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  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Sprint Unlimited

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Sprint Unlimited

    After an off-season filled with snow, as well as major changes in the rules of the sport, here is what was surprising and not surprising from the 2014 Sprint Unlimited.

    Surprising:  After twenty Sprint Unlimited victories for Chevrolet, it was surprising that Toyota was in Victory Lane instead. Denny Hamlin won the non-points race, scoring his second win in the Sprint Unlimited at Daytona and becoming the ninth driver to win multiple times.

    “The best car won, that’s for sure,” Hamlin said. “It was survival of the fittest.”

    “This car was just phenomenal.”

    Not Surprising:  Daytona International Speedway, especially under a full moon, seems to lend itself to something catching on fire. This time, however, it was the pace car that burst into flames, causing Brett Bodine and a passenger to bail out as quickly as they could.

    “The pace car experienced a fire in the trunk area, which contains a purpose-built auxiliary electrical kit to operate the numerous caution lights during the race,” Chevrolet said in a statement. “The pace car driver and passenger safely exited the vehicle. An assessment is underway.”

    Surprising:  While Jeff Gordon may have been jacked up with excitement thanks to his record of 20 consecutive Sprint Unlimited appearances, he was also jacked up, literally, in the race.

    The back end of the No. 24 Drive to End Hunger was sent high in the air during a multi-car crash on lap 36, causing Gordon to have to settle for a 12th place finish.

    “Yeah when you get hit like that it’s pretty soft,” Gordon said. “I mean it sends you up in the air pretty good, but it’s not really that severe of an impact for me because the back of the car absorbs so much of it.”

    “I knew it was flying up in the air and I was just hoping it was going to sit back down on all four wheels,” Gordon continued. “The funny thing is that we slid in there and I was into Tony (Stewart) and I thought well I will try to drive it back.”

    “I put it in reverse I didn’t realize my rear tires were off the ground.”

    Not Surprising:  It may have been a small field, with just 18 cars on the track, but that did not stop tempers from flaring. Just ask Dale Earnhardt, Jr. who was none too happy with the driver from down under.

    “It looks like I was trying to get down a little bit there, and Marcos (Ambrose) went to the outside,” Junior said. “I didn’t know he was out there. Hard racing, and I was upset with him.”

    “A lot was happening right there and we just got turned around.”

    Surprising:  There was no one more surprised with the incident with Earnhardt, Jr. as Marcos Ambrose, especially since in his mind, he was just trying to help.

    “I was trying to help Junior there and ended up hurting him and hurting myself,” the driver of the No. 9 Stanley Ford said. “I was trying to push him and there was a little bit of a zig and a little bit of a zag and the next thing you know I helped him in the fence.”

    “That’s just what happens here.”

    Not Surprising:   While Danica Patrick and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. remain romantically involved off the track, they certainly created sparks on the track when Stenhouse rammed Patrick after she got away clean from one of the Sprint Unlimited’s bigger wrecks.

    Not surprisingly, however, all was forgiven thanks to some dark chocolate from Godiva.

    “Well he got me 18 tin cans of Godiva dark chocolate for Valentine’s Day so I don’t know if he’s trying to butter me up,” Patrick said. “If his hood wouldn’t have been up and had the inability to see obviously there would have been more frustration.  It was one of those racing things.”

    Surprising:  Jimmie Johnson continued his streak of surprisingly poor finishes in the Sprint Unlimited, finishing 14th in the past two years and 18th this year.

    “The back of the car got light off of turn four there,” Johnson said. “The car went into a drift and for a second there I thought I could keep it off the inside wall, but the longer I slid the more the wall became a reality and I got it.”

    Not Surprising:  Kevin Harvick proved yet again that he is nicknamed ‘the Closer’ for good reason. In fact, the driver of the No. 4 Jimmy John’s Chevrolet was the only Stewart Haas Racing driver to finish the race, let alone finish in the top-five.

    “For us, we had a really good car,” Harvick said. “Led several laps in the beginning. Then on that restart we couldn’t get organized and wound up getting shuffled to the back.”

    “We about got lapped,” Harvick continued. “We kept working on it and working on it and the next thing you know, it was at least drivable and you could hold it wide open again.”

    “Heck at one point coming to the white flag, I thought we were going to win the race,” Harvick said. “To come out of here with a fifth place finish and do all the things they did to the car to make it go was pretty awesome.”

    Surprising:  There was no one more surprised than Kyle Busch with the sparse number of cars racing at the end of this year’s Sprint Unlimited.

    “There’s so little cars out there that you’re just kind of on your own trying to figure things out,” the driver of the No. 18 M&Ms Toyota said after finishing third. “That’s kind of the way the race played out tonight.”

    “It was interesting there at the end and I don’t know that we’ve ever had so few cars at the end.”

    Not Surprising:  Joey Logano, driver of the No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford for Team Penske, was no doubt humming Carol King’s song ‘So Far Away’ as he finished fourth.

