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  • Hot 20 – The final hurdle for Bowyer and the rest comes this Saturday night in Richmond

    Hot 20 – The final hurdle for Bowyer and the rest comes this Saturday night in Richmond

    If history repeats itself, there will be no surprise winner at Richmond on Saturday night. Going back over the past 10 years, every single driver who has won there is currently locked into the Chase for this year. Except for one.

    Clint Bowyer has a pair of victories on the 3/4-mile track, but none anywhere to his credit this season. To make it worse, even if a first-time driver does not emerge this weekend to steal his thunder, he still sits just 29 points up on Aric Almirola for the final Chase position, with Kasey Kahne just a couple of points further back. A sour engine, a meeting with a wall or a competitor, a bad tire or messed up pit stop at the wrong time, and Bowyer’s season turns south faster than one’s job security at Michael Waltrip Racing. To make sure he is in, Bowyer needs to finish in the Top 25 on Saturday night. That and hope history does indeed repeat itself.

    The odds are almost prohibitive that the winner this weekend at Richmond will be from amongst our Hot 20…

    1. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 4 WINS
    Expect the team of Jimmie, Chad, and Lowe’s to be around for some time yet.

    2. KYLE BUSCH – 4 WINS
    The story of the year to this point.

    3. JOEY LOGANO – 3 WINS
    Liked Johnson’s car so much he almost took it out with a spin last week.

    4. MATT KENSETH – 3 WINS
    Progress last week was thwarted by an early Darlington stripe…okay, more like a sledge hammer.

    5. KEVIN HARVICK – 2 WINS
    A late trip to the pits in Darlington was the pits for Harvick.

    6. DALE EARNHARDT JR. – 2 WINS
    Getting some real cool throwback gifts from fans lately, including on his last trip to Walmart.

    7. KURT BUSCH – 2 WINS
    Went digital with his Darlington dashboard.

    8. CARL EDWARDS – 2 WINS
    After three Bristol wins, he has added a World 600 and a Southern 500 to the collection in 2015.

    9. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 1 WIN
    Led the most laps, but Edwards got to walk down the aisle, leaving him a bridesmaid.

    10. MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 1 WIN
    A Darlington Top Ten, and he wasn’t happy. Has three Top Tens in last four at Richmond.

    11. DENNY HAMLIN – 1 WIN
    On Saturday night, he denied Daniel Suarez his first career XFINITY victory. My hero.

    12. JAMIE MCMURRAY – 726 POINTS
    To make the Chase, he just needs to start on Saturday night. If he gets the flu, it could get messy.

    13. RYAN NEWMAN – 714 POINTS
    If his finishing position matches his car number, or better, he rockets in as well.

    14. JEFF GORDON – 700 POINTS
    17th will do no matter what anyone else does…and he needs that only if there is not a repeat winner.

    15. PAUL MENARD – 692 POINTS
    Ninth if there is a first time winner…38th if there is not.

    16. CLINT BOWYER – 682 POINTS
    25th gets him in if history repeats itself, or a move ahead of Ryan, Jeff, or Paul if it does not.

    17. ARIC ALMIROLA – 653 POINTS
    Has the King’s car and last week stole his old mustache.

    18. KASEY KAHNE – 651 POINTS
    Can’t grow a mustache. Okay, I am just guessing here.

    19. GREG BIFFLE – 598 POINTS
    I could get Biffle into the Chase…but it has to be in EA Sports’ indestructible mode.

    20. AUSTIN DILLON – 586 POINTS
    One of three Cup guys in the XFINITY race. Go Austin! Go Rowdy! Go Joey! Just be gone!

    20. KYLE LARSON – 586 POINTS
    Last week, they called him Mello Yello, but is he truly just mad about Saffron?

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Darlington

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Darlington

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Kevin Harvick: Harvick led 44 laps and finished fifth in the Bojangles Southern 500 at Darlington, posting his 18th top-5 finish of the year.

    “It’s great to see the Darlington race back on its traditional weekend,” Harvick said. “I think fans would agree. Ironically, sitting through a 4 hour and 29-minute marathon on Labor Day weekend is truly ‘work.’”

    2. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski started on the pole at Darlington and led a race-high 196 laps. However, Keselowski was beaten out of the pits on the race’s final caution by Carl Edwards. Edwards held on for the win, and Keselowski was left with a disappointing runner-up finish.

    “I’m a big fan of the low downforce package we ran at Darlington,” Keselowski said. “As I said before, it separates the race car drivers from the pretenders. And, .902 seconds separates the winner from second place.

    “I was sporting the ‘Miller High Life’ paint scheme at Darlington. They call ‘High Life’ the ‘Champagne Of Beers.’ The difference between winning and losing is known as ‘Champagne Or Beers.’”

    3. Kyle Busch: Busch finished eighth at Darlington and officially clinched a spot in the Chase.

    “It’s a great day,” Busch said. “Usually, when you hear the word ‘official’ mentioned along with a Busch brother, something’s going on in the NASCAR hauler.”

    4. Joey Logano: Logano finished fourth at Darlington, as Penske Racing took two of the top four spots at “The Track Too Tough To Tame.”

    “It was ‘throwback’ weekend at Darlington,” Logano said. “With one race left before the Chase, and only three Chase spots up for grabs, Richmond could be ‘throw punch’ weekend.”

    5. Carl Edwards: Edwards took the lead late at Darlington, using a quick pit stop to beat Brad Keselowski on the race’s final caution. Edwards pulled away to grab his second victory of the season.

