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Tag: Brad Keselowski

NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Michigan

Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

1. Kyle Larson: Larson started on the pole at Michigan and led 96 laps on his way to the win at Michigan. Larson pulled away from Chase Elliott on a restart with five laps to go to claim his second win of the year.

“That’s my third pole this season,” Larson said. “And it’s the second time I’ve won from the pole this year. In honor of the great Alan Kulwicki, I call doing that a ‘pole-ish victory lap.’”

2. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex won the first two stages at Michigan and finished sixth, posting his 11th top 10 of the year.

“I’ve made it a habit of winning two stages in a race but failing to win the race,” Truex said. “As someone who’s never won a Cup championship, I guess that’s called underperforming on the big stage. Maybe I just have a case of stage fright.”

3. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson started at the rear after a spin in Saturday’s practice ruined his primary car and pulled out a 10th in the FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan.

“I signed a contract extension with Hendrick Motorsports through 2020,” Johnson said. “That was definitely a ‘signature’ win for HMS. Hendrick now has me under contract for three more years. The last time a NASCAR driver said he was ‘locked up for three years,’ it was Jeremy Mayfield.”

4. Kevin Harvick: Harvick took 14th in the Firekeepers Casino 400, and is fourth in the points standings, 132 out of first.

“I was anything but freaky fast in the No. 4 Jimmy Johns car,” Harvick said. “Unless we’re better in the future, there’s no way we deliver, a sandwich or a win.

5. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski finished 16th at Michigan and is now sixth in the Monster Energy Cup points standings.

“I tangled with Kyle Busch on the first lap of the Xfinity Series race on Saturday,” Keselowski said. “Of course, that’s not the first time that’s happened. I’m not sure what’s clashed more, our cars or our personalities.”

6. Kyle Busch: Busch led late at Michigan but faded to seventh after a late caution did away with his sizable lead. Busch is third in the Monster Energy Cup points standings, 130 out of first.

“Once again,” Busch said, “a late caution cost me a chance at the win. I’m beginning to think I’m just cursed. And for that reason, I just cursed.”

7. Chase Elliott: Elliott finished second to Kyle Larson for the second consecutive race at Michigan. In August, Larson bested Elliott to win his first career Cup race.

“I just can’t seem to get past Larson at Michigan,” Elliott said. “It seems he has ‘MI’ number.”

8. Jamie McMurray: McMurray bounced back from a 37th at Pocono with a fifth in the FireKeepers Casino 400, scoring his second top five of the season.

“Fifth place was impressive,” McMurray said, “but it certainly wasn’t the biggest story in what was a fairly uneventful race. The big story was Dale Earnhardt Jr. Not necessarily his ninth-place finish, but anytime his crew chief Greg Ives called him in for fresh rubber, or, in other words, when he announced Junior’s ‘re-tire-ment.’”

9. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin finished fourth at Michigan as Joe Gibbs Racing placed three drivers in the top 11.

“Once again,” Hamlin said, “a debris caution affected the outcome of the race. Was their actually debris on the track? If you were watching on television, you probably didn’t see any. Trust me, though, there is garbage on the track. It’s called ‘NASCAR’s product.’”

10. Joey Logano: Logano posted his first top-five finish since taking the win at Richmond on April 30.

“Of course,” Logano said, “that win at Richmond didn’t really count because due to a rules violation, it won’t automatically get me into the Chase. You could also say I cheated out a win. You could also say I got cheated out of a win.

“NASCAR calls that an ‘encumbered’ win. ‘Encumbered’ means ‘to restrict or burden (someone or something) in such a way that free action or movement is difficult.’ If you look that word up in the dictionary, you’ll find a picture of my dad.”

June 19, 2017
Keselowski Fastest in Final Practice at Michigan

Brad Keselowski topped the chart in final Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice at Michigan International Speedway.

