March 20, 2012
- Hendrick Motorsports to make final appeal on Tuesday UPDATE penalties reduced: Hendrick Motorsports will make its final appeal Tuesday over penalties issued for what NASCAR says were illegal C-posts on the car of five-time Cup champion #48-Jimmie Johnson at Daytona. A three-member appeals board already has rejected one appeal by team owner Rick Hendrick, who now takes his case to NASCAR’s chief appellate officer, John Middlebrook, for a hearing Tuesday. Hendrick officials and NASCAR officials will meet with Middlebrook at the same team – a different format than the first appeal hearing, when both sides presented their cases separately.(SceneDaily)
UPDATE: NATIONAL STOCK CAR RACING CHIEF APPELLATE OFFICER STATEMENT:
On March 20, 2012, the Chief Appellate Officer heard and considered the appeal of the penalties resulting from the #48 Hendrick Motorsports NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team. This stemmed from an opening day inspection for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Daytona International Speedway on February 17, 2012.
The penalties concern Section 12-1 of the NASCAR Rule Book “Actions detrimental to stock car racing;” Section 12-4(J): “Any determination by NASCAR Officials that the Race Equipment used in the Event does not conform to NASCAR rules detailed in Section 20 of the NASCAR Rule Book, or has not been approved by NASCAR prior to the Event;” and Section 20-2.1(E): “If in the judgment of NASCAR Officials, any part or component of the car not previously approved by NASCAR that has been installed or modified to enhance aerodynamic performance, will not be permitted: Unapproved car body modifications.”
The results of the appeal hearing were as follows:
– Rescinding the loss of 25 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship Car Owner points (for Jeff Gordon).
– Rescinding the loss of 25 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship Driver points (for Jimmie Johnson).
– Rescinding the six (6) NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship Events suspension for the Crew Chief (Chad Knaus) and Car Chief (Ron Malec), however both will remain on NASCAR probation until May 9, 2012.
– $100,000 fine remains in place for the Crew Chief (Chad Knaus).
John Middlebrook – Chief Appellate Officer.(NASCAR)(3-20-2012) - Bruton Smith considering changes to Bristol Motor Speedway links to input and email to comment
- Gilliland to run different colors at Auto Club: This week David Gilliland returns to his hometown track in the #38 1-800LoanMart Ford at Auto Club Speedway, running the green-and-black colors of the Encino, Calif.-based lender and new Front Row Motorsports partner. “With the #38 car allowing our company to give back to local race fans of Southern California, it is a pleasure to endorse a native Californian, David Gilliland, to race with us,” said Colby Estes, Director of Marketing for 1-800LoanMart. “With the launch of the new sponsorship, 1-800LoanMart has an opportunity to help thousands of sport fans with their financial needs. The time is right to provide a financial solution that makes us more responsible in future lending. The new sponsorship with Front Row Motorsports will go a long way towards strengthening the company’s values and ultimately providing a foundation for a better economy.”(FRM) see an image of the scheme on the #38 Team Schemes page.(3-20-2012)
- Ragan visits hospital: Sprint Cup driver #34-David Ragan stopped by the Shriners Children’s Hospital in Greenville, SC on Monday to speak with some of the patients and their families. Ragan has been a supporter of the hospital for several years. He named the hospital as his charity of choice in 2008. He has helped raise $150,000 for the facility through his personal donations and help from other charity campaigns. “There’s so many things going through their heads as a young guy or girl, having a surgery or being at the hospital,” Ragan said. “So, sometimes it’s good to get their mind off of reality.”(FOX Carolina)(3-20-2012)
- Penske Racing extends partnership with Auto Club: Penske Racing and the Automobile Club of Southern California, the nation’s largest member of the AAA federation of motor clubs, announced that the organizations will extend their current partnership through the 2016 racing season. The multi-year extension of this sponsorship agreement means the Automobile Club of Southern California and its affiliated clubs will continue to sponsor Penske Racing teams competing in both the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and the IZOD IndyCar Series. The Auto Club will sponsor the #22 Dodge Charger driven by AJ Allmendinger in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series this season. The sponsorship includes AAA serving as the primary sponsor for the #22 car at the March 25 Auto Club 400 held at Auto Club Speedway as well as the April 22 race in Kansas. AAA will also be a co-primary sponsor for Allmendinger and the #22 Dodge May 6 at the Talladega Cup Series race and July 15 at the race at New Hampshire. In addition, the Auto Club will continue as a major associate sponsor on the #22 machine for the balance of the season. The Automobile Club of Southern California is the largest member of the AAA federation of motor clubs. For more information visit www.AAA.com (Penske Racing), see images of scheme on the #22 Team Schemes page.(3-20-2012)
