AUTO RACING

Latest NASCAR, IRL, Formula 1, Champ Car and Local Racing News

NASCAR's testing ban not good, but necessary

by Steve Kaminski | The Grand Rapids Press

Tuesday November 25, 2008, 12:00 PM

AP File PhotoNASCAR teams go through a practice session at Bristol Motor Speedway. NASCAR has eliminated testing next season to cut costs for teams.

NASCAR is doing the right thing, but that doesn't mean I have to like it.

Officials announced all testing at NASCAR sanctioned tracks will be banned throughout the 2009 season for its national touring series, including its Sprint Cup, Nationwide and Camping World Trucks. The move was made to cut costs for teams in this struggling economy.

What a bummer it is going to be come early January, when teams annually head to Daytona International Speedway to begin preparation for February's Speed Week.

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Ballard eager to return to Arena Racing track

by Steve Kaminski | The Grand Rapids Press

Friday November 21, 2008, 7:45 AM

Courtesy Photo/Randy EllenKyle Ballard, of Comstock Park, won the Top Dog race Nov 1.

Most area stock car drivers are enjoying a well-deserved break now that tracks across West Michigan have closed up for the season.

Kyle Ballard of Comstock Park isn't the type to cool his wheels, not even during the winter months.

Look for Ballard to hit the track Saturday night when Arena Racing returns to DeltaPlex Arena at 7:11 p.m. Ballard, who competes in Berlin Raceway's Super Stock division during the summer, will be unveiling his new Arena Racing car colors now that he is receiving sponsorship help from the International Hockey League's Muskegon Lumberjacks.

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Berlin Raceway to offer Young Guns class in '09

by Steve Kaminski | The Grand Rapids Press

Thursday November 20, 2008, 8:00 AM

Berlin Raceway has no plans to host a Dr. Seuss hour next season, but it's true drivers will be getting younger.

Previously, drivers had to be 16 years old to race at the Marne half-mile, but the age requirement will be lowered two years when the track introduces the Young Guns class for racers ages 14-16 for the 2009 season.

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Benson proud of Truck title; future still uncertain

by Steve Kaminski | The Grand Rapids Press

Tuesday November 18, 2008, 12:00 PM

Courtesy Photo/NASCAR: Marc SerotaNASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion Johnny Benson stands with, from left, daughter Mikayla, wife Debbie and daughter Katelyn in the Seminole Paradise Courtyard at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla.

NASCAR hosted its annual Craftsman Trucks season-ending awards banquet Monday night, but Johnny Benson Jr. fans will have to wait until December before they can see and hear their driver deliver his victory speech.

Benson, who clinched his first Truck championship with a seventh-place finish in Friday's season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway, was honored in a ceremony in Hollywood, Fla. The Speed Channel will televise the banquet at 8 p.m. Dec. 8.

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Holland go-kart racer heads to Italy for world finals

by Steve Kaminski | The Grand Rapids Press

Tuesday November 18, 2008, 9:00 AM

Courtesy Photo/Marc MillerMarc Miller will race his go-kart in the Rotax Max World Finals next week in Italy.

Tim Lobaugh was well aware of what Marc Miller of Holland could do with a go-kart long before the two ever became teammates.

Let's just say Lobaugh never stood in line waiting for Miller's autograph.

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Johnson stacks up favorably with NASCAR greats

by Steve Kaminski | The Grand Rapids Press

Monday November 17, 2008, 12:00 PM

AP PhotoJimmie Johnson's three-peat can't be discredited as a byproduct of Rick Hendrick Motorsports' dominance.

Jimmie Johnson is in the conversation.

If you had $1 million riding on the outcome of a NASCAR race and could pick any driver past or present to win it, I'm sure the names Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt Sr. and David Pearson would top the list. Or maybe you would go with Jeff Gordon, Darrell Waltrip, Cale Yarborough and Bobby Allison.

But you couldn't go wrong with Jimmie Johnson, either, not after the El Cajon, Calif., native clinched his third consecutive Sprint Cup championship Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Johnson joined Yarborough as the only drivers to win three straight Cup titles.

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Trading Paint's Chase ends with Edwards' win

by Steve Kaminski | The Grand Rapids Press

Monday November 17, 2008, 11:30 AM

AP PhotoCarl Edwards' victory helped Antoine Pitts capture Trading Paint's checkered flag.

It pains me to write this but the inaugural season of Trading Paint will have co-champions.

I'm the overall champion, while The Ann Arbor News' Antoine Pitts is the Chase champion.Keep in mind that we implemented the Chase standings only because I had such a big lead after 26 races and the other participants whined like sniveling little children. I was forced to go along with it.

