Jimmy Elledge Earns Crew Chief Of Race
With the spotlight focused on the 12 drivers fighting for a Nextel Cup Championship, most would be excused for neglecting the 31 other cars battling it out in their own right. Heading to the Atlanta Motor Speedway for the Pep Boys Auto 500, Jimmy Elledge and the No. 41 Target / Breast Cancer Awareness team, were looking to impress and to improve on their top 10 finish from the season’s first race at the 1.5 mile track. Being the home track of team driver Reed Sorenson also gave more reason for the team to shoot for a good performance. Elledge and his team did not disappoint, fighting for 329 laps and avoiding various on-track dilemmas. Throughout the race, Elledge was able to plot a calculated path for Sorenson, which included various well-timed strategic calls, to finish the afternoon at Atlanta with a top five finish. For his calculated display and strategic call strategy, Elledge was awarded the WYPALL* Wipers Crew Chief of the Race.

Starting from the 31st position, Sorenson made light work of cars in front of him, weaving his way into the top 20 within the first 10 laps. From there, Elledge was able to work on the car, via several adjustments, giving his young driver an opportunity to race with the field’s top 10. With eight laps remaining and pit stops pending while a caution flag waved, Elledge gambled with a two-tire stop, giving Sorenson valuable track position. As the race went back to green, Sorenson started fifth and was able to avoid an incident on the restart, plus an accident on the final lap, picking up two positions to finish the race third. The No. 41 team’s finish was the only non-championship contender finish inside the top eight.

A panel of judges including a member of the local media, Robbie Reiser, Kenny Francis and a WYPALL* Wipers spokesmen, recognized Elledge’s race day performance. “There were a few cars who opted for two tires in that last stop and it paid off for them,” commented Francis after the race. “But it was great to see Jimmy [Elledge] fighting it out with the chase contenders and coming off with a solid finish. Those guys were really great today and showed everybody that they can race with anybody.”

As the WYPALL* Wipers Crew Chief of the Race winner, Elledge received $1,000. Mike Ford stands alone on top of the overall standing with five wins. Bob Osborne is currently second with fours wins. Robbie Reiser, Steve Letarte and Chad Knaus are third with three wins each, while Tony Eury Jr., Jimmy Elledge, Larry Carter and Donnie Wingo have two wins apiece. Pat Tryson, Tony Gibson, Mike Nelson, Darian Grubb, Alan Gustafson, Chip Bolin and Ryan Pemberton each have one win. At the end of the season, the crew chief with the most wins will receive $20,000 and be crowned WYPALL* Wipers Crew Chief of the Year.

Bill Davis Trucking, Inc. Files For Banckruptcy
Bill Davis Trucking, Inc., founded in 1975 by Bill and Gail Davis, announced today it has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Today’s action was necessitated by an injury accident and an ensuing lawsuit against the company, based in Batesville, Arkansas. “This has been a very unfortunate chain of events and Gail and I certainly hate that it ever had to happen,” stated Bill Davis. “Bill Davis Trucking and Bill Davis Racing are two completely separate entities and the race team will in no way be affected by today’s announcement.”

Water In Atlanta Gas Puzzling
NASCAR has its own "Water-gate." The racing organization conceded Monday that water got into the fuel supply of more than two cars during the race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, apparently leading to a crash that took out several top contenders in the closing laps.

Denny Hamlin was leading the Pep Boys Auto 500 with three laps to go when his car stalled while taking the green flag after a caution period. Martin Truex, who led the most laps Sunday, smashed into the back of Hamlin's car and finished 31st. Hamlin slipped to 24th. Both were in the Chase for the championship.

"There are multiple teams that are showing positive for some level of water contamination level in their fuel," said John Darby, NASCAR's Nextel Cup director. "I can't tell you the exact number. It's more than two and less than (the full field of) 43 at the moment."

Darby dismissed sabotage as a possible explanation, saying too many teams were affected for anyone to have been singled out.

"For those who have their evil, twisted conspiracy hats on, we want to put that to rest," Darby said. "If it was sabotage, it would have to be the kind of thing where someone hates NASCAR racing across the board."

He said extensive testing done by Sunoco, NASCAR's official fuel supplier, showed no signs of problems in the underground storage tanks at the suburban Atlanta speedway. The problem likely occurred in the piping that runs from the tanks to the pumps, or in the pumps themselves, which teams use to fill the high-tech cans that are used for fueling.

"It's a brownish-colored water," Darby said. "If it was just water, it would be more clear. That should help us understand if it came from a failed pipe or a failed pump or some other source that allowed it to enter the fuel."

In a "huge majority" of cars that tested positive for water in their fuel systems, the amount was so small that it didn't affect performance. For example, winner Jimmie Johnson had water in his carburetor during the post-race inspection. But the contamination was enough to affect at least two drivers: Hamlin and Dave Blaney, who had performance issues all day and finished 38th, 66 laps behind Johnson.

After a yellow flag came out late in the race, Hamlin stayed on the track, believing he had enough fuel to get to the finish and more concerned about his tires holding up. But, as he crept slowly toward the start-finish line to take the green, his car began to sputter.

"When I hit the gas, it took off, then it stopped. It took off again, then it stopped," Hamlin said. "I was just waiting for the hit from behind."(ap.google.com)

Franchitti Entered In Texas Busch Race
Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates (CGRFS) announced today driver Dario Franchitti will make his second appearance in the NASCAR Busch Series this Saturday, Nov. 3 at Texas Motor Speedway in the O’Reilly Challenge (ESPN2, 3:00pm ET).

The fourth official step in Franchitti’s stock car learning curve will take place this weekend in the No.42 Dodge Charger on the 1.5-mile oval after previously contesting the ARCA race at Talladega Superspeedway, the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Martinsville Speedway and last weekend’s NBS race at Memphis. Franchitti will again race under the guidance of CGRFS Crew Chief Brian Pattie.