THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
September 10th, 2012
Volume VI, Edition CLXXX
~~~~~~~~~~
Editor's Note: Win a Free Weekend of FanVision! - Just tell us why and it can be yours! First, watch the FanVision video on our homepage to learn about the device and service. Then, submit a short essay (no more than 250 words) to FrontstretchTrivia@gmail.com telling us why you should win one weekend's use of FanVision at a Sprint Cup weekend. Submissions due by Friday, September 14th at 9PM Eastern time. (Note: The winner does NOT receive tickets to the Sprint Cup event).
Sprint Cup Race Recap: Bowyer Wins on Fuel Mileage; Gordon Claims Final Chase Berth
by Jeff Wolfe
The saying goes that a little rain never hurt anybody.
But a few drops at around 12:30 a.m. Sunday in Richmond, Va., just may have saved Jeff Gordon's season.
Gordon made an unlikely comeback to finish second in the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Richmond International Raceway Saturday night/Sunday morning to become the final qualifier for NASCAR's Chase for the Championship. The race was the last regular-season date on the schedule. The final ten races make up the sport's version of the playoffs, the first of which is Sunday at Chicagoland Speedway.
Gordon, who earlier Saturday night had bemoaned his ill-handling car during a 51-minute rain delay as he sat one lap down and well out of the Chase at that time, edged Kyle Busch for the 12th and final Chase spot by three points. Clint Bowyer, who was in obvious fuel-saving mode for the final 50 laps of the 400-lap race on the three-quarter mile D-shaped oval, earned the win, finishing just over two seconds ahead of Gordon in a race that ended about 1:30 a.m. Sunday morning due to about two-and-a-half hours of rain delays, including about a 90-minute delay prior to the start of the race in front of a crowd of 89,000.
And while Bowyer celebrated in Victory Lane for the second time this season after a fuel-saving run, Gordon, a four-time Sprint Cup champion, was elated to have his season saved by the final caution of the night for rain on lap 275.
"I went from last week being the most disappointed I've ever been to finish second to the most excited I've ever been to finish second," said Gordon, who has one victory this year, in the rain-shortened race at Pocono in August. "Wow, what a race for us. We just flat out missed the setup at the beginning. I felt like I won the race tonight. When that was over, [and] they told me I was in the Chase, we made it, I mean, I was ecstatic. I was going nuts."
Gordon admitted he was going a little nuts for another reason when the red flag waved to stop cars due to rain on lap 152. After starting second and leading the first two green flag laps of the race, he faded quickly and eventually found himself a lap down, fighting poor handling on the No. 24 car as crew chief Alan Gustafson tried to figure out how to make the Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet faster.
"I was not very smiling and happy at that rain delay, the one red flag," said Gordon, who joined Hendrick teammates Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kasey Kahne in the Chase. "I was pretty ticked off that we got that far behind. For me as a racecar driver, when you have that kind of start to the race, you don't have a lot of hope you're going to get it turned around. I went to Alan. He never wavered. He was confident. "
After comparing Gordon's car to each of his three teammates, Gustafson decided do away with the rear sway bar under the rear of the car.
"The biggest thing is that rear bar, we just had to get rid of it," Gordon said. "We did that. We cut the chain. Our car really started coming to us right then. We finally got some drive-off (the corners)."
While that allowed Gordon to gain some handling and much needed speed, he was still the first car one-lap down and in 13th-place. So, without a yellow flag, Gordon had no way to make up that much ground on leader Denny Hamlin, who dominated the first 275 laps by leading 202 of them.
That's when a few raindrops started to fall and the sixth and final caution came out on lap 275. And with rain throughout the area and the race well past it's halfway point, it left drivers and crew chiefs with a difficult decision. If they decided to pit, it was possible that rain could end the race and cost them good finishes. If they stayed out, they would be left on older tires and more or less sitting ducks for those who pitted and took fresh tires.
Gordon, of course, had nothing to lose, being a lap down. He, along with Bowyer, Mark Martin, Tony Stewart, Ryan Newman and Matt Kenseth, were among those to pit when the yellow first waved. Then, once it became apparent the race would return to green-flag racing without a red flag, Hamlin and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. each hit pit road, but had to restart back in the field, which put Hamlin in 15th-place.
Not pitting at all during the yellow was Busch, who apparently told crew chief Dave Rogers on the radio that he wanted to come in for tires. That left Busch, who didn't have a great car to begin with, losing valuable places and points to Gordon.
"We missed it, plain and simple," said Busch, who received some quick words from team owner Joe Gibbs before climbing out of the car when the race was over. "He told me to handle it the right way. There's no right way to handle the situation."
