Tag: joey logano

Hot 20 over the past 10 – The junior circuit needs a rejig, while our Cup leaders hope to avoid a bad day in Charlotte

Grading the Sprint Cup Rides – 2013 Third Term Report

As we head into Charlotte, there is a birthday to note and a milestone to recognize. Dale Earnhardt Jr has celebrated his 39^th birthday, and on Saturday night he will run in his 500^th Cup start. It is a track he has yet to win on, a track that launched his Cup career back in 1999.

Of course, by that time Junior had already won his first of two junior circuit titles. In doing so, in 1998 and 1999, he claimed 13 victories. Imagine that, the champion of what, for now at least, is known as the Nationwide series actually winning races. Regan Smith has won two and sits in second place. Sam Hornish Jr and the eighth place Trevor Bayne each has one. Austin Dillon leads Smith by eight points, and he has not yet won a blessed thing. I wonder why?

Four Nationwide drivers have won just four of 29 events. Maybe it is a good thing that Kyle Busch missed seven of those races, for he has won 10 of those he has run. Brad Keselowski has five, Joey Logano has three, and two more claimed by Matt Kenseth. After fellow Cup drivers Tony Stewart and Kevin Harvick get credit for their wins, that leaves only the one to youngster Ryan Blaney and the two for two run of A.J. Allmendinger when he found the time when not running Cup or IndyCar. So, exactly what is the purpose of the Nationwide series?

If it is to develop future Cup drivers, rather than providing Chasers or former Cup champions yet another opportunity to showcase their talents against lesser lights, then just maybe we have undermined the purpose of the series. Maybe we have turned the exercise into something of a joke. I do understand why they run there, why the track owners want to see them there, but as much as I would love to see such names as Cabrera, Ellsbury, and Scherzer on the field should I take in a game in Winnipeg, it would be wrong for them to be there in a regular American Association game. It is just as wrong for Kyle, Joey, Matt, et al to take the place of drivers who have hopes of climbing the ladder. There is nothing to be gained by having established stars simply dropping down to the bushes, as it were.

A solution? Allow Cup drivers five, and no more than five, opportunities to compete in any lower series than the one they are competing for points in. If Kyle Busch wishes to race in five Nationwide races and five truck events, let him do so. The fans would love it…but no more than five in each. Up and coming drivers would love the opportunity to compete, and to do so against their peers. They deserve no less. You can discuss.

While the others await a stumble from Kenseth as we head toward the fifth of the ten Chase events, our points leader remains the hottest driver over the past ten events. While Jimmie Johnson sits three points back in the standings, he is buried in 17^th place over the past ten starts. So, what if there is no stumble, what if these drivers average a tenth place finish the rest of the way?

With the advent of the Chase, whomever is the best over the final ten races of the season should be the champion. Obviously, making the Chase is necessary as well as taking into consideration the bonus advantage the leader takes in. Three points is what Kenseth had over Johnson going in, and three points is what he has today.

As we replace the results from Pocono, Watkins Glen, Michigan, Bristol, Atlanta and Richmond by those of Charlotte, Talladega, Martinsville, Fort Worth, Phoenix, and Homestead, let us assume both Kenseth and Johnson will average 34 points, a 10^th place finish, from this point onward. If that were the case, Kenseth would end with a ten race total of 372 points, a dozen better than what he has today. If Jimmie Johnson replaces those results (13^th, 8^th, 40^th, 36^th, 28^th, and 40^th) in similar fashion, he also would wind up with 372 points, jumping his total by 103.

While Five Time is not among our hottest today, he will be in six weeks if he hopes to make it six. As hot as the Busch boys, Logano, Gordon, and Harvick might be right now, they will need better than a series of 10^th place finishes to get back into the picture. That said, a bad day for two could equate into a great one for a few others.

TW	Driver	Win	T5	T10	Points	LW	Rank
1	Matt Kenseth	3	3	5	360	1	1
2	Kurt Busch	0	6	7	352	5	7
3	Joey Logano	1	5	7	348	4	10
4	Jeff Gordon	0	3	7	342	6	4
5	Kyle Busch	2	5	6	337	2	5
6	Kevin Harvick	1	3	5	332	9	3
7	Greg Biffle	0	1	5	330	7	6
8	Ryan Newman	0	3	5	317	3	12
9	Jamie McMurray	0	2	2	310	8	14
10	Carl Edwards	1	3	5	304	10	11
11	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.	0	2	6	294	11	8
12	Marcos Ambrose	0	0	3	288	15	20
13	Paul Menard	0	2	4	285	14	17
14	Juan Pablo Montoya	0	2	3	280	12	22
15	Kasey Kahne	1	2	3	275	13	13
16	Brad Keselowski	0	1	3	274	17	15
17	Jimmie Johnson	1	3	5	269	16	2
18	Jeff Burton	0	0	2	258	22	19
19	Martin Truex, Jr.	0	2	4	252	18	16
20	Aric Almirola	0	0	1	246	20	18
21	Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.	0	0	2	246	19	21
22	Clint Bowyer	0	1	4	242	21	9

October 9, 2013

Surprising and Not Surprising: Kansas Hollywood Casino 400

From weather and tires to a fire off track that was smoky enough to cause a caution, here is what else was surprising and not surprising from the 13^th annual Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway.

Surprising: Two ‘lame duck’ drivers who just happen to be future teammates scored the one-two victory punch in the land of Oz, with Kevin Harvick scoring the win from the pole and Kurt Busch coming all the way from the rear of the field to finish runner up.

“To sit on the pole and win the race is obviously a great weekend, and controlling our own destiny by doing that, we are putting ourselves closer to where we need to be with the championship race,” the driver of the No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet said. “We’ll just keep having fun and keep doing what we’re doing.”

This was Harvick’s first win at Kansas and his third victory of the season. And with the win, Harvick did indeed help himself in the point standings, climbing into the third position, 25 points behind the leader.

Kurt Busch scored his fourth top-10 in 16 races at Kansas and his 15th top-10 finish in 2013. He moved up two positions to seventh in the Chase standings, 47 points behind the leader.

“Wow, what an unbelievable drive,” the driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Chevrolet said. “We battled hard to come from 41^st and we did this in a backup car.”

“Today is a small little victory in my own mind.”

Not Surprising: With every driver on edge given the track conditions, it was no surprise that tempers flared just a little bit with some of the close racing. Four-time champ Jeff Gordon was one driver who had an issue after some hard racing with Kurt Busch resulted in his third place finish.

“It’s not a NASCAR race if you don’t have a discussion with another driver out there about an incident on the track,” the driver of the No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet said. “Everybody is just trying to get every position they could.”

“I got in the outside lane there one time and he (Kurt Busch) just came up and the next lap I got to his bumper and got him loose,” Gordon continued. “I guess that kind of led to him wanting to run into me on the right side on my door.”

Gordon’s third place finish did, however, move him up one position in the Chase standings to the fourth spot, 32 points back from the leader.

Surprising: In spite of a speeding penalty, loose race car and an 11^th place finish, Matt Kenseth was feeling incredibly lucky in the Hollywood Casino 400, particularly since he described his No. 20 Dollar General Toyota as the ‘evilest’ car he had ever driven.

Yet even with that ‘evilest’ car, Kenseth not only was the highest Toyota finisher but he also managed to maintain his points lead in the Chase, out front by three after Kansas.

“It was a struggle all day,” Kenseth said. “I was so loose I was ready to crash pretty much at all times of the race.”

“We drove back to 11^th, which definitely isn’t what we wanted or what we need to contend for this thing, but it was a good save for as bad as we were.”

Not Surprising: While some drivers circle dates on the calendar for tracks where they cannot wait to race, others have tracks from which they cannot wait to leave.

Such was the experience at Kansas for Kyle Busch, who yet again was bitten by the Kansas demons that led to his Chase race demise, from third to fifth place, after his 34^th place finish. This was his third straight DNF at Kansas Speedway.

“I have no idea what happened,” Busch said after his race ended in carnage. “All I know is we’re in Kansas, right?”

“Every other track except Kansas seems to be able to bode well for us,” the driver of the No. 18 M&Ms Toyota said. “It wasn’t meant to be.”

