Feuding drivers celebrated the New Year on rapper’s yacht
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — The latest chapter in the feud between drivers Clint Bowyer and Jeff Gordon involves a hip-hop superstar, a yacht, a Caribbean getaway — and questions over whether they’re still feuding.
Gordon and Bowyer found themselves in the same place, and in the most exotic of locations, on New Year’s Eve, when they both attended a party aboard P. Diddy’s boat on the island of St. Bart’s. By all accounts the meeting was cordial, even if there are no indications that they’ve resolved their disagreements stemming from a crash last November in Phoenix.
“I was on the damndest boat you’ve ever seen in your life,” Bowyer said Thursday during Preseason Thunder testing at Daytona International Speedway. “I’m from Kansas. We don’t have big boats in Kansas. We don’t have very big bodies of water, so I think he was on that same boat, but there was a lot of other people on there and it was a big time being had. Yes, he was on there and I think it was on the same island. I’m pretty sure (Gordon) was on there. It was pretty late. Put it that way.”
PRESEASON THUNDER
BROADCAST SCHEDULE
Sprint Cup Series testing; all times Eastern
Thursday, Jan. 10
Generation-6 cars pass first test
Friday, Jan. 11
9 a.m.-noon – SPEEDtv.com
1 p.m.-5 p.m. – SPEED
Saturday, Jan. 12
9 a.m.-noon – SPEEDtv.com
1 p.m.-5 p.m. – SPEED
Both drivers, though, danced around whether they had put their feud behind them. Seeking revenge for an on-track incident that had occurred months earlier, Gordon lingered on the race track and crashed Bowyer in the penultimate event of the 2012 season. The action earned Gordon a $100,000 fine and 25-point penalty from NASCAR, and ignited a scuffle between the two crews in the garage area.
Tensions between the two drivers were evident even a month later at Champions Week in Las Vegas, where Bowyer and Gordon rarely interacted. Did they make up on New Year’s Eve in St. Bart’s?
"Yeah, we held hands and walked on the boat and discussed the past year and enjoyed ourselves throughout the whole vacation,” Bowyer said sarcastically. “That was the one person that I definitely wanted to vacation with. I couldn’t wait to get there for that very reason."
Gordon said his family has been spending New Year’s on the island for several years. He heard Bowyer and Kevin Harvick were there on a chartered boat that belongs to his car owner, Rick Hendrick, so he stopped by to say hello. Gordon didn’t find the other two drivers then — but did later when he and his wife Ingrid were rubbing shoulders with other celebrities aboard Oasis, P. Diddy’s $72 million, 194-foot yacht.
“It was the party of the year, if you ask me,” Gordon said. “It was an amazing event that P. Diddy had. We’re just hanging out having a good time, and in walk Bowyer and Harvick and a couple of other folks. I don’t know. It was a good New Year’s. I enjoyed myself very much.”
But did they end the feud? That much remains to be seen.
“We talked,” Gordon said. “We talked. I had a great New Year’s.”
Teams must balance competition, cooperation as Ford heavyweights
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Brad Keselowski was just beginning to make his first starts at NASCAR’s national level. Roush Racing, still three years from partnering with the Fenway Sports Group, was coming off a first championship in the NASCAR Sprint (then NEXTEL) Cup Series.
The NASCAR landscape was very different in 2004, but there’s one clear connection between then and now. That season was the last time Jack Roush’s organization received any serious title competition from a team within its own manufacturer — something almost certain to occur again this year, now that reigning titlist Keselowski and his Penske Racing operation have made the switch to Ford.
It all raises the question of how much collaboration will take place between two organizations accustomed to being the largest planets in their respective solar systems. During Preseason Thunder testing at Daytona International Speedway on Thursday, it seemed clear the line between competition and cooperation was still being figured out.
PRESEASON THUNDER
Sprint Cup Series testing
Thursday, Jan. 10
Generation-6 cars pass first test
Penske, Roush walk thin line
Friday, Jan. 11
Video: ‘Big One’ hits during draft
Johnson shows his smarts
Saturday, Jan. 12
Final day, final impressions
Patrick pleased with Thunder
“Those things are being defined daily as far as what is OK to share and what is not,” Keselowski said. “I don’t have great answers for you there, but we all agree that it is better for us to get beat by another Ford than to watch us be the best Ford but not be the fastest car on the track. I would rather get beat by another Ford and run second or third than run 17th and be the best Ford. In order for that to work out there has to be a level of cooperation, and I think we all see that. It is just a matter of defining what that level is.”
On both sides, it’s a new experience. For the past three years, Penske had been the lone Dodge entry on the circuit, benefitting from knowledge it didn’t have to share with anyone else. Roush has been the primary supplier of chassis to other Ford operations, which — while capable of winning races — were never a threat to the title. The last Ford team other than Roush to finish in the top 10 in final points was Yates Racing in 2004, winning a race at Texas and placing ninth with Elliott Sadler behind the wheel.
Today, Roush and Yates jointly operate an engine-building company that supplies all Ford teams — including, now, Penske. These seemingly strange bedfellows first sat down across from one another during the development of Ford’s new Generation-6 car, which both Roush and Penske played a role in. That experience provided a get-to-know-you platform outside of any competitive arena, fostering a working relationship that might have been much more difficult to develop had both sides been thrown together at the race track.
