I know, it sounds far fetched but how cool would it be to see a Petty back in Victory Lane?  Do you know when the last Petty Enterprises car won a race?  Back in 1999, John Andretti won the spring Martinsville race driving the #43 STP.  I can’t really remember the details of the race but that’s a heck of a long time.  Shoot, I even had to look it up to find out when it was.

Now, you might ask, if we all agree that Petty in Victory Lane is far fetched, why did I even bring up the possibility?  Well, as we all know, NASCAR is a sport of momentum.  Last year, Kyle led 4 laps at Kansas.  Now, I don’t remember the circumstances but I did look up the stat.  So far this season, he hasn’t led any laps.  Most importantly, Kyle will be attending a press conference on Friday morning to discuss the progress of the Victory Junction Gang Camp in Kansas City.  I don’t know that I’ve ever seen anyone as passionate about a cause as Kyle is about Victory Junction.  Maybe Kyle’s passion for Victory Junction, combined with his past performance at Kansas can equal momentum.

I know all this doesn’t translate into a victory or even a top 35 finish but here’s where my mind is.  I have always been a huge fan of the Petty’s.  Both The King, Richard and Kyle, are on my list of people I’d most like to meet and sit and talk with.  Richard’s last win was in 1984 and Kyle’s eleven years later in 1995.  That was a whopping 24 and 13 years ago respectively.  Believe it or not, the King has been retired since 1992.  Thinking back, it only seems like yesterday but the current fans have never seen a Petty in victory lane.  I would even bet that many don’t even know who Richard is and if they do, they don’t even know why he’s the King.  Shoot, I would even go further and bet that a great number of the fans today think that Jeff Gordon is the greatest driver ever.  Now before the hate mail starts, I know and agree, the greatest drivers ever are Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt,  I can actually name about 10 other drivers greater, in my mind, than Gordon.  Nothing against him but you have to look at the entire history of NASCAR when you consider the greatest drivers.

I am concerned that with Kyle sitting some races out, he may be getting ready to leave driving all together.  I personally can’t imagine a NASCAR without a Petty.  It would almost be like a Christmas without Santa.  Before that horrible thought becomes reality, I would like to see a Petty back in victory lane, even if it’s just one more time.  It would especially mean a lot for it to be the number 45 car in memory of Adam Petty with Kyle driving.  I’ll even take a pit strategy or fuel mileage win.  I’m not too picky.  If that ever happens, and you just happen to be near me, you might just see a grumpy old guy shed a few tears himself.

While we’re talking about it, please check out the Victory Junction Gang Camp and support it if you can.  It’s really an incredible cause.

(Photo credit: Worth Canoy of VPS Motorimages)

It’s official.  After months of rumor and speculation, Red Bull Racing announced that AJ Allmendinger is out for ‘09.  I’m kind of sad to see Allmendinger go.  Kid had talent and he’s marketable.  Here’s the official announcement from Red Bull Racing.

Red Bull Racing Team and driver AJ Allmendinger have agreed to part ways for the 2009 NASCAR
Sprint Cup Series season.  Allmendinger is in his second NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season driving
the No. 84 Red Bull Toyota, which currently sits 34th in owners’ points.

“AJ is a talented driver and we really enjoyed working with him,” said RBRT Vice President and
General Manager Jay Frye. “He’s come a long way in just two years and we wish him nothing but
the best.”

In an effort to continue the development of the No. 84 team, Red Bull athlete Mike Skinner will
drive the No. 84 Red Bull Toyota during this week’s Lowe’s Motor Speedway open test.  Skinner has
been called upon by RBRT on multiple occasions since the team’s 2006 NSCS entrance, including a
five-race stint in the No. 84 earlier in the 2008 season, as well as mentor duties for both
Allmendinger and Red Bull development driver Scott Speed. Skinner will round off a three-car test
for Red Bull Racing Team alongside Red Bull development driver Scott Speed in the No. 82, and
Brian Vickers in the No. 83.

Red Bull Racing Team will make an announcement regarding the 2009 driver lineup at a later date.

