A Hair-Pulling NASCAR Finish

((HT: ESPN/youtube/NASCAR))

It was supposed to be Patrick Carpentier's last race...

The Circuit Gilles Villeneuve was the place for the Montreal Nationwide event, but it dodn't end the way the locals wanted...

Steve Wallace created a bit of a furor that involved Carpentier, but more importantly, the pit road was the place for Wallace and a Carpentier crew man to square off...


Jerry Baxter had his hands full, didn't he...???

DEVELOPING: Danica To Run NASCAR Full-Time Next Season...? Looks That Way...

According to Marty Smith over at the four-letter, it looks like Danica Patrick will be driving Nationwide full-time for 2012 and running select NASCAR events for Stewart-Haas in the same calendar year with the idea of her going full-time Sprint Cup for Tony Stewart by 2013's season...

A presser is being arranged at GoDaddy's HQ in Phoenix to announce the whole idea.

"Tony Stewart has always said he'd love to have her, but we're a long ways from being at that point," Stewart-Haas spokesman Mike Arning said Wednesday. "From a Stewart-Haas Racing standpoint, things aren't there yet."

No word on how this would clash with her running in the Indy 500 every year when and if this announced...

Here was the discussion during SpeedWeeks at Indy this past year...
((HT: IndyCar/ESPN on ABC/youtube))


Turns out they were right...

Danica To Run NASCAR Full-Time Next Season...?

((HT: ESPN))

Not really surprising anyone, Danica Patrick who has been purposefully coy about her future plans, looks like she is headed to the Nationwide Series full-time in 2012 before heading to the Sprint Cup in 2013.

Who, specifically, will she be driving for...??? Dunno...

Her contracts for both Andretti and JR Motorsports are both up after this season, and she looks like to be the mother of all free agents for the silly season...

Here's Linda Cohn with the guy who broke the story, Terry Blount...


One note... she wants the resources to run in the Indy 500 as well next year- regardless of who she runs for in the NASCAR ranks...

Saturday's Big One At 'Dega...

((HT: NASCAR/ESPN/MT89Motorsport2))

Has the HQ told you that the ground on Talladega was built on cursed Indian ground...???

We got another wreck for the weekend...
Here's the Nationwide version...


Waiting for tomorrow's version...

JJC Told To Stick It... By Her Old Boss...

Rick Russell...

Here's your recap of the Jennifer Jo Cobb Nationwide story from Bristol...

Otherwise known as "As The Steering Wheel Turns"
Just watch the interview, you'll get all you need to see...
((HT: NASCAR Images/Speed/youtube))


Now, according to our friends at the Sporting News, JJC's old boss Rick Russell, is having her and her crew chief put up on larceny charges. Russell asserts that JJC and Steve Kuykendall stole $16,000 worth of parts and were not giving them back.

From Sporting News...

"I'm not sure how you steal something from someone when you move it from their property A to their property B," Cobb said, according to ESPN. "It's just him trying to stir up more trouble. I'm not concerned. He's just trying to rattle us.

Somehow, the HQ thinks this ain't over- and we might actually have an interest in the California races at Fon-tucky...

Jennifer Jo Cobb Tells Boss To Stick It...

((HT: Jalopnik/Hyde))

A lot of us have always wanted to have the spilkas to tell our bosses stuff like this...
((HT: WWE/youtube/USA))


It appears Nationwide Series racer Jennifer Jo Cobb got to do the same thing this past weekend in Bristol...

If you watch stock car racing with any great deal of regularity, you know that it takes a lot to fill a field of 43 on any given weekend. And if there a certain amount of field fillers, they're usually the first ones to check out, get a paycheck and keep their mom-and-pop-shop operations afloat through a full season.

JJC had a Nationwide deal with Rick Russell's shop. After a rough Vegas race, they all seemingly agreed to run safe and survive in the bullring...

Here's JJC talking about what went down next...
((HT: Speed/NASCAR/youtube))


Most of the talk behind the wall is siding with Cobb...

Sufficed to say, she's got a new ride in California with Rick Ware...
Who looks like the tool now...???

DEVELOPING: Danica Finishes Fourth In Nationwide

Establishing a new watermark for female drivers in NASCAR, Danica Patrick wrapped up her Las Vegas experience by crossing the finish line fourth.

