- Home
- TV Shows
-
TV Schedule
-
SPEED Showcase
-
- NASCAR
-
- Formula 1
- Auto Racing
- Moto Racing
- Cars
- Bikes
- Store
- Social
- Mobile
- Deals
- Videos
- Photos
Sprint Cup
CUP: Friday Talladega Notebook
Greg Biffle leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup points standings...
Greg Biffle, driver of the No. 16 3M Ford, walks in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series garage. (Photo: Getty Images)
Editor’s note: This notebook will be updated several times throughout the day. Check back for additional news items.
GAME ON FOR BIFFLE — Greg Biffle had his worst race of the season last weekend at Richmond International Raceway, but he still comes into Sunday’s Aaron’s 499 at Talladega Speedway with a points lead of 5 over Dale Earnhardt Jr. and 9 over Denny Hamlin. Biffle said Friday that where he is in points at this time of year doesn’t affect how he and his No. 16 Roush Fenway Racing team race each weekend.
“We approach, whether we are the points leader or not, the same way as everybody else,” said Biffle. “It is kind of funny. A lot has been talked about how people might be racing careful because every point counts because of the way it came down at the end of the season with Carl (Edwards) and Tony (Stewart).”
Biffle said the emphasis on points in NASCAR’s regular season is overblown.
“If you really think about it, the points right now don’t count right now, provided if I make the Chase, it doesn’t matter if I finish seventh, fifth, 13th or second,” said Biffle. “The only way I can get points right now for the Chase is to win. To me, sixth or seventh means no difference simply from the fact that the only way I can get points for the Chase is to win. Our importance right now is to win. Yeah, we want to keep leading the points and that is important but in order to win the championship we’ve gotta win races to get bonus points for the Chase.”
PARTY ABOUT TO HAPPEN? — Much has been written already this week about Dale Earnhardt Jr. being close to finally ending his 138-race non-winning streak. What would it mean if Earnhardt, who is second in the NASCAR Sprint Cup points standings, could break the streak at Talladega Superspeedway, a place where Earnhardt Jr. won five races and his late father won a record 10?
“I think we all know what that would be like,” said Jeff Gordon, Earnhardt’s teammate at Hendrick Motorsports. “This has always been Earnhardt country here in Talladega. That was built by Earnhardt Sr. and what he did here. He just did amazing things in the race car here that would not only get the fans excited, but would boggle the minds of the competitors. It frustrates you in a lot of ways, because he was doing things you didn’t think were capable by just him alone. Yet he was and Junior has been able to carry that on. He is a great drafter he has got the support behind him. When he does something great here you could be a mile away from here and you know it.”
Asked how he thought fans would react, Martin Truex Jr. of Michael Waltrip Racing added, “They'd probably tear it down. They'd probably tear the stands down. It would be crazy, for sure.”
SMOKE SIGNALS — A late-race caution flag — and a subsequent poor pit stop — at Richmond International Raceway last Saturday night cost Tony Stewart what looked like a sure victory. Friday at Talladega Superspeedway, Stewart said he was still disappointed about losing the race, but thought NASCAR acted properly in throwing the yellow.
During the Richmond race, Stewart said he thought the caution was for a plastic bottle, but NASCAR Vice President of Competition Robin Pemberton later claimed it was for a piece of metal.
“They (NASCAR) picked it up. They know what it is,” Stewart said. “It looked like a bottle to me. But, the end result is the same thing. It still cost us an opportunity. It still cost us a win. The good thing is, no matter what it is on the race track, you can’t have a race car hit it and then go in the stands and hurt somebody. You (know) that they did what they needed to do, but you just hate the timing of it. And, you hate that it even happened in the first place.”
Stewart said he had no concerns about NASCAR finding debris.
“I think NASCAR has done a really good job in the last year or so of making sure if there is a debris caution, it’s not a just mystery caution,” Stewart said. “There is something out there that they are picking up. I’ve got the trust in them that when they through the debris caution that there is something out there. ... They have pretty good eyes around the race track to make sure that there’s not stuff laying out there.”
