Hornaday, Stewart get Saturday wins

The photos are from CIA Stock Photos - Thanks Earnie.

Yeah, I know. I slacked of a little last week. But I did get a chance to watch both the Nationwide Series race and the Craftsman Truck Series race today. Tony Stewart dominated the field in the Nationwide race at New Hampshire and Ron Hornaday took the checkers at Mephis.

Here's the lowdown on the Craftsman Truck Series event from the folks at Chevrolet.

Memphis, TN – June 28, 2008 – Ron Hornaday had a great record at Memphis Motorsports Park (MMP) heading in to tonight’s O’Reilly 200, but he was determined to make it better and 

take home the coveted Elvis trophy the race winner receives in victory lane. After leading 139 of 204 laps in his No. 33 Camping World Silverado fielded by Kevin Harvick, Inc. (KHI) to claim his third win of the 2008 season, the three-time NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (NCTS) champion is a two-time winner at the Tennessee track. 

The victory is the 36^th of Hornaday’s career, extending his lead as the all-time NCTS race winner. He retook the top-spot in the championship standings by 27 points over fellow Team Chevy Silverado driver Matt Crafton.  In addition to his three victories, Hornaday has scored six top-five and eight top-10 finishes thus far in the season. 

His victory was the fifth for Chevrolet this season and vaulted the Bowtie brand back to the top of the NCTS Manufacturers’ point standings with 12 of 25 races now in the record books. 

Hornaday qualified third and took the lead for the first time on lap 44. He retook the point on lap 76 and never looked back as the race scheduled for 200 laps, finished under a green-white-checkered scenario, the fourth time this season for the NASCAR pickup truck drivers. 
Crafton, No. 88 Menards Silverado, kept his quest for his first NCTS championship in high gear with a third place finish at Memphis.  It is the second consecutive race Crafton has finished in the top three to extend his season’s record to one win, six top-five and seven top-10 finishes. Crafton started 16^th in the 35-truck field. 

Jack Sprague, No. 2 American Commercial Lines Silverado, finished sixth to give Team Chevy Silverado three drivers in the top-10.  Sprague is eighth in the standings.  Chevrolet driver Chad McCumbee, No. 8 Malcolmson Construction Silverado remains 10^th in points after finishing 15^th at MMP. 

Round 13 for Team Chevy Silverado in NCTS competition is July 19, 2008 at Kentucky 

Speedway. 

And here is the race report from Reid Spencer:

Stewart bags fifth Nationwide win at Loudon

 

By Reid Spencer

Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

 

LOUDON, N.H. (June 28, 2008) -- Aside from Tony Stewart becoming the 22nd different winner in 22 Nationwide Series races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, the outcome of Saturday's Camping World RV Sales 200 was more of the same for NASCAR's Triple-A division.

 

Stewart's victory was the eighth of the season for the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, which has carried four different drivers to victory lane this year -- Stewart on five occasions and Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin and rookie phenom Joey Logano once each.

 

Hamlin and Busch, in fact, chased Stewart for the final 64 laps, after Stewart took the lead for good on Lap 136. Hamlin, driving Braun Racing's No. 32 Toyota, was within a half-second of the leader when Greg Biffle crashed on Lap 200, the final circuit. The race ended under caution with Stewart, Hamlin and Busch in the top three spots, followed by Kevin Harvick and Carl Edwards.

 

Stewart credited crew chief Dave Rogers, a native of the neighboring state of Vermont, with the consistently excellent performance of the No. 20 Camry.

 

"There've been four drivers (to) win in this car, so it's not the drivers -- that's for sure," Stewart said. "We're the fortunate ones to be able to drive this thing."

 

A two-tire call on Stewart's final pit stop in Lap 129 got the No. 20 Toyota out in third place for a restart on Lap 133. Three laps later, Stewart took the lead from Edwards, who had taken fuel only on the pit stop, with a smooth pass entering Turn 1.

 

On Lap 138, Hamlin passed Edwards for second, and Busch followed into third position three laps after that, but neither could overtake the leader.

 

"We didn't know it would come down to a track position race," said Busch, who took four tires on his final pit stop, restarted eighth and had to work his way through traffic. "We got out-strategized there at the end."

 

Notes: Todd Braun's No. 32 and No. 38 Toyotas were painted black, with no sponsor decals on the car. The cars were a symbol of mourning for the team owner's mother, Linda Braun, who died Wednesday. . . The race marked the first 1-2-3 Nationwide Series finish for Toyota. . . Stewart led 75 laps and Busch 63, as the Gibbs cars dominated. . . Series points leader Clint Bowyer finished ninth. . . Polesitter Landon Cassill had to start from the rear of the field because of an engine change. He gained 28 positions before a tap from Bobby Hamilton Jr. sent his No. 5 Chevy into the wall and out of the race on Lap 47. He finished 34th.

