THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
March 5th, 2012
Volume V, Edition XXXI
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Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
March 5th, 2012
Volume V, Edition XXXI
~~~~~~~~~~~
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: Phoenix not a Daytona Downer for Denny
by Jeff Wolfe
After all the excitement and suspense involved in NASCAR's season-opening Daytona 500 last week, many might consider the Sprint Cup season's second race a bit of downer. After all, there were no lead changes in the final 52 laps.
by Jeff Wolfe
After all the excitement and suspense involved in NASCAR's season-opening Daytona 500 last week, many might consider the Sprint Cup season's second race a bit of downer. After all, there were no lead changes in the final 52 laps.
Try telling that to Denny Hamlin and Darian Grubb.
The duo, in just their second race together stunk up the show late, winning on a combination of speed and fuel mileage to coast to victory in the 312-lap race at Phoenix International Raceway. Of course, Hamlin certainly knows what it's like to leave Phoenix on a bit of down note, having essentially lost the Chase for the Championship at the track with a late-race pit strategy mistake in the fall of 2010 and not having a top-10 finish at PIR in his last four races there. When the weekend started, the driver actually thought he might be in for more frustration out in the desert.
"I mean, for me, I don't know where this came from," he said of what amounted to a late-race surge: he closed by leading 59 consecutive laps, holding off a hard-charging Kevin Harvick before the No. 29 car ran out of gas. "I don't know how our car was as good as it was today. We were solidly off in practice. We were off, but we kept getting it better and closer to being competitive. But, I had no idea we were going to fire off like we did today. "You know, it just seemed like we kept improving our car, and I think the turning point for us was that green flag pit stop. Whatever he (Grubb) did to the car at that point was just lights-out after that."
Hamlin's last green flag pit stop came on lap 188, after he had taken the lead as the pit stops cycled through. He stayed in the top-5 after those adjustments and held station until a debris caution with 59 laps remaining. It was on that restart where Brad Keselowski had the inside line and tried to pull away to take the lead, but he appeared to enter the third turn a little hard, and slid up the track, leaving an open door that Hamlin gladly drove through. The No. 11 Toyota had clean air - and clear sailing - after that.
"If you asked me at the beginning of today, I say we would have taken a top-15 finish," he said. "This is huge momentum for us. I've never been in this position this early in the season. This is particularly not my type of track."
While former Stewart-Haas crew chief Grubb celebrated in Victory Lane, it was a 1-2 punch to the gut down the stretch for his former employer. Ryan Newman and Carl Edwards tangled on Lap 257, causing the final caution and forcing Newman to get extensive repairs to continue on. He eventually finished two laps down in 21st after running in the top-10 most of the day. On the previous caution, Newman's owner and teammate Tony Stewart also had bad fortune. With several drivers being close on fuel, Stewart decided to shut the car off to save gas, a common practice in such situations in NASCAR. However, when the reigning champ went to start it back up, he was out of luck.
"I just shut the car off like I did at Daytona and I don't know why it didn't refire," said Stewart, who eventually got restarted and finished two laps down in 22nd. "I just turned the switch back on and it never refired. It definitely cost us a good day."
It appeared to be an electrical problem with the new fuel injection system that cost Stewart. Several others also ended the race with their own issues, simply running out of gas as they chose track position over pitting during the final few yellow flags. That list included a fast-closing Kevin Harvick, who appeared to be in a good situation at one point to challenge Hamlin for the win - he gradually closed the gap and reached Hamlin's bumper with two laps to go. But, that's as far as the veteran got. He ran out heading to the white flag lap, although he still had enough of a cushion to beat third-place finisher Greg Biffle to the line.
The duo, in just their second race together stunk up the show late, winning on a combination of speed and fuel mileage to coast to victory in the 312-lap race at Phoenix International Raceway. Of course, Hamlin certainly knows what it's like to leave Phoenix on a bit of down note, having essentially lost the Chase for the Championship at the track with a late-race pit strategy mistake in the fall of 2010 and not having a top-10 finish at PIR in his last four races there. When the weekend started, the driver actually thought he might be in for more frustration out in the desert.
