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Tuesday, July 29, 2008
NASCAR apologizes for tire mishap: NASCAR apologized Tuesday for the tire fiasco that ruined its prestigious race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and vowed to avoid a repeat. A durability issue with the tires Goodyear brought to Indy forced NASCAR to call cautions every 10 to 12 laps on Sunday to slow the action and force teams to change their tires before they failed. The longest run under the green flag was 13 laps, and Jimmie Johnson claimed the victory at the end of a seven-lap sprint to the finish in the second-slowest race in the 15 years NASCAR has competed at the Brickyard. The drivers were disgusted, fans were frustrated and NASCAR is still trying to figure out why things went so wrong. "I can't say enough how sorry we are and it's our responsibility being NASCAR that we don't go through this situation again," said Robin Pemberton, vice president of competition. "The race didn't come off like we had hoped, the fans didn't get what they exactly wanted and we'll do everything in our power — it won't happen again, I can tell you that much." (AP/Google)
Petty announces three-driver lineup for #45 through August 17th: Petty Enterprises announced its driver lineup for the #45 Marathon American Spirit Motor Oil Dodge through the August 17th Sprint Cup race at the Michigan International Speedway. Chad McCumbee, Kyle Petty and Terry Labonte will each compete in one event over the next three weeks. "Chad, Kyle and Terry will be competing at places where they have all had success in the past," said Petty Enterprises Vice President of Race Operations Robbie Loomis. "That should put the #45 team in the best position possible to gain points on the teams in front of us in owner points. Everyone at Petty Enterprises is committed to doing whatever it takes to get this team back inside the top-35. That is one of our highest priorities as an organization." McCumbee, 23, will attempt to make his first Sprint Cup start of the season this weekend at the Pocono Raceway. He made his first career Sprint Cup start at Pocono in 2007, finishing 25th. McCumbee also picked up an ARCA RE/MAX Series victory at Pocono last year. He currently competes full-time in the Craftsman Truck Series where he is 12th in points. Petty will return to the seat of the #45 Dodge for the August 10 event at Watkins Glen International. This will be the first start for Petty since the Coca-Cola 600 in May. His hiatus included at six-race stint in the TNT Sports booth where he covered the Sprint Cup Series. "We're all excited to see Kyle back in the #45 Marathon Dodge at Watkins Glen," said Loomis. "He has been a great road course racer throughout his career. I know he is looking forward to it as well so we are going up there with a lot of confidence that we will have a solid run." Labonte, who has competed in seven races in the #45 Dodge this season, will make his eighth start at the Michigan International Speedway on August 17th..(Petty Racing PR)
Truex upset with Siegel? Dale Earnhardt Inc's Martin Truex Jr. reportedly was involved in a raised-voice spat with DEI President of Global Operations Max Siegel Saturday night, accusing Siegel of leaking a story to ESPN.com that Truex had agreed to a two-year contract extension. Truex angrily denied the story on Saturday and reported had it out with Siegel that evening.(Ford Racing)
IMS track owner Tony George says its NASCAR's problem: George, the Speedway's CEO, said there's nothing wrong with the track surface. "They've run on it," he said from British Columbia, where he was vacationing after Saturday's IndyCar Series race in Edmonton, Alberta. "The problem is solely theirs, and by that I mean it's theirs to figure out. "It's not going to come with anything we do to the track. Figuring it out will only come with getting the car and tire combination right, and that requires actually spending the time and effort to do something about it. The track won't change next year, so if they want to come back, they better figure it out, because I don't think the fans want to come back and see that." (Indy Star)
Stewart fined after USAC incident: Tony Stewart was fined $10,000 and his team was placed on probation Monday following an altercation last week at the USAC's National Midget race in Indianapolis. Stewart was fined for unsportsmanlike conduct and conduct detrimental to racing. USAC said in a statement that Stewart was involved in an on-track incident Thursday at O'Reilly Raceway Park related to one of his Midgets driven by points leader Tracy Hines. Hines had scraped the wall and pitted for a tire change, but his car was not deemed ready to re-enter the race in time to rejoin the field for the restart. Stewart then came down to pit lane to get an explanation for the call. He reportedly knocked the headset from the official's head and then shoved him. "USAC immediately assessed the incident and it was determined that unacceptable behavior detrimental to the sport had occurred, and that the professionalism and the integrity of the series and its promoters had been severely compromised," Jason Smith, USAC's vice president of racing operations, said in the statement. "While we respect the passion of our teams in the spirit of competition, we regret this incident occurred and are dedicated to averting a recurrence in the future." (ESPN.com)
Monday, July 28, 2008
Ryan Newman not likely to join JGR: Newman's name has been most prominently mentioned to land with Stewart-Haas Racing next season. Sources close to the situation said he also has had discussions with JGR, Richard Childress Racing and Gillett Evernham Motorsports. An RCR official said Friday that he expected Newman to go to Stewart, and JGR president J.D. Gibbs said Sunday it was unlikely the driver of Penske Racing's No. 12 would join his Toyota team. "It would be hard," Gibbs said before the Sprint Cup race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. "Another time, another day, maybe. He's a great individual. You would love to have him on your team. It's just all those ducks aren't in a row." (ESPN.com)
