THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
April 28th, 2014
Volume VIII, Edition LVIII
~~~~~~~~~~
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
April 28th, 2014
Volume VIII, Edition LVIII
~~~~~~~~~~
Today's TV Schedule
Time Telecast Network
4:00 PM - 5:00 PM NASCAR RaceHub FOX Sports 1
6:00 PM - 6:30 PM NASCAR America NBC Sports Network
6:30 PM - 7:30 PM NASCAR RaceHub FOX Sports 2*#
11:00 PM - 12:00 AM Moto3: Argentina FOX Sports 2* (from April 27)
DVR Theater (Late Monday night/Early Tuesday morning)
2:30 AM - 3:00 AM NASCAR Now ESPN2
~~~~~~~~~~
Sprint Cup Race Recap: Logano Wins Wild Battle at Richmond
by Justin Tucker
Kyle Larson won the pole. Jeff Gordon led much of the race. Joey Logano?
He just waited patiently for an opportunity late on Saturday night. And when Matt Kenseth, Brad Keselowski, and Gordon got into a three-way battle for the win, it was Logano who pounced with just three laps to go, getting the jump on all of them. It was enough not only to squeeze out in front, but pull away to win Saturday night's Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond International Raceway.
Logano, who came into Saturday's race winless in his first ten starts at the 3/4-mile oval, virtually came out of nowhere after J.J. Yeley's blown engine bunched up the field one last time on Lap 386. On the final restart, with nine laps left Logano, who lined up fourth, fell back initially and bided his time. Then, once the field settled out and Kenseth, Keselowski, and Gordon all jockeyed for the top spot, he closed in and made a power move to the bottom of the racetrack. Logano cleared the trio, after some hard side-by-side racing and then held off a surging Gordon to score his second trophy of the season. Now, with three career victories driving for Roger Penske the youngster has more in 45 races with the team than he scored in over four seasons (nearly 150 starts) with former employer Joe Gibbs Racing.
"It feels great," said Logano. "I want to start winning some races in the Chase now. These cars right now are so good and (Team) Penske is doing such a great job with these cars right now. I am just the lucky guy that gets to drive these things."
With his second win of 2014, Logano has assured himself a spot in that Chase, joining Kevin Harvick as the only multiple winners this season. Gordon, meanwhile kept his incredible start to the 2014 season going with a strong second-place effort. He would lead a race-high 173 laps on the evening, clearly the best driver on long runs but couldn't close the deal during a short sprint.
"All night long, I just had to let the 2 and the 22 go right by me because they were so fast on fresh tires," Gordon said.
That short run push almost sent them to a 1-2 finish, with Brad Keselowski using the outside line to challenge Kenseth and Gordon up front. In the end, a block from Kenseth's No. 20 sent Keselowski high, caused contact and pushed him back to third place. Feeling Kenseth squeezed him up the track in the closing laps, the frustrated Penske racing driver slammed into his rival post-race, a bump that also damaged the cars of Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and AJ Allmendinger before throwing his gloves on pit road, pointing fingers at Kenseth and angrily venting during a post-race interview.
"Every race track you should race for the win, but you don't run somebody off the racetrack to race for the win if you really aren't fast enough," Keselowski said. "Three, four other cars passed him so it didn't win him the race running me off the racetrack. He probably finished where he was going to finish anyway. It just cost me the win, and I don't think that's very smart. That's something I'll remember."
Kenseth, on the other hand, didn't understand the frustration for Keselowski after the race, a bump-and-run that even caused impartial observer Dale Earnhardt, Jr. to say, "Get over it."
"I think you race as hard as you can to win. I'm not going to go wreck somebody to win, and he certainly tried to wreck me on the race track," Kenseth said. "That's one thing, and then trying to wreck all those cars after the race is totally another. That's always uncalled for. I can see he's upset. I ran him up the track. I'd probably be upset, too, but like I said we're racing as hard as we could to try to get that win."
Joining Logano and Gordon in the top 5 of Saturday's Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond were: Kyle Busch after a late-race charge in third, then Keselowski in fourth and Kenseth in fifth. AJ Allmendinger finished sixth, while Dale Earnhardt, Jr. fell back to seventh due to brake issues down the stretch. Ryan Newman was eighth, Carl Edwards ninth, while Martin Truex, Jr. rounded out the top 10 with his first top-10 of the season for his new team, the No. 78 of Furniture Row Racing.
The wild action wasn't just reserved for the track as tempers flared during post-race between several drivers. The tone was set as Clint Bowyer would spin pole sitter Kyle Larson on the opening lap of the race. Larson would recover from the early spin to finish 16th while Bowyer was not as lucky as suspension issues would end his night, on lap 159 in 43rd place. Then, Justin Allgaier sought out Denny Hamlin in the garage after the two made contact late, sending Allgaier into the wall and ruining the rookie's first potential top-10 finish. But it was Marcos Ambrose and Casey Mears who had the most serious altercation, resulting in Ambrose punching Mears in the face. Although unclear as to what caused the fight, NASCAR Vice President of Competition Robin Pemberton said NASCAR would further investigate the matter.
"We don't think it was anything too severe," Pemberton said of an incident, caught on camera in which both drivers got physical before crewmembers intervened. "We'll get all the footage that we can and look at it and see what happens from there. … We've got to take our time and do everything."
