Martin will drive 30 races, according to the report. Michael Waltrip, the team’s co-owner, is likely drive the restrictor plate events in that car.

Reutimann told FoxSports.com via a text message that he was informed of the decision this week.

Reutimann was re-signed by MWR in July of 2010. His contract was slated to end at the end of the 2012 Sprint Cup season.

MWR has also signed Clint Bowyer to drive the No. 15 MWR Camry with sponsorship from 5-Hour Energy. Both Bowyer and Martin will become teammates to Martin Truex Jr.

The news of Reutimann’s release is shocking, but understandable. Reutimann has struggled this season. He currently sits 28th in the championship points standings, with only two Top 10 finishes this season.

Update: It’s official. Michael Waltrip Racing announced that Mark Martin will replace David Reutimann in the No. 00 Sprint Cup Toyota next season. Team co-owner Michael Waltrip said:

David has been a significant part of Michael Waltrip Racing since the very beginning and will forever be a part of our heritage. We want to thank David for his contribution to our growth and success over the past five years and wish him well in the future.

All three cars were found to be in violation of Sections 12-1 (actions detrimental to stock car racing); 12-4-J (any determination by NASCAR officials that the race equipment used in the event does not conform to NASCAR rules detailed in Section 20 of the rule book, or has not been approved by NASCAR prior to the event); and 20-3.2.1A (unapproved modification to an approved windshield) of the 2011 NASCAR rule book.

Crew chiefs Rodney Childers (No. 00), Frank Kerr (No. 47) and Chad Johnston (No. 56) were each fined $50,000 and suspended for the next four Sprint Cup events. They were also suspended from NASCAR until Nov. 23rd.

Car chiefs Steve Channing (No. 00), Raymond Fox (No. 47) and Anthony Lunders (No. 56) also received the same suspensions. And, MWR director of competition, Bobby Kennedy, has been placed on probation until the end of the calendar year.

The car owners, Rob Kauffman (No. 00), Tad Geschickter (No. 47), and Michael Waltrip (No. 56), have each been penalized with the loss of 25 championship owner points. Drivers David Reutimann (No. 00), Bobby Labonte (No. 47), and Martin Truex Jr. (No. 56) have each been penalized with the loss of 25 championship driver points.

JTG Daugherty owner Brad Daugherty said:

We are very disappointed in this entire situation and we will not appeal NASCAR’s ruling. We look forward to racing at Martinsville Speedway this weekend and getting ready for next season.

Team chief race engineer Brian Burns will assume the role as crew chief for the No. 47 Toyota Camry replacing Kerr and Bob Bechstein has been named car chief replacing Fox following the penalties.

MWR also commented on the penalties:

Michael Waltrip Racing is ultra-sensitive and very serious about working within the guidelines of NASCAR policy. We do not condone this type of activity and as such we will take appropriate internal corrective action immediately. We thank NASCAR for providing a fair and equitable platform for all of its competitors and respect its decisions; therefore, we will not appeal.

Pat Tryson will take over for Johnston as crew chief for the no. 56 team. Tryson was recently replaced on that team earlier this year.

Allen Mincey, race mechanic of the No. 56, will serve as interim car chief for that team in place of Lunders.  Bobby Kennedy will serve as interim crew chief in place of Childers on the No. 00. Chris Hall, race mechanic with the No. 00 , will serve as interim car chief for that team in place of Channing.

Keselowski took the lead on the last restart with 80 laps to go, holding off Martin Truex Jr and Jeff Gordon for the win.  Since injuring his ankle at a Road Atlanta test crash at the beginning of August, he has finished first at Pocono, second at Watkins Glen, third at Michigan, and first at Bristol.

He has climbed from 23rd to 11th in the point’s standings over the last five races and currently sits in the top wild card spot.  He is a virtual lock for the Chase with two races to go and three victories. Don’t be surprised if at Richmond International Raceway he cracks the Top 10 in points.  If he were to make the Chase by virtue of points, that would open the wild card up to drivers like Paul Menard, David Ragan, Marcos Ambrose or Regan Smith.

Truex Has A Good Run

Martin Truex Jr hasn’t been a driver talked about much this season, but he definitely gave us something to talk about Saturday night.  Truex took two tires on his last pit stop, putting him in second place.  He had a hard battle with Jeff Gordon over the last 20-laps, but he was able to hold off the four-time champion to finish in second position.

