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Nationwide Series: The crown jewel of Ford Championship weekend

Ford Championship weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway is arguably the biggest weekend of the NASCAR season. This this the weekend they crown the national series champions.

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series is the elite series of NASCAR and usually gets the majority of the attention. This weekend the points gap between first and second in the series is wide enough that the leader, Jimmie Johnson, has to only manage a 23^rd place finish to clinch his sixth series championship. Not that finsihning 23^rd among the world’s best drivers is easy, but with Johsnon’s performance this season and for the last several seasons, it is like kicking a fifteen yard field goal – Not a guarantee, but not exactly a nail biter.

The Camping World Truck Series which many opine has the best competition on track. Firday nights Ford Ecoboost 200 solidifies that opinion. Truly an impressive display of racing talent and competition that NASCAR should be proud of. The championship, however, was basically sewed up before the race. Matt Crafton only had to start the race to clinch the title.

The NASCAR Nationwide Series is widely considered a developmental series, though NASCAR states that it is not. It is actually a stand-alone series, and actually the No. 2 form of motorsports in the United States. Even with these numbers, the series still plays second fiddle in realm of public opinion form the NASCAR community.

This weekend, however, the Nationwide Series has a lot to be proud of. The championship battle is the closest among the three series. The profiles of the two contenders are, to say the least, completely different. Sam Hornish is 34 years old, has three Indycar championships, and is currently in a position where he may need this championship to assist him in landing a sponsor to keep him in NASCAR for 2014. Austin Dillon, is a young-gun driver, with a racing pedigree, one Camping World Truck Series championship in the bank, and pretty much has his future already planned out thanks to the fact that his grandfather is Richard Childress, owner of an elite NASCAR team. That fact also drives him to prove himself as a driver to help quiet the critics who feel he is getting a free ride.

In addition to the driver’s championship, the manufacturer’s championship is so close that it will come down to who wins – Ford or Chevy. Not only is it a classic Ford vs. Chevy battle, but even more tantalizing – if Toyota wins, it could come down to an unprecedented tie-breaker possibly going down to which car has the most fourth place finishes.

Finally, let’s not forget the fantastic owner’s championship battle as well. Roger Penske’s No.22 and Joe Gibbs No. 54 are separated by only four points. A battle that is so important that Penske added an additional car this weekend. Defending Sprint Cup Series champion, Brad Keselowski, will drive the No. 48 Discount Tire Ford in the Ford Ecoboost 300. This entry could be to just assist Joel Logano, who is driving the No. 22 or it could be to just play mind games with the No. 54 driver, Kyle Busch. Busch recently made contact with Keselowski in a Nationwide race crashing him and being less than apologetic about it. This move may have Kyle looking over his shoulder wondering of payback is coming. That could give Penske the edge they need to secure the title.

With so many dramatic storylines, series director, Wayne Auton, has plenty to smile about as he closes his first season with the series. His Nationwide Series is definitely the crown jewel of the Ford Championship weekend. The green flag will fall on the Ford Ecoboost 300 at 4:30 pm local time.

November 16, 2013
Truex’s roller coaster season on up swing at Homestead

Since that controversial night at Richmond International Raceway, the season has been a roller coaster for Michael Waltrip Racing driver, Martin Truex Jr. Upon the completion of that event, Truex was informed he was in the Chase. After reviewing the circumstances of the night, NASCAR decided to make some changes. Those changes removed Truex from the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship.

During the nine Chase races completed so far, Truex learned that his sponsor, NAPA, would not return. That bit of bad news was followed up with more bad news from his team, Michael Waltrip Racing, who said they would not field three full-time cars in 2014 effectively leaving him out of a ride. On the track, Truex has only managed two top-10 finishes – not the results he had hoped for.

On the other side of the coin, it was announced that Truex will drive the No. 78 Furniture Row Chevrolet next season. This puts him in a quality ride that made the Chase this season with driver Kurt Busch. There are also rumors beginning to swirl that NAPA may be considering following him to his new team. At this point, it is just a rumor, but at least gives some hope. It was also announced that Truex’s entire pit crew will follow him to Furniture Row Racing as well. This should make him feel right at home and permit him to settle in quickly at his new home.

Truex is also attempting to end the season on a high note in the Ford Ecoboost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway this weekend. Truex topped the speed charts in the first practice on Friday. Truex posted a lap of 176.661 MPH to best Kasey Kahne, who was second fastest.

Rounding out the top-5 were Paul Menard in third, Clint Bowyer in fourth, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr in fifth.

November 15, 2013
Round one to Hornish

Nationwide Series championship contenders, Sam Hornish and Austin Dillon are locked in the closest points battle among NASCAR’s three national series that are closing out their season’s this weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

A mere eight points separate the two drivers with Dillon on top. Round one, however, for the weekend goes to Hornish. In first practice on Friday, Hornish was fourth fastest, laying down a lap of 167.848 MPH. Dillon only managed a lap of 166.590 MPH, which placed him 14^th on the final sheet.

