THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
September 3rd, 2012
Volume VI, Edition CLXXV
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Sprint Cup Race Recap: Hamlin's Crew Comes Through for a Second Straight Victory
by Jeff Wolfe
There's a lot that goes into winning a NASCAR Sprint Cup race. And what sometimes looks like a sure victory, can disappear in an instant.
Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. each experienced that first hand Sunday night at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Hamlin won his second straight Sprint Cup race and his fourth of the season as he was one of ten drivers to clinch a spot in NASCAR's Chase for the Championship, the sport's version of the playoffs, which is the final ten races of the season.
This win was at least in part clinched by Hamlin's pit crew. The final yellow of the night came out with five laps remaining when Jamie McMurray blew a right front tire and hit the wall in the quad-oval. At the time, Truex Jr. appeared to be on the way to his first win of the season, with about a two-second lead over Jeff Gordon. While Truex definitely did not want to see the yellow, it was just what the rest of the contenders needed.
Hamlin's pit crew gave him the lead coming off pit road, followed by Truex Jr. and Gordon. Hamlin then held off Gordon on the final two green flag laps for his 21st career victory.
"This is one I wanted real bad," said Hamlin, who led a race-high 105 laps out of 325 on the 1.54-mile oval. "Last week (at Bristol) was the big one, no doubt about it. I've been really good at Atlanta the last few years and never won. The pit crew won me the race and that is what a championship team is all about is having all the pieces of the puzzle put together."
Truex has had a solid season and is guaranteed a place in the Chase, but is still missing the victory piece of his puzzle. He appeared to be on the way to his first win since 2007 before McMurray brought out the caution. Truex, who led 40 laps, wasn't a factor for the lead on the final restart.
"I just spun the tires," Truex Jr. said. "All night I had trouble on the outside. When I got to third (gear), I just smoked the tires like a dragster. It just wasn't meant to be. I sure didn't want to see that caution. We had them covered. But such is life."
While Hamlin was jubilant in victory, it wasn't without feeling for Truex as they each drive Toyotas, Hamlin for Joe Gibbs Racing and Truex for Michael Waltrip Racing.
"It was a new lease on life," Hamlin said of the final caution. "I'm 70 percent happy for us and 30 percent sad for Michael Waltrip and Martin Truex, Jr. One way or another, they are teammates with us."
Gordon was more upset at himself, than sad. He is 12 points behind Kyle Busch in the race for the second wild-card spot. They each have one win and the final two spots will be decided by who has the most wins.
Gordon got close to Hamlin on the final lap, but couldn't make the winning pass.
"We were pretty good on short runs, but the long runs are what hurt us," said Gordon, who has six top-five finishes this season. "I got everything I could ask for. I got the restart I wanted and got to the outside. He (Hamlin) made a mistake off two and I got a run on him and I made a bad decision. I should have run into the back of him going into three and run him up the racetrack. I would be sitting in Victory Lane right now. This chase is too important for me not to make a move like that. I wouldn't have wanted to have wreck him, but I would like to have that one over again."
The rest of the top-10 after Gordon was Brad Keselowski, Truex, Kevin Harvick, who led 101 laps, Kyle Busch, who led 66 laps, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Paul Menard, Matt Kenseth and Mark Martin in front of an estimated crowd of 90,300.
The biggest accident of the night came on a restart on lap 270. Jimmie Johnson appeared to go up into Sam Hornish, who was running next to Ryan Newman. The crash ended the nights for Newman and Johnson, while Hornish recovered to finish 11th. Newman, who finished 35th, saw his chances of making the Chase take a serious blow.
"It looked like the 48 ran everybody out of room," Newman said.
The only way Newman can get into the Chase now is to win the final race of the regular season, the Federated Auto Parts 400 next weekend in Richmond and hope that Kyle Busch doesn't race his way into the top-10. Coverage starts at 7 p.m. Saturday at Richmond, on ABC.
Jeff Wolfe is a Contributor for Frontstretch.com. He can be reached via email at jeff.wolfe@frontstretch.com.
