THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
October 11th, 2011
Volume V, Edition CCXIV
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by Tom Bowles
- Just two days after a potential Chase-altering performance at Kansas, Jimmie Johnson is scheduled to speak about his victory with the media. Johnson is also scheduled to make a special appearance at the NASCAR Hall of Fame down in Charlotte, part of a jam-packed week of Bank of America 500 festivities for fans in NASCAR's mecca.
- Richard Petty and Bruton Smith will be honored with Visionary Awards in a special dinner sponsored by The Foundation Fighting Blindness. In a special twist, all guests at the event will dine in total darkness to get a taste for what it's like to be visually impaired.
Today's Top News
by Tom Bowles
Highlights From Brian France Media Session - Kansas
Over the weekend in Kansas, NASCAR's CEO made himself available for a question-and-answer session about anything and everything concerning the sport these days. From the Nationwide and Truck schedules, to the current economic woes facing some Sprint Cup teams a wide range of issues were discussed; we've sorted through the material and given you a highlighted, quick-read version of the transcript for your convenience:
BRIAN FRANCE: As you know, from time to time I will take some questions for the record. Obviously I'm not sure we can be any more pleased with how the Chase is unfolding, and frankly how the season has unfolded, with the level of competition, the closeness in the Chase, some of the moves that we made, the wild card being one, and streamlining and simplifying the points system being another, to make it easier for people to understand how you qualify and of course add some additional drama. It's done all of that, and if you look back, those were at the time viewed as small moves that we made, but they're actually having a really big impact, and that's terrific. I think it's still very wide open. Our hope and our hope always is that we come down to the finale in South Florida at Homestead and have as many drivers really in the thick of it as possible. That's the goal. That's what we hope. We'll see, and we'll also see if Jimmie Johnson can continue to make history, as well, winning six in a row.
Q. Obviously we're near the home of Sprint. They've got two years left on the deal. They've had some kind of good days and bad days. Where do you see that relationship? Have you started renegotiating the series sponsorship?
BRIAN FRANCE: Well, [the] relationship is very good. It's a program that's worked extremely well for them. They would, I think, tell you that. We're in a time when we're having those kind of discussions about extending the relationship. My hope is that we will. That's always a goal when we have a really good incumbent sponsor who's done such a good job. You obviously want to extend the relationship if you can.
Q. You've had some good news as far as TV ratings go early in the Chase. Any data yet as to what demographics the increases are coming from in particular, and what's your gut feeling in terms of why there seems to be a heightened level of interest this year?
BRIAN FRANCE: You know, the increase is primarily coming frankly right where we would really want it to be, which is the younger demo, up I think 20 something percent, has consistently been up 20 something percent. I think in major sports today, you're going to see this in the various playoffs and championships that will be decided in all kinds of sports, it gets down to story lines and match-ups is that last 10 percent, 15 percent, whatever it's going to be, and when you have more of that, good story lines and great racing in our case, you should do better, and we are doing better. We've just got to keep building on that and hope that the racing and the story lines continue to do what they have done.
Q. You've seen a lot of races this year that have come down to fuel mileage races, and I was wondering if NASCAR is considering any competition changes going into 2012 to kind of put more emphasis on the side-by-side racing rather than who's not going to run out of fuel.
BRIAN FRANCE: Well, that's part of the strategy, it's part of the game, and it's part of the racing. We're not going to be trying to overregulate that. That's cyclical, too. There's going to be times when there tends to be more of that for whatever reason, the way races play out, and then there will be times when there are cautions like there was yesterday in the Nationwide, where the cautions happen late in the race and bunches everybody up, and people always say you don't like too much of that, either, do you? Of course we like it all. We like to see all the strategies and scenarios play out.
Q. You've had good story lines on the track, but off the track there's still been some unsettling news with teams filing layoff notices with the state of North Carolina, and it appears there will be maybe five or six less full-time Cup cars next year at this point. How would you characterize the labor environment for teams and the sponsor environment for teams going into 2012, and do you see any hope of this rebounding?
