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Bass Pro Shops and Kasey Kahne don’t seemingly have a lot in common, but with the season now in full swing the two are about to have a very similar decision to make: do they stay where they’re at or look for greener pastures elsewhere.

It’s well known Kahne and Bass Pro are in contract years, and given the tension they’ve had with their respective organizations in the past their futures might seem clear; but with recent success and transition both could make surprise moves.

For Bass Pro the transition from DEI to EGR was less than a happy one. It was quite apparent last year that they weren’t putting much into their long standing deal. Even worse, when Martin Truex Jr. left, EGR had to do a lot of convincing to get the company to sign off on Jamie McMurray.

In just a matter of a couple of months though Bass Pro went from skepticism of their new driver, to celebrating with him in victory lane at the Daytona 500. As a sponsor do you stick with the current iteration of a team you’ve been with for years or go elsewhere? Arguably McMurray isn’t the best representative of the company, but if he continues to perform is there any reason for them to move on?

For Kasey Kahne the decision to leave Richard Petty Motorsports is equally murky. He joined Evernham Motorsports in 2004 and in that time racked up 11 wins, including two last year. Since 2004 though, the organization has gone through two mergers and all but lost Ray Evernham’s guidance.

In September, Kahne was among those publicly and privately questioning who was in charge at RPM.

“There are not a lot of answers out there right now. I don’t know if it’s because we’re in the middle of a lot of things, we just don’t have a person in that position. I think Robbie Loomis is supposedly going to be that guy, but I don’t think that he is yet. Is it Foster? You can’t get anything out of Foster. So it’s hard to say who that is, and I think that’s because we’re in a lot of different things right now. But when you’re in things, you still need to keep your team and your guys, your company behind you knowing what’s going on, and we don’t have that. Hopefully, we’ll get it soon. The sooner we get that, the better everybody will be.”

Since that time though Kahne seems like a guy much happier with and much more sure of his situation. That said as one of the sport’s most popular and talented drivers, does he stick with a team that needs him more than he needs them? If Kahne enters free agency he’s sure to be the hottest driver on the market. He’ll likely be able to write his own ticket.

Certainly continued success is going to be important for all parties involved to consider staying where they’re at, but if that does happen is there a reason to move on? And how much success do Kahne and McMurray need to have?

No matter what happens from here on out, I think both have to consider the options available to them. Either one may choose to stay where they’re at, but with plenty of teams looking for sponsors and the likelihood of any number of available seats, Kahne and Bass Pro would be crazy to not see who’s interested.

So what do you think? Will Kahne and Bass Pro stay put? What will it take for their respective teams to keep them? If they do move on where do you think they’ll they go?

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It was announced Wednesday that effective immediately, Todd Parrott would be replacing Drew Blickensderfer as crew chief for Matt Kenseth.  The Crown Royal team finished eighth at Daytona, and I think the move has surprised some fans and maybe even some media folks.  But with what happened last season, and what it took the 17 team to finish eighth at Daytona, the move might not be so shocking.

It’s been well documented that Kenseth and Blickensderfer got off to one hell of a start in 2009.  In their first two races together, the duo scored two wins; Daytona and California.  After those first two though, the team struggled for most of the rest of the season and failed to make the Chase.  It was the first time in the Chase era that Kenseth wasn’t a part of NASCAR’s playoffs.

Fast forward to the 2010 season and this weekend’s Daytona 500.  In the race he’d won just one year earlier, Kenseth struggled mightily with the handling of his car.  He did however manage to bring home a top ten finish with the aid of a few green-white-checkered restarts and some good pit crew work.  But, as they say, it was no picnic.

Over the course of the race, the 17 team made a number of changes to the car to help the handling including wedge adjustments, air pressure, track bar, a shim change, spring rubbers, and finally, a shock change!  Not exactly how you hope one of these races goes.

In the Cup Series, especially for a team that expects to contend for the Championship every year, the setup of the car has got to be pretty close when the green flag drops.  To make that many changes during the race, including two new front shocks is not good.  By the time Sunday rolls around, the setup should only require small tweaks to keep up with the changing conditions during the race.  Wholesale changes, like those that it took to get the Crown Royal Ford competitive, make Blickensderfer look incompetent.

I believe last year’s performances, together with how the Daytona 500 played out for Kenseth & Co. spelled the end for Blickensderfer.  It was the proverbial “straw that broke the camel’s back.”  Something tells me the meeting with Mr. Roush this week was not so pleasant.  And crew chief changes after a situation like this are not necessarily something new for “The Cat in the Hat.”

The whole thing really is a shame too, because as bad as it looks for Blickensderfer, he is not an incompetent crew chief.  You don’t win in the Nationwide Series and the Cup Series for Jack Roush if you don’t know what you’re doing.  But obviously something just wasn’t clicking between driver and crew chief and it was time to make a change.

