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Tag: Ricky Stenhouse Jr

NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Las Vegas

Note: the quotes in this article are fictional.

1. Joey Logano — Logano dashed to the win at Las Vegas, holding off Penske Racing teammate Brad Keselowski for his first Cup win in Vegas.

“I knew Brad was going to make a run,” Logano said. “He’s so good at making those race-winning passes. I saw him in my mirror and though, ‘Uh oh.’ Anytime you look in the mirror and see Brad Keselowski, it’s bad news, especially if you’re Brad Keselowski.”

2. Brad Keselowski — Keselowski, looking for his second straight win, finished second at Las Vegas to Penske teammate Joey Logano.

“That’s right,” Keselowski said. “I finished second. So, for the second consecutive week, I ‘went No. 2’ in my car.”

3. Kyle Busch — Busch’s quest for a weekend sweep ended with a third in the Pennzoil 400.

“I blew any chance of winning when I was caught speeding on pit lane,” Busch said. “I’ll tell you this, though, the penalty for breaking the 45 miles per hour speed limit is much less severe when it happens on pit lane as opposed to a highway in Iredell County, North Carolina.”

4. Denny Hamlin — Hamlin finished 10th at Las Vegas.

“Other than those for the ends of stages,” Hamlin said, “there wasn’t a single caution during the race. And that made for a very boring race. Just ask television viewers. The TV ratings are in, and Sunday’s race rolled ‘snake eyes.’”

5. Kevin Harvick — Harvick led a race-high 88 laps and finished fourth in the Pennzoil 400.

“We dominated Stage 1,” Harvick said. “After that, the handling just went south. And with NASCAR’s new rules package, my battle with my steering wheel may have been the best action of the day in Vegas.”

6. Martin Truex Jr. — Truex finished eighth at Las Vegas, recording his second top-10 of the year. He is eighth in the Monster Energy Cup points standings.

“I’m not sure if NASCAR’s new rules package made that much of a difference,” Truex said. “But it’s a start. Now what the rules need is just some fine-tuning, or small adjustments. That’s why NASCAR should bring in the Mayfield family, because they can ‘tweak’ anything.”

7. Kurt Busch — Busch finished fifth at Las Vegas and is 10th in the points standings.

“I’m a Las Vegas native,” Busch said. “So it’s always hard to leave this place. When I leave Vegas, it’s like I leave a little piece of me behind, which was also the case when I had ear-reduction surgery in 2006.”

8. Kyle Larson — Larson took 12th in the Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas and is now sixth in the Monster Energy Cup points standings.

“Those guys from Hendrick Motorsports are at it again,” Larson said. “They’re ‘playing games.’ Only this time, it’s in the casino.”

9. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. — Stenhouse finished eighth at Las Vegas, posting his first top-10 of the year.

“Erik Jones and I had a heated battle for position at one point in the race,” Stenhouse said. “Over the radio, he told me to ‘stop being a dumb ass.’ I responded by saying, ‘I dated Danica Patrick. You can use real profanity.’”

10. Erik Jones — Jones finished 13th in the Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas.

“My Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch just signed a contract extension,” Jones said. “Kyle’s had some big wins in his illustrious career, but this is his latest ‘signature’ win.”

March 7, 2019
Truex frustrated with lapped cars after runner-up finish

As Brad Keselowski climbed out of his car, with an American flag in hand, Martin Truex Jr. stood adjacent to his car a few hundred yards away, with arms crossed. The source of his frustration was lap traffic.

“They just have no respect for the leaders running for the win,” he said. “It’s completely uncalled for, ridiculous. It’s a shame.”

Truex was trapped a lap down when he pitted with 53 laps to go, because the caution flew for fluid on the track. He took the wave-around and restarted fourth with 43 to go, behind all the lapped cars.

He particularly took issue with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. He understood that Stenhouse was racing for the lucky dog, but believed he should’ve let him by when the field got strung out (thus making it unlikely Stenhouse would get his lap back).

“He just kept hugging the bottom, hugging the bottom, hugging the bottom and knew that’s where I needed to run,” Truex said. “I kept telling – my spotter kept telling his we need the bottom.”

“These cars punch such a big hole and it’s so bad in dirty air, it completely killed us for 25, 30 laps to the point my front tires were gone once I finally got by him.”

Despite the holdup, Truex was cutting two-tenths off Keselowski’s lead with eight to go. With seven to go, after he passed Stenhouse, he ran six-tenths faster than Keselowski.

With less than three to go, he was less than three-tenths of a second behind Keselowski. This time in Turn 1, Keselowski took the bottom from Truex. On the final lap, Truex made a late dive to the bottom, as he drove like he expected Keselowski to take it. While he kept within three-tenths, this moment of indecision cost him a chance at a victory.

