Stewart Wins Atlanta/ Harvick Sneeks Under Edwards/ Open Wheelers Shine in Trucks/ Walker and Crocker News/ Stewart Scores Another Championship

Tony Stewart wins Atlanta
Tony Stewart recorded his 28th NASCAR Nextel Cup Series victory Sunday at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Jeff Gordon got together with Jamie McMurray in turn 2 when McMurray could “see Gordon because of the sun.” Ryan Newman ran into trouble on the backstretch on lap 244.

Kasey Kahne got into David Stremme on lap 250 in turn 1. Tony Stewart who led the most laps of the race, 146,

retook the lead from Dale Earnhardt on lap 315 and held on for the next ten laps for the win.

Cup Results Atlanta
1. 20 Tony Stewart
6. 24 Jeff Gordon
7. 99 Carl Edwards
10. 7 Robby Gordon
16. 18 JJ Yeley
18. 22 Dave Blaney
24. 21 Ken Schrader
29. 49 Mike Bliss
28. 42 Casey Mears
30. 12 Ryan Newman
38. 9 Kasey Kahne

Harvick Sneeks Under Edwards to Win in Memphis

MILLINGTON, Tenn. – Kevin Harvick and his No. 21 Coast Guard team have dominated all season and Saturday at Memphis was no different. As I correctly predicted on Friday, Harvick won clinching the owner’s points championship for Richard Childress Racing. Kevin Harvick clinched the drivers points championship two weeks ago at Charlotte. It was not an easy road for the 2006 champ or three other Open Wheelers Kasey Kahne, JJ Yeley and Carl Edwards. The drivers were all on Atlanta at Cup Happy Hour when their fill in drivers like USAC driver Pete Shepherd qualified their cars. Because of the change, all were forced to start from the rear. Pole sitter Johnny Sauter would lead the field to the green flag before a sellout crown of 38,000. A track record tying 15 cautions would fly on the afternoon.

The first, coming for a spin by Burney Lamar when Kasey Kahne helped Lamar around in turn 4 on lap 46. On lap 83, Clint Bowyer took the lead from Sauter. The two would trade places before Kenny Wallace took the lead on lap 144.

JJ Yeley was helped around by Juan Montoya on lap 148 in turn 4.

Juan Pablo Montoya went around with a little help from Jason Keller in turn 2 on lap 156. Montoya raced Keller hard in practice Friday. Kevin Harvick would take over the lead on lap 160.

John Andretti had a brief fire on a pit stop but would make it back onto the track. Burney Lamar went around again thanks to the help of Augie Vidovich on lap 179 in turn 1. Lamar’s day was over in his last race for Kevin Harvick Incorporated. Carl Edwards would nose under Harvick on a restart on lap 238.

It looked like Edwards would get his first win at Memphis Motorsports Park but the yellow flag flew for an accident involving Steven Wallace with four laps to go. NASCAR went to overtime with a “green-white-checker” restart and both Kevin Harvick and Clint Bowyer were able to get around the Silver Crown team owner.

Harvick held off his teammate for the win. With the win, Harvick became the first Busch Series driver to win two races at the ¾ mile paved oval. The third place finish kept Carl Edwards second in the points, Yeley is 5th and Paul Menard is 6th.

Busch Series Results Memphis
1. (21 Kevin Harvick)
3. 60 Carl Edwards
8. 9 Kasey Kahne
10. 18 J.J. Yeley
11. 42 Juan Pablo Montoya
23. 11 Paul Menard
34. 38 Jason Leffler
35. 10 John Andretti
38. 77 Burney Lamar

Open Wheelers Shine at Atlanta
Former USAC driver Mike Bliss recorded his first NASCAR win since 2002 Saturday at Atlanta Motor Speedway as other Open Wheelers shined. The other story of the day would be 21 lead changes amoung 9 drivers. Mike Skinner took the lead when the green flag dropped but newcomer AJ Allmendinger got his first chance to lead a NASCAR race on lap 8. Johnny Benson took the lead away from Allmendinger on lap 13. The former Champ Car World Series driver and Joe Nemecheck were then involved in a two car accident on lap 14 on the backstretch. David Reutiman took the lead from Benson on lap 28. Mike Bliss took the lead on lap 34. Reutiman took the lead back on the next lap and led until Johnny Benson took the point on lap 48. Mike Bliss led for the second time of the day on lap 53. Jack Sprague took the lead on lap 80 and Reutiman took it away 4 laps later. Other drivers would take the lead but Reutiman would get it back on lap 102. Bobby Hamilton Jr. would trade the lead with Reutiman several times before Erik Darnell would take the point on lap 114. Mike Bliss would take the lead for the final time with 9 laps to go and would hold on for the win on the 1.54 mile banked track. The day was also good for Terry Cook and David Reutiman who both scored top five finishes.

Open Wheeler Truck Results Hotlanta
1. 16 Mike Bliss
2. 10 Terry Cook
4. 17 David Reutiman
15. 21 Bobby East
23. 98 Erin Crocker
34. 24 AJ Allmendinger

Walker to Trucks
Tyler Walker will drive for Bill Davis Racing in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series in 2007 Walker will drive the No. 36 Toyota Tundra.

Also SPEED’s Ray Dunlap is reporting that Erin Crocker will have a new crew chief come next weekend.

Tony Stewart Racks Up Another Championship
Tony Stewart added to his long list of championships Saturday as he won his first IROC championship finishing third at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Fellow Open Wheeler Ryan Newman was fourth. Stewart has national championships in six different series including the USAC Triple Crown in 1995.

USAC Midget 1994, 1995
USAC Sprint 1995
USAC Silver Crown 1995
IRL IndyCar 1997
NASCAR Nextel Cup 2002, 2005
IROC 2006

Coming Later this Week:
More with Juan Montoya and Schatz on Wind Tunnel

All images in this update courtesy of NBC, NASCAR Images and SPEED.

