THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
March 18th, 2012
Volume VI, Edition XLI
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Frontstretch at the Track: Hey Frontstretch readers! The Frontstretch has Amy Henderson on hand for Bristol's Cup show Sunday, so stay tuned to the website and Twitter (@TheFrontstretch and @Writer_Amy) for all you need to know as it happens at the bullring in Tennessee!
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Top News
by Amy Henderson
Sadler Wins A Not-So-Wild One At Bristol
Make it four-for-four by NASCAR Nationwide Series regulars this season, and make this latest trip to Victory Lane historic. Using the pit strategy that took him to his first NASCAR Sprint Cup victory at Bristol in 2001, Elliott Sadler stayed out on the final caution to win the Ford EcoBoost 300 by 1.159 seconds over Kasey Kahne. Brad Keselowski, polesitter Joey Logano, and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. rounded out the top 5.
Sadler's victory marks the first time since the series was established in 1982 that series regulars have won the first four races of the season. Regulars won the three of the first four races in 1995, but Kenny Wallace won the third race of the season at Richmond, after opening the season as a Cup regular, though on a limited schedule.
In the early laps of the race, Joey Logano took advantage of his pole position, jumping out to lead the first 66 laps before Kyle Busch took the point on lap 67. Busch led the next 40 circuits. The race was a clean one, with only four caution flags in the air. The first didn't come until lap 106, when Joey Gase slapped the turn 4 wall. Logano regained the race lead on the subsequent round of pit stops, and led another 53 laps before the caution flew for the second time on lap 167 when Sam Hornish, Jr. spun in turn 2. Logano gave up the race lead to Tennessee native and crowd favorite Trevor Bayne in the pits.
Bayne, who wasn't even entered in the race until earlier this week, held the point for the next 63 laps, through the third caution, which came out for a T..J Bell wreck coming off of turn 4. Bayne finally relinquished the lead on lap 223 after a heated battle with his Roush Fenway teammate, Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. after Bayne's No. 60 faded a bit. Bayne finished eighth.
Stenhouse held the point for the next 40 laps, but gave it up on the final round of pit stops under yellow when the fourth caution came out for Kyle Busch, who smacked the turn 4 wall. That's when Sadler made his move, staying out along with Kasey Kahne in a make-or-break strategy. And just like it did for in that 2001 Cup race, it made Sadler's day.
Kevin Harvick came out of the pits first on the final stop, and looked to have a shot at running down Sadler, but a speeding penalty moved Harvick to the end of the lead lap. Harvick was one of five drivers to be penalized for being too fast on pit road during the race. Stenhouse finished sixth, and Justin Allgaier, Bayne, Kevin Harvick, and Ryan Truex complete the top 10.
Sadler leaves Bristol with not only the trophy, but also with the points lead. Sadler leads the Nationwide Series standings by 25 points over Stenhouse. Bayne is just four behind Stenhouse, but still not assured of a full schedule due to sponsorship woes. Austin Dillon is just a single point behind Bayne in fourth, and Cole Whitt is another 11 points in arrears to Dillon, 41 behind Sadler. Hornish, Tayler Malsam, Michael Annett, Justin Allgaier, and Mike Bliss round out the top 10 in the standings.
For more on this race, check out Bryan Keith's Nationwide Series Breakdown below.
Piquet, Jr. Wins K&N Series Opener
The NASCAR K&N Pro Series East got the 2012 season underway on Saturday afternoon at Bristol with the Widow Wax 125. Nelson Piquet, Jr. took the pole and dominated in the early going. The yellow flag flew for Sam Hunt on lap 14, but the leaders did not pit, and Piquet got a great restart, holding off Hendrick Motorsports development driver Chase Elliott and Joe Gibbs Racing development driver Darrell Wallace, Jr., leaving Wallace to battle Kyle Larson for third.
The caution flew for the second time on lap 30 for a blown tire on the No. 8 of Jorje Arteaga. Because there was a 10-minute break planned after lap 70, the leaders stayed on track, lining Piquet and Elliott up on the front row for the restart. This time, Piquet did not get the jump he wanted, washing up the track and allowing Elliott to take over the point. Larson made short work of Wallace on the restart, taking over the third spot.
Elliott continued to lead under green until the third caution of the day came out for a spinning Candace Muzny. Elliott must have seen the race flash in front of him along with Muzny, who slid across the track just in front of the race leaders. The caution led into the break period, during which teams had seven minutes to work on their racecars before returning to the track.
Before Muzny's crash, it was Ryan Blaney on the move as Larson, who charged hard early on, faded. Blaney had moved into fourth position at the time of the crash.
