Irwindale Speedway looks like they will not be open for the 2012 racing season.  The fast half-mile facility is showing tell-tale signs of a shutdown according to the local newspaper, The Daily News.

The story details the dismantling of the pit grandstands and moving vans at the facilities offices.  It is a sad day for Southern California race fans facing the impending closure of another racing facility in its prime.  Irwindale Speedway took up the slack as the only racing facility in the Los Angeles area when Ascot Park closed their doors in the '90s.

Irwindale Speedway hosted the annual Turkey Night Grand Prix, the last big open wheel race of the year and a Southern California tradition dating back to the early days of racing.  The facility also hosted the official kickoff of the NASCAR season with the Toyota Showdown every January.

Many drivers from around the country tested their mettle on the fast and dangerous half-mile along with several NASCAR drivers every season.  Joey Logano counts Irwindale's Toyota Showdown among his favorite races every season.  Tony Stewart, Jason Leffler and Kasey Kahne are just a few NASCAR standouts who have taken a spin on famous track.

Now it looks like the Irwindale Speedway will fade into obscurity like other great Los Angeles area tracks of the past.  Ascot Park, Gilmore Field, Saugus Speedway and Legion Ascot Speedway to name just a few of the historic tracks bulldozed in the Los Angeles area.

Maybe someone will step up and save the speedway from demolition.  Maybe someone with a sense of history by the name of Tony Stewart or Darrell Waltrip.  Both racers have an affinity for the short track and maybe one or both can get together the sponsorship dollars to keep the facility operating.  The odds are long but Southern California race fans can dream of a last second savior instead of facing up to the nightmare of another closed racing facility.

Danica Patrick is guaranteed a spot in the 2012 Daytona 500 but is this a potential nightmare for NASCAR Sprint Cup.  Patrick will be jumping into the cockpit of her Stewart Haas Racing No. 10 Go Daddy Chevy for the first points race of her career in NASCAR's elite series.

Another rookie, Trevor Bayne, won the Daytona 500 as a 20-year-old rookie last season.  This is leading many to speculate that Patrick has an opportunity to set NASCAR racing on its ear by capturing a top ten in the most prestigious race on the calendar. 

Patrick had a chance to win at Daytona in a NASCAR Nationwide car last season and in this year's Great Amercian Race she will have two Stewart Haas Racing teammates and four Hendrick Motorsports teammates in her corner.  Tony Stewart and Ryan Newman are Patrick's immediate teammates and the Hendrick Motorsports camp includes:  Patrick's Nationwide car owner, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kasey Kahne, Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson.

There is one more car who will have a Hendrick Motorsports engine under the hood and that is Kurt Busch racing for Phoenix Racing.  Busch is famous for being the man behind the Daytona 500 winner and he owns his share of top five finishes in the classic race.  With all this help behind her, it is up to Danica Patrick to survive 500 miles and be there at the end.

Patrick had suffered through her share of crashes and setbacks last season but now she is committed full time and NASCAR is banking on her to be relevant.  The NASCAR Nationwide series is suffering lower attendance numbers and a big win in the Daytona 500 would be International news and carry over the Nationwide series.

The problem is getting to the finish.  This year there is potential for pack racing to return to Daytona and if the drivers run in packs, Danica does not have the experience to compete in the rough and dangerous packs.  She will either go to the back and stay out of trouble or she will learn how to drive inches apart in a pack of 30 to 40 cars.

Inexperience will be Patrick's downfall but she will learn in the 300 mile NASCAR Nationwide race on the Saturday before the 500.   She will also race in the Gatorade Duels with no repercussions if she fails to finish.  The Duels will tell us what kind of Daytona 500 Danica will have.

If Danica does trigger the wreck that causes a 10-15 car pile-up, she will be haunted by the crash all season.  With the pressure to stay out of trouble hanging over her, it will be hard for her to succeed in her first ever Daytona 500.  Her car owner Tony Stewart once triggered one of the most horrifying crashes in Daytona 500 history, barrel rolling down the back stretch.  Stewart triggered the accident by attempting to pass below the yellow line, a rookie mistake that eliminated half the field.

If Danica Patrick succeeds with Kurt Busch pushing her to the front in two Hendrick Motorsports satellite cars the story will be off the charts.  Patrick and Busch will undergo the most scrutiny in the weeks leading up to the Daytona 500 and both could change many opinions with a big showing in the big race.

