Chip Ganassi Racing

Too loose, too tight, no horsepower, bad tires, got wrecked, too many crew chiefs, we are getting better, no money, lost sponsor, and on and on and on.

There is no doubt in my mind that Juan Pablo Montoya is one of the best race car drivers in the world. Montoya has hit the podium on just about every series he participated in, with multiple wins in many of them.

So, it's hard for me to understand why success is taking so long...or is it? Is it safe to say Chip Ganassi's commitment in equipment and personnel to his NASCAR team may not be at the same level as his Indy and Grand-Am teams?

That's a hard question for an outsider to answer, but what we can do is look at the results of Chip Ganassi's teams. Ganassi's Indy team is the primo team in the IRL, and the Grand-Am team is always the team to beat in their series.

Why? Well, I can only guess, but I would bet the wife and the dog his Indy and Grand-Am equipment are top of the line. Can the same be said with the Dodge from the 2008 season or the Chevy package they have in 2009? The results, so far, say no.

Does good equipment make a good driver a great driver? Well, yes. Even though Joey Logano may be destroying the theory by not doing well in the No. 20 car, I still believe good cars produce good drivers.

The Atlanta race was full of cars with handling problems, and yet the top teams did well. Their teams made it work, no excuses, no complaining about not getting a breaks on the timing of the cautions, etc.

Juan Pablo Montoya is too talented to be running 20th after two full seasons in NASCAR. I may be biased, but the poor performance by the No. 42 car may be all about Chip's NASCAR equipment rather than the driver.

If it was me, I would rather run in the teens in a Toro-Rosso F1 car than in NASCAR sucking exhaust in the back 40. Agree?

I hope things get better for Montoya, but the last two races remind me of the downhill spiral after the Talladega race that put Montoya out of the Top 12 in 2008. Let's hope it turns around soon.

In America today, it costs more than $250,000 to raise a child.

The average wedding, in 2005, was more than $30,000.

College tuition for a public four-year university totals nearly $7,000.

So, what's this have to do with NASCAR? Well, for more than 800 pit crew members, it means they can't pay for these things since losing their jobs this past offseason.

Even Champions Aren't Immune

"I knew the layoffs were coming, but sometimes you think you're going to be all right," 28-year-old David Tallman said.

Tallman was one of the twenty Hendrick Motorsports employees let go due to the economy. He worked for three-time champion Jimmie Johnson's crew, tearing down the car after the race as well as checking parts and preparing for the next race.

He says that because he wasn't more versatile, the team let him go.

"There was no other room for anybody," Tallman recalls. "I was the only one in my department that wasn't on a pit crew."

Marriage May Have To Wait

Derrick Finley feels his pain. The former crew chief lost his job after Petty Enterprises shut down—a "surprise" to him, since he thought he'd be safe when Boston Ventures took over majority control of the company last year.

Finley and his wife are expecting their first child this month.

However, he is one of the lucky ones—thanks to Joe Nemecheck starting his own team, there's work. For now.

"Even the guys with jobs have to be somewhat worried because there's a lot of talented people without jobs," he says.

Family Vacation on Hold

"Bills have to be paid."

For former fabricator Andy Page, losing his job has became all too real. Not only did Page lose his job when Dale Earnhardt, Inc. and Ginn Racing merged, but he lost his job when DEI merged with Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates.

The trip he planned on taking with his six year old son—ironically, to the same place four-time champion Jeff Gordon just took with his little girl—will have to wait.

Now, Page can only tell Nicholas "someday."

Volunteer firefighter Travis McQuade was released from Gillett Evernham Motorsports. The 24-year-old "doesn't dare to spend a dollar right now."

A hard thing to do, as he's getting married this summer.

"It's driving me nuts," said McQuade. "I just don't know what to do."

Many drivers are echoing the sentiments of former crew member David Salerno: "I should be there."

While several independent teams are currently hiring, it's little comfort for those still unemployed. One can only hope these good people do get jobs.

If you're looking for a job in NASCAR, you can post your resume at http://racecityresumes.com/

Thanks to MSN, Baby Center, Money.CNN.com, FOX Sports and The Virginia-Pilot for the quotes and figures used in this story.

I dare say that if you didn’t at least take a little bit of time out of your weekend to watch some of the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona, you’re not a racing fan.

Sports car racing may not be the biggest thing going, but this was the first race of the year (okay, so there was the Chili Bowl earlier in the month…) and the beginning of Speedweeks at Daytona (since there wasn’t any on-track testing for NASCAR).

Regardless, the action was great, and you couldn’t have asked for much more than four cars being in contention in the closing laps. This after 24 hours of full-throttle racing (without rain, they were flat-out the whole time) and covering over 2,600 miles.

But could you ask for more? I could, and will. Read on as I review the 47th Rolex 24 at Daytona from a good, bad, and ugly perspective.

Conditions:

Good: The weather. Mother Nature delivered perfection. No rain, the cold from earlier in the week moved out, and it looked like it was just a beautiful winter weekend in Florida.

Bad: No rain. I’m not talking about a monsoon here. But this would have really challenged the competitors. Consider last year in Formula 1; Silverstone separated the men from the boys. Otherwise they should set up a sprinkler system from Lake Lloyd in the infield and pump some water on the track for a few hours to make things a little more interesting. But honestly, I think they did okay without.

