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  • Brad Keselowski Sweeps Weekend; Passes Dale Earnhardt Jr. On Final Lap

    Brad Keselowski Sweeps Weekend; Passes Dale Earnhardt Jr. On Final Lap

    Brad Keselowski passed Dale Earnhardt Jr. on the final lap of Sunday’s Kobalt Tools 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway to score the victory. Keselowski notched his 11th career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory after leading a dominating 52 laps of the 267 laps ran in ‘Sin City’.

    “Heck of a call throughout the race to get us out front,” Keselowski said in victory lane. “At the end, this car was just really fast. I’m really proud of the car and proud of the team.”

    “Carl Edwards helped me out there,” Keselowksi explained. “He gave me a little break and let me go after Dale.”

    Keselowski, who won yesterday’s Boyd Gaming 300 in the NASCAR Nationwide Series at LVMS, inherited the race lead after Earnhardt’s fuel tank went empty down the backstretch on the white flag lap. Earnhardt was able to continue and finished an acceptable second place, which becomes his second straight runner-up finish.

    “It sucks to lose like that, but we can’t let that be a negative.” Earnhardt explained after climbing from his No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. “Running out of gas it tough, but one thing you can’t do it let it get under your skin, get under your team’s skin. Probably would have had a better record with about a Mountain Dew can full of fuel.”

    The pivotal moment of the event occurred with 48 laps remaining when the fourth caution of the race flew for debris on the front stretch.  Keselowski, Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson and Paul Menard were among the front runners to hit pit lane in hopes that’d be their final stop of the race. However, considering we were in the famous gambling city of Las Vegas, Nevada, it was only appropriate for somebody to stay out and try to make it to the end on fuel.

    Carl Edwards and Earnhardt were the only competitors to gamble and stay on the racetrack. Luckily, they both were able to have enough fuel in the tank to reach the checkered flag. Edwards finished fifth, which marks his first top five of the season and Earnhardt (like stated above) finish second.

    Paul Menard, on the day his wife was scheduled to have her baby, finished third after sitting inside the top five all race long. Menard finished highest among the Richard Childress Racing stable and posted his first career top five at Vegas.

    “It’s something we can definitely build on for more mile and a halfs,” said Menard, who was going back home to North Carolina, where his wife is due to deliver their first child.

    Joey Logano, who started the race on the pole and led 44 laps, finished fourth after dying off during the middle part of the event. Jimmie Johnson, who led 34 laps today, finished sixth after being shuffled outside the top five late in the going.

    The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series returns to the track next Sunday at Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee in what’s going to only instigate existing feuds and create new ones while it’s at it.

  • Brad Keselowski Scores Vegas Victory After Fending Off Kyle Busch

    Brad Keselowski Scores Vegas Victory After Fending Off Kyle Busch

    Brad Keselowski sailed to victory lane on Saturday after leading a remarkable 144 laps of the 200 laps run in the Boyd Gaming 300 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. He was able to do ‘donuts’ while holding the American Flag for the 28th time in his NASCAR Nationwide Series career and the first time at the tricky Las Vegas track.

    “We found every way we could to make it hard (on ourselves).” Keselowski explained in victory lane. “This Ford was flying today. These races aren’t getting any easier to win.”

    Keselowski fended off late race charges by Kyle Busch to eventually score the victory by 0.349 thousandths of a second. While holding off Busch, the No. 22 team was overwhelmed by possible electrical issues worsening. Luckily, the problem didn’t progress, which provided fans with a magnificent two-car battle right to the checkered flag.

    “I don’t know what caused us to lose the lead (on the restart), that was unfortunate.” Busch explained following a runner-up finish. “Best motor won, probably the best car.”

    The climax of the event occurred with 30 laps remaining when Ryan Sieg spun bringing out the fifth and final caution. The restart following the yellow flag featured Keselowski quickly stretch his lead to 1.5 seconds. However, ‘Rowdy’ Busch wasn’t going down without a duel in his home state of Nevada.

    The tension started rising around 15 laps to go when Busch was beginning to reel in former NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion, Keselowski. But, over the duration of the final five laps the leaders were mired in lap traffic which gave Keselowski all he needed to seal an impressive victory.

    “Kyle is one of the best in the business and he deserves a win here. It was just our day, it was meant to be.” Keselowski explained. “We had to never give up”

    Kyle Larson, who’s making his first NSCS start at Vegas this weekend, had to overcome early race damage to finish an impressive third place. Dale Earnhardt Jr., who’s still celebrating a Daytona 500 triumph, finished fourth and wasn’t disappointed at all.

    Chase Elliott, who rode inside the top five all day, finished fourth and rounding out the top five was Matt Kenseth right in Elliot’s tire tracks. Kenseth, who spun out with under 50 laps remaining, was a contender for the victory but had to settle for sixth.

    “It was just a lot of fun. It gives us a mindset that we can run up front.” Elliott explained after hopping out of his machine. “The cars (that JR Motorsports provides) can (run up front), just up to me to get the job done.”

    Regan Smith maintains his points lead, but Trevor Bayne is just a mere three markers behind the NNS Daytona winner. NASCAR’s second premier series takes to the short track of Bristol Motor Speedway next week in what’s already anticipated to be a door banging and tempers flaring kind of race.