Stremme in talks with Penske Racing? David Stremme, currently a test driver at Penske Racing and Nationwide Series driver for Rusty Wallace Racing, said he has talked with Penske officials about driving the No. 12 Sprint Cup car next season. The team is looking for a replacement for Ryan Newman, who will leave the team at the end of the year, likely for Stewart-Haas Racing. “We’ve talked,” Stremme said Saturday at O’Reilly Raceway Park. “Obviously, I’m doing testing for them. But there are a lot of opportunities open, too. “Who wouldn’t want to be racing for Roger Penske? He’s very successful in motorsports. I like how they do their program.” (SceneDaily.com)
Nationwide series to Iowa Speedway? Mexico City race scrapped: NASCAR officials confirmed Sunday that due to a variety of factors, including the growth and stability of NASCAR's touring series in Mexico and lower attendance at the Nationwide event, the road course race at the Hermanos Rodriguez Autodrome will not appear on 2009 series schedule. The Mexico race will be replaced on the schedule next season with another event in the United States, said Steve O'Donnell, NASCAR's vice president of racing operations. He declined to name the track. Sources told the Observer and ThatsRacin.com on Sunday that the likely venue is the recently opened Iowa Speedway, a seven-eighths-mile track in Newton, Iowa. The track already hosts IndyCar and NASCAR Camping World East series events. (ThatsRacin.com)
Petty to skip Pocono? Kyle Petty is expected to skip his second straight race next week at Pocono since the end of his deal with TNT, team officials said. "We're still working through a few things," said Robbie Loomis, the vice president of racing operations at Petty Enterprises. The most likely candidate to fill in is Chad McCumbee, who attempted to qualify the car at Texas earlier this year. (ESPN.com)
Sunday, July 27, 2008
McMurray expected to stay with Roush Fenway in 2009: Jamie McMurray said he'll remain with Roush Fenway Racing despite reports that he'll drive elsewhere next year. "The truth is I'll be there with [sponsor] Crown Royal," McMurray said Saturday. "There's not a question. It's 100 percent. I will be here ... at Roush Fenway." (Roanoke.com)
Extra tires shipped in for today's race: Goodyear trucked in extra shipment of tires Sunday morning for the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard amid complaints about excessive wear during practice Friday and Saturday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. NASCAR vice president of competition Robin Pemberton said the new shipment of tires, which were intended to be used at Pocono Raceway next week, could be used during the 160-lap, 400-mile race. If needed, the Pocono tires would be implemented unilaterally across the 43-car Sprint Cup Series field. Pemberton said there would be at least two NASCAR-mandated caution flags to check wear during the early stages of the race, with the first occurring on Lap 10.(USA Today)
Ford discussing new engine: Ford officials have discussed a new engine with NASCAR officials, according to Doug Hervey, North American Operations Manager, Ford Racing Technology. "We've presented our plans to them for a new engine," Hervey said. "We've got prototype engines that we're evaluating right now." (Roanoke.com)
NASCAR statement on tire issues: Following are comments from NASCAR Vice President of Competition Robin Pemberton, regarding tires for Sunday’s Allstate 400 at the Brickyard: "We've got enough tires for Sunday's race and there will be up to 10 sets per team. Not everybody is going to use all of their tires in the last practice session. There may be some teams that keep an extra set behind. There’s only one NASCAR series that's here this weekend, and you don't get a chance to put enough rubber on the track. If you make a tire that lasts during practices, when you get into the race then they have issues with handling. It's always a challenge here. It's a ‘one-off’ tire that Goodyear builds for this place. The track is very abrasive because we don't run on it very often. Goodyear's doing the best they can. It's a situation we do see probably every time that we come here.”(NASCAR PR)
Roger Penske says he did not fire Ryan Newman: A day after Rusty Wallace said Roger Penske essentially fired Ryan Newman from the #12 car after the 2008 season, Penske said Wallace didn’t know what he was talking about. “I have read Rusty’s comments and it is important for everyone to understand that I did not fire Ryan,” Penske said in a statement. “His contract runs through 2008 and we sat down and agreed that we were not going forward beyond this year.” Penske’s statement matches what Newman said after he heard about Wallace’s comments Friday – that it was a mutual decision. On Saturday, after Newman qualified third at the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard for the second consecutive year, he seemed vindicated by Penske’s agreement. “That’s what I said,” Newman said. “I made some jokes about Rusty and all, but the bottom line is what he said wasn’t true and we’ll go on.”(Fort Wayne Journal Gazette)
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Truex angily denies report: Despite a report by ESPN.com to the contrary on Saturday, Sprint Cup driver Martin Truex Jr. has not agreed to any contract extension with Dale Earnhardt Inc. Several sources close to the driver and his representatives on Saturday night adamantly denied a report by ESPN.com that Truex had agreed to a two-year deal. The Charlotte Observer and ThatsRacin.com have been attempting to obtain confirmation this week of a Truex deal, but DEI officials have declined to comment. In a brief interview Saturday evening with The Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service, Truex expressed outrage at the report. "It's (expletive). I don't know what the hell (the reporter) is talking about. He doesn't know what he's talking about," Truex said. (ThatsRacin.com)
