166 replies to this topic

[OfficeLinebacker]

Hi all, just getting the thread started. Will someone please put up the jayski and NASCAR.com tune in links?

This is the site of the proposed $5 million prize race in IRL at the end of their season--they'll probably be talking about it quite a lot.

[SimMaker]

Just clicked your craziest crash link......wow.

I'm about this weekend, what time is greenflag in the UK?

[whitewaterMkII]

This is the site of the proposed $5 million prize race in IRL at the end of their season--they'll probably be talking about it quite a lot.

Depends.
I'm fairly sure that the France's have washed their hands of the irl, since they no longer use any of ISC's tracks. They may frown on too much of
the sham offer of 5 mil from the irl on air.
On the other hand, Bruton Smith is a huckster of the same strain as Randy Bernard. Both of them can benefit from the offer, if Bruton/Bernard had a lick of sense they would find a way to get an irl car on the track sometime this weekend, if possible.
It's Brutons track so any increase in the anemic attendance of the irl races would be welcome later this year.

Edited by whitewaterMkII, 04 March 2011 - 14:42.

[Atreiu]

Who has the best record at Las Vegas???

[Crafty]

Jayski link : http://jayski.com/ne...tory?id=6142698

Green flag scheduled for 3:14pm et or 8:14pm UK time.

Additional info from Jayski:
NASCAR honoring Wendell Scott at Vegas: In honor of the 50th anniversary of African-American racing pioneer Wendell Scott's first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start, all Nationwide Series and NASCAR Sprint Cup cars competing this weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway will display a commemorative decal bearing Scott's image. Scott made his first start in NASCAR's premier series 50 years ago - March 4, 1961 - in Spartanburg, S.C. On Dec. 1, 1963 in Jacksonville, Fla., Scott became the first African-American to win a NASCAR Sprint Cup event. Drive for Diversity drivers Michael Cherry, who last season became the first African-American to win at Tri-County Speedway, and Ryan Gifford, who in 2010 became the first African-American driver in NASCAR K&N Pro Series history to win a pole, will join Scott's daughter Deborah Scott at LVMS to further recognize this special occasion



Far as the indy race goes I saw a quote somewhere that said IRL will help drivers who wish to take part with practice sessions etc. Wonder if that will tempt some NASCAR boys across ?

[Villes Gilleneuve]

Who has the best record at Las Vegas???

this guy:

[Atreiu]

...mmmkay.

[whitewaterMkII]

this guy:Frank Sinatra

Not even...
They call him the King for a reason....

[Marbles]

I must say, I'm really looking forward to this weekend's race. The previous two races have me convinced that the worst aspects of the CoT have been fixed and drivers can once again bump and run. The last two races looked like genuine stock car races and that's a great thing.

[Henri Greuter]

NASCAR at Las vegas,

now....

hmmm..

Why do I get such a feeling like "a good homecoming" about this....


henri

[Crafty]

I must say, I'm really looking forward to this weekend's race. The previous two races have me convinced that the worst aspects of the CoT have been fixed and drivers can once again bump and run. The last two races looked like genuine stock car races and that's a great thing.

How much do you think this is due to tech changes this year like the front splitter removal ?

[Crafty]

Who has the best record at Las Vegas???

According to : http://www.driverave...k.php?trk_id=12

Las Vegas since March 1, 1998Driver		Wins	Races	Top5's	Top10's	Top20's	Avg.Finish	Avg.Start	Poles	LapsLed	LapsCompleted	DNFJimmie Johnson	4	9	4	5	7	10.00		15.3		0	320	99.88%		0Jeff Burton	2	13	5	8	12	9.92		18.8		0	280	97.63%		0Matt Kenseth	2	11	5	6	10	11.73		19.2		0	447	90.14%		1Mark Martin	1	13	6	10	10	12.77		13.2		0	259	89.89%		2Jeff Gordon	1	13	6	7	10	13.31		13.8		0	453	97.60%		2Sterling Marlin	1	10	2	3	6	19.20		23.7		0	75	96.87%		2Kyle Busch	1	7	3	4	6	11.71		7.3		2	113	86.46%		1Carl Edwards	1	6	1	2	5	12.67		14.0		0	91	100.00%		0

So seems watch out for Kyle in qualifying, Burton should finish well and Jimmie should win if he has a good day, if not he'll be well down.


Interesting - doesn't appear to be a great track for Hamlin, but Jr has run 3 races here with an average finish of 7.67 so he could have a good day here. Harvick has run 10 races with 3 top 5s but has an average finish of 23rd.