FORD’S NEW JOB ONE — The vacation is over for Mike Ford, who on Monday was named crew chief for Aric Almirola and the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford Fusion. Friday morning at Talladega Superspeedway, Ford said he was glad to be back to work after being unemployed since he was let go from Joe Gibbs Racing after the end of the 2011 season.
“Through the winter and into the beginning of the race season I have never been able to spend time at home with family and friends and do things,” said Ford. “We took four or five trips with family and it was awesome. ... We’ve just been having a good time traveling and spending time with the family. I have actually been working in the garage a lot and have grease under my fingernails. I can actually still work on cars. I’ve just been having fun.”
But now it’s back to work and time for Ford to get caught up on what he missed.
“The difficult part of this is that it is so technical,” Ford said. “Ten years ago making a change midseason wouldn’t be that big of a deal but there are so many reasons for evolving to where you are in this sport. I am the guy that is on the steep learning curve even though I’ve got the experience behind me and a good record behind me. It is very difficult to come in and be able to take advantage of your resources from day one.”
ETC… — Virginia-based Federated Auto Parts will be title sponsor for the Sept. 8 Federated Auto Parts 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Richmond International Raceway. … Rockwell Tools will be primary sponsor for Kasey Kahne and the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet at Darlington Raceway next week. It will be Rockwell’s first Sprint Cup sponsorship.
Tom Jensen is the Editor in Chief of SPEED.com, Senior NASCAR Editor at RACER and a contributing Editor for TruckSeries.com. You can follow him online at twitter.com/tomjensen100.
GAME ON FOR BIFFLE — Greg Biffle had his worst race of the season last weekend at Richmond International Raceway, but he still comes into Sunday’s Aaron’s 499 at Talladega Speedway with a points lead of 5 over Dale Earnhardt Jr. and 9 over Denny Hamlin. Biffle said Friday that where he is in points at this time of year doesn’t affect how he and his No. 16 Roush Fenway Racing team race each weekend.
“We approach, whether we are the points leader or not, the same way as everybody else,” said Biffle. “It is kind of funny. A lot has been talked about how people might be racing careful because every point counts because of the way it came down at the end of the season with Carl (Edwards) and Tony (Stewart).”
Biffle said the emphasis on points in NASCAR’s regular season is overblown.
“If you really think about it, the points right now don’t count right now, provided if I make the Chase, it doesn’t matter if I finish seventh, fifth, 13th or second,” said Biffle. “The only way I can get points right now for the Chase is to win. To me, sixth or seventh means no difference simply from the fact that the only way I can get points for the Chase is to win. Our importance right now is to win. Yeah, we want to keep leading the points and that is important but in order to win the championship we’ve gotta win races to get bonus points for the Chase.”
PARTY ABOUT TO HAPPEN? — Much has been written already this week about Dale Earnhardt Jr. being close to finally ending his 138-race non-winning streak. What would it mean if Earnhardt, who is second in the NASCAR Sprint Cup points standings, could break the streak at Talladega Superspeedway, a place where Earnhardt Jr. won five races and his late father won a record 10?
“I think we all know what that would be like,” said Jeff Gordon, Earnhardt’s teammate at Hendrick Motorsports. “This has always been Earnhardt country here in Talladega. That was built by Earnhardt Sr. and what he did here. He just did amazing things in the race car here that would not only get the fans excited, but would boggle the minds of the competitors. It frustrates you in a lot of ways, because he was doing things you didn’t think were capable by just him alone. Yet he was and Junior has been able to carry that on. He is a great drafter he has got the support behind him. When he does something great here you could be a mile away from here and you know it.”
Asked how he thought fans would react, Martin Truex Jr. of Michael Waltrip Racing added, “They'd probably tear it down. They'd probably tear the stands down. It would be crazy, for sure.”
SMOKE SIGNALS — A late-race caution flag — and a subsequent poor pit stop — at Richmond International Raceway last Saturday night cost Tony Stewart what looked like a sure victory. Friday at Talladega Superspeedway, Stewart said he was still disappointed about losing the race, but thought NASCAR acted properly in throwing the yellow.
