Momentum Building Jimmie

Same result, different race.

One week on from a relative snooze-fest at California that Jimmie Johnson dominated, the rain-delayed Richmond race was a great spectacle, even if the result was the same. After the farcical nature that Formula One is turning into as of late, Nascar is a breath of fresh air for me.

All eyes were on the battle for the final Chase berth. David Ragan looked feisty in his late charge for the final spot. The youngsters chances took a crippling blow when his car went into a half spin, compounded by team-mate Kenseth doing a synchronised spin, clattering his team-mate. His car badly damaged, Ragan fought on admirably and with some great choice strategy kept him in the hunt till late. Eventually the #6 drifted back, ending his Chase dreams. Regardless, it has been a stunning end of the season for Ragan, who according to reports will have UPS sponsorship next year.

Kasey Kahne, Dodge’s only chance of making the Chase also failed in his attempt. Kahne was anonymous all race long. After a bright mid-season, two terrible finishes in the last few races put an end to the fan favourite’s hope.

Going into the Chase, it is the crème de la crème. Three cars are supplied by the top teams – Joe Gibbs, Hendricks, Childress and Roush. Defending champion Johnson is peaking at the right time now and has all the momentum going into Loudon this coming weekend. Busch and Edwards, current favourites need to pull up their socks now that we are getting into the final stages of the season.

It will be interesting to see the mindset at Loudon. How will the championship contenders play it and, more importantly, who of those who have been experimenting the last few weeks have found the right formula.

While I think there are only three choices for a champion, the format of the Chase does allow for the unpredictable. Clint Bowyer was last year’s Cinderella story, winning his first career race at the start of the Chase, eventually finishing third.

Business is just about to pick up.

Johnson Stakes His Claim

Like a stealth assassin, defending champion Jimmie Johnson provided a reminder to Busch and Edwards – don’t count me out yet.

The #48 dominated the race at California, the only time that anyone got close was at restart. It was the sort of display we all expected from Hendricks’s this year. The timing of the run, pivotal, with the ‘Race to the Chase’ starting in a few weeks. His experience of the Chase format, knowing what it takes to win, is something neither Busch nor Edwards can call upon.

The race was hardly one to remember. The most interesting battle was that of the bubble drivers. With this my first season to watch Nascar live in many years, it is my first with the Chase format. From the outset, I thought it was a bit cheesy for motorsport. But now, I have a very different opinion of it.

The battle at the bubble is fascinating. Kasey Kahne and David Ragan are on the outside looking in, but even a minor hiccup for current 12th spot man Bowyer and either could be in. Let’s not forget that eight position man, Tony Stewart, is only 138 points ahead of Ragan. With the reliability and durability of the cars today, an early smash at Richmond could have massive implications for those near the bubble.

It’s an interesting element for a race that is ten away from the season’s chequered flag. At the end other end, we have the battle to stay in the top-35. I still remain somewhat sceptical of this concept, but again it does offer excitement. Sure, most people probably don’t find it interesting, but I do. A.J. Allmendinger, who is one of the most improved drivers of the year, has found himself just inside the top-35, after chasing the coveted position all season. Much like the Chase, there are a number of drivers within a small point’s margin. It will be intriguing to see how this places out comes seasons end.

Elsewhere, Dario Franchitti will be returning to the IRL next season, replacing Dan Weldon in the Ganassi team. Reading this on Autosport, I did drop my jaw at the fact Weldon got the kick. He’s third in the points! Surprised a team like Ganassi couldn’t expand for a car for him, given that IRL is cheaper than Nascar. Perhaps the recent shifts – starting with the closure of the #40 team and have since been followed by the loss of Texaco as a sponsor for the #42 and Reed Sorenson moving to GEM, it is a sign of bigger issues at Ganassi.

It’s a smart move by Franchitti. He showed the odd spark, but nothing that made him stand out and made me think he could last. His injuries hardly helped the situation, with Stremme filling in and running the car up front. It’s never good to have your car do better than you managed with it. A return to the Nationwide saw him show better consistency, but I figure there wasn’t many a team willing to take him on.

What About Carl?

So far in the 2008 Nascar season, all the talk has been about Kyle Busch. How ‘Rowdy’ has been having one of the best seasons in recent memories or how he is squashing the domination.
But what about Cousin Carl?! The Missouri native has stealthily moved his way up to the second seed for the Chase. The #99 notched up its fifth win of the year at Michigan. Four of them count towards his Chase seeding after the penalty received at Texas.

