THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
March 19th, 2012
Volume V, Edition XLII
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ADVERTISEMENT
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~~~~~~~~~~~
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
March 19th, 2012
Volume V, Edition XLII
~~~~~~~~~~~
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 frontstretcheditors@googlegroups.com for details.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Sprint Cup Race Recap: Keselowski Uses the Low Line to Win at Bristol
by Phil Allaway
Ever since Bristol Motor Speedway's track surface was redone, the philosophical style of racing has changed. No longer do drivers simply bump and run all day to their hearts' content, causing a dozen or so wrecks along the way. However, one thing has not changed. In order to win, one must be able to run the low line and minimize wheelspin exiting the corners.
Brad Keselowski could do both of those relatively easy, becoming the key to a second straight victory at Bristol and a first for him in 2012.
"Today my team certainly delivered," Keselowski said. "My guys, they made it happen. I told somebody before the race, This is the best race car I've ever had in Cup. It showed off today. Hopefully we can have more cars like this and we'll win more races and continue to move the needle forward."
On Sunday, Keselowski started fifth and stayed up front all day. However, being near first place nearly got him wrapped up in the big crash of the day on Lap 24. Keselowski was right behind Kasey Kahne and Regan Smith when they collided on the frontstretch. The resulting wreck wrapped up Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Marcos Ambrose and Carl Edwards as well.
Keselowski chose to go with a fuel-only stop at Lap 42 during the first yellow to put himself near the head of the group that chose to pit. From there, the race was effectively an exercise in being able to control wheel spin on the bottom lane in the turns and making passes.
Making passes on-track was a lot more important on Sunday than in typical Bristol races because Sunday's event featured a series of long, green-flag runs. There were only 49 laps of caution during the race. 22 of those laps were during the first yellow very early in the event (due to overnight and morning rains, that yellow also served as a competition caution).
As a result, those would put themselves up front coming out of the competition caution stayed up front for much of the race. Outside polesitter A.J. Allmendinger chose to stay out under the caution to take the lead. He would be joined by Martin Truex, Jr., Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Brian Vickers, Jeff Burton and Jamie McMurray.
Allmendinger staked out to a decent advantage over the pack, while Vickers moved up quickly in his first start of the season. When Allmendinger encountered lapped traffic, Vickers, Earnhardt, Jr. and Burton caught up. Vickers' car was able to handle better on the inside, which allowed him to eventually take the lead.
After the second yellow, a long, 200-plus lap green flag segment started. During that time of the race, Keselowski came to life. He moved up the order at a methodical pace, picking drivers off one by one.
Keselowski passed Vickers for the lead on Lap 217 and was rarely challenged for most of the rest of the race. Matt Kenseth was able to take the lead on Lap 348 due to a bad lane choice on the restart by Keselowski. However, Keselowski stayed in touch with Kenseth and pounced on Lap 390 to take the lead back. From there, Keselowski was unchallenged on his way to his second consecutive win at Bristol.
Second-place finisher Kenseth was pleased with his finish, but felt that his car needed just that little bit more in order to take the fight to the No. 2 Dodge.
"Overall, I was pretty happy with my car," Kenseth said. "When we started that last run [and] got [in] the lead, air on the nose, we picked up a big piece of Bear Bond or something. I got too loose and knew I wasn't going to have enough traction more than likely to hold him off."
Michael Waltrip Racing had one of their best-ever races on Sunday, placing all three of their drivers in the top-5. Truex was third, followed by Clint Bowyer and Vickers.
Burton held on for sixth, while McMurray was seventh. Juan Pablo Montoya was eighth, while Jimmie Johnson had a quiet run to ninth. Paul Menard rounded out the top-10 in an event that saw a total of just five caution flags for 49 laps.
Next week, the Sprint Cup Series travels back out west to Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California for the Auto Club 400. Coverage is scheduled to start at 2:30pm EDT (11:30am PDT) on FOX.
