April 6, 2013
- Happy Hour practice for the STP Gas Booster 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway is over after 60 scheduled minutes, the top five, slowest and notes:
#15-Bowyer 97.018
#48-Johnson 96.293
#99-Edwards 96.161
#16-Biffle 96.151
#31-Burton 96.073
slowest: #7-Blaney 94.293 & #87-Nemechek 93.318. No speed: #98-McDowell.
notes: there is no TV coverage of today’s practices. #22-Logano suffered some right rear damage after contact with #48-Johnson, with 20 minutes left in the session.
See fastest speeds, laps run and more on the STP Gas Booster 500 Practice 3 Speeds page (pdf).(4-6-2013)
- Saturday first practice for the STP Gas Booster 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway is over after 45 scheduled minutes, the top five, slowest and notes:
#15-Bowyer 96.681
#18-Busch 96.529
#24-Gordon 96.357
#55-Vickers 96.327
#39-Newman 96.185
slowest: #32-Schrader 94.125 & #95-Speed 93.673. No speed: #44-Riggs.
notes: there is no TV coverage of today’s practices.
See fastest speeds, laps run and more on the STP Gas Booster 500 Practice 2 Speeds page (pdf).(4-6-2013)
- Pit Stall Selections: The selections of pit stalls for the STP Gas Booster 400 Sprint Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway have been made.
Pole sitter #48-Johnson chose pit stall 1 [as do most pole sitters].
Outside pole sitter #59-Ambrose took pit stall 11, the next pitstall with an opening in front of it.
#55-Vickers, who starts 3rd took the 8th pit stall.
The 43rd and final pit stall was taken by #42-Montoya, who starts 14th.
To see where the drivers/teams pit stall is, see the pit selection chart on the Pit Stall Selection chart.(4-6-2013)
- Swan Racing makes personnel changes: Swan Racing announced that Tony Eury Jr. has been named competition director for the team, replacing Steve Hmeil. Steven “Bones” Lane has been named crew chief for the #30 Toyota driven by David Stremme. Hmeil was relieved of his duties. This move reunites Lane and Stremme as crew chief and driver combination. Lane was Stremme’s crew chief from 2011 – 2012. The two also worked together in 2006 – 2007 and for one race in 2008. “We made changes in the front office today that we believe will have a long term benefits for the team going forward,” said Swan Racing owner Brandon Davis. “I want to thank Steve Hmeil for his service, we wish him all the best in his future endeavors.” Eury said, “This team is committed to making progress every week. I’m excited for this opportunity. I think having ‘Bones’ on top of the box is a great move and will help improve our overall effort.”(Swan Racing)(4-6-2013)
- Tony Stewart discusses blocking: #14-Tony Stewart addressed the media Friday at Martinsville:
DO YOU STILL FEEL THE SAME WAY YOU DO ABOUT BLOCKING?
“Yeah, my stance has never changed about blocking. Everybody has got a different opinion. I know the last two weeks everybody has tried to make a comparison to the Talladega deal. Talladega is a little different deal than the rest of it. I don’t like it at Daytona and Talladega either, but it’s the position we are put in there. What happened at California is a different deal. The people that are trying to compare the two are people that honestly I’ve read who has written it. It’s disappointing that they don’t understand the sport any better than that, but there is a huge difference between the two. It’s our jobs as drivers to go out there and try to pass people. That is what racing is about. We didn’t have blocking 10 years ago. I don’t know where all of a sudden it became a common deal or some people think it’s alright to do now and think it’s common practice. I don’t believe in it. I don’t believe it should be common practice.”
AT RESTRICTOR PLATE TRACKS IT’S A NECESSARY EVIL?
“We don’t have a choice. We can’t even get away from each other there. It’s not so much that you are trying to block as much as you are trying to make that guy that you are trying to get in front of push you. We don’t have the luxury of running on our own there. You have to have somebody pushing you. So if there is a line coming you want that faster line to pick you up and push you. The last half of a lap at Talladega is different than a restart with 15 to go at California.”
WHY DO YOU THINK BLOCKING HAS INCREASED?