    “I’m trying to relive it all in my head right now.  It’s crazy,” Logano said. “It’s just so frustrating when you’re that close. It’s so close and you can see it, but it’s so frustrating because you’re going as fast as you can and that’s all you’ve got.”

    “These things don’t mean anything unless you win.”

     

  • Smooth Sailing For Chevrolet While TRD & Ford Stumble

    Smooth Sailing For Chevrolet While TRD & Ford Stumble

    The 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup season is 13 races old and we now have a fairly clear picture as to which manufacturer has an edge on the competition. There is a great disparity between all three makes which isn’t surprising considering that this is a brand new car.  Joe Gibbs Racing is by far the best team winning five races this year and dominating many more. TRD powered cars have won eight poles as well and were under the hood for all those JGR victories. They are fast but maybe a little too fast. They are pushing the limits of their engines which are failing more than any other manufacturer. They had at least three other races this year in the bag until engine issues killed their chances. There is an intense feeling of trepidation throughout the Toyota camp even if they don’t show it because they can’t afford to be giving valuable championship points away like this and they know it.

    Part of the reason why Joe Gibbs switched to TRD in 2012 is because their own engines were having reliability problems and they hoped to bolster their program with the addition of TRD power. Well, they are right back to where they were except this time; they are relying on someone else to fix the issues. TRD is plenty capable of fixing this problem though and I believe they will but the clock is ticking and they don’t have very much time. A quick fix that will be implemented immediately is to scale back the horsepower on their cars in an effort to improve reliability. Its common sense really; be easier on the engine components and they are more likely to last the entire event. They won’t be dominating every single race now but a top 10 and a few wins is a lot better than a few wins and a couple 40th’s.

    We don’t even know if this will eradicate the issue which has mostly been valve train related; considered the most fragile part of the engine to most. We saw Matt Kenseth not even make it 200 miles before he lost the engine at Dover and TRD’s thinking is that less strain on the parts will help them endure the entire race distance. Cup motors are built to last around 800 miles so for these engines to not even make it a quarter of the way to that amount is a little concerning. If they can get past these issues, then not much will be able to stop their powerful fleet of cars in 2013.

    Ford hasn’t had very many engine problems this year, what they are lacking is raw speed. They would like to adjust the front aerodynamics of their cars but I doubt NASCAR will let that happen mid-season. I said it back in Daytona that I felt the 3D “grills” would be a disadvantage to the Ford team but they aren’t pin-pointing that as the main issue so don’t quote me on that. They have just two wins this year compared to Toyota’s five and Chevy’s six. Carl Edwards won Ford their first race in the Gen-6 back in Phoenix while the underdogs at Front-Row Motorsports put their Ford Fusion’s 1-2 at Talladega. The Ford’s seem to run so-so at the 1.5 mile and 2 mile tracks which they have historically dominated in the past.

    Photo Credit: Simon Scoggins
    Photo Credit: Simon Scoggins

    They are fast at shorter, less aerodynamic dependent venues which is very uncharacteristic for that group. In the manufacturer standings, they trail Toyota by 20pts and Chevy by 28 which is a fairly large margin. Penske Racing and even Germain Racing have shown consistent speed in the cars although they’ve also had a few dismal results. Richard Petty Motorsports and Roush-Fenway are the ones that are really having a tough time. Carl may be 2nd in points but that team as a whole hasn’t taken charge at all this year and really haven’t shown much strength. They’ve just been there for the most part. RPM’s Aric Almirola was really good earlier in the year but now he is beginning to fall off as well. This certainly isn’t Ford’s season and as they struggle to find their footing, Toyota and Chevrolet continue to gap them more and more every weekend.

    Now I would talk about Chevy’s issues if they really had any. They came out of the gate winning the Daytona 500 in a Hendrick Motorsports 1-2 and all their teams have been solid this year. Toyota seems to have a little more speed than them but like I said earlier, their reliability is awful. Hendrick Motorsports and ECR have built very durable engines that have only failed twice during the season thus far. Hendrick Motorsports, Richard Childress Racing and Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing have all been very strong. Drivers such as Paul Menard, Jamie McMurray and even Juan-Pablo Montoya who are usually around 15th-20th in points aren’t ruling out the possibility of a chase berth just yet. Stewart-Haas has struggled but that is of their own doing as they are finding it tough to adapt to the Gen-6. They either have ill-handling racecars or find themselves at the wrong place at the wrong time. That being said, Tony Stewart just won at Dover so it’s not all doom and gloom for that organization.

    Chevrolet takes racing more seriously than most seeing that they put so much time and effort into their program. They were the last to unveil their Gen-6 car and were very secretive when testing last year. Chevy exemplifies what is reachable when you pour your heart and soul into something.  The record holding 36-time NASCAR Sprint Cup manufacturer champions are looking to win their 11th straight in 2013 and it’s not just NASCAR where they rise above their competition. They are kicking Honda’s tail for the most part in Indycar, Corvette Racing is the most successful team in the history of Le Mans and Chevrolet Cruze has a stranglehold on World Touring Car. I’ll tell you what; I’d love to see General Motors try their hand at Formula 1 so we can see if they have what it takes against the likes of Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes.

