Intercepted Nascar Emails

Originally Posted on Foxsports on September 26, 2007.


Saturday, September 1, 2007 7:48:02 a.m.
Kyle - Just a quick note about the Toyota thing.  Please, Please, Please don't mention it again.  We want to do a big roll out, and we're concerned about how your current employer and the other Chevy guys will take it.  We'd like to win a Championship, and I'm sure you personally would too.  Let's not sink the ship before it's time.  Give me a call if you have any questions.   J.D.
PS - DO NOT MENTION THE M&M DEAL!!!
PPS - If this is the worst thing you ever do, it's no big deal.  I mean, we've dealt with Tony for how long?!?

Sunday, September 9, 2007 5:02:34 a.m.
Bro - I don't know what else we can do to help him out.  I mean we added two drivers to the Chase to make it easier for him to get in, and he still doesn't make it.  Ratings will plummet unless he wins a race this year.  Any ideas who the new sponsor will be?  Frankly I think Bud is out of their freaking mind to let him go.  But then again, they're also walking out of the Busch series deal.  Well, this latest debacle has driven me to drink too.  Any luck with the football team plan?  Sis
PS  - Rumor has it that Smith is trying to buy NHIS.  Sucker.  Like we'll let him move another race, especially to  Vegas.

Tuesday, September 11, 2007 10:23:58 p.m.
Jade - I know I'm moving on from Budweiser, but do you think they'll keep stocking my cooler?  I won't have a beer or liquor sponsor.   I promise to show up once and a while with an old hat or T-shirt.  Thanks for checking for me.  Junior

Saturday, September 15, 2007 6:33:09 p.m.
Champ - Don't worry about failing to qualify at NHIS.  Sometimes it takes a while to get the hang of qualifying, and there are a lot of fast cars that don't make the show each week.  We'll see if it works to add a race later this season.  RP

Monday, September 17, 2007 1:37:55 a.m.
Clint - Congratulations on the win!!  Once I'm back, we'll celebrate in style - that first win is a big deal.  Earnhardt always wanted to go hunting, but we'll figure out what you'd like to do.  Do you think you'll have time to help Austin out again at the dirt track?   Don't let Harvick talk you into anything!  If all goes well, I should have some yak steak to celebrate with by the end of this week.  Enjoy the sponsor in your victory celebration.  Richard

Tuesday, September 18, 2007 8:30:04 p.m.
Kasey - Congrats on the Bud sponsorship.  It is awesome!  If you enjoy it half as much as I have, you will think you've died and gone to heaven.  I have to say, I'm delighted it didn't stay with my step-mother's company.  Karma, I guess.  Junior
PS - If you happen to have any "extra" Bud, I'd be glad to take it off your hands!

Saturday, September 22, 2007 6:23:22 p.m.
Champ - Don't worry about failing to qualify at NHIS  Dover.  Sometimes it takes a while to get the hang of qualifying, and there are a lot of fast cars that don't make the show each week.  We'll see if it works to add a race later this season.  RP

Sunday, September 23, 2007  11:08:43 p.m.
Hammy,   I told you that regardless what happens on the track, the garage stall is SACRED!  How could you let Kyle walk into your garage stall, flip your visor, and scold you like a toddler?!  Are you a man or a mouse?  I'd never take that from another competitor.  In fact, I've had scuffles with Jeff and Robby Gordon when they tried to walk INTO my garage stall to continue an argument.  You need to work on that - I mean the Petty Golden Boy will hardly even draw a PENALTY for it.  Quit worrying about the anger management courses - they're a breeze.  And it's not like Joe or JD will take you to task for it.  You're a proven winner.  Smoke.

Sunday September 23, 2007 11:10:00 p.m.
Kyle - Denny Hamlin?!?  I mean, can't you talk to someone who needs it like Juan Pablo Montoya?!?   Happy

Sunday, September 23, 2007 11:12:02 p.m.
Muscle Man - Heard about your height problem.  Don't let this get you down - Nascar may take some points, but you can do what I haven't done - win the Championship.  Nascar took a bunch of points from me once, and I lost the Championship.  I always figured it was a way to get back at Jack.  But I think they are over that now.  In any event, I'm calling you out again - keep winning and prove them wrong.  Your car looked great today.  MM

Sunday September 23, 2007 11:15 p.m.
Kyle - Flipping open his visor?  That was classic!  My teammate didn't have any idea what to do about it.  I don't think they'll even touch you with a penalty.  It looked like a father lecturing a son.  Maybe you should try it next weekend on Montoya!  Smoke.

