The Nationwide Series boys will be out on the track again this week

In other news, Braun racing has decided to expand their line up of Nationwide Series cars to four for the 2010 NASCAR Nationwide Series season and put team member Brian Scott behind the wheel of their fourth Toyota. Braun is looking forward to 2010 with their leader and founder Todd Braun confident and happy as he prepares to take Braun into another Nationwide Series season. Braun has been making steady progress in the Nationwide Series since they first entered the series in 2003, before racing full time in the Nationwide Series in 2004 and capturing their first win in the series with Jamie McMurray behind the wheel at North Carolina Speedway. In 2005 Braun decided to drop their Arca team and concentrate on NASCAR’s Nationwide Series for 2005. This team has come along way in a few years and they appear to have a bright future and understanding of what it takes to win in NASCAR’s Nationwide Series.

This week NASCAR also announced two fines and penalties for Nationwide Series teams during the Nationwide Series race at Texas Motor Speedway on the weekend. The crew chief of Kyle’s Busch’s No. 18 Toyota was fined $5,000 for violation of NASCAR Nationwide Series Sections 12-1, 20A-2.3A and 12-4-I. Kyle Busch and owner Joe Gibbs were also docked 25 points respectively from their Nationwide Series driver and team point totals. Brad Parrott, the crew chief of the No. 9 Ford with John Wes Townley behind the wheel was fined $5,000 and placed on probation for violation of Section 12-1, 9-4-A, and 12-4-I.

The Nationwide Series will have Reed Sorenson on the track for Saturday’s Able Body Labor 200 on the track of Phoenix International Speedway. Reed will be a dark horse for the race certainly, but he has finished in the top ten three times in his four starts at Phoenix. If he’s able to get a good start and get out front of the main pack along with the leaders, he has as good a chance as any of winning.

“Image: Zuma Press”

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Nationwide Series Changes

Kelly Bires is getting ready to set the Nationwide Series on fire in 2010

He took his turn behind the wheel of what are called start-and-park rides, filling the seat behind the wheel for Nationwide Series teams like Kevin Harvick Inc., JTG Daugherty, and Braun racing during the 2008 and 2009 Nationwide Series campaign. Finishing in the top ten six times in 2008 racing in this manner, he persevered through this time and competed in cars that weren’t going to take him to his dream.

Staying visible and racing fast during this time has finally paid off with a chance for Kelly to drive steady for one team as he recently signed a two-year deal to slip behind the wheel of a JR Motorsports sponsored Nationwide Series race car. Kelly will take the place of Brad Keselowski behind the wheel as Brad makes the move to NASCAR’s premier class, the Sprint Cup Series, to race for Penske Racing during the 2010 season.

Kelly should be breathing a little easier now as he has a signed deal and can concentrate on racing instead of looking for a steady ride. Finding a ride to keep him on the track on a race-to-race basis is a big step to giving him the room and air he needs to do even better in 2010 and he had a pretty good year considering the circumstances he was racing under.

Kelly was able to find a ride for 12 races during the 2009 Nationwide Series, with five separate teams, and despite this finished in the top five twice and was in position for a possible win in three of his races. A pretty good showing for a racer who was probably thinking more about finding a steady ride most of the time, rather than how to win. He can now concentrate on winning his first Nationwide Series in 2010 and taking his dream up the next step on the ladder to NASCAR success.

“Image: Zuma Press”

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Kelly Bires Grabs Hold of Opportunity

Jacques Villeneuve is preparing to return to Montreal in August to race

Villeneuve is already a growing legend on the road-courses around the racing world and has a tremendous amount of experience on this particular 2.709 mile road circuit. In the past two decades Villeneuve has had a career that can be rivaled by very few in the history of road races. The story begins with his capture of world championships in both the CART and Formula One series and his win in what many consider the most prestigious race in racing history, the Indianapolis 500. Only two other racers in racing history have accomplished these three feats together in their careers, which is an amazing feat for any racer.

