Wednesday
Lewis Hamilton: ?The car?s been feeling really good?
Source: http://adamcooperf1.com/2012/07/27/lewis-hamilton-the-cars-been-feeling-really-good/
Carl Edwards returns to Nationwide at Watkins Glen
Carl Edwards is coming back to Nationwide.
Earlier this year, with the pain of a Cup lost on a tiebreaker still fresh on his mind, Carl Edwards declared he would no longer run in the Nationwide series. It was a surprising announcement given that Edwards had successfully doubled up full-time rides in both Sprint and Nationwide since 2005.
The prevailing theory, of course, was that Edwards would be spending more time zeroing in on his Sprint Cup career without the "distraction" of a Nationwide career. Even so, he managed to win a championship and placed in the top three every single year he ran Nationwide. Last year, with Sprint Cup drivers barred from winning the championship, he nonetheless managed eight wins and 23 top-5s in 33 events.
But the solo-Cup adventure hasn't quite worked out so well. Edwards sits 11th in points, but with no wins to his credit is in very real danger of missing the Chase entirely.
Could the added preparation that comes from running a race on Saturday help him on Sunday? We'll find out at Watkins Glen, where Edwards plans to return to the track in the No. 60 Subway Ford.
"The Nationwide race at Watkins Glen is almost like a Sprint Cup event because of the length of the race," Edwards said in a release. "It's a very long and tough race, and there is a lot of competition with all the road-course specialists."
Whether this comes too late to turn Edwards' season around, we can't know. Either way, it'll give him better preparation for the Sunday race and, perhaps, pave the way for a return to the Chase. Once in the Chase, anything can happen ... as Edwards knows all too well.
2012 Charlotte Race Weeks Events Guide
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Tuesday
GB 1-2-3
Mini-racing: Get the Pocono II experience in ten minutes, minus the rain
Sunday was a tragic day in NASCAR history with the death of a fan to a lightning strike, and we should never minimize that. Before that, however, there was a race ... here's what happened there.
Michael Andretti calls move to Cup in 2013 ?highly unlikely?
Rumors have been swirling about Andretti Autosport's potential move to NASCAR and the Sprint Cup Series, but according to Michael Andretti, the chances of the team fielding a Sprint Cup car in 2013 are dwindling.
Andretti told the Indianapolis Star that the move wasn't dead, but it wasn't looking good either. ""We've got a couple of (sponsorship) deals working, but it's getting late," Andretti said on Friday. "It's not dead yet, but it's highly unlikely."
Andretti Autosport currently fields teams for Marco Andretti, James Hinchcliffe and Ryan Hunter-Reay in the Izod IndyCar Series. Hunter-Reay has won the last three races of the season to take over the points lead with five races to go.
Any move to the Cup Series for Andretti Autosport has been strongly linked to Dodge, which currently does not have a flagship team for the 2013 season after Penske's move to Ford for next year. The team currently fields Chevys in the IndyCar Series, but any manufacturer conflicts likely wouldn't be an issue with a Sprint Cup move. Penske runs Chevys in the IndyCar Series and Chip Ganassi is affiliated with Chevy in NASCAR and Honda in IndyCar.
Monday
Button: ?I?d love to race in London? | F1 Fanatic round-up
Button: ‘I?d love to race in London” is an original article from F1 Fanatic. If this article has been published anywhere other than F1 Fanatic it is an infringement of copyright.
In the round-up: Button would "love" a London Grand Prix ? Usain Bolt vs Lotus E20 ? Pictures of Coulthard in Copenhagen
Button: ‘I?d love to race in London” is an original article from F1 Fanatic. If this article has been published anywhere other than F1 Fanatic it is an infringement of copyright.
Source: http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2012/08/06/f1-fanatic-roundup-068/
Todd Bodine revives the lost art of the helmet throw at Pocono
NASCAR needed a good old fashioned helmet throw and Todd Bodine obliged during Sunday's Camping World Truck Series race at Pocono.
While trying to chase down leader James Buescher after a restart, Bodine made contact with Nelson Piquet Jr. on the Long Pond Straight off of turn one and crashed hard into the tire barrier. After climbing out of his car, Bodine chucked his helmet toward's Piquet's truck as he drove by under caution... and missed.
Upon further review of the instant replay, well, it's hard to see how Bodine's anger is appropriate. He moved to the inside while he wasn't clear of Piquet's truck. When he emerged from the infield care center, he didn't repent for the helmet toss.
"I'll take the blame for that whole thing just because I should have known better than to trust an idiot to do the right thing," Bodine said. "You know, I pulled down to draft off of James and I should have known Nelson wasn't smart enough to pull over with me and sidedraft me."
"If it was the last lap of the race I can see that ? he thinks he owes me one anyway from Kansas, I think it was. But it's a shame, we had a good truck."
Strong words, even though the anger looks to be misplaced. If Piquet had read Bodine's mind and pulled to the inside as well, he might have taken out Bodine's teammate Timothy Peters, who was to the inside of Piquet. How smart would that have been?
Anyway, we got a helmet toss, even if it didn't hit the bullseye. Huzzah!
