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Matt Kenseth: The Man To Beat In 2013

Yes, Jimmie Johnson has a considerable margin over the field right now (44pts) but Matt Kenseth who sits 3rd in the standings has put up performances as good as if not better than the 5-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion. Through just 11 races, he’s led 781 laps which is already more than 9 of his 13 previous Cup seasons including his 2003 championship run. Kenseth’s three victories already matches his 2011 and 2012 totals and don’t be surprised if he wins well over five races before 2013 is finished. It’s astonishing that Matt has competed for the win and led laps in most of the races so far this year and with a brand new team; that’s very impressive. They’ve ran well at short tracks, plate tracks, cookie cutters and one milers proving that they will be a threat everywhere and anywhere they go this year.

In the Daytona 500, no one could touch his No.20 that led the pack for nearly half the race and it looked like he would win his 3rd Daytona 500 with little challenge from behind. That is before his TRD engine let go with about 50 laps remaining. He ran inside the top 10 the whole race at Phoenix, won Las Vegas, crashed out of Bristol while running 2nd and after leading 85 laps, finished in the top 10 again at Cali, led a career high 96 laps at Martinsville, finished 12th at Texas, led over half the race at Kansas in route to the victory, finished 7th at Richmond after leading 140 laps, dominated 3/4ths of the Talladega event before being shuffled back to 8th in the closing laps, and now he is a winner of the Southern 500. We can’t forget about how he’s been qualifying either. Matt holds a lot of records for being the deepest starting position of a race winner and he isn’t known for winning very many poles. So far this season, he’s started inside the top 10 seven times and has won the pole twice.

On top of all their on track dominance, the team is also winning off the track. NASCAR issued one of the largest penalties in history to Kenseth and JGR when a connecting rod from their winning Kansas engine was found to be 2.7 grams underweight. They stripped them of 50 championship points, fined them $200,000, suspended crew chief Jason Ratcliff for six races, suspended Joe Gibbs’ owner’s license, took the chase bonus points that he would get for the win away and refused to count the pole towards the 2014 Sprint Unlimited eligibility. Well, the team made a statement the following race winning the Richmond pole and then focused on appealing the harsh punishment. The nearly unprecedented penalty was reduced significantly by the panel and NASCAR was very displeased with the outcome.

“While we are disappointed in today’s outcome, we stand firmly behind our inspection process. In violations such as these, we have no other recourse in the reinforcement process than to penalize the team owner and team members. That’s how our system works…..You’re not going to agree with everything, and today is one we disagree with. We feel like when we write a penalty and write a rules violation, there needs to be something behind it.” -Kerry Tharp

JGR took on NASCAR and won, a rare accomplishment for anyone in the garage area and something not many can say. They came to Darlington just a few days later with their chests pumped out and a chip on their shoulder ready to take on the notorious Lady in Black. The win marks Kenseth’s first in the Southern 500 and was helped by some bad luck biting teammate Kyle Busch in the closing laps but it was nonetheless a monumental victory for the team. With their confidence at an all-time high and some bad fast racing machines underneath a championship caliber driver, Matt Kenseth and team looks to set the world on fire as NASCAR races into the summer months.

With the way they’ve been running, I would not discount Kenseth getting to 10 wins by the end of 2013. He has always been a formidable opponent and his Achilles heel (qualifying) no longer exists since he’s joined Joe Gibbs Racing. He’s amazingly consistent, can close the deal, is now able to start up front and does it with little drama or controversy. That last quality hasn’t been seen with a JGR driver since the days of Bobby Labonte. This already strong team has bolstered their lineup with one of the best drivers in the garage and I think this unshakable team will be the ones to beat as the season progresses. Right now, we have some pretenders mixed in with the real contenders but the cream will rise to the top as it always does. By the time we reach the season finale at Homestead, there will only be a few left standing to fight tooth and nail for the Cup. I can assure you that Matt Kenseth and Joe Gibbs Racing will be one of those few men left and in fact, they will probably be the one that everybody is chasing.

May 13, 2013
Denny Hamlin is back Full-time for the Bojangles’ Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway

Denny Hamlin is scheduled to return to racing full time Saturday evening at Darlington Raceway. He has no backup plan for the Bojangles’ Southern 500 and is determined to run the entire race.

Hamlin has not competed in a full race since March 24^th when he suffered a compression fracture in his lower back. He has missed four races and drove only 23 laps last week at Talladega. Hamlin is currently 31^st in the Sprint Cup point standings.

“I don’t think there’s any doubt we’ll go the whole way,” Hamlin said. “I stayed in the car for about an hour and a half straight with no issues during practice. Nothing was uncomfortable, nothing hurt or nothing was sore, so I’m pretty comfortable I can make it the three or three and a half hours that it’s going to take to run the race.”

He has no illusions about the difficulties he will face in his first full race since March.

“It will be a challenge,” Hamlin admitted, “because this is one of the toughest, physically challenging races that we have; not only by distance but the amount of mental focus that you have to have during this race is tough. You’re running right next to the wall and the margin for error is zero.”

Hamlin also believes that with a couple of wins and a little luck that that he can get into the top-20 before the Chase begins.

“There’s nothing that wins can’t fix,” he insists. “That’s the bottom line. If we put ourselves in position and win a race here and there, more than likely if we win a couple of races then we’re going to be top-20 in points, I would think.”

Hamlin continued, “You’ve got to have things go your way; that’s the bottom line to it. A lot of this sport is based on luck and we’re going to need some.”

Hamlin has already made a good start with a strong qualifying lap and will begin the race in the sixth position. NASCAR pre-race coverage starts at 6 p.m. on Fox. The green flag for the Bojangles’ Southern 500 is scheduled to drop at approximately 7 p.m.

May 11, 2013
Previewing The Bojangles Southern 500 At Darlington Raceway

This weekend, NASCAR heads to the track nicknamed “too tough to tame” and rightly so. Darlington Raceway is a 1 mile egg-shaped oval nestled in a small town in South Carolina and once a year, NASCAR awakens this legendary speedway and will adorn the lady with her signature black walls before the race is done. Darlington was NASCAR’s first paved speedway hosting its first event back in 1950 where 1956 USAC Stock Car Champion and Indy 500 competitor Johnny Mantz won in what would be his only Cup win. He was running off road tires starting the race 43rd and although Mantz was slow in time, everyone else tore up their tires as he rode around with his more durable ones and cruised to victory by over 9 laps. In fact, so many tires were being torn up that some crews raided the parking lots taking tires from cars owned by race fans.

This track has a quite a history and is one of the most psychically demanding venues on the schedule. The two sets of corners offer a unique challenge to drivers considering that they are very different from one another. As these brave racers roar around the track at over 180mph, they run literally inches away from the wall and most hit it at least once during the 500 mile race. Harold Brasington had a vision to design a speedway that would rival Indianapolis and at the team of its construction, stock car racing had never competed on such a circuit. Darlington quickly became an iconic track that every driver wanted to have on their resume. The Generation-6 racecar gets to take on The Lady in Black Saturday night and you can be assured that it will be wild as these drivers try to throw these cars around at 200mph while remaining on the edge of control and inches away from disaster.

