Testing SpeedwayMedia.com

Tag: Richard Childress Racing

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Martinsville

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Martinsville

    [media-credit name=”Credit: Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images” align=”alignright” width=”225″][/media-credit]Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Tony Stewart: Stewart salvaged a solid seventh-place finish at Martinsville after a wild finish scrambled the finishing order and gave Stewart’s teammate Ryan Newman the win. Stewart moved up one place into a tie for third in the Sprint Cup point standings, and trails Greg Biffle by 12.

    “Some people would say Ryan ‘bullied’ his way to the win,” Stewart said. “Those people would all share the last name ‘Logano.’

    “I guess you could say Ryan stole the win. He took the win right out from under the noses of Hendrick Motorsports. As a result of Ryan’s win, Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson should visit Outback Steakhouse, Ryan’s sponsor, and get a free Bloomin’ Onion. Let me reiterate: it’s free, so they won’t have to steal it.”

    2. Dale Earnhardt, Jr: Earnhardt made a risky move to pit during a caution with three laps to go, but the move paid off after a disastrous restart for Hendrick teammates Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson. When the dust settled, Ryan Newman had stolen the win, and Earnhardt had a third, his third top-5 finish of the year.

    “Hendrick cars were running 1-2-3 with two laps to go,” Earnhardt said. “Hendrick’s 200th victory was so close, we could smell it. Oddly enough, it smelled like a Bloomin’ Onion from Outback Steakhouse.

    3. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth posted his third top-5 finish of the year with a fourth in the Goody’s Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville. He is now tied for third in the point standings, 12 behind Roush Fenway Racing teammate Greg Biffle.

    “Recklessness caused pure chaos at Martinsville,” Kenseth said, “which led to an amazing finish. What’s more amazing? The fact that I used ‘recklessness,’ ‘chaos,’ and ‘Martinsville’ in a sentence, and didn’t mention Brian Vickers.”

    4. Greg Biffle: Biffle maintained the Sprint Cup points lead with a 13th-place finish at Martinsville, one lap down. He holds a six-point lead over the hard-charging Dale Earnhardt, Jr., who finished third.

    “David Reutimann was clearly driving the ‘Car Of Tomorrow,’” Biffle said, “because at that rate of speed, it would have been Monday before he completed 500 laps.”

    5. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson’s epic duel with Hendrick teammate Jeff Gordon was interrupted two laps from the end by the stalled No. 10 car of David Reutimann, which forced the race’s penultimate caution. On the ensuing restart, Johnson and Gordon spun after Clint Bowyer’s dive to the bottom, assisted by a bump from Ryan Newman, caused short-track chaos. Johnson limped home with a 12th-place finish.

    “Newman got lucky,” Johnson said, “and I can live with that. As my five Sprint Cup titles can attest, I’d rather be good than lucky. But give Newman credit. For someone with no neck, he sure did stick his out.”

    6. Kevin Harvick: Harvick started second on the grid at Martinsville and led 21 early laps before his day went sour. He finished 19th, two laps down, and tumbled one spot in the point standings into a tie for third.

    “We totally missed the setup on the No. 29 ‘Budweiser Is Back’ Chevrolet,” Harvick said. “As a result, my pit crew sent me out on the track with half-hearted encouragement, saying ‘This Dud’s For You.’ I can’t thank them enough, so I won’t thank them at all.”

    7. Martin Truex, Jr.: Truex posted his fourth top-10 finish of the year with a fifth in the Goody’s Fast Relief 500. He jumped two places in the point standings into a tie for third, 12 behind Greg Biffle.

    “Between David Reutimann, Clint Bowyer, and Ryan Newman,” Truex said, “it was an April fools day to remember. Apparently, Auto Club Speedway wasn’t the only appearance the Three Stooges made.”

    8. Clint Bowyer: Bowyer’s dash to the inside on a late restart, helped by a bump from Ryan Newman, initiated a crash that wiped out Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon from contention. Bowyer spun as well in the melee, but recovered to finish 10th, and now sits ninth in the point standings, 34 out of first.

    “I had fresh tires,” Bowyer said, “so I knew I could get a good jump on Gordon and Johnson on the restart. I had ‘grip;’ they had ‘gripes.’ But don’t blame me. I was trying to win. David Reutimann? I’m not sure what he was doing? I don’t know why he chose to park on the track. My guess? It’s Martinsville, and that was the only spot available.”

    9. Jeff Gordon: Looking for a win to boost a lackluster season, Gordon saw a near-victory ripped from his grasp after a caution for David Reutimann’s stalled car led to the restart that wrecked Gordon. Gordon took the lead after stalking Jimmie Johnson for 50 laps, and was poised to give Hendrick Motorsports its 200th win.

    “Obviously,” Gordon said, “Reutimann has a mistaken idea of ‘start and park.’ He was, quite literally, out for a Sunday drive.

    “I understand Reutimann was trying to score as many points as possible to keep that No. 10 car in the top 35, so Danica Patrick can run her allotted races. Heck, why not just let Patrick race at Martinsville. That way, we know any caution caused by the No. 10 would have been a legitimate one.”

    10. Ryan Newman: Newman plowed his way to the front on a restart with two laps to go, leaving the Hendrick Motorsports duo of Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson in his wake. Newman held off A.J. Allmendinger on the final green-white-checkered finish to secure his first win of the season, and Stewart-Haas Racing’s third.

    “Hopefully,” Newman said, “I haven’t burned any bridges with the Hendrick camp. After all, they do provide us with engines. So, I don’t mind them giving me horsepower, but I do mind them giving me grief. Joke of the day: How is Stewart Haas Racing different from Hendrick Motorsports? Stewart Haas can win with Hendrick engines.”

  • Lap by Lap: Kroger 250 won by Kevin Harvick

    Lap by Lap: Kroger 250 won by Kevin Harvick

    [media-credit name=”Barry Albert” align=”alignleft” width=”300″][/media-credit]Green flag as Kevin Harvick leads the first lap after starting on the pole.