Woking woken
Source: http://joesaward.wordpress.com/2012/07/28/woking-woken/
Sunday
Furniture Row Continues To Progress
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Into the Crystal Ball? Its a REAL Twistie Edition
Source: http://anotherindycarblog.wordpress.com/2012/08/02/into-the-crystal-ball-its-a-real-twistie-edition/
Christijan Albers Michele Alboreto Jean Alesi Jaime Alguersuari
Audi R8: Available in Late 2012
Source: http://www.autocarblog.co.uk/302-audi-r8-available-in-late-2012.html
Power Rankings: Does anybody want to be No. 1?
The race is done, and that means it's time for Power Rankings. Each week throughout the season, we'll size up who's rising and who's falling, based on current standings, behind-the-scenes changes, expected staying power, recent history and general gut feelings. It is not scientific, nor is it meant to be. And remember, whoever your favorite driver is, we're biased against him and like someone else better. We continue with a guy who's back in the front yet again...
1. Jimmie Johnson: Help me out here. Who goes here? Matt Kenseth is leading the points, but he had a weak Loudon. Tony Stewart? Hottest driver in NASCAR was a nonfactor. Kasey Kahne and Denny Hamlin are too buried in the standings to make the leap. So we're going with Jimmie Johnson because he had a halfway decent race, and you can't do anything about it. Last week: 4.
2. Matt Kenseth: This was one of the first races of the year where Kenseth wasn't ever a factor. He'll likely be back in form at Indy, but this was an uncharacteristically dull race for a guy who ... nah, you know what, that's too easy. Last week: 1.
3. Kasey Kahne: There are four or five drivers out there who can just come from out of nowhere and thoroughly dominate a race. Denny Hamlin is one of those. Unfortunately for him, so is Kasey Kahne. It's too early to consider Kahne a title contender, but he's looking a whole lot more like a legit Chase candidate than several of the guys still in the top 10. Last week: 6.
4. Denny Hamlin: I love how Hamlin just lets every single emotion spill right out of him like a middle-school drama queen. Despite how that sounds, that's not a slam. Well, not much of one. We love emotion in NASCAR, and we'll even take the kind that makes Hamlin sound like he's listening to Adele on the plane ride home. "Maybe someday I'll ask for two tires just like youuuuuu..." Last week: 10.
5. Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Hey, Dale. 'Sup. Good little run on Sunday. Pretty sweet moment there when all four Hendrick guys were in the top 5. Not leading the race, but still...you can't have everything. Anyway, that's all I've got to say about Mr. Notched-Another-Top-Five-Sorry-For-Party-Rockin'-You-Haters.� Last week: 5.
6. Greg Biffle: What the heck happened to the Roush guys on Sunday? Are we entirely certain they made the trip back north from Daytona? As dominant as they were last Saturday, they were utterly forgettable this Sunday. Not what we expected to see. Last week: 3.
7. Brad Keselowski: I usually have a lot to say about Kes, but not this week. So I will say that Kes is the driver whose standups have probably seen more crime than any other. Seriously. They're all over dingy, creepy gas stations in the middle of nowhere. Heaven only knows what horrors those things have seen. Last week: 7.
8. Tony Stewart: All right, I give: don't bet Tony Stewart after a win. Seriously, the guy wins and then goes into the tank. He'll be just fine in Indy, but wow, was he awful at Loudon. All right, all right: his car was awful. He was the same ol' precious cuss we all love. Last week: 2.
9. Jeff Gordon: As you read these words, Gordon is headed to the Congo as part of his charitable efforts. Worthy, worthy cause. But I do have to wonder if he'll be greeted by a horde of kids wearing "Carl Edwards 2011 Sprint Cup champion" shirts. (Yes, I will keep re-using that joke every year until you laugh, dammit!) Last week: 9.
10. Clint Bowyer: TNT was beyond problematic this season, what with all the commercials (more on that in a moment), but one of the better moments of the race on Sunday was the clip of Bowyer's crew chief Brian Pattie yelling something indecipherable at his crew. As stressful as it surely is being a crew chief, you have plenty of opportunity to work off that stress. Last week: NR.
11. Ryan Newman: Decent day by the Rocket Man at one of his better tracks. Now, the commercials: we can't escape 'em. But TNT made the unfortunate choice to go with shorter commercial breaks staggered more frequently, which means that we were seeing commercials literally every five minutes. That didn't go over so well. Last week: NR.
12. Joey Logano: Not a great run by Logano, but he's running better than Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr. and others we left off the list. If Logano is able to get into the Chase, he'll be able to tap-dance on the heads of his detractors. Last week: 9.
Dropping out of the rankings: Carl Edwards, Martin Truex Jr.
Lucky Dog: Brian Vickers, who put in another strong effort in the rotating No. 55 seat. Dude is making a strong case for a ride next� year ... if there is a ride to get.
DNF: Carl Edwards, who began his stretch run to the playoffs with an uninspiring, virtually anonymous 18th-place finish. He needs that win, pronto.
All right, your turn. Fire away, friends.
Happy Hour: Is Brad Keselowski getting the respect he deserves?
