April 17, 2009
- Race Coverage of the Subway Fresh Fit 500k at Phoenix International Raceway is scheduled for Saturday, April 18, 2009.
TV: FOX at 8:30 pm/et; pre-race show at 8:00 pm/et; green flag approx 8:46pm/et
Radio: MRN Radio and Sirius XM Satellite NASCAR Radio
Scheduled Race Re-Airs: SPEED, Wednesday, April 21 at 12:00pm/et; - Martin wins pole at Phoenix: #5-Mark Martin won the Coors Light Pole Award for the Subway Fresh Fit 500k at Phoenix International Raceway with a lap of 133.814mph for his 3rd pole of 2009, 1st ever at Phoenix and 44th of his career [10th all time]. Martin has won 7 races from the pole in his career. #18-Busch qualified 2nd followed by #2-Busch, #24-Gordon, #83-Vickers, #14-Stewart, #98-Menard, #00-Reutimann, #78-Smith and #48-Johnson.
The non Top-35 drivers who made the race: #78-Smith, #82-Speed, #87-Nemechek, #71-Gilliland, #36-Riggs, #09-Marlin and #73-Raines.
The five drivers who failed to qualify: #64-Todd Bodine, #41-Mayfield, #51-Bean, #02-Ash and #06-Boys.
For qualifying order, results and starting lineup see my Phoenix Starting Lineup/Qualifying Page.(4-17-209) - Qualifying Fast Facts – Phoenix International Raceway:
Mark Martin won the Coors Light Pole Award for the SUBWAY Fresh Fit 500 with a lap of 26.903 seconds, 133.814 mph.
This is his 44th pole in 730 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his third pole and fifth top-10 start in 2009.
This is his first pole in 25 races at Phoenix International Raceway.
Kyle Busch (second) posted his seventh top-10 start of 2009 and his fourth in nine races at Phoenix International Raceway.
Kurt Busch (third) posted his eighth top-10 start at Phoenix International Raceway. It is his fifth in eight races this season.
Scott Speed (18th) was the fastest qualifying rookie.(NASCAR Statistics)(4-17-2009) - Pole Progression: (who had the pole first, who got it next and who ended up with it)
#47-Ambrose, 1st out to qualify, 132.402mph, starts 29th
#9-Kahne, 2nd out, 132.626, starts 21st
#16-Biffle, 8th out, 133.240, starts 13th
#5-Martin, 9th out, 133.814, starts 1st - J.D. Gibbs gives Joey Logano vote of confidence: Rumors earlier this month that Joe Gibbs Racing considered replacing #20-Joey Logano with Martin Truex Jr. didn’t reach Logano until Joe Gibbs told the rookie they weren’t true. “I like this saying: the brighter the spotlight on you, the more bugs it attracts,” Logano said. “The more people are going to talk about you, the more all that’s going to happen. … If people want to make stuff up that’s fine.” Since then, the organization has emphasized its confidence in the 18-year-old’s future. “Watching everything he’s done up to this point, he’s really gifted,” said J.D. Gibbs, president of Joe Gibbs Racing. “He’s the guy; we feel like he’s the guy of the future.” Tony Stewart’s departure from JGR one season before his contract expired caused the vacancy in the #20 Toyota. Gibbs said there was talk of keeping Logano longer in Nationwide, but Cup and Nationwide cars are too different. They knew 2009 would be a challenging year. “Before the year’s out we expect to be out front challenging, and next year we’d like to come out of the box and grow,” Gibbs said. “I don’t care who you are in this sport, you have to perform as a team or you won’t be here. There’s no franchising to guarantee a spot.”(Orlando Sentinel)(4-17-2009)
- Kahne set at RPM thru 2010: #9-Kasey Kahne Open Interview – Dodge Motorsports Transcript:
CAN YOU TALK ABOUT HOW THINGS ARE RIGHT NOW AT RICHARD PETTY MOTORSPORTS? ARE YOU HAPPY? ARE YOU EXPLORING OTHER OPTIONS? [Kahne] “I’m definitely not exploring other options. I have another year with Richard Petty Motorsports. The Gillett’s have been good to me since I came here. I made a commitment to them to race thru 2010, so I’ll do that for sure. I’ve told them from the start that if we can get our cars to where they’re right and we’re competitive with the best teams out here, then I don’t know why I’d ever want to move from that company. I like the people (at RPM). From the guys building the race cars in the shop, the engine guys to the guys painting the cars, I have a good relationship with everybody. For me to leave, I wouldn’t want to, but at the same time, I want to get a chance in some really good equipment too. I think that we’re working on that. If we get there, I’ll stay with RPM for a long time.”
