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  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Kentucky Quaker State 400

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Kentucky Quaker State 400

    With a surprising Sunday afternoon race thanks to Mother Nature on Saturday night, here is what else was surprising and not surprising from the 3rd Annual Quaker State 400 presented by Advance Auto Parts at Kentucky Speedway.

    Surprising:  Although five-time champion Jimmie Johnson ended up with a top-ten finish, the driver of the No. 48 Lowe’s Dover White Chevrolet made two surprisingly uncharacteristic mistakes.

    First, Johnson, in a pit road fake out, pulled back on track well in front of the pace car. Although no penalty was issued, this mistake garnered a warning from Race Director David Hoots, who advised Johnson to cease the shenanigans.

    The second mistake came on what has become Johnson’s Achilles heel, a late race restart. After jumping the start and being penalized at the Dover race, Johnson has seemingly been spooked by restarts, this time blaming none other than the race winner for the Kentucky restart miscue.

    “The No. 20 broke the pace car speed, which you aren’t supposed to do,” Johnson said. “I don’t know, we were kind of in an awkward situation in that restart.”

    “And then we were like three and four-wide going in the corner, something happened with the air and it just kind of turned me around,” Johnson continued. “Unfortunate, but at least we rallied back for a good finish.”

    Not Surprising:  With the combination of the race delay to Sunday under the sun and the bumpiness of the track, it was not surprising that a gutsy call from the pit box to stay out on old tires would be the one to win the race. And although it turned out to be a brilliant call, victorious driver Matt Kenseth had his doubts at the time.

    “I didn’t roll the dice, Jason (Ratcliff) did,” Kenseth said. “I thought he was slightly crazy when that happened.”

    “It’s just been an unbelievable season and year of my life honestly,” the driver of the No. 20 Dollar General Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing, said. “I didn’t think there was any way that we were going to hold on for that win.”

    “Jason made the right call at the right time and those guys got it done.”

    This was Kenseth’s fourth victory in 2013 and his highest win total since 2006. It was his first victory in three races at Kentucky Speedway.

    Surprising:  Although under sunshine instead of a full moon, there were still some surprisingly strange incidents in the race which unfortunately impacted other drivers who were innocent victims not of their own doing.

    One of the most impacted was Dale Earnhardt, Jr., who after turning in a pole winning qualifying lap, was hit by an errant tire carcass from the Denny Hamlin machine. He did, however, manage to salvage a decent finish in the twelfth spot.

    “Can’t do anything about what happened out on the race track with that casing,” the driver of the No. 88 National Guard Youth Foundation Chevrolet said. “You just fix it and keep going.”

    “They guys did a good job on pit road all day long working on it and trying to fix everything,” Junior continued. “We did well enough to get a decent finish out of it.”

    The other two drivers impacted through no fault of their own were Brad Keselowski and Greg Biffle. Both drivers were collected in a hard crash caused by Kurt Busch, who admitted that he  ill-advisedly used the apron to try to pass.

    “Wrecks happen,” Keselowski, the driver of the Blue Deuce, said. “There is no reason to drive like an animal but apparently I am the only one that got that memo.”

    “I don’t know what happened,” Biffle said. “I’m sure someone got aggressive or made a mistake or did something to cause that.”

    The issues were costly to both drivers, with Keselowski losing four positions in the point standings, falling to 13th, and Biffle losing three positions to the ninth spot.

    Not Surprising:  With the resurgence of Earnhardt Ganassi Racing continuing, it was not surprising that Jamie McMurray had a pretty good run at Kentucky. In fact, the driver of the No. 1 Hellmann’s Chevrolet scored the runner up position when the checkered flag flew.

    “Yes, it was a really good day for us,” McMurray said. “We’ve had really quick cars for the last two months but had really unfortunate luck.”

    “So, it’s cool to have a really good run.”

    This was McMurray’s first top-ten finish in three races at Kentucky and his fourth top-ten finish in 2013.

    Surprising:  Denny Hamlin had a surprisingly bad day at Kentucky, hitting the wall after his tire blew. While Hamlin has been struggling with back issues, this time he surprisingly had his bell rung instead and was held in the infield care center to evaluate if he had had a concussion.

    Hamlin’s heavy hit was also costly, with a 35th place finish, leaving him in the 25th position in the point standings, well out of current Chase contention.

    “Definitely have to proceed on,” Hamlin said. “Hopefully, at least something to build off of even though we didn’t have a good finish.”

    Not Surprising:   Clint Bowyer continued to impress, scoring his sixth top-five finish for the season. The driver of the No. 15 Camry 30th Anniversary Toyota took the checkered flag in third at Kentucky, getting ever so close to that first win of the season.

    “Good day for us,” Bowyer said. “Obviously when you get that close at the end you can smell a chance at the win – just not our day yet.”

    Surprising:  In spite of getting trapped on pit road when a caution flew yet again, four-time champion Jeff Gordon managed to overcome and salvage a top-ten finish at the end of the day.

    “We had an awesome fast Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet, that is for sure,” Gordon said. “I think we passed more cars than anybody.”

    “These pit stops just aren’t going our way,” Gordon continued. “You just have to keep working hard at it and hope they fall your way eventually.”

    Not Surprising:  Just as Dale Earnhardt Jr. got lucky in qualifying by catching a cloud, Kyle Busch was searching all race day for the same. Busch rebounded from an early race spin to finish in the fifth position in his No. 18 Doublemint Toyota Camry.

    “Anytime I got cloud cover, I could pick up three-tenths of a second,” Busch said. “It was a stupid amount of time I could pick up and then I go down into the next corner and the sun is back and then you’re wrecking loose.”

    “We persevered and came home fifth,” Busch continued. “We can take that effort and go into next week.”

    Surprising:  The end of one driver’s record was the beginning of another driver’s redemption. Bobby Labonte’s streak of 704 consecutive starts came to an end at Kentucky Speedway and the Quaker State 400 marked the first race since 1978 in which there was no driver named Labonte.

    While Bobby Labonte sat on the sidelines, the replacement driver in the No. 47 Scott Products Toyota, AJ Allmendinger, had his own comeback moment at Kentucky. The ‘Dinger, who had tested positive for substance abuse one year ago at Kentucky came back and finished 22nd for JTG-Daugherty Racing.

