Turn 3

Oh, what a feeling!

By DAVID GREEN

Congratulations to Dave Blaney and the Bill Davis Racing team for claiming the pole at New Hampshire. I'm wondering, halfway through this historic season, how most fans feel about Toyota's participation in Cup Series racing; as for myself, I'm getting used to it.

It took some getting used to, I must admit. I won't get into all the debate over whether the Camry (assembled in my home state, by the way) is more of a "domestic" automobile than its NASCAR competitor models, but I'm old-school and Japanese brands are definitely not something I associated with American stock car racing.

That reaction is not something that's limited to supposedly "redneck" NASCAR, either. When Honda made its first appearance in the Indianapolis 500 in 1994, there were more than a few "boos" from the crowd. Funny how when Spaniards cheer for Fernando Alonso or Brits for Lewis Hamilton, they're just being nationalistic, but when Americans voice a preference for American cars and drivers, they're being xenophobic.

Anyway, looks as if the Camry crews are making progress. It doesn't surprise me that it's Blaney and the Bill Davis team who are showing the way. It is mystifying how Jeremy Mayfield has not done any better than he has done in the other Davis Toyota.

The difficulties for new entry Red Bull Racing don't really come as such a shock, either. Not too many upstart teams have come in and kicked butt in this series -- not only recently, but historically, except for Carl Kiekhaefer in 1955-56. No team has ever dominated NASCAR the way those Mercury Outboard-sponsored Chrysler 300s did for two seasons, but that's another story for another day.

Obviously, the biggest surprise for Toyota has been the struggle of Michael Waltrip's team. For one thing, it's not a new team in the sense that Red Bull is. It had its basis in the long-standing Michael Waltrip Racing Busch Series endeavor and it had last year to get ready for the move to Cup in Waltrip's partnership with Davis.

Also, the inconsistency among the three MWR cars represents a huge puzzle.

Ostensibly, the Davis and Waltrip efforts were considered the primary standard bearers for TRD in NASCAR, no disrespect intended toward Red Bull and drivers Brian Vickers and A.J. Allmendinger. BDR has delivered, and Blaney is rewarding those who pipped him as the Toyota driver most likely to succeed in 2007. Victory is within reach for these guys, I believe.

 

A Buffet of NASCAR Thoughts

By Mike Harper

No, I’m not going to bring up the IRL. I really don’t plan to touch on the absolutely wonderful coverage we saw from our good friends at TNT from Infineon either. Yep, I tend to ruffle feathers with some of my friends when I do that.

I could slip in a few good words about ARCA since they’ve been the most competitive racing this season. But - I won’t. Why you ask? Good question thanks for asking.

Well, because lately I’ve been living and breathing ARCA and so I figured uncapping these NASCAR emotions that’s been building up inside my head would make me feel better. Maybe in my next posting, I can share with you how life is going in ARCAville U.S.A.

But today it’s all NASCAR and as we head into New Hampshire, my agenda includes penalties, Kyle Petty and the other Kyle, that would be Kyle Thomas Busch.

My good friend Mark Young touched on this topic here in Turn 3 and while I like all of the comments, I have a different take on how these penalty situations should be handled moving forward.

I’ve always – yes, always have taken the position that if you break the rules in NASCAR, to the extent where suspension comes into play, then the team should be parked. To be blunt, if life is good enough to win as a team, then life should be miserable enough to be parked as a team.

But as we move forward into this mega-money industry where race fans and sponsors pay lots and lots of cash to support their drivers and teams, I’ve come to the conclusion that you can’t park teams. If you do, fans and sponsors suffer. And, when fans and sponsors suffer, they’ll go elsewhere for their racing entertainment.

Obviously suspending crew chiefs isn’t the answer. You know as well as I do, with today’s technology Chad Knaus doesn’t need to be on the pit box to get his job done.

I think when NASCAR suspends a crew chief or driver for a rule violation as we’ve seen happen this week - the team must race, period. The team must qualify too. The sponsors and fans deserve to see the car on the track.

But – yes there's a but. The driver and owner shouldn’t receive any points for the same amount of races their guy is suspended. That means Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon should race for their fans and sponsors, but receive no points for six events.

