Racing hottie and Go-Daddy spokeswoman Danica Patrick is good to go for her big Sprint Cup debut Feb. 26 at the Daytona 500. Well, at least she will be once she gets into the frame of mind of the infamous honey badger.

“And the honey badger, it was last year, I think, somebody showed me this video of the honey badger, and the commentator on it was very, very funny,” Patrick said Thursday. “Anyway, the honey badger, he doesn’t give a crap, he takes what he wants. And that’s how I’m going to be this year, like a honey badger. But I feel like it’s a little diluted with the football player that has the honey badger nickname, too. He’s No. 7, as well.”

She’s talking about LSU cornerback Tyrann Mathieu, whose association to the honey badger wasn’t enough to keep him from losing 21-0 to Alabama on Monday night’s BCS title game.

“I bet he’s not feeling like a honey badger. I bet — anyway, the video is great,” Patrick said. “He eats a poisonous snake and he falls asleep and wakes right back up. The video is funny, so I encourage you all to watch that. I think Randall something is the commentator or the name on the YouTube video.”

She went on to say:

“I don’t know, it’s a mindset. I even have a honey badger picture on my screen saver on my phone to inspire me. It takes what it wants.”

She may be late to the viral/meme phenom, but she’s going to need all the positive thinking she can get. She’s got 10 races on her schedule in the Sprint Cup Series and a full schedule in the Nationwide Series. She did alright in the July Nationwide race, leading laps and finishing 10th – and crashing across the finish line.

She’s still hot though.

Do you think the honey badger will come through for Danica Patrick?

Danica Patrick Takes Up “Honey Badger” Strategy For Upcoming Races is a post from: The Inquisitr

Kurt Busch, 2004 Sprint Cup Champion and NASCAR All-Star has made his decision.  Next year he will be driving the #51 Chevrolet for James Finch on the Phoenix Racing team.  Busch wade it to the Chase for the Cup again for the sixth straight season, but had a bit of a hard time closing the deal down the stretch.  He had been previously driving the #22 Dodge for Penske Racing

“I’m very happy to join Phoenix Racing, and, after entertaining a lot of quality offers, there’s no better place for me,” Busch said in a written statement. “We’re going to run the full schedule together, and we’re going to have fun doing it.

Finch has not been so successful since becoming an owner with only one Sprint Cup victory since 2009 at Talladega Speedway.

Ironically, Finch has been very critical of Busch’s behavior in the past.  He once told ESPN: “He needs to simmer down a while. There are a lot of people that don’t like Kurt. He’s never done anything to me personally. He just needs to look in the mirror and see what the problem is.”

Finch was always impressed by Busch’s skills behind the wheel.  for the last 10 seasons Busch has won at least one Sprint Cup race. In 2011, he won two races and finished 11th in the Chase for the Cup.

“All we want to do is win,” Finch said to USA Today. “Winning is why I’ve been in racing for as long as I have, but NASCAR is a very competitive sport, and winning – especially at the Sprint Cup level – is hard. But now, with Kurt Busch as our driver, we have a shot to win every week. He’s a past champion, and he’s proven he can win everywhere. Our sponsors are looking forward to Kurt representing their brands.

Finch is sure that he has the team and the cars that are poised to win and with the addition of Busch he thinks this is going to be a good year.

Is Kurt Busch going to bring home a championship for Phoenix Racing this year?

NASCAR Champion Kurt Busch to Drive for Phoenix Racing is a post from: The Inquisitr

Tony Stewart entered Sunday’s race at Homestead-Miami Speedway three points behind cup leader Carl Edwards and he emerged as the Sprint Cup champion for the third time in his career.

Vowing to drive like he had nothing to lose Stewart damaged the front of his Chevrolet which dropped him into 40th position before using an aggressive three and four-wide passing strategy to bring him back into contention.

Following the guidance of his crew chief Darian Grubb and a rain shower that allowed Stewart to save gas under a yellow flag he was able to pass three cars at restart and then surged ahead of Edwards with 37 laps to go.

