 | | Jimmie Johnson will start 42nd. Credit: Autostock |
By Dave Rodman, NASCAR.COM
June 3, 2006
09:00 PM EDT (01:00 GMT)
DOVER, Del. -- For the first time in his career, Nextel Cup points leader Jimmie Johnson will have to share a pit stall during a race. Johnson spun out on his Bud Pole Qualifying run Friday at Dover International Speedway and thus will line up a season-worst 42nd for Sunday's Neighborhood Excellence 400 presented by Bank of America.  |  | LINEUP | |
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Because the one-mile speedway has only 42 pit stalls that measure 28 feet long by 15 feet wide, Johnson's Hendrick Motorsports team will have to share a box with Scott Wimmer's Morgan-McClure Motorsports crew, which will start 43rd. When he discussed the situation Saturday, Johnson didn't know exactly how the rule worked, but his team has the first option to move due to its better point position. A NASCAR spokesman said that means the first stall that opens, the 48 will either have the option to stay where it is, or move to the other pit box. Until then, the cars must alternately pit since they won't fit in the stall at the same time. "I've never been in this situation, so I'm not sure what to expect," Johnson said. "I would assume that whoever is in the highest place on the racetrack has priority in the pit box." The short tracks at Martinsville and Bristol reconfigured their pit roads to enable every entrant to have its own stall and Johnson on Saturday lobbied for the same treatment at Dover. "It's tough for me to believe in today's world of racing they can't modify pit road and adjust to all 43 cars having their own pit stall," Johnson said. "I believe there are other tracks that we have this -- but I've never been in this position before. "I just hope it gives everybody a fair shot. We just have to make the most of it and stay ahead of the No. 4 car so we have priority on pit road and then when someone falls out, we can split up and take it from there." Johnson is in the position after spinning off Turn 4 on his second lap of qualifying. He was incredulous about being able to start the same car in the race after hitting nothing. The competition wasn't totally unscathed, though. "There is no way I could do it again and not hit something -- I had a lot of luck on my side," Johnson said. "I heard I filled the 11 [Denny Hamlin's] car full of dirt. When I spun around, the left rear tire dug into the grass and it shot dirt and mud inside the 11 car sitting on pit road." Jarrett spots Jarrett |  | | Dale Jarrett didn't even complete a lap last week. Credit: Autostock |
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Jason Jarrett, who has a race-winning background and two runner-up championship finishes in the ARCA RE/MAX Series, is spotting this weekend at Dover for his father, former Cup champion Dale Jarrett. Robert Yates Racing's former general manager Eddie D'Hondt previously spotted for Jarrett until he was fired from Yates' company. Jarrett had a different spotter at the Coca-Cola 600 and lasted less than a lap before he was involved in an accident. "For the first two or three practices that we had, Jason did really good," Jarrett's crew chief, Jason Burdett, said. "I think the biggest thing is that those two will communicate with each other. "I know, flying up here that they talked a lot about what Dale wanted [Jason] to inform him of as the race is going on. Jason has experience and he's raced here before so he knows what to expect." LaJoie to stand by for Harvick This summer, Busch Series point leader Kevin Harvick is one of at least seven drivers facing the daunting prospect of needing a replacement driver for four conflicting Nextel Cup and Busch series events at different venues. |  | | Randy LaJoie won back-to-back Busch titles in 1996-97. Credit: Autostock |
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| Randy LaJoie |
| Busch Series stats |
| Years |
19 |
| Starts |
349 |
| Wins |
15 |
| Top-5s |
62 |
| Top-10s |
118 |
| Poles |
9 |
| Avg. Start |
19.2 |
| Avg. Finish |
17.6 |
