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  • Sprint Media Tour – Day Three Continued – Front Row Motorsports and Wood Brothers Racing

    Sprint Media Tour – Day Three Continued – Front Row Motorsports and Wood Brothers Racing

    Day Three of the Sprint Media Tour concluded with visits by Front Row Motorsports, the Wood Brothers racing team and Team Penske. Team Penske will be addressed with a separate article. It was all a part of Ford Day at the four-day program. Front Row introduced their returning drivers – David Ragan, winner of their first race at Talladega, and David Gilliland, but there was a new face on the stage.

    Eric McClure will pilot a Ford Mustang in the Nationwide Series for FRM during the 2014 season. He also will start the 2014 Daytona 500 in the No. 35 Ford Fusion.

    “I’ve only recently been cleared to compete so a lot of dominoes are starting to fall into place,” McClure said. “The plan is the Daytona 500 for sure, Speedweeks too, and hopefully we will qualify.” McClure admitted that the Daytona 500 is on his bucket list and his ride will be sponsored by Hefty.

    Front Row Motorsports drivers agreed that the new qualifying procedure could benefit small teams.

    “I think that we’ve got to continue to evolve our sport based on the fans that we have in the world as it changes,” said Ragan, who drives the No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford. “The fundamental parts are always going to be there. You’re going to have 43 cars you’ve got to go and race, and the best guy is going to win. But I’m excited about the upcoming season, the possible changes. I think that it definitely fits into our favor as a smaller team trying to grow in this world. It’s a big benefit if we can be in the Chase, for our sponsors, for our team, for everyone. I think it’s a good thing to help everybody grow.”

    Gilliland went a step farther.

    “I think they said with David (Ragan) winning at Talladega last year, if the points were the exact same this year, he possibly would have made (the Chase),” Gilliland said. “That’d be a huge shot for Front Row Motorsports, so that’s kind of what we’re focusing on, all the while keeping focus on getting our whole team elevated to run better each and every week.”

    Appearing with the Front Row gang was the legendary Wood Brothers Racing team. The Woods’ will once again feature Trevor Bayne in its Ford Fusions for 2014. Only 12 races are scheduled this year, but Ford Racing boss Jamie Allison mentioned that the Woods only needed two wins to reach 100 all-time NASCAR wins and looked at Bayne for approval. “That would be a tall order if we’re only running 12 races.”

    Bayne has had his ups and downs on and off the track with Wood Brothers Racing, but through it all, including a Daytona 500 win and being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, he’s kept an even keel.

    “It is a diagnosis, but to me it has not changed my way of life or any daily activities or anything like that so for me that’s all it has to be right now is a diagnosis,” Bayne said of learning to live with MS. “It changes one thing about your mindset… you appreciate every day and you make the best of it.”

    Team co-owner Eddie Wood says that with sponsorship, the team could run 15-16 races a year.

    “We’d love to do it (more races), but the money just isn’t there,” Wood said. We bought four new cars this year—four intermediate cars and our Daytona car, and that’s about all we can do. We have all the good stuff that Roush has. Donnie Wingo, (crew chief) has all the stuff they’ve learned right on his computer every day. We’re ready to roll, but the sponsors just haven’t stepped up.”

  • If by chance the France proposal had come to pass…in 2013

    If by chance the France proposal had come to pass…in 2013

    A year or two ago, let us say that Brian France had a brainwave. He came up with a proposal to allow 16 drivers into the Chase, first determined by wins gathered up to and including Richmond. The rest would get an invite due to the points accumulated. Let him add another twist. Let him have the rank of contenders drop by four after three Chase events, another four after six, with four more gone just as they headed to Homestead. In the big finale, an artificially engineered four driver showdown for all the marbles would take place, also featuring 39 also-rans out there to keep them company.

    So, after the race in Richmond in 2013, they would have set the sweet 16, to steal yet another concept from another sport. A dozen would wind up getting a pass based on having won at least once up to that moment. Welcome David Ragan to the derby for his win at Talladega. Tony Stewart would limp in, though he would be gone after the third race of the Chase for obvious reasons.  Just like Clint Bowyer, not enough penalties could have kept Martin Truex Jr out, due to his win at Sonoma. The remaining four spots get in on points, which would mean no help needed by Jeff Gordon as he would join Dale Earnhardt Jr, Kurt Busch, and Bowyer..

    Three races down in the Chase, and four drivers would be eliminated. Stewart is officially gone, to be joined by Ragan, who in three races earned only 53 points more than the idle Smoke.  A lousy day at Loudon finished Kasey Kahne’s hopes, while Joey Logano started the Chase bad and that was all that was needed. Then, to keep us all on the edge of our seats, they evened up the points to put the final dozen on an equal footing.

    12 left, with four more about to go by the time they left Talladega. A bad day in Chicago was all that was needed to eliminate Ryan Newman while Truex had a tough time just finishing in the Top 20 in those initial Chase weeks. Chicago also meant the end of Kyle Busch’s hopes, as the second stage also would have spelled adios for Greg Biffle. For the eight that remain, the points are again evened out as they all start from scratch, season be damned.

    While Johnson would have cruised through the next segment with a win and a pair of Top Fives, Kurt Busch was just so-so, so he had to go. Jeff Gordon and Carl Edwards both had Texas disasters, while Bowyer was good at a time he needed to be great. 12 drivers and nine races down and it was down to NASCAR’s manufactured “game seven”…even though no other sport actually attempts to engineer such a thing. There is the Super Bowl, I guess, but I can’t help but notice that only the contenders ever hit the field on game day and most often the two teams are meeting for the first time that year. Still, I digress.

    So, off they would have gone to Homestead, just four still alive in the hunt for the paper title. Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Dale Earnhardt Jr, and Matt Kenseth in a one race showdown. What a wonder for the ages it would have been, that is if the fans had bought into the nonsense.  All four were on the lead lap on the final day, and while in-race observer Denny Hamlin was out in front at the end, the third place Junior was putting on a furious charge in an attempt to catch the second place Kenseth on the track. He would come up just short. Matt would no doubt have been overjoyed to win his second title, while Johnson finished ninth in the one race spectacular. Despite an average finish of 5.1 over the final ten races, it just would have not been good enough under the new France system. Would it have been a good enough finish for you?

    While Matt celebrated and Johnson pondered what could have been, Dale Earnhardt rolled over in his grave. As for Richard Petty, he was just happy that the 1967 season was run under different rules. If it had not been, Bobby Allison’s sixth win that year in the Weaverville, North Carolina finale would have trumped the King’s 27 to claim the title that year. Petty finished second in the race, but even the best season in NASCAR history would have been reduced to a mere footnote.  Still, imagine the excitement and joy of the fans in watching that “game seven” spectacular. Imagine the legitimacy of the championship.

