The Frontstretch Newsletter: February 14th, 2013

THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
February 14th, 2013
Volume VII, Edition XIII
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What to Watch: Thursday

- Today is NASCAR Media Day in Daytona Beach, FL.  There will be a number of driver availability sessions all day in the Daytona 500 Club at Daytona International Speedway, giving all forms of media an opportunity to catch up on offseason news.  For fans, ESPN2 will be airing a three-hour Media Day special starting at Noon ET that includes driver interviews.  Then, SPEED is airing a special two-hour edition of NASCAR RaceHub at 6:00 PM ET to wrap up the happenings from Daytona.

- New Hampshire Motor Speedway is scheduled to host a press conference later today where they will announce "the largest interactive fan sweepstakes and pre-race show in New England Sports History."  It is unclear what the fan contest will be, but one member of NHMS' Loud n' Proud group of season ticket holders will be a guaranteed contestant in the competition at the New Hampshire 300.

Top News
by Phil Allaway

Sport Clips Returns to Joe Gibbs Racing

On Wednesday, Joe Gibbs Racing announced that Sport Clips has renewed their sponsor deal for the 2013 season.  The chain of male-oriented hair salons has agreed to serve as a primary sponsor for nine races.  Two of those events will be on Denny Hamlin's No. 11 Sprint Cup Toyota Camry while the other seven will be on the No. 11 Camry in the Nationwide Series driven by Elliott Sadler.

Joe Gibbs Racing President J.D. Gibbs is thrilled to have this company back for another year.

"We're excited to have Sport Clips continue its partnership with us at JGR," Gibbs said.  "It's been fun to watch the success of their program and how it continues to grow each season."

Last year, Sport Clips served as primary sponsor of Hamlin's No. 11 at Darlington (in a special, Cale Yarborough-inspired scheme) and at Atlanta.  Hamlin finished second at Darlington and won at Atlanta.

e-Swisher to Sponsor Team Motorsports Group at Daytona

On Wednesday, the Team Motorsports Group announced that e-Swisher will serve as the primary sponsor of the team's No. 40 Chevrolet Camaro in the season opening DRIVE4COPD 300 at Daytona International Speedway.  e-Swisher is a line of e-cigarettes and e-cigars from Swisher International.  The taste is supposed to replicate traditional Swisher Sweets.

Sorenson, as you might expect is happy to have Swisher International on board for Daytona.

"I'm thrilled to have e-Swisher as a partner," Sorenson said.  "Their participation is a vote of confidence for us at TMG, so I'm looking forward to giving the e-Swisher brand an exciting ride.  I think we've got a car that can run really well at Daytona."

For Swisher International, this will not be their first foray into the Nationwide Series.  Through their Swisher Sweets division, Swisher International served as the primary sponsor of driver Rob Moroso's No. 25 Oldsmobile in the then-Busch Grand National Series in 1989.  With Swisher backing, Moroso won four races and claimed the championship.

Entry List Update:
Note: These entries are accurate as of Wednesday night.  However, they are still subject to change.

Sprint Cup Series Sprint Unlimited: 19 cars entered

Driver Changes:
No. 20 - Matt Kenseth is in the seat, replacing Joey Logano. Kenseth moves over from Roush Fenway Racing in a multi-year deal to drive for Joe Gibbs.
No. 22 - Joey Logano is in the seat, replacing Sam Hornish, Jr. Logano, of course signed a multi-year deal to drive this car for 2013 and beyond.
No. 32 - Terry Labonte returns to the seat, replacing Ken Schrader. Labonte will run all four restrictor plate races (plus this special event) for the FAS Lane Racing team.

Entries:
No. 5 - Kasey Kahne (Eligibility: 4 poles in 2012)
No. 9 - Marcos Ambrose (Eligibility: Pole at Michigan in June)
No. 11 - Denny Hamlin (Eligibility: 3 poles in 2012)
No. 14 - Tony Stewart (Eligibility: Pole at Atlanta)
No. 16 - Greg Biffle (Eligibility: 3 poles in 2012)
No. 18 - Kyle Busch (Eligibility: 2 poles in 2012)
No. 20 - Matt Kenseth (Eligibility: Pole at Daytona-July)
No. 22 - Joey Logano (Eligibility: 2 poles in 2012)
No. 24 - Jeff Gordon (Eligibility: 2 poles in 2012)
No. 29 - Kevin Harvick (Eligibility: Past winner in 2009-2010)
No. 32 - Terry Labonte (Eligibility: Past winner in 1985)
No. 42 - Juan Pablo Montoya (Eligibility: 2 poles in 2012)
No. 43 - Aric Almirola (Eligibility: 2 poles in 2012)
No. 48 - Jimmie Johnson (Eligibility: 4 poles in 2012)
No. 55 - Mark Martin (Eligibility: 4 poles in 2012)
No. 56 - Martin Truex, Jr. (Eligibility: Pole at Texas-April)
No. 78 - Kurt Busch (Eligibility: Past winner in 2011)
No. 88 - Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (Eligibility: Pole at Richmond-September)
No. 99 - Carl Edwards (Eligibility: Pole at Daytona-February)