    “I went in third and came out first,” Edwards said, “thanks to my pit crew. I owe this win to them. Believe me, they’ll be a part of the victory celebration. Heck, I might even have them DJ the party because they know how to ‘turn tables.’”

    6. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth hit the wall on lap 19 and struggled with handling for the duration of the Bojangles Southern 500, finishing 20th.

    “It was an otherwise strong day for Joe Gibbs Racing,” Kenseth said. “Carl Edwards took the lead in the pits and pulled away for the victory, winning by nearly a second. Carl took off like he was shot out of a cannon. Much like he did with Roush Fenway Racing, Carl left in a hurry.”

    7. Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Earnhardt was the top finisher among Hendrick Motorsports cars at Darlington, finishing eighth.

    “Right now,” Earnhardt said, “HMS cars aren’t fast enough to compete for wins. With the Chase For The Cup right around the corner, that’s not good. So, much like our current lap speeds, it’s a case of ‘bad timing.’

    “In other news, Danica Patrick has become more famous for her yoga poses than for her racing. Should we call her a ‘yoga master’ or a ‘threat to win a race?’ Either way, it’s a stretch.”

    8. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson finished a disappointing 19th at Darlington and is now winless in his last 12 races.

    “You probably heard my crew chief Chad Knaus married a former Miss Sprint Cup,” Johnson said. “Hopefully, Chad will have more luck with the ‘Lady In White’ than I did with the ‘Lady In Black.’

    “I gave the groom a bottle of ‘Burnt Rubber’ cologne. Chad wore some during Sunday’s race. At a track like Darlington, that’s known as ‘tire wear.’”

    9. Kurt Busch: Busch started second in the Bojangles Southern 500 at Darlington and finished sixth.

    “Much like me,” Busch said, “Bojangles is famous for its ‘chicken.’

    “You may have heard that I recently became engaged. I asked Ashley Van Metre and she said ‘yes.’ Soon, I’ll pop the question, and ask her if she’s an assassin.”

    10. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex finished ninth and had a late run-in with Kurt Busch, whom Truex sent spinning after contact on lap

    “Just as Daytona did, Darlington was offering a flag exchange,” Truex said, “in which you could exchange a Confederate flag for an American flag. With race ticket prices skyrocketing and races becoming even less exciting, leave it to NASCAR to offer fan another offer they can refuse.”

  • The Final Word – A Southern 500 that took us on a nice ride back to the future

    The Final Word – A Southern 500 that took us on a nice ride back to the future

    Tradition. On Sunday, we learned that tradition means something. We learned it is actually worth waiting for its return, though why it took NASCAR a decade to solve the hot, muggy conditions of a day race in early September by simply moving it to the evening still boggles the mind. The Southern 500 was back, back to where and when it belonged, along with throwback paint schemes and other nods to the past. Tradition.

    We learned that Ken Squier should be cloned. He is to auto racing what Vin Scully is to baseball, a poet with a microphone who has the gift to paint vivid pictures through prose, to enhance the action we see with our own eyes, to allow us to commune with the best of the sport’s past even as we watch its future unfold before us. One is an 80-year-old legend who we got to hear from again on Sunday night, the other is an 87-year old Dodger icon. We learned that sometimes the best of what is has been with us all along. Tradition.

    Jeff Gordon, for one. Seven times he managed to not just survive but to thrive on the track too tough to tame over the course of his career. He finished 16th on Sunday in his event curtain call. Jimmie Johnson, a six-time Cup king and three-time Darlington winner, was 19th. These two eventual Hall of Famers were seen last weekend in the company as such past stars as Richard Petty, Bobby Allison, and Bill Elliott. Terry Labonte was the Grand Marshal. Ned Jarrett was put to work in the broadcast booth, alongside his son Dale. Tradition.

    We learned that even though it is possible for 26 drivers to win a race from Daytona in February to Richmond later this month, it seems improbable. Only 11 different pilots have shaken the suds in Victory Lane this season, with the last first-time victor coming in the form of Martin Truex Jr. three months ago. For the second time this season it was Carl Edwards doing the backflip at the finish line, his first at Darlington’s Lady in Black. Once again, the same 16 drivers sitting in a Chase place coming in will be the same when they hit the line at Richmond next Saturday night.

    Racing began in Darlington in 1950. Three years later, the Richmond tradition got its start. Potential winless Chasers have won there, including Gordon, Ryan Newman and Clint Bowyer. Drivers such as Tony Stewart and Kasey Kahne have claimed the prize before, and their only route to the Chase is to do it again this Saturday night. Of the quintet, though, only Bowyer has done so in the past decade. In fact, 19 of the other past 20 Richmond winners have already punched their tickets for this season’s Chase. Unless there is a break in tradition, the 20th should as well.

    The 20 Richmond race winners over the past ten years include…

    Kyle Busch (4)
    Jimmie Johnson (3)
    Kevin Harvick (3)
    Denny Hamlin (2)
    Kurt Busch (2)
    Clint Bowyer (2)
    Brad Keselowski
    Carl Edwards
    Dale Earnhardt Jr.
    Joey Logano

  • Hot 20 – The Southern 500…a tradition truly reborn this Labor Day weekend!

    Hot 20 – The Southern 500…a tradition truly reborn this Labor Day weekend!

    It is the Southern 500 coming our way from Darlington on Sunday night. Interestingly, I do not view it as one of the circuit’s marquee tracks, where you do not dare touch the fast-forward button. However, like Indianapolis, it is one of the Cup Series marquee events where a win gets you remembered.

