Nationwide Series

NASCAR Season Midway Review

Well, Kyle Busch capped off the season’s midway point at Daytona with his 10th career win and his sixth this season.

NASCAR’s premier series is in their first full year with the Car of Today, and it has undergone some criticism.  It actually got so out of hand that NASCAR President Mike Helton called a mandatory meeting to tell drivers to basically, “Shut up and drive.”

The first half of the Sprint Cup Series season has provided NASCAR fans with some good, bad, and very ugly races.

On paper, for the most part, this is a record breaking season for competition.  The California race had a record 33 lead changes, the Coca-Cola 600 had 2,580 green flag passes, that was up almost 900 from the 2007 Coca-Cola 600.  The Michigan race tied a track-best 3,204 green flag passes.

NASCAR is getting more coverage than ever.  TV Ratings are up for the most part from last year.  Although some tracks are struggling with attendance, tracks are still selling out.

NASCAR is also going through some economic hardships.  Sponsors willing to fork out millions of dollars a year are few and far between.  Teams are shutting down, Petty Enterprises sold 50% of their company to Boston Ventures.

The competiton is also even, all four manufacturer’s have won at least three races.  All four manufacturer’s are represented in the top 12 in driver points.  There has been 10 different race winners, 11 different pole winners, 74 drivers have attempted to qualify for at least one Sprint Cup Series race, and 46 driver had led at least one lap.  All evidence that NASCAR has accomplished one goal — make competitors and manufacturer’s even.  Chevy no longer has a stangle hold on the field.  In fact, the first Chevy in the top last week at Daytona will Dale Earnhardt Jr. who finished 8th.

Also, Hendrick Motorsports is apparently struggling.  Despite the fact that they only have two wins, and have three of their drivers in the top six in points.  At this point in the season, Hendrick Motorsports drivers had 10 wins.

Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, and Ryan Newman all led the points standings for the first time in their careers this year.  And, Kasey Kahne and Greg Biffle are back!  They are both back in the top 12, and Kahne has two wins so far.

And don’t forget.  The most-popular driver is showing that he indeeds deserves the attention.  He ended a two year winless streak with a win at Michigan, he has matched his 2007 numbers already, which is answering the question on how Dale Jr. would perform in 2008 after leaving DEI in 2007.  The answer — Great!

Speaking of DEI, recently, sources close to DEI are reporting that DEI could be sold to Max Siegel for as much as $130 million, which would take Teresa out of the picture.  This is still developing, but could get very interesting.

And, you can’t talk about the 2008 season without talking about Silly Season — 2009 edition.

Rumors have been circulating and some are very tasteful.

Sources yesterday confirmed that Joe Gibbs Racing will go to four teams, and Juan Pablo Montoya would be the driver.  Now, wouldn’t that be a combination.  Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, and Juan Pablo Montoya.  Add Joey Logano in the 20 after Stewart leaves to buy into Haas CNC Racing with Ryan Newman as a teammate, and you get headlines for the rest of the year.

Sources close to Tony Stewart say that he is expected to announce his future plans as soon as Indianapolis in two weeks.

As Silly Season continues to unfold, and the season heats up for the chase — stay tuned to NASCAR FanZone for all your NASCAR updates.

Logano picks up first career pole in his second attempt

Joey Logano followed the footsteps of many great drivers in achieving his first career pole in just his second career start. Logano made a complete circuit around the 1.333-mile Superspeedway in 30.003 with a speed of 159.944 miles per hour.

He is now among many drivers to get their first career pole out of the way in their rookie season. It only took Kenny Wallace 2 races as well to get his first career Nationwide Series pole. It took three for both Clint Bowyer and Morgan Shepard, and Greg Biffle four starts.

Joey Logano is living up to the hype so far. Last weekend, for his Nationwide career debut, he started ninth and finished sixth for the night.

