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Brad Keselowski barely missed a very early six-car wreck, and went on to take the lead of the grueling 500-lap race at Bristol Motor Speedway, barely gaining a victory over Matt Kenseth on Sunday afternoon.
While Greg Biffle earned the pole and led earlier in the race, A.J. Allmendinger pulled ahead to lead 54 laps. But it was the Dodge of Keselowski who led 231 laps before pulling into Victory Lane for the second consecutive race at Bristol.
Image courtesy of http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/
Many fans said it was just a fluke win, but I’d prefer to say that he proved the haters wrong. It was no easy undertaking to pass on this track and hold off the likes of Kenseth over the final 50 or so laps.
The early wreck on the front stretch of Bristol, when Regan Smith got into the back of Kasey Kahne, and turned him into the bottom barrier, left Smith to sit crossways in the middle of Turn 2. Inevitably the next pack of cars— Kevin Harvick, Carl Edwards, Marcos Ambrose and Kyle Busch—had absolutely nowhere to go and a pileup ensued. Only Harvick returned to the race with any positive results, finishing 11th. The others spent much time in the pits for major repairs.
Four-time champion Jeff Gordon tangled with teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr. late in the show, sending Gordon hard into the outside wall, resulting in a 35th-place finish – dropping the Chevy driver down three spots to 23rd overall.
Gordon was clearly unhappy, while Earnhardt didn’t regret what happened, stating it surely wasn’t a hard hit or intentional.
In the end the results scrambled the points standings. Biffle and Harvick stayed first and second, but Edwards dropped eight positions to 14th and Kenseth moved up two spots to third place.
Yesterday’s 400-mile race at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway provides the third-different style of racing in three weeks. From drafting at Daytona to the finesse of Phoenix, Las Vegas is about getting every ounce of raw speed out of your car that you can and pushing it to the limit to achieve it. Juan Pablo Montoya and Jimmie Johnson crashed on their first lap of Friday’s opening practice – demonstrating that even practice has to be pushed to the limit. Kyle Busch wrecked in the Saturday morning practice session. Three up. Three down. Then along came Toney Stewart…
Pushing his car to the limit, Stewart made a three-wide pass on a late restart and held off Jimmie Johnson in the Kobalt Tools 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, winning at a track that was the site of his biggest disappointment in 2011.
Timing the restart perfectly, Tony Stewart dove to the edge of the apron and ducked under the two cars in front of him. With one bold move, the defending Sprint Cup champion was on his way to a redemptive win Sunday at Las Vegas.
Qualifying seventh at Las Vegas, Stweart took his first lead on lap 135, beating Jimmy Johnson on a restart. He lost the lead briefly on a cycle of green-flag pit stops and quickly regained it. Stewart turned back a challenge by Brad Keselowski and pulled away from Johnson on a final restart with four laps left to take the checkers at one of the few tracks he hadn’t won at.
Johnson Despite starting from the back of the field, Johnson didn’t take long to get the No. 48 car to the front, though, challenging Matt Kenseth for the lead by lap 83.
Having never won in a backup car, Johnson overtook Kenseth 16 laps later and stayed there until Stewart beat him on a restart on lap 134. The five-time Sprint Cup champion stayed within range and was third coming out of a caution with 17 laps, then quickly passed Biffle for second.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. had a disappointing finish after leading more laps in one race than he did in all of the 2011 NASCAR season.
What really had him riled up was what he believed to be a lack of respect by Mark Martin while trying to pass him.
“To me, there’s an unwritten etiquette that when the guy is running the top even if you are clearing or passing him … I’m coming 10 mph faster off the top of the race track, you stay low,” he said. “Don’t knock a half second off my lap time being a jerk about it. Stay low. You are going to get it in the next corner and the position is going to be yours.”
Earnhardt finished 10th after leading 70 laps early in the race — 18 more than he did in 2011
For NASCAR fans this weeks race at Phoenix, AZ is going to be different. When compared to Daytona, everything is different at Phoenix, with the biggest difference being the weather. After all the issues that sent the Daytona 500 into a Tuesday morning finish, it’s nice to see a forecast that includes a zero percent chance of rain, and temperatures in the mid-80s for Sunday’s Subway Fresh Fit 500.
