Whew..work was crazy today, but glad it was Friday.
Congratulations to Greg Biffle for gettin’ the Pole for tomorrow night’s race.
I wasn’t able to catch much of the race. I was out taking care of some things and spend some of that money the government sent back to me.
If what I saw of the race is any indication of what tomorrow night will be like…kick the tires and light the fires…it’s going to be a bumpy ride
Wow! What an ending to the Nationwide race today. It looked like it was going to be a classic Talladega last lap pass kind of race until a debris caution came out. It was Tony leading the pack with Dale Jr. right behind him. When the green flag was thrown, it was on. Dale Jr. pulled out and looked like he was going to take the lead. But in the race fan’s opinion, he went a little too soon. Of course I am a little biased because my boy was leading. But Tony wanted this win. He had not see victory lane at Talladega in either the Nationwide car or his Cup car. After all the talk across the world wide web with Smoke talk, it was Tony’s time to see the checkers at Dega. Oh yea…he won it from the pole!
And where does Tony start in tomorrow’s race? That would be 2nd. Way to go Front Row Joe!
Of course, Talladega is famous for the Big One and today was no different. Kevin LePage was coming out of the pits and trying to merge with the racers on the track. From what I understand from the merging rule, he came up onto the check too soon and the melee began. The intial impact was very violent. It was scary. I saw the post crash race interview with Kevin Lepage. Now, this is from my own viewpoint as a race fan and this my own personal opinion, so if you are a Kevin Lepage fan, I’m sorry. This wreck was his fault. From his interview, he seemed like he was not taking responsibility for the wreck. Even the guys in the booth were saying he made a mistake. I hope in tomorrow’s driver meeting, the NASCAR bosses explain the merging rule so a wreck like today doesn’t happen tomorrow.
And how ’bout David Stremme finishing 2nd behind Smoke.
Even though tomorrow is Postman’s birthday, we will be watching the race. We are not having his party until later in the day and perhaps the race will be over so the non-NASCAR friends of course will be able to enjoy themselves. But hey…a little NASCAR never hurt anyone.
I have had about 24 hours to digest all of this about Tony.
There was one point yesterday, I am like who cares who Tony drives next year or the year after that. I will follow him whereever he goes…that it’s. And yes, even if a spot opens up at the HMS and that is where he goes so be it. And like Junior fans did this year, I will buy all new stuff and still cheer on my driver even if he is no longer with JGR and driving the #20 Home Depot Car, because it comes down to the fact that Tony’s my driver period end of discussion.
We all know how things get started in NASCAR. One little remark or comment by someone “close to the situation” can become much ado about nothing. There is only one person who knows what Tony is planning to do and that is Tony.
So this Tony fan is behind Tony on whatever path he chooses.
To all you Stewart fans out there don’t panic…as of yet. While driving home yesterday, I caught the tail end of this story on Sirius Speedway so I decided to check it further.
Of course as always I head on over to Jayski’s to find out more information regarding this news tidbit. I just wanted to check things out to see what other details are available. According to Sports Illustrated, Tony may be shopping for another team, more specifically Haas CNC, next year. According to the “sources” close to the situation, he would be given the opportunity to have some percentage of ownership with the team. However, Tony’s PR man Mike Arning was very, shall we say for argument sakes, avoiding the matter at hand. According to Arning, Tony is with JGR the rest of this year and next year. He has a contract with JGR through 2009. And plus JGR is interested in signing Tony beyond the 2009 season. JGR wants Tony to retire with them.
We all know that if a driver wants to be release from his contract with his current team it can happen. I mean all you have to do is look Jamie McMurray and Kurt Busch. So if Tony wanted out of his contract, say at the end of this year, it might could happen. You never know what really goes on behind closed doors. I mean look at the Busch/Earnhardt deal from last year. I think I recall at one time Rick Hendrick stated he was not interested in Earnhardt, but yet who is Earnhardt driving for this year?
Would this be a good move for Tony? I really don’t know. If he were to move to Haas CNC, he would be given the opportunity to be partial car owner of Cup team. He would return to driving a Chevy which has been the only manufacturer he has driven for until this year. Tony’s open wheel sprint car teams drive GM products. HMS does provide the motors to Haas CNC. However, Haas CNC has not been tearing up the circuti these days. The #66 is currently 28th in the driver and owner standings, while the #70 is outside the top 35. The #70 has had a revolving door of drivers this season. Jeremey Mayfield started out the season as the driver for the car, but was released on April 8. Immediately Johnny Sauter was hired to drive the #70 at Phoenix. Oh by the way, Sauter was the previous driver of the #70, but was let go and replaced by Mayfield . It was announced yesterday that Max Papis will race the road races this season and Ken Schrader will drive it this weekend.
I think is going to one of those news items that has some meat to it. I guess we will just have to wait and see.
Once again I am upset with the outcome of the race. Tony had the car to beat on Sunday. He once again lead the most laps at Bristol and once again didn’t win the race. I don’t blame Kevin for the spin out. It was just racing. All bets are off when it comes to the last few laps in a race. I have to admit it was a little boring…just a little. It was pretty cool to have the RCR drivers finish 1 (Burton), 2(Harvick), 3(Bowyer).
Congratulations to Jeff Burton. I really like Jeff Burton. He’s one of those drivers you can’t dislike. I am sure there are people out there who don’t like him. There are even those who don’t like Mark Martin. That’s right, there was a caller to the NASCAR channel who stated he didn’t like Martin. Thought he was whiner. I don’t know what kind of wacky weed he had been smoking, but as I say everyone is entitled to their opinion. Burton is one of the drivers who will race you clean and if you jack him up is not afraid to confront you about it…just ask Clint Bowyer, his own teammate.
I didn’t get a chance to listen to Smoke’s show on Sirius tonight. He is having his back waxed as part of fundraiser for Victory Junction. This has been a year in the making. Donations were collected on KHI website from fans and I believe Kevin Harvick chipped in the rest of it. This is definitely one time Tony is taking one for the team. His back should be all nice and smooth now. Now what can we do to get his hair chopped?
Bristol was the last points race for Dale Jarrett. He will race one last time at the All-Star race in May, but as of Sunday he is retired. He can now focus on his broadcasting duties for ESPN. It is a driver who has the respect from his fellow drivers and fans alike. I for one will miss seeing him on the track. I will also miss his UPS commercials. My favorite…the one where the little boy is with his father and they are watching the cars on the track. The truck zooms by and he goes flying in the air albeit holding his father’s hand. Also, the last one where he gets to “race”. Thanks Dale!
The boys are off this weekend to enjoy the Easter weekend, but will soon be back short trackin’ it at Martinsville.Hope everyone had a Happy St. Patty’s Day!
Trixie's Trailer Park 
