Stewart prepares for Pocono
Maybe Tony Stewart has some bad engrams he needs to get rid of.
The buzz around the racetrack this week is the entry of Dianetics into the world of NASCAR. Evoking memories of Tom Cruise in Days of Thunder, The Church of Scientology is reportedly sponsoring Kenton Gray’s No. 27 Ford Taurus as it tries to qualify for a late-model race this Saturday at Irwindale Speedway in California.
NASCAR is no stranger to contentious sponsorship. You may recall Bobby Labonte appearing in a car emblazoned with an advertisement for Mel Gibson’s The Passion of The Christ back in 2004. Or Morgan Shepherd driving for Jesus Racing Ministries. But this takes the space-opera cake.
Whatever your religious views, it’s safe to say that Scientology is not widely embraced by the public at large, and NASCAR’s key demographic in particular. NASCAR has already been roundly criticized for being oversponsored, stripping the personality of its races by calling them things like last week’s “Neighborhood Excellence 400 presented by Bank of America.” Perhaps officials thought allowing Scientology to sponsor a low-level race would fly under the media radar. It didn’t. Instead of focusing on this week’s Pocono 500, sports media outlets are already having a field day with this tidbit of news.
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This is a shame for Stewart. This is a man who deserves some serious credit for racing at the Neighborhood Excellence 400 with a broken shoulder blade. Despite still being in pain, Stewart started the race in order to collect valuable points in the drivers’ standings. He got out of the car at the first caution flag on Lap 38 at Dover International Speedway and tagged out to Ricky Rudd. Having to stop and get out of the car was painful for Stewart on many levels, perhaps none more so than falling behind the race leaders. Rudd drove well, but picked up a one-lap penalty for speeding in the pit lane; the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Chevy finished the race in 25th place, dropping Stewart from fourth to fifth in the standings.
Stewart is expected to make it all the way through this week’s event at Pocono Raceway, where he took the checkered flag in 2003. It should be a much smoother ride. Dover isn’t called the “Monster Mile” for nothing: Its 24-degree banks create enough g-forces to make a carnival tilt-a-whirl feel like a limousine ride. Pocono, on the other hand, is a 2.5-mile long superspeedway with a nice, long frontstretch and shallow banks around its three hairpin turns.
Not that Pocono doesn’t have its own physical challenges. The shape of the course is essentially a triangle. “The three corners are pretty unique,” Stewart told Racing One, “and the tunnel turn was pretty bumpy the last time we were there. Hopefully that won’t hurt too much, but even if it does, it’ll still be a lot easier than having to race at Dover for 400 laps.”
Stewart says a decision will be made later in the week whether to have Rudd, who came out of retirement to pitch relief at Dover for Joe Gibbs Racing, available to sub in at Pocono. Rudd has a history of success there, winning the race in 2001; however, Stewart says he would rather not have to drag Rudd and his family away from the vacation they’re on at the moment.
Handicappers may find excellent value in Stewart this week. Because of the uncertainty regarding his health and whether he’ll be able to complete the Pocono 500, Stewart is getting longer odds than he’s used to: plus-1800 (Bet $100 to win $1,800), the same as Ryan Newman (currently in 19th place in the drivers standings) and longer than 18th-place Kurt Busch at plus-1500 (Bet $100 to win $1,500).
The favorite for Sunday’s Pocono 500 is Jimmie Johnson at plus-700 (Bet $100 to win $700). Johnson finished in sixth place at Dover despite having to start in 42nd place, good enough to hang onto first place in the standings ahead of race winner Matt Kenseth (+1000). That comeback performance may have been even more impressive than Johnson’s four victories this year – if not as lucrative. The $1.5 million he earned for taking the Daytona 500 has Johnson well in the money lead at a shade over $5 million, a full $2 million ahead of Kenseth.
Joining Kenseth at plus-1000 (Bet $100 to win $1,000) on the odds list are Mark Martin and Carl Edwards, each looking for his first checkered flag of the season. Other notable names on the odds list include Kasey Kahne (+1100), Kevin Harvick (+1200), Jeff Gordon (+1200) and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (+1500). Earnhardt has a proven track record on superspeedways, but his specialty is the restrictor plate races at Daytona and Talladega. Pocono’s hairpin turns slow the cars down enough to exempt the track from requiring plates.
