Hamilton has  liabilities of $1,293,543. More than $929,000 of the liabilities are property mortgages or loans, while he also lists owing the Internal Revenue Service $198,000 for 2005 taxes. In the filing, he listed assets of $551,825 .

The annual race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway is one of the more popular on the NASCAR circuit, as it pairs exciting racing with the chance to visit Las Vegas for an amazing vacation in its own right. Add into the mix hundreds of thousands of racing fans who descend on the city during a race weekend and you have the perfect combination for fans — getting to see a Sprint Cup race and escaping from the worries of the real world for a weekend.

Sportsbooks in Las Vegas have offered the chance to bet on NASCAR races for years. But now, much of the action is available online as well, with online casinos offering sportsbooks that include the chance to bet on NASCAR, NFL, MLB, and other major sports. It’s simple to open an account and just takes a few minutes, and many sites offer free contests and other promotions that you can enter and compete in without ever depositing any money whatsoever.

If you do decide that you’d like to put a bet on your favorite driver, it’s safe and quick to deposit money to your account, with a variety of methods offered as far as both depositing and withdrawing money. Many online sites also offer special bonuses for new players, which can double or triple the amount you initially deposit — much better deals than you’ll find at casinos in Las Vegas or other gambling areas!

MWR executive vice president Steve Hallam is rumored to be the one who will oversee MWR’s Grand Am effort.  Hallam joined MWR before the 2009 NASCAR season, leaving his job as head of race operations for McLaren in Formula 1 where he won a World Driving Championship with Lewis Hamilton.

There has been no word on what make or model of car MWR would field, but Waltrip and Kauffman recently drove a Ferrari 458 Italia in the 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race at Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans, France. The Ferrari was prepared by an Italian team, AF Corse SRL.

Rui Águas also drove with Waltrip and Kauffman. They qualified 44th out of 56 cars, and 15th in the GT Endurance Pro category. They did not finish the race, but were scored in 38th place overall and 13th in the GTE Pro category after completing 178 laps, 136 fewer than class winner Corvette Racing.

This year, ACP has improved the cooling system of its drive system, which the company predicts will help the car climb the hill in the 12-minute range. Last year’s time was 13 minutes and 17.575 seconds.

The vehicle is a rear-wheel drive, open-wheel car with lithium-ion batteries from Sanyo Electric Co. It will use Yokohama BluEarth tires, which are designed to conserve fuel. It will be driven by Ikuo Hanawa, who also drove the car that won the Exhibition Class last year.

This news, coupled with the news of an London-based, electric-vehicle racing series called EV Cup that is launching this year, makes the possibility of an electric Sprint Cup car more realistic than it once was.

Two years ago, I wrote an article about this very idea. I still maintain that a move to electric cars is not that ridiculous. With that said, we’re decades away from that I think. But with the development and refinement of hybrid and electric race car technology, the likelihood continues to increase, even if ever so slightly.

The EV Cup will run two races this season, one at Mazda Laguna Seca in November and one at Auto Club Speedway in December.  A full season is set to run in 2012, though tracks have not yet been publicized.

Still, a move to electric cars would not be well received by the current crop of NASCAR fans. For example, few things match the sound of a pushrod, V8 circling the track. Sure it’s loud, but that’s the point. Electric vehicles cannot match that sound.

Last year, Mike Monticello of Road & Track called the ACP car his “least favorite” car at Pikes Peak. He wrote:

I know, I know, I’m supposed to be embracing all this ‘green’ technology, but the car I liked the least at the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb was the electric EV Sports Concept HER-02 buggy piloted by Ikuo Hanawa. Nothing against Hanawa, but if you need to have chimes ringing on your car, as Hanawa did, so that onlookers know to skedaddle off the road as you drive up the hill, then there’s something wrong with your race car. … A proper racing car should be loud, like the Super Stock class cars of Layne Schranz (a full-on Chevy Monte Carlo NASCAR stocker) and Steve Goeglein (Chevy Camaro), the bellowing V8s of which raised the hairs on the back of your neck whenever they thundered by.