DP Competition:

Good: The run by the top-four cars. Brumos had the speed and overcame some pit-road miscues to take first and third on the podium. The 01 Ganassi car got lucky with a caution allowing them to repair splitter damage without losing too much ground and did everything they could to fall just short of a third-straight overall win. Wayne Taylor’s SunTrust Ford/Dallara ran great in fourth – showing the wisdom of going with proven engine technology to ensure reliability.

Bad: The run by the 99 Gainsco Bob Stallings car. It suffered an electrical problem taking out the tail lights which required repairs, and then the gearbox went kaput. This took the team I was hoping would dethrone Ganassi out of the running for the win. You had the primary pilots of Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty joined by former CART Champion Jimmy Vasser, and three-time defending Sprint Cup Champion Jimmie Johnson - So much talent gone to waste.

Bad: The 02 Ganassi Lexus Riley was strong early, but splitter damage would leave them in the not-so-envious position of having to make a change under green – effectively taking them out of contention. Dario Franchitti and Scott Dixon are going to be tough to beat this season in IndyCar.

Bad: The number 16 car for (Roger) Penske Racing led early and looked like it could add insult to the injury of defrocking the CGR team. Nothing would have brought the Captain more pleasure in beating his rival Ganassi than to do it by preventing his car from making history. Sixth place overall wasn’t good, but not all bad considering how other big names fared. Roger couldn’t draw Chip into running in American Le Mans Series head-to-head, so Penske decided to come play in his adversaries’ sandbox.

Ugly: The number 2 car for (Richard) Childress-Howard Motorsports was a non-factor all weekend. They didn’t even make it on the track for the first qualifying session. After addressing some gremlins during the race, including a door that didn’t want to stay closed, at least they did nurse the car home in eighth overall – 33 laps down. This was one bad run that can’t be blamed on Danica Patrick.

Ugly: Michael Shank Racing’s two cars stunk it up, both succumbing to Ford engine failures, resulting in 41st and 47th place on the score sheet.

GT Competition:

Good: The drive put in by the TRG (The Racers Group) and their Porsche GT3s. Ninth and tenth overall is a great day for GT teams up against the much faster Daytona Prototypes.

Bad: The number of cars Farnbacher-Loles Racing fielded (5) and lackluster performance: 13th, 15th, 16th, 26th, and 27th overall. They didn’t even get a podium finish. Five cars! And they were the same Porsche GT3s TRG went one-two and Wright Motorsports finished third with.

Ugly: A run across rumble strips or some other off-track excursion punctured the fuel tank and broke the pump on the SpeedSource Mazda RX-8 of Sylvan Tremblay and Nick Ham. These guys could have given the Porsches a battle, instead they spent 23+ hours running to make points.

Really Ugly: Team Sahlen. Three guys on the team named Nonnamaker, two Corvettes, only one started, and it made it all of 30 laps. Thirty? I could have done better on a bicycle and still enjoyed the party Saturday night. Please… If you’re not going to be worth a damn, don’t embarrass the bowtie by fielding a Vette.

Conduct of the Race:

Good: The call not to penalize Max Angelelli for racing hard with the Brumos Porsche and they both spinning in turn 6.

Bad: A record number of cautions (25) for 117 laps (both records). Yes, there were too many yellow flags, but it helped keep things tight (though that seemed to be happening based on the quality of the competition anyway). 

Bad: Waving the white flag before the 24-hour clock had expired. One more lap wouldn’t have hurt, would it? Or was the 58 car on fumes?

Ugly: The drive-through penalty assessed to the 02 Ganassi car for shooting the chicane at the Bus Stop because the brakes failed. Dario Franchitti immediately pitted the car, and they lost two laps as a result of a loose brake line. Why add insult to injury at that point? Dumb.

Coverage:

Good: SPEED’s coverage was good, as usual. Bob Varsha’s toes probably hurt a little from David Hobbs stepping on them so much.

Bad: The lack of overnight broadcast. Grand-am.com could have at least had an audio cast couldn’t they? SPEED went out to Irwindale for the Toyota All-Star Showdown, so I’ll give them a pass on that front. It would be costly to have crews on cameras and running the truck all night, but it would have been fun to watch flag-to-flag.

I was working overnight after monitoring live timing and scoring (see below), I couldn’t wait for 6 a.m. to roll around and SPEED’s coverage to resume. Last year I think grand-am.com had audio, and a live webcam that wasn’t worth a whole lot, but was better than nothing. Put one on the front stretch and one looking down pit road and let ‘em roll.

Good: The Grand-Am.com web site had live timing and scoring for the entire event. NASCAR.com also had articles, but being that the France family now owns Grand Am, and there were a number of Cup drivers in the field, this is no surprise.

Bad: IndyCar.com had nothing about the race, yet the biggest names in their sport were involved: Scott Dixon, Danica Patrick, Dario Franchitti, Ryan Hunter-Reay… What else would they talk about right now?

Results:

Good: The win by David Donohue 40 years after his father, Mark, did the same. Not to mention he did it from pole.

Good: Margin of victory: .167 seconds. If only it had been as close as the July race at the track... (Can you say, "Pruett by a nose!")

Good: Record number of cars on the lead lap (4). If only the 02 hadn't had the splitter issue, they would have been there as well. And the 16 certainly had the speed.

Bad: Juan Pablo Montoya complaining that the speed of the Brumos Porsche, “Wasn’t fair.” Come on, Juan, be gracious in defeat. If anyone had a right to complain about a lack of speed, it was the Gainsco guys.