Qualifying
Driving the No. 55 Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota, Mark Martin didn’t need a second qualifying lap Saturday as he claimed the pole for Sunday’s Subway Fresh Fit 500. With a speed of 136.815 mph, Martin toured the one mile “D”-shaped oval in 26.313 seconds, beating Tony Stewart by a mere .133 seconds. Martin’s 52nd-career pole position and his second at Phoenix, the beloved NASCAR veteran was so excited after claiming the pole that he actually climbed atop the door of his blue and white racing machine and saluted the fans — just as though he had actually won the race.
Martin turned his pole-winning lap on a track that was warmer and slicker than it was during Friday’s practice sessions. He will be joined on the front row by Tony Stewart with conditions that suit Stewart’s driving style. “I always like it when it’s hotter and slicker” said Stewart, the 2011 Sprint Cup Series champion. With a comfort zone dead center on a warm and slick track, could Tony Stewart be the one to take the checker at the Subway Fresh Fit 500? We’ll have to watch and see.
Starting Lineup
Here’s the complete starting lineup for Today’s Subway Fresh Fit 500 :
1. Mark Martin, Michael Waltrip Racing No. 55 Toyota
2. Tony Stewart, Stewart-Haas Racing No. 14 Chevrolet
3. Regan Smith, Furniture Row Racing No. 78 Chevrolet
4. Jimmie Johnson, Hendrick Motorsports No. 48 Chevrolet
5. Juan Pablo Montoya, Earnhardt Ganassi Racing No. 42 Chevrolet
6. Ryan Newman, Stewart-Haas Racing No. 39 Chevrolet
7. Greg Biffle, Roush Fenway Racing No. 16 Ford
8. Kevin Harvick, Richard Childress Racing No. 29 Chevrolet
9. Joey Logano, Joe Gibbs Racing No. 20 Toyota
10. Kasey Kahne, Hendrick Motorsports No. 5 Chevrolet
11. Jeff Burton, Richard Childress Racing No. 31 Chevrolet
12. Kyle Busch, Joe Gibbs Racing No. 18 Toyota
13. Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing No. 11 Toyota
14. Marcos Ambrose, Richard Petty Motorsports No. 9 Ford
15. AJ Allmendinger, Penske Racing No. 22 Dodge
16. Clint Bowyer, Michael Waltrip Racing No. 15 Toyota
17. Bobby Labonte, JTG Daugherty Racing No. 47 Toyota
18. Aric Almirola, Richard Petty Motorsports No. 43 Ford
19. Kurt Busch, Phoenix Racing No. 51 Chevrolet
20. Paul Menard, Richard Childress Racing No. 27 Chevrolet
21. Jamie McMurray, Earnhardt Ganassi Racing No. 1 Chevrolet
22. Landon Cassill, BK Racing No. 83 Toyota
23. Dave Blaney, Tommy Baldwin Racing No. 36 Chevrolet
24. Carl Edwards, Roush Fenway Racing No. 99 Ford
25. Martin Truex Jr., Michael Waltrip Racing No. 56 Toyota
26. Matt Kenseth, Roush Fenway Racing No. 17 Ford
27. Scott Riggs, R3 Motorsports No. 23 Chevrolet
28. Brad Keselowski, Penske Racing No. 2 Dodge
29. Dale Earnhardt Jr., Hendrick Motorsports No. 88 Chevrolet
30. Jeff Gordon, Hendrick Motorsports No. 24 Chevrolet
31. Casey Mears, Germain Racing No. 13 Ford
32. David Reutimann, Tommy Baldwin Racing No. 10 Chevrolet
33. Josh Wise, Front Row Motorsports No. 26 Ford
34. David Ragan, Front Row Motorsports No. 34 Ford
35. J.J. Yeley, Robinson-Blakeney Racing No. 49 Toyota
36. David Gilliland, Front Row Motorsports No. 38 Ford
37. Michael McDowell, Phil Parsons Racing No. 98 Ford
38. Joe Nemechek, Nemco Motorsports No. 87 Toyota
39. Robby Gordon, Robby Gordon Motorsports No. 7 Dodge
40. Brendan Gaughan, Richard Childress Racing No. 33 Chverolet
41. Travis Kvapil, BK Racing No. 93 Toyota
42. Mike Bliss, FAS Lane Racing No. 32 Ford
43. David Stremme, Inception Motorsports No. 30 Toyota
Phoenix International Speedway
See you in victory lane!
