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Kyle Busch wins 12th NNS race of season

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SM Staff
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Photo Credit: Noel Lanier

Kyle Busch has won the most NASCAR Nationwide Series races in history and further extended his legacy with another dominant showing at the ServiceMaster 200. Busch edged Austin Dillon for the pole earlier in the morning and didn’t hesitate to get off to a good start, leading the first 79 laps of the event.

Busch was entirely in a different class today. Green flag pit stops prevented Kyle Busch from leading more of the first-half. Trevor Bayne led two laps during the initial set of green flag stops. Kyle Busch cycled back to lead the next 29 laps before the first debris caution came out on Lap 106, and subsequently lost the lead on the following restart to Brad Keselowski.

Keselowski did a slide job on Kyle Busch to take the lead, causing Busch to lose several positions as he checked up, but Busch was able to recover to overtake Keselowski on Lap 120. Busch said, “It was definitely different being in third because of the flat aero deficiencies here in Phoenix, but I knew we had a really good car.” Busch also noted that the frequent amount of cautions after the first-half made it difficult to pass, despite leading 84.5% of the race. “We would pick off one or two cars and then a yellow, then we would pick off another two cars and another yellow.”

The victory was the 12th victory of the season for Kyle Busch, and it marked a season sweep at Phoenix International Raceway. Busch has a busy weekend ahead of him as teammate Matt Kenseth possibly could win the Sprint Cup Series championship as long as he beats Jimmie Johnson, and Busch could win the owners title for Joe Gibbs if he can hold off Roger Penske’s entourage. With Kyle Busch’s track record in the Nationwide Series, it will be difficult for the Penske clan to hold off Kyle Busch, but anything can happen in NASCAR.

The surface at Phoenix has come under scrutiny. Denny Hamlin suggested on Twitter that the surface should be grinded, but Kyle Busch disagreed saying, “I don’t think we should grind it. Jeff Gordon said that it takes about 8 years of the track weathering to see good racing.” Phoenix was repaved following the spring race in 2011 and we are still seeing mixed reactions. I asked Busch about his initial reaction. Busch replied, “I came here for the tire test.” “Our initial reaction was literally omg and wtf.” Busch noted that that tends to happen when you are used to one thing and it all of a sudden changes. “It’s hard to get used to, but it is what it is.”

NTS MOTORSPORTS Releases Ron Hornaday, Jr. from Driving Duties of the No. 9 Chevrolet in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series

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Mark Martin To Retire Following 2013

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SM Staff
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Photo Credit: Gary Buchanan

Mark Martin released to the public on Saturday at Phoenix Raceway that he will no longer be behind the wheel of a racecar. Martin will formally retire from the act of racing at the conclusion of the 2013 season.

The 54-year-old didn’t express to the media that he’d be leaving the NASCAR world, he explained that he’d be a mentor at Stewart-Haas Racing.

“The garage is full of drivers who are on their game, and I’ve gotten all the good out of mine. I’ve squeezed every ounce of it out, and no one can say that I didn’t,” Martin said. “I worked really, really hard the last 10 years to continue to be a formidable opponent in the garage, and from time to time when stuff was right, I was able to do it. And I’m proud of that. But it’s time for me to open a new chapter and do some other things.”

“Father Time does take its toll on every single sense you have,” Martin said. “Your hand-eye coordination, everything is affected as you get older. And at some point in time, that decline becomes a detriment to you. You can work as hard as you want, you can maybe run well, but you’re fighting Father Time. That’s different for anyone. I feel I can still drive a race car pretty fast, but I’m not the driver I was at my peak. And I know it. Maybe for a while I didn’t, but I know it. … I’m not saying I can’t run good, but I can feel it in everything I do. Every time I get up and walk across the room, I can tell that I’m not 35. And anybody that says they can’t, I don’t know. I’d like to be sipping off their juice.”

Mark recently took over for Tony Stewart while he’s been out with an injury to his leg. The No. 14 ride might have just been Mark’s way of leaving with authority.

“I was trying to go out with some dignity,” Martin said. “The last two months have not been pretty. But everybody in the garage suffers through times when they can’t get their cars to do what they need them to do. I’m not the only one.”

Richard Petty’s No. 43 Stock Car Featured in Smithsonian Magazine

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Matty’s Picks 2013 – Race 35 AdvoCare 500 – Phoenix International Raceway – November 10, 2013

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SM Staff
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Photo Credit: Noel Lanier

The West Coast swing of the 2013 Chase for the Sprint Cup is on this weekend as we head for the one-miler in the desert. This thing is coming down to the wire between five-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion, Jimmie Johnson, and seven-time 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race-winner Matt Kenseth. Just seven points separate the two heading into this weekend’s AdvoCare 500, and ironically, this was the same margin Jimmie Johnson had over 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion, Brad Keselowski heading into the 9th race of the Chase last season.

