April 12, 2011
- Richert named crew chief for Lally, TRG: Doug Richert has been named crew chief on the #71 Interstate Moving Services Ford for TRG Motorsports. Richert will take over the reins for this weekend’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Aaron’s 499 to be run at Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday, April 17.
Richert is a championship winning crew chief and is best known as the crew chief for Dale Earnhardt’s first Cup championship as well as guiding Greg Biffle to 10 Cup victories. In addition to having experience across the NASCAR Craftsman Truck and Nationwide Series’, Richert is also a familiar face on the SPEED Channel.(TRG)(4-12-2011) - Bayne may have sponsor to run All-Star race: UPDATES: The Wood Brothers are close to a sponsorship deal that will put Daytona 500 champion #21-Trevor Bayne into the May 21 All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. “I think it will work,” said Len Wood, one of the co-owners of the team. “There’s been interest in the last 36 hours.” Wood said he should know something for sure early next week, but wouldn’t identify the sponsor other than to say it was a familiar name in racing. “We’ve got somebody who wants to run the race,” Len Wood said. On Tuesday, Eddie Wood said the team didn’t plan to enter the non-points event without sponsorship. Len Wood said the publicity did not spark the interest from the sponsor that has stepped forward, but acknowledged a number of people want the team in the race. Among those are Charlotte Motor Speedway, which hosts the race, and Ford, the team’s manufacturer.(ESPN.com)(4-2-2011)
UPDATE: Wood Brothers Racing is expected to add two more races to Trevor Bayne ‘s schedule, including the May 21 Sprint All-Star race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The team is completing a deal for additional sponsorship that would push the rookie’s schedule in the Sprint Cup Series to 18 regular season races and the All-Star event. The announcement could come as soon as this week. The additional sponsorship also includes the April 17 race at Talladega Superspeedway.(Augusta Chronicle)(4-8-2011)
UPDATE 2:Daytona 500 champion Trevor Bayne will enter the May 21 All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, as Wood Brothers Racing has secured sponsorship for the event.
The Wood Brothers have lined up Camping World and Good Sam Club to sponsor the 20-year-old Bayne in the non-points event. Until sponsorship was lined up, Bayne, who qualified for the race with his surprising victory at Daytona, was not slated to take part.
Camping World and Good Sam Club will also sponsor Bayne’s car in Sunday’s Sprint Cup race at Talladega Superspeedway.
(ESPN.com)(4-11-2011)
UDPATE 3: Daytona 500 winner Trevor Bayne and his Wood Brothers Race Team will carry the colors of the Good Sam Club in the Aaron’s 499 at Talladega Superspeedway on April 17 and in the NASCAR Sprint All Star Race on May 21. Marcus Lemonis, Chairman and CEO of Good Sam Club and its sister company Camping World, said he’s thrilled to have Bayne and the Woods on board for a big weekend in April, which includes both the NASCAR race and Good Sam Days, where the camping club’s one million members can enjoy special deals at Camping World’s online store at www.campingworld.com and free food and hospitality at Camping World stores. Then, at the All Star race, the #21 also will carry a Camping World logo, but the most prominent space on the car will go to the Good Sam Club, which Lemonis said is most appropriate.(Wood Brothers Racing)(4-12-2011) - Terry Labonte returns to the #32: FAS Lane Racing announced that C&J Energy Services will sponsor the team’s #32 Ford this weekend for the running of the Aaron’s 499 at Talladega Superspeedway. The team also announced that two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion Terry Labonte will be back in the driver’s seat. Labonte piloted the #32 Ford in the season opening Daytona 500 to a solid 15th-place finish. C&J Energy Services is based in Houston, but founded in Corpus Christi, Texas which is also the hometown of Terry Labonte.(Integrity Sports Marketing)(4-12-2011)
- Judge rules against NASCAR in plane crash suit: A U.S. District Court judge has thrown out NASCAR’s lawsuit against Cessna over a July 10, 2007, plane crash that killed five people near Orlando. Judge John Antoon II issued the ruling Friday, granting summary judgment in favor of Cessna, stating that any responsibility by Cessna for the crash expired after 12 years. The Cessna 310R involved in the crash was constructed in 1977 and co-piloted by Bruce Kennedy, husband of NASCAR Executive Vice President Lesa France Kennedy. Bruce Kennedy, his co-pilot and three others on the ground were killed in the fiery accident in Sanford, Fla. The pilots reported smoke in the cockpit and were attempting to make an emergency landing. NASCAR, through its insurance company, has paid the families of the victims (as well as the property owners who had damage resulting from the crash) an undisclosed settlement. NASCAR and its insurance companies were asking for Cessna to contribute to those payments.(Scene Daily)(4-12-2011)
- At Talladega Superspeedway:
· Construction began on what was then known as the Alabama International Motor Speedway on May 23, 1968.
