Auto Racing Capsules: Newman on outside of Chase spot
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Ryan Newman is about out of time to make the Chase field.
Newman is 15th in the standings, 118 points behind Clint Bowyer for the final spot with two races left to qualify for the 12-driver, 10-race Chase for the Sprint Cup championship. Jamie McMurray is 13th — 100 points behind Bowyer — and Mark Martin is 14th — 101 points back — heading into the race Sunday night at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
The field well be set after the Sept. 11 race at Richmond.
"It's a legit shot," Newman said, "But it's not the shot we would have preferred."
Newman won in April at Phoenix International Raceway to snap a 77-race Cup winless streak, but has had only five other top-five finish since, putting the Stewart-Haas Racing driver in the precarious position.
He finished sixth in the last race at Bristol Motor Speedway and will likely need at least that type of finish — along with some misfortune from the drivers ahead of him — to get to 12th. He won't use previous success as a guide the next two weeks. Newman has one career win and six top fives in 34 career races at Atlanta and Richmond.
If the pressure is building inside the No. 39, Newman won't show it on the outside.
"I don't change the way I race because of it. I don't change my approach," Newman said.
He sure won't change his car, although it was tempting to pluck one of the more than 60 racing sports cars Wednesday on his tour at a Philadelphia museum. Newman, a classic car collector, showed great appreciation and knowledge at the Simeone Foundation Automotive Museum. The museum boasts it has the "rarest and most significant racing sports cars ever built."
"You've got the sickness, too," a smiling Newman said to collector, retired neurosurgeon Frederick Simeone.
Simeone led Newman on a tour of cars that range from a 1909 American Underslung to a 2002 NASCAR Dyno Mule. A curious Newman took a closer peek at the tire on one of the cars. Yup, that was a Penske Alltel Dodge marking on the rear passenger tire — one Newman identified on his own, likely from the 2000 or 2001 season with Roger Penske Racing.
He perked up when he saw a Triumph TR5 — a 1974 Triumph TR6 was his first car.
"Anyone can have a '57 Chevy," Newman said.
Newman rattled off a list of antique cars he keeps at his personal garage, like a 1928 Ford Roadster. Not exactly the kind of car that can win Daytona, which Newman has done, these days.
Newman would love to add his 2008 Daytona 500 winning car to his collection.
"I think R.P. is going to have controlling interest in that one for a while," Newman said. "Hopefully at some point in my career, I can acquire it."
The site of his biggest career win may have derailed his Chase chances this season. He was 34th and 26th at Daytona this season and 35th at Talladega. Newman says throw out the three restrictor-plate races and he's jostling down the stretch for a high seed in the Chase and not a long shot at making the field.
Newman also said he hasn't spoken to Joey Logano since the two drivers tangled on the track at Michigan International Speedway.
Logano's car got loose and tapped the left rear fender of Newman's car, causing Newman to spin out with 53 laps remaining. Newman confronted Logano after the race, but NASCAR officials stepped in before the situation escalated.
"When somebody crashes you and tells you you're to blame, that's the end of the story," Newman said. "What else do you say? ... When somebody crashes you, you just say, 'Hey man I'm sorry. I didn't mean to get into you.' He never said that."
Keselowski on verge of 1st title in NASCAR
MONTREAL (AP) — Brad Keselowski knows he doesn't have that yellow rookie stripe on the back of his No. 12 Dodge anymore.
Just don't blame him if he occasionally checks to make sure before he jumps behind the wheel for Roger Penske to race against the likes of Carl Edwards, Kyle Busch, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and the other elite drivers on NASCAR's Sprint Cup circuit.
While Gordon can wreck a bunch of cars with aggressive driving on the road course at Sonoma, the threatened retaliation never comes against the four-time Cup champion. Johnson can trigger a big crash at Talladega with a mistake, and all the defending four-time champ has to do is apologize and it's all but forgotten.