OFFICIAL RESULTS: FOOD CITY 500
Phil Allaway is the Newsletter Manager and a Senior Writer for Frontstretch.com. He can be reached via e-mail at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com.
Tracking the Chase: Biffle Maintains The Advantage, MWR Jumps
by Phil Allaway
Bristol is usually a rough-and-tumble event that can heavily shake up the points. However, Sunday was more or less an exception to that rule. Not much has changed atop the standings. Points leader Greg Biffle was strong early, but faded to a 13th-place finish. Meanwhile, Kevin Harvick was caught up in the big crash and struggled towards the back of the lead lap all day. That meant he struggled to gain significantly on the No. 16 team, although Harvick managed to keep himself from being lapped and used pit strategy to finish two spots in front of Biffle.
Matt Kenseth's run to second allowed him to move up two places to third in the points, just 12 out of the lead. Michael Waltrip Racing's 3-4-5 on Sunday greatly benefited Martin Truex, Jr., who is up to fourth in the standings after a third-place result. Denny Hamlin dropped two positions after a tough afternoon that saw him run midpack, then get caught out in traffic due to a bad pit stop and finish two laps down in 20th.
Dale Earnhardt, Jr.'s day will be best remembered for the relatively minor contact that cut Jeff Gordon's left rear tire down and put the No. 24 out of the race. However, he was having a great run until he sped entering pit road on the final stop, dropping him to a 15th-place finish and into a tie for fifth in the standings with Hamlin (Hamlin wins the tiebreaker since he won Phoenix). For Tony Stewart, he managed to maintain seventh in points despite a late-race crash with Brendan Gaughan. Finishing 14th after that is just another sign that Stewart-Haas is still a force to be reckoned with.
Clint Bowyer was the big gainer of the week, moving up six places to a tie for eighth after finishing fourth on Sunday. That completely wipes out the nightmare which was Phoenix. Bowyer is tied with Joey Logano, who had a rather anonymous run to 16th, the first car off the lead lap. Paul Menard, after a tenth-place finish, now rounds out the top 10.
Jeff Burton is in the 11th position at the moment, while Brad Keselowski slips into a "wild card" slot after his Bristol victory. He's 13th in the standings.
Standings: 1) Greg Biffle 157, 2) Kevin Harvick -9, 3) Matt Kenseth -12, 4) Martin Truex, Jr. -18, t-5) Denny Hamlin -20, t-5) Dale Earnhardt, Jr. -20, 7) Tony Stewart -27, t-8) Clint Bowyer -31, t-8) Joey Logano -31, 10) Paul Menard -34, 11) Jeff Burton -37, 12) Ryan Newman -39.
Wild Cards: 1) Brad Keselowski (13th in points, one win), 2) Jeff Burton (11th in points)
Race Winners: Matt Kenseth (Daytona), Denny Hamlin (Phoenix), Tony Stewart (Las Vegas), Brad Keselowski (Bristol)
Tracking The Top 35: Kahne In Serious Trouble After Early Wreck
Even though Sunday didn't really cause huge negative swings at the top of the table (unless your name is Carl Edwards), some teams that really needed a good run just could not get one at Bristol. Most notable in this group is the No. 5 of Kasey Kahne. Kahne was racing for position with Regan Smith and eventual race winner Brad Keselowski when he had contact with Smith at the start-finish line. Kahne thought that he had cleared the hard-charging Smith (who was on the outside), but his spotter cleared him right into Smith's left-front corner. The contact turned Kahne into the outside wall, then Smith bumped Kahne again, spinning the Farmers Insurance Chevrolet out.
Kahne spun down to the apron, then came back up the track in the middle of Turn 1. Here, Carl Edwards, Kyle Busch, Marcos Ambrose, and Kevin Harvick piled in. All of the drivers eventually continued following repairs, but due to the low amount of attrition Sunday, everyone's days (except for Harvick's) were completely ruined. Kahne's 37th-place result dropped the No. 5 seven places in owners' points and places him just seven points in front of 36th.
