SHOW #143 – We discuss the 43-1 Points System, the Toyota All-Star Showdown, Rolex 24, and fantasy racing returns for 2011. Hosted by Kerry Murphey and Paul Northrop.

LISTEN HERE (About 42 mins)

SUBSCRIBE HERE

DOWNLOAD HERE

SUBSCRIBE FROM iTUNES: Take us with you! Subscribe to our audio shows from iTunes, and they will automatically show up on your computer as soon as we post fresh shows..it’s easy, FREE, and we take no information. It’s like a DVR for audio so you can take us with you anywhere and listen on your schedule!

Follow us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter

NOTE: Also HEARD on Stitcher Radio

CREDITS:
Hosts: Kerry Murphey & Paul Northrop
Production: Kerry Murphey
Music: Radium Sound
Voice Over: Thomas Moog

Travis Pastrana, No. 99 Boost Mobile Toyota Camry – finished sixth in Toyota Allstar Showdown at Irwindale Speedway

Race Summary: No. 99 Boost Mobile Toyota driver Travis Pastrana impressed the NASCAR world Saturday night posting a sixth-place finish in his NASCAR debut in the action-packed Toyota All-Star Showdown at Irwindale Speedway.

The race was divided into three segments (100 laps,100 laps and 25 laps.) Pastrana had to take action to avoid accidents most of the night including three crashes in the first segment. The action sports star started 20th and raced there for the first two segments. On the final 25-lap segment Pastrana restarted 15th and a multi-car incident helped propel him into the top 10. In the closing laps, the 27-year-old driver raced three-wide with several competitors and crossed the finish line sixth.

Pastrana expects to race in the K&N Pro Series West race at Phoenix in February. He’ll enter his first of seven 2011 Nationwide races at Indianapolis in July.

Travis Pastrana, No. 99 Boost Mobile Toyota
· Travis Pastrana started 20th and finished sixth
· Recorded his first top-10 in his NASCAR debut
· Went a lap down to the leaders on lap 171 but was able to recover when the leader suffered a flat tire a few laps later.
· Suffered minor right-front fender damage on lap 61 caution
· Suffered from a tight-handling race car for much of the race

TRAVIS PASTRANA QUOTE: “It was absolutely awesome. I was just happy not to be a complete road block. I learned a lot. That last green, it was just chaotic, it was four wide, three wide. I just have to thank Matt Crafton (spotter) for keeping me out of most of the trouble. It was a lot of fun. It felt like a win. I know I had a lot of guys in front of me and a lot of guys faster than me. However, it was a good time out there.”

Race Results
· Jason Bowles won his first All-Star Showdown in front of a sold-out crowd
· Bowles is a three-time winner at Irwindale Speedway
· Bowles won the K&N Pro West Series championship in
· D.J. Kennington, Jonathon Gomez and Luis Martinez Jr. rounded out the top five

FINAL RESULTS (Unofficial)
FINDRIVER
1Jason Bowles
2D.J. Kennington
3Jonathon Gomez
4Luis Martinez, Jr. *
5Johnny Borneman
6Travis Pastrana
7Derek Thorn
8Travis Motley
9Moses Smith
10Steve Wallace
11Daniel Suarez
12German Quiroga
13Andrew Myers
14Chad Boat
15Lucas Lasserre
16Paulie Harraka
17Ryan Philpott
18Taylor Cuzick
19Travis Milburn *
20Greg Pursley
21Michael Self *
22Andrew Ranger *
23Matt Kobyluck
24Dale Quarterley
25Troy Ermish *
26Cole Cabrera
27David Mayhew
28Jason Fensler
29Sean Caisse
30Ruben Rovelo
31Darrell Wallace, Jr. *
32Brennan Newberry
33Spencer Gallagher
34Max Gresham *
35Eric Holmes
36Greg Rayl *
37John Salemi
38 Auggie Vidovich
39 Sergio Pena *
40Miguel Paludo *

GLENDORA, Calif. (Jan. 24, 2011) – Kurt Busch, driver of the No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Dodge Charger in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, has announced that he will be making his NHRA Full Throttle Series debut at the 41st annual Tire Kingdom NHRA Gatornationals, March 11-13, at historic Gainesville (Fla.) Raceway.

The 2004 NASCAR Sprint Cup Champion will be competing for one of the 16 qualifying spots in the ultra-competitive Pro Stock class in the Shell Dodge Avenger for Allen Johnson and J & J Racing.

“Pro Stock is the tightest pro category as far as the elapsed time is concerned and it’s not going to be an easy task,’ Busch said. “I feel me teaming up with Allen Johnson and the Mopar folks, we’ve given ourselves the best opportunity to make the show.”

Busch spent a good part of his busy offseason testing with Allen Johnson and he earned his NHRA Pro Stock license with an impressive best-pass of 6.576 seconds at 210.43 mph at Bradenton, Fla.

