Johnson leads NASCAR media exposure this season

   No driver has been mentioned more often on television, interviewed more frequently, or collected more exposure value for their sponsors in the first half of the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season than Jimmie Johnson.
  
   According to research conducted by Joyce Julius & Associates, Inc. — which has monitored every NASCAR race telecast over the last 28 seasons — Johnson's sponsors as a group appeared for 13 hours, 10 minutes, 46 seconds  during live and replayed telecasts of the season's first 18 points-paying races. When also factoring in verbal mentions (82) of his sponsors, $45.3 million of in-broadcast exposure value was amassed by the 43 brands monitored in association with Johnson.

   Joyce Julius calculates television exposure value by comparing the in-broadcast visual and verbal exposure to the estimated cost of a national commercial during the telecast and applying Joyce Julius Recognition Grading, which takes into account factors such as size and placement of the image on screen, as well as brand clutter and integration of the brand into the activity.

   Rounding out the top-five in media exposure value were Dale Earnhardt Jr., Tony Stewart, Kasey Kahne and Greg Biffle.

What's next for A.J. Allmendinger

   Now that Sprint Cup Series driver A.J. Allmendinger has been indefinitely suspended for failing a random drug test, what happens next?

   Well, it's really up to the driver.

   NASCAR spokesman David Higdon explains the next steps:

   "Under section 19-11F in our rule book, NASCAR facilitates assistance for anyone testing positive under our substance abuse program. When a license is suspended, NASCAR sends a letter for reinstatement. By agreeing to the terms of the letter, the member is allowed to participate in the Road to Recovery Program," he said.

   "The Program Administrator will work with the suspended member to arrange evaluation by a substance abuse professional. This evaluation helps the PA create a road map leading to a return to competition. This plan may include everything from counseling to in‐house treatment and rehabilitation. Additional testing is also required, and the Program Administrator will decide how often the member will be tested, for what and under what conditions.

   "Once the member successfully completes the plan, the PA will send a letter to NASCAR recommending reinstatement."

   One caveat. Allmendinger can be reinstated but there is no guarantee he can return to the ride he left, driving the No. 22 Dodge for Penske Racing. That would be up to the team.

Shell statement on Allmendinger's failed drug test

   THE FOLLOWING STATEMENT SHOULD BE ATTRIBUTED TO SHELL AND PENNZOIL:

   Shell and Pennzoil believe that the process and procedures that NASCAR has in place as part of their substance abuse policy are appropriate and serve to ensure that the sport and its participants are held to the highest standards.

   We share Penske Racing’s disappointment with the result of AJ’s (Allmendinger) B sample test and will work closely with them to determine plans moving forward. We hope for the best for AJ during this difficult time.

NASCAR Contenders Live: New fan event starts NASCAR Chase

NASCAR announced on Friday the launch of a new interactive fan event which will help kick off the start of the Chase for the Sprint Cup. The event, called NASCAR Contenders Live and sponsored by Toyota and Sprint, will be held at 1:30 p.m. Sept. 12 at the House of Blues in Chicago.The 12 Chase contenders will interact onstage with NASCAR's biggest supporters - the fans - and share their strategies and insight on how they plan to win the ultimate prize: the Sprint Cup Series championship.

In conjunction with the event, a sweepstakes has started to give fans a chance to win an ultimate package that includes a 2012 Toyota Camry SE, two tickets to the NASCAR Contenders Live, two VIP tickets and two VIP passes to attend the Cup race at Chicagoland Speedway on Sept. 16, a one-year subscription to SiriusXM Satellite radio and $500 cash.

To enter, go to www.NASCAR.com/ContendersLive until Aug. 30 at 3 p.m. Eastern. Beginning July 27, fans can purchase tickets to NASCAR Contenders Live on the website.