    Not Surprising:  At a track where he has won three straight Nationwide Series races, all coming from the pole, it was not surprising to see Joey Logano have a top-five finish at Kentucky Speedway. And this young driver, behind the wheel of the No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford was wishing for just one more caution in which he was convinced he could have gotten to Victory Lane.

    “I felt like we were good enough to win for a little bit,” Logano said. “We were sitting pretty in fourth when the caution came out and that usually puts you second or third.”

    “I was hoping for one more caution because I thought I would be in the cat-bird seat if that happened.”

    Surprising:  After winning at Sonoma and predicting his winning ways would continue, Martin Truex Jr. took an ill-handling car and managed a surprisingly good top ten finish.

    “We dodged a lot of bullets,” the driver of the No. 56 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota said. “We didn’t have a very good car.”

    “We just never could get the car in the race track and I feel lucky to finish where we did,” Truex Jr. continued. “These are the kind of days that we need when we don’t have a good car – to persevere, fight through it and get a top-ten.”

    Not Surprising:  After running so well this season and being second in the point standings to none other than five-time champ Jimmie Johnson, it was no wonder that Carl Edwards was confused after finishing 21st in the race at Kentucky.

    “Man, I don’t understand what happened,” the driver of the No. 99 UPS Ford Fusion said. “We were terrible at the end.”

    “I just couldn’t make anything happen,” Edwards continued. “We’re going to have to try to figure that out.”

    “We were feeling really good and having a good time out there for a while but it turned out terribly,” Edwards continued. “I guess that is the way it goes.”

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Kentucky

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Kentucky

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth’s gamble to take no tires during pits stops on the final caution paid off handsomely, as he collected his fourth win of the year with a win at Kentucky. He is now fifth in the Sprint Cup point standings, 82 behind Jimmie Johnson.

    “We took the lead in the pits,” Kenseth said. “That’s become something in which we specialize—winning without passing; only this time, it’s got nothing to do with an inspection.

    “The No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was strong in clean air. And the state of Kentucky offers an abundance of it, except at the Mayfield compound, where the air is a thick as the heads.”

    2. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson’s spin while leading on the race’s final restart likely cost him the win, as he finished ninth after charging back from 25th. It was the latest in a rash of faulty restarts that may have cost him two wins.

    “Apparently,” Johnson said, “I’ve got a mental block when it comes to restarts. That makes me mentally restarted.

    “But I’m not worried. My resume speaks for itself. Not only do I ‘fall back’ on restarts, I fall back on five Sprint Cup championships.”

    3. Kevin Harvick: Harvick finished 10th in the Quaker State 400 at Kentucky, posting his ninth top-10 finish of the season. He is fourth in the point standings, 66 out of first.

    “I’m well within striking distance,” Harvick said. “I would say I’m ‘right where I want to be,’ but that would be false, because I’m still with Richard Childress Racing.”

    4. Carl Edwards: Edwards posted a 21st in the Quaker State 400, leading 35 laps before becoming mired in traffic and fading towards the end. Edwards remained second in the Sprint Cup point standings and trails Jimmie Johnson by 38.

    “The No. 99 Ford was sporting UPS sponsorship on Sunday,” Edwards said. “Unfortunately, it drove like a big, brown truck in the last 30 laps.

    “Congratulations are in order for Matt Kenseth. His four wins this year prove that he can run away from the field just as well as he can run away from me.”

    5. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: After starting on the pole, Earnhardt’s No. 88 Chevy was damaged by the remnants of Denny Hamlin’s blown tire on lap 38. Earnhardt spent much of the next 100 laps in and out of the pits for repairs, and eventually finished 12th.

    “We made ‘something out of nothing,’” Earnhardt said. “The people of Junior Nation have a wealth of experience in making ‘something out of nothing,’ because they are still able to get excited about what is sure to be another Cup-less season.”

    6. Clint Bowyer: Bowyer finished third at Kentucky, posting his sixth top-5 result of the year. He is third in the Sprint Cup point standings and still in search of his first win of the season.

    “A win this season has been as elusive as Jeff Gordon last year at Phoenix,” Bowyer said. “The wins will come. We’ve been solid all year. In fact, I’ve only got one DNF this year, so, for the most part, I’ve been much like Gordon—still running.”

    “On another note, Kyle Petty said Danica Patrick was not a ‘race car driver. Danica responded by saying she is a woman and a driver. Likewise, she said Petty can also be two things at once—a son of a ‘King’ and a son of a bitch.”

    7. Kyle Busch: Busch recovered from an early spin to finish fifth in the Quaker State 400, his eighth top 5 of the year. He is now seventh in the point standings, 110 out of first.

    “Kentucky’s John Calipari drove the pace car for Sunday’s race,” Busch said. “I think he completed only one lap and then called it quits, thus another ‘one and done’ in Kentucky.”

    8. Martin Truex, Jr.: Truex backed up his win at Sonoma with a seventh in the Quaker State 400. The result boosted him two places in the point standings to eighth, 120 out of first.

    “A win at Sonoma followed by a top 10 at Kentucky,” Truex said. “That’s like going from wine to whiskey without missing a beat, something that NASCAR great Tim Richmond probably did better than anyone.”

    9. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski’s day ended early at Kentucky when Kurt Busch’s No. 78 car slid up and into the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge on lap 151. Keselowski’s spinning car collected Greg Biffle’s No. 16, essentially ending the day for both cars. Keselowski was credited with a 33rd-place finish and tumbled four spots in the point standings.

    “Busch may drive the Furniture Row car,” Keselowski said, “but there’s no ‘couching’ his recklessness. I’m sure there are many other drivers who would agree with me, enough to form a committee, in fact, of which I’d happily ‘chair.’ With that being said, what’s more likely? Furniture Row making a ‘chaise,’ or me making the ‘Chase?’”

    10. Joey Logano: Logano finished fourth at Kentucky, posting his fifth top-5 result of the year. He is tenth in the Sprint Cup point standings, 131 behind Jimmie Johnson.

    “Penske Racing drivers are earning a reputation of running others out of the Chase,” Logano said. “I ran Denny Hamlin out, and Brad Keselowski is running himself out.”

  • NASCAR BTS: Samantha Busch’s Adventures in Food, Fitness, Fashion and Philanthropy

    NASCAR BTS: Samantha Busch’s Adventures in Food, Fitness, Fashion and Philanthropy

    While NASCAR driver and team owner Kyle Busch is busy on the track, his wife Samantha is having adventures of her own, from food and fitness to fashion and philanthropy.

