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Surprising and Not Surprising: Samuel Deeds 400 at the Brickyard

At one of the most historic tracks on the NASCAR Sprint Cup venue, here is what was surprising and not surprising in the 20^th running of the Crown Royal Presents the Samuel Deeds 400 at the Brickyard Powered by BigMachineRecords.com.

Surprising: It is not often that Chad Knaus, one of the best crew chiefs in the business, gets outfoxed, however he surprisingly did at the Brickyard by none other than Matt Borland who won his first race since being reunited with driver Ryan Newman.

Borland made the gutsy two-tire call with just eleven laps left in the race to score the kissing of the bricks for his driver and the team of the No. 39 Quicken Loans/The Smurfs Chevrolet.

“Matt Borland just made an awesome call,” Newman said. “I have won more races with him on old tires and out of gas than I have with four tires and the best car.”

This was the first win of the season for soon to be unemployed driver Newman and the first win at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for his team, Stewart-Haas Racing.

“It’s just a fantastic day,” Borland said. “This is Ryan’s hometown and the Brickyard is the Brickyard.”

“We were finally able to get everything right on race day.”

Not Surprising: Five-time champ Jimmie Johnson was disappointed but not surprisingly gracious in defeat. And the driver of the No. 48 Lowes/Kobalt Tools Chevrolet did not even throw anyone under the bus in the process.

“Second is never fun especially at the Brickyard,” Johnson said. “Bummed out with that, but stuff happens.”

“I believe the No. 39 took two (tires) as well where we took four (tires),” Johnson continued. “I don’t fault the call by any means.”

“We win as a team we lose as a team, it’s just how it is.”

Surprising: Matt Kenseth, driver of the No. 20 Home Depot Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing, was the highest finishing Camry, taking the checkered flag in the fifth spot. But even with that good run, Kenseth admitted that he had nothing for the surprisingly fast two-some of Ryan Newman and Jimmie Johnson.

“They were way faster than us and they were up there pretty far,” Kenseth said. “Jimmie went by me so quick that I thought he was going to suck the numbers off the doors.”

“Ryan had a really fast car,” Kenseth continued. “We had a top-10 car most of the day, but I couldn’t run with those guys.”

Not Surprising: Hendrick horsepower ruled the day at the Brickyard, with six of the drivers in the top-ten having that power under their hood. One of those drivers, Kasey Kahne even credited team Hendrick power in the engine of his No. 5 Great Clips Chevrolet with his third place run.

“We had a really fast Great Clips Chevrolet,” Kahne said. “Great Hendrick horsepower was key.”

Not surprisingly and not coincidentally, Hendrick Motorsports also just named engine whiz Doug Duchardt as their new Executive Vice President and General Manager, effective immediately.

“Doug has led by example from his first day with us,” Mr. H. said “He understands the importance of relationships and has helped promote a culture of teamwork and communication.”

Surprising: Dale Earnhardt Jr. pulled off a surprisingly good finish, in fact a sixth place finish, in spite of troubles on and off the race track. The driver of the No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet battled a loose wheel at the start of the race and troubles with the car running at the end of the race, as well as coping with the loss of his uncle Randy Earnhardt, whose death Junior learned of while at the track.

“The car was shaking real bad,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “Steve (Letarte, crew chief) is a good strategist and we ended up alright.”

“Randy was always there,” Junior said of his uncle who passed away. “It is just very, very sad but I am glad his suffering is over with.”

“I loved him dearly and will miss him a lot.”

Not Surprising: Kurt Busch has been running so well as of late that, not surprisingly, he was distressed with a top-15 finish. The driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row/Beautyrest Chevrolet finished the race in the 14^th position, which was exactly where he stood in the point standings when the race was over.

“The 14^th place finish is unacceptable,” Busch said. “We’ve accomplished a lot thus far this season, but one area we need to improve upon is finishing strong.”

“No question we have to run better than we did today if we want to get into the top-10,” Busch continued. “We need to have strong finishes in the next six races.”

Surprising: Brad Keselowski was the biggest Indy loser, falling four spots in the point standings to 13^th with his 21^st place finish in his No. 2 Miller Lite Ford.

“That was definitely not the day we wanted,” Keselowski said. “We weren’t a 21^st place car.”

“It is just the way things worked out,” Keselowski continued. “That has been the story of the year.”

Not Surprising: With a hard fought battle, Jeff Gordon bounced back into the top ten in the point standings with his top ten finish in his No. 24 Pepsi Max Chevrolet at the Brickyard.

“You had to fight extremely hard in this race,” Gordon said. “It was just pit strategy and speed in the car and traffic.”

“It was not easy I can tell you that.”

Surprising: There is a surprisingly tight Sunoco Rookie of the Year battle going on at present, with Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. leading by just nine points over Danica Patrick in the ROTY standings.

Patrick, however, did not help her case with her 30^th place finish at the Brickyard, although her ROTY competitor Stenhouse Jr. did not fare much better, finishing 25^th.

“We tried something, it just didn’t work, and that’s that,” Patrick said. “It just was what it was.”

“It would have been nice to have a better day than this and be able to march forward,” Patrick continued. “We just didn’t and that’s just all there is to it.”

Not Surprising: With the lack of passing on the track, it was not surprising that many were calling for some changes, including driver Carl Edwards, who finished 13^th in his No. 99 Fastenal Ford Fusion.

“When you rely on down force and your car is going 200 mph and everything has to be perfect and there is a car up there in front of you that disrupts that air, it just becomes difficult,” Edwards said. “I don’t know that there is a fundamental problem with the car but I would be really curious to see what no front splitter and a really tiny rear spoiler would do.”

“I think it would allow Goodyear to make a tire that is softer so it would fall off more and I think you would see those great races.”

July 31, 2013
Surprising and Not Surprising: Camping World RV Sales 301

On a steamy day in New England where the action on the track was just as hot, here is what was surprising and not surprising from the Camping World RV Sales 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

Surprising: While usually on target, Chad Knaus’ prediction of his driver motoring through the pack to the front only partially came true. Johnson, who started dead last in his No. 48 Lowes Chevrolet due to failing post qualifying inspection, made his way through the field to finish just shy of the top-five in the sixth spot.

But although his prediction of a last to first performance was not fulfilled, crew chief Knaus felt that he and team 48 had made the statement they wanted to make in light of their inspection failure.

“We made the best of a bad situation and that’s all you can do,” Knaus said. “We wanted to make it a non-issue and I think that’s exactly what we did.”

“We didn’t need to win, but the most important thing is we didn’t need to lose,” Knaus continued. “And I think we came out of here with a solid run.”

With that top-10 finish, Johnson remains solidly in the points lead as well, 56 points ahead of runner up Clint Bowyer.

Not Surprising: Just as the chemistry between Knaus and Johnson led to a decent run after adversity, it was not surprising that the chemistry between Rodney Childers and Brian Vickers achieved their dream of taking the Michael Waltrip Racing’s No. 55 Aaron’s Dream Machine to Victory Lane.

Vickers, who battled back from life-threatening blood clots to race again, credited his relationship with crew chief Childers, which has spanned almost his entire lifetime, as making the difference in his win at the Magic Mile.

“I can remember the day Clyde (Vickers, Brian Vickers’ father) walked into our go-kart shop in Cornelius, North Carolina and said he wanted to buy his eight-year-old kid a go kart,” Childers said. “So, we got it together overnight and they came and picked it up the next day and then a good friend of ours helped Brian get started.”

