Latest Headlines

Comments

Live Cams on NASCAR’s 64 Greatest Drivers Bracket Tournament
Live Cams on THA TOAD DUZ VEGAS…”VIVA LOST WAGES” !
Live Cams on Jeff Gordon defames Senior’s memory
Live Cams on The Return of Loose in Turn Three
Fantasy Pick’Em: 2010 Emory Healthcare 500 (Redux) : NASCAR commentary and pictures,2010 NASCAR schedule,NASCAR video, Bench Racing With Steve and Charlie on Fantasy Pick’Em: 2010 Emory Healthcare 500

Sections

Danica Does Daytona

by Charlie Turner

Thanks for stopping by OnPitRow.com and the Bench Racing with Steve and Charlie blog. The best NASCAR and IndyCar news and opinion, exclusive pictures and video. I'm Charlie Turner. Follow me on Twitter @onpitrow

December 18, 2009 5:02 pm CST No Comments

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to our RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

Danica Patrick took her first laps in anger on Daytona Internaional Speedway today during practice with the ARCA Racing Series. Here’s a bit from ARCA’s PR department…

Patrick, one of 26 drivers who posted a time during the 35-minute single car run session, was 12th quickest on the charts with a time of 51.095 seconds (176.142 mph) around the 2.5-mile superspeedway. A trio of three cars fielded by long-time ARCA Racing Series team Venturini Motorsports comprised the top three positions in Friday’s test session, led by fulltime series competitor Mikey Kile (49.804 seconds/180.708 mph).

Patrick only had four laps at full speed Friday, due to rain delays. But she said she got a feel for stock cars…

“It’s still a car once you get in it, “Patrick said during a post test media center press conference on Friday. “I feel most comfortable once I’m at speed actually.

Everything from getting into the car to getting the car started–that part feels quite different to me. It’s not normal to me. The car gets pulled out to pit lane and you get in the car when its in its pit stall in an IndyCar and the getting strapped in part is something that I’ve been familiar with for a long time now so everything is a little bit different but once I get out there I feel good. I feel comfortable.

These cars can run more lanes on the track. You’re all the way to the wall and the car is good to go there. It’s easier to drive there and in an IndyCar you can’t use quite as many lanes usually. That’s just one of the first things I noticed. The gear shifter has more travel. You have to pull something and no more paddle anymore. The clutch is long. It’s just different stuff. But I wouldn’t say that there is any instinctual stuff that is different which is the best part, right? Because I just get to be a driver and I get to do what I’m used to. I feel comfortable once I get going. “

Photo credit: Getty Images for NASCAR

Filed under: ARCA Remax Series, Danica Patrick, Daytona International Speedway, JR Motorsports, NASCAR & the Media, Nationwide Series, Testing news

Tagged with: ARCA testing, GoDaddy.com

Digg This | Save to del.icio.us

ARCA Racing Series President Ron Drager Welcomes Danica Patrick to Stock Cars

by Charlie Turner

December 11, 2009 1:57 pm CST No Comments

Danica Patrick - NASCAR driver.

Not so fast bubba. First, Danica will do ARCA. As in the ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/Max and Menards.

Danica Patrick’s long waited for announcement that she will drive for Dale Earnhardt Jr’s J R Motorsports in selected 2010 NASCAR Nationwide Series races was Tuesday.

But before she turns a NASCAR lap in anger, D-Pat will test and race at Daytona in the ARCA Racing series.

Get the Flash Player to see the wordTube Media Player.

ARCA president Ron Drager joined us On Pit Row Tuesday night for a far ranging interview. He talked about Patrick, and other high profile racers who have gotten their stock car chops honed in ARCA and the state of the ARCA Racing Series as it enters 2010. Here is part one of Ron Drager, On Pit Row.