On the bright side, a couple of teams in and around the danger zone helped their cases significantly on Sunday. After a series of issues in the first three races, Penske Racing's No. 22 entered Bristol 33rd in owner points. However, A.J. Allmendinger was very strong early on, leading 54 laps before the handling fell off a cliff. Allmendinger's 17th-place finish was still good enough to move up seven places to 26th and out of clear danger for now.
Another squad that finally made it through a race without issues was the No. 10 that Tommy Baldwin Racing fielded for David Reutimann. Carrying Tradebank sponsorship on Sunday, Reutimann spent much of the early portions of the race inside the top 20. However, the long green flag runs made it hard to keep up. While teammate Dave Blaney ended up behind the wall due to a sway bar failure, Reutimann stayed out of trouble and wound up 21st, three laps down. However, that only moves the No. 10 up to 36th, four points behind the "bubble" position. Another good run in Fontana is required to lock the team into Martinsville.
Here's the Owner Point Standings in and around the 35th-place cutoff:
t-29) Front Row Motorsports (No. 34 - David Ragan), 16 points ahead of 36th.
t-29) Richard Childress Racing (No. 33 - Brendan Gaughan), 16 points ahead of 36th.
t-29) Front Row Motorsports (No. 38 - David Gilliland), 16 points ahead of 36th.
32) BK Racing (No. 93 - Travis Kvapil), 15 points ahead of 36th.
33) Germain Racing (No. 13 - Casey Mears), 10 points ahead of 36th.
34) Hendrick Motorsports (No. 5 - Kasey Kahne), 7 points ahead of 36th.
35) BK Racing (No. 83 - Landon Cassill), 4 points ahead of 36th).
36) Tommy Baldwin Racing/Stewart-Haas Racing (No. 10 - David Reutimann), 4 points behind 35th.
t-37) Wood Brothers Racing (No. 21 - Trevor Bayne), 10 points behind 35th.
t-37) Inception Motorsports (No. 30 - David Stremme), 10 points behind 35th.
39) Front Row Motorsports (No. 26 - Josh Wise), 18 points behind 35th.
Phil Allaway is the Newsletter Manager and a Senior Writer for Frontstretch.com. He can be reached via e-mail at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com.
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Got NASCAR-related questions or comments?
Send them John Potts' way at john.potts@frontstretch.com; and if you're lucky, you'll get your name in print when he does his weekly column answering back to you – the fans that keep Frontstretch afloat. Potts' Shots will run on Thursdays with a whole new set of Fan Questions and Answers!
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Quotes To Remember From Bristol
"I knew we had a shot to win one, running like we were, and we finally closed the deal." - Brad Keselowski
"Proud of Chad (Johnston, crew chief) -- his call at the end. He called to stay out and stuck to his guns and never second-guessed himself. He's really coming into his own as a crew chief." - Martin Truex, Jr., 3rd place
"When it's your only one, you have to make it count. I can't take any of the credit. Wow, the guys -- I'm just proud to be a part of MWR (Michael Waltrip Racing) and get three cars in the top-five. What an exciting day. Rodney Childers (crew chief) bolted together my first go-kart 20 years ago and then he handed it off to my father to finish it off and then he just put together my last one and what a heck of a job. He called a great race and everyone did good." - Brian Vickers, 5th place
"Well, we were better all weekend than a 12th place finish. That's for sure. That's definitely not what we wanted today. Our Quicken Loans Chevy was fast off the truck; and we were strong all weekend. The guys worked hard all day. But we just could never adjust on it; we were too tight." - Ryan Newman, 12th place
"I got busted for speeding on pit road. I really hate that happened. I don't think I was; but I don't (think) any driver ever thinks he was speeding. Congratulations to Brad (Keselowski, race winner); he drove a great race. We had a good, fast car. We didn't have a good car here last year. We're improving. Things are looking up for our team, and we've been running strong this year. I expect more of it. (If) We put cars like we did today on the race track; we'll get some shots at some wins." - Dale Earnhardt, Jr., 15th place