Surprising: Five-time champ Jimmie Johnson had a self-proclaimed surprisingly crazy, weird and wacky day that still had him passing cars, finishing sixth in his No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet, and gaining points, now just three points back from leader Matt Kenseth.

“All in all it was just a crazy day,” Johnson said. “Weird restarts. Wacky restarts. A lot of chaos there.”

“These cautions kept coming out and they hurt us each time,” Johnson continued, “So we rebounded from all that and passed a ton of race cars, and then on the last lap with I guess two to go, coming down the back, the car started shaking real bad and I thought it was over.”

“We had so many things happen to us and still salvaged a very strong sixth place finish.”

Not Surprising: Richard Petty Motorsports, a team that has seemed to be steadily gaining and moving forward had another good run at Kansas with both drivers finishing top ten.

“It felt like a win because I thought our day was done,” Marcos Ambrose, driver of the No. 9 MAC Tools Ford said after finishing ninth. “It was a bizarre kind of a race.”

“The tire was super edgy and unpredictable and you didn’t know if it was the wind or the tire or the car that was making the difference.”

“I am just pleased that we finished and I fought hard all day.”

“We got a top-10 and I would have never told you that was possible,” Aric Almirola, driver of the No. 43 Farmland Ford said after finishing tenth. “We got off in the middle part of the race but salvaged a good finish.”

“I am proud of my guys.”

Surprising: Another team, however, that of Stewart Haas Racing, had a surprisingly ugly day at the race track.

Danica Patrick, SHR driver, wrecked hard on the first lap and finished 43^rd, while Ryan Newman, SHR teammate, got tangled up in a wreck, finishing 35^th and dropping to 12^th in the point standings.

“I knew that going into the race that losing grip was going to be not that hard to do,” Patrick, driver of the No. 10 GoDaddy Chevrolet said. “I said that before the race started.”

“Things just go wrong,” Patrick continued. “If I did something wrong, I apologize to everyone on my team but it’s just a shame.”

“There’s not much to say other than we were in the wrong place at the wrong time and got caught up in an accident not of our making,” Newman said. “It’s definitely a disappointing day for all of us on the Code 3 Associates team.”

Not Surprising: With the challenging track conditions, it was not surprising that restarts were especially challenging for each and every driver, whether a Chaser or not, in the field. In fact, one Chase contender defined the restarts at Kansas as simply ‘insane.’

“The restarts were insane,” Carl Edwards, driver of the No. 99 Fastenal Ford said. “Look up insane and that is the definition right there.”

“It is tough to be racing for points when you have those kind of restarts.”

“It was pretty crazy out there,” Joey Logano, driver of the No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford, said. “Every restart you had to be so aggressive to pass people because that was your best shot to pass them and everyone realized it.”

Logano finished the race in fourth while Edwards salvaged a fifth place finish. The two drivers are now in the tenth and eleventh spots in the point standings respectively.

Surprising: The end of the race was most surprising, at least for Aric Almirola and Clint Bowyer, who got into each other coming to the checkered flag.

Bowyer, driver of the No. 15 Raspberry 5-Hour Energy/Living Beyond Breast Cancer Toyota, described his day in a tweet after the race, “What a frustrating day! Started out sh**ty, got a little better, got WAY better, put on 2 tires and s**t the bed…Then lost my mind.”

Almirola described the run-in with Bowyer in a slightly different way, “I beat him on that restart and I guess he was mad about it.”

“That is fine, I am not worried about it,” Almirola continued. “I beat him.”

Not Surprising: With the confluence of weather, tires, track conditions and the Chase pressure, it was not surprising that the record for the number of cautions was broken at Kansas Speedway with a total of fifteen. In fact, there were 71 laps run under caution, a new record for the season.

“We had a lot of gremlins this weekend,” Brad Keselowski, reigning champ and driver of the No. 2 Miller Lite Ford said. “There were so many wrecks and so many yellows that we could never really get going.”

“Oh yeah, we couldn’t get in a rhythm out there.”

The Cup Series next travels to Charlotte for the Bank of America 500 under the Saturday night lights.

October 8, 2013
Surprising and Not Surprising: Dover AAA 400

Under picture perfect skies in the Delmarva, here is what was surprising and not surprising in the 44^th annual AAA 400 at Dover International Speedway.

Surprising: Probably the biggest surprise was that the ‘monster’ that usually lurks at the track known as the ‘Monster Mile’ was nowhere to be found.

In fact, at a track where one driver’s misfortune can also collect others in the process, there were but 4 cautions for 21 laps, including 3 cautions for debris and one for fluid on the track from the Blue Deuce of Brad Keselowski.

“I’m not exactly sure what happened but something in the rear end housing went out and burned itself up,” the reigning champ said. “We tried to get off the track as fast as we could with the Miller Lite Ford to not bring out a yellow, but obviously wasn’t quite quick enough.”

“We’re getting all of our bad luck out of the way this year.”

Not Surprising: When your driver breaks record after record, including surpassing Richard Petty and Bobby Allison for eight wins at Dover, it is not surprising that the crew chief is proud. But Chad Knaus was absolutely effusive when it came time to talk about his driver Jimmie Johnson.

“It’s been an honor to be able to work with Jimmie over the course of the years,” Knaus said. “I think he’s able to pull out some things that are pretty spectacular.”

“He’s able to dig deeper, pull out his cape, make things happen in winning moments of these races that other people cannot do,” Knaus continued. “It’s pretty spectacular.”

“I think Jimmie is probably the most underrated champion we have in this industry,” Knaus said. “He is by far and above the most powerful driver over the course of the last 25, 35 years in this sport.”

Surprising: Dale Earnhardt Jr. emerged from his second place run at the ‘Monster Mile’ with a renewed confidence and an obvious fire in his belly to get to Victory Lane.

“I feel we’ve been able to really show what our team’s capable of,” the driver of the No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet said. “The changes we’re making, everything seems to be going in the direction you want.”

“We came really close today,” Junior continued. “I don’t feel like today was a highlight for us.”

“I think this is how it’s supposed to be every week.”

Not Surprising: With his eye out the front windshield, it was not surprising that Joey Logano, who finished third had no idea what happened to his teammate Brad Keselowski. In fact, he did not even want to take the time to find out, adopting his version of a ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy.

“I try not to ask questions,” the driver of the No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Chevrolet said. “I know for me, when I talk on the radio, I slow down a lot.”

Surprising: In spite of a pit crew swap with RCR-alliance Nationwide team partners, Kurt Busch had issues, again with a loose wheel. The driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Chevrolet finished a disappointing 21^st, the second lowest of all of the Chase drivers, losing two Chase positions from seventh to ninth.

“A loose wheel did us in,” Busch said. “Nothing went our way today.”

“This is the Chase and you can’t afford to have these problems,” Busch continued. “We need to regroup and get it together for Kansas next week.”

Not Surprising: While certainly disappointed to not be in Victory Lane, Kyle Busch was not surprisingly satisfied with his third straight top-five finishes in the Chase to date.

“Certainly, I wish we definitely could have gotten more,” the driver of the No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota said. “We were about a fifth to seventh-place car much of the day and we ended up fifth.”

“The Interstate Batteries Camry got what it could out of it.”

Surprising: As a last minute addition to the Chase, it has been surprising to see Jeff Gordon progress in the way that he has, in fact climbing out of the basement to the fifth place in the standings due to his fourth place finish at Dover.

But even more surprising was the fact that the driver was having such a great time just watching his teammates battle for the win.

“All in all, it was a great day for the Axalta Chevrolet,” Gordon said. “I was having fun.”

“Congrats to Jimmie as he’s so tough here,” Gordon continued. “It was a great job by Junior too.”

“That was fun to watch.”

Not Surprising: When a driver competing for the championship has mechanical failures, it is not surprising that he becomes one of NASCAR’s biggest losers. But even with that, there is no quit for the driver of the No. 99 Fastenal Ford.

And in this case, Carl Edwards, who experienced a broken left-rear hub, finished the worst of all Chasers in 35^th, plummeting from fourth to eleventh in the standings.

“We did not need to have that trouble,” Edwards said. “Something broke in the left-rear, so that’s tough.”

“Overall, we gave it the best effort we could,” Edwards continued. “We don’t quit.”