BRIAN FRANCE: Look, I've always said I'm not an economist, but I know what you know, and it's very, very difficult out there for companies and for people in the general economy. That has impact on us, and it will continue to have some impact on us. One of the things that does happen when availability comes forward in terms of if a team or two doesn't elect to compete next year, we often see in the off-season teams that were thinking about moving up but did not want to because there wasn't availability, they couldn't make the event, couldn't make the top 35 or whatever else, you'll see where those five or six teams don't necessarily turn out to be five or six teams. I hope everybody comes back and everybody gets what they need to compete, but if the economy is difficult, it does allow opportunities for others, and that's, I guess, the only silver lining in it.
Q. The Truck Series in particular, somewhat related to Nate's question, seems to have some teams struggling. It's very hard for teams to get to the races in some cases. Do you still consider the Truck Series to be a viable, healthy series, and what do you think the future of that is?
BRIAN FRANCE: It's very viable. It's a franchise for the SPEED Channel. It's their highest rated programming every week, depending on what venue. It does fairly well. But yeah, there's no question that that series and every motor sport series in the country has got some impact, and some greater than others. I will say that with that particular series we've done unprecedented things in the last two or three years to take cost out of the system for those team owners and the drivers for that matter. But limiting crew members and doing all kinds of things on the regulatory side that have proven a great deal of cost savings, it's a lot cheaper to operate a truck team than it was three years ago.
Q. You mentioned some cost-cutting measures in Nationwide and the Truck Series. Is NASCAR considering any further measures there, either technical or in any other way, to help those owners save more money?
BRIAN FRANCE: Absolutely. It's a core principle at the R & D center that there's a group of people that are looking at safety, performance and cost all the time. You don't see them, you don't need to see them, they're not going to come to the events very often, but that's what they're trying to do. And we're trying things out in the touring divisions frequently that we don't talk a lot about, but we do, to see what can work and what can't, and obviously the conditions are different. But that's all good.
I did want to say one last thing about our diversity efforts, and you think you're starting to see some really top-notch talent that I believe will make it into the Cup level and certainly the Nationwide level shortly. Darrell Wallace being one has got the attention of a lot of owners, and Sergio Pena is another talented driver winning races in a tough environment. We could have what we've been hoping for, which is to spotlight some talent that will be with us at the highest level for a long time. That will be good for NASCAR, and obviously Danica coming over and competing full-time next year in the Nationwide and some Cup events is another positive thing. She's talented, and I hope she does well.
TRG Motorsports Adding Second Car
In a difficult NASCAR economy, another small team has been forced to realign their resources in order to compete more effectively. Small-time Ford operation TRG Motorsports has entered a second car for Charlotte; their primary, the No. 71 will be driven by veteran Hermie Sadler while rookie Andy Lally will move to the newly-numbered No. 77. For this event, as well as ones in the foreseeable future Lally will start-and-park if he qualifies, unless last-minute sponsorship materializes while the No. 71 will go the full distance.
Frontstretch has also learned multiple drivers have been contacted to form a possible second TRG team in 2012. However, according to sources it does seem the full-time opportunity is contingent on funding. Teams often pull out a second car to start-and-park when they don't have enough money to go the distance on what they have for the primary car.
Sadler, a veteran of 61 Cup starts has run two previous races for TRG, in the Fall of 2010 and Spring of 2011 at Martinsville posting a best finish of 26th. The current reporter for SPEED network will miss his Truck Series duties in Las Vegas; Krista Voda will cover for him on pit road.
New Rule Under Consideration For Pushing Cars Under Caution
Kevin Harvick's infamous Kansas "push" Sunday from Austin Dillon is getting a serious look from NASCAR officials as they consider major rule changes for 2012. The Virginian Pilot's Dustin Long has learned the sanctioning body is considering altering when and how you can pushing other cars legally after several fuel mileage finishes have teammates trying to save gas on the track. Harvick's incident, which NASCAR officials claimed was illegal because the No. 29 failed to maintain "reasonable speed" under caution has highlighted the advantage team cars can gain by helping each other out; currently, it's legal to push another car around the track as long as it's not the last lap of the race.
J.J. Yeley, after seeing Matt Kenseth penalized when he pushed the No. 17 car across the line at Chicagoland has also asked for clarification on the rule. After that event, Yeley claimed that at Talladega, the two-car tandems "push" someone across the finish line every race but no one has ever been penalized for an infraction.
