Bud Shootout
By Micah Roberts
VegasInsider.com
What a mix we have for Saturday’s night first taste of competitive racing. Budweiser, the primary sponsor for the race, has a new driver and team they are sponsoring. If you go back and look at the Daytona test sessions from early January you’ll see that the top times represent both the old and new guard for Budweiser. The best single car speeds during testing were led by Dale Earnhardt Jr while the best drafting speeds were led Kasey Kahne, Bud’s new driver.
Those times will be helpful this week when attempting to dissect who the winner of this 70 lap non-points race will be. Junior is the 3 to 1 favorite followed by his new teammates Jeff Gordon (4/1) and Jimmie Johnson (9/2). The Toyota’s will have a nice race and surprise everyone with how well they all collectively run led by Tony Stewart (5/1) and Denny Hamlin (16/1).
The obvious choice would seem like Junior just because of the sponsorship and him wanting to get out in the open. Generally the Bud Shootout is won by the Cup Series best of the best. One of the lone exceptions came two years ago when Denny Hamlin won as a rookie. Stewart took last seasons Bud Shootout and might be the best driver of the bunch in a short race format. He has the closest temperament to the late Dale Earnhardt who was a 6 time winner of this event and also a dominator of the Gatorade Twin 125’s qualifying races.
We have only seen Toyota in practice sessions, but thus far they look pretty strong and have made a good impression and a believer out of me, particularly in a short race format. Don’t expect the Chevy’s to lay down, but do expect the Toyota’s coming out with a feeling they have to prove something. Stewart’s nature and the circumstances give him the nod in this race.
TOP 5 Bud Shootout Finish Prediction
#20 Tony Stewart (5/1)
#11 Denny Hamlin (16/1)
#88 Dale Earnhardt Jr (7/2)
# 5 Casey Mears (15/1)
#48 Jimmie Johnson (4/1)
Local Las Vegas NASCAR Action
As the season nears to an official opening on January 17th we’ll attempt to keep everyone updated on what is happening as it relates to NASCAR such as specials, viewing, and of course wagering.
PT’s Pub loves NASCAR
The PT’s Pub chain across Nevada will be using NASCAR as their major marketing program all season with several gaming and drink specials during the race. We’ll update full details with the release next week, but if you saw the Kurt Busch PT’s Pub Miller Lite commercial last week before the Super Bowl then you should know they are pretty serious.
Miller Lite Challenges Budweiser?
Speaking of Miller Lite, it appears that they are getting a bit more aggressive in the beer NASCAR wars with Dale Earnhardt Jr trading in his beer can for an energy drink. Rumor has it that Miller Lite has challenged Budweiser, who now sponsors Kasey Kahne, to a substantial amount of money which will go to charity for which driver will finish higher in the final standings. The wagers would reportedly be made at the Palms Sports Book. Before Bud agrees to the deal they should settle on the odds because straight up, Kurt Busch and Miller Lite, should dominate Kahne and Bud. Busch should be at least a minus -500 favorite to finish with more points than Kahne.
Looking for a Place to HEAR the race?
The Ballpark Lounge and Jack Potters Quarter Club will again be showing all the NASCAR races with full sound blaring, which is hard to find in Las Vegas, and makes for a nice amenity for the NASCAR fan looking to hang out with friends, and foes, and drink a few cold Bud Light drafts. For the video poker or keno players they have a nice NASCAR bonus when hitting a 4 of a kind or 5 spot. They have a board with 43 positions and fill them out with the gamblers names throughout the week until full. When the drivers qualify, their car number is placed next to the name and that’s the driver you root for to finish 1st, 2nd, or 3rd. If your driver has a podium finish you win cash, points, and prizes.
Top Sports Books to wager on NASCAR this season
Most Sports Books offer odds to win for every NASCAR race, but only a select few offer Matchups and props weekly, and then even fewer offer wagering on the Busch and Truck Series.