Phoenix has been an important race since the series swapped to the Chase setup, as the worst finish in a Chase race by the eventual series champion at Phoenix International Raceway is 10th, by Kurt Busch in 2004. Adding to the importance this weekend is the fact that the average Chase race finish by the eventual series champion at Phoenix International Raceway is 3.7! The catalyst in all of this is the fact that in each of previous three seasons, the eventual NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion was sitting second in the points standings following the 8th Chase Race. Jimmie Johnson erased a 33 point deficit over the final two Chase races in 2010 to score his fifth and most recent NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship. Tony Stewart was three points behind Carl Edwards in 2011 and erased the deficit in the final race at Homestead-Miami to capture his second Chase Championship, and as mentioned previously, Brad Keselowski sat seven points behind Jimmie Johnson entering this race last season. So, will it be Jimmie Johnson flipping the trend over the last three seasons to exit the 8th Chase race and not look back, or will it be Matt Kenseth keeping the streak alive to take the trophy next weekend and erasing the seven-point deficit over the next two weeks?

As far as Phoenix, specifically, its 100% advantage Jimmie Johnson this week if you’re looking at the career histories at Phoenix. Johnson leads the series in six loop stats, (Average Running Position, Driver Rating, Fastest Laps Run, Average Green Flag Speed, and Quality Passes) he’s had top-five finishes in 12 of the last 14 races at Phoenix International Raceway, and far and away owns the better record than Matt Kenseth in career victories, top-fives, top-tens, average finish, and laps led. Also keep in mind, Matt Kenseth’s last top five finish at the desert one-miler was all the way back in 2007, his one and only win (three less than Jimmie Johnson) at PIR came in 2002, and his average finish is 17.2, so not only is Kenseth battling the Goliath named Jimmie Johnson this week, but he’s battling an Achilles heel of his own this weekend.

Enough about the points battle, on to my picks this week…

 

Winner Pick

I may be completely out of material for my winner pick this week, outside of practice and qualifying…you guessed it, tough not to like Jimmie Johnson this week. He was fastest in practice on Friday, broke the track record in qualifying to capture the pole for Sunday’s AdvoCare 500, and carries the momentum of last week’s perfect win. Seriously, Johnson scored a perfect 150 Driver Rating in his dominating win last week at Texas Motor Speedway, the fourth ever perfect Driver Rating in Chase history.

Denny Hamlin commented on the state of the No.48 team following Friday’s qualifying session, “I think everyone in the garage kind of knew (the No.48 team) could turn it up at will”. Joey Logano also commented on how the Hedrick Motorsports team is in “kill mode”, Logano says “(Johnson) has that next notch and extra speed that nobody else can find. His intensity level picks up.”

Well boys, I’m right there with you this week and even though I didn’t find a header in the stats column entitled “kill mode”, I’m going with the overwhelming favorite, and now pole-sitter Jimmie Johnson this week. One piece of history besides Johnson’s impressive history at PIR that I do have to help my cause this week is the fact that seven of the 34 NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Phoenix have been won from starting positions on the front row….not that I need any help in making my point this week.

 

Dark Horse Pick

Now, if you’ve been listening to my preview of the race each week with Greg on the Prime Sports Network, you may have noticed an ongoing trend since mid-June or so. Each time when we reach the time to talk about Denny Hamlin, you’ve probably heard me laugh or say “steer clear of Denny this week”. Well, this week I have a bit different take on Denny Hamlin for a few reasons.
Number one, Denny Hamlin has been coming around down the stretch here in the Chase, and is certainly a far cry away from where he was at a couple months back. Three top 5’s in the last four races mark’s Hamlin’s best stretch of runs since he ran second at Darlington, finished fourth in the Coke 600, and finished eighth in the June Pocono race. He’s climbing back to relevancy in the latter stages of this year’s Chase, and will use these remaining two races this season to springboard his team into the 2014 season.

The number two reason for picking Denny Hamlin is his career history, not only at Phoenix but as a top tier driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Since his first full season in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in 2006, Denny Hamlin has managed to find Victory Lane at least once in each of his seven full seasons in the Cup series. Out of the two remaining racetracks this season, Phoenix is certainly the better chance for Hamlin to keep his streak alive. He’s got an average finish of 5.8 in the last five races at PIR, including a win in 2012, three additional top 5’s, 116 total laps led, and an average driver rating of 104.2 over that same five-race stretch, so Hamlin has the recent stats worth a look this week.

