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Tag: Tony Stewart

  • Stewart’s Emotional Sonoma Victory One Of NASCAR’s Defining Wins

    Stewart’s Emotional Sonoma Victory One Of NASCAR’s Defining Wins

    Once Tony Stewart broke his leg in a Sprint Car crash in 2013, it was easy to write him off in the long scheme of things. He had only won once that season with five top-fives and eight top-10s.  In 2014 he was winless with three top-fives and seven top-10s. Then 2015 wasn’t any better, with a measly three top-10s. There was no reason to expect anything remotely different out of that No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing team in 2016, which is Stewart’s retirement year.

    So to see Stewart bring the fight to Denny Hamlin on the last corner of the last lap of Sunday’s Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway and emerge victorious in his battered No. 14 Chevy was not only a pleasant surprise, but capped off one of the most emotional roads to recovery this sport has ever seen.

    Stewart has always been strong on the road courses, leading all active drivers with eight wins at Sonoma and Watkins Glen, so his win there isn’t exactly a surprise, especially on the heels of a strong seventh-place run at Michigan. But look at his last three finishes there beginning in 2013: 28th, 19th, and 12th. It was definitely his worst streak at Sonoma since his first start in 1999, where he finished 15th after starting second.

    But take some of the other things into consideration. In 2013 he struggled mightily, worse than he ever had, behind the wheel of a Sprint Cup car. He did win at Dover in June, but that was due to good pit strategy. He wasn’t consistent, he wasn’t near the front, and he wasn’t doing so well. That carried on into 2014 and 2015, and what was once a question of when Stewart would win again became a question of if he would win again. Top-10s alone were cause for celebration among the Stewart supporters.

    Then came Michigan two weeks ago, and Stewart put on a performance that was so strong and unexpected that many were wondering if he had turned the corner with his No. 14 and rookie Crew Chief Mike Bugarewicz. Then comes a 10th-place qualifying effort at Sonoma, followed by a determined performance by Stewart, where he led 22 laps and had no qualms door-slamming Hamlin out of the way on the way to victory.

    Is this a championship statement? Not likely. Even though SHR has now won three times in 2016, they’re still being overshadowed by the Toyotas of Joe Gibbs Racing. On top of that, even though it’s a given that Stewart will claim that 30th-place in points and claim his Chase spot come Richmond, it’s still too early to say if he’ll even contend for the championship. It would be nice, granted, but one win does not a championship run make.

    The next race is Daytona, where Stewart has multiple wins in the July event. Daytona is also a crapshoot when it comes to winners and losers. Stewart is a strong superspeedway racer and could very well nail a top-five or a top-10 easily. He’s got a lot of good tracks coming up and he will be the one to watch in the next two months before the Chase starts.

    Regardless of Chase status, it’s evident that the questions of whether or not Stewart has lost his edge can now stop. Drivers like Stewart, people like Stewart, never really lose that edge, that will to win. It may have been subdued over the last three years, but it never left Stewart completely. In the final corner of the final lap at Sonoma, it was made clear that that the will to win was stronger than ever. Stewart wanted to win at all costs and with the amount of crew members and peers including SHR drivers Kevin Harvick and Kurt Busch as well as runner-up Hamlin coming up to congratulate him on his way to Victory Lane, it was obvious no one could blame him.

  • Smoke Beats and Bangs his Way Back to Victory Lane

    Smoke Beats and Bangs his Way Back to Victory Lane

    After about losing the race running wide in turn 7a on the final lap, Tony Stewart capitalized on Denny Hamlin locking up in Turn 11, made contact with him, hit the wall and scored the victory at Sonoma.

    The driver of the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet snapped an 84-race winless streak as he won the Toyota/Save Mart 350.

    When asked if this win is significant because of its timing, he said “They’re all good; it doesn’t matter where you get them. But, we ran close to those guys all day. We just got stuck back in traffic. It’s pretty ironic the last one we got was in a Code 3 car and I’m proud to do it again. I’m proud of Mobil 1 and Bass Pro and everybody. It’s just an awesome job.”

    It’s his 49th career win in 598 Sprint Cup Series starts, first of 2016, first since Dover in June of 2013, third at Sonoma Raceway and first since 2005.

    He currently sits 32nd in points nine points back of the Chase cutoff.