If Kyle Busch wasn’t having such an awesome season, everyone would be raving about Edwards’ season. This championship is anything but a two-horse race. Over the past number of races, Edwards has been notching up impressive result after result. Critics tip him, along with defending champion Jimmie Johnson to take the fight to Busch when the Chase begins in a few weeks.

The Race to the Chase is heating up with only a few rounds before the field is locked. Bad days for Hamlin, Gordon and Kahne saw them slip further towards the cut-off. From 8th down to 14th are covered by only 103 points. In Nascar terms, nothing. A bad day for any of the Chase contenders will see any hopes of solidifying their places dashed.

One man on the up is David Ragan. Lambasted last year to the point where many questioned Jack Roush’s wisdom in giving him a second year, the youngster has blossomed. He scored a career best 3rd place finish at Michigan. He goes into the next few events looking to gate crash the Chase party.

This coming week the Nascar circuit moves to Bristol – for one of the most highly anticipated events of the year. Under the lights in Tennessee, what more twists and turns we will see as drivers look to secure their Chase slots.

Junior Breaks His Duck

Dale Earnhardt Junior finally took a long awaited victory at Michigan.

It may have been via a fuel strategy, but given Junior’s form in 2008 it is no less deserved. On a number of occasions, the sport’s most popular driver has challenged for the victory but fell short. However, Sunday saw a change in luck for Junior.

It was day where he didn’t necessarily have the best car, but a daring strategy saw him come up trumps. It isn’t the first time that Hendricks have taken the gamble with fuel. The team which dominated 2007 has struggled to replicate its form. This has led the teams to go an unorthodox direction with fuel strategies. It worked for champion Jimmie Johnson earlier in the year. Up to this point it was Hendricks’s only win of the year. Since, Junior and Gordon have scored top-10’s because of their ability to stretch their fuel.

Junior finally broke his duck when the race finished under yellow. The situation looked dire for the #88 a few laps before. Whilst coasting to save fuel, a yellow came out. The race distance would go over the 200 laps to allow a final attempt at a green flag finish. Earnhardt Nation held its breath while their man saved fuel. Half way into the final lap a spin brought out the yellow leaving Junior to cruise home to a popular win.

Championship leader Kyle Busch recovered from a torrid weekend at Pocono to finish 13^th. It could’ve been so much more for the #18 who led early on. Matt Kenseth and Brian Vickers were another two driver’s left rueing what might have been. Both drivers are making a late push for the Chase. Former champion Kenseth, who at one stage looked out of it, now stands just 14 points out of the coveted final spot.

This weekend the Sprint Cup heads to Infineon for the first of two road courses on the calendar. Last year F1 convert Juan Montoya took his maiden Nascar victory. The road courses always see a strong showing from the former single-seaters and will also see a host of a road-course ringers show up, adding more pressure to the go or go-homers.

On A Roll

Kasey Kahne continues to rise like the Phoenix from the ashes with his second points victory of the season.

Since earning a spot in the All-Star race due to popular vote, a race he went on to win, Kahne has been a driver reborn. The #9 team are looking more like the team that took six victories and a Chase berth in 2006. The struggles of 2007 seem to be behind the GEM squad. Whilst Elliott Sadler hasn’t replicated Kahne’s form, he too has shown a marked improvement.
GEM’s third driver, rookie Carpentier, has shown glimpses of what he is capable of in the #10 Dodge. Despite been outside the top-35 in owner points he has consistently gotten the car into the show. If Carpentier can start to hook up with solid race drives there is no reason why he can’t replicate Montoya in becoming a steady stock car driver.

On a weekend that he made history, Kyle Busch’s weekend ended up in tatters. The youngster, who completed in all three top-tier races in three different states, failed to win any. His Cup race saw him pinned against the wall after his spotter failed to tell him about a car on his inside. Lengthy repairs saw him return to the track but he finished dead last.
It was a hollow end to a historic weekend for the youngster. Still have to give a massive amount of credit for him trying to do as many races as he can. People criticize him for it but you can’t doubt the guys racing spirit. It isn’t about the money for him. It’s about fun and racing for victory. He is a true racer.

Kahne Victorious At Charlotte Again

Sunday’s motorsport bonanza ended with the Coke 600 from Charlotte.

NASCAR prepared for its toughest test. The race started in daytime before transforming as the sun went down before finishing under the lights. As if that wasn’t challenging enough, drivers had to contend with an extra one hundred miles.

