NASCAR diversity program on BET doesn't shy from sport's past

The drivers for NASCAR's Drive for Diversity program were introduced Tuesday night, but those in attendance also saw a clip for the reality show on the diversity program that will air on BET later this year.

 

The BET show "Changing Lanes'' will follow the progress of the diversity drivers and Max Siegel, who oversees the race teams the drivers will race for this year. (The 8 hour-long episode show is scheduled to debut this summer but that could be moved up to April or May).

 

Early in the clip that was shown, the subject of NASCAR's past with minorities was discussed and how Wendell Scott remains the only African-American driver to have won a Cup race and that was back in 1963. The clip also mentioned how Scott was not allowed in the winner's circle in the race he won. The clip then features a comment from Scott's daughter, who says: "Racial barriers were a sign of the times. There were people who did not accept him. I feared for my dad's life, but, the man was an inspiration and he still inspires today.''

 

Asked why was it important to address NASCAR's past in a show that will be aired on BET, this is what Max Siegel and Scott Mills, President of BET said:

 

Siegel, who is African-American, said: "I've said every time that I'm asked probably the most welcoming surprise for me was the way my family and I have been embraced by the sport. I think that what you find in the NASCAR community is that everybody is passionate about their product and about their sport. You find out pretty quickly it's about whether they like you or not and whether you care about the health of the sport. We've been treated with open arms and a tremendous amount of respect. What I have found is that the barrier of entry to new fans is the historical perception that the sport has had. I wanted to get a partner to do everything I could to dispel that view of the sport right now and really highlight the commitment of the senior managers in the NASCAR community to diversity. We want to find teaching moments where we realistically deal with issues that we face, and I don't think that any we face in NASCAR are unique to the industry. You find them in IBM and General Motors. Quite frankly, this is a way to address those issues and educate people who don't know a lot about the sport, and hopefully, entice them to become fans and participants.''

 

Said Mills, who also is African-American: "In partnering with BET to make this program that it really evidences how serious NASCAR is about this undertaking. For a program to be on BET it really has to be credible and authentic with our audience. If you wanted to tell a story that wasn't going to accurately reflect the accuracy and concerns, you might have been able to use some other platform. But in our platform, our audience understands the history, so you have to acknowledge it before you can actually show them moving forward.''

 

NASCAR Chairman BrianFrance spoke earlier in the evening about the diversity program's importance. While some might criticize how France speaks in public, he was smooth in talking to this audience without use of a TelePrompter or any notes, a sign of what this issue means to him and something that has been important to him for years in getting this effort started.

 

Said France: "In 2004, one of the first things that I wanted to do was set us on a course as a sport that put a priority on diversity. Frankly, that's our future. That's where our future fans are going to come from. That's where, obviously, our future drivers, crew members... There are all kind of things that our diversity plan can accomplish. Notably, like I said, tracking talent in all forms of our industry. ... Know that NASCAR is committed to everything that we can as an industry for all the right reasons. We're never satisfied because we've got a long way to go. We're going to get some talented men and women ... to compete in NASCAR. They're going to set new standards. Shows like this, projects like this that bring it to life and showcase it to a bigger audience will help us track more of these drivers and participants in NASCAR.''

 

Here's the 2010 Drive for Diversity Class

 

# Mackena Bell of Carson City, Nev. She's 19 and will compete in the K&N Pro Series East.

# Jessica Brunelli of Hayward, Calif. She's 17 and will compete in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series.

# Michael Cherry of Valrico, Fla. He's 20 and will compete NASCAR Whelen All-American Series.

# Ryan Gifford of Winchester, Tenn. He's 20 and a Richard Childress Racing development driver. He will compete K&N Pro Series East.

#Katie Hagar of Damariscotta, Maine. She's 23 and will compete in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series.

#Paul Harrake of Wayne, N.J. He's 20 and a sophomore at Duke University. He will race in the K&N Pro Series West.

#Rebecca Kasten of Mequon, Wis. She's 19 and will compete in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series.

#Sergio Pena of Winchester, Va. He turns 17 on Feb. 13. He will compete in the K&N Pro Series East.

#Megan Reitenour of Miamisburg, Ohio. She's 18 and will compete in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series.

#Jason Romero of Cameron Park, Calif. He turns 26 on Feb. 25. He will compete in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series.

#Darrell Wallace, Jr. of Mobile, Ala. He's 16 and a Joe Gibbs Racing development driver. He will race in the K&N Pro Series East.

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The 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup champion will be ...