    Just imagine.

  • David Ragan Set for a Milestone Year

    David Ragan Set for a Milestone Year

    For David Ragan, 2014 is set to be a year full of milestones, from his 100th Nationwide start to his impending fatherhood, with baby Ragan set to arrive this summer.

    But as is the case for most racers, Ragan is just happy to be back at the track, even if only for some preseason testing in the Nationwide Series.

    “I’m excited for the Daytona Nationwide race,” Ragan said. “I will be racing with the Biagi-DenBeste Racing team.”

    “I wanted to run a few Nationwide races to get back in the rhythm of running up front and having some fun in the Nationwide Series,” Ragan continued. “It’s something that I really haven’t had an opportunity to do in the last year or so.”

    “I didn’t even realize it would be my 100th start so that was kind of interesting as well,” Ragan said. “It’s something that as the years go on, you look back and say, ‘Man it did go by pretty fast.’

    “But definitely the 100th start will be fun to make at Daytona, which is special to me.”

    Ragan will be behind the wheel of the No. 98 Curb Records Ford for his milestone start in the DRIVE4COPD 300, scheduled for February 22nd.

    “The Nationwide team has built a really nice car,” Ragan said. “We tested down in Dayton for a couple days and thought the car had a lot of speed.”

    “We have won a couple of races, a few poles and I certainly want to add another notch in the win column,” Ragan continued. “That would be cool to do in your 100th milestone start.”

    Another milestone that Ragan is hoping to achieve is being able to compete in even more Nationwide Series races with this Biagi-DenBeste Racing team.

    “We are working hard to attract a few more sponsors to run a few more races,” Ragan said. “This is the kind of team that doesn’t run a tremendous number of races so they can do it a little cheaper than a full-time team.”

    “It’s fun and a great opportunity with a Ford Mustang to get back into the Nationwide Series,” Ragan continued. “So, I’m looking forward to hopefully running a few more races with this team.”

    While Ragan is looking forward to achieving more milestones at Daytona in the Nationwide Series, he acknowledges that he will have a few challenges to face getting back into that seat. And while he enjoys racing at Daytona, the track has also presented some challenges along the way.

    “I enjoy plate racing,” Ragan said. “I didn’t enjoy it the first year or two but I got to learn how to do it well.”

    “But Daytona has been a tough track for me,” Ragan continued. “I think I’ve wrecked the last three or four races there.”

    Several of the other challenges that Ragan will face in his milestone return to the Nationwide Series is the new ‘no tandem racing’ rule, as well as all the new, fresh rookie faces in the garage area.

    “I don’t think that NASCAR will even have a chance to police that no tandem rule because of the configuration of the air intake and the radiator package,” Ragan said. “It’s very similar to the Cup Series so the temperatures will be so high that you won’t be able to even attempt to tandem race.”

    “It is just one of those things that NASCAR is adjusting the rules on a bit that I don’t think they’ll have an opportunity to enforce because we can police it ourselves.”

    “Also, I’m trying to get to know some of the new guys out there that I’m racing with,” Ragan said. “That’s why it was important to go and do the test.

    “A lot of the Nationwide guys I know and know of but I haven’t had the opportunity to race with them,” Ragan continued. “I think it’s important to get to talk to them and let them see me in the car so they recognize who is driving it.”

    “That will pay big dividends when we are out there racing for sure.”

    Ragan is also looking forward to achieving new milestones on the Cup side of his career, especially being back in partnership for another year with Front Row Motorsports teammate David Gilliland.

    “Front Row Motorsports has improved year in and year out since I’ve started there in 2012,” Ragan said. “We’ve got a lot of potential now.”

    “Some of our primary sponsors are coming back and we’re excited about that,” Ragan continued. “We’ve worked on our car inventory this off-season and we’ve certainly improved our team.”

    “We’ve got to keep working hard because as the same time we’re improving our team, the teams around us are improving theirs as well,” Ragan said. “We just have to keep our heads up and keep working hard.”

    “We’re excited to get to Daytona, but really excited to get to Phoenix, Las Vegas, Bristol and see where we shake out in those first few races,” Ragan continued. “I’m looking forward to my third year and having some fun with my team.”

    “And if we could slightly improve on our Cup efforts, continue to build relationships with our sponsors and it has a lot of potential to be a milestone year.”

    Ragan’s final, and most important, milestone in 2014 is more personal. He and his wife Jacquelyn are expecting a new addition to the Ragan clan.

    “We are also having a milestone personally as Jacquelyn, my wife, is pregnant and due in June,” Ragan said. “So, this is going to be a big year off the race track.”

    “It’s going to be a fun time but a very busy time,” Ragan said. “But we’re excited and ready to get the year underway.”

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Phoenix Advocare 500

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Phoenix Advocare 500

    After welcoming a serviceman home in honor of Veteran’s Day and with all eyes on the Chase contenders, here is what was surprising and not surprising from the 26th annual Advocare 500 at Phoenix International Raceway.

    Surprising:  Drivers leaving their teams at the end of the 2013 season had surprisingly good finishes, with the best of course being race winner Kevin Harvick, who will leave Richard Childress Racing to go to Stewart Haas Racing in 2014.

    “We challenge each other,” Kevin Harvick said of his RCR relationship. “There’s no better way to go out than to do what we’ve done this year.”

    “I think as we move forward will probably make us closer as friends.”

    And along with Harvick, Kurt Busch, another driver in transition who will be leaving Furniture Row Racing to join Harvick as Stewart Haas Racing teammate, finished fifth.

    The top ten was filled with other racers leaving their teams after the checkered flag flies next weekend at Homestead Miami Speedway, including Juan Pablo Montoya, who finished sixth and is heading to the IndyCar Racing Series; Martin Truex Jr., who is leaving Michael Waltrip Racing for Furniture Row Racing and finished eighth; and Ryan Newman, who finished tenth and will head from Stewart Haas Racing to Richard Childress Racing in the New Year.

    Not Surprising:  With championship points on the line all around, there were a few mea culpas issued not surprisingly after the race end.

    Carl Edwards, who had a scary moment of close racing and contact with championship contender Jimmie Johnson, could not apologize to him more. Edwards first apologized over his radio after the contact and then met Johnson on pit road after the race to declare mea culpa yet again.

    “Yeah, I definitely did not mean to hit him,” Edwards, driver of the No. 99 Fastenal Ford, said of his Johnson close encounter. “He did a heckuva job saving it and I’m just glad he saved it.”

    “I did not want to be part of the championship in that manner.”

    Edwards himself almost had the race won but ran out of gas to finish a disappointing 21st.

