Jimmie Johnson didn't have the car to beat until late in the Goody's 500 on Sunday, but that he emerged at the right time should have been no surprise.
After all, he is Mr. Martinsville.
Johnson nudged Denny Hamlin aside in the third and fourth turns with 15 laps to go at Martinsville Speedway, and gave team owner Rick Hendrick a perfect place to celebrate the 25th anniversary of his first victory in NASCAR's premier series: Victory Lane.
Johnson and Hamlin had differing views of the pass that gave Johnson his fifth victory in the last six races on NASCAR's smallest, trickiest track. Hamlin said it was a bump and standard short-track fare, while Johnson thought the video would change Hamlin's opinion.
On the pass, Johnson caught Hamlin and got inside him on the backstretch on the 485th lap. From the outside, Hamlin tried to cut down in front of Johnson, bringing the contact.
Johnson gathered control and grabbed the lead, while Hamlin kept his car from hitting the wall and tried to give chase, but Johnson pulled away easily and coasted to the victory.
"If he wants to think that I tried moving him out of the way, he can believe that, but he should watch the video and see that I was inside of him," Johnson said. "I did everything I could to miss him - climbed up on the curb - and he was still coming down.
"The only reason we touched and the only reason he ended up in the rubber where he couldn't come back and get me was the fact that he chopped me," he added. "I patiently worked to get that spot, to get the position inside of him, and he crowded me on the bottom."
Hamlin said he bore no ill will, but will look forward to a chance to reciprocate.
"I would have done the same to him and if it comes back around, I will do the same thing." he said. "It's just the way it is. At Martinsville, you've got to battle for every inch."
No one, clearly, does that better than Johnson.
Dubbed "Mr. Martinsville" by Jeff Gordon, Johnson won for the fifth time in the last six races here and for the sixth time overall, second among active drivers to Gordon's seven.
And he did it by biding his time, falling back in the pack early in the race to get his car right, and then using the improved car and some slick work in the pits to make it pay.
The victory was the 18th for Hendrick Motorsports at Martinsville, where a victory by Geoff Bodine 25 years ago gave the fledgling company a needed boost, and the 10th in the last 13 races. Johnson has won six of those, and Gordon has won the other four.
Hendrick, who missed that first win, gave Johnson a bear hug in Victory Lane.
Johnson's 41st career victory came after Gordon, who led 147 laps, and then Hamlin, who led 296, dominated for most of the race, and after it looked like Hamlin had outfoxed him.
After Johnson took the lead coming out of the pits with 72 laps to go, Hamlin ducked inside him on a restart with 45 laps to go. The move gave the Virginia native the position he needed to take the lead, and he held onto it through three restarts until 15 laps remained.
Hamlin, the defending race champion, never challenged Johnson after he slid high into the banking after the winning pass, and his winless streak extended to 32 races.
Hamlin recovered to finish second in his Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, followed by Tony Stewart, Gordon and Clint Bowyer. Ryan Newman was sixth with Mark Martin and Dale Earnhardt Jr. next, giving Hendrick four of the top eight spots and Stewart-Haas Racing two.
Stewart, who had the best view of the duel for the lead, was disappointed the leaders' battle and contact didn't give him a chance to take advantage, but thrilled nonetheless.
"We're inching up closer," said Stewart, a first-year owner who also owns Newman's car.
Gordon, who started on the pole for the eighth time at the track when qualifying was rained out and the starting lineup was set by the point standings, ran in the top five for most of the day, but still saw his winless streak extend to a career-high 47 races.
Gordon remained the points leader by 89 over Bowyer.
"I'm not really concerned with this streak of how many wins we haven't had in a row," Gordon said. "I am more concerned with what we have to do this year to win races and win this championship. You certainly don't want to give that No. 48 (Johnson) momentum."
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Friday, March 27, 2009
RACE LINEUP-Goody's Fast Pain Relief 500 | Martinsville Speedway
Due to qualifying being rained out the starting lineup for Sunday's Goody's Fast Pain Relief 500 at Martinsville will be determined by owners points. This would have been the first race of the season where the top 35 in points would have been guaranteed a starting position and everyone outside of the top 35 would have to make their way in on speed. Although the top 43 in points were used in this case it still goes to show how important it is to have a solid position in the points. the higher you are in points the better your starting position. Martinsville is another short track so track position is very important. It will only be a very short time before the leader gets into lap traffic and starts putting the field a lap down. There is a very high chance of rain still in the forecast for the weekend and the drivers,owners and crews hope to get both practice sessions in on Saturday.
1 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet
2 2 Kurt Busch Dodge
3 33 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet
4 18 Kyle Busch Toyota
5 99 Carl Edwards Ford
6 9 Kasey Kahne Dodge
7 14 Tony Stewart Chevrolet
8 11 Denny Hamlin Toyota
9 48 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet
10 17 Matt Kenseth Ford
11 00 David Reutimann Toyota
12 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet
13 31 Jeff Burton Chevrolet
14 83 Brian Vickers Toyota
15 42 Juan Montoya Chevrolet
16 44 A.J. Allmendinger Dodge
17 19 Elliott Sadler Dodge
18 16 Greg Biffle Ford
19 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet
20 1 Martin Truex Jr. Chevrolet
21 55 Michael Waltrip Toyota
22 12 David Stremme Dodge
23 96 Bobby Labonte Ford
24 47 Marcos Ambrose Toyota
25 07 Casey Mears Chevrolet
26 6 David Ragan Ford
27 39 Ryan Newman Chevrolet
28 26 Jamie McMurray Ford
29 43 Reed Sorenson Dodge
30 7 Robby Gordon Toyota
31 5 Mark Martin Chevrolet
32 77 Sam Hornish Jr. Dodge
33 34 John Andretti Chevrolet
34 20 Joey Logano* Toyota
35 171 David Gilliland Chevrolet
36 82 Scott Speed* Toyota
37 8 Aric Almirola Chevrolet
38 98 Paul Menard Ford
39 66 Dave Blaney Toyota
40 36 Scott Riggs Toyota
41 187 Joe Nemechek Toyota
42 41 Jeremy Mayfield Toyota
43 64 Todd Bodine Toyota
1 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet
2 2 Kurt Busch Dodge
3 33 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet
4 18 Kyle Busch Toyota
5 99 Carl Edwards Ford
6 9 Kasey Kahne Dodge
7 14 Tony Stewart Chevrolet
8 11 Denny Hamlin Toyota
9 48 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet
10 17 Matt Kenseth Ford
11 00 David Reutimann Toyota
12 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet
13 31 Jeff Burton Chevrolet
14 83 Brian Vickers Toyota
15 42 Juan Montoya Chevrolet
16 44 A.J. Allmendinger Dodge
17 19 Elliott Sadler Dodge
18 16 Greg Biffle Ford
19 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet
20 1 Martin Truex Jr. Chevrolet
21 55 Michael Waltrip Toyota
22 12 David Stremme Dodge
23 96 Bobby Labonte Ford
24 47 Marcos Ambrose Toyota
25 07 Casey Mears Chevrolet
26 6 David Ragan Ford
27 39 Ryan Newman Chevrolet
28 26 Jamie McMurray Ford
29 43 Reed Sorenson Dodge
30 7 Robby Gordon Toyota
31 5 Mark Martin Chevrolet
32 77 Sam Hornish Jr. Dodge
33 34 John Andretti Chevrolet
34 20 Joey Logano* Toyota
35 171 David Gilliland Chevrolet
36 82 Scott Speed* Toyota
37 8 Aric Almirola Chevrolet
38 98 Paul Menard Ford
39 66 Dave Blaney Toyota
40 36 Scott Riggs Toyota
41 187 Joe Nemechek Toyota
42 41 Jeremy Mayfield Toyota
43 64 Todd Bodine Toyota
Thursday, March 26, 2009
May 16th All - Star Race
Should we call it the All-star race or the 1 million dollar dash for cash? The final 10 lap segment is where will get to see everyone get up on the wheel and show us what they are made of. It should be a very exciting race to watch. I can't help but think it will be as exciting as a Saturday night dash for cash at you local dirt track. I can't wait for it to get here. Last year was awesome. Kasey Kahne definately showed us what he was made of last year. You can't put together a more exciting come from behind,underdog finish than he did last year. I thought it was awesome.
