News for February 22nd 2010
Mario Andretti will Test at Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama
Mario Andretti competed in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in four decades — the last time in 2000.
Ten years later, an Andretti again will compete in the endurance sports car race in France. Marco Andretti, 22, will co-drive a Rebellion Racing LMP1 entry. Neel Jani and Nicolas Prost will be his teammates in the June 12-13 race (an off weekend for the IZOD IndyCar Series).
Mario Andretti and his son, Michael (owner of Andretti Autosport), teamed up for the frist time at Le Mans in 1983. Mario’s nephew, John, joined th, finishing third. They were joined in the 1998 race by Mario’s newphew, John Andretti.
Marco Andretti co-drove the Andretti Green Racing LMP2 car in three American Le Mans Series races in 2008. He will be behind the wheel of the No. 26 Venom Energy car Feb. 24-25 in the IZOD IndyCar Series Open Test at Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama.
Edited: February 22nd, 2010
Questions arise over start-and-park cars
When Dave Blaney headed to the garage in his No. 66 Prism Motorsports Toyota after 43 laps, NASCAR officials were waiting.
Three laps earlier, Michael McDowell drove the other Prism Motorsports car to the garage. The final race report concluded that both cars had engine failures.
So why did the sanctioning body confiscate the No. 66 car before the engine had even cooled down?
“Because they can,” said Bill Henderson, crew chief of the No. 66 team and general manager for Prism Motorsports.
Henderson, who has just two cars for the team, was told the car will not be returned until next Saturday — long after qualifying is over. However, the primary car has the basics of racing — swaybar, shocks and springs — that the team simply can’t afford to duplicate on the backup car. Without those necessities, Henderson will not be able to race.
Sprint Cup Series director John Darby said he hopes to perform the inspection at Las Vegas in order to return the car to the team in a timely fashion, but that’s hardly a guarantee
Which begs the question: Is NASCAR attempting to send the message to “start and park” teams — those that enter a race primarily to collect a check and don’t always try to finish — not to stink up their show?
Prism Motorsports wasn’t the only team that ended their day prematurely Sunday at Fontana.
Joe Nemechek initially parked his car on Lap 27 then mysteriously returned to the track a short time later and ran an additional 27 laps before a “rear gear” failed.
Boris Said also went into the garage early, came back out, and then disappeared.
Even Aric Almirola, who was driving the No. 09 Phoenix Racing entry that won at Talladega last year, ended up in the garage after 34 laps with an engine failure.
But Prism might be in a different situation.
“It’s one thing to try to race each week,” said the manager of a team that generally finishes among the 40-somethings who spoke on the condition of anonymity. “But I think doing two (teams) to get a check isn’t going to sit very well with NASCAR.”
Prism Motorsports pocketed $160,070 for Sunday’s combined effort of 83 laps. Matt Kenseth, who finished seventh, ran the full 500 miles and earned a $161,696 pay day.
Darby said choosing the No. 66 Toyota as “the random” car was part of “the normal inspection procedure. That particular car stood out given that Blaney qualified fifth and led three laps.
“The ‘randomness’ of inspection covers everyone in the field,” Darby said. “The 66 was a car that was very competitive. Yes, he was outside of the top 35, but he was the fastest of the group. He was fifth overall qualifying and he led the race today.
“We’ve got to make sure that as we fulfill our responsibility to our competitors to make sure that everyone is playing with the same rulebook and adhering to the same rules — and that means everybody. That car deserves a look at to make sure it’s up to start.”
Darby said the sanctioning body cannot try to “outguess the teams” to determine who the start-and-park cars are every weekend.
“You don’t know what their plans are,” Darby said. “Sometimes that might be 50 laps. Some races it might be the whole race and running a top 10. You don’t know. It’s no different than a top 35 car that blows up on Lap 2 and comes into the garage. You just don’t know those things so you apply the policies and procedures as evenly as you can to everybody in the garage.”
Henderson said if Prism Motorsports could secure sponsorship for the entire season, the teams would run every lap of every race. At Daytona, Prism attempted to qualify both cars with Reed Sorenson in the No. 66 Toyota, but only McDowell in the No. 55 made the cut. The team ran 195 of the advertised 200 laps until a driveshaft broke in the car. McDowell finished 33rd and the team earned $267,495 for their effort — enough to continue to California and Las Vegas.
“We prepared ourselves all winter to race,” Henderson said. “We do everything we can to go as far as we can each week. You can’t do this out of your own pocket or you’d go broke.
“Dave did an awesome job for us this weekend. Yes, he deserves better than what we’re able to give him. I just hope we’re able to continue next weekend. If I don’t have the parts, I’ll see what I’m able to buy and what I have to whittle out of wood.”
Edited: February 22nd, 2010
Mustangs Run Back to Barber Motorsports
ZOOM Motorsports and the Mustang Club of America are proud to bring the Mustang 45th Anniversary Celebration to the Barber Motorsports Park the weekend of April 16 to April 19, 2009.
This event marks the Mustang Club’s second visit to the Park, after the Club’s 30th Anniversary which was held there in 2006. “Coming back for the Ford Mustang’s 45th Birthday was a given,” says Steve Prewitt, Executive Director of the 45th Mustang Anniversary Celebration. “The layout and beauty of Barber lends itself perfectly to an event of this magnitude and significance.”
Over 2500 Mustangs (from all over the US, Europe, Australia, and the Netherlands) are expected to descend on the Park over the 4 day event. Each model will be celebrated including Mustang, Shelby, Boss, Saleen, Rousch, SVT, Cobra, Steeda, and McLaren, with several examples of the original 1964-1/2 model. Show cars will be displayed around the entire Park with the Mustang Club of America hosting a formal judging competition.
Additional weekend events include a Thursday night “Cruise In” and street party in downtown Homewood, Alabama, that is expected to draw over 700 participants and a Saturday night banquet titled “An Evening with Ford.” On-track activities include open track days for Mustang participants and two races provided by Ford Racing Mustang Challenge, which will host rounds three and four of their racing season.
“The Barber Motorsports Park is the perfect venue to celebrate 45 years of one of America’s greatest sports cars,” says Clark Virden of ZOOM Motorsports, the exclusive promoter and management team for the Barber Motorsports Park. “We’re thrilled to be the host for this historic event and with the careful planning of the Mustang Club; we look forward to making this a celebration that all Mustang fans will be proud to call their own.”
To register your Mustang, please visit www.mustang.org.
Edited: February 22nd, 2010