During the Richmond race, Stewart said he thought the caution was for a plastic bottle, but NASCAR Vice President of Competition Robin Pemberton later claimed it was for a piece of metal.
“They (NASCAR) picked it up. They know what it is,” Stewart said. “It looked like a bottle to me. But, the end result is the same thing. It still cost us an opportunity. It still cost us a win. The good thing is, no matter what it is on the race track, you can’t have a race car hit it and then go in the stands and hurt somebody. You (know) that they did what they needed to do, but you just hate the timing of it. And, you hate that it even happened in the first place.”
Stewart said he had no concerns about NASCAR finding debris.
“I think NASCAR has done a really good job in the last year or so of making sure if there is a debris caution, it’s not a just mystery caution,” Stewart said. “There is something out there that they are picking up. I’ve got the trust in them that when they through the debris caution that there is something out there. ... They have pretty good eyes around the race track to make sure that there’s not stuff laying out there.”
FORD’S NEW JOB ONE — The vacation is over for Mike Ford, who on Monday was named crew chief for Aric Almirola and the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford Fusion. Friday morning at Talladega Superspeedway, Ford said he was glad to be back to work after being unemployed since he was let go from Joe Gibbs Racing after the end of the 2011 season.
“Through the winter and into the beginning of the race season I have never been able to spend time at home with family and friends and do things,” said Ford. “We took four or five trips with family and it was awesome. ... We’ve just been having a good time traveling and spending time with the family. I have actually been working in the garage a lot and have grease under my fingernails. I can actually still work on cars. I’ve just been having fun.”
But now it’s back to work and time for Ford to get caught up on what he missed.
“The difficult part of this is that it is so technical,” Ford said. “Ten years ago making a change midseason wouldn’t be that big of a deal but there are so many reasons for evolving to where you are in this sport. I am the guy that is on the steep learning curve even though I’ve got the experience behind me and a good record behind me. It is very difficult to come in and be able to take advantage of your resources from day one.”
ETC… — Virginia-based Federated Auto Parts will be title sponsor for the Sept. 8 Federated Auto Parts 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Richmond International Raceway. … Rockwell Tools will be primary sponsor for Kasey Kahne and the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet at Darlington Raceway next week. It will be Rockwell’s first Sprint Cup sponsorship.
Tom Jensen is the Editor in Chief of SPEED.com, Senior NASCAR Editor at RACER and a contributing Editor for TruckSeries.com. You can follow him online at twitter.com/tomjensen100.
Shake and Bake: Recent Posts
-
ICYMI: The Biff Stands By Decision To Not Help Edwards »
-
Blowout Blame Game: Is It The Tire Or The Crew Chief? »
-
Biffle Loves It When The #48 Crashes Trying To Catch Him »
-
Rubbin' Is ... Amazing? Think You Can "Finish That Phrase"? »
-
Harvick And Labonte Toss First Pitch, Mocked By Stenhouse, Jr. »
-
Last Lap: Déjà vu ... Mike Harmon Has Turned Himself In »
-
Ricky Vs. Danica: Michigan Edition »
-
Feud Of The Week: Junior Nation Vs. The Racing Gods »
Latest Gallery
LATEST HEADLINES: NASCAR
-
Winged Sprint-Car Wreck Claims Jason Leffler
Jason Leffler lost his life Wednesday night in a winged sprint-car… -
MCREYNOLDS: Dover Showed Gen-6 Car Is Strong
The biggest storyline of the year is the introduction of the Generation… -
CUP: Richard Petty Motorsports Expands Development Program
Young drivers join new Petty program... -
CUP: Monster Mile Gets Toyotas
Toyota teams find setbacks at Dover... -
CUP: Kez Is On The Down-Low
Bard Keselowski's car too low after race... -
CUP: Dover Power Rankings
Despite a rare and costly mistake, Jimmie Johnson holds onto the… -
CUP: Montoya Edges Closer To Oval Win
Juan Pablo Montoya loses shot at first victory on oval… - More News
