|
July 3, 2008
Randy Moss Motorsports to Make Debut at Kentucky
Craftsman Truck Series News
Daytona Beach, Florida - Randy Moss, NFL All Pro wide receiver with the New England Patriots,
will make his debut as a NASCAR team owner on July 19 in the Built Ford Tough 225 at Kentucky Speedway. Moss has purchased
a 50-percent stake in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series team owned by long-time series participant David Dollar. Dollar's
team, known as Morgan-Dollar Motorsports, will be renamed Randy Moss Motorsports effective immediately.
"We looked at a lot of different options and we've decided to align with David Dollar's
team rather than build an operation from scratch," Moss said. "He has an existing team with a state-of-the-art shop,
all the parts and pieces it takes to do this and do it well, and some of the best people in the Craftsman Truck Series garage
area. The team has contended for championships in the past and has won a lot of races. We really believe that we'll come
out of the gate competitive with a chance to win."
As Morgan-Dollar
Motorsports, the team has won 13 races with drivers Dennis Setzer, Bobby Labonte, and Clint Bowyer. With Setzer at the wheel,
the team finished second in the series standings from 2003 through 2005. The team has entered each race in 2008 with drivers
A.J. Allmendinger, Aric Almirola, Landon Cassill, Erin Crocker, Timothy Peters, Regan Smith and Scott Speed. The team has
three top-ten finishes so far in 2008; Speed scored a tenth-place finish at Martinsville while Cassill has finishes of ninth
at Charlotte and third at Milwaukee.
Sponsorship for the new organization
is pending. The new team will utilize Moss's familiar No. 81, and will retain Morgan-Dollar's relationship with
Chevrolet. Eric Phillips, long time crew chief for Morgan-Dollar Motorsports will continue to fill that role with Randy
Moss Motorsports.
Moss is a ten year veteran in the National Football League
and was a first-round draft pick in the 1998 draft out of Marshall University . He has been a NASCAR fan for several
years including sponsorship of a local dirt track program and recently made the decision to get involved with the ownership
of a NASCAR team. He is also a Goodwill Ambassador for the Urban Youth Racing School and furthers his youth advocacy
while holding the same honor with American Youth Football. A major component of the Randy Moss Motorsports program will
be the continued involvement and support of youth programs.
Moss is looking
forward to seeing his truck on the speedway in competition.
"It's
been a long time coming," he said. "It's something I've wanted to do for a long time. It's going to
be a lot of fun to see that truck out on the track and know I own it. We've made a pretty big commitment to be here, and
we have just as big a commitment to win races too. All of us at Randy Moss Motorsports are competitive people and winning
is our priority. It's not going to be easy but we're all going to work as hard as we can to make it happen."
SCR
1:27 pm | link
Crew Chief for No. 5 Nationwide Team Fined for Improper Language
Nationwide Series News
Chad Walter, crew chief for the No. 5 Chevrolet in the Nationwide Series was fined by NASCAR Wednesday
for improper language during the Nationwide Series race this past weekend at New Hampshire.
Walter was fined $10,000 and place don probation until December 31, 2008 due to language that was used during a televised
interview during the race. Walter originally was placed on probation in February, because of rule violations at the season-opening
event, at Daytona International Speedway.
In addition to Walter being fined
and placed on probation, team owner Rick Hendrick was penalized with the loss of 25 NASCAR Nationwide Series car owner points
while driver Landon Cassill was docked 25 NASCAR Nationwide Series driver points. SCR
Matthew Blaylock
8:00 am | link
David Ragan Names Shriners Childrens Hospital Charity of Choice
Sprint Cup News
ST. LOUIS, MO - Sprint
Cup Series driver, David Ragan named Shriners Hospitals for Children his official charity of choice at the 134th Imperial
Council Session of Shriners International in St. Louis on July 1. Ragan also plans to pursue membership with the Shriners
fraternity.
"Shriners Hospitals has provided medical care to more than
865,000 children since the first hospital opened in 1922," Ragan said. "I am happy and proud to be in a position
where I can make a real difference in the lives of these kids and educate others about this wonderful organization."
Shriners Hospitals for Children is a one-of-a-kind international health care
system of 22 hospitals dedicated to improving the lives of children by providing specialty pediatric care, innovative research
and outstanding teaching programs. Children up to the age of 18 with orthopaedic conditions, burns, spinal cord injuries and
cleft lip and palate are eligible for admission and receive all care in a family-centered environment - at no charge - regardless
of financial need.
"I look forward to a long and productive relationship
with Shriners International and the health care system they help support," Ragan said. "With the help of NASCAR
fans across the nation, I know we can increase donations to their worthwhile cause and ultimately help thousands more children
in the future."
