May 4, 2007
- Final Talladega TV Ratings down: Fox’s broadcast of last Sunday’s Aaron’s 499 Nextel Cup race at Talladega Superspeedway earned a final Nielsen Media Research rating of 5.4 and a 14 market share, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily reports. While the race was the most-watched sports event of the weekend, the figures were 28.9% lower than the 7.6/18 the race earned in 2005, the last time it aired on Sunday. Last year’s race was rained out on Sunday and carried on Fox’s FX cable station on a Monday. The Daily also reported that ABC’s broadcast of last Saturday’s Aaron’s 312 Busch Series race earned a 2.1/6.(SpeedDaily.com), for more on TV Ratings, see my 2007 TV Ratings page.(5-4-2007)
- Nadeau to Drive in Portuguese 24-Hour Event: Former NASCAR driver Jerry Nadeau will make a triumphant return behind the wheel of a racing machine as part of EnduranceKarting.coms Team USA in the 24 Hour race at Leira, Portugal June 1-3. “I am so looking forward to racing again, Nadeau says. I feel great, and I am ready to go out there and be competitive and driving against some of the top European teams”. Nadeau, Schwartz and teammates Dan Burke, Peter Peters, Kevin Bligan and a sixth driver yet to be announced will pilot full-bodied karts powered by Honda 390 cc, 15-horsepower engines. The karts are the same as those used in Brazils famous Granja Viana 500 Mil.(EnduranceKarting.com)(5-4-2007)
- Kyle Busch buys into Truck team? UPDATE denied: hearing that #5-Kyle Busch has bought 49% of the Billy Ballew Motorsports #15 Craftsman Truck Series team.(5-4-2007)
UPDATE: folks from Kyle Busch Motorsports have informed me that neither Kyle Busch nor KBM has purchased any part of Ballew’s team, shop, trucks or equipment. However, he will be driving a handful of truck races for Ballew this season.(5-4-2007) - Jeff Gordon wins 1st qtr Driver of the Year award: While Jeff Gordon was making NASCAR history the four-time Driver of the Year was also was voted 1st quarter Driver of the Year 2007. Only Gordon, who currently leads the Nextel Cup points standings after two straight victories putting him fifth on the all-time winner’s list and ahead of the late Dale Earnhardt (also a Driver of the Year), had his mind on a fifth championship and a fifth Driver of the Year title. Although he overtook Earnhardt (with 77 wins) this past weekend in Talladega, voting only considered results through the previous event at Phoenix where he won his 76th Cup race from the pole. Gordon led the points after the first eight events in the series with only two finishes lower than fourth. Driving the #24 DuPont Chevrolet he had four poles, and three second-place finishes in the voting period. The only multiple winner in the series, and runner-up in the voting, was Jimmie Johnson with three victories but, it was an up and down quarter for the 2006 Driver of the Year. In the voting Gordon took nine first-place ballots, and none lower than a third place totaling 111 points. Jimmie Johnson’s three wins earned him six first-place votes and a total of 84 points. France’s Sebastien Bourdais, the reigning Champ Car World Series Champion, had no first-place votes, but was the only driver to appear all voting panelists ballots and counted a total of 54 points. Bourdais, drives for Newman/Haas Racing. Fourth place went to NASCAR’s Jeff Burton who won at Texas, and was second in the Nextel Cup Points standings at the end of the first quarter. A total of 21 drivers scored points in the first quarter voting, including fifth place Joey Saldana, in the World of Outlaws, he was the only other driver to earn a first place vote.(DOTY PR)(5-4-2007)
- Despain Special: Wonderboy or the Intiminator: As part of its weeklong All-Star programming lineup leading up to the Nextel All-Star Challenge, SPEED will deliver a special episode of Wind Tunnel with Dave Despain. The 90-minute special, entitled “Wonderboy or The Intimidator … Who’s Better?” will air live at 7:00pm/et on Wed., May 16, as Despain brings in experts to compare the careers of the sport’s ultimate all stars — Dale Earnhardt and Jeff Gordon. Despain will lead an all-star panel discussion, with early confirmations from team owner Rick Hendrick and former drivers Darrell Waltrip and Rusty Wallace. Wallace, the 1989 Nextel Cup Series champion and current ESPN broadcaster, and Waltrip, a three-time Nextel Cup Series champion and current FOX/SPEED broadcaster, will each make the case for the driver of their choice.(SPEED PR)(5-4-2007)
