It’s back to the Irish Hills this week as NASCAR rolls into Michigan International Speedway and inches closer to the start of the Chase. But before we head to Brooklyn (Michigan that is), it’s time to answer your questions! If you don’t know what this post is, we answer any and all reader questions every Wednesday, right here. So if you’ve got one, click on the ”Ask the Insiders” tab at the top of the page and send one to us. On to the questions…
1. From Michael:
“Fortunately for Pattie and Montoya, Chip Ganassi isn’t Jack Roush.” …..What do you mean?
Jack Roush has an affinity for not letting driver/crew chief relationships run their course (though Bob Osborne has made it longer, his second time around, than some of his peers). Jack’s not a patient man – he wants fast results, and if things aren’t happening within his time frame he tends to quickly make changes (ask Jimmy Fennig, Drew Blickensderfer, Todd Parrott etc.). My point was to say driver/crew chief relationships take time to develop – if Montoya and Pattie were at Roush there is a chance they wouldn’t have made it. – Journo
2. From Rob:
What is the proper etiquette in the garage w/ hot passes?? Thanks guys love the site..
The most important thing is to make sure you’re wearing the proper attire. Long pants, closed-toe shoes, and sleeves (short ones are fine) are a must. Beyond that, just make sure you’re always paying attention to what’s going on around you, and try to stay out of the way of those at work. Oh and have fun! – Journo
3. From Franq:
What would it take to make the Brickyard race into a road race using the excellent F1 course. I think this would put some life into an ever increasing boring race?
An act of Congress maybe? Seriously though I don’t think NASCAR has any interest in turning the Brickyard into a road course race. I don’t think it’s a bad idea; certainly the folks at IMS need to do something to bring life back to the race. I think though making it a road race would diminish NASCAR’s role at IMS – that is to say it would put them on different footing than the IndyCar Series and the Indianapolis 500. It would send the message that NASCAR can’t cut it on the big track, so they’re experimenting. Just my two cents. – Journo
4. From Sam:
I may be in the minority, but I really enjoy the road course races. I’ve noticed many oval tracks with two races also have road courses which use most of the oval but add some infield twisties. Has nascar ever considered using the oval for the spring race and the road course for the fall race, or vice versa. It would be an interesting way of introducing “new” tracks without really changing the schedule at all.
I’m with you, I love the road course races. They provide such a nice change of pace. Remember though NASCAR is primarily an oval racing series. Changing that changes the spirit of the sport. It would be interesting, but as you said there are a good number of people who don’t like seeing NASCAR go left and right. I think they would risk alienating a large segment of fans. – Journo
5. From Dwiltone:
I know that the teams use road race cars at Watkins Glen and Infineon. That aside. In my feeble mind I think that in some ways , setting up a car for a road course would be easier than for an oval track. One situation where lefty righty tighty loosey would equal out. Any insight on my theory? Keep up the good work on the Web site. I read it every week.
I’m not really sure you can say setting up for one is easier then the other. Both styles of tracks have their challenges that must be overcome. For NASCAR teams, road courses may have a slight edge just for the simple fact that we only race on them a few times a year. – T.C.
6. From Doug in CA:
As I watched the Busch race from the Glen today, I noted that some cars are listed as being “out” of the race, while others are merely “off.” Are teams supposed to notify NASCAR when they have decided to pack it in for the day? P.S. LOVE that road racing!
Yes, when a team decides to retire from a race, they have to let a NASCAR official know. The official will then let race control know the team is out of the race. When a team is listed as “off” they are just in the garage working on the car. – T.C.
7. From Garry:
Is it my imagination, or are pit stops backwards at The Glen? It looks like they are coming in and going out the wrong direction. If this is true, how does that affect the way you guys operate..(if i am imagining this..then never mind; )… And could you please explain what the heck was the deal with Kyle Bush having to fix something at the start? Why wouldn’t this be something they had taken care of already? I tell ya…. following along at home by picking a fantasy team each week really makes it more personal … DANG IT!!
Yes, the teams pit the cars backwards at Watkins Glen. I wrote a post all about it in 2008 (click here). Kyle Busch’s team had an issue with their right side weights before the race at the Glen. They were not secured as they should have been, and the weights were sliding back and forth in the tube. Incidents like this can get guys fired. – T.C.
