Friday, Aug. 5, 2005 | 10:14 a.m.
Brian Hilderbrand covers motor sports for the Las Vegas Sun. His motor sports notebook appears Friday. He can be reached at [email protected] or (702) 259-4089.
INDIANAPOLIS -- Kurt Busch has assembled an impressive record at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway during his first four full seasons in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series.
In four previous Cup races at the Brickyard, Busch has posted three top-10 finishes -- including a career-best fifth-place effort in his rookie year (2001).
But this year, Busch said he and his No. 97 Roush Racing teammates are putting extra emphasis on winning Sunday's Allstate 400 at the Brickyard for crew chief Jimmy Fennig, who guided Busch to the Nextel Cup championship last season.
"This year and next year may be Jimmy Fennig's last couple of years," Busch, a Las Vegas native, said earlier this year. "With his resume, he's got a Daytona 500 (victory) and he now has a championship.
"He's got a bunch of other races that he has put down on his resume and he's looking for the Brickyard 400 now and that's going to be a big focus for us this year; to go to Indy ... and to be competitive there."
Busch had a strong two-day test last month at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the team is bringing a new car to Indy this weekend instead of the one Busch won with two weeks ago at Pocono -- the series' most recent race.
"We're taking a brand-new car this weekend for the Brickyard rather than the car that we won with at Pocono," Fennig said. "A lot of teams will go with the same chassis, but this new one is one that we felt good with during our test last month and Kurt likes it a little more than the one we took to Pocono, so we feel good about it.
"We've had good solid runs lately and that's what we need this weekend in the Crown Royal Ford."
Busch has posted three consecutive top-10 finishes -- and four in the past five races -- and is ranked fifth in Nextel Cup points after 20 races.
Although Busch said the Daytona 500 and his hometown race, the UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, are the two races that are most special to him, he said it would mean just as much to win at the Brickyard for Fennig.
"I'm able to look at my career and know that I've got time in front of me to help out with winning specific races or achieving certain accomplishments," Busch said.
"(Winning the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard is) something I want to live through Jimmy Fennig with and see what we can do together as a team. We accomplished something very large (the championship) this past year, but the Brickyard 400 would be a small token, as well."
KINGSLAND AT IRP: Las Vegas resident Casey Kingsland will attempt to qualify for this evening's NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Indianapolis Raceway Park in Clermont, Ind., in the No. 91 truck for Las Vegas-based TommyRaz Motorsports.
Kingsland, 20, made his Truck Series debut in April at Martinsville Speedway. In that race, Kingsland was involved in several on-track incidents that damaged the truck and eventually he was parked by NASCAR officials for failing to maintain the minimum speed after completing only 104 laps. He finished last in the 36-truck field.
Team owner Tommy Ramirez also will be fielding a car in Saturday night's NASCAR Busch Series race at IRP for driver Wayne Edwards.
"I am really excited about both vehicles participating, especially about Casey, who has all the talent in the world," Ramirez said. "I am proud that we have had the opportunity to test and hook up with a great crew chief (Steve Kuykendall) and team.
"Casey has a great attitude and we are looking forward to showcasing his talents in Indy."
Kingsland's No. 91 Dodge Ram will carry primary sponsorship from SpeedZone Energy Drink.
LOCALS 'GONGED': Las Vegas racers Matt Jaskol and Scott Lynch did not make the cut to 12 drivers for Jack Roush's driver development program -- also known as the "Gong Show."
Jaskol and Lynch were among 25 drivers selected from nearly 1,700 applicants to take part in the program, which will award a fully funded ride next season with Roush Racing in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. The 25 drivers were cut to 12 following two days of testing this week at Martinsville Speedway.
The competition is being filmed for a 13-part reality television series that is scheduled to air in the fall on the Discovery Channel.
TRACY ON NASCAR: Although he will test a NASCAR Nextel Cup car next week with an eye on starting the Aug. 21 Cup race at Michigan International Speedway, open-wheel racing champion Paul Tracy said he will not necessarily walk away from the Champ Car World Series at the end of this season.
Tracy, a longtime Summerlin resident who now splits his time between Southern Nevada and Florida, said his test Monday and Tuesday in a Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet is his way of testing the NASCAR waters.
"(Moving to NASCAR) is a career-changing decision so I've got to think it through and I'm not in any rush to make a decision -- I don't have to make a decision by tomorrow," Tracy said Wednesday prior to a Bridgestone tire test at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Tracy said that although he is in the final year of his Champ Car contract with Forsythe Championship Racing, team owner Gerald Forsythe has kept the door open for him to return to the team in 2006.
"Gerry wants me to re-sign for as long as I want to drive for him," Tracy said. "But he understands that there are things that I would like to try in my career and if (NASCAR) is what I want to do, he's told me he's not going to stand in my way. That's real nice of him to do that.
"I'm in a great situation: I've got people that are willing to do what I want to do under no terms."
Tracy, who would have to qualify for the Michigan Cup race on time, said a successful first NASCAR race would have him finishing on the lead lap.
Tracy, the 2003 Champ Car World Series season champion, is the series' leading active driver with 30 victories. He currently is second in points to reigning series champion Sebastien Bourdais after 8 of 14 races. The Champ Car World Series visits Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sept. 24.
2006 NHRA SCHEDULE: The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway again will host two NHRA Powerade Drag Racing Series national events next year, according to the 2006 schedule released Thursday by the NHRA.
The seventh annual NHRA SummitRacing.com Nationals will be held April 6-9, 2006, and the sixth annual ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals are slated for Oct. 26-29, 2006. The spring event is being held a week earlier than this year's race and the fall 2006 event will be held a week later than this year' event.
The 2006 NHRA schedule includes 23 races, with one major change from this year: The series is returning to Virginia Motorsports Park next season and will visit Route 66 Raceway in Joliet, Ill., only once. That leaves Pomona Raceway in Southern California and The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway as the only venues hosting two national events in 2006.
HENDERSON DESERT RACE : The Best in the Desert Racing Association announced it will add 100 miles to its season-ending off-road race in the Eldorado Valley between Henderson and Boulder City.
The Henderson's Terrible 400 race week will run Dec. 1-4, with the actual race being held Dec. 3. Best in the Desert officials will extend the course from 65 miles to 80-plus miles and racers will be required to complete five laps.
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