The Frontstretch Newsletter: June 16th, 2011

THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
June 16th, 2011
Volume V, Edition CXV
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Frontstretch sends its well wishes, prayers, and support to all our Southern U.S., Joplin, MO and Western Massachusetts fans affected by the swath of tornadoes over the past few weeks. To help out recovery efforts, text "GIVE" to 80888 to donate $10 towards disaster relief efforts in Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, Massachusetts and Missouri through the Salvation Army.
 
Today's Top News
by Phil Allaway
 
Indianapolis Motor Speedway to Expand Brickyard 400 Weekend at the Direct Expense of Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis?

The Indianapolis Star reported on Wednesday that the track is in talks to bring the Rolex Sports Car Series to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway to race on the undercard during the Brickyard 400.  The plan would be to have the Rolex Sports Car Series run on either Friday or Saturday on the infield road course that is currently used by motoGP and formerly used by Formula One.

It is unclear whether the Rolex Sports Car Series would make use of Turn 13 of the road course (Turn 1 of the oval, run clockwise instead of counter-clockwise), or skip it altogether in favor of the short section inside of Turn 1 that bypasses the nine degree flat out turn.  Regardless of what configuration is chosen, having the race the same weekend as the Brickyard 400 would cause significant issues due to the fact that infrastructure needs to be moved around in order to use the road course as opposed to the oval.

In addition, the track is negotiating to move the Nationwide Series from Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis (LORI) to the 2.5 mile rectangle for 2012 to form a new tripleheader weekend.  Such a setup would see the Rolex Sports Car Series race Friday, the Nationwide Series on Saturday and Sprint Cup on Sunday, albeit with the same infrastructure issues listed above.

There is no word how such a move would affect the Camping World Truck Series race at LORI.  LORI has hosted the Nationwide Series Kroger 200 every year since the-then Budweiser Late Model Sportsman Series began touring in 1982.  It has also been on the Truck Series' schedule every year since the inaugural season in 1995.

Carmichael to Drive 4 Races in Nationwide Series

On Wednesday, Turner Motorsports announced that Ricky Carmichael, who normally drives the No. 4 Monster Energy Chevrolet for the team in the Camping World Truck Series, will be returning to the Nationwide Series for four races later this season.  Carmichael will be bringing his sponsorship from Monster Energy with him to the No. 30 Chevrolet, which is currently driven by a revolving door of drivers (Reed Sorenson is in the car this week at Michigan).

Carmichael is scheduled to drive the No. 30 starting next weekend in the Bucyrus 200 at Road America.  He will also drive in the Subway Jalapeno 250 at Daytona on July 1, the Virginia 529 College Savings 250 at Richmond on September 9, and the Wypall 200 at the reconfigured Phoenix International Raceway on November 12.

Carmichael is quite excited to be returning to the Nationwide Series.

"I'm obviously excited about running more Nationwide Series races with Monster Energy and Turner Motorsports," Carmichael said.  "The biggest thing I'm looking for out of these four races is seat time. My goal is to move up and race in the Nationwide Series full time so this is a great chance for me to get some track time and better familiarize myself with the car. It is going to be a fun four races and hopefully we'll have some good runs in the No. 30 Monster Energy Chevy."

Last season, Carmichael started four races in the No. 10 Toyota for then-Braun Racing.  He had a best finish of 18th at Kansas in October.  However, he also had two DNF's, one due to a bad oil pump, while he got caught up in crash caused by teammate James Buescher at Auto Club Speedway.

Entry List Update:
Note:  These entries are accurate as of Wednesday night.  However, they are still subject to change.

Sprint Cup Series Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips 400:  47 cars entered

Drivers Ineligible to Earn Points:
No. 21- Trevor Bayne for Wood Brothers Racing
No. 32- Mike Bliss for FAS Lane Racing
No. 38- Travis Kvapil for Front Row Motorsports
No. 51- Landon Cassill for Phoenix Racing
No. 60- Mike Skinner for Germain Racing
No. 81- Scott Riggs for Whitney Motorsports
No. 87- Joe Nemechek for NEMCO Motorsports

Driver Changes:
No. 7- Robby Gordon returns to the seat, replacing Scott Wimmer.
No. 21- Trevor Bayne returns to the seat, replacing Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.
No. 38- Travis Kvapil returns to the seat, replacing Sam Hornish, Jr.

