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Tag: Matt Kenseth

  • Hot 20 over the past 10 – The junior circuit needs a rejig, while our Cup leaders hope to avoid a bad day in Charlotte

    Hot 20 over the past 10 – The junior circuit needs a rejig, while our Cup leaders hope to avoid a bad day in Charlotte

    As we head into Charlotte, there is a birthday to note and a milestone to recognize.  Dale Earnhardt Jr has celebrated his 39th birthday, and on Saturday night he will run in his 500th Cup start. It is a track he has yet to win on, a track that launched his Cup career back in 1999.

    Of course, by that time Junior had already won his first of two junior circuit titles. In doing so, in 1998 and 1999, he claimed 13 victories. Imagine that, the champion of what, for now at least, is known as the Nationwide series actually winning races.  Regan Smith has won two and sits in second place. Sam Hornish Jr and the eighth place Trevor Bayne each has one. Austin Dillon leads Smith by eight points, and he has not yet won a blessed thing. I wonder why?

    Four Nationwide drivers have won just four of 29 events.  Maybe it is a good thing that Kyle Busch missed seven of those races, for he has won 10 of those he has run. Brad Keselowski has five, Joey Logano has three, and two more claimed by Matt Kenseth. After fellow Cup drivers Tony Stewart and Kevin Harvick get credit for their wins, that leaves only the one to youngster Ryan Blaney and the two for two run of A.J. Allmendinger when he found the time when not running Cup or IndyCar.  So, exactly what is the purpose of the Nationwide series?

    If it is to develop future Cup drivers, rather than providing Chasers or former Cup champions yet another opportunity to showcase their talents against lesser lights, then just maybe we have undermined the purpose of the series. Maybe we have turned the exercise into something of a joke. I do understand why they run there, why the track owners want to see them there, but as much as I would love to see such names as Cabrera, Ellsbury, and Scherzer on the field should I take in a game in Winnipeg, it would be wrong for them to be there in a regular American Association game. It is just as wrong for Kyle, Joey, Matt, et al to take the place of drivers who have hopes of climbing the ladder. There is nothing to be gained by having established  stars simply dropping down to the bushes,  as it were.

    A solution? Allow Cup drivers five, and no more than five, opportunities to compete in any lower series than the one they are competing for points in. If Kyle Busch wishes to race in five Nationwide races and five truck events, let him do so. The fans would love it…but no more than five in each. Up and coming drivers would love the opportunity to compete, and to do so against their peers. They deserve no less. You can discuss.

    While the others await a stumble from Kenseth as we head toward the fifth of the ten Chase events, our points leader remains the hottest driver over the past ten events. While Jimmie Johnson sits three points back in the standings, he is buried  in 17th place over the past ten starts. So, what if there is no stumble, what if these drivers average a tenth place finish the rest of the way?

    With the advent of the Chase, whomever is the best over the final ten races of the season should be the champion. Obviously, making the Chase is necessary as well as taking into consideration the bonus advantage the leader takes in. Three points is what Kenseth had over Johnson going in, and three points is what he has today.

    As we replace the results from Pocono, Watkins Glen, Michigan, Bristol, Atlanta and Richmond by those of Charlotte, Talladega, Martinsville, Fort Worth, Phoenix, and Homestead, let us assume both Kenseth and Johnson will average 34 points, a 10th place finish, from this point onward. If that were the case, Kenseth would end with a ten race total of 372 points, a dozen better than what he has today. If Jimmie Johnson replaces those results (13th, 8th, 40th, 36th, 28th, and 40th) in similar fashion, he also would wind up with 372 points, jumping his total by 103.

    While Five Time is not among our hottest today, he will be in six weeks if he hopes to make it six. As hot as the Busch boys, Logano, Gordon, and Harvick might be right now, they will need better than a series of 10th place finishes to get back into the picture. That said, a bad day for two could equate into a great one for a few others.

    TW Driver Win T5 T10 Points LW Rank
    1 Matt Kenseth 3 3 5 360 1 1
    2 Kurt Busch 0 6 7 352 5 7
    3 Joey Logano 1 5 7 348 4 10
    4 Jeff Gordon 0 3 7 342 6 4
    5 Kyle Busch 2 5 6 337 2 5
    6 Kevin Harvick 1 3 5 332 9 3
    7 Greg Biffle 0 1 5 330 7 6
    8 Ryan Newman 0 3 5 317 3 12
    9 Jamie McMurray 0 2 2 310 8 14
    10 Carl Edwards 1 3 5 304 10 11
    11 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. 0 2 6 294 11 8
    12 Marcos Ambrose 0 0 3 288 15 20
    13 Paul Menard 0 2 4 285 14 17
    14 Juan Pablo Montoya 0 2 3 280 12 22
    15 Kasey Kahne 1 2 3 275 13 13
    16 Brad Keselowski 0 1 3 274 17 15
    17 Jimmie Johnson 1 3 5 269 16 2
    18 Jeff Burton 0 0 2 258 22 19
    19 Martin Truex, Jr. 0 2 4 252 18 16
    20 Aric Almirola 0 0 1 246 20 18
    21 Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. 0 0 2 246 19 21
    22 Clint Bowyer 0 1 4 242 21 9
  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Kansas

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Kansas

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth finished 11th at Kansas and maintained the lead in the Sprint Cup points standings. He leads Jimmie Johnson by three.

    “Believe it or not,” Kenseth said, “having my points lead sliced wasn’t my biggest ‘slide’ of the day. That Kansas track is slick! My teammate Kyle Busch had so many spins, even Clint Bowyer was impressed.”