When asked about his opponents come from behind victory Edwards responded:

“This night is about Tony Stewart,” and “Those guys rose to the occasion.”

“That’s all I got,” Edwards said. “That’s as hard as I can drive. … I wish so bad we had that trophy, but it just wasn’t meant to be tonight.”

Both men actually finished in a tie based on overall series points however Stewart won five Chase wins this season to Edwards’ one Chase victory which allowed him to claim the tie-breaker.

Adding to his accomplishment Stewart became the first owner/drive to win the Sprint Cup Championship since Alan Kulwicki. The Stewart victory also marks the end of five straight years in row in which Jimmie Johnson won the coveted title.

Were you happy to see Tony Stewart surge ahead for his third championship title or should Carl Edwards have claimed NASCAR’s top prize?

[Image via Walter G Arce / Shutterstock.com]

Tony Stewart Surges Ahead To Collect Third Sprint Cup Victory is a post from: The Inquisitr

Jimmie Johnson is only four points away from leading the Chase for the Sprint Cup after taking first place on Sunday at Kansas Speedway.

Before chasing his sixth straight Cup title Johnson and his team spent the night in the garage attempting to figure out why NASCAR’s top racer didn’t qualify in the races top position.

Johnson surged to the front of the pack early and held off racers during several cautions to take the green-white-checkered finish for his first win since April.

After the race crew chief Chad Knaus said of his star driver:

“Jimmie was very dedicated last night with us, trying to figure out the setup of the car,” while adding, “We pored over a lot of combinations and we came up with a good one.”

After tweaking the setup on Johnson’s car he managed to lead the race for 197 laps while claiming his 55th victory, moving Johnson into a tie with Rusty Wallace for the eights most wins of all time.

Last weekend Johnson finished in second-place after entering Dover in 10th place.

Speaking about his team Johnson said:

“I know what my team is capable of … and we showed today what we’re capable of when we’re all performing at the top of our game.”

While Carl Edwards still sits atop NASCAR’s Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship only 19 points separate the top eight drivers.

Do you think Jimmy Johnson will pull ahead once again to claim his 7th straight Sprint Cup or will Carl Edwards remain this seasons top driver?

Jimmie Johnson Wins At Kansas Speedway, Eyes Another Championship is a post from: The Inquisitr

Kurt Busch jumped from ninth to fourth in the Chase for the Sprint Cup points standing, beating out five-time champ Jimmie Johnson at the Dover International Speedway.

Busch’s No. 22 Dodge seemed to get stronger during the 400-mile race and he overtook long time rival Johnson on the final restart, a second checkered flag win for Busch during the current racing season. The final restart came with 43 laps remaining and Busch easily pulled ahead for the victory.

With his win only 15 points separates the top eight drivers with seven races left in Chase competition.

The win also marks the 24th career victory for Busch and his first at Dover International.

For his part Johnson was considered to be floundering in the Chase after finishing 10th and 18th in the first two Chase races of the season, only to return with five straight top 10 finishes to put him 13 points behind the lead of the pack.

Speaking about beating Johnson his rival said:

“To beat your arch-nemesis, that’s just icing on the cake. That’s pretty sweet.”

His comment came after Johnson led the race for 157 laps but fell behind Busch for a second place win followed by Carl Edwards in third. Edwards had led the race for 116 laps before falling into third place.

With such a close race who are you cheering for as the Chase for the Sprint Cup continues towards it’s eventual end?

Kurt Busch Wins At Dover, Moves Into Sprint Cup Contention is a post from: The Inquisitr

Tony Stewart has done it again going 2 for 2 in the Chase series for the Sprint cup championship. Stewart claimed his victory when Clint Bowyer ran out of gas with just two laps left to go at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Sunday

Last week Stewart took the top prize at Chicagoland Speedway and his two Chase wins this year have propelled him to the top of the points standings.

In an ironic twist of fate it was Tony who ran out of gas during the same race last year, a misstep that gave Bowyer the win. Realizing the reversal of fortunes Stewart said over the radio:

“If that’s not a flip-flop from last year, I don’t know what is.”