Tire issues also once again plagued a Sprint Cup Series race in 2014 as Jimmie Johnson, Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., Reed Sorenson and others would have issues with their Goodyear Eagles. Right-front tires appeared to give way after no more than 55 laps, melting pieces of rubber while setting oil lines and other parts of the front of the car on fire as they split apart. Sorenson had the most serious incident, literally pulled from his No. 36 Chevy by safety workers as pieces of tire set off a fire that burnt the entire front portion of his car to a crisp.
A look at the Toyota Owners 400 by the numbers: There were 20 lead changes among eight different drivers and nine cautions for 66 laps would slow the race pace to 93.369 MPH.
Next week, the Sprint Cup Series heads to the Talladega Superspeedway for the Aaron's 499. Green flag scheduled for 1:20 PM ET next Sunday.
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: Gordon Slightly Extends Lead With Excellent Night
by Phil Allaway
Jeff Gordon came into Darlington with the slimmest of leads and knew he had to run great to keep it. Mission accomplished. Gordon led a race-high 173 laps, dominant at times in his Drive To End Hunger No. 24 Chevrolet and finished second. However, even with that run, it still took some late-race fireworks to keep the point lead as Matt Kenseth was looking good for a win until he got into a bumping match with Brad Keselowski.Kenseth, who then dropped back to a fifth-place result allowed Gordon to extend his lead back up to five. Carl Edwards still sits third, but fell to over half-a-race's worth of points behind after finishing ninth. Edwards, who made an unscheduled pit stop for tires at one point that left him two laps behind used the wavearound and Lucky Dog to get back in position for a top 10. Kyle Busch, meanwhile is up two places this week to fourth after using late-race pit strategy to finish third (he was the only driver in the top 5 to pit after the leader's final round of stops with 30 laps to go). Using fresh tires, Busch blitzed the field on the final restart, jumping from outside the top 15 to third - and closing - by the checkered flag.
Dale Earnhardt, Jr. had to run the final ten laps of the race with only rear brakes after boiling his brake fluid. As a result, Earnhardt Jr. fell to a seventh-place finish. That was enough to drop one spot in the points to fifth. Joey Logano's victory on Saturday night moved him up two places in points to sixth, while Brad Keselowski's fourth-place finish kept him seventh. Jimmie Johnson, meanwhile dropped three places to eighth after having multiple flat tires Saturday night. While Johnson's car did not catch fire, the Goodyear issues cost him four laps on track, relegating him to a 32nd-place finish.
Ryan Newman had a very quiet run up through the field at Richmond, in position to challenge for a win at one point but inevitably faded to an eighth-place finish. That allowed Newman to maintain the ninth spot in the regular season standings. Brian Vickers, meanwhile had an up-and-down night, running for the lead at one point while straining to stay inside the top 20 at others. In the end, he finished in 12th. That was enough to move Vickers up into a tie for tenth in points with Greg Biffle. Biffle also struggled for much of the evening before running 15th. Finally, Austin Dillon, the series' top rookie in points is down to 12th after finishing exactly where he started (27th) on Saturday night. Yes, Dillon got up into the top 15 at one point, but he got booted out of the groove shortly after a restart, ended up 27th and stayed there for the rest of the race, struggling to stay competitive behind the wheel of his No. 3.
Point Standings (1-16): 1) Jeff Gordon 341, 2) Matt Kenseth -5, 3) Carl Edwards -28, 4) Kyle Busch -31, 5) Dale Earnhardt, Jr. -32, 6) Joey Logano -49, 7) Brad Keselowski -54, 8) Jimmie Johnson -59, 9) Ryan Newman -69, t-10) Brian Vickers -85, t-10) Greg Biffle -85, 12) Austin Dillon -89, 13) Kyle Larson -90, 14) Denny Hamlin -96, 15) Tony Stewart -98, 16) Marcos Ambrose -99.
Outside of the top-16, but in Chase Contention: t-20) Kevin Harvick -121, 25) Kurt Busch -156.
Race Winners: Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (Daytona), Kevin Harvick (Phoenix, Darlington), Brad Keselowski (Las Vegas), Carl Edwards (Bristol), Kyle Busch (Fontana), Kurt Busch (Martinsville), Joey Logano (Texas, Richmond)
Phil Allaway is the Newsletter Manager and a Senior Writer for Frontstretch.com. He can be reached via email at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com. Follow him on Twitter at @Critic84.
Phil Allaway is the Newsletter Manager and a Senior Writer for Frontstretch.com. He can be reached via email at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com. Follow him on Twitter at @Critic84.
~~~~~~~~~~
Never Fear, The Underdogs Are Here: Richmond Edition
by Amy Henderson
Are you a fan of a driver from a smaller team? Do you ever see one of these guys on the race results and wonder how he got there? NASCAR's small teams may not get much airtime during the race broadcast, but that doesn't mean there's nothing to talk about. Each week, Amy Henderson takes a peek into how the little guys fared in the race.
Underdog Selection No. 1: AJ Allmendinger for JTG-Daugherty Racing; started 14th, finished 6th
This team is one on the verge of not being included as an underdog anymore. Like Furniture Row Racing, better finishes are to be expected as the team has Richard Childress Racing equipment and access to all of RCR's extensive information to help make the cars go faster. Allmendinger, meanwhile in his first full season with JTG is showing why Roger Penske believed in him even after a suspension for violating NASCAR's drug policy. Back then, in mid-2012 the owner was forced, via company policy to fire his driver. But Penske was still confident enough, after Allmendinger got cleared to hire him back the following year, handing the driver a limited schedule in both IndyCar and the NASCAR Nationwide Series. Allmendinger thanked him by winning both NNS races and having a near-miss in Indy — if not for a seat belt problem, he might well have won the biggest event in American racing. Now, Allmendinger and his new team, the No. 47 of JTG-Daugherty Racing are putting it together in a big way.
