Auto Racing Capsules: Ford looking for overdue breakthrough at Michigan

BROOKLYN, Mich. — Greg Biffle spent some time at Ford headquarters on Thursday, taking each of the resilient automaker's newest toys out for a spin.

The veteran NASCAR driver, while admittedly a little biased toward the company whose name is splashed across the grille of his No. 16 Roush Fenway Racing car, was impressed.

"They are building such great products while the other companies are trying to get back at it," Biffle said. "I wish we could hold our end of the bargain up. We are carrying that banner out here."

They're just not carrying it to Victory Lane.

A Ford car hasn't taken the checkered flag in a Cup race since Jamie McMurray won at Talladega last fall. It'll take some doing to end the drought during Sunday's 400-miler at Michigan, where only one of the 12 Ford drivers to make the field qualified in the top 10 behind pole sitter Kurt Busch.

Ford's struggles on the track play in stark contrast to the resurgence the company has found in the showroom, where the only one of America's Big Three automakers to not take any federal bailout money is thriving. May sales were up 22 percent over the same month in 2009, according to Ford — the sixth straight month the company saw at least a 20-percent jump in year-over-year sales.

The mood in Detroit is considerably brighter than it was a year ago. The same can't be said in the garages of Ford's two top Cup teams, Roush Fenway and Richard Petty Motorsports.

Though RFR drivers Matt Kenseth (fourth), Carl Edwards (ninth) and Greg Biffle (10th) find themselves in the top 10 in points with 12 races remaining before the cutoff for the Chase, they're not exactly optimistic about catching up with Joe Gibbs Racing's Toyota's or Hendrick Motorsports' Chevrolet's anytime soon.

"We seem to be a ways off more times than not," Kenseth said. "You do want to pass all those guys, but right now I would be happy if we were the same and able to race them."

Sometimes they do. Sometimes they don't. A Ford car has led just 410 of a possible 2,413 laps this season, well behind each of the series' other three manufacturers.

There's hope that help is on the way with the arrival and maturation of the new FR9 engines. The motors, designed by Roush Yates Engines, have slowly been phased in over the last eight months and will be in all eight of the RFR and RPM cars on Sunday.

RFR owner Jack Roush says the new FR9 engine is "marginally better" than the previous spec engine Ford drivers have used, and the onus is on teams to start coming through.

"You say what is wrong with the Fords? The teams aren't getting it done," said Roush, who has won 11 times at Michigan's two-mile oval, tied for most all-time.

The drivers argue the issue with the Ford teams isn't the engine but the handling. Edwards, one of the hottest drivers on the planet just two years ago, has been dealing with the same balance difficulties in the corners all season.

"The problem is how fast the car can go through the center of the corner and the balance," he said. "The engine is a separate thing."

Edwards uses words like "reliable" and "powerful" to describe the FR9. He doesn't use "great." Though he calls it "as good as or better than the old engine" he's not ready to say it's on par with what's under the hood at Hendrick or JGR.

"It would be nice for us to have an engine that everybody else is trying to catch up to, instead of us trying to catch up to them," he said. "We have to figure out how to be the guys everyone is trying to catch. It's a lot easier when you're in that position."

Ford hasn't been there for a while. The best finish by a Ford driver this season is Kenseth's runner-up effort at Atlanta in March. And while the teams are quick to point out the currently winless drought is "only" 18 races, it certainly feels longer than that.

Besides, McMurray's win last season comes with an asterisk since it was at Talladega, where the victor is often the driver that can survive the carnage.

Throw that race out and Ford hasn't won since Kenseth captured the Daytona 500 and the ensuing race in California to open the 2009 season. In the interim Chevrolet, Toyota and Dodge — which is down to one major team in Penske Racing after RPM announced it was moving to Ford last fall — have won 47 of the last 48 races.

It's not exactly encouraging, though Roush has credited his drivers for remaining resolute. He's confident things will turn around, but it might not be anytime soon.

NASCAR's move to limit testing to save money has forced teams to rely heavily on things like simulators to make up the difference. Roush would love to see NASCAR ease up on the restrictions, feeling nothing replaces track time when it comes to getting feedback on the car.

Regardless, Roush — who started working for Ford after graduating from college in 1964 — believes the end of the winless streak is near. For inspiration he needs only to look at how the auto industry and his adopted state have tried to bounce back from near collapse.

"Detroit is on the rebound," he said. "Ford certainly has turned the corner."

Notebook: Junior looking to end 71-race winless drought

BROOKLYN, Mich. — It's not the kind of anniversary Dale Earnhardt Jr. enjoys celebrating.

NASCAR's most popular driver heads to the track for Sunday's 400-mile race at Michigan International Speedway two years removed from his last trip to Victory Lane.