The driver of the No. 2 Team Penske Ford was the fastest with a time of 36.474 and a speed of 197.401 mph. Kyle Busch was second in his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota with a time of 36.512 and a speed of 197.195 mph. Kyle Larson was third in his No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet with a time of 36.537 and a speed of 197.061 mph. Joey Logano was fourth in his No. 22 Team Penske Ford with a time of 36.554 and a speed of 196.969 mph. Erik Jones rounded out the top-five in his No. 77 Furniture Row Racing Toyota with a time of 36.557 and a speed of 196.953 mph.

Daniel Suarez, Martin Truex Jr., Clint Bowyer, Jimmie Johnson and Denny Hamlin rounded out the top-10.

Larson posted the fastest 10 consecutive lap average at a speed of 195.416 mph.

AJ Allmendinger got loose going into Turn 1 and made contact with the outside wall. The team will run a backup car for tomorrow’s race.

Related Links:
First Practice Results
Second Practice Results

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June 17, 2017
Hot 20 – Heading to Michigan, Danica would top this chart if it were not based on performance

You would think it would be great to be Danica Patrick. After Pocono, she might be thinking it would be far easier to be Kyle Busch.

When Kyle does not win, Kyle is not happy. He might not be out signing autographs like Richard Petty should he fall short, especially a race he thought he should have won. Danica finished 16th at Pocono and walked by some autograph hounds without stopping to sign. They then brought out the raspberries. Patrick did not like that and turned to face them.

“If you’re a real fan then you’ll know my job is not to sign autographs. My job is to drive a car and to tell the team what is going on.”

She added that the booing was hurtful, and she pulled no punches in doing so.

“I don’t appreciate the booing. It hurts my feelings. I’m a f***ing person. I’m a person too. I have feelings.”

I think Kyle might have similar thoughts on the matter, though I am sure he probably would have expressed them a bit differently. Rowdy might not have mentioned how they hurt his feelings, but there are a couple of Danica’s words he might have used, along with a few more. Did the crowd feel bad after her comments? Not really. They could not help but notice she still had not given them her autograph. They forget she is a driver first and foremost. If not, they would be hounding the Monster Energy ladies for their autographs. Hell, maybe they do.

Meanwhile, Patrick has a new book out, but some question as to how much touch-up was done to her cover photo. Really? Who gives a damn? I might question her ability to bring in the results you might expect given the resources behind her, but I do not question her popularity, her place in the sport, her dedication, or her appearance.

If the latter really mattered out on the track, Patrick would top our Hot 20 every damn week. Until such time as they figure out why her racing performance is not where they want it to be, that should be her focus. Her real fans would understand that. The others just do not matter. If you don’t like it, try approaching Jack Nicholson for an autograph. He would just tell you to go to hell.

1. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 3 WINS (421 Pts)
Had a Yosemite Sam moment. “Whoa, camel. Whoa, Whoa!” This time, no brakes, no whoa.

2. MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 2 WINS (584 Pts)
Top Tens in seven of his past eight. Too bad about Talladega.

3. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 2 WINS (454 Pts)
At least nobody wrecked him last week.

4. KYLE LARSON – 1 WIN (583 Pts)
Career wins: 2 Cup, 8 Xfinity, 2 Craftsman, 1 ARCA, 5 World of Outlaws

5. RYAN BLANEY – 1 WIN (360 Pts)
Dad finished third twice at Talladega and once at Darlington, but the boy finished the deal.

6. KURT BUSCH – 1 WIN (331 Pts)
Won 15 times in a Ford (2002-05, 2017), 14 times in another brand (2006-16). Lesson learned.

7. RICKY STENHOUSE JR. – 1 WIN (325 Pts)
Never feels he needs to ask Danica for her autograph.

8. RYAN NEWMAN – 1 WIN (322 Pts)
Count the win, and he is 8th. Count the points, and he is 17th. He likes to count the win.

9. AUSTIN DILLON – 1 WIN (287 Pts)
If Newman likes the new format to get to the Chase, Dillon must love it.

10. KEVIN HARVICK – 480 PTS
You shift from first to second to third, pop it back to second, slam clutch and try again.

11. KYLE BUSCH – 463 PTS
I do remember Kyle trying to share his feelings, but Logano’s crew got in the way.

12. CHASE ELLIOTT – 438 PTS
Believing Elliott the next first-time winner is like believing Johnson the next eight-time champ.

