Stewart embraced, supported by drivers in return

Posted on April 22, 2016 by Holly Cain

RICHMOND, Va. — The feeling around the NASCAR garage at Richmond International Raceway on Friday was both unanimous and magnanimous.

Tony Stewart‘s return to Sprint Cup Series competition this weekend was the big news of the week, possibly the year and he was greeted by welcome text messages, friendly pats on the back, and lots of smiles and goodwill.

NASCAR legend Richard Petty, whose team’s car was parked in the garage stall next to Stewart’s, sought Stewart out and embraced him.

By the time Stewart, 44, climbed into his No. 14 Mobil 1 Chevrolet for Friday morning’s opening practice, many of his competitors had stopped by to shake the three-time champ’s hand or wish him well in his first racing weekend since the 2015 season finale. Doctors cleared Stewart to compete this weekend after an eight-race absence while his body healed from a broken back — an injury he suffered during an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) accident just before the season began.

Stewart broke the news of his return himself on Twitter Thursday saying, “Well the long wait is over. I’ll be back in my @Mobil1 Chevy this weekend at Richmond. I can’t wait to race again.”

Then he added, “The Dr’s said my scans ‘looked much better than they thought they would after 3 months.’ So they cleared me.”

He will start Sunday’s Toyota Owners 400 from the 18th-place on the grid — his position in the only practice on a day shortened because of rain.

But the weather was the only downer on a day dominated by a warm and enthusiastic welcome back for Stewart.

“I don’t know about from the NASCAR standpoint, but from a competitor’s standpoint Tony is one of the fiercest competitors in the sport so to have him there and have someone to battle against is fun,” Carl Edwards said.

Stewart’s Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Kevin Harvick won the pole for Sunday’s race thanks to a chart-topping run in Friday’s only practice and it certainly sets the stage for a grand return of the team’s namesake. Stewart’s team confirmed their leader is re-energized and enjoying the positive reinforcement throughout the garage and in the grandstands.

“It’s been interesting just for the fact that I came to Stewart-Haas Racing to race with Tony, and obviously it’s been an in-and-out of the car situation for the last two and a half years,” Harvick said. “So, to see where he was from a personal standpoint over the time from when he got hurt and everything that happened, and see his interaction from the owner’s standpoint over the last several weeks has been very interesting to me, just to see how engaged he was and how excited he was and how relaxed and into what was going on.”

And his fellow competitors want to see “Smoke” go out strong.

“This is a retirement season for him and it was a little bit delayed, but he’s now going to some of the these race tracks for the final time and I know just in general, Tony has been around and traveling each week to the race and tracks and been very hands on with his race team,” Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin said Friday.

“It’s a great season and I would love to see him make a Chase push if he can and end on a good note.”

Posted on April 22, 2016 by Holly Cain

RICHMOND, Va. — NASCAR’s Senior Vice President of Competition Scott Miller took questions from the media on Friday at Richmond International Raceway regarding the sport’s regulation of tire lug nuts.

With the opening day of activity at the track called off early because of rain, Miller came to the media center to discuss what’s becoming a hot topic in the garage. Miller said NASCAR was open to exploring new pit rules as to how the teams are using — or not using — the correct number of lug nuts on tires, a downsizing all done with the goal of turning faster pit stops to gain a competitive advantage on the track.

“The rules have been pretty clear (the past two seasons) and we’ve really never had, until this point. too much trouble,” Miller said. “Obviously there are strong rules in place and pretty severe penalties associated with the rules in place but since the drivers are now questioning it, it’s time for us to kind of re-evaluate our position and work with the community in looking at possible different ways to enforce the pit road rules.

“The teams are obviously pushing harder than they ever have in this area. It’s time for us to take a look at it. We’ll do that as an industry. The open dialogue is very good right now between NASCAR and the teams. We’ll work with them and work internally to move forward.”

In order to speed up pit stops, teams are increasingly using fewer lug nuts to secure tires — creating a dangerous potential problem according to many in NASCAR. Three-time Sprint Cup champion Tony Stewart was fined $35,000 on Thursday under Section 12 of the rule book, specifically member conduct guidelines. According to Section 12.8.1, actions that could result in a $10,000-$50,000 fine include disparaging the sport and/or NASCAR’s leadership.

Miller said he understood the recent concerns and that the series was looking for ways to revisit reinforcement of the rule. He reminded that there is a serious penalty in place for purposely mishandling the installation of tires.

