Talking Rear-Ends with Penske Racing and Hendrick Motorsports
This past weekend, Penske Racing was found in violation of NASCAR’s rear-end suspension policy. As per the report on SPEED during NASCAR Raceday, NASCAR did not approve of the way both Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano’s rear-ends were bolted in. Reports since have stated that the rear-end housings were attached in a fashion that they might shift the rear-ends of the cars into yaw during competition.
Well this was something was allowed last year with the previous car, NASCAR wrote a new rule in the rulebook this year to prevent teams from doing that with the Generation Six car.
Section 20-12 of the rulebook states, “All front end and rear end suspension mounts with mounting hardware assembled must have single round mounting holes that are the correct size for the fastener being used. All front end and rear end suspension mounts and mounting hardware must not allow movement or realignment of any suspension component beyond normal rotation or suspension travel.”
As a result, both the No. 2 and No. 22 teams were assessed the following penalties as per NASCAR’s press release:
- Crew chief Paul Wolfe has been fined $100,000 and suspended from NASCAR until the completion of the next six NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship points events (including the non-points Sprint All-Star Race) and placed on probation until Dec. 31.
- Car chief Jerry Kelley, team engineer Brian Wilson and team manager Travis Geisler (serves as team manager for both the No. 2 and No. 22 cars) have been suspended from NASCAR until the completion of the next six NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship points events (including the non-points Sprint All-Star Race) and placed on probation until Dec. 31.
- The loss of 25 championship driver (Brad Keselowski) and 25 championship owner (Roger Penske) points.
- Crew chief Todd Gordon has been fined $100,000 and suspended from NASCAR until the completion of the next six NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship points events (including the non-points Sprint All-Star Race) and placed on probation until Dec. 31.
- Car chief Raymond Fox and team engineer Samuel Stanley have been suspended from NASCAR until the completion of the next six NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship points events (including the non-points Sprint All-Star Race) and placed on probation until Dec. 31.
- The loss of 25 championship driver (Joey Logano) and 25 championship owner (Walt Czarnecki) points.
Penske Racing has stated that they will appeal the penalties.
This entire scenario reminds us of what happened last year with Hendrick Motorsports with regards to the C-Posts of the car.
During last year’s pre-Daytona 500 qualifying inspection, NASCAR did not agree with the shape of the c-posts and requested that they be changed. The C-post is a piece of paneling towards the back of the car that connects the roof to the rear quarterpanel. The team modified the piece to gain an aerodynamic advantage.
As a result, Hendrick Motorsports was assessed penalties, which included a six week suspension for both crew chief Chad Knaus and car chief Ron Malec from the next six NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events, plus probation till May 9th. They also fined Knaus $100,000 while taking away 25 driver points from Johnson and 25 owner points from his owner, Jeff Gordon. In comparing to the penalties for Penske Racing, seems that NASCAR is being consistent for once.
Now, Hendrick Motorsports appealed the penalties and got the suspensions removed. Chief Appellate Officer John Middlebrook erased the 25 owner point penalty assessed to car owner Jeff Gordon, the 25 driver point penalty assessed to Jimmie Johnson, the six week suspension to crew chief Chad Knaus and the six week suspension to car chief Ron Malec.
However, there’s a difference in the penalties, besides the fact that they do with different parts of the car. Hendrick Motorsports was assessed their penalties during pre-qualifying inspection while Penske Racing was assessed their penalties during pre-race inspection. That means that both cars had passed pre-qualifying inspection without any problems. Was there a change in the rear of the cars over the course of the weekend? Hmm, that is yet to be seen.
If this is something that Penske Racing has done within the grey areas, expect the penalty to be changed. However, if this is something that is right against the rule, then expect the penalties to stay.
Though why bring up Hendrick Motorsports in talking of these penalties to Penske Racing? Funny you should ask ‘ol mighty one.
Last year following a race at Michigan International Speedway, Brad Keselowski made some choice comments about the rear suspension of the Hendrick Motorsports cars. Keselowski said that his team hadn’t tried to change rear-end setups because “there’s a question to the interpretation that as of right now it’s legal. We have not felt comfortable enough to risk that name and reputation that (team owner) Roger (Penske) has over those parts and pieces. Others have, which is their prerogative. I’m not going to slam them for it. But it’s living in a gray area.”