My Top 25

My Top 25 for Oct. 29, 2006

1. Louisville 7-0 Beat Syracuse, Cincinnatti, Kansas State, Miami, MTSU and Kentucky.
2. Ohio State 9-0 Beat Minnesota, Indiana, Michigan State, Bowling Green, Iowa, Penn State, Cincinatti, Texas and Northern Illinois.
3. West Virginia 7-0 Beat U Conn, Syracuse, Mississippi State, East Carolina, Eastern Washington, Maryland and Marshall.
4. Michigan 9-0 Beat Northwestern, Iowa, Penn State, Michigan State, Minnesota, Wisconsin, held off Vanderbilt and beat Notre Dame and Central Michigan.
5. Boise State 8-0 Beat Idaho, Louisiana Tech, Utah, Hawaii, Oregon State and Wyoming.
6. Rutgers 7-0 Game On Sunday Beat Pittsburgh, Navy, South Florida, Illinois, Ohio and Howard.
7. UTK 7-1 Beat South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, Memphis, Air Force, Marshall and Cal but lost to Florida.
8. Arkansas 7-1 Beat LA Monroe, Ole Miss, Auburn and Alabama. Lost to USC.
9. Notre Dame 7-1 Beat Navy, UCLA, Stanford, Purdue and Michigan State. Lost to Michigan after beating Penn State and Georgia Tech.
10. Texas 8-1 Lost to Ohio State but beat Nebraska, Baylor, Oklahoma, Rice, Texas Tech and Iowa State.
11. Auburn 8-1 Lost to Arkansas. Beat Ole Miss, Florida, South Carolina, LSU, Washington State and Mississippi State.
12. Tulsa 7-1 Beat UTEP, Memphis, East Carolina, Southern Miss and Navy.
13. Cal 7-1 Beat Washington in OT Beat Washington State, Oregon, Oregon State, Arizona State, Minnesota and Portland State but lost to UTK.
14. Florida 7-1 Lost to Auburn. Beat Georgia, LSU, Alabama, Kentucky, Central Florida, Southern Miss and UTK.
15. Wisconsin 7-1 Lost to Michigan but beat Purdue, Illinois, Minnesota, Northwestern, Indiana, Western Illinois and San Deigo State.
16. Texas A&M 8-1 Beat Baylor, Oklahoma State, Missouri, Kansas, Louisiana Tech and Louisiana Lafayette but lost to Texas Tech.
17. USC 6-1 Lost to Oregon State. Beat Arizona State, Washington, Washington State, Arizona, Nebraska and Arkansas.
18. Boston College 7-1 Lost to NC State. Beat Buffalo, Florida State, Virginia, Maine, BYU and narrowly edged Clemson.
19. Wake Forrest 7-1 Lost to Clemson. Beat North Carolina, NC State, Ole Miss, U Conn and Duke.
20. LSU 6-2 Lost to Florida and Auburn but beat Fresno State, Kentucky, Mississippi State, Arizona, Tulane and Louisiana Lafayette.
21. Georgia Tech 6-2 Lost to Clemson and Notre Dame and beat The Fighting Hurricanes, Maryland, Virginia Tech and Virginia.
22. South Carolina 5-3 Beat Vanderbilt, Kentucky and FAU. Lost to Auburn and UTK.
23. Virginia Tech 6-2 Lost to Boston College and Georgia Tech. Beat Clemson, Southern Mississippi, Cincinatti, Duke, North Carolina and Northeastern.
24. Maryland 6-2 Beat Florida State, NC State, Virginia and FIU. Almost upset Georgia Tech.
25. Oklahoma 6-2 Lost to Texas. Beat Missouri, Colorado, Iowa State and MTSU.

Knocking on the Door
26. Oregon 6-2 Lost to Washington State and Cal. Beat UCLA, Arizona State, Oklahoma, Fresno State, Portland State and Stanford.
27. Clemson 7-2 Lost to Virginia Tech. Beat Georgia Tech, Temple, Wake Forrest, Louisiana Tech, North Carolina and Florida State.
28. Hawaii 6-2 Beat Ohio, Beat New Mexico State, Fresno State, Nevada and Eastern Illinois. Lost to Boise State.
29. Missouri 7-2 Lost to Oklahoma and Texas A&M. Beat Kansas State, Texas Tech, Colorado, Ohio, New Mexico and Ole Miss.
30. Pittsburgh 6-2 Lost to Rutgers. Beat Central Florida, Syracuse, Toledo and the Citadel.
31. Brigham Young 6-2 Beat Air Force, UNLV, San Deigo State, TCU and Utah State.
32. Kent State 4-2 Beat Toledo, Temple, Akron and Bowling Green.
33. TCU 5-2 Dropped to Utah and BYU. Beat Wyoming, Army, Texas Tech, UC-Davis and Baylor.
34. San Jose State 5-2 Lost to Nevada. Beat Utah State, San Deigo State, LA Tech and Cal Poly.
35. Western Michigan 6-2 Lost to Ohio. Beat Eastern Michigan, Ball State, Northern Illinois and Temple.
36. Oregon State 6-3 Beat USC.
37. Alabama 6-3 Lost to UTK, Lost to Florida and Arkansas. Beat Ole Miss, Duke, Vanderbilt, Hawaii and Louisiana Monroe.
38. Iowa 6-3 Lost to Michigan, Indiana and Ohio State. Beat No. Ill., Purdue, Illinois, Iowa State, Syracuse and Montana.
39. Houston 6-3 Lost to Southern Mississippi and Louisiana Lafayette. Barely lost to Miami. Beat Central Florida, UTEP, Oklahoma State, Tulane and Grambling.
40. Washington State 6-3 Lost to Cal and USC. Beat UCLA, Stanford and Oregon State
41. Arizona State 5-3 Lost to USC, Oregon and Cal but beat Stanford, Washington, Colorado and Nevada.
42. Penn State 6-3 Beat Purdue, Illinois, Minnesota and Northwestern. Lost to Ohio State and Michigan.
43. Navy 5-3 Lost to Rutgers, Notre Dame and Tulsa. Beat Air Force, U Mass and U Conn.
44. Georgia 6-3 Lost to Florida, Vanderbilt and UTK. Beat Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Colorado, UAB, South Carolina and Western Kentucky.
45. Oklahoma State 5-3 Lost to Texas A&M, Kansas State and Houston. Beat Nebraska, Arkansas State and Kansas.
46. Arkansas State 5-3 Beat North Texas, Memphis, Louisiana Monroe, Army and FIU. Lost to SMU, FAU and Oklahoma State.
47. Nebraska 6-3 Lost to Oklahoma State and Texas. Beat Kansas State, Iowa State, Kansas and Troy.
48. Ohio 6-3 Beat Kent State.
49. South Florida 5-3 Beat North Carolina, U Conn, Central Florida and FIU. Lost to Kansas and Cincinnatti.
50. Nevada 5-3 Beat News Mexico State, Colorado State, Northwestern and UNLV.

Sauters Rule while Juan and Leffler Run Up Front/ Juan Pablo Montoya Happy with Sessions/ Tracy Stays in Champ/ If Stewart Wins, Eldora May Get IROC

Sauters Rule while Juan and Leffler Run Up Front
MILLINGTON, Tenn. - The Sauter brothers shined today at Memphis Motorsports Park despite the clouds and intermittent rain. Johnny Sauter let the first practice session. His brother Jay led the final session turning the best time of the day at 22.919 at 117.806mph. Juan Pablo Montoya and his No. 42 team were hot right out of the box today timing in 4th quick in the first practice session of the day at 23.136. Carl Edwards was 6th quick in the session coming in at 23.169. Jason Leffler was 9th quick at 23.214. The USAC Silver Crown owner was second quick in the final practice turning a time of 22.942. JPM timed in 8th at 23.054. Burney Lamar was 10th quick at 23.083. Rain halted practice today several times as four jet driers circled the track. There were no major incidents. The weather should be perfect for tomorrow’s race. By the way, I am predicting Kevin Harvick to win.

Juan Pablo Montoya Happy with Sessions
NASCAR Busch Series rookie Juan Pablo Montoya says everything is going well. The Open Wheeler spoke to the national and local media today following practice at MMP. Montoya’s crew chief and former Busch crew chief for Carl Edwards, Brad Parrott said the rookie is doing a 11 out of 10 for his first time on the track. JPM was fast all day. Parrott says the real test will come with the other cars on the track racing his NASCAR newcomer.

Not so Hotlanta
Rain washed out qualifying today at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The start of Sunday’s race will be set by points. Matt Kenseth is on the pole and Open Wheeler Kasey Kahne will start 8th. Carl Edwards and the rest of the Cup guys minus Kahne, who are scheduled to race in Memphis on Saturday, flew in to the Memphis Motorsports Park today to practice. You can track their flights in the links posted yesterday on this website.

