NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Richmond
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[/media-credit]Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.
1. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin led 202 of 400 laps at Richmond, but the No. 11 Fed Ex team’s decision to stay on the track after a late rain delay proved costly. His shot at the win gone, Hamlin came home 18th, one lap down.
“I’m leading the points,” Hamlin said. “So I’m right where I need to be, just ten weeks too early.
“The Chase is wide open. There doesn’t appear to be a clear-cut favorite to win the Cup. The identity of the 2012 Sprint Cup champion is a lot like NASCAR’s drug policy—it’s anyone’s guess.”
2. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson finished 13th at Richmond, and will start the Chase For The Cup three points back of Denny Hamlin. He’ll lead the way for Hendrick Motorsports, which place all four drivers in the Chase.
“A full third of the Chase field are Hendrick drivers,” Johnson said. “That means there’s a 33% chance a Hendrick driver will win the Sprint Cup. There’s a 100% chance that Hendrick driver will be me. And, as five titles in six years suggests, it’s wise to play the percentages.”
3. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski finished a solid seventh at Richmond, posting his 15th top-10 result of the year. With three wins, he’ll start the Chase tied with Jimmie Johnson and Tony Stewart, three points back of points leader Denny Hamlin.
“The Chase field is set,” Keselowski said, “and Kyle Busch isn’t in it. Kyle will never be considered a true great of the sport until he wins a Sprint Cup title. Therefore, it compels me to say that ‘Kyle Busch is an asterisk,’ because he’s not a star, but starlike.”
4. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt started on pole in the Federated Auto Parts 400, leading 67 laps on his way to a 14th in Saturday’s rain-delayed race. With only one win this year, he’ll start nine points behind Denny Hamlin.
“Congratulations to Jeff Gordon,” Earnhardt said. “With his runner-up finish, he’s in the Chase. He said that was like a win to him. That makes him a lot like me, because with my track record, I’ll call anything a win.”
5. Tony Stewart: Stewart scored his first top-5 finish since a fifth at Pocono in early August with a fourth at Richmond. His three wins this year will start him tied for second in the Chase, three points behind Denny Hamlin.
“In most cases,” Stewart said, “I take offense at things. But, as last year’s Sprint Cup champion, I’m going on the defensive. But never fear, that’s still reason enough to throw helmets, punches, and tantrums. These are a few of my favorite things.”
6. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth finished fifth at Richmond, posting his 16th top-1- finish. By virtue of his one victory, he’ll start the Chase nine points down to Denny Hamlin.
“It’s been a crazy year,” Kenseth said. “Honestly, I can’t tell whether I’m coming or going. Fortunately, I’ve got two wins on the year—one at Daytona, and one at Joe Gibbs Racing. Hopefully, Roush Fenway Racing will consider me a ‘loss’ and not a ‘loser.’”
7. Greg Biffle: Biffle finished ninth at Richmond, and, with two wins on the year, will start the Chase tied for fifth, six points out of first.
“I like my chances,” Biffle said. “I’m not going to back down from anyone. As far as the Cup goes, I, like all the favorites, expect to be there at the end. And, unlike Matt Kenseth, I expect to be here at the end.”
8. Clint Bowyer: Bowyer survived a spin through the infield grass before rallying late to win the Federated Auto Parts 400. Bowyer’s second win of the year places him six points behind Chase leader Denny Hamlin.
“I’ve got what no one else has,” Bowyer said. “And that’s 5-Hour Energy sponsorship on my car, which naturally gives me a ‘shot’ to win it all.”
9. Jeff Gordon: Gordon raced his way into the Chase For The Cup with a hard-earned second at Richmond. As the final wildcard entrant, he’ll start last in the field, 12 points out of first.
“We had a little help from Kyle Busch,” Gordon said. “It seems the No. 18 M&M’s car got a little loose, right after the No. 18 pit crew got ‘tight.’ I’m just happy to qualify for the Chase. I’m in, and I’m ecstatic to the inth degree.”
10. Kasey Kahne: Kahne finished 12th at Richmond and qualified for the Chase as the field’s first wildcard. He will start at the bottom of the Chase field, 12 points behind Denny Hamlin.
“I’m starting all the way at the back,” Kahne said. “I’ve been ordered to choose my words carefully, because Hendrick Motorsports doesn’t want anyone to ‘bring up the rear.’”
Sadler and Stenhouse headline exciting NNS title fight
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[/media-credit]Two weeks ago in Bristol Elliott Sadler, after disappointingly finishing fifth following bump-and-run from Ricky Stenhouse Jr., declared that the fight for the Nationwide Series championship was on. From his point of view, the two would race each other differently, no holds barred as the season started to wind down.
