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Logano – Testing SpeedwayMedia.com

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Tag: Logano

  • Thoughts on the All Star Race — Hendrick Rules

    Thoughts on the All Star Race — Hendrick Rules

    My friend Monte Dutton, who is one of the best or probably was one of the best writers on the NASCAR beat, tweeted Saturday night that unlike normal races, the format actually seems to encourage all hell breaking loose UNTIL the end. That was the case on Saturday. There was a lot of good racing and lots of rubbing, but in retrospect, we should have known what was going to happen. The first four 20-lap segments proved one thing—if you got up front, you were going to be there at the end. No matter what NASCAR has tried to do with this Gen 6 car, the dreaded aero-push still exists. So, whenever Kyle or Kurt or Jimmie got in front, they were off to the races. One by one, they got the lead and couldn’t be headed in each segment.

    It seems to only happen on the 1.5-mile tracks, or maybe it’s my imagination, but at different times it seemed that Kurt or Kyle, or even Carl or Kasey had the best, almost unbeatable car. In the end, it was the guy who led last, and that was Jimmie Johnson who drove into the sunset, as usual. Johnson and his crew chief, Chad Knaus, have all this figured out. No matter where you start, get to the front late and drive away. They constantly outsmart most teams, which is better than having a great driver which is not to discredit Jimmie Johnson. He is a great driver.

    That is one of the reasons why I have contended for a long time that the domination of Jimmie Johnson and Hendrick Motorsports is one small factor in the demise or at least one of the factors why NASCAR is not what it was fifteen or even twenty years ago. Yes, Richard Petty, the King, dominated in the 60’s, and others dominated at different times, but never at the length that the Hendrick Motorsports teams have, especially at Charlotte Motor Speedway and the 1.5 mile tracks. Given that the final ten races are dominated by such tracks, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that we’ve already seen who is going to win the NASCAR championship and his name is Johnson. Last year, bad luck played into that scenario, but without that happening, there are no drivers like Brad Keselowski on the horizon to challenge him. Of course, the great part is you never know. Hendrick Chevrolets and Gibbs Toyota dominate the series, but as the season goes along and the expertise of the Hendrick teams continue to shine, we know the outcome, if Jimmie is out front at the end.

    Who could be the challenger? Naming them is difficult. Competition from the Chevrolet side would include Johnson’s teammates, but others pale by comparison, and that’s a problem. You might make an argument for Kevin Harvick, but we’ve seen less than stellar performance from any of the Richard Childress Racing team. With so many Chevrolets in the lineup—they dominate—it seems Johnson’s main competition is in house.

    Toyota has several challengers. Matt Kenseth and Kyle Busch from Gibbs (and maybe Denny Hamlin if he can perform a miracle), and Clint Bowyer and Martin Truex, Jr. from Michael Waltrip Racing seem to be the best bets. The smart money would be on Kenseth, Busch, or Bowyer, but consistency is a problem so far.

    Ford only has Carl Edwards. Brad Keselowski, the defending champion who seems to have been forgotten in all of this, should be at the top of the list and would be if not for that nasty penalty he and Joey Logano received earlier. I look for Keselowski to come on at the end after they are totally comfortable with the new car. Joey Logano is a year away, although his talent is coming through. His second place finish in the Showdown was impressive. Edwards, though not a factor in most races to win, is showing the consistency that crew chief Jimmy Fenning brought Kenseth for so long. Greg Biffle is out to lunch so far and Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., though a rookie, is showing signs of improvement and could be a spoiler later on.

    In the end, Johnson, who is more than a race ahead of any challenger, will go into the last ten races with a huge advantage, one that will be difficult to overcome. If that happens, it won’t be the drivers’ loss as much as NASCAR. Knowing who is going to win before they play the game (or race) is not going to get more fans in the seats or drive ratings. It’s a problem, but not to the Hendrick guys. They are paid to dominate and it’s up to the opposition to catch up. Unfortunately, that hasn’t happened lately. Let’s hope that changes soon.

  • Hardly Boring, the 2013 Season Has Been Entertaining So Far

    Hardly Boring, the 2013 Season Has Been Entertaining So Far

    All last year, folks commented that the racing in NASCAR’s top series was boring. Most of them pointed to the late-race action at Martinsville Speedway last April. On Sunday, at near 200 mph, they saw more of the same. This time it was Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin, fresh off a dustup at Bristol Motor Speedway where both drivers pointed fingers. Who would have thought that a race at Auto Club Speedway could bring that kind of excitement? Certainly not me or most anyone else would think that. Was it the Gen 6 car or the track or the drivers? I can’t answer that question, but the bigger question is why Safer Barriers were not on the wall where Hamlin hit head on?

    The accident that put Hamlin into that wall was just that—a racing accident. Fighting for a win on the last lap, neither driver did anything wrong. I doubt wither one of them even thought about the spin of Logano caused by Hamlin. They were just going for the checkered flag. That’s racin’. The result was something else. Hamlin might miss seat time with a broken back and Logano will always be seen as a vindictive guy who deliberately wrecked Hamlin. I don’t believe that for a second. While we all know that Jeff Gordon did do that to Clint Bowyer, I don’t think that is the case here. Regardless, if there had been a Safer Barrier on that inside wall, we wouldn’t be having this discussion. The track is owned by International Speedway Corporation, not a part of NASCAR, but the same people are involved. To continue to ask why is not enough. They have some explaining to do. When Pocono’s guardrail nearly cut Elliott Sadler’s car in half, nothing short of a removal was accepted. When Kyle Larson nearly tore down the catchfence at Daytona, the conversation was all about safety and changing things. I certainly hope this unfortunate incident gets the same reaction.