Surprising: After convincingly clinching the first two races in the Chase, it was surprising that the driver of the No. 20 Home Depot ‘Let’s Do This’ Toyota pronounced his seventh place finish ‘decent.’

“We kind of missed it today,” Matt Kenseth said. “We got caught with being the last on two tires and restarting on the inside, which was really bad.”

“Still salvaged a respectable finish, but certainly I wanted to do better than that.”

Not Surprising: Even with his sponsor, 5-Hour Energy, renewing their relationship and in spite of his positive, image-enhancing yoga event for Living Beyond Breast Cancer prior to the race, Clint Bowyer was resoundingly booed by the crowd at the Monster Mile during driver introductions.

The driver of the No. 15 Raspberry5hourEnergyLivingBeyondBreastCancer Toyota finished top ten and moved two positions up in the standings to the eighth spot.

Surprising: Jamie McMurray followed up his top-five run at New Hampshire Motor Speedway with an eleventh place finish at the Monster Mile. And with that, the driver of the No. 1 Liftmaster Chevrolet pronounced his season ‘pretty good.’

“Yeah, it’s been good,” McMurray said. “I think our cars have been even better than what they were in 2010 when we won some big races.”

“We were able to hit on a few things that has really worked well for us at a variety of different tracks.”

Not Surprising: With nothing to lose after losing his Chase spot, Martin Truex Jr. was proud of the ‘Hail Mary’ that he and his crew threw at the No. 56 NAPA Shocks Toyota Camry, finishing 15^th.

“Chad (Johnston, crew chief) took a real chance with our set up and I am proud of him for it,” Truex Jr. said. “We had nothing to lose and everything to gain.”

“Sometimes you have to think outside the box.”

September 30, 2013

Brad KESELOWSKI

Juan Pablo MONTOYA

Jamie MCMURRAY

Brian VICKERS

Paul MENARD

This grading system is pretty basic. Top 10’s, with extra consideration given for wins and Top 5’s, can help you earn an A+. Keep it in the Top 20 each race and that is worth a B. Just by finishing 30^th each time out and that would still get you a C-. Less than that is a failure; a failure to compete, a failure to get noticed.

Grade: A

The top students have been to joy to have in class, even though Jimmie did cost himself an A+ by playing hookey in the weeks leading to the Chase. We are hopeful Kyle continues his stellar work through the final part of the year, though he has had trouble in the past. Matt has really hit the books as of late, and could wind up class valedictorian if he continues his progress. Carl once again is near the head of the class, but time will tell if can charge to the front to finally be number one.

CAR	DRIVER	WINS	TOP 5	TOP 10	TOP 20	TOP 30
48	Jimmie JOHNSON	4	11	17	21	25
18	Kyle BUSCH	4	13	17	20	22
20	Matt KENSETH	7	8	15	21	24
99	Carl EDWARDS	2	8	14	24	26

Grade: A-

Kevin has been in the top half of the class pretty much the entire year and only twice has the dog eaten his homework. Clint is usually a very popular boy, but for some reason I detect that many of his classmates do not want him to wind up at the head of the class this year.

CAR	DRIVER	WINS	TOP 5	TOP 10	TOP 20	TOP 30
29	Kevin HARVICK	2	7	14	25	25
15	Clint BOWYER	0	8	14	24	26

Grade: B+

Kurt, who usually does not play well with others, has some cheering for him. It will be interesting how he works with his new friends when class resumes next year. Kasey had some trouble last week, as did little Joey a week earlier. Dale is once again a very popular boy while Ryan has had some issues to work through, but seems to have replaced former friends with some new ones for next year. Martin has had some problems as well due to the company he keeps, and I am not sure how that will work out. Greg remains a solid student, with Mark helping Tony since he hurt his leg. Meanwhile, Jeff needed some help near the end of the term, though I am not sure it will be enough for him to realize his dreams by the end of the school year.

CAR	DRIVER	WINS	TOP 5	TOP 10	TOP 20	TOP 30
78	Kurt BUSCH	0	9	14	20	23
5	Kasey KAHNE	2	8	11	18	20
22	Joey LOGANO	1	8	14	19	23
88	Dale EARNHARDT, Jr	0	5	15	21	24
39	Ryan NEWMAN	1	6	13	21	22
56	Martin TRUEX, Jr	1	6	12	21	23
16	Greg BIFFLE	1	4	11	23	24
14	Tony STEWART	1	5	10	19	27
24	Jeff GORDON	0	5	13	21	22

Grade: B

It has been a disappointing year for some students. Brad has stumbled a bit since being last year’s valedictorian. Juan Pablo plans to transfer out of our school next year, returning to where he had previously enjoyed very good grades. His friend Jamie will remain with us, and has hopes of improving his status next year. Mark has been busy, first helping Brian earlier this year and now Tony. I am expecting good things when Brian returns full-time next year. Along with Paul, they might not make the honor roll this year, but these boys have done enough work to show they belong here.

Grade: B-

Aric has shown signs that we might expect better things ahead for him. Jeff, as always, was expecting more. As he leaves us a year early, we will miss this well spoken young man.

CAR	DRIVER	WINS	TOP 5	TOP 10	TOP 20	TOP 30
43	Aric ALMIROLA	0	1	5	22	24
31	Jeff BURTON	0	2	6	17	23

Grade: C+

Marcos and Ricky have been okay, though not great. They both manage to get their work done, but I still would like to see better things from them before the year is out.

CAR	DRIVER	WINS	TOP 5	TOP 10	TOP 20	TOP 30
9	Marcos AMBROSE	0	0	5	19	23
17	Ricky STENHOUSE, Jr	0	0	2	20	25

Grade: C

I do not know what to say about Denny. I know he was hurt earlier in the year, but he has not been his old self since he returned. It appears he would just as soon end the year, go on vacation, and start afresh next year.

CAR	DRIVER	WINS	TOP 5	TOP 10	TOP 20	TOP 30
11	Denny HAMLIN	0	3	6	12	19

Grade: C-

Casey is not quite ready to compete with the big boys just yet, but I have been pleased with his progress. I am interested to see how he might do next year. I will miss Bobby, though he has had another disappointing year. Some seem happy with Danica’s progress, but I feel we should expect more by this time. She is blessed with so much more than a lot of the other students. David did succeed on the subject of Alabama geography, with some help from his close friend, the other David, but neither are quite there yet. As for A.J., who sometimes goes by Regan or Austin or, just last week, by Michael, might make some real progress once he figures out who he really is.

CAR	DRIVER	WINS	TOP 5	TOP 10	TOP 20	TOP 30
13	Casey MEARS	0	0	1	9	23
47	Bobby LABONTE	0	0	1	8	21
10	Danica PATRICK	0	0	1	6	23
34	David RAGAN	1	1	1	4	21
38	David GILLILAND	0	1	1	5	20
51	A.J. ALLMENDINGER	0	0	2	7	18

Grade: F

To be honest, I am not sure why these boys are even in my class. Both Dave and Travis, I am sure, would do so much better at Nationwide High. What can you say about J.J. (other than he enjoyed Daytona seven months ago), David S. (who just isn’t the same boy the past two weeks), David R. or Timmy? No, really. What can you say about them? Well, I’ve seen worse. I feel bad for Trevor, as I think if he would attend class more often he might be able to pull in a better grade than this. However, to be fair, of the nine assignments he has done, none have been much to write home about. As for Landon, things just don’t seem to work out. He and Tony R. have done most of the assignments for Austin, which is too bad as the young fellow has done so much better on the two he has written on his own. There are other students who drop in from time to time, but I have reserved my remarks for those who have tried to attend class at least nine times this year. God bless Scott, Michael, Joe, and Mike, but if the school board ever considers reducing class size, they make a good argument. To be honest, they usually do not stick around long enough to become a nuisance. The sad thing is, all four have ability but you never get to see it.

