Busch Series News - - - February 2nd Edition

Busch Series Ride Sharing

Evernham Motorsports officials say Elliott Sadler, Scott Riggs and Kasey Kahne will share driver duties for the team's #9 Busch Series Dodge, which will be sponsored by Unilever.

Unilever brands include: Klondike Ice Cream, Ragu Pasta Sauce, Hellman's Mayonnaise, Shedd's Spread Country Crock Spreads, Lawry's seasoning blends and marinades, Lipton Teas, Wisk laundry detergent, Wishbone Salad Dressing and Slim-Fast Weight Control products. I am providing you this list, just in case you are like I am when it comes to supporting our NASCAR sponsors.

Anyway, Kahne will be the primary driver and the three drivers will compete in 23 Busch Series races this season. I'm just here to provide you with the news, personally I think they should take the Cup Series drivers out of the Busch Series and let that series be the "training ground" it was meant to be. Just my humble opinion.

Busch Series Test In Las Vegas

Sam Hornish, Jr. will return to the track next week to test the #12 Busch Series Dodge for Penske Racing. You may remember that Hornish, Jr. last drove at LVMS in 2000 and finished third in the Vegas Indy 300 Indy Racing League event.

Teammate Kurt Busch will drive the car Monday, with Hornish scheduled to drive Tuesday in the second preseason test for the Busch Series.

"I'm excited to test at Las Vegas Motor Speedway," Hornish said. "Kurt Busch and Ryan Newman tested their Nextel Cup cars last week, and as I understand it, the changes made to the track have made it especially fast. I have not turned a lap at LVMS in a stock car, but having experienced driver like Kurt Busch will certainly help my education."

Twenty four current full-time Nextel Cup drivers are slated to show up and test next week, including defending Champ Kevin Harvick and defending Vegas Busch winner Kasey Kahne. All in all, there will be 45 drivers scheduled to test the newly reconfigured track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. So much for my opinion regarding the Cup Series drivers, eh ? ? ?

Crocker Not Done ? ? ?

Erin is scaling back on her Busch Series career, rumor has it that she may even change teams according to team owner Ray Evernham. Needless to say her goals are being redirected, but the primary mission is the same: Become the best female driver in the sport's history. The plan for 2007 is to include 12 ARCA races and 4 Busch Series races. I think she should stay home and take care of their child and forget about her dreams prior to meeting Mr. Ray Evernham.

Busch Series Television Schedule

Six races will be televised on ABC this season, a schedule released by ABC/ESPN shows. The other 29 races will be on ESPN2, including the first three events of the year, in case you need help, they are Daytona, California and Mexico. The six ABC races, which will be broadcast with the ESPN2 crew, will be Las Vegas (March 10), Atlanta (March 17), Bristol (March 24), Talladega (April 28), New Hampshire (June 30), and Chicago (July 14). Did you get all of that ? ? ? There will be a pop-quiz next week ! ! !

ESPN to use Sportsvision Transmitters for Busch Series races: ESPN2 will be home for the NASCAR Busch Series all season, with the exception of those races I've already mentioned above. As part of ESPN's commitment to the series, the network will utilize the same standards of production for the NASCAR Busch Series as it will for telecasts of the final 17 NASCAR Nextel Cup races of 2007. In addition to 100 percent use of High Definition cameras, ESPN will also produce NASCAR's top two series with Sportsvision technology. Sportsvision utilizes satellite technology to create on-screen "pointers" to designate specific cars within a pack, helping viewers distinguish their favorite driver's car, lead-lap cars and produces telemetry from the race cars to show speeds, braking and other compelling information to viewers. All cars in the race will carry Sportsvision transmitters. Hmmmm, Iwonder if the car owners have to pay for this equipment, we are a brand new start up team and probably don't have a lot of money in the budget for this extra equipment ! ! !

Hamilton Jr. Happy To Be Back With Team Rensi

Bobby Hamilton, Jr., 29, was back in a Busch Series car for the Jackson Hewitt Preseason Thunder at Daytona for the first time in three years and could not stop bubbling about the experience.

"First, I'm just glad to be back," Hamilton said. "I walked in the garage and told my wife, 'This is where I'm supposed to be.' Pretty much, my whole career has been in the Busch Series. I'm just relaxing."

I guess my heart goes out to Bobby because he lost his father on January 7th and I lost mine on January 24th of 2007. I know we can feel each others pain.

I will miss Bobby, Sr. and Benny Parsons as this new season gets underway. They both made a tremendous impact on our sport and they will never be forgotten by the entire NASCAR family.

My father always referred to Michael Waltrip, Tony Stewart or Dale Earnhardt, Jr. as car number 15, 20 and 8. Obviously I will never forget you either Dad, I love you ! ! !

Have a great week, and remember, it won't be long now and we will have some LIVE racin' ! ! !

The Wal-Nutz Maniac