This Week in Auto Racing September 26 - 28
Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - Round three in the "Chase for the Sprint Cup" championship heads through the heartland of America to the Kansas Speedway. The Nationwide Series will join the Sprint Cup Series at Kansas. Meanwhile, Formula one gears up for the inaugural, night running of the Singapore Grand Prix on the Singapore Street Circuit.
Sprint Cup Series
Camping World RV 400 - Kansas Speedway - Kansas City, KS
After winning the first two races in the "Chase," Greg Biffle has emerged as a serious championship contender as he trails leader Carl Edwards by just 10 points.
Last Sunday's race at the Dover International Speedway came down to a battle among Roush Fenway Racing teammates Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth and Biffle in the final 30 laps. Biffle ended up winning the war as he passed Kenseth for the lead with eight laps to go and held it for his second victory of the season.
"The reality of it is we haven't been good enough in the past, and our car hasn't been good enough to win," Biffle said. "I felt like I'm going to be more involved in these last 10 races leading up to the Chase, to be more involved with the adjustments on the car, understanding what everybody's doing, trying to understand it a little bit better. It's starting to pay dividends for me."
Biffle returns to the Kansas Speedway this weekend as the defending race champion. He held off Clint Bowyer and Jimmie Johnson in the final laps before the race ended under caution to score his only victory of the 2007 season. If Biffle wins on Sunday, he will join Johnson as the only drivers to win three or more consecutive "Chase" races. Johnson won four consecutive races before the season-ending event at Homestead last year. He also won three straight in 2004, the inaugural year of the "Chase."
"We went to Kansas last year and won there," Biffle said. "We would certainly like to defend our victory, and now that we're in the "Chase," it would make a bigger deal for us. That's one of the tracks I'm looking forward to."
Johnson, who is also 10 points behind Edwards, is attempting to become the first driver since Cale Yarborough to win three consecutive Cup championships. Yarborough captured his titles from 1976-78.
Perhaps the biggest shocker in this year's "Chase" so far is Kyle Busch's fall from first to last in the standings. Busch started the playoffs with a 30- point lead, but after a 34th-place finish at New Hampshire and a 43rd-place run at Dover, he has dropped to 12th in the standings, 210 points behind Edwards.
"We're out of the title hunt," Busch said after his engine blew up during the mid-stages of last Sunday's race at Dover.
But is he done?
If Busch has any hopes of getting back into the championship, he'll need to improve considerably at Kansas. Johnson overcame a 165-point deficit in the final seven races to win his first Cup title in 2006.
Busch has struggled at Kansas, scoring just one top-10 finish in his first four races there. He finished seventh at Kansas two years ago and 41st last year.
Jeff Gordon is currently eighth in the standings, and trails Edwards by 118 points. Gordon has yet to win a race this year but has two victories at Kansas -- the first two events there from 2001-02.
"We've been working extremely hard on our mile-and-a-half speedway program, Gordon said. "It hasn't been up to par for us this year on those tracks. We had a great test at Kentucky last week. I feel like a lot of the things that we learned there we can apply to Kansas. I think if any track is similar to Kentucky, it is Kansas. So we're looking forward to seeing if those things can apply and if we can get ourselves going down the right path."
Kenseth's second-place run at Dover certainly helped him rebound from his disappointing 40th-place finish at New Hampshire. He moved from 12th to 10th in the standings. But he needs to continue his momentum at Kansas, where he has finished 23rd and 35th in the last two races there.
Kevin Harvick, currently fifth in points (-101), recorded his eighth straight top-10 finish with a sixth-place run at Dover. Harvick hasn't won a Cup race since last year's Daytona 500, but consistency has kept him right in the game.
As for Edwards, it's homecoming time as the Columbia, MO native considers the 1.5-mile Kansas track his "home track." His best finish in four races there is third, coming in 2005, his first year in the "Chase." Edwards won a Craftsman Truck Series race in 2004 at Kansas.
Clint Bowyer also heads home this week. Bowyer, from nearby Emporia, KS, sits sixth in the rankings and trails Edwards by 106 markers. He finished second at Kansas last year and ninth in his first race there in 2006.
