NASCAR news

[Garrett Duke]

According to this article Red Bull are rumored to be pulling out of NASCAR at the end of the season. They currently own/run the cars driven by Kasey Kahne (#4) and Brian Vickers (#83). Lack of success and reduced viewing figures in their target demographic have been suggested as possible reason for the exit.

Red Bull also has two F1 teams: Red Bull Racing (RBR) and Scuderia Toro Rosso (STR). By contrast to their results in NASCAR, RBR has the reigning World Champion, Sebastian Vettel, driving for them and are currently leading both the drivers' and constructors' championships. STR is less well funded, and is used to find young drivers to move up to the RBR team.

I have yet to see this, but have yet to check up on my NASCAR sites...but if this is true, it would only have effect on Brian Vickers since Kasey Kahne will be going to Hendrick Motor Sports next year. He is only at RBR for this year until Mark Martin's contract at HMS comes to an end. Feel bad for Vickers though...he's had his share of bad luck this past couple of years. Hopefully he'll find another team that will pick him up. Which he should...he's a talented driver.

[RogerDuke]

Poor Garrett.

NASCAR has this weekend off. It looks like Garrett will have a little time to catch up on some of the NASCAR themed Dukes episodes.

[Garrett Duke]

Poor Garrett.

NASCAR has this weekend off. It looks like Garrett will have a little time to catch up on some of the NASCAR themed Dukes episodes.

You just had to go and remind me, now didn't you, Roger? I'm already going through NASCAR withdrawl .:(

[Garrett Duke]

You just had to go and remind me, now didn't you, Roger? I'm already going through NASCAR withdrawl .:(

Though I am frustrated with the weekend off since I have a free day on Sunday with no race to watch...I am sure the drivers are in need of a break. This will be their last off weekend of the season (luckily for me!) and while I am sure some are vacationing or doing other racing in other series or perhaps just hanging out at home. But not Jeff Gordon. He left after the race on Sunday or perhaps Monday to go to Congo, Africa or somewhere around there that sounds like one of the most dangerous places due to war and violence. He has went in hopes of finding or bringing medical help there or something like that. He is coming home on Thursday...today. (I could send you a link if you want more info from the article I read about it if y'all wish.)

Perhaps I am biased, but it his charity work he does for children and other such charities that make me proud to be a Jeff Gordon fan. Not only is he a great driver, but also a great person. WAY TO GO JEFF GORDON! It is impressive to see him give his money away to such charities, but even more so to give up his week off, his time, to go down to Congo and to see first hand what is going on and in attempt to make life better for those in such dire need.

Perhaps he will back up his charity work in Congo with a win at Indy next weekend... I can always hope, right? Anyway, to hear what Gordon is doing, makes the weekend off of Sprint Cup racing worth it.

Am very proud of Jeff Gordon and to be called a BIG Jeff Gordon fan!

[Garrett Duke]

Just got word on my Facebook account that Indy Car lost a driver today...Dan Wheldon. It says they were racing at Las Vegas and Wheldon was in a 13 car accident on turn two. May Wheldon rest in peace. My thoughts and prayers are going out for him, his famiy, and friends as they face this terrible loss.

[HossC]

Thanks for passing on the news Garrett. I've been watching various other motorsport this weekend, and didn't get a chance to see the race. It looks like a horrendous accident, and it's lucky more weren't badly hurt. Here is USA Today's article on the accident. Motorsport, and open-wheeled racing in particluar, has become so safe these days that this kind of news comes as such a great shock.

Let's remember Dan's 2nd time of winning the Indy 500 earlier this year:

RIP. Daniel Clive "Dan" Wheldon (22 June 1978 – 16 October 2011)

[Garrett Duke]

Thanks for the article, Hoss. You are welcome...wish I was spreading more better news that this. Was very disappointed by last night's race, but now it shows that it could always be worse than what it was. Very sad for Dan and his family that are now having to face this tragedy. So very sad.

Just got done reading the article and saw the video of the wreck. So how very scary that had to have been for ALL the drivers. It was scary just watching the video. . .