Tuesday marks the last quiet day at Daytona before action resumes. So, with a little break in the action, I figured this would be a good time to reveal my picks for who will win the title, who will make the Chase and who won't.

 

Here's how I see 2010 shaping up.

 

1. Denny Hamlin _ It’s his time, his year and his chance to replace the tag “potential’’ with that of “champion.’’ Even a knee injury in January won’t deter him: “Nobody wants it as bad as me … PERIOD,’’ he wrote on his Twitter account shortly after his injury.

 

2. Jimmie Johnson _ His reign has to end sometime. Doesn’t it? Then again, maybe not with the way he dominates the Chase. He has won 30 percent of all the Chase races. That’s nearly twice as high as his winning percentage for all races.

 

3. Tony Stewart _ Theory is that team put so much into the start of last year making sure it put Stewart in a good position in the points that it couldn’t maintain that pace. Feeling is this team won’t feel such early pressure and will be strong later in the year.

 

4. Mark Martin _ Was last year the dream year that just fell short of a championship or a prelude?  For him to finally score that championship, his team can’t afford to repeat the reliability issues it had early last season.

 

5. Carl Edwards _ To go from nine wins in 2008 to none last year was among the biggest shocks in the sport. Can he recover or will the “Baby on Board’’ sign (wife is due after Daytona 500) slow him down this year?

 

6. Kyle Busch _ Missing the Chase last year also was among the bigger stories last year.  That and he finally admitted he needed to grow up and do a better job dealing with difficult situations on the track. If he keeps his composure, there’s no telling where his talent will take him.

 

7. Juan Pablo Montoya _ Remarkable job of making the Chase and then starting strong before results slipped away. He wants to repeat that effort to prove that last year was not a fluke. For two-car operation, that could be a challenge. Then again, Montoya could be the guy who could pull it off.

 

8. Jeff Gordon _ He finished second eight times last year and had only one win. Since 2007, he has seven wins and 15 runner-up finishes. Key is finding a way to turn those runner-up finishes into wins. Otherwise, he’ll likely be watching someone else celebrate a title and his championship drought will continue.

 

9. Kurt Busch _ New crew chief (Steve Addington). New teammate (Brad Keselowski joins Busch and Sam Hornish Jr.). No other Dodge teams (Richard Petty Motorsports went to Ford). There’s a lot of question marks about this team. Busch could excel and challenge for a title or stumble and struggle to make the Chase. He’ll be worth watching.

 

10. Jeff Burton _ Strong finish at the end of last year _ four consecutive top-10 finishes _ shows that this Richard Childress Racing team seems to be on track after issues with the car last year kept him and his teammates out of the Chase.

 

11. David Reutimann _ Michael Waltrip Racing team is gaining momentum. Scored first career win last year by capturing Coca-Cola 600. Now is time to step it up and make the Chase. This team shows signs it can do that.

 

12. Greg Biffle _ Roush Fenway Racing officials say they’ve fixed the problems that kept them from challenging for a title. If so, Biffle could be a lot higher. Underrated as a driver.

 

Five to watch: Ryan Newman, Brian Vickers, Martin Truex Jr., Matt Kenseth and Clint Bowyer.

 

OK, so who's your pick and do you agree or disagree with my picks?

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The power of Danica Patrick

A few tidbits to consider.

 

UPDATED ON TUESDAY

 

# Speed Channel reports ratings for ARCA race with Danica Patrick in it this past Saturday.

 

#Speed had a Nielsen Household rating of 2.3 (1.723,000 households) -- a 59 percent increase over last year's 1.45 (1,062,000 households)

 

#Race coverage peaked at 2.66 Household Rating (1,997,000 households) -- a 72 percent increase from last year's peak of 1.55 (1,137,000 households)

 

#According to Nielsen Media Reserach, 2.4 million viewers tuned in to see the ARCA race -- an 87 percent increase over last year's audience of 1.3 million.

 

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1. As I write this Danica remains the No. 1 trending topic on the Yahoo! website.

 

2. ESPN2 will broadcast live the Nationwide practice from 3-5 p.m. Wednesday. The network had not planned to air the first Nationwide practice session of the year live. Again, the power of Danica.

 

3. Speed Channel officials pleased with the numbers they got on the steaming video of Danica they ran on SpeedTV.com during the ARCA race. SpeedTV.com ran streaming video either showing in-car shots, an in-car shot of Patrick or a camera following her progress through the race.

 

Was told by Speed that their Danica-cam feature on SpeedTV.com drew 18,794 unique visitors with a peak unique visitors count of 8,408 at one time. The average play time for folks on the site was 26 minutes.

