RPM Makes Pit Crew Switches for Ambrose, Almirola According a report from FoxSports.com’s Lee Spencer (http://msn.foxsports.com/nascar/story/Richard-Petty-Motorsports-shifts-parts-of-NASCAR-Sprint-Cup-pit-crews-082212), Richard Petty Motorsports announced they’re changing up the pit …
For Peters, it’s a night that reminds us how strong his No. 17 team has been throughout the season. He clearly leads the team in his performance, grabbing his second victory (Iowa) in six races and the fifth in his career. After starting in the runner-up spot, the driver of the No. 17 Toyota wasted little time, taking the top spot before the field completed a single lap. And despite charges from teammate Todd Bodine, Brad Keselowski and even runner-up Parker Kligerman on each restart, Peters always left his competitors eating dust. It’s no easy feat to lead every single circuit at the world’s fastest half-mile, where anything can happen, especially after a recent reconfiguration. Heck, it’s near-impossible to do it at _any_ racetrack: Wednesday night marked the first time since Louisville in July, 1997 a Truck Series driver led every lap of a race.
An old friend from the Indianapolis area, Carl Jackson, wants to know why NASCAR seems reluctant to use “local” yellow flags on road courses.
There have been many people commenting on the issue, post-Montreal so I figured maybe I’d toss in my two cents.
Working with SCCA and other road racing bodies in my fifteen years at Indianapolis Raceway Park, I got fairly familiar with their procedures. I made an effort to learn as much as I could about it, especially because we had open test dates prior to their road race weekends. I served as either race control or chief starter on those dates, and felt I should know what the participants were expecting. I found out it was usually quite different from an oval racing outlook.
It’s back-to-school time, which means it’s also make-the-Chase time, too. The postseason format for stock car racing has now become synonymous with the start of autumn. Once the checkered flag flies at Richmond, the final ten Sprint Cup races take their place in the media spotlight alongside college football, early season games in the NFL, and late season games in major league baseball. That’s precisely what Brian France intended when he explained what the “Chase for the Championship” was hopefully going to accomplish back in January of 2004. Here we are, eight years later, and France’s vision seems to have come true. The Chase, roller coaster TV ratings aside seems to have earned its recognition among the other “mainstream” sports of fall.
The team and crew chief merry-go-round at RCR continues, with Shane Wilson out as Kevin Harvick’s head wrench starting this Saturday night at Bristol Motor …
*After his win at Michigan, is Greg Biffle a legitimate title favorite, or is he a step behind some other teams?*
Summer: He’s a step behind others, but would be a good dark horse pick. If he had more wins, I’d feel differently.
Phil: I like that, Summer. Biffle’s really been the quiet type this year.
Kevin: I think it’s tough to say since Roush isn’t at the level altogether that they were at season’s beginning, but I think he could pull it off with some consistency.
Amy: Honestly, I’m not sure about Biffle. Every time I think he’s going to win a couple of races, he doesn’t. I think he’s a favorite, but not _the_ favorite, if that makes sense. Remember, he essentially lucked into the win Sunday.
_Recently, Patrick Long made his Sprint Cup debut in the No. 30 Toyota for Inception Motorsports at Watkins Glen. Unfortunately, it didn’t last very long — the team was out of commission well before the halfway point — but that was just one more series in a long list that he has competed in over the last decade or so._
_In addition to Sprint Cup, Long has competed in the Nationwide Series, ARCA and the K&N Pro Series. That speaks nothing of his volumes of experience in sports cars, having served as a Porsche factory driver since 2004. Long recently took a break from his very busy testing schedule in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin to talk to our own Phil Allaway._
*With the cancellation of the China race this past weekend, consensus is still that trying to throw together a replacement was a bad idea, but it left the IZOD IndyCar Series with no presence at all for essentially three weeks in the prime of racing season. What does this do to the momentum of the series and how can they get folks back and interested for the run to the championship?*
Huston: Prime of racing season? I didn’t know there was such a thing.
Toni: I think there is. You can maybe get away to a gradual start of the season, and Indy traditionally only has the one race in May, but when it’s summer and you are gearing up for a championship battle, it seems like a huge momentum killer to me. I have to confess to me it feels like the IndyCar Series has been out of sight forever, maybe because everyone else has been in full swing.
Heartbreak may not even begin to describe what Jimmie Johnson felt after losing just one lap to go thanks to a blown engine. One man’s loss was another man’s gain, however, and Greg Biffle returned to Victory Lane for the second time this year. Meanwhile, Brad Keselowski’s strong run also brought him to the forefront of everyone’s minds as we head to the Chase for the Sprint Cup.
How did these three fair in our rankings? Did Biffle’s win vault him to the top? Keep reading to find out:
Justin Allgaier has to be getting frustrated.
Last weekend’s Nationwide Series event at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve saw the 26-year-old driver gain his first win of the 2012 season. That makes three straight seasons that he’s won in the series.
Following the victory, Allgaier sits fifth in overall points, 68 markers behind championship leader Elliott Sadler. His position follows finishes of third, fourth and sixth in the three previous years’ final standings. Many drivers would kill to have that kind of results, so, where does the frustration come into play?