    Lap 2 Harvick leads Ty Dillon and Cale Gale.

    Lap 3 Timothy Peters and Ron Hornaday both pass Gale for third and fourth.

    Lap 4 Justin Lofton passes Gale for fifth

    Lap 5 Dillon takes the lead from Harvick

    Lap 6 Harvick takes the lead back from Dillon while Johnny Sauter passes Gale.

    Lap 8 James Buescher and Matt Crafton pass Gale for seventh and eighth

    Lap 10 Harvick leads Dillon, Peters, Hornaday, Lofton, Sauter, Buescher and Crafton.

    Caution Lap 21 Hornaday get loose and goes for a spin.

    Restart Lap 26 Harvick leads Dillon, Lofton, Peters, Buescher, Sauter, Crafton, Gale, Todd Bodine and Jeb Burton.

    Lap 33 Peters, Buescher and Sauter pass Lofton for third and fourth.

    Lap 37 Peters passes Dillon for second

    Lap 41 Harvick leads Peters, Dillon, Buescher, Sauter, Crafton, Lofton, Gale, Bodine and Parker Kligermann

    Caution Lap 75 Joey Coulter gets into the outside wall after a flat tire. All the leaders take the opportunity to pit. Harvick leads Dillon, Buescher, Peters, Lofton, Sauter, Gale, Kligermann and Bodine off pit road. John King gets the lucky dog.

    Restart Lap 83

    Lap 86 Harvick leads Dillon, Peters, Buescher, Sauter, Lofton, Gale, Kligermann, Bodine and Jason Leftler.

    Lap 92 Caution as J.R. Fitzpatrick goes for a spin as Jeff Agnew collects damage. John Wes Townley gets into Fitzpatrick spinning him, as the chain reaction gives Agnew and Dakota Armstrong damage. Hornaday and Crafton both had to change their batteries already, Paulie Harraka thinking he has an issue.

    Green Flag lap 100 as Harvick leads Dillon and Buescher

    Lap 101 Harraka changes the battery

    Lap 103 Harvick leads Dillon, Peters, Buescher, Sauter, Lofton, Gale, Bodine, Kligermann and Leftler

    Caution Lap 111 Dusty Davis is stopped on the front stretch on the track. Crafton gets the lucky dog.

    Restart Lap 123

    Lap 125 Harvick leads Dillon, Buescher, Peters, Lofton, Sauter, Bodine, Gale, Kligermann and David Starr.

    HALFWAY

    110 to go Bodine passes Sauter for sixth

    103 to go Fire on pit road as Ryan Sieg breaks a rear end gear

    93 to go Nelson Piquet Jr. passes Starr for 10th

    Caution Lap 157 as Starr spins with a flat tire. Hornady gets the lucky dog. Leaders pit…….Harvick leads Dillon, Buescher, Lofton, Bodine, Peters, Gale and Sauter off pit road.

    Restart Lap 164.

    82 to go Harvick leads Dillon, Lofton, Buescher, Peters, Bodine, Sauter, Gale, Ross Chastain and Piquet Jr.

    47 to go Harvick leads Dillon, Buescher, Lofton, Sauter, Peters, Bodine, Gale, Piquet, Chastain

    40 to go Sauter passes Lofton

    26 to go Bodine has a flat tire and a broken sway bar.

    25 to go Leftler possibly has a lot of fluid leaking; Coulter almost into the wall with another flat tire

    Caution 24 to go as David Reuitmann gets into the wall with a flat tire. Harvick leads. Sauter behind the wall with a broken upper control arm.

    Restart 16 to go as Harvick has the lead.

    15 to go Caution as Max Gresham goes for a spin, collecting Jeb Burton, Miguel Paludo and Brennan Newberry

    Restart 6 to go

    Kevin Harvick wins the Kroger 250 over Dillon, Buscher, Lofton, Peters, Piquet Jr., Chastain, Leftler, John King, Jason White

    Unofficial Race Results
    Kroger 250, Martinsville Speedway
    http://www.speedwaymedia.com/Cup/race.php?race=2
    =========================================
    Pos. St. No. Driver Make Points
    =========================================
    1 1 2 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet 0
    2 2 3 Ty Dillon * Chevrolet 43
    3 9 31 James Buescher Chevrolet 41
    4 6 6 Justin Lofton Chevrolet 40
    5 3 17 Timothy Peters Toyota 39
    6 16 30 Nelson Piquet Jr. Chevrolet 38
    7 17 8 Ross Chastain * Toyota 37
    8 12 18 Jason Leffler Toyota 36
    9 32 7 John King * Toyota 35
    10 22 23 Jason White Ford 34
    11 15 29 Parker Kligerman Ram 33
    12 20 60 J R Fitzpatrick Chevrolet 32
    13 7 27 Jeb Burton* Chevrolet 31
    14 27 81 David Starr Toyota 30
    15 4 33 Cale Gale * Chevrolet 29
    16 5 9 Ron Hornaday Chevrolet 28
    17 14 32 Miguel Paludo Chevrolet 27
    18 31 7 Jake Crum Chevrolet 26
    19 26 24 Max Gresham * Chevrolet 25
    20 25 92 David Reutimann Chevrolet 0
    21 36 98 Dakoda Armstrong * Toyota 23
    22 18 5 Paulie Harraka * Ford 22
    23 30 9 John Wes Townley * Toyota 21
    24 11 88 Matt Crafton Toyota 20
    25 13 11 Todd Bodine Toyota 19
    26 33 99 Bryan Silas * Ford 18
    27 35 93 Chris Cockrum Chevrolet 17
    28 19 214 Brennan Newberry Chevrolet 16
    29 8 13 Johnny Sauter Toyota 15
    30 21 22 Joey Coulter Chevrolet 14
    31 29 168 Clay Greenfield Ram 13
    32 28 39 Ryan Sieg Chevrolet 12
    33 24 15 Dusty Davis * Ram 11
    34 34 8 Jennifer Jo Cobb Ram 10
    35 10 170 Jeff Agnew Chevrolet 9
    36 23 174 Rick Crawford Chevrolet 8
  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: California

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: California

    [media-credit name=”Simon Scoggins” align=”alignright” width=”211″][/media-credit]Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Tony Stewart: Stewart won the Auto Club 400 in a race shortened by 71 laps due to rain. Stewart overtook Kyle Busch on lap 85 and held on until the weather forced the race’s first caution, and ultimately its cancellation. It was Stewart’s second win of the year and seventh in the last 15 Sprint Cup races.