Ugly: Did I mention the Sahlen team’s poor performance? I think a used Taurus on a doughnut could have gone farther than they did. At least Corvette will be redeemed in American Le Mans.

Intangibles:

Good: The racing season has officially begun!

Bad: There’s not another Grand Am race for three months… Three MONTHS! Who made this schedule?

Ugly: After the greatness of the DP race this weekend, see above. The GT racing will be much better going forward, and this year is going to be another great battle for the points championship. I’m ready for more now. I’d really like to see these guys come to Texas Motor Speedway for a 4-6 hour race on the Roval.

Yes, every other racing series will kick off between now and April 25th (the next race on the schedule), but if you don’t like the action in Grand Am, I dare say you’re not a race fan.

After a grueling 24 hours for drivers of the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series, we race fans can truly say that this year's Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona was one to remember!

After racing all night and all morning, the action on the race track was still very tight.

Juan Pablo Montoya, after taking control from Scott Pruett of the Chip Ganassi Daytona Prototype, passed David Donohue of the Brumos Porsche Racing Team as he tried to grab Ganassi's fourth consecutive Daytona victory.

But the job was certainly not over, as both the Brumos racing machines were on a charge. Joao Barbosa put the pressure on Montoya until his teammate, David Donohue, zoomed by him.

Donohue, having the faster car, pressured Montoya even harder and did all he could to overtake him.

With only 39 minutes remaining, going through the bus stop chicane, Donohue took advantage of the slower traffic and carried momentum heading into the final high banked corners.

Montoya, who was unable to gain momentum, could do nothing to stop Donohue in his Porsche as he watched the lead go away.

Montoya put on pressure to regain the lead but just was not fast enough to do so.

After threats of maybe not having enough fuel to make it to the finish, David Donohue crossed the finish line in the No. 1 position on the 40th anniversary of his father's victory in the 24 hours of Daytona in 1969.

Donohue finished .167 seconds ahead of Montoya to make it the closest finish in the race's history.

Joining Donohue in the win were Buddy Rice, Darren Law and Antonio Garcia to give Brumos Racing its first Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series victory since 2003.

“These guys have put a lot of effort into this,” Donohue said. “I’m glad to be able to carry the flag. The Brumos team is just a tenacious bunch of guys, they never give up and today proves the point. We came here ready to run and we ran hard the whole time.”

“Every corner it was 110 percent everywhere,” said Montoya, who drove for Ganassi in the team’s 2007 and 2008 victories. “And it was fun, because we drove like that the last two hours. And we didn’t make any mistakes. I gave it 110 percent, and I know I couldn’t go any faster if I had done anything different.”

Joao Barbosa finished third in the No. 59 Brumos Racing Porsche Riley shared by JC France, Hurley Haywood, and Terry Borcheller, 5.504 seconds back.

Max Angelelli took fourth in the No. 10 SunTrust Racing Ford Dallara co-driven by Wayne Taylor, Pedro Lamy and Brian Frisselle, 10.589 seconds behind.

This race was one that broke many records, such as: the closest margin of victory, most finishers on the lead lap and most cautions, 25 for 117 laps.

The top four finishers completed 735 laps; most in the Daytona prototype era.

The exciting final hour was run entirely under green flag conditions with the top four cars running nose to tail most of the time.

TRG Porsche notched a 1-2 finish in the GT class, with Andy Lally, RJ Valentine, Jorg Bergmeister, Justin Marks, and Patrick Long winning in the No. 67 Porsche GT3.

Second, one lap behind, was the TRG No. 66 driven by Spencer Pumpelly, Tim George Jr., Richard Leitz, and Emmanuel Collard.

I had heard of the Grand Am racing, but I didn't understand how, why, or who would want to watch a 24-hour race. I'd caught some of the action before and it never caught on, so I wanted to make sure by watching the Rolex 24 at Daytona.

There were lots of Sprint Cup stars like Jimmie Johnson, Casey Mears, Juan Pablo Montoya, AJ Allmendinger, etc., so I decided to catch the last two-and-a-half hours of it.

I saw lots of drivers I'd never heard of, like David Donohue and Darren Moore. But they showed me.

At the 40-minute mark Montoya took the lead in a Chip Ganassi Racing Lexus Daytona Prototype, going for three overall wins in a row with co-drivers Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas, and Ganassi's fourth consecutive Rolex 24 win.  

At the 18-minute mark Donohue took the lead. He battled through traffic and fought off the hard charging Montoya at the end.

I had witnessed the most laps completed, the most cautions, and the end of Ganassi's era of winning at Daytona.

Forty years after his father graced Victory Lane, David Donohue won from the pole. The team of Donohue, Darren Law, Antonio Garcia, and Buddy Rice won themselves a Rolex watch each.

Also, Rice joined names like Foyt, Unser, Franchitti, Montoya, Dixon, and more by winning both the Indy 500 and Rolex 24 at Daytona.

In the Grand Touring class, the winner was RJ Valentine and SPEED's coverage was great. They didn't cover GT much but they didn't have the big names like the Prototypes.

I personally didn't think I could watch it, but I absolutely loved it! It was exciting and fast-paced racing—nothing like NASCAR, but still a great show.

Now the Rolex Series heads to the road couse at Virginia International Raceway the weekend of April 24 and 25. The race will be broadcast on SPEED. Check your local listings for times.