Darlington Raceway Track Data

Track Size: 1.366-miles

Banking/Turns 1 & 2: 25 degrees

Banking/Turns 3 & 4: 23 degrees

Banking/Frontstretch: 6 degrees

Banking/Backstretch: 6 degrees

Frontstretch Length: 1,229 feet

Backstretch Length: 1,229 feet

Race Length: 367 laps / 501.3 miles

Capacity: 75,000

Track History & Records

Inaugural Race Winner: Johnny Mantz by 9 laps over Fireball Roberts

Most Wins By a Driver: David Pearson (10)

Most Wins By a Team: Hendrick Motorsports (14)

Most Wins By a Manufacturer: Chevrolet (40)

Youngest Race Winner: Kyle Busch at 23 years, 0 months and 8 days in May of 2008

Oldest Race Winner: Harry Gant at 51 years, 7 months and 22 days in September of 1991

Least Amount of Cautions: None in September of 1963 (Data from 1 event is missing)

Most Amount of Cautions: 17 in May of 2009 (Data from 1 event is missing)

– This will be the 110th NSCS race held at Darlington Raceway

– 700 drivers competed at Darlington and 45 of them have won at least once

– Richard Petty has made more starts at Darlington than any other driver with 65

Darlington Qualifying Stats

Track Record: Kasey Kahne with a lap time of 27.131 (181.254mph) in May of 2011

Youngest Pole Winner: Kurt Busch at 23 years, 0 months and 29 days in September of 2001

Oldest Pole Winner: David Pearson at 47 years, 8 months and 15 days in September of 1982

Inaugural Pole Winner: Curtis Turner with a speed 82.034mph in 1950

– 47 drivers have won poles at Darlington led by David Pearson with 12

– 36 of the 109 NSCS races at Darlington have been won from the front row: 19 from the pole and 17 from second-place (33.0%)

-94 of the 109 NSCS races at Darlington have been won from a top-10 starting position (86.2%)

– 6 of the 109 NSCS race sat Darlington have been won from a starting position outside the top 20 (5.6%)

– The deepest in the field that a race winner has started was 43rd by Johnny Mantz in 1950

Top 10 Best Driver Ratings at Darlington

1.) Jeff Gordon………………………… 111.8

2.) Greg Biffle………………………….. 110.5

3.) Denny Hamlin………………………. 109.5

4.) Jimmie Johnson…………………… 105.7

5.) Kyle Busch…………………………. 102.3

6.) Kasey Kahne………………………… 98.3

7.) Ryan Newman……………………….. 97.6

8.) Martin Truex Jr………………………. 95.2

9.) Carl Edwards………………………… 93.9

10.) Dale Earnhardt Jr…………………… 90.4

Best Average Finish Among Active Drivers

1.) Denny Hamlin——5.9

2.) Jimmie Johnson—9.1

3.) Brad Keselowski—-9.2

4.) Martin Truex Jr.—-11.3

5.) Jeff Gordon———11.8

Most Wins Among Active Drivers

1.) Jeff Gordon———7

2.) Jimmie Johnson—3

3.) Mark Martin——–2

4.) Greg Biffle———–2

5.) Jeff Burton———-2

Most Top 5’s Among Active Drivers

1.) Jeff Gordon———-18

2.) Mark Martin——–17

3.) Jeff Burton———-8

4.) Jimmie Johnson—-7

5.) Ryan Newman——-7

Most Top 10’s Among Active Drivers

1.) Mark Martin——26

2.) Jeff Gordon——-21

3.) Jeff Burton——–16

4.) Bobby Labonte—11

5.) Tony Stewart——11

Most Laps Led Among Active Drivers

1.) Jeff Gordon———–1,720

2.) Jeff Burton———–817

3.) Mark Martin———801

4.) Greg Biffle————713

5.) Jimmie Johnson—-543

Jeff Gordon, Jeff Burton and Mark Martin have a ton of experience at Darlington and all three have also won at this track multiple times. Darlington is a place where you must race the track, not your competitors and veterans like those three are aces at doing that. Conserving your equipment for the end is key to staying in contention as the laps wind down. Jimmie Johnson has also had a lot of success at this legendary speedway winning three times with the most recent victory coming last year. In a 500 mile grueling race like the Southern 500, veterans have the advantage but that doesn’t mean the young guns have never made some noise. Kyle Busch won this race back in 2008 at just 23 years of age and in 2011, then 27 year old Regan Smith pulled off the upset taking Furniture Row Racing to victory lane for the first time.

The Lady in Black has never been very kind to 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup runner-up Clint Bowyer who has just one top 10 in 7 starts (9th) and four finishes of 23rd or worse. His former teammate Kevin Harvick has also struggled to find success at Darlington never winning and posting a top 10 result just once since 2004 and that was his 6th place finish in 2010. He rarely leads laps and an average finish of 18.8 shows just how difficult of a time he has had here. This track eats up tires and pushes drivers to the limit and sometimes over the edge. There have been post-race altercations in both events the past two years and a Busch brother was involved in each incident. Speeds are nearing the 200mph mark in the Gen-6 which is unprecedented at this 1.3 mile oval. It was purpose built for speeds around 100mph back in the 50’s and the high banked part of the track we race now was actually used as a runoff area. If there wasn’t enough incentive to win the Southern 500, this is the final opportunity for someone to win their way into the All-Star Race with the exception of the Sprint Showdown. It’s sure to be exciting as the best stock car racing has to offer takes on the track too tough to tame this Saturday night!

May 10, 2013
Bobby Labonte’s Career Is One of Trials, Triumphs and Raw Deals

Bobby Labonte made his 700th career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) start at Talladega Superspeedway this past Sunday leading laps under green before being swept up in a late race wreck finishing 20th. Today is the champ’s 49th birthday and I thought a good way to celebrate it would be to remember all of his great NASCAR accomplishments. His Cup debut came back in 1991 driving the No.14 Slim Jim Oldsmobile for his father, Bob Labonte at Dover. He finished 34th after starting 33rd. He won the NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) title that year and just about won it again in 1992 losing by 3 points to Joe Nemechek.

His big break came in 1993 getting a ride with Bill Davis Racing in the No.22. He finished a respectable 19th in the standings with a best finish of 7th and a pole at Richmond. In 1994, he had a career best result of 5th at Michigan and finished the season 21st in points. With Dale Jarrett leaving Joe Gibbs Racing, Bobby got a chance to pilot the No.18 in 1995. It was a match made in heaven and the true potential of Bobby Labonte was about to be witnessed. He won the Coke 600 and swept the Michigan races in route to a solid 10th place points finish leading nearly 300 laps and turning a lot of heads. People realized very quickly that this guy was the real deal as the success continued into 1996 and beyond.