Sunday, September 23, 2007 11:44:17 p.m.
Mr. Petty, Thank you for finally doing to Denny Hamlin what should have been done a long time ago - put him in his place.  He obviously didn't take it well, but he needs to learn the world doesn't revolve around him.  Thanks again, Kristin Buntain, his ex-girlfriend

Sunday September 23, 2007 11: 48:41
KP - Can we get together and discuss what happened with Hamlin?  I just don't understand what happened there - it would never happen like that in Formula One.  Should I be doing that in the garage when people cause me to crash?  Give me a call.  Thank you.  JPM

Gibbs to Toyota: The Pros and Cons

Originally Posted September 2, 2007 on Foxsports blogs.


Kyle Busch spilled the beans on the Gibbs Defection to Toyota.  In fact, this is one of the worst kept secrets in the Cup Garage since Busch left Hendrick and Junior moved in.  My take on the move?  Well, that's complicated.

Pro:  Be Toyota's #1 Team.  Gibbs leaves Chevy, where, frankly JGR will always be playing second fiddle to Hendrick.  Hendrick has a long history with Chevy and has the chamionships and trophies to boot.  Toyota's standard bearer is... MIchael Waltrip Racing?  Red Bull? Bill Davis?  It's hard to pick one because none of them have set the world on fire.  BDR has finishes in the top ten, as does Red Bull, when they're able to qualify.  Gibbs should quickly become the Toyota flagship in Cup.

Con:  Leave GM.  Gibbs started Cup racing with Pontiac, and won two championships with them (B. Labonte and Stewart).  They are consistantly a threat to win on any track, and the teams perform on the cutting edge with new ideas and teamwork.  Mark Cronquist, Gibb's engine builder, is clearly on par with Hendrick's program.  Stewart has been one of the faces of Chevy due to his Championship in 2005, and this year his USAC teams have Chevy engines.  What will this mean, if anything to those business deals?

Pro:  Toyota's deep pockets. Toyota demonstrated in the truck series their desire and ability to spend the bucks to get the results.  This is Jack Roush's biggest fear.  Gibbs should be getting an infusion of cash and that means more people, and more technology with the hopes of more wins down the road.

Con:  Lose Chevy support during Chase.  How eager will Chevy be to help out the Gibbs teams?  The other Chevy teams won't be keen on providing information to Gibbs as that info will leap into Toyota's pockets at the end of the season.  This is what I'd worry about if I were Tony Stewart and Denny Hamlin going into the Chase.  

Pro:  COT transition.  The new templates with the COT mean that all car bodies are equal.  Teams have little room to fudge the template, and Nascar has shown its willingness to punish offenders.  Gibbs teams have worked with the Chevy COT, and the Toyota COT isn't that much different.

Con:  Lose the new Chevy Engine Program.  Chevy debuted the new engine this year, and clearly it is the class of the field.  Chevy's new engine has been hard to beat.  My question is whether Cronquist stays or goes due to the Toyota switch.  His engines fuel the Gibbs' brigade charges; without him, I'd worry about engine power.  Add in RCR and DEI's new program, and Chevy has the other manufacturer's scrambling to catch up.  Toyota's engine has improved over the course of the year, but the Toyota teams are having difficulties qualifying.

Pro:  JGR has changed before, with little impact.  Gibbs transitioned from Pontiac to Chevy with minimal overall impact.  There will certainly be struggles as the teams transition, but with the skilled people Gibbs has in place, it shouldn't be horrible.  Stewart weathered the prior change.

Con:  Fan backlash.  Some Nascar fans boycotted the Toyota foray into Cup racing.  It remains to be seen how many JGR fans leave the fold due to the manufacturer change.  This will hit the pocketbook in lost sales for merchandise, which may actually hurt the drivers more than JGR.

In the long run, the Toyota move will benefit Gibbs.  But in the short term, it may cost Stewart and Hamlin a shot at the Championship this year.
And that's probably why Gibbs wanted to keep this secret until the end of the season.

Why I'm Becoming a Kyle Busch Fan

Originally Posted on Foxsports.com on July 16, 2007.

I've never really liked Kurt Busch. I thought he was pompous, tried to use terms which he didn't know the meaning of, and generally was a driver with a big mouth and minor talent. I've since revised my opinion of him somewhat, but when little brother Kyle arrived on the scene, I imagined he was getting attention due to big brother Kurt's success.