This is bound to be a great season in this series and this was an absolutely great way to start off Speedweeks 2009.

Joining me is SPEED TV’s Bob Varsha. Bob’s duties include calling Formula 1 races, hosting Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Auction coverage, and is frequently on the SPEED Report. This weekend though he’s in Daytona for the Rolex 24 Hours.

Bob, welcome and thanks for your time.

BV: My pleasure, Adam. Good to be with you.

AA: Alright let’s start with the 24 Hours of Daytona. This is the premier event in American sports car racing. How long have you been covering this race?

BV: Well Adam this was actually one of the first major international events I came to. The first time was 1984 I believe and it’s been pretty much every year since. Not every year consecutively, but it’s always a thrill to come down here to Daytona and get out of the winter weather and just get back to racing.

Everyone has a little cabin fever after the off season no matter how long or short it might have been. So to get back down here and smell the brakes, and the oil, and the tires, and the engine exhaust – it’s a real rite of Spring and I’m sure a lot of people that come down here will agree with that.

AA: How has the 24 Hours changed over the time you’ve covered it?

BV: Well, you know if you ask any driver in the field who has experience the first thing they tell you (it) is so much faster. You know back in the day old hands like Hurley Haywood – who’s going for a sixth victory here in the 24 Hours – back then the idea was just to preserve the car. Stay out of trouble, run to a pace that’s maybe a couple of seconds off your qualifying speed – be there when the race finishes.

That’s still the case but it has become so competitive, and the cars here in the Grand Am Rolex Series are so evenly matched that’s it’s basically a sprint now for the entire 24 hours. The key thing is to maintain your speed, again stay out of trouble, and stay out of the pit lane.

I believe last years’ winner with Ganassi Racing spent just an astonishingly small amount of time to do 25 or so pit stops. I mean they were barely in the pits for thirty minutes of the entire 24 hours. It really was a charmed run for them, and that’s why they’re going for an unprecedented fourth in a row here – something nobody has ever done. In fact nobody had ever won three until Ganassi did last year. I think their secret is go fast and stay out of the pit lane.

AA: Your perspective – the difference between the 24 Hours at Daytona and the 24 Hours at Le Mans?

BV: Well the first thing that strikes you about the two aside from the fact that there’s a lot of French spoken over at Le Mans is the fact that Daytona runs in January when there’s very little daylight in the winter time. Whereas Le Mans in June where there is lots and lots of daylight.

We spend very little time racing in the dark in France, whereas here in Daytona the sun goes down around six o’clock Eastern time and probably doesn’t come up until six o’clock the next morning. So the drivers have to spend a lot of time – and just a few years ago they raced entirely in the dark.

Now of course there are lights here at Daytona International Speedway. And though I think they only use about half of their available candlepower the track is much better illuminated than it has been in the past. But still in the night time you have the plunging temperatures, the drivers have to be very careful with their tire selection and the way they drive the cars.

In fact we’ve had a couple of very cold days here in the run-up to this years’ race and there’s been a lot of guys exceeding the bounds of traction, getting off into the run-off area – whether it was grass or pavement. Only one hard impact that I’m aware of thus far, and that’s a good thing obviously.

So it’s a very, very different sort of challenge despite the fact that the two races are equal in length.

AA: It seems to me over the past couple of years of actively monitoring both Grand Am and ALMS (American Le Mans Series), that sports car racing is really making a comeback in its popularity. What are your thoughts on that?

BV: Well I think it’s fair to say obviously right now nobody needs to be told what’s happening with the economy and that has had an impact on all forms of racing. They’re down a little bit on car count here at Daytona but really all the top cars from the top teams are here. And sports car racing I’d like to think is making a comeback.

AA: Where do you see sports car racing going? I mean, we’ve seen new tracks in just the past couple, three years in out in Toole, UT; Barber Motorsports Park – that wonderful track down in Birmingham, Alabama; and the new – I think it’s Thunderbird Raceway in New Jersey?

BV: That’s right. Yeah, it’s New Jersey Motorsports Park has two tracks: “Thunder” and “Lightning” they call them. But yeah, you’re right. There are tracks going up around the country either public or private and certainly the private motor sports country clubs have become very popular – although once again the economy is having an impact on that.

Racing, you know, is being embraced once again, particularly by television. Networks that would have never looked at motorsports in the past like Versus – which will have the majority of the IndyCar season this year. And Discovery and Outdoor Channel which has done a lot of dirt-track programs. And of course SPEED and ESPN and the major networks – and in that regard we’re going to do the first ninety minutes here in Daytona on FOX before switching over to SPEED for the other 14 and a half hours of our coverage so…

Racing is getting popular again, it’s being embraced by television again, and you know that’s a good thing. Hopefully the economy gets turned around soon. Sports car more so than stock cars and open-wheel racing depends on the pocket book of the enthusiast – a lot of gentlemen racers, a lot of weekend warriors that come to a race like the Rolex 24 if they can afford it.

As the economy gets better hopefully that upward trend in the popularity of motorsports will continue.

AA: We were talking a little while ago about Scott Pruett and the strength that Chip Ganassi Racing has shown in the 24 in the past three years. And he’s been so strong, he won the championship last year with his co-driver Memo Rojas. Now Roger Penske “The Captain” has moved over to Grand Am from the American Le Mans Series where his Penske Porsche Spyder RS’s dominated the P2 class the past couple of seasons and were just phenomenal challenging the Audis which were the P1 class cars.

