Dale Earnhardt Inc. made a very strong showing at the Amp Energy 500 at Talladega on Sunday.
Regan Smith basically won the race, by outrunning the leader. He got penalized for it though and finished on the tail end of the lead lap, in 18th place.
Martin Truex Jr. and Paul Menard, along with Aric Almirola also had good cars too. Truex got wrecked while running in the front, but DEI cars were always contenders to win, all day long.
Truex was probably at least as frustrated as was Regan Smith on Sunday. A blown tire on the car of Brian Vickers ended his day early, when clearly, Truex had a car that was capable of running up front.
DEI's day will come, and probably soon, if they can keep up the kind of performance they showed at Talladega.
DEI has definitely shown some muscle in at least their super speedway program this past week, after it was announced that Paul Menard was leaving the team after the 2008 season for Yates.
I was among those who thought DEI was headed for trouble, but I stand here, totally reprimanded. DEI is still a factor, and even though the have no drivers in the Chase for the Cup, they still can upset the apple cart by putting a driver in Victory Lane.
Races are still won by drivers who have the ability to become, how shall we say, 'creative'. What Regan Smith did certainly wasn't a sin, at least to me. My NASCAR's standards, I suppose it was. To me, it meant doing what ever it takes to win, and that's what Regan did. If the guy ahead of you blocks you low, go lower. On any other track on the circuit, except Daytona, of course, this move would have been totally legal.
DEI is not out of the game yet. They still have some cards to play.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
The Best Driver in NASCAR? It's Easy to Figure Out
Who is it? We'll wait until the end to show you. But I have to ask you, who else has won 38 races out of 249 starts, and also has 98 top five finishes and 152 top ten finishes?
Who also has 18 poles out of his 249 starts? Who also has never finished worse than 5th in the points standings since he started driving all the races in Cup?
This driver's ability to cultivate wins astounds me. He has a fantastic crew chief as well, about as nerdy as Mr. Spock on Star Trek, but the combination has produced fantastic results.
This driver also lacks, or so it would seem, in personality. He is one of those "I want to thank my sponsor" kind of guys in interviews. He never seems to have a hair out of place, and never says the wrong thing on camera. In other words, he's a sponsor's dream.
This driver overcomes adversity at all costs. He never sounds tired or overly frustrated on the radio during the longest of races. I know. I spent a lot of time listening to his radio during Sunday's Talladega race, and he had more reasons than I have the space to list here to be frustrated. His crew chief kept him in line very well.
Who am I talking about? Of course it's Jimmie Johnson. Since his first Cup race in 2001, he's managed to win 38 times and has 2 championships. He never gives up, as was evident on Sunday during the Talladega race. He salvaged a 9th place finish after losing a lap early. He is the current points leader in Cup, and appears to be on his way to a 3rd consecutive championship. What he lacks in on camera personality, he makes up for on the track.
Performance is what counts, and Jimmie Johnson has proven that he's one of the best.
Who also has 18 poles out of his 249 starts? Who also has never finished worse than 5th in the points standings since he started driving all the races in Cup?
This driver's ability to cultivate wins astounds me. He has a fantastic crew chief as well, about as nerdy as Mr. Spock on Star Trek, but the combination has produced fantastic results.
This driver also lacks, or so it would seem, in personality. He is one of those "I want to thank my sponsor" kind of guys in interviews. He never seems to have a hair out of place, and never says the wrong thing on camera. In other words, he's a sponsor's dream.
This driver overcomes adversity at all costs. He never sounds tired or overly frustrated on the radio during the longest of races. I know. I spent a lot of time listening to his radio during Sunday's Talladega race, and he had more reasons than I have the space to list here to be frustrated. His crew chief kept him in line very well.
Who am I talking about? Of course it's Jimmie Johnson. Since his first Cup race in 2001, he's managed to win 38 times and has 2 championships. He never gives up, as was evident on Sunday during the Talladega race. He salvaged a 9th place finish after losing a lap early. He is the current points leader in Cup, and appears to be on his way to a 3rd consecutive championship. What he lacks in on camera personality, he makes up for on the track.
