Cars at Daytona test are slowing down

   Perhaps the cars were going a bit fast at the December Goodyear tire test after all.

   Several NASCAR drivers and teams confirmed Thursday they have been informed the sanctioning body has decided to reduce the size of the holes in the restrictor plate used in next week's Sprint Cup Series test at Daytona International Speedway from 30/32nds of an inch to 29/32nds of an inch.

   The change will likely reduce speeds - which reached nearly 200 mph at the December test - around 5 mph in the draft.

   “When we tested during the Goodyear tire test at Daytona, I could see the speeds of two cars that got together being high,” said Bobby Labonte, who drives for JTG Daugherty this season. “When you get to actually racing, things always go a little faster.

   "I think making the restrictor plate smaller is a deal where NASCAR was foreseeing that speeds would be really high."

   All Cup teams will participate in next week's test, which begins Jan. 20. Only 18 teams were involved in the December test.

   The tests are being held because of the repaving of the speedway.

   "I think now, we can expect to see the cars a lot closer together and more in one pack versus two, three or four. It’s going to make for some great racing for sure," said Pat Tryson, crew chief for Martin Truex Jr.

   "I expect to see more three, maybe four-wide racing at Daytona which is exactly what we saw at Talladega Superspeedway."

Mark Martin will race in all three NASCAR series in 2011

   Mark Martin has never been one to slow down.

   In addition to driving a final fulltime season for Hendrick Motorsports in the No. 5 Chevrolet in the Sprint Cup Series this season, Martin has also added four races in the Nationwide series and two in Camping World Trucks to his schedule.

   He will drive the No. 32 Chevrolet for Turner Motorsports in Nationwide races at Las Vegas, Auto Club Speedway, Michigan and Kentucky this year with crew chief Trent Owens and sponsored by Dollar General. Martin will also drive the No. 32 Chevy in Truck races at Michigan and Pocono for the organization.

   “I’m excited to be running back in the Nationwide and Truck Series again,” said Martin. "Working with Turner [Motorsports], I get to extend my relationship with Chevrolet and continue to have Hendrick horsepower under the hood which is really, really good.”

   Martin holds the all-time Nationwide Series records for most wins (48) and most pole positions (30). In 2006, motorsports media members named him the greatest Nationwide Series driver of all-time. 

   “The races we picked for both series are personal favorites of mine. I’d love to win another Truck race, and I’ve got to get back to Victory Lane in the Dollar General car so I can keep Kyle [Busch] from breaking my Nationwide Series record,” Martin joked.

   Team owner, Steve Turner, is excited about having Martin on board.

   “Mark shares my same passion for helping groom young talent and has expressed interest in helping us get our young drivers to the NASCAR Sprint Cup level. I can’t think of a better mentor than Mark Martin," Turner said.  

Carl Edwards makes wishes come true

   NASCAR star Carl Edwards helped out a friend and in the process helped to make wishes come true for children with life-threatening medical conditions.

   Edwards is friends with World Wrestling Entertainment star John Cena, who has been involved in a personal campaign to raise 3 million Delta frequent flyer miles for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

   Edwards recently donated his Delta frequent flyer miles to help Cena reach his goal, and with an extra contribution of 1 million miles by Cena, Make-A-Wish received 4.2 million Delta miles from the campaign.

   “We did it. We hit the 1 million mile mark in donations of Delta frequent flyer miles with the help of my good friend, NASCAR driver Carl Edwards, who donated his Delta miles to put us over the top,” Cena said.

   In addition to being friends with Cena, Edwards also served as a "guest host" of one of WWE's live "Monday Night Raw" TV programs in 2010.

   To read more about Edwards, Cena and the Make-A-Wish campaign, go here.

 

Yes, Kevin Conway's in the Shootout

   Yes, folks, there is actually a criteria in NASCAR that allows Kevin Conway to race in the 2011 season's first event while leaving out the likes of Brian Vickers, David Reutimann, AJ Allmendinger, Brad Keselowski and Elliott Sadler, among others.

   You remember Conway, the winner of the one-man Cup rookie of the year competition who registered one whopping top 20 finish this season?

   Because of a change in the eligibility rules for the Budweiser Shootout NASCAR announced on Friday, Conway - the 2010 rookie of the year "winner" - is eligible to race in the kickoff to this year's Speedweeks at Daytona International Speedway.

   The rule change allows all former rookies for the previous 10 years eligible which coincidentally makes Kasey Kahne, Joey Logano and Juan Pablo Montoya eligible.

   I'm sorry, but the eligibility rules of the Shootout have now been tricked up more than the Chase, leaving it about a dozen drivers short of being just another Cup race.

