Rain Disrupts NHIS Schedule
Rain washed out the Nextel Cup practice sessions at New Hampshire International Speedway on Saturday morning. There were two practice sessions scheduled but now the Cup cars will not get any further time to adjust before Sunday's Sylvania 300.

The rain also forced NASCAR to cancel the Craftsman Truck Series qualifying. The field for the New Hampshire 200 will be set based on owner's points and that will put Ron Hornaday on the pole with Mike Skinner on the outside of the front row. Should the track drying measures succeed, the green flag is expected to drop at 3 p.m. Eastern time.

Sunday's forecast calls for clear and sunny skies.

Dale Jr.-Sources Say No. 88
Dale Earnhardt Jr. is reportedly adding an 8 in '08. Earnhardt Jr. will drive the number 88 car for Hendrick Motorsports next season after Robert Yates Racing agreed to sell the No. 88 that Dale Jarrett drove to the 1999 Championship. The car, which sources said will be sponsored by Mountain Dew and the Amp Energy Drink, will be revealed for the first time at a Wednesday press conference in Dallas.

Earnhardt, whose Busch Series car is the number 88, would not confirm the report. Earnhardt had hoped the number 8 would follow him from Dale Earnhardt Inc. to HMS. But when he couldn't reach a deal with stepmother/team owner Teresa Earnhardt, he began exploring other options. As many as seven numbers were considered, most of them containing an 8.(fox28.com)

NASCAR Considers More Chase Changes
NASCAR is considering creating a reward for the winner of the "regular season" in response to the huge points lead Jeff Gordon built before the Chase for the championship. NASCAR chairman Brian France said earlier this week he is willing to explore the idea of rewarding the driver who is leading the points at the end of the 26th race of the season. Gordon built a lead of more than 300 points, but lost all of it when the field was reset this week for the Chase for the championship.

Gordon will start the Chase in second place based on the new seeding process. Jimmie Johnson, his teammate, is the new leader based on his six regular season victories. Gordon said Friday that he doesn't feel slighted, but would like to see NASCAR address it going forward.

"If I didn't know what the rules were going into the season, I'd say we got the shaft. But that's not the case," Gordon said. "Ever since they've had the Chase, they've said what it is. But I do think they're going to have to revisit now, going back. If you're going to have incentives for guys to win races, you have to have some kind of incentive for a guy to go out there and be the points leader at that point. I wouldn't be surprised if they revisit that a little bit."

NASCAR spokesman Jim Hunter said Friday that the sanctioning body will discuss the issue during the off-season. Among the ideas being kicked around are awarding additional bonus points to be used in the seeding, more prize money or a trophy different from the Nextel Cup.(canadianpress.google.com)

Brewco Sells To Baker
Former track owner Gary Baker has purchased controlling interest in Brewco Motorsports and intends to move the team to Nashville, Tenn., possibly by the end of the year.

The team announced Friday that Baker had joined the team's ownership group, but a source said Baker would have control of the team. Clarence Brewer started the team in 1995 and has won 10 races. Brewco currently fields two cars, No. 27 and No. 37, for various drivers. It is based in Central City, Ky. Team president Todd Wilkerson, who said he will remain with the team as a consultant, said the deal was necessitated by the increased cost and competition in the Busch Series.

"It's very difficult, especially in today's environment with all the Cup teams running Busch," Wilkerson said. "Being in Central City, we had kind of maxed it out. We were just kind of stale and just not going anywhere. We felt like we needed new blood and new money."

Moving the team is a big part of that, Wilkerson said.

"That's where Gary is form, that's where his business are," Wilkerson said. "That's where he plans on moving it. I don't know exactly when. The first thing he's got to do is find a building. I'd say by the end of the year, probably November, December, they'd probably look at moving the team to Nashville."(scenedaily.com)

Hornaday Wins Truck Race
Ron Hornaday didn't just win the New Hampshire 200 Craftsman Truck race at New Hampshire International Speedway, he literally blew away the competition. The class of the field, Hornaday started on the pole for Saturday's race because he was the Series points leader and the qualifying session was rained out. That forced NASCAR to lineup the drivers on the starting grid based on owner's points. Mike Skinner started on the outside pole and everyone expected to see a battle between Hornaday and Skinner going into the first turn. But it didn't happen, Hornaday got a great start and was pulling away from the field on the very first turn of the race. That set the tone for the event and even though Hornaday was mired in the middle of the pack after a green flag pit stop, he quickly passed the nine cars in front of him to get back into the lead. "He put a wipping on us today," said Mike Skinner. "Ronnie put on a clinic. It was a good race, a little boring. That No. 33 led too much. But we've got some good races coming up. I don't think I'd start fitting the crown yet."

Hornaday won today’s race, his fourth victory of the 2007 season by leading 174 of the 200 laps. In 18 races this season, he has racked up 10 top-five and 17 top-10 finishes. It was Hornaday's 33rd career victory in the Truck Series in 193 starts. We've got to do it," Hornaday said. "If we don't, Skinner will. This is the same truck we finished second with three times and we finally got a win, It was just unbelievable."