As a matter of reference (understanding conditions are not identical), Mike Edwards was the No. 1 qualifier at the 2010 Tire Kingdom NHRA Gatornationals with a 6.537 at 211.53 and Rickie Jones was on the bump with a 6.601 at 209.10. Busch’s 6.576 would have qualified him 11th.

When Busch arrives in Gainesville for the 41st running of the Tire Kingdom NHRA Gatornationals, he will get a total of four qualifying passes – two on Friday and two on Saturday – at which point the 16-car fields will be set for Sunday’s race.

Pro Stock cars have similar appearance to their showroom counterparts but feature extensive engine modifications, sophisticated chassis and suspension with a maximum 500 cubic-inch engine displacement. On average a Pro Stock car will cover the quarter-mile in six and a half seconds with a speed of more than 200 mph.

“It’s a whole different world than NASCAR. The toughest part is staging the car and of course cutting a good light, the thrill of the launch and the speed at the top-end is why I’m so fascinated with drag racing. But I do know that heading to the Gatornationals and running with the pros, I will get a full dose of ‘humble pie.’”

At the 2010 Tire Kingdom Gatornationals, Busch competed in the Super Gas category, which is part of the NHRA Lucas Oil Series, in a rebuilt 1970 Dodge Charger. Weather plagued the event which limited his time on the track and contributed to his first round loss in the category.

“The 2010 event was an experience of a lifetime, the camaraderie with the sportsman guys was a truly fun experience,” Busch said. “Although it was tough to watch it rain for four days, the grassroots effort of the sportsman guys is what makes the true heart of NHRA racing.”

Busch, a native of Las Vegas, was introduced to drag racing in the early 1990s when he met two Las Vegas based NHRA racers – George Marnell, a Pro Stock racer, and Dave Bush (no relation), a Super Comp competitor. He also became friends with three-time NHRA Top Fuel Champion Larry Dixon when both were sponsored by the same company.

COURTESY: kurtbusch.com

Guest Column By Cathy Elliott

During his annual State of the Union address on Jan. 25, President Barack Obama did something nearly unprecedented in politics – he had Republicans and Democrats actually sit together in one big, co-mingled group. Generally, the two opposing parties are separated from one another like family members at Thanksgiving dinner, although it can sometimes be challenging to tell which table belongs to the grownups and which to the kids.

Just one day later, in his ‘State of the Sport’ address on Jan. 26, NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France did much the same thing, informing the assembled press corps and a live TV audience that the 2011 season would serve to better blend the sport’s top two performance aspects.

Consistency has always been critical to success in NASCAR, which has the longest season in professional sports. It’s not exactly what you might call breaking news, but during his remarks, France pinpointed another characteristic particularly important to fans – “They care about winning. They don’t want drivers to just be content with a good points day or a good run,” he said.

Since the inception of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup format in 2004,‘racing for points’ during the first 26 races of the season simply meant a driver worked his way into the Top 12, then did whatever was necessary to ensure he stayed there. If this meant ‘laying up’ and settling for a Top 5 or Top 10 finish instead of going whole-hog for the win, he did it, in order to have an opportunity to race for the title at the end of the year.

I don’t remember this being much of an issue in the early years of the Chase, but things did flare up a bit in 2009 when Juan Pablo Montoya publicly stated that he had been points racing all season, with the single purpose of making the Chase. A lot of fans didn’t really grasp the charm of that comment.

Another thing fans haven’t altogether grasped over the years is NASCAR’s somewhat complicated scoring system. During a Jan. 21 press conference at Daytona International Speedway, Kevin Harvick remarked that at the end of the 2010 season, he had gotten a text message from New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi, congratulating him on a good season but noting,” I don’t understand how you have the best year and not win. I don’t understand your points system.”

Now, I’m the type who, when required to figure out a restaurant tip or double a recipe, still occasionally suffers from a sort of post-testing stress disorder, flashing back to the math portion of the SAT. And granted, baseball’s scoring system is pretty easy to understand – you get a W when you win and an L when you lose and that pretty much sums it up.

But I get Girardi’s point. We shouldn’t have to work quite as hard as Abbott and Costello to figure out who’s on first.

NASCAR agrees, and to that end, is implementing changes in the way post-race points are allocated.

The new system is about as basic as it gets. Forty-three drivers start each NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race. The winner will get 43 points, the last-place finisher will get 1 point, and you can figure out the middle part for yourself.

Additionally, there are three bonus points for the win, one for leading a lap, and one for leading the most laps. The total number of possible points for a single driver is 48.

NASCAR is a sport of numbers, and France addressed many more of them during his speech. The Chase will still consist of 12 drivers – the top 10 in points at the end of the regular, plus the two drivers in slots 11 through 20 with the most regular season wins. If there are no winners in the 11-20 group, drivers in the 11th and 12th points positions will qualify for the title run, as in seasons past.

When the Chase begins, drivers will be re-seeded, awarded three points for each win. Qualifying order will be set by practice speeds rather than the luck of the draw.

And on the 10th anniversary of his death, tribute will be paid to Dale Earnhardt, Sr.

