Monday, October 28, 2013

The Frontstretch Newsletter: A Look Back At Sunday's Mayhem

THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
October 28th, 2013
Volume VII, Edition CCI
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Sprint Cup Race Recap: Gordon Upstages Johnson and Kenseth to Win Martinsville
by Justin Tucker

They always say at Martinsville to expect the unexpected.  Coming into Sunday's race, all eyes were on Jimmie Johnson and Matt Kenseth going head-to-head in another classic Chase race between the season's most dominant cars.

Instead, it was another legend who stole the show.

Jeff Gordon, winless entering the event recaptured his Martinsville magic, earning an eighth career victory on NASCAR's shortest track -- his first in eight years. Passing Kenseth with 21 laps to go, he tied Johnson for the most wins at the paperclip amongst active drivers while launching himself back into the championship conversation. It's the peak of what's been a rollercoaster season for Gordon; the 13th driver, added to the Chase mere days before it was supposed to begin has seized the opportunity and jumped to third in the season standings.

"It's hard to top what it feels like to win; especially when you've been through all of what this Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet team has been through," said Gordon, earning his 88th career victory on the Sprint Cup circuit.  "I'm just so proud of them for never giving up.  We've shown it all year long.  We've been through a lot, but boy, this is making it all worth it."

The Chase took center stage during Sunday's race and it appeared coming in that Johnson had a decided edge on his closest challenger for the championship.  However, Kenseth would outpoint his rival Sunday by leading a race-high 202 laps and finishing second.  Johnson would lead 123 laps early, but struggled as the race went on. After a midrace pit stop, under caution that put him off sequence from other lead lap cars the No. 48 had to battle back simply to finish fifth. (See Summer Bedgood's sidebar stories for more). As a result, the two drivers are tied going into next week's race at Texas Motor Speedway. 

Kenseth, who put himself in position to win said Gordon's experience at the end was the deciding factor.

"I have nothing to complain about, just you always feel bad when you're leading at the end and your crew puts you out front and you can't hold on to win," he said.  "So, I'm disappointed about that. [But] gosh, for how Martinsville has been for me, how could you not be pleased.  I mean, we led the most laps and finished second.  The only guy happier is Jeff."

Joining Gordon, Kenseth and Johnson in the top 5 of Sunday's race at Martinsville were Clint Bowyer in third and defending Sprint Cup champion Brad Keselowski in fourth.  Rounding out the top 10 were Kevin Harvick in sixth, Denny Hamlin in seventh and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. in eighth.  Greg Biffle finished ninth, despite missing 80 percent of his TV panel, and Jamie McMurray would back up his Talladega win with a tenth-place finish.

Sunday's race at Martinsville was a true, "throwback style" short track race.  17 cautions for 111 laps would slow the race pace to an average speed of 70.337 MPH. Several top names, from Mark Martin to Kasey Kahne were involved in incidents although the final 77 circuits went caution free. There were a total of 15 lead changes, among eight different drivers with a green-flag, on-track pass for the lead the deciding factor in the race.

Only three event remain in the Chase for the Sprint Cup as the series heads to the Wild Asphalt Circus at Texas Motor Speedway.  The AAA Texas 500 gets underway next Sunday at 3:16 PM ET.

Justin Tucker is a Newsletter Contributor at Frontstretch. To reach Justin, please contact Newsletter Manager Phil Allaway at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com.

Chasing The Chase: Through Seven Races, We've Settled Almost Nothing
by Phil Allaway

Martinsville Speedway is one of Jimmie Johnson's best tracks, so it was assumed that Johnson would be able to stretch his miniscule points lead over Matt Kenseth.  Not so fast.

Kenseth came into Sunday on a mission to defeat Johnson and he managed to do it.  Kenseth led a race-high 202 laps and finished second.  With Johnson running just at his average for Martinsville (fifth), we have a dead heat with three races to go.  Kenseth officially wins the tiebreaker since he has seven wins to Johnson's five; however, this title is far from settled.  The duo now heads to Texas, where neither performed all that well in the Spring. Johnson ran sixth, while Kenseth was 12th and neither driver got up front to lead a lap.

