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Chase History: Homestead-Miami Speedway

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by Chris Leone, Special To NASCAR commentary and driver pictures, 2012 NASCAR schedule, video, Bench Racing With Steve and Charlie

I do weekly Fantasy Pick'Em columns here at OPR, as well as the occasional opinion and analysis piece. I also provide the IZOD IndyCar Series coverage. For more on that, head to my site, OpenWheelAmerica.com. My Twitter handle is @christopherlion.

November 18, 2011 11:38 am UTC No Comments

I hate to borrow from another sport’s marketing campaign to explain this weekend’s Chase for the Sprint Cup finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway, but I feel like the NHL’s playoff slogan says it all: History will be made.

We have a two-way battle for the championship between Carl Edwards and Tony Stewart, and if either of them win the race, they win the title. It’s as simple as that. Both drivers are on top of their game, unlike last year, when Jimmie Johnson was able to psyche out Denny Hamlin relatively easily. Stewart’s been engaging Edwards pretty heavily in the media, but Edwards doesn’t seem too worried about it.

Perhaps it’s because neither of Stewart’s two Homestead wins came on this track layout. While Smoke dominated the early years of its Cup history, winning the inaugural race in 1999 and again in 2000, track ownership altered its shape and banking in 2003. Since then, Roush Fenway Racing has basically owned the track, winning six of the last seven races there. The last two of those wins, in 2008 and 2010, went to Edwards.

Or perhaps it’s because Edwards is just better at Homestead. Stewart’s got a good track record, with two wins and six top-10s in 12 starts and an average finish of 12.4. But Edwards has two wins and six top-10s of his own in only seven races run. His average finish is 5.7. That’s off the wall. That’s the kind of average finish that will give you 1:2 odds in Vegas.

And yet, Stewart’s won a title under the Chase format before. Edwards hasn’t. Stewart has the advantage of having been in Edwards’ position in 2005 and knowing what throws a leader’s mindset off. He’s got all the confidence in the world – he just needs to execute.

Ignore the change in points formatting before this season. This championship could, theoretically, end in a tie (which would go to Stewart on the strength of more wins). It could be separated by only one or two points, which, under the old system, would still be a narrower margin of victory than Kurt Busch’s eight point win in 2004. Either way, it’s a very slim chance that Sunday becomes a gimme for either driver.

So get your popcorn ready, folks. We’re about to witness history.

Filed under: Carl Edwards, Chase for the Cup, Homestead-Miami Speedway, Tony Stewart 

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Chase History: Texas Motor Speedway

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by Chris Leone, Special To NASCAR commentary and driver pictures, 2012 NASCAR schedule, video, Bench Racing With Steve and Charlie

I do weekly Fantasy Pick'Em columns here at OPR, as well as the occasional opinion and analysis piece. I also provide the IZOD IndyCar Series coverage. For more on that, head to my site, OpenWheelAmerica.com. My Twitter handle is @christopherlion.

November 6, 2011 12:15 pm UTC No Comments

Texas Motor Speedway promoter extraordinaire Eddie Gossage loves a good head-to-head battle, especially in the Chase for the Sprint Cup. That’s what he hopes for between Carl Edwards and Tony Stewart, the top two remaining championship contenders, in today’s Texas race.

Ideally, Gossage would love to see the points lead change hands today. It’ll make the race one of the most interesting ones in the Chase, but mostly it’ll help him sell even more tickets to this race in the future. And, if it happens again, it’ll firmly entrench Texas as perhaps the most pivotal race in the Chase.

Remember what happened last season. Denny Hamlin took the win in this race after leading 31 laps, inheriting the points lead in a 47-point swing from Jimmie Johnson, who finished ninth. That’s roughly an 11-point swing under this year’s point system, which would be good enough to give Stewart the lead if he did the same thing.

Then again, perhaps that wouldn’t be such a good omen. The only driver to take the title after winning at Texas was Johnson in 2007 since this race was established in 2005. Edwards took the checkers in 2008, only to finish second in points; Hamlin did the same thing last year. Edwards was too far back in the Chase to catch Johnson, though he would have won the championship under a non-Chase format. Meanwhile, Hamlin blew it the next week at Phoenix and gave the point lead right back.

Whoever wins today, though, Gossage probably hopes they’re leaving with the points lead. Stewart could do it easily; Kevin Harvick, Brad Keselowski, and even spring Texas race winner Matt Kenseth could do it with a bit of luck. Today should be a Texas-sized shootout, and Gossage is loving every second of it.

Filed under: Carl Edwards, Chase for the Cup, Denny Hamlin, jimmie johnson, Texas Motor Speedway, Tony Stewart 

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Chase History: Dover International Speedway

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by Chris Leone, Special To NASCAR commentary and driver pictures, 2012 NASCAR schedule, video, Bench Racing With Steve and Charlie

I do weekly Fantasy Pick'Em columns here at OPR, as well as the occasional opinion and analysis piece. I also provide the IZOD IndyCar Series coverage. For more on that, head to my site, OpenWheelAmerica.com. My Twitter handle is @christopherlion.

