Submitted by NASCAR Eclectic

Lebanon Valley Speedway
West Lebanon, NY

This track is about an hour and 15 from my house. It offers a full schedule of dirt racing every weekend from the Pro Stock’s to Modified and the World of Outlaws race a couple times a year. Tony Stewart has been here a few times as have some other big name drivers over the years.

I attended the races there last night for the first time and other than a burst of rain, that only made things messy, it was a pretty cool experience. The World of Outlaws are scheduled for 9/21… top row seats are a whopping $25… a 110% increase over a normal Saturday night. There are 1/2 dozen tracks similar to this one all within a couple of hours of each other and the ticket prices are about the same. You’d think these track owners would go broke!! I’ll be attending the 9/21 event.

Tires!! Well… I don’t think we’ve ever seen a race quite like the Brickyard 400. Somehow it did not seem like racing… rather a series of shootout’s. One thing that stood out….. there was only one engine failure. Kudos to E.Sad for a great race today as well as Jamie McMurray and AJ Allmendinger. It’s nice to see some different drivers with good finishes.

I’m liking Smoke’s new digs. The #14 Old Spice / Office Depot seems very fitting. I’ve always favored the Old Spice paint scheme and next year it’ll be on a Cup car.

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Submitted by NASCAR Ranting and Raving Blog

Well, Tony announced his new sponsors for next year along with his team’s car numbers.
When I got to interview Tony a few weeks ago, one of the questions I was going to ask him (but ran out of time) was about his new car number for next year and whether it was going to be the 4 or 14. As it turns out, I was kind of right as he will be driving the 14 himself while his still unnamed teammate will drive the 4 car.

Tony picked the 14 for himself because it was his childhood idol’s number as well. The idol you ask? A.J. Foyt.

He picked the #4 for his other team car because that is the number he started with in go-karts when he was a kid.

I wrote a comparison between Foyt and Stewart over a year ago, and now that things have come full circle (sort of) it is worth a re-read.

Tony also announced that he will have a shared sponsorship program for his car (14) next year. To no one’s surprise they are Old Spice and Office Depot.

Having a multiple sponsorship program for his car is no news to me because, in that same interview from a few weeks ago, I asked Tony about sponsorships in NASCAR nowadays and he replied;

“If you look at the (sponsor) program that Dale Jr has this year, it makes sense. You can’t keep asking the sponsors to keep spending more and more and more, but it costs more and more and more to go racing each year. The program that they’ve got where they’re flopping a couple of sponsors around on a car makes sense to me. Seems like a pretty good formula that’s working good for them over there. I don’t think you’re gonna see one sponsor that can keep affording to spend 20-25 million dollars for the primary sponsorship of a car and have a whole car to themselves anymore. It’s hard for one sponsor to do that, especially when the economy is bad, it’s hard to get the return on your investment. So [multiple sponsors] seems to be the better option for a lot of corporate America right now.”

There you have it. What’s your take?

“Tony and the 14″ Photo by Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images for NASCAR and “Tony with his Dad” Photo by ? - help me out.

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The Allstate 400 this weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway is the 15th running of the event.

I can’t help but get excited about this race for several reasons, especially this year with the new car.

The history that surrounds this track is incredible, and when NASCAR finally made it to “The Brickyard” in 1994, a new chapter in the speedway’s history, as well as NASCAR’s, was opened.

The Indy speedway is a relatively flat rectangle with four distinct corners and nine degrees of banking, two long straight-aways, and two short straightaways.

Handling of the car is going to be essential to a good finish here. And this is the first time the new, and sometimes ill-handling, race car is being raced here.

So, it has potential for some good ‘poor-handling’ storylines.

But if you don’t have a good powerplant, it won’t matter how well your car handles. You have to have a lot of horses to get down the long straights, and good torque to handle the low rpms on the short straights.

Not only that, but if the driver misses his ‘marks,’ or turning points in the corners, the potential for disaster is great, moreso here than anywhere.

Finally, track position is also important, especially on restarts.

Watch for teams to do different pit strategies, like only changing two tires.

Jeff Gordon (24) won the inaugural event in 1994, and then went on to win three more times. He has not gone any longer than a span of four years between wins, and since his last win at The Brickyard was in 2004, he’s due this weekend.

But there are several drivers who will have something to say about Gordon winning his fifth race at Indy. Current point leader Kyle Busch (18) is one of those drivers. Busch has raced there three times and not finished out of the top 10.

