Author: Ron Thornton

[media-credit name=”Credit: Jerry Markland/Getty Images for NASCAR” align=”alignright” width=”250″][/media-credit]With this having been the Canadian Thanksgiving weekend, there are a number of things I am thankful for. Among them is the track in Talladega, Alabama and a race that lived up to expectations. A race where I watched lap after lap and did not feel compelled to wander away to find a ball game of some sort to break the monotony.

The sweeping camera angles as the cars flashed by going nose to tail at high speeds. No way on God’s green earth could we find ourselves heading down a local through-fare with that much trust in those idiots around us, never mind there was not a brake light to be found between them. Even if there were, it would only indicate an impact was probably forthcoming in the next split second.

I like to think that I am a pretty good driver, but I know that running even at close quarters at Richmond or Martinsville would be more than I could handle. What Talladega does is it brings that reality in no uncertain terms to the television audience. We ride with the boys on the seat of our pants while sitting in our favorite chair at home, knowing that even the slightest miscue could take out half the field. If only they could find the camera angles, to discover the shots, that could bring it home to us from all the tracks and not just the super speedways. That would be something.

We got a three car wreck early, just to remind us that these gents are just fooling around early. Carl Edwards went from minding his own business to riding around in a junker as even Landon Cassill drove away from him.

We got Kurt Busch losing power, finding the fence, and just when he has emergency crews leaning in his windows, a bag of their gear atop the car, and even with his own helmet off, Busch fires it up and droves off. NASCAR parked him for his recklessness, but he then proceeds to do all the right things, thanking his crew, giving them hugs, talking sweetly to the cameras. You want to like the guy, but he had just done something stupid, endangering others. Busch finished 39th, the guy he replaces next week in the Furniture Row entry was 5th. At least, I think NASCAR will still let him race next week.

We watched the tight, high speed action. We saw some incredible saves. We also saw one hell of a mess when Michael Waltrip got pushed into Tony Stewart on the final lap, and discovered once again why none of these cars have collision insurance. Matt Kenseth took his little pink car to the winner’s circle, yet sits 12th in the Chase more than 60 points behind Brad Keselowski, who was 7th. Jimmie Johnson is 14 points back, the only guy within 20 of the leader, and he finished 17th in a smoking heap of metal.

I admit, Talladega spoils me, as does Daytona, yet we also have Bristol and Charlotte to usually provide us with a great level of televised excitement. Next weekend, they return home, to the home of the World 600, home of the All-Star race, and home to this Saturday night’s Bank of America 500 in Charlotte, North Carolina. As for the Chase, even with six to go it is all but over unless, or until, Mr. Keselowski has himself a bad day.

Finally, there are those who claim that Talladega is not racing. Maybe they are right, just like the forward pass is not true football or home runs have no place in baseball. However, I know what I like. I watched each and every lap on Sunday. I just wish more televised races caused me, and you, to do the same. Enjoy the week.

[media-credit id=26 align=”alignright” width=”238″][/media-credit]I keep running Sunday’s highlight over and over in my mind. It was incredible. A soon to be 39 year old dashing to his left to make an outstanding grab in Toronto for the Yankees. You may ask just what in blazes Ichiro Suzuki has to do with NASCAR. Sadly, not a damn thing, but at least I had a moment of excitement to tell you about.

I could tell you about the excitement at Dover, but what you saw on lap fifty you pretty much saw on lap 350. Not much change among the top dozen as the boys, and Danica Patrick, went round and round. Thank God for fuel mileage races, as the prospect of somebody running out of gas was just about as good as this got.

Kyle Busch once again dominated and once again that meant nothing at the end. He needed petrol and sunk from first to seventh, Brad Keselowski did not and he won his 9th, and fifth of the season, to move 5 points ahead of Jimmie Johnson in the standings.

