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  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Charlotte

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Charlotte

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Joey Logano: With his spot in the Chase’s next round already locked up, Logano finished fourth at Charlotte, then watched as his Penske teammate went berserk afterwards.

    “Sadly,” Logano said, “Kes is going to get stuck with the nickname ‘Spoiled Little Brad.’ Brad’s not one to back down when he thinks he’s been wronged, and if that means crashing his car, he’ll do it. If nothing else, he has ‘scrap mettle.’

    “The post-race shenanigans were wild. It looks like my teammate is the bad guy. He really pissed some drivers off. When you say ‘Flair’ in Charlotte, you usually think of ‘Ric,’ not ‘tempers.’”

    2. Kevin Harvick: Harvick led 162 laps at Charlotte, and took the field to green on the final restart with two laps remaining. He pulled away from Jeff Gordon and won the Bank Of America 500 and a pass to the third round of the Chase.

    “They call me the ‘Closer,’” Harvick said. “They call Gordon the ‘(Can’t Get) Closer.’

    “With the win, I moved in to the Chase For The Cup’s round 3. Of course, that took a backseat to some of the post-race events, which looked more like round 1.”

    3. Kyle Busch: Busch won the pole at Charlotte and finished fifth in the Bank Of America 500, his second top-five in the last two races. He is second in the points, six out of first.

    “I’m in perfect position to advance,” Busch said. “The only thing that can keep me out of the ‘Eliminator’ round is a meltdown on the scale of the one that Brad Keselowski displayed. I’m confident that won’t happen. What worries me is that I know I’m capable of it.”

    4. Jeff Gordon: Gordon chased Kevin Harvick to the finish at Charlotte, but didn’t have enough to catch the No. 4. Gordon took second, and needs only a finish of 16th or better at Talladega to advance to the Challenger round.

    “What a wild night at Charlotte,” Gordon said. “I think NASCAR needs more races like this. I hear NASCAR is already looking to add a race on a track shaped not like an oval, but an octagon.”

    5. Carl Edwards: Edwards finished eighth at Charlotte and now stands fifth in the Sprint Cup points standings, 12 behind Joey Logano.

    “I’ve got to hand it to my future teammate Matt Kenseth,” Edwards said. “He really went after Brad Keselowski. From the man who is known for his backflips, that was the best ‘jump’ I’ve seen in awhile.”

    6. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth finished 19th after starting 42nd due to what NASCAR called an “unapproved adjustment.” After the race, Brad Keselowski hit Kenseth’s No. 20 as the cars were heading to the garage.

    “First of all,” Kenseth said, “NASCAR’s so-called unapproved adjustment was a decal. When I heard we had to go to the back of the field, I experienced a case of ‘sticker shock.’

    “Then, Keselowski started playing bumper cars. I won’t stand for that. I’m not a huge social media user, but I felt the need to post Brad’s new Twitter handle, ‘@hole.’”

    7. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson pitted on the final caution with seven laps to go, giving up fourth place in the process. He emerged 10th and dropped back to 17th at the checkered flag.

    “Obviously,” Johnson, “that wasn’t the right decision. It appeared to be the first of many judgment errors made by drivers at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

    “We’ve placed ourselves behind the 8-ball. But we’ll have to scrap for everything at Talladega, and I’m confident we can do it. With the Keselowski-Hamlin-Kenseth dustup in mind, I still have some ‘fight’ left in me.”

    8. Kyle Larson: Larson led five laps and looked poised to challenge for the win until he brushed the wall late, throwing off the handling of his No. 42 Target car. He still finished sixth, and has a top-six result in all five Chase races.

    “Sure,” Larson said, “the events of Saturday night don’t reflect well on Brad Keselowski. He’s got at least three drivers upset with him. But there’s a positive to everything, and NASCAR drivers are always looking for a new sponsor. The heck with the milk industry, Keselowski should be the poster boy for the new ‘Got Beef?’ ad campaign.”

    9. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin finished ninth in the Bank Of America 500, then tangled with Brad Keselowski on the cool-down lap.

    “Ironically,” Hamlin said, “I threw a white towel at Keselowski in anger.

    “I’m not afraid to tell it like it is. I’m a straight-shooter. Keselowski needs a straightjacket.”

    10. (tie): Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Earnhardt suffered a broken shifter handle on lap 137, and the ensuing problems cost him dearly at Charlotte. He finished 20th, and now needs a win at Talladega to advance to the next Chase round.

    “Hey,” Earnhardt said. “Shift happens.

    “But I know what I have to do. It’s all or nothing at Talladega. I need a huge victory in the worst way. So, contrary to what is standard at Talladega, I welcome the ‘Big One’ at Talladega.”

    Brad Keselowski: Keselowski finished 16 in the Bank Of America 500 on a clearly frustrating night in Charlotte. On the cool down lap, Keselowski rammed Denny Hamlin, then hit Matt Kenseth and Tony Stewart. In the garage moments later, Kenseth charged Keselowski, sparking a wild melee.

    “It looked like everyone wanted a piece of me,” Keselowski said. “What the heck happened? Did NASCAR just announce a new dispute-settlement philosophy, ‘Boys, have at ‘im?’”

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Charlotte Bank of America 500

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Charlotte Bank of America 500

    With new paint schemes under the lights, as well as pink for breast cancer awareness abounding, here is what was surprising and not surprising from the 55th annual Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

    Surprising: In spite of the championship not even being close to secured for 2014, there was a surprising amount of discussion about champions after the checkered flag flew at Charlotte.

    Past champs Matt Kenseth and Brad Keselowski had quite the confrontation in the pits after the race, as well as exchanging some beating and banging on the track during the race and at the end of it.

    “The race had ended, and he’s running into cars on the cool-down lap,” Kenseth said of Keselowski. “I mean, the race is over, and he comes down pit road and drives into the side of me. That’s inexcusable. He’s a champion, and he’s supposed to know better.”

