Off The Wall Racing News

NASCAR


Congratulations to Jimmie Johnson and Hendrick Motorsports for their come-from-behind 2010 Sprint Cup Championship! An unprecedented in NASCAR five in a row puts the number 48 Lowe’s team in rarefied air indeed…
Johnson now stands next to sports icons such as the New York Yankees (the best team money can buy), the Montreal Canadiens, the Boston Celtics, NHRA’s John Force and Formula 1’s Michael Schumacher, all with five consecutive championships…
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So… What do Carl Edwards, Jeff Gordon, Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson and Tony Stewart have in common?

2010 – Kevin Harvick
2009 – Jimmie Johnson
2008 – Carl Edwards
2007 – Jeff Gordon
2006 – Jimmie Johnson
2005 – Tony Stewart
2004 – Jeff Gordon

Does that ring a bell? Yep, these are the “would have been” winners of the Sprint Cup if not for the Chase…

Are Johnson’s five consecutive championships tarnished? I’ve gotta believe Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, Cale Yarborough and yes, current drivers Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart all did it the hard way…

Has NASCAR gained on any of the other major sports with its Chase? We all know the answer to that one…

So now we’re hearing that despite the greatest Chase in the format’s seven year history, more tweaks may be on the way as NASCAR still searches for those "Game 7" type moments.

Suggestion… Put some REAL money on the line and have a nationwide NASCAR sponsored fantasy league. The winner will get what… One hundred grand? Then feed diminishing returns to the top eleven finishers below the overall champ. You want people to pay attention? That might do it… I know in football, fans tune into every game just to check out how their fantasy players are doing. NASCAR needs that kind of participation and a little financial reward might yield great benefits.
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Here’s a driver’s answers to several questions… Who do you think is saying such things?
Who is the most talented driver in NASCAR? The most talented driver in the sport is... (thinks for a moment)... it's either Jimmie (Johnson) or Kyle (Busch). Probably Jimmie.
What's the worst track on the NASCAR circuit? I don't like Sonoma. I just don't think these cars were meant to go left and right. There's nowhere to pass, and we all run over the top of each other and wreck the shit out of each other to get positions.
If you were in charge of NASCAR, what would you change? Everything we do needs to be geared toward making the sport more accessible to the fans – the rules of the sport, how the race plays itself out, how people qualify into the races – everything needs to be as easy to understand as possible.
If a new driver came to you for advice, who is one driver you'd tell him to learn from and one driver you wouldn't? I'd tell ‘em to go learn from Mark Martin, and I'd tell ‘em to not do anything I ever did. Why's that? I don't know. Well...I just don't want to name any names in that category, so I named myself (laughs).
How much longer would you like to keep driving? Till I'm 50 or 55, that'd be awesome.
Who wins Sprint Cup in 2015? 2015? Shit! My dark horse is going to be Brad Keselowski, but...I'm going to go for me. I think I'm going to win it. So I'll pick me, and then Brad Keselowski as the dark horse.
Would you rather be known as a great driver or great person? A great person. That reaches all facets of your being, you know? Not just your job. When you say great person, that includes your family, your friends. I've already done enough to have earned ‘good driver,' so if I can be known as a great person and a good driver, that's better than only being a great driver.
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The 48 team’s pit crew won the Tissot Pit Road Award in Phoenix for spending the least amount of time on pit road (170.246 seconds) and finishing on the lead lap. How about some props for these guys? They are: Clay Robinson (front-tire changer), Mike Houston (front-tire carrier), Joe Slingerland (rear-tire changer), Matt Ver Meer (rear-tire carrier), Jeff Cook (jackman), Caleb Hurd (gasman), and Jamie Frady (catch can). The team's pit crew coach is Greg Morin.
Thinkin’ about it… I could be a great gasman!

Greg Biffle and Roush Fenway number 16 crew, pictured here, won the 2009 Season Tissot Pit Crew Award. The crew members received Tissot wrist watches and divided $100,000 between themselves...

Now, who deserves the Tissot Award this season?
Here were the standings through the November 7th race at Texas...