That my friends would stop the cheating!

Next topic please….

I’m not going to say anything about TNT and their lovely coverage last weekend. Not gonna do it. But I will ask a simple question – how does a person get away with dropping an expletive on national TV without receiving any kind of penalty?

Maybe I’m jumping the gun, but Kyle has admitted to it. He said, "I'm sorry it got as far as everyone's living room. But when an incident happens that early in the race and it's unexpected, what I said pretty much described it."

Dale Earnhardt Jr., says a dirty little word in victory lane a few years ago and NASCAR pounds him, but now we hear nothing from the network or NASCAR. What gives?

I like Kyle. Kyle is a cool cat. But come on, where is the consistency on this policy?

Next topic again please…

Our good little buddy Kyle Busch! Here’s the deal folks – you may not like him or he may be your favorite driver, either way the kid can drive a race car.

Bottom line without holding anything back, Kyle got fired. When have we ever heard of a driver winning races, running in the top 12 and getting fired? Doesn’t happen.

As much as people want to point at Kyle and blame his attitude for getting the boot, it was 100% a choice. Hendrick picked Junior over Kyle.

At the end of the day it’s Rick Hendrick’s choice and by golly I respect his decision. But I am man enough to step up and admit that if Junior doesn’t beat Kyle to a Nextel Cup Series championship, I’ll be one of the first to wonder who got the better deal.

Make The Whole Team Sit!!

By Mark Young

The verdict is in, NASCAR has matched previous penalties regarding COT infractions and now the #24 and #48 teams will have new crew chiefs for the next six races.  I applaud NASCAR for finally showing some consistency with handing down rulings but this time it shouldn't have been consistent.  If Chad Knaus was being judged by a court of law he would be sent up the river for a long time as a repeat offender.  The only way to get through to some of these guys is to sit the whole team.

Chad Knaus has a rap sheet longer than my kids' Christmas list, that is no secret.  I heard on Sirius this morning that he has gotten busted eight times (not confirmed) and this is his second suspension in two years.  $100,000 is chump change for these teams and in reality 100 points means nothing because they get wiped clean when the Chase starts.  If NASCAR wants to make a statement then they should hit them hard and make them sit at least one race.

Bending the rules is part of the history of the sport and I don't want to lose that.....to an extent.  Things that are extreme like twisted bodies, tweaked fenders, trick shocks, and modified spoiler brackets that go beyond the limits of NASCAR's "Thou Shalt Not Cheat" mandate must be handled swiftly and with severe consequences.  The guys that find little improvements and advancements that are still within the "gray area" and get caught should suffer as well but at a smaller scale proportionate to the penalty.

I would hate to see a driver who likely didn't know about the violation or wasn't involved with the decision to do it be punished but that is what it is going to take.  Let an owner explain to a high-profile sponsor about why they are getting such negative media attention and we will see an end to extreme violations of the rules.

That's what I think, what say you?

Juan Pablo Montoya is King

By Mark Young

Well Juan Pablo Montoya did it.  He won his first ever NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series race on Sunday in dramatic fashion.  I think this is a great thing for NASCAR though many people don't agree.  There appears to a large contingent of "fans" out there that think Montoya doesn't belong or doesn't deserve the credit he gets from the media.  Well people I think he deserves every ounce of credit and then some, that is why I have crowned him King Of France Mountain for the week.

U WANT SOME?

Some have said he drives too aggressive, does anyone remember Dale Earnhardt?  How about the beatin' and bangin' Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart did at the end of the race on Sunday?  Oh that's right they are REAL NASCAR DRIVERS.  For some reason  people out there feel he shouldn't here and won't recognize him as a true driving talent.  Face it people this is diversity at it's finest.

JPM is the most talented road racing driver in NASCAR, period.  In fact, I would stick my neck out and say by the time JPM is done in NASCAR he will be compared to the all-time greats as one of the best to get behind the wheel of a stock car.  He will figure out how to drive ovals, we have seen glimpses of the future when he ran so well at Atlanta, he will win races other than road courses.

