Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
April 26th, 2011
Volume V, Edition LXXIII
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Editor's Note: Check out our first ever Frontstretch Podcast this Friday! Doug Turnbull and our small group of racing experts will get you prepped for the Richmond weekend with exclusive driver audio, debates on the latest NASCAR issues and so much more. Check out the main page to listen, only on Frontstretch.com.
Editor's Note 2: For more on the Smokey Yunick situation, check out a special column / commentary by our Vito Pugliese tomorrow, only on Frontstretch.com.
Today's Top News
by Tom Bowles
NASCAR Appeal Claims Mayfield Shirking Responsibility
In a federal appeal filed Monday, NASCAR claims Jeremy Mayfield is acting irresponsibly while refusing to come to terms with repeated usage of methamphetamine. The response comes after the former driver appealed Judge Graham Mullen's decision against him, stopping a false positive defamation lawsuit against the stock car series dead in its tracks while enforcing an indefinite suspension from the sport. To this day, Mayfield insists a failed drug test in May 2009, the one that sparked nearly two years of trouble was a product of taking too much over-the-counter Claritin-D combined with a prescription dose of Adderall.
As expected, NASCAR continues to fight hard on disproving that.
"This appeal is about a professional race car driver's attempt to entirely avoid any responsibility for, or consequence from, testing positive for methamphetamine in a NASCAR-required, random drug screening," they claimed in their brief. "This appeal is also a result of Mayfield's abuse of the legal system through his insistence on perpetuating litigation in an effort to wear NASCAR out and extort a settlement."
Mayfield's attorneys now have two weeks to respond to NASCAR's brief, after which a hearing will be scheduled for either May or sometime in September. If Mayfield wins the appeal, the case will return to U.S. District Court but an actual jury trial would be months, if not years away.
Inception Motorsports Making Cup Debut This Weekend
For the first time in nearly a year, David Stremme is returning to NASCAR's top level of competition. Newly formed Inception Motorsports will make their debut with Stremme this Saturday, running the No. 30 Chevrolet at Richmond with crew chief Steve Lane. According to their website, the team is scheduled to run at 25 of the final 28 events while preparing for a full-season run at the championship in 2012.
The 33-year-old Stremme last ran in Cup for the current FAS Lane Racing team, then known as Latitude 43 Motorsports in mid-2010. With a total of 119 career starts at the Cup level, he has three top-10 finishes, has led 27 laps and earned over $12.2 million in prize money.
Clint Bowyer On "The Biggest Loser" Tonight
One of NASCAR's physically fit drivers is appearing on the famed NBC show known for people losing weight. No, it's not Carl Edwards but Clint Bowyer making a second appearance on "The Biggest Loser," scheduled for 8 PM as he helps motivate and cheer on contestants through the process.
"It is so great to be back on 'The Biggest Loser,'" he said in announcing the guest spot. "These contestants prove that even though life is full of setbacks, you pick yourself up, stay on track to reach your goals and focus on what matters most – a healthy and active lifestyle."
Bowyer, the first NASCAR driver to get involved with the show first made an appearance back in 2009. He currently sits 10th in the Sprint Cup point standings after a second-place finish at Talladega.
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Got NASCAR-related questions or comments?
Send them John Potts' way at john.potts@frontstretch.com; and if you're lucky, you'll get your name in print when he does his weekly column answering back to you – the fans that keep Frontstretch afloat. Potts' Shots will run on Thursdays with a whole new set of Fan Questions and Answers!
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Editor's Note: Numbers Game will return next week.
Today's Featured Commentary
Winning In The Nationwide Series: Top Of The Class, But Yet Still the Runner-Up
by S.D. Grady
I watched a race on Saturday. Mostly. there was a white car with the No. 60 on its side in the camera shot. On occasion, I spied a No. 18 and a No. 20, both appearing for very brief moments before vanishing. The checkered flag dropped and I watched with disinterest Carl Edwards execute a back flip, receive some back slaps in the grandstands and Kyle do a bit of sulking on pit road. All very familiar. All very depressing. There were the usual smiles, predictable banter thanking the victorious sponsors and well, yeah…you know this story.
I was prepared to switch the channel, but ESPN returned from commercial and started talking about Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., Kenny Wallace, Justin Allgaier and a few more Nationwide regulars… as in, the people who declared they'd be collecting points in this series for 2011. The post-race interviews lasted a good twenty minutes, and I actually enjoyed myself. But it's pretty clear the drivers who sit at the top of the points in this series were not all that happy. They haven't won a race in their series this year.
Heck. The fans ain't all that happy with this supposedly new and improved focus on the up-and-comers in our sport, either. Mostly because we haven't seen any.