    The reason why Chevy always seems to be the ones to beat in any form of racing is because of the passion and time they put into all their programs around the world. Toyota is catching up in NASCAR though and I think they are going to have one heck of a battle in 2013. Toyota has never won a driver or manufacturer title in Cup and it would give much more credence to their title hopes should they resolve their engine woes. You can be assured that if they don’t win it all, the car standing in their way when it’s all said and done will most likely feature a gold bow tie on the grill.

     

  • Sprint Media Tour – Day Two – Michael Waltrip Racing

    Sprint Media Tour – Day Two – Michael Waltrip Racing

    Photo Credit: Brad Keppel
    Photo Credit: Brad Keppel

    On Day Two of the Sprint Media Tour, Michael Waltrip Racing was featured. Waltrip’s team was considered the most improved in 2012, having two of his three teams make the Chase and the third very close. This year, there are few changes at MWR.

    “If you’re looking for change, there isn’t any,” Waltrip said. “We’re going to try to build on last year.” Clint Bowyer was cautiously optimistic. “I don’t think we overachieved, because I think when you say overachieved it means you did more than you’re capable of, Bowyer said. “I just think we were beyond expectations and what people expected of us. I’m very proud of what we accomplished last year.

    I’ve looked forward to this year and what we have in front of us and the opportunities ahead with this new car and continue to build on what we had last year. That’s more important to me right now, is making sure we get the year started off right and the only way I know to do that is to win the Daytona 500.”

    Bowyer was asked what it was like being around someone like Mark Martin.

    “You know, Mark Martin first of all is a class act. He’s a racer, he’s driven beyond belief. His focus and determination is incredible and is just a great asset for our program and to be around as an individual. I’m very, very happy that he’s my teammate. I’m very appreciative of the fact that he’s my teammate and hopefully he’s in the sport for many years to come,” Bowyer said.

    Mark Martin was asked how he felt about the new Gen 6 Toyota.

    “This is not a dramatic change from what we had. In most ways, it’s subtle improvements all around until it gets to the aesthetics, and then that is — I would say — a huge improvement, Martin said. “Aesthetically, it’s a big change. Mechanically, it’s a nice improvement, a nice evolution of what we were doing, so operationally it’s not that huge. We went to the race track and we picked up where we left off at the end of last year and I saw most, pretty much everyone do that.”

    Martin Truex, Jr. came close to winning races last year, but the improvement was possibly more dramatic with his Toyota.

    “Really, it was the end of 2011 that got it started. We built new cars, we did a lot of things differently, had momentum going into the off-season, felt good and had a good direction going into 2012. I told a lot of people last year — or last winter – that we were going to be somebody that could go out and run strong each and every week and I felt like we could go out and make the Chase, and we were able to do that. It started in 2011 for sure, but it was mostly a direction of the team. The direction that the team was going in because of our leadership, because of Michael (Waltrip, co-owner) and Rob’s (Kauffman, co-owner) commitment to put our team where it was last year. And, that commitment obviously is to keep going in that directly and hopefully we’ll be able to do it this year.”

    Truex also mentioned that the reason sponsorship was so stable at MWR was that the organization was “all in” in sponsors. “Here’s what we’re going to do for you and here’s what it costs,” Truex said. Sponsors like that.”

    Co-owner Waltrip was very enthusiastic about the new season, but at the same time amazed at how good the formula worked.

    “I was just amazed at Brian Pattie’s (No. 15 crew chief) ability to run a race,” Waltrip said. “To help Clint Bowyer go win races — he really was a master strategist. He understood when to get gas and when to get two tires and so you put a guy behind the wheel like Clint Bowyer, who showed up in NASCAR and you could tell that he could drive a car better than most and then you give him a guy that’s a bit of a risk taker and a call maker and put him on the pit box like Brian Pattie and you couple all that with the support that Scott Miller (competition director) and the boys that build the cars and do the engineering at MWR — they were a really fun combination to watch. I’m just looking forward to watching them go again in 2013.”

    MWR will make no changes, as the co-owner said, from the formula that worked so well in 2012. Bowyer and Truex will have full time rides with Martin and Brian Vickers sharing the third car.

  • Surprising and Not Surprising: Dover AAA 400

    Surprising and Not Surprising: Dover AAA 400

    [media-credit id=26 align=”alignright” width=”233″][/media-credit]As all at the Monster Mile mourned the passing of Chris Economaki, here is what was surprising and not surprising from the third Chase race, the 43rd annual AAA 400 at Dover International Speedway.

    Surprising:  While Chevrolet has been dominant at the Monster Mile in the past, particularly with Jimmie Johnson behind the wheel, and Toyota strong in qualifying this race with Denny Hamlin on the pole, it was surprising that neither manufacturer ended up in Victory Lane.

    Instead the lone representative of the Dodge brand took the checkered flag, waved the American flag, and even did a stellar burnout in spite of being almost out of fuel.

