THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
- Tuesday is teleconference day and NASCAR has arranged for a Chaser to talk to the assembled media today. Ryan Newman will be at the mike at 1:45pm EDT for NASCAR's weekly teleconference. If anything interesting breaks, we'll report on it here at Frontstretch.
Top News
Want to follow Kyle Larson yourself?
Twitter: @KyleLarsonRacin
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KyleLarsonRacing
Website (under construction): http://kylelarsonracing.com/
Looking for a little history? Try... http://kylelarsonracing.net/
S.D. Grady is a Senior Editor for Frontstretch and runs a NASCAR blog called the S-Curves. She can be reached via e-mail at sonya.grady@frontstretch.com. Follow her on Twitter at @laregna and on her Facebook page (she's an author, too!) at https://www.facebook.com/Author.SDGrady.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Numbers Game: Hollywood Casino 400
by Tom Bowles
0
Top-5 finishes by Kyle Busch in 13 career starts at Kansas. By comparison, he's failed to finish four times – all due to wrecks.
1
Position – and point – lost by Jimmie Johnson after experiencing mechanical problems over the final two laps. Johnson wound up sixth, leaving him three points behind Matt Kenseth for the season title.
2
Straight races where all top-5 finishers have been Chase drivers. Paul Menard, in seventh was the best of those drivers not competing for the championship.
3
Wins for Kevin Harvick this season. It's the third time, in the last four years he's won three or more with Richard Childress Racing. That number's also more than all of Stewart-Haas Racing's wins this season combined. (Harvick will move to SHR in 2014).
4
Top-10 finishes in four Chase races for Jimmie Johnson. He's the only driver to have accomplished the feat.
4
Chasers who remain winless with six races left in 2013: Clint Bowyer, Kurt Busch, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Jeff Gordon.
6
Straight finishes outside the top 10 for Kasey Kahne. He's the only Chaser without a top-10 result this postseason.
8
Races since Brad Keselowski scored a top-5 finish (tying a season high). 17th at Kansas, he hasn't run that well since a second at Watkins Glen back in August.
15
Record number of cautions Sunday. The field ran 71 laps of 267 under the yellow flag… 26.5 percent of the race.
28th
Finishing position of Timmy Hill, Rookie of the Race for just the second time this season over Danica Patrick and Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. It was also the first lead-lap finish of Hill's Cup career.
43rd
Finishing position of Danica Patrick after not completing a single turn of a single lap Sunday. Losing control and starting a multi-car wreck, it's her worst finish of her full-time rookie season in Cup.
$126,140
Money Dale Earnhardt, Jr. made for finishing eighth, on the lead lap.
$134,588
Money Kyle Busch made for crashing out and running 34th.
Tom Bowles is the Editor-In-Chief of Frontstretch. He can be reached via e-mail at tom.bowles@frontstretch.com.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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 frontstretcheditors@googlegroups.com for details.
~~~~~~~~~~~
TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
Racing To The Point: Kasey Kahne, The Biggest Surprise of the Chase
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 Tom Bowles
-- WTF Wednesday by Ellen Richardson
Tom returns with his list of small but important observations about the sport.
Beyond The Cockpit: TBA
Open-Wheel Wednesday by Matt Stallknecht
Matt returns with another look into the Izod IndyCar Series in the lead up to the season finale at Auto Club Speedway.
Side By Side: Intentional Wrecking by TBA
Brad Keselowski questioned NASCAR's caution policies this weekend, asking whether intentionally wrecking another driver was akin to intentionally causing a caution, which is against the rules. Should a driver who intentionally wrecks another driver be subject to penalties in accordance with NASCAR's rule against intentionally causing a caution? Give us your opinion as two of your favorite Frontstretch experts go toe-to-toe on this week's controversial topic.
Top Ten List by the Frontstretch Staff
Check out this weekly dose of humor, from our staff that'll leave you laughing about the world of racing.