“It says a loss of wheels due to improper installation is a mandatory minimum four-race suspension of the crew chief, the tire changer and tire carrier of the lost wheel,” Miller said. “So that’s the penalty that would be imposed should a wheel actually come off.

“We do have the rules and they have served us well. But obviously moving forward, the teams have become very aggressive with it. It’s been brought up as a concern and when any of our competitors raise a concern it’s time for us to take a little bit harder look at it.”

While speaking to an Associated Press meeting this week, NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France defended the sport’s regulation of the situation and reminded of its extreme emphasis on safety.

“Nobody has led, done more and achieved more in safety than we have,” France said. “It is a never-ending assignment and we accept that.

“We do take offense that anything we do is somehow leading toward an unsafe environment. Safety … that’s the most important thing we have to achieve.”

Posted on April 22, 2016 by Holly Cain

PHOTOS: Stewart’s career highlights | All 48 of Stewart’s Cup victories

RICHMOND, Va. — Tony Stewart officially drove out of the garage and onto a race track for the first time this season at 10:59 a.m. ET Friday morning after spending a good half hour in the seat of his red-white-and-blue No. 14 Mobil 1 Chevrolet, getting re-familiarized with the cockpit and debriefing with his team’s new crew chief, Michael Bugarewicz.

Both Stewart’s return and farewell to NASCAR Sprint Cup Series competition began this weekend at Richmond International Raceway.

The driver/owner placed 18th (124.700 mph/38 laps) in opening practice before the session was halted for rain.

The three-time Cup champion returned to competition for the first time this season, having received medical clearance earlier this week. He has been recovering from a broken back suffered during the offseason in an all-terrain vehicle accident, and just this week doctors okayed Stewart’s return for what is his final NASCAR Cup season as a driver.

The Stewart-Haas Racing team worked fast and furiously, enthusiastically and with unmistakably high energy early Friday morning in the garage preparing Stewart’s Chevrolet.

Photographers, cameramen and reporters crowded around the garage to get a glimpse of Stewart.

“For this whole team, this company, it’s awesome to see him back at a place he loves, a place he’s had success,” SHR Competition Director Greg Zipadelli said Friday in the RIR garage.

“It looks like they changed the tire back to the way it used to be, more his style and hopefully we’ll have a real sunny day come Sunday. I think it will be a great race.

“For our company, our sponsors and our fans it’s awesome that it’s sooner than later.”

Stewart’s Chevy was positioned in between Aric Almirola’s Ford and Kyle Larson‘s Chevy in the Richmond garage. And earlier in the morning while the champ was still in his motorcoach getting ready for his first practice session since his last race, the 2015 November finale in Homestead, Fla. the crew was already smiling. There was a palpable sense of expectation.

“We’re extremely happy to have him back and to work with him the rest of the year,” Chevrolet’s Sprint Cup Series Program Manager Alba Colon said as she and Zipadelli stood together, watching preparation for opening practice.

It was the first practice session for Stewart this year, the first time he’s even turned a lap. The medical clearance came so late, he didn’t have an opportunity to even test his Chevy before arriving in Richmond.

“He’s done this so long it will just be a matter of him adjusting,” Zipadelli said. “I think that the state of mind he’s in, the adjustments should be short. He’s rested; I’ve not seen him this focused, this excited ever.

“It’s exciting and I feel good for him that he got the opportunity to come back a couple weeks earlier than we thought at a place he really likes. It’s something he really wanted to do.

“Before he went to the doctor the other day, he said, ‘If the doctor clears me, I’m going to do this.’ “

There was little time to prepare, but the team has been ready and anticipating the eventual go-ahead.

“Everything was in place,” Zipadelli said. “It was more of the internal preparation, making sure his helmets were on the truck, gloves, the HANS, all those little details. The guys did a good job working late Wednesday night. Had to make some changes with the seat and the headrest and the weight of the car. They went back and did it all.”

Other drivers seemed genuinely excited to see Stewart back as a competitor.

“It’s great to have him back and it’s great for the sport,” rookie driver Ryan Blaney said Friday.

It was clearly the consensus.

“As a friend, somebody responsible for bringing good race cars to the track for him and our company I just hope he has a great rest of the season, can be competitive and have a lot of fun,” Zipadelli said. “I know he’s really looking forward to it.”

And so are many others.

