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  • The Final Word – The Countdown to the New Season is Down to Single Digits

    The Final Word – The Countdown to the New Season is Down to Single Digits

    The countdown has begun to the start of a new season, with less than ten days to go before the Sprint Unlimited exhibition race at Daytona. A new campaign, some new teams and some new expectations.

    Stewart-Haas had a year of mixed results in 2014. Kevin Harvick has his crown, but I think if you claim one championship you might like to claim another. Hey, it works for Jimmie Johnson. His boss, Tony Stewart, has three, but just having a year without the drama would be a Godsend. Kurt Busch won a race, which placed him in the Chase, but he actually was not even as good as Austin Dillon, Paul Menard, or Brian Vickers over the course of the season. He needs to show this year as to why Gene Haas spent the big money to bring him into the stable.

    Danica Patrick must do well. I hear that, I believe that should be so, but I am not so convinced the bloom is off the rose just yet. With the big money funding, a solid organization behind her, and the media attention she gets, I do not believe she needs to be anything more than the novelty she already is. Being the best female driver in NASCAR history might still be enough, but results better than those of, say, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. should be expected as the soon-to-be 33-year-old embarks on her third full season.

    Kasey Kahne turns 35 this spring and probably is considered the little guy at the big boys table at Hendrick by some. Seventeen wins over his career, including six in the past four years, argues otherwise. The only reason Kahne is not more front and center is due to having teammates who have either won the title multiple times or who happens to be the sports most popular performer. Even Harvick and Stewart would be considered fourth on the depth chart on this outfit.

    Dale Earnhardt Jr. has a new crew chief. After matching his win totals of the previous nine seasons in 2014, Junior has Greg Ives on the box after Steve Letarte left for the broadcast booth. The 40-year-old needs to repeat what he did in 2014, as 23 Cup wins, 23 more on the junior circuit, two Daytona 500 wins, five Talladega celebrations, and a dozen straight Most Popular Driver of the Year nods might not be enough to make the Hall…in 2030.

    2015 marks the final full-time season for Jeff Gordon. You better enjoy it, as he will not be eligible for the Hall of Fame until at least 2023. That would mark 30 years since he began his career, which is one qualification. If he has to wait until he is 55, that would be in 2027. Gone is the former three years in retirement qualification, as of this year. This alone causes me to expect more tinkering to the qualification rules between now and then.

    Trevor Bayne has a Daytona 500 to his credit, and not much else over the past four seasons. He leaves his part-time job driving for the Wood Brothers to a full-time gig with Roush Fenway. Bayne turns 24 the day they run the Duels at Daytona, with hopes of taking Mark Martin’s old No. 6 ride back to the front. The question is, does he and teammates Greg Biffle and Stenhouse represent an organization on the rise?

    Bayne takes the place of Carl Edwards, who hopes to realize that first championship with his move. Twice he has been the season’s runner-up, as the 35-year-old seeks some greener grass on Joe Gibbs’ side of the fence. Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch and Matt Kenseth are a pretty good trio of teammates to roll with. Without question, one of NASCAR’s Big Three organizations, along with Hendrick and Stewart-Haas.

    Or should that be Big Four? Penske is just a two car outfit, but with Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano on the reins their wagons can make something happen. Both finished amongst the season’s Top Five, combining for 11 victories last year. Yes, Big Four is more like it.

    Is there anyone to make it a Big Five? Childress has youth in Austin Dillon, with brother Ty waiting in the wings. They have experience in Ryan Newman, who was just one point behind Harvick when the smoke cleared at Homestead last November. Then there is Paul Menard, who has yet to crack the season’s Top Fifteen in his career, the past four with Childress. On the positive side, he does come complete with a sponsor. Is that enough?

    Michael Waltrip’s crew once was considered a top flight team, until the wings came off. Martin Truex Jr. found himself with Furniture Row, where their gains with Kurt Busch disappeared with his replacement. Brian Vickers is on the mend with a heart issue, so he will require a temporary replacement. As for Clint Bowyer, Captain Skid dropped to 19th in the season rankings after being the runner-up in 2012 and seventh the season after. Bowyer is locked in for another three years, but will they be the best of times, or the worst of times?

    Ganassi has 22-year old Kyle Larson, who just missed the Chase in his rookie season, along with veteran Jamie McMurray. Am I the only one who thinks this team should have been, and should be, more successful? McMurray has only seven wins over 13 seasons, but where he won is impressive. Two came at Daytona, including the 500 in 2010, two at Talladega, two at Charlotte, as well as the Brickyard 400. Not enough to make one a contender, but certainly one who gets remembered.

    You cannot forget Petty, if only for the guy the outfit is named after. Aric Almirola is back, after a single win got him into the Chase…for three races. That victory was just one of five the team has had over six seasons. Coming in is Sam Hornish Jr. who, in 239 NASCAR races in all three top series, has just three wins on the junior circuit. Two of them came over his last 39 races run there over the past two campaigns. Let us not forget his 19 IndyCar wins between 2001 and 2007, including the 2006 Indianapolis 500. Does that get one excited? Sadly, not much.

    Maybe the biggest move comes off the track. Gone is ESPN. Thank God Almighty. FOX returns, with NBC taking over the second half of the season. Mike Joy is a good lap-by-lap announcer, while Rick Allen is even better. While he may have a few detractors, I enjoy Darrell Waltrip, along with Larry McReynolds, providing color analysis. I think Steve Letarte will be even better though, surprisingly, Jeff Burton may be the weak link until he smooths out his delivery. Still, he has a few months to work on it. All are infinitely better than the ESPN crew, and that works for me.

    It all begins on Saturday, February 14th with the Sprint Unlimited from Daytona on FOX. Dare I say it, “Boogity, Boogity, Boogity.” Sorry, I just could not resist.

  • Driver and Team Changes for the 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Season

    Driver and Team Changes for the 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Season

    As one season ends and a new one approaches, teams begin a self evaluation that often results in changes among key personnel. Here’s your guide to some of the new alliances we will see in 2015.

    Hendrick Motorsports

    Dale Earnhardt Jr.:

    As Steve Letarte departs for the television broadcast booth; Greg Ives will take over the role of crew chief for the No. 88 team. Ives will have big shoes to fill as the pairing of Letarte with Earnhardt in 2011 was the catalyst for resurgence in Earnhardt’s career. He’s coming off his first multiple win season since 2004 and running out of time in the championship hunt.

    While some question his lack of experience in the Cup series, Earnhardt is confident that Ives is the right person for the job.

    “I don’t think it’s a step back, I think it’s a step forward,” he said. “This is a guy that engineered Jimmie (Johnson) to five championships, won the Nationwide Series championship last year, almost won it with Regan (Smith) the year before. Basically, in more than 50 percent of the years he’s been in the sport, he’s won a championship.”

    The No. 88 Chevrolet will also have a new sponsor in the Sprint Cup Series as Nationwide Insurance takes over as Earnhardt’s primary sponsor, replacing National Guard. Nationwide will sponsor 21 races each year of the next three seasons.

    Kasey Kahne:

    Keith Rodden, formerly of Chip Ganassi Racing, will assume crew chief duties for the No. 5 Chevrolet in 2015. Rodden worked with Kahne at Hendrick Motorsports as team engineer from 2004 until 2013. He replaces Kenny Francis who has been with Kahne since the end of 2005.  The successful partnership of Francis and Kahne produced 16 of Kahne’s 17 career Sprint Cup wins but floundered in 2014. Kahne only had one victory and barely made it into the Chase. Francis moves to the new position of vehicle technical director and will also serve as Chase Elliott’s crew chief for five races in 2015.

    “I worked with Keith for years, said Kahne.”We’ve got a great relationship, we’re friends, and it’s exciting to know we’ll be working together full time again. I think he brings a lot to the 5 team.”

    Chase Elliott: After winning the XFINITY championship and becoming the youngest NASCAR Touring Series champion last year, Elliott has been named as Jeff Gordon’s successor in the No. 24 Chevy in 2016. As preparation for that role, he will run five Cup races this season in the No. 25 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet with Kenny Francis by his side as crew chief. Those five races include Martinsville Speedway in March, Richmond International Raceway in April, Charlotte Motor Speedway in May, Indianapolis Motor Speedway in July and Darlington Raceway on Sept. 6.

    Joe Gibbs Racing

    Joe Gibbs Racing ended the 2014 season with only two wins and as Carl Edwards moves from Roush Fenway Racing to Joe Gibbs Racing in 2015, J.D. Gibbs, president of JGR, is using the opportunity to make some changes.