    Denny Hamlin was also a participant in the melee on and off the track with Keselowski, calling the driver of the powder blue deuce “out of control.”

    “He’s desperate, obviously, and it’s either four or five of us are wrong or he’s wrong because he’s pissed off everyone,” Hamlin said. “That was unfortunate. Matt (Kenseth) was nearly out of his car, and he just plowed into Matt and then ran into Tony and then went in through the garage and cleared out transmissions and did burnouts in the garage.”

    “Just acting like a dumbass instead of a champion.”

    Not Surprising: Although he won his 26th race, tying Hall of Famer inductee Fred Lorenzen for 25th on the all-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series win list, as well as securing his spot in the Eliminator round of the Chase, Kevin Harvick seemed more than willing to turn over the wheel of his No. 4 Budweiser Chevrolet to another driver for next weekend’s race at Talladega.

    “I’d park it because it’ll be one hell of a race to watch,” Harvick said simply when asked about the potential mayhem at ‘Dega. “That’s what I’d do.”

    “I’m parking it and watching it. It’s going to be fun to watch. It’s going to be crazy, offensive racing.”

    “You want to drive, DeLana?”

    Surprising: It was a surprisingly good night in Charlotte for the Ganassi Racing team, with Jamie McMurray finishing third and the rim-riding rookie Kyle Larson finishing sixth.

    “Yeah, it was a really good night for our whole group,” McMurray said. “When I got to second place at one point I looked at my mirror and Kyle was catching me. We certainly went through a couple of really tough years as our group at Chip Ganassi Racing, and it’s so great right now to have both cars run that well every single week at a lot of different type racetracks.”

    “I was not only thrilled for our group but also for the 42 car and just everybody. This is a big weekend for all the race teams. There’s a lot of crew guys that get to bring their kids here to watch their dads or their moms work that sit in the stands, so that’s pretty special I think for Kyle and I to have a good showing.”

    “Top groove got going, and I was able to run up there and get to the front and lead for a little bit and the yellow came out and we lost some spots on pit road,” Larson said. “I was able to get back to second and then got into the wall in 3 and 4 chasing down the 11, and messed up the aerodynamics and was really tight after that and just kind of held on and I was lucky with that green-white-checkered, we came down and took four, restarted on the outside and was able to follow the 22 up around the top to get to sixth.”

    Not Surprising: Although he finished second in his No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet, restarts continue to be the Achilles heel for Jeff Gordon.

    “I didn’t want to see another restart, because every time we start on the inside, we seem to lose positions; there at the end, and the whole race,” Gordon said. “We were just trying to tune to make it better.”

    “I’m really proud of that finish and really proud of that effort.” Gordon continued. “It looked like we were going to be second. We got off a little bit and lost some track position. I had some terrible restarts. Kevin was tough. I knew when he got out in front it was going to be hard to beat him.”

    “I’m really happy about this second (place finish). It doesn’t make us, by any means, comfortable going into next week, but a lot better than it could be.”

    Surprising: With all the post-race drama, one of the most dramatic turn of events at the race start was lost in the shuffle. Matt Kenseth was penalized at the start of the race for an unapproved adjustment on pit road, which was reportedly a bumper decal.

    After his crew chief vociferously argued the call, Kenseth was forced to start the race at the rear of the field, which perhaps led to his anger and frustration that spilled over at race end.

    Not Surprising: While there was much drama for the Chase competitors, there were many non-Chasers that were having quite their own little races as well.

    Both Kurt Busch and AJ Allmendinger were satisfied with their finishes at Charlotte, taking the checkered flag in eleventh and twelfth places respectively.

    “I would call it a really good effort,” Kurt Busch, the driver of the No. 41 State Water Heaters Chevrolet, said. “The lap times were there. We were running second at half-way and ended up finishing 11th. But all-in-all, it was nice to run up front with the guys, and to show a turn in the right direction from where we had been running.”

    “We started off a little bit off,” AJ Allmendinger, the driver of the No. 47 Scott Products Chevrolet, said. “There were a couple of runs that I thought we were really good. I’m happy with it and stayed on the lead-lap all day.”

    “We have to keep working. I think there are little, small things that we are missing instead of big things. Getting better.”

    Surprising: After Jeff Gordon, Kasey Kahne was the only Hendrick driver to finish top-ten, with Dale Earnhardt Jr. having shifter problems and Jimmie Johnson testily telling crew chief Chad Knaus that he was going to crash every lap.

    “It was better than we ran most of the night,” Kahne, driver of the No. 5 Pepsi Chevrolet, said. “The only way I could get it to turn in the center was to be so loose. Then it would still get tight after 15 laps so we would go slower at that point. So we just tried a lot of things.”

    Johnson soldiered on to finish 17th and Junior ended the race in the 20th spot.

    Not Surprising: While Joey Logano did not even have to finish the race given his race win at Kansas last weekend, he was still very pleased with maintaining his points lead position. In fact, he remarked prior to the race that he was thrilled to see his hauler and car in the garage area at the front of the pack.

    “Obviously, this doesn’t do a whole bunch for us because we’re in the next round,” Logano said after his fourth place finish. “But we still need to keep that momentum like we have been. It was definitely a hard-fought day for this whole Pennzoil team and they did a good job.”

    Logano leads the point standings by six points over competitor Kyle Busch.

    Surprising: With the focus more on tire concerns, the real issue of the race was the incredible number of blown engines. In fact, there were five engine expirations, including Clint Bowyer, Paul Menard, Josh Wise, Michael Annett, and Brian Vickers.

    “I had a really good car,” Paul Menard, driver of the No. 27 Schrock/Menards Chevrolet, said. “It’s too bad, awesome car, we had a pit stop problem and went to the back, but drove our way back up into the top 15 or so. We definitely had a top five car, just unfortunate. Something let go in the motor.”

