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HOUSTON DAILY JOURNAL NASCAR h Point Standings Breen Flag News and Notes Car of Tomorrow gets mixed reviews in test NASCAR’s Car of Tomorrow, includ ing the new Toyota Camry, tested Monday at the Michigan International Speedway with mixed reviews. The new car is wider and taller to reduce the dependency on aerodynam ics to promote competition. The car also has other changes inside the car to enhance safety. The driver’s seat has been pushed more to the center and the larger size means the driver has more room inside. While most drivers said the new car showed promise, four-time Nextel Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon wasn’t so sure. “I don’t see that there’s that much more room other than headroom,” Gordon said. “My seat’s moved further inside the car to the right, but I'm closer to the door bars than 1 was before. To me, there’s not really any big gain there.” Overall, however, the car got a pass ing grade, especially the plan to replace the rear spoiler with a wing and the front bumper with a scoop called a splitter. The wing and splitter are supposed to create downforce when the cars get in traffic. Gordon was one of 14 drivers at Monday’s test. Others were: Michael Waltrip, Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth, Kurt Busch, Ryan Newman, Jeff Green, David Blaney, Scott Riggs, Denny Hamlin, JJ. Yeley, David Stremme, Bill Elliott and Joe Nemechek. Waltrip, Blaney and Elliott were in new Toyotas, which will join the Nextel Cup circuit next year. The Car of Tomorrow will be phased into the schedule during the next three years, including 16 of 36 races next year. Toyota submits engines for NASCAR approval Toyota Racing Development submit ted its Nextel Cup Series engine to NASCAR for approval. Manufacturers must have cylinder heads and engine blocks approved a year in advance. The Toyota teams that tested at Michigan on Monday were using engines created for the truck series. Those engines were modified to con form to current Cup rules. Car companies have until Sept 1 to submit engine and chassis changes for the following year. Chevrolet already has submitted a new engine request and Dodge is expected to ask for changes to the front bumper area of the Charger. Sadler adjusts quickly to Evernham race team Elliott Sadler made his debut with Evernham Motorsports last week at the Michigan International Speedway. He started second and finished 10th, giving the No. 19 Dodge its first top-10 finish of the year. Sadler replaced Jeremy Mayfield, who won his release from Evernham in an out-of-court settle ment a week earlier. Sadler’s departure from Robert Yates Racing wasn’t as dramatic, but it gained speed as soon as Mayfield was pushed out at Evernham. Sadler discussed his new job at Evernham before last week’s race. Here are excerpts of that interview: Question: Talk about joining Evernham Motorsports? Sadler: I’ve had a stressful month and a half, two months just getting everything done the right way. That's something I keep close to my heart, making sure we do things the right way. Whether it was leaving where we were or coming to Ray and Evernham Motorsports. Those guys have been helpful getting me fitted in here. We tested this week and everything went good. I’m ready to start a new chapter in my life. Question: What are your goals for the rest of the season? Sadler: I want to get this car back in the top 35 in points. I think that’s going to be very impor tant for the next couple of races and for next sea son. That’s my No. 1 goal. To try to get these guys back competitive, I know Ray has put a lot of effort in this team to get it back where it should NASCAR NEXTEL cup. •units y Beware the Bristol bullring A %. - could thui Chase oou. t eft.d^ By Don Coble Morris News Service BRISTOL, Tenn. - The oldest car in Matt • Kenseth’s race shop is Chassis 89. It’s a six year-old Ford that started as a Taurus and has been converted to a Fusion specifically for use at the Bristol Motor Speedway. It’s rare a car survives one race at the half mile short track, much less the last 11. “We’re bringing ‘Old Reliable’ back to Bristol,” said crew chief Robbie Reiser. “It doesn’t run anywhere except Bristol.” Kenseth’s No. 17 Ford hasn’t escaped 1 Bristol without a few bumps and bruises. He got knocked around by Kurt Busch last March while racing for