From the Marbles - NASCAR

From the Marbles

Tue Jan 13, 2009 10:53 am EST

Four wide: Cup guys out of Nationwide; Stremme gets loud

By Jay Busbee

Every weekday morning, we'll run out four NASCAR stories to get your day started right.

Keep Cup guys out of the Nationwide races, FastMachines says: "2. It's simply not fair: What other sport allows its professional athletes to come back and play in the college ranks. Don't think that's a good example? The Nationwide Series is supposed to be the level where young-guns get their chance to shine (sounds kind of like college football or basketball or any sport to me). The past three seasons now, the championship has been won by a Cup driver. That would be like allowing Peyton Manning to go back to Tennessee for a couple of games (or the whole season) to win a National Championship."

David Stremme might not want to yap so loud: "Stremme hasn't exactly had a stellar NASCAR career, and apparently he is blaming it all on his previous teams. Since his debut in 2003 Stremme has no Nationwide Series or Cup Series wins. He also doesn't have a Cup top five. His best finish was an 8th in 2007 while driving for Chip Ganassi Racing. In 75 Cup starts, the best Stremme could do was three top tens. Yikes."

GEM-Petty announces its crew atop the boxes: "Robbie Loomis will serve as the executive director of racing operations for the team that will emerge from the merger of Gillett Evernham Motorsports and Petty Holdings, and Kevin Buskirk and Sammy Johns will join existing GEM crew chiefs Kenny Francis and Mike Shiplett atop the pit boxes. All four crew chiefs will report to former Petty executive Loomis, according to GEM Director of Competition Mark McArdle."

Sorry, Helio Castroneves can't come to the track right now ... : "Australian driver Will Power will step in for Helio Castroneves of Brazil at Team Penske while the two-time Indianapolis 500 champion fights tax evasion charges in court ... Power, whose contract with KV Racing Technology expired at the end of last season, will handle testing for Penske's No. 3 car, which has belonged to 2008 IndyCar Series runner-up Castroneves ... Castroneves, who also won TV's "Dancing With The Stars" competition in 2007, has pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiracy and tax evasion involving about $5.5 million in income stashed in offshore accounts."

Got a link / post / tip for us to check out for each morning's Four Wide? Hit us up at jay.busbee@yahoo.com.

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21 Comments

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  1. MarkN
    1. Posted by MarkN Thu Sep 03, 2009 7:08 pm EDT

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    I agree keep the cup guys out of the nationwide if they do want to race don't let them get any points.
    Then at least we would have a true nationwide driver win the points.
  2. miss priss
    2. Posted by miss priss Thu Sep 03, 2009 9:06 pm EDT

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    What, there are offshore accounts for rich people to stash money? lol I realize that taxes can bite, but better to pay them than try to avoid them
    MarkN - that is what I have been saying. I realize that some of the drivers have used the excuse of driving NWS (JJ) to get practice on a track that he doesn't do well on. But to go out there and continually drive to possibly win it is (in my opinion) not kosher. Think they should number the races that they can run in NWS once they make the leap to cup. Let's take the number 3. You get three shots at a NWS race where you can practice but won't get awarded any points for those races in the NWS. There are drivers in that league that are putting a lot of effort into their race each weekend and are getting shot out of the water by the "cup" drivers taking the wins.
  3. miss priss
    3. Posted by miss priss Thu Sep 03, 2009 9:06 pm EDT

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    BTW - that statement is directed at the "cup" drivers that have a full time ride. Those that are only given a part - time ride should be given maybe a few more races in NWS to run.
  4. MarkN
    4. Posted by MarkN Thu Sep 03, 2009 7:08 pm EDT

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    miss priss I wouldn't even mind a cup guy running the series but chose one series don't run 2 or 3 series for points.
    You take a guy like carl edwards who is backed by roush with top of the line equipement and an endless money supply against a guy who has enough money to get the car on the track. Then Carl thinks he is superman because he beat that guy.
  5. FarmerJ
    5. Posted by FarmerJ Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:14 pm EDT

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    Cup drivvers should stay outta busch races.
    Will Power, that has got to be the coolest name in racing
  6. Jean M
    6. Posted by Jean M Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:31 pm EDT

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    who would ever name their kid "will power"? lmao on that one.
  7. Tony
    7. Posted by Tony Thu Sep 03, 2009 7:02 pm EDT