Edited by Crafty, 04 March 2011 - 17:19.

[Marbles]

How much do you think this is due to tech changes this year like the front splitter removal ?

I'll be honest with you, Crafty, I don't have a clue. After last season's road races, I ran out of patience with the CoT, threw up my hands in disgust, and (not for the first time and certainly not for the last time) said, "To hell with Nascar!" I didn't pay much attention to the series until Daytona week and it wasn't until midway through last weekend's race that the light bulb really went off in my head: "Gee wiz, they can bump and run again."

To reiterate, I don't have a clue what they did, but it seems to be working.

[OfficeLinebacker]

Just clicked your craziest crash link......wow.

I know, right?

I go back and click on it every few months or show it to somebody or something. Very cool, I think. Those guys, (announcers, onlookers like Tony Stewart) were scared.

Nascar.com is hyping Jeff Gordon's record at Vegas.

http://www.nascar.com/races/tune_in/

[Andrew Hope]

On the topic of sig-worthy crashes, this is in with a shout.



Say what you want, but I know I would've **** my pants, too.

Should be a good race this weekend. Really enjoyed Daytona and Phoenix, I was a huge Nascar fan growing up but kind of lost interest over the last few years, only watching Daytona, Talladega, Bristol, and the road course races, but looking forward to the season this year.

Edited by andrew., 04 March 2011 - 18:36.

[loki]

Not even...
They call him the King for a reason...

LOL, but these guys took over years ago.



Hasn't sold out yet. There don't seem to be as many fans in town. They'll still get 130k or so but that is down from 165k at the peak.

The qual record is Kurt Bush last year at 188.719 mph. The track was reconfigured a few years back, previously it was about 10 mph slower.

[Villes Gilleneuve]

Not even...
They call him the King for a reason.

Chump change compared to Celine Dion and Cirque du Soleil.

http://www.nevadamag...fluential_acts/

[Villes Gilleneuve]

LOL, but these guys took over years ago.

Yes, but the King started the tradition of fat, sweaty people walking around Las Vegas.

[whitewaterMkII]

Yes, but the King started the tradition of fat, sweaty people walking around Las Vegas.

Wrong again.
Louie Prima started that trend...

[Marbles]

Gee, Villes, it just isn't your day today, is it?

[OfficeLinebacker]

Hey I happened to tune in to the lap time feed just as each person had turned their first lap.

I think maybe it shows a little about how each driver approaches it. Some are going to treat the first lap more like a recon lap. Others are going to go ahead and go at 9/10 or 9.5/10 on their very first lap.

Keep in mind this is the first practice session of the weekend for the Cup guys. The lap record lat year was 188.719.

LIVE LEADERBOARD : Kobalt Tools 400
Las Vegas
Time Elapsed:
00:05:10
	Leader:
Carl Edwards
	Fastest Time:
29.05
	Fastest Speed:
185.867
									
