[NSC/NNS/CTS] 2008 Season

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[NSC/NNS/CTS] 2008 Season

#1

Post by HC »

List of drivers that are expected to test during Preseason Thunder at Daytona.

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The following drivers are expected to participate in the first test session (Jan. 7-9):

# AJ Allmendinger (No. 84 Red Bull Toyota)
# Aric Almirola (No. 8 U.S. Army Chevrolet)
# Greg Biffle (No. 16 3M Ford)
# Clint Bowyer (No. 07 Jack Daniel's Chevrolet)
# Kurt Busch (No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge)
# Kyle Busch (No. 18 M&M's Toyota)
# Carl Edwards (No. 99 Office Depot Ford)
# Jeff Gordon (No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet)
# Robby Gordon (No. 7 Jim Beam Ford) — Brendan Gaughan will fill in for Gordon.
# Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet)
# Matt Kenseth (No. 17 DeWalt Ford)
# Travis Kvapil (No. 28 Ford)
# Mark Martin (No. 8 U.S. Army Chevrolet)
# Casey Mears (No. 5 Kellogg's/CARQUEST Chevrolet)
# Juan Pablo Montoya (No. 42 Texaco-Havoline/Big Red/Juicy Fruit Dodge)
# Kyle Petty (No. 45 Marathon American Spirit Motor Oil Dodge)
# David Reutimann (No. 00 Toyota)
# Scott Riggs (No. 70 Haas Automation Chevrolet)
# Elliott Sadler (No. 19 Best Buy Dodge)
# Reed Sorenson (No. 41 Target Dodge)
# Martin Truex Jr. (No. 1 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet)
# Jacques Villeneuve (No. 27 Toyota)
# J.J. Yeley (No. 96 DLP HDTV Toyota)

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The following drivers are expected to participate in the second test session (Jan. 14-16):

# John Andretti (No. 49 WhatsOnline.com Dodge)
# Dave Blaney (No. 22 Caterpillar Toyota)
# Jeff Burton (No. 31 AT&T Mobility Chevrolet)
# Patrick Carpentier (No. 10 Valvoline Dodge)
# Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88 Mountain Dew AMP/National Guard Chevrolet)
# Dario Franchitti (No. 40 Dodge)
# David Gilliland (No. 38 Ford)
# Denny Hamlin (No. 11 FedEx Toyota)
# Kevin Harvick (No. 29 Shell/Pennzoil Chevrolet)
# Sam Hornish Jr. (No. 77 Dodge)
# Kasey Kahne (No. 9 Budweiser Dodge)
# Bobby Labonte (No. 43 Cheerios/Betty Crocker Dodge)
# Jeremy Mayfield (No. 66 Haas Automation Chevrolet)
# Jamie McMurray (No. 26 Crown Royal Ford)
# Paul Menard (No. 15 Menards Chevrolet)
# Ryan Newman (No. 12 Alltel Dodge)
# David Ragan (No. 6 AAA Ford)
# Regan Smith (No. 01 Chevrolet)
# Tony Stewart (No. 20 Home Depot Toyota)
# Brian Vickers (No. 83 Red Bull Toyota)
# Michael Waltrip (No. 55 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota)


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Last edited by HC 16 years ago, edited 1 time in total.
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#2

Post by PTRACER »

Juan Pablo Montoya is capable of making this year's Chase for the Sprint Cup, according to his team boss and crew chief.

The Colombian finished 20th in the standings after his first full season in NASCAR last year, and his team boss Chip Ganassi has said that their approach will be 'Chase or bust' in 2008.

Also, his crew chief Donnie Wingo believes that both team and driver are now in a position to compete for a Chase spot.

"I think making the Chase is something we can definitely do," said Wingo. "I think we've got the tools, I think we definitely have the driver, and I think we have the team to do it."

Montoya believes that getting into the top 12 shootout for the title at the end of the season is a realistic aim, but he is wary of focusing too much on one goal.

"Do we think we can make the Chase? Yeah," said the former Formula One driver. "Do we think we can have a chance at winning a race on an oval? Yeah.

