What Carl Edwards found scary at Las Vegas last weekend

 

   Roush Fenway Racing as an organization struggled a lot last season on 1.5-mile intermediate tracks and worked hard in the offseason to help improve their race package. 

   Sprint Cup Series driver Carl Edwards said when the organization again struggled on a 1.5-mile track last weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, he found the situation very "scary."

   "We did struggle in the Chase and we struggled at the mile-and-a-halves at the end of the year last year," Edwards said. "We basically changed everything and worked really hard, and that’s what was so scary about struggling at Vegas because it was like, ‘Hey, this is the problem we’ve been addressing.’ 

   "Now, once we went back and looked at the race and thought about it a little bit, towards the end of the race on that last restart I had the fastest car on the track for eight or 10 laps. We just kind of lost the balance there and I think we need to understand that, so there’s a big glimmer of hope and some evidence that we can do it, we just have to understand a couple of things the car is doing a little bit better."

Dale Junior and Kyle Busch can reach NASCAR milestones this weekend

 
   BRISTOL, Tenn. - Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt Jr. are on the verge of reaching a pair of significant NASCAR milestones this weekend.

   If he can lead at least 140 laps in Sunday’s Food City 500 – something he’s done four times previously – Busch will become the 15^th driver in Sprint Cup Series history to cross the 10,000 laps led threshold for his career.

   “There’s a lot of things that I want to accomplish still that I haven’t,” said Busch, who has five Cup series victories at Bristol Motor Speedway. Whatever things come along the way that we’re able to accomplish is awesome – it’s fun.

   “It means you are a namesake in the sport and that hopefully things continue to go down that path.”

   Earnhardt can join an even more exclusive club on Sunday should he finish first or second. Only one other driver in Cup history – Richard Petty – has finished second or higher in the first four races of the season (He did so in 1974). Earnhardt has finished first, second and second in the first three races.
  
   “Anytime you’ve done anything that Richard has done and you put yourself in the conversation with him to do with any statistic, it’s a pretty awesome accomplishment,” Earnhardt said. “He’s such a fixture in the sport still today.”

NASCAR penalizes three Nationwide Series teams

   Three Nationwide Series teams were penalized on Wednesday for rules violations stemming from last weekend’s race at Las Vegas.

   Chris Gayle, crew chief for the No. 11 Toyota driven by Elliott Sadler, was fined $10,000 and he and car chief Todd Brewer were placed on probation until Dec. 31 for having weight attached in an unapproved location.

   Greg Ives, crew chief of the No. 9 Chevrolet driven by Chase Elliott, was placed on probation until Dec. 31 after the front of the car was found to be too low. Jeremy Bullins, crew chief for race winner Brad Keselowski, was fined $5,000 and placed on probation until Dec. 31 for having a shock absorber that exceeded maximum pressure.

Tony Stewart: "I just want to be 100 percent"

 

   Three-time Sprint Cup Series champion Tony Stewart is three races into his return from a serious leg injury suffered in a sprint car race last summer. While Stewart has been cleared to driver by doctors he has repeatedly said his leg is not near 100 percent.

 

   To add insult to injury, so to speak, Stewart is off to a tough start to the season. He has two finishes of 33rd or worse and best finish of 16th at Phoenix.

 

   Sunday's race is at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, one of the most physically demanding in the series. Stewart was asked if he had any fear in returning to racing and his thoughts heading into this weekend's race.

 

   Here is his complete answer:

 

   “The fear was not getting back out. Being out of my Bass Pro Shops/Mobil 1 Chevy is what bothered me more than anything. I’ve had injuries before. I’ve had broken hands and raced dirt cars and stock cars. I’ve had broken bones that weren’t healed 100 percent and still went out and did what we needed to do. This was just a bigger setback. This was one that I didn’t have a choice of being in the car and fighting through it. This was one where the ante was up a little bit," he said.

