March 19, 2005
- Sad News: Paul Jedic from Flag 2 Flag Racing Collectibles in Tuckerton, NJ passed away on Saturday, March 19th after a valiant battle against lung cancer.(3-19-2005)
- What’s the Record? #12-Ryan Newman won his 5th straight pole at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Friday…so what is the record? David Pearson won 11 straight poles, all while driving for the [#21] Wood Brothers from 1973 through 1978, at the track now known as Lowe’s Motor Speedway.(Gaston Gazette)(3-19-2005)
- Rusty goes yellow at Texas: Rusty Wallace will be back with the Kodak colors at Texas Motor Speedway in April. Last year, Wallace had the Kodak sponsorship on his #2 Dodge at Watkins Glen, marking the first time [since 1989 when Koidak was the sponsor during hios Championship season] he raced for another sponsor since being with the Miller Brewing Company.(RacingOne)(3-19-2005)
- Times have changed: Richard Petty never thought he’d see the day when he promoted Nicorette nicotine gum, a product designed to help people stop smoking. “Not after spending 33 years with Winston,” Petty said of the cigarette company that was NASCAR’s primary sponsor until last season. “Times have changed. Circumstances change.” Petty’s involvement with Nicorette is part of a program in which five NASCAR fans were selected to be a part of the Winner’s Circle quit-smoking campaign. The public can follow their progress over the next 12 weeks by logging onto www.quit.com. Those who are successful will get to spend a day and a half learning to drive a stock car at the Richard Petty Driving Experience.(The State)(3-19-2005)
- Motorcycle Racer Bubba Stewart on NASCAR: “I’ve gotten offers already to do that from a lot of sponsors, like Home Depot, Tony Stewart’s team and stuff like that. A few teams,” he said. “Right now I’m focusing on racing. All the NASCAR guys pretty much start from go-karts, I think. I’ve never heard of a NASCAR guy riding a motorcycle [Jimmie Johnson]. Right now I make a good living (between $3 million and $5 million a year) doing this. I just want to do it and have fun at it, and I’m going to take it seriously and stuff. I think if I went to NASCAR right now, I’d be the guy in the best shape. I wouldn’t need a water bottle. This is a physical thing; you can be a little bit overweight and still be good at NASCAR. You can be 30 years old and still be young in NASCAR.”(in part from the Lakeland Ledger)(3-19-2005)
- Fatback’s stance on the penalties: The crimes committed in Sin City [Las Vegas] drew stiff punishments and suspensions for [crew chiefs] #48-Chad Knaus, #5-Alan Gustafson and #29-Todd Berrier but not much sympathy from many competitors. The trio is challenging the penalties as excessive, but [#21 Crew Chief] Michael “Fatback” McSwain wasn’t interested in hearing explanations or claims of injustice. “Tough [expletive],” said McSwain, crew chief for Ricky Rudd. “That’s [baloney], man. That’s what’s wrong with America now. Every time somebody screws up, we tell them it’s all right. You don’t pay your bills, you can file bankruptcy. You kill somebody, spend 10 years in jail, and we’ll let you out. That’s what’s wrong with society now, man. If you do the crime do the time. If you had the guts to do it, have the guts to take your punishment.”(Richmond Times Dispatch)(3-19-2005)
- RCR Sues ESPN over the number ‘3’: The stylized No. 3 symbolizing the legacy of Dale Earnhardt has been reproduced on jackets, on stickers with an angel’s halo, on the walls of local restaurants, and on countless other products and memorials to the late racing legend. RCR Enterprises Inc., which owns the trademark rights to the stylized No. 3, says that one of those memorials went too far. RCR, of Welcome, is owned by Richard Childress. RCR filed a federal lawsuit this week against ESPN Inc., the all-sports cable-television network that recently produced a film about Earnhardt’s life. The film and its related products use a stylized No. 3 similar to the trademark owned by RCR, according to the lawsuit. RCR is owned by Richard Childress.
“(ESPN’s) use of a colorable imitation of the Stylized 3 Mark in connection with a motion picture, DVDs and books is a purposeful attempt to draw a connection between those products and RCR’s Stylized 3 Mark,” the lawsuit argues. “Defendant has used and is using a colorable imitation of the Stylized 3 Mark in commerce to advertise and promote itself and its products and services,” the lawsuit continues. “Defendant has offered and is offering, in commerce, products and services for commercial sale or for commercial profit under a colorable imitation of the Stylized 3 Mark.” Josh Krulewitz, a spokesman for ESPN at its headquarters in Bristol, Conn., said that the company did nothing illegal. “We did not make use of the plaintiff’s trademark, and our use of the No. 3 was entirely legal,” he said. In the lawsuit, RCR charges that ESPN is violating its trademark, is competing unfairly under federal law and is diluting the symbol used by Earnhardt when he was driving for RCR for 20 years. “The Stylized 3 Mark is distinctive and has become famous through extensive advertising, promotional expenditures, careful control and over 20 years of continuous use and commercial exposure,” the lawsuit says. “Defendant’s use of a colorable imitation of the Stylized 3 Mark has resulted in and will continue to result in a lessening of the capacity of the Stylized 3 Mark to identify and distinguish authorized products and services.”