CAR	DRIVER	WINS	TOP 5	TOP 10	TOP 20	TOP 30
7	Dave BLANEY	0	0	0	2	18
93	Travis KVAPIL	0	0	0	4	15
36	J.J. YELEY	0	0	1	2	14
30	David STREMME	0	0	0	4	13
83	David REUTIMANN	0	0	0	1	14
32	Timmy HILL	0	0	0	2	12
21	Trevor BAYNE	0	0	0	4	8
40	Landon CASSILL	0	0	0	4	8
33	Austin DILLON	0	0	0	2	12
95	Scott SPEED	0	0	1	1	3
98	Michael MCDOWELL	0	0	1	1	2
87	Joe NEMECHEK	0	0	0	0	3
19	Mike BLISS	0	0	0	0	1

September 24, 2013

History Says That Title Hopes May Be Over For Earnhardt & Logano

Joey Logano and Dale Earnhardt Jr. were both having respectable runs at Chicagoland until their races went up in smoke…literally. Engine failures ended their days prematurely and the pair brought home disappointing results of 35th and 37th in the chase opener. The rain delay that forced NASCAR to finish at night definitely had a deleterious effect on the engines which may have consequently ended the dreams of two championship hopefuls very early in this chase…the nose damage to the No.88 may have been the reason for Dale’s motor giving up though. Whatever the reason, the fact is that these two are now 52 and 53 points back of the leader which is a margin that will certainly be difficult to make up. Can it be done? Of course it can; especially with Talladega on the schedule but history says that they can’t do it.

Last Place In Points After Chase Race #1

2012: Jeff Gordon was 47pts out and went on to finish 10th in the standings

2011: Denny Hamlin was 41pts out and went on to finish 9th in the standings

2010: Clint Bowyer went on to finish 10th in the standings with the old points system

2009: Kasey Kahne went on to finish 10th in the standings

2008: Matt Kenseth went on to finish 11th in the standings

2007: Kurt Busch went on to finish 7th in the standings

2006: Kyle Busch went on to finish 10th in the standings (10 Driver Chase Field)

2005: Kurt Busch went on to finish 10th in the standings

2004: Jeremy Mayfield went on to finish 10th in the standings

If the pattern continues, these two will most likely finish 9th or worse in points this year. The deficit they now face is more than a race’s worth of points but if they can be spot on the rest of the season while others use up their mulligans; they can definitely work their way back into contention. Unfortunately, I don’t see Earnhardt or Logano being able to put together nine consecutive perfect races although a large contingent of the NASCAR fan base, aka JR Nation would argue otherwise.

Eventual Champion’s Points Position After Chase Race #1

2004: 1st

2005: 1st

2006: 9th

2007: 1st

2008: 1st

2009: 2nd

2010: 6th

2011: 2nd

2012: 1st

History also tells us that Matt Kenseth or Kyle Busch will most likely come away with the championship this year. Only twice in the chase’s nine year history has the eventual champion left the first race worse than 2nd in points. On both occasions, it was 5-time champ Jimmie Johnson. That 9th place in ’06 really stands and it was only a ten person chase at that time so how did Jimmie come back to win the title after that? He had five consecutive top two finishes at the end of the year; that’s how. With six races to go; he was still back in 8th spot. It would take an incredible run like the one Johnson had to put yourself back into contention for the championship after a dismal start to the chase.

We used to talk about mulligans in the chase and how everyone has one that they can use. That’s no longer the case. With how competitive the Sprint Cup Series has become, you have to be perfect with no mistakes in every single race from Chicagoland all the way to Homestead. In 2011, Carl Edwards finished 2nd in the final three races of the year, led laps in eight of the ten chase races, put together seven top five’s, nine top 10’s and his worst finish in those ten weeks was 11th but it still wasn’t enough to win the championship!

I think this year’s chase is going to be the most competitive one ever. I feel that there are about ten drivers with a legitimate shot at the title but Kenseth, Kyle Busch and Johnson are the obvious favorites. Those three also dominated the regular season but when we left Richmond; it was Carl Edwards leading the points so it’s anyone’s guess who will hoist the Cup in November. I believe that this chase will be about survival and winning will be a necessity to keep your title hopes alive. It will come down to the final race, the final laps and maybe even the last corner of the last lap.

September 18, 2013
Surprising and Not Surprising: Geico 400 at Chicagoland

After a wild week of penalties, shakeups to the Chase line up, and a lengthy rain delay to boot, here is what else was surprising and not surprising in the first race of the Chase, the Geico 400 at Chicagoland Speedway.

Surprising: While it was surprising that the race was run in its entirety, albeit into the wee hours of the night, the biggest surprise was the impact of the change from day to night on the engines, forcing two of the Chasers right into the basement of the standings as a result.

Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the No. 88 Time Warner Cable Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports, and Joey Logano, behind the wheel of the No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford for Penske Racing, both had catastrophic engine failures, finishing 35^th and 37^th respectively.

Even more devastating, Logano lost six positions in the standings to the 12^th spot and Junior lost four positions falling to the newly formed 13^th Chase position. Both are not only in the basement spots in the standings but also over 50 points behind leader Matt Kenseth.

“I’m pretty angry,” Logano said after dropping out of the race. “That was such a fast race car but unfortunately the motor blew up.”

“It is a bummer to have it in the Chase when you are running for a championship,” Logano continued. “It just wasn’t our day I guess.”

“I’m not really sure if it was motor or transmission, but it has got us sitting on the sidelines,” Junior said. “Something broke there in the motor.”

“It’s tough,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “It’s going to be really hard to win a championship this far behind.”

Not Surprising: Coach and team owner Joe Gibbs not surprisingly reacted as a proud papa when it came time to visit one of his drivers in Victory Lane and the other in the runner up role.

JGR racer Matt Kenseth scored his first ever win at Chicagoland and his career best sixth win for the season while Kyle Busch missed the weekend sweep by just one position, bringing his JGR Toyota home in the second spot.

“We won the race tonight,” Gibbs said. “We were one and two there.”

“My wife probably said it best, she said it’s like having babies, they’re all great,” Gibbs continued. “That’s the way you feel about it.”

Surprising: Two future Stewart Haas Racing teammates and yes, lame duck Chase contenders both, had a surprisingly good battle going between the two of them late in the race, with Kevin Harvick finishing third and Kurt Busch finishing fourth.

“Yeah we had a lot of fun,” the driver of the No. 29 Budweiser Designate a Driver Chevrolet, said. “Came up a couple short, but a good day.”

“Yeah, we had a battle with Harvick and we brought our Chevy home in fourth,” Kurt Busch said. “Top fives are what it’s all about in the Chase so one down and nine to go.”

Not Surprising: He’s back……After a four-week downward spiral of twentieth place finishes or worse, Jimmie Johnson and team No. 48 got their mojo back, finishing top-five and representing the Hendrick Motorsports in the third position in the Chase standings, just eleven points behind the leader.

Even more impressive, although not surprising, the No. 48 bunch had to overcome two problematic episodes on pit road to regain their forward momentum.

“From a jack failing to a call on pit road for a lug nut that was not supposedly on, and a variety of issues, it was a great comeback,” Johnson said. “We wanted to finish better of course, but we’re very proud of all the hard work from Hendrick Motorsports, Chad Knaus, and this No. 48 Lowe’s race team.”

“We’re off to a good start.”

Surprising: Apparently a little off-track action was all that was needed to score another surprising top-10 finish, at least for Rookie of the Year contender Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

“We started the race and thought we were in big trouble,” Stenhouse Jr. said. “Luckily after the rain delay, it kind of helped our car turn a little bit better and we were able to get an eighth place finish.”

“Yes, we went to Sonic,” Stenhouse Jr. continued, describing his drive-through rain delay adventure. “Gave me a little bit of energy.”

“Took a nap and really played it out well.”

Not Surprising: For someone who came to the Chase party a bit late and who also may have been up a bit past his veteran bedtime, Jeff Gordon was not only wired after his sixth place finish, but he looked like he could actually run another race or two.

“Well, that was an incredible accomplishment,” the driver of the No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet, said after his top ten finish which propelled him into the seventh spot in the Chase standings. “It just shows how much fight this team has in them.”

“Can’t wait to get to this next race,” Gordon continued. “Where is it? Loudon? We’re ready!”

Surprising: Although not in the Chase, the reigning champ had a surprisingly good run, scoring the highest finish for the Ford Camp at Chicagoland. Brad Keselowski, driver of the Blue Deuce, took the checkered flag in the seventh position.

“I think we were probably a top-five car,” Keselowski said. “I don’t know if I had anything for the 20 or 18.”

“It was hard to tell because we never got a shot to find out.”