    “When there’s a sky full of clouds all with silver linings,” Stewart said, “should one expect a golden shower? Maybe for Denny Hamlin. I faked, and Denny bought it. That has to hurt, so I guess Denny’s ‘Stinging In The Rain.’

    “But the No. 14 Office Depot team is picking up right where we left off last year. No, I’m not firing my crew chief. I’m winning races. And the ‘reign gauge’ is full.”

    2. Greg Biffle: Biffle finished sixth at Auto Club Speedway, following Roush Fenway teammate Carl Edwards, who finished fifth, across the line. Biffle has scored top-10 finishes in four of the season’s five races, and leads the Sprint Cup point standings.

    “If nothing else,” Biffle said, “I’m consistent. And, as Edwards showed last year, consistency will take you places. Unfortunately, it will also leave you there.”

    3. Kevin Harvick: Harvick finished fourth in California, posting his second top-5 result of the year. He remained second in the point standings, and trails Greg Biffle by seven.

    “I hear Kyle Busch slapped the wall on Sunday,” Harvick said. “Just as I suspected, it didn’t leave a mark.”

    4. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt continued his solid start to the season, taking third in the Auto Club 400. He improved three places in the point standings, and now trails Greg Biffle by 17.

    “I was hoping the race could have been restarted,” Earnhardt said. “But, when it rains, it pours. As someone who’s riding a 134-race winless streak, I know that better than anyone. Oh yes, they call me ‘The Streak.’”

    5. Jimmie Johnson: Rain showers salvaged what could have been a disastrous day for Johnson at Auto Club Speedway. After the caution flew when rain started falling on lap 123, Johnson pitted, and the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevy started smoking soon after. The race was red-flagged on lap 129, with Johnson’s car still spewing smoke.

    “If you ask NASCAR,” Johnson said, “they’d say those fumes were from the ‘smoking gun.’ I say the heat that created the smoke could be used to cook ‘crow’ before you eat it.

    “We feel fortunate to finish 10th, and fortunate to have our points reinstated. We’re thrilled to be the first beneficiaries of NASCAR’s ‘Boys, have it back’ policy.”

    6. Matt Kenseth: After a penalty for a loose tire in the pits, Kenseth and the No. 17 EcoBoost Ford limped away from Auto Club Speedway with a 16th-place finish. He fell three spots to sixth in the point standings and trails Greg Biffle by 22 points.

    “This is one time,” Kenseth said, “that I’m sorry to say ‘We were on a roll.’ We missed our setup so bad, tires were trying to escape from being attached to the car. I can’t say I was impressed with my pit crews’ performance, but the Three Stooges were.”

    7. Martin Truex, Jr.: Truex finished eighth at Auto Club Speedway, recording his third top-10 result of the year. He now stands fifth in the Sprint Cup point standings, 20 out of first.

    “Not everyone believed I’d be in the top 10 in points after five races,” Truex said. “I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard someone say, “When will this end?” And that was before it started to rain inFontana.”

    8. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin started on the pole in California as Joe Gibbs Racing swept the front row, with Kyle Busch on the outside. Hamlin was in second before pitting during the race’s only caution, which flew for rain on lap 123. He finished 11th after the race was called on lap 129.

    “Tony Stewart threw the fake on me,” Hamlin said. “And, like Jeff Gordon’s gas man, I got taken for a ride. Ironically, I got hung out to dry. They say there’s a sucker born every minute. By that reasoning, I should have a twin, or, better yet, a ‘dupe­-licate.’”

    9. Kyle Busch: Despite scraping the wall late in the race, Busch finished second, earning his first top 5 of the year. He led 80 laps on the day, but lost the lead when slower traffic allowed Tony Stewart to pass him on lap 85.

    “Without the rain,” Busch said, “I’m not sure we could have finished second. The rain was my friend. In fact, the rain may be my only friend.”

    10. Carl Edwards: Edwards opted to stay out when the caution flew for rain on lap 123, and his decision proved to be the right one. Edwards earned a fifth-place finish when rain halted the race shortly thereafter on lap 129. It was his second top-5 finish of the year, and vaulted him three places in the point standings to 12th.

    “The No. 99 Subway Ford was good enough to win,” Edwards said, “but the rain prevented us from proving that. My car was really fast, possibly faster than the speed of sound. But once the rain came, my shot at winning was gone, having disappeared faster than the ‘speed’ of Mayfield.”

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Bristol

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Bristol

    [media-credit name=”Brad Keppel” align=”alignright” width=”229″][/media-credit]Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth doggedly chased Brad Keselowski to the finish at Bristol, but could never catch the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge. The runner-up result gave Kenseth his second top-5 finish of the year, and boosted him two places in the Sprint Cup point standings to third.

    “As his number of followers would suggest,” Kenseth said, “Keselowski is fast becoming America’s ‘Tweet-heart.’ And, no, that’s not my Ward Button impression. Keselowski even Tweeted a photo from victory lane. That’s impressive. He may be the only NASCAR driver who can ‘phone it in’ and still be successful.

    “Contrary to popular belief, I didn’t jump a restart midway through the race to get in front of Keselowski. Oh no. I was trying to get as far away from Brian Vickers as possible.”

    2. Greg Biffle: Biffle started on the pole at Bristol and led 41 early laps before handling issues stymied his efforts to stay out front. He finished 12th and remained atop the Sprint Cup point standings, with a nine-point lead over Kevin Harvick.