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
September 3rd, 2012
Volume VI, Edition CLXXV
~~~~~~~~~~
Sprint Cup Race Recap: Hamlin's Crew Comes Through for a Second Straight Victory
by Jeff Wolfe
There's a lot that goes into winning a NASCAR Sprint Cup race. And what sometimes looks like a sure victory, can disappear in an instant.
Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. each experienced that first hand Sunday night at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Hamlin won his second straight Sprint Cup race and his fourth of the season as he was one of ten drivers to clinch a spot in NASCAR's Chase for the Championship, the sport's version of the playoffs, which is the final ten races of the season.
This win was at least in part clinched by Hamlin's pit crew. The final yellow of the night came out with five laps remaining when Jamie McMurray blew a right front tire and hit the wall in the quad-oval. At the time, Truex Jr. appeared to be on the way to his first win of the season, with about a two-second lead over Jeff Gordon. While Truex definitely did not want to see the yellow, it was just what the rest of the contenders needed.
Hamlin's pit crew gave him the lead coming off pit road, followed by Truex Jr. and Gordon. Hamlin then held off Gordon on the final two green flag laps for his 21st career victory.
"This is one I wanted real bad," said Hamlin, who led a race-high 105 laps out of 325 on the 1.54-mile oval. "Last week (at Bristol) was the big one, no doubt about it. I've been really good at Atlanta the last few years and never won. The pit crew won me the race and that is what a championship team is all about is having all the pieces of the puzzle put together."
Truex has had a solid season and is guaranteed a place in the Chase, but is still missing the victory piece of his puzzle. He appeared to be on the way to his first win since 2007 before McMurray brought out the caution. Truex, who led 40 laps, wasn't a factor for the lead on the final restart.
"I just spun the tires," Truex Jr. said. "All night I had trouble on the outside. When I got to third (gear), I just smoked the tires like a dragster. It just wasn't meant to be. I sure didn't want to see that caution. We had them covered. But such is life."
While Hamlin was jubilant in victory, it wasn't without feeling for Truex as they each drive Toyotas, Hamlin for Joe Gibbs Racing and Truex for Michael Waltrip Racing.
"It was a new lease on life," Hamlin said of the final caution. "I'm 70 percent happy for us and 30 percent sad for Michael Waltrip and Martin Truex, Jr. One way or another, they are teammates with us."
Gordon was more upset at himself, than sad. He is 12 points behind Kyle Busch in the race for the second wild-card spot. They each have one win and the final two spots will be decided by who has the most wins.
Gordon got close to Hamlin on the final lap, but couldn't make the winning pass.
"We were pretty good on short runs, but the long runs are what hurt us," said Gordon, who has six top-five finishes this season. "I got everything I could ask for. I got the restart I wanted and got to the outside. He (Hamlin) made a mistake off two and I got a run on him and I made a bad decision. I should have run into the back of him going into three and run him up the racetrack. I would be sitting in Victory Lane right now. This chase is too important for me not to make a move like that. I wouldn't have wanted to have wreck him, but I would like to have that one over again."
The rest of the top-10 after Gordon was Brad Keselowski, Truex, Kevin Harvick, who led 101 laps, Kyle Busch, who led 66 laps, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Paul Menard, Matt Kenseth and Mark Martin in front of an estimated crowd of 90,300.
The biggest accident of the night came on a restart on lap 270. Jimmie Johnson appeared to go up into Sam Hornish, who was running next to Ryan Newman. The crash ended the nights for Newman and Johnson, while Hornish recovered to finish 11th. Newman, who finished 35th, saw his chances of making the Chase take a serious blow.
"It looked like the 48 ran everybody out of room," Newman said.
The only way Newman can get into the Chase now is to win the final race of the regular season, the Federated Auto Parts 400 next weekend in Richmond and hope that Kyle Busch doesn't race his way into the top-10. Coverage starts at 7 p.m. Saturday at Richmond, on ABC.
Jeff Wolfe is a Contributor for Frontstretch.com. He can be reached via email at jeff.wolfe@frontstretch.com.
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Chasing the Chase: Top-10 Clinch Chase Spots, But Final Wild Card Up for Grabs
by Jeff Wolfe
The top-10 in the NASCAR Sprint Cup points standings clinched a spot in NASCAR's Chase for the Championship, the sport's version of the playoffs. And with one race left in the regular season, Kasey Kahne is sitting in good shape to claim the first wild-card spot. That second wild-card spot, though, is anything but settled.