Not so with Keselowski, a third-generation racer in his first full season at NASCAR's top level, and he thinks he knows why.
"I haven't got it all figured out, but there's a little bit of a boys-only club going on there, and over time we all make our way into it if you just keep knocking on the door," Keselowski said. "When you're knocking on the door, it's not a lot of fun and sometimes you get kicked back out of the house. I'm trying to make my way in it, and you're not going to get in there by being a pushover."
His father, the 1989 ARCA champion, sees his son's treatment as a form of hazing.
"It seems like you're a kid going to high school and you've got to take your initiations ... to make them happy," Bob Keselowski said.
Keselowski has repeatedly made it clear he's no pushover. His first knock on that imaginary door came at Talladega Superspeedway last year when he pushed Edwards toward the finish line and didn't lift when Edwards tried to block his pass for the win. Edwards went airborne, upside down, sheet metal spewing in his wake as his car sailed into the safety fence in a scary crash, while Keselowski grabbed his first Cup victory in only his fifth start in NASCAR's top series.
A feud was born.
After Keselowski collided again with Edwards early in the March race at Atlanta, Edwards retaliated by intentionally wrecking Keselowski, sending him airborne.
Now, they're on probation for the remainder of the season because of a frightening accident on the last lap of a Nationwide race at Gateway International Raceway in mid-July. Edwards intentionally drove into the back of Keselowski on the last lap seconds after Keselowski had made contact in a pass for the lead. Edwards won the race, leaving Keselowski's Dodge in tatters in a chain-reaction crash that included nine other cars.
"I talked to Brad the other day. I said, 'Why does everybody think they owe you a payback?' " said Bob Keselowski, who had to fight back his emotions at Gateway during a postrace television interview. "I look back at the racing and I don't know why they feel Brad has something coming."
Keselowski also angered Busch in the Nationwide race at Bristol two weeks ago while the two were racing for the lead. Busch intentionally spun him and went on to win the race. Keselowski finished 14th.
Busch celebrated that win by mockingly rubbing his eyes like a crying baby and was greeted with a chorus of boos. Keselowski promised revenge over the public address system and had some choice words for Busch the next day during driver introductions for the Cup race.
"There's always been give and take in the sport. I don't mind give and take, but you have to know when give and take makes sense,'" Keselowski said. "In that same race when Kyle and I had a run-in, I let him go twice when he moved me up the racetrack. It was because of that that I didn't let him go the third time.
"It's like, 'Well, Brad never gives.' I gave and I was tired of giving. There was no more give left in me. The bank was dry."
Probation seems to be having a positive effect on Edwards and Keselowski. They joked about each other in separate media sessions at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve before Sunday's Nationwide race and had no run-ins on the track.
"On the racetrack, I think we're better," Edwards said. "All of our issues have just been on the racetrack. I think I see a little bit more respect there, but time will tell."
With the Nationwide season winding down, Keselowski, barring a total collapse, is closing in on his first NASCAR title. Edwards, the 2007 series champion, is 365 points behind him in second place with 10 races remaining.
"As a person, I think it gives credibility to my career," Keselowski said. "It will certainly give me some more confidence. The confidence bank goes up and down. There's deposits and withdrawals."
"He'll be excited, and he should be because he accomplished something really nice," NASCAR driver and TV commentator Kenny Wallace said. "To me, it's not Brad trying to win the championship, it's Brad against Carl. I think these guys take advantage of each other. Every once in a while they say, 'You're not going to do that to me. I'm going to get you back.' And then, all of a sudden, it becomes part of the show.
"I will tell you this. What Brad Keselowski and Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch are doing for this sport right now, they should be paid for it. It's awesome."
While Keselowski has blossomed in NASCAR's second-tier series, he's struggled in Cup. His average start this year is 23.2 and his average finish 22.5. He started ninth and finished a season-best 12th at Darlington, matching his finish at Martinsville, and has four DNFs, crashing at Atlanta, Talladega, Sonoma and Daytona in July.
