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

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.

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.

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.

Recent Winners:
2007 - Kurt Busch, Jeff Gordon
2006 - Denny Hamlin (x2)
2005 - Kurt Busch, Carl Edwards

Recent Pole Winners:
2007 - Dale Earnhardt Jr, Ryan Newman
2006 - Denny Hamlin (x2)
2005 - Jamie McMurray, Michael Waltrip

Best Driver Ratings (from racingone.com):
1. Denny Hamlin - 133.1
2. Kurt Busch - 116.6
3. Tony Stewart - 103.2
4. Ryan Newman - 101.9
5. Jeff Gordon - 97.5

Best Driver Average Finishes (from racingone.com):
1. Denny Hamlin - 2.8
2. Jeff Gordon - 9.9
3. Jimmie Johnson - 10.7
4. Mark Martin - 11.7
5. Tony Stewart - 12.4

Most Wins - Bill Elliott (5)
Most Wins / Active Driver - Jeff Gordon (4)
Most Poles - Bill Elliott, Ken Schrader (5)
Most Top 5’s - Mark Martin (19)
Most Top 10’s - Mark Martin (27)
Most Manufacturer Wins - Chevrolet (23)
Track Qualifying Record - Kasey Kahne (52.164 seconds / 2004)

TZ’s Six-Pack Challenge:
Winner - Denny Hamlin
2nd Place - Dale Earnhardt Jr.
3rd Place - Jimmie Johnson
4th Place - Kurt Busch
5th Place - Matt Kenseth
6th Place - Kyle Busch

Lock of the Week - Denny Hamlin
Sleeper Pick - Brian Vickers
Steer Clear of - Kasey Kahne

Image details: Nextel Prelude To The Dream served by picapp.com

If you thought it was bad sitting through the rain delay that slowed down the action this past Saturday for the Nationwide’s Heluva Good! 200 at Dover International Speedway, then you’re not the only one feeling the anguish that Mother Nature can put on racing events.

Fullthrottle.com has reported that rainy skies have delayed - or, in some cases altogether postponed - racing events across the nation this past week.  The Tri-Track Challenge Series that takes place at Paducah International Raceway, Macon Speedway, and I-55 Raceway probably felt the weather a bit more than most.

After the first leg of the Tri-Track Challenge on Friday was won by Ken Schrader at Paducah with a last lap pass over second place finisher, Jason Feger, the second race - held at I-55 scheduled for Saturday, May 31st - was rained out just prior to the hotlaps, and they have re-scheduled the event for August 2nd. The third event - held in Macon, IL - was also delayed by rain, though they eventually got that race underway. 

As if all that rain weren’t enough for Schrader, he was again slated to run on Tuesday at the Iowa Sate Fairgrounds along with fellow NASCAR driver, Kenny Wallace, but that, too, was halted by some nasty weather. That race has been re-scheduled for June 16th.

Wednesday evening will bring the annual running of the Prelude to the Dream race held at Eldora Speedway in Ohio. The event will feature a myriad of NASCAR stars, including Tony Stewart, Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Denny Hamlin, Matt Kenseth, Kasey Kahne, and others.

For more information on this story, as well as message from Ken and Ann Schrader, please read Where in the World are Wallace and Schrader? over at Full Throttle.

Image details: NASCAR Testing Day 1 served by picapp.com

Dario Franchitti, driver of the no. 40 Target car for Chip Ganassi Racing, returned to the track on Tuesday for the first time since incurring his ankle injury a month ago at Talladega. Dario was on-hand for NASCAR’s test session at Pocono Raceway in preparation for the upcoming Pocono 500 two weeks from now which the husband of movie star, Ashley Judd, plans to participate in.

Since the injury to Franchitti back on April 26th in the Nationwide’s Aaron’s 312, car owner, Chip Ganassi, has used an extended list of contacts to keep the seat of the no. 40 car filled for the interim. Ganassi turned to Penske Racing’s test driver, David Stremme, for the Cup race at Talladega, and then Ken Schrader for Richmond, and then most recently, former Ganassi driver, Sterling Marlin, at Darlington and last weekend at Lowe’s. The team failed to qualify for the Dan Lowry 400 in Richmond, and posted an average finish of just 31.0 in the other three events.

Though Franchitti is considering possibly competing in this weekend’s Nationwide race at Dover, the Heluva Good! 200, Ganassi plans to run Jeremy Mayfield in the car for Sunday’s Cup race. Mayfield has been out of a ride since his release from Haas CNC Racing earlier in the season, and many people feel that he has just about run out of anymore good potential opportunities for the future. After touring with the soldiers in Iraq for 12 days earlier in the month, Mayfield now must concentrate on putting together a solid run this weekend if he hopes to have a shot at landing a solid ride for 2009.