Congratulations Juan Pablo, well done.

That makes me... the winner?

By DAVID GREEN

Quickly, now, before the news breaks about NASCAR sentencing Chad Knaus and Steve Letarte to a prison colony on the Planet Mungo and that's all everyone will be talking about, let's hear it for Aric Almirola. You remember Aric, the guy who won his first career victory in NASCAR's big leagues -- sort of -- Saturday night at Milwaukee.

In what has to be the weirdest development in racing in some time, Almirola won the pole in place of the absent Denny Hamlin and then, when Hamlin was late arriving from Sonoma for the race, he started the car and led the field to the green flag.

Things were going just great for the young driver -- and then, Hamlin arrived.

Incredibly, the Gibbs Racing team called Almirola in for a driver switch. Even more incredibly, after falling a lap down during the lengthy pit stop, Hamlin roared back to win. To win a victory that won't even be credited to him. A victory that will be credited to Aric Almirola.

This must be some new strategy for motivating young drivers. Sounds like something a consultant cooked up and sold to Joe Gibbs.

As Dr. Phil might say, "How's that working for you, Aric?"

The cliche is that you never forget your first victory. I'll bet Aric would like to forget his -- no, check that. He'd like to remember it. All 250 laps of it.

Oh, well. NASCAR continues to change. Guess we'll have to add a statistical category for "saves" and credit Denny with the first one.

The Snorer in Sonoma

By Keith Ott

That was it?  This was your event where going left and right turns boy drivers into men?  Tell me y’all were just kidding and that the real race is tonight.  Please, please, please, please, please, tell me that.  I won’t be mad. I promise.  Because, whatever it was that I watched on TV yesterday, it had nothing to do with racing.  I can, however, now define the term “strategy” as it relates to RC racing.

Strat-e-gy (n) – used to describe a racing event characterized by an extreme lack of competition predictably culminating in a fuel mileage finish; see boring, dull, lame.

Race Notes:

The COT seems to have equalized the RC racing skills.  No-one, including the ringers, seemed to be able to do anything with it.  Of the few lead changes I saw, most were the result of pit work and timing.

Hamlin’s shifter mysteriously breaks off.  Team officials question Almirola.

Has Montoya worn out his welcome yet?  For a perfect score he should have hit the pace truck.  He hit everything else on the track.

How about that TV coverage during the last 40 laps?  Let’s just follow 3 cars to see if they run out of fuel.  I guess the other 40 cars weren’t racing hard enough to put on TV.  And, did anyone ever actually see the 55 car on TV?

So, in no way shape or form did this change my opinion of RC racing.  Maybe, you’ll have better luck at Watkins Glen. 

Oh, by the way, there's a race Sunday...

By DAVID GREEN

The latest criminals in NASCAR are the crews that prepared the No. 24 and No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolets for this weekend's action at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif. I didn't say that. Fans who hate and constantly bash Hendrick drivers Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson didn't say that. NASCAR did.

Front fenders on the two cars were modified to increase downforce, NASCAR officials said. The modifications were in an area between where two templates are fitted to the car to measure it for compliance.

In response to this violation, the two cars were excluded from practice and qualifying, relegating Gordon -- the series points leader -- and Johnson -- the reigning champion -- to a starting spot near the back of the 43-car grid. Further penalties are expected. Regardless of what NASCAR does, from nothing to execution by lethal injection, there will be complaints.

Am I the only one who is sick of this garbage?

NASCAR has only itself to blame for the impossible position in which it finds itself -- not only in the no-win nature of how it handles punishment for the two Hendrick teams, but more pertinently that the antics of its inspections process are stealing the spotlight from the racing itself.

Perhaps that's a good thing, and I'm just too dumb to see it. Perhaps the product itself is flawed, and NASCAR believes it needs to have a soap opera to go along with the competition. For all I know, more fans are interested in crimes and punishment than in competition, and NASCAR is onto something here.

To be fair about it, perhaps NASCAR is genuinely trying to prevent any team from gaining an unfair advantage over other competitors, with the ultimate objective being absolutely pure competition with results that truly reflect the talent of the driver and his crew to work within the rules and out-perform others.

