THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Jul. 23, 2015
Volume IX, Edition CXXV
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What to Watch: Thursday
- Today is load-in day for the Sprint Cup and XFINITY Series teams at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Following a parade in Speedway, the teams will pull into the garage late this afternoon (XFINITY Series) and tonight (Sprint Cup Series). No on-track activity is scheduled. Regardless, Frontstretch will have breaking news when it comes across.
Top News
by the Frontstretch Staff
Third Time's the Charm: Christopher Bell Victorious at Eldora
by the Frontstretch Staff
Third Time's the Charm: Christopher Bell Victorious at Eldora
Wednesday night's 1-800 CarCash Mud Summer Classic turned into a duel between a couple of newcomers, Christopher Bell and Bobby Pierce. The two drivers swapped the lead multiple times, with Pierce giving the underdog Mittler Brothers' No. 63 the best run in its history of running the Truck Series. However, Bell was able to put his Toyota in front of Pierce's MB Motorsports Chevrolet for good on a lap 106 restart and held off Pierce's charges to take his first career Camping World Truck Series victory. The win happened in just his third start, propelling Bell to instant name recognition just weeks after replacing fellow rookie Justin Boston at Kyle Busch Motorsports. Pierce was second, followed by Tyler Reddick, Erik Jones and Daniel Hemric. Read more
Bobby Pierce Wows in Eldora Truck Debut, Makes History for MB Motorsports
Bobby Pierce Wows in Eldora Truck Debut, Makes History for MB Motorsports
MB Motorsports took a bit of a gamble in hiring 18-year-old Bobby Pierce, who had never driven in the Camping World Truck Series to compete in the 1-800 CarCash Mud Summer Classic. However, the gamble paid off as Pierce led 39 laps and finished second, the best-ever result for MB Motorsports in the series. Read more
Brad Keselowski Fails to Exceed Expectations in First Eldora Start
For Brad Keselowski, Wednesday was a learning experience as the 2012 Sprint Cup Series champion has very little experience racing on dirt. Keselowski had a mixed bag in the race, starting 11th and falling back early. A gamble on staying out at the first competition caution resulted in Keselowski dropping out of the top 20. Recovering from that strategy, a stop for tires allowed him to climb back into the top 10 before a crash relegated him to 28th. Read more
Wild Night Ends with Post-Race Argument for Matt Crafton, Ty Dillon
Brad Keselowski Fails to Exceed Expectations in First Eldora Start
For Brad Keselowski, Wednesday was a learning experience as the 2012 Sprint Cup Series champion has very little experience racing on dirt. Keselowski had a mixed bag in the race, starting 11th and falling back early. A gamble on staying out at the first competition caution resulted in Keselowski dropping out of the top 20. Recovering from that strategy, a stop for tires allowed him to climb back into the top 10 before a crash relegated him to 28th. Read more
Wild Night Ends with Post-Race Argument for Matt Crafton, Ty Dillon
For Matt Crafton, Wednesday night was looking to be a pretty good night in the points. However, he had contact with Ty Dillon on the green-white-checkered restart and dropped back from a top-5 spot to ninth at the finish (Dillon ended up tenth). Afterwards, Dillon was not pleased with Crafton, resulting in a pit road discussion. Read more
Bowyer's Frustrating NH Trip Continues with Written Warning
Last weekend was rather frustrating for Clint Bowyer and the No. 15 team. Handling problems dropped Bowyer to a 34th-place finish, multiple laps down. On Wednesday, it got a little worse when NASCAR levied a warning onto the team for flunking pre-qualifying inspection twice. In addition, Paul Menard, Denny Hamlin and Eddie MacDonald's teams were also given the same warning while the Wood Brothers were warned for failing pre-race inspection twice. Read more
Big Machine Records and "The World's Fastest Lawn Mower" Sponsoring Larson at Indy NXS Race
Big Machine Records and "The World's Fastest Lawn Mower" Sponsoring Larson at Indy NXS Race
On Wednesday, HScott Motorsports with Chip Ganassi announced a one-race co-primary sponsorship deal for Saturday's Lilly Diabetes 250 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The No. 42 Chevrolet of Kyle Larson will be sponsored by a combination of Big Machine Records and Dixie Chopper this weekend. Read more
Have news for 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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Today's Featured Commentary
Potts' Shots on High Downforce and Rule 9.3.8
Potts' Shots
by John Potts
Well, this weekend we find out if the track-specific aero package NASCAR has decreed for the Brickyard 400 will result in the kind of competition they (and fans) want to see.
The drivers don't seem to be convinced that it'll work.
Jimmie Johnson, for one, says he doesn't see the field being any closer. From what he's been able to learn, he says, with the high-downforce, high-drag package, cars running by themselves in race trim should be able to run almost at full throttle, which wouldn't be sufficient to bunch the field and produce the slingshot opportunities Brian France and company are looking for.
