THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
Mar. 2, 2015
Volume IX, Edition XXII
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!
Mar. 2, 2015
Volume IX, Edition XXII
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What to Watch: Monday- The Sprint Cup and XFINITY Series are both back at their shops this morning (with the possible exception of Furniture Row Racing since they have to haul back to Denver). Work is underway to prep for Las Vegas this week, the start of NASCAR's new West Coast swing. Meanwhile, we're still watching the situation surrounding the theft of Team XTREME Racing's No. 44. If any more news comes out, we will report on it.
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Monday's TV Schedule can be found in Couch Potato Tuesday here.
Top News
Monday's TV Schedule can be found in Couch Potato Tuesday here.
Top News
by the Frontstretch Staff
Jimmie Johnson Back On Top, Wins at Atlanta
On a chilly Sunday afternoon, Jimmie Johnson reasserted himself as a frontrunner to watch in 2015. Johnson passed Matt Kenseth for the lead on a lap 305 restart and held off Kevin Harvick to claim the victory at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Johnson, who has made the postseason every year of its existence now essentially locks himself into the Chase for the Sprint Cup. Read more
Matt Crafton Wins Truck Series Race in Dominating Fashion
Dylan Kwasniewski's Plans Remain Unknown for 2015
Kevin Harvick Continues Hot Streak, Wins Third Straight XFINITY Race at Atlanta
In an XFINITY Series race that was completely dominated by Sprint Cup regulars, Kevin Harvick was the strongest of the usurpers on Saturday. Harvick stuck his No. 88 Bad Boy Buggies Chevrolet on the yellow line and led 101 of 163 laps on the way to his 45th career win in the XFINITY Series. Joey Logano was second, followed by Ty Dillon, Chris Buescher and Chase Elliott. Read more
Matt Crafton Wins Truck Series Race in Dominating Fashion
On Saturday night, Matt Crafton was invincible once he claimed the lead. The two-time defending Camping World Truck Series Champion led 85 of the 130 laps en route to a victory by nearly nine seconds over Ty Dillon. Ben Kennedy finished third, followed by Daniel Suarez and Tyler Reddick. Read more
Team Xtreme Racing Trailer, Race Car Stolen; Team Withdraws from Atlanta
Team Xtreme Racing Trailer, Race Car Stolen; Team Withdraws from Atlanta
Early Friday morning, thieves stole a Ford F-350 dually pickup truck and the trailer it was towing from a motel in Georgia. That trailer was carrying the No. 44 Phoenix Warehouse Chevrolet that Travis Kvapil was scheduled to attempt to qualify for Sunday's Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500. An investigation eventually led to its return, but not before the team was forced to withdraw from Sunday's Cup race. Read more
Dylan Kwasniewski's Plans Remain Unknown for 2015
With the recent addition of Brennan Poole to the HScott Motorsports with Chip Ganassi No. 42 in the XFINITY Series, it is unclear what the plans will look like for sophomore racer Dylan Kwasniewski in 2015. While Kwasniewski still has a development deal with Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates, he has no scheduled races as of now. Read more
Have news for The Frontstretch? Don't hesitate to let us know; email us at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com with a promising lead or tip.
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Chasing the Chase: Logano Retains Slight Lead in Standings
by Phil Allaway
Early in the season, big swings in the points after every race are typical. However, the top of the standings remains the same.AJ Allmendinger made the biggest move of anyone in the top 15 in points, gaining nine spots to put himself in a tie for eighth after finishing seventh. He's tied with Aric Almirola, who kept himself on the lead lap all day and wound up 11th. Clint Bowyer was having a good run until he lost a cylinder late in the race. Shortly after losing power, he then got wrapped up in a big crash on lap 306 that was not of his making. He would eventually finish four laps down in 24th and fall three places to tenth in points.
Point Standings (1-16): 1) Joey Logano 88, 2) Jimmie Johnson -1, 3) Kevin Harvick -2, 4) Dale Earnhardt, Jr. -4, 5) Martin Truex, Jr. -13, 6) Casey Mears -20, 7) Kasey Kahne -23, t-8) AJ Allmendinger -26, t-8) Aric Almirola -26, 10) Clint Bowyer -30, 11) David Gilliland -32, 12) Sam Hornish, Jr. -33, t-13) Greg Biffle -34, t-13) Carl Edwards -34, 15) David Ragan -35, 16) Danica Patrick -37.