Braun racing might be the favorite to win next August on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, now that they have both the skilled and talented racer Jason Leffler and Jacques Villeneuve driving their cars. Montreal Formula One fans will certainly remember the excellent run Villeneuve had last year and will be looking forward to some exciting racing with his return. The feeling is Villeneuve has an excellent chance of having a good showing at this track and maybe even grabbing the victory if everything falls into place for him. The fun begins at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on August 29^th with Nationwide Series practice sessions and qualifying runs, and will culminate in a 74 lap race on August 30^th.

“Image: Zuma Press”

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Jacques Villeneuve Returns to Montreal

Image details: RVs.com 200 served by picapp.com

Tony Stewart has given the media something else to talk about for a day, as he conquered Camping World RV Sales 200 on Saturday, to become the Nationwide Series’ 22nd winner at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in just as many races. With Joey Logano sitting out of the no. 20 Joe Gibbs Toyota for the next few weeks, Stewart answered the call this weekend and led his JGR teammates to the finish line.

After leading the most laps on the afternoon, Stewart took the white flag as he tried to hold off teammates, Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch. (Hamlin was actually racing the no. 32 car for Braun Racing, which included an all-black paint scheme in mourning of the loss of Todd Braun’s mother, Linda Braun). Shortly after taking the white flag on the final lap of the race, Greg Biffle crashed while racing Brad Keselowski for position, ending the race and giving Stewart his fifth Nationwide victory of the season.

Hamlin, who had pulled to within a half a second of the leader, wound up finishing in 2nd, with Kyle Busch in third. Kevin Harvick ended a solid day in 4th with his self-owned Kevin Harvick Inc. no. 33 Chevy. And, Carl Edwards finished 5th, after using some pit strategy with a no-tire stop during the final caution to gain track position with a little more than 30 laps remaining. David Ragan, David Reutimann, Mike Bliss, Clint Bowyer, and Brad Keselowski completed the top-ten.

David Reutimann and Carl Edwards each leap-frogged Brad Keselowski for position to take over 2nd and 3rd in the points standings. Clint Bowyer still holds a 182 point lead in first, though. Check here for the Camping World RV Sales 200 complete results.

Nationwide Series Standings (from nascar.com):

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Tony Stewart Becomes 22nd Different Winner at New Hampshire

Image details: Heluva Good! 200 served by picapp.com

Saturday’s running of the Heluva Good! 200 at Dover International Speedway in the Nationwide Series ended with Denny Hamlin pulling his no. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry into Victory Lane, giving Gibbs their season leading 9th victory on the year. After sitting through a 3 hour rain delay due to storms along the east coast, Hamlin, who started the race on the outside of the front row next to polesitter, Carl Edwards, was the dominant car for most of the day, leading the most laps in the race and ultimately beating Edwards to the finish line with a 1.154 second lead. Edwards went onto finish second.

“It was alright,” Edwards said. “Second’s no fun, it’s not what we come here for, but my hat’s off to Denny. He did a great job. I just wish I could have got up to him.”

David Stremme used some late race pit strategy with a two-tire stop for some much needed track position, and he wound up third. Fourth place went to David Reutimann, and Greg Biffle wound up fifth after passing rookie, Joey Logano, in the closing laps of the race to take that position.

Logano – who started the race in 9th – ran solidly all day long in his Nationwide Series debut, but found himself in trouble early on. He made contact with the no. 9 Dodge of Kasey Kahne during a round of pit stops and was forced to return to the pits for a second time under caution, and he restarted back in the 28th position on lap 26. By the time that the next caution flag waived in the air just twenty laps later, Logano had worked his way up eleven spots to 17th, and he gradually worked his way through the field for the remainder of the race before finishing 6th.

Following the race, Logano stated, “We were a sixth place car and finished sixth. Overall it was a good day. I was hoping for that top-five, but I screwed up in the pits and put myself in a position that I didn’t need to. We’ll see what happens next.”