    “Dodge has really performed with us,” Roger Penske, the ‘captain’ of the victorious No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Penske team, said. “They committed to us three or four years ago as we became the only team.”

    “The greatest thing we could do would be to bring a championship to Dodge this year,” Penske continued. “At the moment, we represent them.”

    “They’re partners,” Penske said. “We’re going to do our best.”

    Penske’s driver Brad Keselowski not only score the win for Dodge, but also got his first win at the Monster Mile. Even more important, Keselowski grabbed the points lead in the Chase standings and is now five points ahead of Jimmie Johnson.

    Not Surprising:  One driver that had to have a good run in order to even stay with spitting distance of the Chase contenders pulled it off and tamed the monster for a second place finish.

    “I thought it was a solid effort,” Jeff Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Dupont Chevrolet, said. “Our car was pretty good right from the start.”

    “It was a great finish to come home second,” Gordon continued. “This is nice to follow up what we had last week.”

    “We’re running good,” Gordon said. “We got seven more weeks to get it done.”

    Surprising:  For a track known as the ‘Monster Mile’, it was surprising that the monster was in the fuel tank and not on the race track itself.

    There were just five cautions total in the race, most for debris, and the final laps were nail biters to see who would make it on fuel rather than who would wreck or have other on-track incidents.

    Even five-time champ Jimmie Johnson, behind the wheel of the No. 48 Lowes/Kobalt Tools Chevrolet, had to back it down because of his fear of running out of Sunoco, finishing fourth instead of first just to be sure about that pesky fuel mileage.

    “Well, for starters, we’re not very good at fuel mileage races,” Johnson said. “So, when I heard that, I’m like, man, we’re in big trouble.”

    “And Chad asked me to start saving fuel,” Johnson continued. “It’s tough; it really is.”

    “I wished we could have raced for it,” Johnson said. “But it is what it is.”

    “You’ve got to be good on all fronts and we did a decent job today.”

    Not Surprising:  They say that races can be won or lost in the pits and that proved true for many drivers trapped a lap down after a cycle of pit stops gone awry with a caution. But for one Chase contender, Kasey Kahne, his entire race was impacted by what happened on pit road.

    “We don’t know why I had to pit the first time, but the car just started shaking really bad,” the driver of the No. 5 Farmer’s Insurance Chevrolet, said. “Right before it did that, we were fast, we finally got our laps back that we lost early and we were coming.”

    Then the No. 5 team made a critical mistake on the stop with a lug nut and Kahne again had to visit pit road, losing track position and precious time.

    “We were sitting really good because we had just pitted and topped off on fuel,” Kahne said. “It’s too bad whatever it was.”

    “We’ll figure it out and hopefully we don’t have it happen again.”

    Kahne finished the race in 15th and fell to sixth position in the point standings, 32 points behind the leader.

    Surprising:  Although the non-Chase Fords fared surprisingly well, with Carl Edwards finishing fifth in his No. 99 Fastenal Ford, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr., in his new Ford Cup ride finishing 12th, the Chase Fords of Greg Biffle and Matt Kenseth had surprisingly bad days at the Monster Mile.

    In fact, Biffle and Kenseth had such surprisingly bad days, finishing 16th and 35th respectively, that they both fell to the basement in the Chase point standings, facing an incredibly uphill battle to get back into the championship hunt.

    “It’s tough,” Biffle, driver of the No. 16 Scotch-Brite Ford Fusion said, after contending with a loose wheel and having a meltdown of epic proportions on his scanner. “We were in great position, but that really kind of takes us out of the title hunt.”

    “We really needed to finish in the top three here to be a factor, but now we’ll just work on being in the top 10.”

    “In two of three Chase races, something either fell off or broke, so obviously that’s not good,” Kenseth, driver of the No. 17 EcoBoost Ford Fusion, said. “This is probably the worst we’ve run here for as long as I can remember.”

    “From the first lap on the track to the last lap on the track, we were pretty much junk.”

    Not Surprising:   There is no doubt that Kyle Busch, who had yet another great race going, including leading the most laps until fuel mileage concerns forced him to pit road at the race end, has become the modern day racing equivalent of the biblical character Job.

    The driver of the No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota just cannot seem to catch a break, whether it is fuel mileage, engine failure or other strange on-track incidents. And, just like Job, Busch has done his share of vociferously and vehemently questioning the racing gods, as well as his team and manufacturer.

    “It’s frustrating,” Dave Rogers, Busch’s crew chief said. “I knew if it came down to a fuel mileage race that we were going to be in trouble.”

    “There was no doubt that we had the fastest car,” Rogers continued. “We played our best cards and we came up short.”

    Surprising:  Denny Hamlin, a physical force behind the wheel at any track, stepped up his mental game for a surprisingly good finish at the Monster Mile. The driver of the No. 11 Fed Ex Office Toyota Camry and pole sitter, finished top-ten, one of his best results at a track that admittedly is not his favorite.

    “Top-10 day on a race track like this and to battle for the win all day – I’m not going to complain,” Hamlin said. “We ran our ass off today.”

