Martin Truex Jr. will take the wheel of the No. 88 Navy Chevrolet this week at Daytona Int. Speedway. Truex will replace regular driver Mark McFarland after and MRI showed more damage to McFarland's shoulder after his late crash at Milwaukee.

 

"Mark's well being is our primary concern," said Steve Crisp, Director of Motorsports for JR Motorsports. "We will followe the doctors directives to give Mark the necessary time to heal properly."

 

“Our relationship with the Navy is very important to us and we wanted to give them the best while Mark recuperates. Martin is a two-time champion in the series and the defending series champion – that’s as good as you can get.

 

“The Navy is a model sponsor. They have been very supportive of the growth and development of JR Motorsports and to have the support of more than 400,000 sailors in this situation makes us appreciate the relationship more than ever.

 

“We want to thank Martin, Dale Earnhardt, Inc. and Bass Pro Shops for helping a shipmate out and assisting us in this tough situation.” SCR

 

 

CONCORD, NC – While most Americans celebrate their country’s independence by holding family get-togethers around the pool or barbecue, or perhaps enjoying a festive aerial fireworks display in their backyards or in their town squares, Tim Russell will be spending his Fourth of July weekend either at a racetrack or traveling to one.

 

Russell has a big Independence Day holiday ahead of him, as the 23-year-old is set to make his debut behind the wheel of the Hagans Racing #9 Dodge sponsored by Rinnai Tankless Water Heaters on Saturday, July 1st, at Kansas Speedway.  Immediately after stepping out of the #9 car, Russell will board an airplane bound for New Smyrna Beach, FL, where the young star will be racing in his #36 Rinnai-sponsored Super Late Model in the Clyde Hart Memorial 200 at New Smyrna Speedway on Sunday afternoon.  

 

It may mean not being able to take part in a family gathering or watching some fireworks, but there’s no place than inside a racecar that Tim Russell would rather be this weekend.

 

“It’s going to be one heck of a weekend, but I’m really excited about both of the races,” said Russell.  “I can’t wait to make my first start for Hagans Racing at Kansas.  They are a great organization, and we ran really well in our test session at Kansas last week, so I’m expecting good things when we get out there this weekend.

 

“Then once that race is over, we’ll board a plane either Saturday night or Sunday morning for Florida.   Our race at New Smyrna is at about 4pm Sunday afternoon, but we’ll have all of our Super Late Model stuff there ready and waiting for us so that hopefully we can get out there and qualify and race for the win. 

 

“Hopefully we’ll bring home two wins this weekend.  That is what we are working for.”

 

First things first, Russell will have to get the job done for Hagans Racing in the Kansas Lottery $200 Grand at the 1.5-mile Kansas Speedway on Saturday.  The Kansas event marks Russell’s second ARCA RE/MAX series race of the 2006 season, following a 23rd-place finish at the season-opening race at Daytona in a family-owned Dodge.

 

Joining with the team that finished fifth in Daytona with driver and car owner Matt Hagans behind the wheel and second in the overall ARCA championship last season with driver Joey Miller, Russell knows that he now has all the ingredients necessary to run up front in the elite ARCA series.

 

“Hagans Racing is by far one of the strongest teams in ARCA today.  Bobby Blount (Crew Chief) is a very smart guy and is a great teacher for a driver.  The guys work very hard at getting these cars ready, so I hope that I can bring home a good finish for them.”

 

Last week, Russell got his first on-track experience with Hagans Racing in a test session at Kansas Speedway.  Russell set quick lap times, but getting the speed was just as important as getting to know and work with the Hagans Racing crew at the track.

 

“The whole team worked together really well at the test.  We posted the fourth-fastest time and the car felt great.  Having never been to Kansas before, the first couple of sessions were just learning how to drive there, but once I got the place figured out we were turning some pretty quick laps.  I’m confident in the team and they’re confident in me, and that’s a huge motivation for Saturday’s race.

 

If Russell is able to pull off the win at Kansas and repeat the deed the next night at New Smyrna, then maybe he will be able to relax a little bit with some family and friends around the pool on the Fourth of July…only with a couple more trophies next to him. SCR

 

 

 

 

Dick Cheney, Vice President of the United States will attend this Saturday nights Pepsi 400 at the Daytona Int. Speedway.