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Phoenix

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Phoenix

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt finished second at Phoenix and maintained the Sprint Cup points lead. He leads Brad Keselowski by six.

    “It easily could have been my second win this year,” Earnhardt said. “And two consecutive wins would have sent Junior Nation into a frenzy, which is another word for ‘alcohol-induced coma.’

    “But I’m really pleased with our start to the season. This could be the year that I finally fulfill my destiny and win the Sprint Cup championship. I’m hoping fate can lead me there, because no one else has been able to.”

    2. Kevin Harvick: Harvick led 224 of 312 laps in winning the Profit For CNBC 500 at Phoenix, his second consecutive spring win in the desert. Harvick kept his challengers at bay on a number of restarts in the final 50 laps.

    “It was great to celebrate in Victory Lane with Miss Sprint Cup,” Harvick said. “Richard Childress is not a woman, but you can call him ‘Misses Kevin Harvick’ anyway.

    “And speaking of the ‘misses,’ I celebrated my 13th wedding anniversary. After 13 years, my wife DeLana has assured me that she has no intentions of replacing me with Austin Dillon.”

    3. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski won the pole and finished third, leading a strong Penske Racing at Phoenix. Teammate Joey Logano started alongside Keselowski and came home fourth.

    “I won the pole in NASCAR’s first knockout qualifying session,” Keselowski said. “In my book, that’s called a ‘BKO.’

    “And congratulations to my crew chief Paul Wolfe. He missed the race to be by his wife’s side for the birth of their first son. I’ve already bought little Caden a gift. It’s a Kyle Busch driver’s suit he can wear on Halloween. That way, he’ll be a ‘Wolfe in sheep’s clothing.’”

    4. Jeff Gordon: Gordon finished fifth in the Profit For CNBC 500 as Hendrick Motorsports again placed three driver in the top 10, duplicating their feat from Daytona. Gordon is fourth in the point standings, ten behind Dale Earnhardt, Jr.

    “Most importantly,” Gordon said, “I finished eight spots ahead of Clint Bowyer. That was weird, because I always feel like Clint is only two steps behind me.”

    5. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson posted his second top-10 result with a sixth at Phoenix, following a fifth at Daytona. The six-time Sprint Cup champ is fifth in the points standings, 12 behind Dale Earnhardt, Jr.

    “Have you heard?” Johnson said. “Texas Speedway president Eddie Gossage is upset that Formula 1 has a race scheduled in Austin on the same day in November that NASCAR is in Fort Worth. I’m not sure what Eddie stands to gain. Of course, it’s not the first time NASCAR has been accused of ‘running in circles’ where Formula 1 is concerned.”

    6. Joey Logano: Logano finished fourth at in The Profit On CNBC 500, joining Penske teammate Brad Keselowski, in third, in the top 5. Logano is sixth in the points standings, 15 out of first.

    “In case you didn’t know,” Logano said, “’The Profit’ is a show on CNBC. It’s only slightly more informative than Michael Waltrip’s pre-race walk through the pit lane on Fox. But you’ve got to commend Michael. He’s not afraid to ask to tough questions. Heck, he asked if he could kiss 50 Cent at Daytona. And I don’t even think it was a rhetorical question.”

    7. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth finished seventh in the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 20 Home Depot car, posting his first top 10 of the season. He is seventh in the Sprint Cup points standings, 20 out of first.

    “That car was made famous by Tony Stewart,” Kenseth said. “What else has been made famous by Tony Stewart? This Danica Patrick-Richard Petty feud. One would think that after starting his own race team, Tony would learn to mind his own business.

    “Personally, I would love to see Patrick and Petty in a race. It could be huge. All that’s needed is a pay-per-view audience, Stewart to continue his role as hype man, and a catchy slogan, like ‘The King And Eye (Candy),’ or ‘Age Before Beauty?,’ ‘Is This Really Necessary?’”

    8. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin followed up his second-place run at Daytona with a disappointing 19th at Phoenix. Hamlin pitted during a late caution while most of the leaders stayed out, costing him track position which he could not recover.

    “The No. 11 FedEx Toyota dealt with handling issues all day long,” Hamlin said. “I can’t tell you how many pit stops we made. Luckily, with the race being in Arizona, I wasn’t denied service based on my sexuality.”

    9. Carl Edwards: Edwards led the Roush Fenway Racing contingent at Phoenix, scoring an eighth-place finish in the Profit For CNBC 500. He is ninth in the points standings, 25 out of first.

    “What a performance by Kevin Harvick,” Edwards said. “He was so much better than everyone else, especially on restarts. Just ask Richard Childress—when Kevin says ‘goodbye,’ he means it.”

    10. Ryan Newman: Newman posted a seventh at Phoenix, leading the way for Richard Childress Racing as former RCR driver Kevin Harvick won easily.

    “I’m driving the No. 31 car formerly piloted by Jeff Burton,” Newman said. “But I’m not your typical RCR driver. Two things to remember: I’m not Richard Childress’ grandson, and Wadd Button is not my brother.”

  • The Final Word – Harvick wins at Phoenix, Junior remains hot, but as for Danica…

    The Final Word – Harvick wins at Phoenix, Junior remains hot, but as for Danica…

    Daytona was great. Phoenix was not bad, once you got used to the differences. One week we had a 2.5-mile superspeedway, the next we got was a single mile circuit. It rained in Florida, yet despite the forecast the only rain came to prematurely end the Nationwide race on Saturday. They ran in big packs in the southeast, not so much in the southwest. Rather than the huge grandstands, the feature of the PIR was Lonely Mountain and its band of hobbits just beyond the track. There was one similarity of note, however.

