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  • Hot 20 – If dreams do come true, why not a Dale Earnhardt 500 at Talladega?

    Hot 20 – If dreams do come true, why not a Dale Earnhardt 500 at Talladega?

    With more than a month left in the old year, talk about the new is already starting to dominate. Tony Stewart is now retired, with Clint Bowyer no doubt thrilled at the chance to get back into quality equipment as his replacement. Dale Earnhardt Jr. is getting ready to return to racing, though that message from fiance Amy Reimann seems to indicate he never really left. Greg Biffle has left Jack Roush after all these years, with his old ride apparently being put on blocks for next season.

    Dear NASCAR: Please start branding your races so they might one day become stand alone marquee events. Along with the Daytona 500, the Southern 500, and the Brickyard 400, change it back to the World 600 at Charlotte and summertime should mark the Firecracker 400 at Daytona. While we are at it, who would not want to win at Talladega, taking the Hellmann’s Dale Earnhardt 500, or STP’s Richard Petty 500 at Martinsville? A Ridgeway grandfather clock with the King’s face on the face. Hey, it is not our circus, but we have grown fond of some of the monkeys.

    Jimmie Johnson has another trinket to keep polished. NASCAR, in its stupidity, has few iconic events, we know, but Johnson has won them all. Daytona 500? Twice. Southern 500? Twice. World 600? Four times. Brickyard 400? Four more. Ten-time winner at Dover. Nine at Martinsville. Did anyone mention seven Cup championships? Is it too early to wonder about an eighth? Jimmie Johnson is a living, breathing active iconic legend of the sport. Enjoy him while we can.

    Most athletes are done by the time they hit 40. NASCAR is lucky in that way, but even at that age folks start asking the drivers “how much longer?” once they hit the milestone. Johnson, Junior, Biffle, Matt Kenseth and Kevin Harvick have already reached the peak of that mountain. The good news is that young gents such as Chase Elliott, Ryan Blaney, and Austin Dillon have already arrived, with Ty Dillon coming soon, along with the likes of Erik Jones and Darrell Wallace Jr. Those are just the ones with decent rides, either at this level or the one just below. Like XFINITY champ Daniel Suarez, for instance.

    Elliott, Cup’s top rookie, turns 21 within the week. There are 50 drivers younger than him with some experience in the Cup, XFINITY, Camping World, or ARCA series. Harrison Burton finished 22nd in a truck race, third in an ARCA event. Jeff Burton’s boy turned 16 in October. Cole Custer does not turn 19 until January, yet was 10th best in the trucks this season, with a pair of XFINITY Top Tens to his credit in just five attempts. Tomorrow’s stars are coming.

    Let us not rush things, though. 2016 gave us a nice mix of seasoned veterans and fuzzy-cheeked talent, as our Hot 20 bears out.

    1. JIMMIE JOHNSON (5 WINS – 11 T5 – 16 T10) 5040 PTS
    Gunning for eight in 2017. What, too soon?

    2. JOEY LOGANO (3-16-26) 5037 PTS
    I will never forget what he and Brittany did to honor the family of Jake Leatherman.

    3. KYLE BUSCH (4-17-25) 5035 PTS
    If NASCAR was Canadian, would Kyle be sponsored by Smarties?

    4. CARL EDWARDS (3-9-18) 5007 PTS
    Not at the front of the field in the end, but left as the class of the field.

    5. MATT KENSETH (2-8-19) 2330 PTS
    With the Biff leaving, that ole Roush gang have now all departed for greener pastures.

    6. DENNY HAMLIN (3-12-22) 2320 PTS
    Average finish over the final 21 races was 8.5. Thirtieth at Charlotte ruined everything.

    7. KURT BUSCH (1-9-21) 2296 PTS
    Was better in the first half than the second. The good news is that 2017 begins with the first half.

    8. KEVIN HARVICK (4-17-27) 2289 PTS
    Best damn driver in NASCAR this season is a champion…just not for this year.

    9. KYLE LARSON (1-10-15) 2288 PTS
    Second-best 20-something driver this season, and seems to have designs on #1 in the next.