The Palms, Caesars Palace properties, Hilton Superbook, and Station Casinos 14 Sports Books consistently offer the most on a weekly basis.
New to the mix this season will be Cal-Neva’s entry as new boss Nick Bogdonovich says he intends to offer a full slate of odds on the Cup races, including matchups. You can always count on Bogdonovich to offer everything he puts out at the most competitive of fair prices. Expect a very low hold percentage on the odds to win index.
Las Vegas race weekend a week earlier in ‘08
There is no off week between the California NASCAR race weekend and the Las Vegas race weekend which should spell bad news for the California track once again that hasn’t sold out since moving to February. Despite the west coast NASCAR Nation craving stock car racing just as bad as anywhere at this juncture of the year, a choice has to be made for many, “Where do I want to spend a weekend at in late February, Fontana, California or Las Vegas?”
After weighing out just the type of racing each track produces, the site lines of which one track has a bulking water well obstructing racing views on the backstretch, and the actual amenities the facility can offer, Vegas wins quite easily with most west coast fans. When factoring in what the city hosting the event has to offer, well, that’s not even fair. Las Vegas actually has tens of thousands of fans from the south, Midwest, and east coast that figure they’ll kill two birds with one stone with the Vegas race.
Next season should produce another Vegas race in the fall. If California and the ISC group were logical about it, they would move their first date closer to April as it originally was. I used to attend the California date in April every year because after trips to Daytona, Rockingham, and Las Vegas I would be kind of worn out. By the time April came around, I was really excited about Fontana and seeing a race again. I haven’t been to the February Fontana date since it moved.
Did they ever have back to back races in Rockingham and Charlotte?
Gatorade Duels on Thursday, Feb 14th
What better way to spend Valentines Day than with your girlfriend watching two action packed races. She’s going to love it………not so much. To better help your situation that day and turn the tables on her, have a pre-Valentines Day dinner just because you appreciate her so much. Have a single rose for her in the morning with an invite to a great “Night”. She’ll feel so indebted to you and so happy that you went all out with the thought process that her present to you will be to allow you to do something you love, watch NASCAR, bet, and drink beer.
If you don’t do any of the above it is likely that you’ll not only “Not” be allowed to watch the races, but that you’ll also have an angry woman nagging at you. If you stay with her for a few years despite her feeling slighted that day, it will always be brought up in situations where women tell stories that they feel can top one another with just how bad their “jerk” boyfriend is. You’ll hear about it forever. Avoid it all, TCB early!
We’ll have updates and thoughts on the race after the lineups are set. Updates should be posted by Tuesday, Feb 12th.
I cant wait for this shit to start
Kurt Busch claims pole for Bud Shootout
FOXSports.com
Kurt Busch will lead the 23-car field to the green flag in the 30th Annual Budweiser Shootout at Daytona this Saturday night.
Busch won the top starting spot through a random draw at Daytona International Speedway on Thursday night. Mark Martin will join Busch on the front row as he drew the second-place starting position.
The 23 drivers eligible for the Budweiser Shootout participated in the annual draw party on Thursday night to determine the starting lineup for the race. Each driver selected a Budweiser bottle containing a numbered flag. The number indicated the driver's starting position. Busch was the sixth driver to select a bottle and although he is excited about starting from the top spot on Saturday night, he said it only matters where he finishes.
"I think this race is a great, unique way to start the season," Busch said of the Budweiser Shootout. "There are only 23 guys that get the special treatment. I'm starting first but in this type of racing I could be 23rd on the first lap. This is a tight group of guys that are tough but we're looking forward to it."
Busch makes just his fifth start in the Budweiser Shootout while Martin, who made his Shootout debut in 1982, makes his 21st start in the annual event Saturday night.
"I drew the number two starting spot because I didn't want to start up front," Martin joked after making his selection. "I like starting in the back and passing everybody. But we were just talking about how much different it is from 1982. I just feel like it's a privilege to be in this race."
