Posts Tagged ‘Tony Stewart’

Any NASCAR Sprint Cup driver or crew chief will tell you pretty much the same thing about the Daytona 500, It’s not an accurate predictor of what’s to come in the year. Daytona has its own unique challenges being a restrictor-plate race, and tracks like Auto Club Speedway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway are a better gauge of performance, of who’s fast, who isn’t and who is capable of winning.

No driver, especially those with championship hopes, wants to start the year with a bad race at Daytona. Last year, for example, Mark Martin suffered through two engine failures and a catastrophic tire explosion in the first four races and spent the next 22 races furiously digging out from 34th in points to get back in the top 12 in points.

Several of the top drivers in the Cup series had a disappointing Daytona 500, so they’ll be looking to rebound in a big way Sunday at Auto Club Speedway in Southern California, with the running of the Auto Club 500.

Six of the 12 drivers who qualified for the Chase for the Sprint Cup in 2009 finished outside the top 20 in the Daytona 500: Tony Stewart (22nd), Kurt Busch (23rd), Jeff Gordon (26th), Kasey Kahne (30th), Ryan Newman (34th) and Jimmie Johnson (35th). Certainly, it isn’t panic time for any of them by a long shot.

“It sucks,” Johnson said of his Daytona 500, which ended with a broken rear axle. “But it’s a long season and we came out of here last year with a crashed race car and still came back. We have a little work ahead of us.”

“Daytona was very disappointing – more so than I think a lot of people realize,” said Newman, Stewart’s teammate at Stewart-Haas Racing. “We were just biding our time in the back of the field and, with 10 laps or so to go, we decided it was time to make our move. I don’t really know what happened, but I was the recipient of it. We were seven laps from the end of the race, well before the green-white-checker, and we ended up with a destroyed race car. It was just very disappointing. We wanted to come out of the box strong at Daytona, but we walked away with a 34th-place finish. We had good cars but we didn’t get the finish we wanted.”

Gordon, who finished second at both ACS races last year, is ready for better days, too.

“I’m hoping we can run better and get better as the season goes on,” said Gordon, “I certainly feel that we have that capability. Last year, I think we were the best team during the first 10 races, but we flattened out. We’re looking at the championship differently this year. We want to start the season off right, but we want to build and get better as the season goes along. “And show our strengths at the right time — not only for winning races, but battling for the championship.”

Speed TV contributed to this report.

At the Texas Motor Speedway Cup drivers Tony Stewart, Kurt Busch, Greg Biffle and Brian Vickers became the first to conduct an on-track test with a new aluminum spoiler package that could be implemented for the 2010 season during the Goodyear Tire test at Texas Motor Speedway on Tuesday.

Stewart was the first of the group to test the spoiler in the morning session, which was delayed nearly two hours from its 9 a.m. CT start time due to moisture on the 1.5-mile, high-banked oval from heavy morning dew.

The session kicked off at approximately 10:53 a.m. with temperatures in the 60s as Stewart rolled out with the wing and less than 40 minutes later was utilizing the spoiler. Vickers also got an opportunity to run the spoiler in the abbreviated morning session.

By the reaction of the drivers it seems like NASCAR is going in the right direction with the spoiler change.

NASCAR has not determined the specific dimensions as yet for the spoiler, but the one that was being used as a baseline at Tuesday’s
session was 64.5 inches wide and four inches in height with no contour in the design. Also, the rear quarter panels were extended four inches toward the ground.

NASCAR phased out the traditional spoiler on the rear deck lid of the Cup cars and went to a rear wing when the [new car] was unveiled in 2007. The return to the traditional look provides fans with the ability to differentiate between the four manufacturers more easily and hopefully enhance the passing ability of the cars and overall race action. Tuesday’s tire test was the first opportunity for drivers to test the package and provide feedback on its effects on the car.

Biffle and Busch had to wait until the afternoon session to test out the spoiler, with Busch not getting an opportunity until nearly the culmination of the session.

“With the spoiler on, the car had a looser feel to it,” Busch said. “The car was turning better and it felt like the car was sliding a bit more. ”

Stewart, Busch, Biffle and Vickers will conclude the Goodyear test Wednesday, where they are scheduled to test the spoiler package once
again. NASCAR will conduct another test with the spoiler March 23-24 at Charlotte Motor Speedway another 1.5-mile oval and sister track to TMS that will be open to all Cup teams.

“I think we’re stirring up the pot with the change, but it’s in a positive direction,” Busch said. “A lot of times NASCAR throws changes our way and the drivers and owners grumble about it.   With the spoiler, it seems like a positive reaction has been made already and just driving in it Tuesday, I don’t see any problem with it at all.”

