Tag: Matt Kenseth

Surprising and Not Surprising: Richmond Toyota Owners 400

At the track which made Chase-altering headlines the last time the Cup Series came to town, here is what was surprising and not surprising in the 60^th annual Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond International Raceway.

Surprising: While another racer with two wins has most often been known by this moniker, crew chief Todd Gordon dubbed his own winning driver Joey Logano ‘The Closer’ instead. Not only did Logano close the deal on his first win at Richmond but also closed on a Chase berth with his second win of the 2014 season.

“Joey does a really good job closing,” Todd Gordon, crew chief, said in the media center after the race. “I think that’s one thing that’s impressed me in the last year and a little bit.”

“I knew we had a shot at the win and it all kind of lined up for us.”

“We kind of thought with one win you’re going to be all but locked in, but this really secures you,” the closing 23 year old driver of the No. 22 Team Penske Shell Pennzoil Ford said. “Having a couple wins this early in the season and in two completely different racetracks makes you very confident for the rest of the season.”

Not Surprising: While Joey Logano punched his card to the Chase, both Marcos Ambrose and Casey Mears punched their tickets for NASCAR’s further review of the punches thrown in the pits at the conclusion of the race.

In fact, the normally good natured Aussie landed such a punch that Mears acknowledged he was still smarting from the day after the race.

“He got me good,” Mears said of Ambrose’s punch. “That’s one thing I can say that out of all the NASCAR fights or punches or when you see people swing, usually it’s a lot of fly-swatting.”

“But he actually connected.”

Surprising: One of the most surprising aspects of the Richmond race was that tire management issues led to fire management issues, with several drivers going up in flames after tire failures occurred.

What was even more surprising is that those tire to fire issues happened four consecutive times right around lap 60 on tires.

One of the most dramatic tire to fire episodes impacted Reed Sorenson, driver of the No. 36 Tommy Baldwin Racing Chevrolet, who was pulled out of his burning car by a NASCAR official and a crew member from the No. 5 Kasey Kahne team.

“Seems like the rubber got to the oil lines and the brake lines and that was what was burning was the oil and the fuel,” Sorenson said. “So I got out of there as quick as I could and to try and not inhale all that smoke.”

“Definitely not what you want to be inside of.”

Not Surprising: While Jeff Gordon remained the point’s leader, currently five points ahead of Matt Kenseth, both drivers expressed the same feelings as far as prioritizing wins over position in the point standings.

“You’re right, I mean, normally I’d be ecstatic with leading the points and where we’re at and consistency, but right now those wins are just so important,” the driver of the No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet said. “I mean, I’d rather be 12th in points right now with three wins than be leading the points.”

The driver of the No. 20 Home Depot Husky Toyota echoed Gordon’s sentiments.

“I’m disappointed I didn’t get the win,” Kenseth said. “I did everything I could do.”

“I was trying to win the race and at the end of the day I just didn’t get it done.”

Surprising: Some of the drivers with the highest driver ratings at Richmond International Raceway struggled the most mightily at the short track.

Denny Hamlin, who had the highest driver rating of 114.8 coming into the race, had an abysmal finish of 22^nd after spinning out and being narrowly missed by many in the field.

Tony Stewart, who came to the race with a driver rating of 96.5, the fifth best, also struggled, finishing 25^th, one lap down.

Two of the other drivers with good driver ratings, Kurt Busch in seventh and Jimmie Johnson in tenth, also had difficult nights finishing 23^rd and 32^nd respectively.

“We struggled tonight in the Haas Automation Chevrolet,” Busch said. “The car was loose in, tight in the center and loose off for most of the night.”

“It was frustrating.”

“Really thought we had a decent car and was going to run in the top-five, top 10 at the worst,” Johnson said. “Then we had one run where we cut a right-front and the next run another right-front.”

“That really just kind of put an end to our night.”

Not Surprising: Martin Truex, Jr. finally tamed the bad racing luck demons with his best result of the season, tenth, in his No. 78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Chevrolet.

“We finally finished one!” Truex said after the race. “Nothing fell out of the sky and hit us. We kept the air in the tires all night.”

“The biggest thing is finally shaking the bad luck.”

Surprising: While others may describe him in colorful ways, Kyle Busch had some interesting descriptors for himself after finishing third in the race.

“That last restart was intense,” the driver of the No. 18 M&Ms Toyota said after finishing third. “I thought that that was a bad call coming in and putting tires on, but man, when we went back green, everybody went fighting for the bottom.”

“Really crazy the way that ended up and just drove past everybody on the outside like a bad mofo, just getting my job done like I was supposed to, and kind of recovering our day and ended up third,” Busch continued. “Dave (Rogers, crew chief) made a very gutsy call there to come in and put four tires on it and restart 16th and I just was a bad ass and drove the hell out of it.”

Not Surprising: After what happened in the fall Richmond race and then what happened at this race, Clint Bowyer no doubt would like to take the track completely off his dance card.

Instead of doing his own spinning, this time around Bowyer collided with the rookie pole sitter Kyle Larson on the very first lap, sending Larson spinning and sending himself into fiery tire hell.

“What a bad night,” the driver of the No. 15 AAA Insurance Toyota said after his 43^rd place finish. “I was on fire and I really hate that happened with Kyle because I really like him and I’m a big fan of his.”

“It was just one thing after another and not a very good night.”

Surprising: Rookie Kyle Larson made a surprising comeback drive after starting from the pole and then having that first-lap incident with Clint Bowyer. The young driver of the No. 42 AXE Peace Chevrolet finished 16th and was yet again the highest finishing rookie of the race.