    “With the expansion of our NASCAR Sprint Cup Series operations to four teams next year with the addition of Carl Edwards,” he stated, “we have been able to take a step back and evaluate each of our teams and make decisions that we feel are best for our organization long term.”

    Kyle Busch:

    Adam Stevens will move from the XFINITY Series where he and Busch combined for 19 wins, to partner with Busch in the Cup Series as crew chief for the No. 18 Toyota.

    Busch had one Cup win in 2014 and advanced to the Chase but was eliminated from championship contention in the second round. The frustration of the season sometimes disintegrated into heated exchanges between Busch and Rogers, undoubtedly putting a strain on their relationship.

    Denny Hamlin:

    Dave Rogers (Busch’s crew chief for five seasons) will join Hamlin’s No. 11 team as crew chief.

    Hamlin scored one victory last season and advanced to the final round of the Chase. He led 50 laps in the championship title race at Homestead-Miami Speedway but Darian Grubb’s decision not to pit for fresh tires late in the race was costly.

    Carl Edwards:

    Edwards, the newest member of the JGR team will be paired with Darian Grubb (Hamlin’s former crew chief) in the No. 19 Toyota.

    Richard Petty Motorsports

    Sam Hornish Jr.: Three-time IndyCar champion Hornish signed a multi-year deal to replace Marcos Ambrose in the No. 9 Ford this year after Ambrose announced his intention to return home to Australia at the end of the 2014 season. Drew Blickensderfer will continue in his position as crew chief.

    Hornish is optimistic about his future stating, “I feel like having the opportunity is great for me, and above and beyond, to be able to drive for Richard Petty now is just awesome. I’ve worked four years to get back to this point, and I feel like as a driver I’ve come a long way. ”

    Roush Fenway Racing

    Trevor Bayne:

    Bob Osborne will return to RFR as the crew chief for the No. 6 when Bayne begins his first full-time Sprint Cup season in 2015. Osborne was Carl Edwards’ longtime crew chief and a guiding force behind his 18 career wins.

    Ricky Stenhouse Jr.:

    After a disappointing season with only one top-five finish, Nick Sandler will take over crew chief duties for the No. 17 of Stenhouse in 2015, replacing Mike Kelley who will continue as car chief.

    “Nick has a strong engineering background with the company”, Jack Roush explained, “and his time working hand-in-hand with Jimmy Fennig over the past few seasons will prove invaluable as he takes the helm of the No. 17.”

    Wood Brothers Racing

    Ryan Blaney:

    Blaney will replace Trevor Bayne as the driver of the famed No. 21 Ford Fusion this year in an expanded 18 race Sprint Cup schedule as Wood Brothers Racing enters its 65th year in NASCAR with a new technical alliance with Team Penske.

    Blaney is optimistic about the upcoming season saying, “We have a very fast car for the 500 and a fast car for this whole year. They’ve worked really hard on our speedway car and they are very confident going into it.

    “Just the history of this car with that race, it would be just amazing. I hope we can pull a Trevor Bayne moment.”

    Jeremy Bullins will reunite with the team to serve as the crew chief for Blaney. Bullins first worked with Wood Brothers Racing in 1999 and from 2000-2002 was the race engineer for the No. 21 in the Cup Series.

    Furniture Row Racing

    Martin Truex Jr.: Truex’s first year with the team failed to produce any wins and only one top-five in the No. 78 Chevrolet. In his sophomore season with the team, he will be paired with former team lead engineer Cole Pearn who will replace Todd Berrier as crew chief.

    General Manager Joe Garone emphasized the struggles they experienced last year will make them stronger going forward.

    “What we went through last year, our performance was horrible and we hadn’t gone through that as a team yet,” Garone said. “We’ve been through that, we looked at where we were weak, where we had things where we were off base, and we’ve realigned it and we’re going to prove it this year.”

    HScott Motorsports

    Michael Annett: Annett, who brings sponsorship from longtime backer Pilot Flying J, joins the organization for the 2015 season as they expand to a two car team.

    “This opportunity came very late, but it was one that I couldn’t pass up and definitely wanted to jump on,” Annett said. “I know there’s going to be some growing pains. We don’t even have a car number yet, let alone a crew chief.”

    Tommy Baldwin Racing

    Alex Bowman: Bowman will drive the No. 7 Chevrolet in his second full-time year in the Sprint Cup Series after a rookie season at BK Racing.  Kevin “Bono” Manion will remain with TBR as Bowman’s crew chief.

    Owner Tommy Baldwin Jr. said, “Alex is the future of TBR, and he will be a great representative of our team. He is a young driver who displayed a great talent in both the Xfinity and Sprint Cup Series the past few years. We are pleased to give Alex the opportunity to further showcase his skills behind the wheel of the No. 7 Chevrolet this season.”

  • Joe Gibbs Racing Looks Forward to a Better Season in 2015

    Joe Gibbs Racing Looks Forward to a Better Season in 2015

    Charlotte, NC – The Charlotte Motor Speedway Media Tour’s second stop was Joe Gibbs Racing. There are lots of changes at JGR, most notably the addition of Carl Edwards in the No. 19 Toyota, but it was Denny Hamlin who spoke first.

    Hamlin was a notable participant with other drivers in what became a feud with Team Penske’s Brad Keselowski in 2014. Hamlin now says that he has moved on from 2014, and feels like he and Keselowski are in a good place for 2015.

    “I think as drivers, we’re becoming a tighter-knit group,” Hamlin said. “I think really, it doesn’t take long for stuff like that to kind of wash itself under the bridge. I think that any incidents with myself, or Kevin, or Jeff or anyone who may have had an issue with Brad, it’s in the past and you’ve got to move on.

    “It’s hard to hold grudges because they take up so much effort to keep them going. As drivers, you just don’t have time.”

    Hamlin, who chased Keselowski through the garage area after a racing incident at Charlotte on the final restart, says the intensity of the final 10 races led to that incident, something that maybe drivers are going to handle better the second time around.

    “Jeff (Gordon), he probably knew that was a great opportunity for him to win a championship before he retires, that probably ramped up his intensity,” Hamlin said. “For those other moments, we’re all trying to make it to the next round. If you feel like someone causes you to miss it, you are really, really angry. It’s part of racing.”

    Kyle Busch had to answer questions about his brother, Kurt Busch and domestic violence. Busch said Monday that he has steered clear of involving himself in older brother Kurt’s recent legal issues, even though reporting mistakes have confused the two. Busch said he had not spoken to his older brother about the alleged incident.

    “Haven’t spoken to him,” Busch said. “Don’t know nothing and I’m trying to stay away from it all and let him handle his business.”

    Carl Edwards, the star of the show, was his usual optimistic self. Edwards is probably looking at the success of his former and current teammate, Matt Kenseth, for inspiration. During his first season after leaving Roush Fenway Racing, Kenseth won seven races and Edwards is hoping for the same in 2015, and not looking back.

    “This year’s a little bit different,” Edwards said Monday during the Charlotte Motor Speedway NASCAR Media Tour. “It reminds me of my first year full time in the Cup Series. I feel like I’ve really got to prove myself. I feel a little anxious; a little nervous about it. It’s nice. I haven’t had that feeling for a long time and it’s a motivator. I’m as focused as I’ve ever been and I’m excited as I’ve ever been. This is a neat opportunity for me.

    “I’m just excited to get to learn from these guys and get to race under the JGR banner for Toyota. We had a great test at Charlotte and I’m really ready to go. I’ve been wearing my driver’s suit a lot.”

    Kenseth went from riches to rags in 2014 by not winning a single race in his second season at JGR.

    “It’s probably a little bit different of a situation because it’s starting a whole new team for Carl, but he’s a guy who’s been in one place for a while and is making a jump,” Kenseth said. “That’s never easy to do, to leave some place where you’re comfortable and you understand how it works and you’ve won some races. I know what it feels like.”

    Time will tell, but Edwards is confident and with Darian Grubb as his Crew Chief, success should come to the kid from Missouri who handed out business cards early in his career while trying to find a ride.

  • Odds and Ends as the New NASCAR Season Prepares to Crank it Over

    Odds and Ends as the New NASCAR Season Prepares to Crank it Over

    A new season, with a new defending champion, will be soon upon us. Kevin Harvick and the rest of the boys, and girl, will be in Daytona in less than a month to kick things off. According to Jayski, 43 teams have dreams of running full-time in 2015, with more than a dozen seeing drivers with new crew chiefs, and a handful of wheel men changing seats.

