On Pit Row

2009 OPer Awards: Best NASCAR Team

Charlie Turner — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 21:53:58 +0000

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This really could have been the “No Brainer” Award.

The team that fields the driver - Jimmie Johnson - who has won the last four Sprint Cup championships. The crew chief - Chad Knaus - who has guided that driver to all four. The team - the Hendrick Motorsports Lowes no. 48 - that has remained basically intact for six straight seasons.

Seven 2009 Sprint Cup Series wins and a fourth straight Cup championship.

There were several good teams. A couple of other great ones too. But just one Hall of Fame team.

NASCAR Christmas Presents from the Monday Morning Crew Chief

Charlie Turner — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 13:25:43 +0000

What are the perfect gifts for NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt Jr, Jeff Gordon, Denny Hamlin and, yes, Danica Patrick?

Get the Flash Player to see the wordTube Media Player.

Watch the 2009 holiday edition of the Monday Morning Crew Chief with Mindy Monday and find out.

2009 OPer Awards: Worst NASCAR Media Personality

Charlie Turner — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 23:36:04 +0000

My vote for this OPeR award was for Fox’s Digger.

I lost on a technicality. Digger isn’t a real personality. He (it?) is a cartoon character. There will be a new award category for the 2010 OPeRs, because I can’t see Fox dumping the Race Rat.

And I doubt that Speed will can Rutledge Wood either. Wood is harmless, I guess and he has a big Twitter following. That, alone probably will keep him around.

We just don’t see what he adds to the broadcasts. And someone had to take the Bill Weber award.

2009 OPer Awards: Best Start and Parker

Charlie Turner — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 11:06:50 +0000

The start and park business model may not be real popular with NASCAR fans, but it is a fact of life in many forms of auto racing.

Depending on the economy, even NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races feature a fair number of start and park operations.

TRG Motorsports turned their 2009 , mostly start and park season into a full on, major sponsorship run for the 2010 season with ex-champ Bobby Labonte and Taxslayer.com.

Nice job by team principle Kevin Buckler and the rest of The Racers Group.

Danica Patrick Daytona Pictures

Charlie Turner — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 22:42:57 +0000

There are never enough photos of Danica Patrick. Here are a few more from the ARCA Racing Series test session at Daytona. Click the thumbnail image for a larger view.

: Danica Patrick on the track in JR Motorsports no. 88 ARCA Chevy

: Danica Patrick at Daytona ARCA presser

: Danica Patrick at ARCA Daytona press conference

Photo credit: ARCA Media site

2009 OPer Awards: Worst NASCAR TV Network

Charlie Turner — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 21:10:03 +0000

For the second consecutive year, ESPN is our choice as the network that does the poorest job of broadcasting the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.

I think that ESPN’s problem is the fact that they are…well…ESPN. They are the stick and ball network. They are the Sports Center Highlight Network. Sound bites and Web Jems are their bag.

NASCAR races - especially the long, three to four hour Cup contests don’t produce tight little packages of content like that. So ESPN seems to need to create “stories” to show during the races. And they too often miss the race.

2009 OPer Awards: Best NASCAR Driver

Charlie Turner — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 16:11:55 +0000

No, Jimmie Johnson is not our pick as best NASCAR driver in 2009.

There are a ton of awards Johnson could legitimately grab. Hell he already has. But not this OPeR. Not this year.

Kyle Busch was NASCAR’s best driver in 2009.

20 wins combined in the top three NASCAR touring series did the trick. It didn’t hurt that The Shrub was following up a 22 win 2008 season either. Those two years could put Kyle Busch in the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

Rowdy didn’t make the Chase to the Sprint Cup. But won another OPeR. That should help. Shouldn’t it?

