THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
April 26th, 2012
Volume VI, Edition LXXI
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
April 26th, 2012
Volume VI, Edition LXXI
~~~~~~~~~~
Editor's Note: Frontstretch has a brand new, redesigned Facebook page. Click Here to "Like" Us and get a direct connect to all your Frontstretch favorites along with polls, interaction with fans and so much more.
Editor's Note: Due to at-track coverage, the Newsletter came out a bit later than usual today. We apologize for the inconvenience; expect overnight delivery to resume with Friday's edition.
What to Watch: Thursday
- Thursday night is race night at Richmond International Raceway. The action starts with coverage of the Blue Ox 100 for the K&N Pro Series East at 7 PM, followed by the Denny Hamlin Short Track Showdown, back for a second year at RIR at 8:30 PM. Both races will be televised live on SPEED. However, rain is in the forecast and could put a significant damper on the evening.
Top News
by Phil Allaway and Tom Bowles
Thumbs-Up From Drivers At Pocono Test
Speed and smiles dominated the Goodyear Tire Test this week at Pocono Raceway, site of a recent repaving as the track prepares to start its June NASCAR schedule with fresh asphalt. It's a rare thumbs up from the driving corps after a series of "modifications" to tracks that have gone awry; instead, many of those testing think the racing at the 2.5-mile Tricky Triangle will improve immediately.
"This was the track that was most overdue to be repaved," claimed Jamie McMurray, one of over a half-dozen drivers selected by Goodyear to try out new compounds. "I think most guys will like this a lot more. Being a driver, just a lot more grip. Gosh, I mean certainly everyone will ask me about the tire test when we get to Richmond this weekend and I'll have nothing but really good things to say about it."
"It's smoother," added Hendrick Motorsports' Kasey Kahne when asked about the track. "It still has the same transitions, the same rolling hills in spots that Pocono has always been known for. To me, it's really good."
Kahne, who holds the Pocono Cup qualifying record was reported to be running up to seven-tenths faster per lap during the test; all drivers agreed speeds would continue to increase significantly leading up to the June event.
"The trucks right now, last time I was out, I ran pretty much every lap, including the tunnel turn wide open," claimed ThorSport's Matt Crafton. "It was intense, very intense."
The main concern voiced by drivers was whether there would be multiple grooves "broken in;" however, all remained optimistic the repaving job was so strong working in a second and perhaps even a third groove at points around the track would not be a problem.
"I think the most important thing," added McMurray, "When we come back here for the race is, if we can get them to do something like they did at Phoenix, where they drug some tires to try to widen the groove out a little bit. There's a fairly narrow groove right now. I haven't really ventured out because you're going so fast, there's not really any room for error if you get into the grey where there hasn't been rubber laid down yet, but the track has a lot of grab."
Bristol Begins Turn Modifications
Ever since the Food City 500 back on March 18th, stories have been flying around about potential modifications to Bristol Motor Speedway's high-banked turns in the wake of decreasing attendance and fan apathy. The track itself even put a survey on their website asking race fans whether they were satisfied with the track and what changes (if any) should be made.
Bristol most definitely listened to their fans.
On Wednesday, Speedway Motorsports, Inc. Chairman and CEO O. Bruton Smith announced the long-awaited plans for modifications to Bristol Motor Speedway in preparation for the track's August race weekend. According to screenshots posted on Bristol's website, the current plan is to grind down the outside lanes in the corners so that the banking will be equal from the top to the bottom.
Today, the track has progressive banking that ranges from 24 degrees at the bottom of the track to 30 degrees up near the wall in the turns. The modifications appear to set a universal banking in the turns of 24 degrees. This is quite a bit lower than both what the "Old Bristol" advertised (36 degrees) and what it actually was (somewhere in the 27-30 degree range).
Smith was honest in his decision making rationale.
"I said when this process began last month that I would listen to what the fans said they wanted," Smith said. "The fan feedback over the past month, along with input over the last few years, was the impetus for alterations to the track."
"The majority of the fans we heard from said they wanted adjustments made and the bulk of those said the progressive banking was what they didn't like," Smith continued. "So, that's the focus of our efforts. And that is what we're working to change."
Work is already underway on the track modifications. Reporters who made the trip up to Bristol for Wednesday's press conference saw a track that had already had the SAFER Barriers removed and work that had already begun. The press release issued by the track did not quote a completion date for the project; however, it is not likely to take more than a few weeks. Also of note, according to Smith on Wednesday's edition of NASCAR Now, the straightaways will not be altered.
Goodyear to Hold Tire Test at Bristol
In response to Bristol Motor Speedway's track modification announcement, Goodyear announced on Wednesday that they will be holding a special, two-day tire test at Bristol Motor Speedway from June 12th to 13th. This test will be used to determine whether the current Bristol tire can continue to be used after the modifications or if a new one is required.
Goodyear officials are confident that they will find the proper compound for the more traditional Bristol setup.
"We're happy with our current tire setup at Bristol, but we always have to keep up with track changes, so we plan to run a test to determine what will best suit the specific modifications made," said Stu Grant, Goodyear's General Manager of Worldwide Racing. "We will start our test with the existing Bristol tire setup in order to determine if the changes to the track surface require any changes to our tread compound formulation. We'll then evaluate if the track surface has changed and if we'll need to bring back something different for the race in August."
One of the main issues with tires recently is that the tires don't rubber in well on concrete surfaces. This has been an issue more or less since the COT was introduced in 2007. Rubber more or less sits on top of the track under green flag conditions, then is picked back up by the cars under caution. It is unclear whether these issues will be addressed with the tire test. Also, no teams that will be participating in the test were announced. That will happen in a few weeks.
Entry List Update:
Note: These entries are accurate as of Wednesday night. However, they are still subject to change.
Sprint Cup Series Capital City 400 Presented by Virginia Is For Lovers: 46 cars entered
Drivers Ineligible to Earn Points:
No. 19 - Mike Bliss for Humphrey-Smith Racing
No. 32 - Reed Sorenson for FAS Lane Racing
No. 87 - Joe Nemechek for NEMCO Motorsports
Driver Changes:
No. 33 - Stephen Leicht is in the seat, replacing Jeff Green. Leicht last made a Cup start at Richmond last Fall.
No. 52 - An unknown driver will be in the seat, replacing Scott Speed. This attempt is the first for Hamilton Means Racing since Martinsville.
No. 74 - Stacy Compton returns to the seat, replacing Tony Raines. Turn One Racing is expected to start and park if they make the field.