Along with Stewart four other Chase drivers finished in the races top 10; Brad Keselowski (2nd), Jeff Gordon (4th), Matt Kenseth (6th) and Carl Edwards (8th).

The two-time Cup champion is only the second driver to open the Chase series with consecutive wins

Speaking about the challenge ahead Stewart revealed:

“Got eight long weeks still, man,” while adding, “It’s way too early to start counting chickens.”

Denver International Speedway will host the 3rd Chase race next weekend.

Do you think Tony Stewart can keep up his recent string of wins to claim this years top prize?

Tony Stewart Wins Second Chase Series Victory In A Row is a post from: The Inquisitr

Let me start by saying I don’t like when NASCAR Sprint Cup racing teams swap out crew chiefs for other crew chiefs already on the payroll. I am not talking about guys coming up from the Camping World Truck or Nationwide Series; I am talking about lateral moves made from one organizations cup team to another. On the surface the decision to mess with the driver/crew chief pairings at Hendrick is change for changes sake.

With that said starting in 2011 Mark Martin’s crew chief will be Lance McGrew who chiefed Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 2010. Alan Gustafson who had been paired with Martin now moves to the #24 team of Jeff Gordon, and Steve Letarte who had been with Gordon gets the hardest job of them all and takes over the #88 car of Dale Earnhardt Jr.

The bigger news is the team is moving the shops around as well, and this is where I think the overall improvement of the team will come from. Previously the #48 and #24 cars were built and maintained in one facility and the #5 and #88 cars were built in another. Now the #48 and #88 cars will be prepared in one and the #5 and #24 cars in the other. In keeping with tradition the men who work in those shops will build both cars, for both teams.

This is probably good news for Junior fans, as having his cars built by the folks who had been building the #48 and #24 cars should boost his performances. Dale Jr. is coming off one of his worst seasons in his cup career that saw him finish 21st in points. Junior did not win a race and had just 11 top ten finished so changes were in order. We will have to wait and see if those changes are successful.

Related Links:

• MTR Auto Racing
• Joshua Lobdell.com

Hendrick Motor Sports shakes things up is a post from: The Inquisitr

Once again Jimmie Johnson has done some things that no one else has been able to do. The most important thing he did today was win his fifth straight NASCAR Sprint Cup championship. He now ranks third in most championships won, two behind NASCAR Hall of Famers Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Richard Petty. The next thing he did that no one else has done was win the title after trailing in the points heading into the final cup race of the season.

This championship win also gives Hendrick Motor Sports, the team Jimmie drives for; it’s tenth Cup Championship giving the team the most championships in cup series history. They had previously won four titles with Jeff Gordon and another with Terry Labonte. The team also broke it own record for consecutive championships with five. They have won four in a row twice before.

By finishing this race in second Jimmie wins the title by 39 points over Denny Hamlin. Hamlin had a rough day spinning early in the race collecting some damage on his way to a 14th place finish. He started the day with a 15 point advantage. Kevin Harvick, who also had a shot at the title, suffered a pit road speeding penalty on his way to a third place finish. However he started the day 46 points out of the lead.

Related Links:

• MTR Auto Racing
• Joshua Lobdell.com

Jimmie Johnson wins 5th Cup series title is a post from: The Inquisitr

When the NASCAR Sprint Cup circus comes to Homestead this Sunday for the final race of the 2010 season, only three drivers will have a shot at the point’s championship. Denny Hamlin, Jimmie Johnson, and Kevin Harvick are the only three drivers in it due to the math, and NACAR has not had a season ending race like this since 1992. That year three men (Alan Kulwicki, Davey Allison, and Bill Elliott) entered the final race with a shot at the title. Of course NASCAR was a very different place in 1992. The 1992 contenders had a grand total of one teammate (#22 Sterling Marlin also ran out of the Junior Johnson shop with Elliott). This year the three men have a total of seven teammates, and one has to wonder how that will factor into the championship hunt.