    2. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson finished sixth at Kansas, five places ahead of Matt Kenseth. He trimmed Kenseth’s lead in the Sprint Cup points standings from eight to three.

    “Kenseth certainly feels the pressure,” Johnson said. “He’s hanging on to the points lead by a thread. And we all know you can’t have a noose without first a thread.

    “It’s very fitting that we’re leaving the Hollywood Casino 400 in a very tight race for the Cup, because for those who thought Kenseth was running away with the championship, all bets are off.”

    3. Kevin Harvick: Harvick dominated the early stages of the Hollywood Casino 400 and led 138 of 267 laps on his way to the win, his third of the year. He is now third in the points standings, 25 out of first.

    “After months of talking about going to Stewart-Haas Racing,” Harvick said, “I finally ‘made a move.’”

    4. Kyle Busch: Busch had all kinds of trouble at Kansas, spinning several times until ultimately ending his day after slamming the wall with 68 laps to go. He is now fourth in the points standings, 35 out of first.

    “I couldn’t keep the tires on the track,” Busch said. “There was nothing ‘Hollywood’ about my performance, mainly because I was lacking ‘key grip.’ As they say, ‘M&M’s don’t melt in my hands, but my steering wheel does.”

    5. Jeff Gordon: Gordon took third in the Hollywood Casino 400 as Kevin Harvick took the win. Gordon is fourth in the Sprint Cup points standings, 32 out of first.

    “I had a cordial discussion with Kurt Busch after the race,” Gordon said. “I gave him an earful, which was quite difficult, because cosmetic surgery left Kurt with less than a full ear.”

    6. Kurt Busch: Busch posted his best finish of the Chase, taking second behind Kevin Harvick at Kansas. He is seventh in the point standings, 47 out of first.

    “Kyle entered Sunday’s race only 14 points out of the lead,” Kurt Busch said. “He left 35 out of the lead. I guess he gives new meaning to the term ‘backup’ car.”

    7. Joey Logano: Logano finished fourth at Kansas, the top Ford finisher in the Hollywood Casino 400. He is tenth in the points standings, 59 out of first.

    “Brad Keselowski signed an extension through 2017 to remain with Penske Racing,” Logano said. “In related news, Keselowski said he ‘deal with’ Kyle Busch later.”

    8. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt finished eighth in the Hollywood Casino 400, nabbing his 17th top 10 of the year. He is eighth in the points standings, 54 out of first.

    “Danica Patrick was out of the race in a hurry,” Earnhardt said. “Apparently, ‘Go’ time came early on Sunday.

    “As you’ve probably heard, Danica and Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. star in a Colt Ford country music video for his song, ‘Drivin’ Around Song.’ Rumor has it that the tune samples Pink Floyd’s ‘The Wall.’”

    9. Greg Biffle: Biffle finished 13th at Kansas and is sixth in the points standings, 44 behind Matt Kenseth.

    “I’ve fallen so far behind in the points,” Biffle said, “Tony Stewart will probably ‘recover’ before I do.”

    10. Clint Bowyer: Kansas native Bowyer came home 14th in the Hollywood Casino 400, and is now ninth in the points standings, 55 out of first.

    “I’m not sure where this Hollywood Casino is,” Bowyer said, “but I’d sure like to find the roulette wheel and take it for a ‘spin.’”

  • The Final Word – Kansas leaves us with just two contenders…or does it?

    The Final Word – Kansas leaves us with just two contenders…or does it?

    Sometimes I like surprises. You tune in a race hoping to be entertained, but not always expecting it. Kansas turned out to be that kind of race.

    Not everyone enjoys surprises. Danica Patrick, I am sure, did not expect to win last Sunday, but she probably had hopes of lasting more than a lap. Kyle Busch has rarely done well at Kansas, but he was hoping. He took some slings and arrows throughout, at least until he got spun to tear the front end off his car to put an end to his day early. He then slipped down to fifth in points behind race winner Kevin Harvick and the third place Jeff Gordon.

    Harvick’s third win of the season, and 22nd of his career, moved him to within 25 points of Matt Kenseth. Kenseth got a pit penalty early that dropped him from first to 30th at the time, only to recover to wrap the day up in 11th, just five spots behind Jimmie Johnson to retain a 3 point advantage.  Kurt Busch was second best on the day, but he sits 47 out, leaving Kenseth and Johnson in a two way fight, barring bad things going their way over the next six events.

    No surprise that Chasers Joey Logano, Carl Edwards, and Dale Earnhardt Jr finished in the top ten last weekend. It also should come as no surprise to see that matters little until the two leaders falter. Ryan Newman  got a surprise when he got clipped to pretty much skin his ride, leaving him 35th, a spot behind Rowdy. The junior Busch is 35 back, Newman is 38 behind even him. Say goodnight, Irene.

    Rating Kansas – 9/10 – Some races need the assistance of an announce team to keep us entertained. Some are entertaining on their own, and the ESPN trio were more than good enough to keep folks watching this time out. The track was slick and treacherous, providing more than a few  unexpected surprises.

    Traditionally, Charlotte and Talladega tend to be rather entertaining and those are our next two stops on the tour. Jimmie Johnson has six previous victories in North Carolina and is tied for second among active drivers with the best average finish.  If I were a betting man, I would not be surprised to see Five Time taking over the Chase standings when they are done this Saturday night, but I would also bet Mr. Kenseth to pick up a Top Ten to remain close.

