Surprising and Not Surprising: IRWIN Tools Night Race
The Coliseum…..Thunder Valley…..and “The World’s Fastest Half Mile”…..here is what was surprising and not surprising from Bristol Motor Speedway in the IRWIN Tools Night Race.
Surprising: Although Team Penske scored a one, two finish, race winner Joey Logano and race runner up Brad Keselowski both admitted that was one of the toughest, most physically demanding races of the season to date.
“It definitely was a very, very tough race,” the driver of the No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford for Team Penske said. “I feel like it’s the most physically demanding racetrack, just the baddest, mamma jamma racetrack ever built, not only for the driver but for the race car. You’re just always on the gas or the brake or in the turn. There’s always something going on, and as a driver you don’t get a break inside the race car, either.”
“It was a hard night,” the driver of the No. 2 Wurth Team Penske Ford said. “I’ll tell you, first off, this place, the race pace is really brutal and aggressive. With the cars having all the extra downforce this year and tires improving and some of the new rules, compounded by grinding the track and the track’s high lane having a lot of speed, I swear, this is the most grueling race of the year.”
“It feels good just to complete it and be able to kind of look myself in the eye and know I gave it all I had,” Keselowski continued. “It just wasn’t enough, but I didn’t fall out of the seat, so I’m damned near as proud of not falling out of the seat as anything else.”
Not Surprising: Coach Gibbs has no doubt already sent out for the infamous milk and cookies for his driver of the No. 18 Doublemint Toyota and his crew chief Dave Rogers. The two exchanged some pretty heated words after Busch sped on pit road, got back in traffic and was collected in a wreck for a 36th place finish.
“That’s just pro sports,” Coach Gibbs said. “Every now and then you get frustrated.”
“I think the night was totally frustrating,” Gibbs continued. “(Kyle) had a great car and it was a series of circumstances. Something like that happens in pro sports you can get frustrated.”
Surprising: While Kyle Busch vacated his race car without speaking to the media, his teammate Denny Hamlin could not stop talking about what happened between himself and Kevin Harvick, resulting in his 40th place finish in the Bristol night race. In fact, he even added some physicality to his words, tossing his HANS device at Harvick’s car under the caution laps.
“I’m just frustrated because we had a good run going,” Hamlin opined. “I thought for sure after the first couple runs that we were going to win the race.”
“It just didn’t work out,” the driver of the No. 11 FedEx Ground Toyota said. “Mistakes happen in racing. Obviously, I believe that Kevin (Harvick) made a mistake tonight and that’s just part of it. I was just on the short end of the stick.”
Not Surprising: Matt Kenseth, although winless, continued his consistent streak of good finishes, scoring the third position in his No. 20 Dollar General Toyota. Kenseth was also the highest finishing Toyota driver and, in fact, was the only Toyota to finish in the top-15.
“I feel like we’re getting better,” Kenseth said. “We just didn’t quite have it today and we still got a decent finish out of it, but we just didn’t quite have the speed we’ve had the last few races here.”
“We’ll keep working on it.”
Surprising: Ricky Stenhouse Jr. had a surprisingly good finish, taking the checkered flag in the sixth spot. In fact, Stenhouse Jr. led the Roush Fenway Racing trio in the finishing order, with both of his teammates finishing behind him, in seventh and tenth respectively for Carl Edwards and Greg Biffle.
“We didn’t start off very good but Mike (Kelley, crew chief) made a lot of changes,” Stenhouse said. “Our pit crew did an awesome job on pit road and gave me some fast pit stops, and Mike made a good call to take the wave around to get back on the lead lap and then the caution came out quick and we were able to make our car a little bit better.”
“We’ve got a lot of work to do, but definitely really pleased with how we finished with how the car drove, so we’ll get it better and we’ll keep working on it,” Stenhouse Jr. continued. “That felt really good to pass some cars. It was a great night.”