Another driver to watch out for is last year’s Allstate 400 champ, and Indiana native, Tony Stewart (20). Stewart is still winless this year, and will be at his best here because the two-time winner considers it his home track.

Two drivers to keep an eye on are former F1 driver Juan Pablo Montoya (42), who finished second last year in his rookie season, and former winner Kevin Harvick (29).

My pick for this year’s Brickyard 400 though is Dale Earnhardt Jr. (88) because he has been really focused this year. I know Earnhardt has only one win this season, but he has been the picture of consistency this year and is second in points to Kyle Busch (18).

Winning at the Brickyard takes more than just having a fast car, and a lead foot. It’s about putting a complete package together, which allows the driver to do his job. And that means doing a good job in the pits, as well as having a driver keep his head about him. And being consistent for every lap. The goal is to make sure his car is still in one piece for the final laps, so that he and his team will still be in contention for the win at the end.

So far this year Earnhardt and his team have best demonstrated these qualities of winning, and that is why Jr. will win the Allstate 400 this weekend.

And in the past 10 years the winner of the race has gone on to win the series championship six times.

If he doesn’t, I prefer my crow to be well-done and West Nile-free.

find the complete article at thespec.com

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Submitted by NASCAR Ranting and Raving Blog

I’ve been out of the loop these last few days as I’ve been really busy enjoying some time with my family doing family-type things. My son finally soloed today on his two-wheeler! He went to bed with a grin a mile wide on his face, and I just checked in on him a few minutes ago and I swear he is still smiling.

Anyway, as I continue to spend some time with my family please bear with me over the next few days or so as I pop in and out of here with brief tidbits of racing carnage from my mind to offer you. Like this:

I’m going to be honest with you, don’t you think this whole Danica Patrick vs Milka Duno thing is a little overblown?
If this were two guys instead of two females this would have over and done with.

Even the Sportsdesk guy from TSN showed his “maleness” with his comment about the verbal banter between these two highly competitive females. I won’t go into what he said, that isn’t important, what is important is that they probably wouldn’t have shown a clip of it, or even talked about it, if it were two guys - unless they were beating the crap out of each other in a fashion similar to Yarborough vs Allison (circa 1979) I guess.

Photo Credit: ogpaper.com

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Submitted by NASCAR Ranting and Raving Blog

We just passed the halfway point in the NASCAR Sprint Cup season, and we are heading into an off-weekend, as the teams gear up for their next race at the Indianapolis Speedway.

NASCAR has even changed the rules for wheelbase measurements to stop teams trying to manipulate the car better in the corners by altering the wheelbase on each side of the car.
Now on to the two bigger stories developing in NASCAR: Kyle Busch’s dominance and Tony Stewart’s leaving of JGR.
Kyle Busch has been on a tear this year. He has won seven Sprint Cup races, five Nationwide Series races (four of those in JGR cars), two Craftsman Truck Series races, and has established himself as the top contender to win the Sprint Cup this year.

Photo Credit: Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images for NASCAR

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Sorry I haven’t been around in a while, there has been some sort of flu-like illness going through the family this week and it was my turn last night. I’m feeling better, but still not 100%.

Anyway, the other night I was channel surfing and I came across this old movie with Annette Funicello, Frankie Avalon, and Fabian called “Fireball 500″. Other than the fact that the main character, Avalon, was drving Richard Petty’s car I found the movie to be pretty good for the time in which it was made (1966).

Avalon was even driving a George Barris original as well, which was cool. One thing to note about the Barris creation was the wrap around head rest that most NASCAR drivers now have in their race machines, although I’m sure the Barris version is more cosmetic than anything, but still interesting to see.

So I got thinking about this movie and thought that this movie had some similarities to the 1990’s movie “Days of Thunder” starring Tom Cruise.

To be honest, I thought that the Fireball 500 was a better movie. I know it was not a well polished as Days of Thunder, but I thought the story line was pretty good and it certainly didn’t have a “Top Gun” feel to it. O.K. there was some singing in it by it’s stars, but I’m sure if Tom Cruise could sing anything else other than “You Lost That Lovin’ Feeling” they would have had him singing as well.

What’s your take?

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Now that Mark Martin and Tony Stewart have made their plans for next year public the driver dominoes are starting to fall a little faster.

Ryan Newman, the driver of the Penske South Racing #12 machine, has officially announced his free agency in the NASCAR driver market.