    Dale Earnhardt Jr did run out front all day, just like at Daytona. He was almost the most dominant car on the day. Almost. The only difference was that Kevin Harvick remained ahead of him. All day. In the end, he had the horses to record his first victory as part of the Stewart-Haas team and an all but certain berth in the Chase, barring injury or alien abduction. Happy’s fender stated that it was Freaky Fast, and that was no lie.

    If this was a wedding party, we had the happy couple at the alter, and the best men just behind them. Team mates Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano started on the front row and never seemed to fade beyond the top four. You need ushers, and Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon were visible for the first half of the race, disappearing for much of the second half before returning at the end to round out the top half dozen. No one else really mattered from start to finish on Sunday in what was a great day for Hendrick, Penske, and Stewart-Haas.

    The Hendrick weak sister was not all that delicate, with Kasey Kahne 11th.  Not everyone at SHR was as stout. Tony Stewart was 16th, Danica Patrick 36th, and Kurt Busch 39th. Busch ran out the string with an ailing auto until it finally blew up with 20 laps left.

    As for Patrick, she has still yet to show she can race, as the new qualifying rules left her starting closer to the rear. While a Top 20 might be a victory for her, she never got a chance to even get that far. Already a lap down, in 25th, she tangled with Justin Allgaier, which left her rear left quarter-panel buckled in. While the broadcast crew saw the tire rub, her crew did not, so they were probably the only folks surprised when the tire finally blew.

    With wins pretty much equaling a Chase challenge, the only folks of note in trouble early are Patrick and Martin Truex Jr, both outside the top thirty in the standings. Truex was 22nd last Sunday after finishing dead last at Daytona, with Patrick still unable to crack the top 35 on race day. Still, it is early and you would think any fully funded driver surely would have to be able to crack the Top 30. Right?

    So, off we go via FOX to Las Vegas this Sunday for a 400 miler on a 1.5-mile layout.  Johnson has four wins there, while Gordon was best once back during his last championship season.  Matt Kenseth has three, including the one last year. Carl Edwards has a pair, with Tony Stewart and Kyle Busch each with one.

    Talking about Busch, does anyone give a damn that he won his all-time series best 64th Nationwide race in Phoenix on Saturday?  NASCAR sees what we see, they are concerned that the big leaguers stomp all over the up and comers, but are not sure exactly what to do about it just yet. The tracks want the stars to bring out the fans, the team owners want them as they bring in sponsorship dollars, but they are for sure killing this series.

    Regan Smith won at Daytona, but series regulars have just three of ten Top Five finishes, and 11 of a possible twenty Top Tens.  What I wonder about is why bother wasting my time gushing over Kyle kicking minor league ass, when the most relevant finishers at Phoenix were Elliott Sadler (6th), Trevor Bayne (7th), and Smith (8th)?  You know, the top three in the Nationwide standings, the boys who are truly relevant.  I think the problem is not that the Cup drivers are allowed to race, but that the media focuses in on those who do not matter at the expense of those who do.

    Winning is good, but at least one needs to strive to be relevant. Win a Cup race, stay in the Top 30, and one becomes relevant. Go winless, and one better be in the Top 16 in points to stay relevant. With a career average finish of 27.0, I think I can already identify one who is not. I believe Richard Petty might even agree with me.

    Here are the sweet 16 as we head to Las Vegas.

     

    Pos. Drivers Wins Points
    1   Dale Earnhardt, Jr. 1 90
    2   Kevin Harvick 1 79
    3   Brad Keselowski 0 84
    4   Jeff Gordon 0 80
    5   Jimmie Johnson 0 78
    6   Joey Logano 0 75
    7   Matt Kenseth 0 70
    8   Denny Hamlin 0 68
    9   Carl Edwards 0 65
    10   Jamie McMurray 0 64
    11   Greg Biffle 0 64
    12   Casey Mears 0 64
    13   Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. 0 63
    14   Kyle Busch 0 61
    15   Ryan Newman 0 60
    16   Austin Dillon 0 56

     

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Daytona

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Daytona

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt withstood a long rain delay and held off numerous challenges to win his second Daytona 500, beating Denny Hamlin to the line. The win ended a 55-race winless streak and instantly qualified Earnhardt for the Chase For The Cup.

    “That six hour, 22 minute rain delay didn’t bother me at all,” Earnhardt said. “What’s 6:22 when I’m used to waiting 55 races for a win? And what better way to celebrate such a huge win than to join Twitter. By the time you read this, I should have 750,000 followers, and the best thing is, none will require a restraining order.”

    2. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin topped off a successful Speedweeks with a runner-up finish in the 500, making a bold move at the front befire finishing behind Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Hamlin won the first Gatorade Duel and led 16 laps in Sunday night’s race.

    “How about that piece of black plastic that clung to Dale, Jr.’s grill?” Hamlin said. “Some say it was the ‘Man In Black,’ Dale Earnhardt, Sr., making his presence known. NASCAR made an even more outlandish claim—that it was proof that their ‘Drive For Diversity’ program is actually working. Here’s the most interesting part: ghosts are a lot like NASCAR drivers—-mostly white.”