 

Vice President Cheney will speak to race fans during pre-race ceremonies for the mid-summer classic as well as meet NASCAR drivers, teams and executives during his visit to "The World Center of Racing." "We're honored that Vice President Cheney will visit Daytona International Speedway and participate in Pepsi 400 pre-race festivities," Braig said. "Vice President Cheney continues the tradition of high-profile elected officials that have visited the 'World Center of Racing'." SCR 

 

 

NASCAR team owner Gene Haas pleaded not guilty to charges of tax fraud and witness intimidation Monday in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles.

 

Haas, who owns the Haas CNC Racing team with Nextel Cup driver Jeff Green and Busch Series driver Johnny Sauter, is accused of orchestrating a scheme, through the Haas Automation business he operates, that created approximately $50 million in bogus expenses to avoid paying more than $20 million in income taxes.

 

"We know this is going to be a long fight, but we feel that the government has been overzealous in pursuing this case," said Haas attorney Kenneth Barish in a statement last Friday when Haas was released on bail. "Mr. Haas looks forward to going home and going back to work running Haas Automation and his other businesses.

 

"But more than anything else he wants to prove that he is innocent."

 

The company says the tax issues revolve around a former employee and that the charges will not impact Haas' businesses.

 

The Haas CNC Racing team also plans to continue business as usual. SCR

 

 

For the second year in a row, the Jack Daniel’s Distillery, in cooperation with the USO, is launching its’ “Toast to the Troops” campaign. During the campaign, Jack Daniel’s and the USO collect messages of support—or “toasts”—to include in Operation USO Care Packages for service men and women serving abroad. Toasts will be collected through the Operation USO Care Package Web site (www.usocares.org), the Jack Daniel’s Web site (www.jackdaniels.com), at the Jack Daniel’s Experience during NASCAR races across the country and at selected retail outlets. SCR

 

 

The Nextel Cup season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway is sold-out. What is known as Ford Championship weekend is set to take place Nov. 17-19, 2006 features all three of NASCAR’s top series.

 

“Having such an early sellout of tickets for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series race is evidence that Ford Championship Weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway is becoming one of the hardest tickets to get in all of motorsports,” said NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France.

 

“Selling-out NASCAR’s Ford 400 nearly five months early is a credit to the great race fans of South Florida and NASCAR fans across the nation,” said Homestead-Miami Speedway President Curtis Gray. “The season-ending Ford Championship Weekend has built itself into one of our nation’s premier championship events complete with concerts,

 

Seats still remain for the Busch and Craftsman Truck Series races that will take place on Nov. 17 and 18. SCR

 

 

 

 

CONCORD, N.C. - When Erik Darnell returned home to Illinois this past weekend, he did so differently than he has been accustomed to.  The roads he traveled along Saturday afternoon were the same ones he had been up and down hundreds of times as a local resident, but this time around looked slightly different. 

 

Darnell stood in the bed of a Ford F-150 as it cruised up and down Sheridan Road in Zion, Illinois as part of the Nostalgia Days festival.  A carnival, classic car show and more, the event has attracted car enthusiasts nationwide for some 20 years.  Not only was it the first time he had attended the event, but Darnell did so in style, as the Grand Marshal of the event.  

 

"Nostalgia Days was a lot of fun, I'm really glad I got to take part in it," said Darnell.  "I'd heard about it before, but I'd never actually been to one.  Because of the timing, we've always been away racing.  So to attend it for the first time as the Grand Marshal, that's something I'll always remember.  I couldn't believe all the people that came out,

there was a huge crowd.  There were some really nice old classic cars out there, it was a pretty cool deal."

 

Darnell will return to his native Illinois again next week following the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event in Kansas along with Roush Racing teammate David Ragan, where the pair will compete in a Legends car race at Grundy County Speedway on Sunday, July 2.

