2008 Subway Fresh Fit 500
Encyclopedia
The 2008 Subway Fresh Fit 500 was the eighth race for the NASCAR Sprint Cup season
and ran on Saturday, April 12th at Phoenix International Raceway
in Avondale, Arizona
. The race was broadcast on television by Fox
starting at 8:53 PM US EDT
, and broadcast via radio and Sirius Satellite Radio
on the Motor Racing Network
beginning at 7:45 PM US EDT.
won the pole position, the 34th of his career. Elliott Sadler
started on the outside. Kyle Petty
and John Andretti
failed to qualify.
Chad Knaus
' calculations, Jimmie Johnson
stayed out late in the race while leaders Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
and Mark Martin
entered their pits. Johnson held on for the win while Clint Bowyer
finished second.
Jeff Burton
climbed from 39th starting position to a sixth-place finish and retained his lead in points.
-Boston Red Sox
baseball game which had been delayed due to rain. Fox then switched back to the race as the cars were on the dogleg just after the start. The final two pitches of the game were shown on the cable
/ satellite
channel FX leaving some baseball fans confused. Fox was contractually required to show the entire race on its broadcast network.
NASCAR fans were upset that the network did not show the invocation
and national anthem, especially as it was realized that the game was shown on both Fox and FX, in a simulcast
, for about 10 minutes. Theoretically, the baseball game could have continued on Fox and the pre-race ceremonies would have been seen on FX, but parent company News Corporation
chose not to use that option.
This is the first known occurrence in the history in American sports television that a network missed both the ending of one event (similar to the Heidi Game
, except that there was an option to see the remainder of it) and the beginning of another.
On the Speed Channel rebroadcast later that week, the start of the race was shown, in real time, from Brett Bodine
pulling the pace car to pit road, and Fox analyst Larry McReynolds
waving the green flag, all the way through the entire first lap. It is evident in that replay that the broadcast started on the backstretch as the graphics package did not appear until the cars were on the dogleg.
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 ran on Saturday, April 12th at Phoenix International Raceway
Phoenix International Raceway
Phoenix International Raceway, also known as PIR, is a one-mile, low-banked tri-oval race track located in Avondale, Arizona. The track opened in 1964 and currently hosts two NASCAR race weekends annually. PIR has also hosted the Indycar Series, CART, USAC and the Rolex Sports Car Series...
in Avondale, Arizona
Avondale, Arizona
Avondale is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, USA, adjacent to Phoenix, Arizona. According to 2010 Census Bureau, the population of the city is 76,238.Avondale is the home of Phoenix International Raceway, an auto racing facility...
. The race was broadcast on television by Fox
NASCAR on Fox
NASCAR on Fox is the Emmy-winning branding used for Fox Sports's broadcasts of NASCAR races airing on the Fox network since 2001. The production has been in high-definition since 2005.-Background:...
starting at 8:53 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 broadcast via radio and 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...
on the Motor Racing Network
Motor Racing Network
The Motor Racing Network is the principal radio broadcasting operation of NASCAR, promoting themselves as "The Voice of NASCAR." It broadcasts coverage of most major NASCAR races at the top three levels of NASCAR at tracks owned by International Speedway Corporation as well as Dover International...
beginning at 7:45 PM US EDT.
Pre-Race News
- Jeremy MayfieldJeremy MayfieldJeremy Allen Mayfield is a former NASCAR driver who last competed in 2009 due to legal troubles and an indefinite suspension by NASCAR. Prior to 2009, Mayfield drove cars for the Sadler Brothers, T.W. Taylor, Cale Yarborough, Michael Kranefuss, Roger Penske, Ray Evernham, Bill Davis, and Gene Haas...
was dropped as the driver of the Haas CNC RacingHaas CNC RacingStewart-Haas Racing, formerly known as Haas CNC Racing, is a NASCAR racing team based in Kannapolis, North Carolina, which runs Chevrolet Impalas. The team is owned by Tony Stewart and Gene Haas, and runs the #14 Office Depot/Mobil 1 Chevrolet Impala driven by Stewart and the #39 United States...
#70 ChevroletChevroletChevrolet , also known as Chevy , is a brand of vehicle produced by General Motors Company . Founded by Louis Chevrolet and ousted GM founder William C. Durant on November 3, 1911, General Motors acquired Chevrolet in 1918...
and replaced by the former driver of the #70 car they own, Johnny SauterJohnny SauterJohnathan 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...
. - Brienne Davis, an official whose specialty was being an inspector of engine manifolds, was killed in an automobile accident outside Mooresville, North CarolinaMooresville, North CarolinaMooresville is a large suburban town in southern Iredell County, North Carolina, USA. It is in the Metrolina metro area. The population was 32,133 at the 2010 United States Census...
on April 8th at the age of 28.
Qualifying
Daytona 500 champion Ryan NewmanRyan Newman
Ryan Joseph Newman is a driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. He drives the #39 United States Army/Tornados/Haas Automation Chevrolet Impala for Stewart Haas Racing under crew chief Tony Gibson. Newman graduated from Purdue University in 2001 with a B.S. in vehicle structure engineering...
won the pole position, the 34th of his career. Elliott Sadler
Elliott Sadler
Elliott William Barnes Sadler is a NASCAR driver. He currently drives the #2 OneMain Financial Chevrolet Impala for Kevin Harvick Inc. in the Nationwide Series. He is one of only 23 drivers to have won in each of NASCAR's top three series...
started on the outside. Kyle Petty
Kyle Petty
Kyle 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...
and John Andretti
John Andretti
John Andretti is an American race car driver. He has won in CART, IMSA GTP, Rolex Sports Car Series and NASCAR. He was the last NASCAR driver to win a Cup race for the famous Petty Enterprises team.-Andretti family:...
failed to qualify.