    Hamlin brought his wounded No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota home to a runner-up finish.

    “Tony was doing a good job maintaining his tires, a good job of running consistent laps there,” Hamlin said. “Really he gave me an opportunity to get close. On the second to last lap, he wheel-hopped into (turn) seven, allowed us to get close and I just did a poor job of getting through 11. I was expecting to really drive in deep and I really thought that was going to happen and he did, but I also left the bottom open and that was a bad mistake on my part.”

    It’s his seventh top-10 finish of the season and third in 11 races at Sonoma. He earned the bonus point for leading the most laps at 33. Joey Logano rounded out the podium in his No. 22 Team Penske Ford.

    “We had a hard-fought third-place finish today, which is no easy finish here at Sonoma at any point,” Logano said.

    It’s his fourth top-10 finish in eight races at Sonoma.

    Carl Edwards led 24 laps on his way to a fourth-place finish in his No. 19 JGR Toyota.

    “We had a really fast Stanley Toyota, this was the most fun I’ve had in a long time, really good car,” Edwards said. “It was fun to race. Congrats to Tony, I know he drove his heart out there. It’s pretty neat to see him in victory lane. We just had some fun today, it was a good time.”

    After losing second to Hamlin going into turn 7a with 12 laps to go, Martin Truex Jr. rounded out the top-five in his No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota.

    “We just burned it up at the end trying to get Smoke (Tony Stewart) and I gave up a couple spots, but I had to try to go for it,” Truex said of the closing laps. “The rear tires were gone at the end. It was a good race and congrats to Tony, it’s good to see and it’s been a long time coming for him.”

    Kevin Harvick led three laps on his way to a sixth-place finish in his No. 4 SHR Chevrolet. Kyle Busch led two laps on his way to a seventh-place finish in his No. 18 JGR Toyota. Ryan Newman finished eighth in his No. 31 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet. Kasey Kahne finished ninth in his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. Kurt Busch rounded out the top-10 in his No. 41 SHR Chevrolet.

    Despite leading 20 laps and being a front-runner for most of the afternoon, an uncontrolled tire penalty relegated AJ Allmendinger to the tail-end of the longest line during the fourth caution of the race and he finished 14th. Paul Menard, who led three laps, finished 16th. Danica Patrick, who led three laps, finished 19th.

    Thirty-five cars finished on the lead lap and 37 finished the race. Josh Wise exited the race with 14 laps remaining due to engine failure. Michael McDowell left the race with 18 laps to go for rear gear failure and Clint Bowyer exited the race on lap seven for an electrical fire in the dashboard of his car.

    The race lasted two hours, 42 minutes and 13 seconds at an average speed of 80.966 mph. There were 12 lead changes among eight different drivers and four cautions for 10 laps.

    Harvick leaves with a 35-point lead over Kurt Busch in the points standings.

    The next race for the Sprint Cup Series is the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway this Saturday night.

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  • The View From My Recliner – Smoke is on Fire!

    The View From My Recliner – Smoke is on Fire!

    In the middle of what should have been an amazing weekend for Tony Stewart, Smoke has shown that he is had enough and Homestead can’t get here soon enough for him.

    Coming off his solid run in Michigan, Stewart was running in the top-five in practice at Sonoma when he came up on slower cars heading into turn 11 and it set off the fireworks. Later in practice, Jamie McMurray cut him off and received the one-finger salute from the three-time champion.

    After practice, Stewart said to the gathered media, “I’m ready to go run stuff that makes me happy and driving a Sprint Cup car does not make me happy right now. A lot of things have changed. The atmosphere has changed. There is so much stuff in the garage area that has changed that it was time for me to make a change with it.

    “I’ve dedicated 18 years of my life to this series and it’s done great by me,” Stewart said. “I’ve made a great living doing it, but at the same time, there are other things in life I want to do other than be at a NASCAR track three days a week for 38 weekends out of 52 weeks a year. There are just other things I want to do now.”

    Reading Stewart’s quotes to the media makes me wonder about the shape NASCAR is in as a sport. One thing that Stewart has said was when he was coming up, drivers learned from Mark Martin, didn’t cross Dale Earnhardt and would get a lecture from Rusty Wallace if they didn’t obey the unofficial rules of practice or the race.

