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Carl Edwards Wins Atlanta; Johnson Second

Posted: Oct 26th 2008 7:15PM by Geoffrey Miller (author feed)
Filed under: Carl Edwards, Jimmie Johnson, Chase for the Sprint Cup

7 COMMENTS

Carl Edwards did all he could do Sunday afternoon at Atlanta Motor Speedway to catch Jimmie Johnson in the Chase for the Sprint Cup by winning the Pep Boys 500 in Hampton, Ga.

But when the Sprint Cup point leader already has a huge lead in the standings and is finishing a spot behind after a tremendous rally in the race's final eight laps, well, settling for the second place points check at the end of the season doesn't seem too bad.

Continue Reading Carl Edwards Wins Atlanta; Johnson Second

Chick-Fil-A Is Coming, to Your GameDay

Posted: Aug 10th 2008 7:25PM by Brian Grummell (author feed)
Filed under: Fans, Media Watch, General CFB Insanity, Bowl Games

1 COMMENT

Home Depot remains the program's title sponsor (hooray, more free hard hats for the crowd), but the great, mostly Southern dining establishment that is Chick-Fil-A is changing the routine a bit.

The agreement [with ESPN] includes Chick-fil-A TV commercials during the show and a live shot of a Chick-fil-A fan interaction area. Event staff in "College GameDay" and Chick-fil-A co-branded uniforms will escort a crate carrying the mascot head for Corso's announcement.

Total cheese, but then so is the entire Lee Corso repertoire. This move should fit right in.

Chick-Fil-A now sponsors a bowl game (aptly named the Chick-fil-A Bowl in Atlanta) and will also sponsor the Chick-fil-A College Kickoff, an annual affair in Atlanta to begin the college football season. The normally secretive GameDay location dance is a wash as the article states GameDay will be in Atlanta for that game (August 30) during the first Saturday of college football this year.

Carl Edwards' Sprint Cup Roller Coaster

Posted: Mar 10th 2008 2:25PM by Geoffrey Miller (author feed)
Filed under: Carl Edwards, Ford, Roush Fenway Racing

6 COMMENTS

Welcome to the Carl Edwards Sprint Cup Crazy Train, the newest attraction at Roush-land Amusement Park. Before boarding, realize that this ride is not for the faint of heart. Be sure to keep the lap bar down at all times, and enjoy your ride on the Carl Edwards Sprint Cup Crazy Train.

It's been an interesting couple of race weekends for Carl Edwards in the Sprint Cup Series. Winning races, cheating accusations, penalties, and a blown engine don't generally run together for a driver, so let's rewind:

Monday, Feb. 25, 2008 - Auto Club 500: Edwards takes his No. 99 to victory lane on rain-delayed Monday. The No. 99 led 64 of 250 laps for Edwards 8th-career victory at the Auto Club Speedway of Southern California.

Sunday, March 2, 2008 - UAW-Dodge 400: For the second week in-a-row, Edwards carries his Roush team to victory, backflip and all. It's his 9th-career victory and is a sign that Roush-Fenway Racing has made significant strides in 2008.

Hours later though, problems would arise.

Continue Reading Carl Edwards' Sprint Cup Roller Coaster

Video: Tony Stewart Slams Goodyear Tires

Posted: Mar 10th 2008 10:30AM by Geoffrey Miller (author feed)
Filed under: Tony Stewart, Joe Gibbs Racing, NASCAR Videos

33 COMMENTS

Though he finished second in Sunday's Kobalt Tools 500 won by teammate Kyle Busch, Tony Stewart still wasn't happy.

Instead, Stewart felt extremely lucky to have even finished the race in his No. 20 car thanks to the new compound the Goodyear, NASCAR's sole racing tire supplier, brought to Atlanta for the Sprint Cup race. After exiting his car on pit road, he proceeded to rip Goodyear to shreds on network TV:

I think the single best line from all of Stewart's comments was "Goodyear can't build a tire that's worth a crap". (If you weren't able to watch the video, click the link below to read the transcript of Stewart's quotes.)

Continue Reading Video: Tony Stewart Slams Goodyear Tires

Busch Scores First Toyota Win at Atlanta

Posted: Mar 9th 2008 6:30PM by Geoffrey Miller (author feed)
Filed under: Tony Stewart, Carl Edwards, Greg Biffle, Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing, Kyle Busch, Sprint Cup

23 COMMENTS

Kyle Busch scored his first win of the season, first win with Joe Gibbs Racing, and most importantly scored Toyota's first-ever victory in the Sprint Cup Series Sunday at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

It was the first time since 1954 when a Jaguar won a race in New Jersey that a foreign manufacturer has won a race in NASCAR's top series.

Busch had one of the top cars to beat all afternoon, though in the middle of the race he seemed to lose the handle on the No. 18 Toyota. That's when Carl Edwards took command trying to win his third consecutive race in the Sprint Cup Series before suffering a mechanical failure while leading late in the event.

In victory lane, Busch made note of the important victory by recalling how the No. 18 machine used to be a dominant force at Atlanta when Bobby Labonte drove the machine.