Pos 	Car 	Driver 	Laps 	Best Speed 	Last Speed 	Avg. Speed 	Best Time 	Last Time 	Avg. Time
1 	99 	Carl Edwards 	1 	185.867 	185.867 	185.867 	29.05 	29.05 	29.05
2 	42 	Juan Pablo Montoya 	1 	181.629 	181.629 	181.629 	29.73 	29.73 	29.73
3 	43 	A.J. Allmendinger 	4 	181.543 	181.543 	163.797 	29.74 	29.74 	32.97
4 	00 	David Reutimann 	2 	181.105 	181.105 	180.521 	29.82 	29.82 	29.91
5 	83 	Brian Vickers 	4 	181.068 	181.068 	173.199 	29.82 	29.82 	31.18
6 	78 	Regan Smith 	3 	180.959 	180.959 	145.276 	29.84 	29.84 	37.17
7 	56 	Martin Truex Jr. 	4 	180.868 	180.862 	179.307 	29.86 	29.86 	30.12
8 	27 	Paul Menard 	1 	180.487 	180.487 	180.487 	29.92 	29.92 	29.92
9 	33 	Clint Bowyer 	3 	180.445 	180.445 	172.985 	29.93 	29.93 	31.22
10 	4 	Kasey Kahne 	1 	180.385 	180.385 	180.385 	29.94 	29.94 	29.94
11 	6 	David Ragan 	3 	180.210 	180.210 	172.894 	29.96 	29.96 	31.23
12 	20 	Joey Logano 	2 	180.120 	179.372 	179.745 	29.98 	30.10 	30.04
13 	29 	Kevin Harvick 	4 	179.964 	179.964 	161.992 	30.01 	30.01 	33.34
14 	22 	Kurt Busch 	1 	179.724 	179.724 	179.724 	30.05 	30.05 	30.05
15 	17 	Matt Kenseth 	3 	179.677 	179.677 	178.912 	30.05 	30.05 	30.18
16 	13 	Casey Mears 	2 	179.671 	162.455 	170.630 	30.06 	33.24 	31.65
17 	1 	Jamie McMurray 	2 	179.611 	179.611 	179.366 	30.06 	30.06 	30.11
18 	16 	Greg Biffle 	2 	178.921 	163.103 	170.646 	30.18 	33.11 	31.64
19 	14 	Tony Stewart 	1 	178.820 	178.820 	178.820 	30.20 	30.20 	30.20
20 	9 	Marcos Ambrose 	1 	178.183 	178.183 	178.183 	30.31 	30.31 	30.31
21 	39 	Ryan Newman 	1 	178.165 	178.165 	178.165 	30.31 	30.31 	30.31
22 	18 	Kyle Busch 	1 	177.848 	177.848 	177.848 	30.36 	30.36 	30.36
23 	2 	Brad Keselowski 	1 	175.593 	175.593 	175.593 	30.75 	30.75 	30.75
24 	7 	Robby Gordon 	1 	175.058 	175.058 	175.058 	30.85 	30.85 	30.85
25 	5 	Mark Martin 	2 	173.935 	170.735 	172.320 	31.05 	31.63 	31.34
26 	71 	Andy Lally 	1 	169.950 	169.950 	169.950 	31.77 	31.77 	31.77
27 	31 	Jeff Burton 	1 	168.718 	168.718 	168.718 	32.01 	32.01 	32.01
28 	24 	Jeff Gordon 	1 	136.281 	136.281 	136.281 	39.62 	39.62 	39.62

Looks to me like Edwards just goes at 9.7/10 and Montoya at 9/10 straight off the bat.

Other guys go slower, down to Jeff Gordon who is at like 7/10 just checking out the scenery, making sure everything works.

Keep in mind these are the timed laps, the outlap (pit exit back around to S/F line) doesn't count.

What do you guys think? I'd be interested to see the first lap from the first practice session from every race, but I don't have that data.

[OfficeLinebacker]

BTW, current, real time practice speeds:

http://www.nascar.co...d/cup/practice/

Last year's qualifying results:

http://www.nascar.co...ata/lineup.html

[jonpollak]

Wrong again.
Louie Prima started that trend...
;)

Frickin' brilliant!!!!
However...The all time gross leader is that Quebecois chick.
Jp

[Villes Gilleneuve]

Frickin' brilliant!!!!
However...The all time gross leader is that Quebecois chick.
Jp

That's what Canadians call the "smart bomb", we actually buy all those tickets to keep her in Vegas. Same with the Cirque.

[whitewaterMkII]

1st Practice results.
Juan breaks Ford's Kung Fu grip at the top of the field.