    Folks, please take notice. NASCAR is a better place with Tony Stewart in the race car and in the garage. Tony Stewart basically said yesterday he can’t wait to be done with NASCAR. That is sad.

    The state of NASCAR is up in the air.

    The majority of competitive NASCAR team owners are in their 60s and 70s,  Who is the next group of racers who want to own teams? How many drivers are in cars because they bring sponsorship with them? Paul Menard, Brian Scott and Danica Patrick are drivers who are either funded by family companies or just a marketing machine and probably not in their rides without the sponsorship they bring to the table.

    The XFINITY Series can’t develop the next group of drivers because they will run with the funding Cup drivers bring with them to theXFINITY Series rather than take a chance on a good young driver like Ryan Truex, Corey LaJoie and Brandon McReynolds.

    Attendance is down everywhere and television ratings are down, where is the opportunity to grow the sport?

    The television contract with Fox Sports 1 and NBC Sports Network put more races on cable networks that are building an audience from scratch and people are too fickle or lazy to go searching  for what channel it is on.

    A couple comments from a post-practice interview yesterday, really made me question where does NASCAR go from here? Think about it, if Tony Stewart doesn’t want to be in Sprint Cup racing, why would anyone else want to watch it?

     

  • The Final Word – New package excites Brad, Joey, Jeff and D.W. but as for Junior, not so much

    The Final Word – New package excites Brad, Joey, Jeff and D.W. but as for Junior, not so much

    Michigan brought us tremendous action. I mean, how could it not? Brad Keselowski tested the new aero package and he was excited about it. In the end, even ole Brad led 10 laps, as did Martin Truex Jr. Chase Elliott led 35, while of the other 145 circuits, 138 of them saw Keselowski’s teammate, Joey Logano, on point. In fact, the 26-year old was up front for the final 48 laps to take his first of the season and 15th of his career.

    Fifteen races in, 10 different victors. Dale Earnhardt Jr. is not one of them. Did he think the new package was a God-send, like announcers Darrell Waltrip and Jeff Gordon seem to think?

    “Not a whole lot different than the other package,” was the assessment of NASCAR’s most popular driver. Mind you, he was being interviewed in the garage after Chris Buescher had wiggled, waggled Junior, who wrinkled A.J. Allmendinger against the outside wall to remove both of them from the action. Even a Top 35 was too much to hope for. From the stat sheet, you could not say the much-promised passing materialized at Michigan, though the lower spoiler made sure things had the feel of a Montana country road in January.

    If this were Game of Thrones, those boys were the ice but Kyle Busch was all fire. Rowdy did not even make the mid-point, as his blown engine left the defending series champ dead last. The engine was fine for Denny Hamlin, but after a tire blew up he found himself on a wild ride and a 33rd place finish. Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. cut a tire with a half dozen laps remaining and had to settle for 29th. Not good, but their hard times on this day will prove as memorable in the long term as a race that was just newly named for a casino. I mean, even 15 years of Miller and its brands of beer did not leave much of a legacy since they departed as title sponsor after 1998. Since this has been the Kmart Sirius DHL Batman 3M Citizens Bank Life Lock Heluva Good! Sour Dips Quicken Loans FireKeepers Casino 400. Then again, what in hell do I know about event branding?

    Still, those holding a Chase place coming in did so when they left Michigan. The kids did fine, with Elliott the runner-up and Kyle Larson finishing third. He sits 23 points out of that final Chase berth currently held by Ryan Blaney, who was 17th on Sunday.

    Tony Stewart finished seventh, and while he still needs a win over the next 11 contests to get an invite for himself, he improved his position somewhat. Smoke shortened the gap between himself and 30th in the standings, at which point a win would actually mean something in the season rankings, down to 45 points. A single victory and Top Tens through to Richmond would sure be helpful to his cause.

    As for this weekend, they rest. Well, except for Keselowski who will try to take a starting spot away from somebody when the junior loop visits Iowa. I bet he is pretty damned excited about that, too. As for the rest of the grown-ups, they will wait for Sonoma on June 26th.