Last year, as a rookie in the Sprint Cup Series, Ragan
finished fifth in the Daytona 500 and third at Richmond International Raceway in Richmond, Va. Now in his second full season
on the Cup circuit, the 22-year-old Georgia native is currently 17th in the Sprint Cup point standings and fifth in the Nationwide
Series point standings.
Ragan will keep his fans informed of his fundraising
activities and visits to Shriners Hospitals on his Web site, www.davidragan.com. For more information on Shriners Hospitals
for Children and their care specialties, visit www.shrinershq.org. SCR
7:46 am | link
July 2, 2008
The “Old School-RacersReunion.com Shootout” Comes to Music City Motorplex, Nashville, TN July 18, 2008
Old School Racing News
Mooresville, NC - Old school Racing (OSR) will bring retired NASCAR legends back to the track for
its inaugural event on July 18th. The "Old School-RacersReunion.com Shootout" will be held at the famed Music
City Motorplex (MCM) in Nashville, TN as apart of MCM's 50 Years of Asphalt Racing Celebration, July 18-20, 2008.
OSR, in conjunction with RacersReunion.com, will bring the July 18th event live to
the web with the veteran racing analyst Randy Pemberton in the broadcast booth with many special guest that will bring the
fans racing stories that may never be heard again. Fans not attending the event will be able to view it live in it's entirety
along with some special surprises at www.RacersReunion.com.
Some of the
greatest drivers of all time have been slated to compete in this long anticipated inaugural event. They include names such
as; Harry Gant, Sterling Marlin, Geoff Bodine, Dave Marcis, Jack Ingram, Larry Pollard, James Harvey Hylton, Charlie Glotzbach,
Joe Ruttman, Ronnie Thomas, Tommy Houston, and Randy Lajoie.
Drivers will
be available for autographs between qualifying and race time. Qualifying is scheduled to begin at 6:30 pm and the green flag
drops for the Shootout at 8:30 pm. One of the must see events during the live broadcast will be a round table discussion
with four of these racing legends. It will be hosted Randy Pemberton and is sure to bring out some great stories from these
"old school" drivers.
"It's great to finally give the
fans something they've wanted to see," said OSR Managing Partner Gene Weaver. "These guys are my hero's
and putting these legends back on the track is not just a thrill to the fans, but also to everyone involved in this series.
We're excited about this opportunity to bring this inaugural event to the fans along with RacersReunion.com and our sponsors."
"We're thrilled to be able to participate in this event with OSR,"
said Jeff Gilder, of the RacersReunion Network. "Our goal is to bring recognition to the roots of stock car racing and
to keep these legends of the sport in front of their fans. This is a perfect fit for us."
Tickets for the event start at just $15.00 and can be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.com. And the three hour-live
broadcast can be seen for FREE at www.RacersReunion.com.
Track Info: www.musiccitymotorplex.com
Ticket Info: http://www.ticketmaster.com/venue/221353/?search_redirect=music%20city%20motorplex
SCR
2:02 pm | link
Sauter Running Cup at Chicago and Indianapolis
Sprint Cup News
EM Motorsports
team owner John Carter has announced that Johnny Sauter will pilot the No. 08 getFUBAR.com Dodge at Chicago for the LifeLock
400 and Indianapolis for the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard.
Sauter has competed
at Chicago on seven occasions (two Cup and five Nationwide) and won the 2002 Tropicana Twister 200 Nationwide Series event
while driving for Richard Childress Racing. The Necedah, Wisconsin native competed for the first time at Indianapolis
in 2007, driving for Haas Racing in the Allstate 400. SCR
Matthew Blaylock
8:02 am | link
Chip Ganassi Racing Trims Team to Two Cars
Sprint Cup News 
Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates has announced that his Sprint
Cup team will now be a two car operation. Effective immediately Chip Ganassi Racing will cease operation of the
No. 40 team driven by Dario due to lack of sponsorship.
"This
is a difficult decision for Felix and I that did not come without its share of anguish,"
said Team Owner Chip Ganassi. "In this tough business environment continuing to run the car without proper funding has
become increasingly difficult."
Franchitti, a rookie in the Sprint
Cup Series in 2008 will remain with the team and possibly could run the balance of the 2008 Nationwide Series schedule. He
currently sits fifth in rookie points, with a best finish on the season being a 15th at Martinsville. SCR
Matthew Blaylock
Photo: James S. Langley
7:55 am | link
Rookie Phelps Fastest in Kentucky Testing
ARCA RE/MAX Series News
SPARTA KY - Suwanee, Georgia rookie Michael Phelps, in the no. 45 Bowen Family Homes-Cunningham
Motorsports Dodge, unofficially posted the quickest speed in ARCA RE/MAX Series open testing Tuesday at Kentucky Speedway.
