Smith: Fans look to drivers

CONCORD, N.C. — The economic state of NASCAR was the hot topic of day one of the annual Sprint Cup Media Tour hosted by Lowe’s Motor Speedway on Monday. One major player said everyone, including drivers, has a role to play in making sure fans don’t leave the sport.

Speedway Motorsports founder Bruton Smith, the owner of seven Sprint Cup tracks, said drivers need to reconnect with fans.

“Drivers, track owners, general managers — we all have our obligations to the fans,” Smith said during a panel discussion with his seven track presidents. “Drivers are the best way to connect. This idea of running and hiding from autograph sessions ... I don’t like it.

“Maybe NASCAR should look at something like, if a track holds two hours for autographs and a driver is scheduled to appear for an hour and doesn’t show up, take 15 percent of his total winnings that week. Maybe that would get their attention and give them a reason to be there,”

Smith also thinks today’s drivers are still too distant emotionally, something that has pushed fans away. He has a solution for that as well.

“If Jimmie Johnson would just get out of a race car and slap somebody, I would like that,” he said. “We’ve got to have that, something to make the headlines in the sports pages.”

Texas Motor Speedway president Eddie Gossage said drivers just need to be themselves.

“We’re beginning to pay the price from something that’s been going on for some time — the corporalization of our sport,” Gossage said. “This is a sport for the people and by the people, and I think drivers lost sight of that for a while. But I think they’re beginning to get it back.”

Penske organization healthy

With many NASCAR teams laying off employees and eliminating jobs, it’s rare when a team reports that it’s in good financial health. Such was the news Monday when the nation’s motorsports media met with Penske Racing.

Despite the loss of marquee driver Ryan Newman to Tony Stewart Motorsports, Penske drivers Kurt Busch, Sam Hornish and David Stremme reported that things have never been better at the shop.

“It’s refreshing to know as a driver that even in this economy it feels like it’s business as usual at Penske,” Busch said. “We’ve got sponsors like Miller Lite and Mobile One that have been here for years. We’ve brought back all the crew chiefs and we’ve added some good people.”

Added Hornish, who begins his second season in Sprint Cup: “Given the economy, I don’t think there’s a better place to be than Penske Racing.”

Stewart hooks up with Hendrick

Tony Stewart, who is set to begin his first season as an owner/driver in Sprint Cup, will attempt to qualify a HendrickCars.com Chevrolet prepared by Hendrick Motorsports for the Feb. 14 Nationwide Series race at Daytona International Speedway.

Stewart, the 2008 winner of the Camping World 300, has won the season-opening event three times — twice with owner Kevin Harvick (2005 and 2006) and once with Joe Gibbs (2008).

Should he qualify, the race will mark Stewart’s first-ever start for car owner Rick Hendrick. The effort will be led by 2003 Nationwide Series champion crew chief Lance McGrew.

“After winning the season-opening Nationwide Series race at Daytona three times, we’re going to try and get another one, this time for Rick,” said Stewart, who has seven career Nationwide Series victories. “Rick and I have been friends for years, so it would mean a lot to me to get a win for him.”

Smith has Kentucky hopes

Smith said Monday that he’s still confident the Kentucky Motor Speedway, which he purchased last year, will eventually get a Sprint Cup race date. He says that date would have been this year if not for ongoing litigation between the old owners and NASCAR.

“The previous owners lost the lawsuit against NASCAR, but now they’re appealing it,” Smith said. “If they had dropped the appeal, we would have a Cup race this year. We certainly didn’t buy that speedway without the thought of getting a Cup race. I’ve got some big plans for that track.”