Performance is what counts, and Jimmie Johnson has proven that he's one of the best.
Want to change NASCAR?
You can do it, as is a catch phrase in most Adam Sandler films. All you need to do is convince about 12 drivers not to show up. All you have to do is convince Jimmie Johnson, Carl Edwards, Greg Biffle, Jeff Burton, Clint Bowyer, Kevin Harvick, Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth, Dale Earnhardt Jr, Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin not to show up at Charlotte. That's all you need to do.
You think I'm crazy? Ok, so maybe I am. But think about it. If you get the 12 chasers to quit right now out of protest for NASCAR's rules, or because whales are still be slaughtered by certain countries, or because wolves are being hunted and shot down by helicopters, then you will get NASCAR to change it's rules.
There is a quote that comes from somewhere which basically says of drivers who buck NASCAR's rules: "You need NASCAR more than NASCAR needs you." That's certainly true for individual drivers. When many current drivers boycotted Talladega for it's inaugural race in 1969, NASCAR put out the news that there would be a full field there. There was, mostly. Drivers such as Richard Childress got their start there. A guy named Richard Brickhouse won the very first race at Talladega. Have you ever heard of him? Not many have.
Richard Brickhouse ran 39 races total in Cup. He only won one time. His winnings from the first Talladega race were $45,637.00 That was real money back in those days. Richard Childress finished 23rd and earned a whopping $1,175.00. That was big money to Richard in those days.
NASCAR owns this sport. NACAR makes the rules. NASCAR changes the rules. NASCAR owns the rights to do just about anything they want to as far as the sport goes. You could change that. NASCAR makes its money from the people who buy tickets, who watch on TV, who support the sport. If you can convince 12 drivers to stay at home, NASCAR might understand that they need to change things around.
If the top 12 drivers just didn't show up at a track, for just one race, what would NASCAR do? Sure, it would allow drivers who normally don't have a shot at Cup racing get in. But do the drivers themselves, whom I've mentioned above really need NASCAR?
Probably not as much as NASCAR needs them.
You think I'm crazy? Ok, so maybe I am. But think about it. If you get the 12 chasers to quit right now out of protest for NASCAR's rules, or because whales are still be slaughtered by certain countries, or because wolves are being hunted and shot down by helicopters, then you will get NASCAR to change it's rules.
There is a quote that comes from somewhere which basically says of drivers who buck NASCAR's rules: "You need NASCAR more than NASCAR needs you." That's certainly true for individual drivers. When many current drivers boycotted Talladega for it's inaugural race in 1969, NASCAR put out the news that there would be a full field there. There was, mostly. Drivers such as Richard Childress got their start there. A guy named Richard Brickhouse won the very first race at Talladega. Have you ever heard of him? Not many have.
Richard Brickhouse ran 39 races total in Cup. He only won one time. His winnings from the first Talladega race were $45,637.00 That was real money back in those days. Richard Childress finished 23rd and earned a whopping $1,175.00. That was big money to Richard in those days.
NASCAR owns this sport. NACAR makes the rules. NASCAR changes the rules. NASCAR owns the rights to do just about anything they want to as far as the sport goes. You could change that. NASCAR makes its money from the people who buy tickets, who watch on TV, who support the sport. If you can convince 12 drivers to stay at home, NASCAR might understand that they need to change things around.
If the top 12 drivers just didn't show up at a track, for just one race, what would NASCAR do? Sure, it would allow drivers who normally don't have a shot at Cup racing get in. But do the drivers themselves, whom I've mentioned above really need NASCAR?
Probably not as much as NASCAR needs them.
Monday, October 6, 2008
Tire Problems, Bad Decisions Mar Exciting Talladega Race
Photo by AP.
Tony Stewart was scored his first victory of the 2008 season on Sunday, after crossing the finish line in second place at the Amp Energy 500 at Talladega, Alabama. The picture above speaks for itself.