    This week’s NASCAR Behind the Scenes (BTS) focuses on the myriad of activities that this Busch bride of two and half years is juggling and loving every minute of it.

    Although petite herself, one of Samantha Busch’s loves is food and cooking, with special emphasis on healthy eating even while on the racing road. She specializes in foods that are quick and easy to prepare in small spaces, such as their motor home.

    “The recipes took off when Kyle was in Texas running around with his plate of food,” Samantha Busch said. “I’ve done some video blogs on healthy options and Kyle’s favorites.”

    “That’s been really great that people see that you can cook in a little space and in a quick amount of time.”

    Busch admits that while she loves to eat healthy and experiment with interesting types of food, she has to try some stealth moves to get the ‘good stuff’ into her husband’s food, as he is not quite so adventurous.

    “I tried making zucchini pasta, which was interesting,” Busch said. “It was good but I’m Italian and although it was healthy, it just wasn’t quite pasta.”

    “I gave it a try though,” Busch continued. “Food wise, Kyle wouldn’t do the zucchini pasta by any means.”

    “So, I have to sneak spinach into his pasta sauce and vegetables into things.”

    Samantha Busch does have a dream when it comes to food and her love of cooking. And she would even include her own ‘weird’ food interests in that particular dream.

    “One day I hope to put all my recipes together,” Busch said. “I would love to do a cookbook and maybe due that as a fundraiser for the Kyle Busch Foundation.”

    “It would also be cool to also have the fans submit their recipes.”

    “But I’d need a whole section for me because I eat really weird food,” Busch said. “I usually make myself something and then Kyle something because I eat wacky food.”

    “I eat things like tofu and unprocessed soy beans,” Busch continued. “My mom always used to mix things together so I just pile stuff together.”

    “I’ll need a whole section on weird, healthy stuff.”

    In addition to her weird, healthy food habits, Samantha Busch is also a fitness fanatic. And she does all of her exercising in spite of being on the road and in a motor home for the better part of every weekend throughout the year.

    “In Daytona, an RV show from the Travel Channel is coming because they recognize that I do an awful lot, especially exercising, in the little space in our motor home,” Busch said. “I started doing more video blogs, keeping them short and easy, to help people with the proper form needed in working out.”

    “Then, I pin the workouts I create on Pinterest, which has been amazing.”

    Samantha Busch said that both she and Kyle also enjoy golfing as their newest workout regime, as well as taking their dogs for walks.

    One area in which Samantha Busch has become well-known for is her fashion sense, dressing well at an affordable price. She does her fashion research and especially enjoys her design work, whether it is Kyle Busch Motorsports gear or styling shoes on pit road.

    “This year I did a dress collection through the Social Dress Shop at the Kyle Busch Motorsports fan club event, which was huge,” Busch said. “We had a lot of our partners there and they were there showing off the dresses and Just Fab, the shoe company, I work with was also there.”

    “I also did a new design that launched there,” Busch continued. “It’s a ‘54’ shirt and it’s summery with different colors.”

    “Coming out of the ‘54’ is a picture of Kyle doing a burnout,” Busch said. “And this went out really well because all the lady fans were checking it out.”

    “With our KBM stuff, it’s been great,” Busch continued. “I’ve taken over the whole women’s collection there.”

    “I’m also working with Social Dress Shop, which is a local online company that sells dresses,” Busch said. “They let me choose these budget chic dresses, everything under $80, for their collection.”

    “I’m hoping one day I can design with somebody,” Busch continued. “That would be my ultimate goal, especially shoes.”

    “To have an affordable trendy shoe line would be the ultimate.”

    Probably most important, however, at least to Samantha Busch is her passion for philanthropy and making kids dreams come true, from ice cream parties to building basketball courts, through the Kyle Busch Foundation.

    Busch also has innovated unique ways to raise money, from putting sheet metal up for auction on eBay to having fans donate gift cards used to support wish-granting activities for needy children.

    “Last year Kyle won the ‘Toyota Dream Build’ with ‘Rowdy Camry’ so that was amazing,” Busch said of another unique fundraising effort. “So, we’ve had that extra money to go out and help.”

    “We focus not on giving kids the necessities but giving them the fun stuff that they miss out on,” Busch continued. “That’s where the money goes because we focus on allowing the kids to be kids.”

    “The biggest thing when people ask what to do is for people to send gift cards,” Busch said. “This past Christmas, we bought 400 individual Christmas gifts for kids with the gift cards.”

    Samantha Busch has been especially grateful for all that the fans have done to support the work of the Kyle Busch Foundation for children in need.

    “We’ve done well with the fans support,” Busch said. “It’s really humbling.”

    “On our fan club day, one guy came in and gave us his whole paycheck for the day,” Busch continued. “We’ve had little kids come in and give us our allowances and you hate to take it but it’s so sweet.”

    “Our Foundation has thrived through fan support and word of mouth,” Busch said. “When they see the kinds of things we do for kids, they want to keep helping.”

    With all of her passions, whether food, fitness, fashion or philanthropy, the one thing that keeps Samantha Busch grounded is her love of family, especially now that her parents have moved closer. And of course, she has her eyes on a family of her own, someday down the road.

    “It’s great having my mom and dad close to us,” Busch said. “They are huge helps which has freed up more time for me to do more of the Foundation work and more blogs and videos.”

    “I don’t know how I did it before,” Busch continued. “They’re always doing something.”

    “So between my mom and I we’re really OCD so everything is all lined-up and color-coded,” Busch said. “Kyle comes home and he’s like “Whoa, what went on here?”

    “When he goes out of town, my mom spends the night with me and we organize some part of the house,” Busch continued. “We’re kind of weird like that.”

    So, what about that question of when the stork will be bringing a little Busch to Kyle and Samantha?

    “Yes, everybody’s big question is when we’re going to have kids,” Samantha Busch admitted. “One day.”

    “We always talk about it but we haven’t decided,” Busch continued. “But when we do, I’m not going to say anything either.”

    “We both really want kids,” Busch said. “I love kids.”

    “We want to have our own kids obviously but we also talk about adopting,” Busch continued. “I think that would be amazing.”

    “My dad came from Italy and grew up in a very poor town,” Busch said. “So, it would be really cool to go back there and adopt from there.”