       CONCORD, N.C. (Sept. 22, 2008) – One lucky fan is guaranteed to have
an unforgettable experience on Friday night, Oct. 10, at Lowe’s Motor
Speedway when they drive away in a brand new 2008 Toyota Tundra following
the Dollar General 300 NASCAR Nationwide Series race.
       “This is just another way Lowe’s Motor Speedway is setting the
standard in putting fans first,” said Marcus Smith, president and general
manager of Lowe’s Motor Speedway. “The Dollar General 300 is a great event
and for one lucky fan, that evening is going to be even more memorable.”
       The contest winner will be presented the keys to the Tundra prior to
the start of the Dollar General 300 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. The truck,
donated by Braun Racing and Great Clips, is a red, 2008 Toyota Tundra
regular cab with a 5.7-liter V8 and 18-inch steel wheels.
       Fans can enter the contest in one of three ways before 11:59 p.m. on
Oct. 7 by purchasing or having purchased a ticket to the Dollar General 300;
by completing an entry form available at the Lowe’s Motor Speedway ticket
office; or by completing an entry form online at www.lowesmotorspeedway.com.
Contestants must be present on Oct. 10 to win. Contest details are available
at www.lowesmotorspeedway.com.
       Tickets for the Dollar General 300 on Friday evening, Oct. 10, start
at $17. Tickets can be purchased online at www.lowesmotorspeedway.com or by
calling the speedway ticket office at 1-800-455-FANS.

According to a release by Hendrick Motorsports, Brad Keselowski will be making his Sprint Cup debut at Lowes Motor Speedway in the October 11^th Bank of America 500. He will be driving the number 25 GoDaddy Chevrolet. A few weeks later, on November 2^nd, he’ll be doing it again at the Dickie’s 500 in Texas. Keselowski is currently third in the Nationwide points, driving for JR Motorsports. In order to get ready, Keselowski will be driving the car during an open test this week at the Lowes Motor Speedway.

“I’m focused on making the most of these first two races,” Keselowski said. “The Sprint Cup Series has always been a goal, and now it’s up to me to take advantage of the opportunity. I have to thank Mr. Hendrick, Dale Jr. and the folks at GoDaddy.com for showing so much faith in me.”

For full details of the release, check out http://www.hendrickmotorsports.com/news_detail.asp?id=2135&bhcp=1

If you’ve always wanted to take the family out to the races but couldn’t afford it, I would suggest that you check out Rockingham on the first weekend in November.  On November 1st, the Hooters Pro Cup, American 200 will be run at the Rock.  This is the series season finale so the champion and the rookie of the year will all be determined after the race.  Festivities start Friday the 31st with practice, qualifying and a Pit Crew competition.  All this for $10.00 and children under 12 get in free with a paid adult.

Saturday the 1st starts out with tours of the pit areas for $10.00 per person.  Drivers will be signing autographs at 11:30am and all the pre-race festivities kick-off at 12:30pm with the race starting at 1:00pm.  Now, here’s the absolute best part, reserved tickets are only $25.00 and $28.00 depending on where you sit and kids under 12, again, get in free with a paid adult.

Need somewhere to stay while you’re at the race?  Check out this.  Camping in all the outside lots at the Speedway is, you guessed it, free.  Thunder Alley RV slots are $100.00 for a view overlooking the backstretch.

Let’s do the math real quick.  If you’re the average family of four, you would spend $20.00 on Friday.  On Saturday, you’d spend $40.00 for the pit tours if all four of you went plus $56.00 for event tickets for a total of $126.00 plus food, fuel and souvenirs for a race weekend for the entire family.  Wow, that’s not bad even in this economy.

I would urge everyone to schedule some time off in November and take advantage of this chance to check out one of the best tracks around.  If you’re a NASCAR fan, this is one of the original tracks that was all but lost until Andy Hillenburg snapped it from the jaws of death. 

Great racing, family outing and easy on the purse to boot.  All this makes the Hooters Pro Cup, American 200 at Rockingham my top pick for the 2008 season.  Check out the details at www.rockinghamracewaypark.com/.

