Rowdy People

Cup Chasers race league is back at Yahoo!

It's not too late to join the Cup Chasers. We got a late start this season, but we plan on finishing strong. Everybody c'mon and jump on board. Let's trade some paint!

ID#: 28016

PASSWORD: trophy

Now, here's an interesting concept that could boost NASCAR.

This has the possibilities of being extremely fun to play. Interest in otherwise dull races could really soar if this comes into fruition.

Is Dale Jr. on cocaine???

I just got back from Martinsville, and one of the most telling features of the race was just how bad Dale Jr. sucks on the track. This is WAY past ridiculous---three wrecks. What the heck is going on with this guy? Is he strung out out on something? He doesn't act right. He almost looks spaced out sometimes, and his track acumen is pitiful right now. I feel sorry for him, but he's definitely got some issues that go beyond his team. No other Hendrick car, or Hendrick affiliated car, blows engines or blows tires or just goes wall hunting as often as Jr.---not even close. He needs some help that extends beyond a dictator crew chief. Can anyone in Rowdy-land help him out...maybe get him a Goody's or some black coffee?

Old Championships or New Championships?

The Rowdy guys had a topic on the Big 3 video this morning concerning Jeff Gordon on the NASCAR conference call. They said that Jeff stated that he doesn't feel that his legacy is complete without winning a championship under the chase format. I scoffed at the idea.

If anything, Jeff is more accomplished than any of the current champions BECAUSE he won all *FOUR* of his championships under the old points system. My belief is that Matt Kennseth is the last true-blue champion because every champion since has had to play the "chase game."

The "chase game" is, as we NASCAR fans have become accustomed to, drivers wheeling around and trying to do enough to get into the chase playoffs. They try to score a win here-and-there to get those 10 bonus points (only since '07), but they also play it safe when they feel nothing to gain. Some of them experiment with set-up schemes once they feel their chase spot is secure. BOGUS!!! Jimmie Johnson has been a classic example of laying the wood to it come chase time. He hasn't dominated a "regular season" since he started winning chase championships. When he did dominate the first 26 races, he lost in the chase to Stewart and Kurt Busch. I think JPM is also trying his hand at this ploy because he sure seems like he's been wanting wins a lot more lately. Granted, Jimmie usually does rack up a few wins during the pre-chase races, but his dominance doesn't reveal itself until the chase---at least not in the last three seasons.

Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Matt Kennseth, and Bobby Labonte are the only remaining regular cup drivers who have legitimate championships. These guys fought and earned their cups through season-long dominance and/or competitiveness. They didn't sit on their hands until the September New Hampshire race. They played their cards for the whole season because they had to.

We've seen dominant seasons by Kyle Busch in '08, Jeff Gordon in '07, (coincidentally) Jimmie Johnson in '05, and Tony Stewart (probably this season) go up in flames come chase time. It's awkward that Tony and Jeff were runaway points leaders at the point of the chase, but once the chase started, they found themselves playing catch-up to other drivers.

If you ask me, Jimmie is the one with the tainted legacy. I believe that he needs a championship outside of the chase format before he can be classified as a true champion. I don't think Jeff has anything to feel incomplete about---even if he is just using that as motivation (per Bass).

What do you folks think?

Coyote of Tomorrow

Joe Gibbs Racing driver Brad Coleman was testing a Gibbs NASCAR Sprint Cup Series car at Toyota Arizona Proving Grounds earlier this week and came onto the radio and told his crew something rather unusual.

"Guys, I hit a coyote," Coleman said.

Coleman was running close to 200 mph around the 10-mile test track when he saw the animal wander under the outside guardrail.

"I'm in the middle of the corner, and I'm doing like 190," Coleman said Friday at Nashville Superspeedway before practicing his Nationwide Series car. "I'm just cruising. You run the high line there, because that's where the most banking is. It's the high-speed lane. There's just a guardrail there like on the freeway.

"I see this thing, it must've been 100 feet in front of me, just jump out. Right when I saw it come out from under the guardrail, I was like, 'That's a coyote.'"

"It just started smoking like crazy," Coleman said. "And it smelled terrible. I didn't see anything in the mirror, so I was like, 'I wonder where it went?' I said, 'Guys, I hit a coyote. I'm going to come in because I think it screwed up the radiator. I think it clogged up the grille a little bit.'"

Petty stays in America, but...

...was that the right move?

With RPM now being "Built...Ford Tough," some puzzle pieces are starting to move. The #96 car seems to be out to pasture (retribution for the Bobby L. fiasco, perhaps), as does Reed Sorrenson's future, as does Eric Darnell's oppurtunity, as does McMurray's move to Yates.

According to the Busbee blog, over on Yahoo, the line-up is Kahne, Allmendinger, Menard, and...Sadler is coming back. I guess that makes sense since Sadler's only real NASCAR success has come in Fords. However, it's a little weird to see him back with Yates in some capacity.