8. From Mark:
How does the pit crew line up stud holes on wheel and stud so quickly? What is the I.D. of hole compared to O.D. of stud?
The tire carriers use a piece of tape as a reference point that allows them to know exactly where the stud holes are on the wheel. Check out this classic TNI blog post for more info. And to be honest, I’m not sure what exactly the difference is between the stud and the stud hole. It’s not much, whatever it is. – T.C.
9. From Steve:
If a driver goes into the pits during the pre-race pace laps (like Kyle Busch at the Glen), does he lose laps if he doesn’t come out before the pace car completes each lap? Or does he simply start at the back on the same lap as everybody else?
Pace laps are not official race laps, so a team would not lose any laps. They will however have to start at the rear of the field. Also, teams are not allowed to add fuel during pace laps. – T.C.
10. From Eddie:
Wasn’t Mark Martin supposed to retire after the 2005 season? Will he finally retire after 2011? I like Mark Martin, but what motivated him to come back to race full time after making retirement announcements like Brett Farve?
Hahaha, Brett Favre. Well that’s a new one. There was an announcement (from Mark) though. I think he just realized there was still a lot of fight left in him, and he wouldn’t be content sitting on his couch watching races. Will he retire after 2011? That’s something you’d have to ask him. I honestly don’t know. At least he’s not waffling like Favre. When he got back in, he got back in. – Journo
11. From Marcus:
When GE Reveal, Philps Norelco, Suave, and AXE Twist sponsor Jamie McMurray are thay really sponsoring him or is it Target “showcasing” their different brands they offer? Jayski put it as “Philips Norelco sponsoring McMurray at Michigan”. Ganassi also does this in Indy Cars with Franchitti. Being he is sponsored by Target, I am asking this. I know it’s kind of a weird question but I am just curious.
Not a weird question at all – in fact I’m impressed you even noticed. Those deals are facilitated through Target, but those sponsors pay EGR to be on the car. It’s like Target provides Ganassi a marketplace of sponsors. Beyond those one-race deals though Target does have a very successful affiliate program with EGR and CGR (that’s why you’ll see Kimberly-Clark or Unilever products on JPM’s quarter panels when they’re running Target colors). Companies pay Target to get better placement in store and in advertisements and they also get the perk of Target’s motorsports program. It’s a win-win for all involved. And from what I’ve heard, Target’s affiliate program more or less pays for the sponsorship. – Journo
12. From Billy:
What are your thoughts on Bill Jenkins and Latitude 43 Motorsports?
I’m guessing you are referring to the recent revelations that Bill Jenkins doesn’t seem to be paying his drivers. This is a very small team, with extremely limited resources that is just trying to make it to the next week. You can’t really fault their efforts, as at least they aren’t start and parking. But when money starts running out, the first people to suffer are the drivers and employees. This is a very common tale in racing. The list of drivers and crew guys that have been screwed out of money by a team owner would probably circle the earth. If Jenkins can’t afford to pay his drivers however, it’s probably easy to assume the end is near for the team. - T.C.
13. From Rowan:
How good is Marcos Ambrose rated as a serious Cup racer by other teams and fans and what is the likelyhood of him having a Cup drive for next season? I think his Cup drive at Watkins Glenn was awesome and probably his best performance I have seen. Thanks and regards…. an aussie Marcos fan
Marcos is certainly regarded as a legitimate driver in the Cup Series. He showed flashes last season that he could get it done on ovals, but he’s just been the victim of a lot of bad luck this season. I think it is very likely he will land with another Cup team for the 2011 season and beyond, with the most likely candidate being Richard Petty Motorsports. - T.C.
14. From Tom Skaggs:
I read this article a few years ago. The question I have is that it appears that Jamie McMurray is paying team expenses (payroll) out of his own pocket. I can understand paying agents, handlers et cetera, but is it common for drivers to be paying for team expenses? I’d assume that team owners would be paying these expenses.