    After a few years of tinkering around with tradition, something NASCAR seems more than eager to do until the manure hits the ventilation system, the Southern 500 is back for the Labor Day weekend. It worked from 1950 until someone had a bright idea in time for the 2004 event. They pushed the legendary race back to November so that fans would no longer have to face the heat of day in September. That, and they thought it also a brilliant move to give the 500’s date to California after it had taken Rockingham’s spot on the calendar. I wonder how that worked out for them?

    Somebody sued so that Texas could have a second race, and they got it when the Lady in Black’s spring date was spirited away. Then to prove their astute understanding of its fan base, they moved the race to Mother’s Day before dropping the iconic “Southern 500″ moniker entirely for four seasons, starting in 2005. Then they did not have a title sponsor in 2009, at least before Go Daddy came on board, so the Southern 500, now presented by Go Daddy.com, was back.

    The tinkering did not end there, of course. Sponsors come and go, but traditions remain…except in NASCAR. In 2014, the race date was shipped to April before someone came up with a bright idea. No, really. They moved the Southern 500 back to the Labor Day weekend, but as had been the case since its rebirth, they scheduled it for Sunday night to avoid the heat that started all the nonsense a decade before.

    The fact they installed lights in 2004, just before they moved the date to avoid the heat, doesn’t make much sense, either, come to think of it. However, let us just be glad the Southern 500 is truly back with cars with paint schemes from Darlington’s glory years.

    The Hot 20 as they challenge “The Track Too Tough to Tame” include…

    1. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 4 WINS
    Christopher Walken’s favorite driver. More cowbell!

    2. KYLE BUSCH – 4 WINS
    Looking to finish two spots up on Cole Whitt to claim his Chase place. Let the battle begin.

    3. JOEY LOGANO – 3 WINS
    The Shell logo on his car is one I remember…from way back…when I had hair…and youth.

    4. MATT KENSETH – 3 WINS
    After running less than 60 miles at Bristol, he should be well rested for Darlington

    5. KEVIN HARVICK – 2 WINS
    I keep underwear longer than he keeps a house.

    6. DALE EARNHARDT JR. – 2 WINS
    Is Junior interested in driving IndyCar? Apparently, the answer is “no, no, no, no.”

    7. KURT BUSCH – 2 WINS
    Kurt is engaged. It would be easy to come up with a punchline, but I truly wish him happiness.

    8. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 1 WIN
    Frank Kimmel, 10 time ARCA champ and Brad’s matchmaker.

    9. MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 1 WIN
    Furniture Row might not be big, but you cannot say they have not been successful.

    10. DENNY HAMLIN – 1 WIN
    Only problem with a throwback weekend is do you go with a Ned, Cale, or Jaws scheme?

    11. CARL EDWARDS – 1 WIN
    Worst driver at Gibbs Racing? Honestly, I do not believe there is such a thing.

    12. JAMIE MCMURRAY – 696 POINTS
    After claiming a Brickyard 400 and a Daytona 500, he needs a little trinket from Darlington.

    13. RYAN NEWMAN – 683 POINTS
    Riding along the walls at Darlington, it might be best to be driving a Caterpillar.

    14. PAUL MENARD – 674 POINTS
    Paul won the XFINITY race last week. I used to outrun my baby sister.

    15. JEFF GORDON – 672 POINTS
    Only driver whose throwback paint scheme could be one of his own.

    16. CLINT BOWYER – 655 POINTS
    Sitting pretty, unless the wrong guy wins on Sunday. Then it could get ugly.

    17. ARIC ALMIROLA – 620 POINTS
    The King won 200 times. Aric needs just one.

    18. KASEY KAHNE – 618 POINTS
    Will be channeling his inner Geoff Bodine this weekend.

    19. GREG BIFFLE – 572 POINTS
    Roll them dice. Daddy needs a win.

    20. AUSTIN DILLON – 564 POINTS
    Race car driver, former Little League World Series player, now basketball star?

  • NASCAR BTS: Pit Crew Wrestlers In Training

    NASCAR BTS: Pit Crew Wrestlers In Training

    Ever wonder how those pit crew members, especially for the elite teams, muscled their way into that kind of a sweet gig?  Well, this week NASCAR Behind the Scenes focuses on two of Jimmie Johnson’s pit crew members in training who wrestled their way into the sport.

    Matt Wilps and Zach Thomsusseit were actually wrestling teammates at the University of Pittsburgh when they decided to go NASCAR racing after graduation.  Both are in training with Hendrick Motorsports to eventually and hopefully carry tires on one of NASCAR’s elite teams.

    “I was born and raised in Pittsburgh, from around the Carnegie area,” Wilps said. “I went to the University of Pittsburgh for five years. I wrestled there and was a two-time All-American.

    Following that, I coached there for one year as a second Assistant Coach. And then I heard through the grapevine about NASCAR. I really didn’t know much about the sport at all and I got invited to Hendrick to do a combine tryout.

    I did well enough and I ended up here at the track.”

    For Wilps, focus and repetition are the commonalities between wrestling and NASCAR racing.

    “You have to focus,” Wilps said. “Obviously you have to watch for cars that can hit you on pit road. It is a dangerous thing. But you cannot worry about mistakes that you make. You just have to keep focusing on your task.”

    “The way wrestling prepared me was that you would practice a specific move over and over again, like ten times, over and over,” Wilps continued. “That repetition is the same thing in a NASCAR pit stop.

    So, I’ll just practice putting the tire on the car over and over again. I have to notice where my feet are prior to the movement and throughout the movement as I put the tire on. It has to be not only the most efficient way to do it but also the healthiest for my body.”

    Just as when he wrestled, Wilps is dedicated to an intense workout routine, at least when they are not on the road.

