April 28, 2004
- Assoc for BAM? hearing that the #49 BAM Racing team has signed another major associate full season sponsor, AXA Financial.(4-28-2004)
- Cogswell to RCR? UPDATE 2 it’s official: hearing current #12 Fitz-Bradshaw Busch Series crew chief, Gary Cogswell, is leaving to go to Richard Childress Racing but not sure in what capacity. Tim Fedawa drives the #12 car.(4-21-2004)
UPDATE: Gary Cogswell has tendered his resignation as crew chief of the #12 FitzBradshaw team and driver Tim Fedewa and will take a similar position at Richard Childress Racing working with its part-time Busch and Cup teams, ThatsRacin.com has learned. Cogswell will work this weekend’s race at Talladega with Fedewa before he leaves. Fedewa is currently ninth in points. “While we wish Gary the very best of luck, we feel the team can continue to build on the positive momentum it has built so far,” said team co-owner Armando Fitz.(ThatsRacin.com)(4-22-2004)
UPDATE 2: Richard Childress Racing announced today the hiring of veteran crew chief Gary Cogswell to head up the #33 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet Monte Carlo of driver Kerry Earnhardt in the NASCAR Cup Series and the all-star cast of the #29 Employer Support of Guard and Reserve (ESGR) Chevy in the NASCAR Busch Series. Most recently, Cogswell served as crew chief for the #12 Chevrolet and Busch Series driver Tim Fedewa. Last season, Cogswell called the shots for Todd Bodine in NASCAR’s premier division with the #54 Ford.
“It’s an honor for me to be able to join RCR,” said Cogswell, a 13-year NASCAR veteran. “Most of the racing world, whether it be people who work on race teams, the casual fan or the serious fan, recognize RCR as one of the cornerstones of NASCAR. I was very flattered to be considered for this position and to be honest it really didn’t require much thought on my part to accept. This organization has been here so long and is so solidly planted into the sport that I feel like I’ll never have to look for another job.” Cogswell owns 14 NBS victories as a crew chief, as well as seven poles, 51 top-five and 85 top-10 finishes. A native of Holt, Mich., Cogswell began his professional racing career after moving south in 1991. “Gary has been a winning NASCAR crew chief for 10 years. We’re very excited to have him at RCR working on our ESGR and Bass Pro Shops programs,” said Richard Childress, president and CEO of Richard Childress Racing. “We’ve put together a strong team for those two programs and I know Gary will work very well with Bobby Hutchens (RCR’s general manager of competition team manager for the ESGR and Bass Pro Shops programs) and the crew. This move will only make the team stronger.”(RCR PR)(4-28-2004) - #31 Pit Crew Notches 2nd Win of Season; #8 Crew Takes Over Points Lead: The pit crew for Robby Gordon’s Chevrolet won the McDonald’s Drive-Thru Pit Championship fueled by POWERade in Sunday’s Aaron’s 499 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. The $20,000 victory was the second time Gordon’s Cingular Wireless pit crew took top honors this season. The other was at the March 4th race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The pit crew for Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished second in Talladega and moved into first place in the McDonald’s/POWERade season standings with 344 points, 10 more than the second place crew for Kurt Busch’s team. Elliott Sadler’s team is third with 329 points. The season champion will receive $200,000.
Gordon’s #31 Chevrolet spent the least amount of time on Talladega’s pit road — 255.107 seconds. Earnhardt’s Budweiser Chevy was close behind with a time of 264.364.
“I remember saying after their first McDonald’s/POWERade win this year the Team Cingular pit crew would be back on top more than once this year,” said Chris Andrews, Team Cingular crew chief. “Thank goodness they didn’t make a liar out of me. I suspected they were going to win or be real close to first by the end of the day Sunday because they really hit their marks all day long.
“I know there were three times Robby came down pit road outside of first place, but was in the lead by the time the guys sent him back out on the track. I didn’t make it easy on those guys either, because there was more than one time Sunday I didn’t make the final pit call for four or two tires until Robby was driving down pit road and those guys responded every time, not fumbling once.”
