April 2, 2006
- Stewart wins at Martinsville: #20-Tony Stewart won the DIRECTV 500 at Martinsville Speedway, leading 288 or 500 laps for his first win of 2006, 25th of his career and first since Watkins Glen last August. #24-Jeff Gordon held on for 2nd, with #48-Jimmie Johnson 3rd, then #8-Dale Earnhardt Jr. in a very beat up car and #5-Kyle Busch. The rest of the top-10 were #38-Sadler, #29-Harvick, #25-Vickers, #26-McMurray and #10-Riggs. Points leader #17-Matt Kenseth was 7th as late as lap 493 when he lost his brakes on a restart and smacked the wall, finishing 24th and dropping to 3rd in points with #48-Johnson taking over the lead, leading #6-Martin by 59 points going into Texas next week. There were 16 cautions for 87 laps and 6 leaders with 12 lead changes. The race will re-air on Speed Channel, Thursday, April 6th at 4:00pm/et.
Race Results on my Martinsville Race Results/Awards Page.
Points Standings on my Drivers/Owners Points after Martinsville page.
Race Rundown: see my Martinsville Race Info/Rundown Page for my race rundown page, laps led, top 10, race notes, lucky dogs and more.(4-2-2006)
- Smaller fuel cells at LMS and road courses? UPDATE: hearing that NASCAR is looking at putting the smaller fuel cells in the cars at Lowe’s Motor Speedway to force cars to pit somewhere between 35-40 laps, due to the tire wear with the new surface. NASCAR may also due this in the future at all road races to break up the pit strategies and could also use the smaller fuel cells when they return to Atlanta in the Fall.(4-1-2006)
UPDATE: Smaller fuel tanks might be a way to deal with excessive tire wear at tracks like Atlanta Motor Speedway and the newly paved Lowe’s Motor Speedway. The idea is that if drivers ran out of fuel after 30 laps or so, they’d make pit stops before tires could wear to a dangerous point. NASCAR spokesman Kerry Tharp said it’s too soon to tell whether the smaller tanks, which are used at Daytona and Talladega to add pit stops and therefore break up big packs of cars, will be used elsewhere. “Our primary focus in preparing for the upcoming races at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in May is testing the tires and getting them right,” he said.(Atlanta Journal-Constitution)(4-2-2006)
- Robby and Andretti in Jim Beam PSA commercial: Jim Beam bourbon announced the launch of its 2006 Public Service Announcement (PSA) to raise awareness of the company’s drink smart social responsibility platform. Through drink smart, the company reminds consumers of the basic principles for making responsible decisions concerning alcohol: 1) if you’re under 21, don’t drink; 2) if you’re of legal purchase age and choose to drink, do so in moderation; 3) and never drive drunk. The television PSA, featuring NASCAR Nextel Cup driver and owner Robby Gordon of Robby Gordon Motorsports and Indy Racing League (IRL) driver and co-owner Michael Andretti of Andretti Green Racing, reinforces the drink smart messages and the importance of making smart decisions about alcohol. Using a victory lane backdrop, both Gordon and Andretti reinforce the Jim Beam drink smart messages of making smart choices “on and off the track.”
“As professional racecar drivers and team owners, Michael and I are in a great position to encourage fans to make the right decisions when it comes to consuming alcohol responsibly,” said Gordon. “We’re very committed to helping spread the drink smart messages.” For more information on drink smart, please visit www.drinksmart.com. Jim Beam is a primary sponsor of the #7 Chevy driven by team owner Robby Gordon of Robby Gordon Motorsports for a designated number of races in the 2006 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series season. Jim Beam is an associate sponsor for an additional number of races. In addition to the Jim Beam logo, the company’s drink smart logo is displayed on the car and Gordon’s firesuit to communicate the importance of responsible drinking.(Jim Beam PR)(4-2-2006)
- Drive for Diversity driver wins: In his debut race with the Drive for Diversity program and Joe Gibbs Racing, 15 year-old Marc Davis won the Limited Late Model stock car race at Hickory (NC) Motor Speedway last Saturday night. In doing so, he became just the second African-American to win a stock car race at Hickory, joining former Joe Gibbs Racing development driver Chris Bristol who won at the famed short track last April. After starting third, Davis took the lead during the final lap and piloted the #92 Levi Strauss Signature Chevy to victory, making him the first Drive for Diversity driver to win in 2006. Hickory’s Limited Late Model division is one of six support classes at the historic speedway, one step below the premier NASCAR-sanctioned Late Model Stock Cars.(Alan Taylor Communications PR)(4-2-2006)
- Martinsville Race Notes:
• Tony Stewart won the DIRECTV 500 at Martinsville Speedway, scoring his 25th career NASCAR NEXTEL Cup victory in his 254th career start.
• Stewart’s last victory came at Watkins Glen last August, 20 races ago.
• Stewart scored his second Martinsville victory. His other victory here came in October 2000.
• Stewart scored his eighth top-10 finish in 15 races at Martinsville.
• Stewart moved into 22nd on NASCAR’s all-time winners list, tied with Jim Paschal and Joe Weatherly.
• It is his sixth short-track victory. He has 14 superspeedway victories and five on road courses.
• Stewart scored his third top-10 finish in six races this season.
• Stewart climbed from ninth to eighth in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup point standings. One year ago after six races he ranked 11th in the point standings.
