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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. |
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Sprint Cup Rookie Report: Logano Makes His Debut, But Almirola Steals the Show
Tony Lumbis · Monday September 15, 2008
Rookies in the Starting Lineup: (Qualifying lineup set by points due to inclement weather) — Aric Almirola (15th), Regan Smith (29th), Michael McDowell (35th), Sam Hornish, Jr. (36th), Patrick Carpentier (39th), Joey Logano (40th), Chad McCumbee (41st)
Unofficial Finishing Positions: Aric Almirola (18th), Regan Smith (23rd), Michael McDowell (27th), Sam Hornish, Jr. (30th), Patrick Carpentier (31st), Joey Logano (32nd), Chad McCumbee (42nd)
Rookie of the Race: Aric Almirola. For the second time this year at New Hampshire, the driver of the U.S. Army Chevrolet takes home our top rookie honors. Aric Almirola started in the Top 20 due to the efforts of both he and Mark Martin, who have kept the No. 8 team in a favorable owner points position throughout 2008. The rookie kept up a quick enough pace to stay reasonably close to that, running mid-pack for most of the day; however, he was not quite fast enough early on to avoid losing a lap to the leaders. After the race, Almirola admitted the slow start was due to a lack of proper feedback about the car’s setup from him to the crew during practice. But he had 300 miles to learn how to make the car better on Sunday, and DEI’s top prospect proved he was a quick study.
The U.S. Army team got the chance to show their stuff after lap 229, when the day’s fifth caution waved for a big wreck in turns three and four. The rookie was in position for the “Lucky Dog” award, placing him back on the lead lap for the remaining 71 laps of the race. By this point, but Almirola and crew chief Tony Gibson had hit on something with their setup, and their efforts would be rewarded with a Top 20 finish — Almirola’s third of the 2008 season.
Note: While Almirola beat the 2008 Rookie of the Year candidates, as he has done several times this year, Regan Smith officially won his eighth Rookie of the Race honor at New Hampshire.
All eyes may have been on media darling Joey Logano, but on the track it was Aric Almirola that stole the limelight at New Hampshire.
Tony’s Take: It should not come as too much of a surprise that the two leading rookies on Sunday afternoon belonged to the DEI organization. For several years now, that team has been a threat on the flat tracks, and both Almirola and Regan Smith capitalized on their success. This is also a good sign for Almirola, who will also be behind the wheel of the No. 8 Impala at Martinsville, Phoenix, and Talladega later this season. This rookie has a great chance to build some momentum of his own heading into his first full-time season in Cup next year.
Meanwhile, I am surprised that Patrick Carpentier was never on the radar this weekend; well, at least until he hit the spin cycle late in the race. After qualifying on the pole and running in the Top 10 for the first segment of the Magic Mile event back in June, many thought that Carpentier would be a force here in the Fall. However, the Canadian could never recover from being buried in the pack at the start of the race, and was one of the first cars to go a lap down. This is hardly the performance this freshman needs during his 10 week “audition” for a 2009 ride.
Rocky Rookie Performance: Joey Logano. Last week, Joey Logano never had the chance to capitalize on his Top 10 speeds turned in during practice, as qualifying got rained out. This week, he probably wishes he was able to make his debut at Richmond, as New Hampshire was a much different experience for the phenom. Logano had an ominous start to his Sprint Cup career when he left his pits early, and took the jack with him during the day’s first caution. Driver and team were never able to recover from the penalty, as the freshman remained at or near the back of the pack for the entire afternoon.
However, you have to consider Logano’s ride when analyzing his run. This No. 96 team has not performed well with anyone behind the wheel in 2008, firing main driver J.J. Yeley midseason and throwing a handful of drivers behind the wheel with mediocre results. The NASCAR community will be watching this kid closely through the next few months, and the team that Logano drives for cannot be overlooked when passing judgment on his success… or lack thereof. Pay close attention to how the rookie performs in the No. 96 car versus the No. 02 Camry each and every time he hits the track — only then will we know whether the equipment or the driver is to blame.