    3. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski, in the No. 2 car with the classic Miller Lite paint scheme, challenged for the win at Daytona and finished third behind Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Denny Hamlin.

    “I hear that Danica Patrick exceeded 1,000,000 Twitter followers,” Keselowski said. “That’s a lot, maybe too many for one web site to handle. I can see this ending in one way only—with a ‘crash.’”

    4. Jeff Gordon: Gordon finished fourth at Daytona as Hendrick teammate Dale Earnhardt, Jr. powered to the win. Gordon gave Earnhardt a boost on the final lap, helping Junior hold off Denny Hamlin at the end.

    “Dale deserved to win,” Gordon said. “His No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet was by far the strongest. This could very well be the year Junior wins the Sprint Cup. In other words, it could finally be when ‘A Little E Goes A Long Way.’”

    5. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson started 39th after going to a backup car and finished fifth after leading 15 laps. Last year’s Daytona 500 winner joined race winner Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Jeff Gordon as Hendrick Motorsports took three of the top five spots.

    “That rain just wouldn’t stop,” Johnson said. “And, trust me, I know long ‘reigns.’

    “I’m on a quest for my seventh Sprint Cup championship. It would be awesome to be mentioned in the same sentence with Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt, Sr. Contrary to what Tony Stewart says, six titles give you the right to ‘challenge’ Petty, not two.”

    6. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth started third after winning Thursday’s second Gatorade Duel and finished a long day at Daytona with a sixth-place finish. Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch finished second and 19th, respectively.

    “Did you see Kyle cross the finish line?” Kenseth said. “He did it in reverse. But that’s really no surprise. Just look at the sponsors on the No. 18 car—it’s got ‘good backing.’”

    7. Austin Dillon: Dillon survived involvement in three accidents at Daytona and put the Richard Childress Racing No. 3 Chevy in the top 10 in the return of the “3” made famous by Dale Earnhardt, Sr.

    “That ‘3’ on the side of my car means a lot,” Dillon said. “At Daytona, it indicated the number of crashes I caused.”

    8. Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.: Stenhouse led the way for Roush Fenway Racing with a seventh at Daytona, joining teammate Greg Biffle, who finished eighth, in the top 10. It was Stenhouse’s best finish ever in the 500.

    “That was one of the best Daytona 500’s of all time,” Stenhouse said. “I can’t wait to catch a replay of the race, and neither can Dale Earnhardt, Jr. fans. That’s the only way their favorite driver will have multiple wins this season.”

    9. Greg Biffle: Biffle battled Dale Earnhardt, Jr. over the final laps at Daytona before the mad scramble relegated him to a finish of eighth.

    “How about Madison Rising’s performance of the national anthem before Saturday’s Nationwide race?” Biffle said. “They claim to be America’s most patriotic band. I certainly agree. Their music is best listened to with a hand over the heart, and two over the ears.”

    10. Kevin Harvick: Harvick finished 13th at Daytona in the No. 4 Chevrolet, the highest finisher among the Stewart-Haas Racing stable.

    “Tony Stewart challenged Richard Petty to race Danica Patrick,” Harvick said, “and the ‘King’ accepted. But really, what does King Richard stand to gain with a win? The last thing he needs is another feather in his cap.”

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: The Daytona 500

    Surprising and Not Surprising: The Daytona 500

    In spite of the unusual happenings that perpetually occur at Daytona, this year a six hour plus rain delay with tornado warnings, here is what was surprising and not surprising from the 56th running of the Great American Race.

    Surprising:  With so much focus pre-race on the return of the No. 3, formerly driven by Dale Earnhardt Sr. and now by rookie Austin Dillon, the son of the Intimidator and NASCAR’s most popular driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. instead stole the show with his second Daytona 500 victory.

    This was Junior’s 20th victory in the Cup Series and, with the win, he joined Bill Elliott, Michael Waltrip, Sterling Marlin, Matt Kenseth and Jimmie Johnson as two-time Daytona 500 winners.

    “I’ll never take this for granted,” Junior said. “We’re two time Daytona champions.”

    In addition to the coveted win at Daytona, Earnhardt Jr. had a big weekend overall. The team bearing his name, JR Motorsports, won the Nationwide Drive4COPD 300 race with driver Regan Smith at the wheel.

    Not Surprising:  In spite of several on-track incidents, the driver of the aforementioned No. 3 for Richard Childress Racing, did quite well for himself, starting from the pole and finishing ninth.

    Austin Dillon was also the highest finishing rookie of the race, taking the early lead in a Sunoco Rookie of the year battle.

    “That’s what this year is about — experience, trying to finish races and getting better each week,” Dillon said, “We have a long year ahead of us, I’d like to use some of this momentum going forward. I know it’s going to be a long, tough year, and hopefully we’ll be there at the end of these races and try to learn something.”

    Surprising:  Goodyear had a little scare early in the race when both Kyle Larson and Greg Biffle had tire problems, causing hard hits into the wall for the rookie and veteran racers.

    Larson, in the No. 42 race car formerly driven by Juan Pablo Montoya, actually hit the wall twice in the opening laps, going a lap down and soldiering on to finish 38th.