• Stewart led the most laps (288) – including the final 27, the second time this season that he led the most laps. He also led the most laps last week at Bristol. The last time he led the most laps and won the race was at Watkins Glen last August.
• Stewart has led the most laps in the last three races at Martinsville. He led 247 of the 500 laps in the spring of 2005 and 283 of the 500 in the fall race. Stewart became the fourth driver in Martinsville history to lead the most laps in three straight races. He joined Cale Yarborough (fall 1976 and both races in 1977), Rusty Wallace (both races in 1994 and spring 1995) and Dale Earnhardt (both races in 1987 and spring 1988). Yarborough won all three, Wallace won all three and Earnhardt won two of the three and finished second in the September 1987 event. Ironically, Stewart won only one of the three races, posting finishes of 26th, 2nd and first.
• This was team owner Joe Gibbs’ 48th NASCAR NEXTEL Cup victory. Gibbs has scored three victories at Martinsville. Joe Gibbs Racing has won at least one race each season 1993-2006, 14 consecutive years.
• Tony Stewart has won at least one race each season 1999-2006, eight consecutive years.
Notebook Items
• Jeff Gordon (second) has finished in the top-10 in his last six races at Martinsville Speedway. Four of those finishes were victories He scored his third top-10 finish of the season and best finish in 2006. Gordon remained seventh in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup point standings. One year ago he ranked sixth after six races.
• Jimmie Johnson (third) scored his eighth top-10 finish in nine races at Martinsville Speedway. He climbed from third to first in the NASCAR NEXTEL cup standings. Johnson is the only driver to score four top-five finishes in the first six races of the season.
• Dale Earnhardt Jr. (fourth) scored his sixth top-10 finish in 13 races at Martinsville and his third top10 finish in 2006.
• Kyle Busch (fifth) scored his second top-10 finish in three races at Martinsville and his fourth top-10 finish in 2006.
• Brian Vickers (eighth) was the fourth Hendrick Motorsports driver to finish among the top-10 in the DIRECTV 500. It was Vicker’s first top-10 finish in five races at Martinsville.
• Reed Sorenson (12th) was the highest finishing Raybestos Rookie-of-the Year contender. At least one of the Raybestos Rookie-of-the Year contenders has scored a top-15 finish in every race this season.
• Joe Nemechek (23rd) has been running at the finish in the last 38 races, a streak that began at Bristol last April, the longest current streak.(NASCAR Statistical Services)(4-2-2006)
- Rumblings – Martinsville:
Tony Stewart led the most laps (five times for 288 circuits), then held off Jeff Gordon for a three lap sprint (after a late red flag) to take today’s DIRECTV 500 at Martinsville Speedway. In a caution filled race (we had 16 of ’em) Stewart grabs his second win at this half-miler, the 25th of his career (he’s tied for 22nd on the all-time win list with Jim Paschal & Joe Weatherly), and the 48th for Joe Gibbs Racing. The win was worth $220,786 from the over $5.4M in posted awards.
The Chevy domination was certainly a story today. The Top-5 spots and seven of the top eight were members of the bow-tie brigade.
Jeff Gordon (2nd) had his best finish since he was runner-up at Atlanta last October.
Scott Riggs (10th) had his best finish since he was runner-up at Michigan last August.
Sterling Marlin (14th) had his best finish since he was 13th at Kansas last October.
Tony Raines (21st) had his best finish since he was 13th at Homestead in November of 2003 (only 13 races).
Chad Chaffin (36th) had his career-best finish today. His previous best was 39th when we were here in October of 2004.
STREAKIN….Jimmie Johnson has 5 Top-10’s in the last 6 races.
Kyle Busch has 4 Top-10’s in the last 5 races.
The Rookie Report: Reed Sorenson (12th) is the top-finishing first year driver for the second time this season. He was followed by Martin Truex Jr (19th), J. J. Yeley (20th), Clint Bowyer (22nd), Denny Hamlin (37th), and David Stremme (38th). Sorenson & Hamlin have each topped this category twice this season….Brent Sherman was replaced by Jimmy Spencer for this event and that team was a dnq this weekend.
This Week’s Elevator….UP: Operator of the Week is Dale Earnhardt Jr (+25) followed by Clint Bowyer (+20). DOWN: The Big Dropper was Kasey Kahne (-30), followed by Greg Biffle (-21) and Ken Schrader (-21).
In that ever shifting battle to gain an exempt spot in the Top-35 in Owner Points, Sterling Marlin in now in and Bobby Labonte may have to rely on the Champions Provisional (if needed) next week. Jimmie Johnson regains the points lead today (he’s led five of the six weeks) as Matt Kenseth’s late race problem dropped him to third in the standings. Jamie McMurray (24th to 17th) made the best move forward today while Robby Gordon (20th to 27th) fell the same number of spots.(Stock Car Fans)(4-2-2006)
- Makoto Dressing on #34 and #92 at Martinsville: Front Row Motorsports placed both of their entries into the starting lineup at Martinsville for the DirecTV 500. The #34 Oak Gloves car driven by Chad Chaffin will start 31st and the Makoto Dressing #92 driven by Chad Blount will start 43rd. Makoto Dressing will be a sponsor on both cars. They will be on the hood of the #92 and on the quarter panels and TV panel of the #34. Makoto Ginger Dressing, which was developed at one of their two Japanese Steakhouses in Florida, is available in refrigerated sections of grocery stores across the United States. For more information, please visit www.makotogingerdressing.com.(Front Row Motorsports PR)(4-2-2006)
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