IMSA-XJR9 Posted July 26, 2017 Share Posted July 26, 2017 http://www.racer.com/nascar/item/142599-menard-joining-wood-brothers-for-2018 http://www.racer.com/nascar/item/142598-penske-adds-blaney-to-three-car-cup-squad-for-2018 Team Penske has announced that it will bring Ryan Blaney in house as a full-time driver in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series beginning in 2018, as the team returns to a three-car operation. The 23-year-old Blaney, who also signed a multi-year contract extension with the team, will drive the No. 12 Ford Fusion, beginning with the annual non-points Clash event at Daytona International Speedway in February. Nice! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fuzzymoomoo Posted July 26, 2017 Share Posted July 26, 2017 Poor Wood Brothers. They finally get a driver worth a damn, the first since Neil Bonnett IMO, and he leaves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bdegrand Posted July 26, 2017 Share Posted July 26, 2017 Poor Wood Brothers. They finally get a driver worth a damn, the first since Neil Bonnett IMO, and he leaves. Well, there is still a reasonable chance Menard will do well. I am concerned about Joey and his chances after Kahne knocked him down on the list. He needs a win...! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bdegrand Posted July 26, 2017 Share Posted July 26, 2017 (edited) Poor Wood Brothers. They finally get a driver worth a damn, the first since Neil Bonnett IMO, and he leaves.Blaney is high potential...but Menard could be a pleasant surprise. Mr Logano needs to score a win soon...especially after Kahne knocked him further back on the list. Edited July 26, 2017 by bdegrand Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IMSA-XJR9 Posted July 26, 2017 Author Share Posted July 26, 2017 (edited) Poor Wood Brothers. They finally get a driver worth a damn, the first since Neil Bonnett IMO, and he leaves. I'd put Dale Jarrett over Neil Bonnett, but I get what you're saying . . . And I am happy the Wood Brothers are/have been covered by the Penske Ford Banner as opposed to Roush over the last few years. Edited July 26, 2017 by IMSA-XJR9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fuzzymoomoo Posted July 26, 2017 Share Posted July 26, 2017 I forgot Jarrett ran for the Wood Brothers before Yates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Rosadini Posted July 27, 2017 Share Posted July 27, 2017 I would hope that Ford (and Roger) one way or another look after the Wood Bros. Have to believe some young hot shot will pop out of the woodwork and be in the 21. Like one of these kids in the truck series?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fuzzymoomoo Posted July 27, 2017 Share Posted July 27, 2017 I would hope that Ford (and Roger) one way or another look after the Wood Bros. Have to believe some young hot shot will pop out of the woodwork and be in the 21. Like one of these kids in the truck series?? Nope Paul Menard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blksn8k2 Posted July 28, 2017 Share Posted July 28, 2017 It's all about the money that the Menards name brings to a team. He has been with Roush, RCR and probably some others I don't remember, all with pretty mediocre results. Kinda the male version of Danica without the looks. I just hope this is a temporary thing until Edsel can get someone like Chase Briscoe into the 21 seat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fuzzymoomoo Posted July 28, 2017 Share Posted July 28, 2017 Kinda the male version of Danica without the looks. and the charisma of a postage stamp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blksn8k2 Posted July 28, 2017 Share Posted July 28, 2017 (edited) Menard's sponsors one of Penske's cars in Indycar (Simon Pagenaud). I'm guessing that had something to do with this whole deal. John Menard probably made Penske an offer he couldn't refuse. BTW, Chase Briscoe is a Ford development driver driving for Keselowski in the truck series. Wouldn't surprise me if he gets a few rides in a Penske Xfinity car in the next year or two and then Cup. Besides, Paul Menard is 36 and probably won't be racing too many more years. Edited July 28, 2017 by blksn8k2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coupe3w Posted July 30, 2017 Share Posted July 30, 2017 Why are the Toyota's so fast lately? Penske seems to be struggling a bit. Need to get Lagano a win. He didn't do well today 27th. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbone Posted July 31, 2017 Share Posted July 31, 2017 Probably because NASCAR allowed them to make an adjustment that gave them an edge. Seems to be what they do in the name of parity of course. ? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted July 31, 2017 Share Posted July 31, 2017 Probably because NASCAR allowed them to make an adjustment that gave them an edge. Seems to be what they do in the name of parity of course. Name a major sanctioning body or series that doesn't make balance of power type adjustments to keep the field in parity. None of these are straight up engineering competitions where the best car and driver wins - it's entertainment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fuzzymoomoo Posted July 31, 2017 Share Posted July 31, 2017 Name a major sanctioning body or series that doesn't make balance of power type adjustments to keep the field in parity. None of these are straight up engineering competitions where the best car and driver wins - it's entertainment. Exactly. NASCAR stopped being an engineering competition in the 80s. It would be nice to see a few of the more underfunded teams acquire some meaningful sponsorship dollars and be able to compete a little better though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coupe3w Posted July 31, 2017 Share Posted July 31, 2017 Probably because NASCAR allowed them to make an adjustment that gave them an edge. Seems to be what they do in the name of parity of course. What adjustments? They all have to go through inspection using the same templates don't they? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fuzzymoomoo Posted July 31, 2017 Share Posted July 31, 2017 What adjustments? They all have to go through inspection using the same templates don't they? Yes however they can allow different tweaks to engines and whatnot I suppose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bdegrand Posted July 31, 2017 Share Posted July 31, 2017 What adjustments? They all have to go through inspection using the same templates don't they? Years ago, NASCAR would often take the top finishers and run them on their engine dyno machines to test for output variances. It's obvious lately, as Brad mentioned after the race, Toyota has found a bunch of power lately and have a half second advantage and he doesn't see NASCAR doing anything about it. Martin Truex and Kyle Busch have been dominant and I predict will win the championship unless they crash each other, like last week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bdegrand Posted July 31, 2017 Share Posted July 31, 2017 Name a major sanctioning body or series that doesn't make balance of power type adjustments to keep the field in parity. None of these are straight up engineering competitions where the best car and driver wins - it's entertainment. I would guess the Camping World Truck Series....Toyota leads in Owner/Manufacturers/Driver Standings. The Best Truck/Toyota and Driver Christopher Bell. Sad to see the Ford's get pummeled every week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fuzzymoomoo Posted July 31, 2017 Share Posted July 31, 2017 I would guess the Camping World Truck Series....Toyota leads in Owner/Manufacturers/Driver Standings. The Best Truck/Toyota and Driver Christopher Bell. Sad to see the Ford's get pummeled every week. Ford has almost zero presence in the truck series, it's almost all Toyota. Rumor has it that was a big point of contention during Keselowski's contract negotiations. He wanted more factory support for his truck team. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted July 31, 2017 Share Posted July 31, 2017 I would guess the Camping World Truck Series....Toyota leads in Owner/Manufacturers/Driver Standings. The Best Truck/Toyota and Driver Christopher Bell. Sad to see the Ford's get pummeled every week. But that's already a spec series with bespoke vehicles and engines just like the other NASCAR series. As opposed to just allowing the mfrs to bring their production vehicles and race whatever they want to race. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IMSA-XJR9 Posted July 31, 2017 Author Share Posted July 31, 2017 And the Truck series may get a bit more "Spec." https://www.motorsport.com/nascar-truck/news/nascar-truck-spec-engines-2018-935715/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coupe3w Posted July 31, 2017 Share Posted July 31, 2017 And the Truck series may get a bit more "Spec." https://www.motorsport.com/nascar-truck/news/nascar-truck-spec-engines-2018-935715/ Just another kick in the head to Ford. Do you think the spec engine would ever be Ford based? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbone Posted August 1, 2017 Share Posted August 1, 2017 Name a major sanctioning body or series that doesn't make balance of power type adjustments to keep the field in parity. None of these are straight up engineering competitions where the best car and driver wins - it's entertainment. Which is why this kind of racing doesn't interest me at all. I'm not even sure why they have different manufacturers involved in this kind of racing. If Toyota out engineered Ford, I could accept it, but when each manufacturer is allowed variances in the name of parity, who cares at that point. How about you just let them build the best cars they can under a basic framework. Then perhaps the manufacturers would care a little more, or at least I would. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted August 1, 2017 Share Posted August 1, 2017 You'd think LeMans would allow that with Endurance being the balancing force, and it's only one race per year. But even there they use BOP. But alas, there is too much money in TV revenue and not many people would watch if every race was dominated by one team or make. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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