Tag: Tony Stewart

NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Daytona

Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

1. Jeff Gordon: Gordon overcame damage in an early wreck at Daytona and finished 12th, maintaining the points lead. He leads Dale Earnhardt Jr. by 27, as Hendrick drivers occupy the top three spots.

“It was all about survival,” Gordon said, “and I survived. ‘It’s called survival, only the strong can survive.’ And that may be the first and last time a NASCAR driver quotes Grand Master Flash.

“And speaking of NASCAR and rappers, I haven’t seen 50 Cent around lately. That may be because Erin Andrews told him to kiss off.”

2. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson was caught in a lap 20 wreck that ended his day with a 42nd-place finish, his worst of the year. He is third in the points standings, 55 out of first.

“What a day for Aric Almirola,” Johnson said. “Richard Petty made the 43 car famous; Almirola made it relevant, at least on Sunday. That makes Aric ‘King’ for a day. And he’ll be in the news consistently for the coming week. So, that makes Aric a loyal subject.”

3. Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Earnhardt finished 14th at Daytona, the top finisher among Hendrick Motorsports cars. He is second in the Sprint Cup points standings, 27 behind Jeff Gordon.

“I was looking for the Daytona sweep,” Earnhardt said. “Unfortunately, there wasn’t a broom in sight—only mops.

“That’s probably one of the wettest weeks of racing at Daytona. The rain affected everything: practice, qualifying, and the race. But it was business as usual for Junior Nation in the Daytona infield—-their alcohol consumption dictates that they’re never dry.”

4. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski finished a lap down in 18th in the Coke Zero 400. Kesekowski’s No. 2 Chevy was one of 25 cars affected by a lap 97 pile-up that forced a red flag.

“I’m not sure who started that mess,” Keselowski said, “but I’d like to punch them. Hopefully, should I open up a can of whoop ass, somebody else will bleed, and not me.”

5. Carl Edwards: Edwards found trouble early at Daytona, becoming one of several cars involved in a lap 20 wreck started when Roush Fenway teammate Ricky Stenhouse Jr. got loose. Edwards eventually finished 37th, 46 laps down.

“Tony Stewart was not happy with Stenhouse,” Edwards said. “He called him an ‘idiot.’ Trust me, you don’t want to be in Tony Stewart’s doghouse. It’s way too crowded in there.”

6. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth took 20th at Daytona in a race won by Aric Almirola’s No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports car. Kenseth, still winless on the year, is fifth in the points standings, 71 out of first.

“What a win for Almirola,” Kenseth said. “It’s always wide open when there’s a restrictor plate race. And when they say ‘anybody’ can win, what they really mean is a ‘nobody’ can win.”

7. Joey Logano: Logano finished 17th in a crash-filled Coke Zero 400 that left only 17 cars on the lead lap. He is now sixth in the points standings, 105 out of first.

“My teammate Brad Keselowski had the cut on his hand glued together,” Logano said. “And I believe it’s made him a better driver, because now he’s even more skilled at operating a ‘stick shift.’

“My car was leaving a trail of debris late in the race. As a result, I was black-flagged. That’s similar to my dad being black-listed.”

8. Kyle Busch: Busch finished 28th after being collected in lap 97’s “Big One,” which involved no less than 25 cars and left Busch’s No. 18 Toyota upside down.

“Jeremy Mayfield would call that a ‘roofie,’” Busch said, “or a ‘downer.’ Luckily, the tow truck was there quickly to turn me over. Mayfield would call that an ‘upper.’

“It was certainly a wild ride, and reminded me of that fateful day in Iredell County, North Carolina back in May of 2011. In that case, it wasn’t the ‘Big One’ that forced me into the grass on the side of the road, but a State Trooper.”

9. Aric Almirola: Almirola captured the rain-shortened Coke Zero 400, placing the No. 43 car in winner’s circle for the first time since 1999. The win came almost 30 years to the day of Richard Petty’s 200th and final NASCAR victory.

“It was a great day for ‘The King,’” Almirola said. “And Prince, too, because we’re gonna party like it’s 1999.

“I won $377,176 in prize money. I think I could win another weather-shortened race, or be a big-time player at the strip club, because with that kind of cash, you can really ‘make it rain.’”

10. Kevin Harvick: Harvick suffered damage in the first of two “Big Ones” in the Coke Zero 400. He eventually finished 39th after completing just 46 laps.

“Haas Automation became an official sponsor of Ferrari’s Formula 1 through the 2015 season,” Harvick said. “Gene Haas is an astute business man, and the timing of this deal is perfect. Before forming a partnership with Ferrari’s ‘Prancing Horse,’ he got into business with Tony Stewart’s ‘Ranting Donkey.’”

July 7, 2014
The Final Word – Rains delayed and shortened the race, but there were still fireworks at Daytona

Holy crap, what was that? If nothing else, the Firecracker 400 in Daytona sure was not predictable. A few yards short of a competition caution, many of the favorites were removed or seriously hampered when all hell broke loose. Ricky Stenhouse Jr, Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart got involved in a non-romantic triangle that involved some of the circuit’s best. Just past the half-way mark, they took care of a bunch of others with an even bigger demo derby. Greg Biffle caught up to Kasey Kahne, who in turn kissed Joey Logano, which commenced a wrecking orgy. In the end, half of the field was gone and those running up front were folks we usually expect to see running near the back.

Aric Almirola was not favored to return the iconic 43 that Richard Petty won his 200th win the Independence Day weekend thirty years ago, but he did. The rains that delayed the action for a day, and delayed it again early on Sunday, returned to finally put a wash to the proceedings prior to the three-quarter mark. The man in front was the 30-year old Tampa, Florida native, recording his first Cup victory in 125 starts. That goes with his single Nationwide win from 2007 and his two truck series triumphs back in 2010. Better yet, that car is all but entered into the Chase, with eight races to run before they settle on the 16 championship contenders.

Brian Vickers is not in a Chase place, yet finished second. Ditto for Casey Mears, in fourth. Danica Patrick and Marcos Ambrose had Top Ten days. Michael McDowell , who is not even in the Top 30 in points, was seventh on Sunday with Alex Bowman finishing 13th. Even part-timer Terry Labonte, the former two-time champ, was 11th. For some, it was worth the wait to run this thing.