    The other mea culpa, which had definite championship implications, came from Jason Ratcliff, crew chief for Matt Kenseth. Ratcliff and the team struggled all day with the handling of the car and in the pits, finishing 23rd in the No. 20 Dollar General Toyota and falling 28 points behind the Chase leader.

    “I apologize for giving you something like that,” Ratcliff said to Kenseth. “I apologize for a really poor job of executing.”

    “I apologize to all of you,” Ratcliff continued. “Just a bad job on my part.”

    Surprising:  While Phoenix usually generates some exciting racing, there was a surprising amount of strategy that played out throughout the race, with cars staying out, pitting, and taking all kinds of tire combinations. In fact, there was so much confusion for one driver that it almost made his head spin.

    “There was a lot of strategy and it confused the heck out of me,” Joey Logano, driver of the No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford said after finishing ninth. “At times we were leading the race and at times we were 24th.”

    “Overall, it was a weird race because you didn’t know where you were at and you just passed the cars in front of you,” Logano continued. “It was too confusing for me.”

    Not Surprising:  Jimmie Johnson channeled his inner dirt track racer to bring home yet another top-ten finish, his 17th in 21 races at Phoenix International Raceway. To be precise, Johnson finished third in his No. 48 Lowe’s/Kobalt Tools Chevrolet.

    “I knew I had a great race car,” Johnson said. “But I really had to fall back on my dirt driving skills racing out here in the desert all the years that I did.”

    “I knew I could get through traffic and I knew I was in good shape relative to the championship battle,” Johnson continued. “I’m in a position I want to be in and now we just need to go to Florida and have another good day.”

    Surprising:  Kasey Kahne, driver of the No. 5 Farmers Insurance Chevrolet is a basement dweller in the point standings no more, thanks to his second place finish in the Valley of the Sun. Kahne advance from the 13th position in the Chase to the 12th spot after posting his seventh top-10 at Phoenix International Raceway.

    “We got our car really good about Lap 150,” Kahne said. “I got a little loose in the last restart but just felt good about our Farmers Insurance Chevrolet.”

    “We made some big gains and I got a nice second-place finish.”

    Not Surprising:  Ricky Stenhouse Jr. not only maintained his strong lead in the Rookie of the Year battle over girlfriend and competitor Danica Patrick but actually gained ground after his 12th place finish and her 27th place finish.

    “It was a tough day all around,” Patrick said after starting 32nd, battling a loose race car and getting caught in a major-league wreck with Cole Whitt, David Reutimann and Justin Allgaier. “We started out pretty loose and got down a lap early.”

    “Then obviously we got caught up in the accident,” Patrick continued. “It’s disappointing, but the GoDaddy guys did a good job of fixing it as best they could so we could finish.”

    Surprising:  It will be a surprisingly different Vegas experience for Dale Earnhardt Jr. Usually the sport’s most popular driver picks up that award at the Myers Brother Luncheon and heads on home, however, this year, he will have a major speaking role as he is fifth in the point standings after finishing fourth at Phoenix in spite of a loose wheel.

    “We had a fast car,” the driver of the No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet said. “I thought Steve Letarte (crew chief) could get some good strategy to get us back up into the top-10, top-five and I was real happy with the way we were able to rebound.”

    This was Junior’s third top-5 finish in the past four races.

    Not Surprising:  Jeff Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet achieved another milestone after his 14th place finish at Phoenix. Gordon led his 400th lap in 2013, which marks the 20th consecutive year that he has led at least 400 laps.

    Surprising:  Phoenix proved to be the tale of the two Davids, with David Gilliland having a good run, at one point running top-10, and teammate David Ragan having engine troubles yet again.

    Gilliland finished 24th and moved up to 25th in the point standings while Ragan finished 35th and fell to 28th in points.

    “That was probably the best car we had all year,” Gilliland said. “We had some brake issues at one point, but overall it was a great car and a good points day.”

    Not Surprising:  Greg Biffle had an eventful day at Phoenix as he had to start from the back of the field due to a transmission change in his No. 16 3M Scotch Ford.

    Nevertheless, Biffle was able to run in the top-10 with the help of some strategy from atop the pit box and finished 13th in the race.

    Biffle also moved up one place in the championship standings to the seventh spot.

    The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will head south to Homestead-Miami Speedway for the Ford Ecoboost 400 season finale where the 2013 champion will be determined.

     

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: AAA Texas 500

    Surprising and Not Surprising: AAA Texas 500

    As the race for the six shooters and black cowboy hat moved from afternoon into evening, here is what was surprising and not surprising in the ninth annual AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway.

    Surprising:  Although no one could argue about the strength of Jimmie Johnson’s performance and victory at Texas, when it came time to discuss the Chase and the battle with Matt Kenseth, now seven points behind Johnson, there were some fighting words involved.

    “I have been watching a lot of MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) fighting lately, and you’ll fall into a rhythm and think that somebody has got the fight won, and it doesn’t end that way,” Johnson said. “That’s how this is going to be.”

    “Matt didn’t have maybe the best day and still finished fourth,” Johnson continued. “This thing is going to go to the last lap at Homestead.”

    “I think this is just going to be a dog fight there,” Rick Hendrick, Johnson’s team owner, said. “I think it’s going to be the last lap at Homestead because the teams are that close.”

    “It’s going to be a war,” Coach Joe Gibbs, Kenseth’s team owner, said. “And I just hope we all survive.”

    Not Surprising:  Dale Earnhardt Jr. acknowledged Jimmie Johnson’s dominance best, telling his crew chief Steve Letarte that his car won even though he finished second for the third time to his five-time champion teammate.

    “He (Johnson) was in a class of his own,” Dale Junior said. “We were joking that he won the DP but we were first in the GT class.”

    “They were super-fast and I was super, super impressed with those guys’ car,” Earnhardt Jr. continued. “I’m happy to have a good effort and looking forward to the last couple of races.”

    “Hopefully we will get us a win,” Junior said. “We keep getting close.”

    Surprising:  Carl Edwards, driver of the No. 99 Aflac Ford Fusion, went from hero, sitting on the pole, to zero, getting knocked out of the race at Texas due to engine failure. Yet even in his disappointment, Edwards surprisingly was still able to pull off a plug for his erstwhile sponsor.

    “I think a valve spring broke,” Edwards said. “We don’t usually have a lot of engine trouble.”

    “We had such a great weekend going,” Edwards continued. “Aflac has coverage for just about everything but I don’t think they cover sick engines which is too bad.”

    Edwards was not the only one with a sick engine as Ford mate David Ragan also lost one, as did Timmy Hill and Bobby Labonte.

