Last weekend at the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona, Richard Petty and RPM driver AJ Allmendinger had a short confrontation in the garage area after the race. During the race, Allmendinger was involved in a wreck with Kyle Busch that sent him spinning off the track and into the inside wall. AJ went on to finish the race, but 36th position, 30 laps down wasn’t the result he and his team were looking for. Once in the garage, Petty had words with Allmendinger as he climbed from his race car.
I apologize for not having the video of the incident, but for whatever reason, I couldn’t seem to find it anywhere online. In case you didn’t see it, Petty says something to Allmendinger as he climbs from the car that AJ doesn’t want to hear. ’Dinger attempts to walk away, and Petty grabs his arm. The two talk for a bit longer, with AJ attempting to escape again.
What exactly was said between the two I don’ t know. It does appear to me however, that Petty was attempting to teach or point something out to Allmendinger about the day, and AJ didn’t want to hear it. Either way, I don’t think anyone is to blame for the spat, and I don’t think it will have any lasting effect on their relationship.
Robbie Loomis, RPM’s VP of Competition, came out after the incident and tried to downplay the confrontation.
“I always say the car owner shouldn’t talk to the driver anytime after the race, especially after an accident,” Petty VP Robbie Loomis said. “I think Richard’s been here so many times, he’s been through this stuff and he was just trying to get him to loosen up and let the boys do their stuff on fixing the car and getting back out there. Anytime you talk to somebody at the wrong time, it always causes discussion that needs to be worked out. That’s all that happened.”
Richard Allen from RacingwithRich.com thinks that the confrontation may affect AJ’s future with RPM, but I disagree. Allmendinger was clearly upset about how the race played out, and you can’t blame the guy for being angry. And if anyone knows what it’s like to be disappointed by a race, it should be Richard Petty. Both are very passionate about racing, and that passion is going to boil over at certain times. In this case, Allmendinger let his temper get the better of him, and Petty just chose the wrong time to try and make his point to his young driver.
With it being Friday already, I’m sure Petty and Allmendinger have already sat down and worked out any issues they may have had. Both are passionate competitors, and I’m sure once calm, AJ will listen to anything Richard has to say. In the future, hopefully Petty will wait until their weekly meeting to offer any advice or thoughts to his drivers.
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With all the discussion surrounding Kasey Kahne, and the 2011 Hendrick plan for him, I’ve begun to wonder whether this was Kasey’s best move. I say this not because Hendrick isn’t a great team – they most certainly are. And not because Kasey can’t succeed at Hendrick – I think he most certainly can. I say this because of the time he will inevitably lose as he makes the transition to the team’s #5 car.
Speculation has been rampant about where Kasey would end up next season since he and the team announced their partnership earlier this season. Hendrick Motorsports is currently at NASCAR’s four-car limit. The list of unsubstantiated candidates now includes Phoenix Racing and Stewart-Haas Racing. Stewart-Haas, for it’s part, says it currently has no plans to expand to three cars for the 2011 season.
Whatever happens it can be assured that Kasey will have a ride next season – top-tier team or not.
Where does this leave Kasey though? He’s in the final year of his deal with Richard Petty Motorsports, and has already announced his intention to leave. I know it’s a little premature, but this year can probably be considered a loss for Kahne (see Dale Earnhardt Jr., Martin Truex Jr.). Then what about next year?
Let’s say for example purposes Kahne ends up at Phoenix Racing (I’m not saying he will). He’ll of course have all of his equipment built at Hendrick, full sponsorship and all the backing of Rick Hendrick. What will his crew look like? Who knows who they’re looking at, or want for a crew chief, but it’s Hendrick so for all intents and purposes let’s say they promote from within. From there, the crew will likely be composed of Phoenix Racing guys.
So Kasey does this for 2011 (with Phoenix or someone else). At the end of the season what do they do with this team? Does Alan Gustafson become Kasey’s crew chief for 2012? Do they keep the one he’s got? Whatever they do, Kasey is likely going to have to make yet another transition into the 2012 season.
