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Matty’s Picks 2012 – Vol. 21 – Michigan International Speedway – Pure Michigan 400 – August 19, 2012

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The summer tour continues this week in the rolling hills of Michigan for the 43rd Annual Pure Michigan 400. The new racing surface at Michigan International Speedway, produced speeds upwards of 210 mph and sent Goodyear’s engineers back to the drawing board. NASCAR was forced to circle the wagons and have a fleet of new Goodyear tires caravanned up to MIS from Charlotte as a result of the blistering speeds. The tires held up and the race at MIS nine weeks ago turned out to be a far cry from the traditional strung out boring-ness that races at Michigan tended to produce.

Drivers are loving the new surface at Michigan, and with a two-groove racing surface coming into play this weekend, side-by-side racing is surely on the menu this week.

Watkins Glen Recap

It was a wild one last week at Watkins Glen, but in the end I was proved wrong by the recent ‘Master of The Glen’, Marcos Ambrose.

I went out on a limb last week and said it would not be one of the two ‘Road Course Specialists’ in Victory Lane last week, and had that statement shoved in my face on the final lap of the Finger Lakes 355 at The Glen. My Winner Pick, Brad Kesolowski fought hard all day last week and fell victim to the bold driving of Marcos Ambrose on the final lap last week.

The oil down on the track at the conclusion of the race on Sunday was the main story.

“Well the 18, (who was leading the race at the start of the final lap) was oil. Look like he had something wrong there and had the whole track slick as hell. You couldn’t drive it; it was undriveable…Then it came down to just running a whole lap against Marcos. I got in the oil and we’d slip up. He’d get by me and then he’d get in the oil and I’d get by him. Just really good, hard racing; some beating and banging. I think its the way racing should be.” Brad Keselowski said about the situation.

My Dark Horse pick last week considers Watkins Glen International to be one of his ‘Hometown Tracks’. The Mayetta, NJ native started ninth and finished tenth in Sunday’s 90-lap NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Watkins Glen International. Quickly climbing through the top-10, Martin Truex Jr. made his way all the way up to third by lap 27. A mid-race mishap for the No. 56 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota (an empty fuel tank), put the kibosh on Truex’s bid for the victory at the 2.45-mile road course.

Truex commented after the race “We dodged a big bullet there with a 10th-place finish. We had a good car. The NAPA Toyota was fast. We were running third and one lap from pitting and we ran out of gas and the caution came out. So, when we pitted we had to go to the tail end of the longest line and I think there were only 25 laps to go and we were in the tail end of the longest line. We had to pass a lot of cars to get back to 10th.”

Michigan Picks

I’m very glad I’m finishing this week’s column today rather than yesterday. With the drama of NASCAR Sprint Cup Series practice this morning, my picks would have been far different had I written my column yesterday, rather than today.

Winner Pick

Dale Jr. was the guy I was looking at for the win before this morning’s practice session, but with Jr. forced to a backup car following a spin in practice, it would be a true underdog victory tomorrow afternoon for the No. 88 team. To make things worse for the Steve Latarte and Dale Jr., the wreck happened with less than ten minutes remaining in Final Practice, leaving no time for adjustments to the Hendrick Motorsports backup car.

With the Dale Jr. drama unfolding this morning, I have no choice but to turn to a guy with two wins under his belt at Michigan International Speedway. He’s currently second in points, and has just one win this season. He’s had an up and down last few weeks, and needs a win for seeding purposes for this year’s Chase for the Sprint Cup. Greg Biffle was fastest in each of the two final practice sessions this weekend at MIS, and has a great looking car for tomorrow’s Pure Michigan 400.

Dark Horse Pick

Reagan Smith is riding a great looking Furniture Row/Farm American Chevrolet this week into Michigan, and is coming off back-to-back top tens at the two tracks closest to his hometown of Cato, NY. Michigan International Speedway has not been the kindest of racetracks for Reagan Smith, but that’s not to say he can not change that this week. He boasts a best finish of thirteenth at the two-miler, but was shown eighth fastest on the speed charts this morning in Final Practice. Smith will start the Pure Michigan 400 from the eighteenth starting spot, so he’s got some work to do on Sunday to leave Michigan with a solid finish.