Not Surprising: Dale Earnhardt Jr. did his best ‘Frozen’ imitation, substituting ‘Let it Go’ with just ‘Get over It’ in response to all the tempers flaring after the race. Junior himself got over it by bringing his No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet home in the seventh spot.

“The No. 2 (Brad Keselowski) was mad at the No. 20 (Matt Kenseth) and he slammed on brakes after the checkered and the No. 47 (AJ Allmendinger) ran into the No. 20 and I ran into the No. 20 and I don’t know what that was all about,” Junior said, summing up all the action in the final lap. “You know, get over it.”

Surprising: AJ Allmendinger celebrated his 200th Cup start in style, with his best finish to date. He brought his No. 47 Bush’s Grillin’ Beans Chevrolet to the checkered flag in sixth place.

“It was a good race,” the Dinger said. “Just a tough race track.”

“I was really happy with the car in general.”

Not Surprising: When all is said and done, NASCAR is a family sport. Thus there was an outpouring of love for the ‘King’ Richard Petty as he returned to the race track for the first time after the passing of his wife Lynda.

“I just felt like I needed to have a little time on our own so I have been gone for two or three weeks but I am back in the saddle again now,” Petty said. “I am just learning to live all over again.”

“I am surviving,” Petty continued. “The busier they keep me the better off I will be.

The ‘King’, along with the rest of the Cup Series will be busy as they travel next to the superspeedway of Talladega for the Aaron’s 499 on Sunday, May 4^th.

April 27, 2014
NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Darlington

Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

1. Jeff Gordon: Gordon finished seventh in the Bojangle’s Southern 500 and held on to the lead in the Sprint Cup points standings. He leads Matt Kenseth by one point.

“I’m surprised Kenseth didn’t win a race sponsored by Bojangles,” Gordon said, “because he knows chicken better than anyone.

“But the ‘Drive For Five’ is still alive. And if I win the Sprint Cup title, you can best believe I’ll ride off into the sunset. If not, I might call it a day, anyway.”

2. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt took second at Darlington, posting his fifth top-3 finish of the season. Earnhardt is fourth in the points standings, 26 behind Jeff Gordon.

“I’m sponsored by the National Guard,” Earnhardt said. “Is Kevin Harvick sponsored by the Navy? Because his wife curses like a sailor.

“As Harvick proved, tires were the most important factor in winning. Maybe we should have put on those extra two tires. I guess you could say we failed. Of course, it’s surely not the first case of ‘blown’ tires this year.”

3. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson took the lead with a two-tire pit stop on a caution with ten laps to go at Darlington. Harvick eventually chased down Johnson and passed Dale Earnhardt, Jr. for the lead on the final lap. Johnson finished third and is now fourth in the points standings, 27 behind Jeff Gordon.

“I’m still winless on the year,” Johnson said. “But winning isn’t everything. Otherwise, I’d have everything. Harvick can have his four tires; I’ll take my six Cups. Unlike those tires, those Cups will last forever.”

4. Kevin Harvick: Harvick’s four tire pit stop on the final caution at Darlington proved the difference. Harvick, restarting fifth, chased down Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt, Jr, to secure the win in the Bojangle’s Southern 500.

“We were ‘great’ in ‘Darlington,’” Harvick said. “Taking four tires was a ‘good decision.’ Those weren’t the only ‘G.D.’s’ heard at Darlington.

“Gene Haas of Stewart-Haas Racing is planning to field a Formula 1 team in 2015. Gene’s got the money to make it work. He’s loaded. He has to be. Reportedly, he couldn’t pay Tony Stewart enough to have Kurt Busch as a teammate.”

5. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth claimed fourth at Darlington, posting his sixth top-10 result of the year. He is second in the points standings, trailing Jeff Gordon by a single point.

“The call Darlington Raceway the ‘Lady In Black,’” Kenseth said. “They call Delana Harvick the ‘Lady In Blue’ because of her language. Harvick may be the best driver never to win a Cup championship. Maybe he’s cursed.”

6. Carl Edwards: Edwards finished 13th at Darlington, as Roush Fenway teammate Greg Biffle was the only Ford in the top 10. Edwards is third in the points standings, 19 behind Jeff Gordon.

“How is Delana Harvick like the Aflac duck?” Edwards said. “They’re both ‘fowl-mouthed.’”

7. Kyle Busch: Busch finished sixth at Darlington, joining Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Matt Kenseth, who finished fourth, in the top 10. Busch is sixth in the Sprint Cup points standings, 28 out of first.

“My brother Kurt was wrecked by Clint Bowyer,” Busch said. “Rest assured, Kurt won’t take that lying down. Or at least not before an open-handed slap takes him off his feet.”

8. Joey Logano: Logano blew an engine with ten laps to go at Darlington and finished 35th, 15 laps down. He fell four spots in the points standings to eighth, 52 out of first.

“Hey,” Logano said, “I wasn’t the only one cursing my blown engine.”

9. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski finished 17th at Darlington on a disappointing day for Penske Racing. Teammate Joey Logano suffered an engine failure, while Keselowski dealt with handling issues late in the race.

“With no top 10 finishes in the last five races,” Keselowski said, “I haven’t looked like a Cup contender. We’re heading to Easter for a much needed break, and hopefully I’ll be a lot better upon returning. Just call it a ‘Kes-urrection.’”

10. Kyle Larson: Rookie Of The Year candidate Larson finished seventh in the Bojangle’s Southern 500, scoring his second straight top 10 and fourth of the year.

“I earned my Darlington stripe,” Larson said. “The ‘Lady In Black’ always leaves an impression. But I think I did the same. Hopefully, this driver of the No. 42 Target car will leave a mark, and not just leave.”

