September 29th, 2008 
Journo Penalties have been a popular topic around here lately. And why not? They provide good story lines and passions on either side. The source of the controversy this weekend was Juan Pablo Montoya, who after taking the pole at Kansas was penalized for having too much gas pressure in a rear shock.
Unlike many around the sport, I am not of the philosophy that teams should be thrown from the race track if they do not pass pre-race inspections. Certainly there are instances that may call for that to happen; for instance if a driver’s safety is put at risk, or if the crime is particularly egregious. This instance was not one of these egregious incidences.
NASCAR has been warning for months that if teams screwed with the COT, they would feel the wrath of God coming down on them. So far they have not disappointed. Again though, this was not one of those instances. There were no modified brackets or tweaked roof lines. The splitter braces were all where they were supposed to be and the car met all the height requirements.
Now I can’t say if this was a purposeful instance of cheating or an oversight on the part of the shock specialist, and/or crew chief. If it was purposeful this was probably not the smartest effort to bypass inspectors. It is much like having a car that is too high or low. If it is there NASCAR will find it.
Ultimately the #42 car was properly penalized at track. Montoya had his first pole stripped from him and he was forced to start from the back of the pack. The potential for something disastrous to happen to him while he was back there was very good. No point or monetary penalties were necessary, and a suspension would have been a little too much.
I can’t say I always agree with NASCAR’s decisions. Their penalties are not always very consistent, and more often than not they do not fit the infraction, however this time they hit the nail on the head. I know many of you did not agree with the penalty so let us know what you think. What penalties would you have handed down?
Kyle Petty
Over the weekend in an interview with the Winston-Salem Journal’s Mike Mulhern, Patti Petty said Kyle may be on the outs at Petty Enterprises. I can’t say I was surprised and I know many around the sport had been waiting for this to happen. Kyle’s sporadic schedule and performance issues have made him an easy target for team managers.
Since Boston Ventures bought a majority share in the team earlier this season, Kyle has been a sitting duck. While before, Kyle occupied a safe seat at the family owned venture, his new bosses lack the patience for poor performance. As we say on what feels like a daily basis, this is a business and when a driver is no longer cutting it on the track, his value to the team is severely diminished. Not to mention, I am sure BV is looking for young talent that they can develop and grow for years to come. Kyle is obviously not that young driver.
The danger of no longer controlling a majority of your own company becomes perfectly evident in situations like this. It is something every other major team who has taken on investors has avoided and something that has backfired on many prominent business owners through the years. Steve Jobs at Apple comes to mind. The moral of the story is, as you soon as you give up control of your company, you are no longer in control of your destiny.
In recent years Kyle has struggled on the track. His last win came in 1995 with Team Sabco Racing and prior to a top-5 finish in last year’s Coke 600, he had not scored a top-5 since 1997. With 14 starts this season he has average start of 34.7 and and average finish of 34.5.
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Re: Kyle, He has been around for a long time. BV has a very hard desision to make. Patty Petty said that Wells Fargo is going to stick with KP where ever he goes. With that said PE should look at the amount of sponsor money brought in by Wells Fargo. If they bring enough money to the company start a thrid team and let KP finish out his time with PE if not let him go. It’s all business. either your in the black or red. If the money is there let him run. If the money is not there send him packing or put him in another position in the company.
I have alot of respect for Kyle. I think he took to much on. He was trying to drive and be president of Petty Enterprises. That in itself is a huge job. They as a team have not been able to keep up with the technology, you could put Jimmie Johnson in the 45 car and I doubt he would finish better than Kyle. The height of Kyle’s career was when he got away from Petty Enterprises and out from under his fathers thumb. It seems their relationship has been rocky over the years. I remember a video clip from several years ago where Richard was telling Kyle what to do on the track and where to run and Kyle blew up telling him “you drive it then”.
With all due respect to Richard Petty does he really think he has anything to offer with today’s cars? Even the previous model was not there when he retired.
It was alot easier to win back in Richards day. Whoever chested the best won, and inspections were nothing like they are now. NASCAR insured that by hiring the best cheater in the business to run the inspections.
I support Kyle completely wherever he races. I always root for an underdog, I’m a Robby Gordon fan remember?
I think if they replace Kyle with a younger driver, they had better be ready to spend a wad of cash to make a competitive race team. In their current condition, Tony Stewart would finish 30th or worse in any race you name in their car. Kyle’s only plus is his popularity with fans and sponsors, me included.
Kyle Petty probably had too big a role as both driver and officer in PE, before BV took over. Now that there’s a new sheriff in town, they don’t like the old one hanging around, reminding them they better make good on their promises.
Kyle’s a link to the old days, just because he’s a Petty. I’ll bet BV doesn’t like that either.
Kyle has a lot to offer this sport. How and when will be laid out in the future, but he always calls it like it is. It’s to his credit that he’s not having a public fit over being treated like day old garbage at the company he fought to save. I can’t imagine the difficulties in his current situation, and wouldn’t blame him a bit for mouthing off.
Kyle made a comment last spring, on TV, about it being time to go somewhere else. As isthe case in many family businesses the kids need to work elsewhere to gain the knowledge and get a better appreciation of the business. When he decides to quit driving he may be ready to run P.E.
I hate to say this but “business is business”. When Kyle and Richard accepted Boston Ventures’ money, they relingquished control of PE.
Frankly, they probably got a lot better deal than Bud Moore did when he had to auction off the assets of his storied team for pennies on the dollar. And that was where PE was heading before Boston Ventures came along.
According to Patti Petty (though Mike Mulhern), Kyle is supposed to have the Wells Fargo sponsorship (reported to be a 12-race deal) in his pocket. However, I bet that Kyle and Richard signed “non-compete” clauses with Boston Ventures, which would prevent Kyle from taking any sponsors to another team.