MANY CHANGES SET FOR RESTART.NASCAR NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing), organization that sanctions American stock-car races, est. 1948. It held its first race in Daytona Beach, Fla. Craftsman Truck Series driver Ted Musgrave made it to Birmingham, Ala., on his way to Texas Motor Speedway Texas Motor Speedway is a superspeedway located in the northernmost portion of the U.S. city of Fort Worth, Texas -- the portion located in Denton County, Texas. The track layout is very similar to Atlanta Motor Speedway and Lowe's Motor Speedway (formerly Charlotte Motor for last weekend's race when he was called back to his team's shop. His Ultra Motorsports teammate Scott Riggs was in Dallas when he was called and told the Silverado 350 was canceled because of terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of and the Pentagon near Washington. Musgrave joked it was the best time to be running late for a race. His team didn't have as far to drive back home as his teammate. On a more serious note, Musgrave said he supported NASCAR's decision to postpone the race. It has been rescheduled for Oct. 5. ``It was the right call for NASCAR to call it off,'' Musgrave said. But he also said traveling to tracks on the West Coast won't be as easy as it was in the past because of the attacks. Musgrave said his team plans on driving to the next race at South Boston Speedway South Boston Speedway or "SoBo" is a race track located in South Boston, Virginia, U.S.A.. SoBo is located approximately sixty miles east of another area familiar to most NASCAR fans, Martinsville. It is owned by Dr. Joe Mattioli III, who also controls Pocono Raceway. in Virginia on Sept. 28. But races at Las Vegas Motor Speedway Las Vegas Motor Speedway, located in Clark County, Nevada, just outside Las Vegas, is a 1,200 acre (4.9 km²) complex of four different tracks for automobile racing. The complex is owned by Speedway Motorsports, Inc., which is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. , Phoenix International Raceway Phoenix International Raceway, or just PIR, is a one mile tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona. It opened in 1964, as the new home of major open-wheel racing in the Phoenix area, replacing the track at the Arizona State Fairgrounds as an automobile racing venue. and California Speedway in Fontana will be more of a challenge to get to. In the past, Musgrave and Riggs' teams have used commercial airlines to travel to race tracks on the West Coast. ``By the time we do have to travel out there, it may lighten up,'' Musgrave said. ``Before it was no big deal. You'd show up and away you go. Now it's going to have a different feel, but we're still going to have to do it.'' Security is expected to be beefed up at this weekend's NASCAR Busch and Winston Cup races at Dover Downs International Raceway in Delaware. No coolers, backpacks or other containers will be allowed in the track area. There is also a possibility that pit-area access to fans will be limited. Musgrave said he hopes that isn't the case. ``I don't think there's anything going to happen between NASCAR and its fan base,'' Musgrave said. ``That's what made this sport grow: the availability of the teams and drivers. If you take that away, it will hurt the sport.'' Musgrave, who is fifth in the Truck Series points standings, says he has an outside shot at winning the championship. He is 152 points behind leader Jack Sprague with five races left in the season. ``Problem is,'' Musgrave said, ``the people I'm chasing, when they have a bad day, they finish no worse than 10th. It's been getting tougher and tougher every race.'' Musgrave has four wins this season, second most in the series to his teammate Riggs with five, but Musgrave hasn't won a race since June 30 at the Milwaukee Mile. --Harvick on Dover: NASCAR Busch Series points leader and Winston Cup rookie leader Kevin Harvick of Bakersfield likes Dover Downs International Speedway. His first Winston Cup race at the one-mile oval in Delaware produced a top-10 finish in June. In three Busch Series races at Dover, he has two top 10s, including a third-place finish in June and his first career Busch Series pole last year. It shouldn't come as much of a surprise, though, that Dover would be to his liking. It is similar to his home track, Mesa Marin Raceway Mesa Marin Raceway was a high banked half mile racetrack in Bakersfield, California that was demolished following the 2005 racing season to make way for housing developments in the foothills of northeast Bakersfield. in Bakersfield. ``We've always seemed to run well there and we did really well this