Surely The Hendrick boys, the Joe Gibbs boys, and the Richard Childress boys will race the competition tough. I am not talking about the other 32 guys actually racing this weekend. I am talking about the three contenders. If Harvick, Hamlin, or Johnson find themselves behind or next to the teammates of their fellow championship contenders I would expect them to battle for each position like they were trying to win the race.

However, I do not think any one of the seven teammates to will intentionally cause the three contenders to wreck. To do so would invite the wrath of NACAR, and further turn NASCAR fans away from this sport. Racing is racing and I do expect the seven teammates to not make life easy for the championship contenders, but there is a line here and I would be weary of any driver stepping across it. I have no idea what NASCAR would do in that case, but you can bet it would be quite severe.

Related Links:

• MTR Auto Racing
• Joshua Lobdell.com

What role will teammates play in the Sprint Cup Championship showdown? is a post from: The Inquisitr

On one hand I like Kyle Busch’s passion for racing, and really his passion for winning. However he constantly lets his emotions get the better of him, and even his crew chief finally had to call him on it. Kyle got caught speeding on pit road in an attempt to not lose a lap after a spin out. If he had just accepted the penalty he would have been placed at the back of the field, and been eligible either for the lucky dog or a waive around on the next caution. Instead he went into a verbal tirade on his radio and then flipped off the NASCAR official when he came around to serve his penalty. NASCAR parked him for two laps effectively taking him out of the race.

Since Kyle clearly had one of the cars top beat the 2 lap penalty is especially hard to accept. Kyle’s crew chief told his driver over the radio that he cost the team and that they work far too hard for him to act like such a child. This incident will likely carry a fine as well as Kyle obscene gesture was captured by ESPN cameras.

Kyle has got to learn how to reign in his emotions. Merely launching into a profanity laded communication over his radio can cost him money and points. Flipping off a NASCAR official is the action of a child, and it cost his team big. It was the second emotional explosion by Kyle of the weekend as Saturday he stormed out of the media center after he believed Carl Edwards jumped the final restart of the Nationwide Series race on his way to a victory.

To his credit Kyle later apologized for his action after cooling off after the race, but we have seen this kind of behavior from Kyle before and to be a NASCAR champion he is going to have to learn to not act like a little baby.

Related Links:

• MTR Auto Racing
• Joshua Lobdell.com

Kyle Busch is just a punk is a post from: The Inquisitr

Denny Hamlin did what he needed to do. He went to Texas and finished in front of Jimmie Johnson. He also happened to win the race, and now is the NASCAR Sprint Cup point’s leader. Since Denny runs very well at Phoenix and Homestead we have to count him the favorite to dethrone four time cup champion Johnson. Speaking of Johnson and his #48 team this race, much like the Texas chase race last year, proved that they are indeed human, and it looks like the best he is right now is the third best team. At least that is true for this week.

Before the 2010 Sprint Cup season started many of us counted Denny has the favorite to finally knock Johnson out of championship form. Throughout the 2010 Cup season he has certainly been that. He won six regular season races, and has backed that up with two wins in the 8 chase races so far. Remember Denny finished third and first in the final two races last season. If he can duplicate those strong runs the title is his to lose.

He knows has a 33 point lead over Jimmie, and a 59 point lead over third place Kevin Harvick. Of course all three drivers tend to run very well at Phoenix so next week the ratings should be very good as the NASCAR chase has finally delivered what it has been promising all these years, close action where the race for the title comes down to the final weekend at Homestead.

For the good of NASCAR someone not named Jimmie Johnson really needs to win the title. NASCAR TV ratings and live attendance have suffered due to the economy as well as Johnson’s dominance. Since NASCAR will attempt to Jimmie proof the chase starting next year, Denny bumping him off in his prime is the best storyline NASCAR could have hoped for.

Related Links:

• MTR Auto Racing
• Joshua Lobdell.com

Denny Hamlin wins a wild race in Texas is a post from: The Inquisitr

Kyle Busch has notched another NASCAR record. This week all three of NASCAR’s National Touring series converged on the track in Bristol, Tennessee. The one thing they had in common, Kyle Busch won them all. It is a feat that has never been done, and one that is not very likely to happen again any time soon. Unless of course Kyle can go out and do it again. This feat solidifies Kyle has the biggest NASCAR star of his era. Remember he was the first NASCAR driver to win a race in the COT machine, and whatever other records Kyle sets this one will be one of the most special.

