Through 55 years of racing at NASCAR’s top level, the Wood Brothers have established themselves amongst the all-time winningest teams in the sport’s history with an accumulated 97 wins amongst the organization. The organization has housed such legendary names as Cale Yarbrough, David Pearson, Davey Allison, AJ Foyt, Tiny Lund, Dale Jarrett, Ricky Rudd, and Dan Gurney. The team made history in the late 70’s when they were invited to the White House by former U.S. President, Jimmy Carter … Yet, Wood Brothers Racing has not visited Victory Lane since Elliott Sadler’s 2001 win at Bristol Motor Speedway, and the organization has been relegated to one of stock car racing’s proverbial laughing stocks in recent years.

With the team struggling, and the evolution of the NASCAR economy seeming to work against them and the Ford Racing program, team owner Glen Wood sought to keep the driving program afloat by signing veteran drivers Bill Elliott and Ken Schrader to drive the no. 21 Ford for the team in 2007. The end result, however, was less than desirable as the combination failed to net the Wood Bros. a single top-ten finish, and much hasn’t changed in 2008 with Elliott again behind the wheel this year, this time being complimented by Jon Wood on occassion.

So, what does a team do when they’ve fallen so far off of the mark of excellence that they themselves established so long ago? They go out and fetch themselves the 31-year-old Aussie that’s largely credited with the revival of Ford Racing in Australia - Marcos Ambrose. Adequately named the “Tasmanian Devil,” Ambrose, a former Formula Ford Euro Cup and 2x former V8 Supercar Championship Series champion, broke into the NASCAR scene in 2006 when the Wood Brothers / JTG Racing partnership signed Ambrose to compete in full-time in the Craftsman Truck Series. Not being cleared by NASCAR to compete in the first three races of the season, Ambrose was limited to 22 races in which he garnered 4 top-ten finishes, including a pair of 3rd place runs at Nashville and Kansas.

The team then set Ambrose’s sights on the Nationwide Series in 2007, where Marcos tallied 6 top-ten runs through 35 events and ultimately finished 8th in the overall points standings, and was the third highest ranked non-Cup regular in the standings. 2008 has gotten Marcos off to a bit of a slower start in the series, where he currently sits 13th in points, but a 2nd place run at the road course in Mexico earlier in the season prompted a callup from the Wood Brothers this past weekend at Infineon.

Slated to make his long-awaited Sprint Cup debut behind the wheel of the famed no. 21 Ford Fusion, Ambrose got the weekend off to a great start when he was the 7th fastest during qualifying, and then led the final practice session on Saturday. Looking to prove his road course prowess was no joke and that he belonged at NASCAR’s premier level, Ambrose then established himself as one of the top cars in the field and definitely one of the guys to beat on Sunday, though looking at the box score following the race, you’d have never known it unless you’d watched the race yourself.

Marcos ran with the leaders and stayed up around the top-five all day long, even when pit strategies shuffled several of the other race leaders back into the pack. Only some unprovoked contact from Elliott Sadler late in the race kept him from getting the finish he deserved, and yet, even after a 42nd place run, both Ambrose and the Wood Brothers organization were rather upbeat following the race.

“Just awesome,” he said. “I couldn’t believe it. Here I am, passing Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon, racing with Earnhardt Jr, it’s just fantastic. It’s what I dreamed about, what I dreamed it would be like. It’s certainly like that. It’s just fantastic. It’s just a real shame we couldn’t finish the race.”

While most people probably find it tough to see the silver lining in a 42nd place finish, those that have followed the Wood Brothers throughout the years know that they’ve been far from competitive the last few years, and that even though the finish wasn’t indicative of the good run, it’s a huge morale booster for the organization to have a car run as well as Marcos did on Sunday. Ambrose is now scheduled to compete in seven more Cup events in the no. 21 car, including next weekend at New Hampshire and the August road course race at Watkins Glen.

*Credit photo to Newscom.

Post from: EveryJoe

Is Ambrose the Ticket for the Wood Bros.’ Return to Prosperity?

Recent Pole Winners:
2007 – Jeff Gordon, JJ Yeley
2006 – Jeff Burton, Kasey Kahne
2005 – Joe Nemecheck, Ryan Newman

Best Driver Ratings (from racingone.com):
1. Carl Edwards – 112.3
2. Kurt Busch – 106.8
3. Greg Biffle – 105.4
4. Jimmie Johnson - 104.7
5. Matt Kenseth – 104.1

Best Average Finishes (from racingone.com):
1. Carl Edwards – 7.3
2. Matt Kenseth – 9.7
3. Denny Hamlin – 10.0
4. Jeff Gordon – 12.5
5. Martin Truex Jr – 12.5

Most Wins – David Pearson (9)
Most Wins (Active) – Bobby LaBonte (3)
Most Poles – David Pearson (10)
Most Poles (Active) – Jeff Gordon (5)
Most Top 5’s – Cale Yarbrough (21)
Most Top 10’s – Bill Elliott (29)
Most Manufacturer Wins – Ford (30)
Track Qualifying Record – Ryan Newman (37.069 seconds / 2005)

Odd Facts:
- David Pearson, Cale Yarbrough, Bill Elliott, Rusty Wallace, Richard Petty, Bobby Allison, Dale Jarrett, and Mark Martin have combined to win 45 of the 77 Cup races at Michigan, or 58.4% of the races.
- The track record for a 400 mile race at Michigan is 173.997 mph, whereas the record for a 500 miler is only 139.254 mph. That’s an average 34 mph slower for that extra hundred miles! This weekend’s race is 400 miles.
- A Cup race at Michigan has gone caution free on three separate occassions, most recently in 1999. The most cautions at MIS? Only 10, which came in August of 2006.
- Five times has a Michigan race ended with only 2 drivers on the lead lap. The last time was in 1975.
- Roush-Fenway Racing has more wins at Michigan (10) than they do any other track.
- A driver has won from the pole position at Michigan 15 times. Last weekend at Pocono marked the first time this season such a feat had been accomplished.

