Watch the Dodge Boys at Infineon
by Charlie Turner
I'm Charlie Turner co-host of the syndicated, mostly NASCAR radio show On Pit Row. Thanks for stopping by OnPitRow.com and the Bench Racing with Steve and Charlie blog. Oh yeah, Steve is an idiot.
June 19, 2008 11:47 pm CDT 3 CommentsIf you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to our RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
I have been looking through the entry list for the Toyota Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway. I had plans to write something about road course ringers or some such. Fact is, there aren’t that many ringers any more. But there are an awful lot of experienced road racers driving Dodges this weekend in wine country.
Start with the Ganassi Racing trio of defending race winner Juan Pablo Montoya and teammates Dario Franchitti and Scott Pruett - strongest driver line-up in the race. Gillette- Everham has red hot Kasey Kahne with Patrick Carpentier - who will be good - and Elliott Sadler. Penske’s Kurt Busch is strong here as is Ryan Newman and Sam Hornish Jr is experienced turning both ways. The Labonte brothers will make Petty Enterprises a factor. Robby Gordon might be a favorite to win this thing.
No manufacturer has a stronger driver roster for Sonoma this year than Dodge.
Photo credit: Photo Credit: Mike Doran
Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Earnhardt Jr Gets Lucky at MIS
by Charlie Turner
I'm Charlie Turner co-host of the syndicated, mostly NASCAR radio show On Pit Row. Thanks for stopping by OnPitRow.com and the Bench Racing with Steve and Charlie blog. Oh yeah, Steve is an idiot.
June 16, 2008 9:33 am CDT 1 Comment
There are, according to Google, twenty permanent casinos in the state of Michigan. For dice rollin’, all-in plays, they had nothing on Michigan International Speedway on Fathers Day.
The #88 team of Dale Earnhardt Jr and Tony Eury Jr did their seniors proud, parlaying a gutsy fuel strategy into Junior’s first win for Rick Hendrick and the National Guard car. It was - needless to say - a very popular win with the majority of the MIS crowd.
Rock star Bob Seger - another of Michigan’s favorite sons - has a song that seems to fit Dale Jr this morning.
Got to keep movin’, never gonna slow down
You can have your funky world, see you ’round
Cause I got to ramble (Ramblin’ man)
I got to gamble (gamblin’ man)
I got to ramble (ramblin’ man)
Lord I’m a ramblin’, gamblin’ man
Photo credit: Icon Sports Media, Inc.
Who Will Be the Sprint Cup’s Next First-time Winner?
by Charlie Turner
I'm Charlie Turner co-host of the syndicated, mostly NASCAR radio show On Pit Row. Thanks for stopping by OnPitRow.com and the Bench Racing with Steve and Charlie blog. Oh yeah, Steve is an idiot.
May 30, 2008 9:32 am CDT 6 CommentsMartin Truex Jr grabbed his first and, so far only, Cup Series win at Dover Downs in 2007. By my count, he was one of three drivers to accomplish that feat last year - Casey Mears and Clint Bowyer were the others.
I’m looking at the line up for this week’s tilt at the Monster Mile and wondering who will be the next first timer. The answer is not obvious. David Ragan would seem the best bet. He drives for one of the major teams, as did all of 2007’s first time winners. Ragan has lately been running up front and looked like a contender at Charlotte. But who else. Is there anybody else?
Before his injury, Dario Franchitti would have been my pick if only because of the two road courses where he should be one of the contenders. His lost seat-time may not hurt his chances at Sonoma and the Glen, but it steepens the learning curve elsewhere.
Fellow Dodger Reed Sorenson looked strong coming out of Daytona. Since then though, his team has been a big part of Ganassi’s funk. The stirring of that pot by Chip doesn’t bode well for the Target car.
Dave Blaney is the only non winner in a Toyota who seems a candidate. A J Allmendinger didn’t convince me at Lowes. David Reutimann looks like a journeyman.
Who do you like in a Chevy? All of 2007’s virgin winners were Bowtie Boys. But who’s left? Regan Smith? Too soon and not enough chances. Same for Aric Almirola. The Haas CNC teams probably killed their chances by losing crew and car chiefs for six races.