NASCAR announced the return of the 10-lap shootout to conclude the Sprint All-Star Race at Lowe's Motor Speedway on May 16.
Around the track
The 100-lap race's first segment will consist of 50 laps with a mandatory pit stop, followed by two 20-lap segments with optional stops and a 10-lap (green-flag only) finale.
Last year's format was four 25-lap segments.
For Ryan Newman, winning the 2002 All-Star event — then known as The Winston — was the most cherished moment in his career until he won last year's Daytona 500. During the first 18 years the romp was run, Newman was just the second rookie to win, following Dale Earnhardt Jr. two years earlier.
Although Newman "accidentally" knocked Elliott Sadler out of the race on the way to victory that night, he considered his victim hurling his helmet at the No. 12 car a badge of honor.
"I kind of relished it, because I thought it was cool," Newman said Wednesday. "I knew I didn't do it on purpose. The bottom line was there's that much emotion in this race. This is bragging rights for everybody in your backyard. That's what was cool."
To hear Newman's excitement about of the 25th running of the Sprint All-Star Race, it was hard to determine whether he was a competitor or a fan.
"It's an awesome race," Newman said. "The excitement is there. The 20-lap segments break up the action. You can watch the strategy unfold. You don't know what's going to happen. Just like last year, the guy (Kasey Kahne) wasn't even in the race, got the fan vote and won the race."
The Sprint Pit Crew Challenge, held on May 14, will determine the pit selection for the event. Friday night's qualifying format will consist of three laps including a four-tire pit stop. Newman, nicknamed "Rocket Man" for his qualifying prowess, called the exercise "true qualifying" because it takes the entire team to post the best time.
Saturday night's on-track activities will kick off with the Sprint Showdown, where the winner advances to the main event. Again, fans will vote for the second transfer driver — but there will be no field inversions.
In a new twist, Sprint will provide a one-time only audio broadcast of the event's drivers' meeting streamed to cell phones.
"The driver meeting is about as 'inside' as one can get," said Steve Gaffney, director of sports and entertainment marketing for Sprint, "and we take a great deal of pride in using our technology and position in the sport to deliver this unique experience to NASCAR fans."
And with the return of the 10-lap dash for the $1 million first prize, Newman believes drivers will be up on the wheel to extremes.
"Ten thousand a lap is pretty good money," said Newman, adding that the format will take drivers back to "when we started racing. It was 10-lap heat races. Twelve-lap semi-races. Last-chance races, whatever you want to call them. It's all about getting it done quick for a lot of money."
NASCAR announced the return of the 10-lap shootout to conclude the Sprint All-Star Race at Lowe's Motor Speedway on May 16.
Around the track
The 100-lap race's first segment will consist of 50 laps with a mandatory pit stop, followed by two 20-lap segments with optional stops and a 10-lap (green-flag only) finale.
Last year's format was four 25-lap segments.
For Ryan Newman, winning the 2002 All-Star event — then known as The Winston — was the most cherished moment in his career until he won last year's Daytona 500. During the first 18 years the romp was run, Newman was just the second rookie to win, following Dale Earnhardt Jr. two years earlier.
Although Newman "accidentally" knocked Elliott Sadler out of the race on the way to victory that night, he considered his victim hurling his helmet at the No. 12 car a badge of honor.
"I kind of relished it, because I thought it was cool," Newman said Wednesday. "I knew I didn't do it on purpose. The bottom line was there's that much emotion in this race. This is bragging rights for everybody in your backyard. That's what was cool."
To hear Newman's excitement about of the 25th running of the Sprint All-Star Race, it was hard to determine whether he was a competitor or a fan.
"It's an awesome race," Newman said. "The excitement is there. The 20-lap segments break up the action. You can watch the strategy unfold. You don't know what's going to happen. Just like last year, the guy (Kasey Kahne) wasn't even in the race, got the fan vote and won the race."
The Sprint Pit Crew Challenge, held on May 14, will determine the pit selection for the event. Friday night's qualifying format will consist of three laps including a four-tire pit stop. Newman, nicknamed "Rocket Man" for his qualifying prowess, called the exercise "true qualifying" because it takes the entire team to post the best time.
Saturday night's on-track activities will kick off with the Sprint Showdown, where the winner advances to the main event. Again, fans will vote for the second transfer driver — but there will be no field inversions.
In a new twist, Sprint will provide a one-time only audio broadcast of the event's drivers' meeting streamed to cell phones.
"The driver meeting is about as 'inside' as one can get," said Steve Gaffney, director of sports and entertainment marketing for Sprint, "and we take a great deal of pride in using our technology and position in the sport to deliver this unique experience to NASCAR fans."
And with the return of the 10-lap dash for the $1 million first prize, Newman believes drivers will be up on the wheel to extremes.
"Ten thousand a lap is pretty good money," said Newman, adding that the format will take drivers back to "when we started racing. It was 10-lap heat races. Twelve-lap semi-races. Last-chance races, whatever you want to call them. It's all about getting it done quick for a lot of money."
Sunday, March 22, 2009
2009 Food City 500 Results- Bristol
1 Kyle Busch
2 Denny Hamlin
3 Jimmie Johnson
4 Jeff Gordon
5 Kasey Kahne
6 Mark Martin
7 Ryan Newman
8 Jeff Burton
9 Juan Pablo Montoya
10 Marcos Ambrose
11 Kurt Busch
12 David Reutimann
13 Clint Bowyer
14 Dale Earnhardt Jr.
15 Carl Edwards
16 AJ Allmendinger
17 Tony Stewart
18 Travis Kvapil
19 David Stremme
20 Elliott Sadler
21 Robby Gordon
22 Bobby Labonte
23 Reed Sorenson
24 Casey Mears
25 Paul Menard
26 Martin Truex Jr
27 David Ragan
28 Scott Speed
29 Brian Vickers
30 Kevin Harvick
31 Sam Hornish Jr.
32 Michael Waltrip
33 Matt Kenseth
34 John Andretti
35 Aric Almirola
36 David Gilliland
37 Jamie McMurray
38 Joey Logano
39 Greg Biffle
40 Sterling Marlin
41 Joe Nemechek
42 Todd Bodine
43 Dave Blaney
2 Denny Hamlin
3 Jimmie Johnson
4 Jeff Gordon
5 Kasey Kahne
6 Mark Martin
7 Ryan Newman
8 Jeff Burton
9 Juan Pablo Montoya
10 Marcos Ambrose
11 Kurt Busch
12 David Reutimann
13 Clint Bowyer
14 Dale Earnhardt Jr.
15 Carl Edwards
16 AJ Allmendinger
17 Tony Stewart
18 Travis Kvapil
19 David Stremme
20 Elliott Sadler
21 Robby Gordon
22 Bobby Labonte
23 Reed Sorenson
24 Casey Mears
25 Paul Menard
26 Martin Truex Jr
27 David Ragan
28 Scott Speed
29 Brian Vickers
30 Kevin Harvick
31 Sam Hornish Jr.
32 Michael Waltrip
33 Matt Kenseth
34 John Andretti
35 Aric Almirola
36 David Gilliland
37 Jamie McMurray
38 Joey Logano
39 Greg Biffle
40 Sterling Marlin
41 Joe Nemechek
42 Todd Bodine
43 Dave Blaney
Busch dominates at Bristol for 2nd win of season
With exception of Joey Logana blowing his engine Joe Gibbs Racing pretty much dominated Bristol in today's Food City 500. Kyle Busch would lead the most laps and again find himself in victory lane for the second time this season in the sprint cup series. Denny Hamlin would come in second making it a 1-2 Gibbs Racing finish. Jimmie Johnson would also find himself tieing his best finish at Bristol today. He has never won at Bristol and in his own words has just not been able to figure the track out. Today it would look as though he is getting it figured out. He would lead the 2nd most laps today and would put together a very strong 3rd place finish. Bristol is always a very exciting race to watch and never lacks in close call and mishaps. I am always amazed at how beat up the cars are after the race and I have to say that I think Kyle's car probably looked the best of any winning car that I can recall. He did a good job today keeping his car in one piece and staying out of trouble. You can love him or hate him but the kid does have talent. Add that talent to a good team and good equipment and there will be many more wins to come. Next week they travel to martinsville so we can expect to see a lot more pushing and bumping to get to the front.
