Dwayne Baker wins OSCAAR Super Late feature on day one of Don Biederman Memorial
In the first day of the two-day Don Biederman Memorial weekend, it’d be Dwayne Baker picking up the victory in his No. 48 Zancor Homes, Innisfil Machine and Welding and Baker Performance Parts Super Late Model. It marks his first win this season in two starts this year.
Baker would start off the night strong as he was the quickest in time trials, timing in at a 13.503.
Rookie Kevin Cornelius would time in second quick behind the wheel of his No. 17 Halton Crushed Stone, Lee Sand and Gravel, Alliston Transmission and McColl Racing Super Late Model at 13.54.
Four-time series champion Glenn Watson was third fastest at 13.56 behind the wheel of his No. 22 Line-X Protective Coatings – Barrie, Race2Way.ca, Rival Office Solutions and Williamson Uxbridge GM Late Model.
As pertaining to the format, each driver would start pole in their respective heats with the rest of the heat starting spots determined on qualifying effort. The front row would be locked in with Baker and Cornelius, however the rest would of the field would depend on how the drivers did in their heats.
George Wilson would win the first heat behind the wheel of his No. 77 Marollo Race Engines, Union Cab of Sault Ste. Marie, Let the Fur Fly Pet Salon of Barrie and City Centre Motors of Sault Ste. Marie Super Late Model. Baker would finish second, followed by John Owen, Mike Beyore, Gary Passer and Jim Bowman.
Brandon Watson would win the second heat behind the wheel of his No. 9 The Smart Exchange – Propane Cylinder Exchange, Ken MacKinnon Construction, Barrie Frame & Alignment, and Knightworks Design Super Late Model. Cornelius would finish second, followed by Andrew Gresel, Ethan Cournyea and Tyler Hawn.
During the pace laps of the third heat, Sean Cronan would have to pull off due to a flat tire. Derrike Tiemersma would take the win behind the wheel of the No. 7 Wayfreight, Speedy Auto Machine, Castrol and Spira Fire Protection Super Late Model. Glenn Watson would finish second, followed by Shane Maginnis, Charlie Gallant and Ian Bourque.
Quinn Misener would spin on lap to of the final heat. Jeff Hanley would grab the win in his No. 70 Raylene Racing Inc and Carmen Auto Sales Super Late Model. Rob Poole would finish second, followed by J.R. Fitzpatrick, Brad Corcoran, Brandon Vanderwel and Misener.
Everybody who had yet to qualify for the A-Main would be forced to run one of the two b-features. OSCAAR would take the top four from each b-feature to continue to make up the a-feature line-up.
The first heat b-main would go to Mike Beyore in his No. 54 Stemac New & Used Machinery Industrial Tools, CNC Custom Machining & Fabricating, Inc. Oshawa, Millennium Crane Service and Metals Plus (Oshawa-Whitby) Super Late Model. Campbell would finish second, followed by Hawn, Passer and Cournyea.
The second b-main would have an incident as Misener would spin Vanderwel on lap seven. Charlie Gallant grabbed the win in the No. 40P South Shore Services, Just Lube, East Point Marina and Pefferlaw Lawn Care & Ice Super Late Model. Corcoran would finish second, followed by Cronan, Vanderwel, Cournyea and Shane Gowan.
In the feature, it’d be Dwayne Baker starting on pole, followed by Kevin Cornelius, George Wilson, Derrike Tiemersma, Brandon Watson, Rob Poole, John Owen, Jeff Hanley, Glenn Watson, Shane Maginnis, J.R. Fitzpatrick, Mike Beyore, Todd Campbell, Brad Corcoran, Tyler Hawn, Charlie Gallant, Sean Cronan, Andrew Gresel, Gary Passer, Brandon Vanderwel, Shane Gowan, Jim Bowman and Quinn Misener.
Before the start of the race, Vanderwel would pull his car behind the wall with problems. Fitzpatrick would have the left rear tire fall off, but would get it back on and be able to start the feature. Lastly, Bowman and Cronan would head down pit road under the pace laps, returning to the track before the green.