    “That breaks my string of third-place finishes,” Biffle said. “Still, my average finish is sixth. And let’s be honest, nothing says ‘average’ quite like ‘Greg Biffle.’”

    3. Kevin Harvick: Harvick was caught up in a lap 24 spin between Regan Smith and Kasey Kahne that collected seven cars, including Harvick’s No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet. Despite extensive damage, Harvick salvaged an 11th at Bristol, and remained second in the point standings, nine behind Greg Biffle.

    “Say what you will about Kahne,” Harvick said, “but he was the only Hendrick Motorsports driver who was a factor in the race. Just a few months ago, he was apologizing to breastfeeding mothers. Now, he’s apologizing to expectant fathers. No wonder he’s the ‘red-headed stepchild’ of HMS.”

    4. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson finished ninth at Bristol, scoring his third-straight top-10 finish. It was likely Johnson’s last race with crew chief Chad Knaus before Knaus serves his six race suspension

    “NASCAR seems to be unusually vigilant where Knaus is concerned,” Johnson said. “Call it an episode of ‘Queer Eye For The Not-So-Straight Guy,’ if you will. This being March, I’m surprised NASCAR didn’t accuse Chad of having an illegal ‘bracket’ of some sort.

    “But I’ll manage without Chad. He’ll return in six weeks rejuvenated. I hear he’s taking a vacation to a mysterious locale. If NASCAR officials ask us where he is,Chad’s instructed us to wink and simply say ‘parts unknown.’”

    5. Martin Truex, Jr.: Truex finished third at Bristol, leading a parade of Michael Waltrip Racing cars in the top 5. Teammates Clint Bowyer and Brian Vickers came home fourth and fifth, respectively, and Truex jumped four places in the point standings to fourth, 18 out of first.

    “Michael Waltrip has assembled quite an organization here,” Truex said. “And, he’s quite entertaining on Showtime’s ‘Inside NASCAR.’ So, that’s at least two things that Michael’s better at being behind than a steering wheel: a desk and a microphone.”

    6. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski dominated at Thunder Valley, leading 231 laps and holding off Matt Kenseth to win the Food City 500 at Bristol. The young Penske Racing driver proved that last fall’s Bristol win was no fluke, and gave Dodge its first win of the year.

    “The Sprint Cup championship is obviously a goal,” Keselowski said. “But that goal is secondary to reaching 1,000,000 followers on Twitter. As a social media hound, I want to get social medieval on the web’s behinds.

    “Of course, there are those that say my penchant for social media interaction can only spell my downfall where the Cup is concerned. Those people are on Facebook, and they believe the writing is on the ‘wall.’”

    7. Tony Stewart: Stewart had a top-10 Bristol finish in sight until he was punted into the wall on lap 479 when Brendan Gaughan’s brakes failed. Stewart limped home in 14th, and remained seventh in the point standings, 27 out of first.

    “If he continues to wreck superstars like me,” Stewart said, “Gaughan will be out of NASCAR before long. That’s why he’s earned the nickname ‘Going, Going’ Gaughan.”

    8. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt survived a run-in with Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jeff Gordon to post a 15th-place finish in the Food City 500. Earnhardt was nabbed for speeding on pit road late in the race, an infraction that likely cost him a top-10 finish. He is now tied for fifth in the point standings, 20 out of first.

    “What’s Gordon’s biggest complaint about Diet Mountain Dew?” Earnhardt said. “It tastes ‘flat.’”

    9. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin started 20th at Bristol and finished in the same position, victimized by handling issues and long green runs that left little opportunities for adjustments. He dropped two spots in the point standings to fifth, and trails Greg Biffle by 20 points.

    “I’m tied in the point standings with Dale Earnhardt, Jr.,” Hamlin said. “I made a race out of going nowhere fast; Junior’s made a career of it.”

    10. Clint Bowyer: Bowyer, in the 5-Hour Energy No. 15Toyota, finished fourth at Bristol, joining Michael Waltrip Racing teammates Martin Truex, Jr. and Brian Vickers in the top 5. Bowyer improved five places in the point standings to eighth and is 31 out of first.

    “I’m confident this car will soon be in Victory Lane,” Bowyer said. “When that happens, I promise to douse everyone there with 5-Hour Energy drink, which may, in fact, take five hours.”

  • Austin Dillon: Gaining Experience, Going After Rookie of the Year

    Austin Dillon: Gaining Experience, Going After Rookie of the Year

    [media-credit name=”Sal Sigala Jr.” align=”alignleft” width=”301″][/media-credit]As Austin Dillon continues up the racing ladder, this year marked an important year as he made the move from the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series to the NASCAR Nationwide Series. So far this year, he sits fourth in points, 30 points behind teammate Elliott Sadler.

    “I’m very happy to the start of the season,” he told me before Bristol. “We went to all three races running every lap and we just keep gaining on it each week. The experience level is lacking and once we get that figured out and how to adjust these cars, we’ll be fine.”

    In the first four races of the season, the 21-year-old has finished fifth, fourth, seventh and 12th. The success he has had so far has impressed a lot of people, including Denny Hamlin.

    “I feel like they’re both kind of living up to expectations,” Hamlin said of Dillon and Cole Whitt during his media availability at Bristol. “They’re doing kind of exactly what you would hope that they would do, not what you necessarily thought they would do. I think they’re doing a very, very good job. I’ve watched them a little bit and it just seemed like they’ve both got the talent to make it. You can see it right from the beginning. Some drivers have the speed and can go and not tear up equipment right from the beginning and it looks like those two especially have that and that’s what can make you successful not just at that level, but the following one.”

    Coming into Bristol this weekend, Dillon knew it was going to be wild.

    “We run pretty well once we get into the race,” he said. “We’ll work hard tomorrow. It’s going to be a pretty wild race.”

    Dillon started the race in the ninth position and ran just outside the top 10 most of the time, picking up valuable experience.

    In continuing to gain experience, Dillon expects to do well this year.