September 28, 2011 1:05 pm UTC No Comments

Chad Knaus Jimmie Johnson Chandra and daughter on pit road Dover 10 bure

Chad Knaus Jimmie Johnson Chandra and daughter on pit road Dover 10 bure

One of the toughest tracks on the Sprint Cup schedule, the concrete Dover International Speedway – “The Monster Mile” – hosts the third round of this year’s Chase for the Sprint Cup, the AAA 400, this weekend. Right now, Tony Stewart is the points leader, holding a seven-marker advantage over second-place Kevin Harvick after scoring wins in both Chase races so far.

But when it comes to Dover, Stewart hasn’t won since sweeping the track in 2000. He came close in the spring 2009 race, only to be edged for the lead by Jimmie Johnson with three laps to go. His average finish at Dover in the seven Chase races is a so-so 15.3, but the Chase isn’t about solid points finishes, it’s about winning.

If recent history is to be trusted, in fact, this should be the track at which Johnson breaks out. Johnson, like Stewart, can boast a Dover sweep in the distant past (2002), but unlike Stewart, has tasted victory more recently. He’s won the past two fall Dover races (both from pole) and three of the past five at the track overall. He used last year’s victory to set him up to take the points lead from Denny Hamlin the next weekend at Kansas. The two would continue to swap the lead throughout the Chase, in one of the best battles in the format’s history.

Johnson’s career average finish of 9.6 is second best of all active Cup drivers, with only Carl Edwards‘ 7.6 a superior mark. Edwards only has one career win at Dover, however, which came during the 2007 season. The win, inherited when dominant teammate Matt Kenseth blew an engine, put Edwards within 28 points of leader Jeff Gordon; however, a late-race crash at Kansas put a major dent in his title hopes, and he wouldn’t win again that year.

Filed under: Carl Edwards, Chase for the Cup, Dover International Speedway, jimmie johnson, Tony Stewart 

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NASCAR Awakens the Sleeping Bear of Silly Season in Michigan

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by Steve Wronkowicz

I am co-host of the syndicated radio show: ON PIT ROW. Over ten years on the air and three on the net; see what can happen when I don't let the facts get in the way of my opinions.

June 21, 2011 2:18 pm UTC No Comments

Denny Hamlin finish line burnout Michigan International Speedway spr heisler 11

Twice a year the silence is broken by the noise of race cars and the swelling of a population.

While much activity is present on the race track, the first race of the year at Michigan International Speedway rarely has a lot of silly season activity.

NASCAR’s silly season is highlighted by sponsor, driver and crew chief changes for the next race season; but rarely is the June race at MIS the beginning of that process.

This year however was a different story.  News of Red Bull Racing pulling out of the sport came as a shocker to most.  While RBR has not exactly set the NASCAR world afire, they have been a respectable race team.  Poor cars early on forced RBR to miss races and driver inconsistencies have wreaked havoc with the program.

Now what will be left of RBR will either be sold off or morphed into another race team. What will become of Brian Vickers?  Kasey Kahne was a lend-lease driver from Hendrick Motorsports for 2011 so his future is secure and paints a picture that Red Bull had an idea that 2011 was going to be its last year.

It looks as if Home Depot is loosing its patience with coming in second to its big-box home improvement competition and may push for Joey Logano’s removal as the driver.  Carl Edwards name has been thrown into the mix as a possible replacement brand spokesman.  Edwards could move into a fourth Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota with Home Depot on the side if another sponsor can be secured for Logano .

JGR also made headlines this week, not only by taking Denny Hamlin to
Victory Lane, but by showing up to tech inspection with illegal oil pans. NASCAR took away the offending units and have fined each crew chief $50,000 and put each on probation, along with their respective car chiefs, until December 31, 2011.

Photo credit: BethAnne Heisler/ON PIT ROW

Filed under: Michigan International Speedway, Monday Morning Crew Chief, NASCAR, NASCAR & the Media, NASCAR Rumors, Red Bull Racing 

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Fantasy Pick’Em: 2011 FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks

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by Chris Leone, Special To NASCAR commentary and driver pictures, 2012 NASCAR schedule, video, Bench Racing With Steve and Charlie

I do weekly Fantasy Pick'Em columns here at OPR, as well as the occasional opinion and analysis piece. I also provide the IZOD IndyCar Series coverage. For more on that, head to my site, OpenWheelAmerica.com. My Twitter handle is @christopherlion.

