Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Internet rumor of race swap dismissed angrily in Atlanta, laughingly in Las Vegas

Friday, Feb. 25, 2005 | 9:41 a.m.

Brian Hilderbrand covers motor sports for the Las Vegas Sun. His motor sports notebook appears Friday. He can be reached at bh@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4089.

FONTANA, Calif. -- Don't believe everything you read on the Internet.

A popular auto racing Web site created a stir in Atlanta and Las Vegas this week when it posted a rumor that one of Atlanta Motor Speedway's two NASCAR Nextel Cup races would be moved to Las Vegas Motor Speedway in 2006 or 2007. The report also said that LVMS "supposedly has plans to add ... possibly 50,000 more seats."

The rumor prompted amusement from LVMS general manager Chris Powell and an angry response from his counterpart in Atlanta, Ed Clark. Both tracks are owned by Bruton Smith's Speedway Motorsports Inc.

"I'm just trying to figure out where we're going to put 50,000 seats," Powell said, dismissing the rumor with a chuckle.

Clark was not as amused.

"The report was completely unfounded and false," Clark said in a statement. "It's very disappointing that Internet sites spread this kind of mistruth. Rumors like this, published without any attempt at verification, create confusion and they hurt our fans, our competitors and our sport.

"There have been absolutely no discussions in our company about moving a NASCAR date from Atlanta. We will continue to host two NASCAR races well into the future."

Powell, who has been lobbying NASCAR for several years to get a second annual Nextel Cup Series race at his track, also said he has heard no talk about Smith moving a race to Las Vegas from any of his tracks -- or adding 50,000 additional seats.

Smith's Speedway Motorsports Inc. also owns Bristol Motor Speedway, Texas Motor Speedway, Lowe's Motor Speedway and Infineon Raceway.

DAYTONA FINES: Ten Nextel Cup Series teams, three Busch Series teams and four Craftsman Truck Series teams were penalized Wednesday as a result of rules violations discovered during Speedweeks at Daytona International Speedway.

The hardest hit was Robby Gordon Motorsports. Crew chief Bob Temple was fined $50,000 for an unapproved intake manifold on Gordon's No. 7 Chevrolet. Jim Smith, listed as Gordon's car owner, was penalized 25 car owner points. Gordon was not penalized driver points because he failed to qualify for the Daytona 500 and did not earn any points.

The illegal part was discovered during the initial pre-race inspection on Feb. 11.

Four penalties were issued to Wood Brothers Racing after an unapproved spoiler adjustment was made on Ricky Rudd's No. 21 Ford after pre-race inspection 150-mile qualifying races. Rudd was penalized 25 driver points, car owner Glen Wood was penalized 25 owner points, crew chief Michael McSwain was fined $25,000 and crew member Marc Smith was suspended from NASCAR competition until March 31.

TRADING PAINT: Kyle Busch will trade his Kellogg's paint scheme for Carquest Auto Parts colors on his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet this weekend at California Speedway.

Busch, a Las Vegas native, is giving up the Kellogg's colors in deference to teammate Terry Labonte, who will be making his 2005 NASCAR Nextel Cup debut Sunday. Labonte's No. 44 Chevrolet will feature the same Kellogg's Corn Flakes paint scheme he drove during his Cup championship season in 1996.

Labonte is running a limited schedule of 10 races this season and next. Busch replaced Labonte in the No. 5 Chevrolet.

GAUGHAN HONORED: Brendan Gaughan of Las Vegas will serve as the grand marshal for this evening's American Racing Wheels 200 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at California Speedway.

American Racing Wheels picked Gaughan for the honor because of his 20-year association with the company. Normally an associate sponsor on Gaughan's No. 77 Dodge, ARW will be the primary sponsor for this race.

"I'm flat-out honored that American Racing has asked me to be the grand marshal of the American Racing 200," Gaughan said. 'It brought a tear to my eye (when they asked me).

"Walker Evans, Bob Bondurant and Parnelli Jones were their three others; to have Brendan Gaughan on that list is just unbelievable. They've been with me a long time and with any luck, they'll be with me a whole lot longer."

Gaughan, who spent last season in the Nextel Cup Series, finished second in the truck race here in 2003 and was third in 2002.

SCORE-ING BIG: The 19th Tecate SCORE San Felipe 250, Round 2 of the 2005 SCORE Desert Series, will take the green flag Saturday morning with a record field of more than 280 entries.

The start/finish line for the 240.34-mile loop course will be located on the outskirts of the fishing village of San Felipe, Mexico. All vehicles will have a 10-hour time limit to complete the race.

Mark Post is the defending overall 4-wheel vehicle and Trophy Truck race winner, while Mark McMillin won Class 1 last year. Steve Hengeveld and Johnny Campbell have posted three consecutive Class 22 and Overall motorcycle division victories in San Felipe.

Of the 283 official entries for the race, 20 are from Nevada.

AT THE STRIP: The fourth season of "Midnight Mayhem" for street-legal cars opens at 8 tonight at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

"Midnight Mayhem" is open to any licensed driver with a registered car or motorcycle and proof of insurance. Cars and bikes must be driven to the track and drivers under the age of 18 are required to present a completed parental consent form.