Drivers who must qualify on speed:
No. 7- Robby Gordon for Robby Gordon Motorsports
No. 30- David Stremme for Inception Motorsports
No. 37- Tony Raines for Front Row Motorsports/MaxQ Motorsports
No. 38- Travis Kvapil for Front Row Motorsports
No. 46- J.J. Yeley for Whitney Motorsports
No. 50- T.J. Bell for MAKE Motorsports
No. 60- Mike Skinner for Germain Racing
No. 66- Michael McDowell for HP Racing, LLC
No. 71- Andy Lally for TRG Motorsports
No. 81- Scott Riggs for Whitney Motorsports
No. 87- Joe Nemechek for NEMCO Motorsports
No. 92- Brian Keselowski for K-Automotive Motorsports

Nationwide Series Alliance Truck Parts 250:  46 cars entered

Drivers Ineligible to Earn Points:
No. 18- Kyle Busch for Joe Gibbs Racing
No. 20- Joey Logano for Joe Gibbs Racing
No. 22- Brad Keselowski for Penske Racing
No. 32- Mark Martin for Turner Motorsports
No. 33- Paul Menard for Kevin Harvick, Inc.
No. 60- Carl Edwards for Roush Fenway Racing
No. 64- David Reutimann for Rusty Wallace Racing
No. 70- David Stremme for ML Motorsports

Driver Changes:
No. 7- Josh Wise returns to the seat, replacing Danica Patrick.
No. 13- Jennifer Jo Cobb returns to the seat, replacing Rick Crawford.
No. 18- Kyle Busch returns to the seat, replacing Kelly Bires.
No. 25- Chad Finley is in the seat, replacing Kelly Bires.  If Finley qualifies, he will be making his Nationwide Series debut.
No. 30- Reed Sorenson returns to the seat, replacing Mikey Kile.
No. 32- Mark Martin returns to the seat, replacing Reed Sorenson.
No. 33- Paul Menard returns to the seat, replacing Kevin Harvick.
No. 39- Danny Efland returns to the seat, replacing Josh Wise.
No. 70- David Stremme returns to the seat, replacing Scott Wimmer.

Drivers that must qualify on speed:
No. 03- Scott Riggs for R3 Motorsports
No. 12- Sam Hornish, Jr. for Penske Racing
No. 13- Jennifer Jo Cobb for JJC Racing
No. 16- Trevor Bayne for Roush Fenway Racing
No. 20- Joey Logano for Joe Gibbs Racing
No. 25- Chad Finley for Team Rensi Motorsports
No. 41- Carl Long for Rick Ware Racing
No. 42- Tim Andrews for Key Motorsports
No. 44- Jeff Green for TriStar Motorsports (Guaranteed to start via the Past Champions' Provisional)
No. 46- Chase Miller for Key Motorsports
No. 49- Dennis Setzer for Jay Robinson Racing
No. 55- Brett Rowe for Faith Motorsports
No. 64- David Reutimann for Rusty Wallace Racing
No. 68- Matt Carter for Fleur-de-Lis Motorsports/Rick Ware Racing
No. 74- Mike Harmon for Harmon Motorsports
No. 75- Johnny Chapman for Rick Ware Racing

 

Izod IndyCar Series The Milwaukee 225:  26 cars entered

 

Driver Changes:  None

 

Entries:

No. 06 - James Hinchcliffe for Newman-Haas Racing
No. 2 - Oriol Servia for Newman-Haas Racing
No. 3 - Helio Castroneves for Team Penske
No. 4 - JR Hildebrand for Panther Racing
No. 5 - Takuma Sato for KV Racing
No. 6 - Ryan Briscoe for Team Penske
No. 7 - Danica Patrick for Andretti Autosport
No. 8 - Paul Tracy for Dragon Racing
No. 9 - Scott Dixon for Target Chip Ganassi Racing
No. 10 - Dario Franchitti for Target Chip Ganassi Racing
No. 12 - Will Power for Team Penske
No. 14 - Vitor Meira for AJ Foyt Enterprises
No. 18 - James Jakes for Dale Coyne Racing
No. 19 - Alex Lloyd for Dale Coyne Racing
No. 22 - Justin Wilson for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing
No. 24 - Ana Beatriz for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing
No. 26 - Marco Andretti for Andretti Autosport
No. 27 - Mike Conway for Andretti Autosport
No. 28 - Ryan Hunter-Reay for Andretti Autosport
No. 34 - Sebastian Saavedra for Conquest Racing
No. 38 - Graham Rahal for Service Central Chip Ganassi Racing
No. 59 - Ernesto (EJ) Viso for KV Racing
No. 67 - Ed Carpenter for Sarah Fisher Racing
No. 77 - Alex Tagliani for Sam Schmidt Motorsports
No. 78 - Simona de Silvestro for Nuclear Clean Air Energy HVM Racing
No. 82 - Tony Kanaan for KV Racing
No. 83 - Charlie Kimball for Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing

 

Not Entered:

No. 8 - Paul Tracy for Dragon Racing

No. 11 - Davey Hamilton for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing

No. 88 - Jay Howard for Sam Schmidt Motorsports

No. 99 - Jay Howard for Sam Schmidt Motorsports

Have news for Phil and 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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Hey Frontstretch Readers!
We know you love the roar of raw horsepower under the hood that powers 43 of the best drivers in the world every weekend, but did you ever wonder how the sponsor on top of that hood also contributes to keeping the sport moving? What about the contributions of official NASCAR companies? If you think they are simply writing checks, think again. Check out our newest feature - Sunday Money. This weekly Frontstretch exclusive provides you with a behind the scenes look how NASCAR, its affiliates and team sponsors approach the daunting task of keeping fans interested and excited about the sport for 38 weeks of the year.
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What's Vexing Vito:  Like a Dog Returning To Its Vomit - or - Vito Pugliese Rejoins The Frontstretch.com Staff

by Vito Pugliese

 

Sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings, but the reports of my demise have been greatly exaggerated – and now much lamented.  To quell any concerns (sic) amongst our loyal readership regarding my Houdini act over the last three months, I was not issued a secret fine, nor put on probation by NASCAR.  I was not fired or reprimanded for saying something that was not in accordance with the wishes of the website or sanctioning body.  Quite simply, I was taking a break.

 

It's kind of good to do that from time to time.  Prevents burnout, complete mental meltdowns, or firing off Twitter pics of ones self clad only in a bath towel.

 

During the course of the last six months I have been training and pursuing opportunities within the law enforcement community, while also in the midst of a professional transition during this time.  Both of these required more hours, energy, and commitment than I had readily available, so I was forced to take a little bit of a breather from babbling about racecars for a while.

 

Now that I have a badge, body armor, and a .40 Glock stuffed with 165-grain Federal Tactical Bonded jacketed hollow points, it's back to business as usual.  With NASCAR returning to my backyard this weekend, however, I will be back in full-force, providing coverage from Michigan International Speedway, and eating a lot of track president Roger Curtis' donuts.

Until somebody can provide convincing evidence to me that apple fritters are a precursor to prostate problems, this practice will continue.

 

Don't get things twisted though – just because I was not writing does not mean I have not been watching, dissecting, or taking notes.  Here are a list of things in particular that have caused me to blow a couple of gaskets over the course of the last few weeks:

 

Kyle Busch's Speeding Ticket:  You just knew this was going to be fodder for the Shrub Haters when it happened.  While joy riding – errr –evaluating a new Lexus LF-A supercar (the $375,000 equivalent of a Ferrari 599 Fiorano), Busch was clocked at 128 mph and the racing world lost their mind.  More was made of that incident than there was of Nationwide Driver Michael Annett getting popped for a DUI before the season started, or even Scott Wimmer a few years ago, when he barrel rolled his Dodge Ram through a highway sign, then fled the scene of an accident.  He was eventually found hiding from the police, cowering behind his bed like an eight-year old who accidentally busted a window with a baseball – which prompted his wife to get into it with the arresting officers.