Sprint Cup Power Rankings: Post-Kansas compiled by Mike Mehedin
Sure, he's still third in the title Chase. But did Kevin Harvick's win on Sunday do enough to convince our experts he should move up the order? See how your favorite writers voted, in our weekly poll from around the web as we rank the best 15 drivers in the Cup Series heading to Charlotte.
Happiness Is... by Huston Ladner
Don't let your racing life sink straight into the pits. Huston gives us the bright side of stories from around the world of motorsports this week.
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!
©2013 Frontstretch.com
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
October 8th, 2013
Volume VII, Edition CLXXXVII
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
October 8th, 2013
Volume VII, Edition CLXXXVII
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
What To Watch: Tuesday- Tuesday is teleconference day and NASCAR has arranged for a Chaser to talk to the assembled media today. Ryan Newman will be at the mike at 1:45pm EDT for NASCAR's weekly teleconference. If anything interesting breaks, we'll report on it here at Frontstretch.
Top News
by Tom Bowles
Brian France Divorce Finalized
The court battle between NASCAR CEO Brian France and ex-wife Megan has finally come to a close. The two agreed to settle out of court, September 26th and terms of their agreement were not disclosed.
For the past few years, the two had been locked in a contentious court battle recently made public through court rulings. France was then revealed to be worth a total of $500 million, with homes in Charlotte, Florida, and New York City among other assets. France was paying Megan $9 million alone just to keep his children in the Charlotte area.
For the past few years, the two had been locked in a contentious court battle recently made public through court rulings. France was then revealed to be worth a total of $500 million, with homes in Charlotte, Florida, and New York City among other assets. France was paying Megan $9 million alone just to keep his children in the Charlotte area.
Neither side will be commenting on the finalized terms of their agreement.
News 'N' Notes
- Nationwide Series rookie Dexter Stacey will return to competition this week with his No. 92 KH Motorsports team. Funding is back from sponsor Maddie's Place after they temporarily had to pull their backing. The rookie hasn't been racing in the series since Chicagoland on July 21st.
- Former Phoenix Racing head wrench Nick Harrison has officially been named to crew chief RCR's No. 33 Nationwide Series Chevrolet. Harrison will work with a variety of Cup drivers to finish out the season as the organization reevaluates the program for 2014.
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.
~~~~~~~~~~
GOT A NASCAR QUESTION OR COMMENT? WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!
That's right; our Fan Q & A column is back once again in 2013. 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!
~~~~~~~~~~
Today's Featured Commentary
Fans and Fence Safety: Change Needs to be Made Now
~~~~~~~~~~
GOT A NASCAR QUESTION OR COMMENT? WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!
That's right; our Fan Q & A column is back once again in 2013. 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!
~~~~~~~~~~
Today's Featured Commentary
Fans and Fence Safety: Change Needs to be Made Now
Sitting In The Stands: A Fan's View
by S.D. Grady
"You shouldn't go to those races. The cars fly into the stands all the time."
Such was the admonishment I received many years ago from a concerned parent. Granted, my parents' generation had auto races run at county fairs with nothing but hay bales keeping the competitors on the track. That was then...or so I told myself when I went to my first major racing event back in 1997. Entering into the 21st century, we were far safer.
Safe is all relative, isn't it?
Sunday night on the final lap of the Houston Grand Prix, Dario Franchitti's IndyCar left the racing surface and flew into the temporary catch fencing. His car shattered, leaving Franchitti with two broken vertebrae, a broken ankle (which he had surgery on Monday to stabilize) and a concussion. The fence broke, too. Two entire segments could be seen soaring toward the grandstand. This week, we were lucky. Only 13 fans were injured in the incident, two transported to the hospital and last reported in good condition. The rest were treated at the scene and released.
It seems with each of these terrifying wrecks--which are inherently part of auto racing--we take a moment to catalogue what could have happened and sometimes are too quick to decide it could have been worse. Well, yeah. But in a better world, a modern world, why did it have to be this bad in the first place? Why did the fencing fail?
