NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series News & Notes
– Infineon
June 22
* Road warrior: Four-time
series champion Jeff Gordon tough at Infineon Raceway
* A well-rounded skill: Equipment, patience and smoothness key to good road
course performances
* Familiar faces: Boris Said leads list of road-racing specialists at Infineon
* History lesson: Ricky Rudd the first NASCAR NEXTEL Cup winner at Infineon
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (June 21, 2005)
– If it’s late June, that means NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series teams are preparing
for a curve in the road ahead – quite a few, in fact.
This week marks the series’ annual visit to
Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif., a 1.99-mile road course which may function
as a blender when it comes to shaking up the current point standings. NASCAR
NEXTEL Cup teams annually tackle two road courses, once at Infineon and once in
August at Watkins Glen International in New York, and the dips, twists and turns
offer special challenges.
“They were tracks that I thought were a lot of
fun and very challenging,” says Jeff Gordon (No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet) of
road courses, “but it took me a couple of years – and the team a couple of
years – for us to really get everything where it needed to be gearing-wise,
car-wise and driver-wise as far as how hard you can attack and where you need to
be good, and where you need to be smooth.”
As NASCAR’s all-time leader with eight
road-course wins, Gordon is the defending champion of Sunday’s Dodge/Save Mart
350. He’s also battling a recent skid that has bumped him out of the NASCAR
NEXTEL Cup Top 10 and into a fight to make the “Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL
Cup.” Currently he’s 12th in the standings, 406 points behind leader and Hendrick
Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe’s
Chevrolet).
But four-time series champions don’t rattle,
and with the pressure building to make the “Chase,” expect Gordon to use
road-racing excellence to his advantage this week. And not only Gordon; a good
road-course run is crucial for many teams.
Following race No. 26 at Richmond International
Raceway, the top 10 and any driver within 400 points of the leader are eligible
to compete for the championship in the “Chase” – the season’s final 10
races. Road-course performance – or a lack of it – could mean ground gained
or lost in the standings.
Being able to master the moment has proven a key
component for drivers trying to cement themselves in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Top
10, or vault into it.
“The guys who are really good with throttle
control are the guys who are good at Sonoma,” said Tony Stewart (No.
20 Home Depot Chevrolet), the 2002 winner at Infineon. “Guys who are
just used to mashing the gas struggle at Sonoma. It’s one of those tracks that
challenges you physically and mentally and makes you stay on top of your game
all day.”
NEWS AND NOTES, PART II
They Like Road Courses: Martin,
Wallace, Rudd Lead Standout List … Either with the hope of
scaling the standings, or padding one’s position, here’s a look at NASCAR
NEXTEL Cup drivers who excel on road courses:
• Jeff Gordon leads the
list with eight road-course wins. He has four at Infineon and four at Watkins
Glen. Gordon won three consecutive events at Infineon from 1998-2000 and three
straight at Watkins Glen from 1997-99.
• Ricky Rudd (No. 21 Motorcraft
Ford) won the first NASCAR NEXTEL Cup event at Infineon in 1989. He
also won the 2002 race. His other road-course wins have come at Watkins Glen
(1988, 1990).
• Mark Martin (No. 6 Viagra Ford)
has one victory at Infineon, in 1997. He won three straight at Watkins Glen from
1993-95.
• Rusty Wallace (No. 2 Miller Lite
Ford) won the 1990 and 1996 events at Infineon and the 1987 and 1989
events at Watkins Glen.
• Also watch out for Tony Stewart
and Robby Gordon (No. 7 Harrah’s Chevrolet), the other NASCAR
NEXTEL Cup drivers with multiple road-course wins. Stewart has three – 2001 at
Infineon and 2002 and 2004 at Watkins Glen. Gordon has two road-course wins; he
swept both 2003 events.
