Transactions:
- Hendrick Motorsports has announced the release of Casey Mears for next season.
- Richard Childress Racing has extended Clint Bowyer’s contract through 2011.
- Roush-Fenway Racing has extended Greg Biffle’s contract through 2011.
- Gillette-Evernham Motorsports has signed Elliott Sadler through 2010.
- Richard Childress Racing has announced the addition of the #33 car as a fourth Cup team in 2009.
- Petty Enterprises has signed Bobby LaBonte through 2012.
- Roush-Fenway Racing has signed Carl Edwards through 2011.
- Due to a lack of sponsorship, Chip Ganassi Racing is forced to shut down the no. 40 car driven by Dario Franchitti for the remainder of the season.
- Hendrick Motorsports has signed Mark Martin to drive the no. 5 car full-time in 2009 and part-time in 2010.
- Tony Stewart announced his departure from Joe Gibbs Racing to go to Stewart Haas Racing (formerly Haas CNC Racing) as a 50% owner and a full-time driver in 2009.
- Ryan Newman has announced that he will not re-sign with Penske Racing for the 2009 season.
- JTG Dougherty Racing has signed Marcos Ambrose to drive their new no. 47 entry in the Sprint Cup Series next year.
- Martin Truex Jr. has re-signed with DEI for the 2009 season.
- HOF Racing has released JJ Yeley and will replace him with Brad Coleman in the no. 96 car.

Teams Without an Assigned 2009 Driver:
- Dale Earnhardt Inc. - No. 01 car
- Penske Racing - No. 12 car
- Stewart Haas Racing - No. 4 car
- Dale Earnhardt Inc. - No. 15 car
- Joe Gibbs Racing - No. 20 car
- Wood Brothers Racing - No. 21 car
- Bill Davis Racing - No. 22 car
- Yates Racing - No. 28 car
- Richard Childress Racing - No. 33 car
- Furniture Row Motorsports - No. 34 car
- Chip Ganassi Racing - No. 41 car

Drivers Without a Definitive 2009 Ride:
- Regan Smith
- Casey Mears
- Ryan Newman
- Paul Menard
- Dave Blaney
- Travis Kvapil
- Tony Raines
- Reed Sorenson
- Scott Riggs
- JJ Yeley
- Johnny Sauter
- Jeremy Mayfield
- David Stremme
- Jacques Villeneuve
- Kenny Wallace
- Ken Schrader
- Ward Burton
- Dario Franchitti

Saturday’s running of the NAPA Auto Parts 200 at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal was an historic night for the Nationwide Series, and NASCAR in general. As the rainy weather crept its way onto the tracks, the race was red flagged, and for the first time ever in a NASCAR points race, the teams switched over to grooved tires to run the remainder of the race.

The rain was eventually stopped 26 laps short due to poor visibility, and in the end, it was Canadian native, Ron Fellows, out in front of the pack when the race was officially called. Throughout the majority of the race it appeared as though Marcos Ambrose was going to run away with things, leading a race high 27 laps, but a late pit road speeding penalty cost him, and Fellows was there to take advantage.

For Fellows, who was driving the no. 5 entry for the Dale Earnhardt Jr. owned JR Motorsports, it was his fourth career road course victory in 13 Nationwide Series starts, and he also became the first Canadian to ever win a major NASCAR event in Canada.

Fellows was followed to the line by another Canadian native, Patrick Carpentier, who finished 2nd. Ambrose was able to recover from his earlier mistakes on pit road and came back to finish 3rd. 4th place went to Ron Hornaday, and 5th was Boris Said.

Carl Edwards - now 2nd in points - finished 6th, while the series points leader, Clint Bowyer, crossed the finish line in 9th. Brad Keselowski dropped the 2nd position in the points race to Edwards with a 12th place run, dropping Brad down to 3rd overall.

Jacques Villeneuve and Joey Logano dropped about 10 positions in the running order each when they wrecked into other cars during the final caution period.

“I hit a lapped car with no brake lights. I have no idea who it was,” Logano said. “I couldn’t see 5 feet in front of me down the straightaway, under caution. Somebody stopped. I locked up all four and boom! … It’s just not right.”