Drivers who must qualify on speed:
No. 19 - Mike Bliss for Humphrey-Smith Racing*
No. 23 - Scott Riggs for R3 Motorsports*
No. 26 - Josh Wise for Front Row Motorsports*
No. 30 - David Stremme for Inception Motorsports*
No. 33 - Stephen Leicht for LJ Racing
No. 49 - J.J. Yeley for Robinson-Blakeney Racing
No. 52 - Unknown driver for Hamilton-Means Racing
No. 74 - Stacy Compton for Turn One Racing*
No. 87 - Joe Nemechek for NEMCO Motorsports*
No. 95 - Scott Speed for Leavine Family Racing
No. 98 - Michael McDowell for Phil Parsons Racing*
Nationwide Series Virginia 529 College Savings 250: 44 cars entered
Number Change: RAB Racing switches from No. 09 to 99 as a result of a partnership with Michael Waltrip Racing
Drivers Ineligible to Earn Points:
No. 17 - J.J. Yeley for Berryhill Racing
No. 18 - Denny Hamlin for Joe Gibbs Racing
No. 20 - Joey Logano for Joe Gibbs Racing
No. 22 - Brad Keselowski for Penske Racing
No. 30 - James Buescher for Turner Motorsports
No. 33 - Kevin Harvick for Richard Childress Racing
No. 38 - Kasey Kahne for Turner Motorsports
No. 42 - Josh Wise for Key Motorsports
No. 47 - Scott Speed for Key Motorsports
No. 54 - Kurt Busch for Kyle Busch Motorsports
No. 75 - Scott Riggs for Rick Ware Racing
Driver Changes:
No. 08- Casey Roderick returns to the seat, replacing Kyle Fowler. Roderick is running a limited schedule for Randy Hill when sponsorship allows.
No. 4 - Steve Wallace is in the seat, replacing Danny Efland. Rusty Wallace Racing is running the number this week for JD Motorsports, guaranteeing that Wallace will not have to qualify on speed.
No. 24 - Tanner Berryhill is in the seat, replacing Benny Gordon. Since Berryhill is already locked in, this will mark Berryhill's Nationwide Series debut.
No. 30 - James Buescher returns to the seat, replacing Steve Arpin. The Daytona winner is running a limited schedule in this series while running full-time in Trucks.
No. 33 - Kevin Harvick returns to the seat, replacing Paul Menard.
No. 39 - Matt Frahm returns to the seat, replacing Kelly Bires.
No. 52 - Kevin Lepage returns to the seat, replacing Tim Schendel.
No. 74 - An unknown driver will be in the seat, replacing Kevin Lepage. This car is a start-and-park entry.
No. 99 - Travis Pastrana is in the seat, replacing Ryan Truex. Provided that he avoids spectacular injury between now and Friday night, Pastrana will be making his Nationwide Series debut.
Drivers who must qualify on speed:
No. 10 - Jeff Green for TriStar Motorsports (Guaranteed to start via the Past Champions' Provisional)*
No. 15 - Blake Koch for Rick Ware Racing
No. 17 - J.J. Yeley for Berryhill Racing
No. 20 - Joey Logano for Joe Gibbs Racing
No. 36 - Ryan Blaney for Tommy Baldwin Racing
No. 39 - Matt Frahm for Go Green Racing
No. 42 - Josh Wise for Key Motorsports*
No. 46 - Chase Miller for Key Motorsports*
No. 47 - Scott Speed for Key Motorsports*
No. 50 - T.J. Bell for MAKE Motorsports
No. 52 - Kevin Lepage for Means Motorsports
No. 74 - Unknown driver for Mike Harmon Racing*
No. 75 - Scott Riggs for Rick Ware Racing*
No. 89 - Morgan Shepherd for Shepherd Racing Ventures
*- Expected to Start-and-Park
Izod IndyCar Series Sao Paulo Indy 300: 26 cars entered
Driver Changes: None
Entries:
No. 2 - Ryan Briscoe for Team Penske
No. 3 - Helio Castroneves for Team Penske
No. 4 - J.R. Hildebrand for Panther Racing
No. 5 - E.J. Viso for KV Racing Technologies
No. 6 - Katherine Legge for Lotus-Dragon Racing
No. 7 - Sebastien Bourdais for Lotus-Dragon Racing
No. 8 - Rubens Barrichello for KV Racing Technologies
No. 9 - Scott Dixon for Chip Ganassi Racing
No. 10 - Dario Franchitti for Chip Ganassi Racing
No. 11 - Tony Kanaan for KV Racing Technologies with SH Racing
No. 12 - Will Power for Team Penske
No. 14 - Mike Conway for A.J. Foyt Enterprises
No. 15 - Takuma Sato for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
No. 18 - Justin Wilson for Dale Coyne Racing
No. 19 - James Jakes for Dale Coyne Racing
No. 20 - Ed Carpenter for Ed Carpenter Racing
No. 22 - Oriol Servia for Lotus-DRR
No. 25 - Ana Beatriz for Andretti Autosport
No. 26 - Marco Andretti for Andretti Autosport
No. 27 - James Hinchcliffe for Andretti Autosport
No. 28 - Ryan Hunter-Reay for Andretti Autosport
No. 38 - Graham Rahal for Chip Ganassi Racing
No. 67 - Josef Newgarden for Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing
No. 77 - Simon Pagenaud for Schmidt-Hamilton Motorsports
No. 78 - Simona de Silvestro for Lotus-HVM Racing
No. 83 - Charlie Kimball for Chip Ganassi Racing
Not Entered:
No. 98 - Alex Tagliani for Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb-Agajanian
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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 Thursday with a whole new set of Fan Questions and Answers!
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Today's Featured Commentary
Action and Inaction Both Breeding Dissatisfaction
What's Vexing Vito
by Vito Pugliese
There Will Be Weeping There, and Gnashing of Teeth – and Track
On Wednesday, it was confirmed that one of the worst ideas ever was coming to fruition. No, not the specter of taxpayers being on the hook for another $1 trillion, this time covering student loan debts (but take heart, that's just around the corner); instead, it's Bruton Smith moving forward with ruining yet another perfectly good race track in the hopes of – wait for it – improving racing.
Good God, where have we heard this before? Oh I know, right after the race at Kansas on Sunday.
Despite the pleas from drivers such as Jeff Gordon and Carl Edwards - who declared he would lay down in front of the bulldozers - the Kansas track is going to be resurfaced. While there are some large gaps in the track that need to be sealed, as well as a chunk of pavement that came up in Turn 1 on Saturday, it was not as if the track was in need of a complete overhaul. Repaving a track does not make for improved racing; if anything, it delays the time required for the pavement to settle, racing grooves to be established, and ultimately, for the track to develop its own character and idiosyncrasies.
There's a reason why the biggest story the last few weeks was the return to racing at Rockingham - and that was just the Truck Series. As much as everybody is pumped for a rare short track race at Richmond this weekend followed by the following week's first trip to Talladega, many more still are waiting for The Southern 500 ran over Mother's Day weekend. Darlington is shaped like an egg and gets repaved once every 20 years because its surface gets naturally sandblasted and destroys anything that comes in contact with it, short of an M1 Abrams tank tread. Besides, how many track layouts these days are determined by minnow ponds?
In 2005, Charlotte Motor Speedway attempted a resurfacing of the track, which more less ruined the character and uniqueness of what ironically was the track that served as the inspiration for all of the "cookie-cutter" surfaces constructed during the mid-1990's and early 2000's. What resulted was the best track in the world reduced to a shadow of its former self. Kind of like that blond chick in the movie Sucker Punch who receives an unsolicited lobotomy, and goes from a vibrant, dynamic heroine, into a vapid, empty shell. A few days of grinding left what had been the ultimate showplace in the heart of NASCAR country without bumps and without character.
As Mark Martin put it at the time, "They took the greatest race track in the world and ruined it."
Sadly, it appears that same thing is now going to happen at Bristol Motor Speedway, simply because there isn't any wrecking, which allegedly is keeping fans away. Never mind the obscenely high price of a race weekend with unemployment tickling ten percent and gas nudging north of $4.00 a gallon – sometimes food and paying the electric bill take precedence over "Racin' The Way it Oughta Be" -- or at least used to be.