Adding to my statement this week is the stat I mentioned above….over 20% of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at PIR have been won from starting spots on the front row, and Denny Hamlin just happens to be starting second on Sunday. Not only did Denny qualify well, but he also practiced well on Friday to earn my nod as the Dark Horse play of the week.

 

That’s all for this week, so until we head to South Florida for the 2013 Grand Finale….You Stay Classy NASCAR NATION!

Toyota Takes Sixth Truck Series Manufacturers Title

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CHEVY NSCS AT PHOENIX TWO: Jimmie Johnson Wins the Pole at Phoenix; Press Conf. Transcript

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CHEVY NSCS AT PHOENIX TWO: Team Chevy Driver Qualifying Notes and Quotes

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Ford Phoenix Sprint Cup Qualifying Quotes

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Erik Jones wins Lucas Oil 150 at Phoenix International Raceway

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SM Staff
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Photo Credit: Tom Pennington/Getty Images

What were you doing at the age of 17? For Erik Jones, he was winning races.

Erik Jones would become the youngest NASCAR Camping World Truck Series winner on Friday night at Phoenix International Raceway when he picked up the win in the Lucas Oil 150.

“Its unbelievable,” Jones said in victory lane. “Like I told Rudy on the radio – this is the best feeling ever. It’s all I wanted – was to be a winner in NASCAR. To get this win, its really unbelievable and hard to put in words. Just couldn’t be happier to get in victory lane.”

Pole sitter Ross Chastain restarted as the leader with 10 laps to go and was able to clear Jones heading into turn three. However, the lead wouldn’t last long as Jones was able to get a good run off of turn two and got underneath Chastain through the dog led and by him to take the lead. From there, Jones checked out and headed to victory lane.

“I had been taking the top all day and when he got me there, I wasn’t able to hold him down,” Jones commented. “So I got a run off of two and was able to get under him there.”

Jones got the opportunity to run the No. 51 “Wake Up Narcolepsy ” Awake at the Wheel Toyota in five races this year after beating Kyle Busch last year to win the Snowball Derby.

“I want to thank KBM for this opportunity – thanks to Kyle, Samantha for the opportunity and giving me a chance to prove myself in NASCAR,” Jones said.

Ross Chastain came home second for his sixth top 10 finish of 2013 for Brad Keselowski Racing. Chastain stated after the race that he will not be with BKR for 2014.

“Erik drove a great race and he had a great truck,” Chastain commented. “He showed that in practice. We were not that good in practice and got it so close. I want to thank this BKR team. I don’t know what we could do better. I tried to hold him down, dived bomb there but just couldn’t hold them off. It’s disheartening with the fact that next weekend will be my last weekend in the truck.”

Brendan Gaughan finished third after running in the top five throughout the whole night. Ty Dillon and Matt Crafton rounded out the top five. Heading into the final race of the season, Crafton now leads Dillon by 46 points and just has to start to the Ford 200 to clinch the 2013 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Championship.

“We’d run about 15 laps and I’d lose about 90 percent of my brake pedal,” Crafton commented after the race. “I had to pump the pedal like 10 times to just get it to slow don. They  were thinking of bringing me down pit road and drilling a hole – but I didn’t want to lose track position.

“Then when someone blew a tire there right in front of us and I ran over a piece of debris. I didn’t say anything. I was like, ‘I hope that isn’t a piece of metal’. It was a tough day.”

Cale Gale finished sixth followed by Ryan Blaney, Johnny Sauter, James Buescher and Chase Elliott.

The 150 lap race would feature seven caution flags for various incidents, including a hard wreck for Ron Hornaday at lap 85 for hitting the wall hard after a flat right front tire.

“I knew I was using a lot of brake,” Hornaday said afterwards. “I had been tight in, loose off and been working on it. I think I just melted a bead. Hate it for all of these guys.”

Hornaday announced that he will not be in the No. 9 Smokey Mountain Chevrolet for NTS Motorsports next weekend, but instead in a truck for Turner-Scott Motorsports.

“I contacted Nelson and found out that I would not be in the truck,” Hornaday said. “Mr. Turner then came by and offered me a ride for Homestead. Richard came by, Turner came by. I’ll be racing a sixth truck for Mr. Turner. Can’t say enough about the opportunity. I just love this series.”

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