THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTERPresented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
Sept. 29, 2014
Volume VIII, Edition CLXVIII
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Today's TV Schedule
Time Telecast Network
5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. NASCAR RaceHub FOX Sports 1
6:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. NASCAR RaceHub FOX Sports 2*#
7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. NASCAR America NBC Sports Network
7:30 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. Empty Cup: Quest for the 1992 NASCAR Championship FOX Sports 2#
* - Tape Delayed
# - Repeat Coverage
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Sprint Cup Race Recap: 92 and Counting, Jeff Gordon Wins at Doverby Justin TuckerOn a day where much of the talk surrounded both Chase eliminations and bubble drivers, Jeff Gordon took another huge step towards immortality at Dover's Monster Mile. The four-time Cup Series champ, having a resurgent season took advantage of a lightning fast pit stop by his No. 24 Drive to End Hunger crew with around 70 laps to go, separating himself from a hard-charging Brad Keselowski and coasting to a 4.352-second margin of victory. Defending race winner Jimmie Johnson ran third, followed by New Hampshire winner Joey Logano in fourth. Matt Kenseth, who still hasn't visited Victory Lane this year, rounded out the top-5 finishers.
It was Gordon's 92nd Sprint Cup Series win and his fourth of the 2014 season, automatically advancing him to the Contender round of the Chase for the Sprint Cup, which starts at Kansas Speedway next week.
"It wasn't about the points. It wasn't about just squeezing by to get to the next round," Gordon said. "It was about making a statement. I don't know how you make a bigger statement than what this team just did right there."
The win at Dover was Gordon's first at the track since 2001, which coincidentally was the last year he took home NASCAR's biggest prize. Gordon credited Alan Gustafson and his pit crew for the team's success this season.
"I don't know what I've found, but I think a lot of it has to do with (crew chief) Alan Gustafson and all the guys on this No. 24 team," Gordon said. "They've just giving me such an awesome race car team this year. I'm having so much fun."
While Gordon enjoyed the spoils of victory, Kevin Harvick was left to ponder another win that got away. Harvick dominated much of Sunday's 400-mile race at Dover, keeping his Budweiser Chevrolet out front for a race-high 223 laps, including the first 147. Harvick was in full command until disaster struck during a pit stop when the inner valve stem was knocked out of the left front tire of his No. 4 Chevrolet, a mishap which mired Harvick deep in the field. Harvick did mount a rally but could only climb as high as 13th, the first car a lap down at the finish. Harvick has now led 406 laps in the first three Chase races, leading all drivers but has yet to win a race during this postseason.
"We can beat every car on the race track. We just need some good luck," Harvick said. "If we get some luck, we'll win races and have a shot at the championship."
Meanwhile, on a day where four Chasers were eliminated from title contention much of the drama surrounded Kasey Kahne. After running inside the top 10 early, a loose wheel forced the driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet to make an unscheduled pit stop that put him two laps down. At one point, though for only a short time, Kahne found himself as much as four laps down through a late-race round of green-flag pit stops. He managed to recover and finish 20th, one lap down, barely edging AJ Allmendinger for the 12th and final spot in the Contender Round by a slim, two-point margin.
Dover was the final race of the Challenger Round for the Chase. Jeff Gordon joins Chicago winner Brad Keselowski and New Hampshire's Joey Logano with automatic berths into the next round. Those advancing into the Contender Round, by virtue of points are: Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Matt Kenseth, Denny Hamlin, Carl Edwards, Ryan Newman and Kahne. Those eliminated were Aric Almirola, AJ Allmendinger, Greg Biffle and Kurt Busch, who made his 500th Cup start on Sunday.
A quick look at Dover by the numbers. There were ten lead changes among seven drivers and five cautions for 23 laps kept the race pace at a quick 130.541 MPH.
Next week, the Contender Round in the Chase for the Sprint Cup kicks off in the nation's heartland, Kansas Speedway. The Hollywood Casino 400 goes green at 2:16 p.m. 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: Keselowski Locks Into Next Round, Expands Lead Slightly
by Phil Allaway
On Sunday,
Brad Keselowski likely had the strongest car for the entire 400-mile distance. He was the only driver who could realistically run with
Kevin Harvick before Harvick had his issues. Keselowski's second-place finish was more than enough to lead the Chase points at the end of the Challenger round. Teammate
Joey Logano came back from some early handling issues to finish fourth, holding onto second in points. Harvick, after leading 223 laps prior to his tire issue, finished a lap down in 13th. However, he still ran well enough to hold onto the third spot.
