THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
November 1st, 2011
Volume V, Edition CCXXXI
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What To Watch For: Tuesday
by Tom Bowles
- Stewart-Haas Racing has scheduled a press conference at which they're expected to announce a new, six-race primary sponsor for Ryan Newman and his No. 39 car in 2012. No company is listed, but Quicken Loans has been heavily reported to have signed on the dotted line in a multi-million dollar deal. Also, Newman's contract is up at the end of the 2011 season so it's possible an official extension with the team will be announced.
- Carl Edwards, the Sprint Cup points leader will participate in a national teleconference with reporters Tuesday. Edwards, up by eight over Tony Stewart in the championship has finished no lower than 11th during his seven Chase races this season. However, he's won just once, causing criticism over the possibility of the first one-win champion since Matt Kenseth's season of uberconsistency caused the creation of the Chase format after 2003. Jimmie Johnson will also hold his occasional teleconference with the media.
Today's Top News
by Tom Bowles
Rick Hendrick, Wife Linda Suffer Minor Injuries In Plane Crash
The patriarch of Hendrick Motorsports, Rick Hendrick and wife Linda suffered minor injuries after a Florida plane crash Monday night. According to the Miami Herald, the aircraft the couple was riding in, a Gulfstream 150, lost its brakes and ran off the runway around 7:45 PM at Key West International Airport. Of the four people aboard, the two pilots - whose names were not released - were treated and released but both Hendricks have been admitted to Lower Keys Medical Center. HMS released a statement late Monday night confirming their injuries are not serious; the team claimed they are "gathering additional information on the incident" and will release additional details when they have them.
Director of the airport Peter Horton told the Herald the plane skidded all the way through the 4,800-foot runway and down a 600-foot paved safety area that had just been added in May. Without the additional distance, Horton predicted the outcome could have been "catastrophic." The Monroe County Sheriff's Blog has a picture of the downed plane, confirming it was registered not to Hendrick but his driver, Jimmie Johnson.
This incident occurred seven years, seven days after the tragic Hendrick plane crash of 2004. In that incident, an HMS plane crashed in the foggy mountains near Martinsville, Virginia and killed all ten people on board, including Rick Hendrick's 24-year-old son Ricky; brother John; nieces Kimberly and Jennifer; engine builder Randy Dorton; general manager Jeff Turner; DuPont executive Joe Jackson; and three pilots.
NASCAR Fuel Injection Test Successful At Martinsville
Nine teams and ten cars stuck around at Martinsville Monday for another opportunity to test NASCAR's fuel-injected engine. Stewart-Haas Racing (two cars), Joe Gibbs Racing, Hendrick Motorsports, Earnhardt Ganassi Racing, Michael Waltrip Racing, Penske Racing, Roush Fenway Racing, Front Row Motorsports and even single-car NEMCO Motorsports chose to participate, tweaking their mechanics for a change that'll be mandated beginning with the 2012 Daytona 500.
NASCAR, for one was pleased with both the track size and cool conditions, throwing the teams yet another curve as they look to make their equipment adaptable for whatever comes their way next season.
"Since the time we first began testing EFI in July in Kentucky, I think the teams have been able to work through just about all the configurations of race tracks and the different extremes of weather that they will see in 2012," said NASCAR Sprint Cup Director John Darby. "At Kentucky, it was brutally hot and the teams were faced with the extreme heat. This morning, it was 30 degrees here at Martinsville, so they've been able to test this system under a variety of conditions."
Ryan Newman, driving his own Stewart-Haas No. 39 Chevy led the testing speeds with a best lap of 19.734 seconds, or 95.956 miles an hour. That's just a tick off last Spring's pole speed of 96.509 miles an hour set by Jamie McMurray. The No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports car, driven by Aric Almirola was ninth-fastest but ran the most laps, almost a full race distance of 480 before calling it quits.