A.J. Allmendinger, fresh off his signing with the "Captain" Roger Penske, won his first race of 2012 in Daytona this weekend.  Allmendinger made the winning pass in the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona to give Michael Shank Racing the victory over Chip Ganassi's team led by Scott Pruett.

Allmendinger was one of four drivers in the Michael Shank Racing Ford-Riley.  He combined with Shank regulars Ozz Negri and John Pew, along with IndyCar star Justin Wilson.  Allmendinger looked like a regular during his stints and when he took over for the final push to the checker he got to rub fenders NASCAR style en route to the victory.

Allen McNish was not happy with A.J.'s pass with 2:17 remaining and he drifted up into Allmendinger to let him know his disapproval.  The two crinkled some body work but the Shank Racing Ford crossed the finish line with a more than a five second advantage. 

Michael Shank Racing never won the coveted 24 Hours of Daytona but this weekend the team placed two cars on the podium.  The team's second car, driven in the final stretch by 19-year-old Felipe Nasr of Brazil finished the marathon in third place.

Another NASCAR Sprint Cup driver stood atop the podium for the GT Class.  Andy Lally, NASCAR Sprint Cup Rookie of the Year, brought home the hardware for the No. 44 Magnus Racing Porsche.  John Potter, Richard Lietz and Rene Rast split time with Lally to win the event.

"I absolutely knew we had the potential to do it," Lally said, beaming after the victory.  "It was a pleasure to be able to join the team. It was absolutely epic to come home . . . on the top step, especially the 50th."

Juan Pablo Montoya did not fair as well as his fellow NASCAR Sprint Cup competitors, racing for the second Ganassi Racing team.  Montoya finished a lap down in fourth place overall.

Kurt and Kyle Busch pulled out all the stops to announce their new goal of winning the NASCAR Nationwide owners championship with Kyle Busch Motorsports in 2012.  The team secured the sponsorship support of extreme sports sponsors, Monster Energy drink and the company shuttled all of their action sports stars to North Carolina to help make the announcement.

Kyle Busch unveiled the No. 54 Monster Energy Toyota Camry and detailed his plan to dominate the NASCAR Nationwide series with his own team in 2012.  Kyle has driven the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota in NASCAR Nationwide and now will embark on his own venture with his brother Kurt.

Monster pulled out all the stops to help KBM announce the deal.  There were plenty of motocross acrobatics including back flips and heel clickers well above the KBM complex as befuddled old school NASCAR media writers looked on.  Jamie Bestwick, extreme sports star and Monster's master of ceremonies, welcomed Kyle and Kurt to the Monster family and expressed his own desire to get behind the wheel of one of the new Monster Toyotas.

Bestwick joked,  "Now that you've joined Monster you may have to try a back flip yourself," said Bestwick, adding, "all of us want to take some of your 650-horsepower cars here in the shop out for a 180 mile per hour spin, by the way. Keys, please."

Kyle laughed at the prospect,  "I'm thrilled to a be part of a team of athletes like this, but I'll pass on back flipping."

"Since debuting in NASCAR, Kyle Busch Motorsports has had the goal to add a championship-caliber Nationwide Series team to our organization. With today's announcement of Monster Energy as primary sponsor and my brother Kurt as the second driver, we've accomplished that goal," Kyle stated confidently.

"Monster Energy has always stood for competing and winning no matter what the sport,"  Monster Energy Co. president Mark Hall said as he was equally excited at the prospect of having his company on a championship Caliber team. "To make this happen, we've always sought out the most determined, fearless and committed athletes for the Monster team. With the Busch brothers sharing the wheel of Kyle Busch Motorsports Energy Camry, we have reason to believe we have drivers capable of running up front every weekend."

Richard Petty said last week he could not find a suitable sponsor for Kurt Busch when he attempted to put the elder Busch in the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford.  Petty said at the time no one would step up and sponsor Busch.  Another reason behind Petty passing on Busch is the tie between Jack Roush and RPM.  Roush and Busch ended their relationship on bad terms and it would have been a sticky situation to bring Busch into the Ford camp with Roush as the head honcho.

Can Kyle and Kurt dominate NASCAR Nationwide in 2012?  There is no doubt the team will be up front in every race and they are an instant favorite with Kevin Harvick selling out to Richard Childress Racing and Kyle Busch leaving Joe Gibbs team in the Nationwide series. 