    Jeff Gordon could win. He has five at Charlotte. Kasey Kahne has four, and could do well. Carl Edwards has yet to be victorious there, but he seems to have decent finishes. Still, until the top two slip, it all does not mean that much.  That is, unless Harvick repeats his spring performance and wins another this weekend.  That could cause us to rethink things when they venture to Alabama, a place where surprises are totally expected. In the meantime, enjoy the week.

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Kansas Hollywood Casino 400

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Kansas Hollywood Casino 400

    From weather and tires to a fire off track that was smoky enough to cause a caution, here is what else was surprising and not surprising from the 13th annual Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway.

    Surprising:  Two ‘lame duck’ drivers who just happen to be future teammates scored the one-two victory punch in the land of Oz, with Kevin Harvick scoring the win from the pole and Kurt Busch coming all the way from the rear of the field to finish runner up.

    “To sit on the pole and win the race is obviously a great weekend, and controlling our own destiny by doing that, we are putting ourselves closer to where we need to be with the championship race,” the driver of the No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet said. “We’ll just keep having fun and keep doing what we’re doing.”

    This was Harvick’s first win at Kansas and his third victory of the season. And with the win, Harvick did indeed help himself in the point standings, climbing into the third position, 25 points behind the leader.

    Kurt Busch scored his fourth top-10 in 16 races at Kansas and his 15th top-10 finish in 2013. He moved up two positions to seventh in the Chase standings, 47 points behind the leader.

    “Wow, what an unbelievable drive,” the driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Chevrolet said. “We battled hard to come from 41st and we did this in a backup car.”

    “Today is a small little victory in my own mind.”

    Not Surprising:  With every driver on edge given the track conditions, it was no surprise that tempers flared just a little bit with some of the close racing. Four-time champ Jeff Gordon was one driver who had an issue after some hard racing with Kurt Busch resulted in his third place finish.

    “It’s not a NASCAR race if you don’t have a discussion with another driver out there about an incident on the track,” the driver of the No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet said. “Everybody is just trying to get every position they could.”

    “I got in the outside lane there one time and he (Kurt Busch) just came up and the next lap I got to his bumper and got him loose,” Gordon continued. “I guess that kind of led to him wanting to run into me on the right side on my door.”

    Gordon’s third place finish did, however, move him up one position in the Chase standings to the fourth spot, 32 points back from the leader.

    Surprising:  In spite of a speeding penalty, loose race car and an 11th place finish, Matt Kenseth was feeling incredibly lucky in the Hollywood Casino 400, particularly since he described his No. 20 Dollar General Toyota as the ‘evilest’ car he had ever driven.

    Yet even with that ‘evilest’ car, Kenseth not only was the highest Toyota finisher but he also managed to maintain his points lead in the Chase, out front by three after Kansas.

    “It was a struggle all day,” Kenseth said. “I was so loose I was ready to crash pretty much at all times of the race.”

    “We drove back to 11th, which definitely isn’t what we wanted or what we need to contend for this thing, but it was a good save for as bad as we were.”

    Not Surprising:  While some drivers circle dates on the calendar for tracks where they cannot wait to race, others have tracks from which they cannot wait to leave.

    Such was the experience at Kansas for Kyle Busch, who yet again was bitten by the Kansas demons that led to his Chase race demise, from third to fifth place, after his 34th place finish. This was his third straight DNF at Kansas Speedway.

    “I have no idea what happened,” Busch said after his race ended in carnage. “All I know is we’re in Kansas, right?”

    “Every other track except Kansas seems to be able to bode well for us,” the driver of the No. 18 M&Ms Toyota said. “It wasn’t meant to be.”

    Surprising:  Five-time champ Jimmie Johnson had a self-proclaimed surprisingly crazy, weird and wacky day that still had him passing cars, finishing sixth in his No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet, and gaining points, now just three points back from leader Matt Kenseth.

    “All in all it was just a crazy day,” Johnson said. “Weird restarts. Wacky restarts. A lot of chaos there.”

    “These cautions kept coming out and they hurt us each time,” Johnson continued, “So we rebounded from all that and passed a ton of race cars, and then on the last lap with I guess two to go, coming down the back, the car started shaking real bad and I thought it was over.”

    “We had so many things happen to us and still salvaged a very strong sixth place finish.”

    Not Surprising:   Richard Petty Motorsports, a team that has seemed to be steadily gaining and moving forward had another good run at Kansas with both drivers finishing top ten.

    “It felt like a win because I thought our day was done,” Marcos Ambrose, driver of the No. 9 MAC Tools Ford said after finishing ninth. “It was a bizarre kind of a race.”

    “The tire was super edgy and unpredictable and you didn’t know if it was the wind or the tire or the car that was making the difference.”

    “I am just pleased that we finished and I fought hard all day.”

    “We got a top-10 and I would have never told you that was possible,” Aric Almirola, driver of the No. 43 Farmland Ford said after finishing tenth. “We got off in the middle part of the race but salvaged a good finish.”

    “I am proud of my guys.”

    Surprising:  Another team, however, that of Stewart Haas Racing, had a surprisingly ugly day at the race track.

    Danica Patrick, SHR driver, wrecked hard on the first lap and finished 43rd, while Ryan Newman, SHR teammate, got tangled up in a wreck, finishing 35th and dropping to 12th in the point standings.

    “I knew that going into the race that losing grip was going to be not that hard to do,” Patrick, driver of the No. 10 GoDaddy Chevrolet said. “I said that before the race started.”

    “Things just go wrong,” Patrick continued. “If I did something wrong, I apologize to everyone on my team but it’s just a shame.”