For others, not so much, as barely half the field managed a hundred laps. Our list of likely Chasers who wound up in scrap metal included Jimmie Johnson (42nd), Kevin Harvick (39th), Carl Edwards (37th), Kyle Busch (28th), and Ryan Newman (24th). It is too early yet to get all tight ended about the chances of Kahne, Biffle, and Kyle Larson after they all finished outside the Top 25, but they could have done without this Daytona experience. On the other hand, Stewart and Jamie McMurray might be puckering up a little as both dropped points they could ill afford to lose. It has become even more likely than ever that without a win they will be running the final ten just for fun.

Almirola is the 11th driver to win this season, so as long as no more than five more drivers win their first of the season over the course of the next eight, he and the others will be in the Chase. Matt Kenseth is 90 points to the good in the Top 16, so he is secure as they sit right now. Newman also is strong, but things start to get tight after that. Still, anyone in the Top 20 can still dream of making it in on points, but the next dozen will need a win to even hope of making it.

Next Sunday it is New Hampshire. Sadly, that marks the final race broadcast on TNT before the ESPN gong show returns to test our love of the televised version of the sport. Adam, Wally, and Kyle, thanks for showing us how the job should be done.

Loudon could be the place where some winless drivers can show us how it should be done. Newman and Stewart each have three wins there. Clint Bowyer has a couple, and Biffle, Kenseth, Vickers, and Kahne also know where to find Victory Lane. Now, as long as other former New Hampshire winners, such as Johnson, Gordon, Harvick, Logano, Denny Hamlin, or one of the Busch brothers do not get greedy…

SWEET SIXTEEN
1 – Jimmie Johnson – 3 WINS – 596 POINTS
2 – Dale Earnhardt, Jr. – 2 – 624
3 – Brad Keselowski – 2 – 586
4 – Joey Logano – 2 – 546
5 – Carl Edwards – 2 – 543
6 – Kevin Harvick – 2 – 514
7 – Jeff Gordon – 1 – 651
8 – Kyle Busch – 1 – 524
9 – Denny Hamlin – 1 – 493
10 – Aric Almirola – 1 – 452
11 – Kurt Busch – 1 – 422
12 – Matt Kenseth – 0 – 580
13 – Ryan Newman – 0 – 534
14 – Paul Menard – 0 – 516
15 – Clint Bowyer – 0 – 509
16 – Austin Dillon – 0 – 494

CONTENDERS & PRETENDERS
17 – Greg Biffle – 0 – 490
18 – Brian Vickers – 0 – 484
19 – Kyle Larson – 0 – 482
20 – Kasey Kahne – 0 – 482
21 – Marcos Ambrose – 0 – 472
22 – Tony Stewart – 0 – 465
23 – Jamie McMurray – 0 – 447
24 – Casey Mears – 0 – 438
25 – A.J. Allmendinger – 0 – 414
26 – Martin Truex, Jr. – 0 – 414
27 – Danica Patrick – 0 – 358
28 – Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. – 0 – 342
29 – Justin Allgaier – 0 – 319
30 – Michael Annett – 0 – 299
31 – David Gilliland – 0 – 256
32 – Cole Whitt – 0 – 254

July 7, 2014
The Final Word – Brad dominated Keselowsky … Kentulowski … Kesetucky … He Owned the Thing

They might as well go ahead and rename that Kentucky track Kesetucky. That boy dominated Saturday night’s race from start to finish. Sure, he let team mate Joey Logano, a ninth place finisher, run shotgun for a lot of the race, got the lad some camera time to make the sponsors happy. Kyle Busch got the honors of finishing runner-up, but no one was betting he was going to do better than that. This was Brad Keselowski’s race, he led three-quarters of the laps, and if you were hoping for a challenge, it had to come from watching a channel that was all Brad, all the time. He simply owned it.

It was win number 12 for the 30-year old former champ, his second of the season and his second in three years on this particular circuit. The win moves Keselowski among the elite on the year, one of six drivers with at least two victories, and the best in points among those not working for Rick Hendrick. Jeff Gordon, who was sixth Saturday, continues to lead the way, with three-race winner Jimmie Johnson (10th) and Dale Earnhardt Jr (fifth) just behind, as Keselowski is ahead of Matt Kenseth (fourth).

The worst day was had by Denny Hamlin, who spent 90 percent of this one as a spectator after a tire issue introduced him to the outside fence. Kyle Larson lasted a bit longer, finishing 40th, after the same fate awaited him. As they counted down the laps, a failing tire was about the only thing the rest could hope for if they had any aspirations of beating Brad out. In fact, the only thing that got him that day was a breaking champagne bottle that left him in stitches, but it seems not enough to affect him at Daytona this weekend. He probably should have stuck with beer…in a can.

While Kevin Havick, Kasey Kahne, Tony Stewart, and Kurt Busch were good enough to be among the top dozen, the best of our “have nots” was Reed Sorenson. Thirty third in the standings, he was 27th on the tower at Kentucky. Unfortunately, even if he wins this weekend he still would not be in a Chase place as he currently sits 69 points beyond 30th.

Beyond us is the summer return to Daytona and the Firecracker 400 (amongst us traditionalists) on Saturday night. A dozen current drivers, not including Michael Waltrip and Jeff Burton, have won there before. Gordon has six, Stewart four, and Johnson and Earnhardt have three wins apiece. Keselowski is still without after 10 starts, but has a pair of Top Fives in the past two Daytona 500’s. Still, it might be a bit early to refer to it as Daytonalowski just yet.

SWEET SIXTEEN
1 – Jimmie Johnson – 594 points – 3 wins
2 – Dale Earnhardt, Jr. – 594 – 2
3 – Brad Keselowski – 560 – 2
4 – Carl Edwards – 536 – 2
5 – Joey Logano – 519 – 2
6 – Kevin Harvick – 509 – 2
7 – Jeff Gordon – 618 – 1
8 – Kyle Busch – 508 – 1
9 – Denny Hamlin – 455 – 1
10 – Kurt Busch – 379 – 1
11 – Matt Kenseth – 555
12 – Ryan Newman – 514
13 – Paul Menard – 488
14 – Kyle Larson – 474
15 – Greg Biffle – 474
16 – Clint Bowyer – 473

CONTENDERS & PRETENDERS
17 – Kasey Kahne – 465
18 – Tony Stewart – 460
19 – Austin Dillon – 455
20 – Brian Vickers – 442
21 – Marcos Ambrose – 438
22 – Jamie McMurray – 432
23 – A.J. Allmendinger – 413
24 – Aric Almirola – 405
25 – Casey Mears – 397
26 – Martin Truex, Jr. – 385
27 – Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. – 339
28 – Danica Patrick – 322
29 – Justin Allgaier – 300
30 – Michael Annett – 275
31 – David Gilliland – 246
32 – Cole Whitt – 244

June 30, 2014
Surprising and Not Surprising: Kentucky Quaker State 400

From the jaw-jarring bumps of the old pavement in which Kentucky Speedway takes such pride, here is what was surprising and not surprising from the 4th Annual Quaker State 400 presented by Advance Auto Parts.