This Is What It Takes: Drivers’
Road-Course Tips … As with any different venue, road-course
racing both necessitates and negates certain theories and set-ups. The many
turns and changes in elevation are two variables; track position, car control
and mechanical components are other parts of the equation.
“There are a lot of drivers out here today that
can get around road courses,” Ricky Rudd said. “They can be
competitive. And in my interpretation of road racing there is not a right way or
a wrong way. There are schools that tell you the right way. Each driver takes
the proper technique and finds the technique that works for him. And there is
not really a right way or a wrong way.”
There are, however, basics that help a driver
find road-racing comfort. Jeff Gordon cites “wheel
hopping,” where the rear wheels bounce and upset a car’s balance, as
something to avoid.
“The biggest challenge is the downshifting,”
Gordon said. “When you drive in hard into the corners and you’re braking
very, very deep, and then you start downshifting the car, first to get the car
slowed down a little bit more and also to get into the proper gear to come up
off the next corner. It can be very challenging.”
For Rudd, it’s detail – road-course cars
prepared with the same precision that’s applied to teams’ weekly fleets.
“And, the end result is that instead of having
three guys that could win on a weekend, now you have 25 guys that could win,”
Rudd said. “The modern equipment that we have today certainly gives you a
large percentage of racers that are good road racers because of the equipment,
and then there are some that are still good road racers naturally.”
And, Gordon added, don’t forget the fun factor.
“I think one of the fun things is taking the
car left and right through the corners and just feeling the car swing both ways
– driving up over the curbs and the elevation changes,” Gordon said. “I
think that it’s certainly some of the most challenging laps that you’ll make
in these type of cars.”
Road-Course Masters …
Drivers who specialize in road racing are a NASCAR NEXTEL Cup fixture at
Infineon – also a valid barometer for peers looking to improve or measure
road-course skills against a specialist. Three drivers – Boris Said,
Ron Fellows and Scott Pruett – are among the
road-racing gurus competing at Infineon this week.
Said (No. 36 CENTRIX Financial Chevrolet)
has two consecutive sixth-place finishes at Infineon. He’s also now a regular
part of the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup garage. Sunday’s Dodge/Save Mart 350 should be
Said’s fifth start this season; he plans to run 13 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup races
this season for MB/Sutton Motorsports as a teammate to Joe
Nemechek (No. 01 U.S. Army Chevrolet) and Scott Riggs (No. 10
Valvoline Chevrolet).
Pruett (No. 39 Texaco/Havoline “Shine
On” Dodge), a Sacramento, Calif., native, also is no stranger to the
NASCAR NEXTEL Cup garage. He has 36 series starts dating back to 2000, including
four at Infineon. Last year, he finished third in the Dodge/Save Mart 350 behind
Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates teammate Jamie
McMurray (No. 42 Texaco/Havoline “Shine On” Dodge).
Fellows, a native of Windsor, Ontario, Canada,
has competed in 11 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup events. He finished second at Watkins Glen
last year while driving a third entry for Dale Earnhardt Inc.
This week, he’ll drive the No. 32 Tide Chevrolet for owner Cal
Wells III, stepping in for Bobby Hamilton Jr., for one
event.
Other drivers with road-course experience who
plan to compete this weekend are Sonoma, Calif.-native Chris Cook (No.
87 NEMCO Motorsports Chevrolet), Tom Hubert (No. 27 Freddie B’s Ford)
and Brian Simo (No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet).
Edwards An Infineon Factor? Stay
Tuned … NASCAR NEXTEL Cup newcomer Carl Edwards (No.
99 Office Depot Ford) has surprised many in the NASCAR world with his
energetic performances, and this weekend offers another such opportunity.
Edwards is scheduled to run his first NASCAR NEXTEL Cup road-course race, and
only the second such event of his young career. It also will be Edwards’ first
event at Infineon Raceway.
Recent history is on his side: The last time
Edwards competed on a track for the first time, he won, two weeks ago at Pocono
Raceway. He also finished third in the NASCAR Busch Series’ Telcel MOTOROLA
200 presented by Banamex on March 6 in Mexico City – his only other
road-course competition.
