The Frontstretch Newsletter SPECIAL EDITION: June 5th, 2010
Frontstretch.com
Breaking News
Ruckus At Strip Club Costs Roush Crew Chief His Job
by Tom Bowles
Frontstretch.com has learned Roush Fenway crew chief Eddie Pardue was fired last week after his crew’s involvement in a fight at a Daytona strip club. Multiple sources confirmed Nationwide Series veteran Pardue was released once management learned of the incident, which occurred in the middle of a Nationwide Car of Tomorrow test at Daytona. Sources say the crew for his No. 16 Roush Fenway Ford went to the club one night during the test, where a physical altercation with several patrons ensued. No charges were filed, but once word spread of the fight an undisclosed number of crewmen were fired, along with Pardue despite him not being in attendance at the club. One source suggested Roush was making an example with his dismissal in the wake of a miserable season during which their Cup and Nationwide teams have gone winless.
Pardue had been a Roush employee for seven years and a Nationwide crew chief for the past four, working with drivers Greg Biffle, Colin Braun, and Matt Kenseth among others at the No. 16 Ford. Prior to the test, the car was enduring its worst season in history, without a top-5 finish in a dozen starts while accumulating six DNFs with Braun, Kenseth, and Brian Ickler.
“Eddie Pardue is no longer employed here, and that was a performance-based decision,” said Kevin Woods, Roush Fenway’s Director of Corporate Communications, when asked to respond to the allegations. The organization would not expand further when asked about additional personnel let go, as Woods explained the company’s policy is not to comment on internal employee matters.
Since Pardue's release last week, Ben Leslie has been working as the interim replacement at the No. 16. Ickler is scheduled to drive this weekend at Nashville.
Kyle Busch To Start Career Cup Race No. 200 from the Pole; Dale Jr. to Start Third
by Bryan Davis Keith
Kyle Busch on Sunday will become the youngest driver in NASCAR history to make 200 Sprint Cup starts. And he'll have the best view on the track when he does.
Busch scored his second pole of 2010 at Pocono on Friday afternoon, besting Clint Bowyer, who will share the front row with Rowdy. Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Kurt Busch and Denny Hamlin rounded out the top 5.
For Busch, his career-best qualifying effort came on an unusually quiet Pocono weekend for him. After traveling to run both the Truck race at Texas and Nationwide event at Nashville in 2008, then a Nashville-Pocono double-dip a year later, 2010 will consist of a single event. With his Truck team recently shutting down its second entry and JGR forbidding Busch from defending his Nationwide Series crown, Busch is running only the Cup car at Pocono this Sunday.
When asked if the lesser amount of activity this weekend played any role in his pole run, Busch was dismissive, noting “I don't think so.”
“We'll see how we run Sunday,” he continued.
Notable in the top 10 were both Ryan Newman and Tony Stewart, only the third time this season that both Stewart-Haas Racing cars have started in the top 10. It was in this race one year ago that SHR began their run to two Chase berths, with Tony Stewart the defending event winner and Ryan Newman coming off a top 5 run in this race one year ago. On the other end of the spectrum, Roush Fenway Racing's struggles also continued, with Matt Kenseth the only driver from the RFR organization to qualify in the top 15.
The other surprising driver in the back of the pack was Jimmie Johnson, who qualified a career worst 27th at a venue that's been generous to the No. 48 team. Even more surprising about Johnson's slow time trial was that his No. 48 bunch led the practice session prior to qualifying.
Failing
to make the field for Sunday's 500-miler were Terry Cook in his debut in the
Phoenix Racing No. 09 and Ted Musgrave, who was subbing in for Robby
Gordon in the No. 7. For Robby Gordon Motorsports, it was the No. 7
team's first DNQ since Texas in November of 2005.
Cup News And Notes
by Tony Lumbis and Tom Bowles
- Count Mark Martin out of the camp that thinks Roush Fenway Racing is struggling, part of a wide-ranging presser Friday where the sometimes politically correct driver was open on a variety of topics. "I think they've been running great," he said at his hauler. "They ran well last week [at Charlotte]. They've made a lot of progress since last year. On the race track, they're running right by me."
Martin also insisted he is not stepping into the ownership game in the foreseeable future, dispelling rumors he'll be buying a team for the 2011 season. "I'm not that interested in ownership," he said. "I wouldn't make a big deal out of that. About this time next year, I'll lay out the options of what there is for me to do, what is rewarding and exciting, and I'll pursue that. Right now, I know what I want to do next year and I'm open to anything that's fun, challenging, and exciting in 2012 and beyond."
- Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. will be competing with each off the racetrack this month ... for a good cause. Participating in the Pepsi Refresh program, each driver has put forth an idea to make a difference in America's communities, looking to earn a grant for their project. Fans will vote on the best concept, with the winner getting $100,000 to jumpstart their program.
