The talk this weekend at Texas Motor Speedway was all about IRL-star Danica Patrick, who is arguably the most successful woman in auto racing. She is by far the most business-savvy/successful women, and most likely will be known as the best behind the wheel.

Should Danica Patrick make the switch from the IRL to the NASCAR series?

Rumors have it that she is running part-time in the Nationwide series next year while running a full-time schedule in the Indy Racing League (IRL). JR Motorsports has been reportedly talking with her, as Dale Earnhardt Jr. looks to be her owner. The thing is, will she be successful?  She will be a GREAT marketing tool. That’s the understatement of the day. The amount of money she brings in the IRL for her GoDaddy.com commercials, etc. is outstanding. With a women in the NASCAR garage, the amount of revenue is something a team owner in the struggling economy will be looking for.

She made her debut in the IRL in 2005, and that same year in the Indianapolis 500, she led 19 laps late in the race, and ultimately finished fourth, the best finish by a woman. Although she hasn’t had the success that the media expected of her, she finally nabbed her first win in 2008 at Motegi, Japan.

Will she be successful?  Let’s compare her with Juan Pablo Montoya, the most successful switch-over driver thus far. She has one win in 81 starts, a constant contender in the top-10 in the IRL points, and three poles. Montoya won the Indy 500 in his first start in 2000, has seven Formula 1 wins, a CART championship, and in his third year in the NASCAR Sprint Cup series, he has one win (the road course in Sonoma) and made the Chase for the first time this year. If Danica decides to go for it, she may take a couple of years to be a legit contender, like Montoya. Let’s just hope she fares better than fellow drivers Sam Hornish Jr, Dario Franchitti, A.J. Allmendinger, and Scott Speed, who have also made the switch, with little success.

Nevertheless, I, for one, would enjoy seeing her face in the NASCAR garage on race day, successful or not.

Today’s halfdog nominee is AJ Allmendinger.  News leaked today that Allmendinger was charged and arrested for a DWI. If you’re livelihood and money comes from driving cars, driving drunk probably isnt the best way to promote your sport or yourself.

California Race Results…Top 10

1)  #48 Jimmie Johnson
2)  #24 Jeff Gordon
3)  #42 Juan Pablo Montoya
4)   #5 Mark Martin
5)  #14 Tony Stewart
6)  #99 Carl Edwards
7)   #6 David Ragan
8)   #2 Kurt Busch
9)  #33 Clint Bowyer   
10) #29 Kevin Harvick

Chase Points after California

1) #48-Jimmie Johnson [5 wins], 5728, finished 1st
2) #5-Mark Martin [5 wins], 5716, -12, 4th
3) #42-Juan Montoya 5670, -58, 3rd
4) #14-Tony Stewart [4 wins], 5644 -84, 5th
5) #24-Jeff Gordon [1 win], 5623 -105, 2nd
6) #2-Kurt Busch [1 win], 5607, -121, 8th
7) #16-Greg Biffle 5540, -188, 20th
#99-Carl Edwards 5536, -192, 6th
9) #11-Denny Hamlin [2 wins], 5509, -219, 37th
10) #39-Ryan Newman 5505, -223, 15th
11) #9-Kasey Kahne [2 wins], 5422, -306, 34th
12) #83-Brian Vickers [1 win], 5377, -351,2 9th

For the Entire Results and Points California Results and Driver Standings

#5 and #48 taken back to the R & D Center AGAIN

NASCAR takes the #48 and the #5 cars back to their R & D Center in Concord N.C. for the third consecutive week for closer inspection. The winning car and the engines of the top two finishing cars always are taken to the R&D Center. But Martin finished seventh last week at Kansas and Johnson was ninth, but both cars again were taken the R&D Center. Both cars were cleared after inspections in Concord. Martin finished fourth Sunday, but NASCAR officials again elected to take the #5 Chevy back to the R&D Center for additional tests.

Kyle Feeling ill

Kyle Busch was sick this past weekend and elected to be replaced after starting the Nationwide and Sprint Cup races. He started both of the races this weekends races to be able to keep the points earned by his cars. After starting the Nationwide race he was replaced by Deny Hamlin who ended up finishing the day by kissing the wall. Sunday Kyle was replaced by start and park driver David Gilliland but not before Kyle had drove his M & M Toyota from the back of the field to about 20th position pitting on lap 61 to make the switch, Gilland who will be driving a fourth Gibbs car for an undetermined amount of races starting this weekend didn’t do to bad Sunday, without running any practice laps Gilliland managed to bring home a top 25 finishing 24th.