past June,'' said Harvick, driver of the No. 2 AC Declo Chevy on the Busch Series and the No. 29 GM Goodwrench Chevy on the Winston Cup Series. ``The groove spreads out during the Winston Cup race as the rubber builds up on the track. You can run two or three wide and really race.'' --Jimmie Johnson moves up to Winston Cup: NASCAR Busch Series driver Jimmie Johnson of El Cajon will be moving up to Winston Cup, Hendrick Motorsports announced this week. Johnson, who is eighth in points and won his first Busch Series race this year, will make his Winston Cup debut at Lowe's Motor Speedway Lowe's Motor Speedway (formerly Charlotte Motor Speedway) is a speedway in Concord, North Carolina, north of Charlotte. It features a 1.5 mile long quad-oval track that seats 167,000 people, with room for 50,000 more spectators in the infield. in Charlotte, N.C., on Oct. 8. He will be driving the Lowe's Home Improvement-sponsored No. 48 Chevy Monte Carlo and be teamed with three- time Winston Cup champion Jeff Gordon, the current Winston Cup points leader. ``When a deal like this comes together for a driver, the media and the fans are going to expect us to win races right away,'' Johnson said. ``But they can't put any more pressure on me than I put on myself. With a teammate like Jeff and a sponsor like Lowe's, I think I have a special opportunity to be successful in Winston Cup racing.'' Johnson also will race at Homestead-Miami Speedway and Atlanta Motor Speedway Atlanta Motor Speedway (formerly Atlanta International Raceway) is a superspeedway in Hampton, Georgia, twenty miles (32 km) south of Atlanta. It is a 1.54-mile (2.48 km) quad-oval track with a seating capacity of over 125,000. It opened in 1960 as a 1.5 mile standard oval. to conclude the 2001 Winston Cup season. He will run a full Winston Cup schedule in 2002. ``Hendrick Motorsports has had their eye on Jimmie for some time,'' Gordon said. ``Racing with him for a few races in the NASCAR Busch Series only confirmed what we already believed about his abilities on the track. Off the track, he has always handled himself well, and I know he appreciates the opportunity he is getting with a sponsor like Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse.'' WEEKEND SCHEDULE NASCAR WINSTON CUP MBNA MBNA Monument Builders of North America MBNA Mercedes-Benz North America MBNA Maryland Bank, National Association MBNA Maryland Bank North America MBNA Mount Baker Nurses Association (Bellingham, Washington) Cal Ripken Jr. 400 Site: Dover, Del. Schedule: Today, qualifying (CNN/SI, 10:30 a.m.); Sunday, race (NBC NBC in full National Broadcasting Co. Major U.S. commercial broadcasting company. It was formed in 1926 by RCA Corp., General Electric Co. (GE), and Westinghouse and was the first U.S. company to operate a broadcast network. , 9:30 a.m.) Track: Dover Downs International Speedway (oval, 1 mile, 24 degrees banking in turns). Race distance: 400 miles, 400 laps. On the net: www.nascar.com BUSCH MBNA.com 200 Site: Dover, Del. Schedule: Today, qualifying, 9 a.m.; Saturday, race (TNT TNT: see trinitrotoluene. TNT in full trinitrotoluene Pale yellow, solid organic compound made by adding nitrate (−NO2) groups to toluene. , 10 a.m.) Track: Dover Downs International Speedway (oval, 1 mile, 24 degrees banking in turns). Race distance: 200 miles, 200 laps. Next race: Mr. Goodcents 300, Sept. 29, Kansas City, Kan. CHAMPIONSHIP AUTO RACING TEAMS Rockingham 500 Site: Corby, England. Schedule: Today, qualifying, 5:30 a.m.; Saturday, race (ESPN ESPN Entertainment and Sports Programming Network , 4:30 a.m.) Track: Rockingham Motor Speedway
Rockingham Motor Speedway (rectangular oval, 1.5 miles, 8 degrees banking in turns). Race distance: 312 miles, 208 laps. On the net: www.cart.com NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION
The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) AutoZone Nationals Site: Millington, Tenn. Schedule: Today, qualifying, noon; Saturday, qualifying, noon (ESPN2, noon, tape); Sunday, eliminations, 8 a.m. (ESPN2, 9 a.m.) Track: Memphis Motorsports Park Memphis Motorsports Park is a race track located in just across the Loosahatchie River from Memphis, Tennessee, approximately ten miles south of Millington, Tennessee. It is owned by Dover Motorsports, which also controls Dover International Speedway, Gateway International Speedway . On the net: www.nhra.com CAPTION(S): photo, box Photo: NASCAR fans cover up at Dover Downs International Speedway in June. The season will restart this weekend in Dover, Del. Pat Crowe/Associated Press Box: WEEKEND SCHEDULE (see text) |
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