THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
May 30th, 2013
Volume VII, Edition XCIII
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Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
May 30th, 2013
Volume VII, Edition XCIII
~~~~~~~~~~
What to Watch: Thursday
- The race weekend in Dover gets underway today with two practice sessions for the Camping World Truck Series. The 34 trucks will take to the track from 2:30-3:45pm EDT and from 4:15-5:30pm EDT. Neither practice session will be televised.
Top News
by Phil Allaway
Smithfield Foods Being Purchased?
The Associated Press is reporting that North Carolina-based Smithfield Foods, the primary sponsor for Richard Petty Motorsports, has agreed to sell itself to Shuanghai International Holdings Ltd., a Chinese company that invests in food processing companies. The purchase price is $4.72 billion dollars, or $34 per share, which was a significant premium on the Smithfield Foods stock price at the time of the announcement. Since the announcement was made public, the stock's price has increased 29 percent to $33.35 a share.
Even though the move has been agreed to by both Smithfield and Shuanghai's boards, the deal still has to be agreed to by Smithfield Foods' shareholders since Smithfield Foods is a publicly-traded company. In addition, since the deal involves the sale of an American corporation to a foreign entity, the U.S. Government has to approve the deal. That process will take at least a couple of months.
If the deal goes through, Smithfield Foods' current production facilities in the United States will remain open and all existing contracts will be honored. No food will be imported into the United States from China. Instead, some pork products will likely be exported overseas to be sold in China, a place that has seen scandal after scandal in recent years due to tainted food.
In the United States, Smithfield Foods products are sold under the Smithfield name, in addition to Armour, Gwaltney, John Morrell, Farmland, and Eckrich, among others. It is currently unclear if this deal will have any effect on Smithfield Foods' sponsorship of the No. 43.
Parade Magazine to Sponsor McMurray at Dover
Earnhardt Ganassi Racing announced on Wednesday that they have entered into a partnership with the Parade Media Group. As part of an advertising campaign to promote the rebranding of Parade's magazine and digital assets, Parade will sponsor the No. 1 Chevrolet in a one-race deal this weekend in Dover.
Officials from Earnhardt Ganassi Racing are pleased to be in business with Parade.
"We are pleased to announce this partnership opportunity," said Steve Lauletta, President of Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates. "Parade is a longstanding and recognizable brand, so to partner the No. 1 magazine in America with the No. 1 Chevrolet on the massive stage of NASCAR just made sense. We are thrilled to be associated with Parade."
"We are pleased to announce this partnership opportunity," said Steve Lauletta, President of Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates. "Parade is a longstanding and recognizable brand, so to partner the No. 1 magazine in America with the No. 1 Chevrolet on the massive stage of NASCAR just made sense. We are thrilled to be associated with Parade."
Parade is very happy to be onboard with Earnhardt Ganassi Racing for Dover.
"Parade jumped at the chance to sponsor the No. 1 car in the June 2 race benefiting Autism Speaks," said Maggie Murphy, Parade's Editoral Director. "[We didn't do it] just because it's a fantastic idea to team one of America's most popular sports and America's most widely read publication, but also because of the connection to Autism Speaks. Parade has done extensive reporting on issues surrounding autism, which are inspired, in part, by my own niece's struggle with autism. We can't wait to see Jamie McMurray put the Parade Chevrolet through its paces, give voice to Autism Speaks and drive to victory!"
"Parade jumped at the chance to sponsor the No. 1 car in the June 2 race benefiting Autism Speaks," said Maggie Murphy, Parade's Editoral Director. "[We didn't do it] just because it's a fantastic idea to team one of America's most popular sports and America's most widely read publication, but also because of the connection to Autism Speaks. Parade has done extensive reporting on issues surrounding autism, which are inspired, in part, by my own niece's struggle with autism. We can't wait to see Jamie McMurray put the Parade Chevrolet through its paces, give voice to Autism Speaks and drive to victory!"
Parade Magazine's new look will launch on Sunday, June 2, which just so happens to coincide with the FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks. The magazine, which launched in 1941. is currently distributed in 670 Sunday edition newspapers like the Times Union of Albany, New York. They are probably best known for their yearly look into the incomes of workers in various industries.