“We’ve had a real up-and-down season,” Truex said. “We’ve had some bright spots; we’ve had some really tough days. So it’s really nice to come here and have a good finish.”  Chad Johnson took over crew chief duties for the No. 56 team in June and we are slowly but surely seeing the results from it.

Gordon Wants NASCAR To Fix Pit Road Advantage

Jeff Gordon may have been happy with his third place finish, but he certainly wasn’t happy with the way some drivers were speeding down pit road.   Some drivers would speed entering and exiting their pit box, and then slow back down to pit road speed right before the scoring timer.  Although this isn’t considered a penalty, Gordon found that it was an unfair advantage for position.

“It’s a joke,” he said, “that somebody can leave pit road and run that fast down pit road and then slam on the brakes. Kenseth drove by four cars and so did the 2 car when he left his pit stall. I just don’t understand it.”  Director of the Sprint Cup Series, John Darby, said that NASCAR will address the situation and install more scoring loops on pit road.

Johnson, Busch Tied For Points Lead

Kyle Busch remains the point’s leader, tied with Jimmie Johnson, who is in second position based on his number of wins this season.  Kevin Harvick dropped two spots to fifth, putting Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards in third and fourth position, respectively.  Gordon, Ryan Newman, Kurt Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr and Tony Stewart round out the Top 10.

We head to Atlanta Motor Speedway next weekend where the Sprint Summer Showdown will conclude.  The showdown drivers consist of Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch, Paul Menard and Marcos Ambrose.  If one of them were to win the race, the driver, his charity of choice, and one lucky fan will each recieve $1 million.  The two fans that picked Keselowski to win at Pocono and Bristol will split the $1 million.  Tune into the race September 4th to see who comes out on top!

Rubbing is Racing

Boris Said and Greg Biffle weren’t talked about much during the race. Said spun early and ran in the back most of the day. Biffle ran out of gas early and ended up losing several laps. For them, the action heated up after the checkered flag. After Said spun, he spent the rest of the day racing near the back.  Biffle, who ran out of gas on lap 28, was also racing at the back, two laps down.  Said radioed to his spotter and said that Biffle was racing him “dirty” and let it be known that he would find him after the race to take care of it.

As soon as the race was over, Said parked his car in front of the No. 16 hauler to have it out. According to Said, Biffle threw some punches at him and then took off.  Said then got out of his car and took off angrily towards Biffle.  Pit crews from both teams restrained them and the drivers were sent separate ways.

Said let his voice be heard  in his post-race interview.  “He’s the most unprofessional scaredy cat I’ve ever seen in my life.  He wouldn’t even fight me like a man after (the race).  I won’t settle it out on the track. It’s not right to wreck cars, but he’ll show up at a race with a black eye one of these days.”

Said then went on to say he would get Biffle’s home address and give him a visit Wednesday for a ”whipping.”  Biffle responded via twitter, calling Said “unprofessional and disrespectful.”

NASCAR said let the boys “have at it”, but are they allowed to make threats towards other drivers?  I’m curious to see how far NASCAR will let this go.

Wild Wrecks

I’ve seen some crazy wrecks in my ten years of being a fan, but today’s wrecks rank as some of the wildest.  It started with Kurt Busch on lap 49.  Busch had a brake failure and crashed hard into the Turn 5 tire barrier.  Denny Hamlin, who also seemed to have a brake failure, had a very scary crash into the Turn 1 barrier.  The crash was so hard that it buckled the guard-rail behind the tire barrier.

The biggest crash of the day happened when Boris Said and David Ragan got together on the final lap.  Said and Ragan went for the same real estate at the same time. Said got his nose up to Ragan’s left-rear quarter panel. The two made contact, which ended up hooking Ragan causing him to bounce off the left rail.  Ragan then slammed into Reutimann, sending him into the right guard-rail.  The impact caused Reutimann to go airborne, then crash viciously into the fence.  Both Ragan and Reutimann walked away from the accidents sore, but okay.