 

As a racing-related item that SpeedTV.com has streamed, this ranked among the highest things it has ever done.

 

TV ratings for Speed's coverage of the ARCA race hasn't come in yet but one would suspect it will give Speed its highest rating for an ARCA race.

 

Remember that Thursday's twin 150-mile qualifying races, broadcast by Speed Channel, also can be seen on NASCAR.com. Streaming video from the Speed cameras will be online. However, the Speed broadcast (with the announcers) won't be on NASCAR.com. What will be shown will be meant to compliment what is being aired by Speed.

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Danica will make her Nationwide debut at Daytona

Danica Patrick is back, the team confirmed Monday morning, saying she will run in the Nationwide race Saturday at Daytona.

 

Patrick was scheduled to run 12 Nationwide races this season but purposely left the Daytona Nationwide race off the list in case she elected not to do it, depending on how well she felt after her ARCA race.

 

She finished 6th in the ARCA race in her stock-car debut on Saturday, recovering from a spin after she was hit by another competitor. The ARCA race was a good first step for her in gaining experience in stock cars. She asked crew chief Tony Eury Jr. and her spotter several questions during the race from basic things such as where was the light indicating if pit road is open or not located to if she should make a move at a particular time in the race.

 

That Patrick finished sixth in the ARCA race is not a surprise. She should have. She had one of the better cars in the field. The thing was she just didn't have the experience. Obviously, the only way to get experience is to go do something, no doubt a reason for her decision to compete in the Nationwide race on Saturday. At issue Saturday will be the field around her will be more experienced in stock cars and more talented driving those types of cars. You never know what is going to happen in a restrictor-plate race but to think she can pull out a sixth-place finish again would be a difficult double. Of course, that means little compared to her logging laps and getting used to racing these cars.

 

"I think Danica proved to everyone that she can compete in stock cars at a high level, and right now seat time is extremely important,'' team co-owner Kelley Earnhardt said in the statement announcing Patrick's intentions. "She has worked extremely hard during the past two months for this opportunity. Her dedication and work ethic is infectious.''

 

Said Patrick: "Racing in the Nationwide Series race was my goal during the entire two-month preparation process, but we wanted to make sure it was the right thing to do. The ARCA race was a blast, and I'm not ready for my first Daytona Speedweeks to end just yet. I want more racing.''

 

The main goal for her Saturday will be to just run laps, gain experience and not cause a crash. The Nationwide race with its better list of drivers will be much tougher for her. While she might emerge with another big smile and declare she had fun after her Nationwide debut, one would suspect she will have a more difficult time. And that's not a bad thing. As you progress in any job, things get more difficult. Doing it at a gradual pace can help get through those obstacles whether it's racing or some other desk job.

 

Remember, this is a two-year plan to see if she can compete in Cup. Progress is the key word early on. We'll get to see take another step in that journey this weekend.

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Harvick wins Shootout; Danica happy in debut; Martin on pole & Duel lineups

A  big day at Daytona from Mark Martin winning the pole, Danica Patrick finishing 6th in the ARCA race in her stock-car debut and the Budweiser Shootout ending with Kevin Harvick winning after a multi-car crash. A wild, wild day.

 

So let's get to it, starting with the Budweiser Shootout

 

First, here's the finishing order

 

1. Kevin Harvick

2. Kasey Kahne

3. Jamie McMurray

4. Kyle Busch

5. Denny Hamlin

6. Jeff Gordon

7. Joey Logano

8. Brian Vickers

9. Tony Stewart

10. Juan Pablo Montoya

11. Dale Earnhardt Jr.

12. Jeff Burton

13. Jimmie Johnson

14. Ken Schrader

15. Greg Biffle

16. Matt Kenseth

17. Carl Edwards

18. Bobby Labonte

19. Ryan Newman

20. Mark Martin

21. Michael Waltrip

22. John Andretti

23. Kurt Busch

24. Derrike Cope

 

So Kevin Harvick wins this race for the second year in a row. He was racing side-by-side at the end with Greg Biffle with a tight pack of cars behind each when Biffle spun. He collected the cars of Kenseth, Martin, Gordon, Newman, Labonte, Schrader and Edwards -- essentially most of the guys running the high line behind Biffle).

 

Harvick won this race despite having never driven it this week. He was sick and didn't arrive until after practice ended Thursday for the Shootout. By then, his car had been collected in a crash with Clint Bowyer driving it. Jeff Burton got in the backup to run it a few laps. So it wa a true team effort that way.