Vehicles Belonging to Jennifer Jo Cobb Seized From Harmon
WBTV is reporting that Rowan County Sheriff's Deputies raided Mike Harmon's race shop in Mooresville, North Carolina, and a storage facility in Catawba County on Tuesday. Among the evidence seized were seven race vehicles (two race cars and five race trucks) that deputies believe were stolen from Cobb by Harmon at the end of 2012.
As of yet, Harmon has not been charged with any additional crimes in relation to the seizure. Harmon is currently out on bond after being arrested under suspicion of stealing Cobb's hauler. In addition, Harmon is currently without his cell phone, which was seized by authorities as part of the investigation.
For his part, Harmon has professed innocence, while at the same time claiming that there is a lot more to the story. There are civil court proceedings ongoing between Cobb and Harmon in regards to past issues. After Harmon was originally arrested, he referenced eventually getting his day in federal court in regards to his past legal issues.
Entry List Update:
Note: These entries are accurate as of Wednesday night. However, they are still subject to change.
Sprint Cup Series FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks: 43 cars entered
Drivers Ineligible to Earn Points:
No. 19 - Mike Bliss for Humphrey-Smith Racing
No. 35 - Josh Wise for Front Row Motorsports
No. 51 - Austin Dillon for Phoenix Racing
No. 87 - Joe Nemechek for NEMCO Motorsports/JRR
Driver Changes:
No. 51 - Austin Dillon returns to the seat, replacing Regan Smith.
Since there are only 43 entries, no one will fail to qualify.
Not Entered:
No. 21- Trevor Bayne for Wood Brothers Racing
No. 95- Scott Speed for Leavine Family Racing
Nationwide Series 5-Hour Energy 200: 38 cars entered
Drivers Ineligible to Earn Points:
No. 5- Kasey Kahne for JR Motorsports
No. 18- Matt Kenseth for Joe Gibbs Racing
No. 22- Joey Logano for Penske Racing
No. 23- Harrison Rhodes for R3 Motorsports/Rick Ware Racing
No. 33- Ty Dillon for Richard Childress Racing
No. 42- JJ Yeley for The Motorsports Group, LLC
No. 54- Kyle Busch for Kyle Busch Motorsports/Joe Gibbs Racing
Driver Changes:
No. 00- Blake Koch returns to the seat, replacing Bryan Silas.
No. 23- Harrison Rhodes returns to the seat, replacing Robert Richardson, Jr.
No. 33- Ty Dillon returns to the seat, replacing Kevin Harvick.
No. 44- Cole Whitt is in the seat, replacing Hal Martin.
No. 52- Joey Gase returns to the seat, replacing Kevin Lepage.
No. 70- Tony Raines returns to the seat, replacing Johanna Long.
No. 74- Mike Harmon returns to the seat, replacing Juan Carlos Blum.
No. 79- Jeffrey Earnhardt returns to the seat, replacing Kyle Fowler.
Since there are only 38 entries, no one will fail to qualify. However, these teams must still qualify on speed:
No. 00- Blake Koch for SR2 Motorsports
No. 10- Jeff Green for TriStar Motorsports (Guaranteed to start via the Past Champions' Provisional)*
No. 18- Matt Kenseth for Joe Gibbs Racing
No. 42- JJ Yeley for The Motorsports Group, LLC*
No. 52- Joey Gase for Jimmy Means Motorsports
No. 70- Tony Raines for ML Motorsports
No. 89- Morgan Shepherd for Shepherd Motor Ventures
No. 92- Dexter Stacey for KH Motorsports
Not Entered:
No. 16- Chris Buescher for Roush Fenway Racing
No. 17- Tanner Berryhill for Vision Racing
No. 21- Dakoda Armstrong for Richard Childress Racing
No. 25- John Wes Townley for Venturini Motorsports
No. 29- Kenny Wallace for RAB Racing with Brack Maggard
No. 37- Matt DiBenedetto for Vision Racing
No. 55- Jamie Dick for Viva Motorsports
No. 66- Steven Wallace for Rusty Wallace Racing
No. 98- Kevin Swindell for Biagi-DenBeste Racing
Camping World Truck Series Lucas Oil 200: 35 trucks entered
Drivers Ineligible to Earn Points:
No. 51- Kyle Busch for Kyle Busch Motorsports
Driver Changes:
No. 0- Clay Greenfield returns to the seat, replacing Scott Saunders.