The two wild-card spots go to the drivers 11th through 20th in points with the most wins. Kahne is 11th in points, 18 behind tenth-place Tony Stewart, while no other driver outside the top-10 has more than one win.
At the moment, the 12th and final spot belongs to Kyle Busch, who has one win. Busch's biggest challenger for the final spot is Jeff Gordon, who is 12 points behind and also has a victory. Other drivers outside the top-10 with one win are Marcos Ambrose, Ryan Newman and Joey Logano. However, Ambrose is 40 points behind Busch, while Newman 49 is back and Logano 72 back. So, they will be in win or miss the Chase mode in the final regular season race Saturday night at Richmond.
Another driver who still has slim hopes, but has to win is Carl Edwards. Last year's runner-up for the title has no wins this year and sits 14th in points. If he does find Victory Lane at Richmond, he would also have to finish ahead of Busch and Gordon in the points standings to qualify. Edwards hopes took a bit hit Sunday night in Atlanta when his engine expired with 59 laps remaining, relegating him to a 36th-place finish after he had been in the top-10 much of the night.
"This year has been amazing in a bad luck kind of way," Edwards said. "We're going to Richmond, where anything can happen. Its almost too frustrating to put into words what happened tonight."
The top-10 who have made the Chase are Greg Biffle, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth, Martin Truex, Jr., Clint Bowyer, Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Kevin Harvick and Stewart.
The top-10 in the Chase will be reseeded when the Chase begins with each driver receiving three bonus points per victory. At the moment that would put Hamlin in first with his four wins, followed by Johnson, Keselowski and Stewart.
Stewart's situation is somewhat precarious though. Even though his three wins have him locked into the Chase, if he falls out of the top-10, he would lose the nine bonus points he has at the moment. But then again, Stewart had no wins going into the Chase last year, then went on to win the title by taking five of the final 10 races.
The final regular season race at Richmond has a 7 p.m. start Saturday on ABC.
Standings: 1) Greg Biffle 879, 2) Dale Earnhardt, Jr. -8, 3) Matt Kenseth -21, 4) Jimmie Johnson -31, 5) Martin Truex, Jr. -41, 6) Brad Keselowski -48, 7) Denny Hamlin -49, 8) Clint Bowyer -60, 9) Kevin Harvick -72, 10) Tony Stewart -110.
Wild Cards: Kasey Kahne, 2 wins, 11th in points; Kyle Busch, 1 win, 12th in points
Race Winners: Matt Kenseth (Daytona 500), Denny Hamlin (Phoenix, Kansas, Bristol 2, Atlanta), Tony Stewart (Las Vegas, Fontana, Daytona 2), Brad Keselowski (Bristol, Talladega, Kentucky), Ryan Newman (Martinsville), Greg Biffle (Texas, Michigan 2), Kyle Busch (Richmond), Jimmie Johnson (Darlington, Dover, Indianapolis), Kasey Kahne (Charlotte, New Hampshire), Joey Logano (Pocono 1), Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (Michigan 1), Clint Bowyer (Sonoma), Jeff Gordon (Pocono 2), Marcos Ambrose (Watkins Glen).
Tracking The Top 35: The Gap Breaches the Century Mark
The gap between the 35th and 36th place cars grew by 15 points after Sunday night's race at Atlanta, putting the gap between 35th and 36th place at 117 points. The top 35 in points are guaranteed a starting spot in each week's race, and as has been the case since the first two months of the season, the margin remains a wide one.
The No. 36 car driven by Dave Blaney finished 25th, and that allowed the car owned by Tommy Baldwin Racing to earn 18 points. The No. 33 Chevrolet driven by Stephen Leicht for Circle Point, LLC failed to qualify this week, which allowed the part-time Wood Brothers Racing No. 21 of Trevor Bayne to overtake the No. 33 for 36th in owners' points. Bayne overcame an ill-handling car to finish on the lead lap in 16th with the use of wave arounds.
Here's your owners point standings around the all-important cutoff...
29) BK Racing (No. 93 – Travis Kvapil), 234 points ahead of 36th.