The 30th Budweiser Shootout is scheduled for an 8:30 p.m. EST start this Saturday. FOX will provide live television coverage of the event beginning with their pre-race show that will start at 8 p.m. EST.
Speedweeks has volatile start, with wrecks and flared tempers
February 8, 2008
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) -Speedweeks got off to a volatile start Friday night, with former NASCAR champions Tony Stewart and Kurt Busch at the center of it all.
Stewart and Busch were involved in the second of two wrecks during practice for Saturday night's Budweiser Shootout, an exhibition race that kicks off nine days of racing at Daytona International Speedway.
Busch was blocking Stewart, and contact between the two cars sent Busch spinning into the wall. Stewart then turned low and ran into teammate Denny Hamlin.
As Stewart tried to drive to the garage, Busch caught up and twice slammed into the side of his car. Busch then blocked Stewart from exiting the track, prompting some of Stewart's crew members to run toward pit road. They appeared to yell at Busch.
Both drivers were called into a meeting with NASCAR. Jeff Gordon and crew chief Chad Knaus burst into laughter as Stewart walked toward the NASCAR trailer with a throng of reporters and cameramen in tow.
Fans on an observation deck above the garage area shouted encouragement to Stewart, including, ``Get it on, Tony!''
NASCAR spokesman Jim Hunter said officials, upset with the banging between the two under caution, would meet with them again Saturday. It was undecided whether they will be punished.
``They made it pretty clear that these two drivers are going to have to really think about what they are doing when they are in that race car,'' Hunter said.
It ended a wild two sessions of practice for a no-points, 70-lap dash for cash.
``We are getting aggressive out there for not a lot of money on the line now,'' fellow driver Greg Biffle said.
Eleven of the 23 cars practicing for the exhibition were damaged, a possible indication of what's in store leading up to next week's season-opening Daytona 500.
``It's been a wild practice,'' Dale Earnhardt Jr. said. ``It'll be interesting to see how this all unfolds.''
The first crash had less emotion, but included more cars.
It started when Clint Bowyer nipped the back of Ryan Newman's car, sending Newman sliding up the track and collecting several others in an eight-car crash.
Two-time defending Cup series champion Jimmie Johnson, Gordon, Carl Edwards, Mark Martin, Bill Elliott and David Gilliland also were caught in the wreck.
``We're going to see a lot of things like this happening because the drafting is so severe that there is a lot of movement going on out there,'' Gordon said. ``I've been saying it's going to be exciting, and I think there's a whole lot more excitement to come.''
The crashes sent crews scrambling to prepare backup cars and gave everyone a little insight into what kind of racing might come with the Car of Tomorrow, which is making its Daytona debut.
``The racing should be spectacular,'' Edwards said. ``Cars are really all over the place.''
When practice resumed after the second wreck, only five cars turned laps on the 2 1/2-mile oval.
After practice ended, several drivers said some were being too aggressive, especially with a new car that was anything but predictable during testing.
``It almost seems like we were going for the win tonight,'' Reed Sorenson said.
Guys have had their hands full trying to keep the cars in line, especially in traffic. And since testing included no more than 14 cars at a time, the practice session was the first chance to get a feel for bigger packs of side-by-side racing.
``It was totally like 'Days of Thunder,''' J.J. Yeley said. ``I felt like Cole Trickle.''
Many predicted it would only get worse when the green flag drops Saturday night, when there's actually something at stake and even more drivers trying to take chances in hopes of getting to the front.
Given the rocky start, there's little doubt the Shootout will be much more than an exhibition race. It promised to provide an exciting start to Speedweeks.
``Every (driver) will be watching, whether it's on the top of a truck or in a suite or in their bus watching it on TV,'' series director John Darby said. ``They'll be watching it all.''