No. 07- CJ Faison is in the seat, replacing Chris Cockrum. This will be Faison's Camping World Truck Series debut.
No. 84- Chris Fontaine returns to the seat, replacing Mike Harmon.
Since there are only 35 entries, no one will fail to qualify. However, these teams must still qualify on speed:
No. 0- Clay Greenfield for JJC Racing*
No. 10- Jennifer Jo Cobb for JJC Racing
No. 27- Jeff Agnew for Hillman Racing
No. 57- Norm Benning for Norm Benning Racing
No. 59- Kyle Martel for Martel Racing
No. 75- Caleb Holman for Henderson Motorsports
No. 84- Chris Fontaine for Chris Fontaine, Inc.
No. 93- Chris Jones for RSS Racing*
No. 94- Chase Elliott for Hendrick Motorsports
No. 99- Bryan Silas for T3R2
*- Expected to Start-and-Park
Entered, but Already Withdrawn:
No. 6- Danny Efland for Eddie Sharp Racing
Not Entered:
No. 01- Jake Crum for Jake Crum Motorsports
No. 02- Tyler Young for Young's Motorsports
No. 2- Brad Keselowski for Brad Keselowski Racing
No. 28- Blake Koch for FDNY Racing
No. 50- MAKE Motorsports
No. 92- Scott Riggs for RBR Enterprises
Izod IndyCar Series Chevrolet Duals in Detroit presented by Quicken Loans: 25 cars entered
Number Change:
Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing No. 21 changes back to No. 67.
Driver Changes:
No. 18- Mike Conway is in the seat, replacing Ana Beatriz.
Entries:
No. 1- Ryan Hunter-Reay for Andretti Autosport
No. 2- AJ Allmendinger for Team Penske
No. 3- Helio Castroneves for Team Penske
No. 4- JR Hildebrand for Panther Racing
No. 5- E.J. Viso for Andretti Autosport
No. 6- Sebastian Saavedra for Dragon Racing
No. 7- Sebastien Bourdais for Dragon Racing
No. 9- Scott Dixon for Target Chip Ganassi Racing
No. 10- Dario Franchitti for Target Chip Ganassi Racing
No. 11- Tony Kanaan for KV Racing Technologies
No. 12- Will Power for Team Penske
No. 14- Takuma Sato for A.J. Foyt Enterprises
No. 15- Graham Rahal for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
No. 16- James Jakes for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
No. 18- Mike Conway for Dale Coyne Racing
No. 19- Justin Wilson for Dale Coyne Racing
No. 20- Ed Carpenter for Ed Carpenter Racing
No. 25- Marco Andretti for Andretti Autosport
No. 27- James Hinchcliffe for Andretti Autosport
No. 55- Tristan Vautier for Schmidt Peterson Racing
No. 67- Josef Newgarden for Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing
No. 77- Simon Pagenaud for Schmidt Hamilton Racing
No. 78- Simona de Silvestro for KV Racing Technologies
No. 83- Charlie Kimball for Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing
No. 98- Alex Tagliani for Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb-Agajanian
Not Entered:
No. 8- Ryan Briscoe for Chip Ganassi Racing
No. 17- Michel Jourdain, Jr. for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
No. 22- Oriol Servia for Panther-DRR
No. 26- Carlos Munoz for Andretti Autosport
No. 41- Conor Daly for A.J. Foyt Enterprises
No. 60- Townsend Bell for Panther Racing
No. 63- Pippa Mann for Dale Coyne Racing
No. 81- Katherine Legge for Schmidt Peterson Racing
No. 91- Buddy Lazier for Lazier Partners Racing
Rolex Sports Car Series Chevrolet Grand-Am 200 at Belle Isle: 26 cars entered (13 DP, 10 GT, 3 GX)
Daytona Prototype Entries:
No. 01- Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas for Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates
No. 2- Ryan Dalziel and Alex Popow for Starworks Motorsport
No. 3- Pedro Lamy, Stephane Sarrazin and Enzo Potolicchio for 8Star Motorsports
No. 5- Joao Barbosa and Christian Fittipaldi for Action Express Racing
No. 6- Antonio Pizzonia and Gustavo Yacaman for Michael Shank Racing
No. 8- Brendon Hartley and Scott Mayer for Starworks Motorsport
No. 9- Brian and Burt Frisselle for Action Express Racing
No. 10- Max Angelelli and Jordan Taylor for Wayne Taylor Racing