Then Nascar instituted a rule preventing drivers under 18 from running in the major series, so I figured it was because some owner or sponsor wanted to make a big splash with Shrub. You know, the biggest racing brothers since the LaBontes or Allisons? At the time, Kyle had signed with Hendrick and was only 16, and trying to race in the Truck series.

Kyle still races for the biggest powerhouse in Nascar - Hendrick Motorsports. Surely his success was due to the equipment he was running and the team he was working with.

Wrong. Wrong. And Wrong. Kyle Busch arguably has more talent that big brother Kurt. And he's proven wise in avoiding some of the problems Kurt encountered (but not all of them).

Like Kurt, Kyle has a big mouth. After the first COT race, Kyle had harsh words for how the car drove. "I'm still not a big fan of these [cars]. I can't stand to drive them. They suck." And he'd won the race. "Winning Ugly" was what he called it.

It wasn't the first or the last time he'd bit the hand that fed him.

Lately, he's been firing shots at any and everything that he doesn't like. Such as soon-to-be-former teammates Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon and Casey Mears. Shrub claims they didn't help him at Daytona. In case you've lost count, that's 5 Cup championships and one racing legend's nephew he's messing with. Anyone who saw the race knows Kyle's car was dominent. And anyone who watches restrictor plate races knows that the last corner is crucial to the win, and it just didn't happen for Busch.

Kyle also took a couple shots at Rick Hendrick when Dale Earnhardt Jr announced he's moving into Kyle's seat, garage, and team. Kyle commented that "this {wa}s all brand new" to him. He later offered up his then agent as a sacrifice (probably to save his seat at Hendrick), claiming his agent didn't tell him what had been going on with negotiations.

At the awards banquet late last year, Kyle flubbed up his speech by mentioning his girlfriend "Eva." Unfortunately, his girlfriend is "Erica" and "Eva" is his sister-in-law. None of the remaining drivers let him forget it, with Rick Hendrick telling him that he wasn't going to be able to help him out with that comment! Kyle (and Erica) laughed it off, taking the ribbing in good humor.

His outspokenness may be uncouth, a la Tony Stewart, but it doesn't leave any doubt as to how he feels about things.

Add to the mix his contentous relationship with his team after he left the Texas race while they were feverishly working to put the car back in the race. Junior stepped in and drove the car for Busch, who had left the track. Busch repented, a little, but is still complaining about his car, the strategy that cost him the Busch race on Saturday, and teamwork at Hendrick.

Busch has begrudgingly pondered the scathing assessment of competitors. Tony Stewart compared him to a dart without feathers. Jeff Gordon remarked that he had a lot of learn. Kyle took the comments to heart, and although he hasn't stepped off the gas, even when the car is wickedly loose, he has learned how to avoid running over his competitors.

Earlier this year, he had duels with Jeff Burton in the Busch series. Burton complimented Busch on his clean driving, applauding the fact that Busch didn't bump him out of the way to win.

Now Shrub is the most sought after free agent in Nascar. Hourly updates on which shop he visited this week or which owner he spoke with at the track plague motorsports reporting. Rumors are that Evernham, DEI, Penske, RCR, Gibbs and Ganassi are eminiently going to announce they've signed him.

And why wouldn't a team want him? He's won a race in each of the three Cup season's he's competed in. He has 4 career wins in Cup, and wins in both the Busch and Truck series. He was the youngest pole sitter in the Cup series at 19 and the youngest winner at 20. And now, he's only 22.

He's brash, reckless and brave. He doesn't mince words, and doesn't back down when confronted with a problem. And he has talent.

Kind of like another jaw-flapper named Darrell Waltrip. Or even Tony Stewart,

Maybe that's why he's growing on me.

Bad Boys, Bad Luck and Bad Endings

Originally Posted on May 29, 2006 on Foxsports.com

Bad Boys:  Kurt Busch - On Friday night, Kurt Busch had a literal "run-in" with a traffic control person at the "Cars" premiere at Lowe's Motor Speedway.  Apparently, Busch was following a police escort when the traffic controller tried to stop Busch's car by stepping in front of it.  (maybe he wanted an autograph?)  Busch brushed by, grazing the man's knee.  The man's knee was checked out after he finished work about 15 minutes later.  Nothing further will happen as a result of the incident, as it appears no one knows who should do something about it - Nascar claims it wasn't their event, track security was not contacted, and the local authorities can't do anything without a report. 