They each went onto finish 16th and 17th respectively.

It should be noted, however, that the accidents during the final caution were caused by poor visibility, and were not tire-related. In fact, there were really no tire issues the whole race, which should serve as a huge pick-me-up for Goodyear after the debacle that they went through last week at Indy.

Complete Results of the NAPA Auto Parts 200     /     Current Nationwide Series Points Standings

I would like to thank John Beamer, one of the writers for F1 Pitlane, for contacting me recently to do an interview over at the site … to which, of course, I happily obliged. John is a great guy and they do a fantastic job over there, so I encourage you all to go give it a look and while you’re there, take a look at the interview.

A Stateside Perspective - NASCAR and F1

Transactions:
- DEI has picked up the 2009 option on Martin Truex Jr, though Truex disputes the legality of the verbiage in the contract.
- Hendrick Motorsports has announced the release of Casey Mears for next season.
- Richard Childress Racing has extended Clint Bowyer’s contract through 2011.
- Roush-Fenway Racing has extended Greg Biffle’s contract through 2011.
- Gillette-Evernham Motorsports has signed Elliott Sadler through 2010.
- Richard Childress Racing has announced the addition of the #33 car as a fourth Cup team in 2009.
- Petty Enterprises has signed Bobby LaBonte through 2012.
- Roush-Fenway Racing has signed Carl Edwards through 2011.
- Due to a lack of sponsorship, Chip Ganassi Racing is forced to shut down the no. 40 car driven by Dario Franchitti for the remainder of the season.
- Hendrick Motorsports has signed Mark Martin to drive the no. 5 car full-time in 2009 and part-time in 2010.
- Tony Stewart announced his departure from Joe Gibbs Racing to go to Stewart Haas Racing (formerly Haas CNC Racing) as a 50% owner and a full-time driver in 2009.
- Ryan Newman has announced that he will not re-sign with Penske Racing for the 2009 season.
- JTG Dougherty Racing has signed Marcos Ambrose to drive their new no. 47 entry in the Sprint Cup Series next year.

Teams Without an Assigned 2009 Driver:
- Dale Earnhardt Inc. - No. 01 car
- Dale Earnhardt Inc. - No. 1 car
- Penske Racing - No. 12 car
- Dale Earnhardt Inc. - No. 15 car
- Joe Gibbs Racing - No. 20 car
- Wood Brothers Racing - No. 21 car
- Bill Davis Racing - No. 22 car
- Yates Racing - No. 28 car
- Richard Childress Racing - No. 33 car
- Furniture Row Motorsports - No. 34 car
- Chip Ganassi Racing - No. 41 car
- Stewart Haas Racing - No. 66 or No. 70 car

Drivers Without a Definitive 2009 Ride:
- Regan Smith
- Martin Truex Jr.
- Casey Mears
- Ryan Newman
- Paul Menard
- Dave Blaney
- Travis Kvapil
- Tony Raines
- Reed Sorenson
- Scott Riggs
- Johnny Sauter
- Jeremy Mayfield
- David Stremme
- Jacques Villeneuve
- Kenny Wallace
- Ken Schrader
- Ward Burton
- Dario Franchitti

Transactions:
- DEI has picked up the 2009 option on Martin Truex Jr, though Truex disputes the legality of the verbiage in the contract.
- Hendrick Motorsports has announced the release of Casey Mears for next season.
- Richard Childress Racing has extended Clint Bowyer’s contract through 2011.
- Roush-Fenway Racing has extended Greg Biffle’s contract through 2011.
- Gillette-Evernham Motorsports has signed Elliott Sadler through 2010.
- Richard Childress Racing has announced the addition of the #33 car as a fourth Cup team in 2009.
- Petty Enterprises has signed Bobby LaBonte through 2012.
- Roush-Fenway Racing has signed Carl Edwards through 2011.
- Due to a lack of sponsorship, Chip Ganassi Racing is forced to shut down the no. 40 car driven by Dario Franchitti for the remainder of the season.
- Hendrick Motorsports has signed Mark Martin to drive the no. 5 car full-time in 2009 and part-time in 2010.
- Tony Stewart announced his departure from Joe Gibbs Racing to go to Stewart Haas Racing (formerly Haas CNC Racing) as a 50% owner and a full-time driver in 2009.