the lead. He took out his frus tration by bumping Jeff Gordon into the wall. Crumpled fenders and fractured tempers are part of the show at Bristol, which makes it a difficult place to make up ground - or keep pace - in the Chase for the Championship. I With just three races remaining before the final cut is made to determine the champi onship field, no place offers more opportuni ties for gains or losses than Bristol. “If we can get through Bristol without wrecking, it’ll look pretty good,” Mark Martin said of his chances to qualify for the Chase. Not only is Bristol one of only three short tracks on the Nextel Cup Series schedule, it has the most-severe banking in the entire sport. The 36-degree corners turn a main event into a carnival sideshow, complete with sparks and ear-shattering noise. be. We’re pretty much coming to the track like the 9 and 10 and trying to make all three teams the same and let each driver and team director work it out and do what I can as a teammate, too, to help Kasey Kahne make The Chase. I know that’s very impor tant for this com pany. Question: Your new teammates are Kasey Kahne and Scott Riggs. How well do you know them? Sadler: I’ve been friends with Kasey for a while, the last year or two. This is a great guy, a fun-loving guy, and we hit it off. Scott Riggs and I used to race against each other in the mid-90s at South Boston and Orange County. I’ve known him for 10 years now. Scott has run well for a first-year team, very competitive You think about that as a driver. He has the same back ground I’ve got, and if he’s running good in that equipment, I kinda know his driving style, I should come over here and be pretty good, too. That kinda was all part of the decision coming to Evernham Motorsports. Everyone has been great. We’ll see how it all works out. Question: How can you make a big splash with your new team? Driver Jimmie Johnson Matt Kenseth Kevin Harvick Mark Martin Tony Stewart Kyle Petty once said racing at Bristol is like flying a jet inside a gymnasium. It’s also been compared to spending three hours in a dryer - - and everyone loses a sock. The high banking combined with 120-mph speeds make for one of the most-popular shows of the year. The best way to pass at Bristol is to knock somebody out of the way. It’s one reason why there is a waiting list for reserved tickets that rivals the Green Bay Packers. In fact, ticket brokers call this Saturday night’s Sharpie 500 one of the top-five sporting events of the year;’every bit as popular as a Super Bowl, Final Four and Masters. For drivers hanging onto their positions in the Chase, it’s a place that offers unparalleled pitfalls. For those trying to break into the top 10, it offers unparalleled opportunity. “Bristol is one of those tracks where you can have a great car and just get caught up in someone else’s mess and ruin your whole day,” Ryan Newman said. “Short tracks are fun to drive at because you never know what’s going to happen and I know the fans enjoy watching those races, but if you’re the team that has a bad day, then it’s not so fun anymore. “When you go to Bristol at this time of year, it’s always interesting to see what’s going to happen. Bristol can make or break a driver’s Chase hopes. We’ve had our share of problems at Bristol, just like every other team, so there’s no telling how your team is going to do there.” A year ago Kevin Harvick crashed early at NEWSMAKER Elliott Sadler SPORTS Behind Leader •58 •317 •395 •406 HI NASCAR U bi/sch )l Sadler: They have over 200 guys in their shop. To go around and meet everybody was fun. I saw a lot of faces I’d seen in the garage before. Sit in the seats and get fitted up for me. I’m a little different size than Jeremy was. Just meet and greet everybody, learn everybody’s language. My crew chief’s from New Jersey, and I’m from southern Virginia, so we had to sit and talk a little bit and talk about things. Just getting a direction of where they’re headed as a team, where they’re mindset is when they unload on Friday mornings. They wanted to know the things I like and dislike in race cars. It was pretty much like a study hall or class on Tuesday and then we put everything together on Wednesday by going to the race track. We went to Kentucky and shook the car down. I'd never been in a Dodge before, so I wanted to scope it out and give them some input so when we got here this