Filed under: ARCA Remax Series, Danica Patrick, Daytona International Speedway, JR Motorsports, NASCAR, NASCAR & the Media, NASCAR Rumors, Nationwide Series, On Pit Row The Fastest Two Hours on Radio

Tagged with: ARCA 200, ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/Max and Menards, ARCA testing, Go Daddy Racing, Ron Drager

Digg This | Save to del.icio.us

Over My Dead Camel!

by Charlie Turner

October 17, 2009 7:48 am CDT No Comments

Get the Flash Player to see the wordTube Media Player.

Mindy Monday is back and better than ever. The Monday Morning Crew Chief is looking forward to in-car radio chat between Tony Eury Sr and a certain future NASCAR rookie. And she doesn’t miss an opening when she gets a chance to tell it like it is about certain teams. Watch it now.

Filed under: Danica Patrick, JR Motorsports, Monday Morning Crew Chief, NASCAR, NASCAR Rumors, NASCAR video, Nationwide Series, Richard Childress Racing

Tagged with: Mindy Monday, Tony Eury Sr

Digg This | Save to del.icio.us

Talk of Danica in NASCAR Won’t Go Away

by Steve Wronkowicz

I am co-host of the syndicated radio show: ON PIT ROW. Charlie likes to call me an "idiot". I'm not an "idiot"; I just prefer not to let the facts get in the way of my opinions.

October 6, 2009 8:05 am CDT No Comments

Danica Patrick signed a three year contract with Andretti-Green Racing to continue running in the IRL and the talk of her moving to NASCAR stopped….for a few weeks.

Now new information is coming from Hendrick Motorsports and it’s Nationwide satellite team JR Motorsports that Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Danica Patrick may be working together in 2010. Patrick and Earnhardt are looking at their connection with sponsor GoDaddy.com as a way to make the IRL darling a part of NASCAR.

Patrick could run Chevys out of the Hendrick/Earnhardt stable in selected events in 2010 when not running in the IRL. Selected ARCA events could also be on the slate to move her along the fast track into stock cars full time when her IRL contract is concluded.

A lot has been written about Patrick’s purported move to NASCAR and each time the “leverage” angle pops up. Many believe her talking with NASCAR owners is nothing more than a tactic to increase her paycheck from her IRL suitors.

Danica is a force to be reckoned with regardless of which series she runs. Wins are not the total factor in determining her value to a series. You only have to look at her perspective car owner to see that. While Earnhardt has struggled at the track for two years, his fan base has never wavered.

Bring Danica into the fold and let her learn the right way. Put her in good equipment in the Nationwide and ARCA series and let her fans swarm the race tracks.

This week’s BUZZ ON PIT ROW is:

Now that Danica has an IRL contract; can her entry into NASCAR be considered legitimate?

Let us know what you think and we could use your answer on this week’s ON PIT ROW radio show. Listen live every Tuesday at 5pm ET. Your call could win you a Kevin Harvick bobblehead if you are the Shell-Fuel my Passion call of the day. Call the show live at 1-800-645-2946 or send a tweet to @onpitrow.

Filed under: ARCA Remax Series, Chevrolet, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Danica Patrick, Hendrick Motorsports, JR Motorsports, On Pit Row The Fastest Two Hours on Radio

Tagged with: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Danica Patrick, Hendrick Motorsports, IRL, NASCAR

Digg This | Save to del.icio.us

Brad Keselowski: Fit, Funny and Fast

by Charlie Turner

March 10, 2009 10:41 pm CDT 1 Comment

We had two opportunities to talk to NASCAR star, driver of the GoDaddy.com Chevrolets and Dale Earnhardt Jr’s personal trainer, Brad Keselowski. First during the annual ARCA kick off press conference and later as a guest ON PIT ROW.

Kez is a local favorite around these parts - the Keselowski family having a longtime presence in ARCA-land. But, with two 2008 Nationwide Series wins, a full 2009 NNS slate and a bunch of confirmed Sprint Cup Series starts for Hendrick Motorsports, Brad has gone big time. And the locals are happy about it.