    10. CHASE ELLIOTT (0-10-17) 2285 PTS
    Not all Rookies of the Year are stellar choices, but this one most definitely is.

    11. MARTIN TRUEX JR. (4-8-17) 2271 PTS
    Next year, Erik Jones becomes his new teammate. If the boy wins, soda pop for everyone.

    12. BRAD KESELOWSKI (4-16-22) 2267 PTS
    Brad does not think the format led to great racing last week. Brad did not have my television.

    13. JAMIE MCMURRAY (0-2-12) 2231 PTS
    Joined by Larson, McMurray gave boss Chip Ganassi a pair in the Top Five last Sunday.

    14. AUSTIN DILLON (0-4-13) 2223 PTS
    Some wags figure if Woody from Toy Story drove in NASCAR, he would look a lot like Austin.

    15. TONY STEWART (1-5-8) 2211 PTS
    As iconic as Johnson, Petty, Earnhardt, Gordon, L. Petty, Pearson, Yarborough and Waltrip

    16. CHRIS BUESCHER (1-2-2) 2169 PTS
    Proof that one race can make a season.

    17. KASEY KAHNE (0-3-13) 898 PTS
    2004’s top rookie teams with a seven-time champ, a 13-time most popular, and 2016’s top rookie.

    18. RYAN NEWMAN (0-2-10) 895 PTS
    If he had actually been driving a Caterpillar, the car would have looked better after last Sunday.

    19. A.J. ALLMENDINGER (0-2-9) 830 PTS
    If getting the wave around works good enough to claim eighth at Homestead, why not?

    20. RYAN BLANEY (0-3-9) 812 PTS
    Turns 23 on New Year’s Eve. Talk about welcoming in a new year twice at the same party.

  • Hot 20 – Here is hoping for a little Sunday excitement in Kansas…or a bottle of wine in my fridge.

    Hot 20 – Here is hoping for a little Sunday excitement in Kansas…or a bottle of wine in my fridge.

    Usually, when a sport enters its playoff phase, there is news galore. While the Blue Jays, Indians, Cubs, and either the Nationals or Dodgers, continue in their quest for a World Series crown, the excitement seems a bit, well, subdued in NASCAR.

    That is not to say there is no news. Ryan Newman got a contract extension from Richard Childress, so he will continue to drive for them. So, Ty Dillon will either drive a new entry, if they get the sponsorship, or Grandpa leaves him in the minors for another year.

    What goes on when the sun goes down? Other than Jeff Gordon trying to finish a race by candlelight last November, not much of anything at Martinsville. In time for its 70th season next year, lights are going up.

    So, there is news. With Clint Bowyer set to return to decent equipment as Tony Stewart’s replacement, we seem a bit slim on the silly season news front. The big dogs seem all set to stay in their respective kennels for 2017.

    XFINITY driver Daniel Suarez dropped by the White House as NASCAR’s rep for National Hispanic Month. Jamie McMurray talked to some submariners in Connecticut. Yes, nothing but thrilling stuff.

    Dorothy and her little mutt might not be there, but the rest of us will be focusing our attention and our ruby reds on Kansas. Jimmie Johnson is locked into the next round, and thanks to Denny Hamlin’s expiring engine last week, all 12 of our contenders are still within hailing distance of advancing.

    Here is hoping excitement in the form of some great racing action is coming our way this Sunday. I do not know if it is the bit of snow on the ground, the sub-freezing temps outside my house, our ongoing kitchen renovation, or the crown that popped off my tooth, but I could use some excitement about now of the good kind. I am feeling like a politician in mid-rant. You know a case of the blah, blah, blahs.

    I am relying on a few folks from among our Hot 20 to deliver a few thrills this weekend in Kansas.

    1. JIMMIE JOHNSON – SEGMENT WIN (3045 Pts)
    His search for a seventh Heaven comes down now to Martinsville, Texas, Phoenix, and Miami.

    2. MATT KENSETH – 3040 PTS
    Being at the back only allows you see exactly where you plan to be going.

    3. KYLE BUSCH – 3036 PTS
    While some were being splattered with fertilizer, he overcame an early tire issue to finish sixth.

