■ Brad Keselowski met with top NASCAR officials for about 20 minutes before yesterday's race at Phoenix International Raceway, where he had yet another on-track run-in with Denny Hamlin.
Keselowski was summoned to a closed-door meeting in the NASCAR truck with president Mike Helton, vice president of competition Robin Pemberton and Nationwide Series director Joe Balash to discuss growing tension among rival drivers about Keselowski's aggressive nature.
NASCAR chairman Brian France entered the truck mid-meeting.
"I really respect the fact that Brian France walked in there, that meant a lot to me," Keselowski said after the meeting. "It's really the first time I've ever had a conversation with him. I think that's a good sign for the sport that he was involved in that conversation."
At issue is an escalating feud with Hamlin. Contact between the two has led to five Hamlin wrecks dating back to last season, and the latest came in Saturday's Nationwide race at PIR. Hamlin hit Keselowski on a restart, and Keselowski retaliated by hitting him back to knock Hamlin's car out of line. He then followed with a second hit that wrecked Hamlin.
"The second time was a little overboard," Pemberton said.
Hamlin has vowed revenge in next week's Nationwide finale at Homestead, pretty much promising to wreck Keselowski.
■ Chip Ganassi has had a seat to fill since July, when Martin Truex Jr. said he'd leave the No. 1 Chevrolet for Michael Waltrip Racing next season.
Ganassi vowed to take his time replacing Truex, and has: With one week left in the season, he's yet to announce a replacement.
That could change next week, though. Ganassi said before yesterday's race that he should be able to discuss the Earnhardt Ganassi Racing lineup next week.
Although Ganassi declined to discuss specifics, he's expected to reunite with Jamie McMurray, who left his team to drive for Roush Fenway Racing in 2006. But Roush has to cut a team at the end of the year to meet NASCAR's four-car cap, and McMurray is his only driver in a contract year.
■ A van carrying crew members for Dale Earnhardt Jr. was involved in an accident outside Phoenix International Raceway yesterday morning.
No one was injured, although some of the crewmen did go to the infield medical center for evaluation.
"All I know is they were stopped and they got run into," team owner Rick Hendrick said. "They are all OK."
■ Mark Martin used the question-and-answer period of the pre-race driver meeting to ask the competitors to be careful entering pit road.
Martin raised his hand when race director David Hoots opened the floor for questions, but instead made a statement.
"In green-flag pit stops, everybody needs to be conscious of not going into the corner and washing up into the second lane and then turning down pit road," Martin said. "Some of the worst wrecks I've been in have been like that and last week was close a couple times. All you've got to do is go in the corner and stay on the white line. And of course, waving (to signal to the drivers behind you), too."
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