Track Talk for the weekend of January 25 - 27
 THE BIG STORY
Also
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
NHRA Powerade Drag Racing Series
Rolex Sports Car Series
Racer of the Week
Yes, He REALLY Said That



THE BIG STORY


Scott Pruett and Juan Pablo Montoya won the Rolex 24 at Daytona for the second consecutive year Sunday, this time teaming with Dario Franchitti and Memo Rojas in a Lexus-Riley. They led about a third of the distance and finished two laps ahead of the Pontiac-Riley of Alex Gurney, Jon Fogarty, Jimmie Johnson and Jimmy Vasser.
Also: The IndyCar Series will utilize four-lap qualifying runs to determine the starting field at all oval races . . . Scott Sharp confirmed his switch from IndyCars to the ALMS Highcroft Acura team.

NASCAR Nextel Cup Series


NASCAR made several announcements: In all three national series, teams not locked into the starting field (by virtue of owner points) will qualify as a group at the end of the regular qualifying session. All fines will be donated to the NASCAR Foundation. Tires available for non-sanctioned tests will be: 200 for Cup teams, 160 in Nationwide, 120 in Trucks. Ken Schrader will drive the No. 49 Dodge at Daytona, replacing John Andretti.


NHRA Powerade Drag Racing Series


Rain washed out Sunday’s third day of the National Time Trials at Firebird Raceway, near Phoenix. Tony Schumacher set the best Top Fuel run Saturday with a 4.480 second, 322.04 mph pass. Ron Capps was best in Funny Car at 4.785, 322.34 mph. John Force was at the track but mechanical issues kept his Ford Mustang sidelined Saturday. Antron Brown qualified for his Top Fuel license. The 17 and 12-year-old sons of Doug Herbert were killed in a car accident Saturday in Cornelius, N.C. Jerry Toliver will drive a Rockstar Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car for Don Schumacher Racing. NHRA added a Sept. 14 event at the new dragway at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

Rolex Sports Car Series


The Ford-Riley of A.J. Allmendinger, Ian James, Burt Frisselle and John Pew was battling leader Juan Pablo Montoya when a tire blew in the 21st hour Sunday at Daytona. Suspension damage knocked it from Rolex 24 contention. At that point Montoya’s Lexus-Riley had a five-lap lead and was able to run an easy pace to the finish. Scott Pruett drove at the end and became Daytona’s winningest sports car driver with three overall victories plus five more in lower classes. Several records were set: Most leading cars – 15; Most lead changes – 60; and most cautions. The winners led 252 of 695 laps and completed 2,460 miles. Third overall was the Pontiac-Riley of Helio Castroneves, Ryan Briscoe and Kurt Busch. The winning average speed was 103.057 mph with 66 starters. In GT, the Mazda RX-8 of Sylvain Tremblay, David Haskell, Nick Ham and Raphael Matos won.


Racers of the Week


Scott Pruett and Juan Pablo Montoya, winners of the Rolex 24 two years in a row.


Yes, He REALLY Said That


John Force, on other Funny Car team owners who are upset about additional costs to build safer cars. "If they're mad at me, then I'm doing my job."

Testing heads west

Written by Administrator & MCF `Space : )   

Jan 27, 2008 at 09:06 PM


DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Jan. 25, 2008) – Soon, NASCAR team transporters will embark on their late-January trek across plains, mountains and deserts – an annual cross-country pilgrimage crucial to a fast start.

For NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NASCAR Nationwide Series teams, the western swing of NASCAR Preseason Thunder – the sport’s annual preseason test sessions – extends some recent learning curves.

Next week, both series test at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, with the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series also testing at California Speedway. Both series are fresh off preseason sessions at Daytona International Speedway; now they head west.

“It’s another test that the teams weighed in on as one of the six NASCAR-sanction tests,” said NASCAR Sprint Cup Director John Darby of next week’s schedule. “Yes, they’re in preparation for the start of the season, but this is plain-old, let-the-teams-go-test.”