30) Front Row Motorsports (No. 38 - David Gilliland), 229 points ahead of 36th.
31) Front Row Motorsports (No. 34 - David Ragan), 216 points ahead of 36th.
32) BK Racing (No. 83 - Landon Cassill), 187 points ahead of 36th.
33) Tommy Baldwin Racing / Stewart-Haas Racing (No. 10 – Danica Patrick), 153 points ahead of 36th.
34) FAS Lane Racing (No. 32 – TJ Bell), 131 points ahead of 36th.
35) Tommy Baldwin Racing (No. 36 – Dave Blaney), 117 points ahead of 36th.
36) Wood Brothers Racing (No. 21 - Trevor Bayne), 117 points behind 35th.
37) Richard Childress Racing/Circle Point, LLC (No. 33 – Stephen Leicht), 121 points behind 35th.
38) Inception Motorsports (No. 30 – David Stremme), 147 points behind 35th.
39) Robinson-Blakeney Racing (No. 49 – Jason Leffler), 176 points behind 35th.
40) Phil Parsons Racing (No. 98 – Michael McDowell), 192 points behind 35th.
41) Front Row Motorsports (No. 26 - Josh Wise), 194 points behind 35th.
Jeff Wolfe is a Contributor for Frontstretch.com. He can be reached via email at jeff.wolfe@frontstretch.com.
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Secret Star of the Week: The Race You Never Saw
For Jeff Burton, the 2012 season has been a giant struggle. Just check out the interview that I did with Burton in Daytona back in July. However, Burton was able to put together a decent run on Sunday. Starting just behind teammate Kevin Harvick in 26th, Burton slowly moved his way up through the pack. However, he did lose a lap during the long green flag run after the first caution. Burton took multiple wavearounds in order to get back on the lead lap during the event, and took advantage of the misfortune of lead lap drivers like Jimmie Johnson to finish 12th. This is Burton's best finish of the season on an intermediate track, the team's bugaboo. In addition, this was accomplished with the left side of the splitter ground off the car.
After the race, Burton took to Twitter and briefly talked about the night.
"Better night for us. That's a step in the right direction. Keep improving," Burton tweeted. "[Drew Blickensderfer] called a perfect race tonight."
This is completely in line with Burton's team mentality that he mentioned in the aforementioned interview. The top-15 finish did not move him up any positions in the points (Burton's still 20th), but it could be the beginning of a new form on-track for the Caterpillar team. - Phil Allaway
STAT OF THE WEEK: 109. Atlanta, like many of the other races this season at intermediate tracks, had a series of long, green flag runs on Sunday night. This number represents the longest of those runs. This represents approximately one-third of the advertised race distance. - Phil Allaway
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Quotes to Remember: AdvoCare 500
"What a battle. You know going into this race that it's going to be a fight. You know, the track is just so slick, and your car has a lot of grip for about five laps and then all of a sudden it just starts going sideways. We just never could get my car tight enough. On the short runs we were really fast, which worked to our favor here to get that second place and almost that win. I'm just mad at myself right now. I don't know, I guess I'm just getting soft in my old age. I'm too nice because, I don't know, 15 years ago I would have just moved him right up the racetrack. I don't know why I didn't do that. I thought I could get to his quarter panel and slow him down and stay there. But I got there, I just carried too much speed into 3 and it pushed up the racetrack." - Jeff Gordon, finished second.
"We just couldn't get the handle on this thing tonight. We needed more side bite in the corners, and I was just too free. We chased it all night. We'll go back to the shop, tear it apart and see what the deal is." - Tony Stewart, finished 22nd.
"I didn't see much – all I know we ran out of room on the restart there. It wasn't my fault, but it was just racing. It's unfortunate for our U.S. Army Medicine Chevrolet. We caught two bad breaks just prior to that trying to get back on the lead lap. It was just unfortunate that we were in that position there because we raced our way from 13th, a lap down, all the way up to eighth and back on the lead lap. We've got one chore to do with the U.S. Army team, and that is to go into Richmond and get the win. We've done it before, and we can do it again. In the big picture, tonight's result hurt. But the U.S. Army Soldiers we represent are known for their refusal to accept defeat, and that is precisely what motivates this race team to employ the type of mental toughness, focus and determination it does on and off the racetrack. This result tonight hurt us relative to the Chase, yes, but the battle is certainly not over. Our mission is clear." - Ryan Newman, finished 35th (Crash on Lap 269).
