David Ragan lands a Cup ride

   David Ragan, who spent the past five seasons driving for Roush Fenway Racing, will drive for Front Row Motorsports in the Sprint Cup series in 2012, the Observer and ThatsRacin.com have learned.

    An official announcement is scheduled for early next week, sources said.

    It remains unclear which team Ragan will drive for at Front Row, which fielded Ford teams last season for David Gilliland and Travis Kvapil.

    Ragan earned his first career Cup win in the 2011 season, at the July race at Daytona. The 26-year-old native of Unadilla, Ga., also has two wins in the Nationwide series.

Brad Keselowski to run 6 Truck races

   Brad Keselowski will run at least six NASCAR Camping World Truck series races this season in a second truck fielded by his Brad Keselowski Racing team.

    Keselowski will drive in the season opener at Daytona plus the races at Kansas, Charlotte, Kentucky, Pocono and Bristol, Tenn.

    Jeff Stankiewicz will serve as Keselowski's crew chief. Doug Randolph will serve as crew chief for Parker Kligerman, who drives BKM's No. 29 Dodge in the Truck Series.

Trevor Bayne talks Tim Tebow

   Last season's surprise Daytona 500 winner, Trevor Bayne, was asked on Friday why he thought Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow's publicly professed religious beliefs were so polarizing to some people. Bayne is also very public in professing the role his religious beliefs play in his life, including his profession as a race car driver.

   Here was Bayne's answer:

   "Well, it's polarizing to me because it's something different that I think our world needs and I think it desires, and so when you look at somebody and you see something different, you wonder what that is, then I think Tim Tebow has made that very clear what that is, and I think that's our mission is to make it very clear. If we look different from the world, it's because of Jesus.

   "I think he's done a lot in my life. I can't speak for Jamie. I've seen some things that he's seen the same way. It's what we're here for. I started racing for me, I started racing because I wanted to be a driver and I wanted to be successful and I wanted to win races and I wanted to have the most followers on Twitter or the most fans or whatever it is.

   "But I think that's changed over the past few years. I got to go to something that was really incredible this year called Passion, which is for 18 to 25 year olds, and it really got me fired up to see what this is all about, that it's not about me, it never has been. It's not about what I do here, but it's about what happens for the kingdom. I think this year I'm a lot more fired up about storing my treasures in heaven instead of here.

   "I think it's a really great thing that Tim Tebow is staying firm in what he believes in. He's not letting that change him. I read an article today in USA Today that talked about that, and I can see how that would be really hard when you have that much flak that you're catching, whether it's good or it's bad, if people are talking about it so much, it would be easy to change and waver, but I think the reason he doesn't is because it's real. I think Jesus is something that can really change lives, and I think that if we believe all that he says he is and we believe like we say we do, then we'll look different just like he does and like we're trying to do here."

2012 NASCAR Speedweeks schedule

   Thursday, Feb. 16
   1-5 p.m. ARCA practice
  
   Friday, Feb. 17
   2 p.m. ARCA qualifying
   5-5:45 p.m. Budweiser Shootout practice
   6:30-7:30 p.m. Final Budweiser Shootout practice

   Saturday, Feb. 18
   10-10:45 a.m. final ARCA practice
   11 a.m.-1 p.m. Sprint Cup practice
   2-3:45 p.m. Cup practice
   4:30 p.m. ARCA race
   8:10 p.m. Budweiser Shootout

   Sunday, Feb. 19
   1:05 p.m. Daytona 500 pole qualifying

   Monday, Feb. 20
   No track activity

   Tuesday, Feb. 21
   No track activity

   Wednesday, Feb. 22
   noon-1:30 p.m. Cup practice
   2:30-4 p.m. Cup practice

   Thursday, Feb. 23
   9-9:50 a.m. Nationwide practice
   12:10-1 p.m. Truck practice
   2 p.m. Gatorade 150-mile qualifying races
   6-7:20 p.m. Final Truck practice

   Friday, Feb. 24
   11 a.m.-noon Cup practice
   2:05 p.m. Nationwide qualifying
   4:05 p.m. Truck qualifying
   7:30 p.m. Truck series race

   Saturday, Feb. 25
   10:30 a.m.-noon Final practice for Daytona 500
   1:15 p.m. Nationwide Series race

   Sunday, Feb. 26
   1 p.m. 2012 Daytona 500




   

Dale Junior talks about his new hire, Cole Whitt

   Dale Earnhardt Jr. was asked Thursday at Daytona International Speedway about the process that led him and his JR Motorsports organization to pick upstart Cole Whitt as the new driver for the No. 88 Chevrolet. The team's previous driver, Aric Almirola, was hired by Richard Petty Motorsports earlier this month to drive its legendary No. 43 car.