13. JAMIE MCMURRAY – 418 PTS
Same scene, different camel at Pocono.

14. DENNY HAMLIN – 386 PTS
Believes there will be at least 10 drivers making the Chase on wins…he being one of them.

15. CLINT BOWYER – 369 PTS
You know, his position in the playoffs does not seem near as secure as it once did.

16. JOEY LOGANO – 362 PTS (1 win)
“To hinder or impede the action or performance of something.” That is what encumbered means.

17. MATT KENSETH – 359 PTS
Both Kenseth and Logano have recent wins at Michigan. They each could use another one.

18. ERIK JONES – 322 PTS
Drop this far back in points and you just can not make them up…even with a third place finish.

19. TREVOR BAYNE – 303 PTS
If you thought his 21st place finish was bad, you should check out last week’s tv ratings.

20. DANIEL SUAREZ – 300 PTS
Crew chief Scott Graves tagged with fine over lug nuts? A politician accepts less responsibility.

June 14, 2017
The Final Word – It was the thrill of victory at Pocono for one, but first a lot had to suffer the agony of defeat

If you were looking for tight pack racing, Pocono was not it. However, if you wanted to see variations of the old Wide World of Sports “agony of defeat” scenario, that it had.

Bubba Wallace, Jr. got his first Cup ride sitting in for the injured Aric Almirola. His opening act was a lot similar to an actor stepping out from behind the curtain for the first time, only to fall off the stage. Wallace got caught speeding on pit road twice in the opening stage, including his penalty pass through. He went down a lap early, and stayed there, coming home 26th.

Clint Bowyer saw his tail end slip slide away on him to brush the fence. He never threatened, yet finished on the lead lap in 17th.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. picked up a bad habit in his 609th career race. As you accelerate, shifting from third to fourth saves the engine. Shifting from third to second kills it. Junior did it twice. Once in practice, once during the second stage. Same result; 38th was to be his fate.

Jimmie Johnson and Jamie McMurray are what I might call fitness freaks. They do freaky things together, like a Saturday bicycle ride, for example. They got caught in the rain and probably skipped the Piña coladas after that exercise trek got washed out. On Sunday, they had brake failures within a couple of seconds and a few yards apart. Johnson had his chimes rung a bit while McMurray needed to evacuate his burning auto. Now you know who finished just ahead of Junior.

Kevin Harvick was in his 588th race. Near the end of the second segment, he did the same damn thing Junior did. Fortunately for him, a quick tap on the clutch saved his bacon, along with a very stoutly built engine. It was a death watch for smoke and flames that proved to be a tad premature.

After Kasey Kahne brought out a late caution, we had Kyle Busch on point, with Ryan Blaney just behind him with 13 to go. Three laps later, Blaney finally managed to avoid the blocks and took over the lead, but he had company. As Rowdy faded to ninth, it was Harvick, abused engine and all, making this a race to the line. In the end, it was Dave Blaney’s son coming through to do something his dad could only come close to accomplishing in 473 starts and claim a Cup victory.

It was a great day for Blaney and Harvick, a good one points-wise for the Busch boys (Kurt was fourth), Kyle Larson, Brad Keselowski, and Chase Elliott. However, if we have just seven more drivers winning their first of the season over the next dozen races, points will not mean as much as they used it.

An encumbered win means nothing, so that leaves Joey Logano 16th in the standings, just three points up on Matt Kenseth. Michigan is next, and with the pair having won two of the past three runs at the track, it might be a time for one of those other Wide World of Sports moments. You know, the “thrill of victory.”

June 12, 2017
Keselowski Swipes Pocono XFINITY Victory

By Reid Spencer | NASCAR.com

LONG POND, Pa. — With a dramatic last-lap pass — the first of the season in the NASCAR XFINITY Series — Brad Keselowski won Saturday’s Pocono Green 250 at Pocono Raceway, ending a 46-race drought for the No. 22 Team Penske Ford.