When the break was over, the cars were lined up in their original positions from before the pause. Elliott held the lead on the restarts, but Blaney made the boldest move, passing both Wallace and Piquet to take over the second spot. With 50 laps to go, Blaney challenged Elliott for the lead, getting into the side of Elliott's No. 9 and sending it spinning. Elliott didn't hit anything in the spin, but the caution came out for the fourth time.
Corey Lajoie assumed the lead over Wallace and Piquet after the fracas. On the restart, Lajoie got a big jump, pulling away from Wallace and leaving him to battle with Ryan Gifford and Piquet for the second spot. Wallace was able to hang on as Gifford and Piquet waged a battle for third. With fewer than 4 laps remaining, Wallace made a move on Lajoie, but was forced to back off as his car got loose, and before he could mount another charge, the fifth caution of the day slowed the field as Brandon Gdovic and Eddie MacDonald tangled. Elliott and Daniel Suarez also got together in the aftermath, both sustaining significant damage.
The field restarted with 30 to go, and Piquet made a charge for the top spot, taking it three-wide with Wallace and Lajoie and finally regained the lead with 24 laps remaining, powering by Lajoie on the outside. The two made contact, which cut a tire on Lajoie's machine and sending him to pit road. From there, it was all Piquet. The driver of the No. 14 jumped out to a huge lead, leaving the field to decide second place. Caution No. 6 flew with seven laps remaining for a three-car incident among MacDonald, Dale Quarterly, and C.J. Faisson which spread debris across the track and set up a red flag and a dash finish, but Piquet would not be denied the victory. Blaney, Gifford, Andrew Smith, and Derek Ramstrom rounded out the top 5 finishers.
Have news for The Frontstretch? Don't hesitate to let us know; email us at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com with a promising lead or tip.
~~~~~~~~~~
ADVERTISEMENT
Are you looking to advertise your website, product or brand? A good way to get your name out there is via direct advertising here in the Frontstretch Newsletter! Interested parties can contact us at tony.lumbis@frontstretch.com for details.
~~~~~~~~~~
TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
Nationwide Series Breakdown: Ford EcoBoost 300
by Bryan Davis Keith
~~~~~~~~~~
This Weekend on the Frontstretch:
Nationwide Series Breakdown: Ford EcoBoost 300 by Bryan Davis Keith
Bryan has all the post-race analysis you need after Saturday afternoon's Nationwide Series race from Bristol.
~~~~~~~~~~
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: Rusty Wallace, for all of his skill behind the wheel at short tracks, had quite a bit of bad luck at Bristol in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In the Spring of 1988, Wallace hit the wall in Turn 4 and was pitched into a barrel roll. ESPN's Dr. Jerry Punch is infamously credited with saving Wallace's life that day since Wallace was apparently in the process of swallowing his tongue.
The 1990 Valleydale 500 is probably best known for the epic fight for the win, and Sterling Marlin flipping out after getting spun out on the last lap. However, Wallace also had a big incident in this race as well. What happened?
Check back Monday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Frontstretch Trivia Guarantee: Take the shirt off our backs! If we've provided an incorrect answer to the Frontstretch Trivia question, be the first to email the corrected trivia answer to trivia@frontstretch.com and we'll send you a Frontstretch T-Shirt ... FREE!
~~~~~~~~~~
Coming Monday in the Frontstretch Newsletter:
-- Food City 500 Race Recap by TBD
-- Secret Star and Stat of the Race by Tom Bowles
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
Monday on the Frontstretch:
Matt McLaughlin's Thinkin' Out Loud: Food City 500 by Matt McLaughlin
Matt will be here with his overall thoughts about the action from Sunday afternoon's action from Bristol.
Monday Morning Teardown by Ron Lemasters
Ron returns for a website look at one of the big stories from Sunday's race from Bristol.
Bowles-Eye View by Tom Bowles
Tom brings back his weekly post-race commentary with all of the insight you need from a weekend of racing at Bristol.
Big Six: Food City 500 by Amy Henderson
Looking for all you need to know leaving the fourth race of the season? Amy has your who, what, when, where, why and how from a weekend of racing at Bristol.
Pace Laps: Bristol Weekend by the Frontstretch Staff
In our newest column this season, we'll take a look at the biggest stories to keep an eye on in each series after a weekend at Bristol.
-----------------------------
Talk back to the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Got something to say about an article you've seen in the newsletter? It's as easy as replying directly to this message or sending an email to editors@frontstretch.com. We'll take the best comments and publish them here!