    “There’s not much to say other than we were in the wrong place at the wrong time and got caught up in an accident not of our making,” Newman said. “It’s definitely a disappointing day for all of us on the Code 3 Associates team.”

    Not Surprising:  With the challenging track conditions, it was not surprising that restarts were especially challenging for each and every driver, whether a Chaser or not, in the field. In fact, one Chase contender defined the restarts at Kansas as simply ‘insane.’

    “The restarts were insane,” Carl Edwards, driver of the No. 99 Fastenal Ford said. “Look up insane and that is the definition right there.”

    “It is tough to be racing for points when you have those kind of restarts.”

    “It was pretty crazy out there,” Joey Logano, driver of the No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford, said. “Every restart you had to be so aggressive to pass people because that was your best shot to pass them and everyone realized it.”

    Logano finished the race in fourth while Edwards salvaged a fifth place finish. The two drivers are now in the tenth and eleventh spots in the point standings respectively.

    Surprising:  The end of the race was most surprising, at least for Aric Almirola and Clint Bowyer, who got into each other coming to the checkered flag.

    Bowyer, driver of the No. 15 Raspberry 5-Hour Energy/Living Beyond Breast Cancer Toyota, described his day in a tweet after the race, “What a frustrating day! Started out sh**ty, got a little better, got WAY better, put on 2 tires and s**t the bed…Then lost my mind.”

    Almirola described the run-in with Bowyer in a slightly different way, “I beat him on that restart and I guess he was mad about it.”

    “That is fine, I am not worried about it,” Almirola continued. “I beat him.”

    Not Surprising:  With the confluence of weather, tires, track conditions and the Chase pressure, it was not surprising that the record for the number of cautions was broken at Kansas Speedway with a total of fifteen. In fact, there were 71 laps run under caution, a new record for the season.

    “We had a lot of gremlins this weekend,” Brad Keselowski, reigning champ and driver of the No. 2 Miller Lite Ford said. “There were so many wrecks and so many yellows that we could never really get going.”

    “Oh yeah, we couldn’t get in a rhythm out there.”

    The Cup Series next travels to Charlotte for the Bank of America 500 under the Saturday night lights.

     

  • Matty’s Picks 2013 Race 30 – Kansas Speedway – October 6, 2013

    Matty’s Picks 2013 Race 30 – Kansas Speedway – October 6, 2013

    Disclaimer: My column this week will be as exciting to read as I anticipate the race being on Sunday afternoon…scroll down for picks.

    Kansas Speedway is certainly one of the cookie-cutter races that the Chase schedule has to offer. The variable 17 to 20 degrees of banking in the corners plus the 10 degrees on the frontstretch leaves much to be desired for those looking for an exciting Sunday afternoon of racing. Even though the last two races at Kansas (since the mid-season repave in 2012) produced more cautions than the previous four races combined, they also produced the least amount of lead changes at Kansas speedway since the second ever race at the track back in 2002.

    One interesting statistic I was able to uncover this week has to do with Chase races being won by non-Chase drivers. There have been 14 Chase races won by non-Chase drivers in the history of the Chase for the Sprint Cup, that is now 93 total races. Three of those 14 races have been won at Kansas Speedway as Joe Nemechek became the first ever spoiler in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winning the fall race of 2004 as a non-Chase driver. The other two races by non-Chase drivers were won by Tony Stewart in 2006 and Greg Biffle in 2007, so it has been a while, but with the parody we saw in the regular season, certainly anything can happen on Sunday. With 7 of the top 15 qualifiers for Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 being non-Chase drivers, the possibility of a spoiler this week is certainly valid.

    Winner Pick

    It’s onto my picks already this week and no surprises here, I will be going with Matt Kenseth this week. I couldn’t find a single reason to not pick Kenseth this week, he’s won the last two races at Kansas, he also won at Chicagoland, Kentucky Speedway, and Las Vegas Motor Speedway this season, all which happen to be the tracks most similar to Kansas Speedway.
    On top of all the wins at similar tracks this season, Kenseth is second, third, or fourth in 4 of the loop stats, the most important – Driver Rating- he’s third on the list at 110.0. Kenseth also qualified very well on Friday, important because 9 of the 15 Kansas races have been won from starting spots inside the top-10. Kenseth will start seventh on Sunday, and was second in the second practice session on Friday, fourth in Happy Hour earlier today, too much to like here about Kenseth, he’s my Winner Pick for Sunday.

    Dark Horse Pick

    It’s not every day you can take a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion as a Dark Horse, but because Brad Keselowski is not a part of this year’s Chase for the Sprint Cup, I’m going with him as a Dark Horse this weekend. This team has been fairly non-existent since that solid stretch of runs to start the 2013 season, since the series visited Kansas Speedway in particular. Brad was 7th at Chicagoland, the most recent cookie-cutter of the season, his 5th top 10 finish in that 19 race stretch since the April Kansas race, so I’m going on a bit of a hunch here, but I like Brad’s chances this week.

    You can not look past the fact that he’s got an average finish of 9.2 in his 7 career races at Kansas Speedway. He’s qualified his Miller Lite Ford Fusion in the 4th starting position and has shown speed in all of the practice sessions at Kansas this week. He was a longer play to start the week, the odds have not shortened a bit, Brad is a solid longer play this week.

    That’s all for this week, so until we turn the lights on in Charlotte…You Stay Classy NASCAR NATION!

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Dover

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Dover

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth finished 7th at Dover, failing in his quest to become the first driver to win the first three Chase For The Cup races. Kenseth leads Jimmie Johnson by eight points in the standings.