RPM Ford Program to start

Richard Petty Motorsports has had a Ford in its possession ready to race since after New Hampshire. Most likely AJ Allmendinger will be driving a Fusion at Lowe’s Motor Speedway next weekend or the week after that. Once the #44 car flips over to Ford, it will remain a Fusion the rest of the season. In addition to Allmendinger, Elliott Sadler is expected to drive a Roush-prepared Ford with a Yates engine at Talladega. Whether or not RPM’s proposed merger with Yates Racing goes through, team owner George Gillett has said his team will run Ford’s next season.

Restricting the Restrictor Plate

NASCAR will reduce the size of the restrictor plate and allow teams an optional change as a way to slow the cars and try to keep them from getting airborne at Talladega. Sprint Cup Series Director John Darby said Friday at Auto Club Speedway that the restrictor plate will be reduced 1/64 of an inch. The new size will be 59/64 of an inch. Darby estimates it will shave 12 horsepower off the engines. Teams also have been given an option on side wickers, something they hadn’t been allowed to use before at Talladega. Darby said that teams “will be able to add the same little side wicker to the end plate (on the rear wing) much like they do at the downforce tracks. If you look at all the cars in the garage right now on that end plate, all the way out on the back edge they’ve got a little half by half piece of aluminum. That’s eight inches long. It helps in yaw or when the cars are turned. It kind of settles the back of the car down a little bit.

Latest on Danica:

Danica’s a hot commodity with team onwers right now. It’s become increasingly more difficult for car owners to find good commited sponsor these days. What Danica lacks in talent is made up for by her marketability. What makes her even more attractive is she already has a relationship with godaddy.com as well as other motorsports sponsors, which in some respects (I hate to say) makes her good for NASCAR because some IRL sponsors may follow her which will be good for the team and teammates because more relationships are built. One thing we talked about last week was Danica’s paycheck they’re were false rumors saying she wanted 1 million per race that turned out to be poppycock, insiders say she’ll make somewhere between $20,000 and $40,000 per race.

Ford’s New Engine

Ford will delay the debut of its new Sprint Cup engine, Doug Hervey, who oversees Ford’s North American racing operations, said Saturday. The engine was scheduled to have debuted next week at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Instead, Ford will debut the restrictor-plate version of the engine at Talladega in three weeks. As for the non-restrictor-plate engine, it likely will debut at Texas or Homestead. I wonder if this will have an effect on RPM’s date to switch to a Ford which was slated for A.J. Almemdinger to run a Ford at Lowes.

First of all I have to say Richard Petty Motorsports (RPM) has done an unbelievable job keeping this manufacturer switch under wraps in the NASCAR world. Earlier today when the announcement was released stating that RPM would be merging with Yates Racing and running Ford Fusions, even “franchise” driver Kasey Kahne posted on his Twitter and MySpace accounts that the switch surprised him.

There are two points that make me wonder how effective this switch is.

1. I understood that Ford was only supporting Roush Fenway Racing (RFR) with manufacturer money and had no intention of branching out to other teams. So this leads me to believe that manufacturer money will not be arriving at RPM. Why the company would agree to this deal I am not sure because the fact that Dodge had stopped sending their payments was why RPM was talking to other manufacturers to begin with. To top it all off none of the Ford teams have been spectacular this season, even RFR is struggling with no turn around in site. So I really don’t think that this move is going to greatly improve RPM’s performance on the track. They are a team that as Kasey Kahne said earlier this season jump on to things too late and prevent themselves from being an elite team. I think this is another move in the wrong direction for RPM.

2. By merging with Yates, RPM is taking on perennial field filler, Paul Menard, and getting rid of Reed Sorenson after only one year. Many people I’m sure will say that it seems like RPM is swapping poor driver for poor driver, but at least Sorenson has his moments where he shows promise. I have never seen any of that from Paul Menard. This move does further support one of my previous blog posts, which also centered on RPM, that NASCAR teams will gladly have a field filler as long as they come with money and will get rid of anyone who isn’t a cash cow for the team. Once again marketability and money win out over all else.