"I mean, for me, I don't know where this came from," he said of what amounted to a late-race surge: he closed by leading 59 consecutive laps, holding off a hard-charging Kevin Harvick before the No. 29 car ran out of gas. "I don't know how our car was as good as it was today. We were solidly off in practice. We were off, but we kept getting it better and closer to being competitive. But, I had no idea we were going to fire off like we did today. "You know, it just seemed like we kept improving our car, and I think the turning point for us was that green flag pit stop. Whatever he (Grubb) did to the car at that point was just lights-out after that."
Hamlin's last green flag pit stop came on lap 188, after he had taken the lead as the pit stops cycled through. He stayed in the top-5 after those adjustments and held station until a debris caution with 59 laps remaining. It was on that restart where Brad Keselowski had the inside line and tried to pull away to take the lead, but he appeared to enter the third turn a little hard, and slid up the track, leaving an open door that Hamlin gladly drove through. The No. 11 Toyota had clean air - and clear sailing - after that.
"If you asked me at the beginning of today, I say we would have taken a top-15 finish," he said. "This is huge momentum for us. I've never been in this position this early in the season. This is particularly not my type of track."
While former Stewart-Haas crew chief Grubb celebrated in Victory Lane, it was a 1-2 punch to the gut down the stretch for his former employer. Ryan Newman and Carl Edwards tangled on Lap 257, causing the final caution and forcing Newman to get extensive repairs to continue on. He eventually finished two laps down in 21st after running in the top-10 most of the day. On the previous caution, Newman's owner and teammate Tony Stewart also had bad fortune. With several drivers being close on fuel, Stewart decided to shut the car off to save gas, a common practice in such situations in NASCAR. However, when the reigning champ went to start it back up, he was out of luck.
"I just shut the car off like I did at Daytona and I don't know why it didn't refire," said Stewart, who eventually got restarted and finished two laps down in 22nd. "I just turned the switch back on and it never refired. It definitely cost us a good day."
It appeared to be an electrical problem with the new fuel injection system that cost Stewart. Several others also ended the race with their own issues, simply running out of gas as they chose track position over pitting during the final few yellow flags. That list included a fast-closing Kevin Harvick, who appeared to be in a good situation at one point to challenge Hamlin for the win - he gradually closed the gap and reached Hamlin's bumper with two laps to go. But, that's as far as the veteran got. He ran out heading to the white flag lap, although he still had enough of a cushion to beat third-place finisher Greg Biffle to the line.
"Yeah, when you come out of a caution and they tell you you're nine laps short, you really don't think there's any possibility to make it," Harvick said. "But, a couple cautions and a little bit of saving and a little bit tighter crunch on the numbers, we wound up about a lap short."
"But those are the types of things you've got to do to take the chances to win a championship, and when you're close enough to at least coast around, they did a good job."
Part of the job for fourth-place finisher Jimmie Johnson was to try and get back into the positive side of the point standings, something it looked like he'd do in grand fashion early on after leading 55 laps. But a pit road miscue for bad lugnut studs dropped him to 24th in the middle of the race, ending any hopes of an upset just days after a 25-point penalty left him with -23 heading into the weekend. Fighting back for a fourth-place finish, that plus the bonus point for leading a lap gave him a 41-point day at Phoenix, giving him 18 total. That's good for 38th in the standings, but 71 behind new leader Hamlin.
"We were definitely concerned about fuel," said Johnson, who refrained from criticizing his crew for their mistake. "We just tried to make sure we got some points today."
Brad Keselowski, who overdrove Turn 3 while trying to hold off Hamlin, rounded out the top 5. Kyle Busch, who was in contention for the win prior to the final stops, finished sixth. Martin Truex, Jr. was seventh, followed by Jeff Gordon and Mark Martin. Joey Logano rounded out the top 10.
But the Sunday story was clearly Hamlin, who now has started the season with two top-5 finishes after struggling to get any during the first month since 2010. When questioned about the fiery beginning, he immediately credited Grubb, who led Stewart to the title in a late season rally last year, for injecting some life into the No. 11 team after a disappointing 2011 season. So would the head wrench stick it to his former boss in Victory Lane?