Welcome to the latest Happy Hour mailbag! You know how these work: You write us with your best rant/ joke/one-liner at happyhournascar@yahoogroups.com or on Twitter at @jaybusbee, we respond to your messages, everyone goes away with a smile on their face.
It's Independence Day, which in America means celebrating our freedom by blowing stuff up. (In other countries, it, uh, doesn't really mean much.) What's your best Fourth fireworks debacle? We once nearly set a forest of 40-foot-tall pine trees on fire by not checking the tree cover when we fired off some extra-strength Roman candles. Still, at the moment I have all 10 of my fingers, and considering I've blown up enough explosives in my day to take over Canada, that's an achievement in itself.
Anyway, your letters:
As I read through the headlines of Brad Keselowski's run at Kentucky, I get the sense that it's still a surprise when he wins, almost as if it's a some abnormal event (like Sam Hornish Jr. not running into Danica).
From my quick research, Jetski has won more races over the last four years than Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth, Greg Biffle, Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr, and a whole host of others that seem to be expected to win. Is he getting the respect he deserves from the NASCAR community?
? Doug
Troy, Ohio
Keselowski has a couple things working against him. For instance, he's relatively new to a sport that's slooow to embrace turnover. (Don't believe me? Check this list of race winners from 2004. Only four winners from that era aren't relevant right now, and two, Elliott Sadler and Joe Nemecheck, continue to run occasionally in Cup.) He's also racing for Dodge and Penske, two organizations that haven't held a hammerlock on the public imagination in quite some time. Still, he's as legit as they come right now, and anyone, driver or fan, who takes him for granted could be in for a surprise. And as that link above shows, he's likely to be a force in NASCAR for a long time to come.
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NASCAR is the only sport where ALL of the teams are on the field at the same time. Imagine if the MLB schedule said, "Yankees/Cubs/Cardinals/Rays et al are playing the Red Sox...at the same time." Every week we have the joy of seeing the biggest rivalries going on at 200 mph. I have watched since 1965 and with all of the terrible broadcasts, cookie cutter tracks, dial-tone personalities and made up drama there is still nothing like it. There are times I love to hate it/hate to love it but after almost 50 years I still watch it.
? Michael Raby
North Port, Fla.
What a lovely email. True, too. We sometimes take for granted our embarrassment of riches here in NASCAR; your favorite driver is out there and on TV every single week. (Unless your favorite driver is Brian Vickers. Then, sorry.) Hey, the rest of you: quitcher bitchin' and write in something you love about NASCAR. Anything. We'll do a roundup.
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Can you talk about any dirt races? We here in Texas enjoy our dirt racing and go to them and enjoy the competition and passing. Try it. Some may like it. Do it in the dirt!
? Bill L.
There's so much racing out there that we generally don't even try to cover the smaller events, but by all means, if you see something cool at your dirt track (video is always nice!) hit us up at the address above or below. You're right, dirt racing is something to behold, and the world is a better place for it.
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So Danica Patrick finishes 12th and actually moves up to 9th in the Nationwide standings. The strategy seems to be working. Watch the DNFs, drive like an old lady ? well, not like many old ladies but certainly in comparison with the real racers ? and pile up laps and points. Only one top 10 and she is firmly seated in the top 10. It's just not right.
But, if fellow drivers have kind hearts and want to help her develop, here's what they need to do: pit her. Early and often. Do it gently and don't hurt her but DNF her several times and force a new strategy. As she falls in the standings, she's going to have to start racing. I don't know that she has it in her, but we (and she) will never know unless trying for some top 5s is the only way to recover her season.
So, try not to wrap up too many others, but send her to the garage early and often. Then we'll learn if she deserves to be called a race car driver.
? Paul Stewart
By taking her out? That seems a little ... unsporting. We've said it before, many times: Patrick isn't a great driver yet. But she could be. She could also be a flameout. We just don't know. She doesn't have the credibility of other drivers, but then she's not a complete embarrassment either. Her ceiling is likely much lower than most champion-worthy drivers, but soon enough there'll be a woman who won't have that ceiling. And she'll have Danica and other women of racing to thank for paving the way.
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What do you think of Erin Andrews leaving ESPN? With Fox courting her, any chance she ends up on race coverage during the college football off-season? She'd be a nice counter-balance (read: distraction) to DW. Please?
? Jeff "The Real Slim Sarge" Smith
I have been at events where Ms. Andrews has been assigned coverage, and let me tell you: watching college boys watch Erin Andrews is like watching a dog on a leash with a glistening steak just out of reach. I shudder to think what would happen if you brought that poor woman to a NASCAR track. You'd have to airlift her in and out. That said, she would give instant cachet to, say, the Daytona 500 just by her presence. And there's always the chance of a Danica-Erin catfight that would crack the Internet in half. We can hope, can't we?
And on that note, we're out. Thanks to all our writers this week. You want in? Fire up the computer and hit us with whatever's on your mind, NASCAR-wise, at happyhournascar@yahoogroups.com. You can find Yahoo! Sports' NASCAR coverage on Facebook right here, and you can follow me on Twitter at @jaybusbee and on Facebook here. Make sure to tell us where you're from. We'll make you famous!