Drivers Eligible, but Not Entered:
AJ Allmendinger (Eligiblity: Pole at Kansas-April)
Bill Elliott (Eligibility: Past winner in 1987)
Ken Schrader (Eligibility: Past winner in 1989-1990)

ARCA Racing Series Presented by Menards Lucas Oil 200 at Daytona presented by MavTV: 45 cars entered

Notable Entries:
No. 06 - Dexter Stacey for Peterson Motorsports
No. 08 - Clay Campbell for Spraker Racing
No. 09 - Grant Enfinger
No. 4 - Kyle Larson for Turner Scott Motorsports
No. 5 - Bobby Gerhart for Bobby Gerhart Racing
No. 15 - John Wes Townley for Venturini Motorsports
No. 17 - Chris Buescher for Roulo Brothers Racing
No. 32 - Mason Mingus for Win-Tron Racing
No. 35 - Milka Duno for Venturini Motorsports
No. 44 - Frank Kimmel for ThorSport Racing
No. 52 - Chad Boat for Ken Schrader Racing
No. 55 - Darrell Wallace, Jr. for Venturini Motorsports
No. 62 - Mark Thompson for Turner Scott Motorsports
No. 77 - Tom Hessert III for Cunningham Motorsports
No. 82 - Sean Corr for Empire Racing
No. 92 - Brennan Newberry for NTS Motorsports
No. 99 - Mason Mitchell for Roulo Brothers Racing

News Bites:

- NASCAR staged a demonstration of their brand-new "Air Titan" track drying apparatus at Daytona International Speedway on Wednesday.  Crews sprayed down Turns 3 and 4 with water, then activated the new system.  The racing surface was dry within 10-15 minutes.  As we reported yesterday, though jet dryers will continue to be used for the apron.  General opinions of the system were very positive.

- Wood Brothers Racing unveiled a special throwback paint scheme for the Daytona 500 on Wednesday.  The candy apple red and white scheme references the Ford Galaxie that Tiny Lund drove to victory in the 1963 Daytona 500.

Have news for Phil and the Frontstretch? Don't hesitate to let us know; email us at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com with a promising lead or tip.
 
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Got NASCAR-related questions or comments?
Send them Summer Bedgood's way at summer.bedgood@frontstretch.com; and, if you're lucky, you'll get your name in print when she does her weekly column answering back to you – the fans that keep Frontstretch afloat. Frontstretch Fan Q & A will run on Thursdays with a whole new set of Fan Questions and Answers!

Today's Featured Commentary
2013 Speedweeks Kickoff A Mix of Old and New
What's Vexing Vito
by Vito Pugliese

As we approach Speedweeks 2013 kickoff in Daytona this weekend, there is as much talk about looking to the past as there is heading towards the future.

- The Gen-6 car will make its debut in competition for the first time Saturday night in the Sprint Unlimited exhibition race. The sixth iteration of the Cup car to compete is version 3.0 for the COT. After an update in 2010 axed the front splitter and rear wing, the latest version is said to embrace more of the street car cues of their production counterparts. Much like the Nationwide Series regained some notoriety and started to develop an image of its own, with the throwback styling of the Dodge Challenger and Ford Mustang, the Cup cars now look more "street savvy" than they have in nearly 20 years.

There will be aspects, though that harken back to a simpler time with the new car.

Much like in the early 1980s, Dodge has all but vanished once again from NASCAR, save for Morgan Shepherd's effort in the Nationwide Series. Chevrolet has been thumping their chest about the new SS now being the only rear-wheel drive, V8 powered production car in the field – albeit due to Dodge's departure – and their car isn't due in showrooms until the end of the year. Note it had to be engineered in Australia, and rebadged from the long defunct Pontiac G8. Lumina fans, take heart. Even the Fords are taking a page out of yesteryear; well, at least one of them anyways. The Wood Brothers announced that 2011 Daytona 500 champion Trevor Bayne will be piloting the colors driven to victory 50 years ago by DeWayne "Tiny" Lund for this year's event. Lund's win was as unlikely as Bayne's, as he was a substitute driver, filling in for the injured Marvin Panch, whose life he saved just days earlier.

Holding true to tradition is the running of the Busch Cla…er, the Bud Shoot…I mean, the Sprint Unlimited as the first race of the season. It used to be held the week before the Daytona 500 during the day, and it was quite simple: a 20-lap sprint (literally) to the finish, with no pit stops needed. In 1991, when restrictor plates made things pretty boring, the format was updated. The race was broken into two ten-lap, green flag segments, with the field inverted for the second ten-lap segment. Considering what today's plate races have devolved into – riding around for 3 hours before trying the last 20 laps – this formula would probably be the preferred one nowadays.

Alas, further tinkering with perfection was preferred, and the race then was eventually drug out to a 25-lap first segment, and intermission, followed by a 50-lap race. Why, I have no clue. Probably because you can sell more commercials and beer over the course of 75 laps.

