THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
Mar. 12, 2015
Volume IX, Edition XXX
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What to Watch: Thursday- Today, no on-track activity is scheduled to take place at the one mile tri-oval in Phoenix, but Sprint Cup, XFINITY and Mexico Series teams will be parking their haulers in the garage.
Thursday's TV Schedule can be found in Couch Potato Tuesday here.
Top News
by the Frontstretch Staff
by the Frontstretch Staff
Kurt Busch Reinstated By NASCAR
On Wednesday, NASCAR officially reinstated Kurt Busch to NASCAR, effective immediately. He is eligible to race in Sunday's CampingWorld.com 500k at Phoenix International Raceway and will be back in the No. 41 Chevrolet for Stewart-Haas Racing. He also has a waiver from NASCAR that allows him to compete in the Chase if he manages to meet qualifications despite missing the first three races of 2015. Read more
Daytona Announces SAFER Barrier Additions, Other Safety Improvements
On Wednesday, Daytona International Speedway announced track renovation plans in the wake of Kyle Busch's huge crash during the Alert Today Florida 300 in February. New SAFER Barriers will be installed, along with a realignment of the inside wall that Busch hit. Read more
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FRONTSTRETCH JOB: WEBMASTER
Frontstretch.com is looking for a talented and motivated individual to fulfill the role of the site's webmaster. The ideal candidate must be highly proficient in WordPress, as the site recently converted from Textpattern to WordPress as its content management system. The webmaster will assist with leftover conversion tasks, work with the management team to implement site enhancements and help troubleshoot problems as they arise. The candidate must also have a working knowledge of search engine optimization strategies to help improve search rankings for the site. Motorsports knowledge is preferred but not required. The candidate should have on average at least 1-2 hours per week to devote to Fronstretch initiatives. If you are interested, please contact our Business Manager, Tony Lumbis at Tony.Lumbis@gmail.com.
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Today's Featured Commentary
Kurt Busch's Return and IndyCar Aero Kits
Potts' Shots
by John PottsPotts' Shots
The big story this week, of course, is that NASCAR has lifted the indefinite suspension of Kurt Busch, effective immediately, and placed him under indefinite probation "…subject to additional mandatory requirements that include, but are not limited to, participation in a treatment program and full compliance with any judicial requirements placed upon him."
Stewart-Haas Racing Executive Vice President Joe Custer simply voiced appreciation for the steps Kurt has made, and that he's taken this path seriously. With him allowed to return to their race team, Custer noted, their focus is on the future.
I'm going to leave any further comment on this story to people closer to the situation and who have better sources than I do, except to say this is the fastest I've heard of anybody being reinstated by NASCAR. I also will voice a hope that Chevrolet follows suit with their support. (Editor's Note: After NASCAR reinstated Busch, Chevrolet followed suit).
But I still want to know why Travis Kvapil wasn't penalized for his little domestic abuse incident.
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I hate having to say goodbye to old friends…
Ron Lemasters, Sr. passed away on Monday, March 9 at Ball Memorial Hospital in Muncie, Ind. after suffering a stroke.
He was a long-time racing fan and writer, having been a contributor to National Speed Sport News since 1970, and serving as sports editor of The Muncie Star from 1982 until his retirement in 1999. For the past 17 years, he had been an integral part of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway's news bureau.
He covered many races I flagged, and after I came down from the flagstand he and I covered both basketball and racing together, and enjoyed being around each other. I last saw him during Brickyard weekend at IMS last fall.
His oldest son, Ron Jr., is involved in racing journalism and lives in Concord, N.C. (Editor's Note: Ron Jr. is a former colleague of ours here at Frontstretch). I'm gonna miss seeing Ron Sr. at the Speedway in May. I already miss him. RIP, old friend…
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I understand that two of "my" old midget drivers, Ryan Newman and Jeff Gordon, had some discussion with NASCAR about the absence of SAFER barriers in some locations.
Apparently, Kevin Harvick made some comments on the XFINITY race broadcast at Las Vegas on Saturday which may explain some of this decision making. His remarks came after Erik Jones had contacted the concrete wall on a straightaway in a location after the softer wall ended.
Harvick pointed out that the drivers preferred SAFER barriers end where they do at some tracks because installing them would change the racing line. I understand where he's coming from, and I recall having the same concern when hearing that they were going to install them in the turns at Indianapolis Raceway Park. At the time, the preferred line was nearly up against the existing wall.
