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NASCAR Daily News Headlines * December 4, 2007
Pahrump Valley Speedway ClosesPahrump Valley Speedway, which opened in 1985 and bills itself as Southern Nevada's fastest quarter-mile dirt oval, officially closes effective on December 9th. Pahrump is the track where Kurt Busch began racing as a teenager in dwarf cars in the early '90s. He was the Nevada State Dwarf Car Rookie of the Year in 1994 and won the Nevada Dwarf Car championship in 1995. There will be a farewell race at the Pahrump Valley Speedway -- held on December 8th at 1:00 O'Clock. Gates open at 11 a.m. local time.
Kurt Busch Will Run Rolex 24Wayne Taylor Racing, which in 2008 will campaign the No. 10 SunTrust Pontiac and championship-winning driver Max Angelelli for its fifth Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series season, has entered into a partnership with Penske Racing to field a second entry at the 2008 season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona featuring an all-star lineup of Penske drivers from the NASCAR Sprint Cup (formerly Nextel Cup) Series, the IRL IndyCar Series, and the American Le Mans Series (ALMS).The No. 9 Toshiba Pontiac Riley of Penske-Taylor Racing will be co-driven in the Jan. 26-27 endurance classic by 2004 Sprint Cup champion Kurt Busch, two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves, and open-wheel and sports-car veteran Ryan Briscoe, who piloted the Penske ALMS Porsche to two overall wins and three class victories in 2007 and will join Castroneves full-time on the IndyCar circuit this coming season. The No. 9 entry will also carry associate sponsorship from Atlanta-based SunTrust Bank, which continues as primary sponsor on the No. 10 Pontiac for the fifth consecutive year in 2008. “I think, certainly from a team standpoint, if you have an opportunity to run a second car, I can’t imagine having it any better than being associated with Roger Penske’s organization,” said Wayne Taylor, the three-time sports car racing champion who co-drove to the 2005 Rolex Series title with Angelelli and founded Wayne Taylor Racing prior to the 2007 season. “It’s going to be a big deal for everybody involved. There’s a lot of work, obviously, in getting this all together. We’re very excited that Toshiba has come on board as title sponsor of the effort. Of course, SunTrust, which has been our lead sponsor on the No. 10 car, will be on both cars, as well, so that’s very exciting, too. The driver lineup and the team Roger has put together are really strong. There are three drivers from three different racing disciplines. Ryan’s driven with us before, so we know him very well. Helio, well, the guy’s a superstar. And Kurt Busch, he’s a NASCAR champion and a very good road racer. It’s certainly a lineup that will draw a lot of attention. And, without question, it gives us two strong contenders for the race win.” “On behalf of Penske Racing, I am thrilled to be returning to the Rolex 24 At Daytona next month,” Roger Penske said. “I want to thank Wayne Taylor, Toshiba and SunTrust for allowing us this opportunity. We could not be more pleased to have our Penske Racing teammates, Ryan, Kurt and Helio, driving for us at this event.” “We have enjoyed a long and successful relationship with Wayne Taylor over the years, and this latest venture combining Wayne’s resources with those of Penske Racing is tremendously exciting for everyone at Toshiba,” said Rick Taylor, president and CEO of Toshiba America Business Solutions, Inc. “We made a thrilling run for the 2007 championship as associate sponsor on the SunTrust car. And now, we will start the new season with an all-star driver lineup and a serious shot at stealing an overall race win. It doesn’t get any better than that.”
Both the No. 9 Toshiba Pontiac Riley and No. 10 SunTrust Pontiac Riley teams will take part in the annual three-day Rolex 24 test session Jan. 4-6 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway. Angelelli and newly named teammate Michael Valiante are full-time drivers of the No. 10 SunTrust Racing machine.
Final Episode of Chasing GloryThe final episode of ESPN2’s weekly series NASCAR: Chasing Glory airs Tuesday, Dec. 4, at 6 p.m. ET. -- NASCAR: Chasing Glory is a behind-the-scenes look at the Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup. The 11-part series follows drivers during the final 11 races of the season and documents their preparation for the races. Viewers will have another chance to see the last two episodes of the series when they re-air Tuesday, Dec. 11, at 5:30 p.m. and 6 p.m.