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    If a "Cup" driver owns a Nationwide team then he has the right to have whoever he wants drive his cars. However, in order to level the playing field, they should only be allowed to race for points in a handful of races and not for the entire season. All the "cup" drivers who want to participate in Nationwide events can chip in their own money either per race or for the entire season and have a winner take all, or donate to their favorite charity. They can race as many Nationwide events as they want but only 6 races will count and they have to decide before a race when they want to run for points or not so at any Nationwide there could 6 - 10 "cup" drivers racing but only 3 of them could be racing for points. Let the Nationwide guys run for the Nationwide title and let the "Cup" drivers drive for their own pool
  8. Jet
    8. Posted by Jet Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:56 pm EDT

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    Farmer - I agree that Will Power's name is too cool. He also has a nephew named Max Power. lol
  9. Rudy88
    9. Posted by Rudy88 Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:16 pm EDT

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    miss priss - I've been saying that for ages. I quit because after I used all my arguments, A large number of people disagreed with me, saying they needed the cup drivers in order to increase attendance. I also believe that if your a cup driver that own you own NNS car, you should have the right to drive it. ( ie JR.) I also don't think the cup drivers should get the money. (unless they own the car.) Those NNS teams need the money.
  10. razz
    10. Posted by razz Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:31 pm EDT

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    I think the NNS does use the Cup drivers for marketing the series. Would they be on tv as much or would the attendance be the same if there were no cup drivers? Would you just tune in to see how many laps Steven Wallace ran before wrecking himself or others? How would the up and comers know how they stacked up against a Cup driver if they did not run in NNS?
    Hey Jet, you think Will's parents are named Horse, Wind or Solar?
  11. Rudy88
    11. Posted by Rudy88 Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:16 pm EDT

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    razz -The up and comers should be allowed to run a limited # of races in the NSS, according to how they run in NS. I can't speak for others, but I didn't start watching NNS because of the well known drivers in the race. I read about Brad K and Scott S, and wanted to see what the commotion was all about. Publicity might be the key for NS. i liked what I saw especially with Brad K and now am a regular watcher.
  12. hugsx5
    12. Posted by hugsx5 Thu Sep 03, 2009 7:31 pm EDT

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    I think it is fine for Cup drivers to race the NNS, but I just don't think that they should be eligible for the championship. I think that their presence in the NNS makes the NNS drivers more competitive, gives the NNS more exposure and a larger fan following and it makes the Sunday race that much better. HOWEVER, since testing has been nixed, it will create another unfair advantage for the bigger teams to get track time whereas a smaller team won't have the money to field a car there.
  13. hugsx5
    13. Posted by hugsx5 Thu Sep 03, 2009 7:31 pm EDT

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    Razz, Will's pet's name is Puppy, and his sister is Girl.
  14. FarmerJ
    14. Posted by FarmerJ Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:14 pm EDT

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    I want to see the busch drivers run in the busch series. I'm tired of seeing Curl, D00D, and all the other cup drivers hold the top 8 spots every week.
  15. Nathan B
    15. Posted by Nathan B Thu Sep 03, 2009 7:34 pm EDT

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    I've never been a big fan of Stremme ... he just rubs me the wrong way and completely ignored me the one time I asked for an autograph (he didn't seem to be in a hurry or anything, but I know it can get annoying). He didn't even acknowledge me; he was pretty rude about it. So his attitude doesn't suprise me. I'll be interested to see if Robbie Loomis and Kevin Buskirk can help Elliott Sadler now that his ride is apparently secure for the year ... or if Dodge is just so bad that it won't matter anyway.
  16. Richard T
    16. Posted by Richard T Thu Sep 03, 2009 9:47 pm EDT

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    Razz , Steven Wallace wrecking is actually a pool in my house, lap and # of cars taken out , closest one wins. But anyway, Cup drivers in NNS races no problem, competing for the title that's where I draw the line. Who the hell wants to see Kevin or Curl run away with the championship by August?
  17. Jet
    17. Posted by Jet Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:56 pm EDT

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    Hey jazz - LoL The Power family does have an imagination and sense of humor. There is another member but I can't remember his name...
  18. Rita B
    18. Posted by Rita B Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:10 pm EDT

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    Well let the cup drivers drive, but have the same driver every week and not Bowyer one week and Burton the next week. If they are gonna be in Nat series then have the same driver every week like Carl does.
  19. kinggeorge
    19. Posted by kinggeorge Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:51 pm EDT

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    Since Helio looks like he might be spending his summer vacation in club fed. I call dibs on Ashley Judd. Suckers!!!! HaaaaaHahaha.
  20. Heather G
    20. Posted by Heather G Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:17 pm EDT

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    Hey Kinggorge,
    Wrong Indy driver. Ashley is married to Dario Franchitti, not Helio.
  21. n88car
    21. Posted by n88car Thu Sep 03, 2009 7:32 pm EDT

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    i like the idea that drivers shouldnt be in both series. pick one or the other.

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