1 17 Matt Kenseth Ford Crown Royal 186.599 28.939 Leader
2 6 David Ragan Ford UPS "We Love Logistics" 186.297 28.986 -0.047
3 42 Juan Montoya Chevrolet Clorox 185.957 29.039 -0.100
4 99 Carl Edwards Ford Scotts / Kellogg's 185.893 29.049 -0.110
5 16 Greg Biffle Ford 3M Post-it 185.676 29.083 -0.144
6 9 Marcos Ambrose Ford Stanley 185.624 29.091 -0.152
7 14 Tony Stewart Chevrolet Mobil 1 / Office Depot 185.561 29.101 -0.162
8 78 Regan Smith Chevrolet Furniture Row Companies 185.446 29.119 -0.180
9 2 Brad Keselowski Dodge Miller Lite 185.357 29.133 -0.194
10 20 Joey Logano Toyota The Home Depot 185.287 29.144 -0.205
11 27 Paul Menard Chevrolet Moen / Menards 185.249 29.150 -0.211
12 48 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Lowe's / Kobalt Tools 185.230 29.153 -0.214
13 56 Martin Truex Jr. Toyota NAPA Auto Parts 185.211 29.156 -0.217
14 1 Jamie McMurray Chevrolet McDonald's 185.090 29.175 -0.236
15 39 Ryan Newman Chevrolet Haas Automation 184.988 29.191 -0.252
16 43 A.J. Allmendinger Ford Best Buy 184.761 29.227 -0.288
17 18 Kyle Busch Toyota Snickers Peanut Butter Squared 184.678 29.240 -0.301
18 11 Denny Hamlin Toyota FedEx Ground 184.533 29.263 -0.324
19 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet DuPont 184.533 29.263 -0.324
20 31 Jeff Burton Chevrolet Caterpillar 184.508 29.267 -0.328
21 4 Kasey Kahne Toyota Red Bull 184.489 29.270 -0.331
22 5 Mark Martin Chevrolet GoDaddy.com 184.388 29.286 -0.347
23 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Budweiser 184.363 29.290 -0.351
24 83 Brian Vickers Toyota Red Bull 184.351 29.292 -0.353
25 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet National Guard / Amp Energy 184.344 29.293 -0.354
26 47 Bobby Labonte Toyota Kingsford 184.238 29.310 -0.371
27 21 Trevor Bayne Ford Motorcraft / Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center 184.150 29.324 -0.385
28 00 David Reutimann Toyota Tums 183.961 29.354 -0.415
29 33 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet Wheaties Fuel 183.905 29.363 -0.424
30 13 Casey Mears Toyota GEICO 183.899 29.364 -0.425
31 22 Kurt Busch Dodge Pennzoil Platinum 183.474 29.432 -0.493
32 34 David Gilliland Ford Taco Bell 182.723 29.553 -0.614
33 32 Terry Labonte Ford FAS Lane Racing 181.855 29.694 -0.755
34 46 J.J. Yeley Chevrolet Darlington Raceway.com 181.739 29.713 -0.774
35 87 Joe Nemechek Toyota NEMCO Motorsports 181.561 29.742 -0.803
36 36 Dave Blaney Chevrolet Accell Construction 181.305 29.784 -0.845
37 7 Robby Gordon Dodge Speed Energy 180.941 29.844 -0.905
38 60 Landon Cassill Toyota Big Red 180.385 29.936 -0.997
39 09 Bill Elliott Chevrolet Security Benefit / Rydex / Billboard.com 180.096 29.984 -1.045
40 66 Michael McDowell Toyota HP Racing LLC 179.886 30.019 -1.080
41 71 Andy Lally Chevrolet Super Eco-Fuel Saver 179.587 30.069 -1.130
42 38 Travis Kvapil Ford Long John Silver's 177.784 30.374 -1.435
43 37 Tony Raines Ford Race Fuel Energy Drink 176.794 30.544 -1.605
44 192 Brian Keselowski Dodge MGM Grand 176.390 30.614 -1.675

[Marbles]

Looks to me like Edwards just goes at 9.7/10 and Montoya at 9/10 straight off the bat.

Other guys go slower, down to Jeff Gordon who is at like 7/10 just checking out the scenery, making sure everything works.

Keep in mind these are the timed laps, the outlap (pit exit back around to S/F line) doesn't count.

What do you guys think? I'd be interested to see the first lap from the first practice session from every race, but I don't have that data.

I think you're correct to suggest that personality has a lot to do with it, OLB. At least that has been my conclusion from observing free practices over the years--mostly CART, IMSA, and ALMS. I never have been able to swing a Friday at Sears Point, so I can't speak directly to Nascar, but my hunch is that race car drivers are race car drivers in this respect.

Some guys simply seem incapable of driving anything other than 10/10s (Zanardi, Tracy, Auberlain) and others seem quite content to run at 8/10s for as long as they're able (the Andrettis, Sullivan, Stuck, and, especially, Bourdais). The neat thing about the slow, smooth drivers is that you can get a bit of a glimpse into their set-up process because they are so smooth and consistent. Also, if you have a stop watch handy, you can get a sense for what is and isn't working for them, which is a lot of fun.

[nosaj100]

Chump change compared to Celine Dion and Cirque du Soleil.

http://www.nevadamag...fluential_acts/

I don't care what the numbers say. Blue Man Group takes the cake!




Kenseth on pole, Ambrose outside pole. In fact, Fords have the first two rows. All the Roush cars have been strong so far, reminds me of the late 90s/early 00s when they dominated this track.

[John B]

Yeah, it is interesting that in the first races (not counting the Daytona lottery) with both the splitter and wing off Gordon ends a long drought and Kenseth/Roush (MK not exactly known for his qualifying prowess) look good so far after falling off during the original COT era - wonder if that pattern will continue long term.