- Jim Beam partners with NADCP: Beam Global Spirits & Wine, a global leader in premium spirits and wine, announced a ground-breaking partnership with the National Association of Drug Court Professionals (NADCP) to help eliminate hard core and repeat drunk driving. A founding partner of the National Center for DWI Courts, Beam Global donated $50,000 to underscore its commitment to eliminating drunk driving. Members of Congress, traffic safety experts, DWI Court judges and prosecutors and law enforcement officials assembled today to support the launch of the National Center for DWI Courts. Professional race car drivers and long time supporters of the fight against drunk driving -Michael Andretti and Robby Gordon – participated to bring awareness to the life-saving efforts of DWI Courts. Michael Andretti and Robby Gordon are long-standing supporters of Beam Global’s efforts to fight drunk driving. They have appeared together in public service announcements that urge the public to consume adult beverages responsibly.(Ketchum Sports PR)(5-4-2007)
- Jeff Gordon wins pole at Richmond: #24-Jeff Gordon won the Budweiser Pole for the Crown Royal Presents The Jim Stewart 400 at Richmond International Raceway with a speed of 126.251mph. for his 5th pole of 2007, his third pole in a row, and the 61st of his career. The rest of the top 10 are #99-Edwards, #10-Riggs, #48-Johnson, #9-Kahne, #11-Hamlin, #8-Earnhardt, Jr., #1-Truex, Jr., #01-Martin, and #22-Blaney. The non-top 35 teams that made the race were #10-Riggs, #22-Blaney, #84-Allmendinger, #00-Reutimann, #4-W. Burton, #78-K. Wallace, #46-Johnny Benson (driving for Wyler Racing), and #15-Menard. #44-Jarrett was 47th fastest and was out of past champion provisionals. He missed his first race in 424 races. See the qualifying results/starting lineup on my Starting Lineup/Qualifying Results/Order Page.(5-4-2007)
- Seven do not qualify for the Subway Fresh Fit 500k at Phoenix International Raceway: #83-Vickers, #21-Schrader, #55-Waltrip, #36-Mayfield, #3-Jarrett, #37-Lepage, and #49-Bliss.(5-4-2007)
- Qualifying Notes: Jeff Gordon won the Bud Pole for the Crown Royal presents The Jim Stewart 400, lapping Richmond International Raceway in 21.386 seconds at 126.251 mph.
.. This is Gordon’s 61st Bud Pole 483 career NASCAR NEXTEL Cup races. He remains fourth on the all-time Bud Pole winners list – nine behind third place Cale Yarborough (70).
.. This is Gordon’s fifth Bud Pole and eighth top-10 start in 2007. He also started first at Texas Motor Speedway when qualifying was canceled.
.. This is Gordon’s fifth Bud Pole at Richmond. He has started from the top 10 in 23 of his 29 races here.
.. The most recent driver to win three consecutive Bud Poles was Ryan Newman, who posted four in a row from Oct. 16, through Nov. 7, 2004.
.. Carl Edwards (second) posted just his third top-10 start of the 2007 season and his best since he won the Bud Pole for the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2005.
.. Scott Riggs (third) has started from the top 10 in seven races this season, including each of the past three. This is his best start since he started second at Homestead in 2006.
.. Dale Jarrett failed to qualify, ending a streak of 424 consecutive races that dated to North Wilkesboro on Oct. 2, 1994.(NASCAR PR)(5-4-2007) - Ramblings – Richmond Qualifying Notes: Jeff Gordon took the Bud Pole tonight for tomorrow night’s Crown Royal presents the Jim Stewart 400 at Richmond International Raceway…and he made it a three-peat. His time of 21.386 (126.251 mph) was good enough for his 5th top-spot of the season and 61st of his Nextel Cup career.
Carl Edwards (2nd) has his best starting spot since he had the pole at Homestead in November of 2005.
Scott Riggs (3rd) has his best starting spot since he had the outside pole at Homestead in November of 2006.
A. J. Allmendinger (13th) has his career-best starting spot this weekend. His previous best was 40th at Martinsville last month.