With all due respect, that seems just a bit daunting.

Whatever the point of it, this continuing saga focuses attention on rules and rules-breaking. And, if that weren't enough, we have other off-track sub-plots such as the Dale Jr.-to-Hendrick story and the NASCAR v. AT&T litigation.

Ironic, isn't it; in the sport we all like to brag about because the racing is so entertaining and competitive, the really good stories have little or nothing to do with close finishes or passes for position and everything to do with the peripherals.

Another missed opportunity for the departed NBC -- another "Law & Order" franchise, this one subtitled, "NASCAR Inspectors."

Just Shut Up and Lose The Road Courses!!

By Mark Young

Stock Cars do not belong on road courses, period.  I don't care what you say there is no plausible reason why these 3,500 pound machines should be trying to do things that other types of race cars weighing half as much with tires twice as wide do all the time.  Yes it is a different type of track that challenges drivers and separates the men from the boys boys darn it if you want to be a great road racer go to F1 or the Champ Car series (or whatever they call themselves this week).

U WANT SOME?

The two road races on the NEXTEL Cup schedule have a flavor of most Busch races.  The Busch-whackers are replaced with Road-whackers who come crawling out of the woodwork as teams try to get as many points possible to help them either find the top 35 or stay there.  I respect the Ron Fellows', Scott Pruett's, Boris Said's, and P.J. Jones' of the racing world but this is ridiculous.

I wish they would drop these two races and go to Kentucky, Iowa, or Rockingham instead.  I sympathize with the fans out there that only get an opportunity to see NASCAR when they come to the road courses, but I can't stand them and will only watch (or DVR it actually) because I need to stay on top of things in case someone out there gives me something to tell them to JSU about.

That's what I think, what say you?

Observations through 5 year old eyes.

By Mark Young

Michigan International Speedway is my home track and each June race we make our annual pilgrimage to partake in the event.  The fact that it is Father's Day makes it even more fun to some as Dad's take their children to the race with them.  This year it was my middle child Zachary's turn to go to the race with me and I made it a point to pay more attention to the little things he saw that excited him, and see things from the perspective of a five year old.  Let's just say that this race was the most exciting event I have been to ever because I lived it through him.

Now let me set this up a little bit.  Zachary is five years old, loves racing, but has never been to a race of any kind.  He knows the majority of the driver's numbers as well as their sponsors so he is pretty knowledgeable regarding the basics of the sport.  We bought Zac a disposable camera and let him take pictures at will so he could make a display for school in the fall.

Zac couldn't believe how big everything was, specially the track.  As we walked toward the tunnel he kept saying "WOW" about how tall the bleachers were.  After walking under the tunnel, and playing echoes for a minute or two" he looked around and yelled "COOL!!!"  Zac was like a kid in a candy store on pit road.  He would yell out the driver or sponsor he saw as we walked past the pit stalls.  We had to stop and get our picture taken in front of Junior's war wagon, Zac couldn't understand why Junior wasn't there......

Our next stop on pit road was the Fed Ex stall to visit with TR.com blogger Dennis Terry from "Over The Wall".  I have e-mailed with Dennis before but never met him so that was cool.  Dennis was awesome and showed Zachary around the pit stall and then let us sit on the wagon while Dennis and I talked racing.  Their stall was right next to the roadway that the cars were pushed down to get to pit road from the garage.  We have several nice pictures of the back ends of some cars and front ends of other cars as Zac clicked off a dozen or shots from on top the pit box.

At MIS you are allowed to walk out onto the track near the start/finish line when you have pit passes.  Zac couldn't believe how steep the front stretch was!!  I got a picture of him doing a snow angel on the checkered line, I am going to send it to Kurt Busch because that boy needs lessons.  We stood there for a bit and I watched his eyes circle the track taking it all in.

After the pit road experience and a long walk back to the car to join our group for lunch and to pack our coolers we made it to our seats in the 6th row.  Zac swears Junior was waving at him during the parade laps in the pickup trucks during introductions and thanks to the fans around us in the seats they insured him that was exactly what happened.  The fly-by scared the crap out of him (I didn't tell him what was coming) but loved the fireworks and seeing all the teams lined up in formation along pit road.