    “Like I said, there’s nothing we can’t handle on the race track,” Hamlin continued. “I think our performance today is a testament to where we’re heading.”

    Not Surprising:  Veteran Mark Martin, the ‘Energizer Bunny’ of the Cup Series, just keeps getting it done on the race track whenever he is behind the wheel of the No. 55 Aaron’s 2000th Store, Bronx, NY Toyota. Martin finished 3rd, announcing that, although not part of the Chase, he is still a contender.

    “I don’t know if everybody really noticed or not, but we had a rocket ship, super fast car,” Martin said in the media center after the race. “We were passing cars left and right.”

    “I have a fantastic race team,” Martin continued. “We were just having a blast.”

    Surprising:  In contrast to veteran Martin, three-time and reigning Cup champion Tony Stewart and his race team had a surprisingly challenging day. Smoke finished 20th in his No. 14 Office Depot/Mobil 1 Chevrolet and teammate Ryan Newman, in the No. 39 US Army Chevrolet, finished right behind him in 21st.

    “We just got caught behind the eight-ball there,” Stewart said. “We got a lap down and the next run we pitted, came back out and the No. 36 crashes.”

    “It was just a domino effect,” Smoke continued. “As soon as we’d pit, the caution would come out again.”

    Not Surprising:  In addition to the stellar run of Mark Martin, the other two Michael Waltrip Racing cars, both in Chase contention, had decent, top-10 finishes at the Monster Mile. Martin Truex Jr. finished sixth and teammate Clint Bowyer finished ninth.

    “Well, it wasn’t pretty at the beginning,” Truex Jr., driving the No. 56 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota, said. “But it was pretty damn pretty at the end.”

    “It’s great a great finish for where we started,” Truex continued. “What a crazy day.”

    “When you have days like that, you just have to keep fighting and we kept fighting and came out with a good results.”

    Both Truex and Bowyer advanced two positions a piece in the point standings. Martin Truex Jr. is now eighth in points, 42 behind the leader, and Clint Bowyer is now fourth in points, 25 behind leader Keselowski.

    Surprising:  One racer, making her first start at the Monster Mile, expressed surprising comfort with the concept of a fuel mileage racing, in spite of finishing 38th in her No. 10 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet.

    “I’m so used to the concept of fuel mileage racing that I don’t have any problem with it,” Patrick said. “Even at the start of the run I’m saving fuel already and they told me not to.”

    “I was a little slow to start,” Patrick continued. “But we worked our way through it and made it better most every stop.”

    “That is a good starting place for next year when we get here and that is the point of these races.”

    Not Surprising:  While pronouncing the finish ‘decent’, it was not surprising that the crew chief for NASCAR’s most popular driver was not particularly thrilled with the 11th place finish of the No. 88 National Guard/Diet Mount Dew Chevrolet.

    “We had a good car and we are fine with what we had,” Steve Letarte, crew chief for Dale Earnhardt, Jr., said. “To come here and not be good in practice and have a good car and feel like we could run in the top-five – that’s heading in the right direction.”

    “We just need a little luck on our side.”

  • Who wins the Chase? Lots of history and recent performance are telling

    Who wins the Chase? Lots of history and recent performance are telling

    [media-credit name=”Noel Lanier” align=”alignright” width=”239″][/media-credit]It may seem silly, but there are those who have already decided that the Chase has two favorites, Brad Keselowski and Jimmie Johnson. There is something to be said for that, but the thought needs more investigation. It’s also useful to look at history and recent statistics. Those two categories tend to color things a bit.

    First, history tells us a lot. Chevrolet drivers, especially Hendrick Motorsports drivers and those teams he supplies cars for, seem to have the upper hand. The fact is that for the last 20 years, Chevrolet drivers have won 16 championships, with 11 of them coming from Hendrick Motorsports. That’s quite a record. Only Ford drivers Alan Kulwicki, Dale Jarrett, Matt Kenseth, and Kurt Busch have dented that streak. And most of them are ancient history with the last Ford championship coming way back in 2004 when Busch did the trick. In this two decade period, Toyota and Dodge haven’t accomplished a championship.

    Part of the reason for this is the tremendous advantage Chevrolet has in top teams competing week after week. On any given Sunday (or Saturday night), Chevrolet fields 11 top teams running Hendrick and Richard Childress motors or chassis. Ford usually fields only five similar teams, which is one of the reasons Penske Racing was added to the mix. That’s a huge advantage. With Hendrick or his satellite operation winning the last six championships, you have to consider them the favorites—and there are four of them.

    Another thing to consider is recent performance. Surprisingly, the strongest performers over the last six races are Keselowski, Kyle Busch (who isn’t in the Chase), Clint Bowyer, Greg Biffle, and Kasey Kahne. If momentum has in factor in this championship, you have to consider that. Notable is that Hendrick drivers Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Johnson, and Jeff Gordon rank down the list. It makes things more confusing.

