Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Taming the Monster: A Look at Dover

At exactly 1 mile in length, Dover technically qualifies as a super speedway, but in reality, the Monster Mile personifies a short track racing experience in NASCAR.

Racing is intense at Dover. In many aspects, the racing there reminds me of Darlington, another super speedway with a short track personality.

The diversity among recent winners at Dover shows just how hard it can be for any driver to totally dominate at this track. Just in the last 10 years alone, the track has had 13 different winners, partly, of course, because NASCAR runs 2 races per year in the Cup series at Dover.

In the last 10 years, Mark Martin and Ryan Newman have won multiple times. So have Jimmie Johnson and Tony Stewart. Bobby Labonte has won at Dover. Matt Kenseth has won here. So have Greg Biffle, Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch, and Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Who's the odds on favorite to win at Dover this week? Personally, I have no clue, but I'm personally betting on momentum at this point. Mark Martin looks good to win just about anywhere these days, and Dover should be no exception.

Certainly, Jimmie Johnson and Tony Stewart have a good chance of winning at Dover as well. The same could be said for Jeff Gordon, Ryan Newman, Greg Biffle, or Carl Edwards.

Personally, I think it would be a treat to see someone win who has never won a Dover race, such as strong Chase contenders Kurt Busch or Denny Hamlin. A win by someone outside the top 12 would be good to see too, such as maybe Marcos Ambrose, Clint Bowyer, Casey Mears, Kevin Harvick, or dare I say it? A repeat win for Dale Earnhardt Jr? What would that do for the TV ratings?

Once again, NASCAR goes head to head with the NFL on Sunday. Last week at New Hampshire, NASCAR was the big loser in that battle. Personally, I doubt that NASCAR will fare much better again on Sunday, but a great race and a win by a popular driver couldn't hurt. I think that the racing will be great, and the winner, of course, will be they guy that survives the Monster with all the fenders intact.

The Chase was designed to give NASCAR a boost as the season winds down, to erase any huge point leads, and to put the top 12 drivers on a more or less level playing field for the last 10 races of the season. NASCAR, however, appears to be in a lose-lose situation when they go up against the mighty NFL for TV ratings, and unless something drastic happens in the NASCAR world in the remaining 9 races for 2009, that situation will likely not change.

For more in depth information regarding the NASCAR vs. NFL battle, check out the undisputed guru of NASCAR TV coverage, John Daly, at his site. There are tons of great comments there!

Monday, September 21, 2009

Chase Teams Hobbled Going Into Battle

It was interesting to watch Kasey Kahne handling the media this past weekend at New Hampshire. Rather than fielding the usual questions about his chances at winning a championship, Kasey was instead asked about what's happening at Richard Petty Motorsports.

Kahne's answers were diplomatic, but revealing.

Basically, Kasey Kahne doesn't know who's running what at RPM. He assumes Robbie Loomis will be in charge of racing operations, but right now he's just not sure. Apparently no one else at RPM knows exactly what's going on either, or if they do, they're not saying.

Kasey Kahne had an early exit from Sunday's race, suffering a blown engine.

It was revealed also that Pat Tryson, crew chief for the 2 Dodge of Kurt Busch, is only allowed in the Penske shop one day a week for racing debriefs. Tryson has announced that he will be leaving Penske Racing and joining Michael Waltrip Racing in 2010.

Tryson's race day duties apparently remain unchanged for now, but one has to wonder how effective he can be as a crew chief when he has virtually no input on setting up the race cars that he's in charge of tuning at the track.

In other news, NASCAR is apparently considering tweaking its testing ban somewhat. It has been reported today that NASCAR is leaning toward allowing testing sessions at Greenville-Pickens Speedway near Greenville, SC. The reasoning behind such a move is that GPS is not far from the Charlotte area, where virtually all the NASCAR teams are based, so costs involved with testing at Greenville-Pickens would be minimal.

Greenville-Pickens Speedway has often been used for testing by NASCAR teams in the past, especially in preparation for racing at Martinsville.

Thursday, September 17, 2009

Kelly Bires: Will Another Young Driver Realize His Dreams?

Kelly Bires is a 25 year old race car driver from Mauston, Wisconsin. Kelly started racing Karts at age 9, and ended up winning 2 national championships while still in his teens. Bires started his first ARCA series race in May, 2004.

Since that time, Kelly has run in the Camping World Truck Series in 2006 and 2007, scoring a top 10 finish in '07. He's run a total of 66 Nationwide Series races since 2007, showing an impressive tally of 3 top 5's and 11 top 10's during that time. Most of Kelly's Nationwide races have been run in the 47 car of JTG-Daugherty, or the team's previous incarnation, owner Tad Geschickter.

Kelly Bires has also run some races for Todd Braun, MSRP Motorsports, Kevin Harvick, and most recently at Atlanta, Brian Mullet.

In other words, Kelly Bires is not exactly an unknown. Kelly Bires has a bona fide racing pedigree.