Rookie Wreck of the Race: Chad McCumbee. New Hampshire may be a virtually flat race track, but that doesn’t mean the transition to the apron won’t upset the handling of these cars. Chad McCumbee, filling in for Kyle Petty, found that lesson out the hard way. On lap 229, Michael McDowell slowed up entering turn three, as he tried to save his loose race car and avoid the swarm of cars behind him. In that angry hornet’s nest was McCumbee, who dropped the left tires of his car onto the apron to avoid the mistake. As soon as he did, his No. 45 Dodge broke loose and nailed the Ford of Matt Kenseth, igniting the biggest wreck of the day. David Gilliland then T-Boned Kenseth and collected Brian Vickers and Casey Mears in the process, causing the race to be red flagged to clean up the mess. McCumbee, whose car was badly damaged during the incident, was forced to retire for the afternoon and finished a dismal 42nd place.
Who Wasn’t Here?: Nobody. This time, Mother Nature could not foil the plans of the Sprint Cup rookies, as each one was in position to make the race when rain canceled qualifying. This included Joey Logano, whose team got him in his Sprint Cup Race by paying attention to the weather radar instead of engineering data. By placing Logano in the No. 96 car instead of the No. 02, NASCAR’s brightest star was put in a position to inherit a spot in the Sylvania 300 when qualifying was rained out.
Rookie Quotes of the Week:
Joey Logano shares his thoughts about his Sprint Cup debut.
What is your reaction to the race?
“Not what I wanted — that’s for sure. It was a tough one. We tried hard, but it just wasn’t there the whole time. It seemed like the end of the race we were getting it close from where we started the race to where we finished the race. If we could have worked on it from there, then it would have been a lot better. We started so far back in the hole trying to get this car good… and we just got close to it too late.”
How different was testing to actually racing the Cup car?
“You’re racing the same car, so it’s not much different. Racing is racing. I learned a lot, and I take a lot from this for when we come back here next time. I just wish we would have had a little better run than that.”
What did you learn today?
“Just a lot of give and take out there. Again, there’s a lot of take — believe me. You see what these guys are doing, and we’ll see what we can do for the car for the next time we are here. We learned a lot there, so we’ll just have to take what we got.”
Are you relieved that the first race is over?
“No. The other races are coming up. I didn’t think it was a big deal making my first start — I was ready to go as soon as we started.”
Were you able to earn respect today?
“I definitely did that. Deep down inside, I really wanted a better finish than that. After our practice session at Richmond, I thought we were going to have a lot better race car than that. We just missed it and got too close to it at the end. We got close to where we needed to be — just too late in the race and we weren’t able to work on it from there.”
Can you describe the experience of your first NSCS race?
“It was fun — I enjoyed it. By lap 200 I wanted it to end because we weren’t running worth a dang. But we are going to take what we learned and go at it.”
UNOFFICIAL Raybestos Rookie standings:
Smith 186
Hornish, Jr. 183
Carpentier 175
McDowell 164
Franchitti 97 (DNS)
UNOFFICIAL Driver Points Standings
Sam Hornish, Jr.: 33rd (0)
Regan Smith: 35th (0)
Patrick Carpentier: 36th (0)
Michael McDowell: 39th (0)
Aric Almirola: 42nd (+2)
Dario Franchitti: 46th (0, DNS)
Next Up: The Monster Mile is up next, as the Chase moves on to event number two of ten. This track is famous for chewing up race cars; but back in June, not a single rookie competitor was involved in a wreck. In fact, all four rookies in that event finished in the Top 30, quite a feat for this year’s class. The other challenge the freshmen face at Dover is effectively communicating what they need from the car to the crew chief. The track is known for having long green flag runs, giving teams very few chances to adjust on their equipment during the race. As a result, this will be a good test to see how well the rookies can use what they learned in June and apply it the second time around.
Qualifying Next Week: A dropped cylinder in the Sylvania 300 kept Sam Hornish, Jr. from making any headway towards getting his team back in the Top 35 in owner points. He’ll join Patrick Carpentier and Marcos Ambrose on this list of rookies who will need to time into the field at Dover.
Tony’s Top Finishing Rookie Pick: Regan Smith turned in one of his better performances of the year on Saturday afternoon, as his 23rd place finish allows him to lead the Rookie of the Year standings for the tenth consecutive week. However, while he did officially earn rookie honors, his part-time freshman teammate, Aric Almirola, bettered him by five positions — denying me another point.
You Make The Pick: Many of you seemed to take stock in the “Mike Skinner Effect” theory and thought that Michael McDowell would follow up his Top 20 finish with another strong run at New Hampshire. As it turns out, he had a pretty rough weekend. First, McDowell lost control of his Camry just long enough to start the afternoon’s most significant wreck. Then, in the closing laps, he and A.J. Allmendinger made contact on the front straightaway, sending the No. 84 hard into the outside retaining wall. As a result, you continue to lead me by just one point with nine events left in the season.