Surprising: Dominance and redemption surprisingly co-existed in the Bluegrass state. Penske dominated, from qualifying to Victory Lane for Brad Keselowski, yet there was also redemption for several drivers, including Tony Stewart, who rebounded from an engine change to finish 11^th, as well as Jeff Gordon and Kevin Harvick, who both had struggles in the pits and went on to finish sixth and seventh respectively.

“Yeah, what a really fast car,” Keselowski said after his second win of the season and his second win at Kentucky in the No. 2 car. “It feels really good, obviously, to get that second win.”

“We have got a really good stretch run going here over the summer, so it’s very exciting for me personally, very rewarding, and I feel like we’re in such a strong spot,” Keselowski continued. “A lot of momentum, and this was really a big night for us in so many ways.”

Stewart, Gordon and Harvick may not have been in Victory Lane, but all three felt redeemed nonetheless.

“I would’ve liked to have been a little better than what we were there at the end, but I think we definitely had to fight our way up there through the day,” Stewart said. “We never did anything tricky to get track position. We pitted every time the pits were open. We didn’t do any less than anybody else did on any stop.”

“All in all, I thought we had a pretty honest day there and I can’t complain about that.”

Not Surprising: Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 M&Ms Toyota, played it fast and loose, right into the runner up position. This was Busch’s fourth top-10 finish in four races at Kentucky Speedway and his seventh top-10 finish of the season.

“I got to traffic, man, I just got too loose,” Busch said. “I was kind of loose the whole run, but I kept getting looser and looser throughout the run, where normally the rest of the runs prior to that throughout the race I was getting tighter throughout the run.”

“I was loose the whole race,” Busch continued. “I was loose, but it was a drivable loose, it wasn’t just a wrecking loose, until the end, and then I was wrecking.”

“For as loose as I was I had good grip and I was moving forward,” Busch said. “It looked like a lot of guys were struggling with the same issues I was but worse, so I was able to go by them, so I felt pretty good about it.”

Surprising: As a past champion, Brad Keselowski most certainly knows how to celebrate, but this time it resulted in some surprising bodily harm. Thanks to a broken bottle of champagne in Victory Lane, the victor ended up with four stitches to boot.

“We were playing around with some champagne bottles and as I told my good friend, ‘We should have stuck with beer,’” Keselowski said. “We were having too much fun with champagne and one of the bottles broke and I cut my hand open. It’s no big deal.”

“It’s all fixed now, so we’re good,” Keselowski continued. “Yeah, welcome to the party. It’s all good. I’m just glad we won. It’s a lot better story when you win and get hurt.”

Not Surprising: Usually race car drivers emerge after the race being mad at other drivers, but there was one driver who was just mad at himself after the Quaker State 400.

“The first wreck one of those lapped cars spun in front of us and when he spun he lit up his rear tires and made a huge smoke cloud,” Aric Almirola, driver of the No. 43 Eckrich Ford, said. “My spotter, Tyler, was telling me to go high and I was kind of in the middle of the race track to see what he was gonna do and at the last minute he was like, ‘Go high, go high,’ so I veered high and McMurray was out there.”

“I honestly had no idea he was out there and I ran into him, so I feel horrible,” Almirola continued. “I’m just mad at myself. I realize circumstances weren’t in our favor, but I should have done a better job of getting slowed down and not running into the 1 car.”

Surprising: Kentucky race weekend was certainly a good one for Ryan Newman, with Caterpillar Inc. renewing their sponsorship on his car, and with a third place finish, just his second top-10 at Kentucky Speedway.

“Just a good, solid night for the Caterpillar Chevrolet,” Newman said. “All the guys did a really good job strategy wise. Kept our track position all night.”

“Good job for everybody at RCR and ECR, and we’ll keep digging.”

Not Surprising: Clint Bowyer took to Twitter and told it like it was for his No. 15 5-Hour Energy race team after finishing 23^rd.

“Got our natural asses kicked tonight,” Bowyer tweeted after the race. “Testing this week to get to the bottom of a few things. We WILL get it fixed!!!”

Surprising: After a tire issue sent rookie Kyle Larson hard into the wall and out of the race, Austin Dillon became the highest finishing rookie. The driver of the No. 3 Cheerios Protein Chevrolet took the checkered flag in the 16^th position.

Larson does, however, still lead in the Sunoco Rookie of the Year battle and has scored Rookie of the Race honors eleven times to Dillon’s five.

“Blew a right front (tire),” Larson said dejectedly. “This is the first time that’s ever happened to me in stock car racing.”

“So, big hits,” Larson continued. “But it sucks. We were hoping for a good points day to pad our points were we are before we go to Daytona where it’s a real crapshoot. It’s disappointing to have two weekends that didn’t end up very well the last couple of races.”

“Oh, well. That’s how it goes,” Larson said. “We’ll try and go to Daytona and rebound and gain some more points.”

Not Surprising: Joey Logano proved that not only was his teammate powerful, but he had Penske power to boot, finishing ninth place in spite of being down a cylinder.

“I think Team Penske dominated Kentucky this weekend, it’s just unfortunate we dropped a cylinder there, but it’s still a top-10 out of being down one cylinder,” Logano, driver of the No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford, said. “We’ll take that.”

Surprising: Matt Kenseth, in his No. 20 Dollar General Toyota, proved his worth to his sponsor, who announced prior to the race that they would increase their primary sponsorship from 27 to 30 races. Kenseth finished fourth and felt that “Overall, it was a positive weekend.”