Not Surprising: In addition to Logano’s engine failure, the other Ford Chasers did not fare well either. Carl Edwards, in the No. 99 Fastenal Ford, finished 11^th and Greg Biffle, behind the wheel of the No. 16 Post-It Ford Fusion, finished 16^th.

“There are a couple of things I wish I could take back,” Edwards said. “We were just missing something at this style of race track.”

“That was a rough night,” Biffle said. “We had major issues.”

“That wasn’t our best night.”

Surprising: Young up and coming driver Cole Whitt had a surprisingly fiery Cup debut for Swan Racing. His No. 30 Swan Racing/Lean 1 Toyota, had an engine failure that resulted in quite the fire ball.

“It just jumped out of gear on the front stretch and blew up,” Whitt said. “It’s not the debut I was looking for at Swan Racing but I look forward to continuing to work with them.”

Not Surprising: After a cut tire resulted in a 32^nd place finish, it was not surprising that Juan Pablo Montoya announced that he would be ending his NASCAR career at the end of the 2013 season and heading back to the IndyCar Series.

Montoya will be racing for the Captain, Roger Penske, joining teammates Will Power and Helio Castroneves back in the open wheel ranks.

“I’m really excited,” JPM said. “If you really dream of any ideal position for a driver, and you could say, you could race for Penske, I think that would be No. 1.”

“And you know ‑‑ when I heard and it was announced that I wasn’t going to be in the 42 car next year, my No. 1 choice was going to be in a winning car,” Montoya continued. “I really want to be in a winning car.”

Surprising: In spite of spinning twice, Justin Allgaier loved every minute of his 27^th place run in his Cup debut with Phoenix Racing in the No. 51 Brandt Chevrolet.

“There have been a lot of drivers who have come through and raced in the sport’s top tier,” Allgaier said. “For me, it’s a cool feeling to know my name will go on that list of drivers to run a Sprint Cup Series race.”

“There are so many names of guys that I looked up to and respected,” Allgaier continued. “I’m excited to get there.”

Not Surprising: In spite of the rain delay, with the red flag lasting five hours, ten minutes and 21 seconds, at least one driver recognized that the fans were the real heroes at Chicagoland Speedway.

“Matt (Borland, crew chief) and the guys were able to discuss strategy with the break we had, and they made some good adjustments once we went back racing,” Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 39 Quicken Loans Chevrolet said. “I’m glad we were able to get the whole race in.”

“And I’ve got to thank the fans that stuck it out to see the finish.”

September 17, 2013
The Final Word – Matt takes Chicago, Jimmie to take Loudon, leaving Junior and Joey to split the final eight?

After the week’s worth of who is in, who is not, who has been naughty, who has been wronged, we got back to racing. Sadly, the most exciting thing about the day was watching Kyle, Larry, and Kenny discuss the week that was. The race, for me, turned out to be a bit of a let down.

One lap kind of looked like the last one, that looked like the next one. The contenders moved into the front half of the pack and other than an official messing up Jimmie Johnson’s pit stop and Kurt Busch caught speeding, there was not much drama in the proceedings.

Then the rains came. Five hours went by before things got back on track, by which time we caught the PGA event taking place about 70 miles north of Chicagoland, at least until they got washed out. We got to view some NFL action, at least when lightening was not delaying things in Tampa and Seattle. We had time to see the Yankees taking on the Red Sox. Well, not enough time, as I had to watch that game finish before they returned to the race track.

I could have watched it live on computer or got Sirius about it, but I thought I would wait for the tape delayed version after the ball game. I should have known better, but like Clint I just sat there and scratched my arm. The race returned, live and in progress and with just 50 laps left.

I know, I should dwell on the fact Matt Kenseth increased his points lead by winning his career high sixth race of the season. With his 30th career triumph he now sits eight points up on Chicago runner-up Kyle Busch. There was Jimmie Johnson, just 11 points out, after recovering from a failed jack as well as the official problems on pit road, to bring it home fifth. I could seek happiness at the discovery Joey Logano had blown up and would finish 37th, but then Karma bit my butt.

Dale Earnhardt Jr was leading when the action returned to my screen. He then pitted and was buried way, way back, but not for long. He blew up spectacularly in a huge white plume to finish 35th and, like Logano, sits more than 50 points out.

For the rest of the Chasers, they took the top six positions, ten of the top dozen, with Greg Biffle bringing up the rear among those who did not explode in 16th spot. The Biff is 11th in the standings, 31 points in arrears. Still, nobody is out of it yet if history tells us anything.

Rating Chicago – 6/10 – Maybe it just rained on my parade. Kenseth fans no doubt thought it one heck of a great contest.

In 2006, Jimmie Johnson started the Chase by finishing 39th at Chicago, though his 10.8 average Chase finish that year was the worst of the nine among series winners. Over the past six seasons, the eventual champion has averaged 3 Chase wins, 8 Top Tens, and 9 Top Twenties and an average finish of better than seventh. For Junior and Joey fans, that means a Top Five next Sunday would not be good enough.

Now that we have put the controversy of the past week behind us, I wonder if the boys at Michael Waltrip Racing get it just yet? The boss seems to, saying they now know what they can do and what they can not. Clint Bowyer might, though his reputation takes a hit for the perception he can do one thing then lie about the circumstances surrounding what happened. To be honest, he would have been some kind of idiot to confess right after Richmond what he had done. It is like the teacher asking you about your homework assignment, and you reply how the family pet digested it. Clint didn’t raise a stink in his car, the dog did it. We have all been there. He will be forgiven, in time. Just not in enough time to see many wanting him to take the title this year.

Martin Truex Jr does not get it. He figures if Ryan Newman gets in, he should, too. Wrong. He might not have done something wrong, but his organization did. It is the same as when a car has an illegal set up and the team gets sanctioned. The driver may have been an angel, but he gets penalized just the same. To be honest, with MWR being something of a pariah at the moment, no one really gives a damn what they want. As for Brian Vickers, he says he would do the same thing again if asked, which only means he does not mind running for negative points. What they did was fix the outcome of the race, and no professional sport allows that. If he did not get the memo, NASCAR has just reminded everyone that they will no longer tolerate it. End of story.

Thus Sunday, it is off to Loudon and the New Hampshire Motor Speedway, and Chasers have done well there. Three time winners include Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Ryan Newman and Kurt Busch. Bowyer has won there twice, while victory has been celebrated by Logano, Biffle, Kasey Kahne, Kevin Harvick, and Kyle Busch. If fact, the only ones who have never done so are Carl Edwards, Junior, and Kenseth. As for having the best average finish there over his career, it could be a good day for Jimmie Johnson. Enjoy the week.

September 16, 2013
My 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship Predictions

Once we get past all the chaos and controversy surrounding Richmond; it becomes apparent that we still have a championship battle to talk about! Thirteen…yes, thirteen racers will battle tooth and nail for the coveted Sprint Cup trophy and they have ten races to get it done. This chase lacks Tony Stewart, Denny Hamlin and reigning champion Brad Keselowski but it still features some of NASCAR’s heavyweights. Four champions, six Daytona 500 winners and eight teams make up the 2013 chase field. No one has shown immunity to bad luck this season; not even 5-time champion Jimmie Johnson and I could certainly see this coming down to three or five man race at Homestead, much like what we saw in 2004. It’s going to be a great battle!

1.) Matt Kenseth – 5 Wins & 2003 NSCS Champion

Matt Kenseth has been known to quietly click away solid finishes race after race and have sub-par efforts in qualifying seeing that the “go fast for two lap thing” has never really been Matt’s forte. All that changed when he joined Joe Gibbs Racing this year. Matt has made his presence known and has asserted himself as one of the guys you have to go through if you want to win the championship. It’s almost like Roush-Fenway was holding him back. The Achilles Heel of this team may be the lingering TRD engine issues although they have gotten it under control for the most part. Matt is a top five and top ten machine which is why he’s finished 8th or higher in the standings in nine of the last eleven years. He has proven that he’s fully capable of being a title threat and I’ll be very surprised if he’s not a contender.