WOULD YOU SAY THAT WOULD BE THE DECIDING FACTOR?
“Yeah, that’s my only factor. At the end of the day, I grew up racing Sprint cars and driving for my dad. When I had a chance to drive for Steve Lewis, it was a no-brainer. He had the best equipment that there was and I took it and we won a ton of races and basically nobody’s done that since in USAC as far as the Midget series goes or before. I just feel like that at some point, I want that opportunity and hopefully it can be right where we are at.”(Dodge Motorsports PR)(4-17-2009) - Coverage of Qualifying for the Subway Fresh Fit 500k at Phoenix International Raceway is scheduled for Friday, April 17, 2009 at 7:10pm/et.
TV: SPEED – 7:00pm/et
Radio: MRN Radio and Sirius XM Satellite NASCAR Radio
Jayski.com: Jayski’s FREE Semi-Live Qualifying Page
Qualifying Re-Air: none scheduled - Qualifying Order for the Subway Fresh Fit 500k at Phoenix International Raceway is posted. 48 cars/drivers are listed. Go-or-go homers will qualify at the end of the session, once the top-35 drivers are done. The first of the top-35 drivers scheduled to go out is #47-Ambrose, the final top-35 driver scheduled is #18-Busch. The first go-or-go homer scheduled to qualify [36th] is #71-Gilliland, and the final driver scheduled to qualify is #66-Blaney. See the full qualifying order on the Phoenix Qualifying Page.(4-17-2009)
- Happy Hour practice for the Subway Fresh Fit 500k at Phoenix International Raceway is over, the top five:
#48-Johnson 132.236
#42-Montoya 131.912
#24-Gordon 131.844
#14-Stewart 131.392
#2-Busch 131.329
slowest: #06-Boys 122.088 and #02-Ash 123.191
See best speeds, times, ave speeds and laps run on my Phoenix Practice Speeds Page.(4-17-2009) - Where did the non top-35 drivers practice in Happy Hour at Phoenix International Raceway:
if things stay the same, these eight drivers would make the race:
#78-Regan Smith, 7th fastest
#87-Joe Nemechek, 28th
#36-Scott Riggs, 33rd
#82-Scott Speed, 35th
#66-Dave Blaney, 36th
#71-David Gilliland, 39th
#64-Todd Bodine, 41st
#09-Sterling Marlin, 42nd
these drivers would miss the race if things stayed the same:
#73-Tony Raines, 43rd
#41-Jeremy Mayfield, 44th
#51-Dexter Bean, 46th
#02-Brandon Ash, 47th
#06-Trevor Boys, 48th
See best speeds, times, ave speeds and laps run on my Phoenix Practice Speeds Page.(4-17-2009) - First Friday practice for the Subway Fresh Fit 500k at Phoenix International Raceway is over, the top 5:
#48-Johnson, 130.392
#1-Truex Jr., 130.317
#14-Stewart, 130.265
#16-Biffle, 130.237
#17-Kenseth, 130.161
slowest: #06-Boys 117.867 and #02-Ash 123.512
incidents: #26-McMurray smacked the wall early and pancaked the side of his Ford.
Happy Hour practice is scheduled to run from 3:30 – 5:00pm/et.
See best speeds, times, ave speeds and laps run on my Phoenix Practice Speeds Page.(4-17-2009) - Where did the non top-35 drivers practice at Phoenix International Raceway:
if things stay the same, these eight drivers would make the race:
#66-Dave Blaney, 21st fastest
#87-Joe Nemechek, 26th
#73-Tony Raines, 29th
#71-David Gilliland, 32nd
#36-Scott Riggs, 35th
#41-Jeremy Mayfield, 39th
#78-Regan Smith, 40th
#64-Todd Bodine, 42nd
these drivers would miss the race if things stayed the same:
#82-Scott Speed, 43rd
#09-Sterling Marlin, 44th
#51-Dexter Bean, 46th
#02-Brandon Ash, 47th
#06-Trevor Boys, 48th
See best speeds, times, ave speeds and laps run on my Phoenix Practice Speeds Page.(4-17-2009) - American Monster to sponsor #71 at Phoenix UPDATE: the sponsor listed on the updated Phoenix Entry List for the #71 Chevy of David Gilliland is American Monster, a TV Show, a project that showcases successful, homegrown talent from a variety of arenas. More info at americanmonstertv.com. The announcement is expected sometime Friday. See images of the car on my #71 Team Schemes page.(4-17-2009)
UPDATE: American Monster has agreed to a deal with TRG Motorsports to become the primary sponsor on the #71 American Monster Chevy driven by David Gilliland. The car will debut this weekend at Phoenix International Raceway. American Monster is a television concept that will showcase successful, homegrown talent from a variety of competitive arenas. To be an American Monster is to defy the odds and compete at the highest levels relying on little more than your natural talent, innate abilities and pure determination. In 2009, each series will focus on athletes and talent from the Mixed Martial Arts, Monster Trucks, and NASCAR expanding to other sports in the near future. The show will give viewers a behind the scenes view on what it takes to compete against the world’s most sophisticated competition without any of the luxuries of huge budgets, or traditional means of support. The American Monster TV concept will be revealed on FOX Sports Net by the fourth quarter of 2009.