No, the next winner looks to be a Ford man. If not Ragan then maybe one of the Yates guys. Travis Kvapil looks primed.
Coca Cola 600 Fantasy Thoughts
by Charlie Turner
I'm Charlie Turner co-host of the syndicated, mostly NASCAR radio show On Pit Row. Thanks for stopping by OnPitRow.com and the Bench Racing with Steve and Charlie blog. Oh yeah, Steve is an idiot.
May 24, 2008 11:00 am CDT No Comments
I chose David Ragan to win the Coca Cola 600 during our picks weekly segment ON PIT ROW this week. What was I thinking? Admittedly that segment of the show is pretty “off the wall”. It isn’t meant to be serious fantasy racing analysis. It’s more about who can “out stupid” whom. Looking at NASCAR’s Loop Data this week makes me think maybe I have a lock on that for the 600. Ragan isn’t even on the sheet!
Now I will admit to being influenced by the Sprint Showdown - the qualifier for the Sprint All Star Race. David finished a strong third, just out of the last transfer spot. Then Sunday I got to watch him - in person - start from the back of a 35 car field and work to the front for third place finish in the ARCA RE/MAX Series race at Toledo Speedway. Plus I talked to him in the infield at Toledo. He’s a nice guy. But 200 laps at the Glass City half mile isn’t even close to 400 at Lowes. I may have over-bought.
If not Ragan, who?
Once again, Jimmy Johnson is the overwhelming leader of the Loop Data stats. If Dave Ragan is a stretch - and he is - then Johnson is a steal if you get to pick him. But J J has looked the part at many other races in 2008 too, only to disappoint. His Driver Rating of 120.2 - nearly 26 points better than second place Kyle Busch - is a big number. He has Series best stats in nine other Box Score categories including Ave Finish of 5.0, Ave Position 7.5, 246 Fastest Laps and 1956 Laps in the Top 15 for 88.6% of the last six Lowes races. Johnson’s 990 Ave Points Gained is 100 pts better than the next highest total - the 899 for Carl Edwards.
The Loop stats for Lowes are a bit strange though. As stated, Kyle Busch has the second best Driver Rating, but his Ave Points Gained per race is only 596 - almost 400 less than Johnson’s total. The Shrub will start from the pole and he has been one of the best this season but the Loop stats don’t point to consistency at Charlotte. His Ave Finish is only 23.5.
Carl Edwards’ Driver Rating, despite the second most Ave Points Gained per race, is even lower than Busch the Younger’s at 88.6. Carl has been strong on the intermediate tracks this year and I expect he’ll do well at Lowes too. Five top tens in his six starts are a good indication.
Veteran Mark Martin has the number three DR at 93.2 and he’s a four time winner at the N Carolina track. There hasn’t been much talk about Martin in 2008. He could make some noise this week though.
Kasey Kahne, winner of the Sprint All Star race and two time Lowes winner has a Driver Rating of 92.9 and has led the most Loop Laps with 338 to Johnson’s 298. If the Thursday ruling on suspension settings by NASCAR doesn’t throw the #9 teams setups off too much, Kahne could be the pick this week.
You can throw a Loop blanket over the next dozen contenders. The only stat of the bunch that jumps out at me is Bobby Labonte’s Ave Points Gained - 812 from the 13th overall DR ranking position.
I haven’t seen enough from the #9 to pick Kahne for a 600 mile race. To me it’s between Johnson and Edwards. I’ll go with Jimmy, the big stat advantage and the five wins. Carl could get his first Lowes win, but I have to see it first.
Dark horse pick - Kurt Busch.
The Track Too Tough to Tame for Fantasy Picks
by Charlie Turner
I'm Charlie Turner co-host of the syndicated, mostly NASCAR radio show On Pit Row. Thanks for stopping by OnPitRow.com and the Bench Racing with Steve and Charlie blog. Oh yeah, Steve is an idiot.
