April 4, 2008
- LifeLock Sponsoring Carpentier for 8 Races: Gillett Evernham Motorsports announced that LifeLock, the nation’s leading identity theft protection service, will sponsor the #10 Dodge with driver Patrick Carpentier in eight races in the 2008 Sprint Cup Season. LifeLock will sponsor Carpentier at Phoenix on April 12, Talladega on April 27, Richmond on May 3, Darlington on May 10, Charlotte on May 25, Michigan on June 15, Chicagoland on July 12 and Kansas on Sept. 28. Gillett Evernham Motorsports CEO Tom Reddin said the addition of LifeLock to the existing sponsorship lineup at the #10 of Valvoline, Auto Value/All Pro Bumper-to-Bumper, Charter and Cintas mean there are few unsponsored races remaining on the #10 Dodge in 2008.(Gillett Evernham PR)(4-4-2008)
- 70 team picks up a sponsor: Hunt Brothers Pizza announced a sponsorship test with Haas/CNC Racing and the #70 Jeremy Mayfield car in the 2008 Sprint Cup Series. The test sponsorship with the Haas/CNC racing team will include the following: Secondary sponsor for the upcoming Samsung 500, April 6 at the Texas Motor Speedway and primary sponsor at the Aarons 499, April 26 at the Talladega Speedway. “At Hunt Brothers, we are committed to becoming a strong national brand, especially within the C-Store Industry,” said Scott Hunt, executive at Hunt Brothers Pizza. “Our involvement in NASCAR sends a strong message to C-Store Owners, C-Store Chains, and Oil Companies that we are a serious player, and we are committed to driving product awareness on the national level and ultimately boosting sales for our C-Store partners.” For more information about Hunt Brothers Pizza, see huntbrotherspizza.com.(Media Wire), see an image on my #70 Team schemes page.(4-4-2008)
- Garmin to sponsor #19 for two races: Elliott Sadler is scheduled to drive the #19 Garmin Special paint scheme at Talladega Superspeedway on April 27. 2008 & at Kansas Speedway on September 28, 2008, see an image on my #19 Team schemes page.(4-4-2008)
- Smith continues as #21 crew chief: Mike Smith will be the interim crew chief for Wood Brothers Racing and driver #21-Bill Elliott again this weekend for the Samsung 500 Sprint Cup race at Texas Motor Speedway. Smith debuted in the role last weekend, and he is optimistic about the car the team is bringing for Elliott, who has 11 starts at Texas with one pole position and one top-10.(SceneDaily).(4-4-2008)
- Earnhardt Chevy to sponsor Kennedy in Florida series: Dale Earnhardt Chevrolet will sponsor Ben Kennedy in the Florida-based Advance Auto Parts Pro Truck Series. Kennedy, the great-grandson of NASCAR founder Bill France Sr. and son of International Speedway Corp. president Lesa France Kennedy, will run the #96 Silverado based out of Mark Martin Performance in Daytona Beach. Kennedy will race more than 25 events at New Smyrna Speedway and Orlando Speedworld.(DEI)(4-4-2008)
- Hendrick’s Langenstein to be honored: Charlie Langenstein, who works at Hendrick Motorsports will be honored as Mechanic of the Year Award during Northeast Modified Hall of Fame 2008 Induction Ceremonies on Sunday, May 25. Langenstein has molded a successful career that has carried him from the Syracuse Mile in New York State to the superspeedway of Daytona International in Florida. Currently residing in North Carolina, the New Jersey native first ventured to Nazareth, Reading and Flemington (NJ) Fair Speedway in 1972 and over the next two decades surfaced as one of the top wrenches in the Northeast. From 1976-82 Langenstein accompanied George Smith’s Statewide Racing team with Jimmy Horton behind the wheel, then joined forces with big-Block star Brett Hearn before building a car for notorious owner Tony Ferraiuolo and his driver Ken Brenn Jr. to close out the 80s. Charlie relocated to the Tar Heel State and helped Rob Moroso capture the NASCAR Grand National title in 1989 before working at the Kneisel Speed Shop in Pennsylvania from 1992-95 and serving a one-year stint with Team Freightliner owner Ray Bramall. Today, he is the technical supervisor for Hendrick Motorsports on the Cup circuit, overseeing everything mechanical for the cars driven by internationally acclaimed touring stars Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson. More info at dirtcar.com.(4-4-2008)
- Aflac Sponsoring Edwards at Texas & Phoenix: Aflac, the number one provider of guaranteed-renewable insurance in the United States, will be the primary sponsor of Carl Edwards’ #99 Roush Fenway Racing team this weekend at Texas Motor Speedway. Additionally, Aflac will also be the primary sponsor next weekend at Phoenix International Raceway. Edwards will drive the No. 99 Aflac Ford Fusion in a total of eight races throughout the 2008 season.(Roush Fenway Racing PR), See images of the scheme on my #99 Team Schemes page.(4-4-2008)
- Reutimann doesn’t anticipate driver switch if he fails to qualify: #44-David Reutimann faces another weekend where he has to qualify on speed, and he is not looking forward to it. Reutimann said Thursday he wouldn’t anticipate that Michael Waltrip Racing would put him in the car driven by #00-Michael McDowell if he doesn’t make the field. If Reutimann misses the race, the team could replace McDowell with Retuimann, but Reutimann said that hasn’t been discussed. “The #00 is the car that Michael McDowell drives, and as far as I know, if I don’t get in, I’ll be watching,” Reutimann said. “I wouldn’t want to do that. My job is to get the 44 car in. If I can’t get that car in, then I don’t need to be in the race.”(SceneDaily.com)(4-4-2008)