    “We want to win rookie of the year, that’s our first goal,” he said. “If we have a shot at the championship at homestead, then we want to win it.” He added that the main goal is to keep themselves up there while winning some races.

    Teammate Elliott Sadler has already won two races, including Bristol this weekend, which shows the strength of the organization.

    “Our Nationwide program is very fast right now,” he said. “We’re being able to show speed each week. We’re still pushing hard where we want to be. Everybody wants to be better each and every week.”

    He adds that the Cup side of RCR looks strong also with how Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton and Paul Menard have been running.

    Dillon says that having teammates with experience like Sadler and Harvick, he’s able to learn from them.

    Dillon, grandson of car owner Richard Childress, has been around racing his entire life. The first time he got in the race car was in a bandolero on a quarter mile behind Charlotte Motor Speedway at the age of 15.

    As the season goes, there are many tracks that the series will be going to, including two of Dillon’s favorites.

    “I’ve won at Iowa and that’s one of my favorite places that I enjoy, and racing at Michigan,” he said. “We’ve been close there.

    Last season, Dillon had a great season as he won the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Championship. Right now though, the focus is on the Nationwide Series.

    “I’m sure there’ll be one day that we’ll be able to look back on our season and really cherish everything that we were able to accomplish last year,” he said.

  • Dillon and Stenhouse Lead the ‘Young Gun’ Movement Return to NASCAR Nationwide Series

    Dillon and Stenhouse Lead the ‘Young Gun’ Movement Return to NASCAR Nationwide Series

    [media-credit name=”Credit: Tom Pennington/Getty Images” align=”alignright” width=”227″][/media-credit]Through the past five years, there were many concerned NASCAR fans with regards to how they saw the second-tier divisions going. Concerned fans were questioning both series as they saw a lack of young drivers competing in the divisions.

    So far this year, the Nationwide Series looks to have defied the concept as seven drivers in the top 10 in points are considered ‘young guns’.

    For drivers coming into the divisions like Ty Dillon, it gives them hope for the future.

    “They kind of got away from having individual names that led that series,” Dillon says. “Now we’ve got young guys in each series that are developing their way from the trucks to the Nationwide and now to Sprint Cup. It’s really cool to see that and gives you hope as a driver making your way up the rankings. I’m glad to see more individuality in each series, so it’s really nice.”

    Currently, veteran Elliott Sadler leads the standing with a win that came at Phoenix International Raceway. However beyond his position, a group of hungry young drivers follow.

    21-year-old Austin Dillon currently sits second in points, 15 points behind Sadler. So far in the first three races of the season, he has finished fifth, fourth and seventh. This marks Dillon’s first season in the Nationwide Series after winning the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Championship in 2011. Dillon got his start in racing at the age of 15 racing Banderos after seeing them run at Charlotte Motor Speedway with his brother.

    24-year-old Ricky Stenhouse Jr. currently sits third in points, 17 points behind Sadler. In the first two races of the season, he finished 19th and third while winning last weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. This marks Stenhouse’s third full-time season in the NASCAR Nationwide Series after winning the championship last year. He chose to stay in the Nationwide Series an extra year to therefore learn more.

    “Knowing what I want in a race car on the stock car side of it and knowing what these races take to be better throughout the whole race, and the right adjustments and just learning more about the race cars in itself,” Stenhouse says. “I can tell you everything about a sprint car, but there are so many parts on these stock cars that I’m still not 100 percent familiar with so I think to learn last year and so far in my stock car career I’ve been learning what I need for the race car to go fast. Now I want to learn the set-ups and things like being able to come into the pits and say, ‘Hey I need this’ and help the crew chief out instead of just telling him, ‘Hey I need to be tighter, fix it.’ So there are a lot of things I just want to get better at.”

    21-year-old Trevor Bayne currently sits fourth in points, 19 points behind Sadler. In the first three races of the season, he has finished 11th, seventh and fourth. This marks Bayne’s third season in the Nationwide Series after winning the Daytona 500 last season. Bayne is looking to run the full schedule to continue to gain experience, however it will depend if Roush-Fenway Racing can secure sponsorship.

    20-year-old Cole Whitt currently sits fifth in points, 22 points behind Sadler. In the first three races of the season, he has finished fourth, 13th and sixth. This mark’s Whitt’s first season in the Nationwide Series after turning heads last year in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. Whitt moved into the truck series last season after shocking fans by becoming the youngest USAC National Midget Champion in 2008.

    The average age of these four drivers is 21.5, so it is definitely showing proof that ‘young gun’ phase is back.

    One reason that you’re seeing the young gun phase come back is big teams are going back to taking a chance on younger drivers, rather than trying to reel in the money from big companies. Dillon drives for Richard Childress Racing, Whitt drives for JR Motorsports while both Stenhouse Jr. and Bayne drive for Roush Racing.

    Going after inexperienced, unknown drivers can present problems in finding sponsorship. Dillon was able to find sponsorship, as he has made a name for himself by being the grandson of Richard Childress. Whitt has been able to find sponsorship via having NASCAR’s most popular driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. as his car owner. Stenhouse has just found sponsorship for the year, while Bayne is not as lucky. Sponsors aren’t as willing to chance on a young driver as they do not have a proven background. With drivers running for big teams, it can sometimes be enough to per sway a sponsor.

    As the season goes forward, it will be interesting to watch how the young drivers do in comparison to the veterans and Sprint Cup Series drivers who dip in the series. So far the Nationwide Series-only have the upper hand as they have won the first three races of the season.

  • Ty Dillon Puts Pressure Aside, Looking To Do Well This Year

    Ty Dillon Puts Pressure Aside, Looking To Do Well This Year

    [media-credit name=”Credit: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images for NASCAR” align=”alignright” width=”225″][/media-credit]For any driver entering into the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driving for one of the biggest teams in NASCAR, Richard Childress Racing, the pressure is certainly there to perform. However, for Ty Dillon, the pressure goes beyond that. But as you take a closer look at this 19-year-old, the pressure isn’t bugging him one bit.