Clint Bowyer entered the race with the points lead, and a solid 9th place effort was good enough to keep him at the top of the standings, though Kyle Busch – second in points – gave him a little extra insurance earlier on. Busch, who had been running near the front for the entire race, was running ahead of Braun Racing teammate, Jason Leffler, when Leffler’s no. 38 Toyota got loose and hit Busch from behind. Both cars then collided with the outside retaining wall, ending both of their days permanently.

Busch, who finished in 28th and now trails Bowyer by 122 points, said, “I just have a teammate that can’t stand to be number two. I don’t know what Leffler was thinking there.”

Following the accident, Leffler apologized to both Kyle Busch and car owner, Todd Braun.

Nationwide Series Standings:

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Logano Finishes 6th in NASCAR Debut

Image details: CARQUEST Auto Parts 300 served by picapp.com

Kyle Busch has visited the Nationwide Series Winner’s Circle three times this season from behind the wheel of a Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, but Saturday night, he won the Carquest Auto Parts 300 by driving his no. 32 Braun Racing ride to the front of the field, and stretching out a tank of fuel over the course of the final 68 laps.

Busch had to hold off his JGR teammate, Denny Hamlin, to secure the win on a green-white-checkered finish that ended under caution when Mike Wallace slammed the wall. Hamlin finished ahead of the no. 88 JR Motorsports car driven by Brad Keselowski, whom Hamlin had an earlier on-track altercation with just moments before. Keselowski had gotten into the back of Hamlin earlier on, and as the field drove under caution, Denny decided to take a swipe at him in retaliation to what he described as ‘poor racing eitquette’. Immediately following the race, as Busch was taunting the crowd with his post-race victory bows en route to grabbing the checkered flag, both drivers’ pit crews got into a shoving match that was eventually separated by NASCAR and track officials.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Brian Vickers finished fourth and fifth to round out the top-five, followed by points leader, Clint Bowyer, Greg Biffle, Jeff Burton, David Ragan, and Jimmie Johnson in sixth through tenth. Carl Edwards ended the evening with a decent 13th place finish, and Kasey Kahne ran in a disappointing 16th after getting caught up in a late-race tussle.

The win gives Kyle Busch his fourth Nationwide victory of the season, and his first for Braun Racing. He also has three Sprint Cup Series victories on the season, as well as two wins in the Craftsman Truck Series while driving for Billy Ballew Motorsports. The race ended a six-race winning streak for Joe Gibs Racing in the series, but does give Toyota their seventh consecutive win.

Nationwide Series Standings (from nascar.com):

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Busch Puts Third Different Team Owner in Victory Lane This Season

Officials at Penske Racing did not reveal any plans to appeal the penalty, but did appear that they’re ready to move on from the incident. Penske Racing VP, Mike Nelson, stated, “It is always our intention to follow NASCAR’s rules, and we regret this mistake. We look forward to getting back to the track this weekend, and we are focused on having a strong run at Phoenix.”

Newman had moved into 8th place in the points standings after Sunday’s race, but now drops to 10th. He is 189 points behind points leader Jeff Burton, and only 56 points ahead of 13th place Matt Kenseth.

In other news:
- After racing for the team for less than a year, Jeremy Mayfield has parted ways with Haas-CNC Racing. After finishing 5 of the 7 races this year in 30th or worse and dropping down to 36th in points, Mayfield decided it was time to move on in search of a more promising opportunity. The empty seat in the no. 70 ride is now being returned to the same driver that occupied it last season, Johnny Sauter. Last season Sauter had an average finish of 26th and finished 30th overall in the drivers points standings. This weekend at Phoenix will be his first time driving a Cup car in 2008, but will now be forced to qualify on speed due to the team’s position in the standings.