Following 250 laps in Richmond on Friday night, the fight for the championship is without a doubt, on. Stenhouse nearly won again in what would have been his second in as many weeks. Sadler snatched a top five finish from himself, but still recovered in a championship-like fashion. The two have now distance themselves from the other contenders, third place Austin Dillon is 30 points behind, as they head into Chicago separated by just one point.
A second place finish for Stenhouse, after leading 65 laps, helped his cause. He continues to fight back into contention after having lost the point lead after three bad weeks in May. The defending NNS champion is no longer in striking distance, he’s breathing on Sadler’s neck and whispering in his ear.
“We weren’t as good as we thought were going to be or thought we needed to be. We kept working on it all night and I felt like Mike [Kelley, crew chief] and the guys did some good adjustments and got it better throughout the race but not enough to go contend for the win,” said Stenhouse after picking up his 11th top three finish of the year.
“It was a great night for us and were just too loose in and too loose off and not exactly what we wanted. It is a good top-two finish though and that is three good races in a row. We just have to keep doing that.”
Sadler won’t and isn’t intimidated. He’s on a mission to win a championship not only for himself but those who helped turn his career around before he moves on in 2013. No confirmation has been made but rumors are rampant that he’s head to the NNS program of JGR. The same goes for Stenhouse, who gets a full-time Cup ride with Roush, leaving behind the NNS.
On Friday the two were fighting for the lead when Sadler spun himself out, damaging the rear of his Chevrolet.
“It’s frustrating. I made a big mistake, got in there a little too loose under Ricky,” said Sadler. “We had a fast racecar. This OneMain Financial car, 100-year anniversary, guys did a good job. This has been a really good car for us this year and we were in a good position to win the race I just got a little too impatient. Got a little too hard in over my head.”
But in a positive, “We’re still out of it though, we’ve got eight more races left, we’re still in the points lead and we’ll go get ‘em at Chicago.”
After frantically pitting numerous times and managing to stay just one lap down, he put himself in position to get it back. Instead of finishing outside the top 15, he earned a 12th place finish. Hanging onto the point lead when it could have turned into a big deficient. Stenhouse apologized for the incident, noting it was just hard racing and that he had given Sadler plenty of room.
But just as it was a few weeks ago in Bristol, Sadler was upset. This time with himself for making a mistake and not leaving with a finish he deserved. Making this weekend’s race in Chicago coming at just the right time.
“I hate that we had this kind of day for the OneMain Financial. These guys worked so hard all day long and I know that we had a car to compete for the win today,” a dejected Sadler said, while trying to look forward.
“That’s racing, but these guys never quit. I feel like I let the team down, but we are all hungry and have no other choice but to get back up and fight. I’ve said it several times this season, but these are the races and circumstances that make a championship team.
“We will regroup, get more fired up and head to Chicagoland Speedway next weekend.”
At the speedway’s first race this year it was Sadler in Victory Lane. And after seeing his point nearly disappear, he needs to get back there. Except, Stenhouse led the most laps and finished second in that race. The two have been inseparable all year; the racing has been close and exciting. More of what can be expected as the season draws to a close.
“The racing is great right now. There are a lot of people that can win and a lot of great competition, great equipment and great drivers,” feels Stenhouse. “We race hard every week and try to give a little room at the beginning. Once you fill up with fuel and are good to go at the end, you race as hard as you can and try to keep every position you can.
“I think that will continue through the rest of the year and that is how racing should be. You shouldn’t go ride around, you should race as hard as you can.”
Kaeding Beats Schatz with a last lap Slide Job!
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[/media-credit]ANTIOCH, Calif. – Sept. 10, 2012 – Looking for some good entertainment? Just watch Tim Kaeding.
In perhaps the pass of the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series season, Kaeding slid championship points leader Donny Schatz in turn four on the final lap to earn his fourth Outlaws win of the season on Monday at Antioch Speedway. The packed grandstands erupted for the San Jose native, who reciprocated the affection.
He egged them on by popping a wheelie down the frontstretch after taking the checkered flag. And if his last-lap pass and wheelie weren’t enough, Kaeding was as entertaining in his postrace interview.
“Truthfully, it was a slide for life,” Kaeding said. “I was either going to wear me out, him out or both of us at the same time. It was no holds barred, short track racing. This is what I love about it. It’s always fun and exciting, especially for the fans.”
While Kaeding crossed the finish line first, fellow Californian Jonathan Allard had the car to beat. After a red flag on the opening lap for a four-car pileup in turn one, Allard powered to the lead on the start with Schatz, who started on the pole, a close second.
The duo entered traffic on lap five and while Allard never pulled away, he maintained a couple of car lengths on Schatz until a caution with 10 laps remaining for Kenny Allen stopping on the frontstretch. Things continued to heat up on the restart as Rico Abreu hit the wall in turn four, tipped on his side and somehow managed to keep going as the red flag waved.