Keselowski swept the stages in the 100-lap event but couldn’t get past leader Kyle Larson until he reached the Long Pond straightaway on the final circuit. Keselowski powered off the first turn, down-shifted and blew past Larson before the cars reached the Tunnel Turn.

Justin Allgaier followed Keselowski past Larson and finished second, .615 seconds behind the race winner. Larson came home third, followed by Elliott Sadler and Daniel Suarez.

Keselowski’s victory didn’t come without a fight. On a restart with 16 laps left, after a caution for Brandon Jones’ blown left rear tire and a frontstetch wreck on Lap 78, Keselowski was on the inside of the front row, taking the green flag beside race leader Cole Custer.

A push from Elliott Sadler got Keselowski to the front, but Sadler continued the shove into Turn 1. Keselowski sailed high in the corner, narrowly keeping the no. 22 Mustang off the wall.

“I got a good push, but the push didn’t stop, and I found myself in the third lane in Turn 1, which is somewhere you don’t want to be,” said Keselowski, who fell back to 13th in the running order. “I got down there and my rear tires were off the ground and went straight, trying not to back it into the wall. With fewer than 16 laps to get back to the front, Keselowski began to bully his way through the field. He split the two cars of Brendan Gaughan and polesitter Kyle Benjamin, bouncing off both in the process.

By Lap 97 he had reeled in Allgaier, and when the No. 7 Chevrolet slipped slightly, Keselowski charged past and took off after Larson. Then came the winning pass in Turn 1.

“I drove by a bunch of cars and just pushed as hard as I could,” Keselowski said of his closing. “It looked like Kyle’s car was struggling just a little bit and he was getting tight in the middle, loose off. He was doing a really good job holding it low so I couldn’t get a run. Just on the last lap, I got on his bumper and got him loose.

“He was trying to do the side draft thing down the backstretch and all the way down the apron. That had to look pretty cool. Hell of a race. Really happy for the 22 team. It’s been a while.”

When Keselowski dropped back on the final restart, Larson found himself in a surprising position.

“I was not expecting to get the lead on that restart,” Larson said. “Elliott gave Brad too good a push in Turn 1, and then Elliott overshot the Tunnel Turn.”

After charging past Sadler on the restart lap, Larson protected his position until the first corner of the last lap.

“I couldn’t get back to the gas as quick as I wanted to — my car was just plowing — and Brad got a great run off the corner,” Larson said.

Allgaier was disappointed with second place, but he had the consolation of assuming the series lead by one point over Sadler. Those two drivers are light years ahead of their JR Motorsports teammate, William Byron, who stands third, 62 points behind Allgaier.

On the eve of his Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series debut in the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford, Darrell “Bubba” Wallace Jr. finished 11th in his last scheduled ride in the No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing Mustang.

Wallace finishes his stint with RFR fourth in the series standings, 88 points behind the leader.

Benjamin led 28 laps in his second NASCAR XFINITY Series race – one fewer than Keselowski’s 29 – but fell back to 16th at the finish after the late contact with the eventual race winner.

Race results | Series standings

June 10, 2017
Hot 20 – No lug nuts, no crew, as Kyle discovered heading to Pocono

They went and done it. Kyle Busch comes in leading early in the race at Dover. For whatever reason, when they went to tighten up the rear left lug nuts, the air gun was removing them instead. When the jack dropped, the car left, and shortly after the tire left the car. Bad news for Kyle. Today, bad news for the crew.

A major penalty can be handed out for sacrificing safety in order to have a fast pit stop. That clearly was not the case here, but it did not matter. Gone for four races are crew chief Adam Stevens, tire changer Jacob Seminara and tire carrier Kenneth Barber. To be fair, the rule does state “loss of wheel(s) due to improper installation will result in a mandatory minimum four race suspension of the crew chief and the tire changer and tire carrier of the lost wheel(s).” As I read it, and it appears this is NASCAR’s interpretation, intent matters not. Something tells me that a certain jackman might owe his buddies a few beers, at the very least.

Sometimes the crew does things a bit more on purpose. As we head to Pocono, we remember last year at this time, at this track, when Brad Keselowski’s rear tire carrier threw a hip check to the side of his driver’s car in the pits. NASCAR saw it, and did not like the unapproved modifications to its aerodynamics. Mind you, all he got was a call to return to the pits to repair the indentation. No one got vacation time.