    Not Surprising: Next week’s race is the infamous crap shoot of Talladega and not surprisingly, the drivers have different opinions on just how that race will play out.

    “It wasn’t a win – which is what we really want – but it’s another solid finish for us,” Kyle Busch said after his fifth place run at Charlotte. “We just need to go to Talladega next week and try to avoid the ‘big one.’ ”

    “We had a good finish for our Fastenal Ford,” Carl Edwards, driver of the No. 99 Fastenal Ford, said after finishing eighth. “It’s fun racing here at Charlotte and now we get to go to Talladega and have a little fun. We’ve got 20 points on ninth-place so it went pretty well for us.”

    “We’ll go on to Talladega, but I’m just glad we got out of here clean,” Edwards continued. “I don’t think we made any enemies, so we’ll go have some fun at Talladega and hopefully make the next round.”

     

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Kansas

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Kansas

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Joey Logano: Logano took charge after a late restart and cruised to the win in the Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas.

    “I’ve already qualified for the next Chase round,” Logano said. “Some other driver lost tire pressure. Me? I just lost ‘pressure.’”

    2. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski suffered a blown front tire on lap 165 that sent him into the wall, a fate suffered by several Cup contenders. He finished 36th.

    “A lot of Chase drivers, including myself, are dreaming of that championship,” Keselowski said. “Who doesn’t dream of the trophy and the accompanying ring? Unfortunately, at Kansas, talk of fingers quickly turned to talk of ‘tows.’”

    3. Kyle Busch: Busch won his sixth Nationwide Series race of the year on Saturday and scored a third in the Hollywood Casino 400 on Sunday. He is third in the points standings, six out of first.

    “I’m thrilled with third,” Busch said. “Kansas is traditionally a track at which I’ve struggled. Usually, I’m the one that ‘hits a wall’ at Kansas, not the true legitimate Cup contenders.”

    4. Jeff Gordon: Gordon finished 14th on an otherwise disastrous day for Hendrick Motorsports, as Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Jimmie Johnson finished 39th and 40th, respectively.

    “Sunday’s race was the Hollywood Casino 400,” Gordon said. “If you put Clint Bowyer in a casino at the roulette wheel, it’s a sure thing he’ll spin.”

    5. Carl Edwards: Edwards, the lone Roush Fenway Racing driver still in the Chase, finished fifth in the Hollywood Casino 400.

    “I’m third in the points standings,” Edwards said. “That’s my best position of the year. My best position of the next year will be in the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.”

    6. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson was spun by Greg Biffle on lap 85, sending him hard into the inside retaining wall. Johnson finished 40th.

    “The points were reset after the Dover race,” Johnson said. “And Chad Knaus would agree with that fact 100%, because I can’t tell you how many times he’s sworn everybody is on a level playing ground.”

    7. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: While leading midway through the race, Earnhardt blew a right-front tire and slammed the wall. The damage sent him to the garage and he eventually finished 39th.

    “Let’s just hope the people of ‘E-Nation’ don’t become the people of ‘Elimi-Nation,’” Earnhardt said.

    8. Kevin Harvick: Harvick won his seventh pole of the year and led 61 laps on his way to a 12th-place finish at Kansas.

    “My seven poles have resulted in only one win,” Harvick said. “Obviously, I’m not that adept at closing the deal. If you ask Richard Childress, he’ll say I’m good at closing out a deal.”

    9. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth finished 13th at Kansas as Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch finished third. Kenseth is seventh in the Sprint Cup points standings, 17 out of first.

    “We’re headed to Talladega in two weeks,” Kenseth said. “And four drivers will be eliminated afterwards. I didn’t think it was possible, but the ‘Big One’ got even bigger.

    “I hear Michael Waltrip is still alive on ‘Dancing With The Stars.’ And he’s finally able to admit he has a partner.”

    10. Kyle Larson: Larson finished second at Kansas, and now has two seconds, a third, and a sixth in the last four races.

    “Yet I’m barely old enough to drink a ‘fifth,’” Larson said.

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Kansas Hollywood Casino 400

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Kansas Hollywood Casino 400

    With Kansas City Royals Manager Ned Yost commanding the drivers to start their engines, here is what else was surprising and not surprising from the 14th annual Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway.

    Surprising: There were surprisingly two drivers after the checkered flag flew that thought that they had won the race.

    One driver, Joey Logano, did indeed end up in Victory Lane, securing his place in the Eliminator Round of the Chase competition, while Kyle Busch, who has so often had tremendously bad luck at Kansas, finished third in a run that felt to him more like a win.

    “It’s a dream come true,” Logano said after winning his fifth of the season and his first ever at Kansas Speedway. “It’s a dream season so far. We’ve just got to keep finishing it off.”

    “It is awesome to be back in victory lane again,” Logano continued. “We were able to capitalize and do what we needed to do. It was fun.”

    “I won today, I just didn’t get champagne and a trophy,” Kyle Busch said after posting only his third top-10 finish in 15 races at Kansas Speedway. ““To get through Kansas feels nice.”

    “I set my mind to it that there is no reason why we can’t run good here. There is absolutely no reason and other guys can do it so I can do it and my teammates can do it — there is no reason,” Busch continued. “We did that here today and it felt good.”

    Both drivers also had winning days in the point standings as Logano is just six points ahead of Busch after the Kansas race.

    Not Surprising: One of the first gestures after the race was over was from rookie Kyle Larson, demonstrating with about an inch between his index finger and thumb just how close he was yet again to winning.

    This was Larson’s 15th top-10 finish of the season and he was again the highest finishing rookie, in fact for the 21st time.

    “We were good all weekend long,” Larson said. “I thought me and Joey were dead even there at the end. It was hard for me to gain on him. We would go within a hundredth of each other it seemed like on every lap. I was able to close on him at one point, but just couldn’t do anything.”

    “Good finish. We’ll get some wins here soon hopefully before the end of the year, and I think once we get one, we should be up here more often as a winner.”