The Tasmanian Devil

It’s no secret that when the NASCAR series comes to a road course, Marcos Ambrose is a contender.  He was able to beat last week’s winner, Brad Keselowski to get the win.  Ambrose is the fifth, first-time winner this year.  This puts him, along with Brad Keselowski and Paul Menard, into the Sprint Showdown, which pays a $3 million bonus if one of them were to win the race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Amborse is also locked into the 2012 All-Star race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Suprising Contenders

Brad Keselowski isn’t just the surprise of this weekend, he’s the suprise of the month.  Racing hurt hasn’t phased him at all.  Keselowski finished a hard-fought second at the Glen.  He has moved up four spots in the chase to 14th position.  If he keeps this up, he may make his way into the top 10 in points!

Martin Truex Jr also deserves a shout-out for his fourth place finish.  Truex ran in the top five for most of the day and drove a clean race.  Martin has always been a good road course racer, having road course victories in the Nationwide series.  Hopefully this is the medicine this team needs to turn their season around, and finish the year out right.

Also, give a call to Dale Earnhardt Jr. The team was fortunate when the caution came out for Biffle running out of gas while Earnhardt was on pit road. When the race went green, he found himself in fourth. Several thought it would only be a matter of time before he started losing positions. But, he didn’t. He maintained his position in the top 5, holding off Truex Jr, Tony Stewart, and Jimmie Johnson.

Unfortunately, his pit strategy late in the race backfired, and he wound up 15th. Still, 15th place is his best finish at the upstate New York road course since 2005, and he moved up one position in points to ninth, 36 points ahead of 11th place.

Performance is at a stand-still for drivers like Burton, Biffle and Almendinger.  They have a handful of top 10 finishes between them this year and have been flying under the radar all season. Making a crew chief change is a perfect opportunity for these teams to get the improvements they have been looking for. 

All of these teams have the potential to finish well every week, they are just missing a certain spark to get to those finishes.  Hopefully these changes will provide that spark.

For Truex Jr’s team, I feel that communication is one of the major issues.  With only three top 10 finishes and many DNF’s this season, a change had to be made.  Earlier in the year, the team replaced their tire changers in hopes of improving performance.  Unfortunately, their luck never improved.  The No. 56 team now has Chad Johnson as crew chief, formally the lead engineer of Micheal Waltrip Racing.

This team has nothing to lose and everything to gain.  We know that Truex has the potential to win races, he just needs a strong team backing to get there.  I think this change will take time to settle in, but will eventually bring improvement to that MWR team.

Montoya seems to be the roller-coaster driver of this season.  He started off the year well and was as high as fourth in points.  However, in five races out of the last ten, he has finished 20th or worse and has now plummeted to 17th in points.  In my opinion, the crew chief is not the problem. 

We’ve seen Montoya lose his temper with other drivers and his own team countless times throughout the year.  I feel like his temper gets in the way of focusing on his job.  Maybe his new crew chief, Jim Pohlman, can keep the Colombian driver level-headed.  If not, I think Ganassi needs to address the situation and figure out a solution for Montoya.  He is a talented driver, he just needs to focus on his race, rather than focusing on who he’s going to box after the race.

In conclusion, I don’t think this will be the last crew chief changes of the season.  Drivers like, Brian Vickers and Jamie McMurray are used to running well, and aren’t having the finishes they need.  Possible crew chief changes?  I guess we’ll just have to keep watching as this season unfolds.

Reaction to this news is sure to be mixed. While some Earnhardt Jr fans want him stay with HMS because they think it gives him a better shot to win the Sprint Cup championship, others think that Hendrick is more interested in the money and sponsors Earnhardt brings in than he is in giving him the tools needed to win races and championships.

I don’t think an extension makes sense for Earnhardt Jr considering his contract ends after next season. The pairing of Earnhardt Jr with Steve Letarte has improved Earnhardt’s on-track performance, and seems to have shown that Hendrick does indeed want Earnhardt to succeed in his equipment. Some conspiracy theorists may argue that Hendrick wants Jr to re-sign with the team, and is therefore putting him in better equipment, but I’m not sure I buy that.

If you look at the seats available after the 2012 season, the pickings are slim. The end of Denny Hamlin’s contract is unknown, but it runs through at least this year, and most likely next year. Even if Hamlin’s contract ends after the 2012 season, it’s unlikely he would leave Joe Gibbs Racing. And, it’s not a Chevy team.

Matt Kenseth’s contract may end after the 2012 season. If Carl Edwards leaves Roush Fenway Racing for JGR after this season, Kenseth could possibly follow suit, seeking another opportunity for the 2013 season. But RFR has Trevor Bayne and Ricky Stenhouse Jr waiting in the wings, so the No. 17 probably wouldn’t be available. Plus, it’s not a Chevy team.