“Obviously, I don’t think there’s anyone out there who doesn’t believe the Hendrick cars were one of those groups, but I respect them and their ability to do those things and be innovators accordingly,” he added that. “So it’s our challenge to find that little bit of speed and have that true understanding of all the rules that it entails in that particular department, and that’s something that we’re watching. That’s what my comments were meant to say.”
He also said that Penske Racing doesn’t want to work in those gray areas, at that time. Hmm, isn’t it interesting to see the shoe placed on the other foot in the fact that Penske is pushing the envelope?
To add to that, following the race on Sunday and the penalties, Brad Keselowski had some comments to say towards NASCAR and their inspection policy.
“I have one good thing to thing to say and that was my team and the effort they put in today in fighting back with the absolute (expletive) that’s been the last seven days in this garage area,” Keselowski said. “The things I’ve seen over the last seven days have me questioning everything I believe in. I’m not happy about it. I don’t have anything positive to say and I probably should just leave it at that.
Keselowski added in that interview that he feels targeted. Could someone had found out about what they were doing and talked to NASCAR about it?
After Keselowski’s comments last year, Johnson’s car was one of the car selected as the “random” car to take back to the R&D center a lot for further inspection. Could someone had turned the shoe on the other foot? Anything is possible, right?
Though one other thing to consider is Keselowski says he doesn’t agree with the inspection process. Well, it’s the same process that all other 42 cars go through and they are subject to the same procedures that his car goes under. How is that feeling targeted?
Just food for thought :)
NASCAR BTS: Fabian Hall Fulfills Dream of Cooking for Aric Almirola and Petty Race Team
This edition of NASCAR ‘Behind the Scenes’ focuses on Fabian Hall, Army Staff Sergeant, cancer survivor, and aspiring chef, who had his dream come true thanks to Petty Motorsports, Aric Almriola and Eckrich.
This past weekend, Hall was surprised with the opportunity to be the chef at Texas Motor Speedway for Aric Almirola’s No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford. Almirola’s sponsor Eckrich, part of the John Morrell Food Group, a subsidiary of Smithfield Foods, made the dream come true thanks to their corporate partnership with Operation Homefront.
Eckrich gave Hall the opportunity to not only accompany the Petty race team to Texas for the NASCAR weekend, but also set him up with a new grilling set so that he could prepare meals for the team. And this was all revealed to Hall in a surprise trip to a local grocery store.
“We went to Kroger’s and saw all this stuff set up by Eckrich and all of a sudden, here comes the race car around the corner,” Hall said of how he first learned about his opportunity to cook trackside. “I was surprised.”
“After that, they told me what was in store for the whole race weekend and then we shopped for what I would be cooking for the team all weekend,” Hall continued. “It was a thrill ride for me.”
“It was really cool to be able to surprise Fabian,” Aric Almirola, driver of the famed No. 43 said. “I drove the show car around the corner and of course revved the engine when I got up to him.”
“He has done a lot for our country and it was really great to give back to him,” Almirola continued. “He was very surprised and really got a kick out of the car being there.”
While Hall enjoys NASCAR, he is primarily a fan of the automobile.
“I’m a car fan period,” Hall said. “If it’s got wheels on it, I’ll watch it.”
While Hall has heard of many of the NASCAR stars, he admitted to not following a particular driver or team. This past race weekend, his first ever at the track in person, may just have changed all of that for this warrior chef.
“I’ve heard of a lot of the drivers but don’t follow any one driver,” Hall said. “I like the sound of the engines and how they are driving. so I just watch the sport because of my love of the cars and the enthusiasm I get from watching the cars.”
“I’ve never really followed just one driver but I’m definitely keeping my eyes on Aric from here on out.”
“This was my first time at the track,” Hall said. “I was pretty amazing, especially when you get to hear that caliber of car and the engines revved up.”
While Hall was having a great time ogling all those fast cars, he also had a job to do. And this aspiring chef cooked up a storm for Almirola, the ‘King’ Richard Petty and the No. 43 team.
“The first meal I did was a beer brine for the sausages,” Hall said. “I did a vegetable medley with peppers, onions, and squash on the grill with that and some nice white rice to go with it.”
“I also did a beer brine barbecue sauce to finish it off,” Hall continued. “The second day, I did a mac and cheese casserole with several different cheeses, sausage, peppers and garlic.”