“We clearly had the best car and were in position to win,” he said.

His runner-up finish was the end result of an afternoon in which he led four laps and finished fifth and third in the stages. He leaves Atlanta Motor Speedway 12th in points, 30 back of Denny Hamlin.

February 25, 2019
Hot 20 of the NASCAR season that was

Another season has come and gone, along with a few more drivers and fans, to be honest. However, there are some things I have noticed that are on the positive side, though not all would agree.

I like stage racing. I was not sure to start with, but I like it now. It helps chronicle who mattered early and it informs us as to who mattered throughout. It even tells us who won, and it rewards that winner is a meaningful way.

As a traditionalist, I was dead set against the playoffs. I have changed my mind. Logically, it makes no sense to have the pretenders still on the same competitive field as the contenders. Yet, it has not much affected the action, other than for one understandably upset Matt Kenseth. In this snowflake influenced world of ours, sometimes vengeance can still be had.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. was not missed on the track due to his excellence in the NBC broadcast booth alongside Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte, Rick Allen and a very stout track-side team. They were entertaining, informative, and sounded like they were excited being there. That is all it takes, but it took a long, long time for some to figure that out. I am not sure FOX has yet.

NASCAR boss man Brian France left the scene in August after being tagged with charges of aggravated driving while intoxicated and criminal possession of a controlled substance. Replaced by his uncle, I think most think that was a positive step. At least Jim France bothers to show up at the track every week.

The France family is looking to fold its 13 track International Speedway Corp., which includes Darlington, Daytona, Martinsville and Talladega, into a merger with NASCAR itself. One can speculate as to the reasons, be it to lay out “a more unified strategic approach”, as Jim France says, or to package it all up for sale. Time will tell.

Sometime over the past decade, the “How bad have you got it” mantra went out the window, along with the fans they were asking. Most of the races this season had a dip in ratings, with at least 26 being seen as having their worst of the past decade, if not of all time. Most of the celebrities are gone, we produce fewer gear heads these days, and the good ole boys and girls like Bo, Luke, and Daisy have been replaced in society by those who know more about tissues than issues.

It appears Jamie McMurray is leaving the driver’s seat, at least on a full-time basis. Kurt Busch could be his replacement with Chip Ganassi. Kenseth is set to step back from even doing that after spelling off Trevor Bayne. Ryan Newman will take their place at Roush-Fenway, with newcomer Daniel Hemric taking his former ride with Richard Childress. Furniture Row is now gone, as Martin Truex Jr. heads over to Joe Gibbs, bumping Daniel Suarez possibly over to replace the elder Busch at Stewart-Haas. A.J. Allmendinger will be without a ride, giving up his seat to rookie Ryan Preece. Kasey Kahne has called it a career, and the 17-year combination of Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus comes to an end.

Changes. Some we like, some we will not, at least to start with. Will fans come back in droves? Nope. Why should they? Give them a reason, give them entertainment, give them a reason to care.

All they have to do is figure out what that is. Over the course of the past decade, they have not.

1. JOEY LOGANO – 5040 POINTS (3 Wins)
This is not “fake news.” Logano is a deserving, even if not an overly popular, champion.

2. MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 5035 POINTS (4 Wins)
If we could ignore the facts for our own biases…but we can not. Now he is off to join the Coach.

3. KEVIN HARVICK – 5034 POINTS (8 Wins)
If he could win all those he dominated for a period of time, he would have gone double figures.

4. KYLE BUSCH – 5033 POINTS (8 Wins)
Great seasons can be spoiled by the uncertainty of a playoff. Case in point…

5. ARIC ALMIROLA – 2354 POINTS (1 Win)
Not everyone is moving on. Then again, he was one of those movers not so long ago.

6. CHASE ELLIOTT – 2350 POINTS (3 Wins)
The future of Hendrick has already arrived.

7. KURT BUSCH – 2350 POINTS (1 Win)
If he wants to race Indy, his rumored new boss might have a few options open to him.

8. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 2343 POINTS (3 Wins)
“I’m going to say it again. I did not intentionally spin out that driver, Mr. Suarez.”

9. KYLE LARSON – 2299 POINTS
If your business is named “Hi-Line”, I have a marketing opportunity for you.

10. RYAN BLANEY – 2298 POINTS (1 Win)
Like Chase, he is one of the positives NASCAR can showcase for the future.

11. DENNY HAMLIN – 2285 POINTS
As with Johnson, a years-long streak of wins in a season comes to an end.

12. CLINT BOWYER – 2272 POINTS (2 Wins)
Light-hearted and funny. Plus, if you ever find yourself in a ditch, he has connections.