"But there are so many things that can happen. That's why I say you can't think about the Chase. You have to take it a week at a time.

"One side is for the whole company to improve, the other side is, we have to deliver when the car is right. If you had a top car and you finished 20 th, it's your fault."

Montoya has joined some of his Sprint Cup rivals for the start of Daytona pre-season testing this week, where two-time champion Jimmie Johnson has been one of the regular pacesetters.

JJ Yeley set the overall pace on Tuesday though, while Jacques Villeneuve has set top 10 times in three of the four sessions over the past two days.
Didn't Montoya spend much of last year crashing into other people?
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#3

Post by Barre »

:haha: at Kyle, IMO Montoya didn't do half that bad, some crashes yeah like the one at Charlotte IIRC where he was a bit optimistic on lap one but hey that's racing. And he won a race in the Busch and Cup series, both on road courses though so the next step is winning on an oval wich will be soon hopefully.
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#4

Post by OSNOF »

I have a huge amount of support for Montoya, but to tell the truth both his wins in NASCAR to this point were not exactly on merit. He was overambitious in Mexico with that move on Pruett and he got lucky on fuel mileage at Sonoma.

But he has shown some really convincing performances too. The Brickyard 400 (Allstate can swivel), the first Atlanta race, the second Texas race, to name a few.

I don't think he'll make the Chase. But I do think he'll come bloody close, and by the end of 2008, I think he'll be seen not as the overly excited rookie he was in 2007, but the man who was the 1998 F3000 champion, 1999 CART champion, and 2000 Indy 500 winner.
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#5

Post by Cheeveer »

OSNOF wrote:I don't think he'll make the Chase. But I do think he'll come bloody close, and by the end of 2008, I think he'll be seen not as the overly excited rookie he was in 2007, but the man who was the 1998 F3000 champion, 1999 CART champion, and 2000 Indy 500 winner.
...when he was an overly excited champion instead.
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#6

Post by OSNOF »

Still a champion, though. :wink: And in that day and age, you didn't luck into F3000 or CART titles.

As long as he keeps his feet on the ground and his throttle pedal off it for at least some of the time, he should be fine.
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#7

Post by JR90 »

Juan Pablo Montoya did well in his first year, but it was nothing outstanding.

Jamie McMurray and Casey Mears both had higher championship place finishes while in the #42 than Montoya.

It was his first year in stock cars, so I have to give him that. Making the Chase in 2008? Hilarious. I don't see that happening.
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#8

Post by HC »

I'd say he did alright. Of course he had good equipment but that doesn't say anything. I saw a lot of drivers struggle in 2007 who should have been in the front of the field.

Montoya's average finish for 2007 is a 22.7, not too bad. He had some very strong runs but he should just get that little bit more consistent. Also he shouldn't race everybody, he should know when to let drivers past (especially when you are a couple of laps down). But now in his sophomore year I do expect some more top ten runs.

Talking about struggling drivers. Major disappointments for 2007 were Greg Biffle and Kasey Kahne. The first driver had scored 6 wins in 05. He saw that number decrease to 2 in 2006 and only 1 last year. And that win was the controversial victory at Kansas, where he ran out of fuel. Kasey was the big story in 2006, going to victory lane 6 times and sweeping California. But last year he only managed to finish in the top five 1 time. The Ray Evernham stable is in serious trouble, Sadler and Kahne had a season to forget. Together they scored only 10 top ten finishes, ouch.

In the meantime there are some tire trouble at Daytona, this is from Jayski.