At least one "expert" allows that designing an aerodynamics setup for Indianapolis Motor Speedway is "difficult given the low 12-degree banking in corners," along with the long straightaways and narrowness of the track. For one thing, the expert is right about the banking; it's low. But he's almost three degrees too high. It's actually 9.25 degrees unless I missed a story about it being raised.
Carl Edwards holds out a little hope, saying, "It could turn out to be spectacular, but I don't think you know until you see it."
Like I said, we'll find out this weekend, and your faithful columnist will be on hand to see just how it works.
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Being Frontstretch's "Man on the ground" in Indianapolis, I keep my ear pretty much to that ground, and as you may expect a lot of the commentary is about the Verizon IndyCar Series.
This week, the series announced the institution of a new rule which is probably going to have an effect on the ability of drivers and team principals to be candid about their feelings. The changes happened after that Fontana race when drivers and others spoke out about the rules that brought about 500 miles of pretty exciting racing -- along with other comments about the series' short schedule and other items.
The new rule has been interpreted as a "gag order" but series honcho Mark Miles says it's not. I guess it depends on which side of the rule you're standing on.
It's Rule 9.3.8, governing detrimental competitor conduct. The exact wording says, "Competitors must be respectful, professional, fair and courteous to others. At all times, competitors must not attempt to, or engage in conduct or statements that in the judgment of INDYCAR:
"a) Threatens or denigrates any official, fellow competitor, or the INDYCAR brand;
"b) Calls into question the integrity or legitimacy of the rules or their application, construction, or interpretation;
"c) Denigrates the IndyCar Series racing schedule or Event(s);
"d) Threatens or denigrates any INDYCAR business relationship, including those with sponsors or broadcasters;
"e) Otherwise threatens the integrity, reputation or public confidence of the sport, INDYCAR, or IndyCar Series."
In my opinion and several others expressed so far, the series is apparently limiting its paddock to answers that are neutral or positive. They haven't supplied any guidelines for penalties if the new rule is violated.
My good friend Curt Cavin at The Indianapolis Star began his comment on the new rule with one word – "Seriously?" He asked if the rule preventing conduct detrimental to racing didn't have strong enough language.
My first thought was that this ruling came about because of Ed Carpenter's accosting of Sage Karam after the Iowa race, in which the younger Karam made some very aggressive moves and apparently raised the hackles on Carpenter's neck. But it turns out that it comes from Miles' frustration with competitors after the close racing at Fontana, which we've already discussed in this space.
Haven't we seen NASCAR fine drivers after they didn't care for comments? How did that work out for them?
Derrick Walker, IndyCar's President said, "There's no limits on a driver or competitor disagreeing with our judgement" but said they can't "spoil the brand by degrading it."
Seems to be a very fine line there. But there was one thing that Walker was very definite about.
"You can't say IndyCar is all screwed up," he remarked. "That it doesn't know what it's doing."
I'm glad this rule doesn't apply to members of some of the message boards I frequent. Some of those people have been saying that for years. Walker did say that the Carpenter-Karam incident didn't violate the new rule, even though it took place in front of the TV cameras. I suppose it was because Ed was criticizing Karam and not the series or its officials.
One of my reactions to this ruling was to wonder how it might have gone over with some of the associations and tracks I've worked for. John Marcum, for one, wouldn't have made a big fuss about it if he saw that one of his ARCA drivers had ranted to a reporter that the organization was "screwed up" and happened to see it in his racing publications.
I think John would simply and quietly "disinvited" the competitor in question to a few events. Rex Robbins may have handled it pretty much the same way in the real ASA.
Well, this weekend we find out if the track-specific aero package NASCAR has decreed for the Brickyard 400 will result in the kind of competition they (and fans) want to see.
The drivers don't seem to be convinced that it'll work.
Jimmie Johnson, for one, says he doesn't see the field being any closer. From what he's been able to learn, he says, with the high-downforce, high-drag package, cars running by themselves in race trim should be able to run almost at full throttle, which wouldn't be sufficient to bunch the field and produce the slingshot opportunities Brian France and company are looking for.
At least one "expert" allows that designing an aerodynamics setup for Indianapolis Motor Speedway is "difficult given the low 12-degree banking in corners," along with the long straightaways and narrowness of the track. For one thing, the expert is right about the banking; it's low. But he's almost three degrees too high. It's actually 9.25 degrees unless I missed a story about it being raised.
Carl Edwards holds out a little hope, saying, "It could turn out to be spectacular, but I don't think you know until you see it."
Like I said, we'll find out this weekend, and your faithful columnist will be on hand to see just how it works.
