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  • The Final Word – If only all races were like Talladega

    The Final Word – If only all races were like Talladega

    For the third time this season, NASCAR presented a race worth watching. I am not talking about those good ole boys and girls who have the sport in their blood, who love it, cannot live without it no matter what it looks like. I am talking about those who demand an entertaining three-hour experience if they are going to spend the time to take it all in. Talladega delivered.

    This is what drew people to NASCAR in the first place. They did not know a Fonty Flock from a Smokey Yunick, but they knew what they liked. Tons of action, lots of speed, disaster possibly just around the corner, watching guys doing things we could never pull off on our best day, or even contemplate on our drunkest. On Sunday, Talladega delivered.

    Back in the day, we talked about boys who went by the names of Petty, Roberts, Yarborough, Allison, Earnhardt, Gordon, and Stewart, to name a select few. Today, we once again talk about an Elliott, as the son of Bill from Dawsonville took the prize in the end. Chase Elliott, Alex Bowman, and Ryan Preece led three Chevrolets across the line as, for once, the manufacturers made it known they wanted to win. They wanted their representatives to work together to make that happen. Limit what you do for the Ford and Toyota guys. Win one for the Camaro. In the end, thanks to some fine wheelmen and good fortune, Talladega delivered.

    It was a day when sometimes they got too close to the line, and what you would expect would happen at 200 mph at close quarters did happen. Kevin Harvick lasted just 10 laps. Denny Hamlin survived 80. Jimmie Johnson and Clint Bowyer were running at the end, but their odds of winning were about the same as your own. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was front and center most of the day but wrecked by the end. If you were looking for fireworks, Talladega delivered.

    Were the FOX announcers great, keeping you informed and entertained? They did not have to be. The race, the actual event, kept us watching all on its own. Sure, we could talk once more about what changes FOX should make, and what NBC did last season, but we’ve flogged that horse past the point of what the SPCA or even Rodrigo Duterte could tolerate. You wanted a race, you got a race. Talladega delivered.

    Daytona. Bristol. Talladega. Ten races, but only three that kept the viewing public glued to their seats, even if they were nowhere to be seen at that track in Tennessee a few weeks back. To be honest, I was so focused on the race, I could not tell you how many empty seats there might have been in the wilds of Alabama. If they could not or would not make the effort to take this one in, that would have been a shame. Talladega delivered.

    Next week, they are in Dover. The Monster Mile they call it. It has been around for 50 years. Miles the Monster, holding a full sized Cup car up in the air, has been there since 2008. The last time the Cup boys visited there was last October. The winner, the youngest ever to do so at the venue, was one Chase Elliott. Will Dover bring us the same kind of experience as we enjoyed this past weekend? Hell no. Few tracks deliver like Talladega can.

  • Hot 20 over the past 10 – Newman gets justice while Gordon will have to rely on vengeance

    Hot 20 over the past 10 – Newman gets justice while Gordon will have to rely on vengeance

    Sometime over the next ten weeks, at one of ten tracks hosting the Chase, Clint Bowyer will be sailing along. He will feel a sudden nudge in his left rear quarter-final, just a touch but enough to cause him to feel the car getting out from under him. Bowyer will try to save it, and come close in doing so but, alas, his car will find the wall. His race and his Chase hopes, done in an instant.

    Over the car radio we will hear Jeff Gordon, “I did not mean to do that; I sure hate it.” Then silence, at least over the air waves, as laughter explodes from behind the wall, just beyond the #24 pit box and spotter’s stand. High above the track, Mike Helton will look on, a hint of a smile appearing behind that bushy mustache. He will know, just as was the case with Bowyer at Richmond, that he will not have definitive proof that Gordon did anything intentional. No doubt just a racing deal. Just like Bowyer. Then, all will be right with the world.

    Bowyer was not penalized for intentionally spinning out to cause that late caution at Richmond. Not enough definitive proof, though enough to tarnish the reputation of the personable driver for the foreseeable future among fans. No, this was not an individual penalty, but one aimed at an entire organization for attempting to manipulate the outcome of an event and the standings to benefit one of their own. A $300,000 fine to Michael Waltrip Racing, a indefinite suspension of General Manager Ty Norris, 50 point penalties to each of the organization’s cars and drivers, and probation for all three of its crew chiefs.