“This means a lot to me.”

“I just thank God for the chance and opportunity to come back and this team and Rodney believing in me and giving me a second chance,” Vickers said. “That’s a testament to the whole team and everyone at Michael Waltrip Racing.”

Surprising: Joey Logano, a former New Hampshire winner, was surprisingly the first caution of the day, blowing a tire and spinning out on Lap 4 of the race. This is the second race in a row where tire failure has contributed to the No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford team’s struggles.

“The left rear tire blew out,” Logano said. “It isn’t like we touched anyone and rubbed it to make it go down, it just blew out.”

“I am just mad right now.”

Logano has a right to be mad, as he finished 40^th and even more important took a significant hit in the point standings, losing three positions and falling to 18^th.

Not Surprising: Whether it was the combination of the heat or the grueling schedule as the garage readied for the first weekend off in a very long time, it was not surprising that tempers were flaring on the one-mile track and that there were more cautions in this one race than in the past three New Hampshire races combined.

The most caustic exchange happened right after the race end when Kyle Busch had some choice words for Ryan Newman and vice versa.

“Newman is the biggest stupid idiot out here and a big ogre,” Busch said. “I’m glad he’s out of a job.”

“I’m just afraid if I re-arranged his face I might fix it,” Newman responded. “He’s frustrated finishing third or wherever he was after hitting me.”

“He’s a heck of a talent but he’s not very bright,” Newman continued. “I’ll leave it at that.”

Surprising: Just when it appeared that Stewart-Haas Racing was on the upswing, another surprisingly bad day occurred in New Hampshire.

Smoke ran out of gas on the final lap to finish 26^th, Patrick wrecked into her Rookie of the Year competitor to finish 37th, and Newman had his aforementioned tangles with the Busch brothers and finished 39^th.

“Thought we were about three quarters of a lap to the good,” Smoke said. “Obviously didn’t get as much gas saved as I thought we would.”

“I feel bad,” Patrick said. “What can I say? We were having a reasonable race and just didn’t mean to do it.”

“The worst part is that I didn’t want to take anybody with me.”

Not Surprising: The unfortunate struggles of Denny Hamlin continued at New Hampshire, with a lug nut issue and a 21^st place finish. The driver of the No. 11 FedEx Toyota sits 25^th in the point standings, very far out of Chase contention.

Surprising: One of the surprises of the race was Aric Almirola, driver of the No. 43 Smithfield Ford, who finished fifth thanks to some good pit strategy and a great call from atop the box.

“When everybody else stayed out that gave us the opportunity when everyone else came to pit to make it on fuel,” Almirola said. “And we stayed out.”

“That was a great call by Todd Parrott (crew chief),” Almirola continued. “It is a great way to go into the off weekend.”

Not Surprising: At a track that he loves, Jeff Burton finished top three to no one’s surprise. And with his good finish, Burton pronounced that he was still in Chase contention, contrary to everyone’s perception.

“We had a really good car,” the driver of the No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet said. “A lot of people have given up on this team but we haven’t given up on ourselves.”

“We are going to keep working,” Burton said. We feel like we have an uphill battle but we feel like we still have a shot at it.”

Surprising: Brad Keselowski and company showed his championship caliber by bouncing back at the Magic Mile. The driver of the Blue Deuce finished fourth, in spite of the ‘grueling race.’

“We fought hard all day and came home with a fourth so that was a decent day,” Keselowski said. “Not the win I wanted for sure.”

“But it is still a solid day though and something to be proud of.”

Not Surprising: While all the drivers complained about the difficulty of the track and race, Carl Edwards not surprisingly termed it a battle field.

“That was a hell of a battle,” the driver of the No. 99 Fastenal Ford said. “Everybody fought really hard the whole time and we ended up with a top-10.”

“We were able to get a good finish out of a crazy day.”

Surprising: Even with having to stop in the middle of the race track to avoid the Newman/Kurt Busch crash, Matt Kenseth pulled off a surprisingly good finish. The driver of the No. 20 Dollar General Toyota finished in the ninth position.

“I had a good car, probably the best car I’ve ever had here,” Kenseth said. “Kind of lost track position when Kurt cleaned out Newman.”

“I had to stop and miss that wreck.”

Not Surprising: After a grueling race and first part of the season, everyone needed to relax according to Jeff Gordon, who managed to salvage a tenth place finish after a challenging race at New Hampshire.

“Everybody, no matter whether you’re leading the points or running where we are in points or 30^th in the points, everybody has to take moments to step away and relax a little bit and regroup,” Gordon said. “And so, this off-weekend will be good for everybody.”

July 17, 2013
NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: New Hampshire

Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

1. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson finished sixth at Loudon as Brian Vickers was the surprise winner in the Camping World RV Sales 301. Johnson qualified second, but started last after failing post-qualifying inspection.

“According to NASCAR,” Johnson said, “the front-end of the No. 48 was too low, so I was disqualified. You could say it was a ‘front-end suspension.’

“We dug ourselves a hole with the disqualification. But Chad Knaus is a master of digging out of holes, and even better getting out of those filled with hot water.”

2. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth finished ninth at New Hampshire, posting his tenth top-10 result of the year. He is now sixth in the Sprint Cup point standings, 120 out of first.

“What an amazing run by Brian Vickers,” Kenseth said. “What’s even more amazing? Not only did Vickers’ car pass inspection, he passed inspection.”

3. Clint Bowyer: Bowyer took 13th as Michael Waltrip Racing teammate Brian Vickers won the Camping World RV Sales 301. Bowyer moved up one spot in the point standings to second, and now trails Jimmie Johnson by 56.

“It was a banner day for MWR,” Bowyer said. “Unfortunately, Michael Waltrip couldn’t be here to see it. He was in England at the Goodwood Festival Of Speed. Some might say that for just a few days, Michael was the ‘Queen Of England.’”

4. Kevin Harvick: Harvick registered his ninth consecutive top-10 finish with a seventh at New Hampshire, while Richard Childress Racing teammate Jeff Burton finished a season-best third. Harvick is now fourth in the point standings, 74 out of first.

“Ryan Newman is not returning to Stewart-Haas Racing next year,” Harvick said. “So, according to Kyle Busch, Newman is saying ‘ogre and out’ to Stewart-Haas, and I’ll fill his spot. It’s a good exchange for Stewart; as for an ‘ogre,’ I’ve been called worse. As for Newman, I’ve been called better.”

5. Kyle Busch: Busch led 53 laps at Loudon but was overtaken late by Brian Vickers, who held on to win the Camping World RV Sales 301. Busch’s runner-up finish was his fourth top-5 result in the last seven races.

“The Busch brothers have declared all-out war on Ryan Newman,” Busch said. “I called Newman the ‘biggest, stupid idiot,’ which is almost as bad as calling someone the “stupidest, big idiot.’ But make no mistake. My brother and I don’t back down from fights, we just lose them.

“I’m sure Newman will come looking for me now. But tell him not to bother; I’m not hiring.”

6. Carl Edwards: Edwards finished eighth in the Camping World RV Sales 301 at Loudon. He is third in the point standings, 73 behind Jimmie Johnson.

“Danica Patrick turned down an offer to pose nude in ESPN’s ‘Body’ issue,” Edwards said. “I understand she replied to ESPN’s request by saying ‘No GoDaddy.’