Texas AG targeting NASCAR truck team

Man, I don't know what to say about this except, ouch. Apparently, the Green Light Racing Team in the Craftsman Truck Series was the beneficiary of millions of dollars in charitable donations that are now part of an investigation by the Texas Attorney General's office. They say this one is headed to court and the Texas AG is asking for an injunction and filing criminal charges for violating state laws in Texas. Green Light Racing fields the No. 07 Manheim's Dealers Auto Auction of Dallas Chevrolet driven by Ryan Lawler and the No. 08 Gunbroker.com Chevrolet driven by Jason White. The No. 07 truck is currently 33rd in the Craftsman Truck Series and the No. 08 truck is in 23rd. Charity's Founder Charged with Using Charitable Funds for Personal, Political Purposes Attorney General’s enforcement action cites Gene Christensen and People Against Drugs Affordable Public Housing Agency

AUSTIN – Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott today charged People Against Drugs Affordable Public Housing, Inc., its founder and three of its directors with violating the Texas Nonprofit Corporation Act. According to court documents filed by the state, the defendants illegally used charitable resources to fund the founder’s salary, support a NASCAR Truck Series team, and advance the founder’s political career. The state’s enforcement action asks the court to prevent further misuse of charitable assets by appointing a temporary receiver and issuing a temporary injunction against the defendants. A hearing on the temporary injunction and appointment of receiver is scheduled for 9 a.m., Monday, July 21, in Travis County Probate Court No. 1. Defendant Gene Christensen founded People Against Drugs Affordable Public Housing, Inc., which purported to be a non-profit housing operation that offered “gang and drug-free living environments.” Christensen, along with defendants John W. Brown, Martin T. Glenn and, more recently, John Shute, served on the organization’s board of directors. In 1992 the defendants, relying on government-backed loans, purchased an apartment complex, which they promised would offer qualified individuals reduced-cost rent in a drug-free living environment. An investigation by the Attorney General’s Office revealed that the defendants operated the apartment complex like an ordinary, for-profit enterprise. Court documents indicate that People Against Drugs generates approximately $2 million in annual rental revenue. However, the charity’s revenue was neither used to provide reduced-cost living to the poor, nor was it donated to other charitable endeavors. Instead, the defendants spent charitable dollars on Green Light Racing, a NASCAR Truck Series team. Expending charitable funds for a non-charitable purpose is a violation of the Texas Nonprofit Corporation Act. Evidence indicates that Christensen converted People Against Drugs’ financial resources for his own personal financial gain. Without authorization from the board, Christensen entered into an “employee contract” with People Against Drugs that stipulated he would serve as executive director for 25 years at an annual salary of at least $102,000. In 2005, People Against Drugs paid Christensen $181,000, plus benefits and a company vehicle. Despite the fact that Christensen had no significant training or experience in nonprofit management prior to his involvement with People Against Drugs, the employment contract provided for an unreasonably high level of compensation -- $102,000 per year, plus annual cost of living increases. Because of this excessive benefit, the Attorney General’s Charitable Trust Section charged Christensen with diverting charitable resources for his personal use. Additionally, although Texas law prohibits charities from giving their executives interest-free loans, Christensen received a $119,000 no-interest loan from People Against Drugs. Evidence uncovered by the state also indicates Christensen used charitable resources to fund his extravagant lifestyle. People Against Drugs’ credit card billing records show that Christensen charged expensive meals, purchased personal items, and stayed in hotels in exotic locales at the charity’s expense. Christensen also spent $40,000 in charitable funds to help finance a film that he produced. Additional evidence indicates that Christensen used charitable resources to advance his political career. During Christensen’s 2008 primary campaign for the U.S. House of Representatives, he “loaned” himself $278,000. Of that sum, $94,500 has been traced back to accounts owned by the charity, and investigators have reason to believe that the entire amount came from the charity’s funds. That loan has yet to be repaid. Records also indicate that he made financial contributions to the Dallas County Republican Party with the People Against Drugs funds. State and federal law prohibits charitable organizations from making political contributions. Christensen and his fellow directors registered People Against Drugs with the Texas Secretary of State in 1992. Teaching “drug free and gang free living” and offering drug-free living environments for low-income tenants were the organization’s declared purposes. When the defendants acquired a 296-unit apartment complex through the Federal Resolution Trust Corp. and the Garland Housing Finance Corp., they promised that 35 percent of their units would be used to provide charitably-subsidized housing for low-income tenants. According to state investigators, while some qualified low-income tenants live at the complex, those tenants pay standard rental rates. The complex does not employ special security measures to deter drug use and offers no anti-drug programs. Additionally, People Against Drugs has placed no anti-drug education programs in schools, which it promised to do in order to further its charitable purpose. Thus, the state uncovered no evidence indicating that the defendants actually served any charitable purpose. In 2001, Christensen and his colleagues began spending charitable funds on Green Light Racing. People Against Drugs’ 2005 tax forms indicate the defendants spent millions of charitable dollars on vehicle parts, drivers, mechanics and other Green Light Racing-related expenditures. Although Christensen tried to justify his spending by claiming that the trucks advertised his anti-drug message, advertising was limited to a small People Against Drugs logo on both sides of the truck. The charity’s decal was roughly three to four inches in diameter. Today’s state enforcement action charges the defendants with spending millions of charitable dollars to fund a racing enterprise that inadequately advanced its stated charitable purpose – drug-free, low-income housing and anti-drug education. According to investigators, Christensen was able to divert charitable resources because People Against Drugs’ board of directors inadequately policed his actions and relied on legally questionable corporate governance practices. The state’s investigation revealed poor financial record-keeping, the charity’s inability to produce corporate bylaws or minutes from its board of directors meetings, and no evidence of management oversight by the board of directors.