    Former Daytona winner Trevor Bayne goes full-time with Roush, returning in Mark Martin’s old No. 6. Sam Hornish Jr. makes a return to Cup driving the Petty No. 9. Carl Edwards moves on to Gibbs and the No. 19. Brian Vickers is out of Waltrip’s No. 55 until he mends from a heart repair. Nineteen-year-old Chase Elliot should get some seat time with Hendrick, while driving for Junior in the minor series. In the trucks, Junior will have soon-to-be 17-year-old Cole Custer running about 10 races. Cole Custer. If that isn’t the best damned name in NASCAR, I don’t know what is.

    Danica Patrick will be back. She will continue to be back regardless as to what she does, or does not do on the track, as long as fans and sponsors love her and pay her way. You could say she is a lot like Dale Earnhardt Jr. in that way, albeit minus the iconic father, the two Daytona 500 wins, five Talladega triumphs, 23 career victories, and seven appearances in the season’s top ten rankings.

    As I mentioned, while Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus continue their most successful racing marriage, others will be in new relationships. Danica, Junior, and Cousin Carl will be amongst those with new crew chiefs. So will Jamie McMurray, Kasey Kahne, Denny Hamlin, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Paul Menard, Martin Truex Jr. and both Busch brothers. That could prove interesting, especially in the early going.

    Some get going, some get gone, and sometimes somebody is not happy the ways things turned out. As none of us were witness to the alleged altercation between Kurt Busch and his ex, we are left following along the court case. To be honest, as long as the guy is shown not to be a menace to society, as long as what may have happened is all that may have happened, I really do not care. As much as it is serious business for the principles involved, it is nothing more than a sideline event for the rest of us. An outcome to take notice of if we so wish, but not much more.

    It would be nice to owe millions, if only for having the chance to have spent millions in the first place. We try to live within our means, so that means my family is not bogged down in debt. Still, it would be nice to know that if I completely blew it there might be a bank or two willing to forgive millions in loans they gave me. It must be sweet to be in a position to forgive such a loan.

    The NASCAR Hall of Fame has been a white elephant from the beginning, with even its location suspect. It would seem the 25 minute drive from the track in Concord to downtown Charlotte is a trek many are not interested in making. Even the Daytona Experience, rejected as a site for the Hall, closed its doors and it was located right beside that track. I understand it will re-open again next year as the home of the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America. That is irony. Oh well, all is forgiven, I guess, to the tune of nearly $20 million. Now if they can only attract some paying customers, or the Convention Center there might wind up with tons of space for it to expand.

    It would be nice to say the new season means a change in the seasons, but for those of us in the lands of snow and ice, it does not. At least it gives us an idea what clear pavement, green grass, and shirt sleeves might look like. That, and a return of our favorite drivers, is good enough.

  • Joe Gibbs Racing’s Engine Program May Backfire on Them Once Again

    Joe Gibbs Racing’s Engine Program May Backfire on Them Once Again

    Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) is one of the top teams in NASCAR and if you look at their driver lineup, the team appears to be headed in the right direction for many years to come.

    In August the team announced that 23-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winner Carl Edwards would join their driver lineup for the upcoming 2015 season and beyond. The deal, in which Edwards will drive a fourth car for Joe Gibbs Racing, is a multi-year deal and was the most significant deal of the 2014 NASCAR Silly Season. Joining Edwards at Joe Gibbs Racing is former teammate Matt Kenseth.

    Kenseth, the 2003 NASCAR Cup Champion, has 31 career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victories in his 15 full-time seasons in the sport and won seven races in the Sprint Cup Series just two seasons ago. Kenseth signed a multi-year deal with the organization prior to the 2013 season. It is clear that Kenseth is here to stay at Joe Gibbs Racing.

    The same can be said for Joe Gibbs Racing drivers Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch, two of NASCAR’s best young drivers. Even though Busch will be entering his 11th full-time season of his Sprint Cup Series racing in 2015 he will only be 30 years old in May. Busch has an impressive 29 wins in those 11 seasons and is one of the best drivers in NASCAR.

    Hamlin will be entering his 10th year of competition in the 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season. Hamlin will only be 34 years old for the majority of the 2015 season. His 24 victories in the last 10 seasons rank him among NASCAR’s best in that time period.

    It is hard to fathom a possibility of either one of Joe Gibbs Racing’s four Sprint Cup Series drivers leaving to drive for anyone else in the near future. All the team’s drivers are locked up in multi-year contracts and are young enough where retirement isn’t even on their radar.

    JGR’s NASCAR Xfinity program has been outstanding the past few seasons. They also have a major alliance with Kyle Busch Motorsports in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. The team has been the blueprint for success in the NASCAR Xfinity Series the past few seasons and in 2015 that shouldn’t change.

    Not only does their Sprint Cup Series team have a group of talented young drivers but their Xfinity and Camping World Truck Series programs have that as well. On the truck side of things the organization has two-time Snowball Derby champion and two-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series winner Erik Jones signed to a development contract. Jones will run a full season at Kyle Busch Motorsports in the 2015 season. Jones has been considered by many as one of NASCAR’s best young rising stars. Also running for Kyle Busch Motorsports in the 2015 season is 25 year old driver Justin Boston. Boston finished in the top five in points the past two seasons in the ARCA Racing Series and had two victories in the 2014 season. Joining Boston at the organization is young 19 year old driver Matt Tifft, who will run eight races for the team in the 2015 season. Not a bad group of young drivers for the team and it’s only beginning.

    If you move to the Xfinity Series at Joe Gibbs Racing the team recently signed young 22 year old driver Daniel Suarez to a full-time deal. Suarez, a Mexican driver who has won 10 races in NASCAR’s Toyota Mexico Series the past three seasons, is another young driver with promise. Also currently at the organization is Darrell Wallace Jr. Wallace won four races for Kyle Busch Motorsports in the 2014 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season. Joe Gibbs Racing is currently looking for sponsorship for the 21 year old African-American driver.

    Now there are reports that Wallace has asked out of his contract at Joe Gibbs Racing to explore a full-time opportunity to drive for Roush Fenway Racing. Reportedly, Roush is interested in hiring the Alabama native to drive full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in 2015.

    Wallace’s potential move has left a lot of people scratching their heads as to what Wallace is trying to do. Joe Gibbs Racing is a team that has a substantial upside and is considered by many experts as one of the top three or four teams in NASCAR. He would be moving to an organization who has struggled in recent years and has seen two of its biggest stars, Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards, leave for the organization for Joe Gibbs Racing. From afar it looks like Wallace should stay with Joe Gibbs Racing.

    However, if you dig a little deeper you will realize that Wallace is making the right move. As I mentioned before it is highly unlikely that Wallace will find a seat in one of Joe Gibbs Racing’s Cup Series teams in the near future. Wallace’s career is on the fast track and for him three or four years may be too long to wait.

    Going to Roush Fenway Racing makes Wallace’s dream of becoming a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver more realistic. If you look at Roush’s current Sprint Cup Series lineup they have an aging 45 year old Greg Biffle and two young drivers in Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Trevor Bayne in line for the 2015 season and the organization has the potential to grow.

    Wallace, who became the first African-American driver to win a NASCAR race since Wendell Scott in 1964 when he won at Martinsville in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in 2013, would be a popular hire and could sell sponsorship in the Sprint Cup Series because of the historic value behind him. Roush Fenway currently has a three car operation and there is a chance they can go to four teams if sponsorship is found, something that can’t happen very easily at Joe Gibbs Racing.

    It’s an interesting dilemma that Joe Gibbs Racing is facing. They currently do not have an alliance with any Sprint Cup Series organization. The team works with Michael Waltrip Racing but not currently to the capacity other organizations do with other teams.

    Current Joe Gibbs Racing driver Kyle Busch was very vocal after the season about Joe Gibbs Racing’s need of an alliance. He was quoted in an article on MRN.com say that “We (Joe Gibbs Racing) need to have an affiliation,’’ Busch said. “It would be nice if MWR … made us all eight. It would be better for all of us. There’s a couple of reasons that we’re fighting internally why we’re not mingling with those guys quite yet, but hopefully that gets resolved here soon.’’

    Busch is 100 percent right. If you listened to NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick in the last couple of weeks of his championship run in the 2014 season, Harvick pointed towards his team’s (Stewart-Haas Racing) affiliation with Hendrick Motorsports as being a big key to the team’s success in 2014. Stewart-Haas Racing shares engines and chassis with Hendrick Motorsports and has a major association with Hendrick.

    With NASCAR’s four car per team rule Joe Gibbs Racing ca not expand into a five car operation. The only way Gibbs can add to his fleet of cars is to add satellite teams. That may be harder said than done considering it’s been an issue for their engine manufacturer (Toyota Racing Development/TRD) to add teams to their fleet. Heading into the 2015 season TRD will build engines for six full-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams, the same number the company has had for the past several seasons.

