The Frontstretch Newsletter: February 15th, 2012

THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
February 15th, 2012
Volume VI, Edition XIII

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Today's Top News
by Phil Allaway and Amy Henderson

Reutimann to "BK Racing" for Daytona 500, Kvapil for Phoenix

FoxSports.com's Lee Spencer is reporting that David Reutimann has signed with the not-officially-announced-yet BK Racing to drive their No. 93 Toyota in the Daytona 500.  It is currently a one-race deal for the Florida native, who already has a contract to drive in 26 races in the No. 10 for Tommy Baldwin Racing in the events that Danica Patrick does not attempt.  However, prior to Tuesday, he did not have a ride for Speedweeks.

"I was definitely starting to think that I wasn't going to get to run the Daytona 500, but that doesn't seem to be the case," Reutimann said.  "Daytona is such a huge deal.  Everyone says it pays the same amount of points and blah, blah, blah.  But it's my home track and I didn't know how I was going to take sitting on the sidelines.  That place is pretty special to me.  I'm pretty excited about running that race."

After Speedweeks, Reutimann will move over to the No. 10 for Tommy Baldwin Racing through the beginning of May before Patrick returns at Darlington.  When that happens, Travis Kvapil will take the reins of the No. 93 starting at Phoenix.  It is currently unclear whether Kvapil will be in the seat for the 26 races that Reutimann is in the No. 10 for, or if he will drive the car for the rest of the season after Daytona.

The No. 93 for BK Racing is the No. 4 that the Red Bull Racing Team campaigned last season in Sprint Cup.  Not only is the team guaranteed a starting spot thanks to a top-35 finish in owner points, but if they do drop out of the top-35 later in the season, they're still guaranteed a starting spot in rain delay situations since Kasey Kahne won at Phoenix last November.

J.R. Fitzpatrick to Drive for Turn One Racing?

The Toronto Sun reported on Tuesday that former NASCAR Canadian Tire Series Champion J.R. Fitzpatrick will likely announce this week that he will drive the No. 60 Chevrolet for Turn One Racing in the Camping World Truck Series.  According to the article, Fitzpatrick's contract is not fully signed as of yet.  However, a source in the know claims that only minor aspects of the deal need to be worked out before the driver signs on for the season.

The No. 60 Chevrolet was driven last year by Cole Whitt, while sponsorship was split between Red Bull and Fuel Doctor.  In 24 starts (Whitt failed to qualify at Daytona, but cut a deal to drive the No. 93 Chevrolet for RSS Motorsports in the race) he earned two top-5 and 11 top-10 finishes.  Whitt even led the point standings for one race, winding up a respectable ninth by season's end.  As for sponsorship, neither Red Bull nor Fuel Doctor are expected to return to the team, but Fitzpatrick has had backing in the past from Schick Hydro.  It is possible that Fitzpatrick could bring that backing into the fold.

Fitzpatrick has 14 previous starts in the Camping World Truck Series.  He has one fourth-place finish in the series back in 2009 at Daytona while driving for TRG Motorsports.  The journeyman has also started races for Kevin Harvick, Inc., DGR Motorsports, Brad Keselowski Racing and most recently, T3R Motorsports.  Last season, Fitzpatrick raced the full 12-race Canadian Tire Series schedule, earning three top-5 and 10 top-10 finishes while running a strong third in the final point standings.  In addition, Fitzpatrick started seven Nationwide Series races (two for Baker-Curb Racing and five for Go Canada Racing).  He finished a career-best fifth in the NAPA Auto Parts 200 at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve and earned a tenth-place finish at Road America.

News And Notes

- JJC Racing announced their plans to run the full Camping World Truck Series schedule on Tuesday, returning to competition with the No. 10.  Team owner Jennifer Jo Cobb will campaign Fords and Rams for herself during the season, while Steve Kuykendall returns as her crew chief.  The team will still run selected Nationwide Series races in their No. 13 car, as well.

- T3R Racing announced on Tuesday that they will run the full Camping World Truck Series season with Bryan Silas as the driver of the No. 99 Ford F-150.  According to Silas, the team has acquired the owner's points of Turn One Racing's No. 66 from 2011.  As a result, Silas will be locked into the first four races of 2012.

Silas is very excited about running the full year in the Camping World Truck Series.

"We've been building this program up for a while," Silas said.  "I spent a lot of time racing in the ARCA Racing Series and I feel the experience there is going to help me in a truck.  While the vehicles are different, we compete at a lot of the same types of tracks and that is extremely beneficial.  Its also a good feeling that a lot of the drivers I competed against in ARCA are now over here in the trucks, too, so there's that comfort zone as far as who I'm racing around."

Silas' No. 99 will once again be sponsored by Rockingham Speedway, a track that he has had success at in the past, and which just so happens to be on the Camping World Truck Series schedule for the first time this year.  Cal Boprey will serve as Silas' crew chief.

- JD Motorsports and their No. 01 Nationwide Series program announced a primary sponsorship deal with G&K Services for 2012. The company will combine with country gold recording artist Chris Cagle as a primary sponsor for Daytona, then continue on as primary for other selected races throughout the season. Mike Wallace is the driver of the team's Chevrolet.

Have news for Phil 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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TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
Part III Of Our NASCAR Season Preview: What Next For The Busch Brothers?
by the Frontstretch Staff

Did You Notice? ... Buying A Super Bowl Spot, Tweaking The Shootout And Quick Hits
by Tom Bowles

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FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
 
Q:  Back when the Budweiser Shootout was a 20-lap race known as the Busch Clash (split into two segments), multi-car incidents were quite rare.  However, in 1995, the race got off to an auspicious start.  What happened?

 
Check back Wednesday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
 
Tuesday's Answer:

Q:  In the 1995 ARCA 200 at Daytona International Speedway, Bill Venturini was in contention to claim victory early on before it all went away shortly before halfway.  What happened?

A: Venturini, who was running second at the time, suffered an unusual tire failure in the tri-oval and went hard into the outside wall.  Venturini was fine, but none too pleased.  Afterwards, his wife Cathy (Wendy and Billy's mother) gave a memorable interview/rant to ESPN's Dr. Jerry Punch about what was to blame for the crash.  That interview can be seen at the beginning of 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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Coming tomorrow in the Frontstretch Newsletter:
-- Top News from Phil Allaway
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!

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Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:

Season Preview: Part IV by the Frontstretch Staff
Danica, Danica, Danica. We've heard all the hype... now the experts deal with reality. How, exactly, will she fare in her first full-time effort at stock car racing?
 
NASCAR, Tweet At Your Own Risk by Tom Bowles
Last year, multiple drivers found themselves on the wrong end of controversy based on things that they had publicly tweeted.  Tom takes a look at the tweeting phenomenon, and how drivers should be careful what they say online.

Other Columns TBA

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