 

"I think (the win) is good for our particular group because ... this is a fairly new group from a team standpoint (recall that Harvick's crew went to Casey Mears' team last year and Harvick got Mears' crew last spring,'' Harvick said. "For us all to win together, it kind of gives you that team bonding. It gives you a little bit of swagger in your step that everybody knows that they can win. We got beat down a little bit in the middle last year and we kind of built that up as we got toward the end of the year. There's nothing like slinging Budweiser in Victory Lane.''

 

Now this was the first race with NASCAR's relaxed rules. Bump drafting was again allowed after being regulated closely at Talladega last fall and drivers had a larger restrictor plate. It made things a bit different on the track.

 

"With the package tehy have right now, you get stalled out when you get two cars kind of side-by-side,'' McMurray said. "You're just able to get a huge run behnd (those) guys. It's not necessarily because your car is handling better. It's like the cars in the front get stalled out. Tony (Stewart) got a bunch of those (runs) tonight. I think it's just kind of a product of the environment we have right now with the plate and the endplates and the wing.''

 

Kahne was excited with his runner-up finish and even more so with his car, particularly his horsepower. This is was his first race back in the Ford camp after Richard Petty Motorsports went from Dodge to Ford and got Roush-Yates engines.

 

"The Roush-Yates engine, the way it comes up through the gears, the way it races, the way you can get pushes and push other car was something that was new to me and I enjoyed it. I thought that was pretty awesome.''

 

Recall, that the Dodge engines were underpowered compared to other makes on the plate tracks in the past. It was just a matter of finding the right line and holding on for Kahne and those guys. Now he can dictate things. That's what's new for him.

 

Here's what others said after Saturday night's race:

 

Carl Edwards asked about what he learned in this race: "My pit crew is really good.'' Recall that the pit crew was s sore spot for the team last year. So, the good start is promising for this group. Edwards also led the first 29 laps and led 42 of the 76 laps run.

 

Kyle Busch on his car: "We didn't quite have the car we were looking for tonight. I have to apologize to some of our fans. The (car) just didn't quite have enoguh in order to be able to turn on the exit of the corners. I couldn't keep the throttle down the way I wanted. ... On how the race looked from his perspective: "It was out of control - we all just kept it in control These cars aren't that easy to drive we're having a hard time. There's so little room for error at this place and we're just all over

 

Denny Hamlin on his car: "We fought our car. We didn't have the best pit stop at the end. We came in in a pretty good position, but we were going for four tires and then audibled for two at the end and that kind of slows up your stop.'' As for his left knee with the torn ACL, Hamlin said: "It bothers me more to get to the car than it does actually in it.''

 

Kurt Busch, who wrecked for second time in three nights, said: "I'm making more laps in the ambulance than I am on the track.'' He was uninjured and was referring to the mandatory visits to the infield care center. He wrecked after Mark Martin hit him. Martin took the blame.

 

Dale Earnhardt Jr. on his car: "We were not very fast in practice with this car and it was not very strong in the race. We'll try to bring a better chassis to the next Shootout.''

 

Jeff Gordon, describing what happened with him and Biffle to trigger the accident: "I got to Greg and I was just pushing and pushing and pushing; almost had to move to the inside of him. He kind of closed the door there and I was just pushing. We went into the corner and he just spun right out. I don't know if he had a tire go down (Biffle had complained on the radio before the final restart he thought a tire might be going down) or just the fact that he was on old tires and couldn't take that kind of a push. They said that bump-drafting is OK now so tha's what it's going to take to win the race.

 

 

Tony Stewart: "I wouldn't say we had a very strong car, we just got good track position. We had to be in clean air, we got really tight even if we were second in line.''

 

Also, Kevin Harvick won $202,357 out of a purse of $1,095,439. Recall that NASCAR is cutting purses about 10 percent. Last  year, Harvick collected $200,000 for his win out of a purse of $1,217,154.  The purse was off about 10 percent. So, why did Harvick win more money? Well, many of the positions behind him were paid a little less money.

 

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OK, on to Danica Patrick

 

She made her stock-car debut in the ARCA race and placed an eventful sixth. She ran in the pack, spun after contact with another car, got a little time in the top five and did some beating and banging.

 

She was thrilled with her effort, which leads to the question if she'll decide to make her Nationwide debut next week here at Daytona or delay it until the following week in California. A decision is expected Monday. She said she hadn't decided yet. Crew chief Tony  Eury Jr. said he would vote for her doing it and he admits he and Rick Hendrick told her when she started this journey that making her series debut at Daytona might not be the best thing with so many Cup drivers in the field and her inexperience in these cars. We'll see what happens. Certainly having a strong car allowed her to overcome her spin and score a top-10.