   Q. How did you to pick Cole Whitt over the other drivers who are out there and what you think he brings to your team? 
   Earnhardt: Well, I thought that, no disrespect to any of the guys that we didn't choose, they know who they are, but we considered a lot of different people. I just felt like Cole had some potential that was untapped, that we hadn't ‑‑ he had potential and ability that we hadn't been able to ‑‑ he hadn't even discovered yet, and I feel like in the guys that we looked at, we sort of know what kind of hand and cars they had and what kind of talent they had and where they would take us.

   And I think it's more exciting, a lot more risky but more exciting to go with a guy who you don't really know what he's capable of and could be big things, but you've just got to take that risk. And that's really why I do it. I don't do it to make money. I don't have a whole lot of other reasons to be in the Nationwide Series other than just to help somebody. When I'm able to do that ‑‑ I enjoy seeing what happened to Brad and seeing Eric get a deal like he's got now. That's why I do it, you know.

   It's funner to help the new guy than it is to help the guy that's kind of been through the ringer a few times.  Everybody deserves their opportunity, and I just feel like that was going to be Cole's only shot.

   Q. You had watched Brad Keselowski and seen him on the track and kind of had him on the radar screen.  Did you have that same kind of interest with Cole because this really came together very quickly with Aric leaving.
   Earnhardt: I didn't really watch Cole like I did Brad. I knew Brad before I even thought about hiring him as a driver. I just knew him, knew his family and stuff and would see him and watch him drive and watch him do stuff. And he impressed me, but I didn't have the opportunity to sort of ‑‑ I didn't have the opportunity to watch Cole.

   The only time I really got to see Cole race was at Phoenix in the Cup car when I was out on the track with him. I never watched any of his truck races, never seen him drive before then. But everybody who works in that garage in there that has my phone number called me and told me Cole was the guy.  Every one of them.  People I don't even talk to, people that I don't really have relationships with took time out of their day to call me and say, that's the guy you need to hire. They had no other ‑‑ other than interest in seeing Cole do well and get an opportunity. I thought it said a lot for people to do that.

   And the ones that I reached out to, that was the first guy on their list. I trusted all these people, and I feel like the guy ‑‑ from what I can tell, what I can see, that he deserves an opportunity. This might be his only opportunity, so I wanted to be the one to give it to him.

Daytona test will unveil new rules

NASCAR is back in full gear as the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams hit the pavement at Daytona International Speedway this week for three days of preseason testing.

The main focus of the test is for teams to work on their final preparations for 2012 Speedweeks – in particular, the 54th running of the Daytona 500 on Sunday, Feb. 26.

“This is an opportunity we are providing to the competitors to implement and test the new Daytona rules package for 2012,” said Robin Pemberton, vice president of competition. “It’s a chance for them to get comfortable with the cooling package, the smaller spoiler and to practice drafting for next month’s Daytona 500.”

The new rules package is a result of information gathered during recent tests at Talladega last October and at Daytona last November.

 “While we have had other tests with these set-ups, this is the first opportunity for the entire field to test together and get more comfortable with this package as it relates to their cars,” Pemberton said.

 The new rules package includes:

· Smaller radiators
o Maximum of 2 gallon capacity
· Smaller overflow tank
o Maximum capacity of ½ gallon
· Radiator inlet is moved up closer into the front center bumper area
· Rate reduction in the springs – softer springs
· Smaller rear spoiler
· Base line restrictor plate of 29/32 inch (1/64 inch larger than plate size for the 2011 Daytona 500)

“This three-day test will allow the engine tuners for these teams to be able to work with their engine packages and see how they relate and react to the new cooling regulations,” Pemberton said.

Mark Martin gets a race with JGR

Joe Gibbs Racing announced Friday that NASCAR veteran Mark Martin will drive the Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry in the 2012 Nationwide Series race in Las Vegas in March.

“We’ve always hoped to have the opportunity for Mark to drive for us and to have him behind the wheel of our Interstate Batteries Toyota for the Nationwide race in Vegas is exciting,” said J.D. Gibbs, president of Joe Gibbs Racing. “He is a great example to all drivers of the dedication it takes to be successful and certainly we’re honored to have him part of our efforts in 2012.”

While Martin is only currently scheduled to race in Las Vegas for JGR, the team is still working on opportunities for him to secure additional races this season.

Martin currently has 49 career victories in 235 Nationwide starts. His most recent victory came just last season when he piloted the No. 32 car to victory Las Vegas. He had four starts in 2011, with the one victory and three top-ten finishes.

"No organization has been better in the Nationwide Series over the past three or four seasons and to have the chance to get behind the wheel of a Joe Gibbs Racing Nationwide car will be a thrill," Martin said. "Maybe I can pick up a few more races and try to catch Kyle to get my record back again.”