I am sure Dan would like to be remembered by his wins and accomplishments. Looks to have been a talented driver...

RIP DAN WHELDON

Edited October 16, 2011 by Garrett Duke

[TRPColtrane95]

yeah I read that on my comcast.net news and I think Indy Car more dangerous than Stock Car had.. to be because not have cover on top. They need more safety issue on indy cars when they did on stock car in nascar.. so well sad for him to. oh well.

[HossC]

To give y'all an idea of how much things have changed in the world of motorsport safety over the last 50 years I thought I'd post this video. It's a BBC documentary about how the drivers of the '60s and '70s brought about many of the safety precautions and procedures we see today across a variety of motor racing. It starts with three-time F1 World Champion Jackie Stewart explaining that when he started racing there was a 2 out of 3 chance he'd die. He became one of the leading advocates of race safety. It's because of people like him that the tragic events at Las Vegas yesterday are almost unheard of these days.

Grand Prix - The Killer Years

Warning: contains real accident footage.

[TRPColtrane95]

yeah I have other news here from my comcast news check out:

http://xfinity.comcast.net/articles/sports-motorsports/20111017/IndyCar-Wheldon-Jimmie.Johnson/

ONCORD, N.C. (AP) — Five-time defending NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson called on IndyCar to stop racing on ovals in the wake of Indianapolis 500 winner Dan Wheldon's death.

Wheldon was killed in a 15-car accident in Sunday's season finale IndyCar race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, a high banked, 1.5-mile oval.

``I wouldn't run them on ovals. There's just no need to,'' Johnson said Monday during a test session at Charlotte Motor Speedway. ``Those cars are fantastic for street circuits, for road courses. I hate, hate, hate that this tragedy took place. But hopefully they can learn from it and make those cars safer on ovals somehow.

``I don't know how they can really do it. Myself, I have a lot of friends that race in that series, and I'd just rather see them on street circuits and road courses. No more ovals.''

Johnson was in his own frightening accident Saturday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway, where his car hit headfirst into the wall. The back wheels briefly lifted off the track, but Johnson walked away and suffered only next-day soreness.

He's always wanted to race in the Indianapolis 500, but when his daughter was born last year, Johnson said he promised his wife he would not drive an IndyCar. The combination of the speeds and the car design - an IndyCar has an open cockpit and open wheels that can't withstand the bumping that occurs on ovals - has made him gun shy about racing cars that don't have a roof.

``Their average was 225? I've never been 225 mph in my life - and that's their average around an oval. They are brave men and women that drive those things,'' Johnson said. ``There's very little crumple zone around the driver, it's an open cockpit and then you add open wheels - it's just creating situations to get the car off the ground at a high rate of speed. And you can't control the car when it's off the ground.''

Johnson watched Sunday's race at home and said he was glued to his television, mouth wide open as he watched the replays of Wheldon's accident.

``Knowing Dan and his wife and two kids, and then I'm sitting there with my daughter running around in the backyard, I was torn up yesterday,'' Johnson said. ``I mean, I know Dan, or knew Dan. We just stared at the TV for a long time yesterday with long faces. Just really sad.''

wow that sad news...

[TRPColtrane95]

bad news about that best drivers check out:

http://xfinity.comcast.net/articles/sports-motorsports/20111101/Rick.Hendrick-Plane.Crash/

KEY WEST, Fla. (AP) — A small jet carrying the owner of NASCAR's top team and his wife has crash landed in Key West.

Officials say the Gulfstream 150 aircraft carrying Rick and Linda Hendrick ran off the runway Monday at 7:45 p.m. The Hendricks, a pilot and co-pilot were taken to Lower Keys Medical Center. Two have minor injuries, though it was not clear who.

The other two were taken to the hospital for precautionary reasons.

Authorities say the plane is registered to Jimmie Johnson Racing II Incorporated in Charlotte, N.C. Johnson is the five-time defending NASCAR champion, and drives for Hendrick Motorsports.