SPEEDS
39 – Ryan Newman (Stewart-Haas) 95.956 MPH
20 – Denny Hamlin (Joe Gibbs Racing) 95.772
1 – Jamie McMurray (Earnhardt Ganassi) 95.371
6 – A.J. Allmendinger (Roush Fenway) 95.371
12 – Kurt Busch / Sam Hornish, Jr. (Penske Racing) 95.146
14 – Tony Stewart (Stewart-Haas) 95.146
00 – Mike Skinner (Michael Waltrip Racing) 94.932
78 – Regan Smith (Furniture Row Racing) 94.894
5 – Aric Almirola (Hendrick Motorsports) 94.708
87 – Joe Nemechek (NEMCO Motorsports) 93.724
TV Ratings Up For Talladega
Talladega's two-car tandems sparked plenty of debate amongst fans, competitors, and NASCAR officials this past week. But amidst the strong feelings on both sides was a fact you couldn't ignore: plenty of people were watching the controversial method unfold, whether they agreed with what was going on or not.
On Monday, we finally found out just how many after a Nielsen coding error temporarily delayed the processing of final TV ratings from Talladega. For the fourth time in six races, NASCAR showed the expected year-to-year increase; a 3.9 for this race is 8.3 percent higher than last year's 3.6. Viewership also rose slightly, from 5.177 million to 5.430 for the event won by Richard Childress Racing's Clint Bowyer.
There's still a lot of room for upward mobility, though, as the series still suffered a slight decrease in at-track attendance for the event. The final adjustment is also especially intriguing, as a TV By The Numbers report from last week had originally reported an audience of 4,077,000; that's an increase of nearly 1.4 million people based on the coding error. Even after getting adjusted up, the total viewership trails 2009's number of 6.6 million by almost 20 percent.
Vickers Claims Kenseth Cost Himself Championship
Sunday's wrecking ball wasn't mincing words Monday when asked about a Martinsville incident with Matt Kenseth. Brian Vickers, involved in five wrecks on Sunday had his most serious incident with the Chase contender, retaliating on-track after contact from the No. 17 eliminated any chance his No. 83 car had at a top-10 finish. In a phone interview with SceneDaily's Bob Pockrass, however Vickers believes he was the innocent victim.
"I don't really know what he was thinking," Vickers told Pockrass. "Clearly, [Matt] wasn't. For a guy that's racing for a championship in the Chase, to flat wreck someone like that for no justified reason, especially wreck someone that has nothing to lose was a pretty dumb mistake."
"There's three races left and he's not going to win the championship."
Among other snippets from what was a wide-ranging, honest interview: Vickers believed that four of his five incidents Sunday were not his fault, and acknowledged that he and good friend Jimmie Johnson have talked after Sunday's post-race comments by the five-time champ alleged Vickers cost him the race. At the time, Johnson thought Vickers had caused each of the race's last three cautions and felt a green-flag run at the end would have caused him to cruise to victory.
"I didn't know that," said Vickers when asked if he knew Johnson was up front. "I don't ask my spotter who's leading and where they're at and check in and see what my competitors are doing before I handle my race."
The two men have since made up; however, it appears Vickers and Kenseth may remain at odds for at least the short-term future.
News Bites
- An ESPN story confirms previous speculation Roush Fenway will downgrade from four to three teams in 2012. As we've reported previously, the organization has sponsorship for just the No. 16 of Greg Biffle and the No. 99 of Carl Edwards next season. However, Jack Roush claims he is prepared to run the No. 17 car of Matt Kenseth unsponsored if necessary.
- In a SceneDaily interview, Rick Hendrick claimed Jimmie Johnson's crew chief Chad Knaus was "nervous" about post-race inspection when making his infamous pre-race comments at Talladega. Knaus publicly asked Johnson to wreck the car after the checkered, regardless of finish in order to avoid post-race inspection from NASCAR R&D. Instead, the statement has backfired, leading to heavy criticism and the No. 48 being sent to R&D for each of the final four races this season.
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.
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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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Numbers Game: TUMS Fast Relief 500
by Brett Poirier
1
Top-5s for Denny Hamlin in The Chase. Hamlin finished fifth Sunday at Martinsville. It was Hamlin's seventh top-5 in the last eight races at the track.
3
Career victories at Martinsville and in The Chase this season for Tony Stewart.
4
Drivers that have led more than 3,000 laps at Martinsville. Jeff Gordon became the fourth driver to do so on Sunday after leading 113 laps. He joined Cale Yarborough, Rusty Wallace and Darrell Waltrip on the 3,000-laps led list.
4
Drivers awarded multiple free passes or lucky dogs in Sunday's race. Joey Logano, Regan Smith, Greg Biffle and points leader Carl Edwards each were aided by the free pass twice.