“I grilled all that off together and did some bacon as well,” Hall said. “I covered it all with cheese and when the team opened it up and saw it, it was like they were in Disneyland.”
“It was pretty awesome.”
Hall admitted that what has meant most to him was the encouragement and positive comments that he got from the team about his cooking.
“He is a great cook!” Almirola said. “He made dinner for the team on Friday and Saturday and it was delicious.”
“I’ve gotten a lot of text messages letting me know how much the team enjoyed my food,” Hall said. “I could see the look on their faces of the crew members that they enjoyed it.”
“They said that two top chefs came in and cooked for them before but they said my food beat their food,” Hall continued. “That was a great thing to hear and take in.”
“To know that after so many years of being in the Army and learning so many different things and then to go to school and to be able to cook on the same caliber as someone I’ve seen on TV cooking, that was a good feeling.”
Hall has honed his culinary skills from the time he was a young boy, cooking at the feet of his grandmother. He then continued to cook in the Army, prior to being diagnosed with cancer and having to undergo serious treatment.
“I’m from east Texas and that’s a little country area, where either you’re hauling logs or working on cars,” Hall said. “I worked on cars but also watched my grandmother in the kitchen.”
“When I was 14 years old, I decided I was hungry and fixed a roast and stuck with it ever since,” Hall continued. “When I joined the military, they gave me the choice of either being a mechanic or a cook and of course I chose the lesser of the greasy jobs.”
“I think I did my grandmother justice because not only have I taken her recipes and done elegant dishes but I’ve used the techniques that I learned from her in school and in the Army,” Hall said. “My service in the military and the time I spent learning things, from Germany to here at San Antonio receiving my treatment for cancer, I’ve done my profession well in tribute to her.”
Hall shared that what surprised him most about being at the track and cooking for the race team was just how family-oriented the team was. And of course, he was tremendously impressed by the head of that Petty race team family, the ‘King’ himself.
“Richard Petty is one of the most humble guys,” Hall said. “You can tell he is a country boy and we got along well.”
“I loved hanging out with him and him coming by and sneaking his finger into my food,” Hall continued. “That final dessert he tasted, you could tell he liked my food.”
“He could not put that plate down of the apple ala mode,” Hall said. “A lot of people were surprised that I did that dessert being that I only had a grill to cook on.”
“But I still made apple ala mode and they were surprised that I pulled it off.”
For Hall, cooking for Richard Petty and company was most assuredly one of the biggest blessings that he has experienced in his life. Yet he has kept it all in perspective, especially after his experiences in the Army and with battling cancer.
“To me, it was an add-on to God blessing me to still be here,” Hall said. “When I went through my chemotherapy, there were low points and I thought I was not going to make it.”
“My mother and my family came in and helped push me along and kept me motivated,” Hall continued. “They would pray with me and for me and that kept me grounded to my roots in church.”
“When you have something like that to ground you, you can’t go wrong,” Hall said. “Family, church and prayer helped me a lot.”
“So, I was not expecting to be there for this race experience,” Hall continued. “And now that I have, it’s just another blessing.”
“God blessed me to be able to do it and I’m looking forward to many more opportunities to bless other people’s stomachs and mouths,” Hall said. “I feel like what I do is a blessing and I’m going to keep on sharing that blessing with everyone else.”
Petty driver Aric Almirola echoed Hall’s sentiments about his time at the track.
“He is a great example of perseverance,” Almirola said. “He went overseas and fought for our country and then came back and fought for his life.”
“To see someone go through all of that and still have a positive outlook on life is really inspiring,” Almirola continued. “I’m just glad to work with a company like Eckrich that supports charities like Operation Homefront and really gives back to the community.”
“We wouldn’t be able to race every weekend if it weren’t for people like Fabian who give up everything to fight for our freedom,” Almirola said. “So anytime you can give back, even in a small way, is huge.”
Hot 20 over the past 10 – Grey area is gone as Penske discovers
Sometimes teams get real upset when NASCAR docks them six points for a rule infraction. I am thinking Martin Truex Jr. and Waltrip Racing said thanks, as they got a peck on the cheek from momma. Compare that to the boot in the nether regions experienced by Team Penske after Texas.
25 points off, their crew chiefs, car chiefs, engineers and team manager all suspended for six weeks, never mind the $100,000 fines the crew chiefs had to pony up. Those rear end parts they confiscated put NASCAR in one ugly mood. Forget about working in a grey area, as it would seem that things are laid out in black and white, and you tinker with what is regulated at your own peril.