Race Winners: Joey Logano (Daytona), Jimmie Johnson (Atlanta)
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Quotes to Remember: Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500
compiled by Phil Allaway
"It says a lot of good things. I'm just so excited that the guys could understand. We have new guys. So, this new team could understand what I was complaining about and things I didn't like about my race car. We thought we were a top 10 car last night. And I'm sorry to tell you (FOX's Jamie Little) earlier today that we weren't going to be that good, because we certainly were. We had some troubles on pit road. Once we kind of got through and I got by the No. 19 (Carl Edwards), which allowed us to keep track position and we didn't get tripped-up on our pit stops, this thing was just bad fast. I had a blast racing with the No. 4 (Kevin Harvick). He was awfully strong today. I think track position there at the end just kind of set things in place. We had the restart we needed to and cleared the No. 88 (Dale Earnhardt, Jr.) and off we went." - Jimmie Johnson, race winner
"It knocked the whole grill out of the car. Just destroyed the aerodynamics of the car and it cost me a spot to the No. 4 (Kevin Harvick). But I have got to tell you that my guys did a great job on pit road. They were fast all day on pit road – real consistent. We have got some new guys over the wall. Greg Ives (crew chief) did a good job setting up the Kelley Blue Book Chevrolet. We struggled a little bit Thursday but we got better and better each day. Our communication is really, really good. He is doing a great job cheerleading this whole team. I am real proud of the effort the whole crew did, man. To start off like this and get some traction and have a couple of good runs is giving us some confidence and it is helping Greg out a ton." - Dale Earnhardt, Jr., finished third, on his handling woes late in the race
"We had a decent Shell/Pennzoil Ford and my guys on pit road were amazing. Every time I came on pit road they had some fast stops. I'm glad to see they brought their A-game. We raced hard and raced up toward the front all day. Those Hendrick cars are fast, and obviously the 4 car, but the other guys would just take off and leave me. I did everything I could to maintain on restarts and be aggressive and that's where we ended up. Overall, we kept the momentum rolling. We're having a good start to the season, so we'll keep her going. I had nothing for [Harvick, Earnhardt Jr. and Johnson]. They were so fast. I was sitting there watching them in front of me and trying to keep up and doing everything I could, but it's hard because you want to run hard, but also save your stuff for the long run. At the end of the race, we were all running hard and I couldn't keep up with them. They were fast." - Joey Logano, finished fourth
"Yeah it was good, another good weekend. That is two for two on good weekends. I just really wanted a top-five there. I just wasn't really quite as good as those guys on the short run. And in dirty air, I needed a little bit longer runs and to be able to kind of pick and choose my lanes where I needed to be. All in all, what can I say? All the guys at Furniture Row are doing a great job. This beats where we were last year by about 35 spots at this time of the year. Excited about what everybody is doing and really pumped up to get the rest of the year going." - Martin Truex, Jr., finished fifth
"This is truly amazing. We showed good speed all weekend long. We just couldn't bust off a quick lap on fresh tires and we kept adjusting on the car during the race. It wasn't where we needed it to start and I kept learning how to be more aggressive on the restarts and use other people's air to benefit me. I can't thank Michael Waltrip Racing, Toyota and Aaron's enough for this opportunity. Definitely learned a lot out there. Wish I could be in the car more often." - Brett Moffitt, finished eighth
"I was really thrilled. The first 100 laps of the race, our M&M's Crispy Camry was fast, had speed and track position means a lot at any race and as we fell back a little bit and I think it was a snowball effect. We just really probably were a little behind on our adjustment and that's probably just my inexperience with these guys and being a little timid on making a few adjustments. As the track rubbered up at the half way mark of the race, we were just way too loose, so we had to take some pretty big swings to get back, but I was happy at the end of the race. We had some good speed, but we had lost too much ground. All in all, a good weekend. We learned a lot, brought the car back in one piece, but we can run better than that. I felt like we had a good, solid top-10 car and things just didn't shake out." - David Ragan, finished 18th
"I think the 16 and 34 got together, something up front there. I was committed to the top and got in the brakes and got in the back of the 15, which was down on power I guess. And then a lot of smoke and somebody was in front of me as I was still on the brake and went ahead and ended our day. Our Fifth Third Bank Ford wasn't near as good as what we wanted. We were running in the back and had gotten a little bit better throughout the day, just not near as good as what we wanted." - Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., finished 36th (Crashed Out)
"At least I thought we were running pretty decent for this being our first run with this team. It probably exceeded my expectations in the race a little bit. It was nice to run with some of those fast cars and get up there and mix it up with the Roush cars and some of the other good cars. I thought we were good on the long run and our car only got better. Even when it started laying down, we still were running the same speed as a lot of the cars we were racing around. Unfortunately, it finally let go completely but at least we were fast." - Cole Whitt, finished 37th (Blown Engine)
