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No Such Thing as a Win without Honor?

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

July 11, 2010 11:33 pm CDT No Comments

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Which is harder; to not have won a Cup race at all, or living with your only win questioned by your peers for having come in a rain shortened race?

I don’t know. I’ve asked plenty of racers the “Is there such a thing as a win without honor” question. They have all said that there is no such thing. Every single one of them told me the same thing. Maybe they lied.

David Reutimann doesn’t care anymore. He won the LifeLock.com 400 at Chicagoland Speedway convincingly, decisively. Honorably.

The voices will stop now. No more whispers about the way he won the 2009 Coke 600 while sitting in pit lane with MWR team owner Michael Waltrip, praying for rain. No more asterisks.

That all goes for the #00 Michael Waltrip Racing team too. While Reutimann passed the resurgent Jeff Gordon twice for the lead, on the track, the Tums team was near flawless all night in the pits. A late race, green flag pit stop, from the lead, went perfectly.

And David Reutimann drove away to another win. Sounds good doesn’t it Beak?

Photo credit: Icon Sports Media, Inc

Filed under: Chicagoland Speedway, David Reutimann, Michael Waltrip, Michael Waltrip Racing, NASCAR, Sprint Cup Series

Tagged with: Beak, LifeLock.com 400, MWR

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NASCAR Pictures from Infineon Raceway: Friday at Sonoma

by Charlie Turner

June 19, 2010 7:18 am CDT No Comments

Photos of NASCAR Drivers at Infineon Raceway

On Pit Row photographer Jordan Tabak shot these terrific photos of NASCAR road course racing action Friday at Infineon Raceway.

: Marcos Ambrose on track at Infineon Raceway

: Jamie McMurray at speed Infineon Raceway

: Robby Gordon at Infineon Raceway

: Jeff Gordon at Infineon Raceway

: Jeff Gordon and the Dupont Chevy at Sonoma

: Michael Waltrip on track at Infineon Raceway

: NASCAR driver Clint Bowyer

: Scott Speed and the Red Bull Camry

: Joey Logano heading for the track at Sonoma

Photo credit: Jordan Tabak - On Pit Row

If you need NASCAR pictures for your blog or fan page, go to our archive of racing photos and use the stuff you like. Just please give credit to the photographer and OnpitRow.com.

Filed under: Clint Boyer, Infineon Raceway, Jamie McMurray, Jeff Gordon, Marcos Ambrose, Michael Waltrip, NASCAR, NASCAR photos, Scott Speed

Tagged with: NASCAR pictures, Sonoma, Toyota Save Mart 350

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Coke Throws a Big NASCAR Barbeque

by Charlie Turner

May 28, 2010 9:40 pm CDT No Comments

The Coca Cola folks always have something big cooked up for the Coca Cola 600 weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Thousands of fans turned out for the Coca-Cola Family Track Walk and Quarter-Mile Cookout at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Friday, May 28. The event gave fans an opportunity to get active by walking the entire length of the 1.5-mile track, followed by a free cookout on the nation’s longest grill.

Coca-Cola Racing Family driver Ryan Newman used an oversized match to light 7,000 pounds of charcoal ablaze in a quarter-mile-long grill. Newman was joined by fellow drivers Michael Waltrip, Joey Logano and Clint Bowyer for the cookout and the Coca-Cola Family Track Walk.

Ryan Newman waved the green flag to start the Coca-Cola Family Track

Walk. Afterward they feasted on free chicken and burgers cooked on a quarter-mile-long grill, positioned in the track’s infield.

Coca-Cola Racing Family members Michael Waltrip (left) and Joey Logano competed in a spoon race. Logano won the competition when Waltrip fumbled the egg from his spoon in the closing steps of the final lap. The Track Walk reminded the thousands of fans on hand how simple and fun getting active can be.

Photo credit: Harold Hinson

Filed under: Clint Boyer, Joey Logano, Michael Waltrip, NASCAR, NASCAR & the Media, Ryan Newman

Tagged with: Charlotte Motor Speedway, Coca Cola 600, Coca-Cola Racing Family, nation's longest grill

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Fantasy Pick’Em: 2010 Aaron’s 499

by Chris Leone, Special To NASCAR commentary and pictures,2010 NASCAR schedule,NASCAR video, Bench Racing With Steve and Charlie

I do weekly Fantasy Pick'Em columns here at OPR, as well as the occasional opinion and analysis piece. I also provide the IZOD IndyCar Series coverage. For more on that, head to my site, OpenWheelAmerica.com. My Twitter handle is @christopherlion.

April 21, 2010 1:47 pm CDT No Comments

The Aaron’s 499 at Talladega Superspeedway will mark the ninth race of this year’s Sprint Cup Series season, and one of the most difficult to predict in fantasy racing. Anybody who’s ever seen a superspeedway race knows that the “big one” is lurking around every corner, and can knock out many good cars in less time than it takes to change four tires and refuel.

Last year, Brad Keselowski turned Carl Edwards in the tri-oval on the final lap to secure his first career victory. It was a scary moment for Edwards, as his car wound up touching the catchfence in mid-air, injuring eight fans, and he hasn’t won since. Despite the safety improvements made to the cars, these sorts of wrecks are always possible, and are more common at the big tracks than anywhere else.

In other words, this weekend is a fantasy crapshoot. To that end, let’s have some fun.