Kyle Busch has dominated Bristol Motor Speedway before, only to be denied a trip to Victory Lane.Not this time.
Busch led 378 of 502 laps on Sunday to win at Bristol, his second victory of the season. It was redemption for Busch, who lost his power steering while leading last spring and was bumped from the front in August by Carl Edwards after leading 415 laps.
And he was well on his way to victory in the Nationwide Series race on Saturday, leading a race-high 157 laps before his crew let a tire slip away on the final pit stop. The ensuing penalty knocked him out of contention and he finished sixth.
"We should have won here last fall, we should have won here yesterday," Busch said. "This place probably owes me a few. But you can never ask a race track to pay you back. You just have to just keep working on it."
Busch has now won a race in one of NASCAR's top three series every weekend this season. It started with a victory in the non-points qualifying race at Daytona and followed with wins in the Truck and Nationwide Series at California, the Cup race at Las Vegas, and the Nationwide race at Atlanta.
He was untouchable in his Toyota in Sunday's Cup race, even to teammate Denny Hamlin, who followed him across the finish line.
"Man, it's great to get a 1-2," Hamlin said of the Joe Gibbs Racing dominance.
Hamlin has had his own heartbreak at Bristol - he led 98 laps last spring and was headed to the win when a fuel pickup problem cost him the victory. He finished third, again behind Busch, in August.
Defending three-time series champion Jimmie Johnson was third in a Chevrolet to tie his career-best Bristol finish, back in 2004. Johnson had devoted a good deal of time to figuring out why he's struggled at Bristol, and the homework with crew chief Chad Knaus clearly paid off.
"What a day for us. I wish we had 500 more laps to go," he said. "I have to thank Chad and the engineering staff for sitting me down a couple weeks ago to look at this race track and what I need here. I made my wish list and they gave me what I needed."
Jeff Gordon, his teammate at Hendrick Motorsports, was fourth.
Kasey Kahne was fifth in a Dodge and followed by polesitter Mark Martin, Ryan Newman, defending race winner Jeff Burton and Juan Pablo Montoya.
Marcos Ambrose, in the spotlight after his gas man chased a tire across pit road two weeks ago at Atlanta, finished 10th.
A Busch brother has won the past three races. Kyle Busch won at Las Vegas earlier this month, and Kurt followed it with a win at Atlanta. Kurt Busch, a five-time Bristol winner, finished 11th on Sunday.
Travis Kvapil finished 18th in what was likely his final race for Yates Racing. The No. 28 team probably will be closed down on Monday morning due to a lack of sponsorship, making it the first casualty this year of the weakened economy. Several teams were shuttered last season as sponsorship became difficult to find during the economic crisis.
Yates racing general manager Max Jones said before the race he'd bring the No. 28 team back to the track if funding came through, but the team had paid out of pocket for the first five races this season and couldn't afford to do so any longer. Bobby Labonte and Paul Menard also drive for Yates, but have full sponsorship.
Kyle Busch has dominated Bristol Motor Speedway before, only to be denied a trip to Victory Lane.Not this time.
Busch led 378 of 502 laps on Sunday to win at Bristol, his second victory of the season. It was redemption for Busch, who lost his power steering while leading last spring and was bumped from the front in August by Carl Edwards after leading 415 laps.
And he was well on his way to victory in the Nationwide Series race on Saturday, leading a race-high 157 laps before his crew let a tire slip away on the final pit stop. The ensuing penalty knocked him out of contention and he finished sixth.
"We should have won here last fall, we should have won here yesterday," Busch said. "This place probably owes me a few. But you can never ask a race track to pay you back. You just have to just keep working on it."
Busch has now won a race in one of NASCAR's top three series every weekend this season. It started with a victory in the non-points qualifying race at Daytona and followed with wins in the Truck and Nationwide Series at California, the Cup race at Las Vegas, and the Nationwide race at Atlanta.
He was untouchable in his Toyota in Sunday's Cup race, even to teammate Denny Hamlin, who followed him across the finish line.
"Man, it's great to get a 1-2," Hamlin said of the Joe Gibbs Racing dominance.
Hamlin has had his own heartbreak at Bristol - he led 98 laps last spring and was headed to the win when a fuel pickup problem cost him the victory. He finished third, again behind Busch, in August.
Defending three-time series champion Jimmie Johnson was third in a Chevrolet to tie his career-best Bristol finish, back in 2004. Johnson had devoted a good deal of time to figuring out why he's struggled at Bristol, and the homework with crew chief Chad Knaus clearly paid off.
"What a day for us. I wish we had 500 more laps to go," he said. "I have to thank Chad and the engineering staff for sitting me down a couple weeks ago to look at this race track and what I need here. I made my wish list and they gave me what I needed."
Jeff Gordon, his teammate at Hendrick Motorsports, was fourth.
Kasey Kahne was fifth in a Dodge and followed by polesitter Mark Martin, Ryan Newman, defending race winner Jeff Burton and Juan Pablo Montoya.
Marcos Ambrose, in the spotlight after his gas man chased a tire across pit road two weeks ago at Atlanta, finished 10th.
A Busch brother has won the past three races. Kyle Busch won at Las Vegas earlier this month, and Kurt followed it with a win at Atlanta. Kurt Busch, a five-time Bristol winner, finished 11th on Sunday.
Travis Kvapil finished 18th in what was likely his final race for Yates Racing. The No. 28 team probably will be closed down on Monday morning due to a lack of sponsorship, making it the first casualty this year of the weakened economy. Several teams were shuttered last season as sponsorship became difficult to find during the economic crisis.
Yates racing general manager Max Jones said before the race he'd bring the No. 28 team back to the track if funding came through, but the team had paid out of pocket for the first five races this season and couldn't afford to do so any longer. Bobby Labonte and Paul Menard also drive for Yates, but have full sponsorship.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
2009 Food City 500 Starting Lineup - Bristol
1 5 Mark Martin
2 39 Ryan Newman
3 48 Jimmie Johnson
4 16 Greg Biffle
5 9 Kasey Kahne
6 0 David Reutimann
7 43 Reed Sorenson
8 66 Dave Blaney
9 26 Jamie McMurray
10 24 Jeff Gordon
11 82 Scott Speed
12 42 Juan Pablo Montoya
13 47 Marcos Ambrose
14 71 David Gilliland
15 14 Tony Stewart
16 64 Todd Bodine
17 28 Travis Kvapil
18 8 Aric Almirola
19 18 Kyle Busch
20 1 Martin Truex Jr.
21 55 Michael Waltrip
22 19 Elliott Sadler
23 20 Joey Logano
24 11 Denny Hamlin
25 77 Sam Hornish Jr.
26 44 A J Allmendinger
27 83 Brian Vickers
28 87 Joe Nemechek
29 12 David Stremme
30 29 Kevin Harvick
31 33 Clint Bowyer
32 2 Kurt Busch
33 17 Matt Kenseth
34 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr.