©2012 Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
March 18th, 2012
Volume VI, Edition XLI
~~~~~~~~~~
Frontstretch at the Track: Hey Frontstretch readers! The Frontstretch has Amy Henderson on hand for Bristol's Cup show Sunday, so stay tuned to the website and Twitter (@TheFrontstretch and @Writer_Amy) for all you need to know as it happens at the bullring in Tennessee!
~~~~~~~~~~
Top News
by Amy Henderson
Sadler Wins A Not-So-Wild One At Bristol
Make it four-for-four by NASCAR Nationwide Series regulars this season, and make this latest trip to Victory Lane historic. Using the pit strategy that took him to his first NASCAR Sprint Cup victory at Bristol in 2001, Elliott Sadler stayed out on the final caution to win the Ford EcoBoost 300 by 1.159 seconds over Kasey Kahne. Brad Keselowski, polesitter Joey Logano, and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. rounded out the top 5.
Sadler's victory marks the first time since the series was established in 1982 that series regulars have won the first four races of the season. Regulars won the three of the first four races in 1995, but Kenny Wallace won the third race of the season at Richmond, after opening the season as a Cup regular, though on a limited schedule.
In the early laps of the race, Joey Logano took advantage of his pole position, jumping out to lead the first 66 laps before Kyle Busch took the point on lap 67. Busch led the next 40 circuits. The race was a clean one, with only four caution flags in the air. The first didn't come until lap 106, when Joey Gase slapped the turn 4 wall. Logano regained the race lead on the subsequent round of pit stops, and led another 53 laps before the caution flew for the second time on lap 167 when Sam Hornish, Jr. spun in turn 2. Logano gave up the race lead to Tennessee native and crowd favorite Trevor Bayne in the pits.
Bayne, who wasn't even entered in the race until earlier this week, held the point for the next 63 laps, through the third caution, which came out for a T..J Bell wreck coming off of turn 4. Bayne finally relinquished the lead on lap 223 after a heated battle with his Roush Fenway teammate, Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. after Bayne's No. 60 faded a bit. Bayne finished eighth.
Stenhouse held the point for the next 40 laps, but gave it up on the final round of pit stops under yellow when the fourth caution came out for Kyle Busch, who smacked the turn 4 wall. That's when Sadler made his move, staying out along with Kasey Kahne in a make-or-break strategy. And just like it did for in that 2001 Cup race, it made Sadler's day.
Kevin Harvick came out of the pits first on the final stop, and looked to have a shot at running down Sadler, but a speeding penalty moved Harvick to the end of the lead lap. Harvick was one of five drivers to be penalized for being too fast on pit road during the race. Stenhouse finished sixth, and Justin Allgaier, Bayne, Kevin Harvick, and Ryan Truex complete the top 10.
Sadler leaves Bristol with not only the trophy, but also with the points lead. Sadler leads the Nationwide Series standings by 25 points over Stenhouse. Bayne is just four behind Stenhouse, but still not assured of a full schedule due to sponsorship woes. Austin Dillon is just a single point behind Bayne in fourth, and Cole Whitt is another 11 points in arrears to Dillon, 41 behind Sadler. Hornish, Tayler Malsam, Michael Annett, Justin Allgaier, and Mike Bliss round out the top 10 in the standings.
For more on this race, check out Bryan Keith's Nationwide Series Breakdown below.
Piquet, Jr. Wins K&N Series Opener
The NASCAR K&N Pro Series East got the 2012 season underway on Saturday afternoon at Bristol with the Widow Wax 125. Nelson Piquet, Jr. took the pole and dominated in the early going. The yellow flag flew for Sam Hunt on lap 14, but the leaders did not pit, and Piquet got a great restart, holding off Hendrick Motorsports development driver Chase Elliott and Joe Gibbs Racing development driver Darrell Wallace, Jr., leaving Wallace to battle Kyle Larson for third.
The caution flew for the second time on lap 30 for a blown tire on the No. 8 of Jorje Arteaga. Because there was a 10-minute break planned after lap 70, the leaders stayed on track, lining Piquet and Elliott up on the front row for the restart. This time, Piquet did not get the jump he wanted, washing up the track and allowing Elliott to take over the point. Larson made short work of Wallace on the restart, taking over the third spot.
Elliott continued to lead under green until the third caution of the day came out for a spinning Candace Muzny. Elliott must have seen the race flash in front of him along with Muzny, who slid across the track just in front of the race leaders. The caution led into the break period, during which teams had seven minutes to work on their racecars before returning to the track.
Before Muzny's crash, it was Ryan Blaney on the move as Larson, who charged hard early on, faded. Blaney had moved into fourth position at the time of the crash.