With the brief shower giving Gordon new life, he worked his way through the field to put himself in the Chase picture as Busch struggled to stay in the top-20. But with one more pit stop to go, Gordon's job wasn't done yet.
Busch pitted for fresh tires with 66 laps to go, but was hurt a bit when his right rear tire had a loose lug nut, extending the stop by a couple of seconds.
Gordon pitted with 42 laps to go, and when he returned to the track, he had work to do again. He passed several cars coming up through the field, and with ten laps to go, put himself in Chase position when he passed Mark Martin to reach second-place. That, combined with Busch's 16th-place finish, and Gordon's bonus point for leading at least one lap, allowed Gordon to make up the 13 points he needed at the race's beginning.
And now, the Chase is a new beginning for Gordon.
"To me, after you have that kind of effort, fall back, then come up there and finish second, almost win the race … I don't see any reason why we can't go over these next ten races and be a real threat for the championship," Gordon said. "I don't care where we are going to start in the points. We are in it."
Bowyer feels his team will be a threat for the championship, too.
"To win a championship, it would be pretty big," Bowyer said. "Jimmie seems like he has a blast doing it. I promise you I could throw a better party than him. I might not survive it, but we would have a lot of fun."
Bowyer's two wins give him six bonus points in the standings. With the standings reset for the top-12, Hamlin will start on top with four wins, while Stewart, Johnson and Brad Keselowski will be tied for second, with Greg Biffle and Bowyer tied for fifth, then Matt Kenseth and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. tied for seventh each with one win. Finally, Martin Truex, Jr., Kevin Harvick, Kahne and Gordon are tied for ninth. Kahne, with his two wins, and Gordon with his one win, do not get bonus points as they were the wild-card qualifiers.
Followng Bowyer, Gordon and Martin in the top-10 Saturday night were Stewart in fourth, Kenseth, Jeff Burton, Keselowski, Ryan Newman, Biffle and Harvick.
Next weekend, the Sprint Cup Series travels to Chicagoland Speedway for the GEICO 400, race No. 1 in the Chase for the Sprint Cup. Coverage is scheduled to start at 1:00pm EDT (Noon CDT) on ESPN, with race coverage following at 2:00pm EDT.
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 10th, 2012
Volume VI, Edition CLXXX
~~~~~~~~~~
Editor's Note: Win a Free Weekend of FanVision! - Just tell us why and it can be yours! First, watch the FanVision video on our homepage to learn about the device and service. Then, submit a short essay (no more than 250 words) to FrontstretchTrivia@gmail.com telling us why you should win one weekend's use of FanVision at a Sprint Cup weekend. Submissions due by Friday, September 14th at 9PM Eastern time. (Note: The winner does NOT receive tickets to the Sprint Cup event).
Sprint Cup Race Recap: Bowyer Wins on Fuel Mileage; Gordon Claims Final Chase Berth
by Jeff Wolfe
The saying goes that a little rain never hurt anybody.
But a few drops at around 12:30 a.m. Sunday in Richmond, Va., just may have saved Jeff Gordon's season.
Gordon made an unlikely comeback to finish second in the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Richmond International Raceway Saturday night/Sunday morning to become the final qualifier for NASCAR's Chase for the Championship. The race was the last regular-season date on the schedule. The final ten races make up the sport's version of the playoffs, the first of which is Sunday at Chicagoland Speedway.
Gordon, who earlier Saturday night had bemoaned his ill-handling car during a 51-minute rain delay as he sat one lap down and well out of the Chase at that time, edged Kyle Busch for the 12th and final Chase spot by three points. Clint Bowyer, who was in obvious fuel-saving mode for the final 50 laps of the 400-lap race on the three-quarter mile D-shaped oval, earned the win, finishing just over two seconds ahead of Gordon in a race that ended about 1:30 a.m. Sunday morning due to about two-and-a-half hours of rain delays, including about a 90-minute delay prior to the start of the race in front of a crowd of 89,000.
And while Bowyer celebrated in Victory Lane for the second time this season after a fuel-saving run, Gordon, a four-time Sprint Cup champion, was elated to have his season saved by the final caution of the night for rain on lap 275.
"I went from last week being the most disappointed I've ever been to finish second to the most excited I've ever been to finish second," said Gordon, who has one victory this year, in the rain-shortened race at Pocono in August. "Wow, what a race for us. We just flat out missed the setup at the beginning. I felt like I won the race tonight. When that was over, [and] they told me I was in the Chase, we made it, I mean, I was ecstatic. I was going nuts."
Gordon admitted he was going a little nuts for another reason when the red flag waved to stop cars due to rain on lap 152. After starting second and leading the first two green flag laps of the race, he faded quickly and eventually found himself a lap down, fighting poor handling on the No. 24 car as crew chief Alan Gustafson tried to figure out how to make the Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet faster.
