The Frontstretch Newsletter: August 8th, 2013

*THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com <http://frontstretch.com/>
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!**
*August 8th, 2013
Volume VII, Edition CXLVI*
~~~~~~~~~~*

*Top News*
*by Phil Allaway** and Beth Lunkenheimer**
*

*Stewart to Be Out Through Bristol At Minimum

*On Wednesday, Stewart-Haas Racing Competition Director Greg Zipadelli laid
out the situation facing the No. 14 team in a little more detail than what
was already revealed on Tuesday.

Officially, there is no timeline for Tony Stewart's return to the No. 14.
They'll know more once Stewart has his second surgery. No date was given
for that second surgery.

Zipadelli did state that the team will absolutely need a relief driver for
the next 2-3 weeks for Stewart. Max Papis, who was named to drive this
weekend at Watkins Glen, will likely only drive there. There are a number
of potential candidates to take over the No. 14 starting at Michigan, but
they don't have anyone picked out as of yet. Such an announcement could be
coming as soon as today.

Zipadelli said that with how often Stewart races outside of the Sprint Cup
Series, they're lucky that this is the first time that Stewart has gotten
hurt in an extracurricular event. Going forward, there will be more
evaluation of what races Stewart chooses to participate in. For Stewart,
the crash at Oskaloosa that resulted in his broken leg was the third crash
of note in his sprint car in the last month. Previously, he was involved
in a multi-car crash at Canandaigua Speedway Park three weeks. Last week,
Stewart flipped his car at Ohsweken Speedway in Ontario.*

Peters, Red Horse Racing Penalized for Height Violation**
*

Following a 14th-place finish at Pocono Raceway last Saturday, Timothy
Peters' No. 17 Parts Plus Toyota was found too low in post-race inspection.
On Wednesday, NASCAR handed down a six-point penalty to both Peters and
truck owner Tom DeLoach as well as a $5,000 fine to crew chief Butch
Hylton. The truck was found in violation of Sections 12-1 (actions
detrimental to stock car racing), 12-4J (any determination by NASCAR
officials that the race equipment used in the event does not conform to the
NASCAR rules detailed in Section 20B of the NASCAR rule book), and
20B-12.8.1A (the roof failed to meet the minimum height requirement during
post-race inspection) of the 2013 rule book. RHR issued a statement not
long after the penalty was assessed.

"Our race team respects NASCAR and the way our sport is governed by the
sanctioning body," said Tom DeLoach, Managing Partner of Red Horse Racing.
"We fully acknowledge that the team was too low in post race inspection
because of a shock malfunction. Red Horse Racing accepts NASCAR's penalty
and looks forward to success for the remainder of the 2013 season."

The six-point deduction drops Peters to tenth in points, 85 markers behind
leader Matt Crafton. In 11 races this season, the driver of the No. 17 has
one win, two top 5s and six top 10s.

*Updated Camping World Truck Series Points:
*
*1)* Matt Crafton 429,* 2*) Jeb Burton -52,* 3)* Ryan Blaney -62,*
4)*James Buescher -64,
* 5)* Ty Dillon -68, *6)* Brendan Gaughan -75, *7)* Miguel Paludo
-78,* 8)*Darrell Wallace, Jr. -82,
* 9)* Johnny Sauter -84,* 10)* Timothy Peters -85, *11)* Joey Coulter -93, *
12)* Dakoda Armstrong -104.

*Eddie Sharp Racing to Become Sharp Gallaher Racing*