Keselowski knows all about vacation time. He has not made it past the first segment in the past two races. As for Busch, he is left hoping race engineer Ben Beshore will have the magic atop the box to get him his first victory of the season as the Hot 20 make their first visit of the campaign to Pocono.

1. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 3 WINS – 414 PTS
Seven is heaven, but to win eight would be great.

2. MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 2 WINS – 545 PTS
Good on segments, good on wins, good on points, good to go for the Chase.

3. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 2 WINS – 410 PTS
Dear Race Friends: Please do not wreck me until at least the second segment. Thanks, Brad.

4. KYLE LARSON – 1 WIN – 536 PTS
Had the best car out there last week, at least until the final re-start.

5. RICKY STENHOUSE JR. – 1 WIN – 299 PTS
Afraid last week that he had to hit the wall a third time to finally kill the car. It only took two.

6. RYAN NEWMAN – 1 WIN – 299 PTS
Late caution during green flag stops shuffled the order, allowing the Rocket a Top Ten at Dover.

7. KURT BUSCH – 1 WIN – 291 PTS
Wiggled early and took out Keselowski last week. One flat later, and he was gone himself.

8. AUSTIN DILLON – 1 WIN – 263 PTS
Until nine more drivers win this season, he is sitting pretty for the Chase.

9. KEVIN HARVICK – 429 PTS
Six Top Tens in his last seven races leaves him winless yet sitting pretty.

10. KYLE BUSCH – 416 PTS
“The wheels on the car go round and round…” He hates that song.

11. JAMIE MCMURRAY – 415 PTS
Has run no worse than 12th over the past seven events.

12. CHASE ELLIOTT – 398 PTS
After Richmond, Talladega, Kansas, and Charlotte, Dover was like a breath of fresh air.

13. DENNY HAMLIN – 361 PTS
Four Pocono wins, but the last one came seven years ago.

14. CLINT BOWYER – 349 PTS
Thought Tony Stewart was back, but it was just an idiot fan climbing the Dover catchfence.

15. JOEY LOGANO – 348 PTS (1 Win*)
Some seem to think Donald Trump’s win in November was also encumbered. They are wrong.

16. MATT KENSETH – 327 PTS
Screw it. Just win on Sunday and all this point counting will no longer matter.

17. RYAN BLANEY – 320 PTS
Ryan’s plan is to get eight more points than Kenseth and hope someone winless does not win.

18. TREVOR BAYNE – 287 PTS
40 points is not hard to make up…with a win. You might notice a bit of a theme here.

19. ERIK JONES – 283 PTS
Joins Saturday broadcast team of Erik, Ryan, Ricky, Kevin, Joey, Clint, Danica, and Denny.

20. DANIEL SUAREZ – 278 PTS
I read “Suarez drives in three”, but it was Eugenio’s performance for the Reds over the Cards.

June 7, 2017
NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Dover

Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

1. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson started at the rear of the field due to a gear change and charged to the front to win the AAA 400, his 11th career win at Dover and 83rd career Cup victory, tying Cale Yarborough.

“It’s great to be mentioned in the same sentence with Cale,” Johnson said. “Especially since I was wearing a helmet honoring him. Cale hasn’t gone upside someone’s head like that since he battled the Allison brothers at Daytona back in 1979.”

2. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex won Stages 1 and 2 at Dover and finished third as the race ended under caution after a crash shortly after the final restart. Truex leads the Monster Energy Cup points standings by nine points over Kyle Larson.

“I won two stages,” Truex said, “and Kyle Karson led 241 laps. Yet Jimmie Johnson won the race. As the saying goes, ‘Legend has it.’”

3. Kyle Larson: Larson led a race-high 241 laps, and saw a late caution wreck his hopes for the win at Dover. Larson was enjoying over a two-second lead over Jimmie Johnson when David Ragan hit the wall, bringing out a caution.