It was a good thing both Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano were in the top Ten last Saturday night. A finish outside the top Twenty and they would have been better off staying home. I have heard that they were ratted out by another team, that at one time teams kept quiet about such things and just tried to emulate what the other guy had done. If that is true then you can forget about that grey area, too. You cheat, you will get caught. One way or another.
No, this is not Smokey Yunick’s NASCAR anymore. It has not been for 40 years. I am reminded of the time one of his cars got tagged for nine infractions while going through inspection. Smokey told the officials they might as well make it ten as he drove the car back to the garage, minus the confiscated gas tank. Imagine the penalty hit he would have faced today.
While Keselowski and Logano took their hits, both appear relatively healthy on our ten race charts. The defending champ dropped a couple of spots, while Logano actually moved up a position even though he is 13 points poorer than a week ago.
Kyle Busch had three top Fives to end last season and combined with five more in 2013, including wins at Fontana and Texas, he is our top gun. Mark Martin returned to the track and bounced up six positions to return to our hot 20, while Jeff Gordon’s problems last week dropped him four to barely get a mention. One thing that has become clear is that contenders average nearly 30 points or better per race, pretenders do not.
Some are just plain lucky. 20 years ago Amy said “I do”, allowing me to move it on up quicker than the Jefferson’s. I am thankful she is such a charitable person.
| Name | Points | POS | LW | W | T5 | T10 |
| Kyle Busch | 378 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 8 | 8 |
| Greg Biffle | 349 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 7 |
| Brad Keselowski | 346 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 8 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 338 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 6 |
| Dale Earnhardt, Jr. | 328 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 7 |
| Carl Edwards | 327 | 6 | 8 | 1 | 4 | 4 |
| Kasey Kahne | 315 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| Kevin Harvick | 310 | 8 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| Clint Bowyer | 304 | 9 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 5 |
| Matt Kenseth | 302 | 10 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| Paul Menard | 291 | 11 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Ryan Newman | 284 | 12 | 13 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
| Aric Almirola | 280 | 13 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Joey Logano | 262 | 14 | 15 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Jamie McMurray | 261 | 15 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Kurt Busch | 258 | 16 | 14 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
| Tony Stewart | 249 | 17 | 19 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Mark Martin | 244 | 18 | 24 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Marcos Ambrose | 239 | 19 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Jeff Gordon | 237 | 20 | 16 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
Previewing The STP 400 at Kansas Speedway
NASCAR roars into Kansas Speedway this weekend for the 8th race of the 2013 season. It seems like we are saying this at every track this year but once again, you can expect record speeds by the Gen-6 this weekend. Kansas was repaved last summer and we all remember the wild show it put on in the fall.
Sixteen cars posted DNF’s and fourteen cautions flew in the crash marred event that Matt Kenseth ended up winning by just four tenths over Martin Truex Jr. The 12-year old track has featured fourteen races producing ten different winners.
The 1.5 mile venue is owned by the International Speedway Corporation (ISC) and seats 81,687 people. It’s classified as a “D-Shaped Tri-Oval” much like its sister track, Chicagoland Speedway. Here are some stats and facts that you should know as we gear up for this mid-western throw-down!