    Until that time, however, Samantha Busch will continue to focus on her love of food, fitness, fashion and philanthropy. And she loves being busy every minute.

    “I like having stuff to do,” Busch said. “KBM is expanding so that keeps me busy.”

    “Last year, we got a new house so we’re just about done with the redecorating,” Busch continued. “We love traveling, going late model racing, and being with family.”

    “We love to just keep going along.”

    For more information about the adventures of Samantha Busch, visit www.samanthabusch.com and the www.kylebuschfoundation.org.

  • Busch and Keselowski Trying to “Cash-In” on their Previous Success at Kentucky

    Busch and Keselowski Trying to “Cash-In” on their Previous Success at Kentucky

    NASCAR Sprint Cup Series is at Kentucky Speedway in Sparta, KY this weekend for races in all of NASCAR’S top three touring series.  Kentucky has hosted each of these series in past years beginning with the Camping World Truck Series in 2000 and most recently the Sprint Cup Series in 2011.

    Saturday’s Sprint Cup Series race, the Quaker State 400, will be the third Sprint Cup Series race ever held in the Blue Grass State.  The Cup Series inaugural race at Kentucky Speedway was the 2011 Quaker State 400.  Joe Gibbs Racing driver, Kyle Busch, claimed victory of the historical event.

    Success is no stranger to Busch at Kentucky.  He has experience racing at Kentucky Speedway in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, and the ARCA Racing Series.  He has been to victory lane four times, once from each series.

    When asked if he can put his finger on why he has been so good at Kentucky in all divisions, Busch said, “I can’t actually, but I can remember going there for the first time back in 2003 and it was my second-ever ARCA race and first time on a 1.5 mile oval.  It was a big deal, and it was a fast racetrack and I ended up winning that weekend.  I had to do some maneuvering around Frank Kimmel to win.  It wasn’t easy.  But since then, going there in Nationwide and being fast there every time, and going back to race when Sprint Cup didn’t have a date, yet, just getting your feet wet for when that opportunity came when Sprint Cup did go there.  When we went with the Cup car, we were fast right when we unloaded.  Dave Rogers was my crew chief and he had won there several times as a Nationwide crew chief prior to that and had a lot of notes to understand what it took to get around Kentucky, and we ended up winning the first Cup race there.”

    Busch is running races in all three NASCAR divisions this weekend.  His No. 51 ToyotaCare Toyota had a third place finish in the Camping World Truck Series Thursday night, and he finished fifth in the Nationwide Series Feed the Children 300 on Friday night.  The Quaker State 400 will be Busch’s third race of the weekend.  He will be starting in fourth position Saturday night in his No. 18 Doublemint Toyota.

    Last year’s winner of the Quaker State 400, Brad Keselowski, is also running all three NASCAR division races this weekend.  The weekend has proven to be successful for Keselowski thus far with the first two races already completed.  He earned a second place finish Thursday night in the Camping World Truck Series UNOH 225, and won the Nationwide Series Feed the Children 300 Friday night after the race was called for rain.  Keselowksi’s Miller Lite Ford will be starting the final race of the weekend in eighth position.

    When asked why Kentucky fits him well, Keselowski responded, “I think one of the things I like about Kentucky is that it is one of the few tracks that I have always felt kind of heads up to the field.  I guess to elaborate on that, it is my fourth year in the Sprint Cup and in some ways it feels like I have been here forever and in some ways it feels like I haven’t.  When you go to tracks like Texas and Atlanta and places like that where there are a fair amount of drivers with more experience that I do, I always feel like I am that one little step behind.  Here at Kentucky there is no driver that has more experience than me.  We are on an even footing all the way.  In fact, if anything, I feel like I might be slightly up because I have a couple more Nationwide starts and so forth.  I think that leads to some of my comfort here.”

    Being the first two drivers to win a Cup series race at Kentucky and being the only two drivers to enter all three races this weekend, Busch and Keselowski will have their final chance to “cash-in” on their previous success and extra track exposure Saturday night with the 2013 Quaker State 400.

     

  • Quaker State 400 Quick Facts Preview

    Quaker State 400 Quick Facts Preview

    NASCAR Sprint Cup Series heads to the Blue Grass State this weekend for the seventeenth race of the 2013 points season, the Quaker State 400, held on Saturday June 29th at Kentucky Speedway.

    NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and NASCAR Nationwide Series have had Kentucky on their race schedule since 2000 and 2001, respectively.

    This weekend marks the Sprint Cup Series third race at this one and a half mile oval track.

    Forty three cars will take the green Saturday night for the fourth night race so far this points season.

    Driver of the No. 18 Doublemint Toyota, Kyle Busch, was the inaugural winner at Kentucky claiming victory of the 2011 Quaker State 400.

    Busch has racing experience at Kentucky Speedway in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, and the ARCA Racing Series.

    Busch’s success at Kentucky includes one win in each of those stock car racing divisions.

    In his two Cup Series starts at Kentucky, Busch has one victory and two top-10 finishes.  He holds the record for most laps led with 243 laps.

    The runner up for most laps led, who also has one win and two top-10 finishes at Kentucky is Penske Racing driver, Brad Keselowski.

    Keselowksi was winner of Friday night’s rain shortened Feed the Children 300 NASCAR Nationwide Series race.

    Other drivers that typically run well at Kentucky,   who are tied with Busch and Keselowski for most top-10 finishes are Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, and Matt Kenseth.

    Along with his two top-10 finishes Johnson has led a total of 21 laps at Kentucky.

    Drivers will take the green for the 2013 Quaker State 400 Saturday night at 7:30 pm at Kentucky Speedway.

  • Matty’s Picks 2013 – Vol. 14 Quaker State 400 – Kentucky Speedway – June 29, 2013

    Matty’s Picks 2013 – Vol. 14 Quaker State 400 – Kentucky Speedway – June 29, 2013

    To the Bluegrass State we go this week for just the 3rd time in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series history. Kentucky was the race which took away one of the two races at Atlanta Motor Speedway back in 2011. Kentucky is a relatively new track, unlike some of the storied tracks like Martinsville Speedway, Darlington Raceway, Daytona, and Bristol Motor Speedway, really a baby on the list of tracks. It’s 13 years old now and has hosted NASCAR events since 2001, mainly Nationwide and Truck series events, but this is one of just a few weekends where the trucks, Nationwide, and Cup guys are at the same place all in the same weekend. The track is located smack dab in the middle of Louisville and Cincinnati – about an hour away from each, located just off of I-71 in Sparta, Kentucky.