Tire issues at Daytona: #99-Carl Edwards told reporters tire blistering appeared to be an issue with the new race car on Tuesday. Edwards said his Ford experienced blistering with its right front Goodyear tire. #5-Casey Mears blew a right front tire before his Hendrick Motorsports Chevy car brushed the wall. #41-Reed Sorenson blew a right rear tire and spun his Chip Ganassi Racing Dodge. "I believe every set we've put on that's (blistering) been the limiting factor in single car runs and in the draft," Edwards said. "I don't think it's a function of the draft. We have worked with the camber a little bit and gotten it better. That's the No. 1 issue right now." Goodyear's Rick Heinrich acknowledged issues with tires. "We have a new car and we have a new tire and what these test sessions are all about is for the teams to experiment and get dailed in and to figure out where they need to be when they come back for Speedweeks," he said. "Right now we've got, some of the teams have got a lot of heat in the right front tires and we have seen some blistering but then what the situation is from there is it's up to the team to make adjustments and improve on that condition." #19 Gillett Evernham Motorsports Dodge driver Elliott Sadler said his team also experienced some blistering but he wasn't concerned. "I think this is a normal issue in winter testing until we get some rubber down on the race track," he told reporters. "By the time we have the 24-hour race and stuff like that, there will be plenty of rubber down, we'll slide around a little bit more and tire problems will take care of themselves."(Florida Today)
AND Despite a bunch of blistered Goodyear tires Tuesday in Preseason Thunder testing at Daytona International Speedway and one crash that might have been a result of that issue, NASCAR vice president for competition Robin Pemberton said don't expect any tire changes before Speedweeks 2008. Pemberton said teams were using a different tire at Daytona than was used in the COT's previous outing on a similar racetrack, last October at Talladega Superspeedway. He said the Daytona tire had "more stagger," or more circumference from the right to the left side to aid the cars' turning.(NASCAR.com)(1-9-2008)


Expect another boring Daytona 450, with the last 50 miles a sprint to the finish. I guess the Nationwide Series will also run into trouble, they have been fighting with the tires for two years now. Having only one decent race at Daytona and that was the 2006 season opener.
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#9

Post by JR90 »

The Daytona 500 should be fun to watch.

Blown tires, single car drafting, more accidents with C.O.T. blind spots...


We will see. The above might not happen, but it will be hilarious if it does. The high expectations of the 50th running of the Daytona 500 might not be met.
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#10

Post by JR90 »

Jacques Villeneuve might not run the full season this year.

Sponsorship problems perhaps?
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#11

Post by HC »

Villeneuve not to run full season? On SPEED's coverage of Preseason Thunder testing coverage from Daytona, that things are up in the air with Jacques Villeneuve and the #27 [was #36] Bill Davis Racing team. Villeneuve was to run for the 2008 Raybestos Rookie of the Year Award, but supposedly now, will run the first five races of the 2008 Sprint Cup season and see where the team is after those races and if they get in the top-35 in owners points and the guaranteed spot.(1-10-2008)

I think they are just being realistic. Last year Mayfield ran the car, he is a professional and only managed to qualify for 17 of the 36 races. Villeneuve is a rookie and showed that last year with a variety of crashes. Do you really think he can top 17 races with the equipment and experience he's got.

Jacques is most likely gonna end up in a lower league, my guess would be the Nationwide Series. Villeneuve is a world champion, he wants to make the show every weekend.
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#12

Post by Cheeveer »

I wish that if Jacques doesn't make it in NASCAR Sprint Cup (I hate that fucking name btw), that he moves over to IndyCars. And there is time for an Indy 500 attempt if the first 5 races goes shit.
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#13

Post by PTRACER »

Cheeveer wrote:I wish that if Jacques doesn't make it in NASCAR Sprint Cup (I hate that fucking name btw), that he moves over to IndyCars. And there is time for an Indy 500 attempt if the first 5 races goes shit.
I don't know what's so appealing about NASCAR to these drivers anyway...Why stock cars and not open wheelers? JV could be a front runner in CART (Er...CCWS :roll:) now Bourdais has gone to F1.
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#14

Post by HC »

"Been there, done that."

Plus NASCAR is one of the most popular sports in the USA and still gaining popularity. The same happened to the IndyCar Series in the mid 90's. Remember Nige in 1993.

And... I don't think anyone wants to go into CCWS at the moment. :haha:
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#15

Post by JR90 »

Money.

Villeneuve is being paid in NASCAR. He would have to buy his ride in Champ Car.
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