“If David Ragan doesn’t wreck,” Larson said, “Johnson doesn’t win. Jimmie got lucky, very lucky. I said Johnson had a golden horseshoe somewhere. I won’t say where it actually is, but I will say Johnson can afford the best proctologist money can buy.”

4. Kevin Harvick: Harvick finished ninth at Dover, positing his eighth top 10 of the season. He is third in the points standings, 116 out of first.

“My Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Danica Patrick posted her first top-10 finish since April 2015,” Harvick said. “That’s certainly good news for her future with SHR. As you know, Danica is under contract through next season, but she just lost Nature’s Bakery sponsorship. SHR has a decision to make, and the question is, ‘Is Danica worth the bread?’”

5. Brad Keselowski: For the second week in a row, Keselowski’s was collected in a wreck that ended his day. At Dover, Kurt Busch got loose on lap 66 and hit the wall, leaving Keselowski nowhere to go. Keselowski slammed into Busch and finished 38th.

“If it’s not one Busch brother dropping the mic,” Keselowski said, “it’s another dropping the ball.

“I’ve been critical of Kyle Busch after his abbreviated press conference at Charlotte. Maybe I should be more sympathetic, because if anyone knows how to play the victim, it’s me.”

6. Chase Elliott: Elliott overcame an early pit road speeding penalty to bring home a fifth-place finish in the AAA 400 at Dover. He is eighth in the points standings, 147 out of first.

“I heard Kyle Busch’s crewman was unscrewing lugnuts when he thought he was tightening them,” Elliott said. “In NASCAR terms, you can say he got a little loose.”

7. Joey Logano: Logano blew his right front tire with 46 laps to go in Stage 2, and limped home to a 25th-place finish at Dover.

“They don’t call Dover the ‘Monster Mile’ for nothing,” Logano said. “It is truly a monster. And trust me, I know a monster when I see one. And that reminds me, Father’s Day is June 18th.”

8. Jamie McMurray: McMurray finished seventh in the AAA 400 and is now fifth in the Monster Energy Cup points standings, 130 out of first.

“Some idiot fan climbed the catchfence during the race,” McMurray said. “And some idiot NASCAR official didn’t even throw a caution flag. And that, in itself, should raise a red flag.”

9. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin finished eighth at Dover, scoring his sixth top 10 of the year.

“Joe Gibbs Racing has yet to win a race this year,” Hamlin said. “And the pressure is on us to win, especially Kyle Busch. So don’t put a mic in his hands until you put a trophy in his hands.”

10. Kyle Busch: Busch started on the pole at Dover, but disaster struck early, when after his first pit stop, his left rear wheel fell off. Miraculously, Busch recovered from that incident, but fell two laps down late before scrambling to finish 16th.

“Our pit crewman was actually unscrewing the lug nuts,” Busch said. “That’s shocking. But the biggest surprise was even with the unscrewing, I didn’t come ‘unhinged.’

“Obviously, I need to work on my attitude. Still others think my sponsors and bosses should not be so easy to brush off my behavior. So, I guess they need to work on their latitude.”

June 5, 2017
The Final Word – Dover, where yellow became my favorite color

When it comes to extraordinary television, sit on the edge of your seat excitement, Dover under green will not exactly get your heart racing. In fact, Sunday’s race was more of a cautionary tale. When the yellow waved, the interest spiked.

They waved the flag to start the race. I dozed. There was a caution, but it was for one of the exhaust eaters. No big deal. Then they dropped the jack on leader Kyle Busch in the pits, nearly spun the fingers off tire man Kenny Barber, and then the tire rolled off as Busch pulled out. That got my attention. I bet it got the attention of the entire crew. It sure got the attention of NASCAR. It seems Barber, tire changer Jake Seminara, and crew chief Adam Stevens could all face a major penalty. That could cost them each up to four races. We shall see. However, instead of trying to jump the gun by putting on fewer lugs nuts, the air gun was actually pulling them off instead of spinning them on. Be it a malfunction or a miscue, it was rather memorable.

Then, back to my nap. For a couple of laps. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. did not take tires under the caution, but caused the next. The lights went on, I woke up, and Stenhouse had some mangled rubber. That contact with the wall did not help either.