It has been greatly speculated that Newman will be the second driver, and running mate to Tony Stewart, at the newly formed Stewart/Hass Racing next year.

Newman brings an uncanny ability to run fast during qualifying, thus earning him the nickname of ‘Rocketman’ and if he signs with Stewart/Haas Racing he’ll need that because as of right now the existing cars of that team are sitting out of the top 35 and must make each race on speed.

Newman is also very marketable and can bring with him several potential sponsors as well as suitable employees.

Let’s face it, Newman would be stupid not to consider the possibility of driving at Stewart/Haas next year and you just might find him there too, but consider this for a minute: why wouldn’t Newman drive for Richard Childress Racing in their newly formed and already sponsored number 33 car? Newman is the perfect face for sponsor General Mills.

We’ll just have to wait and see, but I expect most of this ‘Silly Season’ stuff to be over within the next few weeks.

Photo Credit: Getty Images for NASCAR

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Kyle Busch won again this weekend at Chicagoland Speedway. Like him, or not, he is tearing up the NASCAR circuit this year and has put himself solidly as the front runner for the Championship this year.

Kyle has now amassed 70 bonus points that will be awarded at the start of The Chase. That is a lot of points to have headed into the 10 race shoot-out to determine the Sprint Cup Champion.

In fact, Kyle now has a 262 point lead over 2nd place Dale Jr in the overall standings. He can take off the next race and still have the point lead even if Dale Jr won the race and got the most laps lead point bonus.

At this level of competition and in this day and age, that is a pretty good feat.

Now, I’m not going on record here predicting that Kyle will be this year’s Champion. I mean look at what happened to Jeff Gordon last year. Jeff went on a tear during the season - he even had a huge point advantage before The Chase - and ended up loosing the Championship in the final 10 races. I know Jeff didn’t have as many bonus points as Kyle does now, but what happened to him may also happen to Kyle if he isn’t careful.

I also have a feeling that based on Kyle’s aggressive-on-the-verge-of-wrecking driving style and overall negative attitude, he won’t have many allies out there on the track in the final 10 races either - except maybe his teammates, but I don’t see Stewart helping Kyle out if he too is in the hunt for a Championship this year.

None-the-less, whether you might be a fan or a fellow competitor, you can’t turn your back on Kyle Busch because you never know what he is going to do next.

Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images

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Submitted by NASCAR Eclectic

Believe that there are many photo thieves…. feel free to steal this… I hope you like the frame!!

For the rest of you good honest folks… I shot this at Loudon 2 weeks ago. My home track and a place close to my heart. Loudon is as boring a race as there is, but the facility itself is awesome and Bruton Smith is only making it better… my wish is he banks the corners…. make it another Vegas so to speak. Plans already include more seating and new modern restrooms. He’ll never have a problem filling the seats there, as it is by far the best track in the northeastern US, next in line to Dover.

I posted this shot of the #20 because it’s the final season with Smoke behind the wheel. I have a rather large diecast collection and after this past weeks announcement that Tony is leaving JGR I must add this car to my collection. It is many firsts… first year Toyota, COT and the first time Tony has raced something in Cup other than a Chevy. Then it can claim last as well. First and last in the same season. I will wait… my hope is Tony gets a victory and that raced version would be my purchase.

Some Stewart fans are distraught over his choice…I claim to be a fan of his, but I am the “NASCAR Fan Rare Breed”. He is one of several of my drivers of choice. I suppose I am not fanatical. I roll with change fairly well and I see this change as an incredible opportunity. This is where Tony’s heart is at and if one’s heart is in it, the rest will follow. A good example of this is Dale Jr.. With DEI and Mother Teresa out of the picture he has relaxed and his performance has shown dramatic improvement. I realize that equipment plays part of this, yet it cannot be denied that Jr.’s state of mind is allowing him to focus from his heart. Tony only knows where Tony’s heart is at…. but we all know it is with Chevy. That may seem trivial in the scheme of things, but guys do hold “things” as objects of affection. At least he’ll be driving the car he loves. No, it won’t be with Home Depot and we won’t see those silly commercials.

For those of you who are angry, upset, distraught or any other negative emotion… these are self centered feelings based on what you expect. Expectations can be our biggest disappointments in life. It’s much easier to roll with the River. Like that of a drifting twig… the twig knows it has no control over the river currents. It has times of turbulence and times of tranquility, but it only has true problems when it is caught up by resistance. Change is inevitable and acceptance is the key… so go ahead… rear up your heads and buck. I only hope y’all feel better for it.