“I feel like we’re gaining on it,” Kenseth continued. “I thought we had a pretty good car. They had a great stop and got me good track position and I was able to get up two or three spots for the restart and hang onto fourth.”

Not Surprising: Dale Jr. was fired up and ready to go after struggling mightily in practice, qualifying 29^th, yet racing back to finish fifth, scoring his ninth top-five in 2014. And with that, Junior became the only driver so far with that many top-fives for the season to date.

“So Steve (Letarte, crew chief) and the guys did a good job in having to deal with me and trying to put a good car under me this weekend,” Junior said. “It was a lot of fun in the race.”

“It just fired me up … (and) they put a good setup under the car,” Earnhardt continued. “It wasn’t the best car out there, but we finished where we should have tonight with the speed the car the showed.”

The Cup Series next heads to Daytona International Speedway for the Coke Zero 400 Powered by Coca Cola on Saturday, July 5^th. Happy Independence Day!

June 29, 2014
The Final Word – Why Can’t NASCAR on TV Always be Like Sonoma?

It was a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon. Interesting race, a few surprises, great topography and scenery, and top notch announcing. What was not to like?

If you were Carl Edwards, not much. He came on strong over the final quarter of the race at Sonoma to march off with his 23rd career victory, and his second of the season. It marked his first win on a road course, and it ended a string of five straight wins by Team Hendrick. Well, barely, considering that Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr were contenders all day to conclude things in the Top Three. Jamie McMurray and Paul Menard put some spark into their seasons with Top Fives. Jimmie Johnson had a Top Ten, for those who do not things to change too much from week to week.

Matt Kenseth got the biggest surprise, when Junior bounced off a curb to clip him into the tire barrier. That tore the front end, radiator included, off his beast to leave him steaming. The driver, Kenseth, not the car. Didn’t I mention the radiator was no longer attached? 42nd was his fate.

Junior also managed to lay a late touch on A.J. Allmendinger, who then spun to get hit by Kasey Kahne and Brian Vickers to tear up his front end. A.J. went from a contender to finish 37th, and probably burned his Junior Nation t-shirt afterwards.

Kevin Harvick had a car to beat, and beat it he did when he got squeezed into Clint Bowyer’s spun car. Happy wasn’t, as his hopes faded to leave him 20th on the day. Notice that Earnhardt had nothing to do with that one.

Danica Patrick finished 18th, just ahead of Tony Stewart, ahead of Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, and Kyle Larson. That should give you some indication as to how lousy the day was for those boys.

Now, I would truly love to be a big Danica supporter, but despite her experience, her quality equipment, her lucrative sponsorship, and a loyal fan base, she just does not matter most weeks. To find her on the charts, you usually start at about 25th and look a few spots either way. Sunday was a good day, for her. Even great open wheelers have had trouble making the transition, and while she was popular, she was not great. Still, at 32, I guess there is still time.

Time to turn our attention to this Saturday night, where Kentucky hosts just its fourth Cup event. Kyle, Keselowski, and Kenseth have won the first trio and I would expect them somewhere near the front again this year. Also, do not be surprised to see a Mr. Gordon or a Mr. Johnson up there close, as they have been the past three years. They have not yet won there, but Saturday has not yet arrived, so that could change.

Change, like Home Depot leaving Joe Gibbs Racing and that same owner possibly about to welcome Edwards to the fold. Yet, not all things change. Check out the top of our leader board.

SWEET SIXTEEN
1 – Jimmie Johnson – 3 WINS (560 Pts)
2 – Dale Earnhardt, Jr. – 2 (555)
3 – Carl Edwards – 2 (509)
4 – Joey Logano – 2 (483)
5 – Kevin Harvick – 2 (472)
6 – Jeff Gordon – 1 (580)
7 – Brad Keselowski – 1 (512)
8 – Kyle Busch – 1 (465)
9 – Denny Hamlin – 1 (453)
10 – Kurt Busch – 1 (347)
11 – Matt Kenseth – 515 POINTS
12 – Ryan Newman – 473
13 – Kyle Larson – 470
14 – Paul Menard – 459
15 – Clint Bowyer – 452
16 – Greg Biffle – 444

CONTENDERS & PRETENDERS
17 – Kasey Kahne – 429
18 – Tony Stewart – 427
19 – Austin Dillon – 427
20 – Jamie McMurray – 425
21 – Brian Vickers – 424
22 – Marcos Ambrose – 407
23 – Aric Almirola – 400
24 – A.J. Allmendinger – 391
25 – Casey Mears – 373
26 – Martin Truex, Jr. – 360
27 – Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. – 320
28 – Danica Patrick – 299
29 – Justin Allgaier – 280
30 – Michael Annett – 249
31 – David Gilliland – 232
32 – Cole Whitt – 228

June 23, 2014
Hot 20 – NASCAR Still Needs to Award More Points to Race Winners

There is no doubt about it; winning is big in the Cup series this year. Race enough to be deemed a regular, sit among the top 30 in points, and a win pretty much gives one a pass to the promised land. It is exciting and has that all-important unpredictability factor we love. Just as we celebrate the possibility of a Buster Douglas knocking out a Mike Tyson for the heavyweight boxing title, we relish in the hope that just maybe a Danica Patrick, Justin Allgaier, or Michael Annett might steal one at Talladega and wind up with a berth to challenge for a championship.

Kurt Busch has no problem with that. As long as the list of winners remains no higher than sixteen as they leave Richmond, Busch would be in. This is despite the fact he currently sits 26th in points, 15 behind Martin Truex Jr. Still, to be honest, I rather like this “win and you’re in” concept, but are race winners given their just due for taking the checkered flag and being consistently up front, where it matters?

I cannot see how anyone could fail to see that Jimmie Johnson is currently having the best season in Cup to date. He has run consistent and has won three times. Yet, he ranks second in points, 15 behind Jeff Gordon. Do not get me wrong, Gordon is having a great season. I just argue that Johnson has been better.

Throughout this season, we have seen what the standings would have been like had we left the points system as it is, with one change. Instead of just awarding a race winner with a bonus three points, we give him 25. No automatic free pass, but a significant points recognition for the accomplishment. The only change among the Sweet Sixteen for the Chase at this time would see Kurt out and his boss Tony Stewart in, via points.