That will make a switch to electric cars in NASCAR virtually impossible any time soon because, simply put, the fans won’t like it and they are what drives the sport, monetarily.

For comparison purposes, the motor in this year’s car, the AC-180, will be similar to ACP’s AC-150 motor, which is used in BMW’s Mini E. The AC-180 produces 268 HP at 6,000 – 7,000 RPM and 258 ft/lb of torque from zero to 5,000 RPM. A Sprint Cup pushrod V8 produces 850 HP at 9,000 RPM and 550 ft/lb of torque at 7,500 RPM.

Electric technology has a long way to go to produce that kind of power, which means it’s a long way off.

What do you think? Would you be opposed to electric cars in NASCAR?

A great movie line is the perfect means of personal expression, as is a great T-shirt. Muze has combined the two to bring you your new favorite shirt.

Muze provides both a physical and digital identity to the vast number of people who use movie quotes to express themselves.  The high-quality, premium shirts are made in the USA, and are worn by several A-list celebrities as their personal statements, and are sold online.

The company features designs from Days of Thunder and Talladega Nights.

About Muze Clothing

Born out of an appreciation and dedication to classic movie lines, Muze is a lifestyle brand where movie quotes and fashion collide to bring you your new favorite shirt. Muze partners with celebrities and athletes, enabling them to leverage the power of the brand for the causes they support, thereby leading the evolution of fashion with a social conscience.

About Lead-Lap.com

Lead-Lap.com is a fast-growing NASCAR news website that was founded in 2008 by journalist, Michael J. Smith. His goal is to provide NASCAR coverage that is interesting, informative, and presented in a manner that maintains the utmost professionalism and journalistic integrity.

About Double L Media

Double L Media is a blog management and social media consultancy that specializes in helping organizations develop strategies for social business initiatives.

For more information about Double L Media, visit doublelmedia.com.

TGUS will feature the same format as the UK version, with a trio of hosts: Actor/comedian Adam Ferrera (Rescue Me and Paul Blart: Mall Cop), NASCAR analyst and SPEEDtv host Rutledge Wood, and stunt driver Tanner Foust. The show wouldn’t be complete without a US version of its tame racing driver, the Stig. (Note: This Stig is not as fat as the Stig’s American cousin.)

Much like the UK version, the US version will feature super cars, unique challenges, extreme stunts, and celebrities driving timed laps in a “reasonably priced car.” Tony Hawk, Tim Allen, Buzz Aldrin, Kid Rock, and Bret Michaels are some of the stars featured in the first round of the segment.

Unfortunately, what makes the original version so appealing is the chemistry and charm of its hosts, Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May. Their US counterparts may not have the same chemistry, which could end up dooming the show.

Also, with the series being on a smaller cable channel, there’s a chance that it could not attract the advertisers and fans needed to sustain such an expensive show.

Still, I’m willing to give the show a chance. But, if you’re a fan of the UK version of the show, please take this advice: Don’t look for the original TG in the US version. If you do, chances are, you’ll be very disappointed.

Here is a trailer:

To test this theory, Mike Wise, a sports columnist for the Washington Post, tweeted on Monday that Ben Roethlisberger would receive a five-game suspension from the NFL. Roethlisberger is slated to miss six games currently, but he is meeting with the NFL commissioner this week in the hopes of getting that suspension reduced.

The problem was that Wise made up the tweet just to see if  it would be picked up by news sources, and some reputable ones did. When the tweet was revealed to be a hoax perpetrated by Wise himself, there was some minor outrage. Wise issued a written apology, and was suspended from the Washington Post for one month – with some at the newspaper saying he is lucky he wasn’t fired.

As a professional journalist, and blogger, I understand the point Wise was trying to make. I’ve seen a lot of erroneous information spread via social media in my two and a half years covering NASCAR for my blog. Just this summer, it was reported that Mark Martin was headed to Red Bull Racing in 2011, allowing Kasey Kahne to take over driving duties of the No. 5 Chevy.