Newman Wins PRA Race
Cup driver Ryan Newman took the lead from Marc Jessup three-quarters of the way through the 100 lap event and went on to record the win. Newman and Jessup staged a thrilling duel, swapping the lead several times for two laps, before Ryan took command. Jessup would go on to finish 14th. A.J. Fike held off PRA points leader Chet Fillip for second position, while Tracy Hines and Eric Gordon rounded out the top five finishers. Next up for the Big Cars will be at USA International Speedway in Lakeland, Florida December 13th.

Tracy Stays in Champ

Paul Tracy abandoned the path that his teammate AJ Allmendinger has taken. The Canadian has announced that he will not race in NASCAR next season and instead concentrate on winning in the Champ Car World Series. Allemdinger is on the fast track to NASCAR.

If Stewart Wins, Eldora May Get IROC
Tony Stewart has said in the media before that if he wins the 2006 IROC title that he is willing to forfeit the million dollar prize in exchange for getting Eldora Speedway to host an IROC event, in late model cars, in 2007. Stewart will need to finish third or better to clinch the title. Stewart was the IROC Series runner-up in 2001. A Crown Royal IROC title in 2006 would give Stewart six different series title to his collection of national championships. His five national titles include: USAC National Midget champion (1994 & ’95), USAC Sprint Car (’95), USAC Silver Crown (’95), IRL IndyCar Series (’97) and NASCAR Nextel Cup (2002 & ’05). Stewart, Matt Kenseth, Max Papis and Ryan Newman all mathematically have a chance at the title in Atlanta Saturday on SPEED at 3pm eastern. Open Wheelers Sam Hornish Jr., Scott Sharp, and Steve Kinser are also scheduled to start.

Kinser began the 2006 season at Daytona with this scary flip

and followed it up

with this flip at Texas.


All images in this update courtesy of CCWS and SPEED.

Memphis Open Wheeler Busch Series Coverage/ Pete Shepherd and Bobby East News/ Montoya Mania/ Rice to Champ Car?/ NASCAR Comes to ESPN2

Memphis Open Wheeler Busch Series Coverage
Welcome to our coverage of this weekend’s NASCAR Busch Series race at Memphis Motorsports Park. We have a lot of stories we are working on plus information on our Open Wheelers racing in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Atlanta so lets get to it.

Memphis Motorsports Park (MMP) is known as a good place for first time Busch Series drivers to get their first start. The track’s first race came in 1999 and since then 23 drivers have made their series debut at the .75- mile facility. Many Open Wheelers have gotten their first start at Memphis.

The Great Racing Fly In
One of the reasons Memphis is a great place for first times is that the Cup guys are in Atlanta but that doesn’t mean we will not see them in the Bluff City this weekend. Three Chase contenders are schedule to make the flight from Atlanta, Georgia to Millington, Tennessee. Kyle Busch was originally scheduled to race in Memphis but has since backed out and who can blame him with so much at state in Hotlanta. Kevin Harvick clinched the Busch Series championship two weeks ago at Charlotte but will still race in Memphis. Harvick told Dave Rodman of NASCAR.com that he has always planned on racing at MMP and his plans have never changed. Denny Hamlin and Open Wheeler Kasey Kahne are the other two “Chasers” making the trip. Open Wheelers JJ Yeley and Carl Edwards will also pull the double. Cup Happy Hour is scheduled for 12:50pm eastern in Atlanta and the start of the Busch Race at MMP is set for 2:10 eastern. This makes for a tight day logistically. The teams work with Memphis Motorsports Park and local authorities to pull off the quick trip. Last year Edwards hopped a ride with his boss Jack Roush to Charles Baker Airport, which is located adjacent to MMP property. Other teams with bigger aircraft have to land at Millington Municipal Airport, which is located a few miles north of the track. Several teams have already landed at the larger Millington airport this morning. You can track the flights to Millington http://flightaware.com/live/airport/KNQA as well as Charles Baker http://flightaware.com/live/airport/2M8 through our friends at FlightAware.com.

Shepherd to Warm Up Busch Car for Edwards
Roush Racing developmental driver, Peter Shepherd, will practice and qualify Carl Edwards' Busch Series No. 60 FreeCreditReport.com Ford Fusion this weekend in Memphis. This will be Shepherd's inaugural Busch Series event. Shepherd has competed in three NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series races this season for Roush Racing, the first of which was at Memphis. Shepherd qualified 25th and finished 23rd in that race. Carl Edwards is part owner of the USAC Silver Crown race car that Shepherd competed in this year and has helped Shepherd out with driving tips throughout the season. Now Shepherd can return the favor while gaining valuable seat time. With Edwards in Atlanta for the Nextel Cup race he will miss all Busch practice sessions and qualifying for Saturday's Sam's Town 250. Shepherd will step in to practice and qualify the car while Edwards fulfills his Nextel Cup responsibilities in the No. 99 Office Depot Ford Fusion at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Shepherd is prepared to start the Busch race if Edwards does not make it to Memphis in time for the green flag."I am really thrilled for this opportunity," Shepherd said. "Pierre Kuettel (P.K.) and the whole No. 60 team are great at what they do and I can't wait to help out and learn at the same time. I hope we can get the No. 60 FreeCreditReport.com Ford Fusion handling just right so Carl can jump in and win the race." Edwards who is second in Busch Series points, said he had confidence in Shepherd's ability to perform."Peter has been doing a great job driving," Edwards said. "He finished the season driving my RE Technologies Silver Crown USAC Car, and I got a chance to spot for him in Chicago and was really impressed with him, just like everyone else. He is a super nice kid; he has a great family and will be a great driver. Peter has tested the Silver Crown car at Memphis and ran the truck there so we thought he would be the perfect guy to get the car set up and ready to race."

Montoya Mania
The big news this weekend in Memphis, never mind the outcome, will be Juan Pablo Montoya first NASCAR star in the No. 42 Texaco/Havoline Dodge. The former Indianapolis 500 champion and Formula One star has participated in several tests in NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series cars including one two weeks ago at Memphis Motorsports Park. JPM has also made starts at Talladega Superspeedway and at Iowa Speedway in the ARCA RE/MAX Series. The Columbian will take over the driving duties of the No. 42 Texaco/Havoline Dodge in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series in 2007. The 31-year-old driver is probably one of the best Open Wheel drivers in the world. In 137 starts between the CART, IndyCar and Formula One Series, Montoya has tallied 18 wins, 26 poles, 60 top-five and 79 top-10 finishes.

“Our biggest goal this weekend is to get 250 laps of racing,” said crew chief Brad Parrott. “He got 202 at Iowa on the short track, now we need to get 250. He needs to continue to get more comfortable racing in traffic and that comes with race time and laps. He had a good test in the Cup car at Memphis, and the Texaco/Havoline team put together a good car, so this should be a good weekend for the team and the organization.”

Juan Pablo Montoya is aware of the goals but knows Memphis will not be an easy race.