As the changes were explained during the press conference, a grinding machine was fired up and hard at work tearing up the top groove of the track. The goal is to remove the progressive banking and make running three-wide less attainable - while making contact inevitable. The days of running multiple lines and door to door have been short-lived; instead, Bristol is now going to be a one and a half groove track where to get around somebody, you have to pop them in the back in the middle of a corner, in hopes of bringing back the dumbest thing to enter the sports lexicon since the term "Young Gun" was shoved down our throats ten years ago: The Bump and Run.
Oh wow, what skill that takes. There's a reason that Sebastian Vettel, Lewis Hamilton, and Fernando Alonso are considered among the best drivers on the planet. They don't have to run into each other to execute a pass.
Yeah, I know F1-bashers… they have to do it on the start or in the pits. Sorry, but I just don't get too excited over celebrating the accomplishments of a guy not slowing down in the middle of a corner to hit another car in order to pass them. I could spend $10 to see that at Berlin Raceway – except there they race cleaner there and with more respect.
Here's an easier solution to Bristol's alleged woes: have Goodyear show up with a tire that wears out after 30 laps. As I've said before, these aren't Assureatreds with a 70,000-mile warranty. Want some cautions? Erect a gigantic fan to blow trash all over the track, which apparently they have in Fontana for Auto Club Speedway. I thought that place was built on a foundry, not a landfill. Every time there's a race there, I have to check The Drudge Report to make sure there isn't a tickertape parade we're holding for returning heroes from Iraq and Afghanistan.
"We didn't want to create a train wreck here in what we're doing," Smith said. "We're modifying what we have. We think it will be a lot better than it was. It will be exciting."
If watching 100 laps under caution at $109 a seat the last week of summer is "exciting," then maybe things will turn out OK, and my Mayan doomsday scenario will be avoided.
"We think we'll win all these race fans over to our side on this," claimed Smith. "They're going to love it. Chances are we'll have a complete sellout in August."
True. But there's also a chance it will be a colossal disaster. Then again, there's also a chance that it won't matter. If a tree falls in the woods and nobody's there to see it… does it pay to have it cut down in the first place?
(North) American Innovation
With NASCAR's continued popularity issue and lack of sponsorship, there is another side effect at hand here that is affecting fans on a weekly basis: a dearth of new commercials.
Unless you're really into 5 Hour Energy, NAPA parts, or shopping at Lowe's, you've pretty much seen every ad that in the rotation by the time the F/A-18's fly over. One recent addition, however, that caught my attention is the spot for the Dodge Charger touting "American Innovation."
Uh, really?
The Dodge Charger, whose basic structure has been with us since 2005, is built on the leftovers of a ten-year-old Mercedes E and S-Class platform, using a transmission of similar vintage, mated to an updated version of a decade-old pushrod truck engine that's made in Mexico – with everything later assembled in Canada. Big shocker why it's Half Time in America and we're down points; the auto industry is based in Detroit, yet the powertrain is driven right past the Motor City and put together in Ontario.
Anyways, if you opt for the Challenger, a Charger in a coupe costume, you get the same basic package, unless you opt for the manual transmission in the R/T and SRT8 models - which is ultimately a derivative of a 20-year-old transmission. Don't get me wrong, this is perfectly fine and preferred in a musclecar, using bullet-proof, sorted out, proven components – except for one small detail.
You can't do anything with them.
Chrysler has seen fit to not assist the performance community with its iconic pair of Mopar muscle twins, which rely heavily on their lore and successes from 40 years ago to market their mainstream NASCAR-approved boulevard bruisers. Starting in 2011, the two feature an engine control computer with a rolling encryption code, much like a garage door opener, making it impossible to improve performance – unless Chrysler offers their assistance, which to date they have declined.
This sort of basic modern day hot rodding is key to the billion dollar Ford aftermarket business for the Mustang, as well as cursory Camaro tinkering, both the key to the continued survival and relevancy of these storied marquees. Ford has a technology transfer program with a number of vendors, tuners, and performance shops, as well as General Motors, who markets Nurburgring-approved Cadillacs and will put a supercharger or turbo on anything these days.
Chrysler, however, seems content to talk a good game – yet contradict itself in the process.
That means the natives are growing restless. Peruse any of the enthusiast forums for the Dodge Charger and Challenger and there is a near mutiny afoot, with threats of defecting from Dodge to Ford or even worse – the dark side for the Pentastar proud – Chevrolet. It would be wise for Chrysler to heed the warning signs, otherwise they may find the general public pulling a Penske, and exploring options from both the Blue Oval and Bowtie brigades to better, ahem, "benchmark" their machines.
If they refuse and turn a deaf ear to those pleading their case, there may be one less commercial - and brand - to watch during a race weekend.
Vito Pugliese is a Senior Writer for Frontstretch.com. He can be reached via e-mail at vito.pugliese@frontstretch.com.
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COME JOIN THE FRONTSTRETCH FAMILY!
Editor's Note: Frontstretch has a brand new, redesigned Facebook page. Click Here to "Like" Us and get a direct connect to all your Frontstretch favorites along with polls, interaction with fans and so much more.
Editor's Note: Due to at-track coverage, the Newsletter came out a bit later than usual today. We apologize for the inconvenience; expect overnight delivery to resume with Friday's edition.
What to Watch: Thursday
- Thursday night is race night at Richmond International Raceway. The action starts with coverage of the Blue Ox 100 for the K&N Pro Series East at 7 PM, followed by the Denny Hamlin Short Track Showdown, back for a second year at RIR at 8:30 PM. Both races will be televised live on SPEED. However, rain is in the forecast and could put a significant damper on the evening.
Top News
by Phil Allaway and Tom Bowles
Thumbs-Up From Drivers At Pocono Test
Speed and smiles dominated the Goodyear Tire Test this week at Pocono Raceway, site of a recent repaving as the track prepares to start its June NASCAR schedule with fresh asphalt. It's a rare thumbs up from the driving corps after a series of "modifications" to tracks that have gone awry; instead, many of those testing think the racing at the 2.5-mile Tricky Triangle will improve immediately.
"This was the track that was most overdue to be repaved," claimed Jamie McMurray, one of over a half-dozen drivers selected by Goodyear to try out new compounds. "I think most guys will like this a lot more. Being a driver, just a lot more grip. Gosh, I mean certainly everyone will ask me about the tire test when we get to Richmond this weekend and I'll have nothing but really good things to say about it."
"It's smoother," added Hendrick Motorsports' Kasey Kahne when asked about the track. "It still has the same transitions, the same rolling hills in spots that Pocono has always been known for. To me, it's really good."
Kahne, who holds the Pocono Cup qualifying record was reported to be running up to seven-tenths faster per lap during the test; all drivers agreed speeds would continue to increase significantly leading up to the June event.
"The trucks right now, last time I was out, I ran pretty much every lap, including the tunnel turn wide open," claimed ThorSport's Matt Crafton. "It was intense, very intense."
The main concern voiced by drivers was whether there would be multiple grooves "broken in;" however, all remained optimistic the repaving job was so strong working in a second and perhaps even a third groove at points around the track would not be a problem.