 

The car Busch was driving can accelerate from the posted speed limit of 45 mph to the recorded velocity of 128 mph in a matter of a few seconds – and stop again.  I am by no means condoning it, but the media circus surrounding it was a bit much and melodramatic at best.  It was by definition reckless driving (without a wreck?) – but not manslaughter, which by the reaction you would have think it was.  The same self-righteousness that was displayed by some was conspicuously absent whenever the whimsical reminiscing of certain other NASCAR personalities were driving recklessly with cars loaded with contraband, evading, eluding, and in violation of Federal law.

 

Or one well-known story that involved getting loaded and racing Jimmy Spencer on the streets around Mooresville, NC one night in old pickup trucks.

 

I have first hand knowledge over 15 years ago of the same speed being attained by both a 1973 Dodge Challenger and a 1972 Plymouth 'Cuda– not exactly the brightest thing in the world on any roadway, particularly when piloted by two individuals who had neither the skill of  a professional racecar driver or vehicles with the capabilities of Toyota's techno-laden super sled.  It turns out leaky axle seals, torsion bars, leaf springs, and drum brakes aren't up the LF-A's standards.  Again, I would never condone these actions and am in no way glorifying or justifying them in any way.  Besides, the statute of limitations has since expired and there is no video evidence available.  And it took place in Mexico.

 

Richard Childress Fine, Newman's Secret Fine, Have It Boys - Safely:  The headlines read "Childress Attacks Busch"; they might as well have read, "Cranky Old Rich Guy Beats Up Young Rich Guy."  Richard Childress was issued a $150,000 fine for assault and battery against Kyle Busch; not unlike when Jimmy Spencer blasted Busch's brother in the face following contact at Michigan in 2003.

 

$150k is a small fortune to most of us, but a pittance to the likes of Childress who a couple of years ago was sweating not getting his annual $10 Million payment from General Motors that got axed in the midst of the largest company in the world tanking.  Apparently Childress had sternly warned Busch not to get near his racecars ever again – which is kind of amusing since one of Childress' former drivers built a career, persona, and millions of dollars in t-shirt sales from wrecking people on purpose.

 

Hey didn't Chidlress' driver and chief antagonist Kevin Harvick, get parked for a weekend by NASCAR once for intentionally wrecking Busch's car owner's son in a Truck Race?  Hmmm.

 

Not to beat a dead horse, but again, this is the same sport that was built upon evading both federal law enforcement officers and lengthy prison sentences.  "Have At It, Boys" back in the early days meant that your toolbox contained a .38 Special with some semi-wad cutters as well as a micrometer and torque wrench.  Lee Petty's wife once thunked Tiny Lund over the head with her purse, which contained said sidearm, while Tiny had both Lee and Richard by the throat like Andre The Giant in Wrestlemania III.  As Lund released both and slumped to the ground he muttered,  "well at least one of the Pettys knows how to fight."

 

Between Busch and Childress, Newman and Montoya, and Harvick versus whoever he hates this week, do we really need to be making that big of a deal out of things?  Way back when it was bootleggers chasing each other with wrenches and axles shafts.  Now it's rich guys bopping one another in the garage or the NASCAR trailer.  No, NASCAR doesn't like it – officially.  It gets people talking about the sport and maintains the interest, but it also doesn't do much to deter the comparisons to professional wrestling.

 

Which may not be such a bad thing. With the untimely passing of Macho Man Randy Savage – my all-time favorite personality in sports entertainment (or sports in general…), maybe it's time for somebody to launch themselves off a stack of tires and drop a big elbow on someone, and really make a scene of things.  DIG IT!

 

Reporters Not Knowing History:  During the course of the last few weeks, two NASCAR media types (who will remain nameless) both drew parallels between the people they were interviewing or discussing to famed World War II General George Scott Patton.  However, in both instances, each individual referred to him as George "C." Patton.

 

Let's pump the brakes here fellas, and back up that M4 Sherman.

