DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Only two races are left in the 2009 season as the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series heads west to Phoenix International Raceway for the Checker O’Reilly Auto Parts 500.

The standings are tight after Jimmie Johnson’s (No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet) accident on Lap 3 last Sunday that relegated him to a 38th-place finish. Mark Martin (No. 5 CARQUEST/Kellogg’s Chevrolet) and Jeff Gordon (No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet) were able to gain ground on Johnson by finishing fourth and 13th respectively. Martin is 73 points behind and Gordon is 112 points behind Johnson.

Continue reading “Can Martin or Gordon catch the 48?”

The No. 48 team faced its first dose of adversity during the Chase last Sunday at Texas when Johnson was in an accident on Lap 3 that sent the entire team scrambling to salvage the day. Johnson ended up finishing 38th and the point lead the No. 48 team had accumulated going into Texas had shrunk to 73 points.

“It was definitely not the day we wanted,” Johnson said. “We did not want to lose points like that. Luckily we had a big margin. We’ve been saying all along that anything can happen, but we’re going to two great tracks (Phoenix and Homestead-Miami) for us and we’ll just keep racing.”

Calling Phoenix a “great track for us” is an understatement. Johnson leads the series in wins at Phoenix International Raceway with three. He dominated last season’s Chase event at Phoenix starting on the pole and leading 217 laps for the win.

Continue reading “Johnson/Knaus hope to bounce back at Phoenix”

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Nov. 10, 2009) – NASCAR announced penalties for the car No. 1 team in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for a violation that occurred during post-race inspection last Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway.

The team was penalized for violating Sections 12-1 (actions detrimental to stock car racing); 12-4-I (any determination by NASCAR officials that the race equipment used in the event does not conform to NASCAR rules); and 20-12.8.1B (front of the car did not meet the required height specification; too low in post-race inspection).

Crew chief Kevin Manion was fined $50,000 and remains on NASCAR probation until Dec. 31, 2009. Car owner Teresa Earnhardt and driver Martin Truex Jr., were penalized with the loss of 50 championship owner and 50 championship driver points, respectively.