Erik Jones wins a confusing AttiCat 300 at ChicagoLand Speedway

By @GucciardoJoey | June 21st, 2015

View image | gettyimages.com

JOLIET, IL--- Erik Jones sure won a hectic and crazy Owens Corning AttiCat 300 at ChicagoLand Speedway today.

After having the race postponed today due to inclement weather, some crazy things happened today.

How crazy?

How "about the almost half the field getting penalized on pit road at once" crazy?

What happened was, during a late caution, NASCAR told the drivers that pit road was open. Apparently, pit road was NOT open, so the drivers that DID pit were penalized.

Ryan Blaney finished 2nd, followed by Austin Dillon, Brendan Gaughan, and Chris Buescher.

Ross Kenneth finished 6th in his first-ever NASCAR XFINITY Series start.

Owens Corning AttiCat 300 postponed to 12 PM E.T. today.

By @GucciardoJoey

Happy Father's Day & Happy Race Day! Lots open at 9AM, Grandstands at 10AM & Green Flag for the #AttiCat300 at 11AM! pic.twitter.com/repOi5dCjS

— Chicagoland Speedway (@ChicagolndSpdwy) June 21, 2015

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JOLIET, IL--- Yesterday's Owens Corning AttiCat 300 from ChicagoLand Speedway was supposed to begin at 9:30 PM E.T., but the race was postponed to 12 PM E.T. today due to heavy rain.

The National Weather Service is reporting severe thunderstorms in the area. You are advised to seek shelter.

— Chicagoland Speedway (@ChicagolndSpdwy) June 21, 2015

All race activities were put on hold for worries of thunder/lightning and rain in the area. Fans were advised to seek shelter immediately at the time.

Race activities are delayed until further notice.

— Chicagoland Speedway (@ChicagolndSpdwy) June 21, 2015

NASCAR never even began driver introductions because of the rain.

NASCAR then decided to postpone the race to today at 12 PM E.T.

The Owens Corning #AttiCat300 is postponed until tomorrow at 11 AM CST. Parking lots will open at 9 AM and grandstands will open at 10 AM.

— Chicagoland Speedway (@ChicagolndSpdwy) June 21, 2015

The race will be on FOX Sports 2, not FOX Sports 1. Have fun, and enjoy today's race.

Austin Dillon will start first today, with Ross Kenseth, who is Matt Kenseth's son, will start next to Austin Dillon in second.

Erik Jones wins at Iowa.

By @GucciardoJoey

NEWTON, IOWA--- Erik Jones won last night's NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa.

It was Jones' first victory of the season after he had started on the pole for the fifth time in his past 26 truck series starts.

Brandon Jones finished 2nd, Tyler Reddick finished 3rd, and the current truck series points leader, Matt Crafton, finished 4th. Christopher Bell finished 5th in his first career NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start.

How Sweet: Dale Jr. and Amy Reimann get engaged.

By @GucciardoJoey

Dale Earnhardt Jr. has gotten engaged to his longtime girlfriend Amy Reimann.

The couple that had been dating since 2009, got engaged last night in Germany:

Jr. had traveled to Germany since there is no NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race this weekend  so he could research his family history. Jr.'s family emigrated from Germany in 1744. Let's just say that he made some new family history.

It was on this trip where he proposed to Reimann.

I'm completely overwhelmed with love & joy. Happiest girl in the world! I love you so much @DaleJr pic.twitter.com/lBxbFLJ4xf

— Amy Reimann (@Amy_Reimann) June 17, 2015

Jr. had gone on The Dan Patrick Show in February of this year that a Jewlery Phobia was the biggest holdup for him getting married.

Congrats to Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Amy Reimann on your engagement!

NASCAR introduces new aero package for Kentucky SPRINT CUP race.

By @GucciardoJoey

NASCAR has announced a new aero package which will lead to lower downforce on cars.

The package is ONLY for the July Kentucky race weekend for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Also, a lower spoiler will need to be on cars, meaning that the spoiler must be lower in height.

Any uses of this spoiler AFTER the Kentucky race weekend is to be decided at a later time.

Driscoll Investigation

If you're like me you weren't especially surprised when the ESPN article came out about Patricia Driscoll using AFF funds for personal matters. Honestly, I believe the only reason she's in the news is that she's Kurt Busch's ex-girlfriend. This puts NASCAR in yet another negative light. Has Karma bit back? I believe so. As a Kurt Busch fan I never believed one word of her "abuse" allegations but I do believe she embezzled millions from her foundation. I'm with everyone else on this & that's that I want to see if Karma really does bite back for her. We'll see.

Slugger Labbe becomes Austin Dillon's new crew chief.

UNB Sprint Cup Homepage: Slugger Labbe becomes Austin Dillon's new crew chi...: 

By  @GucciardoJoey | June 16th, 2015

Yesterday (Monday), Richard Childress Racing announced that Austin Dillon is getting a new...
READ FULL ARTICLE HERE.

Slugger Labbe becomes Austin Dillon's new crew chief.

By @GucciardoJoey | June 16th, 2015

View image | gettyimages.com

Yesterday (Monday), Richard Childress Racing announced that Austin Dillon is getting a new chief.

Richard "Slugger" Labbe, former crew chief of Paul Menard, will be Austin Dillon's new crew chief, starting on June 28th, 2015 for the Toyota SaveMart 350 at Sonoma Raceway in Sonoma California.

Labbe was Paul Menard's crew chief in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series from 2010 to 2014. In his Sprint Cup Series career, he had 433 starts as a crew chief, he won the 2003 Daytona 500 being Michael Waltrip's crew chief, and the 2011 Brickyard 400 as Paul Menard's crew chief.

Labbe will be replacing Gil Martin as the role of Dillon's crew chief. Martin will fulfill Labbe's role as a leadership role in the Richard Childress Racing organization.

Is calling races the right move?

By @GucciardoJoey | June 16th, 2015

View image | gettyimages.com

NASCAR has a problem on their hands, at least I think so.

Here's the question: "Is calling races the right thing to do?"

When you call a race, that means that you end a race early, and whatever the running positions was, then those become the finishing positions.

This past Sunday, the Quicken Loans 400 at Michigan International Speedway was called, which gave Kurt Busch the victory in the race.

View image | gettyimages.com

Last year, in the 2014 Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway, Aric Almirola got his first ever career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory.

But is this really right?

Let me clarify that a race must be past halfway through (or exactly halfway through) for the race to be called.

If the race is not halfway, then NASCAR has two options (assuming that rain is thr problem): 
-NASCAR can try dry the track, and can continue racing.
-NASCAR can postpone the race to the following day, or to a day where the weather is good (the race must be resumed from the point that it was originally stopped).

But calling a race can have some bad consequences, at least some people think so.

Calling a race means that you are ending the race early, and not giving the fans what they came for. The fans want some full racing action at a NASCAR race, not a rain-shortened event. If NASCAR postpones the race to the following day, for example, then maybe most fans won't be able to go to the race, maybe because they have a day or night job. Maybe something comes up in the fan's family, or something goes wrong and they can't make the rescheduling of the event.

So ending a race could mean that the fans WILL see the end of the race, but they are not getting their money's worth. But rescheduling a race means that most fans may not be able to make it.

Still, fans will be upset with a race ending early, because they may not have gotten what they wanted.

NASCAR needs to think of a way to get the races in, yet still make the fans happy if we ever have another rain incident like we did this past Sunday.