- Ford EcoBoost to sponsor Kenseth: #17-Matt Kenseth, will sport the primary colors promoting Ford EcoBoost at Auto Club Speedway this upcoming weekend. This is the first time that the #17 entry for Roush Fenway Racing will carry the Ford EcoBoost paint scheme and comes at a track where Kenseth has achieved success at in the past; including three Sprint Cup victories. Ford EcoBoost earned its first NASCAR [Nationwide] victory as a primary sponsor at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with Roush Fenway Racing’s Ricky Stenhouse Jr. in the #6 Ford [Stenhouse also ran the EcoBoost scheme in the Daytona 500 on the #6 Ford]. Ford EcoBoost technology uses turbo-charging and direct gasoline injection to boost engine output, thus reducing emissions and improving fuel efficiency by as much as 20%. Ford will offer fuel-efficient EcoBoost engines in 11 vehicles in 2012, up from seven in 2011, tripling the production capacity of EcoBoost-equipped Ford vehicles. Expanded availability in high-volume nameplates helps make fuel economy more affordable for hundreds of thousands of drivers.(Roush Fenway Racing)(3-20-2012)
- Top-35 in owners points for the 2012 season is starting to shape up. After the fifth race of the 2012 season, at Auto Club Speedway, NASCAR will use the current owners points standings to set the top 35 in owners points. Teams in the top 35 owners are guananteed a starting spot in the race. After the 4th race, at Bristol, here are the standings after Bristol with one race to go:
Rank) Car#-Driver/Team, owners pts, +/-
26) #22-Allmendinger/Penske, 72, +22
27) #51-Kurt Busch/Phoenix Racing, 70, +20
28) #32-Schrader/FAS Lane Racing, 70, +20
29) #34-Ragan/Front Row, 66, +16
30) #33-Guaghan/Childress, 66, +16
31) #38-Gilliland/Front Row, 66, +16
32) #93-Kvapil/BK Racing, 65, +15,
33) #13-Mears/Germain, 60, +10
34) #5-Kahne/Hendrick, 57, +7
35) #83-Cassill/BK Racing, 54, +4
these teams are currently outside the top 35 in owners points:
36) #10-Reutimann-Patrick/Baldwin, 50
38) #30-Stremme/Inception, 44
39) #26-Wise/Front Row, 36,
40) #98-McDowell/Parsons, 34
41) #49-Yeley/Robinson, 33,
42) #87-Nemechek/NEMCO, 27
After the race at Auto Club Speedway, the 5th race of the season, teams are NOT locked in past the next race as the owners points change after each race.
For the owner points standings, see my Owners Points Standings page (pdf).(3-20-2012) - Edwards to train with SWAT team: #99-Carl Edwards, known for his strength and conditioning, will receive a different kind of workout with the Fort Worth SWAT (Special Weapons and Tactics) team on Wednesday, March 21st. Edwards will be put to the test in a 45-minute training session where he will undergo the same training methods of the Fort Worth SWAT team, which include riding in a Bearcat tactics vehicle; rappelling down an eight-story building; situation exercises in a shooting simulator; live range shooting with a variety of firearms including a sniper rifle; and participating with the team in a “live” tactical scenario. Following the session, Edwards is scheduled to meet with the media to discuss his experience, along with his season and return trip to Texas Motor Speedway for the April 14th Samsung Mobile 500.(TMS)(3-20-2012)
- Facts & Notes Auto Club Speedway:
• Groundbreaking for California Speedway, as Auto Club Speedway was originally known, took place in November 1995.
• The first race at Auto Club Speedway was a NASCAR K&N; Pro Series, West race won by Ken Schrader on June 21, 1997.
• The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was held on June 22, 1997 and won by Jeff Gordon.
• September 2004 was the first night race at Auto Club Speedway and that also was the first year both the NASCAR Sprint Cup and NASCAR Nationwide Series ran two races in a season there.
• The track name was changed to Auto Club Speedway in February 2008.
• There have been 22 NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Auto Club Speedway since the track opened in 1997.
• Four drivers have competed in all 22 races: Jeff Burton, Jeff Gordon, Bobby Labonte and Joe Nemechek.
• Joe Nemechek won the pole for the inaugural race in 1997.