"I think the most important thing," added McMurray, "When we come back here for the race is, if we can get them to do something like they did at Phoenix, where they drug some tires to try to widen the groove out a little bit. There's a fairly narrow groove right now. I haven't really ventured out because you're going so fast, there's not really any room for error if you get into the grey where there hasn't been rubber laid down yet, but the track has a lot of grab."
Bristol Begins Turn Modifications
Ever since the Food City 500 back on March 18th, stories have been flying around about potential modifications to Bristol Motor Speedway's high-banked turns in the wake of decreasing attendance and fan apathy. The track itself even put a survey on their website asking race fans whether they were satisfied with the track and what changes (if any) should be made.
Bristol most definitely listened to their fans.
On Wednesday, Speedway Motorsports, Inc. Chairman and CEO O. Bruton Smith announced the long-awaited plans for modifications to Bristol Motor Speedway in preparation for the track's August race weekend. According to screenshots posted on Bristol's website, the current plan is to grind down the outside lanes in the corners so that the banking will be equal from the top to the bottom.
Today, the track has progressive banking that ranges from 24 degrees at the bottom of the track to 30 degrees up near the wall in the turns. The modifications appear to set a universal banking in the turns of 24 degrees. This is quite a bit lower than both what the "Old Bristol" advertised (36 degrees) and what it actually was (somewhere in the 27-30 degree range).
Smith was honest in his decision making rationale.
"I said when this process began last month that I would listen to what the fans said they wanted," Smith said. "The fan feedback over the past month, along with input over the last few years, was the impetus for alterations to the track."
"The majority of the fans we heard from said they wanted adjustments made and the bulk of those said the progressive banking was what they didn't like," Smith continued. "So, that's the focus of our efforts. And that is what we're working to change."
Work is already underway on the track modifications. Reporters who made the trip up to Bristol for Wednesday's press conference saw a track that had already had the SAFER Barriers removed and work that had already begun. The press release issued by the track did not quote a completion date for the project; however, it is not likely to take more than a few weeks. Also of note, according to Smith on Wednesday's edition of NASCAR Now, the straightaways will not be altered.
Goodyear to Hold Tire Test at Bristol
In response to Bristol Motor Speedway's track modification announcement, Goodyear announced on Wednesday that they will be holding a special, two-day tire test at Bristol Motor Speedway from June 12th to 13th. This test will be used to determine whether the current Bristol tire can continue to be used after the modifications or if a new one is required.
Goodyear officials are confident that they will find the proper compound for the more traditional Bristol setup.
"We're happy with our current tire setup at Bristol, but we always have to keep up with track changes, so we plan to run a test to determine what will best suit the specific modifications made," said Stu Grant, Goodyear's General Manager of Worldwide Racing. "We will start our test with the existing Bristol tire setup in order to determine if the changes to the track surface require any changes to our tread compound formulation. We'll then evaluate if the track surface has changed and if we'll need to bring back something different for the race in August."
One of the main issues with tires recently is that the tires don't rubber in well on concrete surfaces. This has been an issue more or less since the COT was introduced in 2007. Rubber more or less sits on top of the track under green flag conditions, then is picked back up by the cars under caution. It is unclear whether these issues will be addressed with the tire test. Also, no teams that will be participating in the test were announced. That will happen in a few weeks.
Entry List Update:
Note: These entries are accurate as of Wednesday night. However, they are still subject to change.
Sprint Cup Series Capital City 400 Presented by Virginia Is For Lovers: 46 cars entered
Drivers Ineligible to Earn Points:
No. 19 - Mike Bliss for Humphrey-Smith Racing
No. 32 - Reed Sorenson for FAS Lane Racing
No. 87 - Joe Nemechek for NEMCO Motorsports
Driver Changes:
No. 33 - Stephen Leicht is in the seat, replacing Jeff Green. Leicht last made a Cup start at Richmond last Fall.
No. 52 - An unknown driver will be in the seat, replacing Scott Speed. This attempt is the first for Hamilton Means Racing since Martinsville.
No. 74 - Stacy Compton returns to the seat, replacing Tony Raines. Turn One Racing is expected to start and park if they make the field.
Drivers who must qualify on speed:
No. 19 - Mike Bliss for Humphrey-Smith Racing*
No. 23 - Scott Riggs for R3 Motorsports*
No. 26 - Josh Wise for Front Row Motorsports*
No. 30 - David Stremme for Inception Motorsports*
No. 33 - Stephen Leicht for LJ Racing
No. 49 - J.J. Yeley for Robinson-Blakeney Racing
No. 52 - Unknown driver for Hamilton-Means Racing
No. 74 - Stacy Compton for Turn One Racing*
No. 87 - Joe Nemechek for NEMCO Motorsports*
No. 95 - Scott Speed for Leavine Family Racing
No. 98 - Michael McDowell for Phil Parsons Racing*
Nationwide Series Virginia 529 College Savings 250: 44 cars entered
Number Change: RAB Racing switches from No. 09 to 99 as a result of a partnership with Michael Waltrip Racing
Drivers Ineligible to Earn Points:
No. 17 - J.J. Yeley for Berryhill Racing
No. 18 - Denny Hamlin for Joe Gibbs Racing
No. 20 - Joey Logano for Joe Gibbs Racing
No. 22 - Brad Keselowski for Penske Racing
No. 30 - James Buescher for Turner Motorsports
No. 33 - Kevin Harvick for Richard Childress Racing
No. 38 - Kasey Kahne for Turner Motorsports
No. 42 - Josh Wise for Key Motorsports
No. 47 - Scott Speed for Key Motorsports
No. 54 - Kurt Busch for Kyle Busch Motorsports
No. 75 - Scott Riggs for Rick Ware Racing
Driver Changes:
No. 08- Casey Roderick returns to the seat, replacing Kyle Fowler. Roderick is running a limited schedule for Randy Hill when sponsorship allows.
No. 4 - Steve Wallace is in the seat, replacing Danny Efland. Rusty Wallace Racing is running the number this week for JD Motorsports, guaranteeing that Wallace will not have to qualify on speed.
No. 24 - Tanner Berryhill is in the seat, replacing Benny Gordon. Since Berryhill is already locked in, this will mark Berryhill's Nationwide Series debut.
No. 30 - James Buescher returns to the seat, replacing Steve Arpin. The Daytona winner is running a limited schedule in this series while running full-time in Trucks.
No. 33 - Kevin Harvick returns to the seat, replacing Paul Menard.
No. 39 - Matt Frahm returns to the seat, replacing Kelly Bires.
No. 52 - Kevin Lepage returns to the seat, replacing Tim Schendel.
No. 74 - An unknown driver will be in the seat, replacing Kevin Lepage. This car is a start-and-park entry.
No. 99 - Travis Pastrana is in the seat, replacing Ryan Truex. Provided that he avoids spectacular injury between now and Friday night, Pastrana will be making his Nationwide Series debut.