NASCAR Mexico champ to run for KBM in Trucks

   Three-time NASCAR Mexico Series champion German Quiroga will run four races in the NASCAR Truck Series this season with Kyle Busch Motorsports beginning with the Oct. 6 race at Talladega, Ala.

   KBM will also field the the No. 51 Toyota with sponsorship from NET10 in the final three races of the season at Texas, Phoenix and Homestead, Fla.

   Quiroga, the only driver in the history of the NASCAR Mexico Series to win multiple championships, captured three consecutive titles from 2009 to 2011 after finishing in the runner-up spot in both 2007 and 2008. After the Mexico Series became officially sanctioned by NASCAR in 2007, the talented wheelman collected 16 wins, 52 top-five and 60 top-10 finishes over 70 starts.

   The 32-year-old finished 16^th in his Truck Series debut with KBM at New Hampshire last September, and then finished 26^th - after losing a lap due to a loose wheel - in the 2011 series finale at Homestead. In 2007, the Mexico City native led 12 laps in his lone Nationwide Series start before being relegated to a 28^th-place finish at his home-country track, Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez.

NASCAR statement on test of Allmendinger's B sample

NASCAR Statement

   DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (July 17, 2012) NASCAR has been informed by the NASCAR Substance Abuse Policy Program Administrator (Dr. David Black of Aegis Sciences Corporation) that the test of AJ Allmendinger’s "B" sample will take place on Tuesday, July 24. The test will be conducted in Nashville, Tennessee at Aegis headquarters, per the NASCAR rule book.

   Review of timeline:

   ·     On June 29, NASCAR member Allmendinger, driver of the #22 car in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, was randomly tested by Aegis at the NASCAR event in Kentucky, per Section 19-6C.

  

   · On July 4, the Program Administrator (PA) sent a positive "A" sample test result to the program’s Medical Review Officer (MRO) Dr. Douglas Aukerman, M.D., and on July 5, Aegis sent final paperwork to the MRO, per Section 19-11, which allows him to begin his review.

   · On July 6, the MRO and competitor exchanged phone messages.

   · On July 7, the MRO connected by phone with the NASCAR member and informed him of the positive "A" test. The MRO also informed him he could choose to have the "B" sample tested, per Section 19-11A, B.

  

   · Later that day, July 7, the MRO notified NASCAR of the positive "A" test, and NASCAR temporarily suspended the NASCAR member, as stated in Section 19-11B(6,7).

  

   · The NASCAR member officially notified the MRO on July 9 of his request to have his "B" sample tested, which was within the allotted 72-hour window from the time he was informed that his "A" sample was positive, per Section 19-11B.

   · Once a member requests to have the "B" sample tested, NASCAR’s substance abuse policy provides its members up to 30 business days to have the "B" sample test conducted and results finalized, per Sec. 19-11B(5). These 30 days are designed to provide the member with reasonable time to prepare to attend the "B" sample test or be represented by a qualified toxicologist, per Sec. 19-11B(2).

   · On July 17, the PA informed NASCAR that the NASCAR member made the decision to select Tuesday, July 24, for the "B" test and has designated an independent toxicologist to be present on his behalf.

B Sample Test Set for Allmendinger

   Statement from Tara Ragan, Vice President, Walldinger Racing Inc.
   Charlotte, NC (July 17, 2012)

   “We now have a confirmed date for the testing of AJ’s “B” (split specimen) Sample. The test will take place on Tuesday, July 24 at 8 a.m. CDT and be conducted at the Aegis Analytical Laboratories in Nashville. Pursuant to the 2012 NASCAR Rulebook and in line with the procedures, we have elected to have a designated independent toxicologist present on AJ’s behalf.  Along with everyone else, we are looking forward to hearing the results as quickly as possible. AJ and all of us at Walldinger Racing have truly appreciated the outpouring of support from our fans, partners, and colleagues. It has meant a lot to us during this difficult time. We are also grateful to Mr. Penske and his management team for their patience and respect of the process we are going through.”