Daily NASCAR

Ever since this story first leaked out over the weekend, there has been a ton of discussion about Kasey Kahne’s move to Red Bull for the 2011 season.  While the official announcement from the team answered a few questions for Kahne and Hendrick going forward, it created a bunch more for Red Bull.  Looking over what we know about the deal, it appears to me that the only party who is benefiting from this move is Hendrick Motorsports.

Think about it.  Hendrick found a way to bring Kahne in when the team was ready for him, supposedly not pay a dime for Kahne’s temporary seat, and keep Mark Martin in the #5 for the remainder of his deal.  Put a nice big red bow on it, and you’ve got yourself and nice little package.

Here is why this deal doesn’t really help anyone else out.

First, what exactly is Red Bull getting out of having Kasey Kahne for one season?  Red Bull’s GM Jay Frye attempted to compare this deal to when the Vikings brought in Brett Favre, saying the team will benefit from having a proven winner driving for them.  That would be all well and good if Red Bull actually had the pieces in place to win.  From what they’ve shown all season though, it appears as though that isn’t the case.  The #83 team had a very solid 2009 season, winning a race with Brian Vickers and making the Chase, but that success from last year did not equate to continued performance this season.  In the 11 races Vickers drove before the blood clots forced him out, his average start and average finish were down significantly from the previous year.  He did have two top ten finishes, but he also had four finishes of 29th or worse, including two DNFs.  And with Scott Speed’s struggles, and the driver merry-go-round in the #83, it will be very difficult to gain any momentum or make gains for 2011.

I also think it’s important to note what this means for Red Bull’s teams and drivers for the future.  If Vickers cannot return and Kahne fills the seat in the #83, where does Red Bull go after 2011?  If Speed is released, and Kahne takes his ride, who replaces Speed for 2012?  In both cases, Red Bull loses a year of developing a driver and his chemistry with the team for the future.  If Red Bull starts a third team specifically for Kahne, what happens to that bunch after Kahne leaves?  Is it really worth opening a team for one year, just to shut it down? 

For Kahne, the whole reason for him leaving Richard Petty Motorsports was to join a team that would make him a perennial contender.  Obviously HMS is an upgrade from RPM; but Red Bull arguably is not.  So what good does this deal do for him if he gets in a Red Bull Toyota next year and struggles worse then he did in RPM equipment?  With the way the #83 and #82 have performed this season, it’s difficult to believe this team will make the quantum leap into real contention next season.  And don’t expect Red Bull to get any support for HMS.  While Kahne could certainly use the help, it would be a very bad deal for Hendrick to give Red Bull anything, seeing as how they are competitors and they don’t share a manufacturer.  So what Kahne ends up with is a throw away season that is just serving as a place holder until he moves to HMS.  Not good for a driver’s confidence or his brand.

It’s also not good that Kahne is essentially under contract with HMS, but is going to work for a team that has ties and partners that conflict badly with those at HMS.  Most notably Red Bull vs. Pepsi and Toyota vs. Chevy.

So while I do give kudos to Mr. H. for finally finding a spot for Kahne, and doing it to his advantage, on the other side I think it’s a mistake.  This deal just doesn’t make a ton of sense, and it appears it could be another in a long line of questionable calls made by Jay Frye and Red Bull’s management.

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by Holly Cain

Filed under: Hendrick Motorsports, NASCAR

After starting his career sweeping floors at Hendrick Motorsports during a college internship 14 years ago, Marshall Carlson moved up the ranks to become president and chief operating officer (COO) of the 13-time NASCAR championship Hendrick organization, which fields cars for Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Mark Martin and Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Carlson, 37, was promoted Tuesday during the organization’s quarterly employee meeting. The position has remained open for the past six years. It was previously held by the late John Hendrick, brother of team owner Rick Hendrick (pictured at right). John Hendrick was killed along with nine other people — including John’s twin daughters, Rick Hendrick’s son Ricky, and other Hendrick Motorsports executives — in an airplane crash near Martinsville, Va., on October 24, 2004.

“Hendrick Motorsports is a family and it’s been one of the great privileges of my life to work with these amazing people,” said Carlson, who has helped guide the company to four NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championships since he assumed the role of executive vice president and general manager in January, 2005.

After his college internship in the chassis department, Carlson worked as an engineer on the team’s Camping World Truck Series team that won a title in 1997. He’s worked in the company’s marketing and sponsorship department and oversaw more than $200 million in real estate projects working with Hendrick Automotive Group, one of the largest auto dealership conglomerates in the country before taking his most recent position.

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Somebody please explain this to me.  It seems that these ludicrous Dale Jr. to RCR rumors have come up every year since he made the decision to leave DEI after the 2007 season.  I realize that Jr. has only a single points paying win since joining Hendrick Motorsports, and things haven’t gone well at times this season, but a move to RCR just isn’t going to happen.  Let me say that again for effect.  Dale Jr. IS NOT going to RCR.