    In order for Martin Truex Jr to make the Chase, Ryan Newman could not win and Joey Logano had to claim a Top Ten spot in the standings in order to keep him out of the wild card scenario. When a startled Brian Vickers was ordered to the pits, just before the re-start, in order to allow Logano to move ahead of him on the track, combined with Bowyer’s dawdling on pit road to do the same, the proof was there. Logano made it, taking Jeff Gordon out of the Chase and allowing Truex to slip into the final wild card position.

    At least until the penalties. They dropped Truex behind Newman in points, so Newman takes over that position. Logano was simply a pawn, so there was no reason to sanction him. Other than to invent a rule to award Gordon an extra Chase place, NASCAR’s hands were tied. Bowyer gets penalized from his season total, which will not affect his Chase standing going in. He was going to be tied for 8th at Chicago, penalty or no penalty. Where is the justice, you might ask. For Gordon, the best he can do is discover an itch in his hot car, just enough for him to need to scratch it, sometime over the next few weeks as his right front fender nears Bowyer’s left rear quarter-panel. We know it could happen. We have all already seen it.

    As they enter the Chase, five race winner Matt Kenseth takes a three point lead over Jimmie Johnson and Kyle Busch in to Chicago.  The leader has been as hot as Johnson has not, as of late, but Rowdy is the one to watch. He has won there, while Kevin Harvick has done so twice. While they have not yet claimed a victory at the track, the two we will be watching who have the best average finish at Chicagoland are Johnson and Bowyer.  Ironically, Gordon owns a piece of one of those cars and would like just a piece of the other.

     

    Name Points Pos LW Rank W T5 T10
      Kyle Busch  350 1 2 (2) 2 4 6
      Kurt Busch  337 2 1 (8) 0 4 7
      Matt Kenseth  326 3 7 (1) 2 3 5
      Jamie McMurray  326 4 9 (14) 0 2 3
      Ryan Newman  323 5 8 (8) 1 4 5
      Kevin Harvick  318 6 5 (4) 0 2 5
      Joey Logano  312 7 3 (6) 1 4 7
      Jeff Gordon  309 8 6 (13) 0 1 7
      Dale Earnhardt, Jr.  302 9 10 (8) 0 1 5
      Kasey Kahne  294 10 11 (8) 1 3 5
      Carl Edwards  294 11 14 (4) 1 2 4
      Juan Pablo Montoya  285 12 17 (19) 0 2 4
      Greg Biffle  280 13 15 (6) 0 0 3
      Jimmie Johnson  268 14 13 (2) 1 2 5
      Brad Keselowski  266 15 18 (15) 0 2 3
      Marcos Ambrose  258 16 16 (21) 0 0 2
      Paul Menard  253 17 19 (16) 0 2 3
      Clint Bowyer  251 18 4 (8) 0 3 4
      Martin Truex, Jr.  238 19 12 (17) 0 2 4
      Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.  238 20 22 (20) 0 0 1
      Aric Almirola  236 21 20 (18) 0 1 1
  • Martinsville is the Blueprint for NASCAR’s Future

    Martinsville is the Blueprint for NASCAR’s Future

    [media-credit name=”Brad Keppel” align=”alignright” width=”240″][/media-credit]Did anyone doubt that Jimmie Johnson would lead the Chase points after Martinsville? Earlier in the spring race, he and teammate Jeff Gordon were headed for a 1-2 finish before somebody got greedy and the result was Ryan Newman winning. Never mind that Hendrick Motorsports owns this place, and if for not a strange turn of events, HMS would have won both races at Martinsville Speedway. As usual.

    The only driver and team that have a chance against the Hendrick superstars is Denny Hamlin. Trouble was that Hamilton had electrical and pit speed problems that gave him little chance of winning on Sunday. These days, you can forget anyone else challenging. Despite that one thing, it was a good race and in fact competitive. Brian Vickers, who had qualified second, was competitive all day. Clint Bowyer was up front for the entire race. Even Jeff Gordon looked invincible at times, but in the end, everyone in the stands, even though many were scared off by Storm Sandy and the warnings of the Virginia Governor, knew that Johnson would be celebrating at the race’s end. It’s been that way for years. Those guys, led by Chad Knaus just have the Paper-Clip figured out, but that didn’t mean that it was a boring race. It was far from that.