  • Seventh-Place Doesn’t Tell Full Story for Tony Stewart

    Seventh-Place Doesn’t Tell Full Story for Tony Stewart

    Sunday at Michigan was much needed for Tony Stewart. To say that the driver/co-owner of the No. 14 has struggled is a bit of an understatement; Aside from being sidelined multiple times due to injury since 2013, he hasn’t won a race since Dover in June of 2013 and has only scored seven top-fives (the last coming in October 2014 in Martinsville) and 20 top-10s since the 2013 Daytona 500.

    He’s had plenty of good runs and good cars during that time. Pit strategy derailed him from winning at Pocono and June of 2014 and Indy in July 2015, while crashes sidelined him at Daytona in July of 2014 and Pocono in June 2016. He had a car capable of winning the Spring 2015 race at Talladega before being shuffled out of the draft. It hasn’t been for lack of effort from that team.

    After qualifying third for Sunday’s FireKeepers Casino 400, Stewart ran in the top-five for most of the race. He never led a lap, but he was keeping pace with polesitter and race winner Joey Logano. When green flag pit stops were cycling through at halfway, he was shuffled back to 16th. But instead of fading or lingering in that area of the running order for the rest of the race, he made his way back to the front before settling for seventh.

    After having such a strong run cap off a strong weekend, Stewart praised the new aero package, saying, “Love it. Absolutely love it. The package is good. The aero package is starting to catch up now.”

    It’s only one race. It’s too early to say whether or not Stewart and his crew have turned a corner and will fall back into the old early summer groove he used to have, where he started reeling off wins and good finishes. That’s no longer the norm for the three-time Sprint Cup champion. These days the new normal is somewhere between 15th and 30th on a good day.

    It’s doubtful he’ll win a race in 2016, and it’s doubtful he’ll make the Chase in his final year of competition. But it’s strong weekends like Michigan that build momentum, and time will tell if it carries on through the Summer stretch.

  • Hot 20 – Michigan will be great, because Stone Cold Keselowski said so

    Hot 20 – Michigan will be great, because Stone Cold Keselowski said so

    A new aero package combined with reduced down and side force should mean more passing at Michigan this weekend, as well as at Kentucky later in the year. Wonderful, just wonderful. Now all that needs to happen is that it actually happens.

    Four drivers did the testing, four drivers are apparently all giddy about it. Brad Keselowski is all excited about it. Then again, ole Brad was all tingly about that All-Star format he is said to have come up with, and we know how that turned out. We shall see, we shall see.

    Greg Biffle is nowhere to be found amongst our Hot 20, but he does have four wins at Michigan. This week, he said he believes fans are just as passionate as they always were, but there are just so many ways to follow the sport than just showing up at the track or watching the action on television. I think the Biff is wrong. Where are all those celebrities who once asked us, “How bad have you got it?” The few who show up today do so only to promote a movie that often sucks, to be honest with you. There is no buzz anymore.

    The only near guarantee of great action can be found at venues such as Daytona, Talladega, and Bristol. We tune in such milestone events as the Southern 500, the World 600, and the Brickyard 400, along with the novelty presented by the road courses. That constitutes just 11 of the 36 races on the calendar. The rest are generic goofy sponsor named events with little drawing power against baseball, football, hockey, basketball or just a damn nice day outside with the family. If Biffle figures the passion remains even though the fans do not, he is sadly mistaken.

    So, why bother? Well, I am a NASCAR fan. I want to see if the brainiacs have actually stumbled upon something to make Michigan a race to watch. I want to see how the big dogs perform, even that damned irritating Keselowski and the equally delightful Joey Logano. I want to see Tony Stewart do something positive before he makes his career exit. I want to see if Dale Earnhardt Jr. might win. Who doesn’t? In fact, I want to see how each of the below listed 20 drivers perform and to see if someone outside can shake things up with a win. I would be thrilled if Danica Patrick could be that person. I would be shocked if it came to pass.

    That is why I will be watching the Hot 20 and the rest this Sunday at Michigan.

    1. KYLE BUSCH – 3 WINS (416 PTS)
    Well, that is one way to keep Rowdy out of Victory Lane.

    2. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 2 WINS (442 PTS)
    I think if Brad were a political candidate, I might have to vote for the other guy…just because.

    3. CARL EDWARDS – 2 WINS (437 PTS)
    Visited Loudon this week. He wants to win. He wants to eat the lobster. Let the protests begin.

    4. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 2 WINS (415 PTS)
    This NASCAR Johnson likes his drinks from a can. The other Johnson liked his from a jar.