“I don’t know. I hope you guys can tell me. I don’t understand it either. I have never agreed with it. I don’t like it. For some reason it’s getting increasingly worse. I don’t know why that is, but it is.”(Chevy PR)(4-6-2013)
- Vickers’ understands Hamlin’s situation: In picking Brian Vickers to substitute for Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing got a driver who can empathize with what Hamlin is feeling while he waits to return to his car. Vickers will start a stint of indeterminate length in the # 11 Toyota next weekend at Texas Motor Speedway, as Hamlin continues to recover from a compression fracture. Driving the # 11 Camry is an important opportunity for Vickers, who is running a nine-race NASCAR Sprint Cup Series schedule for Michael Waltrip Racing, including Sunday’s STP Gas Booster 500 at Martinsville Speedway. But Vickers has mixed feelings about the circumstances that will put him behind the wheel of Hamlin’s car. Much of Vickers’ ambivalence stems from a medical condition that forced him out of his ride at Red Bull Racing in 2011. Suffering from blood clots in his legs and lungs, Vickers missed the last six months of the season while he recuperated. “Next week I’m going to be in the 11 car, which I’m obviously excited about, but sad how the opportunity came about,” Vickers said Friday morning at Martinsville. “I know what it’s like to be pulled out of your car for health reasons — I’ve been in that boat before and wish Denny a speedy recovery.(NASCAR Wire Service)(4-6-2013)
- Paige Duke will serve as “Lady in Black” at Darlington: The Lady in Black, as Darlington Raceway has been notably named for decades, will have a new face in 2013 as Paige Duke will serve as the track’s official “The Lady in Black” for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Bojangles’ Southern 500 race weekend on May 10-11. Duke, a former Miss Sprint Cup and current model, will be present during the race weekend and other track events throughout the year proudly wearing a black fire suit and representing Darlington Raceway. Her local ties are in the state of South Carolina as she hails from nearby Lancaster, S.C. and is a graduate of Clemson University. Besides her role serving as Miss Sprint Cup in 2010-11, Duke is the national spokesperson for Kruger Farms, an online outdoor outfitter in Minnesota, and was cast in the CMT hit show Sweet Home Alabama for two seasons in 2011 and 2012. She is also a model for various national campaigns and works as a veterinary technician in Lancaster.(Darlington Raceway)(4-6-2013)
- Kansas Speedway partners with Hy-Vee: Kansas Speedway and Hy-Vee, Inc. announced a partnership agreement that makes Hy-Vee the Official Grocer and Tailgate Pit Stop of the Kansas Speedway. Hy-Vee operates 26 full-service supermarkets throughout Kansas and the Kansas City metro area. Randy Edeker, Chairman, President and CEO of Hy-Vee, said the company has planned special events throughout the year to promote the Speedway and enhance the fan experience. The 2013 racing season at Kansas Speedway kicks off April 19-21 with the SFP 250 and STP 400.(Kansas Speedway)(4-6-2013)
- Sauter wins at Martinsville: #98-Johnny Sauter won the Kroger 250 at Martinsville Speedway. #88-Matt Crafton finished second followed by #4-Jeb Burton, #17-Timothy Peters, #54-Darrell Wallace, #94-Chase Elliott, #60-Dakoda Armstrong, #39-Ryan Sieg, #51-Erik Jones, #9-Ron Hornaday.
There were 11 cautions for 71 laps and 13 lead changes among 7 leaders. Complete results are on the Martinsville race results page (pdf).(4-6-2013)
- Driver standings following Martinsville:
1) #98-Johnny Sauter, 94
2) #4-Jeb Burton, 82, -12
3) #88-Matt Crafton,77, -17
4) #9-Ron Hornaday, 76, -18
5) #54-Darrell Wallace, 72, -22
6) #39-Ryan Sieg, 70, -24
7) #13-Todd Bodine,67, -27
8) #3-Ty Dillon,66, -28
9) #32-Miguel Paludo, 64, -30
10) #29-Ryan Blaney, 64, -30
See complete standings on the driver standings page (pdf).(4-6-2013)
- Owner Standings following Martinsville are posted (pdf).(4-6-2012)
- Crafton to tie consecutive starts record in Martinsville: Matt Crafton will start seventh in Martinsville on Saturday, and noted his truck was one of the best he’d ever had here, in his 23rd career Martinsville start, which will also tie him with former ThorSport driver Terry Cook for the all-time Truck Series consecutive starts streak, with 296.(ThorSport Racing PR)(4-6-2013)
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