"I was right on the 19 (Carl Edwards) entering (turn) one and he checked up and if I didn't move to the right, I was going to spin him out. I was going to run right in the back of him and when I moved to the right of him it put me right on the door of the 4 (Kevin Harvick) and I just sucked around and that was it. I apologize to all those cars involved, but it's tough. I mean, we had a good FedEx Ground Toyota for most the day. Just lost the handle there on the last run and kind of put us in a spot where we hadn't restarted all day and just got sucked around and got a little loose." - Denny Hamlin, finished 38th
"I saw the No. 11 (Denny Hamlin) going sideways. I had him cleared. I stood on the gas and went by him; but I guess he might have clipped the No. 1 (Jamie McMurray) and it turned the No. 1 back into me. After that, I was just along for the ride. It looks like maybe the No. 31 (Ryan Newman) came down in trying to avoid the No. 11 and got into the No. 1 and then he clipped me in the left rear and sent me down the back straightaway. It wouldn't have been too bad except that I found that one spot where there's no SAFER barrier. I can't believe it. That's amazing to me. Anyway, hopefully soon that will get fixed. It was a pretty big impact. I hate it for this team. We were struggling. We didn't have the 3M Chevrolet that I thought we were going to have, but we weren't giving up on it. We were going to make gains and we finally got ourselves in the top 10 and I think we had a shot of getting into the top five. But obviously, it's not the way we want to start our season." - Jeff Gordon, finished 41st (Crashed Out)
"It says a lot of good things. I'm just so excited that the guys could understand. We have new guys. So, this new team could understand what I was complaining about and things I didn't like about my race car. We thought we were a top 10 car last night. And I'm sorry to tell you (FOX's Jamie Little) earlier today that we weren't going to be that good, because we certainly were. We had some troubles on pit road. Once we kind of got through and I got by the No. 19 (Carl Edwards), which allowed us to keep track position and we didn't get tripped-up on our pit stops, this thing was just bad fast. I had a blast racing with the No. 4 (Kevin Harvick). He was awfully strong today. I think track position there at the end just kind of set things in place. We had the restart we needed to and cleared the No. 88 (Dale Earnhardt, Jr.) and off we went." - Jimmie Johnson, race winner
"It knocked the whole grill out of the car. Just destroyed the aerodynamics of the car and it cost me a spot to the No. 4 (Kevin Harvick). But I have got to tell you that my guys did a great job on pit road. They were fast all day on pit road – real consistent. We have got some new guys over the wall. Greg Ives (crew chief) did a good job setting up the Kelley Blue Book Chevrolet. We struggled a little bit Thursday but we got better and better each day. Our communication is really, really good. He is doing a great job cheerleading this whole team. I am real proud of the effort the whole crew did, man. To start off like this and get some traction and have a couple of good runs is giving us some confidence and it is helping Greg out a ton." - Dale Earnhardt, Jr., finished third, on his handling woes late in the race
"We had a decent Shell/Pennzoil Ford and my guys on pit road were amazing. Every time I came on pit road they had some fast stops. I'm glad to see they brought their A-game. We raced hard and raced up toward the front all day. Those Hendrick cars are fast, and obviously the 4 car, but the other guys would just take off and leave me. I did everything I could to maintain on restarts and be aggressive and that's where we ended up. Overall, we kept the momentum rolling. We're having a good start to the season, so we'll keep her going. I had nothing for [Harvick, Earnhardt Jr. and Johnson]. They were so fast. I was sitting there watching them in front of me and trying to keep up and doing everything I could, but it's hard because you want to run hard, but also save your stuff for the long run. At the end of the race, we were all running hard and I couldn't keep up with them. They were fast." - Joey Logano, finished fourth
"Yeah it was good, another good weekend. That is two for two on good weekends. I just really wanted a top-five there. I just wasn't really quite as good as those guys on the short run. And in dirty air, I needed a little bit longer runs and to be able to kind of pick and choose my lanes where I needed to be. All in all, what can I say? All the guys at Furniture Row are doing a great job. This beats where we were last year by about 35 spots at this time of the year. Excited about what everybody is doing and really pumped up to get the rest of the year going." - Martin Truex, Jr., finished fifth
"This is truly amazing. We showed good speed all weekend long. We just couldn't bust off a quick lap on fresh tires and we kept adjusting on the car during the race. It wasn't where we needed it to start and I kept learning how to be more aggressive on the restarts and use other people's air to benefit me. I can't thank Michael Waltrip Racing, Toyota and Aaron's enough for this opportunity. Definitely learned a lot out there. Wish I could be in the car more often." - Brett Moffitt, finished eighth