Driver to win The Bud Shootout
Jeff Gordon +450
Dale Earnhardt Jr +350
Jimmie Johnson +600
Tony Stewart +700
Kurt Busch +850
Mark Martin +1450
Martin Truex Jr +1450
Denny Hamlin +1350
Casey Mears +1600
Clint Bowyer +2000
Ryan Newman +2000
Jamie McMurray +2000
Greg Biffle +2500
Carl Edwards +1600
Kasey Kahne +2500
Field +1150
TheGreek
NASCAR doesn't fine Stewart, Busch but may revisit topic next week
ESPN.com
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Tony Stewart and Kurt Busch had better keep their distance during Saturday night's Budweiser Shootout.
That was the message from Sprint Cup series director John Darby on Saturday morning after meeting with the drivers to discuss their altercation during Friday's final practice for the Shootout.
No fines were given, although there could be some next week, but both drivers were told to keep a good distance from each other during practice and the exhibition race featuring 2007 pole winners and past Shootout champions.
"We've got to get their attention," NASCAR spokesman Jim Hunter said. "We're going to watch what happens tonight, and they better give each other plenty of space."
Two of NASCAR's most controversial characters got into a sheet metal exchange on pit road after an on-the-track incident that wrecked both of their cars halfway through Friday night's practice.
Both drivers immediately were summoned to the NASCAR hauler to meet with Darby and competition director Robin Pemberton. The only words spoken publicly by either driver -- both left through a side door without commenting -- came from Busch before entering the hauler.
"It's a great way to start off 2008," he said, clapping his hands together.
Neither driver spoke again after Saturday's meeting as they went immediately to their cars for the first practice for Sunday's qualifying for the Daytona 500. Busch later addressed the situation on the SPEED channel.
"We know we need to help each other out in the future so that doesn't happen again," he said.
Stewart was accompanied by team owner Joe Gibbs, who recently retired as head coach of the Washington Redskins. He was scheduled to discuss the incident after Saturday's second practice.
Meanwhile, NASCAR will be watching.
"We're going to continue to think about it and talk about it and handle it just like any other penalty," Hunter said. "If there are [penalties], we'll talk about them Monday or Tuesday."
The confrontation began when Stewart tapped Busch from behind, forcing Busch into the wall. Busch felt Stewart caused the accident and retaliated by bumping Stewart's car with his on the way to the pit road entrance.
Stewart felt Busch caused the accident by blocking.
"That was a racing accident, totally," Hunter said. "We looked at it from a bunch of different angles. The two drivers are the only people who really know what happened. When you look at the replays on television it is very inconclusive.
"What they emphasized in the meeting was you two guys better give each other a lot of space."
This wasn't the first time the two have clashed. Busch was fined $100,000 and docked 100 championship points in June after sending Stewart into a barrier at Dover and nearly hitting a member of Stewart's crew making additional contact on pit road.
He also was parked for the remainder of the race.
"Both of them are so competitive," said Hunter, noting any fine would be less than what Busch received because there were no crew members on pit road. "Both of them are hard-headed. And both of them want to win. There you have it."
Hunter said what happened showed the fine line between letting drivers be themselves as NASCAR chairman Brian France stated as a goal for 2008 and crossing the line where safety becomes an issue.
"I don't mean we want things like that to happen on the racetrack," he said. "But we like our guys to be emotional. If they're mad, vent it. Our responsibility is to make sure when they're in those race cars they don't lose their heads for safety reasons."
Perfect Start for Junior
Racingone.com
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - Dale Earnhardt Jr. started his career with Hendrick Motorsports perfectly Saturday night as he scored the victory in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Budweiser Shootout at Daytona International Speedway.
With the help from his teammate Jimmie Johnson, Earnhardt Jr. edged defending race winner Tony Stewart to pick-up his second career win in the annual season-opening all-star race.
"I had a blast those last few laps," Earnhardt Jr. said. "I got some great help from my teammates. I didn't win the race without Jimmie pushing me."
Earnhardt Jr. led 47 of the 70-lap race, the most in the race's thirty year history.