2.) Jimmie Johnson – 4 Wins & 5-time NSCS Champion (’06, ’07, ’08, ’09, ’10)

The untouchable No.48 team has been vulnerable this year. Their immunity to bad luck has ceased and their rivals are excited to take them on. A recurring thing you heard at Chase Media Day was that drivers thought they can beat Jimmie and they said that with a big grin on their face. This is the guy everybody compares themselves with. If you can beat him, then you definitely have a shot at it! Don’t fool yourself into believing that this rash of bad luck has enervated this team. They have endured their fair share of bad luck in 2013 but it was while they were running up front and for the win so don’t think for a second that they are under performing this year. They just aren’t quite as lucky. If fate was kinder, Johnson could be starting the chase with eight or nine wins. As for momentum going into the chase; Jimmie Johnson doesn’t need momentum. He becomes a winning machine that can do no wrong when the playoffs start. Only time will tell if the this group becomes that indestructible winning machine that all their competitors fear or if the bad luck that has plagued the No.48 carries over into the post-season. One thing for certain is that you can never count out Jimmie Johnson and that elite No.48 team.

3.) Kyle Busch – 4 Wins & Best Points Finish of 5th (2007)

Rowdy Busch. Some love him, many hate him but no one can deny the fact that he’s a heck of a wheel man. Kyle has never fared too well in the chase and last year, he missed out on the post-season by 1pt but went on to score enough points in the ten race stretch that would have given him a 3rd place finish in the championship. The chase is primarily made up of large, high speed banked ovals which bodes well for Busch and his teammate, Matt Kenseth. JGR has excelled at those venues this year with six of their combined nine wins coming at those kind of tracks. Kyle has always had issues handling adversity and it will be interesting to see if he falls apart and makes imprudent decisions should things get tempestuous for him at some point in this chase. I believe 2013 will be the best chase result of Kyle’s career.

4.) Kevin Harvick – 2 Wins & Best Points Finish of 3rd (’10 & ’11)

Kevin Harvick has once again made his way into the chase without many people noticing. “The Closer” not only comes out of nowhere at the end of races but he also has an uncanny way of making his way into the top five in points at the end of the season on multiple occasions without anyone realizing it. I don’t see a championship for Kevin this year but I wouldn’t put it past him. This “lame duck” wants to deliver Richard Childress his first Cup title since 1994 and he’s got one last chance to get it done.

5.) Carl Edwards – 2 Wins & Best Points Finish of 2nd (’08 & ’11)

He’s tied for 2nd, he’s finished 2nd and he’s tied for 1st….guess what comes next? I believe it’s only a matter of time before Cousin Carl, as Kenny Schrader would call him, hoists the trophy in Miami at the end of the season. Carl is one of those drivers who is a champion waiting in the wings. It will come with time. His consistency is what won him the unofficial title of regular season champion and his consistency also helped him stay neck-and-neck with Tony Stewart in 2011. Despite the two wins, Carl hasn’t shown that he can contend for wins on a regular basis but should the other drivers use up their mulligans while he keeps clicking away top 10’s and top 5’s, he may very well find himself in the middle of the title fight.

6.) Joey Logano – 1 Win & Best Points Finish of 16th (2010)

Penske Racing got one driver in the chase this year…and it wasn’t Brad Keselowski. Joey Logano has truly impressed me this year with his tenacity and the way he and this No.22 camp have handled adversity. Joey has won the pole for the first chase race and he seems to have found his niche in the form of large, high banked ovals. Lucky for him, that’s 50% of the chase races. He will win at least one race in the chase in my opinion and I see him as a dark horse. You wouldn’t normally look at Logano as title threat seeing that he’s never gotten a top 15 points finish but he could surprise a few people. His inexperience in this kind of situation may be what hurts him in the end though.

7.) Greg Biffle – 1 Win & Best Points Finish of 2nd (2005)

I doubt Greg Biffle can win the championship this year. He has spent the majority of his season around 8th-10th in points and I don’t expect that to change in the chase. He only has three top five finishes in the first 26 races and ten top 10’s. Those are the lowest numbers of anyone in the top 13 in points right now. The Fords seem very strong at Chicagoland so I wouldn’t be surprised to see him win one of the 1.5 milers but other than that, I really don’t expect Greg to make much noise in the chase this year.

8.) Clint Bowyer – 0 Wins & Best Points Finish of 2nd (2012)

Would I be exaggerating if I said this guy has a lot of attention on him going into Chicagoland? I thought not. Clint Bowyer and his race team have been the headline on every major news outlet this week for all the wrong reasons. He was grilled by multiple ESPN reporters, booed by fans at NASCAR Contenders LIVE, harassed by thousands of incensed people on Twitter and even criticized by his fellow competitors. His integrity has been called into question after a spin that many believe to be deliberate and his intentions with seven laps to go were incontrovertible to most but Bowyer denies it. Clint says that all this negative attention has him determined more than ever to win it all. The usually loquacious Clint is ready to just put that helmet on and go to work. He has spent most of 2013 near the top of the standings despite failing to reach victory lane. I don’t think all this drama will affect him while he’s racing. I wouldn’t bet against it hurting his team though. Distractions are never a good thing in sports. I would say Clint can be a contender just like he was in 2012 but some disgruntled drivers that didn’t take too kindly to what went down may make sure that a championship for the No.15 doesn’t happen this year. It will be interesting to see how Bowyer is treated by other drivers once we get to racing at Chicagoland..

9.) Dale Earnhardt Jr. – 0 Wins & Best Points Finish of 3rd (2003)

Dale Jr. has consistency but he isn’t up there mixing it up for victories every week like his teammate Jimmie Johnson and even Kasey Kahne are. They need to take it up a notch if they want to hold their own against Johnson, Kenseth and Kyle Busch in this chase. If they can’t do that, then I don’t see Jr. getting anything higher than 5th or 6th this year.

10.) Kurt Busch – 0 Wins & 2004 NSCS Champion

Here we have the first “single car” team to ever make the chase. Despite their strong technical alliance with Richard Childress Racing, they are still considered a single car operation. Do not make the foolish mistake of underestimating Kurt Busch or this well funding race team though. The tenacity and raw talent of this proven champion is undeniable and he can most certainly win the championship this year….if he had a better pit crew. When the pressure’s on, the No.78 crew almost always drops the ball and costs Kurt valuable spots. NASCAR is a team sport and if you have a pit crew that isn’t getting the job done, it doesn’t matter if you have a Dale Earnhardt caliber guy wheeling the No.48 with Junior Johnson on top of the pit box…you still won’t win. They have two crew guys so hopefully, he doesn’t encounter as many costly issues on pit road. If his pit crew can get it together, Kurt can be a serious threat for the championship before he departs for Stewart-Haas Racing at the end of the year.

11.) Kasey Kahne – 2 Wins & Best Points Finish of 4th (2012)

Kasey Kahne was my pick to win the title back in March and I wouldn’t be surprised if he proved me right. If fate was kinder (and if Kasey was more aggressive), he could have at least five wins right now. He has four runner-up finishes this year; three of which came down to half a second or less. He also crashed while leading Michigan, Darlington and while going three wide for the lead with two laps to go at the July Daytona race. Kasey’s kindness on track though may pay dividends during the chase when he’s racing around guys not in the running that remember his courtesy while racing them earlier in the year. On the flip side, it may also tempt drivers his battling to use him up not thinking there will be any repercussions. In my eyes, Kasey can win the championship this year if the stars align.

12.) Ryan Newman – 1 Win & Best Points Finish of 6th (’02, ’03 & ’05)

Ryan wasn’t a chaser until Monday night which seemed crazy until Jeff Gordon had to go and outdo him by being added to the chase as the 13th seed less than 48 hours before the first chase race! Ryan is motivated and motivation always seems to have an uncanny way of giving a driver a few extra horsepower. Can he hold his own against Busch, Johnson and Kenseth? I doubt it but be assured that the Rocket Man will go all out and leave nothing on the table before his release from Stewart-Haas Racing. Ryan has been fired and replaced because Gene Haas believes Kurt is a better driver. He’s also been called an ogre, had an airborne car land on top of him, been cheated out of his 18th career win, knocked out of the chase before being put back in two days later and even watched his good friend and current owner break his leg in a Sprint Car crash….yeah; it’s been an interesting year to be Ryan Newman to say the least. He will make some noise in this chase probably by winning at one of the flat tracks that he;s always so good at and I see him having his best points finish since 2005.