Drivers who must qualify on speed:
No. 10 - Jeff Green for TriStar Motorsports (Guaranteed to start via the Past Champions' Provisional)*
No. 15 - Blake Koch for Rick Ware Racing
No. 17 - J.J. Yeley for Berryhill Racing
No. 20 - Joey Logano for Joe Gibbs Racing
No. 36 - Ryan Blaney for Tommy Baldwin Racing
No. 39 - Matt Frahm for Go Green Racing
No. 42 - Josh Wise for Key Motorsports*
No. 46 - Chase Miller for Key Motorsports*
No. 47 - Scott Speed for Key Motorsports*
No. 50 - T.J. Bell for MAKE Motorsports
No. 52 - Kevin Lepage for Means Motorsports
No. 74 - Unknown driver for Mike Harmon Racing*
No. 75 - Scott Riggs for Rick Ware Racing*
No. 89 - Morgan Shepherd for Shepherd Racing Ventures
*- Expected to Start-and-Park
Izod IndyCar Series Sao Paulo Indy 300: 26 cars entered
Driver Changes: None
Entries:
No. 2 - Ryan Briscoe for Team Penske
No. 3 - Helio Castroneves for Team Penske
No. 4 - J.R. Hildebrand for Panther Racing
No. 5 - E.J. Viso for KV Racing Technologies
No. 6 - Katherine Legge for Lotus-Dragon Racing
No. 7 - Sebastien Bourdais for Lotus-Dragon Racing
No. 8 - Rubens Barrichello for KV Racing Technologies
No. 9 - Scott Dixon for Chip Ganassi Racing
No. 10 - Dario Franchitti for Chip Ganassi Racing
No. 11 - Tony Kanaan for KV Racing Technologies with SH Racing
No. 12 - Will Power for Team Penske
No. 14 - Mike Conway for A.J. Foyt Enterprises
No. 15 - Takuma Sato for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
No. 18 - Justin Wilson for Dale Coyne Racing
No. 19 - James Jakes for Dale Coyne Racing
No. 20 - Ed Carpenter for Ed Carpenter Racing
No. 22 - Oriol Servia for Lotus-DRR
No. 25 - Ana Beatriz for Andretti Autosport
No. 26 - Marco Andretti for Andretti Autosport
No. 27 - James Hinchcliffe for Andretti Autosport
No. 28 - Ryan Hunter-Reay for Andretti Autosport
No. 38 - Graham Rahal for Chip Ganassi Racing
No. 67 - Josef Newgarden for Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing
No. 77 - Simon Pagenaud for Schmidt-Hamilton Motorsports
No. 78 - Simona de Silvestro for Lotus-HVM Racing
No. 83 - Charlie Kimball for Chip Ganassi Racing
Not Entered:
No. 98 - Alex Tagliani for Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb-Agajanian
~~~~~~~~~~
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 Thursday with a whole new set of Fan Questions and Answers!
~~~~~~~~~~
Today's Featured Commentary
Action and Inaction Both Breeding Dissatisfaction
What's Vexing Vito
by Vito Pugliese
There Will Be Weeping There, and Gnashing of Teeth – and Track
On Wednesday, it was confirmed that one of the worst ideas ever was coming to fruition. No, not the specter of taxpayers being on the hook for another $1 trillion, this time covering student loan debts (but take heart, that's just around the corner); instead, it's Bruton Smith moving forward with ruining yet another perfectly good race track in the hopes of – wait for it – improving racing.
Good God, where have we heard this before? Oh I know, right after the race at Kansas on Sunday.
Despite the pleas from drivers such as Jeff Gordon and Carl Edwards - who declared he would lay down in front of the bulldozers - the Kansas track is going to be resurfaced. While there are some large gaps in the track that need to be sealed, as well as a chunk of pavement that came up in Turn 1 on Saturday, it was not as if the track was in need of a complete overhaul. Repaving a track does not make for improved racing; if anything, it delays the time required for the pavement to settle, racing grooves to be established, and ultimately, for the track to develop its own character and idiosyncrasies.
There's a reason why the biggest story the last few weeks was the return to racing at Rockingham - and that was just the Truck Series. As much as everybody is pumped for a rare short track race at Richmond this weekend followed by the following week's first trip to Talladega, many more still are waiting for The Southern 500 ran over Mother's Day weekend. Darlington is shaped like an egg and gets repaved once every 20 years because its surface gets naturally sandblasted and destroys anything that comes in contact with it, short of an M1 Abrams tank tread. Besides, how many track layouts these days are determined by minnow ponds?
In 2005, Charlotte Motor Speedway attempted a resurfacing of the track, which more less ruined the character and uniqueness of what ironically was the track that served as the inspiration for all of the "cookie-cutter" surfaces constructed during the mid-1990's and early 2000's. What resulted was the best track in the world reduced to a shadow of its former self. Kind of like that blond chick in the movie Sucker Punch who receives an unsolicited lobotomy, and goes from a vibrant, dynamic heroine, into a vapid, empty shell. A few days of grinding left what had been the ultimate showplace in the heart of NASCAR country without bumps and without character.
As Mark Martin put it at the time, "They took the greatest race track in the world and ruined it."
Sadly, it appears that same thing is now going to happen at Bristol Motor Speedway, simply because there isn't any wrecking, which allegedly is keeping fans away. Never mind the obscenely high price of a race weekend with unemployment tickling ten percent and gas nudging north of $4.00 a gallon – sometimes food and paying the electric bill take precedence over "Racin' The Way it Oughta Be" -- or at least used to be.
As the changes were explained during the press conference, a grinding machine was fired up and hard at work tearing up the top groove of the track. The goal is to remove the progressive banking and make running three-wide less attainable - while making contact inevitable. The days of running multiple lines and door to door have been short-lived; instead, Bristol is now going to be a one and a half groove track where to get around somebody, you have to pop them in the back in the middle of a corner, in hopes of bringing back the dumbest thing to enter the sports lexicon since the term "Young Gun" was shoved down our throats ten years ago: The Bump and Run.
Oh wow, what skill that takes. There's a reason that Sebastian Vettel, Lewis Hamilton, and Fernando Alonso are considered among the best drivers on the planet. They don't have to run into each other to execute a pass.
Yeah, I know F1-bashers… they have to do it on the start or in the pits. Sorry, but I just don't get too excited over celebrating the accomplishments of a guy not slowing down in the middle of a corner to hit another car in order to pass them. I could spend $10 to see that at Berlin Raceway – except there they race cleaner there and with more respect.
Here's an easier solution to Bristol's alleged woes: have Goodyear show up with a tire that wears out after 30 laps. As I've said before, these aren't Assureatreds with a 70,000-mile warranty. Want some cautions? Erect a gigantic fan to blow trash all over the track, which apparently they have in Fontana for Auto Club Speedway. I thought that place was built on a foundry, not a landfill. Every time there's a race there, I have to check The Drudge Report to make sure there isn't a tickertape parade we're holding for returning heroes from Iraq and Afghanistan.
"We didn't want to create a train wreck here in what we're doing," Smith said. "We're modifying what we have. We think it will be a lot better than it was. It will be exciting."
If watching 100 laps under caution at $109 a seat the last week of summer is "exciting," then maybe things will turn out OK, and my Mayan doomsday scenario will be avoided.
"We think we'll win all these race fans over to our side on this," claimed Smith. "They're going to love it. Chances are we'll have a complete sellout in August."
True. But there's also a chance it will be a colossal disaster. Then again, there's also a chance that it won't matter. If a tree falls in the woods and nobody's there to see it… does it pay to have it cut down in the first place?
(North) American Innovation
With NASCAR's continued popularity issue and lack of sponsorship, there is another side effect at hand here that is affecting fans on a weekly basis: a dearth of new commercials.