    Martinsville, the oldest track on the NASCAR Sprint Cup circuit, has become the showplace of what NASCAR is and what it should be. While track owners and corporations continued to build their mile and a half palaces, isn’t it funny that the best racing is always on shorter tracks? Sunday saw lead changes and spirited back and forth among several drivers. No fuel mileage problems here. Just hard racing was on the menu from start to finish. The race didn’t give fans any time to fall asleep or wander to another NFL game, if they were at home. Even the finish held some drama as Kyle Busch tried unsuccessfully tried to run down and pass Johnson. Compare that with other races this season.

    It’s really interesting to note that a track designed in 1947 provides the best racing on the circuit. No progressive banking and nothing to take away from the racing like casinos or other distractions. Sue, the end result was what everyone figured would happen, but fenders were put on opponents and no car got so far out in front that no one could pass them. It was the perfect race and that’s as it should be.

    So, as far as I can see, the twice annual “Hendrick Invitational” should be the blueprint of what NASCAR should be. For too long, the sport has tried to emulate stick and ball sports. We now have a playoff system where the championship is the end all. If you find yourself in the top 12 before the playoffs, you get all the attention. The only problem is that in the other sports, only the playoff teams are playing. In NASCAR, the other 31 teams still compete, but go largely unnoticed. From Daytona to Homestead, the points are the only story. Who cares who wins a race? In the NFL or MLB, that works because you have a game that never changes. Everything changes in the Chase. Thou shalt not touch the Chase contenders. No one paid any attention to that, that I could see at Martinsville, but that is the exception. As we head to the final three races at tracks larger than Martinsville, that may come into play and that’s unfortunate. On Sunday, as I sat in the Press Box, I was rooting for anyone who was in the Dirty Dozen to win. It didn’t happen, but not for lack of effort. On a larger track, it might be hard to see that. Isn’t it time to see more of that?

    Regardless, last Sunday was a joy if you enjoy good racing. Thank goodness that tracks like Martinsville still exist after 65 years, and isn’t it time that we see more of that? The trend to go to larger tracks and less unique tracks (I hear Darlington and Rockingham calling) has led to the lack of television ratings and attendance, in my opinion. Folks want to see action, and they got it at Martinsville. Long may the little track in the small town somewhere between Roanoke and Greensboro continue to flourish. It’s the crown jewel of NASCAR.

  • Gustafson – Overcoming obstacles with one goal in mind

    Gustafson – Overcoming obstacles with one goal in mind

    [media-credit id=100 align=”alignright” width=”225″][/media-credit]Hendrick Motorsports crew chief, Alan Gustafson, continues to showcase his talent when faced with adversity. The gusty chassis adjustment call at Richmond earlier this season that vaulted his No. 24 team into the Chase when the possibility of making the postseason looked grim, was just one example of many timely and “out of the box” calls Gustafson has made to overcome a problem.

    Every team he has led performed well, but it seems the Sprint Cup Series’ inevitable variables seem to bite at inopportune times. Whether it be caught up in someone else’s crash, having a part failure or the rare occasions, like at Richmond, when the team just simply misses the setup, Gustafson always shows the ability to make a quick, crafty call that overcomes seemingly insurmountable odds.

    When I asked Gustafson about other events this season where he had to climb out of a hole and think outside the box, he pointed out, “The most recent races stick out in your mind the most, but at Atlanta, we started up front at Atlanta and struggled at the start of that race. Even though we took the lead the car got really, really loose, really quick.” he continued, “The Richmond thing was really so pronounced because it was so visual, but I think at Atlanta we struggled as bad, but we were able to work on the car, work on the car and work on the car and then race Truex for the win at the end, and ultimately after the restart race Denny for the win.”

    “Another time I think of is Daytona , it wasn’t really something that I did, but it shows the commitment of this team, Daytona in the summer, we were running third and got wrecked on pit road, which is crazy right, you never know, you’re coming down pit road and you get wrecked. And our car was hurt and the guys did a phenomenal job fixing the car and we ended up getting a 12th place finish and you sit back and you think to yourself, well 12th place is not that great, but if we hadn’t got that finish, we wouldn’t have been able to beat Kyle at Richmond.”

