April 30, 2008
- Here he comes, here comes Speed Racer…on the #43 IMAGES added: This weekend at Richmond, the #43 Petty Enterprises Dodge of Bobby Labonte will sport a special paint scheme to promote the new movie, Speed Racer, which opens across the country May 9. The paint scheme is reflective of Speed Racer’s Mach 5, the car driven by the character in both the classic 1960s animated series and the new live action family film. Labonte: “I appreciate NASCAR allowing us to have a little extra ‘speed’ this weekend. It’s really cool to have the new Speed Racer movie on the side of the #43 Dodge for Richmond. Any young boy that grew up in the ’70s watched Speed Racer. I know I did. To a kid that dreamed of growing up to be a racecar driver, that was the coolest show on television. They haven’t given me a sneak preview yet, but I’m sure I’ll check it out in the theaters.”(Petty Racing/MCG Sports), add some cool images of the scheme to my Paint Scheme Gallery.(4-30-2008)
- Kvapil gets sponsor for Richmond: Yates Racing announced that Discount Tire, America’s largest independent tire retailer, will sponsor the #28 entry with driver Travis Kvapil for this weekend’s Crown Royal Presents the Dan Lowry 400 at Richmond International Raceway on Saturday, May 3rd. “This has been such a tremendous week for our #28 team,” stated Kvapil. “We just left Talladega with our best finish of the season so far, and now we have Discount Tire as our sponsor for Richmond this weekend. There’s a lot of momentum right now at Yates Racing, and thanks to all the wonderful sponsors we’ve enjoyed partnerships with already this year, we’re very grateful that companies recognize our increased performance both on and off the track. Discount Tire is a fantastic company and I am proud that they chose to partner with our #28 team at Richmond.” Saturday night’s race will mark the first time Discount Tire has been a primary sponsor in Sprint Cup Series. Discount Tire has been a sponsor in the Nationwide Series since 2004. Discount Tire provides sales of tires, wheels and related accessories and services through mail order, Internet and retail stores. They currently operate more than 650 stores across the country.(Yates Racing)(4-30-2008)
- No #21 driver named yet for RIR UPDATE Jon Wood in: The Wood Brothers have not announced who will drive for its [#21 Ford] car this week at Richmond, but Bill Elliott is scheduled to drive for the team at Darlington Raceway the following weekend.(Roanoke Times), Schrader?(4-28-2008)
UPDATE: Jon Wood will drive the #21 Air Force Ford Fusion at this weekend’s Sprint Cup event at the Richmond International Raceway. The 26 year old driver will be attempting to qualify for his second start of the 2008 season, after qualifying 12th at Talladega Superspeedway last week.(Wood Brothers Racing)(4-30-2008) - BB&T colors return on the #07: After showcasing a DIRECTV paint scheme the last two races, Clint Bowyer’s #07 Chevy will be wrapped in burgundy and gold BB&T colors this weekend in Richmond. Jack Daniel’s, Bowyer’s mainstay primary sponsor, will be featured on the car’s lower-rear quarter panels and deck lid. BB&T is the primary sponsor of Bowyer’s #2 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS in the Nationwide Series and also sponsored the #07 at Martinsville in March.(RCR), see images of the scheme on my #07 Team Schemes page.(4-30-2008)
- Stewart/Yocum to help Shephard at Richmond: Morgan Shepherd’s Faith Motorsports Dodge will hopefully be making a lot more trips around the Richmond International Raceway this weekend, thanks to the generosity of two of the veteran driver’s modern-day heroes. Two-time Sprint Cup Champion #20-Tony Stewart and broadcaster Matt Yocum will provide tire sponsorship to the #89 team this weekend in an effort to help Shepherd build on last week’s 13th place run at Talladega. Shepherd was a surprise call-in guest to the Tony Stewart Live radio show on SIRIUS NASCAR Radio on Monday evening, and before the conversation between Shepherd and the two hosts was over the duo had come aboard as tire sponsors for Friday night’s Lipton Tea 250 at Richmond. “You say you need some tires for this weekend,” Yocum said during the interview. “How about if Smoke and I each buy you a set of tires.” Stewart and Yocum said they would each set Shepherd up with a set of tires for this weekend’s 250-lap event at the .75-mile track at the Virginia State Fairgrounds. Stewart followed up by saying he would provide as many tires as Shepherd might need this weekend. Stewart went on to talk about how many modern-day fans of NASCAR don’t appreciate the personal dedication that Shepherd and many other racers from his era put into the sport. “I know how much you put into it personally and I can appreciate it,” Stewart said. “We’ll make sure you have plenty of tires for this weekend.”(PR)(4-30-2008)