    Surprising: For at least one Chase contender, the Kansas race ended up being what has traditionally been defined as “a potentially lethal game of chance in which a “player” places a single round in a revolver, spins the cylinder, places the muzzle against their head, and pulls the trigger.”

    “It was just Russian roulette and it was our turn,” Brad Keselowski said after a tire issue sent him into the wall for a 36th place finish. “We blew the right front tire. I am not sure why. We didn’t have an aggressive setup or anything, we just blew the tire.”

    “We didn’t do anything,” the driver of the No. 2 Miller Lite Ford continued. “Like I said, it was a game of Russian Roulette and it was our turn at the gun.”

    Not Surprising: After the euphoria of welcoming his first born son into the world prior to the race, it was not surprising that Clint Bowyer was extremely upset with finishing 18th at a track that he considers part of his racing history.

    “We just struggled all day,” Bowyer said. “Got damage early on and our pink lemonade 5-hour ENERGY Toyota was never the same. Hate it at my home track.”

    Surprising: For once in a very long time, Richard Childress Racing had a better day at the track than Hendrick Motorsports, with the former having all three of its drivers in the top ten, while the latter had major issues of some sort for every one of its four drivers.

    Ryan Newman, driver of the RCR No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet finished sixth, Austin Dillon in his RCR No. 3 American Ethanol Chevrolet finishing eighth, and Paul Menard, in the RCR No. 27 Quaker State/Menards Chevrolet finished ninth.

    “Just a good run for the Caterpillar Chevrolet, it was nice to lead some laps,” Newman said. “First time in a long time we have done that.”

    “That is good. That is a motivation for our company.”

    “We fought hard all day,” Menard said. “We didn’t quite have the speed our teammates did. We made some really good adjustments to get the car balanced out good. I’m pretty happy with a top 10 after struggling most of the race. We hit on a couple of things throughout the race that got us better.”

    Jeff Gordon was the highest finishing Hendrick Motorsports car, with a 14th place run. Kasey Kahne finished 22nd; Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jimmie Johnson finished 39th and 40th respectively.

    “It was a handful,” Jeff Gordon said. “We were having a pretty solid day with the Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet until the No. 1 car (Jamie McMurray) got loose and got into our left rear.”

    “We had a little damage but we just lost all that track position,” Gordon continued. “It is so hard to get it back at this place.”

    “A lot of people had trouble today. So today was a real survival day. We did that. It just felt like we could have finished a lot better than that. We had a good race car. We actually really had a great race car.”

    Not Surprising: Pleased but not satisfied was how Brian Vickers felt after almost wrecking all day, throwing the kitchen sink at his race car, and finishing tenth in his No. 55 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota.

    “I think we wrecked 15 times and didn’t hit anything,” Vickers said. “We didn’t get much practice yesterday — we had a couple shock issues that kind of messed us up for the two practices. Then we finally got that figured out on the last run of practice. Basically, today’s race was our practice.”

    “It just took us until the end of the race to kind of get it figured out,” Vickers continued. “There were a few runs there where we were horrible and trying to learn and trying things that didn’t work and did work. Then that last run the guys said, ‘Screw it,’ and threw the kitchen sink at it with a couple changes where we were trying to learn something for the future and it was just awesome.”

    “Considering everything we had to overcome this weekend I would say we’re pleased, but not satisfied.”

    Surprising: In a race with so many blown tires, it was a bit surprising that Carl Edwards’ two tire call actually worked out for him. The driver of the No. 99 Fastenal Ford finished fifth, keeping his hopes alive in the Chase race.

    “That was an awesome finish for us,” Edwards said. “I appreciate everyone coming out here and supporting this 99 team, it means the world. We did not run very well all day but that was awesome at the end, a lot of fun.”

    “We put it on the top and ran around and it was a lot of fun,” Edwards continued. “You keep saying we are going to fall out of this and we will keep doing what we are doing. I am so proud of my guys, they did great on pit road. Everyone on the Fastenal crew did a great job and Jimmy Fennig made the right calls and we came home with a top-five, so it was a good day.”

    Not Surprising: After another top-10 finish, there was no doubt that Denny Hamlin was in a smooth mood after his seventh place run.

    “I’m proud of my team — no mistakes on pit road, just nice smooth day,” Hamlin said. “I saw those guys having a lot of issues. We don’t have a lot of the speed that those guys have, so maybe if we can get them out this round, then maybe there’s a fighting chance we’ll get to the end of this thing.”

    “This is a good run for us and this is obviously the type of runs that we need to keep moving on. We’ll take sevenths all the way out.”

    Surprising: This team just might have finally turned the corner after a struggle and back luck filled season to date. Martin Truex Jr. scored his best finish of the season with a fourth place run in his No. 78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Chevrolet.

    Since the Chase began, Truex has an average finish of 9.25 and had the second best result at Kansas of all of the non-Chase drivers.

    “A lot of effort and a lot of patience have gone into our resurgence,” said Truex. “Everything seems to be clicking much better right now and I look forward to taking advantage of what we have learned and trying to get a win.”

    “As I said last week, we’re also getting ready for 2015 and right now we’re seeing the fruits of our labor.”

    Not Surprising: He may not have advanced in the Chase but AJ Allmendinger was celebrating what he perceived as a stand-out weekend at Kansas.

    “This is the best weekend we have had in a long time for sure,” the driver of the No. 47 Clorox Chevrolet said after finishing 11th. “Happy with the car throughout the whole race, we are just lacking a little bit of overall speed.”

    “It was a good car, by far the best we have been,” Dinger continued. “That is the best 1.5-mile car I’ve had in over a year. Hopefully, we learned for the next race at Charlotte.”