David Reutimann (14th) ties his career-best starting position. He also started 14th last week at Talladega.
Welcome Back Johnny Benson (31st). This is his first start since Atlanta in October of 2005 when he lined up 19th and finished 28th.
Got a first this week. All five Rookie of the Year Candidates have made the field….first time this season we’ve seen that.
STREAKIN….Jeff Gordon has 7 Top-5 starts in a row.
Denny Hamlin has 6 Top-10 starts in a row.
Jimmie Johnson has 6 Top-10 starts in the last 7 races.
Well, Dale Jarrett lost his best friend this weekend (the Champions Provisional) and he’s on the Trouble Train out of town early. The DNQ’s this week were: Brian Vickers, Ken Schrader, Michael Waltrip, Jeremy Mayfield, Jarrett, Kevin Lepage, and Mike Bliss.
(Stock Car Fans)(5-4-2007) - Richmond Goodyear Tire Notes:: Both the Nextel Cup and Busch Series will run the same tire codes at Richmond this weekend . . . teams in these two series ran this tire setup with great results just two weeks ago at Phoenix . . . this exact combination is also scheduled to be run at New Hampshire June 29-July 1 . . . as on most NASCAR ovals one mile or less in length, teams will not run inner liners in their tires at Richmond. Estimated Pit Window for the Cup cars are every 85-95 laps, based on fuel mileage.(Goodyear PR), see the full notes/report on my Richmond Race Info page.(5-4-2007)
- King [Petty] to meet the Queen [of England]: Great Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II won’t be the only royalty at the Kentucky Derby on Saturday. Richard Petty, otherwise known as “King Richard” in NASCAR circles, will fly to the Derby to meet with Queen Elizabeth after a special invitation from Kentucky Gov. Ernie Fletcher. Petty then will return to Richmond International Raceway in time for Saturday night’s Nextel Cup race in which he has two cars, the #43 of Bobby Labonte and #45 of Kyle Petty. The Queen was in Richmond on Thursday to address the Virginia General Assembly. She and Prince Phillip, Duke of Edinburgh, then went to Jamestown to help commemorate the 400th anniversary of America’s first permanent colony.(ESPN.com)(5-4-2007)
- Gordon to carry special banner at RIR: Jeff Gordon will proudly carry a special banner with cops.KEVLAR.com on the rear TV panel of the #24 DuPont car during this week’s Crown Royal 400 race at the Richmond International Raceway. DuPont has created the cops.KEVLAR.com Web site and a companion toll-free number, 1.877.COP.9606, to help raise awareness for the future National Law Enforcement Museum and encourage contributions to the Museum’s fundraising campaign. Jeff will also show his support for the law enforcement community and the Museum through a public service announcement that will be highlighted throughout the race weekend. During the pre-race activities on Saturday, DuPont will present a check for $250,000 to the National Law Enforcement Museum fund.(Ogilvy PR)(5-4-2007)
- Reese’s 2007 debut on the #29 at RIR: Reese’s, a major associate sponsor RCR’s #29 Chevy, kicks into high gear this weekend in Richmond as Kevin Harvick and the #29 team transform their bright yellow-and-red Shell-Pennzoil Chevy into a bright orange Reese’s racing machine for the Crown Royal 400.(RCR PR), see an image of the scheme on my #29 Team Schemes page.(5-4-2007)
- Richmond Rookie of the Year notes: #6-David Ragan was the Raybestos Rookie of the Race in the April 29 Aaron’s 499 at Talladega Superspeedway. Ragan posted a 17th-place finish and was the only Raybestos Rookie to lead a lap in the race, holding the top spot once for one lap. He took top rookie honors for the fifth time in nine races this season. Juan Pablo Montoya leads David Ragan by four points (100-96) in the Raybestos Rookie standings entering the May 5 Crown Royal 400 at Richmond International Raceway. Montoya is 19th in the Nextel Cup Series championship standings, best of any Raybestos Rookie. Since 1975, Brian Vickers (2004) and Morgan Shepherd (1981) are the only Raybestos Rookies to win a pole for the spring race at Richmond. Since 1980, just seven Raybestos Rookies have led a lap in the spring race at Richmond. See the full rookie report on my Rookies page.(5-4-2007)
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