Talladega “News” and Notes

—Well I’m back after another trip to the heart of Nascar country, North Carolina.  I come back with some good information, a bad cold, and some great pictures—look for them (and my pics from the Richmond Cup Race!) later next week.

—It’s a decent weekend of racing on-tap from The Track Too Tough to F#@& With* with Cup, Xfinity, and ARCA action on track today, tomorrow, and Sunday.  Unless it rains.

—Talladega also means a shot for an underdog, underfunded team to run up front and maybe even win, so don’t be surprised to see a newcomer up front like BK Racing, Front Row Motorsports, or RoushFenway Racing.

—There’s a bit of controversy over Tony Stewart vacating his ride on Sunday at the first caution for Ty Dillon—namely that if Dillon drove the car to victory, Stewart would not only get credit for the win, but he’d qualify for the Chase (as long as he finishes top-30 in points, that is).  But come on—that’s been the rule for years: You start a race, you get the points for that race.  Don’t let something stupid like the Chase muddle a sensible rule.

—David Starr has been released from TriStar Motorsports (the 44 car), replaced by JJ Yeley.  No idea of the real reason behind this, but something tells me we’ll get at least one lawsuit out of it.

*—according to Ed Hinton, this was the slogan Talladega’s PR team half-jokingly proposed for themselves after Darlington trademarked “The Track Too Tough to Tame”.

Richmond “News” and Notes—Super Maxi Jumbo Edition

—After weeks of waiting, he’s finally returning this weekend at Richmond—that’s right, ME!  I’ll be in the pits pre-race for the Sunday Cup race at Richmond International Speedway, so just look for the schmuck in the “Spade Racing” t-shirt.

"Look Clint, if you're gonna race for me,
you've got to start wearing gaudier shirts."

—Oh, and some IRL guy is coming back too.

—Due to being at the race (and touring the race shops of North Carolina for my OTHER website afterwards) there will almost certainly be no post-race “Burnout” article this weekend.

—For the first time since Daytona there will be more than 40 cars attempting the Cup race.  What should we call this?  I mean, 36 charter teams is a “full field”, so what would 40+ be?  Overstuffed?

—Kevin Harvick makes Nascar history this Sunday, running the first car sponsored by a canned-water brand, Busch Light.

--A happy Passover to all my fellow Jews in Nascar (all five of us).  For those who don’t know, Passover is what happens when sponsors see Xfinity regulars.

—If you caught the IndyCar race on Sunday (post-Nascar, of course), then you saw a controversial non-call on pit-exit procedure, taking the average IndyCar fan to “furious rage” from their normal “angry rage”.  Still, it was nice to see them talk about something other than The Split.

—But seriously, it’s great to have Tony Stewart coming back this weekend from his injuries.  It sounds like Brian Vickers will be on standby as a relief driver, while Ty Dillon will be on standby as a relief gigantic face.

Comcast Car to Arrive in Victory Lane Between 5-7pm

After a dominant day at Bristol Motor Speedway, Carl Edwards captured the checkered flag at the Food City 500.  However, his sponsor, Comcast, says that he will arrive in victory lane between 5-7pm.

“Thank you for contacting Comcast”, a spokesman said.  “For quality assurance, this press conference may be recorded.  If you’d like to interview our driver, please press or say 1 now.”

Members of the media waited impatiently, wondering how it could take a car more than a few minutes to report to something inside the track.

“We appreciate your business, and please continue to hold for your race winner”, the spokesman continued.  “Please note that if the winner does not report to victory lane in the allotted time window, you will receive a credit to your account worth about 5% what you spend with us in a month.”