The whole idea behind the Chase, and the institution this year of having wins trump points, an expanded Chase, and elimination rounds are all geared to keeping the possible championship outcome unpredictable until the final laps at Homestead. This could still happen with just one more tinker to the tabulations. I guess it all comes down to who do you think is the most deserving of a Chase place, Kurt Busch or Tony Stewart (or those closely behind him), and who you think has been the best thus far this season, Jeff Gordon or Jimmie Johnson.

(Points reflect race winners receiving 25 bonus points, rather than 3)

Pos – Driver – Points – Wins
1 – Jimmie Johnson – 588 – 3
2 – Jeff Gordon – 559 – 1
3 – Dale Earnhardt, Jr. – 558 – 2
4 – Matt Kenseth – 513 – 0
5 – Brad Keselowski – 512 – 1
6 – Joey Logano – 498 – 2
7 – Kevin Harvick – 491 – 2
8 – Carl Edwards – 484 – 1
9 – Kyle Busch – 468 – 1
10 – Denny Hamlin – 457 – 1
11 – Kyle Larson – 454
12 – Ryan Newman – 440
13 – Paul Menard – 420
14 – Clint Bowyer – 417
15 – Greg Biffle – 409
16 – Tony Stewart – 402
17 – Austin Dillon – 400
18 – Brian Vickers – 394
19 – Kasey Kahne – 391
20 – Jamie McMurray – 384

June 19, 2014
The Final Word – Great Father’s Day for Genevieve and Lydia’s Daddy at Michigan

Sunday was a time for remembering our fathers. For those of us still fortunate enough to do so, it was a day to call the ole boy up or drop by for a visit. It was a time for fathers to spend some time with their children or, if one happens to be Jimmie Johnson, a time to kick butt at Michigan and then spend some quality time with the daughters.

Correct me if I am wrong, but was it not just a few weeks ago some media clowns made up the story that we should all be wringing our hands in anguish as we wondered when, oh when, might Jimmie win a race? That was three wins ago. Soon, we should again be hearing how Johnson dominates all those other little darlin’s by winning all those titles, and what a nasty thing that is. Bite me. The only down side to Six Time’s day was that younger brothers Jarit and Jessie got to spend time with their dad while the older sibling was working his day job. It marked his first victory at Michigan in 25 tries.

Good race, great race commentary on TNT, as we watched the boys and girl slip sliding away in the early going. Early was all Travis Kvapil got as Brian Vickers lost traction, went for a slide, and wound up fileting the right side of T.K.’s ride on the opening lap.

Kasey Kahne and Reed Larson, who will be a dad when the big day rolls around next year, got tied up on the eighth lap. The odd man out was Martin Truex Jr, who needed three laps worth of repairs. At least all it will take to make the Chase is just a single ole win, probably. He sure is not going to do it on points. Kyle Busch, who has a win, was a solid 41st after his car developed some issues in the late going and needed a time out in the garage.

It was a good day for some, with Paul Menard and Kahne both in the Top Five. The usual suspects did well enough, but that did not include the likes of Greg Biffle (20th), Carl Edwards (23rd), Denny Hamlin (29th) or Austin Dillon (30th). In fact, Dillon tumbles out of the Sweet Sixteen. Clint Bowyer moves up and, believe it or not, Tony Stewart is just seven behind Biffle for that final spot. Three SHR boys could make the Chase yet.

Now, if the boy could only road race. Actually, Tony won at Sears Point twice, and a few years back so did Jimmie Johnson. Oh, did I mention Jeff Gordon has won there five times? As for those road course ringers some teams import, not a damn one has claimed this race in 25 attempts. I guess we know who’s their daddy.

Driver Wins – Points

SWEET SIXTEEN
1 – Jimmie Johnson – 3 – 522
2 – Dale Earnhardt, Jr – 2 – 514
3 – Joey Logano – 2 – 454
4 – Kevin Harvick – 2 – 447
5 – Jeff Gordon – 1 – 537
6 – Brad Keselowski – 1 – 490
7 – Carl Edwards – 1 – 462
8 – Kyle Busch – 1 – 446
9 – Denny Hamlin – 1 – 435
10 – Kurt Busch – 1 – 315
11 – Matt Kenseth – 0 – 513
12 – Kyle Larson – 0 – 454
13 – Ryan Newman – 0 – 440
14 – Paul Menard – 0 – 420
15 – Clint Bowyer – 0 – 417
16 – Greg Biffle – 0 – 409

CONTENTERS & PRETENDERS
17 – Tony Stewart – 0 – 402
18 – Austin Dillon – 0 – 400
19 – Brian Vickers – 0 – 394
20 – Kasey Kahne – 0 – 391
21 – Jamie McMurray – 0 – 384
22 – A.J. Allmendinger – 0 – 382
23 – Aric Almirola – 0 – 379
24 – Marcos Ambrose – 0 – 370
25 – Casey Mears – 0 – 342
26 – Martin Truex, Jr. – 0 – 331
27 – Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. – 0 – 307
28 – Danica Patrick – 0 – 273
29 – Justin Allgaier – 0 – 269
30 – Michael Annett – 0 – 235

WISHING AND A HOPING
31 – Cole Whitt – 0 – 211
32 – David Gilliland – 0 – 209
33 – David Ragan – 0 – 190
34 – Reed Sorenson – 0 – 187

June 16, 2014
Surprising and Not Surprising: Pocono 400

Under surprisingly blue skies with no rain in sight, here is what else was surprising and not surprising from the 33^rd annual Pocono 400 at Pocono Raceway in the mountains of Pennsylvania.

Surprising: It may have been his first ever win at Pocono Raceway and his second win of the season guaranteeing him an opportunity to run for the championship, but surprisingly Dale Earnhardt, Jr. was focused more after the race on how he was going to share the victory with Junior nation.

In fact, the driver of the No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet advised the media that he planned to head over to his Twitter account because he “took a picture of myself over at the pylon and I’ll tweet that out later once I get to my phone.”

“I joined Twitter in February at Daytona and I underestimated just how enjoyable that could be,” the race winner continued. “The interaction is unlike any other, and I get as much out of it, I think, as the fans that are following me.”

“It definitely has some sort of a small effect on your personality, to have that kind of support directly right at your fingertips, knowing everybody is behind you 100 percent every day.”

“I’ve enjoyed it a lot and it’s wins like this that certainly make it a whole lot more fun for everybody.”

