NASCAR Top-10 Power Rankings: Talladega
Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.
1. Carl Edwards: Edwards paired up with Roush Fenway teammate Greg Biffle late at Talladega, and led with two laps to go before finishing sixth following a chaotic shuffling on the final lap. Edwards maintained the lead in the Sprint Cup point standings, and leads Jimmie Johnson by five.
“With five laps to go,” Edwards said, “there were eight drivers with a chance to win the race. Eight, if you count Dave Blaney. I found it interesting that I started the race beside Brad Keselowski and finished it beside the concrete wall. That’s called running a race between a hard head and a hard place.”
2. Jimmie Johnson: Benefitting from a race-winning push from Hendrick Motorsports teammate Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Johnson won the Aaron’s, nipping Clint Bowyer by .002 in a stirring finish at Talladega. Johnson’s first win of the year moved him up to second in the Sprint Cup point standings, where he trails Carl Edwards by only five.
“Obviously,” Johnson said, “I couldn’t have done it without Earnhardt’s help. They say Earnhardt is NASCAR’s most popular driver. He just became Jimmie Johnson’s most popular driver as well. I guess this is what happens when ‘push comes to love.’
“I’m just glad I was able to lead the Hendrick charge. There may only be room for one driver on my bumper, but there’s room for three on my coattails.”
3. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Earnhardt finished fourth in the Aaron’s 499, sacrificing a chance for the win to push teammate Jimmie Johnson to a dramatic victory. In the tandem racing prevalent at Talladega, Johnson was faster in front with Earnhardt pushing. After the race, a grateful Johnson presented Earnhardt with the checkered flag.
“I can’t thank Jimmie enough for the flag,” Earnhardt said. “Actually, I think once is enough. I’m honored, but not winning at the track at which I’m most capable of winning is something I’d like to put behind me. Thus, the flag becomes my ‘checkered past.’
“You’ve got to hand it to Jimmie, though. He’s a very shrewd racer. It was quite clever of him to say he was slower in the back. Of course he’s slower; he’s behind me. But I bought it, and now I have to live with it. I guess I’ll now be categorized as the ‘consummate’ teammate. ‘Consummate’ would be the operative word, because I believe I got screwed.”
4. Kevin Harvick: Harvick nearly pushed Richard Childress teammate Clint Bowyer to the win at Talladega, as Bowyer lost to Jimmie Johnson by .002 in a photo finish at the line. Harvick finished fourth, collecting his fourth top-5 result of the year, and leaped five places in the point standings to fourth.
“One day I’m stocking grocery stores with Budweiser,” Harvick said. “The next, I’m thriving in the role of dedicated teammate, and using the No. 29 Budweiser Chevy to push Clint Bowyer to a near-win at Talladega. In both cases, you could say I ‘shelved’ Budweiser for the sake of others.”
5. Kyle Busch: Busch saw his Talladega hopes dashed when Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Joey Logano nudged Busch’s No. 18 M&M’s Pretzel Toyota on lap 140, sending Busch into Matt Kenseth’s No. 17. Busch finished 35th, and tumbled four spots in the Sprint Cup point standings to sixth, 38 out of first.
“In a restrictor plate race,” Busch said, “sometimes you have to learn to accept your ‘restrictor fate.’ C’est la re(strictor). Joe Gibbs Racing cars have had their engine issues this year, but at Talladega, it was Logano who was the culprit. Either way, you could say it was still Toyota’s fault.”
6. Clint Bowyer: Bowyer led the most laps at Talladega, 38, but came up just short at the end, losing to Jimmie Johnson’s No. 48 Hendrick Chevy by .002, which tied Ricky Craven’s 2003 win at Darlington for the narrowest margin of victory since the age of electronic timing. Bowyer improved two places in the point standings to tenth, 50 out of first.
“It was an exciting end to an otherwise boring race,” Bowyer said. “I think we gave the fans what they wanted. Although I didn’t win, I was the pleased the No. 33 BB&T Chevy could add a little ‘interest’ to the race.”
7. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth’s run of four-straight top-10 finishes ended at Talladega, when he was collected in a lap 139 wreck that sent him to the garage. Kenseth’s No. 17 Crown Royal Black Ford was nailed by Kyle Busch’s No. 18 Toyota after Busch was clipped by Joey Logano. Kenseth finished 36th, and fell four places in the point standings to eighth.
“Wrecks at Talladega are a lot like what Kyle Busch must experience with his teammates at Joe Gibbs Racing,” Kenseth said. “There’s no way to avoid them. And speaking of ‘unavoidable wrecks,’ my brother Kurt had quite the day at Talladega. The ‘Duke Of Hazard’ invented a new style of racing called ‘constrictor plate,’ because afterwards, everyone wanted to choke him.