Danica Does Daytona

Charlie Turner — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 22:02:18 +0000

Danica Patrick took her first laps in anger on Daytona Internaional Speedway today during practice with the ARCA Racing Series. Here’s a bit from ARCA’s PR department…

Patrick, one of 26 drivers who posted a time during the 35-minute single car run session, was 12th quickest on the charts with a time of 51.095 seconds (176.142 mph) around the 2.5-mile superspeedway. A trio of three cars fielded by long-time ARCA Racing Series team Venturini Motorsports comprised the top three positions in Friday’s test session, led by fulltime series competitor Mikey Kile (49.804 seconds/180.708 mph).

Patrick only had four laps at full speed Friday, due to rain delays. But she said she got a feel for stock cars…

“It’s still a car once you get in it, “Patrick said during a post test media center press conference on Friday. “I feel most comfortable once I’m at speed actually.

Everything from getting into the car to getting the car started–that part feels quite different to me. It’s not normal to me. The car gets pulled out to pit lane and you get in the car when its in its pit stall in an IndyCar and the getting strapped in part is something that I’ve been familiar with for a long time now so everything is a little bit different but once I get out there I feel good. I feel comfortable.

These cars can run more lanes on the track. You’re all the way to the wall and the car is good to go there. It’s easier to drive there and in an IndyCar you can’t use quite as many lanes usually. That’s just one of the first things I noticed. The gear shifter has more travel. You have to pull something and no more paddle anymore. The clutch is long. It’s just different stuff. But I wouldn’t say that there is any instinctual stuff that is different which is the best part, right? Because I just get to be a driver and I get to do what I’m used to. I feel comfortable once I get going. “

Photo credit: Getty Images for NASCAR

2009 OPeR Award: Worst NASCAR Owner

Charlie Turner — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 19:32:46 +0000

In our first unanimous vote of the 2009 OPeR Awards, Jeremy Mayfield was named the worst team owner in NASCAR.

Neither Steve nor I are happy about that - though we were the voters.I would rather have given Jeremy the “Best NASCAR Music Video” award, or something.

The fact is, we both genuinely like Mayfield.

But whether he is personally guilty of the accusations against him or not, he didn’t handle the situiation like a good NASCAR owner should have in the circumstances.

2009 OPeR Award: Best New NASCAR Rivalry

Charlie Turner — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 15:25:29 +0000

Everybody loves a NASCAR rivalry, it seems. Maybe even the rivals who are involved.

Denny Hamlin and Brad Keselowski developed one of the best ongoing battles in recent memory in 2009. And they kept a sense of humor about it too. Good stuff.

Runner up was the was the clash between Kyle Busch and Brian Vickers. But the verbal part of that one wasn’t as entertaining.

The “Biggest” Mistake Fantasy Racers Make

Ryan Rantz — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 21:19:51 +0000

There are a ton of mistakes that fantasy racers can make but I believe there is one that stands out among the rest. This mistake that I will talk about is the equal of a baited mouse trap. A mouse trap works by drawing in the mouse and then clamping down on the pesky critter.

The unique thing about NASCAR is that everyone has a favorite driver (mouse trap). NASCAR fans (mice) are the most loyal fans in the world but fantasy racing wise this is a problem. If you’re ever going to really succeed in fantasy racing then you need to be neutral towards drivers that you both like and dislike. The simple way to think about this situation is “Don’t play with your heart”.

Playing with your heart is by far the number one reason why people who do fantasy racing don’t succeed. NASCAR is a loyalty based sport, but that doesn’t mean your fantasy team needs to be also. It’s alright to have a favorite driver but be smart about it.

Your role as a fantasy racer (mouse) is to stay away from the trap. Let’s say Dale Earnhardt Jr is your favorite driver. A fan who plays with their heart will pick him almost anywhere, even a road course (or any track this year). I know this is probably a weak example but don’t let your heart ever become a deciding factor when you make picks. Make smart picks based on information, not on the NASCAR flag you have of your favorite driver.

Sometimes even displaying you have a favorite driver can be a weakness in fantasy racing. I know I’ve always enjoyed being in leagues with people who play with their hearts. I will admit that when it come to fantasy racing I’ll use this information against my opponents. For example in a auction league if I see a team that is named DaleJR#1fan then I’m going to drive his price up so high that you might as well stick a fork in that team for the year.