Not Surprising: There is no doubt that Brad Keselowski must be hoping that NASCAR forget Air Titan and develop Trash Titan after having to choose between trying to get some trash off his grille and finishing the race or trying to win and blowing up in the process.

To make matter worse, the driver of the No. 2 Redd’s Apple Ale Ford had not only been leading the race at the time of the trash, but had also dominated the race, leading 95 laps.

“You know, we were just running really hot and the motor was going to blow up so I had to do something,” Keselowski said. “So, I tried to follow the 10 down in the corner to get the debris off and I just checked up too much. I thought I had more room than I did.”

“I’m not sure I did enough to make a difference,” Keselowski continued. “But I made enough of a difference to lose the lead in the process. I thought I had enough of a cushion. When I got down in the corner, the car got sideways and I realized I had made a mistake. It was too little, too late.”

“It was really a flawless day except for my mess up.”

Surprising: At the conclusion of the Pocono 400, Kasey Kahne and Kurt Busch shared something surprisingly snake-like in common. Kahne continued to be snake bit after crashing hard on lap 142 to finish 42^nd, while third-place finisher Busch commented that he felt like he and his team were “shedding that new-team skin today and running up front.”

In contrast to Busch’s shedding off of bad runs, the snake bit runs of Kasey Kahne continued. And the driver of the No. 5 Great Clips Chevrolet was not happy about any of it as he emerged from the infield care center after his hard crash.

“Well, I had just passed Kyle (Busch) and I caught (Ryan) Newman and I was passing him off Turn 3,” Kahne said. “We were side-by-side so Kyle was able to get a good draft down the straightaway. We got to Turn 1 and I was on the outside and then he knew if he didn’t clear me there, then I would pass him back because I just had.”

“He just floored it and didn’t care there was someone out there and ran me right in the wall,” Kahne continued. “We both ended up wrecking. I think he wrecked a little bit, but I hit a good bit harder.”

“Once we hit, my car just went hard right.”

Not Surprising: Kyle Larson continued to prove himself to be a quick learner by winning the ARCA race at Pocono and also by mastering the art of shifting.

“To be honest with you, I did miss a couple shifts,” the driver of the No. 42 Target Chevrolet said. “Yeah, just twice, which is a lot better than probably it would have been if I didn’t practice shifting a whole lot.”

“But yeah, I mean, surprisingly there was only two times, when I was battling people and when I was pretty excited,” Larson continued. “I don’t know, I thought it was a good day.”

It was indeed a good day as the rookie driver finished fifth, again scoring Sunoco Rookie of the Race honors, at a track where he had never been before.

Surprising: ‘Home’ tracks were surprisingly good for Martin Truex Jr., who scored his second top-ten finish in two races, taking the checkered flag in ninth at Pocono this weekend and sixth at Dover last weekend. Since Truex is from southern New Jersey, he considers both tracks his ‘home’ turf.

“We had top-10 cars all year but we were not able to finish races,” the driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row Chevrolet said. “The last two weeks we finished the races and got some decent results. We’re gaining but still have a ways to get to where we want to be with our Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Chevrolet.”

“I made a mistake on one of the restarts and lost a bunch of track position,” Truex, a native of nearby Mayetta, N.J, continued. “But on the last restart I was in the right line and got a little lucky. Earlier in the race we were unlucky on the restarts.”

“I guess what goes around comes around.”

Not Surprising: Even champs make mistakes, but their true measure is demonstrated as to how they handle those errors. Both Jimmie Johnson and Tony Stewart made pit road mistakes, Johnson with a spin on pit road and Smoke with a speeding penalty, but both were able to rebound, finishing sixth and thirteenth respectively.

“My car somehow pivoted around that right-front tire changer and carrier,” Johnson said. “From there, we just went to work and did what the No. 48 does best and grind it out.”

“100 percent driver error,” Stewart said of his pit road speeding issue. “I got to where I blew through all the lights.”

“Had an awesome Mobil 1 Chevy all day, so great race, just the driver screwed it up this week.”

Surprising: David Ragan had a surprisingly good Tricky Triangle run, finishing 18^th in his No. 34 Taco Bell Ford.

“That was fun to be racing up there with those guys,” Ragan said. “Obviously it’s been a tough year for us so hopefully this can be a turning point for our Front Row Motorsports team.”

“It was nice to have things go in our favor today and do what we know we’re capable of doing.”

Not Surprising: Denny Hamlin, after scoring the pole, went on to prepare for the upcoming charity poker event for the next race at Pocono.

“It was a challenge,” Hamlin said of his fourth place run in the No. 11 FedEx Ground Toyota. “Those are the cards you are dealt and you have to deal with it.”

“I think in today’s world, strategy plays more into it than wheeling the car,” Hamlin continued. “The driver was at the mercy with the air that he’s dealt and the car that’s under him.”

“Those were the cards we had today.”

Surprising: One of NASCAR’s intrepid beat reporters Dustin Long became the story this past weekend, after breaking his ankle during an interview with eventual race winner Dale Earnhardt, Jr.

Junior bantered with Long in the media center after the race, telling Long to use the ramp and asking why he was so far away sitting at the furthest end of the media center from the dais.

“I’m keeping my distance now,” Long replied.

“I won’t push you again,” Junior bantered back.

While Earnhardt Jr. did no such thing as Long tripped over one of the scales during the interview, the story took on a life of its own and will no doubt be one of the stories to remember in the 2014 season.

Not Surprising: It was Jeff Gordon’s turn to snatch the points lead back from Matt Kenseth, after Kenseth stumbled early in the race to finish 25^th in his Dollar General Toyota while Gordon brought his No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet home in the 8^th position.

“It was a great effort, great race car again,” Gordon said. “I thought that was consistent all day long and the pit stops were fantastic.”

Gordon now leads the winless Kenseth in the point standings by just 16 points.

June 10, 2014
The Final Word – Junior wins on the Pocono Merry-Go-Round

Pocono has a great name, a long tri-cornered track, but visually the action there is not exactly stimulating. To paraphrase Stacy Musgraves, round and round they go, but trash on the grill really blows.

Leading late in the race, Brad Keselowski had trash on his nose, sending the water temperature soaring. He attempted to use Danica Patrick’s car to help fling it off, but all he managed to do was break his momentum to allow Dale Earnhardt Jr. to sail by with five laps remaining. On a track where passing was something most did in the pits, it was all over.