13.) Jeff Gordon – O Wins & 4-time NSCS Champion (’95, ’97, ’98, ’01)

Well, who saw this coming? You aren’t supposed to be here! One of unluckiest guys in the garage got a once in a life time break Friday when he was added to the chase as a 13th seed. It would be an auspicious time for Jeff to go buy a lottery ticket right now…although he obviously doesn’t need it. I am hoping that he somehow goes on a tear in the chase, becomes a contender and that we go to Homestead with Kansas Clint and 4-time 1-2 in points. In reality though, I don’t see Jeff making much of an impact on the 2013 chase at all. He is fully capable of being a 5-time champion talent wise but all the pieces team and luck wise just aren’t there. This was a nice gesture by NASCAR but Jeff’s team is not championship caliber in 2013….I think he will spend the last 10 races in the back half of the chase field.

My Three Championship Picks

Kasey Kahne: Why Kasey? I have liked what I’ve seen out of him this year with the speed he’s shown on both 1.5 milers and short tracks. I also like the chemistry he has with long time crew chief Kenny Francis. When it comes to the best driver/crew chief combos in the garage; these two are near the top of the list. Kasey is also able to keep a level head in difficult situations and get all he can out of the car without risking his whole race; necessities for a championship hopeful. Bad luck and JGR drivers running him over has been his only noticeable weakness in 2013.

Kurt Busch: You want to talk about determination? You want to talk about someone that will drive their guts out and finish 10 spots higher than the car he’s driving should? That would be Kurt Busch. That No.78 has been blistering fast at every kind of track this year; they have no bad track. Kurt has completely changed as a person and for the better. No longer does he act churlish towards the media, fans and his team when things get rough. In fact, he’s become one of the most optimistic people out there when things go awry. If Furniture Row wasn’t trying to resolve their pit crew issues, then I’d be counting Kurt out but they’ve already replaced a front tire changer and tire carrier. If Kurt has a solid pit crew, he can win it all.

Jimmie Johnson: Do I really need to say why? You can never count out 5-time and like I said earlier, his win column could be in the double digits this year if it weren’t for bad luck. Like always, he is fast everywhere and his team is solid as a rock. Performing at a super-human level during the chase is something embedded deep within the DNA of everyone on this race team. Chad Knaus is very fastidious and will make sure everything that he can possibly control is in his control. Jimmie doesn’t need momentum to be on his side. He doesn’t even need a good start to the chase. Nothing phases the 5-time champ and that’s why he is one of my three favorites to win the 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup championship?

Feel free to post your picks below or to comment on mine!

September 15, 2013
NASCAR and the Ripple Effect

This past week has been unprecedented and historic for the sport of NASCAR, with the sanctioning body announcing the two major penalties, the first for Michael Waltrip Racing on Monday and then Friday announcing probation for Penske and Front Row Motorsports, as well as the historic placement of a thirteenth driver into the Chase, Jeff Gordon.

In spite of these machinations, twists and turns this past week, there has been one constant throughout, the ripple effect.

So, what is the ripple effect?

Webster’s dictionary defines it as “a spreading, pervasive and usually unintentional effect or influence” and dictionary.com defines it as “a series of consequences caused by a single action or event.”

Mike Helton, NASCAR President, used the term ripple effect first by describing how the sanctioning body made the difficult decision on the Monday after the Richmond race to penalize Michael Waltrip Racing with a $300,000 fine, suspend MWR executive Ty Norris indefinitely, and replace MWR driver Martin Truex Jr. in the Chase with Ryan Newman.

“The way we go about these is we look at the incident and only the incident because we know from experience that if you try to look at the ripple effect of an incident, you can’t cover all those bases,” Helton said during the MWR penalty announcement.

“Our focus is around the incident and what we were going to do to react around it, not the ripple effect of the incident or the ripple effect of our reaction,” Helton continued. “So, we simply look at the incident and react to the incident, and whatever our reaction may create, that has a ripple effect to it as well.”

One of the first ripple effects was the outrage expressed by driver Jeff Gordon, who was outside the Chase looking in by just one point behind due to the apparent shenanigans that took place both on the track and on pit road.

“Someone explain the ‘ripple effect’ to me,” Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet, tweeted after the race.

And just after the tweet, Jeff Gordon fans latched on and quickly echoed the sentiments that their driver had been a victim of the ripple effect, starting a social media movement of their own in reaction to their driver being denied an opportunity to run for the championship.

Gordon’s teammate Jimmie Johnson also joined in the discussion about the ripple effect, calling for NASCAR to adopt rules similar to the NFL, where play is halted and a review is made of any questionable play or call on the field.

“In my opinion, if there is a question they don’t know, they need to stop the race immediately,” Johnson, driver of the No. 48 Lowes Chevrolet, said. “Figure it out and made the best judgment they can because trying to go back on Monday or Tuesday to fix the situation is just too much and then I learn something about a ripple effect.”

While ripples ran rampant through the garage and the media center alike, the biggest ripple effect came from the fans who continued to be incensed about the actions on the track that they felt compromised the integrity of the sport.

The ripple effect continued throughout the week as the sanctioning body continued to investigate the events at Richmond, turning their attention to the team communication with Front Row Motorsports driver David Gilliland and the discussion to give a spot to Joey Logano late in the Richmond race.

This apparently assisted Logano, who finished 22^nd in front of Gilliland, to move ahead of Gordon in the point standings, squeaking into Chase contention.

On both Wednesday and Thursday, NASCAR announced that they would not have any comment, however, Joey Logano addressed the media during his pre-Chase interview in Chicago.

“I am going to be 100 percent honest, I knew nothing about it,” Logano said. “That is stuff that happens week in and week out with spotters.”

“What I look at and say is that if we didn’t pass the 38 car, we were still in 10^th in points and still got our bonus point so it has no change in the outcome of where we are right now.”

But the ripple effects did not stop and again NASCAR made a major announcement on Friday, September 13^th that a 13^th driver would be added to the Chase for the Championship.

In addition to NASCAR making the unprecedented decision Friday to add the four-time champion to the 2013 Chase for the Sprint Cup field, they also put the Penske Racing team of Joey Logano and Front Row Motorsports with David Gilliland on probation.

And the ripple effect continued.

“There were just too many things that went on Saturday night that gave a clear disadvantage and what we deemed an unfair disadvantage to the 24 (Gordon),” Brian France, NASCAR Chairman and CEO said. “I have the authority to do that.”

“It is an unprecedented and extraordinary thing but it is also an unprecedented and extraordinary set of circumstances that unfolded in multiple ways on Saturday night,” France continued. “And we believe this is the right outcome to protect the integrity of the sport, which is our number one goal in NASCAR.”

“It’s been a rough week,” Gordon said after learning that he was back into championship contention. “I’m very appreciative to be in and I know it’s under the most unbelievable circumstances I’ve ever been in as part of my racing career.”

“I wish all of this hadn’t happened,” Gordon continued. “Now here we are as a 13^th car and in and we just try to take that opportunity and make the most of it.”

While Gordon expressed his thoughts on how rough his week was, the ripple effect that extended to Martin Truex, Jr. was, however, the most devastating.

Truex, through no fault of his own, was ousted from the Chase due to the MWR penalties, said that all he did was ‘drive his heart out’ throughout the entire race at Richmond, only to be taken out of the chance to run for a championship.

“I’m not even sure what to say at this point to be honest with you,” Truex said. “I’m kind of at a loss for words.”

“They kick me out to make spot for somebody and then they don’t do the same for the other guys,” Truex continued. “It’s just unfair, and nothing I can do about it.”

Truex was not the only driver to experience the ripple effect of confusion stemming from the events of the week since Richmond. Hendrick Motorsports teammate and the sport’s most popular driver also weighed in with his thoughts on the events.

“I don’t know what is fair anymore,” Dale Earnhardt Jr. said. “You could have done it a million different ways and I don’t know that one is better than the other.”

“The whole thing is a mess.”

The most significant ripple effect has yet to be determined, however, as NASCAR announced that it will have a mandatory meeting with all of the drivers, crew chiefs and owners to further discuss these issues.