Not much excitement, but there were some interesting moments. Kasey Kahne was a challenger until somebody thought he only needed four lug nuts to land him back in 15th. Tony Stewart started deep, went to the pits under green only to see it turn to yellow…twice. 20th was to be his fate. Matt Kenseth was inside the top twenty, but that was as good as it got as he broke a suspension part to leave him bouncing off the walls to wash up in 35th.

Kenseth is 75 away, Hamlin is third, 16 off the pace, Johnson and Keselowski up front with nobody else within 25 points of them. Still, we must await Talladega, where a big wreck could turn the standings upside down. Talladega, where we might finally see some action that will get us excited and keep us glued to the screen.

Kyle Busch has had some time to think this season during his stops in the garage. He figures the Chasers should have their own little points system to keep them more bunched up. So, instead of Kenseth picking up 9 for finishing 35th and Keselowski 47 for winning the race (a difference of 36 points), Kyle supports Kenseth getting 1 point for being the last Chaser and Keselowski getting 16, getting 12 for being first amongst the Chasers, 1 for leading a lap, and 3 for his victory. That would be a difference of only 15. Might I suggest Chasers get enough of a break by the rejigging of points and the 3 point per win bonus after 26 races. If he wants to be really fair, Busch should be advocating for the abolishment of the Chase and the return to the top gun over the course of the season winning the crown.

What would the classic standings be, using our new points system?

1051 – Jimmie Johnson
1040 – Brad Keselowski
1033 – Dale Earnhardt Jr
1025 – Greg Biffle
1012 – Denny Hamlin
1009 – Clint Bowyer

That would be six contenders within 42 points of one another. In the Chase, we have eight. Not much of a difference, and you tell me what would be more legitimate. No, the Chasers don’t need any more breaks. They already got it pretty good, yet most seem like they can’t do anything with it.

What fans need, those who watch these races on television, is a break from the mundane; something damned exciting. Something to have them talking about what they saw come Monday morning when they head back to work. Something to get even the most casual observer excited. I believe they call it Talladega. I think even Ichiro would agree. Enjoy the week.

[media-credit name=”Credit: Geoff Burke/Getty Images for NASCAR” align=”alignright” width=”236″][/media-credit]Babe Hamlin? Okay, it might not roll off the tongue as nice as Denny Hamlin but, like George Herman Ruth of old, Hamlin was bold enough to call his shot and was good enough to pull it off in winning at New Hampshire last Sunday. Yes, I still don’t love him, I may still think of him as a bit of a SOB, but you got to admit that this SOB has style.

The race still was not one of those visual fiestas, such as what we expect to see in a couple of weeks in Talladega, but it was not bad for a one trick pony event. For much of it, Hamlin led, so you had to find the pop elsewhere. Kyle Busch might not have made the Chase, but it was great to watch him near the front until his engine went pop, and so did a couple of veins in the lad’s neck in frustration.

We watched to see where the dozen Chasers sat as the crawl went across the top of the screen, to see whose car and heart got broke this time. For the most part none were ever found outside the top twenty. You can’t write a guy off just yet until he at least slips a good 50 points out, and none are quite there yet. Jimmie Johnson is a point up on Brad Keselowski, with Hamlin seven back, Tony Stewart is 10 in the distance, as Clint Bowyer and Kasey Kahne remain within 15. Jeff Gordon is in the rear, but even though he is 45 points off the pace even he made up some ground on Sunday.

It was more a day about what might have been. Might someone catch Hamlin? No, as it turned out. Might someone wreck? Not really. Might someone find their hopes good and dashed? Unless you consider Martin Truex Jr and Greg Biffle finishing 17th and 18th a disaster, not so much.  Just about the only thing we might have watched for, and got rewarded for doing so, was to see if Hamlin could make good on his promise. He ran out of gas and finished 16th in Chicago so he declared he was going to come back to win it all this time out. Could he, did he? Damn right he did. It marked his 5th win of the season, and the 22nd of his Cup career. In his seventh full season, the 31-year old has never finished outside the top twelve. A SOB with style, indeed.