MORE: Complete coverage of Stewart’s accident, recovery

Posted on April 22, 2016 by Staff Report

Lineup: Heat Race 1

Position	Car	Driver	Manufacturer
1.	18	Matt Tifft	Toyota
2.	88	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	Chevrolet
3.	20	Erik Jones	Toyota
4.	1	Elliott Sadler	Chevrolet
5.	33	Brandon Jones	Chevrolet
6.	62	Brendan Gaughan	Chevrolet
7.	48	Brennan Poole	Chevrolet
8.	6	Darrell Wallace Jr.	Ford
9.	43	Jeb Burton	Ford
10.	28	Dakoda Armstrong	Toyota
11.	51	Jeremy Clements	Chevrolet
12.	44	J.J. Yeley	Toyota
13.	07	Ray Black Jr.	Chevrolet
14.	14	Jeff Green	Toyota
15.	5	Cole Custer	Chevrolet
16.	25	Harrison Rhodes	Chevrolet
17.	97	Ryan Ellis	Chevrolet
18.	70	Derrike Cope	Chevrolet
19.	40	Carl Long	Toyota
20.	89	Morgan Shepherd	Chevrolet

Lineup: Heat Race 2

Position	Car	Driver	Manufacturer
1.	2	Austin Dillon	Chevrolet
2.	19	Daniel Suarez	Toyota
3.	7	Justin Allgaier	Chevrolet
4.	22	Brad Keselowski	Ford
5.	3	Ty Dillon	Chevrolet
6.	42	Justin Marks	Chevrolet
7.	16	Ryan Reed	Ford
8.	39	Ryan Sieg	Chevrolet
9.	4	Ross Chastain	Chevrolet
10.	11	Blake Koch	Chevrolet
11.	01	Ryan Preece	Chevrolet
12.	0	Garrett Smithley	Chevrolet
13.	78	BJ McLeod	Ford
14.	90	Todd Peck	Ford
15.	52	Joey Gase	Chevrolet
16.	15	Travis Kvapil	Ford
17.	74	Mike Harmon	Dodge
18.	13	Timmy Hill	Toyota
19.	93	Josh Wise	Chevrolet
20.	21	Spencer Gallagher	Chevrolet

Posted on April 22, 2016 by Staff Report

RELATED: Full practice results

Kevin Harvick topped the leaderboard in Friday’s rain-shortened first Sprint Cup Series practice at Richmond International Raceway, using a 129.069 mph-lap in his No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet.

Right behind him was Joey Logano in the No. 22 Team Penske Ford at 128.694 mph.

Rounding out the top five were Jimmie Johnson in the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, Carl Edwards in the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota and Denny Hamlin in the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.

Tony Stewart, in his first practice session of the season since sustaining a back injury in the offseason, was 18th at 124.700 mph in the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet. Stewart drove a field-high 38 laps.

Michael Annett slammed into the wall with his No. 46 Pilot Flying J Chevrolet about seven minutes into the session, sustaining significant damage to the front of his car.

Because rain also is predicted for later today, many teams used qualifying trim on their cars in the event qualifying is rained out. Practice speeds will be used to set the lineup for the Toyota Owners 400 if Coors Light Pole Qualifying is rained out.

Posted on April 22, 2016 by Staff Report

RELATED: Complete Richmond schedule

Posted on April 22, 2016 by Staff Report

RELATED: Live weather updates | Weekend schedule

Heavy rain canceled the majority of on-track action Friday at Richmond International Raceway.

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series cars were in the midst of circling the 0.75-mile track for the opening practice when the skies opened up. The session ran for most of the alotted time, with Kevin Harvick topping the leaderboard at 129.069 mph with just more than 20 minutes remaining.

Sprint Cup Coors Light Pole Qualifying was scheduled to begin at 4:15 p.m. ET, but NASCAR announced shortly after 3:30 p.m. ET that it was canceled. By virtue of notching the best speed in the rain-shortened opening Cup practice, Harvick will start on the pole for Sunday’s Toyota Owners 400 (1 p.m. ET, FOX).

Cup cars will have another shot at putting laps down on the short track Saturday at 10:30 a.m. ET (FS1).

Opening NASCAR XFINITY Series practice, scheduled from 12:30 p.m. to 1:55 p.m. ET, was canceled due to the wet weather. A second XFINITY practice was scheduled from 3-3:55 p.m. ET, but was also unable to be run.