Once the race resumed, Allard again entered traffic on lap 27 and held a sizeable advantage as he was coming to the white flag when Craig Dollansky spun out in turn two. That forced a green-white-checkered finish, which turned out to be wild.
Allard, who chose the outside on the double-file restart, spun his tires and Schatz rocketed to the lead. Kaeding was in tow and slid by Allard entering turn one.
“I thought we had it,” Allard said. “I knew the restart would be tough because the track was starting to go away. I tried to pick the right lane.
“I started to actually roll the throttle on and it got a bit tight. (I) tried to drive back around them and it spun the tire and (Schatz) took off.”
Kaeding dove to the inside in turn three, but was unable to make a move on Schatz as they took the white flag. Kaeding followed Schatz around the high side exiting turn two and as Schatz ran the cushion in turn three, Kaeding dove to the bottom and executed a perfect slide job as they raced through turn four.
Kaeding slammed against the cushion and he drove across the track to edge Schatz by a little more than two tenths of a second.
“We KOed the curb and I drove straight down the race track so nobody could get back by me,” Kaeding said.
Schatz, who recorded his seventh straight top-five finish, said he was surprised by the slide job.
“I just overdrove the car,” he said. “TK got a big run and slid me going into (turn) three and surprised me. I just made a couple of mistakes there at the end. Just me overdriving the car.”
Allard finished third and to make matters worse, he flipped in turn four on the cool-down lap.
“They said green-white-checkered on the thing, but I didn’t really know what the lap count was,” he said. “I saw Tim run it down the straightaway and I thought, ‘Well, maybe there’s something going on.’ I ran it down in there and just lost control. So just a bad move on my part.”
Cody Darrah placed fourth and Lucas Wolfe ended fifth. Sammy Swindell was sixth, Kerry Madsen seventh, Joey Saldana eighth and Steve Kinser earned the KSE Hard Charger Award after driving from 17th to ninth. Kraig Kinser rounded out the top 10.
Qualifying – 1. 1-Sammy Swindell, 11.594; 2. 83-Tim Kaeding, 11.669; 3. 4-Cody Darrah, 11.683; 4. 5W-Lucas Wolfe, 11.689; 5. O-Jonathan Allard, 11.733; 6. 9-Joey Saldana, 11.770; 7. 15-Donny Schatz, 11.806; 8. 11K-Kraig Kinser, 11.824; 9. 19-Tyler Wolf, 11.844; 10. 18H-Jac Haudenschild, 11.879; 11. OO-Jason Statler, 11.903; 12. 29-Kerry Madsen, 11.906; 13. 63-Chad Kemenah, 11.910; 14. 7-Craig Dollansky, 11.931; 15. 83JR-Kyle Hirst, 11.937; 16. 7K-Kenny Allen, 11.986; 17. 19B-Bud Kaeding, 11.987; 18. 11-Steve Kinser, 12.004; 19. 7S-Jason Sides, 12.120; 20. 89-Rico Abreu, 12.129; 21. 21-Tommy Tarlton, 12.142; 22. 18-Travis Jacobson, 12.346; 23. 6-Bill Rose, 12.383; 24. 6UP-Danielle Simpson, 12.492; 25. A19-Art McCarthy, 12.628; 26. 52-Dusty Green, 12.906; 27. 6C-Chase Wood, 13.261.
Heat 1 – (8 Laps – Top 6 finishers transfer to the A-feature) – 1. 15-Donny Schatz [2]; 2. 18H-Jac Haudenschild [1]; 3. 1-Sammy Swindell [4]; 4. 5W-Lucas Wolfe [3]; 5. 63-Chad Kemenah [5]; 6. 18-Travis Jacobson [8]; 7. 7K-Kenny Allen [6]; 8. 7S-Jason Sides [7].
Heat 2 – (8 Laps – Top 6 finishers transfer to the A-feature) – 1. 11K-Kraig Kinser [2]; 2. OO-Jason Statler [1]; 3. 83-Tim Kaeding [4]; 4. O-Jonathan Allard [3]; 5. 6-Bill Rose [8]; 6. 7-Craig Dollansky [5]; 7. 89-Rico Abreu [7]; 8. 19B-Bud Kaeding [6]; 9. 52-Dusty Green [9].
Heat 3 – (8 Laps – Top 6 finishers transfer to the A-feature) – 1. 4-Cody Darrah [4]; 2. 19-Tyler Wolf [2]; 3. 29-Kerry Madsen [1]; 4. 9-Joey Saldana [3]; 5. 83JR-Kyle Hirst [5]; 6. 11-Steve Kinser [6]; 7. 6UP-Danielle Simpson [8]; 8. 21-Tommy Tarlton [7]; 9. 6C-Chase Wood [9].