Regardless of Kelly's past successes, the news out of Mooresville this past week must have indeed been some of the most exciting news he's ever received in his young career: A 2 year deal with JR Motorsports, with owner Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Earnhardt Jr., himself a young driver not so many years ago, has a history of aiding and benefiting young, promising drivers. I suppose it really started years ago with a deal worked out between Junior and his step-mom Teresa Earnhardt, when they formed the short lived Chance 2 Motorsports, giving a young driver named Martin Truex Jr. a leg up in the sport. Martin went on to win Nationwide championships, and currently is a winning driver in the Cup series. Truex will be driving Toyotas for Michael Waltrip Racing in 2010.

Dale Jr. went on to form his own company, JR Motorsports, which a few years ago took a relatively little known driver named Brad Keselowski, and put him in a car with sponsorship, good equipment, and a great crew chief, namely Jr.'s original crew chief, cousin Tony Eury Sr. Brad went on to win in the Nationwide series, and even won his first Cup race at Talladega this year, though only running a part time schedule. Though Brad Keselowski wasn't driving for Dale Jr. at Talladega, one has to think that the skills he polished while driving the 88 JRM car led ultimately to his first win in the big show.

Next year, Brad Keselowski will be leaving JRM and driving for Roger Penske full time in the Cup series, as well as at least a partial schedule in the Nationwide series. Brad has become yet the latest graduate of the Dale Jr. development school for promising young drivers.

JR Motorsports, backed by Hendrick equipment and engineering, is a great place for an aspiring Cup driver to find himself early in his career. For Kelly Bires, this is a chance of a lifetime.

Virtually all successful Cup drivers find ways to give back to the sport which has been so good to them. Most have their own charities, all worthy causes. Many have foundations which help feed children, take care of injured pets and other animals, and provide for victims of disasters. All are very worthy and noble causes.

Other drivers, such as Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kevin Harvick, participate in all the other charities and events, but they take it one step farther, by helping young drivers get into the sport they love. For Kevin and Dale Jr., their race teams are indeed business ventures, and one day both drivers will probably slip on the reigns of ownership in its entirety when they finally hang up their helmets for the last time.

Finding and cultivating young drivers who might not ordinarily have the path opened to them is a great service not only to the young drivers involved, but to the sport itself. Kelly Bires will certainly try to make the most of this opportunity, and given his level of talent, is almost assured of much success during his tenure at JR Motorsports.

Kelly Bires, your ship has come in. All aboard!

The Chase for the Cup is Set

After watching all the races leading up to the 2009 Sprint Cup Chase for the Cup, there are relatively few surprises as to who is in the Chase and maybe one surprise as to at least one driver who is not.

Kyle Busch, even with 4 wins, failed to make the field for the 2009 Sprint Cup Chase. Is this just more proof that the Chase idea is a bad one?

Should a driver with 4 wins automatically be in the chase, despite the DNF's and poor finishes that brought him up just a few points short of making the show?

Many people think so.

NASCAR's points system has almost always rewarded consistency over pure victories. Victories are the fastest ways to gain points, but finishing in the top 5 or top 10 every week provides a driver with more comfort when it comes down to crunch time. Theoretically, I suppose, it's entirely possible for a driver to win the Sprint Cup without a single victory, or even having led a lap. It's unlikely, but it's possible.

I'll leave the argument over whether this makes for good racing to the experts, but the system is what we've got right now.

By experts, I mean, of course, You, the fans.

Thursday, September 10, 2009

NASCAR Fans and Manufacturer Loyalty

The big news of the day is, of course, the announcement that Richard Petty Motorsports has signed a letter of intent to merge with Yates Racing before the 2010 season. This means that RPM will be switching to Ford, which seems to have a few fans upset.

Switching brands is nothing new in NASCAR of course. It's especially not new for Richard Petty.

Though Petty is probably best known for his relationship with Chrysler Corporation, namely his days driving Plymouths and Dodges, Petty Enterprises also drove Chevrolets and yes, even Fords at one time or another.

Many NASCAR teams have, over the years, switched manufacturers when circumstances have proven beneficial to do so. Some have never done so, however.

Jack Roush has always been a Ford man. He worked for Ford for many years, and his loyalties have always been to Dearborn. Jack Roush fielding a brand other than Ford is unimaginable. Richard Childress and Rick Hendrick have always been just as loyal to Chevrolet. The former Dale Earnhardt Inc, which is now known as Earnhardt Ganassi Racing will likely not field anything but Chevrolets, at least as long as Teresa Earnhardt has a stake in the company.

It should be remembered, however, that even the Great One himself, Dale Earnhardt, drove Fords for Bud Moore early in his career. He didn't much like them, but he won some races in them.

In reading through the great multitude of comments on Twitter today, I was not surprised to see much dismay, and even disbelief that RPM would become a Ford team. One Kasey Kahne fan even said she could no longer support her driver if he became a Ford man. On the face of it, that seems a little harsh, but if nothing else, NASCAR fans are loyal. At least loyal to something.

Many fans are loyal to their drivers, and could care less if their driver was driving a Ford, a Dodge, a Toyota, a Chevrolet, or a Kia or even a John Deere lawn mower.

