Daytona 500: 46 Days and Counting

By Luke, Thunder Lounge
Published on Thunder Lounge.

If you’re new around here, you may want to subscribe to our RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

Happy New Year, from Thunder Lounge!

Kenny Wallace

• 2007 Stats

  • Organization: Furniture Row Racing
  • Car Number: 78
  • Crew Chief: Jay Guy
  • Sponsor: Furniture Row
  • Points: 46th :: 1066 :: -5657
  • Starts: 16
  • Poles: 0
  • Wins: 0
  • Top 5’s: 0
  • Top 10’s: 0
  • Winnings: $1,411,830

• 2008 Preview

  • Organization: TBD
  • Car Number: TBD
  • Crew Chief: TBD
  • Sponsor: TBD

What seemed like a trickle of light in the tunnel for Kenny Wallace fans, it turned dismal last August when Kenny stepped out of the car after Watkins Glen.

At this time, Kenny is looking for sponsorship while talking to both Busch Nationwide and Truck teams.

Note: information is accurate as of date published. Check Thunder Lounge for additional updates and information.

Read more of this article »

Share your thoughts!.

Filed Under: Drivers, Kenny Wallace, Nascar, Nextel Cup





Trackback URL for: Daytona 500: 46 Days and Counting

By Luke, Thunder Lounge
Friday September 28, 2007
1:26am CDT
Published on Thunder Lounge.

Yeah, the image says it all. I guess Marc might be rubbing off a bit, but this has been wreaking havoc on my brain since it was made public.

I’m not normally one for Nascar conspiracy/tin foil hat slinging/propeller twirling thoughts. But let’s see what you think, as this is killing me.

Let’s start the progression of events. I’m not convinced that everything is all peachy over at the Yates’ place. Not saying it isn’t, and that I’m not off my rocker. But 2+2 != 4 in this case. The publicly known facts just don’t add up. Let’s follow them in the order we found out about them.

Ricky Rudd says he is leaving Robert Yates Racing at the end of the season. Something about retiring is mentioned. (Note, year before last it was taking a break.)

Robert Yates personally calls Kenny Wallace to set up a meeting about driving the #88 in 2008. This took place over Labor Day weekend, that Sunday to be specific.

Ricky Rudd gets hurt that same day, Kenny’s driven the car since. Doesn’t sound like a bad conversation took place, does it?

A few days later, over the Richmond weekend, we get this big announcement: Robert Yates to retire, Doug Yates to the helm and will re-brand RYR as Yates Racing.

Yates Racing will get cars, technical information, etc from Roush Racing. Roush Racing’s development driver, Travis Kvapil, will be headed to the #88.

Woah paint! A week earlier, Robert was talking to Kenny, and yet here’s a done deal with Kvapil? Hmmm, something isn’t right, and Kenny gets the shaft again. Not that it was exactly Hendrick or Gibbs, but it wasn’t ERR or FRR.

Then the silence falls. It was the quiet before the storm.

Last week, Mr. Junior makes his big announcement. The #88 Mountain Dew Amp Energy Drink National Guard Wrangler Trojan Foot Creme Chevy. Or, whatever it was.

Huh? What was that? Um, 88? Didn’t Doug Yates just say a bit ago that Yates Racing would be fielding the #38 with David Gilliland and the #88 with Travis Kvapil? Are we down by the docks? Something smell fishy here folks.

Is the madness over? Oh no. So let’s carry on to the next little tidbit before we fill in the dots.

Mars Inc. (read as Snickers, and M&M’s) announces that it will be heading to Joe Gibbs Racing and the #18 with Kyle Busch. What? Didn’t Interstate Batteries CEO say they were on the hood for 2008 at that press conference? Now they’re backing down? What the…

Are you following me on this? Let me back the truck up so that we have all readers on board with this. It’s time to fill in the dots on this.

Here’s what my mind says went down.