No. 42- Dane Cameron and Wayne Nonnamaker for Team Sahlen
No. 43- Joe and Will Nonnamaker for Team Sahlen
No. 60- John Pew and Michael Valiante for Michael Shank Racing
No. 90- Ricky Taylor and Richard Westbrook for Spirit of Daytona Racing
No. 99- Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty for GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing
Grand Touring (GT) Entries:
No. 18- Tomy Drissi for Muehlner Motorsports America
No. 31- Eric Curran and Boris Said for Marsh Racing
No. 44- Andy Lally and John Potter for Magnus Racing
No. 57- John Edwards and Robin Liddell for Stevenson Motorsports
No. 61- Max Papis and Jeff Segal for R. Ferri/AIM Autosport
No. 63- Alessandro Balzan and Jeff Westphal for Scuderia Corsa
No. 69- Emil Assentato and Anthony Lazzaro for AIM Autosport Team FXDD
No. 73- Patrick Lindsey and Patrick Long for Park Place Motorsports
No. 93- Michael Marsal and Gunter Schaldach for Turner Motorsport
No. 94- Bill Auberlen and Paul Dalla Lana for Turner Motorsport
Grand Touring Experimental (GX) Entries:
No. 00- Joel Miller and Tristan Nunez for Yellow Dragon Racing/SpeedSource
No. 38- Dr. Jim Norman and Spencer Pumpelly for BGB Motorsports
No. 70- Tom Long and Sylvain Tremblay for SpeedSource
Not Entered:
No. 59- Andrew Davis and Leh Keen for Brumos Racing
No. 71- Jason Hart and John McCutchen for Park Place Motorsports
No. 6- Danny Efland for Eddie Sharp Racing
Not Entered:
No. 01- Jake Crum for Jake Crum Motorsports
No. 02- Tyler Young for Young's Motorsports
No. 2- Brad Keselowski for Brad Keselowski Racing
No. 28- Blake Koch for FDNY Racing
No. 50- MAKE Motorsports
No. 92- Scott Riggs for RBR Enterprises
Izod IndyCar Series Chevrolet Duals in Detroit presented by Quicken Loans: 25 cars entered
Number Change:
Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing No. 21 changes back to No. 67.
Driver Changes:
No. 18- Mike Conway is in the seat, replacing Ana Beatriz.
Entries:
No. 1- Ryan Hunter-Reay for Andretti Autosport
No. 2- AJ Allmendinger for Team Penske
No. 3- Helio Castroneves for Team Penske
No. 4- JR Hildebrand for Panther Racing
No. 5- E.J. Viso for Andretti Autosport
No. 6- Sebastian Saavedra for Dragon Racing
No. 7- Sebastien Bourdais for Dragon Racing
No. 9- Scott Dixon for Target Chip Ganassi Racing
No. 10- Dario Franchitti for Target Chip Ganassi Racing
No. 11- Tony Kanaan for KV Racing Technologies
No. 12- Will Power for Team Penske
No. 14- Takuma Sato for A.J. Foyt Enterprises
No. 15- Graham Rahal for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
No. 16- James Jakes for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
No. 18- Mike Conway for Dale Coyne Racing
No. 19- Justin Wilson for Dale Coyne Racing
No. 20- Ed Carpenter for Ed Carpenter Racing
No. 25- Marco Andretti for Andretti Autosport
No. 27- James Hinchcliffe for Andretti Autosport
No. 55- Tristan Vautier for Schmidt Peterson Racing
No. 67- Josef Newgarden for Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing
No. 77- Simon Pagenaud for Schmidt Hamilton Racing
No. 78- Simona de Silvestro for KV Racing Technologies
No. 83- Charlie Kimball for Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing
No. 98- Alex Tagliani for Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb-Agajanian
Not Entered:
No. 8- Ryan Briscoe for Chip Ganassi Racing
No. 17- Michel Jourdain, Jr. for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
No. 22- Oriol Servia for Panther-DRR
No. 26- Carlos Munoz for Andretti Autosport
No. 41- Conor Daly for A.J. Foyt Enterprises
No. 60- Townsend Bell for Panther Racing
No. 63- Pippa Mann for Dale Coyne Racing
No. 81- Katherine Legge for Schmidt Peterson Racing
No. 91- Buddy Lazier for Lazier Partners Racing
Rolex Sports Car Series Chevrolet Grand-Am 200 at Belle Isle: 26 cars entered (13 DP, 10 GT, 3 GX)