Once the green fell, Dwayne Baker would grab the lead ahead of Cornelius while Brandon Watson and George Wilson ran side-by-side for the third. Watson would clear Wilson for third on lap two, with Tiemersma and Hanley ran side-by-side for fifth. Bowman would head down pit road on lap four with a problem. On lap seven, Tiemesma would pass Hanley while Gowan would pit under green on lap 10.
The first caution would fly on lap 17 when Maginnis and Owen would get together. Under the caution, Beyore, Fitzpatrick and Corcoran would pit. Meanwhile, Fitzpatrick would be done for the night as smoke was coming from his machine. So with 33 laps to go, it’d be Baker leading Cornelius, Brandon Watson, Wilson, Tiemersma, Hanley, Glenn Watson, Gresel, Poole, Gallant, Cronan, Campbell, Passer and Hawn.
On the restart, Baker would once again pull ahead of Cornelius while Wilson and Brandon Watson battled once again for third. Wilson would pass Watson on lap 21 as the caution came out for Cronan spinning. He had received damage on the restart after contact with a couple other cars. With 29 laps to go, it’d be Baker leading Cornelius, Wilson, Brandon Watson, Hanley, Tiemersma, Glenn Watson, Gresel, Poole, Campbell, Gallant, Maginnis, Hawn, Passer, Corcoran, Beyore, Cronan, Misener and Bowman.
On the restart, Wilson would make it three-wide for the lead, diving underneath Baker and Cornelius going into turn one. Coming off the corner, it’d be Cornelius grabbing the lead ahead of Wilson and Baker. Baker would pass Wilson for second on lap 25, followed by a pass on Cornelius on lap 26 off of turn two to go back to the lead. The third caution would fly on lap 31 for Cronan and Misener going around off of turn four.
On the restart, Baker would once again retain the lead ahead of Cornelius, Wilson, Brandon Watson and Glenn Watson. Tiemerma would look to pass Glenn Watson on lap 35, though Watson was able to hold him off. The fourth caution would then fly on lap 37 for Mike Beyore hitting the inside turn two wall. With 13 laps to go, Baker would lead Cornelius, Wilson, Brandon Watson, Glenn Watson, Tiemersma, Campbell, Gresel, Poole, Gallant, Maginnis, Hawn, Passer, Corcoran and Cronan.
On the restart, Baker would once again grab the lead ahead of Cornelius while Wilson and Brandon Watson battled for third. Watson would pass Wilson on lap 39. Gresel would slip past Tiemersma for sixth and try to pass Glenn Watson for fifth, but wasn’t able to.
Back at the front on lap 42, Brandon Watson would get underneath Cornelius for second, though Watson would get loose causing him to slip back. The caution would then fly three laps later for Glenn Watson spinning Wilson in turn two. With five laps to go, it’d be Baker leading Cornelius, Brandon Watson, Gresel, Tiemersma, Campbell, Poole, Gallant, Maginnis, Hanley, Hawn, Cronan, Passer, Corcoran, Wilson, Glenn Watson.
On the restart, Baker would once again grab the lead, though the caution would fly once again as Hanley would make contact with Gallant, causing Gallant to make hard contact with the front stretch wall. Under caution, Passer would pull his car behind the wall and be done.
On the restart, Baker once again grabbed the lead while Brandon Watson got underneath Cornelius for second. Then, Gresel would get to the outside off of turn two, making it a three-wide battle. Contact would be made, causing Gresel to make contact with the outside wall while Cornelius was able to pull ahead of Watson. Everybody would keep going, able to complete the final laps of the feature.
Dwayne Baker would pick up his first feature victory of the year, ahead of Kevin Cornelius, Brandon Watson, Andrew Gresel and Derrike Tiemersma.
Rob Poole would finish sixth, followed by Shane Maginnis, Sean Cronan, Glenn Watson and Todd Campbell.
Tyler Hawn finished 11th, followed by Jeff Hanley, George Wilson and Brad Corcoran.
The OSCAAR Super Late Models will take to Sunset Speedway on June 30th for day two of the Don Biederman Memorial. Whoever has the best average finish between the two days will be crowned the Don Biederman Memorial Champion. There is an autograph session at 5:45pm, with racing starting at 6:30pm.
Brent McLean wins OSCAAR Modified feature on day one of Don Biederman Memorial
For the second time this year, Brent McLean would take his No. 7 Home Building Centre (Bowmanville), Pro FX Signs, RN Manufacturing an McLean Farms to victory circle. It marks his second win so far this year after winning earlier this month at Barrie Speedway.