 

George S. Patton is the General who distracted the Axis Powers from the actual landing point of the Allied Invasion of 1945, and beat back the Nazis in the Battle of The Bulge, and whose troops liberated the Buchenwald concentration camp.

 

George C. Scott is the actor who portrayed America's greatest battlefield commander in the film Patton, who famously refused to accept the Oscar for Best Actor in 1971.

 

Now that has been cleared up, let's get back to racing. Looking forward to writing, receiving your comments and e-mails, and seeing you at the track.  Except that one guy…

Vito Pugliese is a Senior Writer for Frontstretch.  He can be reached via e-mail at vito.pugliese@frontstretch.com.

 

Today's Featured Commentary
Racing For A Good Cause

Shakedown Session
by Brody Jones

NASCAR drivers like to fashion themselves as something resembling humanitarians, racing for fashionable causes.  Most notably, there is the "Prelude To The Dream" at Eldora Speedway, pitting 28 of the world's best drivers against each other on a high-banked half-mile holy grail of dirt track racing.  There have also been drivers using charitable causes as sponsorships, such as Jeff Gordon being sponsored for the majority of the 2011 season by the AARP's "Drive To End Hunger" campaign.  Other drivers, such as Jamie McMurray and Joey Logano, have helped with clean-up and recovery efforts in the tornado-ravaged city of Joplin, Missouri.

 

One particular cause this week at Michigan that likely won't get as much media attention as the charitable efforts some of these other drivers have received is the cause that the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports-owned entry driven by Travis Kvapil is racing for.  The team, this week, is sponsored by the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and will have the Wes Leonard Heart Team foundation stickers on the rear quarter-panels of the car.

 

For those unfamiliar with the star-crossed tale of Wes Leonard, he is the Fennville (Michigan) High School basketball star who died of a heart ailment shortly after hitting the game-winning lay-up to cap off his team's undefeated season against Bridgeman.  As the students and fans rushed the court, euphoria quickly turned into tragic anguish as Leonard collapsed on the court and was pronounced dead just a few hours later.  In the wake of the tragedy, a charitable foundation was set up in Leonard's memory to honor children who have died from S.C.A. (Sudden Cardiac Arrest) and in an effort to prevent similar tragedies from occuring again.

 

This weekend at Michigan, the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford Fusion piloted by Travis Kvapil will be racing for more than the sake of sport.  They will be racing to bring awareness to race fans about Sudden Cardiac Arrest and to honor the memory of a fallen high-school basketball star.  The team may be thirteen points out of the top-35 in owner points, but for once, points racing is a mere after-thought in the big picture for Front Row Motorsports.  While a solid top-20 to top-25 effort would be icing on the cake, in the grand scheme of things, if they can make one fan aware of the cause they are racing for, then that is a victory in of itself.

 

Wes Leonard's immediate family and members of the organization created in his memory will be honored guests at Michigan International Speedway this weekend.  While having to bury your child is an unthinkable tragedy in its own right, the Leonards can know that at least one team in the close-knit fraternity of NASCAR is willing to race in their son's honor.  In a sport where there is so much focus on the negative side of racing, whether it's drivers or owners getting into fist fights, teams being decked for rules violations, stories like these that highlight a good cause far too often fall between the cracks.  But, maybe we as NASCAR journalists and fans should focus more on the positives of racing than on the negative side.

Brody Jones is a Website Contributor to Frontstretch.com.  He can be reached via e-mail at brody.jones@frontstretch.com.
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The Critic's Annex:  Seat Swap: Hamilton vs. Stewart
by Phil Allaway
 
Hello, race fans.  Welcome back to the Critic's Annex, where I take an additional look at telecasts available to the general public.  On Tuesday, I asked for suggestions as to whether I should write about the ARCA race, the announcement of the 2012 NASCAR Hall of Fame Inductees, or the Seat Swap in Watkins Glen.  I didn't receive any suggestions, so I decided to pick via blind draw.