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Well, the first chase race is now in the books and man what a race it was.  Even with ABC coverage (my local cable company doesn’t have our ABC affiliate in HD), it was a good watch.  Qualifying was rained out so the field was set by points which put Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards on the front row.  Kyle went into the chase first and from the start had problems.  He had mechanical problems and, after a spin, was involved in a crash with Jamie McMurray on lap 84.  His finish put him back in the 8th chase slot.

I was listening to Greg Biffle, Carl Edwards and Jack Roush’s post race press conference and one thing really struck me.  First I should set this up a little.  As I mentioned, Jamie McMurray and Kyle Busch got together, ending Jamie’s day.  Jamie wasn’t the only Roush-Fenway driver to have problems.  Matt Kenseth was taken out also in a crash in lap 220.  During the conference, Jack said that even though Carl and Greg had done so well, he would still have trouble sleeping because of what happened to Matt.  I swear, it’s almost like Jamie doesn’t exist at Roush-Fenway.  It seems that Jack often forgets that Jamie drives for him at least for the time being.  I can only imagine that the reason that Jack neglected to mention Jamie is because he isn’t in the Chase but that’s got to tear the hell out of a teams morale.  I don’t think I’ve heard yet if Jamie is going to be at Roush-Fenway next year. 

Carl and Jimmie are tied in the lead of the Chase with Carl shown in the first slot.  Greg Biffle’s win brought him up to the third slot and you can check out the entire field here.

(Photo Credit: Todd Warshaw/Getty Images for NASCAR)

NASCAR has some great releases that they create in-house and this is one of them.  It’s a quick look at the Chase.  I just had a thought.  Wouldn’t it be cool if Tony Stewart won the Sprint Cup this year?  If he did, he would have a Winston Cup, a Nextel Cup and a Sprint Cup.  Highly unlikely I know but still, it would be cool!

I tried to get this working the other day without success.  Here’s the current standings going into the Chase.

Racing at Richmond never disappoints.  Especially the late summer race at Richmond since it’s the last chance drivers have to get in the chase.  This year was no exception.  After rescheduling to avoid hurricane weather, the Chevy Rock and Roll 400 was an excellent watch. 

I’ve mentioned before that no one covers the races like Fox but, ESPN didn’t do a half bad job.  First of all, props for covering the rescheduled race live.  I was afraid it was going to be a 2:00AM run that was edited down to one hour.  ESPN HD is very nice especially since, sadly, my local Fox affiliate isn’t HD on my cable provider.  

Until the Richmond race today, it was pretty easy to dismiss David Reutiman.  He’s only run 53 races with an average finish of 26th.  Up until Fontana, he had only led a total of 6 laps in his three year career in Nextel/Sprint Cup racing.  He pretty much stays out of the way and runs his own race.  That is until Fontana, where he grabbed his first ever top-ten finish. 

I am a firm believer in the power of bounce.  We see it all the time in the sport.  Sometimes, all a team needs is a win or even a good run for a shot of confidence to spring them forward.  That’s why we see so many winning streaks or at least back to back wins.  The #44 UPS team may be just experiencing a bounce from their 9th place finish in Fontana but I don’t really think so.  For the second week in a row, they’re inside of the top-ten.

It’s relatively easy to grab a couple of lead laps.  Just stay out on a caution for a couple of laps and grab the bonus points.  When a driver is able to stay out front for 104 laps in a 400 lap race, that’s a different story.  That’s what Reutimann was able to do today at Richmond.  I was very impressed with the #44’s run today.  For a bit, I even thought he might just pull off his first Cup win.  Mark my words, this teams win is coming.  I’m not sure it will be this season but I’m betting that by this time next year, Reutimann will have a win or two under his belt.  That would be incredible for Michael Waltrip Racing.  Off the top of my head, I’m not sure if they’ve ever had a win.

I was so impressed with the #44’s run today that I even dedicated a forum to David Reutimann fans which, if he keeps running like this, should keep growing every week.  If you want to check it out, it’s our first real racingfaces.com forum.  Even better than checking it out, jump in and post.  During the off season this year, I plan on doing a lot of work with the forums to get them ready for next season.