"I still have work to do to solidify my position in the sport on the Cup side, that's for damn sure," he said. "You've got to be up front, leading races and contending. So far, that's where we're at in the Nationwide program. We're not there right now in the Cup program.
"I need speed. Until we have raw speed on the Cup side, nothing else matters. We don't have it right now."
What he does have is the attention of race fans across the country, and that's a good thing for the sport.
"I've got to believe NASCAR has got to be extremely happy with Brad because it seems like the media attention Brad has brought, it's really cashing in," Bob Keselowski said. "From time to time I wonder, is it downhill from here? Are we still going up? Will this still be this exciting two or three years from now?
"I kind of wonder and worry about it because I really like where we're at right now. It's pretty exciting."
-- John Kekis
IndyCar
IndyCar team rallies around crew member with ALS
JOLIET, Ill. (AP) — Carey Hall's mind remains as sharp as ever, so he knows the outlook is grim.
The muscles in his tongue are failing him, and he can't express his thoughts as clearly as he could before his diagnosis nearly eight months ago. His hand muscles are deteriorating, too, meaning his days working as the refueling specialist for Sarah Fisher's IndyCar pit crew are coming to an end.
Hall has ALS, a destructive disease without a cure.
There aren't even that many doctor visits, because there's just not much they can do to slow the disease's deadly advance. And there certainly aren't any easy answers; what do you tell an 11-year-old boy who says he doesn't want Christmas to come this year because his dad probably won't be able to speak to him by then?
"I remember the doctor saying to hope I had cancer," Hall says through slurred speech, a common symptom of the disease. "We know so much more about that. Seventy years after Lou Gehrig had it, no medication, no treatment."
The one thing Hall has is plenty of support.
Last Saturday's race at Chicagoland Speedway may end up being Hall's final race as a member of the pit crew. So Fisher, the team's driver and team owner, decided to surprise Hall by putting the logo for the family's ALS awareness website, careyshope.com, on her race car.
"We're a family, and we support our people 100 percent," Fisher said. "This is something really little in the big picture, but I'm hoping that by doing this, that our fans will go to careyshope.com and support us."
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis — often called Lou Gehrig's Disease, after the baseball star who is believed to have died of it in 1941 — causes degeneration of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, leading to poor muscle control and even paralysis.
According to the ALS Association website, half of all people affected with ALS live at least three or more years after diagnosis, 20 percent live five years or more and up to 10 percent live more than ten years.
"It's destructive," says Hall's wife, Carla. "You try to be hopeful, but you're somewhat hopeless. There's nothing out there. And you live each day absolutely second to second. Scary."
The 40-year-old Hall began having muscle problems near the end of last year. He spent most of New Year's Eve in the hospital for tests, then was diagnosed with ALS a few days later.
"I was fine in December. I woke up in January with ALS," Hall says, his voice quivering. "I never thought about it."
Hall told Fisher that he would stay on her pit crew as long as he could. During a recent race at Mid-Ohio, Fisher said the team gained two spots with a fast pit stop.
"Carey doesn't hold up the program whatsoever," Fisher said.
But as his muscles continue to deteriorate, he won't be able to perform his duties much longer.
"I'll work as long as I can," he said. "But mentally, I'm prepared for the day."
Hall also owns Hall's Motorsports Refinishing, Inc. in Indianapolis, which paints race cars for several teams. He had a special design on his own helmet for Saturday's race, bearing the names of fellow ALS patients.
Fisher, who also has participated in breast cancer awareness efforts, was surprised by the lack of mainstream attention to ALS.
"There's obviously a really big need for that," Fisher said. "Hopefully, this can help raise awareness that they're really great, talented people out there that need help. It's not just Carey, it's thousands of people. Carey is special to us, but this is something that needs attention."
As part of their awareness effort, Hall and his family are trying to drum up attention for an Oct. 2 ALS walk in Indianapolis. But truth be told, he'd rather be at the racetrack.