 

"It was a lot of fun,'' she said of her day. "I bumped from the side. I bumped from the front. I got bumped from the back. I learned a lot. I had so much fun in a race car. I can't wait to do it again.''

 

As for her incident, here's what she said: "People were kind of checking up and slowing down, so I went to the inside and (Nelson Piquet Jr.) tried to cut over to the inside line and I was there,'' Patrick said. "I can't go below the yellow line (the out-of-bounds mark at the bottom of the track) to pass, so I just held my line and it collected us. I could either back off and give it up and wuss out, or I can keep my foot in it and make him react to me.''

 

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Qualifying,

 

Mark Martin won his first Daytona 500 pole with a lap of 191.188 mph, nipping teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr., who recorded a lap of 190.913 mph. Both Hendrick Motorsports teams work out of the same shop. Car owner Rick Hendrick wanted those teams to work more closely together. What people admit is that the shop was if there were two separate teams in there instead of one big team. Yes, they did work together on things but it wasn't as close as it could be as seen with Martin finishing second in the points last year while Dale Jr. was a career-worst 25th.

 

So, this was a good first step. Does it mean all is right with everything over there? Not necessarily, but this is a sign of progress. Let's see what happens at the non-restrictor plate tracks but for now Dale Jr fans enjoy it. I'm sure things will be much better between the teams and that should lead to better results. If nothing else, it was a good result and that's something Dale Jr and his team needed.

 

Here's the lineups for the two 150-mile qualifying races on Thursday that will set the starting lineup for the Daytona 500. ... Drivers with an -X after their name must finish in the top two among others with an -X by their name to earn a starting spot in the Daytona 500.

 

DUEL 1 LINEUP

 

1. Mark Martin

2. Ryan Newman

3. Bill Elliott

4. Jimmie Johnson

5. Clint Bowyer

6. Kyle Busch

7. Jeff Gordon

8. Joe Nemechek

9. Jamie McMurray

10. Michael Waltrip-X

11. David Ragan

12. AJ Allmendinger

13. Carl Edwards

14. Denny Hamlin

15. Kevin Harvick

16. Jeff Burton

17. Regan Smith

18. Greg Biffle

19. Reed Sorenson-X

20. Max Papis-X

21. John Andretti

22. Jeff Fuller-X

23. Robert Richardson

24. Travis Kvapil

25. Terry Cook-X

26. Michael McDowell-X

27. Kirk Shelmerdine-X

 

DUEL 2

 

1. Dale Earnhardt Jr.

2. Juan Pablo Montoya

3. Kurt Busch

4. Matt Kenseth

5. Sam Hornish Jr

6. Scott Speed

7. Marcos Ambrose

8. Brad Keselowski

9. Joey Logano

10. Bobby Labonte

11. Tony  Stewart

12. David Reutimann

13. Paul Menard

14. Kasey Kahne

15. Mike Bliss-X

16. Robby Gordon

17. Martin Truex Jr.

18. Brian Vickers

19. Elliott Sadler

20. Casey Mears-X

21. David Gilliland-X

22. Aric Almirola-X

23. Boris Said

24. Dave Blaney-X

25. Derrike Cope-X

26. Mike Wallace-X

27. Norm Benning-X

 

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Copy & Save: NASCAR Pit Road and Restart Penalty List

A couple of weeks ago, NASCAR had some media members in for a seminar on pit road rules. Today in the media center at Daytona, they passed out a list of pit road and restart infractions and what the penalty is.

 

So, to help you during the season (NOW KEEP THIS LIST) and avoid confusion here's what they gave us:

 

VIOLATIONS

 

1. Pitting before Pit Road is open (Rule 10-4B in rule book) -- Must restart at the tail end of the field

 

2. Pitting out of order (10-4B) -- Must restart at the tail end of the field

 

3. Car/truck must enter pit road single file (9-15C) -- Penalty is pass-through pits if race is under green; If under yellow, the offender must restart at the tail end of the field.

 

4. Excessive speed entering pits (9-15D) -- Penalty is pass-through pits if race is under green; If under yellow, the offender must restart at the tail end of the field.

 

5. All passing on pit road must be to the outside on entry (9-15C) -- Penalty is pass-through pits if race is under green; If under yellow, the offender must restart at the tail end of the field.

 

6. Driving through more than 3 pit boxes (9-15C) -- Penalty is pass-through pits if race is under green; If under yellow, the offender must restart at the tail end of the field.