Nationwide Series
Kansas Lottery 300 - Kansas Speedway - Kansas City, KS
The battle for the Nationwide Series championship between Clint Bowyer and Carl Edwards continues this weekend at the Kansas Speedway.
Edwards' fifth-place finish coupled with a 10th-place run for Bowyer last Saturday at Dover allowed Edwards to move within 186 points of Bowyer with six races remaining in the season.
Halfway through the race, Bowyer and Edwards made contact as they both exited pit road, with Bowyer sustaining damage to the front end of his Chevrolet. He had to make another stop under the caution for additional repairs.
Bowyer has yet to win a Nationwide race at Kansas but has finished fourth and fifth in the last two races there.
"It's going to be a lot of fun to go back there and be racing against Carl for the championship," Bowyer said. "It's kind of a Kansas/Missouri border war. I remember going to the KU/MU game at Arrowhead Stadium last year and this kind of reminds me of that. It's the Kansas boy against the Missouri boy. Hopefully, we'll put it on them."
Edwards hopes his track record will improve at Kansas, where he has scored just one top-10 finish in three races there. He finished sixth at Kansas in 2006 but has finished 27th and 38th in his two other races there.
Kyle Busch is the defending race winner at Kansas. Busch grabbed the lead from Matt Kenseth with 17 laps to go and then held off Kenseth at the finish for his third victory of the 2007 season.
Busch won last weekend at Dover after leading 157 of 207 laps.
Formula One
Singapore Grand Prix - Singapore Street Circuit - Singapore
History will be made in Formula One this weekend as the inaugural Singapore Grand Prix marks the first ever night race for the circuit. The race will run through the Singapore metropolis on an all-new anticlockwise street course, the first F1 event held on the streets of an Asian city. Singapore is the second new venue on the 2008 calendar, joining Valencia, Spain earlier in the season.
With four races remaining this year, McLaren's Lewis Hamilton holds only a one-point lead over Ferrari's Felipe Massa in the World Championship standings.
"I'm looking forward to visiting the country, trying the food, seeing what the track is like, seeing what it will be like to race on," Hamilton said. "It is going to be an exciting weekend. The race will be quite a fun challenge, and I like a challenge. I've never raced at night before, but I don't think it is going to be a problem. It doesn't seem to be a problem in other sports and there have been huge preparations for this, so I think it will be great."
The FIA's International of Court of Appeal on Tuesday denied Hamilton's appeal to overturn a 25-second penalty that cost him the victory in the Belgian Grand Prix earlier this month.
Hamilton appeared before a five-judge panel in Paris on Monday to contest the timed penalty that was assessed to the British driver by race stewards at Spa-Francorchamps after he gained an advantage by cutting a chicane while battling Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen for the lead in the final laps.
McLaren officials filed an appeal two weeks ago on the grounds their driver had relinquished the lead back to Raikkonen immediately following the incident. However, the court rejected McLaren's right to appeal.
"Having heard the explanations of the parties, the Court has concluded that the appeal is inadmissible," the FIA stated in their decision.
The FIA also noted, "Article 152 of the International Sporting Code states that drive-through penalties are 'not susceptible to appeal'."
The forecast in Singapore this weekend calls for rain. Last week, Torro Rosso's Sebastian Vettel survived wet track conditions at Monza to capture the Italian Grand Prix. The 21-year-old German driver became the youngest grand prix winner in the history of F1.
"I won't go to Singapore and feel like a hero and the superstar and expect another race win just like that," Vettel said. "It's not going to be like that. Where I come from and how I grew up, I am down-to-earth enough to realize what happened (at Monza) and to understand the approach for the next races."
Although this is the fifth and final street circuit on this year's schedule, the Asian region is not unfamiliar with motorsports. In the 1960s and early 1970s a Formula Libre event was staged at Singapore's Thomson Road circuit and, more recently, motorsports fans have been able to enjoy Formula One at Sepang, home of the Malaysian Grand Prix, 185 miles to the north.
Auto Racing Glance
Camping World RV 400 - Kansas Speedway - Kansas City, KS
Schedule: Friday, qualifying (ESPN2, 4 p.m.); Sunday, race (ABC, 2 p.m.).