On Wednesday, Eddie Sharp Racing announced that Bill Gallaher, a real
estate developer and Chairman of the Board for First Community Bank in
Santa Rosa, CA, has purchased a share of the race team. As a result, the
team will be renamed Sharp Gallaher Racing.

Gallaher is very happy to be joining the operation.

"Eddie has proven he is a winner, not only in racing but also as a person
which is exactly what I look for in a successful business combination,"
Gallaher said. "I am very pleased to be part of this exciting team and
look forward to using my expertise to bring this team to a new level of
success."

Eddie Sharp is happy to have Gallaher onboard for his business expertise.

"Bill coming on board is a game changer," Sharp said. "We have aggressive
plans to step this team up as a premier organization in NASCAR and Bill's
partnership makes that possible. I am so humbled and thankful to Bill for
his trust in me and our organization."

Currently, Eddie Sharp Racing consists of one full-time operation, the No.
8 Chevrolet driven by Max Gresham in the Camping World Truck Series.
Gresham is currently 16th in points with a third-place finish at Charlotte
Motor Speedway and one other top-10 finish. The team also has two
part-time trucks, the Nos. 6 and 33, which ran full-time in 2012. The No.
33 has appeared sparingly this season, but the No. 6 ran as recently as
Eldora with an assortment of drivers.

*Dennis Connor Officially Named Crew Chief for Sauter*

ThorSport Racing announced on Wednesday that Dennis Connor has been signed
on to serve as Johnny Sauter's new permanent crew chief. Connor replaces
Joe Shear, Jr., who left the team prior to Eldora and has since signed on
with Turn One Racing. Last weekend, Connor was at Pocono Raceway with the
team, but merely as an "observer," watching from the wings.

Connor has a winning pedigree in the Camping World Truck Series, leading
Hendrick Motorsports and driver Jack Sprague to three championships (1997,
1999 and 2001), the first two coming while competing with Ron Hornaday, Jr.
and DEI. More recently, Connor has worked for ThorSport previously as crew
chief for Shelby Howard in 2008, and Tracy Hines before that.

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

Sprint Cup Series Cheez-It 355 at The Glen: 43 cars entered

Drivers Ineligible to Earn Points:
No. 14*- Max Papis for Stewart-Haas Racing
*No. 19*- Alex Kennedy for Humphrey-Smith Racing
*No. 40*- Landon Cassill for Hillman Racing/Circle Sport, LLC

*Driver Changes:
No. 14*- Max Papis is in the seat, replacing Tony Stewart. Stewart was
injured Monday night in a Sprint Car crash in Oskaloosa, IA.
*No. 32*- Boris Said returns to the seat, replacing Timmy Hill.
*No. 33*- Ron Fellows returns to the seat, replacing Tony Raines.
*No. 35*- Michael McDowell is in the seat, replacing Josh Wise.
*No. 36*- Victor Gonzalez, Jr. returns to the seat, replacing JJ Yeley.
*No. 47*- AJ Allmendinger returns to the seat, replacing Bobby Labonte.
*No. 51*- Owen Kelly is in the seat, replacing AJ Allmendinger. This will
be Kelly's Sprint Cup Series debut.
*No. 55*- Brian Vickers returns to the seat, replacing Mark Martin.
*No. 87*- Tomy Drissi is in the seat, replacing Joe Nemechek.

Since there are only 43 cars entered, no one will fail to qualify.

*Not Entered:
No. 98*- Phil Parsons Racing

*Nationwide Series Zippo 200: 39 cars entered*

*Drivers Ineligible to Earn Points:
No. 5*- Kasey Kahne for JR Motorsports