Can anyone else catch up to the top two? Jeff Gordon used the momentum of his victory Sunday to move up two spots, up to third in the points.  However, he is one point behind where the duo of Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick were in comparison to Johnson entering Sunday. 27 markers behind, Gordon is no longer in control of his title destiny. Even if he won the last three races, plus led the most laps the two drivers above him could steal the title with three consecutive finishes of fifth or better.

Speaking of Harvick and Kyle Busch, Harvick more or less stood pat on Sunday, finishing sixth and losing two points to Johnson.  If anything, Harvick's tiff with owner Richard Childress' grandson will continue to cast a pall over the team; the outlook may be cloudy here over the next three weeks. Kyle, meanwhile ran very well on Sunday, but faded late to finish 15th. Those two are the only others who could technically assume the point lead after Texas.

Leading off the next group of Chasers, Clint Bowyer is up two places to sixth after finishing third by just a hair at Martinsville. Dale Earnhardt, Jr. dropped one place to seventh after running eighth on Sunday.  Just two points behind him is Greg Biffle, who finished ninth at Martinsville, but was none too pleased with Johnson after the race.  Kurt Busch maintained the ninth spot, but lost quite a bit of ground after finishing a lap down in 18th. Carl Edwards, in tenth is just one point behind Kurt.  For Edwards, Martinsville was a rough ride. Involved in the race's first two cautions, he was as far back as 28th at one point and required a Lucky Dog to fight back to 12th at the finish.

Joey Logano, still recovering from a bumpy Chase start is up one place to 11th after finishing 14th.  That one spot was at the expense of Ryan Newman, who crashed after contact with Harvick on Lap 318.  Newman would eventually fall to 38th, 68 laps down. Finally, Kasey Kahne's horrid Chase continued with a 27th-place finish.  Kahne was spun out early in a chain reaction crash and got stuck in the grass, losing multiple laps in the process.

Outside of the Chase, Jamie McMurray continues to lead those drivers following his tenth-place Martinsville finish.  However, his advantage has dropped to 24 points over Brad Keselowski.

Chase Point Standings: t-1) Matt Kenseth 2,294, t-1) Jimmie Johnson 2,294, 3) Jeff Gordon -27, 4) Kevin Harvick -28, 5) Kyle Busch -36, 6) Clint Bowyer -55, 7) Dale Earnhardt, Jr. -56, 8) Greg Biffle -58, 9) Kurt Busch -75, 10) Carl Edwards -76, 11) Joey Logano -85, 12) Ryan Newman -106, 13) Kasey Kahne -124.

Best of the Rest (14-23): 14) Jamie McMurray 953, 15) Brad Keselowski -24, 16) Martin Truex, Jr. -61, 17) Paul Menard -66, 18) Aric Almirola -110, 19) Jeff Burton -115, 20) Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. -126, 21) Marcos Ambrose -140, 22) Juan Pablo Montoya -147, 23) Casey Mears -278.

Non-Chase Point Standings (top-23): 1) Jimmie Johnson 1123, 2) Kevin Harvick -35, 3) Matt Kenseth -37, 4) Kyle Busch -66, 5) Carl Edwards -69, 6) Dale Earnhardt, Jr. -104, 7) Clint Bowyer -105, 8) Jeff Gordon -106, 9) Greg Biffle -131, 10) Kurt Busch -142, 11) Joey Logano -166, 12) Jamie McMurray -170, t-13) Brad Keselowski -194, t-13) Ryan Newman -194, 15) Kasey Kahne -214, 16) Martin Truex, Jr. -231, 17) Paul Menard -236, 18) Aric Almirola -280, 19) Jeff Burton -285, 20) Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. -296, 21) Marcos Ambrose -310, 22) Juan Pablo Montoya -317, 23) Casey Mears -448.

Race Winners: Jimmie Johnson (Daytona-1, Martinsville-1, Pocono-1, Daytona-2, Dover-2), Carl Edwards (Phoenix, Richmond-2), Matt Kenseth (Las Vegas, Kansas-1, Darlington, Kentucky, Bristol-2, Chicagoland, New Hampshire-2), Kasey Kahne (Bristol-1, Pocono-2), Kyle Busch (Fontana, Texas, Watkins Glen, Atlanta), Kevin Harvick (Richmond-1, Charlotte, Kansas-2), David Ragan (Talladega), Tony Stewart (Dover-1), Greg Biffle (Michigan-1), Martin Truex, Jr. (Sonoma), Brian Vickers (New Hampshire-1), Ryan Newman (Indianapolis), Joey Logano (Michigan-2), Brad Keselowski (Charlotte-2), Jamie McMurray (Talladega-2), Jeff Gordon (Martinsville-2).