35 7 Robby Gordon
36 96 Bobby Labonte
37 7 Casey Mears
38 99 Carl Edwards
39 34 John Andretti
40 31 Jeff Burton
41 6 David Ragan
42 98 Paul Menard
43 9 Sterling Marlin
2 39 Ryan Newman
3 48 Jimmie Johnson
4 16 Greg Biffle
5 9 Kasey Kahne
6 0 David Reutimann
7 43 Reed Sorenson
8 66 Dave Blaney
9 26 Jamie McMurray
10 24 Jeff Gordon
11 82 Scott Speed
12 42 Juan Pablo Montoya
13 47 Marcos Ambrose
14 71 David Gilliland
15 14 Tony Stewart
16 64 Todd Bodine
17 28 Travis Kvapil
18 8 Aric Almirola
19 18 Kyle Busch
20 1 Martin Truex Jr.
21 55 Michael Waltrip
22 19 Elliott Sadler
23 20 Joey Logano
24 11 Denny Hamlin
25 77 Sam Hornish Jr.
26 44 A J Allmendinger
27 83 Brian Vickers
28 87 Joe Nemechek
29 12 David Stremme
30 29 Kevin Harvick
31 33 Clint Bowyer
32 2 Kurt Busch
33 17 Matt Kenseth
34 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr.
35 7 Robby Gordon
36 96 Bobby Labonte
37 7 Casey Mears
38 99 Carl Edwards
39 34 John Andretti
40 31 Jeff Burton
41 6 David Ragan
42 98 Paul Menard
43 9 Sterling Marlin
Martin Grabs Another Pole and Hamlim Tops The Speed Charts
I was very happy to see Mark Martin grab the pole again this weekend at Bristol. 2 poles in a row is a very strong point for the once retired driver. I have always been a fan of Mark Martin and I also like to see an older driver still get it done. There are a lot of sports that age plays a factor in when you call it quits. Yes there is a lot of younger talent out there but in racing it comes down to who can get the job done. Young or old, if you can put the car on the pole and win some races then you can still compete every week. I think Mark has just what he needs with Hendrick Motorsports and I can't wait to see him put the car in victory lane. I think he still can get it done and I think he will get it done very soon. I didn't get to see much of practice but I did catch the tail end of final practice and saw Denny Hamlin top the speed charts with his practice run. I think Denny has had a very strong chance this year but some unfortunate incidents have ruined his chances of making it to victory lane. Maybe this will be his weekend to get it done. I have no doubts he will be in victory lane very soon. On another strong note Ryan Newman was able to put his car on the front row for sunday's race. Ryan has talent, and has good equipment but has been another driver who has been victim of some unfortunate incidents this year. It's been a pretty wild and unusual start to this season but it has come time for everyone to get the job done. We go to the top 35 in owner points after this week so the time has come for everyone to step up.
After breaking a 257-race pole drought at Atlanta two weeks ago, Mark Martin topped his second consecutive Sprint Cup qualifying session, streaking around .533-mile Bristol Motor Speedway in 15.256 seconds (125.773 mph) Friday to win the pole for Sunday's Food City 500.
Martin won back-to-back poles for the second time in his career, having claimed the top starting spot for the April 1989 races at Darlington and Bristol.
"It felt really, really good," said the 50-year-driver of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, who edged Ryan Newman (125.740 mph) for the pole by .004 seconds. "The car was really fast and it was really comfortable."
Good starts are nothing new to Martin this year. Now he needs a good finish. Blown engines at California and Las Vegas and a blown tire at Atlanta have dropped him to 34th in the Cup standings.
"With the things that have happened to us in the races, it was good to show people that we've still got speed in the car," said Martin, who claimed the 43rd pole of his career. "We've got speed, and the other part will come around sooner or later."
Martin's teammate, Jimmie Johnson (125.453 mph), will start third, followed by Greg Biffle (125.289 mph) and Kasey Kahne (124.954 mph). David Reutimann, Reed Sorenson, Dave Blaney, Jamie McMurray and series points leader Jeff Gordon will start from positions six through 10, respectively.
Newman, whose luck has been almost as bad as Martin's through the first four races of the season, was happy to have righted the ship.
"Fortunately, it worked out the way it was supposed to, with the exception of the four one-thousandths that we lost by," said Newman, who won poles for the spring races at Bristol in 2003 and 2004.
Johnson, who has never won at Bristol, also got the track position he was looking for, as the three-time defending Cup champion seeks to improve his 13th-place position in the points.
Notes• After wrecking in practice, Michael Waltrip qualified 21st in a backup car.
• Scott Riggs and Jeremy Mayfield failed to qualify for Sunday's race
• Tony Stewart (15th) and A.J. Allmendinger (26th) are the only two drivers required to qualify on speed who have done so for each of the first five Cup races
• Scott Speed qualified 11th, 12 positions ahead of Joey Logano, his primary rival for rookie of the year honors.
After breaking a 257-race pole drought at Atlanta two weeks ago, Mark Martin topped his second consecutive Sprint Cup qualifying session, streaking around .533-mile Bristol Motor Speedway in 15.256 seconds (125.773 mph) Friday to win the pole for Sunday's Food City 500.
Martin won back-to-back poles for the second time in his career, having claimed the top starting spot for the April 1989 races at Darlington and Bristol.
"It felt really, really good," said the 50-year-driver of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, who edged Ryan Newman (125.740 mph) for the pole by .004 seconds. "The car was really fast and it was really comfortable."
Good starts are nothing new to Martin this year. Now he needs a good finish. Blown engines at California and Las Vegas and a blown tire at Atlanta have dropped him to 34th in the Cup standings.
"With the things that have happened to us in the races, it was good to show people that we've still got speed in the car," said Martin, who claimed the 43rd pole of his career. "We've got speed, and the other part will come around sooner or later."
Martin's teammate, Jimmie Johnson (125.453 mph), will start third, followed by Greg Biffle (125.289 mph) and Kasey Kahne (124.954 mph). David Reutimann, Reed Sorenson, Dave Blaney, Jamie McMurray and series points leader Jeff Gordon will start from positions six through 10, respectively.
Newman, whose luck has been almost as bad as Martin's through the first four races of the season, was happy to have righted the ship.
"Fortunately, it worked out the way it was supposed to, with the exception of the four one-thousandths that we lost by," said Newman, who won poles for the spring races at Bristol in 2003 and 2004.
Johnson, who has never won at Bristol, also got the track position he was looking for, as the three-time defending Cup champion seeks to improve his 13th-place position in the points.
Notes• After wrecking in practice, Michael Waltrip qualified 21st in a backup car.
• Scott Riggs and Jeremy Mayfield failed to qualify for Sunday's race
• Tony Stewart (15th) and A.J. Allmendinger (26th) are the only two drivers required to qualify on speed who have done so for each of the first five Cup races
• Scott Speed qualified 11th, 12 positions ahead of Joey Logano, his primary rival for rookie of the year honors.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Manzanita Speedway race track closing after being sold
It's hard to explain exactly what is going through everyones minds here in the local racing clubs. There is anger,disappoinment,disbelief,etc over what has taken place rencently regarding Manzanita Speedway. Manzanita Speedway is home to a dozen local racing clubs,not to mention the home of many memorial races, and has been the trainging track of champions for over 50 years. Many Nascar greats have spent a lot of their open wheel racing time on the clay at Manzanita Speedway. So you can only imagine our shock and disappointment after learning the the track has been sold and we be torn down after April 11th. We just started our season and had our season opener last weekend at Manzanita only to find out that we will have 2 more races there and will lose 10 races from our schedule due to the sale of the track. WHAT THE FUCK??? were they thinking. There was no mention of the track being up for sale during the off season nor during the discussion and making of this years racing schedule. All the local racing clubs are shocked ,not to mention pissed off to learn that they will basically have no races after April 11th 2009. Yes there are other track here in Arizona,but the fact is the schedues have already been made in the off season and since Manzanita always insists that our club and the non wing sprintcars consider Manzanita our home track and let them schedule the bulk of our races. After losing the 10 races at Manzanita our club will end up having only 9 races this season which will make it impossible to raise a points fund or compete for a points championship. I understand that money talks and when approached with an offer you can't refuse, I guess you take the offer and run. it just makes me sad that there was no consideration given to the racing clubs and the fact that Manzanita is the home of open wheel racing in Arizona and has been for over 50 years. to see that come to an end is a devastating thing overcome both for the racers and for the fans. i guess that another reason I started this blog. Now i have a place I can vent my frustrations and bitch about it. Besides there wasn't any nascar to blog about this weekend anyway.