“Once you point it out, it's like putting a
duck in the water,” said road-racing specialist Boris Said,
of his coaching work with Edwards and other NASCAR NEXTEL Cup peers. “They
just know how to swim. Most of them picked it up really well. The example, Carl
Edwards, he never road raced in his life and he spent a couple of days at VIR
(Virginia International Raceway) and we went down to Mexico and he's the fastest
car there. Good drivers pick it up pretty quick.”
Edwards is running a fulltime schedule in the
NASCAR NEXTEL Cup and NASCAR Busch Series, and this weekend marks the third
straight week he’ll do double-duty at separate venues. He plans to run the SBC
200 at The Milwaukee Mile on Saturday prior to Sunday’s Dodge/Save Mart 350 at
Infineon Raceway.
Doing Research: Southwest Series
Offers Valuable Seat Time … Prior to Sunday’s Dodge/Save
Mart 350, the NASCAR AutoZone Elite Division, Southwest Series will take the
spotlight. Saturday’s Blue Lizard Australian Suncream 200 not only offers
regional competitors an opportunity to gain experience and exposure before a
NASCAR NEXTEL Cup audience, but also a valuable outlet for NASCAR NEXTEL Cup
drivers.
Kyle Busch (No. 5 Kellogg’s Chevrolet),
Travis Kvapil (No. 77 Kodak-Jasper Engines Dodge), Hermie Sadler, Boris Said
and Michael Waltrip (No. 15 NAPA Chevrolet) are all scheduled
to compete in Saturday’s Southwest Series race. Said will drive Ken
Schrader’s No. 99 Southwest Series car. The Southwest Series has
raced at Infineon since 1987, with Ron Hornaday Jr., Schrader, Kurt
Busch (No. 97 Crown Royal Ford) and Kevin Harvick (No. 29 GM
Goodwrench Chevrolet) collecting victories.
This Week’s Series Leaders
… Through 15 races of the 36-race NASCAR NEXTEL Cup season:
• Points leader – Jimmie Johnson.
Total: 2,173
• Money won – Jeff Gordon. Total: $3,887,248
• Laps led – Greg Biffle. Total: 953
• Miles led – Greg Biffle. Total: 1,304.78
• Victories – Greg Biffle. (5)
• Poles – Ryan Newman. (5)
• Top-five finishes – Jimmie Johnson. (7)
• Top-10 finishes – Jimmie Johnson. (11)
• Races led – Greg Biffle. (11)
• Weeks in Top 10 – Jimmie Johnson. (15)
Ford Leads Chevrolet In
Manufacturers Standings … After 15 races in the NASCAR
NEXTEL Cup Series season, Ford got its eighth victory of 2005 last Sunday thanks
to Greg Biffle’s (No. 16 National Guard-Post It Ford) win at
Michigan International Speedway. The win also gave Ford its first lead of the
season in the series’ Manufacturers Championship standings, with Dodge running
third with one win. Ford leads Chevrolet, which has six wins, by a 108-106
margin; Dodge has 67 points. … Chevrolet has won the Manufacturers
Championship 28 times while Ford has won 15 times; the other 10 years the
championship has been awarded, it has been won by Hudson (3), Dodge (2), Buick
(2), Oldsmobile (1), Pontiac (1) and Plymouth (1). … Points are earned in this
fashion: Nine points to the highest-finishing car type; six points to the
second-highest finishing type; four points for the third-highest finishing type.
… Chevrolet has won the championship the last two years. … Jimmie
Johnson is currently the leading Chevrolet driver, as the series point
leader. Greg Biffle, second in points, is the top Ford driver. Ryan
Newman (No. 12 Alltel Dodge) is the leading Dodge driver, seventh in
the points.