You'll never make racing totally safe. That point has been made by smarter people than me. However, in our effort to make it as safe as possible maybe the drivers need to adjust their lines.
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I found it interesting that when Jeff Gordon crashed his primary car on the last lap of final practice at Las Vegas last week, Facebook immediately lit up with remarks that Danica Patrick had wrecked him.
I'm not taking up for her for any special reason, but this one looked like a simple case of her spinning and Jeff not being able to avoid contact.
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As Frontstretch's "man on the ground" in Indianapolis, I try to keep an eye on what's happening with IndyCar, and there is some interesting news to report.
Both Chevrolet and Honda have released their "aero" kits to be installed on the Dallara cars using their engines starting this season. This adjustment is meant to allow teams to modify the performance of their vehicles by changing the body work. They will be available in a high downforce configuration for road courses and short ovals, or a more streamlined setup for the high speed tracks – IMS, Pocono, and Fontana.
Chevrolet unveiled their high downforce package back in February, and Honda's was shown this week.
One of the better things about this development, as far as I'm concerned, is that the cars won't all look exactly the same except for paint and numbers.
All of the cars are designed and built by Dallara, and the cost is about $349,000 each. The aero kits are expected to add about $75,000 to that price. So the price of a new car is roughly $425,000 now.
Honda's kit reportedly has over 200 parts that teams will be able to mix and match from track to track.
Photos of each aero kit are posted above this week just to give race fans an idea of what we'll be seeing when the season starts at St. Petersburg in a couple of weeks. I suppose we'll also see which works best on a street or road course.
My first thought when seeing Honda's photo? If I was a car owner, I'd be dialing up Gillette as a possible sponsor...
John Potts is a Senior Writer for Frontstretch. He can be reached via e-mail at john.potts@frontstretch.com.
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Editor's Note: The Critic's Annex will return next week.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~Frontstretch Line of the Week
From Beyond the Cockpit: Brennan Poole on Excitement, Debuts & Talents"I hold the camera while it is on a tripod. You follow the car around the track. You try and find the guys who have been quick lately. You're trying to pick out who is going to run a quick lap and get their best lap of the day. Just so you can compare it to the guys you are working for. You compare laps with a software program. It is like the ghost car on Mario Kart. It takes the fastest lap of the day and compares it to your fastest lap of the day. They lay their car on top of your car and you can see where he is better than you or where you are better than he is." - Brennan Poole comparing Dartfish to the Mario Kart series
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TODAY AT FRONTSTRETCH:
by Mike Neff
by Matt McLaughlin
by P. Huston Ladner
by Toni Montgomery
by S.D. Grady
~~~~~~~~~~FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: In 1994, Petty Enterprises was struggling badly. Putting Wally Dallenbach, Jr. in the No. 43 was supposed to benefit the team. Unfortunately, the move coincided with the number of full-time teams increasing to 42 for the first time. Failing to find pace early meant DNQs. In August, Dallenbach was replaced by John Andretti and a series of good runs resulted. Phoenix could have been another good race for Andretti, but he fell victim to circumstances. What happened?
Check back Friday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Wednesday's Answer:
Wednesday's Answer:
Q: 1991 saw a number of Hut Stricklin's best races in Cup while driving for Bobby Allison. The Pyroil 500k at Phoenix was shaping up to be a great race for Stricklin, but it ended at the one-third mark. What happened?
A: Stricklin was running tenth when he ran afoul of the lapped car of Randy LaJoie. LaJoie was the fifth driver of the season for Cale Yarborough Motorsports (and who had already crashed earlier in the race). Stricklin got in the back of LaJoie in turn 4, which caused LaJoie to get loose. Stricklin could not avoid LaJoie, making contact again and going into the wall. The crash can be seen here.
Stricklin was OK, but his Buick Regal was done for the day. He would be credited with a 39th-place finish. LaJoie continued, but later blew an engine.
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COMING TOMORROW
COMING TOMORROW
In The Frontstretch Newsletter:
We'll have a recap of Thursday's breaking news for you as well as a preview of Sunday's race at Las Vegas.
On Frontstretch.com:
We'll have some discussion questions to cover ahead of this weekend's Kobalt Tools 400. In addition, we'll also take a look at the XFINITY Series as Joseph Wolkin has his Eyes On XFINITY.-----------------------------
Talk back to the Frontstretch Newsletter!
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