 

As a result of the draw, I'm writing about SPEED's coverage of Seat Swap:  Hamilton vs. Stewart, which was held Tuesday at Watkins Glen International in Dix, New York.  A while back, I considered making the haul out to Watkins Glen for the special event to cover it for the site.  Its doable for me because I live 220 miles from the track.  I can get there by car without traffic in about three and a half hours.  However, due to already having put in for too many days off from work in the months of June and July (four for the Daytona weekend, where I'm representing Frontstretch, and another one at the end of this week so that I can visit my dad), I just couldn't have swung it.  Knowing the weather at the track on Tuesday, maybe it was a good thing that I didn't make the haul out there.

 

Tuesday dawned cool, wet and dreary at Watkins Glen International.  It was apparently 50 something degrees outside when the special day commenced.  A couple of thousand people made the haul out to the track to check out the proceedings (grandstand access was free, but the concessions were not).  SPEED provided cameras for the special swap, but had a very small crew of personalities on hand.  Ralph Sheheen, fresh from three days in Pocono for TNT, served as the on-site reporter.  Commentary was done back in Charlotte by Bob Varsha and Steve Matchett from SPEED's Formula One coverage.  Larry McReynolds represented SPEED's NASCAR coverage in the booth.  Finally, Sam Posey, who serves as a "essayist" for the Formula One coverage, chimed in with taped snippets about the history of racing in Watkins Glen coming out of commercial breaks.

 

The telecast started off with Matchett and McReynolds describing the career paths of the protagonists.  The two analysts traded off, covering the two racers' paths chronologically.  Following that, the twosome compared and contrasted the two series.  Such a feature was undoubtedly done because of the assumption (at least) that a lot of fans who wouldn't have ordinarily tuned into one series or the other would be watching.  It did a decent job of dispelling stereotypes.  The idea of there being 155 Americans that have started a Grand Prix is a bit of a stretch, though.  The only reason that is so is because the Indianapolis 500 counted as a round of the World Championship for a period in the 1950's prior to the first real U.S. Grand Prix at Riverside in 1958.  If you were to discount the Americans who only started the Indianapolis 500, the number would be much lower.

 

Both drivers were interviewed by Sheheen prior to getting into their normal cars for a photo-op.  They were both quite cheerful, especially Stewart, who often operates with a permanent scowl on his face.  It should be noted that the Seat Swap was actually the first time (that I can think of) that the COT was fitted with rain tires, a defroster and windshield wiper (that was not used).  Yes, Cup cars have been outfitted for racing in the rain on road courses off and on since 1996, but they never raced in the rain (Practice and Qualifying for the exhibition race at Suzuka in 1997 was in the rain, as was one practice session at Watkins Glen in 2000).  When the COT was introduced to road courses in 2007, Goodyear stopped bringing rain tires to the track for them (although, they did start bringing them for Nationwide races).  That is why the 2009 Sprint Cup race at Watkins Glen was postponed to Monday due to rain.

 

As for the Mclaren brought over from England, I was under the opinion that Stewart was going to be driving a more current car.  It turns out that the team brought a MP4-23 to the track.  For those of you unfamiliar with car designations, that is the car that Mclaren raced in 2008 and Hamilton won his World Championship in.  Nice, but its three years old.  Since then, there have been a butt-load of rule changes in Formula One, most notably the banning of in-race refueling and most of the aerodynamic devices on the car.  The current car that Hamilton and teammate Jenson Button races (the MP4-26) is substantially longer than what Stewart drove due to the larger fuel cell and far less cluttered.  For reference purposes, when Jeff Gordon got to drive the Williams at Indianapolis in 2003, he was driving a one year old Williams along with Juan Pablo Montoya.

 

By contrast, Hamilton had a current-spec Mobil 1-sponsored No. 14 Chevrolet Impala from Stewart-Haas Racing at his disposal.  If anything, Hamilton definitely seemed to be enjoying himself in the Chevrolet.  However, it is a big change from a Formula One car.  Most notably, the seating position is much different and shifting is done with a stick shift as opposed to with paddles.  This is less of a change than Montoya had to make in 2003, because teams were just getting back into fully automatic transmissions in Formula One at the time.