“Once again, we’re getting worked up about Danica for nothing. What has she done in NASCAR? Not much. Maybe she should concentrate on appearing in ESPN’s ‘Somebody’ issue first.”

7. Tony Stewart: Stewart’s fuel mileage gamble fell short, costing him a sure top-10 finish at New Hampshire. He fell all the way to 26th, and tumbled out of the top 10 in the Sprint Cup point standings.

“Danica Patrick won’t get naked,” Stewart said, “but my gas tank sure will, because it petered out.”

“But how about Morgan Shepherd? At 71, he became the oldest driver to start a NASCAR race. In doing so, he’s redefined ‘late model’ racing.”

8. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt finished 14th in the Camping World RV Sales 301, the lowest finish among Hendrick Motorsports drivers. He remained in fifth in the point standings, 118 out of first.

“I can appreciate a good RV,” Earnhardt said. “Some of my fans travel to races in them; the others live in them.”

9. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski edged Jimmie Johnson for the pole at Loudon and finished fourth, ending a string of five finishes outside the top 10. The defending Sprint Cup champion moved up four spots in the point standings to ninth, 167 out of first.

“It’s good to be up front,” Keselowski said. “It keeps fans and sponsors alike happy. With fans, it’s a matter of ‘What have you done for me lately?’ With sponsors, one in particular, it’s a case of ‘What have you done for me Lite-ly?’”

10. Greg Biffle: Biffle finished 15th in the Camping World RV Sales 301. He is eighth in the Sprint Cup point standings, 151 out of first.

“It was not a great day for us,” Biffle said, “nor was it one for Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. He was wrecked by his girlfriend, Danica Patrick. Word is she was fully-clothed when he rebuffed her.”

July 16, 2013
Brian Vickers Becomes New Sheriff in Town with New Hampshire Win

Brian Vickers, driver of the No. 55 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota, proved that there was a new sheriff in town in the Camping World RV Sales 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

Vickers scored his first win of the season, forgoing the traditional burnout to instead claim the checkered flag and celebrate the moment high-fiving the fans.

“I don’t know if I can put it into words,” Vickers said. “With everything I’ve gone through from the blood clots to are you ever going to race again to now I can race, but I don’t have a job to getting a phone call from Ty (Norris) to run eight races, nothing could be more special to have this win.”

“I’m grateful to my family and friends who have supported me along the way,” Vickers continued. “When your back’s against the wall, you find out quickly who is willing to vouch for you.”

“Sitting in Victory Lane is one of the most special events of my life.”

The last time that Vickers was in Victory Lane was on August 16, 2009 at Michigan. Until now, he has never won at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

“I’m just thankful that I was able to get back in the car and that there were people that still believed in me,” Vickers said. “That was the biggest emotion that I have and will have going forward.”

“They took a chance in a lot of ways,” Vickers continued. “I’m just very thankful for all that and that’s the main emotion that I still have.”

Although Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota, finished in the runner up position, he acknowledged that it was one difficult race, especially contending with race winner Vickers.

“Well it was certainly a tough one,” Busch said. “Our car was super-fast for the short run of the race and we could run up front and make some ground.”

“But once we got close to somebody, the aero effect seemed to take over,” Busch continued. “I was just getting tighter and tighter as the run went along.”

“I’m really proud of the effort and glad we came home second but it was a really tough day for us.”

Busch had nothing but praise for Brian Vickers, as well as Michael Waltrip Racing, with whom Joe Gibbs Racing has a relationship. And he even learned a little bit that he can take into the next Loudon race during the Chase.

“Vickers was obviously going to be the car to beat,” Busch said. “But congratulations to them.”

“It was cool to see an MWR team in Victory Lane with the relationship we have with JGR,” Busch continued. “Certainly, we really wanted to win but we know what we need to do to get our car better for when we come back in the Chase race.”

This was Busch’s seventh top-10 finish in 17 races at the Magic Mile and his 11^th top-10 finish of the season.

Jeff Burton achieved a milestone at a track that he loves, scoring his best finish of the season in third. The driver of the No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet posted his 14^th top-10 finish at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

“You know, we feel good about what we’re doing,” Burton said. “We are definitely making progress and we feel like we are starting to building on something.

“And we think we can improve.”

Brad Keselowski, who sat on the pole, finished fourth in the Blue Deuce. And he echoed what most of the drivers were saying, that the race was one of the toughest he has run.

“That was a grueling race for sure,” Keselowski said. “We fought hard all day and came home with a fourth, so that was a decent day.”

“I thought we had a shot at it,” Keselowski continued. “The 18 and 78 were really good and I hadn’t been around the 55 all day until the end.”

“But man, that last run, he was definitely fast and deserved the win,” Keselowski said. “It was a decent day for the Miller Lite Ford Fusion but we just needed a little bit more to win.”

One of the bigger surprises of the race was the finish of Aric Almirola, behind the wheel of the No. 43 Smithfield Ford for Richard Petty Motorsports, finishing fifth. And he gave all the credit to the man atop his pit box, crew chief Todd Parrott.

“We really struggled and Todd saw that track position was really important,” Almirola said. “So, we took two tires on one of those cautions and that was really bad so we came back down pit road and took four tires when everybody else stayed out and that gave us the opportunity when everyone else came to pit to make it on fuel and we stayed out.”

“That was a great pit call by Todd Parrott and these guys on the Smithfield Ford Fusion did a great job and that is nice,” Almirola continued. “It is a great way to go into the off weekend.”

As with any short, flat track, there were some moments both on and off the track that sparked some rather emotional responses.

Probably the most disappointed was Kurt Busch, who sat on the outside pole and then got tangled up with Matt Kenseth, sending Ryan Newman spinning as well. The driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row Chevrolet finished 31^st.

I just got hit from behind,” Busch said. “There was three-wide action and everybody’s going hard.”

“Kenseth was in the middle on the back straightaway,” Busch continued. “The car gets light when there is no air on the rear spoiler back there.”

“We just got whacked by a bunch of guys,” Newman said. “The No. 18 hit me first, the No. 2 hit me next and then I guess it was Kurt (Busch) that went underneath three-wide.”

“The No. 20 come and clipped us and knocked us into the fence and took himself out,” Newman said. “That was the best I could tell.”

“We kind of were in a bad spot having a little bit older tire but just a lot of disrespect from a bunch of guys on restarts.”

The Rookie of the Year contenders Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. and Danica Patrick also had a moment together, finishing 23^rd and 32^nd respectively. And for those two drivers, it was all about the brakes that were to blame as they both went crashing.

“My brakes were going out all race really,” Stenhouse Jr. said. “I was complaining about it all race.”

“We will take the weekend off and go to Indy.”

Jimmie Johnson, who came from the rear to finish sixth and maintain the points lead, Kevin Harvick, Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth and Jeff Gordon rounded out the top-ten in the 21^st Annual Camping World RV Sales 301 at the Magic Mile.

July 14, 2013
Surprising and Not Surprising: Coke Zero 400

In addition to a dose of roof flap drama, here is what else was surprising and not surprising from the 55^th annual Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway.

Surprising: Who knew that the magic between driver Jimmie Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus, leading to their record-setting night of sweeping both the 500 and 400 at Daytona in the same year, all started over a beer and a game of horseshoes?

“People make the difference,” five-time champ Johnson said. “Chad and I have a relationship since the first time we drank beer in my backyard throwing horseshoes.”