    5. KEVIN HARVICK – 1 WIN (490 PTS)
    Happy might not win on Sunday, but his odds of finishing second are pretty good.

    6. KURT BUSCH – 1 WIN (465 PTS)
    If he missed his crew chief last week, he did a poor job of showing it.

    7. MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 1 WIN (403 PTS)
    Girlfriend Sherry is from Michigan and a fan of the Wings. Hence, this is now Truex country.

    8. MATT KENSETH – 1 WIN (382 PTS)\
    A restart on your computer should end your problems. On the track, they just began for Matt.

    9. DENNY HAMLIN – 1 WIN (372 PTS)
    Won the Daytona 500. What more do you want?

    10. CHASE ELLIOTT – 413 PTS
    Few would be surprised if his first win comes very, very soon.

    11. JOEY LOGANO – 410 PTS
    The new “old” Kurt Busch? I wonder what Jimmy Spencer is up to these days?

    12. DALE EARNHARDT JR. – 381 PTS
    What is worse than being a bridesmaid again? That damn unusable ugly dress.

    13. AUSTIN DILLON – 348 PTS
    Very proud of his grandfather and boss, one of NASCAR’s latest Hall of Famers.

    14. JAMIE MCMURRAY – 342 PTS
    An average finish of 16.6 might not sound great, but a 14.0 or better gets you in the Top Ten.

    15. RYAN BLANEY – 340 PTS
    You know, the “other” rookie is not doing too bad himself.

    16. RYAN NEWMAN – 338 PTS
    I wonder if Newman got Logano’s attention at Pocono?

    17. A.J. ALLMENDINGER – 334 PTS
    Ernie Cope was on the box at Pocono, cousin Derrike was on David Letterman in 1990.

    18. KASEY KAHNE – 325 PTS
    Dover penalty is the difference between 18th and a place in the Chase.

    19. RICKY STENHOUSE JR. – 325 PTS
    Escorted Danica Patrick to Nashville last night for the CMT’s.

    20. TREVOR BAYNE – 319 PTS
    Got to see Danica present an award with Kelly Pickler, watching television like the rest of us.

  • The Final Word – Not all would agree that Monday was a great day for motor car racing

    The Final Word – Not all would agree that Monday was a great day for motor car racing

    Weather forced a day delay at Pocono, and was it worth the wait? For me, it was, though I could not help but notice that it was a day too late for some who might have been in the grandstands. Soon, NASCAR will institute a dress code where fans must wear the same color as the seats in their section so everything will just blend in on television.

    It was worth it for Kurt Busch. With his crew chief Tony Gibson on the shelf due to a lug nut related suspension, team engineer John Klausmeier sat on the box and apparently liked the view. If you remember, he took over last year when Gibson was suddenly advised to jettison his appendix. For a car that arrived on fumes, Kurt sure had more than enough to get those burnouts in as he claimed his 28th career victory.

    Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Brad Keselowski were the runners-up, with young Chase Elliott just behind them. Not sure if ole Brad will collect all his points, as post-race the car had an honor guard of NASCAR officials surrounding it. Something tells me “they who must be obeyed” are not happy. Earlier in the day, the shoulder of jackman Braxton Brannon reshaped the side of Keselowski’s car and it was required to return to pit road to have that alteration corrected. Come to think of it, wasn’t Brannon the same guy Keselowski clipped in a pit road incident last August at the same track? It would seem that being a jackman is truly a full contact position.

    It was not worth it for Martin Truex Jr. to wait a day. He got slammed on pit road early by Matt DiBenedetto to leave him 19th on the day. As for DiBenedetto, it was a day better spent at a barbecue, as the Truex incident was the first of at least three times he was featured in a negative light, but none of them was his fault. He finished dead last after a crash. Another wreck took place with Tony Stewart’s car getting loose at the wrong place at the wrong time, as his employee Danica Patrick was left with no choice but to pile into the boss. Too bad, as Stewart appeared to have a Top Ten car. That leaves him with a dozen races to pick up a win and make up the 71 point difference between his current position and 30th place in order to make the Chase.

