The Frontstretch Newsletter: Ben Rhodes Tops Opening Practice at Road America

THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!

Aug. 28, 2015

Volume IX, Edition CLI

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What to Watch: Friday

- Today, the XFINITY Series traverses the 4.048 mile circuit known as Road America.  The teams get three hours of practice to prepare themselves.

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This weekend's TV Schedule can be found in Couch Potato Tuesday here.

 

Top News
by The Frontstretch Staff

Ben Rhodes Fastest in Opening Road America XFINITY Practice

 

At Road America, getting track time was paramount during the first 90 minute practice session.  A number of spins and stopped cars resulted in multiple red flags.  In addition, the threat of rain led a number of teams to bolt on tires and throw down mock qualifying runs.  Rookie Ben Rhodes was fastest overall with a lap of 134.311 seconds (108.500 mph).  Chase Elliott was second, followed by Ryan Blaney, Justin Marks and Brian Scott.  Read more

 

 

Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth Among Drivers & Teams Penalized After Bristol

The warnings are flying around once again.  Earlier this week, NASCAR issued warnings to 11 teams for infractions at Darlington.  The most harshly penalized were Kyle Busch and Matt Kenseth's teams.  They will both lose 15 minutes of practice time at Darlington due to multiple infractions.  Read more

Jeffrey Earnhardt to Attempt Cup Debut at Richmond

Go FAS Racing announced on Thursday that Jeffrey Earnhardt will attempt to make his Sprint Cup Series debut in the team's No. 32 Ford at Richmond International Raceway in September.  Sponsorship will be provided by CorvetteParts.net.  Read more

Leavine Family Racing, Monitronics Announce Partnership, Giveaway

On Thursday, Leavine Family Racing announced a new partnership with Monitronics Security, a security company that outfitted their shop with a new system after their early season fire.  In addition, a contest accompanies the new deal, allowing fans to win trips to races.  Read more

Terry Labonte Named Grand Marshal of Southern 500

On Thursday, Darlington Raceway announced that two-time Cup Series Champion Terry Labonte will serve as the Grand Marshal for next weekend's Bojangles' Southern 500.  Labonte, who retired at the end of 2014, won the 1980 Southern 500 for his first career victory.  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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Editor's Note: Frontstretch Folio will return with the Sprint Cup Series next Friday.

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IndyCar In Brief: GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma

by Matt Stallknecht

Date: Sunday, August 30, 2015

Track: Sonoma Raceway, 2.2-mile triangular natural terrain road course in Sonoma, CA

Race distance: 85 laps / 200 miles

On Social Media: @RaceSonoma, @IndyCar, #GoProGrandPrix, #IndyCar

2014 race winner: Scott Dixon

2014 Verizon P1 Award winner: Will Power

One-lap qualifying record: Ryan Briscoe, 1:20:95 seconds, 98.60 mph, August 27, 2005

On Television: Race, 4:00 p.m. ET Sunday, August 30 (live NBCSN).

Video streaming: All practice sessions for the 2015 Verizon IndyCar Series season are available live on RaceControl.IndyCar.com.

Race notes:

* This is the final race of the 2015 Verizon IndyCar Series season. Graham Rahal and Juan Pablo Montoya are the primary contenders for the championship, while Scott Dixon is also mathematically eligible to win the title.

* Sunday's race will be the first and only double-points event of the season.

* Montoya enters the race with a 34 point advantage over Rahal.

* Scott Dixon is the most recent Sonoma winner (2014), and is a two-time winner at the track.

* Team Penske is the winningest team at Sonoma, with five wins at the facility all-time.

Who Ya Got:

Matt Stallknecht is taking Rahal to win the race and the championship in upset fashion. Toni Montgomery is going with Montoya to win the race and the championship.

Quotable:

JUAN PABLO MONTOYA (No. 2 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet): "We know Graham didn't really have that stellar car in Mid-Ohio. We think we should have a strong car at Sonoma. Last year there we finished fifth. Hopefully we can qualify better. We opened some more points (47 from 34 entering Pocono) on Dixon. I think that's important. That's it. We'll do what we can."

GRAHAM RAHAL (No. 15 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda): "At this point we have to go there to win, we have no other choice. In order to beat Montoya, we have no choice. We're going to go all out, do the best we possibly can and see what happens. I still have a lot of confidence going into race weekend."

Matt Stallknecht is the Multimedia Manager and a Senior Writer at Frontstretch.  He can be reached via e-mail at matt.stallknecht@frontstretch.com.

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TODAY ON FRONTSTRETCH:

Four Burning Questions: Which Road Course Will Put On the Better Show?

by Sean Fesko

Friday Faceoff: Was Bristol a Good Race Despite Lack of Wrecks?

by the Frontstretch Staff

Holding a Pretty Wheel: Warning System (Almost) Gets It Right

by Amy Henderson

NASCAR 101: Didn't Pay Your NASCAR Sponsorship Bill? You're Not Alone

by Kevin Rutherford

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FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:

Q: When then-Sears Point Raceway was awarded a Cup Series race in 1989 in order to replace the closing Riverside International Raceway, a number of improvements were required.  What were they?

Check back Monday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!

Thursday's Answer:

Q:  Instead of taking the off week to spend time relaxing, Paul Menard is entered in Saturday's Road America 180 Fired Up by Johnsonville.  Look for him to be a contender for the win, not just because he's driving the No. 33 Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing but because he has quite a bit of road racing experience.  Where did that experience come from?

A: Prior to his time in NASCAR, Menard ran full-time in Trans-Am, driving a Menards-sponsored Ford Mustang.  In addition, Menard won the only NASCAR Midwest Series late model race at Road America.  Pictures of Menard in Victory Lane were used by the track to promote the inaugural XFINITY Series race in 2009.

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COMING MONDAY

In The Frontstretch Newsletter:

We'll have a recap of Saturday's Road America 180 and Sunday's Chevrolet Silverado 250k, plus an update on the points and any other news that breaks this weekend.

On Frontstretch.com:

We'll have a series of post-race commentaries breaking down this weekend's road racing and looking forward to Darlington.
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