There was, however, a small bit of drama during the session. Hornish brushed the wall slightly in his No. 12 Penske Racing Ford Mustang. On Thursday, Hornish talked about the pressure he is under trying to win his first NASCAR championship, “It’s not the way we would have liked to come into the race. We feel like we’ve had a good year at Penske Racing. We’ve been strong a lot of races this year. Capitalizing on the days we were strong is one of the things we need to continue to work on. At the end of the day we feel real proud to be in the position that we are and to have the opportunity to win the championship. There’s a lot of things that need to happen. We’d like to go out there and lead the most laps, win the race, do all that good stuff. If Austin finishes third, that’s all for not. We’ll try to be smart, figuring out the best way to do this. One of the things that gives me confidence going into this weekend is our performance on the mile-and-a-half’s this weekend and the fact we got to come here and test. It’s a big gamble to look at Miami and say that we need to be the best that we can possibly be when we get there, but we had a feeling that we were going to need to be strong here. Saving that test day for here hopefully will be a real good thing for us.”

Dillon who has won a Camping World Truck Series championship is confident heading to the final weekend of the year, “God blessed us with a good season. We were consistent. That paid off for us at the end of the year. Love coming to the mile-and-a-half’s. We were strong there all year long. Homestead was a place where we led a lot of laps last year. I’m glad this is the last race of the year. Feel like we need to approach it with a win. We don’t have any wins this year. To finish off the year with a win in the championship would be great.”

The Nationwide Series championship is providing us with the perfect ending to a fantastic season. Two drivers in a tight battle, one with a racing resume’ that demands respect, the other – a young gun driver who is already writing his own impressive resume’. Additionally, we have a classic Chevy vs. Ford battle and a manufacturer’s championship that currently has the two only two points apart.

What more could we ask for?

November 15, 2013
SPRINT CUP: Early Predictions for Championship Weekend

This is it. The final showdown. Matt Kenseth and Jimmie Johnson have gone toe-to-toe all throughout the Chase, and it all gets settled on Sunday.

Both drivers are separated by a mere 10 points, and … wait a second, I forgot the AdvoCare 500 happened. Back to reality, Johnson has a nearly insurmountable 28 point advantage going into the final race at Homestead-Miami Speedway. I did not expect Kenseth to lose many points on Johnson, but thanks to a couple 20 second pit stops and an ill-handling racecar, the driver of the 20 car had to settle for a mediocre 23rd place finish, while Johnson came home third.

With that being said, Kenseth is more than likely going to have to win the race and rely on Johnson slipping out of the top 25. Is it possible? Absolutely. Is it going to happen? Definitely not. Johnson will nonchalantly hang around in a comfortable position inside the top 15 to easily secure his sixth championship.

As much as I hate to admit it, as far as the championship battle is concerned, it might be a real yawn-fest on Sunday, with Johnson nearly guaranteed to become “Mr. 6 Pack.”

However, the same can’t be said about the other drivers who will be looking for a win. Here a few drivers you should keep an eye on, and one of them might end up in Victory Lane.

Carl Edwards

Recent history at Homestead-Miami Speedway has shown that Edwards has been one of the drivers to beat at that track. Over the past five races at HMS, he’s scored two wins (2008 and 2010), three top fives and four top 10s. He’s also led over a third of the laps he’s completed during that time period, and he has an average finish of a stunning 4.6. Edwards also has a couple wins this year, but they both came on tracks 1-mile or smaller. Can Edwards bounce back from the fuel debacle last week and end the season on a high-note? It’s very likely.

Kevin Harvick

Kevin Harvick has been a formidable contender on the 1.5 mile tracks this year, posting victories at Charlotte and Kansas. He also won last week, thanks to Edwards’ misfortunes. As far as his recent history at Homestead-Miami is concerned, Harvick hasn’t won in his last seven starts there, but he’s been very solid, notching four top fives and six top 10s. He’s also scored the second most points of any other driver during that time period, and has an average finish of 6.9. Harvick had a solid eighth place finish at the 2012 event, and I expect him to better that performance on Sunday.

Jeff Gordon

Although Homestead-Miami Speedway has been mostly dominated by Roush Fenway Racing throughout the years, Jeff Gordon of Hendrick Motorsports went to victory lane last year, and he could repeat his performance. Over his past 10 starts, Gordon has posted one victory (2012), six top fives, eight top 10s, and an average finish of 9.8. He’s finished in the top five in his last two trips to HMS, so look for Big Daddy to replicate that kind of performance.