Mark Martin won the Nationwide Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway after Brad Keselowski hit the wall on the last lap.

Justin Allgaier finished second and Keselowski was third.

Patrick's finish was the best by a woman in a national NASCAR race since Sara Christian finished fifth at Pittsburgh in 1949 in the Cup Series.

Here's your highlights...
((HT: NASCAR/ABC/BumpsNotes))

Another Race, Another Keselowski Incident

NASCAR officials aren't planning any punishments for Kyle Busch or Brad Keselowski over Friday's Nationwide Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway. Busch admitted that he "dumped" Keselowski after Keselowski got into the back of Busch's car with 31 laps remaining.

Vice president of competition Robin Pemberton called it "good, hard racing," but he did admit that he would be keeping an eye on the two of them.

Keselowski already is on probation for an incident involving him and Carl Edwards in the Sprint Cup race at Atlanta- which you've seen here before.

Busch drove back under Keselowski's left rear bumper and spun him after getting rubbed into the wall beforehand. Keselowski finished 14th.

Here's your postgame from Bristol...
((HT: NASCAR/ESPN/RNCoyote))

BREAKING: NASCAR Announces 2011 Schedules

((HT: NASCAR their own selves))

The ideas and ruminations that NASCAR has had on their schedules have officially come out today for all of us to see...

OSG HQ has been keeping you on top of it all here...

“The adjustments and realignment of the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule will make for an exciting race season next year,” said NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France. “The revised schedule provides better situated dates for the tracks, a more challenging lineup for the drivers and ultimately more intrigue for the fans.”

To wit and in final:

The second race of the season goes to Phoenix a week after the Daytona 500. PIR replaces Fontana in Week 2. Texas takes over in the Phoenix spot on Saturday, April 9 for a night race.

Fontana will now run March 27. A second Kansas date follows the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte and will be held on June 5. The Kentucky race will be held under the lights on Saturday, July 9.

The "Chase" will begin at Chicagoland Speedway on Sunday, September 18th.
Chicagoland’s previous date was in early July, that now goes to Kentucky. New Hampshire Motor Speedway, which previously had the first Chase date, will now have the second, on September 25th.

The Nationwide Series:

34 races in 2011, all featuring the new car that is being run a total of four times this season.
Iowa Speedway gets a second date in 2011. May 22nd and Saturday, August 6th.
Chicagoland gets a date on Saturday, June 4th and again on Saturday, September 17th as part of a weekend tripleheader.
Road America returns on Saturday, June 25th.
Kentucky Speedway adds July 8.

The Truck Series:

The trucks will get 25 races, one of which will be announced at a future date.
Phoenix International Raceway used to do November, now they get February 25th.
Darlington Raceway moves from August to Saturday, March 12th.
Michigan's June race now goes with the August 20th race weekend.
Kentucky Speedway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway will now be back-to-back in October on the 1st and 15th...

More when we know more...

Watkins Glen Takes Out Drivers Again...

This time, it was a precursor of the Sunday race...
It all happened on Saturday...

It took only 24 laps in the Nationwide race to get everyone red-flagged for 30 minutes.

Jason Leffler's 38 car started it... he was too wide on a turn and clipped Colin Braun when he was trying to get back on course...

"I'll take the blame because I got wide," Leffler said. "I was trying to ease back over and got hit in the right front. If you don't give, you cause a multicar wreck. I'll take the blame, but you've got to let somebody back in. It's early in the race to get wiped out like that."

Ten cars were involved- and the rear of Tony Raines' 34 car was on top the hood of Braun's car and also on Justin Allgaier's front end. Kevin Harvick, on his in-car radio, said it looked like a bunch of Legos.

He was right...

Here's the wreck and a history lesson from the guys in the booth...
((HT: NASCAR/NASCAR Media/ESPN/Fel0096/TSN))


Oh, Marcos Ambrose won the race... his third straight Nationwide at the Glen.

Edwards And Keselowski Hear From The Big Red Truck

((HT: NASCAR.com))

From NASCAR their ownselves...

NASCAR has penalized the No. 60 team and the No. 22 driver for rule violations committed during last Saturday’s NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Gateway International Raceway.

The penalties come as a result of violating Section 12-1 (actions detrimental to stock car racing/ aggressive driving) of the 2010 NASCAR Rule Book.

