Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com Autoblog http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.autoblog.com/media/feedlogo.gif Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com en-us Copyright 2009 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[NASCAR turns right, headed to Road America in 2010]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2009/12/23/nascar-turns-right-headed-to-road-america-in-2010/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/12/23/nascar-turns-right-headed-to-road-america-in-2010/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/12/23/nascar-turns-right-headed-to-road-america-in-2010/#commentsFiled under:



Some motorsports fans take issue with the fact that the vast majority of NASCAR tracks are little more than a series of left turns. This is for you, roundy-round jokers. The official sport of the South is mixing in some right turns and working the brakes a bit more in 2010 with a pair of road courses. The first race, a June 20 Sprint Cup affair at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California, was already on the books, and now the truck racing series has added a second road course on June 19. The Nationwide Truck Series race will be held at Road America near Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, where a scenic 4.04 mile, 14 turn course awaits tailgate-loving NASCAR drivers.

We joke about NASCAR and right turns, but Wisconsin native Paul Menard thinks the biggest challenge will come courtesy of the brake pedal. "Braking will be the hardest aspect. Strategy will play a big part in this race." NASCAR hasn't run a national cup race at Road America since way back in1956, back when race cars used carburetors weren't as fast. Racing Road America will likely be a challenge for drivers who participate in both NASCAR Series, as a trip from Wisconsin to California inside of 24 hours sandwiched between a pair of tough races doesn't sound at all easy to us.

Whether you love NASCAR or you can't stand it, we're thinking middle America's racing sport of choice deserves hats off for mixing it up a bit this year.

[Source: NASCAR | Image: Road America]

NASCAR turns right, headed to Road America in 2010 originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 23 Dec 2009 16:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>motorsportsnascarNationwide SeriesNationwideSeriesroad americaroad courseRoadAmericaRoadCoursesprint cupSprintCupstock carstock car racingStockCarStockCarRacingWisconsinWed, 23 Dec 2009 16:56:00 EST<![CDATA[VIDEO: NASCAR's Dickies 500 shows you how to properly deliver a pace car]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2009/11/10/video-nascars-dickies-500-shows-you-how-to-properly-deliver-a/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/11/10/video-nascars-dickies-500-shows-you-how-to-properly-deliver-a/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/11/10/video-nascars-dickies-500-shows-you-how-to-properly-deliver-a/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , ,

Dickies 500 Chevrolet Camaro pace car delivered in style - Click above to watch the video

The official pace car for last weekend's Dickies 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup race was none other than the 2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS. This, in itself, is no biggie. What's interesting is how the car was delivered to the Texas Motor Speedway prior to the race. If you watched sports over the weekend, you know that salutes to America's veterans were part of just about every event that took place (Veterans Day is tomorrow, remember).

As part of that theme, NASCAR had the Camaro delivered to the track in a CH-47 Chinook helicopter. In the video posted after the jump, you'll see the big heavy-lift chopper touch down, drop its ramp, have the Chevy drive on out, and take back off. At the wheel of the Camaro was NASA astronaut Doug Hurley, who is also a TMS season-ticket holder, a United States Marine Corps colonel, and was the pilot of the shuttle Endeavour on this year's STS-127 mission. Pretty. Freaking. Cool. In fact, short of the Camaro and Chinook subsequently turning into robots and fighting each other on the TMS infield, it doesn't get much cooler. Follow the jump to watch.

[Source: YouTube]

Continue reading VIDEO: NASCAR's Dickies 500 shows you how to properly deliver a pace car

VIDEO: NASCAR's Dickies 500 shows you how to properly deliver a pace car originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 10 Nov 2009 19:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rumors of IndyCar's Danica Patrick dipping a toe into the stock car racing pool have been swirling for months, but a new report suggests that an end to the rumors is near. ESPN says that Patrick is on the verge of signing a NASCAR Nationwide Series contract with JR Motorsports, the operation owned by Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Unnamed sources that spoke to ESPN call the talks "near their final phase" and comment that it'd be a "surprise if it didn't happen." In any case, don't expect a formal announcement until sometime after the Sprint Cup chase draws to a conclusion on November 22.