Expectations for Matt Kenseth

The way I see it, Kenseth has two choices going into Sunday. First choice, he can put an aggressive set-up on the car that will maximize his opportunity to win the race, but could cause mechanical failure, which could drop him to third in the final standings behind Kevin Harvick. Second choice, he can shoot for a solid top five run and ultimately put up the white flag of surrender to Johnson and settle for second place.

It doesn’t take a genius to realize that Kenseth will all but certainly choose the first choice. Kenseth still has a infinitesimally minuscule slimmer of hope left to win this championship, and the only way to stop Johnson from becoming six-time is to lead the most laps and win the race, and hope that Johnson somehow stays out of the top 25.

When everything is said and done, I fully expect Johnson to be hoisting the championship trophy, with the final points margin being somewhere around 10-15.

November 12, 2013
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 26^th 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 21^st.

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 23^rd 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 24^th.”

“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 17^th 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 13^th position in the Chase to the 12^th 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 12^th place finish and her 27^th place finish.

“It was a tough day all around,” Patrick said after starting 32^nd, 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 14^th place finish at Phoenix. Gordon led his 400^th lap in 2013, which marks the 20^th 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 24^th and moved up to 25^th in the point standings while Ragan finished 35^th and fell to 28^th 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 13^th 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.

November 11, 2013
Matty’s Picks 2013 – Race 35 AdvoCare 500 – Phoenix International Raceway – November 10, 2013

The West Coast swing of the 2013 Chase for the Sprint Cup is on this weekend as we head for the one-miler in the desert. This thing is coming down to the wire between five-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion, Jimmie Johnson, and seven-time 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race-winner Matt Kenseth. Just seven points separate the two heading into this weekend’s AdvoCare 500, and ironically, this was the same margin Jimmie Johnson had over 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion, Brad Keselowski heading into the 9th race of the Chase last season.

Phoenix has been an important race since the series swapped to the Chase setup, as the worst finish in a Chase race by the eventual series champion at Phoenix International Raceway is 10th, by Kurt Busch in 2004. Adding to the importance this weekend is the fact that the average Chase race finish by the eventual series champion at Phoenix International Raceway is 3.7! The catalyst in all of this is the fact that in each of previous three seasons, the eventual NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion was sitting second in the points standings following the 8th Chase Race. Jimmie Johnson erased a 33 point deficit over the final two Chase races in 2010 to score his fifth and most recent NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship. Tony Stewart was three points behind Carl Edwards in 2011 and erased the deficit in the final race at Homestead-Miami to capture his second Chase Championship, and as mentioned previously, Brad Keselowski sat seven points behind Jimmie Johnson entering this race last season. So, will it be Jimmie Johnson flipping the trend over the last three seasons to exit the 8th Chase race and not look back, or will it be Matt Kenseth keeping the streak alive to take the trophy next weekend and erasing the seven-point deficit over the next two weeks?

As far as Phoenix, specifically, its 100% advantage Jimmie Johnson this week if you’re looking at the career histories at Phoenix. Johnson leads the series in six loop stats, (Average Running Position, Driver Rating, Fastest Laps Run, Average Green Flag Speed, and Quality Passes) he’s had top-five finishes in 12 of the last 14 races at Phoenix International Raceway, and far and away owns the better record than Matt Kenseth in career victories, top-fives, top-tens, average finish, and laps led. Also keep in mind, Matt Kenseth’s last top five finish at the desert one-miler was all the way back in 2007, his one and only win (three less than Jimmie Johnson) at PIR came in 2002, and his average finish is 17.2, so not only is Kenseth battling the Goliath named Jimmie Johnson this week, but he’s battling an Achilles heel of his own this weekend.

Enough about the points battle, on to my picks this week…

Winner Pick

I may be completely out of material for my winner pick this week, outside of practice and qualifying…you guessed it, tough not to like Jimmie Johnson this week. He was fastest in practice on Friday, broke the track record in qualifying to capture the pole for Sunday’s AdvoCare 500, and carries the momentum of last week’s perfect win. Seriously, Johnson scored a perfect 150 Driver Rating in his dominating win last week at Texas Motor Speedway, the fourth ever perfect Driver Rating in Chase history.

Denny Hamlin commented on the state of the No.48 team following Friday’s qualifying session, “I think everyone in the garage kind of knew (the No.48 team) could turn it up at will”. Joey Logano also commented on how the Hedrick Motorsports team is in “kill mode”, Logano says “(Johnson) has that next notch and extra speed that nobody else can find. His intensity level picks up.”

Well boys, I’m right there with you this week and even though I didn’t find a header in the stats column entitled “kill mode”, I’m going with the overwhelming favorite, and now pole-sitter Jimmie Johnson this week. One piece of history besides Johnson’s impressive history at PIR that I do have to help my cause this week is the fact that seven of the 34 NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Phoenix have been won from starting positions on the front row….not that I need any help in making my point this week.