    Sunday’s storm clouds left the sky but were all over the track. When Kasey Kahne cut below Ryan Newman, it shot Newman up into Kyle Busch who found the fence. Rowdy would not be the only top contender to be outside the Top 30 when things came to a conclusion. Jimmie Johnson was near the front on a restart, but found himself too low for his car to handle, and it stepped out and stepped into the inside barrier. Five laps earlier, Austin Dillon had wrecked on Turn One. That leaves him just 14 points to the good among the current Chase placers, down from 36 coming into Pocono.

    June is a great time to be a racing fan in Michigan. On Sunday, Will Power won the IndyCar event while the boys and girl from NASCAR make an appearance this Sunday…weather permitting, of course.

  • The View from my Recliner

    The View from my Recliner

    It’s Pocono week and I can tell you from experience, the infield at Pocono rivals Talladega for the things you can see and learn.

    One Pocono race, you saw porn on a big screen and a Chevy Vega and Ford Pinto chained axle to axle with a fire pit in the middle in the ultimate game of tug of war. I have witnessed a deer cross the track and a streaker on the track. Boy, there are some memories at Pocono.

    Since they dropped the racing from 500 miles to 400 miles at Pocono, it has drastically improved. I can’t explain why, but eliminating those extra 100 miles changed the way the drivers attack the track.

    It has been a little while since I wrote my column due to technical issues, but everything is ironed out and we’re all ready to set the world on fire with some predictions for the second half of the regular season.

    Prediction 1: This is from my heart probably not my head, but Tony Stewart will win a race and make the Chase. The best chance for Smoke to earn his win is at Daytona or the two road courses.

    Prediction 2: Keith Rodden will not finish the season as Kasey Kahne’s crew chief. Kasey Kahne has not run consistently well for the past three years. Rookie Chase Elliott is regularly running around the top-10 and Kahne is ranging from 15th to 20th. Hendrick Motorsports has a Cup-winning crew chief in the organization in Darian Grubb who could get right on the box and change the culture of the team.

    Prediction 3: NASCAR will make the right call with the rules package for Michigan and Kentucky and will change the rules and use that package for the rest of the season. The racing was fantastic for the All-Star race and NASCAR will try to re-create that racing.

    Prediction 4: Ty Dillon will be announced as the new driver of the No. 31 car. Kevin Harvick said before leaving RCR that those kids will get everything. It is a shame because Ryan Newman is a talented racer but you can see that he isn’t getting the best RCR equipment.

    Prediction 5: Joe Gibbs Racing will announce that Aarons will sponsor Matt Kenseth in 2017. Kenseth’s dry humor will be great for the Aarons commercials and hopefully, get Michael Waltrip off of my television.

    Kudos to Mike Joy who made sure during the Fox broadcast to seamlessly work in the names of the fallen on the windshields and the stories behind them throughout the race. It wasn’t forced and the way he told their stories was heartfelt.

    Enjoy the racing at Pocono and I’ll be back next week with the View from my Recliner.

  • NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Charlotte

    NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Charlotte

    Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

    1. Kevin Harvick: Harvick scored his third runner-up finish of the season with a second in the Coca-Cola 600.

    “I signed a contract extension with Stewart-Haas Racing,” Harvick said. “We met at the bargaining table; they made me an offer, I signed it, and, you know me, I pushed it back across the table.” Pushed.

    2. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson took third in the Coca-Cola 600 as Martin Truex Jr. captured a dominating win. Johnson is third in the Sprint Cup points standings, 48 out of first.

    “Truex certainly had the best car,” Johnson said. “I got close to him a few times, but he just pulled away easily. I really think he was just toying with the other 39 cars. Really, I don’t think anyone has ‘played the field’ like that since Tim Richmond.”

    3. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex won the pole and led 392 of 400 laps on his way to a dominating win in the Coca Cola 600, leading all but 12 miles of the race.

    “We had the field covered,” Truex said, “or, in Furniture Row-speak, we had the field ‘upholstered.’ Everything went right for us, which was surprising. The way things had been going, I was expecting the wheels to fall off, both literally and figuratively.

    “Lewis Hamilton celebrated his Monaco Grand Prix with Justin Bieber. I hear he handed Bieber a bottle of champagne in Victory Lane. I’ve heard of DRS-enabled; Bieber at Monaco is a case of TMZ-enabled.”

    4. Kyle Busch: Busch finished 33rd at Charlotte, eight laps down, suffering his second-worst result of the year, and second finish in a row of 30th or worse.