Phil Allaway is the Newsletter Manager and a Senior Writer for Frontstretch. He can be reached via e-mail at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com. Follow him on Twitter at @Critic84.

Never Fear, The Underdogs Are Here: Martinsville-2 Edition
by Amy Henderson

Underdog Selection No. 1: Casey Mears for Germain Racing; started 28th, finished 21st

Mears' day was better than his finish shows.  Damage to the hood of his car from an early chain reaction dustup left Mears unable to see where he was going, and even under caution, he lost a lap on pit road.  It took another 200 or so laps until he got it back, which was really a shame because the driver was running lap times equal to those in the top 5.  The No. 13 faded a bit in the late going, as the team ran low on fresh tires but was still the best in the small-team bracket.

Underdog Selection No. 2: David Gilliland for Front Row Motorsports; started 27th, finished 23rd

It was Gilliland's teammate, David Ragan, who surprised everyone by qualifying eighth to start the weekend. But after his engine gave up the ghost, after just over 100 laps it was Gilliland who carried the flag for Front Row Motorsports.  The team has shown improvement in recent weeks, and at Martinsville, Gilliland looked racy for much of the day, running well among his peers and even giving the leaders a hard time as he fought to stay on the lead lap.  It wasn't the kind of day a team circles in red as their best, once the checkered flew but it was one where the team can be satisfied with the effort. That 23rd, for FRM is now looked at as a C grade is significant progress.

Underdog Selection No. 3: Travis Kvapil for BK Racing; started 32nd, finished 24th

For the second week in a row, Kvapil quietly gave BK a solid, if unspectacular, day.  Despite getting spun twice during the 500-lap race, Kvapil was able to salvage a decent finish in 24th, better than most of his direct competition.  With questions surrounding his future with the team after Kvapil was arrested earlier this month, on domestic violence charges he may well be auditioning to keep this ride come 2014. So far, so good.

Underdog Pick of the Week - Texas II: David Ragan for Front Row Motorsports

In this section, I'll give you my pick among the small teams to have a strong run in the upcoming race.

My Martinsville pick, Bobby Labonte, was plagued by a car that wouldn't cooperate, and came in 32nd.  I need a little redemption this week, and I'm hoping to find it in David Ragan.  While Casey Mears has a better average finish at Texas, this team has found a little power of late, and Ragan has raced well.  He's got a good shot at being the best in class this weekend.

Is your favorite driver among NASCAR's underdogs?  Are you frustrated with the lack of coverage they receive during the race broadcasts? Amy has all the small teams covered each and every week in The Big Six.  Be sure to check it out to see how your favorites fared!
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Letter of the Race: Sunday's Talladega race was brought to you by the letter "I," for Inside Line. Traditionally, Martinsville Speedway has been a one-groove racetrack.  However, it was possible to use a second lane in a pinch, especially in the three years before the most recent repave.  However, the cool weather this past weekend made it near impossible for the race cars and race trucks to lay any rubber down on the concrete in the turns. That left guys on the outside, every restart hung out to dry and almost guaranteed to lose several spots on-track before slotting in line. - Phil Allaway

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Sidebar Stories: Martinsville
by Summer Bedgood

Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth Leave Martinsville Tied in Points

When Jimmie Johnson entered the weekend in Martinsville, he had to feel rather confident.  After all, he has a total of eight victories at the track, and was the two-time defending winner before the green flag fell on Sunday.  Martinsville seemed to be the track where he would finally widen the gap between himself and championship contender Matt Kenseth.

The opposite would actually happen, though as the two would wind up tied for the top spot at the end of the race.  Kenseth's second-place run and Jimmie Johnson's fifth-place finish left the two with the exact same amount of points when the checkered flag flew. However, Kenseth was given the tiebreaker by virtue of having more wins than Johnson did.

With that in mind, Kenseth and Johnson are still looking ahead to Texas knowing full well that the championship is far from over.