Bobby had a decent season in ’96 but failed to win a race until the final event of the year at Atlanta Motor Speedway. His older brother Terry was trying to win the championship while Bobby starting on pole for the event. In one of the more memorable moments in NASCAR history, Bobby crossed the line winning his 4th NSCS race while Terry finished 5th winning his second championship. The two celebrated together and the family was ecstatic. A few years later, it was Bobby’s turn to hoist the hardware.

After winning 5 races and finishing runner-up to Dale Jarrett in 1999, Bobby was determined to win the Winston Cup (now Sprint Cup) title. He won 4 more races in 2000 including the highly sought after Brickyard 400 trophy. He battled fiercely with 1989 NSCS champion Rusty Wallace for the victory and finally made his way by with 14 laps remaining. Bobby went on to win the title by a massive margin of 265 points over arguably the greatest stock car driver that ever lived, Dale Earnhardt. He was unable to defend his title in 2001 and what he is most remembered for that year has to be his scary crash at Talladega. Bobby was trying to work the high lane battling for the win with Dale Jr. on the final lap when Bobby Hamilton attempted to make a move underneath the No.18. The Bobby’s made contact and Labonte was sent over on his lid while 20 other cars piled into the massive wreck.

Labonte was unharmed thankfully and soldiered on to a 6th place finish in the standings and winning the IROC title. 2002 was a tough year for the champ; in fact it was his worst showing since 1994 when he was with Davis. Although he won a race at Martinsville, he only managed to get a 16th place points finish posting just 7 top 10’s. 2003 was better for him making his way back into the top 10 in the standings (8th) and winning two more races. The 2003 finale at Homestead was a significant one for NASCAR being the final Winston Cup sponsored race. Bill Elliott looked to have it in the bag until a flat tire with half a lap to go handed the victory to Bobby Labonte. Bobby had now won at least 1 race every year for the past 9 which is obviously an impressive feat.

Unfortunately, we are nearing the 10 year anniversary of that win and Bobby has yet to visit victory lane since. He has come so close so many times but win number 22 eludes him. In 2004, Jimmie Johnson narrowly beat him off pit road at Darlington and even though he had a faster car, Labonte was unable to get around the No.48 who won the race. He also finished 2nd to Rusty Wallace that year at Martinsville on his way to a 12th place finish in the standings. 2005 ended up being the worst of Bobby’s career up to that point finishing 24th in the standings while his teammate Tony Stewart won the championship.

Photo Credit: Chuck Burton/AP

On a very strange night at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 2005, Bobby almost won the Coke 600. It happened to be the 10 year anniversary of Bobby’s first ever NSCS win at that very track almost to the very day. The race had a record 22 cautions and went past midnight. Tempers flared between multiple drivers and big wrecks were the story until Joe Nemechek found himself leading with 10 to go. Suddenly, he crashed and Jimmie Johnson narrowly avoided him as he came back down the track. Bobby Labonte was now leading the race driving the FedEx paint scheme because Jason Leffler who was supposed to have that sponsor missed the race. The FOX commentators talked to Bobby under caution and you could tell that the tension was high and he was anxious to get going. The race became a 5 lap knock-down drag-out fight to the finish between Bobby Labonte and Jimmie Johnson who had much fresher tires and much faster car. Bobby held him off even when JJ made a move to the inside on the final lap. They drove off into turn 3 and it seemed Bobby might win until Johnson got alongside him running the high line. It was a drag race to the line and in a spectacular photo finish, Jimmie Johnson defeated Labonte by .027 hundredths. In frustration, Bobby kicked the side of his car knowing that he might never get a chance like that again.

At the conclusion of 2005, he left Gibbs and joined the legendary Petty Enterprises team trying to bring them back to their former glory. He almost did nearly winning Martinsville in a thrilling late race battle between Hamlin, Labonte and Johnson. He gave the team its best points finish in 7 years finishing 21st and improving to 18th in 2007. In 2008, Bobby signed a 4 year extension with Petty and this is the part where I start talking about raw deals. Right before Christmas, he was released from the team and they merged with Gillet-Evernham. A former champion of our sport who poured his heart and soul into that No.43 team sat there ride-less. Fortunately, he got a car in late January driving for Hall Of Fame Racing which teamed up with Yates. At Las Vegas, the car was blistering fast and Bobby battled for the lead with Kyle Busch late in the race. The caution flew, pit stops were made and bad luck bit Bobby once again. He was blocked in his pit stall costing him multiple spots forcing him to restart around 8th or 9th. He drove through the field and was actually 2 tenths quicker than race winner Kyle Busch on the final lap in traffic but he ran out of time finishing 5th.

Victory had been in Labonte’s reach yet again before slipping through his fingers at the last second. Later that year, he got screwed (for lack of a better term) by his team when they replaced him mid-season with Erik Darnell who brought sponsorship. Bobby ran for TRG finishing 10th at Talladega; the best finish ever for that team. In 2010, he joined them full-time and ran the 24 Hours of Daytona nearly winning that historic race before the car ran out of fuel 3 laps ahead of the 2nd place car costing them the win. May 16th, 2010 was a sad day for Bobby Labonte fans everywhere when he pulled into the garage on lap 65 at Dover International Speedway. He didn’t have a mechanical issue, he was start and parking. A former NASCAR Sprint Cup, Nationwide and IROC champion was parking his car early in a race for a $75,000 pay day. He left the team soon after and drove for many different teams the remainder of the year. The teams included Robby Gordon, Phoenix Racing and Stavola-Labonte Racing which was c0-owned by his older brother. It was the first time he ever went a season without a top 10 with a best finish of 16th.

Photo Credit: Todd Warshaw/Getty Images

In 2011, he joined JTG-Daugherty Racing where he remains to this day. In his very first race with them, he had another chance at victory lane. It wasn’t the Coke 600, Martinsville, Darlington or Las Vegas though…..it was the 53rd running of the Daytona 500. He shoved rookie Trevor Bayne far out in front of the field with half a lap to go but as he got ready to make his move to try to steal the win, the Fords of Carl Edwards and David Gilliland crashed the party pushing Bobby back to 4th as they raced to the line. He was visibly disappointed following the race after watching yet another win pass him by. In 2012, he had his best season in 4 years finishing 23rd in the standings. So far in 2013, Bobby has led 5 laps and posted a best finish of 15th at the Daytona 500.

From hoisting the championship trophy in three different series to start and parking, Bobby Labonte’s career has been full of many ups and downs. He has fought through all the adversity though and continues to race on hoping to one day win that 22nd NSCS race. There is a contingent of people out that that feel the need to criticize Bobby saying that he’s washed up and needs to retire but let me tell you how ignorant that statement really is. Since leaving Joe Gibbs Racing, Bobby has given teams such as Hall of Fame Racing, Petty Enterprises, TRG and JTG some of the best runs of their existence or in quite some time. If you put him in a top tier ride, he will perform. Champions don’t forget how to drive a racecar and this champion could be a contender again in faster equipment. He seems content though using his experience to try to help JTG build their program and there is nothing wrong with that. He is a great person and has proven that he belongs in NASCAR and should be allowed to race for as long as he pleases without anyone judging him or telling him what to do. NASCAR needs more drivers like Bobby Labonte and he deserves respect for what his done; not criticism. Lastly, I’d like to say congrats on your 700th start Bobby and good luck in final 26 races of 2013!