April 15, 2014

The Final Word – The Southern 500 featured SHR’s good, their bad, their ugly…and their boss

There is a reason we read the entire book, rather than rely totally on the CliffsNotes version. For example, the shortened description of Saturday night’s Southern 500 action at Darlington would read that Kevin Harvick dominated and went on to win his second of the season. That would be correct, yet it misses the fact Jeff Gordon had a shot, then Dale Earnhardt Jr had an opportunity, before Harvick charged ahead on fresh tires in the green-white-checker to run away with it in the end.

It has been feast or famine for Harvick in the opening eight. He won at Phoenix and Darlington, was 13^th at Daytona and 7^th at Martinsville. Then there are the four races where he wound up beyond 35^th. At least in a season where Stewart-Haas drivers have had their share of adversity on-track, he has given some hope, even if it proceeded a feeling of hopelessness. He has been damned good in all, a force to be reckoned with in each, but too often some part fails and the day goes for naught. Saturday was not one of those days.

If not for Harvick, we would be telling tales of woe regarding his team mate Kurt Busch. He did have one of those days on Saturday night, when he crashed out in 31^st, a week after crashing out in 35^th in Texas. A bad engine left him 39^th at Phoenix, and when he clipped his brother at Bristol, once again 35^th was his fate. Still, he has that win and that is going to mean a lot over the next few months.

The CliffsNotes might have missed that little factoid, along with just how ornery that Lady in Black proved to be, especially to the rookie class. Both stand-out rookies Kyle Larson and Austin Dillon clobbered the fence coming off turn two, yet did finish 8^th and 11^th respectively…and respectfully.

When measuring the Danica Line, 25^th or better usually finds one sitting ahead of her on the track. Not so on Saturday, when the third member of SHR finished 22^nd. Of the other newcomers at Darlington, only the 23^rd place of Justin Allgaier came close. Still, you have to show some respect to the other boys and their teams who are out there to race, to learn, to grow, to compete, and not just there to start and park and collect some undeserved cash. Of the 43 who ran, maybe one might have exited early due to having a bad hair day.

As for the driver in the owner’s seat, just where did Tony Stewart come from last weekend? Most of the night, he was trailing Danica, for goodness sake, but at the line Stewart recorded a Top Ten. How in blazes did that happen? Fortuitous and smart pit strategy brought him back from the dead.

Among those who do not get to hang with Gene Haas, Earnhardt and Gordon finished 2^nd and 3^rd, while Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth, and Jimmie Johnson all had Top Ten days to remain high on the charts. Carl Edwards is still the best among single race winners, and he came home 13^th.

It burns me that the Nationwide series is still a showcase for five or six Cup guys, but I am pleased to see they are now joined by Chase Elliott. Bill’s boy won his second straight when the series regular won at Darlington to lead the over-all standings. Elliott Sadler (2^nd), Regan Smith (8^th), Trevor Bayne (9^th), and Ty Dillon (10^th) also finished strong among the relevant performers.

If wins are the thing, then Harvick takes over the top spot in the Cup standings, while Gordon and Kenseth remain the best among those who have yet to shake up the bubbly post-race as we take the week off for Easter. A fellow might even have time to read a full sized book this weekend. Any suggestions?

	Driver	Races	Wins	Points
1	Kevin Harvick	8	2	186
2	Carl Edwards	8	1	278
3	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.	8	1	271
4	Kyle Busch	8	1	269
5	Brad Keselowski	8	1	246
6	Joey Logano	8	1	245
7	Kurt Busch	8	1	164
8	Jeff Gordon	8	0	297
9	Matt Kenseth	8	0	296
10	Jimmie Johnson	8	0	270
11	Ryan Newman	8	0	236
12	Austin Dillon	8	0	235
13	Greg Biffle	8	0	227
14	Brian Vickers	8	0	224
15	Tony Stewart	8	0	224
16	Denny Hamlin	7	0	223
17	Kyle Larson	8	0	223

31	Reed Sorenson	8	0	118

April 14, 2014

Kyle Busch wins the Nationwide Series Coors Light Pole Award at Darlington Raceway

After posting fast speeds in all three rounds, Kyle Busch went to the top of the leaderboard in Round 3 of Knockout Qualifying to score his 37^th pole in 277 NASCAR Nationwide Series races. He posted a lap speed of 173.681 mph. It is his third pole in ten races at Darlington Raceway.

Chase Elliott will start on the outside pole position in his debut at “The Track Too Tough To Tame” and scores his fourth top-10 start this season. He also has the distinction of being the fastest qualifying rookie.

Matt Kenseth will begin third, marking his seventh top-10 in seven races this season. Kevin Harvick will start fourth followed by Ty Dillon in fifth. Chris Buescher, Brian Scott, Regan Smith, Elliott Sadler and Trevor Bayne qualified in positions six through 10, respectively.

Of special note, all three JR Motorsports cars qualified in the top-10. Kyle Larson spun out during qualifying, hitting the wall and will most likely have to go to a backup car for the race.

Busch will lead the field to green in the 32nd annual VFW Sports Clips Help a Hero 200 Friday evening. The race coverage will be broadcast on ESPN2 beginning at 7:30 p.m.

