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Week of 6/4/06
Stewart needs no help at Pocono
Tony Stewart says he's feeling better and will drive his #20 car all weekend long, including practices, qualifying, and the race at Pocono. As of right now Joe Gibbs Racing does not have a relief driver planned like last weekend when Ricky Rudd was already lined up and ready to go. June 7, 2006
Awesome Bill adds 3 more races
Bill Elliott will run in 3 more races this year for Team Red Bull. Elliott will race the #83 at Charlotte, Atlanta, and Texas which is on top of the 5 races he's scheduled to run in the #00 for Michael Waltrip. Red Bull Racing is a new team that will field Toyota Camry's in 2007. June 7, 2006
TESTING | INFINEON
Teams at the track this week include Carl Edwards, Reed Sorenson, Kyle Busch and Clint Bowyer, all getting some extra seat time turning left, and right. Road-race ace Boris Said was also on hand coaching Edwards who finished 38th in last years event.
June 7, 2006
That shock will cost you $1k...son
Crew Chief for the #33 Busch car Wally Rogers was fined $1000 for a violation relating to the right rear shock on the car. The car is owned by Kevin Harvick and Ron Hornaday drove it this past weekend. June 7, 2006
Stremme to run Pocono ARCA race
David Stremme will drive the Coors Light Dodge in this weekend's ARCA series race in Pocono. David said “This will be my first time at Pocono so the more seat time I can get the better." Check out the race Saturday on Speed.
June 7, 2006
TESTING | KENTUCKY
Just a couple of cars at the track testing their setups. Dave Blaney and his #22 Dodge, and Ken Schrader in the #21 for Wood Brothers Racing. June 7, 2006
POINT STANDINGS | BUSCH & TRUCK
BUSCH SERIES
5 Kyle Busch
4 J.J. Yeley
3 Clint Bowyer
2 Carl Edwards
1 Kevin Harvick lost a bit last week, but still leads by 297
TRUCK SERIES
5 David Starr
4 Johnny Benson
3 David Reutimann
2 Ted Musgrave
1 Todd Bodine is up by 76 June 7, 2006
Did you notice a few things this weekend?
First Jimmie Johnson came from 2 laps down, and a spin to finishing 7th! Amazing.
Kyle Busch did triple duty, with 3 top 10's
In the Cup race, Roush Racing finished 1-2, Richard Childress Racing finished 3-4, and Hendrick Motorsports wound up 5-6....pretty weird.
And finally Jamie McMurray turned 30 years old on Saturday, and came up one spot short of his second career Cup win. June 6, 2006
POINT STANDINGS | CUP SERIES
10 Kyle Busch
9 Jeff Gordon
8 Kevin Harvick
7 Jeff Burton up 1 spot
6 Kasey Kahne
5 Tony Stewart dropped a spot
4 Dale Earnhardt Jr.
3 Mark Martin
2 Matt Kenseth is 74 behind the leader
1 Jimmie Johnson June 6, 2006
Race Run-Down - Cup
Race Recap: Kenseth Battles Teammate McMurray for Win at Dover
DOVER, DE. -- Former NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series champion Matt Kenseth saved the best for last Sunday and passed Jamie McMurray with three laps to go to win the Neighborhood Excellence 400 at Dover International Speedway.
Kenseth raced side by side with McMurray before dipping low between the third and fourth turns to zip past McMurray, who finished second ahead of hard-charging Kevin Harvick.
The stage for the three-car shootout was set when the final caution of the day put McMurray in front of the pack with Harvick right behind. Kenseth re-started the final 51-lap showdown from fifth spot and gradually worked his way around Jeff Burton, who finished fourth, and Kyle Busch, who finished fifth.
Rounding out the top 10 were points leader Jimmie Johnson, who once again managed an outstanding end to a dismal, bad-luck day by taking sixth position.
Kasey Kahne was seventh, Greg Biffle eighth, Mark Martin ninth and Dale Earnhardt, Jr., 10th.
Early race leader Jeff Gordon was 12th behind rookie Denny Hamlin.
Johnson's charge to a sixth-place finish came after he started from the rear of the field, lost several laps due to an accident with David Stremme, but literally drove the wheels off his Chevrolet to manage a top 10 finish.
The first 200 laps of this "Monster" race saw the lead change hands several times with pole winner Newman, Gordon, Kenseth and others taking turns at the front of the pack.
The biggest cheer erupted when injured Tony Stewart was helped out of the Home Depot Chevrolet and replaced by veteran Ricky Rudd after 38 laps. Stewart suffered a painful scapula injury last weekend at Lowe's Motor Speedway and elected to have a relief driver for this grueling, 400-lap event over Dover's high-banked, one-mile, concrete oval aptly nicknamed "The Monster Mile." Rudd ran in the middle of the pack in the early stages of the race after replacing Stewart but was penalized for exiting pit road too fast shortly after a green flag pit stop on lap 209. He lost several laps to the leader as a result of the penalty. Rudd went on to finish 25th. June 4, 2006
Race Run-Down - Busch
Race Recap: Jeff Burton wins StonebridgeRacing.com 200 at Dover
DOVER, Del. (June 3, 2006) – Jeff Burton won Saturday’s StonebridgeRacing.com 200 at Dover International Speedway, his second NASCAR Busch Series win of the season. Carl Edwards finished second, followed by Kurt Busch, Clint Bowyer and Ron Hornaday in fifth place. After starting the race from the 34th position, Burton’s 22nd career NASCAR Busch Series victory was also the biggest come-from-behind win in series history at Dover.