My prediction is that RPM will not perform better than it has in the past. Kasey Kahne will still be the team’s star while the rest of the drivers fight for top 30 finishes. RPM can boast of having the “Bud Boy”, two field fillers, and a streaky driver who may be going to F1 after 2010. None of this makes me believe that RPM is moving toward elite team status. Sorenson may get the best end of this deal if he can land a half-decent ride. Best of luck to all….you’re gonna need it!

The widespread use of Twitter by celebrities has allowed fans to get an inside look at the lives of their favorite personalities, but could the days of being able to know what they are doing be coming to a halt?

One of the greatest additions to this NASCAR season has been the Tweeting of teams and drivers about how the race weekend is going. Some driver’s even have their wives tweeting for them from the pit box to keep fans up-to-date. A recent move by Richard Petty Motorsports may be a indicator of things to come in the world of NASCAR.

AJ Allmendinger driver of the number 44 Richard Petty Motorsports Dodge Charger has been tweeting for most of the season. On race day his PR representative takes over keeping tabs on changes to the car and how Allmendinger is running.

This morning at 10:50 AM ET Public Relations for AJ Allmendinger tweeted the following: “PR – good morning loyal followers! We have some bad news – due to some circumstances beyond our control, we are having to temporarily suspend aj’s twittering. We apologize this has to be done. We will look for an alternative to replace the best we can. Thank u guys for being the best fans out there!”

There has been no other explanation as to why this is happening or what the circumstances are. Allmendinger’s other tweeting teammates Kasey Kahne (@kaseykahne) and Elliott Sadler (@elliott_sadler) have not made a similar announcement, leaving followers to wonder why only Allmendinger’s tweeting is being suspended.

This suspension comes after ESPN has told it’s employees they can not tweet.

Other sports are also joining in banning Twitter. An article in the New York Times on August 3′rd discussed how NFL coaches told their players during pre-season practice that they are not allowed to tweet. The article goes on to state that though the NFL does not have a social media policy, it does not allow players and coaches to have cell phones, smart phones, or PDA’s on the sidelines.

For the full article text: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/04/sports/football/04twitter.html?_r=1&ref=sports

It’s time to face it folks the days of Cale Yarborough and Richard Petty working a real job by day and on their race cars at night are long gone. This really shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone because as we know NASCAR is in the age of big money. Teams need a large amount of start-up capital to build their shop and the infrastructure needed to run a team, but they also need sponsors.

Today it seems like the old conundrum: what came firs the chicken or the egg? In NASCAR terms, what comes first the sponsor or the team? For an established team that answer is obvious the sponsors come before the team. Without a sponsor you are unable to put a car on the track.

Hands down, NASCAR is a great marketing tool. Where else can you get your logo four hours of national television coverage? Not to mention the fact that all Sprint Cup series practices and qualifying are televised providing exposure from Friday to Sunday.

What does all of this mean though?

Simple, the focus of NASCAR and it’s race teams has moved from performance to marketability. The first step in that was the Car of Tomorrow (COT). There’s no way that’s true you say? Think about it for a minute.

Why did NASCAR institute the COT? To make performance more consistent amongst all teams not just the perennial powerhouses. Has that really come to pass? No, it hasn’t. One of the most common things that drivers say about the COT is that they have a hard time passing with these cars.

Now we have double file restarts. What does each of these things provide? More TV time for each sponsor. The TV cameras move to where the action is and if you have two drivers battling for two to three laps to pass each other that’s laps of coverage for those two primary sponsors.

The other answer NASCAR gives is that the changes it is making are for the fans. Doesn’t that just make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside? Yes, the changes may have been made to increase and maintain the fan base, but not truly for the fans. Who is it for then? Simple, the sponsors.

Without fans, NASCAR teams are going to lose sponsors. Teams are already losing sponsors. Take for example, Dewalt leaving Matt Kenseth after ten seasons. The failing car manufacturers are cutting back and cutting off payments to NASCAR teams that run their emblem. These cut-backs don’t have anything to do with fans, it’s due to the economy. So just imagine what would happen if legions of fans were dropping away.

