Thursday, September 10, 2009

A.J. Foyt doesn't think Danica Patrick can make a successful switch to NASCAR (damned lion)


A.J. Foyt, arguably the greatest, indisputably the luckiest man to cast his body out onto a speedway (or run a bulldozer, or boat in the Gulf of Mexico or pose with a lion), has opinions. He's earned the right to share them and doesn't mind doing so, whether they buck convention or not. (And they often do.) So he offered a refreshing and as-yet-unspoken analysis of Danica Patrick's likelihood of success in a possible NASCAR dalliance next season on Sirius' 'Tradin' Paint.' Not caustic stuff for Foyt, but to the point.

FOYT: “Well, you know, to be truthful with you, I think she does a very good job in Indy cars but that’s a different type of car altogether. I hope she can cross over. Deep down I really don’t think she can. And I could be completely wrong. Because stock car racing is completely different than IndyCar racing. You take Dario Franchitti. Look, he’s come back from stock cars, been very competitive this year over in the Indy Series, right? And he couldn’t cut the mustard and he had some good equipment. It wasn’t like he was short equipment or people. Sam Hornish [Jr.] was very successful in Indy cars. He’s come around a little bit but not like he was in Indy cars and, let’s face it, Roger Penske’s got probably as good equipment as money can buy. And he’s struggling and he was a damn good IndyCar racer.”

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Junior still king, but King represents himself well in online NASCAR query

The top 10 NASCAR driver and query searches on Ask.com, according to a release provided by the site. Richard Petty hanging in there at number 10 isn't bad for a man who hasn't raced since twelve days after Bill Clinton was elected president. It would stand to reason that many of the Earnhardt Jr. searches included the phrases "what is up with" or "last time he won," but every little bit helps.
Would love to see the tactful answer to the third-most-asked question.


Top NASCAR Driver Searches on Ask.com
1. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
2. Tony Stewart
3. Dale Earnhardt
4. Jeff Gordon
5. Bobby Labonte
6. Matt Kenseth
7. Michael Waltrip
8. Carl Edwards
9. Kasey Kahne
10. Richard Petty

Top NASCAR Questions on Ask.com
1. How much do NASCAR drivers get paid?
2. Who won the Daytona 500 in 2009?
3. How do NASCAR drivers go to the bathroom?
4. Why was Lake Lloyd built?
5. What does NASCAR stand for?
6. Who won the first Daytona 500?
7. Who is Tony Stewart dating?
8. What do NASCAR drivers wear under their suits?
9. What is the closest finish in Daytona 500 history?
10. Why do they call Tony Stewart "Smoke"?

Friday, September 4, 2009

Now THAT is a broken foot

Courtesy Nelson Philippe's incredibly spunky and good-natured Twitpic documentation(via Facebook) of his treatment and recovery so far from an IndyCar crash with Will Power at Sonoma, Calif.

The streak will die, right? Edwards' broken foot makes back-flipping a really bad idea


Yes, Kerri Strug summoned up all her inner pluck and pain-suppression abilities to stick the landing on the gold-medal winning vault at the 1996 Olympics despite an ankle filled with cole slaw for tendons. But she had Bela Karolyi to carry her away that night in Atlanta.
Carl Edwards' customary post-victory celebration is a trickier issue now that a Frisbee put him on crutches as he limps into the same city.
Team owner Jack Roush probably couldn't lift him and crew chief Bob Osborne likely isn't willing, so if Carl Edwards wins his first race of the season this weekend at Atlanta - where he's won three times - or in the final 11 races, his ceremonial back flip off the car door is likely to come to an end. Paging Mr. Korolyi.

Shilling through the pain: Carl Edwards gets sponsor name-drop in broken-foot memo

Never once have I heard a baseball thank greenies for helping him stay focused for the 0-2 fastball he sent over the left field wall, or a football player commend the Icy Hot that loosened up that balky hamstring.
But here's Sprint Cup driver Carl Edwards - while trying to explain how an impressive physical specimen such as himself broke his foot playing Frisbee - glad he has the supplemental coverage he needs. Another hit for the public option. ...


Concord, N.C. (September 3, 2009) - Roush Fenway Racing confirms today that Carl Edwards fractured his right foot yesterday. He is working with doctors at the University of Missouri who have cleared him to drive for this weekend’s Sprint Cup and Nationwide events at Atlanta Motor
Speedway. He is currently on crutches to assist with walking but will race the No. 99 Aflac Ford and No. 60 Save-A-Lot Ford in the Sprint Cup and Nationwide races respectively this weekend.

“I know this probably sounds ridiculous to a lot of people and I could hardly believe it myself,” said Edwards from his home in Columbia, Mo. “I was playing Frisbee with a couple of buddies and we both went for the Frisbee at the same time. I put my foot on it, my friend dove for it, and the next thing you know…we all heard a pop. I knew it was broken and we all kind of looked at each other in disbelief that of all things, I would break my foot playing Frisbee. I
immediately went to the doctor and have been working with a great team of people at the University of Missouri who work with all the college teams here. They have me on crutches to help me walk but said I could race in both races this weekend and shouldn’t have a problem using the accelerator.
“I guess you never know when something is going to happen. This is
obviously an unforeseen accident and even though I am not going to miss
work, my Aflac policy has me covered. I’ve now seen first hand how Aflac works and it’s clear that no matter how big or small the accident is Aflac is there for their policyholders.”
If only he was sponsored by Vicodin.