The race
The outcome of this race was determined largely on fuel mileage strategy. Based on crew chiefPit stop
In motorsports, a pit stop is where a racing vehicle stops in the pits during a race for refuelling, new tires, repairs, mechanical adjustments, a driver change, or any combination of the above...
Chad Knaus
Chad Knaus
Chad Anthony Knaus is the current NASCAR Sprint Cup Series crew chief for Jimmie Johnson. He is currently employed at Hendrick Motorsports. Knaus has 52 victories as Jimmie Johnson's crew chief and is the only NASCAR crew chief to win five consecutive championships. He has been a crew chief in...
' calculations, Jimmie Johnson
Jimmie Johnson
Jimmie Kenneth Johnson is an American NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race car driver. He currently drives the No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports....
stayed out late in the race while leaders Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
* NOTE: References to "Earnhardt", "he", and "him" refer to the subject of this article, unless otherwise specified. References to his father will include "Sr."...
and Mark Martin
Mark Martin (NASCAR)
Mark Anthony Martin is an American stock car driver currently competing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. As of 2012, Martin will drive for Michael Waltrip Racing, moving on from successful organizations such as Hendrick Motorsports and Roush Fenway Racing. He has the second most wins in the NASCAR...
entered their pits. Johnson held on for the win while Clint Bowyer
Clint Bowyer
Clint Bowyer is a NASCAR driver. He drives the #15 5 Hour Energy Toyota Camry in the Sprint Cup Series for Michael Waltrip Racing. Early in his career, he drove for Richard Childress Racing. He won the 2008 Nationwide Series championship....
finished second.
Jeff Burton
Jeff Burton
Jeffrey Brian "Jeff" Burton , also referred to as JB or The Mayor, is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver who drives the #31 Caterpillar Chevrolet Impala for Richard Childress Racing. Burton is the younger brother of Ward Burton, who is a former Sprint Cup driver...
climbed from 39th starting position to a sixth-place finish and retained his lead in points.
Yankees / Red Sox coverage
Coverage of the pre-race was interrupted when Fox switched over to cover the remaining New York YankeesNew York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
-Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
baseball game which had been delayed due to rain. Fox then switched back to the race as the cars were on the dogleg just after the start. The final two pitches of the game were shown on the cable
Cable television in the United States
Cable television in the United States is a common form of television delivery, generally by subscription. Cable television first became available in the United States in 1948, with subscription services in 1949. Data by SNL Kagan shows that as of 2006 about 58.4% of all American homes subscribe to...
/ satellite
Satellite television
Satellite television is television programming delivered by the means of communications satellite and received by an outdoor antenna, usually a parabolic mirror generally referred to as a satellite dish, and as far as household usage is concerned, a satellite receiver either in the form of an...
channel FX leaving some baseball fans confused. Fox was contractually required to show the entire race on its broadcast network.
NASCAR fans were upset that the network did not show the invocation
Invocation
An invocation may take the form of:*Supplication or prayer.*A form of possession.*Command or conjuration.*Self-identification with certain spirits....
and national anthem, especially as it was realized that the game was shown on both Fox and FX, in a simulcast
Simulcast
Simulcast, shorthand for "simultaneous broadcast", refers to programs or events broadcast across more than one medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at the same time. For example, Absolute Radio is simulcast on both AM and on satellite radio, and the BBC's Prom concerts are often...
, for about 10 minutes. Theoretically, the baseball game could have continued on Fox and the pre-race ceremonies would have been seen on FX, but parent company News Corporation
News Corporation
News Corporation or News Corp. is an American multinational media conglomerate. It is the world's second-largest media conglomerate as of 2011 in terms of revenue, and the world's third largest in entertainment as of 2009, although the BBC remains the world's largest broadcaster...
chose not to use that option.
This is the first known occurrence in the history in American sports television that a network missed both the ending of one event (similar to the Heidi Game
Heidi Game
The Heidi Game or Heidi Bowl was an American football game played on November 17, 1968. The home team, the Oakland Raiders, defeated the New York Jets, 43–32. The game is remembered for its exciting finish, as Oakland scored two touchdowns in the final minute to overcome a 32–29 New York lead...
, except that there was an option to see the remainder of it) and the beginning of another.
On the Speed Channel rebroadcast later that week, the start of the race was shown, in real time, from Brett Bodine
Brett Bodine
Brett Bodine is a former NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver and is the current driver of the pace car in Sprint Cup events. Brett is the younger brother of 1986 Daytona 500 winner Geoff Bodine and the older brother of 2006 Craftsman Truck Series champion Todd Bodine...
pulling the pace car to pit road, and Fox analyst Larry McReynolds
Larry McReynolds
Lawrence Joseph McReynolds III is a former NASCAR crew chief and currently serves as a racing analyst on Fox Sports, TNT and a columnist on Foxsports.com. He currently lives in Mooresville, North Carolina...
waving the green flag, all the way through the entire first lap. It is evident in that replay that the broadcast started on the backstretch as the graphics package did not appear until the cars were on the dogleg.