Here's a brief synopsis of each driver's idea:
Gordon: Wants to establish a program focusing on the care, treatment, and protection of physically and sexually abused children
Earnhardt: Looking to build a computer lab for students at Shepherd Elementary School in NC, part of a larger project within the Dale Jr. Foundation aimed at updating and providing technology to disadvantaged schools in need
Johnson: Would create a fund to provide relief to pediatric bone marrow transplant patients, so they're better able to afford the surgery
To make your voice heard on this initiative, go to www.nascar.com/pepsirefresh where you can cast your vote. The site is open from now until June 23rd.
- With all the talk about the strong month of May for both Kurt and Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick has been largely overlooked as a title contender despite leading the points. In the past, that might have irked a more immature Harvick, but in his tenth year on the circuit it's clear he won't be bothered by perception.
"I think for me, I've been down this road a bunch of times and no offense, it really doesn't matter what you guys think," he said. " I's all about just performing on the race track and being solid week after week. Going through spurts of winning a couple races here and there aren't going to win the championship, it's just not going to happen. You have to be solid week in and week out. We need to win a couple more races before the Chase starts. All in all. you have to win a couple races, but you can't have 30th or 35th place finishes and be disastrous a couple weeks here and there. I feel like that's always been the strong point of our team has been consistency, and this year the consistency happens to be that when you're having a bad day, you finish. Like last week we had all kinds of things go wrong and we finished 11th. Those are the kinds of things that you have to do to win a championship. If we win in quietly, I'm fine with that."
Mikey Kile Rockets to ARCA Pole at Pocono; Kimmel to Start Second
For much of Friday's ARCA qualifying session at Pocono, all was back to normal, with nine-time champion Frank Kimmel sitting on the pole.
Then came Mikey Kile.
Laying down a blistering lap that was nearly a second faster than any other driver in the field, Kile easily snagged his first career ARCA pole on a day that was bittersweet for the Venturini Motorsports camp; Alli Owens was unable to capitalize on a top-5 practice time after crashing on her qualifying attempt, while Steve Arpin will roll off 14th after struggling through a practice in which the No. 55 car was “way, way off” according to the driver. Tom Berte qualified the team's fourth car 17th.
Sharing the front row with Kile will be Frank Kimmel, whose second-place starting position is his best for any ARCA event since the DuQuoin dirt race in September of 2008. Following a top-5 finish at Toledo two weeks ago, Kimmel showed signs of optimism that his Kimmel Racing operation is about to turn the corner from top 10 to top 5 team.
“I think we have [turned a corner],” said the longtime veteran. “We're real happy with the car, and we didn't even get to make a mock qualifying run. I didn't have anything for Mikey, he was extremely fast. But we thought we could get in the top 5, that was our goal. And starting second, we're happy with that.”
Rounding out the top 5 were Craig Goess, Chad Finley, and Justin Marks.
Along with Kile, Kimmel, and Goess, Patrick Sheltra and Joey Coulter were also among the ranks of ARCA title contenders still searching for their first win of 2010 that will start in the top 10 for Saturday's 200-miler.
“We've just got to put the complete package together,” said Goess of his chances at a career-first ARCA triumph, currently riding a streak of three top-5 finishes in the last four races.
But after seeing the blazing speed that Kile demonstrated Friday, Frank Kimmel pulled no punches; “We've got to see how long he can run like that. The rest of us may be racing for second.”
36 cars are featured on the starting grid for the Messina Wildlife Stopper 200 on Saturday. Along with Alli Owens, Larry Meadors wrecked his No. 68 Mark Gibson Racing entry during his qualifying attempt. Owens will go to a backup car, while Meadors' team was seen in the garage trying to repair their primary car.
ARCA News and Notes
Mike's Hard Lemonade has agreed to a deal with Venturini Motorsports that will feature them as the title sponsor of Steve Arpin's No. 55 car for the remainder of the 2010 season. Mike's originally signed on as a two-race sponsor, but agreed to the extension after Arpin won at Texas in his first race with the company.
Speaking of Arpin, the air between he and Frank Kimmel appears to have been cleared after their incident in Toledo. Arpin, who spoke to Kimmel immediately following the Toledo race two weeks ago, said that Kimmel did not intentionally wreck him on lap 140 of the event, and that Kimmel's apology for the accident was one of the “most sincere” apologies he's heard as a race car driver.
Wayne Peterson Racing's No. 0 car was not seen on track following a blown motor early in practice. The team, which has attempted every race thus far in 2010, did not make a qualifying attempt.
Bobby Gerhart, who qualified ninth in his first ARCA race attempt since winning the season-opener at Daytona, told Frontstretch that his team is attempting to prepare a Nationwide Series COT car in time for the NNS race at Daytona in July. He's also looking to dip into the Truck Series, searching for a ride at the Pocono event later that month.