Fantasy racers, don’t be the mouse who is driven to the trap. It gives away your position and many times it leads to irrational fantasy race thinking. Be neutral towards both the drivers you like and dislike. This is perhaps the most basic important thing in Fantasy Racing.

Biggest Fantasy Mistake: “PLAYING WITH YOUR HEART”

Kyle Busch Motorsports: Huge Risk, Huge Reward?

Chris Leone — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 16:16:43 +0000

On Friday, Kyle Busch finally announced what those of us in the know had been expecting for the past few weeks – that he would purchase the Camping World Truck Series equipment of Xpress Motorsports to form his own team, Kyle Busch Motorsports.

We weren’t shocked when he announced that Miccosukee Gaming, his sponsor at Billy Ballew Motorsports for the past couple of years, would make the transition with him, or that Brian Ickler, his protégé, would run his truck in non-companion events. We already knew that Rick Ren had left 2009 champion Ron Hornaday’s team to manage Rowdy’s operation in the Mooresville shop.

What we didn’t know, however, was that Tayler Malsam, last of Randy Moss Motorsports, would join the new team in a No. 56 truck sponsored by ActivWater. We also didn’t know that the presumptive deal for Johnny Benson, the series’ 2008 champion, had not yet been signed.

But whether Benson gets a deal or not – and seeing as he’s been the only constant name in the rumor mill for KBM, and he’s guaranteed to make races based on his champion’s provisional, he probably will – Kyle Busch has already assembled a team capable of winning races and championships. The question is, however, whether or not the team will be able to realize that potential.

The only other driver to attempt to run his own team this early in his career was Kevin Harvick, and that operation started in earnest compared to Busch’s plans for three trucks. Harvick started his team with a limited schedule in 2002, where he and Rick Carelli combined for one win and five top-10s in six starts. He utilized a similar plan in 2003, with four drivers sharing the limited-schedule truck.

It wasn’t until 2004 that Harvick began running a full-time truck, as Matt Crafton took the reins of the No. 6 Goodwrench Chevrolet. Despite finishing fifth in points, he was not retained for the following year. Harvick also entered Tony Stewart in two Busch Series races that year, in preparation for a full-time car for Stewart and Tony Raines in 2005.

Slowly but surely, Harvick built his team, adding Hornaday in 2005 after he was dropped from the Busch car of Richard Childress Racing, Harvick’s Cup team. Hornaday has never finished worse than seventh in Truck points in a KHI vehicle, winning championships in 2007 and 2009. In 2006, KHI ran two full-time Busch cars as its owner won the series title, although he mostly drove RCR cars that year. Harvick has run more Nationwide races in his own cars every year, winning in his own equipment for the first time in 2009 and potentially running for the championship in 2010.

Of course, that’s not to say that KHI hasn’t had its stumbles. The Burney Lamar experiment did not work well in 2006, as he only had three top-10s in 29 Busch starts. Cale Gale did little to distinguish himself in KHI cars in 2007 and 2008, and no longer drives for the team. Expanding to two trucks in 2008 was unsuccessful too, as former champion Jack Sprague failed to win a race and only had nine top-10s in 20 starts, lagging far behind Hornaday’s six wins and 18 top-10s that year.

For the most part, however, Harvick’s team has been a success, and a big part of it is because he started off slowly, rarely going in over his head with his team. They raced when they had the proper funding and infrastructure to do so, and it paid off by turning KHI into the premier non-Cup team in the Nationwide and Truck series. Busch, however, is taking the opposite philosophy, hitting hard and early with a multi-truck team.

An example of which Busch should be wary is Michael Waltrip Racing, which went into Cup way beyond its capabilities in 2007. The team entered three cars that year as the flagship team in Toyota’s entry into Cup racing. Waltrip himself spent the first third of the season 27 points behind the continent of Africa, having accrued 73 points in Daytona, a 100-point penalty for loading his Toyota with jet fuel, and a streak of a dozen DNQs afterwards. Young gun David Reutimann and former champion Dale Jarrett weren’t much better. Busch, Malsam, and Benson could easily correspond to Waltrip, Reutimann, and Jarrett if things start going wrong early.