Chalk up another win for Shrub.

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Submitted by NASCAR Ranting and Raving Blog

This article also includes excerps from my interview with Tony Stewart this week.

Stewart’s luck about to change: After settling his future, he’s a good bet to

come out on top at Chicagoland

This week’s race at Chicagoland Speedway brings with it uncertainty. Uncertainty about the track, uncertainty about the new car of tomorrow (CoT) and uncertainty about the future of driver Tony Stewart (20).
Drivers and their crew chiefs are going to be scratching their heads a lot this week because this race is going to have two firsts: They will be racing at night under the lights for the first time ever at this track, and they will be racing the CoT for the first time ever at this track, as well.

“You value engineers right now, more than ever,” Tony Stewart said in an interview this week. “There is nothing that really translates from the old car (to the new car), especially on the front end because of the less-suspension travel. Now we are running ‘bump rubbers’ (or bump stops that are mandated by NASCAR that limit the amount the shock travels up and down) and all this trick stuff on the front, so it’s quite a bit different than what it has been.”
Since the race is run at night, the track should allow for more traction because the sun is not beating down on it, making it slick. More traction should mean an increase in speed and this could be a problem for teams because Chicagoland has become quite bumpy in the corners.

More traction and greater speeds on a bumpy track, in a new car that has limits on shock-absorber travel, will make for a busy night of racing for some. The team with the engineers who find the best suspension combination for the drivers and crew chiefs to work with will be the one to beat.
Those to look out for this week are: Hendrick Motorsports drivers Jeff Gordon (24), Jimmie Johnson (48) and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (88); Joe Gibbs Racing drivers Kyle Busch (18), Denny Hamlin (18) and Tony Stewart (20); Richard Childress Racing drivers Kevin Harvick (29) and Clint Bowyer (07); and Roush/Fenway drivers Matt Kenseth (17) and Carl Edwards (99).

If you want a dark horse pick, I’d go with either Casey Mears (5) or Brian Vickers (83), but my bet is on Tony Stewart as he has finally settled what he is going to do next year and his team can focus on getting better, making The Chase and winning some races.
Tony is hungry and perhaps had one of his best shots for his first win of the season taken away last week at Daytona as he had to leave the car and allow a substitute driver, J.J. Yelley, to take over the driving duties partway through the race as he was too ill to continue, watching the finish from the infield care centre hooked to IVs trying to rehydrate. So far this year, the only luck Tony has had has been bad luck.
“You can’t do anything different than what we’re doing. We’re doing things right as a team we’re just snake-bitten, having bad luck right now, and there’s nothing you can do about it. You start putting more pressure on yourself if you’re running 30th to 35th each week (alluding to the Top 35 rule) … but, when it’s stuff that is out of your control like a tire going down or somebody turning you around, there’s nothing you can do about that. That’s just bad luck.”
Now that he’s feeling better and he’s decided what he’s doing next year, look for Tony’s luck to change this weekend — providing his car engineers give his crew chief a good suspension package to work with.

This article can be seen at thespec.com.

Photo by Jason Smith/Getty Images for NASCAR

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Tony Stewart was at one of the local Home Depot Stores (350 Centennial Pkwy Hamilton, Ontario) signing autographs for about 700 fans today. After he did that he then met with members of the media, myself and two other guys, and then signed stuff for the employees of Home Depot before leaving for Chicago.

Let me tell you, the PR people running the show did an awesome job.

There were people lining up as early as 5:30 am. Some people even travelled from the US to get a chance to meet Tony.

Tony was in a great mood tonight as well and it appeared to me that he was having a good time meeting the fans and even the media guys.

To the question about his future in racing Tony’s reply was, “I’m gonna shorten’ this up for you real quick. I’m gonna make you do just like everybody else and wait for tomorrow.”

That was the end of the ‘Tomorrow’s Big Announcement’ part of the interview and when it was brought up again in an other way Tony quickly shot the question down and remained cool, although I could tell he was a little bothered by the persistence of the individual in question (not me).

One of the other media guys then asked Tony, “Is it a dream of yours to eventually own your own team?”

Tony’s reply was, “We’ll know tomorrow,” quickly followed by, “I’ve got teams. I’ve got two World of Outlaws sprint car teams, two USAC teams with the two cars in the midget division Silver Crown Division, Sprint Car Division, so between four race teams and three race tracks it keeps me pretty busy.”