    Not Surprising:  While speeding penalties are costly enough to the average driver, they were especially costly to two of the Chase competitors, particularly Matt Kenseth, whose penalty no doubt cost him the point’s lead, and Kyle Busch, who battled not only the speeding penalty but also an early crash to finish 13th.

    “We were just being too aggressive,” Kenseth said. “That speeding penalty got us behind — we definitely didn’t need that.”

    “If I wouldn’t have messed up, maybe we could have ran second.”

    “Kyle (Busch) feels horrible because he sped on pit road late in the race,” Dave Rogers, crew chief of the No. 18 Snickers Toyota, said. “He was giving us all he had to give us the best possible finish and we took a little bit more that what was there.”

    “This is a team and we’ve got his back.”

    Surprising:  While Texas provided a surprising venue to showcase the strength of Penske Racing, with two top-ten finishes, both drivers, however, acknowledged that neither of them had what it took to be stronger than team 48.

    “From the start of the race, we moved our way forward,” Joey Logano, driver of the No. 22 AAA Ford said. “Overall we can’t be disappointed with a third place finish but the 48 car was just ridiculously fast.”

    “I thought we had decent speed,” Brad Keselowski, driver of the No. 2 Miller Lite Ford, said. “We were leading at one point and the yellow flag came and we pitted and came out ninth, which ended our shot of being able to derail Jimmie if there even was one.”

    “His car was so much faster than the field,” Keselowski continued. “It was pretty embarrassing to be quite honest.”

    Not Surprising:  The pattern of inconsistency for team No. 24 and driver Jeff Gordon continued, with the win at Martinsville last weekend being negated by the hard hit into the wall after a tire went down at Texas.

    “I hit the wall hard,” Gordon said “I just know the left front went down as I was going down the front straightaway.”

    Gordon finished 38th, close to 200 laps down, his worst finish since Watkins Glen.

    Surprising:  Parker Kligerman made a surprisingly good debut in the Sprint Cup Series for Swan Racing, finishing top-20.

    “Although 18th doesn’t sound that great, for a rookie and this team, it’s a great finish and it’s one of the best finishes for these guys,” Kligerman said. “It was a long tough race but the team persevered and everyone fought hard.”

    Not Surprising:  Since Greg Biffle never, ever forgets, his love tap of Jimmie Johnson in the waning laps of the Texas race was not the least bit surprising. It did not, however, help him to feel at all better even though he finished twelfth in the race when the checkered flag flew.

    “That was a tough one,” Biffle, driver of the No. 16 3M Ford Fusion, said. “The car wasn’t very good in traffic.”

    “We didn’t get it until it seemed like about 20 to go or whatever that last stop was,” Biffle continued. “We just weren’t where we wanted to be.”

    Surprising:  While most, if not all eyes were on the Chase race between Johnson and Kenseth, there were other drivers in the field who literally paid no heed as they were marching to the beat of their own drummers.

    “We actually made a lot of gains throughout the weekend,” Danica Patrick, drive of the No. 10 GoDaddy Chevrolet said after finishing 25th. “We never quite got it, but we certainly made progress.”

    “I’m excited to get to Phoenix next week,” Patrick continued. “GoDaddy is based out there, so it’s a big race for us.”

    With her 25th place finish, Patrick also gained three spots in the point standings to 25th as well.

    Not Surprising:  Problems continued on and off the track for Juan Pablo Montoya as he winds up his NASCAR career and prepares to return to the IndyCar Series.

    Montoya brought out one of the few race cautions on track due to a tire issue, which was a shredded right front tire according to Crew Chief Chris ‘Shine’ Heroy. JPM was able to soldier on to finish in the 20th place at Texas Motor Speedway.

    But off track, Montoya also has problems as Forbes reported that he is in trouble with the US taxman. The IRS is alleging that the driver owes $2.7 million in additional taxes and penalties due to some interesting and complicated deductions, many of which were made prior to his coming to NASCAR and to the United States to live with his family.

    Montoya has just two more races in the NASCAR Series and then will return to IndyCar racing but this time to drive for Roger Penske and serve as teammate to Penske driver Helio Castroneves.

    Surprising:  After a challenging season of his own, Kasey Kahne actually surprised himself with a top-five finish at Texas Motor Speedway.

    “We had a pretty good Time Warner Chevy today,” Kahne said. “We were seventh to tenth most of the race and we worked our way to fifth there at the end.”

    “I’m glad we were able to have kind of a flawless race and race all day and make a little bit of ground up at the end.”

    Not Surprising:  Kurt Busch’s quest to finish off his season with Furniture Row Racing with outstanding performances is proving most difficult.

    “Nothing good to say about this race,” Busch, driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Chevrolet said. “That’s all we had and it was a struggle all weekend.”

    “We definitely need a turnaround in the final two races because it has been too good of a year to end on a struggling note.”

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Goody’s Headache Relief Shot 500

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Goody’s Headache Relief Shot 500

    With NASCAR legend and Hall of Famer Junior Johnson giving the command to get the action started and a grandfather clock trophy on the line, here is what was surprising and not surprising in the 65th annual Goody’s Headache Relief Shot 500 Powered by Kroger at Martinsville Speedway.

    Surprising:  Jeff Gordon had some pretty surprising thoughts in the waning laps of the race as he battled with Matt Kenseth for the race lead at Martinsville and then motored on to Victory Lane.

    “I was thinking, what would Jimmie Johnson do?” the driver of the No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet said. “Or better yet, maybe what would Richard Petty do?”

    “I was just hoping that no cautions were going to come out and they didn’t,” Gordon continued. “That clock, there’s nothing better than getting a clock at Martinsville.”

    This was Gordon’s first win of the season and his 88th victory in his career, tying him with Jimmie Johnson and trailing only Richard Petty and Darrell Waltrip on the all-time wins list at Martinsville.

    And with the win, Gordon climbed two spots in the all-important point standings to third, now 27 points behind the leaders.

    Not Surprising:  While the inside lane was definitely the preferred one at Martinsville, the outside lane seemed especially cursed during this seventh race of the Chase at the short track.

    “It’s just the nature of the beast here,” Clint Bowyer, driver of the No. 15 5-Hour Energy Toyota said. “That’s how important it is to get to the inside on these restarts.”

    “You’d better get your business done quick,” Bowyer continued. “If you don’t, within two corners you’re in trouble because they’re stacked up on the bottom.”

    Bowyer survived the curse of the outside lane to finish third, his tenth top-10 finish in 16 races at Martinsville Speedway.

    Surprising:  While Matt Kenseth was surprisingly confident at a track where he has no wins, only three top fives and a 15th best driver rating of 80.5, his confidence did indeed bear fruit, with a runner up finish in his No. 20 Dollar General Toyota and a bump back up in the Chase standings.