5
Accidents caused by Brian Vickers in Sunday's race. Vickers also pitted a race-high 19 times.
9
Career victories in The Chase for Tony Stewart. He moved into second-place behind Jimmie Johnson (20) with his third victory in the last seven races.
9
Times Jimmie Johnson has finished first or second at Martinsville in 20 starts at the track.
13
Points separating the No. 38 and the No. 71 teams for 35th spot in owner points. Travis Kvapil finished 16th in the No. 38 at Martinsville for his best finish of the season.
13
Top-5 results for Jeff Gordon in his last 14 races at Martinsville.
16.8
Average finishing position of Sprint Cup drivers following a win in the previous Sprint Cup race in 2011. After winning at Talladega, Clint Bowyer finished 19th at Martinsville. It marked the fifth straight week that the series' most recent race winner finished outside the top-10 in the next race.
18
Top-10 finishes for Jimmie Johnson in 20 starts at Martinsville. Johnson was second on Sunday.
20
Combined laps led this season by Martinsville race winners. Kevin Harvick led only six laps in his win in the spring and Tony Stewart led 14 laps on Sunday.
21
Positions gained by Casey Mears from start to finish at Martinsville, the most of any driver. Mears earned his best finish of the season (12th).
48
Victories for Chevrolet at Martinsville, the most of any manufacturer.
108
Laps run under caution in the 500-lap Sprint Cup Series race at Martinsville, a season-high. There were 18 cautions on Sunday.
1,186
Laps completed this season by Joe Nemechek through 33 Sprint Cup races. He ran 33 laps at Martinsville and finished 41st.
1,439
Laps led this season by Kyle Busch in the Sprint Cup Series, a number that leads all drivers. He paced the field for a race-high 126 laps and finished 27th
Sunday at Martinsville, meaning Busch has led in 25 of the 33 races.
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
How Much NASCAR is too Much? Thoughts of Losing SPEED Channel
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!
~~~~~~~~~~
Numbers Game: TUMS Fast Relief 500
by Brett Poirier
1
Top-5s for Denny Hamlin in The Chase. Hamlin finished fifth Sunday at Martinsville. It was Hamlin's seventh top-5 in the last eight races at the track.
3
Career victories at Martinsville and in The Chase this season for Tony Stewart.
4
Drivers that have led more than 3,000 laps at Martinsville. Jeff Gordon became the fourth driver to do so on Sunday after leading 113 laps. He joined Cale Yarborough, Rusty Wallace and Darrell Waltrip on the 3,000-laps led list.
4
Drivers awarded multiple free passes or lucky dogs in Sunday's race. Joey Logano, Regan Smith, Greg Biffle and points leader Carl Edwards each were aided by the free pass twice.
5
Accidents caused by Brian Vickers in Sunday's race. Vickers also pitted a race-high 19 times.
9
Career victories in The Chase for Tony Stewart. He moved into second-place behind Jimmie Johnson (20) with his third victory in the last seven races.
9
Times Jimmie Johnson has finished first or second at Martinsville in 20 starts at the track.
13
Points separating the No. 38 and the No. 71 teams for 35th spot in owner points. Travis Kvapil finished 16th in the No. 38 at Martinsville for his best finish of the season.
13
Top-5 results for Jeff Gordon in his last 14 races at Martinsville.
16.8
Average finishing position of Sprint Cup drivers following a win in the previous Sprint Cup race in 2011. After winning at Talladega, Clint Bowyer finished 19th at Martinsville. It marked the fifth straight week that the series' most recent race winner finished outside the top-10 in the next race.
18
Top-10 finishes for Jimmie Johnson in 20 starts at Martinsville. Johnson was second on Sunday.
20
Combined laps led this season by Martinsville race winners. Kevin Harvick led only six laps in his win in the spring and Tony Stewart led 14 laps on Sunday.
21
Positions gained by Casey Mears from start to finish at Martinsville, the most of any driver. Mears earned his best finish of the season (12th).
48
Victories for Chevrolet at Martinsville, the most of any manufacturer.
108
Laps run under caution in the 500-lap Sprint Cup Series race at Martinsville, a season-high. There were 18 cautions on Sunday.
1,186
Laps completed this season by Joe Nemechek through 33 Sprint Cup races. He ran 33 laps at Martinsville and finished 41st.