“There’s no substitute for knowing the names and faces, sitting down at a table with somebody,” said Travis Geisler, Penske’s competition director. “I’ve got their cell numbers in my phone, and they have mine, and when I call them, they answer. You learn how to not step on each others’ toes but be honest, and those things are difficult to do when it’s 100 percent competitive.”
It helps, Geisler adds, that Roush has experience working with other teams through its business relationships, and that there are some people who have worked for both organizations. The hope is that the collaboration during the new car development will carry over to race weekends and make both sides more comfortable with the idea of sharing information with one another. According to Carl Edwards, everyone involved stands to gain from the cooperation.
“I hope we can share information. It would help us a lot,” said the Roush driver, who missed the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup in 2012. “The way that Brad ran at the end of last year, that was spectacular, and at the end of the day I hope we have something to give them so that they will reciprocate. The more teams you have working together, the more information you have and more ideas you have and it makes things better.”
Added Geisler: “I look at it, it’s like the Allied front in (World War II). OK, we’re different, but we’re still trying to shoot the same guys. We can line up the common goal of beating everybody else. We still want to beat each other, but I think we know it’s important to Ford to share and work together. You look at all the Chevy camps that are out there, the manufacturer’s title is something that needs to be won by Ford. That’s something we want to do, and the only way we’ll accomplish that is if all the Fords are running well.”
Jamie Allison, director of Ford Racing — whose stable also includes Richard Petty Motorsports, the Wood Brothers, Germain Racing and Front Row Motorsports — said sharing a common engine manufacturer will lead to natural areas of cooperation, as will technologies being developed with the intent of improving the fleet as whole. But in the end, the goal of both Penske and Roush is to beat one another, despite the common logo on the nose of their cars.
“We also recognize these are racing organizations and each is striving for the same goal, which is to go and win races,” Allison said. “That is the main goal that we, and all Ford fans, have in common.”
Toward that end, not all doors will be open. Geisler expects Roush and Penske drivers to work better together on the race track, and said the two teams may strategize over big-picture ideas that each organization might not have the resources to pull off on its own. But when it comes to hard data, such as numbers from the race car or chassis development, Penske draws a line.
“That stays with our crew chiefs and with our drivers,” Geisler said. “In my opinion, those are trade secrets of those guys who work very hard in giving themselves an advantage. It wouldn’t be fair to us to publicize how Brad’s driving. I think those are things that separate them from a crowd of crew chiefs, from a crowd of race engineers, and we need to respect where they stand as individuals in this sport.”
Of course, if one side asks, who knows what may be the outcome. After all, it is a new spirit of cooperation between two of NASCAR’s top teams — to a point, at least. “All of us will decide whether there’s an answer given or not,” Geisler said. “That will be on a case-by-case basis. But there’s no harm in asking.”
Danica downplays impressive Preseason Thunder showing
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — They stood five and six deep peering through the Daytona International Speedway garage windows on Thursday hoping for a glimpse, pining for a smile, an autograph, an acknowledgement.
And this crowd of mostly middle-aged men and women playing hooky from work to attend NASCAR’s Preseason Thunder wasn’t there for the sport’s long-reigning Most Popular Sprint Cup driver Dale Earnhardt Jr.
“We’re here for Danica,’’ they responded in near unison when asked.
PRESEASON THUNDER
Sprint Cup Series testing
Thursday, Jan. 10
Generation-6 cars pass first test
Penske, Roush walk thin line
Friday, Jan. 11
Video: ‘Big One’ hits during draft
Johnson shows his smarts
Saturday, Jan. 12
Final day, final impressions
Patrick pleased with Thunder
Her bright green GoDaddy.com sponsor hats, shirts and autograph cards were everywhere in the Daytona infield as fans lingered for a view and scouted out tables for the autograph session later that evening.
It was quite a reception for Danica Patrick, who posted the third quickest lap in the morning test session — her first official laps as a full-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver.
“I feel really excited, I have to say, going into this season versus a lot of other seasons in my career,’’ said Patrick, who begins in earnest her Cup career after a historic run in IndyCars (her third-place finish in the 2009 Indy 500 is the highest ever for a woman) and a couple seasons of splitting time between open wheel and NASCAR.
Last year, Patrick’s first competing only in stock cars, she finished 10th in the Nationwide Series points standings in addition to running 10 Cup races.
What started in go-karts, included intensive training in England and, eventually, international stardom as the most accomplished woman in American open-wheel history, is again one of the most-watched story lines in sports. How will Patrick fare in NASCAR’s big leagues?
“(Crew chief) Tony Gibson has said to all of you (reporters) and said to me that we need to create certain expectation levels as we go along and make them realistic, be smart about them and move them slowly,’’ Patrick said. “… You just have to stay relaxed, stay positive; you can’t let the tough days get you down. I’m sure they are going to happen so I think that is going to help us have more better days if we can stay positive and stay upbeat.’’
Patrick certainly looked the part Thursday.