 

"I've never raced in a Legends car before, so I really don't know what to expect," said Darnell.  "I raced Allison Legacy cars when I was younger, but I don't know how close they are.  David's raced these things for years now, so I hope he doesn't make me look too bad out there.  It'll be a good time, I'm glad we're able to do that.  I'm fortunate I get to go back home as much as I do, but to do so in events like this makes it all the better." SCR

 

 

The Checkers/Rally’s Double Drive-Thru winner for Friday’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Michigan International Speedway was Ron Hornaday Jr.’s No. 33 crew, which spent 51.525 seconds on pit road. SCR

 

The Checkers/Rally’s Double Drive-Thru winner for Saturday night’s NASCAR Busch Series race at The Milwaukee Mile was Johnny Sauter’s No. 00 crew, which spent 101.563 seconds on pit road. It was the sixth pit crew win of the season for Sauter’s team. SCR

 

 

The crew for the No. 48 Chevrolet driven by Jimmie Johnson won the long Checkers®/Rally’s® Double Drive-Thru Challenge at Infineon. The win was the fourth of the season for the No. 48 crew and helped them extend their lead over the crews for Kyle Busch, Tony Stewart and Elliott Sadler (each of those crews have two wins each). SCR

 

SONOMA, Calif. — It was a banner weekend for Sonoma County youth groups as two events held during the Dodge/Save Mart 350 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup weekend combined to raise $134,000 for Speedway Children’s Charities.

 

The Raceway Builder’s NASCAR Grand Marshal’s Banquet generated $94,000, while the 4th annual Race-n-Rock Charity Auction raised $40,000. All proceeds will benefit qualified youth groups in Sonoma County through Speedway Children’s Charities.

 

The Grand Marshal’s Banquet was held on Friday night of race weekend at beautiful Cline Cellars in Sonoma and featured actor/comedian Cheech Marin, grand marshal of the race weekend. The sit-down dinner attracted more than 500 people, including NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series drivers Kasey Kahne, Kurt Busch and Ryan Newman.

 

The top-selling item in the charity auction, which took place on Sunday in the Wine Country Winner’s Circle, was a Budweiser racing helmet signed by Dale Earnhardt Jr. for $3,250. A Snap-on toolbox netted $3,100, while a lap around the track with NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon during pre-event ceremonies sold for $3,000. SCR

 

 

Kirk Shelmerdine, will carry Catdaddy Carolina Moonshine Saturday night in the Pepsi 400 at the Daytona Int. Speedway. Shelmerdine carried Catdaddy earlier this season and will carry them again at Lowe’s Motor Speedway Oct. 14 during the bank of America 500. Additional races could be added. SCR

 

 

Ward Burton is ready to get back behind the wheel of a Nextel Cup car. Burton,  who will be at the Daytona Int. Speedway this Friday taking part in a ceremony honoring the winners of the last 10 Daytona 500’s hopes the next time he is at the track it is as a driver.

Burton who won the Daytona 500 in 2002 has confirmed that he is negotiating with two established Cup teams.

 

Although Burton would not confirm what teams he has negotiated with, he did say they were multi-car team that have struggled as of late. That could be Robert Yates Racing, who will have the No. 88 Ford open at the end of the season as Dale Jarrett is leaving for Toyota.

 

Another possible team is that of Chip Ganassi, who will have the No. 42 Dodge open at season end as current driver Casey Mears is headed to Hendrick Motorsports to pilot the No. 25 Chevrolet.

 

Burton did confirm he has had no talks with Toyota.

 

"One of the things we're working on is the sponsor,'' said Burton, which makes the No. 88 car more viable since its deal with UPS is up after this season. "I'm working on a couple of things to try to bring something home.''

 

Burton, 44, said there'd been negotiations about putting him in a car this weekend at Daytona that fell through at the last minute. He'd like to enter a couple of races before the end of this season to begin his comeback. SCR

 

 

Jeff Gordon can tie the late Dale Earnhardt for wins on restrictor plat (RP) tracks with a win Saturday at Daytona, in the Pepsi 400. With a win Gordon would tie Earnhardt with 11 victories in RP races. SCR

 

 

Unleaded fuel will be used for the first time in NASCAR during the Busch Series race July 29 at the gateway Int. Raceway. The plan is to evaluate the use of unleaded fuel over several NASCAR Busch Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series events this season before making a decision on when it will be mandated for all three national series.