Unless you're really into 5 Hour Energy, NAPA parts, or shopping at Lowe's, you've pretty much seen every ad that in the rotation by the time the F/A-18's fly over. One recent addition, however, that caught my attention is the spot for the Dodge Charger touting "American Innovation."
Uh, really?
The Dodge Charger, whose basic structure has been with us since 2005, is built on the leftovers of a ten-year-old Mercedes E and S-Class platform, using a transmission of similar vintage, mated to an updated version of a decade-old pushrod truck engine that's made in Mexico – with everything later assembled in Canada. Big shocker why it's Half Time in America and we're down points; the auto industry is based in Detroit, yet the powertrain is driven right past the Motor City and put together in Ontario.
Anyways, if you opt for the Challenger, a Charger in a coupe costume, you get the same basic package, unless you opt for the manual transmission in the R/T and SRT8 models - which is ultimately a derivative of a 20-year-old transmission. Don't get me wrong, this is perfectly fine and preferred in a musclecar, using bullet-proof, sorted out, proven components – except for one small detail.
You can't do anything with them.
Chrysler has seen fit to not assist the performance community with its iconic pair of Mopar muscle twins, which rely heavily on their lore and successes from 40 years ago to market their mainstream NASCAR-approved boulevard bruisers. Starting in 2011, the two feature an engine control computer with a rolling encryption code, much like a garage door opener, making it impossible to improve performance – unless Chrysler offers their assistance, which to date they have declined.
This sort of basic modern day hot rodding is key to the billion dollar Ford aftermarket business for the Mustang, as well as cursory Camaro tinkering, both the key to the continued survival and relevancy of these storied marquees. Ford has a technology transfer program with a number of vendors, tuners, and performance shops, as well as General Motors, who markets Nurburgring-approved Cadillacs and will put a supercharger or turbo on anything these days.
Chrysler, however, seems content to talk a good game – yet contradict itself in the process.
That means the natives are growing restless. Peruse any of the enthusiast forums for the Dodge Charger and Challenger and there is a near mutiny afoot, with threats of defecting from Dodge to Ford or even worse – the dark side for the Pentastar proud – Chevrolet. It would be wise for Chrysler to heed the warning signs, otherwise they may find the general public pulling a Penske, and exploring options from both the Blue Oval and Bowtie brigades to better, ahem, "benchmark" their machines.
If they refuse and turn a deaf ear to those pleading their case, there may be one less commercial - and brand - to watch during a race weekend.
Vito Pugliese is a Senior Writer for Frontstretch.com. He can be reached via e-mail at vito.pugliese@frontstretch.com.
~~~~~~~~~~
COME JOIN THE FRONTSTRETCH FAMILY!
Hey Frontstretch Readers,
We are looking for someone who shares our enthusiasm for NASCAR and has an experienced background in web design. Specifically, we are looking for someone who can help maintain and enhance our website, increase our SEO, and upgrade our publishing platform while producing a limited amount of content throughout the season. This job presents a perfect opportunity for someone with a technical background, a person who wants their work to gain national exposure.
If you are interested, contact frontstretcheditors@googlegroups.com. Please include references to your past work in your e-mail.
~~~~~~~~~~
The Critic's Annex: Tequila Patron Grand Prix of Long Beach
by Phil Allaway
Hello, race fans, welcome back to the Critic's Annex, where we take an additional look at the motorsports telecasts made available to us, the general public. I originally stated that I was going to take a look at SPEED's Trackside Live for today's edition of the Annex. However, due to last week's third edition of our Paulie Harraka Driver Diary, I never got a chance to run my look at the ALMS telecast from Long Beach back on April 14. I'm going to do that today. The critique of Trackside will occur at a later date, sometime in May (but not next week).
However, before we start, we've got some TV news. On Wednesday, SPEED announced a new deal that will bring the World Rally Championship (WRC) back to SPEED after a multiple-year absence. The rallies will be covered on a same-day delay basis on Sunday nights, typically at 11 PM. This is similar to how the races were covered around 2005 or 2006. Since the series is already four rallies into the season, SPEED2 will be offering 30-minute recaps of the first four rallies (Monte Carlo, Sweden, Mexico and Portugal).
In addition to the rally recaps, SPEED2 will be airing 30-minute, same-day recaps of each day of the rally. This is the same coverage that formerly aired on Velocity. Unfortunately, as I've mentioned in past critiques, SPEED2 has very limited availability (subscribers to Dish Network, Cablevision, Time Warner Cable, Cox Cable and Bright House Networks). As a result, this move could actually be seen as a downgrade in coverage for the WRC, but the move puts the WRC on a network in more homes (75 million as compared to an estimated 40 million for Velocity).
Now, to the critique.
ESPN2 brought viewers a live telecast from Long Beach, the first of such on television for the Tequila Patron American Le Mans Series since they were still on SPEED in 2010, and the first on ESPN since 2000 or so. Arguably, this is the easiest race for ESPN to televise live due to the fact that it is the shortest race on the calendar (just two hours in length), plus the start time (7:30 PM EDT) was definitely in their favor.
The race weekend in Long Beach was pretty difficult, to say the least. Qualifying, which was aired live on ESPN3, was stopped after the GTC class put in their laps. Why? ALMS had declared the session to be a dry session and just as the GT class drivers went on track, it started raining hard. In order to prevent an Australian pursuit setup for the actual race, the session was wiped away and everyone started on points. In addition, all the practice sessions were run in the rain and most drivers got very little track time leading up to the race.
For the headlining (sort of, due to the lack of machinery) P1 class, the name of the game was Mazda vs. Honda (or Dyson Racing vs. Muscle Milk Pickett Racing). Part of pre-race was spent covering that duel (with Jamie Howe). Kelli Stavast covered the GT battle between Chevrolet, BMW and Porsche. Johnny O'Connell took care of the track description by going on onto the track and pointing out three hot spots on the track (Turn 1, Turn 9 and the Queen's Hairpin). Interesting way of showing the course off.
Also, there was some discussion of new machinery that is coming into the series, starting with the Lotus Evora that made its debut at Long Beach with Alex Job Racing. The car is new to the United States, but ran last year with the JetAlliance team in Europe, including two spots in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Also, Chrysler Group, LLC is getting back into the series towards the end of the year with the new for 2013 SRT Viper. An artist's rendering of a No. 91 Viper was shown to viewers. That number might not mean anything offhand, but when Dodge was supporting the ORECA team's efforts in ALMS, their primary car was the No. 91. The car also won the Rolex 24 at Daytona in 2000 (the inaugural race for Grand-Am), defeating the Corvette team in the process.
The start of the race was nothing short of a mess. There were a number of spins, not all of them caught by ESPN's cameras. Tim Pappas, driving his No. 54 Black Swan Racing prototype, got involved in a crash just after getting released from the pit lane. Apparently, the aforementioned Lotus Evora had spun out and no local yellow was shown. At the time, we weren't shown any replays of this incident. We only saw a brief clip of Pappas trying to drive back to the pits with the front end clouted. A replay was shown roughly 10-15 minutes later, one that showed Evora tried to turn around in front of the Aquarium entrance, then spun the car around in a blind spot. Pappas had nowhere to go. Not too good.