NASCAR missed a key ingredient to a successful series when they messed with the system this time: the winners. When it all shakes out the following morning, the number one fact that matters is who crossed the finish line first. Nobody else will have their name splashed in the national papers or see their name tick across the bottom of the sports channels. It's an ancient saying in racing: "Second is the first loser." Runner-up means next to nothing in the grand scheme of sponsor dollars and media attention.
Remember the glory days in February when a certain nobody named Trevor Bayne snagged the checkers in Daytona? Now, quick. Don't look. Who finished second? What driver collected the most points for the Sprint Cup championship that day? (For the record, it's Carl Edwards... but did you remember?)
NASCAR fans love to see an underdog win. We adore watching them rise above and beat the established champion. We don't like to watch Superman steal the thunder over and over and over again, especially when it doesn't signify a major moment that alters the championship.
Why should we care that Allgaier tops the standings? Or that Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. has shown the world he can keep his car pointed in the right direction for an entire race? They haven't won and as long as the four horsemen of the apocalypse continue to lead the charge around the track, it's doubtful we'll see it happen anytime soon.
It's a bit like the varsity team coming over and beating up on the JV squad… not very sporting. Those sitting in the stands groan with each tackle and offer their condolences at the end of the day; it's pretty much all they can do. In place of their enjoyment, the only ones smiling after that game tend to be the seniors who whooped someone's ass. It's really only fun when the JV manages to pull a surprise out of the playbook and hand it all back to their schoolmates. That's where the entertainment value lies.
That is not happening in NASCAR.
Look, it's been years since the term Buschwhacker was coined by NASCAR fans. Even then, when the interloper only stayed for a few races, we just wanted the Cup-sponsored team with all the bells and whistles to leave the smaller teams alone and give them a chance. A chance to stand in Victory Lane and discover the wonder of winning, meet the mayor, eat some lunch with a new sponsor, buy a better engine and maybe, just maybe, earn the invitation to make it to the big leagues. It is that story that will bring me to my feet and bring me to the track.
NASCAR, your latest new and improved system sucks. Not until you banish the monster teams from the Nationwide and Truck garages will you have support series that are worth watching and worth investing in.
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TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
The Yellow Stripe: The Winner Might Take It All: Even with a Mediocre Regular Season
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FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: The 1991 Miller Genuine Draft 400 at Richmond International Raceway was won by Harry Gant. It was the second race in the streak of four consecutive wins that earned Gant the nickname "Mr. September." However, the race marked a first for RIR. What was this first?
Check back Wednesday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Monday's Answer:
Q: In March 1990, Mark Martin claimed his one and only Cup victory at Richmond in the Pontiac Excitement 400. However, he was penalized after the race. What was illegal about Martin's Folgers Ford?
A: In post-race inspection, Martin's Folgers Ford was discovered to have an incorrectly installed carbeuator spacer. Specifically, it was bolted on instead of welded. There was no performance advantage to be gained from the move. However, NASCAR still saw fit to penalize the No. 6 team 46 driver and owner points. That was more than enough to cost Martin the 1990 Winston Cup Championship, although Martin would likely argue against the penalty being the only reason he lost the title.
Frontstretch Trivia Guarantee: If we mess up, you get the shirt off our backs! If we've provided an incorrect answer to the Frontstretch Trivia question, be the first to email the corrected trivia answer to trivia@frontstretch.com and we'll send you a Frontstretch T-Shirt ... FREE!
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Hey, Frontstretch Readers!
We know you love the roar of raw horsepower under the hood that powers 43 of the best drivers in the world every weekend, but did you ever wonder how the sponsor on top of that hood also contributes to keeping the sport moving? What about the contributions of official NASCAR companies? If you think they are simply writing checks, think again. Check out our newest feature - Sunday Money. This weekly Frontstretch exclusive provides you with a behind the scenes look at how NASCAR, its affiliates and team sponsors approach the daunting task of keeping fans interested and excited about the sport for 38 weeks of the year.
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Coming tomorrow in the Frontstretch Newsletter:
-- Top News from Summer Dreyer
-- Full Throttle by Mike Neff
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
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Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:
Did You Notice?... by Tom Bowles
We've got another batch of talking points coming your way. Among them: Seeing where "Sliced Bread" compares to his NASCAR superstar peers three years in, who the best short track racer is since 2010, and more.
The Mirror crew is at it again with more talking points to debate. Topics include whether Carl Edwards will re-sign with Roush Fenway Racing or press his luck with free agency, which drivers not already in the Sprint All-Star Race are most likely to get in during the next three races, which Nationwide or Camping World Truck Series regular will be the next to win an event, and more.
Top 15 Power Rankings by the Frontstretch Staff
With the Sprint Cup Series off this past weekend, we're taking a look at some of the best up-and-coming talents in the Nationwide and Camping World Truck Series on Wednesday. Which of the young 'uns will be at the top of the rankings? You'll have to check it out in order to see.
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