One of the nation's most famous race tracks is closing its doors in just a few weeks.
Manzanita Speedway at 35th Avenue and Broadway has been sold. The buyer plans on leveling the dirt race track that has been around since 1951.
All of racings' biggest names have raced at the famous track so you would bet that many drivers are upset that the race track is shutting down.
The owners have bought the rights to the Manzanita name and hope they can find a new home for the track.
The track will see its last race on April 11.
One of the nation's most famous race tracks is closing its doors in just a few weeks.
Manzanita Speedway at 35th Avenue and Broadway has been sold. The buyer plans on leveling the dirt race track that has been around since 1951.
All of racings' biggest names have raced at the famous track so you would bet that many drivers are upset that the race track is shutting down.
The owners have bought the rights to the Manzanita name and hope they can find a new home for the track.
The track will see its last race on April 11.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Didn't your mother tell you not to chase things into traffic?
I had figured that after the weekend passed I probably wouldn't hear much more about last Sunday's tire chasing incident. I guess I was wrong. The subject is still a buzz and when I logged onto my Yahoo homepage it was one of the headlines. We all do things that we think are right but in fact turn out to be a stupid idea after the fact. I'm over it,you can't rewind, get a do-over, etc. I think the media should let it go also. The guy's is embarassed enough. Wouldn't you be?
On the list of dumb things to do at a NASCAR race, "running toward traffic" has to rank at the top, ahead of "eating that sandwich that's been sitting in the sun for an hour," "assuming that young lady is telling the truth when she says she doesn't have a boyfriend" and "rooting loudly for Jeff Gordon."
The most bizarre moment of an exceedingly strange Kobalt Tools 500 on Sunday came in lap 67, when a crew member for Marcos Ambrose's No. 47 team dashed across pit road and halfway through the infield to chase down an errant tire.
You hopefully don't need me to tell you that chasing down a tire in the direction of cars going 200 m.p.h. probably isn't the wisest move. But gas man Jimmy Watts decided to chase down the tire anyway, apparently fearing that it was headed straight for the cars on the front stretch. But like a broken TV that suddenly starts working again when the repairman shows up, the tire stopped dead just before Watts got to it.
NASCAR pays close attention to crew member safety; it was in Atlanta that a member of Bill Elliott's crew died when Ricky Rudd's car spun into him in 1990. And as Matt Kenseth noted, just because cars were moving in an orderly fashion when Watts began chasing the tire doesn't mean they were going to stay that way.
"Maybe he's new," said Matt Kenseth. "Maybe he hasn't seen us drive, but we tend to wreck a lot. I wouldn't want to be out in the middle of the grass."
Driver safety aside, Watts really screwed up a lot of people's day, since he caused a caution to come out when most of the field was pitting under green. As a result, he put half the field a lap down and perhaps cost someone a shot at winning the race. "He kind of ruined the race," Kasey Kahne said. Watts was suspended for the rest of the day, and further penalties could be forthcoming. (To be fair, the tire would have brought out a caution on its own, but Watts' run just added that extra little jolt of terror. Plus, whoever let the tire get away remains at large.)
[UPDATE: NASCAR just announced the penalty: "Jimmy Watts, a crew member for the No. 47 team in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, has been suspended from the next four NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events (until April 22) for rule violations during last Sunday's race at Atlanta Motor Speedway." No word on whether the tire was punished as well.]
Sad thing is, even thinking about chasing the tire wasn't necessary. Ambrose has had troubles with tires getting loose before, and everything ended up okay:
On the list of dumb things to do at a NASCAR race, "running toward traffic" has to rank at the top, ahead of "eating that sandwich that's been sitting in the sun for an hour," "assuming that young lady is telling the truth when she says she doesn't have a boyfriend" and "rooting loudly for Jeff Gordon."
The most bizarre moment of an exceedingly strange Kobalt Tools 500 on Sunday came in lap 67, when a crew member for Marcos Ambrose's No. 47 team dashed across pit road and halfway through the infield to chase down an errant tire.
You hopefully don't need me to tell you that chasing down a tire in the direction of cars going 200 m.p.h. probably isn't the wisest move. But gas man Jimmy Watts decided to chase down the tire anyway, apparently fearing that it was headed straight for the cars on the front stretch. But like a broken TV that suddenly starts working again when the repairman shows up, the tire stopped dead just before Watts got to it.
NASCAR pays close attention to crew member safety; it was in Atlanta that a member of Bill Elliott's crew died when Ricky Rudd's car spun into him in 1990. And as Matt Kenseth noted, just because cars were moving in an orderly fashion when Watts began chasing the tire doesn't mean they were going to stay that way.
"Maybe he's new," said Matt Kenseth. "Maybe he hasn't seen us drive, but we tend to wreck a lot. I wouldn't want to be out in the middle of the grass."
Driver safety aside, Watts really screwed up a lot of people's day, since he caused a caution to come out when most of the field was pitting under green. As a result, he put half the field a lap down and perhaps cost someone a shot at winning the race. "He kind of ruined the race," Kasey Kahne said. Watts was suspended for the rest of the day, and further penalties could be forthcoming. (To be fair, the tire would have brought out a caution on its own, but Watts' run just added that extra little jolt of terror. Plus, whoever let the tire get away remains at large.)
[UPDATE: NASCAR just announced the penalty: "Jimmy Watts, a crew member for the No. 47 team in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, has been suspended from the next four NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events (until April 22) for rule violations during last Sunday's race at Atlanta Motor Speedway." No word on whether the tire was punished as well.]
Sad thing is, even thinking about chasing the tire wasn't necessary. Ambrose has had troubles with tires getting loose before, and everything ended up okay:
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Busch Wins at Atlanta. Just not the Busch you might have expected.
WOW!!! Was anyone else bored out of their minds from watching the Kobalt Tools 500 today at Atlanta? Besides Kurt Busch's impressive domination of today's race there really wasn't much else to talk about. Yes there were a few cautions,some more pit road blunders,a couple tire issues and some motor problems. The excitement was missing. After the caution that trapped pretty much the whole field 2 and 3 laps down it just got hard to watch. Kurt Busch was in front most of the time and noone was close enough to race him for it. Some people got their laps back but they weren't all racing for the win on the lead lap like we as fans like to see. Personally i just thought it was pretty boring to watch. Here's a thought. They had to throw the caution because some dumbass thought he was doing the right thing by retrieving the tire. Why not just punish that team?? Throw the caution for safety purposes, but everyone shouldn't have to suffer from it. I don't know? I realize that SHIT does happen but it sure screwed up what could have been an awesome race. Not to say also that Kurt Busch didn't deserve to win. Congrats to him and his team it was well deserved and earned. Would have been nice to see more than a dozen cars racing for the win.
The 30-year-old Busch led 234 of 330 laps in the Kobalt Tools 500, surviving a couple of scrapes with the wall and a late caution to pull away for a 0.332-second victory over Jeff Gordon.
Polesitter Mark Martin, who had become the second-oldest driver in Cup history to claim the top spot in qualifying, had another rough day after blowing engines the two previous weeks. He apparently cut a tire, smashed the wall and finished 31st, 14 laps down.
How dominating was Busch? He led more laps in one afternoon than he did all of last season (164), when his only victory came in a rain-shortened race at Loudon, N.H.
For his victory lap, Busch grabbed the checkered flag and drove backward around the 1.54-mile quad-oval. That might have been the only way anyone would have caught him during the race.
"I've got to thank my guys," he said in Victory Lane. "This car was unbelievable. I guess good things come to those who wait."
Gordon is still waiting for his first win since 2007, but he remained on top of the Sprint Cup standings after another strong run.