The race was a test of how a team could adapt to the changing conditions. Some faired well and ran good all night while others waited for their time to pounce. One such person was Tony Stewart. The #20 struggled to keep on the lead lap early on. But as the night wore on the orange Toyota powered it’s way to the front. His chance of a first victory at Charlotte went up in smoke with a tire blow late into the race.
One more his team-mate Kyle Busch was the man at the front. However the #18 team was beset with issues. It is something the team will have to deal with if they intend to win the Chase. Any lesser driver wouldn’t have pulled off the sterling finishes the Las Vegas native has. Dale Earnhardt Junior was top dog at Hendricks. His own chances of victory suffered when he hit the wall and was rear-ended by JJ Yeley. Despite this he still game home with a top-five along with team-mate Jeff Gordon. Both men got good fuel mileage from their Chevy’s to limit the damage of their misfortunes.

All this allowed All-Star winner Kasey Kahne to pick up his second win in two weeks. As the old saying goes, when it rains, it pours. Kahne snapped a long-running winless streak last week and the confidence it has instilled in the GEM Dodge team is showing. Kahne is showing signs that he could recapture is 2006 form. Time will tell, but the team is off to an excellent start. The result seems him sneak into the top-12, ahead of the ever impressive David Ragan in the #6 Roush Ford. Ragan, who endured a crash-fest rookie year, is proving that Jack Roush was right to back him for a second year. Seeing the #6 running back at the front brings back memories of what Mark Martin did with the car.

The NASCAR circuit heads to Dover this weekend. A return to day-time racing is a welcome change with the time zone difference! It will also be the last race broadcast by Fox. I’ve grown to enjoy the Fox team commentating and will be interesting to see how it is handled from here on out. I think Darrell Waltrip will be missed most of all.

So we’ll have to tighten those belts one more time at Dover!

A Month Under The Lights

It’s been a while since I pulled up a Nascar round-up. The main reason for the delay is the late night races that are on the schedule over the last while.

The last three weeks have been night races with the fourth, the Coke 600 at Charlotte this coming weekend. Adjusting to this schedule has been a pain in the arse. I tried to stay up for Richmond in vain. Midnight to 4am races are pretty taxing. The race was dominated by Denny Hamlin. Lady Luck decided against letting the youngster record his second win of the year with a tire blow out near the end.

The race will be remembered for the contact between Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt Junior. The former has endured the wrath of Earnhardt Nation since. Clint Bowyer snuck through to take his second career victory.

Kyle Busch was dominant force at Darlington. The tight confines of the track didn’t stop ‘Wild Thing’ from overtaking anywhere on the track. Even a penalty for a loose nut, which put him to the back of the pack couldn’t stop Busch. The youngster, who was promoting the new Indiana Jones flick, provided a swashbuckling performance to win the race. Common sense was to the front for me to watch Darlington with taping it. While I hate the idea of watching races re-live like this, it’s better than nothing.

The third consecutive night race was the All Stars race on Saturday night. A non-points race which Kasey Kahne, who only made the race after been voted in by the fans, walked away with the one million dollar cash prize. Dale Jarrett stepped back into the car one last time and even drove big brown truck before the race got off.

The common thread through all these races was the force that is Kyle Busch and Toyota. The Gibbs team were beset with mechanical issues at the All Stars race. But, better to get them out of the way now than have them this coming weekend.

Busch is also in the spotlight over his tangle with Earnhardt Junior. As I said before, he is now incurring the wrath of Earnhardt Nation. His former Hendricks team-mates Gordon and Johnson can give him tips on that. I noticed that the pair of them, Busch and the open-wheelers received a less than appreciative applause from the fans at the All Stars.

I love the way the Kyle is handling it though. He admitted after the race it wasn’t intentional and that he wasn’t thrilled that it occurred. In most cases, that should be enough and everyone gets on with it. But now when the other driver is Earnhardt.
It’s just the way things are over there. I read plenty of times about the Nascar.com journalists having their inbox’s filled with such comments that are really... well.. narrow minded.
But Kyle just feeds on the crowd, the hate. It’s like a pantomime where he is the villain, one which in public he is happy to play. The team bow at the All Stars driver intro’s – I loved it. It’s just a shame that in all likelihood most pre-race interviews are going to see that this issue cropped up. Earlier on the season I enjoyed his comments and playful attitude over things.

Whether Earnhardt Nation likes it or not, Wild Thing is here and he isn’t going away.