Filed under: Kurt Busch, Sam Hornish Jr., Penske Racing, Chase for the Sprint Cup, Sprint Cup, NASCAR
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Filed under: Sam Hornish Jr., Penske Racing, Indianapolis 500, NASCAR
Penske Racing is an organization on the move. As they transitioned this season into their role as the sole Dodge team in NASCAR, Penske has found success and wins. Despite their move up in the world, they are in familiar territory for race teams these days – light on sponsorship and heavy on drivers.
Sirius Speedway reported last week that Verizon Wireless was out as sponsor on Penske’s NASCAR programs and would likely transition strictly to the IndyCar Series – obviously the company is running into exclusivity issues with Cup Series title sponsor Sprint. On top of Verizon, the company is searching for a replacement to Mobil 1, which is leaving Penske at the end of the year because of a conflict with new sponsor Shell. While this leaves Sam Hornish Jr. in a bad spot, it’s Justin Allgaier who’s the real loser.
Allgaier burst onto the scene in 2008 after winning the ARCA championship for his family owned team. If you’ll remember, that was the season Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Scott Speed each ended the others shot at the Championship in the final race.
Allgaier joined Penske in the Nationwide Series full time last season. And by all accounts it’s been a good deal for ‘The Captain’ and his team. Allgaier has shown consistently why he is one of NASCAR’s future stars.
In 2008 he had three top-five finishes, 12 top-10 finishes, averaged a 16.5 and ended the season sixth in points. This season he’s been improved, scoring his first win, and raking up six top-fives and 14 top-tens. He’s fourth in the points – the highest running Nationwide only driver, and one of only five in the top-10.
With eight races to go in the season, Allgaier probably won’t win the championship, but he is well positioned for more solid finishes – maybe even another win.
Despite all that, Allgaier’s future is uncertain. If Verizon does indeed move on, and Penske doesn’t find another sponsor to fill the void, he could be out of a ride. Or if FoxSports has the story, he could lose his ride to none other than Penske teammate Sam Hornish Jr.
According to Sirius Speedway:
[Team VP of Marketing and Communications Jonathan] Gibson said the team is talking with other companies about potentially replacing Verizon next season, adding, “Our intent to continue with two Nationwide Series entries next season.” He declined to comment on reports that Algaier [sic] has been given permission to look elsewhere, but called him, “A great young driver who we would like to keep in our organization.”
That doesn’t sound to me like a team committed to keeping Allgaier in a ride. It’s frankly hard to comprehend a driver like Allgaier being in this position at all. He’s done absolutely everything he could do in the car – he’s run well, he’s won, and he hasn’t torn up much equipment. And he has great future potential.
We’ll see what happens over at Penske in the coming weeks and months, but I feel bad for this kid. He deserves to have a top-notch ride with a team that is fully committed to him (from the sound of it Penske is not). The good news is, if Penske does let him go, I have a feeling he’d land on his feet. Penske’s loss could be someone else’s gain.
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Filed under: Carl Edwards, Dale Earnhardt Jr., David Ragan, Jeff Gordon, Kasey Kahne, Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr., Sam Hornish Jr., Daytona Int'l Speedway, Sprint Cup, Scott Speed, NASCAR
Following the 2008 season, Journo and myself wrote a series of posts that covered all the major teams in the Cup Series. We looked at where they had been in 2008 and where they were going in 2009. The posts contained some predictions for the 2009 season, with some being more specific then others. I thought, since 2009 is in the books, that it would be fun to go back over the posts and see how we fared with our predictions. Listed below you will find all the teams we covered, our predictions, and what actually happened. Enjoy!
Hendrick Motorsports Prediction: All four drivers will be contenders for the 2009 title. Actual:We were right, with one notable exception. Jimmie Johnson, Mark Martin, and Jeff Gordon finished 1-2-3 in the standings for HMS. But, Dale Earnhardt Jr. struggled all season and finished a disappointing 25th.
Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Prediction:Martin Truex Jr. and Juan Pablo Montoya should win a few races each and both could make the Chase. The jury is still out though on Aric Almirola. Actual: He never won a race, but Montoya did make the Chase and was a factor until late; we missed on Truex though. The Bass Pro Shops team only had one top five finish all season and they finished way down in 23rd in the standings. Almirola did struggle, and ended up only running eight races before the sponsorship money dried up.
