Temperatures soar on track, under the collar

Forrest Gump's optimism derived from his Mama's philosophical teaching that "Life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get."

However, had Gump lived in Las Vegas in August, he would have known precisely what to expect: a box of melted goo.

In motor sports, you don't need 110-degree temperatures for a meltdown. In fact, some recent developments in the sport have raised my body temperature despite my passion for staying as close to an air conditioner as possible. Maybe I'll chill out if I unload some of what's made me even hotter this week.

• GAG ORDER, PLEASE -- Enough already with the soap opera between NASCAR and Jeremy Mayfield over his failed/passed drug tests. A judge needs to intervene and tell both parties to shut up and stop trying the case in the court of public opinion.

And it could get more unbearable. SceneDaily.com -- NASCAR's official, yet independent, news site -- reported that a trial won't begin before Sept. 13, 2010, in U.S. District Court in Charlotte, N.C.

Yes, that's 2010.

• SPONSORS DEPART -- This week's bleak economic news included Dewalt Tools leaving Roush Fenway Racing, Allstate pulling away from sponsoring the Sprint Cup race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and BMW leaving Formula One.

Las Vegas Motor Speedway needs sponsors for its Sept. 26 NASCAR truck race, the 2010 Sprint Cup race and its NHRA national event in April.

There is good news on the sponsor front for the IndyCar Series: It won't lose a sponsor -- but that's because it hasn't had one for eight years.

• NO. 48 IS HOT -- NASCAR probably hopes Jimmie Johnson doesn't get any hotter.

The three-time reigning Cup champion won Sunday at Indy and climbed to second in points. Johnson is a class act, but not a TV ratings buster. His lack of controversy leaves most fans lukewarm.

• NO. 18 IS NOT -- Kyle Busch needs to rekindle the fire under his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing team.

A 38th-place finish at Indy dropped him from favorite to win the championship to 14th in points, two spots out of the Chase with six races left before the cutoff.

After winning three of this year's first nine Cup races, Busch has two top-six finishes since.

NASCAR needs Busch and Tony Stewart battling for the championship.

• F1 LEGEND RETURNS -- Michael Schumacher said he's returning to Formula One out of loyalty to Ferrari, which helped make the seven-time champion a gazillionaire.

He's going to replace the injured Felipe Massa.

This is what the world's top series needs after enduring a year of headlines about two of its top executives having an affinity for Nazis and Hitler, a threatened split by race teams to form another series, and the loss of a major manufacturer.

Schumacher, 40, last raced in F1 three years ago.

• LAMB HOT IN GOOD WAY -- A few hot topics have kept me from a complete meltdown.

Such as Ford's decision to introduce Mustangs for its model in the NASCAR Nationwide series when new-styled cars are introduced midway through next year.

And the hottest Southern Nevada racer is not Kurt Busch, who is fourth in Cup points. It's 22-year-old Jason Lamb, who won the Super Comp title in the NHRA national event Sunday at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif. He also was runner-up in the Super Stock division.

The UNLV student has won three NHRA national event titles -- including one in Super Gas -- and advanced to five championship rounds this year.

Lamb is one of a handful of drag racers to win national titles in three categories. He also competes in Comp Eliminator at some races, and a victory there would match him with Jeg Coughlin Jr. as the only racer to own national titles in four NHRA categories.

That would be thermometer-popping hot.

Jeff Wolf's motor sports column is published Friday. He can be reached at jwolf@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0247. Visit Wolf's motor sports blog at lvrj.com/blogs/heavypedal/ throughout the week.