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Chase History: Chicagoland Speedway

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 14, 2011 2:04 pm UTC No Comments

How’s it going, OPR readers? Long time no talk. Turns out life continued to get in my way of writing anything decent for the majority of this Sprint Cup season, but for the final 10 races of the year I’m back with something fresh and different – a little column on the history of the Chase for the Sprint Cup at each of this year’s 10 tracks.

But, of course, NASCAR can’t make anything easy for me, as the opening track on the schedule, the Chicagoland Speedway, has never actually hosted a Chase race. No matter. This week, we’ll start instead with how drivers have propelled themselves into the Chase with good runs at Chicagoland.

2007: After a busted fuel pump at Bristol and a late race caution at Phoenix robbed him of two sure-fire wins, Tony Stewart entered the second half of the Cup season solidly in the Chase, but without any wins to boost his fortunes. But a dominant performance at Chicago spurred on a run of three wins in four races, including his first career Brickyard 400 win. These three victories propelled Stewart to second in points and the third seed of the Chase that season.

2008: In his first year with Joe Gibbs Racing, Kyle Busch established himself as a tour de force on the Sprint Cup circuit, taking eight victories. Perhaps the most dominant came at Chicago, as he started from the pole, led 165 laps, and even beat leader and two-time defending champion Jimmie Johnson at his own game, passing him on the final restart to take his seventh win of the year.

2009: Mark Martin had struggled with consistency all season, often going from inside the Chase to out of it and back again over the span of just two races. He had won in two of his previous eight starts entering the Chicago race weekend, but only had one other top-10 in that span, and was coming off two finishes of 35th or worse in his previous three races. After winning the LifeLock.com 400, however, he began a run of five finishes of seventh or better in the final seven races before the Chase, cementing his eligibility. His four wins also gave him the points lead.

Filed under: Chase for the Cup, Chicagoland Speedway

Tagged with: Chase for the Cup, Chicagoland Speedway, jimmie johnson, Joe Gibbs Racing, Kyle Busch, Mark Martin, Tony Stewart

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Fantasy Pick’Em: 2011 Showtime Southern 500

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

May 6, 2011 12:08 pm UTC No Comments

What it do, folks? Sorry about the delay on this week’s fantasy blabbering – it’s term paper week at college, you understand. Thankfully, my hard work (cough) will pay off when I get to relax on Saturday night and watch the Showtime Southern 500 at the Lady in Black, Darlington Raceway.

Granted, it stunk when NASCAR ruined a bunch of traditions by getting rid of the Labor Day tradition that was the Southern 500, took away a race from one of the sport’s most famous tracks, and decided to run on Mother’s Day weekend. But the result – this race – has made for a spectacular event since day one.

But enough about that. You want to know who’s going to win. Well, I’ll see what I can do.

Kyle Busch: If it’s about momentum, Rowdy’s got it after that Richmond win. Leading 235 of 400 laps and winning the spring event there three years in a row is a great way to come into Darlington with your head held high. Busch has never won the Darlington race directly after winning Richmond, his lone victory at the track coming in 2008. But unless he gets snakebit (finishes of 37th in 2007 and 34th in 2009), he should run well.

Denny Hamlin: Hamlin’s career average finish at Darlington is a Jimmie Johnson-esque 6.6 in five starts, by far the best of all active drivers. He’s never finished worse than 13th, and won last year. So why am I ranking teammate Kyle Busch (average finish: 18.2) above Hamlin on the board this week? Because Hamlin’s had a rough year. Something with that team hasn’t been right since day one. Maybe it was the engine room explosion at Joe Gibbs Racing in the offseason; maybe it’s a hangover from a tough championship run that fell just short. Either way, I’m not sold… although he could easily prove me wrong.