    When you look at the engine programs TRD is competing against on a weekly basis, TRD has the least amount of cars in their fleet.  Hendrick Motorsports provides engines to 11 full-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams heading into the 2015 season. The Roush-Yates engine program currently fields engines for 10 full-time Sprint Cup Series teams and several part-time teams. The Earnhardt Childress Engine program currently fields engines for nine full-time Sprint Cup Series teams.

    All of those engine programs are significantly higher than what Toyota Racing Development engines currently provide. Every other manufacturer in the Sprint Cup Series has the ability to grow and expand because they are not hampered by their engine program, like Joe Gibbs Racing is.

    Not only that but Toyota’s subsidiary engine program, Triad Racing Technologies, has underperformed the past few seasons. They currently do not have a full-time Sprint Cup Series team to provide engines for entering into the 2015 season. There are not too many teams willing to move from where they are to go to an underperforming engine program.

    That means that the only way a team would align with Joe Gibbs Racing would be to have TRD Engines and not Triad Engines since Triad has underperformed. That means that TRD would have to expand the amount of teams they provide engines for in a hurry.

    While Gibbs’ driver lineup in the Sprint Cup Series is currently fantastic the team could potentially find themselves competing against a lot of talent that Joe Gibbs Racing has groomed through their Xfinity and Truck programs.

    Darrell Wallace Jr. may be the first to jump ship but he may not be the last. Wallace sees the handwriting on the wall that there is a logjam at Toyota and Joe Gibbs Racing. Eventually you have to wonder when the other young drivers in Joe Gibbs Racing’s stables will see the writing on the wall. Don’t be surprised to see Daniel Suarez or Erik Jones make a jump to another organization in the next couple of years as several teams may try and gobble up the young talent with the promise of Sprint Cup Series rides, something Joe Gibbs Racing may not be able to promise.

    You have to wonder what’s next for Joe Gibbs Racing and Toyota and whether the team and manufacturer will step up to the plate and spend the time, money and resources it takes to compete against Hendrick Motorsports. Until that time though, Joe Gibbs Racing will continue to lose its young talent to other teams who can provide them with Sprint Cup Series rides.

  • Hot 20 – The Elimination Format was Good, but an Actual Five Race Post-Season Even Better

    Hot 20 – The Elimination Format was Good, but an Actual Five Race Post-Season Even Better

    Over the course of the season, Jeff Gordon was the top driver of 2014. However, NASCAR has not determined its champion using the results of the entire campaign for more than a decade. They want excitement, drama, unpredictability. They want what the other big boy sports have, and when they waved the flag to start the season finale, four drivers had an even shot to claim the prize. Unfortunately, 39 we knew who would not, also were out there.

    Regular season and then the playoffs. That is what you get with the NFL, MLB, NBA, and the NHL. You play to entertain and to position yourself into earning a shot at the championship. Since 2004, NASCAR has also done this, except for allowing the non-contenders to remain out on the field of play getting in the way of those who matter.

    What if NASCAR had a real playoff? It has been brought up that the season is too long, that there needs to be a reduction in the schedule. Realistically, there is no way anyone is going to say adios to the big dollars that comes with putting on a 36 event schedule, not including the extras at Daytona in February and Charlotte in May. However, NASCAR could shorten its regular season to 31 races, as it was in some seasons in the 1970s, 80s, and 90s, for its 43 car fields. Then they could reduce it to the top 20 drivers and teams over the course of a five-race championship playoff, resetting the points to zero for the post-season, and allowing the best of the best to settle it among themselves.

    The point system would remain the same, other than instead of “win and you are in,” winners are given credit for their victory with 25 bonus points, instead of the three they are presently given. In that way, a race winner would claim as much as 70 points, compared to the 43 for the runner-up. During the playoffs, points would range from one to 20, with the winner’s bonus reduced to three points in recognition of the smaller field and the impact of a win over the shorter “season.” So, in the playoffs, a race win could earn up to 25 points, compared to the runner-up’s 20. Yes, a driver sweeping the first four races of the playoff would have enough to win the title before they run Homestead but, let’s be honest, if they were that dominant they should win it.

    The playoff teams would be expanded from 16 to 20, with those not making the cut sent home, their season over. Considering there are really no more than 25 quality entries in any given race, all we would be doing is exchanging quantity for quality, with Charlotte being the final race of the regular season.

    Using 2014 as a guide for illustrative purposes, neither A.J. Allmendinger or Aric Almirola would make the playoffs as, despite each picking up a win, neither would have made it on points in our Top 20. Along with the other 14 Chasers from this season we would have included Austin Dillon, Brian Vickers, Clint Bowyer, Jamie McMurray, Kyle Larson and Paul Menard. A pretty fair exchange.

    TALLADEGA

    Twenty drivers hit the track all even as the opening round of the playoff Chase begins on the super speedway in Alabama. Kyle Busch once again got snake bit come go time when he gets caught up in a crash that left him dead last. Of course, those cars that got him in reality would have been home watching television under this format. Meanwhile, Brad Keselowski responded from the less than loving embraces Denny Hamlin wanted to put on him at Charlotte, and Matt Kenseth did, by claiming 24 points in winning at Talladega. Kenseth, ironically enough, pushed Bad Brad to the front and finished just behind him on the track.

    1 Brad Keselowski 24 Pts
    2 Matt Kenseth 20
    3 Ryan Newman 18
    4 Clint Bowyer 18
    5 Kevin Harvick 16
    6 Kurt Busch 16
    7 Joey Logano 14
    8 Kasey Kahne 14
    9 Austin Dillon 12
    10 Denny Hamlin 11
    11 Kyle Larson 11
    12 Jimmie Johnson 9
    13 Brian Vickers 9
    14 Carl Edwards 8
    15 Greg Biffle 7
    16 Jeff Gordon 6
    17 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. 5
    18 Jamie McMurray 4
    19 Paul Menard 2
    20 Kyle Busch 1

    MARTINSVILLE

    Keselowski takes his four point lead over Kenseth to Martinsville, where more than a few need to come up big to make amends for the previous week. After finishing 17th at Talladega, Dale Earnhardt Jr. was among them. In winning, he added 24 points to the five he picked up the previous week, but he remained deep in the standings. Kenseth, Bowyer, Ryan Newman and Joey Logano all had a second strong playoff result, Keselowski was 16th to drop like a stone, as Jimmie Johnson slipped well out of contention with yet another less than stellar result.

    1 Matt Kenseth 37 Pts
    2 Ryan Newman 36
    3 Clint Bowyer 34
    4 Joey Logano 32
    6 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. 29
    5 Brad Keselowski 29
    8 Jeff Gordon 26
    7 Denny Hamlin 26
    9 Austin Dillon 24
    11 Kurt Busch 19
    10 Kevin Harvick 19
    12 Greg Biffle 18
    13 Kyle Larson 17
    15 Carl Edwards 16
    14 Brian Vickers 16
    16 Kasey Kahne 15
    18 Kyle Busch 14
    17 Jamie McMurray 14
    19 Jimmie Johnson 13
    20 Paul Menard 12

    TEXAS

    Kenseth heads into the Lone Star State a point ahead of Newman, with Bowyer three away. When it came time to fire off the six guns, Gordon was seeking his own version of High Noon after Keselowski’s bid to take the lead left him with a cut tire and a good day that went for nought. To make matters worse, his rival returned atop the leader board. Johnson’s win at least moved him back into territory where he might yet see light at the end of the long tunnel he is trying to emerge from.

    1 Brad Keselowski 48 Pts
    2 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. 44
    3 Ryan Newman 44
    4 Matt Kenseth 42
    5 Joey Logano 42
    6 Kevin Harvick 39
    7 Denny Hamlin 38
    8 Jimmie Johnson 38
    9 Clint Bowyer 37
    10 Kurt Busch 33
    11 Kyle Larson 31
    12 Kyle Busch 31
    13 Jamie McMurray 30
    14 Jeff Gordon 29
    15 Austin Dillon 29
    16 Carl Edwards 28
    17 Greg Biffle 27
    18 Brian Vickers 23
    19 Paul Menard 18
    20 Kasey Kahne 16

    PHOENIX

    After the events at Texas, Keselowski takes a four point lead over both Earnhardt and Newman heading out to the desert, with Gordon’s dreams pretty much shattered by that torn tire. Kevin Harvick came up with a race most can only dream about, absolutely dominating most laps and pretty much all of the re-starts to win. He now sits just behind Keselowski, who finished fourth behind Gordon and Kenseth. Bowyer was dead last on this day, taking him from contender to pretender, while Johnson erased even a glimmer of good tidings by finishing 19th.