Harvick, who was simply given a warning after the incident midrace went on to finish sixth at Kansas. But with three intermediate tracks still on the horizon - Charlotte, Texas, and Homestead - it's likely the fuel mileage issue and "pushing teammates" will pop up again before the end of the 2011 season.
News And Notes
- Matt Kenseth has received primary sponsorship for Charlotte in a one-race deal with Fluidmaster. The plumbing company, which specializes in dual flush technology, is testing the waters, engaging in their first-ever partnership with a NASCAR program while watching how much their customer base increases as a result of being on the race car. Kenseth, who is seeking full-time sponsorship for 2012 has had a plethora of backers this season while preparing for the departure of his biggest supporter, Crown Royal.
- Travis Kvapil will drive a third Front Row Motorsports car the distance this week after announcing a sponsorship with Ingersoll Rand. Kvapil and Yeley have been sharing the No. 55 and No. 38 cars for the season's second half, with only the latter going the distance as the team has used a start-and-park car to raise extra funds for the program.
Ingersoll Rand is a vehicle service tools, equipment and compressed air technology company that's been involved in NASCAR for over 50 years. Among other contributions, they produce the "Thunder Gun Impactool" that teams routinely use for stops on pit road.
Have news for Tom and the Frontstretch? Don't hesitate to let us know; email us at ashland10@mail.com with a promising lead or tip.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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Numbers Game: Hollywood Casino 400
by Brett Poirier
1
Drivers to finish in the top 10 in all four Chase races in 2011. Point leader Carl Edwards is the only driver to do so; he finished fifth on Sunday.
2
Tracks on the Sprint Cup Series circuit that Kyle Busch has not scored top-5 finishes on (Kansas and Homestead). Busch finished 11th on Sunday at Kansas and has only one top-10 finish in nine starts there.
5
Top-5 finishes for Kasey Kahne in 2011. He recorded his second straight top 5 with a second-place showing at Kansas.
7
Races extended past the scheduled distance of laps in 2011 (Daytona - Feb and July, Darlington & Charlotte - May, Watkins Glen & Michigan - August). A late caution added five laps at Kansas, extending the final distance to 272 circuits.
7
Top-5 finishes for Carl Edwards in eight starts at 1.5-mile tracks in 2011; he was fifth on Sunday. Three of the six remaining races in The Chase are at these intermediate tracks.
9
Consecutive manufacturers' championships for Chevrolet. The automaker clinched its 35th title in the sport with Jimmie Johnson's win Sunday.
9
Consecutive Chase races won by drivers qualified for the playoff. The last non-Chase driver to win a postseason race was Jamie McMurray at Charlotte on October 16, 2010.
16.1
Average finishing position of Sprint Cup drivers following a win in the previous Sprint Cup race in 2011. After winning at Dover, Kurt Busch placed 13th at Kansas.
19
The number of points that separated the top-8 in the Sprint Cup Series standings heading into Sunday's race at Kansas. It is also the number of points separating the top-7 in the standings after Kansas.
20
Wins for Jimmie Johnson in Chase races, a NASCAR record.
39
Bonus points accumulated by Kyle Busch in 2011. Busch leads all Chase drivers while Dale Earnhardt, Jr. has the smallest amount with eight.
55
Wins for Jimmie Johnson in the Sprint Cup Series. With the victory Sunday, Johnson moved into a tie for eighth with Rusty Wallace on the all-time wins list.
57
Top-10 finishes for Jimmie Johnson in 74 career races in The Chase; he won at Kansas.
197
Laps led by Jimmie Johnson on Sunday in the 272-lap race at Kansas. It was the most laps led by any Kansas winner in the history of the speedway, which first held a Cup race in 2001.
199
Wins in Sprint Cup Series competition for Hendrick Motorsports. Jimmie Johnson captured win 199 on Sunday.
1,138
Laps completed this season by Joe Nemechek through 30 Sprint Cup races. He ran 18 laps at Kansas and finished 41st.
1,197
Laps led this season by Kyle Busch in the Sprint Cup Series, a number that leads all drivers. He paced the field for eight laps and finished 11th Sunday at Kansas, meaning Busch has led in 22 of the 30 races.