Dammit! Scott Kalitta dead at 46

For the second time in two years, the National Hot Rod Association has lost one of its top stars. Scott Kalitta died from injuries he received after a crash on Saturday.

Kalitta was 46-years-old, a husband and father and one hell of a drag racer.

I know everyone whom he was close to will miss him and I know those people who fans of the NHRA never wanted to deal with this type of tragic news again. Last year, it was Erick Medlin — now Kalitta.

Let's all stop and say a prayer for his family and the entire racing community — worldwide — because it's times likes these when you realize that the sport you love comes with extreme risks.

Dale Jr. snaps losing streak

Photo by CIA Stock Photo: Dale Jr. is doused as he climbs from the No. 88 Amp Energy Drink/National Guard Chevrolet.
Wow, there were a lot of people that thought his day might never come and Dale Earnhardt Jr. had a big 'L' on his chest. Now, I am not saying that Dale Jr. is a loser but I will say that he has had a long spell of coming in behind the race-winner.

The naysayers have been spouting off for weeks saying that Junior is a has been, or better yet, a never was. I, on the other hand, think that Junior's going to Hendrick Motorsports was the best thing that he could do for his career. I predict that this is just the first of many more wins that Dale Jr. will get while racing under the Hendrick banner.

Here's a few quotes from the post-race press conference:

THE MODERATOR:  This is your 18th victory in 306 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts, your first win since Richmond 2006.  Why don't you tell us a little bit about your run today.

        DALE EARNHARDT, JR:  Well, we started out the race pretty good.  Had about a top-five car, and we were real loose on the first 20 laps of the run and we were probably one of the best cars on the track the last 20 laps of the run.

        We just lost so much track position, distance mainly, not spots so much, from the leader in the first 20 laps of every run with the car being so loose.  But I felt like we had a top-five, definitely a top-10 car.  We came in that last stop, we were going to be about six laps short, and I saved six laps of gas.

        So just real lucky.  I've got to hand it to Tony Jr. for being a risk taker, not so much audacity wouldn't be a good word, but it's close to that.  He's done a good job this year of getting us good finishes, better finishes than we probably should have.  Normally would not take the risk to trade the top-five for a possible win because normally half the time it doesn't work out, but we did the right thing today.

        So, it was a real good car.  Happy Father's Day to everybody.  My guys had really, really good stops and the car was great, the motor was great, the body was good, the chassis was good, set up was really close, and we didn't mess with it too much all day, just really loose, too loose to start with on the first few laps of the tire run.  And that's pretty much it.

        THE MODERATOR:   Also joined by Tony Eury, Jr. (crew chief) and Mr. Rick Hendrick (team owner).  Tony tell us about your day from the pit box.

        TONY EURY, JR.:  Today was pretty good.  We had a top-five car like he said most of the day and I just kept making little bitty changes.  Because you can go over an edge with this car really easy, and it was basically, you can start out really loose but at the end and be really tight.

        I looked at it today as we had a top-five car and that was as good as we were going to get.  Come down to the last caution, we were six laps short, and the caution come out six laps later after we stopped.  So I actually called up Stevie (Letarte, crew chief of Hendrick Motorsports team car, No. 24 DuPont Impala SS) and I asked him:  "Are you going for it?"

And he's like:  "No, I ain't going for it."  I'm like, okay.

        Those cautions helped out and reduced it to two laps short.  I'm like, "Look, Dude, I'm not going any further forward because the car did not really respond good with the two tires, so just chill out and save some fuel.  You have a pretty good caution behind you."  And I knew some guys, the next caution, the guys stopped, so they could make it.  

        So we are sitting here at the tail end of the guys that could make it and I'm telling him, just save gas because worst case scenario, we finish 25th, so who cares, go for it.  And if not, you're going to wind up 25th or win, if things just roll right.  That was kind of the scenario we was going on.  And he was sitting there running around and Jamie(McMurray) started coming up on him and I knew Jamie could probably make it.

        And I told him:  Look, we've got to race that guy and when the caution came out, I was pretty sick, I was like, okay, we're done, but I could make 200; 202, we're in trouble.  I told him as soon as the caution comes out, shut it off.  And coasting around like he did is probably what got us the win.  He's done it the last couple weeks, did a good job of saving fuel and we knew what he had.  So I'm going to be honest with you, my nerves is pretty tore up right now

An update on Alabama Motorsports Park

Hey check this out. If you thought the Alabama Motorsports Park was never going to happen, well, it appears there is a public hearing this week for those who are interested in weighing in on the subject. I predict the park will be built and from everything that I hear, it will feature Nationwide Series and Truck Series races when it is complete.