While Hamlin did win at New Hampshire previously five years ago, we are discovering past success or a lack of it does not mean a whole bunch. That might not be the case in Dover. Jimmie Johnson has won seven in 21 tries at that venue. Seven. Add his ten Top Fives and 15 Top Tens, and one starts to get the feeling that odds are Jimmie is going to have a good weekend.

As for Hamlin, he has four Top Tens in 13 attempts. It might not look promising, but after that called shot, maybe he will now promise some young boy that he will win at Dover on Sunday. Whatever happens, it might be wise for Joe Gibbs not to trade him anywhere, or he might not win the Sprint Cup title for another 86 years. Enjoy the week.

[media-credit name=”Noel Lanier” align=”alignright” width=”231″][/media-credit]The excitement. The drama. The dreams we have, only to be dashed by the reality. In more ways than one, this was Chicago. Thankfully, there is the personal video recorder.

Jimmie Johnson and Brad Keselowski led the race last Sunday afternoon. Unlike Daytona, for example, where the guy leading might switch places with the guy in 20th place on any given lap, what you saw in Chicago you saw for lap upon lap. When you got enough of that, and especially when you catch up to the live fed, you let the program record as you leave for awhile. There is something to be said about that, as you catch up with the latest happenings on the diamond or the gridiron. You get to see stuff live, such as a last second botched field goal attempt that left the New England Patriots sitting second best on the day. You discovered there was not much hope on the weekend for those self-destructing zany Saskatchewan Roughriders. Then you come back to the race.

When I came back, there was either Jimmie or Brad still leading the race. However, after the final pit stops, Keselowski was better and ran off to win his eighth career event and fourth of the season to take the lead in the Chase. With nine to go, he leads the runner-up Johnson by three points and defending champion Tony Stewart by eight.

Yes, there was more news to be had other than who ran first or what ran second. Jeff Gordon, he of the big Richmond comeback, got bit by a hung throttle that caused him to bite the outside wall which resulted in a 35th place, which really bites. Now 47 points out of the hunt, he will need to discover another comeback or his championship hopes will be about on par with those of Kyle Busch.

Matt Kenseth lost a shock, and wound up 18th. Denny Hamlin ran out of fuel on the last lap, and his fate was 16th. Still, only Gordon, Kenseth, Kevin Harvick, and Martin Truex Jr are more than 20 points out at the moment. In the novelty section, Danica Patrick ran 25th.

25th is probably the maximum number of actual contenders we have in Sprint Cup. If changes are to be made in who gets a free pass each week, I would lower it from 35 to 25. Bobby Labonte currently is in 24th place, fifty some points ahead of Mark Martin, who has missed nine races this year and is still eleven points better than Kurt Busch. The Top 25 should keep the marquee drivers in, while leaving the rest with a shot at competing for a place. Now, if your race week might be ruined by not seeing Casey Mears, David Gililand, David Ragan, Travis Kvapil or Landon Cassill out there, well, too bad. Let those boys race in if they can. If they can’t beat out Joe Nemechek, they should not be there.

Joe was not last on Sunday. Nemechek ran 52 laps to finish 40th, while Michael McDowell went all of 38 of 267, less than 15% of the contest. My solution? Give the boys a base amount for making the race, say $20,000, then give them 100% of the remainder owed for whatever position they finish in if they run 100% of the laps. Run only 15%, you get just 15% of the remainder owed. If you get crashed out or caught in someone else’s mess, tough luck. If you want to play with the big boys, be sure you can at least run with the big dogs. I wouldn’t mind 25 contenders and 18 pretenders running out there, as long as they at least try to be the best in class.