Early in the race (right after a commercial break, mind you), ESPN cut away from the race to bring viewers a piece about how to negotiate traffic in the Tequila Patron American Le Mans Series. O'Connell talked about traffic while driving on the infamous Interstate 405 (the "405 Freeway"). I guess what O'Connell said was pertinent, but I don't think that ESPN should have cut away from race action to show it.
Race coverage (when they weren't cutting away for pieces like the one mentioned above) was mainly by class. ESPN would focus on one individual class for a certain amount of time (for example, the GT class), then switch to another.
Post-race coverage was typical for ESPN's ALMS broadcasts. They would show the unofficial results in each class, then interview one driver from the winning team in each class. On the 14th, they talked with Klaus Graf (P1), Oliver Gavin (GT), Ryan Dalziel (LMPC), Damien Faulkner (GTC) and Scott Tucker (P2). There was also a check of the Michelin Green X Challenge results (which is probably one of the most insane scored competitions in racing because of the confusing way it's calculated). Finally, Till and O'Connell wrapped up the telecast before ESPN left.
This was a disjointed broadcast to watch. The direction was simply not the best. The Alex Job-Black Swan crash on the first lap was handled terribly. Usually, you either see something live, or see a replay of said incident before talking to the driver and seeing what put them out. We got the reverse of that here. It was ridiculous. Yes, I'm sure Pappas was bummed out that he couldn't display his one-race sponsorship deal from Roscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles, but the handling of that situation made the entire production look low rent.
In addition, the coverage does currently seem to be stilted toward the P1 and GT classes. They get roughly 80 percent of the coverage in the broadcasts. Yes, the GT class has the lion's share of the entrants and is the strongest class as far as competition is involved (its considered to be stronger than the GT class in both the European Le Mans Series and the World Endurance Championship), but they're not the only show out there. As for P1, the count there has been miserable for years. I think the ACO ditched the ALMS' single prototype class idea from 2010, so they have to run with classes that might only have a couple of cars in it. Still, all the classes should get a decent amount of coverage.
Finally, the LMPC (Le Mans Prototype Challenge) class seems to be getting the shaft from ESPN. The racing in the class is actually pretty good, but all we hear about is the lack of experience in the class and how either the drivers or the cars themselves cause problems for everyone else. It's really kinda sad. The guys that drive in that class are experienced racers like everyone else out there. The cars themselves probably don't put heat into their tires fast enough, but they're a pretty quick package when you sit down and think about it.
I thank you for reading this critique of ESPN2's coverage of the Tequila Patron Grand Prix of Long Beach. Check out next week's edition of the Annex, when I'll take a look at Top Gear's NASCAR adventure, set to premiere Monday night on BBC America. Until then, enjoy the racing this weekend from Richmond, Sao Paulo and Homestead.
Phil Allaway is a Senior Writer and the Newsletter Manager for Frontstretch. He can be reached via e-mail at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Frontstretch Line of the Week
From Beyond the Cockpit: Timothy Peters On Whoopin' Cup Butt... And Burger Heaven
"You just want to beat them. From my point of view, I don't care nothing about it. I want them to come and race for my selfish reasons I just want to whoop 'em every week. " - Timothy Peters, on Sprint Cup drivers 'whacking Camping World Truck Series races
~~~~~~~~~~
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 tony.lumbis@frontstretch.com for details.
~~~~~~~~~~
TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
NASCAR Role Reversal: Pocono's Promise Versus Bristol's... What, Exactly?
by Tom Bowles
MPM2Nite: Critical Mass - Is It Too Late To Save NASCAR?
by Matt McLaughlin
~~~~~~~~~~
The Critic's Annex: Tequila Patron Grand Prix of Long Beach
by Phil Allaway
Hello, race fans, welcome back to the Critic's Annex, where we take an additional look at the motorsports telecasts made available to us, the general public. I originally stated that I was going to take a look at SPEED's Trackside Live for today's edition of the Annex. However, due to last week's third edition of our Paulie Harraka Driver Diary, I never got a chance to run my look at the ALMS telecast from Long Beach back on April 14. I'm going to do that today. The critique of Trackside will occur at a later date, sometime in May (but not next week).
However, before we start, we've got some TV news. On Wednesday, SPEED announced a new deal that will bring the World Rally Championship (WRC) back to SPEED after a multiple-year absence. The rallies will be covered on a same-day delay basis on Sunday nights, typically at 11 PM. This is similar to how the races were covered around 2005 or 2006. Since the series is already four rallies into the season, SPEED2 will be offering 30-minute recaps of the first four rallies (Monte Carlo, Sweden, Mexico and Portugal).
In addition to the rally recaps, SPEED2 will be airing 30-minute, same-day recaps of each day of the rally. This is the same coverage that formerly aired on Velocity. Unfortunately, as I've mentioned in past critiques, SPEED2 has very limited availability (subscribers to Dish Network, Cablevision, Time Warner Cable, Cox Cable and Bright House Networks). As a result, this move could actually be seen as a downgrade in coverage for the WRC, but the move puts the WRC on a network in more homes (75 million as compared to an estimated 40 million for Velocity).
Now, to the critique.
ESPN2 brought viewers a live telecast from Long Beach, the first of such on television for the Tequila Patron American Le Mans Series since they were still on SPEED in 2010, and the first on ESPN since 2000 or so. Arguably, this is the easiest race for ESPN to televise live due to the fact that it is the shortest race on the calendar (just two hours in length), plus the start time (7:30 PM EDT) was definitely in their favor.
The race weekend in Long Beach was pretty difficult, to say the least. Qualifying, which was aired live on ESPN3, was stopped after the GTC class put in their laps. Why? ALMS had declared the session to be a dry session and just as the GT class drivers went on track, it started raining hard. In order to prevent an Australian pursuit setup for the actual race, the session was wiped away and everyone started on points. In addition, all the practice sessions were run in the rain and most drivers got very little track time leading up to the race.
For the headlining (sort of, due to the lack of machinery) P1 class, the name of the game was Mazda vs. Honda (or Dyson Racing vs. Muscle Milk Pickett Racing). Part of pre-race was spent covering that duel (with Jamie Howe). Kelli Stavast covered the GT battle between Chevrolet, BMW and Porsche. Johnny O'Connell took care of the track description by going on onto the track and pointing out three hot spots on the track (Turn 1, Turn 9 and the Queen's Hairpin). Interesting way of showing the course off.
Also, there was some discussion of new machinery that is coming into the series, starting with the Lotus Evora that made its debut at Long Beach with Alex Job Racing. The car is new to the United States, but ran last year with the JetAlliance team in Europe, including two spots in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Also, Chrysler Group, LLC is getting back into the series towards the end of the year with the new for 2013 SRT Viper. An artist's rendering of a No. 91 Viper was shown to viewers. That number might not mean anything offhand, but when Dodge was supporting the ORECA team's efforts in ALMS, their primary car was the No. 91. The car also won the Rolex 24 at Daytona in 2000 (the inaugural race for Grand-Am), defeating the Corvette team in the process.
The start of the race was nothing short of a mess. There were a number of spins, not all of them caught by ESPN's cameras. Tim Pappas, driving his No. 54 Black Swan Racing prototype, got involved in a crash just after getting released from the pit lane. Apparently, the aforementioned Lotus Evora had spun out and no local yellow was shown. At the time, we weren't shown any replays of this incident. We only saw a brief clip of Pappas trying to drive back to the pits with the front end clouted. A replay was shown roughly 10-15 minutes later, one that showed Evora tried to turn around in front of the Aquarium entrance, then spun the car around in a blind spot. Pappas had nowhere to go. Not too good.