“Memphis is a really tough race track. When I tested the Cup car there the first thing I learned was that it is a really small racetrack. It is difficult and tricky. I was surprised at how hard on the tires it was, it killed the tires. When I race at Iowa there were several lines you could run, at Memphis there is really just one line. Everybody wants to run the car at the bottom, that's it. When we tested, I was running competitive times with (David) Stremme, so I think my race pace is fine. I do think there will be a lot of getting bumped and moved around. It's going to be I think a bit of a shock for me compared to what I’ve been used to in Formula One. I'm out here to learn and get ready to take over the Texaco/Havoline car in 2007. Hopefully, we can bring this car home in better shape than the car from Iowa.”

Burney’s Back
Open Wheeler Burney Lamar is back behind the wheel of the No. 77 Dollar General Chevrolet this weekend. Tennessee based Dollar General is hoping to provide a lucky boost for the team by inviting the Kevin Harvick Inc. road and race day crews to join a riverboat cruise on the Mississippi River aboard the Queen Memphis III on Thursday evening. Note to KHI team, bring a jacket because the river can get cool on fall evenings.

Leffler Looks for Win
Open Wheeler Jason Leffer cut his teeth on short tracks. Maybe that is why he is looking forward to Memphis. Leffler who currently sits 11th in the NASCAR Busch Series point standings has a total of five career starts at Memphis Motorsports Park, three (3) in the NASCAR Busch Series and two (2)in the Craftsman Truck Series. The USAC Silver Crown Series Championship Car Owner has one career pole, one top-five and two top-10 finishes with eleven laps led at MMP.

Memphis Notes
There have been seven different winners at Memphis since the inaugural NASCAR Busch Series race at the track in 1999. Two former winners – teammates Clint Bowyer (2005) and Kevin Harvick (2000) – are entered. Randy LaJoie, who will sub for Harvick until race time, also won at Memphis in 2001. Harvick and Bowyer have two top-five finishes at Memphis, best among drivers entered. Jason Keller has five top-10 finishes at Memphis, best among all drivers. A new Busch Pole winner can emerge from Memphis as none of the previous four pole winners are entered in the event. Jeff Green and Martin Truex Jr. lead that category with two each. Four former Memphis winners also are NASCAR Busch Series champions – Harvick, Truex, Jeff Green and LaJoie.

Richard Childress can clinch his third NASCAR Busch Series owner championship at Memphis if Kevin Harvick driving the No. 21 U.S. Coast Guard Chevrolet can finish 35th or better. Harvick is not taking any chances, bringing the same car that won earlier this year at Martinsville Speedway, O’Reilly Raceway Park and Richmond International Raceway. Paul Menard will aim for his 100th series start at Memphis.

Schedule: All times central
Friday, Oct. 27
Practice, 2-3 p.m. & 4-5 p.m.
Rookie Practice, 3:30-4 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 28
Qualifying, 10:05 a.m.
Race, 1:10 p.m. NBC

Odds and Ends Track Layout: .75-mile oval Race Purse: $1,279,397 2005 Winner: Clint Bowyer 2005 Pole: Martin Truex Jr.

Out numbered?
Out of 50 entries this weekend, 8 are Open Wheelers

Busch Series Entries for Memphis
9 Kasey Kahne
10 John Andretti
11 Paul Menard
18 J.J. Yeley
38 Jason Leffler
42 Juan Pablo Montoya
60 Carl Edwards
77 Burney Lamar

Tickets Almost Gone
If you are planning on going to the Memphis race this weekend and haven’t purchased your tickets yet you better get on the phone. As of last check, all that remains are $45 general admission tickets ($20 for children under 12) in Grandstand H – the new, temporary stands brought in to accommodate the continuing demand for tickets to the track’s NASCAR season finale on Oct. 28. Also available are $15 tickets for the three practice sessions on Friday, Oct. 27. For tickets or more information, call 1-866-40-SPEED (77333) or visit MemphisMotorsportsPark.com.

We will have continuing coverage throughout the weekend of the Memphis Busch race on this website.

Bobby East Looks for First Win in Hotlanta
Memphis is not the only place that Open Wheelers are looking for success this weekend. Bobby East and five other Open Wheelers are looking for good results at Atlanta Motor Speedway. East returns to the site of his 2006 Craftsman Truck Series debut where he started fifth and finished 23rd in the spring race at AMS.

“I've really learned a lot on our mile-and-a-half program,” said East. “When we went to Atlanta earlier this year, we had a fast truck and we had an excellent setup and a good body and an awesome motor, but it was my first mile-and-a-half race and I really didn't know what to do other than hold the throttle down. I took that race and made sure I finished every single lap just to make sure I could get 130 laps of experience on a mile-and-a-half track. Since that time, we've come a long way. The team has come a long way in its mile-and-a-half program, and they've really worked hard with me to get better on the mile-and-a-halfs because that's been one of my biggest struggles this year. We're trying to get top-10s. We've had some decent runs here lately; we either haven't been able to finish it or had some kind of problems along the way. We're just making sure we work through everything we can, but when we show up to the track, me and John Monsam (crew chief), our mindset is: what can we do to get a top-10? That's what I want, to be able to put myself in the position where I'm in the top 10 week in and week out and see if we can't turn our luck around here ourselves.”

Open Wheeler Truck Entries for Hotlanta
10 Terry Cook
16 Mike Bliss
17 David Reutiman
21 Bobby East
24 AJ Allmendinger
98 Erin Crocker

SPEED Says Rice to CCWS
According to a story posted at http://www.speedtv.com/articles/auto/champcar/33628/ Buddy Rice could leave the IRL for Champ Car in 2007. SPEED reports that Rice will replace A.J. Allmendinger in the CCWS season finale Nov. 12 at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez. Allmendinger announced earlier this week he was leaving Champ Car for NASCAR..

Who is Next?
Today’s Indianapolis Star has the answer in two articles who in USAC could be next for fendered stardom at www.indystar.com. Note that the registration police are out so you may have to register to see the article.

NASCAR Comes to ESPN2 Sunday
ESPN kicks off their coverage of NASCAR early this weekend with the reality TV program “NASCAR Drivers Non-Stop.” The program will follow around Open Wheel JJ Yeley as well as Clint Bowyer and Jeremy Mayfield in the first episode. The new show premieres Sunday, October 29 at 11:00pm/et on ESPN2.

Not So Fast!

Not So Fast!

Minnesota 3-5 at 2 Ohio State 8-0
Ohio State is ranked No. 1 in the national poles but I have then No. 2 because Louisville had the No. 1 position first. Ohio State will look like they are No. 1 by slapping around a terrible Minnesota team that almost list to North Dakota State last weekend at home.

10 Clemson 7-1 at 25 Virginia Tech 5-2
This will be a good test to see if Clemson is for real. I think they are. The Tigers by at least 7.

11 Notre Dame 6-1 at Navy 5-2
This looks like a blowout but Navy is no slouch. ND will still win but it will be closer that what the odd makers say.

Oklahoma 5-2 at 19 Missouri 7-1
If Oklahoma is as good as they supposedly are, they will beat a good Tiger team. I think the Sooners will win in a good game.

Georgia 6-2 at 17 Florida 6-1
The Cocktail Party should be rocking this year and the Gators will roll by at least 5.