Teams Without an Assigned 2009 Driver:
- Dale Earnhardt Inc. - No. 01 car
- Penske Racing - No. 12 car
- Dale Earnhardt Inc. - No. 15 car
- Joe Gibbs Racing - No. 20 car
- Wood Brothers Racing - No. 21 car
- Bill Davis Racing - No. 22 car
- Yates Racing - No. 28 car
- Richard Childress Racing - No. 33 car
- Furniture Row Motorsports - No. 34 car
- Chip Ganassi Racing - No. 41 car
- Stewart Haas Racing - No. 66 or No. 70 car

Drivers Without a Definitive 2009 Ride:
- Regan Smith
- Casey Mears
- Ryan Newman
- Paul Menard
- Dave Blaney
- Marcos Ambrose
- Travis Kvapil
- Tony Raines
- Reed Sorenson
- Scott Riggs
- Johnny Sauter
- Jeremy Mayfield
- Brad Keselowski
- David Stremme
- Jacques Villeneuve
- Kenny Wallace
- Ken Schrader
- Ward Burton
- Dario Franchitti

Other Potential Rides & Drivers that Could Become Available
(Pending variable circumstances):
- Dale Earnhardt Inc. - No. 1 Car - Current Driver: Martin Truex Jr.
- Gillette-Evernham Motorsports - No. 10 Car - Current Driver: Patrick Carpentier
- Roush Fenway Racing - No. 26 Car - Current Driver: Jamie McMurray
- Penske Racing - No. 77 Car - Current Driver: Sam Hornish Jr.

Image details: LifeLock 400 served by picapp.com

Happy 4th of July, everyone! Along with celebrating America’s independence, since it just so happens to have fallen on a Friday this year, that means you’re also treated to a “special” edition of “Loose in Turn Three”. Along with me as always are Bruce Simmons from “Bruce’s Bits & Pieces”, and, of course, Charlie Turner from “On Pit Row”.

Earlier this week, Chip Ganassi announced that due to sponsorship woes, he was being forced to cease operations on his no. 40 operation, laying off 71 employees in the process and also putting NASCAR rookie, Dario Franchitti, out of a ride for the remainder of the season.

Ganassi has been fortunate to maintain sponsorship on all of his cars to this point in 2008, but there have been several other teams that have struggled with similar situations all season long. Yates Racing is perhaps the most publicized of these stories, running the no. 28 car of Travis Kvapil without a primary sponsor for most of the year, and the no. 38 of David Gilliland’s contract with freecreditreport.com is only for a limited number of races. BAM Racing also had to shut down operations earlier in the year, Bill Davis Racing shoved Jacques Villeneuve out of the series before he ever even got started, and Michael Waltrip Racing is known to have troubles on the horizon.

Q: With the recent folding of Chip Ganassi’s #40 operation due to lack of sponsorship, is this a trend we can continue to expect in NASCAR with other teams that have struggled with sponsorship … teams like Yates Racing? 

TZ: I think it is. The economy’s really turned everything upside down, even in NASCAR. Many of NASCAR’s long-term sponsors are starting to see a substantial decrease in profits, which means that they’ve got to start cutting down on their budget in areas like professional sports. Then, on top of that, you’ve got some of the top-tier teams such as Childress and Gibbs with plans on expanding their organizations with an additional car, and before ya know it, there’s just not enough water in the kiddie pool anymore.

Bruce:  If the team isn’t performing, the hood sponsor isn’t getting it’s $10 mil of advertising exposure, so yea, we just may see other teams lose sponsors.  BAM was trying something interesting with their sponsor packages but then they jumped manufacturers and then suddenly took a break.  I guess the sponsor program wasn’t the hit they were hoping it to be.

Charlie:  Every indication is that other teams are on the brink of closing shop. Ganassi is one of the organizations that you would think to be stable. Chip may have just missed on a hunch that in Dario he could catch the Montoya lightning again. Regardless they failed with that car.  I have a feeling that Yates will survive, but Waltrip could shrink by a car.