May 10, 2008 8:36 am CDT No Comments
Kevin Harvick was - by all statistical evidence - the right pick for last weeks Sprint Cup race at Richmond International Raceway. It didn’t work out. Picking winners in NASCAR racing often doesn’t. You can begin to doubt the viability of the stats.
But the drivers who rated right behind Harvick for RIR were two of the most dominant and - as it turned out - controversial guys in the event.
Denny Hamlin led 381 of the 400 race laps but finished 24th - due to a tire going down under green and his attempt to draw a caution. The controversial part came of that try for a yellow flag.
Kyle Busch finished second. He got there by - some say - driving through Dale Earnhardt Jr while going for the win. There has been plenty of hash and re-hash on that subject.
Harvick had a dominant position in the NASCAR Loop stats for RIR. The spread between drivers at Darlington Raceway is tighter and there are only three races in the Loop database for the Lady in Black.
Fantasy Picks for the Track too Tough to Tame
Some weeks ago, Steve and I interviewed several of the NASCAR internet community’s most knowledgeable writers for our first 7 Post Podcast. We asked each of our guests who their pick would be for Darlington in May. Most chose Greg Biffle. Goodyear had just completed the spring tire test at the South Carolina track. The news that Biffle had topped 200 mph on the back stretch was big. Maybe that was an influence on the picks. Or perhaps those blogger folks are pretty smart too.
Gregg Biffle has the top Driver Rating of 126.1. He is the top dog in Fastest Laps with 141 and Laps Led at 346 or 31.3% of the last three races at Darlington. Greg has the second most Laps in the Top Fifteen the third best Ave Running Position of 5.2. Top those numbers with three top tens and two wins and The Biff looks good this week.
Jimmy Johnson looks good every week, doesn’t he? Second best Driver Rating, Fastest Laps, Laps Led and the top Ave Finish of 2.3 make it so again. JJ has two top fives and eight top tens.
Hamlin has only raced twice in Loop races at the Lady. He has the third best DR of 119.2 in those two and two top fives and four top tens all together. Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Busch has only one top ten ever and a Driver Rating of 85.7 which is 13th.
Darlington has been good to Ryan Newman. Ryan is fourth in DR with 116.4 and number one in Ave Running Position of 4.951. Five top fives and six top tens show his consistency at this track.
Jeff Gordon has gained more total Loop Points per Darlington race than anyone else - 540 compared to Biffle’s 498 - and has the best Ave Finish - 1.7 - and Laps in the Top Fifteen - 1091 for 98.8%. Gordon is also a seven time winner here. Yikes!
Earnhardt Jr, Carl Edwards and Kasey Kahne all have similar DR’s - 99.6, 98.8 and 97.8 respectively. None of the three has ever won at Darlington. The only Loop stat that jumps out is that Junior has zero Laps Led.
I’m going with Jeff Gordon as my fantasy pick. That Ave Finish stat of 1.7 and his top Ave Points Gained combined with his history at the track and the fact that he is, well, Jeff Freakin’ Gordon finish the self-argument for me.
If you want a driver outside the Loop stat top ten, take Jeff Burton.Steady Jeff has two wins, eight top fives and fourteen top tens at Darlington to support his 2008 success.
My dark-horse pick is Bobby Labonte - hopefully in that Speed Racer-painted #43 again.
Photo credit: Icon Sports Media, Inc.
Maybe Kyle Busch Just Got Loose in Turn 3
by Charlie Turner
I'm Charlie Turner co-host of the syndicated, mostly NASCAR radio show On Pit Row. Thanks for stopping by OnPitRow.com and the Bench Racing with Steve and Charlie blog. Oh yeah, Steve is an idiot.
May 9, 2008 9:52 am CDT 5 Comments
Do you think that “the incident” at Richmond International Raceway Saturday night was evidence of the “vengeance of the Shrub”? After-all, Dale Earnhardt Jr did spin out of the lead because of contact with the guy who used to have his seat at Hendrick Motorsports.
Just about everybody that we have talked to in the last week - from Larry McReynolds to Joey Logano say that they think this was a racing deal. Plain fact. I just can’t find the stones to argue that.