It's been 71 long races since Earnhardt memorably coaxed his No. 88 Chevrolet to the finish line at the two-mile oval, alternately starting and then killing the engine to conserve enough fuel to reach the checkered flag under caution.

He hoped his first win at Hendrick Motorsports would be the start of big things. Instead, it's been two years of mostly big headaches.

Earnhardt missed the Chase for the championship last year and is in danger of missing out again this fall. He's 16th in points with 12 races remaining in the regular season and as close to falling out of the picture as he is of cracking the top 12. After finishing second at Daytona, he's faded as the temperatures have warmed up with just one top-10 finish in his last nine races.

Yet Earnhardt is surprisingly upbeat. He remains confident in crew chief Lance McGrew despite some missteps in the race setups and pit strategy in recent weeks.

"With everything that I've been through since I won my last race, I can honestly tell you ... this weekend I'll get in the car Sunday and I firmly believe in what Lance is going to do, what the team is going to do," said Earnhardt, who will start 27th.

Besides, Earnhardt realizes he's just as culpable for the drought as anyone.

"I know I as a driver can always improve for this team," he said. "If I was sitting there with a perfect record on my part, on my end, maybe I'd have some grounds to point some fingers."

Rather than assign blame, Earnhardt is trying to stay positive. During last week's race at Pocono, he remained in constant contact with McGrew and stayed optimistic even as he slid from third to 19th.

"I know with myself personally if I feel like I see a weakness in a team, it bugs (me)," Earnhardt said. "I just haven't seen it there."

Neither have his teammates.

Mark Martin pointed to Earnhardt's struggles as proof of how difficult it is to win at the Cup level regardless of how easy the other Hendrick drivers make it look. Earnhardt's teammates have won 22 times since his last triumph.

"They have run good enough to win some races last year and they've run well in some races this year," Martin said. "Many of them have been foiled by one little issue here, one little issue there. They are dug in."

It's a compliment Earnhardt tries to shrug off. Martin is his friend. It's what he's supposed to say.

"I'm sure he is having to be positive due to our relationship as co-worker, but at the same time I feel like he feels honest because I do work really hard out there," Earnhardt said. "I drove last week as hard as I could every lap because I knew we were really close on the car."

That hasn't always been the case. Earnhardt says the days when he could cruise around and bide his time before trying to get to the front are over. He believes he's more competitive on a lap-to-lap basis now than he's ever been in his career.

He'll need to be if he wants to finally end a streak he never saw coming.

"It is time for them to win a race and break through and end that streak," said teammate Jimmie Johnson. "I am hopeful that happens very soon for them."

DOWN TIME FOR BUSCH: While Carl Edwards and Joey Logano hopped on planes Saturday afternoon to head to Kentucky and run in the Nationwide Race, Kyle Busch opted to run in the truck race and stay put in the Irish Hills.

It marked the second straight weekend one of NASCAR's hardest working drivers chose to skip the Nationwide race and spend the weekend at the Cup event. Busch stuck around in Pocono last week rather than try to make the Nationwide event in Nashville.

The slightly scaled back schedule is geared toward helping Busch grab his first points title.

"I feel like by maybe running some standalone Cup races I can tally some more Cup wins," Busch said. "That's what it's about."

Not that skipping a race — any race — is a lot of fun. Busch said he was "miserable" watching the race from his motorhome.

ON EMPTY: Even though fuel management problems last year twice cost him his first career win at Michigan, Jimmie Johnson has heard more from his wife about running out of gas away from the track.

Johnson, who was not won at Michigan in 16 starts, ran out of fuel while leading with less than two laps left in last June's race and also in the final laps of the August event.

"Between the span of two races last year, I wasn't paying attention in my (Chevrolet) Tahoe," Johnson said. "I ignored the bell or buzzer telling me that I was low on fuel and we were late going to an airport trying to get to a race. I was riding along and the car shut off. I was out of fuel. I heard about it from my wife then and still today."

Johnson said he was surprised at the reaction he saw from motorists passing by his stalled car.

"It was amazing how many people were angry that I was out of fuel on the side of the road," he said. "A little lady shot me the bird, which I couldn't believe. She was behind me honking. I walked back and I'm like, 'I'm out of fuel. What am I supposed to do?' And she shot me the bird."

LUGNUTS: Clint Bowyer will have to go to the back of the field in a backup car after scraping his No. 33 Chevrolet against the wall during practice on Sunday. Bowyer had qualified 25th. ... Tony Stewart didn't stick around to watch the NASCAR Truck race. He returned to Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio, to race in 16th annual "Dirt Late Model Dream," a 100-lap race that gives $100,000 to the winner. Stewart has owned Eldora since 2004.

-- Will Graves

Sandler, James to be marshals at Michigan speedway

Aric Almirola picks up 2nd Truck win

BROOKLYN, Mich. — Aric Almirola's enjoyed his first win in the NASCAR Truck Series at Dover last month, yet he freely admits it was decidedly lacking in style points.