Rick Hendrick is the owner of the race team.

http://www.nascar.com/news/111101/rhendrick-plane-crash-key-west/index.html

nascar.com:

Championship NASCAR team owner Rick Hendrick and his wife are recovering at home in Charlotte after each suffered minor injuries Monday night when the small jet carrying them to Key West, Fla., lost its brakes and crash landed at the island's airport.

“

It really shakes you down to the core. I'm just so thankful that Rick and Linda and the pilots are home in Charlotte ... But it certainly gets your attention.

â€

-- JIMMIE JOHNSON

Officials on the scene told the Associated Press that the Gulfstream 150 ran off the runway at Key West International Airport Monday at 7:45 p.m., and that Rick and Linda Hendrick, as well as a pilot and co-pilot, were taken to Lower Keys Medical Center. Hendrick suffered a broken rib and clavicle, and Linda was treated for minor cuts and bruises, according to Hendrick Motorsports. The pilots were evaluated and released without injury, and all four have returned to North Carolina.

The plane was registered to five-time Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson, one of four Hendrick Motorsports drivers. Johnson said Tuesday that the aircraft operates out of Hendrick as part of a joint operating agreement. The plane, which remains in Key West, is capable of seating up to eight or nine people.

"It really shakes you down to the core," Johnson said. "I'm just so thankful that Rick and Linda and the pilots are home in Charlotte, and not badly injured, and everybody's going to be OK. But it certainly gets your attention."

The crash comes seven years and two weeks after a Hendrick plane carrying 10 people veered off course in foggy conditions and crashed en route to a race in Martinsville, Va. Hendrick's son Ricky, his brother and team president John, two of Hendrick's nieces and chief engine builder Randy Dorton were among those lost in the 2004 accident.

Monday, the Gulfstream's pilot and co-pilot radioed that the aircraft had no brakes upon landing in Key West, the Monroe County Sheriff's Department told the AP. The plane ran off the runway, and then 100 feet beyond into a 600-foot safety area that was completed in May, county airport director Peter Horton told the AP.

"If we hadn't done that, it likely would have been a different story," Horton said.

Johnson was relieved. "I'm so thankful it turned out the way it did," he said. "It certainly was a scary event, I can only imagine. But everything did its job, and as time goes on we'll learn a lot more about the details and what happened down there."

Johnson said he spoke briefly with Hendrick on Tuesday morning.

A plane carrying Rick Hendrick and his wife Linda crashed Monday.

"It's been a long night for him. He's trying to get some rest," Johnson said. "We just touched base, and I know he's OK. It's just nice to hear his voice and to hear him say he's fine and OK, and Linda is as well along with the pilots. That's really just the short, brief thing along those lines, and that was it."

The National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the accident. Tuesday, Johnson was still unsure of many details.

"There are a lot of really good, smart people working on getting answers to these questions so we can all understand what exactly took place," he said. "As we all understand, there was a brake issue with the plane landing, all four on board are OK and home back in Charlotte. I'm thankful everything turned out well with the crash, and there weren't any major injuries down there. Certainly a crazy evening for everybody involved, and I'm just thankful everybody is OK."

seem they okay right now. hope come back on racing this sunday.

[Garrett Duke]

Thank-you TRP Coltrane on the scary news...am so relieved to hear Mr H and his wife are Ok after the scary accident. Hendrick and his wife know very well just how horrorifying plane accidents can be after several family members were killed in one years ago.

[Garrett Duke]

Well don't know how much this is NASCAR related anymore, but it is a former NASCAR driver. Don't know if anyone other than me remembers who Jeremy Mayfield is...

In 2009 Jeremy Mayfield failed a drug test...that may have been the first year they started the drug tests...but don't quote me on that. Anyway he claimed it was due to the allergy medicine he was taking and even went onto fail another drug test later on it seems. (Sounds safe...driving 200 mph on durgs. I say that SARCASTICALLY! He could have seriously hurt or wose himself or any other 42 drivers on the track...how dumb can one be?!) There was awhole bunch of charges going back and forth from Mayfield and NASCAR with all of this...(if you all want, I could look them up. I don't want to state what they were from memory in fear of getting some of it wrong...)

Anyway...he was suspended from NASCAR for all this.