NASCAR officials believe the time has come to bring back pack racing in this year’s Daytona 500.
On Monday, NASCAR vice president of competition Robin Pemberton and Sprint Cup Series director John Darby held an informal competition update at the NASCAR Research and Development Center to outline some of the competition changes for the 2012 season. The pair touched on a variety of subjects, and said that when it came to the Daytona 500, the fans have spoken and NASCAR is listening.
According to Pemberton, more than 80 percent of NASCAR fans objected to the two-car tandem style at Daytona, leading NASCAR officials to make a variety of changes.
“In the grand scheme of things our biggest responsibility is to give the most exciting Daytona 500 we can to the fans, and you don’t do that by eliminating all the components it takes to put on a good race,” Darby said. Daytona 500 fans have grown accustomed to seeing a large pack of race cars battling over 500 miles and anything that has ventured away from that has been met with bitter criticism.
40% of the fans hated the two-cat tandem, while another 40% wanted to see a mix of styles. The biggest thing the fans didn’t like about two-car tandems is that they want to see my driver win a race. With tandem racing I can’t do that. I can see you push me to victory but I can’t win the race by myself.
The common consensus among the majority of fans is that they want it to be back to one driver against 42. Racing style is often cyclical, but the tandems never caught on with fans, Pemberton said. “There was a time when they didn’t like the pack racing then they watched it and liked it and wanted to go back,” Pemberton said. “We’ve had different types of racing over the years and once the novelty wore off on the two-car tandems it never gained momentum at all.”
The large packs at this year’s Daytona 500 will be a treat for the 80 percent of fans who disapproved of two-car drafts, but will the on-track product be markedly more exciting? Darby doesn’t think so.
Throughout the 53-year history of NASCAR its race cars have been transformed from road-going true “stock” cars, into these lightening-fast and technologically advanced cars that we see today. In tracing this evolution it’s necessary to go back to the beginnings of NASCAR.
When NASCAR was formed in 1948 it was the post World War II era and there was a shortage of new cars. It was a general consensus that the majority of race fans wouldn’t be real fond of new cars being beat up on a race track while they were driving a beater, pre-war era car. As such, it didn’t take too long before the “Modified” stock cars became the official staple of NASCAR racing.
Fast forward to 1949 when then NASCAR president Bill France Sr. contemplated the idea of actually racing the same cars that people drove on the street. Thinking of that type of race car in modern times almost seems funny, but back then no other racing organization had seized the idea of utilizing street cars, that is, until Bill France thought it just might work. The current success of the NASCAR Cup Series proves his inklings were correct.
Genuine Stock Racing Cars
From the racers’ perspective in the earlier days of NASCAR, being able to put a race car together was not an expensive investment. If a brand-new Chevy sold for around $3,800, and considering the fact that there was little or no modification to be done to it, the actual race car could be raced for a very cheap investment. In some instances, rental cars were actually used by point-chasing drivers who had no guaranteed ride for a given event. Cars were typically either driven to the track or towed behind pick-ups and family sedans. Other than some minor tweaking and tuning of the engine, nothing needed to be done to these early race cars that were strictly stock. Essentially, in the earlier day there were no roll bars, the window was intact, and aircraft harnesses, or sometimes even ropes, were used as seat belts. When these cars rolled out on the track they were practically like showroom cars.