Dash – (6 Laps, finishing order determined first 10 starting positions of A-feature) – 1. 15-Donny Schatz [1]; 2. O-Jonathan Allard [2]; 3. 5W-Lucas Wolfe [3]; 4. 83-Tim Kaeding [5]; 5. 4-Cody Darrah [4]; 6. 1-Sammy Swindell [6]; 7. 19-Tyler Wolf [8]; 8. 11K-Kraig Kinser [7]; 9. 18H-Jac Haudenschild [9]; 10. OO-Jason Statler [10].
B-Main – (10 Laps – Top 6 finishers transfer to the A-feature) – 1. 19B-Bud Kaeding [2] [-]; 2. 89-Rico Abreu [4] [-]; 3. 7S-Jason Sides [3] [-]; 4. 21-Tommy Tarlton [5] [-]; 5. 7K-Kenny Allen [1] [-]; 6. A19-Art McCarthy [7] [-]; 7. 6C-Chase Wood [9] [$200]; 8. 52-Dusty Green [8] [$180]; 9. 6UP-Danielle Simpson [6] [$175].
A-Main – (30 Laps) – 1. 83-Tim Kaeding [4] [$10,000]; 2. 15-Donny Schatz [1] [$5,500]; 3. O-Jonathan Allard [2] [$3,200]; 4. 4-Cody Darrah [5] [$2,800]; 5. 5W-Lucas Wolfe [3] [$2,500]; 6. 1-Sammy Swindell [6] [$2,300]; 7. 29-Kerry Madsen [12] [$2,200]; 8. 9-Joey Saldana [11] [$2,100]; 9. 11-Steve Kinser [17] [$2,050]; 10. 11K-Kraig Kinser [8] [$2,000]; 11. 18H-Jac Haudenschild [9] [$1,500]; 12. 89-Rico Abreu [19] [$1,200]; 13. 7-Craig Dollansky [14] [$1,100]; 14. 21-Tommy Tarlton [20] [$1,050]; 15. OO-Jason Statler [10] [$1,000]; 16. 19-Tyler Wolf [7] [$900]; 17. 7K-Kenny Allen [23] [$800]; 18. 18-Travis Jacobson [21] [$800]; 19. A19-Art McCarthy [24] [$800]; 20. 83JR-Kyle Hirst [15] [$800]; 21. 7S-Jason Sides [18] [$800]; 22. 6-Bill Rose [22] [$800]; 23. 63-Chad Kemenah [13] [$800]; 24. 19B-Bud Kaeding [16] [$800]. Lap Leaders: Jonathan Allard 1-28, Donny Schatz 29, Tim Kaeding 30. KSE Hard Charger Award: 11-Steve Kinser [+8].
World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series Top 20 Championship Standings
World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series Top 20 Championship Standings
| Pos. | Driver |
Total |
Diff |
Wins |
T5 |
T10 |
QT |
| 1 | Donny Schatz |
8356 |
0 |
9 |
31 |
51 |
3 |
| 2 | Craig Dollansky |
8284 |
-72 |
7 |
31 |
46 |
8 |
| 3 | Sammy Swindell |
8271 |
-85 |
11 |
28 |
42 |
14 |
| 4 | Joey Saldana |
8236 |
-120 |
5 |
22 |
47 |
9 |
| 5 | Steve Kinser |
8175 |
-181 |
3 |
24 |
43 |
0 |
| 6 | Kraig Kinser |
7966 |
-390 |
4 |
18 |
38 |
5 |
| 7 | Cody Darrah |
7770 |
-586 |
1 |
19 |
32 |
2 |
| 8 | Kerry Madsen |
7732 |
-624 |
5 |
13 |
33 |
1 |
| 9 | Chad Kemenah |
7553 |
-803 |
2 |
9 |
28 |
2 |
| 10 | Lucas Wolfe |
7348 |
-1008 |
1 |
8 |
22 |
1 |
| 11 | Bill Rose |
6691 |
-1665 |
0 |
0 |
10 |
0 |
| 12 | Jason Sides |
5212 |
-3144 |
0 |
15 |
25 |
1 |
| 13 | Tim Kaeding |
3524 |
-4832 |
4 |
10 |
17 |
0 |
| 14 | Jac Haudenschild |
3469 |
-4887 |
0 |
2 |
8 |
0 |
| 15 | Daryn Pittman |
2537 |
-5819 |
0 |
6 |
13 |
1 |
| 16 | Sam Hafertepe Jr. |
2454 |
-5902 |
0 |
3 |
7 |
0 |
| 17 | Danny Lasoski |
2431 |
-5925 |
1 |
5 |
8 |
0 |
| 18 | David Gravel |
2385 |
-5971 |
0 |
7 |
9 |
4 |
| 19 | Paul McMahan |
2296 |
-6060 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
0 |
| 20 | Stevie Smith |
2276 |
-6080 |
0 |
3 |
11 |
1 |
