Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
October 8th, 2011
Volume V, Edition CCXII
~~~~~~~~~~
NEW PODCAST! Don't forget our new FREE weekly audio segments hosted by Doug Turnbull. Click here for the October 7th edition that features Max Gresham and Cole Whitt as our main racing guests.
~~~~~~~~~~
Top News
by Summer Dreyer
BREAKING: Michael Waltrip - Clint Bowyer Partnership Made Official
Click here for Summer's commentary and background information on the subject.
The Blue Oval crowd has taken to the midwest quite well as they start off their weekend in Kansas City. Roush Fenway Racing swept the front row in Friday's Sprint Cup qualifying session at Kansas Speedway, with Greg Biffle clocking in at 30.877 seconds in his qualifying run to take the top spot. Carl Edwards will start alongside Biffle when the green flag waves on Sunday afternoon, finishing out his session at 30.933 seconds.
-- Greg Biffle Wins Pole For Sunday's Hollywood Casino 400
"It was a really good lap," said Biffle. "I think what I'd really rather talk about is how slow we were off the truck. It was quite amazing. We were 35th or 37th when we loaded off the truck today and 15 or 20 guys in race trim were faster than we were. I think that says something about the team, how we started there and ended up where we are right now."
Edwards was also satisfied with his qualifying run, saying, "I'm pretty excited to have an all Ford front row. I think that's neat. There's a lot of pride for that in our guys at the shop."
Yet another factor was prevalent in this qualifying session, though, that also played a part in Friday's Sprint Cup Series practice: Wind. Kyle Busch, who qualified third, was one of the drivers who noticed this phenomenon.
"The wind blowing today was kind of a handful for a lot of cars, and it was a little bit for us too just getting down into turn three," said Busch. "We couldn't get to the bottom as good as I wanted to."
Jeff Gordon almost wrecked his car trying to compensate for the wind gusts and qualified 10th. Behind Biffle, Edwards, and Busch, Matt Kenseth and Kasey Kahne rounded out the top 5. But RFR's front row sweep was clearly the talk of the garage; Biffle warned the other competitors to watch out for the RFR drivers on Sunday, as a trio of their cars are starting in the top 4. "The three of us are going to be hard to beat," said Biffle. Other Chase notables are Brad Keselowski (12th), Kevin Harvick (14th), Kurt Busch (17th), Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (18th), Jimmie Johnson (19th), and Tony Stewart (23rd).
For Sunday's full starting lineup, click here.
Richard Childress Racing may have lost Clint Bowyer Friday at Kansas Speedway, but they sure got off to a strong start on the practice sheet - with one notable exception. Paul Menard led the way for the team with a time of 31.024 seconds at 174.059 mph, setting the pace for Sunday's Hollywood Casino 400 hopefuls. Right behind him was his soon-to-be-ex Richard Childress Racing teammate Clint Bowyer, who was only .101 seconds slower than Menard. Jeff Gordon, David Reutimann, and Matt Kenseth rounded out the top-5 drivers by speed.
Paul Menard Leads First Practice For Cup Drivers At Kansas
Richard Childress Racing may have lost Clint Bowyer Friday at Kansas Speedway, but they sure got off to a strong start on the practice sheet - with one notable exception. Paul Menard led the way for the team with a time of 31.024 seconds at 174.059 mph, setting the pace for Sunday's Hollywood Casino 400 hopefuls. Right behind him was his soon-to-be-ex Richard Childress Racing teammate Clint Bowyer, who was only .101 seconds slower than Menard. Jeff Gordon, David Reutimann, and Matt Kenseth rounded out the top-5 drivers by speed.
Several drivers complained about the extreme winds at the racetrack on Friday, saying that it affected the handling of their racecars and the way their car felt in the corners. "Definitely it's tough," said Tony Stewart. "It's tough in three and four getting the cars to turn so you are definitely fighting the wind today but everybody is fighting it. It is the same for everybody."
Teammate Ryan Newman agreed. "It is the same for everyone as long as you have a good understanding of what the wind is and how it is affecting your car, then you do have to change the way you drive and the way you approach the race track compared to if there is no wind," he said. "It is something that everyone has to deal with."
Fan favorite Dale Earnhardt Jr. was sixth-fastest in the running order, followed by Martin Truex Jr. in seventh. Kyle Busch, David Ragan, and Kasey Kahne rounded out the top 10. Other notable Chasers include Carl Edwards (16th), Jimmie Johnson (18th), Brad Keselowski (22nd), Tony Stewart (23rd), Kurt Busch (27th), and Kevin Harvick (32nd).
For a full list of practice speeds, click here.
Summer Dreyer is a Senior Writer for Frontstretch.com. She can be reached via email at summer.dreyer@frontstretch.com.