    1 Brad Keselowski 65 Pts
    2 Kevin Harvick 64
    3 Matt Kenseth 60
    4 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. 58
    5 Joey Logano 58
    6 Ryan Newman 55
    7 Denny Hamlin 55
    8 Jeff Gordon 48
    9 Kurt Busch 47
    10 Kyle Larson 41
    11 Jimmie Johnson 40
    12 Jamie McMurray 39
    13 Greg Biffle 39
    14 Clint Bowyer 38
    15 Carl Edwards 36
    16 Kyle Busch 35
    17 Austin Dillon 32
    18 Brian Vickers 30
    19 Paul Menard 23
    20 Kasey Kahne 22

    HOMESTEAD

    Heading for Miami and the final showdown, 10 drivers remain mathematically alive with seven still with a legitimate shot at the title. Kenseth and Harvick, in fact, could claim it with a victory, no matter what Keselowski did. That is just what Happy Harvick did, leaving Keselowski’s third place result at Homestead just not good enough. A five race playoff, only 20 cars on the track and, in this scenario, the same Sprint Cup champion as provided by the elimination series.

    1 Kevin Harvick 88 Pts
    2 Brad Keselowski 83
    3 Matt Kenseth 75
    4 Ryan Newman 74
    5 Denny Hamlin 70
    6 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. 65
    7 Joey Logano 64
    8 Jeff Gordon 61
    9 Kurt Busch 58
    10 Jamie McMurray 55
    11 Jimmie Johnson 52
    12 Clint Bowyer 51
    13 Kyle Larson 49
    14 Paul Menard 40
    15 Greg Biffle 40
    16 Carl Edwards 39
    17 Kyle Busch 37
    18 Austin Dillon 36
    19 Brian Vickers 35
    20 Kasey Kahne 31

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Homestead

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Homestead

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Kevin Harvick: Harvick’s four-tire pit stop on a caution with 20 laps to go keyed his victory at Homestead, giving him the Sprint Cup championship. Harvick held off Ryan Newman to claim his first title.

    “I’d like to thank everyone who believed in me,” Harvick said. “I’d also like to thank Richard Childress. Do you believe me now, Richard?

    “Sunday’s race was for all the marbles. And that included the ‘marbles’ of Kurt Busch, because it seems he’s lost his.”

    2. Ryan Newman: Newman started 21st on the grid and chased Kevin Harvick to the checkered flag, unable to get close enough to make a move. Newman finished second as Harvick celebrated his first championship.

    “I was looking to become the first Sprint Cup champion without a win,” Newman said. “That would have been a dream come true for me, and a nightmare for NASCAR.”

    3. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin, on old tires, lost the lead to Kevin Harvick with seven laps to go and finished seventh.

    “Michael Jordan was in my pit box cheering me on,” Hamlin said. “Seventh may be good enough for Charlotte Hornets, but not for me. No one was more upset when I lost than Michael. No one was happier than his bookie.”

    4. Jeff Gordon: Gordon started on the pole at Homestead and led a race-high 161 laps on his way to a 10th-place finish at Homestead.

    “Surprisingly,” Gordon said, “there were no punches thrown. Apparently, Homestead isn’t ‘grounds’ for fighting.”

    5. Joey Logano: Logano’s chances at the Sprint Cup championship disintegrated when jack problems in the pits dropped him to 21st on the restart. He eventually finished 16th in the Ford EcoBoost 400.

    “Just when we needed a ‘pick-me-up,’” Logano said, “we suffered a ‘letdown’ in the pits.”

    6. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth won the Nationwide Ford EcoBoost 300 on Saturday and finished sixth in the Ford EcoBoost 400 on Sunday.

    “Congratulations to Kevin Harvick,” Kenseth said. “He wouldn’t be holding that championship trophy had he not won the last two races. I’d say he certainly knows when to ‘push.’”

    7. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski finished third at Homestead, closing the books on an up-and-down year.

    “It was an up-and-down year for us,” Keselowski said, “as well as a ‘left-and-right’ year.”

    8. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt finished 14th in the Ford EcoBoost 400, finishing the year with four wins.

    “It was a historic day at Homestead,” Earnhardt said. “The competition was intense, while Junior Nation was ‘in tents.’ Leave it to my fans to bring the moonshine to the ‘Sunshine State.’

    9. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson finished ninth at Homestead, the top finisher among Hendrick Motorsports drivers.

    “I wasn’t able to win my seventh title,” Johnson said, “but I can’t be too upset. “The race was called the ‘Ford EcoBoost 400. Let’s change that ‘Eco’ to ‘Echo,’ because whenever and wherever you say my name, you hear it repeated five times.”

    10. Kyle Larson: Larson finished 13th in the Ford EcoBoost 400, wrapping up what will surely be a Rookie Of The Year campaign.

    “If I don’t win that Rookie Of The Year award,” Larson said., “I’ll be very unhappy. So unhappy, that I could possibly go into ‘ROY’d rage.’”

  • Kenseth Wins Nationwide Finale; Elliott and Penske Celebrate Championships

    Kenseth Wins Nationwide Finale; Elliott and Penske Celebrate Championships

    In a thrilling green-white-checkered finish, Matt Kenseth, behind the wheel of the No. 20 GameStop/Rock Candy Toyota, held both Kyle Busch and Kyle Larson at bay to win the 20th annual Ford EcoBoost 300.

    This was Kenseth’s first win of the 2014 Nationwide Series season and his second victory in 13 races at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

    “Well, we kept getting those restarts at the end of the race, and the first couple got away okay,” Kenseth said. “I felt good about it.”

    “We had a really good car tonight, especially on a short- to mid-range run, and that kind of fell into our hands except for the last two or three cautions we didn’t need, but it kind of worked out where we got in the front and had the speed on the front side of the run where we needed it.”

    ”It’s been a long time since I’ve won a race in anything.”

    Following closely behind race winner Kenseth, with what has become known as the ‘Kyle and Kyle show’, Busch and Larson finished second and third respectively. This was Busch’s seventh top-10 finish in eight races and Larson’s seventh top-10 finish in just two races at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

    “Yeah, we had a strong car,” Kyle Busch said. “Somewhere in the middle part of the race we started falling behind a little farther than I wanted to, just ill handling, being loose, tight, loose, and everything going on. But Adam made some great race calls and some good adjustments to get our car handling a little bit better, to get ourselves farther up toward the front. The 20 was kind of off there early on in the race, but there at the end he really came on strong and the 42 was really good.”

    “So it was kind of a race amongst us three, I thought, and that’s kind of what it came down to there at the end,” Busch continued. “All in all, can’t be prouder of my team, Adam Stevens and Curtis and everyone that works so hard on the Monster Energy 54 at Joe Gibbs Racing, all the guys at the shop.”

    “We did our part and we had some great races, and we did have a successful year, so nothing to hang our hats about, but there’s one other guy or team out there that was a little bit better than us.”

    “Yeah, we were able to lead a lot of laps today, a lot more than I’ve probably ever led in my career,” Kyle Larson said. “That was fun. I had good restarts up there until the last 50 laps or so, and then I finally got a good one underneath Matt, was able to get to the lead, and was about 15 feet short of the win.”

    “Almost had second, but Kyle was able to squeeze around me,” Larson continued. “I probably could have shut the door on him, but we weren’t going to win, so there was no point in maybe tearing up two cars. Disappointed, super disappointed. Really close to a win today.”

    The Homestead finale race also officially crowned Chase Elliott as the Nationwide Series champion, an honor he had clinched last weekend. In spite of finishing 17th in the last race of the season, Elliott still made history as the youngest champ in NASCAR history.

    “I know it was ugly,” Elliott said. “We didn’t have a very good run, but we’ll take it.”

    The title was not just special for Chase Elliott and his family, NASCAR Hall of Famer Bill Elliott and wife Cindy, but was also the first ever for the team owned by Dale Earnhardt, Jr., his sister Kelly and Rick Hendrick.

    Roger Penske also clinched a championship, that of the Nationwide owner’s title. He did so with six wins and not just with one, but five different drivers, in the No. 22 Hertz Ford Mustang.

    “It was a great day,” Penske said. “I thought that race would never get over. I think we had a green-white-checker and all we had to do was finish 25th, but you never know with all the action up front.”

    “Brad (KeselowskI) ran a great race and when you think about five different drivers it’s really a credit to Jeremy Bullins and the job he’s done in preparing the car for different drivers and with six wins.”

    “So, to me, this was a team effort at Team Penske,” Penske continued. “Everyone did so much to make this happen and obviously it didn’t come down until the last lap there that we knew we had it.”