What do you see – I think that Penske and Ganassi just can’t get enough of racing each other. What are your thoughts on that?

BV: Well I’m sure both men would tell you there’s nothing sweeter than beating the other guy. Obviously Roger has a long and highly-distinguished career, both as a driver, which is probably underestimated by the average racing fan, and of course as a car owner – with his 14 Indy 500 wins and his Daytona 500 victory and all the other things he has done, including victories here at Rolex 24.

You know, Chip is of more recent vintage he’s had spectacular success in partnership mainly with the Target stores. He’s won his Indy 500, he’s brought guys like Juan Pablo Montoya (JPM) to the sport, broadened the appeal of open-wheel racing and now of NASCAR. He’s still trying to get over that hump in NASCAR it would appear but terrific success in IndyCar and in sports cars and there’s really very few car owners out there, aside from Roger Penske, who can claim the breadth of competency that Ganassi Racing with Felix Sebates has.

It really is amazing to watch, they’re a terrific group.

AA: There are a number of (Sprint) Cup drivers in this race. Have you spoken with Jimmie Johnson, Casey Mears…Why do these guys like to drive in the 24 Hours so much?

BV: Well I think there are several reasons, Adam. One of course is the reputation of the event. It takes place right here at Daytona, a place they know intimately – although it’s a very different kind of racetrack. They’re running on the 3.56-mile combined oval and road course rather than just the big 2.5-mile NASCAR tri-oval.

And, you know, they’re racers to their core. If they can get in a race car they love to do it. Jeff Gordon has raced here, he’d love to come back. Probably the real watershed came back in 2001 when Dale Earnhardt joined the factory Corvette team for the Rolex 24. Before he died, I spoke with Earnhardt who said that one thing he would like to do in racing, other than win another NASCAR championship, of course, was to drive in the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

And I think that is what he was building up to in taking part with the factory Corvette team here at the Rolex 24. Their sister car won the race but Earnhardt…I think they finished fourth in class and were up there on the podium with their teammates spraying the champagne as happily as all the other guys, so…

Great driver, great teammate, and I think that opened the eyes to a lot of the NASCAR guys to say, you know, “This is pretty cool. This could be a lot of fun.” Although I should point out that guys like Fireball Roberts and Tiny Lund and Marvin Panch and fellows like that were driving in sports car races here at Daytona back in the 1960s.

So it’s not a new phenomenon, but the NASCAR guys are now seeing that it’s a lot of fun. You can get that very coveted Rolex watch that goes only to the winners of this race.

And then there’s the practical side of things, Adam, with all the testing being cut back or even cancelled not only by NASCAR but IndyCar and so on. A lot of these drivers haven’t had the opportunity to knock the rust off and to do what it is that they love to do in life which is drive race cars. So that makes this race even more attractive because they can come out here and prepare for their day jobs that come up in a couple of weeks.

AA: You’ve got, I would think, the best driver talent pool in the world, arguably, in this race. What are your thoughts on that?

BV: I think that’s fair to say. I think the driver pool here, you know, it can go up and down from year to year. And back in the day when I first started coming here in the eighties, you’d see guys like Al Unser, Sr. and A.J. Foyt, and some of the Formula 1 stars from Europe, and the stock car guys like Bill Elliott and Mark Martin and so on… And the off-track celebrities like Paul Newman and Gene Hackman and the Hollywood types. Of course Patrick Dempsey is driving in the race this year and he is a car guy to his very core.

It’s a tremendous cross-section, and in addition to all those great champions -  70 championships in I don’t know how many different series – and drivers from more than two dozen different countries entered in this race. Aside from the glittering professionalism is you have guys who have been driving in Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) events or Ferrari Challenge – whatever it might happen to be – who have dreamed of coming to this event. So they, you know, work hard on a budget to do this one event and race alongside the pro stars, and that’s one of the other great stories of this event: Is the guys you’ve never heard of who are out here living the dream and just going through that 24-hour odyssey.

But up front I’d have to say there isn’t any other field in the world, even at Le Mans, with the credentials you see at this one when it comes to variety and accomplishments.

AA: Well it’s going to be a lot of fun. The race rolls off about 2:30 Central, 3:30 Eastern tomorrow afternoon, that’ll be Saturday. Who should we watch for in the 24 Hours?

BV: Well, starting with the Daytona Prototype Class you gotta go with the guys who have pretty much dominated the dance the last few years. I think either the 01 or the 02 from Ganassi Racing – the Target cars – not terribly quick in qualifying but this is a 24-hour race so being on the front row is…Polesitter David Donahue said it’s bragging rights for a couple of days whereas if you win the race it lasts all year long. So I would look to the Ganassi guys.

There are some very quick cars: David Donahue leading the Brumos Porsche two-car Porsche Riley attack. Hurley Haywood will be with them trying to get that sixth Rolex watch. The cars from Michael Shank Racing the 6 and the number 60 cars have another terrific lineup. A.J. Allmendinger is in there with the series regulars, so they have been very, very quick.

Over on the GT (Grand Touring) side it gets even more crazy. Twelve cars – the top 12 qualifiers in this race – all broke last years’ qualifying record. So you can see the kind of competition we’re going to have.