Daytona Prototype Entries:
No. 01- Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas for Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates
No. 2- Ryan Dalziel and Alex Popow for Starworks Motorsport
No. 3- Pedro Lamy, Stephane Sarrazin and Enzo Potolicchio for 8Star Motorsports
No. 5- Joao Barbosa and Christian Fittipaldi for Action Express Racing
No. 6- Antonio Pizzonia and Gustavo Yacaman for Michael Shank Racing
No. 8- Brendon Hartley and Scott Mayer for Starworks Motorsport
No. 9- Brian and Burt Frisselle for Action Express Racing
No. 10- Max Angelelli and Jordan Taylor for Wayne Taylor Racing
No. 42- Dane Cameron and Wayne Nonnamaker for Team Sahlen
No. 43- Joe and Will Nonnamaker for Team Sahlen
No. 60- John Pew and Michael Valiante for Michael Shank Racing
No. 90- Ricky Taylor and Richard Westbrook for Spirit of Daytona Racing
No. 99- Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty for GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing
Grand Touring (GT) Entries:
No. 18- Tomy Drissi for Muehlner Motorsports America
No. 31- Eric Curran and Boris Said for Marsh Racing
No. 44- Andy Lally and John Potter for Magnus Racing
No. 57- John Edwards and Robin Liddell for Stevenson Motorsports
No. 61- Max Papis and Jeff Segal for R. Ferri/AIM Autosport
No. 63- Alessandro Balzan and Jeff Westphal for Scuderia Corsa
No. 69- Emil Assentato and Anthony Lazzaro for AIM Autosport Team FXDD
No. 73- Patrick Lindsey and Patrick Long for Park Place Motorsports
No. 93- Michael Marsal and Gunter Schaldach for Turner Motorsport
No. 94- Bill Auberlen and Paul Dalla Lana for Turner Motorsport
Grand Touring Experimental (GX) Entries:
No. 00- Joel Miller and Tristan Nunez for Yellow Dragon Racing/SpeedSource
No. 38- Dr. Jim Norman and Spencer Pumpelly for BGB Motorsports
No. 70- Tom Long and Sylvain Tremblay for SpeedSource
Not Entered:
No. 59- Andrew Davis and Leh Keen for Brumos Racing
No. 71- Jason Hart and John McCutchen for Park Place Motorsports
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!
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Today's Featured Commentary
Quick Hits for May 30th
What's Vexing Vito
by Vito Pugliese
After the lap 327 incident at Charlotte Motor Speedway Sunday night that collected Aric Almirola, Mark Martin, Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., Bobby Labonte, Casey Mears and Jeff Gordon, Almirola mentioned during a radio interview that Mark Martin must have had a "Senior moment…" after the No. 55 and 43 cars made contact. If by "senior", you mean, "experience", then yeah, sure. Turning right approaching a left hand turn through the dog-leg portion of race track usually ends poorly, as evidenced by this similar incident between Kyle Petty and Ted Musgrave in the 1996 Coca-Cola 600.
Ironically, check out Musgrave's then-teammate Martin slaloming through the carnage.
If you check out the replay, you'll see Almirola nearly put a tire in the grass, then turn right in the middle of the dog leg to get the proper entrance to Turn 1. Martin, whose No. 55 was damaged by the dangling camera cables early in the event was not up to speed most of the night, likely would have given him the spot had he just held his line going into Turn 1 – as he had done with pretty much anybody else throughout his career. Check out the cars behind them trying to get the correct line into Turn One – they're all lined up with the No. 55, not the 43.
With this past incident with Almirola, and the wreck with Kasey Kahne a few weeks ago in Richmond, what other drivers that Martin recommended for rides pile into him next?
In fairness to both drivers, the incident between the 55 and 43 is best described by the quote of NASCAR quotes, courtesy of the owner of Almirola's car: "Jes one uh them racin' deals..."