"I absolutely feel responsible. I got into his door a little bit. We were racing and having a good time, to be honest with you. I put the pipes up against the left rear tire of his car, and knocked the side wall out of it. I hate...I feel bad about that. I'm going to have to do some damage control this week. I know Jeff understands what was going on out there, but his boys work real hard on their car, and they had a good run going. They had a potential win, or good finish going too; and they deserve it." - Earnhardt on his contact with Jeff Gordon
"I think we bumped more than we should have is the way it looks like. We definitely didn't hit in the right location, because I think the tailpipe or something just cut the left-rear (tire) immediately. We didn't hit that hard. We were a little bit too tight and he was pretty good on the restart there and we were racing hard. I know that it wasn't intentional, but it certainly ruined our day. I hate it for Drive To End Hunger. I encourage everybody to text 'hunger' to 50555. I hate it for this race team. There were times we had the best car out there and I think we could have got back to that before this thing was over." - Gordon on that contact, ran 35th
"Everybody at Hendrick Motorsports is doing such an awesome job. I've had awesome race cars, and I have nothing to show for it." - Kasey Kahne after his early wreck
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Secret Star Of The Race: The Best Run You Never Saw
Jeff Burton's racing life has been the victim of some hard luck in recent years. But even during the worst of times, the veteran has been able to count on Thunder Valley to carry him through; in fact, he entered this weekend with six straight top-20 finishes at Bristol's half-mile oval. It's a love affair that continued straight through Sunday's 500 laps, the No. 31 Chevy quietly charging to a solid sixth-place finish that was best within the Richard Childress Racing trio. What Burton lacked in pizzazz, he certainly made up for in consistency: inside the top 5 through pit strategy, charging from 33rd starting spot by Lap 50 he was a fixture from about fourth to seventh the entire rest of the race.
Those numbers have to leave both driver and new crew chief Drew Blickensderfer smiling. At this time last year, Burton had yet to finish higher than 20th; in 2012? He's already earned two top-10 finishes, sits 11th in points and has led more laps – 31, then he did through the first four months of 2011. Not a bad turnaround for a 44-year-old vet who needed to show this season he still had a little something left. – Tom Bowles
STAT OF THE WEEK: 219. That's the highest consecutive number of green-flag laps the field ran at Bristol Sunday. From Laps 112 to 341, we stayed caution free in a segment that nearly lasted 50 percent of the race. How rare are these types of stretches at a wreck-filled short track like Thunder Valley? It's the longest such green-flag run since a 257-lap stretch at Bristol in March of 1996. That event, won by Jeff Gordon may have gone even longer under green without a roadblock in the form of Mother Nature: a passing shower left the flagman no choice but to throw the yellow.– Tom Bowles
by Phil Allaway
Ever since Bristol Motor Speedway's track surface was redone, the philosophical style of racing has changed. No longer do drivers simply bump and run all day to their hearts' content, causing a dozen or so wrecks along the way. However, one thing has not changed. In order to win, one must be able to run the low line and minimize wheelspin exiting the corners.
Brad Keselowski could do both of those relatively easy, becoming the key to a second straight victory at Bristol and a first for him in 2012.
"Today my team certainly delivered," Keselowski said. "My guys, they made it happen. I told somebody before the race, This is the best race car I've ever had in Cup. It showed off today. Hopefully we can have more cars like this and we'll win more races and continue to move the needle forward."
On Sunday, Keselowski started fifth and stayed up front all day. However, being near first place nearly got him wrapped up in the big crash of the day on Lap 24. Keselowski was right behind Kasey Kahne and Regan Smith when they collided on the frontstretch. The resulting wreck wrapped up Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Marcos Ambrose and Carl Edwards as well.
Keselowski chose to go with a fuel-only stop at Lap 42 during the first yellow to put himself near the head of the group that chose to pit. From there, the race was effectively an exercise in being able to control wheel spin on the bottom lane in the turns and making passes.