I may not agree with Tim Zaegel or Bruce Simmons though, as we each give our opinions on three separate, NASCAR related topics in this week’s Loose In Turn 3 go-round. Here’s my question of the week.
Should NASCAR drop the “ruse” of team owners being allowed only four Cup teams?
Charlie: First, you have to believe that the present rule is a false one. The rule was written with a real intent to limit the size and power of the super-team organizations. The advent of satellite teams for the Hendrick, Gibbs and Roush’s of the NASCAR world has effectively circumvented the spirit, if not the actual law, of the original ruling. That said, there is still a limiting effect on the big teams which gives an impression that teams like Hall of Fame Racing and Yates Racing are maintaining independence. I say let the ruse continue.
Bruce: I think it’s ridiculous that they pretend to have a team limit. First, owners, their wives, their kids, heck, I wouldn’t be surprised if someone’s dog shows up as an owner some day. Now that we have satellite teams forming with partnerships, it’s getting even more complicated. (I’ll avoid the ridiculous term here for the moment) So if a team has a limit, is there a limit to how many satellite teams a team can have a team under with a team? (Look out Dr Seuss)
TZ: I think that between the both of you, you two hit the nail on the head on this topic. There is one thing Charlie said though, about Yates Racing maintaining independence, because they would actually be involved in the basis of my argument on this. Yates is the beneficiary of Roush-Fenway in so many ways, it’s not even funny. Roush plays a huge role in their engines, they’ve been trying to help them lock on some sponsorship deals, and in 2010, they’ll probably be handing them a driver. To answer the question though, not only should they “continue the ruse” as Charlie put it, but I would actually like to see them limit it to three teams - that’ll never happen though.
There you have it. That’s what we think. What do you think?
Continue the discussion with Tim’s post:
Do you think that the Nationwide Series will ever truly develop its own identity and if so, what will it be?
Bruce’s post asks for comment on this:
Denny Hamlin is having the worst luck in the world.
Photo credit: Icon Sports Media, Inc.
Third race at Phoenix was the New Car charm
by Charlie Turner
I'm Charlie Turner co-host of the syndicated, mostly NASCAR radio show On Pit Row. Thanks for stopping by OnPitRow.com and the Bench Racing with Steve and Charlie blog. Oh yeah, Steve is an idiot.
April 17, 2008 12:41 am CDT 2 CommentsSaturday’s Subway Fresh Fit 500 - which was actually the Phoenix 312 in non-metric stock-car lingo - was race number three for the racer formerly known around these parts as the “Ugly Little Freakin’ Toad” on dessert flat track.
If the occasional fuel mileage race doesn’t bother you - and it doesn’t me - then you probably liked the SSFF 500 (or 312) just like me. That would make you pretty darn astute, in my opinion. My buddy Steve hates economy runs of any kind, any time. If you are like him, well, Steve has a deserved reputation in ON PIT ROW land. You would be wrong, just like El Idioto.
Did you like the way I set up my segue to the Nationwide Series (maybe it should be the Continent-wide Series) trip to Mexico City for the rematch of Scott Pruett and Juan Pablo Montoya. What a great story that shapes up to be.
What? Whaddaya mean Juan’s not going to MayHeeCo? What PR Bozo blew this deal? Don’t they know how long Pruett’s been planning his revenge? It’s not fair!
I guess JPM will spend the week bonding with new Cup crew chief Jimmy Elledge. Thank you Chip Ganassi (with Felix Sabates).
OK, I’m going back to watching “Daytona 500: 50 Years of the Great American Race” that the folks at A&E Home Video sent me to review. Disc one is pretty darned awesome so far, which means I’m not gonna get a whole lot of sleep tonight. It features the broadcast of the 50th ever Daytona 500 in a multi-media format where you can switch from several vantage points to watch the action. You get the Fox team’s coverage but you can switch to the in-car camera - and driver audio - of Dale Jr, Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Newman and more. It is really cool stuff.
I’ll never get to disc two tonight, so I’ll pass along my thoughts on that later. But the race coverage alone is worth the money. Buy it. Check it out here.
