Kyle Busch wins Nationwide title

It was a tough race for Busch, but he won with his usual flare and was the best car on the track again. He should buy his team a dinner tonight and thank them all for giving him the car to compete and win. Kyle Busch never would have accomplished this without the little people surrounding this affair doing their jobs and making it possible.

The day was exciting as Brad Keselowski took Denny Hamlin’s purposeful spinning of Keselowski’s No. 88 Chevrolet, before the excitement had even started. This scene played second fiddle to Kyle Busch and his championship though and it’s certainly a good thing. Keselowski should be sanctioned for his actions and he needs to keep control of his emotions and show some maturity in his actions on the track. There’s no place for such choices and actions on a track where the possibility of death or serious injury is always present. Two laps after a restart on Lap 163 and pitting for new tires, Kyle Busch passed Edwards and pulled into the lead and then held on for the win.

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Kyle Busch Wins Nationwide Title

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.

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Nationwide Series Changes

Kyle Busch won his second race of the weekend Saturday

Busch was able to pull away from Casey Mears during a restart on Lap 187 and in a race to the finish line was able to cross the line 3.154 seconds ahead of Mears. This win is the eighth of the 2009 Nationwide Series season for Kyle Busch, the 29^th of his NASCAR career and his fourth Nationwide Series win in a row at Texas. Kyle Busch moves 272 points in front of his nearest competitor with this win, ninth place finisher in the O’Reilly Challenge Carl Edwards and can clinch the 2009 Nationwide Series title Saturday at Phoenix International Raceway by placing better than sixteenth place. He still has two races after that where he only needs to place at least 34^th to also clinch the title, so things are looking pretty good for him to win the Nationwide Series title for 2009.

Casey Mears took advantage of a ride he received because of a crash Friday during Sprint Cup Series practice for Sunday’s race by Jeff Burton to finish second with a great run that left him just short. Burton was not seriously hurt but team owner Richard Childress decided to make the change anyway as a precaution. Hats off to the gentlemen for thinking of Burton’s health first and not his ego, there ‘s no point in taking the chance with the lives of people on the track and it’s always better to error on the side of caution.

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Kyle Busch Wins O’Reilly Challenge

Friday's practice wasn't as enjoyable as Jeff Burton hoped

The crash was apparently due to problems with the power steering and not due to driver error; apparently he couldn’t turn his car when needed. His car probably felt heavy, like he had blown a tire at that point as he missed the soft wall and smashed into the wall with both the front and back end of his car.

Burton was scheduled to also race in Richard Childress Racing’s No. 29 Chevrolet for Saturday’s O’Reilly Challenge Nationwide Series race. His boss and friend decided after the race that despite what his driver was telling him, he was going to have Burton sit out Saturday’s Nationwide Series race and rest up for Sunday’s Dickies 500. Racers being racers, I am sure that Burton would race unless he couldn’t get out of bed and its best that Richard makes this call for him. Racers are foolhardy souls at times, who will forget about personal injury and pain, in order to achieve their ultimate goals.

Burton is still a young man with years of racing ahead of him and a head injury should never be taken lightly, as the last few years in sports have shown. The speeds at which racers impact the wall goes beyond the normal forces that the human head is designed to take and anytime a racer or sports athlete has a head injury, we should make sure we make the decision for them and try to error on the side of caution. There will be lots of days and years for Burton to win championships and ultimately, championships aren’t as important as human life.

Concussions can occur whenever the human head meets an unmovable object or force, such as a wall, and death can result from a concussion. In fact, doctors should probably be monitoring Burton and all NASCAR racers involved in a crash and the final decision on the length that a driver should wait before driving again should be up to the doctor ultimately. An injured driver puts his life and the life of every driver on the track at risk whenever he gets in a race car and competes and this is in a sport that’s already extremely dangerous.