Early in the race (right after a commercial break, mind you), ESPN cut away from the race to bring viewers a piece about how to negotiate traffic in the Tequila Patron American Le Mans Series. O'Connell talked about traffic while driving on the infamous Interstate 405 (the "405 Freeway"). I guess what O'Connell said was pertinent, but I don't think that ESPN should have cut away from race action to show it.
Race coverage (when they weren't cutting away for pieces like the one mentioned above) was mainly by class. ESPN would focus on one individual class for a certain amount of time (for example, the GT class), then switch to another.
Post-race coverage was typical for ESPN's ALMS broadcasts. They would show the unofficial results in each class, then interview one driver from the winning team in each class. On the 14th, they talked with Klaus Graf (P1), Oliver Gavin (GT), Ryan Dalziel (LMPC), Damien Faulkner (GTC) and Scott Tucker (P2). There was also a check of the Michelin Green X Challenge results (which is probably one of the most insane scored competitions in racing because of the confusing way it's calculated). Finally, Till and O'Connell wrapped up the telecast before ESPN left.
This was a disjointed broadcast to watch. The direction was simply not the best. The Alex Job-Black Swan crash on the first lap was handled terribly. Usually, you either see something live, or see a replay of said incident before talking to the driver and seeing what put them out. We got the reverse of that here. It was ridiculous. Yes, I'm sure Pappas was bummed out that he couldn't display his one-race sponsorship deal from Roscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles, but the handling of that situation made the entire production look low rent.
In addition, the coverage does currently seem to be stilted toward the P1 and GT classes. They get roughly 80 percent of the coverage in the broadcasts. Yes, the GT class has the lion's share of the entrants and is the strongest class as far as competition is involved (its considered to be stronger than the GT class in both the European Le Mans Series and the World Endurance Championship), but they're not the only show out there. As for P1, the count there has been miserable for years. I think the ACO ditched the ALMS' single prototype class idea from 2010, so they have to run with classes that might only have a couple of cars in it. Still, all the classes should get a decent amount of coverage.
Finally, the LMPC (Le Mans Prototype Challenge) class seems to be getting the shaft from ESPN. The racing in the class is actually pretty good, but all we hear about is the lack of experience in the class and how either the drivers or the cars themselves cause problems for everyone else. It's really kinda sad. The guys that drive in that class are experienced racers like everyone else out there. The cars themselves probably don't put heat into their tires fast enough, but they're a pretty quick package when you sit down and think about it.
I thank you for reading this critique of ESPN2's coverage of the Tequila Patron Grand Prix of Long Beach. Check out next week's edition of the Annex, when I'll take a look at Top Gear's NASCAR adventure, set to premiere Monday night on BBC America. Until then, enjoy the racing this weekend from Richmond, Sao Paulo and Homestead.
Phil Allaway is a Senior Writer and the Newsletter Manager for Frontstretch. He can be reached via e-mail at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Frontstretch Line of the Week
From Beyond the Cockpit: Timothy Peters On Whoopin' Cup Butt... And Burger Heaven
"You just want to beat them. From my point of view, I don't care nothing about it. I want them to come and race for my selfish reasons I just want to whoop 'em every week. " - Timothy Peters, on Sprint Cup drivers 'whacking Camping World Truck Series races
~~~~~~~~~~
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 tony.lumbis@frontstretch.com for details.
~~~~~~~~~~
TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
NASCAR Role Reversal: Pocono's Promise Versus Bristol's... What, Exactly?
by Tom Bowles
MPM2Nite: Critical Mass - Is It Too Late To Save NASCAR?
by Matt McLaughlin
Dollars And Sense: NASCAR's FanVision Controller Is Worth The Investment
by Jesse Medford
Professor Of Speed: Racing Into The Future
by Mark Howell
Truckin' Thursdays: International Flair Extends Beyond Paludo and Piquet
by Beth Lunkenheimer
~~~~~~~~~~
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: The 1998 Pontiac Excitement 400 is best known for an incident involving Jeff Gordon and Rusty Wallace. What happened here?
Check back Friday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Wednesday's Answer:
Wednesday's Answer:
Q: The 1988 Pontiac Excitement 400, held on another chilly February afternoon, is most notable for being the final race run on the original 0.538-mile Fairgrounds Raceway. However, the race ended in controversy. Why?
A: The race was considered to be controversial due to an apparent scoring error. Second-place finisher Ricky Rudd and his car owner, Kenny Bernstein, protested the results afterwards, claiming that race winner Neil Bonnett was actually at the tail end of the lead lap instead of the actual race winner. However, his protest was denied.
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!
~~~~~~~~~~
Coming tomorrow in the Frontstretch Newsletter:
-- Top News from Jeff Wolfe
-- In Case You Missed It by Nick Schwartz
-- Keepin' It Short by Mike Neff
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, trivia, and more!
~~~~~~~~~~
Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:
Four Burning Questions: Richmond Edition by Summer Dreyer
Summer is back with a four-part look at some interesting stories as we look forward to Saturday night's race at Richmond International Raceway.
Holding A Pretty Wheel by Amy Henderson
Amy's back with another interesting commentary.
Friday Fast Forward Into NASCAR's Future by Bryan Davis Keith
Bryan returns with another interesting commentary piece on the Nationwide Series ahead of their race in Richmond.
Voices From the Heartland by Jeff Meyer
Our Tennessee transplant returns with another interesting take on recent events.
Driver Diary: Michael Annett as told to Toni Montgomery
The driver of the No. 43 Pilot Travel Centers Ford for Richard Petty Motorsports returns to talk about the past few weeks on and off the track.
Izod IndyCar Series Preview: Sao Paulo Indy 300 by Toni Montgomery
We'll have a preview of this Sunday's race on the streets of Sao Paulo, Brazil. It's currently forecast to have some rain during the race (again).
-----------------------------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!
~~~~~~~~~~
Coming tomorrow in the Frontstretch Newsletter:
-- Top News from Jeff Wolfe
-- In Case You Missed It by Nick Schwartz
-- Keepin' It Short by Mike Neff
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, trivia, and more!
~~~~~~~~~~
Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:
Four Burning Questions: Richmond Edition by Summer Dreyer
Summer is back with a four-part look at some interesting stories as we look forward to Saturday night's race at Richmond International Raceway.
Holding A Pretty Wheel by Amy Henderson
Amy's back with another interesting commentary.
Friday Fast Forward Into NASCAR's Future by Bryan Davis Keith
Bryan returns with another interesting commentary piece on the Nationwide Series ahead of their race in Richmond.
Voices From the Heartland by Jeff Meyer
Our Tennessee transplant returns with another interesting take on recent events.
Driver Diary: Michael Annett as told to Toni Montgomery
The driver of the No. 43 Pilot Travel Centers Ford for Richard Petty Motorsports returns to talk about the past few weeks on and off the track.
Izod IndyCar Series Preview: Sao Paulo Indy 300 by Toni Montgomery
We'll have a preview of this Sunday's race on the streets of Sao Paulo, Brazil. It's currently forecast to have some rain during the race (again).
Talk back to the Frontstretch Newsletter!
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