And the kid is funny. He answered all the usual driver questions. But when asked about his relationship with his boss, Dale Jr, he told some stories about getting Junior into working out. Specifically running. And it didn’t sound like Earnhardt’s heart was really in it. It;s one of those stories that lose much of the humor in the re-telling. I guess you had to be there.

We joked with Brad about his GoDaddy.com commercial work and asked if he’d had a chance to work with fellow GoDaddy.com marketer Danica Patrick. I can tell you, if Brad ever gets an opportunity to help out with one of Patrick’s swim suit shoots, he’s in.

We’ll have the podcast of Brad’s interview with us posted on Wednesday.

Update: Here’s Brad Keselowski’s ON PIT ROW podcast.

Photo credit: Icon Sports Media, Inc.

Filed under: ARCA Remax Series, Brad Kesolowski, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Hendrick Motorsports, JR Motorsports, NASCAR, Nationwide Series, On Pit Row The Fastest Two Hours on Radio, Podcast Links

Tagged with: GoDaddy.com, JR Motorsports

Digg This | Save to del.icio.us

NASCAR Tight in Turn Two? It’s the Economy Stupid

by Charlie Turner

October 17, 2008 10:42 am CDT 3 Comments

There’s plenty of doom and gloom in the mainstream media about the current state of the U.S. economy. You don’t need more from a NASCAR blog and I’m not going to give you any. But NASCAR teams had money issues before the recent house-of-cards crashed on all of our heads. Race teams always have cash concerns, no matter the league.

But this time, will NASCAR go in an all new direction? Will NASCAR finally embrace the “F-word”? Full Throttle’s Marc has a great post with question suggestions for Dustin Long to ask of Mike Helton. Here’s one…

Set the record straight on any potential franchising of NASCAR teams. Is franchising in NASCAR’s future? And if so will the number of teams allowed into Cup be restricted further in the number of cars allowed? (i.e. From 4 to 3 per owner)

I’m betting that Dustin will get danced on when Mr Helton answers that one. But nobody dances the answers here. Check out my Tight in Turn Two topic this week. Then go to NASCAR Bits and register your votes on question of the week.

According to various reports, Felix Sabates and or Chip Ganassi are predicting that NASCAR will reduce the size of starting fields in the three top series to as few as 36 cars. Do you agree?

Charlie: No, not for the Sprint Cup Series I don’t. But I don’t know what these guys know either. I believe that the Nationwide and Craftsman Truck Series fields will shrink. They already have, unofficially. We posed this same question to Larry McReynolds on Tuesday’s ON PIT ROW. He agreed on the Nationwide and Truck but surprised me by saying he saw scenarios where Cup could shrink as well. I don’t see it. If anything, the attitude of Earnhardt Jr may force the Cup Series to increase its field size. Remember Junior saying that, with the cost of fielding Nationwide teams being what it is, he may as well move JR Motorsports up to the Cup level. A similar thing seems to been behind JTG Racing moving to Cup.

One of the problems early this season was teams with good sponsors having to go home after failing to qualify. Many of those sponsors have moved to teams with a better chance of making races. How will fewer teams help that?

Bruce: I think that some of the guys on the Cup side are guessing at the situation from some stats that are floating around out there right now.

If they had to, NASCAR will probably back up their Cup side of things and it would be an interesting consolidation to see more Nationwide teams merge over to Cup, whether they are ready or not for it. If that’s a possibility. It don’t think the field will be limited, but it may be short in a race or two in 2009.

That’s what we think. What do you think? And what do you think about Bruce’s topic?

I have to wonder just how well NASCAR can fare the financial storm that not only just plowed through everyone’s wallets, but next year while we still deal with the after affects?

Photo credit: Icon Sports Media, Inc.

Filed under: Craftsman Truck Series, Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates, JR Motorsports, Mike Helton, NASCAR Bidness, NASCAR Rumors, Nationwide Series, Sprint Cup Series, Stewart Haas Racing, Top 35 Rule, Turn 2 posts