Not to be out-done by his brother's second run-in with traffic control laws, Kyle Busch drug a Nascar official away from the ambulance after a caution flag. Casey Mears slid to start crash, which culminated in Busch violently crashing into the wall.  Busch was so disgusted with Mears that he pulled the official from taking him to the ambulance and threw his HANS device at Mears.  This happened in the same week Busch pled guilty to improper driving in Richmond, VA.

Bad Luck:  Tony Stewart crashed twice this weekend - first in the Busch race on Saturday, and then in the Cup race on Sunday.  At this time, he has a broken right shoulder.  Will this slow down his extracurricular driving activities?  In addition to his Cup duties, he has more Busch races on-tap, a Modified race in New Hampshire in July, and the Prelude to the Dream Late Model race at Eldora next week.  And that's just what he's told us about ...

Kevin Harvick, who has been solidly in the top 10, had another bad race, following his trouble at Darlington.  Harvick had a tailpipe that broke, which caused him to be stuck in the garage for several laps.

Is it me or does Jeff Gordon have the same undiagnosed mechanical problem every other race? 

Bad Endings:  The Indy 500 was a bad ending for the Andretti family - leading the race going into the fourth turn, Marco Andretti looked destined to win the race as a rookie.  However, Sam Hornish had other ideas and took the race at the line.

Scott Riggs was leading the Coca-Cola 600 when he had problems in the pits that probably cost him the race.  The only solice had to be that his teammate won (although that might be more like salt in an open wound).

Jimmie Johnson finished second in the 600.  Given his domination at Lowe's over the past few years, second has to feel strange.

Texas Tangles: Was this a Short Track? Or just a return to Busch Brother Bashing?

Originally Posted on Foxsports.com on April 9, 2006.

Nascar finished its Texas weekend, celebrated 10 years of racing at the facility, and managed to continue the Busch Brother Bashing that had been going on for several races. 

Kurt Busch v. Greg Biffle:  Although the President had a taped greeting at the track, the majority of the Busch Bashing this weekend was betwen Kurt Busch and Greg Biffle.  Biffle's car had been strong during the first 50 or so laps, but he was cycled out of the lead due to pit stops.  As he was working his way back to the front, he came across Kurt Busch.  Whether Busch or Biffle was to blame for what happened next depends on your point of view.  Busch, who  was down a lap, end up running into Biffle's back bumper, causing him to crash.  Biffle blamed Busch for ended his day.  Biffle's girlfriend, Nicole Lunders, walked to Busch's pit box and had words with Busch's fiancee Eva Bryan. 

Kurt Busch vs. the Media? The news media wanted Busch's reaction to Biffle's wrech after the race.  Busch gave an explanation blaming Biffle for coming up in front of him and slowing down.  When another reporter asked him what happened, Busch snapped back at them that he had answered the question and stormed off into his hauler.  He later came back out and answered a few more questions.  Apparently the Penske PR people have not quite worked their magic with Kurt...

Clint Bowyer vs. Kyle Busch:  Late in the race, Bowyer opted to take 2 tires instead of 4 to gain track position.  As he was sliding backwards in the field, he began racing with Kyle Busch for position.  As they raced, Bowyer crashed.  Bowyer claimed Busch got into him, Busch claimed Bowyer did it on his own.  The tape is unclear.   Given that Bowyer is a rookie and Kyle Busch is,  well, Kyle Busch, both are probably at fault in some way.

Carl Edwards vs. Jeff Gordon vs. Tony Stewart?  Carl Edwards, who was in third place, was racing with Jeff Gordon, who was a lap or two down.  Edwards got out of shape, hit Gordon, hit the wall, narrowly missed hitting Stewart and then crashed into the inside wall.  Needless to say, he was out of the race at that point.  Reporters questioned Edwards and asked if Gordon or Stewart caused the accident, Edwards denied it  and said it was just him pushing too hard at the time.  After the race, reporters went to Stewart and asked him what he thought happened - Stewart said Edwards was driving too hard ("in over his head") and lost it, then commented he was glad Edwards was OK because it looked like a hard hit into the wall.  In other words, the drivers didn't have issues with each other, but the reporters tried to generate a fight.  No one appears to have taken the bait.

Busch Series Racing Notes:  Kurt Busch won his first race in the Busch series, and to celebrate, he did his "trademark" snow angel.  I admit it was somewhat charming at Bristol where it had snowed all weekend, but I'm not sure it should be his "trademark" celebration.