13. AUSTIN DILLON – 2245 POINTS (1 Win)
That win was nice, but the iconic number was not so iconic after Daytona.

14. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 2242 POINTS
The marriage with Chad lasted longer than a vast majority of Hollywood relationships.

15. ERIK JONES – 2220 POINTS (1 Win)
At 22, That Jones Boy is making Joe Gibbs feel pretty good about the future.

16. ALEX BOWMAN – 2204 POINTS
Driving a car once driven by an Earnhardt is not an easy act to follow.

17. RYAN NEWMAN – 769 POINTS
Off to become one of the guys over at the House that Jack built. Maybe even his bodyguard.

18. RICKY STENHOUSE JR. – 701 POINTS
After five years, the storyline changed in 2018, along with a downturn in performance

19. PAUL MENARD – 692 POINTS
Will be around as long as a certain home improvement company markets its wares on a stock car.

20. JAMIE MCMURRAY – 683 POINTS
If this marks the end of the line, he finishes it up among those who mattered.

November 21, 2018
Hot 20 – At win at Homestead could move one of the boys closer to legendary status

Legends are rare. Many get an honorary title, no doubt stars in their own right at one time long ago or a pioneer of some description. However, to be a true legend, an icon, it takes a lot to make the grade. In NASCAR, David Pearson was an undisputed legendary driver, one of the best all-time, a true giant of the sport.

The Silver Fox passed away this week at the age of 83. His 105 career Cup victories have him placed only behind the 200 accumulated by the King, Richard Petty. Sixty-three times the pair finished one-two on the track, an amazing statistic showcasing what is unarguably the greatest rivalry in the sport. It stretched from the 1963 Sandlapper 200 in Columbia, South Carolina through to the 1977 World 600.

Pearson’s career covered the years of 1960 through to his final start in 1986, yet he managed to race in more than half the schedule just a dozen times. Running 90 percent of the schedule? Just thrice. That does not even include his 1966 championship year, one of his three titles, when he won 15, competed in 42, skipped out on seven others. In 1973, he won 11 of the 18 he competed in. While Petty drove in everything, Pearson drove when he wanted. It appears that when he wanted, he wanted to win. Pearson’s first victory was the 1961 World 600. His last was Darlington’s Rebel 500 in 1980, one of the nine he competed in that season. In total, 574 starts, 105 wins.

David Pearson is truly among NASCAR’s racing gods residing atop its Mount Olympus. Truth be told, he has had a reservation up there for a very long time.

At Homestead, one of four hope to add to their own legacy, to maybe establish themselves as one of the sport’s future legends.

1. KYLE BUSCH – 5000 POINTS (8 Wins – 1388 Season Points)
Will the best on the season be the championship winner?

2. KEVIN HARVICK – 5000 POINTS (8 Wins – 1333 Season Points)
Back in the old days, this championship would have already been decided.

3. MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 5000 POINTS (4 Wins – 1212 Season Points)
One final race for the boys and girls from Colorado.

4. JOEY LOGANO – 5000 POINTS (2 Wins – 1192 Season Points)
Believes he is the favorite going in. All he has to do now is prove it.

5. CHASE ELLIOTT – 2320 POINTS (3 Wins)
With one shot, Denny managed to burst the bubble of not one, but two rivals.

6. KURT BUSCH – 2318 POINTS (1 Win)
Too much gas cost him the lead, too much Hamlin kept him from taking it back.

7. ARIC ALMIROLA – 2316 POINTS (1 Win)
For a moment he must have believed, but the hamster under the hood was not big enough.

8. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 2309 POINTS (3 Wins)
Penske teams are out…but they won’t let themselves be forgotten.

9. RYAN BLANEY – 2278 POINTS (1 Win)
In fact, no one would be terribly surprised if either Brad or Ryan wins this weekend.

10. KYLE LARSON – 2256 POINTS
Too late for this year, but he keeps reminding us that there is more than one Kyle out there.

11. DENNY HAMLIN – 2252 POINTS
His final shot to keep his yearly win streak alive, and he can not be counted out.

12. CLINT BOWYER – 2242 POINTS (2 Wins)
Went from rating among the top eight to hanging on as a member of the dirty dozen.

13. AUSTIN DILLON – 2219 POINTS (1 Win)
Might not win this one, but he has done well in the next one.

14. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 2217 POINTS
The beginning of the end or just a blip on the radar?