XFINITY practice has been rescheduled for 9 a.m. Saturday. The lineup for each Dash 4 Cash heat was set per the rule book, which is owner points. Results from the heat races will set the lineup for the main.

Posted on April 22, 2016 by Staff Report

Members of the Drivers Council, a group of NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers that meets occasionally with NASCAR leadership, will pool money to pay the $35,000 fine NASCAR levied against Tony Stewart, Denny Hamlin confirmed Friday at Richmond International Raceway. NBC Sports first reported the story.

Via the NBC report, Denny Hamlin, a member of the Drivers Council, released this statement: “We as drivers believe Tony has the right to speak his opinion on topics that pertain to a sport that he has spent nearly two decades helping build as both a driver and an owner. While we do not condone drivers lashing out freely at NASCAR, we do feel Tony was in his rights to state his opinion. We as a Council support him and do not agree with the fine. Therefore, we fellow council members have agreed to contribute equally to paying his fine.”

He reiterated that stance Friday afternoon.

“It’s about us believing we have the right to express our opinions,” Hamlin said.

Hamlin and Stewart are both in the Drivers Council. Other members are Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Larson and Joey Logano. Jeff Gordon had previously been a member until his retirement following the 2015 season.

Stewart’s fine, announced Thursday afternoon, falls under Section 12 of the rule book, specifically member conduct guidelines. According to Section 12.8.1, actions that could result in a $10,000-$50,000 fine include disparaging the sport and/or NASCAR’s leadership.

Previously on Thursday, Stewart announced he would return to his No. 14 Chevrolet this weekend at Richmond International Raceway after missing the first eight races of the year with a back injury.

PHOTOS: All 48 of Tony’s wins | Stewart through the years

Posted on April 22, 2016 by Zack Albert

RELATED: Heat races lineup | Full schedule

RICHMOND, Va. — The first brush with qualifying heats and a feature in a revamped Dash 4 Cash race format brought a new wrinkle to the NASCAR XFINITY Series last weekend. With the newfangled system ready for Round 2, many in the garage are bracing for the encore.

Dual heats make their return in Saturday’s ToyotaCare 250 (12:30 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), the second of four races this season for the Dash 4 Cash incentive program. One of four eligible drivers — determined through the two heats — will make their bid for a $100,000 bonus at Richmond International Raceway.

Last weekend’s Dash 4 Cash opener at Bristol Motor Speedway was marked by a pair of wire-to-wire winners in the heats, but some frantic lead-swapping in the shorter 200-lap main. This weekend, the total distance of the feature event (106.6 miles at Bristol vs. a scheduled 105 at Richmond) is comparable, but the difference in lap count (Bristol’s 200 vs. Richmond’s 140) is far wider.

“That’s a pretty narrow window to make yourself better if you’re not where you want to be,” said Erik Jones, last week’s winner of both the Bristol race and the Dash 4 Cash prize. “I think it’s cool. I think it’s a neat thing to do. I think the shorter races is something we as drivers enjoy. I think fans enjoy it as well. And just that dash to the finish running as hard as you can is pretty neat.

“Bristol was a part of that — tire wear at Bristol isn’t that great so you can run pretty hard for the majority of the race and not have to worry about fall-off and really dash like that for the whole race. But, I think you’ll see a lot of the same here at Richmond with an only 140-lap main as well.”

Roush Fenway Racing‘s Ryan Reed said Friday that the shorter format placed a premium on executing a mistake-free race, for both driver and crew. But the 22-year-old also said that the sanctioning body could discover enhancements as the Dash 4 Cash system continues to evolve.

“With 140 laps at Richmond, you’re going to have no time to mess around,” Reed said. “I think it’s good. Everyone’s talked about shortening races up, and I think this is a great way to do it without taking away from total laps. You’re still running the same amount of miles in the weekend, but you’re breaking it up. I’m a pretty big fan of it. I think that they’ll continue to improve on it and learn from this year and then be able to apply more things to it.”

Last weekend’s event at Bristol helped fuel discussion about potentially reducing the number of scheduled laps in the hopes of creating more intense racing — not just on the XFINITY circuit but in all three NASCAR national series.

JR Motorsports’ Justin Allgaier, who was one of four eligible Dash 4 Cash drivers last weekend, said he saw some validity to that theory, but that he expected more to be learned as the four-race series unfolds.