Junior won his second of the season, and 21st of his career, in his best showing since his high water mark of six wins a decade ago. Keselowski did not blow up, finished second, and was left wondering what could have been if he chanced it.

Jimmie Johnson recovered from a pit road collision to finish sixth, one spot behind rookie Kyle Larson. A pit row penalty put Tony Stewart (13th) out of contention, while a flat did in Kevin Harvick (14th). Kasey Kahne (42nd) suffered a tremendous hit on the outside wall to leave him shaken and a bit stirred in regards to Kyle Busch (12th). These, along with Junior’s late race pass, pretty much completed the highlights of this one.

The rest of the day was spent on a merry-go-round, as they went round and round and the only other action either took place coming off pit row or on re-starts. What you saw one lap you probably wound up seeing on the next one. Thank goodness the commentary of the TNT crew was interesting enough, as expected, to keep us listening even when there was not much to see. Even so, the trigger finger remained poised above the button on the PVR. At least it was when I wasn’t dozing off to take a quick nap here and there.

Still, Junior won and isn’t that possibility the very reason why a bunch of us watch every week? Since May 6, 2006 that has been realized just four times, once in 2008, once in 2012, and now the duo this campaign. Not a lot, but enough for some to wonder if the 88 is the new 48. Yah, sure. Over that same span, while Junior has picked up his four, Johnson has claimed 47 triumphs. I might be wrong, but maybe it might be a wee bit early for that kind of wondering.

I do wonder why races refuse to brand themselves, like the Daytona 500, the Southern 500, the Brickyard 400, and the like. Next up, the Motor City 400 in Michigan, at least that was the brand before they totally sold out to the sponsors 40 years ago. It is a shame it is a no-name, especially when you consider that 20 of the first 22 drivers who won the spring race there are Hall of Famers. A race with such a legacy should be known as something more than just a dozen sponsor names since 1976.

Dale Earnhardt won the race twice in his career, as has his son. The legacy tops the leader board as they swing back into action this Sunday.

SWEET SIXTEEN
1 – Dale Earnhardt, Jr. – 2 WINS – 476 POINTS
2 – Jimmie Johnson – 2 WINS – 475
3 – Joey Logano – 2 WINS – 418
4 – Kevin Harvick – 2 WINS – 403
5 – Jeff Gordon – 1 WIN – 498
6 – Brad Keselowski – 1 WIN – 448
7 – Kyle Busch – 1 WIN – 443
8 – Carl Edwards – 1 WIN – 441
9 – Denny Hamlin – 1 WIN – 420
10 – Kurt Busch – 1 WIN – 283
11 – Matt Kenseth – 482 POINTS
12 – Kyle Larson – 417
13 – Ryan Newman – 411
14 – Brian Vickers – 392
15 – Greg Biffle – 385
16 – Austin Dillon – 385

CONTENDERS & PRETENDERS
17 – Clint Bowyer – 383
18 – Paul Menard – 380
19 – Tony Stewart – 368
20 – Aric Almirola – 366
21 – A.J. Allmendinger – 360
22 – Jamie McMurray – 351
23 – Kasey Kahne – 351
24 – Marcos Ambrose – 351
25 – Martin Truex, Jr. – 324
26 – Casey Mears – 322
27 – Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. – 290
28 – Danica Patrick – 246
29 – Justin Allgaier – 241
30 – Michael Annett – 212

PARTICIPANTS
31 – Cole Whitt – 195
32 – David Gilliland – 191
33 – David Ragan – 184
34 – Reed Sorenson – 175
35 – Alex Bowman – 169

June 9, 2014

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Scores First Ever Pocono Win and Chase Berth to Boot

Dale Earnhardt Jr. may not have dominated the Pocono 400 race, but he was the one who took his No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet to Victory Lane after Brad Keselowski succumbed to trash on his grille and overheating issues.

This was Junior’s first win at Pocono Raceway and the first time that he has scored multiple wins in one season since 2004, when he won six times. Now that he has two wins, Earnhardt Jr. is guaranteed a spot in the Chase for the Championship for 2014.

“I’ve lost some in some strange ways, so it feels good to win one,” Dale Jr. said from Victory Lane. “We won the race and it goes in the books and helps us toward the Chase.”

“I’ve never won here,” Junior continued. “I can mark this one off.”

Steve Letarte, crew chief, shared his driver’s sentiments in the media center after the race.

“It means the world to win races,” Letarte said. “We talk a lot about the Chase and points and they are important but when you’re little you just want to win.”

“You appreciate the wins when they come,” Letarte continued. “I don’t think we had the best car, but Dale drove a great race and we had a little luck on our side at the end.”

“This one fell our way and we’ll take it.”

After running so well and leading 95 laps, Brad Keselowski was visibly disappointed with his runner up finish, for the most part blaming himself for the decision to try to get the trash off his grille.

“First off, I’m really proud of the speed we had today,” Keselowski said. “But this one’s kind of on me and the circumstances.”

“I was trying to do something for me and to help the car out, the driver of the No. 2 Redd’s Ford continued. “I knew it was going to break and I was going to get passed. So, I was trying to make whatever move I could do to help clean it off.”

“I’m not sure I did enough to make a difference,” Keselowski said. “But I made enough of a difference to lose the lead in the process. I thought I had enough of a cushion. When I got down in the corner, the car got sideways and I realized I had made a mistake. It was too little too late.”

“The team did a heck of a job; I just messed up a little bit there. We had a really, really good car. It was really a flawless day other than my mess-up there.”

Kurt Busch, who started the race on the outside pole, finished third in his No. 41 Haas Automation Chevrolet. He was the highest finishing Stewart-Haas Racing driver as Tony Stewart finished 13^th; Kevin Harvick finished 14^th; and Danica Patrick finished 37^th.

“Nice solid day. Top five car and we cashed in on a top five finish,” Busch said. “We were able to hold the track position and it was a solid execution. It was a nice turning of the page so to speak and a congratulations for shedding that new team skin.”

Kyle Larson, winner of the ARCA race the day before, finished fifth and was once again the top finishing rookie.

“It was a lot better finish than I thought that we were going to get,” the driver of the No. 42 Target Chevrolet said. “I knew from the drop of the green that we were going to be pretty good. Today I had a lot of grip and I knew that was a good sign.”