Making passes on-track was a lot more important on Sunday than in typical Bristol races because Sunday's event featured a series of long, green-flag runs. There were only 49 laps of caution during the race. 22 of those laps were during the first yellow very early in the event (due to overnight and morning rains, that yellow also served as a competition caution).
As a result, those would put themselves up front coming out of the competition caution stayed up front for much of the race. Outside polesitter A.J. Allmendinger chose to stay out under the caution to take the lead. He would be joined by Martin Truex, Jr., Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Brian Vickers, Jeff Burton and Jamie McMurray.
Allmendinger staked out to a decent advantage over the pack, while Vickers moved up quickly in his first start of the season. When Allmendinger encountered lapped traffic, Vickers, Earnhardt, Jr. and Burton caught up. Vickers' car was able to handle better on the inside, which allowed him to eventually take the lead.
After the second yellow, a long, 200-plus lap green flag segment started. During that time of the race, Keselowski came to life. He moved up the order at a methodical pace, picking drivers off one by one.
Keselowski passed Vickers for the lead on Lap 217 and was rarely challenged for most of the rest of the race. Matt Kenseth was able to take the lead on Lap 348 due to a bad lane choice on the restart by Keselowski. However, Keselowski stayed in touch with Kenseth and pounced on Lap 390 to take the lead back. From there, Keselowski was unchallenged on his way to his second consecutive win at Bristol.
Second-place finisher Kenseth was pleased with his finish, but felt that his car needed just that little bit more in order to take the fight to the No. 2 Dodge.
"Overall, I was pretty happy with my car," Kenseth said. "When we started that last run [and] got [in] the lead, air on the nose, we picked up a big piece of Bear Bond or something. I got too loose and knew I wasn't going to have enough traction more than likely to hold him off."
Michael Waltrip Racing had one of their best-ever races on Sunday, placing all three of their drivers in the top-5. Truex was third, followed by Clint Bowyer and Vickers.
Burton held on for sixth, while McMurray was seventh. Juan Pablo Montoya was eighth, while Jimmie Johnson had a quiet run to ninth. Paul Menard rounded out the top-10 in an event that saw a total of just five caution flags for 49 laps.
Next week, the Sprint Cup Series travels back out west to Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California for the Auto Club 400. Coverage is scheduled to start at 2:30pm EDT (11:30am PDT) on FOX.
OFFICIAL RESULTS: FOOD CITY 500
Phil Allaway is the Newsletter Manager and a Senior Writer for Frontstretch.com. He can be reached via e-mail at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com.
Tracking the Chase: Biffle Maintains The Advantage, MWR Jumps
by Phil Allaway
Bristol is usually a rough-and-tumble event that can heavily shake up the points. However, Sunday was more or less an exception to that rule. Not much has changed atop the standings. Points leader Greg Biffle was strong early, but faded to a 13th-place finish. Meanwhile, Kevin Harvick was caught up in the big crash and struggled towards the back of the lead lap all day. That meant he struggled to gain significantly on the No. 16 team, although Harvick managed to keep himself from being lapped and used pit strategy to finish two spots in front of Biffle.
Matt Kenseth's run to second allowed him to move up two places to third in the points, just 12 out of the lead. Michael Waltrip Racing's 3-4-5 on Sunday greatly benefited Martin Truex, Jr., who is up to fourth in the standings after a third-place result. Denny Hamlin dropped two positions after a tough afternoon that saw him run midpack, then get caught out in traffic due to a bad pit stop and finish two laps down in 20th.
Dale Earnhardt, Jr.'s day will be best remembered for the relatively minor contact that cut Jeff Gordon's left rear tire down and put the No. 24 out of the race. However, he was having a great run until he sped entering pit road on the final stop, dropping him to a 15th-place finish and into a tie for fifth in the standings with Hamlin (Hamlin wins the tiebreaker since he won Phoenix). For Tony Stewart, he managed to maintain seventh in points despite a late-race crash with Brendan Gaughan. Finishing 14th after that is just another sign that Stewart-Haas is still a force to be reckoned with.
