NASCAR: General News and Discussion

[Mothers Worry]

Ganassi to lose Texaco backing

From autosport.com:

Ganassi to lose Texaco backing

Wednesday, August 20th 2008, 13:05 GMT

Chip Ganassi's NASCAR team will take another blow this season when they lose their Texaco sponsorship at the end of the year.

The fuel company currently sponsor's half of Juan-Pablo Montoya's No.42 car but have decided to end their deal with the team after five years.

It will be the first time in more than 20 years that the iconic Texaco livery will not be on the NASCAR grid. Drivers including Dale Jarrett, Davey Allison, Ernie Irvan, Ricky Rudd and Kenny Irwin all carried the black, red, and yellow decals.

Ganassi were forced to shut down one of their three teams earlier this year due to lack of sponsorship, which left Dario Franchitti without a drive in the Sprint Cup and around 70 employees had to be laid off.

A statement from Chip Ganassi said: "Despite the success of our partnership, we understand that priorities change and wish Chevron (owner of the Texaco and Havoline brands) the best in implementing their new marketing initiatives."

[Mothers Worry]

Biffle claims Busch gained advantage

From autosport.com:

Biffle claims Busch gained advantage

Saturday, September 20th 2008, 05:53 GMT

Title contender Greg Biffle claims Kyle Busch has gained an unfair advantage on his Chase rivals by participating in a tyre test at Atlanta Motor Speedway, where the series will compete in five weeks' time.

Goodyear had Busch, Travis Kvapil and Scott Riggs testing tyres last Tuesday at Atlanta, following the overwhelming negative comments coming from drivers about the lack of grip they had when they raced in the spring at the mile-and-a-half oval.

Biffle believes that Busch should not have been called to test, because that gives him an edge over his fellow title rivals. Data acquisition systems are banned on race weekends, but they are allowed in private tests, something Biffle believes to have given Busch and his team an advantage.

"I think it's a pretty big significant deal," Biffle said about Busch's test. "I've got a really bad memory, and if my memory serves me correctly that they said that they wouldn't use Chase cars to do tyre testing once the Chase started.

"So, maybe my memory isn't serving me correctly because that's perfectly possible, but I thought that that was what I was told but I could be wrong on that. But, it does give you somewhat of an advantage, certainly.

"But no doubt that will help them because they had test data, I'm sure, on the car and were able to gather some information for going back."

Busch denied they could have gained any advantage by participating in the test, saying that they were not allowed to work on the setup of their car, as they were exclusively testing tyres.

"We really couldn't work on anything, so I don't see it as though it was an advantage," Busch said. "You are strictly there doing tyre tests for (Goodyear). You can't change your car setup as soon as you get it close."

The JGR driver claims that the new tyre he tested at Atlanta will be an improvement from the one used in the spring event, but still believes it won't offer as much grip as everyone expects because the car's aerodynamics simply don't allow for it.

"We got a better tyre now than what we had in the spring, but the tyre is only going to be better for eight or ten laps," he said. "The car just doesn't have the amount of downforce it needs to run around that track, and the more and more you go you just get so loose in and tight in the centre and loose off that you just can't stand it.

"It's going to be a tough race again - same as what it was there in the spring. Not a whole lot different."

Busch won the spring race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, where Carl Edwards was his main rival for victory until his engine expired.

[Mothers Worry]

NASCAR to random drug test in 2009 

From autosport.com:

NASCAR to random drug test in 2009 

Sunday, September 21st 2008, 03:50 GMT

NASCAR is set to introduce random tests for substance abuse next year as a step towards enforcing their current policy.

Steve O'Donnell, NASCAR's vice president of race operations announced on Saturday at Dover International Speedway significant changes to their substance abuse policy, which will be incorporated fully from the start of the 2009 season.

When Speedweeks testing starts in preparation for the Daytona 500 next year, all drivers will have to submit a test, plus the teams will also have to implement their own test for all licensed personnel.

AEGIS Sciences Corporation, which is the largest independent sports and forensic testing laboratory in the United States, will support NASCAR in implementing the policy.

"Beginning with the 2009 season, we're going to institute a baseline test that will take place for the drivers in Daytona during pre-season testing," O'Donnell said. "Every driver who attends the testing session will be required to submit to a substance abuse test.

"All those tests will be administered by an outside agency, which is AEGIS, who will be on-site throughout the testing session. We're also going to institute a mandatory test from the owners to all of their licensed crew members."

However, the most crucial change to NASCAR's current policy is the implementation of random tests for all three National series. These tests will not only be for drivers, but also for pit crew members and event NASCAR officials.

Up until now, only a limited number of tests have been carried out, all of them based on reasonable suspicion.

"We're going to institute random testing that will begin, again, starting in 2009," O'Donnell added. "People that will be subjected to random tests are all NASCAR Cup, Nationwide and Truck Series drivers. All over-the-wall pit crew members and, again, NASCAR officials will all be part of that program.

"The way the program will work is you can probably expect it to be at most if not all events."

NASCAR's policy is different to that of other professional sports in the United States in that it doesn't have a list of banned substances. However, O'Donnell believes that allows them to act on any kind of abuse that they consider as a contravention to their policy's principles.

"We think we have the broadest policy in all of sports," said O'Donnell. "The reason we don't have a list is we believe that a list is restrictive. If you've seen with a lot of other leagues, the policy is constantly changing.

