By Mark Gregory Momentum is a big thing in any sport. There is no one who has more momentum in NASCAR than Matt Kenseth and the No. 20 Toyota of Joe Gibbs Racing. Kenseth, last season’s winner at Chicagoland Speedway, won the final race of the regular season at Richmond heading into the Chase for the Sprint Cup which begins Sunday in the MyAFibRisk.com 400 in Joliet. The win was Kenseth’s fourth of the season and third in the last six races.
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Busch in Chase contention despite broken leg By Mark Gregory sports reporter
mark@buglenewspapers.com @Hear_The_Beard
At the beginning of the season, it appeared as if NASCAR would not have one of its most polarizing and talented drivers in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship. That was because Kyle Busch suffered a broken right leg and broken left foot in a crash during the Xfinity race the Saturday before the season-opening Daytona 500. Busch would miss 11 races and per NASCAR rules for the Chase, would need to be in the top 30 in points with at least one win to secure a spot in the Chase. Officially, Bush placed 25th in the overall points standings. He clinched a spot in the Chase by guaranteeing himself a top30 spot in the points standings with a seventh-place finish at the Southern 500 at Darlington two weeks ago and with four wins under his belt, he is tied for the most of any driver with Jimmie Johnson and Matt Kenseth. Busch is the second seed in the restructured Chase points system. “It certainly was a rollercoaster season, probably more for my team and guys and everybody that started the season in Daytona, switching seats out, having other drivers in my car,” Busch said. “Can’t say enough about the team and the effort (crew chief ) Adam Stevens, everyone that continued to focus and work hard, wait for the star quarterback to come back. Once I did come back, they were all ready, ready to perform. Felt like we did a really good job of that. Maybe the first month was a little rough. After that, once we
got through Sonoma, it was on. We had a really good stretch and still continue to run strong each week. (I am) real proud of everybody on this Toyota Camry. It Makes our job easier week in and week out to have fast race cars. Now it’s to focus and put your head down to the dirt and make sure that you get all you can get when you go through these next 10.” Busch finished second to Matt Kenseth in the final race of the season at Richmond, giving him nine top 10 finishes, six in the top five, in only 15 races this season. “It was an unbelievable beginning and a pretty believable middle part of the season and how we ran. That’s just how we’re supposed to be and how this 18 M&M’s Camry is supposed to be every week. Again tonight Joe Gibbs Racing had a really good showing,” Busch said. “(I am) just proud of Adam Stevens and all my guys. They never gave up. They fought hard, they worked really good together and a first year team so I’m really proud of all of that. It’s come together real well and it’s just a matter now of being able to put our heads down and get the job done. We definitely have equipment capable of doing it. It might be a race between all four (Joe) Gibbs (Racing) cars come Homestead but I’m sure Joe (Gibbs) will love that.” All four JGR teams made the Chase, with Kenseth seeded third behind Busch, Carl Edwards is eighth and Denny Hamlin is 11th. With Bush having fought so hard to get back in the Chase, he knows the last thing he can afford is to make a mistake and be eliminated early.
PHOTO courtesy of Jonathan Ferrey/Nascar media
Kyle Busch has four wins on the year even after missing several races due to a broken leg. “I think the mindset is just the same as what we’ve been doing. Keep going, keep hitting it hard and don’t screw up,” he said. “That’s the biggest thing is just try not to make any mistakes. That’s the biggest thing about this Chase but with the given opportunity that you have now with win and you’re in or win and you transfer through you can make a mistake and come back but you better be good when you do come back.” Busch is looking forward to
kicking off the Chase Sunday in Joliet at the MyAFibRisk.com 400. “I think when you have good races and good cars and stuff like that it makes your job a heck of a lot easier going to the race track to be able to be competitive and to continue to strive and to push and to get those wins and have good finishes. Last year I’d say that our cars and stuff – our equipment we were just struggling. We were just off and we were just kind of missing something and with the
realignment of the crew chiefs and bringing on Carl (Edwards) this year and having that opportunity to have four cars I think just elevated our program and gave us everything that we needed in order to have a strong showing and we’ve proven that the last two, three months. “I think this year’s Chase is going to be a bit better than what last year’s Chase was. I think it’s going to be for an entertaining Chase.”