Gordon’s over-the-wall crew consists of: Ira-Jo Hussey (front-tire changer), Kevin Nervegna (front-tire carrier), Timmy Ladyga (rear-tire changer), Matt Kreuter (rear-tire carrier), Ron Liddell (gasman), Mike Moore (jackman) and Coy Hedrick (catch can).(DMF Communications PR). For the season standings, top 10 at Talladega, see my Pit Crew News page.(4-28-2004) - Hermie Sadler looking for sponsor: #02-Hermie Sadler and SCORE Motorsports are looking for a sponsor for this weekends Nextel Cup Series Auto Club 500 at California Speedway, as well as upcoming races in Richmond, Charlotte, and Dover. Anyone interested in primary and associate sponsorship opportunities should contact SCORE Motorsports at (434) 348-0267.(4-28-2004)
- Special Scheme for Rusty at California: #2-Rusty Wallace, driver of the Miller Lite Dodge, will beactive in sponsor Miller’s advertising push to be “President of Beers.” “Our Miller Lite Dodge will be carrying a special color scheme this weekend at California Speedway that reflects their latest advertising campaign,” said Wallace, who won two weeks ago at Martinsville, Va., to snap a victory drought of 105 races that dated back to his California win on April 29, 2001. “It’s a cool looking car and a real eye-catcher. The theme signals how determined Miller is to let consumers know that there’s a choice out there.” Miller’s latest ad campaign features television commercials urging beer drinkers to reject a monarchy (King of Beers) and instead consider a democracy in which Miller runs for “President of Beers.” See an image of the car on my #2 Team Paint Scheme Page.
AND – the Martinsville Car Name: got asked this question quite a bit this week so…..Martinsville winning car named “The Predator” — “We’ve been trying to get Bell to name one of their new models (helicopters) that for some time now,” Rusty explained. “The predator is the ultimate hunter and it strikes like nothing else. This was a brand new car that won right out of the box. The car never touched a race track until we got to Martinsville. That’s quite impressive.” The next race for the car will be Richmond, with the team scheduled to test there on May 5.(TRPR.com)(4-28-2004) - Hendrick Motorsports Fan Festival – May 26-28: As part of its 20th anniversary celebration, Hendrick Motorsports will host a fan festival at its Charlotte-based headquarters May 26-28 prior to the May 30 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series event at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Free and open to the public, the festival was designed as a way to thank fans for their support of the team since its 1984 inception. Scheduled to run 8:30am until 6:00pm each day, the event will include interactive games, show cars, sponsor displays, product sampling and autograph sessions from past and present Hendrick Motorsports drivers. Townsend’s Gourmet will sell food throughout the festival, with a portion of the proceeds benefiting The Hendrick Marrow Program. The 15,000-square-foot Hendrick Motorsports Museum will offer festival-goers a free-of-charge glimpse into HMS history, including championship trophies; three of Jeff Gordon’s #24 Chevrolets; Tim Richmond’s #25 Chevy; the very first #5 “All-Star Racing” car; and the “Days of Thunder” Lumina driven by Tom Cruise. The facility has recently been updated with new trophies, cars and other memorabilia. Lowe’s Motor Speedway will provide free festival parking, which can be accessed at “Lot Z” off Speedway Boulevard in Concord. Trams will be available to transport fans from the parking area to the festival grounds. For additional information, including directions and schedule updates, fans may visit www.HendrickMotorsports.com or call 877-467-4890 toll free.(Hendrick Motorsports PR)(4-28-2004)
- Tony Stewart Day: Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius and leaders from the state’s House of Representatives and Senate will declare April 28 “Tony Stewart Day” in Kansas. The 2002 NASCAR Champion and driver of the #20 Home Depot Chevrolet will speak before both houses of the Kansas Legislature and participate in a press conference with the governor, where she will present him with the official proclamation/resolution for “Tony Stewart Day.”(Kansas Speedway PR)(4-28-2004)
- #48 News? New Tire Changer: hearing the #48 Lowe’s Chevy team is looking for a new tire changer for Jimmie Johnson, not sure if anyone got let go or which tire changer position.(4-27-2004)