2006
The last year that Jeff Gordon finished outside the top 5 at Kansas until Sunday, when he blew an engine and finished 34th.
Brett Poirier is a Contributor to Frontstretch.com. He can be reached via e-mail at brett.poirier@frontstretch.com.
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Today's Featured Commentary
Baring It All in NASCAR: How Much is too Much?
by S.D. Grady
Jimmie Johnson smiled in Victory Lane at Kansas. Carl Edwards cheered about his fifth-place finish. Austin Dillon seemed pleased overall with his 26th-place debut. In fact, for the most part, Sunday's race was rather pleasant — as long as you discounted the mind-numbing parade that we called racing. But that was Sunday, and appropriately Kansas. Normalcy reigned, save for the purported banana peels under Kurt Busch's tires.
Saturday seemed to have a slightly more interesting slant to it, though, at least by the time ESPN was ready to leave the air for the Nationwide race. Brian Scott and Aric Almirola spent more than a few minutes trading schoolyard threats, livening up a rather boring afternoon. Something about who hit who in Richmond and then who bumped who earlier in the day raised the ante; promises of retaliation were tossed back and forth. Mildly good stuff, for sure and a confrontation to make note of for the next time these two meet.
But really, if I was looking for eye-popping, jaw-dropping entertainment I had missed it. Thursday night at Thompson International Speedway the stands were… subjected to the kind of driver angst that probably sells tickets, but did little to support the racing at this small oval in rural Connecticut.
Joe Coates, driver not so extraordinaire, and his adversary Jason Chicolas came to the green in their Limited Sportsman Division and proceeded to tear each other's cars apart in an attempt to settle a feud. Officials threw the yellow after just the first lap and kicked the pair out of the race, telling them to head to the paddock. But no. Instead, Coates and Chicolas continued to beat and bang into Turn 3. At last, they turned into the pits with Chicolas accepting his fate; however, Coates was not willing to give it up for the season quite yet. He stopped on pit road, climbed out -- there are reports of throwing something at Chicolas' car — walked up to pit wall, gave the tower the middle finger salute and, at long last, dropped his drawers. Not too many spectators found it amusing, and Coates was escorted off track property.
Now that, people, is what I call something to talk about. However, it is not racing.
More than once in the past year have we talked about the "Boys, Have At It" credo and the beauty of a driver showing his emotion. I am all for it, from Harvick vs. Kyle Busch at Darlington to the other Busch brother venting his frustration with the media. These demonstrations remind the viewing public that our heroes are more than mere extensions of their machines, but blood, bone and heart as well. Granted, it can all get out of hand and we comment we'd rather see a bit less of this "personality" in the garages.
However, it behooves us to keep in mind if all NASCAR-endorsed competitors toed the company line and maintained a blinding white smile at all times, we'd be tuning out from a series that had deteriorated into something worse than oatmeal. Where, then, is the invisible line? At what point will anger and commitment to the cause of reaching the checkers first vanish in the roar of disgust from the direction of the stands and the tower?
It's a good question, one that Joe Coates found the answer to on Thursday night.
You could argue that Kyle Busch has already discovered that line in the sand as well, if you listen to the chorus of boos that meet him during driver intros each week and when he takes a bow while holding the latest trophy over his head. However, he does have those 100 pieces of hardware overflowing from a display case to prop up his side of the argument. Apparently, you're permitted a little more leeway in the smugly overconfident department when you do beat the pants off the field every week.
Will Power's double-finger salute shown nationwide on ABC in August, however, indicates that not every poorly timed emotional outburst by a driver is received by the viewing public with equal distaste. Those watching the IndyCar race in New Hampshire with me didn't recoil in disgust; instead, we all laughed. We laughed because what other possible outcome did race control think would result from trying to restart in the rain? This reaction translates into the acceptance of understandable outbursts.
So, if an acerbic tongue doesn't totally alienate you from all of racing kingdom, or driving into the door of the guy next to you on a regular basis, or even flipping off the powers that be… all of which were apparent sins of one Mr. Coates, could it be that exposing body parts is the last straw? I have to admit I can't recall another instance of a competitor dropping trou in the last 20 years, but I could be wrong. That aside I have to say, deciding to disrobe on pit road is probably as good as handing in a letter of resignation to track officials.