Complete NASCAR Nationwide Series Starting Lineup – Darlington Raceway

1. Kyle Busch

2. Chase Elliott

3. Matt Kenseth

4. Kevin Harvick

5. Ty Dillon

6. Chris Buescher

7. Brian Scott

8. Regan Smith

9. Elliott Sadler

10. Trevor Bayne

11. Cale Conley

12. Kyle Larson

13. Bendan Gaughan

14. Ryan Sieg

15. Joey Logano

16. Landon Cassill

17. Dylan Kwasniewski

18. Ryan Reed

19. Josh Wise

20. Mike Bliss

21. Jeremy Clements

22. James Buescher

23. JJ Yeley

24. David Starr

25. Dakoda Armstrong

26. Jeffrey Earnhardt

27. Mike Wallace

28. Tanner Berryhill

29. Todd Bodine

30. Eric McClure

31. Kevin LePage

32. Joey Gase

33. Matt Dibenedetto

34. Tommy Joe Martins

35. Derrike Cope

36. Carlos Contreras

37. Matt Carter

38. Jeff Green

39. Mike Harmon

40. Blake Koch

April 11, 2014

The Final Word – That was no pass in the grass at Texas

Sometimes when you mess with the bull, you get the horns. This past weekend, there was one ornery Texas Longhorn who made his displeasure known.

First to be gored were those fans who mosied on down to Dallas for a Sunday race. If they had no Plan B, the race was run on Monday while they were on the return trip home to Poughkeepsie. Rain took care of business on the scheduled day, and I wonder how many were like me and did not plan on a “what if” strategy. Fortunately, I did not need it, but some sure did this past Sunday.

When a roper misses, it often is forgotten in a week. Dale Earnhardt Jr. wrecked riding a bull instead, and when he poked his nose down to the inside in the opening laps, he went where no car should ever go. It was his version of “the Crash in the Grass”, as his front end dug in to shatter his car before it even got thrown for a hard hit along the outside fence. The fact it then burst into flames was just a final touch of the torch, so to speak. Ten laps of caution to open, two laps of green, then a trip to the garage and an early flight home for Junior, dead last in 43rd.

Jimmie Johnson was like a rodeo barrel man. You know, that nice guy with the painted up smiley face who keeps the kids entertained while poking his head out of the barrel to tease the bull. Then the bull decides to hook the barrel and flip it high into the air, or just toss a piece of a deteriorating tire from Junior’s dying beast into Johnson’s windshield. It bent the bar meant to support the glass and even tore Jimmie a new one in the front end where not even the old one would have been located. His crew fixed him up, but he never got back to the lead lap, having to settle for 25th.

It is good that Kevin Harvick won at Phoenix, as four of the seven rodeos have seen him shoved face deep in the dirt. A broken hub left him 41st in Las Vegas, a lost oil line meant 39th at Bristol, then a blown tire left him 36th in California. Once again, his bronco came snorting out of the gate in Texas, twisted, turned, and then suddenly dropped dead. Harvick lasted more than twice as long as Earnhardt, which is saying nothing, when his engine quit. He was 42nd, and the only race he was part of was to see which of the two got back to North Carolina the quickest.

Joey Logano thought he was also bound for heart break. With the white flag on the horizon, he was heading to the line when the left rear on Kurt Busch’s car let go to shred the quarter-panel to pieces. Out came the caution, four Goodyears went on Joey’s ride, but Jeff Gordon took two to start in front for the green-white-checker. That drama did not last long, as the Connecticut Yankee stormed back in front to win for the fourth time of his career and picked himself up a Chase place.

While things went well for Logano, team mate Brad Keselowski was out near the front almost the entire day. However, while Logano got his four feel goods in the pits, Keselowski was earning himself a speeding penalty to vacate his spot beside Joey at the re-start to finish 15th. Sometimes the bull just sits back and lets you kick your own butt.

In tallying up the standings, the first to be considered are the seven race winners before we worry about points. Too bad, as Jeff Gordon has no wins but more points than anyone else. He was consistently up front on Monday, to finish second, just ahead of Kyle Busch, Brian Vickers, and Kyle Larson.

Texas was tough on some, mild on others. Matt Kenseth remains winless yet his seventh place result on Monday leaves him just four points back of Gordon. Danica Patrick was a barrel racer in the midst of the bull riding, finishing 27th to sit 29th in the standings. Nobody sits behind her other than those you would have bet on to be back there.

Austin Dillon is 12th, four spots ahead of Larson in the rookie race. Despite all the talk about the good crop of first year drivers this season, only those two will matter. Frankly, none of the others are in equipment worthy of challenging, with only Justin Allgaier (28th) joining the other two ahead of the “Danica line.” It should be interesting to see how they, and their teams, will fare the rest of the season. One point of measure might indeed be the Danica line.

As for Harvick and Kurt Busch, they need to stay within the Top 30 over-all to make their wins work for them. With more than a 30 point bulge over the 31st place David Gilliland, they both still look safe for the next few weeks. That Texas bull was bad, but nothing those two cowboys cannot recover from.

They replace the critter with the lady this Saturday night, as Darlington and the Southern 500 is next on the dance card. Seven different drivers have won this season. Seven different drivers have won at Darlington since Greg Biffle won back to back in 2005-06. Jeff Gordon has won seven times there, the last in 2007. If he drove the No. 7, picking the winner for Saturday night would have been a no brainer. Still, if he brings flowers maybe the Lady in Black will be kind to him one more time.