Six-Pack Challenge:
Winner – Greg Biffle
2nd Place – Carl Edwards
3rd Place – Tony Stewart
4th Place – Kasey Kahne
5th Place – Matt Kenseth
6th Place – Jimmie Johnson

Lock of the Week – Carl Edwards
Sleeper Pick – Brian Vickers
Steer Clear of – Clint Bowyer

Post from: EveryJoe

Fantasy Preview: Michigan

Recent Pole Winners:
2007 – Jimmie Johnson, Ryan Newman
2006 – Jeff Gordon, Ryan Newman
2005 – Ryan Newman, Jimmie Johnson

Best Driver Ratings (from racingone.com):
1. Greg Biffle – 113.7
2. Matt Kenseth – 111.9
3. Mark Martin – 104.4
4. Jimmie Johnson – 101.5
5. Kyle Busch – 101.5

Best Driver Average Finishes (from racingone.com):
1. Carl Edwards – 9.1
2. Ryan Newman – 10.0
3. Martin Truex Jr. – 10.5
4. Tony Stewart – 10.6
5. Mark Martin – 11.1

Most Wins – Bobby Allison, Richard Petty (7)
Most Wins / Active Driver – Jimmie Johnson, Ryan Newman, Mark Martin (3)
Most Poles – David Pearson (6)
Most Top 5’s – Dale Earnhardt, Mark Martin (19)
Most Top 10’s – Richard Petty, Ricky Rudd (26)
Most Manufacturer Wins – Chevrolet (28)
Track Qualifying Record – Jeremy Mayfield (22.288 seconds / 2004)

TZ’s Six-Pack Challenge:
Winner – Tony Stewart
2nd Place – Greg Biffle
3rd Place – Jimmie Johnson
4th Place – Kyle Busch
5th Place – Martin Truex Jr.
6th Place – Jeff Burton

Lock of the Week – Tony Stewart
Sleeper Pick – Juan Pablo Montoya
Steer Clear of – Kevin Harvick

Post from: EveryJoe

Fantasy Preview: Dover

Recent Polesitters:
2007 – Ryan Newman (x2)
2006 – Scott Riggs (x2)
2005 – Elliott Sadler, Ryan Newman

Best Driver Ratings (from racingone.com):
1. Jimmie Johnson – 120.2
2. Kyle Busch – 94.3
3. Mark Martin – 93.2
4. Kasey Kahne – 92.9
5. Carl Edwards – 88.6

Best Driver Averages (from racingone.com):
1. Jimmie Johnson – 6.8
2. Carl Edwards – 7.3
3. Bobby LaBonte – 9.3
4. Mark Martin – 12.1
5. Tony Stewart – 12.9

Most Wins – Bobby Allison, Darrell Waltrip (6)
Most Poles – David Pearson (12)
Most Top 5’s – Bobby Allison, Richard Petty (23)
Most Top 10’s – Richard Petty (31)
Most Manufacturer Wins – Chevrolet (353)
Qualifying Record – Elliott Sadler (27.948 seconds / 2005)

Race Notes:
- LMS President, Humpy Wheeler, will step down following the Coca Cola 600
- Ken Schrader will debut Richard Childress Racing’s no. 33 car this weekend
- Sterling Marlin will reunite with Chip Ganassi Racing this weekend to fill in for the injured Dario Franchitti
- Brian Pattie will make his Sprint Cup Series Crew Chief debut at the helm of Juan Pablo Montoya

TZ’s Six-Pack Challenge:
Winner – Carl Edwards
2nd Place – Jimmie Johnson
3rd Place – Kyle Busch
4th Place – Kasey Kahne
5th Place – Mark Martin
6th Place – Tony Stewart

Lock of the Week – Carl Edwards
Sleeper Pick – Mark Martin
Steer Clear of – Ryan Newman

Post from: EveryJoe

Fantasy Preview: Lowe’s

And kudos to Kyle Petty for predicting exactly what the 24-team was going to do. I think Petty will bring some insight to their broadcast team, and he also has the respect of the current drivers, as well as those that he grew up around as a kid. His interview with David Pearson was pretty good, I have to admit, and I’m not a real fan of NASCAR’s constant zeal to hang on to its past.

Let me digress for a moment. I’m a long-time of NHRA (professional drag racing for the uninitiated), and if there’ s one thing the NHRA could learn from NASCAR, it’s how to market and promote those that came before today’s current crop of drivers. Don Garlits is probably the most famous drag racer NHRA has ever had, but you’d never know it because Garlits and Wally Parks (the NHRA comish for a long time) had a falling out years ago and never resolved their differences. Instead, Garlits travels around and makes appearances at these “nostalgia” drag racers where he makes a few bucks. Very sad indeed.

Post from: EveryJoe

TNT’s Coverage: Average