"I was really thrilled. The first 100 laps of the race, our M&M's Crispy Camry was fast, had speed and track position means a lot at any race and as we fell back a little bit and I think it was a snowball effect. We just really probably were a little behind on our adjustment and that's probably just my inexperience with these guys and being a little timid on making a few adjustments. As the track rubbered up at the half way mark of the race, we were just way too loose, so we had to take some pretty big swings to get back, but I was happy at the end of the race. We had some good speed, but we had lost too much ground. All in all, a good weekend. We learned a lot, brought the car back in one piece, but we can run better than that. I felt like we had a good, solid top-10 car and things just didn't shake out." - David Ragan, finished 18th
"I think the 16 and 34 got together, something up front there. I was committed to the top and got in the brakes and got in the back of the 15, which was down on power I guess. And then a lot of smoke and somebody was in front of me as I was still on the brake and went ahead and ended our day. Our Fifth Third Bank Ford wasn't near as good as what we wanted. We were running in the back and had gotten a little bit better throughout the day, just not near as good as what we wanted." - Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., finished 36th (Crashed Out)
"At least I thought we were running pretty decent for this being our first run with this team. It probably exceeded my expectations in the race a little bit. It was nice to run with some of those fast cars and get up there and mix it up with the Roush cars and some of the other good cars. I thought we were good on the long run and our car only got better. Even when it started laying down, we still were running the same speed as a lot of the cars we were racing around. Unfortunately, it finally let go completely but at least we were fast." - Cole Whitt, finished 37th (Blown Engine)
"I was right on the 19 (Carl Edwards) entering (turn) one and he checked up and if I didn't move to the right, I was going to spin him out. I was going to run right in the back of him and when I moved to the right of him it put me right on the door of the 4 (Kevin Harvick) and I just sucked around and that was it. I apologize to all those cars involved, but it's tough. I mean, we had a good FedEx Ground Toyota for most the day. Just lost the handle there on the last run and kind of put us in a spot where we hadn't restarted all day and just got sucked around and got a little loose." - Denny Hamlin, finished 38th
"I saw the No. 11 (Denny Hamlin) going sideways. I had him cleared. I stood on the gas and went by him; but I guess he might have clipped the No. 1 (Jamie McMurray) and it turned the No. 1 back into me. After that, I was just along for the ride. It looks like maybe the No. 31 (Ryan Newman) came down in trying to avoid the No. 11 and got into the No. 1 and then he clipped me in the left rear and sent me down the back straightaway. It wouldn't have been too bad except that I found that one spot where there's no SAFER barrier. I can't believe it. That's amazing to me. Anyway, hopefully soon that will get fixed. It was a pretty big impact. I hate it for this team. We were struggling. We didn't have the 3M Chevrolet that I thought we were going to have, but we weren't giving up on it. We were going to make gains and we finally got ourselves in the top 10 and I think we had a shot of getting into the top five. But obviously, it's not the way we want to start our season." - Jeff Gordon, finished 41st (Crashed Out)
Phil Allaway is the Newsletter Manager as well as a Senior Writer for Frontstretch. He can be reached via e-mail at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com.
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TODAY AT FRONTSTRETCH:
by Amy Henderson
by Jerry Jordan
by the Frontstretch Staff
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FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
Talk back to the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Got something to say about an article you've seen in the newsletter? It's as easy as replying directly to this message or sending an email to editors@frontstretch.com. We'll take the best comments and publish them here!
©2015 Frontstretch.com
Q: When Las Vegas Motor Speedway opened in 1996, the track was designed to cater to all kinds of racing tastes. The configurations also included an infield road course. That road course had multiple configurations as well. There was one notable difference between when the first sports car race was held there in 1997 and the last ALMS race in 2000. What was it?
Check back Tuesday for the answer, here in the Frontstretch Newsletter!
Friday's Answer:
Friday's Answer:
Q: In 1996, Jack Sprague competed in the final two races of the Cup season in a No. 52 Pedigree-sponsored Pontiac owned by Rick Hendrick. Hendrick Motorsports has always been a Chevrolet team in NASCAR with the exception of this brief experiment. Why did they field a Pontiac here?
A: At the time, Hendrick Motorsports was trying to differentiate their teams. Rumors at the time had Hendrick changing the No. 25 from a Chevrolet to a Pontiac, possibly in a midseason switch. However, it never came to be.
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COMING TOMORROW
COMING TOMORROW
In The Frontstretch Newsletter:
We'll have breaking news from Monday and S.D. Grady's Sitting In The Stands: A Fan's View commentary.
On Frontstretch.com:
Matt McLaughlin returns with a new commentary based on Sunday's race.
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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!
©2015 Frontstretch.com
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