    “The No. 20 Toyota sported the ‘Let’s Do This’ logo at Dover,” Kenseth said. “That’s opposed to Clint Bowyer’s No. 15, which read ‘I Did This.’”

    2. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson captured a big win at Dover, taking the AAA 400 as Joe Gibbs Racing rivals Matt Kenseth and Kyle Busch finished 7th and 5th, respectively. Johnson trails Kenseth by eight in the Sprint Cup points standings.

    “Kenseth won’t have this championship handed to him on a silver platter,” Johnson said. “Why? Because that platter is full, because I just served notice on it.”

    3. Kyle Busch: Busch led 30 laps and finished fifth at Dover, posting his 14th top 5 of the year. He is third in the point standings, 12 behind Matt Kenseth.

    “I’m tired of playing second fiddle to Kenseth,” Busch said. “I’m used to being called a ‘tool,’ not an ‘instrument.’

    4. Jeff Gordon: Gordon finished fourth at Dover as Hendrick Motorsports took three of the top four spots, with Jimmie Johnson winning. Gordon is fifth in the points standings, 39 out of first.

    “I’d say I’m doing pretty good,” Gordon said, “considering I was a wild-wild card addition to the Chase.

    “My odds are slim and my chances are fat. It appears that for my fifth Sprint Cup championship, the ‘wait’ is on.”

    5. Kevin Harvick: Harvick finished sixth in the AAA 400 at Dover, recording his 15th top 10 of the year. He is fourth in the Sprint Cup points standings, 39 out of first.

    “Matt Kenseth, Jimmie Johnson, and Kyle Busch are slugging it out at the top,” Harvick said, “while I’m merely an afterthought. I, along with others, am what you call a ‘sleeper.’ That’s because if I win the Cup, someone will have to wake me up, because I was obviously dreaming.”

    6. Greg Biffle: Biffle took ninth at Dover, the top finisher among Roush Fenway Racing drivers. He is sixth in the point standings, 41 out of first.

    “I heard Clint Bowyer did yoga before Sunday’s race,” Biffle said. “Ironically, I find myself in a similar position, because it’s a ‘stretch’ to believe either one of us has a chance to win the Cup.”

    7. Clint Bowyer: Bowyer finished 10th in the AAA 400 after starting 23rd and leading one lap. He is eighth in the points standings, 51 out of first.

    “Luckily,” Bowyer said, “5-Hour Energy will remain as the primary sponsor of the No. 15 car. I guess I talked them in to staying. You could say I put a positive ‘spin’ on the situation.”

    8. Kurt Busch: Busch finished 21st in the AAA 400, three laps off the pace. He is now ninth in the points standings, 55 out of first.

    “We had four new pit crew members at Dover,” Busch said. “You could say Furniture Row Racing ‘benched’ some guys. It didn’t seem to make much of a difference, though, because our chances to win the Cup have been put to bed.”

    9. Ryan Newman: Newman finished eighth at Dover and is now seventh in the points standings, 48 behind Matt Kenseth.

    “Quicken Loans is following me to Richard Childress Racing,” Newman said. “Unlike Stewart-Haas Racing, they didn’t leave me hanging.”

    10. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt started on the pole and finished second to Hendrick teammate Jimmie Johnson at Dover. He is tenth in the points standings, behind Matt Kenseth.

    “I won the pole with a record lap at Dover,” Earnhardt said. “It was a historic moment for Junior Nation, because they had good reason to do a pole dance and a lap dance.

    “I thought my four tires would catch Johnson’s two. Four is usually better than two. Likewise, five is always better than zero.”

  • Don’t Call This a Three-Man Race Just Yet

    Don’t Call This a Three-Man Race Just Yet

    Matt Kenseth, Kyle Busch and Jimmie Johnson seem unstoppable at the moment but no matter how fast they are and how dominate they can be, there will always be forces outside of their control that could halt their crusade for the Cup in an instant. These three are far from immune to bad luck and to count out 4th on back right now would be imprudent. It’s incontrovertible that it’s their chase to lose but to completely discount the chances of some of those behind them isn’t a smart idea just yet. It would obviously take a mechanical issue, a blown tire or a wreck to stop the top three but with how solid and consistent some of the driver’s chasing them are, they would be launched right back into the battle should fate decide to be so kind.

    Martinsville and Talladega still loom and until we get past those two races, I’m going to hold my tongue on eliminating anyone still within 50 points of the leader. The next race on the schedule is Kansas which is statistically one of Kyle Busch’s worst tracks. When we raced there earlier this year, Busch’s day ended after a vicious crash with Joey Logano. In fact, he’s crashed out of the last two Kansas events and in twelve starts, the highest finishing position he could ever manage was a 7th back in 2006. As for his teammate, the only weak spot I see left on the schedule for Kenseth is Martinsville; a track he’s never won at in 27 starts.

    Despite the fact that Kyle rarely has a good showing at Kansas and Matt is less than spectacular at Martinsville, that won’t be enough to take control of this chase away from them if they have rough days. I haven’t mentioned Jimmie Johnson yet because there really isn’t a track that he isn’t great at except for Homestead but five consecutive years of just needing to finish to win the title could be partially to blame for that. In reality, the only thing that will stop these three are problems that they can’t predict or counter. Johnson would have been the champion last year if it weren’t for a blown tire at Phoenix followed up by rear gear issues at Homestead. 5-time was at that mercy of both unfortunate circumstances and in the end, it cost him a 6th Sprint Cup.