15. ERIK JONES – 2207 POINTS (1 Win)
NASCAR has two guys with the same name, kind of. Is there room for an Eric one day?

16. ALEX BOWMAN – 2196 POINTS
Though he has done well, he still hasn’t made us forgot the name of the guy he replaced.

17. RYAN NEWMAN – 747 POINTS
No playoff run this year, but he still is the Hot Dog Eating Champion in four states.

18. RICKY STENHOUSE JR. – 680 POINTS
If you thought he was fired up at Phoenix, you should have seen his car.

19. PAUL MENARD – 680 POINTS
Last week at Phoenix he reminded me of the Arizona Cardinals. 29th place.

20. DANIEL SUAREZ – 667 POINTS
McMurray is just three points back. Neither has a ride for next season.

November 14, 2018
Kevin Harvick on Pole for Can-Am 500 at ISM Raceway

Kevin Harvick sneaks past Chase Elliott to take the pole in the penultimate race of the 2018 NASCAR Monster Energy Series season at ISM Raceway for the Can-Am 500 with a time of 25.836 seconds at 139.340 mph.

With the penalties from last weekend’s encumbered win at Texas Motor Speedway, Harvick’s usual crew chief, Rodney Childers, is serving a two-race suspension. Interim crew chief Tony Gibson is calling the shots for the No. 4 Stewart Haas Racing team. That didn’t faze Harvick one bit.

“It’s pretty awesome to see a group of people come together — old man Tony Gibson and Nick (DeFazio, interim car chief) — coming out to fill the gaps for the suspensions,” Harvick told NBCSN. “Like I told the radio a second ago, everybody on our Busch Light Ford has been there before and we know what we need to do. This is a great race track for us. I really wasn’t expecting that. Our cars are usually a lot better in race trim than in qualifying trim, and just got fortunate to hit a good lap right there and it came at a good time.”

Throughout the three stages, Harvick wasn’t always up toward the front. In fact, all eight of the Playoff drivers were spread out across the top 21 positions, but still advancing to the second round of qualifying. Matt Kenseth quietly ran fastest and was the only driver in the 138 mph speed bracket. Austin Dillon was second fastest, with Harvick as the first Playoff contender in third.

In Round 2, half of the Playoff drivers were eliminated, including the other three Stewart Haas drivers: Kurt Busch (14th), Clint Bowyer (16th) and Aric Almirola (18th). Martin Truex Jr. missed the final round of qualifying by only three-thousandths of a second. To put it in even further perspective, positions eight through sixteen were only separated by one-tenth of a second, as the fight for the final transfer spots were a tight battle as Elliott ran fastest in the second round.

“It was a battle,” said Truex, who was 20th-fastest in Friday’s practice. “Kind of par for the course for us here lately, so I say 13th is a pretty good starting spot for the day we’ve had. I really didn’t get a good crack at anything in practice and we didn’t end up having much time and we were pretty far off. Made some good gains for sure. I wish we could’ve ran again. I definitely feel like I could pick up some more. Car was just pretty tight, so we’ll start 13th and get to work tomorrow.”

In the final round, Harvick claimed his 25th career pole by holding off Elliott, who will be clawing for every point possible in Sunday’s race and try to steal a spot in the championship race at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ryan Blaney and Alex Bowman rounded out the top five.

“That’s not bad,” Blaney said with a shrug as he glanced at the speed charts. “We got better each round, which is good, so that was nice, but we just didn’t quite have the speed and obviously not pole speed, but it was good.”

Kyle Busch, Erik Jones, Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, Denny Hamlin, Paul Menard and Brad Keselowski completed the top 12 in the final round of qualifying.

Cody Ware, who crashed during Friday’s lone practice for the series, did not make a qualifying attempt in the Rick Ware Racing No. 51 Ford.

November 9, 2018
Hot 20 – Smokey just tagged the Bandit to make Phoenix a lot more interesting

If NASCAR was a certain 1977 hit movie, you could say that Sheriff Buford T. Justice finally got his hands on the Bandit. It might not have derailed the adventure, but there is a danger the Snowman might not be able to deliver that truckload of suds to their destination on time.

That quest could be spoiled by spoilers. Specifically, NASCAR tagged the team of Kevin Harvick with a top drawer penalty violating the rules that explicitly points out that spoilers must be used exactly as supplied from the manufacturer and not altered. Instead of getting that free pass to contend at Homestead, the boys are just three points in.

Gone are all the benefits of the win at Texas. No free pass, though Harvick does keep the guns and the hat. Gone are 40 of the sixty points he picked up in that race. Gone is crew chief Rodney Childers for the rest of the season. Gone is $75,000 from Childers’ pocket. Gone is car chief Robert Smith until the campaign is over. Stewart-Haas Racing will not appeal the penalties, as production manager Tony Gibson returns to the box he last sat atop a year ago, when he directed Kurt Busch to the 2017 Daytona 500 victory. With the decision, Busch now finds himself just three points out of the Homestead final four.

Post-race tear downs at the NASCAR Research and Development Center can be a real bitch. Ryan Blaney lost 20 points from Texas, along with crew chief Jeremy Bullins, who was fined $50,000, and car chief Kirk Almquist for the rest of the season. Same goes for Erik Jones, as crew chief Chris Gayle coughs up the same amount of cash and he joins car chief Jason Overstreet on the sidelines until the smoke clears in Florida.