Clint Bowyer was the big gainer of the week, moving up six places to a tie for eighth after finishing fourth on Sunday. That completely wipes out the nightmare which was Phoenix. Bowyer is tied with Joey Logano, who had a rather anonymous run to 16th, the first car off the lead lap. Paul Menard, after a tenth-place finish, now rounds out the top 10.
Jeff Burton is in the 11th position at the moment, while Brad Keselowski slips into a "wild card" slot after his Bristol victory. He's 13th in the standings.
Standings: 1) Greg Biffle 157, 2) Kevin Harvick -9, 3) Matt Kenseth -12, 4) Martin Truex, Jr. -18, t-5) Denny Hamlin -20, t-5) Dale Earnhardt, Jr. -20, 7) Tony Stewart -27, t-8) Clint Bowyer -31, t-8) Joey Logano -31, 10) Paul Menard -34, 11) Jeff Burton -37, 12) Ryan Newman -39.
Wild Cards: 1) Brad Keselowski (13th in points, one win), 2) Jeff Burton (11th in points)
Race Winners: Matt Kenseth (Daytona), Denny Hamlin (Phoenix), Tony Stewart (Las Vegas), Brad Keselowski (Bristol)
Tracking The Top 35: Kahne In Serious Trouble After Early Wreck
Even though Sunday didn't really cause huge negative swings at the top of the table (unless your name is Carl Edwards), some teams that really needed a good run just could not get one at Bristol. Most notable in this group is the No. 5 of Kasey Kahne. Kahne was racing for position with Regan Smith and eventual race winner Brad Keselowski when he had contact with Smith at the start-finish line. Kahne thought that he had cleared the hard-charging Smith (who was on the outside), but his spotter cleared him right into Smith's left-front corner. The contact turned Kahne into the outside wall, then Smith bumped Kahne again, spinning the Farmers Insurance Chevrolet out.
Kahne spun down to the apron, then came back up the track in the middle of Turn 1. Here, Carl Edwards, Kyle Busch, Marcos Ambrose, and Kevin Harvick piled in. All of the drivers eventually continued following repairs, but due to the low amount of attrition Sunday, everyone's days (except for Harvick's) were completely ruined. Kahne's 37th-place result dropped the No. 5 seven places in owners' points and places him just seven points in front of 36th.
On the bright side, a couple of teams in and around the danger zone helped their cases significantly on Sunday. After a series of issues in the first three races, Penske Racing's No. 22 entered Bristol 33rd in owner points. However, A.J. Allmendinger was very strong early on, leading 54 laps before the handling fell off a cliff. Allmendinger's 17th-place finish was still good enough to move up seven places to 26th and out of clear danger for now.
Another squad that finally made it through a race without issues was the No. 10 that Tommy Baldwin Racing fielded for David Reutimann. Carrying Tradebank sponsorship on Sunday, Reutimann spent much of the early portions of the race inside the top 20. However, the long green flag runs made it hard to keep up. While teammate Dave Blaney ended up behind the wall due to a sway bar failure, Reutimann stayed out of trouble and wound up 21st, three laps down. However, that only moves the No. 10 up to 36th, four points behind the "bubble" position. Another good run in Fontana is required to lock the team into Martinsville.
Here's the Owner Point Standings in and around the 35th-place cutoff:
t-29) Front Row Motorsports (No. 34 - David Ragan), 16 points ahead of 36th.
t-29) Richard Childress Racing (No. 33 - Brendan Gaughan), 16 points ahead of 36th.
t-29) Front Row Motorsports (No. 38 - David Gilliland), 16 points ahead of 36th.
32) BK Racing (No. 93 - Travis Kvapil), 15 points ahead of 36th.
33) Germain Racing (No. 13 - Casey Mears), 10 points ahead of 36th.