"Homestead is that same weekend," Hall said of the season-ending race on Oct. 2. "I want to be at Homestead."
For now, Hall is trying to appreciate every last moment and laugh whenever he can. He jokes that having his tongue not able to keep up with his thoughts "keeps me out of trouble."
"Some people don't have much to look forward to," Hall said. "I've been blessed in a lot of ways. You surround yourself with good people ..."
With that, Hall's voice cracks and he doesn't finish the sentence. Sitting by his side, his wife sobs softly.
-- Chris Jenkins
Formula One
Webber stakes claim as Red Bull No. 1 over Vettel
MADRID (AP) — Mark Webber staked his claim to being Red Bull's better bet to win the Formula One championship at the Belgian Grand Prix, where another poor decision proved costly to teammate Sebastian Vettel's title chances and reputation.
Webber lost his pole advantage but came back from fifth to finish second behind Lewis Hamilton of McLaren, who retook the overall lead from Webber with the victory at Spa. Hamilton leads Webber by three points.
Webber indicated that the team should back him because Vettel fell further adrift in the standings after a crash into Jenson Button left him out of the points.
"It's still too early at the moment, but not too far away," the 34-year-old Webber said of a decision by Red Bull, which is chasing it's first F1 title. "I think it depends on how hungry we are to try and do that."
Webber has won four races this season, two more than Vettel, to sit 28 points ahead of his 23-year-old German teammate, who came away with question marks over his decision making after taking Button out trying to make an ill-advised pass.
"It was not what you would expect to see in F1 — it was more reminiscent of junior (categories)," McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh said. "If he was going for the inside he had 3 inches to sneak down there, so God knows what he thought he was doing."
While Vettel apologized afterward, the damage was done. Vettel's enormous promise has earned him the nickname "Baby Schumacher," in reference to seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher, but the hype that surrounded him has been dissipating over this season.
"A very strange mistake to make. He lost the car under braking and it was completely dry on that corner," Button said. "I don't know what he was doing, really. I paid the price for somebody else's mistake."
A tug-of-war over the No. 1 spot in Red Bull emerged after Turkey when Vettel swiped into Webber as he tried to overtake. Vettel emerged from his car making a "he's crazy" gesture with his hand while Webber recovered from losing the race lead to finish on the podium.
Vettel was on course to win in Hungary, but a mistake behind the safety car cost him and Webber won. That came after Webber questioned his own future with Red Bull at the British Grand Prix, where the team had only one new front wing and gave it to Vettel.
Despite the ongoing saga, team principal Christian Horner said Red Bull would not be picking a No. 1 with 150 points still up for grabs.
With Vettel being the face of the energy drink-sponsored team that thrives on the image of youth and extreme sports, Red Bull may hand its opponents the advantage if it delays a decision too long.
Ferrari has already backed Fernando Alonso in its title bid, while defending F1 champion Button is likely to be relegated to No. 2 in McLaren should Hamilton win the Italian GP on Sept. 12.
"(Webber) is mathematically the closest. He is a strong driver and he is driving well, so he has got to be the main opposition," Whitmarsh said. "(But) I think they quite like their younger driver, so I doubt they will put their weight behind Mark."
Hamilton believed McLaren's experience would serve it down the stretch with six races to go.
"You have seen in the last few races how quickly things can change so we still have a long way to go, and many points to be grabbed by any of us drivers fighting for the championship," the Briton said. "The closest rival to me at the moment in terms of points is Mark but I still think the championship is open."
-- Paul Logothetis
Malaysian teenager youngest driver to test F1 car
CAMBRIDGE, England (AP) — A 16-year-old Malaysian has become the youngest person to drive a Formula One car in an official test session.
Nabil Jeffri took part in a day of straight-line aero testing for Lotus Racing at the Imperial War Museum runway near Cambridge on Wednesday.