 

If you remember the Gordon-Montoya swap at Indianapolis, that show was televised live on SPEED.  I think it was a two-hour special that day.  Tuesday's show aired via tape delay on SPEED and was cut down to an hour.  That one-hour show was compiled from what I'm assuming is quite a bit more than an hour of footage.  The weather and track conditions showed the cutting quite well.  The opening and demo runs made Watkins Glen International look like the Knockhill Circuit in Scotland (a short 1.3 mile track with substantial elevation change where it seems to rain roughly every other race).  However, when the swap was instituted, it actually looked halfway decent outside (but still damp in sections).

 

There were other differences in how the swap was done.  For example, Gordon and Montoya each got multiple runs in each other's cars at Indianapolis.  The telecast we got made it seem like Stewart and Hamilton only got one run each.  Perhaps SPEED only showed the best runs for each driver.

 

Also, I don't recall Gordon and Montoya driving their normal cars in Indianapolis.  In fact, they made it a point that Gordon (at least) not drive his No. 24 car at all on the Infield road course.  Another Hendrick Motorsports driver was brought in to shakedown the No. 24 ahead of the swap.  As a result, I don't recall any target times being set for Montoya to reach, let alone if he did reach it.  Gordon was simply put up against the pole time from the 2002 United States Grand Prix.  His best lap was roughly 106 percent of that time (meaning that he would have qualified for the race on speed, no groveling required).

 

SPEED gave viewers radio communication in both cars, which was pretty interesting.  Stewart served as a driver coach for Hamilton in the Impala, and vice versa.  Radio chatter in Sprint Cup telecasts has been around since something like the 1980's.  In Formula One, it was only added to the broadcast within the past five years or so, and only at designated times.  Viewers got to hear more radio chatter on Mclaren's part than at almost any previous time on American television.  With the low ceiling, I'm surprised that the in-car cameras actually worked at all.

 

Varsha, Matchett and McReynolds worked together in the booth for Tradin' Paint in 2003, so they already had a little experience together as a threesome.  Varsha and Matchett already have quite the rapport from their normal duties calling Formula One.  As a result, McReynolds seemed a bit like an outsider at times since Varsha seemed to be in no mood to dumb anything down for new viewers.  For that matter, neither was Matchett.

 

McReynolds, for his part, didn't try to make NASCAR sound as simplistic as he did in 2003 (I recall him referring to the shifter at that time as being "...something right out of a Chevelle").  It appeared that being around the Formula One duo did rub off a little on McReynolds, but I'm unclear whether that was simply McReynolds playing along, or if he was learning something.

 

Regardless, the three commentators in the booth definitely seemed to have fun with the special, which is exactly what I wanted to see.  Stewart and Hamilton definitely did as well, even doing some donuts on the frontstretch after finishing his run, to the delight of the gathered fans.  Unfortunately, due to the way that SPEED cut the special, it left me wanting more.  I would have liked to see some footage on how the teams set up their cars for the track, and if whether any laps were turned in on Monday to serve as a baseline (it was mentioned that both teams arrived at the track the day before the special) for the setup and give the drivers something to shoot at.

 

Ahead of next year's return of the United States Grand Prix to the World Championship (at the not-yet complete Circuit of the Americas near Austin, Texas), Formula One's popularity in the United States appears to be growing.  Its not that long ago that Formula One was aired in the United States on a quirky split TV deal that unless you had Speedvision at the time, which I didn't, meant you got only four live races a season on Fox Sports Net (those races would be Australia (the season opener), Canada, the U.S. Grand Prix (2000 only), and whatever ended the season (either Japan or Malaysia).  The rest would be tape-delayed to either 10am or Noon Eastern.

 

Following the Seat Swap, Stewart was quoted in a press conference as saying that he really liked running on the long course and that he wanted to have the Cup Series race on it.  Jimmie Johnson voiced similar sentiment after racing in the Sahlen's Six Hours of the Glen last year.  According to Sporting News, Watkins Glen International President Michael Printup plans to lobby NASCAR to actually move Watkins Glen's NASCAR weekend to the long course.  It would require the paving over of the last trap on course at Turn 12 (referred to as Turn 8, but its really Turn 12) before NASCAR would likely consider it.  There might be more to come on this issue, but don't expect a change for this year's race.