So in addition to this year, Kahne stands to lose the next two seasons trying to adapt to separate teams.
I know Rick Hendrick and team Hendrick Motorsports have nothing but the best of intentions for Kasey moving forward. And I would imagine they’re working very hard to make sure these transitions the driver is about to face are as painless as possible. The issue at hand though could be very bumpy.
I know it’s really easy to play Monday morning quarterback on this (and on anything), but do you think Kasey should have waited to see if he could put a deal together at Gibbs (team Gibbs was interested, but was unable to commit), or somewhere else that he could have immediately transitioned him into a permanent ride?
In a sport where chemistry and consistency are key, I’m kind of thinking he should have waited. For me, the end payoff (that is getting the #5 car) may not be worth the cost of the next couple of seasons. All that said, Hendrick of course hasn’t done anything and gets the benefit of the doubt here.
So what do you think of Kasey’s move? Was Hendrick the right place for him to go? Would you have liked to see him go somewhere else? Where do you think he’ll end up next season? Discuss away!
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?
After a short hiatus, “Ask The Insiders Wednesday” returns for the 51st version. We’ve got a big batch of questions, so lets get right 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 Maytag:
Hey I got to thinking this morning while air-jump starting a ramcar off of a nitrogen bottle , pit crews use compressed gas in a bottle to power the air guns. How many bottles do you go through on any given weekend,race only? I know the guns are hopped up. Do you use special regulators/fittings for flow? Or may I dare ask what PSI and flow rate you use? How about just a range?
It really depends on how many stops a crew does during the race, but the Cup teams and Nationwide teams will usually change their bottles out after each race. Truck teams can get a couple races out of two nitrogen bottles. And I don’t believe the regulators are anything special. In terms of PSI and flow rate, I couldn’t tell you the flow rate, but changers will run PSI anywhere from 90 up to 150. Each changer has their own preference about what PSI to run. – T.C.
2. From Bob:
I just wondering what happened to Yates Racing? I know that they are supposed to “merge” with RPM next year. Is this just a case of changing manufacturers(Dodge to Ford) and picking up a sponsor (Menards)? Will all vestiges of Yates disappear? Seems like Doug Yates just didn’t have his heart in being an owner. Such a shame as Robert Yates Racing was one of the great teams.
Yates pretty much disappeared as an organization after Robert Yates stepped away from the team and Max Jones came in as a co-owner. The last bits of Yates for all intents and purposes became Roush. From what I understand RPM will function much in the way Yates did; as a satellite of Roush. Doug has always been far more involved with Roush-Yates Racing Engines. – Journo
3. From Steve:
What’s the pecking order in the garage? Obviously, the driver is the prima donna, I figure the crew chief comes next, who comes after that and so on? And while I’m asking, how about the pecking order on the pit crew? Where does a poor tire changer fit?
I’m not 100% clear about what you are asking, but the hierarchy for the team is the driver, then the crew chief, followed by the car chief. Everyone after that is pretty much equal. Each team will have their own hierarchies based on seniority, but after those three, it’s wide open. The same is true for pit crews. Outside of seniority, there really isn’t a pecking order. Nobody is more important then anyone else. – T.C.
4. From Ric:
Since there is some talk about going to Fuel Injection in 2011, what does the garage think? Will the production of Black Helicopters ramp up?
I personally haven’t heard a ton of talk about fuel injection. I believe it is being considered, but I don’t think there will be any more black helicopters then normal. There are quite a few other racing series that successfully use and police fuel injection, and I don’t think NASCAR will be any different. – T.C.
5. From Steve:
Perhaps the subject that no one dares talks about out loud… What options does NASCAR have if a championship contender or the leader in a race is deemed to have been intentionally taken out by a friend or teammate of the 2nd place driver? I know NASCAR can penalize the offending driver and I know it would likely end their career, but is there any chance NASCAR wouldn’t allow the beneficiary of such an incident from benefiting? Football has a provision where if a runner is interfered with by someone on the sidelines, they can be awarded the touchdown. Anything similar in NASCAR?