    At Talladega, you can give up 30+ points quicker than you can think about it. Just look back at 2012 when Tony Stewart entered turn three on the final lap with the win in hand and ended up with a DNF and a 22nd place finish. On the flip side of that, Jeff Gordon went into the final corner outside the top 15 and ended up 2nd so to say that 4th on back have no chance with Dega still to come is ignorant. Talladega doesn’t necessarily have to be the game-changer either. You can blow a tire or have an engine failure just about anywhere. The possibility of bringing more bodies back into the fight at the paperclip, aka Martinsville are very high as well.

    If these three do indeed stumble, who will be the beneficiary? I see four drivers that aren’t performing anywhere close to the level of the three leaders but are consistent enough to capitalize should bad luck plague the guys at the top. They are Kevin Harvick, Jeff Gordon, Clint Bowyer and Carl Edwards. Yes, there is an obvious dichotomy between the performance level of these two groups of drivers but it’s like the tortoise and the hare….sometimes slow and steady wins the race. Before I go any further, I think we can discount Carl who now faces a 65pt deficit and sits back in 11th after an engine failure at Dover….something out of his control. He would need to go on an incredible run that I don’t see Roush capable of doing right now as well as hoping that a lot of the people in front of him have trouble.

    Lets first take a look at the most talked about driver as of late and for all the wrong reasons, Clint Bowyer! The 2012 runner-up is 8th in points, 51 back of the leaders and would have been the regular season champion had he not partaken in the Richmond shenanigans. He would have been the points leader with no wins simply because he was quietly consistent. He does need to pick it up if he wants to have an outside chance of getting back into this fight because finishes of 9th, 17th and 10th are okay but with the caliber of driver’s he’s chasing, he’ll keep losing ground on them every single race until he’s too far behind to catch back up. He needs more top 5’s and wins in order to augment his chances at this championship.

    Jeff Gordon…the 13th seed that some people say doesn’t belong in the chase in the first place. Jeff is certainly making the most of this incredible opportunity given to him by NASCAR. Right now, he is tied for 4th place and is within 39 points of the championship leader. When we think of Gordon lately, we think of all the bad luck that has haunted him but his recent results prove that he can make a run at this title should something go awry with the three men everyone is chasing. In the last six races, he has five top seven finishes and the other result is still a respectable 15th which could have been a win if 4-time didn’t make a mistake on pit road. Jeff’s also put his car out front and led multiple laps in each of the last five events so don’t underestimate this future Hall of Famer and his ability to win it all in 2013.

    Now we go to Kevin Harvick, “The Closer,” “Mr. Where Did He Come From?” Both of these nicknames are well deserved as Harvick is famous for showing up out of nowhere to be in contention at the end of races and he’s also got an uncanny way of doing that when the fight for the championship comes down to the wire. Kevin is able to fly under the radar for the most part and more importantly, keep his nose out of trouble. In 2013, he only has two DNF’s and they both came at plate tracks; places where trouble finds you no matter where you try to hide. He’s shown this year that his team is fully capable of winning races and even when they don’t bring home the trophy, this Daytona 500 champion always does a stellar job of bringing home the most points possible which is crucial if you want to win the championship. In the last four years, he’s finished inside the top five in points three times and was always on the heels of the title contenders waiting for them to stumble. If those top three do falter, you can bet that Kevin Harvick will be one of, if not the first person to capitalize on their misfortunes.

    Like I said before, this chase is their’s to lose in reference to the top three. No one has shown the speed that they have showcased in 2013 and without bad luck, I highly doubt that any driver can catch them. If fate is not in their favor though, look for drivers such as Harvick and Gordon to be right there and ready to pounce. Until we get past the two wild card races left on the schedule, you shouldn’t rule out anyone still within reasonable striking distance of the top. You can try, but you can’t truly ascertain who the champion will be with seven races remaining no matter how blistering fast those top three are. I hate to sound cliche but remember, it’s never over until it’s over.

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Dover AAA 400

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Dover AAA 400

    Under picture perfect skies in the Delmarva, here is what was surprising and not surprising in the 44th annual AAA 400 at Dover International Speedway.

    Surprising:  Probably the biggest surprise was that the ‘monster’ that usually lurks at the track known as the ‘Monster Mile’ was nowhere to be found.

    In fact, at a track where one driver’s misfortune can also collect others in the process, there were but 4 cautions for 21 laps, including 3 cautions for debris and one for fluid on the track from the Blue Deuce of Brad Keselowski.

    “I’m not exactly sure what happened but something in the rear end housing went out and burned itself up,” the reigning champ said. “We tried to get off the track as fast as we could with the Miller Lite Ford to not bring out a yellow, but obviously wasn’t quite quick enough.”

    “We’re getting all of our bad luck out of the way this year.”

    Not Surprising:  When your driver breaks record after record, including surpassing Richard Petty and Bobby Allison for eight wins at Dover, it is not surprising that the crew chief is proud. But Chad Knaus was absolutely effusive when it came time to talk about his driver Jimmie Johnson.

    “It’s been an honor to be able to work with Jimmie over the course of the years,” Knaus said. “I think he’s able to pull out some things that are pretty spectacular.”

    “He’s able to dig deeper, pull out his cape, make things happen in winning moments of these races that other people cannot do,” Knaus continued. “It’s pretty spectacular.”

    “I think Jimmie is probably the most underrated champion we have in this industry,” Knaus said. “He is by far and above the most powerful driver over the course of the last 25, 35 years in this sport.”

    Surprising:  Dale Earnhardt Jr. emerged from his second place run at the ‘Monster Mile’ with a renewed confidence and an obvious fire in his belly to get to Victory Lane.