    As far as the track itself, it might be the cookie-cutter of all cookie cutters. With just 14 degrees of banking in the corners, it’s the flattest of any of the 1.5 mile tri-ovals on the schedule. Both 400-mile races have produced a total of 10 cautions in the two years of races, so it’s not my favorite stop on the schedule, but it is a night race which always add a certain element of excitement for any race.

    I had the opportunity to cover the inaugural Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Speedway in 2011, and was impressed with everything but the parking situation at the track. It’s a fantastic facility and another one of Bruton Smith’s gems.

    Sonoma Recap

    I’m not sure how many folks had Martin Truex Jr. on their list of potential race winners last week at Sonoma, but what a shot in the arm that win was for Truex, the No. 56 team, and Michael Waltrip Racing as a whole. A 200+ race drought was snapped last week with Truex’s second career victory, and the win couldn’t come at a better time as we make the downturn towards Richmond in September. The win lifted Truex to 10th in points and with the Wild Card race heating up amongst guys like Brad Kesolowski, Kasey Kahne, Jeff Gordon, and Tony Stewart – 4 of the big hitters on the tour – the win really boosts Truex’s chances of making the Chase in a couple months.

    As for my picks, Juan ran out of gas after racing in the top 5 all day, and Jamie McMurray suffered a flat tire on lap 74 of 110 and finished 25th…the story of my season so far.

    Kentucky Picks

    Winner Pick
    One can not go to Kentucky Speedway without looking at Kyle Busch as the true front-runner for the win on Saturday night. It was a tough week for Kyle at Sonoma last week, and he certainly had a lot to say about it on Twitter following the race last Sunday. I pulled out the popcorn for the entertainment Sunday night as folks poked the bear without knowing we were headed to the place where Kyle has led over 45% of the laps ever run, leads the series in average running position at 3.6, has set a series-high fast laps at 92, and also leads the series in Driver Rating at an incredible 133.0. Kyle has won in every major stock car series at Kentucky Speedway including the Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, and the ARCA series, and will roll off 4th tonight when the green flag drops. He was fast in both practices as expected, and will be the guy to watch later this evening.

    Dark Horse Pick

    On Thursday, I picked Joey Logano as my dark horse guy this week, and it’s a pick which looks even better after the cars have hit the track and the starting grid has been set. Logano will start 11th tonight at Kentucky, and was in the top 20 in both practice sessions earlier in the day on Friday. He’s a solid sleeper pick this week because of his three-straight NASCAR Nationwide Series Victories from 2008 to 2010, and has put himself in position for a solid finish by starting tonight’s Quaker State 400 just outside the Top-10.

    That’s all for this week, so until we put the plates on for the 3rd time this season…..You Stay Classy NASCAR NATION!

  • Kyle Busch – A Kentucky Thoroughbred?

    Kyle Busch – A Kentucky Thoroughbred?

    Saturday night’s Quaker State 400 marks the third time in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series history that the race will be held in the Bluegrass State at Kentucky Motor Speedway.  Over the years the state of Kentucky has developed a reputation for high quality horse racing.  They have produced a myriad of thoroughbreds throughout the years, and this weekend we shift from the idea of thoroughbred horses to thoroughbred NASCAR drivers.

    The inaugural Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Motor Speedway was held on July 10, 2011.  Joe Gibbs Racing driver of the No. 18 Doublemint Toyota, Kyle Busch, led six times during the race for a total of 125 laps to become the noteworthy winner of NASCAR’s top series in the state.

    Even though 2011 marked Kentucky’s first Sprint Cup Series first race, Busch’s winning history at Kentucky began eight years earlier when he was 18 years old.

    In 2003, an eighteen year old Kyle Busch, won The Channel  5 205 NASCAR ARCA Series race.  That win marked the beginning of Busch’s stock-car stardom at Kentucky.  Busch has won one race in each of the stock-car divisions at Kentucky Motor Speedway.

    His Kentucky victories consist of the 2003 Channel 5 205 ARCA Series race, the 2004 Meijer 300 Nationwide Series race, the 2011 UNOH 225 Camping World Truck Series race, and the 2011 Sprint Cup Series Quaker State 400.

    When asked if he could put his finger on why he has been so good at Kentucky in all divisions, Busch commented, “I can’t actually, but I can remember going there for the first time back in 2003 and it was my second-ever ARCA race and the first time on a 1.5 mile oval.  It was a big deal and it was a fast racetrack and I ended up winning that weekend.  I had to do some maneuvering around Frank Kimmel to win.  It wasn’t easy.  But since then, going there in Nationwide and being fast there every time, and going back to race when Sprint Cup didn’t have a date, yet, just getting your feet wet for when that opportunity came when Sprint Cup did go there.  When we went with the Cup car, we were fast right when we unloaded.  Dave Rogers was my crew chief and he had won there several times as a Nationwide crew chief prior to that and had a lot of notes to understand what it took to get around Kentucky, and we ended up winning the first Cup race there.”

    Reflecting on how it feels to be the Inaugural Sprint Cup winner at Kentucky, Busch said, “I think it’s cool.  You look at some of the new venues we’ve been to over the years and Jeff Gordon got to win a number of inaugural races, like the Brickyard, Fontana, and Kansas.  He was always the guy who was known to figure out places the fastest, but we were able to be the ones to do that at Kentucky.  There aren’t many opportunities these days to go to a new venue, so for us being able to win the first race there was extra special.”

    Hoping to add to his Kentucky legacy, Busch will be running all three NASCAR races this weekend.

    When asked what he enjoys about running races in all three NASCAR divisions, like at Kentucky this weekend, Busch said, “It’s a lot of on-track time.  On Thursday we practice all day, and then there’s the truck race that night.  It’s a busy schedule and you are running back and forth between garages and it’s typically hot there in Kentucky.  The biggest thing you get to work on, and enjoy, is essentially the on-track time and getting to figure out the bumps there, and you get extra track time to figure out if you need to get through them better or if you need to get your guys to give you a better setup to get through the bumps.  I have three divisions worth of chances, and three crew chiefs who have different mindsets that, by the time I get to Saturday, I have a feel for what I need to win the Cup race with our Doublemint Camry.”