    It would be a tremendous surprise to me if the champion is not one of the Hendrick Motorsports drivers. History is with them. Brad Keselowski. Bowyer, and Biffle have had their consistency problems and Johnson looks like he is ready to dominate. Kahne is surprisingly at the top of the field every race and the rest of the field is, to be honest, chasing (no pun intended).

    It’s a little early to tell, but history and recent performance gives us a little insight to how this thing will play out. If I was a betting man, and I’m not, I would put my money on a Chevrolet driver and one from the Hendrick camp. We’ll visit this all during the Chase, but as for now, that’s the way I see it.

  • Kyle Busch continues Charlotte success with strong top five

    Kyle Busch continues Charlotte success with strong top five

    [media-credit name=”Brad Keppel” align=”alignright” width=”246″][/media-credit]With every lap and every race Kyle Busch runs at the Charlotte Motor Speedway, it becomes one of his better racetracks.

    Good news if Busch plans to contend for the championship since Charlotte is not only in the Chase but several other mile-and-a-half tracks are as well. Busch and his No. 18 M&M’s team continue to improve their program and Sunday night was another step in the right direction.

    After leading 55 laps and spending nearly all 400 laps in the top-10, Busch came home with a third place finish. In the last two Charlotte races Busch hasn’t finished worse than third and has led 166 laps. His last nine races are even more impressive: besides a wreck in the Coke 600 last year, Busch hasn’t finished worse than eighth and has four third place finishes.

    The only thing missing is a win.

    “Man, I want to win at Charlotte so bad,” said Busch when asked about it. “This stinks – second, third, fourth every single time here. It’s a little frustrating being able to finish in the top five like that all the time when you are that close.

    “It’s also good to finish like that. We just need to carry on that momentum. This a good race for us so we can bring back some good notes for when we come back in October.”

    The finish marks the 10th time Busch has finished in the top-10 in his 17 starts at Charlotte. But for all the success that he’s earned there with wins in the Camping World Truck Series (4) and the Nationwide Series (6), it hasn’t carried over – yet.

    He and his team though did many things right during the Coca-Cola 600. His car was one of the few that stayed fast during day and into the dark night, not fading off and needing many adjustments.

    After starting 21st he quickly found a comfortable spot in the top-10 and the only concern for the team was keeping up with the changing track conditions. Every time he came to the attention of his crew on pit road they never flinched and quickly got him back out onto the track.

    With the race going into long green flag runs, that certainly helped. At times it appeared his car was better on shorter runs before losing positions the longer a run went on. According to Busch though, a driver could then search around on track and make a line work where others weren’t.

    “It took so long for the cars to slow down to a certain point that then you could make speed up on the top side,” Busch said. “I could do that but it just took so long in the run to get to that point. If you went up there too early, you’d lose spots.

    “I did that a couple times today. It’s 600 miles here. It’s the Coke 600 – that’s what you get.”

    The finish moves Busch to eighth in points and while he would certainly like to win, he knows getting locked in the Chase is a priority. The way the month of May has been going, he’s hasn’t finished outside the top four, Busch is putting up a strong fight for a Chase spot.

    It’s a good change for a team who found themselves behind when the season started. Not performing to standard and leaving many questioning if something was wrong. Now they’ve moved from 16th to the top-10 in points.

    Busch loves what he sees from behind the wheel. His team is getting stronger, the cars are getting faster and they’re closing in on what they need to win.

    “I think we’re good,” said Busch about his team. “We’re definitely a contender each and every week. We’re just not winners yet. I wish we knew what it was to get us to that point. There’s just a little bit of something lacking – whether it’s speed or whether it’s longevity in the runs.

    “It seems like we can have one or the other and we have to put it all together. The guys did a great job – Denny [Hamlin] finishing second, we run third so that’s really good for us. We’ll move on and go to Dover and see what we can get there.”

  • Sadler to drive for five with MWR

    Sadler to drive for five with MWR

    [media-credit name=”Michael Waltrip Racing” align=”alignright” width=”180″][/media-credit]Elliott Sadler and Michael Waltrip Racing (MWR) have agreed to a deal where the Emporia, VA. native will drive five races in the No. 55 Toyota Camry.

    As a 12 year veteran in the Sprint Cup Series, Sadler will be competing for the Nationwide Series title once again this season. He signed a two-year deal with Kevin Harvick Incorporated in November of 2010, after struggling to find a competitive ride in NASCAR’s elite series.

    KHI merged with Harvick’s Cup Series team, Richard Childress Racing as Sadler was unable to win the a lone race in the 2011 season. Childress gave Sadler the opportunity to run the Daytona 500 in the No. 33 Impala. Sponsorship came from General Mills in a collaboration with Kroger, but Sadler was unable to race for the win as a fuel pressure issue deflated any chance for Sadler to be competitive.

    Waltrip has always known that Sadler has it in him to run competitively in the Sprint Cup Series, but Sadler has never been given the right opportunity. With Sadler’s signing, Waltrip signs a driver such as himself.

