NASCAR 2012 - Page 5

**GuyIncognito** · #81 03-02-2012, 12:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tervuren

Doesn't surprise me, Ford is spending huge on trying to market itself through NASCAR right now. They've had the best engine design last year, and with that, are also trying to get some of the best teams.

the surprise to me is they're switching to Ford, not Toyota.

although Ford only really has one NASCAR team (Roush/Fenway), the rest are midfield teams at best.

also remember Penske was with Ford for a long time, from mid 90s to mid 00s.

at any rate, good sign for Penske IMO.

**Str8shooter** · #82 03-02-2012, 09:35 AM

I wonder what manufacturer it could be.

"It seems that while sponsorship is down, car manufacturer support is strong. That is probably due to the fact that the car companies are all doing significantly better these days than a few years ago. Thus Petty has been approached by several manufacturers recently.

What's interesting is that while there are the usual suspects there is one new manufacturer that is trying to break into the sport.

RPM's contract with Ford is up at the end of the season. Petty ran Dodges from 1972 to 1978. Petty Enterprises aligned with Dodge again when the manufacturer returned to NASCAR competition in 2001 through most of the 2009 season, then under the RPM banner. "

http://www.jayski.com/cupnews.htm

**Whisky** · #83 03-02-2012, 12:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tervuren

Doesn't surprise me, Ford is spending huge on trying to market itself through NASCAR right now. They've had the best engine design last year, and with that, are also trying to get some of the best teams.

It leap-frogs every couple of years (which manufacturer is 'hot').

Problem Penske has is he has one driver on the fringe of being a solid #1, and he has a low-end #2/high-end #3 driver that will probably stay there.

**4re Nut** · #84 03-02-2012, 12:10 PM

I wonder if Knaus believes the adage "if you ain't cheating, you ain't trying": http://espn.go.com/racing/nascar/cup...handling-no-48

Quote:

AVONDALE, Ariz. -- Chad Knaus, crew chief for Jimmie Johnson and the No. 48 Chevrolet, said he is "deeply saddened and disappointed" by the severe penalties NASCAR announced against the team on Wednesday.

NASCAR suspended Knaus for six races and fined him $100,000 for the body of the car being out of alignment at the C-post above the rear windows. The issues were found during an initial inspection at Daytona. Johnson, meanwhile, was penalized 25 championship points and car chief Ron Malec also was suspended for six weeks...

Knaus has been down this road before. He was suspended before the 2006 Daytona 500 (which Johnson won) and sent home before the race. He also was suspended in 2007 for violations to the car body found before the road race at Sonoma, Calif.

Knaus was asked if he is concerned about his reputation.

"I'm here to do the best I can for the 48 team," Knaus said. "That's all that really matters to me. As far as my reputation goes, I'm not too concerned about that."...

**4re Nut** · #85 03-02-2012, 12:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GuyIncognito

the surprise to me is they're switching to Ford, not Toyota.

although Ford only really has one NASCAR team (Roush/Fenway), the rest are midfield teams at best.

also remember Penske was with Ford for a long time, from mid 90s to mid 00s.

at any rate, good sign for Penske IMO.

Yep and I suspect Ford wants to make a big splash with the new Fusion and having a marquee name like Penske involved certainly is a plus.

**GuyIncognito** · #86 03-02-2012, 12:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 4re Nut

I wonder if Knaus believes the adage "if you ain't cheating, you ain't trying": http://espn.go.com/racing/nascar/cup...handling-no-48

between the penalty and his finish (or lack thereof) at Daytona, JJ now has NEGATIVE points!!!

**Fast_ian** · #87 03-02-2012, 12:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GuyIncognito

between the penalty and his finish (or lack thereof) at Daytona, JJ now has NEGATIVE points!!!

Wow! Didn't even realize they could do that!

Bummer!
Cheers,
Ian

**4re Nut** · #88 03-02-2012, 01:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GuyIncognito

between the penalty and his finish (or lack thereof) at Daytona, JJ now has NEGATIVE points!!!

Nice catch, I didn't realize that and he still won $361K!

http://www.nascar.com/races/cup/2012...standings.html

**Fast_ian** · #89 03-02-2012, 01:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 4re Nut

I wonder if Knaus believes the adage "if you ain't cheating, you ain't trying":

It appears to be out of print, and I've loaned my copy out and don't remember the author, but David Bull Publishing had a book called "Cheat! The bad things good men do in Nascar".[Or very close to that.]

A *fascinating* read and apparently the only time a journo has been allowed in the "sin bin" where all the bad bits go - Some of the stuff these guys did (and continue to do it seems) are outrageous! And damn funny at times..... Dumping lead shot out of the chassis on the warm up lap? Check! 1/2 mile long, 3" diameter fuel feed? Check!

But Smokey was da' man - He really did believe that adage!

Cheers,
Ian

**4re Nut** · #90 03-02-2012, 01:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fast_ian

It appears to be out of print, and I've loaned my copy out and don't remember the author, but David Bull Publishing had a book called "Cheat! The bad things good men do in Nascar".[Or very close to that.]

A *fascinating* read and apparently the only time a journo has been allowed in the "sin bin" where all the bad bits go - Some of the stuff these guys did (and continue to do it seems) are outrageous! And damn funny at times..... Dumping lead shot out of the chassis on the warm up lap? Check! 1/2 mile long, 3" diameter fuel feed? Check!

But Smokey was da' man - He really did believe that adage!

Cheers,
Ian

Yep, IIRC I posted an article a year or two ago that described some of the more famous, err infamous cheats.

I just did a quick Google search and this came up: Cheatin’s Still Winnin’- The Story of Toyota Racing’s Best Cheat EVER

Quote:

...In 1995 the FIA (Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile, the major governing body for motorsports) decided that cars racing in the upper echelons of WRC would be fitted with “restrictor plates” on the turbo units of cars...