Brent McLean would win the first heat ahead of Brad Pearsall, Branden Bullen, Mike Westwood, Shane Stickel, Dave Osbourne, Bobby Tolton and Ryan Dick.
Gary McLean would win the second heat in his No. 8 McLean Industrial Design & Fabrication Ltd and McLean Farms Modified ahead of Matt Barton, Chad Strawn, Brandon Watson, Justin Demelo, Barry Newman, Brian McLean and Davey Terry.
Branden Bullen would grab his first career OSCAAR Modifieid heat victory in the third heat, followed by Stickel, Brent McLean, Pearsall, Westwood, Osbourne, and Dick.
OSCAAR Super Late Model points leader Brandon Watson would win the final modified heat ahead of Demelo, Newman, Brian McLean, Gary McLean, Terry, Strawn and Barton.
When it came feature time, it’d be Brent McLean starting on pole, ahead of Brandon Watson, Branden Bullen, Brad Pearsall, Justin Demelo, Gary McLean, Shane Stickel, Barry Newman, Matt Barton, Brian McLean, Dave Osbourne, Davey Terry, Ryan Dick, and Chad Strawn. Brian McLean would head down pit road before the start with problems.
Brent McLean and Watson would be side-by-side for the lead, with Watson securing it on lap two. Watson would only lead two laps as Brent McLean would make his way back by on lap four. So five laps into the event it’d be Brent McLean leading Watson, Pearsall, Gary McLean and Justin Demelo. Over the course of the event, Watson would slip back through the field after being passed by Pearsall, Gary McLean and Newman.
The first and only caution of the feature would fly on lap 30 when Bullen would spin in turn four. So with six laps to go, it’d be Brent McLean leading Pearsall, Gary McLean, Newman, Watson, Demelo, Stickel, Strawn, Brian McLean and Barton.
On the restart, Brent McLean would clear Pearsall while Newman would make his way by Gary McLean.
Brent McLean would hold on to pick up the victory ahead of Brad Pearsall, Barry Newman, Gary McLean and Justin Demelo.
Brandon Watson would finish sixth, followed by Shane Stickel, Brian McLean and Matt Barton.
Branden Bullen finished 11th, followed by Chad Strawn, Ryan Dick and Dave Osbourne.
The OSCAAR Modifieds return to Sunset Speedway for another full day of action on June 30th. Autograph session at 5:45pm with racing starting at 6:30pm.
Earnhardt Jr. Starts from the Point in the Quaker State 400
Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the Coors Light Pole award on Friday for the third annual Quaker State 400 presented by Advance Auto Parts. This marks Earnhardt Jr.’s first pole and third top-10 start in the 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points season.
Earnhardt Jr.’s No. 88 National Guard Youth Foundation Chevrolet set a track qualifying record with a lap of 29.406 seconds. Nine different drivers posted faster laps than the previous record, which was set by Jimmie Johnson in 2012.
Earnhardt Jr.’s last win came from Michigan International Speedway last year when he won the Quicken Loans 400. Still looking for a win this season, Earnhardt Jr. commented on how urgent he feels he needs to get a win before the chase. He said, “I think we keep working hard and the wins will come. We have had some really fast cars, just had some bad luck. Thought we had an opportunity to win at Michigan and just with the engine failure we weren’t able to get that done. If we just keep working and running well we will get our opportunities to get to Victory Lane”
The Hendrick Motorsports driver finished in the top-5 at Kentucky last year and was asked if he has a lot of confidence coming into this track and if he feels like turn three is one of those critical parts of the track that you have to get down. He replied, “Well, it looked critical last night in the Truck race, some guys having some difficulty in turn three. The track is just unique and very bumpy and got a lot of character. I enjoy racing here. I think that the track gets better every year. Just look forward to having a good car…I enjoy coming here and we’ve got a lot of fans in this area that enjoy seeing us race here.”
The No. 99 UPS Ford driver, Carl Edwards will be starting in second position. This is his eighth top-10 start of 2013 and his second in three races at Kentucky Speedway. Carl Edwards looks forward to racing at Kentucky. He said, “Kentucky is fun for three reasons: I have great memories of my first NASCAR win there in the Truck series, the track has bumps and character and the fans are passionate as any. We are proud to represent UPS this weekend and hopefully we can deliver them a victory.”