This weekend at California Speedway
While this weekend’s stop in Fontana, CA is usually not an anticipated one for fans and the teams (see California Doesn’t Deserve A Cup Date), I think this Sunday’s Cup race will be an intriguing one to watch.

The Daytona 500 is always a bit of a crap shoot, and often, teams that might not be contenders can find a way to run well.  You can thank the restrictor plates for that.

But this race should be a fairly good litmus test for who might really be strong this year.  Plenty of teams think they’ve made the necessary changes to compete again (see RCR, RFR) and this weekend will be their first opportunity show it.

California will be the first of many speedway races that will be run this season, and it’s tracks like this that will make or break a driver’s season.  If you can’t run well at places like this, you can’t expect to finish well in the points.

Is Dale Jr. actually on the rise?  Will the down teams from last year come back?  Will Jimmie run away with a fifth straight Cup?  Sunday’s Auto Club 500 will be our first opportunity to start piecing together the puzzle that is the 2010 season.

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Filed under: Jamie McMurray, Daytona Int'l Speedway, Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- As Jamie McMurray sat behind the microphone in his Daytona 500 victory press conference, hands clinched around his face, head bowed, tears rolling down his eyes, too emotional to speak -- the enormity of his accomplishment set in. For him and for us.

The hundred or so journalists typing away on deadline suddenly became quiet, almost reverently watching McMurray in the several minutes it took for him to regain his composure and continue taking questions.

He was so honestly and deeply wrapped up in the moment. His moment.

It was a nice reminder of what it means to feel such genuine happiness. And for the 33-year old Missouri native McMurray, there was also a bit of relief and a healthy dose of redemption.

"To be honest, I was thinking, 'you need to stop crying and answer the questions ... but you know, the harder you try, the worse it gets,'' McMurray explained Tuesday with a laugh.

 

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Filed under: Jamie McMurray, Sprint Cup

Since his emotional victory in the Daytona 500 Sunday, Jamie McMurray has been on a nonstop, coast-to-coast roller coaster ride of public appearances, television shows and other activities that are the exclusive privilege and responsibility of winners of NASCAR's biggest race.

"I don't know that I've ever been recognized," McMurray said Tuesday from New York on the weekly NASCAR teleconference.

"I can't believe in just the 24 hours that I've been here the amount of people that have found me and have brought their USA Today paper up and had me sign it. I can't believe how popular that race is and how, by winning it, how many people realize who you are all of a sudden."

But after trips to New York and San Francisco, the long week eventually winds down, and come Friday, he'll be back at the race track at California Speedway, preparing for race number two in a long season full of opportunity and potential disappointment.

in fact, over the past 15 years, the winner of The Great American Race has usually not been the driver who, at the end of the season, hoists NASCAR's biggest trophy for winning the Sprint Cup championship. Likewise, the eventual season champion often has a largely unremarkable finish in the 500.

Just two drivers -- Jimmie Johnson in 2006 and Jeff Gordon in 1997 -- have hoisted both the Harley J. Earl trophy in Daytona's victory lane and the championship trophy at the end of the year. Otherwise, the 500 winners haven't really come close. Dale Jarrett, who won the 500 in 1996, and Sterling Marlin, 1995's winner, came the closest to taking NASCAR's ultimate double with 3rd-place points finishes after winning at Daytona.

The average points finish of the 15 Daytona 500 winners since 1995 is an unremarkable 10th. Ward Burton, the winner in 2002 after a crazy finish that saw Sterling Marlin try to fix his damaged front fender during a late red flag while leading, had the worst points finish (25th) in the measured span.

 

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Filed under: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Sprint Cup, Hendrick Motorsports

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- They say a picture says 1,000 words.

The expression and attitude of Dale Earnhardt Jr., though, might have said a whole lot more after Sunday's extended Daytona 500.

 

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First, before I get into the meat of this post, I want to congratulate Jamie McMurray and his Earnhardt Ganassi crew.  Jamie drove his butt off and the team did a heck of a job to bring home the 2010 Daytona 500.

Now, after tonight’s race I got to thinking about what it means for the season to win the Daytona 500.  After doing a little research, I’m wondering if winning the 500 might be becoming a bit of a, dare I say, curse?

I went back and looked at the seasons for the previous ten Daytona 500 winners.  They winners are, in chronological order: Matt Kenseth, Ryan Newman, Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr, Michael Waltrip, Ward Burton, Michael Waltrip, and Dale Jarrett.  This list stretches back to the 2000 season.

Over the previous ten seasons, only once has a driver that won the 500 gone on to win that season’s championship (Johnson, ‘06).  And since 2000, only four times has a driver that won the 500 gone on to a top ten points finish.  Two drivers, Burton and Waltrip, finished outside the top 20 in points.