"I think we picked up overall throughout the race and we were learning about the car. I was a lot tighter than I thought I would be, but I was pretty afraid after last night at how loose I was in the Nationwide car to come tonight where I was in practice far looser in the Cup car than in the Nationwide car. I was afraid it was going to be just tank-slapping the whole time. Zippy (Greg Zipadelli, race strategist) said that we were running a pretty conservative setup, and the changes he was making were not huge changes so it didn't step over." - Danica Patrick, finished 29th.
"This is really frustrating since we had an apparent lock on a top-10. We didn't need that last caution, but we still should have finished in the top-10. For some reason our car had issues with sticker tires tonight and that was our problem in the final two laps. While we all wanted that top-10, I am proud of how this team worked through the problems tonight. We've made some big gains recently and feel that we're on track to make even bigger gains." - Regan Smith, finished 14th
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TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
Thinkin' Out Loud: Thinkin' Out Loud - Advocare 500 - Atlanta Motor Speedway
by Mike Neff
Pace Laps: Setting the Chase Field, Selective Editing and Dillon Redux
by the Frontstretch Staff
IndyCar Baltimore Recap: Title Battle Tightens with Hunter-Reay Victory
by P. Huston Ladner
Is Denny Hamlin a Serious Title Contender? We're About to Find Out
by Matt Stallknecht
No Normal Day at the NASCAR Office
by Tom Bowles
The Big Six: Questions Answered After the AdvoCare 500
by Amy Henderson
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FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: In September, 1988, the Miller High Life 400 marked the grand opening of the then-brand new Richmond International Raceway (the track was renovated from its original narrow .542 mile configuration to the current three-quarter mile track in six and a half months). However, the field was completely jumbled up. Why was this so?
Check back Monday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Friday's Answer:
Q: In 1993, Richard Childress Racing entered Neil Bonnett in a No. 31 Chevrolet in the Hooters 500 in an attempt to stack the cards in favor of Dale Earnhardt winning his sixth championship. However, that wasn't Bonnett's only race of the weekend. Bonnett drove Earnhardt's No. 3 in the Busch race on Saturday (rescheduled from March due to Superstorm '93). However, that didn't go all that well. What happened?
A: During the summer in 1993, Atlanta Motor Speedway sealed a lot of cracks in the racing surface that were likely caused by winter snows. As a result, the track was very slippery and there were a number of wrecks. Bonnett was actually running in the top-5 when his Goodwrench Chevrolet swapped ends and went hard into the Turn 4 on the drivers' side. The crash can be seen at the 6:30 mark of this clip. Behind Bonnett, Ricky Craven backed his No. 99 DuPont Automotive Finishes Chevrolet into the wall as well.
The hit was nearly flush on the drivers' side, but Bonnett was able to walk away. However, he was done for the day. Craven's crew was able to repair the No. 99 on pit road and Craven continued, eventually finishing 15th, two laps down. That fix allowed Craven to finish second in points to champion Steve Grissom (who had already clinched the title in The Pantry 500 at Hickory a week earlier).
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 Tuesday in the Frontstretch Newsletter:
-- Top News by Tom Bowles
-- Fan's View Commentary by S.D. Grady
-- Numbers Game: AdvoCare 500 by Garrett Horton
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:
Who's Hot / Who's Not in Sprint Cup by StarCoach Race Tours: Atlanta / Richmond Edition by Brett Poirier
With just one more race left until the Chase, Brett takes a look at which drivers are in perfect position to make the field... and which ones are already taking a look ahead towards 2013.
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.
The Yellow Stripe by Bryan Keith
Bryan is back with another commentary to make you think.
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©2012 Frontstretch.com
Chasing the Chase: Top-10 Clinch Chase Spots, But Final Wild Card Up for Grabs
by Jeff Wolfe
The top-10 in the NASCAR Sprint Cup points standings clinched a spot in NASCAR's Chase for the Championship, the sport's version of the playoffs. And with one race left in the regular season, Kasey Kahne is sitting in good shape to claim the first wild-card spot. That second wild-card spot, though, is anything but settled.