Other good qualifiers today were Brad Keselowski, who qualified second and posted his second top-10 start in four Nashville Superspeedway races. It makes for his sixth top-10 starting position so far this season.

Mike Bliss qualified third, Clint Bowyer fourth, and Kyle Busch qualified fifth. Landon Cassill, another rookie, qualified sixth and will start next to seventh place qualifier Scott Wimmer. Carl Edwards, Mike Wallace, and Brad Coleman will round out the top ten qualifiers.

JRM to field a Sprint Cup car in 2009?

Dale Jr said on Friday that his current Nationwide Series team is in the position to field a cup ride as soon as 2009.  However, only if and when the right sponsorship and driver opportunity occurs.

When asked if he would consider Martin Truex Jr to be a driver of a JRM Sprint Cup Series Car, he responded, “Why would he want to come drive for me? He’s in good stuff now and he’s going to have great opportunities from other people. And I would never do that to him.”

“For the first year coming out of the box, man we’ll struggle like hell. Come on, man. He’s going to have deals offered to him by these great companies around here and from DEI. I’ll be at the bottom of that list, right there with Haas [CNC Racing] and a couple of other people. I don’t know with Tony [Stewart] if he goes [to Haas CNC], he might be able to talk Martin into it. But I don’t know, man. I mean no way would I even do that to Martin, even if he wanted to.”

Earnhardt doesn’t seem to think that costs to fund the team would be any higher than they are for the Nationwide Series.

“I used to say ‘No way, no way,’” Earnhardt Jr. said. “But it’s almost as expensive to run in the Nationwide Series. And they’re going to bring a [car of tomorrow] in and we won’t be able to race in the Nationwide Series with [it] probably. That’ll just be too expensive to switch all that over.”

“And the COT program is going to be too expensive for me to justify creating a whole new program with COT stuff, so I’d just as soon go into the Cup Series or get out of the Nationwide Series altogether,” he said.

If indeed he does  decide to field a part-time or full-time ride in the Sprint Cup Series, it is a near certainty that he WON’T be the one driving.

What is up with Smoke?

After some harsh criticism for Goodyear at Atlanta this year, Tony Stewart has did a complete flip on his opinion of Goodyear tires. Stewart actually gave some praise for Goodyear’s tire choice recently, including this weekends harder tire compound at Darlington Raceway - a race track that’s motto “Too tough to tame” speaks for itself.

“I’m the first one to tell them when they screw up and I want to be the first one to tell them when they do a good job, too,” Stewart said.

It only took Tony’s first career win at Darlington during Friday’s Nationwide Series race to give a friendly pat on the back to Goodyear.

There wasn’t many tire failures Friday. The only one that comes to mind was Carl Edwards on lap two of Friday’s race.

Tony wasn’t the only driver that has praised Goodyear’s tire choice this weekend. Jeff Gordon has said a couple times this weekend that he was happy with Goodyear’s decision.

Tonight will be the real test. With the new pavement for Darlington, it has knocked two seconds off the lap times of last year’s events.

Tony Stewart wins at Darlington

After multiple tries to tame the “Lady In Black,” today was the day for Tony Stewart.  Tony Stewart pulled away from Clint Bowyer, the Nationwide Series Points Leader who now leads by 112 points over Kyle Busch in the unofficial points standings. After Tony Stewart crossed the finish line with four-fifths of a second lead of Clint Bowyer, he broke his career winless drought at Darlington.

“It’s this team behind us and this team at Joe Gibbs Racing,” Stewart said. “We just took it easy in the beginning and tried to bide our time and take care of the car and take care of the tires and have something for them when we came to the end.”

Mark Martin brought out the caution on the restart with 3 laps to go when he stalled his car, triggering a six car pile up on the front stretch.

Carl Edwards experienced more bad luck this weekend, blowing a tire on just the second lap of the race, ending the night earlier than expected.