If NASCAR is pleased with the progress and performance of the spoiler, the new package could be implemented for the Samsung Mobile 500 scheduled for April 15-18 at Texas Motor Speedway.

Earlier this year in Concord, N.C, a select number of drivers and NASCAR met at the R&D Center to discuss what would be the best way to move forward in the 2010 season.

At the top of the list from the technical side appears to be searching for a solution to keep Sprint Cup cars from lifting off the track during a spin. Consequently, NASCAR could introduce a spoiler for the new car as early as the Bristol or Martinsville race.

The spoiler change is for two reasons  to keep cars from launching and in response to fans’ dislike of the wing, according to NASCAR.

Ryan Newman, who was involved in a horrific crash at Talladega on Nov.1, said  he would welcome the change.

NASCAR.com

Fox Sports

contributed to this report.

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What another great race from Daytona International Speedway. Close racing just about all night with tons of lead changes. But Jammie McMurry driver of the #1 Tracker Boats Chevy Impala prevailed and took the checkered flag winning the 52nd running of the Daytona 500.

The adrenaline rush of the final two laps, the second attempt at a green-white-checkered-flag finish under rules implemented by NASCAR before Thursday’s Gatorade Duels, all but erased the frustration of almost 2½ hours of stoppages as track workers at Daytona International Speedway repaired potholes in the asphalt between Turns 1 and 2.

You couldn’t have asked for a more story book finish. When other teams wrote him off and even Jammie wasn’t sure where he would be for the 2010 season, owner Chip Ganassi  gave McMurry the chance to come back and drive for Earnhardt Ganassi racing.

“Oh, my God!” McMurray screamed after taking the checkered flag. “I can’t freaking believe it right now. Thank you so much. I can’t believe we just won the Daytona 500.”

Later,  in Victory Lane, McMurray fought back tears. Though he won one race last season at Roush Fenway Racing, he struggled in his final year there and was the odd man out from his team’s NASCAR-mandated reduction from five teams to four.

“It’s a dream — it really is,” he said. “To be where I was last year, and for Johnny Morris owner of sponsor Bass Pro Shops, Chip and co-owner Felix Sabates to take a chance on me and let me come back what a way to pay them back.”

With the new areo package and restrictor plate size, cars were not able to come up through the field like years past. There wasn’t a lot of drivers  sitting out back waiting to avoid the big wreck.

The Roush Fenway Ford Fusions look to be strong all night. Greg Biffle in the #16 3M car finished third, Matt Kenseth in the #17 Crown Royal car finished 8th and soon to be father Carl Edwards finished a respectable 9th place.

Clint Bowyer, who led 37 laps, finished fourth, followed by David Reutimann. Martin Truex Jr. and Kevin Harvick the 2009 Daytona 500 winner.

Under the new NASCAR rules the race leader must take the white flag and start the final lap under green before the race can end, unless three attempts at a green-white-checkered-flag finish are exhausted.

The field failed to make it to the white flag under green on a restart on Lap 203, because NASCAR called a caution for a wreck off Turn 2 involving Kasey Kahne, Tony Stewart, Robert Richardson and Jeff Gordon. By then, McMurray had rocketed to second position behind Harvick and restarted next to Harvick on Lap 207.

The push from Biffle gave McMurry the lead he need to win the race.

Coming into turn three on the last lap  McMurry look in his mirror only to see the #88 Chevy National Guard car driven by Dale Earnhardt Jr, McMurray said, “No!” but there wasn’t enough time for Jr to make a move for the win.

Nascar .com contributed to this report.

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Tony Stewart’s stayed up front all day in Saturday’s Drive4COPD 300 Nationwide Series race at Daytona International Speedway his KHI chevy was strong keeping him there.

This will be Stewart’s third consecutive and fifth overall February Nationwide at Dayton that he has won, and showing his dominance on restrictor-plate races in the Nationwide series getting his sixth win. Tying Dale Earnhardt and Dale Earnhardt Jr. for the career lead in that category.

“There were some really good cars that got mangled up Saturday,” Stewart said, referring to crashes that damaged the cars of Earnhardt, Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski, among others. “We were just lucky to be in front when it happened.”

Kevin Harvick, who owns the No. 4 Chevrolet that Stewart was driving in his only scheduled Nationwide appearance of the year, finished third in his own No. 33 Chevy. Justin Allgaier came home fourth and Brian Vickers fifth.

There was some wild racing and on lap 92, Dale Earnhardt Jr in his #88 Chevrolet went for a wild tumble flipping his car on the backstrech, after Carl Edwards tried to squeeze into a small hole in the outside lane. Edwards made contact with Brad Keselowski spinning him into Earnhardt.