May 28, 2008 
PUBLIC HEARING SCHEDULED FOR JUNE 19
Show Your Support For Alabama Motorsports Park

MOBILE, AL - Public comments on the proposed Alabama Motorsports Park, A Dale Earnhardt Jr. Speedway, off Interstate 65, near Industrial Parkway and Kali Oka Roads, will be heard June 19 at 7 p.m. at the Saraland Civic Center, 716 Mae St., hosted by the Army Corps of Engineers.
An informal open house will be held from 6-7 p.m. to allow the public to view the site plans for the $624 million motorsports and entertainment complex on 2,400 acres. 
The developers, Gulf Coast Entertainment LLC, submitted a revised design in December after the corps found that the original site plan on the banks of Chickasabogue Creek would have altered more than three miles of stream and affected 177 acres of wetlands. 
The original proposal was open for public comments shortly after its submission, but this public hearing will give community members an opportunity to put their voice on the record.  
Reconfiguring the number and layout of tracks reduced the wetlands impact to about 87 acres.
The complex will also include a 5,000-space motor home or RV park, and retail and entertainment facilities. 
The public can submit comments and letters of support for the proposal via e-mailto damon.m.young@sam.usace.army.mil, call 251-690-2658 or by mail to PO Box 2288, Mobile, AL 36628. 
Key Notes and Figures

On his third try Joey Logano gets first win

Joey Logano, the kid they call 'Sliced Bread," got his first-ever win in the Nationwide Series besting the field at Kentucky Speedway on Saturday night and becoming the youngest driver in history to do so.

It looked like a battle might shape up between Logano and Kyle Busch but with 20-or-so laps to go, Busch lost control of his Toyota Camry and slammed into the outside wall. That left the race for Logano to lose — and he didn't. It was just three weeks ago at Dover, that Logano got his first start in the Nationwide Series and he almost went out and won his first race. Last week, he sat on the pole at Nashville and now he is in Victory Lane.

"Unbelievable, that's for sure," Logano said as he climbed out of his car in Victory Lane. "I have to thank GameStop and all the fans. The team was amazing today. I didn't think we had the car today and I said I would be happy with a Top 5. I tell you what. How about this team. It's freaking amazing. I gotta alive this moment first before I live anything else."

Logano's dad Tom was at the race and said this was the best Father' Day he's ever had, as he celebrated his son's win.

Man, I don't know what to say. I was at the press conference at Lowe's Motor Speedway when they announced that Logano would be taking over driving duties for the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing machine. Still being a teenager, Logano was a perfect fit for Grapevine, Tx.-based GameStop.

I t was most-certainly a party atmosphere as they unveiled a 47-pound cake to celebrate Logano's 18th birthday and they let it be known that this kid was the real deal.

I believe them and I think it is safe to say that he has proven himself.

I have heard rumors for the past two weeks that Tony Stewart will vacate the No. 20 Home Depot Toyota at the end of the season and it is very possible that Logano will take over that ride. It could be very interesting.

Secret meetings with NASCAR teams and FORBES rates NASCAR values

Apparently, NASCAR brass held a top-secret meeting with drivers and team owners this morning to discuss the state of the sport and the importance of spending time with fans. Honestly, I can't tell you what was said but one might speculate that it also had to do with the recent $250 million discrimination lawsuit filed against the sanctioning body. NASCAR said the lawsuit was not discussed and I believe them. I have tried to find a copy of the lawsuit but it has not yet been posted to the federal government's PACER Web site. I will obtain a copy of the lawsuit as soon as possible and post it here for everyone to read.

Now, what follows below is something that I stole from FORBES. If you want to read the entire article the goto www.forbes.com. I lay no claim to the information, I just thought my readers might be interested in what FORBES came up with concerning the value of NASCAR teams. It should be interesting reading.

Taken from the FORBES.COM Web site:

There's a widening gulf in NASCAR between stock car racing's biggest, most valuable teams and those hoping to hang on for just one more race. Since our first NASCAR valuation package two years ago, values have rocketed skyward, up 65% on average, to $119 million, thanks to a rash of investment in a sport whose radical growth over the past decade appears to be sputtering.

In the past year, billionaire investors like George Gillett, the owner of the NHL's Montreal Canadians and English soccer club Liverpool, and Fortress Investment Group President Rob Kaufman purchased stakes in teams (Gillett Evernham Motorsports and Michael Waltrip Racing, respectively) after seeing value in NASCAR.

They aren't alone. Stock car racing is also seeing interest from within--mergers of middling teams are yielding ready-made contenders as teams begin to realize the new efficiencies of operating, say, two cars from one expanded shop rather than separately. Example: Ginn Racing teaming with Dale Earnhardt Inc. prior to this season.

WWW.FORBES.COM

Petty joins with investment group

First, I already know that I have been slacking on getting stuff posted to the site. I have been busy trying to meet deadline for the paper and trying to move. Anyway, the site has suffered over the past week and there is no other way to describe it. Now that I have the apologies out of the way let me say a few things about the Petty Enterprises/Boston Ventures business arrangement.

Although I hate the fact that Richard Petty and the Petty family are not the only ones that will be calling the shots at Petty Enterprises, I truly believe that had this deal not been finalized that we may have seen the eventual demise of the most famous racing organization in history.