"It felt really good to get back like we are supposed to be," said Earnhardt Jr's crew chief Tony Eury Jr. "Junior just drove his butt off and it was really pleasing."
Stewart gave Toyota its best series finish with his runner-up run in the Home Depot Camry.
"It's hard to beat Dale Jr., he's one of the best restrictor-plate drivers there's ever been," Stewart said. "He learned a lot from his Dad, and I'm not sure he's not better than his Dad."
Jimmie Johnson, who drove his back-up car after wrecking his primary machine in Friday's practice session, came home third.
"I felt like Fred Flintstone in this thing trying to get this short track car to go (laughs)," Johnson said about his backup car. "We had a great effort. The car really drove well and that’s what kept me in the game. I made some smart moves and good decisions and was up there racing with the guys."
Jeff Gordon, also forced to a back-up after Friday's practice wreck, finished fourth with Reed Sorenson rounding out the top five.
"I had a great time tonight," Sorenson said. "I don’t really know if I had friends or didn't make friends but I did the best I could. I pushed whoever was in front of me and had a great time."
Earnhardt Jr. also won the first 20-lap segment of the race, which is split into two separate parts of 20 and 50 laps.
The opening segment ended under the event's first of four caution flags after Bill Elliott's No. 21 cut a tire.
"I've never wrecked so many race cars in my career, much less come here and do this," said Elliott, who also crashed in Friday night's Shootout practice. "There was something wrong with the front end and I was just trying to ride it out. I ended up just causing the tire to blow out, but that's the way it goes."
With 22 laps-to-go, David Gilliland's No. 38 Ford also blew a right-front tire and slapped the outside wall. The incident collected Martin Truex Jr., Greg Biffle and Kasey Kahne in the process. All the cars with the exception of Kahne retired to the garage.
Jamie McMurray was the only other driver that did not finish the race after he was involved in a single-car incident on the frontstretch.
The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will be back in action tomorrow with qualifying for the 50th running of the Daytona 500 at 1:15 p.m. (ET).
Matt McLaughlin's Thinkin' Out Loud: 2008 Bud Shootout Recap
The Key Moment: Even though Dale Earnhardt, Jr. had hung new teammate Jimmie Johnson out to dry a lap earlier, Johnson gave the No. 88 the push it needed on the final lap to beat Tony Stewart.
In a Nutshell: Maybe this Earnhardt / Hendrick pairing might work out all right after all.
Dramatic Moment: The last ten laps when the drivers got down to business had the crowd on its collective feet.
What They’ll Be Talking About Around the Water Cooler This Week
Combining Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s plate track prowess with Rick Hendrick’s excellent plate track equipment might just make Junior unbeatable at Talladega and Daytona.
Note to Junior: Running over your new boss after winning your first race with the team would have been very poor form. Note to Rick Hendrick: Please ensure the car has come to a stop before leaping in front of it.
I guess Tony Stewart didn’t get the memo about working with his extended Toyota teammates? Thank goodness.
“letting the boys be boys,” especially after Stewart allegedly punched Busch while the two were having a little chat in the NASCAR trailer.
Much was made of the fact that the Bud Shootout wasn’t a points race. But for sheer pointlessness, it can’t rival Daytona 500 qualifying. With only the top two drivers in the session locked into a starting spot, it’s a wonder some of the smaller teams even bother trying to take their runs against the clock. Likewise, the Twin 150 Qualifying races — once some of the most exciting racing of Speedweeks — have lost a lot of their luster, with the Top 35 teams in last year’s owner points locked into the field. With drivers having adopted the practice of dropping from good starting spots to the rear of the pack — treading cautiously until the final ten laps of the race — they might as well decide starting spots by lottery. Yeah, I’d say the thrill is gone… with all due apologies to B.B. King.
I find it interesting that Dario Franchitti is the media’s prohibitive favorite for Rookie of the Year honors, yet Franchitti and his team still haven’t landed a full season sponsor.