And once again you gotta go with the guys who have done so well of late, and that’s the number 70 Speedsource Mazda – a Canadian entry – from Sylvian Tremblay and Nick Ham and that entire crew. They are the defending champions in class, in fact, they have won the last three races in the Grand Am Series held here at the Daytona

International Speedway. That is the two midsummer 250-mile sprint races, and last year’s Rolex 24.

But that GT class is always close…It’s very competitive the timesheets are telling us. You’ve got Porsche, Mazda, Ferrari, and the list goes on and on. Corvette is out there. You know the great makes are out there to do battle once again. The 47^th running of this twice-around-the-clock classic and I for one can’t wait.

AA: It’s going to be a real fun ride. I’m torn because I like Scott Pruett but I sure do like Jimmie Johnson and he’s co-driving with Alex Gurney in the Bob Stallings car from here in Lewisville, TX. And so that’s going to be a fun race there – Jimmy Vasser is on board with them in the 99 Gainsco car.

A lot of fun this weekend, we sure do look forward to your coverage. You guys come on at 3 Eastern, 2 Central tomorrow on FOX, is that correct?

BV: On FOX that’s right. Three o’clock Eastern on FOX – We’ll do 90 minutes including the first hour of the race and then we’ll switch over to SPEED and take you up to 10:00 Eastern time. And then be back at 7:00 in the morning on Sunday to go right through to the finish at 3:30 in the afternoon and beyond – to meet all of the winners.

And I apologize for not giving a shout-out to all of the Gainsco boys since you are in Texas after all…Gurney, Fogarty, Vasser and Jimmie Johnson. He’s been second in this race twice in the four previous times he’s done it and so he’s probably owed something too.

AA: He pulls off a win in that and he’s going to have two things to hang over his boss Jeff Gordon’s head at that point – three Cup title wins in a row and a Rolex watch, “Hey Jeff look what I’ve got here!” So that’s fantastic.

Well we look forward to seeing you this weekend, Bob, and then a whole new era of Formula 1 starts up in two months. We sure do appreciate you spending time with us today.

BV: My pleasure, Adam, thank you.

We Americans are faced with a daunting fact: this will be the first weekend without a meaningful football game since the week before Labor Day.

Don't worry any longer, because in addition to a full slate of college hoops, the first major touring race in American motorsports is here this weekend to shake off the wintertime and pre-Valentine's Day blues.

The 47th running of the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona kicks off the Grand-Am season for the Daytona Prototype and Grand Touring classes beginning tomorrow afternoon at 3:30 (notice the later start time), and continuing all the way until the same time on Sunday.

FOX will air the green flag and continue until 4:30, when coverage transfers over to SPEED until 10. They take the night off, as usual, and are on the air bright and early at 7 on Sunday morning until the checkered flag falls.

The NASCAR and IRL connections seem to run deep at the 24 Hours, especially in the DPs, and this year is no different. Amongst the entrants are Danica Patrick, Dario Franchitti, Scott Dixon, Ryan Briscoe, Jimmie Johnson, Casey Mears, A.J. Allmendinger, Juan Pablo Montoya, Colin Braun, and Kyle Petty. And Roger Penske, Chip Ganassi, and Richard Childress all own teams.

Ganassi's DP team will be trying to earn their record fourth consecutive overall victory. Here is the starting lineup for the DP class, seeing that is where all the heavy hitters are:

1. 58 David Donohue/Antonio Garcia/Darren Law/Buddy Rice (Brumos Racing)
2. 16 Timo Bernhard/Ryan Briscoe/Romain Dumas (Penske Racing)
3. 76 Nic Jonsson/Darren Turner/Ricardo Zonta (Krohn Racing)
4. 01 Scott Dixon/Juan Pablo Montoya/Scott Pruett/Memo Rojas (Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates)
5. 10 Max Angelelli/Brian Frisselle/Pedro Lamy/Wayne Taylor (SunTrust Racing)
6. 02 Scott Dixon/Dario Franchitti/Alex Lloyd/Scott Pruett (Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates)
7. 59 Joao Barbosa/Terry Borcheller/JC France/Hurley Haywood (Brumos Racing)
8. 55 Christophe Bouchut/Raphael Matos/Scott Tucker/Ed Zabinski (Level 5 Motorsports)
9. 99 Jon Fogarty/Alex Gurney/Jimmie Johnson/Jimmy Vasser (GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing)
10. 60 Colin Braun/Ryan Hunter-Reay/Oswaldo Negri/Mark Patterson (Michael Shank Racing)
11. 13 Jared Beyer/David Martinez/Jordan Taylor/Ricky Taylor (Beyer Racing)
12. 61 David Empringham/John Farano/Alex Figge/Burt Frisselle/Mark Wilkins (AIM Autosport)
13. 09 Guy Cosmo/Jason Pridmore/Scott Russell/Jeff Ward (Spirit of Daytona Racing)
14. 77 Matteo Bobbi/Memo Gidley/Fabrizio Gollin/Brad Jaeger (Doran Racing)
15. 75 Oliver Gavin/Tracy Krohn/Eric van de Poele (Krohn Racing)
16. 45 Leo Hindery Jr./Bill Lester/Darren Manning/Kyle Petty (Victory Junction-Orbit Racing)
17. 6 A.J. Allmendinger/Ian James/John Pew/Michael Valiante (Michael Shank Racing)
18. 2 Rob Finlay /Casey Mears/Danica Patrick/Andy Wallace (Childress-Howard Motorsports)
19. 22 Ryan Dalziel/Carlos de Quesada/Chapman Ducote/Jean-Francois Dumoulin/Tomas Enge (Alegra Motorsports)
20. 7 Timo Bernhard/Ryan Briscoe (Penske Racing)

PICK: I'm not a big sports car guy, but I do watch occasionally. In an upset, I see A.J. Allemendinger and the Michael Shank team driving through the field and ending the Ganassi domination of this event.

