 |
 |
 |
NASCAR Will Use New Spoiler At Martinsville
posted by Jay Pennell
Wednesday March 17, 2010
During a press conference for the Sprint All-Star Race in Charlotte, N.C. today, NASCAR vice president of competition Robin Pemberton confirmed the Sprint Cup Series would officially make the transition to the rear spoiler beginning with the Goody’s Fast Pain Relief 500 at the Martinsville Speedway. Pemberton said 83 spoilers had been sent to the teams on Monday. Teams tested the new rear spoiler on Tuesday at the Talladega Superspeedway, where the cars reached speeds well over 200mph in the draft. Throughout the test, NASCAR tried different combinations of spoiler height and restrictor plate size. Next week there is a two-day (Tuesday and Wednesday) test planned at the Charlotte Motor Speedway, where over 50 teams are scheduled to participate. Along with the return of the rear spoiler, Pemberton explained NASCAR is still working on other changes to the aero package on the Sprint Cup cars that will go into effect at all the tracks, possibly starting as soon as Texas in April.
High speeds in Talladega at first CoT spoiler test
posted by Doug Turnbull
Tuesday March 16, 2010
The highly anticipated first official spoiler test for the Car of Tomorrow may be noteworthy for other reasons. In an attempt to break up the large packs of cars, a notorious characteristic for restrictor plate tracks like Talladega, NASCAR allowed teams to try plates with larger holes – they started with a record size plate of 66/64th of an inch before shortening to 62/64ths of an inch after speeds were listed as too high. Just how high did those speeds go? Sources tell Frontstretch.com that this change, combined with the replacement of the rear wing with the traditional spoiler and the lowering of the front edge of the rear quarterpanels on both sides of the race car, allowed cars to approach straightaway speeds of up to 208 mph and average laps over the 200 mph mark. To set a mark for comparison, Juan Pablo Montoya’s April 2009 Talladega pole speed was 188.171 mph. Since speeds were in the 200 mph range, the same source says that NASCAR may consider having teams change the gear ratios on the cars, instead of decreasing the plate holes going forward, so the packs will remain broken up. Interestingly enough, the higher speeds come in light of the infamous Brad Keselowski-Carl Edwards race car flipping episode at Atlanta Motor Speedway two weeks ago, Ryan Newman’s incredible end-over-end flip at Talladega last October, and Keselowski turning Edwards airborne into the Talladega frontstretch catchfence last April. Read Wednesday’s Frontstretch.com Newsletter for more details on the Talladega spoiler test.
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. |
||
 |
Check in with Matt and Jay on their site at CareyandCoffey.com.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
| Subscribe to The Frontstretch Newsletter |
| Visit this group |
Miss out on your favorite driver's report card / season preview? Just click the link above and you can find them all archived together!
When Roger Penske signed Brad Keselowski to his roster, he thought he was simply signing a rookie with serious potential.
But it turns out his arrival comes with one small wish list: add a couple of extra people to the team.
Like, dozens.
“One of the gaps that I notice drastically at Penske is they’re about 100 people short of where they need to be to compete with Hendrick,” Keselowski said Friday as he held an open, honest conversation with the media on setting expectations for next year. “I communicated that with them, and just wanted to know what their thoughts were [on expanding their company].”
Brad Keselowski has learned a great deal in his time in the Hendrick organization, and he’s not being shy about sharing what he’s learned.
Considering Penske employs just about 300 people, suggesting a 25 percent increase between now and February is a fairly bold statement from a man stepping into just his first full season of Cup competition next year. But Keselowski claims it’s a necessary step to bridging the gap between them and the Hendrick juggernaut.
“Resources-wise, Penske’s phenomenal,” he said. “They have the same resources, if not more, than what Hendrick has to work with. It’s just a matter of installing the depth and the personnel.”
“It does not take 550 people [like at Hendrick] to build a winning race car at any given weekend. But it does take 550 people when XYZ gets sick, or his wife’s in labor, any of those circumstances that are going to come up… that’s where that piece is so important. If your main fabricator that does the best bodies is out for a month hunting, or out for a month with his wife on maternity leave, or whatever that might be — you need that depth to come in and cover for him. And that’s one of the things that Hendrick has done very well.”
With so many teams cutting back this season, there’d be plenty of people lining up for jobs should Penske beef up their roster. But what’s surprising is that Keselowski claims the most inquiries have come from none other than the only other Dodge team in the series.