Back in February, NASCAR and auto racing received yet another wake-up call regarding catch fence safety when Kyle Larson's Nationwide car landed in pieces on the wrong side of the barrier. 33 non-competitors were injured, some with life threatening injuries as an entire wheel assembly was launched into the seating areas. Gates were identified as the weak segments of the wreck and NASCAR scrambled to improve gates at all their facilities. Columns were written, spots aired on TV and the world all agreed it was good we were addressing the next safety item on the long list of driver and fan safety after the introduction of the HANS device and SAFER barriers. Fencing should be improved.
And yet eight months later, here we were on the streets of Houston, with k-rails and temporary chain link fencing the only protection between the too eager fan and the high-powered machines of IndyCar. Guess what failed? No, not the overly simplistic mesh of the fencing, but once again the posts of the fencing gave way and took a segment with them, endangering innocent bystanders.
I'm not an engineer. I don't have the next technological innovation needed to move auto racing up beyond our current version of hay bales. But it is clear that stop gap measures and slight improvements are not what we need. Wholesale redesign is required. And now.
When Dale Earnhardt Sr. perished in 2001, a sudden need to save our drivers took over auto racing like a fever. Within a very few short years dramatic improvements to the racing venues, safety equipment for the competitors and the cars were seen on track. But it did take the loss of an iconic competitor to fuel the movement. How many fans need to be injured before the sport decides an equally focused attack on catch fencing is required? Or must we suffer the loss of a high profile personality in order the kick start the research?
Monday afternoon, IndyCar released a boiler plate statement regarding the unfortunate circumstances.
"Our thoughts remain with everyone affected by yesterday's accident. Thank you to the people of Houston for their support of the Grand Prix and their concern for Dario Franchitti, the fans and race personnel. INDYCAR is thoroughly reviewing the incident. Reducing the risks that are associated with racing is one of our highest priorities and receives our constant and on-going focus."
This sounds almost exactly like the release put out by NASCAR in February. Promises were made of action to be taken and the problem to be thoroughly studied. I'm sure the promises aren't entirely empty, but I do doubt how quickly we should expect to see results. I doubt where the priority of fan safety has been placed in the grand scale of international auto racing.
"It could have been worse" is not the catch phrase we ought to be settling on when we speak about safety in our sport. If the panic button wasn't pressed in February for new safety innovations, it certainly should've been hit Sunday.
It's time to do something, before we have more to regret through a lack of action.
Kyle Larson Stat
Series: Nationwide
Track: Kansas
Car: No. 32 Cessna Chevrolet
Qualified: 19th
Finished: 30th (DNF, 55 laps down, Handling)
Points Standings: 9th
"You shouldn't go to those races. The cars fly into the stands all the time."
Such was the admonishment I received many years ago from a concerned parent. Granted, my parents' generation had auto races run at county fairs with nothing but hay bales keeping the competitors on the track. That was then...or so I told myself when I went to my first major racing event back in 1997. Entering into the 21st century, we were far safer.
Safe is all relative, isn't it?
Sunday night on the final lap of the Houston Grand Prix, Dario Franchitti's IndyCar left the racing surface and flew into the temporary catch fencing. His car shattered, leaving Franchitti with two broken vertebrae, a broken ankle (which he had surgery on Monday to stabilize) and a concussion. The fence broke, too. Two entire segments could be seen soaring toward the grandstand. This week, we were lucky. Only 13 fans were injured in the incident, two transported to the hospital and last reported in good condition. The rest were treated at the scene and released.
It seems with each of these terrifying wrecks--which are inherently part of auto racing--we take a moment to catalogue what could have happened and sometimes are too quick to decide it could have been worse. Well, yeah. But in a better world, a modern world, why did it have to be this bad in the first place? Why did the fencing fail?
Back in February, NASCAR and auto racing received yet another wake-up call regarding catch fence safety when Kyle Larson's Nationwide car landed in pieces on the wrong side of the barrier. 33 non-competitors were injured, some with life threatening injuries as an entire wheel assembly was launched into the seating areas. Gates were identified as the weak segments of the wreck and NASCAR scrambled to improve gates at all their facilities. Columns were written, spots aired on TV and the world all agreed it was good we were addressing the next safety item on the long list of driver and fan safety after the introduction of the HANS device and SAFER barriers. Fencing should be improved.