 

7. Crewmembrer(s) over the wall too soon (9-15E) -- Penalty is pass-through pits if race is under green; If under yellow, the offender must restart at the tail end of the field.

 

8. Car/truck pittingout of the assigned pit box (9-15F) -- 1 Lap penalty regardless of if race is under green or yellow.

 

9. Use of extension poles are limited (9-15G) -- Penalty is pass-through pits if race is under green; If under yellow, the offender must restart at the tail end of the field.

 

10. Too many crewmember(s) in contact with pit service area (9-15H) -- Penalty is pass-through pits if race is under green; If under yellow, the offender must restart at the tail end of the field.

 

11. Crewmember(s) returning from equipment side of wall (9-15H) -- Penalty is pass-through pits if race is under green; If under yellow, the offender must restart at the tail end of the field.

 

12. Front air wrench must be carried back to pit wall side of car/truck (9-15J) -- Penalty is pass-through pits if race is under green; If under yellow, the offender must restart at the tail end of the field.

 

13. Using more than two (2) air wrenches during one pit stop (9-15J) -- Penalty is pass-through pits if race is under green; If under yellow, the offender must restart at the tail end of the field.

 

14. Non-compliant refueling (overflow container) (9-15M) -- Penalty is pass-through pits if race is under green; If under yellow, the offender must restart at the tail end of the field.

 

15. Tossing or throwing the fuel filler/overflow containers/equipment (9-15N) -- Penalty is pass-through pits if race is under green; If under yellow, the offender must restart at the tail end of the field.

 

16. Tire violation - Removing outside tire acceptable/Rolling a tire(s) beyond the center of pit road (9-15Q) -- Penalty is pass-through pits if race is under green; If under yellow, the offender must restart at the tail end of the field.

 

17. Lug nut(s) not installed (9-15O) -- Must come in regardless if race is under green or yellow

 

18. Removing equipment from assigned pit area (9-15P) -- Stop & Go penalty (regardless if race under green or yellow)

 

19. Running over/under equipment (9-15P) -- NASCAR Discretion

 

20. Hand pushing car/truck more than 3 pit boxes (9-15R) -- Penalty is pass-through pits if race is under green; If under yellow, the offender must restart at the tail end of the field.

 

21. Excessive speed exiting pits (9-15D) -- Penalty is pass-through pits if race is under green; If under yellow, the offender must restart at the tail end of the field.

 

22. Running the stop & go sign/light (10-4C) -- NASCAR Discretion

 

23. Going above the blend line exiting the pits (9-11) -- Penalty is pass-through pits if race is under green; If under yellow, the offender must restart at the tail end of the field.

 

24. Refueling car/truck before the affected car/truck receives the green flag on the race track or does not complete the designated race distance (competition yellow) (9-6D) (9-6E) -- Minimum 1 lap

 

25. Passing the caution car/truck (10-4D) -- 1 lap

 

26. Pulling up to pit (9-15A) -- Pass through the pits penalty under Green

 

27. Jumping the start (10-2A) -- Pass through the pits penalty under green

 

28. Jumping the restart (10-2A) -- Pass through the pits penalty under green

 

29. Passing after turn three (3) on "One (1) to Go'' (9-11) -- Pass through the pits penalty under green

 

30. Passing on a start or restart (9-11) -- Pass through the pits penalty under green

 

31. Disobeying a NASCAR request (9-11) -- NASCAR Discretion

 

32. Intentionally causing a caution (9-11) -- NASCAR Discretion

 

33. Verbal abuse to a NASCAR Official (9-11) -- NASCAR Discretion

 

34. Disobeying Black Flag (10-6A) -- NASCAR Discretion

 

35. Safety violation -- NASCAR Discretion

 

36. Commitment Line Violation (9-15B) -- Penalty is pass-through pits if race is under green; If under yellow, the offender must restart at the tail end of the field.

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Forget NASCAR's baby explosion, there's going to be a Mrs. Rowdy

So, just what is going on in NASCAR? Jeff Gordon's announcement on Thursday that his wife is pregnant with their second child later this year makes five wives of Cup drivers expecting children.

 

Then Friday came word that Kyle Busch (known as Rowdy) proposed to his girlfriend on Thursday night. Here's a picture of her engagement ring.

 

Suddenly, I feel as if I should be writing for some Page 6 section instead of Sports. Births and engagements? Is this the new NASCAR?

 

Actually, it's not surprising. With so many younger drivers, it was only a matter of time before some were married and even some had children (Carl Edwards, Jimmie Johnson and Elliott Sadler all to be first-time fathers this year). This is a result of the sport getting younger. When those young drivers have been here for a few years, marriages and births are likely to happen.