Tony’s Pick for Next Week’s Top Finishing Rookie: With nine races remaining, I have to admit that it is getting darn near impossible to pick the top finishing rookie. Through the first 27 events of 2008, there has been next to no consistency among this year’s candidates, making it a complete crapshoot as to which freshman driver will the best rest at any given race. Next week, I am going to go with Michael McDowell, who has been showing some signs of life down the stretch. He had the best run of his career at Richmond — although he followed it up with a less than stellar run last weekend. I think he will rebound next week, however, and best the rest of the field at Dover.
| Event | Track | Tony’s Pick | Finish | Reader’s Pick | Finish | Top Finishing Rookie | Finish |
| Daytona 500 | Daytona | Regan Smith | 37th | Dario Franchitti | 33rd | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 15th |
| Auto Club 500 | California | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 43rd | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 43rd | Regan Smith | 31st |
| UAW-Dodge 400 | Las Vegas | Patrick Carpentier | 40th | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 41st | Dario Franchitti | 33rd |
| Kobalt Tools 500 | Atlanta | Dario Franchitti | 33rd | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 25th | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 25th |
| Food City 500 | Bristol | Regan Smith | 26th | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 29th | Aric Almirola | 8th |
| Goody’s Cool Orange 500 | Martinsville | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 28th | Aric Almirola | 42nd | Regan Smith | 14th |
| Samsung 500 | Texas | Regan Smith | 35th | Michael McDowell / Regan Smith | 33rd / 35th | Patrick Carpentier | 28th |
| Subway Fresh Fit 500K | Phoenix | Michael McDowell | 34th | Michael McDowell | 34th | Sam Hornish Jr. | 20th |
| Aaron’s 499 | Talladega | Aric Almirola | 33rd | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 35th | Regan Smith | 21st |
| Crown Royal 400 | Richmond | Patrick Carpentier | 43rd | Patrick Carpentier | 43rd | Regan Smith | 21st |
| Dodge Challenger 500 | Darlington | Regan Smith | 29th | Regan Smith | 29th | Michael McDowell | 28th |
| Coca-Cola 600 | Lowe’s | Michael McDowell | 32nd | Michael McDowell | 32nd | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 13th |
| Best Buy 400 | Dover | Regan Smith | 21st | Michael McDowell | 30th | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 18th |
| Pocono 500 | Pocono | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 42nd | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 42nd | Michael McDowell | 27th |
| LifeLock 400 | Michigan | Regan Smith | 32nd | Michael McDowell | 37th | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 22nd |
| Save Mart 350K | Infineon | Patrick Carpentier | 23rd | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 31st | Michael McDowell | 21st |
| Lenox Industrial Tools 301 | New Hampshire | Regan Smith | 27th | Marcos Ambrose | DNQ | Aric Almirola | 23rd |
| Coke Zero 400 | Daytona | Michael McDowell | 25th | Patrick Carpentier | 14th | Patrick Carpentier | 14th |
| LifeLock 400 | Chicagoland | Michael McDowell | 25th | Patrick Carpentier | 30th | Patrick Carpentier | 30th |
| Allstate 400 | Indianapolis | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 37th | Patrick Carpentier | 18th | Patrick Carpentier | 18th |
| Sunoco Red Cross 500 | Pocono | Regan Smith | 25th | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 26th | Chad McCumbee | 17th |
| Centurion Boats At The Glen | Watkins Glen | Patrick Carpentier | 20th | Patrick Carpentier | 20th | Marcos Ambrose | 3rd |
| 3M Performance 400 | Michigan | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 22nd | Marcos Ambrose | 43rd | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 22nd |
| Sharpie 500 | Bristol | Aric Almirola | 13th | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 37th | Aric Almirola | 13th |
| Pepsi 500 | California | Patrick Carpentier | 18th | Sam Hornish, Jr. | 31st | Patrick Carpentier | 18th |
| Chevy Rock and Roll 400 | Richmond | Patrick Carpentier | 25th | Patrick Carpentier | 25th | Michael McDowell | 20th |
| Sylvania 300 | Loudon | Regan Smith | 23rd | Michael McDowell | 27th | Michael McDowell | 18th |
2008 Score: Readers 4, Tony 3.
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