    4. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 3034 PTS
    With his cushion, he plans “to just go and lay up at Kansas.” Ask Hamlin how that worked out.

    5. KURT BUSCH – 3033 PTS
    “Charlotte has turned into Talladega.” Well, Talladega-lite, maybe.

    6. CARL EDWARDS – 3029 PTS
    For a good portion of the race, he thought he was blowing up. Twelfth seemed pretty good after that.

    7. MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 3028 PTS
    As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly…and my bump would help Austin.

    8. DENNY HAMLIN – 3012 PTS
    Tried to avoid the drama, but drama found him, to the joy of four of his competitors.

    9. CHASE ELLIOTT – 3009 PTS
    When Rowdy zigged, Chase got zagged.

    10. AUSTIN DILLON – 3009 PTS
    Sometimes no help is the best help of all.

    11. JOEY LOGANO – 3006 PTS
    Just in case you missed his tire going down and him finding the wall, he did it again.

    12. KEVIN HARVICK – 3004 PTS
    Thanking Hamlin would not be appropriate, but his blown engine deserves a good ole hug.

    13. KYLE LARSON – 2109 PTS
    Now he gets a Top Five. It would have been nicer had he recorded that a week earlier.

    14. TONY STEWART – 2106 PTS
    His exit is similar to that of Big Papi. Both made the dance, but the music ended far too soon.

    15. JAMIE MCMURRAY – 2084 PTS
    A second-straight Chase season no longer enough, as Dimples wants to go deeper in 2017.

    16. CHRIS BUESCHER – 2070 PTS
    Clint did not win. Danica did not win. Greg did not win. Paul did not win…but Chris did.

    17. KASEY KAHNE – 766 PTS
    Too late to matter, but finishing third anywhere at any time has to mean something.

    18. RYAN NEWMAN – 738 PTS
    Is a new sponsor coming for a new entry, or is Ty is going to have to deal with disappointment?

    19. RICKY STENHOUSE JR. – 658 PTS
    Does having a good points race really matter? Well, you don’t see A.J. on this list, now do you.

    20. RYAN BLANEY – 655 PTS
    OMG…Ryan just met Sam Elliott. Hey, Chase is cool…but I’m talking about Sam Bloody Elliott!

  • Erik Jones Checks Out On Field, Wins XFINITY Series Race At Iowa

    Erik Jones Checks Out On Field, Wins XFINITY Series Race At Iowa

    Erik Jones continued the dominance of Joe Gibbs Racing in the XFINITY series on Saturday by winning the U.S. Cellular 250 at Iowa Speedway in his No. 20 DeWalt Toyota. Jones won his third career race and his third of the season by passing Ty Dillon’s No. 3 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet for the lead with 16 laps to go and won the race having led 154 of 250 laps.

    “It’s a great day,” Jones said after the race. “We had a great car. One that definitely deserved to win the race. The fastest car I feel like won tonight, which is always a good feeling. It was an awesome day for us.

    “I feel like we deserved to win when we came here earlier this year, we had a really fast car. It was nice to get some redemption for that one.”

    It’s the 13th win in the first 19 races of the season for JGR.

    Jones led most of the race from his start on the front row in second before the final caution with 100 laps to go. Jones had a mediocre pit stop and was beaten off pit road by Dillon and Elliott Sadler. Dillon was able to keep a comfortable lead for the next 60 or so green flag laps before fading away to being 3.533 seconds behind Jones in second at the finish.

    “I want the win so bad,” said a disappointed Dillon, who has not won since 2014 at Indianapolis. “That was all I had. They (Joe Gibbs Racing) are good right now. That was all I had.

    “I’m proud of my guys. They gave us a great opportunity tonight. My heart’s been broken every race since Indy. I want to get in victory lane again. We’re close; we just have to get a little better.”

    Sadler finished third and took over the points lead after Daniel Suarez struggled after that last caution. First, Suarez got into Josh Berry on the last restart. Then, he was forced to retire from the race with 76 laps to go due to engine problems. The Monterrey, Mexico native ended the night 30th after starting from the pole.