"We know that there's new drugs out there every day. By having a broad policy that doesn't list anything, we feel like we can test for any substance that may be abused, no different than our policy is today."

Substances that NASCAR could test for abuse include narcotics, beta blockers and steroids.

Today's announcement comes in the wake of revelations made by Craftsman Truck series champion Ron Hornaday, who last week admitted taking prescribed testosterone between 2004 and 2006, while competing in the series.

NASCAR cleared Hornaday after confirming he had used the substance as part of a treatment for an illness he was suffering at the time.

[Mothers Worry]

Kyle Busch says Cup title is gone 

From autosport.com:

Kyle Busch says Cup title is gone 

Monday, September 22nd 2008, 04:39 GMT

Kyle Busch's engine smokes at DoverFormer Sprint Cup points leader Kyle Busch says he is out of the fight for the championship after suffering car failures in each of the first two races of the Chase.

Busch led the series going into the Chase, but was only classified 34th at Loudon a week ago and retired from last night's race at Dover with an engine failure.

He tried to keep going and nurse his car when it started smoking quarter of the way through the race, but on lap 172 of 400 he was forced to pit when oil started dripping into the cockpit.

His mechanics tried to get the car back into the race, but Busch eventually decided to call it a day. He was classified last, which also puts him at the bottom of the Chase standing, 210 points behind leader Carl Edwards.

"We're out of the title hunt, that's for sure," said a disappointed Busch. "So we'll just manage what we can."

"At this point (the championship) doesn't matter. The same thing happened two years ago, the exact same thing. We wrecked at Loudon and blew up here. So, where did we end up? Dead last."

Busch's crew chief Steve Addington revealed that a lifter or a valve spring failed, causing the engine to expire shortly before the halfway mark of the race.

He says the team now need to stand up from two consecutive bad weekends where faulty parts have put an end to their title hopes.

"We've got to do it as a team, we've got to step up. "We can take chances now and win races and show them that it was just bad parts that got us," said Addington.

"It was human error on the first one at Loudon. This right here, Mark Cronquist (Joe Gibbs Racing's engine builder) and his guys have been bullet proof all year long. If anybody says anything about our engine department tell them to come and see me."

Although it is possible that Busch could get back in the championship hunt, no driver has ever overcome such a deficit following the first two races of the Chase.

In 2006, Jimmie Johnson made an impressive comeback from 136 points behind Jeff Burton after the first two races of the Chase to win his maiden Sprint Cup title eight weeks later at Homestead.

In that same year, Busch had a similar start to his Chase and finished the season last among the title contenders.

[Mothers Worry]

Allmendinger dropped by Red Bull

From autosport.com:

Allmendinger dropped by Red Bull

Tuesday, September 23rd 2008, 15:53 GMT

AJ Allmendinger will leave the Red Bull Racing Team with immediate effect, the Sprint Cup team announced on Tuesday.

Allmendinger was completing his second year in the series and had put his No.84 car back in the top 35 in the owner standings, but recent results and the imminent arrival of former Scuderia Toro Rosso driver Scott Speed have put an early end to his second season with the team.

Red Bull are testing today at Lowe's Motor Speedway, where veteran Mike Skinner, who replaced Allmendinger in five races earlier this year, is driving the No.84 car.

Meanwhile, Speed is making his first official Sprint Cup series test in a third Red Bull Toyota, labelled with the No.82.

"AJ is a talented driver and we really enjoyed working with him," said the team's vice president and general manager Jay Frye. "He's come a long way in just two years and we wish him nothing but the best."

The team have yet to name the driver who will replace Allmendinger at next weekend's event in Kansas, where Speed has already competed in the Craftsman Truck Series, finishing eighth.

The track is also a mile-and-a-half oval like Lowe's Motor Speedway, where he is testing until tomorrow.

However, Speed is initially scheduled to compete in Sunday's ARCA race at Millville, New Jersey, and leads the series' standings.

Meanwhile, Skinner is available to drive the car as the Craftsman Truck series where he regularly competes, doesn't have a race this coming weekend.

Speed is expected to take over the drive of the No.84 car next season.

[Mothers Worry]

Speed to make Cup debut at Lowe's 

From autosport.com:

Speed to make Cup debut at Lowe's 

Tuesday, September 30th 2008, 16:37 GMT

Red Bull Racing Team have finally confirmed that Scott Speed will attempt to make his Sprint Cup debut at Lowe's Motor Speedway before taking over AJ Allmendiger's drive for the rest of the season.

The team announced Tuesday that Allmendinger will be replaced from next weekend by veteran Mike Skinner, who had already filled in for him in five races at the start of the season. Skinner will driver the No. 84 car at Talladega and Lowe's, before handing it over to Speed.

The former Toro Rosso driver will try to clinch the ARCA RE/MAX series title at Toledo, while attempting to qualify for his Sprint Cup debut at Lowe's on the same weekend driving a third Red Bull entry, which he already tested successfully at the venue last month.

"I'm really looking forward to my first Sprint Cup race with Red Bull," Speed said. "I can't describe how much it means to walk into Red Bull Racing and feel support from everyone on the team.

"It's a huge step up the ladder and another step towards the goal of becoming a Sprint Cup champion for Red Bull. I know this team has the performance level that it takes to be competitive."