Regan Smith, driver of the 01 Dale Earnhardt Inc. Chevrolet passed Stewart just before crossing the finish line. There was one problem though. Part of that pass occurred while Smith was below the yellow line, which is considered a no-no by NASCAR. It would appear that Stewart, driver of the 20 Home Depot Chevrolet had actually forced Smith below the yellow line. NASCAR, in it's infinite wisdom, said it didn't matter. Tony Stewart went to Victory Lane and Regan Smith was penalized and finished a very disappointing 18th.
Yellow line passes on restrictor plate tracks have been controversial in the past, but none is likely to be as controversial as the one that occurred in Sunday's race. NASCAR seemingly changes the rules from incident to incident, and that makes for a lot of angry drivers, crew chiefs, owners, and especially fans. Right or wrong, Tony Stewart was awarded the trophy, and as always, what NASCAR says goes. Only NASCAR makes the rules in NASCAR, and if they want to change them, it's their option. I personally feel it makes the sport look bad, and gives it a certain WWE feel. If that's what NASCAR wants to do, neither you, nor I, not Regan Smith can change that. There will be no asterisk in the record book.
Goodyear tires once again led to some unnecessary danger in Sunday's race. Blown tires caused at least what could have been one very serious injury when Denny Hamlin blew a right front tire while leading the race, shooting him hard into the wall. Denny was taken to an ambulance on a stretcher and transported to a nearby hospital and kept overnight for observation. Brian Vickers, Mike Wallace were among others who experienced catastrophic tire failures as well. Talladega, even with restrictor plates produces speeds of up to and even exceeding 200 mph. This track is dangerous enough without Goodyear once again providing an inferior and unsafe product. Harsh words, you say? I think perhaps not harsh enough. Several of the drivers expressed their concerns about their safety after Sunday's race. Talladega is nerve racking enough for the drivers without having to wonder if the next blown tire could end their race. Permanently.
Another bad decision was made by Carl Edwards, driver of the 99 Office Depot Ford, who in attempting to push teammate Greg Biffle to the lead, caused a spectacular wreck, not only taking himself out, but also teammates Greg Biffle and Matt Kenseth. Dale Earnhardt Jr. was caught up in that crash, which ended his day as well. Edwards did take responsibility for his mistake, but that was small consolation to the drivers who's championship runs were effectively ended by one bone headed mistake. Aggressive is one thing, but stupid is another.
One true high point of the race, from this fan's perspective, was the 13th place finish by Kenny Wallace, who apparently drove a one race deal in the Michael Waltrip owned 00 Toyota. Kenny was penalized a lap early in the competition for speeding in excess of 100 mph on pit road, but was able to recover for a very good finish. Kenny, who is a well liked personality, showed yesterday that he's also a pretty good race car driver. I hope to see this open up the opportunity for Kenny Wallace to drive more Cup races in the near future.
Regan Smith, driver of the 01 Dale Earnhardt Inc. Chevrolet passed Stewart just before crossing the finish line. There was one problem though. Part of that pass occurred while Smith was below the yellow line, which is considered a no-no by NASCAR. It would appear that Stewart, driver of the 20 Home Depot Chevrolet had actually forced Smith below the yellow line. NASCAR, in it's infinite wisdom, said it didn't matter. Tony Stewart went to Victory Lane and Regan Smith was penalized and finished a very disappointing 18th.
Yellow line passes on restrictor plate tracks have been controversial in the past, but none is likely to be as controversial as the one that occurred in Sunday's race. NASCAR seemingly changes the rules from incident to incident, and that makes for a lot of angry drivers, crew chiefs, owners, and especially fans. Right or wrong, Tony Stewart was awarded the trophy, and as always, what NASCAR says goes. Only NASCAR makes the rules in NASCAR, and if they want to change them, it's their option. I personally feel it makes the sport look bad, and gives it a certain WWE feel. If that's what NASCAR wants to do, neither you, nor I, not Regan Smith can change that. There will be no asterisk in the record book.