 

   “Honestly, there hasn’t been one day or night where I’ve sat and questioned whether it’s what I wanted to do or whether it was something I could do. It was just, when can we do it? I just want to be 100 percent, and we’re pushing toward that. The passion and desire I have for the sport, that’s never wavered, and that’s what gets you through some of this stuff. 

 

   “People that want to compete, want to compete. They fight through injuries, they persevere, they work hard to get back where they want to be, and this is no different. There’s nothing about this process that has taken away my desire to do what I want to do. You don’t live for what could happen, you live for what you can make happen.”

 

NASCAR bans cool down laps in knock out qualifying

 

 

   Daytona Beach, Fla. (Mar. 11, 2014) — NASCAR notified its teams this afternoon that effective immediately the following modifications apply to all elements of its national series qualifying including the breaks: 

 

   - One cool down unit connected through either the left side or right side hood flap/cowl flap is allowed to cool the engine

 

   - The hood must continue to remain closed

 

   - Plugging in the generator will not be allowed

 

   - Two crew members will be allowed over the wall to support the car and driver

 

   - No cool down laps will be permitted

   NASCAR instituted a new group qualifying format for its three national series in January and has continued to evaluate the process through the first three races of the season. The new format has been well-received by fans, competitors, race tracks and other key stakeholders. NASCAR believes that the modifications announced today should help make the qualifying even better and more compelling.

   “The qualifying is new to all of us and as we have said over the past several weeks, we are looking at it from all aspects,” said Robin Pemberton, vice president of competition and racing development. “Following discussions, both internally and with others in the garage area, we moved quickly to make a few revisions that will be effective starting with our two national series events at Bristol Motor Speedway this weekend. We believe this will only enhance and improve what has demonstrated to be an exciting form of qualifying for our fans, competitors and others involved with the sport. Moving forward we will continue to look at it and address anything else that we may need to as the season unfolds.”

Three observations from Sunday's NASCAR race at Las Vegas

   Three observations from Sunday's Kobalt Tools 400:

   - There have been several doubters of whether NASCAR’s new Chase format would live up to its promises. Three races into the 2014 season, it’s safe to say it’s already delivered. The is no way Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s team elects to roll the dice on fuel three races into the season to gain a second win if he wasn’t already virtually ensured a spot in the Chase. He and his crew chief, Steve Letarte, confirmed that after the race. And the downside – which really isn’t one – is there are already three very talented drivers known who will battle for the title – Brad Keselowski, Earnhardt and Kevin Harvick.

   - For much of the weekend, it appeared Danica Patrick may be primed for one of her better NASCAR performances. She was fast in practice on Friday and did well in qualifying. She was also good in Saturday’s first practice session. In Saturday’s final practice, however, she seemed to fall off and in Sunday’s race she quickly fell back in the field. But it wasn’t all bad, by the end of the race Patrick finished 21^st, one lap down, but she was the highest finisher of all four Stewart-Haas Racing drivers.

   - No idea if it’s a sign of things to come but fans certainly turned out in much larger numbers this weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway than a year ago. The tone was set on Friday which saw one of the largest qualifying crowds in several years for any NASCAR track. It’s much too early to tell if NASCAR changes this season are the reason, but it’s safe to say they haven’t hurt.

Chip Ganassi Racing adds Dylan Kwasniewski as development driver

   Two-time NASCAR K&N Pro series champion and current Nationwide series driver Dylan Kwasniewski has joined Chip Ganassi Racing as a development driver.

   

   Kwasniewski, 18, will continue to compete in Nationwide with Turner Scott Motorsports but team owner Chip Ganassi hopes to move the 18-year-old Las Vegas native to the Sprint Cup series in two to three years.

   “This young man has impressed us from the moment we saw him,” Ganassi said. His poise, skill and determination on the race track are remarkable for someone so young.”

   Kwasniewski called the move "a dream come true."

   "I have wanted to do nothing but race for as long as I can remember," he said. "I look forward to being part of Chip's organization and will hopefully be a key contributor to its future success."