This merger seems like a strange move, to me (but I guess no stranger than Earnhardt/Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabatos :-). 2009 hasn't been one of Ford's stellar years. Also, Dodge officials have claimed that they want to reaffirm their commitment to NASCAR by focusing on only one or two teams. I guess that'll be only one, now, since Penske is all that remains. Toyota was the big rumored destination for RPM, and that would have made more sense. We all know of Toyo's deep pockets and their drive to succeed in NASCAR. That may have been a great jumping point for RPM to get back in the limelight. Toyo's progress has been extremely noticeable with the emergence of Reutimann and Vickers. It's not just a Gibbs-only success story, now. Ford has only been hanging on in NASCAR by the skin of their Rousch---er, I mean teeth.

It will be weird seeing the Petty name associated with Ford, again. It's not that that's a bad thing, it's just unaccustomed. I suppose it's nice that the Petty brand continues to be on American-born vehicles---I'm sure folks will remind me that Toyotas are obesely produced in the U.S., nowadays. I really liked Richard going back to Dodge, but Dodge just never really got behind him. Ganassi and Davis had some success. Then, when Penske joined up, Dodge found itself in the forefront even more. Evernham enjoyed some bountiful years with Dodge, too (heck, Ray was the ringleader of their return).

Also, I'm curious about Yates' continued relationship with Rousch. RPM has their own programs for development, but separating themselves from Rousch might be foolhardy. Time will tell. For now, the Petty name gets to live a little longer in a sport that's dwindling down to about 5 or 6 teams by 2012. Mergers for everyone!!!

Anyway, let's get ready for, "...and driving the #9 Budweiser Ford Fusion, it's Kasey Kahne!" With Kasey's contentious history regarding Yates and Ford, you may not hear that intro. for long. 2010 promises to be a different kind of year for Sprint Cup racing.

Something to help you get over hump day...

He used to always make me feel better about myself. Will we see any "clowns" at the Richmond race?

The Subtle Sounds of Sportsmanship

The Rowdy guys put me in Jack Handy mode, today, with some "Deep Thoughts." The debate of clean racing, in regards to Saturday night's Bristol race, came up during their daily video. Should Mark Martin have roughed up Kyle Busch if the opportunity was there for the win?

It's a tough call...surprisingly. I'm usually all for doing things the right way (like good little Americans should, right?), especially in sports. Major League Baseball has 162 games per season, so it's easy to adhere to good sportsmanship at the expense of a win---you've got 161 other games to make up for it. The NBA plays 82 basketball games per season. So, if being a good sport screws you out of win during the season it's no biggie (81 more chances). The NHL plays for what seems like 10 months, so again, well...you know. Of course, the X-factor in all of these sports is that when the playoffs start, or a team is in danger of missing the playoffs, all bets are off.

However, the NFL and the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series are two sports where, just maybe, you can't afford to let good sportsmanship take a win away from you. A 16 game season and a 36 race schedule doesn't afford a lot of chances at wins. You kind of need to get one when you can get one. If you follow the NFL and NCAA football, then you've probably seen coaches call a time-out at the very moment a kicker on the opposing team is going for a game winning field-goal. I think that's pretty much a bush-league move, but the coach is doing what has to be done to try and give his team a win. If he can ice the kicker and mess up the field goal, then he will live with being a bad sport as he celebrates. Teams don't get a lot of chances at wins with so few games to play.

Johnny Benson missed out on a win or two by being a good sport at the end of races, and it cost him his final Cup opportunity (which stinks). NASCAR Cup wins can be few and far between (if they ever come at all). Not every driver can rack up wins like Johnson and Gordon. Heck, Gordon doesn't even see that many as of late.

My point is, if you can win a race, then you need to. The team's existence and the driver's career are most certainly at stake. No driver should feel guilty about having a win gifted to them (like Reutiman, Logano, and Keselowski), and by the same token, they shouldn't feel too guilty about doing what had to be done to take one away from someone else. Denny Hamlin did what he had to do to get his most recent win at Pocono---at the expense of Reutimann and Ambrose, but that win may have salvaged his season and his chance at the Cup.

Mark Martin, Jeff Burton, and Johnny Benson (and others, of course) are to be admired for their polite racing. However, there overall win totals are slight (even though Mark has nabbed a few this season), and none of them have a Cup. They have suffered periods of irrelevance and lost jobs by not doing the dirty deed of knocking someone out of the way for a win. Also, if another driver is dominating a season, it is very prudent of other drivers to try and break that momentum.

Wins are valuable. They build team confidence, bring in money and opportunities for everyone involved, and they set the driver apart from the rest of the pack. You might just save your season, and your career, by knocking that guy aside and getting the checkered flag. It doesn't mean you're a bad person; it just means that you realized that 35 more races among 42 other drivers doesn't give you good odds of getting another one anytime soon.