    “Typically we are at the track every weekend but on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday we have a full day at the gym,” Wilps said. “During those days, we will help out with Cup practices as well as getting our own practices in as the developmental crew.

    We’ll get a lift or a run in every day. We actually do yoga every Monday as long as we don’t get back late from the track on Sunday. We need to stretch out as we are standing on the concrete all day.

    You’re not going to be sore from the pit stop but the long day standing and being out in the sun wearing three layers of fire suits, the yoga helps and clears you up. It helps you keep feeling nimble.”

    “A lot of the guys appreciate the same hard work that translates well from wrestling into NASCAR,” Wilps continued.  “I’m in training to be one of the guys to go over the wall in the future for maybe Jimmie Johnson. I’m not quite good enough yet. Hopefully, I get there.”

    “I help out any way I can.”

    Wilps’ partner in wrestling and in the pit crew development program is Zach Thomsusseit. He too is in training to carry tires, while currently handing in the gas can to the gas can man.

    “I grew up in Dayton, Ohio,” Thomsusseit said. “I was always involved in athletics and got the opportunity to go and wrestle for the University of Pittsburgh.”

    “Wrestling got me here. I think every opportunity I’ve had has come about because of wrestling. Someone in the Pitt wrestling program knew about NASCAR and he gave some of us a call.

    I honestly didn’t even watch NASCAR or know there was such a thing as a pit crew. I had the itch to compete and missed it. So, I came and tried out because it was a sweet opportunity. I gave it a go and here I am.”

    Thomsusseit is grateful that he is in this program with a buddy, in fact, one that he not only wrestled with but lived with in the dorm down the hall.

    “I think it’s made it easier to have a friend,” Thomsusseit said. “We push each other. He doesn’t want me to do better than him and vice versa.”

    “There’s another guy who wrestled at Pitt that is on the developmental team for Dale Jr. So, there are three of us Pitt pit crew trainees now.”

    Thomsusseit echoed his teammate’s thoughts about wrestling skills parlaying into NASCAR pit crew skills, however, he also noted that Team 48 demands just a bit extra, even out of its developmental pit crew members.

    “You obviously have the athleticism, but the 48 team holds themselves to higher standards,” Thomsusseit said. “I just think wrestling is very disciplined and you have to focus on the little things. That’s what Chad Knaus here on the 48 team does.

    He has won a lot and that is what he makes his guys work towards. You have to have that goal in sight. And that’s what wrestling is all about, competing for the national championship. But in NASCAR, it is preparing for the Chase and winning the championship at the end of the season.”

    “I think wrestling parlays really well into NASCAR. I’m a tire carrier, so I’m pretty much in wrestling stance most of the time. That’s worked well because I’m used to squatting down, unlike some of the football players in the program.”

    “I also like the team atmosphere,” Thomsusseit continued.  “I was a sales rep out of school, but wrestling was my life. So, I love working together on goals and I get paid to work out, which is what I’ve done all my life.”

    While both Wilps and Thomsusseit treasure the time they are having in pit crew training, they also acknowledge that there is at least one big challenge that they have to face.

    “The most difficult thing is getting used to the travel,” Thomsusseit said. “We’re gone most every weekend. That’s a bit like wrestling but it’s a lot more travel.

    “I have become a race fan now and I have more appreciation for the sport. What goes on behind the scenes is amazing.”

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Bristol

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Bristol

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Kyle Busch: Busch suffered from a loose wheel early in the race before picking his way back into the top 5 at Bristol. But a late pit road speeding penalty cost him a chance at the win, finishing eighth.

    “It was still a strong day for Joe Gibbs Racing,” Busch said. “JGR went 1-2-3-4 in qualifying and place three cars in the top 10. That’s quite a stable Joe’s got right now. Take my brother Kyle and myself at our worse, and you’ve got yourself an ‘unstable.’”

    2. Kevin Harvick: Harvick chased Joey Logano over the final laps at Bristol, but Logano’s No. 22 Penske machine was just too strong. Harvick settled for second, his second-consecutive runner-up finish and 11th of the season.

    “We certainly weren’t helped by two pit road speeding penalties,” Harvick said. “At 30 miles per hour, a drive-through penalty is brutal. At that speed, Bristol’s pit road is much like Kyle Petty’s ponytail—long and grey.”

    3. Joey Logano: Logano won his second straight Bristol night race, holding off Kevin Harvick over the final laps to win the Irwin Tools Night Race.

    “I knew I couldn’t make a mistake with Harvick behind me,” Logano said. “Obviously, this Penske driver reacts a little better from a push from Harvick.”

    4. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth blew an engine early at Bristol, spoiling an otherwise solid day for Joe Gibbs Racing.

    “Did this Toyota engine come from Michael Waltrip Racing?” Kenseth said, “because it just quit on me.”

    5. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson was solid at Bristol, finishing fourth for his first top-five result since a second at Daytona in July.

    “With six Sprint Cup championships,” Johnson said, “I obviously have the look of a champion. Now, with the new fragrance ‘Burnt Rubber,’ anyone can smell like a champion. And if you have the nerve to go to the fragrance counter and ask for Burnt Rubber, then you certainly won’t be phased by extreme speeds. Just make sure you ask for ‘Burnt Rubber’ by name, lest you may end up with the Jeremy Mayfield knockoff brand, ‘Speed In A Bottle.’”

    6. Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Earnhardt took advantage of two “Lucky Dog” free passes and recorded a ninth-place finish at Bristol. He is third in the Sprint Cup points standings, 89 out of first.

    “Danica Patrick has a new sponsor in Nature’s Bakery,’” Earnhardt said. “Now people can finally say she’s got ‘natural’ talent and actually believe it.”