Four NASCAR drivers you think should win, but don’t
by Charlie Turner
I'm Charlie Turner co-host of the syndicated, mostly NASCAR radio show On Pit Row. Thanks for stopping by OnPitRow.com and the Bench Racing with Steve and Charlie blog. Oh yeah, Steve is an idiot.
March 21, 2008 2:23 pm CDT 6 Comments
The pressure is off for NASCAR fantasy players this week. If you participate in a Sprint Cup Series fantasy game, you get an extra week to figure out your best picks to win your NASCAR fantasy league since the Cup Series is on Easter break.
Perhaps now is the time to plot your ultimate winning strategy. Or line up your latest wild ass guesses, which is what I’m planning to do. For me, putting too much thought into this whole thing hurts my head. But that doesn’t stop me. In fact it got me to thinking about why certain drivers - having all of the requisite tools and pedigree - just can’t close the deal. At least not as often as it seems they should.
Of the current crop of Cup competitors, Casey Mears and Jamie McMurray are the two that jump out at me. Both drivers are approaching 200 starts in Cup rides ranging from pretty good to top-shelf.
McMurray won in his second start ever after taking over for an injured Sterling Marlin- who could very well make this list too - and then went win-less, through the rest of his Ganassi career and high profile drives for Roush Racing, until 2007’s summer Daytona race.
Mears broke the ice last year with his first win, but had nothing to show for his Ganassi seat time and, I’m betting, not enough to keep the Hendrick franchise happy much longer.
Those are winning percentages along the lines of .5 to 1%. If that criteria is followed, I hate it but I have to put Kyle Petty in here too. Eight wins in 819 starts makes winning a rare enough occurrence for someone who, at times has been in top equipment. Sorry Kyle, it just seems like you should have been first more than this.
Picking four was tougher that I thought it would be. I keep wanting to go back to New Zealander and 60’s-70’s F1 driver Chris Amon. Amon drove for the best teams and was acknowledged by peers and journalist’s alike as one of the best for more than a decade. But he never won a race. If I pick him, I’ll never hear the end of it from Steve - who thinks I live totally in the past - or Marc, who actually does.
No, unfortunately I’ll have to call recent ON PIT ROW guest and genuine good guy, Jeremy Mayfield out as my fourth enigma. Big contracts with top teams (allegedly at least) Penske Racing and Evernham Motorsports produced just 5 wins in 425 Cup starts. Mayfield did qualify for the Chase a couple times though, which ought to count for something.
Luke has an interesting take at the Thunder Lounge on the current crop of Rookie of the Year candidates, and how NASCAR’s goofy qualifying rules can screw with that race. I just wonder if any of the four ROY favorites will make a list like mine in five or ten years.
Photo credit: Icon Sports Media, Inc.
Dodges dominate Daytona
by Steve Wronkowicz
I am co-host of the syndicated radio show: ON PIT ROW. Charlie likes to call me an "idiot". I'm not an "idiot"; I just prefer not to let the facts get in the way of my opinions.
February 18, 2008 9:35 pm CST 3 CommentsAfter lackluster efforts testing, qualifying and practicing; where did all the Dodges come from?
That is THE BUZZ this week ON PIT ROW. For most of Speed Weeks at Daytona everyone was focusing on the Chevy super teams. Hendrick Motorsports, Richard Childress Racing and DEI. Then testing successes by the Toyota teams shifted the focus to their new found prowess and much debate ensued.
Not much ink or bandwidth was wasted on the Ford and Dodge teams, other than the Robby Gordon story. So little credit was given to the Dodge teams that the biggest Dodge story was Kurt Busch’s run in with Tony Stewart’s fist.
When all was said and done and the checkers flew on the 50th Daytona 500, the Dodge Boys had captured the majority of top ten spots. Along with Ryan Newman’s win and Kurt’s second, Reed Sorenson, Elliott Sadler, Kasey Kahne and Robby all finished in the top eight, Only the Toyotas of Tony Stewart and Kyle Busch along with Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s Chevy and Greg Biffle’s Ford made the top ten.