One of the many benefits of implementing the strictly stock design was the tremendous diversity of manufacturers with their cars on the track. For example, the first official strictly stock division race had nine makes on the line that included Buick, Cadillac, Chrysler, Ford, Hudson, Kaiser, Lincoln, Mercury and Oldsmobile However, as one would suspect, using a genuine “stock” automobile for racing had its downfalls.
One of the most significant problems were tire, wheel, and suspension failures brought on by stresses that were atypical of normal road use. This was especially true with the rough-surfaced dirt tracks that were predominant in the early days of racing. Nevertheless, the only modification that was allowed to the stock racing cars was a reinforcing steel plate on the right front wheel which helped to prevent the lug nuts from pulling right through the rim on factory wheels. Otherwise, racing stock cars in the early days of the sport was very much a bare bones ordeal.
For a certain number of years, that concept certainly worked and, through the support of fans, competitors and manufacturers, it continued to thrive. But the variety of race tracks in use and the intensity of the competition level necessitated various modifications. While many of these were instituted in the interest of safety, manufacturers found that there were ways to integrate high performance parts into their mainstream production line.
One of the first items produced specifically for stock car racing was a racing tire manufactured and distributed by the Pure Oil Company in 1952. Prior to that time, street tires were all that were available for racing applications.
Not only is Jeff Gordon one of the most winning drivers in the history of NASCAR, but he’s also one of the most polite and personable figures in NASCAR racing. But earning the title of four-time NASCAR champion certainly is not attributable to being too nice. Gordon proved this when he started a highly publicized fight with Jeff Burton after they crashed last Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway in the AAA Texas 500.
It all happened as the field prepared to align itself under a caution flag on lap 191 and Gordon and Burton were heading into turn two to catch up with the rest of the field. It was at that point that Burton’s No. 31 hooked the No. 24 of Jeff Gordon from behind.
As drivers qualified Friday for the next NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Phoenix International Raceway, and moved closer to deciding the season champion,it appears as though long winless streaks were the contributing factor to what has been dubbed by many as”The Texas Turmoil”.
In the course of 36 points races, frustrations are bound to boil over, stemming from issues like deliberate paint trading, mediocre pit stops, or a late race collapse from leading the field to ending up smashed up with a pile of heap in the garage area, but Jeff Gorden stated that the fight itself “was a reflection of stupidity” because Burton’s No. 31 Chevrolet collided with Gordon’s No. 24 Chevy moments after the caution flag came out at the Texas Motor Speedway. “I don’t care what kind of season we’re having or not having, if you get wrecked under caution you’re going to be really, really mad.”
Gordon and Burton are among the 12 in this year’s 10-race Chase for the Cup championship playoff, but both are so far behind in the standings that neither one of them has a realistic chance of winning the 2010 title.
After the wreck in Texas Burton stated that he didn’t intentionally hit Gordon’s car. However, he did add that, “When it all happened, I thoroughly expected to be in a physical altercation. I could tell by the gait in [Gordon's] walk and by the look in his eye that he wasn’t coming down there to talk. It’s all funny now.”
NASCAR team owner Jack Roush was in serious but stable condition after walking away from a plane crash in Oshkosh, Wisconsin at 6:15 p.m. (CST) on Tuesday night.
Video showed Roush and another passenger, identified by the Experimental Aircraft Association as Brenda Strickland of Plymouth, Michigan, walking away from the crash. Roush, an aviation buff, was attending the Experimental Aircraft Association’s annual Air Venture in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, this week.
“There are injuries. Possible surgery,” Roush Fenway Racing president Geoff Smith said in a text message to The Associated Press. “But he walked out of the plane.” Smith confirmed that the plane belonged to Roush, and he was flying it. Smith said Roush’s injuries include facial lacerations.
It is the second close call for Roush, who crashed a plane into a pond in Alabama in 2002, nearly drowning before being rescued by an ex-Marine who lived nearby. Despite serious injuries in the 2002 incident, Roush continued flying.
Incidents of this nature are not new for the EAA Air Venture. Each year Air Venture brings in about 10,000 planes from around the world, increasing the risk of a crash by five times. Since 2000, there have been 59 crashes associated with the event — with at least one resulting in a death each year.