34) Hendrick Motorsports (No. 5 - Kasey Kahne), 7 points ahead of 36th.
35) BK Racing (No. 83 - Landon Cassill), 4 points ahead of 36th).
36) Tommy Baldwin Racing/Stewart-Haas Racing (No. 10 - David Reutimann), 4 points behind 35th.
t-37) Wood Brothers Racing (No. 21 - Trevor Bayne), 10 points behind 35th.
t-37) Inception Motorsports (No. 30 - David Stremme), 10 points behind 35th.
39) Front Row Motorsports (No. 26 - Josh Wise), 18 points behind 35th.
Phil Allaway is the Newsletter Manager and a Senior Writer for Frontstretch.com. He can be reached via e-mail at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com.
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Got NASCAR-related questions or comments?
Send them John Potts' way at john.potts@frontstretch.com; and if you're lucky, you'll get your name in print when he does his weekly column answering back to you – the fans that keep Frontstretch afloat. Potts' Shots will run on Thursdays with a whole new set of Fan Questions and Answers!
~~~~~~~~~~
Quotes To Remember From Bristol
"I knew we had a shot to win one, running like we were, and we finally closed the deal." - Brad Keselowski
"Proud of Chad (Johnston, crew chief) -- his call at the end. He called to stay out and stuck to his guns and never second-guessed himself. He's really coming into his own as a crew chief." - Martin Truex, Jr., 3rd place
"When it's your only one, you have to make it count. I can't take any of the credit. Wow, the guys -- I'm just proud to be a part of MWR (Michael Waltrip Racing) and get three cars in the top-five. What an exciting day. Rodney Childers (crew chief) bolted together my first go-kart 20 years ago and then he handed it off to my father to finish it off and then he just put together my last one and what a heck of a job. He called a great race and everyone did good." - Brian Vickers, 5th place
"Well, we were better all weekend than a 12th place finish. That's for sure. That's definitely not what we wanted today. Our Quicken Loans Chevy was fast off the truck; and we were strong all weekend. The guys worked hard all day. But we just could never adjust on it; we were too tight." - Ryan Newman, 12th place
"I got busted for speeding on pit road. I really hate that happened. I don't think I was; but I don't (think) any driver ever thinks he was speeding. Congratulations to Brad (Keselowski, race winner); he drove a great race. We had a good, fast car. We didn't have a good car here last year. We're improving. Things are looking up for our team, and we've been running strong this year. I expect more of it. (If) We put cars like we did today on the race track; we'll get some shots at some wins." - Dale Earnhardt, Jr., 15th place
"I absolutely feel responsible. I got into his door a little bit. We were racing and having a good time, to be honest with you. I put the pipes up against the left rear tire of his car, and knocked the side wall out of it. I hate...I feel bad about that. I'm going to have to do some damage control this week. I know Jeff understands what was going on out there, but his boys work real hard on their car, and they had a good run going. They had a potential win, or good finish going too; and they deserve it." - Earnhardt on his contact with Jeff Gordon
"I think we bumped more than we should have is the way it looks like. We definitely didn't hit in the right location, because I think the tailpipe or something just cut the left-rear (tire) immediately. We didn't hit that hard. We were a little bit too tight and he was pretty good on the restart there and we were racing hard. I know that it wasn't intentional, but it certainly ruined our day. I hate it for Drive To End Hunger. I encourage everybody to text 'hunger' to 50555. I hate it for this race team. There were times we had the best car out there and I think we could have got back to that before this thing was over." - Gordon on that contact, ran 35th
"Everybody at Hendrick Motorsports is doing such an awesome job. I've had awesome race cars, and I have nothing to show for it." - Kasey Kahne after his early wreck
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Secret Star Of The Race: The Best Run You Never Saw
Jeff Burton's racing life has been the victim of some hard luck in recent years. But even during the worst of times, the veteran has been able to count on Thunder Valley to carry him through; in fact, he entered this weekend with six straight top-20 finishes at Bristol's half-mile oval. It's a love affair that continued straight through Sunday's 500 laps, the No. 31 Chevy quietly charging to a solid sixth-place finish that was best within the Richard Childress Racing trio. What Burton lacked in pizzazz, he certainly made up for in consistency: inside the top 5 through pit strategy, charging from 33rd starting spot by Lap 50 he was a fixture from about fourth to seventh the entire rest of the race.