*No. 22*- Brad Keselowski for Penske Racing
*No. 33*- Brendan Gaughan for Richard Childress Racing
*No. 46*- JJ Yeley for The Motorsports Group, LLC
*No. 48*- Joey Logano for Penske Racing
*No. 54*- Kyle Busch for Kyle Busch Motorsports/Joe Gibbs Racing
*No. 79*- Bryan Silas for Go Green Racing

*Driver Changes:
No. 4*- Landon Cassill returns to the seat, replacing Daryl Harr.
*No. 5*- Kasey Kahne returns to the seat, replacing Brad Sweet.
*No. 23*- Anthony Gandon is in the seat, replacing Richard Harriman. This
will mark Gandon's Nationwide Series debut. Gandon is a regular in the
NASCAR Whelen Euro Series.
*No. 24*- Derek White returns to the seat, replacing Brett Butler.
*No. 33*- Brendan Gaughan returns to the seat, replacing Ryan Gifford.
*No. 42*- Josh Wise returns to the seat, replacing T.J. Bell.
*No. 46*- JJ Yeley returns to the seat, replacing Jason Bowles.
*No. 54*- Kyle Busch returns to the seat, replacing Drew Herring.
*No. 70*- Tony Raines returns to the seat, replacing Johanna Long.
*No. 74*- Kevin O'Connell returns to the seat, replacing Kevin Lepage.
*No. 79*- Bryan Silas returns to the seat, replacing Kyle Fowler.
*No. 87*- Kyle Kelley returns to the seat, replacing Joe Nemechek.

*Drivers who must qualify on speed:
No. 00*- Blake Koch for SR2 Motorsports*
*No. 10*- Jeff Green for TriStar Motorsports*
*No. 42*- Josh Wise for The Motorsports Group, LLC*
*No. 46*- JJ Yeley for The Motorsports Group, LLC*
*No. 48*- Joey Logano for Penske Racing
*No. 52*- Joey Gase for Jimmy Means Racing
*No. 53*- Andrew Ranger for NDS Motorsports
*No. 74*- Kevin O'Connell for Mike Harmon Racing
*No. 75*- Kenny Habul for SunEnergy1 Racing, LLC
*No. 89*- Morgan Shepherd for Shepherd Motor Ventures
*No. 92*- Dexter Stacey for KH Motorsports

*Not Entered:
No. 15*- Carl Long for Rick Ware Racing
*No. 50*- Danny Efland for MAKE Motorsports

*Rolex Sports Car Series VisitFlorida.com Sports Car 250: 29 cars entered
in 3 classes*

*Daytona Prototype (DP) Entries: 14
No. 01*- Scott Pruett/Memo Rojas for Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates
*No. 2*- Ryan Dalziel/Alex Popow for Starworks Motorsport
*No. 3*- Enzo Potolicchio/Stephane Sarrazin/Michael Valiante for 8 Star
Motorsports
*No. 4*- Sebastien Bourdais/Emilio DiGuida for 8 Star Motorsports
*No. 5*- Joao Barbosa/Christian Fittipaldi for Action Express Motorsports
*No. 6*- Justin Wilson/Gustavo Yacaman for Michael Shank Racing with
Curb-Agajanian
*No. 8*- Brendon Hartley/Pierre Kaffer/Scott Mayer for Starworks Motorsport
*No. 9*- Brian and Burt Frisselle for Action Express Racing
*No. 10*- Max Angelelli/Jordan Taylor for Wayne Taylor Racing
*No. 42*- Dane Cameron/Wayne Nonnamaker for Team Sahlen
*No. 43*- Joe and Will Nonnamaker for Team Sahlen
*No. 60*- Ozz Negri/John Pew for Michael Shank Racing with Curb-Agajanian
*No. 77*- Rubens Barrichello/Doug Peterson for Doran Racing
*No. 90*- Ricky Taylor/Richard Westbrook for Spirit of Daytona Racing
*No. 99*- Jon Fogarty/Alex Gurney for GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing

*Grand Touring (GT) Entries: 12
No. 18*- Unknown drivers for Muehlner Motorsports America
*No. 31*- Eric Curran/Boris Said for Marsh Racing
*No. 44*- Andy Lally/John Potter for Magnus Racing
*No. 46*- Charles Espenlaub/Charles Putman for Fall-Line Motorsports
*No. 57*- John Edwards/Robin Liddell for Stevenson Motorsports
*No. 61*- Max Papis/Jeff Segal for R. Ferri/AIM Autosport