    Unfortunately, Busch fell short of a win in Thursday night’s NASCAR Camping World Truck Series 3rd Annual UNOH 225 with his No. 51 ToyotaCare Toyota finishing in third place.  However, if Busch’s theory of benefiting from his extra track exposure this weekend pans out and he improves with each race, he is already only two improvements away from victory lane.

    With six Nationwide Series wins and two Sprint Cup Series wins under his belt this season, his impressive history at Kentucky Motor Speedway, including being the inaugural Quaker State 400 winner, is it safe to say that Kyle Busch is a top Kentucky thoroughbred? Can there be any higher accolade in the Blue Grass State?

  • Crunching The Numbers: Kentucky

    Crunching The Numbers: Kentucky

    After a weekend of turning left and right at the road courses at Sonoma and Road America, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NASCAR Nationwide Series, joined by their NASCAR Camping World Truck Series counterparts, head back east to the 1.5 mile Kentucky Speedway for the second tripleheader of the season. This time around all three races will be under the lights of this oval that is a relative newcomer to the schedule, having only hosted all three series for the past two years.

    Sprint Cup Series – Quaker State 400

    As the Sprint Cup Series heads into Kentucky Speedway for a Saturday night showdown under the lights, the series reaches an important milestone for the season. This weekend’s race marks the beginning of the 10 races before the start of the “Chase for the Sprint Cup”. The so-called “Race for the Chase” sets off a mad dash for drivers trying to accumulate wins and rack up points to either make the Chase or improve their position in the standings for a better seed once the Chase starts. There are also a couple of unknowns surrounding this race since the teams have a slim notebook on setups for this track since it has only been on the schedule since 2011 and the Gen6 makes its Kentucky debut this weekend as well.

    Driver Races Win Top 5 Top 10 Pole Laps Led Avg. Start Avg. Finish
    Brad Keselowski 2 1 1 2 0 147 7.0 4.0
    Jimmie Johnson 2 0 1 2 1 21 3.0 4.5
    Kyle Busch 2 1 1 2 0 243 1.5 5.5
    Matt Kenseth 2 0 0 2 0 0 16.5 6.5
    Denny Hamlin 2 0 1 1 0 63 14.5 7.0
    Kasey Kahne 2 0 1 1 0 1 11.5 7.5
    Jeff Gordon 2 0 1 2 0 0 11.5 7.5
    Carl Edwards 2 0 1 1 0 0 16.0 12.5
    Martin Truex, Jr. 2 0 1 1 0 1 13.0 13.0
    Kevin Harvick 2 0 0 0 0 0 11.5 13.5

    Who To Watch: As one of the only two winners at Kentucky and the defending race winner, Brad Keselowski has found a way to get around the 1.5 mile oval better than anyone else, with his one win, one top five, two top tens, 147 laps led, and an average finish of 4.0. Five-time Sprint Cup Series champion, Jimmie Johnson, comes in right behind Keselowski with one top five, two top tens, one pole, 21 laps led, and an average finish of 4.5. Kyle Busch, the inaugural race winner at Kentucky, falls in just behind Keselowski and Johnson with one win, one top five, two top tens, 243 laps led, and an average finish of 5.5.

    Others who run well at Kentucky include: Matt Kenseth, with two top tens and an average finish of 6.5; Denny Hamlin, who could really use a win to boost his Chase hopes, with one top five, one top ten, 63 laps led, and an average finish of 7.0; Kasey Kahne, with one top five, one top ten, one lap led, and an average finish of 7.5; and Jeff Gordon, with one top five, two top tens, and an average finish of 7.5.

    Nationwide Series – Feed The Children 300

    As the second half of the weekend tripleheader, the Nationwide Series has been running at Kentucky since 2001 and moved to two races per year at the track last season. Only two Sprint Cup Series regulars will be running on Friday night and if the Nationwide Series regulars can get past those two drivers then a Nationwide Series regular should find their way to Victory Lane. For even more incentive for a Nationwide regular to run well in this race, this is the qualifier for the first “Dash 4 Cash” race at Daytona. The top four finishers among Nationwide Series regulars at Kentucky will have a shot at a $100,000 bonus in the race next week at Daytona.

    Driver Races Win Top 5 Top 10 Pole Laps Led Avg. Start Avg. Finish
    Austin Dillon 2 2 2 2 2 257 1.0 1.0
    Brad Keselowski 5 1 4 5 0 132 11.0 3.6
    Sam Hornish, Jr. 2 0 1 2 0 5 3.5 4.0
    Elliott Sadler 3 0 2 3 1 101 7.0 6.3
    Justin Allgaier 5 0 2 4 0 29 6.2 9.0
    Kyle Busch 5 1 3 3 0 311 12.2 9.8
    Cole Whitt 2 0 0 1 0 0 12.5 10.0
    Trevor Bayne 3 0 0 0 0 0 10.0 11.3
    Michael Annett 5 0 1 4 0 5 13.0 11.8
    Brad Sweet 2 0 0 1 0 0 16.5 13.0

    Who To Watch: Austin Dillon made his first two starts at Kentucky in 2012 and has a perfect record thus far at the track with two wins, two top fives, two top tens, two poles, 257 laps led and an average finish of 1.0 in his two starts. If Dillon can continue his Kentucky magic, the No. 3 Chevrolet will be tough to beat Friday night.

    Others to keep an eye on include Sprint Cup Series champion Brad Keselowski, who will be running all three races during the weekend, with one win, four top fives, five top tens, 132 laps led, and an average finish of 3.6 in five starts; Sam Hornish, Jr., with one top five, two top tens, five laps led and an average finish of 4.0 in two starts; Elliott Sadler, with two top fives, three top tens, one pole, 101 laps led, and an average finish of 6.3 in three starts; Justin Allgaier, with two top fives, four top tens, 29 laps led, and an average finish of 9.0 in five starts; and Kyle Busch, who is always a threat in these Nationwide Series races, with one win, three top fives, three top tens, 311 laps led, and an average finish of 9.8 in five starts.

    Camping World Truck Series – UNOH 225

    For the first time in three weeks, the Camping World Truck Series heads back to the track to kick off the weekend tripleheader with their race on Thursday night. As in the Nationwide Series race, a couple of Sprint Cup regulars, Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski, will be running this race to try and complete the tripleheader weekend. With that in play, we will see a battle between the up and comers that are regulars in this series and the Sprint Cup regulars that have reached the upper echelon of the sport. Who will win out between the two? Tune in Thursday to find out.