Have news for Summer and The Frontstretch? Don't hesitate to let us know; email us at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com with a promising lead or tip.
~~~~~~~~~~
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 special 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.
~~~~~~~~~~
TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
~~~~~~~~~~
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: Originally, the Conrod Straight was a flat-out blast all the way from Forrest's Elbow to Murray's Corner right before the start-finish line. This clip from 1985 shows what the track was like pre-Chase. However, in 1987, the "Caltex Chase" was added. Why?
Check back Monday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Frontstretch Trivia Guarantee: Take 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 totrivia@frontstretch.com and we'll send you a Frontstretch T-Shirt ... FREE!
~~~~~~~~~~
Coming Monday in the Frontstretch Newsletter:
-- Hollywood Casino 400 Race Recap by Brody Jones
-- Running Their Mouth: Hollywood Casino 400 by Brody Jones
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
Monday on the Frontstretch:
Matt McLaughlin's Thinkin' Out Loud: Hollywood Casino 400 by Matt McLaughlin
Matt will be here with his overall thoughts about the action from Sunday afternoon's action from the Kansas.
David vs. Goliath by Bryan Davis Keith
Who's hot and who's not towards the back end of the owner points battle? Bryan brings the stories you didn't hear about into print from Sunday's race from Kansas.
Monday Morning Teardown by Ron Lemasters
Ron returns for a website look at one of the big stories from Sunday's race from Kansas.
Bowles-Eye View by Tom Bowles
Tom brings back his weekly post-race commentary with all of the insight you need from a weekend of racing from Kansas.
Big Six: Hollywood Casino 400 by Amy Henderson
Looking for all you need to know leaving the third race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup? Amy has your who, what, when, where, why and how from a weekend of racing at Kansas.
Nationwide Series Breakdown: Kansas Lottery 300 by Bryan Davis Keith
Bryan has all the post-race analysis you need after Saturday afternoon's Nationwide Series race from Kansas.
-----------------------------
Talk back to the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Got something to say about an article you've seen in the newsletter? It's as easy as replying directly to this message or sending an email to editors@frontstretch.com. We'll take the best comments and publish them here!
©2011 Frontstretch.com
Have news for Summer and The Frontstretch? Don't hesitate to let us know; email us at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com with a promising lead or tip.
~~~~~~~~~~
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 special 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.
~~~~~~~~~~
TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
by Summer Dreyer
by Danny Peters
~~~~~~~~~~
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: Originally, the Conrod Straight was a flat-out blast all the way from Forrest's Elbow to Murray's Corner right before the start-finish line. This clip from 1985 shows what the track was like pre-Chase. However, in 1987, the "Caltex Chase" was added. Why?
Check back Monday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Frontstretch Trivia Guarantee: Take 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 totrivia@frontstretch.com and we'll send you a Frontstretch T-Shirt ... FREE!
~~~~~~~~~~
Coming Monday in the Frontstretch Newsletter:
-- Hollywood Casino 400 Race Recap by Brody Jones
-- Running Their Mouth: Hollywood Casino 400 by Brody Jones
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
Monday on the Frontstretch:
Matt McLaughlin's Thinkin' Out Loud: Hollywood Casino 400 by Matt McLaughlin
Matt will be here with his overall thoughts about the action from Sunday afternoon's action from the Kansas.
David vs. Goliath by Bryan Davis Keith
Who's hot and who's not towards the back end of the owner points battle? Bryan brings the stories you didn't hear about into print from Sunday's race from Kansas.
Monday Morning Teardown by Ron Lemasters
Ron returns for a website look at one of the big stories from Sunday's race from Kansas.
Bowles-Eye View by Tom Bowles
Tom brings back his weekly post-race commentary with all of the insight you need from a weekend of racing from Kansas.
Big Six: Hollywood Casino 400 by Amy Henderson
Looking for all you need to know leaving the third race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup? Amy has your who, what, when, where, why and how from a weekend of racing at Kansas.
Nationwide Series Breakdown: Kansas Lottery 300 by Bryan Davis Keith
Bryan has all the post-race analysis you need after Saturday afternoon's Nationwide Series race from Kansas.
-----------------------------
Talk back to the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Got something to say about an article you've seen in the newsletter? It's as easy as replying directly to this message or sending an email to editors@frontstretch.com. We'll take the best comments and publish them here!
©2011 Frontstretch.com
Feel free to forward this newsletter if you have any friends who loves
NASCAR and great NASCAR commentary. They can subscribe to the Frontstetch by visiting http://www.frontstretch.com/notice/9557/.
If you want to stop your Frontstretch Newsletter subscription, we're sorry
to see you go. Just send an email to
TheFrontstretch-unsubscribe@googlegroups.com from the address that you
recieve the Frontstretch Newsletter.
No comments:
Post a Comment