"It was a good race," said Allmendinger after Richmond, bringing the car its best result since Bobby Labonte ran fourth in the 2011 Daytona 500. "Just a tough racetrack. I was really happy with the car in general. It's just such a fine line between being too tight and burning the rear tires off or just being a little too loose the whole time. I thought there were two or three long runs I thought the car was awesome. Then, another couple of runs it wasn't as good. Overall, proud of the guys. We definitely had a top-15 car all day, top-10 car probably. Probably stole one there finish-wise at the end, but we are getting there."
If Allmendinger keeps stealing those finishes, this team will leave the underdogs behind.
Underdog Selection No. 2: Casey Mears for Germain Racing; started 34th, finished 19th
Germain Racing also inked a deal with RCR this year, and while they've been a little slower off the block, this week, they put it all together. It's a shame that what most people will remember from Richmond was Mears' post-race altercation with Marcos Ambrose because his on-track performance should have been the story. Mears came from 34th to 15th and was moving forward before a speeding penalty derailed that charge. He made it back to 16th, only to have a tire reportedly cut by Ambrose, sparking the fireworks after the race that left Mears with a swollen and cut face.
The No. 13 team got lucky with a caution for J.J. Yeley's blown engine, one that allowed Mears to pit under caution and not lose laps, though they lost any chance at a top-10 finish. But this team is headed to one of the driver's best tracks this week with some of the best restrictor plate equipment in NASCAR. If Mears can avoid trouble, he could put the heartache of Richmond in the rear-view for good, in position to contend for the win Sunday at Talladega.
Underdog Selection No. 3: David Gilliland for Front Row Motorsports; started 33rd, finished 20th
Most people probably think of David Ragan as FRM's top driver after he pulled off an upset win at Talladega last spring. But in reality, that title belongs to Gilliland over the last couple of years, with a higher average finish and a greater degree of consistency. This season, that average result is three spots better than Ragan's, and Gilliland's been more competitive overall. In Richmond, Gilliland nabbed his first lead-lap finish of the year, swapping paint with Ambrose before Mears while fighting hard to stay inside the top 20, and within striking distance of the leaders during the final 100 laps. Lead-lap finishes are a big deal to FRM, and Gilliland came through this week with the first for Bob Jenkins' three-car operation in 2014.
Underdog Pick of the Week - Talladega: Casey Mears for Germain Racing
My pick for Richmond was AJ Allmendinger, whose run was foiled by a Darlington Stripe that went a little too far. He finished sixth, easily best in class, so it was a good pick.
This week, the Cup Series visits big, bad Talladega Superspeedway. While David Ragan won this race a year ago, my nod goes to Mears, who's visiting his best track, one where he's come tantalizingly close to a win on more than one occasion. For Mears, the question will be simply whether he can avoid trouble; the driver rarely starts it but always seems to be in the middle of it. If luck stays on his side, this underdog's got a shot at not only besting the other small-team drivers but the entire field.
Is your favorite driver among NASCAR's underdogs? Are you frustrated with the lack of coverage they receive during 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!
Never Fear, The Underdogs Are Here: Richmond Edition
by Amy Henderson
Are you a fan of a driver from a smaller team? Do you ever see one of these guys on the race results and wonder how he got there? NASCAR's small teams may not get much airtime during the race broadcast, but that doesn't mean there's nothing to talk about. Each week, Amy Henderson takes a peek into how the little guys fared in the race.
Underdog Selection No. 1: AJ Allmendinger for JTG-Daugherty Racing; started 14th, finished 6th
This team is one on the verge of not being included as an underdog anymore. Like Furniture Row Racing, better finishes are to be expected as the team has Richard Childress Racing equipment and access to all of RCR's extensive information to help make the cars go faster. Allmendinger, meanwhile in his first full season with JTG is showing why Roger Penske believed in him even after a suspension for violating NASCAR's drug policy. Back then, in mid-2012 the owner was forced, via company policy to fire his driver. But Penske was still confident enough, after Allmendinger got cleared to hire him back the following year, handing the driver a limited schedule in both IndyCar and the NASCAR Nationwide Series. Allmendinger thanked him by winning both NNS races and having a near-miss in Indy — if not for a seat belt problem, he might well have won the biggest event in American racing. Now, Allmendinger and his new team, the No. 47 of JTG-Daugherty Racing are putting it together in a big way.
"It was a good race," said Allmendinger after Richmond, bringing the car its best result since Bobby Labonte ran fourth in the 2011 Daytona 500. "Just a tough racetrack. I was really happy with the car in general. It's just such a fine line between being too tight and burning the rear tires off or just being a little too loose the whole time. I thought there were two or three long runs I thought the car was awesome. Then, another couple of runs it wasn't as good. Overall, proud of the guys. We definitely had a top-15 car all day, top-10 car probably. Probably stole one there finish-wise at the end, but we are getting there."
If Allmendinger keeps stealing those finishes, this team will leave the underdogs behind.
