The General
Another Day, Another Dollar
Preseason testing marks the unofficial start of the 2007 NASCAR season, and while these test sessions are dull affairs for the most part, this year's testing has been a beehive of activity.
Highlighted by revealing press conferences and revealing test speeds, several key issues have surfaced:
Car of Tomorrow
NASCAR's new Car of Tomorrow (COT), which doesn't actually race at Daytona until next season, is turning out to be a pretty good piece.
Kurt Busch spent a day with the new car and had his Penske Dodge Avenger up to speed rather quickly, running in excess of 190 mph at Daytona. The speed Busch was achieved with a legal COT, but with a larger restrictor plate than currently is in use.
Expect NASCAR officials to use a smaller plate in competition. Without it, speeds in the draft will approach takeoff speed ? the speed at which cars traveling other than straight become airborne.
The new car has also changed the minds of some of its harshest critics ? including team owner Jack Roush, who said it was a waste of time, money and effort when it was first introduced.
Roush shakeup/sale
Roush has much more than just the COT to think about.
After a disappointing season in which two of his drivers ? Greg Biffle and Carl Edwards ? failed to make the Chase and long-time friend Mark Martin defected, Roush announced a major shakeup in his organization's ranks at the team level.
It involved both dismissing and moving crew chiefs as well as reorganizing the teams in an effort to take better advantage of the assets at the disposal of one of the sport's biggest and best-financed organizations.
It also was seen by many in the racing (and investment) community as an effort to provide to Roush's soon-to-be-announced business partner John Henry, owner of the Boston Red Sox, proof that the Cat in the Hat is still in charge.
So far, the jury is out on whether the changes will work, but regardless of the outcome, Roush's teams will be faced with the daunting task of delivering the goods on a more regular basis in '07.
Junior distracted
Perhaps the biggest issue to surface during the first two weeks of testing was the rising level of rhetoric coming from the feuding Earnhardts ? Teresa and Dale Jr.
The sport's biggest star is unhappy with the lack of progress in his attempts to obtain controlling interest in the organization that bears his and his late father's name.
Junior confessed during a press conference that his soon-to-expire contract is very much on his mind when he's away from the race track, which raises questions about whether he's focused on the matter at hand ? racing.
The Dale Earnhardt Jr.-Teresa Earnhardt saga took another turn this week when Junior defended his stepmother after Kevin Harvick made some critical comments.
The trouble with Red Bull
When Red Bull announced it was coming to NASCAR, there were high hopes and even higher expectations. Now, the best-funded new team to enter NASCAR in more than a decade finds itself struggling to find speed on the race track.
Red Bull driver Brian Vickers was off the pace set by the rest of the field at Daytona ? a field that, for the most part, was sandbagging, which is a time-honored tradition during these preseason tests.
The problem is that Red Bull wasn't sandbagging.
Despite having a cadre of proven talent in its midst, what's happening at Red Bull isn't working. This team has a lot of homework to do before the Daytona 500, or it will be watching the race on television.
Fatherhood
Jeff Gordon already has shown that whatever is going on in his personal life doesn't seem to affect his on-track performance.
However, one can't help but wonder how becoming a father for the first time will change him. Becoming a parent changes everyone.
Could this racing giant be beginning the final years of his stock car career? Or might he be spurred on to an even longer career, one that extends well beyond his competitiveness, in a sad attempt to regain his once-great stature?
Emergence of Ginn Racing
So far, Bobby Ginn has put his money where his mouth is by pouring millions of dollars into his race team.
It's a strategy that seems to be paying off, although he continues to make questionable moves like retaining Sterling Marlin and signing Ricky Carmichael. Signing former Hendrick Motorsports stalwart Gary DeHart is a plus.
One question still remains. How long will the Florida-based billionaire's accountants turn a blind eye to these massive expenditures before raising the red flag?
Make or break
Several well-known drivers are approaching critical junctures in their careers entering the 2007 season.
It's a list of drivers who have shown flashes of brilliance, but for one reason or another have never been able to close the deal.
Among the obvious on the list are Ryan Newman, Casey Mears, David Stremme, Brian Vickers and Jeremy Mayfield.