Jimmie Johnson failed in his quest to win his third straight race at Dover, but he still finished a strong third on Sunday, enough to keep the fourth spot in the standings. Jeff Gordon's victory moved him up two places to fifth, while Kyle Busch fell a spot to sixth despite a tenth-place finish.
Dale Earnhardt, Jr. had an off-day on Sunday, never really putting himself in contention on his way to a 17th-place finish. The run dropped Earnhardt, Jr. to seventh in points. Matt Kenseth remains in eighth after finishing fifth on Sunday. Ryan Newman made the biggest gain amongst the Chasers Sunday, gaining three spots to finish the Challenger round in a tie for ninth. Newman wins the three-race tiebreaker over Carl Edwards, who finished 11th on Sunday.
Denny Hamlin referred to Sunday's race as one of the most important in his career. Hamlin responded with a 12th-place finish to advance to the Contender Round. Kasey Kahne recovered from a loose wheel to finish 20th and claim the last spot in the next round. AJ Allmendinger, meanwhile struggled all day with an ill-handling Hungry Jack Chevrolet. Allmendinger would eventually finish two laps down in 23rd and finish just two points behind Kahne. Kurt Busch dealt with a very tight Chevrolet and dropped from a top-10 position all the way back to 18th, and thus out of the next round. Greg Biffle and Aric Almirola simply never had the right stuff to be competitive at Dover, finishing outside the top 20.
Contender Round Points: All 12 advancing drivers will start Kansas with 3000 points. 13) AJ Allmendinger 2077, 14) Kurt Busch 2073, 15) Greg Biffle 2072, 16) Aric Almirola 2061.
Chase Point Standings: 1) Brad Keselowski 2140, 2) Joey Logano -4, 3) Kevin Harvick -17, 4) Jimmie Johnson -19, 5) Jeff Gordon -23, 6) Kyle Busch -29, 7) Dale Earnhardt, Jr. -36, 8) Matt Kenseth -43, t-9) Ryan Newman -49, t-9) Carl Edwards -49, 11) Denny Hamlin -59, 12) Kasey Kahne -61, 13) AJ Allmendinger -63, 14) Kurt Busch, -67, 15) Greg Biffle -68, 16) Aric Almirola -79.
Regular Point Standings (1-20): 1) Jeff Gordon 1022, 2) Dale Earnhardt, Jr. -44, 3) Brad Keselowski -64, 4) Joey Logano -66, 5) Jimmie Johnson -108, 6) Kevin Harvick -117, 7) Matt Kenseth -128, 8) Ryan Newman -149, 9) Carl Edwards -160, 10) Kyle Larson -163, 11) Greg Biffle -197, 12) Clint Bowyer -205, 13) Kasey Kahne -211, 14) Jamie McMurray -217, 15) Kyle Busch -227, 16) Paul Menard -241, 17) Austin Dillon -243, 18) Brian Vickers -257, 19) Denny Hamlin -285, 20) Kurt Busch -301.
Race Winners: Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (Daytona-1, Pocono-1, Pocono-2), Kevin Harvick (Phoenix, Darlington), Brad Keselowski (Las Vegas, Kentucky, Loudon-1, Richmond-2, Chicagoland), Carl Edwards (Bristol-1, Sonoma), Kyle Busch (Fontana), Kurt Busch (Martinsville), Joey Logano (Texas, Richmond, Bristol-2, Loudon-2), Denny Hamlin (Talladega), Jeff Gordon (Kansas, Indianapolis, Michigan-2, Dover-2), Jimmie Johnson (Charlotte, Dover-1, Michigan-1), Aric Almirola (Daytona-2), AJ Allmendinger (Watkins Glen), Kasey Kahne (Atlanta)
Key:
Blue - Locked into the Contender Round
Red - Eliminated from further Chase contention
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.
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Editor's Note: Never Fear, The Underdogs Are Here will be in Tuesday's edition of the Frontstretch Newsletter.