May 8, 2013
The Front Row Motorsports Story: Giving Up Wasn’t An Option

Front Row Motorsports (FRM) has competed in 511 NASCAR sanctioned events over the last eight years and on Sunday night with the sun setting in the background; they did what many found inconceivable winning a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) race in an FRM 1-2 finish! It’s an amazing example of David versus Goliath (In this case, two David’s) and NASCAR hasn’t seen an upset like this in quite some time. We all know what happened late Sunday night at Talladega Superspeedway but do you know the rest of the story? Do you know about all the adversity and the failures this team faced and had to persevere through to get to this moment of triumph? Well, you’re about to.

Bob Jenkins is the owner of Front Row Motorsports and funds his cars mostly through the money he makes from his many restaurant franchises that he owns such as Taco Bell, Long John Silver’s and A&W. He teamed up with Jimmy Means to form Means-Jenkins Racing in 2004 before Bob took full ownership the following year. With Stanton Barrett as his driver, Jenkins made his NSCS debut as the sole owner of a team at Bristol in 2005. Stanton started the race 23rd but did not finish bringing home a 41st place result. The team came from very humble beginnings and looked to be one of those little teams that would just fade away over time. Let me tell you this, Bob Jenkins had no intentions of going anywhere except for victory lane. The team battled through some unimaginable odds and kept fighting no matter how bleak the outcome looked.

Getty Images

They pushed through every 40th place finish and kept their heads held high knowing that if they wanted it bad enough and if they worked hard enough, that one day they would succeed. In their first four years of competition, they posted 15 finishes of 40th or worse, 16 DNF’s and a best result of 20th in 34 races. The team also tried out Nationwide in 2008 finding no success. FRM ran their first full-time NSCS season in 2009 with John Andretti behind the wheel. Their best result was a 16th at Loudon in route to a 36th place points finish. In 2010, they expanded their operation running two full-time cars and a 3rd for 21 races. They also made the switch to Ford’s in preparation for the Daytona 500. Kevin Conway, Travis Kvapil and David Gilliland piloted their cars and all three drivers led laps during the year. The cars finished 33rd, 34th and 36th in the owners standing which may not sound great but with the top 35 rule (and a couple cars ahead of them disappearing before 2011), all three cars were automatically locked into the first five races of 2011 which was a huge accomplishment for FRM.

Without having to worry about qualifying, Front Row was able to focus on strengthening the team as a whole instead of searching for a way to go fast for two laps. The 2011 Daytona 500 didn’t start off well for them with 2 of their three cars getting swept up in an early wreck. The No.38 of David Gilliland was the only FRM driver left and he made his small team proud as he came roaring down the backstretch on the final lap running down the leaders at a high rate of speed. Bobby Labonte pushed leader Trevor Bayne into turn three but Gilliland and Edwards closed in fast overtaking Labonte and making it a Ford 1-2-3. David finished 3rd marking the first ever top 5 finish for FRM. Their best result prior to that race was a 14th back in 2010. Later on that same year at Talladega, Gilliland scored another top 10 finish ending up 9th. He capped off the year with a respectable 30th place finish in the standings which was FRM’s best at the time.

2011 was a big year for the team scoring their first top 5 and top 10 finishes and putting two cars out on the track almost every single week. At the July race in Daytona, Gilliland finished a solid 16th while Roush-Fenway Racing’s (RFR) David Ragan won his first ever race at the Cup level. Ragan and Jenkins had no idea at the time that their fates would intertwine just a few months later. Ragan was released from RFR at the end of 2011 and was rideless until the opportunity to drive the No.34 for Jenkins came about. In 2012, they had two cars run every race on the schedule and a 3rd ran all but six. Ragan had two impressive runs of 4th and 7th both coming at Talladega….perhaps an omen of what was to come less than a year later? In the off season, Inc. Magazine named Front Row Motorsports as No.800 on their list of the 5,000 fastest growing companies and this little team that was progressively getting bigger and bigger was starting to turn some heads.

NASCAR’s new Gen-6 car put a strain on all the smaller teams who had to spend a lot of money building new cars but FRM persevered once again and showed up to Daytona with three brand new Ford Fusions. On lap 139, disaster struck for the team as they looked on in horror as all three of their cars piled into a wreck in turn 1. They were all damaged beyond repair posting DNF’s and finishing 35th, 38th and 40th. It was a massive blow to this team that had worked so hard to construct these new cars hoping to build on the momentum gained from 2011 and 2012. If that wasn’t bad enough, they destroyed two more cars in wrecks at Phoenix the very next week.

Photo Credit: George Diaz/Orlando Sentinel

The team arrived at Talladega Superspeedway with an intense feeling of trepidation knowing that their fleet of cars could be wiped out in an instant just like they were in Daytona. They dodged the massive 16 car crash early on in the race and when rain struck with 60 to go, it looked like the race was over but after a 3 hour rain delay, they went back racing. A second big wreck erupted in front the three drivers with just a handful of laps remaining. Gilliland and Ragan dodged the flipping No.78 of Kurt Busch by taking their cars to the apron as the spinning car of Jeff Gordon threw mud and grass everywhere. Josh Wise on the other hand was surrounded by smoke and spinning racecars but he somehow emerged from the carnage unharmed. The race became a 2 lap scramble to the finish as darkness crept over the light-less track.

Ragan restarted 10th, Gilliland 11th and Wise 14th. Josh went up the track with flat tire in the first corner but was able to limp home to a 19th place finish; the best of his NSCS career. The two David’s took the snarling pack of racecars head-on as they cut their way through the center of it. They passed the likes of Gordon, Kenseth and Johnson as they charged to the front of the field. With the titans of the sport all around them, this little team did not back down and fought their way to 2nd and 3rd with half a lap to go. The No.99 of Carl Edwards was the only driver that stood in their way and in a heart stopping moment, Ragan got sideways at 190mph and just about put it in the fence but thankfully, kept it straight. He dove underneath Edwards with the pedal through the floor and the No.38 followed.

Gilliland shoved with all his might and as Edwards made contact with the right rear of Ragan’s Ford. David Ragan drove across the track blocking a wall of cars hell bent on taking the victory away from him as the field roared through the tri-oval. He drove back down to the yellow line and began to throw sparks as his No.34 scraped the track with left side. With cars slamming into each other behind him with sparks and debris flying, David Ragan stunned the racing community and won the race! David Gilliland brought home 2nd as the crowd screamed in utter shock and amazement at this spectacular showing by Front Row Motorsports. Bob Jenkins’ 8 year struggle to win in NASCAR was over, now it’s time to go do it again. He made it this far by being smart, calculated and not making any imprudent decisions along the way.