"We're getting close," Gordon said. "We're going to keep knocking on the door until we get to Victory Lane."
With four laps to go, Robby Gordon shredded a tire to bring out the final caution flag of the race. Carl Edwards gambled as all the leaders ducked into the pits, changing only two tires so he got back on the track first.
Busch and Jeff Gordon both went with four new tires, coming out second and third behind Edwards. But the leader had no chance of holding off Busch on the two-lap finish, watching him blow by on the backstretch and cruise to his 19th career victory. Gordon also got by Edwards, who settled for third.
"That was the hand we were dealt," Edwards said. "I just wish we had four tires. Kurt did a good job. He was the fastest car all day."
Last year, Busch's only victory for Penske Racing was due more to strategy than skill. Meanwhile, 23-year-old Kyle became a full-blown star, winning a series-best eight races before struggling in the championship playoff, his undeniable talent earning him a mention as a possible candidate to drive for an American-based Formula One team that's trying to get off the ground.
Then, last weekend in the Busch family's hometown of Las Vegas, Kyle drove from the back of the field to victory while Kurt finished a disappointing 23rd after starting on the outside of the front row. Even so, Kurt kept insisting he wasn't jealous of his kid brother's success, even stopping by Victory Lane to give Kyle a big hug.
Sunday was Kurt's time to shine. Finally.
"I've got to hold up my end of the bargain," he said. "Kyle's on the gas right now."
There were huge sections of empty seats along the front stretch of the track south of Atlanta, which was no more than two-thirds filled despite a warm, sunny day. Clearly, the economy is taking its toll on NASCAR's fan base.
"I'm kind of baffled by it," Gordon said.
Until the final shootout, the most dramatic moment came on the 67th lap when a tire rolled away from Marcus Ambrose's pit box, and gas man Jimmy Watts took off after it. He ran halfway onto the grass in the quad-oval to retrieve it, a dangerous move that prompted NASCAR officials to throw a yellow flag and toss Watts out of the pits for the rest of the race.
Martin had a tough day, as well.
The 50-year-old was running sixth when he appeared to cut a right rear tire heading into turn one. The No. 5 Chevrolet slammed backward into the wall, then slid down off the banking into the grass. He hobbled back to the pits for repairs, pieces of sheet metal falling off as he drove his crippled car along the inside apron.
Martin returned to full-time racing this season with the Hendrick Motorsports team in hopes of contending for his first Cup championship. But he's off to a terrible start with one of NASCAR's strongest teams, blowing engines in two straight races before he wrecked at Atlanta, leaving him 34th in the standings.
The lack of grip in the tires led to a yawner of a race for the most part. The drivers looked as though they were more concerned with avoiding crashes than dueling each other, the 43-car field quickly spreading out all over the high-banked track. At one point, there were only nine cars on the lead lap and just 12 were there at the end.
"It reminds me of Darlington," Busch said, referring to the track that's been dubbed "too tough to tame."
"This place just chews you up and spits you out."
Well, everyone except Busch. Starting on the outside of the front row, he quickly raced to the front and stayed there most of the race, stretching his lead to more than 10 seconds during his most dominating run.
Busch, who found his best line along the top of the track, twice scraped the outside wall, but even that didn't slow his No. 2 Dodge, just left it in need of a paint job.
There were no serious wrecks. The first multi-car clash didn't come until lap 204 when Sam Hornish Jr., lost control in turn two and collected home-state favorite Bill Elliott, who didn't have anywhere to go on the inside as Hornish's smoking car slid down the banking. Both drivers were knocked out of the competition.
It was a tough day for the locals. Reed Sorenson, a native of nearby Peachtree City, spun out on the second lap and finished 33rd, completing just 264 laps.
Martin Truex Jr. was back behind the wheel just a day after being taken by ambulance to a hospital emergency room with kidney stones. He passed the stone late Saturday night and drove to a solid 10th-place showing.
The 30-year-old Busch led 234 of 330 laps in the Kobalt Tools 500, surviving a couple of scrapes with the wall and a late caution to pull away for a 0.332-second victory over Jeff Gordon.
Polesitter Mark Martin, who had become the second-oldest driver in Cup history to claim the top spot in qualifying, had another rough day after blowing engines the two previous weeks. He apparently cut a tire, smashed the wall and finished 31st, 14 laps down.
How dominating was Busch? He led more laps in one afternoon than he did all of last season (164), when his only victory came in a rain-shortened race at Loudon, N.H.
For his victory lap, Busch grabbed the checkered flag and drove backward around the 1.54-mile quad-oval. That might have been the only way anyone would have caught him during the race.
"I've got to thank my guys," he said in Victory Lane. "This car was unbelievable. I guess good things come to those who wait."
Gordon is still waiting for his first win since 2007, but he remained on top of the Sprint Cup standings after another strong run.
"We're getting close," Gordon said. "We're going to keep knocking on the door until we get to Victory Lane."
With four laps to go, Robby Gordon shredded a tire to bring out the final caution flag of the race. Carl Edwards gambled as all the leaders ducked into the pits, changing only two tires so he got back on the track first.
Busch and Jeff Gordon both went with four new tires, coming out second and third behind Edwards. But the leader had no chance of holding off Busch on the two-lap finish, watching him blow by on the backstretch and cruise to his 19th career victory. Gordon also got by Edwards, who settled for third.
"That was the hand we were dealt," Edwards said. "I just wish we had four tires. Kurt did a good job. He was the fastest car all day."
Last year, Busch's only victory for Penske Racing was due more to strategy than skill. Meanwhile, 23-year-old Kyle became a full-blown star, winning a series-best eight races before struggling in the championship playoff, his undeniable talent earning him a mention as a possible candidate to drive for an American-based Formula One team that's trying to get off the ground.
Then, last weekend in the Busch family's hometown of Las Vegas, Kyle drove from the back of the field to victory while Kurt finished a disappointing 23rd after starting on the outside of the front row. Even so, Kurt kept insisting he wasn't jealous of his kid brother's success, even stopping by Victory Lane to give Kyle a big hug.
Sunday was Kurt's time to shine. Finally.
"I've got to hold up my end of the bargain," he said. "Kyle's on the gas right now."
There were huge sections of empty seats along the front stretch of the track south of Atlanta, which was no more than two-thirds filled despite a warm, sunny day. Clearly, the economy is taking its toll on NASCAR's fan base.
"I'm kind of baffled by it," Gordon said.
Until the final shootout, the most dramatic moment came on the 67th lap when a tire rolled away from Marcus Ambrose's pit box, and gas man Jimmy Watts took off after it. He ran halfway onto the grass in the quad-oval to retrieve it, a dangerous move that prompted NASCAR officials to throw a yellow flag and toss Watts out of the pits for the rest of the race.
Martin had a tough day, as well.
The 50-year-old was running sixth when he appeared to cut a right rear tire heading into turn one. The No. 5 Chevrolet slammed backward into the wall, then slid down off the banking into the grass. He hobbled back to the pits for repairs, pieces of sheet metal falling off as he drove his crippled car along the inside apron.
Martin returned to full-time racing this season with the Hendrick Motorsports team in hopes of contending for his first Cup championship. But he's off to a terrible start with one of NASCAR's strongest teams, blowing engines in two straight races before he wrecked at Atlanta, leaving him 34th in the standings.
The lack of grip in the tires led to a yawner of a race for the most part. The drivers looked as though they were more concerned with avoiding crashes than dueling each other, the 43-car field quickly spreading out all over the high-banked track. At one point, there were only nine cars on the lead lap and just 12 were there at the end.
"It reminds me of Darlington," Busch said, referring to the track that's been dubbed "too tough to tame."
"This place just chews you up and spits you out."
Well, everyone except Busch. Starting on the outside of the front row, he quickly raced to the front and stayed there most of the race, stretching his lead to more than 10 seconds during his most dominating run.