12 Texas 7-1 at Texas Tech 5-3
Texas will win a tough one on the road and further their quest for the BCS.

8 UTK 6-1 at 24 South Carolina 5-2
The Vols are on a roll and are in the catbird’s seat for the SEC Championship and a BCS birth so heading to South Carolina should be not big deal but Not So Fast. Phil Fulmer aka the Great Pumpkin has a good record against almost everyone but Steve Spurrier. The Ole Ball Coach has had his way with the pumpkin over the year and if South Carolina can get up early in the Vols and stay on top, they can win. I think the Great Pumpkin’s team has the talent to out play the Gamecocks and win in a close one.

The phrase “Not So Fast!” is my tribute to Lee Corso of ESPN. It is not intended to infringe on any copyright laws or trademarks.

Look for my rankings Sunday night.

Gordon Comes Clean on Wind Tunnel/ Better Day for Open Wheelers at Martinsville/ Reid Shopping for a Ride/ Open Wheeler Legend Wins/ Hot Chick Warning

Gordon Comes Clean on Wind Tunnel

Wind Tunnel with Dave Despain has to be one of the best racing programs on TV. It usually brings out the truth from the movers and shakers in the sport. Sunday Jeff Gordon co-hosted the program. Despain put Gordon and Dale Earnhart Jr. together and both of them field phone calls from fans.

“I wine too much… in the heat of the moment,” Gordon admitted to Despain. “I agree that sometimes I wine too much.”

He also took on NASCAR and their development of the Car of Tomorrow.

“I don’t believe it (COT) symbolized the future of racing,” said Gordon. “I don’t like the way it looks.”

The four time Cup Champ says he likes the safety aspects but there is room for improvement in other areas.

The funniest part of the program came when the folks at WT ran a takeoff on the Guinness Draft in a bottle commercial. SPEED’s F1 commentators poked fun at Gordon’s mustache

and his ability to kiss his girlfriend and then hug another woman next to her. The segment was “brilliant.” That segment and the rest of Wind Tunnel with Dave Despain is scheduled for rebroadcast at 12am and 10am eastern Monday morning.

Better Day for Open Wheelers at Martinsville

Martinsville Speedway was rough on the Open Wheelers in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Saturday. Sunday, the story would change as six of the top thirteen Nextel Cup finishers today were Open Wheelers.

Jeff Gordon was off to a good start as he led several laps.

Early in the race it was Open Wheeler vs Open Wheeler as Ryan Newman got into Casey Mears.

Ken Schrader and Dale Jarrett were victims of this accident caused by rookie David Ragan.

Schrader was running in the top ten at the time.

After he got out of his car he helped the track crew with cleanup. No he did not throw the bar.

Casey Mears would go around again when David Gilliland hit him from behind. Mears would recover from two spins, none of his own making, to finish 6th. Jimmy Johnson won the race.

Martinsville Cup Results
1. (48 Jimmie Johnson)
4. 20 Tony Stewart
5. 24 Jeff Gordon
6. 42 Casey Mears
7. 9 Kasey Kahne
12. 99 Carl Edwards
13. 12 Ryan Newman
31. 18 JJ Yeley
33. 22 Dave Blaney
37. 7 Robby Gordon
41. 21 Ken Schrader

Reid Shopping for a Ride

Krista Voda reported on The Speed Report Sunday night that Boston Reid was in the Cup garage in Martinsville talking to several owners about running for them in 2007. Reid told SPEED that he would be interested in racing in any of NASCAR’s top three series. The Speen Report is scheduled for rebroadcast 9am eastern Monday morning.

Open Wheeler Legend Wins
One of the biggest contributors to Open Wheel racing, Paul Newman won his class at the SCCA race at Lime Rock Park today.

Hot Chick Warning

Phoenix International Raceway hit the male demographic on the head

when they cast this lovely lady in their latest national ad.

The television ad promotes ticket sales for the NASCAR weekend at PIR.

All images courtesy of NBC, SPEED and NASCAR Images.

Open Wheel Racing Innovator Passes Away/ Not a Good Day for Open Wheelers at M’ville

Open Wheel Racing Innovator Passes Away

Ted Johnson changed the course of sprint car racing in the United States and the world. Johnson founded the World of Outlaws in 1978. The former china salesman set out to make his series the best and his drivers stars.

He assembled a group of drivers to tour nationally.

Over the years the series grew and found a partner in TNN.

Johnson’s World of Outlaws at one point became one of the most popular forms of racing in the United States.

The series toured the best tracks in the United States and even convinced

Bristol Motor Speedway to cover it’s hallowed high banks with dirt.

Not everyone agreed with Ted Johnson but everyone could admit that he was a pioneer.

Several years ago I had scheduled a meeting with an IRL official. He didn’t know me from Adam but he knew that my last name was Johnson and that I was from a racing family. He gave me the royal treatment with a personal tour of the IMS facilities. Then he asked how my father, Ted Johnson, was doing. “Ted Johnson is not my father,” I said. “Oh,” said the IRL official. I might have not accidentally got in the door that day if it wasn’t for that mistake.

Ted Johnson wielded a lot of power. He created an empire. He was a promoter and pioneer. His leadership and contributions to the sport of Sprint Car racing will not be forgotten.

Not a Good Day for Open Wheelers at M’ville

There was not a lot of positives to report for Open Wheelers at the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Martinsville.

The most positive thing I can say is that Krista Voda did look smokin in that black leather jacket in SPEED’s prerace show.

Now on to the bad news. Young Cameron Dodson went around for the first time Saturday when an impatient Brendan Gaughan hit the sprint driver sending both spinning.

Erin Crocker went around after being tapped from behind.

A multi-car pileup began when someone got into Erin Crocker and it was on. The accident also took out Cameron Dodson.

The final Open Wheeler spin cycle featured USAC veteran Mike Bliss was turned around when Rick Crawford got into Denny Hamlin. Hamlin then got into Bliss. Jack Sprague won the race. Terry Cook was the highest finishing Open Wheeler at 17th.

Open Wheeler Truck Results Martinsville
1. (60 Jack Sprague)
17. 10 Terry Cook
18. 17 David Reutiman
21. 21 Bobby East
22. 16 Mike Bliss
26. 98 Erin Crocker
30. 63 Cameron Dodson

All images courtesy of World of Outlaws, TNN, CBS Cable, SPEED and NASCAR Images.