    As for Tony Stewart’s quarterly outburst against some other driver, I take it with a grain of salt. Blocking was the sin committed by Logano, but if we look back long enough, we might notice that Stewart is the king of blockers. Plus, you cannot tell me that Stewart wouldn’t have done the same thing if it had been him in front of Logano. The cheap shots at Logano’s upbringing and personality were un-called for, but that’s Tony. We can all remember the helmet throwing incident at Bristol, can’t we? If Kurt Busch was called on the carpet for his language at Homestead a few years ago, what about Tony on Sunday? Sure, his expletives were beeped, but is there really any difference. Every 10-year old knew what he said. If Tony isn’t fined, they owe Busch an apology, in my opinion.

    So boring it has not been in 2013. Television ratings are up and attendance, save Bristol, is better than last year. Or so it seems. Since NASCAR doesn’t give out attendance estimations, only the tracks know and they’re not talking, but it looks better. Still, I’ll be the first to say that so far the product is better. That goes a long way from what we’ve seen in the recent past.

  • Has the Gen 6 Car Changed Anything?

    Has the Gen 6 Car Changed Anything?

    Photo Credit: Noel Lanier
    Photo Credit: Noel Lanier

    So far, from a fan’s point of view, not much has changed since the advent of the much ballyhooed Gen 6 car arrived on the scene. At least on the racetrack. Yes, the cars look like showroom cars, but other than that, the same things keep happening. The same drivers are good that were good and the same teams lead the pack. Did you expect anything else?

    It may be a rush to judgment, however. We’ve only had one short race and a qualifying session to judge the new Fords, Chevrolets, and Toyotas, but some things are clear. Hendrick Motorsports has built the fastest motors, Earnhardt-Childress motors are not far behind, Matt Kenseth is still a great driver, Ford didn’t gain anything with the change, and a lot of teams have a lot of work to do.

    On Saturday night during the Sprint Unlimited exhibition race, many drivers couldn’t keep up with Tony Stewart, Matt Kenseth, and Kevin Harvick. Drivers trying to help couldn’t get to those three drivers’ bumper to push. They were that fast. Many feel like this is a good thing. It has certainly made the “two car tango,” as Darrell Waltrip said, to rest, but to see cars pull away from the field, as much as they can in restrictor plate racing, was interesting. It was also interesting to note that Joey Logano, former driver on the No. 20 Toyota, finished two positions ahead of his former ride in third place in a Penske Ford. It didn’t get as much publicity as Ricky nearly qualifying on the front row with Danica, but then again, what is?

    Was the racing better in the Sprint Unlimited? Not that I could see. As usual, the cars were close and we had a big wreck because of driver error, something we’ve come to expect. Qualifying would have been a surprise had Danica Patrick not telegraphed her strength by running the fastest speed in Saturday’s qualifying practice. As usual, nothing seemed so different. Chevrolet dominated the whole two days of action as they will all season. As usual. Did the new car make a difference on the track?

    Truth is, we really won’t know much about this car until we hit some normal tracks. No, Daytona and its sister track, Talladega Superspeedway, are not normal. We will know a lot more after Phoenix, Las Vegas, and Bristol because we will have seen the car on a plate track, a flat one-miler, a mile and a half, and a short track. So, sometime on the late afternoon of March 17th, as we are enjoying our green beer, we might know what to think of this new car. Right now, it looks to be status quo, but late on March 17th, who knows?

  • The Beauty of Silly Season

    The Beauty of Silly Season

    [media-credit name=”David Yeazell” align=”alignright” width=”208″][/media-credit]It’s finally Silly Season time and moves are happening fast. The season started prematurely with A.J. Allmendinger’s failed drug test and Matt Kenseth’s shocking announcement that he was leaving Roush Fenway, but this is the time of year when Silly Season starts in earnest and started it has.

    Joe Gibbs Racing announced what we’ve known for ages, Matt Kenseth will drive the No. 20 Home Depot/Family Dollar Toyota next season. And Penske Racing announced that Joey Logano will drive Allmendinger’s former ride, the No.22 Shell Ford in 2013, but it doesn’t stop there.

    This weekend we learned that Tony Stewart has lost one of his primary sponsorships. Office Depot is leaving. This is problematic because Stewart-Haas racing lost the U.S. Army as a sponsor on its No. 39 car that Ryan Newman drives. That leaves only the Go Daddy car, the No. 10 Chevrolet that Danica Patrick will drive in 2013, as the only fully sponsored car in the SHR stable. Efforts have been made to obtain sponsorship for the No. 39 car apparently without success. That puts Ryan Newman on the market because he is a free agent next year. But there’s more.

    Elliott Sadler, the current points leader in the Nationwide Series, announced he was leaving Richard Childress Racing’s Nationwide team at the end of the season. The reasons are somewhat foggy and contradictory. Sadler says RCR offered him nothing. Richard Childress has expressed disbelief that Sadler was leaving after having his “best season.” We may have to wait awhile to get the full story on this one. Rumor has Sadler going to Joe Gibbs Racing and taking his sponsor, One Main, with him. Whether that means Gibbs has his sponsor for a fourth Sprint Cup team is not determined yet.

    That’s the beauty of the Silly Season. It’s drivers and teams looking for that extra edge. Kenseth looking for some new scenery (he’s been with Roush since day one), Logano looking for an organization that has the ability to win and one that will respect his talents, and Sadler, at age 37, looking for a chance to get to the big show again. It puts Ryan Newman, who strangely finds himself without sponsorship, possibly on the market. It leaves the very successful RCR Nationwide program without a lead driver. And it gives something for fans to debate.