I was about to head off to dream land when Stenhouse hit the wall again. He was finally done. Still, no nap for me, as on the re-start, Kurt Busch broke loose and drove Brad Keselowski into the fence. Bad Brad was toast. Busch lingered, but the damage he sustained finally got to his tire, which got him into the wall, and finally in to the garage to stay. There were still three-quarters of the race left to run and three bound for the Chase were already gone for the day.

They pitted, when Clint Bowyer’s crew noticed a mechanical issue. Fluids were flowing out where they should not be flowing. To the garage for repairs. By the time he returned, 18 laps had gone by.

I was able to get in some serious “zzzz” time for the next hundred laps. That was interrupted by another caution. It would seem Joey Logano met the outside barrier, and the repair time cost him four circuits.

More than a hundred laps of round and round later, the alarm went off again. Regan Smith, sitting in for the mending Aric Almirola, had his right front surrender. Another caution, another tire, another fence, another retirement.

As the final laps clicked off, it was Kyle Larson, Jimmie Johnson, and Martin Truex Jr., the contenders. One more caution, and we were off to overtime. Six additional laps under green, we thought. It actually ended under caution.

Johnson moved to the lead with a better re-start and had gone by the overtime line when all hell broke loose behind them on the front stretch. Ty Dillon wiggled and got punted into the safer wafers, while Trevor Bayne and Kasey Kahne not only rhymed but also were among those who failed to make the line. Under caution, Johnson, Larson, and Truex did, in that order.

It marked the 83rd career win for Johnson, tying him for sixth all-time with Cale Yarborough. It gave him his 11th career Dover win in 31 attempts, and third victory of the season. As far as the standings go, the only real change of note was Matt Kenseth out performing Ryan Blaney, 13th compared to 32nd, and moving seven points up in the battle for the final Chase place.

With Pocono coming up next week, here is a final cautionary tale. If you are not in the Top 17 heading to Pennsylvania on Sunday, you are not going to make the Chase on points. With the rest 40 or more points out, their best hopes lie in winning one of the next 13 events. The way things have played out so far, with nine winners to date, even a single victory might not be enough.

This might be a good time for recent past Pocono winners Kahne, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kenseth, and Chris Buescher to catch lightning in a bottle one more time. Either Sunday, or the return date in August will do. Maybe.

June 5, 2017
Kurt Busch Pounds Wall Twice in Dover Cup Race

By Lap 65, Kurt Busch was in second place and looked to have a car to run up front Sunday at Dover in the AAA 400 Drive for Autism. However, by Lap 97, he was in the garage and out of the race after hitting the wall a second time.

Busch lined up inside of Kyle Larson on the Lap 65 restart and edged ahead of him going into Turn 1. But rounding the turn, Busch got loose underneath Larson. He overcorrected, turned up the track, hit Brad Keselowski, who swerved up to the high line to avoid the spinning Busch and sent him into the outside wall in Turn 2. Busch continued his slide through the turn before coming to a stop near the exit of Turn 2 in the middle of the track.

“I got loose on a restart, it’s my bad as a driver. My bad,” Busch said. “We had good speed in our car and just couldn’t finish. You can’t make mistakes out here and we did.”

“Yeah, one of them racing deals,” Keselowski said. “These cars rely so much on aerodynamics. We saw that early with guys being able to stay out on two tires even with a lot of tire wear. I don’t know if it was Kurt’s fault, just one of them racing deals. We line-up double-file and somebody got loose and just took us out. What a bummer. Just one of them racing deals.”

Busch soldiered on in the race until his left-rear tire came apart entering Turn 1 on Lap 97, sending him spinning through the turn and rear-first into the outside wall.

Keselowski leaves Dover seventh in points, 135 back of leader Martin Truex Jr. while Busch leaves 16th, 254 behind.

June 4, 2017
Hot 20 – If Dover is such a boring track to watch a race, why is Jimmie Johnson so excited?

Some things are just not like the others. May featured the World 600 and the All-Star race at Charlotte, the spring derby at Talladega, events a fellow can get excited about. This week. Dover.