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Jeff Burton Ready to Race Sunday

Kelly took the new Chevrolet Impala they'll be using in the Nationwide Series in 2011 for a test drive at Talledega on Monday

The new cars looked great and were nimble and fast as they went around the track of Talledega, the new car will provide the Nationwide Series with its own identity and the drivers and teams with safe cars to race with. The day turned out to be a special one for NASCAR as the response of everyone who saw and sat behind the wheel of the new cars was suitably impressed. The successful tests on this day matched results from previous testing done on the car at Richmond and Charlotte last year and should go along way to making NASCAR confident in the new cars and the direction the Nationwide Series is headed.

The drivers that tried the cars commented that the new cars appeared to draft better than the current Nationwide Series cars, but they tried different arrangements on the cars throughout the day trying to find the right set up. The cars started the testing with a restrictor plate with holes measuring 29/32 of an inch, but they experimented with different sizes, before finishing with a 31/32 hole. They also tested different spring and suspension combinations in the cars throughout the session.

The drivers and teams took it easy on the cars through the day as this was the first time they had the cars on the track. When questioned later they said they were just trying to match the new engine package to the same RPM ranges they race every day and had spent part of the day on a gear change to help them work on the RPMs of the cars.

This day is really just a brief shake down for the cars and they’ll need to do a lot more work and spend more time behind the wheel and in the garage, before the new cars are ready to race, but at least we the drivers have an idea of what the cars they’ll be racing in feel like.

What’s next for the new Nationwide Series cars, they’ll debut at Daytona next summer, before competing in races at Michigan next August, Richmond in September and then Charlotte in October, as a lead up to full time racing in the new Nationwide Series car in 2011.

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NASCAR Unveils New Nationwide Series Car

Nationwide Series rules and regulations are being implemented with full force this week against a few teams and individuals

This week NASCAR announced that two Nationwide Series teams have been discovered to have skirted the rules during last weekend’s Nationwide Series event at Memphis Motorsports Park and have been appropriately fined and penalized according to the rule book. Jay Robinson, the boss of Mark Green in the No. 49 Chevrolet, drew the attention of NASCAR officials, along with Chris Rice, the boss for the No. 70 Chevrolet with Shelby Howard at the wheel. Surprisingly, both teams were found to be in violation of the same rules in the rule book and were fined and penalized the same amounts of $2,500, 25 owner points and 25 driver points.

Also this week, NASCAR fined racer Steve Wallace in the No. 66 Chevrolet for the Nationwide Series for his actions after the race at Memphis Motorsports Park during last weekend’s event. Wallace was told he would have to pay $5,000 of his winnings and placed on probation to give him time to think about his actions. He was upset with something that Matt Kenseth had done on the track during the race and decided to use his car as a battering ram and ran into Kenseth’s car after the race. This is an unfortunate situation that Kenseth has placed himself in by letting his emotions control him after the race. He may have been right in being upset but this gives him no right to loose control and use his car in such away. It’s just a sporting event after all and controlling your emotions is a required skill of all competitors in a dangerous sport like racing.

It’s probably best this racer sits on the side lines and come to terms with his emotions and learns how to control them, no matter the outcome or events that occur on the track. After he comes back he’ll be a much better racer and a safer competitor than before and maybe this might keep him in racing.

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NASCAR Rules and Regulations

Brad keselowski was able to pull away from Kyle Busch during this restart to win

Keselowski was able to leap into the lead after he went past the front row racers Michael Annett and Tony Raines during a restart on Lap 238 of 250 scheduled for the day. Keselowski just had to keep the Nationwide Series leader, Kyle Busch behind him during a restart to win and that’s just what he did.

The day was eventful for other reasons as Steve Wallace ran into Kenseth’s car after the race and it looked purposeful. The two races did exchange compliments after the race and something tells me they weren’t exactly happy with the way the other races. There’s a lot of money and pride on the line and these two gentlemen are very competitive and hate to loose. Keselowski picked up $75,000 through the Nationwide Series Dash 4 Cash program, $25,000 for the win and $50,000 for being the point’s leader in the four Dash 4 Cash races of the 2009 Nationwide Series season. His most prized possession for the victory has to be the Elvis trophy that is presented to the winner of this race, he never let go of it during the whole winning ceremony and carried it with him as he left. If we were able to see into his bedroom, we might see him sleeping soundly with his arms around the trophy and a big smile satisfied smile on his face.

