Motorsports

Midseason report

By BRANT JAMES
Published July 14, 2007

It has been the year when everything has changed. Traditions and milestones overturned, at once invigorating, then sad. ¶ The season so far could be symbolized by Jeff Gordon doing a victory lap in April at Phoenix International Raceway, holding a "3" flag out the window, then accepting congratulations from Dale Earnhardt Jr. after tying Earnhardt's late father for sixth on the all-time wins list with 76. It would be symbolized by Earnhardt saying in May before a national television audience that he is leaving Dale Earnhardt Inc. at the end of the season - the team his father founded for his children to run - and revealing in June that he will join mighty Hendrick Motorsports. ¶ But the scope NASCAR had come to command was put in perspective June 4, when Bill France Jr., son of NASCAR's founder and the man who cajoled it into national prominence, died at age 74. ¶ And the season has been about renewal, the emergence of Lewis Hamilton, who as a 22-year-old Formula One rookie has become one of the world's most recognizable athletes by finishing third or better in his first nine races, winning two of them. NASCAR stepped into its future with the Car of Tomorrow, and a former F1 driver, Juan Pablo Montoya, winning at Sonoma, Calif. Old truisms no longer apply this season. And it's only halfway through.

Surprises

In NASCAR, Casey Mears, Juan Pablo Montoya, Martin Truex win for the first time and Jamie McMurray for the first time since 2002.

Disappointments

1. In NASCAR, Toyota Racing Development president Jim Aust says he was hoping his company would "merge into traffic" in its first Cup season, but the program is creeping up the shoulder, the blinker on its '78 Corolla winking pathetically. It has two top 10s and one top five (by Brian Vickers).

2. In the IRL, defending series champion Sam Hornish seems flat at times as Team Penske appears to have lost footing.

Best finishes

1. Jamie McMurray holds off Kyle Busch by 0.005 in the Pepsi 400, tying for the second-smallest victory margin in series history.

2. Kevin Harvick noses ahead of Mark Martin as the field wrecks behind and they are allowed to race on in the Daytona 500. Harvick wins by 0.02 seconds.

NASCAR

1. Hendrick Motorsports' Jeff Gordon (4), Jimmie Johnson (4), Kyle Busch (1) and Casey Mears (1) win 10 of the first 14 races, convincing Dale Earnhardt Jr. that's where he can win his first championship. Busch will be released at end of the season.

2. At Talladega, Gordon wins his 77th race to pass the late Dale Earnhardt for sixth on the all-time wins list - and ties him with 11 restrictor-plate victories - then adds three more and takes the points lead. And he becomes a father.

3. Michael Waltrip's No. 55 Toyota is found to have an illegal fuel additive before the Daytona 500, resulting in fines, suspensions and points deductions. It's a bad start for Toyota's first season in Cup.

4. NASCAR debuts the Car of Tomorrow without major problems. It polices rules violations on the car with six-race suspensions to crew chiefs Tony Eury Jr. (Earnhardt Jr.), Chad Knaus (Johnson) and Steve Letarte (Gordon) and will implement the safer and cost-efficient model full time in 2008.

5. Tony Stewart compares NASCAR to professional wrestling and suggests series officials orchestrate finishes, then recants everything after meeting with those officials.

Indy Racing League

1. Andretti Green Racing is back, capturing five of 10 races, including the Indianapolis 500 with points leader Dario Franchitti.

2. Sam Hornish, the league's all-time wins (19) and championships winner (3) considers leaving for Team Penske's NASCAR team.

3. Danica Patrick prompts a publicity-generating tiff with St. Petersburg resident Dan Wheldon, whom she says ran her onto the grass as she tried to pass at Milwaukee.

4. Hornish and his father and Tony Kanaan and team friend Anthony Fedele get involved in a pit road tussle at Watkins Glen.

5. Milka Duno becomes the series' third "full-time" female, joining 2005 rookie of the year Patrick and Sarah Fisher.

Champ Car

1. St. Petersburg resident and three-time defending series champion Sebastien Bourdais tests three times for the Scuderia Toro Rosso Formula One team.

2. Newcomers Will Power and Robert Doornbos win races, and former champion Paul Tracy comes back from a broken back to do the same.