Their battle is by no means over though, this is just another step forward in a never ending fight to find success in NASCAR. FRM is a team that refused to give up and refused to walk away even when there seemed to be no hope of prospering in this cut-throat business of auto racing. Quitting is not in this team’s vocabulary and their determination is paying major dividends now. They would not bow to the pressure and they prevailed against the greatest stock car racing has to offer. Finally, their dreams of winning in NASCAR have come to fruition and I’d like to say congrats to David Ragan and Front Row Motorsports on their incredible victory at Talladega!

May 6, 2013
Previewing the Aaron’s 499 at Talladega Superspeedway

The 10th NASCAR Sprint Cup (NSCS) event of 2013 will be held at the meanest, biggest, wildest track on the circuit…..Talladega Superspeedway. At 2.66 miles in length and banking nearing 35 degrees, this tack certainly isn’t one for the faint of heart. The first race took place back in September of 1969 and it had its fair share of controversy. Superstars such as Richard Petty, Bobby Allison, Cale Yarborough and David Pearson all boycotted the race due to concerns over tires and safety. They looked at those intimidating high banks and turned away while a few brave men dared to take the monster of a track on. Bill France resisted the the pleas to cancel the race and drivers from a lower series were used to fill the field.

Richard Brickhouse was a member of the boycotting group of drivers who called themselves the Professional Driver Association (PDA). He resigned from the PDA a day before the race and went on to win the inaugural event by 7 seconds over Jim Vandiver. It was the only victory in the North Carolina native’s 39 race NSCS career. Since that day, many strange and tragic incidents have occurred at Talladega and some believe it is due to a medicine man from an Indian tribe back in the 1800’s. Local legend tells that he that put a curse on the valley when President Andrew Jackson ordered the tribe to leave and forcing them to reservations. Talladega is feared by many and respected by all and this weekend marks the 88th event held at the legendary speedway. Here are some stats and facts regarding Dega that you should know as today’s racing superstars gear up for one wild ride this weekend!

Talladega Superspeedway Track Facts

Track Type: Tri-Oval

Track Size: 2.66 miles

Banking/Turns 1 & 2: 33 degrees

Banking/Turns 3 & 4: 33 degrees

Banking/Frontstretch: 16.5 degrees

Banking/Backstretch: 3 degrees

Frontstretch Length: 4,300 feet

Backstretch Length: 4,000 feet

Race Length: 188 laps / 500.08 miles

Track History & Records

Inaugural Race Winner: Richard Brickhouse by 7 seconds over Jim Vandiver in September of 1969

Most Wins By a Driver: Dale Earnhardt (10)

Most Wins By a Team: Richard Childress Racing with 12 followed by Hendrick Motorsports with 11

Most Wins By a Manufactuer: Chevrolet with 38 followed by Ford with 19

Youngest Race Winner: Bobby Hillin Jr. at 22 years, 1 month and 22 days in July of 1986

Oldest Race Winner: Harry Gant at 51 years, 3 months and 26 days in May of 1991

Least Amount of Cautions: None in April of 2001 and October of 2002

Most Amount of Cautions: 11 in April of 2004

– This will be the 88th NSCS race held at Talladega Superspeedway

– 429 drivers have compteted at Talladega Superspeedway and 47 of them have won

– Dave Marcis has made more starts at Talladega than any other driver with 61

– The track has been repaved 4 times with the most recent one being in the fall of 2006

Talladega Qualifying Stats

Track Record: Bill Elliott with a lap time of 44.998 (2012.809mph) in May of 1987

Youngest Pole Winner: Jimmie Johnson at 26 years, 7 months and 4 days in April of 2002

Oldest Pole Winner: Mark Martin at 52 years, 9 months and 14 days in October of 2012

Inaugural Pole Winner: Bobby Isaac with a speed of 199.466 mph in 1969

– 13 of the 87 NSCS races at Talladega have been won from the pole

– 36 drivers have won poles at Talladega led by Bill Elliott with 8

– 10 drivers have won consecutive poles at Talladega and Bill Elliott holds the record for most consecutive poles with six

– 13 different times has the pole sitter won the race with the last time being Jeff Gordon in May of 2007

– The deepest in the field that a race winner has started was 36th by Jeff Gordon in April of 2000

Top 10 Driver Ratings At Talladega

1.) Jeff Burton…………………………… 91.4

2.) Dale Earnhardt Jr…………………… 89.6

3.) Matt Kenseth………………………… 88.9

4.) Brian Vickers………………………… 87.3

5.) Kurt Busch……………………………. 86.1

6.) Brad Keselowski……………………. 85.6

7.) David Ragan…………………………. 85.5

8.) Denny Hamlin……………………….. 84.9

9.) Tony Stewart…………………………. 83.5

10.) Jeff Gordon………………………….. 83.1

Best Average Finish Among Active Drivers

1.) Brad Keselowski———–12.2

2.) Dale Earnhardt Jr.——–15.0

3.) Kevin Harvick————-15.4

4.) Tony Stewart————– 15.8

5.) David Ragan————— 16.0

6.) Kurt Busch—————–16.1

7.) Clint Bowyer————–16.1

8.) Jeff Gordon—————-16.4

9.) Jimmie Johnson———-17.7

10.) Travis Kvapil————17.8

Most Wins Among Active Drivers

1.) Jeff Gordon—————-6

2.) Dale Earnhardt Jr.——-5

3.) Clint Bowyer————-2

4.) Brad Keselowski——–2

5.) Jimmie Johnson——-2

6.) Terry Labonte———-2

7.) Matt Kenseth———–1

8.) Kevin Harvick———1

9.) Jamie McMurray—–1

10.) Tony Stewart——–1

Most Top 5’s Among Active Drivers

1.) Jeff Gordon————–15

2.) Terry Labonte———-14

3.) Dale Earnhardt Jr.—–11

4.) Tony Stewart———-9

5.) Michael Waltrip ——-9

6.) Bobby Labonte——–7

7.) Kurt Busch————-6

8.) Kevin Harvick———6

9.) Matt Kenseth———-5

10.) Jimmie Johnson—-5

Most Top 10’s Among Active Drivers

1.) Terry Labonte———–24

2.) Jeff Gordon————–23

3.) Jeff Burton—————19

4.) Michael Waltrip———16

5.) Dale Earnhardt Jr.——15

6.) Tony Stewart———–13

7.) Kurt Busch————-13

8.) Bobby Labonte——-13

9.) Kevin Harvick——–10

10.) Jimmie Johnson—9

Laps Led Among Active Drivers

1.) Jeff Gordon—————839

2.) Dale Earnhardt Jr.——737

3.) Terry Labonte———-362

4.) Tony Stewart———–317

5.) Matt Kenseth———–294

6.) Jimmie Johnson——-234

7.) Michael Waltrip——-233

8.) Jamie McMurray—–221

9.) Denny Hamlin——–204

10.) Kevin Harvick——155

I’d like to tell you what to expect this weekend but to be honest, I have no idea. The Gen-6 cars couldn’t pass each other at Daytona but I don’t believe it will be that difficult at Talladega. Dega is more about pure flat-out speed and less about handling which will help when it comes to trying to pass. Also, these teams had no clue what they were doing when we showed up for Speedweeks but they have learned so much regarding these cars over the last 2 1/2 months of racing and are more prepared. The race will be better than the 500 but don’t expect it to be like last fall when they were 3 and 4 wide 10 rows deep. Even with the lack of passing at Daytona, the “big one” still happened and it won’t be any different this weekend. It’s not a matter of if the big wreck will happen but simply when.