    Though sponsorship has yet to be named, the races Sadler will drive have been announced. The 36 year old will step behind the wheel at both Bristol and Martinsville races with the first New Hampshire race in mid-July.

    Rodney Childers will be Sadler’s Crew Chief. Sadler previously worked with Childers at what was Gillett/Evernham Motorsports in 2008. But, Childers left RPM for MWR. Ironically, the two will now work together once again, even though it is on a part-time basis.

    “We’ll pair him with Crew Chief Rodney Childers who builds really fast cars. We believe Elliott will do a great job,” said team owner, Michael Waltrip, who will race four more times in the No. 55 this year.

    Waltrip and the MWR have an exceeding amount of confidence in Sadler who finished second in the battle for the Nationwide Series championship in 2011.

    The signing could mean Sadler will return to the Cup Series for a full-time schedule in 2013. Sadler may drive for RCR, MWR, or even another team. However, for 2012, Sadler’s goal is to win the Nationwide Series championship.

    Though the season has yet to get into the midst of the points battle, Sadler will likely battle Ricky Stenhouse Jr. once again for the trophy which can lock up Sadler’s return to the elite series of stock car racing.

  • Matt Crafton Leader of the Pack at ThorSport Racing

    [media-credit id=62 align=”alignright” width=”221″][/media-credit]Celebrating his twelfth season at ThorSport Racing, 35 year old Matt Crafton may well be known as the ‘leader of the pack’ among his fellow drivers, including championship runner-up Johnny Sauter and Rookie of the Year contender Dakoda Armstrong.

    And although the driver of the No. 88 Menards Toyota Tundra is fine with that ‘leader of the pack’ moniker, as well as being the ‘wily veteran’, he does take exception to anyone who pins the ‘old’ label on him.

    “That’s what they’ve named me,” Crafton said of his ‘leader of the pack’ status. “I didn’t so much come up with that but I guess that’s what they’re calling me.”

    Whether leader or wily veteran, Crafton admits that he definitely has had an unusual amount of time with the same team, especially in the ever-changing sport of NASCAR racing.

    “It says so much for Duke and Rhonda Thorson (ThorSport owners) and Menards (sponsor) who have been behind me for these past years,” Crafton said. “Duke has run this like a business and has grown each year but has not overspent, like so many race teams do.”

    “Duke said if I’d stick with him as he was growing, we would be just fine,” Crafton continued. “And he has been a man of his words.”

    Will this long-term relationship with ThorSport Racing lead to a championship run for the ‘wily veteran’ this upcoming race season?

    “I sure hope so,” Crafton said simply. “That would be a dream come true for the Thorsons and for me.”

    In addition to his teammate Johnny Sauter, who has been with ThorSport Racing for several years, Crafton is also looking forward to his newer teammate Dakoda Armstrong. With the trio racing together for ThorSport, Crafton is convinced that they may just be that team to beat for the Truck Series championship.

    “It’s definitely going to help us,” Crafton said of his teammates. “It will give us some more people to bounce ideas off.”

    “There’s going to be some weekends that me and Johnny will struggle and Dakoda and his team might be on a different path and able to help us,” Crafton continued. “That’s one of the great things about having a multi-truck deal.”

    “Dakoda’s going to do a good job,” Crafton said. “He’s got a lot of learning to do and he’s definitely green.”

    “But if he keeps calling me ‘old guy’, we’re going to have a problem,” Crafton said with a chuckle. “He’s going to have to learn to respect his elders.”

    In addition to his young teammate, Crafton also has another major change facing him for the 2012 season. For the first time in his Truck career, he will be driving a Toyota instead of a Chevrolet.

    “It’s been great,” Crafton said of the change. “Toyota has been a great company to work with so far.”

    “I’ve been with Chevy since I started in the Truck Series and that’s all I’ve ever known,” Crafton continued. “So, I had no idea how this was going to go.”

    “But they give you so many tools and their door is always open to ideas and questions you might have,” Crafton said. “They have 40 engineers on staff and you can go to them and they thrive on figuring out the answer.”

    “That’s one of the cool things that Toyota has given us.”

    “Chevy was great to us but we were racing against Cup-associated and affiliated race teams,” Crafton said. “To get to the next level, we felt we could get that Cup technology by going with Toyota.”

    Not only does Crafton have a new manufacturer, but he also has a new crew chief, Carl Joiner. And while Joiner may be new to the top of the pit box, he has been a long time team member and friend of the veteran driver.

    “He’s actually been our shock guy for, oh my God, seven years if not more,” Crafton said of Joiner. “I just got married this year and he was my best man.”

    “The year I won the championship on the southwest tour, he and my dad were my crew chiefs,” Crafton continued. “He was doing it back then and we’ve always had a great relationship.”

    “I’m really, really super-stoked about working with him this year.”

    While he may be looking forward to the 2012 Camping World Truck Series season, Crafton has been busy off the track as well.  In fact, he has been on the road during his time off just about as much as during his race season, even taking time to tie the knot.

    “I have been traveling,” Crafton said. “From the time I left Homestead to two days ago, I’ve only been home eight days.”