    “I feel we’ve been able to really show what our team’s capable of,” the driver of the No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet said. “The changes we’re making, everything seems to be going in the direction you want.”

    “We came really close today,” Junior continued. “I don’t feel like today was a highlight for us.”

    “I think this is how it’s supposed to be every week.”

    Not Surprising:  With his eye out the front windshield, it was not surprising that Joey Logano, who finished third had no idea what happened to his teammate Brad Keselowski. In fact, he did not even want to take the time to find out, adopting his version of a ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy.

    “I try not to ask questions,” the driver of the No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Chevrolet said. “I know for me, when I talk on the radio, I slow down a lot.”

    Surprising:  In spite of a pit crew swap with RCR-alliance Nationwide team partners, Kurt Busch had issues, again with a loose wheel. The driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Chevrolet finished a disappointing 21st, the second lowest of all of the Chase drivers, losing two Chase positions from seventh to ninth.

    “A loose wheel did us in,” Busch said. “Nothing went our way today.”

    “This is the Chase and you can’t afford to have these problems,” Busch continued. “We need to regroup and get it together for Kansas next week.”

    Not Surprising:   While certainly disappointed to not be in Victory Lane, Kyle Busch was not surprisingly satisfied with his third straight top-five finishes in the Chase to date.

    “Certainly, I wish we definitely could have gotten more,” the driver of the No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota said. “We were about a fifth to seventh-place car much of the day and we ended up fifth.”

    “The Interstate Batteries Camry got what it could out of it.”

    Surprising:  As a last minute addition to the Chase, it has been surprising to see Jeff Gordon progress in the way that he has, in fact climbing out of the basement to the fifth place in the standings due to his fourth place finish at Dover.

    But even more surprising was the fact that the driver was having such a great time just watching his teammates battle for the win.

    “All in all, it was a great day for the Axalta Chevrolet,” Gordon said. “I was having fun.”

    “Congrats to Jimmie as he’s so tough here,” Gordon continued. “It was a great job by Junior too.”

    “That was fun to watch.”

    Not Surprising:  When a driver competing for the championship has mechanical failures, it is not surprising that he becomes one of NASCAR’s biggest losers. But even with that, there is no quit for the driver of the No. 99 Fastenal Ford.

    And in this case, Carl Edwards, who experienced a broken left-rear hub, finished the worst of all Chasers in 35th, plummeting from fourth to eleventh in the standings.

    “We did not need to have that trouble,” Edwards said. “Something broke in the left-rear, so that’s tough.”

    “Overall, we gave it the best effort we could,” Edwards continued. “We don’t quit.”

    Surprising:  After convincingly clinching the first two races in the Chase, it was surprising that the driver of the No. 20 Home Depot ‘Let’s Do This’ Toyota pronounced his seventh place finish ‘decent.’

    “We kind of missed it today,” Matt Kenseth said. “We got caught with being the last on two tires and restarting on the inside, which was really bad.”

    “Still salvaged a respectable finish, but certainly I wanted to do better than that.”

    Not Surprising:  Even with his sponsor, 5-Hour Energy, renewing their relationship and in spite of his positive, image-enhancing yoga event for Living Beyond Breast Cancer prior to the race, Clint Bowyer was resoundingly booed by the crowd at the Monster Mile during driver introductions.

    The driver of the No. 15 Raspberry5hourEnergyLivingBeyondBreastCancer Toyota finished top ten and moved two positions up in the standings to the eighth spot.

    Surprising:  Jamie McMurray followed up his top-five run at New Hampshire Motor Speedway with an eleventh place finish at the Monster Mile. And with that, the driver of the No. 1 Liftmaster Chevrolet pronounced his season ‘pretty good.’

    “Yeah, it’s been good,” McMurray said. “I think our cars have been even better than what they were in 2010 when we won some big races.”

    “We were able to hit on a few things that has really worked well for us at a variety of different tracks.”

    Not Surprising:  With nothing to lose after losing his Chase spot, Martin Truex Jr. was proud of the ‘Hail Mary’ that he and his crew threw at the No. 56 NAPA Shocks Toyota Camry, finishing 15th.

    “Chad (Johnston, crew chief) took a real chance with our set up and I am proud of him for it,” Truex Jr. said. “We had nothing to lose and everything to gain.”

    “Sometimes you have to think outside the box.”

     

     

  • The Final Word – Dover is over, now off to Kansas where Kyle’s dreams go to die

    The Final Word – Dover is over, now off to Kansas where Kyle’s dreams go to die

    Dover in a nutshell? Well, Jimmie won, Matt did not, and Kyle had to settle for a mere Top Five. What has not changed is that the trio remain the only relevant drivers as they head to Kansas for Sunday’s fourth round of the Chase.

    Johnson made it a record eight wins at that track in just 24 starts in Delaware. By claiming his fifth of the season, and 65th of his career, the five-time former champ is just 8 points behind Kenseth, who finished 7th at Dover. Busch was fifth last Sunday and is a dozen points off the pace. Jeff Gordon and Kevin Harvick are next, 39 points away. So, until each and every one of the three leaders cough and sputter to somewhere beyond a Top Ten, at least, the rest of them remain just members of the supporting cast.

    Dale Earnhardt Jr started from the pole and finished just behind Johnson. A win would have meant more to him than a great points day, as he sits 57 back in the waiting room. Most of the Chasers did well, taking all Top Ten spots, while Kasey Kahne (13th), Kurt Busch (21st after a loose wheel green flag stop), and Carl Edwards (35th after a broken wheel hub) were the outsiders.