Arriving before her Stewart-Haas Racing team owner/teammate Tony Stewart for a joint interview with reporters in the Daytona International Speedway media center, she stepped on the podium, sat in the middle chair and moved Stewart’s placard to the side.
When told Stewart would be joining her, she quickly moved Stewart’s nameplate back to the center of the table and moved herself to a chair on the side.
“Hey, I know who’s boss,’’ she joked.
When Stewart joined her moments later, he told her that “the new guy” is supposed to buy dinner for the team.
“Good thing I’m not a guy,’’ Patrick said, smiling.
Asked about her upcoming Rookie of the Year competition with two-time defending Nationwide Series champ Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Patrick deferred.
“You know, you just race hard,’’ she said, smiling and admitting she didn’t honestly know how that award was decided. “I think those are the things that just happen.
"If it does, it does, if it doesn’t, it doesn’t. But I think that if I shoot for great results each time and keep bettering myself all the time, that is the best goal that I can have as opposed to just shooting for Rookie of the Year."
With the introduction of NASCAR’s new Generation-6 race car, Patrick figures her full-time debut couldn’t have been timed any better. She’s hoping that being closer to the same learning curve as everyone else will work to her advantage.
She backed up her impressive showing in the morning session Thursday with a seventh best lap in the afternoon and fifth best 10-lap average on the day.
After climbing out of the car at the end of her first full day as a Sprint Cup regular, she had a quick debrief with the team, then went over to the garage window and signed some autographs.
So far, so good.
Kenseth, Hamlin top charts in Preseason Thunder practice
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Joe Gibbs Racing drivers showed early strength in the opening day of NASCAR Preseason Thunder testing Thursday at Daytona International Speedway, sweeping the top three spots as speeds picked up in the afternoon session.
PRESEASON THUNDER
Sprint Cup Series testing
Thursday, Jan. 10
Generation-6 cars pass first test
Penske, Roush walk thin line
Friday, Jan. 11
Video: ‘Big One’ hits during draft
Johnson shows his smarts
Saturday, Jan. 12
Final day, final impressions
Patrick pleased with Thunder
Denny Hamlin was fastest among the 34 drivers to turn a lap in the second session of the day, clocking a 195.712 mph lap in his No. 11 JGR Toyota. Hamlin is scheduled to miss the next two days of testing at Daytona, instead opting to return to Charlotte to be with his girlfriend, Jordan Fish, who is expecting the couple’s first child.
Hamlin’s new teammate Matt Kenseth, who logged the fastest lap in the day’s first session, was second fastest at 195.385, followed by fellow Gibbs driver Kyle Busch (195.329) in third.
The day concluded the first on-track activity in the new year for the sixth generation of Sprint Cup Series cars, which will make their competition debut next month on the 2.5-mile track.
Danica Patrick, who begins her first full-time season at NASCAR’s highest level in 2013, was seventh-fastest at 192.934. Defending Sprint Cup Series champion Brad Keselowski ranked 31st-fastest out of 34 cars in both sessions. His Penske Racing Ford was more than 5 mph off Hamlin’s pace in the second session.
The second day of the three-day test is scheduled Friday with a three-hour morning stint and a four-hour afternoon session.
|
NASCAR Preseason Thunder — Practice 2 results
Thursday, Jan. 10 |
|||||||||
|
Pos
|
Car
|
Driver | Team |
Time
|
Speed
|
Lap #
|
# Laps
|
-Fastest
|
-Next
|
|
1
|
11
|
Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
45.986
|
195.712
|
28
|
38
|
—.—
|
—.—
|
|
2
|
20
|
Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
46.063
|
195.385
|
24
|
35
|
-0.077
|
-0.077
|
|
3
|
18
|
Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota |
46.076
|
195.329
|
21
|
30
|
-0.090
|
-0.013
|
|
4
|
55
|
Mark Martin | Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota |
46.139
|
195.063
|
32
|
33
|
-0.153
|
-0.063
|
|
5
|
31
|
Jeff Burton | Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet |
46.244
|
194.620
|
22
|
22
|
-0.258
|
-0.105
|
|
6
|
27
|
Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet |
46.550
|
193.340
|
32
|
32
|
-0.564
|
-0.306
|
|
7
|
10
|
Danica Patrick | Stewart Haas Racing Chevrolet |
46.648
|
192.934
|
26
|
26
|
-0.662
|
-0.098
|
|
8
|
9
|
Marcos Ambrose | Richard Petty Motorsports Ford |
46.746
|
192.530
|
21
|
24
|
-0.760
|
-0.098
|
|
9
|
15
|
