View From The Couch

The NASCAR awards banquet was Friday, who won? There aren?t even any surprises to the awards being presented, everyone already knows the results. Aside from the NHL, no other professional sport has a banquet at all let alone a televised one. I confess to watching the banquet in the past, but I couldn?t do it this year. Nothing new is unveiled. At this point every sponsor involved with a Chase driver has made a return on their investment; there?s no need for listening to drivers thanking them again. The token B-list celebrity typically tries too hard. I know this was true of Jay Mohr and can only assume David Spade was similar. Obviously fans watch, and I have no problem with that. I simply wish NASCAR didn?t pretend it was a must-see event that provided anything fresh to NASCAR fans. For a great recap of the awards show, check out Charlie and Steve?s liveblog.

What else happened this week
Bobby Labonte gets a new crew chief?again. In less than three seasons, Bobby Labonte will now have his fourth crew chief in three years with Petty Enterprises. First it was Todd Parrott, then Paul Andrews followed by Doug Randolph. Now it?s Jeff Meendering?s turn. PE general manager Robbie Loomis is obviously familiar with Jeff Meendering from their days together on the #24 car. Meendering took a similar path as Jeff Gordon?s current crew chief Steve Letarte. They both began in the Hendrick Motorsports shop and worked their way up the ladder. Meendering also marks Labonte?s 7th different crew chief since the beginning of 2004. It?s a good deal for Meendering too. He gets to be a crew chief at the Cup level for a former champion in the most famous car in NASCAR. It?s also rare that an entire organization will move to get closer to the incoming crew chief.

It might look like it?s a revolving door at the #43 shop, but it?s hardly the case. Parrott left to return to Yates Racing and Randolph recently left to join DEI. Meendering might be the guy to form a strong partnership with Labonte and get him back running in the top 10.

Ryan Newman gets a new crew chief too. Roy McCauley will return to the pit box for Penske Racing, but this time it is with the #12 team. McCauley previously called the shots for Kurt Busch, but took a leave of absence to care for his wife who was battling leukemia. Hopefully MCauley?s return to race weekends means his wife is doing well in that battle.

As far as Newman is concerned, it is a reunion of sorts. He won 6 Busch (can I still call it that?) races in 2005 with McCauley as his crew chief. Newman had a nice season at the Cup level, but still went winless. The biggest thing for Newman?s team is avoiding 9 DNF?s, including 5 due to engine failures. His 86.5 driver rating was 13th best and it obviously would have been higher without his series high DNF total dragging his rating down. If the engine shop can clean up their reliability, and McCauley can clean up the pit crew, Newman could return to Victory Lane and the Chase in 2008.

The more things change? 2007 was a year filled with change, transition and uncertainty, so leave it to Dale Earnhardt Jr to restore a little normalcy. Last week he was voted most popular driver for the 5th straight season. And NASCAR order is restored. If anyone was still wondering, nothing can stop the big Junior machine. Dale Jr could announce he was quitting NASCAR to run a full-time ARCA schedule with sponsorship from Monistat and he?d still sell millions in merchandise and have a gaggle of fans. This isn?t a criticism of Junior or his fans, it?s simply a note of how incredibly powerful the Junior brand is.

Silly Season Trivia:

– Only five organizations will head to Daytona with the same driver lineup as the 2007 Daytona 500. Can you name them?

– Name the two teams have the same lineup from the 2006 Daytona 500.(hint: one is mentioned in earlier in this post)

– Name the drivers who have won races with two different teams since 2002?

– How many drivers have stayed with the same team and number since 2004? Bonus: How many have the same number, team, and crew chief?

– What team has the longest current uninterrupted driver lineup? (Hint: It goes all the way back to 2005)

I can?t give you any prize of value, although you could reward yourself with a nice Virtual High Five.

If you like this post, check out Trouble in Turn 2 for more NASCAR news and opinions.

RacingNation Crew

Related Posts

• 
  Motorsports Minute: Kyle Busch
• 
  Motorsports Minute: Chase Elliott
• 
  Motorsports Minute: Chase Elliott