NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Talladega

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May 7, 2013

carledwards_kalaperkins — Photo Credit: Kala Perkins

Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.

1. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson finished fifth at Talladega in the rain-delayed Aaron’s 499 at Talladega. His lead in the Sprint Cup point standings is now 41 over Carl Edwards.

“What an ending!” Johnson said. “It reminded me a lot of former NASCAR driver Kimi Raikkonen’s NASCAR skills—it was a ‘wild Finnish.’”

2. Carl Edwards: Edwards finished third in the Aaron’s 499 at Talladega, losing the lead on the final lap as David Ragan grabbed an unlikely win. Edwards is second in the point standings, 41 out of first.

“Ragan came out of nowhere,” Edwards said. “And that’s probably where he’ll return.

“As one of NASCAR’s manliest of men, I’d like to comment on the NBA’s Jason Collins announcing that he’s gay. I think NASCAR is ready for a homosexual driver. She better be really hot, though.”

3. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt slipped through the chaos of a wreck six laps from the to salvage a 17th at Talladega. He moved up two places to third in the point standings to third, and trails Jimmie Johnson by 46.

“I was just happy to see the finish line,” Earnhardt said. “It was a war of attrition. That’s not to be confused with the “War Of Attrition,” which, according to many of my fans, was won by the South.”

4. Kasey Kahne: Kahne was taken out at Talladega when Kyle Busch sent him spinning on lap 44, triggering the ‘Big One’ that eliminated 13 cars from contention. Kahne finished 42nd and fell one place in the point standings to fourth, 46 out of first.

“Busch used to drive the No. 5 car,” Kahne said. “And, as of lap 44 at Talladega, so did I.”

5. Clint Bowyer: Bowyer suffered significant damage in a big crash six laps from the end at Talladega, but managed to wheel the No. 15 Toyota to an 18-place finish. He is fourth in the point standings, 67 behind Jimmie Johnson.

“Brad Keselowski wasn’t too happy with the way the cars lined up on the final restart,” Bowyer said. “So he took to Twitter to whine. I hear he changed his Twitter handle to “sshole.” Sunday’s result must have left a sour taste in his mouth. That gives him the ‘tart’ of a champion?”

6. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski finished fifth in the rain-interrupted Aaron’s 499 at Talladega, posting his fourth top 5 of the year. The defending Sprint Cup champion is fifth in the point standings, 69 out of first.

“For a while,” Keselowski said, “it appeared the race would be much like our rear housing at Texas—‘shortened.’

“NASCAR denied our appeal for penalties incurred for illegal parts at Texas. And they surely didn’t Tweet their response. Oh no. It came on paper, and it was called a ‘cheat sheet.’”

7. Kyle Busch: Busch triggered a huge lap 44 wreck in the Aaron’s 499 when he tried to move around the No. 5 Chevy of Kasey Kahne. The pileup wiped out 13 cars, including Tony Stewart, Greg Biffle, Kevin Harvick, and Tony Stewart. Busch eventually finished 37th and is now ninth in the point standings, 98 out of first.

“Kurt may be the older brother,” Busch said, “but now, several drivers are calling me the ‘Big One.”

8. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth led 142 of 192 laps on the day, and led at the green-white-checkered finish, but finished eighth after the Front Row Motorsports duo of David Ragan and David Gilliland zoomed to the front.

“I’ve been a lame duck,” Kenseth said, “and I’ve been intimidated by the Aflac duck. On Sunday, I was a sitting duck there at the end.

“Former Alabama quarterback A.J. McCarron drove the pace car for Sunday’s race. There was talk that his girlfriend, Katherine Webb, would drive the pace car. That fell through, because David Gilliland refuses to follow a woman.”

9. Aric Almirola: Almirola finished 10th at Talladega in the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford. He is now seventh in the Sprint Cup standings, 90 out of first.

“You just never know what’s going to happen at Talladega,” Almirola said. “There were a lot of ‘unknowns,’ like the parts used by Penske and Joe Gibbs.