“It was the start of many good things to come,” Johnson continued. “The relationships, the people make the difference.”

“That’s where the magic lies.”

Johnson also gave Team Hendrick its first sweep at Daytona since 1986 when Geoff Bodine and Tim Richmond accomplished the same feat. This was Johnson’s 64^th career Cup Series win and his fourth victory of the season, tying competitor Matt Kenseth in the win column.

Not Surprising: While Tony Stewart finished runner up in his No. 14 Bass Pro Shops Ducks Unlimited Chevrolet, regaining the six spots in the point standings to the tenth position, he finished off the night ‘testy’ in the media center after the checkered flag flew.

When asked whether or not his retreat to the rear of the field for much of the race was pre-planned, Stewart showed his dismay for what he considered perhaps not the best question of the evening.

“You guys act like you’ve never seen me do that before,” Smoke answered. “I’ve been doing that for 15 years and we’ve had good results on it.”

When next asked about whether or not he liked this type of racing at this stage in his career, Stewart again reverted to past practice.

“Go back to your old notes,” Smoke said. “My opinion hasn’t changed in 15 years.”

“If you don’t have them, somebody else in the room will have them, you know that.”

Surprising: Rookie of the Year contender Ricky Stenhouse Jr. thought that he had successfully broken a barrier in his 2013 career. Unfortunately he was unpleasantly surprised after NASCAR showed him the photo finish, realizing that he still had more work to do.

“We’ve been working all year long and we’ve got a couple of 11ths, 12ths, and it’s good to break that barrier of top ten,” Stenhouse Jr. said, before learning that he had really finished in the 11th spot. There is no doubt that he will be aiming for that barrier again at New Hampshire and with a vengeance.

Not Surprising: Kevin Harvick was not happy in spite of being the third place finisher in his No. 29 Budweiser Folds of Honor Chevrolet.

“Yeah, we didn’t win,” Harvick said. “That was our expectation coming here.”

“I felt like we were in the right position,” Harvick continued. “We couldn’t get everything lined up to get going.”

Surprising: Probably the most surprised driver at Daytona was Paul Menard, who lost an engine with absolutely no warning in the early going on Lap 22.

“Something just let go,” the driver of the No. 27 Rheem/Menards Chevrolet said. “I felt the heat come up.”

“It gave no indication,” Menard continued. “I haven’t had a motor failure in forever.”

“Just unfortunate.”

Not Surprising: NASCAR’s biggest loser in addition to Menard was Joey Logano, who brought out the second caution of the race with a tire failure and a crash into the wall. The driver of the No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford fell hard in the point standings, losing five positions and dropping from the 10^th to the 15^th position.

“It was a big hit,” Logano said of his trip into the wall. “But it was a bigger hit in the points really.”

“We’ve lost a lot but we’re not out of it by any means.”

Surprising: While Daytona is known for its share of ‘big ones’, there were some particularly hard hits in this version of the Coke Zero 400, including crashes for Denny Hamlin, A.J. Allmendinger, and Kasey Kahne.

Hamlin was involved in two crashes, the second just a few laps away from the checkered flag. The two wrecks added insult to his already injured back, as well as a sore knee and head from a crash just last week at Kentucky.

Allmendinger, in the No. 51 Phoenix Construction Chevrolet for James Finch, described his wreck as a ‘Days of Thunder’ moment, one that injured him in his ‘man parts’ and sent him stumbling out of his car in pain.

“Everybody moved down and Denny (Hamlin) appeared right in front of me,” Allmendinger said. “I just hit him as hard as I could unfortunately.”

One of the most bizarre but hard wrecks occurred at the end of the race, knocking a strong player out of contention. On Lap 155, Kasey Kahne got slammed while running at the front of the field, crashing hard into the inner wall.

“I got slammed and shot to the left,” Kahne said. “It’s kind of how these races go.”

“You don’t have a lot of control over what happens.”

Not Surprising: Michael Waltrip, behind the wheel of the No. 55 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota often driven by Mark Martin, scored a top-five finish. Waltrip, who has a stellar resume on plate tracks, pulled off another good finish in spite of being a bit rusty behind the wheel and having some struggles in the pits.

“We were just really fortunate after getting into a wreck on pit road,” Waltrip said. “I’m just happy for the team because it was a well-deserved finish.”

Surprising: MWR teammate Clint Bowyer also had such a surprisingly good run, finishing fourth in his No. 15 Blue DEF Diesel Exhaust Fluid Toyota. And with that finish, he ousted Carl Edwards from second place in the point standings, sitting 49 points behind leader Johnson.

“I was pushing Michael and got him passed,” Bowyer said. “I looked in the mirror and all hell broke loose.”

“That’s Daytona,’ Bowyer continued. “But I’ll take a top-five anytime in one of these races.”

This was Bowyer’s third top-five finish in a row.

Not Surprising: With team owner and driver Tony Stewart setting the bar in the runner up spot, the rest of the Stewart-Haas Racing team also finished well at Daytona, in spite of final lap mishaps.

Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 39 Outback Steakhouse Chevrolet, scored bloomin’ onions for all with a top-ten finish. This was Newman’s sixth top-ten at Daytona and his eighth of the season

“I’m glad we got a top-10 for Outback Steakhouse, but I hate that we destroyed another race car on the final lap,” Newman lamented. “That just seems to be the norm for us when it comes to restrictor-plate racing.”

SHR teammate Danica Patrick was also involved in the multi-car melee at the end of the race, finishing 14^th in her No. 10 GGoDaddy.com Chevrolet.

This was her fourth top-15 finish of the 2013 season.

“Well a green-white-checkered finish is always exciting,” Patrick said. “All in all, it was a solid day.”

Surprising: Kurt Busch, driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet, continues to amaze with his performance, finishing sixth and putting himself in Chase contention with a five spot move up in the point standings to ninth.

This is the highest in the point standings that Kurt has been so far in the 2013 season. This was also his third straight top-ten finish and his eighth top-10 finish of the season.

“We stayed out of trouble, had smooth pit stops and had a big points night for our Furniture Row team,” Busch said. “These guys are working hard and it’s paying off.”

Not Surprising: Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished top-ten at Daytona, in spite of some challenges with his race car.

“I had fun,” the driver of the No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet said. “We just didn’t make our way to the front.”

“We had a problem with the car,” Junior continued. “Something broke and we could hardy steer it coming into the pits.”

The eighth place finish at Daytona moved Earnhardt Jr. up one position in the points standings to fifth.

July 10, 2013
NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Kentucky

Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

1. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth’s gamble to take no tires during pits stops on the final caution paid off handsomely, as he collected his fourth win of the year with a win at Kentucky. He is now fifth in the Sprint Cup point standings, 82 behind Jimmie Johnson.

“We took the lead in the pits,” Kenseth said. “That’s become something in which we specialize—winning without passing; only this time, it’s got nothing to do with an inspection.

“The No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was strong in clean air. And the state of Kentucky offers an abundance of it, except at the Mayfield compound, where the air is a thick as the heads.”

2. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson’s spin while leading on the race’s final restart likely cost him the win, as he finished ninth after charging back from 25th. It was the latest in a rash of faulty restarts that may have cost him two wins.

“Apparently,” Johnson said, “I’ve got a mental block when it comes to restarts. That makes me mentally restarted.

“But I’m not worried. My resume speaks for itself. Not only do I ‘fall back’ on restarts, I fall back on five Sprint Cup championships.”