"I was not very smiling and happy at that rain delay, the one red flag," said Gordon, who joined Hendrick teammates Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kasey Kahne in the Chase. "I was pretty ticked off that we got that far behind. For me as a racecar driver, when you have that kind of start to the race, you don't have a lot of hope you're going to get it turned around. I went to Alan. He never wavered. He was confident. "
After comparing Gordon's car to each of his three teammates, Gustafson decided do away with the rear sway bar under the rear of the car.
"The biggest thing is that rear bar, we just had to get rid of it," Gordon said. "We did that. We cut the chain. Our car really started coming to us right then. We finally got some drive-off (the corners)."
While that allowed Gordon to gain some handling and much needed speed, he was still the first car one-lap down and in 13th-place. So, without a yellow flag, Gordon had no way to make up that much ground on leader Denny Hamlin, who dominated the first 275 laps by leading 202 of them.
That's when a few raindrops started to fall and the sixth and final caution came out on lap 275. And with rain throughout the area and the race well past it's halfway point, it left drivers and crew chiefs with a difficult decision. If they decided to pit, it was possible that rain could end the race and cost them good finishes. If they stayed out, they would be left on older tires and more or less sitting ducks for those who pitted and took fresh tires.
Gordon, of course, had nothing to lose, being a lap down. He, along with Bowyer, Mark Martin, Tony Stewart, Ryan Newman and Matt Kenseth, were among those to pit when the yellow first waved. Then, once it became apparent the race would return to green-flag racing without a red flag, Hamlin and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. each hit pit road, but had to restart back in the field, which put Hamlin in 15th-place.
Not pitting at all during the yellow was Busch, who apparently told crew chief Dave Rogers on the radio that he wanted to come in for tires. That left Busch, who didn't have a great car to begin with, losing valuable places and points to Gordon.
"We missed it, plain and simple," said Busch, who received some quick words from team owner Joe Gibbs before climbing out of the car when the race was over. "He told me to handle it the right way. There's no right way to handle the situation."
With the brief shower giving Gordon new life, he worked his way through the field to put himself in the Chase picture as Busch struggled to stay in the top-20. But with one more pit stop to go, Gordon's job wasn't done yet.
Busch pitted for fresh tires with 66 laps to go, but was hurt a bit when his right rear tire had a loose lug nut, extending the stop by a couple of seconds.
Gordon pitted with 42 laps to go, and when he returned to the track, he had work to do again. He passed several cars coming up through the field, and with ten laps to go, put himself in Chase position when he passed Mark Martin to reach second-place. That, combined with Busch's 16th-place finish, and Gordon's bonus point for leading at least one lap, allowed Gordon to make up the 13 points he needed at the race's beginning.
And now, the Chase is a new beginning for Gordon.
"To me, after you have that kind of effort, fall back, then come up there and finish second, almost win the race … I don't see any reason why we can't go over these next ten races and be a real threat for the championship," Gordon said. "I don't care where we are going to start in the points. We are in it."
Bowyer feels his team will be a threat for the championship, too.
"To win a championship, it would be pretty big," Bowyer said. "Jimmie seems like he has a blast doing it. I promise you I could throw a better party than him. I might not survive it, but we would have a lot of fun."
Bowyer's two wins give him six bonus points in the standings. With the standings reset for the top-12, Hamlin will start on top with four wins, while Stewart, Johnson and Brad Keselowski will be tied for second, with Greg Biffle and Bowyer tied for fifth, then Matt Kenseth and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. tied for seventh each with one win. Finally, Martin Truex, Jr., Kevin Harvick, Kahne and Gordon are tied for ninth. Kahne, with his two wins, and Gordon with his one win, do not get bonus points as they were the wild-card qualifiers.
Followng Bowyer, Gordon and Martin in the top-10 Saturday night were Stewart in fourth, Kenseth, Jeff Burton, Keselowski, Ryan Newman, Biffle and Harvick.
Next weekend, the Sprint Cup Series travels to Chicagoland Speedway for the GEICO 400, race No. 1 in the Chase for the Sprint Cup. Coverage is scheduled to start at 1:00pm EDT (Noon CDT) on ESPN, with race coverage following at 2:00pm EDT.
Jeff Wolfe is a Contributor for Frontstretch.com. He can be reached via email at jeff.wolfe@frontstretch.com.
~~~~~~~~~~
Chasing the Chase: Top-10 Clinch Chase Spots, But Final Wild Card Up for Grabs
by Jeff Wolfe
Greg Biffle finished the NASCAR Sprint Cup regular season as the points leader, but now that the points are reset, he's not in the lead anymore. That's because the top-10 in points after the 26th race are reset for the Chase for the Sprint Cup based on wins. Each of the top-10 drivers get three bonus points for each of their regular season victories. So, heading into the 10-race Chase which starts Sunday at Chicagoland Speedway, Denny Hamlin's four wins will put him in the lead with 2012 points.