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Letter of the Race: Sunday's AAA 400 was brought to you by the Letter A for "Anticlimatic." For as much as ESPN's pre-race coverage centered upon the fact that anything can and will happen at Dover, recent years have seen these races be dominated by a couple of strong drivers without all that much drama. That is exactly what we got on Sunday, like it or not. - Phil Allaway
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Sidebar Stories: Dover
by Phil Allaway
Tony Stewart Speaks To The Media
On Monday morning, Tony Stewart spoke to the assembled media (writers and cameras from multiple media outlets, including FOX Sports and ESPN) for the first time since he was cleared of any wrongdoing in the wake of the death of Kevin Ward, Jr. While relieved that the potential criminal issues are over, Stewart clearly came off as emotionally troubled.
Read more at Frontstretch.
Kevin Ward, Jr.'s Aunt Speaks Out
After a Grand Jury cleared Tony Stewart of any wrongdoing in the death of Kevin Ward, Jr. in a crash on Aug. 9, Ward's family was quick to denounce the decision and declare their intentions to do right by Kevin. Last weekend, Ward's Aunt Wendi read a statement over the phone to USA Today that served to reiterate the Ward family's position on the issue.
Read more at FrontstretchHarvick's Dominant Run Stymied By Air Gun Error
On Sunday, Kevin Harvick had a dominant run. He led the first 147 laps nearly unopposed before issues with the left front corner caused Harvick to lose his pace. The issue allowed Brad Keselowski to run down Harvick and take the lead, but despite the problem, Harvick was still nearly the fastest driver on track. Harvick retook the lead 25 laps later and seemed to be on his way to victory.
Then came the green-flag pit stop on Lap 249. Harvick had a fast stop and got back on-track fast enough to claim the lead. However, five laps later, Harvick had a flat left-front tire. Was it the potential shock issue coming up to haunt Harvick? No. During the stop, front tire changer Ira Jo Hussey appeared to miss a lugnut. Instead, Hussey's gun went into one of the holes in the wheel and directly into the valve stem, chopping it off. To make matters worse, Harvick broke part of the splitter while running around on the flat tire.
Harvick's pit crew repaired the splitter under a debris caution, which allowed Harvick to stay on the lead lap. However, the handling on Harvick's Budweiser Chevrolet was simply not the same. He would eventually struggle to a 13th-place finish as the first car a lap down, an unsatisfying conclusion to the race.
Quotes to Remember: AAA 400
compiled by Beth Lunkenheimer
"I don't know what happened to Kevin Harvick. It was unfortunate for him. He was the class of the field. We were tuning on it to try to keep even with him. When I saw him go out, I knew we could compete with the No.2 (Brad Keselowski) car. The No. 2 was really good on short runs, but we could run him down. Of course he made us work for it there at the end because he was so good on short runs and he got to me. I was really, really tight in traffic there at the end. I didn't know if we were going to pull it off. I'm so, proud to have this orange Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet. This is Hunger Action month and it's extremely important to all of us who are fighting for the older Americans going hungry every day in this country. This is a great way to take action. I don't know what I've found, but I think a lot of it has to do with Alan Gustafson and all the guys on this No. 24 team. They've just giving me such an awesome race car team this year. I'm having so much fun." - Jeff Gordon, race winner
"We've had a really good start. I guess we can't really complain that much having won a race, a second and a seventh, but it's hard to look at that. All I could think about is how I wanted to win all three races and now it's time to move forward. Three more races, a new start and what we were able to do in these last three, other than getting us to this next round, really means nothing. We've got to keep our head on straight and push forward these next three like we have these last three." - Brad Keselowski, finished second
"I think I have won here nine times but I think I have raced here a heck of a lot more than that. Certainly wish we were in Victory Lane, but good solid third-place run. Our car just didn't have the short run speed that the competitors did. We would kind of run everybody back down towards the end of a run, but just didn't have what we needed at the start. I wish it was a little bit better, but still a great day with a Hendrick (Motorsports) car in Victory Lane, which is awesome and we will go to the next one." - Jimmie Johnson, finished third
"It was a little bit of a tougher week for us. We didn't have a very fast car off the truck, but Todd Gordon and all these Shell/Pennzoil guys did a great job giving me a car that was pretty racy. We started 16th and drove up to 10th quick and then had a terrible restart and lost everything we had gained and then some. From there we just put four tires on it, reset and try to drive our way back up there. It was a hard-fought day, which is pretty normal for here at Dover. We got something good out of it and now we'll start the next round and try to move on to the next one." - Joey Logano, finished fourth