3. Kevin Harvick: Harvick finished 10th in the Quaker State 400 at Kentucky, posting his ninth top-10 finish of the season. He is fourth in the point standings, 66 out of first.

“I’m well within striking distance,” Harvick said. “I would say I’m ‘right where I want to be,’ but that would be false, because I’m still with Richard Childress Racing.”

4. Carl Edwards: Edwards posted a 21st in the Quaker State 400, leading 35 laps before becoming mired in traffic and fading towards the end. Edwards remained second in the Sprint Cup point standings and trails Jimmie Johnson by 38.

“The No. 99 Ford was sporting UPS sponsorship on Sunday,” Edwards said. “Unfortunately, it drove like a big, brown truck in the last 30 laps.

“Congratulations are in order for Matt Kenseth. His four wins this year prove that he can run away from the field just as well as he can run away from me.”

5. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: After starting on the pole, Earnhardt’s No. 88 Chevy was damaged by the remnants of Denny Hamlin’s blown tire on lap 38. Earnhardt spent much of the next 100 laps in and out of the pits for repairs, and eventually finished 12th.

“We made ‘something out of nothing,’” Earnhardt said. “The people of Junior Nation have a wealth of experience in making ‘something out of nothing,’ because they are still able to get excited about what is sure to be another Cup-less season.”

6. Clint Bowyer: Bowyer finished third at Kentucky, posting his sixth top-5 result of the year. He is third in the Sprint Cup point standings and still in search of his first win of the season.

“A win this season has been as elusive as Jeff Gordon last year at Phoenix,” Bowyer said. “The wins will come. We’ve been solid all year. In fact, I’ve only got one DNF this year, so, for the most part, I’ve been much like Gordon—still running.”

“On another note, Kyle Petty said Danica Patrick was not a ‘race car driver. Danica responded by saying she is a woman and a driver. Likewise, she said Petty can also be two things at once—a son of a ‘King’ and a son of a bitch.”

7. Kyle Busch: Busch recovered from an early spin to finish fifth in the Quaker State 400, his eighth top 5 of the year. He is now seventh in the point standings, 110 out of first.

“Kentucky’s John Calipari drove the pace car for Sunday’s race,” Busch said. “I think he completed only one lap and then called it quits, thus another ‘one and done’ in Kentucky.”

8. Martin Truex, Jr.: Truex backed up his win at Sonoma with a seventh in the Quaker State 400. The result boosted him two places in the point standings to eighth, 120 out of first.

“A win at Sonoma followed by a top 10 at Kentucky,” Truex said. “That’s like going from wine to whiskey without missing a beat, something that NASCAR great Tim Richmond probably did better than anyone.”

9. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski’s day ended early at Kentucky when Kurt Busch’s No. 78 car slid up and into the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge on lap 151. Keselowski’s spinning car collected Greg Biffle’s No. 16, essentially ending the day for both cars. Keselowski was credited with a 33rd-place finish and tumbled four spots in the point standings.

“Busch may drive the Furniture Row car,” Keselowski said, “but there’s no ‘couching’ his recklessness. I’m sure there are many other drivers who would agree with me, enough to form a committee, in fact, of which I’d happily ‘chair.’ With that being said, what’s more likely? Furniture Row making a ‘chaise,’ or me making the ‘Chase?’”

10. Joey Logano: Logano finished fourth at Kentucky, posting his fifth top-5 result of the year. He is tenth in the Sprint Cup point standings, 131 behind Jimmie Johnson.

“Penske Racing drivers are earning a reputation of running others out of the Chase,” Logano said. “I ran Denny Hamlin out, and Brad Keselowski is running himself out.”

July 2, 2013
Danica Patrick stays positive amidst criticism

Danica Patrick is one of NASCAR’s most polarizing drivers. Since her move to NASCAR, she has been the center of attention. She has many fans, but also many critics. It also seems that some members of the media try to make her a story, for everything she does, no matter how insignificant. This past week someone even tried to make it a bog deal that she was seen getting out of a Ford street car, though she is a Chevy driver.

Her name was thrust back into the spotlight again this week, when former NASCAR driver turned TV analyst, Kyle Petty, made some comments about her.

During a Speed interview with Matt Clark, Petty said, “Danica has been the perfect example of somebody who can qualify better than she runs. She can go fast, but she can’t race. I think she’s come a long way, but she’s still not a race car driver and I don’t think she is ever going to be a race car driver.”

Clark followed up by asking why she wouldn’t be a driver in his opinion, Petty replied, “…too late to learn.” Petty made no bones about the fact that he, himself was not a great driver saying, “I was not a great driver, and I’ll be the first to admit it. I was a journeyman driver.”

At least Petty is consistent with his comments. In 2010, he had very similar comments towards the Go Daddy driver. When Patrick was announced as the driver of the No. 7 Go Daddy Chevrolet for JR Motorsports in the Nationwide Series, Petty said, “If she gets in that car and doesn’t win races, it’s not the car, it’s not the engines, it’s not the team. They only changed one thing. Initially, she’ll have an impact on the sport. If she’s successful, she’ll have a long term impact on the sport.” He went to compare her to other open wheel drivers who have made their way to NASCAR, saying, “Juan Montoya is probably, car control wise, one of the most amazing human beings you’ve ever seen in a car and he struggled for three years at this level, and she’s not Juan Pablo Montoya.”

On Friday, Patrick had a scheduled press conference at Kentucky Motor Speedway, of course the Petty comments were a major topic of discussion. Patrick did an excellent job handling those questions. When asked if she knew about Kyle Petty’s comments, she replied, “Read it, yes. I just think it’s funny how he said I could qualify, but I can’t race because those of you who actually watch what I do know I can’t qualify for crap. In the race things go much better.”

Patrick seems to be right on this account, her average starting position this season has been 32.0, but her average finishing position is 25.8. An indication that she races a little better than she qualifies.

When she was asked if it mattered to her what people said about her and if it motivates her if someone speaks negative of her, Patrick said, “Thanks (Kyle) for motivating me. I really don’t care, I don’t, it’s true that there are plenty of people who say really bad things about me, I hear about them or I read about them on Twitter. People want me to die. At the end of the day, you just get over that kind of stuff and all you can do is trust that you’re doing a good job and that’s all that matters and the people around you believe in you.”

She also took time to explain why she was driving a Ford street car last week. “For those of you who follow me on Twitter, you would have seen that it was taking a really long time to get into the track, and he (boyfriend Ricky Stenhouse) had a team meeting at the top of the hill. That was a long walk and he was going to be late if we parked down in the paddock area, so being the nice girlfriend that I am, I said I would just drive the car down and park it and you get on with your meetings. So it was as simple as that.”

Patrick obviously gets over-hyped by a large portion of the media. We should keep in mind that she has only started 26 races in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. She is a rookie. Rookies struggle, they wreck cars and have a lot to learn especially on tracks they have never been to before. This is, however, the premier stock car series in the world.

After a conversation on social media on Friday, I decided to compare her stats to another NASCAR driver. At first I wanted to pick a driver with a similar background, but someone said she should be compared to other NASCAR drivers for a fair comparison, not someone who came from open wheel. So I decided to make it tough. I picked a driver who a proven he could win in other NASCAR series, then made the huge step into the Sprint Cup Series. I chose Travis Kvapil. Travis won the Camping World Truck Series championship in 2003. In 143 starts, Travis compiled nine wins, 51 top-5’s and 85 top-10’s. A pretty impressive resume’.