Now that I’ve solved all of NASCAR’s problems, next week I’ll either tackle the NHL lockout, the Chicago teacher’s strike, or world peace. In the meantime, we have a race coming up in New Hampshire. Eight of the Chasers have won there, while Kenseth, Martin Truex Jr, Dale Earnhardt Jr, and Keselowski have not. Mind you, Keselowski had not won at Chicago before last weekend, and neither had Johnson. So much for that statistic. Jeff Gordon has three wins at Loudon, but none since 1998. If nothing else, Gordon has to be not just good, but great this Sunday, or the excitement, the drama, the dream for him will truly come crashing to an end. Enjoy the week.

[media-credit name=”Barry Albert” align=”alignright” width=”229″][/media-credit]Not so long ago, a wise man (hey, I can dream can’t I?) once said that Kyle Busch would claim the final Chase place at Richmond. This wise man noticed that in 13 of 15 attempts, Busch had finished not worse than sixth. That would leave no room, one would think, for Jeff Gordon to make up a 12 point deficit. It seemed like a pretty good bet. Thank God that wise man didn’t wager on the outcome. Sometimes nudity, even if only to lose one’s shirt, is not a good thing for any of us.

Rain delayed things in Richmond for a couple of hours, then more rain put a halt to the action short of the midway point. Crew chief Dave Rogers left Busch out for track position, just in case the rains continued. They did not. Kyle Busch wanted to pit. He did not. They then hoped for a caution, maybe hoping Brad Keselowski might toss out another water bottle, thermos, or even the entire cooler. He did not. What they would wind up needing was to pit under green for servicing.

Busch came in, the tires went on, but there was something missing. From my couch, a 2400 mile drive away from Richmond, I could see the official in white frantically waving at the missing lug nut on the passenger rear tire. Rogers, from a few feet away in the pit box, apparently did not. After a painful pregnant pause, the man with the airgun returned, fixed the problem, and Busch drove off. Precious time and positions were lost, and in the end Kyle lost his Chase spot to Gordon by three little points.

Jeff was ecstatic. When they had halted for rain, he thought he was done like dinner. Instead, he marched forward, Busch faltered, then they took the gun to his foot and pulled the trigger. Gordon led two laps and finished second, Busch led none and wound up 16th for his second worse finish there in eight seasons. When he pulled in, Joe Gibbs stuck his head in the window to remind his driver to handle the situation the right way. For his trouble, he got a face full of Busch butt as he got out of the car and out of Dodge, but not before stating that they missed it and that there was “no right way to handle it.”

Gibbs claims “we love Dave Rogers.” I’m not sure who “we”includes, but I have a suspicion as to one who might not. It should be interesting to see how this plays out over the course of the next ten races. Meanwhile, Gordon said if he made the Chase he was going to bring back that cheesy mustache he sported back when he first broke in, and he is a man of his word. I guess we can blame Dave Rogers for that, too.

Heading to Chicago, Denny Hamlin enters the Chase with a 12 point bonus to lead the way, three up on Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart, and Keselowski. Those with 2006 points, six off the pace, are Richmond race winner Clint Bowyer, who led the final 86 laps, and Greg Biffle. Three behind them we find Dale Earnhardt Jr, and Matt Kenseth, with Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr, Kasey Kahne, and Gordon all starting with 2000 points. Four cars owned by Rick Hendrick, two by Jack Roush, and two by Michael Waltrip, with Childress, Penske, Stewart, and Gibbs each with one.

So, it is off to Chicago and the nitty gritty portion of the season. Tony Stewart won there last season but, based on what happened last Saturday night, yesterday’s results might mean squat coming into this weekend. Still, Smoke has won there three times in eleven attempts, Harvick has a couple, with Junior and Jeff with one apiece. Stewart might be the favorite coming in but, as we have discovered, it is what it is heading out that really counts. Enjoy the week.

[media-credit name=”Noel Lanier” align=”alignright” width=”233″][/media-credit]Atlanta, the place where Richard Petty made his exit and Jeff Gordon made his Cup entrance back in 1992. It is where Alan Kulwicki claimed his title. It was the venue from which Sunday’s action was telecast, but after the initial broadcast hype I found these old eye lids fluttering like I was a damsel meeting Prince Harry in Las Vegas for the first time. To ask if I found much of the race boring, especially the first two-thirds, is like wondering if the Pope is German.