    Brennan Poole roared his way through the field from his starting position of 25th to fourth by the time the checkered flag waved. It’s just the second top five in the young Chip Ganassi Racing driver’s career. Dakoda Armstrong, in the No. 18 Toyota for JGR this week instead of his usual ride with JGL Racing, rounded out the top five in fifth.

    All told there were seven lead changes among four leaders, with the field being shown the yellow caution flag six times. Darrell Wallace Jr. had two accidents during the race and ended the night in 27th.

    Sam Hornish Jr., the part-time driver who led 183 of 250 laps en route to a victory at Iowa in June for JGR, finished sixth in this race for Richard Childress Racing. Brad Keselowski was the only Sprint Cup series regular in the field and returned to Pocono with a finish in eighth for his efforts.

    Complete Results:

    [pdf-embedder url=”http://www.speedwaymedia.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/NXS-Race-at-Iowa-Unofficial-Results-7-30-16.pdf”]

  • The Final Word – Welcome to Indianapolis, welcome to Kyle’s world

    The Final Word – Welcome to Indianapolis, welcome to Kyle’s world

    It was the Brickyard 400, presented by Kyle Busch. He led the first lap, he led the last one and led most of the laps in between. If the focal point of a race is at the front, if the drama of a race is to see who is leading the way, this competition was pretty much done when they waved the green flag. In short, Busch kicked their combined asses to take his fourth of the season, the 38th of his career, and his second consecutive Brickyard.

    Oh, Kyle also won Saturday’s junior circuit race. 38 Cup wins, 83 junior wins, 45 truck wins (albeit in a series no longer broadcast to Canada), 166 victories in all. Man, that looks impressive, until you remember that all but five of them were claimed after he became a full-time major leaguer. That’s 123 wins against minor-league opposition, almost all on the same weekends and the same tracks the big boys (and girls) ran. That begs the question, just what in the hell is the point to the XFINITY and Camping World Truck series? If the inclusion of Cup guys is to draw out fans to see the spectacle of the top dogs slumming, it sure is not working. I believe there were more folks working the various concessions than were in the grandstands at Indianapolis. It was downright embarrassing. Still, I guess there are some who do not mind being embarrassed, while at the same time the vast majority of us are allowed to do other things with our Friday and Saturday afternoons.

    By the way, Daniel Suarez, Elliott Sadler, Ty Dillon, Justin Allgaier, and Erik Jones are the top five guys in the XFINITY series at present. They have a combined four wins between them in 18 events. Kyle Busch has won seven in 11 starts. Watching those who dream of moving up and those wrapping up their careers in moving down, play second fiddle every damn week to the moonlighters from the Show, is obviously no longer of interest for a vast majority of us. Good Lord. So ends my sermon. Amen.

    Sunday brought us the final appearances at the venue of Tony Stewart and, as it turned out, Jeff Gordon once again. The FOX announcer suspended his brief retirement to substitute for the ailing Dale Earnhardt Jr. for a couple of races, finishing 13th while Stewart came home two spots better. The Columbus, Indiana native made one hell of a move on that opening lap to move into second. I wonder if Kyle saw it in his rear view mirror?

    Due to his absence, Junior drops out of a Chase place. Kyle Larson is 11 points ahead, with even Kasey Kahne sitting a point ahead of Earnhardt, who now is 18th in the derby. Jamie McMurray got a piece of the late race troubles, winding up 19th but remains 26 points to the good in 15th place. A quartet who have drifted almost out of touch were Trevor Bayne (30th), Ryan Blaney (36th), A.J. Allmendinger (38th), and Greg Biffle (39th). Not a good day to experience bad tidings.

    As a television event, it was not bad. The final dozen laps were downright exciting, as wrecks often are. Too bad it was a one horse pony show. Too bad only 50,000 folks, according to one news source, bothered to turn out to this “crown jewel” NASCAR event. Compare that to the 300,000 who took in the Indianapolis 500 in May. Just imagine how many, or few, took in Saturday’s preliminary contest.