“They dropped the green, and I was ready to race,” said the defending series champion, who finished 43rd as the first car out. “I got loose and hit the wall. I guess I cut a tire down. . . That was a bad mistake, and I learned my lesson there.”

The race had eight leaders.  Stewart led the most with 90 laps, Matt Kenseth had 35, Bowyer with 13, Rowdy led a total of 6 laps, Kelly Bires led 2 laps, and Ambrose, Ragan, and Jeff Burton all led one lap.

After 8 cautions, a green-white-checkered finish, and 11 lead changes, the headline reads, “Tony tames Darlington.”

Pull Your Belts Tight! Phoenix Preview

Up Next: Subway Fresh Fit 500, Avondale, Arizona, Saturday, April 12, 2008, 8:30 p.m. EDT, 5:30 p.m. PDT. Broadcast on FOX- TV. The Valley of The Sun has hosted NASCAR since 1988. For those of you who hated Texas, this ain’t Texas- NASCAR drivers will go at it this week on a 1-mile oval, with 9 to 11-degree banking in the turns, 3-degree banking on the front stretch, 9-degrees on the back.

Phoenix trivia- Alan Kulwicki won the first Cup event at Phoenix International Raceway on November 6, 1988. The Craftsman Truck Series started running here in 1995, the Nationwide Boys didn’t start running here until 1999.

The fastest qualifying speed here is owned by “Mr. Pole,” Ryan “Rocket” Newman with a 26.499 lap in November, 2004 with a speed of 135.854. Newman “!!” has earned 3 Bud Pole Awards at Phoenix, as has Jeff Gordon and Rusty Wallace

For best race speeds, Tony Stewart ran an average speed of 118.132 in the #20 Pontiac in his 1999 victory, Jeff Burton set the pace in the November, 2000 Nationwide race with an average 115.145 in a Roush Ford. For CTS drivers, Kevin Harvick set the standard with an average speed of 108.014 from his November, 2002 win.

The Big Winners at Phoenix- 2001 & 2006 Nationwide champ Kevin “Happy” Harvick, now the 2nd winningest driver in Nationwide history (32) has won 2 Cup races, a Nationwide race, and a Craftsman Truck race. 2002 Busch Series titleist Greg Biffle has won 2 Busch races and a truck race in the Grand Canyon State, Jack Sprague has 3 CTS checkereds. In Cup driving, Davey Allison, Jeff Burton, Dale Earnhardt Jr. have all won 2 apiece. Defending champion Jimmie Johnson and HMS teammate Jeff Gordon were winners at PIS in 2007.

A record 11 caution flags flew at Phoenix in 2004, The fewest? 2- in 1999.

The oldest race winner at Phoenix was Rusty Wallace, at age 42 years, 2 months and 11 days in 1998. The youngest was Kyle Busch at the ripe old age of 20 years, 6 months and 11 days in the Fall, 2005 race.

A look at history suggests some of 2008’s hottest drivers should like this stop. Points leader Jeff Burton (a 2-time winner) has an average finish of 5.0 over his last 5 races, Dale Earnhardt Jr. (also a 2 time winner at Phoenix) has an average finish over the last five events of 5.6, Kevin Harvick (care to guess hwo many times he’s won at this track?) has an average finish in recent races of 7.2. Denny Hamlin (7.2) and Clint Bowyer (11.4) round out the top five, based on average finishes in the last five.

Based on driving rating, the following five have earned the greatest success at Phoenix: Jimmie Johnson (115.9), Kevin Harvick (110.3), Jeff Gordon (107.0), Kurt Busch (who?) (103.7), and “Mr. Subway Himself” Tony Stewart with a 103.5.

As I said earlier, I expect a better race than Texas. While I do not subscribe to the idea that the Texas race was HORRIBLE, it was a far cry from the bumpin’ and bangin’ we had on the short tracks. But seriously, think about it, has there ever really been a good race in Texas? Not in my recent experience. Drivers will be working on a slower and shorter track and a generally flatter surface with a greater possibility for side-by-side racing.