- Dale Jr. – Shifting Gears Airs Saturday on ESPN2: Race fans who missed original airings of the television series Dale Jr. – Shifting Gears, chronicling the move of Dale Earnhardt Jr. to Hendrick Motorsports in the Sprint Cup Series, will have a chance to watch again. ESPN2 airs a one-hour episode Saturday, April 5, at 1:30pm/et, leading to live coverage of the Nationwide Series race at Texas Motor Speedway. The series provides viewers with a behind-the-scenes look at the personal, corporate and competitive ramifications involved with the five-time NASCAR Most Popular Driver award recipient leaving Dale Earnhardt, Inc., the team founded by his late father. Dale Jr. – Shifting Gears is produced by Earnhardt Jr.’s Hammerhead Entertainment, a division of JR Motorsports, in cooperation with Hendrick Motorsports and is presented by the National Guard. The final two episodes air on ESPN in prime time the week of the July 27 Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, ESPN’s first live Sprint Cup event of the season.(ESPN)(4-4-2008)
- Earnhardt, Jr. wins pole at Texas: #88-Dale Earnhardt, Jr. won the Coors Light Pole for the Samsung 500 at Texas Motor Speedway with a speed of 190.907mph for his first pole of 2008 and his first for Hendrick Motorsports. #99-Edwards qualified second with the rest of the top-10 being: #18-Busch, #12-ewman, #48-Johnson, #44-Reutimann [best go-or-go homer], #6-Ragan, #17-Kenseth, #84-Skinner, and #9-Kahne. The non-top 35 teams that made the race were: #44-Reutimann, #84-Skinner, #77-Hornish, #10-Carpentier, #21-Elliott, #22-Blaney, #34-Andretti, and #78-Nemechek. #00-Michael McDowell got loose going into turn one on his second lap, the car veered head first into the wall and rolled over 8-9 times through turn 2. He got out of the car under his own power, but the session was delayed for one hour and 12 minutes while NASCAR made repairs to the SAFER barrier. See the starting lineup on my Texas Qualifying Page.(4-4-2008)
- Three do not qualify [DNQ] for the Samsung 500 at Texas Motor Speedway: #40-Franchitti, #45-McCumbee, and #08-Lamar.(4-4-2008)
- Qualifying Notes:
.. Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the Coors Light Pole Award for the Samsung 500 with a lap of 28.286 seconds, 190.097 mph.
.. This is his eighth pole in 298 career NASCAR Sprint Cup races. His most recent pole was at Pocono in August 2007.
.. This is his first pole and fourth top-10 start in 2008.
.. Earnhardt posted his second pole and sixth top-10 start in 12 races at Texas. It is his first start better than seventh in his last 10 races here.
.. Carl Edwards posted the second-fastest qualifying time with a lap of 28.498 seconds, 189.487 mph. This is his first start better than 10th in seven Texas races.
.. Kyle Busch (third) posted his second top-10 starts in seven races at Texas. His other top-10 start was fifth in April 2007 when qualifying was canceled.
.. David Reutimann (sixth) was the fastest of the drivers required to make the field on time.
.. Sam Hornish Jr. (17th) was the fastest qualifying rookie.
(NASCAR Statistics)(4-4-2008)
- Fastest Qualifier by Manufacturer::
Chevy: #88-Earnhardt, Jr, 190.907, starts 1st
Ford: #99-Edwards, 189.487, starts 2nd
Toyota: #18-Busch, 189.069,starts 3rd
Dodge: #12-Newman, 189.043, starts 4th
(4-4-2008) - Doosan Infracore Sponsoring Busch at Mexico: Doosan Infracore, a global leader in the heavy industrial marketplace, is taking driver Kyle Busch and the #20 Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing south of the border for the fourth renewal of the Mexico 200 Nationwide Series race at Mexico City. Doosan Infracore is Korea’s largest manufacturer of construction equipment, forklift trucks and machine tools, and is a major supplier of defense products, as well as diesel and natural gas engines. Its U.S. subsidiary, Doosan Infracore America Corp., is headquartered in Suwanee, Ga.(Joe Gibbs Racing PR)(4-4-2008)
- Mike Wallace Making 600th NASCAR Start: Some would say that Mike Wallace is an old school racer, and they would be right. When Wallace and his #7 GEICO Camry roll off of the starting grid on Saturday afternoon, he will be making his 600th career NASCAR start. There is something to be said for longevity and since his debut in NASCAR in 1991 he has logged 60,000 miles, while also recording $5.2 million dollars in earnings in NASCAR’s number 2 series.(Player Management International PR)(4-4-2008)
- Newman Would Like to Run More Nationwide Races: Daytona 500 winner Ryan Newman has had an up-and-down 2008 since his big win in the season opener. One thing he’s not happy about is that Penske Racing isn’t fielding cars for him in more Nationwide Series races this season. “The seat time, no matter what car you’re driving at a certain race track, is very important,” said Newman. “There are two things that I’ve always said that that you learn: the first is the race track and what you learn from it. Race tracks change, characteristics change. For instance, two years ago, they took the bump out of (Turns) 1 and 2. In the Nationwide Series, you get the opportunity to feel that first then you know how to predict things. The combination of the tires – typically the tires are identical, so you have an idea of the tire falloff and what the tires are going to feel like. So there are huge advantages seat-time wise, not just pure racing in getting more experience in being a better race car driver. Getting a taste of a few things make a big difference for your potential Sunday race.”(SPEEDtv.com)(4-4-2008)
- Lia being honored at Thompson’s 23rd Annual Icebreaker: Preceding the start of the 23rd Annual Icebreaker’s main event [April 6th], NASCAR and Thompson Speedway [Thompson, CT] will pay tribute to three of the “Tour’s” past champions. Among them, Donny Lia, the reigning Tour Champion, will be honored for his incredible 2007 campaign title.(ThompsonSpeedway.com)(4-4-2008)
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