You may be wondering what SPEED will be doing during the nine hours they are off the air tomorrow night and Sunday morning.

The smartass would say "let me guess, the same episode of Pinks, Unique Whips, or Chop, Cut and Rebuild for the 100th time or 172 straight hours of Barrett-Jackson instead of actual racing!"

Well, SPEED will actually fulfill their purpose and air (GASP) REAL racing while they are off the air from Daytona. NASCAR moved the Toyota All-Star Showdown, which features their Camping World East and West stars, to January this year in order to avoid the fact that the event in the past has come before the end of the season (i.e. the regional series have raced at Phoenix in November after this race was run in October).

Preliminaries are tonight at 10 EST on SPEED, with the 250-lap main event tomorrow night once again at 10. Irwindale is a great track, problem is, it's in California. The green flag will not even fly until 11:30 for us back east tomorrow night, although for my fellow SNL fans, staying up until 1 or 2 on a Saturday night is nothing new (and SNL is a repeat tomorrow night, so we have that going for us).

NASCAR decided to open this event up to everyone at some point, so we will see some ringers in this event from the national series, namely Matt Crafton, Ron Hornaday Jr., and Joey Logano. Amongst the young talent, keep an eye on Brian Ickler, Trevor Bayne, Ricky Carmichael (who will run 14 events in the Truck Series for KHI), and Austin Dillon, to name a few. And don't forget about Steve Park, who has returned to the Camping World East Series after failing to secure a ride in Cup, Nationwide, or Camping World Truck competition.

When Mark Martin announced that he would be leaving then Dale Earnhardt, Inc. to give another go at the championship with Hendrick Motorsports, Aric Almirola believed he'd finally get his full time ride.

Things, though, aren't going according to that plan.

Despite the merger between DEI and Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates, the team only has two full time sponsors—Bass Pro Shops, for Martin Truex, Jr. and Target, which will now sponsor Juan Pablo Montoya in the No. 41.

Bobby Labonte will be piloting the No. 8, which is unsponsored.

Earnhardt-Ganassi officials have told ESPN that Almirola will race in the season opener at Daytona and a few selected races if full-time sponsorship can't be found.

This would probably happen in the No. 42.

Almirola started in the Busch Series driving in the No. 18 and No. 20 for Joe Gibbs Racing. After an incident in Milwaukee, in which Almirola subbed, won the pole, and started the race for Denny Hamlin, Gibbs made the decision to pull the young driver out in favor of Hamlin.

Hamlin won the race, even though Almirola received credit for starting the race. Soon afterwards, the now 24-year-old Tampa native asked for his release from the team. His request was granted, and he soon made his way to Dale Earnhardt, Inc.

During his two year Cup career, Almirola has only one top-10, which came at the 2008 Food City 500 in Bristol. He has yet to compete full-time.

In other NASCAR news, Jayski is reporting that Tommy Baldwin's Cup car will be No. 36, but still no word on whether veteran Dave Blaney will drive the car.

Also, all three of NASCAR's major teams have just one week to drug test and submit a list of employees to the sanctioning body, for clearance before the season begins in February. Names of those who do not pass tests do not need to be submitted to NASCAR.

"According to NASCAR policy, any driver who fails a test will be indefinitely suspended."

One of the most interesting drivers in NASCAR today is Juan Pablo Montoya.  Although still not performing at his optimal level, the 2008 season showed moments of great promise for JPM and his Ganassi team. 

So, what will 2009 bring for this talented driver who is one of the few to have crossed over successfully from F1 to NASCAR?   Here are some of the expected changes for Montoya in the upcoming year:

1.  New Team:  One of the biggest changes for Montoya in 2009 will be the formation of a new team.  Ganassi Racing has been struggling of late and has been holding serious merger discussions with Dale Earnhardt, Inc.  Next year, Juan Pablo will most likely be racing for the new merged entity, Earnhardt Ganassi Racing.

2.  New Manufacturer:  With the DEI Ganassi merger on the horizon, Juan Pablo will be moving manufacturers as well, from Dodge to Chevy in 2009.  Unfortunately, this change in manufacturer also puts Montoya out of a Dodge spot in the 2009 Bud Shootout.

3.  New Teammates:  Also with the merger, Juan Pablo Montoya will face a change in teammates in 2009.  He will now be teamed with DEI drivers Martin Truex, Jr. and Aric Almirola.

Montoya has been quoted as saying that he is "really good" friends with Martin and "pretty good" friends with Aric.  His possible teammate, if there is one, in the Target sponsored No. 41 car is still to be determined.

4.  Sponsor Changes:  Since just about everything else is changing for JPM in 2009, why not throw in a sponsor change too.  Last year, the team lost the Texaco/Havoline sponsorship.  To date, they have half a year sponsorship with Wrigley and are searching for a sponsor(s) to round out the year. 

