NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Watkins Glen

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August 12, 2014

Allmendinger burnout at Watkins Glen — Photo Credit: Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images

Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

1. Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Earnhardt finished 11th at Watkins Glen after an untimely late caution cost him any chance of winning. He passed Jeff Gordon to take over the lead in the Sprint Cup points standings, and now leads Gordon by four.

“Let me point out,” Earnhardt said, “that at this point, points don’t mean much. Have I made my point?

“It was a crazy day at Watkins Glen. A.J. Allmendinger proved that a one-car team can compete with the multi-car teams. Chances are that the ‘Dinger’ will be with a big-time team in the future. Instead of losing a ride, he’ll be pimping one.”

2. Jeff Gordon: Gordon won the pole at Watkins Glen but faltered late after electrical issues sabotaged his chances. He eventually finished 34th and now trails Dale Earnhardt, Jr. by four in the Sprint Cup points standings.

“There’s only one word to describe how you feel sitting in a car suffering from electrical issues,” Gordon said. “Powerless.

“The weekend started on a high note. I won the pole on my son Leo’s birthday, and he couldn’t be happier. And can you blame him? What other adolecent has a Coors Lite Pole Award in his bedroom? Besides Kurt Busch?”

3. Brad Keselowski: A promising start at Watkins Glen soured for Keselowski after brake issues relegated him to a 23rd-place finish, five laps down.

“I’d rather have trouble stopping,” Keselowski said, “than trouble ‘going,’ which is a problem 72-year-old Morgan Shepherd deals with on a daily basis. At least that’s what Joey Logano tells me.”

4. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson had a solid finish in sight before a spin on a lap 80 restart sent him hurtling back in the field. He finished a disappointing 28th.

“Sunday’s race was stopped twice so repairs could be made after accidents,” Johnson said. “Chad Knaus radioed me during the delays and asked, ‘How’s the track look?’ I replied, ‘It’s fixed.’ And I fully expect that statement to be taken out of context.”

5. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth finished ninth in the Cheez-It 355 At The Glen and remains winless on the year. He is third in the points standings, 70 behind Dale Earnhardt Jr.

“Unless I can find a win in the next four races,” Kenseth said, “I’ll be starting at the bottom when the Chase For The Cup starts. Where my wins total is concerned, ‘V’ is for ‘void.’

6. Joey Logano: Logano finished sixth at Watkins Glen, recording his 12th top 10 of the year.

“Allmendinger ran a heck of a race,” Logano said. “I guess the competition was a lot like drug problems—he put it behind him.”

7. Carl Edwards: Edwards finished fifth at Watkins Glen, posting his fifth top-five result of the year. He is sixth in the points standings, 115 out of first.

“I had a good view of the A.J. Allmendinger-Marcos Ambrose battle,” Edwards said. “Allmendinger obviously knew the track well. He’s certainly done his homework. There’s probably only one circuit he knows better than Watkins Glen, and that’s the road to recovery.

“It was a great day for the Cheez-It brand. They sponsored the race, as well as my No. 99 car. If the race in Sonoma is attended by the ‘wine and cheese’ crowd, then fans at the Glen should be called the ‘wino and Cheez-It’ crowd.”

8. Ryan Newman: Newman crashed heavily with 34 laps to go at Watkins Glen, smashing a fence and causing the race to be stopped for over an hour while repairs were made. Newman finished 41st, 35 laps off the pace.

“Race officials raised more red flags than the Mayfield family,” Newman said. “And I’m not happy with safety at the Watkins Glen track. It seems track officials need a crash course in safety.”

“My former teammate Rusty Wallace was recently inducted into the Motorsports Hall Of Fame. I don’t know who told Rusty to ‘Go to Hall,’ but it sure as Hell wasn’t me.”

9. Kevin Harvick: Harvick finished seventh at Watkins Glen, posting his 11th top-10 result of the year.

“Was God on AJ Allmendinger’s side at Watkins Glen?” Harvick said. “It certainly looked that way. If He was, AJ should change his name to ‘Amendinger.’”

10. AJ Allmendinger: Allmendinger repelled the challenges of Marcos Ambrose on two late restarts to win the Cheez-It 355 At The Glen. The win guaranteed Allmendinger a spot in the Chase For The Cup.

“Kimberly-Clarke Corporation renewed their sponsorship of my car,” Allmendinger said, “making the weekend even more satisfying for car owner Brad Daugherty and myself. Kimberly-Clarke produces the Kleenex, Scott, Viva, and Cottonelle brands, and that means Sunday was a great day for white paper and black hillbillies.

“Of course, this doesn’t mean I’m a ‘paper’ champion. It does mean I’m well equipped to wipe up the competition.”