While this rumor wasn’t a deliberate fabrication like Wise’s – I don’t think – it did spread enough to force Martin’s business manager and RBR officials to deny the report.

These inaccurate rumors did not gain traction because people don’t check the facts, as Wise contends. They were spread because the sources that started them have credibility. In Wise’s case, he is a Washington, DC radio personality and a sports columnist for the Post. If anyone has reputable sources, he does. So, more stock is put into what he says, or tweets as it were, than someone without his credentials or credibility. The same goes for most, if not all, journalists with reputable news organizations.

If SuprDaleJrFan88 tweets that Dale Earnhardt Jr is retiring to pursue an acting career, no major NASCAR news outlet would pick it up without verifying the information with a credible source. And, most fans wouldn’t believe it. If Jeff Gluck, Jenna Fryer, Marty Smith or David Newton (to name a few) tweeted it on any other day than April 1st, people would believe it (assuming they didn’t quantify it as a joke or rumor). They’re all reputable, and cover NASCAR for reputable organizations. So, their words and tweets carry more weight than the words of a random tweeter. Their reporting is taken at face value because people assume that they did the legwork to verify it.

That’s not to say that people (non-journalists) should spread rumors. But, they don’t have the same responsibility as journalists to vet a story because they’re not expected to be credible, nor are they making claims of the accuracy of what they’re spreading. Their tweets don’t carry the same weight as a journalists.   

And that’s the reason Wise’s experiment was a failure. If he really wanted to test his theory, he should have tweeted from an anonymous Twitter account, which wouldn’t have his credibility attached to it, and see whether or not it would’ve been picked up. I highly doubt it would’ve been given a second look – at least by media outlets.

One NASCAR.com (which is owned by Turner Sports and Entertainment Digital, not NASCAR itself) writer was covering a dust-up between a crew chief and a driver back in 2005. Seeking comment for a follow-up story, the reporter contacted the crew chief. The crew chief wasn’t pleased with the attention story was getting, and called it a lie. He also said he would contact NASCAR, presumably to complain about the story.

The reporter was later fired for violating the company’s email policy. Many contend, however, that issue with the crew chief was the reason for the firing.

The other writer worked for a media outlet that was purchased by an entity owned by International Speedway Corporation, a company founded by NASCAR founder Bill France Sr. The writer was vocal in his criticisms of the sport – this was also back in 2005 – and was let go for reasons that don’t appear to be publicized. Many contend, however, that he was fired due to his criticisms and the company’s NASCAR-affiliated ownership.

I can’t say with any certainty whether or not those firings were due to NASCAR pressure, no matter how much it appears like that is the case. But, let’s say, for the sake of this article, they were. Is it illegal?

Simply put, no, it’s not illegal. CBS News featured an AP article discussing what recourse private-sector employees have if they feel they’ve been wrongfully terminated. Charles Craver, of George Washington Law School, said, “Private-sector employees don’t have rights.” They can be terminated for any legal reason (assuming there is no employment contract expressing otherwise). Illegal reasons include whistleblowing and discrimination (race, age, sex, disability, etc.)

To win a wrongful termination suit for an illegal reason, the burden of proof is on the plaintiff, and you need hard evidence to prove that the firing was wrongful. In these two cases, there is nothing to indicate that the firings were illegal, which probably explains why no suits were filed.

In the case I used in my other article, Korb v. Raytheon, Korb’s firing did not violate public policy because he was not fired for speaking out on issues in which his employer had no interest, financial or otherwise. In his case, Korb spoke out against issues in which Raytheon had substantial interest; his comments came at Raytheon’s expense. And, in the case of these two writers, both of their employers have substantial interest in NASCAR.

Despite not doing anything particularly egregious, the reporter in the first case – assuming that the firing was due to the complaint – is unlikely to win a suit based on Korb. In Korb, two Navy officials, an official from the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Air Force officials complained, resulting in his termination. That’s not much different than a crew chief complaining to NASCAR officials, who then complain to the media company. So, it is unlikely that NASCAR’s pressure – if it existed — to fire the writer would change the outcome in a suit.