Underdog Selection No. 2: Casey Mears for Germain Racing; started 34th, finished 19th
Germain Racing also inked a deal with RCR this year, and while they've been a little slower off the block, this week, they put it all together. It's a shame that what most people will remember from Richmond was Mears' post-race altercation with Marcos Ambrose because his on-track performance should have been the story. Mears came from 34th to 15th and was moving forward before a speeding penalty derailed that charge. He made it back to 16th, only to have a tire reportedly cut by Ambrose, sparking the fireworks after the race that left Mears with a swollen and cut face.
The No. 13 team got lucky with a caution for J.J. Yeley's blown engine, one that allowed Mears to pit under caution and not lose laps, though they lost any chance at a top-10 finish. But this team is headed to one of the driver's best tracks this week with some of the best restrictor plate equipment in NASCAR. If Mears can avoid trouble, he could put the heartache of Richmond in the rear-view for good, in position to contend for the win Sunday at Talladega.
Underdog Selection No. 3: David Gilliland for Front Row Motorsports; started 33rd, finished 20th
Most people probably think of David Ragan as FRM's top driver after he pulled off an upset win at Talladega last spring. But in reality, that title belongs to Gilliland over the last couple of years, with a higher average finish and a greater degree of consistency. This season, that average result is three spots better than Ragan's, and Gilliland's been more competitive overall. In Richmond, Gilliland nabbed his first lead-lap finish of the year, swapping paint with Ambrose before Mears while fighting hard to stay inside the top 20, and within striking distance of the leaders during the final 100 laps. Lead-lap finishes are a big deal to FRM, and Gilliland came through this week with the first for Bob Jenkins' three-car operation in 2014.
Underdog Pick of the Week - Talladega: Casey Mears for Germain Racing
My pick for Richmond was AJ Allmendinger, whose run was foiled by a Darlington Stripe that went a little too far. He finished sixth, easily best in class, so it was a good pick.
This week, the Cup Series visits big, bad Talladega Superspeedway. While David Ragan won this race a year ago, my nod goes to Mears, who's visiting his best track, one where he's come tantalizingly close to a win on more than one occasion. For Mears, the question will be simply whether he can avoid trouble; the driver rarely starts it but always seems to be in the middle of it. If luck stays on his side, this underdog's got a shot at not only besting the other small-team drivers but the entire field.
Is your favorite driver among NASCAR's underdogs? Are you frustrated with the lack of coverage they receive during 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!
Amy Henderson is a Co-Managing Editor and a Senior Writer at Frontstretch. She can be reached via e-mail at amy.henderson@frontstretch.com.
~~~~~~~~~~
Letter of the Race: Saturday night's Richmond race was brought to you by the letter "C," for confidence. Joey Logano, at age 23 is quickly growing into a driver willing to lay it all on the line, the right way -- without wrecking his rival or the entire field. Saturday night's final laps showcased someone whose maturity, mixed with God-given talent has gotten him in position to fully contend for a title with Roger Penske. - Phil Allaway
~~~~~~~~~~
Sidebar Stories: Richmond
by Phil Allaway
Marcos Ambrose Punches Casey Mears in the FaceLetter of the Race: Saturday night's Richmond race was brought to you by the letter "C," for confidence. Joey Logano, at age 23 is quickly growing into a driver willing to lay it all on the line, the right way -- without wrecking his rival or the entire field. Saturday night's final laps showcased someone whose maturity, mixed with God-given talent has gotten him in position to fully contend for a title with Roger Penske. - Phil Allaway
~~~~~~~~~~
Sidebar Stories: Richmond
by Phil Allaway
Towards the end of Saturday night's Toyota Owners 400, tempers began to flare. Marcos Ambrose and Casey Mears, who finished 18th and 19th, respectively, entered into a series of bumping matches. While the TV coverage did not show it definitively, sources claim that contact between the two drivers cut Mears' left front tire right as the final caution flew for J.J. Yeley's blown engine in the No. 30 Chevy.
Afterwards, Mears was none too pleased with Ambrose. Mears confronted the Tasmanian racer in an attempt to get an explanation for what had just gone on. Ambrose attempted to walk away, but Mears then grabbed Ambrose to keep him from doing so. Ambrose then responded with a punch that hit Mears just above his left eye before scurrying away quickly. Ambrose was later hit by an unidentified man in an ECR firesuit before he vacated the scene.
Mears ran in Sunday's Jimmie Johnson Foundation 5K, back in the Charlotte area, but did so wearing sunglasses for much of the time. He did take a picture with ESPN's Marty Smith (posted on Twitter) that showed the early development of a black eye. Mears also talked to NASCAR.com's Alan Cavanna about his evening. Mears stated to Cavanna that there were a series of events during Saturday night's race that ticked both drivers off.
"One thing I can say is that out of all the NASCAR fights, when you see people swing it's usually a lot of fly-swatting," the driver told Cavanna. "He actually connected, so that was pretty good."
"One thing I can say is that out of all the NASCAR fights, when you see people swing it's usually a lot of fly-swatting," the driver told Cavanna. "He actually connected, so that was pretty good."
NASCAR has stated that they will investigate the incident. However, a confrontation between drivers like the Ambrose - Mears incident falls squarely inside of the "Boys, have at it" mantra that NASCAR has been publicizing for the last couple of years. If any punishment at all is levied towards the two drivers, it will be announced later this week.