NASCAR Buzz: What is NASCAR without a lot of complaining? Drivers and fans didn’t have tires to whine about at Texas, so now all the talk is all about the car. How soon we forget! Michael Mc Dowell is alive to race in his home state today because of that car and it’s safety features. I’m sure that not testing in Texas with the new car didn’t help, but we all have to remember that NASCAR is still in a “research and development” mode with the car. You’ve got the best drivers, engineers and a wheelbarrow load of money thrown at this sport- THEY WILL FIGURE IT OUT. One of the main ideas behind this car was it was supposed to be challenging! It is definitely that. Hey, look who’s back! Johnny Sauter is back in the #70 Haas-CNC Chevy, replacing Jeremy Mayfield, after the car fell out of the top 35. On NASCAR Now, Yates Racing owner Doug Yates says they’re be patient- holding out for the sponsorship deal they want. I hope he has deep pockets! It’s really a shame to see two very serviceable drivers like David Gilliland and Travis Kvapil driving in plain white cars…maybe we should take up a collection.

NASCAR Terminology- A NASCAR For Dummies Primer

Wedge, round of- Not to be confused with a “wedgie”, which I’m sure a few readers would liek to administer to me! According to the 2007 Edition of the Officially Licensed NASCAR Record & Fact Book, this is “adjusting the handling of the car by altering pressure on the rear springs.”

200 m.p.h. tape- This is also known as “racer’s tape.” This is duct tape so strong it will hold a banged up race car together long enough to finish a race. It is rumored that Michael Waltrip buys this tape in bulk (and sometimes Juan Montoya has to come over to borrow some).

Wedge: Term that refers to the cross weight adjustment on a race car. Now if only they could come up with a wedge to adjust Kyle Busch’s attitude. The boy can race, but man he’s obnoxious sometimes!! That’s all for this week.

Let’s go out and enjoy this race! NASCAR isn’t perfect by any means, but I’ll take this over what the NBA or Major League Baseball has become any day of the week. Until next time- keep your fender off the wall. Thanks Everybody!

Busch Whacking: Should the Cup Guys Run in the Junior Varsity?

Yesterday, NASCAR called the top ten drivers from the erstwhile Busch Series to discuss a number of issues, not the least of which is the controversial presence of Cup (the top level of NASCAR) drivers at the second level, which will be title sponsored by Nationwide in 2008. NASCAR fans have a number of gripes, and one of them is the fact that Cup drivers have tended to dominate the “second series”- full-time Cup driver Carl Edwards won the Busch Series title in 2007 and veteran driver Kevin Harvick took the trophy in 2006. This season, the highest ranking full-time Busch driver was Jason Leffler (who finished third)- the rest of the top ten was littered primarily by drivers you’d also see at the Cup level.

Cup drivers have been a part of the Busch scene since its inception in 1982, growing out the NASCAR Sportsman’s Division, later the NASCAR Late Model Sportsman Division. The all-time leading winner at this level is none other than the original “Buschwhacker” Mark Martin, with 47 trips to victory lane, many coming after he found success at the top.

Disgruntled fans claim that the Nationwide Series should be a developmental or “feeder” series for aspiring Sprint drivers, that the presence of Cup drivers hampers the development of aspiring Cup drivers and hurts the small Busch only teams struggling to qualify and survive. The reality is, the series has more or less lacked an identity all along. Yes- Busch competition has done great things to further the development of Dale Earnhardt Jr., Martin Truex, Brian Vickers, and most recently, A.J. Allemendinger. By the same token, there are a number of older drivers who race almost exclusively in the middle tier division- Mike Wallace, Jason Keller and Ashton Lewis among others. Heck, we even a have a genuine senior citizen, the 65-year-old Morgan Shepherd still taking laps. Along with that, you also have full time Cup regulars who often pull double duty- Edwards, Harvick, Greg Biffle, and David Reutimann to name a few. They insist they do it for their love of racing- that it’s more fun to go out run with the “other guys” than hang out and watch.