    For starters, he is driving the exact same truck that his brother Austin Dillon drove to the 2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Championship. Everybody is expecting younger brother Ty to live up to Austin’s level after Ty finished in the top 10 in two of three starts last year.

    Rather than being concerned with the expectations, Ty Dillon focuses on the advantages of having a big brother racing in NASCAR.

    “I can use his career as a learning curve for me, the things that he does,” Dillon says. “I get to pay attention to everything that he does on and off the race track that help him or hurt him. There are a lot of advantages to having an older brother who is successful in a series above you.”

    Dillon also has the pressure on his shoulders as he is the grandson of his team owner, Childress. For Dillon, he once again uses it as an advantage from his standpoint in his career.

    “He is always there to help us, no matter what it is on or off the race track,” the defending ARCA Racing Series Champion says. “Whether it’s doing stuff like this and what he’s learned over the years that’s helped him, or things on the race track. He’s a legend of our sport and I’m very blessed to be in the situation that I am to be able to rely on him.”

    Dillon adds that Childress stresses that he should bring the truck back in one piece, while also taking some risks to win races.

    At no point does Dillon take for granted the situation he is in, either, saying that he was blessed to be born into this situation.

    “I’ve been around racing all my life and kind of knew it would be an option there for me,” he says. “My grandfather never really wanted to pressure us into racing. We played football, baseball and other sports. We kind of started racing late. I started when I was 13. (Brother) Austin was 15. Nowadays kids are starting when they’re four or five years old racing.”

    Since then, the feeling behind the wheel hasn’t changed for Dillon as he says he still loves it just as much.

    “Driving, it just gives us that feeling that you can’t get away from,” he explains. “We still get it every day when we strap into these Nationwide (cars) and trucks and we race probably 50 or 60 races a year, just because we love the sport and we love what we do.”

    With taking over the truck that his big brother drove, that means that Dillon is behind the wheel of the legendary No. 3 truck. This brings its own set of expectations from fans that expect the No. 3 to be running up front and winning every weekend. Dillon says he doesn’t feel that pressure as he is actually having fun with running the number.

    “It means more to us on a personal side that it’s my grandfather’s number and it’s really great to see the fan’s reactions when you run well in it and you win races,” he says. “To see how excited people get to see that black number 3 back there on the track, the way it used to be. So we’re just having fun with it right now. As long as everybody stays happy with it that’s what we’re going do. As far as what series it’s going to go, I’ll leave that up to my grandfather. Right now we’re doing it for our family and doing it for the fans.”

    In expanding on that, Dillon says that the number means a lot to him due to it being the number that his grandfather Childress ran during his career.

    Dillon joins the youth movement that has taken over the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series as late with young drivers coming in to get their start in racing, including James Buescher and Parker Kligermann, among others.

    “They kind of got away from having individual names that led that series,” Dillon says. “Now we’ve got young guys in each series that are developing their way from the trucks to the Nationwide and now to Sprint Cup. It’s really cool to see that and gives you hope as a driver making your way up the rankings. I’m glad to see more individuality in each series, so it’s really nice.”

    While most rookies may be set on coming in and learning, that’s not the same with Dillon. He says that coming off the ARCA championship last year and driving Austin’s trucks, he feels that he can do well.

    “I feel like we need to run for a championship this year,” he says. “We’ve got the experience and the equipment, why can’t we do it? We ran well last year and we got a lot of confidence going into this year. We’ll see what it gives us. We want to win some races but our main trophy in our little trophy case we have set off to the side is the championship trophy. Then if we do that, we will have won races and won rookie of the year.”

    So far, Dillon is off to a pretty good start as he survived the carnage in Daytona to finish ninth and now sits eighth in points heading into Martinsville in two weeks.

  • RCR Brings Force to Reckon With in Nationwide Series

    RCR Brings Force to Reckon With in Nationwide Series

    [media-credit name=”Simon Scoggins” align=”alignright” width=”225″][/media-credit]The headlines were going crazy last season when Kevin Harvick Incorporated (KHI) announced that it was closing its doors at the conclusion of 2011. The result of that closure saw KHI’s Nationwide Series program be put under Richard Childress Racing.

    The merger was met with some questions, however, they have been quickly answered this far into the season. After the second race of the season, Elliott Sadler leads the point standings, 10 points over rookie teammate Austin Dillon. Sadler won the last race at Phoenix International Speedway while Dillon and Kevin Harvick finished fourth and fifth, respectively.

    The win marked a special win for Sadler as he hadn’t been to victory lane in one of NASCAR’s top three divisions since 2010 in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. The win also marked a bit of revenge for last year as despite finishing second in points, the season was considered disappointing due to no victories.

    One of the first moves that was made when Sadler made the shift from KHI to RCR was a change in his crew chief. Richard Childress partnered Sadler with Luke Lambert, who was the crew chief for Clint Bowyer last year in the Sprint Cup Series. Childress felt the partnership was perfect based on what he saw Sadler needed in a crew chief and how Lambert could benefit from a couple seasons spent in Nationwide.

    Sadler now hopes to carry the momentum from the win into Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

    “Momentum is huge in this sport,” he said. “Our team is so strong and so focused that I know the win last week at Phoenix will just add to our drive. We have one goal, and that is to win the championship, and I think this week we will continue to go along with our game plan. It was such a great feeling to be in Victory Lane, and I am so proud of our team and excited to home a win for OneMain Financial and Richard Childress Richard Childress.”

    The win marked some reassurance for Sadler as he was at first concerned when Harvick told him of the switch.

    “When Kevin first came to me and said, ‘Look, I’m going to sell my team to Richard. We’re going to run the team out of his shop’. I said, ‘Where is that going to leave me?’,” Sadler explained. “He said, ‘Elliott, the last time I ran for RCR, we won 13 races. You’re going to be okay.’

    “When you’re affiliated with the Cup teams and the simulation programs that they have and when you’re on the same campus, you feed off of it. We race against the Cup affiliated teams all the time – Roush and Gibbs – so it just puts us on an even playing field.”