    In spite of his blown tire early in the race, Biffle had a much better finish than Larson, taking the checkered flag in the eighth spot in his No. 16 3M Ford.

    “It was a good night,” Biffle said. “We had a really strong car but the 88 was real fast. We just couldn’t hold him off.”

    Not Surprising:  With the combo platter of the rain delay, potential for additional weather coming in, and the pent up energy of the first race of the season, it was not surprising that there were a number of pit road incidents that created some major mayhem for several drivers.

    Early in the race, Matt Kenseth had contact on pit road and ended up spinning to pit backwards in his box. Both Kyle Busch and Aric Almirola removed equipment out of their pit boxes and had to serve costly penalties.

    And then there was one of the more controversial calls, with Kasey Kahne called for speeding, all of which he did in an effort not to get hit by Michael Annett who had lost control of his vehicle coming to his pit.

    Surprising:  After dominating most everything during Speedweeks, from the Sprint Unlimited to the second Duel race, it was a bit surprising that Denny Hamlin did not claim the big prize. He did, however, come home in the runner up position in his No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota, which was his best finish ever in the Daytona 500.

    “I thought — the Duels and the Unlimited — I felt like our car didn’t have quite the speed,” Hamlin said. “It was a solid run for us and really it was a fun race.”

    Not Surprising:  Given the manufacturer change to Chevrolet and a new alliance with Richard Childress Racing, it was not surprising that Casey Mears and his GEICO No. 13 team had a great run in the Great American Race.

    In fact, team GEICO finished in the top-10, getting their driver and crew chief Bootie Barker off to a great start for the season.

    Surprising:  The Labonte brothers, Bobby and Terry, not only made the race but had surprisingly good finishes, 15th and 20th respectively.

    Brother Bobby extended his consecutive start street for the Great American Race to 22 while elder brother Terry most likely ran his last Daytona 500 competition.

    Not Surprising:   Because it was after all Daytona, there were several big crashes, collecting many good drivers, to no one’s surprise. One of those hard hits, however, impacted the only female in the field Danica Patrick.

    “I think more than anything I am just upset because the GoDaddy car felt really good and it was the best car that I had all Speedweeks,” Patrick said. “I felt like everything was going pretty well, so it’s just upsetting.”

    “It’s a bummer, but you know that is the excitement of speedway racing that anything can happen, and it was unfortunate that I was on the short end of the accident.”

    Surprising:  With a more than six hour rain delay, some of NASCAR’s finest were up to some surprising activities to pass the time away. In fact, several of the racer dads were busy with their children, from Jeff Gordon making Lego creations to Keelan Harvick suiting up in his dad Kevin’s fire suit.

    Probably most novel, however, was David Ragan, still clad in his own fire suit, who went out to pick up pizza for his team during the break.

    Not Surprising:  While Junior reigned triumphant in Victory Lane, just like in the Olympics, there was some agony of defeat in this year’s running for the Great American Race.

    Most agonizing were those drivers impacted by engine or fuel pick up woes, including Clint Bowyer, Martin Truex, Jr. and Tony Stewart.

    “If it was going to blow up, I wish it would have blown up four hours ago,” Clint Bowyer said. “I could have been home watching.  Just disappointing — the guys work so hard for this race.  Everybody is out there having fun and we broke our toy.”

    “It’s definitely a tough break for our team,” Martin Truex Jr. said. “I went to bed thinking this was my best chance to win the Daytona 500.”

    The Cup Series moves on next to Phoenix International Raceway in Avondale, Arizona for The Profit on CNBC 500 on March 2nd.

     

  • Kyle Busch Snatches Daytona Victory After Photo Finish

    Kyle Busch Snatches Daytona Victory After Photo Finish

    The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series 2014 season began with an astounding photo finish between Timothy Peters and Kyle Busch. Tonight the trophy will be given to ‘Rowdy’ who made an outside pass on Peters to snatch the win by only 0.017 hundredths of a second.

    The victory marks Busch’s first career win in the NCWTS at Daytona International Speedway after finishing second three times prior to tonight and the excitement was obvious in victory lane.

    “I didn’t think I would be able to make that move (the outside pass on Peters).” Busch commented to Fox Sports 1 in victory lane.

    Busch, who isn’t eligible for points in the CWTS, will attempt to complete the sweep by winning in the CWTS, NNS and NSCS all in the same weekend, which would be an amazing feat at Daytona.

    Timothy Peters finished second after stealing the lead within five laps to go before being dethroned by Busch in the tri-oval. Johnny Sauter captured the final podium finish after riding top five the entire event.

    The pivotal factor in tonight’s event came with 27 laps to go when the ‘big one’ occurred in the turn’s one and two. Mason Mingus, Parker Kligerman, Darrell Wallace Jr, Caleb Holman, Sean Corr, Brian Ickler and Joey Coulter were involved in the catastrophic incident. Luckily, none of the drivers were injured – showing how much safety has improved.

    Busch’s victory marks his third career at Daytona – one in ARCA, one in NNS, and tonight’s race. The NCWTS and Busch will return to the racetrack next month at Martinsville Speedway.

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Sprint Unlimited

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Sprint Unlimited

    After an off-season filled with snow, as well as major changes in the rules of the sport, here is what was surprising and not surprising from the 2014 Sprint Unlimited.