Franchitti has stated that he’d like to remain in NASCAR, and Chip Ganassi has since offered Dario the full-time seat in his Nationwide Series entry. No decisions have been made as to what they’ll do from here, but sources indicate that the two plan to meet and discuss Dario’s future going forward.

the Rest of the Discussion:
- Do You Think Kurt Busch Giving up his car points to Hornish hurt the team overall? (Bruce’s Bits & Pieces)

- What will become of Dale Earnhardt Inc? (On Pit Row)

Transactions:
- DEI has picked up the 2009 option on Martin Truex Jr, though Truex disputes the legality of the verbiage in the contract.
- Hendrick Motorsports has announced the release of Casey Mears for next season.
- Richard Childress Racing has extended Clint Bowyer’s contract through 2011.
- Roush-Fenway Racing has extended Greg Biffle’s contract through 2011.
- Gillette-Evernham Motorsports has signed Elliott Sadler through 2010.
- Richard Childress Racing has announced the addition of the #33 car as a fourth Cup team in 2009.
- Petty Enterprises has signed Bobby LaBonte through 2012.
- Roush-Fenway Racing has signed Carl Edwards through 2011.

Teams Without an Assigned 2009 Driver:
- Dale Earnhardt Inc. - No. 01 car
- Hendrick Motorsports - No. 5 car
- Penske Racing - No. 12 car
- Dale Earnhardt Inc. - No. 15 car
- Wood Brothers Racing - No. 21 car
- Bill Davis Racing - No. 22 car
- Yates Racing - No. 28 car
- Richard Childress Racing - No. 33 car
- Furniture Row Motorsports - No. 34 car
- Chip Ganassi Racing - No. 41 car
- Haas CNC Racing - No. 66 car
- Haas CNC Racing - No. 70 car

Drivers Without a Definitive 2009 Ride:
- Regan Smith
- Casey Mears
- Ryan Newman
- Paul Menard
- Dave Blaney
- Marcos Ambrose
- Travis Kvapil
- Tony Raines
- Reed Sorenson
- Scott Riggs
- Johnny Sauter
- Mark Martin
- Jeremy Mayfield
- Brad Keselowski
- David Stremme
- Jacques Villeneuve
- Kenny Wallace
- Ken Schrader
- Ward Burton

Other Potential Rides & Drivers that Could Become Available
(Pending variable circumstances):
- Dale Earnhardt Inc. - No. 1 Car - Current Driver: Martin Truex Jr.
- Gillette-Evernham Motorsports - No. 10 Car - Current Driver: Patrick Carpentier
- Joe Gibbs Racing - No. 20 Car - Current Driver: Tony Stewart
- Roush Fenway Racing - No. 26 Car - Current Driver: Jamie McMurray
- Penske Racing - No. 77 Car - Current Driver: Sam Hornish Jr.

Ryan Newman’s no. 12 Alltel Dodge failed post-race inspection on Sunday when officials discovered that his car was too high. Newman – who finished fourth in the race – was docked 25 driver points, and Crew Chief Roy McCauley was fined $25,000 and placed on probation until December 31, 2008.

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.

- Yes, just a month and a half into the 2008 NASCAR season, here we are already talking about 2009 as it seems that the ever-so-dramatic Silly Season is once again creeping upon us. There’s been quite a buzz created with Richard Childress Racing announcing their addition of a fourth team next year in the Sprint Cup Series, and rumors have begun circulating instantly that Bobby LaBonte was the top candidate to drive that car next season. While it remains true that the 2000 Series Champion has yet to accept an offer of renewal from Petty Enterprises, LaBonte did state on Friday following qualifying that Petty was where he wanted to be driving next year, and that it was simply a matter of making it all work on paper. Other drivers that are without contracts currently for 2009 include Greg Biffle (Roush-Fenway Racing), Martin Truex Jr. (DEI), or even Jacques Villeneuve (Bill Davis Racing) who has yet to race this year due to lack of sponsorship. It’s also come to my attention that Tony Stewart (Joe Gibbs Racing) and Ryan Newman (Penske Racing) have yet to renew their contracts for next year as well. 
(Click Here for more on that)