Favorites heading into Talladega have to be Matt Kenseth and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Matt has dominated almost every single restrictor plate race over the past couple of years but due to circumstances out of his control, he failed to win every time. Jr. is an Earnhardt and when you have that last name, you have to be fast here. His father won here a record 10 times and Jr. is a contender every time they visit this track too. Last time NASCAR was at Talladega though, he was involved in a massive last lap crash that gave him a concussion forcing the driver of the No.88 to miss the next two races. Jeff Gordon is another driver with an impressive record at Talladega but this is a race where luck plays a major factor and that poor guy doesn’t seem to have any good luck as of late. You can bet he will be fast though with that Hendrick power under the hood and a 4x champion behind the wheel.

Drivers that have struggled at Talladega include Kyle Busch, Marcos Ambrose, Martin Truex Jr., Paul Menard and Kasey Kahne. Just because they don’t have a great record doesn’t mean they haven’t been competitive though. A track clearing wreck is waiting around every corner and when it happens, a driver has little control over whether they emerge from the smoke unscathed or not no matter where they are running. Talladega is a track where you might as well blindly pick a driver out of a hat with how unpredictable it is. The race strategy is always the same and that’s survive. Some teams do it by hiding in the back which doesn’t always work out while others try to put their car out front hoping that the mess is behind them which doesn’t work out all the time either. Then there are the ones who throw caution to the wind and just go for it and hope that luck ends up being in their favor. It’s sure to be one wild weekend of racing from ARCA to Nationwide and ending it with the Cup guys battling on Sunday. This is definitely one race you don’t want to miss!

May 2, 2013
NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Richmond

Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

1. Jimmie Johnson: Despite being collected in a spin initiated by Tony Stewart and finishing 12th, Johnson increased his lead in the Sprint Cup point standings. He now leads Carl Edwards by 43.

“My points lead is so big,” Johnson said, “only a NASCAR inspection could do anything about it.

“I got ‘Smoked;’ now, I’m ‘Steamed.’ Stewart may be a three-time Cup champion, but judging by his performance this year, I’m not sure I want any of him ‘rubbing off’ on me.”

2. Carl Edwards: Edwards finished sixth at Richmond, posting his fifth top-10 result of the year. He jumped four spots to second in the point standings, and now trails Jimmie Johnson by 43.

“How about Matt Kenseth and his connecting rods?” Edwards said. “NASCAR says they didn’t weigh enough. I would tend to agree, because I’ve known Kenseth was a lightweight for years.”

3. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt scored his first top-10 finish in the month of April with a 10th in the Toyota Owners 400. He is third in the point standings, 46 out of first.

“It was wild at Richmond International Speedway,” Earnhardt said. “There were nut shots, fights, and arrests. It reminded me of Mother’s Day with Teresa.

“I may be a ‘Junior,’ but I wouldn’t stoop so low as to kick a competitor in the balls. If I’m going to kick someone where it hurts, it will be a fan of Junior Nation, in the wallet, at the merchandise stand.”

4. Clint Bowyer: Bowyer led 113 laps at Richmond and finished second to former teammate Kevin Harvick. He is fifth in the Sprint Cup point standings, 53 out of first.

“I was the top Toyota finisher,” Bowyer said. “Which means NASCAR will be watching me as intently as I watch Jeff Gordon.

“In the wake of the Matt Kenseth penalties, Toyota Racing Development recalled three of my engines. Now, Michael Waltrip can say he’s just like an ordinary Toyota owner, because now he’s experienced a recall.”

5. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth led a race-high 140 laps at Richmond and finished seventh after a mad green-white-checkered scramble at the finish. It was an impressive result, coming just days after NASCAR levied harsh penalties on the team for illegal parts.

“I don’t agree with NASCAR’s penalties,” Kenseth said. “I feel they were much too strict with their inspection. In other words, I was ‘screw-tinized.’”

6. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski struggled at Richmond, finishing 33rd, eight laps down, his worst finish of the season. He is now sixth in the point standings, 59 out of first.

“It’s good to see NASCAR’s focus on something other than Penske Racing,” Keselowski said. “Penalties have become so commonplace, there’s practically no difference in the questions ‘Witch hunt?’ and ‘Which hunt?’”

“Among kicks in the balls in NASCAR this year, Nelson Piquet, Jr.’s may be the most blatant. Is it a surprise that Piquet’s right foot was in Brian Scott’s crotch? Not really, because it certainly wasn’t on the gas pedal.

7. Kevin Harvick: Harvick dashed from seventh to first on the chaotic green-white-checkered finish at Richmond, earning him his first win of the season. Harvick took four tires and, after a great restart, easily picked off Jeff Burton to take the lead.

“I found some extra motivation,” Harvick said. “Some Richard Childress Racing drivers needed a kick in the pants, not in the balls. Of course, I was lucky to win. While Nelson Piquet, Jr.’s may have put one up Brian Scott’s, I pulled “one” out of mine. And it didn’t hurt nearly as much.”

8. Kasey Kahne: Kahne finished 21st in the Toyota Owners 400 on a night when only one Hendrick Motorsports driver finished in the top 10. Kahne is tied for third in the point standings, 46 out of first.

“It was a wild weekend at Richmond,” Kahne said. “Now, I can say the same thing to Nelson Piquet, Jr. that I would say to a lovely Sprint Cup girl: ‘nice rack.’ Between them, my teammates Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon have nine Cups. Hopefully, they can spare one for me to wear.”

9. Kyle Busch: Busch’s No. 18 Toyota was damaged when Jimmie Johnson’s No. 48, sent reeling by Tony Stewart, spun into Busch’s path. Busch eventually finished 24th, ending his run of four consecutive spring victories at Richmond.

“They say good things come in three’s,” Busch said. “But bad things come in two’s, like damaged Busch brother cars at Richmond, Tony Stewart chins, and bruised Brian Scott testicles.”

10. Greg Biffle: Biffle suffered a broken shock and spun about midway through Saturday’s race. He finished 36th, 15 laps down, and tumbled four spots in the point standings. He is now eighth, 71 out of first.

“Of all the wild occurrences over the weekend,” Biffle said, “mine was the least shocking. Take it from Brian Scott—a swift kick in the nuts can really cause momentary confusion. Medically, that’s known as a loss of your ball bearings.

“But Nelson Piquet, Jr. isn’t completely at fault. He made millions of NFL fans happy, because ‘foot-ball’ season came early this year.”