My Top 25 for Oct. 22, 2006

My Top 25 for Oct. 22, 2006
1. Louisville 7-0 Beat Syracuse, Cincinnatti, Kansas State, Miami, MTSU and Kentucky.
2. Ohio State 8-0 Beat Indiana, Michigan State, Bowling Green, Iowa, Penn State, Cincinatti, Texas and Northern Illinois.
3. West Virginia 7-0 Beat U Conn, Syracuse, Mississippi State, East Carolina, Eastern Washington, Maryland and Marshall.
4. Michigan 8-0 Beat Iowa, Penn State, Michigan State, Minnesota, Wisconsin, held off Vanderbilt and beat Notre Dame and Central Michigan.
5. USC 6-0 Beat Arizona State, Washington, Washington State, Arizona, Nebraska and Arkansas.
6. Boise State 8-0 Beat Idaho, Louisiana Tech, Utah, Hawaii, Oregon State and Wyoming.
7. Rutgers 7-0 Beat Pittsburgh, Navy, South Florida, Illinois, Ohio and Howard.
8. UTK 6-1 Beat Alabama, Georgia, Memphis, Air Force, Marshall and Cal but lost to Florida.
9. Arkansas 6-1 Beat Ole Miss, Auburn and Alabama. Lost to USC.
10. Clemson 7-1 Hammered Georgia Tech. Beat Temple, Wake Forrest, Louisiana Tech, North Carolina and Florida State.
11. Notre Dame 6-1 Beat UCLA, Stanford, Purdue and Michigan State. Lost to Michigan after beating Penn State and Georgia Tech.
12. Texas 7-1 Lost to Ohio State but beat Nebraska, Baylor, Oklahoma, Rice, and Iowa State.
13. Auburn 7-1 Lost to Arkansas. Beat Tulane, Florida, South Carolina, LSU, Washington State and Mississippi State.
14. Tulsa 6-1 Beat Memphis, East Carolina, Southern Miss and Navy.
15. Cal 7-1 Beat Washington in OT Beat Washington State, Oregon, Oregon State, Arizona State, Minnesota and Portland State but lost to UTK.
16. Texas A&M 7-1 Beat Oklahoma State, Missouri, Kansas, Louisiana Tech and Louisiana Lafayette but lost to Texas Tech.
17. Florida 6-1 Lost to Auburn. Beat LSU, Alabama, Kentucky, Central Florida, Southern Miss and UTK.
18. Wisconsin 7-1 Lost to Michigan but beat Purdue, Minnesota, Northwestern, Indiana, Western Illinois and San Deigo State.
19. Missouri 7-1 Lost to Texas A&M, Beat Kansas State, Texas Tech, Colorado, Ohio, New Mexico and Ole Miss.
20. Boston College 6-1 Lost to NC State. Beat Florida State Virginia, Maine, BYU and narrowly edged Clemson.
21. Wake Forrest 6-1 Lost to Clemson. Beat NC State, Ole Miss, U Conn and Duke.
22. LSU 6-2 Lost to Florida and Auburn but beat Fresno State, Kentucky, Mississippi State, Arizona, Tulane and Louisiana Lafayette.
23. Georgia Tech 5-2 Lost to Clemson and Notre Dame and beat Maryland, Virginia Tech and Virginia.
24. South Carolina 5-2 Beat Vanderbilt, Kentucky and FAU. Lost to Auburn.
25. Virginia Tech 5-2 Lost to Boston College and Georgia Tech. Beat Southern Mississippi, Cincinatti, Duke, North Carolina and Northeastern.

Knocking on the Door
26. Maryland 5-2 Beat NC State, Virginia and FIU. Almost upset Georgia Tech.
27. Georgia 6-2 Lost to Vanderbilt and UTK. Beat Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Colorado, UAB, South Carolina and Western Kentucky.
28. Oklahoma 5-2 Lost to Texas. Beat Colorado, Iowa State and MTSU.
29. Oregon 5-2 Lost to Washington State and Cal. Beat UCLA, Arizona State, Oklahoma, Fresno State and Stanford.
30. Arkansas State 5-2 Beat North Texas, Memphis, Louisiana Monroe, Army and FIU. Lost to SMU and Oklahoma State.
31. Hawaii 5-2 Beat New Mexico State, Fresno State, Nevada and Eastern Illinois. Lost to Boise State.
32. Brigham Young 5-2 Beat UNLV, San Deigo State, TCU and Utah State.
33. Pittsburgh 6-2 Lost to Rutgers. Beat Central Florida, Syracuse, Toledo and the Citadel.
34. Navy 5-2 Lost to Rutgers and Tulsa. Beat Air Force, U Mass and U Conn.
35. Kent State 4-2 Beat Toledo, Temple, Akron and Bowling Green.
36. TCU 4-2 Dropped to Utah and BYU. Beat Army, Texas Tech, UC-Davis and Baylor.
37. South Florida 5-2 (Sunday game vs Cincinnatti) Beat North Carolina, U Conn, Central Florida and FIU. Lost to Kansas.
38. Louisiana Layfayette 4-2 Beat FAU, Houston, Eastern Michigan and NC A&T.
39. Western Michigan 5-2 Lost to Ohio. Beat Ball State, Northern Illinois and Temple.
40. Nebraska 6-2 Lost to Texas. Beat Kansas State, Iowa State, Kansas and Troy.
41. San Jose State 4-2 Lost to Nevada. Beat Utah State, San Deigo State and Cal Poly.
42. Kent State 5-2 Beat Toledo and Temple.
43. Alabama 5-3 Lost to UTK, Lost to Florida and Arkansas. Beat Ole Miss, Duke, Vanderbilt, Hawaii and Louisiana Monroe.
44. Southern Miss 4-3 Beat Houston, Central Florida and NC State but lost to Tulsa, Florida and Virginia Tech.
45. Iowa 5-3 Lost to Michigan, Indiana and Ohio State. Beat Purdue, Illinois, Iowa State, Syracuse and Montana.
46. Houston 5-3 Lost to Southern Mississippi and Louisiana Lafayette. Barely lost to Miami. Beat UTEP, Oklahoma State, Tulane and Grambling.
47. Washington State 4-3 Lost to Cal and USC. Beat Stanford and Oregon State
48. Arizona State 4-3 Lost to USC, Oregon and Cal but beat Stanford, Colorado and Nevada.
49. Penn State 5-3 Beat Illinois, Minnesota and Northwestern. Lost to Ohio State and Michigan.
50. Texas Tech 5-3 Lost to Colorado and Missouri. Beat Iowa State, Texas A&M and SE Louisiana

World of Outlaws Family Remembers Founder Ted Johnson

World of Outlaws Family Remembers Founder Ted Johnson
By Chris Dolack, WoO VP Public Relations

Ted Johnson and the World of Outlaws. It's pretty hard to say one without at least thinking of the other. That's as much a tribute to the man as it is the racing series he created.
Johnson dedicated his life to sprint car racing, taking the sport to heights not previously imagined. He assembled the greatest collection of sprint car drivers in the world and helped them enjoy careers entertaining fans across the United States and around the world. Through the World of Outlaws, Johnson has impacted thousands of sprint car racers and created national heroes out of the best of the best during the past 30 years.

On Friday night in Texas, Johnson, 72, finally lost his hard-fought battle with cancer.
Born on Feb. 5, 1934, in Beloit, Wis., Johnson developed a passion for motor sports early in his childhood as he watched his father race motorcycles.

Johnson, who briefly drove a midget before settling into a career as a china salesman, never could shake the racing bug and in 1978 he unveiled the World of Outlaws, a collection of the biggest names in sprint car racing that traveled around the country trying to swipe purses from local competitors. The series drew huge crowds, attracted national television audiences and major sponsorship all while competing nearly 100 times a year with Johnson calling the shots every step of the way.

He continued to operate the series until selling it in 2004 to DIRT MotorSports. Even then Johnson found himself involved with the World of Outlaws as an advisor and confidant to those now making decisions.

"Ted Johnson gave all he had to make the World of Outlaws the premier dirt racing series in the world," DIRT MotorSports President and CEO Tom Deery said. "It's up to us as fans and competitors to continue to carry on his legacy. It's not something we take lightly, which is why on Sunday at the World of Outlaws banquet in Las Vegas we will introduce the Ted Johnson Award in recognition of an outstanding contribution to sprint car racing."