Travis made the jump to Sprint Cup in 2005 after 96 of those truck series starts and of course the championship. An obvious proven driver in a NASCAR series. So let’s compare:

Travis Kvapil first full season in Sprint Cup:

Starts – 36, Poles – 0, Top 5 – 0, Top 10 – 2. Laps led – 36, RAF – 29, Final position in points – 33^rd

Danica Patrick Cup career (two partial seasons) so far:

Starts – 26, Poles – 1, Top 5 – 0, Top 10 – 1, Laps led-5, RAF-22, Position in points (16 races) – 27^th

The two drivers compared pretty close. One stat that needs to be noted is – Running at Finish (RAF). This is one of the most crucial stats for a rookie. Keeping the car in the race is a very important first step becoming a successful driver.

When assessing Patrick, we also must consider the fact that until recently, her team, Stewart-Haas Racing, has also struggled. Her teammate, Ryan Newman, has 420 starts in the series and this season only has an average starting position of 18.9 and an average finishing position of 18.2. Not considerably better, given how much more experience he has. Newman is a proven performer, he has a total of 16 wins, and 173 top-10’s.

The team will get better, without a doubt. Will Patrick get better? Only time will tell. One thing she has definitely learned, is how to play the media game and to not let negativity affect her.

June 28, 2013
Surprising and Not Surprising: Sonoma Toyota Save Mart 350

Under unexpected cloudy skies and even some rain drops, here is what else was surprising and not surprising from the 25^th annual Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway.

Surprising: Martin Truex Jr. was in surprisingly esteemed company with his 218-race winless streak, the second longest in the Cup Series to Bill Elliott’s 226-race winless streak.

But Truex managed to avoid that number one winless record spot by grabbing the brass ring on the road course, attaining his second career victory, his first at Sonoma, and his first of the season.

And according to the driver of the No. 56 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota for Michael Waltrip Racing, the win marks the beginning of the new winning Truex.

“I can’t even put it into words,” Truex said in Victory Lane. “I have so many people to thank who have stuck with me.”

“The team is just phenomenal,” Truex continued. “It feels damn good to get one finally.”

“Today was just our day and our time,” Truex said. “Our car was flawless.”

“We’re going to get a bunch of them now, I can tell you that much.”

Not Surprising: The remainder of the MWR Race team also had a good day at the race track, with Clint Bowyer, defending Sonoma winner, finishing fifth in his No. 15 5-Hour Energy Toyota and Brian Vickers, fresh off his sixth place Nationwide finish at Road America, finishing 13^th in the No. 55 RKMotorsCharlotte.com Toyota.

“We had a fast car all weekend long,” Bowyer said. “We got close but we pitted and nobody came with us.”

“A long time coming for Martin and happy to see him in Victory Lane.”

MWR driver Vickers may not have had quite the finish he wanted but he got something even more important, a ringing endorsement from his team owner Michael Waltrip after the race.

“We want Brian Vickers to be a part of this organization in the future,” Waltrip said after the race. “He’s our guy.”

“We’re trying to put the pieces together.”

Surprising: Jeff Gordon, who had an eventful day of having to overcome a pitting too early penalty, also achieved a surprising record of his own.

This was the Gordon’s 302^nd career top-five finish, breaking the tie he had for third with Hall of Fame driver David Pearson.

“This is one of those crazy types of races where pit strategy goes all over the place and you never know what might happen,” the driver of the No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet said. “The way things have been going on the track for me haven’t been great and they way things have been going with the calls haven’t been going his (crew chief Alan Gustafson’s) way either.”

“But wow, we finally had a race car that was fantastic,” Gordon continued. “We had a lot of fun out there.”

This was Gordon’s 17^th top-10 finish in 21 races at Sonoma.

Not Surprising: Carl Edwards started where he finished, third and third, in his No. 99 Aflac Ford. This was his fourth top-10 finish in nine races at Sonoma and he was officially the highest finishing Ford in the race.

“I would have liked to have made a couple spots up,” Edwards said. “It feels weird to race that hard all day and finish in the same spot you started.”

“That’s the true story,” Edwards continued. “It was a pretty dynamic race.”

“Eventually we will win one of these races.”

Even with his third place start and finish, Edwards remains in the second place in the point standings, 25 points behind leader Jimmie Johnson.

Surprising: Kurt Busch was, by his own admission, surprisingly fast both on and off the track. He endured not one but two pit road speeding penalties , and in spite of that managed to claw his way back to the fourth finishing position in his No. 78 Furniture Row Racing/Sealy Chevrolet.

“Yeah, we were fast, even on pit road, twice,” Busch said. “I messed up, flat out.”

“I didn’t hit my tachometer right and I was speeding both times,” Busch continued. “I just put myself in a position that was poor trying to get too much on pit road.”

“But man this Furniture Row Chevy was fast.”

Not Surprising: Juan Pablo Montoya had a fast race car but that was not quite enough to finish the Sonoma race. The driver of the No. 42 Target Chevrolet needed some additional gas in his vehicle, running out on the last lap and dropping from the front of the field to a 34^th place finish.

“It’s just heartbreak,” Montoya said. “Our Target Chevy was really good today.”

“You’ve got to defend them in the way they do the fuel calculations,” Montoya continued. “It should have been a little smarter.”

“We’ve got tools to prevent things like that from happening.”

Surprising: Kyle Busch, who finished 35^th in his No. 18 M&Ms Toyota after contact with both Montoya and Edwards sent him spinning, took to Twitter to battle those who were criticizing him.

His first tweet of “Awww. My heart melts for @jpmontoya who ran out of gas. Only thing I got for Carl is “aww crap,” sent the tweet war off and running with some of his followers.

After a few barbs back and forth, however, Busch showed his more jovial side, ending the Twitter visit with “Brought to u in part by mms. LOL” in response to this tweet @queers4gears: Does @KyleBusch’s twitter feed come with popcorn? #Entertainment.

Not Surprising: Most likely the two most disappointed drivers at Sonoma were those that started on the front row. Jamie McMurray had a great pole run only to finish 25th due to a flat tire and damage, while Marcos Ambrose, who had tested at Sonoma and qualified on the outside pole, salvaged a seventh place finish.

“It’s OK,” the driver of the No. 9 Stanley Ford said. “We got a top-10 out of it.”

“The weather cooled down and lot and we just didn’t anticipate that when we set the car up,” Ambrose continued. “Of course I wanted to win but that’s the way it goes.”

Surprising: There were two surprising engine issues right at the start in the race. Bobby Labonte, in the No. 47 Kingsford Toyota, did not even make a lap before his engine expired.

Joining him was Jacques Villeneuve, who made it to Lap 19 before having his No. 51 Tag Heuer Avant-Garde Eyewear Chevrolet pushed into the garage with gear and engine woes.

Not Surprising: While Danica Patrick supposed that she was comfortable at Sonoma in that she at least knew where the ladies’ restrooms were, she finished a very uncomfortable 29^th in her No. 10 GoDaddy Chevrolet.

“It was a long day – a long weekend,” Patrick said. “We just couldn’t get the car to the point where I was comfortable with it.”

“Having the cut tire and going into the tire barrier was just sort of salt in the wound,” Patrick continued. “Hopefully we have a better weekend next week at Kentucky.”