Some suggest kicking full-time Cup drivers out altogether. While expedient, it has the potential to hurt the sport. Honestly, having Edwards and Harvick running around the track draws more fans than seeing Stephen Leicht or Kyle Krisiloff. More fans in the stands of course means more money for NASCAR, the track owners and better exposure for the sponsors. Successful Busch driver Marcos Ambrose has even commented that racing against Cup drivers has helped him gauge his own development. Interesting point.

Others have suggested that Cup drivers could compete, but that they’d receive no points for running in the standings- thus enabling the full-time Busch/Nationwide drivers to enjoy the spoils of success. Needless to say, Edwards hated the idea. I don’t know- it just seems like a half-baked idea. It’d be like a baseball player playing and not recording his stats. It just seems to go against the grain of good, old-fashioned competition. If somebody’s performing with excellence- then he should be rewarded for it.

Now here’s an idea I can buy into: put a limit on the number of races a Cup driver can enter. As I recall, the number 15 has been bantied around, a little less than half the schedule. That sounds good to me. You would give the driver and his team the choice, so it would have the likely effect of having some Cup driver presence in every race. It sounds reasonable to me.

The outcome of this discussion remains to be seen. As a fan, I’m just encouraged to see that it is actually reviewed and discussed. The other sports don’t do this often enough.

A Junior Revival? JGR Wins For Toyota? Early Bird Predictions for 2008

Man, it’s a good thing the NASCAR off-season is short. Fans are going crazy with speculation over what the NEXT season holds in store. We’ll be getting used to new names (Sprint will take over sponsorship at the Cup level, while Nationwide takes over the namesake for the the second tier series from Busch), and we’ll be seeing lots of familiar faces in new places. I won’t get too crazy with reckless prognostications about what I see happening in 2008, but I am certain of the following:

Junior Revival- Dale Earnhardt, recently voted NASCAR’s most popular driver for the fifth year in a row, will give something for his fans to cheer about in the new year. The move to Hendrick Motorsports gives Junior a fresh start after a particularly frustrating 2007 season with a truckload of engine failures and off the track distractions. Junior raced his tail off in the latter stages of the season, but you could tell he was pressing and his demeanor was de-pressing.

It’s also no secret that the move to Hendrick provides Earnhardt the best equipment and resources in the business. Their 2007 performance provides ample evidence that the Hendrick got the jump on the Car of Tomorrow. Add to that the spirit of teamwork that Rick Hendrick has instilled in his organization, and one can see why better things are expected of NASCAR’s favorite son. These guys simply have their act together, and the winning ways of Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon will rub off on Earnhardt.

I predict a minimum of 3 wins for the #88 Mt. Dew/Amp Chevrolet in 2008 and a spot in the Chase.

The Joe Gibbs Team Won’t Miss A Beat- A lot has been made of Joe Gibbs’ announced switch to Toyota from Chevrolet. Toyota endured a rough debut in 2007, as Toyota drivers not only struggled to run well, they struggled to even get in the race! These ill fortunes have left may questioning the wisdom of JGR making such a move, especially when one considers that their star driver, Tony Stewart, has had a long standing alliance with Chevrolet in some of his personal business pursuits.

I say both sides knew what they were getting into when they signed the papers. Gibbs knows that a disastrous 2008 campaign would mark the end of their affiliation with Stewart, who’s up for contract renewal. Toyota is also well aware that their credibility within the sport is at stake. We Don’t know all of what was said behind closed doors, but I am quite sure that J.D. Gibbs was given replete assurances from the Japan-based manufacturer that they would spare no expense in becoming more competitive with their engines.

You know what? I think  they will. I predict that at least two Gibbs drivers will make the Chase: most likely Stewart and Kyle Busch. I wouldn’t discount Denny Hamlin either. Between the three JGR drivers, I predict a minimum of seven wins.