    “I felt like today was an opportunity to get the points lead back,” Kenseth said. “I know Jimmie (Johnson) is always the man here, and he’s still the man here along with Jeff (Gordon) and Denny (Hamlin) for sure.”

    “I haven’t had that many good runs here, but we ran good in the spring, we were terrific at Loudon which has always been my worst track and this has probably been my second-worst track, and Jason (Ratcliff, crew chief) and the whole group at JGR gave us such good cars to drive.”

    “I couldn’t be much happier, but I am disappointed I got beat there at the end,” Kenseth continued. “I feel like we can go do some racing here in the next three weeks.”

    With his good finish, Kenseth actually tied Jimmie Johnson for the point’s lead, however, has the advantage due to his number of overall wins.

    Not Surprising:  Tempers abound at any short track so it was not surprising that some apologies were due, some were made, and some will remain to be made potentially in the upcoming week as a result of the Martinsville race.

    Kevin Harvick, behind the wheel of the No. 29 Rheem Chevrolet, made several apologies, first to Ty Dillon for his harsh words after the Truck race and then to Ryan Newman for hitting him during the Cup race.

    “Yeah, first thing I want to do is apologize to Ryan Newman,” Harvick said after finishing sixth. “I tried to shoot in a gap there and just barely clipped the right rear of his car.”

    Carl Edwards also acknowledged that he owed a few apologies after a ‘terrible’ day at the race track.

    “I caused the first two cautions when the car was real hard to drive on entry,” the driver of the No. 99 Geek Squad Ford said. “I felt bad about that.”

    “The car was real, real loose in and that was the reason I hit Kvapil there like that,” Edwards continued. “I’m going to apologize to him right now.”

    There were two drivers, however, who were in no way, shape or form in the apologizing mode, at least after the race ended.

    “We made contact, but I couldn’t quite understand why he was down here pulling on my collar like he just did,” Jimmie Johnson, driver of the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet, said after his pit road interview was interrupted by a visibly upset Greg Biffle.

    “You knocked my (expletive) back bumper off mother (expletive)”, the driver of the No. 16 3M Ford said to the five time champ after finishing ninth. “You (expletive) ran into the back of me.”

    “Dude, if you want to talk about it, let’s talk about it” Johnson said during the exchange.

    “We just did,” Biffle countered as he walked away after being separated from Johnson by a NASCAR official.

    Surprising:  Brad Keselowski finally had a surprisingly good day, with his career best finish, fourth place, at Martinsville Speedway. And with that, the driver of the No. 2 Miller Lite Ford said that he took the checkered flag exactly where he thought he had a car to do so.

    “It was a decent day,” Keselowski said. “We weren’t where we wanted to be at the start, but we worked on our car and got it better at the end.”

    “The last run was by far the most competitive we were and had probably about a fourth or fifth-place car and that’s where we finished at the end,” Keselowski continued. “It was a solid effort.”

    Not Surprising:   Chevrolet yet again secured the 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup manufacturer’s championship and did so even with three more races left in the season.

    This was the 37th manufacturer’s title for Chevrolet and the eleventh year in a row taking the honors.  This was also the 16th win of the season for Team Chevy.

    “To wrap it up with a win, with a great, exciting finish battling it out with a Toyota (the No. 20 driven by second-place finisher Matt Kenseth) is awesome,” Jeff Gordon said. “I know how much that means to Chevrolet.”

    Surprising:  In spite of his record setting qualifying effort, putting his No. 34 Taco Bell Ford in P8 in time trials, engine woes bit David Ragan and he finished dead last with a broken valve spring.

    The driver, however, found the bright spot in his surprisingly bad finish with the positive evolution of his team over this past season, from testing to better work coming from the shop.

    “We’ve built some new cars in-house and that’s doing the chassis work, the body work and building the components, so we’ve really evolved a lot,” Ragan said. “We’ve done it from within and I think long-term that’s a big positive for the whole Front Row Motorsports team.”

    Not Surprising:  Denny Hamlin, traditionally strong at Martinsville and pole sitter for the race, not surprisingly scored another top-ten run in his No. 11 FedEx One Rate Toyota, even with some damage incurred from one of the race’s early wrecks.

    And with that finish, Hamlin pronounced the team as finally going in the right direction after a very difficult season.

    “We ran decent,” Hamlin said. “Even though the car drove as bad as it did, we still were able to be at least somewhat competitive.”

    “Seventh isn’t what we like here at Martinsville, but still it’s a step in the right direction,” Hamlin continued. “We’re just trying to get our feet under us.”

    “Then that’s going to set us up pretty good for next year.”

    Surprising: Sticking with the theme of blown engines, another one bit one of NASCAR’s most promising young drivers Kyle Larson who blew up for the second race in a row. The driver of the No. 51 Target Chevrolet suffered the mechanical issue on lap 165, spinning in his own fluid and bringing out the caution.

    “We just can’t seem to catch a break in these two Cup starts that I’ve had,” Larson said. “We blew up in Charlotte and not sure we had a rear end blow up here or what.”

    Larson’s day went from bad to worse as he tweeted after the race.

    “What a bad last couple of hours. Engine blew up, got a speeding ticket, now my cat just puked and pooped in the car.”

    Not Surprising:  Kurt Busch admitted right up front that he does not have Martinsville Speedway circled on his calendar. And the track again was a struggle yet again for him as he finished 18th with a banged up race car.

    “We didn’t qualify well (19th), didn’t practice well and obviously didn’t race well,” the driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Chevrolet said. “I don’t know what it is but there’s something about this track that doesn’t suit me.”

    “It was a very disappointing performance today,” Busch continued. “Our Furniture Row Chevrolet got banged up early when it took a big hit to the right side.”

    “But no excuses, we just didn’t have it.”

    The Cup Series next heads to Texas Motor Speedway for the AAA Texas 500, the eighth race in the Chase.

  • John Hunter Nemechek Ready to Step into His Own Spotlight

    John Hunter Nemechek Ready to Step into His Own Spotlight

    While many know and love his famous father Joe, John Hunter Nemechek is now ready to step out into his own spotlight as he makes his debut in the Camping World Truck Series this weekend at Martinsville.

    Nemechek will be behind the wheel of the No. 22 race truck for SWM-NEMCO Racing, a new race team owned by Sid Mauldin in partnership with Joe Nemechek and company.

    Nemechek’s truck will also debut some of the young racer’s sponsor partners who have supported him throughout his career, including SWM International, Wood Pellet Grills and D.A.B. Constructors.