That’s all for this week, so until next time….You Stay Classy NASCAR NATION!

Piquet Jr. wins his first Camping World Truck Series race at Michigan

By
SM Staff
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[media-credit name=”Dan Sanger” align=”alignright” width=”241″][/media-credit]Brooklyn, Mich. – Nelson Piquet Jr. won the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) race at Michigan International Speedway on Saturday.  Piquet Jr. stretched his fuel mileage to 48 laps in route to his first NCWTS victory in 42 career starts.

“It’s finally an amazing moment that I made it in the Truck Series.  I think if we were second or third in the championship, I would have been more concerned. But I said, ‘Let’s just go for it,’ and we went for the win.” Piquet Jr. said.

Piquet Jr. is the tenth different winner in the last 10 races for the NCWTS.

Jason White finished second, Dakoda Armstrong third, Parker Kligerman fourth and James Buescher finished fifth.

“Really worked out with good strategy there.  We were having problems in the pits today.  I did mess up and then the guys kind of messed up a little bit, but to come back and get that good finish it was awesome.” Armstrong said.

Kurt Busch led a race-high 57 laps (of 100) and finished ninth in his first NCWTS start since 2001.

“It was fun to get back in the trucks.  I really enjoyed myself out there and wanted to do a good job for Kyle and I think we got that done as far as evaluating our program, his program.  I say, ‘Ours,’ because we’re brothers and its fun to do this together.” Busch said.

Todd Bodine lost control of his No.11 truck and crashing the rear end of the truck into the outside wall, ending his day.

“I don’t know what happened on the first deal.  I don’t know who pushed up into me or whatever.  The aerodynamics on these trucks are so sensitive that you get really aero-pushy and real aero-loose.  Got into the corner, probably got aero-tight and pushed into me.  It happens.” Bodine said

Unofficial Race Results
VFW 200, Michigan Int’l Speedway
http://www.speedwaymedia.com/truckseries/race.php?race=12
=========================================
Pos. St. No. Driver Make Points
=========================================
1 2 30 Nelson Piquet Jr. Chevrolet 47
2 12 23 Jason White Ford 42
3 20 98 Dakoda Armstrong * Toyota 41
4 11 7 Parker Kligerman Toyota 41
5 8 31 James Buescher Chevrolet 40
6 5 3 Ty Dillon * Chevrolet 39
7 1 22 Joey Coulter Chevrolet 37
8 10 29 Brad Keselowski Ram 0
9 4 18 Kurt Busch Toyota 0
10 3 32 Miguel Paludo Chevrolet 34
11 6 13 Johnny Sauter Toyota 33
12 14 6 Justin Lofton Chevrolet 32
13 9 17 Timothy Peters Toyota 31
14 23 99 Bryan Silas * Ford 30
15 25 39 Ryan Sieg Chevrolet 29
16 13 88 Matt Crafton Toyota 28
17 22 9 Ron Hornaday Chevrolet 27
18 21 8 Ross Chastain * Toyota 26
19 18 214 Brennan Newberry Chevrolet 25
20 17 33 Cale Gale * Chevrolet 24
21 7 2 Tim George Jr. Chevrolet 23
22 29 10 Jennifer Jo Cobb Ram 22
23 34 57 Norm Benning Chevrolet 21
24 15 11 Todd Bodine Toyota 21
25 16 9 John Wes Townley * Toyota 19
26 26 7 Johnny Chapman Toyota 18
27 32 27 Brandon Knupp Chevrolet 17
28 31 174 Mike Harmon Chevrolet 0
29 24 84 Chris Fontaine Chevrolet 15
30 30 225 Stephen Leicht Chevrolet 0
31 28 93 Dennis Setzer Chevrolet 13
32 19 5 Scott Riggs Ford 0
33 27 38 Chris Jones Chevrolet 11
34 35 175 Josh Wise Chevrolet 0
35 33 0 T.J. Bell Ford 0

SRT Motorsports – Camping World Truck Series Post Race Quotes – Michigan

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Toyota NCWTS Michigan Post-Race Notes & Quotes