I’m not sure what you read in this article that makes you think McMurray is paying team expenses. This article is referring to some savings that McMurray had frozen for a time due to a bank fraud investigation. Drivers don’t cover any team expenses with their earnings. Many drivers have their own companies and organizations to help manage their careers, and they are obviously responsible for those expenses, but not for the teams they drive for. – T.C.
And that brings yet another “Ask The Insiders Wednesday” to a close. Thanks to everyone who sent in questions. And remember, if you’d like to be a part of next week, click on the ”Ask the Insiders” tab at the top of the page and send your question in!
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I wonder if we will ever quit referring to driver and sponsor movements as the Silly Season. It was initially called that because it referred to a specific part of the season when all this started happening. Now it seems that it starts in February at Daytona. Sorry, I digress…
Has the 2010 Silly Season not been extremely odd? Looking at what we know and still don’t know about who will be where in the future is really interesting. We’ve had all kinds of crazy things happen already, and it’s only August!
Let’s review. First, it was announced in April that Kasey Kahne would leave Richard Petty Motorsports at the end of 2010, and that he’d signed a deal to drive for Hendrick Motorsports beginning in 2012. The move certainly raised a ton of questions, namely, where in the heck Kasey would be driving for the 2011 season. In the four months that have followed, we’ve heard everything from Kasey to Stewart Haas, Kasey to stay at RPM, Martin out at HMS early, and so on and so forth. As it sits today, we still don’t have a single answer about where Kahne will be in 2011. With other teams having open seats, and some considering adding teams, was this move the best for Kahne? Should he have waited to make a move? The ball is in Mr. H’s court.
A few weeks after the Kahne announcement, we learned that Shell-Pennzoil would be leaving the Richard Childress #29 and Kevin Harvick to join Penske Racing and Kurt Busch for 2011 and beyond. It was an interesting move at the time, as trouble was brewing and it appeared Harvick was on his way out at RCR. Besides the chance to sponsor a NASCAR Cup champion, a big reason for the move on Shell’s part was the chance for rights to sell their oil in all of Penske’s auto dealerships. Shortly after the initial announcement however, Harvick won at Talladega, and later decided to re-sign with RCR. Even with the business opportunities for Shell at Penske, this move was still an odd one. You don’t often see a sponsor leave a team at or near the top of the points standings. It may be a little awkward at season’s end if Harvick ends up winning the championship.
The strangest driver change of this season though, just might be the most recent one. On July 27th, Marcos Ambrose announced he would leave JTG Daugherty Racing after the 2010 season. The move ended a five year relationship with team owner Tad Geschickter that took Ambrose from the Truck Series to the Cup ranks. JTG wasn’t driver-less for long, as only a few short days later they announced that Bobby Labonte would replace Ambrose for 2011. What’s odd here though, is Ambrose is now without a ride for the future. We’ve seen plenty of lame duck situations with drivers over the years, but how often has the lame duck driver not had a spot for the next year already locked up when he made his announcement to leave? I can’t think of one off the top of my head. The persisting rumor is that Ambrose is headed over to RPM to replace one of their vacating drivers in either the #9 or #19, but no announcement has come and there are indications that RPM doesn’t have a sponsorship deal lined up. Some have floated that Ambrose may be wanting to return to Australia, but I feel if that were the case, he would have already told us that. He may just be caught in the middle right now waiting for a deal to come together. Either way, the whole situation is very odd.
Besides the situations and questions that I mentioned, there are plenty of other holes to fill for 2011. There are strong indications that Paul Menard is bailing from RPM and taking his family sponsor money to help RCR restart their fourth team for next season. The deal may already be done. If that happens, where does that leave RPM? What happens to Elliott Sadler, who by most indications appears to finally be on his way out? With Brian Vickers health still in question, and Scott Speed’s unflattering 2010 performance, who will drive the Red Bull cars next season? Is Sam Hornish going to be out at Penske at season’s end, or does Roger keep him on? Could Justin Allgaier be bumped up to the third or possibly fourth team for Penske next season?
