April 4, 2005
- Harvick goes testing….after winning Busch race: Just how glamorous is big time auto racing? Well, as soon as Kevin Harvick was finished in victory lane Monday afternoon [after winning the Busch race] he took a helicopter to Asheboro, NC [Caraway Speedway] to test his cup car until dark for this weekend’s upcoming race at Martinsville. Crew Chief Todd Barrier, who is serving a four race suspension, joined his driver at the half-mile non-NASCAR [non Cup/Busch track] short track.(PRN’s Garage Pass Radio Show)(4-4-2005)
- Overnight Bristol TV Ratings: Fox’s broadcast of Sunday’s Food City 500 from Bristol Motor Speedway drew a 5.6 overnight rating from Nielsen Media Research and a 13 share from the nation’s largest markets, today’s Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. The rating represents a 7.9% increase from the overnight rating for the 2004 spring Bristol race, which was contested on the last weekend of March. The numbers match the overnight figures from the spring Texas Motor Speedway race of 2004, when it was run on the first weekend of April, although those Nielsen figures were reported to be incomplete because one market was not included.(NASCAR Scene Daily Newsletter)(4-4-2005)
- Testing at Kentucky this week: Several NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series teams are scheduled to test at the speedway this week. The Tuesday, April 5 schedule includes Petty Enterprises drivers #45-Kyle Petty and #43-Jeff Green along with Morgan McClure driver #4-Mike Wallace. Evernham Motorsports driver #19-Jeremy Mayfield and Hendrick Motorsports rookie #5-Kyle Busch are scheduled to test on Wednesday, April 6. They will be joined by the Chip Ganassi Racing R&D [#39?] Team. The Thursday, April 7 schedule features Biagi Brothers NASCAR Busch Series driver #4-Ryan Hemphill and Michael Waltrip Racing [#99].(Kentucky Speed PR(4-4-2005)
- Fill In Crew Chief Takes Harvick to Victory Lane: Nothing was going to deny Kevin Harvick a trip to victory lane this weekend. With Scott Miller filling in as crew chief, Harvick went from worst to first in the Food City 500, collecting his first win in over fifty races. Miller’s spectacular day earned him the WYPALL Wipers Crew Chief of the Race. Miller led Harvick from the back of the pack not once, but twice. On the morning of the race, the #29 Goodwrench crew found a leak in the power steering system and replaced a faulty pump. For making a change to the car after it had been impounded, Harvick was sent to the back of the field for the start of the race. On top of that, Harvick had to come in for an unscheduled pit stop after two of his lug nuts were left untightened, once again sending him to the tail end of the lead lap. Despite the setbacks, Miller stuck with his game plan and inched Harvick back into the lead. “The last pit stop was one of the biggest factors in our win,” said Miller after the race. “We brought Kevin (Harvick) in when the leader stayed out. The crew did an awesome job to get him out of the pits first. That’s when our strategy fell into place. He had fresh tires and that’s what he needed to take the lead and pull away.” The panel of voters selecting the Crew Chief of the Race; including Robert Daski of the Lynchburg Daily News, a WYPALL Wipers representative and Tony Eury Sr.; all thought Miller was the standout crew chief. Miller was awarded $1,000 for taking home Crew Chief of the Race honors. He is now tied with Bob Osborne, Alan Gustafson, Pete Rondeau and Doug Richert in the point standings for the WYPALL Wipers Crew Chief of the Year. At the end of the season, the crew chief with the most weekly wins will receive $20,000. For more information, visit www.wypall.com.(4-4-2005)
- Engine of the Future news, 2007? 2008?: Chevrolet engineers are expected to have their first version of NASCAR’s proposed “engine of the future” ready for dyno testing by Christmas, according to Detroit sources. And Ford’s Robert Yates and Jack Roush have started laying the groundwork for a new engine-development operation that would start work on a Ford version of that engine of the future. But Roush said Ford couldn’t meet a deadline of having such a new engine ready for the 2007 Daytona 500, as NASCAR has proposed. It would have to be 2008 at the earliest, Roush said.(Winston Salem Journal)(4-4-2005)
- Newman to Roush? There are reports that Jack Roush may be interested in Penske’s #12-Ryan Newman for the #6 ride [to be vacated by Mark Martin], or perhaps even Newman and his crew chief Matt Borland, too.(Winston Salem Journal), a thought comes to mind….Not Bloody Likely.(4-4-2005)
- No Crew Flip-Flop at DEI: For those who wondered if conditions at Dale Earnhardt Inc. were dire enough to swap the Nos. 15 and 8 crews and cars back to the original drivers–think again. “There will never be a flip back,” says a DEI source, who adds that the 15 crew, formerly the No. 8, was disappointed with Earnhardt. “I don’t think they would take him back. We said we would work with Michael (Waltrip) this year for us to get a young gun for next year. What’s happened is fate, and we’re going to make the most of it.” Earnhardt echoed similar sentiments and reiterated his confidence in crew chief Pete Rondeau. “The way Pete has hung in there further constitutes my belief in him,” he says. Earnhardt and Waltrip are 17th and 27th, respectively, in points.(Sporting News)(4-4-2005)
- Eury Jr. to bolt DEI? Crew chief Tony Eury Jr., the key car chief in Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s title runs the past two years, is reported to be one of hottest items in the garage, with several rival teams interested in hiring him away from Dale Earnhardt Inc., where he now runs Michael Waltrip’s #15 team. It is unclear if rival Chevy teams are interested in Eury or Ford or Dodge team owners.(Winston Salem Journal)(4-4-2005)
- No Roush or Hendrick car in top five: Neither a Hendrick [5 in the race] or a Roush [5 also] driver finished in the top five. The last time that happened was 90 races ago, on Aug. 11, 2002, at Watkins Glen.(Gaston Gazette)(4-4-2005)
- Harvick sweeps Bristol: #29-Kevin Harvick won the Sharpie Professional 250 at Bristol Motor Speedway in a crash filled, 3-time red flag, green-white-checker wild race, the day after winning the Food City Cup race on Sunday. His teammate #21-Jeff Burton ended up 2nd, followed by #41-Reed Sorenson, #17-Matt Kenseth and #40-Sterling Marlin. Harvick has ran 5 of the 7 Busch races with a win and four 2nd place finishes.
From Speed Channel: The race was extended when #32-Shane Hmiel rammed the rear of #90-Dale Jarrett’s car on Lap 248, bringing out caution. Jarrett was not happy with Hmiel and approached him, with the two pointing fingers, and with Hmiel, who seems always to be in some kind of trouble, apparently making a rude hand gesture. NASCAR officials were examining the situation, and penalties are possible.
Race results at:
ESPN.com
BGNRacing.com
Motorsports One
NASCAR.com.(4-4-2005)
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