Jeffri says that "the first time I went out it was pretty scary." He said it took him awhile to get used to the car's powerful acceleration and braking.
Jeffri also took part in pitstop practice.
Team owner Tony Fernandes says that Jeffri "repaid my faith in him and has performed incredibly well."
Auto Racing Glance
NASCAR
SPRINT CUP
Emory Healthcare 500
Site: Hampton, Ga.
Schedule: Saturday, practice (Speed, 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m.), qualifying (Speed, 4:30-6:30 p.m.); Sunday, race, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN, 7-11:30 p.m.).
Track: Atlanta Motor Speedway (tri-oval, 1.54 miles).
Race distance: 500.5 miles, 325 laps.
Last year: Kasey Kahne raced to the second of his two 2009 victories, holding off Kevin Harvick in the first night Cup race at the track.
Last race: Kyle Busch completed an unprecedented Trucks-Nationwide-Sprint Cup sweep at Bristol Motor Speedway on Aug. 21. David Reutimann was second.
Fast facts: Harvick has a 279-point lead over second-place Jeff Gordon with two races left before the 10-race, 12-driver Chase. Denny Hamlin (fifth in the standings) and three-time defending series champion Jimmie Johnson (ninth) lead the series with five victories, with each worth 10 bonus points when the points are reset for the Chase. Harvick has three victories. Clint Bowyer is 12th, 100 points ahead of No. 13 Jamie McMurray and 101 in front of No. 14 Mark Martin. ... Kurt Busch won at the track in March, surviving two overtime restarts and 16 extra laps in the race highlighted by Carl Edwards' retaliatory late-race bump that flipped Brad Keselowski's car. ... Dale Earnhardt won a record nine Cup races at the track.
Next race: Air Guard 400, Sept. 11, Richmond International Raceway, Richmond, Va.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
NATIONWIDE
Great Clips 300
Site: Hampton, Ga.
Schedule: Saturday, practice, qualifying (Speed, 2:30-4:30 p.m.), race, 7 p.m. (ESPN2, 6:30-10 p.m.).
Track: Atlanta Motor Speedway (tri-oval, 1.54 miles).
Race distance: 300.3 miles, 195 laps.
Last year: Kevin Harvick passed Dale Earnhardt Jr. with two laps left and held off Kyle Busch for the victory. Harvick led 131 of the 195 laps.
Last week: Boris Said raced to his first Nationwide victory, edging Max Papis by 0.012 seconds at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal.
Fast facts: Busch has a record-tying 10 victories in 20 Nationwide starts this year. He also won 10 times in 2008 to match the record set by Sam Ard in 1983. Busch, not running for the season title this year after winning the 2009 title, is second on the Nationwide victory list with 40 — eight behind Mark Martin. In Busch's last Nationwide start, he won at Bristol after intentionally spinning leader Brad Keselowski in retaliation for Keselowski's bump seconds earlier. ... Keselowski leads the season standings, 365 points ahead of second-place Carl Edwards.
Next race: Richmond 250, Sept. 10, Richmond International Raceway, Richmond, Va.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
CAMPING WORLD TRUCKS
Built Ford Tough 225
Site: Sparta, Ky.
Schedule: Thursday, practice; Friday, qualifying (Speed, 6-7:30 p.m.), race, 8 p.m. (Speed, 7-10:30 p.m.).
Track: Kentucky Speedway (tri-oval, 1.5 miles).
Race distance: 225 miles, 150 laps.
Last year: Ron Hornaday Jr. raced to the third of his series-record five straight victories, edging Mike Skinner by 0.135 seconds.
Last week: Kyle Busch won for the fourth time in nine Trucks starts this season, holding off points leader Todd Bodine at Chicagoland Speedway.
Fast facts: Busch is attempting to win his fifth straight national series event and 80th overall. He swept the Trucks, Nationwide and Sprint Cup races at Bristol before winning at Chicagoland. ... Bodine has a 236-point lead over second-place Aric Almirola.