OK, it wasn’t a surprise for me or anyone else in this country; but still, seeing Dale Earnhardt, Jr. in anything other than the red No. 8 Bud car is going to take some getting used to.
Here’s something I don’t understand. They run the Bud Shootout at night… during the weekend, when most people have off. And they run the Qualifying races on Thursday, starting at 2:00 PM when most people are at work. Hmm… I’m seeing part of the problem with those declining ratings here.
He’s back… and just as irritating as ever. Saturday night, I was thinking, “Gee, I hope I win the Powerball lottery tonight so I can quit my job.” Then, I was thinking, “Damn, I hope Darrell Waltrip wins the Powerball lottery tonight so he can quit his job.”
This week, Bruton Smith said that as part of his future pre-race antics, he’d like to feature parachuting pachyderms. That’s right; elephants would (presumably) be pushed from airplanes, and then an automatically deploying parachute would allow them to float gently to earth. Um, fans might want to take cover when that happens. You thought pigeons and seagulls were bad? But it could never happen… right? Just remember, they laughed at Smith when he proposed building condos at his race tracks, as well.
The Hindenburg Award For Foul Fortune
Kurt Busch wrecked his primary car in the final moments of Friday night’s practice, then apparently got punched right in the yap by Stewart inside the NASCAR trailer, no less. He was forced to start at the rear of the field in a backup car, but raced to the front before incidental contact caused a rubbing fender to cut down a tire. He lost a lap, got it back with a caution, then raced to the front… only to lose the car and go for a wild ride, dirt tracking the car around the bottom while watching his chances for a good finish go up in smoke. Oh, and for the record, Busch was battling the flu all weekend.
Bill Elliott’s twentieth start in the Bud Shootout (or similar events with different names over the years) didn’t end well. He cut down a tire and hit the wall hard after having also destroyed his primary car in Friday’s final practice for the event.
Don’t you just know that Budweiser had to be wincing, seeing their former driver win the event they sponsor in his first race with a new sponsor?
The “Seven Come Fore Eleven” Award For Fine Fortune
Earnhardt felt he had a tire left loose on his final stop, but this time, it didn’t fall off on the race track.
Stewart survived that altercation with Kurt Busch in Friday’s practice and didn’t get his butt booted from the track for throwing a punch. He then went on to finish second in the Shootout, and nobody even made fun of his boy band haircut. Let’s just say it’s going to take a few more years without barbers or razors for Stewart to pull off that Jerry Garcia “fat era” look.
Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon both wrecked their primary cars in Friday night’s practice (there was a lot of that going around) and weren’t very happy with their backup cars in the first twenty lap segment. Gordon even felt he had an engine going flat; still, they both came away with Top 5 finishes.
Worth Noting
* Well, it looks like another long season for everyone else at first blush, as Hendrick-owned cars claimed four of the Top 6 finishing positions Saturday night. And something else hasn’t changed, either… Casey Mears’ No. 5 car was found to be too low during post-race inspection. Conspiracists, start your engines!
* The Top 10 finishers drove five Chevys, three Toyotas, and two Dodges. The best finishing Ford was Carl Edwards, who finished twelfth and hopefully got his long overdue bathroom break.
* Tony Stewart and Jimmie Johnson were the only two drivers to post Top 10 finishes in the 2007 and 2008 Bud Shootouts. Mark Martin was the only other driver with Top 10s in both events. Stewart now has Top 5 finishes in the last four Shootouts.
What’s the Points?
There aren’t any. I just wish it would stay that way all season.
Overall Rating (On a scale of one to six beer cans, with one being a stinker and a six pack an instant classic): We’ll give this one four-and-a-half cans of cold Budweisers. Yeah, good luck with that Kasey Kahne thing, guys.
Next Up: The Twin 150 Qualifying races are slated for Thursday, with the Daytona 500 to follow next Sunday. Temper your enthusiasm.
frontstretch.com