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GOT A NASCAR QUESTION OR COMMENT? WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!
That's right; our Fan Q & A column is back once again in 2014. Send your question Summer Bedgood's way at summer.bedgood@frontstretch.com and if you're lucky, you'll get your name in print on Thursday when she does her weekly column. It's all part of our daily mission to give back to you – the fans that keep Frontstretch afloat!
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With the Top Contenders Down, Is the Chase a Win or a Bust?
Let's get this straight: Jimmie Johnson, Brad Keselowski, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Kasey Kahne are all sitting on the outside of the Chase's top 8 going into Charlotte. Even Jeff Gordon is teetering on the brink of oblivion after struggling with his car all day in Kansas. What happened? How is it that four drivers who have all logged multiple victories in the regular season, plus Kahne are balancing on the precipice of a Chase crash & burn?
Welcome to the 2014 version of NASCAR's playoff season, where three-race sudden death rounds are the means to whittling the field down to the final four for Homestead. Your execution over the past seven months means nothing; it's time to either put up or shut up. Apparently, the entire Hendrick garage missed the memo this week, suffering at the hands of the man behind the curtain -- sometimes known as Goodyear. Did you hear the collective gasp of NASCAR fans as one after another popped a tire and slid into the wall? It was deafening.
And thrilling.
Yes, Joey Logano clearly demonstrated his dominance over the field Sunday by running off into the distance every time he snared some clean air at the Hollywood Casino 400. Obviously, we were watching a cookie-cutter race, where there's little competition to be found at the front of the field. Boredom threatened to settle in, until Johnson and company started playing ping pong off the outer wall.
That's what this Chase format has brought to some otherwise pretty mundane afternoons - a secondary storyline that engages the race fan's brain while the usual silliness takes place for those drivers without camber and wear issues. I awoke from my nap to see Johnson sliding to the inner wall, Greg Biffle trying to collect his disastrously handling vehicle and Jeff Gordon's team examining his passenger side door. What the hell happened? And hey, where would this leave our six and four-time champs? Nursing a horrible points position entering into Charlotte and guaranteeing upset stomachs come Talladega in two weeks.
The Chase complications expanded with each lap. Harvick, Keselowski and Kyle Busch all cried foul. Some worked through their problems, but others didn't. I tried to keep track of where everybody's yo-yo was located right now; were they in the garage fixing things? Would they return to the track to log more laps, and could that even help them? Why weren't there any start-and-park teams to help Johnson out of his hole?
Then, it occurred to me: What would happen if Earnhardt, Johnson, Keselowski and Gordon were all wiped out of the next round? Um, seriously. Would we be crowning Carl Edwards in November? What would it say about the sport if Joey Logano did actually win the Cup this year?
I can hear it now: the boos would be deafening. A mass of naysayers would label NASCAR as the biggest crock ever seen on the planet, while the media would be trying to build a backstory that would hold up Cousin Carl as the driver who was destined to take the Cup all along. Isn't that how the playoffs work in the other major sports, though? When an underdog appears in the World Series, somehow the networks manage to scrape enough defining moments from the entire year to make their ascension an obvious end to a twisted tale of a season.
One thing does happen, too when David defeats Goliath: a lot of curiosity seekers would be tuning in to see that season finale. SportsCenter would have to talk NASCAR for longer than a sentence. The airwaves would suffer a virtual meltdown, while the boys down in Daytona would be toasting to their own brilliance - even with Junior Nation tuning out.
All in all, we'd have the recipe for the kind of disaster our sport both hates and desires; making these next two races both must-see events and the kind of afternoons where you watch with your hand over your eyes, peeking between your fingers. You have to watch, even though you're going to hate how it ends.
In the world of entertainment, that is called the perfect storm. In the world of sports, we call it something else. Either way, I'm going to enjoy watching it all fall apart.
On to Contender Race No. 2. How crazy will Charlotte be? I am unabashedly dying to find out.
2014 Sonya Strictly by the Stats
Top Three Rookies for 2014 Hollywood Casino 400
1) No. 42 Kyle Larson - Started 18th, Finished 2nd (1st in RoTY standings)
2) No. 3 Austin Dillon - Started 16th, Finished 8th (2nd in RoTY standings)
3) No. 26 Cole Whitt - Started 39th, Finished 23rd (5th in RoTY standings)
S.D. Grady is a Senior Editor for Frontstretch and runs a NASCAR blog called the S-Curves. She can be reached via email at sonya.grady@frontstretch.com. Follow her on Twitter at @laregna and on her Facebook page (she's an author, too!) at https://www.facebook.com/Author.SDGrady.
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TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Q: In the 1987 All Pro 300 at Charlotte, Geoff Bodine got off to a great start, charging to the lead from the sixth starting spot in just a couple of laps. However, by the standards of racing on intermediate tracks, his race ended in a very unusual fashion. What happened?
Check back Wednesday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Monday's Answer:
Q: Winston Cup was a trial by fire for rookie Robert Pressley in 1995. At Charlotte in October, Pressley earned a decent 19th starting spot, but failed to make it to the first pit stop before trouble struck. What happened?
Coming tomorrow in the Frontstretch Newsletter:
-- Top News from Ashley McCubbin
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
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Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:
Did You Notice?... by Tom Bowles
NASCAR Mailbox by Summer Bedgood
Summer's ready to once again answer questions from you, our loyal fans. Do you have a question or comment for Summer? Don't be shy. Just send her an email (summer.bedgood@frontstretch.com) and you might just see your name in print!
NASCAR Power Rankings: Top 15 after Kansas compiled by Michael Mehedin
The Chase is here and Roger Penske's teams continue to show their strength on a weekly basis. With the problems striking some of the top contenders Sunday, will Joey Logano ascend to the top of the rankings? Find out how your favorite experts voted in the latest edition of our weekly poll.
The newly crowned ARCA champion, with NASCAR aspirations sits down and talks career with Summer. Where will Mason end up in 2015, and what were his most memorable moments en route to the title? Find out all that and more as our weekly interview column returns.
Got something to say about an article you've seen in the newsletter? It's as easy as replying directly to this message or sending an email to editors@frontstretch.com. We'll take the best comments and publish them here!
©2014 Frontstretch.com
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