Smack: Penske move has Keselowski on fast track

1. Did Brad Keselowski make the right decision to sign with Penske Racing for 2010?

David Caraviello: Yes. Hey, I understand that in a perfect would, he would have liked to have stayed aligned with JR Motorsports and Hendrick Motorsports. But you have to take the options that are available, not wait on an option that may or may not become reality. Given that, he absolutely made the right call.

Joe Menzer: Well, what was Brad supposed to do? Wait on something to fall into place at Hendrick? Even though last year Mr. H said BK was "the future" at Hendrick Motorsports, the timing was all off by a year or more. And he's ready for Cup racing now.

Raygan Swan: I think it was time in his career to make the next move, and Penske was the only viable option on the table. He's had a couple of seasons running the Truck Series and three in Nationwide, on top of 10 Cup starts. He couldn't afford to stay at JR Motorsports another season. It is essential in his development that he move on the to the next level and keep learning these new cars in the Cup Series.

David Caraviello: I think he hoped to swing some kind of Cup deal that would allow him to continue to drive the Nationwide car at JR Motorsports. Hey, that's laudable. Loyalty is a good thing. But it's not always practical. Very big of Dale Earnhardt Jr. to tell him to take the leap with Penske.

Joe Menzer: He couldn't afford to wait one more minute before going Cup racing full-time. And like y'all pointed out, Penske was his best option for 2010 at this point. Now what is most interesting to me about the whole deal is how Mr. H said he "would come and find" BK when the time was right. And he even added to make sure reporters told other owners that.

David Caraviello: And yet, the folks at Penske said Tuesday that this is a multi-year deal, and there are no plans for him to go back there. And even Brad said this is a long-term step for him. So it doesn't sound like he's just in the No. 12 car to bide his time.

Joe Menzer: Who knows what happens down the line, but this is not like a deal where Brad will gain experience at Penske for a year or two and then bolt to Hendrick. At least I don't see it that way. The loyalty he has shown to Junior now is likely to be transferred to Penske.

Career-maker

Brad Keselowski will admit, it was the hardest decision he's ever had to make. But having the blessing of Dale Earnhardt Jr. made it a little easier.

• Complete story
• Keselowski to join Penske

David Caraviello: Joe, I would hope Brad is smart enough to not take this ride with an eye toward something else. Let's face it -- there aren't a lot of top-level rides open out there for next year. Even good drivers cannot afford to be choosy in this environment. Landing a job with a team that's going to put the No. 2 car in the Chase is an absolute home run.

Raygan Swan: I agree, but if they can't consistently give him a competitive car week in and week out on the 12 team, then I can't see him staying. But he does appear to be loyal, and I think he learned that from his father Bob, the ARCA champ. But like David said, where else would he go? His options are limited.

Joe Menzer: I think the 12 car can be competitive with someone else driving it. Listen, David Stremme is a nice guy and all, but this is twice now where he has failed to get it done in a pretty decent ride. It should be different with BK behind the wheel.

David Caraviello: That's the whole key -- the state of the 12 team. How much of it was Stremme, and how much was everything else? You'd like to think this is the same group that won all those races with Ryan Newman, but that was a long time ago. We should find out quickly what kind of potential that 12 team really has. But you'd have to think, given Kurt Busch's success and Sam Hornish's progress, that the pieces are there. It all goes back to those Penske "resources" we've all heard about for so many years, and whether this organization as a whole can take that next big step up.

Raygan Swan: Maybe they need an overhaul, scrap the whole bunch and start fresh. And yes I'm officially convinced Stremme belongs in the Nationwide Series permanently. Sorry, but a second chance like that doesn't come around very often and he did little with it.

David Caraviello: Raygan will no longer be receiving Christmas cards from the Stremme household.

Joe Menzer: She's just speaking the truth, man!

Raygan Swan: Yeah Joe, speaking the truth! He pointed the finger at the Ganassi operation for his poor performance, so I had high expectations for him this season. Maybe Brad can hire him on to the family team.

Joe Menzer: What I'm wondering is, why the heck they don't just pull Stremme from that car now and put BK in it? Probably because of BK's contractual commitments to others (i.e. Hendrick and JR Motorsports) this season. But man, that could make a difference for next year.

David Caraviello: They say they have no plans to do that, Joe. I would think it would have to do with Brad's intentions to finish out the year strong on the Nationwide side and make one last big title push for his buddy Dale Jr.