    Next Sunday, it is the triangle known as Pocono. Gordon leads the way with six career wins there, so a seventh would be a nice way to go out one more time. He was third last year. A dozen others on this weekend’s grid all have shared the winning experience there at this two-race venue. Biffle and Kahne could use another one about now.

    As for Kyle Busch, he is 0 for 23 at Pocono, with a pair of runner-up finishes. He was 31st in June. I should mention that brother Kurt Busch has three wins, so if any ole Busch will do, you might be in luck. Back in June, both Chase Elliott and Matt Kenseth ran strong, but it was Kurt who led the final 32 laps for the victory.

    Now, if Kurt is not your boy, I have sad news. With the XFINITY series running Saturday in Iowa, Kyle might not be running. I am truly sorry.

  • The View from my Recliner — Just before the Brickyard

    The View from my Recliner — Just before the Brickyard

    I am writing this in anticipation of missing the Brickyard 400 live because I will be returning home from a wedding. My DVR better not let me down.

    Some thoughts before the green is dropped tomorrow.

    The piece on NBCSN with Tony Stewart reading letters from Robin Miller, Greg Zippadelli, Eddie Jarvis and his dad should be a great piece to watch. If the preview of the story is just a touch of what you will see, it should be a great five minutes on the pre-race show.

    You would think by watching promos for the Brickyard that Jeff Gordon was the only person running at Indy. Smart move on NBCSN to use a Fox Sports commentator as your promo. It should be interesting to see how Gordon fares in the 88 car.

    Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s concussion-like symptoms kept him out of the car at New Hampshire and will keep him out at Indy and Pocono; the future is still to be determined. I think the decision on Earnhardt’s part to skip races to get healthy is the right move. He has a life to live and if he isn’t 100 percent physically in a race car, going 200 mph can cause further issues as he moves forward in life, possibly hurt another driver and cost him more than a chance at a championship. Smart move Jr.

    Richard Childress said this week that he is getting closer to solidifying his driver line-up for next year. My prediction is that he brings the charter that belongs to Circle Sport-Levine Family racing back to RCR and puts Ty Dillon into a fourth RCR entry. I think Childress values what Ryan Newman brings to the team and will keep him in a car. The RCR ride for Paul Menard is the best ride that he and his family can buy and Austin Dillon is going nowhere.

    It is nice to see Roush Fenway Racing getting back to where they were during the days of when Mark Martin, Matt Kenseth, Greg Biffle and Carl Edwards ran for them. Jack Roush is a legend of the sport and you weren’t going to keep him and his team down forever. He went young with drivers and will continue to improve as his drivers grow with experience.

    The truck race at Eldora was the best race all season in all three NASCAR national touring series. Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell and Bobby Pierce put on a great show in the front of the field and throughout the race, you could see three and four wide at times trying to get a position. It was the most exciting race of the season and I am already looking forward to next year’s truck race.

    Five predictions going forward:

    1. Tony Stewart wins the Brickyard 400 to solidify his spot in the Chase and add to his final season.
    2. Dale Earnhardt Jr. will not make the Chase and because of that, he might not run for an extended period of time.
    3. Ryan Blaney will make the Chase.
    4. William Byron will be announced as a Joe Gibbs Racing XFINITY Driver in 2017.
    5. Kevin Harvick’s pit crew will be outstanding going forward. Last week’s public tongue lashing will solidify the over the wall guys because they know their jobs are on the line.

    Enjoy the Brickyard and we’ll talk next time with the View from My Recliner.

  • Kyle Larson Wins Rained Out Inaugural XFINITY Race at Pocono

    Kyle Larson Wins Rained Out Inaugural XFINITY Race at Pocono

    LONG POND, Pa. – Kyle Larson battled competitors and the weather to score the victory in the inaugural Pocono Green 250 XFINITY Series race in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. The driver of the No. 42 Cessna/NTT Data Group Chevrolet received the checkered flag after the race was rain delayed and then finally called.

    This was Larson’s fourth victory in 82 NASCAR XFINITY Series races, his first victory for the 2016 season and his fifth top-10 finish in 2016.  Larson’s last win came at Homestead in the 2015 season finale.