In the second case, when ISC purchased the media company, it could conceivably be assumed that the writers were no longer independent journalists. Under the new ownership, it can be assumed – without making a claim as to whether it is right or wrong – that they are now spokesmen for the sport, even if the ties to NASCAR were not direct.

From a business perspective, what sense would it make for an organization to buy a media company if the goal wasn’t to shape the product (the news) into what they wanted? At the very least, the media company would protect NASCAR’s interests. And, as far as I know, that’s not illegal.

Note: Without going into too much detail, the way media companies are owned and operated, it’s virtually impossible for any media outlet to be 100% free of any bias, as most that are independent still rely on advertising. Do you think an advertiser would continue to pay a company in which its employees (writers) continually badmouth its products and/or services?

If that’s the case – that the writers became spokesmen for the sport – then being critical of the sport is speaking against their employer’s interests. NASCAR has a financial stake in not letting that happen. And, with the media company now being owned by a NASCAR-affiliated entity (plus the changing focus of the company – from news organization to NASCAR-owned organization), it could be argued that the reporter is no longer effective at being a NASCAR spokesman, which means the employer has the right to fire the employee because there is no public policy preventing an ineffective, at-will employee from being discharged.

This doesn’t mean that the reporter in the second case is not entitled to his opinion; he certainly is. But, he can’t criticize NASCAR at NASCAR’s expense, much like the court ruled in Korb. And, by being an employee for a NASCAR-affiliated entity, his comments came at NASCAR’s expense.

I’m not indicating one way or another whether or not the termination of these two writers is right or wrong, or that NASCAR’s pressure had anything to do with the firings.

While I do think that journalists should have the right to express their opinions, I also realize that it is an employer’s right to punish its employees if they speak out against its interests. And, it isn’t illegal to do so.

If a journalist is employed by a company owned by NASCAR, it shouldn’t be surprising if they are reprimanded for being critical of the sport. If an employee is critical of their employer, they can and should expect repercussions. Companies are well within their rights to punish those who work for them and speak out against their interests.

I said in my earlier article, drivers are agents for the sport, journalists are not. But, there is a caveat: when journalists work for an organization that is directly affiliated with NASCAR, they are agents for the sport, and are probably going to be treated as such. Again, I’m not arguing whether this is right or wrong; it’s just the way it is.

The Huffinton Post features a slideshow of instances where employees were fired for criticizing their employers or customers via social media.

Patrick garnered a lot of press attention in her decision to move over to stock cars, and she garnered a lot of attention in the ARCA race coverage. At one point, I could have sworn it said the ARCA Danica Racing Series. Of course, I could be mistaken.

Patrick proved to be a quick study, staying in the lead draft and stayed out of trouble for the first half of the race. Around lap 50, she got loose, and out of the groove. She was quickly shuffled to the back. Three laps later, Nelson Piquet Jr, the former Formula One driver who was also making his stock car debut, made contact with Patrick, sending her spinning through the infield grass.

Patrick made an amazing save — at one point completely letting go of the wheel (she may have been praying) — and kept the car off the wall. (Conspiracy theorists might speculate that her car was radio controlled.)

She made two pit stops to stay on the lead lap and used a late caution to catch the lead draft. She battled back to a very respectable sixth place finish.

Patrick stayed calm and cool in the race car and was very patient, something she’s not really known for in Indy Car.

As we all know, one race does not a stock car career make, but she did exactly what she had to in her first outting. Good for her.

On Monday, the decision will be made as to whether or not she starts the Nationwide Series opener at Daytona.

I have an unwavering faith in the company’s leadership team and our government’s commitment to support this reorganization. After all of the efforts of the past several months, it’s unfortunate that bankruptcy has become the only option, but we at Hendrick Automotive Group and Hendrick Motorsports are certain that GM will emerge from this stronger and better equipped to compete than ever before.

He added that service will not be affected at his 27 GM franchises. This includes warranties and parts, he said.

In conclusion, he said:

It has been a great privilege to be a small part of GM’s rich history, and we are looking forward to an even brighter future together.