Owner Points Update: Top 35
Heading to Infineon … Beginning in 2005, teams outside the
top 35 in owner championship points must qualify on speed for each
week’s 43 starting spots. The top-35 designation guarantees a spot. Beginning
with the season-opening Daytona 500 and running through the Bristol race on
April 3, the top 35 in 2004 owner points was the yardstick. Beginning with the
Martinsville race on April 10, the current top 35 became the yardstick.
This week’s top-35 situation
follows:
* No. 30 – Jeff Green (No. 43
Cheerios/Betty Crocker Dodge). Owner: Richard Petty.
Points: 1,333.
* No. 31 – Kyle Petty (No. 45 Georgia-Pacific/Brawny Dodge).
Owner: Kyle Petty. Points: 1,314.
* No. 32 – Travis Kvapil. Owner: Doug Bawel.
Points: 1,313.
* No. 33 – Ricky Rudd. Owner: Glen Wood.
Points: 1,235.
* No. 34 – Scott Wimmer (No. 22 Caterpillar Dodge). Owner: Bill
Davis. Points: 1,204.
* No. 35 – Mike Wallace (No. 4 Lucas Oil Chevrolet). Owner: Larry
McClure. Points: 1,156.
* No. 36 – Jason Leffler (No. 11 FedEx Chevrolet). Owner: J.D.
Gibbs. Points: 1,101.
* No. 37 – Bobby Hamilton Jr. (No. 32 Tide Chevrolet). Owner:
Cal Wells III. Points: 996.
* No. 38 – Kevin Lepage. (No. 37 Underdog Dodge). Owner: John
Carter. Points: 949.
* No. 39 – Robby Gordon. Owner: Jim Smith.
Points: 797.
* No. 40 – Mike Garvey (No. 66 Peak Fitness Ford). Owner: Jeff
Stec. Points: 725.
On the Right Track
• Jeff Gordon and Ricky
Rudd lead all active drivers with four Bud Poles each at Infineon.
• Gordon is the all-time NASCAR leader with 361 laps led in 12 races at
Infineon.
• Mark Martin’s 13 top-10 finishes at Infineon leads
all drivers.
• Ricky Rudd leads all drivers with nine top-five
finishes at Infineon.
From the Archives: Rudd Wins First
NASCAR Race at Infineon … The NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series made
its inaugural trip to Infineon Raceway in 1989, marking the series’ first
return to northern California since Eddie Gray won a 100-mile
race at Sacramento’s California State Fairgrounds in 1961.
The first Infineon event was 300 kilometers
covering 74 laps over the then-2.52 mile course. Along with the regular NASCAR
stars, several West Coast competitors entered the event including the legendary Hershel
McGriff, West Coast champions Bill Schmitt and Roy
Smith, and road course specialist Darren Brassfield.
Rusty Wallace took the pole, but
it was Ricky Rudd, driving Kenny Bernstein’s
Buick, who led the most laps and won the event by a margin of just .05 of a
second over Wallace. Bill Elliott and Dale Earnhardt
finished third and fourth, with Lake Speed rounding out the top
five.
TV Timeout: The Week Ahead for
NASCAR TV on SPEED Channel (Unless otherwise noted)
• NASCAR Nation
– Monday through Thursday 7 p.m. ET and PT; hosted by Ralph Sheheen
and Krista Voda, with Courtney George, Connie LeGrand,
Michelle Fizer, John Willenborg and NASCAR.com’s Marty Smith.
Check out special segments like “Beyond the Wheel” on SPEED’s nightly
program.
• Thursday, June 23 – Mobil
High-Endurance Charity Poker Challenge (9 p.m. ET). Ryan
Newman, Travis Kvapil, Helio Castroneves, Sam Hornish Jr., Richard Childress,
Kenny Wallace and others play for charity. Appearance by World Series
of Poker champion Chris Moneymaker.