   So, why not just make it one?

   Surely, holding a non-points, full-field Cup race at Daytona has got to be better than any event which somehow places Conway in a higher regard in NASCAR competition than the likes of Vickers, Keselowski and Sadler - all of whom who have won actual Cup series races.

Congrats to Ray Evernham on his new job, but what exactly is it ?

   I sincerely would like to congratulate Ray Evernham on his new job, but honestly I have little understanding what exactly he will be doing with Hendrick Companies.

   On Tuesday, Hendrick Motorsports distributed a press release announcing Evernham - a previous championship crew chief at Hendrick and most recently ESPN TV analyst - had signed on as a consultant for Hendrick Companies, formed in 2005 to oversee own Rick Hendrick's "strategic initiatives." Evernham, it appears, will be consult on "special projects."

   According to the release Evernham's role will be to help with the development of the Hendrick Performance retail brand of high-performance parts, vehicles, products and related services.

   No where in the release in regards to Evernham's work can be found the words "NASCAR," "motorsports" or "Earnhardt Jr." (of course there were rumors he was going to become Earnhardt's crew chief. Isn't everyone?).

   Given the hoopla surrounding the anticipation of this move to Hendrick by some of my colleagues in the media, I have to say I am a little underwhelmed by the initial details of his announcement.

   That's not to say Evernham may not be involved in some grand project with a long-lasting and highly profitable impact on Hendrick Companies, or even Hendrick Motorsports or perhaps in NASCAR itself.

   It's just that in reality I still have no clue what he's doing. Do you?

  

Brad Keselowski goes back to school

   You're never too old to learn and for 26-year-old Nationwide Series champion Brad Keselowski, there was plenty he needed to know before starting the 2011 NASCAR Season promoting a new sponsor in the Sprint Cup Series for his No. 2 Penske Racing team.

   How about "Beer 101"? It's hard to imagine many young people passing up a chance to pass - or fail - that class.

   Keselowski recently took a trip to the MillerCoors brewery in Milwaukee to learn the history of Miller Lite and its history of sponsorship in NASCAR. He charged into beer fundamentals with Miller brewmaster Manny Manuele. There he learned the complex brewing process that produces the great taste of Miller Lite.

   The trip was capped off with the annual Christmas lighting ceremony on State Street, right in front of the site of the original Plank Road Brewery, which Miller purchased and transformed into the Miller Brewing Company.

   "The trip to Milwaukee was an awesome learning experience for me as I prepare to represent such a great brand in Miller Lite," said Keselowski. "A lot of adults know how to drink a beer, but it was really cool to see how it is produced, and even how to pair it with certain food.

   "There is tradition and greatness that comes with being associated with Miller Lite. The ‘Blue Deuce' has an unbelievable history in our sport. Rusty Wallace and Kurt Busch set a very high bar, but I'm confident my team and I can carry on that successful legacy."

   Any chance Keselowski didn't get an 'A'?

 

NASCAR TV start times look like they will remain the same in 2011

   The TV start times for NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races, at least those on the Fox Network anyways, look like they will remain the same in 2011.

   The Observer and ThatsRacin.com have obtained the approximate green-flag start times of all the Cup races that will be broadcast on Fox and they all generally follow the same 1 p.m.-3 p.m.-7:30 p.m. Eastern start time slots of 2010.

   NASCAR CEO and Chairman Brian France said during the season finale race weekend in Homestead, Fla., that the sanctioning body was looking at several areas that could be affecting poor TV ratings in 2010, including start times.

   According to the information obtained, the Budweiser Shootout is scheduled for a green-flag start at 8:29 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 12. The 2011 Daytona 500 is scheduled for a 1:19 p.m. green-flag start on Feb. 20.

   Other green-flag start times:
   3:14 p.m. Eastern Feb. 27 at Phoenix
   3:16 p.m. Eastern March 6 at Las Vegas
   1:13 p.m. Eastern March 20 at Bristol
   3:16 p.m. Eastern March 27 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif.
   1:13 p.m. Eastern April 3 at Martinsville, Va.
   7:46 p.m. Eastern April 9 at Texas
   1:19 p.m. Eastern April 17 at Talladega, Ala.
   7:44 p.m. Eastern April 30 at Richmond, Va.
   7:45 p.m. Eastern May 7 at Darlington, S.C.
   1:15 p.m. Eastern May 15 at Dover, Del.
   7:46 p.m. Eastern May 21 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway
   6:15 p.m. Eastern May 29 Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway
   1:16 p.m. Eastern June 5 at Kansas