Clint Bowyer | Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota |
46.750
|
192.513
|
23
|
23
|
-0.764
|
-0.004
|
|
10
|
43
|
Aric Almirola | Richard Petty Motorsports Ford |
46.756
|
192.489
|
25
|
25
|
-0.770
|
-0.006
|
|
11
|
24
|
Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
46.777
|
192.402
|
17
|
17
|
-0.791
|
-0.021
|
|
12
|
42
|
Juan Pablo Montoya | Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet |
46.832
|
192.176
|
20
|
23
|
-0.846
|
-0.055
|
|
13
|
21
|
Trevor Bayne | Wood Bros Racing Ford |
46.843
|
192.131
|
24
|
24
|
-0.857
|
-0.011
|
|
14
|
29
|
Kevin Harvick | Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet |
46.870
|
192.020
|
22
|
22
|
-0.884
|
-0.027
|
|
15
|
1
|
Jamie McMurray | Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet |
46.876
|
191.996
|
24
|
30
|
-0.890
|
-0.006
|
|
16
|
16
|
Greg Biffle | Roush Fenway Racing Ford |
46.886
|
191.955
|
23
|
24
|
-0.900
|
-0.010
|
|
17
|
33
|
Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet |
46.896
|
191.914
|
22
|
24
|
-0.910
|
-0.010
|
|
18
|
51
|
Regan Smith | Phoenix Racing Chevrolet |
46.925
|
191.795
|
23
|
26
|
-0.939
|
-0.029
|
|
19
|
56
|
Martin Truex | Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota |
46.958
|
191.661
|
26
|
35
|
-0.972
|
-0.033
|
|
20
|
5
|
Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
46.958
|
191.661
|
17
|
23
|
-0.972
|
-0.000
|
|
21
|
39
|
Ryan Newman | Stewart Haas Racing Chevrolet |
46.968
|
191.620
|
14
|
14
|
-0.982
|
-0.010
|
|
22
|
48
|
Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
47.000
|
191.489
|
17
|
32
|
-1.014
|
-0.032
|
|
23
|
14
|
Tony Stewart | Stewart Haas Racing Chevrolet |
47.015
|
191.428
|
17
|
23
|
-1.029
|
-0.015
|
|
24
|
88
|
Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet |
47.021
|
191.404
|
30
|
31
|
-1.035
|
-0.006
|
|
25
|
78
|
Kurt Busch | Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet |
47.120
|
191.002
|
19
|
31
|
-1.134
|
-0.099
|
|
26
|
22
|
Joey Logano | Penske Racing Ford |
47.171
|
190.795
|
3
|
23
|
-1.185
|
-0.051
|
|
27
|
38
|
Josh Wise | Front Row Motorsports Ford |
47.221
|
190.593
|
8
|
23
|
-1.235
|
-0.050
|
|
28
|
99
|
Carl Edwards | Roush Fenway Racing Ford |
47.233
|
190.545
|
21
|
21
|
-1.247
|
-0.012
|
|
29
|
17
|
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing Ford |
47.241
|
190.512
|
15
|
27
|
-1.255
|
-0.008
|
|
30
|
13
|
Casey Mears | Germain Racing Ford |
47.280
|
190.355
|
14
|
35
|
-1.294
|
-0.039
|
|
31
|
2
|
Brad Keselowski | Penske Racing Ford |
47.329
|
190.158
|
27
|
27
|
-1.343
|
-0.049
|
|
32
|
36
|
Dave Blaney | Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet |
47.396
|
189.889
|
33
|
33
|
-1.410
|
-0.067
|
|
33
|
95
|
Scott Speed | Leavine Family Racing Ford |
47.609
|
189.040
|
18
|
22
|
-1.623
|
-0.213
|
|
34
|
47
|
Bobby Labonte | JTG Racing Toyota |
47.713
|
188.628
|
16
|
16
|
-1.727
|
-0.104
|
|
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Race will reunite former driver and crew chief pair
Swan Racing announced Thursday that two-time Daytona 500 winner Michael Waltrip will drive the No. 30 Toyota in the Great American Race with former crew chief Tony Eury Jr. calling the shots on top of the pit box. Eury was Waltrip’s crew chief during the 2005 season at Dale Earnhardt Inc. for 26 races.
Rounding out the reunion is Steve Hmiel, recently named competition director at Swan Racing, which is under new ownership. (The team was formerly Inception Motorsports.) David Stremme will wheel the car for the remainder of the season.
The three have history that dates back to their days at Dale Earnhardt Inc., but Waltrip said while it brings back good memories, the reunion “is going to create new ones.”
"I am thrilled to drive the No. 30 Toyota for Swan Racing and the chance to win a third Daytona 500," Waltrip said about the one-race deal.
PRESEASON THUNDER
BROADCAST SCHEDULE
Sprint Cup Series testing; all times Eastern
Live stream: Watch Preseason Thunder morning sessions from Daytona on SPEEDtv.com
Thursday, Jan. 10
9 a.m.-noon – SPEEDtv.com
1 p.m.-5 p.m. – SPEED
Friday, Jan. 11
9 a.m.-noon – SPEEDtv.com
1 p.m.-5 p.m. – SPEED
Saturday, Jan. 12
9 a.m.-noon – SPEEDtv.com
1 p.m.-5 p.m. – SPEED
Brandon Davis, owner of Swan Racing, believes they can contend for the win and will not start and park.
"Swan Racing is here to compete and to build a championship contender," Davis said. "This one-race partnership with Michael puts a two-time champion behind the wheel and the No. 30 in the mix at the Daytona 500."
Waltrip raced in 25 consecutive Daytona 500s (1987-2011), winning in 2001 and 2003 and took the victory in the July 2002 race.