Nope... he simply let Stewart's "sticky" EFI situation stand on its own merits.
"I guess you could say it is a little bit of vindication, but I really don't think that way," Grubb said. "I try to just think the high road all the time. I feel like I came into a very good situation."
Jeff Wolfe is a New Contributor for Frontstretch.com. He can be reached via e-mail at jeff.wolfe@frontstretch.com.
Tracking the Chase: Phoenix Brings Wild Swings in Points
by Jeff Wolfe
Here's a look at the winners and losers, early on when it comes to making the top-12 cutoff to reach NASCAR's Chase for the Sprint Cup in the final ten races of the season. Remember, the 11th and 12th positions will go to the drivers with the most wins who are inside the top-20 in points.
The big gainers: Brad Keselowski picked up 17 spots to move up to 12th, benefiting from a strong top-5 run. One spot ahead lies Bobby Labonte, sitting there in 11th after gaining three spots Sunday through a solid, consistent 16th-place performance.
False positive: Mark Martin is sitting in seventh, but isn't scheduled to run all the races this season. The first race he'll sit out will be Bristol on March 18th.
Biggest losers: After rough days at Phoenix, Jeff Burton and Paul Menard each dropped eight spots to 13th and 14th, respectively. Also, Stewart-Haas teammates Tony Stewart and Ryan Newman were looking at top-10 finishes, only to be slowed by mechanical issues and an accident, putting Stewart in 22nd and Newman in 21st at Phoenix. That erased what could have been a big gain for them: Stewart is tied for 12th in points while Newman is 18th.
Top-12 Standings: 1) Denny Hamlin 89, 2) Greg Biffle -6, 3) Kevin Harvick -8, 4) Matt Kenseth -10, 5) Dale Earnhardt, Jr. -17, t-6) Martin Truex, Jr. -18, t-6) Mark Martin -18, 8) Joey Logano -19, 9) Kyle Busch -23, 10) Carl Edwards -26, 11) Bobby Labonte -31, t-12) Brad Keselowski -37, t-12) Jeff Burton -37, t-12) Paul Menard -37, t-12) Tony Stewart -37.
Race winners: Matt Kenseth (Daytona), Denny Hamlin (Phoenix).
Tracking The Top 35: Some Surprising Drivers are at Risk
35 starting spots, through owner points are always guaranteed in Sprint Cup; but remember, for the first five races of 2012 it's the top-35 in 2011 points who are locked into the first five races this season. After that, the 2012 point standings take over. Keep that in mind as we discuss the current top 35 battle below...
Where's Jimmie: After the crippling 25-point penalty from Daytona, Jimmie Johnson's No. 48 is back up to 38th in the standings after a fourth-place finish Sunday. He's got 18 points, just three behind 35th-place David Ragan.
Close for Kasey and Casey: Kasey Kahne is in 33rd in owner points and Casey Mears 34th, just four and three points ahead of the cutline. Both have experienced hard crashes so far this season, each wrecking out at Phoenix and spending extensive time behind the wall.
What's he doing back here? Speaking of McMurray, his No. 1 car tied with Ragan for 36th in owner points after finishing 37th Sunday at Phoenix. Surely, this won't last but if current points were being used in Las Vegas, both drivers would have to qualify on speed.
31) BK Racing (No. 83 - Landon Cassill), +10 points ahead of 36th.
32) Roush Fenway Racing (No. 6 - Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.), +6 points ahead of 36th.*
33) Hendrick Motorsports (No. 5 - Kasey Kahne), +4 points ahead of 36th.
34) Germain Racing (No. 13 - Casey Mears), +3 points ahead of 36th.
35) Inception Motorsports (No. 30 - David Stremee), +1 point ahead of 36th.
t-36) Front Row Motorsports (No. 34 - David Ragan),-1 point behind 35th.
t-36) Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing (No. 1 - Jamie McMurray), -1 point behind 35th.
38) NEMCO Motorsports (No. 87 - Joe Nemechek), -2 points behind 35th.
t-39) Hendrick Motorsports (No. 48 - Jimmie Johnson), -4 points behind 35th.
t-39) Robinson-Blakeney Motorsports (No. 49 - J.J. Yeley), -4 points behind 35th.