[OfficeLinebacker]

Apparently, Robby Gordon and Kevin Conway got in a fight in the garage yesterday:

http://www.sbnation....ent-altercation

[Crafty]

Lineup:

1	 17	Matt Kenseth	   Ford	   188.884	28.589	Leader
2	 9	 Marcos Ambrose	 Ford	   188.166	28.698	-0.109
3	 99	Carl Edwards	   Ford	   188.127	28.704	-0.115
4	 16	Greg Biffle		Ford	   187.970	28.728	-0.139
5	 18	Kyle Busch		 Toyota	 187.565	28.790	-0.201
6	 20	Joey Logano		Toyota	 187.318	28.828	-0.239
7	 43	A.J. Allmendinger  Ford	   187.253	28.838	-0.249
8	 39	Ryan Newman		Chevrolet  187.221	28.843	-0.254
9	 56	Martin Truex Jr.   Toyota	 187.201	28.846	-0.257
10	5	 Mark Martin		Chevrolet  187.195	28.847	-0.258
11	1	 Jamie McMurray	 Chevrolet  187.084	28.864	-0.275
12	78	Regan Smith		Chevrolet  187.084	28.864	-0.275
13	24	Jeff Gordon		Chevrolet  186.903	28.892	-0.303
14	48	Jimmie Johnson	 Chevrolet  186.728	28.919	-0.330
15	14	Tony Stewart	   Chevrolet  186.529	28.950	-0.361
16	21	Trevor Bayne	   Ford	   186.529	28.950	-0.361
17	11	Denny Hamlin	   Toyota	 186.464	28.960	-0.371
18	27	Paul Menard		Chevrolet  186.445	28.963	-0.374
19	83	Brian Vickers	  Toyota	 186.335	28.980	-0.391
20	2	 Brad Keselowski	Dodge	  186.079	29.020	-0.431
21	31	Jeff Burton		Chevrolet  186.053	29.024	-0.435
22	22	Kurt Busch		 Dodge	  186.002	29.032	-0.443
23	42	Juan Montoya	   Chevrolet  185.970	29.037	-0.448
24	47	Bobby Labonte	  Toyota	 185.688	29.081	-0.492
25	00	David Reutimann	Toyota	 185.567	29.100	-0.511
26	29	Kevin Harvick	  Chevrolet  185.478	29.114	-0.525
27	13	Casey Mears		Toyota	 185.217	29.155	-0.566
28	33	Clint Bowyer	   Chevrolet  185.103	29.173	-0.584
29	32	Mike Skinner	   Ford	   184.742	29.230	-0.641
30	4	 Kasey Kahne		Toyota	 184.470	29.273	-0.684
31	87	Joe Nemechek	   Toyota	 184.464	29.274	-0.685
32	46	J.J. Yeley		 Chevrolet  184.200	29.316	-0.727
33	88	Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet  183.949	29.356	-0.767
34	36	Dave Blaney		Chevrolet  183.014	29.506	-0.917
35	34	David Gilliland	Ford	   183.007	29.507	-0.918
36	60	Landon Cassill	 Toyota	 182.070	29.659	-1.070
37	09	Bill Elliott	   Chevrolet  181.977	29.674	-1.085
38	7	 Robby Gordon	   Dodge	  181.403	29.768	-1.179
39	38	Travis Kvapil	  Ford	   181.269	29.790	-1.201
40	71	Andy Lally*		Chevrolet  179.414	30.098	-1.509
41	37	Tony Raines+	   Ford	   177.299	30.457	-1.868
42	6	 David Ragan+	   Ford	   -		  -		  -
43	66	Michael McDowell   Toyota	 181.769	29.708	-1.119

Ragan spun at turn 2, didn't set a time, so more break than make at the moment. How come he starts 42nd not 43rd ?

Bayne not doing too bad again there, Ambrose right up there is a bit of a surprise.

Jr said the track was bumpy in turns 1 and 2, he didn't run there in practice and was a bit of a shock to find them in qualifying.

[Dmitriy_Guller]

Apparently, Robby Gordon and Kevin Conway got in a fight in the garage yesterday:

http://www.sbnation....ent-altercation

Was the fight over ExtenZe money?

[FLB]

Apparently, Robby Gordon and Kevin Conway got in a fight in the garage yesterday:

http://www.sbnation....ent-altercation

NASCAR has put Gordon on indefinite probation over the incident...

http://www.scenedail...vin_Conway.html

Edited by FLB, 05 March 2011 - 21:24.

