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Martin to drive the No. 5 in 2009

Mark Martin, a 35-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race winner and the all-time leader in NASCAR Nationwide Series victories, has signed a two-year agreement to drive for Hendrick Motorsports beginning in 2009. A Batesville, Ark., native, Martin also is slated to run a partial Sprint Cup schedule for Hendrick Motorsports in 2010, sharing the No. 5 Chevys with a to-be-determined second driver. Martin will enter 26 events, including the non-points Budweiser Shootout and NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race. Martin, 49, will be paired with crew chief Alan Gustafson, who now is in his fourth season at the helm of the No. 5 Kellogg's/CARQUEST Chevrolet team. Gustafson has posted four Sprint Cup wins as a crew chief and has a history with Martin, having worked with him in multiple Nationwide Series events.  (From HendrickMotorsports.com)

Replacements and road-ringers at Infineon

As always, we will see several new drivers behind the wheel of some high-profile cars at Infineon Raceway this weekend for the Toyota/Save Mart 350.  Here is a quick glance at the changes:

No. 01 - Ron Fellows in for Regan Smith
No. 8 - Aric Amirola in for Mark Martin (planned)
No. 21 - Marcus Ambrose
No. 34 - Brian Simo
No. 41 - Scott Pruett in for Reed Sorenson
No. 45 - Terry Labonte in for Kyle Petty
No. 66 - Max Papis (Scott Riggs will drive the No. 70)
No. 102 - Brandon Ash
No. 160 - Boris Said

Subway Fresh Fit 500 at PIR - Notes

Pole: Ryan Newman 133.457 mph
Outside pole: Elliott Sadler 133.412 mph

"I know it's just qualifying and not the race, but we needed this," Sadler said. "We needed a good run today. We had such a bad week in Texas."

Didn't qualify: Kyle Petty, John Andretti.

Johnny Sauter, who took over for Jeremy Mayfield in the No. 70 earlier this week and needed to get in on time, qualified 42nd.

Drug testing has been the big news is off the track at Phoenix.  Here are some driver comments:

“I don’t feel like I race with guys on drugs, but at the same time, there are certain people you wonder about some times,” Kasey Kahne said. “I definitely wondered about Aaron Fike the last year he was in Nationwide or whatever he was racing. I always wondered. I really had no clue why he raced as long as he did.”

“I guess that shows you can be naive; I was naive,” Mark Martin said. “I didn’t think that was ever really a problem or would be an issue. I’m a race car driver and I would have no desire of racing a car or driving a race car with any sort of impairment at all.”

“What I think NASCAR should do is schedule the drivers’ meeting an hour early some week and, right as we come out of the drivers’ meeting, just test everybody,” Greg Biffle said. “And then it would be cut and dry. No ifs, ands or buts about it.”

Driver comments from Texas

Chevy:
comments from Mark Martin, Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton, Clint Bowyer, Dale Jr., Jimmie Johnson, and Jeff Gordon
comments from DEI team

Dodge:
comments from Bobby Labonte
comments from Robby Gordon
comments from Elliot Sadler
comments from Patrick Carpentier
comments from Ryan Newman
comments from Sam Hornish, Jr.
comments from Kurt Busch

Ford:

Toyota:
comments from Denny Hamlin
comments from Kyle Busch
comments from Tony Stewart
comments from J.J. Yeley
comments from Dave Blaney

Details, Drivers announced for Prelude to a Dream

April 4, 2008 // FORT WORTH, Texas -- A supernova of racing talent will again descend upon the Field of Dreams that is Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio, on June 4 when the dirt that made champions out of A.J. Foyt and Mario Andretti hosts today's racing stars at the fourth annual Old Spice Prelude to the Dream.

For those not lucky enough to grab a seat for the dirt late-model race featuring more than 25 world renowned drivers as they battle for dirt supremacy, HBO Pay-Per-View will present the event live to the entire nation. Proceeds from this telecast will support construction of Victory Junction Gang Camp II in Kansas City, as well as the Tony Stewart Foundationexternal link.

The all-star race will feature such racing icons as Tony Stewart, Kasey Kahne, Kyle Busch, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Carl Edwards, Kevin Harvick, Matt Kenseth, Mark Martin, Denny Hamlin, Bobby Labonte and more. All will pilot 2,300-pound dirt late-model stock cars capable of putting out more than 800 horsepower.  Additionally, J.J. Yeley, Clint Bowyer, Jeff Burton, Ryan Newman, Bill Elliott, Dave Blaney, Aric Almirola, Ron Capps, Cruz Pedregon, Ray Evernham, Red Farmer, Ken Schrader and Kenny Wallace have also committed to the Old Spice Prelude to the Dream.

Drivers from all types of disciplines, some with lots of dirt-track experience and others with hardly any, will participate in hot laps, qualifying, heat races and the 30-lap feature on the half-mile clay oval, all of which will be televised live on HBO. (From EldoraSpeedway.com)