It is no wonder that Chrysler Corporation inked the Ganassi and Penske to new multi-year contracts to stay with Mopar.
Photo credit: BethAnne Heisler - ON PIT ROW/BRP
Head to Head driver challenge: Dodge vs Ford
by Charlie Turner
I'm Charlie Turner co-host of the syndicated, mostly NASCAR radio show On Pit Row. Thanks for stopping by OnPitRow.com and the Bench Racing with Steve and Charlie blog. Oh yeah, Steve is an idiot.
February 2, 2008 3:09 pm CST 5 CommentsSo Robby Gordon is switching from Ford to Dodge - who cares you say?
Ford fans ought to. At the end of the 2007 Nextel Cup season, the Blue Oval brigade looked to be a solid number two in the manufacturer’s championship race going into 2008’s inaugural Sprint Cup Series season. The thinking was Roush-Fenway Racing had slipped up and fallen behind the CoT and general testing programs of the big Chevy outfits. The Ford faithful assumed that Jack Roush would straighten out the problems and restore Ford to at least competitive equality with the dominant Hendrick-Gibbs-Childress troika.
Observers of preseason testing are telling us otherwise. The Joe Gibbs Racing move to Toyota has boosted that brand’s prospects. Many experts think that Toyota may well jump to number two status. Boris Said told us on last week’s ON PIT ROW that the speed and sheer numbers of the Toyotas will make it very tough for his Ford team to qualify for non-road course races.
Ford vs Dodge
The real question is; can Ford keep from falling to fourth, behind Dodge in the Cup Series? Look at the rosters of the two makes and compare.
Ford teams will field eight full time teams in 2008, led by Roush-Fenway’s fivesome. Dodge enters 2008 with a lucky thirteen. Seven of Ford’s eight have top 35 owner’s points while Dodge gets twelve of it’s thirteen in each of the first five races. So far it looks like, advantage Dodge, if quantity counts. If you’re one of those quality folks - here’s my personal Power Ranking of the Ford vs Dodge NASCAR battle.
- #17 Ford -Matt Kenseth - past champ, two time 2007 race winner and Chaser
- #2 Dodge - Kurt Busch - see above
- #99 Ford - Carl Edwards - three time race winner in 2007 and Chaser
- #12 Dodge - Ryan Newman - 12 career wins, no Chase but a solid 2007
- #9 Dodge - Kasey Kahne - Bad 2007 but won 6 in 2006 - just a hunch
- #16 Ford - Greg Biffle - Missed the Chase but got a win
- #26 Ford - Jamie McMurray - see Biffle
- #42 Dodge - Juan Pablo Montoya - 2007 Rookie of the Year won a race too
- #43 Dodge - Bobby Labonte - past champ finished ahead of Kahne and Montoya
- #41 Dodge - Reed Sorenson - his 2007 points put him here
- #6 Ford - David Ragan - ditto
- #19 Dodge - Elliott Sadler - very tempted to rate higher
- #7 Dodge - Robby Gordon - ditto
- #38 Ford - David Gilliland - The Yates team is Ford’s wild card, they hope
- #40 Dodge - Dario Franchitti - I think the 2008 ROY will drive a Dodge
- #28 Ford - Travis Kvapil - see Gilliland
- #21 Ford - Bill Elliott et al - Awesome Bill’s provisionals will payoff later with starts
- #45 Dodge - Kyle Petty - Must stay in the top 35
- #77 Dodge - Sam Hornish Jr - My pick for ROY, but I’m hedging that bet
- #10 Dodge - Patrick Carpentier - Going to have a tough time qualifying to race
I give the nod to Dodge. Kurt Busch and Kenseth are a push. Maybe the Ford boys get a slight edge in slots 3 through 8 but Newman and Kahne have championship capability in them - it’s close. The Dodge advantage is in depth and the fact that it’s major teams are all aggressive and growing. I like the look of Gillette-Evernham, Penske, Ganassi-Sabates and even Petty Enterprises over Roush-Fenway and the struggling Yates and Wood Brothers.
Picture credit: Todd Warshaw/Getty Images