• There have been 15 different pole winners, led by Kurt Busch (three). Jamie McMurray and Jeff Gordon each have two poles.
• Fifteen different drivers have posted victories. Jimmie Johnson leads all drivers with five wins. Jeff Gordon and Matt Kenseth each have won three races.
• Hendrick Motorsports has won nine races, more than any other team.
• Eleven of the 22 races were won from starting positions outside the top 10; only one has been won from the pole (Jimmie Johnson in 2008). The most prolific two starting positions are third and 24th, with three victories each.
• Matt Kenseth won the 2006 spring race from the 31st starting position, the deepest in the field that a race winner has started.
• Three active drivers have averaged a top-10 finish: Jimmie Johnson (5.1), Carl Edwards (9.0) and Matt Kenseth (9.9).
• Jimmie Johnson (9.0) is the only active driver to have an average starting position in the top 10 at Auto Club Speedway.
• Kyle Busch won his first NASCAR Sprint Cup pole (2/05) and first race (9/05) at Auto Club Speedway.
• Jimmie Johnson won his first NASCAR Sprint Cup race at ASC on April 28, 2002.(NASCAR)(3-20-2012) - Bruton Smith considering changes to Bristol Motor Speedway: Bristol Motor Speedway owner Bruton Smith is considering about $1 million worth of changes to return his Tennessee track to the way it was before a 2007 reconfiguration. “We are going to take a very hard look at it this week,” Smith told The Associated Press on Monday. “We have everything in our computers that shows us what the track used to be and what it is now, and we started working on that last night. I’ll have an answer for you next week on if we’ll alter the track.” But Smith insisted it was the rain, not fan apathy over the current style of racing at Bristol, that contributed to Sunday’s poor crowd. “We certainly thought it was going to be better, but the rain got us,” Smith said. Bristol once was one of the toughest tickets in all of professional sports, but attendance has waned the past several years and its spring race has particularly suffered. The speedway says it seats 160,000, and although the grandstands appeared half empty Sunday, NASCAR’s listed attendance was 102,000. Smith said 8,120 sold tickets went unused. But he remained adamant the attendance decline has nothing to do with the new racing at Bristol. At the same time, though, Smith said he began talking to his Speedway Motorsports Inc. officials on Sunday evening about changes to the track. Smith said SMI will study fan commentsthis week. “I want to be sure that the fans like what they see,” he said. “If the fans like three abreast through the turns, we do nothing. If they don’t, then we’ll alter the track. The fans vote is the most important thing.” If changes are made, they’ll be done in time for NASCAR’s Aug. 25 return to Bristol.(more at the Associated Press / Bristol Herald Courier ans SHARE your input HERE)(3-20-2012)
- Judge dismisses CMS’s lawsuit: After more than four years of wrangling and deal-making, a Superior Court judge has dismissed a lawsuit against Cabarrus County by Bruton Smith, owner of Charlotte Motor Speedway. Superior Court Judge Robert Ervin dismissed the lawsuit over development incentives Smith says he is owed. Speedway representatives have 30 days to file an appeal and say they are considering whether to do so. The dismissal March 9 comes more than five years after speedway owner Bruton Smith threatened to move Charlotte Motor Speedway out of the area. That threat came after Concord’s City Council declined to approve Smith’s plans for a drag strip across U.S. 29 from the main track, citing neighbors’ concerns about noise. Smith’s threat prompted city, county, tourism and other leaders to try many ways of courting Smith to keep him from moving the speedway. City and county leaders went on to forge an $80 million incentives package and offer it to Smith in late 2007. As part of that deal, Smith would build the $60 million drag strip and make $200 million worth of improvements around the track. Part of the disagreement centers on how much of the $80 million the city agreed to provide out of its own budget. Smith filed the suit in Cabarrus County Superior Court in September 2009, seeking $4 million in compensation from the city and county for roadwork and other improvements around the speedway and zMax Dragway. The suit was dropped in hopes that the parties might come to an out-of-court agreement, but it was re-filed May 27, 2011. Jared Gardner, an attorney with James, McElroy & Diehl in Charlotte, which is representing Smith, said appealing the dismissal is among the options attorneys, Smith and the speedway are considering.(more at Charlotte Observer)(3-20-2012)