Tire Issues Mar Richmond Race
Had the Ambrose - Mears confrontation never happened, Saturday's Toyota Owners 400 would be remembered for a spate of tire issues that made it so the race could not go more than 64 laps all night without someone having a tire problem that brought out a caution. This weekend was the race debut at the three-quarters of a mile "D-Shaped" oval for Goodyear's Dual Zone tires, and sadly, they flunked the test.
However, it appears that only teams that pressed their luck too much on camber were the ones that suffered. For some cars, like Brad Keselowski's, cords were showing on their right front tire at the Lap 42 Competition Caution. From then on, selected drivers would have their right fronts essentially peel apart at the inside shoulder.
"The problem is they put a harder inside edge on the right front and right rear here, and that's eventually where we ride most of the time around the racetrack on that part of the tire," explained third-place finisher Kyle Busch. "Why they went harder on that, I'm not sure. They could have probably left the same inside edge and probably went a little softer on the outside edge, but it's just too hard of a compound for here. We were all basically on ice; it was just like having a hard tire out there. The effort that they tried to gain with the left-side tire softening it up, you could just take the left-sides off, it didn't feel like they did anything. Really tough for all of us to, for one, keep the tires under our car... it's supposed to be more durable [but it] was just not the right way to go obviously for Goodyear."
Drivers would have warning that the tire was coming apart and the onus was on them to get to pit road. If they did it immediately, then there were few lingering issues other than a couple of laps lost. However, not fixing the issue could result in another failure. Jimmie Johnson and Clint Bowyer found that out the hard way.
"The track temperature was really cold," explained Joey Logano's crew chief, Todd Gordon, among a minority who thought the failures were track and setup-related. "I think you had a similar situation to what we had at Martinsville earlier this year where it was so cold that the track would never take rubber. The track surface has got to get hot enough that the rubber will actually get into it. That's where the new aero package and the new ride heights and everything that we've done differently to this year's car has now put a lot back in my hands of risk and reward. Goodyear does an awesome job for us in building good race tires, but they're in a box that gets smaller as we make those cars go faster as far as what they can do."
"The problem is they put a harder inside edge on the right front and right rear here, and that's eventually where we ride most of the time around the racetrack on that part of the tire," explained third-place finisher Kyle Busch. "Why they went harder on that, I'm not sure. They could have probably left the same inside edge and probably went a little softer on the outside edge, but it's just too hard of a compound for here. We were all basically on ice; it was just like having a hard tire out there. The effort that they tried to gain with the left-side tire softening it up, you could just take the left-sides off, it didn't feel like they did anything. Really tough for all of us to, for one, keep the tires under our car... it's supposed to be more durable [but it] was just not the right way to go obviously for Goodyear."
Drivers would have warning that the tire was coming apart and the onus was on them to get to pit road. If they did it immediately, then there were few lingering issues other than a couple of laps lost. However, not fixing the issue could result in another failure. Jimmie Johnson and Clint Bowyer found that out the hard way.
"The track temperature was really cold," explained Joey Logano's crew chief, Todd Gordon, among a minority who thought the failures were track and setup-related. "I think you had a similar situation to what we had at Martinsville earlier this year where it was so cold that the track would never take rubber. The track surface has got to get hot enough that the rubber will actually get into it. That's where the new aero package and the new ride heights and everything that we've done differently to this year's car has now put a lot back in my hands of risk and reward. Goodyear does an awesome job for us in building good race tires, but they're in a box that gets smaller as we make those cars go faster as far as what they can do."
One thing we know for certain; if drivers waited until the tire completely came apart, a whole 'nother threat was waiting for them. The strips of rubber from the tire would get onto the brake rotors and catch on fire. The fiery rubber would fling off the car and draw a caution (if it wasn't already out). Then, the entire right front corner of the car would then catch fire. This happened three separate times during Saturday night's race (to Cole Whitt, Bowyer and Reed Sorenson) causing major scrambling and the whole front of the car to burn into melted metal.