---
Being Frontstretch's "Man on the ground" in Indianapolis, I keep my ear pretty much to that ground, and as you may expect a lot of the commentary is about the Verizon IndyCar Series.
This week, the series announced the institution of a new rule which is probably going to have an effect on the ability of drivers and team principals to be candid about their feelings. The changes happened after that Fontana race when drivers and others spoke out about the rules that brought about 500 miles of pretty exciting racing -- along with other comments about the series' short schedule and other items.
The new rule has been interpreted as a "gag order" but series honcho Mark Miles says it's not. I guess it depends on which side of the rule you're standing on.
It's Rule 9.3.8, governing detrimental competitor conduct. The exact wording says, "Competitors must be respectful, professional, fair and courteous to others. At all times, competitors must not attempt to, or engage in conduct or statements that in the judgment of INDYCAR:
"a) Threatens or denigrates any official, fellow competitor, or the INDYCAR brand;
"b) Calls into question the integrity or legitimacy of the rules or their application, construction, or interpretation;
"c) Denigrates the IndyCar Series racing schedule or Event(s);
"d) Threatens or denigrates any INDYCAR business relationship, including those with sponsors or broadcasters;
"e) Otherwise threatens the integrity, reputation or public confidence of the sport, INDYCAR, or IndyCar Series."
In my opinion and several others expressed so far, the series is apparently limiting its paddock to answers that are neutral or positive. They haven't supplied any guidelines for penalties if the new rule is violated.
My good friend Curt Cavin at The Indianapolis Star began his comment on the new rule with one word – "Seriously?" He asked if the rule preventing conduct detrimental to racing didn't have strong enough language.
My first thought was that this ruling came about because of Ed Carpenter's accosting of Sage Karam after the Iowa race, in which the younger Karam made some very aggressive moves and apparently raised the hackles on Carpenter's neck. But it turns out that it comes from Miles' frustration with competitors after the close racing at Fontana, which we've already discussed in this space.
Haven't we seen NASCAR fine drivers after they didn't care for comments? How did that work out for them?
Derrick Walker, IndyCar's President said, "There's no limits on a driver or competitor disagreeing with our judgement" but said they can't "spoil the brand by degrading it."
Seems to be a very fine line there. But there was one thing that Walker was very definite about.
"You can't say IndyCar is all screwed up," he remarked. "That it doesn't know what it's doing."
I'm glad this rule doesn't apply to members of some of the message boards I frequent. Some of those people have been saying that for years. Walker did say that the Carpenter-Karam incident didn't violate the new rule, even though it took place in front of the TV cameras. I suppose it was because Ed was criticizing Karam and not the series or its officials.
One of my reactions to this ruling was to wonder how it might have gone over with some of the associations and tracks I've worked for. John Marcum, for one, wouldn't have made a big fuss about it if he saw that one of his ARCA drivers had ranted to a reporter that the organization was "screwed up" and happened to see it in his racing publications.
I think John would simply and quietly "disinvited" the competitor in question to a few events. Rex Robbins may have handled it pretty much the same way in the real ASA.
John Potts is a Senior Writer for Frontstretch. He can be reached via e-mail at john.potts@frontstretch.com.
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The Critic's Annex: 1-800 CarCash Mud Summer Classic
by Phil Allaway
As you all know, last night was the Camping World Truck Series' signature event, the 1-800 CarCash Mud Summer Classic at Eldora Speedway. Yeah, it's only been around for a couple of years, but there is no race in the series that is more hyped. Naturally, that means that's ripe for critique.
We'll start with the heat races. Unlike the past couple of years, FOX Sports had additional programming that took precedence (the Jamaica-United States Gold Cup Semifinal). As a result, the heat races had a limited audience. That bites, but there wasn't much that FOX Sports could have done about it. Since this event was held on Wednesday night, the heats couldn't have been moved to another network (Ex: FOX News Channel) because of regularly scheduled programming. Knowing that the Last Chance Qualifier aired after 8 p.m., I'm sure that The O'Reilly Factor's audience would have gone nuts if racing was on in its place.
The last half-hour of preliminary coverage was supposed to be simulcast between FOX Sports 1 and 2. However, coverage of the aforementioned Jamaica-United States soccer match went over its time slot, mainly since the Jamaicans beat the United States. The preliminary race coverage reached the end of its time slot on FOX Sports 2 in the middle of the LCQ. Yes, FOX Sports 2 had pre-game coverage leading up to the Mexico-Panama match scheduled, but they couldn't have stayed on the race until it finished? It resulted in a bizarre mid-race channel switch, the likes of which we haven't seen in a long time. That's something you wait for a commercial to do. It was quite hackneyed to watch, and that's even with FOX Sports 1 and 2 being right next to each other in my channel lineup. Yes, Ralph Sheheen warned viewers that it was going to happen, but as far as I'm concerned, that doesn't even matter. It's a 15-lap race. You could have waited the three minutes it would have taken to finish the LCQ before switching over to the Gold Cup.