    7. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski led four laps and finished sixth in the Irwin Tools Night Race as Penske Racing teammate Joey Logano captured the win.

    “Logano showed a load of maturity holding off Harvick,” Keselowski said. “That gives Joey three wins this season. I have only one. I guess we know who wears the firesuit on this team.”

    8. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex suffered from a collection of misfortune at Bristol and finished 28th at Bristol, five laps down.

    “They call Bristol Motor Speedway ‘The Last Great Colosseum,’” Truex said. “I guess that means the drivers are gladiators. Instead of fighting to the death, fans in the stands are bored to death.”

    9. Carl Edwards: Edwards led 74 laps at Bristol and was out front on lap 355 when he suffered a flat tire. He still managed a seventh-place finish, joining Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch in the top 10.

    “A flat tire while leading is the very definition of ‘untimely,’” Edwards said. “What is the very definition of ‘timely?’ Leaving Roush Fenway Racing when I did. Jack Roush may be the ‘Cat In The Hat,’ and chances are he owns the ‘Car In The Rear.’”

    10. Kurt Busch: Busch finished 14th, one lap down, at Bristol, after damaging his car in an incident with David Ragan.

    “What do you expect from a Michael Waltrip Racing driver?” Busch said. “Ragan was driving like there was no tomorrow.

    “I guess you’ve heard that MWR released Clint Bowyer from his contract. And I think I’m qualified to announce that Bowyer is not a secret agent, but a free agent.”

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Bristol Irwin Tools Night Race

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Bristol Irwin Tools Night Race

    With lots of discussion and questions about restarts in the drivers’ meeting prior to the race, here is what was surprising and not surprising after the checkered flag flew on the 55Th Annual Irwin Tools Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway.

    Surprising:  Joey Logano took a page from ‘Through the Looking Glass’ as he battled against Kevin Harvick and the rest of the field to take the checkered flag at Bristol Motor Speedway. This was the third win of the season for the driver of the No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford for Team Penske.

    “It was kind of interesting to watch it in the mirror,” Logano said. “I was watching him (Harvick) drive in and I was like, ‘He’s going to get me eventually,’ so I just wanted to make sure I stayed at least three or four car lengths up on him so he didn’t get to me.

    “There’s not much time to look in the rearview mirror, but I realized how different his line was than mine.  He’d drive in so hard and almost get to my back bumper and then I’d drive off really good.  It’s kind of interesting to watch a race like that when two cars are a similar speed but in two complete different ways.  That’s what’s so fun about Bristol is you can drive the car about five or six different ways and make it fast, so it’s fun to race here.

    “That’s what we did and that’s what we do every week.  We just try to keep our heads calm and cool and just run our race.

    “I feel like we’re right where we need to be, just like we were last year at this point.  I can’t wait for the Chase to start.”

    Not Surprising:  It was a twofer for the No. 4 car, who turned two pit road penalties into another second place finish.

    “Yeah, we had an interesting night,” Kevin Harvick said after finishing second for the 10th time this season. “We went to the back twice and passed a bunch of cars.

    “I think, all in all, it’s just a huge credit to the team. They just keep bringing fast cars to the race track and we’re able to overcome a lot of things.

    “So, it’s just great to be a part of a team like this and just really excited to be able to run like this at Bristol.”

    Surprising:  It was a blowout of the unwanted kind for Kyle Larson, who had such high hopes coming into the Bristol night race. The driver of the No. 42 Target Chevrolet had a tire blow out when he stayed out after taking just two tires, finishing 41st.

    “The first time we blew our left front we stayed out on two tires and we had a lot of laps on our lefts,” Larson said. “And we blew that one out. Later on we had a lot of damage and got really tight and blew the right front.

    “I guess on our left front the side wall got cut out. I don’t know if that was a wear issue or not. Then we got into the wall and we were pretty tight after that with lots of damage on the right side. So, probably just used up our right front tire because I couldn’t turn. I just hate it we hit the wall with a blown right front and ended our night.”

    Not Surprising:  By no means out but……could best describe Paul Menard, who finished 24th at Bristol and is hanging on to 12th in the point standings and 14th in the Chase grid at present.

    “This was not the finish we wanted when the weekend started at Bristol,” the driver of the No. 27 Knauf/Menards Chevrolet said. “We got behind early in the race and then were never able to make the improvements work to our advantage during the night. Then we ended up getting some damage there near the end and that didn’t help us any.

    “But, the good news is we fought through all that and finished the race. We are by no means out of the Chase for the Championship and look forward to being there after Richmond.”

    Surprising:  Ryan Newman apparently was doing his best imitation of David Copperfield, working some magic on his. No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet.

    “We took a 20th place car from Friday and turned it into a top 10 on Saturday,” Newman said. “Not the end result that we wanted, but a good points day for us. That is part of what we are racing for right now.”

    This was Newman’s second straight top-10 finish at Bristol and his 10th place finish advance him up to the 11th place in the championship point standings and 13th in the Chase Grid.

    Not Surprising:  After the devastating news of the demise of Michael Waltrip Racing for the 2016 season, Clint Bowyer fought the hard fight for his team, finishing fifth in his No. 15 5-Hour Energy Toyota.

    “MWR (Michael Waltrip Racing) really needed that run,” Bowyer said. “With that being said we desperately needed a solid run right there. I mean obviously you’re hungry for a win with this organization given everything it had and I drove my ass off, we just come up short.

    “I’m really proud of all of these guys on the 5-hour ENERGY Toyota. They’re digging man. It’s fun to be a part of this. It’s fun to be a part of a group that can answer the call when you gotta dig down and reach down a little bit more to get in that Chase and be a part of that elite group.