 

The fuel will also be used at O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis on Aug. 4 and 5 for the NASCAR Busch Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series; at Watkins Glen for the NASCAR Busch Series and Nashville Superspeedway for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series on Aug. 12; and at Michigan International Speedway for the NASCAR Busch Series on Aug. 19. Then it will be evaluated by NASCAR and Sunoco officials.

 

In addition, NASCAR, Sunoco and NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series engine builders plan to work with the ARCA Re/Max Series at Talladega Superspeedway to study the use of unleaded fuel in engines with restrictor plates.

 

The goal is to have unleaded fuel in all three of NASCAR top series by Speedweeks at Daytona 2007. SCR

 

 

Vision Racing has announced that they have added to the team heading into the ARCA RE/MAX Series race at the Kansas Speedway this weekend. The team has added driver Will Vaught, to pilot the No. 37 Chevrolet for the rest of the 2006 season. Vaught, hails from Missouri where he has been racing Late Models.

 

In addition to adding Vaught, team owner announced that country legend Roy Clark has joined the team as a partner sparking the team’s new emblem as Vision Racing with Roy Clark.

 

The team announced that they have also signed Primeaux Kia to serve as primary sponsor for the team. In addition to Primeaux Kia, Wiley Law Office, Red Rocket Fireworks and Branson Craft Mall will all serve as associate sponsors on the No. 37 Chevrolet Monte Carlo for the double-header event with the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series on Saturday. SCR

 

 

The Hershey’s Milk Chocolate brown will don the hood this weekend at Daytona International Speedway. The Hershey Milk Chocolate bar is one of five special paint schemes The Hershey Company will run throughout the 2006 season. SCR

 

 

Hershey’s driver Kevin Harvick and members of the Richard Childress Racing Team will light up the infield on Thursday, June 29, at Daytona with a S’mores campfire event. Celebrating this quintessential summertime snack, Hershey’s will distribute more than 2,000 S’mores kits complete with graham crackers, marshmallows and Hershey’s Milk Chocolate bars to fans staying in the infield to celebrate race week at Daytona International Speedway. Randomly selected kits will contain invitations to join Harvick and the Team for “s’more” fun around the campfire. Local Boy Scout Troops will get the campfire started; while Smoky the Bear looks on to ensure a safe party in the Fan Zone. SCR

 

 

 

SONOMA, California –Prior to this weekend’s Dodge/Save Mart 350, the No. 96 DLP HDTV team’s best finish was a 16th place run at Pocono Raceway, but thanks to a crafty pit strategy from crew chief Philippe Lopez, Terry Labonte left Infineon Raceway with a 3rd place finish to boot.  Lopez’s day earned him the WYPALL® Wipers Crew Chief of the Race award.

 

After starting 37th, Labonte worked his way into the top-25, but had trouble making up any additional ground on the leaders.  Realizing that the opportunities to pass at the winding road course were few and far between, Lopez made the gutsy call to leave Labonte on the track following his pit stop on lap 60, which allowed him to inherit the lead.  Lopez’s decision went against the grain, as all other competitors elected to come in for fuel at least one more time.  Although few thought the No. 96 had enough fuel to go the distance, Labonte cruised his way to a top-five finish.

 

“The original plan was to stop, get the tires, and then under green, get enough gas to finish the race,” said Lopez.  “We started crunching numbers and figured if he could just save a little bit, and if we had a few cautions, we could go the distance.  He was running so well up there in the lead, so I wasn’t going to bring him in until he told me he was out of gas.”

 

A panel of voters; including a member of the local media, Robbie Reiser and a WYPALL® Wipers representative; all cast their vote for Lopez as the crew chief that made the biggest impact to his team.  “I didn’t think Terry (Labonte) had a chance of making it to the end,” said Reiser.  “I thought for sure he was going to run out of fuel with two laps to go, but Philippe (Lopez) knew what his car was capable of, and coached his driver to go easy on the gas.  It was a great strategy – they had a great car today, but might not have been able to get it into the top-five unless Philippe decided not to pit on the last round of stops.”