 

Still, how much of this that is taking place certainly is a unique way to start the NASCAR season.

 

So maybe the question is who is next to get engaged or have a birth announcement? We might only have to wait a few days the way this is going.

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Crashes force many to backups; Shootout lineup set; Gordon on future; Dale Jr on respect

A busy, hectic day at Daytona and this was just the first day of the season. One can only imagine what this year could be like.

 

Six cars are going to backups for Saturday's Budweier Shootout because of multiple wrecks in Thursday's practice sessions. Kevin  Harvick didn't even make it. He was ill and stayed in North Carolina most of the day and arrived in Daytona in the evening. Also, the entry list is out for the Daytona 500 and 54 cars will vie for the 43 spots. Lots of things happend and were said Thursday, so let's get to it:

 

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Budweiser Shootout lineup set by blind draw

 

Here's the lineup for Saturday's non-points race.

 

1. Carl Edwards

2. Kevin Harvick

3. Brian Vickers

4. Ryan Newman

5. Greg Biffle

6. Mark Martin -- Will have to start at rear for going to backup & not running it in Thurs night practice.

7. Jeff Burton

8. Matt Kenseth

9. Jamie McMurray

10. John Andretti

11. Dale Earnhardt Jr.

12. Bobby Labonte

13. Tony Stewart

14. Ken Schrader (in the 82 car in place of Scott Speed for this event only)

15. Michael Waltrip

16. Jimmie Johnson

17. Kyle Busch

18. Derrike Cope -- Had not passed inspection as of Thursday evening

19. Kasey Kahne

20. Juan Pablo Montoya

21. Joey Logano

22. Kurt Busch -- Will have to start at rear for going to backup car & not practicing it Thurs night.

23. Jeff Gordon

24. Denny Hamlin -- Will have to start at rear for going to backup car & not practicing it Thurs night.

 

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THURSDAY'S PRACTICES

 

A wild night. In the first practice session, Denny Hamlin and Mark Martin got together and caused a multi-car crash. They both went to backup cars. Also going to backup cars after damaging their primary cars in this incident are Jamie McMurray, Greg Biffle and Kevin Harvick (Clint Bowyer drove the car in the first session since Harvick was sick and Jeff Burton drove the backup in the second session).

 

Here's what folks said about the incident:

 

DENNY HAMLIN

 

"I'm a heck of a lot better than a lot of the race cars out there. I talked to Mark and I had a huge run going. I was going to go to the outside of him, but I chose against it at the last minute and he was courteous enough that he was going to give me the lane up high. I guess when he checked up to give me that high lane, I had already committed to go ahead and get behind him. It was just a conflict of two lines, two cars going at the wrong place at the the wrong time I guess you could say.''

 

MARK MARTIN

 

"Probably a case of both of  us anticipating something where it caused a flash. It looked like he was going to try to squeeze in on the outside of me, so I made an effort to give him the lane. And, he anticipated to get behind me, If either one of us had just anticipated something else, then it wouldn't have happened.''

 

JAMIE McMURRAY

 

"I saw the wreck happen on the outside and you turn to the left and try to get away from it, but you can only turn so hard. It is amazing how fast those cars come back across the track.''

 

Later, Kurt Busch wrecked after some contact with Juan Pablo Montoya. Busch's car slammed the wall and he'll go to a backup car. Montoya's car suffered minor damage.

 

After all the wrecking was finshed, here's who was fastest in the final practice session (note speeds are in the draft so just because someone is the fastest, it doesn't mean they're the best).

 

1. Kasey Kahne .... 191.673 mph

2. Ken Schrader .. 191.371 mph

3. Matt Kenseth ... 191.367 mph

4. Jimmie Johnson .. 191.294 mph

5. Tony Stewart ...... 191.270 mph

6. Brian Vickers ..... 191.221 mph

7. Jeff Burton .......... 191.192 mph

8. Juan Pablo Montoya ... 191.148 mph

9. Carl Edwards ........ 191.083 mph

10. Joey Logano .........191.034 mph

 

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Dale Earnhardt Jr. was among the many drivers who met with the media before heading to the track on Thursday. Here's some of what he said

 

"Somebody asked me how you get respect. You get respect because of the way you act. They asked me whether if that was in or outside the car. I said it's all the time, no matter where you're at. You don't get Mulligans for being an a--hole. I feel like what I do, how I carry myself, you know, I try to earn respect when I go and do stuff, whether that's inside the car or not.