    “These guys are up for the challenge.”

    Surprising:  One young driver surprisingly logged an incredible number of laps at Bristol Motor Speedway, in fact, one thousand to be exact.

    “I could do it again,” Ryan Blaney, driver of the No. 21 SKF Ford in the Cup race and driver in the Truck and Xfinity races as well. “It’s just nice to get all those laps under your belt and know the race track, what it does and learn for next time.”

    In the Cup race and after completing his one thousand Thunder Valley laps, Blaney finished 22nd.

    “It’s not the night we wanted, but we gained some good experience and hopefully we come back better.”

    Not Surprising:  As they have done for much of the season, Hendrick Motorsports shop mates Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. fared fairly well at Bristol where shop mates Jeff Gordon and Kasey Kahne continued to struggle.

    Johnson finished best in fourth in his No. 48 Lowe’s Pro Services Chevrolet, and Earnhardt Jr. popped off another top-10 finish in his No. 88 Nationwide Chevrolet.  Kasey Kahne and Jeff Gordon, however, finished 16th and 20th respectively.

    Jeff Gordon, in his final year of Cup competition, currently sits 15th in the Chase grid after the Bristol race.

    Surprising:  Martin Truex Jr., who has been so consistently running for much of the season to date, took the biggest tumble in the point standings, falling two spots to the sixth spot. Truex had to go to a backup car, then had a lug nut issues, which put him back in the field, and finally was collected in an accident.

    “I felt we had a top-three car tonight, but the loose wheel really hurt our chances,” Cole Pearn, crew chief, said after the race.

    Not Surprising: As usual, given his dry wit, Matt Kenseth had the quote of the race after finishing 42nd due to engine failure, wishing for at least a text before going up in smoke.

    “It broke in the middle of the straightaway – it had that hop and that noise that it makes when you know you dropped a valve,” the driver of the No. 20 Dollar General Toyota Camry said. “Something in the valve train, we dropped a valve or something it felt like and sounded like. Things like that happen.

    “They never warn you, it would be cool if they would send you a text or something. Just the middle of the straightaway it made that pop where you knew that was it.”

    As the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series prepares to head into the Chase, the racers get a needed weekend off next weekend.  On Sunday, September 6, racing will resume at historic Darlington Raceway.

     

  • Hot 20 – Bowyer soon to become a free agent as MWR goes part-time in 2016

    Hot 20 – Bowyer soon to become a free agent as MWR goes part-time in 2016

    Hot news this week is headlined by the near-demise of Michael Waltrip Racing. The team has announced that it will not run full-time entries in 2016 and that Clint Bowyer will indeed be a free agent after this season. It has been a bit of a bumpy ride for the team that Mikey built, and Rob Kauffman paid for, and with the money man headed elsewhere, the writing was all over the wall. Kauffman is looking to buy into the Ganassi operation, but that deal is not done. Bowyer could wind up there, or wherever an opening appears between now and next season.

    Danica Patrick has a new sponsor. With Go Daddy about to be Gone Daddy, Nature’s Bakery has decided that sponsoring the only woman in Sprint Cup is a great $20 million sponsorship opportunity. With just a single IndyCar win back in 2008 to go with her Budweiser Duel victory in 2013, she is not a great driver, but still a competent one with tons of drawing power. Plus, did you see her latest yoga video? I mean, I am a straight male and I fear the day I find something similar posted by Tony Stewart.

    Stewart has had some tough times, with results no better than Patrick’s since he broke his leg driving on dirt in 2013. Then came the tragedy in upstate New York a year ago. The family of Kevin Ward Jr. filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Stewart on Friday. It alleges Stewart drove his car up the track, gunned his engine, causing the vehicle to slide and strike Ward with the rear-right tire. As a father of a couple of lads about Kevin’s age, I understand the family’s course of action. It was either Stewart’s fault or, as what came out of the criminal investigation, their son had enough marijuana in his system to impair his judgement and that in an act of bravado he approached Stewart’s car on foot and simply got too close and was struck. As a parent, what would you want to believe?

    The action will be hot on Saturday night at Bristol, one of NASCAR’s fan favorite venues. There should be enough action to satisfy a television viewer who simply finds their way to the telecast, along with those who know what it all means for Kyle Busch, Bowyer, Aric Almirola, Kasey Kahne, and those behind them in the standings.

    Our Hot 20 heading into Bristol include…

    1. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 4 WINS
    You know your focus is off when you can’t even remember where your pit stall is.

    2. KYLE BUSCH – 4 WINS
    Second in the standings, yet battling Cole Whitt for his playoff position.

    3. MATT KENSETH – 3 WINS
    Owned Michigan, has a down payment on Bristol.

    4. KEVIN HARVICK – 2 WINS
    Only three times he has missed finishing in the Top Ten…including Bristol in the springtime.

    5. JOEY LOGANO – 2 WINS
    Winner at the Brickyard and the Glen…you know, races one might actually remember.

    6. DALE EARNHARDT JR. – 2 WINS
    Man, he feels like a woman. Really. I heard him say so. You can’t make something like this up.

    7. KURT BUSCH – 2 WINS
    Sure, his brother has more wins, but when it comes to points, baby, Kurt rules!

    8. MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 1 WIN
    Finished third and is still frustrated. I wonder if he has ever met Timmy Hill?

    9. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 1 WIN
    He and Joey no doubt would like their splitters back, splitters back.