Track Security Measures ExaminedThere are plans on the drawing board to bring Daytona International Speedway, and all other tracks owned by International Speedway Corp., into the high-tech security era. Speedway officials are reviewing ticket and credentialing systems to see if adding bar codes, even radio frequency identification chips, would help keep sensitive areas around the track more secure.The staff at Daytona is preparing in all areas of function for a monster crowd of race fans for the 50th running of the Daytona 500 and ancillary events during Speed Weeks 2008. Most race fans abide by the rules, staying clear of highly restricted zones such as the garage area, pit road, gas pumps, inspection stations and the Nextel Cup driver/owner RV lot. But occasionally, one will wander from the herd, which has the potential of causing all sorts of unwanted chaos. For instance, during practice sessions, drivers will turn off their engines and coast -- sometimes all the way to their garage stalls -- to get a sparkplug check.For someone unfamiliar with garage etiquette, they could be struck down by a race car since most drivers figure knowledgeable pedestrians will get out of the way. One security measure being analyzed is bringing race tickets and credentials "to life" in this digital age. Power and ISC are researching the use of tracking systems that will tell security guards electronically if someone is allowed in certain areas of the racetrack. "Yes, we are looking at RFID technology and bar codes, but we need to test the process further before we implement it at our facilities," he said. Power said there's probably not enough time at this point to use such a system for the upcoming Speed Weeks, but some sort of ticket-with-a-chip could be put to use as the 2008 season progresses. ISC has 18 Nextel Cup dates throughout the season which stretches from February to November. "It's not going to happen tomorrow," Power said. "It's probably not going to happen in early 2008, but it's going to happen sometime."(news-journalonline.com)
NASCAR Busch Series Champion's Week PreviewIn its final season as sponsor of the NASCAR Busch Series, Anheuser-Busch’s Busch brand will celebrate its last title in duplicate. Friday night at the Portofino Bay Hotel in Orlando, Fla., Carl Edwards officially will be crowned the 2007 NASCAR Busch Series driver champion. On the same stage in the Tuscan Ballroom, Richard Childress and his No. 29 Chevrolet team will be honored as series owner champion.
What: NASCAR Busch Series Awards Ceremony. It’s only the second time in NASCAR national series history the feat as been accomplished. Richard Childress Racing has been the owner title recipient both times; its first was following the 2003 season. This week’s festivities begin with a media day at the ESPN Club on Thursday, followed by an event unique to the series’ Champion’s Week activities, hot laps driven by Edwards, Scott Wimmer (representing the owner champion) and the top 10 drivers for media at the 1.5-mile Walt Disney World Speedway. The key highlights from the NASCAR Busch Series Champion’s Week schedule: Thursday – Edwards, Wimmer and the top 10 drivers (including NASCAR NEXTEL Cup double-duty drivers such as Zephyrhills native David Reutimann, Greg Biffle and Matt Kenseth) will gather for NASCAR Busch Series Champion’s Week Media Day at the ESPN Club on Disney’s Boardwalk from 10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Daytona International Speedway president Robin Braig will make announcements surrounding the 2008 season-opening Camping World 300 – the inaugural NASCAR Nationwide Series race – and the 50th running of the Daytona 500. The drivers will meet with numerous outlets from national, regional, state and local print and broadcast media at the ESPN Club and utilize the various platforms available from ESPN for broadcast on programs such as ESPNews, ESPN Radio, ESPN.com and SportsCenter. Afterwards, drivers head to Walt Disney World Speedway where they will whisk the media around in specially-wrapped cars honoring the champions and commemorating the Busch brand’s tenure with the series. Edwards will be featured on a satellite media tour broadcast from the ESPN Club from 4-5 p.m. Later that evening, he will be honored along with the owner champion team at a private dinner. Anheuser-Busch will host a party for NASCAR Busch Series teams and officials at Universal City Walk.
Friday – Edwards and his team, along with owner champion Richard Childress and the No. 29 team, will participate in the traditional Champion’s Photo Shoot at the Harbor Piazza at the Portofino Bay Hotel. Following photos, both champion teams will join the top 10 drivers and other guests at various receptions leading up to the main event—the NASCAR Busch Series Awards Banquet. The ceremony begins at 7:30 p.m. in the Tuscan Ballroom of the Portofino Bay Hotel where Edwards and Childress officially will be honored as the 2007 series driver and owner champions.
Craftsman Will Leave Truck SeriesCraftsman will be out as title sponsor of NASCAR’s truck-racing series beginning with the 2009 season, The (Kansas City) Star has learned. No new title sponsor has been found to replace Craftsman, but a search will soon be getting under way, said Steve Phelps, marketing director for NASCAR. He said he believes NASCAR will have little problem finding a new title sponsor because of the increasing popularity of the series.“We haven’t started a search, per se,” Phelps said. “But what we want to try to do is identify companies that we believe would be a great fit for the series and a great fit for the fan base. So we’ll get out there in 2008, the new year, and start discussions with new companies. No real timelines on when it’s going to get done. But it will obviously get done.” Craftsman has been the title sponsor since 1995, the year NASCAR founded the series. Over the past 13 series, the trucks have featured some of NASCAR’s best racing. Television ratings in terms of total viewership have grown every season. Craftsman’s contract with NASCAR ends after the 2008 series. Scott Howard, manager of marketing partnerships and activation for Sears, said his company had been in discussions with NASCAR about continuing sponsorship of the series for the past several months. But, he said, “We have come to the decision that we’re going to be giving up our title sponsorship to the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at the end of 2008. We are fully committed to the series until the end of next season.” Howard said that Craftsman does not plan to withdraw fully from NASCAR. He said his company will continue exploring efforts to maintain a presence in the series. Earlier this year, NASCAR’s other top series — the Nextel Cup series and the Busch series — announced that they were changing their names.(Kansas City Star)  Discuss this and other racing matters in the Prodigys@Speed ForumYou can contact us at.. Insider Racing News
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