  • The Final Word – Kahne Provides Some Drama at Dover

    The Final Word – Kahne Provides Some Drama at Dover

    Thank God for Kasey Kahne. With no Kahne, the broadcast of the Dover race would have been about as exciting as watching a Soap Box Derby contest in Saskatchewan, or a downhill ski event in Saskatchewan, or an outdoor performance of the Sound of Music…in Saskatchewan. The hills might be alive, but they are nowhere to be found. Sort of like waiting for drama at Dover, except for the performance of Kasey Kahne. He came in six points in the Chase. It almost proved to be not enough.

    When Kasey’s crew left him with a loose wheel after a pit stop, he needed to come in. In doing so, he went two laps down. When he needed a green lap stop later, he went down four. He just did not stay there. Pit strategy and cautions fell at the right time, his car was just that good, and in the end Kahne finished Dover in 20th. Not great, but it was enough, by two points, to continue in the Chase.

    Aric Almirola was buried in 41st after Chicago, and 28th in Delaware kept him buried. A.J. Allmendinger was six to the good on Saturday, but Dover is a track he historically does not do well at. History won, as he finished 23rd, and it was Kahne who advanced.

    I had thought Greg Biffle might be the man. He was, but the car was not. Usually good on this track, he was 21st when he needed a top fifteen. Kurt Busch was 18th, but after the disaster at Loudon only a top ten would have saved him. As for Denny Hamlin, he was six points out of it coming in, but a 12th place finish cured his ills and all is forgiven up to and including Talladega.

    Now, the top dozen are even, 3000 points for everyone in a 12 driver tie. Jimmie Johnson has 14 Top Tens, along with a couple of wins, in sixteen tries at Kansas. That bodes well for him. Jeff Gordon, who won at Dover has three on the plains, so he should do well. Other Chasers with strong Kansas resumes include Carl Edwards, Brad Keselowski, and Kevin Harvick. Oh, Kyle Larson seems to like the place, too. I am starting to think the kid is on a scouting mission for next year.

    Not everyone likes Kansas, though after Dover I can not imagine it being a worse televised experience than that. Hamlin and Dale Earnhardt Jr. do not exactly burn up this venue. Same goes for Ryan Newman. However, there are two gents who have a tough time just cracking the top twenty there. It could be an interesting day for Joey Logano and Kyle Busch.

    In case you missed it, Kyle Busch won another Nationwide race last weekend. I went to the bathroom last weekend, and so did you. Look at that, an entire paragraph totally unnewsworthy.

    There is no question that the stats that spit out after Kansas should be interesting. We have great story lines, strong characters, but sadly I believe the NASCAR movie just does not measure up to the book.

    Advancing…
    1 – Brad Keselowski – 1 Win – 2140 Points – *
    2 – Joey Logano – 1 – 2136 – *
    3 – Jeff Gordon – 1 – 2117 – *
    4 – Kevin Harvick – 0 – 2123 – 46 Points In
    5 – Jimmie Johnson – 0 – 2121 – 44
    6 – Kyle Busch – 0 – 2111 – 34
    7 – Dale Earnhardt, Jr. – 0 – 2104 – 27
    8 – Matt Kenseth – 0 – 2097 – 20
    9 – Ryan Newman – 0 – 2091 – 14
    10 – Carl Edwards – 0 – 2091 – 14
    11 – Denny Hamlin – 0 – 2081 – 4
    12 – Kasey Kahne – 0 – 2079 – 2

    Eliminated…
    13 – A.J. Allmendinger – 0 – 2077 – 2 Points Out
    14 – Kurt Busch – 0 – 2073 – -6
    15 – Greg Biffle – 0 – 2072 – -7
    16 – Aric Almirola – 0 – 2061 – 18

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Loudon

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Loudon

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski won his second straight pole and was in contention at Loudon despite hitting the wall. He eventually finished seventh as teammate Joey Logano won.

    “When I hit the wall,” Keselowski said, “I thought the worst. But the Chase is long and grueling, and won’t be won in a day. You’ve got to keep your eyes on the prize. For me personally, I’m able to see the ‘Lite’ at the end of the tunnel.”

    2. Joey Logano: Logano led 78 laps and pulled away on the gree-white-checkered restart to take the win at New Hampshire. With the victory, Logano joins Penske Racing teammate Brad Keselowski as the only drivers to have clinched berths in the next round.

    “It’s great to win at my home track,” Logano said. “I have lots of supporters at home, but none more fanatical than my father.”

    3. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt finished ninth in the Sylvania 300, posting his 17th top-10 finish of the year. He is sixth in the points standings, 20 out of first.

    “There were a whopping 15 cautions on Sunday,” Earnhardt said. “That really slowed the race down, and it truly made it feel like a ‘Sunday drive.’”

    4. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson finished fifth at New Hampshire, posting his ninth top 5 of the year. He is fourth in the points standings, 17 behind Brad Keselowski.

    “Some say the Jimmie Johnson aura of invincibility is fading,” Johnson said. “That could change in a matter of seconds with a win at Dover, where I’ve won several times. A win there, and all my critics will realize I am a threat to win the Cup. So I’m replacing the aura of invincibility with the aura of convincibility.”

    5. Kevin Harvick: Harvick led a race-high 104 laps and finished third in the Sylvania 300 at Loudon. He is now third in the Sprint Cup points standings, seven out of first.

    “Traditionally,” Harvick said, “the Loudon winner is awarded a lobster. That’s what Joey Logano got. It may be the first time the race trophy was older than the race winner.”

    6. Jeff Gordon: Gordon finished a troubling 26th in Sunday’s caution-filled race at Loudon. He is seventh in the points standings, 27 behind Brad Keselowski.

    “The pressure will be on at Dover,” Gordon said. “I need a solid finish in order to advance. So, the only clinching scenarios I want to hear are the ones that don’t involve my rear end.”

    7. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth finished 21st at Loudon and is now eighth in the points standings, 40 out of first.

    “Fifteen is simply way too many cautions,” Kenseth said. “’Proceed with caution’ is a warning for drivers, not instructions for race officials.”

