More
Editorials

Off The
Press

|
|
Posted on May
29, 2007
The
GOOD, The BAD, & The UGLY - Unsafe
Rubber Flies Off Johnson To Cull The
Herd
It is not often that the
turning points in a 600-mile race take
place over the first 100 miles, but that
is exactly what happened last Sunday.
First, some BAD rubber left the tire of
Jimmie Johnson to fly into the path of
checking and diving competitors early in
the Coca Cola 600 at Charlotte. 16 cars
got tagged to various degrees in the
mayhem. On the restart, Tony Raines
spun Jeff Gordon into the path of A.J.
Allmendinger, culling the herd even
further. You have to admit, whether by
accident or not, it was an effective
strategy on the part of those two
harbingers of havoc. Johnson finished
tenth, in part due to a hung lug nut in
the pits with a hundred miles to go,
while Raines finished 14th.
Some final results are exciting, and
some was just very, very satisfying.
With the leaders running on vapors and
needing a final dash for gas at the end,
Casey Mears was GOOD to go to the
checkered flag. Coming a day after his
runner-up NBS finish, this marked the 29
year old Californian's first Cup victory
and continues the family tradition of
Memorial Day celebrations. His uncle,
Rick, won four Memorial Day races at
Indianapolis.
Just how GOOD was this day for some?
Well, J.J. Yeley was second, the first
Top Five of his career. Kyle Petty
third, his best finish in nearly a
decade. Fourth went to Reed Sorenson,
the best finish for the 21-year old in
his 50-race Cup experience. Brian
Vickers strong-armed a car in which
power steering was a long ago memory to
round out the Top Five and give Toyota
its best result yet. Now, if we could
only have such finishes every week.
BAD weekend for the Busch boys. Kurt,
along with Vickers, had been the class
of the field early, but as the sun went
down so did the quality of his ride.
With less than 50 laps to go, he caught
the fence for a second time to finally
put the auto out of its misery.
Earlier, Kyle had cut a tire down,
pancaked the left side, and broke a
brake rotor. He would limp around to
finish 30th, two better than older
brother.
Among the big boys, at least according
to the standings, Tony Stewart was the
best, finishing sixth. Ricky Rudd was
next, the best he has done since his one
year sabbatical ended in February. Mind
you, since 1979, you could bet the farm
that Rudd would claim at least one Top
Five over the course of any campaign he
competed in. Dale Earnhardt, Jr was
eighth, but still 13 points behind Jamie
McMurray for a Chase invitation. Those
who were in the Top Dozen in the
standings before the race remain there,
including Denny Hamlin, who finished
just ahead of Johnson on Sunday.
GOOD to see Dale Jarrett make the race
on time. Too BAD he left when his
engine let go just 125 miles in to this
thing. As for UGLY, may I direct your
attention to the idle vehicles of
Michael Waltrip and David Reutimann,
both wrecked during qualifying. You
know, I'm one of those guys who doesn't
mind kicking a guy when he is down, but
my leg hurts. Enough already.
Talking about the Jarrett family, GOOD
to see daddy Ned return to the airwaves,
if only for a short time, to assist his
boy during the Busch broadcast on
Saturday. I'm glad they have managed to
get past that broadcast truck theft
attempt. It is always sad when a dad
goes BAD.
Cookie power is still working for Kenny
Wallace, as a fresh container of goodies
made its way from Colorado to aid in
their qualifying efforts. Wallace found
a place just outside the Top Twenty for
the first 400 miles before engine woes
parked him in 34th.
More BAD times than GOOD for Greg Biffle
and crew. He lost a tire and found the
fence before any of the other wrecks to
finish dead last. Crew chief Pat Tryson
got bounced in favor of Greg Erwin,
while some rumor mills have both Tryson
and his former driver eventually ending
up together at DEI.
With his suspension lifted, ex-Waltrip
crew chief David Hyder returns to the
pit box next weekend at Dover
International Speedway to guide the #36
Toyota driven by Jeremy Mayfield. That
car was near the front on Sunday, but
its engine gave up the ghost with 25
miles to go. I understand Hyder has
some expertise when it comes to engines.
Jeff Gordon and his wife have a baby due
in early July and the four time champ
plans to be there for the event. So,
what happens if the arrival coincides
with a race date? Jeff plans to be a
GOOD attentive parent right from the
start, so if the baby is on the way,
he'll be at the hospital and Mark Martin
will be in the Dupont Chevy. It would
mark the first race Gordon would miss
since he got behind the wheel at Atlanta
in the final race of the 1992 season.
As for the Chase, he could miss a couple
of races and still be in GOOD shape.
That is, provided he is driving no where
near Tony Raines.
Kasey Kahne, who was 23rd on Sunday, won
the Busch race on Saturday. In
Mansfield, Ohio, it was Dennis Setzer
driving to victory in a truck. At
Cayuga Speedway Park, near Hamilton,
Ontario, hometown boy Don Thomson, Jr.
won the inaugural NASCAR Canadian Tire
Series event. At Indianapolis, Ashley
Judd's hubby Dario Franchitti won the
500. In Monaco, Spain's Fernando Alonso
claimed the Grand Prix. Here at home,
I'm racing to cut the lawn before the
next rain fall.
So, after all the Memorial Day
excitement here and abroad, this weekend
turns to Delaware where the Craftsman,
Busch, and Nextel folks take on the
Monster Mile at Dover. Enjoy the
racing!
You can
contact Ron at
thornton@speedwaymedia.com
The opinions expressed
on this site are not necessarily those of the publisher. All
comments other than website related problems need to be directed to
the author. Copyright 2000-2007 SpeedwayMedia.com.
More by
this author:


Click here to
discuss this story at our forum! |