Eury Jr. is no stranger to wins at Daytona, either. He assisted in two Sprint Unlimited (formerly Budweiser Shootout) wins for Dale Earnhardt Jr. and has 19 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victories under his belt.
"Michael is a familiar face for a lot of us here at Swan Racing," Eury said. "We know each other’s habits, wants and needs on the track. We’re going to Daytona to compete and hopefully we’ll make a mark for Swan Racing."
Toyotas shine, details dominate first day at Daytona
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — The draft was faster, but the details dominated the day Thursday at Daytona International Speedway as NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams opened Preseason Thunder, a three-day test session on the 2.5-mile track.
It was the first full-blown official test for the Generation-6 car, a piece that provides more manufacturer identity and one that officials hope will improve on-track competition.
A late-afternoon run featuring Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Denny Hamlin, Matt Kenseth and Kyle Busch, along with fellow Toyota driver Mark Martin (Michael Waltrip Racing), provided the only semblance of pack racing. The 10-minute session left the four atop the scoring pylon, led by Hamlin’s 195.712 mph effort. Kenseth, Busch and Martin also topped the 195 mark, the only other drivers to do so.
“I thought the cars drove really good,” Hamlin said. "It almost felt like a video game in arcade mode, very easy to drive. It’s definitely very hard to suck up to the front car … but with more cars (on the track) that will get better.”
PRESEASON THUNDER
Sprint Cup Series testing
Thursday, Jan. 10
Generation-6 cars pass first test
Penske, Roush walk thin line
Friday, Jan. 11
Video: ‘Big One’ hits during draft
Johnson shows his smarts
Saturday, Jan. 12
Final day, final impressions
Patrick pleased with Thunder
Hamlin won’t be around to see if that’s the case. His team packed up and departed after Friday’s session to allow the driver to return home and be with his girlfriend, Jordan Fish, who is expecting the couple’s first child.
“I didn’t want to leave her home alone at any point in the night,” said Hamlin, adding that crew chief Darian Grubb “already had a test plan that was going to be done in a day.”
The focus Thursday was on the more mundane aspects of testing for most of the day. With 34 entries on hand making solo runs, teams sorted through pages filled with setup changes and alterations in an attempt to verify what performed as expected, as well as what did not.
Robin Pemberton, NASCAR vice president of competition, called the opening day’s activities “relatively uneventful.”
“I think we anticipated the speeds would be as good as they were,” he said. “(They were) probably a little quicker than what we were the first practice down here last year (for the test).”
“It was uneventful because we weren’t running around pulling our hair out all day,” added John Darby, Sprint Cup Series director. “When you look at the enormity of the project … basically putting three brand-new models of race cars out on a race track, coming down to the first official test of the new season and (to) put speeds up that are within a tenth of a second of each other, it’s an incredible, incredible effort.”
Jeff Burton (Richard Childress Racing) completed the top five in the second session, with Paul Menard (RCR), Danica Patrick (Stewart-Haas Racing), Marcos Ambrose (Richard Petty Motorsports), Clint Bowyer (Michael Waltrip Racing) and Aric Almirola (RPM) rounding out the top 10.
Kenseth, who made the move from Roush Fenway Racing to JGR during the offseason, said the late draft effort didn’t provide a wealth of information.
“It seemed like you could get big runs on people, so I would think that it would be easier to pass,” the 2003 Cup champion said. “Hopefully we can get a lot more cars out there (and) get a feel for where we’re at.”
Most felt it was too early to read too much into speeds based on the first day’s results.
“You never know (where you stand) until we come back for the (Daytona) 500 and everybody makes their first laps,” team owner Richard Childress said. “Right now I feel pretty good. We’re not searching for half-a-second. We’re right there.”
Defending series champion Brad Keselowski (Penske Racing) ended the day 31st on the speed chart.
Architect of modern pit stop heads to NASCAR Hall Of Fame
Editor’s note: This release is part of a series in advance of the 2013 NASCAR Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in Charlotte, N.C. on Feb. 8. Buck Baker, Cotton Owens, Herb Thomas, Rusty Wallace and Leonard Wood are the five 2013 inductees. This installment spotlights pioneering crew chief Leonard Wood. Click here to download and listen to a special NASCAR Hall of Fame podcast on Leonard Wood with historian Buz McKim.
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Back in the day, there was no such thing as a “how-to” manual for chief mechanics.
Or for race car builders, engine assemblers and tuners and anyone else associated with the then-fledgling sport of NASCAR stock car racing.
The sport’s pioneers — in a way — made it up as they went along, some better than others.
And one who did it among the best is Stuart, Va.,’s Leonard Wood, who is among the 2013 class of five set for induction into the NASCAR Hall of Fame on Friday, Feb. 8. Wood, 78, will be enshrined in ceremonies to be held at the Charlotte (N.C.) Convention Center Crown Ballroom, which is connected to the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
PROFILES OF INDUCTEES
Ceremony set for Feb. 8
• Buck Baker
• Cotton Owens
• Herb Thomas
• Rusty Wallace
• Leonard Wood
Wood joins his older brother Glen Wood, the fabled Wood Brothers No. 21 racing team’s original driver and owner, as a NASCAR Hall of Fame member. His fellow inductees in the Hall’s fourth class are NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champions Buck Baker, Herb Thomas and Rusty Wallace and car owner/builder/driver/crew chief Cotton Owens.