“The TRG Motorsports NASCAR on a Dime story of entering the most competitive racing series on the planet is exactly what the American Monster concept is all about,” Roger Dean, American Monster creator said. “We chose TRG Motorsports as the catalyst to introduce and publicize the American Monster brand. The car will be used as a 180 mph billboard to let people know what will be coming on the American Monster TV shows. We will also use the NASCAR venues to cross promote our other exciting program segments and brand lifestyle. American Monster’s creative partners Joe Iacono of Iacono Design Group and James Begera of WA007 will leverage the NASCAR audience to offer American Monster’s television viewers and advertisers added value by building a lifestyle brand of the future. American Monster will utilize David Gilliland and the sport to explain to everyone that an American Monster lives in all of us, but you have to have what it takes.”
TRG Motorsports team principal Kevin Buckler now has a few more dimes to continue running in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. “We have found a partner that really mirrors what we are all about at TRG Motorsports,” Buckler said. “The very definition of an American Monster is what we portray in our team. What we have been able to do, with 11 Monsters on the crew, against the large well funded teams has earned us a place in this sport. It was a huge risk to get involved when we did, but that risk is now rewarded with a great looking blue and silver #71 American Monster Chevrolet. The partnership with American Monster will help us to focus on increasing our level of competitiveness on the track as well as begin to incubate a fan following in NASCAR through a very cool merchandising program.”
Racer Management led by Bryan Houtchens in conjunction with The Hufco Pro-Motion Agency led by John Huffman worked with American Monster to find the appropriate team that fit the American Monster program with a lean, mean, and targeted approach in motorsports; thus culminating in the relationship between TRG Motorsports and American Monster as a predominant force within NASCAR for many years to come.(TRG PR)(4-17-2009) - MAPEI to make 2009 debut for Robby: The #7 Toyota of Robby Gordon will display the familiar yellow and blue MAPEI / Menards colors for the first time this season at Phoenix International Raceway. Saturday’s Subway Fresh Fit 500 will mark Gordon’s 14th start at the ultra-fast mile oval. He owns two top-10 finishes in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and also has one win in the CART Series at PIR. “We are also excited to have MAPEI return as a primary sponsor for Robby Gordon Motorsports this year. We expect good things from this car and our team for their 2009 debut this weekend,” commented Robby Gordon.(RGM PR)(4-17-2009)
- Hamlin, FedEx Racing Marching for Babies in Phoenix: The #11 FedEx Toyota Camry will sport an unfamiliar paint scheme this weekend at Phoenix International Raceway. Instead of the nearly all-black paint that Hamlin has driven to sixth place in the Cup standings, the FedEx team will unload a white and purple #11 FedEx Office/March for Babies Toyota this weekend – all in the name of charity. For the second consecutive year, Hamlin and team are raising awareness for the March for Babies – the March of Dimes’ largest annual fundraiser. Hamlin also will wear a helmet designed by Bernard “Sonny” VanBuskirk. Sonny is the son of FedEx Express employee Bernard VanBuskirk and was born seven weeks premature in 1998. Eleven years later, Sonny is a healthy, vibrant boy due to the March of Dimes and the medical care he received. VanBuskirk designed the helmet and his work was transferred on to the official race helmet by renowned helmet designer Jason Beam.(FedEx Racing PR), see an image of the scheme on my #11 Team Schemes page.(4-17-2009)
- RPM locks up Allmendinger UPDATE: Richard Petty Motorsports has picked up the option on #44-AJ Allmendinger’s contract, locking up the driver through 2010. According to multiple sources, Joe Gibbs Racing had inquired about Allmendinger’s status as they consider starting up a fourth team. RPM had an Aug. 15 deadline to pick up Allmendinger’s option for 2010.(FoxSports)(4-17-2009)