There’s no doubt that Sunday’s Cup race at Dover International Speedway was going to come down to a two-man duel between Kyle Busch and Jimmie Johnson.
Busch seizes the moment
Kyle Busch took advantage of a costly mistake by the four-time Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson and pulled away for the win this past Sunday in the Autism Speaks 400 at Dover International Speedway.
Johnson was flagged for speeding while exiting the pits during a round of green-flag stops on Lap 363 and forced to return to pit road to serve a pass-through penalty. This rare, but unwitty mistake by Johnson cost him a race that he clearly could have won. Johnson was attempting to beat Busch off pit road at the time. He said he knew his penalty came shortly after he left his pit stall because by the time he reached the stall occupied by Busch, he already had conceded that Busch was going to beat his No. 48 Chevrolet back out onto the track. Johnson had been leading the race, with Busch second, when they came to the pits.
“It definitely cost us a top-two finish,” said Johnson, who led a total of eight times for a race-high 225 laps. “I’m frustrated. I think we’ve got to be a little bit more aware of our acceleration of the car off pit road, and how we can get busted there. But outside of that, I can’t say we did anything else wrong all day. We led a bunch of laps, had great pit stops. I mean, across the board it was a great day. I just hate, that at the end, one small mistake knocked us back to a 16th-place finish.”
Johnson owns his mistake
As a direct result of the incident, Johnson dropped two spots in the point standings and was leap-frogged by Busch, who jumped two places to second. Yet Johnson did not seem too disturbed by the development. He politely answered all questions for several minutes afterward and blamed no one but himself for the costly mistake. And he also made it very clear that his frame of mind is right for the the next points race at the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 2 weeks (May 30th).
Only time will tell whether this is a lesson learned, or whether Johnson gets a bit jumpy when he’s under pressure? His record dicatates that this was probably just a somple mistake…
NASCAR History:
The date was November 22, 2009.
The place was the Homestead Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida.
His 5th place finish crowned him the 2009 Sprint Cup Series Champion, and it was almost predictable when Jimmy Johnson cinched his record-breaking 4th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at the Ford 400. Watching from afar with brave anticipation, the event was breathtaking and chilling for any NASCAR Racing fan — even if Jimmy Johnson was not your favorite driver. In doing so, Jimmy Johnson has joined Richard Petty (7 wins), Dale Earnhardt (7 wins) and teammate Jeff Gordon (4 wins) as the only NASCAR Racing drivers to win more than three titles.
At age 33 the profile of Jimmy Johnson speaks loud for the making of NASCAR history. He has finished in the Top 5 a remarkable 64 times in the last four years. Never did he expect to become a champion; all he ever really wanted to do was to have a chance to race against the very best.
Going back to the 2002 Winston Cup results, Jimmy Johnson started all 36 races, completing 10521 of 10695 racing laps, and leading 838 of those laps. The latest of this recent four year trek speaks a little differently, however.
- In 2006 he had 36 starts, completed 10577 of 10660 laps, with 854 laps led. Overall he had 24 Top 10 finishes, 13 Top 5 finishes, and 5 wins.
- In 2007 he had 36 starts, completed 10318 of 10582 laps, with 1289 laps led. Overall he had 24 Top 10 finishes, 20 Top 5 finishes, and 10 wins.
- In 2008 he had 36 starts, completed 10643 of 10726 laps, with 1959 laps led. Overall he had 22 Top 10 finishes, 15 Top 5 finishes, and 7 wins.
- In 2009 he had 36 starts, completed 10298 of 10492 laps, with 2238 laps led. Overall he had 24 Top 10 finishes, 16 Top 5 finishes, and 7 wins.
Overall, Jimmy Johnson has a 9 year NASCAR Racing career total of 291 starts, completing 83810 laps, with 9681 laps led. He has 180 Top 10 finishes, 117 Top 5 finishes, and 47 wins.
When it comes to the making of NASCAR Racing history, could anything have been more predictable than the current reign of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion?