Busy offseason on the horizon
By Lee Spencer
Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service, December 2

NEW YORK-The NASCAR talent pool is as strong as it ever has been, but the action it's producing begs for TiVo.

NASCAR President Mike Helton announces the winner of the Bill France Award of Excellence during the NASCAR Nextel Cup Championship Cup Series awards ceremony at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York, Friday, Dec. 1, 2006.

(AP Photo/Henny Ray Abrams)

With a flip of a switch and a little button pushing, the four-hour snooze-fests that eat into Sunday family time can be condensed into about a half-hour. If you're a Dale Earnhardt Jr. fan and the No. 8 car is having a bad day -- just pencil in 15 minutes.

But if you haven't been watching NASCAR at all, you're not alone. The sport hit a lull in 2006; TV ratings for the Nextel Cup Series tanked for the year, and the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway was no exception.

For the past three years, pundits have been claiming NASCAR has reached its saturation point. The Chase for the NASCAR Nextel Cup artificially stimulated interest but only for the short term. More needs to be done to improve the overall quality of the racing.

There are several changes on the horizon that figure to shake up the sport. The long-awaited return of ESPN to NASCAR cannot be overlooked. During its first run with NASCAR, ESPN completely reinvented how motorsports were packaged. With the advancements in technology in the five years of the network's absence, expect its return to enhance the sport considerably. And don't be surprised if a designated motorsports channel like SPEED appears under the ESPN banner in the not too distant future.

From the technical side, Toyota's arrival in the Cup and Busch Series will elevate the use of engineering. The additional teams, drivers and sponsors are likely to spike interest simply from the standpoint of being fresh. Ditto for the Car of Tomorrow, NASCAR's new and improved stock car. Time will tell whether the COT actually will enhance the caliber of racing.

The face of NASCAR has changed considerably over the past decade. Only four of the top 10 finishers in the Chase hailed from the South, and five were born west of the Mississippi.

Medical Excellence: NASCAR Honors Dr. Jerry Petty
Distinguished Neurosurgeon Receives Top Industry Award For Career Service
December 2

As a physician, North Carolina neurosurgeon Dr. Jerry Petty ranks among the top of his field.

He also ranks highly in the minds of many NASCAR drivers, officials and industry members – both past and present – whom he’s cared for during his 46-year medical career.

Sauter tabbed to drive No. 70 for Haas CNC
December 2

Johnny Sauter is returning to the Nextel Cup Series, and will drive the No. 70 Chevrolet for Haas CNC Racing in 2007.

Sauter has started 32 Cup races across four different seasons. He ran 16 races in 2004 for Richard Childress and James Finch and 10 in '05 for Finch. Sauter has one top-10 finish, a ninth-place showing in Phoenix on April 23, 2005.

He finished eighth in the Busch Series standings this year, one of only two drivers -- along with sixth-place Paul Menard -- in the top 10 who did not also run full time in the Cup Series.

Sauter, 28, has three victories in 175 Busch Series starts. He also has 10 starts in the Truck Series.

Jeff Green, who finished 28th in the driver standings, will continue to drive the No. 66 for Haas CNC.

No. 98 truck team closes

December 2

According to team sources, Ray Evernham has closed the No. 98 Dodge Truck Series Team with driver Erin Crocker.

Crocker made her full time series debut in 2006 and failed to finish inside the top 15 with her best finish being 16th, twice. She competed in six Busch Series races in 2006 as well, finishing inside the top 20 once.

Sources said that team members have been relocated to other Evernham Motorsports teams and Crocker will race a limited number of ARCA races in 2007.

Phone calls to EMS late Friday were not returned.

The View From Fanville
Who Designed Your Dress?
By Amy Hair
Cup Scene Daily,December 2

The final culmination of a week’s worth of wining, dining and soaking in the sights of New York City finally came to a very formal finale.