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MATT KENSETH He's cool |
Nextel Cup Notebook
HOMESTEAD, Fla. - Amid speculation his family was ready to put its lucrative racing business on the block, Brian France, NASCAR's chairman and chief executive officer, emphatically stated yesterday NASCAR was not for sale.
"All the time, there are inquiries," France acknowledged before yesterday's Ford 400 season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. "But we do not take meetings with any private equities. We're not for sale."
France proclaimed it was "by definition, a very good year" for NASCAR. Personally speaking, though, it has been a devastating year for his family.
France's 74-year-old father, William G. France, NASCAR's vice chairman, died June 4 from cancer, then a month later France's sister, Lesa France Kennedy, president of
Questions were raised whether France would be stepping aside to allow his uncle, James C. France, ISC's vice chairman, to take over.
Asked what his plans were for the long term, France said, "I'm committed to my job for the foreseeable future - and that's years, not months. The family has absolutely no interest in selling NASCAR or International Speedway. That's exactly where it is, so let's put that rumor right to bed.
"Our management team, and not just with me, is the deepest and best management team. I'm committed and we're committed for the long run. My family is committed; my uncle, my sister, myself. But you just got to hear from me, as directly as you can, that NASCAR is not for sale."
NHIS switch could come in '09
France doesn't anticipate Speedway Motorsport Inc.'s purchase of New Hampshire International Speedway for $340 million to have any immediate impact on the future of the Chase for the Nextel Cup Championship, saying Bruton Smith, SMI's 80-year-old chairman and CEO, is not able to move any of his Cup dates without NASCAR's approval.
While New Hampshire's two Cup dates, including the Sylvania 300, which serves as the launching point of the Chase, are set for 2008, France indicated Smith had options for 2009.
"He could certainly petition NASCAR [for 2009] as part of our realignment policy, and he's done that before successfully," France said. "We'll always look at what's in the interest of the most fans, and the rest of the schedule. That's why it can't be just one track operator who decides it. There's a ripple effect.
"[Smith] can certainly do that but he has not indicated to us that it's on his radar screen, it's a little too early, I think. From what I understand, he wants to continue to look at the operations and get some time there before he gives it any consideration."
Last ride for DEI
Dale Earnhardt Jr., who is moving to Hendrick Motorsports, made his last start in the red No. 8 Chevrolet for Dale Earnhardt Inc. He would've started 13th in yesterday's race but was forced to the rear of the 43-car field after changing his transmission. He fought his way into the top 10 after 48 laps, passing Kyle Busch, the driver Earnhardt supplanted at Hendrick. Earnhardt, however, brought out the race's first two cautions on Laps 51 and 57, the first when he and Busch collided at the entrance of pit road. Earnhardt spun in front of Busch and Patrick Carpentier, but was hit with a commitment-cone violation that dropped him to 36th when he steered back onto the track. He brought out the second caution when he spun on the restart and hit the wall near Turn 1. "I guess I would be sadder, but I am not," Earnhardt said of his final ride with DEI. "I still have all these guys as friends; that is even better than the working relationship. Now, I am ready to get to work." . . . In winning the race, Matt Kenseth delivered his departing crew chief, Robbie Reiser, one last hurrah. "It's cool to go out with a win," Kenseth said. "I'm going to miss working with him on Sundays, but he's not going far." Reiser will replace Max Jones as general manager at Roush Fenway Racing.
© Copyright 2007 Globe Newspaper Company.