Of course, neither of those rulings have anywhere close to the same impact as the hit taken by the No. 4 crew. It could all still end the same way most expect, with Logano joined by the Big Three at the big dance. Now, however, it will take a little more action before this movie runs the final credits.

In the words of Sheriff Justice, “What we’re dealing with here is a complete lack of respect for the law.” Well, message delivered.

Now it is time for the Bandit to keep his foot hard on the peddle, son, never mind them brakes. Let it all hang out ’cause you’ve got a run to make. Phoenix just got a lot more interesting.

1. JOEY LOGANO – ROUND VICTORY – 4119 Pts (7 Wins)
Shell Pennzoil is his Phoenix sponsor. At Homestead, maybe it should be Target.

2. KYLE BUSCH – 4128 POINTS (7 Wins)
Nothing has changed for him, other than there are now three opens spots instead of just two.

3. MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 4125 POINTS (4 Wins)
Do not expect him to go down this week without having vengeance in his heart for the next.

4. KEVIN HARVICK – 4103 Pts (8 Wins)
A nine-time Phoenix winner suddenly could sure use a 10th about now.

5. KURT BUSCH – 4100 POINTS (1 Win)
Would hate to break his brother’s heart but as for those other two…

6. CHASE ELLIOTT – 4086 POINTS (3 Wins)
Phoenix has been kind to him in the past. She needs to be downright romantic on Sunday.

7. ARIC ALMIROLA – 4068 POINTS (1 Win)
His schedule reads, “Win this week or destroy Logano next week.” Not sure about the word “or.”

8. CLINT BOWYER – 4052 POINTS (2 Wins)
If anyone needed a tinkered spoiler last week, it was him.

9. RYAN BLANEY – 2263 POINTS (1 Win)
I am not sure if being in danger of dropping to 10th in the standings is that big a deal.

10. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 2259 POINTS (3 Wins)
The Miller Lite Ford will look a lot like a giant pysanka this weekend.

11. DENNY HAMLIN – 2220 POINTS
Well, Texas sure sucked.

12. KYLE LARSON – 2211 POINTS
Tires. If Fred Flintstone ran Goodyear things might have gone differently.

13. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 2195 POINTS
Sometimes Jimmie screws up. Sometimes it is Chad. In Texas, it was all NASCAR.

14. ALEX BOWMAN – 2187 POINTS
A Tucson boy returns to Arizona.

15. ERIK JONES – 2184 POINTS (1 Win)
He probably would prefer to lose those 20 points rather than $50,000.

16. AUSTIN DILLON – 2184 POINTS (1 Win)
The winless streak has now reached 34.

17. RYAN NEWMAN – 721 POINTS
Are we done yet?

18. RICKY STENHOUSE JR. – 676 POINTS
You could say that Stenhouse was in the eighth fastest unpenalized car at Texas.

19. PAUL MENARD – 672 POINTS
Does not exactly have the biggest social media footprint.

20. DANIEL SUAREZ – 666 POINTS
Still nothing set for 2019.

November 7, 2018
Stenhouse Jr. Drives Fastenal Ford to an 11th- Place Finish at Texas

FORT WORTH, Texas (Nov. 4, 2018) – Ricky Stenhouse Jr. overcame a pit-road penalty to earn an 11th-place finish in Sunday’ Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway.

“Our Fastenal Ford was really strong all weekend,” Stenhouse said. “After leading final practice yesterday, I was really looking forward to the race. Luckily we were able to get back on the lead lap there at the end and be able to contend in the final green-white-checkered finish. Overall it was a good weekend for our No. 17 team.”

After barely missing the final round of qualifying on Friday, the two-time Xfinity Series Champion started the 334-lap race in the 15th position but quickly maneuvered his Fastenal Ford inside the top-10 by lap 10. When the competition yellow waved on lap 30 for rain overnight, Stenhouse was scored in the 10th position. After taking two tires, the Roush Fenway Racing driver lost a few positions when the remainder of the stage went caution free taking the green checkered in the 11th position.

The two-time Xfinity champion started stage two in the 10th position but dropped to 16th on the restart after being caught in the outside lane. Later in the run, Stenhouse bullied his way forward working his way inside the top-10 by lap 133. During a scheduled green flag pit-stop, the team was penalized with an uncontrolled tire forcing Stenhouse to serve a pass-thru penalty and costing him to lose a lap to the leaders. When the green checkered waved at the end of stage two, the Olive Branch, Miss. native was scored in the 20th position.