I then asked Tony about sponsorship and alluded to his possible sponsorship formula next year using Dale Jr as an example.

Tony’s reply was, “If you look at the (sponsor) program that Dale Jr has this year, it makes sense. You can’t keep asking the sponsors to keep spending more and more and more, but it costs more and more and more to go racing each year. The program that they’ve got where they’re flopping a couple of sponsors around on a car makes sense to me. Seems like a pretty good formula that’s working good for them over there. I don’t think you’re gonna see one sponsor that can keep affording to spend 20-25 million dollars for the primary sponsorship of a car and have a whole car to themselves anymore. It’s hard for one sponsor to do that, especially when the economy is bad, it’s hard to get the return on your investment. So [multiple sponsors] seems to be the better option for a lot of corporate America right now.”

I tried to pin Tony down on who he might have for a Crew Chief next year, now that we know his longtime Crew Chief Greg Zipadelli will not be going with him. I even asked him flat out if he was going to take the Crew Chief of JGR’s #20 Nationwide car, Dave Rogers, with him.

Tony: (laughs) I don’t think you could pry Dave Rogers off of that 20 car right now … they’re one (win) away from tying the record (for wins) in the Nationwide Series and we’re just barely half-way through the season. I don’t think you could take a crowbar and pry Dave away from that program right now. It would be foolish to see him leave right now because they’re having so much success right now.”

I then ask, “In a perfect world, knowing that Zippie and Dave are out of the question, who would top the list of Crew Chiefs that you would want to work with?”

Tony: (laughs) “I don’t even know right now to be honest. I’ve never worked with anybody else so I don’t know. I don’t know who the perfect Crew Chief is really.”

So there you are, make of it what you want. There’s more to the interview and I’ll have that at a later date. I just put up the things that I thought you might find interesting due to the fact that he is having his press conference tomorrow at 2:30 pm to announce his future plans in racing.

I just want to thank Tony for giving us the chance to talk with him. It was certainly a pleasure to interview him and let me tell you, he was great all evening with the fans and media. I even asked him to smile for a picture and he smirked, looked up and gave one of his patent ‘goofy’ smiles. That is the picture that I’ve posted here because I think it exemplifies the whole evening with Tony at the Home Depot, just flat out fun for everyone.

Hey Tony, in case you are reading this I just want to say, from myself and your fans, ‘Thank-you’.

Take Care

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Submitted by NASCAR Eclectic

Or maybe it’s a case of asking and receiving, or ranting and raving, either way the irony is… I wrote that crap yesterday about Newman and Stewart only to wake to an article in Fox NASCAR today… Report: Stewart to be granted release from JGR

I always liked Gene Haas, but he got caught with his hands in the cookie jar. The Fed’s merely slapped his hands with 24 months in the slammer, a gift in comparison to what he could have received. Albeit, it has opened the door for Stewart to buy into Haas CNC Racing where rumors state he will totally revamp the entire organization. He’ll be back in the Chevy Saddle again and give himself the opportunity to remain with NASCAR well into the future.

What’s even more ironic is… rumor has it that Newman has plans to go with Stewart. Smart move… I think?

Joey Logano in the #20… that’ll take some getting used to.

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Finally, those guys at ‘On Pit Row’, Charlie and Steve, had me on their show tonight and I had a blast as always. If you’ve never had a chance to listen to their show you should, they have awesome guests (excluding me of course), it is funny to listen to them cut each other up, and they know their stuff.

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Even without a victory by a Coca-Cola Racing Family driver, Kyle Petty – a founding member of the Coca-Cola Racing Family and analyst in the TNT broadcast booth for the race – announced that in celebration of the inaugural Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway, fans would still be able to receive free Coke Zero.

Any U.S. resident 13 years of age or older can visit www.CokeZero.com through July 13 and follow the instructions to receive a coupon for a free 20-ounce bottle of Coke Zero. Additionally, fans can help support a charity close to the hearts of Coca-Cola Racing Family drivers. Coke Zero will donate $1 to the Victory Junction Gang Camp on behalf of the first 10,000 people who visit CokeZero.com to request a free coupon.

Founded by Petty and his wife Pattie in honor of their late son Adam, the Victory Junction Gang Camp enriches the lives of children with chronic medical conditions or serious illnesses by providing life-changing camping experiences that are exciting, fun and empowering, in a safe and medically sound environment.