Goodyear tires once again led to some unnecessary danger in Sunday's race. Blown tires caused at least what could have been one very serious injury when Denny Hamlin blew a right front tire while leading the race, shooting him hard into the wall. Denny was taken to an ambulance on a stretcher and transported to a nearby hospital and kept overnight for observation. Brian Vickers, Mike Wallace were among others who experienced catastrophic tire failures as well. Talladega, even with restrictor plates produces speeds of up to and even exceeding 200 mph. This track is dangerous enough without Goodyear once again providing an inferior and unsafe product. Harsh words, you say? I think perhaps not harsh enough. Several of the drivers expressed their concerns about their safety after Sunday's race. Talladega is nerve racking enough for the drivers without having to wonder if the next blown tire could end their race. Permanently.
Another bad decision was made by Carl Edwards, driver of the 99 Office Depot Ford, who in attempting to push teammate Greg Biffle to the lead, caused a spectacular wreck, not only taking himself out, but also teammates Greg Biffle and Matt Kenseth. Dale Earnhardt Jr. was caught up in that crash, which ended his day as well. Edwards did take responsibility for his mistake, but that was small consolation to the drivers who's championship runs were effectively ended by one bone headed mistake. Aggressive is one thing, but stupid is another.
One true high point of the race, from this fan's perspective, was the 13th place finish by Kenny Wallace, who apparently drove a one race deal in the Michael Waltrip owned 00 Toyota. Kenny was penalized a lap early in the competition for speeding in excess of 100 mph on pit road, but was able to recover for a very good finish. Kenny, who is a well liked personality, showed yesterday that he's also a pretty good race car driver. I hope to see this open up the opportunity for Kenny Wallace to drive more Cup races in the near future.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Why Paul Menard is a great addition to Yates Racing
It's very simple. Paul Menard brings to Yates what all NASCAR teams need, in order to survive. $. Yep that's it.
It doesn't matter that Menard has not won a race in the Sprint Cup series. He did win one in the Nationwide series, back when it was still called the Busch series. In the Cup series, he has exactly one top 10 finish, which came as a 7th place finish at Atlanta in 2006. That's out of a total of 68 races thus far in the Cup series.
I'm not saying that Paul Menard is not a good race car driver. I'm just saying that a driver without a built in sponsor, which is what Paul brings to the game, would not even be in the series at all. Paul's father, John Menard, is the owner of Menards, a major mid western home improvement chain. John Menard is the richest person in the state of Wisconsin, as of 2007, according to an online encyclopedia.
Having a rich father certainly helps a young race car driver succeed. Many people attribute Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s success to the fact that his father was a successful race car driver, and not that Dale Jr. could possibly have any talent of his own. That point of view is foolish at best, and ridiculous at worst, because drivers with no talent who win the Busch series championship 2 years in a row and 18 Cup races by the time they are 33 years old are rare indeed.
Paul Menard is not among the top tier of drivers in NASCAR, and never has been. However, as long as Menard's keeps doing business, and as long as his father believes in his son, Paul Menard will have a sponsor. Is this a trend that will become more prevelant in NASCAR in the future? It's difficult to say.
As long as money is the life blood of all NASCAR teams, any driver with a built in sponsor will be poplular. Race wins or championships will not make any difference, as long as the bucks keep pouring in. Yates Racing, now run by Doug Yates, has done what his organization needed to do to keep the doors open for next year. They hired a guy with a rich dad. Does this cheapen the sport in any way? I say yes, it does.
There are drivers out there that cannot get a job anymore. They have won races in the past. Steve Park comes to mind. Though he's had some terrible accidents, Steve is a proven Cup winner. He drove for DEI, basically as the company's first Cup driver. His dad doesn't own a multimillion dollar business though.