The two wild-card spots go to the drivers 11th through 20th in points with the most wins. Kahne is 11th in points, 18 behind tenth-place Tony Stewart, while no other driver outside the top-10 has more than one win.
At the moment, the 12th and final spot belongs to Kyle Busch, who has one win. Busch's biggest challenger for the final spot is Jeff Gordon, who is 12 points behind and also has a victory. Other drivers outside the top-10 with one win are Marcos Ambrose, Ryan Newman and Joey Logano. However, Ambrose is 40 points behind Busch, while Newman 49 is back and Logano 72 back. So, they will be in win or miss the Chase mode in the final regular season race Saturday night at Richmond.
Another driver who still has slim hopes, but has to win is Carl Edwards. Last year's runner-up for the title has no wins this year and sits 14th in points. If he does find Victory Lane at Richmond, he would also have to finish ahead of Busch and Gordon in the points standings to qualify. Edwards hopes took a bit hit Sunday night in Atlanta when his engine expired with 59 laps remaining, relegating him to a 36th-place finish after he had been in the top-10 much of the night.
"This year has been amazing in a bad luck kind of way," Edwards said. "We're going to Richmond, where anything can happen. Its almost too frustrating to put into words what happened tonight."
The top-10 who have made the Chase are Greg Biffle, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth, Martin Truex, Jr., Clint Bowyer, Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Kevin Harvick and Stewart.
The top-10 in the Chase will be reseeded when the Chase begins with each driver receiving three bonus points per victory. At the moment that would put Hamlin in first with his four wins, followed by Johnson, Keselowski and Stewart.
Stewart's situation is somewhat precarious though. Even though his three wins have him locked into the Chase, if he falls out of the top-10, he would lose the nine bonus points he has at the moment. But then again, Stewart had no wins going into the Chase last year, then went on to win the title by taking five of the final 10 races.
The final regular season race at Richmond has a 7 p.m. start Saturday on ABC.
Standings: 1) Greg Biffle 879, 2) Dale Earnhardt, Jr. -8, 3) Matt Kenseth -21, 4) Jimmie Johnson -31, 5) Martin Truex, Jr. -41, 6) Brad Keselowski -48, 7) Denny Hamlin -49, 8) Clint Bowyer -60, 9) Kevin Harvick -72, 10) Tony Stewart -110.
Wild Cards: Kasey Kahne, 2 wins, 11th in points; Kyle Busch, 1 win, 12th in points
Race Winners: Matt Kenseth (Daytona 500), Denny Hamlin (Phoenix, Kansas, Bristol 2, Atlanta), Tony Stewart (Las Vegas, Fontana, Daytona 2), Brad Keselowski (Bristol, Talladega, Kentucky), Ryan Newman (Martinsville), Greg Biffle (Texas, Michigan 2), Kyle Busch (Richmond), Jimmie Johnson (Darlington, Dover, Indianapolis), Kasey Kahne (Charlotte, New Hampshire), Joey Logano (Pocono 1), Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (Michigan 1), Clint Bowyer (Sonoma), Jeff Gordon (Pocono 2), Marcos Ambrose (Watkins Glen).
Tracking The Top 35: The Gap Breaches the Century Mark
The gap between the 35th and 36th place cars grew by 15 points after Sunday night's race at Atlanta, putting the gap between 35th and 36th place at 117 points. The top 35 in points are guaranteed a starting spot in each week's race, and as has been the case since the first two months of the season, the margin remains a wide one.
The No. 36 car driven by Dave Blaney finished 25th, and that allowed the car owned by Tommy Baldwin Racing to earn 18 points. The No. 33 Chevrolet driven by Stephen Leicht for Circle Point, LLC failed to qualify this week, which allowed the part-time Wood Brothers Racing No. 21 of Trevor Bayne to overtake the No. 33 for 36th in owners' points. Bayne overcame an ill-handling car to finish on the lead lap in 16th with the use of wave arounds.
Here's your owners point standings around the all-important cutoff...
29) BK Racing (No. 93 – Travis Kvapil), 234 points ahead of 36th.
