The Frontstretch Newsletter: October 16th, 2012

THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
October 16th, 2012
Volume VI, Edition CCVIII

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What To Watch: Tuesday

- Former RCR teammates Clint Bowyer and Kevin Harvick will hold national teleconferences with the media. Bowyer, who is coming off his third Cup win of the season at Charlotte is fourth in points with his new employer, Michael Waltrip Racing while Harvick has struggled this season. Tenth in the Chase, the driver of the No. 29 Chevrolet has just four top-5 results and has already changed crew chiefs once this season, from Shane Wilson to Gil Martin.

Top News
by Tom Bowles

Softbank Buys 70% Of Sprint

In a move that shakes up the mobile phone industry, Japanese wireless carrier Softbank has acquired 70% of Sprint in a takeover that's reported to be $20.1 billion. Changing its name to New Sprint, the deal represents a financial windfall to shareholders who will get 55% of current Sprint shares exchanged for $7.30 in cash. On the stock car side, the investment in the third-largest wireless company immediately raised questions as to whether their NASCAR sponsorship would be affected; however, for now all parties are operating as if they'll maintain the status quo.

"As our premier series entitlement sponsor, Sprint has been successful using our sport as a platform to enhance its brand," Steve Phelps, NASCAR chief marketing officer said in a Monday statement. "NASCAR fans have rewarded Sprint with their business and loyalty, and we don't expect that to change. We are thrilled for our partner that they are getting an infusion of capital and support that will strengthen them going into the future."

CEO Dan Hesse, who did not comment on the company's sponsorship in the midst of this investment deal will remain in his current role with the company -- likely a plus for the sport. It was Hesse who helped negotiate a three-year extension of Sprint as title sponsor, one which takes "Sprint Cup" all the way through the end of the 2016 season.

The deal itself, which needs regulatory approval is not expected to close until the middle of next year.

New Jersey Motorsports Park to Push For Nationwide Race

Another road course is looking to add itself to the list of Nationwide venues for 2013. New Jersey Motorsports Park, located in Millville has expressed interest in holding an event for the series next season. With Montreal off the schedule, unable to find a partnership that works the sport is looking for a right-turn replacement and General Manager Brad Scott told the Press of Atlantic City this weekend he's going to put his facility right in the mix.

"One of my immediate goals is going to be to really get aggressive and at least throw our name in the hat," Scott said. "If there's an opportunity to host something like that, we'd love to."

"We just kind of got wind of it last week that Nationwide was looking, with the termination of the contract with Montreal, that they were considering running on (another) road course. Mid-Ohio and other tracks apparently have been contacted, but we have been known to get aggressive and go after them ourselves, so that's what we plan to do."

NJMP, in its sixth year of existence has already hosted ARCA and Grand-Am events. The racetrack, located within driving distance of both Atlantic City and Philadelphia has a maximum distance of 2.25 miles per lap depending on layout.

News Bites

- NASCAR's television troubles halted a bit with Saturday night's Chase broadcast. Their 3.0 Nielsen overnight for the Charlotte race, the only one which will be broadcast on ABC this season matched their audience for last year's 500-miler. That ties Talladega for the largest rating for any one of NASCAR's playoff events in 2012.

 - Left unreported here on Sunday was a change in broadcasting rights for Formula One. Beginning in 2013, NBC and NBC Sports Group will be televising all races in the U.S. as part of a multi-year deal which sees SPEED's live coverage of the sport come to an end. The big network will televise four races live under the new contract - the Canadian Grand Prix plus the last three events of the season - while NBC Sports Network will tackle the rest. Live qualifying and practice coverage will also occur on NBC Sports Network.

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 A NASCAR QUESTION OR COMMENT? WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!
That's right; our Fan Q & A column has a new sheriff in town. Send your question Summer Bedgood's way at summer.bedgood@frontstretch.com and if you're lucky, you'll get your name in print on Thursday when she does her weekly column. It's all part of our daily mission to give back to you – the fans that keep Frontstretch afloat!
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Today's Featured Commentary
Nothing But Silly Stories and the End of NASCAR
Sitting In The Stands: A Fan's View
by S.D. Grady

Besides the fact that the race on Saturday night was yet another yawn-inducing, fuel mileage parade, was there anything at all happening in our sport this week?  I mean, something of importance.

Something like... the Bank of America 500 was the first Cup race run without an Earnhardt in it since 1979.  Yes, it was certainly gossip worthy that Junior chose to sit out two weeks of competition, suffering from a concussion. But it wasn't earth-shattering for the sport, despite the number of times the stat got repeated over the length of the weekend.  The fact the "Big E" didn't appear on an entry list was simply that, nothing more.  The world does not always revolve around Mooresville.  Or does it?