Following him are the three-win drivers with 2009 points. They are defending champion Tony Stewart, five-time champion Jimmie Johnson and Brad Keselowski. Next at 2006 are two-time winners Biffle and Clint Bowyer, and then at 2003 are Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Matt Kenseth then at 2000 are Martin Truex Jr. and Kevin Harvick, who finished in the top-10 without a win, and wild-card qualifiers Kasey Kahne and Jeff Gordon, whose wins do not count when the points are reset.
While Gordon made a dramatic run to edge Kyle Busch by three points and make the Chase, the only other driver who needed to win to make the Chase and actually led was Ryan Newman. He took the lead from team owner and teammate Stewart on lap 300 Saturday night and led for 13 laps, but was overtaken by the eventual winner Bowyer.
It looked like Hamlin was going to get three more bonus points to start the Chase. He led 202 of the first 275 laps, before that final caution for rain caused crew chiefs and drivers plenty of headaches when deciding whether to stay out or pit.
But Hamlin took solace in the fact that he is not only leading the points, but that his car has been so strong lately. He was bidding to win his third straight race, trying to become the first driver to do so since Johnson won four in a row in 2007.
"Our cars are lightning fast and we've just got a good thing going," Hamlin said.
Other drivers who needed to win Saturday night to make the Chase, but were never a factor were last year's runner-up Carl Edwards, Marcos Ambrose, Joey Logano and Paul Menard.
The other mini-drama surrounding Saturday's race was whether Stewart would remain in the top 10 and be able to keep his bonus points for his three victories. After starting 28th and struggling early in the race, he started to move up and was sixth when the final caution came out. He pitted early under the yellow and the fresh tires helped him to the lead where he led 15 laps. Coming into the race, that tenth spot had been threatened by Kahne, but he finished 12th, leaving him 26 points behind Stewart.
Stewart won last year's title by taking five of the final ten races. He entered last year's Chase without a win. So, he, more than anybody, knows anything is possible beginning at 1 p.m. Sunday at Chicagoland on ESPN.
"I obviously couldn't predict it last year," said Stewart, a three-time champion. "I wasn't good enough to predict it then. I'm not sure I'm going to be any better at predicting it now. It just showed all 12 of them are capable of doing it now. You look at the run that Jeff had tonight, raced his way in. That's the kind of drive you have to have to win a championship. All 12 guys have a shot, and a good shot I think."
Final Regular Season Standings: 1) Greg Biffle 914, 2) Dale Earnhardt, Jr. -12, 3) Matt Kenseth -17, 4) Jimmie Johnson -34, 5) Brad Keselowski -46, 6) Martin Truex, Jr. -52, 7) Clint Bowyer -56, 8) Denny Hamlin -64, 9) Kevin Harvick -73, 10) Tony Stewart -104.
Wild Cards: Kasey Kahne, 2 wins, 11th in points; Jeff Gordon, 1 win, 12th in points.
Chase for the Championship Standings: 1) Denny Hamlin 2012, t-2) Tony Stewart -3, t-2) Jimmie Johnson -3, t-2) Brad Keselowski -3, t-5) Clint Bowyer -6, t-5) Greg Biffle -6, t-7) Dale Earnhardt, Jr. -9, t-7) Matt Kenseth -9, t-9) Martin Truex, Jr. -12, t-9) Kevin Harvick -12, t-9) Kasey Kahne -12, t-9) Jeff Gordon -12.
Best of the Rest: 13) Kyle Busch 774, 14) Carl Edwards -27, 15) Marcos Ambrose -39, 16) Ryan Newman -40, 17) Paul Menard -43, 18) Joey Logano -96, 19) Jeff Burton -127, 20) Jamie McMurray -134
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, Richmond 2), Jeff Gordon (Pocono 2), Marcos Ambrose (Watkins Glen).
Tracking The Top 35: The Gap Increases Just A Little More
The gap between the 35th and 36th place cars grew by seven more points after Saturday night's race at Richmond, putting the gap between 35th and 36th-place at 124 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 33rd, and that allowed the car owned by Tommy Baldwin Racing to gain seven points on the 36th spot. The No. 21 Ford driven by Trevor Bayne, which entered the race in 36th, did not compete. This allowed the No. 33 driven by Stephen Leicht for Circle Point, LLC, to reclaim the spot. Leicht finished 36th, nine laps down on Saturday night.
Here's your owners point standings around the all-important cutoff...
29) BK Racing (No. 93 – Travis Kvapil), 247 points ahead of 36th.
30) Front Row Motorsports (No. 38 - David Gilliland), 238 points ahead of 36th.
31) Front Row Motorsports (No. 34 - David Ragan), 224 points ahead of 36th.
32) BK Racing (No. 83 - Landon Cassill), 208 points ahead of 36th.
33) Tommy Baldwin Racing (No. 10 – David Reutimann), 159 points ahead of 36th.
34) FAS Lane Racing (No. 32 – Ken Schrader), 136 points ahead of 36th.
35) Tommy Baldwin Racing (No. 36 – Dave Blaney), 124 points ahead of 36th.
36) Circle Point, LLC (No. 33 – Stephen Leicht), 124 points behind 35th.
37) Wood Brothers Racing (No. 21 - Trevor Bayne), 128 points behind 35th.
38) Inception Motorsports (No. 30 – David Stremme), 151 points behind 35th.
39) Robinson-Blakeney Racing (No. 49 – Jason Leffler), 187 points behind 35th.
40) Phil Parsons Racing (No. 98 – Michael McDowell), 199 points behind 35th.
41) Front Row Motorsports (No. 26 - Josh Wise), 203 points behind 35th.
Jeff Wolfe is a Contributor for Frontstretch.com. He can be reached via email at jeff.wolfe@frontstretch.com.
~~~~~~~~~~
Secret Star of the Week: The Race You Never Saw
For BK Racing, the 2012 season was always going to be a bit of a "death trial," if you will. The team didn't even open up shop until January. Yes, they had pretty good equipment left over from the Red Bull Racing Team (including the car that Kasey Kahne used to win in Phoenix last November), but they had a lot of inexperience and a lack of preparation.
This past weekend, Landon Cassill kept up his decent qualifying runs by turning in the 12th-fastest time in qualifying. However, once the race started, Cassill dropped like a rock down into the 30's. He was eventually able to recover with the help of pit strategy to finish 19th, one lap down. BK Racing continues to show improvement, but they need to be able to put together a full race. That's when you'll start to see even better things from the small organization. - Phil Allaway
STAT OF THE WEEK: 123. This represents the number of laps that Clint Bowyer went on his final tank of fuel in order to claim the victory. The stop occurred during the final caution, meaning that only the first couple of laps were at a reduced pace. The pit window was generally considered to be 90-100 laps. - Phil Allaway
~~~~~~~~~~
Quotes to Remember: Federated Auto Parts 400
"Man, I tell you the last couple of times we've walked in -- Sonoma I ran out of gas doing a burnout too. Thank you to these fans. This is a late night they stuck it out with us, went through the weather with all of us. Unbelievable. To win this last race before this Chase got off -- we had a bad race last weekend. Had a lot of adversity we had to bounce through. Just kind of bummed out as a team as a whole coming into this race. This is a good way to get things bounced back headed into this Chase. You can't ask for a better race team. MWR (Michael Waltrip Racing), my teammates, everybody that is a part of this -- it's just unbelievable." - Clint Bowyer, winner
"It's just disappointing. I really don't know what to say. We really gave it all we had out there with our Quicken Loans Chevrolet. Unfortunately, it just wasn't our year to make the Chase. Now we have to go out there and do what we have to do to be the best of the rest these next 10 races." - Ryan Newman, finished eighth.
"To start from 28th and have to work our way up, it makes for a long night. Really proud of Steve Addington (crew chief) and all of our guys at Stewart-Haas Racing. That is what you have to do to win a championship. After last year, you can't count anybody out. All 12 guys have a good shot right now." - Tony Stewart, finished fourth
"As soon as we got started there after the rain we were a little bit free and then we just way tightened up and couldn't do what we needed to do. Just didn't have the long-run speed that we did early on. It's unfortunate. We keep coming close to getting a top 10 but 11th and 12th doesn't get it for us right now. I'm real happy with the job that the guys did. Obviously we want to be better but didn't have quite enough today." - Sam Hornish, Jr., finished 11th.
"We missed. That's it. Plain and simple. Handle it the right way. There's no right way to handle this situation [When asked about what he was told before he got out of the race car]." - Kyle Busch, finished 16th
~~~~~~~~~~
COME JOIN THE FRONTSTRETCH FAMILY!
If you are interested, contact frontstretcheditors@googlegroups.com. Please include references to your past work in your e-mail.
~~~~~~~~~~
ADVERTISEMENT
Are you looking to advertise your website, product or brand? A good way to get your name out there is via direct advertising here in the Frontstretch Newsletter! Interested parties can contact us at tony.lumbis@frontstretch.com for details.