Quotes to Remember: Toyota Owners 400
compiled by Phil Allaway
"Having a couple wins this early in the season and in two completely different racetracks make you very confident for the rest of the season. At this point, we really have nothing to lose; it's all about going for wins, having fun out there and making sure we're ready for when the Chase starts. We've put ourselves in a good position this early, and we're going to have some fun." - Joey Logano, race winner
"Yeah, I really thought when we started on the inside there that we were going to have a real shot at it. My car was a little bit freer underneath those guys than I anticipated, so I kind of fell back to fourth, and then we had a couple more restarts. We got into third, and then there at the end actually I got right behind Matt on that last restart and I knew I was better than him; it's just a matter of trying to get him up off the bottom and get a run. That was tough. And then, the 2 was just right there, and his car was just so good on the short runs, and to be able to go to the outside like that is just ‑‑ shows you how good your car is on the short runs. When he got to the outside of me, I thought we were done, but then Matt started driving up the racetrack to block him and gave the inside to me, so now here I come back, and then Matt sort of turned down and I clipped him and didn't get a good run off of 2, and then the 22 came. To come home second is still a great finish. Would have liked to have seen a longer run because we were really, really good after about 20 laps. That's when our car really seemed to come on. It was a great night. We were having fun. Gosh, what great race cars we're bringing to the racetrack, great pit stops all night tonight. It's frustrating to not win, but also each time we run this good, it builds more confidence and momentum that we're going to get that win soon." - Jeff Gordon, finished second
"Our day started out a little slow but then picked up. We got all the way up to fourth. I felt like our car was pretty good, and from there just one little change, I felt like once we got to fourth, one little change more was going to make us a good car, a car to compete for the lead, and that little change we made took us all the way back to 14th. We're really battling a knife's edge with our cars, it seems like. I don't know if everybody is, maybe. But ours more than others because we do these little changes sometimes each week and go from leading a race or third or something like that back to further than 10th. That last restart, though, was intense. I really doubted Dave (Rogers, crew chief). I thought that that was a bad call coming in and putting tires on, but man, when we went back green, everybody went fighting for the bottom. It looked like they had 80 laps on their tires, and I had stickers on, and I think they only had eight laps on their tires. Really crazy the way that ended up and just drove past everybody on the outside like a bad mofo, just getting my job done like I was supposed to, and kind of recovering our day and ended up third. Thought we had a shot to win for a second with those guys racing up front the way they were. I thought if I could get there and they were all still racing, I might have been able to pass the 22 and the 24, also, but once I got there they were kind of single-filed out, so I got there a little late, and rolled home third. We'll take it." - Kyle Busch, finished third
"With me and Brad (Keselowski) specifically, I don't know he was mad because I ran into him a little bit getting into (turn) three, but we're going for the win. I ran him up to the third groove or so, but I've witnessed him racing that way a lot like I think he did to Jimmie (Johnson) at Texas a few years ago. I thought once we got to the straightaway, I left him enough room unless I wasn't clear, I need to re-watch it. I guess he's upset about that and we were all going for the win, that's what we're supposed to be doing." - Matt Kenseth, finished fifth, on his duel with Brad Keselowski and the resulting anger
"Had a lot of brake problems with the car and the fluid boiled over under that last caution and I couldn't keep the pedal up and had all rear brakes that last run. Just real loose getting in the corner and trying to run seventh was all I could do and just trying not to fall back worse than that. The run before when we were racing with Matt (Kenseth) and I thought we had a little bit better car in the end in the middle of the corner, but at that next caution, we boiled over. We had brake problems the last 150-200 laps and it would leave the fluids black and Steve (Letarte) said it had boiled over a couple times. So we got a lot of rubber build up on the brake duct and the grill so it just got real hot." - Dale Earnhardt, Jr., finished seventh
"I thought we had a shot at a top 5 there, but the short runs were just killing us. We just couldn't take off for the first 15 or 20 laps of a run. All those guys up there were really fast and we weren't. We had a really good car on those last couple of long runs, but we had short runs at the end. We have to figure out how to get that short run going. Those long runs toward the end, we had something for them. It was a good [night] for us." - Martin Truex, Jr., finished tenth
"We never could get the car to turn through the center of the corner. We lacked rear grip and got behind on one run with a funky set of tires there. We kind of got caught back in the swarm and were never able to quite make it up. It all just didn't line up right on the restarts there at the end. We were just a little bit off tonight with our Outback Steakhouse Chevrolet." - Kevin Harvick, finished 11th
"We struggled tonight in the Haas Automation Chevrolet. The car was loose in, tight in the center and loose off for most of the night. It was frustrating, because we practiced early in the weekend and I thought we had a pretty good handle on our setup, but for some reason the car responded differently tonight. The guys all worked on it and we were racing our way into a decent finish before that final long run caused us to have a flat tire. It's frustrating, but we were able to race our way back onto the lead lap and gain a few spots at the end." - Kurt Busch, finished 23rd
"Really thought we had a decent car and was going to run in the top 5, top 10 at the worst. Then we had one run where we cut a right-front and the next run another right-front. Not exactly sure why we had that issue, but we did have back-to-back tire issues there. That really just kind of put an end to our night. We didn't have anything for the win, but I thought we could run top 5." - Jimmie Johnson, finished 32nd
"Seems like the rubber got to the oil lines and the brake lines and that was what was burning was the oil and the fuel. So I got out of there as quick as I could and to try and not inhale all that smoke. Definitely not what you want to be inside of." - Reed Sorenson, finished 42nd (Stripped Tire, Fire)
"It was on fire. What a bad night. I hate this for AAA. This is our first race with them and was really proud to have them on board with us tonight. It was just one thing after another and not a very good night. I really hate that [the first-lap spin] happened. I really like Kyle (Larson) and I'm a big fan of his. Him and the 2 (Brad Keselowski) kind of spun the tires and I just got such a big run him when he moved up. Then I was like, 'Okay, I guess I'm going to go to the bottom if you're going to give me the bottom.' Then, at the last minute he arched it in and I just wasn't ready for him. I tried to get on the brakes and just got into him. I'm so glad he didn't hit the wall. I was afraid he hit the wall and ended his night. It certainly didn't help it at all." - Clint Bowyer, finished 43rd (Stripped Tire, Fire)
~~~~~~~~~~
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:
Thinkin' Out Loud: Toyota Owners 400
by Mike Neff
Pace Laps: JRM Shines, RFR Fails to Impress and Hunter-Reay Silences Long Beach Critics
by the Frontstretch Staff
The Big Six: Questions Answered After the Toyota Owners 400
by Amy Henderson
Short Track Racing Should Encourage Summer Viewership
by Aaron Creed
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 Greg Davis
-- Fan's View Commentary by S.D. Grady
-- Numbers Game: Toyota Owners 400 by Tom Bowles
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:
We'll take a look at which drivers are sitting pretty after nine races -- and who is looking forward to Mother's Day.