T1 24 Jeff Gordon 4 $20,000
T1 18 Kyle Busch 4 20,000
T1 17 Matt Kenseth 4 20,000
T1 1 Jamie McMurray 4 20,000
T5 33 Clint Bowyer 3 15,000
T6 56 Martin Truex Jr. 2 10,000
T6 00 David Reutimann 2 10,000
T6 14 Tony Stewart 2 10,000
T9 42 Juan Pablo Montoya 1 5,000
T9 12 Brad Keselowski 1 5,000
T9 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 1 5,000
T9 39 Ryan Newman 1 5,000
T9 2 Kurt Busch 1 5,000
T9 26 Boris Said 1 5,000
T9 16 Greg Biffle 1 5,000
T9 29 Kevin Harvick 1 5,000
T9 5 Mark Martin 1 5,000

This certainly begs the question... Gordon's 24 team was tied for the lead and then won the Phoenix race award on the 48 car... Does that knock them out of consideration? Four crew teams were tied for first after Texas. Go figure...
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Joe Gibbs on Kyle Busch

In an interview on NASCAR Radio’s Sirius Speedway with Dave Moody, Joe Gibbs stated that he’s spoken with Kyle Busch about the profanity laced tirade at Texas Motor Speedway.
"(Kyle) gets so uptight that every now and then, he makes mistakes," said Gibbs. "We've got to do everything we can here inside Joe Gibbs Racing to make sure that doesn't happen. That's what we're totally focused on. We've got a plan laid out, and Kyle has agreed to do the things he needs to do to ensure that we don't put ourselves in that position again. We think he's a huge talent; a smart, bright guy that we enjoy being around. His whole life is Sam (his fiancée) and racing. There are no issues with him running around drinking or anything. He doesn't care about any of that. He's totally focused, and all he wants to do is race cars. (Unfortunately) he gets so wound up at the race track that it's hard for him to handle some of the things he needs to handle. We love his competitive nature, but he just needs to learn to handle things better." Gibbs declined to speak specifically on what discussions have been had, or what guidelines have been put in place regarding Busch's future behavior. He stressed, however, that all parties agree that incidents like his recent outburst at Texas Motor Speedway cannot continue to occur. "(It) was not good for us at Joe Gibbs Racing, and it certainly wasn't good for our sponsor," he said. "We feel like there was a plan that we had to put out there, to assure that this doesn't happen again. We're going to keep that in-house, but it's something that we think is smart, and Kyle does too. He realizes where he is, and that's a great part of this. We just have to make sure it doesn't happen again.”
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Another Crew Chief Change in Junior’s Future?

Evidently the search is on for a new crew chief in 2011 for the 88 Chevrolet. Give me your honest opinion… Do you truly believe Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s problems getting into victory lane are centered on who’s making the calls from the pit box? Do you think the change is Rick Hendrick’s idea or is it Junior’s?


My idea… Put Tony Eury Jr. back on Dale’s box. Yeah I know what happened the last time but just maybe they can figure out how to get tunnel vision like last July when they partnered to win the Nationwide 250 at Daytona when Junior honored his dad’s memory driving the Wrangler number 3. Seems to me Junior needs that kind of incentive and Eury might be the guy to keep him focused. Just a thought…
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Speaking of Daytona, how are things going with the track resurfacing?

The repaving work has boiled down to the skid pads, the apron and pit road. Yes sir! The track itself is done. Wednesday and Thursday, December 15th and 16th, have been scheduled for Goodyear tire testing. The drivers for the test have not been named at this time but a bit of interesting information concerns fans wanting to watch the tests that will mark the first time race cars will be allowed on the track: The Oldfield Grandstands will be open for free access to anyone willing to come. Might be fun!

David Ragan and a couple of brave souls took a spin around the track in a bright red Ford Mustang last week… Check out the video and the wide eyed guy riding shotgun! That dude is not taking his eyes off the road while Ragan is virtually free wheeling! LOL

I can’t wait to enjoy the “World Center of Racing” next February!

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IndyCar

Two’s Company… So Is Three A Crowd?

Just on the heels of Chevrolet’s announcement they are getting back into IndyCar racing in a partnership with Cosworth, Lotus announced they’ll jump in as well.


Lotus Group CEO Dany Behar stated, "We want to really fight and compete with the big guys," Behar said. "But we have a Lotus way to do things. We always try to understand what we are getting into. That's why we started this year with a very small activity with Takuma Sato with one car to understand IndyCar racing and to see whether there was an opportunity for us to become a real contender.