- Speaking of Greg Biffle, he and Roush-Fenway claim that they are about 90% done with their negotiations for a 2009 contract, and that securing long-term sponsorship appears to be one of the final pieces to put in place. Biffle has also suggested that even if this contract extension doesn’t happen, he doesn’t see a move to RCR as a viable option due to the fact that the team would be starting out without any owner points. Roush has also reported that they’re working on contract extensions with Carl Edwards and David Ragan as well. Following the 2009 season, Roush will be forced to cease operations on one of their five race teams due to a new mandate put in place by NASCAR.

- Michael McDowell has had quite an interesting first two weeks in the Sprint Cup Series. Last weekend at Martinsville he unintentionally held up the no. 31 Chevy Impala of Jeff Burton, setting Burton off in a rage following the race. During the course of the week, McDowell later called Burton on the phone and apologized. Burton seems to have been receptive of Michael’s apology, and this little bit of drama now appears to be in the past.

- Dale Earnhardt Jr. has announced that he will run a retro paint scheme at Darlington. The paint scheme will be modeled after the car driven by Darrell Waltrip in 1981-1982, and will be run as a one-time deal only.
(Click Here to view more on the story and a photo of the car)

- Though AJ Allmendinger was originally slated to be back in the seat of the no. 84 Red Bull Racing Toyota Camry at Phoenix on April 12th, the team has decided to push AJ’s return back to the following weekend at Talladega. Mike Skinner will continue driving the car until then.

2/20 – After failing to attain full-time sponsorship to run in the Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series for Bill Davis Racing, former F1 Series Champion Jacques Villeneuve has reportedly contacted former IndyCar team owner Barry Green. Green will work with Villeneuve to find the right sponsors so that he may continue his pursuit to find full-time in rides in either or both of the series.  Read More.

2/20 – Tony Stewart has worked out a deal with Old Spice that will give fans the opportunity to bid in public auction for the Old Spice towel Stewart wears into Victory Lane everytime he wins a race in either the Sprint Cup or Nationwide Series this year. The towel will, of course, be autographed and proceeds will go to the Tony Stewart Foundation.  Read More.

2/21 – The Petty family has recently announced the opening of a second Victory Junction Gang Camp, which will be located in Wyandotte County in Kansas.  Read More.

2/21 – DishNet has signed on for a second year with Roush Racing in 2008 and will serve as the primary sponsor in 15 Sprint Cup races between Greg Biffle (11 races), Carl Edwards (3 races), and Matt Kenseth (1 race).  Read More.

2/21 – DEI recently announced that their 01 Sprint Cup Series car driven by Regan Smith will carry Coors Light as their primary sponsor for the next two races at California and Las Vegas.  Read More.

2/22 – Robby Gordon Motorsports has appealed the penalties handed down by NASCAR for rule infractions that occurred during Daytona Speedweeks. While Robby isn’t very hopeful of getting NASCAR to drop the points hit altogether, they are trying to at least reduce the 100 points that the sanctioning body has hit them with.  Read More.

2/22 – In a recent survey, NASCAR fans have voted that the Toyota commercial in which the kids are controlling the cars via remote control is the best new ad of the 2008 season.  Read More.

2/22 – Richard Childress Racing teammates Jeff Burton and Clint Bowyer apparently had a confrontation with one another following last Sunday’s Daytona 500, reportedly because each driver felt they didn’t receive enough help in the closing laps from the other.  Read More.

2/22 – The newly-formed partnership between International Speedway Corporation and the Automobile Club of Southern California has sparked the renaming of California Speedway to what is now the Auto Club Speedway of Southern California.  Read More.

2/22 – After Earl Pearson Jr. had to be cut from his car following an accident in a dirt late model race for Bobby Labonte Racing in Barberville, FL, Bobby Labonte has begun taking several safety measures to ensure the safety in his rides.  Read More.

2/22 – Rain has caused NASCAR to cancel qualifying for all three of their series’ races this weekend at California. Each of the series will line their cars up based on owner points.  Read More.