The Frontstretch Newsletter: June 27th, 2009 Special Edition

[Frontstretch.com]

THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
June 27th, 2009
Volume III, Edition CXV

Talk From The Track
FRONTSTRETCH LIVE FROM NEW HAMPSHIRE 
by Amy Henderson

Stewart Grabs Pole, Qualifying Rained Out

Tony Stewart grabbed the pole for Sunday’s Lenox Industrial Tools 301 on Friday with a little help from Mother Nature.  The skies opened over New Hampshire Motor Speedway, forcing NASCAR to cancel both Nationwide Series final practice and Sprint Cup Qualifying.  Stewart will, however, race his backup car after a crash in morning practice.

"I just got loose going in the corner," he said of the incident. "Once I got out of the groove, I just ran out of room."

Luckily for the series point leader, since all car and engine changes occurred prior to qualifying, he'll be allowed to start Sunday's race up front. With the lineup set by owner points, it'll be Jeff Gordon alongside with Jimmie Johnson, Kurt Busch, and Carl Edwards rounding out the top 5. 

Missing the race was Teddy Christopher in Kirk Shelmerdine's No. 27, Dexter Bean in his family-owned No. 51, and Mike Wallace in the No. 64 Gunselman Motorsports car. The 64 originally made the event due to the NASCAR rulebook, but made a deal with the No. 78 team of Furniture Row Racing to withdraw their entry. That allowed driver Regan Smith and his part-time team, here to run the full distance, to grab the final spot in the 43-car lineup.

Tom Bowles contributed to this article.

DiBenedetto Takes Heluva Good 125 In A Barnburner

Matt DiBenedetto had a great car on Friday afternoon, but it took hard racing to finish first in Friday's Camping World East Series race. DiBenedetto and Ryan Truex put on a heck of a show coming off turn 4 on the final lap, with both drivers battling side-by-side to the line.  Truex lifted off the throttle just a little, but it was enough for DiBenedetto to take the opening and the win in the 125-lapper.

“We just hit doors, and then I stood on the gas, wide open, aiming for that Start/Finish line. It was all I was looking at,” DiBenedetto said after the win in the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Toyota.

Truex, whose pole and near-victory was reminiscent of older brother Martin’s first series win at NHMS, said afterward, “We were where we needed to be... and it got taken away from us.”

Drivers Looking Forward to Racing the Magic Mile

New Hampshire Motor Speedway is one of the Sprint Cup Series’ northernmost stops, and the track itself certainly provides a unique challenge.  It’s a flat, one-mile oval with long straightaways and tight turns - think Martinsville on Popeye’s spinach.  The track is notoriously hard to pass on and hard to get the setup perfected for, so it would be easy for the teams to hate the place. But for many in the Cup garage, the opposite is true -- there are features within the track and surrounding Lakes Region of New Hampshire which give the teams something to look forward to.

“Obviously, I like (NHMS) because I’ve had success there,” says Sprint Cup point leader and Sunday’s polesitter, Tony Stewart.  “Every race at Loudon seems to be a pretty good race.  So, I like it.  I enjoy racing there even though it is hard to pass.  But when you’ve got a good car, it’s always fun to race."

Stewart’s teammate Ryan Newman agrees.  “I have always enjoyed this track,” Newman said on Friday.  “I got my first win here, and after a long winless streak got another one here. Now, I am on another long winless streak; it would be nice to [break that drought again].”  In fact, Newman likes the track enough to race it twice this weekend, as he’ll be running the 100-lap Whelen Modified Tour race on Saturday, “To have fun," he added. "That is the goal.  That is what I’m here for the whole weekend, but the modifieds - the race cars are such a blast to drive!”  Kasey Kahne will also run the modified race on Saturday, as well.

So, for those who've had success here, what is the key to getting around this speedway?

“It’s a big motor deal,” says Stewart of making good laps at NHMS.  “With the corners being so tight, you’ve got to put a lot of gear in the car to get it up off the corner.  Forward bite is always an issue, too, so it’s hard to get up off the corners.  Then, you’ve got long straightaways where you can kind of relax a little bit.  Coming into the corners, you use a lot of brake, and it’s hard not only to get the car stopped but to get it to turn.  Then you go through that challenge all over again."

Greg Biffle adds that there is little margin of error at the Magic Mile.  “You’ll know when you unload here,” he said about the setup of a race car.  “It’s kind of like restrictor plate racing - you can improve a lot, but you’re not normally going to go from one extreme to another.”