· The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was held on Sept. 14, 1969.
· The name changed to Talladega Superspeedway in 1989.
· Fourth repaving completed on Sept. 19, 2006.
· There have been 83 NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Talladega Superspeedway since the track opened in 1969; two a year every year except the inaugural season, which had just one.
· Richard Brickhouse won the first NASCAR Sprint Cup race.
· Bobby Isaac won the first NASCAR Sprint Cup pole in September 1969. Isaac won the first three poles there.
· 35 different drivers have won poles. Bill Elliott leads all drivers with eight poles.
· 41 different drivers have posted victories, led by Dale Earnhardt Sr. (10). Eighteen drivers have won more than once.
· Jeff Gordon leads all other active drivers in victories, with six. Dale Earnhardt Jr. is second among active drivers in victories with five.
· Richard Childress Racing has won 11 races, more than any other organization. Hendrick Motorsports, with 10 wins, can match that mark this weekend.
· 32 of 83 races have been won from a top-two starting position, including 13 from the pole; 23 have been won from a starting position outside the top 10. The most recent driver to win from the pole was Jeff Gordon in 2007 (spring).
· The furthest back in the field a race winner started was 36th, by Jeff Gordon in 2000.
· Mark Martin’s pace in the 1997 spring race set an all-time NASCAR Sprint Cup record for the fastest race ever. He won the caution-free race with an average speed of 188.354 mph and covered the 500-mile distance in two hours, 39 minutes and 18 seconds.
· Last season’s spring race set the all-time and track records for lead changes (88) and lap leaders (29). The previous highs were 75 lead changes (set on May 6, 1984) and 28 lap leaders (set on Oct. 5, 2008). Both previous records also were set at Talladega.
· Dale Earnhardt Jr. had four consecutive victories (October 2001 through April 2003), the most ever by a driver there. Buddy Baker (three – May 1975 through May 1976) is the only other driver to win more than two consecutive races there.
· Since the inception of electronic scoring in 1993, every race that has ended under green has had a margin of victory under half a second.(NASCAR)(4-12-2011) - Storms cause damage at Texas Motor Speedway: The Sprint Cup Series Samsung Mobile 500, the first Saturday night race at Texas Motor Speedway, turned out to be a winner on several fronts; including the timing of a storm front that blew through overnight Sunday that caused damage to some of the structures remaining from Saturday night’s event. “It was one of those typical Texas storms carrying heavy winds, rain and even hail,” said Media Relations Director Mike Zizzo Monday. “The majority of the damage sustained was to temporary structures around the facility that were remaining after Saturday night’s race, mainly third-party vendors. Fortunately, there were no injuries.” According to some witnesses, including several who were still camping in the infield, the high winds blew down tents turned over some RV’s and trailers and tossed around tables and chairs. The damage to the speedway included the loss of signs, fencing and some flag poles.(NASCAR Examiner)(4-2-2011)
- Clements gets new sponsor: #51- Jeremy Clements and the team are headed to Talladega for the 7th race of the 2011 season. Coming off another top 20 in Texas and already locked into the field for Saturday’s race, Jeremy is ready for some super Talladega Speedway action. Racedaysponsor.com has united Jeremy Clements Racing with a primary sponsor, Co-ops USA. Co-ops USA has signed on on the #51 Chevy for Talladega, Richmond, Dover and Charlotte. Co-opsUSA is involved with NASCAR to explore how the cooperative message can reach the millions small business owners, individuals, and communities who make up NASCAR’s fan base. For the hundreds and thousands of small businesses directly involved in motor sports in the U.S. and the thousands more struggling to survive the competitive battles on main street and rural towns, cooperative strategies may be a key to business survival. Exposing this audience on the use of cooperative approaches to make them better off is central to NCBA’s mission to strengthen the cooperative sector.(Clements PR)(4-12-2011)