Once again, I have no beef with Paul Menard. If racing is what he wants to do, then so be it. I find it somewhat of a shame when Paul gets a ride with Yates Racing, and Steve Park is still on the outside, looking in.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
More Problems Ahead for DEI?
The rumors that have been circulating in the garage areas at tracks for the last couple of months are apparently true: Paul Menard, who drives the 15 Menard's Chevrolet, will leave Dale Earnhardt Inc. after the 2008 season and will drive, with Menard's sponsorship, for Yates Racing in 2009.
For Dale Earnhardt Inc, this presents more of a problem than the loss of a so-so driver. Though Paul has won in the Nationwide series, he has yet to post a win in the Sprint Cup series. The main problem for DEI is that Paul Menard came to the company with a built in sponsor. When Paul leaves DEI after the end of the season, the company run by his father John will leave as well.
Dale Earnhardt Inc.'s struggle to find sponsorship in 2009 and beyond is not unique among Sprint Cup teams. Yates Racing has not had a full time sponsor for either of its cars in 2008. If full time sponsorship cannot be found before the beginning of the 2009 season, it's likely that either Travis Kvapil or David Gilliland will be looking for a new ride next year. It is also apparent that DEI will likely be dropping at least one team next year unless sponsorship is found and signed quickly.
The 01 car currently driven by Regan Smith, the 8 car that will be driven by Aric Almirola, and the 15 car currently driven by Paul Menard will all need sponsorship that has either not been secured or at least not announced at this point. Only the 1 Chevrolet driven by Martin Truex Jr. appears to have secure full time sponsorship for 2009. Whether or not the 15 team folds completely would appear to be contingent upon whether a driver can be found for the team that will attract sponsors. DEI does not appear to have a popular driver waiting in the wings for that Cup ride at this point.
It has been reported that Richard Childress, owner of Richard Childress Racing, has taken a personal interest in helping the company started by his former championship driver and close friend started. When Dale Earnhardt died in 2001, many questioned whether DEI would survive. In fact, the company did survive, at least up to this point. With the loss of Dale Earnhardt Jr., last year, who left the team his father started after the 2007 season, many considered this event to be the beginning of the end for DEI. With the loss of a driver with a built-in sponsorship such as Paul Menard, it would appear that there are indeed tough times ahead for Dale Earnhardt Inc.
For Dale Earnhardt Inc, this presents more of a problem than the loss of a so-so driver. Though Paul has won in the Nationwide series, he has yet to post a win in the Sprint Cup series. The main problem for DEI is that Paul Menard came to the company with a built in sponsor. When Paul leaves DEI after the end of the season, the company run by his father John will leave as well.
Dale Earnhardt Inc.'s struggle to find sponsorship in 2009 and beyond is not unique among Sprint Cup teams. Yates Racing has not had a full time sponsor for either of its cars in 2008. If full time sponsorship cannot be found before the beginning of the 2009 season, it's likely that either Travis Kvapil or David Gilliland will be looking for a new ride next year. It is also apparent that DEI will likely be dropping at least one team next year unless sponsorship is found and signed quickly.
The 01 car currently driven by Regan Smith, the 8 car that will be driven by Aric Almirola, and the 15 car currently driven by Paul Menard will all need sponsorship that has either not been secured or at least not announced at this point. Only the 1 Chevrolet driven by Martin Truex Jr. appears to have secure full time sponsorship for 2009. Whether or not the 15 team folds completely would appear to be contingent upon whether a driver can be found for the team that will attract sponsors. DEI does not appear to have a popular driver waiting in the wings for that Cup ride at this point.
It has been reported that Richard Childress, owner of Richard Childress Racing, has taken a personal interest in helping the company started by his former championship driver and close friend started. When Dale Earnhardt died in 2001, many questioned whether DEI would survive. In fact, the company did survive, at least up to this point. With the loss of Dale Earnhardt Jr., last year, who left the team his father started after the 2007 season, many considered this event to be the beginning of the end for DEI. With the loss of a driver with a built-in sponsorship such as Paul Menard, it would appear that there are indeed tough times ahead for Dale Earnhardt Inc.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Danger: Message Boards May be Dangerous to your Health
I'm not kidding, folks. I had a near death experience on a certain NASCAR related message board recently. I will not name the message board, because legal details are involved, but I can say that recently, I was threatened with death by deletion on a message board.