 

For winning the Crew Chief of the Race award, WYPALL® Wipers presented Lopez $1,000.  At the end of the season, the Nextel Cup crew chief with the most weekly wins will receive $20,000 and be crowned the WYPALL® Wipers Crew Chief of the Year.  This was Lopez’s first Crew Chief of the Race award in 2006, which ties him for third place with Darian Grubb, Todd Berrier, Doug Richert, and Roy McCauley. Robbie Reiser, Chad Knaus and Tony Eury Jr. are tied for second-place, all with two wins. Kenny Francis is in the lead with four wins. SCR

 

 

 

Fox's broadcast of Sunday's Dodge/Save Mart 350 NASCAR Nextel Cup race at Infineon Raceway earned a 4.6 overnight Nielsen Media Research rating and a 10 market share, matching 2005's numbers, Street & Smith's SportsBusiness Daily reports.

 

 

 

It looks as if Montreal, Canada is ready to have a NASCAR race. The final hurdle to bring the Busch Series to the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve was cleared Friday when the mayor of Montreal Gerald Tremblay handed the exclusive rights to the city-owned track to Normand Legault for the next 10 years.

 

Under the deal Legault can have to races at the track a year. One of the races will be Formula 1 it looks as if the second will be a NASCAR Busch Series race. This would eliminate the Champ Car Series from having a race at the track. Champ Car could look to the courts to intervene to help keep its date.

 

NASCAR will release its 2007 Busch Series schedule in late July or early August. Expect to see a Busch race at Montreal on it. Possible dates for the event the third weekend in July or the first weekend in August.

 

Those dates coincide with Nextel Cup events at Pocono International Raceway in Pennsylvania and the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway respectively -- both within commuting distance for the dozen or more Cup drivers who regularly compete in Busch races.

 

Legault has not said much on the NASCAR deal as it has yet to be signed. SCR

 

 

Milwaukee, WI – Jason Overstreet and Dave Reutimann worked together to turn a 14th qualifying position into a top 5 finish making Overstreat this week’s WypAll Wipers Crew chief of the Race.  

 

Three judges; including Charles Krall with truckseries.com, Robbie Reiser, and a WypAll Wipers representative disputed over the decision, but in the end Jason Overstreet walked away with the Crew Chief of the Race honors. When it was all said and done, consistency is what earned Overstreat honors this week. Overstreat has steered his team to 3 top 5 finishes in the last 4 races. The team has only failed to post a top ten finish in 1 of the last 7 races. Robbie Reiser had this to say about Overstreat and the No. 17 team’s performance. “These guys are going out and getting it done every single week. This team is demonstrating that winning isn’t everything; to go out and perform well week after week is probably more valuable than just finding a way to pick up a couple sporadic victories.”  

 

After the Toyota Tundra Milwaukee 200, Overstreat had this to say about his crew’s performance. ”Everything seems to just be clicking a little bit better. The driver and I, and the whole crew for that matter are constantly improving our relationship. We have been experimenting with changing a few guys up on our pit crew and it has resulted in some awesome pit stops.”

 

Overstreat earned $500 for winning the WypAll® Wipers Crew Chief of the Race Award presented by Fastenal. Overstreat has added his name to the truck series leader board with his first win of the 2006 season. The challenge returns to the Kansas Speedway on July 1st for the O’Reilly Auto Parts 250. At the end of the season the crew chief who collects the most weekly titles will claim $10,000 and the right to be called the WypAll® Wipers Crew Chief of the Year.  SCR

 

 

General Motors officials plan to submit their proposed new Cup engine to NASCAR executives for review in mid-August, ahead of the Sept. 1 deadline. GM hopes for a quick answer from NASCAR so that its teams can get started on the new engine if it's approved.

 

When word of the shake-up first broke in April, Sprint executives insisted they were committed to continuing the NASCAR sponsorship, despite reports otherwise that the new powers were less than interested in NASCAR. Now, according to sources familiar with the situation, there are reports that Bank of America executives are interested in acquiring the title sponsorship to the Cup series.

 

Brian Vickers announced on Wind Tunnel on the Speed Channel that he will "Take the Bull by The Horns" and drive for the new Team Red Bull in 2007. In what was announced as a multi-year deal, Vickers will pilot the No. 83 Toyota Camry for Team Red Bull.

 

He plans to stay with Hendrick Motorsports for the rest of the 2006 season. SCR will have more on this story as it becomes available. SCR