The second half of this much-repeated "history" this weekend decried the absence of any driver with a birthplace of North Carolina.  Really?  Was this report mere curiosity on the media's part that they spread the lack of a Carolinian far and wide?  No, I think it was a comment on the changing times.

No longer is our sport known as something belonging to the Southeast.  Only seven of the tracks on the Cup circuit are located in the birthplace of NASCAR, the backwoods of Virginia, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Tennessee and Alabama.  As indicated above, no longer do the competitors hail from a singular part of the country.

NASCAR is a global sport these days.  But with all the fireworks, naming rights and pretty paint jobs lighting up the night, and the massive television on Charlotte's backstretch, did we really need such a mundane reminder that NASCAR has left its roots behind and moved into the 21st Century with a more expansive market?  Well...

Point 2.  Less of a story, but a curiosity.  It was reported on Sunday that the Budweiser Duels would not be part of Daytona 500 Speedweeks next year due to lack of sponsorship.  Since Daytona International Speedway still has tickets on sale for the 2013 Duels, I can view this "news" as simply a rumor.  But one that we'd all believe.   The credulity of this information is, perhaps, what we should be concerned with.

It would be depressing indeed to miss the absolutely over the top and unexplainable start to our season.  No, we don't need those qualifying races to muddy up the manner in which the 43 cars line up for the Great American Race.  But it's sort of like short track qualifiers on a grand scale, a nod to the past and a glimpse of the greater things coming on Sunday.  It would be a sad day indeed should we lose the 150s because the cash flow has slowed to a trickle in the great sponsorship river.  Would we believe it could happen.  Oh yes.  Why?

The answer to that question, of course is not "because there's just no money."  There's actually lots of it, if we are to pay attention to the final story of this column.  The problem is, it's only goes into certain pockets -- and nowhere else.

FOX has re-upped with NASCAR through 2022.  Yes sirree, Bob!  We are to be entertained by more bad graphics, distracting sound effects and commentators that could be swapped out with the ringmaster for Barnum & Bailey's Circus for yet another decade.  Color me a sickly shade of green.  What is the price tag for this contract, you ask?  A stunning $2.4 billion; more than enough to fund a few Daytona Duels, if you ask me.

Right there, we have it all.  Not only have we left the good ol' boys of the Old South behind, we've done it in Armani suits while drinking champagne.  Could we possibly be farther from the roots of our sport with this TV deal?

So yes, there was a big story this weekend.  If you've been in any doubt over the last few years, NASCAR is no longer what it was born to be: a rough, dirty, neighborly game of ding up your friend's car at the local track. They've just confirmed it with no more Earnhardts, a believable rumor stealing the glory from the Daytona 500 and a TV deal meant only for the One Percenters.  We've traded in the old Ford for something only to be found on the lot of your luxury car dealer.

So much for NASCAR.

Sonya's Weekly Danica Stat
Charlotte: NNS in the No. 7 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet
Qualified: 11th
Finished: 11th (one lap down)
Points Position: 10th

Author's Note:  I've finally made it to Facebook!  Come visit with me at http://facebook.com/Author.SDGrady

S.D. Grady is a Senior Editor for Frontstretch.com.  She can be reached via e-mail at sonya.grady@frontstretch.com.  Follow her on Twitter at @laregna.

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Numbers Game: Bank of America 500
by Garrett Horton

2
In its first five years of operation, Michael Waltrip Racing earned a total of two Sprint Cup victories, both with David Reutimann.  In his first year with the organization, Clint Bowyer has delivered MWR three wins in just 31 races.

2nd
Denny placed second in both Charlotte events this year.  In his prior 13 starts there, his best finish had been a fourth, which was his only top-5 result at the track up until this season.

3
The last three races held at Kansas have been won by our current top-3 in Sprint Cup points – Denny Hamlin this spring, Jimmie Johnson last fall, and Brad Keselowski in the spring of last year.

12th
Aric Almirola finished 12th in Saturday's race, his best performance since he placed sixth at Dover 18 races ago.

19
Bowyer's Charlotte victory was his 19th top-10 result on the year, breaking a personal best of 18 set in 2010.  As a matter of fact, the trip to Victory Lane on Saturday night also broke his individual mark for wins and top-5s in a year as well. Bowyer now has three wins and eight top 5s in 2012, totaling more than his three former Richard Childress Racing teammates combined.

21
Jimmie Johnson has a series high 21 top 10s in 2012.  Despite his impressive Sprint Cup resume, he has never posted 25 top-10s in a year.  With five races left, he just needs four to do so and only three to tie his personal high of 24, which he has accomplished on three occasions (2006, 2007, and 2009).