I'm familiar with message boards. Heck, I even have one myself. We've got 4 members pumping out information with all their might. Recently, on a board dealing with not only politics, but religion, I was threatened with removal because I committed the greatest sin of all: I told the truth. I said to the board, and I quote here: "George W. Busch has not been the greatest president in history."
I backed up my facts there. I did my research before I made such an audacious post. I did my homework, in other words. I based my reasoning upon the fact that none of us, here in the USA, the land of the brave and the home of the free, have yet to acquire space cars. Yeah, I said it. Space cars.
I once watched a film, back when they had film, about the future. In the future, we would all have space cars. I'm in a midlife crises here. I want a Corvette, but should I wait for my space car instead?
I watch guys like Dale Earnhardt Jr, and he makes life fun by being a guy that makes me think that he lives like a rock star. I imagine being Dale Jr, because being him must be so much fun, right?
The fact is, if Dale Jr. wanted a space car, he'd probably already have one. That's just how cool that guy is. Everything he touches seems to turn to gold. He's got his own racing teams. He's got his own production company. He rocks, he rolls, he's like so totally cool.
I wish I had my space car, but I'm probably not going to get one anytime soon. The prices seems to be very high, the registration costs seem to be very not so nice either. I'd hate to think about the insurance on one of those things.
Getting back to my original topic, I have to report that I once had a message board contact offer to shoot me in the face. I was talking about Kyle Busch at the time. This kind board contact offered to shoot me in the face, free of charge. With the price of ammunition these days, that was indeed a kind offer. I declined, however, because I'm apparently too sissy to take on an armed racing fan. What a shame.
I find it refreshing to know that so many fans out there feel passionate enough about their drivers to kill someone. I'm also a bit disturbed by it. But that's just me.
Don't mind me. If I offend you, why don't you just shoot me in the face?
I'm familiar with message boards. Heck, I even have one myself. We've got 4 members pumping out information with all their might. Recently, on a board dealing with not only politics, but religion, I was threatened with removal because I committed the greatest sin of all: I told the truth. I said to the board, and I quote here: "George W. Busch has not been the greatest president in history."
I backed up my facts there. I did my research before I made such an audacious post. I did my homework, in other words. I based my reasoning upon the fact that none of us, here in the USA, the land of the brave and the home of the free, have yet to acquire space cars. Yeah, I said it. Space cars.
I once watched a film, back when they had film, about the future. In the future, we would all have space cars. I'm in a midlife crises here. I want a Corvette, but should I wait for my space car instead?
I watch guys like Dale Earnhardt Jr, and he makes life fun by being a guy that makes me think that he lives like a rock star. I imagine being Dale Jr, because being him must be so much fun, right?
The fact is, if Dale Jr. wanted a space car, he'd probably already have one. That's just how cool that guy is. Everything he touches seems to turn to gold. He's got his own racing teams. He's got his own production company. He rocks, he rolls, he's like so totally cool.
I wish I had my space car, but I'm probably not going to get one anytime soon. The prices seems to be very high, the registration costs seem to be very not so nice either. I'd hate to think about the insurance on one of those things.
Getting back to my original topic, I have to report that I once had a message board contact offer to shoot me in the face. I was talking about Kyle Busch at the time. This kind board contact offered to shoot me in the face, free of charge. With the price of ammunition these days, that was indeed a kind offer. I declined, however, because I'm apparently too sissy to take on an armed racing fan. What a shame.
I find it refreshing to know that so many fans out there feel passionate enough about their drivers to kill someone. I'm also a bit disturbed by it. But that's just me.
Don't mind me. If I offend you, why don't you just shoot me in the face?
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