And yet eight months later, here we were on the streets of Houston, with k-rails and temporary chain link fencing the only protection between the too eager fan and the high-powered machines of IndyCar. Guess what failed? No, not the overly simplistic mesh of the fencing, but once again the posts of the fencing gave way and took a segment with them, endangering innocent bystanders.
I'm not an engineer. I don't have the next technological innovation needed to move auto racing up beyond our current version of hay bales. But it is clear that stop gap measures and slight improvements are not what we need. Wholesale redesign is required. And now.
When Dale Earnhardt Sr. perished in 2001, a sudden need to save our drivers took over auto racing like a fever. Within a very few short years dramatic improvements to the racing venues, safety equipment for the competitors and the cars were seen on track. But it did take the loss of an iconic competitor to fuel the movement. How many fans need to be injured before the sport decides an equally focused attack on catch fencing is required? Or must we suffer the loss of a high profile personality in order the kick start the research?
Monday afternoon, IndyCar released a boiler plate statement regarding the unfortunate circumstances.
"Our thoughts remain with everyone affected by yesterday's accident. Thank you to the people of Houston for their support of the Grand Prix and their concern for Dario Franchitti, the fans and race personnel. INDYCAR is thoroughly reviewing the incident. Reducing the risks that are associated with racing is one of our highest priorities and receives our constant and on-going focus."
This sounds almost exactly like the release put out by NASCAR in February. Promises were made of action to be taken and the problem to be thoroughly studied. I'm sure the promises aren't entirely empty, but I do doubt how quickly we should expect to see results. I doubt where the priority of fan safety has been placed in the grand scale of international auto racing.
"It could have been worse" is not the catch phrase we ought to be settling on when we speak about safety in our sport. If the panic button wasn't pressed in February for new safety innovations, it certainly should've been hit Sunday.
It's time to do something, before we have more to regret through a lack of action.
Kyle Larson Stat
Series: Nationwide
Track: Kansas
Car: No. 32 Cessna Chevrolet
Qualified: 19th
Finished: 30th (DNF, 55 laps down, Handling)
Points Standings: 9th
Want to follow Kyle Larson yourself?
Twitter: @KyleLarsonRacin
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KyleLarsonRacing
Website (under construction): http://kylelarsonracing.com/
Looking for a little history? Try... http://kylelarsonracing.net/
S.D. Grady is a Senior Editor for Frontstretch and runs a NASCAR blog called the S-Curves. She can be reached via e-mail at sonya.grady@frontstretch.com. Follow her on Twitter at @laregna and on her Facebook page (she's an author, too!) at https://www.facebook.com/Author.SDGrady.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Numbers Game: Hollywood Casino 400
by Tom Bowles
0
Top-5 finishes by Kyle Busch in 13 career starts at Kansas. By comparison, he's failed to finish four times – all due to wrecks.
1
Position – and point – lost by Jimmie Johnson after experiencing mechanical problems over the final two laps. Johnson wound up sixth, leaving him three points behind Matt Kenseth for the season title.
2
Straight races where all top-5 finishers have been Chase drivers. Paul Menard, in seventh was the best of those drivers not competing for the championship.
3
Wins for Kevin Harvick this season. It's the third time, in the last four years he's won three or more with Richard Childress Racing. That number's also more than all of Stewart-Haas Racing's wins this season combined. (Harvick will move to SHR in 2014).
4
Top-10 finishes in four Chase races for Jimmie Johnson. He's the only driver to have accomplished the feat.
4
Chasers who remain winless with six races left in 2013: Clint Bowyer, Kurt Busch, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Jeff Gordon.
6
Straight finishes outside the top 10 for Kasey Kahne. He's the only Chaser without a top-10 result this postseason.
8
Races since Brad Keselowski scored a top-5 finish (tying a season high). 17th at Kansas, he hasn't run that well since a second at Watkins Glen back in August.
15
Record number of cautions Sunday. The field ran 71 laps of 267 under the yellow flag… 26.5 percent of the race.