    “I’m happy with it,” Larson said. “We were good, better than I thought we’d be. Shiplett (Mike Shiplett, crew chief) and all the guys did a really good job adjusting on the car. When we put on stickers, I got closer to the feel I wanted.”

    “I didn’t really think I would win today but it all worked out. All in all, a really solid day.”

    Erik Jones, in the No. 20 SportClips Haircuts Toyota, finished second after starting from the pole. This was his first top-10 finish in his first XFINITY race at Pocono and his seventh top-10 finish in 2016.

    “There was just not enough time,” Jones said. “I thought we by far had one of the best cars in the field but we couldn’t get back in the lead before it started raining.

    “It’s pretty frustrating. It’s kind of been that kind of year for us. Today was another one of those days where I thought we had a shot at the win but it didn’t work out for us.

    “But nice to know we can be that fast and nice to know we can contend for the wins. We will move on from here.”

    The driver of the No. 3 Rheem Chevrolet Ty Dillon finished in position three at the “Tricky Triangle.”

    “We put ourselves in a good position and I felt like we were a top-five race car,” Dillon said.  “We never changed left tires the whole race. When the caution came out, we just weren’t as good anymore and that brought the Gibbs cars closer. My only hope was that I could run them back down.

    “If it had stayed green, I thought that we would have had an opportunity, but all in all a good day for us and a good finish in third.”

    There were five cautions in the race, the first for a competition yellow, the second for an accident in Turn 2 for the No. 7  of Justin Allgaier, the third for debris in Turn 2, the fourth for a hard hit for both the No. 16 and No. 51 of Ryan Reed and Jeremy Clements respectively. And, of course, the final caution was what ended the race, for rain.

    “We had issues from the start,” Reed, driver of the No. 16 Lilly Diabetes Ford, said “We started off getting strapped in the car and didn’t have any radio communication. I could hear the spotter but couldn’t communicate with that.

    “We fire off and were on the splitter really hard so balance wasn’t very good. We were getting it better, using hand signals, and then we got racing with the 39 car and he got on our door and we got loose. I think when we got into him it got the right rear tire and eventually it went down.

    “We had a little tire smoke but it went away and I thought it cleared up. We were racing with the 62 and he got inside of us and I thought it took the air off and we went into one and the tire let go and here we are.

    “I am just thankful to Lilly Diabetes and American Diabetes Association for sticking with us. I feel like we are making progress. These days are really tough with adversity from the start. We will not give up. I was hoping to get our Lilly Diabetes Ford Mustang in victory lane for everyone at home watching on their XFINITY TV, but it just wasn’t meant to be today.”

    Kyle Busch and Joey Logano, both doing double duty at Pocono this weekend, finished fourth and fifth respectively.

    “We were trying to be off strategy,” Logano said. “Our SKF Ford Mustang wasn’t as fast as it needed to be so we were trying to do anything we could to win it.

    “It was interesting for sure. It would have been interesting to see what would happen if we were able to go back green.”

    Elliott Sadler, Paul Menard, Brandon Jones, Daniel Suarez, and Alex Bowman completed the top-10 finishing order in the inaugural XFINITY Pocono race.

    Daniel Suarez remains in the lead in the point standings with Elliott Sadler behind by just 11 points.

    Complete Finishing Order:

    1. (4) Kyle Larson(i), Chevrolet, 53.

                   2. (1) Erik Jones #, Toyota, 53.

                   3. (8) Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 53.

                   4. (2) Kyle Busch(i), Toyota, 53.

                   5. (5) Joey Logano(i), Ford, 53.

                   6. (6) Elliott Sadler, Chevrolet, 53.

                   7. (7) Paul Menard(i), Chevrolet, 53.

                   8. (14) Brandon Jones #, Chevrolet, 53.

                   9. (3) Daniel Suarez, Toyota, 53.

                   10. (10) Alex Bowman, Chevrolet, 53.

                   11. (16) Aric Almirola(i), Ford, 53.

                   12. (13) Brennan Poole #, Chevrolet, 53.

                   13. (11) JJ Yeley, Toyota, 53.