*No. 63*- Alessandro Balzan/Leh Keen for Scuderia Corsa
*No. 64*- Christopher Ruud/Craig Stanton for Scuderia Corsa
*No. 69*- Emil Assentato/Anthony Lazzaro for AIM Autosport Team FXDD
*No. 73*- Patrick Lindsey/Patrick Long for Park Place Motorsports
*No. 93*- Maxime Martin/Will Turner for Turner Motorsport
*No. 94*- Bill Auberlen/Paul Dalla Lana/Billy Johnson for Turner Motorsport

*Grand Touring Experimental (GX) Entries: 3
No. 00*- Joel Miller/Tristan Nunez for Yellow Dragon Motorsports/SpeedSource
*No. 38*- Dr. Jim Norman/Spencer Pumpelly for BGB Motorsports
*No. 70*- Tom Long/Sylvain Tremblay for SpeedSource

*Not Entered:
No. 02*- Tony Kanaan/Joey Hand for Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates
*No. 24*- Filipe Albuquerque/Edoardo Mortara for Audi Sport Customer Racing
*No. 56*- Rui Aguas/Robert Kauffman for AF-Waltrip
*No. 62*- Andrew Davis/Madison Snow for Snow Racing/Wright Motorsports
*No. 71*- Jason Hart/Jason McCutchen for Park Place Motorsports

*American Le Mans Series Orion Energy Systems 245: 33 cars entered in 5
classes*

*Prototype 1 (P1) Entries: 3
No. 0*- Katherine Legge/Andy Meyrick for DeltaWing Racing Cars
*No. 6*- Klaus Graf/Lucas Luhr for Muscle Milk Pickett Racing
*No. 16*- Tony Burgess/Chris McMurry for Dyson Racing

*Prototype 2 (P2) Entries: 4
No. 01*- Guy Cosmo/Scott Sharp for Extreme Speed Motorsports
*No. 02*- Ed Brown/Johannes van Overbeek for Extreme Speed Motorsports
*No. 551*- Marino Franchitti/Scott Tucker for Level 5 Motorsports
*No. 552*- Ryan Briscoe/Scott Tucker for Level 5 Motorsports

*Prototype Challenge (PC) Entries: 7
No. 05*- Jonathan Bennett/Colin Braun for CORE Autosport
*No. 7*- James French/Rusty Mitchell for BAR1 Motorsports
*No. 8*- Chris Cumming/Kyle Marcelli for BAR1 Motorsports
*No. 9*- Duncan Ende/Bruno Junqueira for RSR Racing
*No. 18*- Tristan Nunez/Charlie Shears for Performance Tech Motorsports
*No. 52*- Mike Guasch/David Cheng for PR1 Mathaisen Motorsports
*No. 81*- Mirco Schultis/Renger van der Zande for DragonSpeed Mishumotors

*Grand Touring (GT) Entries: 11
No. 06*- Tom Kimber-Smith/Patrick Long for CORE Autosport
*No. 3*- Antonio Garcia/Jan Magnussen for Corvette Racing
*No. 4*- Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner for Corvette Racing
*No. 17*- Wolf Henzler/Bryan Sellers for Team Falken Tire
*No. 23*- Townsend Bell/Leh Keen for Team West/AJR/Boardwalk Ferrari
*No. 48*- Marco Holzer/Bryce Miller for Paul Miller Racing
*No. 55*- Bill Auberlen/Maxime Martin for BMW Team RLL
*No. 56*- Dirk Müller/John Edwards for BMW Team RLL
*No. 62*- Olivier Beretta/Matteo Malucelli for Risi Competizione
*No. 91*- Dominik Farnbacher/Marc Goossens for SRT Motorsports
*No. 93*- Jonathan Bomarito/Kuno Wittmer for SRT Motorsports

*Grand Touring Challenge (GTC) Entries: 8
No. 11*- Mike Hedlund/Jan Heylen for JDX Motorsports
*No. 22*- Jeroen Bleekemolen/Cooper MacNeil for Alex Job Racing
*No. 27*- Patrick Dempsey/Andy Lally for Dempsey Del Piero Racing
*No. 30*- Henrique Cisneros/Nicolas Armindo for NGT Motorsport
*No. 44*- Seth Neiman/Dion von Moltke for Flying Lizard Motorsports
*No. 45*- Nelson Canache/Spencer Pumpelly for Flying Lizard Motorsports
*No. 6**6*- Damien Faulkner/Ben Keating for TRG
*No. 68*- Unknown drivers for TRG

*Have news for Phil and the Frontstretch? Don't hesitate to let us know;
email us at **phil.allaway@frontstretch.com* <phil.allaway@frontstretch.com>
* with a promising lead or tip*.

