2008 Pep Boys Auto 500
Encyclopedia
The 2008 Pep Boys Auto 500, is the thirty-third race of the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup season
and the third to the last race of the Chase for the Sprint Cup. Pep Boys
Auto 500 was held on October 26 at Atlanta Motor Speedway
in Hampton, Georgia
. ABC
will carry the race beginning at 1 PM US EDT
and Performance Racing Network
along with Sirius Satellite Radio
will have radio coverage starting at that same time. This race will be the last at this track in the current Chase format as they will swap this date for the Labor Day
weekend date as a night race with Auto Club Speedway, and the Southern California track assuming the Chase date for 2009
.
Failed to make race as qualifying was canceled due to rain: Joey Logano
(#02), Bryan Clauson
(#40).
NOTE: The #08 car, to have been driven by Johnny Sauter
was withdrawn earlier in the week.
2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
The 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season began on February 9, 2008 at Daytona International Speedway with the Budweiser Shootout, followed by pole qualifying on Sunday, February 10, 2008 for the 50th Daytona 500 on February 17...
and the third to the last race of the Chase for the Sprint Cup. Pep Boys
Pep Boys
The Pep Boys — Manny, Moe & Jack , branded as Pep Boys Auto and commonly abbreviated as Pep Boys, is a full-service and tire automotive aftermarket chain....
Auto 500 was held on October 26 at Atlanta Motor Speedway
Atlanta Motor Speedway
Atlanta Motor Speedway is a track just outside Hampton, Georgia, twenty miles south of Atlanta. It is a quad-oval track with a seating capacity of over 125,000. It opened in 1960 as a standard oval. In 1994, 46 condominiums were built over the northeastern side of the track...
in Hampton, Georgia
Hampton, Georgia
Hampton is a city in southwestern Henry County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 6,987. Census Estimates for 2005 show a population of 4,743. Hampton mailing addresses also dip into eastern Clayton County and northern Spalding County.The Atlanta Motor...
. ABC
NASCAR on ABC
NASCAR on ESPN is the coverage of NASCAR on ESPN, ESPN2, and ABC. ABC, and later ESPN, carried NASCAR races from the sanctioning body's top three divisions at various points from the early 1960s until 2002. ESPN resumed coverage of NASCAR with the Nationwide Series race at Daytona in February 2007...
will carry the race beginning at 1 PM US EDT
North American Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...
and Performance Racing Network
Performance Racing Network
The Performance Racing Network is a radio network controlled by Speedway Motorsports, Inc..Performance Racing Network broadcasts all NASCAR-sanctioned Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series events held at Speedway Motorsports-controlled tracks which include Atlanta, Bristol, Infineon, Las Vegas,...
along with Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio is a satellite radio service operating in North America, owned by Sirius XM Radio.Headquartered in New York City, with smaller studios in Los Angeles and Memphis, Sirius was officially launched on July 1, 2002 and currently provides 69 streams of music and 65 streams of...
will have radio coverage starting at that same time. This race will be the last at this track in the current Chase format as they will swap this date for the Labor Day
Labor Day
Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September that celebrates the economic and social contributions of workers.-History:...
weekend date as a night race with Auto Club Speedway, and the Southern California track assuming the Chase date for 2009
2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
The 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season was the 61st season of professional stock car racing in the United States, which began at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, with the 2009 Budweiser Shootout at Daytona, a race for the top six teams of the four brands in the 2008...
.
Pre-race News
- Team Red BullTeam Red BullRed Bull Racing Team, also known as Team Red Bull, is a NASCAR team owned by Dietrich Mateschitz. The team is based in Mooresville, North Carolina in the United States and is managed by Jay Frye...
's #83 Toyota driven by Brian VickersBrian VickersBrian Lee Vickers is a American NASCAR driver. He was the 2003 Busch Series champion, and at age 20, became the youngest champion in any of NASCAR's three top-tier series...
was slapped with a very stiff penalty after last week's race at Martinsville2008 TUMS QuikPak 500The 2008 Tums QuikPak 500 was the thirty-second race of the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup season and started off the second half of the 2008 Chase for the Sprint Cup. The 500-lap, event, the only race on the Chase that is scheduled to be held on a short track , was held on October 19 at Martinsville...
. After a post-race inspection at NASCAR's Research and Development center discovered that the sheet metal used was illegal after being lightened to below minimum gauge, NASCAR slapped crew chief Kevin Hamlin with an indefinite suspension and a US $United States dollarThe United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
100,000 fine (donated to the NASCAR Foundation.) The stock car racing body also gave an indefinite suspension to car chief Craig Smokstad, and deducted 150 owners and drivers points from the team. It had been speculated the metal had been dipped in acid, but NASCAR and Vickers denied it. (Normally, such an infraction would be a six-week suspension, but only four races remained; Ryan Pemberton was named permanent crew chief for the #83 team for 2009.)