Through the years, NHMS has been a difficult puzzle for drivers put together consistently. There have been eight different winners in the last eight Sprint Cup races (and the Nationwide Series has never seen a repeat winner in nearly 20 years of racing), showing that it’s a track to be chased every time.  Four-time Cup champion Jeff Gordon attributes that diversity to the track’s inherent toughness.  “ Track position and pit strategy play out so much here that you’ll get guys that take some big risks.  Last year, Kurt Busch took a big risk by staying out when it rained, and that paid off for them.”

Finally, reigning Cup champion Jimmie Johnson had one more reason why this weekend’s race is an important one for his team to be on their game for. The track is the first the top twelve teams will see in the Chase in September, so getting good notes is important in helping those teams get a leg up -- perhaps even more important than taking a big gamble in trying for a win.  “We’ll experiment with some stuff and try to validate it for here, so when we come back we have a read on whatever package that is," he said. "It’s pretty well scienced out.  We’re not looking for the home run; we’re just kind of making sure we got it right.”

Not that Johnson won’t be trying for the win on Sunday. A victory at the Magic Mile is always an important addition to any driver’s resume, one that will ensure the whole field is gunning for it on race day.

Quote of the Day

“I’m meaner than I look.” –Bobby Labonte

To find out the full story, check out our full interview with Labonte in Beyond the Cockpit, this Tuesday on the Frontstretch.

Have breaking news for the Frontstretch? Don't hesitate to let us know; email us at ashl...@mail.com with a promising lead or tip.

It's Frontstretch Podcast Time!!!
Don't forget about Tom Bowles and Matt Taliaferro's Athlon / Frontstretch Podcast, sponsored this season by Wrigley's! Check out the newest edition by clicking here; and remember, you can always listen to us on iTunes for FREE! Search for our weekly show under "Athlon."

THIS SUNDAY: PRESENTING THE FRONTSTRETCH LIVE BLOG

The Frontstretch live blog heads back east this weekend as the Sprint Cup Series travels over 3,000 miles from Sonoma, Ca. to New Hampshire. The coast and type of track may have changed, but the live blog remains the same. Join Mike Lovecchio and your favorite Frontstretch writers Sunday at 1:45 p.m. for instant analysis, polls, videos and much much more.

FRONTSTRETCH FANTASY RACING
At Frontstretch.com, it's never too late to get in on the fantasy fun!  There are still chances to win in our Game of Tomorrow, Frontstretch 4Play, NASCAR Knockout, and even our new salary cap game, Hat Dance Dynasty.  Just because you missed out at the start of the season doesn't mean you have to stay on the sidelines... Click here to get involved today!

FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q. Of the four drivers that have competed in every Cup race held at New Hampshire, only one has not won an event there.  Name him.
Check back Monday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!

Frontstretch Trivia Guarantee;  If we mess up, you get the shirt off our backs!  If we've provided an incorrect answer to the Frontstretch Trivia question, be the first to email the corrected trivia answer to tri...@frontstretch.com and we'll send you a Frontstretch T-Shirt ...FREE!

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Coming Monday in the Frontstretch Newsletter:
-- Lenox Industrial Tools 301 Recap by Phil Allaway
-- Secret Star of the Race: The Best Run You Never Saw by Tom Bowles
-- Big Six: Lenox Industrial Tools 301 by Amy Henderson
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, Stat of the Week, and more!

Monday on the Frontstretch:

Matt McLaughlin's Thinkin' Out Loud: New Hampshire by Matt McLaughlin
Matt's got all the post-race analysis and NASCAR water cooler fodder you need to know after the Sprint Cup Series goes flat track racing, short track style at New Hampshire.

Bowles-Eye View by Tom Bowles
Tom will have his take on the biggest story coming out of New England this weekend in his weekly post-race commentary.

Five Points To Ponder by Mike Lovecchio
Mike has five things you shouldn't have missed from the last week in NASCAR racing, including highlights from our live race blog as he dissects a full slate of NASCAR action in Memphis and New Hampshire.

Bubble Breakdown by Mike Ravesi
Mike tracks all the action in and around the Top 35, as teams battle for that all-important final spot on the bubble at New Hampshire.

Sprint Cup Rookie Report by Tony Lumbis
Tony will have all your post-New Hampshire race analysis for all the Sprint Cup freshmen in his weekly rookie report.

Nationwide Series Breakdown: Camping World RV Sales 200 by Bryan Davis Keith
Bryan breaks down all the action from the Nationwide Series race at New Hampshire.

Tracking The Trucks: MemphisTravel.com 200 by Beth Lunkenheimer
Beth has all the post-race analysis as the Trucks beat and bang at Memphis.
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