Busch, who found his best line along the top of the track, twice scraped the outside wall, but even that didn't slow his No. 2 Dodge, just left it in need of a paint job.
There were no serious wrecks. The first multi-car clash didn't come until lap 204 when Sam Hornish Jr., lost control in turn two and collected home-state favorite Bill Elliott, who didn't have anywhere to go on the inside as Hornish's smoking car slid down the banking. Both drivers were knocked out of the competition.
It was a tough day for the locals. Reed Sorenson, a native of nearby Peachtree City, spun out on the second lap and finished 33rd, completing just 264 laps.
Martin Truex Jr. was back behind the wheel just a day after being taken by ambulance to a hospital emergency room with kidney stones. He passed the stone late Saturday night and drove to a solid 10th-place showing.
Friday, March 6, 2009
Can Busch do it again in the Camping World Truck Series?
With no Nationwide Race at Atlanta this weekend some drivers will still be pulling double duty by racing in the Camping World Truck Series. Kyle Busch has already won 3 of the last 4 truck races at Atlanta Motor Speedway and is looking to make it 2 in a row for this season in the trucks. The trucks usually put on a pretty good show and I enjoy watching them slice and dice for victory. Afterall it is racing and I do love racing. I will be doing some racing of my own tomorrow night in my minisprint. We kick off our season tomorrow night at Manzanita Speedway in Phx Arizona.
Kyle Busch is extremely close to owner Billy Ballew and the rest of his Camping World Truck Series team. He hangs out with them, sometimes pitching in to work on the team's Toyotas, and delights in delivering them victories. Busch seemingly enjoys winning for the team more than for himself.
Busch has 10 wins in 49 starts since joining Ballew's team in 2005. Three of the wins are at Atlanta Motor Speedway, site of Saturday's American Commercial Lines 200. Busch won the race a year ago when he put on a spectacular display using the high and low lines to drive through the field.
Busch also will be trying to win his second consecutive race this season. He finished 9.023 seconds in front of Todd Bodine in the previous race two weeks ago at Auto Club Speedway in California.
"It [Ballew Motorsports] feels like it's almost a part of me, this team I'm a part of," Busch said. "It almost feels like it is Kyle Busch Motorsports -- how close-knit all these guys are, and I spend a lot of time with them in the shop. Billy Ballew is just a great part of this deal, and he makes it happen for us. He busts his butt throughout the week to make sure we get to the racetrack."
Atlanta holds special significance for Ballew, who owns a condo at the track and splits his time living there and his hometown of Blairsville in northeast Georgia.
"I'm always excited about going to Atlanta," Ballew said. "It's been exciting with Kyle winning three of the four races he's run there for us. To me, winning there is bigger than winning the Indianapolis 500."
Bodine's start to the season has equaled Busch's. Bodine won at Daytona and finished second at California. Busch was second at Daytona.
Bodine's Germain Racing Toyota remains without a sponsor for the full season, but it did get some help from GEICO to make it to Atlanta. The team says its success so far has brought some interest in backing the team. Running up front at Atlanta should help move its prospects forward. Bodine won at Atlanta in March 2006 and has been second twice.
"Atlanta's been one of those tracks I've run good at -- whether it's the old configuration, new configuration, Cup Series, the former Busch Series or Truck Series -- it doesn't matter," Bodine said. "I like the track, and that gives you confidence going there."
Kevin Harvick will drive the No. 2 Kevin Harvick Inc. Chevrolet. Ryan Newman won in the No. 2 last October at Atlanta, with teammate Ron Hornaday second. Hornaday has finished second in three consecutive races at Atlanta. KHI also has entered rookie Ricky Carmichael in the No. 4 Chevrolet, adding it to his schedule based upon his eighth-place in California.
The race also marks Rick Crawford's 300th start in the series and the 200th in a row for Matt Crafton.
Kyle Busch is extremely close to owner Billy Ballew and the rest of his Camping World Truck Series team. He hangs out with them, sometimes pitching in to work on the team's Toyotas, and delights in delivering them victories. Busch seemingly enjoys winning for the team more than for himself.
Busch has 10 wins in 49 starts since joining Ballew's team in 2005. Three of the wins are at Atlanta Motor Speedway, site of Saturday's American Commercial Lines 200. Busch won the race a year ago when he put on a spectacular display using the high and low lines to drive through the field.
Busch also will be trying to win his second consecutive race this season. He finished 9.023 seconds in front of Todd Bodine in the previous race two weeks ago at Auto Club Speedway in California.
"It [Ballew Motorsports] feels like it's almost a part of me, this team I'm a part of," Busch said. "It almost feels like it is Kyle Busch Motorsports -- how close-knit all these guys are, and I spend a lot of time with them in the shop. Billy Ballew is just a great part of this deal, and he makes it happen for us. He busts his butt throughout the week to make sure we get to the racetrack."
Atlanta holds special significance for Ballew, who owns a condo at the track and splits his time living there and his hometown of Blairsville in northeast Georgia.
"I'm always excited about going to Atlanta," Ballew said. "It's been exciting with Kyle winning three of the four races he's run there for us. To me, winning there is bigger than winning the Indianapolis 500."
Bodine's start to the season has equaled Busch's. Bodine won at Daytona and finished second at California. Busch was second at Daytona.
Bodine's Germain Racing Toyota remains without a sponsor for the full season, but it did get some help from GEICO to make it to Atlanta. The team says its success so far has brought some interest in backing the team. Running up front at Atlanta should help move its prospects forward. Bodine won at Atlanta in March 2006 and has been second twice.
"Atlanta's been one of those tracks I've run good at -- whether it's the old configuration, new configuration, Cup Series, the former Busch Series or Truck Series -- it doesn't matter," Bodine said. "I like the track, and that gives you confidence going there."
Kevin Harvick will drive the No. 2 Kevin Harvick Inc. Chevrolet. Ryan Newman won in the No. 2 last October at Atlanta, with teammate Ron Hornaday second. Hornaday has finished second in three consecutive races at Atlanta. KHI also has entered rookie Ricky Carmichael in the No. 4 Chevrolet, adding it to his schedule based upon his eighth-place in California.
The race also marks Rick Crawford's 300th start in the series and the 200th in a row for Matt Crafton.
Martin wins Pole at Atlanta
I was happy to see Mark Martin win the pole today for the race at Atlanta. He has had a rough start to what was supposed to be a fairy tale season. I hope he can also put together a good solid finish Sunday and get himself and his team headed in the right direction for making the chase. What about Kurt Busch? Another front row start this weekend. He is looking to be headed in a positive direction. His team has seemed to come together so far this year and look good for getting themselves a spot in the chase as well. Other drivers earning a good start in this weeks race were Denny Hamlin who will be starting 6th and Gregg Biffle who will roll off 5th. Jr. disappointed me again this week with 29th place starting position. I will keep my fingers crossed that he can make up for it in the race Sunday.
After topping the speed chart in Friday's practice, Mark Martin blistered Atlanta Motor Speedway with a 29.640-second lap (187.045 mph) to win the pole for Sunday's Kobalt Tools 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup race at the 1.54-mile track.
All Martin has to do now is find a way to finish the race in his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, after turning a lap that left him breathless and shaking.
"I live to scare myself like that," said Martin, who dropped out of the last two Cup races, at Fontana, Calif., and Las Vegas, because of engine failures. "This is the first real solid step at turning our thing around. This is cool. This is really cool. All it really is that we won a competition.
"It doesn't really have any implications for Sunday, but we won a competition tonight."
The pole was Martin's first since the May 2001 event at Richmond, 281 races ago. Since then, the veteran driver, 50, has qualified second 16 times, including six times last year.
Kurt Busch will start on the outside of the front row after turning a lap at 186.365 mph. Jamie McMurray (186.309 mph) qualified third, followed by Juan Pablo Montoya (186.209 mph) and Greg Biffle (186.184 mph).
Denny Hamlin will start sixth, one spot ahead of three-time defending Cup champion Jimmie Johnson, who is looking to improve his 19th-place position in the Cup championship standings. Joe Nemechek, Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick will start from positions eight through 10, respectively.