- After a rigorous week in the news last week, Kyle Petty will reassume the driving duties behind the wheel of the no. 45 Dodge this weekend for Petty Enterprises. After a lot of talk about what they needed to do to improve the race team, they decided to give Kyle the week off at Texas and replace him with Chad McCumbee, who failed to qualify for the race. This week they’re trying something new, and have hired Stewart Cooper as the team’s new Crew Chief. Cooper has no experience as a Crew Chief in the Cup Series, but did work a stint in the Nationwide Series with Braun Racing. He replaces Billy Wilburn, who has been reassigned as the Crew Chief for one of Petty’s test teams.

- Bill Davis Racing has named Marty Gaunt as the team’s new Vice President. Gaunt has held similar roles with Penske Racing and Team Red Bull. They’ve reassigned the former VP,  Mark Chambers, to be the new General Manager, and they’ve also hired Jim Thomas to be the team’s director of marketing. Thomas was previously the director of business development for Sullivan Worldwide Marketing Group. The team currently fields only one Sprint Cup Series team (Dave Blaney) and 4 Craftstman Truck Series teams, though they still aim to lock on long-term sponsorship for Jacques Villeneuve to drive a second Cup car for them in the Cup.

Post from: EveryJoe

Newman Penalized, Many Team Changes

1/26 – Dover International Speedway – known to racers as “the Monster Mile” – now has a 46’ tall statue known as “Miles” that will stand in the track’s newly created Victory Plaza.  The monument will be the largest attraction at any NASCAR track.  Read More.

1/26 – As Greg Biffle enters the final year of his contract at Roush Fenway Racing, he’s made it a point to state that while he’s listening to all options, staying with Roush is his first choice.  Biffle also talks about how the promotion of Robby Reiser is a huge plus for the organization.  Read More.

1/26 – Kenny Wallace has finally landed a ride in the Nationwide Series with Fitz Motorsports. The car number and sponsor have yet to be announced.  Read More.

1/26 – Team owner Chip Ganassi set a new record by winning three straight Rolex 24 events, this year with the team of Montoya, Franchitti, Rojas, and Pruett.  Read More.

1/28 – This year’s Daytona 500 will carry a record purse of $18,689,238 (about $300k more than 2007’s race).  Read More.

1/28 – The no. 19 Dodge driven by Elliot Saddler will have a tri-mary sponsors in 2008 with McDonald’s, Best Buy, and Stanley Tools all sharing the primary sponsorship role this year.  Read More.

1/28 – Dale Earnhardt Jr. is reportedly upset with the fact that DEI has supposedly removed any indications of his stint with the company since his departure from the team, though DEI claims it’s all a result of a mix-up.  Read More.

1/28 – Kyle Busch has announced that he will participate in the Track Walk at Las Vegas Motorspeedway on March 2. The Track Walk is an event held by the NASCAR Foundation in support of various charities.  Read More.

1/28 – NASCAR rookie Jacques Villeneuve has parted ways with his long-time agent, Craig Pollock.  Villeneuve stated that he no longer needs a manager to handle his affairs.  Read More.

1/29 – Juan Pablo Montoya turned in the fastest lap in the 2 days of Sprint Cup testing at Las Vegas Motorspeedway with a lap of 28.914 in the Tuesday afternoon session.  Read More.

1/29 – Max Papis, a car tester for Hendrick Motorsports, is reported to be looking for opportunities to run the road courses in the Sprint Cup Series this year in addition to his part-time Nationwide schedule for Rusty Wallace Inc.  Read More.

1/30 – Darlington Raceway has announced the debut of their “all-you-can-eat” ticket package.  Read More.

1/30 – “Inside Nextel Cup” on the Speed Channel has changed its name to “This Week in NASCAR” with Steve Byrnes taking over as the new host.  Drivers Michael Waltrip, Ken Schrader, and Greg Biffle will remain as panelists and will be joined by various Crew Chiefs, including Chad Knauss.  Read More.

1/30 – Braun Racing has signed Cup stars Brian Vickers, Kyle Busch, and Denny Hamlin to all run part-time schedules in the no. 10 and no. 31 Toyota Camri’s sponsored by Dollar General in the Nationwide Series this year.  Read More.

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Wednesday Mid-Week Wrap