NASCAR Daily News Headlines * December 3, 2007

Dale Jr. Makes Trip To Australia

In 2004, Earnhardt won the Daytona 500, six years to the day after his late father won his only title in the 'Great American Race'. However, Earnhardt is more than just another 'speed freak'. His interests include building a new multi-purpose racetrack in Alabama, and he also features alongside Sheryl Crow on a video musical tribute to the late actor Steve McQueen.

"I've become a fan of the V8 Supercars from watching the series back home on television," Earnhardt said. "This series has come a long, long way since I first started watching it. In a perfect world I would come and race full-time in the V8 series for a year. I believe I would enjoy it. I like the format. If I got to talk to the right people and make that happen, I would definitely entertain that (idea). I am going to run my butt off in Cup cars until I can't any more. Maybe I'll then move to Australia and race the V8 cars - as long as there is a ride."

Earnhardt was particularly impressed by the technology of the cars and the professionalism of those that prepare them. "The craftsmanship on the cars is really, really impressive," he said. "The technology is also very impressive, especially the ability to record data for the whole weekend. We don't have that."

Earnhardt also praised Australian Marcos Ambrose, a two-time V8 Supercar champion, who he will race alongside in the Nascar Sprint Cup series next year. Ambrose moved to the US two years ago and has worked towards a full-time drive at the top level in Nascar. He will compete in selected races in the main game next year.

"Having Marcos come race with us has given us a better understanding of the (V8 Supercar) series," Earnhardt said. "I have watched him pretty closely in the races he has run. One thing that has stuck out to me, is that when Marcos came into the Busch Series he was very respectful and very understanding of his position as a rookie. He came in with a lot of humility. That was impressive. He's well received and well respected.(theaustralian.news.com.au)

Johnson Will Represent USA In ROC

This exciting event, where drivers will race in identical track conditions against each other with a selection of five cars, is expected to draw 80,000 spectators. The parallel tarmac track will be specially constructed in Wembley stadium for the Race of Champions (ROC); it will be the first motorsport event at the new venue.

Now in its 20th year, ROC drivers will gather again to compete in a straight shootout to win the Champion of Champions title as well as the Nations' Cup, a team event.

The event historically favors drivers from the world of rallying, having taken seventeen out of the nineteen Champion of Champions titles. Previous victors include Didier Auriol, who won the event four times. Sebastien Loeb, Juha Kankkunen and Stig Blomqvist are all credited with taking ROC titles twice. Other rally aces to win are Andrea Aghini, Francois Delecour, Carlos Sainz, Colin McRae, Tommi Makinen, Harri Rovanpera and Marcus Gronholm.

The rally drivers' success in the event has only broken twice, with a win in 2004 by open-wheel racer Heikki Kovalainen and last year's winner Mattias Ekstrom. However, German Touring Car (DTM) racer Ekstrom has a rallying background, being the Swedish Rally Group N Winner in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo in 2004. He also recorded 8 starts in the World Rally Championship (WRC) with a 10th place in the 2005 Swedish Rally in a Skoda Fabia WRC entry.

The drivers competing in the event this year include seven-time Formula One (F1) World Champion Michael Schumacher partnering up with Toro Rosso's F1 driver Sebastian Vettel for team Germany.

Schumacher was a race of Champions finalist in the 2004 event in Paris. He beat World Rally champion and two-time Champion of Champions Sebastien Loeb in the semi-final but missed out in the final to Kovalainen.

Team Autosport England will comprise of Honda Racing F1 driver Jenson Button paired with World Touring Car champion Andy Priaulx. Priaulx recently took his third World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) title in a row driving for BMW Team UK.

Team F1 Racing Scotland will be represented by Red Bull Racing F1 driver David Coulthard who will compete with former British Rally champion Alistair McRae. Alistair will now be driving at the race after the tragic loss of his brother Colin. The late Colin McRae, a crowd favorite in the ROC competition, was a previous Champion of Champions title winner in 1998.

Team USA pairs 2006 NASCAR Nextel Cup champion Jimmie Johnson (Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet) with the Subaru/Vermont SportsCar driver and 2006 Rally America champion Travis Pastrana. Both American drivers are previous entrants in the ROC, Johnson is a former off-road racer and aided in achieving the Nations' Cup win in 2002 for the American team.

Team France is comprised of four-time Champ Car World Series champion Sebastien Bourdais (Newman/Haas Racing) and SEAT Sport WTCC driver Yvan Muller, who won the British Touring Car Championship in 2003. Bourdais first entered the event in 2004 and Muller was the 2000 winner of the Nations' Cup for the French team.(motorsport.com)

Marlin To Tennessee Sports HOF