"It was pretty solid. We had good pit stops down here. The Home Depot guys did a good job. We just lacked a little bit. We were pretty competitive in the middle of the race and then just got too free one run and got too tight one run. I couldn't do very good on restarts, and that really hurt us bad. I'd lose so many spots over the restart and just too hard to get them back. Overall, we were pretty good. We were back and forth a little bit. There were times when the car was better than where we finished and other times it was worse. Just couldn't quite get it, but overall it was a good day for us." - Matt Kenseth, finished fifth
"We fought hard and never gave up today. The guys did a good job in the pits. We got the car better every single stop, and at the end, it was at its best. Track position is important because it's so hard to pass here. What we are doing now is getting ready for next year. Trying to figure out how to make the car better and how to communicate better as a team. The whole nine yards and we are making progress. Everybody has done a good job the past couple of weeks sticking together, not getting frustrated and working hard. I don't know what it is about this track — maybe it's home field advantage for me because it seems like the longer the race goes here the better we get. Just like last week (New Hampshire) I wish the race was longer. I never thought I would say that." - Martin Truex, Jr., finished seventh
"Our car, especially on the long run, was a '10' tight. We did what we needed to do today with our Interstate Batteries Camry, but I'm not sure what the problem was on the last couple runs of the race. We were tight all day, but it just got worse at the end. Dave (Rogers, crew chief) and the guys are going to take the car back to the shop and see if they can figure out if something was wrong. We'll move on to the next round and hope we can have a better handle on our car next week." - Kyle Busch, finished tenth
"It was just a solid day. The car was actually pretty decent and everybody did a really good job. The pit crew did great and Jimmy (Fennig, crew chief) did a great job with the car and that's what we needed. We had a top-10 car and finished 11th, but I think if I would have done a little better job on the restarts we would have been better. We keep making small gains and getting the opportunity to be put back in the same position as the guys in front of us is a huge opportunity for us. We've got to capitalize on it and go run well at Kansas and Charlotte. We know we can win Talladega, so I look forward to that race. This is Jimmy Fennig's last year on the box, but, honestly, more important than that to me is I understand how fleeting and how rare these opportunities are to win championships. They come once a year if you're very lucky, so I just want to make the most of it." - Carl Edwards
"Wish we would've ran a little bit better, but luckily we had good track position from qualifying and just kind of kept it all day. Was sliding there at the end a little bit — but just enough to get through. I feel great. You never know what can happen. I knew we had a car that was capable of racing our way in, but I didn't think it was going to be that close. We just started fading there at the end. A little bit on the defensive on my part, but still we lost the handle. Just happy this all resets and all starts from scratch again and we've got another life." - Denny Hamlin, finished 12th
"The inner valve stem got knocked out just like the first race here, except this time it was on the left-front so unfortunate, but probably our own fault for not finding a solution for it for the first race. A lug nut got in between the wheel and the brake rotor and knocked the vale stem out. Crazy. Just handing out early Christmas presents to people for winning races that we should be winning. But all in all, the Budweiser guys did a great job. It's just crazy luck. It's just unbelievable that it can happen. The shock broke first and we could beat them on three shocks, but we couldn't beat them on three tires." Kevin Harvick, finished 13th
"Not what we had hoped for. Just struggled a little more with the car than we thought. Lost some track position and got behind early in the pit sequence, and just never made it back up." - Brian Vickers, finished 15th
"We didn't run good obviously. We struggled with our car all day long. I thought we had a lot better car in practice, but we made some changes. I guess they didn't really work out for us. We were real loose on entry and real tight in the center. The balance was bad at the start of the run and the end of the run. So we never had a moment during the race where the car was very good and competitive. We just missed the set-up pretty bad. We just need to start from scratch when we come back here next year." - Dale Earnhardt, Jr., finished 17th
"[The car] was just tight the last 100 miles. I felt like we were in good position to advance, but you just can't expect to advance by running 18th. You have to be more competitive. We gave it a good run, you know? We put this team together pretty late. Gene Haas believed in me to come in here and do this; and thanks to Haas Automation and Chevrolet and great associate sponsors like Mobil 1 and State Water Heaters and Monster Energy. We don't get to advance to the championship, but we can still run for pride and run for wins. You can't expect to advance running 18th. You've got to have better lap times every time you go and hit the track. If you're off, it's hard to put the car up on your back and run it. I just chalk it up to me not getting the job done. It's all my fault that we didn't advance." - Kurt Busch