Martin Truex Jr’s contract may be up for renewal in 2012. If it is, he may seek another opportunity if he feels like the team is not performing. Michael Waltrip Racing is signed with Toyota through 2012, so they could (hypothetically) change makes to Chevy, but it is unlikely that Earnhardt Jr would want to go there with the way the team has been performing. Also, there’s no reason to think MWR would switch to Chevy from Toyota.

If Red Bull Racing leaves as expected, any new entity could have a seat available for Earnhardt Jr. It’s unclear if the team would stay with Toyota through the 2012 season, but it is a possibility. Even if the team were to switch makes, Earnhardt Jr still is not likely to want to run with a team that is just starting out. That would make it more difficult for him to contend with a championship. And, with the last couple of years he has had, I’m sure he wants to be in highly competitive equipment.

Stewart Haas Racing could be thinking of expanding to three or four cars by the end of 2012, which would give Earnhardt the option to go there. But, that team has been struggling of late and Earnhardt probably doesn’t want to wait and see if they improve.

Earnhardt Ganassi Racing may or may not be an option. Earnhardt could return to his former team (then Dale Earnhardt Inc) and possibly run the No. 8 he helped make famous. But, that is highly unlikely given the rocky working relationship he had with team co-owner Teresa Earnhardt, his stepmother.

Richard Childress Racing won’t have an opening when Earnhardt Jr’s contract is up, though with their performance of late he would probably seriously consider going there. Paul Menard is signed through 2013, and Jeff Burton’s contract runs through 2014. Clint Bowyer is on the verge of re-signing with RCR and it is likely to be a three-year deal. Kevin Harvick’s contract runs through at least 2012, but if it expires that year, he will be signed to an extension long before that. He has been carring the banner for RCR the last two years so they won’t let him get away.

Plus, a move to RCR would further intensify the pressure Earnhardt is under to win a championship because it was his father’s team. I don’t think he wants that… at least not yet.

Another option would be bringing JR Motorsports to the Sprint Cup level. All indications at this point are that he doesn’t want to do that. I don’t think he wants to headache of running his own team at this time. Three to five years from now, it may be a different story. But for right now, I think he just wants to drive.

So, when you look at all the options out there when his contract expires, it makes sense for Earnhardt Jr to stay with HMS because it is the best Chevy seat available.

Johnson replaces Pat Tryson, who is being redeployed at MWR. Tryson told ESPN.com that he didn’t know what his new assignment would be. He said:

Somebody always has to be that guy. I wouldn’t say I was part of the problem. As a company we aren’t running well. It’s a strange deal. I really can’t say much.

Johnson said:

This is a good opportunity for me since this is the direction I have always wanted to go in my NASCAR career. Michael Waltrip Racing is a good organization to work with as we have assembled a strong NAPA Racing team and a more-than-capable driver. My goal is the same goal that this team set at the start of 2011 and that goal is to win races and try to get in the top 10 in points.

Truex said:

Chad’s been a great addition to the NAPA team ever since he joined us last season. … His personality and mine mesh really well. We get along great, and he really understands what I am saying. He is extremely good at pulling more information from me to get the answers to questions he has when setting up the car. The communication between he and I is impressive, and we just click. I’m looking forward to what all we can accomplish together as a team.

This may indicate that there was a communication problem between Tryson and Truex. While Truex did not actually say anything about Tryson in his quote, it can seem to imply that there was a communication problem with Tryson, depending on how you interpret his quote.

Truex has been running well, but the team struggles to get good finishes. The team has three top 10s, with a best finish of sixth at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. But the team also has five finishes of 20th or worse, and sits 22nd in the NASCAR Sprint Cup standings.

The 2010 Showtime Southern 500 at Darlington was the last race of that season for Brian Vickers. Suffering blood clots, he was forced to give up his ride.  Missing 25 races last year, Vickers said that being out of the car revived his passion for racing.  “It definitely strengthened my conviction, my drive for racing,” he said.  With only one career top 10 finish at Darlington, Vickers is hoping to turn his luck around and get a top 5 for his Red Bull Racing team.  Vickers has posted three top 10 finishes this year, and sits 26th in the Sprint Cup points standings.