The fact is fans, officials and drivers will all believe that doing in the fender of an opponent was probably done in the hopes of bettering your day, or at least making sure the other guy doesn't finish as well as you. Making snarky retorts to overcurious media members will be brushed off eventually as enjoying a certain amount of passion for your sport. And even letting a single digit get away from its brethren will be put down to frustration. We embrace the high level of emotion that engenders these actions. We'll come back again to see more.
However, the moment when a driver decides that the track is nothing more than a personal playground to enact revenge upon a fellow competitor — and to hell with the rest of the drivers, teams and fans in the stands — they have ceased to be a race car driver and become nothing more than a thug. And that, Mr. Coates is exactly what happened to you.
We do tune in to NASCAR week after week hoping for a bit of drama; no auto racing fan will deny that. The fans are eager to bestow our admiration upon a champion who is committed to winning. But a driver will only ever find scorn when he loses sight of that checkered flag and decides to use his car, mind and body as a means to abuse not only a fellow competitor, but the families that fill the grandstands as well.
Joe Coates did provide something to talk about this week. It is just a shame it had nothing to do with his performance on the track.
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TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
by Danny Peters
Five Points to Ponder: Do or Die For Special K, Why Reed and Where's NNS?
by Bryan Davis Keith
Talking NASCAR TV: Frantic Chase Coverage Missing One Thing... The Non-Chasers
by Phil Allaway
Fact Or Fiction: A Chase Replacement, Grading a Cup Debut And Ragan, Don't Be Fooled
by Tom Bowles
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Get THE ANNUAL, 2011 Racing Preview for your mobile device.
Go to Frontstretch.com and click on "The Annual" link on the right side to order and download this special issue that includes: Track Information, Driver profiles and In-Depth Features.
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FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: Charlotte Motor Speedway hosted three races in the Izod IndyCar Series in the late 1990's (the third of which was cancelled after a crash threw debris into the grandstands, killing three spectators). In the first of those races, Greg Ray was driving a car with an unexpected backer. Name the sponsor.
Check back Wednesday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Monday's Answer:
Q: In the 1996 UAW-GM Teamwork 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Robby Gordon qualified the No. 14 DEI-owned Racing For Kids Chevrolet for the event. Unfortunately, Gordon proceeded to crash the car in practice. The team had to acquire a car in order to start the race. Where did the team get their backup car from, and what happened to it during the race?
A: DEI ended up borrowing Joe Nemechek's backup car and put a graphic of Spider-Man onto the hood. During the race, Gordon got caught up in a big crash on Lap 206 with Ernie Irvan and John Andretti. Gordon brushed up against Irvan, hit the outside wall, then careened back across the track and nailed the inside wall hard enough to break it. Brutal. The crash can be seen in this clip.
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 Tom Bowles
-- Full Throttle by Mike Neff
-- Tweet 'N' Greet by Jay Pennell
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
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Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:
Did You Notice? ... by Tom Bowles
Did You Notice... how difficult it will be to field a full, 43-car grid in 2012? Tom delves into economics with his latest edition of small observations around the NASCAR circuit.
Mirror Driving by the Frontstretch Staff
Follow our writer roundtable this week as they enter into a heated debate about the Chasers, teammate help during caution flags, Bowyer's place at MWR and more.
Top 15 Power Rankings by the Frontstretch Staff
Which driver came out of Kansas on top of our 2011 Power Rankings chart? Jimmie Johnson? Carl Edwards? Kyle Busch? Someone else? Find out who our select Frontstretch experts have labeled as this week's favorite heading into Charlotte.
Voice Of Vito by Vito Pugliese
Vito returns to talk about the latest and greatest controversies affecting the stock car circuit.
Beyond The Cockpit: Jeremy Petty as told to Summer Dreyer
The third-generation driver weighs in on his Nationwide Series debut, underfunded teams and much more.
Frontstretch Top Ten by the Frontstretch Staff
Our weekly list based on the latest NASCAR controversy will start your morning off with a laugh -- guaranteed.
Foto Funnies: Hollywood Casino 400 Edition by Kurt Smith
Kurt's back to leave you laughing with the best photos you didn't see in the papers from NASCAR recently.
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