RCR is asking the court to order ESPN to stop using any stylized No. 3 that could resemble its own trademark, and to recall and destroy any products that include such a symbol. Company officials are also asking for damages, attorneys’ fees and “three times all gains, profits and advantages derived by them from (ESPN’s) infringement, dilution, unfair competition or unfair trade practices.” They also want interest. The two symbols have some similarities and some differences. The No. 3 used by Earnhardt was a block number italicized to the left. The No. 3 used by ESPN in its marketing has rounder edges, and it leans to the right.(Winston Salem Journal)(3-19-2005)
- Daytona’s HOF Bid May be in Trouble: Political trouble has the city’s drive to bring the NASCAR hall of fame to Daytona Beach sputtering like a car with engine trouble. City Manager Jim Chisholm told city commissioners in an e-mail Thursday he would suspend the city’s campaign. And though he later backed off making that announcement, the city’s caution flags have state lawmakers rethinking their commitment to the project. The trouble started Wednesday when commissioners voted 6-1 to support building the hall of fame but wouldn’t discuss putting up $20,000 to help pay an estimated $200,000 cost to develop a proposal. Local lawmakers were seeking $75 million in state funding to build the hall of fame. They fear Wednesday’s commission action will make it even harder to sell the project to the Legislature.
With the Florida Marlins and Orlando Magic also looking for help with stadium projects, some lawmakers, including Senate President Tom Lee, R-Brandon, have said they are reluctant to spend tax dollars on sports projects. To make the NASCAR project more palatable, King, Patterson and Daytona Beach lobbyist Sam Bell said Thursday they have revamped — and scaled back — their proposal for state funding. Initially, Daytona officials requested that the state commit $75 million over 25 years to help pay for building the hall of fame. Money would come from state sales taxes generated by the hall of fame. A revamped proposal seeks $30 million over 25 years. Also, it calls for creating a NASCAR-themed license tag, with proceeds from the sale of the tag going to the state to pay back the $30 million. Bell, a former Volusia County lawmaker, said the hall of fame initially was expected to cost about $75 million, but that estimate has been reduced to about $60 million. He said the state money would make up half of that amount, with the rest coming from sources such as sponsorships and land donations by the city and county. NASCAR set a May 31 deadline for proposals from areas including Atlanta, Charlotte, N.C., Kansas City, Kan., Richmond, Va., Talladega, Ala., and the state of Michigan.(in part from the Daytona Beach News Journal)(3-19-2005) - Edwards wins at Atlanta, 1st Busch win, Buschwackers take top-five: #60-Carl Edwards won the Aaron’s 312 at Atlanta Motor Speedway for his first career Busch Series win. #33-Tony Stewart was 2nd, followed by #48-Jimmie Johnson, #17-Matt Kenseth and #38-Kasey Kahne. The first 9 spots were taken by Nextel Cup regulars, #10-Michael Jourdain Jr. was the first Busch Series only regular at 10th. {Edward’s is running both series full-time]. There were 20 lead changes among 7 drivers, 8 cautions for 39 laps. #48-Johnson led the most laps with 90.
Results at:
ESPN.com
BGNRacing.com
MotorsportsOne
NASCAR.com.(3-19-2005)
- NFL’s Warrick Dunn Grand Marshall at Atlanta: Atlanta Falcons running back Warrick Dunn, the 2004 Walter Payton Man of the Year, has been named the Grand Marshal for Saturday’s Aaron’s 312 Busch race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Warrick Dunn and two recipients from his Home for the Holidays program will give the command to the Aaron’s 312 drivers to start their engines. The Home for The Holidays program was established in 1997 and has helped 51 low-income, single mother families become first-time homeowners. In 2004, Dunn handed the keys to three single mothers for their new homes. Aaron’s has been a large part of the Warrick Dunn Foundation’s Homes for the Holidays program. Aaron’s stores in Atlanta, Baton Rouge, and Tampa provide all of the furniture for the program.(AMS)(3-19-2005)
- Cline Debut Postponed: LR2 Motorsports, fielding the #01 Chevrolets for Troy Cline in the NASCAR Busch Series this year, has decided to postpone the team’s debut until the Funai 250 at Richmond International Raceway on May 13. The team had originally been entered in next week’s event at Nashville. ”We just weren’t 100% ready to compete on the level we are capable of, so I withdrew LR2’s entry for the Pepsi 300 at Nashville on March 26,” said LR2 Motorsports co-owner Rick Russell. “We have the best equipment available, the best driver for the job, and backing most teams would kill for, but being a little rushed and not being able to test prior to the event brought about the decision.” LR2 Motorsports and driver Troy Cline are looking toward Richmond with both determination and optimism. Russell noted, “We will definitely test for that event, and go to Richmond at 100%. With the level of competition in the Busch Series each week, anything less than 100% isn’t enough.” Troy Cline and LR2 Motorsports are still actively seeking primary sponsorship. Interested parties may contact Russell at (704) 662-9570.(LR2 Motorsports)(3-19-2005)
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