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CHEVY NSCS AT MICHIGAN TWO: Jimmie Johnson Practice Quote

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SRT Motorsports – Sprint Cup Keys For Success – Michigan

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Interview with Justin Lofton, driver of the NCWTS No.6 Chevrolet

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SM Staff
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[media-credit name=”Photo Credit: Tammyrae Benscoter” align=”alignright” width=”225″][/media-credit]Justin Lofton, driver of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) No.6 Chevrolet currently sits fourth in the series standings with one win, four top-5 and nine top-10 finishes, gave me the opportunity to talk to him and ask a couple of questions.

1. How did you get into NASCAR?

“Honestly, how it all started was in Baja California, I met the gentlemen of Dave Smith of Colorado Springs and he encouraged me to drive race cars a career. He had some connections in the east coast. He was good friends with Jack Roush so he just guided me thru going all the steps from going from the dessert to the pavement, racing late models in Irwindale, next into the Nascar Grand Am West Series which is the K&N Pro Series West and then just introduced me to influencing people along the way to help me in my career.”

2. So then you went into the ARCA Series? How was the Challenge of that series?

“It was really fun. We won about the 4th time we ran. When I was running in the dessert, we were running in a high horsepower car that we could use at the time. When we went into the K&N Pro series we were limited on the amount of horsepower so to get back in the car that had a lot of horse power and I could go full throttle into the corner, it was a really big relief. We had a lot of success off the bat. Then in 09 we had a lot of success in that season and my team was behind me and I had a great owner.”

3. You went on to win the championship that year. What did that feel like?

“You know that was really cool. The sacrifice you take on life and the family takes on helping you that is the big thing. I don’t think that is projected enough in this sport is the family sacrifice and the family support that every driver and every team has behind them. There was a deal to accomplish at the end of 2008 that me, my dad and my owner, Eddie Sharp, sat down and said our goal this year is to win the championship and we basically handpicked the guys that were recently released from Ganassi racing, brought them over and there mindset was the exact same thing. They want to win a championship, so to be able to set a goal and accomplish it with all my family around is one of the most amazing feelings in the world.”

4. So after the ARCA series, you moved up to the Truck Series, what was that like?

“Towards the end of the 09 season, I moved from ESR to Red horse racing to debut in the trucks and I spent 2010 with them.”

5. So you spent 2010 with them and you had a good season but not the best, how did you keep up the momentum and what was the mind set for the following year?

“Throughout the 2010 season, we were making progress thru the year which was a good thing but we started out Daytona very rough and barely made turn 3 before wrecking. Some crashes were not my fault, you just got caught up in it. It was just rough thru the first half of the season and there was a doubt in my mind that was not where we wanted to be or I wanted to be. So then I jumped into a Nationwide Car, a couple of times throughout the 2010 year, and I was really fast but didn’t have the finishes, that we should of gotten but for different circumstances but we didn’t. I showed that I could do it and it kept me alive in the truck series. We brought on Terry Cook to be my spotter and we just progressed really well. We knew that winning a race would be nice but that just was not realistic for us. So we were just showing progress and at the end of the season, a few teams were interested in me and that when I joined Germain racing for the 2011 season. It was unfortunate because we just didn’t have the sponsorship and the money and that was when we rejoined Eddie Sharp Racing last year in Kentucky.”

6. And Wow! What a statement you made with them this year! You got your first win this year in Charlotte!

“That was really cool! It was great to have the success we were having and it felt like we were just rejoining from the ARCA series. We had some decent equipment  but we decided to buy some Kevin Harvick Incorporated and we switched to Chevy and that was when we starting getting really good. We were just so fast off the truck at Daytona and finished 3rd and we actually had a chance to race for the win was awesome. You know it has been a difficult road. We have been living the high life last couple months for sure and want to continue to do that.”

7. You are 18 points out of the lead from Timothy Peters in the Camping World Truck Series, What do you need to do to get back up there?

“We need to be consistent. We need to have good finishes and when we are having a tough time, we just need to try and get the best we can do. Our Morale is very high on this team so we just need to keep it up. We have the confidence and the tools and just need to use them correctly. We just need to keep doing what we did at the beginning of the season which is having fun and going out and trying to win races.”

