The Frontstretch Newsletter: July 11th, 2008
Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
July 11th, 2008
Volume II, Edition CXXX
Today's Top News
by Kurt Smith
Franchitti to Compete In Nationwide Race
Dario Franchitti, whose No. 40 Dodge Cup team was recently shut down by Chip Ganassi due to lack of sponsorship, will be racing the No. 40 for Ganassi in the Nationwide Series this weekend at Chicagoland Speedway.
Franchitti replaces rookie Bryan Clauson in the No. 40 car. Clauson won the pole and finished 19th in last week's Nationwide Daytona race.
Chip Ganassi stated when he closed the No. 40 shop that Dario had the option of driving for him in the Nationwide Series if he so chose until a long-term plan was worked out. Franchitti was the IndyCar Series Champion in 2007.
Jeff Hensley Named Director of Competition for Bobby Hamilton Racing
Bobby Hamilton Racing announced Thursday that Jeff Hensley, former Craftsman Truck Series crew chief for Bill Davis Racing, has been named director of competition for the Nos. 4 and 18 teams, driven by Stacy Compton and Dennis Setzer, respectively. Former director of competition Charlie Wilson will move into an engineering role for the No. 18 team.
As the crew chief for the No. 5 Bill Davis Racing truck entry, Hensley scored eight victories and 27 top-five finishes.
"Sometimes things happen when you least expect them," said Hensley. "I have been amazed at how far this team has come since it moved here in January. It was a huge accomplishment for them to win so early in 2008 and I know they have more wins coming."
In Case You Missed It...by Kurt Smith
U.S. Navy Ending Sponsorship For JR Motorsports
The U.S. Navy, sponsor of the No. 88 JR Motorsports Nationwide Series car driven by Brad Keselowski, will not return to sponsor the car in 2009. The car is owned by Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Rick Hendrick. Keselowski scored his first series win in the car this year in Milwaukee.
The refusal to renew the contract reflects the difficult economic times, where advertising budgets are often the first to be cut.
"We were informed last week that our sponsorship with the U.S. Navy will not renew at the end of the year," team spokesman Mike Davis said. "It's been an exceptional partnership since 2005, and we look forward to a strong finish to the season as Brad Keselowski and the No. 88 Navy team contends for a NASCAR Nationwide Series championship."
No. 84, 00 Cup Cars Get New Crew Chiefs
Former Chip Ganassi crew chief Jimmy Elledge will be taking over crew chief duties on the Sprint Cup No. 84 Toyota for Red Bull Racing, replacing Ricky Viers. The car is currently driven by A.J. Allmendinger.
Elledge worked on the No. 41 team for Chip Ganassi, with drivers Casey Mears and Reed Sorenson. He also sat atop the pit box for Juan Pablo Montoya for a month this season.
In the No. 00 Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota, driven by Michael McDowell, Peter Sospenzo will be taking over crew chief duties from Bill Pappas, who is moving to the head of engineering position in the company.
"Peter has been in the business for years and worked with teams like Penske and Hendrick Motorsports," McDowell said. "He has a lot of experience and has been successful at his job."
Kenseth Has New Crew Chief In Nationwide Series
Pierre Kuettel, former crew chief of the 2007 champion No. 60 for Carl Edwards, will debut as the crew chief for Matt Kenseth in his No. 17 car this weekend at Chicagoland.
"This will be my first race with Matt, so I'm pretty anxious to see how the weekend will go," said Kuettel. "Matt is an experienced racer who has had tons of success, so I know we'll have that on our side this weekend. Hopefully we've put together a fast car for him and we can go out there and get a top-five finish."
Kenseth has three Top 5s and four Top 10s in the Nationwide Series in Chicagoland.
Frontstretch Folio: LifeLock.com 400
By Kim DeHaven
The Sprint Cup Series visits Joliet, Illinois this weekend to take on the challenge of Chicagoland Speedway. The LifeLock 400 is the 19th race of the 2008 Sprint Cup season and will be broadcast live on Saturday, July 12th at 8 pm ET on TNT, with radio coverage by MRN affiliates nationwide. Competitors will make 267 circuits for 400.5 miles around the 1.5 mile tri-oval in their quest for the checkered flag.
Records and Facts
Jimmie Johnson holds the record for the fastest lap at Chicagoland Speedway, posting a qualifying lap with a time of 28.701 seconds and a speed of 188.147 mph to win the pole for the 2005 running of the Tropicana 400.
In the track's seven year history, there has never been a repeat pole winner at Chicagoland. Casey Mears was the polesitter for last year's event.
Kevin Harvick holds the record for the fastest race run at Chicagoland. He attained the record of 2 hours, 55 minutes, 37 seconds with an average speed of 136.832 mph on July 14, 2002 in the Tropicana 400.