“He’s the most dedicated, talented, all-around mechanic NASCAR has ever seen,” said Wood’s nephew, Len, co-owner of the current Wood Brothers team with his brother Eddie and sister Kim Hall. “He fit the term ‘chief mechanic.’ He could do anything with the car.”
The facts are these: Leonard Wood, in 990 races as a crew chief for the No. 21 Ford and Mercury cars, won 96 times. His cars also won 117 poles. After Glen stepped out of the cockpit, Leonard worked with some of the sport’s greatest drivers, including NASCAR Hall of Famers David Pearson and Cale Yarborough; A.J. Foyt, Dan Gurney and Parnelli Jones.
In a recent interview, Dale Jarrett, former Wood Brothers driver and current ESPN analyst, called Leonard Wood “one of the smartest people to come through this sport, especially early on. They had so many ideas from the pit crew to other things that people don’t even know about, under the hood so to speak, that Leonard Wood was kind of in charge of making happen.”
None of it came from a professor’s lecture, a text book or a blueprint. Wood learned by watching, thinking through the problem and then doing. And most assuredly innovating.
He sat by as his father, Walter, tore down the engine from the team’s first race car. Later, when the time had come to freshen it again, Wood — then in high school — volunteered for the task, which was done to perfection.
“It kind of blows your mind that somebody that young could do that,” said Glen Wood, noting that in the early days the chief mechanic was exactly that — a jack of all trades from fabricator to shock and spring specialist to engine builder. “He just learned by himself and he did it really well — anything he did. I could always depend on him. If the car wasn’t working right I’d go off somewhere and sit while he worked on it. When I came back, it would be in winning shape.
“He’s one of the best who ever came down the pike. I felt maybe he should have gone in (the NASCAR Hall of Fame) before me.”
Pit stops weren’t a big part of NASCAR’s early years during which many races were held on half-mile dirt tracks at distances of 200 and 250 laps. But the advent of longer races on superspeedways — Darlington Raceway followed by Daytona, Charlotte and Atlanta — significantly broadened the sport’s boundaries. With multiple stops necessary to add fuel, change tires and make adjustments, the Woods quickly recognized that less time spent on pit road meant fewer rivals to pass on the race track.
Leonard Wood became the architect of what became the signature Wood Brothers Pit Stop, the key to which was modernizing the equipment used on pit road.
In the early years, floor jacks weighing 70 to 80 pounds were used to lift the race cars. They also required a strong man to pump the handle — up to 10 pumps for tire clearance. Wood took apart the jack, inserted larger pistons and — presto — his brother Delano Wood could get the car off the asphalt by pumping two or three times.
He ported and polished the mechanisms in the team’s air guns, allowing lug nuts to be removed and replaced more quickly. Finally, Wood modified the inside of the team’s dump cans so that gasoline flowed faster.
Hired by the Ford Motor Co. to pit Jim Clark’s Lotus at the Indianapolis 500, the Woods stunned the racing world as Clark spent 41.9 seconds on pit road en route to Victory Lane — thanks to “tweaking” of the gravity-fed refueling rig.
“We turned that thing on and it put in 58 gallons in 15 seconds,” said Wood. It just sucked the fuel out of there. We knew we were going to be under 20 seconds on the pit stops.
“We got the most publicity in the least amount of time we ever got in our lives,” he added. “We hit a home run for sure.”
Len Wood continues to marvel at his uncle’s fabrication skills. The team is completing a replica of the Ford Galaxie in which Tiny Lund won the 1963 Daytona 500. The car will be on display at the NASCAR Hall of Fame during NASCAR Acceleration Weekend, along with a 1/8-scale, gasoline-powered car fashioned from scraps of aluminum and the soles of shoes that Wood built decades ago. He tethered it to a pole, a kind of forerunner to today’s radio controlled cars.
“His fabrication skills; it’s all in his head; no blueprints,” said the younger Wood, recalling that they were going to use aluminum pieces to fasten the windshield to the Galaxie. “Leonard said, ‘No, I think we used steel back then. I’ll make steel ones.’
“If you can describe it, he can fix it or make it.”
Induction ceremonies will take place at 7:30 p.m. ET in the Crown Ball Room at the Charlotte Convention Center which is directly connected to the NASCAR Hall of Fame. The event is the first half of NASCAR Acceleration Weekend followed on Saturday, Feb. 9 by NASCAR Preview 2013. Tickets for the ceremonies start at $45 (available at www.nascaracceleration.com) and the NASCAR Hall of Fame box office. In addition, a $20 ticket will gain fans all-day access into NASCAR Preview 2013 and the NASCAR Hall of Fame on Fame on Saturday, Feb. 9.
How cars handle, how much speed they achieve are among focal points
After months of testing and preparation, it’s finally time for the new cars in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series to take their first laps around NASCAR’s most famous track.