Now, according to the press release: "Petty Enterprises, the most successful organization in the history of American motorsports, today (June 11, 2008) announced a partnership with Boston Ventures, a leading middle market private equity firm which invests in the entertainment, media, and communications sectors. This marks the first time since Lee Petty formed the organization in 1949 that an outside firm has invested in the legendary race team.  In addition to introducing new CEO David Zucker and a major investment by Boston Ventures, Petty Enterprises has also extended their contract with former NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Bobby Labonte and will integrate the operations of Petty Enterprises and the Richard Petty Driving Experience.

So, what does that mean? Well, for sure it means that Petty Enterprises will get a big chunk of cash flung at them. The idea behind this little business experiment is to build up the team and then let Boston Ventures sell off its share at a greatly increased profit. I do disagree with several of my racing reporter colleagues that continue to say that race teams are nothing more than money pits.

Can you really say that about someone like Hendrick Motorsports? I understand that the cost of "going racing" has gone up over the years but so has everything else. It is time to face facts, most of th guys that run race teams are not necessarily the best business people in the world. Correct me if I am wrong but it appears that the most successful teams are run by real business people. Look at Roush-Fenway Racing. Yes, Jack Roush took on an investor in Fenway but the team wasn't struggling before. Prior to the investment deal, Roush had won two Sprint/Nextel/Winston Cup Championships in three years. Rick Hendrick is  great businessman and owns a gazillion-dollar auto business. His race team is doing pretty good, I would say.

But look at Ray Evernham, Michael Waltrip, Leonard Wood, Robert Yates and the list goes on. All of these guys are or were racers. It doesn't mean that they aren't business-savy but I would be that any one of them could drive a racecar better than run a Fortune 500 company. Over the past seven years, NASCAR has skyrocketed in popularity and along with that has come increased costs. It is not a bad thing that the Pettys joined up with Boston ventures. In fact, if you think about it, Petty Enterprises held off for a long time before making this deal. And now that it is done, I project that Petty Enterprises with Boston Ventures help, will once-again become a dominant force in NASCAR.

Kahne wins Pocono, continues comeback

By Reid Spencer

Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

LONG POND, Pa. (June 8, 2008) -- Polesitter Kasey Kahne recovered from missing lug nuts that dropped him to the back of the field -- and weathered myriad strategic ploys from his rivals -- to win Sunday's Pocono 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Pocono Raceway.

The victory was Kahne's second of the season and the ninth of his career in 158 starts, but it wasn't as easy as Kahne's 3.702-second margin of victory over Brian Vickers might suggest.

After a restart on Lap 182 of the 200-lap event, Kahne passed Dale Earnhardt Jr. on Lap 183 and Vickers on Lap 185 to take the lead for the final time.

Denny Hamlin ran third, followed by Earnhardt and Jeff Burton, who trimmed the series points lead of 43rd-place finisher Kyle Busch to 21 points. Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth, Kurt Busch, Carl Edwards and Mark Martin completed the top 10.

Kahne is riding a wave of momentum that dates to the May 17 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race at Lowe's Motor Speedway. After Kahne failed to qualify for the event, fans voted him in. Kahne made the most of the opportunity and won the race. Eight days later he won his first points race of the season, the Coca-Cola 600.

"The fans gave (momentum) to us in the all-star race when they gave us that boost," Kahne said. "It's done a tremendous amount for our confidence in the last month."

It gave Kahne and his No. 9 Dodge crew enough presence of mind to recover from a snafu in the pits on Lap 58. Crew chief Kenny Francis changed his call from a four-tire to a two-tire pit stop under caution, but the front tire changer didn’t pick up on the change and removed three lug nuts from the left front before Kahne left the pits.

Kahne had to pit again a lap later to replace the lug nuts and fell to 38th in the running order for a restart on Lap 64. With the race's dominant car and excellent subsequent performance in the pits, Kahne worked his way back to sixth by the halfway point. On Lap 116, he passed teammate Elliott Sadler for third.

With both Earnhardt and Vickers on fuel-mileage strategies, Francis kept Kahne on a normal cycle of pit stops and let the strength of the No. 9 car make the difference.

Because of the fuel-mileage ploy, Vickers' tires were 10 laps older than Kahne's at the finish, and Vickers thought that was the critical issue.

"I'm so proud of our guys," said Vickers, who gave Red Bull Racing its best finish in the Cup series. "We needed tires. He (Kahne) had a lot newer tires, and that’s all we needed. We had a great car."

Hamlin, who won both Pocono races from the pole in 2006, had a run on Vickers soon after the final restart but couldn’t make the pass.

"I got to the 83 (Vickers), but as soon as we got there, he moved down into our line, and we couldn't make any headway," Hamlin said.

Notes: Edwards made an astounding run through the field after puncturing a left front tire and starting deep in the field on the final restart ... Pit road speeding penalties cost Greg Biffle (15th) and Tony Stewart (35th) dearly. Both had contending cars. Stewart fell to 12th in points, just seven ahead of 13th-place David Ragan ... Kyle Busch turned right into the path of Jamie McMurray on Lap 46 and slammed the frontstretch wall, severely damaging his front suspension. Busch return to action late in the race but completed just 95 laps and finished last.

Tony Stewart can't catch a break and Kyle Busch can do no wrong

Photo by CIA Stock Photo

What else is there to say except that Tony Stewart needs to stay away from the lottery, casinos, ladders, black cats, broken mirrors ... whatever it is Stewart will be jinxed. And his teammate, Kyle Busch, is on top of the world.