Maybe Jimmie Johnson will stall on the re-start like he did last spring. That caused one hell of a mess. No, it was not racing, but it sure was not boring. It was not boring when Carl Edwards bounced off the infield wall. At the end, Kyle Larson kept Matt Kenseth honest right to the stripe, as the veteran claimed the victory. That was not a boring finish.

Miles the Monster is not boring. He is big, and the trophy is cool as it holds a model of the winning car in its big mitt. The Monster Mile was once known as White Lightning, but I am thinking that Miles is a bit of a Teetotaler. Come to think of it, so are Donald Trump and Kathy Griffin. Why that fun fact amuses me as much as it does, I do not know.

They have raced 94 times at Dover since the first Cup event in 1969. Richard Petty won the first two, three of the first four, and is tied with Bobby Allison with seven victories. That is good enough for second best.

Among active drivers, Kenseth and Ryan Newman have won three apiece but they are a long ways away from the top gun. Remember that guy who jammed things up last year? Johnson has won 10 in 30 attempts. That is a pretty good average. I wonder who the favorite might be?

It would seem our seven-time Cup champion just likes collecting the more unusual trophies. Ten Monsters to go with his nine Martinsville grandfather clocks. Say what you might about the one-mile track in Delaware or the driver who dominates it, but I think we can agree that there is a trophy room out there that is anything but boring.

Like Austin Dillon, Johnson is among our Hot 20 with a Chase in his future.

1. MARTIN TRUEX JR – 2 WINS – 491 PTS
First in points, tied for first in wins. What do you think of Furniture Row now?

2. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 2 WINS – 409 PTS
Dreams of lasting a tad longer this Sunday than he did in the race last week.

3. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 2 WINS – 359 PTS
The gatekeeper of the room with Monsters and Grandfather Clocks.

4. KYLE LARSON – 1 WIN – 486 PTS
Monaco is too far away to attempt a Triple but has dreams of a Memorial Day Weekend Double.

5. RICKY STENHOUSE JR. – 1 WIN – 298 PTS
Like Happy and Rowdy, he has an attractive better half, but he also has something they do not.

6. KURT BUSCH – 1 WIN – 290 PTS
With his Daytona 500 win and three of the past four a Top Ten, it is good to be Kurt.

7. RYAN NEWMAN – 1 WIN – 266 PTS
When a veteran looks you in the eye and says you are who they fight for, that has an impact.

8. AUSTIN DILLON – 1 WIN – 238 PTS
Points? Who needs stinkin’ points when you get a win at Charlotte?

9. KEVIN HARVICK – 388 PTS
The buck stops with the crew chief, as Childers loses $10,000 for Charlotte’s loose lug nut.

10. KYLE BUSCH – 386 PTS
Hates to lose, be it 38th at Daytona or 2nd at Charlotte. He won’t be a happy camper.

11. JAMIE MCMURRAY – 385 PTS
All of his wins have come on just four marquee tracks, and this is not one of them.

12. CHASE ELLIOTT – 362 PTS
Keselowski saved mechanics a ton of time last week, removing any thought of making repairs.

13. CLINT BOWYER – 343 PTS
Solution to a front end that just would not turn last weekend. Clydesdales. Just a thought.

14. JOEY LOGANO – 336 PTS (1 WIN*)
Win at Kansas was encumbered, meaning it means nothing when it comes to Chase eligibility.

15. DENNY HAMLIN – 332 PTS
One very bad day away from being in danger of losing his contender status.

16. RYAN BLANEY – 308 PTS
One very good day away from potentially putting Hamlin in that position.

17. MATT KENSETH – 288 PTS
A repeat of last year’s spring edition would be just fine with him.

18. TREVOR BAYNE – 271 PTS
Doing enough to stay on this list, but not enough to challenge for a title.

19. ERIK JONES – 256 PTS
Just turned 21 this week. I turned 21 in 1977. I win!

20. DANIEL SUAREZ – 246 PTS
Five straight in the Top 20, three of the last four in the top dozen. There is still time.

May 31, 2017