NASCAR Daily News Headlines * December 22, 2007

Martinsville Produced More Action

In its two (Nextel) Sprint Cup Series events in 2007, Martinsville Speedway saw a total of 28 accidents, four more than the second place track and nine more than third place. And the action didn’t come at the expense of close racing. Last spring’s Goody’s Cool Orange 500 produced one of the closest finishes of the year with Jimmie Johnson taking a .065 second win over Jeff Gordon. There were 12 lead changes in the spring event and 14 in the fall.

“Short-track racing, and especially Martinsville Speedway, is all about action,” said Martinsville Speedway president Clay Campbell. “When you have close-quarters racing like we have, there is going to be lots of action. And the great thing about Martinsville Speedway is, no matter where you are sitting, you’re right on top of the action.”

In the spring Goody’s Cool Orange 500 there were 14 caution periods, while in the fall Chase for the NEXTEL Cup event, there were a season-high 21 caution periods. The 21 yellow flags were a track record for Martinsville.

Tickets are on sale for both the Goody’s Cool Orange 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup race on March 30 and the Kroger 250 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race on Saturday, March 29, and may be purchased by calling 1.877.RACE.TIX or online at (www.martinsvillespeedway.com). Ticket prices for the Goody’s Cool Orange 500 range from $42 to $77.

Penske Hires Chris Carrier To Lead No. 77 Team

“I’m very excited about joining the team at Penske Racing,” said Carrier, who’s been crew chief at Morgan-McClure Motorsports directing the team’s NASCAR Cup and Busch Series programs for the last several years and has worked with such established drivers as Dale Earnhardt, Harry Gant, Bobby Allison, Ken Schrader, Elliot Sadler and Mike Skinner. “I know there’s a lot of good, talented people at Penske Racing and I’m looking forward to getting to know everyone and I plan to take full advantage of their resources and knowledge while also giving as much as I can back to the team. I’ve been fortunate to work with a number of great drivers through the years and I think that experience will help as we work with Sam to reach his goals in NASCAR.”

Carrier will join the Mooresville, NC-based Penske Racing team in the new year and will work with David Elenz, who’s been named race engineer for the No. 77 Mobil 1 Dodge.

“It’s going to be great working with Chris and David because they have so much experience at this level of racing,” said Hornish Jr., who announced in November that he would join Penske Racing’s NASCAR program full-time, driving the team’s third entry in the Sprint Cup Series in 2008. “As I complete the transition to Cup racing, it’s great to have such a veteran support staff to rely on.”

Growing up in the shadows of Bristol Motor Speedway, Carrier got an early start to his career in motorsports. He started helping the local racing team owned by Ed Whitaker at the age of 14 and first served as a crew chief when he was just 18-years-old, winning his first race. He directed Whitaker Racing’s winning Busch Series team for several seasons and eventually joined Andy Petree Racing in 1998 as crew chief in the Busch and Cup Series programs. Carrier earned his first win as a Cup crew chief with Andy Petree Racing and driver Joe Nemecheck at Rockingham’s North Carolina Speedway in November of 2001. In addition to his 20-plus career victories as a crew chief in Busch Series competition, Carrier also helped produce a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series victory with driver Tony Stewart and the Petree team at Richmond in 2003.

“We want to welcome Chris and all of his years of racing experience to the team,” said Michael Nelson, Penske Racing Vice President of Operations. “Chris and David will be a great combination on the 77 car team as we look for a strong first full season with Sam competing in the Sprint Cup Series.”