The potential move to JR Motorsports was made possible when driver Brad Keslowski jumped ship to join Roger Penske's NASCAR Sprint Cup team. According to ESPN, Patrick is angling to drive the number 7 car (the same number she runs in IndyCar), which would replace the current JR Motorsports number 5 car. Since Danica will continue to run the full IndyCar schedule as well, she'd be a part-time driver for JR Motorsports, sharing the race car with Junior and another unnamed driver. If the signing happens and NASCAR gives its blessing, Danica will make her first stock car appearance in the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 ARCA race on Feb. 6 during the Daytona Speedweeks, and go on to drive in 12 to 13 Nationwide Series races during the 2010 season. Frankly, given NASCAR's feel for marketing and Danica's undeniable celebrity, we see no way that she won't be in place for a debut during the February Speedweeks, assuming she does indeed ink the rumored deal.

[Source: ESPN | Image: Robert Laberge/Getty]

ESPN: Danica Patrick close to two-year NASCAR Nationwide deal originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>Brad KeslowskiBradKeslowskidanicadanica patrickDanicaPatrickESPNIndy carIndyCarJr motorsportsjr motorsports ESPNJrMotorsportsJrMotorsportsEspnnascarnationwide seriesNationwideSeriesroger penskeRogerPenskesprint cupSprintCupThu, 05 Nov 2009 10:39:00 EST<![CDATA[GM to make "NASCAR-wide" funding cuts]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2009/06/14/gm-to-make-nascar-wide-funding-cuts/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/06/14/gm-to-make-nascar-wide-funding-cuts/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/06/14/gm-to-make-nascar-wide-funding-cuts/#commentsFiled under: ,



The scalpel of bankruptcy that is slicing off GM's sponsorship activities hasn't touched NASCAR's top tier Sprint Cup series, but the Nationwide and Camping World Truck series' have been trimmed. NASCAR drivers Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Kevin Harvick have teams running in the lower two series, and have been told by GM that they will lose funding.

Harvick runs three trucks in the Camping World Truck Series and hasn't commented on what GM's move will bring. Earnhardt, with the backing of Hendrick Motorsports, fields two cars in the Nationwide series and a team spokeswoman said "we are fully capable of adjusting our business model to this change" to continue racing.

For now, Chevrolet has no plans to pull out of NASCAR entirely and the Sprint Cup remains immune to the cost cutting. As the red carpet event, everybody knows the fans want to see Chevrolet doing the ovals, and we imagine there will be quite a few other painful measures taken before the Bowtie would bow out of oval racing.

[Source: AP via Google News]

GM to make "NASCAR-wide" funding cuts originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 14 Jun 2009 10:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jeremy Mayfield, a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver with five career victories, has become the first driver suspended for substance abuse since the sanctioning body's no-nonsense policy took effect this season. Jim Hunter, NASCAR's vice president of corporate communications, would not say what the specific substance was, but he did clarify that it was not alcohol-related. As of last September, NASCAR tests all drivers and crew members at the start of the season, and randomly throughout the year. Mayfield, 39, drives for Mayfield Motorsports, his own team. The suspension prevents him from leading or driving, but nothing prevents the team from being run by someone else with a replacement driver behind the wheel.

Mayfield released the following statement to Sports Illustrated on Saturday: "As both a team owner and a driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, I have immense respect for the enforcement policies NASCAR has in place. In my case, I believe that the combination of a prescribed medicine and an over the counter medicine reacted together and resulted in a positive drug test. My Doctor and I are working with both Dr. Black and NASCAR to resolve this matter." Thanks to Patrick for the tip.