• Friday, June 24 – NASCAR
Live updates from the track with Steve Byrnes, John
Roberts and Bob Dillner at 5 p.m. ET.
• Friday, June 24 – NASCAR
NEXTEL Cup Series qualifying (6 p.m. ET LIVE) from Infineon.
• Friday, June 24 – NASCAR
Craftsman Truck Series’ Toyota Tundra Milwaukee 200 (9 p.m.
ET LIVE) from Milwaukee.
• Friday, June 24 – Trackside
(11:30 p.m. ET) with Steve Byrnes, Jeff Hammond, Larry McReynolds
and Darrell Waltrip talk up the weekend’s events with
scheduled guests Ron Fellows, Kurt Busch and Scott
Pruett. The SPEED Channel stage truck will be located outside the main
grandstands.
• Saturday, June 25 – NASCAR
Live updates from the track with Steve Byrnes, John
Roberts and Bob Dillner at noon ET.
• Saturday, June 25 – NASCAR
Busch Series qualifying (6 p.m. ET LIVE) from Milwaukee.
• Saturday, June 25 – NASCAR
Busch Series SBC 250 (9:05 p.m. ET LIVE on FX) from Milwaukee.
• Saturday, June 25 – NASCAR
Performance (1:30 p.m. ET) from Infineon.
• Sunday, June 26 – NASCAR
This Morning (11 a.m. ET LIVE) with John Roberts, Jimmy
Spencer, Kenny Wallace from the SPEED Channel Stage
Truck at Infineon.
• Sunday, June 26 – NASCAR
NEXTEL Cup Series Dodge/Save Mart 350 (3:35 p.m. ET LIVE on
FOX) from Infineon.
• Sunday, June 26 – NASCAR
Victory Lane (8 p.m. ET) with John Roberts, Jimmy Spencer
and Kenny Wallace analyzing the weekend’s action.
• Sunday, June 26 – SPEEDNews
NASCAR Edition (1 a.m. ET) with Bob Varsha, Ralph Sheheen
and Connie LeGrand. Bob Dillner, Robin Miller, Larry McReynolds
and Jeff Hammond are regular contributors.
• Monday, June 27 – Inside
NEXTEL Cup ( 8 p.m. ET) with Allen Bestwick, Michael
Waltrip, Johnny Benson and Ken Schrader reviewing the
weekend’s action. This week’s “Hot Seat” guest is Carl Edwards.
• Monday, June 27 – SPEED Channel’s
reality series NBS 24/7 (9:30 p.m. ET) follows NASCAR
Busch Series teams from FitzBradshaw Racing and Braun
Racing.
On Deck: Daytona International
Speedway … Race No. 17 on the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup schedule will be
Saturday, July 2 – the Pepsi 400 at Daytona International Speedway. Daytona, a
2.5-mile tri-oval, has been part of the schedule since 1959 when the race winner
was Fireball Roberts. … Jeff Gordon is
defending champion; also last year’s polesitter.
Fast Facts
The race: Dodge/Save Mart 350
(Race No. 16 of the 36-race NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series season.)
The track: Infineon Raceway,
Sonoma, Calif. (1.99-mile road course.)
The date/time: Sunday, June 26,
3:35 p.m. (ET).
TV: FOX, 2:30 p.m. (ET).
Radio: PRN/XM Satellite.
Posted awards: $5,322,397.
Race length: 350 kilometers, 218
miles, 110 laps.
Track layout: 2-mile oval.
2004 winner: Jeff Gordon.
2004 polesitter: Jeff Gordon.
NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Top 10:
1. Jimmie Johnson 2,173. 2. Greg Biffle 2,124. 3. Elliott Sadler 1,923. 4. Carl
Edwards 1,914. 5. Mark Martin 1,904. 6. Tony Stewart 1,862. 7. Ryan Newman
1,856. 8. Rusty Wallace 1,848. 9. Kurt Busch 1,813. 10. Kevin Harvick 1,803.
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