Carl Edwards, driver of the No. 60, has been penalized with the loss of 60 NASCAR Nationwide Series championship driver points, fined $25,000 and placed on NASCAR probation until December 31st. Car owner Jack Roush has been penalized with the loss of 60 series championship owner points.

Brad Keselowski, driver of the No. 22, has been placed on NASCAR probation until Dec. 31.

Since Keselowski was the hittee and Edwards the hitter ((in this case)), the HQ thinks that's why Edwards was placed on probation until the end of the year in the Nationwide Series.

The HQ also thinks Daytona is the next spot where these two hook up... again...
Here's what caused the mess... this time...
((HT: NASCAR/ESPN/MT89Motorsports))

Edwards-Keselowski Rivalry Continues At Gateway

We all remember Atlanta and the Nationwide Series... actually, this started all the way back at Talladega when Edwards went airborne in one of the mastiest crashes in the modern era.

Gateway was another notch in this rivalry's belt...

Keselowski gets in to Edwards in Turn 1 of the final lap, and Edwards takes Keselowski out for the win. Spinning wounded, Keselowski was T-boned just short of the Start-Finish and ended up 14th...

"I just couldn't let him take the win from me," said Edwards. "We had a great restart. My guys built me a great car. We came to the checkered flag, and I hate to see stuff tore up, but we came here to win and he took it from us there in Turn 1. Just an awesome race. ... I'm sure some of them don't like that win -- Brad Keselowski fans and stuff -- but, man, I just couldn't let him take it from me. I had to do what I had to do."

Expect another tour of the Big Red Truck...
Here's the last lap and the money quote from Brad's dad...
((HT: XERB1090/BumpsNotes/ESPN/NASCAR))


The HQ knows this is far from over...

Bowyer On Probation For Five Weeks

NASCAR driver Clint Bowyer has been placed on probation until June 16 for aggressive driving.

It's a Wednesday, yes we know that...

The penalty is from a late-race incident between Bowyer and Denny Hamlin in last weekend's Nationwide Series race at Dover. Bowyer and Hamlin were going at it on a late restart when Hamlin clipped Bowyer, forcing him to pit.

Here's the bump...
((HT: ESPN/NASCAR/NASCAR Media/dsplayerboy10))


Hamlin called the bump "unintentional," but Bowyer raced out of the pits and slammed into Hamlin- kinda like Cole Trickle...

Bowyer's No. 21 car was parked immediately and finished 24th. Hamlin wound up 12th.

Dennis Setzer's Wild Ride At Talladega

You had some excitement in the double-header at Talladega today, but the biggest batch seemed to be at the end of the Nationwide event- the Aaron's 312...

And Dennis Setzer was one lucky dog...

((HT: ESPN/NASCAR))

Leffler Placed On Probation For 3 Races

((HT: NASCAR))

From NASCAR their ownselves...

NASCAR has placed Jason Leffler, driver of the No. 38 car in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, on probation for the next three NASCAR Nationwide Series events for a rule violation he committed during the race at Nashville Superspeedway on April 3.

Leffler’s probation will run until April 28 of this year.

Leffler was found to have violated Section 12-1 (actions detrimental to stock car racing – aggressive driving) of the 2010 NASCAR Nationwide Series Rule Book.

Here's the back story with Leffler and James Buescher that caused the decision...
((HT: NASCAR/ESPN/SlicedSmoke14))


Leffler retalliated and was then, subsequently, parked after the make-good wreck...

J-Dub's JR Motorsports Update

((HT: Examiner.com))

Scott Wimmer knew his deal with JR Motorsports was going to be a short one. After leading 21 laps and finishing a season-best 10th place at Bristol, Wimmer ran his last race in the #7 Lifetime Army Wives Chevrolet April 3 at Nashville Superspeedway. Wimmer started 17th, and once again finished 7th – the second consecutive Top 10 finish for the #7 car.

Enter Landon Cassill.

Cassill, former JR Motorsports driver and winner of the Raybestos Rookie of the Year Award in the Nationwide Series in 2008, has been selected to drive four races in the #7 car. In 19 starts in 2008 (16 of those for JR Motorsports), Cassill took five Top-5 finishes and even took the pole at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Ironically, Danica Patrick will return June 26 to take over the #7 at NHMS.