The major discussion point, however, was the restructuring of the points. No longer will we have to worry about possessing the capability of constructing rockets in the garage in order to figure out the driver standings from week to week, because NASCAR has made it so simple that it’s practically impossible for us to misfigure and misfire. This will be much more fun for us, and much safer for the neighbors.

So you and I. And Joe Girardi, too, will understand NASCAR’s new math, which looks like it’s going to add up to one great big W.

The opinions expressed in this articles are solely those of the author and not this website.

Sprint Announces 2011 Miss Sprint Cup Lineup
Race Fans, Media Attend Unveil Event at Whisky River Nightclub

HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. – Jan. 26, 2011 – With just a few weeks remaining until the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season gets under way, Sprint unveiled its 2011 Miss Sprint Cup lineup Wednesday night in Charlotte, N.C.

Returning Miss Sprint Cup representatives Paige Duke and Monica Palumbo were joined by newcomer Kim Coon. The trio was introduced to a crowd of race fans and motorsports media at the popular Whisky River nightclub.

Duke, who was revealed last week via social media, has returned for a second season. Palumbo is back for a fourth year.

Since its inception in 2007, the Miss Sprint Cup program has gained tremendous popularity among both race fans and industry members alike. Although their most visible role is representing the Sprint brand in every NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Victory Lane celebration, it’s a small portion of the overall job responsibilities for the Miss Sprint Cup lineup.

In addition to making appearances at charity events and NASCAR sponsors’ functions, the representatives serve as the “fans’ friend on the inside,” offering behind-the-scenes access through regular video, photo and text updates to their more than 300,000 social media followers (Twitter, Facebook and the NASCAR.com “Community” page).

The Miss Sprint Cup lineup also greets thousands of race fans each weekend at the Sprint Experience, the mobile marketing display Sprint brings to every NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event. There they talk with fans about the latest Sprint products and offerings and help emcee the weekend’s various contests and giveaways. On the Sprint Experience stage, they also interview the sport’s top drivers and personalities, as well as celebrities from the worlds of music, TV and film.

With a personality steeped in down-home charm, Duke is a self-proclaimed “country girl” who loves hunting, barrel racing, horse riding, deep sea fishing and, of course, country music. Born and raised in Lancaster, S.C., Duke graduated magna cum laude from Clemson University and remains a diehard Tigers fan.

Palumbo is a Charlotte native who attended East Carolina University. The consummate “girl next door,” she’s been recognized by The Sporting News as one of “NASCAR’s 50 Most Beautiful People.” Her TV work includes a guest host spot on “Live with Regis and Kelly” and a regular weekly segment on “NASCAR Race Hub” on SPEED.

Coon was pulled from the world of corporate marketing to join the Miss Sprint Cup lineup. Born and raised in Orlando, Fla., Coon received her undergraduate degree from the University of Miami and a master’s degree from the University of Alabama. Always on the go, she’s balanced a career in marketing and PR with her role as an NFL cheerleader and a volunteer with the Susan G. Komen For the Cure® campaign.

The unveiling was hosted by Daryl Motte, emcee of the Sprint Experience, who treated fans to an evening of contests similar to what they can experience when they visit the mobile display. As he does each race weekend, Motte engaged fans in dance contests and challenged them to post the fastest time in a tire-changing competition. In addition to prizes for the winners of those events, Sprint gave each of the first 200 fans through the doors of the club that evening a pair of ticket vouchers for the May 21 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

After the lineup was revealed, they met with the media and signed autographs for fans in attendance.

The three Miss Sprint Cup representatives now prepare to kick off the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season at Daytona International Speedway next month. Competition begins with the Budweiser Shootout on Feb. 12 and culminates in the DAYTONA® 500 on Feb. 20.

Duke, Palumbo and Coon will be at the track throughout both race weekends, visiting with fans at the Sprint Experience, located in the display area outside Turn 4. Fans can also meet them at select times in the Sprint FANZONE area, located adjacent to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series garage area at the legendary track.

To follow Miss Sprint Cup, visit:

§ Twitter at twitter.com/misssprintcup

§ Facebook at facebook.com/misssprintcup

§ NASCAR.com Community Sprint Crew

Quotes

Paige Duke: “Being Miss Sprint Cup has been an amazing experience. I’ve enjoyed seeing different parts of America and meeting the diehard race fans who support the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. I’m really looking forward to being a part of this amazing sport and representing Sprint at the track for another year.”

Monica Palumbo: “When they asked me back for my fourth season, I was ecstatic. I’m fortunate that I get paid to basically have fun and interact with wonderful people while representing a great organization like Sprint. If you love what you’re doing, it’s hard to call it work. I’m blessed to say that I definitely love what I do.”

Kim Coon: “I’m just ready to get down to Daytona and get the season going. Monica and Paige have already taught me a lot, but I know I’ve got a lot more to learn. I’m looking forward to seeing all the different tracks, experiencing my first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Victory Lane, and especially getting to say hello to all the fans.”