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Speaking of those dangling cables, this should be reason enough to do away with that stupid camera that does nothing but induce vertigo and give you the impression of what a bird flying the opposite direction would see. Between this and the gyro cam, how is FOX able to consistently find new ways to ruin proven technology? Stop with the goofy camera angles, and just study a tape from Ken Squier and company from CBS back in the mid 1980's. Mike Joy was there and part of the action, he should be able to help everyone out.
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Equally disturbing following the camera cables that fell down, was the lack of awareness by NASCAR and track officials to throw a caution flag and cease racing, and remove the debris from the grandstands. It was not until fans began hurling objects onto the track in an effort to gain attention to what was going on did a yellow come out. Check out this video recorded by a fan where the cables fell – and his reaction to holding a handful of wires while cars drive near it approaching 200mph.
What could go wrong? Only at a NASCAR race. At least some things haven't changed. What needs to change however is greater attention to the garbage hanging over the fence, over the fans, and what is ending up on the track. NASCAR fans have a saying: If a car part ends up in the stands, free souvenir. If broadcasting equipment is raining down and getting tangled up in race cars and people, well then that's where I draw the line.
On a personal note, this is the second time this year where fans have been injured where I had been sitting at the race a year before. If this is going to be a recurring trend, I'll be sure to post my location for the next few events this year, so you know where to avoid in 2014.
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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The Critic's Annex: Indianapolis 500
by Phil Allaway
Hello race fans, welcome back to the Critic's Annex, where we take an additional look at motorsports-related programming. Last week, I promised that I'd take a look at NBC's telecast from Monaco. However, that was before we had the wire issues. The editing staff agreed that the overall length of Tuesday's Couch Potato Tuesday was just too long
Late Sunday morning, ESPN came on-air with their annual coverage from Indianapolis, which dates back nearly 50 years. There was only one change to the on-air lineup, that being the replacement of Brent Musberger with Lindsay Czarniak in the telecast. When ESPN made that announcement, I thought that it was a great idea. Yes, Musberger has a couple of decades of TV experience on Czarniak, but he also doesn't know jack about motorsports. Even though Czarniak has little experience with the IZOD IndyCar Series, she brings plenty of motorsports experience from her time with Turner Sports and SPEED. She did a good job.
One of the primary features shown during the pre-race show was a Jeremy Schaap-narrated piece on the infamous "Andretti Curse," the fabled bad luck that the Andretti family has suffered from at Indianapolis for most of the last 40 years. For those viewers who aren't all that familiar with IndyCar racing, or Indianapolis, it stands as a pretty good primer. We had sound bites from Marco, Michael, John, Mario and Jeff Andretti, whom I honestly can't remember hearing much about on television in the last 20 years. A fair amount of time was given to Jeff's big crash from the 1992 Indianapolis 500. However, I think they might have made that wreck out to be a little worse than it actually was. Yes, Jeff broke both his legs in the crash and was never really the same afterwards. Yes, Mario was in the Field Hospital because he had wrecked earlier in the race and ended up being a mental wreck after learning that Jeff crashed. However, no one ever made it sound like Jeff's life was in danger back then. Not ABC, not Dr. Henry Bock, who ran the Field Hospital at the time and who can be seen in the linked clip. Also, that wasn't even the worst hit of that variety in 1992. Nelson Piquet had a slightly worse version of that crash in practice. In that crash, Piquet's helmet appeared to hit the wall.
Another piece was focused on James Hinchcliffe and how he dubbed himself "The Mayor." Ultimately, he created the whole idea of "Hinchtown" as an interesting idea for his own website so that he could stand out. It was an interesting look at an up-and-coming star in the sport. I think viewers just discovering Hinchcliffe would come out of the piece with a favorable opinion of him.
We saw a piece that chronicled the search for Dario Franchitti's very first go-kart from back in 1977. Ultimately, Franchitti's father, George, found it, restored it and gave it to Dario as a 40th birthday present. It was a touching piece, I guess. Dario had a huge smile on his face. Another feature had Tony Kanaan and Helio Castroneves talking about growing up together at the track in Brazil as kids. This has been re-run on SportsCenter since the race ran. Basically, we now know that Kanaan, Castroneves and Rubens Barrichello are basically contemporaries of each other and hung out together.