Ricky gets fed up (again), and remembers why he left for the Wood Brothers to begin with. What that is, I don’t know, but Ricky hasn’t looked happy for most of the season. If I was in a bottom end car, from a team that’s supposed to be top end, I’d be a little depressed after a while too. He decides to part ways. He may/may not have been talking to RCR about the fourth car, or potentially another opportunity. Something not at the back of the pack, else he’s headed for the front porch and a glass of tea.

Robert is talking to Kenny Wallace about a job, yet a couple days later it’s filled and all that hoopla. If the position was known to be filled, why would Robert talk to Kenny at all?

Behind the scenes here, Kelly is talking to Robert and asking about the #28 for Junior, and Robert ponies up the #88 instead.

Doug’s been talking to Roush on the side, and was made the offer of a lifetime. While mulling it over, he finds out about the 88 being released by its owner (Robert Yates), gets pissed, and announces the Roush deal. It’s been rumored that Ol’ Jack needs to move a team out of his shop in a bit (wink wink, nudge nudge), so why not make Roush #2 with the same folks he builds engines with. Of course he can’t profit from the teams winnings, but I bet the toilet seats aren’t going to be cheap. With this “partnership” or “leasing” in terms of well, everything, there’s his out when the time comes. But who shall it be? Hmmm…

Robert announces out of nowhere that he’s retiring, (Not wanting any part of that mess, and to spite Doug?)

Why the press release said 88, I have no idea.

Now, Mars/Snickers/M&M’s gets all pissed off because they were quite pleased with the opportunity to work with Kenny. That being sent to the gutters, they opt out on a performance clause, and walk. Can’t go to Evernham (because of Sadler), couldn’t follow Ricky (I’m sure because of a similar clause), so what’s left at the top? Here comes Gibbs, and hey, wanna throw a bone to the Shrub? They bite.

This is one big soap opera.

It may not be in that order, or exactly like that, but it could be close. Just think about it. The scenario of events doesn’t make sense whatsoever.

I can’t imagine Kenny wasn’t open to the idea of a full time ride. It would be higher in the points than FRR was and will continue to be. Not to mention, if it went bad, would he be subbing for Ricky at the moment? I doubt it, as bad as he wants to race.

So what we have here, is something some folks might refer to as a soup sandwich. Then again, maybe some phrase about a football bat comes to mind.

On top of all that crap, Newman/Haas/Lanigan are left out in the cold and wondering what happened? Um, hello, we’re a partnership now, right? Um, guys? Hey, guys? Hello? Buhler?

Something with this deal stinks to high heaven. Even the rats won’t touch it. So what in the world happened? OK, maybe kicking off the #88 wasn’t part of it. Then again, maybe it was and Doug didn’t find out until after California. Who knows? Not me, I’m just filling in the dots on this piece of swiss cheese.

That being said, something just isn’t right about this whole deal. Maybe it was planned all along? Then why the announcement about partnering with Newman/Haas/Lanigan? A decoy? Yeah, whatever. I don’t buy it. Something went wrong, and someone got hurt.

But who? Kenny had expectations, obviously sent awry. David Gilliland? Just a pawn in the game, happy to have a ride. Ricky Rudd? No pun intended. Robert Yates? Shouldn’t his legacy remain as RYR, even with Doug at the helm? That was what it sounded like anytime he mentioned “down the road”.

My thoughts on this are pretty scattered, I know. However, I can’t say that the overall theory is that far out there. There’s much not being told. It’s the kinda stuff that’ll show up on page 385 in a memoirs style book one day. Long after this mess has been forgotten. I can only hope to read it someday, and satisfy my curiosity.

6 comments. Add your 2 cents!.

Filed Under: Dale Earnhardt Junior, David Gilliland, Drivers, Joe Gibbs Racing #18, Kenny Wallace, Kyle Busch, Nascar, Ricky Rudd, Robert Yates Racing #38, Robert Yates Racing #88, Yates Racing #28





Trackback URL for: Does This Whole Yates Deal Make Sense?