Continue Reading Busch Scores First Toyota Win at Atlanta

NASCAR Warmup: Kobalt Tools 500

Posted: Mar 9th 2008 9:00AM by Geoffrey Miller (author feed)
Filed under: Jeff Gordon, Roush Fenway Racing, Sprint Cup

3 COMMENTS

What: Kobalt Tools 500
Where: Atlanta Motor Speedway, Hampton, Georgia.
When: Sunday, March 9, 1:00p/ET on FOX (Green Flag 2:00p/ET)
Distance: 334 laps, 500 miles
Weather: Sunny, with a high near 56. Northwest wind around 5 mph.
2007 Winner: Jimmie Johnson
Predictions: Keep Reading

Breaking Down the Kobalt Tools 500

Jack Roush's Community Relations

A hot topic all around Atlanta Motor Speedway this weekend has been the feud between Jack Roush and, well, the rest of the NASCAR garage.

Continue Reading NASCAR Warmup: Kobalt Tools 500

Gordon Wins Pole On Tricky Atlanta Track

Posted: Mar 7th 2008 10:30PM by Geoffrey Miller (author feed)
Filed under: Jeff Gordon, Hendrick Motorsports, Sprint Cup

7 COMMENTS

Jeff Gordon keyed his in-car radio as he crossed the start/finish line Friday night at Atlanta Motor Speedway to end his qualifying run and called his lap "decent".

The lap turned out to be a little more than decent as Gordon won the pole for Sunday's Kobalt Tools 500. The pole was the 64th of Gordon's career.

Gordon paced all drivers with a lap of 185.251mph, just quicker than teammate ~~Jimmie Johnson~~ Dale Earnhardt Jr.*** who qualified 2nd for Sunday's race with a lap of 184.862mph.

Gordon was pleasantly surprised with his lap because in an interview after his run he called the car "evil" -- a common theme among several drivers Friday at Atlanta. The teams had the chance to test the next-generation car at Atlanta last fall, however, Goodyear changed the tire combination for this race, its first at the track.

That took many drivers for a loop, including Denny Hamlin who heartily disagreed with the practice of changing the tire from testing to the race. By changing the tire combination, teams can use very little of their notes from testing.

Overall grip appears to be the biggest factor for Sprint Cup drivers as the both the straightaway speeds and corner speeds have changed dramatically from the old car at Atlanta. Last year, Ryan Newman won the pole at over a 193mph average.

Five drivers failed to make the field including Ken Schrader, Bill Elliott, Johnny Benson, Burney Lamar, and John Andretti. For a complete field rundown, click here.

(***= Edited. Shout out to Becky for catching my mistake!)

Roush Not Too Happy With Toyota Comments

Posted: Mar 7th 2008 6:20PM by Geoffrey Miller (author feed)
Filed under: Carl Edwards, Toyota, Roush Fenway Racing

30 COMMENTS

Jack Roush, co-owner of Roush Fenway Racing, was none too pleased with Toyota's Lee White Friday at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

White, a former Roush employee and now the head of Toyota Racing Development, was quoted Thursday as saying that the violation against Carl Edwards that resulted in severe penalties for the No. 99 team were intentional.

White's comments are below, and he is referring to the oil tank cover that was missing from Edwards' Ford after Sunday's win at Las Vegas:

"I guarantee you the cover bolts didn't fall out, because if they fall, the engine leaks and you can't run," White said. "If you want something to fall off, you fix it so it can."

Roush responded Friday with these comments about White:

"He's a real nice guy," Roush said of White, a former Roush employee. "I respect him, but he's also a great racer and would seek any advantage he might think he had an opportunity for."

In other words, Roush tactfully stated that he thought White's comments were out of line, incorrect, and tactless.

Continue Reading Roush Not Too Happy With Toyota Comments

NY Times Declares War on Sun Belt Hockey

Posted: Feb 14th 2008 1:10PM by Greg Wyshynski (author feed)
Filed under: General NHL, Thrashers, Lightning, NHL Economics

6 COMMENTS

For some, "balanced reporting" and "The New York Times" are mutually exclusive terms. Last weekend's notebook item titled "Enthusiasm Cools for Hockey's Foray Into the South" did little to dispel that notion; here was a doom and gloom report on the NHL in non-traditional markets -- an indictment of Tampa Bay, Phoenix, Nashville, Atlanta, Washington, Florida and Carolina -- that contained not a single interview with any of the defamed. Instead we have two financial consultants, a crackpot Marcel Dionne and NHLPA president Paul Kelly, keeping that Canadian wet dream of the NHL's return to Winnipeg alive.

There are some basic misconceptions and ingrained hypocrisy throughout the piece. Let's explore them together, shall we?

Continue Reading NY Times Declares War on Sun Belt Hockey

Terps Win Over Heels Just Beginning of Upsetting Day in ACC

Posted: Jan 19th 2008 11:51PM by Shiloh Carder (author feed)
Filed under: UNC Basketball, Georgia Tech Basketball, Duke Basketball, Maryland Basketball, NC State Basketball, ACC Basketball, Virginia Basktball

1 COMMENT

What a day of college basketball! Especially in the ACC. The three remaining unbeaten teams in ACC play all took the court on Saturday. Only one survived.

One of the teams that didn't was top-ranked North Carolina who saw their trouble spots all hit a perfect storm today against Maryland. They weren't hitting from the perimeter (they missed 18 of their 25 three-point attempts) and weren't tight with their defensive assignments. It hurt them against Clemson and Ga Tech, but they left both places with wins mainly because their outside shots were hitting. Today, they weren't. It was like watching the Georgetown game all over again.

On another point of the Triangle, Gavin Grant stole an inbounds pass and scored a layup with two seconds remaining to give NC State a 79-77 victory over #24 Miami. The win was the first in conference play for the Wolfpack who looked horrific in their first two ACC games and gives the Canes a two-game losing skid.