The three-day test opening Thursday morning at Daytona International Speedway at last brings together the Generation-6 cars with the facility where they will compete for the first time next month. Preseason Thunder marks the first restrictor-plate test of the new cars since Talladega in October, and may answer any questions still lingering about more brand-identifiable vehicles that will debut in the Daytona 500.
The most pressing of all those remains the draft, a source of high curiosity to race fans since the advent of tandem drafting two years ago. By tweaking the cooling systems on the old car, NASCAR was able to revive pack racing and minimize the effectiveness of the tandem draft.
Preseason Thunder will present the largest number of cars ever assembled for a Gen-6 test, though results of the last plate-track session in Talladega left officials confident they were on the right track.
PRESEASON THUNDER
BROADCAST SCHEDULE
Sprint Cup Series testing; all times Eastern
Live stream: Watch Preseason Thunder morning sessions from Daytona here.
Thursday, Jan. 10
9 a.m.-noon – SPEEDtv.com
1 p.m.-5 p.m. – SPEED
Friday, Jan. 11
9 a.m.-noon – SPEEDtv.com
1 p.m.-5 p.m. – SPEED
Saturday, Jan. 12
9 a.m.-noon – SPEEDtv.com
1 p.m.-5 p.m. – SPEED
“We felt we had good direction from last year to get the cars to drive well in the draft, and to reduce a lot of that tandem drafting,” said Robin Pemberton, NASCAR vice president of competition. “… We’re pretty confident that we’ve got a good package for Daytona and Talladega. Probably better than what we had last year, by a pretty fair margin.”
Seven cars took part in that Talladega test, while 35 are scheduled to appear in this week’s final shakedown before Speedweeks. Although teams will use single-car runs to fine-tune qualifying packages and optimize the speed in their vehicles, the three-day session is certain to feature the Gen-6 car in its largest pack drafts yet. Scott Miller, competition director for Michael Waltrip Racing, doesn’t believe the tandem approach will be effective given the specifications on the new car.
“I believe that since NASCAR has gotten the cooling package and all those rules mandated, it’s down to, will they be able to do it? Maybe. Will they be able to do it, and make it stick or count for much? Probably not, because it’s such a short period of time before the engines overheat,” he said. “I think it will be much the same as what we saw last year, where two guys couldn’t push out to a huge lead like we saw before NASCAR got the cooling package mandated back to where the cars would overheat if they pushed.”
Earlier this week, teams received a final rules package for Preseason Thunder that included a restrictor-plate opening of 29/32nds of an inch, the same as for 2012. The spoiler size has been set at 4 inches high and 53 inches wide, with an angle of 70 degrees. Miller believes there’s a good chance the same package will be used for Speedweeks, barring any surprises this week.
“As NASCAR will always do, if anything jumps out and something’s going the way we don’t need it to go, there’s a chance that they will adjust,” he said. “Like, if people have problems overheating, or we’re cooling too good and people are still able to push more then they would like, then I think they would adjust. … I think they’re close with this. It seemed like it at the last test. But until we get a bunch of cars out there and get them running, it’s going to be a little bit hard to etch in stone that this is it. I wouldn’t be surprised if there were some minor modifications, but I don’t see anything major.”
Although the Gen-6 cars have proven quite speedy on intermediate tracks — Kasey Kahne turned a lap that would have set a new track record during a test at Charlotte last month — Miller doesn’t expect the vehicles to be outrageously fast in mock qualifying runs at Daytona. Once again, though, the draft remains something of an unknown. Even so, drivers who took part in the Talladega test liked how the cars responded in the draft, allowing them to get better runs on their own, something the previous vehicle struggled with.
“I will tell you, I thought the test we did at Talladega went really well,” Brian Vickers said late last year. “The car drafted really well. Raced very well. Even with seven cars on the race track, we put on one heck of a show — at least I thought so. And it solved a lot of the things, I think, that the fans critiqued about racing at those tracks.”
The Gen-6 car will go through further testing after Preseason Thunder, with another two-day session scheduled for next week at Charlotte, and the possibility that some teams will test at Las Vegas later in the month. But as the 2013 season begins, the spotlight is squarely on Daytona and a test that may reveal not only more about the new vehicles, but also which drivers might be strongest when the circuit returns to the 2.5-mile layout for real.
Of course, last year Kurt Busch and Regan Smith were the two fastest drivers in testing, and neither were in the mix at the end of the Daytona 500. With new cars now in play, Miller will look for other things in the speed charts — like which manufacturers might be ahead of the game.
“This is completely in my viewpoint, but I would think the biggest thing that might be revealed down there at the test is if somehow or another one manufacturer has an advantage over another manufacturer,” he said. “I don’t think that’s going to be the case at all, but that might be something that comes out of the test if there’s anything there. From the wind-tunnel work and everything NASCAR’s put into that, everybody should be equal. But as in everything we do in racing, should be and actually are sometimes different.”
With sponsorship still in question, Phoenix Racing plans for all 36 Cup races
James Finch does not play golf. He does not play tennis. He does not go fishing.
The owner of a Florida-based construction company, Finch has a single hobby: his Phoenix Racing NASCAR team. Which is why despite a change in car body styles, despite having only a few races with secured sponsorship and despite no set driver lineup beyond Speedweeks, his organization is once again gearing up for a full season in the Sprint Cup Series.