    As NASCAR no longer releases attendance figures, we are left guessing as to what those big bare patches in the grandstands meant in way of numbers. Considering Dover is a track situated within a hundred miles of Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington, somebody does not give a damn. A bunch of somebodies. Maybe stellar television coverage might entice them out to take a look at the real deal.

    Rating Dover – 5.5/10 – Too bad, as the visuals of this track, with the dive down the hill into the corners before swooping up on the other side, can be rather breathtaking. I did enjoy watching Race Day, but unfortunately none of the SPEED announcers would later appear on the ESPN broadcast. Good reporting from the pits, but the main crew were, well, the pits. Same old, same old.

    After 31-years, ESPN fired Marty Reid for mistaking the white flag for the checkered flag, and for one second declaring Ryan Blaney the Nationwide winner at Kentucky a lap early. Considering it did not detract in the least from the broadcast, that Blaney was leading by a large margin, or considering the amateur hour that is ESPN’s Cup coverage, you would have figured he might have got a bit of slack from the clowns in the suits. Then again, they might have done him a favor. Reid’s replacement? That would be Allan Bestwick. Good grief.

    Kansas Speedway is next on the schedule. Matt Kenseth won the last two run there and has been in the Top Ten in each of his past six attempts.

    Kansas Speedway, where Jimmie Johnson has a pair, including the fall of 2011. Where he has six Top Fives in 14 attempts, along with 10 Top Tens, and leads all active drivers with an average finish of 7.6.

    Kansas Speedway, where Kyle Busch sucks. Sorry, but two Top Tens in a dozen starts does not cut it. Seven times he has failed to crack even the Top Twenty. This is where his Chase hopes go to die, unless this is the year he avoids his Chase jinx.

    Congratulations to my mother-in-law, who turns 80 years old today. She will not be part of the broadcast of this race. To be fair, Fran doesn’t know a damn thing about NASCAR, but she would be a hell of a lot more entertaining than what we will hear this Sunday. Maybe she could fill in for Marty. Enjoy the week!

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: New Hampshire

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: New Hampshire

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth took the lead for good with 93 laps left and held of Kyle Busch to win the Sylvania 300, his second consecutive win. He leads Busch by 14 in the Sprint Cup point standings.

    “The No. 20 Toyota was awesome,” Kenseth said. “If anyone needs to size me for a champion’s pair of slacks, I wear a ‘Husky.’”

    2. Kyle Busch: Busch finished second to Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Matt Kenseth for the second straight race, this time at New Hampshire. It was Busch’s series-best 13th top 5 of the year, and he trails Kenseth by 14 in the points standings.

    “In the JGR ‘1-2 Punch,’” Busch said, “I must be the ‘2.’ Joe Gibbs brings the ‘punch’ to the Chase. Michael Waltrip brings the ‘punchline.’”

    3. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson took fourth at Loudon, and remained within striking distance of Matt Kenseth in the points standings. Johnson is third, 18 behind Kenseth.

    “Matt won the traditional lobster claws trophy for the victory,” Johnson said. “His two victories to start the Chase, however, have everyone else in a ‘pinch.’”

    4. Carl Edwards: Edwards finished ninth in the Sylvania 300, his 14th top 10 of the year. He is fourth in the points standings, 36 behind Matt Kenseth.

    “It looks like Matt Kenseth is the man to beat,” Edwards said. “And I used to be the man to do it.”

    5. Kevin Harvick: Harvick finished a disappointing 20th at New Hampshire on a day dominated by Joe Gibbs Racing. He is now sixth in the points standings, a distant 39 out of first.

    “Did you hear?” Harvick said. “Danica Patrick will be hosting the American Country Awards in Las Vegas on December 10th. One thing is for sure—she won’t be winning anything.”

    6. Greg Biffle: Biffle finished third in the Sylvania 300, posting his best finish since a win at Michigan in June. He is fifth in the points standings, 38 out of first.

    “The Richmond scandal is still casting a dark shadow over NASCAR,” Biffle said. “I know there’s one on the front of my car, but the real ‘splitters’ are Michael Waltrip Racing sponsors.”

    7. Clint Bowyer: Bowyer took 17th in the Sylvania 300. He fell to tenth in the points standings and trails Matt Kenseth by 48.

    “NAPA dropped sponsorship of Michael Waltrip Racing,” Bowyer said. “It’s no longer ‘NAPA Know-How;’ it’s ‘NAPA No More.’

    “Now 5-Hour Energy may be ending their sponsorship. If MWR loses any more sponsors, out cars will be drawing ‘blank’ stares next year.”

    8. Kurt Busch: Busch finished 13th as bother Kyle took the runner-up spot, while Matt Kenseth won his second Chase race. Kurt is seventh in the points standings, 40 out of first.

    “We’re the only single-car team in the Chase,” Busch said. “But really, who needs teammates? That’s not me talking; that’s a quote from Tony Stewart, right after I decided to join Stewart-Haas.”

    9. Ryan Newman: Newman started on the pole at New Hampshire and led two laps before handling issues led to a 16th-place finish. He is ninth in the points standings, 47 out of first.

    “I set a record for speed in qualifying,” Newman said, “with a lap of 136.497 miles per hour. That’s one of the reasons they call me ‘Rocketman.’ The other reason: because with me, there will be a re-entry.”

    10. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt posted his 16th top-10 result of the year with a sixth at New Hampshire. He trails Matt Kenseth by 62 in the points standings.

    “You could say I’m a long shot to win the Sprint Cup title,” Earnhardt said. “And that’s okay with the people of Junior Nation, because they like any shot.”