“We tried to put ourselves into position to get a better finish on that last restart and it all worked out,” Larson continued. “I’ll take a top five here at Pocono.”

Denny Hamlin, who started from the pole position, ended up taking the checkered flag in fourth in his No. 11 FedEx Ground Toyota.

“We had great strategy, great pit stops,” Hamlin said. “Darian (Grubb, crew chief) and the guys really put a great FedEx Ground Toyota underneath me this evening. It’s a good run for us — two top-fives in a row for us this year all year and that’s not bad.”

“We had great strategy and I’m proud of the Camry our FedEx Ground crew put under me this week.”

While several of the cautions were due to debris on the track, as well as one bizarre caution for a grass fire in the infield in Turn 3, there was one very vicious wreck that occurred, involving the No. 5 of Kasey Kahne, the No. 18 of Kyle Busch and the No. 99 of Carl Edwards.

“Well I had just passed Kyle (Busch) and I caught (Ryan) Newman I was passing him off Turn 3,” Kahne advised. “We were side-by-side so Kyle was able to get a good draft down the straightaway. We got to Turn 1 and I was on the outside and then he knew if he didn’t clear me there then I would pass him back because I just had.”

“He just floored it and didn’t care there was someone out there and ran me right in the wall,” Kahne continued. “We both ended up wrecking. I think he wrecked a little bit, but I hit a good bit harder once we hit my car just went hard right.”

“I’m not sure what happened,” Edwards said. “Somehow Kasey hit the wall.”

“It’s just tough to run the whole race and miss the best part.”

Thanks to Jeff Gordon’s eighth place finish and the trouble of Matt Kenseth, who ran into Jamie McMurray early, damaging his nose and finishing 25th, Gordon re-assumed the points lead which he had lost after the Dover race.

The driver of the No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet is now sixteen points to the good of the driver of the No. 20 Dollar General Toyota.

“It was just kind of chaos,” Gordon said of his race. “I thought that we were consistent all day long and the pits tops were fantastic.”

“It was a great effort, great race car again.”

The full race results for the 33^rd annual Pocono 400 are as follows:

Fin	Str	Car	Driver	Team	Lap	Pts	BPts	Status	TLd	LLd
1	8	88	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	National Guard Chevrolet	160	47	4	Running	3	11
2	3	2	Brad Keselowski	Redd’s Ford	160	44	2	Running	4	95
3	2	41	Kurt Busch	Haas Automation Chevrolet	160	42	1	Running	1	5
4	1	11	Denny Hamlin	FedEx Ground Toyota	160	41	1	Running	2	4
5	14	42	Kyle Larson #	Target Chevrolet	160	40	1	Running	1	7
6	20	48	Jimmie Johnson	Lowe’s/Kobalt Tools Chevrolet	160	39	1	Running	2	5
7	15	31	Ryan Newman	Wix Filters Chevrolet	160	37		Running
8	5	24	Jeff Gordon	Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet	160	37	1	Running	2	2
9	17	78	Martin Truex Jr.	Furniture Row Chevrolet	160	35		Running
10	18	1	Jamie McMurray	Cushman/Cessna Chevrolet	160	34		Running
11	19	15	Clint Bowyer	RK Motors Charlotte Toyota	160	33		Running
12	6	18	Kyle Busch	M&M’s Peanut Butter Toyota	160	32		Running
13	12	14	Tony Stewart	Mobil 1/Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet	160	32	1	Running	4	24
14	4	4	Kevin Harvick	Budweiser Chevrolet	160	30		Runnng
15	28	17	Ricky Stenhouse Jr.	Zest Ford	160	29		Running
16	13	16	Greg Biffle	3M Ford	160	28		Running
17	11	3	Austin Dillon #	Dow Chevrolet	160	27		Running
18	32	34	David Ragan	Taco Bell Ford	160	26		Running
19	9	55	Brian Vickers	Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota	160	26	1	Running	1	1
20	30	7	Michael Annett #	Pilot Flying J Chevrolet	160	24		Running
21	21	47	AJ Allmendinger	Clorox Chevrolet	160	23		Running
22	22	43	Aric Almirola	Nathan’s Famous Ford	160	22		Running
23	25	13	Casey Mears	GEICO Chevrolet	160	21		Running
24	29	9	Marcos Ambrose	Stanley Ford	160	20		Running
25	26	20	Matt Kenseth	Dollar General Toyota	160	19		Running
26	23	27	Paul Menard	Moen/Menards Chevrolet	160	18		Running
27	24	51	Justin Allgaier #	BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet	160	18	1	Running	1	6
28	35	38	David Gilliland	Long John Silver’s Ford	160	16		Running
29	33	32	Travis Kvapil	Corvetteparts.net Ford	160	15		Running
30	40	26	Cole Whitt #	Burger King Toyota	159	14		Running
31	34	23	Alex Bowman #	Dr.Pepper Toyota	159	13		Running
32	41	83	Ryan Truex #	Burger King Toyota	159	12		Running
33	31	40	Landon Cassill(i)	Newtown Building Supplies Inc. Chevrolet	158	0		Running
34	36	36	Reed Sorenson	Theme Park Connection Chevrolet	158	10		Running
35	37	98	Josh Wise	Phil Parsons Racing Ford	158	9		Running
36	39	66	Timmy Hill	Land Castle Title Toyota	158	8		Running
37	16	10	Danica Patrick	GoDaddy Chevrolet	158	7		Running
38	38	44	JJ Yeley(i)	All City Leasing & Warehousing Chevrolet	157	0		Running
39	42	33	Alex Kennedy	Dream Factory Chevrolet	156	5		Running
40	7	22	Joey Logano	Shell Pennzoil Ford	150	4		Engine
41	10	99	Carl Edwards	Kelloggs/Cheez-It Ford	143	3		Accident
42	27	5	Kasey Kahne	Great Clips Chevrolet	142	2		Accident
43	43	77	Dave Blaney	AmyRFochlerVtrnsLawAttrnyLLC/valor4vets.com Ford	142	1		Running

# = Rookie, Fin = Finish, Str = Start, Pts = Total Points, BPs = Lap Leader Bns Pts, TLd = Times Led, LLd = Laps Led. (i) Ineligible for driver points in this series

June 8, 2014