[nosaj100]

Was the fight over ExtenZe money?

Yeah, Robby says Conway owes him money. Has anyone found a detailed report on what happened? Everything I find seems to indicate no one saw it. Kind of odd Nascar would punish Robby so quickly despite so few details, but the Nascar brass doesn't care for him anyway. Then again, its not like Robby gives them much to love. I've often wondered how successful he could have been had he kept his emotions in check.

[ktsayshi]

Autosport's Daily Grapevine has a nice Vegas-weekend interview with Smoke about his upcoming car swap with Lewis Hamilton:

Stewart excited about McLaren test

[OfficeLinebacker]

Yeah, Robby says Conway owes him money. Has anyone found a detailed report on what happened? Everything I find seems to indicate no one saw it. Kind of odd Nascar would punish Robby so quickly despite so few details,

Conway filed a police report.

[nosaj100]

Conway filed a police report.

Must have been a good one then. Its a shame all the media that's there and we didn't even get so much as a picture

[loki]

Conway filed a police report.

In Vegas unless there is an injury, theft, damage to property it's not likely they'll file charges. According to a witness interviewed locally Gordon grabbed Conway, punched him, knocked him down and slapped him. Conway has been a nomad with the Extenze money and rumor has it they are slow to pay their bills.

Edited by loki, 06 March 2011 - 03:45.

[Dmitriy_Guller]

How shocking, con artists not honoring their commitments.

[Supersleeper]

.... Ambrose right up there is a bit of a surprise.

Is not!!!!


Oh - and thanks OLB for the heads up in these threads - buggered if I can follow news on the NASCAR site....

[Mat]

Sadly, Ambrose will probably fade pretty early. I was pretty disappointed to see him fall off the pace last week, but fingers crossed.

I think one of the Roush drivers will take this race. They have looked really fast at Vegas and Phoenix.

[Ross Stonefeld]

I feel like a gamble on a win by Biffle/Burton/equivalent. One of those competitive guys that you forget about sometimes.

The ultimate combo of Roush and "oh yeah, him" would be my boy David Ragan

[Mat]

The chance for a long shot was Daytona. You missed it!

Biffle looks good. A decent long shot for this race would be Kasey Kahne, 34-1.

Edited by Mat, 06 March 2011 - 11:00.

[SimMaker]

Not gonna let you edit that beauty out.

"Biffle looks good. A decent long **** for this race would be Kasey Kahne, 34-1."


Hehehe

Edited by SimMaker, 06 March 2011 - 10:29.

[Ross Stonefeld]

Im surprised it got past the profanity filter.

[Mat]

Not gonna let you edit that beauty out.

"Biffle looks good. A decent long **** for this race would be Kasey Kahne, 34-1."


Hehehe

whoooops. Edited anyway!

[John B]

A good show for NASCAR overall yesterday....Martin wins on the last lap at the expense of BK, Danica gets a top 5, and bad boy Kyle shows both of his sides, dominating and then taking himself out with a stupid move.

[Andrew Hope]

Correct me if I'm wrong, the race starts in a little over 2 hours from now, yeah? I could live to be a thousand and never really grasp how time zones relate to where I live, Nascar's website needs that count down thing that F1's site has.

[OfficeLinebacker]

Sadly, Ambrose will probably fade pretty early.
I think one of the Roush drivers will take this race.

Yep and yep.

Marcos' main thing will be to see if he can lead the first lap. Maybe 50/50 chance on that. Then soldier on and try to hang on for at top-20.

Don't be surprised to see Marcos and Juan battling in the mid-teens a lot today.

Rousch will be strong!

[OfficeLinebacker]

Correct me if I'm wrong, the race starts in a little over 2 hours from now, yeah? I could live to be a thousand and never really grasp how time zones relate to where I live, Nascar's website needs that count down thing that F1's site has.

You and everyone else in the antipodes (yes you Brits are the antipodes when it comes to NASCAR), bookmark Jayski.com.

It has the countdown timer you want and everything else--pit stall selections (Juan is between the 37 and 71 this week), chassis (most teams are bringing brand new ones, Juan and Jamie included) and everything else.

Live it, learn it, love it!

Jayski.com

that is all.

[Andrew Hope]

Well, I'm Canadian, but we're all just disguised British people up here anyway. Thanks for the link, exactly what I was looking for.