    And while this Truck debut is a dream come true for the sixteen year old racer, it is also a dream come true for family friend and new team owner Sid Maudlin.

    “We are excited to be working with Joe Nemechek and have our first truck driven by John Hunter,” Mauldin said. “John Hunter is making a name for himself and we are so proud to be a founding partner as he keeps moving up to the next level.”

    “One of our good friend’s dreams has been to be a car owner, whether it be Nationwide, Trucks or Cup,” Nemechek said. “I was lucky enough that he has given me the opportunity to drive for him.”

    “It’s been a blessing.”

    The young racer also feels blessed to be making his Truck start at Martinsville, a track where he has most certainly been many times with his father. And although he is familiar with the track from that point of view, he also got the opportunity to go and test a few weeks ago in preparation for his foray into the Truck Series.

    “It was fun,” Nemechek said. “But it’s different too.”

    “It’s a short track so I was just trying to get used to the truck and what it likes,” Nemechek continued. “The truck is a lot heavier than a late model, it has more horse power than a late model, and the tire compound is different.”

    “You can slide around in a late model where the truck you can’t,” Nemechek said. “It’s all about being smooth and it’s trying to build a notebook and get experience and all that type of good stuff.”

    Although the truck is new to the young driver, Nemechek knows that he has a wealth of experience to draw from while at the race track from his crew chief, team and Dad to his already impressive racing resume.

    “Everyone that works in our shop, from my crew chief to my Dad and team, we all have good communication with each other,” Nemechek said. “We talk and joke around but when we need to get serious, we understand each other.”

    “I started racing when I was four in quarter midgets and mini-sprints and ran that for a few years,” Nemechek continued. “And then actually I jumped out of cars and raced dirt bikes for a while.”

    “I raced motorcross and did very well but decided that I didn’t want to get hurt anymore so I got in the Allison legacy car and my first year we ran seven races and my first full season was 2011, where we won two races, two poles and won Rookie of the Year, with second in points,” Nemechek said. “In 2012, I ran the Allison legacy car for a full season and we won 13 out of 18 poles, 15 out of 18 races and won the championship.”

    “While doing that, we ran a little bit of super late model stuff and won the pole at Milwaukee, which was one of the biggest races of the year,” Nemechek continued. “We went down to the Snowball Derby in Pensacola, qualified second to David Ragan, and led until we got caught up in an accident and finished tenth.”

    “But we definitely had a car to beat down there.”

    “This year we’ve been running super late models and I ran a couple K&N races,” Nemechek said. “We haven’t won a race yet, which is kind of frustrating but we did win a pole this year and the championship too.”

    “I’m trying to keep that championship streak alive.”

    So, what does the young racer hope to accomplish in his Truck debut at the short track in Martinsville?

    “My number one goal is to make the race and be in the race because we have to qualify our way into the race,” Nemechek said. “We should make the race and when we do, my goal is to run all the laps and get as much experience as I can.”

    “Hopefully, while doing that we will finish in the top fifteen but I’ll just try to keep learning.”

    Not only does Nemechek have to learn on the race track, but he also has responsibilities at school, especially since he is just a junior in high school. And that off-track learning experience is one that he takes seriously for many reasons, especially since it has the potential to impact his on-track performance.

    “I go to a private school so it makes it a little bit easier but it’s definitely a challenge to balance racing and school work,” Nemechek said. “My academics come first.”

    “One of the deals I have with my parents and sponsors is that if I don’t make ‘A’s and ‘B’s, then all the money stops coming and all the racing stops until the grade gets back up,” Nemechek continued. “My parents are tough on me and it’s definitely hard but my school works with me and my schedule and I have to work with them to get assignments in before I go.”

    “You have to complete the work and it definitely is a challenge.”

    While the teen experiences the challenges of racing, school work and tackling a short track this weekend, he is most grateful to everyone, from his family to his growing fan base, who supports him as he works to achieve his racing dreams.

    “Having my Dad there, I like it,” Nemechek said. “We communicate with each other well and we work with each other well.”

    “That’s one of the good things about being close to your Dad,” Nemechek continued. “He lets me learn on my own instead of him telling me what to do.”

    “I listen to him and he listens to me and it’s all about communication,” Nemechek said. “If he sees something I’m doing wrong, he will tell me.”

    “I’ll adjust and we just bounce ideas off each other.”

    “I’m also grateful to my fans and I want them to know that I appreciate everyone who supports me and believes in me,” Nemechek said. “My motto is to never give up and I want them to know that I’ll race as hard as I can and do the best that I can with what I have.”

    “Their support means a lot to me too.”

    Whatever happens at Martinsville in his Truck debut, Nemechek acknowledged that he does indeed have that same fire in his belly for racing as his father and hopes that someday he can achieve that same success, as well as following in the footsteps of some of his other racing idols, like Jimmie Johnson or Tony Stewart.

    “Yes, I do love racing,” Nemechek said. “It’s in my blood.”

    “I know that my Dad wants me to do it but at the same time, I think he wishes he would have got me a set of golf clubs instead of a race car when I was young,” Nemechek continued with a laugh.” But I love to do this and pretty much this is what I want to do in my future.”

    So, what will the young racer be thinking when he gets behind the wheel of his truck and cinches his belts tight for his first ever NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race?

    “There’s going to be nerves, especially when it is your first time,” Nemechek said. “But I’m also going to be excited at the same time.”

    “It all balances out when you strap into it, you forget all about the nerves and the excitement,” Nemechek continued. “You’re just focused on the race.”

    “I’ll smile and then I’ll be having a good day.”

    For more information about John Hunter Nemechek, visit his website at www.johnhunternemechek.com

    or follow him on Twitter @JohnNemechek.

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Talladega Camping World RV Sales 500

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Talladega Camping World RV Sales 500

    In a race where the spotters sound like auctioneers as they guide their drivers around the track and where anything from chess-like strategy to last lap mayhem can happen, here is what was surprising and not surprising from the 45th annual Camping World RV Sales 500 at Talladega Superspeedway.

    Surprising:  While many drivers and crew chiefs alike assessed the race as ‘uneventful’, with only three cautions, no major multi-car wrecks and primarily single-file racing in the last laps, a few drivers at least might take exception to that viewpoint.

    In one international incident, Marcos Ambrose lost control of his vehicle on lap 78 and took out Juan Pablo Montoya in the process.

    “The Target Chevrolet was pretty good to be honest,” Montoya said. “We were running two-wide so it was comfortable.”

    “We started running three-wide and the spotter told me ‘get out’ and I backed up going into the tri-oval and the next thing I know, I just saw out the corner of my eye somebody coming towards me and that was it.”