10. David Ragan: Ragan, pushed by Front Row Motorsports teammate David Gilliland, won the Aaron’s 499 in improbable fashion, outgunning Jimmie Johnson, Carl Edwards, and Matt Kenseth in an exciting green-white-checkered finish.

“Just call Gilliand and I the ‘Aero-Dynamic Duo,’” Ragan said. “I haven’t got that big of a ‘push’ since Jack Roush showed me the door.

“FRM is a small-time operation with nothing near the budget of the large teams. Not only did we accomplish the Talladega sweep with inferior equipment, we did it with legal equipment.”

The Final Word – Talladega, a place where all your dreams can come true

By

Ron Thornton

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May 7, 2013

field_dega1_getty — Credit: Tom Pennington/Getty Images

Talladega, where we watched Matt Kenseth dominate, where we saw Jimmie Johnson and Carl Edwards contend, and where we watched a lot of cars torn up. It is also where we saw two cars from an underfunded operation charge up from out of nowhere to claim the top two spots at the finish line.

David Ragan, with help from team mate David Gilliland, changed the storyline for this one at the last minute on Sunday, one that also featured a 226 minute rain delay. In the end, it was all about the have nots having their moment as Front Row Motorsports and owner Bob Jenkins celebrated their first ever victory after nine years of trying. With Josh Wise finishing 19th, they had three in the Top Twenty. No Mickey, no Goofy, no Cinderella castle, but definitely a Cinderella ending.

That was not so for some big names who got caught up in big crashes. Outside the Top 25 on the day were a long list of drivers we might have expected to be challenging for the win. Tony Stewart, at 27th, was the best of a lot that included Kurt Busch, Ryan Newman, Denny Hamlin (with Brian Vickers providing backup), Joey Logano, Greg Biffle, Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick, and Kasey Kahne. They were not happy, with Newman particularly upset about the whole deal. Then again, he had Kurt Busch flipping over and on top of his car as Newman got involved in his third Talladega wreck in his last eight attempts.

As an observer, I liked what I saw. I liked the shocking ending to the race, I liked seeing part timer Michael Waltrip finishing fourth, I liked that they outlasted the rain and finished the race, and, God forgive me, I liked the carnage. It was damned exciting, and who doesn’t like some excitement? Okay, a lot of excitement. There is just one problem, and only one that I can see. These drivers are not cartoons characters, they are not gladiators out there to spill blood for our amusement. Maybe having them drive in the dark to conclude the affair might not have been the best of ideas.

The actual race timed in at 3 hours and 26 minutes, or about 20 minutes shorter than the rain delay. It took more than seven hours from start to finish, starting at 1pm local time with sunset Sunday at about 7:30pm. Dusk is a concept that does not last very long in the south, so it had to have been dark enough so that anyone on the highway had their lights on, a feature not part of the package for those out on the track. There is a reason they were going to have just one green-white-checker, for the light was fading fast. Was it too dark? Only those behind the wheel know for sure.

Rating Talladega – 9/10 – As someone seeking television entertainment, I got everything I wanted, with the exception of the long rain delay. Bob Jenkins probably would have rated this an 11. Next on the calender is the Lady in Black, Darlington, and the Southern 500 this Saturday night. Enjoy the week.

Burton’s Cup Future Rests Solely on His Performance

By

SM Staff

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May 7, 2013

burton_jeff_hs_yeazell — Photo Credit: David Yeazell

As a new generation of drivers enters the Sprint Cup Series, the veterans are finding it tougher and tougher to remain competitive. Other than a few breakout weekends, Jeff Burton hasn’t been much of a threat over the past few seasons. Every year, Burton gets the pre-season hype as a potential breakout driver for the upcoming season. The expectations are high until about Phoenix and then they die down since Burton can no longer remain consistent during each race. A new crop of drivers has begun to enter the RCR stable and it’s just a matter of time that the new talent takes over the veteran’s rides.

To still have a ride with a top-tier Cup team is something that indicates RCR still has hope that Burton can once again be competing for wins each weekend. Burton still has the talent, but he needs to show us that. By running up front and winning races, he’ll once again emerge as a threat. If he doesn’t do that soon, he may be run over by the new generation of NASCAR drivers.