The Sprint Cup Series points leader, Jimmie Johnson, will start the Quaker State 400 in third spot. This is his ninth top-10 start in seventeen races this season. Johnson, a five time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion, has never been in Victory Lane at Kentucky. He was asked when he goes to a track that he hasn’t won at before if that gives him something to really shoot at. He said, “It gets me excited. There’s five tracks left that I haven’t won at. I think Stewart is down to two or three. We don’t talk about it amongst Stewart, Gordon, or myself, but I think we all secretly would love to be the first to win at every track that we compete at. I think Stewart is the closest right now. I want to get closer. I’ve been very close here. I’ve been very close at Michigan. I’ve been very close at Chicago. So, I hope we can get one or two of them this year. I would love to start here.”
Last week’s winner of the Toyota Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway, Martin Truex Jr., will start the Quaker State 400 in nineteenth position. Still pumped about last week’s win, Truex Jr. looks forward to the possibility of repeating that win. When asked how the bumps impact racing at Kentucky, Truex Jr. commented, “The bumps, yes-it’s so rough. So difficult with these cars to get them working. We’re on bump stops…It’s very, very difficult –very hard on the crew chiefs. I think it’s fun to drive on because you can move around on the race track and it’s so line sensitive and you have to really focus and hit your marks…Definitely a cool place to race, for sure. Very, very challenging obviously. It’s a good place to race—I enjoy it.”
The green flag will fall on the Quaker State 400 Saturday night at 7:30 at Kentucky Speedway.
Chase hopefuls on the outside looking in
There are just ten races remaining before NASCAR enters it’s “playoff” season – the Chase for the Championship. After race No. 26, drivers that are in the top-10 in points are locked in and they are the drivers that are eligible to win the championship. There are also two wildcard spots available. Drivers who are in positions 11-20 are eligible for a wildcard. The criteria to earn a wildcard is based on wins. The two drivers with the most wins get the two spots, with their points being the tie-breaker.
This season has seen a very tight points battle between just inside the top-10 to 15th. These drivers are fighting hard to get inside or stay inside the top-10. They also need to score as many victories as possible to lock in a wildcard in case they miss the top-10.
There is also a fierce battle for drivers trying get into or stay inside the top-20. These drivers have two concerns. First, they must get inside the top-20, second they must have more wins than the drivers ahead of them in points.
Currently there are several drivers on the outside looking in, or just barely inside trying to stay in and secure a coveted spot in the Chase for the Championship.
Kyle Busch – Currently 8th in points, but only 16 points ahead of Kasey Kahne in 11th.
Plus – Kyle does have two wins which gives him some security.
Minus – Toyota has struggled with engine problems this season. They have sacrificed some horsepower for durability.
Brad Keselowski – Currently 9th in points, just nine points ahead of 11th place.
Plus – Brad has ran well at times and as defending series champion, has experienced team.
Minus – The team changed to Ford this season and Ford’s, as a whole, have been a little lackluster. The team has also seemed to struggle to catch up after they were penalized for illegal rear end housings setups.
Martin Truex Jr. – Currently 10th in points, only 8 points ahead of 11th.
Plus – Martin is the series’ most recent winner and has confidence and momentum heading into crucial time of the season.
Minus – Team has struggled to “close the deal”.
Kasey Kahne – Currently 8 points outside the top-10 in 11th
Plus – Kahne has ran strong this season, has one win. Solid performer all season.
Minus – Has had some bad luck, recently blew tire while leading at Michigan. Needs to stay consistent
Paul Menard – Currently 12th in points, tied with 11th
Plus – Paul has shown promise. In midst of best season of career. Team confidence is high
Minus – Team has started strong in past, but faded during middle of season
Jeff Gordon – Currently 13th in points, 12 points out of 10th
Plus – Jeff has performed well at times
Minus – Does not have a win, and has been very inconsistent. Must find victory lane, must find confidence
Joey Logano – Currently 14th in points, 14 points out of 10th
Plus – Joey has ran stronger this season than any time in his career. Fitting in nicely at Penske Racing
Minus – Same as teammate – The team changed to Ford this season and Ford’s, as a whole, have been a little lackluster. The team has also seemed to struggle to catch up after they were penalized for illegal rear end housings setups.