Red Bull Racing Team vice president Jay Frye said the decision to release Allmendinger and put Skinner and Speed in the car for the rest of the season is in the best interests of both parties.

"The schedule we put together is in the best interest of both Red Bull Racing Team and AJ's plans for the future," said Frye. "Allowing Mike Skinner and Scott Speed to share the No. 84 for the balance of the season helps our team continue developing our program for the future."

While Speed has his future set in the Sprint Cup next year with Red Bull Racing Team, Allmendinger still has to confirm what his plans are for the reminder of the season and next year, although he remains committed to staying in NASCAR.

[Mothers Worry]

Menard to join Yates for 2009

From autosport.com:

Menard to join Yates for 2009

Wednesday, October 1st 2008, 03:05 GMT

Paul Menard will leave Dale Earnhardt Incorporated at the end of the season to join Yates Racing in 2009.

The second-year Cup racer will turn his back on the team he has competed for since 2005 when he joined them for a full assault in the Nationwide Series, also making a Cup outing that year at Watkins Glen.

Menard brings sponsorship money with him to Yates Racing from his family-owned Menards stores, and he could drive a third entry for the team next year, as his new outfit has yet to confirm their plans for current drivers David Gilliland and Travis Kvapil.

"This is a great opportunity, and I'm glad to be joining the Yates Racing organization next season," said Menard. "I think a lot of what Doug Yates and Max Jones are doing over there is building for continued success. I'm excited to be a part of their future and excited to work with Travis and David.

"You look at what Doug and the Ford Motor Company have done in this sport, they've created a lot of horsepower and hoisted quite a few trophies over the years. I'd like to help continue that for both of them."

Menard is the third driver to leave DEI in the last two years following the departure of Dale Earnhardt Jr last year and Mark Martin's already-announced switch to Hendrick Motorsports.

His arrival to Yates Racing secures good funding for one of the team's cars, after the Ford team has struggled to attract full-time sponsors for their current entries despite both cars being well within the top-35 in the owners' standing.

"It's a positive addition for us to get a guy like Paul in camp here," Doug Yates said. "He's been through adversity in his first year in Cup and shown tremendous improvement in his second year.

"He's a racer, a guy who likes to be at the shop a lot, from what I understand, and that's what we like here. Plus, he already has a good relationship with our current drivers, so adding that third source of data should help our entire team rise up."

Menard claimed his maiden Sprint Cup pole position at Daytona in July but his best race result this season has been an eleventh place at Michigan in the spring.

[Mothers Worry]

Allmendinger to race for MWR

From autosport.com:

Allmendinger to race for MWR

Monday, October 6th 2008, 21:12 GMT

AJ Allmendinger will return to the Sprint Cup series next weekend to drive Michael Waltrip Racing's No. 00 car at Lowe's Motor Speedway, the team announced Monday.

The Californian had lost his drive with Red Bull Racing Team last week following his best career result at Kansas, where he finished ninth.

He was replaced by Mike Skinner at Talladega last Sunday and Scott Speed is expected to drive the No. 84 car in the last five races of the season.

Another former open-wheel racer, Michael McDowell, had been replaced recently by Skinner also at MWR but after a short return McDowell then failed to make the field at Kansas.

Kenny Wallace drove the car to a 12th place finish on Sunday at Talladega, giving them their best result of the season to date.

Now Allmendinger will attempt to qualify the car next weekend at Lowe's Motor Speedway, where he claimed victory in May during a qualifying race for the All-Star Challenge.

"I look forward to it and I think this is a great opportunity," Allmendinger said. "Over the past couple of months the organization has really picked up with how everyone has been running. Hopefully, I can go out there and do a good job and get the #00 Champion Mortgage Toyota team back inside the top 35."

The team expect Allmendinger to help bring their car back inside the top-35 before the season comes to an end at Homestead, although he hasn't been confirmed the drive for the rest of the season.

McDowell was runner-up last year in the ARCA RE/MAX Series and had been brought by Waltrip to drive the 00 car full time since Martinsville. However he is not expected to return with the team this year.

[Mothers Worry]

Carpentier loses GEM Cup drive 

From autosport.com:

Carpentier loses GEM Cup drive 

Wednesday, October 8th 2008, 06:32 GMT

Patrick Carpentier has been released from his driving duties with Gillett Evernham Motorsports in the Sprint Cup series and will by replaced by Mike Wallace and AJ Allmendinger for the reminder of the season.

The Canadian had been hired by the team a year ago to drive the No. 10 car full-time this season following promising performances in the Nationwide Series at Montreal and in the top series at Watkins Glen.

The former open-wheel racer scored his maiden pole position on an oval at Loudon in June, but his car has remained outside the top-35 in the owners' standing all year long and he failed to qualify last weekend at Talladega.

"We certainly appreciate all the effort that Patrick Carpentier made for us this year," said GEM's Mark McArdle. "But, our job is to put ourselves in a position to win races plus we're striving to get the No. 10 into the top-35 in points. We feel AJ gives us the best chance to do both."

"AJ has a lot of talent and if you look at his numbers you will see that he's only run in 38 races in his career. I think the more experience he gets the better results you are going to see and I hope that starts at Martinsville.

"He's demonstrated in open-wheel he has the talent and I think his performance two weeks ago proves his worth in a stock car."

GEM announced that Mike Wallace would replace Carpentier next weekend at Lowe's Motor Speedway, before AJ Allmendinger takes over the drive from Martinsville onwards and until the season finale at Homestead.

Allmendinger will drive for Michael Waltrip Racing next weekend at Lowe's Motor Speedway, replacing Michael McDowell in the No. 00 car.

"I'm excited about this news," said Allmendinger. "GEM has great equipment and I'm confident we can take these final five races and get the #10 up in points. I know we have a lot of work to do, but we are going to give it our best shot.

"I'm looking forward to spending some time with crew chief Mike Shiplett and the guys starting at Martinsville."

The team also announced that Reed Sorenson, who leaves Chip Ganassi Racing at the end of the season, will drive the No. 10 car in 2009.

[Mothers Worry]

Montoya bullish despite poor season 

Montoya bullish despite poor season 

Wednesday, October 8th 2008, 14:15 GMT

Juan Pablo Montoya says he remains fully committed to Chip Ganassi Racing and NASCAR despite a tough sophomore season in the Sprint Cup series.

The Colombian has had one of his toughest years thus far after a promising debut in 2007 when he won a race and the Rookie of the Year honours, and was Ganassi's highest finisher in the points standings.

This season has turned out to be full of stumbles for the 33-year-old despite a reasonably good start.

In April his team decided to switch his crew chief with the aim of helping teammate Reed Sorenson and then a few weeks later he had yet another crew chief change when Jimmy Elledge was fired from the team.

Since then, Montoya has not been able to get consistent results and a couple of top-ten placings on the two road course events show as the only highlights, besides a strong run last weekend at Talladega where he led the race and ran up front until getting caught in a multi-car wreck.

"It's been a difficult year, sure," Montoya told autosport.com. "But we won the Rolex 24 at Daytona and that was good, although it has been tough recently, yes. We've done the best we could with what we've got but I knew coming to NASCAR wasn't going to be easy and it was going to take time.

"I knew I wasn't coming to a top team but everything we're going through is part of the process of getting where we want to."

Two weeks ago Montoya had set pole position at Kansas but in yet another setback, his time was disallowed after officials found the nitrogen gas pressure on the rear shock absorbers exceeded the maximum allowed.

He laments that all the progress that his team have made recently was put into question because of the Kansas incident.

"What hurts more is not having lost pole," said Montoya. "What's tough is that we've been working so hard in the last few weeks to improve the car and we've made so much progress that it was sad to end up looking like we cheated to get a pole."

After starting 42nd at Kansas, Montoya fought his way through to move into the top 15 until his charge was hampered by handling issues. He admits he still has to find the right way to set up his car along with his crew chief in order to run consistently during races.

"It's always been different things," Montoya says about the handling problems that he often experiences.

"Sometimes it's been a bad set of tyres, sometimes it's been our set-ups. We're running the car on a knife-edge and what we're trying to do is find a broader range when we can ran the car reasonably well. Right now we're either spot on, or way off."

This season a number of former open-wheel racers who ventured into NASCAR's top series have been unable to match Montoya's numbers from his debut season.

Former Formula One world champion Jacques Villeneuve didn't even qualify for the season-opener and former Indianapolis 500 winner and IndyCar Series champion Dario Franchitti left halfway through the season following an injury, poor results and the closure of his team due to lack of funding.

Penske racer Sam Hornish Jr failed to qualify last week at Talladega and his car remains outside the top 35 in the owner standings while Patrick Carpentier lost his drive at GEM this week. Also AJ Allmendinger, a second-year driver like Montoya, was released by Red Bull Racing a week ago.

Next Saturday Scott Speed is expected to make his Sprint Cup debut, but Montoya warned his former Formula One colleague would find things more difficult than in the ARCA or Truck Series where he has been competing regularly.

"He's been doing well in what he's racing but when he gets to Cup it will be very different," Montoya said. "I did two ARCA races two years ago before moving up to Cup and both times I qualified in the top three and led the race. So yes, he's won in those lower series, but it's all relative."

But while his former teammate Franchitti is about to make his return to IndyCar this month after his brief and troubled career in NASCAR, Montoya says he is in the Sprint Cup for the long term.

He ruled out even making a one-off return to the Indy 500, which he won in 2000, although he doesn't fully close the door on racing there in the future.

"What for?" said Montoya about returning to IndyCar. "I'm in NASCAR, I'm happy here, I enjoy what I do and for now and I'm not thinking about going anywhere else.

"If five or ten years from now I decide to go back, then we would see, but for now I'm staying in NASCAR."

Montoya currently ranks 23rd in the Sprint Cup series standings. He will compete next weekend at Lowe's Motor Speedway where he was fourth fastest, and the best Dodge runner, in testing two weeks ago.

[Mothers Worry]

Goodyear hopes Indy issue resolved

From autosport.com:

Goodyear hopes Indy issue resolved

Wednesday, October 8th 2008, 12:26 GMT

A damage Goodyear tyre at IndianapolisGoodyear believes it has resolved the severe tyre issues that marred this year's Indianapolis round of the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

The Allstate 400 at the Brickyard was interrupted by a series of caution periods as extreme tyre wear meant that the officials were unwilling to allow more than 12 consecutive laps of green flag racing.