    In the past couple of years, the Nationwide Series has been dominated by Roush Racing, Penske Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing – all three teams having a cup affiliation.

    “I think Kevin and Delana did a great job with the Nationwide,” Childress commented after Phoenix. “But running against what Jack, Gibbs, Penske have, they weren’t quite there and that was the difference. I think Kevin once he saw that, wanted to come back. I think the difference is having a cup affiliation. I had the Cup crew chiefs scanning the three radios telling me what was going on. Now that we’re back in Nationwide, I think it helps back to the Cup due to the cars being so similar except for the motor.”

    The success now puts pressure on the team to keep it going, as stated by Brendan Gaughan, who will run his first Nationwide race of the season.

    “I’m really excited to race for such a great organization,” he said in the team preview. “The only downside, if there is one, is that now it’s my turn to keep the hot streak going that RCR has started off the season with.”

    As the season continues, there’s no question there will be a continued battle between Joe Gibbs Racing, Jack Roush, Roger Penske and Richard Childress for the championships. It’ll all be about who can put the best package together, and right now, Childress looks to have the upper hand. It’s also known that this isn’t his first rodeo as he has won five championships in the Nationwide Series.

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Phoenix

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Phoenix

    [media-credit name=”Simon Scoggins” align=”alignright” width=”225″][/media-credit]Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin zoomed to the lead on a restart with 59 laps to go at Phoenix, and held off Kevin Harvick, who ran out of gas, to win the Subway Fresh Fit 500. It was Hamlin’s first win since last June at Michigan and first under new crew chief Darian Grubb. Hamlin now leads the Sprint Cup point standings with a six point lead over Greg Biffle.

    “We’ve got a ton of confidence,” Hamlin said. “And, surprisingly, so does Jimmie Johnson. The last time I left Phoenix with the points lead, Johnson won the Sprint Cup title.

    “I’d like to thank Toyota for giving me a strong engine. The car from ‘The Land Of The Rising Sun’ won in the ‘Valley Of The Sun.’”

    2. Kevin Harvick: Harvick’s charge to overtake Denny Hamlin came to a halt when he ran out of gas on the final lap at Phoenix International Raceway. Harvick still finished second, and is third in the point standings, eight behind Hamlin.

    “Hamlin knew I was coming,” Harvick said. “This father-to-be was getting ready to say ‘Who’s your daddy?’ That may have very well been Hamlin’s first ‘pregnancy scare.’ There’s a bun in the oven. Luckily for Hamlin, there was no gas in the tank.

    “But better to lose to Hamlin than Kyle Busch. I’ve had my differences with Busch in the past, but I now realize we’ll soon have one thing in common: we’ll both have ‘Baby On Board’ stickers on our cars.”

    3. Greg Biffle: Biffle backed up his third at Daytona with an equally-impressive third in the Subway Fresh Fit 500. He stands second in the Sprint Cup point standings, six behind Denny Hamlin.

    “I’ll take third-place any day,” Biffle said. “As a teammate of Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards, I’m quite used to saying ‘There are two drivers better than me.’”

    4. Matt Kenseth: Daytona 500 winner Kenseth finished 13th at Phoenix after a crash in practice forced him to resort to a backup car. He now sits fourth in the point standings, 10 points out of first.

    “Despite a subpar finish at Phoenix,” Kenseth said, “I can’t complain. I’ve won the Daytona 500 and appeared on The Tonight Show. Surely, rumors of a relationship with Kim Kardashian are sure to follow. Even as a driver comfortable with speeds of 200 miles per hour, people will still be amazed at how quickly I deny those rumors. But not before I make the requisite ‘loose in the tail’ and ‘running out of talent’ jokes.”

    5. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski shook off a disappointing finish at Daytona to post a solid finish at Phoenix, charging from the 28th starting position to finish fifth.

    “Luckily,” Keselowski said, “I have a car owner who supports my use of Twitter. Roger Penske is all for short, concise tweets from my phone. Ironically, he encourages me to be ‘curt.’ In fact, Roger often refers to me by my Twitter handle ‘@Keselowski.’ Last year, he often referred to Kurt Busch by a name than sounded like a Twitter handle, ‘@SOB.’”

    6. Martin Truex, Jr.: Truex finished seventh in Phoenix, joining Michael Waltrip Racing teammate Mark Martin, who finished ninth after starting from the pole, in the top 10. Truex jumped six places in the point standings to sixth, and trails Denny Hamlin by 18.

    “This team is hot right now,” Truex said. “As our early-season results can attest, MWR is one of NASCAR’s top teams. And we’ve got Michael Waltrip to thank, mostly because he’s not driving. Michael Waltrip Racing is at its best, unless Michael Waltrip’s racing.”

    7. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt came home 14th at Phoenix, as his winless streak reached 131 races. He is fifth in the point standings, 17 out of first.

    “I sincerely believe a win is forthcoming,” Earnhardt said. “At least according to the Mayan calendar. Luckily, my fans are always supportive and don’t pressure me to win. They don’t say ‘Just win, baby.’ They say ‘Just whenever, baby.’

    “Call Junior Nation whatever you want, like ‘The Nation Of Is Lame,’ or ‘Junior Station-ary,’ or ‘The Winless Circle,’ but they are the best fans in NASCAR.”

    8. Kyle Busch: Busch led 52 laps at Phoenix and finished sixth on the two-mile oval, scoring his first top-10 finish after a 17th at Daytona. He is now ninth in the Sprint Cup point standings, 23 behind Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny Hamlin.

    “Inquiring minds want to know,” Busch said. “Will 2012 see the ‘old’ Kyle Busch or the ‘new’ Kyle Busch? I think you’ll see a little bit of both. That’s called the ‘same’ Kyle Busch.”