Other fans will change drivers in a heart beat if their guy goes to drive for a hated auto company. As loyal to the point of sickening as some accuse Dale Jr. fans of being, some in the Junior Nation would drop Little E like a hot potato if he ever drove for Ford, or Dodge, or Toyota. Some of them already did when he went to drive for Rick Hendrick.

Many of us have our favorite manufacturers when it comes to NASCAR, and quite a few of us carry over that loyalty to our personal preference in vehicles. Some of us wish we could drive the Ford, Dodge, Chevrolet, or Toyota that our favorite driver climbs into every Sunday, but not all of us can do that. If money were no object, I'd probably have a 2009 Chevrolet Impala, as sporty as I could get it. Because of economics and practicality, I drive a Toyota Tacoma, though I'm not really a fan of any of the current Toyota drivers in Cup.

As far as the RPM-Yates merger, I believe it will be a win-win situation for both. Dodge's uncertainties and lack of support have left the Dodge teams hanging to a certain extent this year. Ford seems to be the healthiest of the Big Three at the moment, and Roush-Yates engines seem to be some of the most durable in the sport right now. Ford will certainly benefit by being able to associate the Petty name with its racing program. Petty will have a stronger support group than he has had in years, and Yates basically gets to live to fight another day.

Downsides to the deal? A few, certainly. Reed Sorenson is out of a job, but apparently he already knew that. It was originally thought that the Roush-Fenway 26 team, with Jamie McMurray as driver, would be handed off to Yates racing, but it now appears that the team will just go away. It appears that Jamie is out of a job as well right now. Hall Of Fame Racing, which fields the 96 Ford has been run out the Yates shop in 2009, though they have already hinted that they would not do so next year. That seems to be a given now, so one wonders what will happen to the 96 as well for 2010. Bobby Labonte will likely again be looking for a ride again for 2010. It will all depend on sponsorship. I'll ask Ask.com if they'll still sponsor the 96 next year. I'll let you know if they tell me anything useful.

It appears that the 4 RPM-Yates teams will be Kasey Kahne, Elliot Sadler, A.J. Allmendinger, and Paul Menard. Paul Menard, you ask? Why of course. Paul's the man with a built in sponsor, which is gold for any NASCAR owner. Paul's primary sponsor, Menards, will never leave him for poor performance. They can't. Daddy owns the company.

Oh, I'm not saying that Paul Menard is a bad driver. Billionaire daddy or not, Paul has won a Nationwide race, and has 2 top 10's and 1 top 5 in his 100 Cup starts.

What's your biggest loyalty as a NASCAR fan? Is it to your driver, or a particular sponsor, or a particular owner? Could it be to a particular auto manufacturer? There's no right, there's no wrong.

It's all good.

Sunday, September 6, 2009

Danica Patrick to NASCAR?

Supposedly it will happen, but nobody knows exactly when or for who Danica will be driving in NASCAR.

First of all, I want to say that there is no reason why Danica shouldn't have a great career in NASCAR. She's obviously a talented driver, and she can learn how to drive cars fast with fenders on the car.

But I will say that I don't expect Danica to win 9 championships in a row in NASCAR, because that seems to be what a lot of the "Taxi cab" snobs think will happen. You know who I'm talking about. There are elite open wheel fans who sneer down their noses at anything NASCAR, and refer to our sport as "Boys driving taxi cabs in circles.", since the sentiment is that it takes no real talent to drive in NASCAR.

Ask Juan Pablo Montoya how hard it is. Ask Scott Speed. Ask anyone named Fittipaldi or Papis. Ask former open wheel star Tony Stewart how hard it is to win in NASCAR.

Tony is probably the only former open wheel guy to make it really big in NASCAR's ranks.

Can Danica do it in NASCAR? Of course she can. She probably will too, but don't expect spectacular results too soon. Driving in circles with fenders on one's car can take time to procure as a talent.

Good for Danica. Come racing where it's as real as it ever gets.

Thursday, September 3, 2009

Bobby Labonte Will Be at Atlanta, and The Dangers of Frisbee

Bobby Labonte, who lost his 96 Ask.com Ford ride for 7 races to make way for Erik Darnell and his new sponsorship package with Northern Tool and Equipment and Academy Sports and Outdoors, will be attempting to qualify the 71 Chevy owned by TRG Motorsports and sponsored by TaxSlayer for Sunday's Atlanta race.

Ordinarily, Bobby Labonte would be able to make use of a Past Champion's Provisional to ensure that he makes the field, but since his name was not on the entry list for the 71 car before the deadline, Labonte will have to qualify on time in order to make the race. David Gilliland has made 22 starts in the 71 car so far this year.

In other news, Carl Edwards has apparently broken his right foot playing Frisbee.

Some of us probably thought that driving race cars at 200 miles per hour and doing back flips was dangerous, but now we know the true menace that faces NASCAR drivers.

Frisbee.

(Get well soon, Carl. I kid because I care.)