Carlton Reimers, who is married to Johnson's daughter, Lesa, has been a World of Outlaws official for more than 15 years, including his current role as Series Director. He spoke of Johnson's love for the sport and its fans.

"It's not possible to think of Ted Johnson and not think of the World of Outlaws and sprint car racing," Reimers said. "He dedicated a tremendous amount of time, energy and resolve to the sport, but above all else Ted was sprint car racing's biggest fan. He loved the sport and those associated with it. Our family wishes to express its heartfelt thanks for all the kind thoughts and prayers we have received. The racing community has truly lost one of its friends."

Steve Kinser, a 20-time champion with the World of Outlaws, raced with Johnson from the series' inaugural event nearly 30 years ago in Texas.

"Ted and I had been together since 1978 when we ran the first race down at Devil's Bowl," Kinser said. "We've been through a lot of stuff together. I started with him with the World of Outlaws when he had a dream of taking a sanctioning body and making it national, which he did. He had a lot of good times of doing it and a lot of rough times, but overall he enjoyed it. He enjoyed getting to the races and being around he racers and the race fans. He did what he enjoyed and did a good job with the organization. We did a lot of traveling together. I supported him for a lot of years and he supported me. We've always been good friends and we had a lot of good times over the years. I've been talking to him about three or four times a day lately and I'm going to miss him.

"Probably the most fun we had was when we started the organization, running up and down the road in a duallie pickup. It was some of the harder times, but it was still some of the most fun. We had a lot of memorable times together, especially when we first started up dealing with Lanny Edwards at Devil's Bowl and Earl Baltes at Eldora, and some of the earlier guys me and him, Lee Osborne, Bobby Allen, Rick Ferkel and all of us. We had a great time driving around. We had arguments, but we had a lot of fun. Me and Ted and a lot of guys over the years that ran this thing had a lot of good times that will never be forgotten."

Reaction from many of those whose lives were impacted by Johnson came quickly.

"TJ and I have been good friends since the mid-'70s," said long-time promoter John Padjen of Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico, Calif. "We talked every day, even yesterday. I have lost a great friend with his passing. Ted certainly brought sprint car racing where it is today. He will be greatly missed. Rest in peace TJ."

"He did more for sprint car racing than anybody ever did for racing," said Rick Ferkel, one of the original Outlaws. "Before the World of Outlaws started, he would actually pay some of us to come to a racetrack and he'd just be in the stands watching. Then he decided to be a promoter and he did it right. We pulled into Shreveport and he had the cops escort us to the hotel. The cops pulled up behind us and we thought we were getting a ticket and instead they escorted us. That's the way Ted was. He did it right. Ted just loved the racers. He started the World of Outlaws because he loved racing. He would have been a multimillionaire if he didn't give so much to the racers. He was probably one of the sport's biggest fans."

"Ted had a vision," said DIRT MotorSports VP Race Operations Shane Carson, who earned a victory in the inaugural World of Outlaws season. "We had races running everywhere and he got everybody together to put sprint car racing on the map. It's a sad day."

"Ted was the man who made the racing series I used to sit in the stands as a kid and watch, wanting to be one of those guys they considered an Outlaw," said Donny Schatz, who is closing in on the first World of Outlaws championship of his career. "From the day I came out here in 1997, he made you earn your spot. He made you earn his respect, and I think we earned it. He disappeared out of the picture for a couple of years [after selling the series] and I got to know him a little better after he came back. Sometimes when you mix racing and friendship in life it can be a sticky situation, but I got to know him very well since he stepped back from the World of Outlaws and became a consultant for the series. It allowed me to know him a little bit better and to understand why he did the things he did. There is no replacement for him. There is absolutely nobody who can be as big a fan as he was, as big a dictator and put on the shows that he put on. He's probably the biggest asset sprint car racing ever had. Without him it would have never reached the level it did."

"He is a big influence on my racing," said Danny Lasoski, the 2001 World of Outlaws champion. "He was the one who talked me into taking a chance and doing this for a living way back when I was building bullets (for the U.S. Army). I owe that guy a debt of gratitude that I don't think I can repay. I hope I have the desire to love the sport when I'm 70 like he did. He's going to be dearly missed and my heart goes out to his family."

"I think Ted meant something different to everybody," said Daryn Pittman, the winner on Friday night at Manzanita Speedway. "The bottom line is, Ted formed the World of Outlaws and basically has given a whole lot of people with an ability to drive a sprint car a very good living. He's given a lot people chances. He built a big enough business that will hopefully allow people to keep making a living. Obviously he loved the sport and had a passion for it."

"Ted built the World of Outlaws to be what it is today," said driver Craig Dollansky. "He was great for the sport of sprint car racing and racing as a whole. It's a sad day for auto racing."

Johnson is survived by his wife, Stacy, as well as his son Rick, his daughter, Lori, his daughter, Lesa, and three grandsons. Services are still being determined.

The staff at Open Wheeler sends our condolences to all of Ted's family and friends.

Reid Looking for 2007 Ride/ USAC Ford Focus Driver Aims for First Truck Start

Reid Looking for 2007 Ride
Boston Reid is looking for a ride for 2007. The 2002 USAC National Sprint Car Series Rookie of the Year announced on his website http://www.bostonreid.com/ that he is no longer the driver of the No. 25 Woodward Racing NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series entry.

“I regret to inform everyone that I will no longer be the driver of the No. 25 Woodard Racing Dodge in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series,” said Reid in a statement on his website. “I appreciate everything the employees at Woodard Racing have done for me during the 2006 season, and regret that I will not be able to finish the remainder of the year there. I want to thank all of my fans for their continued support and let everyone know that I am working hard to find a new home in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck or Busch Series for the 2007 season.”

Boston Reid finished 14th three times in this season at Kentucky, Mansfield and Nashville. His best start was 18th at Nashville.

USAC Ford Focus Driver Aims for First Truck Start
It is nice to have friends that can give you a heads up if you are asleep at the wheel. TJ, founder of http://www.tjslideways.com/ gave me the heads up on a story that I missed. Thanks TJ.

It looked like Bradley Riethmeyer’s racing career was over. The Texas A&M Senior’s family had no more money to run the aspiring driver. Then he entered the All-American Driver Challenge and won a seat in a midget. This season Riethmeyer finished third in the points and won two USAC Carolina/ Virginia Ford Focus Midget Series. The 22 year old won at Southern National Speedway on April 15th and at Shenandoah Speedway on June 17th. His performance in the USAC Ford Focus Midget Series was good enough to land him in a ride in a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series entry this weekend at Martinsville. In the first practice session of the day, the Open Wheeler was 38th quick. He was 5th quick in rookie practice and had improved to 19th quick in the final practice session. Both USACRacing.com and NASCAR.com have stories on Riethmeyer. Tune in throughout the weekend for coverage of our Open Wheelers at Martinsville.

http://www.usacracing.com/content/view/6108/100/
http://www.nascar.com/2006/news/headlines/truck/10/19/martinsville.preview/index.html

NCTS Qualifying is set for about 5pm eastern today and the race is set to air at 12:30pm eastern Saturday on SPEED.