Earlier this week, four members of Michael Waltrip Racing’s No. 56 team were replaced.  Having a loose wheel at Richmond caused the team to finish two laps down in 27th place, after leading 11 laps and having a solid top 5 car all night.  ”If the job is not getting done, then a change needs to be made”, said Martin Truex Jr.  Truex has one career top 10 at Darlington and one top 10 so far this season.

Carl Edwards is currently leading the Sprint Cup points standings with five-time champ Jimmie Johnson a close second.  Edwards has never won at Darlington. He has an average finish of 15th.  Johnson on the other hand has two Darlington wins and an average of finish of ninth.

Will Hendrick Motorsports’ No. 48 team take the points lead at Darlington?  Not if Denny Hamlin has anything to say about it. While Hamlin has only two top 10 finishes this year, he usually runs well at intermediate tracks. Hamlin needs his luck to turn around this weekend. Sitting 17th in points, Hamlin would surely love to gain points on his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate, Kyle Busch.

To finish first and tame The Lady in Black, a driver must first finish.  Stamina will play a big factor in the race.  Being a 500 mile race with the temperature being in the mid 80′s, Darlington is going to be a very hot and long race.  Passing at Darlington is difficult, so it will be up to the crew chiefs to determine whether they pit for tires or keep track position. I’m sure we will see many strategies during the race.

Last but not least, drivers will have to contend with the famous Darlington stripe.  The closer to the wall the driver is, the faster he will go around the egg-shaped track. The driver who pulls into victory lane will surely have a signature Darlington stripe.

Who do you think will tame The Lady in Black?

Hallam said:

We’ve seen significant improvement in the overall performance of the #56 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota in 2011. With our impressive speed comes the added pressure of the entire team to perform. As we know, the #56 has experienced several challenges on pit road and we feel the need to intervene.

Eric Maycroft and Ricky Coleman will replace Cory Quick and Cory Curione as front tire changer and carrier, respectively. Daniel Rankin and Jake Brzozowski will replace Shannon Myers and Mark Kennerly as rear tire changer and carrier, respectively.

The first caution of the night came out for debris from an on-track accident. Ryan Newman and Juan Pablo Montoya got together, sending Montoya hard into the wall.

Newman, who was running eighth at the time, insists it was Montoya’s fault. “He crashed himself basically,” said Newman. “I don’t know if he didn’t know he wasn’t clear or what but he crashed himself off of Turn 2. I don’t know if he though it was me on purpose, but the message was delivered that it wasn’t intentional.”

Montoya obviously didn’t like that message. On lap 237, Montoya blatantly spun out Newman in Turn 3, causing damage to his rear bumper. Newman went from running in the top 10, to finishing 2 laps down in 20th spot. This caused him to drop one from seventh to eighth in points.

After the race Ryan Newman walked straight to the NASCAR hauler. “I got a few answers,” he said. “I’m not really sure the direction it’s going to go, but I’ve got a few answers .”

I’m very interested to see if NASCAR does anything about this. At the beginning of the season NASCAR insisted that they were going to let the drivers “have at it;” let it be more like the old-school days when rubbing was racing.

If they penalize Juan Pablo Montoya for this, will they penalize other drivers in the future for the same kind of racing? I guess we will find out soon enough.

On another note, I’m starting to feel like knee surgeries give off some sort of mystical racing power. Last April, Denny Hamlin had surgery for a torn ACL. Just 3 weeks later, he takes the win at Texas Motor Speedway. Last Monday, Kasey Kahne had surgery for a torn meniscus. At Richmond this weekend he finished 3rd and contended for the win. Probably just a coincidence, but still a fun fact.

My biggest focus from the Richmond race was Martin Truex Jr. Truex had a great run going and could have been a contender for the win, but had to pit with 18 laps to go for a tire vibration.

To make a bad night even worse, he was caught speeding on pit road and had to make a pass-through penalty. Truex has had endless streaks of bad luck.

I feel like Michael Waltrip Racing needs a change. Possibly a crew chief change? Maybe even a pit crew swap. Either way, it needs to happen. Both the No. 00 and the No. 56 teams have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Truex and Reutimann have both proven they deserve to be at this level. They deserve to have better finishes.

Kudos to Rowdy Busch for running a clean race and taking the win from teammate, Denny Hamlin. This win has moved Kyle from sixth to third place in points. What are your thoughts on Richmond? Let us know!