    Surprising:  After twenty Sprint Unlimited victories for Chevrolet, it was surprising that Toyota was in Victory Lane instead. Denny Hamlin won the non-points race, scoring his second win in the Sprint Unlimited at Daytona and becoming the ninth driver to win multiple times.

    “The best car won, that’s for sure,” Hamlin said. “It was survival of the fittest.”

    “This car was just phenomenal.”

    Not Surprising:  Daytona International Speedway, especially under a full moon, seems to lend itself to something catching on fire. This time, however, it was the pace car that burst into flames, causing Brett Bodine and a passenger to bail out as quickly as they could.

    “The pace car experienced a fire in the trunk area, which contains a purpose-built auxiliary electrical kit to operate the numerous caution lights during the race,” Chevrolet said in a statement. “The pace car driver and passenger safely exited the vehicle. An assessment is underway.”

    Surprising:  While Jeff Gordon may have been jacked up with excitement thanks to his record of 20 consecutive Sprint Unlimited appearances, he was also jacked up, literally, in the race.

    The back end of the No. 24 Drive to End Hunger was sent high in the air during a multi-car crash on lap 36, causing Gordon to have to settle for a 12th place finish.

    “Yeah when you get hit like that it’s pretty soft,” Gordon said. “I mean it sends you up in the air pretty good, but it’s not really that severe of an impact for me because the back of the car absorbs so much of it.”

    “I knew it was flying up in the air and I was just hoping it was going to sit back down on all four wheels,” Gordon continued. “The funny thing is that we slid in there and I was into Tony (Stewart) and I thought well I will try to drive it back.”

    “I put it in reverse I didn’t realize my rear tires were off the ground.”

    Not Surprising:  It may have been a small field, with just 18 cars on the track, but that did not stop tempers from flaring. Just ask Dale Earnhardt, Jr. who was none too happy with the driver from down under.

    “It looks like I was trying to get down a little bit there, and Marcos (Ambrose) went to the outside,” Junior said. “I didn’t know he was out there. Hard racing, and I was upset with him.”

    “A lot was happening right there and we just got turned around.”

    Surprising:  There was no one more surprised with the incident with Earnhardt, Jr. as Marcos Ambrose, especially since in his mind, he was just trying to help.

    “I was trying to help Junior there and ended up hurting him and hurting myself,” the driver of the No. 9 Stanley Ford said. “I was trying to push him and there was a little bit of a zig and a little bit of a zag and the next thing you know I helped him in the fence.”

    “That’s just what happens here.”

    Not Surprising:   While Danica Patrick and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. remain romantically involved off the track, they certainly created sparks on the track when Stenhouse rammed Patrick after she got away clean from one of the Sprint Unlimited’s bigger wrecks.

    Not surprisingly, however, all was forgiven thanks to some dark chocolate from Godiva.

    “Well he got me 18 tin cans of Godiva dark chocolate for Valentine’s Day so I don’t know if he’s trying to butter me up,” Patrick said. “If his hood wouldn’t have been up and had the inability to see obviously there would have been more frustration.  It was one of those racing things.”

    Surprising:  Jimmie Johnson continued his streak of surprisingly poor finishes in the Sprint Unlimited, finishing 14th in the past two years and 18th this year.

    “The back of the car got light off of turn four there,” Johnson said. “The car went into a drift and for a second there I thought I could keep it off the inside wall, but the longer I slid the more the wall became a reality and I got it.”

    Not Surprising:  Kevin Harvick proved yet again that he is nicknamed ‘the Closer’ for good reason. In fact, the driver of the No. 4 Jimmy John’s Chevrolet was the only Stewart Haas Racing driver to finish the race, let alone finish in the top-five.

    “For us, we had a really good car,” Harvick said. “Led several laps in the beginning. Then on that restart we couldn’t get organized and wound up getting shuffled to the back.”

    “We about got lapped,” Harvick continued. “We kept working on it and working on it and the next thing you know, it was at least drivable and you could hold it wide open again.”

    “Heck at one point coming to the white flag, I thought we were going to win the race,” Harvick said. “To come out of here with a fifth place finish and do all the things they did to the car to make it go was pretty awesome.”

    Surprising:  There was no one more surprised than Kyle Busch with the sparse number of cars racing at the end of this year’s Sprint Unlimited.

    “There’s so little cars out there that you’re just kind of on your own trying to figure things out,” the driver of the No. 18 M&Ms Toyota said after finishing third. “That’s kind of the way the race played out tonight.”

    “It was interesting there at the end and I don’t know that we’ve ever had so few cars at the end.”

    Not Surprising:  Joey Logano, driver of the No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford for Team Penske, was no doubt humming Carol King’s song ‘So Far Away’ as he finished fourth.

    “I’m trying to relive it all in my head right now.  It’s crazy,” Logano said. “It’s just so frustrating when you’re that close. It’s so close and you can see it, but it’s so frustrating because you’re going as fast as you can and that’s all you’ve got.”

    “These things don’t mean anything unless you win.”

     

  • NASCAR 2014 Season Predictions

    NASCAR 2014 Season Predictions

    *Kyle Busch leads 54 laps and passes Ryan Newman on the final lap to win the Daytona 500, his first Sprint Cup win at the season opener. In a post-race interview with Erin Andrews, Busch announces that he and his wife Samantha are pregnant with their first child. Busch beams to Andrews that “I’m sure I’ll be a good father, because I know what it’s like to be a baby.”