When the caution flag waved on lap 306, Stenhouse was scored in the lucky dog position allowing him to get back on the lead lap. When the caution flag waved sending the race into overtime, Stenhouse lined up in the 15th position for the final green white checkered picking up four positions in the closing laps to take the checkered flag in the 11th position.

Next weekend Stenhouse and the No. 17 team travel to ISM Raceway for the Can-Am 500. Race coverage begins at 2:30 pm ET on NBC.

November 4, 2018
Hot 20 – Martinsville and it is getting late, as those who matter are now down to eight

Then there were eight, as the surviving championship contenders take to the track this weekend at Martinsville. It is damn near over, but that overweight soprano has yet to warble, so we have a few notes to wait for between now and Homestead.

First, Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick are bound to be among the final four. Probably. Maybe. If they manage to record Top Ten finishes this Sunday, as well as at Texas and Phoenix, add a few stage points, then all will be fine. If. A blown engine. A failed part. A wreck. Now, that could change everything. Not much wiggle room, but those two boys have more than anyone.

Martin Truex Jr. is our defending champion on a team about to become a ghost after this season. He is 23 points to the good. That is almost enough for a free pass…for one race…almost.

We have been waiting to see which of the new generation would firmly put his foot down and emerge as a true star of the future. Chase Elliott has provided us with the answer. In claiming two of the past three, he is the gent in that final transfer spot. It is not by much. Three points. Three points can come and go in a lap.

Three hounds are chasing the fox. Clint Bowyer, Joey Logano, and Kurt Busch are tied for fifth. For them, everything will be a big thing. Qualifying. Stage points. Finishes. Everything.

Finally, there is Aric Almirola. There are no more Talladega experiences coming up. No teammates to take him down the yellow brick road. This week, especially, he is on his own. As he comes in nine points out, he has to prove he belongs in this company. This week. Next week. The following week. If he can do that, he will truly deserve to be in the hunt in mid-November at Homestead.

The third round of the playoffs begins this Sunday at Martinsville with eight men out to lay a claim on a championship.

1. KYLE BUSCH – 4055 POINTS (7 Wins)
The Big Three…

2. KEVIN HARVICK – 4054 POINTS (7 Wins)
…remain the Top Three…

3. MARTIN TRUEX, JR. – 4038 POINTS (4 Wins)
…but will there be room for all three when they arrive at Homestead?

4. CHASE ELLIOTT – 4018 POINTS (3 Wins)
Three wins in his last 11 starts mean the lad has finally arrived and is a contender.

5. CLINT BOWYER – 4015 POINTS (2 Wins)
Just four spots remain to be in that final run for the championship…

6. JOEY LOGANO – 4015 POINTS (1 Win)
…but should a couple of the boys down here claim a win…

7. KURT BUSCH – 4015 POINTS (1 Win)
…then all bets are off.

8. ARIC ALMIROLA – 4006 POINTS (1 Win)
Almirola will not be among them. I love Talladega, but it is not a true indicator of what is to come.

9. RYAN BLANEY – 2212 POINTS (1 Win)
Had a good day last week, but as things turned out he needed to sweep the stages or win.

10. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 2194 POINTS (3 Wins)
To be a Top Ten ranked driver these days one has to win, though sometimes three is not enough.

11. KYLE LARSON – 2178 POINTS
Even a Top Three finish proved too little too late for some.

12. DENNY HAMLIN – 2159 POINTS
A Fistful of Dollars and a Handful of Martinsville wins. It is never too late to be a winner.

13. AUSTIN DILLON – 2150 POINTS (1 Win)
Do you remember Daytona in February? Me neither.

14. ERIK JONES – 2148 POINTS (1 Win)
Jones is in a Toyota, one of the few who are. How does that bode for 2019?

15. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 2148 POINTS
Here is hoping for a 10th and final Jimmie-Chad Martinsville celebration.

16. ALEX BOWMAN – 2144 POINTS
Bowman drives a bowtie. Am I the only one seeing the advertising potential of this?

17. RYAN NEWMAN – 663 POINTS
Newman drives a bowtie. Next season, it will be a blue oval. At least it is not a Toyota.

18. RICKY STENHOUSE JR. – 632 POINTS
No sweat working with Stenhouse, but driving is an entirely different matter for Kasey Kahne.

19. PAUL MENARD – 630 POINTS
There was a Menard sighting at Kansas, but that ended in the middle of the second stage.

20. DANIEL SUAREZ – 627 POINTS
Former crew chief Scott Graves will join Newman with Roush next season.

October 24, 2018
Hot 20 – If viewership tanked for Talladega, imagine what the ratings for Kansas will be

Talladega was a ratings bust. Talladega. For fans who follow the sport, those four Stewart-Haas cars up front, doing what they had to do all day long, was something to behold. For those who simply tune in to watch incredible action, they had to wait for the final 20 laps for the payoff. However, they had to have tuned in to witness either. They did not even bother. That is troublesome.