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Photo by none other…

With Silly Season now in full swing I wish I were this green eyed Deer Fly. If you’ve ever encountered one of these pesky creatures, you’d know they have the ability to literally get in your hair and any place else they feel like.

There is much happening and many of us “wanna be” flies wish we knew. One example for me is… I want to know what is happening in the Penske camp with Ryan… his contract is up and I’ve heard very little. I suppose I should pay Mike a visit…if anyone has the scoop on Newman, he does. We all know that Sam Hornish should have stayed in Open Wheel and other than Kurt Busch’s luck of the draw and Ryan’s 500 win, things are not looking good for Roger.

Then there’s Smoke… in my opinion he should remain with Gibbs… perhaps a two year renewal will give him enough time to make up his fleeting mind on what his damn future holds. His performance this season is lacking so far and some say it’s because he has too much on his plate… well now… if that is the case how will he perform as an owner/driver?… Get your head out of your ass Tony!!

The smartest decision made is Mark Martin’s. He’s no fool.

More night racing this weekend at Chicagoland…. perhaps Tony can do a repeat!

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Denny Hamlin beat out teammate Kyle Busch to grab his third win of the season and the eighth of his career Saturday at the Nationwide Series Winn Dixie 250 at Daytona.

Denny Hamlin: I didn’t want to happen what did happen, and that was us get out too far. It looked like the 18 took off the same time I did, but it looked like he didn’t want to go, it looked like he was trying to build up a run with the 5. But you know once we pulled about four car-lengths there I just tried to do my best to just ride that —it’s so hard to do — but ride that brake while you’re in the lead to let those guys catch you. Just sit there and let them catch you, but they’ve got to catch you at the right time. You’ve got to put them to a decision. If they catch you in the center of the corner with a big head of steam they need to make a decision. Are they gonna go for the win and sacrifice maybe a good finish, or are they gonna just ride in line and protect what they’ve got. And by doing that in the corner, that’s what decision you make them make, and I think Kyle realized a one-two finish was better than the alternative.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. was third behind Hamlin and Busch.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.: It was fun, I had a good time. The track was real slick; you know we were able to pass more than I thought we would. And Kyle and Denny were real quick, and they handled really really good. I couldn’t run on by like they were, so I really didn’t have many options, I was trying a couple of things and nothing was really working, so it was hard to come up with anything that would have been able to get by them, so. Anybody really, I think, around the top five did a good job cause it was pretty slick out there, but it was a lot of fun.

To hear an audio version of this interview and more about the race at Daytona International Speedway, visit (http://www.nationwide.com/about-us/hamlin-wins-daytona.jsp)

- Courtesy Nationwide Insurance

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On Saturday night I was invited to go to a NASCAR party/BBQ, so I went. Our host and Hostess had a giant screen set up in the yard with a projection unit pointed right at it, and let me tell you, when the sun went down about an hour after the start the picture quality was great.

Until the sun went down we were forced to watch the race on a smaller portable TV on a table. No problem though.

The crowd were from various walks of life ranging from Doctors, to teachers, K-9 control, auto mechanics, NASCAR Collectible store owners, and more, and they were all united in one common cause - watching the race and cheering for their favourite driver(s) - some of us just can’t make up their minds.

It was a good crowd, and, in my opinion, we got to see a good race, well, except for maybe the fact that Kyle Busch won the race - but he did win it fair and square. As much as I don’t like Kyle, I’m glad that Carl ‘Eddie Haskel’ Edwards didn’t win.

Here is my overview of the race in point form:

- Kyle Petty did a great job in the booth. He and Wally should team up and get rid of Webber. I especially liked the fact that Kyle was able to cut himself up and have a laugh about it.

- Kyle Busch has won every time he has a new paint scheme, will someone stop painting his cars differently so other people will win?

- speaking of painting cars, I do realize they ‘wrap’ them in vinyl now-a-days, but there was one car out there that was not ‘wrapped’ and the was Dale Jr’s car. That paint job was really painted, and it looked cool. They’ll make a ton off of the diecast for sure.

- speaking of Dale Jr, I can’t believe that no one, absolutely no one, went with him when he pulled out to go near the end.

- the saying “Cautions breed cautions’ is true, as evident in the last 50 laps.

- NASCAR got it right by not waving the caution flag when Jeff Gordon was spun out. If he didn’t get it started and got himself going then NASCAR would have put out the caution for sure. I was ticked when Jeff got