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| Dale Earnhardt, Jr is close to signing IRL driver Danica Patrick to a two-year deal to drive for his JR Motorsports Nationwide team. |
Our View: Rumors have swirled around a possible NASCAR ride for Patrick for several months now, but this deal appears to be almost a done deal. Patrick, who recently signed an extension with Andretti Green Racing is sure to attract plenty of sponsorship offers in NASCAR.
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| According Yahoo! Sports, Brad Keselowski will replace David Stremme behind the wheel of the No. 12 car for the final three Cup races of 2009. |
Our View: Stremme was 31st in points through 33 races this year so there was no reason not to make the switch. Keselowski will continue to drive for JR Motorsports in the Nationwide Series for the rest of this season, before taking over duties in the No. 12 full-time in 2010. Fantasy owners should feel free to utilize Keselowski down the stretch this year in both series.
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| Despite Dale Earnhardt, Jr's ongoing struggles, crew chief Lance McGrew will return full-time next season atop the pit box of the No. 88, according to RacingOne.com. |
Our View: While it can be argued that McGrew has made Junior more competitive, he hasn't been prodcuing better results. Bad luck continues to plague Junior. With all of his Hendrick Motorsports teammates thriving, Junior has to turn things around soon.
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| Brad Keselowski will be the last driver to win at Memphis Motorsports Park, after track officials decided to close the track, according to RacingOne.com. |
Our View: Nashville Superspeedway will replace Memphis on the Nationwide Series schedule, and the event will swap dates with an event at Gateway International Raceway. It is always sad to see a track close down, particularly one as unique as Memphis.
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| After his recent drunk-drviing arrest, A.J. Allmendinger has been placed on probation by NASCAR, according to Yahoo! Sports. |
Our View: Allmendinger was also fined $10,000 for the incident. Prior to the practice sessions at Talladega Friday, he was given a breath test which he passed.
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| This weekend's race at Talladega will be the final race for Kyle Busch with Steve Addington atop his pit box, according to Yahoo! Sports. |
Our View: Dave Rogers, who currently serves as crew chief on the No. 20 JGR Nationwide team, will take over crew chief duties for Busch's NO. 18 Cup team. Rogers led the No. 20 Nationwide team to an owner's title last season, and it is no secret that Busch fell short of expectations this year. Busch has plenty of talent, and maybe a change will lead to more consistent results.
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| According to Yahoo! Sports, A.J. Allmendinger was arrested early Thursday morning on charges of drunk driving. |
Our View: Allmendinger admitted to having a few drinks with dinner and apologized for poor judgement. He is scheduled to move to the Richard Petty Motorsports No. 43 next season with Best Buy as a sponsor. However, Petty has always been very vocal about his dislike of alcohol through the years. He refused to accept alcohol sponsors for many years, and he wouldn't field cars in the Busch Series because of the title sponsor. It is unknown if Allmendinger's arrest will have long-term ramifications.
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| Brad Keselowski bumped his why by Carl Edwards, Michael Annett and Tony Raines in the closing laps to win the Nationwide race at Memphis Motorsports Park, according to NASCAR.com. |
Our View: Keselowski took advanatge of several late cautions and made his moves on several restarts down the strecth. He then held of a bump-and-run attempt from Kyle Busch in the final corner to secure the win.
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| The rain held off long enough for Ryan Newman to win th epole for Sunday's Cup race at Martinsville, but Mother Nature washed out both practice sessions for the event, according to Jayski.com. |
Our View: The lack of practice and loss of rubber ont he track almost always leads to a scheduled competition yellow. It also gives an advantage to the driver starting up front as well as those that have been histroically strong at the track.
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| Richard Petty Motorsports driver Elliott Sadler will drive a Ford at Talladega, according to NASCAR.com. |
Our View: The organization is planning a merger with Yates Racing and a manufacturer switch in 2010. Sadler is getting a jump on the swap in the hopes that the information gained will benefit the organization in the future.
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