The tyre company launched a thorough investigation into the problem, which occurred during the Car of Tomorrow's first competitive outing at Indy.

Goodyear first ruled out any form of manufacturing or construction issue amongst its Indianapolis tyres, and then concluded that the high wear rate was essentially caused by the track failing to rubber in due to the small particle sizes coming off the tyres as they wore.

"To make a long story short, what we found out was that the additional load and slip that the right rear tyre saw changed the particle size of the wear debris," explained Goodyear racing boss Stu Grant.

"Instead of seeing the rubbered-in racetrack like we saw in 2006 and '07 on that compound, the particle size was so much smaller. If you were here, you saw it, it was this dry, dusty wear, and consequently the track never did rubber in."

Grant said that Goodyear had tested a softer compound at Indianapolis this week and that the results had been encouraging.

"We've got what we believe to be a good start toward a 2009 race recommendation and just look at the racetrack, you can see there's a groove in the racetrack where the cars are going around, just kind of looking normal," he said.

"We've got rubber debris on the outside of the groove, and we're seeing some significant improvements in wear."

Veteran driver Mark Martin said tyre wear was already significantly better during this week's test.

"We're still early on into the long runs, but we just put 20 laps on a set of tyres in the neighborhood and that didn't happen," he said.

"Actually, the tyre is more drivable than what we had. We certainly didn't have any complaints about the grip level that we had with the other tyre, but what they've got for a controlled test tyre here is faster, great grip and it's lasting at least twice, maybe three times the distance already.

"So kudos to these guys for what they've learned, and they'll use that to anticipate our needs going forward."

Another tyre test has been scheduled at Indianapolis in April next year.

[Mothers Worry]

Tracy to race in Truck Series 

From autosport.com:

Tracy to race in Truck Series 

Thursday, October 23rd 2008, 16:08 GMT

Former Champ Car champion Paul Tracy is set to return to NASCAR by making his Craftsman Truck Series debut next week at Texas Motor Speedway.

The Canadian will drive the No. 9 Germain Racing Toyota Tundra after successfully testing with the team back in May at Chicagoland Speedway.

Tracy's teammates for the weekend will be title contender and 2006 Truck Series champion Todd Bodine and rookie Justin Marks.

"Germain Racing is a championship organisation, and I'm excited to be behind the wheel of the Bombardier Learjet/Sport Clips Toyota Tundra in Texas," said Tracy.

"Todd and I are good friends, and I'm looking forward to helping him and the Germain Racing team win the race in Texas and gain spots in the point standings. I appreciate them giving me the opportunity, and I will do whatever I can to support their effort at Texas."

Tracy made his NASCAR debut in 2006 when he ran six races for two different teams in the Nationwide Series. His best result came in the season opener at Daytona International Speedway, where he finished 24th.

At the time, he was looking into making a permanent switch to NASCAR, but ultimately decided to sign a long-term Champ Car deal with Forsythe Racing instead, having struggled to find a competitive Cup seat.

However when Forsythe chose not to join the unified IndyCar Series this year, Tracy was left on the sidelines, with one-off outings at Long Beach and Edmonton his only appearances of 2008.

[Everso Biggyballies]

Tracy to race in Truck Series

Thats about his mark I would have thought.

[Mothers Worry]

Papis to race Cup with Germain 

From autosport.com:

Papis to race Cup with Germain 

Tuesday, October 28th 2008, 09:23 GMT

Max Papis will run a limited number of races in the Sprint Cup Series for Germain Racing starting next weekend at Texas Motor Speedway.

The Italian has signed a multi-year deal with the team, to enter eighteen races next season driving the No. 13 Toyota with technical support from Michael Waltrip Racing. He will also enter two races this season, the first one at Texas plus the season finale at Homestead.

Papis had been working on a deal to race in NASCAR for a long time. He has been a test driver for Hendrick Motorsports for the past two years, and this year he has made a few starts for Rusty Wallace in the Nationwide Series and also for Haas CNC Racing in the Sprint Cup road-course events.

GEICO, an insurance company that has been sponsoring Mike Wallace's drive with Germain Racing in NASCAR's second-tier series, will switch to Cup backing Papis, due to a conflict with title sponsor Nationwide, also an insurance company.

"This is a dream come true," Papis said. "My family and I have been working on this for the last five years and I'm proud that it's happening with GEICO. We share the same passion for life, integrity and moral character, and I'm looking forward to this great new chapter of my life."

"I will give all I have in my heart to make our program successful and I'm proud to be a part of their Racing family. It also brings me great pride to have the opportunity to represent my native country Italy in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series."

Despite his extensive experience in ovals while driving IndyCar machinery, next weekend's outing will be Papis' second ever in an oval in NASCAR. Two years ago he drove for John McGill at Texas in the Nationwide Series but he crashed out of the event.

He will have to qualify on time both next weekend and also at Homestead.

[Mothers Worry]

Hornish stays committed to NASCAR 

From autosport.com:

Hornish stays committed to NASCAR 

Saturday, November 8th 2008, 01:59 GMT

Sam Hornish Jr says he remains committed to succeed in his switch to NASCAR despite a tough rookie season in the Sprint Cup series and speculation about him returning to IndyCars.

The former multiple IRL IndyCar Series Champion categorically denied he is about to give up on his NASCAR career.