Those numbers have to leave both driver and new crew chief Drew Blickensderfer smiling. At this time last year, Burton had yet to finish higher than 20th; in 2012? He's already earned two top-10 finishes, sits 11th in points and has led more laps – 31, then he did through the first four months of 2011. Not a bad turnaround for a 44-year-old vet who needed to show this season he still had a little something left. – Tom Bowles
STAT OF THE WEEK: 219. That's the highest consecutive number of green-flag laps the field ran at Bristol Sunday. From Laps 112 to 341, we stayed caution free in a segment that nearly lasted 50 percent of the race. How rare are these types of stretches at a wreck-filled short track like Thunder Valley? It's the longest such green-flag run since a 257-lap stretch at Bristol in March of 1996. That event, won by Jeff Gordon may have gone even longer under green without a roadblock in the form of Mother Nature: a passing shower left the flagman no choice but to throw the yellow.– Tom Bowles
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TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
Matt McLaughlin's Thinkin' Out Loud: Bristol Race Recap
by Matt McLaughlin
The Big Six: Questions Answered After the Food City 500
by Amy Henderson
The Day Dale Jr. Rediscovered His Swagger
by Ron Lemasters
Pace Laps Week 5: Kahne Un-Able, Wheldon's Lasting Legacy And Casey On The Bench?
by the Frontstretch Staff
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: Prior to the construction of Auto Club Speedway, the last oval venue used for Cup races in Southern California was Ontario Motor Speedway, a 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway inexact copy located less than five miles from where ACS is today. The track was a true multi-purpose facility, composed of that 2.5-mile rectangle and an infield road course. However, the venue had another use. What was it?
Q: Prior to the construction of Auto Club Speedway, the last oval venue used for Cup races in Southern California was Ontario Motor Speedway, a 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway inexact copy located less than five miles from where ACS is today. The track was a true multi-purpose facility, composed of that 2.5-mile rectangle and an infield road course. However, the venue had another use. What was it?
Check back Tuesday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Friday's Answer:
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?
A: Wallace appeared to blow a right front tire in Turn 4. This pitched Wallace hard into the wall. It's unclear from the one replay available, but it looks like Wallace's No. 27 climbed up the wall and got airborne before coming down on all fours, quite similarly to Wallace's 1988 practice crash. However, Wallace walked away from this incident, although his Pontiac was junk and done for the day. The crash be seen in this clip.
Coming Tomorrow in the Frontstretch Newsletter:
-- Top News from Kevin Rutherford
-- Sitting In the Stands: A Fan's View by S.D. Grady
This week's topic: The Making of an American Hero
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
Coming Tomorrow On The Frontstretch:
Who's Hot / Who's Not in Sprint Cup by StarCoach Race Tours: Bristol-Fontana Edition by Brett Poirier
With four races in the books, Brett looks at what trends are developing in NASCAR's two top series and which drivers are sizzling hot to start the season... while others are still stuck as if it never began.
Five Points To Ponder by Bryan Davis Keith
Bryan is back with his weekly edition of talking points to tie up the Bristol weekend and get us set for Fontana.
Couch Potato Tuesday by Phil Allaway
This past weekend, the Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series traveled back east for their first short track outings of the year at Bristol Motor Speedway. Were the race telecasts for these events up to snuff? Find out in this week's edition of the TV Critique.
This year, we have an interesting new weekly feature for our readers where we'll have a special guest stop by on a weekly basis to discuss the technical aspects of our sport. Find out who and what by checking out this column tomorrow.
5th Column TBD
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