Busch easily won the Best Buy 400 at Dover International Speedway, while Stewart was caught up in a lap-17 caution brought on by Elliott Sadler. Sadler got loose and went down on Stewart causing a major crash that collected a total of 10 cars. The crash also took out Busch and Stewart's other teammate Denny Hamlin, as well.

Here's Reid Spencer's recap of all the action from Sunday's race. Be sure to check out Kickin' the Tires in The Examiner on Friday for the latest on the rumors and behind the scenes activities in the world of NASCAR.

Kyle Busch wins easily at Dover

 

By Reid Spencer

Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

 

DOVER, Del. -- Same song, different verse.

 

Points leader Kyle Busch made mincemeat of the competition and a mockery of Sunday’s Best Buy 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Dover International Speedway.

 

In a race that stayed green for the final 153 laps, Busch gained a total of five seconds over runner-up Carl Edwards on his final two pit stops, built a lead that topped eight seconds and cruised in his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota to a 4.225-second win, his fourth of the season and the eighth of his career.

 

Polesitter Greg Biffle ran third, followed by Matt Kenseth, Jeff Gordon and Martin Truex Jr., as only six cars finished on the lead lap.

 

Busch grabbed the lead from Edwards during a cycle of green-flag pit stops that ended on Lap 237. NASCAR called a caution on Lap 243 for debris in Turn 2 -- under which the leaders remained on the track -- and after a restart on Lap 248, Edwards dogged Busch until both drivers brought their cars to the pits under green on Lap 319.

 

Busch gained almost three seconds on pit road and pulled away steadily for the next 60 laps before backing off in the closing circuits.

 

“We didn’t have the car to beat today,” said Busch, who expanded his lead in the championship standings over eighth-place finisher Jeff Burton to 142 points. “Carl Edwards and Greg Biffle did. But our guys on pit road (were)  phenomenal -- got us out front -- and that’s what won the race for us. The guys that pitted this thing on pit road definitely won the race for us.”

 

Edwards acknowledged he was slow getting off pit road on his final stop, but he gained two positions to fourth in the Cup standings with the second-place finish.

 

“It’s not what we came here for, but the car was good today,” Edwards said. “I wish we could have put on a better show for the fans. I wish we could have had a caution there at the end -- but Kyle deserved it.

 

Biffle led 164 laps to Busch’s 158, but he developed an ignition problem on Lap 169 and surrendered the lead to Edwards before switching to his second battery. Biffle ran the rest of the race without the use of air conditioning or brake fans in his car.

 

“The engine started missing, but we changed batteries, and it came back on line,” said Biffle, who vaulted six positions to fifth in the Cup standings. “We were just a little too tight all day. That’s really what the problem was.”

 

The monster that inhabits the Monster Mile woke up early Sunday. Seventeen laps into the race, contact in Turn 2 between David Gilliland and Elliott Sadler triggered an 11-car wreck that ruined the afternoon for Chase contenders Dale Earnhardt Jr. (35th), Clint Bowyer (36th), Kevin Harvick (38th), Tony Stewart (41st) and Denny Hamlin (43rd).

 

Earnhardt, who held third in the points standings (now 271 behind Busch), was the only one of those five drivers who didn’t lose at least three positions in the standings, though none of the drivers dropped out of the top 12.

 

Notes: Roush Fenway Racing put three cars in the top five – Edwards, Biffle and Kenseth – for the first time since July 2006 at New Hampshire. … Sam Hornish Jr. drove his No. 77 Dodge back into the top 35 in owner points with an 18th-place finish. The No. 66 Haas CNC Chevrolet, driven by Scott Riggs, suffered a 150-point penalty on Tuesday for a rear wing mount infraction May 24 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway and fell to 36th in owner points.

Sliced Bread???

They have been calling him Sliced bread for the past couple of weeks but, you know what, they (the other drivers in the Nationwide Series) may be on to something. Wondering who I am talking about? Well, it's Joey Logano.

He's the newest phenom from the Joe Gibbs Racing stable and in his first race out of the gate, he came in 6th.

Logano went into the Nationwide Series race at Dover on Saturday thinking that he could win and he wasn't too far off the mark. But the simple fact is that he could have won. Had he not got trapped in the pits behind Kasey Kahne and then have Kahne back over his left front fender, he may have finished even higher. But Logano wasn't phased, he admitted his mistake in the pits and he will move on to next week.

My advice — watch this kid because he may very well be the "greatest thing since Sliced Bread."

Now, here is the post race wrap-up for the Helluva Good 200 Nationwide Series race at Dover International Speedway from Reid Spencer.

By Reid Spencer

Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

 

DOVER, Del. (May 31, 2008) -- Denny Hamlin extended the domination of Joe Gibbs Racing drivers Saturday with a convincing 1.154-second victory over Carl Edwards in the Heluva Good! 200 NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Dover International Speedway.

 

The race, which started three hours late because of rain, wasn't the only victory for Hamlin, who won for the second time this season and the seventh time in his career.