Following Dario Franchitti's return to the series and Helio Castroneves's tax evasion scandal, Hornish has been linked with a possible return to IndyCars, which he says is not in the works for now.

"I think all of that is basically untrue," Hornish told reporters at Phoenix. "I don't know where we got off on the wrong foot there but it all started basically when Dario [Franchitti] decided to go and run IndyCars and then all the questions started coming on what I was going to do.

"And then obviously now there are some other things that have brought to light the fact that, you know, maybe I would go back over there.

"But I'm focused on running here and I'm focused on trying to be the best Sprint Cup driver I can be. I came over because I wanted the challenge of doing this. I wanted to see it out. I wanted to get to the point where I felt like I could win races. We're not there yet but still working on it."

Hornish says he would even consider stepping down to the Nationwide Series fulltime if he were to lose his ride in the Sprint Cup, before giving up on NASCAR. He feels a move back to IndyCars would be the easy way for him as he has already achieved even more than what he had aimed for over there.

"I've said in the past that even if I have to step down and go to a good Nationwide ride to be able to get back here to try to get to the point where I can win Sprint Cup races, I'm willing to do that before I'm going to give up before I'm going back over and just do what's comfortable because I felt like, and nothing against the IndyCar series, but I felt like I achieved more than I ever dreamed of doing over there."

Hornish is currently thirty-fifth in the drivers' standing, while his car remains outside the top-35 in the owners' standing, forcing him to qualify on time for every event.

[Mothers Worry]

NASCAR Chairman Opens Up About Potential Loss Of Manufacturer Involvement

From autoracingdaily.com:

NASCAR Chairman Opens Up About Potential Loss Of Manufacturer Involvement

Nov 10, 2008

NASCAR chairman Brian France said Sunday he’s not certain the Big Three automakers will be able to continue their involvement in NASCAR as they battle to stay viable during the current economic crisis.

Should funding of race teams suffer because of the nation’s credit crunch, France is confident NASCAR will remain a viable, healthy sport.

“These aren’t our first tough economic times, we’ve been in business 60 years,” said NASCAR’s third-generation czar. “We’ve seen the energy crisis of 1972, and 9-11 wasn’t that long ago. So we’re not going to change our business model because we’re in tough economic times, but it doesn’t mean we won’t be more aggressive and taking out costs for team owners.”

France said General Motors, Ford and Dodge “play a very important role in lots of ways with supporting teams, the branding and heritage, but we’re also not going to live or die if one manufacturer or another has a pullback or pullout. I hope it doesn’t happen. We’re working like mad to make sure it doesn’t happen, but the sport is on very solid ground that transcends one manufacturer or another.”

France said he and NASCAR president Mike Helton have met recently with executives for all four car manufacturers in the sport—General Motors, Ford, Chrysler and Toyota—to discuss the financial problems that are hurting each company.

“We want to understand carefully what they are going through and how it relates back to the [NASCAR] team owners,” France said. “We didn’t talk about a bankruptcy option. We talked about their issues and how they might get through it. They’re all in the same boat, trying to revamp their businesses to get to a better place.”

The problems have caused the auto manufacturers to reduce team support and sponsorships throughout NASCAR.

“We understand team owners are in dire straits, but the entire country is in dire straits in one form or another ... I wish we could have a safety net for everyone in our industry, but it’s not practical.”

NASCAR is continuously looking at money-saving measures - a new idea floating through the garage is the elimination of testing, which could save teams a minimum of $1 million per car. But it may not be enough to keep everyone in business, despite France’s confidence that NASCAR will be able to fill its 43-car fields next season and that the sport can weather the downturn.

[Mothers Worry]

DEI and Ganassi join forces 

From autosport.com:

DEI and Ganassi join forces 

Thursday, November 13th 2008, 01:19 GMT

Dale Earnhardt Incorporated and Chip Ganassi Racing have announced the formation of Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates for the 2009 season.

The alliance of both teams will allow them to enter next season with a four-car effort, consisting of the No.1 of Martin Truex Jr, the No.8 of Aric Almirola, the No.42 of Juan Pablo Montoya and the No.41 with a yet to be named driver.

Autosport.com understands that DEI will move into the Ganassi shop in Concord, North Carolina, adding their technical expertise and resources to the newly formed squad.

They have yet to announce which manufacturer they will race for next season, but it is expected that they will field four Chevrolets with ECR (Earnhardt Chilrdress Racing) engines. As Richard Childress Racing also uses the same powerplants, they are all expected to share data both on and off the track.

"In this ultra-competitive era of NASCAR, it is necessary to build and sustain the strongest team possible and our combining with the people and equipment at Dale Earnhardt Inc will help create a strong four-car program for years to come," said Chip Ganassi.

"This is a win-win for both organizations as well as all of our partners."

Both DEI and Ganassi have struggled over the past few months to raise enough sponsorhip money to fund their cars for next year, but their alliance is expected to make their operations more cost effective.

Montoya's car lost its Texaco backing for next season but the team has a deal in the works to replace them. Wrigley's is expected to remain onboard the No.42 car, funding around half of its running in 2009.

Similarly DEI lost their US Army backing to Stewart Haas Racing for 2009 but the new four-car outfit should have at least three fully funded cars by the end of the year, as Target and Bass Pro Shops should remain as sponsors of the No.1 and No.41 cars.