- Dale Earnhardt honored at Dale Earnhardt Day: The Hershey Company honored the life and career of racing legend Dale Earnhardt with the unveiling of a replica of a large fan photo mosaic during the Dale Earnhardt Day celebration in Mooresville, N.C. on Tuesday. Bearing Earnhardt’s likeness, the 6-foot-tall, 8-foot-wide mosaic is comprised of approximately 1,400 photos from fans across the country, including actress Carmen Electra, racing team owner Richard Childress and drivers Mark Martin and Martin Truex Jr. The mosaic, previewed to fans, will serve as a permanent tribute to “The Intimidator” at Dale Earnhardt Inc. (DEI) headquarters in Mooresville when completed later this year. In recognition of Earnhardt’s impact on the racing world, Hershey is paying tribute to Dale Earnhardt by producing a series of Collector Edition Dale Earnhardt Hershey’s Milk Chocolate Bars, Hershey’s Milk Chocolate with Almonds Bars and Kit Kat Wafer Bars. The specially moulded bars feature a distinctive on-bar design, including Earnhardt?s signature and stylized #3. The Collector Edition bars will be available at select retail outlets nationwide while supplies last. Hershey is also encouraging fans to honor the racing legend by inviting them to visit www.hersheys.com/dale to upload a photo for inclusion in the permanent mosaic and to make a donation to The Dale Earnhardt Foundation. Fans can still upload their photos and tribute messages through June 3 for inclusion in the final mosaic.(PR)(4-30-2008)
- Kvapil gets sponsor for Darlington: Fayetteville’s [NC] Lafayette Ford will sponsor driver #28-Travis Kvapil in the May 10 Sprint Cup race at Darlington Raceway. Lafayette Ford and the #28 car have a vaunted history. Fred Lorenzen, NASCAR’s “Golden Boy” of the 1960s, scored virtually all of his wins with sponsorship from the dealership while driving for the Holman-Moody team. In 1964, he won five consecutive starts, with the last being the Rebel 300 at Darlington.(Fayetteville Observer)
AND: Yates Racing announced that LaFayette Ford, who sponsored the #28 with driver Fred Lorenzen from 1962-1967, will again sponsor the #28 entry but this time with driver Travis Kvapil for the Sprint Cup series race at Darlington Raceway on May 10th. Kvapil’s #28 will sport a paint scheme reminiscent to that of Fred Lorenzen’s during the 60’s when LaFayette Ford sponsored Lorenzen’s #28 machine. The Darlington 500 will mark the first time LaFayette Ford has served as a primary sponsor in the Sprint Cup Series since the dealership was associated with Lorenzen. LaFayette Ford is proud to be Fayetteville, North Carolina’s only family-owned and operated Ford dealer. They have been serving the Fayetteville, Fort Bragg, and surrounding areas since 1949.(Yates Racing)(4-30-2008) - PRN-MRN dispute over New Hampshire continues: With fewer than two months before Sprint Cup cars take to the New Hampshire Motor Speedway oval, there is no resolution on the question of which radio network will broadcast the events. The dispute between Motor Racing Network and Performance Racing Network for the radio rights for New Hampshire races will remain in U.S. District Court in New Hampshire for the time being. Both sides had filed lawsuits over the rights, which stem from the sale of the track from the Bahre family to Speedway Motorsports Inc. earlier this year. The track has a contract with MRN, which is owned by International Speedway Corp, a track-operating rival of Speedway Motorsports. Speedway Motorsports owns PRN and wants PRN to broadcast its events. PRN filed suit in New Hampshire a day before MRN sued PRN in Florida in March. PRN claims the contract is unenforceable. An injunction hearing was scheduled for today in Florida