Dark Horse Pick

Now, if you’ve been listening to my preview of the race each week with Greg on the Prime Sports Network, you may have noticed an ongoing trend since mid-June or so. Each time when we reach the time to talk about Denny Hamlin, you’ve probably heard me laugh or say “steer clear of Denny this week”. Well, this week I have a bit different take on Denny Hamlin for a few reasons.
Number one, Denny Hamlin has been coming around down the stretch here in the Chase, and is certainly a far cry away from where he was at a couple months back. Three top 5’s in the last four races mark’s Hamlin’s best stretch of runs since he ran second at Darlington, finished fourth in the Coke 600, and finished eighth in the June Pocono race. He’s climbing back to relevancy in the latter stages of this year’s Chase, and will use these remaining two races this season to springboard his team into the 2014 season.

The number two reason for picking Denny Hamlin is his career history, not only at Phoenix but as a top tier driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Since his first full season in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in 2006, Denny Hamlin has managed to find Victory Lane at least once in each of his seven full seasons in the Cup series. Out of the two remaining racetracks this season, Phoenix is certainly the better chance for Hamlin to keep his streak alive. He’s got an average finish of 5.8 in the last five races at PIR, including a win in 2012, three additional top 5’s, 116 total laps led, and an average driver rating of 104.2 over that same five-race stretch, so Hamlin has the recent stats worth a look this week.

Adding to my statement this week is the stat I mentioned above….over 20% of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at PIR have been won from starting spots on the front row, and Denny Hamlin just happens to be starting second on Sunday. Not only did Denny qualify well, but he also practiced well on Friday to earn my nod as the Dark Horse play of the week.

That’s all for this week, so until we head to South Florida for the 2013 Grand Finale….You Stay Classy NASCAR NATION!

November 9, 2013
Monica Palumbo Primed and Ready for Her Favorite Event NASCAR After The Lap™

For the fifth year in a row, NASCAR After The Lap™ will be back in Las Vegas during champion’s week and at least one of the co-hosts Monica Palumbo is primed and ready for her ‘favorite’ event.

Palumbo, former Miss Sprint Cup and current reporter for NASCAR Race Hub on Fox Sports 1, will be sharing the hosting duties with Marty Smith of ESPN. Palumbo will be handling the fans in the crowd, while Smith will be managing the drivers on stage.

The event this year will take place on Thursday, December 5^th at 5:00 PM at the Pearl Palms Concert Theater inside the Palms Casino Hotel.

“I actually worked NASCAR After The Lap™ twice already and it’s my favorite event because the guys are so loose and it’s an intimate setting,” Palumbo said. “You can see it on nascar.com but it’s not televised so I feel like it’s a little bit more special.”

“The drivers are really showing off their personalities that you don’t necessarily get to see throughout the season,” Palumbo continued. “It’s just one of my favorite events.”

Palumbo advised that her role at the event will be one of liaison between the crowd, sponsors and the drivers, however, the emphasis from her perspective is indeed on the fans in this unique event.

“It’s a very fan-friendly event and that’s one thing NASCAR is really big on,” Palumbo said. “It’s about the fans first.”

“They are going to have notecards so the audience can submit their questions in advance,” Palumbo continued. “Then I’ll go through them and pick out the questions to be asked.”

“So, I’ll be out there taking questions from the audience and making sure everybody has a good time.”

Palumbo is also primed and ready for the sweepstakes and giveaways that accompany the NASCAR After The Lap™ event. This year, fans can win an all-inclusive VIP trip to Las Vegas for the event, trips to either the 2014 Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte or the 2014 Ford Ecoboost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, as well as the grand prize, a 2014 Ford F-150 Tremor.

“I’m really excited about the big sweepstakes,” Palumbo said. “They’re giving away a 2014 Ford Tremor, which is pretty awesome.”

“Coca Cola and Ford are both giving away tickets to the Coca Cola 600 and the Ford Champions Week for 2014,” Palumbo continued. “So, the sweepstakes winners will be there and they will also have a shot to win a car.”

“We’ll be doing that in the audience as well, which is pretty cool to get a free car.”

Palumbo is also primed and ready to get to Las Vegas, a place that she assesses as ‘perfect’ for this type of fan-interactive post-season event.

“Vegas itself just equals celebration to me,” Palumbo said. “So, I feel like it is a fun event.”

“Everybody is so relaxed,” Palumbo continued. “The season is over and it’s a time for celebration.”

So, who is Palumbo predicting will be in the champion’s seat for the event and at the head table come banquet time?

“It’s definitely down to Jimmie Johnson and Matt Kenseth now and we know how well they are both running,” Palumbo said. “We know that Jimmie is so great at Phoenix so it’s really a toss-up between the two.”