Richard Childress has gathered a great group of young drivers who definitely have a future in the Cup Series. Pretty soon, those drivers will be looking for Cup rides and Childress isn’t going to say “not now.” He’s going to want the future of his organization running in the top level of NASCAR as soon as possible and he’ll bump out the veterans as needed.

Over the past few seasons, Burton has become the odd-man out at RCR. He’s the oldest, has the longest amount of time since his last win, and he hasn’t been competing for the Chase regularly like his teammates have. With Kevin Harvick moving to Stewart-Hass next season and Paul Menard having a family sponsor, Burton has become the anchor of the team. A smart move by RCR would be to boot Burton out and bring in some new talent, but Childress will give Burton a chance to prove himself before he leaves.

This season could be the most important of Burton’s career since he needs to be contending with the front-runners on a regular basis. If he can do that, his career will keep moving along at RCR. Strong performances and wins will also boost Burton’s resume as he fights for a longer-stay at RCR. Without those credential boosters, Burton could be out of a ride following this season.

The only thing that should matter to Burton this season is success. With it, he may get a new contract after this season. Without it, he could be looking at free agency at the end of the season. Success now is very important to Burton’s future since not many teams will be looking for a veteran driver in the middle of NASCAR’s youth-movement.

Anything could happen and he could wind up back at RCR next season, but it isn’t likely unless he has good performances throughout the remainder of the season. It is all up to Burton to decide what his future looks like. He has the ability to shape it how he would like, but if he chooses to just run well enough to get by; he may be a man with few options after this season. He needs a wake-up call now and if his performance level doesn’t change, his Cup career won’t last very much longer.

Keselowski Publishes Open Letter To Fans After Twitter Tirade

By

SM Staff

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May 7, 2013

bradkeselowski_martinsville_barryalbert — Photo Credit: Barry Albert

Just two days after a tirade on Twitter following the final restart at Talladega, NASCAR Sprint Cup Champion Brad Keselowski has published an open letter to the fans and fellow driver, David Ragan, on his website that, on the surface, looks as though it might be an apology for his harsh words. I posted the letter below for you to read and you can find it on Brad’s website as well. After reading through it, I find it to be more of an excuse for his actions, not the apology that the fans and his fellow drivers deserve. Several times he references “NASCAR’s mistake” as the cause of the confusion on that final restart.

I finally had a chance to digest what happened at the end of the Cup race at Talladega on Sunday. I owe David Ragan and his fans an apology. I placed blame on David Ragan for the restart lineup confusion when it wasn’t his fault.

I was very passionate about the finish because I thought we had a chance to win the race if I restarted the race in the 10th position instead of ninth. Passion is a very important characteristic to a champion driver. That passion is not something I will apologize for. The outside line – the 10th spot, in particular – was a huge advantage over the 9th position. David executed that positioning perfectly for the win.

I know first-hand what it’s like to take a lower-budget team victory lane. My comments were never to detract from their victory. They were only to express my opinion that I thought we had been wronged.

Basically what happened is that, when the yellow came out at lap 184 the lineup was supposed to be Scott Speed, myself and David. We were actually lined up David, Scott and me because we were unsure what the lineup was. NASCAR did not change this before opening pit road so by procedure we were lined up in the proper positions. NASCAR made a last-minute lineup change that we missed as we were getting ready to go back to green. David attempted to make it right by letting me go at the start/finish line with one to go. I thought he was attempting to change the pylon because the order is supposed to be set before pit road opens.

With the multi-car wreck, the rain and the impending darkness it is easy to see how NASCAR could have made that mistake.

It was a confusing time for all of us. I want to send a sincere congratulation out to David Ragan and everyone at Front Row Motorsports. It was a very cool win for our sport.

– Brad

What do you think of Brad’s letter, his actions and words that night and in the days since; and do you feel that NASCAR is to blame for the “confusion” that somehow only seemed to affect Keselowski?

Read the letter, and then be sure to comment or let me know on Twitter how you feel about the incident.