THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
April 21st, 2014
Volume VIII, Edition LIII
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Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
April 21st, 2014
Volume VIII, Edition LIII
~~~~~~~~~~~
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's TV Schedule
Time Telecast Network
4:00 PM - 5:00 PM NASCAR RaceHub FOX Sports 1
6:00 PM - 6:30 PM NASCAR America NBC Sports Network
The Weekend's Top News
by Phil Allaway
Jack Roush Wants to Cut Throttle Bore In Lieu Of Smaller EnginesRecently, NASCAR CEO Brian France announced that there would be a new engine package for the Sprint Cup Series in the 2015 season. There are multiple ideas on the table that could be implemented, but none have been decided on as of that time.
Jack Roush, co-owner of Roush Fenway Racing, has one idea.
Back at Darlington Raceway, Roush talked to NASCAR.com about the potential limiting of engines starting next season. He does not appear to be in favor of major structural changes. Instead, he would prefer a change to the throttle bore size.
"[It is] straightforward and it is easily reversible if you decided that the quality of the racing was hurt by it," Roush said during a press conference in Darlington. "If they want to take 100 horsepower off … reduce horsepower significantly, the least expensive and most palatable way to do that is with a restriction on the intake side."
"[It is] straightforward and it is easily reversible if you decided that the quality of the racing was hurt by it," Roush said during a press conference in Darlington. "If they want to take 100 horsepower off … reduce horsepower significantly, the least expensive and most palatable way to do that is with a restriction on the intake side."
Why would Roush oppose such a move? Quite simply, cost. As co-owner of Roush Yates Engines, Roush supplies nearly all the Ford teams in Sprint Cup with their powerplants. He would be well aware of what kind of an expense a major change in engine regulation would force upon the teams, not to mention Roush Yates Engines.
"From an owner's standpoint, NASCAR has got to be mindful of … what it costs," Roush continued. "The race teams can only afford to change so many things at a time. With the expanding technology and the engineering costs that everybody has with the pressure for sponsorship and investment in the sport, a dramatic or unnecessary engine change would not be welcome in my world."
"From an owner's standpoint, NASCAR has got to be mindful of … what it costs," Roush continued. "The race teams can only afford to change so many things at a time. With the expanding technology and the engineering costs that everybody has with the pressure for sponsorship and investment in the sport, a dramatic or unnecessary engine change would not be welcome in my world."
Roush's personal belief is that if NASCAR were to cut displacement, which has been broached in discussions, it would adversely affect the teams because of the millions in development costs that would be incurred as a result. Ultimately, he believes that NASCAR will cut RPM's, much like what ARCA has done with the Mallory boxes, along with instituting a rule mandating engines to be used for two races.
Hamilton Goes Flag-to-Flag to Win Grand Prix of China
Lewis Hamilton won the pole for the Grand Prix of China in the rain on Saturday. That gave him the preferred line for the start of the race. Hamilton nailed the start, then ran off and hid on his way to his third win in a row. In a quirky instance, the checkered flag was shown one lap too early. As a result, the results were declared from Lap 54 of the 56 lap distance.
Hamilton's margin of victory was officially 18.686 seconds over Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg. followed by Ferrari's Fernando Alonso in third. Red Bull-Renault teammates Daniel Riccardo and Sebastien Vettel rounded out the top-5. Despite Hamilton's three straight wins, Rosberg still holds a four point lead in the standings.
Toyota Dominates 6 Hours of Silverstone; Thiriet by TDS Wins ELMS Opener
Sunday marked the first race of the season for the FIA World Endurance Championship, the 6 Hours of Silverstone. The No. 7 Toyota TS040 Hybrid took the overall pole on Saturday, but spun multiple times on Sunday. It was the No. 8 Toyota shared by Anthony Davidson, Sebastien Buemi and Nicolas Lapierre that dominated the proceedings, beating the No. 7 Toyota by a full lap for the victory. The race was called with 26 minutes to go due to heavy rains and standing water on the course.
Silverstone also saw the race weekend debut of the new V4 Porsche 919 Hybrids. While the No. 14 retired early due to mechanical issues, the No. 20 driven by Brendon Hartley, Mark Webber and Timo Bernhard finished third, two laps behind the winners. Audi had a terrible day with both of their R18 e-tron quattros crashing out.
In P2, the No. 24 G-Drive Racing (run by OAK Racing) Morgan-Nissan driven by Roman Rusinov, Olivier Pla and Julien Canal won by two laps over the No. 47 ORECA 03-Nissan entered by Hong Kong-based KCMG. Porsche had a one-two in GTE-Pro with the No. 92 Porsche 911 RSR driven by Marco Holzer, Richard Lietz and Frederic Makowiecki taking the honors. GTE-Am was won by the No. 95 Aston Martin V8 Vantage driven by David Heinemier Hanssson, Nicki Thiim and Kristian Poulsen. The next WEC race is the 6 Hours of Spa-Francochamps, scheduled for May 3.