state court, but it has been postponed because the New Hampshire case was filed first. MRN has now asked for the U.S. District Court in New Hampshire to issue an injunction to allow it to broadcast the events this year. No hearing date has been set. The NASCAR race weekends are June 27-29 and Sept. 12-14. MRN’s contract with NHIS requires it to give the track 25 percent of all advertising revenues. That has resulted in revenues of more than $750,000 for the track in the last seven years, according to court records. That would mean that MRN has taken in approximately $3 million in advertising revenue for New Hampshire events the last seven years, averaging approximately $429,000 a year.(SceneDaily)(4-30-2008)Comment here
- ESPN Wins Seven Sports Emmy Awards AND Fox: ESPN won seven Sports Emmy Awards, presented by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences last night in New York, including ESPN.com taking all three of the “New Approaches” categories for online and broadband entries. “The Sports Emmys we received reflect the rich diversity of offerings across ESPN and our ability to not only cover and report on sports, but to inform, entertain and inspire, both on television and online,” said George Bodenheimer, President, ESPN and ABC Sports. ESPN.com was honored for “Ray of Hope” (Long Form), Fantasy Football Now (Coverage) and “Death Race 2007” (General Interest). NASCAR returned to ABC, ESPN and ESPN2 last year, and the three networks shared the Emmy for Technical Team Remote. ESPN won 17 Sports Emmys for its NASCAR coverage in the 1990s. Also, College GameDay was cited in the Studio Show Weekly category, Sunday NFL Countdown’s “Fear” took top honors among Short Features and Ali’s 65 won in Editing. ESPN has now won 14 Sports Emmys in the Feature category, including seven in the last six years. Overall, ABC has now won 160 Sports Emmy Awards since they were first given in 1980, while ESPN has won 123 in 21 years of eligibility.(ESPN)(4-29-2008)
AND FOX Sports led all broadcast networks with five Sports Emmy Awards, including two major honors for outstanding sports series and sports special. The winners were announced last night [4/28] during the 29th Annual Sports Emmy Awards by The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences at ceremonies held in New York. NASCAR on FOX won two statuettes, one for Outstanding Live Sports Series and one for Outstanding Technical Team Remote. In its seven seasons of coverage, NASCAR on FOX has been recognized for Outstanding Sports Series three times and this year’s recognition brings the series Emmy total to 12. Since its inception in 1994, FOX Sports’ has won 76 Emmy Awards.(Fox PR)(4-30-2008) - Raybestos Rookie Notes for Richmond: Patrick Carpentier was the Raybestos Rookie of the Race in the Aaron’s 312 at Talladega. Carpentier claimed an eighth-place finish, his third top-10 finish in three Nationwide Series starts and claimed top Raybestos Rookie honors for the second time in 2008.
Dario Franchitti holds a 37-point lead (89-52) over Bryan Clauson in the Raybestos Rookie standings entering the Lipton Tea 250 at Richmond.
DID YOU KNOW? Franchitti has led the Raybestos Rookie standings for the past eight consecutive races.
Juan Pablo Montoya was the Raybestos Rookie of the Race in the 2007 Lipton Tea 250, posting an 11th-place finish.
Since the Raybestos Rookie program was created in 1989, two Raybestos Rookies have won pole positions for the spring race at Richmond (19 races): Wayne Grubb (1998) and Kyle Busch (2004).(Raybestos PR)(4-30-2008) - Roush Fenway drivers testing at Caraway: Hearing that Roush Fenway Racing drivers Colin Braun and John Wes Townley are testing today (Wednesday April 30) at Caraway Speedway in Asheboro, N.C. Braun is driving the #6 Con-way Freight Ford. Townley, who will make his NCTS debut in Mansfield on May 24, is testing the #09 Zaxby’s Ford.(4-30-2008)
- Wood to drive #21 at RIR: Jon Wood will drive the #21 Air Force Ford Fusion at this weekend’s Sprint Cup event at the Richmond International Raceway. The 26 year old driver will be attempting to qualify for his second start of the 2008 season, after qualifying 12th at Talladega Superspeedway last week.(Wood Brothers Racing PR)(4-30-2008)
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