He'll have no such worries about his second.

Almirola gambled to take the lead with seven laps to go then held off Todd Bodine and Kyle Busch to win Saturday's race at Michigan International Speedway.

"This weekend we did it fair and square," Almirola said. "I raced my butt off with those guys."

He didn't really have a choice during a mad dash to the finish in which he somehow kept Bodine, the series points leader, and Busch, possibly the most talented driver in NASCAR, at bay.

The victory pulled Almirola within 55 of Bodine in the points race, yet he wasn't interested in talking about a championship. He was too busy savoring a hard-fought win that featured plenty of three-wide racing at the two-mile oval.

Almirola celebrated with a well-deserved burnout after beating Bodine by about a truck length at the finish, a decidedly giddier celebration than the one he had at Dover.

Maybe it's because Almirola doesn't feel he won the race so much as other drivers lost it.

Busch led 172 laps but ran out of gas and had to pit just before the finish. Afterward Almirola acknowledged he would have liked the opportunity to go all-out against Busch.

He got his chance on Saturday, and after a slow start that included a 40-minute rain delay, helped put on a show.

Almirola, driving the No. 51 Toyota that Busch won with regularly before starting up his own truck team this year, hit the gas off a restart with eight laps to go and took advantage while Bodine and Busch squabbled.

Busch argued Bodine, who was in front of him, eased up on the restart, blocking Busch's momentum and allowing Almirola to break free.

"He just suckered me," Busch said of Bodine.

Not that Bodine, who led a race-high 33 laps, was sorry about it. That's racing in the truck series.

"It was a good day," Bodine said. "Nobody likes to lose. I'm not a sore loser."

Almirola wasn't the only person on his team with something to prove. Busch won 10 times in 2008 and 2009 while driving for truck owner Billy Ballew and crew chief Richie Wauters. Busch did it so easily there was some discussion that the team's performance was based solely on his considerable skill.

"We knew we needed to win races to show that our equipment is good and our team is good and not just Kyle carrying us," Wauters said.

Almirola's performance erased any lingering doubts.

Pole-sitter Austin Dillon, grandson of longtime NASCAR owner Richard Childress, led 18 laps but had his hopes for winning dashed due to a pit box violation. Dillon was attempting to exit the pits when the gas can got stuck. It fell off as he was pulling out and rolled over the yellow pit box line.

"It was just a mistake on us," Dillon said.

The stop-and-go penalty sent him tumbling through the field. He made up ground in the final moments to finish fifth.

The penalty wasn't Dillon's only problem. He got sand in his eye early in the race and had trouble seeing. He benefited when the brief shower allowed him to get it taken care of.

NASCAR Sprint Cup regular Elliott Sadler was ninth. Nelson Piquet shrugged off the late spin to finish 10th.

The series has a month off before the next race, but Almirola will be plenty busy.

He's been tabbed as the fill-in driver for four-time defending Cup champion Jimmie Johnson if Johnson's wife Chandra goes into labor during a race. She's expecting their first child in mid-July. If the baby comes early, Almirola could find himself tasked with keeping Johnson's bid for a fifth title intact.

It's heady territory for Almirola, who lost his Cup ride when his Earnhardt Ganassi Racing team ran out of money last year. He's hopped around in the interim, but appears to have found a home in the truck series.

Wauters told Almirola before the season started he thought they could win five races this season. With 15 races remaining, Wauters likes their chances.

"We've just got to keep doing what we're doing," he said.

-- Will Graves

Formula One

McLaren's Lewis Hamilton takes Canadian GP pole

MONTREAL — McLaren's Lewis Hamilton won his third straight Canadian Grand Prix pole Saturday, snapping Red Bull's season-opening streak at seven.

Hamilton, coming off a victory two weeks ago in Turkey, took the top spot on his final lap in the third round of qualifying, edging Red Bull's Mark Webber with a time of 1 minute, 15.105 seconds at 2.709-mile Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

"I think it's fantastic for the team," said Hamilton, the 2007 winner in Montreal. "I'm really proud of my guys. I damaged the car a little bit in practice and they fixed it in no time — seriously professional."

Webber, the Formula 1 season points leader and a four-time pole winner this year, was second — 0.268 seconds back. Red Bull teammate Sebastian Vettel qualified third.

Hamilton used Bridgestone's super-soft compound tires in the 10-car qualifying finale, while Webber and Vettel went out on the more durable medium compound. The top 10 drivers have to start the race on the tires they used in the last session.

"It's fairly interesting to see the two different strategies and it'll be interesting to see how it plays out tomorrow," said Hamilton, the 25-year-old British star who won the 2008 season title. "I think both tires are very, very close."