Not Surprising: After leading 148 laps out of the 500 lap race, it would be natural to feel a bit befuddled after finishing eighth instead of ending up in Victory Lane.
“I don’t know what happened,” Jamie McMurray, behind the wheel of the No. 1 McDonald’s Chevrolet said. “Our car got really tight with about 100 laps to go.”
“We freed it up on the last pit stop and it didn’t really help,” McMurray continued. “But I’m really proud of everybody on our McDonald’s Chevrolet. McDonald’s has been in this sport for so long and they’ve only won a few races and I really thought tonight was going to be our night to put them back in Victory Lane.”
Surprising: Jimmie Johnson, six-time champ, and Kyle Larson, Rookie of the Year contender, may be at different places in their careers, however they had one thing in common at Bristol. They both had to overcome adversity, from Johnson’s two speeding penalties to Larson’s wreck in qualifying, to finish fourth and twelfth respectively.
Johnson was the highest finisher for Hendrick Motorsports and Larson was again the highest finishing rookie of the race.
“Top fives are good. We are happy about that,” the driver of the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet said. “We had some issues on pit road and got nailed for speeding twice which was totally on us. Just mistakes made there that kind of hurt us a little bit, but we still got a third top five, finished fourth.”
“I made our team have to work really hard with wrecking in qualifying,” the driver of the No. 42 Target Chevrolet said. “Just a long race I felt like I worked hard the whole time. That is the hardest I’ve ever raced. Especially having to do it for 500 laps.”
“That was pretty wild,” Larson continued. “I guess I’m happy with a 12th. That is probably about as good as we were. I had a few run in’s today, but still to come away with a 12th is pretty good.”
Not Surprising: Paul Menard quietly continued his string of good finishes, this time taking the checkered flag in ninth.
“We had a really good car,” the driver of the No. 27 Serta/Menards Chevrolet said. “We had two runs where we just got off. We took right sides and it didn’t work out very well. Then we did a chassis adjustment and put four tires. We feel backwards and got a lap down. We were able to put four tires on and pass some guys for the lucky dog.”
“We got that and we could race again.”
Surprising: Aric Almirola was the biggest loser of the evening, wrecking hard to finish 41st and dropping three spots in the point standings to 24th.
“I’m OK, just disappointed,” the driver of the No. 43 STP Ford Fusion said. “What an amazing race car these guys brought me – two of them – and to go out like that is certainly disappointing, but that’s racing at Bristol – you get caught up in other peoples’ wrecks.”
Not Surprising: AJ Allmendinger continues to ride the momentum wave after his win at Watkins Glen, finishing top-15 at a track where he admittedly has struggled.
“It’s a really good night because I’m not really good here,” the driver of the No. 47 Busch’s Beans Chevrolet said. “At times we had a top-10 car and even at the end there when the car was terrible.”
“We were inside the top-15 with decent speeds and that’s what I wanted to at least do here,” Allmendinger continued. “Times we were eighth, ninth, 10th like last week.”
“So, I think we are making progress. I’m just happy to get out of here and be able to run 500 laps. I think the team was a little bit better than me today. All in all, it’s the kind of momentum we need for going into Chicago.”
The Final Word – It was just another whiny ass Saturday night at Bristol
We learned a lot at Bristol on Saturday night. We learned that there might be some bashed fenders. Okay, we already knew that. Kyle Busch learned it as well as anyone else.
We learned that Kyle can be a bit of a whiny ass at Bristol. Well, I guess we knew that, too, but that did not stop his crew chief, Dave Rogers, from reminding Rowdy of that fact. When the driver went off on a rant about needing new suspension and was going to head behind the wall, Rogers told him to “Park it behind the truck and take your whiny little ass to the bus.” All of a sudden, I like Dave Rogers. A lot.