Where’s the Advil, my head is spinning…
Filed under: Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, NASCAR
NASCAR Stars All Revved Up for Indy originally appeared on Motorsports FanHouse on Tue, 20 Jul 2010 18:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Juan Pablo Montoya, Mark Martin, NASCAR Fights, NASCAR
Filed under: Juan Pablo Montoya, Mark Martin, NASCAR Fights, Sprint Cup, NASCAR
Nothing like a little drama to make things interesting. After a very interesting finish to the Pocono weekend, the Trucks and Cup cars head to Michigan this week, while the Nationwide cars take to Kentucky Speedway. This week’s 78th edition of ATIW is a full one, so we’ll get to it. If you don’t know what this post is, we answer any and all reader questions every Wednesday, right here. So if you’ve got one, click on the ”Ask the Insiders” tab at the top of the page and send one to us. On to the questions…
1. From Ric:
With regards to Burton Smith’s $20M offer. I’m wondering if it would be possible, since the Indy winner would not have time to hang around to do interviews, photo shoots, etc. Would the sponsors just say, NO?
I think you could probably work it out to do all of that stuff the following day. That said, I just don’t think it would be feasible to do it. Tony Stewart was the last to do it and he was so dehydrated and exhausted, he was pretty worthless for the Coke 600. If IRL and Cup Series Champion Tony Stewart couldn’t pull it off, I’m not sure who could. – Journo
2. From Kyle:
Is it possible we will ever see tracks such as Rockingham or North Wilkesboro return to NASCAR in either the Nationwide or Truck series? It would help NASCAR with the hardcore fanbase and would provide more standalone dates for the Nationwide series (making it less likely a cup driver would run all the races, plus more races for a nationwide regular to realisticaly have a shot at winning). Is this even a possibility?
Never say never, but I don’t know if NASCAR would be too interested in re-entering those areas. I agree with you, it would be fantastic to see one of those tracks back on a national series schedule, but it’s hard to see what NASCAR would boot from the schedule. You can count out any SMI or ISC tracks. And Wilkesboro is still owned by SMI and in increasingly bad shape. It’s a good idea, I just don’t think it’s on NASCAR’s radar. – Journo
3. From Allen:
What are the 2 small strips on the left front bumper? They are on top of one another, but about 2-3 inches apart. Never noticed them until practice at Pocono on Carl Edwards CHEEZ-IT car.
Those are the part numbers of the nose pieces. The nose on a Cup car is actually two pieces, and NASCAR wants the teams to leave that part number exposed when they paint the car. You should be able to spot those two strips on most of the cars. I know a few paint over it, but if there is ever a question about the nose, the team would have to sand down the paint in that spot. - T.C.
4. From Lost In Texas:
The #7 has a long history in NASCAR, Alan and Geoff to name some of the recent owner/drivers. With the #7 slipping out of the top 35 last week and missing the race this week, do you think that spells the end for one of the last owner/drivers?
Well, after the penalties come down on the #38 team, I think Robby will have a second chance at life. That said, money is going to continue to be a problem for him going forward. Without sponsorship, I don’t know if I think Robby can or will continue for much longer. The points might not necessarily kill off Robby Gordon Motorsports, but lack of sponsorship very well could. – Journo
5. From Brad:
I’m a Huge Mark Martin fan. I just want to know what’s going on with his season this year. After being fairly dominate last season.
I think it’s a mixed bag over there. You can’t say it’s been a terrible season, he hasn’t had any wins, but he’s 11th in points. His average finish is 15.2 just a tick worse than it was last season, he just hasn’t had the consistency. There is still a lot of time left, and plenty of time for the #5 team to start winning races. Don’t count them out yet. – Journo
6. From Kevin:
Hey guys, just read the article about Phil Parsons, and to be honest I didn’t know before this week that he was going to be part of the TNT telecast. Watching the race today, with the included 2 hour delay, I was pleasantly surprised with his contributions. I thought he did an awesome job and was a breath of fresh air compared to the regular guys. I hope he gets to continue. I think people are letting their negative view of start and parkers infringe on him as a TV personality. I mean, the chance that he will ever need to interview one of his teams is slim and none. I don’t see any conflict of interest, its not as though Joe Gibbs is wanting to broadcast.