Back to the economy though, with sponsors pulling back their money and cutting budgets NASCAR teams have to start showing that the drivers can offer something more to the sponsors to keep them. This unfortunately means more “drivers” (I’m using the term loosely) like Paul Menard who have money to back themselves are more likely to remain in the series as well as get picked up by teams. The second downside to finding and keeping sponsors in this economy is that a team’s focus shifts from performance to marketability. Let’s check out a recent rumor.

Reports are running rampant that Reed Sorenson is going to be out of a job at Richard Petty Motorsports (RPM) who will close down the 44 team and place A.J. Allmendinger in the historic 43. If RPM was looking at their team in a performance based way Sadler and Allmendinger would be on their way out. As both drivers have been consistently finishing from 20’th on back since the start of the season. Whereas, after a rough start to the season with mechanical failures and involvement in wrecks Sorenson is posting top 15 finishes and consistently runs with or only a few spots behind RPM money maker Kasey Kahne. Sorenson is also doing so without the Dodge R6 engine, which RPM wasted on Sadler at Indianapolis.

So why does RPM keep Allmendinger and Sadler. Well Sadler has already sued RPM once during the off-season for trying to fire him. So the team is stuck with him until the end of 2010.

As for Allmendinger there are two main reasons why he is preferred at RPM. First, he is currently more marketable than Sorenson. How? First, Allmendinger is fine with shamelessly marketing himself if no one else will do it for him. Remember the shirts his wife, Lynne, and dog, Misty, wore during the All-Star week promoting him? If he’s willing to do that for himself imagine what he would do for a sponsor. Have you seen Sorenson do anything like that? The answer is a simple, no.

The second reason Allmendinger may be preferred by RPM, is that he raced for Red Bull Racing in a Toyota. With RPM’s Dodge contract running out at the end of this season and the team seriously considering the switch to Toyota they could use someone in their stable who is familiar with the Camry COT.

So even though Sorenson is hands down the second best performer as of late in the RPM stable he will be the odd man out as RPM hangs on to the drivers it considers are money makers on and off the track.

Kasey Kahne’s remarks earlier this season about RPM taking three to four months to adopt new equipment that other teams get at the start of the season show that RPM is not performance focused at all. Kahne was right when he said taking so long to get the new equipment is holding RPM back from being an elite team.

Update: RPM released a statement saying that all four teams will run the remainder of the 2009 season but that there are personnel changes on the horizon.

Allmendinger and Sorenson are switching Crew Chiefs, crews, and equipment. The only thing that will remain the same are sponsors and numbers. Allmendinger posted on Twitter earlier this week about testing at Dover with his new crew. Monday during the race at Pocono Allmendinger’s wife Lynne repeatedly tweeted about how poorly the pit crew was performing. Sorenson’s pit crew has had its troubles but is overall a very good pit crew.

Between reports, statements from the team, and Allmendinger’s comments it is clear that RPM is favoring the driver of the 44.

So what’s my personal take on all of this?

1) NASCAR and its teams are doing what they have to do to keep this sport going through an economic downturn.

2) Be prepared to see many more Michael Waltrip and Paul Menard-esque drivers enter the Cup series.

3) Favoring marketability of a driver over performance is going to drive many fans, specifically the lifetime fans, away from the sport. The lifetime dedicated fans are the ones that NASCAR is trying to keep but by chasing the dollar the racing will suffer and so won’t the fan base.

4) Sorenson is one of the most underrated drivers in the sport. He has yet to find a team that will provide him with the people and equipment he needs to run out front every week. He needs to start looking for another ride.

Capshun by Jesse

“That’s it AJ, we’re OVER!”

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Jeremy Mayfield has hired Bill Diehl as he prepares to fight his suspension from NASCAR due to failing a drug test.

While Diehl is working with Mayfield, he said no suit has been filed.

Diehl represented Elliott Sadler in his dispute with Richard Petty Motorsports after reports surfaced that AJ Allemdinger would replace Sadler in the No. 19 Dodge.