Racing to the Point by Brett Poirier
Brett is back with another commentary to make you think. This week, he writes about the penalties (or lack thereof) after the Ambrose - Mears punch and what it could mean for the sport.
Voices From The Heartland by Jeff Meyer
"Having a couple wins this early in the season and in two completely different racetracks make you very confident for the rest of the season. At this point, we really have nothing to lose; it's all about going for wins, having fun out there and making sure we're ready for when the Chase starts. We've put ourselves in a good position this early, and we're going to have some fun." - Joey Logano, race winner
"Yeah, I really thought when we started on the inside there that we were going to have a real shot at it. My car was a little bit freer underneath those guys than I anticipated, so I kind of fell back to fourth, and then we had a couple more restarts. We got into third, and then there at the end actually I got right behind Matt on that last restart and I knew I was better than him; it's just a matter of trying to get him up off the bottom and get a run. That was tough. And then, the 2 was just right there, and his car was just so good on the short runs, and to be able to go to the outside like that is just ‑‑ shows you how good your car is on the short runs. When he got to the outside of me, I thought we were done, but then Matt started driving up the racetrack to block him and gave the inside to me, so now here I come back, and then Matt sort of turned down and I clipped him and didn't get a good run off of 2, and then the 22 came. To come home second is still a great finish. Would have liked to have seen a longer run because we were really, really good after about 20 laps. That's when our car really seemed to come on. It was a great night. We were having fun. Gosh, what great race cars we're bringing to the racetrack, great pit stops all night tonight. It's frustrating to not win, but also each time we run this good, it builds more confidence and momentum that we're going to get that win soon." - Jeff Gordon, finished second
"Our day started out a little slow but then picked up. We got all the way up to fourth. I felt like our car was pretty good, and from there just one little change, I felt like once we got to fourth, one little change more was going to make us a good car, a car to compete for the lead, and that little change we made took us all the way back to 14th. We're really battling a knife's edge with our cars, it seems like. I don't know if everybody is, maybe. But ours more than others because we do these little changes sometimes each week and go from leading a race or third or something like that back to further than 10th. That last restart, though, was intense. I really doubted Dave (Rogers, crew chief). I thought that that was a bad call coming in and putting tires on, but man, when we went back green, everybody went fighting for the bottom. It looked like they had 80 laps on their tires, and I had stickers on, and I think they only had eight laps on their tires. Really crazy the way that ended up and just drove past everybody on the outside like a bad mofo, just getting my job done like I was supposed to, and kind of recovering our day and ended up third. Thought we had a shot to win for a second with those guys racing up front the way they were. I thought if I could get there and they were all still racing, I might have been able to pass the 22 and the 24, also, but once I got there they were kind of single-filed out, so I got there a little late, and rolled home third. We'll take it." - Kyle Busch, finished third
"With me and Brad (Keselowski) specifically, I don't know he was mad because I ran into him a little bit getting into (turn) three, but we're going for the win. I ran him up to the third groove or so, but I've witnessed him racing that way a lot like I think he did to Jimmie (Johnson) at Texas a few years ago. I thought once we got to the straightaway, I left him enough room unless I wasn't clear, I need to re-watch it. I guess he's upset about that and we were all going for the win, that's what we're supposed to be doing." - Matt Kenseth, finished fifth, on his duel with Brad Keselowski and the resulting anger
"Had a lot of brake problems with the car and the fluid boiled over under that last caution and I couldn't keep the pedal up and had all rear brakes that last run. Just real loose getting in the corner and trying to run seventh was all I could do and just trying not to fall back worse than that. The run before when we were racing with Matt (Kenseth) and I thought we had a little bit better car in the end in the middle of the corner, but at that next caution, we boiled over. We had brake problems the last 150-200 laps and it would leave the fluids black and Steve (Letarte) said it had boiled over a couple times. So we got a lot of rubber build up on the brake duct and the grill so it just got real hot." - Dale Earnhardt, Jr., finished seventh
"I thought we had a shot at a top 5 there, but the short runs were just killing us. We just couldn't take off for the first 15 or 20 laps of a run. All those guys up there were really fast and we weren't. We had a really good car on those last couple of long runs, but we had short runs at the end. We have to figure out how to get that short run going. Those long runs toward the end, we had something for them. It was a good [night] for us." - Martin Truex, Jr., finished tenth
"We never could get the car to turn through the center of the corner. We lacked rear grip and got behind on one run with a funky set of tires there. We kind of got caught back in the swarm and were never able to quite make it up. It all just didn't line up right on the restarts there at the end. We were just a little bit off tonight with our Outback Steakhouse Chevrolet." - Kevin Harvick, finished 11th
"We struggled tonight in the Haas Automation Chevrolet. The car was loose in, tight in the center and loose off for most of the night. It was frustrating, because we practiced early in the weekend and I thought we had a pretty good handle on our setup, but for some reason the car responded differently tonight. The guys all worked on it and we were racing our way into a decent finish before that final long run caused us to have a flat tire. It's frustrating, but we were able to race our way back onto the lead lap and gain a few spots at the end." - Kurt Busch, finished 23rd