Such normalcy is heartening, Darby adds, since NASCAR’s new car debuts fulltime with the 50th Daytona 500 on Feb. 17. NASCAR Sprint Cup teams ran 16 of 36 events in 2007 with the new car – NASCAR now-generation race car – and next week’s tests represent some of its final preparations for fulltime competition.

“The good part of it is we’re not all worried about it,” Darby said, citing extensive new-car testing in the past. “All that’s behind us.”

NASCAR Sprint Cup teams will test Monday, Jan. 28 and Tuesday, Jan. 29 at Las Vegas, and Thursday, Jan. 31 and Friday, Feb. 1 at California. NASCAR Nationwide Series teams will test Wednesday, Jan. 30 and Thursday, Jan. 31 at Las Vegas. Times are 9 a.m. until 5 p.m., with a noon-1 p.m. lunch break each day, except for Thursday, Jan. 31 at California, when NASCAR Sprint Cup teams test from 9 a.m. until 9 p.m. That day’s schedule includes a dinner break from 5-6 p.m.

“I’m not aware of anybody that’s going to switch out the cars,” Darby said, between West Coast sessions. “I think everybody’s gearing-up to bring two cars to Las Vegas and California. And that is a good part about the new car.

According to Darby, teams can adjust their schedules at California, running two sessions on Thursday and Friday, or three Thursday and one Friday, if they prefer.

“They can mix and match it any way they want as long as they run four of the five sessions,” he said.

NASCAR Sprint Cup teams also can use Wednesday’s travel day as a garage work day at California, prior to taking the track Thursday morning.

“The garage at California will be open to the teams for maintenance and prepping the cars,” Darby said. “If someone needs to change an engine and fix shocks and things like that, the garage will be open for them to work.”
CREDIT: NASCAR PR 

NASCAR drivers 1-2-3 for Rolex

Only 18 more days until the Daytona

Written by Administrator-Posted by MCF `Space   

Jan 28, 2008 at 01:39 PM

Video Clips from Las Vegas Motor Speedway - Starting this season, we will be providing video clips from the track to put you in the middle of all the action. So we invite you to check back often, for clips of your favorite drivers!

Dale Earnhardt Jr. on the new cars front splitter

Carl Edwards says this test session is important  

 

Las Vegas Testing - Monday PM 

Stories from LVMS 

Tuesday

The winds calmed down for the testing at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and in the morning session the Roush/Fenway Ford of Carl Edwards was on top with a speed of 184.256mph followed by a couple of Toyotas of David Reutimann and Kyle Busch, then Matt Kenseth with Tony Stewart rounding out the top 5.

A couple of problems that came up during the Tuesday test, Jeff Burton's #31 found the wall after a mechanical failure, he's okay.  Kyle Busch's team found a blistered tire off the #18 machine, but all in all tires are holding up well during the tests.  Teams head further west to test at California Speedway tomorrow and Friday, the Nationwide Series tests today in Vegas.

Monday

Preseason Thunder Cup Series Testing at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and drivers had to battle windy conditions at the track yesterday.  In the morning session Denny Hamlin's Camry  was fastest with a speed of 178.265mph followed by Clint Bowyer, Matt Kenseth, Jeff Gordon, and Kyle Busch. 

Regan Smith had a disagreement  with the wall and wrecked his machine, and his teammate Mark Martin hit a pole mangling the front end of his car while making his way through the garage area.

Teams are getting as much information for these new cars on this 1.5 mile track, and California later in the week, as these two represent the majority of the schedule.  Drivers say these tests are completely different from Daytona testing as they can make more adjustments to the cars.  The rules package for Daytona is so strict that there is only so much you can do, at Las Vegas and California they can adjust things like the shocks and rear wing angles.  Teams are using the same 2 cars for both tests “I’m not aware of anybody that’s going to switch out the cars,” Darby said, between West Coast sessions. “I think everybody’s gearing-up t

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