    It’s obvious from talking to him that he is very proud of his team.

    This ability to think outside the box is obviously something that team owner Rick Hendrick looks for in his crew chiefs. Historically, Hendrick Motorsports has always had the most talented crew chiefs.  Chad Knauss, Steve Letarte and of course the amazing Ray Evernham are just a few examples. Gustafson is a perfect addition to this list. As Ray Evernham pointed out to me today, “I think Alan is one of the finest crew chiefs in the sport. I really believe he is going to lead Jeff to his fifth championship.”

    [media-credit id=100 align=”alignright” width=”247″][/media-credit]Gustafson has proven he can win with a variety of different drivers. An all-star line-up of talent that is highlighted by names like Kyle Busch, Mark Martin and of course now four time champion Jeff Gordon. His record emphasizes his ability to adapt. Every driver is different, some temperamental, some laid back. Some drivers feel they can make better decisions than the crew chief can, some have to have feedback forced out of them. There is no single textbook recipe to perform this job. A fluid thought process is a required to be successful with numerous drivers. Some crew chiefs hit that magic combination with one driver, but can’t attain it with any other.

    Now that the No.24 team has made the Chase, adversity once again struck in the Chase opener at Chicagoland Speedway. A crash on lap 190 resulted in a 35th place finish for the DuPont Chevrolet. That finish dropped the team to 12th place in the standings, last among Chase contenders. This once again puts Gustafson in the position of having to be creative and clear the hurdles that life has placed in front of him. In typical fashion, the No.24 group came back strong with a third place finish at New Hampshire and great fuel mileage strategy en route to a second place finish at Dover. Even with these terrific finishes, Gordon still lost points to the leader though he did manage to move up in the standings.

    I asked Gustafson if he felt that his team has now used their mulligan, and does he feel that the other teams in contention will ultimately stumble as well. Gustafson responded, “.. we can’t concern ourselves with them, .. we have to focus on doing the best we can.”

    However this weekend there is a larger, more unpredictable hurdle to clear, Talladega. Long known as NASCAR’s wildcard race, at this track anything can happen. If Gordon can keep the car out of harm’s way and this could be the place to regain what they lost at Chicagoland. This track presents so many opportunities for teams to find trouble, that the top four drivers on the standings could easily lose their momentum and find themselves at the back of the finishing order and put Gordon and Gustafson right back in the hunt the championship.

    Being that Gustafson is a top crew chief in NASCAR’s premier series, I expected him to pattern himself after a famous crew chief from the past, however, when I asked him what person he admires and looks up to, his response was, “If I pattern myself after anyone, it’s probably our owner Mr. Hendrick, he’s a great , incredible leader…. he knows how to manage people, how hire people and inspire people. No matter what field you are in.  Whether it’s you are gonna do writing this story, or what I am gonna go Sunday, or what he does at his car dealerships.” This type of respect is what builds great relationships.

    Statistically, eventually the stars have to line up for Gustafson. Given his track record, and his proven ability to find that proverbial needle in the haystack solution, Gustafson is definitely on the precipice of a championship in NASCAR premier series.

    Asked if the teams goal for the season had changed from the championship to just solid finish, Gustafson says “Our goal is still the championship.  We’re not going away, we’re not going away.”

  • Who wins the Chase? Lots of history and recent performance are telling

    Who wins the Chase? Lots of history and recent performance are telling

    [media-credit name=”Noel Lanier” align=”alignright” width=”239″][/media-credit]It may seem silly, but there are those who have already decided that the Chase has two favorites, Brad Keselowski and Jimmie Johnson. There is something to be said for that, but the thought needs more investigation. It’s also useful to look at history and recent statistics. Those two categories tend to color things a bit.

    First, history tells us a lot. Chevrolet drivers, especially Hendrick Motorsports drivers and those teams he supplies cars for, seem to have the upper hand. The fact is that for the last 20 years, Chevrolet drivers have won 16 championships, with 11 of them coming from Hendrick Motorsports. That’s quite a record. Only Ford drivers Alan Kulwicki, Dale Jarrett, Matt Kenseth, and Kurt Busch have dented that streak. And most of them are ancient history with the last Ford championship coming way back in 2004 when Busch did the trick. In this two decade period, Toyota and Dodge haven’t accomplished a championship.