“We’ve got a large influx of interest from the whole Evernham group,” he explained. “That whole team is scared to death. That whole company is scared. Everybody that works there is scared. And we’ve got a lot of interest from some of their people. So that’s interesting, that’s encouraging.”
“The moment I signed to do this deal, one of the gauges of success for me and for the team was who wanted to come with us. And although no one from Hendrick Motorsports would be following me – and that’s part of my deal, nobody could follow me – it’s interesting to see the other teams that have had people that have come from us. Some really heavy hitters, it’s been pretty cool, and I’m looking forward to seeing who’s going to come.”
With a second full-time Nationwide team (driven by Keselowski) already on the books for 2010, there’ll be an additional 20-30 no matter how much they decide to grow. Keselowski wasn’t specific on exactly how much his new car owner committed to adding, but hopes starting a dialogue now will be a way for them to compromise later.
“We’ve both got to change,” he said matter-of-factly. “We’re going to have to work together, and it can’t be on one end. We have to meet in the middle… and work together that way.”
In this case, that change means doing what it takes regardless of cost. The question now is whether Penske’s willing to open his wallet in response.
Did You Notice? Random Thoughts
A couple of quick observations while walking around Friday …
- Chad McCumbee was on his cell phone, walking in and around the Nationwide garage while networking for next year. McCumbee’s run a limited schedule with Green Light Racing in the Truck Series, but the money’s dried up over the course of the year with the future of the organization in question for 2010. No word on what teams he might have been talking to…
- Kelly Bires is getting a head start on his JR Motorsports affiliation for 2010. Not entered with any team at Charlotte, Bires was in and out of the JR hauler all weekend, working with the team and observing as he prepares to take the reins of the No. 88 from Brad Keselowski.
- Watching Nationwide qualifying from Jeremy Clements’ hauler, the difference between the “haves” and “have nots” couldn’t be more obvious. Over on Clements’ side of the garage, just two haulers had computers on top of them to follow the official times: RAB Racing (John Wes Townley) and Rensi-Hamilton Racing (Eric McClure). Compare that to the other side of the garage, where Joe Gibbs Racing, Roush Fenway Racing, and others had a crowd of people on top of each hauler, including crew chiefs with headsets and all sorts of electronic information accessible with the touch of a button. Although I guess the start and parkers on Clements’ side of the garage don’t need to know much …
- Juan Pablo Montoya is off this weekend. Like, badly off. Unable to crack the top 10 in practice, he’s going to be hard-pressed to duplicate his career-best eighth place finish at Lowe’s Saturday night. And if Johnson and Martin finish 1-2, is this where the Cinderella slipper begins to fall off?
- One other thing from earlier in the week … why was Dale Earnhardt, Jr. not at the Hall of Fame ceremony? No one will ever know the real answer, but my gut tells me it’s ‘cause Teresa Earnhardt was there …
For more notes from the track, including Dale Earnhardt, Jr.‘s notes on Lance McGrew, turn to our FREE Frontstretch newsletter for the latest and greatest NASCAR news from down in Charlotte. While you’re at it, sign up so it gets sent straight into your email inbox, so you’re kept well-informed with all the racing information you need. And for more on Keselowski’s move to the Cup Series full-time in 2010, check out my one-on-one feature with the up-and-coming driver at SI.com this Thursday.
Tom Bowles is now on Twitter! Click HERE to become a follower… even though he’s still learning how to use it (be patient on that one!)
Don’t forget about Tom Bowles and Matt Taliaferro’s Athlon / Frontstretch Podcast, sponsored this season by Wrigley’s! Check out the archive by clicking here, and look for the newest edition to head your way sometime later this week! Of course, if all else fails, you can always listen to us on iTunes for FREE! Search for our weekly show under “Athlon.”
LOOKING FOR FREE NASCAR NEWS AND COMMENTARY SENT RIGHT TO YOUR INBOX?
Well, you’ve come to the right place. The Frontstretch Newsletter is back in action for 2010, giving you more of the daily news, commentary, and NASCAR features from your favorite writers you know and love. Don’t waste another minute – click here to sign up and get all the information you need. We’re here to make sure you start 2010 off on the right foot … so make sure you jump on for the ride!
©2000 - 2008 Thomas Bowles and Frontstetch.com. Thanks for visiting the Frontstretch!