“We’re going to protect, no matter what it takes — the integrity of the sport will never be in question,” France said. “We’re going to make sure that we have the right rules going forward that are clear so that the integrity of the competitive landscape of the events are not altered in a way or manipulated.”

“And that will be what we will address.”

But will this be the end of the ripple effect that has been created throughout the sport of NASCAR as a result of these unfolding events?

Just as in the original penalties announced earlier in the week, there may be ripple effects that even the sanctioning body cannot even begin to predict or may not even have imagined.

And the biggest and most significant ripple effect that remains to be seen is the reaction by the sport’s fan base, who ultimately determine if their passion or thoughts about the integrity of the sport have been affected or diminished.

And the ripple effect goes on and on and on.

September 14, 2013
Jeff Gordon Added To Chase In Unprecedented Move by NASCAR!

As if we thought the fallout from Richmond couldn’t get any more bizarre…NASCAR has stunned us with another unprecedented move. They have expanded the chase field to thirteen cars and we now welcome Jeff Gordon to the lineup. The drivers that make up the 2013 chase has changed twice in the last six days in a wild and unprecedented turn of events that has made NASCAR the top story in sports all around the country. Today, Jeff Gordon was added to the chase as a 13th seed while Front Row Motorsports and Penske Racing were put on probation for the remainder of the year for attempting to manipulate the chase outcome. The two drivers who were initially put out of the chase due to MWR’s shenanigans are now back in. It was the morally correct decision but was it actually the right call?

Announcement

MIKE HELTON:  As you’re well aware, we’ve been looking at a lot of video, audio and timing and scoring information and other data from the Richmond race.  We reacted earlier this week and then based on further due diligence, what we’re determined to do — what we’ve decided is in addition to what other actions we’ve taken, we’re going to put Front Row Motorsports and Penske Racing both on probation for the balance of the year for actions detrimental.

And in addition we are organizing a mandatory meeting with drivers and owners and crew chiefs for tomorrow to hopefully address and make more clearly the path going forward as it applies to the rules of racing and the ethical part of it. Basically what I’m saying is that we’ve decided that we will put Front Row and Penske Racing on probation for the balance of the season for actions detrimental.

BRIAN FRANCE:  In addition to that, we’ve decided that due to the totality of the events that were outside of Jeff Gordon’s — his issues, we’re going to add a 13th position to the field, and Jeff Gordon will qualify for the championship this year, the Sprint Cup Championship.

We believe in looking at all of it that there were too many things that altered the event and gave an unfair disadvantage to Jeff and his team, who would have qualified, and I have the authority to do that.  We are going to do that.  It is an unprecedented and extraordinary thing, but it’s also an unprecedented and extraordinary set of circumstances that unfolded in multiple different ways on Saturday night, and we believe this was the right outcome to protect the integrity, which is our number one goal of NASCAR.

Mike mentioned a moment ago, we will be clarifying in a significant way the rules of racing and the rules of the road going forward, and we will be looking forward to that meeting and addressing the media after that, after we meet with the teams to clarify that with certainly with the media and our fan base.

NASCAR contradicted what they said Monday night about the “ripple effect” and how they can’t help Gordon by adding Jeff to the chase today because it was the fair thing to do in their eyes. I think Brian France had something to do with that drastic change in opinion. Over the past week, NASCAR has slowly molded the chase field back to what it was going to be before Bowyer’s infamous spin…minus the victory that Newman would have most likely collected. When this call was first made, I was shaking my head in disbelief and although I was happy for Gordon; I was not happy with the decision to alter the fabric of the chase to include him. After mulling it over, I have changed my stance.

There were four cars from three different teams working to make sure Jeff Gordon didn’t make the chase Saturday night. NASCAR has penalized them for it but couldn’t slam them to the ground on the basis that the evidence against the teams was inconclusive. Bowyer’s spin certainly looked intentional but in reality, we can’t be 110% certain that it was without an admission. As for the Gilliland and Logano deal, we know exactly what and who they were talking about on their radio but Penske was smart enough not to say anything on the airways that could be incriminating should NASCAR look into it which they obviously did. Since there is no record of them saying anything, NASCAR also called that evidence inconclusive. In their minds, they felt the right course of action would be to assist the man all of these teams tried and succeeded in hurting. Now these teams didn’t have a vendetta to keep Jeff out of the chase but they needed to make sure Gordon wouldn’t get to the top 10 in order to help themselves.

NASCAR is trying to undo the damage done by these organizations that attempted to manipulate the outcome of the race to make the chase. Some people are questioning NASCAR’s integrity for changing the rules of the chase like this but in my opinion, these are special circumstances so special exceptions need to be made. Some will argue that Truex should be let in the chase but NASCAR won’t consider that because they’d be rewarding MWR and giving them exactly what they wanted. Some say if we are letting Gordon in, then we should let Truex in as well but the problem with that is that he wasn’t going to make it without that assist from his MWR teammates; Gordon was. I’d take Logano’s three bonus points away though. Before Gilliland let him by, he was still in the top ten in points (courtesy of MWR) but they still did it for insurance. They wanted those three bonus points is all. The biggest thing that concerned me with that radio communication was that it sounded like Penske was trying to buy the spot and that really bothers me…NASCAR had this to say about a possible bargain between the teams:

“The idea of a bargain that is completely off limits in our view.  But that bargain never — we don’t believe that bargain ever happened, and we don’t believe anything happened, other than the discussions about it, and that’s why the probation is — we’re sending we think an appropriate message there.” – Brian France

I believe this call by NASCAR will help ease the anger of a lot of irate fans but in the end, there is really no right answer in this mess. It’s like trying to put broken glass back together; you can be very tedious about it and try as hard as you can to fix it but it will always be broken glass. NASCAR is going through a phase right now and what exactly this phase entails will become much clearer tomorrow when NASCAR officials hold their mandatory meeting for all drivers and teams. Right now, the feeling in the garage is that if we are going to mess with the race, do it in a way that NASCAR won’t notice or that they have to call it “inconclusive;” a word I’ve heard more than my own name the past six days. I think NASCAR will lay down some guidelines and rules tomorrow that abrogates helping a teammate during a race. Whatever they say, it will definitely make these teams hesitant and think twice about even the slightest manipulation in the future.

I do not think that this call compromises the integrity of NASCAR like a contingent of people out there have stated. I don’t think they crossed a line by enlarging the chase field nor do I believe it makes them look bad. Some say that if NASCAR really wanted to be fair, they’d take Logano out of the chase via a 50pt penalty so that Gordon got in just like they did with Truex and Newman. At first, that sounds like a good idea until you really think about it. Joey, like Martin, knew nothing about the side deals going on; they were just focused on driving. Plus, all Penske did was give Joey a little bit of insurance to make sure he got top 1o and didn’t have to settle for the Wild Card. (Another reason to take 3pts from Joey) Still doesn’t make it right but throwing them out of the chase for it seems a bit drastic to me.

Even without that 1pt from David, Joey would have won the tiebreaker against Gordon so nothing changes. The pass ended up being innocuous to the chase outcome. MWR’s transgressions greatly supersede that of Penske Racing’s. If this was a court of law, I’d charge Penske with a misdemeanor and Waltrip with a felony. That is why you can’t treat Penske the way you treated MWR who manipulated the race on three different fronts. There was the spin that changed the whole race, the green flag pit stop by Vickers and Bowyer who dawdled on pit road until he was two laps down. That’s a 2pt swing in favor of Logano that would have otherwise gotten Gordon into the top 10.

This is the last I hope to write about the Richmond fallout. I cover racing because I love to talk about racing, not politics. This has been a weird and unfortunate situation that has put NASCAR in a very tight spot and I applaud them for thinking excessively about it and reacting appropriately. Like I said before, there are no right answers or panacea if you will in this deal…there are just options to repair the damage that can’t be fully undone. A devastated and livid Martin Truex Jr. ends up being the guy shafted and the one most feel sympathy for. Martin’s anger from his evanescent stay in the 2013 chase will probably linger with him for a long time unfortunately. My only wish is that NASCAR hit Bowyer with a point penalty that actually affected his chase efforts. Other than that, they did a decent job handling such a tumultuous situation.

Now, can we please get back to talking about actual racing!

POLL: Did NASCAR make the right call by adding Jeff Gordon to the chase?

September 13, 2013