    “I slammed the wall hard with 10 laps to go,” Busch said, “and NASCAR didn’t even throw a caution. I guess NASCAR officials ‘86’ed’ the caution. Or maybe they ‘78’ed’ it.”

    5. Kurt Busch: Busch posted his 11th top-10 finish of the year with a sixth at Charlotte. He is second in the points standings, trailing Kevin Harvick by 36.

    “I think everyone was happy to see Truex win,” Busch said. “I guess the old adage “Nice guys finish last” doesn’t apply, at least not now. I was skeptical, because with Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch winning the last two Sprint Cup championships, the old adage ‘A-holes finish first’ has been the norm.”

    6. Carl Edwards: Edwards was penalized twice for speeding on pit row and suffered a finish of 18th, one lap down. He is fifth in the Sprint Cup points standings, 53 out of first.

    “Busted for speeding twice,” Edwards said. “I think we’ve seen this before because this certainly isn’t the first time a NASCAR driver has been brought down by ‘two-timing.’”

    7. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski came home fifth in the Coca-Cola 600, posting his fourth top-five result of the season.

    “The Sunday before Memorial Day is the greatest day of the year in auto racing,” Keselowski said. “Race fans can start the day in Monaco, head to Indianapolis, and finish the day in Charlotte. In other words, race mileage is inversely proportionate to culture.”

    8. Joey Logano: Logano finished ninth in the Coca Cola 600, joining Penske Racing teammate Brad Keselowski in the top 10.

    “I didn’t win on Sunday,” Logano said, “but I did win the All-Star Race last week. It’s nice to have my name engraved on the winner’s trophy. That’s a far cry from the rules for the All-Star Race, which are written in pencil.”

    9. Chase Elliott: Elliott finished eighth at Charlotte, recording his fourth consecutive top-10 result. He is eighth in the Sprint Cup points standings.

    “Martin Truex Jr. won one of NASCAR’s crown jewel races,” Elliott said. “The Coca-Cola 600. The Indianapolis 500 may have ‘Carburation Day;’ now, Truex can celebrate with ’Carbonation Day.’”

    10. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth finished seventh at Charlotte, posting his third top 10 in the last three races.

    “Congratulations to Martin Truex Jr.,” Kenseth said. “You know, Joe Gibbs Racing shares an alliance with Furniture Row Racing. That means we share technical data, strategies, and a dislike for Carl Edwards.”

  • Hot 20 – Looking ahead to the World 600 while remembering those who have fallen

    Hot 20 – Looking ahead to the World 600 while remembering those who have fallen

    Let me be clear. Any race format that artificially moves entries from behind to plop them up front is a dumb one. I do not care if it is NASCAR’s All-Star Race or one that allows me to charge ahead of the Kentucky Derby field while wearing sneakers and a propeller hat. Dumb is as dumb does.

    Thankfully, we move from a waste of a perfectly good Saturday night to one of NASCAR’s marquee events, the Coca-Cola World 600. In fact, it marks the biggest day in motorsports, as our digital recording devices pick up the Formula-1 action from the French Riviera and the streets of Monaco at 8 a.m. EDT. Then our focus shifts to Indiana and the 100th edition of the Indianapolis 500 at 10:20 a.m. EDT, where former NASCAR driver Juan Pablo Montoya hopes to repeat. After they drink the milk there, it is off to Charlotte, North Carolina for our 4 p.m. EDT NASCAR date that sees Carl Edwards looking to defend.

    Four-time winner Jimmie Johnson goes in seeking to claim the victory that would tie him with Darrell Waltrip for the most World 600 victories. Kasey Kahne is currently in a six-way tie for third best, with three checkered flags to his credit. He is in good company, with the other five being Buddy Baker, David Pearson, Bobby Allison, Dale Earnhardt, and Jeff Gordon. That is damn fine company to be in. An all-time All-Star lineup to be sure.

    Every sport has struggled to find the proper All-Star format. Even when you find one, tastes change over time sending organizers back to the drawing board. Baseball is close, and hockey took a major step forward last season. Football is still searching while I appreciate basketball about as much as I do soccer, so I cannot comment.