Team Red Bull Prediction:Expect Scott Speed to struggle in his rookie season, and a top 30 in points would be a victory. Brian Vickers will finish in the top 15 in points, but the Chase will still be out of reach for this team. Actual: Speed did indeed struggle, and did not qualify for three races. He ended up 35th in driver standings and 36th in owner standings. He will be on the outside looking in for 2010. Vickers did a little better then we expected, with one win and a Chase appearance.
Joe Gibbs Racing Prediction:Denny Hamlin will make the Chase, but isn’t good enough to really contend yet. Kyle Busch will continue being a force and will contend for the Cup. In his rookie season Joey Logano will finish top 25 in the points and show flashes of brilliance. Actual: We were right about Hamlin and Logano, but we missed the call on Busch’s season. Hamlin finished fifth in the final standings, but too many DNFs in the Chase killed his chances at the Cup. Logano won at Loudon and finished 20th in the standings. Busch won four races, but struggled for much of the season and missed the Chase.
Richard Childress Racing Prediction: Jeff Burton will win 1-3 races and make the Chase, but will not be a contender. Clint Bowyer will win 3-5 races and challenge for the Cup. Casey Mears will finish top 20 in points at best. Kevin Harvick will win a couple races, make the Chase, and have an outside shot at the Cup. Actual: RCR was probably our biggest missed prediction. Bowyer, Burton, Harvick and Mears finished 15th, 17th, 19th, and 21st respectively. The whole organization struggled all season and didn’t win a single race.
Stewart-Haas Racing Prediction: Tony Stewart and Ryan Newman will finish top 20 in points, we might see a couple wins between the two teams, but a Chase appearance and title contention are a few years away. Actual:SHR was definitely a pleasant surprise this season. Stewart won four races and finished sixth in the standings. He led the points going into the Chase, but lost his momentum and slipped down the stretch. Newman never found victory lane, but did make the Chase on his consistency and finished ninth.
Penske Racing Prediction: The whole organization will struggle with the exception of maybe Kurt Busch. Actual: Kurt Busch won two races and finished fourth in the Chase. Sam Hornish showed a little promise, but could only manage a 28th place points finish. David Stremme continued his history of lackluster performance and finished 32nd in the standings.
Gillett Evernham Motorsports/Richard Petty Motorsports Prediction: The team won’t improve much over 2008, Kahne and Allmendinger are their greatest hopes. Actual:Kahne won two races and did make the Chase, finishing 10th, but that was the bulk of their success. Allmendinger, Reed Sorenson, and Elliott Sadler all failed to finish inside the top 20 in points.
Roush Fenway Racing Prediction: Carl Edwards will be dominant and could be the leading contender for the championship. Matt Kenseth will win 1-2 races and make the Chase. Greg Biffle will also win a race or two and make the Chase, but will not be a serious contender for the title. David Ragan and Jamie McMurray should improve over 2008 but neither will contend or make the Chase. Actual: Edwards was a miss, as he failed to win a race and was never really a factor in the Chase. Kenseth did win two races, but just missed making the Chase. Biffle also went winless, but did make the Chase, finishing seventh. Ragan and McMurray had disappointing seasons, but McMurray did find victory lane at Talladega.
Yates Racing Prediction: Travis Kvapil and Paul Menard will continue to struggle. Bobby Labonte could surprise, but past history doesn’t bode well for him. Actual: Kvapil ended up only running the first five races before his team was shut down due to lack of funding. Menard didn’t earn a top five or top ten all season and finished 31st in the points. Labonte did manage one top five finish, but ended up 30th in the driver standings and was replaced in the #96 late in the season by Erik Darnell.
Michael Waltrip Racing Prediction: David Reutimann should continue to improve, but expect Michael Waltrip to hang up his driving gloves after 2009. Actual: Reutimann did indeed improve in 2009, and collected a win, five top five, and ten top ten finishes. His team nearly made the Chase, but they faded late in the season and finished 16th in the standings. Waltrip’s struggles continued and a 33rd place points finish will see him run only a part time schedule in 2010.
Robby Gordon Motorsports Prediction: Expect more of the same from Robby Gordon, a good finish here and there is the best he’ll do. Actual: Gordon struggled most of the season, and only mustered a 34th place points finish. He did finish third in the rain shortened Coke 600 though.