Statement from Jeremie Corcoran, Owner/Promoter of Canandaigua Motorsports Park

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SM Archive

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August 12, 2014

Allmendinger Brings Redemption Tale to a Close

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SM Staff

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August 12, 2014

Allmendinger at Watkins Glen via Ed Coombs — Photo Credit: Ed Coombs

NASCAR’s great redemption story of recent memory came to a close with AJ Allmendinger’s first career Sprint Cup win at Watkins Glen on Sunday. With the close of that story comes the beginning of another; his quest to find consistency as a proven winner.

To understand the implications of his win, flash back to two years ago. At this point in the 2012 season, Allmendinger was watching races from his couch. He had landed the coveted No. 22 ride at Team Penske prior to that season, and his career looked brighter than ever, until testing positive for Adderall in June and being suspended indefinitely. He was reinstated a few months later after completing NASCAR’s Road to Recovery program, but by that time he had lost his gig at Penske. The following season saw Allmendinger jump back and forth between fill-in dates at Phoenix Racing and JTG Daugherty Racing, neither of which offered the same resources he had at Penske.

Despite a rough part-time schedule in 2013, Allmendinger was able to put his talent on display in different venues. Proof of his talent was evident through his continued support from Roger Penske, who brought Allmendinger on board to run the Indianapolis 500 and multiple Nationwide races.

Penske doesn’t put just anyone in his cars, particularly someone who failed a drug test and essentially threw away a season under his banner the previous year. There is too much young talent to waste time on a problem-driver, but Penske saw something in Allmendinger. He finished seventh in his first Indy 500 and won two Nationwide road course races, all while driving Penske cars.

He was signed to JTG Daugherty Racing for the 2014 season and saw it as his chance for redemption. He was quoted early in the season, confidently claiming he would win a race before the end of the year. Then on Sunday he stayed true to his word and won.

Watkins Glen was the last of the season’s real wild-card races leading into the Chase for the Sprint Cup. That means if winless drivers want in now, they are going to have to do it on the oval tracks of Michigan, Bristol, Atlanta or Richmond, all of which the Sprint Cup has already visited this season. Allmendinger has been fast at some ovals this year, but none offer the opportunity that the Glen offered. His win there proves to the NASCAR world that he is now officially a road course ringer at the premier level of stock car racing.

Allmendinger’s fervor behind the wheel was evident through his screaming and celebration on his radio after winning at the Glen, but it isn’t just a form of celebration. He is known as an intensely passionate driver with serious skill, but his reputation doesn’t precede him. He doesn’t need to slap a self-given nickname over the door of his car in an attempt to tell people what he’s all about.

Allmendinger pounced on his last real opportunity to turn 2014 into something great. While a win on an oval track isn’t out of the question, the competition knew all along that Allmendinger was an obstacle necessary to overcome in the two road course races. On Sunday he proved that he was indeed too big an obstacle. Now he must look to recreating that presence on the oval tracks that make up 34 of the 36 points races.

AJ Allmendinger is now a Chase-bound driver. His future looks brighter than it ever has. He’s in the spotlight, and the next 14 races are his opportunity to show NASCAR fans what he is capable of.

Roush Fenway Gets Another Hit

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SM Staff

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August 12, 2014

Roush_Yeazell — Photo Credit: David Yeazell

Things are not rosy at Roush Fenway Racing. Lately, they’ve lost their top driver to apparently Joe Gibbs Racing, and today they lost 3M as a primary sponsor on the No. 16 Ford of Greg Biffle. The performance has been putrid at best all year even though Carl Edwards has two wins, but Biffle and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. have not had the performance that a top team should have. That is cruel, but fact. Biffle had a good day at Pocono last week, but that’s been pretty much it for this season. Stenhouse is a former Nationwide Series champion, but it has not transferred to the Cup series. It has to be the cars, and that’s a really big problem for RFR.

Stealing sponsors is nothing new, but Gibbs and Hendrick are very good at it. It’s kind of like the rich get richer is true. Yeah, it is business, as they like to say, but there seems to be a big target on RFR and those who are running better have determined to make sure they don’t come back to prominence. Baseball does it all the time at the trade deadline, of course. Teams trade players to non-contenders and never to contenders. At the waiver deadline, teams claim players so that other teams cannot get them. It’s just business.

That said, you have to image the mood over at Roush Fenway—Ford’s top team for years. Roger Penske, the gentleman he is, said that he would never take a driver or sponsor from a fellow Ford team. In fact, Penske has a kept a professional attitude toward all teams. For some reason, non-Ford teams seem to like to pick on Jack Roush. He’s an easy target now. It’s easy to pick on the guy who is down. It happens. Now, it’s up to Roush. If he gets his teams back to being competitive, things might turn around, but teams must always remember that if you stumble, there are two giants waiting to grab your drivers and sponsors.

RFR has had more success than either Gibbs or especially Richard Childress Racing in 2014; RCR has no wins. That may change now as a down on their luck organization is faced with a lame duck driver, minimal sponsorship, and a down year. It would be good if they could rise like the Phoenix and make some noise, but I don’t see it and that is bad for the sport.