*- Editor's Note: The entry listed for Roush Fenway Racing's No. 6 is actually the No. 32 entry that Terry Labonte finished 18th with in the Daytona 500. The Nos. 6 and 32 teams traded owners' points last week. Of course, Terry Labonte on the driver's side sits 28th in points... but that won't last, either.
Jeff Wolfe is a Contributor for Frontstretch.com. He can be reached via e-mail at jeff.wolfe@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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Secret Star of the Race: The Run You Never Saw
His run was as quiet as last week's jet dryer fire was explosive. But for Juan Pablo Montoya, an 11th-place, lead-lap finish was just what the doctor ordered to return to normalcy after a Daytona disaster to forget. Number one: no cleanup vehicles were harmed in the making of this B+ performance. Number two: leaving in one piece at a repaved short track, especially with Montoya's "uptempo" driving style can be harder than it looks.
"11th wasn't what we were hoping for," said crew chief Chris Heroy. "But for what we had to overcome, we'll go on to the next."
That list of problems included falling a lap down at one point, then encountering pit road snafus that left the Target Chevrolet fighting through traffic. Jeff Gordon was also unhappy enough with Montoya's aggression to complain on the radio; once again, the Colombian didn't specialize in making friends while fighting through the pack. But it's the feelings within the driver's Earnhardt Ganassi organization that matter most; and considering the rough start, combined with teammate Jamie McMurray's rocky road (see below) new head wrench Heroy and company are happy to see some chemistry building inside the No. 42 camp.
"Juan is totally engaged and on the right page," he said. "Even during the race, when we had problems on pit road or things like that; our guys enjoy the challenge of recovering and atoning for what happened. The attitude and the dedication of the team are perfect right now. We look forward to better things."
For now, they're simply looking forward to losing their 15 minutes of "explosive fame" after this solid run and heading to Vegas focused on the competition – not on what happened during one untimely caution. – Tom Bowles
STAT OF THE WEEK: 7. That's the number of DNFs for Jamie McMurray since the start of the 2011 season – a span of 38 races. During that same timeframe, he's accumulated just four top-10 finishes, turning his No. 1 Earnhardt Ganassi future from "untouchable" to "uncertain" following what was a stirring 2010 return to the organization. A Daytona 500 victory, however long ago will always buy you some breathing room (see: Derrike Cope). But unless the luck changes soon, for McMurray those mulligans are quickly running out. – Tom Bowles
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Sunday Quotes To Remember
compiled by the Frontstretch Staff
Here's what some of your favorites were saying after the Subway Fresh Fit 500K:
"…You know, and it seems like throughout my career, whenever we lock onto one racetrack and we win, we win multiple times there. Obviously this [track hosting] the second to the last race of the season, hopefully it's a sign of things to come later." – Denny Hamlin, race winner on avenging his November, 2010 Phoenix demons that arguably cost him the championship vs. Jimmie Johnson
"I guess you could say it is a little bit of vindication, but I really don't think that way. I try to just take the high road all the time." – crew chief Darian Grubb, on winning two races after being fired from Tony Stewart's championship team
"They told me were nine laps short when we came back out and the cautions got us to within five, and we were able to save a little and they figured it a little bit close on those numbers. But I'm so proud of these guys. When you figure fuel mileage like that, that's the chances and the things you've got to do to race for championships. I know we didn't win the race today but we came here and struggled here last year at this particular race. And to come here and race for a win and make a total 180 was great." – Kevin Harvick, ran second
"I wish I wouldn't have tried to save so much gas. I probably would have caught the 29, but you just never know how much gas you've got." – Greg Biffle, ran third
"There is going to be growing pains with this system. It hasn't even been hot yet. Wait til it gets hot like at Indy and some of these other places. We don't know how much heat these things can handle and that may be an issue at some point." – Greg Biffle on EFI
"We'll take it. I'm not really satisfied. I really felt like we had a car to win the race with. Unfortunately, things didn't work out." – Jimmie Johnson, ran fourth
