it was Jamie McMurray (6th) whose name has been rumored for the No. 1 Earnhardt Ganassi ride over the last few weeks.
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