Then were was the ending. Jeff Gordon tried desperately to catch Denny Hamlin, to claim that elusive second victory that could push him into the Chase. It did not happen. The Pied Piper won his fourth of the season, 21st of his career, and moved alone to the head of the class with just one to go before the Chase contenders are locked in. It was not 1992 all over again, though it got interesting in the end, and even for a lap or two it might have actually be termed exciting.

It was, well, just racing. They can’t all be spectacles, though there was the wreck that collected Jimmie Johnson, Ryan Newman, and Sam Hornish, Jr. Just a racing deal, where one of the three made a minor mistake at a high speed that resulted in bad things happening. It was worse for Newman, one of those needing a win or at least to be within hailing distance of Kyle Busch in the points, and wound up with neither.

In the end, 11 drivers found themselves locked into the Chase. Tony Stewart will either make it on points or by his three wins. Sitting in tenth heading to Richmond, Stewart is 18 points up on two-time winner Kasey Kahne, 23 ahead of Kyle Busch, with Jeff Gordon 35 points away. It only gets interesting if Stewart has a bad day.

Then there is the second wildcard berth. Busch, Gordon, Marcos Ambrose, Newman, and Joey Logano can claim that with a second win this weekend. It only gets interesting if at least one of these fellows is very near the front. If not, then it comes down to a points race in which only two would be contending, as Busch leads Gordon by 12. It is a tall order, but sure better than the 40 points Ambrose would need to make up to be relevant. As for the winless Carl Edwards, he needs to win and finish 26 points ahead of Busch on Saturday night.

To make it real simple, it sounds like Rowdy needs to be roughed up early, Gordon needs to take flight, or one of the trio involving Ambrose, Newman, and Logano needs to find Victory Lane to give us some drama.  The last time Gordon won there was in 2000; Newman in 2003. The last time Kyle Busch won at Richmond was last April, his fourth straight spring victory on the track.  Richmond, where in 15 races run Kyle has finished 20th once, 15th once, 6th once, and a dozen times in the Top Five. In fact, the last time Kyle Busch finished outside the Top Six at Richmond was September 7, 2008, winning four of the past seven. Like last week, the television boys and girls will probably hype Saturday’s race, showcasing the six contenders seeking that one final Chase position. However, I think this battle is already over. Enjoy the week.

[media-credit name=”David Yeazell” align=”alignright” width=”220″][/media-credit]Lord, I wish to give thanks for the return of Bristol to being Bristol. I don’t know if the shaving down of the track made the difference, but something was different from what we saw in the spring. There was action that kept you watching, and I’m not just talking about the one’s that gave the bodymen and mechanics some extra work.

I give thanks for Denny Hamlin winning last Saturday night. He emerged with his third victory of the season, tying him in bonus points with Jimmie Johnson and Brad Keselowski come Chase time. I don’t really mean it, but I’m trying to become a better person. Now that I’ve tried to do the right thing, I’ll be forgiving if his engine blows up this weekend.

Tony Stewart has three wins, but we don’t know if he’ll make the Chase via wins or points. He is only 16 points up on Kasey Kahne, so he can be caught over the course of the next two events. However, I give thanks for his ability to toss a helmet dead center on the intended target and I give thanks for the awesome video from Matt Kenseth’s roof cam to show the headgear bounce off the hood.

Tony was upset, but it appeared to be more a race deal than anything else. As I am trying to be a better man, I give thanks for world peace and goodwill unto all men…until this Sunday at Atlanta. As we all know, Sunday is the day set aside for boys to have at it, along with the odd Saturday night.

Unto all men. Still, I give thanks for Danica Patrick, who got bounced hard off the inside fence in rather ungentlemanly fashion by Regan Smith. In her rage, she wiggled a finger at Mr. Smith. Her finger? Like her boss, she had a perfectly good helmet in her hands.