Kansas Speedway Track Facts
Track Size: 1.5-miles
Banking/Turns 1 & 2: 17-20 degrees
Banking/Turns 3 & 4: 17-20 degrees
Banking/Frontstretch: 10 degrees
Banking/Backstretch: 5 degrees
Frontstretch Length: 2,685 feet
Backstretch Length: 2,207 feet
Race Length: 267 laps / 400 miles
Capacity: 81,687
Kansas Speedway Stats
Inaugural Race Winner: Jeff Gordon by .413 tenths over Ryan Newman
Only Driver to Sweep the Weekend: Joe Nemechek winning both the NNS and NSCS events in 2004
Most Wins By a Driver: Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart, Greg Biffle who have all won twice
Most Wins By a Team: Roush Fenway Racing and Hendrick Motorsports who each have 4
Most Wins By a Manufactuer: Chevrolet has won 7 of the 14 events (Ford-4, Dodge-2, Toyota-1)
Youngest Kansas Winner: Ryan Newman at 25 years, 9 months and 27 days in October of 2003
Oldest Kansas Winner: Mark Martin at 46 years, 9 months and 0 days in October of 2005
Pole Sitters: Only twice has a pole sitter won from the pole (Joe Nemechek-2004, Jimmie Johnson-2008)
Starting Positions By Winners: 2 from the pole, 4 from 2nd-5th, 2 from 6th-101th, 4 from 11th-20th, 2 from 21st or worse
Worst Starting Position By Race Winner: 25th by Brad Keselowski in 2011
Youngest Kansas Pole Winner: Jason Leffler at 26 years, 0 months and 14 days in September of 2001
Oldest Kansas Pole Winner: Mark Martin who was 50 years, 8 months and 25 days in October of 2009
Most Starts Without a Win: 14 by Bobby Labonte, Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton and Kurt Busch
Track Qualifying Record: Kasey Kahne at a 28.219 (191.360mph) in October of 2012
Track Race Record: Denny Hamlin-144.122 mph (02:46:44) in April of 2012
Least Amount of Cautions: 3 in April of 2012
Most Amount of Cautions: 14 in October of 2012
Average Number of Cautions: 7
Top 10 Driver Ratings at Kansas
1.) Jimmie Johnson…………………… 119.5
2.) Greg Biffle………………………….. 113.0
3.) Matt Kenseth………………………. 106.4
4.) Jeff Gordon………………………… 101.5
5.) Tony Stewart……………………….. 100.8
6.) Carl Edwards………………………… 95.1
7.) Mark Martin…………………………… 91.3
8.) Kevin Harvick……………………….. 90.6
9.) Martin Truex Jr…………………….. 90.5
10.) Brad Keselowski……………………. 90.1
Best Average Finish at Kansas
1.) Jimmie Johnson——-8.0
2.) Greg Biffle————–9.5
3.) Brad Keselowski——-9.8
4.) Carl Edwards———–10.8
5.) Jeff Gordon————-11.0
6.) Tony Stewart———–11.7
7.) Kevin Harvick———-12.9
8.) Denny Hamlin———–14.0
9.) Clint Bowyer————14.0
10.) Kasey Kahne———–15.0
Most Wins at Kansas Speedway
1.) Jimmie Johnson——–2 (2008 & 2011)
2.) Greg Biffle—————2 (2007 & 2010)
3.) Tony Stewart———–2 (2006 & 2009)
4.) Jeff Gordon————-2 (2001 & 2002)
5.) Matt Kenseth———–1 (2012)
6.) Denny Hamlin———1 (2012)
7.) Brad Keselowski——1 (2011)
8.) Mark Martin———–1 (2005)
9.) Joe Nemechek——–1 (2004)
10.) Ryan Newman——1 (2003)
Most Top 5’s at Kansas Speedway
1.) Jeff Gordon———8
2.) Greg Biffle———–7
3.) Tony Stewart——-6
4.) Jimmie Johnson—5
5.) Matt Kenseth——-5
6.) Carl Edwards——-4
7.) Denny Hamlin—–3
8.) Ryan Newman——3
9.) Martin Truex Jr.—-2
10.) Kasey Kahne——-2
Most Top 10’s at Kansas Speedway
1.) Jimmie Johnson———11
2.) Jeff Gordon————–10
3.) Greg Biffle—————9
4.) Tony Stewart———–9
5.) Matt Kenseth———–8
6.) Carl Edwards———–8
7.) Kevin Harvick———6
8.) Dale Earnhardt Jr.—-6
9.) Kasey Kahne———-5
10.) Mark Martin———5
Considering all that, Jimmie Johnson, Greg Biffle and Jeff Gordon look like the biggest threats to take the victory this weekend. Biffle has finished inside the top 10 in seven of the last eight races, Johnson is currently on an eight race top 10 streak at while Gordon has had some lackluster results the past three races. Another driver you have to watch out for but isn’t very high in most of the stats is Matt Kenseth. He won the first race at Kansas after the repave, is riding a streak of three straight top-5’s and hasn’t finished worse than 7th since 2009. A dark horse would have to be Martin Truex Jr. He doesn’t have a great record here but he did finish second in both races last year. Make sure you keep an eye on both him and Kenseth this weekend.