morning we could just unload and go on the racetrack and not mess with any of it. Question: What has it been like going through all the changes this year? Sadler: This has by far been the toughest year of my life. When we got to Daytona we ran so well we really had high hopes. We just never could get things going. It seemed like every week we got knocked back down the ladder. We were just never as competitive as we should have been. It was just a very tough season. It came to a point where Robert and I were disagreeing on which way we think the sport is going. Nothing personal, nothing at all. We’re still great friends. Behind Leader -484 •486 -585 -656 Driver Kevin Harvick Denny Hamlin Carl Edwards Clint Bowyer J.J. Yeley Bristol and finished 37th. That finish squashed his chances of qualifying for the Chase. Jamie McMurray finished 26th and went spiraling out of contention. Now it’s up to Harvick, Martin, Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, Jeff Burton and Dale Earnhardt Jr. to survive 500 laps at Bristol, while Kasey Kahne, Greg Biffle, Carl Edwards and Kurt feu sell must make something happen. Burton was fourth in the rankings before last Sunday’s race at the Michigan International Speedway, but a blown engine dropped him all -die way to ninth in the stand ings. Another bad finish, and he could drop out “I’ve said all along I don’t think we have a cushion,” Burton said. “I don’t think anybody has a cushion. We have to keep fighting and bring it to the race track every week. We can’t afford to get into wrecks; we can’t afford to break motors. When we do, we just have to fight and overcome it.” The battle among the bottom-five drivers in the top 10 offers no room for mistakes. Gordon is 99 points from 11th place, Kyle Busch is 90, Hamlin is 88, Burton is 84 and Earnhardt Jr. is 49. Kahne knows Bristol is his best chance to make a move back into the top 10. “It’s going to be tough to get back in there, but if we do our job, hopefully it will happen,” he said. “You just never know in racing. It’s an up-and-down sport. It’s definitely exciting.” SATURDAY, AUGUST 26, 2006 ♦ Driver Behind Todd Bodine Leader Johnny Benson *144 David Reutimann -194 Ted Musgrave -239 Rick Crawford -255 WnUCKSERIESM This Week’s Race WHERE: Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tenn. WHEN: 7:30 p.m., Saturday TRACK DIMENSIONS: .533-mile bullring with 36-degree banking j in the comers BROADCAST: Television TNT; Radio Performance Racing Network LAST YEAR’S WINNER: Matt Kenseth TRACK RECORDS: Qualifying 128.709 mph (Ryan Newman); Race —101.074 mph (Charlie Glotzbach) COMPANION EVENTS: Wednesday Truck Series O’Reilly 200 (9:15 p.m., Speed); Friday Pole quali fying (3:40 p.m., Speed), Busch Series Food City 250 (7:30 p.m., TNT). RACE NOTE: Kurt Busch has won five of the last nine races at Bristol, including this year’s spring race. We had some great talks this week even after I left. It was just a difference of opinion, that’s it. I wish those guys all the luck. I’ve got a lot of great friends still on that race team, but I want to come over here. I really believe in which way this team is going. I really believe in the effort Ray and his guys put forth on his three teams. I like the way they’re all in the same shops and everybody gets the same equipment. I really believe in the direc tion these teams are going. That’s why I think I should come here and get an idea of how these three teams work this year so when we get to Daytona next year we’ll be ready to go. Question: Do you think you left Robert Yates Racing on a good note? Sadler: I think so. Doug Yates came to my bus at Watkins Glen, and we had a great heart to-heart talk. Tears and everything were involved. Those guys want to get started on their future because they have a young driver at hand, a young, talented driver. By doing that, it was giving me an opportunity to come and start on my future. It was great for both teams. I think Doug and Robert knew from the beginning when we announced we were leaving each other that I was going to do whatever I had to do as a part of their race team. If they wanted me to stay, I wanted to stay and help. If they needed me to leave, that's what I was going to do. I was committed to those guys as long as they wanted me there, so when Doug came to talk last week and it was pretty much a mutual decision. compiled by Don Coble 5B