UPDATE: Richard Petty Motorsports announced today AJ Allmendinger will race for the team in the 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup season. “This was an easy decision for Richard Petty Motorsports,” said Tom Reddin, the team’s chief executive officer. “AJ has done a superb job, both on and off the track in 2009. We want to let everyone know that he’s going to be a vital part of Richard Petty Motorsports for what we believe will be a long-term, winning relationship.” The Petty team signed Allmendinger before the start of the 2009 season with plans to run the Bud Shootout and the first eight point races. Allmendinger finished fifth in the preseason Bud Shootout, and posted a third-place finish in the Daytona 500 and a ninth-place finish at Martinsville. He was the only driver without a guaranteed starting spot to qualify for all of the races in 2009. Sponsorship from Dodge, Hunt Brothers Pizza, Valvoline, Harrah’s, Super 8, the Paralyzed Veterans of America and Charter Communications extended Allmendinger’s schedule through the Sept. 12 Richmond race. Reddin said he is confident the team will secure the sponsorship needed to extend the number of races the 27-year-old Californian will run in 2009 for the full season. Allmendinger is 20th in points but only 104 points out of the 12th and final “Chase” position. “I’m thrilled about this,” Allmendinger said. “Racers are no different than anyone else. We like to know we have a job. I’m very thankful to be where I am and I expect we will keep running better and better each weekend. I think I have found a long-term home at Richard Petty Motorsports.”(RPM PR)(4-17-2009) - Biffle goes off road Racing: With the Nevada desert in Primm, NV as the backdrop, #16-Greg Biffle got behind the wheel of Ford’s newest truck, the Ford F-150 SVT Raptor R, after company engineers requested his feedback. An avid truck lover, Biffle jumped at the opportunity to go off-roading at a desert race for the first time in his life as part of this weekend’s “Terrible’s 250” Best in the Desert Racing Association event. “That is so much fun I might quit my day job, I’m not sure,” said Biffle after making two laps around the three-mile course. “That is certainly a thrill. I’ve never done something like that before and I can see why these guys do this on a weekly basis because it’s a kick in the pants. This thing is unbelievable. I’ve never been off the ground in a production truck. I’ve been off the ground in my sand car or something like that, but never anything like this. A jump like we made, I’d be a little nervous to jump that in my sand car, but it’s incredible. I can’t even begin to explain what that was like.” In addition to Biffle, Ford also invited Lindsey Weenk, driver of the Blue Thunder F-150 in the Monster Jam Truck Series, to test out the F-150 SVT Raptor. The truck, which will be available in showrooms later this summer, is being raced in all five BITD events this season by former Ford Rough Riders Steve Olliges and Rob MacCachren. Biffle spent about three hours in the desert driving and learning about the truck before flying to Phoenix, where he will be competing in Saturday night’s Sprint Cup Series race at Phoenix International Raceway.(Ford Racing site)(4-17-2009)
- Harvick visits Luke Air Force Base: #29-Kevin Harvick, on Thursday, visited hundreds of airmen at Luke Air Force Base. Harvick, partially sponsored by the Veteran of Foreign Wars, plays a key role in the Salute to the Military program at Phoenix International Raceway that began four years ago. In Thursday’s visit to the base, Harvick answered questions from the fans and signed autographs. “We’ve been fortunate to have a relationship with the VFW, and we’ve been able to do a lot of things like this,” said Harvick, also a team owner in the Nationwide and Camping World Truck series. “Today, it’s obviously great to be a part of the people who make it happen for us to live our lives how we’re able to live them. So we’re all pretty fortunate to live in a country like we do, and to be able to support the people who make the sacrifices to make sure we have that is pretty neat just to be a part of.” Col. Henry Reed was grateful for Harvick’s presence and involvement. “It really connects our airmen in a sport that is generally very, very popular amongst military, so whenever we get the opportunity to have a great driver like Kevin come out and interact with our airmen and their families, sign autographs, talks to their kids and answer questions, it’s a great morale boost,” he said. “You add into the fact that PIR and VFW gave us 2,000 tickets for these airmen . . . I’m continually amazed by the outstanding community support that we have here at Luke, and we’re blessed to have it.” PIP President Bryan Sperber said supporting the military and giving back to the community is a common theme of NASCAR: “I can tell you every driver and their teams, in their own way, support the U.S. military even when the cameras aren’t there. The entire sport is so proud of the job the U.S. military does, and it’s very easy for us to want to do everything that we can to say thank you and support them.”(Arizona Republic)(4-17-2009)