Joe Menzer: Yeah, if he's still under contract to Hendrick as well as he obviously is with JR Motorsports, there is that Chevy-Dodge conflict. And why would Mr. H give him/them a jump on next year? I mean, Junior and Mr. H love BK and all, but business is business. You don't want to help the competition -- and that's what BK essentially is now.

2. Which is more to blame for all the crashes last weekend at Montreal: the rain, or the reign of impatience?

Joe Menzer: Man, before we get into all that, I really felt bad for Marcos Ambrose losing the race like he did by making one mistake on the last turn. Not that I'm hating on Carl Edwards or anything. But that would have been huge for Ambrose, and instead it was a huge heartbreak.

David Caraviello: If I read one more time that "this is why NASCAR drivers shouldn't compete in the rain," I'm going to lose my religion. That wreckfest wasn't about rain. It was about guys not driving smart and slamming into one another. Even on dry pavement, too many guys were way too impatient on that tight road layout. Maybe they should have a mandatory driving school before road races now on the Nationwide side. Sure looked like they needed it Sunday.

Foreign intrigue

NASCAR has made that bona fide international past time, road racing, an integral part of stock car lore -- and many of its regulars have excelled at it. But Sunday was a high-water mark even as the race itself, at many times, appeared to be a true comedy of the absurd, says Dave Rodman.

• Complete story

Joe Menzer: Funny, but I didn't know you were religious, David!

Raygan Swan: Amen!

Joe Menzer: Yeah, can we get an Amen, brother?

Raygan Swan: Is that Madonna he's quoting, Joe? Losing My Religion? No, REM! Ha! She was Like a Prayer. I need to dust off my halo!

Joe Menzer: I don't recall ever seeing a halo around your head, girl.

Raygan Swan: That's because your glasses are too old. Anyway, I think this might have been a combination of inexperience and rain, but more about rookie drivers. And yes, the Ambrose bobble was sad but I was happy to see Carl freakin' win for a change. But he didn't seem to think racing in the rain like that was "awesome" or anything. Maybe insane was the word he used, I forget. Rain or shine, I'm indifferent. I just like to finish a race.

David Caraviello: I will tell you this: when the race stayed green, the action on wet tires was some of the best racing we've seen in NASCAR all year. The shuffling at the front of the field was fantastic. Those guys were really going after one another. It was very entertaining to watch, until somebody in 23rd spun to bring out a caution. And "losing my religion" is an old Southern expression for getting angry.

Joe Menzer: Father, I have a confession to make. I am beginning to rethink a column I wrote a few weeks ago -- and not only because of what you say about the latest rain racing in Montreal. I wrote then that I thought racing on rain tires was a bad idea. About 15 minutes after I filed that piece, I did an interview with Humpy Wheeler, who knows a whole lot more about it than I do, and he completely disagreed with me. Along with several dozen e-mailers who had lost their religion (they were angry with me) and said I hadn't done my homework, was an idiot ... you know the routine. So maybe, just maybe, I was wrong.

Raygan Swan: So what you're saying is, maybe the Cup Series should consider rain tires? Might be nice considering all the Monday racing we've done this season.

David Caraviello: Well, they'd only be able to do it on road courses. But this isn't the first time we're seen a glut of impatience on the Nationwide side, in wet or dry weather. Heck, one of those last cautions was brought out by a crash caused when Edwards shoved Andrew Ranger out of the way, and cars stacked up behind them. But when it was green, it was great stuff.

Joe Menzer: Actually, Humpy seems to think they could start on road courses, then try it on short tracks, and eventually run them just about everywhere except the biggest superspeedways. And he said he thinks it's inevitable.

David Caraviello: I love Humpy, but I'll believe that when I see it. As for Montreal ... my jaw dropped when Ambrose popped over that rumble strip and lost the race. Couldn't believe it. And watching Ranger and Edwards go at it was great. Made me wish for more rain!

Raygan Swan: So as far as racing in the rain, are we just waiting for the technology or R&D to be completed?

Joe Menzer: Well, last time I checked, Humpy has said a lot of things -- and NASCAR hasn't always been on the same page.

3. Atlanta Motor Speedway is experiencing record ticket sales for its Sunday night race. But will one big weekend keep it viable as a two-race site?