“We were having a real good run, and I felt good about our chances,” said Earnhardt, whose company, JR Motorsports, also owns the car Patrick will drive in selected races this season. “I’ll have to go back and balance the books — it was an expensive day for JR Motorsports.”

After an 11-minute red flag for Earnhardt’s accident, Stewart took command for his 15th win in a stock car at Daytona, moving him into a tie with Cale Yarborough for third all time at the storied track. He now trails only Earnhardt (34 wins) and Bobby Allison (16) for most at Daytona.

“I would trade a couple of them just for a win in a Sunday race here,” said Stewart, who is 0-for-11 in the Daytona 500. He’ll start sixth in Sunday’s main event.

Patrick’s scheduled to run the next two Nationwide races, at Fontana and Las Vegas.

“We’ll go to these other tracks where she’ll literally be driving the car, it’ll be handling good or bad,” Earnhardt said. “Then people can start forming their opinions on what kind of learning curve she has. But I feel pretty confident. She’s been in a tough situation with the media and the pressure and the attention, I couldn’t have done it.”
Nascar.com contributed to this report.

Video Courtesy of Speed TV

Man I thought the Gatorade Duels were pretty exciting,  you couldn’t get two much closer finishes that that.

The Roush Racing cars looked pretty strong all day looks like they might be a force to reckon with when Sunday come around.

Not really sure with Dale Earnhardt Jr he didn’t look real impressive but sounded like the car was going to be good in Sunday race according to the interviews he gave. I hope he can do better Sunday than what he has shown the rest of this week.

This from Speed tv.

The Gatorade Duel At Daytona delivered back-to-back thrilling finishes as Jimmie Johnson edged Kevin Harvick at the stripe by .005 seconds – the second-closest finish in the history of the Gatorade Duel since the inception of electronic timing and scoring.

Kasey Kahne, behind the wheel of the No. 9 Budweiser Ford, nipped Tony Stewart at the line in the second Gatorade Duel by .014 seconds to capture his first win on the legendary 31-degree high banks of Daytona.

“It feels great,” Kahne said of his inaugural win on the 2.5-mile tri-oval. “You watch tons of races growing up as a kid. I can remember every Daytona 500, having 15-20 people at my house. Daytona is one of those tracks that has a ton of history. My car owner, Richard Petty, is a big part of that history and it feels good to be in Victory Lane here.”

“As I went by the start/finish line sideways, I looked up and hoped that it was the checkered (flag) because I felt like I was going to spin out,” said Johnson, who posted his first win in the 60-lap event and his third career triumph at the “World Center of Racing”. “Everybody wants this big prize. Everybody wants to win the Daytona 500. I think we sent a message today.”

Johnson, the four-time defending NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion, had to start at the back of the pack after his No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet was involved in an incident during practice on Wednesday.

The car, which the 2006 Daytona 500 champion raced to a second-place finish here last July in the Coke Zero 400 Powered By Coca-Cola, made its way through the pack and into the top 10 before leading the last seven laps of the race.

Kahne, who gave Ford their first win in the Gatorade Duel since Elliott Sadler back in 2006, had a shorter trip to the top 10 –

starting in the middle of the pack and leading twice for three laps.

Mark Martin, pole winner for the 52nd annual Daytona 500, and Dale Earnhardt Jr., who will be starting alongside Martin on the front row Sunday, led off their respective Gatorade Duel 150-mile qualifying races to determine the starting order for “The Great American Race”.

Martin led once for a race-high 28 laps, and Earnhardt Jr. led once for five laps.

Three-time Daytona 500 champion Jeff Gordon will have to go to a back-up car and start at the rear of the field on Sunday after being involved in the final caution of the first Gatorade Duel with only six laps to go.

“We sent our Budweiser Shootout car that we wrecked on the last lap (Saturday night) home,” said Steve Letarte, crew chief of the No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet. “They’ve already repaired that, so that car is as good as new. We’re better off bringing that car out. (It’s) been back to the shop, repaired and ready to come back down.”

Of the 19 drivers who were not guaranteed a spot in Sunday’s season opener, Michael McDowell and Max Papis raced their way into the field during the first Gatorade Duel and earned their first career starts in the Daytona 500.

Mike Bliss and Scott Speed earned the transfer spots into the Daytona 500 in the second Gatorade Duel while two-time Daytona 500 champion Bill Elliott, Joe Nemechek, Bobby Labonte and Michael Waltrip earned a starting spot with their qualifying times.

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