“Now, lost in all of the Talladega hoopla was the story that NASCAR chairman Brian France filed a lawsuit against his ex-wife, claiming she recorded phone conversations without his consent in order to extort money from him. That’s amazing! Amazing that she thought someone would actually want to hear what Brian France has to say.”
8. Kurt Busch: Busch led 19 laps in the Aaron’s 499, but faded at the finish after losing Dave Blaney’s No. 36 car in the draft. Busch finished 18th, and remained fifth in the Sprint Cup point standings, and now trails Carl Edwards by 28.
“I started the day fifth in the point standings,” Busch said, “and ended the day in the same place. I guess the point standings are the only thing I could say I didn’t put a dent in.
“Unfortunately, I was in the middle of three major wrecks. But don’t blame me—I couldn’t see what was ahead of me. Apparently, my fans are much better at one thing that I, and that’s ‘blindly following.’”
9. Ryan Newman: Newman finished 25th in the Aaron’s 499, a result that could have been much worse had Newman not made two miraculous saves to stay in the race. On lap 171, Newman momentarily lost the draft with Denny Hamlin, but when their bumpers reconnected, Newman spun, collecting Juan Montoya’s No. 42. Newman miraculously straightened his car and kept going. Two laps later, he spun again, and kept the car out of danger. After pitting for four tires and fender repairs, he resumed in 27th. He eventually finished 25th, and remained seventh in the point standings.
“I even amazed myself,” Newman said. “Only one other thing has made me grip a steering wheel so tightly. That would be Rusty Wallace.”
10. Jeff Gordon: Gordon started on the pole at Talladega, and after riding safely at the back of the pack for most of the race, charged at the end with a continual push from his drafting partner Mark Martin. In the thrilling dash to the line, Gordon finished third behind Hendrick teammate Jimmie Johnson and Clint Bowyer.
“You could say Jimmie Johnson ‘came out of nowhere’ for the win,” Gordon said. “But it seems implausible that a five-time Sprint Cup champion could ‘come out of nowhere.’ Let’s just say he ‘came out of somewhere’ and ‘pulled it out of someplace.”
Austin Dillon Looks For Championship in Second Season of Truck Racing
After Martinsville, Austin Dillon sits seventh in points, 20 points out of the lead with one top five and two top 10s.
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[/media-credit]The season started off on the wrong note for the 20-year old with a crash at Daytona, though since then he has been climbing up through the points.
“It’s a better start for me,” he said. “I think we’re in a better situation this year in points and I feel the competition level is high in the Truck Series.”
The competition level in the Camping World Truck Series, to some fans, is better than any of the top three divisions. Dillon attributes that to the talent and teams.
“I feel there’s a wide variety of new guys that have come in with a lot of talent and you still have the veterans that know how to run these tracks and how to get it done,” he said.
One of the new talents is Dillon’s teammate Joey Coulter, who has been competiting in the ARCA Series the past couple of years.
“Joey Coulter is a great driver,” he said. “He’s done a good job this year. I feel like he’s had some bad breaks so far, but he is going to be just fine. He’s started to learn how these trucks driver and there’s still a lot to learn for him and he will learn more as we go to the mile and a halfs, tracks he hasn’t been to. It’s a learning experience, but we’ll take care of him.”
Dillon, grandson of car owner Richard Childress, has been around racing his entire life.
“You get to go to races a lot and its just a regular family,” he said of the experience in a racing family. “You look out for each other, take care of each other, and we go to the track and its just nice to have a strong family background in something that I love to do.”
The first races he remembers going to date back to his dad, Mike Dillon, racing late models.
“Probably going to all of my dad’s late model races, but first time big one was going to Dale Earnhardt’s when he won the Daytona 500,” he said. “We got to go to victory lane and do the hat dance when he won the race at Daytona. That’s the first one I really remember.”
The first time he got in the racecar was in a bandolero on a quarter mile behind Charlotte Motor Speedway.
“It was fun as it was such a challenge and I knew after that it was what I wanted to do,” he said.
As he goes forward with the rest of the year, Dillon will be a driver who will be challenging for wins at every track, though Texas and Michigan are two he’d really like to win at.
“I really like Texas and Michigan,” he said. “Both those tracks are really fun. I like Michigan – that’s just fun; it’s a really racey track. Texas because the pistols, the cowboy, and I feel like we’ve been really close in winning a race there so hopefully we’ll get one of them.”
For now, Dillon is focused on Nashville this weekend as he will compete in both the Camping World Truck Series race and the Nationwide Series race.
“Great race track,” he said. “I have ran well there in the past. Get to run a Nationwide car there for the first time. There’s a pretty cool guitar for a trophy so I wouldn’t mind taking the guitar home.”
It has been reported that Dillon will be running full-time in Nationwide next year, though he will make his first Sprint Cup start later this year.