May 13, 2011 10:46 am UTC No Comments

martin truex jr david reutimann qualifying new hampshire

martin truex jr david reutimann qualifying new hampshire

Ah, Dover. The track known colloquially as the “Monster Mile” is always a fun time, and given how much fun we had last week at Darlington, it won’t be a shock if this weekend’s race, the FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks, will be even more exciting.

Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch are the new power feud in the sport, after last week’s pit road incident. Ryan Newman and Juan Pablo Montoya still hate each other, if it’s been slightly de-emphasized. Dover is the last chance for top drivers without All-Star eligibility – and yes, that includes Dale Earnhardt Jr. – to earn their way into the event without having to either rely on a last-chance victory in the Sprint Showdown or fan vote.

So let’s make this interesting. My lead pick this week is going to be a driver that hasn’t won in a while. Ready?

Martin Truex Jr.: With Regan Smith taking the surprise victory at Darlington, I might as well go out on a limb and say that lightning can indeed strike twice. Dover is kind of a home track for the New Jersey native, and the site of his lone Sprint Cup win, back in 2007 when Dale Earnhardt Inc. was still a power player in the garage. He’s somewhat struggled at the track since, at least in the finishing order, but starts of first and third last year prove that he’s fast.

Carl Edwards: I could just as easily pick Jimmie Johnson as my alternate, with his six wins at Dover (three of the past four, too) to Edwards’ one. In fact, I probably should. But I won’t. Why? Simple – consistency. When you’re faced with two drivers who perform so well at this track, you might as well go with the guy with the slight edge in consistency, and that’s Edwards. Since 2006, Edwards has only finished outside of the top 10 two times, to Johnson’s four. He just edges Johnson in points scored at the track, 1561 to 1539, in that time frame. You can pick either, but I’m going with Edwards.

Joey Logano: Oh hi, dark horse. Logano has underperformed this year, never cracking the top 20 in points or a single-digit finishing position, but maybe Dover will help him turn it around. Last year he scored finishes of 10th and third in the two Dover races, spending 724 out of 800 laps in the top 10. He also won both Nationwide poles and finished second both times that series took on the Monster Mile in 2010. Even if he hasn’t won at the track yet in either series, he clearly knows how to run up front here.

Filed under: Carl Edwards, Dover International Speedway, Joey Logano, Martin Truex Jr., NASCAR Fantasy Gaming 

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Two Many Cup Drivers at NASCAR Event in Nashville

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by Steve Wronkowicz

I am co-host of the syndicated radio show: ON PIT ROW. Over ten years on the air and three on the net; see what can happen when I don't let the facts get in the way of my opinions.

April 26, 2011 8:17 am UTC 1 Comment

There were two too many Cup drivers at Nashville SuperSpeedway this weekend.

The Nationwide Series has become a mockery of itself and it was no more evident than what we saw this past weekend at Nashville.  Again two high profile Sprint Cup drivers stole the show from those drivers looking to win a championship.

There have been a ton of excuses as to the reasons that Cup drivers are tolerated and encouraged in the lesser series.

The arguments are well documented with t he most prolific being; if Cup drivers don’t participate then no one will show up/watch on TV.  That mindset seems to be held by track promoters and television rights holders and does not seem to hold water.  Look at the empty stands at Nashville and look at the pathetic ratings on ESPN for the NNS and you’ll see that nothing was gained by having Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch in the field.

If you believe that the NNS needs Cup drivers to succeed then the next logical step would be to assume that the more Cup drivers present the more attended the race will be and the higher the TV ratings.  But the TV ratings for the feeder series don’t waver much from race to race and those showing up to the race tracks have more to do with the proximity to and bundling of tickets to the Cup event.

The two man show that ESPN presented to the viewers did a dis-service to those who are in the Nationwide Series on a week to week basis and especially to those who are running for the championship.  ESPN did ittle more than mention the championship drivers as an aside throughout the race, instead concentrating on Edwards and Busch.

Banning Cup drivers from the NNS isn’t the answer.  Finding a better way to integrate those drivers into the series is.  If Jimmie Johnson’s five consecutive championships in Cup is bad for the sport then, Kyle and Carl are just as bad for the sport of second-fiddle NASCAR.

Limit the number of races that full-time cup drivers can participate in.  If Cup teams want to operate in the minor leagues let them do so with a group of drivers from their Cup stables.  This gives the promoters and TV execs the star power they are looking for with some intrigue as to whether this weeks Cup driver can figure out the ride.

There was a time when it was as fun to watch a Nationwide race as it was to watch a Cup race.  Those days are long gone.  The mix of up-and-coming drivers and never-quite-made-its was a series to hold fan interest; not so much any more.

photo credit: BethAnne Heisler/ON PIT ROW

Filed under: Carl Edwards, jimmie johnson, Kyle Busch, NASCAR, NASCAR & the Media, NASCAR Bidness 

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