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  Red Bull is a perfect example why sponsors should not own race teams. Red Bull is probably the best at what they do, make and market energy drinks. But that’s it.
  They have no business making decisions on the drivers of there race teams. That should be Jaye Fryes job he’s the professional they hired to manage there NASCAR race teams. The big wheel(owner) in Austria made the decision to let A.J. Almendinger go and put Scott Speed in the drivers seat. It was a huge set back for the team, they had just started to turn the corner with A.J. he was qualifying well and had gotten into the top 35 which guarantees the team a starting spot. They were finally going to be able to run competitively and bam in one stupid decision the team was setback two years but thats only if all goes well and Scott Speed steps up his game which hasn’t happened yet.
  I was completely against the swap, I think A.J.’s the drive to be successful in NASCAR in the same breathe I think it just might have been the best thing to happen to A.J., he’s with an owner(Richard Petty Motorsports) that see’s his talent, he’s with an owner that wants to win as bad as he does, and he’s with an owner that has experience in the sport. Those combinations along with A.J.’s attitude is recipe for success.
   I really don’t think Scott Speed will be in Cup to long. Other than Red Bull teams can’t go a season and only run 4 or 5 races and right now thats all your going to get with Scott Speed unless you put someone in the car to get them back in the top 35 and then put Scott in to see if he can hold it there. But Scott is not going to get the car into the top 35.

After Richard Petty Motorsports reached an agreement with Hunt Brothers Pizza to sponsor the team’s No. 44 car and driver AJ Allmendinger for seven races, the team has picked up Allmenginer’s option, locking him up until 2010.

Joe Gibbs Racing expressed interest in Allmendinger, due to his on track results. He currently sits 20th in points, a little over 100 points out of the Chase.

There are conflicting reports as to whether JGR was interested in Allmendinger for a fourth team, or to replace a struggling Joey Logano in the Home Depot No. 20.

Richard Petty Motorsports announced that it has signed Hunt Brothers Pizza to a seven-race deal to sponsor the No. 44 and driver AJ Allmendinger.

The deal extends Allmendinger’s season through the Richmond race in September.

Allmendinger said:

I want to thank Hunt Brothers Pizza for coming on board and supporting us. I know our fans and NASCAR fans in general certainly appreciate all they are doing for the sport. We plan to give Hunt Brothers Pizza a lot to talk about in the coming weeks.

Scott Hunt, CEO of Hunt Brothers Pizza said:

Partnering with Richard Petty Motorsports is exciting for everyone involved with Hunt Brothers. We feel blessed to be in a position to support AJ while connecting with our convenience store customers, many of whom are NASCAR fans. Getting the opportunity to work with “The King” Mr. Richard Petty, AJ Allmendinger and all the professionals at Richard Petty Motorsports, offers us a unique opportunity. We are excited and looking forward to seeing the Hunt Brothers Dodge on the track.

Richard Petty Motorsports is working on an extension of driver AJ Allmendinger’s schedule beyond this year’s Coca Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.

RPM is working to secure sponsorship for the No. 44 and Allmendinger. Hunt Brothers Pizza is rumored to be in discussions with the team.

Joe Gibbs Racing reportedly has inquired about Allmendinger’s status with RPM. He could possibly replace Joey Logano in the No. 20 Home Depot Toyota.

Allmendinger is currently 20th in points, with two top 10s and a top 5.

Jimmie Johnson bumped Denny Hamlin out of the way in the closing laps of the Goodys Fast Pain Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway and held on to win.

Hamlin was very diplomatic about the incident, saying he was “honored” being on the racetrack with Johnson, and the other leaders. He said that it was just short track racing, and that he would have done the same thing.

Top 5: Johnson, Hamlin, Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon, and Clint Bowyer.

Ryan Newman, Mark Martin, Dale Earnhardt Jr, AJ Allmendinger, and Jamie McMurray rounded out the top 10.

Notables: Kevin Harvick (12th), Juan Pablo Montoya (13th), Jeff Burton (15th), Bobby Labonte (16th), Kurt Busch (18th), Kasey Kahne (19th), Matt Kenseth (23rd), Kyle Busch (24th), Carl Edwards (26th), Greg Biffle (28th), and Brian Vickers (33rd). 

Give a call to Michael Waltrip Racing. Michael Waltrip (13th), Marcos Ambrose (14th), and David Reutimann (20th) all finished in the top 20. Reutimann ran well and stayed on the lead lap for most of the race. A late-race incident with David Stremme led to a Reutimann spin, which put him a lap down.

Also, Stewart Haas Racing deserves a call for finishing with both cars in the top 6. Stewart finished third, while Newman finished sixth.