“I can’t even bet on either one,” Palumbo continued. “I’m ready to put my money down on one but I can’t because I don’t want to lose.”

“Everybody is on pins and needles because we know Jimmie can do it obviously,” Palumbo said. “But Matt Kenseth is really giving him a run for his money.”

“I think the fans love seeing that and the two drivers are definitely keeping it exciting.”

Palumbo is also primed and ready for the NASCAR After The Lap™ event because of where the proceeds go, helping individuals, children and families in need through the NASCAR Foundation, a nonprofit charitable organization.

“The tickets are only $20 and all the money, one hundred percent of the proceeds, goes to the NASCAR Foundation, which is unreal,” Palumbo said. “It’s probably one of the best charity events where all of the drivers are together in a relaxed way, cutting up with each other, joking about incidents that have happened during the year, and some have even gotten up and danced.”

“It’s a great event to get the drivers out of their element,” Palumbo continued. “There is not an event like this throughout the whole season.”

“This is a one of a kind,” Palumbo said. “You might have the drivers together for media day but they are so focused on that race.”

“This is the end of the season and they can all breathe,” Palumbo continued. “They’re all ready to have a good time, hang out with the fans and answer their questions.”

“There is just nothing like it.

Palumbo is not alone in her enthusiasm for the NASCAR After The Lap™ event.

“Celebrating its fifth consecutive season, NASCAR After The Lap has evolved into one of the most talked about events of NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion’s Week™ and provides two long-standing partners, Ford and Coca-Cola, a valuable platform to connect with our brand-loyal fan base,” Norris Scott, NASCAR vice president of marketing, said. “It is an event unlike any other in sports that gives our fans the chance to see the drivers with their helmets off and their guard down.”

“Over the last five years as event sponsor, Ford has enjoyed some remarkable and very unpredictable moments with our NASCAR drivers,” Tim Duerr, motorsports marketing manager for Ford Racing, said. “The NASCAR after the Lap Sweepstakes continues to provide Ford with a great avenue to engage with fans by offering them a chance to not only win a trip out to Las Vegas, but also an opportunity to go home with a brand-new 2014 Ford F150 Tremor.”

“This sponsorship delivers results to Ford on many levels.”

“As a long-time partner, Coca-Cola is proud to celebrate the 2013 season with the stars of NASCAR at this year’s NASCAR After The Lap,” Ben Reiling, director of motorsports for Coca-Cola North America Group, said. “In our fifth year as an event sponsor, we are offering fans a stellar experience to interact directly with members of our Coca-Cola Racing Family and a chance to win a trip to our marquee event, the Coca-Cola 600.”

“We’re looking forward to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion’s Week and it’s definitely going to be a wild ride.”

For more information or to purchase tickets, fans can visit www.NASCARafterthelap.com.

For fans unable to attend in person, NASCAR.com will offer a live stream of the event.

November 5, 2013
Surprising and Not Surprising: Ford EcoBoost 400

[media-credit name=”David Yeazell” align=”alignright” width=”300″][/media-credit]In a weekend full of champion-crowning, here is what was surprising and not surprising from the NASCAR Sprint Cup season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Surprising: For a driver known, as ‘bad’, brash and cocky, there were some surprisingly humble moments from the 28 year old driver who brought Penske Racing its first ever NASCAR championship.

“It means the world, it really does,” Bradley Aaron Keselowski, driver of the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge and Sprint Cup Champion, said after finishing 15^th and securing the ultimate prize. “I’ve got the best team in racing and I’m just so thrilled to be a part of it.”

“From the top down, Roger Penske, Paul Wolfe, everybody else, the crew guys and my family, that means so much,” Keselowski continued. “You can’t do this sport by yourself no matter how good you are.”

“My family made incredible sacrifices and I’m just so fortunate to have them around me,” Keselowski said. “Without them, none of this is possible and they deserve way more credit than I do.”

Keselowski’s parents, who gave up their lives to their son’s racing career, were equally proud and humble in Victory Lane.

“How many people get to realize this dream?” Bob Keselowski, Brad’s dad and a racer in his own right, said. “There’s a million short track racers out there.”

“I’m just so blown away.”

“He has reached the pinnacle of success and I’m so unbelievably proud of my son,” Brad mom’s Kay said. “I’m ecstatic, just ecstatic.”

“I was holding my breath all race long and praying to God that it would all come together.”

Not Surprising: Of course, once the Miller Lite started to flow in celebration of his championship, Keselowski, sporting a good-sized beer glass, returned to his usual self, tweeting from the media center and wise-cracking in fun with all.

“I’ve got a little bit of a buzz going on right now,” Keselowski said after his victory on the show LIVE on ESPN. “I’ve been drinking for a little bit.”

