Notes: Roush Fenway catches up to others in COT (cont'd)

"You see it in all sports. I've been real lucky because all of my over-the-wall guys are really gamers. They practice really well, but when the pressure is on is when they really perform and you see a lot of people that are the opposite.

"A lot of people you'll go out and watch pit practice and say, 'Man, they're lightning fast,' and then they get in a pressure situation and drop a lug nut or can't get a tire indexed or don't get the car jacked up or whatever it may be. I'm fortunate that my guys are the opposite.

"When it's on the line is when they're always the best."

Sprinting Stewart

Tony Stewart, never to be daunted by a little upside-down mayhem in his past -- specifically a crash in Kahne's inaugural event -- is set to return to Skagit Speedway in Alger, Wash., to compete in the second annual Kasey Kahne Foundation Sprint Car Challenge on Aug. 29 -- when Stewart joins fellow Sprint Car graduate Kahne for the event that feature the pair going head-to-head in winged 360 Sprint Cars.

"I'm looking forward to heading back to Skagit Speedway with the Kasey Kahne Foundation," Stewart said. "The race not only gives me a chance to get back in my 360 Sprint Car, but it benefits a great organization at the same time. Kasey has always supported my charity events at Eldora Speedway, and it means a lot that he's invited me to participate in this race alongside him. Hopefully, we'll be able to put on a great show for the fans and help out a lot of deserving kids."

In addition to competing on behalf Kahne's foundation, Stewart has donated an autographed Home Depot driving uniform to be auctioned on eBay immediately following the event. Last year's Kasey Kahne Foundation Sprint Car Challenge drew a sellout crowd, with all of the proceeds benefiting the Kasey Kahne Foundation.

Good advertising, bad racing?

A weekend of racing at Bristol Motor Speedway guarantees lots of crumpled, torn and flattened sheet metal, which is bad for racecar fabricators but good for sheet metal suppliers, such as Stock Car Steel & Aluminum. The bad news Friday morning came when driver Jason White crashed the Pennington Motorsports car that Stock Car Steel was sponsoring this weekend, preventing it from making a qualifying attempt for the Busch Series' Food City 250.

"Greg [Fornelli, SCSA's owner] always jokes that his favorite words in NASCAR are when we yell 'There's trouble in Turn 2,'" said Larry McReynolds, analyst for FOX Sports and SPEED and former crew chief. "Well, we tend to say those words a lot at Bristol. I would say that track is definitely good for his business."

Fornelli estimates that between the Craftsman Truck, Busch and Nextel Cup Series events at Bristol, more than two tons -- some 4,600 pounds -- of sheet metal will be ruined and need to be replaced; including a few panels from White's No. 08 Dodge.