What Busch does have going for him, however, is that Toyota has never been as abysmal in the Truck series as it was in its first year of Cup racing. Unlike Waltrip, who used Harvick’s philosophy of building everything from scratch (albeit on a much grander scale), Busch is inheriting an existing team and infrastructure, one which has won races and a championship in the past, and is entering a much less competitive series. Also unlike Waltrip, Busch has been no slouch in the series he’s entering, having won plenty of Truck races over the past few years.

Regardless of how the 2010 season actually plays out for Kyle Busch Motorsports, the Camping World Truck Series will be far more interesting for its inception. We could see one of the most successful debut years in motorsports history, on par with Brawn GP in F1 in 2009, with the new team doing everything right and finding great success. Of course, we could also see a catastrophic beginning akin to Waltrip’s first year as a Cup series owner, with the team suffering a handful of setbacks, missing numerous races, and generally disappointing all year.

I’m predicting something close to the former, but unlike the Cup series, it’s a little harder to predict what happens in trucks.

ARCA Racing President Ron Drager On Pit Row - Part 2

Charlie Turner — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 18:27:07 +0000

Danica Patrick will kick off her stock car racing career in a 3400 pound ARCA Racing Series race car sponsored by GoDaddy.com. It all starts at the annual Daytona test session for the ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/Max and Menards, later this month.

That was huge news for ARCA president Ron Drager this week. But there is much more to ARCA than that.

Get the Flash Player to see the wordTube Media Player.

Listen to part two of our interview with Ron On Pit Row on the day of the Danica announcement. Learn a little about what it means to compete in the motorsports industry from someone who has been doing it all his life.

Photo credit: BethAnne Heisler for OnPitRow.com

Is Dale Earnhardt Jr Still the Face of NASCAR?

Charlie Turner — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 03:36:39 +0000

Dale Earnhardt Jr won NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver award for the seventh straight year in 2009. Junior has been the face of NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series.

But is he still?

Or should he be?

Earnhardt Jr’s best season was 2004 when he won six Cup races and had 16 top fives and 21 top tens while winning his second Most Popular Driver title.

But in the the five seasons since, he has just three wins, 36 top fives and 63 top tens. A popular theory is that NASCAR gets a fever when Junior gets a chill.

From 2005 through today, Jimmie Johnson has won 33 times in Cup and finished top five 77 times. Four straight championships too. But J J is most definitely not NASCAR’s most popular. But shouldn’t he be the face of the sport?

Or should Tony Stewart - newly minted owner driver - be the man? 18 wins and 69 top fives and he was the last guy not named Johnson to win a Cup title. Tony’s plenty popular. But is he the face of NASCAR?

Jeff Gordon? Kyle Busch or Mark Martin?

Nah. Dale Earnhardt Jr is still the man for the fans. At least for enough of them. At least for now.

NASCAR Photo credit: Beth Anne Heisler - OnPitRow.com

ARCA Racing Series President Ron Drager Welcomes Danica Patrick to Stock Cars

Charlie Turner — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 18:57:04 +0000

Danica Patrick - NASCAR driver.

Not so fast bubba. First, Danica will do ARCA. As in the ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/Max and Menards.

Danica Patrick’s long waited for announcement that she will drive for Dale Earnhardt Jr’s J R Motorsports in selected 2010 NASCAR Nationwide Series races was Tuesday.

But before she turns a NASCAR lap in anger, D-Pat will test and race at Daytona in the ARCA Racing series.

Get the Flash Player to see the wordTube Media Player.

ARCA president Ron Drager joined us On Pit Row Tuesday night for a far ranging interview. He talked about Patrick, and other high profile racers who have gotten their stock car chops honed in ARCA and the state of the ARCA Racing Series as it enters 2010. Here is part one of Ron Drager, On Pit Row.