“Obviously as racers, we’re competitive, we want to win races and we’ll run as many laps as the sanctioning body or the fans will allow us to run. If you told us it was 1,000 laps, we’d go run it. But at the same time to keep our fans engaged and to keep us moving forward as a sport, is this the right philosophy? Did we do a good job? I think that as we get through these four races, we’re going to see a lot clearer picture of it. But I definitely give kudos to NASCAR, to Comcast XFINITY, everybody here. There was a lot of give and take to make sure these came off well, and I think so far we’ve done a good job of that.”

Posted on April 22, 2016 by Zack Albert

RICHMOND, Va. — Denny Hamlin expounded on the NASCAR Drivers Council’s recent show of solidarity for three-time champion Tony Stewart on Friday, saying that he hoped the sport’s competitors would have better freedom to express themselves in the future.

Thursday afternoon, NASCAR officials handed down a $35,000 fine to Stewart, making his first Sprint Cup Series start of the season this weekend in his return from a severe back injury, for making harsh, candid remarks toward its competition department and its stance on policing loose or missing lug nuts. Within hours, the nine-person council produced a statement that it intended to pay Stewart’s fine.

“When Tony informed us of the fine, we didn’t agree with it. No one agreed with it and we thought there’s something we should do about it,” Hamlin said Friday at Richmond International Raceway. “I think it was a way for us to send a message back to NASCAR — not that we were trying to send any specific message, but that, hey, we just believe we should have the right to speak our opinion.”

Stewart’s comments came at a Wednesday appearance at a service station to promote sponsor Mobil 1’s contributions to the NASCAR Green initiative. When asked about NASCAR’s relaxed stance toward tightening all five lugs, Stewart offered pointed criticism, saying that competition officials “totally dropped the ball” in regards to safety.

NASCAR officials had no comment on the penalty Friday at the .75-mile track. Hamlin indicated that NASCAR officials had not contacted him about the council’s statement as of early Friday afternoon.

NASCAR competition officials changed the rules governing lug nuts before the 2015 season, saying they would no longer issue penalties for loose or missing lug nuts. The change dovetailed with the debut of a new pit-road officiating system that reduced the need for competition officials to go over the wall during stops.

The rule created an opening for pit crews looking for advantages, allowing them to skip tightening lugs in an effort to save fractions of a second on pit road. But as teams have become more aggressive pushing the rule this season, the result has been a rise in loose wheels, vibrations and the need for extra stops.

“I think it’s a safety issue that we should look to address before there is a negative outcome with it,” said Kurt Busch, Stewart’s teammate in the No. 41 Chevrolet and the defending race winner. “To me, it makes sense to have five lug nuts. You want five of them tight. You go to your Goodyear Tire store and get your tires rotated, they put on three lug nuts, you are not going to feel so comfortable about that.”

But Hamlin insisted the council’s actions were less about lug nuts and more about drivers’ ability to speak openly.

For years, NASCAR officials issued so-called “secret” fines — undisclosed penalties — in response to competitors’ remarks that crossed the bounds of criticism of the sport. That practice was abandoned before the 2012 season.

Hamlin was fined $25,000 in March 2013 for critical comments about the newly released Gen-6 race car design. In issuing the penalty, NASCAR officials said, “the sanctioning body will not tolerate publicly made comments by its drivers that denigrate the racing product.”

Hamlin said the out-of-bounds line for which comments are admissible or not is a murky one, but that “obviously we just believe that you should be able to express your opinion as long as you’re not just totally trashing the sport itself or anything like that.” He also indicated that Stewart’s status as a three-time series champion and an outspoken veteran should have factored in NASCAR’s decision.

MORE: All of ‘Smoke’s’ Cup wins

“We try to do our best to give honest answers and sometimes those aren’t always the best thing,” Hamlin said. “I know at times I’ve been very guilty of being too honest at times or too opinionated at times and it costs you a nickel or two. We just think that there should be a little bit of leniency there for someone that knows a lot about our sport and has been in our sport a long time. He gave his opinion and especially when it’s something on safety, too. I think it’s pretty important.”

Stewart was back in his Stewart-Haas Racing No. 14 Chevrolet on Friday, turning his first laps since he was hurt in an all-terrain vehicle incident Jan. 31. His injuries sidelined him for the first eight Sprint Cup races of his final full season in NASCAR’s top division.

MORE: Lineup for Richmond race | Photos: See Stewart back in No. 14