    Even more dramatic, however, was the white flag lap crash where Ricky Stenhouse Jr. made contact with Austin Dillon, driver the No. 14 Bass Pro Shops/Mobil 1 Chevrolet for Stewart Haas Racing, sending the latter airborne.

    “The No. 17 had a little bit of a run and I tried to go with him and came back across and hooked me,” Dillon said. “What a wild ride.”

    “Who needs skydiving?”

    Not Surprising:  There are times at a race track when even the trophy is not the most important thing in Victory Lane and not surprisingly, this was the case for the lucky winner who wound up in Victory Lane.

    Jamie McMurray, driver of the No. 1 Cessna Auburn University Chevrolet, not only ended his 108-race winless streak but, as he had always dreamed, he celebrated in Victory Lane with his family, including wife Christy and his two children Carter and Hazel.

    “Well, that was — I mean, that’s top two or three moments of my life, to get to experience that with them,” McMurray said. “I don’t know if you guys heard, but I rent a space from Matt Kenseth to keep my go-karts and stuff in at his shop.”

    “So I was out in the front where they have some office space, and he’s got pictures hanging inside and there was a picture of Matt and Katie and Grace and Kaylin, and I think it was Dover Victory Lane, and I remember seeing how excited Kaylin was,” McMurray continued. “I went home and told Christy, I hope that we get to have that moment.”

    “That’s really special — especially having a little boy who is into Lightning McQueen and racing in general,” McMurray said. “Yeah, to get to have that with my family is really cool.”

    This was McMurray’s first win of the season, his second victory at Talladega, and his seventh victory in 398 Cup races.

    Surprising:  Dale Earnhardt Jr. was surprisingly upbeat in spite of not having his dream of snagging that elusive first win of the season come true. The driver of the No. 88 Mountain Dew/Xbox One Chevrolet was a bridesmaid in the runner up position yet again.

    “It wasn’t the best run in the world,” Dale Junior said. “It wasn’t what I dreamed it would be, all those last few laps.”

    “But it was a good enough run I think to get up to his (McMurray’s) quarter panel and get beside him.”

    “Really happy with the way the car ran and it was good to run up front, good to lead,” Earnhardt Jr. continued. “We’ve really struggled this season with being competitive, and to drive up through there and do that like we did today, and it felt great.”

    Dale Earnhardt Jr. scored his 14th top-10 finish in 28 races at ‘Dega and posted his 18th top-10 finish of the 2013 season.

    Not Surprising:  In spite of a punishing Truck race the night before, Kyle Busch not surprisingly proved again that he was the redemption story of the race weekend. The driver of the No. 18 M&M’s Halloween Toyota bounced back after missing his pit box to get his lap back and finish fifth.

    And although he had some harsh words on his radio after getting blocked out of his pit box by none other than race winner Jamie McMurray, Busch was giving all the glory to God at the end of the race.

    “Our M&M’s Halloween Camry ran great all day,” said Busch, who earned his fourth top-five finish in 18 starts at Talladega, including his April 2008 win at the 2.66-mile oval. “It was fun to finish one of these things.”

    “It’s God’s grace that allows us to finish one of these, and we appreciate it today, especially coming home with another top-five.”

    Busch also redeemed himself in the point standings, moving up two positions to reclaim the third spot, just 26 points behind the leader.

    Surprising:  Talladega proved a surprising dichotomy for the two primary Rookie of the Year contenders. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. finished third while his primary ROTY competitor Danica Patrick finished 33rd after having a pit road calamity.

    “I thought the racing was great all day,” Stenhouse, driver of the No. 17 Nationwide Insurance Ford, said. “We were two, three, and four wide for a long time.”

    “For our Nationwide Insurance team we were solid all day, in the top-10 a lot of the day and led a few laps, which was good for us.”

    On the other hand, while Danica Patrick had been also running toward the front of the pack, her good day was ruined by an error on pit road during a green flag stop where she missed her pit stall and then incurred a speeding penalty to boot.

    “We just didn’t communicate well on that final pit stop,” the driver of the No. 10 GoDaddy Breast Cancer Awareness Chevrolet said. “We were on the high side and couldn’t get down to where we needed to be to pit.”

    “It’s disappointing and none of us feel good about it.”

    Not Surprising:  David Ragan and David Gilliland, both of whom have proven that they can drive at the superspeedways as evidenced by their one, two finish in the spring race at ‘Dega, not surprisingly fared well again in the fall affair.

    Ragan, behind the wheel of the No. 34 SaferCar.gov Ford, finished sixth, with his teammate Gilliland, driving the No. 38 Long John Silver’s Ford, right behind him in the seventh spot.

    “We had a chance to win the race, took the white flag in seventh or eighth and kind of had a good plan,” Ragan said. “But the caution came out so we got a top-10 finish and that’s a good thing for our Front Row Motorsports team.”

    “David and I worked together for a good part of the race and we were in position,” Gilliland said. “And then the caution came out on the last lap.”

    “Thankfully, we weren’t part of it and we were able to get a top-10 finish and a clean car to take home.”

    Surprising:  Paul Menard, driver of the No. 27 Menards Duracell Chevrolet, surprisingly bettered his Talladega statistics by finishing fourth. This was Menard’s only finish inside the top-10 at Talladega in fifteen starts there other than a runner-up finish in 2008.

    “At the start of the race, we took off and the car drove really good,” Menard said. “We drove to the front and kind of hung out in the top-10 all day long.”

    “We could make the middle groove work to gain spots and then get to the outside,” Menard continued. “Ultimately the outside lane kind of won out over the long run.”

    Not Surprising:  Channeling his best Ricky Bobby from the movie ‘Talladega Nights”, Kurt Busch exemplified the notion that ‘if you’re not first, you’re last’ or at least 18th, which is where he finished in his No. 78 Wonder Bread car.

    “Restrictor plate racing is all about being in the right place at the right time,” Busch said. “We were in the right place for the majority of the race, but when it counted at the end, we weren’t there.”

    “It’s disappointing because our Wonder Bread Chevy was fast and to finish 18th didn’t do us justice,” Busch continued. “I tried to make something happen, but couldn’t get there.”

    Busch fell two spots in the Chase standings, from seventh to ninth, now 61 points behind the leader.

    Surprising:  At a track where handling usually does not matter, Matt Kenseth surprisingly struggled with an ill handling race car that set him back tremendously during the midsection of the race. Kenseth never quite fully recovered, finishing 20th and losing the championship points lead to Jimmie Johnson.

    “It was really bizarre — typically, handling is a non-issue here and we just got so loose I couldn’t even hang on to it,” the driver of the No. 20 Let’s Do This Home Depot Toyota said. “I pretty much had to run in the back for two runs which was disappointing.”