Great Kyle Busch Quotes

Here are some fun quotes from Kyle Busch after being asked about the Daytona wreck incident, as reported by ESPN.com's Terry Blount. These were taken today at Chicago.
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When asked about last lap crashes at Daytona and Talledega, KB said, "NASCAR can take steps to look at it," Busch said. "If the second-place driver dumps the leader, then black flag his ass. He doesn't get the win. If he's up along side the leader and dumps him, give the third-place car the victory."

Busch then was asked if he considered the bump with Stewart "a dump."

"Yes, it would be considered a dump," he said.
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When asked about his feeling about the apologetic phone call from Stewart earlier in the week (which Tony claims meant everything was fine and they were on the same page), KB said, "I really don't have feelings," Busch said. "So it really didn't mean a whole lot. I guess he was checking on me to see if I'm alive."
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When asked about what he may have learned from the incident at Daytona, KB said, "If I'm ever second, I normally finish second," Busch said. "Whenever I'm leading, I guess I get wrecked. It seems to me I don't know how to win restrictor-plate races, so you can't ask me that question."
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There's your daily dose of Kyle Busch-isms! Enjoy!

The Ericsson Cup?

More Questions About Sprint/Nextel's involvement With NASCAR have arisen. My brother alerted me to this article since he and his coworkers are in scramble mode today dealing with the oncoming changes. He works for Sprint (and formerly Nextel) and he works directly with NASCAR on their coverage at tracks. If his job (and others, too) is probably going to be affected by this change, what does this mean, if anything, for Sprint's involvement with NASCAR. Sponsorship probably wouldn't be affected (I gguess), but maybe, some of their technical involvement could be. The BIG Nextel deal from years ago sure has looked pretty awkward for NASCAR with all of the changes that continually occur in the telecom. industry. Possibly, Wal-Mart would have been a safer sponsor---at least with name recognition. NASCAR really doesn't need any more hassles with its corporate partners---the auto industry junk is taxing enough.

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Ericsson to manage Sprint network in $4.5-$5 billion deal
On Thursday July 9, 2009, 2:00 pm EDT
Buzzed! 1 Print
Companies:Sprint nextel corp.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Sprint Nextel Corp (NYSE:S - News) said on Thursday that Ericsson (Stockholm:ERICB.ST - News) would manage its network as part of a seven-year deal worth $4.5 billion to $5 billion under which 6,000 Sprint workers would move to Ericsson.

Related Quotes
Symbol Price Change
S 4.46 +0.17

Sprint, whose shares rose 4.4 percent, said that it would keep full control of its network after the deal, which it sees helping it improve its network performance more efficiently than it could on its own.

"This is about improving our customer experience," Steve Elfman, Sprint's network operations head, said on a call with reporters. "While we get the benefit of Ericsson's expertise ... we can focus our attention on bringing great devices, great services, great applications to them."

Investors will closely watch for any impact on Sprint's network performance as the service provider has been struggling to stem customer losses related to a poor reputation for network quality that it is working to shake off.

Elfman declined to give specific estimates for any savings from the agreement except to say that savings would come from Ericsson's expertise and technology rather than from the transfer of Sprint workers to Ericsson.

Under the deal, Sprint, the No. 3 U.S. mobile service, will keep full ownership and control of its network assets and continue to make network investment and strategy decisions itself. As a result, it said it is retaining about 2,000 employees to work on network related issues.

Pacific Crest analyst analyst Steve Clement said investors should look for more information about savings before having any cause for celebration.

"I don't think customers will notice it. For investors it will depend on the savings they get from the deal," he said.

The fact that it's Ericsson's first U.S. network management deal, Clement said, may mean less savings for Sprint than some would have hoped. He cited investor expectations for network management savings of about 20 percent.

"I don't think this type of deal will even approach that," he said.

Sprint and Ericsson said the agreement would not result in an workforce reductions as the transferred employees would become part of an Ericsson subsidiary based in Overland Park, Kansas, where Sprint's headquarters is located.

The job transfers are expected to occur late in the current quarter.

Kulbinder Garcha, a Credit Suisse analyst, said, "I think strategically it's an important deal (for Ericsson) -- it's the first services deal in the U.S. and the first with a CDMA carrier," Garcha said. CDMA is the wireless technology Sprint uses.

He said that there were also question marks on how the deal would affect Ericsson's margins in the short term as it was obviously competitively priced and Ericsson was take on 6,000 employees from Sprint.

"The question we all have is what impact this has on Ericsson's profitability in the second half of this year and next year," Garcha said.

Sprint shares rose 15 cents, or almost 4 percent, to $4.45 on the New York Stock Exchange. Ericsson's U.S. shares were up 7 cents, or less than 1 percent, on the Nasdaq at $9.43.

(Reporting by Sinead Carew; Editing by Derek Caney and Steve Orlofsky)