Fast Laps with a Jimmie Johnson Hangover

Charlie Turner — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 03:43:03 +0000

We’ve all beaten Jimmie Johnson’s results to death by now. But there were plenty of other stories at the end of NASCAR’s 2009 schedule. Try a little NASCAR debate with Steve and Charlie, Fast Lap style.

Get the Flash Player to see the wordTube Media Player.

Turn 1 - Who will be first to win their fifth championship Jimmie Johnson or Jeff Gordon?

Turn 2 - What will spur larger crowds at NASCAR’s 2010 events?

Turn 3 - If Brad Keselowski is a “breath of fresh air” in the Cup field; what is Denny Hamlin?

Turn 4 - Could 2010 see no Rookie of the Year contenders?

Give us your take on these four, fast ones. Keep it short - preferably Twitter length - but bring the passion.

Sprint Cup Awards Show Live Blog at 9PM Tonight!

Charlie Turner — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 04:12:33 +0000

In the spirit of one of my favorite TV shows - Mystery Science Theatre - we bring you our third annual live blog of the “Worst TV Show of the Year” - NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Awards show.

If you are watching - and you know you will be - fire up the computer, pour yourself a soda and join us as we ridicule uncomfortable drivers, lame comedians and NASCAR for as long as we can stand it. Its a blast.

We’ll send you a reminder if you want. Just sign up below. Click here for the live blog page.

How are NASCAR Drivers paid?

Charlie Turner — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 21:05:16 +0000

Do you want to know how your favorite NASCAR driver gets paid? I think that question is asked of us On Pit Row more than any other.

We have speculated about it. But what do we know.

So, when we got the opportunity, thanks to Shell Gasolines, to talk to Richard Childress recently, we asked him that question. How do you pay NASCAR drivers like Kevin Harvick and Clint Bowyer? I mean, besides really, really well.

Get the Flash Player to see the wordTube Media Player.

So here is the interview from the show, in its entirety. Find out about Richard Childress’ relationship with Kevin Harvick. Steve asked if four cars were too many in 2009 too. And what’s in store for grandson Austin Dillon. More drives in the no. 3 car?

More NASCAR Wives, Girlfriends and Pit Babes

BethAnne — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 18:48:40 +0000

Here are some of the best pictures of NASCAR driver’s wives and girlfriends from the 2009 NASCAR season. Most of these pictures of the ladies of NASCAR were shot at Michigan International Speedway and Texas Motor Speedway by our own BethAnne Heisler. We could use a little help identifying some of these NASCAR beauties. Please leave a comment if you recognize anyone.

: Pretty sight on A J Allmendinger’s pitbox at TMS

: Way to go Truex!

: David Reutimann has fans at Texas too

: Kyle Busch’s companion at Texas

: Chandra Johnson at Texas

: Paul Menard fan at MIS 2009

: Kurt and Eva Busch in Victory Lane TMS 2009

: More Eva Busch at TMS

: Eva Busch in Victory Lane at Texas

: Bill Elliott fan at Texas

: Mystery girl on the DeWalt pitbox at Texas

: Ryan Newman fan at Texas 2009

: Unidentified NASCAR babe

Done With Danicamania: At Least Dale Jr. Won Races

Chris Leone — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 18:14:53 +0000

It seems like wherever I go these days, I cannot escape Danica Patrick.

This morning, while attending class at Boston University, I listened to a presentation on sexuality in the media by Dr. Patrice Oppliger, one of our assistant professors of communication. She noted that many female celebrities, as they grow out of young adulthood, use sex as a way to keep the public’s attention on them, citing Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, and Miley Cyrus as three prominent examples.

All was well until one of my classmates asked a question about wanting “to be taken just as seriously in the office in a miniskirt as in pants.” In response to this question, Danica came up as an example of a prominent celebrity who wants to be taken seriously, but still has no problem doing Sports Illustrated swimsuit photo shoots.

Right then, right there, I decided that I had had it with Danicamania.

