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Notebook Wells dealing with another sponsorship dispute
LOUDON, N.H. (AP) -- Car owner Cal Wells finds himself embroiled in a sponsorship dispute. It's not the first time. Wells had to pull his second car, the one driven by Andy Houston, out of competition for two races while he negotiates his sponsorship deal with McDonald's. The owner has spent much of the leadup to Sunday's New England 300 handling questions about sponsorship, much as he did two years ago when he came to NASCAR from CART and took the Tide sponsorship away from its longtime driver-owner, Ricky Rudd. At the time, Rudd -- who has since signed on with Robert Yates Racing -- decried the pervasive big-money culture of NASCAR, and said it was becoming more difficult for the little guy to survive. He was correct, of course, and Wells came out looking like the villain -- an interloper from the world of open-wheel racing, swooping in and plucking the sponsor of one of stock-car racing's favorite drivers. Now, it's Wells on the defensive -- his deal with McDonald's in limbo. While he wouldn't comment directly about the McDonald's negotiations, Wells has some strong opinions about the way to do business in this sport. "The biggest challenge when it comes to sponsorship in motorsports is having people within the sponsorship community understand their objective, set a goal, and stick with the goal," he said. "Don't get 14 or 16 races in and say, `Oh my gosh, the world as we know it has stopped on its axis.' Because it hasn't."
Benson cruisesCould this finally be the week for Johnny Benson?Benson, winless in his 179 Winston Cup starts, had the fastest practice times in both sessions Saturday, clocking a lap at 129.719 mph during Happy Hour practice. Backstretch bluesTurn 3 at New Hampshire International Speedway gained a notorious reputation last year because that's where Adam Petty and Kenny Irwin suffered fatal accidents.This week, turn 4 appears to be the trickiest spot on the track. Hut Stricklin became the third driver of the week to lose handling on the bend entering turn 4, when he slid out, and slammed backside-first into the wall during Saturday's practice. The wreck was somewhat like the ones Jerry Nadeau and Brett Bodine had Friday. In qualifying Friday, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Todd Bodine and John Andretti all lost handling coming out of the turn and bumped into the wall as they raced to the finish line. None of the drivers were seriously hurt. Trading placesRobby Gordon takes over the No. 31 car normally driven by Mike Skinner, who is recovering from surgery on the ankle he broke last week in Joliet, Ill. "This is the best opportunity I've had in my Winston Cup career," said Gordon, who was fired by Morgan-McClure Racing earlier this year. Skinner is winless in the car, which is owned by Richard Childress Racing. Mike Wallace will drive for owner Jim Smith the rest of the year. Smith had been considering bringing on Gordon, but with Gordon taking over Skinner's ride, Smith committed to Wallace. Wallace is in 38th in the standings, and will start 20th Sunday. "We need a good, solid race setup, and we need to try to have a better second half of the year," he said. Pit stopsJeff Burton leads all drivers with four career victories at New Hampshire. He's starting 29th on Sunday, but that doesn't bother him. He has won this race from the second starting position, and from 38th. "You can win from anywhere if you get everything right," he said. ... Before Sunday's race, the track will hold a brief tribute to Adam Petty, Kenny Irwin and Dale Earnhardt. ... NBC's Tim Russert will be a pre-race guest of Jeremy Mayfield.
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