When the break was over, the cars were lined up in their original positions from before the pause. Elliott held the lead on the restarts, but Blaney made the boldest move, passing both Wallace and Piquet to take over the second spot. With 50 laps to go, Blaney challenged Elliott for the lead, getting into the side of Elliott's No. 9 and sending it spinning. Elliott didn't hit anything in the spin, but the caution came out for the fourth time.
Corey Lajoie assumed the lead over Wallace and Piquet after the fracas. On the restart, Lajoie got a big jump, pulling away from Wallace and leaving him to battle with Ryan Gifford and Piquet for the second spot. Wallace was able to hang on as Gifford and Piquet waged a battle for third. With fewer than 4 laps remaining, Wallace made a move on Lajoie, but was forced to back off as his car got loose, and before he could mount another charge, the fifth caution of the day slowed the field as Brandon Gdovic and Eddie MacDonald tangled. Elliott and Daniel Suarez also got together in the aftermath, both sustaining significant damage.
The field restarted with 30 to go, and Piquet made a charge for the top spot, taking it three-wide with Wallace and Lajoie and finally regained the lead with 24 laps remaining, powering by Lajoie on the outside. The two made contact, which cut a tire on Lajoie's machine and sending him to pit road. From there, it was all Piquet. The driver of the No. 14 jumped out to a huge lead, leaving the field to decide second place. Caution No. 6 flew with seven laps remaining for a three-car incident among MacDonald, Dale Quarterly, and C.J. Faisson which spread debris across the track and set up a red flag and a dash finish, but Piquet would not be denied the victory. Blaney, Gifford, Andrew Smith, and Derek Ramstrom rounded out the top 5 finishers.
Have news for The Frontstretch? Don't hesitate to let us know; email us at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com with a promising lead or tip.
~~~~~~~~~~
ADVERTISEMENT
Are you looking to advertise your website, product or brand? A good way to get your name out there is via direct advertising here in the Frontstretch Newsletter! Interested parties can contact us at tony.lumbis@frontstretch.com for details.
~~~~~~~~~~
TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
Nationwide Series Breakdown: Ford EcoBoost 300
by Bryan Davis Keith
~~~~~~~~~~
This Weekend on the Frontstretch:
Nationwide Series Breakdown: Ford EcoBoost 300 by Bryan Davis Keith
Bryan has all the post-race analysis you need after Saturday afternoon's Nationwide Series race from Bristol.
~~~~~~~~~~
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: Rusty Wallace, for all of his skill behind the wheel at short tracks, had quite a bit of bad luck at Bristol in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In the Spring of 1988, Wallace hit the wall in Turn 4 and was pitched into a barrel roll. ESPN's Dr. Jerry Punch is infamously credited with saving Wallace's life that day since Wallace was apparently in the process of swallowing his tongue.
The 1990 Valleydale 500 is probably best known for the epic fight for the win, and Sterling Marlin flipping out after getting spun out on the last lap. However, Wallace also had a big incident in this race as well. What happened?
Check back Monday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Frontstretch Trivia Guarantee: Take the shirt off our backs! If we've provided an incorrect answer to the Frontstretch Trivia question, be the first to email the corrected trivia answer to trivia@frontstretch.com and we'll send you a Frontstretch T-Shirt ... FREE!
~~~~~~~~~~
Coming Monday in the Frontstretch Newsletter:
-- Food City 500 Race Recap by TBD
-- Secret Star and Stat of the Race by Tom Bowles
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
Monday on the Frontstretch:
Matt McLaughlin's Thinkin' Out Loud: Food City 500 by Matt McLaughlin
Matt will be here with his overall thoughts about the action from Sunday afternoon's action from Bristol.
Monday Morning Teardown by Ron Lemasters
Ron returns for a website look at one of the big stories from Sunday's race from Bristol.
Bowles-Eye View by Tom Bowles
Tom brings back his weekly post-race commentary with all of the insight you need from a weekend of racing at Bristol.
Big Six: Food City 500 by Amy Henderson
Looking for all you need to know leaving the fourth race of the season? Amy has your who, what, when, where, why and how from a weekend of racing at Bristol.
Pace Laps: Bristol Weekend by the Frontstretch Staff
In our newest column this season, we'll take a look at the biggest stories to keep an eye on in each series after a weekend at Bristol.
-----------------------------
Talk back to the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Got something to say about an article you've seen in the newsletter? It's as easy as replying directly to this message or sending an email to editors@frontstretch.com. We'll take the best comments and publish them here!
©2012 Frontstretch.com
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