Cassill’s first race will be in Phoenix this Friday (Apr 9) in the Bashas’ Supermarkets 200 at Phoenix International Raceway. Arizona is the home state of GoDaddy.com (Scottsdale), so the Internet domain name giant will be the sponsor for the #7 Chevrolet. The sponsor of Cassill’s next three races – Texas Motor Speedway (April 17), Talladega Superspeedway (April 24), and Richmond International Raceway (April 30) – is yet to be determined.

Cassill has three races under his belt at PIR, with his best finish being 6th on 11/8/2008. He has never led a lap at Arizona’s 1-mile oval.

"Landon is a familiar face at JR Motorsports, and it is with great pleasure that we welcome him back to drive our No. 7 Chevrolets these next few weeks," Kelley Earnhardt said. "We are committed to keeping this No. 7 team racing as long as possible, because with Tony Eury Jr. and an extremely dedicated group of employees, this team is too good to not be at the race track. We are fortunate to have GoDaddy.com on board at Phoenix. I know it's a big deal to have GoDaddy.com represented there, because the Valley is home to Bob Parsons and the GoDaddy.com team. They are great partners."

Also, Don "Hollywood" Yates has been selected to sing "The Star-Spangled Banner" before the Bashas' Supermarkets 200 at Phoenix, PIR President Bryan R. Sperber announced. Known for his role as "Wolf" on NBC's "American Gladiators" and as a championship bull fighter, Yates also enjoys a diverse career as a vocalist.

J-Dub's JR Motorsports Update

((HT: examiner.com))

((ed. note- We're going to start showing you these when he pumps them out because he is finally writing things after a long absence not of his own doing- even if it is about the Nationwide Series...))

The NASCAR Nationwide Series is in the second of a two-week break, gearing up for the Scotts Turf Builder 300 on March 20 at Bristol Motor Speedway. JR Motorsports will probably only be entering one car into the NNS race – Kelly Bires and the #88 Hellmann’s Chevrolet. Danica Patrick, driver of the #7 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet, has rejoined IndyCar full-time, and will not race for Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and JRM again until New Hampshire on June 26.

Kelly Bires Update:

Bires ((pictured, thanks facebook.com)) has a good car during Las Vegas qualifying, but ended the race very early when a tire somehow got cut down on Lap 6 – sending the #88 Hendrickcars.com Chevrolet hard into the wall. Replays of the crash showed what appeared to be tire parts coming out from underneath the #88 before it struck the wall. Bires was looking to improve on his 7th place finish in Fontana, and will have to wait until Bristol to get the car back on track. On his Twitter feed on March 10, Bires said, “Just spent some time at JRM and took the guys out for lunch. Bristol cars look awesome! Excited for my first race with Hellmanns!”

Some have said the Bires would be the “Invisible Driver” at JRM when they signed Danica Patrick, but Bires has responded well. Bires has developed quite a fan following, and his Facebook page was covered in condolences after Las Vegas. Some of the FB comments said, “Sucks that that happened, that car looked great. Hopefully you guys can catch a break at Bristol,” “Kelly, it is okay. I know you are going to be a winner. It is a shame that the racing tires do not have more puncture resistance,” and “Man that sucked, it is what it is, just gotta regroup and get ready for bristol. Tough break for jrm all together today.” The break has done Bires some good, allowing him to get in some rounds of golf, as well as goose hunting trip in Buffalo, NY. Would you call that a “wild goose chase?”

With two starts under his belt (Dale Jr. raced the #88 at Daytona, and came in second), Bires is in 33rd place with 183 points, and has brought home $54,861 for the season.

Danica Patrick Update:

According to Bob Pockrass at SceneDaily, Rick Hendrick likes how Danica Patrick has approached her first NASCAR NNS season. “She's a pro at handling herself," Hendrick said Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. "And she's learning. She doesn't try to profess to be any further along than she is. ... It's so refreshing. "When you get someone who has done real good in one division and won big races in open-wheel, they come in and they [often] don't want to act like that they don't know everything and they feel like they've got to be [running] up front."

Kevin Harvick is also more than willing to help the NNS rookie, actually pointing her to the more efficient high line at Las Vegas Motor Speedway – urging her to follow him, even though she was towards the end of the pack and he was leading the race at the time. On January 19, Harvick also called Patrick the first true female “competitor” in NASCAR. "We've never had a female -- in my era -- that's been competitive," Harvick said, according to Tania Ganguli and the Orlando Sentinel. "I think most of them have just been here because they're female. I think Danica's the first real female racecar driver that's coming in here. I'm not saying she's going to be competitive overnight but she's the first one who's got any sort of credentials that should be racing cars."