Series points leaders Kevin Harvick and Edwards began the race on the front row, after Busch Pole qualifying was rained out and the field was set according to the point standings. Harvick led the first six laps before yielding to Edwards and eventually drifting back to the fifth position as Denny Hamlin, Bowyer and Kyle Busch charged ahead.
A minor accident on lap 32 slowed the field as three cars tangled in turn two. Edwards led on the restart before two more brief caution periods ensued, to clear debris from the track.
With racing underway once again on lap 50, Hamlin, Edwards and Kyle Busch began a fierce three-way battle for the lead with Hamlin emerging at the front for a few laps – until Busch and Edwards drove past on lap 55.
Steve Wallace and Regan Smith brought out two more caution flags after two more spins on the 56th and 61st laps and Kyle Busch pulled away from Edwards on the next restart. Meanwhile, Burton was making rapid progress and was up to seventh place by the 78th lap.
As Burton continued his drive towards the top five, Edwards caught up to Busch and re-gained the lead on lap 82.
By the halfway point, Bowyer led while Edwards and Kyle Busch raced in the second and third positions. Burton had advanced to fifth and Kurt Busch, who started 30th, was up to seventh.
A spin by Jon Wood resulted in the race’s sixth caution period and Bowyer won the race off pit road to remain in the lead while Edwards, Burton, Kyle Busch and Harvick restarted in the top five. Edwards returned to the lead for the third time before the seventh caution period came out for a spin by Steve Park with 50 laps remaining.
Bowyer, Burton, Kyle Busch, Hornaday and rookie Aric Almirola did not pit during the caution and restarted the race up front before another caution period began for a multi-car accident on the front stretch.
The race restarted with 37 laps remaining and the leaders’ decisive pit strategy was put to the test as the top four drivers had not received fresh tires on the previous caution.
Kurt Busch restarted third and drove past Bowyer for the lead with 31 laps remaining while Burton followed into the second position two laps later. Busch and Burton waged a thrilling, side-by-side battle for the lead over the next 10 laps while Edwards, who had pitted for fresh tires, ran third. Burton’s charge to the front was complete with 18 laps remaining, as he gained the lead while Edwards followed him past Busch and into second.
With his victory, Burton moved into a tie for fourth place on the NASCAR Busch Series’ all-time win list with 22 victories. He shares that ranking with Sam Ard and Tommy Ellis.
The NASCAR Busch Series continues its 25th season June 10 at Nashville Superspeedway. June 4, 2006
Race Run-Down - Trucks
Race Recap: Roush Trucks Finish 1, 2 at Dover
Mark Martin continued his domination of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series on Friday scoring a 3.052-second victory over Roush Racing teammate Carl Edwards in the AAA Insurance 200 at Dover International Speedway.
The victory was Martin’s third of the 2006 season and fourth overall dating to 1996 at the old North Wilkesboro Speedway.
Martin completed the first sweep of NASCAR’s three national series at the Monster Mile where he previously won four NASCAR NEXTEL Cup and one NASCAR Busch Series races.
Martin, who led four times for 86 laps in his Scotts Ford, took the lead for the final time on the 165th lap. He blasted past Budweiser Pole starter David Reutimann’s Team Tundra Toyota entering Turn 3 following the final of four cautions.
Martin then stretched the advantage as Edwards – twice going to the rear of the field – slashed his way through traffic. The latter driver’s Scotts/Ortho Ford took the No. 2 spot on the 199th of 200 laps, passing former series champion Mike Bliss in Turn 4 traffic.
Martin, who won $56,575, averaged a Dover record 120.200 mph in a virtually caution-free race. The four caution periods consumed just 18 laps – both Dover lows – in a race delayed an hour 21 minutes by a late afternoon thunderstorm.
The winner was the second member of the Roush stable to win at Dover joining former NASCAR NEXTEL Cup teammate Kurt Busch, winner of the inaugural race in 2000.
“This thing, we didn’t qualify that well but I told them we set it up to race and it raced well,” said Martin, who started 13th – deepest in the field.
Finishing behind Edwards was series point leader Todd Bodine, who battled past fourth-finishing Bliss on the final lap. Reutimann was fifth followed by Johnny Benson, Ron Hornaday Jr., Rick Crawford, Jack Sprague and Kyle Busch.
Busch suffered misfortune while leading at lap 133 when NASCAR officials flagged him to pit road to repair a broken hood pin. The defending race winner exited a lap down in 21st but got his lap back when the final caution waved. He drove his National Land Liquidations Chevrolet from 18th to the top 10 over the final 36 laps.
Five drivers traded the lead 10 times.
Bodine, who headed Germain Racing teammate Ted Musgrave by 20 points entering the eighth of 25 events, stretched his advantage to as Musgrave finished a lap behind in 18th.
The series next moves to Texas Motor Speedway for next Friday’s Sam’s Town 400 June 4, 2006
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