 

I hope you enjoyed this look at Seat Swap:  Hamilton vs. Stewart.  Tune in next week for a look at SPEED's telecast of the Raineater Wiper Blades 200 from Michigan.  Until then, enjoy the action this weekend.

Phil Allaway is a Senior Writer and the Newsletter Manager for Frontstretch.com.  He can be reached via e-mail at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com.
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Frontstretch Line of the Week

From Sprint Cup Power Rankings:  Top 15 After Pocono 

 
"Turning into Jeff Burton before our eyes: becoming the king of the top-10 finish." - Mike Neff's one-liner describing Dale Earnhardt, Jr., who took the top spot this week.  Unfortunately, I doubt we'll be seeing Dale doing State Farm commercials anytime soon.

 
Have a nominee for Line of the Week? Email Phil Allaway at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com and you may see yourself in this space next week!
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TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
 
MPM2Nite: Time For The Pocono Twin-200's?

by Matt McLaughlin
 
Potts' Shots: Will Cars And Trucks Ever Be On The Same Track At The Same Time?

by John Potts
  
Come One... Come All!

by Mark Howell
 
Fantasy Insider: Rely On Roush At Michigan

by Brett Poirier

 

BSNews: Brian France Meets With Driver's Parents

by Jeff Meyer
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Get THE ANNUAL, 2011 Racing Preview for your mobile device.
Go to Frontstretch.com and click on "The Annual" link on the right side to order and download this special issue that includes: Track Information, Driver profiles and In-Depth Features.
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FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
 
Q:  The US 500 mentioned in Wednesday's trivia question was actually a second race at Michgan that was added for 1996 only.  The traditional July event, the Marlboro 500, was also marred by a early crash that year.  What happened?

 
Check back Friday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
 
Wednesday's Answer:
 
Q:   In 1996, angered by the new Indy Racing League's very controversial "25/8" rule for the Indianapolis 500 which guaranteed 25 starting spots to IRL teams that could not be bumped while CART teams had to fight for the remaining eight, CART decided to hold a rival 500-mile race at Michigan on Memorial Day weekend.

 

The U.S. 500 was held the day before the Indianapolis 500 and featured rows of three just like at Indianapolis (however, there were 27 starters instead of 33).  Unfortunately, the start didn't go so well.  What happened?

 
A:  Basically, an outright travesty.  Jimmy Vasser, who started on the pole, appeared to suddenly veer to the right.  That pitched Vasser's Target-sponsored No. 12 into the second-place starter Adrian Fernandez.  Vasser's car spun up the track and hit Bryan Herta, the third-place starter.  Behind the front row, chaos broke out as cars spun in every direction and detached wheels were bouncing around.

In the end, nearly half the field was caught up in the crash and the Red Flag was thrown.  CART allowed teams to bring out backup cars since the crash happened before the race officially started.  Everyone except for Fernandez, who apparently did not have a backup car, took the restart.  Vasser ended up winning the event in his backup car.  The wreck can be seen at the beginning of this clip.

 
Frontstretch Trivia Guarantee:  Take 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!
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Coming tomorrow in the Frontstretch Newsletter:
-- Top News by Summer Dreyer
-- Keepin' It Short by Mike Neff
-- In Case You Missed It by Brett Poirier
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
 
Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:
 
Four Burning Questions: Michigan by Mike Lovecchio
We'll give you a look at important things to look forward to at Michigan International Speedway this weekend in our racing preview.
 
Holding A Pretty Wheel by Amy Henderson
Amy returns with another intriguing commentary heading into Michigan.
 
Goin' Green by Garrett Horton
Garrett returns with more commentary and insight.
 
Driver Diary: Kenny Wallace as told to Amy Henderson
Kenny returns to talk about the past few weeks on and off the track.
 
Nuts For Nationwide by Bryan Davis Keith
Bryan returns to take a look inside the Nationwide Series ahead of Saturday's Alliance Truck Parts 250 at Michigan International Speedway.
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