“Its just another learning curve,” he said. “It’s awesome. I didn’t know I’d be in the Cup Series that fast. It’s going to be a lot of fun and I’m just going to have to take it day-by-day from the time that we get there.”
Away from the track, Dillon hosts his own radio show “Country Boy Radio” on High Point University’s radio from 4pm-6pm EST every Monday.
“I love it,” he said. “It’s something that I just started this year and within the first 30 minutes of the first show, I knew keep doing it and really enjoy it.”
Ready or Not Here They Come: Drivers Eager for Cup Rides Without Much Experience
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[/media-credit]When the clock was set to strike midnight on January 1, 2000 it was supposed to be the end of technology as things were to go crazy. According to Hollywood the end of the world is approaching in 2012, next year. The way young racecars drivers have been approaching their careers it appears they may have bought into those theories.
Drivers are impatient by nature and now it’s not just on the track. Impatient in making it to the top of their profession the quickest they can. With sports that’s not always a good thing, as any athlete needs time to grow and gain experience. Yet, as long as the Sprint Cup Series is on top that’s where everyone wants to be.
Kimi Raikkonen hasn’t even made his debut in the Camping World Truck Series and he has already asking about running in Nationwide and Sprint Cup races. He’s coming from the world of Formula 1 and Rally Car, has never competed in a NASCAR race before but already wants to go play with the big boys.
He’s not the only one. Joey Logano wanted to make it into NASCAR but had to wait until his 18th birthday. And while Logano also wanted to race in the NSCS he didn’t want to as quickly as he did.
The much publicized, even criticized and then closely analyzed debut of Logano at Joe Gibbs Racing is one of the better examples of what happens when drivers move or are moved too quick. Unfortunately for Logano and JGR they were put in a box when senior driver Tony Stewart announced his departure. Logano was quickly moved into the seat without a full-year of Nationwide under his belt.
It was rough sailing early for Logano but in his third year in the No. 20 the road’s becoming smoother.
Drivers like Brad Keselowski however, might have put themselves in the box. After Keselowski won the NSCS race at Talladega in the spring of 2009 he stated he wanted a Cup ride for the 2010 season. Keselowski was only in his second full season with JR Motorsports in the NNS but Roger Penske snatched Keselowski up and put him in the No. 12 and much like Logano had a rough go of it.
Whether or not they are ready, Logano and Keselowski are not the only drivers who feel they need to be in the Cup Series as fast as they can. The reason the NNS is there is for driver development, yet it can’t work if drivers don’t want to develop but in essence throw themselves to the wolves.
What’s the rush? The Cup Series will still be there next year and even the year after that.
Racing among the best in the business is no doubt intriguing and where all the fame and fortune is, except everyone will have their time. That includes Austin Dillon a full-time driver in the CWTS.
Dillon is in his second full year of truck action and has only run seven career NNS races. He though will be making his Cup debut later this year. Instant reaction of course was wondering if it was the right time. In the case of Dillon he’s only 20-years-old and as the saying goes, has all the time in the world to make it to the top. He’s young and talented and will not have to worry about team owners passing over him or sponsors not wanting to take a chance on him.
With the announcement of his debut though came the news that Dillon will most likely be running full-time in the NNS next season.
That’s more like it. Working up the ladder in what was once the ABC program (ARCA, Busch and Cup) was how drivers paid their dues and prepared themselves for the big leagues. There appears to be no such thing anymore and the only series that matters and is worth the time is Cup.
One argument could be made that the competition and racing as a whole are better when there’s a level playing field. Meaning drivers who are competing at a level they’re talent matches won’t end up being in the way. The less ‘slower traffic’ there is on the track the better.
Yet, with drivers trying to rush themselves to the top and if they wind up being not ready for it, does anyone benefit? If the sponsors and team owners are willing to take the risk however, a driver will end where they want to be maybe before their time.
If that’s what they want to do then have at it but be prepared for the risk, a risk that didn’t pan out for drivers like Sam Hornish Jr. and Patrick Carpentier to name a few. When they two came to NASCAR they went straight to Cup Series with limited Nationwide or other experience in between. Both no longer have rides and are trying to work their way back to the top.
Even drivers that didn’t come from open wheel ranks haven’t been lucky. Casey Atwood was supposed to be the next Jeff Gordon when he moved to Cup. He’s long gone. Reed Sorenson had a stint in Cup after he was moved up by Chip Ganassi and is now back in the Nationwide Series but with a different team.
It’s all about timing and the experience a driver is willing to take the time and earn. Besides, why rush to the Sprint Cup Series when the Nationwide Series have become Cup-lite?
Every weekend Cup drivers invade the lower series and steal the show, the wins and the championships. The NNS is an excellent place to start for a young driver who wants to see if they can hang with Cup stars instead of going straight to the top and biting off more then they can chew.
Because as fast as a driver moves up they can move right on out and permanently lose their chance at the big time.
