Monday Media Tour Pit Notes
 |
| NASCAR President and CEO Brian France talks to the Media during a visit to the NASCAR R & D facility in Concord, NC. |
Notes and Quotes
Monday, Jan. 23 More than 200 print and electronic media members from 20 states and as far away as The Netherlands are registered to participate in the NASCAR NEXTEL Media Tour hosted by Lowe's Motor Speedway. With support from sponsors Sprint Nextel and NASCAR, the Media Tour gives registered participants the opportunity to tour race shops; meet with drivers, crew chiefs and team owners; and discuss the latest developments and news with motorsports industry leaders. "The NASCAR NEXTEL Media Tour is as important to media members as pre-season testing is to the race teams," said H.A. "Humpy" Wheeler, president and general manager of Lowe's Motor Speedway. "There is a great deal of excitement that surrounds the start of a new season and the media tour gives journalists the opportunity to showcase this excitement to fans around the world." Roush Racing, Evernham Motorsports, Robert Yates Racing, MB2 Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing, Robby Gordon Motorsports, Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates, Wood Brothers/JTG Racing, Hendrick Motorsports, Penske Racing, Haas CNC Racing and Richard Childress Racing are among the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup teams scheduled to host NASCAR NEXTEL Media Tour events. The Media Tour will also make its annual visit to the NASCAR Research and Development Center where sanctioning body executives will preview the season.
The first stop took the NASCAR NEXTEL Media Tour to the NASCAR Research and Development Center in Concord, N.C. Several of NASCAR's top officials were on hand speaking about "The NASCAR of Tomorrow ?Today." Among the items discussed were NASCAR's Car of Tomorrow, its Drive for Diversity and the program's 2006 driver lineup, new markets such as Mexico City along with a number of issues facing the sport in the coming years. BRIAN FRANCE (NASCAR Chairman and CEO): "This is the annual kickoff for 2006 and we have a number of announcements that will take us into the future. There are a lot of things I'm excited about like the rookie class as well as Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jeff Gordon as they try to get back to where they're used to running up front. This is also the third year for the new points system and it's given the first part of the season a little more bit of an edge. "In 2007 Toyota will elevate its program to the NEXTEL Cup and Busch Series levels. We're honored to have them come on board. The other thing we're going to talk about is the Car of Tomorrow, and we wondered several years ago if we could build a safer car. Then we asked ourselves if the Car of Tomorrow would be financially reasonable for all of our teams. We don't think that you need a car that's built for Daytona, another for Bristol as well as the mile-and-a-half tracks. We want one car that can be raced at every track so teams don't have to build so many cars. GARY NELSON (NASCAR Vice President of Research and Development): "This (the Car of Tomorrow) is something that I'm very proud of and I've put a lot of work into the last few years. Nelson talked about G-Spike forces and crush zones, side impact bars, front and back bumpers as well as the lightest and most efficient materials. He also talked about a computerized impact simulation where NASCAR can study data and the safety benefits of cockpit intrusion protection. An example of that is that the driver's seat in the new car will be moved four inches toward the middle of the car in order to better protect the driver. The Car of Tomorrow will also have a stronger and smaller fuel cell. The engineering consultants of the newly designed car are Structural, Biomechanical, Testing and Modeling from experts from the University of Nebraska as well as some of the smartest minds from within the NASCAR organization itself. Nelson said the Car of Tomorrow is scheduled to be used in 16 races in 2007, mainly on short tracks and road courses. It will then be phased in at other types of race tracks during 2008 and will be used for the entire NASCAR NEXTEL Cup schedule in 2009. "It's all about safety, cost and competition, Nelson said. "I'm excited about this. France followed Nelson by talking about NASCAR's on-going "Drive for Diversity. We've given people the chance to come into NASCAR who wouldn't normally have that chance, France said about the program.