One more thing. When rain washed away Sunday’s date, fans wondered if they would get a chance to see the Monday attempt. Thanks to TSN2, I could and did. Thanks! Here is a look at the standings, with the priority given to our seven winners…

	Driver	Races	Win	Points
1	Carl Edwards	7	1	247
2	Joey Logano	7	1	235
3	Kyle Busch	7	1	231
4	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.	7	1	228
5	Brad Keselowski	7	1	218
6	Kurt Busch	7	1	151
7	Kevin Harvick	7	1	138
8	Jeff Gordon	7	0	259
9	Matt Kenseth	7	0	255
10	Jimmie Johnson	7	0	228
11	Brian Vickers	7	0	205
12	Paul Menard	7	0	203
13	Ryan Newman	7	0	202
14	Austin Dillon	7	0	202
15	Denny Hamlin	6	0	197
16	Tony Stewart	7	0	189
31				107

April 8, 2014

Hot 20 – Ducks and guns and controversy, it must mean we’re going to Texas

Last year, it was the NRA. This year the Texas race is brought to you courtesy of Duck Commander, representing the first family of Duck Dynasty. While some might be a touch torqued to have another gun-endorsing group as a sponsor, I find it less offensive than, say, Chick-Fil-A. The sponsor pays for name placement, but should not take over the identity of the event in total. I think any affair named exclusively after its sponsor of the moment does injustice to the event in the long-term. The Peach Bowl had tradition, the Chick-Fil-A Bowl was a joke. Its return to becoming the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl is an acceptable nod to both tradition and commercialism.

There is the case of Thai boxer Somboon Phantasi, also known as Samson Dutch Boy Gym, Samson 3-K Battery, Samson Toyota-Thailand and Samson Elite Gym, or whoever his sponsor happened to be at that moment. It could have been worse, but thankfully there was no Samson Chick-Fil-A. It is, or was, an honor to win such milestone events as the Daytona 500, the Southern 500, the Brickyard 400, the Firecracker 400, the World 600, the Dixie 500, the Volunteer 500, the Delaware 500, the Old Dominion 500, the Pocono 500, the Richmond 400, and the Talladega 500. These were races that had their own, distinct identity. Races a winning driver could refer to proudly in future years, events fans might actually know something about and appreciate. You could even have pride in taking the Viagra Daytona 500, though the sponsor name might not appear on the resume. Something like the Duck Commander Texas 500 has a nice ring to it. If you do not like the sponsor, just refer to it by its real name and all will be happy.

Our thoughts are with Jimmie Johnson and his wife Chandra, following the loss of her brother in a sky diving accident last Sunday. Jordan Janway was just 27 years old.

It is official. The troubles experienced by teams at Martinsville were not the fault of Goodyear but were, in fact, self inflicted. NASCAR will not be regulating tire pressures at Texas. Six different drivers have won this season, though a repeat of last spring would give Kyle Busch his second of 2014.

Tradition once gave the best on the season the championship in NASCAR. Even so, some might suggest that Matt Kenseth’s 2003 title was something of an upset considering the eight wins that season of Ryan Newman. With the new knockout format this year, the odds of an upset champion are even greater. It would not exactly be unique in sports should that happen. The Giants beat the up to then undefeated Patriots in the 2008 Super Bowl, the Mets beat the Orioles in the 1969 World Series, and the USA eliminated the Soviet Union in Olympic hockey in 1980. Heading to Homestead, we will only know that one of four drivers will take the prize by the end of the day, and the season’s most dominant driver might not even be among them.

However, if we sought out “the” driver of 2014, gave race winners 22 additional points, up to 69 or 70, and eliminated the Chase, this is what our hot 20 would look like heading into Texas.

	Driver	Races	Wins	Points
1	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.	6	1	249
2	Carl Edwards	6	1	239
3	Matt Kenseth	6	0	218
4	Jeff Gordon	6	0	216
5	Kyle Busch	6	1	211
6	Brad Keselowski	6	1	210
7	Jimmie Johnson	6	0	209
8	Joey Logano	6	0	187
9	Austin Dillon	6	0	179
10	Ryan Newman	6	0	174
11	Kurt Busch	6	1	168
12	Paul Menard	6	0	168
13	Denny Hamlin	5	0	165
14	Brian Vickers	6	0	165
15	Marcos Ambrose	6	0	162
16	Kevin Harvick	6	1	157
17	Tony Stewart	6	0	154
18	A.J. Allmendinger	6	0	152
19	Clint Bowyer	6	0	150
20	Greg Biffle	6	0	149

April 3, 2014

NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Martinsville

Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

1. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: After two straight races outside the top 20, Earnhardt finished third at Martinsville and reclaimed the lead in the Sprint Cup points standings. He leads Matt Kenseth by nine.

“I’m thinking about taking Graham Rahal’s Indy car for a spin,” Earnhardt said. “I doubt Junior Nation cares too much about seeing me in an Indy car. They don’t care about open wheels, just open containers.”

2. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson led 296 laps at Martinsville, but couldn’t hold off Kurt Busch down the stretch. Busch took the lead with ten laps to go and Johnson took second. Although winless on the year, Johnson is fifth in the points standings, 18 out of first.

“With eight wins at Martinsville,” Johnson said, “I’m practically a sure thing. Ironically, ‘automatic’ lost out to ‘automation,’ that being the No. 41 car sponsored by Haas Automation. I couldn’t hold Busch off. I drove the wheels off the No. 48 Lowe’s car. Kurt drove the hood off the No. 2 Miller Lite car.”

3. Carl Edwards: Edwards finished 13th at Martinsville, leading the way on a disappointing day for Roush Fenway Racing. He is third in the points standings, 10 out of first.

“Brad Keselowski and Kurt Busch had quite a battle,” Edwards said. “They exchanged sheet metal, insults, and fingers. And speaking of ‘birds,’ the No. 99 car with the Aflac duck on it should be one of the favorites at the Duck Commander 500 at Texas. If we win, you could call it the ‘Duck Commandeer 500.”

4. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth posted his fourth top-10 finish of the year with a sixth in the STP 500. He moved up three places to second in the points standings, and trails Dale Earnhardt, Jr. by nine.