- Fuge out at TriStar: UPDATES: Sirius NASCAR Radio’s Sirius Speedway with Dave Moody has learned that crewchief Dave Fuge, Sr., is out as crewchief of Mike Bliss’ #19 NASCAR Nationwide Series entry at Tri-Star Motorsports. Speaking on the condition of anonymity, sources close to the team say the veteran crewchief parted company with the team today, despite ranking ninth in Nationwide Series championship points after three events. Bliss was 17th – three laps down – Saturday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, after finishing 13th in the season opener at Daytona and 20th two weeks ago in Phoenix. A spokesperson for Tri-Star Motorsports confirmed that Fuge is no longer with the team, but declined to discuss reasons for the move. No decision has been made on a possible replacement. (Sirius Speedway)(3-8-2011)
UPDATE: TriStar Motorsports owner, Mark Smith, announced that effective immediately Wes Ward will assume crew chief duties for the #19 entry and driver Mike Bliss. A NASCAR veteran of 22 years and former Director of Competition at Rusty Wallace Racing, Ward replaces Dave Fuge at the helm of the #19 team.(3-10-2011)
UPDATE 2: Sirius NASCAR Radio’s Sirius Speedway with Dave Moody has learned that Wes Ward has left Tri-Star Motorsports, where he had served as crewchief for Mike Bliss’ NASCAR Nationwide Series team. There is no word on a replacement, and a call placed to Tri-Star in search of comment was not returned.(Sirius Speedway)(4-5-2011)
UPDATE: TriStar Motorsports announced that Paul Clapprood will assume crew chief duties of the #19 Impala and driver Mike Bliss beginning with this weekend’s event at Talladega Superspeedway. Clapprood, who most recently worked at TRG Motorsports in the Sprint Cup Series, replaces Wes Ward at the helm of the #19 team.(TriStar Motorsports)(4-12-2011) - Mortal Kombat on the #20: This weekend, the #20 GameStop Toyota will carry the look of the new Mortal Kombat game, which comes out for the XBox 360 and Playstation 3 on April 19. Driven by an all new graphics engine, the fan favorite series is back and presented in more gory detail than ever before. Mortal Kombat introduces a number of game-play features including tag team and the deepest story mode of any fighting game.(JGR), see an image of the car on my #20 team paint schemes page.(4-12-2011)
- Applebee’s to sponsor George: Applebee’s Neighborhood Bar & Grill/Potomac Family Dining Group will sponsor Tim George Jr. in both the ARCA and NASCAR Nationwide Series races at Talladega Superspeedway this weekend. George, 30, will compete in his third full ARCA season in 2011, piloting the #31 Chevy for Richard Childress Racing. He ran 27th in the season opener at Daytona on Feb. 12. Friday’s 3 Amigos 250 at Talladega is the second race on the ARCA schedule. George will pilot the #21 Applebee’s Chevy in the NNS race on Saturday.(Fox Sports)(4-12-2011)
- Buescher set for Talladega Nationwide run: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series young gun, James Buescher, will jump behind the wheel of the No. 30 ABF Chevrolet Impala this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway. The 21-year-old, who is running for the NCWTS driver’s championship with Turner Motorsports, will make three more starts in the ABF Chevy in 2011 at Richmond International Raceway, Dover International Speedway and Texas Motor Speedway. For his limited run in the Nationwide Series, Buescher will work with veteran crew chief Stewart Cooper. Cooper also calls the shots for Kasey Kahne and Reed Sorenson on a limited basis.(Turner Motorsports PR)(4-12-2011)
- Coulter among Talladega ARCA entries: ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards veteran racer, Joey Coulter, is ready to tackle the high speed, four-wide racing that is synonymous with Talladega Superspeedway. When he takes to the track for Friday’s (4/15/11) 3 Amigos 250, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series rookie will be sporting a new “purple” paint scheme to represent Rip It Energy Fuel’s ever popular G-Force Grape flavor. In addition to the new sportier design, Coulter and his Coulter Motorsports team will have special guest, Island/Def Jam and New Ocean Media recording artists Lynam as honorary pit crew members. Friday’s 3 Amigos 250 will mark Coulter’s third appearance at the famed 2.66-mile tri-oval in legendary Talladega, Ala.(ARCARacing.com)(4-12-2011)
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