30) Front Row Motorsports (No. 38 - David Gilliland), 229 points ahead of 36th.
31) Front Row Motorsports (No. 34 - David Ragan), 216 points ahead of 36th.
32) BK Racing (No. 83 - Landon Cassill), 187 points ahead of 36th.
33) Tommy Baldwin Racing / Stewart-Haas Racing (No. 10 – Danica Patrick), 153 points ahead of 36th.
34) FAS Lane Racing (No. 32 – TJ Bell), 131 points ahead of 36th.
35) Tommy Baldwin Racing (No. 36 – Dave Blaney), 117 points ahead of 36th.
36) Wood Brothers Racing (No. 21 - Trevor Bayne), 117 points behind 35th.
37) Richard Childress Racing/Circle Point, LLC (No. 33 – Stephen Leicht), 121 points behind 35th.
38) Inception Motorsports (No. 30 – David Stremme), 147 points behind 35th.
39) Robinson-Blakeney Racing (No. 49 – Jason Leffler), 176 points behind 35th.
40) Phil Parsons Racing (No. 98 – Michael McDowell), 192 points behind 35th.
41) Front Row Motorsports (No. 26 - Josh Wise), 194 points behind 35th.
Jeff Wolfe is a Contributor for Frontstretch.com. He can be reached via email at jeff.wolfe@frontstretch.com.
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Secret Star of the Week: The Race You Never Saw
For Jeff Burton, the 2012 season has been a giant struggle. Just check out the interview that I did with Burton in Daytona back in July. However, Burton was able to put together a decent run on Sunday. Starting just behind teammate Kevin Harvick in 26th, Burton slowly moved his way up through the pack. However, he did lose a lap during the long green flag run after the first caution. Burton took multiple wavearounds in order to get back on the lead lap during the event, and took advantage of the misfortune of lead lap drivers like Jimmie Johnson to finish 12th. This is Burton's best finish of the season on an intermediate track, the team's bugaboo. In addition, this was accomplished with the left side of the splitter ground off the car.
After the race, Burton took to Twitter and briefly talked about the night.
"Better night for us. That's a step in the right direction. Keep improving," Burton tweeted. "[Drew Blickensderfer] called a perfect race tonight."
This is completely in line with Burton's team mentality that he mentioned in the aforementioned interview. The top-15 finish did not move him up any positions in the points (Burton's still 20th), but it could be the beginning of a new form on-track for the Caterpillar team. - Phil Allaway
STAT OF THE WEEK: 109. Atlanta, like many of the other races this season at intermediate tracks, had a series of long, green flag runs on Sunday night. This number represents the longest of those runs. This represents approximately one-third of the advertised race distance. - Phil Allaway
~~~~~~~~~~
Quotes to Remember: AdvoCare 500
"What a battle. You know going into this race that it's going to be a fight. You know, the track is just so slick, and your car has a lot of grip for about five laps and then all of a sudden it just starts going sideways. We just never could get my car tight enough. On the short runs we were really fast, which worked to our favor here to get that second place and almost that win. I'm just mad at myself right now. I don't know, I guess I'm just getting soft in my old age. I'm too nice because, I don't know, 15 years ago I would have just moved him right up the racetrack. I don't know why I didn't do that. I thought I could get to his quarter panel and slow him down and stay there. But I got there, I just carried too much speed into 3 and it pushed up the racetrack." - Jeff Gordon, finished second.
"We just couldn't get the handle on this thing tonight. We needed more side bite in the corners, and I was just too free. We chased it all night. We'll go back to the shop, tear it apart and see what the deal is." - Tony Stewart, finished 22nd.
"I didn't see much – all I know we ran out of room on the restart there. It wasn't my fault, but it was just racing. It's unfortunate for our U.S. Army Medicine Chevrolet. We caught two bad breaks just prior to that trying to get back on the lead lap. It was just unfortunate that we were in that position there because we raced our way from 13th, a lap down, all the way up to eighth and back on the lead lap. We've got one chore to do with the U.S. Army team, and that is to go into Richmond and get the win. We've done it before, and we can do it again. In the big picture, tonight's result hurt. But the U.S. Army Soldiers we represent are known for their refusal to accept defeat, and that is precisely what motivates this race team to employ the type of mental toughness, focus and determination it does on and off the racetrack. This result tonight hurt us relative to the Chase, yes, but the battle is certainly not over. Our mission is clear." - Ryan Newman, finished 35th (Crash on Lap 269).
