March 26, 2009
- TBR Hires for Head Engineer, Team Manager for #36 Team: Tommy Baldwin Racing announced that two NASCAR veterans will take leadership positions with the team. Walter Giles, formerly a race engineer for Dale Earnhardt, Inc. (DEI), will serve as TBR’s head engineer. Jennifer Morrell, formally the team manager for TBR/Evernham Motorsports will serve as team manager. Giles, who has a mechanical engineering degree from Western Sydney Institute in Sydney, Australia, brings to TBR over 32 years of engineering knowledge and driving experience to the team. The native of Australia moved to the U.S. over a decade ago after winning more than 200 races and seven championships in various racing series as a driver. Giles began his NASCAR career working for Richard Jackson Motorsports in 1997. He made several stops before landing at DEI in 2005. He was first hired as the race engineer for DEI’s No. 1 car driven by Martin Truex Jr. In 2007, he was promoted to head of race engineering. Over the last year, Giles has been the crew chief for Robby Gordon, Marcus Ambrose and Johnny Sauter.
Morrell, who has a Bachelor of Science in Sport Management, joins TBR with over nine years of management experience. She worked as a team manager for Baldwin’s team from 2003-2005 before it was sold to Evernham Motorsports. Most recently, she worked for Hay Distribution as a business manager.
Riggs and the #36 team testing at South Georgia Motorsports Park in Cecil, Ga. in preparation for this weekend’s race at Martinsville Speedway. Nexxus Lighting Inc. will be the primary sponsor on the #36 Toyota this weekend at Martinsville Speedway. MarkMartin.com has become the first sponsor to jump on board Tommy Baldwin’s Support Small Businesses of America program.(TBR PRs)(3-26-2009) - Labonte and Andretti Discuss Benefits of 2009 Testing Rules: In response to the troubling economy, NASCAR implemented a new policy for the 2009 season that banned testing at NASCAR sanctioned tracks. Although several teams were skeptical of the change when it was first administered, most teams now agree that it has helped make everyone more competitive with their given budget. NASCAR drivers Bobby Labonte and John Andretti discuss the effects of the new policy.
Bobby Labonte, Driver of the #96 Ask.com Ford and President of Breaking Limits: “I think the new policy that NASCAR implemented this year was the right thing to do. Looking back on it, if they (NASCAR) didn’t do anything and we were testing like normal, it would be disastrous for a lot of teams. I’m sure it’s saving them a lot of money in that area. I’m sure they’re spending it in another. I can’t see the difference at the race track, basically. I’m not sure that you’d want to do this every year, but it’s definitely been good not having some teams waste or spend their money. At this point in time, all the teams are pretty strong because they’ve been able to figure things out pretty fast and they’ve adapted quickly to it.”
John Andretti, Driver of the #34 Front Row Motorsports Chevrolet: “I think the new testing policy has served its purpose. It’s helped reduce the separation between the ‘haves,’ ‘have-nots’ and even the ‘have-less.’ Some of the more well-funded teams have found ways to test. There are still tracks that you can test at that might help you prepare for an upcoming race, but it’s only a slight advantage. When you arrive for a race weekend, there won’t be a team with a head and shoulders advantage over anyone else. Everyone will begin at nearly the same starting point and that’s because of the testing policy, so it’s definitely helped keep the playing field level in the tough economic times.”(Breaking Limits PR)(3-26-2009) - Cope Announces Entry for Martinsville: Derrike Cope, Inc. will enter this weekend’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Goody’s Fast Pain Relief 500 at Martinsville. FW1/Fast Wax and flipNbags.com will serve as co-primary sponsors for the team’s entry, which will be driven by Cope. “Our team is gaining momentum with every race,” said Cope. “We are planning to compete this season in the NASCAR Camping World Truck, Nationwide and Sprint Cup Series’ and we are pleased to be working with such great new sponsors while building a stronger racing program.” Also on the #75 Dodge Charger will be associate sponsor Blu Frog Energy Drink.(Derrike Cope, Inc PR)(3-26-2009)
- Sprint remains committed series sponsor: Sprint remains committed to sponsoring NASCAR’s premier series through the duration of its contract that runs through 2013 despite tough economic conditions, director of Sprint entertainment and marketing Steve Gaffney said Wednesday. “Committed more than ever,” Gaffney said. “This sport and what we get from this sport in terms of real business, subscribers and existing subscribers is demonstratively good for our business. “You mention the economic downturn, we need to focus more on areas where we think we’re winning business. And this sponsorship is winning business,” Gaffney said. Sprint, at the time Nextel when the deal was signed, reportedly committed $700 million over 10 years to the series.(ESPN.com)(3-26-2009)