3. Car-count problems haunt the series, with Bourdais saying it is badly ailing.

Formula One

1. The series will not return to Indianapolis in 2008 and may vacate the country altogether because principal Bernie Ecclestone says he does not need America.

2. McLaren-Ferrari espionage scandal threatens the integrity of the sport.

Stories of the year

1. Dale Earnhardt Jr. says he will leave the team his father created for Hendrick Motorsports, beginning in 2008.

2. Lewis Hamilton sets a record for rookies by finishing third or better in his first nine Formula One races, wins at Montreal and Indianapolis and holds the points lead with eight events remaining.

3. Former NASCAR chairman Bill France Jr., who helped guide the sport into the major leagues, dies at age 74. Tragedy strikes the family just more than a month later when his son-in-law Dr. Bruce Kennedy is killed in a Sanford plane crash.

Local stories

1. Tampa native Aric Almirola is removed from a Busch Series car while leading at Milwaukee so regular driver Denny Hamlin - who arrived late with transportation issues - can get in. Hamlin wins, but Almirola gets statistical credit as the starter for his first NASCAR victory.

2. Andretti Green Promotions and the St. Petersburg City Council agree on a two-year extension to bring the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg back downtown through 2009.

3. Almirola makes his Nextel Cup debut for Joe Gibbs Racing, qualifying 31st and finishing 41st after crashing at Las Vegas in March.

4. Zephyrhills' David Reutimann endures inconsistent rookie season in Nextel Cup with a start-up Michael Waltrip Racing.

5. St. Petersburg resident Dan Wheldon struggles to find his cadence in first half, largely because of accidents not of his doing (Indy, Texas) but remains in contention for his second title.

Chase for the Championship

The contenders so far:

1. Jeff Gordon - 2,773 points: Passes Dale Earnhardt Sr. for sixth on all-time wins list, wins four races, wife has a baby girl, back atop the standings and chasing a fifth title. Looks like a charmed year right about now.

2. Denny Hamlin - 277 behind: Sophomore slump be damned! His knack for bringing the car home in one piece makes him a consistent points-gainer (except when a teammate wrecks him).

3. Matt Kenseth - 383 behind: He's high blood pressure, the silent killer. Wins at California with crew chief Robbie Reiser suspended and just keeps knocking out top 10s (12 in 18 races).

4. Jimmie Johnson - 407 behind: He is hunkered down and waiting for the reseed after the last "regular season" race at Richmond, when his four wins - as of now - will put him behind only Gordon.

5. Jeff Burton - 428 behind: A torrid start culminates in a win at Texas, but he's been inconsistent since.

6. Carl Edwards - 465 behind: Where have you been? Apparently he's recovered from a poor 2006 to win and thrust himself into the Chase. He's a virtual lock to win his first Busch title. And his coach driver finally got to shave.

7. Tony Stewart, right - 539 behind: Says he's still cozy and comfy because he's had good cars - though many have broken or been run into - that could have won as many as five times.

8. Kyle Busch - 583 behind: Pointedly critical of Hendrick Motorsports teammates for not helping him last week at Daytona and sounds like a driver looking for an early trip to the exit. Odd, considering his position.

9. Kevin Harvick - 601 behind: His performance graph is like the Tetons. Wins a thriller in the Daytona 500, second at Sonoma, Calif., fourth at Bristol, Tenn., but has plenty of trouble.

10. Martin Truex - 616 behind: DEI's future standard-bearer makes a major progression at the Cup level after winning two Busch titles. Has a win and four top-3 finishes in his past six races.

11. Clint Bowyer - 631 behind: Completes the RCR trifecta. Completes 97 percent of his laps and generally stays out of trouble. Generally considered the next first-time winner.

12. Dale Earnhardt Jr. - 733 behind: Switching teams, switching sponsors, life seemingly in turmoil, he seems serene and focused on the future, and that's making him more of a threat in the present.

Other contenders: 13. Jamie McMurray - 782 behind; 14. Ryan Newman - 794 behind; 15 Kurt Busch - 854 behind.

Predicted story lines

1. Kyle Busch signs with Richard Childress Racing, and Kevin Harvick smiles real nice for the photos, then grits his teeth.

2. In a stunner, Sam Hornish stays in the IRL.

3. Further tinkering on the Car of Tomorrow results in a high-profile crew chief being suspended for the remainder of the season.

[Last modified July 13, 2007, 22:52:16]