    With the final race in the books, NASCAR also bid a fond adieu to Nationwide, who has ended their title sponsorship, turning the reigns over to Xfinity.

    “We have truly enjoyed our time as the series sponsor and are grateful for the relationships we’ve made with the drivers, teams, owners, and fans,” Jim McCoy, director of sports marketing for Nationwide Insurance, said.

    The full race and points results are as follows:

    2014 NNS Ford EcoBoost 300 Race Results

    Fin Str Car Driver Team Lap Pts BPts Status TLd LLd
    1 3 20 Matt Kenseth(i) GameStop/Rock Candy Toyota 206 0 Running 3 52
    2 6 54 Kyle Busch(i) Monster Energy Toyota 206 0 Running 2 5
    3 2 42 Kyle Larson(i) Cartwheel by Target Chevrolet 206 0 Running 5 111
    4 5 12 Ryan Blaney(i) Discount Tire Ford 206 0 Running 1 24
    5 10 60 Chris Buescher # Humalog Ford 206 39 Running
    6 15 7 Regan Smith TaxSlayer.com Chevrolet 206 38 Running
    7 21 3 Ty Dillon # WESCO Chevrolet 206 37 Running
    8 1 22 Brad Keselowski(i) Hertz Ford 206 0 Running 1 5
    9 4 11 Elliott Sadler OneMain Financial Toyota 206 35 Running
    10 7 2 Brian Scott Shore Lodge Chevrolet 206 34 Running
    11 13 6 Trevor Bayne AdvoCare Ford 206 34 1 Running 1 3
    12 31 33 Paul Menard(i) Alert Today Florida/Boy Scouts of America Chevrolet 206 0 Running 3
    13 20 51 Jeremy Clements All South Electric/Repairable Vehicles Chevrolet 206 32 1 Running 1 1
    14 25 10 Ross Chastain(i) watermelon.org Toyota 206 0 Running
    15 30 93 TJ Bell(i) Dedicated to Electrical Linemen Dodge 206 0 Running
    16 17 28 JJ Yeley Texas 28 Spirits Stage Toyota 206 28 Running
    17 14 9 Chase Elliott # NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet 206 28 1 Running 1 1
    18 24 99 James Buescher Rheem Toyota 206 26 Running
    19 9 31 Dylan Kwasniewski # Rockstar/AccuDoc Solutions Chevrolet 206 25 Running
    20 19 43 Dakoda Armstrong # WinField Ford 206 24 Running
    21 28 4 Jeffrey Earnhardt GCL/Polyglass Chevrolet 206 23 Running
    22 22 44 Blake Koch Celsius Flo Fusion Toyota 206 23 1 Running 1 1
    23 18 19 Mike Bliss Tweaker Energy Shot Toyota 206 21 Running
    24 35 26 Jake Crum(i) MyFreedomSmokes.com Chevrolet 206 0 Running
    25 12 5 Josh Berry Ragu Chevrolet 206 19 Running
    26 27 14 Eric McClure Hefty Ultimate/Reynolds Wrap Toyota 206 18 Running
    27 11 16 Ryan Reed # ADA Drive to Stop Diabetes/Lilly Diabetes Ford 206 17 Running
    28 33 36 Ryan Preece Accell Construction/East West Marine Chevrolet 206 16 Running
    29 8 62 Brendan Gaughan South Point Chevrolet 205 15 Running
    30 29 55 David Starr Niece Equipment Chevrolet 205 14 Running
    31 40 17 Tanner Berryhill # New Gulf Resources Toyota 204 13 Running
    32 37 23 Carlos Contreras Circle K Chevrolet 203 12 Running
    33 26 25 John Wes Townley(i) Zaxby’s Toyota 201 0 Running
    34 39 87 Milka Duno CanTV Toyota 201 10 Running
    35 23 1 Landon Cassill Flex Seal Chevrolet 190 9 Engine
    36 32 39 Ryan Sieg # Huntinator Chevrolet 179 8 Suspension
    37 16 98 Corey LaJoie(i) Medallion Financial/Smithfield Ford 116 0 Accident
    38 36 40 Matt DiBenedetto Curtis Key Plumbing Chevrolet 57 6 Transmission
    39 38 52 Joey Gase FindDieselEngines.com Chevrolet 54 5 Engine
    40 34 91 Jeff Green SupportMilitary.org Toyota 3 4 Vibration

    # = Rookie, Fin = Finish, Str = Start, Pts = Total Points, BPs = Lap Leader Bns Pts, TLd = Times Led, LLd = Laps Led. (i) Ineligible for driver points in this series