I learned I am not much of a Joey Logano fan. Okay, you got me. I have always known that. Logano wins and I fail to realize a big ole smile on my face. On a day when Jamie McMurray led the most, and the likes of Kevin Harvick, Matt Kenseth, and Brad Keselowski had their turns up front, it was the 24 year old kid taking his third of the season. That puts him in the same conversation as Keselowski, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I learned that some wrecks you do not mind, some you do. At least, when Denny Hamlin got taken from first to 41st, thanks to Harvick, I was not all that torn up. Then Earnhardt caught the rear end of the sliding beast, and I got almost as torn up about it as Junior’s car did. As for Hamlin, you might have thought he would have been upset, yet that did not stop him from trying to lend Harvick his HANS device. Too bad it just bounced off his passing car.
We learned that Kurt Busch is a Little League World Series fan. When the team from Las Vegas was taking on Chicago in the U.S. final, a tweet came in from the driver saying that he would be there to watch them in the championship game. What I do not know is if he bothered to come out to Williamsport to see them play Japan in the consolation final.
We learned that at least two pilots and as many as four will make the Chase through points. With a 58 point bulge over the cut off, all Kenseth needs to do is finish with a Top 30 at Atlanta and he will be locked in.
We learned that the sights and sounds from Bristol were just as amazing as ever. Then the ABC announcers would speak and ruin everything. We were expecting as much.
Atlanta is the place to be this Sunday. Only two drivers not already locked into the Chase have a win there. One is Kasey Kahne. The other is Tony Stewart.
SWEET SIXTEEN
1 – Jeff Gordon – 3 Wins – 815 Points
2 – Dale Earnhardt, Jr. – 3 – 813
3 – Brad Keselowski – 3 – 733
4 – Joey Logano – 3 – 714
5 – Jimmie Johnson – 3 – 686
6 – Kevin Harvick – 2 – 687
7 – Carl Edwards – 2 – 679
8 – Kyle Busch – 1 – 620
9 – Denny Hamlin – 1 – 589
10 – Aric Almirola – 1 – 556
11 – A.J. Allmendinger – 1 – 556
12 – Kurt Busch – 1 – 553
13 – Matt Kenseth – 0 – 709
14 – Ryan Newman – 0 – 679
15 – Clint Bowyer – 0 – 672
16 – Greg Biffle – 0 – 660
CONTENDERS & PRETENDERS
17 – Kasey Kahne – 0 – 651 Points
18 – Austin Dillon – 0 – 638
19 – Kyle Larson – 0 – 636
20 – Marcos Ambrose – 0 – 616
21 – Paul Menard – 0 – 614
22 – Brian Vickers – 0 – 598
23 – Jamie McMurray – 0 – 596
24 – Casey Mears – 0 – 543
25 – Tony Stewart – 0 – 537
26 – Martin Truex, Jr. – 0 – 516
27 – Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. – 0 – 476
28 – Danica Patrick – 0 – 445
29 – Justin Allgaier – 0 – 400
30 – Michael Annett – 0 – 364
31 – David Gilliland – 0 – 357
32 – David Ragan – 0 – 332
NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Bristol
Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.
1. Jeff Gordon: Gordon started second at Bristol but encountered handling issues that left him mid-pack for much of the race. He finished 16th, one lap down, and leads the Sprint Cup points standings by 27 over Dale Earnhardt Jr.
“We’re disappointed for sure,” Gordon said. “But on the bright side, we’ve procured sponsorship from 3M, which was previously in a ten-year relationship with Greg Biffle. It was a mutually beneficial relationship for the Biff and 3M, and that’s good. Take it from me, not all ten-year relationships end on good terms.”
2. Joey Logano: Logano zipped past Matt Kenseth with 44 laps to go and held off Brad Keselowski to win the Irwin Tools Night Race at Bristol. It was Logano’s third win of the year and solidified his status as a true Cup contender.
“Hey,” Logano said, “I don’t mind being called ‘the man to beat.’ Mostly because it’s the only time I’m called a ‘man.’”
3. Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Earnhardt hit Denny Hamlin’s No. 11 car, which was spun by Kevin Harvick, and suffered serious damage that sent him to the garage. He finished 39th,
“Hamlin’s car just ripped the left side of my car off,” Earnhardt said. “I’ll quote a Michael Waltrip Racing driver and say ‘A Toyota ruined my day.’
“Hamlin may want revenge on Harvick, but I don’t. Those who know me well know I’m a good-natured guy just looking for a good time. So, you could say both Denny and I have a reason to ‘Get Happy.’”
4. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski finished second to Penske Racing teammate Joey Logano in the Irwin Tools Night Race, as the Penske stable swept all three races as Bristol. Keselowski won the Craftsman Trucks race, while Ryan Blaney took the Nationwide victory.
“I think this weekend proves that Penske Racing is the best team in NASCAR,” Keselowski said. “And that’s not just a ‘sweeping’ generalization.”
5. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson overcame two early pit road speeding penalties and posted a solid fourth, his seventh top-five result of the year. He is fifth in the points standings, 119 out of first.
“I was back in the familiar blue Lowe’s paint scheme at Bristol,” Johnson said. “I just feel faster in that paint scheme. Unfortunately, the only thing we ‘blue’ by at Bristol were the pit road timers.”
6. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth held the lead late at Bristol, but succumbed to the charges of Joey Logano, who passed Kenseth with 44 laps remaining. Kenseth settled for third, his ninth top five of the year.
“I couldn’t keep him away,” Kenseth said. “By ‘him,’ I’m not referring to Logano, but Carl Edwards. He’ll be joining Joe Gibbs Racing next year. I guess I’ll welcome him with open arms. I assume he’ll welcome me with a closed fist.”
7. Carl Edwards: Edwards took seventh at Bristol as all three Roush Fenway drivers posted top-10 finishes, with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. leading the way with a sixth.
“I’m off to Joe Gibbs Racing at season’s end,” Edwards said. “I’ll be in the No. 19 Toyota. Starting with a new team is never easy, but I’m getting a raise, of course. As they say, ‘Change is good.’ As I say, ‘More change is better.’”
“And speaking of ‘throws,’ Hamlin’s was nothing compared to the ‘pitch’ Joe Gibbs Racing gave me.”
8. Ryan Newman: Newman finished 13th at Bristol, and is 14th in the Sprint Cup points standings with two races before the Chase.
“I wouldn’t think of throwing my HANS device at another driver,” Newman said. “However, I’d certainly throw a hands device at another driver. It’s called a ‘fist.’ Just ask Juan Montoya.”
9. Kevin Harvick: Harvick won the pole at Bristol and led 75 laps on his way to an 11th-place finish. Harvick faced the wrath of Denny Hamlin after wrecking the No. 11 car.
“Hamlin threw his HANS device at me,” Harvick said. “I guess that means I’ll ‘catch hell.’ Ironically, Hamlin showed ‘restraint.’ I’m not sure what Denny threw harder—his HANS device, or a tantrum.”
10. Kurt Busch: Busch recorded his sixth top-5 result of the year with a fifth at Bristol. With one victory this year, Busch has already locked up his spot in the Chase.
“Tempers were flaring at Bristol,” Busch said. “Denny Hamlin flung his HANS device at Kevin Harvick. In case you’re wondering, the HANS device is a head and neck restraint system. Personally, I’ve tested several head and neck restraints, and the HANS is by far my favorite. My least favorite is a Tony Stewart headlock.”
Richard Petty Presented The American Legion’s James V. Day "Good Guy" Award
Scott Dixon makes late race pass to win GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma victory
Scott Dixon would make the pass on Mike Conway with three laps to go to take the lead and never looked back en route to scoring the victory in the GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma at Sonoma Raceway. It marks the second victory of the season for the 2013 Verizon IndyCar Series Champion and the 35th victory of his career.