Brad Keselowski: He’s had finishes of seventh and 12th in two Darlington starts. After last weekend, when Kurt Busch ripped his Penske Racing team a new one, you can expect everybody in that shop to give plenty of extra effort working on both cars to make sure that a weekend like that never happens again. They call Roger Penske “the Captain” for a reason – he simply refuses to accept failure. While Penske himself may be focusing on Indianapolis 500 preparations, you can bet that he’s instilled the fear of god almighty in his two Sprint Cup teams.

Filed under: Brad Kesolowski, Darlington Speedway, Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch, NASCAR Fantasy Gaming

Tagged with: Brad Keselowski, Denny Hamlin, Fantasy Pick'Em, Joe Gibbs Racing, Kyle Busch, Penske Racing, Showtime Southern 500

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Fantasy Pick’Em: 2011 Matthew & Daniel Hansen 400

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

April 27, 2011 4:10 pm UTC No Comments

Hello, Richmond. One of the most fun tracks on the Sprint Cup schedule, the track will end racing for the month of April with a 400-lap tilt under the bright lights on Saturday night.

Richmond is also the home track of Denny Hamlin, who will host his Short Track Showdown at the track for the first time on Thursday night. After a few years at the since-closed Southside Speedway, Hamlin will bring his own late model charity event to a much bigger stage, even attracting a SPEED Channel broadcast. Maybe it’ll be some good karma for the struggling Hamlin, who currently sits 17th in points after nearly winning it all last year.

I don’t have Hamlin on my short list of fantasy picks this week, though – not as my favorite, my alternate, or my dark horse. So, who am I picking over the guy who’s won two of the last three at Richmond?

Kyle Busch: The two-time race defending champion, of course. Last year, Rowdy dominated by leading 226 of 400 laps, including the first 140, and getting by Jeff Gordon for the final five circuits to cement his first victory of the season. Through two short track races this year, he’s been the top driver as well, scoring a series-best 90 points and leading 304 of 1000 laps. If he’s not your guy, he should be.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.: The momentum’s there. The will to win, if it was ever gone, is back. The last time Junior saw a short track (at Martinsville) he led as late as lap 496 of 500 and finished second. The turnaround within the No. 88 shop (or, technically, the consistently high level of performance in the former No. 24 shop) has the sport’s most popular driver contending for wins every weekend now, but he still has to break through. This could be the weekend.

Marcos Ambrose: Don’t ask me why, I just have a hunch. Well, a hunch influenced by a solid average finish of 11.8 in four Richmond starts, including runs of ninth (spring) and fifth (fall) last year. Richard Petty Motorsports has an issue with inconsistency, as it seems Ambrose will only run well when A.J. Allmendinger doesn’t, and vice versa. If you buy into that coincidence as theory, then Allmendinger’s 11th-place run two weeks ago at Talladega, combined with Ambrose’s crash-influenced 32nd-place finish, should mean Ambrose will run well on Saturday.

Filed under: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kyle Busch, Marcos Ambrose, NASCAR Fantasy Gaming, Richmond International Raceway

Tagged with: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Fantasy Pick'Em, Kyle Busch, Marcos Ambrose, Matthew & Daniel Hansen 400, Richmond International Raceway, Sprint Cup Series

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Two Many Cup Drivers at NASCAR Event in Nashville

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

Tagged with: Carl Edwards, jimmie johnson, Kyle Busch, NASCAR, Nationwide Series, Sprint Cup Series

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Can Kurt and Kyle Busch become NASCAR’s winningest Brothers

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.

March 30, 2011 7:38 am UTC No Comments

Kurt Busch Loudon New Hampshire in car bure 10

Don’t expect the most prolific NASCAR brother combo of our time to challange for the most Cup wins ever by siblings.

Kurt and Kyle Busch currently sit in sixth place all-time with a combined forty-two wins in the Sprint Cup Series; Kurt with twenty-two and Kyle twenty. But there is a formidable task ahead as sitting atop the brothers win list are Bobby and Donnie Allison with ninety-four Cup wins.