    Part of the reason for this is the tremendous advantage Chevrolet has in top teams competing week after week. On any given Sunday (or Saturday night), Chevrolet fields 11 top teams running Hendrick and Richard Childress motors or chassis. Ford usually fields only five similar teams, which is one of the reasons Penske Racing was added to the mix. That’s a huge advantage. With Hendrick or his satellite operation winning the last six championships, you have to consider them the favorites—and there are four of them.

    Another thing to consider is recent performance. Surprisingly, the strongest performers over the last six races are Keselowski, Kyle Busch (who isn’t in the Chase), Clint Bowyer, Greg Biffle, and Kasey Kahne. If momentum has in factor in this championship, you have to consider that. Notable is that Hendrick drivers Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Johnson, and Jeff Gordon rank down the list. It makes things more confusing.

    It would be a tremendous surprise to me if the champion is not one of the Hendrick Motorsports drivers. History is with them. Brad Keselowski. Bowyer, and Biffle have had their consistency problems and Johnson looks like he is ready to dominate. Kahne is surprisingly at the top of the field every race and the rest of the field is, to be honest, chasing (no pun intended).

    It’s a little early to tell, but history and recent performance gives us a little insight to how this thing will play out. If I was a betting man, and I’m not, I would put my money on a Chevrolet driver and one from the Hendrick camp. We’ll visit this all during the Chase, but as for now, that’s the way I see it.

  • Fans Have Spoken – Excitement is the Key

    Fans Have Spoken – Excitement is the Key

    It has been a solid year for discussion of NASCAR. The season started with the Daytona 500 being delayed by rain. Then, once the green flag fell, all the talk was about Juan Pablo Montoya having an equipment failure, turning right into a jet dryer and the resulting fireball. Of course Matt Kenseth won the race, but true to his personality, no one remembers it. Then after a couple of races, the two top series in NASCAR headed to Bristol Motor Speedway to what appeared to be an empty track (it’s amazing what a large venue looks like half full).

    After the rain-shortened race in California, the boys headed to Martinsville. After the first half (and most of the second half) of the race made sleeping medications unneeded, an interesting thing happened. Jeff Gordon dominated that race, but Jimmie Johnson ran him down and took the lead. Gordon wasn’t done, however. Working hard, Gordon and Johnson battled with Gordon taking the lead. Then it happened. David Reutimann, trying to stay in the coveted top 35 in points, which insures a start in the next race, had problems. Running around the track at what many called 20 mph, Reutimann had problems. He couldn’t turn left due to tie rod problems and then the engine gave up the ghost. He stalled on the front stretch. Caution came out, a green-white-checker was in the cards, and the field was bunched up. On the first attempt at the infamous two lap shootout, Clint Bowyer tried to pass both Gordon and Johnson in the first and second turns (the story is fuzzy, but Bowyer says he got pushed by Ryan Newman and had to make the make the attempt to pass while others say that Johnson and Gordon, who did not pit, had old tires and couldn’t get a fast start) and what Gaston Gazette sportswriter Monte Dutton called “synchronized spinning” resulted. Gordon and Johnson finished lower than they deserved and Newman won after a fierce battle with A.J. Allmendinger (where did he come from?).

    The verdict was in. I penned a commentary last year saying Martinsville was the new Bristol and that prediction came true. While Bristol had good racing and lots of two-groove passing, the excitement factor was missing. Even though the same factor was missing for 250 laps at Martinsville, the end made everyone leave talking about the race and how great it was. Unfortunately, Reutimann immediately became the villain—the guy who changed the face of the race—it was obvious that Gordon and Johnson had the best cars—and the phone lines lit up on the NASCAR programs on SiriusXM radio. Never has a nice guy been so criticized and discussed. No one wanted to discuss California or Phoenix.

    What has been missing the last few years is the excitement factor. When the Bristol track was reconfigured, and when the Chase made drivers so concerned about point totals in their quest for a place in the Chase, we lost that urgency to actually take chances to win a race. Add to that a driver who just wanted to keep his team in the position to make the next race, and the excitement factor raised by 1,000 per cent. People responded.