    10. DENNY HAMLIN – 1 WIN
    Kyle and Matt and…what are the names of their two teammates again?

    11. CARL EDWARDS – 1 WIN
    Figures he has the car to beat at Bristol. Forty-two other drivers will attempt to prove him right.

    12. JAMIE MCMURRAY – 663 POINTS
    70 points up on Almirola, 47 ahead of Bowyer. McMurray remains good to go this Saturday.

    13. PAUL MENARD – 654 POINTS
    Along with Junior, loses 15 minutes of practice time this weekend due to inspection issues.

    14. RYAN NEWMAN – 649 POINTS
    Having an actress of the same name is confusing. I do not believe he is dating Jack Griffo.

    15. JEFF GORDON – 648 POINTS
    When they say “pull those belts tight, boys”, his boys tend to argue for a bit of slack.

    16. CLINT BOWYER – 616 POINTS
    NASCAR’s own bubble boy.

    17. ARIC ALMIROLA – 593 POINTS
    It would be a real shame if Clint has another bad day. Yes, it sure would be. Just ask Aric.

    18. KASEY KAHNE – 590 POINTS
    Now, if both Clint and Aric had bad days this Saturday night…

    19. GREG BIFFLE – 553 POINTS
    Three races in just over two weeks and he has to win one of them.

    20. KYLE LARSON – 548 POINTS
    Has done well in the few he has raced at Bristol. Now he needs to be great.

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Michigan

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Michigan

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Kyle Busch: Busch qualified sixth at Michigan, but a wreck in Saturday’s practice relegated him to the back of the field for the start of Sunday’s race. Despite starting in a backup car, he finished with a strong 11th-place finish that helped solidify his Chase chances.

    “I got the job done with a backup car,” Busch said. “That’s unusual. In years past, I don’t start backing up until the Chase starts.”

    2. Kevin Harvick: Harvick started seventh and finished second in the Pure Michigan 400, recording his 10th runner-up finish of the year.

    “I, like many drivers, wasn’t happy with the high-drag aero package NASCAR mandated,” Harvick said. “That drag made it impossible for me to get close enough to even attempt a pass on Matt Kenseth. But I tried my darndest. No one has ‘chased the dragin’ like that in NASCAR since Tim Richmond.”

    3. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth started on the pole at Michigan and was the strongest car throughout, leading 146 of 200 laps on his way to his third win of the season.

    “When Matt Kenseth controls a race from start to finish,” Kenseth said, “it’s called ‘boredom-ination.’”

    4. Joey Logano: Logano finished seventh in the Pure Michigan 400, posting his 17th top 10 of the year.

    “Here are a few words to describe Sunday’s race,” Logano said. “Brutal. Grueling. Uncomfortable. But enough about the fan’s perspective.

    “Seriously though, NASCAR thinks rule changes are the guidepost to racing in which the aerodynamics lead to passing while still maintaining the high speeds that attract fans. Sadly, though, the real ‘fantasy draft’ only happens for football season.”

    5. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson spun on lap 183 at Michigan and limped home to a 39th-place finish, his second-worst of the year.

    “I finished right between J.J. Yeley and Travis Kvapil,” Johnson said. “They’re not exactly household names. They’re barely ‘racetrack’ names. However, Sunday was one time when Yeley and Kvapil can say they were among the hottest drivers in NASCAR.”

    6. Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Earnhardt finished 10th at Michigan, posting his 14th top-10 result of the year. He is third in the Sprint Cup points standings, behind Kevin Harvick.

    “The aerodynamic package for Michigan made for some extreme temperatures in the cockpit,” Earnhardt said. “It reached 150 degrees in some cars. They say you can fry an egg at that temperature. Matt Kenseth chose to ‘make toast.’”

    7. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex took third at Michigan, earning his seventh top-five result of the season. He sits fourth in the points standings, 111 out of first.

    “This aerodynamic package made for some boring laps,” Truex said, “and the fans were clearly bored. If NASCAR fans want to see real ‘drag racing,’ I suggest they attend NHRA events. There, the women are actually a ‘Force.’”

    8. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski finished ninth at Michigan, recording his 15th top 10 of the year. He is fifth in the points standings, 112 out of first.

    “Penske cars had to replace their splitters prior to the race,” Keselowski said. “That was at the behest of NASCAR, who thought the splitters were noncompliant. I guess it’s true that it was, in fact, brutally hot inside the cars, because we got caught red-handed.”

    9. Kurt Busch: Busch finished 20th at Michigan, only his third finish outside the top 15 this season.

    “It was hot in Michigan on Sunday,” Busch said. “Honestly, I could barely take it. But I’m not complaining. You know what they say: ‘If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the bitchin.’’”

    10. Carl Edwards: Edwards came home sixth in the Pure Michigan 400 as Joe Gibbs Racing put three cars in the top 6.

    “Joe Gibbs Racing cars went 1-2-3 in qualifying,” Edwards said. “Now that’s what I call putting the ‘success’ in ‘succession.’”

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Pure Michigan 400

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Pure Michigan 400

    With the new high drag package creating some high anxiety, here is what was surprising and not surprising in the Pure Michigan 400 from the speedway nestled in the Irish Hills.

    Surprising:  With Matt Kenseth’s win in the No. 20 Dollar General Toyota, his manufacturer reigned supreme in Michigan. And with the trip to Victory Circle, Toyota received the Michigan Heritage trophy, initiated in 2013 to celebrate the winning vehicle manufacturer.

    Toyota gets to hang onto that coveted trophy until the next race at Michigan International Speedway in June 2016. This was Toyota’s fifth Cup win at Michigan and the manufacturer’s ninth win of the season.