1,439
Laps led this season by Kyle Busch in the Sprint Cup Series, a number that leads all drivers. He paced the field for a race-high 126 laps and finished 27th
Sunday at Martinsville, meaning Busch has led in 25 of the 33 races.
Brett Poirier is a Contributor to Frontstretch.com. He can be reached via e-mail at brett.poirier@frontstretch.com.
~~~~~~~~~~
Today's Featured Commentary
How Much NASCAR is too Much? Thoughts of Losing SPEED Channel
Sitting In The Stands: A Fan's View
by S.D. Grady
Back in the day, I turned on the brand-new cable box on top of the big screen TV and discovered TNN and ESPN. I studied all week long, but looked forward to Sunday afternoons when stock cars battled around the storied ovals such as North Wilkesboro and Rockingham. Coverage didn't include much pre-race, kind of a perfunctory walk down pit road, the invocation, anthem and then, "Start Your Engines!" I always hungered for more, as the Boston media then--and to a point, now--didn't consider NASCAR worthy of their sports pages.
Over the years, ESPN expanded their programming. TNT joined the fracas. Websites like Jayski popped up. My weekend racing fix became accessible 24/7 and life was good, I thought. And then came SPEED.
I will admit when SPEED joined my auto racing line-up, I ate up all the commentary shows, Friday night trackside coverage and the exploration of all things related to auto sports. This was great! But, did I need it?
I ask this question as a philosophical exploration in the face of being threatened with possibly losing SPEED on my DirecTV programming. While the dispute has been settled, I spent considerable time in the past weeks deciding whether to believe media mogul News Corp. that they were being reasonable in asking for a large fee increase for Fox specialty channels from DirecTV, or believe the satellite television provider when they declared that they were being strong armed into an unfair agreement. Ultimately to me, it mattered very little. Corporate greed will do what it always does...pass the increased costs along to the consumer, all the while they threatened to cut regional sports channels, Fuel, SPEED, NatGeo and a selection of other channels out of existing packages. It was a real possibility that Channel 607 would no longer have existed for me and other faithful SPEED channel viewers. What kind of impact would that have done to my viewing habits, a fan who spends far more time focused on this sport than is really healthy?
I would have missed my trucks. Thoroughly and truly. The Camping World Truck series still embodies the rough and tumble image that stock car racing grew from. The broadcasts are top notch, permitting the booth to add more than a little of their own personality and reactions to the competition. But as much as I love to listen to cars take qualifying--their engines filling my living room with a familiar hum and rumble--I admit to tuning out on the commentary provided during what must be over twenty hours of NASCAR coverage each week. You can only chew over storylines a few times before it becomes repetitious.
Add to that the ability to stream radio broadcasts, enjoy RaceBuddy and spend as much time as I want staying current through the multitude of podcasts on the web, I begin to wonder if we really have surpassed saturation point for our sport on the television. I have options and have driven past requiring any single outlet to keep me up to date.
For years we've heard rumblings of Cup races turning into pay-per-view events, with each new season the major networks telling the viewing poor not to worry, it's not happening yet. But I did wonder if yanking SPEED wouldn't have presented an interesting way to see if the market exists for such a high ticket programming option?
And what about the other sports that were being included in this high stakes game of corporate chess? Not only was SPEED channel being threatened, but also FOX's popular soccer channel--another sport with a large and vocal following. Would we have been offered a NASCAR package for an additional $10 per month? Or perhaps something so sneaky as the Camping World Truck Series programming for an annual fee?
After much consideration of the situation, I decided it wouldn't be so terribly important for me to pay to see Ray Dunlap and Larry Mac for more hours than I have available in a given week. Lining the pockets of one billion dollar enterprise so they can pay another so I can be mesmerized by cars going in circles just takes all the fun out my Saturday afternoons. I wouldn't do it! And I even doubt I would miss it.
Mine is just one small opinion in the sea of the viewing NASCAR public. I'm sure there are others out there who would bemoan the loss of SPEED.
However, life is short and there're over 100 channels for me to pick from. NASCAR certainly figures large in those selections, but when there's many a time when I check SPEED and decide there still isn't anything on...News Corp has started to lose their bargaining power in this billion dollar discussion.