                   14. (17) Brendan Gaughan, Chevrolet, 53.

                   15. (12) Blake Koch, Chevrolet, 53.

                   16. (40) Darrell Wallace Jr, Ford, 53.

                   17. (19) Ryan Preece #, Chevrolet, 53.

                   18. (22) Dakoda Armstrong, Toyota, 53.

                   19. (29) Ross Chastain, Chevrolet, 53.

                   20. (30) Mario Gosselin, Chevrolet, 53.

                   21. (26) Ray Black Jr #, Chevrolet, 53.

                   22. (25) BJ McLeod #, Ford, 53.

                   23. (34) Joey Gase, Chevrolet, 53.

                   24. (35) Alex Guenette, Chevrolet, 53.

                   25. (36) Ryan Ellis, Chevrolet, 53.

                   26. (27) Brandon Gdovic, Chevrolet, 52.

                   27. (24) Garrett Smithley #, Chevrolet, 52.

                   28. (38) Todd Peck, Ford, 52.

                   29. (15) Ryan Sieg, Chevrolet, 51.

                   30. (39) Mike Harmon, Dodge, 50.

                   31. (18) Jeremy Clements, Chevrolet, Accident, 39.

                   32. (32) TJ Bell, Dodge, 39.

                   33. (23) Ryan Reed, Ford, Accident, 38.

                   34. (31) Jeff Green, Toyota, Header, 30.

                   35. (28) Morgan Shepherd, Chevrolet, Vibration, 29.

                   36. (20) Josh Wise(i), Chevrolet, Rear Gear, 23.

                   37. (37) Derrike Cope, Chevrolet, 22.

                   38. (33) Carl Long, Toyota, Brakes, 21.

                   39. (9) Justin Allgaier, Chevrolet, Accident, 20.

                   40. (21) Matt DiBenedetto(i), Toyota, Transmission, 6.

  • The View from my Recliner

    The View from my Recliner

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

  • Ty Dillon Fastest in Final XFINITY Practice at Charlotte

    Ty Dillon Fastest in Final XFINITY Practice at Charlotte

    CONCORD, N.C. — In case you missed it, Ty Dillon topped the chart in final XFINITY Series practice at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

    The driver of the No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 29.778 and a speed of 181.342 mph. Daniel Suárez was second in his No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota with a time of 29.825 and a speed of 181.056 mph. Erik Jones was third in his No. 20 JGR Toyota with a time of 29.937 and a speed of 180.379 mph. Austin Dillon was fourth in his No. 2 RCR Chevrolet with a time of 29.965 and a speed of 180.210 mph. Brennan Poole rounded out the top-five in his No. 48 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet with a time of 30.007 and a speed of 179.958 mph.

    Brendan Jones was sixth in his No. 33 RCR Chevrolet. Denny Hamlin was seventh in his No. 18 JGR Toyota. Elliott Sadler was eighth in his No. 1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet. Jeb Burton was ninth in his No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford. Kyle Larson rounded out the top-10 in his No. 42 CGR Chevrolet.

    Suárez posted the fastest 10 consecutive lap average at a speed of 178.085 mph. Hamlin was second at an average speed of 177.253 mph. Austin Dillon was third at an average speed of 176.652 mph.

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  • The Final Word – Talladega; what could possibly go wrong?

    The Final Word – Talladega; what could possibly go wrong?

    Bad things happen at Talladega. If you are not barrel rolling or wall smacking, you just had yourself a nice, pleasant day in Alabama. That kind of thing, in fact, can get you a win, as was the case with Brad Keselowski on Sunday. The White Deux actually looked pretty good at the end, as the 2012 champ won his 19th career race, and second of the season. When all the smoke had cleared, the driver leading the most laps was leading the last one.

    For some, things did not quite work out. Dale Earnhardt Jr. is always seen as a favorite, but after the 50th lap, not so much. He lost control, collected teammate Kasey Kahne, and they went back to check out the snacks available in the garage.