Joey Logano is my pick for this weekend’s race. Keep in mind that we had a surprise winner in Keselowski last year, a definition that Logano would certainly fit. He led laps in both Talladega races last year, finishing 9th in the spring and 3rd in the fall. His team has also gotten it together this year, and they’re legitimate Chase contenders. Hey, it’s worth a shot.

My dark horse pick for the weekend is none other than Michael Waltrip. Competing in only his second race of the season, this will mark the first time in months that Prism Motorsports looks to actually complete the full race with one of its cars, the No. 55 Aaron’s Toyota. Waltrip drives for the race sponsor and has won at the track before. Again, it’s worth a shot, isn’t it?

Three more, all of whom will probably fall victim to bad luck because I picked them:

Hey, remember when Dale Earnhardt Jr. won four Talladega races in a row? He’s led laps in 18 of his 20 career Talladega starts, too. He was pretty strong at Daytona at the beginning of the year, and he’s pretty overdue for a win. His Talladega luck is also pretty good – of his five DNFs at the track, three were due to engine failures, and those were DEI powerplants, not the Hendrick ones he currently receives.

Picking at Talladega is all about luck. Jeff Burton seems to have some of that at Talladega. He’s led at least one lap in six of the past seven Talladega events, including in each of the past four, a span in which he has finished no worse than 12th. Burton has the patience to let the race come to him and the luck to avoid wrecks; only two of his five DNFs were due to accidents, and they came in 2005 and his 1994 track debut.

Finally, Jamie McMurray is currently one of the best restrictor-plate drivers on the circuit, winning the past two races under the format. Jamie Mac has led in six of his past nine Talladega starts. He does, however, have some poor luck at the track, crashing out in three of the past eight events. Choose wisely.

Filed under: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jamie McMurray, Jeff Burton, Joey Logano, Michael Waltrip, One and Done NASCAR Fantasy Racing, Talladega Superspeedway

Tagged with: Aaron's 499, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jamie McMurray, Jeff Burton, Joey Logano, Michael Waltrip, One and Done NASCAR Fantasy Racing, Talladega Superspeedway

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He Blocked Left then He Blocked Right then He Got Smoked

by Mindy Monday, Special To NASCAR commentary and pictures,2010 NASCAR schedule,NASCAR video, Bench Racing With Steve and Charlie

July 9, 2009 9:50 pm CDT 1 Comment

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Last week, Steve got the crow sandwich. This week, Charlie gets the rocking chair. Actually, Mindy Monday offers up Charlies chair to the shy (right) and retiring (true) Mikey Waltrip.

Mindy compares the Jeremy Mayfield saga to a Burt Levee novel and Phil Parson’s no. 66 ride to the previously mentioned rocker.

There’s more. There always is. Including Tony Stewart’s “ole’- el passo” of Kyle Busch. Watch the latest Monday Morning Crew Chief.

Filed under: Bench Racing TV, Kyle Busch, Michael Waltrip, Michael Waltrip Racing, Monday Morning Crew Chief, NASCAR, NASCAR video, Phil Parsons, Tony Stewart

Tagged with: Mindy Monday

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Reutimann’s NASCAR Memorial Day Parade Rained On–YES

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.

May 26, 2009 9:54 am CDT 5 Comments

Some of the media were referring to the Coca-Cola 600 as the 24 Hours of Charlotte because the holiday weekend dodged rain storm after rain storm.

Mike Bliss won a rain shortened Nationwide Series race on Saturday night, but the 600 couldn’t roll off the starting line on Sunday because of persistent rain. By the time Memorial Day Monday rolled around, the teams, drivers and media had had enough of trying to kill time. But it didn’t take long for the first of several rain delays to stop the action at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

It looked early on as if the scheduled 400 laps would never be seen and a race to halfway was going to be the order of the day. Michael Waltrip Racing’s David Reutimann got the teams first Sprint Cup win by staying on the racetrack when the final rain delay hit the speedway.

I think we sat on pit road eight hours today is what it felt like. We just kept waiting. Rodney and I talked. I was like, I’ve been in situations like this before, obviously not in a Cup race, but different situations. This deal never goes my way, so I don’t see why it should now. We talked about what we were going to change on the car when we came down pit road. Rodney told me, I’m either going to get us a win or lose us 10 spots, one or the other. It’s a gamble. I said, I’ll stay out. That’s what he told me to do. That’s what I do. When I’m told to do something, I generally do something.

NASCAR waited about two and a half hours before finally calling the race over and done. By that time there weren’t many fans left in the grandstands to celebrate. MWR, had seen its share of adversity throughout its first two-plus years of competition. From the jet fuel incident it first year, to not making races times have been tough. Reutimann made all those heartaches and mis-steps seem long removed when he was able to paddle his #00 into the winners circle.

This week’s BUZZ ON PIT ROW ponders:

How does Reutimann’s win stack up as far as first wins go?

Let us know what you think and we could us your comments to this weeks ON PIT ROW radio show. Listen live every Tuesday from 5-7pm ET at onpitrow.com. Call the show at 1-800-645-2946 and you could win a Kevin Harvick bobblehead if your call is the Shell Nitrogen Enriched Call of the Day.

Filed under: David Reutimann, Lowes Motor Speedway, Michael Waltrip, Michael Waltrip Racing, NASCAR, Nationwide Series, On Pit Row The Fastest Two Hours on Radio

Tagged with: David Reutimann, Lowes Motor Speedway, Michael Waltrip, NASCAR

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