~~~~~~~~~~
TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
Matt McLaughlin's Thinkin' Out Loud: Richmond-2 Race Recap
by Matt McLaighlin
Pace Laps: For Many, The Final Chapter Begins
by the Frontstretch Staff
Gordon's "Great Day" Really So Great? Why Wild Cards Aren't So Wild
by Mike Neff
The Big Six: Questions Answered After the Federated Auto Parts 400
by Amy Henderson
Nationwide Series Breakdown: Virginia 529 College Savings 250
by Bryan Davis Keith
~~~~~~~~~~~
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: This weekend's MavTV American Real 500 at Auto Club Speedway is the first open-wheeled 500 mile race outside of Indianapolis since 2002. What was the most notable fact about that race?
Check back Monday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Friday's Answer:
Q: Later on in the 1998 Autolite Platnium 250, there was yet another big wreck. What happened here?
A: This crash started off of Turn 4, and it was the same driver getting spun as the first big crash. Brad Noffsinger was spun out exiting Turn 4 by David Green in front of a large pack of cars. From there, it was on. A dozen cars were swept into the wreck. The crash can be seen at the 10:40 mark of this clip.
In this crash, Noffsinger and both Grubb brothers (Wayne and Kevin) were out on the spot. Robert Pressley, after getting caught up in both big wrecks, briefly returned to the race before pulling out. Randy LaJoie and Phil Parsons continued after time behind the wall. The others all sought repairs on pit road before continuing._
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: Federated Auto Parts 400 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: Richmond / Chicago Edition by Brett Poirier
The Chase is here, and Brett takes a look at which drivers are in position to take the field by storm... 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.
-----------------------------
Talk back to the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Got something to say about an article you've seen in the newsletter? It's as easy as replying directly to this message or sending an email to editors@frontstretch.com. We'll take the best comments and publish them here!
©2012 Frontstretch.com
Chasing the Chase: Top-10 Clinch Chase Spots, But Final Wild Card Up for Grabs
by Jeff Wolfe
Greg Biffle finished the NASCAR Sprint Cup regular season as the points leader, but now that the points are reset, he's not in the lead anymore. That's because the top-10 in points after the 26th race are reset for the Chase for the Sprint Cup based on wins. Each of the top-10 drivers get three bonus points for each of their regular season victories. So, heading into the 10-race Chase which starts Sunday at Chicagoland Speedway, Denny Hamlin's four wins will put him in the lead with 2012 points.
Following him are the three-win drivers with 2009 points. They are defending champion Tony Stewart, five-time champion Jimmie Johnson and Brad Keselowski. Next at 2006 are two-time winners Biffle and Clint Bowyer, and then at 2003 are Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Matt Kenseth then at 2000 are Martin Truex Jr. and Kevin Harvick, who finished in the top-10 without a win, and wild-card qualifiers Kasey Kahne and Jeff Gordon, whose wins do not count when the points are reset.
While Gordon made a dramatic run to edge Kyle Busch by three points and make the Chase, the only other driver who needed to win to make the Chase and actually led was Ryan Newman. He took the lead from team owner and teammate Stewart on lap 300 Saturday night and led for 13 laps, but was overtaken by the eventual winner Bowyer.
It looked like Hamlin was going to get three more bonus points to start the Chase. He led 202 of the first 275 laps, before that final caution for rain caused crew chiefs and drivers plenty of headaches when deciding whether to stay out or pit.
But Hamlin took solace in the fact that he is not only leading the points, but that his car has been so strong lately. He was bidding to win his third straight race, trying to become the first driver to do so since Johnson won four in a row in 2007.
"Our cars are lightning fast and we've just got a good thing going," Hamlin said.
Other drivers who needed to win Saturday night to make the Chase, but were never a factor were last year's runner-up Carl Edwards, Marcos Ambrose, Joey Logano and Paul Menard.
The other mini-drama surrounding Saturday's race was whether Stewart would remain in the top 10 and be able to keep his bonus points for his three victories. After starting 28th and struggling early in the race, he started to move up and was sixth when the final caution came out. He pitted early under the yellow and the fresh tires helped him to the lead where he led 15 laps. Coming into the race, that tenth spot had been threatened by Kahne, but he finished 12th, leaving him 26 points behind Stewart.
Stewart won last year's title by taking five of the final ten races. He entered last year's Chase without a win. So, he, more than anybody, knows anything is possible beginning at 1 p.m. Sunday at Chicagoland on ESPN.
"I obviously couldn't predict it last year," said Stewart, a three-time champion. "I wasn't good enough to predict it then. I'm not sure I'm going to be any better at predicting it now. It just showed all 12 of them are capable of doing it now. You look at the run that Jeff had tonight, raced his way in. That's the kind of drive you have to have to win a championship. All 12 guys have a shot, and a good shot I think."