Webber and Red Bull took a more conservative approach.

"Hopefully, it'll be beneficial for us," said Webber, a two-time winner this season. "We stuck to our guns and here we are in the top three again."

Ferrari's Fernando Alonso was fourth, followed by McLaren's Jenson Button, Force India's Tonio Liuzzi, Ferrari's Felipe Massa and Renault's Robert Kubica, the 2008 winner in the last F1 race at Montreal.

Michael Schumacher dropped out in the second session for the first time this season, relegating the seven-time Montreal winner's Mercedes to 13th on the grid.

"We simply didn't have the balance or grip and overall we had a lot of problems with braking and handling," Schumacher said. "The car was just not performing as we expected. ... It's difficult to understand the reasons at the moment, but we'll look deeply into it now and find a good strategy for the race."

Webber briefly held the top spot in the final minutes of qualifying, but Hamilton pulled ahead to take his 18th career pole.

"I saw on the second-to-last lap that Mark had gone ahead," Hamilton said. "Fortunately, I had just enough time to get another lap in."

-- John Nicholson

Notebook: Schumacher struggles in Montreal qualifying

MONTREAL — Michael Schumacher and his Mercedes GP team had a lot of work to do after a dismal qualifying run in the Canadian Grand Prix.

The 41-year-old Schumacher dropped out in the second of three sessions Saturday, relegating the seven-time Montreal winner to 13th on the 24-car grid.

"We simply didn't have the balance or grip and overall we had a lot of problems with braking and handling," Schumacher said. "The car was just not performing as we expected. ... It's difficult to understand the reasons at the moment, but we'll look deeply into it now and find a good strategy for the race."

The seven-time world champion, driving for the Ross Brawn-led Mercedes GP after a three-year retirement, failed to advance to the 10-driver final round of qualifying for the first time this season. He has a record 91 F1 victories, winning in Montreal in 1994, '97, '98, 2000, '02, '03 and '04.

"A very disappointing qualifying session for us today, particularly as I was quite encouraged by our performance yesterday and this morning," Brawn said. "However, when it came to qualifying, we just weren't able to put our laps together."

Schumacher's teammate, Nico Rosberg, qualified 10th.

"We have a good car here this weekend, but unfortunately we couldn't get the tires to work properly this afternoon," Rosberg said. "That was the big issue."

TIRE STRATEGY: McLaren's Lewis Hamilton won the pole using Bridgestone's super-soft compound tires in the 10-car qualifying finale, while Red Bull's Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel took the next two spots on the more durable medium compound.

"The choice of which compound to use in qualifying was the most difficult it has been all season," said Hirohide Hamashima, Bridgestone's director of motorsport tire development. "The two compounds showed different characteristics, but ultimately similar laps times at the front of the grid."

The top 10 drivers will start the race Sunday on the tires they used in the last qualifying session.

"The medium compound takes longer to warm up than the super soft, so the initial laps will be interesting," Hamashima said. "The durability of the super soft will be interesting, too."

'08 WINNER QUALIFIES EIGHTH: Renault's Robert Kubica, the 2008 winner for BMW Sauber in the last Formula 1 race in Montreal, qualified eighth.

"It was another good qualifying session, but there was a difficult decision to make between the tire compounds in Q3," said Kubica, who used Bridgestone's more durable medium-compound tires in the 10-car, third qualifying season. The top 10 drivers have to start the race on the tires they used in the last session.

"During Q2, we clearly saw that the option tire (the super-soft compound) was quicker for qualifying, but, like yesterday, there was a lot of graining. So we made the decision to run the prime tire for Q3 and, although that cost us some time in qualifying, it will hopefully put us in a good position for the race."

The Polish driver won the 2008 Montreal race for his lone F1 victory, a year after a spectacular crash at the track.

ISLAND TRACK: The 2.71-mile Circuit Gilles Villeneuve sits on Ile Notre-Dame, a slender landfill island just off the southern bank of the St. Lawrence River, directly across from Montreal's historic waterfront and downtown skyline.

Ile Notre-Dame was built for Expo 1967 with 15 million tons of rock from the city's subway excavation. Along with the track, the island also is the site of the rowing basin for the 1976 Olympics and Casino de Montreal.

Gilles Villeneuve, the Canadian star who won the first race at the track in 1978, was killed in a crash during qualifying for the 1982 Belgian Grand Prix. The track was renamed Circuit Gilles Villeneuve soon after the accident.

Villeneuve's son, Jacques, won the 1997 F1 title.

SPEEDBUMPS: The Formula One series is off next week. Racing will resume June 27 with the European Grand Prix in Valencia, Spain. ... The NASCAR Nationwide Series will race at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in late August.

-- John Nicholson

LeMans

Peugeot dominates at 24 Hours of Le Mans