 

Hamlin also won $200 in side bets with Kyle Busch and Michael Waltrip when teammate Joey Logano, 18, finished sixth in his series debut. Hamlin had bet Logano would finish in the top seven, but for a while, the wagers were in jeopardy.

 

Hamlin's win marked the eighth straight time and 10th time in 14 Nationwide events this year that a full-time Sprint Cup driver for Joe Gibbs Racing has won a Nationwide race.

 

David Stremme gained track position with a two-tire pit stop on Lap 155 and held off a determined charge from fourth-place finisher David Reutimann. Greg Biffle passed Logano in the closing laps to run fifth, followed by Logano, Brad Keselowski, Mike Wallace, series points leader Clint Bowyer and Kasey Kahne.

 

"It was fairly uneventful," Hamlin said. "We just bided our time at various times during the race and pulled away at the end. If you can get out there in clean air, your car can really take off. We definitely improved on our car, and I think our car was the strongest it had been all day at the end.

 

Edwards had nothing for the race winner over the final 28-lap green-flag run.

 

"It was all right," Edwards said of the result. "Second's no fun. It's not what we come here for. But my hat's off to Denny. He did a great job. I just wish I could have got up to him."

 

Stremme was pleased with his car's performance, but needed to find a way to get to the front -- hence, the pit strategy on his final stop.

 

"We took two tires at the end, and we felt that was a good choice," said Stremme, whose previous best finish at Dover was 16th. "Our car was strong all day. We just couldn't get track position."

 

Logano was forced to showcase his talent early in the race, after contact with Kahne's Dodge on pit road during the race's first caution necessitated a return trip to the pits. Logano restarted 28th on Lap 26, but by the time caution flew for the second time on Lap 46, he had gained 11 positions.

 

Under the subsequent 52-lap green-flag run, Logano worked his way up to eighth and gradually improved his position during the remainder of the race, until Biffle passed him in the closing laps.

 

"We were a sixth-place car and finished sixth," Logano said. "Overall it was a good day. I was hoping for that top five, but I screwed up in the pits and put myself in a position that I didn't need to. We'll see what happens next."

 

Busch led 68 laps, but a series of mishaps dropped him back in the field and ultimately knocked him out of the race. Busch entered the pits as the leader on Lap 105, but contact between his No. 32 Toyota and Keselowski's No. 88 Chevrolet brought both cars back to pit road under the third caution of the race.

 

Busch worked his way back to eighth, where he was running on Lap 169, when Braun Racing teammate Jason Leffler lost control of his No. 38 Toyota and knocked Busch into the Turn 2 wall. Busch, who finished 28th, held on to second place in the series standings but fell to 121 points behind Bowyer.

 

Notes: The aftermath of the rain that delayed the start of the race brought a couple of unusual problems. First, jet dryers on pit road blew up chunks of asphalt at the seam between the concrete pit stalls and pit road. Second, track workers dumped several bags of Speedy Dry against the inside wall to stem a torrent of water flowing into Keselowski's stall. … In his first race back since breaking an ankle in the Nationwide race at Talladega in late April, Dario Franchitti finished 15th.

Speed is surprise winner at Dover

A special thanks to the guys over at the NASCAR Wire Service from the Sporting News. They provide excellent coverage of the racing action so I decided to post their coverage of the AAA Insurance 200 at Dover International Speedway. If you check out the print version of The Examiner each week you will find the weekly 12-gauge column that is also provided by the Sporting News folks.

By Reid Spencer

Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

 

DOVER, Del. (May 30, 2008) -- Making the most of his sixth start in NASCAR's Craftsman Truck Series -- and capitalizing on transmission troubles that temporarily sidelined Kyle Busch's dominant Toyota -- former Formula 1 driver Scott Speed ran away from the field after a late restart to win the AAA Insurance 200 on Friday at Dover International Speedway.

 

Speed, whose previous best finish was eighth at Kansas Speedway, is the third straight first-time winner in the series, following Matt Crafton (Lowe's Motor Speedway) and Donny Lia (Mansfield, Ohio) to victory lane.

 

Jack Sprague held off Chevrolet teammate Ron Hornaday for second position, as Sprague crossed the finish line 3.379 seconds behind Speed. Travis Kvapil finished fourth and Crafton fifth. David Starr, Mike Skinner, Colin Braun, Rick Crawford and Johnny Benson completed the top 10.

 

"Today we had a good strategy and an awesome truck, and we got everything we could out of it," Speed said of his No. 22 Bill Davis Racing Toyota. "The learning curve I've had has been amazing. Every time I go out on the track, I feel I come away with a lot of knowledge.

 

"I'm just having an awesome time trying to learn this sport."

 

With a two-tire stop on Lap 133, Speed improved his track position dramatically, restarting third behind Todd Bodine and Shane Sieg on Lap 136. After picking off Sieg, Speed passed Bodine for the lead on Lap 150 and opened a lead of more than 3.5 seconds over Hornaday (who gained three positions to second).

 

Speed's lead disappeared, however, when Bodine's No. 30 Toyota blew a right front tire and slapped the Turn 3 wall on Lap 170.

 

But Speed said his truck was quicker on two tires, and after taking the green flag for a restart on Lap 179, he stretched his advantage to nearly four seconds over Sprague before backing off on the final circuit.