- Kenseth takes fan on test drive: Chuck Fountain, of Plymouth, Minn., got the test drive of his life Tuesday when reigning Daytona 500 champion Matt Kenseth took him for a ride around his hometown in a 2010 Ford Fusion and 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid. Fountain earned the visit from Kenseth after his name was drawn as part of Ford Racing’s yearlong “We Race. You Win.” national on-line sweepstakes. Each time a Ford driver wins a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points event this season, one lucky fan and a guest will win an all-expenses paid trip to Ford Championship Weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway from Nov. 20-22. During the race weekend, one of those fans will win the grand prize of a 2010 Ford Fusion. Kenseth’s visit and test drive was a one-time only event, and was a bonus Fountain appreciated. “It’s been an experience I’ll never forget. I feel very fortunate,” said Fountain. “Getting that first-hand experience really is what it’s all about. You can read an article about the Fusion in a magazine or on the Internet, but having that experience and hearing it from the experts, that’s really interesting. I know driving down here on (Route) 169, Matt was showing on the Fusion how the blind spot warning indicator on the side mirrors works. I had never seen that before. That was fascinating. He knows that car. He’s got one on order, for crying out loud.”(Ford Racing Site)(4-17-2009)
- Goodyear Tire Notes – Phoenix: Teams in both the NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series will run the same tire codes at Phoenix this week . . . this left-side tire (D-4240) is slightly different than the one run at Phoenix last season . . . this year’s left-side features a compound change to offer more grip . . . this tire set-up came out of a Goodyear tire test at Phoenix in mid-January . . . drivers participating in that test were A.J. Allmendinger (Dodge), Joey Logano (Toyota), Jamie McMurray (Ford) and Martin Truex Jr. (Chevrolet) . . . teams in these two series will also run this same combination of left- and right-side tires at Richmond in two weeks . . . as on most NASCAR ovals one mile or less in length, teams will not run inner liners in their tires at Phoenix. The estimated pit window (for Cup) is every 75-80 laps, based on fuel mileage (Goodyear PR), see pressures and more notes on the Phoenix Tace Info page – Goodyear Section.(4-17-2009)
- Vote-In Your Favorite Driver to All-Star race: Whoever receives the most votes will race in the All-Star Challenge on May 16th. Fans can also vote by texting the word “NASCAR” to “7777” on their Sprint Phones or by visiting a Sprint store. Voting begins April 14 and ends on May 16, 2009. Vote and more info at NASCAR.com or Sprint.com.(4-17-2009)
- Atwood to the hospital: #05-Casey Atwood was transported to a local hospital after a late race accident in Phoenix. He got out of the car under his own power. There are no current reports on his condition.(4-17-2009)
- Roush-Fenway looking for win #100: UPDATE: Roush Fenway Racing has 99 Nationwide Series wins in the books and a win this weekend could bring them to the century mark. The team hit the 100-win mark in the Sprint Cup Series at Dover in 2007 when Carl Edwards captured the victory. Jack Roush’s first Nationwide victory came at Rockingham with Mark Martin on February 27, 1993. Since then, a total of five drivers have constructed the 99 wins that Roush Fenway has racked up.(Roush Fenway PR)(3-31-2009)
UPDATE: It took 17 years, five drivers and 840 starts for Roush Fenway Racing to reach the century mark in the Nationwide Series. The team reached win number 100 in the Sprint Cup Series at Dover in 2007 with Carl Edwards and the #99 team. Now 2002 Nationwide Series champion Greg Biffle has the honor of claiming Roush Fenway’s 100th Nationwide win under the lights at Phoenix International Raceway, just two days before owner Jack Roush’s birthday.(Roush Fenway PR)(4-17-2009) - Bainey & the #00 Aaron’s Dream Team move to trucks: There’s a new team in the world of NASCAR…Tim Bainey Jr. will return behind the wheel of the #00 Aaron’s Dream Machine in 2009, but he’ll be trading in his car for a NASCAR Camping World Series Truck. The team will make their Debut May 29th at Dover International Speedway. Tim Jr. will pilot the #00 Aaron’s Lucky Dog Truck in a select number of events during the 2009 Season. Tim’s younger brother Dan Bainey will return for his 5th season as his Crew Chief of the #00 Aaron’s Dream Team. The #00 Aaron’s Dream Team plans to compete in the events at; Dover International Speedway May, O’Reilly Raceway Park, Bristol Motor Speedway, Iowa Speedway, & Martinsville Speedway.(Tim Bainey Jr. PR)(4-17-2009)
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