The test, during which 20 drivers participated, was in preparation for the
upcoming Kentucky ARCA RE/MAX 150 Friday night, July 18th LIVE on SPEED at 8:00 PM ET.
Phelps unofficially circled the 1.5-mile superspeedway in 30.680 seconds, for an average speed of 176.010 mph.
Cunningham Motorsports recently announced an alliance with Penske Racing under
which Cunningham Motorsports would serve as Penske's official ARCA RE/MAX Series development team.
Matt Hawkins, who won at Iowa Speedway in his career-first series start back in April, was second
quickest overall at 175.382 mph. Hawkins also made contact with the turn two wall earlier in the day. The Canton, Georgia
driver was not injured.
Tayler Malsam, Phelps's teammate under the Cunningham
Motorsports banner, was third quickest overall at 175.041 mph. Malsam, currently eighth in national championship points headed
to Kentucky, hails from Seattle, Washington.
Alli Owens, driver of the ElectrifyingCareers.com
Chevrolet, was fourth quickest overall at 174.081 mph. Owens, one of four female drivers who tested Tuesday, is running a
partial schedule in 2008 for team owner Mario Gosselin.
Other female drivers
who competed in the open test included Chrissy Wallace, daughter of NASCAR/ARCA veteran Mike Wallace, and Angela and Amber
Cope, nieces of NASCAR veteran Derrick Cope.
Pelham, New Hampshire's
Sean Caisse, in Shigeaki Hattori's Aisin AW Toyota, was fifth quickest overall at 173.801 mph.
In addition to Hawkins, three other drivers made contact with the wall during the open test including
Brian Scott, Todd Hansen and Owens. There were no injuries.
The list of
former ARCA RE/MAX Series winners list at Kentucky is impressive to say the least. It includes four-time Kentucky winner Kimmel,
Stenhouse, Jr., Michael McDowell, Erik Darnell, Tim Steele, Ryan Newman, Chad Blount, Kyle Busch, Ryan Hemphill, Steve Wallace
and Brad Coleman.
ARCA RE/MAX Series Open Test
Kentucky Speedway, Sparta
KY, 7-1-08
Unofficial
Results
POS | NO | DRIVER/HOMETOWN | TEAM & CAR | TIME | SPEED | 1 | 45 | Michael Phelps/Suwanee GA | Dodge-Bowen Family Homes Dodge | 30.680 | 176.010 | 2 | 39 | Matt Hawkins/Canton GA | JaniKing-Racing
Radios Dodge | 30.790 | 175.382 | 3 | 4 | Tayler Malsam/Seattle WA | Dodge Driver Development Dodge | 30.850 | 175.041 | 4 | 12 | Alli Owens/Daytona Beach FL | ElectrifyingCareers.com Chevrolet | 31.020 | 174.081 | 5 | 01b | Sean Caisse/Pelham NH | Aisin
AW Toyota | 31.070 | 173.801 | 6 | 25 | Brian Scott/Mooresville NC | Venturini Motorsports Chevrolet | 31.090 | 173.661 | 7 | 01a | Chrissy Wallace/St. Louis MO | Aisin AW Toyota | 31.120 | 173.522 | 8 | 44 | Frank Kimmel/Clarksville IN | Ford Drive One-ECC Ford | 31.160 | 173.299 | 9 | 15 | Brian Scott/Mooresville NC | Venturini Motorsports Chevrolet | 31.210 | 173.021 | 10 | 1 | Tom Hessert III/Cherry Hill NJ | Maaco
Auto Painting Ford | 31.210 | 173.021 | 11 | 68 | Angela Cope/Puyallup WA | Dodge | 31.400 | 171.975 | 12 | 68 | Amber Cope/Puyallup WA | Dodge | 31.430 | 171.810 | 13 | 77 | Todd Hansen/Farmington MN | Mad Croc Energy Drink-JDRF Chevrolet | 31.610 | 170.832 | 14 | 74 | JR Heffner | Chevrolet | 31.870 | 168.428 | 15 | 32 | Matt Merrell | Win Tron Racing-Red Line Oil Dodge | 32.270 | 167.338 | 16 | 81 | Randy Baker | Chevrolet | 33.120 | 163.043 | 17 | 87 | Chris Cockrum/Conyers GA | Chevrolet | 33.210 | 162.602 | 18 | 33 | Curt Tori/Wilmington DE | Eastern
Industrial Services Chevrolet | 33.560 | 160.906 | 19 | 7 | Jimmy Nowell | Chevrolet | 33.620 | 160.619 | 20 | 81 | Sean Corr | Chevrolet | 33.830 | 159.622 |
SCR
Kerry Earnhardt to Drive for DEI at Daytona
Nationwide Series News
MOORESVILLE, N.C. - For the first time in his career, Kerry Earnhardt, the son of seven-time NASCAR
Champion Dale Earnhardt, will drive a Dale Earnhardt Inc. entry in a NASCAR race.