"I think if you're within a race, anything can happen," said Kenseth.  "I think if you're more than a race behind multiple drivers, I think that makes it tough.  I think if you're whatever you can get in a race, 48 points, if you're more than that behind more than one driver, more than two drivers, I think that's hard to overcome with three races to go.  But as we've seen through the years, anything can happen.  You just never know what's going to happen."

"It's been a great battle with the No. 20 car (Matt Kenseth) and the No. 24 (Jeff Gordon) is really showing that he wants to be a part of this deal, as well; and there are some other guys back there kind of close," responded Johnson.  "So, it's going to be a dogfight to the end.  It's the way that I would want to go racing for a championship, and I know that's exactly what the fans want to see.  We'll keep digging hard.  We had a decent day today and see if we can't get this Lowe's Chevrolet to Victory Lane here soon."

For Johnson, a strong car early appeared to fizzle based on losing the lead just before a midrace restart. Stuck on the outside line, after that for several consecutive cautions the No. 48 car just didn't have the muscle to get down on the inside of the track. Clint Bowyer, among others was openly critical of the way Johnson muscled down to save track position, giving the Lowe's Chevy a break when contact could have led to a spinout. Finally, Chad Knaus brought Johnson to the pits on Lap 339, off sequence for fresh tires and a chance to make a handling adjustment. Forced to fight back the rest of the day, it took all the team had for Johnson to make it back to fifth by the checkered flag.

Greg Biffle Confronts Jimmie Johnson On Pit Road

Greg Biffle had a terrible weekend at Martinsville that began with two spins in one practice session before the green flag ever flew for the Goody's Headache Relief Shot 500.  His race didn't get much better, as he ran midpack for much of the day though Biffle insisted he had a good car.

During the race, a piece of his bumper came apart and started flapping in the wind.  Biffle began racing Jimmie Johnson for position, and the racing got dicey.  Johnson was trying to work his way back up through the field, and made contact with Biffle's rear bumper.  This made the damage to his car worse, forcing the Ford driver to head to pit road during a well-timed caution to fix the damage.

Biffle obviously wasn't happy about the contact, and walked over to Johnson on pit road after the race.  According to witnesses, he grabbed Johnson either by the shoulders or the collar and exchanged some heated words, including several swears before walking away.

"We had a great 3M Ford Fusion," said the driver afterwards.  "It was a good day for us.  I just wish that wouldn't have happened (the rear bumper flapping forcing him to pit road).  We had a top-5 car here today, finally to get in the top 5 at Martinsville, but that's like our fourth or fifth top 10 in a row so I'm pretty happy."

Biffle ran ninth. Johnson had no comment, but Biffle later apologized for the incident on Twitter.

Kevin Harvick Forced to Apologize … Again

A day after Kevin Harvick unleashed on his current organization of Richard Childress Racing, along with Childress' grandson Ty Dillon, Harvick was forced to apologize for those comments.  While he avoided burning that bridge, he just about burned another one: the Stewart-Haas Racing organization he'll be driving for next year.

Harvick was racing Ryan Newman for position on Lap 318, in the Sprint Cup Series race when he made contact and sent the No. 39 car around.  Though Newman is leaving SHR next year, for Richard Childress Racing, Newman remains under contract with SHR through November.

"First thing I want to do is apologize to Ryan Newman," said Harvick.  "I tried to shoot in a gap there and just barely clipped the right rear of his car.  It doesn't make his day any better.  But I've just got to thank all my guys on the Rheem Chevrolet.  It's all beat-up.  And it's leaking water so we didn't have any water pressure there for about 150 laps, so it was a little bit nerve-wracking. Luckily, it was a small hole. We battled all day and had a decent day and had a decent car.  They adjusted for the damage and had the car really good there at the end and we lived to fight another day."

Harvick finished sixth while Newman ran 38th.

Summer Bedgood is a Senior Writer for Frontstretch. She can be reached via e-mail at summer.bedgood@frontstretch.com. Follow her on Twitter at @SummerBedgood.