"Really thought we had a decent car and was going to run in the top 5, top 10 at the worst. Then we had one run where we cut a right-front and the next run another right-front. Not exactly sure why we had that issue, but we did have back-to-back tire issues there. That really just kind of put an end to our night. We didn't have anything for the win, but I thought we could run top 5." - Jimmie Johnson, finished 32nd
"Seems like the rubber got to the oil lines and the brake lines and that was what was burning was the oil and the fuel. So I got out of there as quick as I could and to try and not inhale all that smoke. Definitely not what you want to be inside of." - Reed Sorenson, finished 42nd (Stripped Tire, Fire)
"It was on fire. What a bad night. I hate this for AAA. This is our first race with them and was really proud to have them on board with us tonight. It was just one thing after another and not a very good night. I really hate that [the first-lap spin] happened. I really like Kyle (Larson) and I'm a big fan of his. Him and the 2 (Brad Keselowski) kind of spun the tires and I just got such a big run him when he moved up. Then I was like, 'Okay, I guess I'm going to go to the bottom if you're going to give me the bottom.' Then, at the last minute he arched it in and I just wasn't ready for him. I tried to get on the brakes and just got into him. I'm so glad he didn't hit the wall. I was afraid he hit the wall and ended his night. It certainly didn't help it at all." - Clint Bowyer, finished 43rd (Stripped Tire, Fire)
~~~~~~~~~~
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:
Thinkin' Out Loud: Toyota Owners 400
by Mike Neff
Pace Laps: JRM Shines, RFR Fails to Impress and Hunter-Reay Silences Long Beach Critics
by the Frontstretch Staff
The Big Six: Questions Answered After the Toyota Owners 400
by Amy Henderson
Short Track Racing Should Encourage Summer Viewership
by Aaron Creed
by Tom Bowles
by Mike Neff
Partner Link From Athlon Sports:
Through the Gears: Aggressive, confident Logano nabs second 2014 win in Richmond
Through the Gears: Aggressive, confident Logano nabs second 2014 win in Richmond
by Tom Bowles
~~~~~~~~~~~
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: Much of Michael Waltrip's success (and all of his career victories) have come in restrictor plate races. However, in the first restrictor plate race at Talladega in 1988, his day ended in a rather stomach-churning way. What happened?
Check back Tuesday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Friday's Answer:
Q: In the rain-delayed 2002 Pontiac Excitement 400, Kevin Harvick was having a decent day until he was caught up in a crash that was completely out of his control. What happened?
A: Shortly after halfway, Rusty Wallace began to slow on track. Wallace tried to get down to pit road, but with a stampede of other drivers out there, that's easier said than done. While Wallace was moving to the inside, Jeff Burton was spun out from behind entering Turn 3 by Casey Atwood. Atwood then rubbed against Mike Skinner, who rubbed against Harvick. Harvick was also tapped from behind by Kyle Petty. Harvick then spun and hit the wall head on. Jerry Nadeau then ran into the stopped SIRIUS Dodge of Atwood. Stacy Compton was also involved. The crash can be seen here.
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: Much of Michael Waltrip's success (and all of his career victories) have come in restrictor plate races. However, in the first restrictor plate race at Talladega in 1988, his day ended in a rather stomach-churning way. What happened?
Check back Tuesday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Friday's Answer:
Q: In the rain-delayed 2002 Pontiac Excitement 400, Kevin Harvick was having a decent day until he was caught up in a crash that was completely out of his control. What happened?
A: Shortly after halfway, Rusty Wallace began to slow on track. Wallace tried to get down to pit road, but with a stampede of other drivers out there, that's easier said than done. While Wallace was moving to the inside, Jeff Burton was spun out from behind entering Turn 3 by Casey Atwood. Atwood then rubbed against Mike Skinner, who rubbed against Harvick. Harvick was also tapped from behind by Kyle Petty. Harvick then spun and hit the wall head on. Jerry Nadeau then ran into the stopped SIRIUS Dodge of Atwood. Stacy Compton was also involved. The crash can be seen here.
Nadeau was eliminated immediately as a result. Harvick had to go behind the wall for extensive repairs. He would eventually return and finish 40th, 105 laps down. The rest of the drivers involved continued. Burton actually ended up finishing third, but he was the only one involved in the incident that finished on the lead lap.
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 Greg Davis
-- Fan's View Commentary by S.D. Grady
-- Numbers Game: Toyota Owners 400 by Tom Bowles
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:
Five Points To Ponder: Richmond by Danny Peters
Danny takes care of business at the three-quarter mile oval, wrapping up storylines that are settling this Tuesday while getting us prepped for the week of Talladega madness to come.
Couch Potato Tuesday by Phil Allaway
This past weekend, the Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series both raced at Richmond International Raceway. Meanwhile, the Verizon IndyCar Series ran their first race of the season on a natural terrain road course on NBC Sports Network in Alabama. Were the telecasts of these events "up to snuff?" Find out in this week's TV Critique.
We'll take a look at which drivers are sitting pretty after nine races -- and who is looking forward to Mother's Day.
Racing to the Point by Brett Poirier
Brett is back with another commentary to make you think. This week, he writes about the penalties (or lack thereof) after the Ambrose - Mears punch and what it could mean for the sport.
Voices From The Heartland by Jeff Meyer
Jeff returns with his typical blend of sarcastic humor tilted towards one of NASCAR's controversial issues.
-----------------------------
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 frontstretcheditors@googlegroups.com. We'll take the best comments and publish them here!
©2014 Frontstretch.com
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 frontstretcheditors@googlegroups.com. We'll take the best comments and publish them here!
©2014 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.
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "The Frontstretch" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to thefrontstretch+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
No comments:
Post a Comment