    Winning Coach Joe Gibbs summed it up best as far as the partnership he has enjoyed with the manufacturer, with his Toyota team winning five out of the last six races.

    “Well, the first thing is it’s a team sport all the way,” Gibbs said after the race. “We’ve got great partners, thanks to Toyota, all the hard work they’ve done over the last year and a half.”

    “You really need to enjoy it because about 10 races back, we were struggling trying to get there, and you just hope now that we’ll be able to hold some momentum here and head into the Chase.”

    Not Surprising:  To tinker or not to tinker, that has been NASCAR’s question and the sanctioning body provided some answers after the Michigan race.

    As for the high drag rules package used at MIS for race day, Steve O’Donnell, Executive Vice President and Chief Racing Development Officer, acknowledged that it did not achieve the passing at the front goal as evidenced by the dominance of the No. 20 car.

    NASCAR, however, decided not to do any further tinkering, especially with any rules package changes during the Chase for the Championship.

    “We’re going to stay with the 2015 package,” O’Donnell said. “We’ve seen some good things with that package.  A lot of work has been done by the race teams already leading up to the final 10 races and feel like that’s the best decision for the sport.”

    “Excited about the Chase, excited about the package and what’s to come in the Chase, especially when you look back to last year.”

    Surprising:  Kyle Busch not only overcame having to start in the rear due to a practice crash in his No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota but also demonstrated his best ‘Carnac the Magnificent’ skills with his prediction that there would be a crash in the first lap of the race.

    Busch was so convinced of his prediction that he hung back almost half a lap from the field during the start of the race, only to have David Ragan spin, fulfilling Busch’s prediction.

    Busch went on to finish 11th, moving himself up to 29th in the point standings.

    Not Surprising:  For the driver who came in runner up, yet again, the Pure Michigan 400 was a one-off in his opinion.

    “I would say we didn’t really learn anything today,” Kevin Harvick, the driver of the No. 4 Jimmy John’s/Budweiser Chevrolet, said. “Not only is this racetrack nothing like what we race on in the Chase, it’s just kind of a unique animal, and then you have the rules package.”

    “Today was really just about trying to win a race, and it’s really not going to lend itself towards anything that we do in the last 10 weeks.”

    Surprising:  Martin Truex Jr. is not only locked into the Chase but he continues to break records in his quest for the Championship. The driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row/Visser Precision Chevrolet finished third, scoring his 16th top-10 finish in the first 23 races of the 2015 season.

    This tied a team season record, set in 2013 when Kurt Busch piloted the No. 78 for the Colorado-based race team.

    “It was a good day for everybody on the Furniture Row team,” Truex said. “We had a good car from the get go.  We made some adjustments throughout the race, but overall the No. 78 was a fast hot rod.”

    Not Surprising:  Team Penske drivers may have had a rocky start with their splitters being confiscated by NASCAR prior to the race, but both Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski recovered to both finish in the top-10.

    “My team did a good job and we executed fairly well,” Logano said after finishing seventh. “We had a couple bad restarts but a good one there at the end to make up for it. I would say we finished about where we deserved.”

    “We made the most of our day in every way we could,” Keselowski said after his ninth place finish. “We just needed to be faster, for sure, especially down the straightaways.”

    Surprising:  Dale Earnhardt Jr. was the best of the Hendrick Motorsports drivers, finishing in the 10th position. Teammates Kasey Kahne, Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson finished 15th, 17th and 39th respectively.

    In fact, the driver of the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet had a miserable day, cutting a tire down early in the race, overshooting his pit stall, and spinning through the grass which destroyed the front end of his race car.

    Johnson finished an uncharacteristic 10 laps down.

    Not Surprising:  There was no doubt that Aric Almirola felt like a winner with his top-15 finish. The driver of the No. 43 Armour Ford overcame a stomach virus as well as a 30th place qualifying position to take the checkered flag in the 14th spot.

    Almirola also won in the point standings and now sits just 23 points behind competitor Clint Bowyer in the battle for the final playoff spot.

    “We may have finished 14th today, but it felt like a win after the weekend we had,” Almirola said. “Everyone worked really hard to get the car where we needed it.”

    “We made the best out of our situation and made up some good ground in points. We started the year with a goal to be consistent and just scored our 12th Top-15.”

    Surprising:  One young gun showed the field that having fun and performing can indeed go hand in hand. Austin Dillon, in his No. 3 Dow Chevrolet, had a career best finish in fourth place and yes, also had a little fun along the way moving from the back to the front.

    “We had some circumstances where we had to start at the back and had to figure out a way to get our track position back,” Dillon said. “Slugger (Labbe, crew chief) and the engineers did a good job coming up with a plan.”

    “The first 20 laps was no fun for us because we had to ride around and try and stay in front of the leader, but we saved gas and decided to not come down pit road on that first competition caution for fuel, and it worked out,” Dillon continued. “It showed that our car was fast enough to stay up there.”

    “We pitted, drove back up to where we needed to be, and it was a fun day for us, the Dow Chevrolet was fast, and I felt like I passed a lot of cars, also, getting into fourth.”

    Not Surprising: With his mentor Buddy Baker being laid to rest after losing his battle to cancer, Ryan Newman did him proud, scoring his eleventh top-10 finish, in spite of some damage incurred after a collision with the race car of Clint Bowyer. The finish was essential to the driver’s championship hopes and he moved up to the 12th spot in the standings.

    “I am so pleased with this top-10 finish,” Newman said. “It was an awesome team effort. It was a good day for us and a good points day for us.”

    “I’m looking forward to Bristol and I just found out that it will be my 500th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start. I had no idea, so I’m hoping it will be another good weekend for us.”