Image details: Coca-Cola 600 served by picapp.com

In the longest race on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series schedule, Kasey Kahne proved that attrition pays off, as he was setup in the right place at the right time in the closing laps of the Coca Cola 600 to put his no. 9 Dodge into Victory Lane at Lowe’s Motor Speedway for the second time in as many weeks for car owner Ray Evernham.

After cruising to a victory in last week’s All-Star Challenge, and then earning himself the outside pole position through qualifying, Kahne looked as though he was in position to potentially run away with the race at the drop of the green flag, but that wasn’t the case. Kasey immediately faded from the frontrunners in the early stages of the race, but as the sun went down and the track got cooler, the no. 9 car seemed to get some life back in it. Kahne didn’t lead the race until lap 207 when he snuck around Dale Earnhardt Jr. for the lead, but he surrendered the front position twenty laps later as the field came around for a round of greenf flag stops.

Kahne got the lead two more times before getting passed by Tony Stewart with only 17 laps remaining. Kahne made his final pit stop for fuel just a few laps later, but his stop took nearly 3 seconds longer than Stewart’s, and as the field cycled through their stops, Stewart’s lead over Kasey opened up to nearly half a track length. Misfortune struck the no. 20 team on lap 397 of the 400 lap race, though, as Tony blew a right front tire and was forced to pit, handing the lead over to Kahne for the final time of the evening.

For Kahne, it was his first points race win since the Fall race at Lowe’s in 2006, and it was enough to move him back into the top-12 in points, and the first top-five finish for Evernham Motorsports all season long. For Stewart, it was a frustrating ending to a near-perfect night. Smoke had started the race from 31st position, but his crew worked all night long to get his car up to the front, and it appeared as though he had his first Coca Cola 600 victory well in-hand. Instead, he went onto finish 18th.

Greg Biffle bounced back from a flat tire earlier in the evening that put him a lap down on lap 135. He was able to race his way back onto the lead lap just before a lap 170 caution that was brought out when Patrick Carpentier spun Juan Pablo Montoya through the infield. Biffle was able to avoid further troubles and went onto finish second.

Third place went to Kyle Busch, who was pretty much all over the map all night long. After leading the first 33 laps of the race, his car started to slip a little through the pack as his car started to lose some power. He then had to make an unscheduled stop on lap 150 when he thought he had a tire going down, but was able to race his way back onto the lead lap less than 15 laps later. He went onto lead three more times throughout the race before settling for a top-five finish.

Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr. used some fuel strategy to sneak their way into top-five finishes, as they finished 4th and 5th, respectively. As the rest of the field made their final stops, both drivers stayed out on the track after topping off their fuel tanks on the final caution that occurred with 66 laps remaining. For Gordon, a top-five was a mental victory for the team after running outside of the top-15 for the majority of the race. For Junior, this was a way to salvage a race that had previously taken a turn for the worse. After leading the most laps of the race, Earnhardt blew a right front tire while leading on lap 296. He got into the wall, and then was run into from behind by JJ Yeley. The no. 88 team made several attempts to repair the damaged race car, but in the end, it was a little bit of strategy combined with some good luck that saved the day.

Jeff Burton had a solid day, and wound up finishing 6th. He was followed by Matt Kenseth, who had a pretty uneventful evening and finished 7th. In 8th place was Elliott Sadler, who used some pit strategy to gain some much needed track position around the halfway point of the race. Carl Edwards started the race in 30th, but wound up 9th despite running out of fuel on the final lap. David Reutimann came home in 10th to earn himself his first career top-ten in the Cup Series.

Along with Stewart, several of the race’s other dominant cars were also taken out through a variety of misfortunes. After leading more than 65 laps of the race, and having just surrendered the lead over to Jimmie Johnson, on lap 185, Brian Vickers’ tire actually flew off of his race car, sending him hard into the inside SAFER barrier. The tire then proceeded to smack the no. 38 car of David Gilliland before bouncing down the track and into the trackside camping area. After leading on four different occassions, Johnson would later blow his motor with only 49 laps to go. Kurt Busch had also led more than 50 laps of the race before he had a tire go down, sending him into the wall and ending his bid for his first win of the season.

And, the most interesting statistic of the evening belongs to Ken Schrader. He was given the task of debuting the RCR no. 33 car this weekend, which he successfully qualified 33rd … and, then raced to a 33rd place finish.

Grades:
the Race: 96%
the Drama: 97%
Coverage: 89%
Pre-Race: 76%

Overall Grade: 92.8%

Complete Results (from nascar.com):

Sprint Cup Series Standings (from nascar.com):

Recent Winners:
2007 - Jeff Gordon, Casey Mears
2006 - Kasey Kahne (x2)
2005 - Jimmie Johnson (x2)

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