As the race started I didn't even look at the cars going by, I was too busy watching this little boy jump up and down on the bleachers screaming at the cars going by.  I walked him down against the fence during a restart so he could get a true sense of the speed and what 180+ mph was like.  At lap 100 I looked down to check on him to find him sound asleep!!  A special thanks to my friends from Windsor, Canada sitting behind us who helped me keep him in the shade and cool while sleeping.  Zac woke up in time to see the end and was a bit sad that it was over.

I know this blog was a bit long and not quite like the stuff I ordinarily write following a race but this wasn't an ordinary race for me.  This was by far the best day of NASCAR racing I have ever had.  To see the true excitement and anticipation in my son's eyes as he watched things going on around him I realized that I need to pay a little more attention to the details of a race and not so much on the glamor and glitz the sport has become.  I hope all of you fathers out there enjoyed your special day as much as I did.

Playing big-business hardball

By DAVID GREEN

You just knew we hadn't heard the last of it when that circuit judge ruled that Richard Childress could, indeed, put AT&T logos on the No. 31 Chevrolet driven by Jeff Burton. Sure enough, the other shoe dropped on Sunday, when NASCAR filed suit seeking $100 million in damages -- and the right to kick out or deny access to any of the competitors of Nextel, the Cup Series title sponsor.

All this stuff is far, far above the realm of an avid race fan/part-time journalist/high school English teacher. This is big business. The dollar figures are in numbers I can't even imagine, never mind count, keep up with and balance.

So, that leaves me and much of NASCAR Nation, those who are not accountants or corporate lawyers, to just evaluate this situation from our perspective here at the Poor House.

Frankly, I have no prediction about what's going to happen. I have no idea whether NASCAR's claim that it granted such exclusivity to Nextel will stand another test. That it failed to pass muster the first time around doesn't really mean very much.

I have no idea whether AT&T's claim that it has the right to sponsor the RCR Chevrolet is legitimate, either. The fact that it has been awarded that right is history, and now another court test awaits.

I do happen to have some opinions on the matter, for whatever they may be worth.

I think, with all the revenue streams it has and with the enormous wealth it has accrued, NASCAR needs Nextel less urgently than Richard Childress Racing and Team Penske need their sponsors. What NASCAR's suit seeks to do, effectively, is terminate those deals RCR has with AT&T and Penske has with Alltel.

I have to question NASCAR's judgment in granting such absolute exclusive rights to one corporate entity. I mean, it's not exactly the same as McDonald's having a relationship with Coke, where the consumer is actually limited in his choice of beverage. And heck, even in that example, the consumer can get his Big Mac to go and enjoy it with the Pepsi or Sun-Drop that he can buy at the next-door convenience store.

Looking at it from the opposite point of view, is it really necessary to have such exclusivity in order to make the decision to sponsor the Cup Series a good idea? Is the exposure your company gets from just being the title sponsor not enough? The signage, the identity that (unlike all event sponsors) you are guaranteed to have hyped by the television networks and used by just about all print and online writers except Mike Daly?

I have a racer's mentality, so I think Nextel's demand not to have to compete in this particular microcosm of the marketplace at large is cowardly. If they don't think they can compete, why race at all? Do they think race fans won't know about alternate telecommunications services if AT&T and Alltel are kicked out of the Nextel Cup Series? Do they think their services and products are inferior and therefore don't want them compared side by side anytime they can avoid it?

The suits in high-rise offices won't read this anyway, but if they did, they'd chuckle about how naive this avid race fan/part-time journalist/high school English teacher is.

But where I come from, and here in small-town middle America where I live, one of the most important aspects of a business plan is to establish a rapport with the customer. The best way to do that is by demonstrating character, integrity and good will. Make your profit in a way that satisfies the customer, not by heavy-handed manipulation or exploitation of your competition.

That's probably out-of-date thinking, but it's how I feel. There may be some people who relish this high-stakes tussle in a courtroom, but I'm guessing most NASCAR fans find the whole matter pretty darned distasteful.