Saturday saw the European Le Mans Series run a four hour support race for their season opener. That event was dominated by Jota Sport's Zytek Z11SN-Nissan. However, in the final hour, driver Simon Dolan was trying to lap the No. 55 Ferrari exiting the Chapel curve and got forced into the grass. Dolan then spun across the track, hitting the No. 50 Larbre Competition Morgan-Judd driven by TUSC regular Gustavo Yacaman, then the concrete wall hard.
The crash put the Jota Sport Zytek out and handed the lead to Race Performance's Michel Frey. For the final half-hour of the race, Frey feuded for the lead with Thiriet by TDS' Tristan Gommendy and Newblood by Morand Racing's Gary Hirsch. Gommendy took the lead for good with six minutes to go and held on to take the win. Gommendy, who shared his No. 46 Morgan-Nissan with team owner Pierre Thiriet and Ludovic Badey. beat Frey (shared with Franck Mailleux) to the line by 3.828 seconds. Hirsch, who shared with Christian Klien and Romain Brandela was third.
The crash put the Jota Sport Zytek out and handed the lead to Race Performance's Michel Frey. For the final half-hour of the race, Frey feuded for the lead with Thiriet by TDS' Tristan Gommendy and Newblood by Morand Racing's Gary Hirsch. Gommendy took the lead for good with six minutes to go and held on to take the win. Gommendy, who shared his No. 46 Morgan-Nissan with team owner Pierre Thiriet and Ludovic Badey. beat Frey (shared with Franck Mailleux) to the line by 3.828 seconds. Hirsch, who shared with Christian Klien and Romain Brandela was third.
In GTE, the No. 55 Ferrari shared by Michele Rugolo, Matt Griffin and Duncan Cameron, despite more or less causing Dolan's crash in the final hour, took the class victory. Their margin of victory was only 4.59 seconds over the No. 72 SMP Racing Ferrari F458 Italia driven by Andrea Bertolini, Sergey Zlobin and Viktor Shaitar. GTC was won by the No. 96 Team Ukraine Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 driven by Rolex 24 GT-Daytona class winner Alessandro Pier Guidi, Andriy Kruglyk and Sergii Chukanov. The next ELMS race will be at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari (Imola) on May 18.
Have news for Phil and the Frontstretch? Don't hesitate to let us know; email us at ashland10@mail.com with a promising lead or tip.
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Got 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 ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
Pace Laps: Swan Racing's Future, Fast Females and Dropping Out
by the Frontstretch Staff
as told to Mike Neff
by Tom Bowles
by Matt McLaughlin
by Aaron Creed
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: In the 1986 Miller High Life 400, Harry Gant is listed as dropping out of the race after completing 29 laps due to overheating. How did Gant acquire his overheating issue?
Q: In the 1986 Miller High Life 400, Harry Gant is listed as dropping out of the race after completing 29 laps due to overheating. How did Gant acquire his overheating issue?
Check back Tuesday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Friday's Answer:
Q: The Tequila Patron Sports Car Showcase at Long Beach was not the first appearance on the fabled street course for the Daytona Prototypes. Back in 2006, this was a DP-only round of the Rolex Series that was only 90 minutes in length. It was marred by a massive crash on Shoreline Drive. What happened?
A: The No. 8 Porsche-powered Doran shared by the Frisselle brothers (Brian and Burt) slowed suddenly on Shoreline Drive due to a mechanical issue. While trying to get to the side of the track, the No. 8 was hit by the No. 39 Crown Royal-sponsored Porsche Crawford driven by Eddie Cheever. That hit turned the No. 8 towards the left, where it was then clobbered by the No. 99 Pontiac Riley driven by Rocky Moran, Jr. Moran then spun and hit the wall. Adrian Fernandez's Lowes No. 12 also received damage in the crash, which can be seen here.
All three cars involved in the crash were out on the spot. The drivers were ok, though. The race was under yellow for 12 laps due to the sheer amount of debris on track.
Coming Tomorrow in the Frontstretch Newsletter:
-- Top News by Greg Davis
-- Fan's View Commentary by S.D. Grady
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
Coming Tomorrow On The Frontstretch:
Racing to the Point by Brett Poirier
Brett is back with another commentary to make you think.
Five Points to Ponder by Danny Peters
Danny returns for his weekly edition of talking points, which will help get us ready for Richmond.
Couch Potato Tuesday by Phil Allaway
This past weekend, the Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series were both at Texas Motor Speedway. Were these race telecasts up to snuff? Find out in this week's edition of the TV Critique.
Who's Hot / Who's Not in Sprint Cup: Off Week-Richmond Edition by Brad Morgan
We'll take a look at which drivers are sitting pretty after eight races -- and who is looking forward to a little home cooking.
Voices From The Heartland by Jeff Meyer
Jeff returns with his typical blend of sarcastic humor tilted towards one of NASCAR's controversial issues.
Talk back to the Frontstretch Newsletter!
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