Quotes to Remember: Goody's Headache Relief Shot 500
compiled by Summer Bedgood

"To be able to get a huge win here at Martinsville for points, for the Manufacturers' Championship, for all the Hendrick family and for all those that were lost several years ago; seeing Rick (Hendrick) here means a lot to all of us." - Jeff Gordon, race winner

"Just went away from me there at the end.  But it was a great race.  When the 5 (Kasey Kahne) blocked us in there or whatever went on I really lost a lot of momentum and Jeff (Gordon) got to me.  From that moment on, I had a hard time holding him off.  All of the lapped cars up to that point were so courteous and could roll right by them and then they were side-by-side and I thought he was a bunch of laps down.  So, once I had to push him out of the way we were a little slower.  But, overall, what a great day.  Just thanks to Dollar General and JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing), it was a good day for us." - Matt Kenseth, finished second

"Just not enough man.  We were so good in practice.  Really, really strong in practice with our 5-Hour ENERGY Toyota.  I was super optimistic, but it just wasn't our day.  We worked very hard to get where we were.  I'm proud of (Brian) Pattie (crew chief).  Just frustrating.  I was really looking forward to this race.  I thought this was one that we'd have a legit shot at winning at and just come up a little short." - Clint Bowyer, finished third

"It was a decent day.  It seems like every time we come to Martinsville with the Miller Lite Ford Fusion we run right in that fourth, fifth, sixth range and I was just trying to break out and get to Victory Lane, but came up a bit short today.  It was a solid effort.  We were quite a ways off at the start of the race and Paul Wolfe and everybody on the 2 crew dialed us in a little better and got some decent track position there at the end when it counts." - Brad Keselowski, finished fourth

"We ran decent.  We realistically really had about a 25th-place car — we just kept crutching it with one adjustment to try to make it turn the center and of course, with that I would just burn up my rear tires 30 laps into a run.  Even though the car drove as bad as it did, we still were able to be at least somewhat competitive.  We had a lot of damage from that early wreck. Proud of this whole team for fixing it.  The pit crew did awesome on pit road — they kept picking me up spots.  Seventh isn't what we like here at Martinsville, but still it's a step in the right direction." - Denny Hamlin, finished seventh

"We worked really, really hard all day and just... we had a decent car and didn't do everything exactly like we needed to.  It was a pretty good car, maybe a fifth-place car.  This tire was a struggle for us last year, and the last time we were here and we felt like we made a lot of good gains on it in practice and had some good speed.   I don't know what we have to do to get that extra bit.  I think the race could play out a little bit differently and give us a little better track position.   We tore the right front off and I think that hurt the aerodynamics quite a bit." - Dale Earnhardt, Jr., finished eighth

"An up and down day for our team.  We chased the balance on the car both loose and tight throughout the race.  We raced near the front and the back at different times.  Our guys worked hard to make adjustments and put us in contention for a top-10 finish. All-in-all, a good day for our McDonald's team, on such a tough track." - Jamie McMurray, finished tenth

"It was tough.  We were terrible and then we actually made it back up and we were OK there at the end, but it just wasn't good enough." - Carl Edwards, finished 12th

"The Target Chevy started out strong and then we fell behind and struggled keeping up with the changing track conditions. The guys kept working on it and we were able to get back on the lead lap and run up in the top 15 for the end of the race. I'm proud of these guys. They never gave up and we had a decent finish today." - Juan Pablo Montoya, finished 13th

"This place can be so frustrating.  Chad (Johnston, crew chief) has been bringing me the best cars I have ever had at this place and we keep getting crashed.  On the restart, I just got pushed into the car in front of me.  They never let off to the point my hood was up.  I was just along for the ride.  I have to hand it to my NAPA Know How crew for making quick repairs to keep me on the lead lap.  We made the best of it.  It took us 100 laps but damn, we got back to tenth.  Then we got into another accident so needless to say it was an emotional rollercoaster for us today." - Martin Truex, Jr., finished 16th

"I'm really proud of what our GoDaddy team accomplished today. For pulling out the backup car on Friday and having to start so far back in the field, it was a really good run. We started in the back and made our way through, and we didn't have quite the car that we had here in the spring but we got a similar result and that's something I'm proud of. The guys did a great job in the pits. They were on their game each stop. Our adjustments were good all day. It was just a really solid day for our team, and that's what we want to do these next few races and end our season on a strong note. Today was the last race for our pink car. I'm really proud that we were able to give GoDaddy and .ORG a good run because I'm very proud of what they do to help promote breast cancer awareness and I've been honored to help them with that through the month of October." - Danica Patrick, finished 17th