This year, governing has gone out the window, and the fans will be responsible for voting on the segments. The race's eligibility, with a turn back towards history now remains intact – a race for previous year pole winners only, along with prior winners of the event. The lineup will be determined on race day by a fan vote. The options will be Career Wins, 2012 Points Standings, most nose hair, and the order in which they won their poles the previous year. The format itself will also be a fan vote, broken up into three segments totaling 75 laps.

While I am not really a fan of the constant format fiddling of this event, The All-Star Race, or the points system, it is a definite change to what we had become accustomed to. As much flack as NASCAR takes, you have to give them credit for finally listening to the fans – those who were actually still showing up and tuning in. Nobody liked the splitter and the wing – boom, outta here. Two-car tandems getting boring? Cover up the grille and make it run hot quicker. That Fusion looks nothing like that which Carl Edwards has ripped the front end off of? Suddenly, cars look like cars again. Kind of.

There's even a new track-drying truck, the Air Titan, which is said to reduce track drying time by up to 80%. Presumably since it also blows mainly compressed air, its flash point and burn rate is also greatly reduced if JPM is in the neighborhood.

What is a bit frustrating, however is that we're a week off of what the schedule should truly be and always had been until last year. The Daytona 500 is supposed to be run the third Sunday in February. Last year, tradition was tinkered with, and look what happened – we nearly had a Great American Race run at the inconvenient time of Tuesday afternoon. In addition, had the Unlimited been run last week, it would have been smack dab in the middle of the massive blizzard that buried much of the Northeastern United States. I seem to remember that happening back in 1979 and it being kind of a big deal, one that minted a legion of new race fans who were forced to watch TV that day.

Perhaps with this new car, new format, and a new attitude within the sanctioning body, we can pick up where things left off back in '79 one more time.

Vito Pugliese is a Senior Writer/Assistant Editor for Frontstretch.  He can be reached via e-mail at vito.pugliese@frontstretch.com.  Follow him on Twitter at @VitoPugliese.

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Editor's Note: The Critic's Annex will make it's 2013 debut next Thursday, February 21st.  At that point, we will have a critique of the UNOH Battle of the Beach from Daytona International Speedway.

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Frontstretch Line of the Week

From Mirror Driving: Final Word On The Brawl, Crawling To A Title And Caution Controversy

"Forget the jokes about bump drafting and about Ricky getting the cold shoulder in the bedroom if he turns her into the wall. I want, no, I really want Danica to be taken seriously as a driver. Her actions will help or hinder future females trying to come into an industry dominated by men. "- Marc Lemay, on how Danica's actions as a driver are more important than other drivers.
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TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:

Speeding Through Summer: Weekly NASCAR Fan Q&A Includes MWR, J.J., More
by Summer Bedgood

2013 NASCAR Fantasy Preview: Old Favorites And Diamonds In The Rough
by Jeff Wolfe

Mirror Driving: Offseason Reflections, NASCAR Diversity And Unlimited Rule Changes
by the Frontstretch Staff

Truckin' Thursdays: Bring On 2013!
by Beth Lunkenheimer

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FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:

Q:  In 1989, the first 125-mile qualifier for the Daytona 500 saw somewhat unexpected drivers such as Lee Raymond, Ronnie Sanders, Charlie Baker and J.D. McDuffie race their way into the big show.  A wreck was partly to blame.  What caused this incident?

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

Q:  In 1996, Jeff Purvis took advantage of Phoenix Racing's alliance with Morgan-McClure Motorsports (and the Runt Pittman engines that came with it) to win the Daytona ARCA 200.  However, that victory was overshadowed by a huge wreck on the final lap.  What happened?

A:  Entering Turn 1, Andy Thurman and Bob Hill collided and spun.  Thurman backed into the wall while Ed Dixon hit Hill and then the wall.  Blaise Alexander, Kevin Ray and Bob Schacht were also collected.  Once Hill's car reached the apron, the combination of that car turning and the transition sent Hill's No. 46 into a series of barrel rolls before eventually coming to rest on the passenger side.  The No. 19 of Rob Smith hit Hill just as the car came to rest.  The crash can be seen at the 7:05 mark of this clip.

Hill was OK but had a fair amount of trouble exiting the car due to its position on its side.  Once out of the car, Hill walked away.

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 Tom Bowles
-- In Case You Missed It by Rick Lunkenheimer
-- Keepin' It Short by Mike Neff
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, trivia, and more!

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Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:

Four Burning Questions: Daytona by Matt Stallknecht
Matt gets your engines revved up for 2013 with a preview of the weekend's Sprint Unlimited.

Holding A Pretty Wheel by Amy Henderson
Amy returns this week with another intriguing Friday commentary. This week, she focuses on some lingering issues surrounding NASCAR's Hall of Fame.
 
Nuts For Nationwide by Kevin Rutherford
Kevin takes over this column for 2013 with a laundry list of preview items highlighting NASCAR's second-tier division.

Voices From the Heartland by Jeff Meyer
Our Tennessee transplant returns with another interesting take on recent events.

2013 Staff Predictions by the Frontstretch Staff
Who's your Sprint Cup champion this year? How about the series' best rookie? See which of your favorite experts picked who as we unveil our crystal balls for the next nine months of NASCAR competition.
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©2013 Frontstretch.com

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