April 29, 2013
Dale Earnhardt: The Man That Changed NASCAR Forever

Today is Dale Earnhardt Day; a day to remember arguably the greatest stock car driver that ever lived. While most journalists will write about what he did or why he was so good, I have decided to go further than that. I want to talk about the legacy he created and all the different ways this man captured the hearts of millions changing the face of this sport forever.

There are men in this world that strive for fame and fortune but there are a select few that reach a heroic level of immortality. Dale Earnhardt is one of those men. His competitors feared him, fans either loved him or loved to hate him but everyone agreed that the kind of raw talent he possessed can’t be taught. What made him so good was not only the obvious fact that he could wheel a racecar but that he didn’t want to win, he needed to win. If he didn’t finish in the money, his family went hungry. If he failed, he knew that he was going to have to spend the rest of his life working at that mill in Kannapolis, North Carolina and no way in hell was he going to settle for that.

He persevered through losing his dad when he was 22, being forced to watch his wife leaving him and with her his first born when she got fed up with his racing and of course he watched his best friend Neil Bonnett die in a crash at Daytona International Speedway in 1994. Seven years later on the final lap of the Daytona 500, Dale lost his life in that very same corner in one of the worst days of my young life. I’ll never forget the look on my dad’s face as he tried to explain to his 7 and 10 year old sons that they watched their hero die earlier that day. For me, I found consolation thinking about my other childhood hero, Steve Irwin who ultimately died tragically doing what he loved like Dale when a stingray stabbed him through the heart in 2006.

After that race, I stopped watching NASCAR and basically ignored the sport for three years. But my dad worked in it, my brother worked in it and I couldn’t stay away forever; racing is in my blood. Since the 2004 Daytona 500, I have never missed a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race and don’t plan to. Dale is the reason why I love NASCAR the way I do today. I am more passionate now about this sport than I have ever been before and I will continue to pursue my dream of working in NASCAR just like he pursued his. For me, this sport is not a hobby; it’s my life and the more I watch it, the more I need it. Dale Earnhardt fought for what he wanted even when the odds were against him and in doing so, he has become a legend that to this day is remembered not with tributes on a certain day every year but every day. I think about him at least once a day and I’m sure most of you do too.

Who knows how many lives have been saved as a result of his death but I can tell you it’s a lot. The COT was created because we lost Dale and because of it, no national touring driver has died since that awful day in February of 2001. Carlos Pardo, John Blewett III, Tom Baldwin Sr. and Marcelo Nunez are all unfortunate examples of what could happen without the safety innovations that were put into the Cup, Nationwide and trucks in recent years. Even before “Black Sunday” as it has come to be known, Dale Earnhardt had already made a major impact on NASCAR simply from what he did on the track. He did things with a racecar that was thought to be impossible and in an era where it was a very real possibility that racers would die, Dale showed absolutely no fear.

Photo Credit: Dozier Mobley/Getty Images

Dale raced like his life depended on it and that’s because it did at one point. What made him so good was that he never let that style of driving go no matter how much money he was making. Had he never made it in NASCAR, the name Richard Childress would be known about as well as the name DK Ulrich is with only those older members of the racing community and a few diehard fans knowing of him. His team couldn’t win until Earnhardt showed up. What Dale did would be like Brad Keselowski winning the title last year, jumping into the No.34 for Front-Row Motorsports in 2013 and winning six championships for them. Seems impossible, right? Well, that’s exactly what Earnhardt did except for the fact that he did it twice. He won the 1980 title for Rod Osterlund and before he came along, the likes of Buddy Baker, Neil Bonnett, Dan Gurney and even David Pearson couldn’t win a single race let alone a championship.

Dale was and still is remembered as one of the greatest men to ever wheel a racecar and let me tell you that he was one of the greatest men to ever live period. He acted tough but he had a heart of gold underneath that intimidating smile. He was capable of making drivers wreck themselves simply because they get unnerved when they saw the No.3 in their rear view mirror. Legend tells that he could see the air meaning he knew exactly what it was doing at all times which is what made him so good at Daytona and Talladega. He could take a car sideways through the grass a Charlotte at 180mph and save it while losing no spots in the process. Please feel free to post below how this NASCAR legend affected your life and what you believe made him so good. Today would have been his 62nd birthday and I want to take a moment to remember a truly great man who changed the world for the better and even in death, he reached immortality…..happy birthday Dale Earnhardt.

April 29, 2013
Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Is Back

After two years of miserable races, Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing (EGR) has finally returned back to its old form. Although they haven’t quite gotten rid of all the bad luck that seems to haunt the two car organization, the cars seem fast again and have made monumental progress in their overall performance. McMurray sits a solid 12th in the standings with three top 10’s in 2013 which already equals his total from 2012. Juan Pablo Montoya has been snake bit by wrecks and mechanical failures that have kept him deep in the points but he proved at Richmond what is possible for that No.42 should he stay out of trouble.

Montoya ran up front all night and not many people could say after an event that saw more comers and goers than any race in recent memory. He led 67 laps and finished 4th after a late race caution thwarted his chances of a victory. His last top five was way back in March of 2011 when he finished 4th at Martinsville and he hasn’t led that many laps since his win at Watkins Glen nearly three years ago. It would be ignorant to say that Montoya doesn’t have the talent but it would be acceptable to say that the poor man has no luck at all. Even though he came home with a 4th place finish Saturday and seemed pretty happy about it, the Colombian was all but guaranteed a win as he pulled away from Kevin Harvick until a caution with four laps remaining jumbled up the running order. He restarted 6th while eventual race winner Kevin Harvick restarted 7th and starting on the inside is what won him the race. Had the roles been reversed, Montoya would have most likely been the one passing Jeff Burton with one lap to go.

Photo Credit: David Yeazell

McMurray restarted the race 2nd but the field basically ran him over with how old his tires were finishing a disappointing 26th. Even with the unsatisfactory result, the 2010 Daytona 500 winner finds himself just 26pts out of the top 10 and ahead of champions such as Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth, Kurt Busch and Tony Stewart. In 2009 and 2010, EGR asserted themselves as one of the better teams winning four races including the Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400. They also put Montoya in the 2009 chase and had the Wild-Card existed in 2010, McMurray would have been in it with his three wins. It looks like they are steadily turning things around and I wouldn’t be surprised to see both of their drivers make the chase this year. At the very least, I see both McMurray and Montoya winning a race before the year is over.

Is it the switch Hendrick engines that has helped this team or is it something else? People were shocked when team owner Chip Ganassi didn’t make any major personal changes following their dismal 2012 which saw Jamie finish 21st in points and Juan 22nd. I have to give major props to Chip for not overreacting to what seemed to be a hopeless situation in the eyes of most. Kevin Manion and Chris Heroy are still the crew chiefs and the combinations seem to be working well. All this team lacked was speed and I believe Hendrick power has given them that missing piece they needed to run up front again. Chip felt it would be imprudent to turn the team inside out after all their struggles saying this during the off season; “We’re not afraid to make changes, but we’re not going to make change for the sake of making change.”