Surprising: Rookie Paulie Harraka, attempting his first Cup start in his No. 52 Hasa Pool Products Ford, had a surprisingly difficult start to the race, wrecking as the cars went out on track for the pace laps.

“I don’t know what to say except that stuff happens,” Harraka said. “Somebody two cars ahead of me decided to stop in the go lane and why he did that I have absolutely no idea, but these cars don’t stop very well on the wet asphalt.”

“Sometimes crazy stuff happens.”

Not Surprising: While Dale Earnhardt Jr. may not have scored a top-ten finish, he was still smiling after Sonoma with a 12^th place finish at a road course which admittedly is not his forte.

“It was a pretty good day,” the driver of the No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet said. “This is definitely my worst race track, my least favorite track.”

“We will take a top-15 here any week.”

June 24, 2013
Surprising and Not Surprising: Michigan Quicken Loans 400

Awash in tributes to the memory of Jason Leffler and to all the dads for Father’s Day, here is what was surprising and not surprising in the Quicken Loans 400 at Michigan International Speedway.

Surprising: For the first time since June of 2005 at Sonoma, every Hendrick Motorsports car finished outside the top 25.

Five-time champ Jimmie Johnson finished 28^th after hitting the wall in the remaining laps of the race, while Dale Earnhardt, Jr. blew an engine to finish 37^th. The next HMS driver to finish was Kasey Kahne in the 38^th position after blowing a tire and hitting the wall, followed by Jeff Gordon, who was caught up in an early wreck with Bobby Labonte to finish 39^th.

Four-time champion Jeff Gordon, who himself experienced his second DNF in a row at MIS, summed up the disappointing finishes of all of Hendrick Motorsports teams best.

“It’s testing my frustration level,” Gordon said. “I don’t want to see the team get down.”

“I have a lot of fight and so does the team,” Gordon continued. “I’m looking forward to going to Sonoma.”

Not Surprising: Since it was Michigan, a track that has been known as a Ford playground and where Roush Fenway Racing has such deep roots, it was no surprise that the race winner was Greg Biffle, the driver of the No. 16 3M/Give Kids a Smile Ford.

It was also not surprising that Biffle scored the 1,000^th win for the Ford Motor Company as well as giving the Ford Motor Company a happy 110^th birthday. And for the Biff, he was also able to celebrate his very first win of the 2013 season.

But what was not surprising in the least was the emotion of the driver in Victory Lane as he held his daughter Emma tight, celebrated Father’s Day, and honored the memory of a fellow competitor who was lost too soon, leaving his beloved five year old son behind.

“It is Emma’s first victory lane on Father’s Day,” Biffle said as the confetti rained down upon them. “I am thinking about my dad that couldn’t be here who is hopefully watching.”

“We are also thinking about little Charlie Leffler that doesn’t have a father today.”

Surprising: In spite of an engine failure on Lap 132 and the resulting poor finish, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. was surprisingly upbeat when all was said and done. In fact, he actually took on the role of team leader and chief cheerleader, especially when it came to the performance of his car.

“We just had something come apart in the motor,” the driver of the No. 88 National Guard/Man of Steel Chevrolet said. “Really happy though with the engine.”

“Happy with the way the car performed,” Junior continued. “We had an awesome car.”

“We had a first or second place car there.”

Not Surprising: He may not have closed the deal, but Kevin Harvick was indeed happy with his second place finish in his No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet. And he even managed that great finish in spite of having an ill-handling car to start off with and a vibration at the end of the race.

“I didn’t wake up thinking that we were going to even run in the top ten,” Harvick said. “I was pretty nervous about our car.”

“But everybody on this whole Budweiser team did a great job,” Harvick continued. “We just kept our head in there and kept digging.”

This was Harvick’s fifth top-10 in a row and his fifth top-five finish of the season. His good run also moved him up one spot in the point standings to the fourth position.

Surprising: The rest of Richard Childress Racing had a surprisingly good day at the race track, with all of their other drivers in the top 15 at Michigan International Speedway. Jeff Burton finished 10^th, Austin Dillon finished 11^th and Paul Menard finished 14^th for team RCR.

“The No. 31 Caterpillar team fought hard all day to bring home another solid finish,” Burton said. “We continue to make progress with our mile-and-a –half and two-mile track programs.”

“Overall it was a good points day,” Burton said, moving four spots up to 17^th in the standings.

Not Surprising: Smoke, who has been on fire as of late, continued to rip off good finishes now that the summer has arrived. In spite of a crash on Friday, the driver of the No. 14 Bass Pro Shops/Mobil 1 Chevrolet finished top-five and moved up into the top ten in the point standings.

“We had some breaks go our way,” Stewart said. “I’m proud of these guys.”

“We weren’t very good all weekend so this team had to work hard to get us where we were today.”

Surprising: After all the talk of engine woes and failures and the ratcheting up and down of horsepower, Toyota had a surprisingly good day, scoring a third place finish with Martin Truex, Jr., a fourth place with Kyle Busch, a sixth place with Matt Kenseth and a seventh place finish with Clint Bowyer.

“The power in the engine was definitely better than last week,” Truex, Jr., driver of the No. 56 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota said. “They’re working on that.”

“We were very competitive horsepower-wise and all that was good.”

“That was a crazy day,” Bowyer, driver of the No. 15 5-Hour Energy Toyota said. “We got off to a rough start but we worked on it all day long and made the absolute best of the situation.”

“Not the way we would have drawn it up, but I’ll take it.”

Not Surprising: There was indeed some drama between teammates, from a restart issue with Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt, Jr., as well as a disagreement about trash between Greg Biffle and Carl Edwards.

“Yeah, he spun his tires and almost ran into the side of me trying to control his car,” Johnson said of teammate Junior on a restart. “I wasn’t going to get burned on that again so I jumped off the gas and got drilled from behind.”

“There is a game to be played there and you can cause a heck of a pile up if you are trying to give it back.”

Biffle and Edwards, on the other hand, had a major disagreement about of all things trash on the grille.

“It’s his job to help me,” Edwards said of Biffle, who he felt should have backed up to help him dislodge trash that was causing significant overheating.

“I didn’t know when I passed him he had something on his grille or I’d let him get it off then,” Biffle said. “But when I looked up and he was 25 car lengths back, I said ‘I can’t help him, not right now.’ This is my chance to win today.”

“I didn’t feel like I could take that risk.”

Surprising: After starting 37^th, Danica Patrick scored her first top-15 finish in a Cup Series race at the big track in the rolling hills of Michigan.

“At the end of the race, the last run was the best run I felt,” the driver of the No. 10 GoDaddy Chevrolet said. “It’s so nice to get a decent finish for the team.”

“This will hopefully get everyone’s head up a little bit and we will go on,” Patrick said. “I think we have been strong lately.”

“We just needed to have days like today where we finished it off.”

Not Surprising: Bobby Labonte, booted temporarily from his No. 47 Charter Toyota for JTG Daugherty Racing, struggled even after picking up a new ride in the No. 51 Phoenix Construction Services Chevrolet for James Finch and Phoenix Racing.

Although Labonte was able to keep his consecutive race streak alive at 702, unfortunately his race results were not what he wanted or needed as he wrecked out early, finishing dead last.

AJ Allmendinger, who JTG Daugherty had hired to shake down Labonte’s ride, did a little better in that car, scoring a top-20 finish.