The problem is, Phil Parsons being part of the broadcast is exactly like Joe Gibbs being part of the broadcast. Phil Parsons is still a team owner in the Cup Series, whether his team start and parks or not. If an issue occurs with one of his teams he will not be able to talk about it impartially. The same issue could occur with team owners Rusty Wallace and Brad Daugherty. It may seem petty, but I believe the fans deserve an honest and fair broadcast and they’re just not going to get every time when one of the reporters has such a financial interest in the sport. Unfortunately, this is a very incestuous business, and ESPN and TNT are only more than happy to feed into it. In my opinion whether you work as a White House correspondent for the New York Times or as a pit reporter for ESPN (and yes TNT too), you need to adhere to professionally recognized ethics standards. In other words, I’m with Daly on this on. These guys need to decide whether they want to be broadcasters or team owners. – Journo
7. From Ella:
This weekend Harvick’s crew prevented Joey from reaching Harvick on pit road. Do crews have practiced responses to driver disputes on the track or do the crews just sort of take it on themselves to intervene in some way? Is the primary goal just to keep the two separated?
There aren’t practiced responses, but there is kind of an unspoken rule that crew guys protect the drivers. It’s fine if there is just talking going on, but when it escalates, you will often see crew guys step in. – T.C.
8. From Foster:
Hey guys. I am a huge fan of the site! I was wondering, could you explain if more rubber on the track means there is more or less grip for the cars?
In most cases, more rubber on the track means better grip for the cars. As the tires wear, the soft rubber will stick to the track and create more grip. -T.C.
9. From AJ:
After watching Denny hit the wall during his burn out got me thinking about NASCAR’s thoughts on it? Will that affect how the car fits the template and if a team has a borderline item on the car could this type of incident help hide it?
Don’t forget, the cars go through tech before the race, and must fit the templates then. It would be VERY difficult for a team to alter a body during the race that would give them an advantage without NASCAR seeing it. In post race inspection, the cars aren’t required to fit the templates again. Car heights, engines, gears, and other mechanical bits are under scrutiny in those inspections. – T.C.
10. From Matt:
Where does NASCAR get all the prize money for each race? I know that sounds completely stupid, but I don’t know how they could possibly make the millions they have to pay out every week just off ticket sales and what not. Also the start and park teams shouldn’t even get any money, or at least have theirs reduced. Seeing 7 cars pull off before Lap 20 is getting really old for us fans who pay to see 43 cars race, not 36.
No, not a stupid question at all. The money comes from the TV contracts (which is the biggest piece of the pie), and sponsorship dollars through contingency programs. Now in order to get money from these contingency programs you actually have to participate in them. It’s a little bit of a complicated process so I’m going to direct to a good article written by Lee Spencer on how the process works. As far as the start and park teams go, the problem is it gets complicated to prove they’re actually doing it. From the surface it’s easy to say who’s doing it, but not worth the process to tear cars down to prove it. NASCAR doesn’t like the teams doing this either, but they’ve created an environment that allows it to happen. – Journo
11. From Ron:
TNT had some excellent incar shots at Pocono . One thing I noticed is Denny Hamlin’s has very limited rollbar padding and doesen’t appear to have the netting or other equipment above the driver that some used in the past . is this part of the current rush to take weight of the cars? And where are they shifting weight to?
Remember that the COT has a lot more room inside the car then the previous car did, and in some cases, a ton of roll bar padding isn’t necessary. Also, the amount of weight saved by removing a little bit of roll bar padding would be minimal. Plus, you don’t sacrifice driver safety for a few ounces of saved weight. NASCAR mandates what the weight distribution is from left to right and front to rear. What teams are trying to do is get the weight as low as possible. – T.C.
12. From Ric:
Saw on TV at Pocono a crew member of the 48 team was putting a left side tire over the wall. As he was putting it out as far away from the wall he could, he over extended himself. To keep from falling over the wall he put his hand (or both) down in the pit stall. My question is when is a person considered over the wall towards counting for one of the 7? What is the penalty for having too many people over the wall?
The rulebook actually makes mention of feet and actually stepping in the stall. I’m sure if the official really wanted to, he could call a penalty on the team for the guys hands being down, but most won’t. In a case like that, it was just an accident that the guy ended up over the wall. No advantage was gained. – T.C.
Filed under: Denny Hamlin, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Mark Martin