NASCAR Probing Menard Spinout After All

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After Jeff Gordon raised the radar of NASCAR officials eveywhere by intimating that Paul Menard's tire issue with 17 laps left was a bit of a shenanigan...

They're investigating...
Witness below...


There's unsubstantiated evidence that Menard's team went to an encrypted channel just before the crash... in a race that RCR teammate Kevin Harvick went on to win...

"In light of the suspicions, we're going to look into it and see if there is anything," NASCAR president Mike Helton said Friday at Chicagoland Speedway to David Newton of ESPN and others. "And a lot of it is going to be interpretation. Certainly, it is on us to understand exactly what all we can find as far as facts are concerned."

The "ethics of racing" discussion begins anew...

Race recap: Menard motors to Indy win

Paul Menard kisses the bricks

Nothing like getting your first win at a major track. That's something that few people can say. Paul Menard can now say it.

Menard won for the first time in 167 races and his fifth start at the Brickyard 400. His crew helped him tremendously, balancing his gas milage and enabling Menard to hold off the hard-charging Jeff Gordon. He was in the top part of the race for the most part and didn't take the lead until late in the race. He took the lead for good with 3 laps left.

The win moves Menard to 14th in the Sprint Cup standings and within reach of the finals.

And yeah, he's got a back story too. His family name is one very familiar in the racing business and Menard was a garage rat as a kid. He spent most of his childhood hanging around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway with his dad, who raced there and said he's been to every Brickyard 400 since the race began in 1994.

Here's to you Paul Menard, we hesitate to call you a racing jobber, since you race for Richard Childress racing but never the less, its a great win for the unsung guys.

Your race highlights from NASCAR.com:



And the 1st time winner victory lane thing: (Thanks NASCAR.com)

Richard Petty, Yates Merging For 2010 Season

((HT: AJC))

Under the agreement announced Thursday, Yates driver Paul Menard will join RPM drivers Kasey Kahne, Elliott Sadler and A.J. Allmendinger next year.

RPM was formed in January when Petty Holdings merged with Gillett Evernham Motorsports.

The team has met with mixed success, though Kahne is in good position to make the 12-driver chase for the championship after picking up his second victory of the season last week in Atlanta. Kahne is sixth in points heading into Saturday's race at Richmond, the final race before the chase begins.

"This is a pretty big deal for us," Petty said. "We're thrilled to partner with Ford. We've talked with a lot of folks, but in the end it came down tothe success the Gilletts and I think we can achieve with Ford Racing."

The switch from Dodge to Ford should ease some of the financial pressure felt by RPM since Chrysler's Chapter 11 filing. RPM laid off employees and cut salaries after Chrysler filed for bankruptcy protection.

"If you are going to compete with the other teams in this sport, you need a lot of support," said RPM managing partner Foster Gillett. "We bring a lot to this relationship as well. We've won twice this season and the power of Richard Petty is hard to beat, plus we have the support of some of the biggest names in corporate in America."

The merger leaves RPM driver Reed Sorenson and former NASCAR champion Bobby Labonte —who has been driving for Yates — looking for work while bringing Kahne full circle with Ford.

Kahne was being groomed by for big things by Ford in 2003 when he suddenly left the fold and signed with Ray Evernham's Dodge team, a move that gave Kahne a full-time ride at the Cup level. Ford sued for breach of contract, but the case was eventually thrown out of court.

Brian Wolfe, director of Ford North America Motorsports, called RPM's decision to switch manufacturers "gratifying."

"We will work with them closely on the technical front to help them become even more competitive than they are," he said. "What's also really good to me is the chance to have someone with the class and the legacy of Richard Petty involved with Ford."

Petty, winner of a record 200 NASCAR races, said some of the details are still being worked on. But he added there is little doubt the merger will help RPM make inroads on NASCAR super teams like Hendrick Motorsports.

"I've won races with Ford and plan to again," he said.

Just not with Sorenson, who is 28th in points this year with just one Top 10 finish.

Labonte is 30th while driving for Yates as part of a joint venture with Hall of Fame Racing, but was pulled from last week's race at Atlanta in favor of rookie Erik Darnell. Labonte ended up driving the No. 71 car for TRG Motorsports and finished 18th while Darnell was 30th.

Yates Racing co-owner Max Jones said it will still field two cars for the remainder of the 2009 season. Menard, who is 32nd in points, will drive one car while Darnell and Labonte will split time in the other.

All the story above does is give us a chance to show you the Sonoma race from earlier in the year where Kahne held off Tony Stewart
((HT: NASCAR Media/TNT))