All you have to do is look at how Toyota has performed in the Craftsman Truck Series to know how they develop. They went from being a punch line to powerful in relatively short order. Going with Gibbs gives Toyota a top flight organization to work with, something that was missing in 2007, with all apologies to start up teams like Red Bull and Michael Waltrip, and a reportedly cash-strapped team like Bill Davis.

This alliance will produce…..because it must.

The Open Wheel Invasion Will Be Inconsequential- If the conclusion of the recently concluded season is any indication, there will be many struggles ahead for open-wheel drivers converting to NASCAR. Of the group, I really only see Sam Hornish enjoying any great success as he has the backing of a top team like Penske.

Dario Franchitti may be enjoy some success as he has the guidance of another former Indy car driver (Juan Pablo Montoya) at Chip Ganassi at draw from. As much as I like Jacques Villanueve and Patrick Carpentier, I think they will have equipment and team related issues to deal with on top of a learning curve.

The Hendrick Dominance Will End- Though I expect wins from the four car team at Hendrick, I think the other teams will catch up to HMS. Jack Roush racer Matt Kenseth looked VERY good at the end of 2007 and Carl Edwards also enjoyed a stellar, if uneven 2007 campaign. Ray Evernham’s group will also improve. His partnership with Gillette will enable the former Jeff Gordon Crew Chief to focus on what does best: work on building a winning car. This means good things for Kasey Kahne, Elliott Sadler and Patrick Carpentier.

The Chase?- I predict these guys will make the chase (in no particular order): Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch, Kasey Kahne, Kurt Busch, Matt Kenseth, Carl Edwards, Clint Bowyer, Tony Stewart, Ryan Newman, Kevin Harvick and Juan Pablo Montoya will ALL make the Big Twelve.

Yes- Jeff Gordon will not make the Chase, though he will win 2-3 races.

If I had to hazard a guess for a champion? It will come down to the younger Busch, Junior, Stewart or maybe even Edwards or Bowyer.

O.K.- I’ll go out on a limb here- Tony Stewart will be the 2008 Sprint Cup Champion.

Now I’ve done it. So much for playing it safe.

Worth Repeating: A Look Back at the 2007 Nextel Cup Season

No less than NASCAR sage Mark Martin once said you should enjoy every victory as though it were your last, for it just might be. In today’s competitive climate, winning a NASCAR race is tough enough, let alone 4 in a row like Jimmie Johnson did. Now throw into that mix repeating as NASCAR Nextel Cup champion, and you get an idea of what the driver of the Lowe’s #48 Chevrolet has just accomplished.

The 32-year-old El Cajon, California native became the first repeat winner of the Cup since his friend and mentor Jeff Gordon did it in 1997 & 1998. Johnson blew away the pack with 4 consecutive victories down the Chase stretch, the first to win 4 consecutive since, you guessed it, Gordon did in 1998. “J.J.”’s 10 wins blew away the pack, with Gordon sitting back in second with 6.

Congratulations are due Johnson for his brilliant season. His achievements were overshadowed by one big NASCAR news explosion that triggered off others. The biggest news in 2007?

NASCAR’s Favorite Son Leaves The Farm- Dale Earnhardt Jr. stole the 2007 show with his announcement that he’d be leaving the company his late father founded at the end of the 2007 season. Junior’s attempts to muscle out step-mother Teresa Earnhardt as majority owner fell short, so Junior will move to Hendrick Motorsports in 2008.

Dale’s move has drawn mixed reviews from Junior Nation. Many rejoice at the notion that Earnhardt will be joining the New York Yankees of auto racing, making available to him the best equipment and deepest pockets in the business. For others, the switch represents a move to the dark side, as Junior will be joining forces with the likes of his dad’s last great arch-rival Jeff Gordon.

