1 Is NASCAR really cracking down on the "start-and-park" teams?

When Aric Almirola finished last in last Sunday's Sprint Cup race in Las Vegas for the second week in a row, he found NASCAR inspectors waiting in the garage area for an inspection that matched those generally reserved for the top five finishers. Under NASCAR's latest edict, the lowest-finishing, non-wrecked car also will be inspected.

"We're just expanding our inspection process and making sure that everybody feels like everybody is on the same playing field, that's all," NASCAR vice president of competition Robin Pemberton said Sunday.

"It's all about making sure that the guys who get beat that don't make the race understand that the guys who get in the race, for the most part, are doing everything right."

That process included taking the engine back to the NASCAR research and development center in Concord, N.C., to be broken down.

According to SceneDaily.com, Pemberton said there's a possibility not all engines will be torn down but did acknowledge it could cost teams $30,000 for a rebuild.

Such teams already are strapped for cash and $30,000 is a big hit. Almirola made $79,000 for car owner James Finch on Sunday and $80,300 the week before at Fontana.

The solution? Run longer in the races and finish higher, not dropping out with a "vibration" or "rear gear," which has knocked out Boris Said two consecutive

weeks.

2 In less than a second, the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season literally turned upside down for the Upland-based Mountain View Racing Pro Stock team.

Vinnie Deceglie lost control of his 2010 Dodge Avenger during qualifying for the NHRA Arizona Nationals at Firebird International Raceway, escaping injury but destroying the car.

"It was like having black ice out there," said Deceglie, who knew the feeling from his days as a Long Island resident. Deceglie made a slight correction after hitting the transition from concrete to asphalt, flipping the car and sending it into the wall.

"I've driven cars faster than a Pro Stock car and been way out of shape, much more than I was in that run, but the car just flipped," said Deceglie, who also saw Gordie Rivera experience the same thing earlier in the day.

The Mountain View team will pull out last year's '09 Dodge Stratus for the March 12-14 event in Gainesville, Fla. The car, updated to meet safety standards, will be tested next Wednesday in Valdosta, Ga., before heading to Florida.

Car owner Nick Mitsos has ordered a new race car from Rick Jones, who will be able to salvage some parts. It will be about three months, however, before the new car will be ready, meaning Deceglie will have to drive the old car in Gainesville, Charlotte, N.C., and Las Vegas.

Because of the track issues at Firebird, NHRA will complete the Pro Stock class at Gainesville during Gatornationals qualifying.

3 Want to go fast? Real fast? Then the first Mojave Mile Shootout is the place to be Saturday.

Long a popular event in the Midwest and on the East Coast, the Mojave Mile Shootout is a speed competition based on the highest possible trap speed in one mile from a standing start. No need to worry about salt flats such as Bonneville or El Mirage, the event will be conducted on the 12,000-foot runway at Mojave Air and Space Port, a private airfield in Mojave.

Yes, the same airfield made famous by Burt Ruttan (for his 1986 around-the-world trip in Voyager) and Scaled Composites, the company building a spaceship for commercial purposes.

Two-wheeled motorcycles and 4-wheeled vehicles are eligible to compete in various classes, provided they meet stringent safety regulations. The first run is scheduled for 8 a.m.

As a result of the rules, no rental cars will be allowed to compete.

Only one car will run at any one time, with laser beams triggering the electronic timing. The "speed trap" used to measure speed will consist of the last 132 feet of the one-mile track. Each car will use a semi-standing start (20-foot prestart box) and no elapsed time will be kept.

4 Willow Springs Speedway will close out its Sunday afternoon winter series this week with the Hooper 100 late-model race and six other classes.

It's the late model race, though, that's attracting attention and entries. For openers, the winner's check will be $1,000 if there are at least 18 entries. Event organizers received 26 pre-race entries, with the possibility of more showing up on race day.

The field is limited to 22 cars, creating excitement for qualifying. It also will generate another level of intensity in the `B' main as drivers try to transfer into the final starting positions.

There's also bonus money to be claimed. The top qualifying time is worth a $100 bonus, and another $150 bonus is available for any late-model driver who breaks the division track record during qualifying. The fastest group of qualifiers in the trophy dash eye another $100 bonus.

And if that wasn't enough, there's posted lap money for the Hooper 100. Nearly 40 sponsors, many of them racing families, have put up $10 per lap, and that has added an additional $1,000.

Money is a factor, but many of the competitors are showing their respect for the late Richard Hooper.

"When it comes to stock car racing in the southwestern United States, Hooper remains a genuine icon," noted racing journalist Dave Grayson said. "He was the personification of the term `hard racing' and anyone who competed against him quickly learned that fact.

"Off the track, he was a true friend to every racer; Hooper truly cared about his fellow racers. It's not surprising at all that a special race held in his honor has generated so much interest."

Presented by Beyond Willow Springs Promotions, the weekend starts Saturday with a swap meet, followed by a test-and-tune session beginning at 10 a.m. Racing action begins at noon on Sunday.

5 In its 16 seasons of competition, the California Lightning Sprint Car Series has produced plenty of talent for the USAC/CRA Sprint Cars, the West Coast's premier series.

On Saturday, season No. 17 begins at Perris Auto Speedway. It'll be the first of 20 races at the track, unusual to the series in that the Lightning cars run the half-mile and the inner quarter-mile clay oval with and without wings. For the opener, the series will run on the big track with wings.

In addition to the speedway, the series will compete four times in Bakersfield and three times in Ventura, along with one stop at Santa Maria Speedway.

Defending USAC/CRA champion Mike Spencer is a CLS alum, as is points runner-up David Cardey and fifth-place finisher Greg Bragg, a three-time Lightning Sprint Car titlist.

The reigning series champion is Stuart Hielshier Sr., winner of two main events in 2009. Among other main-event winners returning are Bobby Bender (4), Stuart Hielschier Jr. (3), past series champion Brent Sexton (2) and Johnny Bluntach (2).