"We need to maybe get a little better tire; not a better tire, but just a different tire that would fire off a little bit earlier and let us move around sooner because it takes five or six laps before we can really have confidence in the set-up of the car and lean on it and move around." – Jimmie Johnson on Goodyear's tire for the race
"I really am going to beg Goodyear to try and see if they can change this tire. I think the track has come in pretty good where they can really start investing sometime in the next step is on tire because this one is unpredictable, it's inconsistent. It doesn't allow us to really race the way that this race track right now is truly capable of." – Jeff Gordon, finished eighth
"I'm 99 percent sure Carl Edwards didn't do that on purpose, but I trusted him. Now he can't trust me because there is a lot to be had and lost, we lost a lot today. I don't know how much he lost, but that's not the point. I don't consider that a deliberate move by any means. We know plenty of times in this sport, what comes around goes around." – Ryan Newman, finished 21st on his wreck with Edwards late in the race
"I mean, I just shut the car off like we did at Daytona and turned it back on and it never re-fired. That's all I can tell you. I don't know why it didn't re-fire. I honestly don't know. It's not really my department." – Tony Stewart, finished 22nd on his late-race misfortune
"We blew up. We are here trying to run for wins and run for championships and to trip over ourselves like that, it just isn't going to get it done." – Marcos Ambrose, finished 32nd
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TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
Matt McLaughlin's Thinkin' Out Loud: Phoenix-1 Race Recap
by Matt McLaughlin
The Big Six: Questions Answered After the Subway Fresh Fit 500k
by Amy Henderson
Grubb Working Magic Already at JGR
by Ron Lemasters
Pace Laps Week 3: Dodging A Future In Phoenix, Barrichello to IndyCar & More
by the Frontstretch Staff
by Tom Bowles
by Bryan Keith
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: In 2007, Downtown Las Vegas played host to what turned out to be a one-off street race that served as the season opener for the ChampCar World Series. However, a modification to the track had to be made before the race. What was this, and why?
Q: In 2007, Downtown Las Vegas played host to what turned out to be a one-off street race that served as the season opener for the ChampCar World Series. However, a modification to the track had to be made before the race. What was this, and why?
Check back Tuesday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Friday's Answer:
Q: Especially prior to the CART / IRL war, Phoenix International Raceway was a great place for open-wheel racing. In the early 1980s, CART held two 150-mile races a year on the desert tri-oval. In the Miller High Life 150 in the fall of 1982, the leaders (Rick Mears, Mario Andretti, Gordon Johncock and Tom Sneva) were racing each other hard for position early in the race. However, one false move and out went Johncock. What happened?
A: Lapped traffic always plays a role in oval races. A 150-mile CART race in Phoenix is no different. At that time, the field was a healthy mix of vehicles powered by turbocharged engines and those powered by "stock block" V8 engines. On Lap 15, the leaders approached the slower stock block Chevrolet-powered No. 66 of Pete Halsmer. Mears and Andretti, still battling for the lead, attempted to split Halsmer. Mears got by, but Andretti got trapped on the outside. Meanwhile, Johncock tried to get on the inside of Halsmer. Unfortunately, three-wide didn't work at Phoenix back then. Johncock hit the apron, got loose and hit Halsmer. Both cars then went into the wall and out of the race. In Halsmer's case, his car rode up the Armco barrier and nearly exited the track. Both drivers were ok, but not very happy over the crash. The incident can be seen here. Paul Page has the call for NBC.
Coming Tomorrow in the Frontstretch Newsletter:
-- Top News from Kevin Rutherford
-- Sitting In the Stands: A Fan's View by S.D. Grady
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
Coming Tomorrow On The Frontstretch:
The Yellow Stripe by Danny Peters
Danny returns to his normal day looking ahead to Las Vegas with another thoughtful commentary.
Who's Hot / Who's Not in Sprint Cup by StarCoach Race Tours: Phoenix-Las Vegas Edition by Brett Poirier
With two 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 Phoenix weekend and get us set for another West Coast week ahead.
Couch Potato Tuesday by Phil Allaway
This past weekend, the Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series traveled out to Avondale, Arizona for their second races of the season. 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, a special crew chief stopping by on a weekly basis to discuss the technical aspects of our sport. Find out who and what by checking out this column tomorrow.
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