Finally, on the negative side, there was a piece that talked about the inherent risks of racing at high speeds. However, it ended up being an excuse to show a bunch of wrecks and effects. That was gauche. ESPN could have done without it.
ESPN once again returned the trio of Marty Reid, Scott Goodyear and Eddie Cheever to the booth. Cheever is still part-time in the booth. During the race Sunday, I read some comments on Twitter that inferred that ESPN was trying to recreate the Bobby Unser-Sam Posey booth dynamic with Goodyear and Cheever. I don't think that's happening. Neither analyst is bombastic enough (or rude enough) to match Unser. Cheever just appeared to be sure of himself as an analyst. He's relatively boring to listen to, and just doesn't do it for me. Goodyear has a lot more experience in the booth, but is ultimately neutral to the experience.
Then we have Marty Reid, who has had his good and bad moments over the past few years. I will say this, he was very enthusiastic about the action on-track Sunday. For that matter, so was Goodyear.
Unfortunately for us viewers, we weren't seeing the whole story. I suppose we've been spoiled with the Liniger Group-produced telecasts on the NBC Sports Network so far this season. ESPN has a somewhat similar method to covering IZOD IndyCar Series races as they do with NASCAR races. As a result, the coverage tends to stay pretty close to the front of the field. If something happens outside of the lead pack, good luck figuring out what the deuce happened. As a result, I don't know if I'm really looking forward to ESPN's telecasts from Detroit this weekend. We'll just have to see how they work.
For instance, I have no clue how the heck Josef Newgarden ended up nine laps down in 28th. I'm assuming that he had some kind of mechanical issue. Unfortunately, the team doesn't seem to know what happened to the car, either. However, it doesn't excuse ESPN from basically not informing us of what was going on (especially since Newgarden was in clear contention to win the last race before Indianapolis). Those dudes at Century 21 must be ticked.
Also of note, Pippa Mann apparently dropped out due to hitting the wall somewhere on track. Dr. Jerry Punch was going to interview her about it, but Takuma Sato spun out and drew a caution just as he was going to do it. Standard procedure is to cover the live event (the Sato spin), then allow Punch to get back to the interview he was doing. I don't recall ESPN even getting back to Mann. Also of note, I don't think they ever identified Mann as the driver who cut off Sebastian Saavedra, which put him out of the race. I identified her as the culprit by making use of my DVR. She has since admitted fault for that wreck.
Once again, ESPN made their 12 in-car cameras available via online streaming on ESPN3. Since my laptop doesn't want me to take advantage of that anymore, I used my phone to try it out. All the channels worked picture-wise, but I had sound issues on almost every channel. I don't know about you guys, but if I'm going to watch those in-car streams, I'd like to hear the car. Sometimes, I got no sound at all, sometimes just the radio (uncensored for your pleasure), sometimes, I got everything. That is something that ESPN needs to work out for the future.
Since the race was run at an all-time record speed, there was plenty of time for post-race coverage. In that time, ESPN provided viewers with six drivers, the winning co-car owner (Jimmy Vasser), Kanaan's wife, Lauren, and a couple of dignitaries. There was also a check of the unofficial results and an airing of Kanaan's kiss of the bricks before leaving the air. The interviews that we did get were pretty good. However, I do have some thoughts.
One, as you probably know by now, the race ended under yellow due to Dario Franchitti's crash shortly after the final restart. We didn't see a replay of that for 25 minutes. Right as they were going to show us what happened, they cut to an interview with Marco Andretti, forcing viewers to wait even longer. What the heck? We know he was ok, just show what happened and get it over with. Terrible decision there. Also, there were no point standings shown. I don't get the point of that. I suppose ESPN was trying to promote the race as a standalone event. Of course, that's a stupid idea since they have the rights to air multiple races, including next weekend. Oh, and just in case you're wondering, Marco Andretti took the points lead on Sunday.
Sunday's Indianapolis 500 was a great race that was full of action. Everyone involved seemed to love it, from the fans at the track to the broadcasters, and everyone in-between. Pre-race coverage was pretty good at times, albeit geared more towards beginners. Race coverage brought the whole telecast down. I'm sorry, you can't use the "keep it at the front at all costs" coverage strategy anymore. This isn't 1974. People want more than that today.