Then there are the drivers who missed the Chase in '06 and for whom just any old rebound won't be good enough, including Biffle, Edwards, Kurt Busch and Dale Jarrett.
Shrinking Busch and truck fields
As it stands, there should be enough teams to fill the fields for the Busch and Craftsman Truck season openers at Daytona, but it's anyone's guess after that.
As more Cup teams have taken advantage of the affordable developmental opportunities available to them in the Busch Series, independent Busch team owners have been forced to change their business models to compete with the bigger Cup teams.
It's not an easy task and it makes the job of team ownership more difficult, but right now NASCAR would prefer to have solid businessmen running their teams as successful businesses rather than worry about filling the field with 43 cars.
Its a very different story in the trucks, as teams struggle to find the funding to exist.
Though much of the blame for lack of sponsorship is placed on the television package with Speed Channel, there is much more at play than the lack of a broad and appealing-to-advertisers audience base.
Manufacturer support, except for Toyota, has shrunk to the lowest level in the history of the series, but NASCAR officials would prefer that ingenuity be more team-based in the truck series than fueled by the mega-millions of the manufacturers.
Despite an aggressive ad campaign, NASCAR and Speed Channel marketers can't emphasize enough the competitive nature of the truck series and how it has become the only place to watch the best of the old and new stars of NASCAR beat on each other every weekend. It's a battle of the generations.
And the races are over in two hours. That alone should help draw a huge audience.
New drivers
You'll be hearing these names a lot this year during the NASCAR telecasts: Juan Pablo Montoya, Sam Hornish Jr., A.J. Allmendinger, Ricky Carmichael and Marcos Ambrose.
The first two are Indy 500 winners, and Allmendinger was (until the end of last season) the best American-born open-wheel racer to come along in nearly two decades.
Carmichael is an icon for motocross fans, while Ambrose is an extremely talented former champion from Australia who in just one season has shown that he's got the skill and personality to race (and perhaps win) in NASCAR.
All these items bear watching over the next three to six months as NASCAR enters what can be described as the one of the more pivotal seasons in its history.
Veteran motorsports writer Bob Margolis is Yahoo! Sports' NASCAR reporter. Send Bob a question or comment for potential use in a future column or webcast.
Pressure cooker - NASCAR - Yahoo! Sports
Highlighted by revealing press conferences and revealing test speeds, several key issues have surfaced:
Car of Tomorrow
NASCAR's new Car of Tomorrow (COT), which doesn't actually race at Daytona until next season, is turning out to be a pretty good piece.
Kurt Busch spent a day with the new car and had his Penske Dodge Avenger up to speed rather quickly, running in excess of 190 mph at Daytona. The speed Busch was achieved with a legal COT, but with a larger restrictor plate than currently is in use.
Expect NASCAR officials to use a smaller plate in competition. Without it, speeds in the draft will approach takeoff speed ? the speed at which cars traveling other than straight become airborne.
The new car has also changed the minds of some of its harshest critics ? including team owner Jack Roush, who said it was a waste of time, money and effort when it was first introduced.
Roush shakeup/sale
Roush has much more than just the COT to think about.
After a disappointing season in which two of his drivers ? Greg Biffle and Carl Edwards ? failed to make the Chase and long-time friend Mark Martin defected, Roush announced a major shakeup in his organization's ranks at the team level.
It involved both dismissing and moving crew chiefs as well as reorganizing the teams in an effort to take better advantage of the assets at the disposal of one of the sport's biggest and best-financed organizations.
It also was seen by many in the racing (and investment) community as an effort to provide to Roush's soon-to-be-announced business partner John Henry, owner of the Boston Red Sox, proof that the Cat in the Hat is still in charge.
So far, the jury is out on whether the changes will work, but regardless of the outcome, Roush's teams will be faced with the daunting task of delivering the goods on a more regular basis in '07.
Junior distracted
Perhaps the biggest issue to surface during the first two weeks of testing was the rising level of rhetoric coming from the feuding Earnhardts ? Teresa and Dale Jr.
The sport's biggest star is unhappy with the lack of progress in his attempts to obtain controlling interest in the organization that bears his and his late father's name.
Junior confessed during a press conference that his soon-to-expire contract is very much on his mind when he's away from the race track, which raises questions about whether he's focused on the matter at hand ? racing.