Montoya and NASCAR Adjusting to Each Other/ Reid Reportedly Not in the No. 25 at Martinsville/ Erin Crocker.com is Gone/ Promises, Promises

Montoya and NASCAR Adjusting to Each Other
I will begin this article with a question: Name Juan Montoya’s native tongue? Hint, he is originally from Columbia but now makes his home in Miami. Answer later in this article.

Back in July when Juan Montoya and Chip Ganassi announced that the Indy 500 winner would be leaving F1 for NASCAR, no one could have imagined the adjustments that NASCAR and Montoya would have to make. Having attended an F1 race, (actually only six cars ran so the 2005 USGP should have been called an exhibition but I digress) and several NASCAR races, I can tell you that the fans are almost polar opposites. The obvious change is Montoya adjusting to ovals and going from an open cockpit to a closed cockpit. In a NASCAR media teleconference earlier this week, the Columbian driver said that testing was going well but the Homestead test earlier this week was the most difficult test he has had so far in fendered cars. Another difference the European style driver found was the pit culture is vastly different. Montoya was trying to learn and was apparently struggling with a few things earlier this week when Open Wheelers Kasey Kahne, Casey Mears and 2007 Busch Series champion Kevin Harvick came over to share some pointers.

“In Europe you don’t go to your opponents and tell them what they are doing wrong,” laughed Montoya. “Instead, you go over to your team and tell them and laugh.”

The southern fried hospitality is not the only difference. NASCAR is also dealing with a media overload. In the first fifteen minutes of the English portion of the teleconference, Montoya fielded questions from two new outlets from outside the United States, one from Montreal and the other from Edmonton, Canada. Yes I did say English portion. JP also hung around and did another 15 with Spanish (answer) journalists. The Busch Series is gearing up for his first race. NASCAR is expecting three times the amount of media that normally cover a Busch race in Memphis to show up. With all of the media coverage, Juan Pablo Montoya says he and CGR are not rushing things. The team is working on having him ready for Daytona. The rest of this season is practice and testing. So will he start at his home track at Homestead?

“There are so many things that have to happen. We will go to Memphis and see what will happen. After Memphis we will see whether we need to do more testing or race and I think we will take it as it comes. The main focus is getting myself and the team ready for next year when we go to Daytona.”

Many Open Wheelers have gotten their first starts at the Memphis paved oval. USAC has raced there in 1998, 1999, 2000 and in 2003. The Busch race does not have too many Cup drivers in it therefore giving more opportunities to drivers trying to make a name for themselves. So did Chip Ganassi Racing pick an easy track for their future star?

“Memphis is a really small racetrack. It is a difficult racetrack. It is a tricky track. If I had to pick where I would have my first Busch race I wouldn’t pick that one to put it that way but that is where we are going and that is the way it is. It is a short track. It is a hard track.”

Juan Montoya got a taste of what other stateside Open Wheelers have cut their teeth on during a private test last week. Unlike Iowa Speedway, Montoya says Memphis could be trouble because of the line.

“Everyone (racing Memphis) wants to run the bottom and that is it. I think you are going to get bumped around and moved around. I think it is going to be a shock. I am out there to learn and hopefully we can bring the car home with more pieces than the last time (at Iowa)”

We will be onsite covering the Open Wheelers at the Memphis Busch race from the track next weekend.

The Great Open Wheel Migration
ESPN.com writer Terry Blount pretty much takes the wake up stick to big time Open Wheel racing in his latest article.
http://sports.espn.go.com/rpm/columns/story?seriesId=2&columnist=blount_terry&id=2631753&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab4pos1 While I don’t agree with everything that he writes, he does get one thing very right. The only way to stop the migration is to create more seats for American drivers in a stronger reunified series.

Reid Reportedly Not in the No. 25 at Martinsville
According to a story in NASCAR Scene http://www.scenedaily.com/stories/2006/10/16/scene_daily343.html Woodward Racing will place ARCA driver Damon Lusk in the No. 25 for the next three Craftsman Truck Series events Martinsville, Atlanta and Texas. NASCAR Scene reports that Boston Reid is still with the team. Reid has started all 20 races for Woodward Racing this season. The former USAC driver is listed as the driver of the No. 25 on the pre-entry list that was published on TruckSeries.com on Thursday. An updated entry list should be available later this week. Boston Reid is not the only Open Wheeler that may not return to Martinsville this weekend, Kraig Kinser will not be in the No. 46 this week. That truck will be driven by NASCAR Chase driver Denny Hamlin.

Open Wheeler Truck Entries for Martinsville
10 Terry Cook
16 Mike Bliss
17 David Reutiman
21 Bobby East
25 Boston Reid (see story above)
63 Cameron Dodson
98 Erin Crocker

Erin Crocker.com is Gone

If you are looking for an official website of Erin Crocker in the internet, good luck. Her former website http://www.erincrocker.com/ no longer has any information on the Open Wheeler who now drives in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. The domain name for the website has expired. Before you perverts out there try to purchase the domain name to put up a porn website, know that the domain name may only be renewed by the original owner of the domain. Erin Crocker.net also exists but appears to have been created by a drunk fan. That website reads:

Erin the “Erinator” Crocker
Keep Crocking!

Then it offers readers doughnuts and pie. Uh.. ok? I guess if I was drunk and looking at the website it might make sense. The official Evernham website http://www.evernhammotorsports.com/main.cfm?pagename=ec_bio has her bio and some information about the team. David Newton, staff writer for NASCAR.com is still interviewing her and writing her weekly column “On the Road” at NASCAR.com. This week in the column she talks about New England in the fall and the Evernham Motorsports annual family picnic. NASCAR Scene reported earlier this week that Crocker would return to the No. 98 truck for the 2007 season. Her sponsor, Betty Crocker will not.

Schrader Joins the 700 Club
Former USAC driver, Ken Schrader is expected to make his 700th Nextel Cup start at Martinsville Speedway this weekend. Schrader is 12th in all time starts.

RIR Goes Sky High

If you are bird or enjoy sitting up high where you can see the whole track, you will love the new seats at Richmond International Raceway. RIR is adding 7,800 seats to the main grandstands. The new grandstand will be 18 stories tall. The framework for the grandstand is scheduled to be completed by November 30th and the New lighting is scheduled to go up by December 15th.

The project will be finished in time for the track’s NASCAR doubleheader weekend May 4-5. The USAC National Sprint Car Series is tentatively scheduled to visit the track on Friday, June 29 and the USAC Silver Crown Series on Saturday, June 30. The IndyCar Series also is set to race at the short track on June 30th.

Promises, Promises
Before I let you go I have to make good on a promise I made a few weeks ago before I was offline for a while.

I teased high school images of SPEED News er The Speed Report “get the why” anchor Nicole Manske. Well, here they are courtesy of Duchess Jane. http://duchessjane.com/blomit/index.php?/archives/572-A-Repressed-Memory-from-Middle-School.html The images got me thinking so I pulled out my high school yearbook

Jason Sides graduated from the same HS I did so what about posting his HS mug? Then I flipped a page and saw my mug. Jason I promise I won’t post your mug online if you promise not to post mine.

If the new equipment works this weekend, we will have screen grabs and a story from the Trucks and Cup races at Martinsville over the weekend. Check back this weekend when you can.

Images appearing in this blog courtesy of DuchessJane.com, Richmond International Raceway, NASCAR Images, FX, SPEED and Open Wheeler.