"Having a partner like Chip who is heavily involved on the competition side of the business is an ideal situation for DEI," Teresa Earnhardt said.

"He has a long history of managing championship teams in the IndyCar and Rolex Grand-Am Series and I share his passion and goals of winning races and ultimately championships in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. I think this is a case where we are stronger together than we are apart."

Autosport.com also understands that Scott Riggs and AJ Allmendinger are the most likely candidates being considered for the drive of the No.41 car.

[Mad Maper 13]

http://www.nascar.com/2008/news/opinion/11/14/splash.go.rswan.ford.hybrid/story_single.html#page2

Hybrid pace car sends positive message to fans
The country elected its first "green president" and now it may be a step closer to its first green NASCAR.

Perhaps taking a page from President-elect Barack Obama's playbook of greening the nation's auto fleet, NASCAR and Homestead-Miami Speedway announced their plan to debut the first hybrid pace car this weekend at the Ford 400.With this, NASCAR fans have been sent a message: Hybrid cars are no longer exclusive to tree huggers and environmentalists; it's cool to go green in the off-track sense.

But like Kermit the Frog said, "It's not easy being green."

Changing mind-sets and educating the public takes time. Costly advertising campaigns and effective leadership is required to persuade the NASCAR stronghold that driving a plug-in car is better or at least more socially responsible than a sport utility vehicle that averages 18 miles per gallon.

It's a message NASCAR executives are seemingly taking more seriously these days, having created a post for Mike Lynch, who was hired last month to head the sport's new industry-wide green initiative (read more).


2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid pace car"Ford's hybrid pace car and EP SmartWay vehicle display at Homestead-Miami Speedway is one of many ways the industry is promoting to fans fuel-efficiency messages," said Lynch, the managing director for NASCAR Green Innovation. "This is a small, but noteworthy example of the kind of green collaboration fans will continue to see: manufacturers, tracks and NASCAR working together to raise awareness of conservation."

Is it as ambitious as Obama's goal to put a million plug-in cars on the road by 2015 including the White House fleet within a year of taking office? No, but it is a clear step in the right direction to reducing the sport's carbon footprint.

And the more prominent message this weekend for fans in Miami will be watching the first-ever hybrid car pace the season-ending Sprint Cup race. The 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid will be available to consumers in the spring of 2009.

"The message really is that hybrids are becoming more main stream as opposed to fringe," said Gil Portalatin, Ford's hybrid applications manager. "It's not just your green segment of buyers anymore. It's for anyone and everyone looking for an everyday car."

By Portalatin's explanation, the Ford hybrid has all the same creature comforts of a typical car plus more. It reaches speeds up to 116 mph, but touts the best fuel efficiency in its class.

"Under the right conditions, you can drive in your neighborhood or mall parking lots without using a drop of gasoline," Portalatin added.

“
For Ford to come out with a hybrid version of the Fusion ... I just hope that I can be on the pole, so I can be running up right behind it at the start of the race.
”
CARL EDWARDSNavigating through all the commercial car jargon and getting down to the cool points of the car, Portalatin pointed out that the Ford hybrid coaches you to drive more fuel efficient through what seems to be fantastic green foliage on the car's dashboard.

Better known as the SmartGauge with Eco Guide, it's a feature on a small LCD screen that provides real-time information guiding you to drive in a way that maximizes your fuel mileage.

The better you drive the more "efficiency leaves" bloom on your dashboard; drive aggressively and it's like fall foliage in Indiana -- you lose your "efficiency leaves."

Also, the seat fabric inside the car is made of 100 percent post-consumer recycled plastics, the tires are lower rolling resistance that improve fuel economy and even the wheels are more aerodynamic.

"I spent a lot of time in the wind tunnel," Portalatin said. "The wheels operate like a flat disc so air just rushes right by them instead of adding turbulence which slows the vehicle down."

Ford driver Carl Edwards is in favor of the car leading the drivers to the green flag Sunday.

"For Ford to come out with a hybrid version of the Fusion, that's best-in-class in terms of fuel economy, is really cool," Edwards said. "I just hope that I can be on the pole, so I can be running up right behind it at the start of the race."

That's a nice sound bite Carl, but what about putting your money where your mouth is.

Will the sport appoint a poster child for a greener NASCAR in the coming years? No one in the garage strikes me as the Birkenstock type who is keen on carrying a recyclable tote bag to the market for locally grown greens.

But there is Stanton Barrett, NASCAR's single-car team owner competing in the Nationwide Ford 300 this weekend.

Barrett says his family, hailing from California, is eco-friendly and conservation-minded. Stanton's uncle owns a company, Planet Green Unlimited, that produces energy-saving products in the home that ultimately saves money on power bills.

In an effort to promote a greener planet, Barrett will run his uncle's logos on the hood of his No. 30 Chevrolet during the race.

"I never thought we would see a day where NASCAR, who loves their V8 engines and super-charged power, [would] approve a hybrid car as its pace car. But, in today's economy, race fans are always looking for ways to save money," Barrett said. "And the whole world is becoming more knowledgeable on ways to make the planet greener."

Even NASCAR

Racetracks are planting more trees outside their facilities while inside crews are pushing fans to recycle their trash. NASCAR and the Environmental Protection Agency, once thought to be foes, are becoming the best of partners.