By Luke, Thunder Lounge
Tuesday September 4, 2007
1:16pm CDT
Published on Thunder Lounge.

Go Herman Go!

You may have read recent speculation, and then heard confirmation that Robert Yates contacted the Herminator and asked for a chance to sit down and discuss some business. What business? Well, Ricky Rudd has said he’s one and done. Meaning one more full season was enough. Can’t say I blame him. Heck, he has 900 career starts, second only to Richard Petty, and the pace and demand of the current schedule can be grueling. Especially when you don’t have to do it.

Ricky stepped into the #88 more or less as a favor for a friend, and to help them start to right a listing ship.

Mission complete.

While RYR is far from championship contention at the moment, can anyone say that Ricky Rudd hasn’t given the program a fair shake and assessment, and hasn’t been able to help get it pointed in the right direction?

Rudd had an advantage, he knew what the cars were like earlier this decade when RYR was a constant threat. He could feel and assess the difference. Just throw the COT out the window for a moment. That’s a whole nother ballgame, folks.

Another facet to our Herman story here, is Ricky took a pretty solid lick during the race last Sunday out in California. Such a lick, in fact, that he separated his shoulder. he doesn’t think he’ll be in the mood to push through it and run at Richmond.

Hello, Kenny, want to fill in at one of your favorite tracks? Sheesh, like you’d have to ask.

So let’s get back to this meeting that took place last Sunday at California, between Kenny and Robert.

Nobody, other than those two, know what the outcome was.

What is known, and Kenny said it himself, is that it was about taking the wheel of the #88 next season.

Wow. No ERR or FRR stunts here folks. Finally a serious offer/discussion about driving for a solid team.

Kenny hasn’t forgotten how to drive a race car, and just all of a sudden couldn’t manage to finish in the top 25 consistently. Hell, you could put Rusty, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, or Stewart in one of the rides that Kenny’s been in, and their results wouldn’t have been much better.

You do the best with what you’ve got, and Kenny certainly did that. The move by FRR should tell you that. There has been no change in results, and I’d venture to say they’ve declined a bit.

Let’s add some more fuel to the fire, shall we?

JJ Yeley has been associated with the possibility of driving the #88 over the past week or so, since it was made official that he would be replaced by Kyle Busch. Kyle Busch of course losing his ride to Dale Earnhardt Jr.

JJ Yeley will not be headed to Robert Yates.

As a matter of fact, he’ll be headed to Hall of Fame Racing’s #96 entry. Uh oh, Spaghetti O’s.

So who could fit the ticket over at Robert Yates, and become a solid mentor for the “just barely not a rookie” David Gilliand? I’d say younger, but he isn’t 18 or 21, or close. While he’s more mature in age, he needs some solid mentoring in the experience department.

Kenny Wallace fits the bill here perfectly, and Robert Yates knows it. That’s why he initiated the discussion with Kenny.

It’s as logical a choice as asking Ricky Rudd to give it a spin. Kenny has the talent, the experience, and the total package to lead that race team.

Support Robert Yates’ decision, support Kenny Wallace. He’s paid his dues, it’s about time someone finally had the guts to give him the opportunity to cash in on it, and earn a solid ride in NASCAR’s top series.

Kenny is a natural with the camera as well. Something that will definitely be an asset to any company who would like to put their name on that car. Add to that the fact that Kenny would (presumably) be able to retain his current schedule on Speed while doing NASCAR Race Day and Victory Lane, among other endeavors, and you have something that just darn well will work for a sponsor. Even if RYR isn’t quite up to par next season, and their drivers are back in the mid-20’s in points, they’re going to get an awful lot of bang for their buck.

So here’s to possibilities, making the right decision, and to a man that has earned every inch of what he has.

3 comments. Add your 2 cents!.

Filed Under: Drivers, Kenny Wallace, Nascar, Nextel Cup, Ricky Rudd, Robert Yates Racing #88, Teams





Trackback URL for: Support Kenny Wallace