Track: Kansas Speedway (tri-oval, 1.5 miles, 15 degrees banking in turns).
Race distance: 400 miles, 267 laps.
Last race: Greg Biffle made it 2-for-2 in the Chase for the championship, making another late pass - this time with nine laps to go - and holding off Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards at Dover. Biffle, the winner the previous week at New Hampshire, is tied for second place in the Chase standings with Jimmie Johnson, 10 points behind Edwards.
Last year: Darkness finally ended the disaster at Kansas Speedway, where the Chase for the championship field imploded and the finish was in question long after winner Biffle crossed the finish line. Biffle scored his first win of 2007 by winning a race that was stopped twice for rain delays, was shortened 85 miles because of darkness, ended under caution and saw six Chase drivers finish 29th or worse.
Fast facts: Biffle, who has three career top-five finishes at Kansas, is the first driver to win the first two races in the Chase. He entered the 10-race stretch ninth in the standings and mired in a 33-race winless drought. ... Edwards' only career victory at Kansas came with the truck series in 2004. He finished 37th in this race last year. ... Non-Chase drivers have claimed three of the last four Kansas events. Joe Nemechek won the 2004 race, but hasn't visited Victory Lane since. ... Elliott Sadler is expected to make his 350th career Cup start this weekend, while Edwards will reach the 150-start milestone. ... AJ Allmendinger lost his ride at Red Bull Racing on Tuesday, and it wasn't clear if the team will let him finish out the final eight races of season. Allmendinger is in his second season driving the No. 84 Toyota, but Red Bull opted not to renew his contract for the 2009 season.
Next race: AMP Energy 500, Oct. 5, Talladega, Ala.
Kansas Lottery 300 - Kansas Speedway - Kansas City, KS
Schedule: Saturday, qualifying, 10:35 a.m. (Speed Channel, 11:30 a.m., tape), race (ESPN2, 3 p.m.).
Track: Kansas Speedway (tri-oval, 1.5 miles, 15 degrees banking in turns).
Race distance: 300 miles, 200 laps.
Last race: Kyle Busch made it eight victories this season in the Nationwide Series, leading 157 laps and absolutely dominating to win in a green-white-checkered flag finish at Dover International Speedway. That was win No. 19 this season for Busch in the Nationwide, Trucks and Sprint Cup races.
Last year: Busch slipped inside of Matt Kenseth with just over 17 laps to go, then held off Kenseth's challenges after a late restart to win at Kansas Speedway. But Busch's car failed the postrace inspection because the intake manifold did not meet NASCAR specifications.
Fast facts: Busch is two wins shy of Sam Ard's series record set in 1983. Kevin Harvick won nine races en route to the championship in 2006. ... Points leader Clint Bowyer was involved in a pit-road accident with Carl Edwards and David Reutimann at the halfway mark at Dover and severely damaged the front fenders of his No. 2 Chevrolet. But Bowyer rallied to finish 10th and holds a 186-point lead over Edwards. ... Brad Keselowski, third in the standings, finished third at Dover after posting finishes of 33rd and 21st, respectively, in his two previous starts. Hendrick Motorsports announced Monday it will enter Keselowski in two Cup races this season to test him for NASCAR's top level. ... Mark Martin, the series' career leader in wins (48) and poles (38), is expected to compete this weekend. He won at Las Vegas on March 1 and finished fourth at Michigan last month.
Next race: Dollar General 300, Oct. 10, Concord, N.C.
Singapore Grand Prix - Singapore Street Circuit - Singapore
Schedule: Saturday, qualifying (Speed Channel, 10 a.m.); Sunday, race (Speed Channel, 8 a.m.).
Track: Streets of Singapore (road course, 3.149 miles, 23 turns).
Race distance: 192.089 miles, 61 laps.
Last race: Sebastian Vettel became the youngest driver to win a F1 race, finishing first in a wet Italian Grand Prix he started from the pole. The 21-year-old German driver edged Heikki Kovalainen of McLaren by 12.5 seconds on the slick Monza circuit to give Toro Rosso its first ever win. Fernando Alonso, a two-time world champion, was 22 when he won the 2003 Hungarian GP. Lewis Hamilton worked his way up from 15th to finish seventh, maintaining his lead in the overall drivers' standings.