8. There have been rumors that the truck series may add one or two races, which races tracks would you like to see?

“We have to have a road course for the Trucks! I would like the Glen, Road America is fun, Montreal would be fun but if I had to choose to go BACK to one, it would be Darlington but that is if we have to go back. I would want them to add some Road Courses though.”

 

Thank you Justin for letting me interview you!

Five Things to Watch For in Michigan and Montreal

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SM Staff
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[media-credit name=”Wesley Hitt/Getty Images for NASCAR” align=”alignright” width=”225″][/media-credit]With the Camping World Truck Series and Sprint Cup Series heading to the 2 mile Michigan International Speedway and the Nationwide Series at the road course of Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal, there are many headlines to watch as the championship picture is becoming more and more relevant each weekend.

The following is a list of five things to look for as NASCAR heads to Michigan and Montreal:

Tires:

After a tire concern in June when NASCAR changed the tire combination mid-weekend at Michigan and added an additional practice session for the Sprint Cup Series, Goodyear is more prepared with a slightly different tire compound this weekend.

After a tire confirmation test just weeks ago, many drivers, team members and even Goodyear have expressed pleasure and satisfaction with the tire selection for this weekend.

Still, with the freshly-paved surface and cool temperatures forecasted for this weekend, the speeds will be extremely high, testing the drivers, setups and tires.

Jacques Villeneuve is back:

The last time Jacques Villeneuve participated in a NASCAR Nationwide Series race, he did not please many people. Most notably, the part time driver was involved in an incident at Road America that spun Danica Patrick, angering her and crew chief Tony Eury Jr. With that moment receiving much attention, this has not been the only occurrence for the driver – he has been involved in these types of happenings for a few years.

With Villeneuve back in his home race this weekend with a Penske Racing ride, many will be watching to see if he will continue to anger more drivers this weekend – or if someone repays the favor.

When Jacques Villeneuve is in the running, anything can happen.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. returns to Michigan:

After winning the June race, Dale Earnhardt Jr. will return to the Michigan International Speedway after two consecutive rough races for the driver – finishing off the lead lap in both Pocono (32nd) and Watkins Glen (28th).

With Earnhardt falling to fourth in the points from the top position and critics questioning the true strength of the 88 car, perhaps this will be the team’s true test this weekend. After winning the June race by a huge gap and after leading the most laps of any driver in the event, it would make many think NASCAR’s most popular driver has an advantage going into this weekend.

However, with a new tire compound and perhaps less grip in the track which may have aged some through the summer months, competition could have changed just enough to hurt Earnhardt.

Wild Card and Chase clinch scenarios:

With the Chase for the Sprint Cup nearing – just four races away – the wild card race has become very important and very complex.

With multiple drivers eligible for the two coveted positions to get into NASCAR’s playoff system, it will be an intense battle all the way to the final regular season race in Richmond to decide the lineup for the final ten races.

With this race to the Chase being a highly covered one, the drivers atop of the championship standings also find themselves in a position to lock into the playoff system.

With drivers creating a large gap in the win and point column ahead of top ten outsiders, the possibility of locking into the Chase is looming for the Michigan weekend.

The drivers of Jimmie Johnson, Greg Biffle, Matt Kenseth, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Brad Keselowski all have an opportunity to lock themselves into the Chase, either by points or by wins. While some of these drivers have a better shot than others, this will certainly be something to keep an eye on in the Irish Hills of Michigan.

Silly Season:

While it may not have much to do with the on track performance this weekend, Silly Season is in full swing and the next domino could fall at any time.

With many drivers in the rumor mill of where they will end up for the 2013 season and beyond, the garage talk will be hefty this weekend.

What the next storyline or rumor will be is unknown, but during the Michigan weekend, there is potential for some answers – or more questions – about 2013.

CHEVY NSCS AT MICHIGAN TWO: Jimmie Johnson Post Qualifying Press Conf. Transcript

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SRT Motorsports – Sprint Cup Post-Qualifying Quotes – Michigan

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