Reed Sorenson may be penalized after it appeared he threw a piece of his rollbar padding/insulation onto the track to cause a caution.  He then called in that there was debris in the corner.  The Fox cameras caught the piece of foam flying out the window - it didn't seem to be certain that Sorenson threw it, but he was penalized by Nascar for the infraction (he was sent to the end of the line and lost about 5 places).  Nascar may exact a point penalty as well. 

More interesting was a conversation that Kyle Busch and his crew chief had immediately after that accident.  Busch was warned not to throw anything on the track to cause a caution because they had caught Sorenson.  Busch replied that he didn't have anything to throw.  Seconds later he remarked it would be stupid to do it since he had an in-car camera. 

You'll remember that Greg Biffle eventually won a Busch race when someone caused a caution by throwing a glove onto the track.  Nascar never found out who caused the caution or lost the glove.   Hmm...

 

My Martinsville Musings

Originally Posted on Foxsports.com on April 3, 2006.

Ah, Martinsville.  The paperclip.  Two drag strips connected with two hairpin turns.  Whatever you call it, don't leave without eating a hotdog!  {Seriously, the teams nearly boycotted last year when the condiments and wrapper were changed. }   The race for the most part was uneventful - at least compared to last week at Bristol.  There were still some interesting storylines...

A crash on lap 2 took several cars out of contention for the win.  The groaning you heard across the country was due to the red #8 being involved.  By the end of the race, Junior had "crashed" again, managed to stay on the lead lap, work his way through traffic, and finish 4th after getting by Kyle Busch.  I don't know that there was much to salvage on the car when it hit the hauler - three of the four corners of the car were missing, based in, or dented and  half the brake fan system was gone.  Most impressive was that the team did not give up - which is a marked difference in attitude from last year at this time.

The lap 2 crash ended Robby Gordon's day.  Robby, one of few owner/drivers, was in the top 15 in points prior to the race, but due to the DNF is 27th in points.

Despite the multiple on track incidents throughout the race, there did not appear to be any Bristol pay-backs.  Jimmie Johnson commented on this after the race - his point was that if the media would quite playing it up, there would be more.  According to Johnson, no one will do it when they know the media is looking to pounce on it, so if they lay off, the paybacks will come.  An interesting theory to be sure.

The one feud that has started is Denny Hamlin vs. Mark Martin.  I'm not clear on what happened, but Hamlin expressed his displeasure with Martin due to two run-ins on the track - one at Las Vegas and one at Martinsville.  Martin has not commented at this point to my knowledge, and Hamlin acknowledged that he still respects Martin but whats to know why he has been singled out.  Knowing Martin, this will be a non-issue by Texas.

The Dodge teams continue to have some trouble with the Charger - their highest finisher was Scott Riggs in 10th.  The highest finishing rookie was Reed Sorenson in a Dodge (12th)

What happened to all the discussion of Roush Racing domination?  The highest finisher was McMurray in 9th, followed by Martin (13th), Edwards (16th), Kenseth (24th) and Biffle (31st).

Jeff Gordon has stalking at Martinsville down to a science.  He's won there 7 times  - and the last few has appeared out of nowhere at the end.  He likes to spice it up - this time he got a flat tire early in the race, which caused a caution.  Conspiracy theorists point out that while Gordon got a caution with no debris apparent on the track, a couple other spins, tire-blow outs and debris went unflagged during the race. 

Does anyone else think that Jeff Gordon's two teammates cut him a break on the final two laps when he slipped on the speedy dry?  I think if any other two cars had been right behind him, he would have been shown the wall.

For a guy edging toward retirement, Mark Martin is sure charging up the points standings - he's currently in 2nd behind Jimmie Johnson.

Since it was Martinsville, I wondered how quickly Stewart would mention the Hendrick Motorsports plane crash in his victory speech.  It was practically the first few words out of his mouth.  In Oct 2004, his pilot, Scott Lathram was on the plane, coming to Martinsville to see Stewart before Lathram left for Iraq.  Apparently Stewart hasn't forgotten him - and still has information on his website to make a donation to Lathram's Memorial Fund.

I don't know which is more fun - watching Tony Stewart climb the fence after he wins or watching him spray Jimmy Spencer with a Coke during the victory lane broadcast.

My vote for one of the coolest trophys anywhere is the Grandfather Clock given at Martinsville, although I'm fond of the "brick" trophy at Indy and the glass palm trees at Darlington.