- Veterans get free tickets for Vietnam homecoming at Charlotte Motor Speedway: Only about 4,000 free tickets remain for the Vietnam Veterans Homecoming Celebration at Charlotte Motor Speedway on March 31. “We’ll always have tickets for the veterans,” said Ginny McCabe, a spokeswoman for the USO-NC. Entertainment will include the Charlie Daniels Band and George Clinton. The celebration will honor the more than 216,000 North Carolina residents who served in Vietnam. About 1,600 died in the war. The USO of North Carolina and Charlotte Motor Speedway are sponsoring it. Veterans service organizations will be available at the speedway to assist veterans, who should bring their discharge paperwork. The ticket limit is two per person. Even after the allotment has been filled, veterans can reserve tickets by calling 800-455-FANS (3267) and showing their DD214 card or other military ID when picking up the tickets at the will-call window on the day of the celebration.(Fayetteville Observer)(3-20-2012)
- Sweet makes 2012 debut at “home” track Grass Valley, Calif.-native, Brad Sweet, will make his debut in the #38 Great Clips Chevrolet this weekend at Auto Club Speedway. Sweet has just one NASCAR Nationwide Series start under his belt. In 2010 at Gateway International Raceway, he started ninth and ran in the top-10 before being collected in a mid-race accident. Sweet will share driving duties of the #38 with Kasey Kahne this season with Kahne scheduled to compete in 15 races and Sweet competing in the balance of the 33-race schedule.(Turner Motorsports PR)(3-20-2012)
- Double-duty weekend for Gaughan: Brendan Gaughan, driving the #33 South Point Hotel & Casino Chevrolet Impala, will make his second Nationwide Series start under the RCR banner this weekend at Auto Club Speedway. The Las Vegas native will make his 73rd career start in the Nationwide Series when the green flag waves for Saturday’s Royal Purple 300. He’s earned seven top-five and 18 top-10 finishes in a span of four seasons in the Nationwide Series, as well as a pole award in March 2009 at Bristol Motor Speedway. Aside from his Nationwide Series responsibilities, Gaughan will also pilot the #33 South Point Casino & Hotel Chevrolet Sprint Cup Series entry for the Welcome, N.C. based organization for the fourth time this season.(Richard Childress Racing PR)(3-20-2012)
- Bristol TV Ratings: ESPN’s live telecast of the NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday, March 17, earned a 1.7 household coverage rating, averaging 2,390,017 viewers, according to the Nielsen Company. Last year’s race, which also aired on ESPN, earned the same rating but had 3 percent fewer viewers. So far this season across ABC, ESPN and ESPN2, ratings for the Nationwide Series are up 5 percent from this point last year.(ESPN)(3-20-2012)
- Sadler has new sponsor for California: Elliott Sadler returns to the site of his last NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory, where he earned a win in 2004 at the Fontana, Calif., based track.Sadler has competed at the two-mile track seven times in the Nationwide Series, notching two top-five and three top-10 finishes. He has led 40 laps and has a 99 percent lap-completion record. Last season at Auto Club Speedway, Sadler climbed from a 34th-place starting position in the Nationwide Series event into the top 10 early in the race and drove to a top-five finish. The #2 Chevrolet will sport the red, yellow and white colors of Pierre Drive Thru Sandwiches this weekend at Auto Club Speedway. This weekend, Pierre Drive Thru Sandwiches will donate $10,000 to support the Hermie and Elliott Sadler Foundation’s effort to educate people about the spectrum disease which affects one in every 110 children in the United States. The #2 Pierre Drive Thru Sandwiches will also carry a special puzzle piece decal, the symbol of Austism Awareness, at Auto Club Speedway to show support of the cause.(Richard Childress Racing PR)(3-20-2012)
- Truck series drivers visit VA Museum of Natural History: John King has known since he was a toddler that Martinsville was the home of a world-famous race track. Until Tuesday the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver didn’t know the town also held a world-class museum. King, the rookie who won the season-opening truck race in Daytona, along with defending Kroger 250 champion Johnny Sauter and former Kroger 250 winner Timothy Peters spent a couple of hours Tuesday touring the Virginia Museum of Natural History in Martinsville. King, Peters and Sauter were in town to promote the March 31Kroger 250 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Martinsville Speedway. One of the highlights of the day was the “Rocks to Racing” exhibit which traces the history of racing in the Commonwealth from the formation of limestone to today. The exhibit opens to the public Saturday March 24 and is a perfect attraction for race fans. [For more info on the exhibit, visit VMNH.net.] King, Peters and Sauter will be gunning for a win in the Kroger 250 on Saturday, March 31, the day before the Goody’s Fast Relief 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway.(Martinsville Speedway PR)(3-20-2012)
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