    8. Kyle Busch: Kyle Busch finished eighth at Loudon and has posted top 10’s in both Chase races. He is fifth in the points standings, and barring a disaster, should advance to the Challenger round.

    “I like my chances,” Busch said. “For me, a ‘disaster of the bar’ would be my lawyer not being able to get me a reduced sentence for going 128 miles per hour in a 45 MPH zone.”

    9. Carl Edwards: Edwards finished 17th in the Sylvania 300, the top finisher among Roush Fenway Racing cars.

    “I guess all we can do is put that finish behind us,” Edwards said, “and move on. And speaking of moving on, I’ll be at Joe Gibbs Racing next year. Nobody’s is more excited about it than me. In fact, nobody’s excited about it but me.”

    10. Kyle Larson: Larson finished second in the Sylvania 300 and now has a third and a second in the last two races.

    “I’m 21 years old,” Larson said, “but I’m certainly not the baby of the sport. That title belongs to Cole Custer, who won the Truck series race at New Hampshire at the age of 16 years, 7 months, and 28 days. I’ve heard of the Gillette Young Guns; it’s too bad Cole’s not shaving. He could be a Gillette Young’un.”

  • The Final Word – Loudon was Full of Surprises, and Not all of Them Were Happy Ones

    The Final Word – Loudon was Full of Surprises, and Not all of Them Were Happy Ones

    New Hampshire, for about 180 laps, was a mind numbing experience. It was the Round-and-round 300, and when you add the beleaguered ESPN desk trios to the mix, it was damn near unwatchable. Then stuff started to happen.

    Early on, Kurt Busch had to come in due to a tire issue. Then Dale Earnhadt Jr.’s crew failed to secure lugnuts on a tire, and he had to make an unscheduled stop. Not long after, there was Denny Hamlin stuck on pit row with a car that would not accept fuel. It was enough to make one kick off the fast forward button to check out exactly what was going on.

    Matt Kenseth did not seem to have a lot of command over his sliding vehicle, and when he broke traction and had to whoa up he got hit from behind by Kyle Busch, who got hit from behind by Kasey Kahne, who got hit from behind by Ryan Newman. On the positive side, it at least allowed Junior to get back on the lead lap.

    Brad Keselowski got spun, but after his win at Chicago he was just driving for fun and sponsor dollars. Kurt Busch got into Jamie McMurray which caused a tire rub that caused a blow out that caused Mr. Busch to hit the wall.

    Later, Kenseth again wobbled and after contact with Paul Menard it was the Chaser doing some metal work against the wall. Jeff Gordon looked good with under ten to go, until his tire let go and he nailed the fence.

    In the end, it was almost a recasting of last week, with Kevin Harvick the dominant once again on the day, but once again it was a Penske car driving off on the re-starts. Joey Logano got the lead in this play, driving off, not to be seen again until the finish line, to punch his ticket to the next round. Harvick finished third.

    The runner-up? That would be one Kyle Larson, as the kid did it again. Not a Chaser, but no doubt the 22-year old is a racer as he claims his second straight Top Three. Top Ten days for Jimmie Johnson, Keselowski, Kyle Busch, and Junior keep them high on the charts.

    Aric Almirola was dead last amongst Chasers after his disaster in Chicago. Until his engine blew, he had been doing great. Sixth at Loudon sure helps, and having a bunch of folks joining him in the deep end of the pool at least allows him a chance of standing on somebody’s shoulders to advance. He was 23 points out when they began Sunday, he is ten away going into next weekend.

    Out of 16 Chasers, half of them finished outside the Top Fifteen. Greg Biffle had a non-competitive day to finish 16th. Carl Edwards was 17th, Newman one behind him. Kenseth was 21st, Kahne 23rd, and Gordon 26th. Way back there was Kurt, at 36th, one up on Hamlin’s beast. If nothing else, it rather muddled up what had been, or so I thought, a few foregone conclusions.

    What that leaves us with is Sunday at Dover. Keselowski and Logano are safe, with a disaster of Biblical proportions needed to deny Harvick. Almirola is still dead last, but the gap between 16th and 8th is now just a dozen points. One blown tire, one blown engine, one broken part, or one miscue out on the track, and all bets are off.

    Last Sunday’s televised action would not have added a single new fan to the sport, not in the way Talladega might next month. Loudon was painful to watch and even more painful to listen to. However, for fans who know what is at stake, New Hampshire provided something huge. Unpredictability. Heading to Dover I am confident as to who three, even seven, of the drivers advancing to the next round of the Chase will be. I am not so sure about the other five. Not anymore.

    Dandy Dozen
    1 – Brad Keselowski – 1 Win – 2097 Points –  *
    2 – Joey Logano – 1 – 2096 – *
    3 – Kevin Harvick – 0 – 2090 – 41 Points in
    4 – Jimmie Johnson – 0 – 2080 – 31 Points in
    5 – Dale Earnhardt, Jr. – 0 – 2077 – 28 Points in
    6 – Kyle Busch – 0 – 2077 – 28 Points in
    7 – Jeff Gordon – 0 – 2070 – 21 Points in
    8 – Carl Edwards – 0 – 2057 – 8 Points in
    9 – Matt Kenseth – 0 – 2057 – 8 Points in
    10 – A.J. Allmendinger – 0 – 2056 – 7 Points in
    11 – Ryan Newman – 0 – 2055 – 6 Points in
    12 – Kasey Kahne – 0 – 2055 – 6 Points in

    One chance at Redemption
    13 – Denny Hamlin – 0 – 2049 – 6 Points out
    14 – Greg Biffle – 0 – 2049 – 6 Points out
    15 – Kurt Busch – 0 – 2047 – 8 Points out
    16 – Aric Almirola – 0 – 2045 – 10 Points out

  • Hot 20 – Could the Best at Loudon and Dover be a Non-Chaser?

