investments in these companies are being well spent, new sponsorship is becoming harder to come by and existing sponsors are questioning if they’re getting the return off of their sponsorship dollars.
Second thing has to do with the recent revelation of the Japanese manufacturer using magnets to affect the results of a chassis dyno test. This shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. Especially after it was revealed that they were using the same engine in all 3 series despite rules to the contrary. The Spin Meisters are busy at work "Toyota respects NA$CAR's rules and regulations and accepts the sanctions that were imposed against Joe Gibbs Racing. It is NA$CAR's responsibility to enforce their rules and we respect their decisions. Toyota always has, and will continue to, abide by all NASCAR-mandated policies." Well, if they respect the rules and regulations, then why are they using the same engine in all three series? And yes, we know NA$CAR didn’t bother enforcing their own rules in regards to this because of the $93 million that was spent by the Japanese manufacturer to obtain “favors to be named later”. So this deal with the magnet shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone. You can call it “exploiting the gray area” if you like. But you have to wonder just how much is going on with these cars that we aren’t hearing about. Look at how long it took for the engine deal to come out. How long have they been using the magnets? It makes you wonder just how thorough the inspection process really is or has a blind eye been turned on the cars of the Japanese manufacturer as part of the $93 million “purchase” of NA$CAR, or both.
The 2009 schedule is out and there are 4 scheduled off weekends this coming season. There are also some changes on the schedule which will probably have a few fans up in arms. The Southern 500 is returning to the southeast, but not to Darlington. It’s going to Atlanta instead. You have to question the wisdom of this since Atlanta hasn’t done a very good job of supporting the races they currently have. But maybe by returning the Southern 500 back near its’ southern roots, Atlanta might actually get a few more folks to show up for that race.
In exchange for that date, Fontana, which hasn’t sold out a race in 5 years, is rewarded with a date in the play-offs. Despite giving away thousands of tickets to try to make the track look full, not to mention the excuse of “the fans shopping under the grandstands” and special ticket deals for folks south of the border, NA$CAR/I$C continue to say they need 2 races there because of all the media attention and that it’s the media capital of the world. What they don’t mention is Faux King Brian’s home and business that are not too far away and the “protection” that Gilligan Sucker has from her mentor Lesa France Kennedy. One interesting comment from Gilligan is regarding numbers. They have more people attend Fontana than they have seating capacity at Darlington. While that may be true, Darlington fills its’ seats by selling them out and not having to give away thousands of tickets. So Darlington is making the company money and staying in the black while Fontana continues to have its’ ledgers bleeding red. Despite having folks like P. Diddly, Chutney Beers, and other LaLaLand “B” listers, Fontana still can’t sell out while Darlington, which only has the drivers as their notables, sells out. Then you have the actual racing action. Fontana is a major Snooze Fest and it‘s gotten worse with the Uni-Car. Darlington is known for its’ exciting racing. So which track should actually be awarded a date in the play-offs? One that’s boring and doesn’t sell out or one that’s action packed and fills the company‘s coffers?
Talladega’s second date has been moved around so that it’s in the play-offs taking the place of the Atlanta race. So that adds a Super Speedway date. The only thing missing in the play-off schedule is a road course race to make things a little more challenging. As it stands, NA$CAR/I$C tracks hold 6 positions in the play-offs, $MI has 3, and one independent track rounds out the play-off tracks.
JJ Yeley got dumped by Hall of Fame Racing. Some folks have been saying it’s because of the equipment that he performed so poorly. JGR and HOF teams both use the same equipment. Not to mention that the driver who took over his ride at JGR has been turning out a lot of wins, so that tends to disprove the equipment theory. The driver JJ replaced at HOF, didn’t have a stellar record but had a better record with the HOF team than what JJ turned out. So was it the driver or the equipment? You decide.
And speaking of HOF, Joey Logano will be driving their car for 5 races starting at Loudon. While I hope he does well, don’t be surprised if he doesn’t live up to the hype NA$CAR has been laying on thick all season.
I’m not at all surprised to see Mike Bliss suing Armando Fitz. Fitz hasn’t had a steady driver in his car since Bliss left the team. From talking with some drivers who have driven for Fitz since Bliss left, it’s no wonder he can’t find a steady driver. The equipment leaves a lot to be desired. Despite the drivers asking for changes to be made to improve the cars’ performance and make them competitive, their calls have gone unheeded and fallen on deaf ears. So they have decided not to return the Fitz team to fill the driver’s seat. Fitz asked one driver to fill the seat for him only to have the driver tell him to get someone else who was a lot less talented. Fitz filled the seat with the less talented driver. It’s so bad that even drivers who are desperate for a ride are avoiding Fitz, so that tells you something.
D’Hondt coming back? Maybe so. Eddie is hoping to field a car for the full season next year in the Busch Series. I think he might be able to do it providing he can find sponsorship money. The big question, besides his sponsor, is who will be driving for him. Will he go with a veteran driver or will he go with an up and comer? We’ll have to wait and see.
It was no big surprise to me to see Bill Davis
talking about selling off his racing operations.
BDR has been pretty much a second tier racing
operation since it began. He’s had some pretty
decent drivers and crew chiefs there over the
years but the equipment hasn’t always been that
great. He got a big win with Ward Burton but he
also traded away Jeff Gordon. Dave Blaney has
done a pretty decent job despite the equipment.
On the truck side, he’s had some great drivers
in his fold and gotten some pretty decent
victories with some of them while giving other
drivers junk to drive and hurting their careers or
causing them to move on to other teams or
series and enjoying more success. So whoever
buys the operation is going to have to do a major overhaul on the equipment.
Cousin Carl and Shrub both getting a 6 race probation for their bumping and banging after the Bristol race. No big deal. You can bet they’ll both behave themselves until that 7th race comes up and after that, it’ll be “no holds barred” unless it upsets HRH “Back to Basics” program.
Reed Sorenson moving to GEM next season isn’t really a surprise. Ganassi Racing continues on the downhill slide, so Reed moving isn’t a big deal. In an interview, Reed said they had to figure out what number he was going to be running. Might I suggest #91 to go along with the 9 and 19? Evernham used that number in the past and it fits with the whole number scheme he’s used.
Motherhood, Apple Pie, and John Wayne
Mad Mikie
Curmudgeon at Large
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