“Denny Hamlin had some metal removed from his eye,” Kenseth said. “And that calls for some ‘cornea’ jokes. I think it was glass. That may explain the ‘Who shard-ed?’ buttons that the No. 11 team wore at Martinsville. Many are questioning Denny’s character, accusing him of only caring about himself. Well, let me tell you, Denny’s passed the ‘eye’ test, and he’s passed the ‘me’ test.”

5. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski’s No. 2 Miller Lite car suffered major damage early when Kurt Busch plowed into it as Keselowski was trying to leave the pits. With his front end wrecked, Keselowski finished 38th, 31 laps down, and fell three places in the points standings.

“Kurt won a grandfather clock for his win,” Keselowski said. “And trust me, his time is coming. When I see him next, there will be one hand on his nose, and one hand on his mouth.”

6. Joey Logano: Logano continued his strong year with a fourth at Martinsville, aided by a solid qualifying run of third. He is seventh in the points standings, 40 behind Dale Earnhardt, Jr.

“I doubt we’ve heard the last of the Brad Keselowski-Kurt Busch incident,” Logano said. “Brad’s angry. Kurt’s just as angry, if not angrier. How can you tell? Because he’s got his ears pinned back.”

7. Jeff Gordon: Gordon suffered front-end damage early at Martinsville and struggled the rest of the way, yet managed a 12th-place finish. He is fourth in the Sprint Cup points standings, 11 out of first.

“Texas is next on the agenda,” Gordon said. “They’re calling it the ‘Duck Commander 500’ in honor of Duck Dynasty. Robertson family patriarch Phil Robertson is set to wave the green flag. However, there’s no chance in hell he’ll be waving the ‘P-Flag.’”

8. Kyle Busch: Busch started on the pole at Martinsville and led some early laps before handling issues stifled his efforts. He eventually finished 14th and is now sixth in the points standings, 38 out of first.

“Congratulations to my brother Kurt,” Kyle said. “That was an impressive win. He held off Martinsville master Jimmie Johnson. This pasty white boy’s not hip to the current street lingo, but this seemed to be a case of ‘Bro’s Before Lowe’s.’”

9. Kurt Busch: Busch bounced back from early contact with Brad Keselowski to pass Jimmie Johnson with ten laps to go, and won the STP 500 at Martinsville.

“Unlike some drivers who are expecting children,” Busch said, “I don’t have a baby on the way. But there was a ‘baby’ in the way. I’m sure Brad will say I haven’t heard the last of me. That’s okay, because he has heard the ‘first’ of me.

“Kyle started in the lead, and I finished with the lead. That’s great publicity for Sprint’s new cell phone plan. But neither of us has any friends, so it’s not the ‘Framily’ plan, it’s just the ‘Family’ plan.”

10. Austin Dillon: Dillon posted a solid 15th in the STP 500, the top finish among rookies at Martinsville. He is ninth in the points standings, 48 out of first.

“I really wish I could have won the race,” Dillon said. “Then I would have a grandfather clock to go with my grandfather. Without Richard Childress, I doubt I would be in a Sprint Cup car right now. He’s no clock, but he tells me when it’s ‘time.’”

April 1, 2014

The Final Word – Kurt Busch breaks Johnson’s heart and Keselowski’s car at Martinsville

Winning races gets your name, and that of your sponsor out there. You run where they can see you, or you do something that causes the cameras to wander your way. If that is the goal, it was mission accomplished for Kurt Busch.

At the start, Kurt was in there somewhere but not yet up front. So, with 45 laps gone in a 500 lap event, he managed to find a way into the headlines. When Kasey Kahne turned left to head toward his pit stall, he cut in front of Brad Keselowski. That caused a minor bump. However, Kurt Busch saw room on Keselowski’s right and went for it. Unfortunately, Brad turned ever so slightly to his right and into Busch. Kurt thought he had ruined his chances for good things at Martinsville while Keselowski went to the garage for extensive repairs and a place to stew.

Thirty-odd laps later, Kurt was still not in front, but Keselowski was back on the track in what looked like a stripped down hot rod roadster. Needless to say, Brad was not happy. He tried to keep Kurt behind him when they met again. Kurt nudged Brad’s rear in return. Keselowski tried to brake check Busch, then they banged fenders, or whatever passed for a fender on the 2 car. Keselowski got downright cuddly as a kitten with Busch, if the critter was on catnip and some Colorado herbals. They met; they banged like William Hung, and kept this up until Kurt finally got away. Still not at the front, but he sure got lots of screen time for owner/sponsor Gene Haas. Not bad for being out in the weeds. As for Keselowski, he was the guy driving the No. 2…that white car with no fenders or hood. He was sponsored, was he not?

To maximize his exposure, Kurt’s crew managed to work on the car, got it better and better, and in the final laps he managed to slip past the most dominant car of the day. Jimmie Johnson finished second as his winless streak is now extended to nine whole races, going back to Texas last November. Busch won his first since October 2, 2011 at Dover, the 25th of his Cup career, and this puts him in a likely Chase place. Most important of all, anyone watching the race knew that Kurt Busch and Haas Automation were there.

I also noticed that Busch climbed onto the roof of his car in celebration. Isn’t that now illegal? As for Brad, he is making like Michael Buffer, calling to Kurt to get ready to rumble. Yet, when I rewatched the video, it was Brad’s slight right hand turn after hitting Kahne that caused the contact with Busch on pit row. A wrecked car, a ruined race, and now it is his fault…not that Keselowski would agree.