Kevin Harvick and Tony Stewart are the only repeat winners at Chicagoland Speedway. Stewart won the event last year.
The closest margin of victory at Chicagoland Speedway came in 2005 when Dale Earnhardt, Jr. defeated Matt Kenseth by 0.291 seconds.
The greatest margin of victory at Chicagoland Speedway came in 2004 when Tony Stewart defeated Jimmie Johnson by 2.925 seconds.
Track Facts
Track/Race Length: 1.5 mile tri-oval, 267 laps, 400 miles
Pit Road Speed: 45 mph "
Corners: Banked 18 degrees
Frontstretch: 2,400 feet, Banked 11 degrees *Backstretch: 1,700 feet, Banked 5 degrees
Grandstand seating: 75,000
Pre-race Schedule (all times eastern)
Practice - Thursday, July 10 at 5:00 p.m. on SPEED
Qualifying - Thursday, July 10 at 4:00 p.m. on SPEED
Practice - Friday, July 11 at 5:00 p.m. on SPEED
Happy Hour Practice - Friday, July 14 at 6:30 p.m. on SPEED
Say What?!?
"Chicagoland may resemble places like Kansas and Vegas, but it's different. Each one of those tracks are unique in their own way. At Chicago you've got to watch yourself coming off of turn four. It gets pretty narrow there and it's real easy to run out of room if you're two, sometimes three wide." - Elliott Sadler
"(Chicagoland) is a place where you can really stand on the gas. It's just a fun race track. It's very similar to Kansas Speedway and I also really enjoy going there. I don't know if it's the fact that it doesn't have as much banking as the other 1.5-mile tracks, or the fact that you can run any groove you want to. It's just a real fun track." - J.J. Yeley
"You aren't going to find any two tracks that are more identical than Kansas and Chicago. The only difference between the two tracks – the backstretch at Chicago is a little bit rounded while Kansas' is straight. Both of them, it seems like the last couple years in particular, have come around. They've seasoned, and it's gotten to where we finally got off the bottom and move around the race track more. That's what you want as a driver." - Tony Stewart
TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
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Frontstretch On The Radio:
Join Frontstretch's Tom Bowles and Matt Taliaferro for their weekly version of the Frontstretch.com / Athlon Sports Racing Podcast Powered By Pepsi. This week, Tom and Matt will be joined by host Patrick Snow as they analyze Tony Stewart's official departure from Gibbs, philosophize on his role as the sport's new car owner, and hypothesize as to who will be the replacement in the famed No. 20 car for 2009. All that, plus Martin Truex's difficult choice ahead, the backstory as to whether DEI really is for sale, and can one of the boys finally get a race prediction right as we head outside the Windy City to Chicagoland? You'll just have to tune in to find out.
Unsure when to catch the podcast? Well, the newest version usually comes out by Thursday night and gets archived at racetalkradio.com each Friday. Download us by heading over to http://www.athlonsports.com /racing/inside-racing-powered-by-pepsi, and don't forget to listen in on iTunes each week!! We're under "Athlon Racing Podcast."
And if you're up for it, we're always looking to hear from the fans; be sure to write in and give feedback at inside...@athlonsports.com! Tell us a topic we haven't been chatting about, and we'll be sure to mention it on the air. Of course, the two individual hosts can also be reached at tom.b...@frontstretch.com and matt.ta...@frontstretch.com.
Q. This was the first track to host a NASCAR race run with restrictor plates. Where and when?
Check back Monday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Thursday's Answer
Q. He was the first driver to record an official Cup qualifying lap at over 200 mph. Who is he?
A. Benny Parsons became the first man to post an official Winston Cup qualifying lap at more than 200 mph on April 29, 1982 at Talladega Superspeedway. Parsons' 200.176 mph clocking earned him the pole for the Winston 500 in Harry Ranier's Pontiac.
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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!
Monday on the Frontstretch
Matt McLaughlin's Thinkin' Out Loud:
by Matt McLaughlin
Before you take that first break mid-morning on Monday, be sure you check out Matt's views on Thinkin' Out Loud for the best in water cooler fodder.
By Tom Bowles
Tom gives his views on the weekend events on SI.com. Want to know what he really thinks? You get that only on the Frontstretch.
by Tommy Thompson
Tommy's ten points will leave you wanting for more. Like eleven. Or maybe twelve.
Sprint Cup Rookie Report: LifeLock.com 400
by Tony Lumbis
Check out Tony's Rookie Report on Monday to see which rookies were blown away in the Windy City!
Nationwide Series Breakdown : Dollar General 300
by Bryan Davis Keith
Bet you a buck you won't want to miss Bryan's race recap of the Dollar General 300!
Latest news and Highlights from Sonoma
Secret Star of the Race
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