The Dale Earnhardt Jr.-Teresa Earnhardt saga took another turn this week when Junior defended his stepmother after Kevin Harvick made some critical comments.
The trouble with Red Bull
When Red Bull announced it was coming to NASCAR, there were high hopes and even higher expectations. Now, the best-funded new team to enter NASCAR in more than a decade finds itself struggling to find speed on the race track.
Red Bull driver Brian Vickers was off the pace set by the rest of the field at Daytona ? a field that, for the most part, was sandbagging, which is a time-honored tradition during these preseason tests.
The problem is that Red Bull wasn't sandbagging.
Despite having a cadre of proven talent in its midst, what's happening at Red Bull isn't working. This team has a lot of homework to do before the Daytona 500, or it will be watching the race on television.
Fatherhood
Jeff Gordon already has shown that whatever is going on in his personal life doesn't seem to affect his on-track performance.
However, one can't help but wonder how becoming a father for the first time will change him. Becoming a parent changes everyone.
Could this racing giant be beginning the final years of his stock car career? Or might he be spurred on to an even longer career, one that extends well beyond his competitiveness, in a sad attempt to regain his once-great stature?
Emergence of Ginn Racing
So far, Bobby Ginn has put his money where his mouth is by pouring millions of dollars into his race team.
It's a strategy that seems to be paying off, although he continues to make questionable moves like retaining Sterling Marlin and signing Ricky Carmichael. Signing former Hendrick Motorsports stalwart Gary DeHart is a plus.
One question still remains. How long will the Florida-based billionaire's accountants turn a blind eye to these massive expenditures before raising the red flag?
Make or break
Several well-known drivers are approaching critical junctures in their careers entering the 2007 season.
It's a list of drivers who have shown flashes of brilliance, but for one reason or another have never been able to close the deal.
Among the obvious on the list are Ryan Newman, Casey Mears, David Stremme, Brian Vickers and Jeremy Mayfield.
Then there are the drivers who missed the Chase in '06 and for whom just any old rebound won't be good enough, including Biffle, Edwards, Kurt Busch and Dale Jarrett.
Shrinking Busch and truck fields
As it stands, there should be enough teams to fill the fields for the Busch and Craftsman Truck season openers at Daytona, but it's anyone's guess after that.
As more Cup teams have taken advantage of the affordable developmental opportunities available to them in the Busch Series, independent Busch team owners have been forced to change their business models to compete with the bigger Cup teams.
It's not an easy task and it makes the job of team ownership more difficult, but right now NASCAR would prefer to have solid businessmen running their teams as successful businesses rather than worry about filling the field with 43 cars.
Its a very different story in the trucks, as teams struggle to find the funding to exist.
Though much of the blame for lack of sponsorship is placed on the television package with Speed Channel, there is much more at play than the lack of a broad and appealing-to-advertisers audience base.
Manufacturer support, except for Toyota, has shrunk to the lowest level in the history of the series, but NASCAR officials would prefer that ingenuity be more team-based in the truck series than fueled by the mega-millions of the manufacturers.
Despite an aggressive ad campaign, NASCAR and Speed Channel marketers can't emphasize enough the competitive nature of the truck series and how it has become the only place to watch the best of the old and new stars of NASCAR beat on each other every weekend. It's a battle of the generations.
And the races are over in two hours. That alone should help draw a huge audience.
New drivers
You'll be hearing these names a lot this year during the NASCAR telecasts: Juan Pablo Montoya, Sam Hornish Jr., A.J. Allmendinger, Ricky Carmichael and Marcos Ambrose.
The first two are Indy 500 winners, and Allmendinger was (until the end of last season) the best American-born open-wheel racer to come along in nearly two decades.
Carmichael is an icon for motocross fans, while Ambrose is an extremely talented former champion from Australia who in just one season has shown that he's got the skill and personality to race (and perhaps win) in NASCAR.
All these items bear watching over the next three to six months as NASCAR enters what can be described as the one of the more pivotal seasons in its history.
Veteran motorsports writer Bob Margolis is Yahoo! Sports' NASCAR reporter. Send Bob a question or comment for potential use in a future column or webcast.
Pressure cooker - NASCAR - Yahoo! Sports