- Michael WaltripMichael WaltripMichael Curtis Waltrip is a semi-former professional race car driver, co-owner of Michael Waltrip Racing, and a published author. He is the younger brother of three-time NASCAR champion and racing commentator Darrell Waltrip. Waltrip is a two-time winner of the Daytona 500; having won the race in...
will make his 1,000th NASCAR start (all national and regional series; was the 1983 Baby Grand National (4-cylinder) Champion) in this race.
- Camping WorldCamping WorldCamping World is an American corporation specializing in selling parts and service for recreational vehicles and supplies for camping. The company is based in Bowling Green, Kentucky, and is privately held. Camping World has 70+ retail/service locations throughout the United States, and also sells...
was named the new sponsor of the NASCAR Truck Series for the 2009 season2009 NASCAR Camping World Truck SeriesThe 15th season of the 2009 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series began on February 13, 2009 at Daytona International Speedway with the Daytona 250. The season concluded on November 20 of that year at Homestead-Miami Speedway with the Ford 200. The season was the first under the Camping World...
on Thursday (10/23). CraftsmanCraftsman (tools)Craftsman is a line of tools and lawn and garden equipment controlled by Sears Holdings Corporation; the brand is owned by KCD IP, LLC, a special purpose entity created by Sears Holdings for securitization purposes....
, a division of Sears Holdings, is leaving the series' title sponsorship which they have done since its inception in 1995.
- Kyle PettyKyle PettyKyle Eugene Petty is a former American NASCAR driver and is currently a co-host for NASCAR RaceDay and panel member for NASCAR Smarts which are both on SPEED. He also commentates for TNT in the summer. He is the son of racer Richard Petty, grandson of racer Lee Petty, and father of the late Adam...
will make his 850th career start.
Oualifying
- Qualifying was rained out for the 10th time this season, which is a new record. Because of the cancellation, points leader Jimmie JohnsonJimmie JohnsonJimmie Kenneth Johnson is an American NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race car driver. He currently drives the No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports....
will start on the pole as per the NASCAR rule book. It also marks the third consecutive time that the field will be lined up according to the points standings.
Issues with ABC Affilaies
- KXLY-TVKXLY-TVKXLY-TV, virtual channel 4, is an ABC-affiliated television station in Spokane, Washington, USA. KXLY-TV is owned by Spokane Television Group, a subsidiary of Morgan Murphy Media, it is one of five local Spokane TV stations seen in Canada on the Shaw Direct satellite provider.-History:Although KHQ...
in Spokane did not air the race due to the main transmitter that was knocked out by heavy winds. NASCAR CountdownNASCAR CountdownNASCAR Countdown is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and Nationwide Series prerace show that debuted on February 17, 2007. It is a live on-site pre-race show for all Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series races televised on ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC...
was also not seen on KABC-TVKABC-TVKABC-TV, channel 7, is an owned-and-operated television station of the Walt Disney Company-owned American Broadcasting Company, licensed to Los Angeles, California. KABC-TV's studios are located in Glendale, California...
in Los Angeles in favor of Hannah MontanaHannah MontanaHannah Montana is an American television series, which debuted on March 24, 2006 on the Disney Channel. The series focuses on a girl who lives a double life as an average teenage school girl named Miley Stewart by day and a famous pop singer named Hannah Montana by night, concealing her real...
and the Suite Life of Zack and Cody in order to fulfill an E/IE/IE/I, which stands for "educational and informative," refers to a type of children's television programming shown in the United States. The Federal Communications Commission requires that every full-service Terrestrial television station in the U.S. show at least three hours of these television...
requirement and on WCVB-TVWCVB-TVWCVB-TV, channel 5, is a television station located in Boston, Massachusetts, owned by Hearst Television and affiliated with the ABC Television Network. WCVB-TV's studios and transmitter are co-located in Needham, Massachusetts. WCVB is also one of six Boston television stations seen in Canada by...
in Boston which covered a news report on a shooting at the annual gun show.
Failed to make race as qualifying was canceled due to rain: Joey Logano
Joey Logano
Joseph Thomas "Joey" Logano , nicknamed "sliced bread" by Randy LaJoie, is an American stock car auto racing race car driver who currently drives the #20 Home Depot Toyota Camry in the Sprint Cup Series and the #20 GameStop/Sport Clips Toyota Camry in the Nationwide Series for Joe Gibbs...
(#02), Bryan Clauson
Bryan Clauson
Bryan Clauson, is an American auto racing driver. He went to Noblesville High School in Noblesville, Indiana.-Career:...
(#40).
NOTE: The #08 car, to have been driven by Johnny Sauter
Johnny Sauter
Johnathan Joseph Sauter is a NASCAR driver from Wisconsin. Sauter is the son of former NASCAR driver Jim Sauter, and the brother of NASCAR drivers Tim Sauter and Jay Sauter...
was withdrawn earlier in the week.