    Busch finishes second in the Sprint Cup point standings, winning five races, and caps his year with a win at Homestead and his first Sprint Cup championship.

    *Tony Stewart vows to win his third Sprint Cup championship in 2014, and fans and other drivers notice his new attitude. Former teammate Ryan Newman quips in an interview at Daytona that Stewart seems to be “walking with a purpose, as well as a limp.”

    Stewart wins at Watkins Glen and qualifies for the Chase, but finishes a disappointing seventh in the final standings.

    *Dale Earnhardt, Jr.’s No. 88 car gets a new sponsor just in time for the Daytona 500 when an online funeral planning service signs on for 12 races. The service, known as “Final-E” sees a boom in business after their logo appears on Earnhardt’s Chevy.

    Earnhardt finishes second in the Daytona 500, and wins at Daytona in July on his way to a fourth place finish in the Sprint Cup points standings.

    *Kevin Harvick coins the name “Two Men And A Babe, And Kurt Busch” to describe the Stewart-Haas Racing stable of Stewart, Harvick, Kurt Busch, and Danica Patrick after a heated drivers’ meeting following wreck at Fontana initiated by aggressive driving from Busch.

    Harvick, aided by new buddy Stewart, exacts his revenge the following week at Martinsville, where the two craft an elaborate hoax in which a phony façade of Busch’s hauler placed in front of a Port-A-Potty lures Busch into a trap. Once inside, Busch is fork-lifted to an outer parking lot, and is forced to walk back and misses qualifying.

    *E! Network and ABC collaborate on a new reality show called “Keeping Up With The Chase Format: Extreme Makeover: NASCAR Edition.” In the show, host Brad Daugherty roams around NASCAR events asking fans if they understand not only the Chase For The Cup format, but Daugherty’s hayseed, mountain drawl.

    *Richard Childress Racing rookie Austin Dillon bulls his way to the win in a wreck-filled race at Bristol on March 16, as only 22 cars are running at the end. In Victory Lane, Dillon salutes his detractors with a middle finger, then pops the top on a beer before shouting “Austin 3:16 says I just whipped your ass!”

    The outburst makes Dillon a sensation, but also saddles the driver of the Childress No. 3 Chevy with the nickname “The Imitator.”

    *In an interview promoting a partnership between the No. 48 team and Caesar’s Palace before the March race in Las Vegas, Jimmie Johnson coins his quest for his seventh Sprint Cup championship “VIIni, VIIdi, VIIci.”

    Later, after International Speedway Corporation CEO Jim France makes Smith an insulting offer for Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Smith slaps France, leading a fallen France to quip, “Et tu, Bruton?”

    Johnson leads the points standings for most of the year, and heads to Homestead with a chance to win No. 7, but engine trouble ends his day. He finishes third in the points standings.

    *Danica Patrick and Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. elope in Barbados on April 19th at a ceremony presided over by Russell Brand and streamed live on GoDaddy.com. Patrick wears a Vera Wang gown crafted from fire-suit material and accented with a HANS device and also featuring a plunging neckline that leaves little to the imagination.

    Patrick’s good fortune continues when she wins at Talladega on May 3rd, darting from 23rd to first on the final lap as a wild pileup eliminates half the field. A wild celebration ensues in Victory Lane, where Patrick delivers a message to her competitors, “There’s a party at my house. I hate to be ‘Petty,’ but no one’s invited, so you can all go home.”

    *In a new advertisement for ESPN’s Sportscenter, Clint Bowyer leads a spin class in the ESPN company workout facility, while Michael Waltrip is seen guiding a tour group from Finland around ESPN’s headquarters. The commercial ends when Bowyer and Waltrip dupe the tour group into paying a second admission fee before they’re busted by Jeff Gordon and Ryan Newman, who accuse the MWR duo of “manipulating the Finnish.”

    *Carl Edwards is scheduled to make an appearance in the March 2nd episode of AMC’s The Walking Dead, in which he portrays the leader of a brainless following of half-dead dimwits, a group eerily similar to the Carl Edwards Fan Club.

    To publicize the event, the No. 99 sports a Subway/The Walking Dead paint scheme bearing the slogan, “Subway: Eat Flesh” at Phoenix. Edwards leads 88 laps and wins in a race that features only three lead changes. In Victory Lane, Edwards performs his trademark back flip while disappointed fans file out like zombies.

    *Matt Kenseth wins the Duck Commander 500 at Texas Motor Speedway on April 6th, and is presented the winner’s trophy by “Duck Dynasty” patriarch Phil Robertson, who oddly comments that his favorite parts of the 1.5-mile track are the “straights.”

    *After a crash at Kentucky Speedway on June 28th, Brad Keselowski and Carl Edwards are summoned to the NASCAR hauler for a talk with NASCAR officials. Keselowski creates a firestorm when he tweets a picture from inside the hauler, a photo which shows he and Edwards smoking cigars and playing ping-pong while officials in the background relax in a hot tub.

    Keselowski is placed on probation for two weeks, while NASCAR bans cell phones and all liquids in excess of 3.4 ounces. 5-Hour Energy shots takes advantage of the opportunity, and becomes the official drink of drivers called to the NASCAR hauler.