"We didn't qualify well, didn't practice well and obviously didn't race well today. I don't know what it is but there's something about this track that doesn't suit me. A very disappointing performance today. For a Chase team, we should have been much better. Our Furniture Row Chevrolet got banged up early when it took a big hit to the right side. But no excuses, we just didn't have it." - Kurt Busch, finished 18th

"It was just a long day.  We fought hard and I'm real proud of my guys for all the hard work.  We battled through a lot of adversity today, but it was just not the day we were hoping for.  We just really struggled to get our car to roll around the center of the corner and that ended up hurting us." - Aric Almirola, finished 20th

"Our car would be good for the short run.  I didn't know the track was going to tighten up as much as it did.  We just lost front grip.  I'm proud of my guys.  We made good adjustments and had great pit stops.  I just wish we could have had a little more for them there at the end.  We gave up a lot of spots the last 50 laps." - Elliott Sadler, finished 25th

"I started out too tight. I don't know, we just can't seem to catch a break in these two Cup starts that I've had. We blew up in Charlotte and not sure if we had a rear end blow up here or what. I just want to thank Target for the opportunity to get some experience this season… Chip Ganassi, Felix (Sabates) and everybody that put me out here and let me get a little bit of laps. I would like to finish one of these races that I have run. Who knows, might get a couple of more races this season, so hopefully we can have those go a little better. I learned that I have to get my car a little bit better in the center of the corner during practice the next time I come back. You see the leaders and how much better their cars work in the center of the corners, which helps them off the corner and all the way down the straightaway. I just need to get a better feel for these things and help my career out a little bit." - Kyle Larson, finished 42nd
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TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:

Thinkin' Out Loud: Martinsville-2 Sprint Cup Race Recap
by Mike Neff

The Big Six: Questions Answered Following The Goody's 500
by Amy Henderson
by Tom Bowles

From Sunday:

by Michael Mehedin


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FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:

Q:  The inaugural True Value 500k for the Indy Racing League is best known for the scoring issues that led to the wrong driver (Billy Boat) in Victory Lane and Arie Luyendyk (the rightful victor) being the recipient of a pimp slap from A.J. Foyt.

However, the ridiculousness at the end may have been quite a bit different had another incident not happened.  What was it?

Check back Tuesday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!

Friday's Answer:

Q:  Dale Earnhardt, Jr. didn't exactly have the best introduction to Martinsville in the Cup Series.  After a 26th-place finish in the Spring of 2000, the NAPA AutoCare 500 was just one mess after another.  What happened?

A:  Earnhardt Jr. qualified a miserable 32nd and things never really got much better.  Early in the race, the No. 8 blew a right-front tire, bringing out a yellow when Earnhardt Jr. locked up the tires to avoid smacking the wall.  Unfortunately, Earnhardt Jr. got lapped in the process.

Earnhardt Jr. was then nine laps down when he was hit and spun out in the aftermath of a crash exiting Turn 4 by Stacy Compton.  That crash damaged the left side of the No. 8 and put Earnhardt Jr. behind the wall.  Finally, late in the race, Earnhardt Jr. climbed the right rear of Dave Blaney and crashed hard in Turn 1, ending his day.  ESPN did not catch the wreck live, but has some aftermath footage.  That can be seen here, along with a spin by Bobby Labonte that occurred around the same time.

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: Goody's Headache Relief Shot 500 by Tom Bowles
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!

Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:
 
Five Points To Ponder by Danny Peters
Danny returns for his weekly edition of talking points, which will wrap up the action at Martinsville and get us ready for Texas.

Who's Hot / Who's Not in Sprint Cup: Martinsville-Texas Edition by Brad Morgan
Brad gives us something to look forward to going into Texas. He's tracking the trends of the past few weeks to see which drivers are on a tear... or tearing their hair out.

Racing To The Point by Brett Poirier
Brett is back with another commentary to make you think.

Going By The Numbers by Kevin Rutherford
Kevin enlightens us with his weekly statistics column based on trends we've been seeing in the Cup Series so far this season.

Couch Potato Tuesday by Phil Allaway
This past weekend, the Sprint Cup and Camping World Truck Series both raced at Martinsville Speedway.  How were these races presented last weekend?  Find out in our weekly TV critique.
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