Earnhardt will pilot the No. 8 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet in the July 4 Daytona 250 NASCAR Nationwide Series race at
Daytona International Speedway.
"I've won several races with DEI
in an ARCA car, but I'm really looking forward to driving a fast car at Daytona under the DEI umbrella," Earnhardt
said. "I appreciate DEI giving me the opportunity to get back in a car; especially one that I know will be fast
and competitive. I love running the speedways (Daytona and Talladega ) and can't wait for the weekend to get here."
Earnhardt, who currently works at Dale Earnhardt Inc. as a team liaison, will
be making his 70th career start in the series, but only his fifth Nationwide start since 2003. He most recently competed regularly
in the Craftsman Truck Series in 2006.
It will be Earnhardt's ninth
career Nationwide Series start at Daytona International Speedway. SCR
7:38 am | link
July 1, 2008
Almirola to Pilot No. 8 Car Full Time in 2009
Sprint Cup News
MOORESVILLE,
N.C. - After spending two seasons sharing a car with veteran Mark Martin , 24-year-old Aric Almirola will take over the No.
8 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Chevrolet full time in 2009.
"This is an
incredibly exciting opportunity," said Almirola. "When you get into racing, you always dream of competing at the
highest level and I've had the chance to do that on a limited basis for the past two seasons. Now I will have the
opportunity to race the car full time and I could not be more excited about driving the No. 8 car each week for Dale Earnhardt
Inc.
"This is a really great race team to work with. (Crew Chief) Tony
Gibson and these guys have put me in really good race cars this season and they've never treated me like a rookie.
They are committed to being competitive every week and I'm really looking forward to working with them on a weekly basis
next season."
Almirola, from Tampa, Fla., began sharing the Sprint
Cup ride with Martin during the second half of the 2007 season and has continued in that role in 2008. During his 11
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts, the rookie driver has shown vast improvement, posting a top-10 finish in his debut this season
at Bristol and qualifying third a week later at Martinsville.
"There
is no doubt Aric is ready to go full time," said Martin, who helped bring Almirola to Dale Earnhardt Inc. after its merger
last summer with Ginn Racing. "Aric is an incredible talent and a true student of the sport. Having him run a full-time
program in the No. 8 was always part of the plan, but his development has allowed us to accelerate things. There is
a lot of sponsorship excitement surrounding Aric and he is a sought-after guy. Driving that 8 car has been a tremendous
honor for me given the respect I have for Dale Earnhardt and DEI, but it is also a great honor to be able to turn over the
driving duties of that car to a young man that is destined for great things. Tony Gibson 's team is one of the best teams
in the sport, and Aric should have immediate success once he is in the car each week."
Martin, who has driven the No. 8 in 12 events this season, will compete in 12 more races this year before moving
to another team for the 2009 campaign. Almirola will compete in the balance of the season's seven races. In
addition to his time in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Almirola has made 27 starts in the Nationwide Series, earning four poles
and one win at Milwaukee in 2007.
"With Aric running a full-time schedule
in 2009 we will have a group of immensely talented drivers with long careers in front of them and we like our position for
the future and know that Aric will get the job done," said John Story, vice president of motorsports operations for Dale
Earnhardt, Inc. "We appreciate everything Mark continues to do for the company. Since we first discussed
with Mark our plans for Aric he was 100 percent supportive and has done everything within his power to make it work and allow
us to build a program around Aric. Mark has said many times he will help DEI in any manner necessary, and his commitment
to the team and to Aric in this regard is beyond compare."
Dale Earnhardt
Inc., based in Mooresville, N.C. , employs over 350 people on its two state-of-the-art campuses. Dale Earnhardt Inc. is comprised
of four Sprint Cup teams, featuring drivers Paul Menard, Martin Truex Jr., Regan Smith, Mark Martin and Aric Almirola . The
organization has amassed more than 100 wins, and has won six NASCAR Championships, as well as three Daytona 500s. In addition,
Earnhardt-Childress Racing Technologies, a joint engine venture between Dale Earnhardt Inc. and Richard Childress Racing,
has 147 employees. SCR
7:13 pm | link
HMS to Make Announcement Friday on No. 5 Ride
Sprint Cup News
Hendrick
Motorsports (HMS) team owner Rick Hendrick will make an announcement Friday at the Daytona Int. Speedway about the future
of the No. 5 team. Look for Hendrick to announce that Mark Martin will run a full schedule in the car in 2009 as Martin tries
one last time for a series championship. SCR
Matthew
Blaylock
7:09 pm | link
|
2006 StockCar Review.