Kyle Busch did not like the handle of his car, and he got frustrated early. He drove into the corner a little too hard a spun. He collected Scott Speed in the crash. Busch lost two laps and never recovered. Speed finished 76 laps down in 39th.

Kyle and Kurt Busch qualified first and second for the Shelby 427 from Las Vegas Motor Speedway. But, Kyle lost an engine in practice and will need to start from the rear of the field.

Jimmie Johnson, David Reutimann, and Marcos Ambrose will start third through fifth, respectively.

Rounding out the top 10 are Ryan Newman, Kasey Kahne, Mark Martin, Kevin Harvick, and Tony Stewart.

Notables: Jeff Burton (14th), Carl Edwards (16th), Greg Biffle (24th), Jeff Gordon (28th), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (31st), Denny Hamlin (34th), and Matt Kenseth (40th).

Go-Or-Go-Homers That Will Start: Stewart, Max Papis, Brad Keselowski, Regan Smith, AJ Allmendinger, Joe Nemechek, David Gilliland, and Todd Bodine.

Did Not Qualify: Travis Kvapil, Dave Blaney, Mike Garvey, Jeremy Mayfield, Sterlin Marlin, Scott Riggs, Tony Raines, and Dexter Bean.

AJ Allmendinger, a ChampCar race winner and NASCAR driver has said he is not interested in racing for the USF1 team which is to be launched in the next few days.

The driver, currently racing in the Sprint Cup series in America, would like to sample an F1 car but admitted that it is not his current focus.

His last experience of open wheel racing was in ChampCar, where he drove for RuSport before switching to Forsythe Racing, a team he won 5 races for.

“I’m not focused on that,” said Allmendinger. “I loved being a part of NASCAR. Going to all these races and being around the fans, I enjoy being here. I enjoy the racing… I enjoy all that.

“I’m a true American at heart; I like to in-between races…watch my NFL on Sunday and all that. I’ve learned in this sport, after everything that has happened to me the last couple of years, don’t deny anything. Just nod your head and smile and say there’s a chance.”

“Driving a racecar, no matter what it is, has intrigue to me. That (F1 car) is something that I haven’t driven before, so it’s intriguing, but it’s not my focus either.”

In other American racing news, former Minardi and Red Bull Racing driver Robert Doornbos has secured a seat in the Indy Racing League (IRL).

Doornbos drove for Italian minnows Minardi in F1 in 2005, before moving to test with Red Bull Racing in 2006.  He has driven in races for the team in 2006 after Christian Klien left the team.  He performed well, qualifying in the top 10 on his first attempt at the Chinese Grand Prix.

He has also competed in various demonstrations of F1 machinery, in ChampCar where he won 2 races and more recently in the Superleague Formula.

He will drive for the Newman/Haas/Lanigan team.

“I’m very happy and proud to get this chance to race with Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing,” Doornbos said.

“Racing in the IndyCar Series has been my biggest dream and especially to do it with Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing. The history of the team and the big success they have had in the past really attracted me, and it makes me proud to become part of this winning team.”

“It will be tough, but I’m training as much as possible and am in good condition and ready to achieve results. I’m also excited to race in the legendary Indy 500.”

Matt Kenseth used a push from Kevin Harvick to pass Elliott Sadler for the lead, and the eventual win, once the 2009 Daytona 500 was called 48 laps from the scheduled finish.

Top 5: Kenseth, Harvick, AJ Allmendinger, Clint Bowyer, and Sadler.

David Ragan, Michael Waltrip, Tony Stewart, Reed Sorenson, and Kurt Busch rounded out the top 10.

Notables: Martin Truex Jr (11th), Jeff Gordon (13th), Mark Martin (16th), Carl Edwards (18th), Kasey Kahne (24th), Denny Hamlin (27th), Dale Earnhardt Jr (28th), Jeff Burton (29th), Jimmie Johnson (31st), Kyle Busch (41st), and Joey Logano (43rd).

On lap 124, Dale Earnhardt Jr and Brian Vickers were both a lap down, and were starting on the inside row, as the field restarted. Jr got a big run on Vickers and pulled to the inside. Vickers drove down to block, forcing Jr below the yellow line. Jr turned back up on the track and clipped the back of Vickers, sending him up into Kyle Busch and other cars, triggering a 10-car pile up.