If Earnhardt Ganassi Racing chooses not to run the No. 41 car, Target may be a possible sponsor for Montoya's No. 42 car to round out the year.

5.  “Bring Juan to the Fans” Promotion:  Chances are high that the Wrigley folks will continue to promote Montoya heavily in the upcoming season.  His commercials with his wife Connie and his children are wildly popular. 

Another hit promotion is having Juan Pablo mingle with the NASCAR crowds at every venue where Wrigley is on the car.  You can bet that these promotions will continue, and perhaps even expand, in 2009.

6.  “No” to Formula 1:  JPM continues to be wooed back by the F1 crowd, most recently by Toro Rosso.  And he continues to say "no" to any kind of return to that form of racing. 

Look for Juan to continue to be courted by F1 in 2009, but continue to decline their advances as well.

7.  “Yes” to Rolex 24:  Juan Pablo Montoya has confirmed that he will be driving the upcoming Rolex 24 at Daytona for Chip Ganassi Racing.  He will be driving a Daytona prototype with Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas. 

JPM has shared that his car is "fast", so look for a good run in that upcoming competition.

8.  Little Black Book:  Juan Pablo is nothing if not candid and he has admitted to having his own version of a "little black book."  But instead of keeping numbers of potential hot dates, JPM tracks drivers who have done him wrong at some point in the season. 

Montoya will most likely be dusting off the book as he plots potential paybacks in the upcoming 2009 season.

9.  Improved Point Standing Finish:  In 2008, Montoya finished the season in the 25th position in points.  Juan Pablo will most likely finish higher in the standings in 2009 and also achieve a win or two, even on tracks other than road courses.  Look for him to finish strong at several of the super-speedways in the 2009 season. 

10.  Formula Smiles Foundation:  One of the other passions for Juan Pablo and his family is his work on his Formula Smiles Foundation, which he started several years ago to help poor kids in his native Colombia achieve self-esteem and values through sports and recreation. 

The Montoyas have raised thousands of dollars through galas and fashion shows for this worthy cause and this commitment will continue throughout the 2009 season.

This brand new NASCAR season will most certainly bring many new adventures and challenges for Juan Pablo Montoya.  Look for JPM to continue to grow, mature, and hone his NASCAR skills, on and off the track in 2009.

Silly Season. Once a three- or four-month stand where teams swapped drivers, it's now a year long event where drivers, crew members, sponsors and even car manufacturers are changed.

The year 2008 proved to be one of the most exciting Silly Seasons in NASCAR history...

Ryan Newman won the Daytona 500 before announcing he'd be leaving the struggling Penske Racing.

Reed Sorenson ended years of frustration at Chip Ganassi Racing after he decided to jump ship for '09.

Paul Menard has left a now non-existent Dale Earnhardt, Inc. with his father's big sponsorship bucks along with him.

Casey Mears was once again booted from a ride.

Mark Martin decided to give it "one more shot," saying he would come back full time next season to make a final run at the title.

Clint Bowyer will stay with Richard Childress Racing, but will he change rides?

JJ Yeley was fired by Hall of Fame Racing. Joining him in the unemployment line are the likes of Patrick Carpentier and an emerging AJ Allmendinger.

Then, there was this crazy rumor that after 10 years, 33 wins and two Cup championships that Tony Stewart would be leaving Joe Gibbs Racing to drive for and own his own team.

Oh wait...that crazy rumor came true. And Smoke began a domino effect that would change the look of this sport for the 2009 season.

Stewart will become part owner of Stewart-Haas Racing, a two-car team with sponsors like ARMY, Old Spice and Office Depot.

The other driver? Why, defending 500 winner and former USAC Rookie of the Year Ryan Newman, of course!

Martin's move to the Hendrick No. 5 sends Mears to RCR to drive the Jack Daniel's No. 07. Current driver Clint Bowyer will head to the new No. 33 Cheerios/Hamburger Helper's Chevrolet, headed by crew chief Shane Wilson.

Sorenson will replace Carpentier in GEM's No. 10, which has the US Air Force on board for only two races.

Yates Racing will add the No. 98 Menard's Ford for Paul Menard.

David Stremme will give the Cup Series another try as he replaces Newman in the No. 12. They will have sponsor Alltel for one more season.

Regan Smith will lose his No. 01 at season's end because of the DEI-Ganassi merger.  He could be in the No. 41 Target car.

Newcomer Scott Speed is a contender for Sprint Cup Rookie of the Year in 2009 after taking over for AJ Allmendinger.

Kyle Petty may be out of a ride at Petty Enterprises.

Michael McDowell was rumored earlier in the season to not be getting with owner Michael Waltrip, and isn't expected back at MWR, since the No. 00 will be going to teammate David Reutimann.

Max Papis will be driving the No. 13 Toyota for Germain Racing for 18 races in '09. That entry will be sponsored by GEICO. 

Oh, and how could I forget? There's an 18-year-old kid who, after winning his first Nationwide Series race in only his third start, along with two poles in his first two, will have big shoes to fill as he replaces Stewart* in the No. 20 Home Depot Toyota.

His name? Joey Logano. The so-called greatest thing since sliced bread. Yeah, we'll see.

All these changes have left the likes of Scott Riggs, Yeley, Carpentier, Petty, Smith, and Allmenginger with unknown futures.

Which means even though the checkered flag has flown over Homestead and the 2008 season, Silly Season isn't over yet...

*No Smoke, that wasn't a fat joke.