The second stop on the NASCAR NEXTEL Media Tour was across the street from NASCAR's Research and Development Center at Roush Racing where multi-car owner, Jack Roush, and his fleet of drivers talked about their plans for the season. JACK ROUSH (Owner, Roush Racing): "Here we are again and it's hard to believe we're getting ready for another race season and we're excited about 2006. Last year was the most successful season I've ever had and want to do the same this year. I wouldn't trade what we did last year for anything. It was hard to get Mark to re-sign with the No. 6 car because he was ready to retire. There's a special bond between him and that team. We were faced with a situation where he stayed with that team instead of putting a driver in who might not have been ready. Greg Biffle also had a great year and we're looking for big things for him again this year because they were very close to winning the title last year. Matt Kenseth also had a good year and finished everything on a high note. Have you guys ever seen a guy like Carl Edwards? He won four races and was just awesome. Carl and his family should be proud of what he's done. Jamie McMurray, I've had my eye on him for a while. He eats and sleeps racing and he was a guy I really wanted to have drive for me. Todd Kluever is the only guy at Roush that didn't win a race last season, but I take a lot of responsibility for that because that program wasn't where we need to be. Todd is going to race for the championship in the Busch Series and Danny O'Quinn will drive with him too. Erik Darnell is probably the worst kept secret in the garage area. He's talented and he's going to be tough in the No. 99 truck. David Ragan is another guy who will be tough in the truck series. David will do a great job. I'm surrounded by a bunch of people that I really admire and I think we're going to have a good season. MARK MARTIN (No. 6 AAA Ford): Martin was presented with a painting commemorating his victory in the 2005 NASCAR NEXTEL All-Star Challenge that was commissioned by Sprint Nextel and painted by veteran motorsports artist Garry Hill. "It's incredible and I look forward to looking at it often. It means a lot for my family and friends to have this. A lot of what went into last year was trying to thank my fans. ?I feel like we as a team have the backbone in place even though we had a couple of people on the team that were promoted within Roush Racing. We're all excited about having a better season than we did last year. The Ford Fusion is a fantastic car that I look forward to working with it as well as my truck team. GREG BIFFLE (No. 16 National Guard Ford): "We need to be a little more consistent because 35 points is what we lost the championship by. We didn't change one single crew member over the winter. We won six races last year and were in contention for the championship all year long. I'm ready to battle for the championship again. MATT KENSETH (No. 17 DeWalt Power Tools Ford): "I look forward to going into this year because everybody seems to be working together and like Jack said, last year was a great year for Roush Racing. We have everything we need, all we have to do is put it together. CARL EDWARDS (No. 99 Office Depot Ford): "I love racing and feel like I'm blessed to drive for one of the best teams in the sport. I'm going to be busy, but I'd rather be racing than just sitting around watching. JAMIE McMURRAY (No. 26 Sharpie/Irwin Industrial Ford): "When you know you have cars that are this good, you know it's up to you as the driver to get the job done. I think the test at Las Vegas is going to be very important. I feel like I'm with the best team in this sport right now. ERIK DARNELL (No. 99 Ford F150 in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series): "My past experience is definitely going to be beneficial because I've been to about half the tracks the truck series is going to visit. I got to run in the NASCAR Touring divisions and made my way through the ranks like that. It's going to be a big challenge, but I think I'm ready for it. (Darnell is a former competitor in the NASCAR AutoZone Elite Division, Southeast and Midwest Series divisions and has competed in the ARCA series.) DAVID RAGAN (No. 6 Ford F150 in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series): "I feel pretty confident going into the season. I've got a bunch of great guys working on the truck and I've got a bunch of good teammates I can lean on if I need to. To be sitting on a stage with this group of guys at Roush Racing is a dream come true for me. TODD KLUEVER (No. 06 3M Ford in the NASCAR Busch Series): "I'm just excited because our improvement from the first half of the season to the second half of the year was unreal. (Kluever is moving to the NASCAR Busch Series after capturing NASCAR Raybestos Rookie of the Year honors in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series last season.) DANNY O'QUINN (No. 50 World Financial Group/Stonebridge Ford): "The similarities between the Busch cars and the Hooters Pro Cup cars I drove last year will make the transition to the Busch Series a bit easier for me. I know the competition is going to be a lot tougher, but I've got a great team and all of these guys up here to help me when ever I need it. NEWS AND QUOTES FROM MONDAY NIGHT'S FUNCTION AT EVERNHAM MOTORSPORTS WILL BE INCLUDED IN TUESDAY'S NOTES
|