After checking his phone and adding about 6,000 new followers on his Twitter account, Keselowski, with 5 wins, 13 top-five and 23 top-ten finishes, discussed how he will now approach being the NASCAR champion.

“Expect the unexpected,” Keselowski said, with his trademark grin. “That’s my MO, right?”

And on how being the NASCAR champ might change his life, Keselowski replied, “I’ve always wanted to date a celebrity….but not a Kardashian.”

And finally, Keselowski revealed his surprising powers of prediction, especially as it related to the points needed to secure the Sprint Cup.

“I predicted that the champion would need 2400 points to win,” Keselowski said. And that was the exact number of points, 2400 total, that the second driver in history to win the Cup and Nationwide championships had when the checkered flag flew.

“I feel like the best is yet to come,” Keselowski said as he wrapped up his media availability for the final time of the 2012 season.

Surprising: While not surprising to see team owner Rick Hendrick in Victory Lane, it was surprising that he was not there to see his driver Jimmie Johnson crowned six time champion.

Hendrick instead celebrated his team’s first ever win and the first ever win at Homestead-Miami Speedway for driver Jeff Gordon, commemorating his 20 year partnership with sponsor Dupont in the HMS No. 24 Chevrolet.

“Yeah, it’s disappointing,” Mr. H. said. “If you let that destroy you, you’ll never be able to win again.”

“It’s racing,” Hendrick continued. “I’m celebrating Jeff’s win and letting the other deal go.”

Driver and four-time champion Jeff Gordon might have been surprised to even be in the race, let alone Victory Lane, after his fracas the week before with competitor Clint Bowyer. The four-time champ was able to put the drama behind him, however, to score his 87^th career victory and his second win of the 2012 season.

“This is just huge,” Gordon said. “It’s been an emotional week and a hard one; one of the hardest ones I’ve ever gone through just looking back on my decision.”

“So to come here and focus on the car with this silver commemorative paint scheme for 20 years of Dupont and to be able to end in Victory Lane, it was just an awesome team effort.”

Not Surprising: Even though starting the race behind the leader in the point standings, five-time champion Jimmie Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus seemed on target to parlay some pit strategy into that coveted six pack.

But an uncharacteristic lug nut issue and an even more unusual oil leak that proved fatal closed the door on the championship hopes for the driver of the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet. And Johnson, not surprisingly, found it a bitter pill to swallow.

“You know, to be close, it just sucks to be close and not get it,” Johnson said. “Pretty heartbreaking.”

“We were doing what we needed to and certainly in position to put a lot of pressure on the No. 2 car.”

“Stuff happens,” Johnson continued. “It’s racing.”

“I just have to reflect back on an amazing year.”

Surprising: Probably the most surprised driver coming out of the Ford EcoBoost 400 was none other than Clint Bowyer. Not only did he finish second in the race to nemesis of the week before Jeff Gordon, but he also scored second place in the point standings in his first season with Michael Waltrip Racing.

“To be honest, I didn’t even think I could reach second,” the driver of the No. 15 5-Hour Energy Toyota said of his runner up spot in the points. “That was the goal I’d set.”

“And I just wanted to catch the 24,” Bowyer said of his runner up race finish. “That was the only what-if that went through my mind at the end.”

“Probably went through your mind too.”

“Now I’m going to do whatever I want to do next week.”

Not Surprising: As with every end to the season, there were plenty of farewells to be said. Ryan Newman, who finished third in the season finale, bade farewell to the US Army as his sponsor.

“The US Army Chevrolet, four years strong,” Newman said. “We’re proud to represent them and proud of their support and we wanted to finish on a great note.”

Another farewell was said by Matt Kenseth, leaving the only race team home that he has ever known with Roush Fenway Racing and moving on to Joe Gibbs Racing.

“The team really proved that they gave me all they’ve got this season regardless of my plans for the future,” Kenseth said.

Joey Logano, who leaves Joe Gibbs Racing to partner with new champ Keselowski at Penske Racing, had some interesting words to mark the end of his tenure in the No. 20 Home Depot Toyota.

“And that’s the way the cookie crumbles,” Logano tweeted. “Thanks to all of @JoeGibbsRacing for 7 great years.”

The final farewell was most poignant, however, as Dodge won the championship and bid adieu to the sport of NASCAR.

“It’s been a long run,” Ralph Gilles, President and CEO of the SRT Brand and Senior Vice President of Design at Chrysler Group, said. “I’m still pinching myself.”

“It’s not bittersweet,” Gilles continued. “If anything, it’s an exclamation point on an effort that’s 11 years in the making.”

Surprising: Another Hendrick Chase driver was surprisingly upbeat, particularly since his teammate lost the championship to Keselowski.

And in spite of missing two races due to a concussion, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. was also upbeat about finishing the season with a top-10 in his No. 88 National Guard/Diet Mountain Dew Chevrolet.