Maybe Tony Stewart has some bad engrams he needs to get rid of.
The buzz around the racetrack this week is the entry of Dianetics into the world of NASCAR. Evoking memories of Tom Cruise in Days of Thunder, The Church of Scientology is reportedly sponsoring Kenton Gray’s No. 27 Ford Taurus as it tries to qualify for a late-model race this Saturday at Irwindale Speedway in California.
NASCAR is no stranger to contentious sponsorship. You may recall Bobby Labonte appearing in a car emblazoned with an advertisement for Mel Gibson’s The Passion of The Christ back in 2004. Or Morgan Shepherd driving for Jesus Racing Ministries. But this takes the space-opera cake.
Whatever your religious views, it’s safe to say that Scientology is not widely embraced by the public at large, and NASCAR’s key demographic in particular. NASCAR has already been roundly criticized for being oversponsored, stripping the personality of its races by calling them things like last week’s “Neighborhood Excellence 400 presented by Bank of America.” Perhaps officials thought allowing Scientology to sponsor a low-level race would fly under the media radar. It didn’t. Instead of focusing on this week’s Pocono 500, sports media outlets are already having a field day with this tidbit of news.
Advertisement
This is a shame for Stewart. This is a man who deserves some serious credit for racing at the Neighborhood Excellence 400 with a broken shoulder blade. Despite still being in pain, Stewart started the race in order to collect valuable points in the drivers’ standings. He got out of the car at the first caution flag on Lap 38 at Dover International Speedway and tagged out to Ricky Rudd. Having to stop and get out of the car was painful for Stewart on many levels, perhaps none more so than falling behind the race leaders. Rudd drove well, but picked up a one-lap penalty for speeding in the pit lane; the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Chevy finished the race in 25th place, dropping Stewart from fourth to fifth in the standings.
Stewart is expected to make it all the way through this week’s event at Pocono Raceway, where he took the checkered flag in 2003. It should be a much smoother ride. Dover isn’t called the “Monster Mile” for nothing: Its 24-degree banks create enough g-forces to make a carnival tilt-a-whirl feel like a limousine ride. Pocono, on the other hand, is a 2.5-mile long superspeedway with a nice, long frontstretch and shallow banks around its three hairpin turns.
Not that Pocono doesn’t have its own physical challenges. The shape of the course is essentially a triangle. “The three corners are pretty unique,” Stewart told Racing One, “and the tunnel turn was pretty bumpy the last time we were there. Hopefully that won’t hurt too much, but even if it does, it’ll still be a lot easier than having to race at Dover for 400 laps.”
Stewart says a decision will be made later in the week whether to have Rudd, who came out of retirement to pitch relief at Dover for Joe Gibbs Racing, available to sub in at Pocono. Rudd has a history of success there, winning the race in 2001; however, Stewart says he would rather not have to drag Rudd and his family away from the vacation they’re on at the moment.
Handicappers may find excellent value in Stewart this week. Because of the uncertainty regarding his health and whether he’ll be able to complete the Pocono 500, Stewart is getting longer odds than he’s used to: plus-1800 (Bet $100 to win $1,800), the same as Ryan Newman (currently in 19th place in the drivers standings) and longer than 18th-place Kurt Busch at plus-1500 (Bet $100 to win $1,500).
The favorite for Sunday’s Pocono 500 is Jimmie Johnson at plus-700 (Bet $100 to win $700). Johnson finished in sixth place at Dover despite having to start in 42nd place, good enough to hang onto first place in the standings ahead of race winner Matt Kenseth (+1000). That comeback performance may have been even more impressive than Johnson’s four victories this year – if not as lucrative. The $1.5 million he earned for taking the Daytona 500 has Johnson well in the money lead at a shade over $5 million, a full $2 million ahead of Kenseth.
Joining Kenseth at plus-1000 (Bet $100 to win $1,000) on the odds list are Mark Martin and Carl Edwards, each looking for his first checkered flag of the season. Other notable names on the odds list include Kasey Kahne (+1100), Kevin Harvick (+1200), Jeff Gordon (+1200) and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (+1500). Earnhardt has a proven track record on superspeedways, but his specialty is the restrictor plate races at Daytona and Talladega. Pocono’s hairpin turns slow the cars down enough to exempt the track from requiring plates.