So far this season, Jr. has one top five and three top tens in 12 starts.  Following a tough race at Dover, he currently sits 16th in the standings.  It’s interesting to note though, that while he is 16th, he is only 43 points out of 12th. 

As a whole, this season may not quite be up to the standards that some of Jr. Nation would expect out of their favorite driver.  What it is though, is a marked improvement over last season.  His average start is almost ten positions better then it was last season, and his average finish is up almost seven positions.  The stats don’t lie.

I realize that it’s very easy to look at Hendrick Motorsports and see that Dale Jr. just hasn’t performed like his teammates.  Mark Martin has won some races and run well since coming over, Jeff Gordon is a perennial front runner, and Jimmie Johnson is, well, Jimmie Johnson.  Fans see all that success and they expect that Jr. should be doing everything they are doing.

What they don’t realize though, is Jr. is trying to dig himself out of a hole that, it could be argued, was about three years in the making.  He is also trying to learn how to work with only the second crew chief of his career with whom he doesn’t share blood.  Neither are going to be easy to overcome, or fix overnight.

While it might not be easy to see, Jr. is making progress with Lance McGrew.  I know some of you may not like his style, or the fact that he doesn’t have the #88 winning yet, but he is slowly turning the program around.  Like I said before, the stats don’t lie.

Now, the monkey wrench that some of you seem to think will free Dale Jr. of his troubles at HMS is Kasey Kahne.  Obviously if Martin is staying in the #5 for 2011, Hendrick needs to find a spot for Kahne before he takes over for Martin in 2012.  And while it might seem very tidy for HMS to let Jr. walk so they can bring Kahne in, that spot is not in the #88.  The notion that NASCAR will somehow not allow Hendrick to farm out Kahne for next season to another team because it violates the four team limit is ridiculous.  If Jack Roush can figure out how to control eight Ford teams, Hendrick can find a spot for Kasey Kahne.  I don’t care how much the other owners might complain.  Whether it’s a third Stewart Haas car, or some other arrangement, this will get worked out.

Still not convinced that an improving Jr. who isn’t being pushed out by Kasey Kahne won’t be let go by HMS? 

Let us not forget that the reigning seven (consecutive) time Most Popular Driver is a cash cow, whether he runs well or not.  While some of Jr. Nation may have converted to other drivers over the last few seasons, the power of the group is still very strong.  Hendrick will never have any problem finding a slew of suitors to sponsor Jr.’s racing efforts.  That fact alone would still make him the most sought after driver if he were to become a free agent again.

I also want to point out that there is absolutely no guarantee that Jr.’s problems would be solved by going to Childress and jumping behind the wheel of a Goodwrench sponsored, black #3 Chevrolet.  If anything, it would only add to the already monumental pressure this guy has on his shoulders just having the name “Earnhardt.”  At some point we just need to let Dale Jr. be his own person.  Visions of the #3 returning to the track and once again dominating like it did for so many years, need to remain just that – visions.

So, I’m going on the record right now.  There will be no Hendrick defection.  Hendrick won’t push Dale Jr. out in favor of Kasey Kahne.  In 2011 Jr. will be right where he is right now; behind the wheel of the #88 Amp/National Guard Chevrolet.  (And when these rumors resurface next season, I’m going to run this exact post again.  Bet on it.)

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by Holly Cain

Filed under: Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Talladega Superspeedway, NASCAR Fights, Sprint Cup, Hendrick Motorsports

TALLADEGA, Ala. — All weekend Hendrick Motorsports teammates and four-time champions Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson insisted their simmering rivalry is one of “healthy respect.”

They smiled on Friday and promised that “everything is fine” and the rough racing between the two last week at Texas Motor Speedway was just an inevitable result of two highly-motivated champions wanting the same thing: to win a race.

But that good will and respect was put to another test at Talladega Superspeedway Sunday where a close call between the two of them left Gordon angry and not inclined to mince words or drop euphemisms this time.

“I can tell you the 48 (Johnson) is testing my patience,” Gordon said of an incident between the two late in the Aaron’s 499 Sprint Cup race. “It takes a lot to make me mad and I am pissed right now.”

“He’s been testing my patience and it’s about reached its boiling point.”

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by Holly Cain

Filed under: Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Talladega Superspeedway, Hendrick Motorsports

TALLADEGA, Ala. — All weekend Hendrick Motorsports teammates and four-time champions Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson insisted their simmering rivalry is one of “healthy respect.”

They smiled on Friday and promised that “everything is fine” and the rough racing between the two last week at Texas Motor Speedway was just an inevitable result of two highly-motivated champions wanting the same thing: to win a race.

But that good will and respect was put to another test at Talladega Superspeedway Sunday where a close call between the two of them left Gordon angry and not inclined to mince words or drop euphemisms this time.

“I can tell you the 48 (Johnson) is testing my patience,” Gordon said of an incident between the two late in the Aaron’s 499 Sprint Cup race. “It takes a lot to make me mad and I am pissed right now.”

“He’s been testing my patience and it’s about reached its boiling point.”

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