28th
Finishing position of Timmy Hill, Rookie of the Race for just the second time this season over Danica Patrick and Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. It was also the first lead-lap finish of Hill's Cup career.
43rd
Finishing position of Danica Patrick after not completing a single turn of a single lap Sunday. Losing control and starting a multi-car wreck, it's her worst finish of her full-time rookie season in Cup.
$126,140
Money Dale Earnhardt, Jr. made for finishing eighth, on the lead lap.
$134,588
Money Kyle Busch made for crashing out and running 34th.
Tom Bowles is the Editor-In-Chief of Frontstretch. He can be reached via e-mail at tom.bowles@frontstretch.com.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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 frontstretcheditors@googlegroups.com for details.
~~~~~~~~~~~
TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
Racing To The Point: Kasey Kahne, The Biggest Surprise of the Chase
by Brett Poirier
by Brad Morgan
by Phil Allaway
~~~~~~~~~~
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: In the same 1994 Mello Yello 500, Ward Burton claimed his first career pole in the Cup Series. Unfortunately, he wasn't around very long to enjoy it. What happened?
Check back Wednesday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Monday's Answer:
Q: The 1994 Mello Yello 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway is probably best known for Dale Jarrett winning the race after failing to qualify the previous week at North Wilkesboro. In the race, Bobby Labonte didn't last very long before going down in a blaze of glory. How did this happen?
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: In the same 1994 Mello Yello 500, Ward Burton claimed his first career pole in the Cup Series. Unfortunately, he wasn't around very long to enjoy it. What happened?
Check back Wednesday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Monday's Answer:
Q: The 1994 Mello Yello 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway is probably best known for Dale Jarrett winning the race after failing to qualify the previous week at North Wilkesboro. In the race, Bobby Labonte didn't last very long before going down in a blaze of glory. How did this happen?
A: On Lap 5, Labonte was on the inside of Todd Bodine in Turn 3 when he appeared to simply lose control. Labonte spun and took Bodine with him into the wall. Labonte's hit on the wall ruptured the fuel cell, resulting in a big fire. Dale Earnhardt, Bill Elliott and Jimmy Spencer were also involved. The crash can be seen here.
Labonte was out on the spot and was credited with a 42nd-place finish. Bodine spent time behind the wall, but returned to the event. Earnhardt and Spencer continued with basic repairs on pit road. Earnhardt ended up finishing third, while Spencer was three laps down in 16th at the finish.
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 Tom Bowles
-- WTF Wednesday by Ellen Richardson
-- Tweet 'N' Greet by Kevin Rutherford
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
~~~~~~~~~~
Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:
Did You Notice? by Tom Bowles-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
~~~~~~~~~~
Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:
Tom returns with his list of small but important observations about the sport.
Beyond The Cockpit: TBA
Open-Wheel Wednesday by Matt Stallknecht
Matt returns with another look into the Izod IndyCar Series in the lead up to the season finale at Auto Club Speedway.
Side By Side: Intentional Wrecking by TBA
Brad Keselowski questioned NASCAR's caution policies this weekend, asking whether intentionally wrecking another driver was akin to intentionally causing a caution, which is against the rules. Should a driver who intentionally wrecks another driver be subject to penalties in accordance with NASCAR's rule against intentionally causing a caution? Give us your opinion as two of your favorite Frontstretch experts go toe-to-toe on this week's controversial topic.
Top Ten List by the Frontstretch Staff
Check out this weekly dose of humor, from our staff that'll leave you laughing about the world of racing.
Sprint Cup Power Rankings: Post-Kansas compiled by Mike Mehedin
Sure, he's still third in the title Chase. But did Kevin Harvick's win on Sunday do enough to convince our experts he should move up the order? See how your favorite writers voted, in our weekly poll from around the web as we rank the best 15 drivers in the Cup Series heading to Charlotte.
Happiness Is... by Huston Ladner
Don't let your racing life sink straight into the pits. Huston gives us the bright side of stories from around the world of motorsports this week.
-----------------------------
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!
©2013 Frontstretch.com
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