“I want to congratulate Brad on his championship,” Junior said. “He’s a buddy of mine and he did everything he had to do to win this thing.”

“This has been a really good season for me personally,” Dale Junior continued. “I’ve had a blast.”

“I can’t wait to test the new car and get to Daytona,” Junior said. “It will be a whole new ball game.”

Not Surprising: Yet again, Kyle Busch led the most laps in the race and failed to find Victory Lane, instead coming in fourth. In fact, this was the ninth race in a row where the driver of the No. 18 M&M’s Toyota led the most laps and did not win.

“I think I’ve said it the last five weeks – that’s our year,” Busch said. “It’s just a shame that we were not able to come out here and put it in Victory Lane like we should.”

“We’ll have to see what we look forward to next year.”

Surprising: The driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row Chevrolet not only finished ninth but had a surprisingly record-setting day in the process. Kurt Busch scored his third straight top-10 finish, the first time ever that Furniture Row Racing has had three consecutive top-10 finishes.

“Finishing the season with three straight top-10s and four straight top-15s – you just can’t ask for much more in a short period of time together,” Busch said. “We’ve made a tremendous amount of progress in the last six weeks and that gives us all plenty of confidence heading into the off season.”

Not Surprising: The young driver of the infamous No. 43 for Richard Petty Motorsports continued his great streak of race runs, finishing seventh in the season finale.

“We had a strong car all day,” Almirola said. “That was a great way to go out.”

“I’m excited about next year,” Almirola continued. “These guys give me great race cars so we’re gonna win races.”

As the 2012 season comes to a close, here’s to a Happy Thanksgiving, a blessed Christmas and a truly amazing New Year! See you at Daytona in 2013!

November 21, 2012
Michael Annett Focusing on Fifth for Finale

[media-credit name=”Photo Credit: Gary Buchanan” align=”alignright” width=”228″][/media-credit]With six top-five finishes and 17 top-10 finishes in his first season with Richard Petty Motorsports, driver Michael Annett has had one heck of a year. In fact, in 32 races, Annett has only had five where he finished outside the top-15.

But in the last race of the year, Annett has just one thing on his mind. He wants to finish fifth in the championship points and beat out Justin Allgaier, who is just seven points behind him in sixth.

“Our season didn’t start off the way we wanted to and, as tough as the competition is, you can be out of the championship race pretty early in the season,” Annett said. “At some point, you have to sit down and look at what your goals are going to be.”

“It actually wasn’t too long ago that we were 50 some odd points behind the fifth spot and then we put together some really good runs,” Annett continued. “We looked at where we are and what goal we could achieve and that’s now fifth in points, and to on get on stage, and hopefully get a race win before the season is out.”

“I think we’d be disappointed if we didn’t achieve that goal but still so happy with our season.”

Although Annett is focused on that fifth place in the point standings, make no mistake. The young driver is also focused on going for the win in the season finale.

“We’d like to get that win and this is the last chance of the season to bring home a trophy,” Annett said. “It would be really cool to win and a testament to how hard my guys have worked this season, starting about a month before Daytona in February.”

“To get where we are right now, a win would be a huge honor,” Annett continued. “To get the 43 car back in Victory Lane, knowing how much that means to the sport, would be great.”

“It has been a long time since I’ve won a stock car race so it would be a huge deal.”

While racing for the win, will Annett keep a look out the corner of his eye on the No. 31 Brandt Chevrolet, piloted by the driver know as ‘Lil Gator’? You bet he will, in no uncertain terms.

“We just want to do our best to stay on the same strategy as him,” Annett said. “We know we can beat them but if we stay on that same strategy we know we will beat them straight up.”

Annett is definitely looking forward to racing the finale at Homestead, a track that he enjoys and finds challenging. He has four Nationwide starts there, with a best finish of 19^th at the 1.5 mile track.

“The biggest challenges at Homestead are the changes in the track from one end to the other,” Annett said. “We’ve already seen in the first practice that the tire fall off is huge, about a second it seems like.”

“That’s the biggest thing we fight,” Annett continued. “The track is hot and slick and that’s a challenge, especially to get a car to work good in both ends of the track.

Annett will be piloting Chassis No. 621 for the 200-lap Ford EcoBoost 300. This particular Ford Mustang has previously run at Bristol and at Dover, where Annett finished eighth and third respectively.

“The chassis is one of our mile and a half cars that has run well in the past,” Annett said. “We’ll definitely use it up for the final race.”

While Annett prepares for the Nationwide finale, he will also have spent his Friday night watching the Truck race as well.

“Not only am I a driver but I’m a race fan too and the trucks put on a good show,” Annett said. “I want to pick up what the track is going to do and what’s going to change throughout the race.”