Final Regular Season Standings: 1) Greg Biffle 914, 2) Dale Earnhardt, Jr. -12, 3) Matt Kenseth -17, 4) Jimmie Johnson -34, 5) Brad Keselowski -46, 6) Martin Truex, Jr. -52, 7) Clint Bowyer -56, 8) Denny Hamlin -64, 9) Kevin Harvick -73, 10) Tony Stewart -104.
Wild Cards: Kasey Kahne, 2 wins, 11th in points; Jeff Gordon, 1 win, 12th in points.
Chase for the Championship Standings: 1) Denny Hamlin 2012, t-2) Tony Stewart -3, t-2) Jimmie Johnson -3, t-2) Brad Keselowski -3, t-5) Clint Bowyer -6, t-5) Greg Biffle -6, t-7) Dale Earnhardt, Jr. -9, t-7) Matt Kenseth -9, t-9) Martin Truex, Jr. -12, t-9) Kevin Harvick -12, t-9) Kasey Kahne -12, t-9) Jeff Gordon -12.
Best of the Rest: 13) Kyle Busch 774, 14) Carl Edwards -27, 15) Marcos Ambrose -39, 16) Ryan Newman -40, 17) Paul Menard -43, 18) Joey Logano -96, 19) Jeff Burton -127, 20) Jamie McMurray -134
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, Richmond 2), Jeff Gordon (Pocono 2), Marcos Ambrose (Watkins Glen).
Tracking The Top 35: The Gap Increases Just A Little More
The gap between the 35th and 36th place cars grew by seven more points after Saturday night's race at Richmond, putting the gap between 35th and 36th-place at 124 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 33rd, and that allowed the car owned by Tommy Baldwin Racing to gain seven points on the 36th spot. The No. 21 Ford driven by Trevor Bayne, which entered the race in 36th, did not compete. This allowed the No. 33 driven by Stephen Leicht for Circle Point, LLC, to reclaim the spot. Leicht finished 36th, nine laps down on Saturday night.
Here's your owners point standings around the all-important cutoff...
29) BK Racing (No. 93 – Travis Kvapil), 247 points ahead of 36th.
30) Front Row Motorsports (No. 38 - David Gilliland), 238 points ahead of 36th.
31) Front Row Motorsports (No. 34 - David Ragan), 224 points ahead of 36th.
32) BK Racing (No. 83 - Landon Cassill), 208 points ahead of 36th.
33) Tommy Baldwin Racing (No. 10 – David Reutimann), 159 points ahead of 36th.
34) FAS Lane Racing (No. 32 – Ken Schrader), 136 points ahead of 36th.
35) Tommy Baldwin Racing (No. 36 – Dave Blaney), 124 points ahead of 36th.
36) Circle Point, LLC (No. 33 – Stephen Leicht), 124 points behind 35th.
37) Wood Brothers Racing (No. 21 - Trevor Bayne), 128 points behind 35th.
38) Inception Motorsports (No. 30 – David Stremme), 151 points behind 35th.
39) Robinson-Blakeney Racing (No. 49 – Jason Leffler), 187 points behind 35th.
40) Phil Parsons Racing (No. 98 – Michael McDowell), 199 points behind 35th.
41) Front Row Motorsports (No. 26 - Josh Wise), 203 points behind 35th.
Jeff Wolfe is a Contributor for Frontstretch.com. He can be reached via email at jeff.wolfe@frontstretch.com.
~~~~~~~~~~
Secret Star of the Week: The Race You Never Saw
For BK Racing, the 2012 season was always going to be a bit of a "death trial," if you will. The team didn't even open up shop until January. Yes, they had pretty good equipment left over from the Red Bull Racing Team (including the car that Kasey Kahne used to win in Phoenix last November), but they had a lot of inexperience and a lack of preparation.
This past weekend, Landon Cassill kept up his decent qualifying runs by turning in the 12th-fastest time in qualifying. However, once the race started, Cassill dropped like a rock down into the 30's. He was eventually able to recover with the help of pit strategy to finish 19th, one lap down. BK Racing continues to show improvement, but they need to be able to put together a full race. That's when you'll start to see even better things from the small organization. - Phil Allaway
STAT OF THE WEEK: 123. This represents the number of laps that Clint Bowyer went on his final tank of fuel in order to claim the victory. The stop occurred during the final caution, meaning that only the first couple of laps were at a reduced pace. The pit window was generally considered to be 90-100 laps. - Phil Allaway
~~~~~~~~~~
Quotes to Remember: Federated Auto Parts 400
"Man, I tell you the last couple of times we've walked in -- Sonoma I ran out of gas doing a burnout too. Thank you to these fans. This is a late night they stuck it out with us, went through the weather with all of us. Unbelievable. To win this last race before this Chase got off -- we had a bad race last weekend. Had a lot of adversity we had to bounce through. Just kind of bummed out as a team as a whole coming into this race. This is a good way to get things bounced back headed into this Chase. You can't ask for a better race team. MWR (Michael Waltrip Racing), my teammates, everybody that is a part of this -- it's just unbelievable." - Clint Bowyer, winner
"It's just disappointing. I really don't know what to say. We really gave it all we had out there with our Quicken Loans Chevrolet. Unfortunately, it just wasn't our year to make the Chase. Now we have to go out there and do what we have to do to be the best of the rest these next 10 races." - Ryan Newman, finished eighth.