[Source: Miami Herald, quote from Sports Illustrated]

NASCAR's Mayfield reportedly suspended for substance abuse, says prescription meds to blame originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 10 May 2009 15:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>Jeremy MayfieldJeremyMayfieldNASCARSprint CupSprint Cup SeriesSprintCupSprintCupSeriesSubstance AbuseSubstanceAbuseSuspensionVictorySun, 10 May 2009 15:01:00 EST<![CDATA[Ganassi shuts down Franchitti's NASCAR ride]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2008/07/02/ganassi-shuts-down-franchittis-nascar-ride/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/07/02/ganassi-shuts-down-franchittis-nascar-ride/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/07/02/ganassi-shuts-down-franchittis-nascar-ride/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Okay, we'll admit it. Most of us here at Autoblog aren't big NASCAR fans. But we have been intrigued by the recent migration of championship-winning open-wheel racers to the stock car series. Former Indy 500 and Monaco GP winner Juan-Pablo Montoya seems to be making a go of it, while fellow Indy and F1 champ Jacques Villeneuve has all but given up hope of ever making it with the good ol' boys. But how about Dario Franchitti? After winning both the Indy 500 and the IRL title, Franchitti made the move to NASCAR. Unfortunately, however, his skills in open cockpits have yet to translate to closed ones in the same way as they have for his Colombian team-mate, and his sponsorship cash in the top-level Sprint Cup has run dry after Coors Light dropped the No. 40 Dodge.

Team principal Chip Ganassi has had no choice but to shut down Franchitti's ride as a result. Ganassi emphasized that Dario is encouraged to continue in the second-tier Nationwide Series, and after Franchitti finds his speed again we hope to see him rubbin' bumpers and taking names back in the Sprint Cup soon. In the meantime he'll just have to take solace in the arms of his wife Ashley Judd... poor guy.

[Source: AutoWeek, Photo by Todd Warshaw/Getty Images]

Ganassi shuts down Franchitti's NASCAR ride originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 02 Jul 2008 16:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You've heard it all before. "People watch car racing for the crashes," has been a familiar refrain for what seems like forever. While that stereotype surely applies to a portion of the viewers who tune in, most fans watch motorsports because they like motorsports. (How novel, we know.) That said, there's no denying that some crashes are hard not to watch, regardless of your level of interest in racing.

One these occurrences took place yesterday at the Texas Motor Speedway during qualifying for tomorrow's Samsung 500 Sprint Cup race. Michael McDowell was piloting his #00 Aaron's Toyota Camry when the rear end got loose coming out of a turn. Things then got very bad, very quickly, and McDowell went into the wall at around 180 miles per hour. The engine bay burst into flames and the car went into a slide on its roof that led to several barrel rolls before it finally came to rest. Track officials helped McDowell out of the burning car and with a wave to the fans, he walked away.

It's got a silly name, it's not much to look at, and it further homogenizes the field, but the NASCAR Car of Tomorrow seems able to take some very serious punishment while keeping its driver safe. Ultimately, that trumps everything else. We're glad to see that McDowell's okay. Bummer about your car, though, dude.

Thanks to Taylor for the tip.

[Sources: NASCAR, YouTube]

VIDEO: Think the NASCAR Car of Tomorrow's not tough? Watch this. originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 05 Apr 2008 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Toyota has just raised its profile in NASCAR's top racing series. For the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup (née NEXTEL Cup) season, Joe Gibbs Racing will trade in its Chevrolets for Toyota Camrys (or at least cars with Toyota Camry headlight and grille stickers decorating their noses). In terms of star power, it means that Toyota picks up some very big names in Tony Stewart, Kyle Busch, and Denny Hamlin. Stewart showed how receptive he was to the change by announcing plans to sign a contract extension with JGR that keeps him on the NFL coaching legend's race team through the '09 season.

In a piece he wrote for FOXSports.com, Darryl Waltrip (whose brother Michael's team also runs Toyotas) said that the deal is a boon for both Toyota and JGR, because the adoption of the Car of Tomorrow for the full season next year basically levels the playing field where the cars themselves are concerned. The engines will be the difference-makers on the technical front. Waltrip feels that Gibbs' excellent engineering team will work wonders with the Toyota race engine, and that the JGR Camrys should be competitive right away. We'll see how right or wrong he is on Sunday, February 17, 2008, when the green flag waves at Daytona.

Follow the jump for press releases from Toyota and JGR.

Thanks for the tip, Saimin.

[Sources: Toyota Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing, NYT Wheels Blog, FOX Sports]

Continue reading Joe Gibbs Racing drops Chevy for Toyota in '08 NASCAR season

Joe Gibbs Racing drops Chevy for Toyota in '08 NASCAR season originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 06 Sep 2007 10:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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