Toyota engineers figured out how to allow air in to the turbo intake that completely bypassed the seals around the restrictor! In addition, when the car was moving and the turbo was engaged, the restrictor plate would be moved back a couple of inches completely nullifying the effect of the restrictor plate. Some of the best judges and techs had gone over the car to make sure shenanigans like this weren’t taking place. In fact, the engineering was so good that when the turbo was disassembled post-race for inspection, judges couldn’t find any evidence that extra air had passed through the turbo. Toyota had manufactured special springs and clips that would move the restrictor plate back from the air intake, but when the turbo was disengaged the springs would pop it back in to position making it appear that everything was kosher. Like a sprinter, the more the engine could breathe, the faster it could go...

Max Mosley, the president of the FIA at the time said this: “Inside it was beautifully made. The springs inside the hose had been polished and machined so not to impede the air which passed through. To force the springs open without the special tool would require substantial force. It is the most sophisticated and ingenious device either I or the FIA’s technical experts have seen for a long-time. It was so well made that there was no gap apparent to suggest there was any means of opening it.”

The device gave the car an estimated 25% extra air coming in to the turbos, which added an extra 50 BHP (brake horse power)to the car. The cars raced in WRC at the time had about 300 BHP, an extra 50 BHP gave the car a HUGE advantage...

**4re Nut** · #91 03-02-2012, 05:53 PM

I haven't found a pic though: http://nascar.speedtv.com/article/cu...-sprint-nascar

Quote:

...The most popular new attire in the Phoenix garage was a black and white T-shirt with this Montoya/Daytona reference: I Love The Smell Of Jet Fuel In The Morning.

Since the Daytona incident, several tracks – including Phoenix – have said their jet drier operators will be outfitted with helmets and firesuits.

Chris Heroy, Montoya’s crew chief, said the accident occurred because a truck arm underneath the car failed.

Montoya said Friday he felt a vibration before he lost control of the car.

“I think it was close to failing and it hadn’t failed yet because the guys went underneath the car and they checked everything and they moved and pulled everything and everything was in place,” he said. “It was just the loading of the car. It was just too high.”...

**Whisky** · #92 03-02-2012, 08:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GuyIncognito

between the penalty and his finish (or lack thereof) at Daytona, JJ now has NEGATIVE points!!!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fast_ian

Wow! Didn't even realize they could do that!

Bummer!
Cheers,
Ian

Sure they can, they did that a couple of years ago at Daytona when Robby Gordon showed up with an 'unapproved' nose on his Dodge - never mind the Dodge folks admitted they sent him the 'wrong nose' - they still hammered on Gordon. I think they appealed and won - so he didn't have to pay the $100,000 fine, but they still kept the 100 points they docked him. Or something like that.

Somewhere in 1989-1990, Kenny Shrader owned the restrictor plate qualifying, Richard Broom did his engines, this was when Kenny was with Rick Hendrick. Seems Broom developed something akin to the Toyota turbo springs, and these tubes would get sucked down into the engine somehow, allowing an opening to be larger, and when you let up on the gas, the tubs went back to their proper place.

**Challenge64** · #93 03-03-2012, 05:03 PM

OMG!!! Danica drinks a bottle of water! We must take pictures!

(From her qualifying session today)

**GuyIncognito** · #94 03-03-2012, 05:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Challenge64

OMG!!! Danica drinks a bottle of water! We must take pictures!

(From her qualifying session today)

LOL!

almost as funny as the "debris caution" with 50 to go in the Nationwide race today

**Challenge64** · #95 03-03-2012, 05:36 PM

Ill post some more photos. But it was quite a scene. 20 plus media photographers plus dozens of others behind the wall all trying to take her photo. See the Sheriff there to keep the peace? And everyone behind the white line??

Oh and get this. Every now and then, the crew would have to push the car forward to the start. As they pushed it forward, the crowd walked along side or walked ahead - all in an effort to get a good picture.

So what does Danica do? She walks backwards with her back to everyone. I told some guy in a photovest trying to get a shot that perhaps it would be nice of her to turn around. His response? I kid you not. "Oh, she does that on purpose".

**GuyIncognito** · #96 03-03-2012, 05:49 PM

so what's the verdict on no "out of bounds" at Phoenix on the backstretch?

I kind of like it, it adds a little character to the track; but it also seems like a disaster waiting to happen.

**Challenge64** · #97 03-03-2012, 06:35 PM

I think it is time for a pretty girl.

Meet Rachel. Miss Coors Light!

**GuyIncognito** · #98 03-03-2012, 06:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Challenge64

I think it is time for a pretty girl.

Meet Rachel. Miss Coors Light!

ferraripete · #99 03-03-2012, 06:47 PM

nice finish danica. congrats on the 21st position...and only 3 laps down! you are a real driver kid!!

pcb

**Whisky** · #**100** 03-04-2012, 01:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Challenge64

OMG!!! Danica drinks a bottle of water! We must take pictures!

(From her qualifying session today)

I'm glad I got out of it before everyone was forced to wear those numbered vests.
When this all started about 12 years ago the vests were 'sponsored', problem was
Canon was a big sponsor at events, and I'm a Nikon Pro.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ferraripete

nice finish danica. congrats on the 21st position...and only 3 laps down! you are a real driver kid!!

pcb

She would drive you under the table any day of the week.
Why didn't you mention the drivers that finished OVER 3 laps down?
Seems to me she did good, I don't think she has driven a stock car at Phoenix before.

Guys, I don't think she likes the media CIRCUS any more than you or I would, but the fact is she is bringing in a lot of money to the sport for EVERYONE.