I give thanks for Juan Pablo Montoya, who continues to prove that even if you are outside the Top Twenty in points that does not prevent one from him from making a difference in other people’s fortunes. Ryan Newman went in with the second wildcard berth in his hands. After Montoya wrecked him, he left it 3 points behind Jeff Gordon and 19 behind Kyle Busch. Jeff Burton has had a brutal season, but things were going good Saturday until he piled into the wrecking Newman. I give thanks for Juan, as no one else will.

I give thanks for Dale Earnhardt Jr. He has a win this season, he has a Chase place reserved, and he even finished 12th at Bristol. Junior did this despite a pit road speeding penalty and another one for pitting when it was closed. What a fine fellow, doing all he can to give his competition a chance. Nothing can be finer than our boy from Carolina.

I give thanks for this new Chase format, where the final wildcard berth remains in play this late. If Kahne can catch Stewart for 10th, then Stewart and his three wins locks up the first wildcard spot. That still leaves five single win drivers and the winless Carl Edwards duking it out to see which one of them gets that final invite.

Edwards, Rowdy Busch, Gordon, Newman, Marcos Ambrose, and Joey Logano, I am sure, would like me to pass along their thanks should they win this Sunday in Atlanta, or the following week in Richmond. I offer up my thanks for keeping things interesting. Enjoy the week.

[media-credit name=”Dan Sanger” align=”alignright” width=”259″][/media-credit]As they were revving up the engines in Michigan, I was listening to the Sirius radio in my car as we drove west of Rocky Mountain House en route to the Columbia Icefields and Jasper. It was a great way to follow the race, surrounded by the Canadian Rockies, listening to the live action, and not a word from either Rusty and Brad. Yes, life can be sweet.

It can also be scary. Mark Martin was the early leader and true to form he remained patient and courteous as he was being held up by Juan Pablo Montoya and Bobby Labonte ahead of him. Too bad. In the end, it was Mark who got sent for a slide through the grass, to wind up with his car impaled on the end of the pit row fence, at a break to allow entry into the garage area . Instead of hitting just in front of the rear tire, what if the point of impact was a few feet further ahead, where Martin was sitting? It was close, too damn close.

It hasn’t happened before, we were told. We both know that is total nonsense. Cars hitting the end of a break in the fence probably most famously occurred at Bristol in 1990 when Michael Waltrip hit such a gate in an outside wall, his car disintegrating around him. He survived uninjured, Martin survived Sunday uninjured, but any idiot should surely understand that if you put a gap in a wall the resulting blunt end is a potentially lethal hazard. To have such a hazard where cars run, be it along the track or along pit road where a car spinning out of control or even head on with a hung throttle could result in such carnage is unfathomable. Round the things off, if nothing else. Make ‘em bounce off, instead of impale on a concrete spear. Then, after we take care of all the blunt ends, maybe we can also start looking at the flat spots at places like Pocono where Elliott Sadler almost bought the farm a couple of years ago.

Engines blew up and Greg Biffle won his second of the season. In the end, the story of this race is a close call for a veteran, some a bit choked with their engine shops, and three bonus points for Biffle. Nothing else really changed. The top ten remain the top ten with the 10th place guy enjoying a good 30 point cushion. Among those outside the Top Ten, Kasey Kahne has 2 wins to keep his hold on one wildcard berth into the Chase, while Ryan Newman is 11 points up on Kyle Busch among those with a single win.

Two wins trumps one, so Jeff Gordon, Marcos Ambrose, and Joey Logano have best to get them one more. One trumps none, so Carl Edwards sits nine points up on Newman, but needs a win to make it count. Three races to go before the Chase, with Bristol on this Saturday night’s dance card. Jeff Gordon has five wins there, but none since 2002. Kyle Busch had five between 2007 and 2011. Carl Edwards has a pair from 2007 and 2008. All could use one Saturday night. Enjoy the week.