This has actually happened in recent history. In 2003 the truck series went into Homestead with Brendan Gaughan leading Ted Musgrave by 26 points. Jim Smith, Musgrave’s team owner, entered a third truck for Marty Houston, the brother of Jim Smith’s other driver Andy Houston. With 34 laps left Marty ‘got loose’ and wrecked Brendan. Depending on who you talk to, Marty was ordered to end Brendan’s day. Here’s the video. Brendan famously said “Jim Smith can kiss my ass” on live TV. Ultimately it didn’t matter because Kvapil won the championship. While NASCAR can do just about whatever they want, they aren’t going to give anyone a position they didn’t earn (there’s not presently any precedent for it). Potentially a driver could be fined or penalized, but it would be difficult to prove. – Journo
6. From Ric:
When the crew chiefs give info to the driver about who took how many tires (and other things), where do they get the info? NASCAR? Individual organizations? What info / stats do they have in front of them? Can us viewers get this info?
Information regarding pit stops for other drivers often comes from the spotter. They are the ones with the best view of pit road. Crew chiefs can see the teams directly around them, but not those up and down pit road. The only information about the race that NASCAR provides is timing and scoring. Crew chiefs will usually have notes from previous races in front of them, to go along with timing and scoring data. And there is no special system that viewers can plug into to get extra information. – T.C.
7. From Larry:
Given all of the vacillating, that Kyle Busch has done over the past two weeks, pertaining to his 2010 truck team, the picture is as clear as mud. Do you have any idea, as to what is fact and what is rumor? How many trucks and who might be driving them?
Despite the reluctance Kyle has expressed publicly we keep hearing it’s moving forward. We heard early on in the process Tayler Malsam was a candidate, but we’ve heard he’s likely done with NASCAR (by choice). Johnny Benson was another rumor, as was Brian Ickler. Nothing new though. As far as we know though it’s still moving forward. – Journo
8. From Ric:
When a car needs to change it’s paint scheme what is the process? Paint is removed / decal ( not sure what it’s called when the whole car is one big decal) peeled off or is the metal replaced and new metal / paint scheme is put on?
Unless the car’s body is damaged, the metal is not replaced. Most paint schemes are a combination of paint and vinyl wrap (decals). If there is a color change, the wrap is removed and the old paint is sanded off. Then the body guys can repaint and redecal the car. – T.C.
9. From Tim:
Have there been any surprise cuts from Hatchet Day? After wasting most of the year on a bad manufacturing decision, has Roush got it right or will they over-correct in the off-season? (It looks like RCR is on the upswing, it’s great to see The Mayor back up front.) When will someone rip off Jimmie Johnson’s face and expose him for the robot that he really is? I’m so tired of seeing him dominate, in the same way that the haters feel watching Kyle win NWS, but those two boys have some mad skills.
Other than normal spring (or winter?) cleaning that gets done, we haven’t heard of anything big. Most (if not all) of the Wyler and HT Harris shops have been laid off and we’ve heard about some layoffs at Roush. At other big teams though (other than RPM) we haven’t heard anything. The off-season is still very young though. – Journo
10. From Ric:
Crew chiefs get all the blame when something is wrong with the car. How much work does a crew chief actually do on a car? Does the crew chief or the car chief make the decisions on various aspects of things being done to the car? What are the job duties of both?
In most cases with big teams, you won’t see crew chiefs actually working on the race cars at the track. Back in the day they would, but now crew chiefs have become more like team managers. They work with the driver on the setup and then relay changes to the car chief and mechanics in the garage. Crew chiefs work on overall setup and race strategy. The car chief has now become the lead mechanic. Once a base setup is ready, the car chief and an assistant will set the car up in the shop. For many teams I’ve worked for, the crew chief doesn’t even come down off the hauler during practice. Any changes will be radioed back to the car chief, who will lead the other mechanics in making those adjustments. – T.C.