- Martinsville Rookie Notes: #82-Scott Speed was the Raybestos Rookie of the Race in the March 22 Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway. Speed scored a 28th-place finish and took top rookie honors for the second time this season. #20-Joey Logano leads Speed by one point (53-52) in the Raybestos Rookie standings entering the March 29 Goody’s Fast Pain Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway. J.J. Yeley is the most recent Raybestos Rookie to lead a lap in the spring race at Martinsville, leading once for one lap in 2006. Morgan Shepherd is the only Raybestos Rookie to win the Goody’s Fast Pain Relief 500 (since 1975). Shepherd won the 1981 event, outlasting the late Neil Bonnett to score his first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series win. Shepherd led the most laps in the race (three times for 203) and remains the most recent Raybestos Rookie to lead the most laps in the spring race at Martinsville. Two other Raybestos Rookies scored top-10 finishes that same day: Ron Bouchard (ninth) and Mike Alexander (10th). The most Raybestos Rookies to finish in the top-10 in the spring race at Martinsville are FOUR. In 1979, Joe Millikan placed fifth ahead of Harry Gant (sixth), Dale Earnhardt (seventh) and Terry Labonte (ninth). The most recent Raybestos Rookie to score a top-five finish in the spring race at Martinsville is Dick Trickle. Trickle finished third in 1989. Trickle also led the race once for seven laps. The most recent Raybestos Rookie to score a top-10 finish in the Goody’s Fast Pain Relief 500 is Jeff Gordon, who placed eighth in 1993. Tony Stewart is the only Raybestos Rookie to win the pole for the Goody’s Fast Pain Relief 500 (since 1975). Stewart won his first career pole at Martinsville in 1999.(Camp & Assoc./Raybestos PR), see rookie history, standings, stats, notes on the2009 Rookies page.(3-26-2009)
- Energizer on the #98 at Martinsville: Energizer will make its debut on the hood of the #98 Energizer / Menards Ford for this weekend’s Goody’s Fast Relief 500.(Yates PR)(3-26-2009)
- Listen to All-Star Race driver meeting, pre-race conversations: For the first time in its 61-year history, NASCAR fans will be able to listen to pre-race conversations between drivers, crew chiefs and officials participating in the All-Star Race. The one-time audio feed, offered by Sprint, will take place at the 25th running of the historic race on May 16 in Charlotte, N.C. The audio broadcast will be streamed to Sprint wireless devices via NASCAR Sprint Cup Mobile, an application that enables race fans to get audio feeds, statistics, live televised races and more. The driver-meeting feed is being offered as a freebie to Sprint’s data customers. Sprint came up with the idea of making these discussions available, on a one-time basis, in honor of the 25th running of the All-Star Race. [print spokeswoman Kimberly] Meester says NASCAR was initially reluctant, but finally agreed.(USA Today)(3-26-2009)
- Shepherd gets Beachbody associate sponsorship: Beachbody, the world’s leading in-home fitness and weight loss provider and the creator of the Tony Horton’s 10-Minute Trainer® DVD program, will join Faith Motorsports as an associate sponsor of Morgan Shepherd’s #89 Chevy for NASCAR’s 2009 Nationwide Series campaign. The company has created a special website, www.TenMin.com, for the sponsorship and is now offering all NASCAR fans the ability to try the same program Mr. Shepherd uses, risk free.(Beachbody PR)(3-26-2009)
- Nationwide Series Ratings from Bristol: ABC’s live coverage of the NASCAR Nationwide Series Scotts Turfbuilder 300 from Bristol Motor Speedway earned a final national rating of 1.7, down from the 2.0 rating earned for last year’s race that also aired on ABC. The race averaged 2,324,048 viewers airing against the highly-rated first round of the NCAA tournament. The Scotts Saturday Night Special, which aired live on ESPN2 from 6-7 p.m. on Saturday from Bristol, earned a final national rating of 0.9.(ESPN PR)(3-26-2009)
- CJM helping bring awareness to autism: CJM Racing and America’s Incredible Pizza Company will team up this season with the Autism Society of America to help bring awareness to a disorder that affects one in 150 American children. The complex disability is something America’s Incredible Pizza Company CEO Rick Barsness and his wife Cheryl are all too familiar with. “Our grandson was diagnosed with autism very young. We put this ribbon on our car to bring awareness to the struggle that so many families, as well as our own, face with the diagnosis of autism,” remarked Cheryl Barsness. “We also wanted to declare loudly that there is hope for these children. Children with autism have hope through prayer, early intervention, biomedical intervention and lots of support. We have hope.” The month of April marks Autism Awareness month, the #11 America’s Incredible Pizza Company Toyota will proudly display the Autism puzzle piece ribbon on the hood at the upcoming O’Reilly 300 at Texas Motor Speedway. The new relationship will continue throughout the 2009 season as the Autism ribbon will be located on the c-post for the remaining America’s Incredible Pizza Company races.(CJM PR)(3-26-2009)