“It was tough,” Dixon commented. “There were so many strategies going on and then they were close. So excited. This is big for our team. We’ve had a pretty rough year so far, so happy to get the win.”
Ryan Hunter-Reay would get by Conway the next lap to move into second, bouncing back after failing to finish the race at the Milwaukee Mile.
“It was going our way for a little bit there, picked our way through there on the start,” Hunter-Reay said. “We had a good car in moving away thru traffic. That last set of tires, seemed to be miss the pressures there and had an imbalance there with the tires and had nothing for Scott there at the end.”
Simon Pagenaud would round out the podium after passing Conway through the final corners to remain third in points, now 81 points behind Will Power.
“I didn’t feel that we could be that good, but it turned out to be a good day,” Pagenaud said. “Strategy was very frustrating – very tough for me but we made it, passed Conway on the final corner. I’m delighted and now go into Fontana with a chance at the title, which is important to me.”
Takuma Sato and Juan Pablo Montoya rounded out the top-five, followed by Josef Newgarden, Mikhail Aleshin, Marco Andretti, Justin Wilson, Will Power and Sebastian Bourdais. Power looked to have the strongest car in the field, leading early, however got back mid-field in the process of strategy. Trying to make his way back up through the field, Power would lock up the tires trying to stay tucked to the inside of Newgarden off the hairpin, resulting in a spin.
“It took me by surprise,” he commented. “I was just really tight with a car on the outside of me and didn’t want to get up there. Thought I’d do a few celebratory donuts to show for the youngsters. That’s racing – was able to make a good there.”
He would then go for a second off-track excursion on lap 54 in turn nine. He would hit pit road about six laps later, and from then on, worked at gaining spots throughout the field to conserve as many points as he could, including a three-wide move on the last lap through the final tight corner with Wilson and Sebastian Bourdais.
“It looked like an easy target with Justin struggling – I saw the opportunity and went for it,” he said. “It got a little hairy there with the wheel being ripped out of my wheels but was able to hold on. I couldn’t believe it. That was a hairy last corner.”
Power will now head into the final event of the 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series season next Saturday night at Auto Club Speedway with a 51 point advantage over Helio Castroneves. Castroneves had a rough day, finishing 18th after getting involved in an incident on the opening lap of the race in turn two. There’d be contact between Ryan Briscoe and Bourdais, causing Briscoe to get sideways, leaving Castroneves nowhere to go. Castroneves’ team would change front wing, as well as fix sidepod damage, and tried to get off strategy during the race to make up ground.
“It’s a pretty disappointing finish, to be honest,” Castroneves said. “The Hitachi Chevy was really fast all weekend and to get hit so early on in the race was really tough. That certainly put us behind, fixing the damage in the front and back of the car and it was tough to recover. So now, we are 51 points behind in the championship heading to the finale at Auto Club Speedway, and with the double points there anything can happen.
“We are not giving up. We will keep on it and give everything we have next weekend to try and reach our goal. We are still in it and we know what we need to do now over the 500 miles.”
After leading late in the race, Conway would end up 14th as he ran out of fuel, just a few feet before the line, on the last lap.
“I thought we’d be able to make it – I was hitting the numbers, a little faster some laps, slower others,” he said. “I used an overtake to try and hold off Dixon there and still thought that we’d be okay for a podium. It then died going into 10, picked up a little there and then died again. Just disappointing, but still a good strategy to try and win by the team. Thanks to Ed Carpenter Racing for the opportunity and hard work this year.”
Graham Rahal also tried the same strategy as Conway, also coming up short after leading late in the race and having to pit with four laps to go. He would then suffer a speeding penalty, resulting in a 20th place finish.
“I thought it finally was going to happen. When we had to pass people, we could go by them,” Rahal said. “They told me the fuel number – the yellow map – which was way down in power, way down in boost – and were still able to still pass people. Then dad started counting down laps and I thought ‘okay, we may do this’ and then it ran out there. It may not seem like we’re going to win one, but we’re going to win one.”