    Hot 20 – Could the Best at Loudon and Dover be a Non-Chaser?

    New Hampshire is the next stop on the Chase tour, and if anyone needs to rewrite expectations it would be Aric Almirola and AJ Allmendinger. Both have not done well at Loudon in the past, though Almirola was fifth in the race 15 months ago and the Dinger has one Top Ten. Still, both average beyond 20th there and after the results in Chicago came in they find their title hopes down to fumes. Yet, it is nothing that an unexpected win would not cure.

    Neither are among our Hot 20, based on the season to date. Brad Keselowski is, with back to back wins giving him five on the season. However, he is not the hottest based on this system of providing a 25 point bonus for a win. That remains Jeff Gordon, who despite having two fewer trips to Victory Lane, does have an average finish advantage of 9.7 to 13 over Keselowski in 27 races. Wins are big, especially in how we tabulate these standings, but being consistent also has its rewards. The difference is that Keselowski has finished outside the Top Twenty seven times this campaign, Gordon only three.

    Something tells me Brad is not too concerned, with last weekend’s win locking him into a Chase spot for the next five events. However, it is still too early to hand him the trophy just yet. No matter what he does at Loudon and Dover, Keselowski will have the same 3000 points as the other 11 gents left in the Chase when they move on to Kansas.

    Marcos Ambrose missed the Chase, and next year we will miss him as he returns to his native Australia. He is a fun guy with talent, especially when left hand turns lead to more to the right. Ambrose has a couple of Cup wins in 218 starts, both coming at Watkins Glen, and leaves to raise his family back on their native soil.

    Nothing is more important than family. The Ward family lost their young son Kevin in an accident involving Tony Stewart, a case that will go to a grand jury to determine if the case should proceed to trial. While what video evidence I have seen leads me to believe this was a tragic accident Stewart was not responsible for, I was not there nor do I have knowledge of all the facts. A family lost their young son that day, and they deserve a thorough, transparent review of what took place. I pray for justice for all involved.

    Sixteen drivers remain involved in the Chase, but do not expect much to change in the standings between now and the conclusion at Dover. Based on their track records, both Almirola and Allmendinger are done, with Greg Biffle in a fight for survival. I would expect over the next couple of weeks to see Jimmie Johnson absolutely shine. I would expect, based on past results, strong efforts from Gordon, Carl Edwards, Keselowski, and Matt Kenseth, with Ryan Newman coming on strong to beat out Kasey Kahne for the final spot to the next round. Of course, depending on who wins these races, all my speculation could wind up all out the window.

    There is a reason why non-Chaser Kyle Larson is among our Hot 20. Based on results from earlier this season, expect him to be the star on these tracks once again this weekend and next.

    BOLD = Current Chasers

    *Points awarded as during the regular season, except the winning bonus is 25 rather than 3 points.

    Hot 20
    1 – Jeff Gordon – 3 Wins – 1023 Points
    2 – Brad Keselowski – 5 – 987
    3 – Dale Earnhardt, Jr. – 3 – 982
    4 – Joey Logano – 3 – 935
    5 – Jimmie Johnson – 3 – 900
    6 – Kevin Harvick – 2 – 873
    7 – Carl Edwards – 2 – 845
    8 – Matt Kenseth – 0 – 831
    9 – Ryan Newman – 0 – 811
    10 – Kasey Kahne – 1 – 788
    11 – Kyle Larson – 0 – 779
    12 – Greg Biffle – 0 – 774
    13 – Clint Bowyer – 0 – 764
    14 – Kyle Busch – 1 – 747
    15 – Jamie McMurray – 0 – 742
    16 – Austin Dillon – 0 – 726
    17 – Paul Menard – 0 – 724
    18 – Denny Hamlin – 1 – 719
    19 – Kurt Busch – 1 – 709
    20 – Brian Vickers – 0 – 701

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Chicagoland

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Chicagoland

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski dominated the late restarts at Chicagoland and cruised to the win in the MyAfibStory.Com 400. He built on his lead in the points standings, and now leads Jeff Gordon by seven.

    “I automatically advanced to the next round of the Chase,” Keselowski said. “So you can pencil my name on the bracket to the ‘Contender’ round. And speaking of things written in pencil, the Chase format has seen more alterations than Bruton Smith’s pants.”

    2. Jeff Gordon: Gordon finished second at Chicagoland, a solid start in his quest for a fifth Sprint Cup championship.

    “The ‘Drive For Five’ is still alive,” Gordon said. “But I have to be careful not to get ahead of myself. First, I have to make sure the ‘Drive For 12,’ is alive, then the ‘Drive For 8,’ then the ‘Drive For 4.’”

    3. Joey Logano: Logano finished fourth in the MyAfibStory.com 400 at Chicagoland as Penske Racing teammate Brad Keselowski took the victory.

    “My goal is to be one of the four drivers to make it to that final round,” Logano said. “Obviously, we can’t call it the ‘Final Four’ because the NCAA will sue. I say we broker a tie-in with that apocalyptic HBO series and call that final race ‘The Leftovers.’”

    4. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt finished 11th at Chicagoland as Penske Racing’s Brad Keselowski won. Earnhardt is fifth in the points standings, 17 behind Keselowski.

    “It was a decent start start to the Chase,” Earnhardt said. “It could have been better, but at least there were no fans climbing the fence. I bet if we scheduled a race in southern Texas, that certainly wouldn’t be the case.”

    5. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson finished 12th at Chicagoland. He is sixth in the Sprint Cup points standings, 18 behind Brad Keselowski.

    “Luckily,” Johnson said, “there was no hot air blowing into my helmet on Sunday. But if I don’t make a statement at Dover, it could be time for a ‘cold sweat.’ It’s no time to panic, though. Now, more than ever, I need to ‘be cool.’”