Kyle Busch finished second in the Kroger For The Cure 250, Jason Leffler finished third, just ahead of Mike Bliss in fourth and Brendan Gaughan in fifth position. Carl Edwards held on for sixth place, Scott Wimmer finished seventh, just in front of David Reutimann in eighth, Stephen Leicht in ninth and Landon Cassill who rounded out the top ten.

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Brad Keselowski Wins Nationwide Series Race

Kyle Busch was in front for most of the Dollar General 300

Kyle Busch beat Mike Bliss to the line by 1.712 seconds in a 21-lap race at the end that was run under a green flag to grab his seventh win of the 2009 Nationwide Series season, fifth at Lowe’s Motor Speedway and the 28^th of his NASCAR career. His car was fast all night and his skill was on display as he raced to victory against a field of racers known for their competitive desire to win.

On another note, Steve Wallace had a bad showing and was overtaken by Justin Allgaier, after a competition between these two races that has been fun to watch. Justin moved into fifth place in the standings, just ahead of Wallace, which could mean that it will be Steve Wallace and not Justin Allgaier who makes it to the awards banquet in Florida at the end of the Nationwide Series season.

Dave Blaney finished third in the Dollar General 300, just ahead of Brian Vickers, Carl Edwards in fifth and Brad Keselowski in sixth. Ryan Newman finished in seventh place, Kasey Kahne in eighth, Jeff Burton in ninth and the top ten was completed by Tony Raines.

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Kyle Busch Wins the Dollar General 300

Joey holds off the field to win the Copart 300 Nationwide Series race

The Nationwide Series leader, Kyle Busch, had a bad day all around as he had to bring in a substitute driver on Lap 39 as he was fighting the flu and couldn’t continue. His substitute driver Denny Hamlin didn’t have any better luck as he collided with Greg Biffle coming off of Turn 4 on Lap 141 and had to leave the race with a car that couldn’t continue to race.

The racer just behind Kyle Busch in the Nationwide Series standings, Carl Edwards, finished third and moved to within 155 points of Kyle Busch, while Brad Keselowski finished fifth in the Copart 300 and moved to within 227 points of Kyle Busch in the race for the Nationwide Series title.

Controversy is swirling around the rumour mill about NASCAR analysing Greg Biffle’s radio conversations during the race. The contention is that he was actually silly enough to mention that he might put the No. 20 car into the wall when he got a chance. Unfortunately, according to sources, this was a lap before actually doing so. This all could be a coincidence or just rumour, but they’re looking into it, so there must be something in the story.

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Logano Wins Copart 300

Joey Logano wins the Kansas Lottery 300 six days after his spectacular crash on same track

Kyle Busch was in the lead for the majority of the race, leading for a total of 173 of the scheduled 200 laps on Dover Speedway and setting a new record for total laps in the lead during a Nationwide Series season with the laps he was in the lead in this race. Despite finishing second to Logano for the fourth time this season, Kyle Busch extended his lead the Nationwide Series standings to 245 points over Carl Edwards, who finished seventh in the Kansas Lottery 300 and 307 over Brad Keselowski, who finished third.

This win for Joey Logano will keep his critics quiet and reduce the laughter he probably feels he hears after his spectacular crash six days ago on this same track. It was a pleasure to watch his young racer put his demons behind him and quiet his critics with a win so soon after his crash. He showed no hesitation at any point of the race and when his moment came he grabbed a hold of his opportunity and took full advantage.

The final outcome is certainly a disappointing one for Busch, who hasn’t won on the Nationwide Series in his last ten tries, but has finished second five times during these ten races. He just lost to a faster car and very determined young racer who wasn’t going to let anything keep him from winning. Joey Logano deserves all the credit we can give him for taking his lumps and then jumping to his feet to get back in the there and take his swings. In life and sports it’s not what you do when your winning that tells us the most about you as a person, it’s what you do when every one is against you and things aren’t going your way that determines your character and Joey Logano appears to have the attitude of a winner.

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Logano Quiets the Critics