FOX might think they have a monopoly on my NASCAR addiction, but they don't. Those that sit in steel and glass conference rooms negotiating billion dollar agreements really should keep that in mind when they decide to fight over how much more they want to wring out of the American public. There will come a day when we just won't pay anymore...and I'm thinking that day isn't too far in the future.
by S.D. Grady
Back in the day, I turned on the brand-new cable box on top of the big screen TV and discovered TNN and ESPN. I studied all week long, but looked forward to Sunday afternoons when stock cars battled around the storied ovals such as North Wilkesboro and Rockingham. Coverage didn't include much pre-race, kind of a perfunctory walk down pit road, the invocation, anthem and then, "Start Your Engines!" I always hungered for more, as the Boston media then--and to a point, now--didn't consider NASCAR worthy of their sports pages.
Over the years, ESPN expanded their programming. TNT joined the fracas. Websites like Jayski popped up. My weekend racing fix became accessible 24/7 and life was good, I thought. And then came SPEED.
I will admit when SPEED joined my auto racing line-up, I ate up all the commentary shows, Friday night trackside coverage and the exploration of all things related to auto sports. This was great! But, did I need it?
I ask this question as a philosophical exploration in the face of being threatened with possibly losing SPEED on my DirecTV programming. While the dispute has been settled, I spent considerable time in the past weeks deciding whether to believe media mogul News Corp. that they were being reasonable in asking for a large fee increase for Fox specialty channels from DirecTV, or believe the satellite television provider when they declared that they were being strong armed into an unfair agreement. Ultimately to me, it mattered very little. Corporate greed will do what it always does...pass the increased costs along to the consumer, all the while they threatened to cut regional sports channels, Fuel, SPEED, NatGeo and a selection of other channels out of existing packages. It was a real possibility that Channel 607 would no longer have existed for me and other faithful SPEED channel viewers. What kind of impact would that have done to my viewing habits, a fan who spends far more time focused on this sport than is really healthy?
I would have missed my trucks. Thoroughly and truly. The Camping World Truck series still embodies the rough and tumble image that stock car racing grew from. The broadcasts are top notch, permitting the booth to add more than a little of their own personality and reactions to the competition. But as much as I love to listen to cars take qualifying--their engines filling my living room with a familiar hum and rumble--I admit to tuning out on the commentary provided during what must be over twenty hours of NASCAR coverage each week. You can only chew over storylines a few times before it becomes repetitious.
Add to that the ability to stream radio broadcasts, enjoy RaceBuddy and spend as much time as I want staying current through the multitude of podcasts on the web, I begin to wonder if we really have surpassed saturation point for our sport on the television. I have options and have driven past requiring any single outlet to keep me up to date.
For years we've heard rumblings of Cup races turning into pay-per-view events, with each new season the major networks telling the viewing poor not to worry, it's not happening yet. But I did wonder if yanking SPEED wouldn't have presented an interesting way to see if the market exists for such a high ticket programming option?
And what about the other sports that were being included in this high stakes game of corporate chess? Not only was SPEED channel being threatened, but also FOX's popular soccer channel--another sport with a large and vocal following. Would we have been offered a NASCAR package for an additional $10 per month? Or perhaps something so sneaky as the Camping World Truck Series programming for an annual fee?
After much consideration of the situation, I decided it wouldn't be so terribly important for me to pay to see Ray Dunlap and Larry Mac for more hours than I have available in a given week. Lining the pockets of one billion dollar enterprise so they can pay another so I can be mesmerized by cars going in circles just takes all the fun out my Saturday afternoons. I wouldn't do it! And I even doubt I would miss it.
Mine is just one small opinion in the sea of the viewing NASCAR public. I'm sure there are others out there who would bemoan the loss of SPEED.
However, life is short and there're over 100 channels for me to pick from. NASCAR certainly figures large in those selections, but when there's many a time when I check SPEED and decide there still isn't anything on...News Corp has started to lose their bargaining power in this billion dollar discussion.
FOX might think they have a monopoly on my NASCAR addiction, but they don't. Those that sit in steel and glass conference rooms negotiating billion dollar agreements really should keep that in mind when they decide to fight over how much more they want to wring out of the American public. There will come a day when we just won't pay anymore...and I'm thinking that day isn't too far in the future.