While Kurt and Kyle have one thing on their side in a quest to move to the top of this category–time; their ability to win Cup races at a fast enough rate isn’t looking plausible. Even if the brothers could average winning a combined five races per year it would take them into the 2021 season to even tie the Allisons. Averaging those five wins per year would be based on Kurt and Kyle continuining to win a combined 15 percent of the races they enter. Currently Kyle is winning at just shy of nine percent of the Cup races he enters and Kurt is at six percent.

With 369 Cup starts Kurt has been starting races at NASCAr’s highest level for ten years and one would wonder if he has ten more in him. Last night Kurt talked ON PIT ROW about his career, racing in his home town of Las Vegas and his new found love for drag racing. You can watch the entire interview with Kurt here. Is Kurt’s foray into the drag racing world a preview of things to come as a veteran looks toward his future?

Younger brother Kyle has only 227 Cup starts under his belt and would seem to be better suited to carry the brothers torch toward knocking off the Allisons. Kyle not only has a better winning percentage than Kurt but most likely has more years left in him winning at that higher percentage.

Most of the brother acts ahead of the Busch brothers show lopsided win totals. The Waltrips have a combined win total of 88; Darrell with 84 and Michael with four. The Flock brothers with 62 wins; Tim with 39 while Fonty has 19 and Bob only four. Donald Thomas has one win to combine with brother Herb’s forty-eight.

Only the next tandem above the Busch’s of Terry and Bobby Labonte show an equal number of wins, with twenty-two and twenty-one respectively.

If Kurt and Kyle are to have any chance of rising to the top in this NASCAR catagory it looks as if brother Kyle needs to concentrate on winning in the Cup series at a much more prodigious rate.

photo credit: Glenn Bure/ON PIT ROW

Filed under: Darrell Waltrip, Joe Gibbs Racing, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Michael Waltrip, NASCAR, NASCAR History, On Pit Row The Fastest Two Hours on Radio, Terry Labonte, The Waltrips

Tagged with: Bobby Allison, Bobby Labonte, Darrell Waltrip, Donnie Allison, Fonty Flock, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Michael Waltrip, NASCAR Brothers, Terry Labonte, Tim Flock

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2012, I mean, 2011 NASCAR Astro-Predictions

by Clance' McClannahan, Special To NASCAR commentary and driver pictures, 2012 NASCAR schedule, video, Bench Racing With Steve and Charlie

Clance' McClannahan, famous author behind The Church of The Great Oval and also one of the much appreciated Contributing Authors at Thunder Lounge.

January 25, 2011 11:24 am UTC 2 Comments

2012, I mean 2011 is a very special year, both Numerologically and Astrologically.

Are you curious about how your driver is going to do? Is Jimmie Johnson going to win again? How will Dale Jr. fare? Tony Stewart has already started his year a bit aggressively…Will Smoke be smoking hot in 2012? I mean, 2011? Will Brooklyn’s affect on new Daddy Ryan Newman change the way he drives? What about Kyle Busch, Brad Keselowski, and Carl Edwards? Will they continue to drive as phenomenally, now that they have had to choose which series they will earn point in? Will the feuds continue?

I dare YOU to use my prediction’s in your Fantasy Racing.

I dare ME to remember to play.

I dare Charlie to beat me.

I dare Steve to prove he is not an Idiot.

I dare ALL the Stat guys to a challenge of accuracy.

Stats vs. ‘Scope’s.

2011, I mean 2010, brought us some of the most exciting racing in years. Will the changes in NASCAR rules, affect the excitement for the fans, or dampen it? Will it be possible that actually winning races will matter?

We will be taking a look at all the full time NASCAR Driver’s for the first six months of the season tomorrow. I will also be looking at the year and make my predictions as to who may be the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Champion. I have to do it early, so no one can say I cheat. Oops. 2011. So far this year I am losing in the accuracy challenge. By a year. I was spot on last year…

Well, not quite. Only 97%.