    2014 NASCAR Nationwide Series Unofficial Point Standings Final

    Pos Driver BPts Points Ldr Nxt Starts Poles Wins T5s T10s DNF PPos G/L
    1 Chase Elliott # 26 1213 0 0 33 2 3 16 26 0 1 0
    2 Regan Smith 13 1171 -42 -42 33 0 1 7 26 0 2 0
    3 Elliott Sadler 13 1154 -59 -17 33 1 1 7 25 1 4 1
    4 Brian Scott 10 1154 -59 0 33 3 0 6 23 1 3 -1
    5 Ty Dillon # 11 1148 -65 -6 33 3 1 7 24 1 5 0
    6 Trevor Bayne 7 1086 -127 -62 33 1 0 5 21 3 6 0
    7 Chris Buescher # 9 1014 -199 -72 32 0 1 5 14 1 7 0
    8 Brendan Gaughan 14 954 -259 -60 33 0 2 2 7 2 8 0
    9 Ryan Reed # 1 889 -324 -65 33 0 0 1 1 2 9 0
    10 James Buescher 3 868 -345 -21 33 0 0 0 2 1 11 1
    11 Dylan Kwasniewski # 0 867 -346 -1 33 1 0 0 3 4 10 -1
    12 Landon Cassill 0 800 -413 -67 33 0 0 0 3 7 12 0
    13 Dakoda Armstrong # 2 788 -425 -12 33 1 0 0 3 1 13 0
    14 Mike Bliss 1 779 -434 -9 33 0 0 0 1 4 14 0
    15 Jeremy Clements 8 757 -456 -22 33 0 0 0 2 2 15 0
    16 Ryan Sieg # 1 682 -531 -75 33 0 0 1 2 5 16 0
    17 Jj Yeley 2 651 -562 -31 30 0 0 1 2 5 17 0
    18 Jeffrey Earnhardt 1 586 -627 -65 33 0 0 0 0 9 18 0
    19 Eric McClure 0 521 -692 -65 28 0 0 0 0 4 19 0
    20 Joey Gase 1 482 -731 -39 33 0 0 0 0 11 20 0
    21 Matt Dibenedetto 0 369 -844 -113 29 0 0 0 0 17 22 1
    22 Tanner Berryhill # 1 365 -848 -4 29 0 0 0 0 14 23 1
    23 Derrike Cope 0 364 -849 -1 28 0 0 0 0 12 21 -2
    24 Blake Koch 2 317 -896 -47 28 0 0 0 0 18 25 1
    25 Jamie Dick 1 314 -899 -3 21 0 0 0 0 7 24 -1
    26 David Starr 2 293 -920 -21 14 0 0 0 1 1 26 0
    27 Sam Hornish Jr. 10 242 -971 -51 8 2 1 4 4 3 27 0
    28 Mike Wallace 1 229 -984 -13 11 0 0 0 1 2 28 0
    29 Chad Boat 1 227 -986 -2 14 0 0 0 0 6 29 0
    30 Carlos Contreras 0 204 -1009 -23 14 0 0 0 0 5 30 0
    31 Jeff Green 0 172 -1041 -32 20 0 0 0 0 16 31 0
    32 Kevin Swindell 0 157 -1056 -15 10 0 0 0 0 4 32 0
    33 Mike Harmon 0 153 -1060 -4 16 0 0 0 0 13 33 0
    34 Kevin Lepage 0 137 -1076 -16 14 0 0 0 0 10 34 0
    35 Tommy Joe Martins 0 124 -1089 -13 11 0 0 0 0 8 35 0
    36 Josh Reaume 0 116 -1097 -8 11 0 0 0 0 8 36 0
    37 Ryan Ellis 0 104 -1109 -12 12 0 0 0 0 10 37 0
    38 Carl Long 0 104 -1109 0 16 0 0 0 0 16 38 0
    39 Alex Tagliani 1 82 -1131 -22 2 1 0 2 2 0 39 0
    40 Austin Theriault 0 78 -1135 -4 3 0 0 0 0 0 40 0
    41 Will Kimmel III 0 74 -1139 -4 5 0 0 0 0 1 41 0
    42 Robert Richardson Jr. 0 72 -1141 -2 7 0 0 0 0 4 42 0
    43 Cody Ware 0 71 -1142 -1 4 0 0 0 0 1 43 0
    44 Kenny Habul 0 61 -1152 -10 3 0 0 0 0 1 44 0
    45 Justin Marks 0 58 -1155 -3 2 0 0 0 1 0 45 0
    46 Daniel Suarez Garza 0 54 -1159 -4 2 0 0 0 0 0 46 0
    47 Morgan Shepherd 0 54 -1159 0 8 0 0 0 0 8 47 0
    48 Kelly Admiraal 0 53 -1160 -1 3 0 0 0 0 1 48 0
    49 Martin Roy 0 53 -1160 0 5 0 0 0 0 3 49 0
    50 Josh Berry 0 51 -1162 -2 2 0 0 0 0 0 59 9
    51 Stanton Barrett 0 49 -1164 -2 3 0 0 0 0 2 50 -1
    52 Kevin O’connell 0 48 -1165 -1 2 0 0 1 1 1 51 -1
    53 Ryan Preece 0 46 -1167 -2 2 0 0 0 0 0 61 8
    54 Ruben Garcia Mateos 0 41 -1172 -5 3 0 0 0 0 1 52 -2
    55 Harrison Rhodes 0 40 -1173 -1 6 0 0 0 0 6 53 -2
    56 Daryl Harr 0 39 -1174 -1 3 0 0 0 0 1 54 -2
    57 Andy Lally 0 37 -1176 -2 1 0 0 0 1 0 55 -2
    58 Hermie Sadler III 0 37 -1176 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 56 -2
    59 Bobby Reuse 0 35 -1178 -2 2 0 0 0 0 1 57 -2
    60 Hal Martin 0 34 -1179 -1 2 0 0 0 0 0 58 -2
    61 Scott Lagasse Jr. 0 31 -1182 -3 2 0 0 0 0 0 60 -1
    62 Matt Frahm 0 28 -1185 -3 3 0 0 0 0 2 62 0
    63 Tim Cowen 0 26 -1187 -2 1 0 0 0 0 0 63 0
    64 Paulie Harraka 0 25 -1188 -1 1 0 0 0 0 0 64 0
    65 Kenny Wallace 0 25 -1188 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 65 0
    66 Jason White 0 25 -1188 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 66 0
    67 Ryan Gifford 0 24 -1189 -1 1 0 0 0 0 0 67 0
    68 Bobby Gerhart 0 19 -1194 -5 2 0 0 0 0 1 68 0
    69 Mackena Bell 0 15 -1198 -4 1 0 0 0 0 0 69 0
    70 John Jackson 0 15 -1198 0 4 0 0 0 0 4 70 0
    71 Matthew Carter 0 15 -1198 0 3 0 0 0 0 3 71 0
    72 Roger Reuse 0 14 -1199 -1 2 0 0 0 0 1 72 0
    73 Tim Schendel 0 14 -1199 0 3 0 0 0 0 3 73 0
    74 Milka Duno 0 14 -1199 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 76 2
    75 Kyle Fowler 0 12 -1201 -2 1 0 0 0 0 0 74 -1
    76 Richard Harriman 0 12 -1201 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 75 -1
    77 Kyle Busch(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 26 7 7 25 25 0 77 0
    78 Brad Keselowski(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 11 5 5 10 11 0 78 0
    79 Kevin Harvick(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 15 1 4 12 15 0 79 0
    80 Kyle Larson(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 28 1 2 14 21 2 80 0
    81 Ryan Blaney(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 14 1 1 10 13 0 81 0
    82 Matt Kenseth(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 19 0 1 10 15 1 87 5
    83 Paul Menard(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 8 0 1 3 5 0 82 -1
    84 Kasey Kahne(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 3 0 1 2 2 1 83 -1
    85 Marcos Ambrose(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 1 0 1 1 1 0 84 -1
    86 Joey Logano(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 10 3 0 8 9 0 85 -1
    87 Michael McDowell(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 3 0 0 1 3 0 86 -1
    88 Dale Earnhardt Jr.(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 4 0 0 3 3 0 88 0
    89 David Ragan(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 6 0 0 1 2 0 89 0
    90 Erik Jones(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 3 0 0 0 3 0 90 0
    91 Cale Conley(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 11 0 0 0 1 2 91 0
    92 Joe Nemechek(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 6 0 0 0 1 0 92 0
    93 Darrell Wallace Jr.(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 2 0 0 0 1 0 93 0
    94 Austin Dillon(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 1 0 0 0 1 0 94 0
    95 Justin Boston(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 2 0 0 0 1 0 95 0
    96 Ross Chastain(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 7 0 0 0 1 0 96 0
    97 Alex Bowman(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 3 0 0 0 0 0 97 0
    98 Matt Crafton(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 1 0 0 0 0 0 98 0
    99 Aric Almirola(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 2 0 0 0 0 0 99 0
    100 John Wes Townley(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 11 0 0 0 0 2 100 0
    101 Chase Pistone(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 3 0 0 0 0 0 101 0
    102 Johnny Sauter(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 3 0 0 0 0 0 102 0
    103 Josh Wise(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 17 0 0 0 0 6 103 0
    104 Tj Bell(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 2 0 0 0 0 1 117 13
    105 Jeb Burton(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 1 0 0 0 0 0 104 -1
    106 Corey Lajoie(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 5 0 0 0 0 3 105 -1
    107 Brennan Newberry(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 4 0 0 0 0 1 106 -1
    108 Danica Patrick(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 1 0 0 0 0 0 107 -1
    109 Tomy Drissi(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 2 0 0 0 0 0 108 -1
    110 Timmy Hill(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 7 0 0 0 0 4 109 -1
    111 Jake Crum(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 4 0 0 0 0 1 111 0
    112 Jennifer Jo Cobb(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 1 0 0 0 0 0 110 -2
    113 Todd Bodine(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 2 0 0 0 0 1 112 -1
    114 Chris Cockrum(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 2 0 0 0 0 0 113 -1
    115 Caleb Roark(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 1 0 0 0 0 1 114 -1
    116 Denny Hamlin(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 1 0 0 0 0 1 115 -1
    117 Derek White(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 2 0 0 0 0 2 116 -1
    118 Jimmy Weller(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 1 0 0 0 0 1 118 0
    119 Willie Allen(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 0 0 0 0 0 0 119 0
    120 Benny Gordon 0 0 -1213 -12 0 0 0 0 0 0 120 0
    121 Clay Greenfield(I) 0 0 -1213 -12 0 0 0 0 0 0 169 48

    BPts – Bonus Points, -Ldr/-Nxt = Points behind Leader/Next higher, PPos = Previous Position, G/L = Points standing gain/loss, (i) Ineligible for driver points in this series

    Source: Timing and Scoring provided by NASCAR Media/NASCAR Statistics

     

  • Darrell Wallace Jr. Wins Truck Race; Matt Crafton Wins Back to Back Championship

    Darrell Wallace Jr. Wins Truck Race; Matt Crafton Wins Back to Back Championship

    In a blur of burnouts, Darrell Wallace Jr. won the EcoBoost 200, Matt Crafton won the Truck Series championship, and Kyle Busch Motorsports won the owner’s championship. Ben Kennedy also secured Rookie of the Year honors for the Camping World Truck Series.

    Darrell Wallace Jr. won the race, his first win at Homestead and his fourth victory of the season. This was also Toyota’s 18th win, tying Chevrolet for the all-time series record of wins in a single season.

    “We came down here and tested and I felt pretty happy with what I found out,” the driver of the No. 54 ToyotaCare Toyota said. “Practice wasn’t great but these guys never gave up on me. I might get a little bratty but we always come together. We’ve strung together four wins and it’s been a lot of fun.”

    “We didn’t have a shot at the title but we wanted it more than anything else,” Wallace continued. “We beat the boss finally.”

    Wallace also said this was one of his most emotional wins of the season and dedicated the race to his engineer’s mother, who passed away.

    “We put her name on top of the door,” Wallace said. “She was our guardian angel.”

    Matt Crafton made history at Homestead by winning back to back championships in the Truck Series.

    “To say I made history is definitely very, very cool,” the ThorSports driver of the No. 88 Jeld-Wen/Menards Toyota said. “It’s all about these guys that are behind me. Without them, I’m just an average race car driver at best.”

    “To say I’m in the history books with Ron Hornaday and all those great race car drivers, it’s great,” Crafton continued. “It’s the best racing in NASCAR.”

    Kyle Busch Motorsports won the owner’s championship and secured its place in history as the only team to win back-to-back owner’s championships in the Truck Series.