S.D. Grady is a Senior Editor for Frontstretch.com. She can be reached via e-mail at sonya.grady@frontstretch.com.
~~~~~~~~~~
ADVERTISEMENT
Are you looking to advertise your website, product or brand? A good way to get your name out there is via direct advertising here in the Frontstretch Newsletter! Interested parties can contact us at frontstretcheditors@googlegroups.com for details.
~~~~~~~~~~~
TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
Five Points to Ponder: Trouble In Paradise, Too Many Yellows, And Winning
by Bryan Davis Keith
Six Drivers Who Can't Wait For 2012
by Danny Peters
Who's Hot / Who's Not in NASCAR: Martinsville-Texas Edition
by Summer Dreyer
Talking NASCAR TV: SPEED's Continuous Coverage While ESPN Shouldn't Have Bothered
by Phil Allaway
Fact Or Fiction: Throwing Caution To The Wind, Paybacks & Penalty-Gate
by Tom Bowles
~~~~~~~~~~
ADVERTISEMENT
Are you looking to advertise your website, product or brand? A good way to get your name out there is via direct advertising here in the Frontstretch Newsletter! Interested parties can contact us at frontstretcheditors@googlegroups.com for details.
~~~~~~~~~~~
TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
Five Points to Ponder: Trouble In Paradise, Too Many Yellows, And Winning
by Bryan Davis Keith
Six Drivers Who Can't Wait For 2012
by Danny Peters
Who's Hot / Who's Not in NASCAR: Martinsville-Texas Edition
by Summer Dreyer
Talking NASCAR TV: SPEED's Continuous Coverage While ESPN Shouldn't Have Bothered
by Phil Allaway
Fact Or Fiction: Throwing Caution To The Wind, Paybacks & Penalty-Gate
by Tom Bowles
~~~~~~~~~~~
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.
~~~~~~~~~~~
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: The 1990 AC-Delco 500 was won by Alan Kulwicki, who took his second career Winston Cup win. Ken Schrader was looking good to finish on the podium, but an error dropped him back to a still decent fifth-place finish. What happened?
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.
~~~~~~~~~~~
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: The 1990 AC-Delco 500 was won by Alan Kulwicki, who took his second career Winston Cup win. Ken Schrader was looking good to finish on the podium, but an error dropped him back to a still decent fifth-place finish. What happened?
Check back Wednesday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Monday's Answer:
Q: As many of you remember, Texas Motor Speedway's second NASCAR weekend came out of an out-of-court settlement of the Francis Ferko lawsuit. This used to be the fall weekend in Rockingham. In 2000, the Pop Secret Microwave Popcorn 400 at that racetrack was marred by an incident on pit road. What happened?
A: During the race, there was a massive fire in Matt Kenseth's pit right after a stop. There were no injuries, but it was a very large and smoky fire unlike anything seen on pit road in recent years.
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!
~~~~~~~~~~
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.
~~~~~~~~~~
Coming tomorrow in the Frontstretch Newsletter:
-- Top News from TBA
-- Full Throttle by Mike Neff
-- Tweet 'N' Greet by Jay Pennell
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
~~~~~~~~~~
Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:
Did You Notice? ... by Tom Bowles
Tom is back with his observations from around the NASCAR circuit.
Mirror Driving by the Frontstretch Staff
Follow our writer roundtable this week as they enter into a heated debate about Jimmie Johnson's car getting torn down each week for the rest of the season, whether we'll see paybacks down the line for things that happened Sunday in Martinsville, current Cup drivers with unclear futures snatching Nationwide Series rides late in the season and more.
Top 15 Power Rankings by the Frontstretch Staff
Which driver came out of Martinsville 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 Texas.
Special Commentary by Summer Dreyer
Vito is off this week, but Summer is here with a look at latest and greatest controversies affecting the stock car circuit.
Beyond the Cockpit: Sean Corr as told to Bryan Davis Keith
Bryan caught up with ARCA Racing Series driver Sean Corr recently at Toledo Speedway and had a nice one-on-one interview with the Goshen, New York native. Check out what was said on Wednesday.
Frontstretch Top Ten by Jeff Meyer
Our weekly list based on the latest NASCAR controversy will start your morning off with a laugh -- guaranteed.
-----------------------------
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©2011 Frontstretch.com
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©2011 Frontstretch.com
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