38th
Regan Smith, subbing for the injured Dale Earnhardt, Jr., finished 38th Saturday night, completing only 61 laps before his engine expired. It was the shortest outing for Hendrick's No. 88 this season and worst finish since June, 2011 when Earnhardt ran only 45 laps at Sonoma before overheating (he wound up 41st).

139
Brad Keselowski led the most laps Saturday night, pacing the field for 139 circuits.  This event was the second most laps he has ever led in a race and was easily the most on a 1.5-mile track.  His previous high on an intermediate track was at Kentucky last summer, when he led 79 laps in that event.

177
Kyle Busch, who just barely missed the Chase this year, would have been a factor in these final ten races had he managed to qualify.  In the five races since the Chase started, Busch has accumulated 177 points, the sixth-highest total in that span.  Additionally, Jimmie Johnson is the only driver to have more top 5s than Busch in this year's Chase (Johnson has four to Busch's three). Should Busch, instead of Jeff Gordon had made it with the final "wild card" slot he would be sixth in the standings, 37 points behind championship leader Brad Keselowski with five races remaining.

850
Mark Martin completed his 850th career Sprint Cup start Saturday in solid fashion, coming home in sixth place.  Martin ranks fifth in the all-time starts list, trailing only Richard Petty, Ricky Rudd, Dave Marcis, and Terry Labonte.

$1,478
The difference in dollars earned between Friday night's Nationwide winner Joey Logano and Saturday's last-place Cup finisher Dave Blaney.  Logano, who earned his eighth Nationwide victory of the season this weekend, collected $62,325 for his efforts, while Blaney walked away with $63,713 for completing just 25 of the 334 laps in Saturday's Bank of America 500.

Garrett Horton is a Contributor to Frontstretch.  He can be reached via e-mail at garrett.horton@frontstretch.com.  Follow him on Twitter at @Garrett_Horton.

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TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:

Five Points to Ponder: Johnson's Streak, Martin's Mark and AJ's Smile
by Danny Peters

Who's Hot/Who's Not in NASCAR: Charlotte/Kansas Edition
by Brett Poirier

ESPN Brings Some Boring Telecasts From Charlotte
by Phil Allaway

For Once, It's Jeff Gordon That Needs to Bite His Tongue
by Bryan Davis Keith

Goodyear Engineer Justin Vanthozen on Picking the Right Tire for Kansas
by Mike Neff
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FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
 
Q:  In the inaugural Protection One 400 at Kansas Speedway, rookie Casey Atwood qualified an excellent fifth in his No. 19 Dodge.  However, his race was over before the first commercial break.  What happened?
 
Check back Wednesday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
 
Monday's Answer:

Q:  This weekend is the Armor All Gold Coast 600 for the V8 Supercars in Surfer's Paradise in Australia.  The event has only been a official endurance event for a few years, but for how long has the Streets of Surfer's Paradise been on the V8 Supercars schedule?

A:  Today, the V8 Supercars are the main event at Surfer's Paradise, but the series has been racing at Surfer's Paradise since way back in 1994, when the V8 Supercar Championship Series was still known as the Australian Touring Car Championship.  Back then, the event was a non-points event similar to the races at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne.  The first time the event counted for championship points was in 2002.

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 Brad Morgan
-- Beth's Brief by Beth Lunkenheimer
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!

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Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:

Did You Notice?... by Tom Bowles
Tom returns with a series of "quick hit" discussion points. Among them: how much have wins really meant this postseason? How trends are turning this Chase into a battle of MPG, not MPH and more.

Mirror Driving by the Frontstretch Staff
Your favorite Frontstretch writers are back to discuss a variety of different subjects.  This week's topics include what NASCAR could do as far as driver testing is involved to prevent drivers from hiding concussions, AJ Allmendinger's chances of snagging a decent ride for 2013, the fate of the Nationwide Series, and more.

Sprint Cup Power Rankings compiled by Summer Bedgood
Did Saturday night's action in Charlotte significantly shake up our Power Rankings?  You'll have to check it out in order to see where the drivers stand going into Sunday's Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway.

Kevin's Corner by Kevin Rutherford
Kevin's back with another interesting commentary.

Frontstretch Top Ten by the Frontstretch Staff
We'll have a top ten list that will tickle your funny bone, guaranteed.

Open-Wheel Wednesday: 2012 Team Reviews Part 2 by the Frontstretch Staff
With the driver reviews now complete, it is time to take a look at the individual teams' seasons in this year's Izod IndyCar Series.
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