Tony Stewart – Currently 15th points, 20 points out of 10th
Plus – Team has one win. Tony very experienced in championship battles. Gets support and equipment from Hendrick Motorsports. Has seemed to improve lately. Tony runs well at this time of season
Minus – Team has been wildly inconsistent. Struggled in many races
Kurt Busch – Currently 17th in points, 28 points out of 10th
Plus – Team has ran extremely well. Receives support and engines from Richard Childress Racing
Minus – Team seems to beat themselves. Constant battle to overcome small problems of their own creation.
Jamie McMurray – Currently 21st in points, 8 pints out of top-20
Plus – Team has improved recently and had strong runs.
Minus – Very inconsistent, needs wins badly, does not seem to be able to close the deal
Marcos Ambrose – Currently 22nd in points, 23 points out of top-20
Plus – Team seems to be showing improvement recently
Minus – Lack consistently. Missed best opportunity for a win at Sonoma. Must win to get in
The next ten races for each of these teams are crucial. They must find their problems, fix them and acquire all the pints they possibly can. We are in the closing moments and now is no time to fumble the ball and beat yourself. Discipline and performance will make or break their season. This is the time when true champions shine, and the cream rises to the top.
NASCAR has achieved the goals they desired when they created the Chase format and then enhanced it with the wildcard spots. There are many exciting points battles throughout the standings. At any time during a race there are several races within the race. Many times we come down to the last race of the regular season before we know who is in and who is out.
Busch and Keselowski Trying to “Cash-In” on their Previous Success at Kentucky
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series is at Kentucky Speedway in Sparta, KY this weekend for races in all of NASCAR’S top three touring series. Kentucky has hosted each of these series in past years beginning with the Camping World Truck Series in 2000 and most recently the Sprint Cup Series in 2011.
Saturday’s Sprint Cup Series race, the Quaker State 400, will be the third Sprint Cup Series race ever held in the Blue Grass State. The Cup Series inaugural race at Kentucky Speedway was the 2011 Quaker State 400. Joe Gibbs Racing driver, Kyle Busch, claimed victory of the historical event.
Success is no stranger to Busch at Kentucky. He has experience racing at Kentucky Speedway in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, and the ARCA Racing Series. He has been to victory lane four times, once from each series.
When asked if he can put his finger on why he has been so good at Kentucky in all divisions, Busch said, “I can’t actually, but I can remember going there for the first time back in 2003 and it was my second-ever ARCA race and first time on a 1.5 mile oval. It was a big deal, and it was a fast racetrack and I ended up winning that weekend. I had to do some maneuvering around Frank Kimmel to win. It wasn’t easy. But since then, going there in Nationwide and being fast there every time, and going back to race when Sprint Cup didn’t have a date, yet, just getting your feet wet for when that opportunity came when Sprint Cup did go there. When we went with the Cup car, we were fast right when we unloaded. Dave Rogers was my crew chief and he had won there several times as a Nationwide crew chief prior to that and had a lot of notes to understand what it took to get around Kentucky, and we ended up winning the first Cup race there.”
Busch is running races in all three NASCAR divisions this weekend. His No. 51 ToyotaCare Toyota had a third place finish in the Camping World Truck Series Thursday night, and he finished fifth in the Nationwide Series Feed the Children 300 on Friday night. The Quaker State 400 will be Busch’s third race of the weekend. He will be starting in fourth position Saturday night in his No. 18 Doublemint Toyota.
Last year’s winner of the Quaker State 400, Brad Keselowski, is also running all three NASCAR division races this weekend. The weekend has proven to be successful for Keselowski thus far with the first two races already completed. He earned a second place finish Thursday night in the Camping World Truck Series UNOH 225, and won the Nationwide Series Feed the Children 300 Friday night after the race was called for rain. Keselowksi’s Miller Lite Ford will be starting the final race of the weekend in eighth position.