"Our Zest Ford was really strong in the middle of the race. As the race progressed, our car just kept getting tighter. As an organization, we are all working really hard to get our Fords back up front and are making small gains each week but still have a ways to go." - Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., finished 19th
"I felt like we went four laps down at one point when we pitted. We had to pit because had done the wave-around. But I had a good Farmers Insurance Chevy. I had a fast car. Luckily Kenny (Francis) made great calls. The team prepared a great car so I was fortunate to have that and drive our way back to barely advance. But I had to push hard on that; glad NASCAR just let it go and let us race for it, you know? It was pretty interesting but I'm glad we made it. We had to fight hard. I think we had a top two or three car today; we just didn't get to show it." - Kasey Kahne, finished 20th
"This is the way it's gone all season. We're just searching for speed and struggled all day today. We've worked hard trying to fix our problems, but it just hasn't come together yet. It's frustrating because part of you wants to just pull it and put it in the garage and the other half is racing as hard as you can to get in the Chase. It's pretty frustrating. I've won races my whole career, but to be struggling like this all year is disappointing at best." - Greg Biffle, finished 21st
"We didn't give up. It was an awful day, but I have to thank my whole team. My pit crew kept giving me good stops. We kept throwing the kitchen sink at it every stop. My crew chief Brian Burns did everything he could to keep trying to make it better. We just missed it all weekend. It's disappointing to miss it by two points, but we didn't deserve to be in it with the run that we had. We have to look at it – I'm not going to take a moral victory out of it to miss it by two points, it's disappointing, but we know we are making steps in the right direction. We beat some good cars, but we have seven races to go. Just because we didn't make it doesn't mean our season is over with. We have to keep working and get better. We have seven races to go. I will be disappointed tonight, but be ready to go tomorrow morning." - AJ Allmendinger, finished 23rd
"It just didn't work out for us. I hate it. We picked a bad day to run the way we did and we can't blame anybody but ourselves. My car didn't have any grip. You can't go fast without grip. I'm sure we'll be able to look past this another day, but right now it's pretty disappointing." - Aric Almirola, finished 28th
by Beth Lunkenheimer
From the weekend:
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FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: The 2007 LifeLock 400 at Kansas Speedway was shortened to 315 miles due to a long rain delay and a number of crashes. However, Greg Biffle was credited with the win despite something unusual happening under caution on the final lap. What happened?
Check back Tuesday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Friday's Answer:
Q: In the 1999 MBNA Gold 200, Adam Petty had a career day, leading 23 laps and contending for the win late in the going. However, Petty's race ended 20 laps too early. What happened?
A: Petty was fighting for third with Jeff Green in turn 2 when contact was made. Petty's recently rechristened Sprint Chevrolet spun and backed hard into the wall. After the Chevrolet came to rest in the middle of the track, Petty was hit by Mike Skinner and Bobby Hillin, Jr. The crash can be seen here.
All three drivers were eliminated in the crash. Hillin's No. 8 would burst into flames, but the former Cup race winner was OK.
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 triviaanswers@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: AAA 400 by Tom Bowles-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:Five Points To Ponder by Danny Peters
Danny is back with his usual look at five storylines to follow this week as the drivers look towards Kansas.
Who's Hot / Who's Not in Sprint Cup: Dover-Kansas Edition by Brad Morgan
We'll take a look at which drivers are looking good as the series shifts into Contender Round mode.
Racing to the Point by Brett Poirier
Brett returns with another interesting commentary that'll make you think.
Voices From The Heartland by Jeff Meyer
Jeff returns with his typical blend of sarcastic humor tilted towards one of NASCAR's controversial issues.
Couch Potato Tuesday by Phil Allaway
The Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series were both at Dover International Speedway last weekend. Meanwhile, the Camping World Truck Series was at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. How were these races covered? Check out our weekly TV critique to find out.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Talk back to the Frontstretch Newsletter!
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