Granted, knowing the bush league stuff that went down in the Mexico-Panama game (believe me, it's all over SportsCenter as I'm writing this column while the race is completely absent), there are a bunch of people who probably wished the whole Mud Summer Classic was on FOX Sports 2.
Also during the heat races, FOX would take commercials in the rare instance that cautions flew. NASCAR doesn't exactly run heat races in the same way that regular races are run. Simple spins don't call for long yellows and drivers in the Camping World Truck Series are better at maintaining their order under yellow than local racers. Where am I going with this point? FOX Sports almost missed multiple restarts because they chose to take commercials. They should have stuck to their between-heat commercials.
All night, the commentary from the broadcast booth was quite excitable. Having Sheheen in the booth was a good choice for this race. Remember, he's FOX Sports' AMA Monster Energy Supercross play-by-play commentator during the spring months. He has lots of experience calling races on dirt and he makes those races enjoyable to watch. Wednesday night was really no different.
While Christopher Bell and Bobby Pierce dominated at the front of the field, the racing further back was constantly intense with three and four-wide racing being the norm. We saw some amount of this racing on the broadcast, but the coverage seemed to stay focused on the front of the field for much of the night. That particular type of back-in-the-pack racing was really only seen when Bell opened up some breathing room on Pierce.
I don't know whether it was a lack of time or simple exasperation with the constant yellows, but FOX Sports drastically curtailed wreck replays as the race went on. I guess they figured that they all looked the same. However, that meant we never got a replay of the crash that put Chad Boat out of the race. This glitch occurred even though FOX Sports did do a pretty good job with side-by-side replays instead of full screen so viewers didn't miss too much.
Due to the sheer number of cautions, the race finished a half-hour late (they reached the end of their time slot just before the second competition caution). Post-race coverage was tied into FOX Sports Live (again), but viewers did get a number of interviews. However, there was nothing about the post-race argument between Matt Crafton and Ty Dillon on the broadcast. In fact, I didn't learn about it until I saw Aaron Bearden's column.
Overall, I thought the broadcast was very enthusiastic, but was lacking inclusiveness. Outside of the wrecks, you rarely saw people below about eighth in the running order. The wrecks bunched the field up substantially to the point where there was only one segment that saw a significant amount of lapping slower drivers. That kept everyone in the hunt. Waltrip and Parsons have limited experience on dirt and it showed at times, especially with Waltrip. He more or less sat there in awe for much of the night. Quite a bit different from spouting out randomness like normal, but he cannot bring all that much to a dirt race.
I hope you enjoyed this look at the 1-800 CarCash Mud Summer Classic. Next week, we'll have more motorsports commentary. Until then, enjoy this weekend's action in Indianapolis, Lime Rock and Hungary.
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
"Well, 2011 was my last full-time season. We finished seventh in points in the XFINITY Series. In 2012, '13 and '14, I ran a handful of races. The reason that I decided to retire is that I'll be 52 years old on Aug. 23, and really, the timing is right. It takes too much effort to get a car together. People always want a lot of money. People always want me to bring money. I don't bring money anymore. My whole career, I got paid money. They paid me. I don't like that new concept where people want you to bring money." - Kenny Wallace, on his final NASCAR race at Iowa Speedway and the whole idea of paying for a drive
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TODAY AT FRONTSTRETCH:
by Beth Lunkenheimer
by P. Huston Ladner
by Toni Montgomery
by Brett Winningham
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: In 1980, Johnny Rutherford won his third Indianapolis 500 in the ground-effect, Pennzoil-sponsored Chapparal. However, when he got back to the pits following his cool down lap, he had a passenger. Who was this passenger?
Check back Friday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Wednesday's Answer:
Wednesday's Answer:
Q: Despite qualifying tenth, Sterling Marlin had a miserable Brickyard 400 back in 2004. He dropped back through the field due to a flat tire, then trouble struck again on lap 68. What happened this time?
A: Marlin cut a second left front tire, bringing out a caution in the process. In an attempt to keep himself on the lead lap, he chose to not pit the first time by pit road. That was a bad move as the car burst into flames right after he passed up the pits. That resulted in a stop on-track due to smoke and flames, along with a garage stay when losing one lap in the pits to get the car fixed right would have been preferable. The incident can be seen here.
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COMING TOMORROW
In The Frontstretch Newsletter:
We'll preview this weekend's racing at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, in addition to bringing you Thursday's news.
On Frontstretch.com:
Amy will be back with another edition of Holding a Pretty Wheel.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Talk back to the Frontstretch Newsletter!
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