Phoenix general manager Steve Barkdoll said the team will compete in the three-day Preseason Thunder test at Daytona International Speedway beginning Thursday, and have Regan Smith in the car for the Daytona 500. Although Finch questioned at times last year whether he would continue into 2013 given the sport’s move to the new Generation-6 body styles, his team is building cars in its Spartanburg, S.C., shop with the intention of competing in all points events.
“We plan on racing all 36 races,” Barkdoll said. “What we’re hoping for is to get one sponsor that will take all 36 races. If we have to get different sponsors to take different races, we’re good with that. But right now our plan is to race. And if we get to the halfway point and things haven’t come around, we’re still going to plan on racing.”
PRESEASON THUNDER
BROADCAST SCHEDULE
Sprint Cup Series testing; all times Eastern
Live stream: Watch Preseason Thunder morning sessions from Daytona on SPEEDtv.com
Thursday, Jan. 10
9 a.m.-noon – SPEEDtv.com
1 p.m.-5 p.m. – SPEED
Friday, Jan. 11
9 a.m.-noon – SPEEDtv.com
1 p.m.-5 p.m. – SPEED
Saturday, Jan. 12
9 a.m.-noon – SPEEDtv.com
1 p.m.-5 p.m. – SPEED
With which driver, though, remains a question. Smith’s commitment to run for the NASCAR Nationwide Series championship for JR Motorsports means he can’t be in the No. 51 all season. Barkdoll said Smith will pick eight to 10 events to race for Phoenix, and the team will put another driver — perhaps free agent AJ Allmendinger — in the vehicle for the remainder. Smith’s Nationwide team is affiliated with Hendrick Motorsports, from which Phoenix obtains engines and chassis.
“We’re finalizing the details and working through things there, trying to piece things together,” Smith said. “Hopefully in the next few weeks we’ll have a pretty good idea of what’s going on there.”
Of course, that driver lineup could also be contingent upon sponsorship, should a potential backer arise. Barkdoll said the No. 51 car has sponsorship for the Daytona 500 — it was announced Wednesday that Guy Roofing Inc. will sponsor the team for both the season-opening Sprint Cup and Nationwide races — as well as the race at Las Vegas. The team also plans to compete in five or six Nationwide Series events, perhaps with Kurt Busch, who will meet with the team this week at Daytona. Busch drove the team’s Sprint Cup car for most of last season, and won a Nationwide race with the organization at Daytona in July.
“It’s actually kind of exciting,” Barkdoll said. “Things aren’t great, but we do have some sponsorship signed already for a couple of races this year. Tag Heuer has come aboard for Vegas already, so two out of the first three Cup races and the first Nationwide race have sponsorship. That’s not perfect, but it’s better than we were last year at this time.”
Last year had Finch debating how much longer he wanted to go on, despite involvement in NASCAR that dates back to 1990, and includes a Sprint Cup victory by Brad Keselowski at Talladega in 2009. Although Busch made Phoenix more competitive than it might have been otherwise, he sometimes asked more of the cars than they were able to give — with crumpled sheet metal being the result. On top of that were financial commitments stemming from the lack of sponsorship and the need to update all the cars for 2013.
“James, in the middle of the season when we didn’t have sponsorship and we’d wrecked a bunch of cars, he said ‘You know, I might not even do the changeover because it costs so much per car,’ ” Barkdoll said. “But as he will tell you, he’s a racer. He doesn’t golf, doesn’t fish, doesn’t play tennis. This is what he does. And it’s my job and his to find other people’s money to help him so it just doesn’t have to come out of his back pocket.”
Although Phoenix obtains chassis from Hendrick, it hangs the bodies and prepares the cars on its own. Under normal circumstances, that can be a taxing process for a team that claimed only 18 employees as of last season. Changing over to a new body style only adds to the workload, even though Barkdoll applauds the move to vehicles that more closely resemble their brethren on the street.
“It’s pretty tough,” he said. “We’re a small team. We’re not like a Hendrick or Roush, where they have 400, 500, 600 employees where they’re more of an assembly line like a General Motors is. So our guys have to dig a little deeper and wear multiple hats at the shop. But they’ve made these cars so they come together fairly quick. With these new rules, the bodies go on fairly quickly, so that saves you some time in the shop. It will be a strain to get going. I think once we get to the midpoint of the year, we’ll be OK, though.”
Daytona may offer an early indication, given that Finch’s program has historically been at its strongest on restrictor-plate tracks. Although Busch willed the No. 51 car to third place at Sonoma last year, the three remaining top-five finishes in Phoenix Racing history have all been at plate venues. Two of them came in the Daytona 500, where despite the change in car style, Barkdoll believes the team can be a contender once again.
“I think we can. Absolutely,” he said. “That’s our plan. Our plan is to go down to Daytona with Regan, who’s a great restrictor-plate racer. He had (a victory at) Talladega taken away from him a couple of years ago, but he’s always been good on the restrictor-plate tracks. And then if we do get Kurt in the Nationwide car, we should have won all three of those (plate) races last year, and we won one of them. … So yeah, I think we definitely have a chance when we go to Daytona.”