    *June’s road race at Sonoma is delayed for three hours after a mild earthquake strikes the region, causing slight damage to the circuit’s surface. Swan Racing part-owner 50 Cent is seen inspecting a fissure in the track along pit road, leading to TNT’s Kyle Petty to make the controversial statement, “Well, he was a crack dealer.”

    50 laughs off the comment, and later in the year makes a big splash when, as honorary starter at Dover in June, eschews waving the green flag and instead fires a starters pistol nine times. In doing so, 50 becomes the first rapper to be “shot nine times” twice.

    *Gene Haas abandons his plan to enter Formula 1 and instead opts to field a funny car in the NHRA. Haas car flops, failing to qualify for a single final, and becomes the laughingstock in the drag racing garage, leading to the nickname “Funny Haas Haas.”

    *A healthy Denny Hamlin wins four races on the season, including March’s Martinsville race, where he fights off a challenge from Joey Logano, than challenges Logano to a fight after the race. Hamlin and Logano settle their differences in a charity 1-on-1 basketball game, which ends in a tie, 1-to-1.

    Hamlin qualifies for the “Elimination Round” of NASCAR’s revamped Chase For The Cup format, and wins at Phoenix on November 9th, but tweaks his back shaking an oversized champagne bottle and struggles the following week at Homestead.

  • Jay Beasley Sees D4D Opportunity as Dream Come True

    Jay Beasley Sees D4D Opportunity as Dream Come True

    For 21 year old Jay Beasley, himself a track champion in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Super Late Model at The Bullring at Las Vegas, being chosen for the 2014 Drive for Diversity Class is nothing short of a dream come true.

    “It’s amazing and I’ve been thinking about this my whole life being in NASCAR,” Beasley said. “For NASCAR to look at me and want me to be in this D4D family is a huge recognition.”

    “It feels really amazing and it’s a blessing.”

    Beasley was born and raised in Las Vegas and loves racing in the area. In addition to his home town track championship, he has also won the Series Nevada championship with eight victories in 14 starts. In addition, the young up and comer was the recipient of the 2013 Wendell Scott Trailblazer Award due to his early successes on the track.

    “I love Las Vegas,” Beasley said. “It’s really cool racing out on the west coast.”

    “The Bull Ring is a really tough track,” Beasley continued. “It seems like having that track under my belt helps me out at every other track that I go to.”

    While Beasley is perfectly at home and has had great success at the Vegas Bull Ring, he will now be challenged to race in the K&N Pro Series East for Rev Racing on tracks where he has never been before in his life.

    “I’ve only been on one track back east and that’s Langley for the combine,” Beasley said. “So, I’m really, really green. Everything is new to me.”

    “This year, I’m really excited to be going to these different tracks and to be racing in the K&N East Series,” Beasley continued. “Everything is going to be different and I actually get a kick out of that and it fires me up even more.”

    “I have to adapt quickly and be on the ball, because if I’m not, I’m going to struggle.”

    Beasley is also looking to adapt to his team and is already hard at work on establishing that critical relationship with them, as well as crew chief Eddie Dickerson.

    “My crew chief has been in the sport for a really long time, has worked for Hendrick, and has built a whole bunch of chasses,” Beasley said. “Everyone that is in the Rev Racing program has been in the NASCAR family for quite some time. So, when you get picked, it’s truly an honor to be working with these people because they have so much knowledge.”

    “Coming into the shop and working with the guys, you are learning and gaining a relationship every day,” Beasley continued. “It’s really amazing.”

    While Beasley admits that there are many racing idols that he looks up to, he is also committed to being his own individual on the track, as well as creating his own unique style and brand.

    “I look at a lot of drivers and there are just things about drivers that make them who they are,” Beasley said. “Like Jimmie Johnson, he has won so many championships and he is so level-headed. Clint Bowyer is really a crazy guy but he’s himself and is not trying to put on a façade. Then you have the Busch boys and they are bad and then they are good and trying to be better and they’re fast.”

    “I’m excited to change the sport and put some Jay Beasley into it and to make a name for myself and to put my brand out there.”

    “My brand is going to be the Michael Jordan of NASCAR,” Beasley continued. “That means that I can have any age kid want to be like me. Or I can give them a good way to look at life, not just racing.”

    “I just want to open people’s minds about racing and the passion for it,” Beasley said. “It’s not about the money or the fame because when you get into that race car, you are in bliss. You’re happy and you do it because you love to do it.”

    “You’re not there to make it into the fame but to do it because it feels good in your heart,” Beasley continued. “That’s how I feel. Being in that race car is like that oxygen. For me to survive and for me to live, I need to be in that race car or I’m not living.”

    “That’s just the way it is.”

    Beasley has clear goals for 2014, as well as bringing balance to what he knows will be a challenging season.

    “My goals for 2014 would be to finish every race and not get wrecked out,” Beasley said. “To get top-10s and top-5s and to even win a couple races would be amazing. To adapt and to be in the shop every day with my guys working on the car and working out are all goals to write down and keep digging on.”

    “This is going to be more exciting to me,” Beasley continued. “I will have to take one day at a time, have fun and enjoy what’s going on.”

    “I will have to really stop and smell the roses because this doesn’t happen every day,” Beasley said. “I’m just really excited and I need to thank NASCAR and everyone getting ready for the season so we can do what we love to do.”