The Domino Effect- Junior’s defection set off a domino effect of driver moves. Earnhardt’s move left HMS driver Kyle Busch looking for a new ride in 2008. Joe Gibbs Racing, home to the prodigous Tony Stewart, will be Busch’s new NASCAR hangout, forcing former open wheel stud J.J. Yeley out of the JGR picture. Late in the season, Hall of Fame Racing announced they were signing on Yeley, leaving journeyman Tony Raines without employment for 2008. Raines is still on the free agent market.

The Foreign Invasion- With apologies to Ohio native Sam Hornish Jr., that’s what I’ll call the mass move of former Indy Car and other open wheel drivers to NASCAR. While Hornish took the wheel of the #06 car for Roger Penske, he was joined by other faces familiar to him. IRL Champ Dario Franchitti of Scotland made the move to drive for Chip Ganassi and Canda’s own Jacques Villanueve took the #27 for Bill Davis. Patrick Carpentier, also from Canada, took over the #10 Dodge from Scott Riggs.

No doubt the success of former Indy 500 winner Juan Pablo Montoya played a part. JPM hovered around 20th in the standings most of the year, and though he ruffled more than a few feathers with his agressive style, Montoya was a winner at Sonoma and put together a string of solid runs down the stretch.

So far, the other have shown it is not as easy as it looks.

Speaking of foreigners……Toyota’s maiden voyage was a bumpy ride. A number of Toyota drivers had great difficulty qualifying their cars and no Toyota made the trip to Victory Lane in 2007 at the Cup level. Super Speedway specialist Michael Waltrip did take the pole at the second Talladega race of 2007, but otherwise, it was a season of frustration Michael Waltrip Racing, Red Bull, and Bill Davis Racing as they attempted to establish the Japanese founded auto maker- much to the chagrin of the red-blooded, traditionalist NASCAR fan base.

Given their struggles, you can imagine what a conversation J.D. Gibbs started when he announced that Joe Gibbs’ team was moving to Toyota in 2008. For many old school fans, it’s hard for them to imagine Tony Stewart cruising around the oval in a Camry. With contract renewal negotiations around the corner, some expect a possible defection of Stewart to a Chevy team.

Friendly, and not-so-friendly fire- Fighting and rivalries are a part of the game- we just don’t expect to see teammates going at it. Joe Gibbs found himself putting out a fire between his top two drivers Tony Stewart and Denny Hamlin after a wreck between the two in the Pepsi 400. Carl Edwards and Matt Kenseth stirred up rumblings in the Roush garage, after Edwards engaged in some not-so-gentle shoving with Kenseth. Edwards cites a feeling of being undersupported and underappreciated by his teammates. Edwards and Kenseth also engaged in a fair amount of paint trading at Martinsville as well.

NASCAR hot heads Kevin Harvick and J.P. Montoya gave us an interesting show after a wreck at Watkins Glen. The normally calm Kyle Petty went after Denny Hamlin after a late season “get together.”

In other news- Richard Petty announced his team will be moving to the Charlotte area from Level Cross, North Carolina. The King’s organization has also announced the move of former Jeff Gordon Car Chief Jeff Meendering to become Crew Chief for Petty driver Bobby Labonte.

The only Crew Chief Matt Kenseth ever had at the Cup level is also moving on. Citing the desire to be home more, Robbie Reiser will be moving upstairs to manage operations at the Roush- Fenway organization. 

With Junior’s move to HMS, we will see Budweiser’s brand on a new car in 2008. The Budweiser logo will be seen going forward on the #9 car of NASCAR heartthrob Kasey Kahne in a slightly odd pairing, given Kahne’s youthful and clean cut appearance.

Sponsorship changes for NASCAR were also announced. The Nextel Cup will be known as the Sprint Cup in 2008. The Busch Series will also bear a new monicker in 2008- Nationwide Insurance will become the signature sponsor at NASCAR’s second level.

I hope you caught all that. It’s enough to make your head spin- very quickly.