    Tony Stewart, under doctor’s orders to protect his back, used the caution to crawl out and let Ty Dillon take that ride home. A seventh place finish proved that they had a plan that worked. Most planned to stay on all four tires, but that idea went tumbling down the track for Chris Buescher who did a few barrel rolls after being caught up in some four-wide racing.

    Good news for Junior and Kahne fans, as both returned. Maybe that was bad news. Earnhardt actually had his steering wheel come off under caution and did some shaft driving before he reattached it. This is after he helped Carl Edwards avoid the wall when Edwards shot up the track and sandwiched Junior to a merciful conclusion. A few laps later, Kahne could no longer handle his car, which also shot up into the outside wall and he was finally done, too. At least both Hendrick boys got, not just one but, two post-wreck interviews. You got to keep them sponsors happy.

    With less than thirty to go, we managed to rid ourselves of yet another Hendrick car. Kurt Busch influenced Jimmie Johnson to move up to take out fellow Top Ten driver Paul Menard in a mishap that involved 17 drivers. Yet, a less numerous yet more spectacular meeting of the metal took place about 20 laps later when Danica Patrick got turned to the inside and invited Matt Kenseth to space camp, who exposed the bottom of his car to the television viewers as it launched. Patrick, meanwhile, made some solid contact with the wall to feel the agony of de fence. Both were done as another half dozen cars got bent out of shape to some degree in that one.

    If you thought we were done, you were just ignoring your inner Ricky Bobby. As Keselowski thundered to the line, with Kyle Busch, Austin Dillon, Chase Elliott, and Jamie McMurray behind him, more boys were beating the stuffings out of their boogity boogities. Kevin Harvick, who almost went wheels up, A.J. Allmendinger, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., and Martin Truex Jr. were among those making mangled metallic memories.

    Seven of the Top Ten at Talladega currently hold down a Chase place. Ryan Blaney is just nine points out while Stewart returns to the driver’s seat this Saturday night in Kansas. Thanks to his relief driver, he only has to make up 61 points and pick up a win, to claim a Chase place. Clint Bowyer had a Top Ten and a win still gets him in, or he has 68 points to make up on 16th place. When you think on it, the odds still might favor Stewart. Bowyer has gone winless in 15 attempts in Kansas, and considering the quality of cars he has been blessed with this season, his odds are definitely not terribly high on Saturday.

  • Dillon Gives Stewart a Top-10

    Dillon Gives Stewart a Top-10

    TALLADEGA, Ala.– While Tony Stewart was the driver of record for starting the race, relief driver Ty Dillon drove the car to a top-10 finish at Talladega.

    After switching out with Stewart under the first caution of the race, the relief driver of the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing survived carnage to finish sixth in the GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. It gave Stewart his first top-10 since the Goody’s Headache Relief Shot 500 at Martinsville Speedway in October of 2014.

    In what was unofficially his first Sprint Cup Series race at Talladega, Dillon described it as “just wild and crazy.”

    “We had a really strong car,” Dillon said. “Fighting from behind, it’s hard to get it up front. I felt like if we could lead a pack at any point, we would have put ourselves up front. Early one, once I first got in the car, we drove right up to into the Top 10 really quick and we had some air on the nose and was able to go. The team built an awesome race car. I just kind of got mired back. I made some mistakes being my first time here racing. But we were able to dodge crashes and survive here, which is the big thing. We made some good moves at the end to get us into to the top six or seven.”

    The decision for Stewart to get out of his car after starting the race at Talladega was done at the request of his doctors. Even still, the ever competitive “Smoke” wasn’t too thrilled with the prospect.

    “It sucks, to be honest,” Stewart said. “I know why we got to do it, but it sucks. It still sucks that you have to do it but if I hadn’t broke my back at the end of January, we wouldn’t be in this situation.”

    Stewart suffered a burst fracture of his L1 vertebrae in a dune buggy crash in the desert on January 31. The injury forced him to miss the first eight races of his retirement season. He returned last week to an 18th-place finish at Richmond International Raceway.

    He added that this would be the “last time we have to do it and I am back in next week.”

    Stewart leaves Talladega 38th in points 71 back of current 30th-place driver Matt DiBenedetto.