Bristol is not an easy place to win one race, much less three in the same racing weekend. When we stop to think of the adversary he faced during the weekend this feat becomes even more legendary. Sure he won the pole for the truck race, but pre race adjustments made him start from the back of the pack. Passing 35 racing trucks at Bristol is a nearly impossible thing to do. He ended up leading 116 of the 206 laps in that race.

In the Nationwide Series race he started third, and when we factor in a late race squabble with Brad Keselowski it seem unreal that Kyle was able to keep the fenders on his car, and run for the win. He led 116 laps of the 250 laps run at Bristol Friday night.
In the Sprint Cup series race Kyle started 19th. Passing 18 of the finest drivers the world over at a place like Bristol is nearly impossible. Keeping the car intact, the fenders on it and avoiding everyone else’s mistakes is also nearly impossible.

I cannot believe Kyle went out and did this, and if he were more likable amongst NASCAR fans, they would be celebrating the feat this kid just accomplished. Regardless of his standing with the fans, this is an accomplishment that warrants our admiration. Great Job Kyle, it has been a lot of fun watching you race this past few years.

Related Links:

•The Business of NASCAR
•MTR Auto Racing

Kyle Busch sweeps weekend at Bristol is a post from: The Inquisitr

One cannot go without winning races for an extended period of time and expect to keep his job for very long. Drew Blickensderfer found that out on when he was reassigned within the Roush organization and Todd Parrot was brought on to crew chief the #17 car of Matt Kenseth. Call this the curse of winning the Daytona 500 revisited. Last year Drew and matt teamed up to not only win the biggest NASCAR race of the season, but the second race in California as well. However since then they have not run good, and have failed to find the magic.

I always hate moves like this in the middle of the season. If owner Jack Roush though that Drew was not up to the job he should have been let go in the off season, and the new man could have been brought in built the cars for 2010 and started developing his relationship with Kenseth. The question I have if Drew is not good enough for this job today, how could he have been good enough for it heading into the 2010 Daytona 500?

Sure the limited nature of off season testing may be leaving team owners in the dark about how they team are operating early in the season, but this is a move that probably needed to be made at the end of last season.

Drew was once a rising star at Roush. He finished up the 2008 season leading Carl Edwards’ team in the Nationwide series to seven wins and a second place finish in the point’s standings. He started the 2009 season undefeated through two races, but the final nail in Drew’s coffin should have been the fact for the first time in his career he failed to qualify for the NASCAR post season. Drew has been reassigned to the Roush R & D Department.

Related Links:

• NASCAR Complete.com

Roush replaces crew chief on #17 Matt Kenseth team is a post from: The Inquisitr

There have been many, the sky is falling stories about the NASCAR TV ratings so far in 2009. While the TV numbers are down from 2008, and way down from their peak in 2004 and 2005 the sky is hardly falling. IN fact NASCAR Sprint Cup, Nationwide, and Camping World Truck racing remain a very valuable TV property. However, the numbers are down and many older NASCAR fans are not happy with the current version of NASCAR or completely sold on its current class of drivers.

On average over TV broadcasts on Fox, TBS, ESPN, and ABC the TV ratings are down 12% from 2008. Since attendance is also down it seems to paint a picture of a sport in crisis. However each Sprint Cup race of the 2009 season is averaging just under five million TV viewers. Nationwide series races, predominantly shown on ESPN2 are averaging about 1.6 million TV viewers. TV ratings for the Truck series are actually up, and up significantly even though they are broadcast on Speed TV and average around 450k TV viewers.

All together that means around 7.5 million people are tuning into watch NASCAR TV broadcasts each week. Of course many of the TV numbers get skewed when a race is rained out and has to be run on a Monday afternoon. In 2009 it seems that there has been a lot of races moved or delayed because of the weather, while that hurts the TV numbers it does not truly show how strong of a TV product NASCAR is.