~~~~~~~~~~
*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
Tony Stewart's Defining Moment vs. Denny Hamlin's Missed Opportunity
*
*What's Vexing Vito
*
*by Vito Pugliese

*So everybody is jumping all over Tony Stewart's soda cookie-swilling
backside over his unfortunate and untimely injury at Iowa while driving his
sprint car Monday night. Funny, I don't remember people leveling the same
skepticism towards Dale Earnhardt and Richard Childress tumbling down a
mountain, or Harry Gant working on a roof all summer long.

Not that there's an opportune time for snapping a twig, but considering his
precarious points position (11th, five points removed from the
all-important 10th position despite a win), the momentum being gained in
recent weeks by SHR, and the meat of the summer stretch when Stewart
typically saves the day, the No. 14 team and the company will surely be
tested by these chain of events. However, more importantly, is how Stewart
will respond.

No, I don't mean with a surly, sardonic, pointed response, impugning
anybody who dares ask the obvious: is it really the best idea to strap into
the equivalent of a garden tractor with a Cup engine, and get flung through
the air and out of the arena on your day off? Rather, how Stewart now
responds as the leader of an organization which has already endured
speculation and criticism this year around the tenure of crew chief Steve
Addington, the uncertainty of Ryan Newman's, Kevin Harvick's impending
arrival, and the constant stream of conscious criticism over their
raven-haired rookie from Roscoe, IL. Everyone likes to flippantly say that
SHR is simply a satellite team of Hendrick Motorsports, and that Stewart is
an owner in name only.

Nonsense.

Tony is taking this as hard as any owner or driver ever could. He feels a
personal level of commitment to his sponsors, drivers, crew members, and
fans to be in the No. 14, and his pastime pursuits have prevented this at a
very critical juncture for the team. Now this isn't the first time an
owner or a driver has had an accident that sidelined them. Jack Roush's
pair of aerial mishaps have had him perilously close to the pearly gates a
couple of times. Remember Denny Hamlin's injury from grab-assing around
the haulers that saw him carve his hand up, and wear a mitten for a month –
to say nothing of blowing up his knee in a pick-up basketball game in 2010.

Before everybody writes off Stewart, how did each of these respond? After
nearly buying the farm in an Alabama swamp and being saved by an angel
disguised as a Marine underwater rescue diver named Larry J. Hicks
(atheists and agnostics feel free to chime in), the Roush organization
nearly pulled off the 2002 Winston Cup with Mark Martin losing out narrowly
to – ironically – Tony Stewart, with Roush Racing coming back the next
season, winning the final ever Winston Cup, under what many consider the
most legitimate of points systems with Matt Kenseth.

Denny Hamlin? Got his knee cut on just as the season starts, hobbles back
in his rig, wins eight races, and if not for a botched fuel mileage call in
the penultimate event at Phoenix, wins the 2010 Sprint Cup, and ol'
Five-Time is just another four-time. With what Rick Hendrick has had to
endure as well over the past ten years and beyond – that pretty much speaks
for itself as well.

It would be beyond clichéd to consider this not a setback, but an
"opportunity". To be honest, I sincerely believe that is exactly what this
is.

For SHR to shake off the stigma of being a satellite team with Hendrick
Helper as the main ingredient, and a marketing arm to attract a cadre of
billion dollar behemoths like ExxonMobil, Bass Pro Shops, GoDaddy.com, and
now Anhuiser-Busch, overcoming an obstacle like this would do just that.
Don't get me wrong – not saying that it is a good thing that happened, nor
should Felix Sabates try to get Chip Ganassi to stick his leg in between
two rocks, but how Stewart-Haas Racing responds as a company, and how Tony
Stewart manages the pieces and not concern himself with driving, could lay
the foundation that firmly establishes the company and Stewart as an owner
on the same level as Richard Childress, Rick Hendrick, or Jack Roush.

Besides, with the physical therapy and rehabilitation that Tony Stewart
will require, maybe this is the born-again moment we see from him where he
starts taking training and physical preparation seriously, and drops the
fat kid schtick. Yeah I know…he's won three titles as-is. The potential
to win many more though is self-evident.

Get well soon, Tony.

********************

As I have said for the past two years, the best thing that has happened to
NASCAR from a media coverage perspective is Kyle Petty.

While I think his Danica Patrick criticism wears a little thin, his
analysis of drivers and driver personalities is typically spot on. His
recent beef with Denny Hamlin is evidence of that. Denny does have a habit
of spouting off and garnering a bit of unwanted attention – like the pair
of fines he's received from NASCAR the past couple of years for being what
they considered overly-critical (though the Gen 6 comment at Phoenix this
year was completely harmless, and his refusal to pay the fine a stand-up
move), or this gem, foreshadowing the future of Brad Keselowski and his
future in the sport<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuIhhjN78b0&feature=player_detailpage&t=184>
.