Danica Patrick has been more celebrity than race car driver ever since she first signed with the newly-rechristened Andretti Autosport, back in 2007. Blame it on the GoDaddy ads, blame it on the IndyCar Series using her as their only real marketing tool, blame it on whatever else you’d like, but she is no longer a race car driver first.

She is a celebrity and a brand first, and a race car driver second, and that’s a problem.

I’m sick of the fact that everybody is making a big deal about her supposed jump to the Nationwide Series with JR Motorsports, after a graphic of her in a JR firesuit appeared briefly on the web yesterday. Since when have we cared this much about the Nationwide Series? Have we ever?

Even more troubling, since when have we cared this much about a driver who has never shown the ability to consistently win?

That’s the one difference between Danica and her closest parallel in NASCAR, Dale Earnhardt Jr., her potential Nationwide owner. We all know that they’re both highly overrated by an adoring public. But Junior has won races - plural. Danica hasn’t.

Both have had segments of their careers where they have been in top-flight equipment, albeit not quite as good as some of the other cars out there. Junior has 40 wins in NASCAR’s top two series, now known as Sprint Cup and the Nationwide Series, although he has struggled recently. (With the sheer amount of Cup drivers moonlighting in Nationwide, and their general dominance of the series, with at least 15 Cup drivers entered in the majority of the races, I am calling those wins just as legitimate for the sake of argument. Bear with me.)

To put Junior’s statistics in those two series in perspective, note that Jimmie Johnson has 48 combined wins, Kevin Harvick has 46, Kyle Busch and Tony Stewart have 45 apiece, and Carl Edwards has 41. All of these drivers, except for Busch and Edwards, entered NASCAR at around the same time. Overrated as he may be, Junior isn’t that far off NASCAR’s best when looking at his career statistics.

He’s performed on the track while also establishing himself off of it, running one of the better teams in the Nationwide Series and launching the career of “next big thing” Brad Keselowski.

As for Danica? Well, she has one win, which came on an IndyCar-Champ Car split weekend, and it was cemented by fuel mileage. She’s improved in the points every year, and was the best non-Penske or Ganassi driver in the IndyCar standings last year, but that’s about it for her accomplishments on the track. I don’t think I need to describe her “brand.”

Patrick’s one win in 81 big-league starts yields a winning percentage of 1.23. In 476 combined Sprint Cup and Nationwide starts, Junior has a winning percentage of 8.4. And let’s not forget the two championships Junior won in 1998 and 1999 driving in NASCAR’s number two series. Patrick never won any races in the Toyota Atlantic Series, nevermind championships.

The fact of the matter is, at least Juniormania has some stats to back it up.

I know that Danica Patrick isn’t Milka Duno, running ten miles an hour off the pace in every race she enters. I know that she’s more than just eye candy, that she’s led laps at Indianapolis and whatnot. I also know that stereotypes about racing exist, including that it takes no talent, the fans are a bunch of idiots who choose favorite drivers based on long-standing loyalties, the only drivers that matter are the marketable ones, and so on and so forth.

But I’m a racing fan, not a marketing fan. I don’t think I’m the only one. I grew up before the racing series put more into marketing the products off the track than the racing product on the track, and I know when a driver deserves the publicity that they are receiving.

Sorry, Danica, you’re not a winner.

I want to see a commitment to the race car first and a commitment to the celebrity second. I think the real reason why Junior has been suffering recently is because his celebrity began to outrun his on-track performance, and thus he lags behind the rest of his Hendrick Motorsports teammates. Before the plethora of marketing deals he inked over the past few seasons, Junior was one of the best drivers in NASCAR.

If Danica refocuses on driving the IndyCar and forgets about her celebrity for a while, she’ll be a much better race car driver. She’ll win races. She’ll earn a NASCAR contract if she wants it by bringing more to the table than just her sponsorship dollars.

And when all is said and done, we’ll be able to look back on her career and say “Wow, there’s a driver who really accomplished a lot.”

Until then, have fun with your hype, everybody. I’m done with Danicamania.