    6. Kevin Harvick: Harvick led a race high 79 laps and finished fifth at Chicagoland.

    “I switched pit crews with Tony Stewart,” Harvick said. “I’m happy about that, but my former pit crew is not. They worked 26 races to get me in the Chase. Now, they’re out. You could say they were ‘Un-Happy-ed.’”

    7. Matt Kenseth: On a strong day for Joe Gibbs Racing , Kenseth finished tenth at Chicagoland as teammates Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch finished sixth and seventh, respectively.

    “The Chase format is new and improved,” Kenseth said. “First, you have the ‘Challenger’ round, then somewhere along the way there’s the ‘Eliminator’ round. I’m not sure what the other rounds are called, but I assume they’re named after ZZ Top albums as well.”

    8. Kurt Busch: Busch posted his eighth top 10 of the year with an eighth in the MyAfibStory.Com 400.

    “I made contact with my brother Kyle midway through the race,” Busch said. “That’s one instance where neither Kurt nor I can argue that a Busch was at fault.”

    9. Kyle Busch: Busch started on the pole with the highest practice speed after qualifying was rained out. He led 46 laps and finished seventh.

    “Not only did Kurt and I make contact,” Busch said, “Danica Patrick and Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. got together to bring out the final caution. Neither was happy. But is anyone really surprised that there’s friction between them?”

    10. Kyle Larson: Larson led 20 laps at Chicagoland and engaged Kevin Harvick in a lively battle for the lead late in the race. While Larson and Harvick fought, Brad Keselowski slipped through the middle and led the rest of the way. Larson finished third.

    “Had I made the Chase,” Larson said, “I could have been an unlikely contender. Chip Ganassi Racing has often partnered with Dale Earnhardt, Inc. and Teresa Earnhardt, so if I can borrow Dale, Jr.’s evil stepmother, then this Cinderella story would have been in business.”

  • The Final Word – If You Only Caught the Final Forty at Chicago, it was one Heck of a Race

    The Final Word – If You Only Caught the Final Forty at Chicago, it was one Heck of a Race

    Forty laps. The action was exciting, the announcers sounded excited, it was NASCAR at its best in Chicago. For 40 laps.

    Within those 40 laps, we saw Brad Keselowski shoot through the middle between the dueling Kyle Larson and Kevin Harvick to take the lead with sixteen to go. It was a great piece of racing, and once he was through he was gone. Two in a row, fifth of the season, and Keselowski earned himself a berth in the next round of the Chase.

    Within those 40 laps, we saw a kid truly emerge as a star. Larson just missed the Chase, but the 22 year old did not miss an opportunity to show the big boys that he is and will be a force to be reckoned with. He led, he fought to keep the lead, and he challenged anyone who attempted to get by him, which helped allow Keselowski to disappear in front. If not for Larson, Harvick or Jeff Gordon might have had a chance to go after Keselowski, but the young man did not give them that chance. His first career Cup win still lies ahead of him, but it does not seem to be that far away.

    Within those 40 laps, we saw Gordon come up from fourth to be in the mix at the end. He caught Harvick and then he battled the boy for that runner up spot. When Larson touched the wall with a couple to go, the veteran went by for good. Good racing, with the former champ even offering congratulations and a few words of advice to the newcomer when it was all over.

    Within those 40 laps, we discovered that there are times couples should not touch, especially when using their fenders. Danica Patrick got by Tony Stewart, but when she slipped in front of boyfriend Ricky Stenhouse Jr. he touched her behind in an unappreciated fashion. Both needed repairs to run the final ten and neither finished inside the Top 15.

    Within those 40 laps, we discovered who amongst the Chasers would be snake bit. Aric Almirola looked great, was up there running well within the Top Ten when his engine blew up. He finished 41st and already needs a win if he hopes to advance to the next round as a contender.

    Within those 40 laps, Joey Logano benefited from some trash on the grill that really perked up his ride. Perked it to a fourth place finish, but it did not benefit his engine. That blew at the finish line, but those 40 points more than made up for it.

    Within those 40 laps, Carl Edwards lost a left rear tire. That left him 20th when the day was done. No good, but not as bad as some, and still leaves him among the top dozen in the standings.

    Not as bad as Almirola. Not as bad as Greg Biffle in 23rd. Not as bad as A.J. Allmendinger in 22. Not as bad as the first 227 laps of what had been yet another snore-fest on ESPN until the end. In fact, Edwards sits a point to the good amongst our Chasers, a point up on Ryan Newman.

    Sunday, it is New Hampshire holding their fate. That should be welcome news for those who run well there. Among those who have average finishes of 12th or better we have Denny Hamlin, Jimmie Johnson, Gordon, and Keselowski. Maybe we might see the kid once again up front. Larson finished third there in July in his only Cup start on the track.

    Not all will be happy. Those who average outside the Top 15 at Loudon include Kasey Kahne and Logano, who after Chicago just need to avoid disaster this weekend. As for Biffle, Almirola, and A.J. Allmendinger, they will have to do more than that if they hope to advance on points. Then again, wins erase sins, so maybe, just maybe.
    1 – Brad Keselowski – 1 Win – 2059 Points
    2 – Jeff Gordon – 0 – 2051
    3 – Joey Logano – 0 – 2049
    4 – Kevin Harvick – 0 – 2047
    5 – Dale Earnhardt, Jr. – 0 – 2042
    6 – Jimmie Johnson – 0 – 2041
    7 – Denny Hamlin – 0 – 2041
    8 – Kyle Busch – 0 – 2041
    9 – Kurt Busch – 0 – 2039
    10 – Kasey Kahne – 0 – 2034
    11 – Matt Kenseth – 0 – 2034
    12 – Carl Edwards – 0 – 2030
    13 – Ryan Newman – 0 – 2029
    14 – A.J. Allmendinger – 0 – 2025
    15 – Greg Biffle – 0 – 2021
    16 – Aric Almirola – 0 – 2007