How many wins can the new team amass in one season?  10? 15?  According to Kurt Busch, he believes they can sweep the series, and win all 33 races.  Nothing like setting the bar high.  Make no mistake, if this team wins more than half the races on the schedule it will be one of the top five stories of the year.  A story of redemption and family.  Putting the Busch brothers in the same car for a season will be must-see television on Fridays and Saturdays and ESPN will be all over it. 

Beware Busch brother haters.  This will be a long season if you hate to see a Busch in victory lane because they will live there in 2012.

NASCAR's first testing session in 2012 at Daytona Superspeedway resulted in some surprises good and bad for established teams and teams that are on a shoestring budget.

The fastest cars on Day One of testing are two independent teams with connections to the big three teams.  Kurt Busch registered the top speed of 206.058 mph on the first day and Regan Smith topped out at 206.053 mph.

Both drivers are working for independent car owners with ties to the most successful race teams in NASCAR.  Busch is now driving for James Finch at Phoenix Racing and his No. 51 Chevy is powered by a Hendrick Motorsports engine along with utilizing Hendrick Motorsports technology and information.

Regan Smith is in the same situation as Busch.  His car owner, Barney Visser, has an agreement with Richard Childress Racing and their engine building plant, Earnhardt Childress Racing Engines.  The power plant  and the Childress car bodies helped the tam to their first win at Darlington and also helps this team compete on the big tracks like Daytona and Talladega.

Kyle Busch was the best of the big three NASCAR teams timing in behind the two fast independents.  Danica Patrick ran the 15th fastest speed with her car owner Tony Stewart teaching her the ins and outs of drafting at Daytona.  Patrick and Stewart had a close call when Danica shoved the current champ at the wrong time.

NASCAR is already fearful of the high speeds being attained this weekend.  Director of Competition John Darby wanted to see how the cars reacted in a pack of cars.  Darby said,  “That’s something we need. It’s a piece of the master equation, if you will, as we close in on a package to come back to Speed Weeks with."

This test session is just as much for the NASCAR inspectors as it is for the drivers and crew chiefs.  NASCAR eliminated the communication between other teams and forced all the drivers to only communicate with their crew chief and no one else.

More rules package changes were smaller radiators with a maximum of a two-gallon capacity, smaller overflow tank with maximum capacity of a ½ gallon, radiator inlet moved close to the front bumper area, softer springs, smaller rear spoiler and a larger restrictor plate.

So what did we learn this week in Daytona?  The independent teams led by Kurt Busch, Regan Smith, Dave Blaney and David Reutimann will play a major role in the 2012 Daytona 500 and the Gatorade Duels leading up to the Great American Race.  Another thing learned by the teams was how to work without open communication between other teams.

The best bit of information learned during the three days of testing was that 2012 will be the most wide open season in recent memory.  Buckle those seat belts NASCAR fans this will be wild season.

David Reutimann will race in NASCAR Sprint Cup in 2012 and he can be competitive in Daytona right off the bat.  Reutimann will race a second car for Tommy Baldwin Racing and will be teammates with Dave Blaney.

Blaney ran up front during most of the Daytona 500 in 2011 and now he will have  a teammate to push him up front once the cars break off into tandem pairings.  Blaney and Kevin Harvick spent much of the 2011 race stuck to each others bumpers but now Blaney can hook up with an experienced restrictor plate driver in Reutimann.

Reutimann is a niche driver in NASCAR.  He is horrible on the road courses but does better on the mile and a half tracks.  Reutimann scored only three top tens in 2011:  He finished second at Kentucky, ninth at Charlotte for the Coca-Cola 600 and seventh in Phoenix, a flat mile track.

Reutimann is a good fit for Tommy Baldwin.  He is a big enough name to give the team a legitimate driver but he is also inexpensive enough to work with Baldwin to help the team remain profitable.

Baldwin and Reutimann's entire season will ride on the Daytona Speedweeks.  The team can pay for a substantial portion of their schedule with two solid top ten finishes in the Daytona 500 and with the tandem draft it is a definite possibility.

Dave Blaney is locked into the Daytona 500 field after finishing 32nd in the NASCAR Sprint Cup points and the team can help Reutimann focus on making the race during the Gatorade Duels the Thursday before the race.

This move by Baldwin is either an indication he is stepping up to legitimately race a full schedule with two teams or that he is planning on running two start and park cars all season.  I think he is ready to step up and join the ranks of legitimate teams in NASCAR and I sincerely hope he does not park his two cars before the first pit stops every race this season.