11. From Emanuel:
I apologize if this has been covered, but I was wondering what’s up with the black stripe on Kyle Petty’s #45 hat? Is this in protest of his Dad basically selling the company? P.S. it was great getting to know you guys through your page this season. You guys are awesome.
He wears that in remembrance of his son Adam. Adam was killed during a Busch Series practice at New Hampshire in 2000. Kyle also took over Adam’s #45 number after his death. – Journo
12. From Mr. Ed:
What did you all do for turkey day?
I relaxed at home with my family, watched a little football, and ate some great food! – T.C.
My thanksgiving looked about the same as TC’s. – Journo
13. From BJ:
I’ve read that Steve Addington, former crew chief for Kyle Busch at Joe Gibbs Racing, has had several calls from interested organizations, but have you heard anything about where he may be in 2010?
This is speculation on my part, but I’ve got to believe he is the lead candidate to replace Pat Tryson as Kurt Busch’s crew chief at Penske. Addington is a proven winner, and he has experience in dealing with a cranky Busch brother. Plus, Penske has the money to throw at Addington. Do not expect him to take over as Dale Jr.’s crew chief at Hendrick. I’ve seen some fans float this idea, but Hendrick won’t go back on his decision to keep Lance McGrew, unless something really drastic happens. – T.C.
14. From Michael:
With Nascar mandating that the 26 Team be shut down (since Roush was unable to move the team anywhere), where do the owner points for the 26 stand? Can Roush sell them off? Do they just disappear into the vapor? Scott Speed fans want to know. Thanks.
I believe they will just go away. Since Roush cannot have five teams, I don’t believe NASCAR would allow a fifth car next year to have Roush as the listed owner (which is what happens when points are sold). This is similar to the DEI/Ginn situation a few years back. DEI was not able to sell the points from the remaining Ginn teams because that would have put them over the team limit. – 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!
One Chase race down, nine to go. It’s Wednesday again, so if you’ve got questions, we try really hard to have answers. If you don’t know what this post is, until further notice, we will be answering 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 Pat:
Simple question: what tool do the pit crews typically use to pry the fenders up off the tire after contact? Is it just a pry bar or something more specialized? Thanks!
Teams use everything from their hands, to hammers and baseball bats, to specialized tools. Roush has a fender rolling tool they developed some years back that some teams use. – T.C.
2. From Ric:
I have heard that the Michael Waltrip we see on TV is not the real Michael Waltrip. That he just plays the country boy / hick / hillbilly / country bumpkin / image. Any truth to that? Are other drivers out there that are totally different on TV / in front of the fans, then they are in real life / behind the scenes?
I think to some extent the TV side of Michael you see isn’t real. He’s not quite as funny and goofy as he’d like you to think he is. And I think because of how corporate NASCAR has become, drivers are more polished when they are on TV and in front of the fans. They are going to be a little different when they are just around friends or their teams and can loosen the collar a bit. – T.C.
3. From Matt:
What plans does Hendrick have for Landon Cassill? I thought he would have been a perfect driver for the 88 car in NW.
I honestly don’t know of any plans. I believe he is still doing testing for Hendrick and he is running some dirt modified races, but as far as next year goes, I haven’t heard anything. I too think Landon would have been a good candidate for that ride, but with Bires you get someone with a bit more experience and a little bit more assurance. – Journo
4. From Steve:
Each team has their tires for the race laid out in rows behind the pit box. Is there anything to this, are the tires in any particular order? Or is a tire a tire? And while I saw pressures being checked before the race, are pressures double checked just before they’re used?
Before the race, all sets of tires will be numbered and then will be used in the race according to a specific order. The tire specialists will match tires according to stagger, and strategy will dictate which order the sets are used (for example, when to use stickers and when to use scuffs). – T.C.