“Also, I’ll watch who tries two tires, no tires or four tires and how that either helps or hurts them,” Annett continued. “Those are the kind of things you watch and those races are always exciting and they have a tight points battle to boot.”

Annett is also excited about the end of the season because he, unlike many drivers, knows that he will be back in a race car again in 2013.

“RPM picked up the option so we will be back with our whole team intact,” Annett said. “We have some new partners coming on board and for sure, we are back again.”

Although excited about the season finale, Annett also has an eye to the off-season.

“I’m going to go to the Dominican Republic for Thanksgiving and then I go home for ten or fifteen days for Christmas,” Annett said. “Other than those two trips, then we will start getting focused and get ready to race again in February.”

But for now, Annett has winning and clinching fifth in points on his mind and in his sights.

“We put ourselves in position for top-five in points so we need to keep doing what we’re doing,” Annett said. “Hopefully, we can win the race and if not, then staying in the top five would be the best.”

“If we can keep improving on our results and finish fifth this year, we’ll definitely be a championship team next year.”

November 16, 2012
David Gilliland Shares Racing Pride with Son Todd on Race Finale Weekend

David Gilliland not only finished up the 2011 NASCAR season at Homestead-Miami Speedway behind the wheel of the No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford, but he also played the part of proud dad, watching son Todd do some racing of his own, all for charity.

[media-credit name=”Photo Credit: Breaking Limits LLC” align=”alignright” width=”215″][/media-credit]During the Ford Championship weekend, the younger ‘Gilly’ competed in ‘NASCAR Unleashed’, a newly released racing video game. The ‘race’ competition was held at the Speedway with each NASCAR kid choosing a charity for which to donate the winnings.

“I did good,” Todd Gilliland said. “I finished second out of the NASCAR kids. There was one kid that was a wild card and he went all the way to the finals but then he lost. I finished third over all.”

Each NASCAR kid also had to choose a charity for which to compete. Gilliland chose the Sherrills Ford Optimist Park, a recreation center in the family’s hometown that suffered fire damage to their concession stand.

“I chose it because I played soccer there and I might play baseball there,” Todd Gilliland said. “Their concession stand burned down so I thought it might help rebuild it.”

“I got $5,000 for them.”

“I’m very proud of him,” David Gilliland said of his 11 year old son. “He picked the park for his charity.”

“We just moved into the neighborhood and their concession stand burned down,” Gilliland continued. “He chose that charity all on his own and I’m very proud of him.”

Although the youngster enjoyed playing the new X-Box game, ‘NASCAR Unleashed’, Todd Gilliland is a racer in his own right, hoping to follow in his dad’s footsteps. Although the youngster chose to wear a fire suit sporting his dad’s number, he deserted his dad for Carl Edwards’ No. 99 car to race in the video game.

“I hope I will race like my dad,” Todd Gilliland said. “I race quarter midgets at Bobby Labonte’s track.”

Dad Gilliland is also extremely proud of his son’s desire to follow in his racing footsteps.

“He wants to race and we do as much as we can,” Gilliland said. “We’re trying to think of the next step to take. He’s a good little racer.”

Unfortunately, Gilliland does not feel quite so positively about his own season behind the wheel in the Cup Series. In fact, he would give himself the grade of a ‘C’ for his 2011 performance.

“Our main focus is to get better each week,” Gilliland said. “We started off that way and made progress but we kind of lost it along the way.”

“We are a less funded team and we don’t have the resources like the other teams we race against,” Gilliland continued. “If we blow an engine or wreck, we just dig a hole deeper and deeper. So, we’ll use the offseason to rebuild and make progress to get more competitive.”

While Gilliland is looking forward to improving for 2012, he is not totally sure that he will be back behind the wheel of the No. 34 again next year. As with so many teams in the sport, Gilliland’s team is also one of those struggling with sponsorship.

“I’m not 100% sure about next year,” Gilliland said. “We’re hoping to be back and hoping we can get that worked out.”

“We’ll know shortly,” Gilliland continued. “We definitely need sponsorship but everybody does right now.”

“It’s been a difficult time for NASCAR but we’re going to work through it.”

Now that the season is completed, Dad Gilliland, son Todd and the rest of the family are most looking forward to some down time, celebrating the holidays and recharging their batteries.

“We’re going to go to California,” Todd Gilliland said. “And we will go to the desert and go to the sand dunes.”

“I’m looking forward to some time off,” Dad Gilliland said. “We have some fun things planned with the family.”

“I’m excited for the off season,” Gilliland said. “I’m as ready as I’ve ever been for it.”

“But most of all, I’m very proud of my son and all he’s been able to do,” Gilliland said. “Both my kids are on honor roll and do well in school.”

“I’m just a proud dad to have such a great family.”

November 23, 2011