The sports newly constructed Hall of Fame is set to be a green building certified with energy management systems and low emitting building materials as is the International Speedway Corp.'s new office building in Daytona Beach, Fla.

Recycled Goodyear tires find a second life on new road and highways as well as ground coverage for playgrounds.

Examples in and around the sport abound, so it was only a matter of time before fans saw a plug-in car pace one of their favorite races. However, only time will tell if they chose to actually drive said plug-in cars themselves.

I vote Edwards trade in his motorcycle for a Fusion Hybrid and set the example!

One greener steep forward to a better world

[Mothers Worry]

Montoya excited about DEI link up

From autosport.com:

Montoya excited about DEI link up

Saturday, November 15th 2008, 03:00 GMT

Juan Pablo Montoya is excited about the partnership between Chip Ganassi Racing and Dale Earnhardt Inc, which he believes will make his team a lot stronger in 2009.

Montoya expects the combined effort will allow them to share a lot of data and help the four-car effort to run better than their current form as separate organisations.

"I think it's great for everybody," Montoya said. "It's going to make us better overall as a team and a company. It's exciting, I'm looking forward to it. I think Martin (Truex Jr) and everybody there has so much to give us.

"We've got so much information together and to have it is going to make us a lot better and stronger race team."

Despite Ganassi having to switch from Dodge to Chevrolet and the DEI resources being moved into the Ganassi facility, Montoya believes the partnership can start to deliver immediate results in 2009.

"I think it's going to (work) right away," said Montoya. "My relationship with (Martin) Truex is really good, with (Aric) Almirola is pretty good and whoever is going to be my teammate we're probably going to have a great relationship.

"Everybody wants to win pretty bad and our team itself is getting really good and I think with the help from them it's going to be huge."

The 33-year-old said he was happy to hear from Chip Ganassi about the new direction for 2009 and he believes the progress made by his team recently can transfer to the association with DEI.

"He said 'hey we're going to do this', I said "hey this is freaking great! I think we need it'," said Montoya. "I think between the experience that DEI have as a team, their drivers and what we have, I think we're going to be a great team.

"You look at our performance in the last four mile-and-a-halves and we've been there every week. Short tracks we're not there, but (DEI) are. I'm really, really excited. I think it's going to make us a great team."

Despite the ban on testing issued by NASCAR for next year, Montoya doesn't expect the ruling to work against the team's progress. The Colombian is happy that his schedule for next year will be much less busy than he was expecting.

"I think it's great," he said. "If you look at my schedule at the moment, it would've really sucked.

"It's good, I'm happy. It's a shame that we can't test at all because sometimes you want to do a little bit, but I think our simulations and stuff, and mixing up the information with ourselves and DEI, are going to be huge for us."

[Mothers Worry]

NASCAR introduces testing ban 

From autosport.com:

NASCAR introduces testing ban 

Saturday, November 15th 2008, 03:20 GMT

In the first major move to cut costs, NASCAR has suspended testing at all tracks where its three national series race in 2009.

Teams in the Sprint Cup, Nationwide and Truck series will be banned from testing at any of the venues hosting races during the year. The ban will also include those tracks where the Camping World Series Regional East and West Series compete.

However, teams will be allowed to test at venues like Rockingham, New Smyrna, Caraway Speedway and other tracks where NASCAR doesn't race and is unable to enforce the ruling.

NASCAR estimates that the ruling will save teams $3-4 million a year per car.

The move comes after series bosses had initially planned to expand the current testing policy up to 26 days of running with a maximum of two cars, something the midfield and smaller teams campaigned against.

Budgets had been projected to rise by 20 per cent with the extra testing, but the new limit is set to even out running between the bigger squads and the smaller ones.

"This decision was certainly one that came with a lot of conversation, a lot of discussion, a lot of thought and a lot of input from a lot of different people and stakeholders in the sport," said NASCAR president Mike Helton.

"We've reached it based on the thought that this is the time of the year when race teams need to know what their test policy is to make plans.

"Taking today's circumstances, and looking into the 2009 season, at the things that NASCAR can do to help car owners from a resource aspect, because of the challenging economic circumstances that everybody has, this was something that was timely and relevant."

NASCAR confirmed that the Goodyear tyre testing programme will remain in place and will be the only running teams will do at race venues during the season, although only a selected number of outfits will be able to run in those sessions.

"We have been working with Goodyear to try to spread that out and make it fair and will continue to do that, and probably raise the bar a little bit in 2009 to be sure that the participants of the tyre test get those opportunities spread out," Helton said.

"I think we're still best served by the active teams and drivers in the garage area doing the tyre test, because those are the ones that will be using the tyres and they're the ones that know how to, hopefully, do the proper test to come out with the right answer."

Under the new policy, simuation tools like seven post-test rigs, which are run by most top teams, will probably become key to car development during the 2009 season.

However, Helton believes that will not increase the gap between the top and lesser teams as they will be unable to confront their simulation data as much due to the limited track time.

"You can make that argument, but I think there's another side of that," said Helton. "In order to utilise the engineers and seven post machines and all that, you've still got to have good data. The best data you can get is going to the racetrack.

"So I think you can also make the argument that maybe that closes that gap. But the decision was made based on having to come up with a test policy and knowing that we're going to go into 2009 with some challenging economic circumstances around us. That was driving force behind it at the end of the day."