Allmendinger could drive a few more times for JTG, while Labonte is scheduled to return for the remainder of the schedule. Labonte’s best finish so far in the No. 47 car has been 15^th in the Daytona 500.

Surprising: Kasey Kahne showed off a surprisingly new talent, that of firefighting. The driver of the No. 5 Farmer’s Insurance Chevrolet was leading the race when the car took off, hit the wall and burst into flames.

“Something broke,” Kahne said. “I would say it was a tire that went down but I don’t know for sure.”

“I was just going into the corner and then it went ‘boom’ and turned right straight into the wall.”

Kahne’s car burst into flames and he was able to exit quickly. He then, however, reached back into the car and initiated the fire extinguishing equipment, putting out the fire well before any of the safety professionals arrived at the scene.

Kahne later tweeted, “First time I have ever pulled the fire extinguisher. That was cool.”

Not Surprising: As with every driver, team and owner, hearts were heavy for the loss of Jason Leffler, who died in a sprint car from blunt neck trauma at a dirt track in New Jersey. Team owner Jack Roush put it best with his hope that Leffler would live on through new and improved safety at those local race tracks.

“Every time somebody gets hurt in racing, we need to look behind it and see what we can learn about the tragedy and see what we can do to establish some safety thing that would make it survivable for somebody else in the future,” Roush said. “If there was something to be learned from this, Jason will have an impact, as Dale Earnhardt’s death did, on the generation of drivers that follow him.”

June 18, 2013
Surprising and Not Surprising: Party in the Poconos 400

With a picture-perfect race day after a qualifying rainout, here is what was surprising and not surprising from the 32^nd annual Party in the Poconos 400.

Surprising: With good practice times and a decent starting position set on owner’s points, it was most surprising to see the No. 5 Hendrickcars.com Chevrolet head to pit road and then to the garage on the first lap of the race.

“We have no idea what happened with the car yet,” Kasey Kahne said. “The crew and engineers have been looking at things but they’re still unsure.”

“II know that when I took off, in second gear, I had no power and it was just vibrating like crazy,” Kahne continued. “The faster I went, the worse the vibration was.”

With the garage time, Kahne finished nineteen laps down in the 36^th position. He also lost two positions in the point standings, falling from the fifth to seventh spot.

Not Surprising: With the controversy of the Dover restart still ringing in his ears, Jimmie Johnson put it all behind him, leading a record setting 128 laps out of the total 160 at Pocono Raceway.

And with a lap leading percentage of 80%, there was no surprise that the driver of the No. 48 Lowe’s/Kobalt Tools Chevrolet found Victory Lane for the third time of the season and the third time at Pocono.

“I’m sure we’ve had some other really strong races like that, but not in recent memory,” Johnson said. “What a race car.”

“There are only so many tricks you have if you play by the rules with those restarts,” Johnson continued. “Fortunately, I was able to get the lead and have clean air again at the end.”

Surprising: With all the struggles of team Ford, it was most surprising to see Greg Biffle, in the No. 16 3M Ford, surge at the end to score the runner up position.

“We had some good restarts and we were lucky with the lane choices and my car ran pretty good on restarts,” Biffle said. “Clearly we’re not celebrating that we finished second quite yet and have our cars figured out, but this is definitely a step in the right direction.”

“We certainly ran better here than we have been all season and certainly that’s a positive for us going to next week, so hopefully we’ll continue to build on that.”

Not Surprising: With a third place finish in the books, NASCAR’s most popular driver pronounced it all good, as well as predicting that the momentum might just carry the No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet into Victory Lane soon.

“We are all right,” Dale Earnhardt, Jr. said. “We know what we need to do.”

“Confidence is there so all the fans can rest assured we feel like we are on the right track,” Junior continued. “We want to get a win, man.”

“If we keep getting close, we are going to get one.”

Surprising: The announcement of Toyota Racing Development backing down the horsepower to improve reliability surprisingly came at the worst time for Denny Hamlin, who has been battling intently to recover from his injury and make the Chase.

“We weren’t competitive,” the driver of the No. 11 FedEx Ground Toyota said after finishing eighth. “We’re just trying to do everything we can and grind and finish good when we don’t have a winning car.”

“And by no means did we have a winning car this weekend.”

Not Surprising: Fellow Toyota teammate Kyle Busch was the top Toyota finisher, bringing his No. 18 M&Ms Toyota Camry home in the sixth position.

“The car was loose in turn three all day, but we got the car feeling pretty good towards the end,” Busch said. “We probably had a seventh place car all day long.”

“I just couldn’t get going on that last restart,” Busch continued. “I just didn’t do a good job there and we found ourselves in sixth.”

“We’ll take that and go on to Michigan.”

Surprising: Stewart-Haas Racing had a surprisingly good time at the Party in the Poconos, with Tony Stewart finishing in fourth, Ryan Newman finishing fifth, and Danica Patrick finishing on the lead lap at her first ever try on that tricky track.

“It’s one thing if one car runs good, but to have two or all three of us running good shows that we are gaining momentum,” Tony Stewart, team owner and driver of the No. 14 Mobil 1/Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet, said . “Really proud of our group at SHR.”

Not Surprising: Kurt Busch, behind the wheel of the No. 78 Furniture Row Chevrolet, once again faced adversity, this time with a problem on pit road. And not surprisingly, he and his team rallied yet again to finish top-10.

“We had a fast car again, ran up front but a mistake on my part on pit road stalled our momentum,” Busch said. “But we battled back with a solid finish.”

“The good news is that we know how to overcome adversity and the more we perform the way we have been, the better we’ll get.”

Surprising: Matt Kenseth had an uncharacteristically and surprisingly tough day, doing some synchronized spinning with Juan Pablo Montoya and then wheel-hopping on pit road and having some contact with Dale Earnhardt, Jr.

“I mean, disappointing,” the driver of the No. 20 Home Depot/Husky Tools Toyota said. “I thought we had a top-five at the very worst or seventh or eighth-place car.”

“Whenever you don’t finish where you are running, it’s always disappointing.”

Not Surprising: Earnhardt Ganassi Racing just keeps gaining ground, this week with Jamie McMurray finishing thirteenth and Juan Pablo Montoya finishing fourteenth.

“We just have to execute,” Montoya said. “Each person has got to do its own little thing.”

“We just have to keep our heads down and keep doing our work and we will be fine.”

Surprising: AJ Allmendinger had a surprisingly difficult day in the No. 51 Phoenix Construction Services Chevrolet, finishing a disappointing 33^rd. The ‘Dinger was responsible for the next to the last race caution after experiencing significant tire troubles.

In spite of this, Allmendinger was surprisingly chosen to replace Bobby Labonte when the Cup crowd heads to Michigan next weekend. JTG Daugherty Racing’s leadership apparently selected ‘Dinger to shake down the car to see if and how the performance can be enhanced.

“I have raced for Phoenix Racing some this year and feel confident I’ll be able to provide JTG Daugherty Racing with a good comparison,” Allmendinger said. “I’m thankful for this opportunity to work with the team and Bobby.”

Not Surprising: For Chad Knaus, crew chief, and team Jimmie Johnson, the focus still remains on the point standings. And this team not surprisingly knows exactly how important their points lead is, now 51 points ahead of Carl Edwards.

“As far as points go, it’s always important,” Knaus said. “We’ve got some very tricky race tracks coming up and we want to make sure that we get as many points accumulated as possible.”

“That’s just the way we roll.”

June 11, 2013