Just how bad are the NASCAR TV numbers? is a post from: The Inquisitr

Jimmie Johnson won the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Lowe’s Motor Speedway last night. It was Johnson’s sixth win of the 2009 Sprint Cup season, and the 46th win of his career. However a few other numbers are the ones that are more impressive. Johnson, in his bid to win his fourth consecutive Sprint Cup title has become the first ever driver to win three of the first five chase races, with the win Saturday Johnson now has won 17 of the 55 Chase races in NASCAR history, and with his sixth career wins at the Lowe’s track he ties NASCAR greats Bobby Allison, and Darrell Waltrip with the most wins at this speedway.

The Chase for the Championship is NASCAR’s version of the playoffs and it encompasses the last ten races on the NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule. 2009 is the sixth year that NASCAR has used this system to determine its champion and Johnson is the only NASCAR driver to qualify for the Chase for all six years. A driver qualifies for the chase by being in the top twelve in owners points after the 26th and final regular season race.

By the numbers Johnson’s career chase performance are outstanding. 17 of his 46 career wins have been in chase races put another way 36.9% of Johnson’s wins have come in the chase. By winning 17 of the 55 Chase races in NASCAR history (so far) he has won 30% of the chase races in NASCAR history.

To be sure Johnson and his #48 team led by crew chief Chad Knaus are among the most elite teams in NASCAR history. Until another team can show up and prove that they can out run this team in the 10 race chase Jimmie could be the NASCAR champion for quite sometime.

Jimmie Johnson’s amazing feat is a post from: The Inquisitr

It seems as if Dale Earnhardt Jr. has lost something. It seems that just a few years ago Dale Jr. was the up and coming NASCAR driver that was set to dominate the Sprint Cup series for years to come. Then the bottom fell out at DEI, and Junior was forced to join the most successful team in NASCAR history. Many thought that driving Hendrick equipment he would once again dominate the Sprint Cup series. Apparently Junior has lost his passion, or his will to win. Since joining Hendrick Motor Sports more than a season and a half ago, Dale Junior has only been able to win one race.

Of course every Dale Jr. fan on the planet will now line up and give a litany of excuses as to why.

However none of these self diluted Junior fans will be able to explain away this fact. Junior Hendrick cars are prepared in the same shop, and by the same people who set up and build Mark Martin’s cars. Mark, in his first year driving Hendrick equipment went out and won four races and entered the Chase for the Championship as the number one seed.

Junior on the other hand, in his second full season driving for Hendrick equipment, has failed to win, in fact he has recorded just two top five finishes, and just five top tens. In fact his average finishing position so far in 2009 is 21.3. Not exactly the kind of numbers the most popular driver in NASCAR should be putting up.

Has Dale Jr. lost his passion for racing? is a post from: The Inquisitr

For the second race in a row at Michigan International Speedway three time defending Sprint Cup Champion Jimmie Johnson  ran out of gas before the final lap of the race. Sunday Johnson and his team took a sure top five finish and wound up 33rd. For most race teams that would be a devastating result, for Jimmie and his #48 team it was a calculated risk.

There are just three races left until the Chase for the Championship, NASCAR’s version of playoffs. Right now Johnson sits with a near guaranteed spot in that playoff. After the 26th race the top twelve in drivers points make the playoffs, and are re-seeded according to how many races they won in those 26. Then these 12 drivers race the final 10 races of the season competing against one another.

If the Chase started today Jimmie would be the third seed 10 points behind number one seed Mark Martin. Since there are only three races left until the chase Johnson’s crew chief Chad Knaus felt the reward in this case out weighed the risk. For every race Jimmie wins in the next few weeks he gets another 10 points to help him towards his fourth straight Sprint Cup title.

The last time the Cup series was at MIS in June, Johnson ran out of gas battling Greg Biffle for the lead, this time the team ran short on gas with a few laps to go. Fuel mileage seems to be the only chink in this team’s armor, and that is how another team is going to have to beat them.

Johnson runs out of gas at MIS, again is a post from: The Inquisitr