Gästeforum » stigma of the disappointing first i

ELKHART LAKE, Wis. -- If Sam Hornish Jr. could do it over, he would be more selective in the way he made the jump from open-wheel racing to NASCAR six years ago. Now, Hornish understands the value of having the right ride. So he relishes his shot to win in the Nationwide series this year -- even if those chances arent coming every week. Hornish, the 2006 Indianapolis 500 winner and a three-time series champion in Indy-style racing, is racing a part-time Nationwide schedule for Joe Gibbs Racing in 2014. Hes splitting the No. 54 car with Sprint Cup series star Kyle Busch, so hell only get to race when Busch cant. His next opportunity is Saturdays race at Road America, a scenic 4-mile road course that winds through the tree-lined hills of central Wisconsin. "There were a lot of people that had negative comments about the fact that I was running a part-time schedule," Hornish said. "But you need to look at what the 54 has done over the past couple of years, what the strength of the JGR organization is. I feel like Id rather have seven shots at it with an opportunity to win every time, rather than (a full schedule) and knowing that if I come home 10th, everybody on the team is going to be happy." Hornish took the part-time ride at Gibbs this year after losing his Nationwide ride at Team Penske; despite his second-place finish to Austin Dillon in the Nationwide drivers championship standings in 2013, his sponsorship dried up and the team didnt have a place for him. In three Nationwide races this year -- two in the No. 54 car and one in the No. 20 car -- he has a victory at Iowa, a second-place finish last week at Michigan and a fifth-place finish at Talladega. And he likes his chances at Road America, where he has finished fifth each of the past two years. Its one of Hornishs favourite tracks, one he visited as a fan on family vacations and raced on in open-wheel cars early in his career. "I remember sitting down in Turn 5 as a kid watching the Indy car race," Hornish says. "Any time you can go back to a place that you have these happy childhood memories from, from a vacation or whatever it happened to be, thats always a good thing." A win at Road America would add to the already compelling case Hornish is making for another shot at the top-tier Sprint Cup series, where hes still fighting the stigma of the disappointing first impression he made from 2008 to 2010. Getting back to Cup remains his ultimate goal, but he wont necessarily take any opportunity that comes his way. "Im going to be a little more choosy about that at this point in time, because I know that I cant carry the car," Hornish said. "Nobody can. You can put even the best drivers in the Cup series in a car thats not capable of running in the top 15, and they might get a 12th out of it a day here and there. But thats not enough to keep yourself where you want to be or to move up to that next ride." For now, Hornish wants to make the most of the opportunities he has while appreciating the additional time he has at home with his wife and three kids -- a different kind of full-time schedule. "I went to being kind of a glorified limo driver or taxi driver, taking kids here and there," Hornish says. "But its awesome. Theres been so many part of this year that I would have heard about, instead of being able to experience." Nike Air Max Günstig Kaufen . Hall joined Bengals teammates for a voluntary workout on Monday. Hes got his mobility back and is on schedule to be ready for the season. CINCINNATI - Bengals cornerback Leon Hall is happy with his recovery from a torn Achilles tendon and expects to be ready for the start of training camp in July. Air Max Günstig Outlet . - Chris Davis hit a two-run double, scoring Nelson Cruz in his Orioles debut in Baltimores 9-7 win over to the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday. http://www.schweizairmax.ch/. The defeat leaves the 41-year-old Nestor to concentrate on the mixed-doubles event after winning 12 straight matches and winning Australian titles in Brisbane and Sydney with two different partners. "This was a little bit of a let down, but all credit to them," said Nestor. Nike Air Max Schweiz Bestellen . On Thursday theyll learn even more. Despite the cloud of uncertainty that has followed them around from the moment general manager Masai Ujiri was brought in to put his stamp on the franchise, the Raptors have surpassed all pre-season expectations. Air Max Günstig Online Kaufen . The two teams will play through the completion of the game starting at 5pm ct on Wednesday. The regularly scheduled Wednesday night matchup will follow that and will now be seven innings.NEW YORK -- Kevin Youkilis is leaving the major leagues after an injury plagued season and heading to Japan. The three-time All-Star has agreed to a one-year contract with the Rakuten Golden Eagles of Japans Pacific League. "They made it very apparent right from the start they were quite interested in Kevin being there," agent Joe Bick said Friday. A 34-year-old first baseman and third baseman, Youkilis will have a $4 million base salary and can earn $1 million in bonuses -- including some based on walks, a provision not allowed in major league contracts. After nine seasons with the Boston Red Sox, Youkilis signed a $12 million, one-year deal with the New York Yankees. But his back started to bother him in mid-April, and an epidural injection didnt improve a lumbar spine sprain. Sidelined from April 27 to May 31, he went back on the DL on June 13, had surgery a week later to repair a herniated disk and didnt return.dddddddddddd Youkilis hit just .219 with two homers and eight RBIs over 28 games and 105 at-bats. "Theres no reason to believe hes anything less than 100 per cent," Bick said. "Workouts are going normally." Youkilis has a .281 average in 10 big league seasons with 150 homers and 618 RBIs, and he earned a World Series ring with the 2007 Red Sox. At Rakuten, Youkilis may become teammates with star pitcher Masahiro Tanaka, who went 24-0 last season, While Tanaka wants to join the major leagues, Rakuten is reluctant to make him available in the new posting season, and the 25-year-old right-hander cant leave as a free agent until after the 2015 season. "We were talking with eight or nine other clubs over here," Bick said. "In the final analysis, he said the right thing for my family and me is to go do this. It will be a wonderful life experience." ' ' '