I understand Denny wanting to compete, drive his car, and maintain his role
as the face of FedEx as well as Joe Gibbs Racing. Remember, it was a guy
named Tom Brady who was filling in for injured Drew Bledsoe back in 2001,
and who became the face of that organization? With the number of iconic
drivers with no place to call home officially for 2014 (Ryan Newman, Kurt
Busch, and Mark Martin to name a few), it's easy to see why Denny has a
death-grip on his own steering wheel.

However, it could be to his own detriment. The fact that Kyle Petty has
been in this situation himself might cause Denny to heed some sage-like
advice from somebody who has been involved in the sport since before Hamlin
was born. Kyle Petty broke his leg in 1991 at Talladega, and did not rush
his return to the car. The next year, he went into the final race of the
year in Atlanta with a legitimate shot to win the title.

Yes, that Kyle Petty.

Not the one who was wheeling under-engineered race cars the last eight
years of his career, trying to salvage the most successful motorsports
operation in history, while honoring the memory of his late son,
maintaining The Victory Junction Gang Camp. He has given far more to this
sport than anyone outside of Rick Hendrick or Bobby Allison, and deserves a
bit more respect than flippantly being called a "moron" over social media.

Denny's not a bad guy, and he sincerely wants to help make a positive
impact on the sport, his team, and with his supporters. I just think he's
being a bit short-sighted in not doing everything he can now to right
himself for 2014. If his current condition lingers or heaven forbid is
aggravated and worsened by an accident, then where is he at – and were does
that leave FedEx and Joe Gibbs Racing?

In some respects, it's really no different than Tony Stewart racing sprint
cars on a Monday night and risking further injury to himself and
distraction to his race team.*
*
*
*
~~~~~~~~~~~~*
*
*The Critic's Annex: Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio
*
*by Phil Allaway

*
Hello, race fans. Welcome back to the Critic's Annex, where we take an
additional look at motorsports-related programming. This past weekend,
while NASCAR's primary series were split between Iowa and Pocono, the Izod
IndyCar Series returned to action at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, where
the Nationwide Series will race in just ten days.

The NBC Sports Network was back once again after a three week break. We
had another newcomer in the broadcast booth this week, as Ryan Briscoe, on
the mend from his wrist injury from Toronto, joined Leigh Diffey and
Townsend Bell in the broadcast booth. I thought that Briscoe did a pretty
good job up for a first timer. Yes, Diffey did pitch Briscoe some
questions here and there to keep him involved in the conversation, but that
was only really at the beginning. Once Briscoe got used to being in the
booth, he put in a solid performance.

IndyCar Live started off with a montage-style recap of the past three races
(Pocono, plus the doubleheader at Toronto), all won by Scott Dixon. Later,
Helio Castroneves was put in a studio and asked to describe his teammate
Will Power. It was interesting. Apparently, Power is really
superstitious. Interesting to note.

Jon Beekhuis hosted a piece about the increased number of hand and wrist
injuries in the Izod IndyCar Series in recent years. This included a look
at the steering wheel, recent incidents and a potential fix (power
steering, for $8000-16,000 per car). Some fans might be surprised to learn
that the cars didn't already have it, knowing that most other series
already have it available. Now, this wasn't even really a feature, but I
thought it was really interesting. The DW12 is not the primary reason for
all these issues, but some of these tracks are rough as all heck. As for
the power steering solution that will hopefully cut down on the injuries,
yes, it'll make the cars easier to turn, but if the cars hit anything, I
don't think it'll make much difference.

During the race itself, there wasn't all that much racing for position
since the field spread out. As a result, there was a lot of discussion
about race strategy (mainly fuel and tire strategy). However, when there
was actual racing for position, NBC Sports Network showed that. It didn't
matter where those battles were. As a result, the race was still quite
enjoyable to watch. I have no clue what the Nationwide race there is going
to be like in a couple of weeks. It won't be anywhere near as fast, though.

Speaking of the booth performance, there has been a bit of a revolving door
of on-air personalities on the IndyCar telecasts this year. We've had
seven different people in the broadcast and something like five or six in
the pits. Somehow, the group always comes together and gives viewers a
great broadcast, even though those people might have different styles. For
example, Steve Matchett, who Briscoe technically replaced for Mid-Ohio, has
a very technical style that he has fostered from a decade of commentating
on Formula One races. Briscoe and Bell are analytical, but bring in a lot
of their own experiences. Wally Dallenbach, Jr. (absent this weekend) is
about the only normal analyst that the NBC Sports Network has.

The 90-lap race ended up going caution-free, something that I was
definitely not expecting. As a result, there was plenty of time for
post-race coverage. NBC Sports Network provided viewers with nine driver
interviews, an interview with the winning car owner (Chip Ganassi) and
Charlie Kimball's girlfriend. I still stand by the thought that I have no
idea why they love to interview significant others. It's like interviewing
fans on live telecasts. Makes me think that they really miss having Ashley
Judd around. In addition, there was a replay of Ganassi's celebration.
Let's just say that it was GIF'd pretty
fast<http://oppositelock.jalopnik.com/chip-ganassi-celebrates-indycar-victory-at-mid-ohio-1022381503.>
.

I hope you enjoyed this quick look at the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio. Next
week, my critique of ESPN's telecast of the Cheez-It 355 at The Glen will
be seen here in the Annex. Until then, enjoy this weekend's action from
Watkins Glen and Elkhart Lake.

*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*
*
* <http://www.frontstretch.com/tmontgomery/43387/>
*From Did You Notice? ... Stewart Won't Be Questioning Himself... Should
You?* <http://www.frontstretch.com/tbowles/43699/>

"We're not talking drugs here, nor skydiving or bungee jumping. Yes,
there's a chance of injury, even death; but you know what? There's also a
risk of injury every time Jimmie Johnson takes his boat out onto Lake
Norman. Or every time Denny Hamlin plays basketball (see: torn ACL). Last I
checked, these drivers don't live in a bubble. The reality of everyday life
should continue to exist for them, just as it does for you and me." -* Tom
Bowles, on Tony Stewart's decision to race sprint cars in his spare time.
*~~~~~~~~~~

*ADVERTISEMENT
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*~~~~~~~~~~

*TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:*

*Mirror Driving: A Fountain Of Youth, Keeping It Green And Petty
Power*<http://www.frontstretch.com/md/43702/>
*by the Frontstretch Staff*

*Fantasy Insider: Watkins Glen Brings Some Ringers And A
'Dinger*<http://www.frontstretch.com/jwolfe/43703/>
*by Jeff Wolfe*

*NASCAR Mailbox: FS1, Replacement Drivers, And Unhappy Race
Fans*<http://www.frontstretch.com/sbedgood/43692/>
*by Summer Bedgood*

*Truckin' Thursdays: Harry Scott, Jr. On Eldora, Pocono And Driver
Development <http://www.frontstretch.com/blunkenheimer/43701/>*
*by Beth Lunkenheimer*
~~~~~~~~~~
*
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:

*
*Q:* In 1998, Mike Skinner equaled his career-best finish with a third in
the Budweiser at the Glen. However, this was done via a pit strategy
move. How long was Skinner's final stint to the finish?

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

*Q:* In the 1993 Fay's 150 at Watkins Glen, Phil Parsons was having a
great weekend. He qualified his No. 29 Matchbox Oldsmobile in the top 10
and was running there throughout the first half of the race. However, just
after halfway, everything came crashing down. What happened?

*A:*** Parsons was running in the seventh position when he spun off the
course all by himself in Turn 9 on Lap 34 and broadsided the tire
barriers. The hit didn't appear to be all that hard, but it was a solid
one that disabled Parsons' Oldsmobile, putting him out for the day.
Coverage of the crash from TNN's broadcast can be seen
here<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFtLUMXQrS0#t=1m45s>
.
*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 Justin Tucker*
-- *In Case You Missed It* *by Beth Lunkenheimer**
*-- *Keepin' It Short* *by Mike Neff*
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, trivia, and more!

~~~~~~~~~~
*
Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:*
*
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 prior to this
weekend's Zippo 200 at Watkins Glen International.

*Voices From the Heartland* *by Jeff Meyer*
Our Tennessee transplant returns with another interesting take on recent
events.
*
Frontstretch Foto Funnies **by the Frontstretch Staff
*
Pictures can lead to a thousand laughs; join us in our weekly dose of humor
that comes from those candid moments at the track.

*Driver Diary: TBA
*
-----------------------------
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*©2013 Frontstretch.com <http://frontstretch.com/>*

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