    Those of us that consider us purists and like watching racing are in the minority. Since football has become the sport of choice in these United States, it should be obvious that good old fashioned racing is what has been missing from today’s NASCAR. That’s why I applaud Bruton Smith. He is willing, apparently, even though promised announcements have not been made, to change his track to add that excitement to Bristol. Smith heard the fans and realized that without the fans, there would be no races or NASCAR. That was refreshing. And as many media types or drivers cry about the changes that may come to Bristol, we always have Martinsville. It has pretty much been like it is for over 60 years and it works. That is what racing was like for six decades and the attempt to sterilize the sport should by now be clear to the powers that be is futile. Folks want excitement. And that’s all that matters.

  • Matt Kenseth — The Rodney Dangerfield of the Circuit

    Matt Kenseth — The Rodney Dangerfield of the Circuit

    [media-credit name=”Credit: Todd Warshaw/Getty Images for NASCAR” align=”alignright” width=”225″][/media-credit]The Daytona 500 was quite a show. Not only was the race postponed because of rain, but it caused Daytona International Speedway and NASCAR to hold the first ever prime time night 500 in history. That’s big stuff. There was rain and there was fire (had to change that so James Taylor wouldn’t sue), but the same old thing I’ve harped on for ages was present.

    Restrictor plate racing will always stick in my craw, no matter how much the general public loves it. It’s simply not racing. It better resembles a demolition derby within a race. Sorry, but that’s the way I feel.

    I know many find this racing exciting and probably because of the close racing and, unfortunately, the wrecks, but I just don’t see it. I’ve lost that argument long ago, so no more about that, but the result and the finish was wonderful. In the end, we had a classic battle between two teammates and the most popular driver. In the end, the “unnoticed one,” better known as Matt Kenseth, won going away in a car that doesn’t even have enough sponsorship to finish the season. Jack Roush says the car will be in every race, but the sponsorship isn’t there. What is it about Matt Kenseth that sponsors do not like?

    Kenseth came on the scene and beat Dale Earnhardt, Jr. in a battle for the Nationwide Series Championship way back when. He busted on the scene and won a Sprint Cup race his first year. He’s won over 20 times since. Unlike more popular drivers like Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon (not to mention Junior), Matt doesn’t talk much. Reading PR from Chevrolet, Johnson and Gordon can speak paragraphs about any subject. Long sentences and lots of comments are the rule and Matt answers questions and moves on. He prefers his driving to do the talking. And yet, Kenseth is always competitive. If not for that little problem with Brian Vickers at the end of last year, the Chase might have been a three-way race instead of the two man race we had.

    Then, to take away from Kenseth’s great win, we had the fire. If it wasn’t enough that we had rain on the first race of the season, a freak accident became the main focus of the race. Juan Montoya had a suspension part break that caused him to crash into a jet dryer which produced a terrifying fireball. It took nearly two hours to put out the fire and clean the track. Will anyone remember Matt Kenseth win his second Daytona 500? No. But the fire? Absolutely. Talk about bad luck, but that’s been the case with Kenseth his whole career.

    He won the Sprint Cup Championship in 2003 with his consistency, but the fact that he only won one race, might have caused NASCAR to move to its own playoff system known as the Chase. His first Daytona 500 victory was rain shortened. Maybe he’s the Rodney Dangerfield of racing. He gets no respect, despite his exemplary record.

    One last thing. NASCAR ruled on the rules infraction for the No. 48 team today. The result was suspension of crew chief Chad Knaus and the car chief for six races and probation and a huge fine for Knaus beyond that. The team and driver Jimmie Johnson were penalized 25 points making them -25 for the season. Many think the punishment is too harsh since the car failed inspection before practice. Rick Hendrick thinks that since the same car (or so he says) passed inspection four times without problems, that the penalty is bogus. He is appealing the penalty, but we all know how this has gone on in the past. The suspension will stand when NASCAR gets around to hearing the appeal. It may make Knaus available for Phoenix, but you can bet he’ll be gone for some races sooner or later. I don’t know why they bother. Maybe it’s to lessen the blow, but I think the penalty was less than expected given the history of this team.