    Driver Races Win Top 5 Top 10 Pole Laps Led Avg. Start Avg. Finish
    Kyle Busch 3 1 1 3 0 177 4.7 4.7
    James Buescher 6 2 3 5 0 188 10.5 7.3
    Joey Coulter 4 0 1 3 1 47 8.0 7.8
    Ty Dillon 3 0 2 2 0 3 7.3 8.0
    Ryan Blaney 1 0 0 0 0 13 16.0 11.0
    Ron Hornaday, Jr. 10 3 3 6 1 141 10.9 11.6
    Matt Crafton 14 0 4 9 1 36 11.2 11.6
    Johnny Sauter 6 0 1 3 1 50 6.7 12.3
    Timothy Peters 9 0 2 3 0 13 14.3 15.7
    Brad Keselowski 3 0 1 1 0 4 22.7 16.7

    Who To Watch: Kyle Busch leads all active drivers at Kentucky with one win, one top five, three top tens, 177 laps led and an average finish of 4.7 in three starts at the track. 2012 Truck Series champion James Buescher comes in just behind Busch with two wins, three top fives, five top tens, 188 laps led, and an average finish of 7.3 in six races. Joey Coulter, driver for Kyle Busch Motorsports, is next with one top five, three top tens, one pole, 47 laps led, and an average finish of 7.8 in four starts. Ty Dillon also has a good record with two top fives, two top tens, three laps led, and an average finish of 8.0 in three starts.

    Others to keep an eye on include rookies Jeb Burton and Darrell Wallace, Jr, both of whom have never raced at Kentucky and Sprint Cup champion Brad Keselowski, who will be driving his own team’s truck and trying to capture the Truck Series win that has eluded him thus far in his career.

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Sonoma Toyota Save Mart 350

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Sonoma Toyota Save Mart 350

    Under unexpected cloudy skies and even some rain drops, here is what else was surprising and not surprising from the 25th annual Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway.

    Surprising:  Martin Truex Jr. was in surprisingly esteemed company with his 218-race winless streak, the second longest in the Cup Series to Bill Elliott’s 226-race winless streak.

    But Truex managed to avoid that number one winless record spot by grabbing the brass ring on the road course, attaining his second career victory, his first at Sonoma, and his first of the season.

    And according to the driver of the No. 56 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota for Michael Waltrip Racing, the win marks the beginning of the new winning Truex.

    “I can’t even put it into words,” Truex said in Victory Lane. “I have so many people to thank who have stuck with me.”

    “The team is just phenomenal,” Truex continued. “It feels damn good to get one finally.”

    “Today was just our day and our time,” Truex said. “Our car was flawless.”

    “We’re going to get a bunch of them now, I can tell you that much.”

    Not Surprising:  The remainder of the MWR Race team also had a good day at the race track, with Clint Bowyer, defending Sonoma winner, finishing fifth in his No. 15 5-Hour Energy Toyota and Brian Vickers, fresh off his sixth place Nationwide finish at Road America, finishing 13th in the No. 55 RKMotorsCharlotte.com Toyota.

    “We had a fast car all weekend long,” Bowyer said. “We got close but we pitted and nobody came with us.”

    “A long time coming for Martin and happy to see him in Victory Lane.”

    MWR driver Vickers may not have had quite the finish he wanted but he got something even more important, a ringing endorsement from his team owner Michael Waltrip after the race.

    “We want Brian Vickers to be a part of this organization in the future,” Waltrip said after the race. “He’s our guy.”

    “We’re trying to put the pieces together.”

    Surprising:  Jeff Gordon, who had an eventful day of having to overcome a pitting too early penalty, also achieved a surprising record of his own.

    This was the Gordon’s 302nd career top-five finish, breaking the tie he had for third with Hall of Fame driver David Pearson.

    “This is one of those crazy types of races where pit strategy goes all over the place and you never know what might happen,” the driver of the No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet said.  “The way things have been going on the track for me haven’t been great and they way things have been going with the calls haven’t been going his (crew chief Alan Gustafson’s) way either.”

    “But wow, we finally had a race car that was fantastic,” Gordon continued. “We had a lot of fun out there.”

    This was Gordon’s 17th top-10 finish in 21 races at Sonoma.

    Not Surprising:  Carl Edwards started where he finished, third and third, in his No. 99 Aflac Ford. This was his fourth top-10 finish in nine races at Sonoma and he was officially the highest finishing Ford in the race.

    “I would have liked to have made a couple spots up,” Edwards said. “It feels weird to race that hard all day and finish in the same spot you started.”

    “That’s the true story,” Edwards continued. “It was a pretty dynamic race.”

    “Eventually we will win one of these races.”

    Even with his third place start and finish, Edwards remains in the second place in the point standings, 25 points behind leader Jimmie Johnson.

    Surprising:  Kurt Busch was, by his own admission, surprisingly fast both on and off the track. He endured not one but two pit road speeding penalties , and in spite of that managed to claw his way back to the fourth finishing position in his No. 78 Furniture Row Racing/Sealy Chevrolet.

    “Yeah, we were fast, even on pit road, twice,” Busch said. “I messed up, flat out.”

    “I didn’t hit my tachometer right and I was speeding both times,” Busch continued. “I just put myself in a position that was poor trying to get too much on pit road.”

    “But man this Furniture Row Chevy was fast.”

    Not Surprising:   Juan Pablo Montoya had a fast race car but that was not quite enough to finish the Sonoma race. The driver of the No. 42 Target Chevrolet needed some additional gas in his vehicle, running out on the last lap and dropping from the front of the field to a 34th place finish.

    “It’s just heartbreak,” Montoya said. “Our Target Chevy was really good today.”

    “You’ve got to defend them in the way they do the fuel calculations,” Montoya continued. “It should have been a little smarter.”

    “We’ve got tools to prevent things like that from happening.”

    Surprising:  Kyle Busch, who finished 35th in his No. 18 M&Ms Toyota after contact with both Montoya and Edwards sent him spinning, took to Twitter to battle those who were criticizing him.

    His first tweet of “Awww. My heart melts for @jpmontoya who ran out of gas. Only thing I got for Carl is “aww crap,” sent the tweet war off and running with some of his followers.

