NASCAR Daily News Headlines * November 28, 2007

Don Miller Retires

Penske Racing also announced Tuesday that Mike Nelson, who just completed his first season as crew chief of the No. 12 Dodge driven by Ryan Newman, has been promoted to vice president of operations. In his new role, Nelson will oversee Penske's entries in the Sprint Cup Series and Nationwide Series programs, reporting to Tim Cindric, president of Penske Performance Inc.

In addition, Roy McCauley, an experienced crew chief and engineer for Penske Racing since 2002, has been named crew chief for the No. 12 team. Reuniting a winning combination, McCauley will once again be paired with Newman. The duo produced wins in six of the nine Busch Series races they competed in during the 2005 season, with McCauley serving as crew chief.

"On behalf of our 39,000 employees, I want to thank Don Miller for all he's done for Penske Racing over the years," Roger Penske said. "He's been a partner and great friend and he will definitely be missed. We're looking forward to the 2008 season and we're excited about the new opportunities for both Mike and Roy as they focus on the challenges ahead."

A native of Chicago who began his motorsports career as a drag racer in the 1950s, Miller has done more than just guide one of the winningest programs in racing over the last 17 years. He's also a top designer who has been at the forefront in developing safety measures in NASCAR.(nascar.com)

Dodge Will Race Charger

“Racing is the core of Dodge’s DNA,” said Michael Accavitti, Director – Dodge Brand and SRT Global Marketing. “Dodge has a racing heritage that spans many different nameplates and models, and the Charger is the cornerstone of that heritage. When NASCAR originally announced the phase-in plan for the “car of tomorrow”, it made sense for Dodge to race the Charger and Avenger. When the decision was made to race only one car next year, we talked with our partners, the more than 2,500 Dodge Dealers across the country, and they expressed overwhelming support for Dodge to continue its motorsports heritage with the Charger nameplate. NASCAR rules permit Dodge to use either nameplate in 2008.

“Since 2001 when Dodge returned to NASCAR, the goal has been to win races and ultimately the championship. Those goals have been accomplished with the Charger previously and we are committed to make it happen again.”

The 2008 Dodge Charger lineup will feature five teams with 12 drivers that are a mixture of seasoned veterans, experienced young talent and champions from other racing series that are newcomers to NASCAR.

Dodge Charger Racing Heritage

The Dodge Charger has recorded 136 wins in NASCAR’s premier series with 124 coming during an 11-year span, 1966-1977. Three drivers – Pearson, Isaac and Petty (3) -- combined for five championships during that period driving a Charger. After an absence of almost 30 years, Dodge returned to NASCAR competition in 2001 with the Charger returning to the track in 2005.

Helio Castroneves Wins Dancing With The Stars

In their final dance of the competition, Castroneves and Hough earned a perfect score of 30 with the quickstep, a dance that provided them with a perfect score earlier in the competition."Helio, you are like the sunny side of life," Judge Bruno Tonioli said in his critique of Castroneves and Hough immediately after their final performance. "You have achieved an incredible amount in this competition. Your attitude and your sportsmanship really make you a champion. We are all proud of you."

Brown and partner Maksim Chmerkovskiy also received a perfect score with their final dance, a mambo. Brown and Chmerkovskiy entered Tuesday night's final contest one point ahead of Castroneves and Hough. Each couple picked their favorite routine for the dance-off. They were allowed to alter it with difficult moves, such as lifts, but Castroneves told Hough during rehearsal he wanted to keep it as they had originally performed it because it had received a perfect score.

Numerous Penske Racing employees gathered at the Mooresville, N.C., race shop to watch and cheer for Castroneves during the two-hour finale. Penske Performance President Tim Cindric proudly showed his "Vote for Helio" T-shirt as he talked with WSOC-TV reporter Brigida Mack shortly after the winner was announced. "We couldn't be prouder of him," Cindric said on WSOC, the ABC affiliate in Charlotte, N.C. "We didn't know if he would make it past the first round. We can't believe it. It's a shame they didn't have a fence for him to climb. That's what he's famous for."

Castroneves always climbs the track's frontstretch fence after he wins an IndyCar race.

Throughout the strenuous competition, Castroneves delighted the crowd and the judges with his glowing personality and energetic enthusiasm while performing difficult and entertaining routines. At the beginning of the competition, Castroneves said he would "dedicate the same energy that I bring to racing to rehearsing for the show" and noted he had "set my sights on winning."

"Having won back-to-back Indianapolis 500s, I would like nothing more than to give Julianne back-to-back 'Dancing With The Stars' titles," Castroneves said prior to the competition's beginning.

And the 32-year-old Brazilian, the first race car driver to compete on the show, accomplished his goal with his trademark charm and passion. In addition to Brown, other competitors were Mark Cuban, Jane Seymour, Wayne Newton, Floyd Mayweather, Marie Osmond, Jennie Garth, Sabrina Bryan, Albert Reed, Cameron Mathison and Josie Maran.

ABC's "Dancing With The Stars" averaged about 20 million viewers weekly for each of its twice-weekly shows in the 2006-07 season. In number of viewers, the only show surpassing it is Fox's "American Idol." Last week, "Dancing With The Stars" was the No. 1 show with 22 million viewers.(Penske PR)