 

"So I think there's a little credibility toward, I think that I am intelligent and I have a good point of view about the sport. I think I've got a pretty good perspective from where I stand of What's happening. So I enjoy being in that position.

 

"And, obviously, my heritage, my father, all those things, play a big role in who wants to listen. I've had a pretty good rough patch. Haven't won hardly any races in the last two or three years. But, you know, I'm 35 years old. If I wanted to, I could probably race another 15 years. I've probably got a pretty good chance of putting together another seaosn like I had in 2004 sometime in that 15-year span.''

 

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Jeff Gordon on his future

 

"I will never say never. There was a time I thought 2010 would be my last year. I've always said that it's not for me to pick and choose (when to retire) because it takes -- you have to be healthy and competitive. If you have those two things, then you're going to hopefully, enjoy what you're doing. Those components are what's going to keep me in the sport until the day or season comes to an end.''

 

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SHORT TAKES

 

# In case you missed it, Jeff Gordon's wife is pregnant and expecting their second child in August.

 

# In case you missed it, Richard Petty's wife, Lynda, has been diagnosed with CNS (Central Nervous System) Lymphoma.

 

# Danica Patrick was 14th fastest in Thursday's final practice session for the ARCA series. Qualifying is Friday; race is Saturday.

 

# Word is the larger restrictor plate should give teams about 15 more horsepower.

 

That will do it for now. More Friday. Remember you can follow me on Twitter for instant updates. I'm at www.twitter.com/dustinlong

 

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Richard Petty's wife diagnosed with Lymphoma

Richard Petty Motorsports issued a release Thursday from Richard Petty about the health of his wife, Lynda.

 

Petty said that Lynda has been diagnosed with CNS (Central Nervous System) Lymphoma. She will be treated at the Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center at Duke University Medical Center.

 

"We are thankful for the medical team at Duke,'' Petty said in the statement. "My wife Lynda is in good hands. The doctors and our family are very optimistic that the treatment for this cancer will be successful.''

 

 

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More driver baby news; Danica will use bumper; Hamlin & Keslowski together again

Jeff Gordon's website (jeffgordon.com) featured a  note from Jeff to fans saying that his wife Ingrid is 12 weeks pregnant with the couple's second child.

 

"We're very excited  and can't wait to expand our family to four,'' Gordon wrote in a message to fans. "(Daughter) Ella is also very excited and can't stop talking about how much she's looking forward to being a big sister.''

 

Gordon said that the baby is due in August. They don't know the sex of it yet.

 

Among drivers whose wives are expecting children this year: Carl Edwards, Elliott Sadler, Jimmie Johnson and Juan Pablo Montoya.

 

More to come from NASCAR Media Day. Gordon is scheduled to talk to reporters around 12:40 p.m. Eastern.

 

 

Juan Pablo Montoya on winning:

 

“It’s not so much about the trophy, it’s more about whipping everybody’s ass, to be honest.’’

 

Juan Pablo Montoya on the different rule changes this year and adjusting to them

“They (NASCAR) care about the racing and they’re not afraid of making changes. Do they always get it right? No. At least they admit when they don’t get it right and will change it and make it better. I’ve been in a series where they make a huge screw-up and the racing is terrible and they leave it.’’

 

Brad Keselowski on his relationship with Denny Hamlin after their feuding last season:

“There’s some kind of dark, mystical force that keeps drawing us together. I ran into him at New Year’s, probably ran into him three or four times in the offseason just like randomly back into each other, turn around and look at each other and go Ahhh. And then I came into the (Daytona) motorhome lot last night and his bus was parked right next to mine. There’s just some dark force attracting us together on and off the race track. I think we’re fairly similar. Maybe that’s why we’ve had our troubles with each other. We seem to be around each other a lot.

 

Brad Keselowski on if everything is fine between he and Hamlin

“That’s a two-part question. One part for me. One part for him. My end it’s clear.

 

Danica Patrick on if she’ll be emotional (i.e. aggressive) while racing:

“I will always be me. I will always be emotional. I will always have somewhat of a temper and that’s because I care. It means a lot to me. It means everything to me. When racing is going well nothing else really matters. It kind of rules your life.   “I would like to see more emotion. That’s why we watch sports, isn’t it? We want to see someone get excited. We want to see someone be happy. We want to see someone mad. That’s kind of what makes sports. Otherwise it’s a TV show pre-programmed.

 

Danica Patrick on beating and banging in NASCAR:

“If somebody does something to me that I don’t like, you have to expect that you’ll get something return and I have fenders now so that is pretty exciting.’’

 

I'll also add more here from drivers, so check back  from time to time.

 

 

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