UPDATE: #48-Jimmie Johnson has a new rear tire changer starting this week, Shane Parsnow.(4-28-2004) - Testing at Infineon Raceway TODAY: hearing a few Nextel Cup teams will test at Infineon Raceway on April 27-28th, so far the drivers who plan to test include: #18-Bobby Labonte, #21-Ricky Rudd, #9-Kasey Kahne, #45-Kyle Petty and #16-Greg Biffle.(4-23-2004)
AND add #41-Casey Mears and #42-Jamie McMurray teams testing, supposedly Scott Pruett will also be testing, last year he ran the #39 Dodge. Also scheduled to test are #10-Scott Riggs and Klaus Graf in a 2nd [#69?] BAM Racing Dodge.(4-27-2004)
UPDATE – Pruett, McMurray Fastest During Test at Infineon Raceway: Road-course specialist #39-Scott Pruett and #42-Jamie McMurray posted the fastest time on Tuesday during a NASCAR NEXTEL Cup test session at Infineon Raceway. Pruett, who will compete for Chip Ganassi Racing at the Dodge/Save Mart 350 in June at Infineon Raceway, turned the newly repaved 12-turn, 1.99-mile road course in 1 minute, 16.2 seconds, 94.016mph , as did McMurray. Boris Said holds the official track record of 1:16.522 seconds 93.620mph, set in 2003. “The tires are not as big of an issue now with the track repaved,” said McMurray, who placed 20th in his first start at Infineon Raceway in 2003. “The track is real smooth and it’s going to be a lot faster, at least one second faster. I really enjoy coming to the road courses. It’s a nice change.”
The rest of the drivers and speeds:
#18-Bobby Labonte, 93.893mph
#41-Casey Mears, 93.647
#16-Greg Biffle, 93.623
#9-Kasey Kahne, 93.039
#45-Kyle Petty, 92.498
#22-Scott Wimmer, 91.787
#21-Ricky Rudd, time unavailable #59-Klaus Graf, time unavailable All times were supplied by the race teams.(Infineon Raceway PR)(4-28-2004) - Waltrip does not plan to run all the races: Michael Waltrip, who leads the Busch Series standings, says he does not plan to run the entire Busch schedule. Waltrip says he’ll re-evaluate his plans after Charlotte in late May.(Roanoke Times)(4-28-2004)
- BACE Motorsports Searches for Sponsorship for 2004 Season: BACE Motorsports, who fields the #74 Busch Series ride for Tony Raines, is looking for primary sponsorship to finish out open dates on the 2004 Busch Series schedule. In its second year with BACE, The Outdoor Channel expanded its partial schedule from 13 to 20 races in key markets, leaving a block of high-visibility Busch Series events open to corporations looking for a cost-effective entry into NASCAR with a championship-caliber team. BACE will take a two-week hiatus from the series, returning to carry The Outdoor Channel colors in Richmond on May 14th. Richmond will be one of the 12 events remaining on The Outdoor Channel schedule, and they are anxious to return to a venue that saw Raines charge to a 3rd place finish from his 28th place starting spot. The Memorial Day weekend event in Charlotte and the night race in Daytona headline an attractive block of races available to sponsors interesting in partnering with the three-time Busch Series champs. Indianapolis, the Richmond return, Kansas, Memphis, Atlanta and Phoenix are also available. In just 16 Busch Series starts over the past two seasons, Raines has piloted The Outdoor Channel Chevrolet to two top-five and six top-10 finishes, including a second place finish at Bristol in March 2003. With crew chief Mark Tutor returning for his second season at BACE and virtually the same supporting cast, Raines is focused on turning top-10s and 5s into wins for BACE in 2004. After Richmond, Raines remaining scheduled races in the #74 will be at Nashville Superspeedway (6/12) followed by Kentucky (6/19), Chicago (7/10), Michigan (8/21), Bristol (7/27), California (9/4), Dover (9/25), Charlotte (10/15), Darlington (11/13) and Homestead-Miami (11/20), with an additional race to be determined.
In addition to its search for sponsorship for remainder of the 2004 Busch Series schedule, BACE continues to pursue the corporate partnerships that will return the #74 NEXTEL Cup Series entry to competition. In 2003 Raines posted an impressive rookie campaign. BACE scored 15 top-25 finishes in 35 starts, highlighted by a 6th-place finish at Rockingham and 13th-place run in the season finale in Miami. For sponsorship inquiries, please contact BACE Motorsports at 704-944-7619.(BACE PR)(4-28-2004)
Main Page | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997