"We made the brave decision. Yes, this is where we want to be. We believe in the series. We believe the series is developing very, very well. I think it fits perfectly very well our activities and strategies in the U.S., which is our biggest market"

The move sets up competition of sorts between the U.S. (Chevrolet), Asia (Honda) and now Europe (Lotus).

Once again the IZOD IndyCar Series appears to be growing at a time when NASCAR seems to be stagnating or shrinking.
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Last week it was a green article about the European Le Mans Prototype (LMP1) sports car division with news of a “flybrid” gasoline / electric engine being readied for 2011. Now there’s word of a Honda IndyCar concept frame by designer Nicolas Stone that may feature an innovative new propulsion system enabling the car to power itself with its own momentum by employing wind turbines to generate electricity from the air traveling over the car at high speeds. The IndyCar is said to be capable of reaching a top speed of over 230 mph! Not sure when or if a prototype will show up on the track, but here’s an artist’s rendition:

I don’t know about you folks, but personally I’m all for this kind of research within the auto racing industry. I see it as one more nail in foreign oil’s casket. The more we learn about alternative fuel powered transportation the closer we are to ending our dependency on people who don’t give a damn about us. The sooner this happens the better off we’ll all be.
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Speculation has popped up about a possible marriage between Graham Rahal and Target/Ganassi Racing for 2011. Hmmm… A top young talent and the dominate IndyCar team?
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Formula 1

Is Sebastian Vettel going to jump ship? Rumors are beginning to swirl that Red Bull may not have a lock on the newly crowned F1 champion. Earlier it was Mark Webber who might be gone… Now Vettel? What’s up with these Red Bull drivers? Or maybe it’s the other F1 team member’s just wishful thinking. But on the other hand Sebastian has stated in the past how much he’d like to drive for Mercedes and Ferrari (like Michael Schumacher)...

Here’s what Red Bull owner Dietrich Mateschitz has to say on the matter: "The
whole 'dream team' - maybe that's exaggerated, but I think it's true - will remain together. They all got even more bound together by that success. I am sure this won't change after having won two titles. One thing is for sure however: in 2011 we will be the hunted ones, not the hunters anymore."
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More on Sebastian…

Winning the Formula 1 championship at 23 years of age, young Vettel is poised to become one of Formula 1’s dominate drivers for years to come. So says the man who brought him into major racing, BMW motorsport director Mario Theissen. "He did a fantastic job - especially in the final four races when the pressure was mounting," Theissen told AUTOSPORT when asked about his feelings on Vettel. "When it didn't go his way, he kept his cool. Among the four or five title contenders, the youngest one was the one who didn't make any mistakes anymore. That was really, really good. He is a top driver, one of the top drivers in Formula 1 already at 23. If it all goes well, he has another 15 years in Formula 1, so there are quite some championships he can win if the car is right."

I’ll bet Mr. Theissen wishes he could rethink letting Sebastian go to Red Bull back in 2007…
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With a new Italian racing venue looming on the horizon (2013 - a Formula 1 Grand Prix is scheduled to run through the streets of Rome), concerns are being raised about Monza’s Autodromo Nazionale course outside of Milan. Monza officials worry Formula 1 may opt for only one Italian site on their schedule in the future and with Rome’s influence Monza may be the odd race out.

Here’s a look at the proposed downtown circuit through Rome…
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Speaking of new circuits for Formula 1… The Austin Texas Environmental Board unanimously approved the United States Grand Prix Site in what is considered to be the most difficult approval to secure. The Austin Environmental Board raised the excitement level around central Texas by unanimously voting in favor of the 900 acre road course plan. Also out this month was the announcement that HKS, the same company responsible for designing Jerry Jones’ new Taj Mahal Cowboy Stadium near Dallas has joined the design team for this ambitious $250 million project. The track and multi-use stadium remains on schedule to break ground next month and be ready in time for races beginning in 2012. Here’s a look at the proposed course:

The 3.4-mile Austin track will combine 133 feet of elevation change and 20 turns.

I like it! Kinda looks like an Indian hatchet…

How many races will Formula 1 shortly have?
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Everybody have a good off-season and a great Thanksgiving!