Well now he has been arrested when law authorities found 1.5 grams of meth when they were searching his house...where they also found a hundred thousand dollars in stolen goods. (And just read on Yahoo!"s NASCAR page...that they found 50 firearms!)

He is now out on bail...

[HossC]

What a nice guy this Jeremy Mayfield sounds. I'd never heard of him, so I did a quick search.

When he was trying to clear his name with NASCAR in 2010 his own (estranged) step-mother sent in an affidavit saying they'd taken meth together on the way to a race at Darlington in 1998. She also alleged that Jeremy supplied meth to his late father. The stolen goods found during the search that Garrett mentions allegedly include property belonging to Red Bull Racing and the state of North Carolina. It's not been a good year for Jeremy - earlier this year one of his dogs attacked a postal worker and the courts are currently deciding how much he owes her.

I've never heard of anyone failing a drugs test in F1 - in fact I didn't even know if they tested until I looked it up. Generally the F1 drivers are very fit as every pound (or even ounce) counts - Jenson Button, for example, does triathlons between races. I'm sure I remember reading that the NASCAR driver that MaryAnne won't let me name had to slim down before his F1 car swap earlier this year .

[TRPColtrane95]

ouch that not good for him as well.. check out his wiki about him:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeremy_Mayfield

that guy I not remember when i watching since 1990 as well how I forget that guy. He more like Nationwide series and truck series to be.

oh well.

[Garrett Duke]

Yeah...he's in a lot of trouble now. He thought he was in trouble with NASCAR, now he's dealing with the police. One would think he would have learned when he got kicked out of NASCAR to straighten out. I find it hard to believe someone would work so hard to accomplish their dream and only to ruin it by drugs and other such choices. So not worth it. . .

Never heard about his dog biting that mail person...he just has a whole bunch of problems.

Problems he created for the most part...except for the dog maybe.

Thanks Hoss for the other allegations included. There was a whole bunch of allegations going from him and his step mom and NASCAR. Was not pretty, but do not feel one bit sorry for Mayfield. He did it to himself. Sadly. I had liked him as a driver until all this started to unfold...wasn't one of my favorites, but was a driver I wished well for.

Though have more NASCAR news...David Reutimann who drives for Michael Waltrip has been released from Waltrip racing...looks like Mark Martin may have found a racing home for next season racing part time for Michael Waltrip.

[TRPColtrane95]

yeah I think Mark Martin going to which team since Kasey Kahne change new number team for next year and I see that check out:

http://www.nascar.com/news/111103/dreutimann-out-mwr/index.html

oh well I not know when he would do retired or still driving on other team oh well.. I never knew which Mark will in.

So for Mayfield I think might lot problem from his personal things or family not sure know and wonder why he had lot guns is for his protect or what.. no idea why he doing something wrong with him than Nascar driver huh? I think number 1 problem behind his family and things than Nascar's had to be unlike other drivers sometime had problem from DUI or etc outside from Nascar like that by family or friends or etc.

[Garrett Duke]

Well last night in the NASCAR Sprint Cup race review I wrote how Kyle Busch had gotten in an accident with Ron Hornaday when Hornday went up the track and got into Busch. Well under caution, for that accident, Kyle Busch had purposefully ran into Hornaday and spinning him hard into the wall. NASCAR then parked Kyle for the rest of the race...well all that happened on lap 14. Ron Hornaday was third in points and now sits fourth after last nights wreck...he was only 15 points behind the leader and now is 48 points behind the leader with only ONE race remaining of the season. In other words, Kyle Busch killed his championship hopes last night.

I understand Kyle being upset over being wrecked (according to him, this is the fourth race in a row he's been wrecked) but the accident wasn't all that bad of one and as the announcers had said, they could have fixed the trucks up and went on to race for the win. But Kyle made sure that was not an option when he retaliated as he did. All Kyle had to lose out on was a win, where as Ron is now out of the championship hunt all because Kyle had to retaliate. I'd kinda understand it a little bit more if they had fourteen laps to go or five laps to go, but fourteen laps into the race is redicoulous if you ask me. They had a lot of time to fix their trucks up at that point. . .