Carl Edwards was 13th, which gave Dale Earnhardt Jr a ten position jump on him on the track and moves Junior that many points ahead of Edwards on top in the over-all standings. The winless Matt Kenseth, with finishes this year ranging between fourth and 13th, is in second place, nine points back.

Busch is 20th, based strictly on points, and Kevin Harvick sits in 25th after finishing seventh at Martinsville. A Top 30 in the standings is needed for their wins to count toward making the Chase, but they hold 45 and 34 point cushions respectively in that department. As wins count more than points, they sit fifth and sixth in the standings.

Each week the media seems intent on telling us how much better Danica Patrick is each and every race over last year’s performance. She was 32nd on Sunday, and 12th in the spring race at Martinsville a year ago. She finished no better than 24th over the next eight races last year, so between now and Michigan all she needs to do is finish 23rd or better for this improvement talk to be taken seriously. It should be interesting to see how she does compared to the likes of Justin Allgaier, Michael Annett, and Cole Whitt over that span.

They go from the short track in Martinsville, Virginia to the 1.5-mile circuit in Fort Worth, Texas. Kyle Busch won there last spring, though Jimmie Johnson has won the past two fall events. Tony Stewart, Greg Biffle, and Kasey Kahne are all currently outside our sweet 16 qualifying positions for the Chase, but all three know where Victory Lane can be found in Texas.

	Driver	Races	Wins	Points
1	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.	6	1	227
2	Carl Edwards	6	1	217
3	Kyle Busch	6	1	189
4	Brad Keselowski	6	1	188
5	Kurt Busch	6	1	146
6	Kevin Harvick	6	1	135
7	Matt Kenseth	6	0	218
8	Jeff Gordon	6	0	216
9	Jimmie Johnson	6	0	209
10	Joey Logano	6	0	187
11	Austin Dillon	6	0	179
12	Ryan Newman	6	0	174
13	Paul Menard	6	0	168
14	Denny Hamlin	5	0	165
15	Brian Vickers	6	0	165
16	Marcos Ambrose	6	0	162

30	Reed Sorenson	6	0	101

March 31, 2014

Hot 20 – As Jeff Gordon experiences an interesting week, we remember Lynda Petty

I guess Jeff Gordon had reason to be somewhat hot this past week. Last Sunday, he came within a Clint Bowyer spin of taking the prize in California. Then, a satirical website came out with a story of Gordon coming out, admitting to dating an openly gay fellow, and “reporting” on the outrage of some fans at the “news.” I guess this comes with being the second prettiest driver in NASCAR, though the fact he has two kids with one of the prettiest spouses in NASCAR should be a hint that happy he may be, gay he is not.

One thing Gordon is, and that is the best driver in Cup who thus far has yet to register a win this season. Matt Kenseth and Jimmie Johnson are in the ball park. Even though Kevin Harvick may have won at Phoenix he finds his stock plunging. Three races he has looked good, at least the first few chapters, then someone rips out the final few pages to leave him with finishes of 41^st, 39^th, and 36^th. While the official standings might have him sitting fifth, last among those with a victory to their credit, he is nowhere to be found in anybody’s Top 20 finishers when it comes to accumulated points.

Every method of determining a champion has its critics. While we await reaction to this year’s elimination rounds, most remember that Matt Kenseth won the title in 2003 but fewer remember that Ryan Newman won eight races that year. The points system in place did not really reward him for the effort. Still, that in no way diminishes Kenseth’s crown or the six Johnson has claimed since the Chase was instituted. It may alter who we think of as being the best over any one campaign, but in the long run the cream always rises to the top.

Richard Petty may have become the King due to his seven championships and 200 victories, but this week we mourn the loss of his queen. Lynda and Richard were married in 1959, and it probably is not a coincidence that it was the next year her husband began to win his first races. While Richard ruled the tracks, it was Lynda who ruled the roost. She was even the family disciplinarian. On that subject, a few years ago she said that you could ask her son “‘Did your daddy ever whip you?’ and he’d say, ‘No, but my mother wailed the daylights out of me.’ ” She had her causes that she was passionate about, but none were as important to her than her family. We join with the entire NASCAR family in remembering Lynda Petty.

If we returned to former days when there was no Chase, if we used today’s points system but winners were rewarded with 69 to 70 points, and we determined our champion over 36 races, this is how our Hot 20 standings would look like as the action heads to Martinsville for this Sunday.

	Driver	Races	Win	Points
1	Carl Edwards	5	1	208
2	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.	5	1	207
3	Brad Keselowski	5	1	204
4	Jeff Gordon	5	0	184
5	Kyle Busch	5	1	180
6	Matt Kenseth	5	0	179
7	Jimmie Johnson	5	0	165
8	Ryan Newman	5	0	150
9	Austin Dillon	5	0	150
10	Joey Logano	5	0	146
11	Denny Hamlin	4	0	140
12	Jamie McMurray	5	0	138
13	Brian Vickers	5	0	137
14	Paul Menard	5	0	134
15	Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.	5	0	132
16	Kyle Larson	5	0	131
17	Tony Stewart	5	0	127
18	Casey Mears	5	0	126
19	Kasey Kahne	5	0	123
20	Greg Biffle	5	0	122
21	Marcos Ambrose	5	0	122

March 27, 2014

Surprising and Not Surprising: Fontana Auto Club 400

From the unique race command from Muppet star Gonzo to Denny Hamlin’s pre-race trip to the hospital for a sinus infection and vision problems, here is what else was surprising and not surprising from the Auto Club 400 in Fontana, California.