 

"It was time to get a little aggressive," Speed said of the restart.

 

Busch led the first 96 laps of the race, until heavy smoke from his No. 51 Toyota forced him to the garage. Busch lost 19 laps as his crew changed a transmission, a turn of events that opened a window of opportunity for the truck series regulars. He finished 17 laps down in 27th place after making up two laps during the remainder of competition.

 

But veterans Hornaday and Sprague had nothing for the series rookie at the end of the race.

 

Sprague thought he had a chance to win, but the performance of his No. 2 Chevy fell off after the restart with 22 laps to go.

 

"I could barely outrun (Hornaday) with a sour motor," Sprague said. "After the green (on Lap 179), I got tight again. Dammit! I want to win."

 

Hornaday also felt he could catch Speed until his engine lost power late in the race.

 

"I don't know if we broke a header, but we lost a little bit of power," Hornaday said. "I had to pull down and let Jack go."

 

A flashy dresser and a bit of an eccentric (he just had the tips of his toenails painted blue), Speed found a quick way to gain acceptance among the series veterans.

 

"He's a winner in the Craftsman Truck Series now, so he'll fit right in," Hornaday said.

 

One victory, however, won't be enough to satisfy Speed, who was informed in victory lane that there has never been a repeat winner in the truck series at Dover.

 

"I haven't been back," Speed said.

 

Note: Crawford took over the series points lead, with Crafton 20 points down in second.

Gordon, Hendrick, DuPont resign contract/Haas penalties announced

NASCAR ramped up its penalties for tampering with the new COT car by Haas CNC Racing this week by slamming the company with a 150-point deduction in both driver's and owner's points, suspending the crew chief and the car chief and implementing a $100,000 fine for the team owners and the crew chiefs of the No. 66 and No. 70 teams.

It was the first time that NASCAR had gone above the 100-point mark for tampering with the cars and the first time the sanctioning body had suspended a car chief.

And, according to a NASCAR spokesperson, future rule infractions will cost teams even more.

Also, Tony Eury Sr. and two JR Motorsports employees were fined and placed on probation after a pit road altercation last Saturday during the Nationwide Series race between the No. 88 team and the No. 20 teams. Eury was find $1,000 for not keeping his team in line and the two crew members were each fined $1,500 for not obeying a NASCAR official.

And finally, Hendrick Motorsports has released a statement that it has reached an agreement with DuPont to remain on the No. 24 car through 2010. The deal extends the ongoing contract to 18-years, which is the longest the continuously running sponsor contract in the garage.

The contract extension was announced by Gordon and David G. Bills, DuPont chief marketing and sales officer, on DuPont NASCAR Day, an employee appreciation event held annually at the company's headquarters here. DuPont has a long tradition of excellence in the automotive world and we're proud to be a part of it," Gordon said. "The fact that we're now in our 16th year together speaks volumes about the success of this partnership."

DuPont launched its NASCAR involvement in 1992, when it decided to sponsor Gordon, then a rookie 21-year-old driver from California, who had just been hired by Rick Hendrick, founder and CEO of Hendrick Motorsports. Gordon, now 36, is a four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion.

"This sponsorship is a perfect match for DuPont -- a company known for its science and innovation and longstanding commitment to the automotive industry," Bills said. "NASCAR's overall fan base and communications reach are impressive, but the DuPont brand enjoys even higher visibility because Jeff and the #24 DuPont Chevrolet figure so prominently in so many races."

"The relationship Hendrick Motorsports and Jeff Gordon have enjoyed with DuPont is not just one of the great success stories in NASCAR, but across all forms of sponsorship," Hendrick said. "We feel fortunate to have such a terrific, long-term partner, and our entire company looks forward to an exciting future with the #24 DuPont team."

Kasey Kahne steals win from Tony Stewart in Coca-Cola 600

After Dale Earnhardt Jr. got into the wall with 100-or-so laps to go, the Coca-Cola 600 looked like it would belong to Tony Stewart and the No. 20 Home Depot team. But, that wasn't to be as Stewart would suffer the leader's jinx and cut down a right front tire with three laps to go, leaving the door open for Kasey Kahne to bring the No. 9 Budweiser Dodge to Victory Lane.

It was called the leader's jinx because throughout the evening nearly every driver that got out in front of the pack suffered some sort of problem. It happened to Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch, Kurt Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Brian Vickers.

"I saw him up high and when I came off two he was slow, low and slow and I thought he ran out of gas," Kahne said. "He had a problem and we were in position and the luck was on our side.

Greg Biffle, who finished in second, said he getting a good finish wasn't easy and that his car wasn't right throughout the evening.

"This was a hard-fought effort," Biffle said. "Man, we were hitting the race track. We had some issues going on there with the bump stops, or tires, or something else. The car was just a handful to drive one way or the other. We couldn't ever hit it. We know they are temperamental but jeez. We couldn't do anything to hit it. What a long night. Just came up a little bit short. Just wish we had another 50 laps."

Kahne said his successful evening has changed his opinion of Lowe's Motor Speedway and now, he has a new favorite track.

"I enjoy this track now," Kahne said. "It was Atlanta but after last week and this week it is my favorite now."