- NOS sponsoring Busch: UPDATE 2: Coca-Cola Co.’s NOS Energy Drink will sponsor Kyle Busch’s car in 14 NASCAR Nationwide Series races, according to NOS and Joe Gibbs Racing. Busch’s first race in the NOS car is scheduled for April 4 at Texas Motor Speedway.(Atlanta Journal Constitution)(3-6-2008)
UPDATE: NOS Energy Drink and Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) jointly announce a 14-race Nationwide Series sponsorship of the #18 NOS Energy Drink Toyota driven by Kyle Busch.(Joe Gibbs Racing PR), see the sponsorship schedule on the 2009 Nationwide Team Chart.(3-6-2009)
UPDATE: See an image of the car on the #18 Nationwide Series Paint Schemes page.(3-26-2009)
- Driver change at ML Motorsports: UPDATE: hearing that ML Motorsports #70 has released Mark Green and that Shelby Howard will take over the driving duties at Texas.(3-25-2009)
UPDATE: Based in Indiana, ML Motorsports has hired an Indiana driver to pilot the #70 Chevy for the rest of the 2009 NASCAR Nationwide Series season. ML Motorsports parted ways with driver Mark Green Monday and will put 23-year-old Greenwood, Indiana driver Shelby Howard behind the wheel of Mary Louise Miller’s Biomet/Foretravel Motorcoach ride beginning April 4th at Texas Motor Speedway.(ML Motorsports PR)(3-26-2009)
- Hermie Sadler to return to the track at Martinsville UPDATE 2 TNA Wrestling & Acredale sponsoring: Former Nationwide Series Rookie of the Year and current SPEED analyst Hermie Sadler will return to the track for the NASCAR Camping World Series race on March 28 at Martinsville Speedway. Sadler will pilot the #48 Chevrolet owned by Fast Track Racing and Rockingham Speedway owner Andy Hillenburg. Acredale Vending will be on as an associate sponsor. Primary sponsorship opportunities are still available. (Hermie Sadler PR)(3-4-2009)
UPDATE: Acredale Vending (VA Beach) is proud to return to Hermie Sadler as an associate sponsor at Martinsville. Owner Scott Abshire is excited about the deal. This is our 25th. year in business and I cannot think of a better way to celebrate. Abshire also serves as a part time pit crew member for Jay Robinson Racing (Nationwide teams #28 & #49)(Acredale Vending PR)(3-11-2009)
UPDATE 2: Hermie Sadler who is returning to the track this weekend in the truck series race at Martinsville will be sponsored by TNA Wrestling. Sadler according to sources is good friends with TNA Owner Dixie Carter.(Pro Westling Journal)(3-26-2009)
- Martinsville, new experience for Papis: Awaiting ‘Mad’ Max Papis’s arrival this week is the half-mile paperclip-shaped oval of Martinsville Speedway. He will be attempting to qualify the #9-GEICO Toyota Tundra in his third of seven scheduled NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races. Built in 1947, Martinsville is one of the most historic tracks on the NASCAR circuit and provides a challenge to even NASCAR’s most experienced veterans. A week from now, Papis will be traveling to Texas Motor Speedway to attempt to qualify the #13 GEICO Camry in his second NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race of the 2009 season. (Player Mgmt/Germain Racing PR)(3-26-2009)
- Ryan Sieg to drive Gun Broker Racing entry at Martinsville: Gun Broker Racing announced today that Ryan Sieg, younger brother of NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver Shane Sieg will make his first NCWTS start Saturday afternoon at Martinsville Speedway driving the #21 GunBroker.com Dodge Ram. Sieg will make his first start in NASCAR’s top-three divisions in Saturday’s Kroger 250, the fourth installment on the 2009 schedule. Gun Broker Racing is still actively seeking funded drivers for its NASCAR Camping World Truck Series campaign.(Gun Broker Racing PR)(3-26-2009)
- Buescher makes first visit to Martinsville: James Buescher will be making his first visit to Martinsville Speedway driving the #10-Maxx Force Diesel Ford this weekend. Buescher, who will celebrate his 19th birthday on Thursday, March 26, is scheduled to compete in his fifth career NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race. Adam Crawford, the son of driver Rick Crawford, is the rear-tire carrier for Buescher’s #10 team on race day. This is younger Crawford’s first year performing over-the-wall duties.(Circle Bar PR)(3-26-2009)
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