    9. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson rebounded from a disastrous week at Daytona to score a solid fourth in the Subway Fresh Fit 500. Johnson finished 42nd after a lap 2 wreck at Daytona, and was later docked 25 points and crew chief Chad Knaus was suspended for six races after failing inspection after the Gatorade Duels.

    “I was once a ‘five-time defender,’” Johnson said. “That’s in stark contrast to Knaus, who’s a ‘ten-time offender.’ Knaus was also fined $100,000 in addition to his six-race suspension. Those are pretty stiff penalties. Once again, as a result of what happened in Florida, there’s a ‘hanging Chad.’”

    10. Joey Logano: Logano posted his second top-10 finish of the year with a tenth at Phoenix, joining Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch in the top 10. Logano is eight in the point standings, 19 behind Hamlin.

    “Later this summer,” Logano said, “new father Kevin Harvick will ‘cut the cord.’ Hopefully, my dad can do the same.”

  • Nationwide Series Bahas’ Supermarkets 200 Lap by Lap

    Nationwide Series Bahas’ Supermarkets 200 Lap by Lap

    [media-credit name=”www.phoenixraceway.com” align=”alignright” width=”225″][/media-credit]Lap 1 – Pole Sitter Denny Hamlin leads early

    Lap 6 – Trevor Bayne passes Denny Hamlin for the lead in turn one

    Lap 7 – Brad Keselowski passes Sam Hornish Jr. while Bayne continues to lead Hamlin

    Lap 9 – Hamlin takes the lead back in turn three from Bayne as Keselowski chases them

    Lap 11 – Hamlin leads Bayne, Keselowski, Kasey Kahne, Kevin Harvick and Austin Dillon

    Lap 18 – Kahne passes Keselowski for second while Hamlin leads

    Lap 20 – Hamlin leads Kahne, Keselowski, Bayne, Harvick, Dillon and Hornish Jr.

    Lap 23 – Harvick passes Bayne for fourth as Hamlin leads Kahne

    Lap 26 – Morgan Shephard heads to the garage

    Lap 35 – Hamlin leads Kahne, Keselowski, Harvick, Bayne, Hornish Jr., Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Joey Logano, Sadler and Dillon

    Lap 40 – Top five are the same though Stenhouse has passed Hornish for sixth

    Lap 42 Caution for debris………pit stops for fuel and tires, Hamlin wins the race off pit road. Hamlin, Kyle Busch and Dillon got two tires while the rest of the field took four

    Restart Lap 48

    Lap  50 Dillon slid up big time coming out of turn four, kept it off the wall, falls deep in the field

    Lap 53 Harvick takes the lead from Hamlin, over Kyle Busch, Logano, Stenhouse, Sadler, Keselowski, Bayne, Justin Allgaier and Kahne

    Lap 56 Busch gets into the wall slightly off of turn two while battling Logano for position. Logano and Sadler pass him for position.

    Lap 59 Keselowski passes Busch for eighth as Harvick continues to lead

    Lap 60 Harvick leads Hamlin, Logano, Stenhouse Jr. and Bayne.

    Lap 72 Harvick leads Hamlin, Stenhouse, Keselowski, Logano, Kahne, Bayne, Sadler, Busch and Allgaier.

    Lap 82 Harvick leads Hamlin, Stenhouse, Keselowski, Logano, Kahne, Bayne, Sadler, Busch and Dillon

    Lap 88 Kahne passes Logano in turn one for fifth

    Lap 97 Dillon passes Busch for ninth

    HALFWAY Lap 100 Harvick leads Hamlin, Stenhouse, Keselowski, Kahne, Logano, Bayne, Sadler, Dillon, Busch

    Caution 104 Kenny Wallace hits the turn three wall after blowing a right front tire…..Everybody pits for fuel and tires: Denny Hamlin leads Kevin Harvick, Brad Keselowski, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Joey Logano, Kasey Kahne, Trevor Bayne, Elliott Sadler, Justin Allgaier and Kyle Busch off pit road

    Restart Lap 111 as Kevin Harvick and Denny Hamlin run side-by-side for the lead. Harvick gets the lead off of turn four to take the lead

    Lap 112 Contact between Bayne and Keselowksi while battling for fourth

    Lap 113 Stenhouse makes slight contact with Sadler and Allgaier as they run three-wide

    Lap 115 Michael Annett gets into the turn three wall after getting loose off the turn

    Lap 117 Harvick leads Hamlin, Logano, Keselowski, Bayne and Kahne

    Lap 125 Harvick leads Hamlin, Keselowski, Kahne, Sadler, Logano, Bayne, Allgaier and Dillon while Stenhouse battles with Hornish Jr. for 10th. Stenhouse gets the position off of turn three.

    Lap 137 Harvick leads Hamlin, Keselowski, Kahne, Sadler, Logano, Dillon, Bayne, Stenhouse and Allgaier

    Lap 148 Harvick leads Hamlin, Kahne, Keselowski, Sadler, Dillon, Logano, Stenhouse, Bayne and Allgaier

    50 laps to go Stenhouse passes Logano for seventh

    Caution 38 to go for debris in turn four…….Everybody will come down pit road as they can make it on gas from here, some take two, some take four……..Hamlin leads Keselowski, Stenhouse, Sadler, Dillon, Hornish, Harvick and Bayne off pit road

    Restart with 33 to go as Keselowski gets the lead on the restart while Mike Wallace is off the pace.

    32 to go Sadler and Hamlin battle for second behind Keselowski

    31 to go Kahne gets into the wall hard, making contact with Bayne, sending Harvick for a ride down through the inside paved area but he saves it

    30 to go Kahne is off the pace

    26 laps to go Sadler takes the lead from Keselowski off of turn three

    25 laps to go Harvick passes Dillon for fifth so now Sadler leads Keselowski, Hamlin, Stenhouse, Harvick, Dillon, Hornish, Bayne, Logano and Annett

    15 laps to go Sadler leads Keselowski, Stenhouse, Harvick, Dillon, Hornish, Bayne, Logano, Hamlin and Annett

    Elliott Sadler leads the final 15 laps and wins