SONOMA, Calif. (AP) — Richard Petty Motorsports has made news this season for all the wrong reasons. Caught in the financial crunch of Chrysler’s bankruptcy, the team had a recent round of layoffs and companywide salary reductions.
Star driver Kasey Kahne has been openly unhappy with RPM’s slow development of an improved Dodge motor, and the organization can’t shake whispers about its long-term stability.
A win can cure most of those ills.
Kahne returned team co-owner Richard Petty to Victory Lane for the first time in over a decade with a much-needed win — on a road course, of all places — at Infineon Raceway on Sunday… Details
General Motors last week said it was pulling factory support of NASCAR’s Nationwide Series and Camping World Truck Series, and the bankrupt automotive giant this week served notice to Sprint Cup teams it intends to scale back its support of the premier series as well.
“We had very productive conversations this week with the folks at General Motors,’’ Rick Hendrick said in a statement.
Hendrick, the owner of Hendrick Motorsports, fields Chevrolets for drivers Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Mark Martin, and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
“It’s clear they are committed to racing and committed to our organization… Details
Brian Vickers picked up his Sprint Cup Series- leading fourth pole of the season after recording the quickest lap in Friday’s qualifying for the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway.
Vickers lapped the 1.99-mile, 12-turn road course at 93.678 m.p.h. (76.475 seconds) in his No.83 Red Bull Toyota. He also won the pole last weekend at Michigan.
“I just didn’t want to make any mistakes,†Vickers said. “When I finished the lap, I was kind of thinking it was a decent lap. I felt there was some corners that I could have gone faster.†MiamiHerald.com
Vickers said a variety of factors allowed him to gain significant speed during his qualifying run…Â Details