Surprising: There are not many drivers who, after winning a thrilling race in green-white-checkered fashion, can combine ‘Days of Thunder’ with faith-filled references right out of ‘Talladega Nights’. But Kyle Busch surprisingly managed to pull it all together in his Victory Lane remarks.

“Man oh man. The first thing that comes to mind when the caution came out with just a few laps to go — that was total Rowdy Burns ‘Days of Thunder’ right there,” the driver of the No. 18 No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry said. “There’s a couple laps to go — I’m not pitting.”

“Everybody has to pit, Cole (Trickle), we’re coming down for four tires because there’s a green-white-checkered coming,” Busch continued. “I knew four tires was going to win the race, so I’m glad Dave (Rogers, crew chief) called that.”

“I was able to keep Kyle Larson behind me. Man, what a shoe that boy is,” Busch continued. “If he drove it in further than I did, Jesus must have told him to stop.”

“I just can’t believe it. I thank the Lord for putting ourselves here and getting us locked in the Chase.”

This was Busch’s 29^th win in 334 Cup races but his first victory of the 2014 season. This was his third victory and 12^th top-10 finish at Auto Club Speedway.

Not Surprising: What double file restarts and shortening up the length of the race has done for Pocono Raceway, the rough, aged racing surface with multiple grooves and huge bumps has done the same, if not more, for Auto Club Speedway.

In fact, it seemed like just a few years ago when the track was criticized for boring racing and the grandstands were empty. This Cup race yielded some of the most exciting racing to date, with six and seven cars abreast, in front of a packed house, most of whom barely sat down for the entirety of the show.

Surprising: Kyle Larson went from thinking he was pretty much going to have a tough day to finishing as the highest running rookie, in P2 no less. This stellar finish came on the heels of his Nationwide victory over none other than Cup race winner Kyle Busch.

“I thought we were in trouble or not be able to get to the front,” the driver of the No. 42 said after the race. “I don’t know where everybody went on that last restart.”

“It went through my mind then that I might sweep the weekend,” Larson continued. “That last run, we got good enough to charge to the front. What a weekend.”

Not Surprising: Sam Hornish’s new mantra should be ‘have helmet, will drive.’ Originally, the currently unspoken for driver was on standby to drive for Matt Kenseth in the event that his wife Katie went into labor with their third child.

In the end, however, Hornish ended up substitute driving for Denny Hamlin, finishing a respectable 17th in the No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota. This was his best finish since his 13^th place run in 2012 at Martinsville.

Surprising: The normally cool, calm and collected Aric Almirola, driver of the No. 43 Farmland Ford Fusion, had some surprisingly harsh words for competitor No 33 car driver Brian Scott after their accident brought out the fourth caution of the race.

“The 33 was obviously a dart without feathers and coming across the race track,” Almirola said. “Man, he came from all the way at the bottom of the race track and ran into me.”

“He’s not even racing this series for points,” Almirola continued. “He’s out there having fun because his daddy gets to pay for it and he wrecked us.”

Not Surprising: After tires blew out in practice as well as the race, the debate not surprisingly was on as far as what exactly led to so many tire issues, especially in the left rear.

Brad Keselowski, a driver that suffered particular tire problems in practice and the race, weighed in after the race to share his perspective.

“There were a lot of reasons why we blew a tire today or two or five over the weekend and the field did,’’ Keselowski said after finishing 26th. “I don’t know what to really say about it. As a driver you are left between the choice of driving your car to the limit and blowing a tire out or being a wuss and saving it.”

NASCAR’s most popular driver weighed in with a whole different take on the tire situation.

“I don’t think there is anything wrong with the tire OR the way we choose 2 use them,” Dale Earnhardt Jr. tweeted after the race. “My bet is it’s the bumps on the backstretch.”

“Those are more like jumps and ramps.”

NASCAR representative Vice President for Competition Robin Pemberton shared the more official perspective, saying that some teams were running tires with air pressures as low as 14 pounds, whereas Goodyear had commended tire pressures at 22 pounds for the race weekend.

And finally, Goodyear, echoing Pemberton’s assessment, advised that the problems were not tire-related but more team-related due to the very aggressive set ups.

“Every left-side tire that we’ve seen gone down or had issues with is kind of the same characteristics as (Saturday),’’ Greg Stucker, Director of Race Tire Sales for Goodyear, said. “The common denominator being aggressive on air pressure.”

“You’re in race conditions, so everybody is running a little bit harder.”

Surprising: For the second straight race, NASCAR official human error came into play. This weekend, a NASCAR official actually got his uniform stuck in the fence and he literally could not move to flip the pit road light switch to green.

Because of this error, Brad Keselowski, Jeff Gordon and Clint Bowyer did not pit because there was a red light instead of a green light.

All three drivers went on to suffer less than ideal finishes, with Jeff Gordon finishing the best of the bunch in 13^th, Bowyer in 16^th and Keselowski in 26^th.

“We can’t seem to catch a break,” Bowyer said. “We lead for a while, we came back after confusion with the lights on pit road and were in contention to win at the end.”

“However, we started feeling a vibration with about four to go and it just didn’t make it,” Bowyer continued. “It just stinks for this team.”

Not Surprising: Bosses sometimes do influence the workplace even at the track. One of NASCAR’s most notable bosses, team owner Rick Hendrick, played the encourager role with driver Jeff Gordon, who started from the back not once but twice, passing at least 70 plus cars.

Kurt Busch, who finished third, was also quite emotional about racing with his boss Tony Stewart. “The amount of emotions running well today and we were face and then to race your boss for the win,” Busch said. “Neither one of us got the win but it was a genuine moment for us to race.”

The Cup Series heads next to Martinsville Speedway for the STP 500.

March 24, 2014