When asked why Kentucky fits him well, Keselowski responded, “I think one of the things I like about Kentucky is that it is one of the few tracks that I have always felt kind of heads up to the field. I guess to elaborate on that, it is my fourth year in the Sprint Cup and in some ways it feels like I have been here forever and in some ways it feels like I haven’t. When you go to tracks like Texas and Atlanta and places like that where there are a fair amount of drivers with more experience that I do, I always feel like I am that one little step behind. Here at Kentucky there is no driver that has more experience than me. We are on an even footing all the way. In fact, if anything, I feel like I might be slightly up because I have a couple more Nationwide starts and so forth. I think that leads to some of my comfort here.”
Being the first two drivers to win a Cup series race at Kentucky and being the only two drivers to enter all three races this weekend, Busch and Keselowski will have their final chance to “cash-in” on their previous success and extra track exposure Saturday night with the 2013 Quaker State 400.
Quaker State 400 Quick Facts Preview
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series heads to the Blue Grass State this weekend for the seventeenth race of the 2013 points season, the Quaker State 400, held on Saturday June 29th at Kentucky Speedway.
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and NASCAR Nationwide Series have had Kentucky on their race schedule since 2000 and 2001, respectively.
This weekend marks the Sprint Cup Series third race at this one and a half mile oval track.
Forty three cars will take the green Saturday night for the fourth night race so far this points season.
Driver of the No. 18 Doublemint Toyota, Kyle Busch, was the inaugural winner at Kentucky claiming victory of the 2011 Quaker State 400.
Busch has racing experience at Kentucky Speedway in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, and the ARCA Racing Series.
Busch’s success at Kentucky includes one win in each of those stock car racing divisions.
In his two Cup Series starts at Kentucky, Busch has one victory and two top-10 finishes. He holds the record for most laps led with 243 laps.
The runner up for most laps led, who also has one win and two top-10 finishes at Kentucky is Penske Racing driver, Brad Keselowski.
Keselowksi was winner of Friday night’s rain shortened Feed the Children 300 NASCAR Nationwide Series race.
Other drivers that typically run well at Kentucky, who are tied with Busch and Keselowski for most top-10 finishes are Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, and Matt Kenseth.
Along with his two top-10 finishes Johnson has led a total of 21 laps at Kentucky.
Drivers will take the green for the 2013 Quaker State 400 Saturday night at 7:30 pm at Kentucky Speedway.
Matty’s Picks 2013 – Vol. 14 Quaker State 400 – Kentucky Speedway – June 29, 2013
To the Bluegrass State we go this week for just the 3rd time in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series history. Kentucky was the race which took away one of the two races at Atlanta Motor Speedway back in 2011. Kentucky is a relatively new track, unlike some of the storied tracks like Martinsville Speedway, Darlington Raceway, Daytona, and Bristol Motor Speedway, really a baby on the list of tracks. It’s 13 years old now and has hosted NASCAR events since 2001, mainly Nationwide and Truck series events, but this is one of just a few weekends where the trucks, Nationwide, and Cup guys are at the same place all in the same weekend. The track is located smack dab in the middle of Louisville and Cincinnati – about an hour away from each, located just off of I-71 in Sparta, Kentucky.
As far as the track itself, it might be the cookie-cutter of all cookie cutters. With just 14 degrees of banking in the corners, it’s the flattest of any of the 1.5 mile tri-ovals on the schedule. Both 400-mile races have produced a total of 10 cautions in the two years of races, so it’s not my favorite stop on the schedule, but it is a night race which always add a certain element of excitement for any race.
I had the opportunity to cover the inaugural Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Speedway in 2011, and was impressed with everything but the parking situation at the track. It’s a fantastic facility and another one of Bruton Smith’s gems.
Sonoma Recap
I’m not sure how many folks had Martin Truex Jr. on their list of potential race winners last week at Sonoma, but what a shot in the arm that win was for Truex, the No. 56 team, and Michael Waltrip Racing as a whole. A 200+ race drought was snapped last week with Truex’s second career victory, and the win couldn’t come at a better time as we make the downturn towards Richmond in September. The win lifted Truex to 10th in points and with the Wild Card race heating up amongst guys like Brad Kesolowski, Kasey Kahne, Jeff Gordon, and Tony Stewart – 4 of the big hitters on the tour – the win really boosts Truex’s chances of making the Chase in a couple months.