That risky ideology looks like it was the right call after all. Between McMurray and Montoya there are 8 NASCAR Sprint Cup wins, 9 Nationwide wins, 3 in Grand-Am, 10 in open-wheel and 7 F1 victories that include races such as the 24 Hours of Daytona, the Indy 500, the Daytona 500 and the Monaco Grand Prix. There is certainly no lack of talent there and now they have the cars to back their fully capable drivers up. The travails of the past two years has finally ended and EGR has 27 more races to parlay these great results into race wins and they can do it. Watch out for these two because they could easily become two of the biggest upsets in 2013 and if the bad luck ceases, they will become threats to win almost every single week.

April 28, 2013
Fixing the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Schedule

I may only be 19 but I’m sure a lot of you older fans out there remember the “golden age” of NASCAR. Remember when Ricky Rudd and Dale Earnhardt spun at North Wilkesboro on the final lap battling for the win in 1989? How about when Kasey Kahne and Matt Kenseth crossed the line in nearly a dead heat at Rockingham back in 2004? Then there are the infamous Bristol battles between Earnhardt and Terry Labonte during the 90’s boom.

NASCAR was built on tracks like those and some of the best races in history took place at tracks 1 mile in length or shorter. Okay, I know that 1 mile tracks aren’t technically considered short tracks but they race just like them.

Don’t get me wrong. I like the big tracks. I love watching four wide battles at speeds exceeding 200mph when we visit Atlanta, Texas, Charlotte and Kansas but the problem is that we’ve diluted the schedule with these types of venues. Check out this statistic regarding the amount of short tracks that have been on the schedule at the start of every decade:

1950-13/19 races, 68.4%
1960-30/44 races, 68.2%
1970-28/48 races, 58.3%
1980-10/31 races, 32.3%
1990-7/29 races, 24.1%
2000-6/34 races, 17.6%
2010-6/36 races, 16.6%

You’ve fixed the cars, improved safety and bumped up ratings NASCAR and now it’s time to fill these tracks back up with 100,000+ screaming fans! That Richmond race left me begging for more and now I’ve got short track fever. The track promoters say the bigger tracks are where it’s at because you can hold more people. I’m no businessman but if you ask me, a jammed pack half mile is a lot better than a half full cookie cutter track. A stand-alone truck race at Eldora was sold out 6 months before the race and if that doesn’t give NASCAR and these track owners a wake-up call, I don’t know what will.

More road courses would also be awesome; I don’t think I have to remind anyone about the last two races at Watkins Glen. They are big like Michigan and Cali but they race like Bristol and Marty and every road course is unique in its own right. Short tracks, dirt tracks, 1 milers and road courses is direction NASCAR needs to head if they want to bring back disgruntled old fans and attract curious new ones. With that being said, here is my ideal 36 race schedule without changing too much of what is already there.

1.) Daytona 500

2.) Rockingham

3.) Phoenix

4.) Bristol

5.) Kansas

6.) Martinsville

7.) Texas

8.) Salem

9.) Talladega

10.) Richmond

11.) Darlington

12.) Coke 600

13.) Dover

14.) Road America

15.) Sonoma

16.) Irwindale

17.) Duquoin

18.) Daytona Road Course

19.) Michigan

20.) Indy Road Course

21.) Pocono

22.) Watkins Glen

23.) Iowa

24.) Bowman Gray Stadium

25.) Atlanta

26.) Bristol

27.) Talladega

28.) Road Atlanta

29.) Loudon

30.) Auto Club

31.) Dover

32.) Charlotte

33.) Martinsville

34.) Eldora

35.) Circuit of the Americas

36.) Las Vegas

When making this list, I tried to keep a balance between the tracks already on the schedule and tracks I’d like to see on the schedule while still maintaining the 36 race season. If you broke my schedule down, it goes like this:

1 Mile Or Less Paved Oval-15/36, 41.7%

1.5 Mile or Larger Oval-12/36, 33.3%

Road Courses-7/36, 19.4%

Dirt Tracks-2/36, 5.6%

Now I’d like to take a closer look at a few of the adjustments/additions that I listed above…

Daytona, Talladega & Indianapolis

The Daytona 500 is without a doubt one of the biggest races on the planet and I think when we return to Daytona in July, it shouldn’t be on the high banks. Even with the long history of the 4th of July event, I don’t think there should be another race like the 500 and that’s why I said NASCAR should run the road course like Grand-Am does every January. I put Talladega as the first chase race for one reason and that is the track’s unpredictability. When we go there, it’s all about survival, not who has the best car and that’s why I want it early in the chase so that the true title contenders have time to recover. The Indy 500 is another sacred event and the oval wasn’t made for NASCAR’s. When stock cars show up there, it is almost always a snooze fest and with little on track action. That’s why we should shake it up and run the road course to add a little excitement to this usually lackluster event. Continue the tradition of kissing the bricks but instead of 160 laps of follow the leader, let’s have some intense road course action tearing through the infield of this historic facility.

Las Vegas

The reason I put Las Vegas as the season finale is simply and that’s because the banquet is in Vegas so why not have the last race of the year be there too? Homestead is an okay track but I think we can live without it.

The Road Courses

I firmly believe that NASCAR needs to put at least one road course in the chase. Road courses are the ultimate test of a driver’s skill, physical fitness and mental acuity. With 20 unique turns and long, fast straightaways where the draft comes into play, the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) would be the perfect penultimate event. Formula 1, MotoGP and even V8 Supercars go there and it’s about time NASCAR does too. I had a tough time deciding between what road course I should select for Race #28 on my schedule. I was going back and forth between Mid-Ohio, VIR and Road Atlanta and even though I went with the latter, any of those three would be great additions. As for Road America, I have no clue why that isn’t on the Cup schedule yet but it certainly should be. I considered Montreal but with its recent debacle where the track promoter basically demanded a Cup date, I decided to leave it out.

Dirt Tracks

There are so many worthy dirt tracks out there but in the end, I went with two well-known venues that already feature stock car racing and attract a lot of fans. Duquoin and Eldora are awesome facilities and I’m sure the truck race at the Tony Stewart owned track later this year will be one of the greatest ever. ARCA races are held at Duquoin and their evens always seem to be wild and action packed proving the venue can handle 30 or 40 stock cars very well.

In the end, I don’t see most of that schedule ever coming to fruition but its okay to dream, right? A few possibilities that could happen in the future would be the addition of the COTA’s, Eldora, Rockingham and some kind of road course in the chase. NASCAR fixed something that wasn’t broken but it seems like they are finally taking action with the return of Rockingham and the first dirt race in 40 years coming up in a few months. It’s a work in process and it will be tough to manipulate the schedule while keeping everybody involved happy but it’s doable. The manufacturers and NASCAR have done an awesome job with this new car and it seems to put on a hell of a show almost everywhere we take it but you can’t deny that there’s nothing that can put on a better race than a Saturday night short track event.

April 28, 2013