Last year: Inaugural race.
Fast facts: This event will mark the first-ever night GP in F1 history. ... Hamilton lost his appeal to overturn his penalty from the Belgian Grand Prix on Tuesday, leaving him with a one-point lead over Felipe Massa with four races remaining. Hamilton finished first at Spa this month but was docked 25 seconds and dropped to third place for cutting a chicane. The victory was awarded to Massa. ... Vettel is also the youngest driver in series history to start from the pole.
Next race: Japanese Grand Prix, Oct. 12, Fuji
F1 in Singapore for first-ever night race
September 24, 2008
BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) -Forget their inexperience with night racing and the strong possibility of rain. The main concern for Formula One drivers ahead of Sunday's Singapore Grand Prix is how they'll sleep.
As the F1 show rolls into its newest town this week with McLaren's Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari's Felipe Massa staging a late-season fight for the championship, drivers on the circuit are also preparing for its first-ever night race.
When it was first announced, teams had questions about the lighting, the potential for glare off the surface if it rained, and the wisdom of combining the novelty of a night race with a newly constructed track that none of the drivers has seen, let alone driven on.
Most teams have come up with video-game-like simulators to allow their drivers to get a feel for the track before they arrive, but the major mystery remains the glare caused by rain in tropical Singapore.
``I would have welcomed the chance to test on the track, especially in the rain,'' BMW's Nick Heidfeld said. ``Rain combined with the artificial light is the great unknown for me with this race.''
But as the event has drawn nearer, and the weekend schedule completed, more pragmatic questions have arisen.
With Saturday qualifying not due to start until 10 p.m. local time and Sunday's race at 8 p.m., what time should the drivers wake up? Since the timing of the race is to fit in with European afternoon viewing habits, should the teams and drivers be equally unchanged in their preparations?
Red Bull's David Coulthard has opted for a unique prerace preparation.
``I am staying up late at night, I am going out to nightclubs, and I'm eating a lot of carrots because they apparently help you to see better in the dark,'' Coulthard joked.
Honda's Rubens Barrichello had to look twice at his team's weekend itinerary that had its staff leaving the circuit at 3:30 a.m., describing it as ``crazy.'' But the Brazilian also appeared relaxed, saying he will pursue ``a lively nightlife to get used to the schedule''.
McLaren is leaving nothing to chance in maintaining its European time zone in exile - ordering its Singapore hotel to black out the windows, hold phone calls and prevent housekeeping staff from rousing any team members until the afternoon.
The initial caution expressed by teams about night racing has largely given way to excitement, which has been matched by F1 fans, with organizers saying last week that all but a few hundred of the 80,000 tickets had been sold.
``In Singapore the action will also be taking place at night and that in an Asian metropolis and against an amazing backdrop,'' BMW team principal Mario Thiessen said. ``This will give the event even more appeal and excitement.''
``You only need to think of the special atmosphere you get at a football match under floodlights - the surroundings melt into the background, the action itself takes center stage. I'm expecting this premiere in Singapore to be the highlight of the year.''
Hamilton, who leads Massa by one point in the championship standings, was not worried about competing at night.
``It doesn't seem to be a problem in other sports and there have been huge preparations for this, so it will be great,'' the British driver said.
Hamilton also said it would be hard to deliberately resist the clock.
``Apparently not acclimatizing is much harder than adapting, because your body naturally wants to change,'' Hamilton said. ``For the drivers, our meal, waking and sleeping rhythms will all be in European time, for example we will get up early afternoon for breakfast, have supper at 1 a.m. and go to bed at around 3 a.m.''
Defending champion Kimi Raikkonen has not won a race since April, with his Ferrari struggling for grip in wet conditions over the past two rain-affected races. He's hoping a change of time zone will provide a jolt.
``I enjoy evenings and night time more anyhow,'' the Finn said. ``I like to sleep until noon every day so for me this seems the perfect venue. I am more awake in the evenings than in the mornings.''