Now, we have Kansas coming up on Sunday. Kansas. Winning the Hollywood Casino 400 will not exactly mean anything more than finishing first at some generically named Cup event that no one will remember in a few weeks. It has the marquee value of actress Lecy Goranson headlining a major Hollywood production. None. In fact, Charlotte’s roval and Talladega were the last events of the season able to stand on their own. Do not expect anyone new to watch these final four races. Zip.

NBC did its part. Bringing Dale Earnhardt Jr. into the mix along with Jeff Burton, Steve Letarte, Rick Allen and the rest of the talented crew finally gave us a broadcast that is interesting to tune to watch on its own. If you want to learn stuff, they can educate. Maybe it is the audience that has changed, that has become dimwitted, unable to focus, unable or unwilling to learn, complaining about the stupidest things for the stupidest of reasons. Maybe.

Then again, old-time fans have been thinking that for years. Maybe decades. Stock cars are no longer stock. The champion is no longer determined by being the best over the season. The playoff concept was introduced. Stage points. Selling out tradition (the brief termination of the Southern 500, the Firecracker 400, the World 600) in favor of commercialization. Maybe both NASCAR and what today constitutes many of its potential fans, the society as a whole, has changed to the point the sport is unable to keep them in the seats or sitting in front of their televisions. Maybe too many would rather let someone else do their driving, or some artificial intelligence, than sitting behind the wheel of a car themselves to enjoy the experience of hitting the open road. Maybe.

If you are not a fan, a follower of the action, someone who would love to have the talent to be able to hit the track themselves, maybe you just do not get it. I feel the same way about soccer and basketball. At least I have some ideas as to changes that might interest me in the former. Get rid of the off-side rule, push penalty shots much further back than just 12 yards out, and banning the effeminate diving by grown men hitting the ground over nothing more than a fart might give me some reason to watch the action. Unfortunately, I am fresh out of ideas as to what NASCAR needs to do to attract former and future fans back to their venues and telecasts. If the potential of mayhem on every lap does not do it, I do not know what will.

I know Kansas, on its own, is not part of the answer. What is?

1. ARIC ALMIROLA – ROUND WIN – 3087 Pts – 1 Win
I wish to thank my teammates for all of their support.

2. CHASE ELLIOTT – ROUND WIN – 3066 Pts – 2 Wins
Kansas is next, but he is already preparing for Martinsville, Texas, and Phoenix.

3. KEVIN HARVICK – 3128 POINTS – 7 Wins
Put the pedal to the metal but he needed a chance to coast for a few laps.

4. KYLE BUSCH – 3111 POINTS – 7 Wins
Was in self-preservation mode until the end, when they finally got him.

5. JOEY LOGANO – 3104 POINTS – 1 Win
If he should pick up some stage points and a decent finish, he should be fine.

6. KURT BUSCH – 3095 POINTS – 1 Win
I loved the Talladega finish but as for Kurt, not so much.

7. CLINT BOWYER – 3086 POINTS – 2 Wins
Roar that engine and click those ruby red slippers as the lad is back in Kansas.

8. MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 3083 POINTS – 4 Wins
How he wound up above the cut off line had a lot to do with fuel…or lack of it for others.

9. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 3065 POINTS – 3 Wins
Those three wins mean nothing coming to Sunday. A fourth would be very, very nice.

10. RYAN BLANEY – 3061 POINTS – 1 Win
A very bad day for Bowyer or Truex would be helpful…not wishing bad on anyone, but…

11. KYLE LARSON – 3047 POINTS
Being creative with repairs cost Larson 10 points. Now he is in Bowman country.

12. ALEX BOWMAN – 3015 POINTS
A win by Bowman this Sunday would top even what Almirola managed to do last weekend.

13. DENNY HAMLIN – 2136 POINTS
Being the best of the rest is his remaining goal.

14. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 2128 POINTS
Jimmie and Chad are down to four races to extend that string of seasons with at least one win.

15. AUSTIN DILLON – 2124 POINTS – 1 Win
Some ran out of gas on Sunday. Dillon’s quest ran out of gas a few weeks ago.

16. ERIK JONES – 2108 POINTS – 1 Win
We need the likes of Jones and 17-year old Hailie Deegan to become future marquee attractions.

17. RYAN NEWMAN – 641 POINTS
Had a better season than some, but hopes for better yet with Roush in 2019.

18. PAUL MENARD – 619 POINTS
Returned from two laps down to record a Top Ten at Talladega.

19. RICKY STENHOUSE JR. – 615 POINTS
Third best last week as some of the season’s also-rans finished their runs in lofty positions.