"I think everybody saw that lap go up on the board and went, 'I can't touch that -- I'm not even close,'" Kurt Busch said of Martin's qualifying effort. "I'm surprised that we're second. I think some people had better laps than we did, but we ran a different groove.
"We ran a lane up (toward the outside of the track). We were slower through the corners but faster down the straightaways."
Notes: Todd Bodine, Scott Riggs, Jeremy Mayfield and Geoff Bodine failed to qualify for the race Rookie Joey Logano will start 42nd on an owner points provisional after a lap at 181.938 mph Nemechek (185.922 mph) was fastest among drivers required to qualify on speed Tony Stewart will start 11th after a lap at 185.741 mph.
After topping the speed chart in Friday's practice, Mark Martin blistered Atlanta Motor Speedway with a 29.640-second lap (187.045 mph) to win the pole for Sunday's Kobalt Tools 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup race at the 1.54-mile track.
All Martin has to do now is find a way to finish the race in his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, after turning a lap that left him breathless and shaking.
"I live to scare myself like that," said Martin, who dropped out of the last two Cup races, at Fontana, Calif., and Las Vegas, because of engine failures. "This is the first real solid step at turning our thing around. This is cool. This is really cool. All it really is that we won a competition.
"It doesn't really have any implications for Sunday, but we won a competition tonight."
The pole was Martin's first since the May 2001 event at Richmond, 281 races ago. Since then, the veteran driver, 50, has qualified second 16 times, including six times last year.
Kurt Busch will start on the outside of the front row after turning a lap at 186.365 mph. Jamie McMurray (186.309 mph) qualified third, followed by Juan Pablo Montoya (186.209 mph) and Greg Biffle (186.184 mph).
Denny Hamlin will start sixth, one spot ahead of three-time defending Cup champion Jimmie Johnson, who is looking to improve his 19th-place position in the Cup championship standings. Joe Nemechek, Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick will start from positions eight through 10, respectively.
"I think everybody saw that lap go up on the board and went, 'I can't touch that -- I'm not even close,'" Kurt Busch said of Martin's qualifying effort. "I'm surprised that we're second. I think some people had better laps than we did, but we ran a different groove.
"We ran a lane up (toward the outside of the track). We were slower through the corners but faster down the straightaways."
Notes: Todd Bodine, Scott Riggs, Jeremy Mayfield and Geoff Bodine failed to qualify for the race Rookie Joey Logano will start 42nd on an owner points provisional after a lap at 181.938 mph Nemechek (185.922 mph) was fastest among drivers required to qualify on speed Tony Stewart will start 11th after a lap at 185.741 mph.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
No Three-peat for Kenseth and Busch comes from the back for Victory at Las Vegas
What a crazy weekend it would turn out to be in Las Vegas. It would turn out to be a record breaking weekend but not all for the good. There were 32 pit road penalties and blunders on Saturday and another dozen on Sunday. There were 5 engine changes before today's race, and 6 engines would fail or have issues during the race including Matt Kenseth who was looking to set a record of winning the first three races of the season. The average cautions for Las vegas is 7, the record was 11 until today when we would see that record broken and raised to 14. I saw a lot of similar things happen today that happened in the nationwide race with drivers losing control of there cars for no apparent reason and with little or no warning. My hat is off to Jamie McMurray for the drifting demonstration he put on today when he lost control of his car in the corner and managed to keep it out of the wall and regain control. I have to say that was awesome. there were lots of mishaps today that really mixed things up and made it anyones race to win. I don't like Kyle Busch but my hats off to him also. Winning the pole,changing an engine resulting in starting at the back and winning the race. Everyone really has to click on a team to make that happen and it also takes talent and driving skills to get it done also. Everyone that knows me knows that I am a Earnhardt fan always but I will also never hesitate to give credit to those who deserve it even if I don't like them. Good Job Kyle, and good job Jr. for the solid top 10 finish. For my followers who are Denny fans, that was some tough luck today for Denny,he couldn't seem to come back from the damage he got in the first caution when Nemechek checked up in front of him.
Kyle Busch notched the biggest win of his young career Sunday, driving from the back of the field to win the NASCAR Shelby 427 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Busch came prepared at the start of the weekend, beating older brother Kurt for the pole to put brothers on the front row for the first time since 2000. But an engine change in his motor meant he had to drop to the back of the field at the start of the race.
He took the lead with 57 laps to go, then lost it during a late round of pit stops. Busch was third on a restart with 22 laps to go, then chased down Jeff Burton and leader Clint Bowyer to move out front again.
Busch had to hold off the competition over two final restarts for his first victory of the season, and first win at Las Vegas in six career Cup Series starts.
He celebrated with thick burnouts through the grass, then apparently blew his engine again. Enveloped in thick white plumes of smoke, he emerged from the clouds to make his trademark bow to the crowd.
He then collected the checkered flag from NASCAR, and kneeled to kiss the finish line on the track.
"I tell you what, this is pretty cool," Busch said. "I didn't know exactly what it would mean, but coming to the checkered flag, there were knots in my stomach. It's bigger than winning the Daytona 500. I said it wasn't going to be, but it is."
Bowyer finished second and Burton was third, bouncing back from a horrible run last week at California.
David Reutimann, one of the five Toyota drivers who had to change a motor this weekend, finished fourth and was followed by Bobby Labonte and Jeff Gordon, who missed pit road late in the race and blew his tire on the subsequent trip around the track.
Greg Biffle was seventh and Brian Vickers, another Toyota driver with an engine change, was eighth. Jamie McMurray and Dale Earnhardt Jr. rounded out the top 10.
Jimmie Johnson, strong all afternoon, wrecked with six laps to go to finish 24th.
Carl Edwards' motor blew with two laps to go while he was running fourth. He finished 17th.
Matt Kenseth, trying to become the first driver in NASCAR history to win the first three races of the season, lost his engine six laps into the race and finished last. In all, Roush Fenway Racing lost three of five motors.
Kyle Busch notched the biggest win of his young career Sunday, driving from the back of the field to win the NASCAR Shelby 427 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Busch came prepared at the start of the weekend, beating older brother Kurt for the pole to put brothers on the front row for the first time since 2000. But an engine change in his motor meant he had to drop to the back of the field at the start of the race.
He took the lead with 57 laps to go, then lost it during a late round of pit stops. Busch was third on a restart with 22 laps to go, then chased down Jeff Burton and leader Clint Bowyer to move out front again.
Busch had to hold off the competition over two final restarts for his first victory of the season, and first win at Las Vegas in six career Cup Series starts.
He celebrated with thick burnouts through the grass, then apparently blew his engine again. Enveloped in thick white plumes of smoke, he emerged from the clouds to make his trademark bow to the crowd.
He then collected the checkered flag from NASCAR, and kneeled to kiss the finish line on the track.
"I tell you what, this is pretty cool," Busch said. "I didn't know exactly what it would mean, but coming to the checkered flag, there were knots in my stomach. It's bigger than winning the Daytona 500. I said it wasn't going to be, but it is."
Bowyer finished second and Burton was third, bouncing back from a horrible run last week at California.
David Reutimann, one of the five Toyota drivers who had to change a motor this weekend, finished fourth and was followed by Bobby Labonte and Jeff Gordon, who missed pit road late in the race and blew his tire on the subsequent trip around the track.
Greg Biffle was seventh and Brian Vickers, another Toyota driver with an engine change, was eighth. Jamie McMurray and Dale Earnhardt Jr. rounded out the top 10.
Jimmie Johnson, strong all afternoon, wrecked with six laps to go to finish 24th.
Carl Edwards' motor blew with two laps to go while he was running fourth. He finished 17th.
Matt Kenseth, trying to become the first driver in NASCAR history to win the first three races of the season, lost his engine six laps into the race and finished last. In all, Roush Fenway Racing lost three of five motors.
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