Drivers you may want to stay away from include Kyle Busch, Marcos Ambrose and the 2005 winner of this race, Mark Martin. Ambrose has never led a lap at Kansas, has a best finish of 9th and a best starting position of 18th. Martin did win at Kansas but that is just about the only bright spot on his resume at the track. Martin finished 20th or worse in nearly half the races he’s participated in and has only broken inside the top-20 twice in his last five races. Busch’s stats really surprised me and I had to look at a few times thinking no way are these his stats. His average finish of 21.0 is very low for him and in his whole career, Busch has posted two top 10’s and no top 5’s at the track. He hasn’t led very many laps either proving he’s never really a factor.
I expect that this race will be very fast paced and will feature out of control race cars a lot like last fall’s event. The track has a lot of grip and you can expect to see bottom feeders as well as drivers riding the cushion just inches away from smacking the wall. I don’t think it will have wrecks every 10 laps like it did last year but I don’t see long runs forcing them to make green flag pit stops either.
Busch has been great in 2013 and will have his best race to date at Kansas blowing his best finish of 7th out of the water but he won’t win. I am going with a very hungry driver who is desperate to reach victory lane, Truex Jr. He will finally get that second career win this weekend at Kansas Speedway. Matt Kenseth, Jimmie Johnson and Kasey Kahne will be major factors throughout the race but I am going with Truex Jr. to steal the show Sunday!
Feel free to post who you think will win the STP 400 below!
210 Races & Counting… When Will Truex Finally Get That Breakthrough Win?
Martin Truex Jr. is a highly underrated driver in my eyes but it’s easy for people to overlook a guy who has just one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) victory in 268 races. On June 4, 2007, Truex Jr. won at Dover International Speedway by a staggering 7.3 seconds over Ryan Newman capturing his lone NSCS win at what happened to be his home track. If fate was just a little bit kinder to Truex Jr., he could be nearing ten total wins right now instead of still searching for his second. Last weekend he was a few laps away from victory lane until a late race caution ripped it away from him once again. It’s a feeling the Mayetta, the New Jersey native knows much too well.
This weekend, NASCAR visits the recently repaved Kansas Speedway which put on a very eventful race last fall. If I didn’t know any better, I would have thought we were in Bristol after a race that had 16 cars post DNF’s and 14 cautions marring the event. In the two races held there in 2012, we had two different winners but the race runner-up remained the same in both…..Truex Jr. It was hard to watch him drive his heart out in the closing laps last weekend only to come up empty handed after running so well. Let me make it clear that in almost every situation, it hasn’t been his fault when these wins got away. Mechanical failures, wrecks, bad pit stops and questionable cautions have all have plagued him every time he seems to have one in the bag.
Truex Jr. has won two Nationwide titles and a total of 19 races across every NASCAR division so don’t think for a second that he lacks the talent to get the No.56 to victory lane. I should also add that he was the 2005 IROC runner-up defeating prominent racers such as 3x Indy 500 winner Helio Castroneves, 6x Grand-Am champion Scott Pruett, 4x CART champion Sebastian Bourdais and NSCS champions Matt Kenseth and Kurt Busch. You don’t just accidentally out-perform those guys. I believe that once Martin gets his second win and he will get it, then the racing world will finally witness his true potential. This illusive win is holding him back and once he gets it, the field better watch out because that NAPA Toyota Camry will quickly become a regular sight in the winner’s circle.
Kansas is a good place for the 30 year old racer to rebound from the disappointment of Texas and finally snag a victory considering his recent record at the 1.5 mile track. There is a contingent of people out there that say losing at Texas will bring him down but I think it will have the reverse effect. All that heart-breaking finish will do is make him hungrier and more driven than ever to get to victory lane. If it’s the last lap and you find yourself battling Truex Jr. for the win, you better be ready to race harder than you’ve ever raced before because you can bet Truex Jr. will put up one hell of a fight. He has the potential to be a championship contender once he finally has that race where all the pieces come together. That monumental victory that is coming will work wonders for his Sprint Cup career and you will see a new, happier and more competitive driver out on that race track.
I know that’s a very bold statement but despite his lack of wins, he’s shown on multiple occasions that he can get the job done behind the wheel of a race car. Motivation and confidence has a funny way of turning a decent driver into a NSCS champion and if you want an example of that, look no further than a driver by the name of Brad Keselowski. It wasn’t too long ago we looked at him as just another driver that had won a race at Talladega back in 2009.
Truex Jr. is a true racer who fought his way to where he is today and I firmly believe that he will win many Cup races in the years to come.