Joe Menzer: Well, I'm glad to hear sales are going well. When I was down there for the spring race, the crowd was abysmal. But it seemed like all the promotion they were doing even leading up to that event was pointing toward this Labor Day weekend deal.

Labor of Love

"People are talking about it and getting excited, and you can just feel the momentum building," Ed Clark says of AMS' Labor Day weekend night race. "It's new, it's different, and we're looking at it like a new event, not like we've moved an event. This is like a new beginning."

• Complete story

• Buy your tickets
• Book your travel

David Caraviello: First of all, glad to see Atlanta is having some success at the ticket office. They're good people, that's a good race track, and they deserve it. Monday, according to the track, was the best single day of ticket sales they've ever had. Nice to hear it. They've really promoted the heck out of this race in the city, which strangely is often a tough place for them to sell tickets. No shortage of billboards and radio ads. It all appears to be working.

Raygan Swan: I will admit my bias up front, Atlanta is my second favorite city, behind Indy, so they deserve both dates, absolutely! Way over Chicagoland or California, and it's a great area to sightsee and take in a race. I'm glad to see the ticket sales are up.

Joe Menzer: Um, you can't decide who gets to keep two dates based on your shopping experiences. So while Raygs is right about Atlanta deserving two dates over California (there is only one Cup race per year at the moment in Chicago), if Kentucky is ever to get a date it has to come from within the SMI family of tracks. That means Atlanta.

Raygan Swan: And I haven't been in a while but is the traffic better now with the highway improvements? And yes Joe, even though I shop like a champ in Chicago, Atlanta has the Coke museum and the CNN Center, both of which I love!

David Caraviello: I will admit, I liked Atlanta a lot more before they tore down Buckhead Village. But regardless, there's a lot of enthusiasm for this race, and it looks like they're going to have a nice crowd. The question -- can they sustain it, and carry it over into next spring? That's going to be key. Is this a permanent Atlanta rebirth, or just for one night?

Raygan Swan: I think that depends on the outcome of the race and the continuation of the questionable economy. Also, the weather will play a factor.

Joe Menzer: Guys, it's simple. If the lawsuit thing gets settled in Kentucky, one of Atlanta's dates will almost certainly end up there. And they can keep building on this Labor Day deal until it's their own tradition.

Raygan Swan: I hope it doesn't rain, but isn't Mark Aumann, the "Rain Man," going to cover this one?

Joe Menzer: Um, I think Aumann might be covering for us. But at least we made it through Bristol without a delay. As for AMS, they're better off selling out one race than putting half-full crowds in the stands for two.

David Caraviello: The track is trying to mitigate the effects of the economy somewhat by selling more tickets in the metro area. As far as the track holding on to two dates, looks like 2010 may be the make-or-break year. You'd have to think Bruton Smith will get that Kentucky situation settled before the 2011 schedule comes out. Oh, and by the way -- I like the two-day show. Everything on Saturday and Sunday. What a concept. Talk about doing something to help fans in this economy -- preventing folks from spending extra nights in hotel rooms is a good one. I'd like to see more tracks do that.

Joe Menzer: Yeah, but our Marriott points would take a hit. That would hurt. And where else do you see a Cup date coming from within the SMI family? I mean, he's still trying to get two dates for Las Vegas, too.

Raygan Swan: I can't wait until 2011. Kentucky needs a date now for my travel sake and the sake of my unborn child! Can someone pass that along to the powers that be?

Joe Menzer: That would be like a home game for you and me, Raygs. I'm all for it.

David Caraviello: Kentucky would be a home game for Joe? Did the Menzer clan relocate to Lexington?

Raygan Swan: Or Henderson?

David Caraviello: Or Stinking Creek?

Raygan Swan: Ha! Is that really a place?

Joe Menzer: Come on, man. You know I'm an Ohio guy. It's right down the road from Cincinnati, more or less. And I drive past the Stinking Creek Road exit on I-75 every time I drive to Ohio to see family. And I tell the same sorry joke that my kids don't think is funny.

David Caraviello: Oh, please go ahead ...

Joe Menzer: You know, like, "It sure smells around here." But it's all in the delivery. You say it right before they can see the signs up ahead.

David Caraviello: Sheesh. With lines like that, Joe will be first up to cover the inaugural race at Stinking Creek Speedway!

Raygan Swan: He's here all season, ladies and gentlemen!

The opinions expressed are those solely of the writer.