Anyway, NASCAR not only had parked Kyle for the rest of that race...but they have now parked him for tonight's Nationwide Series race and tomorrow's Sprint Cup race at Texas. This is the first time that NASCAR has parked a driver in another series race since '07 when they parked ROBBIE Gordon (NOT Jeff Gordon) at Pocono for what he had done in the Nationwide Series Montreal race.

Denny Hamlin will be racing for Kyle tonight in the Nationwide Series race and Michael McDowell will be racing the 18 car in the SPrint Cup race tomorrow. Which means Kyle will not get the point for the championship (though think he is pretty much out of the championship hunt in the Sprint Cup) on Sunday's race. The points will probably go to McDowell and be going towards Joe Gibbs car owner points.

A couple of years ago NASCAR had let go of the reins a bit with their "Boys have at it" sort of racing. As was stated in the article I read, Mike Helton, NASCAR president, had said all along that there would be a line somewhere that NASCAR would have to step in if drivers had taken it too far. Helton said that Kyle had crossed that line last night when he retaliated on Hornaday and killed his championship hopes as he did.

Well I don't know anyone here feels about Kyle Busch or about this situation, but I feel NASCAR did what they had to have done. Over the years Kyle Busch has matured a lot and had said so last night before seeing this. Obviously he still needs to grow up some or learn from his mistakes or something. I am glad to see NASCAR finally stepping in and handing him penalties so that he can deal with the consequences of his actions as Hornaday has been forced to do. But all that is of my opinion...what's your's?

[Brian Coltrane]

Here's a video of the incident and Kyle Busch's hollow apology...

http://msn.foxsports.com/nascar/story/kyle-busch-issues-apology-ron-hornaday-jr-intentional-wreck-camping-world-truck-series-race-after-nascar-parks-him-110511/

I think NASCAR should ban Kyle from the track. For good.

Had someone pulled this stunt on the freeway, they'd be in jail.

[Garrett Duke]

Well I am sitting here watcing the Prerace show and they are talking about Kyle Busch and all that is going on. Sounds like he will have to go back in tomorrow (on Monday) to talk to NASCAR president Mike Helton and there MAY be farther penalities coming. Helton wouldn't say on the air or at least said they have yet to make a decision about that as of yet. Also Mars inc...M&Ms which is Kyle Busch's main sponsor and they say they are very displeased with Kyle Busch's actions. One of the announcers said that if Mars INC pulls out as Kyle's sponsor (M&M's...Snickers...) that that would affect 400 people at Gibbs racing. This may be a a bigger story than just Kyle being parked for today's race...

Talking of which Michael McDowell will race for him while Kyle Busch will be sitting on his crew box to watch the race and be with his crew. He was parked but not suspended from the track.

[TRPColtrane95]

yeah I hear about that for Kyle's and He need calm down control to be.. And see happen for him for next year to be since 2 more left for this month.

[Garrett Duke]

Well NASCAR has stepped in again on the Kyle Busch issue...they fined him fifty thousand dollars and put him on probation through Dec. 31, 2011. (He was put on probation through the end of the year last year after the fall Texas race after he flipped off the official who was holding him back for a lap penalty for speeding...must be something about Texas ) Kyle had dropped four positions by being out of Sunday's Sprint Cup race...am sure that is what will make the most effect on Kyle.

[Brian Coltrane]

That's a slap on the wrist. It's enough to tick him off, but I doubt it will change his temper or his recklessness. I wouldn't let Kyle Busch mow my lawn, let alone drive a car.

[Garrett Duke]

The fine and the probation will mean little to him...being parked is what will have the most affect on Kyle, I think.

[HossC]

The fine and the probation will mean little to him ...

I'd miss $50k, but from what I can find of Kyle's earnings for last year it works out at about 2 days' income!. This isn't a regular infringement like speeding in the pit lane, so I don't see why NASCAR can't impose draconian measures to combat this type of behavior. I'd suggest a fine equal to 10% of earnings from the last 12 months. Maybe Kyle wouldn't be so hot-headed if it cost him $870k.