That's it for this week. I still plan to cover NBC's Monaco telecast in this space. Look for it tomorrow. Next week, I will cover the split races this weekend for the Izod IndyCar Series at Belle Isle Park in Detroit. Have fun this weekend.
Phil Allaway is the Newsletter Manager and a Senior Writer for Frontstretch. He can be reached via e-mail at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com.
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Frontstretch Line of the Week
From IndyCar Round Table: What Did We Really Think Of The Indy 500?
"At this point, Indy just needs not to muck things up. Celebrate TK's win. Keep all the backroom chatter out of the press." - Huston Ladner, on what IndyCar needs to do in order to keep any goodwill after Sunday's Indianapolis 500.
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TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
ADVERTISEMENT
Race fans, do you love Frontstretch.com's coverage of NASCAR's top 3 series, IndyCar, Formula One and Short Track Racing? Do you want to read even more about your favorite sport? Then check out the industry's newest racing publication, Motorsport Illustrated News!, which is available both in print and in digital format! As one of our loyal readers, you'll receive 15% off any subscription when you use the coupon code fs2013.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Frontstretch Line of the Week
From IndyCar Round Table: What Did We Really Think Of The Indy 500?
"At this point, Indy just needs not to muck things up. Celebrate TK's win. Keep all the backroom chatter out of the press." - Huston Ladner, on what IndyCar needs to do in order to keep any goodwill after Sunday's Indianapolis 500.
~~~~~~~~~~
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.
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TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
by Jeff Wolfe
NASCAR Mailbox: Rain, Re-signing, and Relationshipsby Summer Bedgood
Truckin' Thursdays: Does Friday Equal First-Time Winner?
by Beth Lunkenheimer
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FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: The 1995 Miller Genuine Draft 500 at Dover was the first race on the one-mile high-banked oval after it was concreted. Let's just say that the race didn't start out all that well. What happened?
Check back Friday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Wednesday's Answer:
Wednesday's Answer:
Q: The 1987 Budweiser 500 at Dover, won by Davey Allison, was plagued by a number of engine failures. Why was this so?
A: Race day at Dover back in 1987 was hot and humid. High temperatures reached the low 90's, along with a dewpoint in the 70's. That equals oppressive weather. Multiple teams suffered from overheating issues. Here's Bobby Allison having issues on pit road, with Dick Berggren reporting. Of course, that's only one example. There are many other instances of similar issues.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 Justin Tucker
-- In Case You Missed It by Beth Lunkenheimer
-- Frontstretch Folio: Dover by Beth 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: Dover by Matt Stallknecht
Matt will get your engines revved up for 2013 with a preview of this weekend's FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks at Dover International Speedway.
IndyCar Preview by P. Huston Ladner
Coming off of an excellent Indianapolis 500, Huston previews this weekend's return to a revamped Belle Isle Park circuit for the first doubleheader weekend of the season.
Holding A Pretty Wheel by Amy Henderson
Amy returns this week with another intriguing Friday commentary.
Nuts For Nationwide by Kevin Rutherford
Kevin has another interesting look at the Nationwide Series as they take a week off prior to the 5-Hour Energy 200 at Dover International Speedway.
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 Nationwide Series No. 43 Pilot Travel Centers Ford returns to talk about his return to the track.
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Talk back to the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Got something to say about an article you've seen in the newsletter? It's as easy as replying directly to this message or sending an email to editors@frontstretch.com. We'll take the best comments and publish them here!
Comment of the Day:
From Maurice Blackwelder:
Talk back to the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Got something to say about an article you've seen in the newsletter? It's as easy as replying directly to this message or sending an email to editors@frontstretch.com. We'll take the best comments and publish them here!
Comment of the Day:
From Maurice Blackwelder:
I enjoyed the Indy race much more than I did the cup race. It seems like the winner of many NASCAR races are the ones who are first off pit road after a caution in the closing laps of the race. The 600 was boring and I rarely describe a race that way. The Nationwide race and the Cup race at Talladega was pitiful excuse for a race for many reasons. NASCAR should have ended both races because of lack of daylight. I live an hour south of Talladega and could see the darkness approaching as the race continued on.
Many people blame Brian France for the ever increasing problems NASCAR is having, but I think the management under him should carry much of the blame as well. Indy racing in years past has learned from NASCAR, and now I think they can learn a few things from Indy.
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