20. DANIEL SUAREZ – 614 POINTS
Ranked 20th last season. Ranked 20th this season. If nothing else, the lad is consistent.

October 17, 2018
Hot 20 – Not everyone loves Talladega, but not everyone is normal

Talladega. Do you need any more incentive to watch the action this Sunday? It is Talladega, dammit!

Flying around in aircraft formation inches apart at 200 mph. That would be good enough to force me into the Depends, especially if I were in the passenger seat. It is a track that causes skid marks to appear everywhere. One wobble, one mistake, and a whole bunch of folks find themselves in a world of hurt. It does not have to happen. Just the threat that it could, on each and every lap, is enough to watch, to wonder, and to marvel at the skills of the boys going round and round.

Just the nature of the beast allows almost all to hold out hope that victory could be their own, legends and no frill competitors alike. Many of the greatest names in the sport have won at least three times there. Bobby Allison. Brad Keselowski. Buddy Baker. Cale Yarborough, Dale Earnhardt. Dale Earnhardt Jr. Darrell Waltrip. Davey Allison. David Pearson. Jeff Gordon. Joey Logano. How sweet it would be to be included among those names.

More than a few have had that honor over the past 50 years. The big names boycotted the first race in 1969. Too dangerous, they said. It gave Richard Brickhouse his lone Cup victory. Peter Hamilton had four career wins, two with his sweep in 1970. James Hylton won twice during his career, including the summer of 1972. Dick Brooks claimed his one and only a year later. Same track, same solitary milestone for Lonnie Pond, Ron Bouchard and Phil Parsons.

Talladega is a track that plays no favorites. A legend or a no name can claim victory, and both can expect one hell of a ride at any time on any corner for any reason. To you, an Elliott could just mean a boy who once played with a funny looking alien fellow and ate Reese’s Pieces. Or a Busch is just a cold beer. Or someone named Kyle must mean a chap who does rap (never heard of the guy, personally). None of that would detract from your Talladega experience.

If you base your television viewing on how many times it causes you to exclaim “Holy Crap!”, might I suggest Talladega.

1. CHASE ELLIOTT – 1 ROUND WIN (3056 Pts – 2 Wins)
It is time for Bill to remove the training wheels. The boy no longer needs them.

2. KEVIN HARVICK – 3101 POINTS (7 Wins)
Harvick just hired my 85-year old mother-in-law to join his pit crew. She starts Sunday.

3. KYLE BUSCH – 3096 POINTS (7 Wins)
The knob is gone next year and, no, I am not referring to the driver.

4. MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 3069 POINTS (4 Wins)
Along with Blaney, the Most Popular Driver contenders include him and the names listed above.

5. JOEY LOGANO – 3064 POINTS (1 Win)
Lately, he has been a Top Five guy at Talladega, and that is something he would like to continue.

6. KURT BUSCH – 3054 POINTS (1 Win)
Surviving the Roval and Talladega is not an easy thing to do, but here is hoping.

7. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 3054 POINTS (3 Wins)
Almirola’s drive to Victory Lane took a detour into Keselowski…and stopped there.

8. RYAN BLANEY – 3043 POINTS (1 Win)
Blaney’s Roval win was no accident, but it sure was assisted by one.

9. ARIC ALMIROLA – 3033 POINTS
Can he bounce back after Dover wreck? Sure, he bounced off Keselowski, didn’t he?

10. CLINT BOWYER – 3033 POINTS (2 Wins)
Feels sick about ruining the day for Almirola. Feels even sicker about ruining his own.

11. KYLE LARSON – 3031 POINTS
Good luck and determination got him here, but he will need more than that to continue.

12. ALEX BOWMAN – 3009 POINTS
Sometimes you do not want anything to do with Aric and Brad. Not a damn thing.

13. AUSTIN DILLON – 2101 POINTS (1 Win)
Avoid a wreck and he just might finish…but that has not happened at Talladega for a while.

14. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 2098 POINTS
I am loaning Jimmie my 2008 Chrysler Pacifica so he can at least get his parade laps in.

15. DENNY HAMLIN – 2094 POINTS
The way he is driving he obviously does not know he has been eliminated from contention.

16. ERIK JONES – 2079 POINTS (1 Win)
“How cool would it be to own this cardboard cutout of me in your house?” Not for a grown man.

17. RYAN NEWMAN – 629 POINTS
Just killin’ time.

18. DANIEL SUAREZ – 593 POINTS
About losing his ride, “When you don’t have anything good to say, it’s better not to say anything.”

19. PAUL MENARD – 591 POINTS
Some drivers worry about such things as sponsorship. I wonder if Paul understands why?

20. RICKY STENHOUSE JR. – 581 POINTS
At the moment, he is having a better season than McMurray. Hey, at least it is something.

October 10, 2018