Winning the 500 hasn’t meant that the particular driver hasn’t had success, as many have gone on to win many more races (see Dale Jr, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson).  But it certainly hasn’t boded well for any championship hopes.

If you’ll remember last season, Kenseth jumped out early and won the 500 and again the next weekend at California.  His team then began a 34 week slide that would see them miss the Chase and finish 14th in the points.

In 2008, Ryan Newman won the season opener, and then failed to reach victory lane again.  He finished 17th in the points that year, and hasn’t won a race since.  The ‘08 season would also be the last straw for Newman at long time home Penske Racing, as he moved on to Stewart-Haas for 2009.

Going back to 2007, Kevin Harvick was the Daytona 500 winner, and he too has not won a points paying race since.

Looking over the stats, I’m not sure we can quite call this a curse just yet, but the numbers don’t lie.  Daytona 500 winners have not fared well following their big win.

I also think this brings up an interesting question, and it’s one in which I’d like to get some feedback from you on.  If you could only pick one, would you rather win the Daytona 500 or a Sprint Cup Championship?  Let that roll around, and let me know your thoughts.

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Well the race took a long time to decide a winner. Between the red flags for fixing pot holes and the wrecks it was still a great race. NASCAR has made the right call replacing the green/white/checkered finish. Congrats to Jamie McMurray for running a great race and Dale Earnhardt Jr coming from nowhere to finish second.

It was a great finish between Dale Jr and Jamie.

Jamie McMurray Wins the Daytona 500 : AwesomeWreckage.com ~ Nascar Fan Forum

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Filed under: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jamie McMurray, Daytona Int'l Speedway, Sprint Cup, Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Clint Bowyer predicted that a nearly two-hour red flag period in the middle of the Daytona 500 was merely the calm before the storm.

He wasn't kidding.

When the racing finally resumed for good Jamie McMurray, 33, of Joplin, Mo., held off a last lap charge by Dale Earnhardt Jr. to win the Daytona 500 in double overtime -- a race that may be remembered as much for a pothole between turns 1 and 2 as the exciting finish.

For the fans who patiently endured more than two hours of total red flag race stoppage at Daytona International Speedway while officials twice repaired a pot hole in the track, the ending was a prime reward. It was the first test of NASCAR's new policy of green-white-checkered finishes, allowing for up to three overtime periods.

McMurray led only the final two laps in the No. 1 Bass Pro Shop Chevrolet -- the fewest number of laps led by a Daytona 500 winner in the 52-year history of the race. And his team co-owner Chip Ganassi now joins Roger Penske as owners with wins in both the Indianapolis 500 and the Daytona 500.

 

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Here is our latest podcast which we have renamed into the “Wreckage Report”. Since we talk about the crashes in NASCAR it only seems fitting that we have that name change.

We talk about speed week and all the races down in Daytona leading up to the Daytona 500. The arrival of Danica Mania and all the rest of the news that is happening in NASCAR.

Our predictions are

Debbie : Dale Earnhardt JR

Vinny: Tony Stewart

Lets see who comes closest to the actual winner.

The Wreckage Report Daytona Speed Week : AwesomeWreckage.com ~ Nascar Fan Forum

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Filed under: Michael Waltrip, Toyota, Daytona Int'l Speedway, Sprint Cup, FanHouse Exclusive

Michael Waltrip will continue his family's esteemed tradition on Sunday, as a Waltrip has been in the Daytona 500 field every year since 1973. This year's race is different, however, as it is likely the final one in NASCAR's Super Bowl for the two-time winner of the Great American Race. In an exclusive first-person account, Waltrip shares his thoughts on what the great race has meant to him directly with FanHouse.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Sometime Sunday morning before the 52nd running of The Daytona 500, I'll find time away from crew, fans and media to have that little pep talk with myself most athletes have before a major sporting event.

I've had these talks of affirmation before, and they've been pretty successful. But Sunday is going to be a whole new experience. I've never climbed into a car thinking it might be the final time I get to race on the track that's played such an important role in my career and life.

Sunday will be my 24th and probably final Daytona 500.

Thursday was a roller coaster for us. I crashed in the first qualifying race and it looked like I was going to miss the race. That was a pretty devastating feeling. The only shot left was Bobby Labonte or Scott Speed racing their way into the transfer positions in the second race.

For most of the race it looked pretty dire. It went back and forth a lot. First, they were in then they were out. It was hard to watch. I didn't know until the checkered flag fell that Scott got in and that got us in as well. In 90 minutes, I went from tears of sadness to tears of joy. It was that kind of day. I think in those few minutes fans saw what NASCAR racing is all about.

So now we start 43rd out of 43 cars. But you know what? We're here on Sunday and that's a whole lot better than the alternative. You might ask how I can be optimistic starting 43rd. But you know what? In restrictor plate racing, you can go from the back to the front pretty fast and I hope that's what we'll do.

 

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