    “Everybody always says we should be resting but I love to travel so I’m not complaining,” Crafton continued. “Right after Homestead, we went to southern California and played in the sand.”

    “Then we came home and flew off to go get married just south of Cancun, Mexico and then we went to honeymoon in Costa Rica,” Crafton said. “When we got home from our honeymoon, we were home for two days and went to play in the sand again in California and then drove our motor home back.”

    “We actually take our motor home and leave it out there all winter and before the season we drive it back,” Crafton continued. “And that is not very much fun.”

    “But if we made it through that long drive stuck in the motor home for three days, I guess we can be married.”

    As hectic as his off-season has been, Crafton can barely contain his excitement for the beginning of the Truck season at Daytona this weekend.

    “I am just super-excited,” Crafton said. “I’m so looking forward to this season.”

  • Rockingham Speedway Hosts Toyota Test Session

    Rockingham Speedway Hosts Toyota Test Session

    [media-credit name=”Rockingham Speedway” align=”alignright” width=”265″][/media-credit]Monday morning I was at home doing the usual housework when all of a sudden it hit me. Why am I in the house on such a beautiful day when I could be at ‘The Rock’? So I ditched the chores, hopped in my car and drove out to Rockingham Speedway.

    I arrived around 2:30 pm and decided to check in at the office. One of the best parts of the day was the opportunity to spend a few minutes with Andy Hillenburg. His vision and perseverance combined to bring NASCAR back to this historic track.

    After parking my car I walked to the grandstands, took my seat and joined the others who were there to watch the testing session. As I sat and watched, I couldn’t help but smile. ‘The Rock’ is an integral part of NASCAR history and a sense of awe immediately enveloped me.

    While I was thinking about all that had come before, a father and son walked past me and caught my eye. I listened as the father patiently explained to his son what was happening.  The young boy gazed into his father’s eyes, determined not to miss a single word.

    That’s when it dawned on me. Maybe I had been looking at this all wrong. Maybe it’s not the past that’s important but the new memories that this young boy and others like him will make when NASCAR returns to ‘The Rock’.

    That reunion will take place when Rockingham Speedway hosts the Camping World Truck Series on April 15, 2012. Tickets are available for pre-order now at www.rockinghamspeedway.com.
    Drivers who participated in the test session:

    NASCAR Sprint Cup – Denny Hamlin
    NASCAR Nationwide – Steve Wallace, Michael Annett, Darrell Wallace Jr.
    NASCAR Camping World Truck Series – Kyle Busch, Brian Ickler, Timothy Peters, David Starr

  • Non-Chasers Excel in Bank Of America 500

    Non-Chasers Excel in Bank Of America 500

    Kasey Kahne

    For the third week in a row, Kasey Kahne has finished in the top-5 among the Chase contenders.  At the beginning of the race, Kahne did not have a great race car.  He complained of “rear-end up and front-end down” handling issues.  After green flag pit stops with 139 laps to go, the No. 4 crew made adjustments to correct the issues.  “Oh yea, it’s going now” Kahne replied to the crew after exiting pit road.  After pit stops, Kahne was in ninth position and was the fastest car on the track.  On the fifth caution of the night, Kahne’s Red Bull crew was able to get him out of the pits in third position, securing him a finish of fourth position.  Kahne won the Mobil 1 Command Performance Driver of the Race award for the Bank of America 500.  Given to the winner of the race, or the next highest finishing driver with the Mobil 1 decal on their race car.  Kasey moved up one spot in standings to 15th position.

    Marcos Ambrose

    Richard Petty Motorsports driver Marcos Ambrose was destined to do well at Charlotte Motor Speedway, having ten top-10 career finishes at intermediate tracks coming into this race.  Ambrose celebrated his fifth top-5 of the season at Charlotte Motor Speedway Saturday night.  Ambrose qualified his Stanley Tools Ford in 12th position and was a front runner throughout the race.  Although there were a few late-race cautions, Ambrose was able to hold his position and stay at the head of the field.  Marcos finished the race in fifth position, his third straight top-10 of the season.  The crew chief of the No. 9 car, Todd Parrott, received the Moog Problem Solver of the Race award.  Given to the crew chief that improves the most from the first half of the race to the second half, utilizing the 40 best laps times(improving 0.155 seconds).  Marcos moved two spots up in the points standings, to 18th position


    AJ Allmendinger

    Although AJ Allmendinger battled handling issues during the race, he was able to keep his Best Buy Ford in the top-10 throughout the night.  On Lap 127 Allmendinger pitted to try and correct these handling issues, but couldn’t quite seem to get it fixed.  AJ remained in the top-10 until just after Lap 200, when he fell to 12th position.  The team remained patient, pitting again under Lap 238 to make more adjustments.  With 100 laps to go, Allmendinger’s No. 43 car came to life, allowing him to finish the race in seventh position.  This marks AJ’s eighth top-10 of the season.  Leaving Charlotte, he rests in 14th position in points standings.