Next race: TheRaceDayRaffleSeries.com 175, Sept. 18, New Hampshire Motor Speedway Loudon, N.H.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
INDYCAR
Kentucky 300
Site: Sparta, Ky.
Schedule: Friday, practice, qualifying (Versus, 5-6 p.m.); Saturday, race, 8:45 p.m. (Versus, 8-11 p.m.).
Track: Kentucky Speedway (tri-oval, 1.5 miles).
Race distance: 300 miles, 200 laps.
Last year: Ryan Briscoe raced to the second of his three 2009 victories, slipping past Ed Carpenter yards from the finish and winning by 0.162 seconds.
Last week: Dario Franchitti won for the third time this season, beating Dan Wheldon at Chicagoland Speedway. Second in the season standings, Franchitti cut Will Power's lead from 59 to 23 points with three races left.
Fast facts: Power has a series-high five victories this season, all on road and street courses. ... The race is the 200th in series history ... Paul Tracy, the 2003 Champ Car champion, is making his first start at the track. The Canadian also will drive for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing in the Indy Japan 300.
Next race: Indy Japan 300, Sept. 18, Twin Ring Motegi, Motegi, Japan.
Online: http://www.indycar.com
NHRA FULL THROTTLE
Mac Tools U.S. Nationals
Site: Clermont, Ind.
Schedule: Friday, qualifying; Saturday, qualifying, Sunday, qualifying (ESPN2, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., 5-7 p.m.); Monday, final eliminations (ESPN2, 1-6 p.m.).
Track: O'Reilly Raceway Park.
Last year: Tony Schumacher raced to his eighth victory at O'Reilly Raceway Park, tying Don Garlits for the most Top Fuel wins at the historic Indiana track. Schumacher beat Larry Dixon in the final. Ashley Force Hood (Funny Car), Jeg Coughlin (Pro Stock) and Hector Arana (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also won.
Last event: Top Fuel points leader Larry Dixon remained perfect in final-round appearances in 2010 by defeating Cory McClenathan at the Lucas Oil Nationals in Brainerd, Minn. Bob Bode (Funny Car), Jeg Coughlin (Pro Stock) and Andrew Hines (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also won.
Fast facts: The event is the first of six in the Full Throttle Countdown to the Championship. The top 10 drivers qualified for the playoffs. The points have been reset, with the leaders getting a 30-point advantage and the rest of the spots separated in 10-point increments. John Force, a record 14-time season champion who has four victories this season and a record 130 overall, tops the Funny Car standings. Dixon, a nine-time winner this year, leads the Top Fuel standings, and Mike Edwards tops the Pro Stock field.
Next event: O'Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Nationals, Sept. 16-19, zMax Dragway, Concord, N.C.
Online: http://www.nhra.com
FORMULA ONE
Next race: Italian Grand Prix, Sept. 12, Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza, Italy.
Last week: McLaren's Lewis Hamilton won the Belgian Grand Prix to take the lead in the season standings. Red Bull's Mark Webber was second.
Online: http://www.formula1.com
OTHER RACES
ARCA RE/MAX SERIES: Southern Illinois 100, Monday, DuQuoin State Fairgrounds, Macon, Ill. Online: http://www.arcaracing.com
WORLD OF OUTLAWS: Sprint Car, Friday-Saturday, Skagit Speedway, Alger, Wash.; Monday, Grays Harbor Raceway, Elma, Wash. Late Model, Oil Region Labor Day Classic, Saturday-Sunday, Tri-City Speedway, Franklin, Pa. Super DirtCar, Sunday, Cayuga County Fair Speedway, Weedsport, N.Y. Online: http://www.worldofoutlaws.com
U.S. AUTO RACING CLUB: Silver Crown, Ted Horn 100, Sunday, DuQuoin State Fairgrounds, Macon, Ill. Online: http://www.usacracing.com