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Harvick's Busch crew chief, Shane Wilson, said his team expected to use former two-time Busch champion Randy LaJoie to replace Harvick in practice and qualifying races when the ninth-place Nextel Cup driver can't be at the Busch venue. Next weekend when Cup is at Pocono, Busch races at Nashville; the following week it's Michigan and Kentucky, respectively; and the week after that, Sonoma, Calif., and Milwaukee. In July, Nextel Cup is at Pocono again, the same weekend the Busch Series races Saturday afternoon at Martinsville. "We've got Randy LaJoie lined up to replace Kevin whenever we need him," Wilson said. "Randy is flexible enough that we can use him. Kevin's done this [both series at once] before so he's not worried about it. "I haven't done it, but I'm not going to worry about it. We've got a good package in place with our Busch car and we're in great shape in the points right now." After Saturday's race at Dover, Harvick is unofficially 297 points ahead of fellow Cup driver Carl Edwards. In fact, the first six drivers are all running both series and seventh-place Greg Biffle, while not running the full Busch Series, will at least race at Martinsville in July. Zipadelli on Stewart's seat Gibbs Racing crew chief Greg Zipadelli says he won't try to curtail defending Nextel Cup champion Tony Stewart's extracurricular racing in the wake of Stewart fracturing his shoulder blade after wrecking on consecutive nights last weekend at Lowe's Motor Speedway. He did say, however, that Stewart will have a new carbon fiber seat, developed by Hendrick Motorsports, in his car, and the sooner the better. |  | | Greg Zipadelli is trying to get Tony Stewart a better seat. Credit: Autostock |
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"Injuries are a part of the sport -- they can happen anytime you get in the car," Zipadelli said. "I mean, you can wreck on the interstate driving to the track. Everybody can speculate on what is too much or not enough or this and that, but it's just an unfortunate deal." Zipadelli said getting Stewart from his home in Indiana to the team's shop in North Carolina was impeding their development of the seat, but he hoped to accelerate that process. "We got a [carbon fiber] seat from Hendrick's earlier in the year," Zipadelli said. "We've just not been able to get everything together -- but we are working on hopefully four to five weeks that we'll have a carbon seat -- the latest and greatest. "We'll just have to put a little bit more effort into that and get Tony down [to the shop] a little bit more. Scheduling things like that have been tough. "As soon as he is well enough, we're looking at five weeks or so and will go to Nashville with a new car with that seat in it and just run for a day and try to get him fitted and from that point on try to get it in our cars." Harvick hires Aaron Fike Kevin Harvick Inc., which has two teams in the top-15 positions in the Busch Series owner standings, has signed former open-wheel driver Aaron Fike to a contract to drive for the team on the circuit. |  | | Aaron Fike has one top-10 in 49 Busch starts. Credit: Autostock |
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Fike, 23, from Galesburg, Ill., is the 2002 and 2003 National Midget Driver of the Year, the 2001 United States Auto Club Silver Crown Rookie of the Year and the youngest driver to ever win a Silver Crown event. Fike also has two Indy Racing League Infiniti Pro Series victories to his credit, but has struggled to achieve much success in 49 Busch Series starts since 2003. This season, Fike has 12 starts for Curb Agajanian Performance Group in its No. 43 Dodge, and is 32nd in the standings following the race at Dover. "When Kevin and DeLana [Harvick] called I was really surprised and very happy -- I've been waiting a long time for an opportunity like this," Fike said. "I've only been driving stock cars for a few short years, and basically I only have about 50 races under my belt. "I believe that I learn and get better each time out, and now I'll get to do that in the great equipment that KHI provides." Fike will compete in a select number of races for KHI this season in the No. 33 Busch Chevrolet, with an increased schedule planned for 2007. Fike's first start for KHI will be next Saturday at Nashville Superspeedway. "Aaron has a tremendous amount of talent and has made himself better as a driver each time he gets in a car," Kevin Harvick said. "He's got limited experience in a stock car, but he is a proven winner in numerous other types of racecars. "Aaron will fit in well at KHI and will gain the experience he needs in a stock car." Roush crewman killed Roush Racing reported Saturday that Michael Fermaglich, 32, of Mooresville, N.C., was killed Friday night in an automobile accident in Concord, N.C. Fermaglich had worked for the past two years as a fabricator at Roush's operation based in Mooresville. In addition to his weekday role of fabricator, Fermaglich served as the race-day pit boss for driver Matt Kenseth's No. 17 Busch Series team. "This is obviously a sad day for Roush Racing," No. 17 Busch crew chief Jimmy Fennig said. "Mike was a hard worker and a valuable part of our team both at home and on the road. "We still have to race [Saturday] because that's who we are and what we do, but our thoughts and prayers are with Mike's family." | 