"I think we picked up overall throughout the race and we were learning about the car. I was a lot tighter than I thought I would be, but I was pretty afraid after last night at how loose I was in the Nationwide car to come tonight where I was in practice far looser in the Cup car than in the Nationwide car. I was afraid it was going to be just tank-slapping the whole time. Zippy (Greg Zipadelli, race strategist) said that we were running a pretty conservative setup, and the changes he was making were not huge changes so it didn't step over." - Danica Patrick, finished 29th.
"This is really frustrating since we had an apparent lock on a top-10. We didn't need that last caution, but we still should have finished in the top-10. For some reason our car had issues with sticker tires tonight and that was our problem in the final two laps. While we all wanted that top-10, I am proud of how this team worked through the problems tonight. We've made some big gains recently and feel that we're on track to make even bigger gains." - Regan Smith, finished 14th
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TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
Thinkin' Out Loud: Thinkin' Out Loud - Advocare 500 - Atlanta Motor Speedway
by Mike Neff
Pace Laps: Setting the Chase Field, Selective Editing and Dillon Redux
by the Frontstretch Staff
IndyCar Baltimore Recap: Title Battle Tightens with Hunter-Reay Victory
by P. Huston Ladner
Is Denny Hamlin a Serious Title Contender? We're About to Find Out
by Matt Stallknecht
No Normal Day at the NASCAR Office
by Tom Bowles
The Big Six: Questions Answered After the AdvoCare 500
by Amy Henderson
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FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: In September, 1988, the Miller High Life 400 marked the grand opening of the then-brand new Richmond International Raceway (the track was renovated from its original narrow .542 mile configuration to the current three-quarter mile track in six and a half months). However, the field was completely jumbled up. Why was this so?
Check back Monday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Friday's Answer:
Q: In 1993, Richard Childress Racing entered Neil Bonnett in a No. 31 Chevrolet in the Hooters 500 in an attempt to stack the cards in favor of Dale Earnhardt winning his sixth championship. However, that wasn't Bonnett's only race of the weekend. Bonnett drove Earnhardt's No. 3 in the Busch race on Saturday (rescheduled from March due to Superstorm '93). However, that didn't go all that well. What happened?
A: During the summer in 1993, Atlanta Motor Speedway sealed a lot of cracks in the racing surface that were likely caused by winter snows. As a result, the track was very slippery and there were a number of wrecks. Bonnett was actually running in the top-5 when his Goodwrench Chevrolet swapped ends and went hard into the Turn 4 on the drivers' side. The crash can be seen at the 6:30 mark of this clip. Behind Bonnett, Ricky Craven backed his No. 99 DuPont Automotive Finishes Chevrolet into the wall as well.
The hit was nearly flush on the drivers' side, but Bonnett was able to walk away. However, he was done for the day. Craven's crew was able to repair the No. 99 on pit road and Craven continued, eventually finishing 15th, two laps down. That fix allowed Craven to finish second in points to champion Steve Grissom (who had already clinched the title in The Pantry 500 at Hickory a week earlier).
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 Tuesday in the Frontstretch Newsletter:
-- Top News by Tom Bowles
-- Fan's View Commentary by S.D. Grady
-- Numbers Game: AdvoCare 500 by Garrett Horton
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:
Who's Hot / Who's Not in Sprint Cup by StarCoach Race Tours: Atlanta / Richmond Edition by Brett Poirier
With just one more race left until the Chase, Brett takes a look at which drivers are in perfect position to make the field... and which ones are already taking a look ahead towards 2013.
Five Points To Ponder by Danny Peters
Danny has his weekly edition of talking points to wrap up Atlanta and get us ready for Richmond.
Couch Potato Tuesday by Phil Allaway
The Sprint Cup, Nationwide and Camping World Truck Series were each in action at Atlanta Motor Speedway this week. How were the telecasts of these races? Find out in this week's 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.
The Yellow Stripe by Bryan Keith
Bryan is back with another commentary to make you think.
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