"To start from 28th and have to work our way up, it makes for a long night. Really proud of Steve Addington (crew chief) and all of our guys at Stewart-Haas Racing. That is what you have to do to win a championship. After last year, you can't count anybody out. All 12 guys have a good shot right now." - Tony Stewart, finished fourth
"As soon as we got started there after the rain we were a little bit free and then we just way tightened up and couldn't do what we needed to do. Just didn't have the long-run speed that we did early on. It's unfortunate. We keep coming close to getting a top 10 but 11th and 12th doesn't get it for us right now. I'm real happy with the job that the guys did. Obviously we want to be better but didn't have quite enough today." - Sam Hornish, Jr., finished 11th.
"We missed. That's it. Plain and simple. Handle it the right way. There's no right way to handle this situation [When asked about what he was told before he got out of the race car]." - Kyle Busch, finished 16th
~~~~~~~~~~
COME JOIN THE FRONTSTRETCH FAMILY!
Hey Frontstretch Readers,
We are looking for someone who shares our enthusiasm for NASCAR and has an experienced background in web design. Specifically, we are looking for someone who can help maintain and enhance our website, increase our SEO, and upgrade our publishing platform while producing a limited amount of content throughout the season. This job presents a perfect opportunity for someone with a technical background, a person who wants their work to gain national exposure.
~~~~~~~~~~
ADVERTISEMENT
Are you looking to advertise your website, product or brand? A good way to get your name out there is via direct advertising here in the Frontstretch Newsletter! Interested parties can contact us at tony.lumbis@frontstretch.com for details.
~~~~~~~~~~
TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
Matt McLaughlin's Thinkin' Out Loud: Richmond-2 Race Recap
by Matt McLaighlin
Pace Laps: For Many, The Final Chapter Begins
by the Frontstretch Staff
Gordon's "Great Day" Really So Great? Why Wild Cards Aren't So Wild
by Mike Neff
The Big Six: Questions Answered After the Federated Auto Parts 400
by Amy Henderson
Nationwide Series Breakdown: Virginia 529 College Savings 250
by Bryan Davis Keith
~~~~~~~~~~~
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: This weekend's MavTV American Real 500 at Auto Club Speedway is the first open-wheeled 500 mile race outside of Indianapolis since 2002. What was the most notable fact about that race?
Check back Monday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Friday's Answer:
Q: Later on in the 1998 Autolite Platnium 250, there was yet another big wreck. What happened here?
A: This crash started off of Turn 4, and it was the same driver getting spun as the first big crash. Brad Noffsinger was spun out exiting Turn 4 by David Green in front of a large pack of cars. From there, it was on. A dozen cars were swept into the wreck. The crash can be seen at the 10:40 mark of this clip.
In this crash, Noffsinger and both Grubb brothers (Wayne and Kevin) were out on the spot. Robert Pressley, after getting caught up in both big wrecks, briefly returned to the race before pulling out. Randy LaJoie and Phil Parsons continued after time behind the wall. The others all sought repairs on pit road before continuing._
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: Federated Auto Parts 400 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: Richmond / Chicago Edition by Brett Poirier
The Chase is here, and Brett takes a look at which drivers are in position to take the field by storm... 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 Richmond and get us ready for Atlanta.
Couch Potato Tuesday by Phil Allaway
The Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series were each in action at Richmond International Raceway 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.
-----------------------------
Talk back to the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Got something to say about an article you've seen in the newsletter? It's as easy as replying directly to this message or sending an email to editors@frontstretch.com. We'll take the best comments and publish them here!
©2012 Frontstretch.com
Feel free to forward this newsletter if you have any friends who loves
NASCAR and great NASCAR commentary. They can subscribe to the Frontstetch by visiting http://www.frontstretch.com/notice/9557/.
If you want to stop your Frontstretch Newsletter subscription, we're sorry
to see you go. Just send an email to
TheFrontstretch+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com from the address that you
recieve the Frontstretch Newsletter.
No comments:
Post a Comment