As for my picks, Juan ran out of gas after racing in the top 5 all day, and Jamie McMurray suffered a flat tire on lap 74 of 110 and finished 25th…the story of my season so far.
Kentucky Picks
Winner Pick
One can not go to Kentucky Speedway without looking at Kyle Busch as the true front-runner for the win on Saturday night. It was a tough week for Kyle at Sonoma last week, and he certainly had a lot to say about it on Twitter following the race last Sunday. I pulled out the popcorn for the entertainment Sunday night as folks poked the bear without knowing we were headed to the place where Kyle has led over 45% of the laps ever run, leads the series in average running position at 3.6, has set a series-high fast laps at 92, and also leads the series in Driver Rating at an incredible 133.0. Kyle has won in every major stock car series at Kentucky Speedway including the Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, and the ARCA series, and will roll off 4th tonight when the green flag drops. He was fast in both practices as expected, and will be the guy to watch later this evening.
Dark Horse Pick
On Thursday, I picked Joey Logano as my dark horse guy this week, and it’s a pick which looks even better after the cars have hit the track and the starting grid has been set. Logano will start 11th tonight at Kentucky, and was in the top 20 in both practice sessions earlier in the day on Friday. He’s a solid sleeper pick this week because of his three-straight NASCAR Nationwide Series Victories from 2008 to 2010, and has put himself in position for a solid finish by starting tonight’s Quaker State 400 just outside the Top-10.
That’s all for this week, so until we put the plates on for the 3rd time this season…..You Stay Classy NASCAR NATION!
Allmendinger comments on changes at JTG/Daugherty
JTG/Daugherty Racing recently made a temporary change that was unpopular in the eyes of fans. Removing former Sprint Cup Series champion, Bobby Labonte, in favor AJ Allmendinger. The move was intended to gain a new perspective on the team’s lack of performance.
Even though the team was adamant about the fact that, at least for this season, Labonte is their driver and no permanent changes were taking place at this time, fans still criticized the move. Probably the biggest cause of fans outrage was the fact that Labonte’s consecutive start streak would come to an end at Kentucky. It is noteworthy that Labonte said he had received offers from teams to start the race and keep the streak alive, but Labonte turned those offers down.
Fortunately, for Allmendinger, none of the anger seemed to be directed toward him. Allmendinger has faced plenty of adversity in the past year. Adversity that was ignited when he was suspended by NASCAR for violation of the organizations substance abuse policy. He was then subsequently fired from Penske Racing, where he drove the No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Dodge.
Allmendinger completed all procedures required of him by NASCAR, and has made a strong comeback into the sport. He capped off that comeback recently with a win in the Nationwide Series at Road America, again driving for Roger Penske. He also drove to a very respectable 7th place finish in the Indy 500 for the famed team owner.
Allmendinger commented on the situation Friday at Kentucky Speedway where he will make hie second start in the No.47 for the JTG/Daugherty team saying, “In this situation, if I’m saying the same thing Bobby is, and in a way I kind of am, you know that only helps what he’s been saying.” “A race car driver as a whole hates it, but you it can play where it helps the team, it helps the other person, it helps me, so I guess what makes it tough obviously, is Bobby’s role in NASCAR the last several years has been huge for this sport.” He continued, “All I can do is go out there and do my best job possible, I understand the people who aren’t happy with it, at the same point, I can’t control that, I can just control myself and just like life I try to live day to day.”
It seems that Allmendinger’s input has helped. In his first race with the team at Michigan he finished 19th, which tied for the second best finish of the season, Labonte scored a 19th place finish at Richmond. Only one time this season has the team had a better finish, a 15th place at Daytona in the season opener.
Allmendinger backed up the Michigan run by turning in the best qualifying effort of the season for the team at Kentucky. The team will take the green in 17th on Saturday night in the Quaker State 400. It is the first time the team will start better than 20th all year. The week after Michigan, Labonte was back in the car at Sonoma. He qualified 20th for that race, an effort he has only equaled one other time this season.
The impressive results are vindication for team owner Brad Daugherty, who has been accused of attempting to ruin Bobby’s career. The improvements shown after only two races indicate Daugherty made the right decision for his team.
It will be interesting to watch this team going forward. Hopefully, Labonte, who is a great ambassador for the sport, will reap the benefits of these tough business decisions.