    After a few barbs back and forth, however, Busch showed his more jovial side, ending the Twitter visit with “Brought to u in part by mms. LOL” in response to this tweet @queers4gears: Does @KyleBusch’s twitter feed come with popcorn? #Entertainment.

    Not Surprising:  Most likely the two most disappointed drivers at Sonoma were those that started on the front row. Jamie McMurray had a great pole run only to finish 25th due to a flat tire and damage, while Marcos Ambrose, who had tested at Sonoma and qualified on the outside pole, salvaged a seventh place finish.

    “It’s OK,” the driver of the No. 9 Stanley Ford said. “We got a top-10 out of it.”

    “The weather cooled down and lot and we just didn’t anticipate that when we set the car up,” Ambrose continued. “Of course I wanted to win but that’s the way it goes.”

    Surprising:  There were two surprising engine issues right at the start in the race. Bobby Labonte, in the No. 47 Kingsford Toyota, did not even make a lap before his engine expired.

    Joining him was Jacques Villeneuve, who made it to Lap 19 before having his No. 51 Tag Heuer Avant-Garde Eyewear Chevrolet pushed into the garage with gear and engine woes.

    Not Surprising:  While Danica Patrick supposed that she was comfortable at Sonoma in that she at least knew where the ladies’ restrooms were, she finished a very uncomfortable 29th in her No. 10 GoDaddy Chevrolet.

    “It was a long day – a long weekend,” Patrick said. “We just couldn’t get the car to the point where I was comfortable with it.”

    “Having the cut tire and going into the tire barrier was just sort of salt in the wound,” Patrick continued. “Hopefully we have a better weekend next week at Kentucky.”

    Surprising:  Rookie Paulie Harraka, attempting his first Cup start in his No. 52 Hasa Pool Products Ford, had a surprisingly difficult start to the race, wrecking as the cars went out on track for the pace laps.

    “I don’t know what to say except that stuff happens,” Harraka said. “Somebody two cars ahead of me decided to stop in the go lane and why he did that I have absolutely no idea, but these cars don’t stop very well on the wet asphalt.”

    “Sometimes crazy stuff happens.”

    Not Surprising:  While Dale Earnhardt Jr. may not have scored a top-ten finish, he was still smiling after Sonoma with a 12th place finish at a road course which admittedly is not his forte.

    “It was a pretty good day,” the driver of the No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet said. “This is definitely my worst race track, my least favorite track.”

    “We will take a top-15 here any week.”

     

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Michigan

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Michigan

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Jimmie Johnson: While in pursuit of Greg Biffle in the lead, Johnson’s No. 48 Chevy cut a tire and slammed hard into the wall at Turn 2. Biffle went on to win, while Johnson finished 28th, one lap down. He remained the points leader, and holds a 31-point cushion over Carl Edwards.

    “I’ll let Biffle enjoy the moment,” Johnson said. “He tastes victory. I drink it.”

    2. Kevin Harvick: Harvick finished second in the Quicken Loans 400 at Michigan, posting his fourth consecutive top-10 result. He is fourth in the Sprint Cup point standings, 62 out of first.

    “Sunday was my first Father’s Day as a father,” Harvick said, “and I finished runner-up to Greg Biffle. I always like to say, ‘I’m a daddy first, and a driver second.’”

    3. Carl Edwards: Edwards finished eighth at Michigan, falling victim to an untimely caution, while Roush Fenway teammate Greg Biffle took the win. Edwards remained second in the point standings and trails Jimmie Johnson by 31.

    “Biffle refused to help me get some debris off my grill,” Edwards said. “But I’ve got no problem ‘trashing’ him. I guess my current teammate is a lot like my former teammate, Matt Kenseth, in that neither ‘favors’ me.”

    4. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth came home sixth at Michigan, collecting his eighth top 10 of the year. He improved one spot in the point standings to fifth and is now 82 out of first.

    “Toyota Racing Development is boosting the power of their engines,” Kenseth said. “That likely means Toyota cars will be going faster….when their engines blow.”

    5. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: A promising day for Earnhardt at Michigan turned sour when his engine blew on lap 131 after he had led 34 laps on the day. He finished 38th and tumbled three places in the point standings to seventh, 91 out of first.

    “We’re close to signing a sponsor that will be new to NASCAR,” Earnhardt said, “and it will be a big deal for both parties. In other words, it’s a ‘win-win’ situation, which doubles my number of victories over the last year.”

    6. Clint Bowyer: Bowyer posted his eight top-10 finish of the year with a seventh in the Quicken Loans 400. He remained third in the point standings and trails Jimmie Johnson by 49.

    “The No. 15 5-Hour Energy car took a beating,” Bowyer said. “Of course, it’s taken a ‘beating’ all year, because I haven’t won a single race. That may change. I won last year at Sonoma’s road course, so I’m confident things will make a ‘turn’ for the better.”

    7. Kyle Busch: Busch led the way for Joe Gibbs Racing with a fourth in the Quicken Loans 400. He is fourth in the Sprint Cup point standings, 86 out of first.

    “Michigan is a fast track,” Busch said. “It carries more speed than the Mayfield’s. That speed is probably why I was penalized for passing on pit road. And that reminds of the title of my upcoming autobiography, ‘Black Flags And Blue Lights.’”

    8. Greg Biffle: Biffle held off Jimmie Johnson at Michigan to give Ford its 1,000th victory in NASCAR. Biffle inherited the lead on a fortunate pit stop on lap 167, and kept Johnson at bay before the No. 48 blew a tire with two laps to go.

    “I stared down Johnson,” Biffle said, “and he blinked. Or maybe he just winked. In any case, he saw me. For once, I can say I had the ‘look’ of a champion.

    9. Kasey Kahne: Kahne blew a tire while leading on lap 104 at Michigan on a tough day for Hendrick Motorsports. Kahne finished 38th, while Jimmie Johnson was the highest Hendrick finisher in 28th.

    “Tire issues meant it wasn’t a good day for Hendrick,” Kahne said. “You want to know why? Because it was a Goodyear.”

    10. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski finished 12th in the Quicken Laons 400 at Michigan on a historic day for Ford, as Greg Biffle gave the auto maker it’s 1,000th win.

    “If you don’t think this is a big deal for Ford,” Keselowski said, “then you’ve been misinformed. Biffle celebrated in Victory Lane with Miss Sprint Cup. Me? I got stuck with ‘Miss Informed.’”