After three races, Patrick is in 34th place with 183 points (tied with her teammate Bires), and has earned $102,679. Remember, Patrick will not get into an NNS car again until the New England 300 at Loudon on June 26.

Next NNS Race for JRM:
Race: Scotts Turf Builder 300
Location: Bristol Motor Speedway, TN
Date: March 20, 2010
Time: 2:00pm EST

Follow me on Twitter(JRM_Examiner), or become a fan on Facebook!

See you on the track!

Here's a flashback of Bires early Vegas experience...
((HT: NASCAR/ESPN2))


UPDATE: Scott Wimmer will be behind the wheel of the #7 car when Danica is not driving. Team co-owner Tony Eury, Jr. says the car is "too good" to be parked. JR Motorsports is trying to find sponsorship for the races where they have an interest in running, but no sponsor dollars as of yet...

Danica Patrick go Boom...

Well, NASCAR's new wonder kid got her 1st Nationwide Race experience today and quite an experience it was. She was cruising along in 21st place during the DRIVE4COPD300/Impossible to read fast race at Daytona when she got caught up in the leftovers of a crash that happened in front of her.

The story from the Orlando Sentinel RIGHT HERE

((Danica seems to draw a crowd//Courtesy: Gary W.Green/Orlando Sentinel))

The wreck was pretty unavoidable, though from what the experts are saying is something that a veteran might have been able to avoid. She had struggled early in the race, expressing some confusion over restart rules and also stalled her car on pit row at one point. She would finish in the back of the pack, the race would be one by Tony Stewart.

Every indication from the NASCAR folks is that she should be able to make the adjustment to stock car racing. Though different from the Indy Cars she primarily drives, indications are she has the skillset to be competitive. However, we may not find out until 2014, when her contract with Andretti Green Racing ends.

Here is video of said incident...at least until the 4-letter word pulls it. Thanks TwahLah and the You Tube:

Danica does NASCAR...Well at least The Nationwide

It looks like Danica Patrick will be working her way into NASCAR after all. She won't be running a "Full" schedule, but she will be running select Nationwide events (Nascar's version of AAA Baseball) this upcoming season.

Patrick signed a deal to be a part of Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Rick Hendrick's racing team and will Drive the #7 GoDaddy.Com car in the series. The announcement was made in Phoenix, Arizona.

More from the Phoenix Business Chronicle RIGHT HERE

((Danica Patrick tries to look Sultry//GoDaddy.com))

There has been a lot of discussion in the Motor Sports circuits as to whether she will or she won't. Most thought that when she signed her recent deal with Andretti Motor Sports that she was going to stay with the Indy Cars. She obviously will for a period of time, but it seems obvious that she is testing the NASCAR waters. Quite honestly, it's no surprise. There is a limited but devoted group of Indy Car fans...but the races are on the Versus Network and aren't seen by a whole lot of people. By contrast NASCAR offers a considerably larger viewing audience, never mind the 110,000 or so that attend each race.

Enjoy one of Ms. Patrick's finer moments...her argument with Indy Car racer Mika Duno...Thanks You Tube:

Danica Nearing Deal To Race For JR Motorsports

((HT: ESPN))

IndyCar Series driver Danica Patrick is nearing completion of a two-year contract with JR Motorsports, the NASCAR Nationwide Series operation owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr., and a source close to the negotiations described the talks as being "in the final phase."

A second source close to the situation confirmed the deal is moving forward, saying "talks are moving in a very positive direction and it would probably be a surprise if it didn't happen."

A deal is likely to be closed in the next week to ten days, but won't be announced until the off-season.

Patrick is trying to secure the number 7 for her ride, and it looks like her main sponsor in IndyCar will follow her to the Nationwide Series.

Here's Mike Massaro, Marty Smith, and Ryan McGee discussing the idea of Danica driving for Junior and in the Nationwide Series...


Those of us at OSG HQ hope that she learns the appropriate lessons of driving in NASCAR and carries them over to open-wheel...

If she doesn't she'll end up like her predecessors- Patty Moise and Shawna Robinson