Three drivers on Stewart's wish list? Stewart said that Ryan Newman is just one of three drivers on his short list. Presumably, Martin Truex Jr. and Jamie McMurray are the other two. And Stewart is battling car owners Joe Gibbs and Richard Childress, who are both also looking for drivers. McMurray's future with car owner Jack Roush has been up for debate the past several weeks, and the speculation has become intense that Roush would be releasing McMurray. But apparently sponsor Crown Royal is pushing Roush to keep McMurray in the fold, and as tough as good sponsors are to find, that could well end that whole debate. McMurray has been mentioned as being on Childress' short list for his new fourth team. But Childress now appears to be back in the market trying to sign Truex. A Childress-Truex deal was in the works earlier this year, until Teresa Earnhardt, who owns DEI, said she would hold Truex to the option year on his current DEI contract for 2009.(Winston Salem Journal)
Ganassi-Waltrip meger? Car owner Chip Ganassi pulled the plug on Franchitti's team a month ago, in a shocker that left 71 people without jobs. That move by Ganassi has led to intense speculation about Ganassi's NASCAR future. Some of that speculation includes the possibility of some merger between Ganassi and the Michael Waltrip operation, which is also struggling and may be down to one sponsor next season for that three-car operation.(Winston Salem Journal)
Friday, July 25, 2008
ESPN.com reports Truex and DEI reach agreement: Martin Truex Jr., who has been speculated as a candidate for every driver opening in the Sprint Cup garage, isn't going anywhere. The 28-year-old New Jersey native has agreed in principal to a two-year deal that will keep him at Dale Earnhardt Inc. through the 2010 season, multiple sources close to the situation told ESPN.com on Saturday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Sources said an official announcement is expected any day, and that details with multiple sponsors remain to be finalized. Truex, asked if he has an agreement, said: "We're getting there, yeah. Things are going well right. I'm pretty happy. I just want to think about racing this weekend." He has been linked most strongly with the #12 car at Penske Racing,#4 at Stewart-Haas Racing and #33 at Richard Childress Racing. The organization also is negotiating a long-term deal to keep #15-Paul Menard, who has improved from 34th in the point standings last season to 26th. Max Siegel, the president of global operations at DEI, would not comment on negotiations.(ESPN.com)
Terry Labonte in the #10 for Pocono: Gillett Evernham Motorsports announced today that Terry Labonte will drive the No. 10 Charter Dodge in the Aug. 3 NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Pocono Raceway. Labonte, 51, the 1984 and 1996 Sprint Cup series champion, will substitute for Patrick Carpentier who is racing in the NASCAR Nationwide Series race that weekend in his hometown of Montreal. “I think anyone who follows our sport knows the caliber of driver and person Terry Labonte is,” said Tom Reddin, Gillett Evernham Motorsports CEO. “We appreciate Terry’s willingness to step in and help us out for a weekend.” Labonte owns 857 starts in his career including six in 2008 with Petty Enterprises. (Gillett Evernham Motorsports PR)
Sam Hornish happy with NASCAR move: Hornish acknowledged he's "a long shot" to become the first driver to win both the Indy 500 and Brickyard 400, Hornish insisted he has no regrets about his career choices. "We knew it was going to be tough; that's why I wanted to do it," Hornish said during a teleconference earlier this week. "It was nice over in the IRL when you felt like you could win every day, but I just felt like I wasn't getting as challenged as much as I needed to anymore. "This was going to be something that I wanted to do for the next 10 years and to keep me occupied and focused at what I was doing. Even with the frustrations and things that haven't been good, it's been good for us." (The Free Lance-Star)
Office Depot and Old Spice to sponsor #14 Tony Stewart in 2009: Office Depot and Old Spice will serve as co-primary sponsors of Tony Stewart’s No. 14 Chevrolet Impala SS NASCAR Sprint Cup Series entry beginning in 2009. Officials from the two companies, as well as from Stewart-Haas Racing, made the announcement today near Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Office Depot, a leading global provider of office products and services, along with Old Spice, the No. 1 antiperspirant/deodorant stick and body wash choice for guys in the United States, have entered into multi-year agreements with Stewart-Haas Racing to sponsor the new entry driven by Stewart. In addition, both Office Depot and Old Spice are official NASCAR® partners, successfully leveraging their relationships with NASCAR and their race team sponsorships as powerful marketing platforms for their brands. “To have Office Depot and Old Spice throw their support behind me and this race team makes me extremely proud,” said Stewart, who announced on July 10 that he had acquired a 50 percent stake in what is now known as Stewart-Haas Racing. (Stewart-Haas Racing PR)
Greci named Truex's interim crew chief: Mike Greci will serve as #1-Martin Truex's interim crew chief beginning this weekend, the team said Thursday. Greci replaces Kevin Manion, who begins serving his six-race suspension after Dale Earnhardt Inc. lost its appeal this week. Grechi first worked with Truex when Truex competed in what is now called the Camping World East series earlier this decade. Manion can return at Richmond in early September.(Virginian-Pilot)
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