    As for NASCAR, they should begin by not having Brad Keselowski come up with the format, as he did this year. If you need gimmicks in an attempt to make it interesting, it is not interesting. A suggestion to tinker with would be to let racing decide who should be there. The only drivers locked in should be those who won races over the previous 15 months. What you did in years past should not matter but rather what you have done lately. That would have tossed Tony Stewart, Jamie McMurray, Ryan Newman, and Kahne back into the mix. Only 11 would have been locked in, with the other nine to be determined on that day.

    If they ran three heats, as they did this year, then we could have the top three in each heat advancing to fill out the field for the feature. In order to reduce wear and tear so that those advancing might actually be able to challenge when they get there, I suggest heats of 30, 20, and 10 laps. The opening heat should be calm enough, the second a little hotter, and the dash for the final three positions would be chaotic enough without having them run too many laps. It would be nice to have 20 cars in the feature that might actually be in condition to compete. However, there are no guarantees in this life.

    As for the feature itself, 100 laps, 150 miles, for a million dollars, with the rules just like any other contest. That is my proposal, but what are your thoughts?

    As for this Sunday, here are NASCAR’s Hot 20 and some of our honored heroes heading into the Memorial Day weekend 600 Miles of Remembrance.

    1. KYLE BUSCH – 3 WINS – 397 PTS
    Pfc. Robert Stephan Underwood, U.S. Army (1949-1968) Missouri

    2. CARL EDWARDS – 2 WINS – 381 PTS
    Capt. Edmond Jablonsky Jr., U.S. Army (1942-1968) Texas

    3. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 2 WINS – 370 PTS
    Sgt. 1st Class Kyle B. Wehrly, U.S. Army (1977-2005) Illinois

    4. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 2 WINS – 368 PTS
    Spc. Joseph T. Prentler, U.S. Army (1990-2010) Michigan

    5. KEVIN HARVICK – 1 WIN – 418 PTS
    Lance Cpl. Nathan Ross Elrod, U.S. Marine Corps (1986-2006) North Carolina

    6. MATT KENSETH – 1 WIN – 313 PTS
    Pfc. Christopher Neal White, U.S. Marine Corps (1983-2006) Kentucky

    7. DENNY HAMLIN – 1 WIN – 308 PTS
    Sgt. John Davis Harvey, U.S. Marine Corps (1958-1980) Virginia

    8. KURT BUSCH – 386 PTS
    Sgt. Nicholas Ray Gibbs, U.S. Army (1981-2006) North Carolina

    9. CHASE ELLIOTT – 341 PTS
    Gunnery Sgt. Justin Martone, U.S. Marine Corps (1974-2006) Virginia

    10. JOEY LOGANO – 340 PTS
    Spc. Cindy Beaudoin, U.S. Army (1971-1991) Connecticut

    11. MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 336 PTS
    Gunnery Sgt. Jeffery E. Bohr Jr., U.S. Marine Corps (1964-2003) Iowa

    12. AUSTIN DILLON – 315 PTS
    SO Chief Petty Officer Mark “Badger” Carter (SEAL), U.S. Navy (1980-2007) California

    13. DALE EARNHARDT JR. – 314 PTS
    Lance Cpl. Aaron Howard Reed, U.S. Marine Corps (1963-2008) Ohio

    14. JAMIE MCMURRAY – 296 PTS
    Lance Cpl. Scott Albert Lynch, U.S. Marine Corps (1988-2010) New York

    15. RYAN BLANEY – 288 PTS
    Signalman Seaman Cherone L. Gunn, U.S. Navy (1978-2000) Virginia

    16. A.J. ALLMENDINGER – 283 PTS
    Yeoman 3rd Class Wendell Williams, U.S. Navy (1965-1991) Ohio

    17. RYAN NEWMAN – 278 PTS
    Staff Sgt. Jason C. Ramseyer, U.S. Marine Corps (1977-2006) Florida

    18. TREVOR BAYNE – 275 PTS
    Chief Warrant Officer 4 Jason William McCormack, U.S. Army (1972-2015) Alabama

    19. RICKY STENHOUSE JR. – 273 PTS
    SP 4 James H. Woolard, U.S. Army (1949-1969) Ohio

    20. KASEY KAHNE – 271 PTS
    Lance Cpl. Eric Levi Ward, U.S. Marine Corps (1990-2010) Washington