Full Throttle

Four years’ hard work pays off for Clint Bowyer as the Richard Childress Racing ace proves dreams can come true in beating Carl Edwards to the 2008 NASCAR Nationwide Series trophy at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Carl Edwards claimed his sixth Nationwide series win of the season at Phoenix International Raceway, reducing Clint Bowyer’s lead in the championship ahead of next week’s finale at Homestead.

Kyle Busch’s first victory of 2008 came in April at Texas, the question now is will Saturday’s dominating performance at the same track be his last, or will he go on to break Sam Ard’s 25 year old record of ten wins?

For the third consecutive week Sprint Cup qualifying has been rained out.
For the third consecutive week points leader Jimmie Johnson starts on the pole and gets his preferred pit selection.
Yepper, three times a charm. Makes you wonder when the “charmed life” will end, if ever.
For those doing the counting, the Weatherman is ahead of Kyle [...]

NASCAR, not usually known for making the right decision, at the right time and for the right reasons (or making one at all) have finally made one.
“We will not roll this thing [NNS CoT] out in 2009,” Pemberton said. “In talking with the teams, we think it’s better for development to have a series of [...]

As you read this let the melody of Love is a Battlefield run through your head.
The AP’s Jenna Fryer reports, via unnamed witnesses, a WWE type match, albeit a verbal one, broke out in the LMS NNS garage between Carl Edwards and Kevin Harvick.
According to Fryer’s sources Edwards and Harvick were in a heated argument [...]

Eyes, left.
Is it safe to say the new Nationwide car is splitting the difference between it and the configuration of the Sprint Cup car?
Looks like it to me, splitter in front and traditional spoiler, vice wing, bringing up the rear. (Alas, no Pony Cars that were basically given the heave-ho by the manufacturers.)
Looks can be [...]

(Subtitled: “Here We Go Again!”)
According to the NASCAR press release the sanctioning body will debut the new NNS car during the first of two scheduled tests Monday and Tuesday, Sept. 8-9, at Richmond International Raceway.
Wednesday, Sept. 10, is set as the rain date which may be the only smart thing printed in the release given [...]

I’ve been waiting for this, the dyno numbers from the chassis dyno tests performed at MIS that resulted in the Gibbs Racing penalties.

Clint Bowyer made an uncharacteristic unforced error that handed Friday night’s Food City Nationwide Series 250 to Brad Keselowski at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Gillett Evernham Motorsports will rotate its three NASCAR Sprint Cup crew chiefs on the team’s No. 9 Nationwide Series entry for the remainder of this season.
The plan is to rotate Kasey Kahne, Elliott Sadler, Patrick Carpentier and Chase Miller at the wheel of #9 Dodge NS entry and match them with Kenny Francis, Mike Shiplett, [...]

There’s one way to beat Kyle Busch.
The recipe includes carrying over a hot streak from last week, toss in a fortuitous pit stop that contenders Jeff Burton and Jimmie Johnson didn’t utilize, and finally, beat Busch into submission with a little dash of Tasmanian Devil. (with a side of Vegemite!)
The end result is Marcos Ambrose’s [...]

Mauricia Grant who has accused NASCAR of racial discrimination and sexual harassment in a $225 million lawsuit had a restraining order filed against her by a former boyfriend and was arrested for driving under the influence, the Associated Press has learned.

It was going to be hard topping last years NNS event at Circuit Villeneuve with its wild finish and two drivers declaring themselves the victor.
But somehow NASCAR and Goodyear did just that.
Last week Goodyear produced a soup sandwich, this week aided and abetted by Mother Nature, Goodyear produced a star show by carrying out a [...]

As I write this the NNS field is under red flag conditions as the entire field is switching to rain tires.
it goes without saying history is about to be made.

According to the DeMoines Register the Nationwide Series date in Mexico will not be on the 2009 schedule. (Bueno-por México y Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez?)
The paper has confirmed the change via an email with the series’ senior manager of communications
Tracey Judd.
Iowa Speedway’s director of media relations Mike Beecher said he’s heard the speculation centering on the [...]

Unconfirmed reports, from completely impeachable sources, claim to have intercepted the following email from Robin Pemberton, NASCAR’s vice president of competition to Brian France CEO and chairman of NASCAR:
“Oh Great One:”
Subject: “Sweet Revenge“.
“I want that kids ‘Jewels’ hanging in my N.C. office by Sunday night!’ How dare he usurp my all-encompassing authority (granted by you, [...]

Here’s NASCAR’s official headline on their announcement of a horsepower decrease for all Nationwide Series Toyotas:
“Rule Amendment Brings NASCAR Nationwide Series Engines In Line”.
Specifically they are targeting all engines “with a cylinder bore spacing of 4.470 inches or more”. Those engines will have to compete with a tapered spacer with four 1.100-inch diameter holes.
At the [...]

It appears Jacques Villeneuve is returning to the Montreal racetrack named after his father.
The star driver from Iberville, Que., will meet with the media at his trendy downtown restaurant today to unveil the details of his participation in the Nationwide Series NASCAR event Aug. 2-3 at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.
The announcement comes five months after Villeneuve [...]