    “We finally got it fixed that last run, but we only had 20 laps to get back up there,” Kenseth continued. “I really needed to be up there like we were early and feel like I was controlling the race more — the lanes and the runs and all that and I could never get back to there.”

    Not Surprising:  While Jimmie Johnson may also have not had the race that he envisioned, his 13th place finish was better than Kenseth’s run. And after surviving Talladega, which was his goal, the five-time champ now has Martinsville, one of his best tracks, in his sights.

    “You know I feel that the races forward now are up to where the competitors go earn it,” the driver of the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet said. “You don’t have this luck issue that can take place at plate tracks.”

    “So I am happy to have the points lead and we went through a lot of work to get there,” Johnson continued. “We just go racing from here.”

    “Martinsville has been good to us in the past, but we’ve got to go there and race,” Johnson said. “We will make sure that we get buttoned up and ready to go to that paperclip and see what we can do.”

    “It’s just going to be a dogfight to the end.”

  • Talladega: The wildcard – the equalizer

    Talladega: The wildcard – the equalizer

    Front Row Motorsports announced this week that David Ragan would drive the No. 34 Ford again next season. Fitting that the announcement would come heading to the track where Ragan found his way to victory lane earlier this season.

    Any time teams come to Talladega the excitement level is at an all-time high. The fear of the unknown is more prominent here than at any other track on the circuit. The 2.66 mile superspeedway is commonly referred to as the “wildcard” race because anything can and seems to happen.

    This moniker fits David Ragan and his Front Row Motorsports team. They are much smaller than the huge mega teams that dominate the spotlight in the Sprint Cup Series. The team is largely underfunded and piece together sponsorships in small packages in an attempt to fill the schedule.

    The “wildcard”, however, is also the equalizer. It gives underfunded, smaller teams a chance. In the Aaron’s 499 this spring, Ragan found his way to the front in the closing laps with teammate, David Gilliland, in tow. Ragan talked about racing at Talladega on Friday saying, “The Talladega race is always special, I’m a NASCAR fan and at heart, I enjoy this style of racing, I enjoy coming here being part of the show.”

    That is the beauty of this place – the unknown. Talladega is the only track on the schedule where literally almost every car in the field could win. Couple that fact with the two and three wide racing, ten to fifteen rows deep, and a person could not ask for more.

    Additionally, there is the constant expectation of having the “big one”, that huge crash that takes out multiple cars. It provides a source of excitement that is equaled by no other track. With the large packs of cars racing so close together, one small bobble or misjudgment can have massive ramifications on, not only the race, but the championship picture.

    Coming into the Camping World RV Sales 500, two drivers seemingly have a stranglehold on the points standings. Matt Kenseth leads Jimmie Johnson by four points. It is then 29 points back to third place, Kevin Harvick. Jeff Gordon and Kyle Busch are 36 and 37 points back respectively. Talladega presents the perfect opportunity to allow them to catch up and turn a two man race into a five man race for the championship.

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Dover

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Dover

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth finished 7th at Dover, failing in his quest to become the first driver to win the first three Chase For The Cup races. Kenseth leads Jimmie Johnson by eight points in the standings.

    “The No. 20 Toyota sported the ‘Let’s Do This’ logo at Dover,” Kenseth said. “That’s opposed to Clint Bowyer’s No. 15, which read ‘I Did This.’”

    2. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson captured a big win at Dover, taking the AAA 400 as Joe Gibbs Racing rivals Matt Kenseth and Kyle Busch finished 7th and 5th, respectively. Johnson trails Kenseth by eight in the Sprint Cup points standings.

    “Kenseth won’t have this championship handed to him on a silver platter,” Johnson said. “Why? Because that platter is full, because I just served notice on it.”

    3. Kyle Busch: Busch led 30 laps and finished fifth at Dover, posting his 14th top 5 of the year. He is third in the point standings, 12 behind Matt Kenseth.

    “I’m tired of playing second fiddle to Kenseth,” Busch said. “I’m used to being called a ‘tool,’ not an ‘instrument.’

    4. Jeff Gordon: Gordon finished fourth at Dover as Hendrick Motorsports took three of the top four spots, with Jimmie Johnson winning. Gordon is fifth in the points standings, 39 out of first.

    “I’d say I’m doing pretty good,” Gordon said, “considering I was a wild-wild card addition to the Chase.

    “My odds are slim and my chances are fat. It appears that for my fifth Sprint Cup championship, the ‘wait’ is on.”

    5. Kevin Harvick: Harvick finished sixth in the AAA 400 at Dover, recording his 15th top 10 of the year. He is fourth in the Sprint Cup points standings, 39 out of first.

    “Matt Kenseth, Jimmie Johnson, and Kyle Busch are slugging it out at the top,” Harvick said, “while I’m merely an afterthought. I, along with others, am what you call a ‘sleeper.’ That’s because if I win the Cup, someone will have to wake me up, because I was obviously dreaming.”

    6. Greg Biffle: Biffle took ninth at Dover, the top finisher among Roush Fenway Racing drivers. He is sixth in the point standings, 41 out of first.

    “I heard Clint Bowyer did yoga before Sunday’s race,” Biffle said. “Ironically, I find myself in a similar position, because it’s a ‘stretch’ to believe either one of us has a chance to win the Cup.”

    7. Clint Bowyer: Bowyer finished 10th in the AAA 400 after starting 23rd and leading one lap. He is eighth in the points standings, 51 out of first.

    “Luckily,” Bowyer said, “5-Hour Energy will remain as the primary sponsor of the No. 15 car. I guess I talked them in to staying. You could say I put a positive ‘spin’ on the situation.”

    8. Kurt Busch: Busch finished 21st in the AAA 400, three laps off the pace. He is now ninth in the points standings, 55 out of first.

    “We had four new pit crew members at Dover,” Busch said. “You could say Furniture Row Racing ‘benched’ some guys. It didn’t seem to make much of a difference, though, because our chances to win the Cup have been put to bed.”

    9. Ryan Newman: Newman finished eighth at Dover and is now seventh in the points standings, 48 behind Matt Kenseth.

    “Quicken Loans is following me to Richard Childress Racing,” Newman said. “Unlike Stewart-Haas Racing, they didn’t leave me hanging.”

    10. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt started on the pole and finished second to Hendrick teammate Jimmie Johnson at Dover. He is tenth in the points standings, behind Matt Kenseth.

    “I won the pole with a record lap at Dover,” Earnhardt said. “It was a historic moment for Junior Nation, because they had good reason to do a pole dance and a lap dance.

    “I thought my four tires would catch Johnson’s two. Four is usually better than two. Likewise, five is always better than zero.”