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Jimmie Johnson wins third straight NASCAR title

by The Associated Press

Sunday November 16, 2008, 10:30 PM

AP PhotoJimmie Johnson celebrates clinching his third straight NASCAR Sprint Cup title, as he joined Cale Yarborough as the only drivers to complete the feat.

HOMESTEAD, Fla. -- Nothing could stop Jimmie Johnson's drive into the NASCAR record books. Not even a final, furious push by Carl Edwards.

Edwards led a race-high 157 laps, ran out of gas as he crossed the finish line, but still won Sunday's season-ending race at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Still, his series-high ninth win of the year wasn't enough to wrest away the Sprint Cup title.

Johnson locked up his third consecutive championship with a solid 15th-place run, beating Edwards by 69 points to join Cale Yarborough as the only drivers in NASCAR history to win three straight titles.

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Grand Rapids' Johnny Benson wins Trucks title

by Steve Kaminski | The Grand Rapids Press

Saturday November 15, 2008, 12:15 AM

AP PhotoGrand Rapids native Johnny Benson celebrates after winning the Craftsman Truck Series championship Friday.

The worst criticism I ever heard anyone level at Johnny Benson's driving skills during the past 20 years is that maybe the Grand Rapids stock car driver is just too nice of a guy.

Too nice in stock car racing means he's not aggressive enough.

Never did I believe that. Let's set the record straight once and for all. Benson is a clean driver. Aggressive? Oh, yeah. He doesn't back down from anyone.

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Trading Paint: Ford 400 picks

by The Grand Rapids Press

Friday November 14, 2008, 10:00 AM

AP File PhotosTrading Paint's Chase has come down to Carl Edwards, left, against Greg Biffle. Just two points separate the leaders in our standings.

Welcome to Trading Paint, a weekly entry where a statewide panel of four auto racing "experts" will make picks on the NASCAR Sprint Cup races. This week: Sunday's Ford 400 in Miami.

The rules:
1. A panelist can't pick the same driver in back-to-back weeks.
2. Standings -- Chase-adjusted and overall -- will be calculated each week based on the actual points earned by the drivers each panelist picks to win.

The standings after 35 races and the ninth in the Chase for the Championship, with last week's pick in parentheses:

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Sprague's disappointing Truck season nearly over

by Steve Kaminski | The Grand Rapids Press

Thursday November 13, 2008, 3:00 PM

Jack Sprague

Jack Sprague of Spring Lake isn't sure what his plans are for 2009.

Chances are that next season could hardly be more disappointing than the one he is about to complete, though.

The three-time NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion will wrap up the season with Friday's Ford 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. It was a year that began with so much promise because Sprague hooked up with the highly successful Kevin Harvick, Inc.

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Benson one race away from Trucks title

by Steve Kaminski | The Grand Rapids Press

Thursday November 13, 2008, 9:15 AM

AP PhotoGrand Rapids' Johnny Benson leads Ron Hornaday by three points heading into the final NASCAR Craftsman Truck race Friday in Homestead, Fla.

Johnny Benson or Ron Hornaday will drive off with the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series championship Friday night, and yet, veteran driver Dennis Setzer isn't so sure he would want to trade places with either one of them.

I just cannot imagine being Hornaday or Benson right now," Setzer said.

Yeah, the pressure is that bad.

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Ganassi, Earnhardt joining forces for 2009

by Jeff Bleiler | Jackson Citizen Patriot

Thursday November 13, 2008, 9:07 AM

In another sign of the economic hardship hitting the nation and the difficulty remaining competitive in auto racing in such an environment, Chip Ganassi Racing and Dale Earnhardt Inc. announced they will join forces next year.

The team will field four cars: the No. 1 of Martin Truex Jr.; the No. 8 of Aric Almirola; the No. 42 of Juan Pablo Montoya; and the No. 41 with a yet-to-be-named driver. Reed Sorenson, the car's current driver, will move to Gillett Evernham Motorsports next year.

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NHRA's Funny Car title chase comes down to end

by Steve Kaminski | The Grand Rapids Press

Wednesday November 12, 2008, 6:00 PM

It appeared that Tim Wilkerson's Chevrolet Impala Funny Car had turned into a big orange pumpkin two weeks ago when he smoked his tires about 150 feet down the Las Vegas strip.

But the National Hot Rod Association's Cinderella story isn't willing to concede that it's midnight just yet, not with the season-ending races in Pomona, Calif., coming up this weekend.

Wilkerson, the 47-year old veteran from Springfield, Ill., has been one of drag racing's biggest surprises this season. However, Mike Neff knocked him out in the opening round in the most recent race at Las Vegas, and Wilkerson dropped from first to second in the Funny Car points standings.

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Poll: How much does the manufacturer matter?

by Jeff Bleiler | Jackson Citizen Patriot

Tuesday November 11, 2008, 12:27 PM

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