Nascar Notebook: Fan events and more By Mark Gregory sports reporter
mark@buglenewspapers.com @Hear_The_Beard
For the race fans, there are two special events going on Thursday, Sept. 17, the day before the racing begins. Both events are free to the public. In Joliet, the annual Race Fan Rally will be held from 4-10 pm in downtown Joliet and feature live music entertainment, vendors, beer tents, NASCAR driver appearances, a 50/50 raffle, race, show and classic cars on display and is concluded with a firework display. Headlining the entertainment will be Hairbanger’s Ball. Fans can also have their photo taken with the NASCAR SPRINT CUP in the rotunda of the Rialto Square Theatre. For those wanting a shot to see the 16 Sprint Cup drivers that qualified for the Chase, there is the NASCAR Chase Fest sponsored by Toyota. The fest will feature all 16 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series challengers
and have live concerts by country cover band the Suburban Cowboys and Grammy-nominated band, 3 Doors Down. Chase Fest will also take place Sept. 17 from 2-9 p.m. on Weed Street between Fremont and Kingsbury streets. NASCAR Chase Fest will feature appearances and autograph sessions from all 16 drivers competing in the Challenger Round, as well as a number of recognizable NASCAR personalities. Fans in attendance will be treated to food from renowned Dinosaur Bar-B-Que, beverages from Coors Light (with proper ID), attractions such as the Toyota Ferris Wheel and NASCAR on NBC Sports Bumper Cars, activations from event sponsor Sprint including an appearance by Miss Sprint Cup “The days leading into the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup have become a signature moment in our sport,” said Steve Phelps, NASCAR Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer. “With the support of Toyota, Sprint
and Chicagoland Speedway, we expect to deliver an engaging fan experience that builds anticipation for the most competitive stretch of our season.” Also, NBC Sports Network personalities Krista Voda, Kyle Petty, Marty Snider and Rutledge Wood will interview all 16 Challengers for the network’s live broadcast of NASCAR America. “NASCAR fans in Chicago and around the world have come to expect big things from the kickoff of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup in Chicago and this year is no exception,” said Scott Paddock, President of Chicagoland Speedway. “NASCAR Chase Fest is a dynamic event that segues nicely into the weekend where the celebration will continue at Chicagoland Speedway.”
GONE COUNTRY As a part of the prerace celebration, Paris, Illinois native Brett Eldredge will perform a concert Sunday, Sept. 20. The CMA New Artist of the Year
released his new single “Lose My Mind” earlier this summer. His debut album, Bring You Back, yielded the No. 1 hits “Don’t Ya,” “Beat of the Music,” and “Mean to Me.” The 29-year-old Eldredge was a student at Elmhurst College before moving to Nashville to chase his dreams. “Over the past several years we’ve had an opportunity to host some of the premier performers within the country music industry, and we’re looking forward to Brett Eldredge continuing that tradition,” said Scott Paddock, president of Chicagoland Speedway. “Including an artist of Brett’s caliber as part of our weekend festivities is an exciting addition for our track, NASCAR and particularly our fans, and the fact that he’s from our own backyard makes it even more special as we kick off the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.”
ICONS LEAD THE WAY Chicagoland
Speedway
announced 39-time Grand Slam tennis champion, Billie Jean King, and 14-time basketball All-Star, Jerry West, will serve as Grand Marshals for the MyAFibRisk.com. As part of AFib Awareness Month this September, Janssen, the official cardiovascular partner of NASCAR®, has teamed up with these two sports icons—Billie Jean King and Jerry West—to talk about a heart condition they share in common with millions of Americans. Atrial fibrillation, or AFib, is an irregular heartbeat that puts them at a one in three chance of having a stroke. Since diagnosis, West and King have been working with their doctors to start and stay on a treatment plan to help prevent a stroke due to AFib. Now they have teamed up to encourage people with AFib to understand their risk for stroke, which can change over time. Everyone living with AFib can quickly and easily calculate their personal stroke risk at www. MyAFibRisk.com.
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Thursday, September 17, 2015
Volume 128 No. 7
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Plainfield man shot to death at Aurora party Police say they are following several leads BY ENTERPRISE STAFF news@enterprisepublications.com @plainfieldNews
Park district removes basketball court amid HOA’s claims of crime, vandalism By Andrea Earnest | ENTERPRISE STAFF The Plainfield Park district will remove a basketball hoop from a park in the cambridge run subdivision, after the homeowners association complained that it was attracting crime and vandalism. John smolar, vice president of the cambridge Home association, spoke to the park district’s board of commissioners at its sept. 9 meeting, saying the neighborhood has experienced problems due to cambridge run park, located near renwick and weber roads. according
to smolar, teens and young adults hang out at the park’s basketball court and have been causing trouble for years. cambridge Home association’s board of directors wrote a letter to the park district formally requesting to have the basketball court removed. The Plainfield Park district will remove a basketball hoop from cambridge run park in the cambridge run subdivision near renwick and weber roads, after the homeowners association complained that it was attracting crime and vandalism.
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pHoTo BY JoNATHAN SAMpleS | eNTeRpRiSe STAFF
Park district staff has removed a basketball hoop at cambridge run park , which nearby residents say was attracting troublesome teens.
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A 23-year-old Plainfield man died after being shot in the head Sept. 5 outside of a party on Aurora’s near west side. Derrick Page, of the 2200 block of Covington Lane, was pronounced dead at 9:41 a.m., Sept. 6, at Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove, where he was transported after receiving initial treatment at an Aurora hospital early Sept. 5. Page was shot at approximately 12:45 a.m., Sept. 5, in the area of Lake Street and Illinois Avenue in Aurora. The preliminary investigation indicates that he had attended a large party that was being thrown in a rental hall in the 600 block of North Lake Street. Shortly before he was shot, a disturbance apparently erupted inside the party causing the attendees to run out of the building toward Illinois Avenue and across Lake Street. A fight then ensued on the east side of Lake and at least one shot was fired, which struck Page in the head. Aurora Police Investigators have not released any suspect descriptions, but police said they are following several leads. Police added that because a large number of people attended the party and because the shooting occurred at the intersection of two busy streets, they are confident that people have useful information and asking them to come forward. Aurora Police Investigators can be contacted at 630-2565500 and the Aurora Area Crime Stoppers can be reached at 630-892-1000.
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