    “It’s a great milestone for us and a great accomplishment,” Busch said after finishing fourth. “It’s a true testament to all the hard work and dedication of Eric Phillips (crew chief) and the team. That’s what the Truck Series is all about as a proving ground. Truly to have two drivers to compete and to capture an owner’s championship says a lot about our team and our organization.”

    Ben Kennedy, whose family has been so integral to the sports of NASCAR, scored Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors.

    “This is awesome,” Kennedy said. “I think it’s a testament to the team and how hard the guys at Turner Motorsports worked. This Rookie of the Year deal was on my bucket list and I’m humbled by it.”

    “We weren’t really all that great tonight but it pays off for the whole season.”

    Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 42 ParkerStore Chevrolet, and Timothy Peters, behind the wheel of the No. 17 Red Horse Racing Toyota, finished second and third respectively.

    “We definitely had the best truck,” Larson said. “We had a bad pit stop that last stop and I had a couple bad restarts. It’s hard to find clean air in the trucks as they punch such a hole.”

    “We were so even,” Larson continued. “Bubba did a good job once again. Two tracks he beat me at where he ran the rim. I hate it that we finished second but it was a good run for us.”

    “It was a lot of fun,” Peters said. “What a way to finish and end the season. It feels good to come to Homestead and do this. Wish we had about 20 more laps but we’ll build on it and go to Daytona.”

    “I just wish that the second half of the season was the first half for us as that could have been us celebrating the championship.”

    Ryan Blaney, who was also fighting for the possibility of the championship, battled a shifter issue for much of the race, finishing top-five.

    “We struggled all night,” Blaney said. “It was one of the worst trucks I’ve ever had. I can’t believe we finished fifth.”

    Blaney ended his season 21 points behind the newly crowned champion Matt Crafton.

     

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Texas AAA 500

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Texas AAA 500

    After remembering the passing of racer Jim Sauter with a moment of silence, here is what was surprising and not surprising from the 10th annual AAA Texas 500 at the Texas Motor Speedway.

    Surprising: Brad Keselowski gave a whole new meaning to minding the gap after his on and off track real estate dispute with Jeff Gordon.

    “Today something happened,” Keselowski said after finishing third. “There was a gap. It closed up. By the time it closed up, I was committed, and I stayed in it. That almost won me the race.”

    “It hurt somebody else’s day. That’s a shame,” the driver of the No. 2 Miller Lite Ford said. “But the reality is there was a gap.”

    “You know, I’m not Dale Earnhardt or Senna. I read how they raced, how great they were for this sport. They would sit here and tell you they would go for that same gap. I’m not them, but I’m inspired by that, and I’m going to race that way.”

    Not Surprising: Team Hendrick continued flawlessly executing their strategy in the Eliminator Round of the Chase, sending their Chase busting team members into Victory Lane as a sort of protection for their Chaser brethren Jeff Gordon, who did not quite make it there after his Keselowski encounter.

    Hendrick driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. became the Chase buster in Martinsville last weekend and this weekend it was another HMS Chase buster Jimmie Johnson who took his turn, honoring all Lowe’s employees who wear the red vest in his red No. 48.

    “We are back on track,” Johnson said after winning his fourth of the year and his fourth at Texas Motor Speedway. “Unfortunately we didn’t find this stuff a month or two ago, but that is the way racing goes.”

    With both HMS Chase busters in Victory Lane for the first two races in the Eliminator Round, the lone HMS Chaser Gordon has maintained his position in the top-4, a team feat especially impressive given Gordon’s 29th place run at Texas.

    Surprising: While tire troubles may be a common driver mantra, it is not often that there are complaints about the sheer lack of number of tires available, so much so that NASCAR actually permitted teams to get an extra set of tires during this particular race.

    “It’s kind of a sad situation when you run out of tires like that,” Newman, driver of the No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet said after finishing 15th. “I wish NASCAR had given us more tires. They gave us one set, but when they keep throwing cautions like that that were totally unnecessary, and there’s not debris on the race track and no reason to throw it. We need to keep racing. And it’s sad to see but that’s the way they’ve been playing it.”

    Not Surprising: If you think that Alexander had a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day, just ask the Toyota drivers how they were feeling after Texas.

    “We were a bag of everything today. Man we were so bad,” Kyle Busch said after his fourth place run. “I don’t know what happened to us from yesterday. We fought all day long.”

    “We had a bad car,” Denny Hamlin, who finished tenth, said, echoing the theme. “We made the best of it. Other guys made mistakes. We weren’t really that good. Luckily other guys had problems. That’s what happened.”

    “We went the wrong direction on adjustments during the middle part of the race,” Brian Vickers said after his 16th place run. “Billy Scott (crew chief) was able to get the car pretty good for the end of the race but with all those cautions we just got too tight.”

    “We were okay when we were up front and had track position, but we had a problem in the pits and lost our track position,” Matt Kenseth said after finishing 25th. “The way my car drove — I was kind of afraid of how it would be in traffic. We got most of our track position back, stayed out on tires and just couldn’t get by Kurt (Busch) there — and got to the back again having to get tires. Then we got caught up in a restart deal that was three-four wide which did some damage, and we could just never overcome it.”

    Surprising: Joey Logano was on a surprisingly odd salvage mission of his own, trying to make good after, of all things, a glue issue on pit road.

    “We were able to salvage something decent out of tonight,” the driver of the No. 22 AAA Insurance Ford said. “We were a top five car and possibly a winning car if scenarios played out right.”

    “I don’t know what happened with the glue on the pit stop and I haven’t gotten the full story yet but we had a hell of a time trying to put rear tires on the car,” Logano continued. “We lost all our track position with 30 to go and I came off the corner and the 9 hit me and popped my right rear and then we spun out. We put tires back on it and then just held on until the end and got something decent out of something that could have been way worse.”

    In spite of his sticky situation, Logano did emerge the point’s leader by virtue of his five wins for the season, which broke the points tie with Denny Hamlin, who has but one win to date.

    Not Surprising: After the two past races where Austin Dillon scored Rookie of the Race honors, Kyle Larson emerged victorious in that regard, finishing seventh to Dillon’s 21st place run.

    “I thought we practiced really well,” the driver of the No. 42 Target Chevrolet said. “When the race fired off, we weren’t very good. I thought we’d get better, but we didn’t. We got worse and worse and worse. We had a lot of late-race restarts to get up there to get a better finish.”

    “Disappointing day, but okay to finish seventh where we did. Hopefully we can get some better runs in the last races.”

    Surprising: In a somewhat surprisingly ironic twist, Kevin Harvick, who nudged along the Keselowski vs. Gordon post-race match up, did not want anything to do with retaliation, even after some harsh words for Matt Kenseth as a result of last weekend’s short track racing.

    “I just raced,” Harvick said after Texas was completed. “I thought my car was fast enough to win the race and be in contention. Doing something crazy at that point in the race, then I never saw him (Matt Kenseth) towards the end of the race, so it wasn’t really our game plan to get into that situation any further than we needed to.”

    “It’s like I said before the race, I know he didn’t do it on purpose, but in the end we still lost 33 points to the leader. We got to race as hard as we can to try to get that back.”

    Not Surprising: Even with a swapped out crew chief, Kurt Busch was able to pull off a top-10 finish in his No. 41 Haas Automation Chevrolet.

    “It was great to have a shot at the win,” Busch said after taking the checkered flag in the eighth position. “Tony Gibson (new Crew Chief), the engineers did a great job reading my balance, and I was trying to pick up on their changes. So, it was nice to go out there and execute.”

    “We used the last yellow to our advantage,” Busch continued. “The last two yellows for fresh tires, and worked our way from, I don’t know, 25th to eighth. All-in-all, a great first day. I love the team; I love the guys. We are going to be good. We just have to work out the details.”

    Surprising: Jamie McMurray could not wait for the sun to go down on him, as when the darkness descended he ascended to the fifth finishing spot.

    “We had an up and down day,” the driver of the No. 1 McDonald’s Chevrolet said. “Fortunately for us we were better when the sun went down. It was really slick at the beginning. We really struggled with the car, but when the sun went down the car started coming to us.”

    Not Surprising: There is no quit in the No. 99 Aflac Ford team, who finished the race ninth after battling from the rear.

    “We got super lucky there at the end and my guys never quit,” Carl Edwards said. “I am so proud of my guys. I have no idea where we are at in points but we certainly finished better than we should have tonight.”

    “It was a great night when for awhile it didn’t look like it was going to be,” Edwards continued. “We get to move on to Phoenix now and we will know what we have to do there. We will take it.”

    “My guys didn’t quit and I know they won’t quit and we are going to go next week and go for this thing.”