5. From Kenny:
What do you hear about the #9’s engine? I kinda wonder if someone who was upset about the lay-off notices at RPM might have just forgotten to tighten a bolt, or fasten a nut…
We actually heard it was a broken crankshaft that did Kahne in. Honestly I can see where all the conspiracy theories are coming from, but it’s just not true. Not only would the sabotage have had to have been the greatest the sabotage ever (he makes it 66 laps, qualifying and several practice sessions?), but despite many of these guys probably losing their jobs at the end of the season, they are still looking at bonuses if Kahne wins the championship. In the end they would only be hurting themselves. I honestly believe it was nothing more than a coincidence. – Journo
6. From Amy:
My question revolves around Tony Stewart’s loose (broken?) axle cap at Louden. One of the announcers said during the broadcast that they probably didn’t even need to bother to fix it? If that is they case why did the team take the time (losing positions) to fix the issue?
The rear axles actually have two caps. The first is a flat cap that actually holds the axle in the tube. The second cap screws to the first cap and is a cone shape. It aids the tire carriers in indexing the new tires during pit stops. The cap that gave Stewart trouble was the outer, cone shaped cap. It sounded like the screws were not tightened properly and came loose. Not fixing the loose cap wouldn’t have led to any mechanical failures, but it would have made subsequent pit stops very difficult for the rear tire carrier, probably resulting in slow pit stops. – T.C.
7. From Amy:
Here is another question I just thought of- this one is directed more towards T.C. In the last two races, two different crew members have sustained hits on pit road during stops. In this article on NASCAR.COM (http://www.nascar.com/2009/news/features/09/22/five.things.dwayne.moore.dreutimann/index.html) Dwayne Moore (hit by Tony Stewart at Richmond) mentions that drivers who hit crew members should get penalized (he specifically mentions tail end). Do you think this is a good idea? When you are over the wall how much trust do you put in the drivers around your pitstall? Is there a way to make it safer?
It might not be a bad thing to consider. If drivers knew they would be penalized for hitting a guy, they might be more careful. But the problem is, is none of these incidents happen on purpose. Drivers aren’t trying to hit guys. These end up being wrong place, wrong time type of situations and there just isn’t enough time for either party to react quickly enough. When I’m over the wall, I just have to hope that my guys around me will watch my back and that the drivers are paying attention. But part of doing what we do is knowing that there is a chance you could get hit. That is why we now wear firesuits and helmets. – T.C.
8. From Doug:
I feel the new restart rule in the cup series has had an unexpected fall out. It seems now since the lap down cars don’t get any air time (by starting on the inside of the front runners), that sponsors are pulling out and will continue to do so. Since NNWS has gone to this rule you’ll start seeing this trend also.
I’m not really sure what evidence there is of this. I can promise the recent announcements by Jack and Jim had nothing to do with the restart rule. Other than them, I can’t think of any sponsors at any level pulling out. The TV the back markers get really wasn’t all that great before the restart rule, and still remains not great. TV exposure while important, is not the only reason a company sponsors a Cup car though. I don’t think the restart rule has/will have any effect on sponsorships. – Journo
9. From red8814:
Hey TC, when a car ends up backwards in the pit like Ragan did this past weekend, are there any changes in who does what on the stop? Also, can you extend our “get well soon!” thoughts to Clint Pittman? You guys in the pits don’t get enough credit for everything you do in the middle of that chaos!
Teams will usually keep their positions, but the problem lies in the tires. With fronts now in the rear, the rears now in the front, and the sides swapped, guys have to be real careful about knowing which tires they are putting on. They end up needing to swap tires front to rear, and left to right. – T.C.
10. From ronfrankl via Twitter:
Which teams are likely to have sponsorship issues in the closing weeks of the season? Any teams that might fold?
None that I’m aware of before the end of the season. As far as next season goes, look to those teams, even individually within bigger organizations, that have lost sponsors or are having trouble finding sponsorship. Most of those problems are ones that have been well publicized. – Journo
11. From 4wide via Twitter:
With 5 tracks in the Chase that have lights, why only one Saturday night race and the rest on Sunday against the NFL?
I think this is simple. ABC needs something to go against the NFL on Sundays and they have NASCAR. While in a lot of situations the NFL game is going to do better than the NASCAR race, it will still give ABC a formidable NFL opponent. – Journo