Hot 20 over the past 10 – Daytona should be hot, but what about Newman, Martin & Montoya?
With ten races to go before the Chase invites get handed out, there are some who just need to keep on doing what they are doing. It is no mistake that Carl Edwards and Kevin Harvick currently lead the parade. Then there are the boys who seem to be heating up at just the right time, with Clint Bowyer and Denny Hamlin are among them. Joey Logano and Marcos Ambrose might still be outside the Top 20, but those two boys also are making noise as of late, providing an argument that maybe we should not count them out just yet.
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[/media-credit]While we expect it to be hot at Daytona this weekend, some of our favorites are starting to chill, and not in a good way. Kyle Busch seems to have put the disappointments of Talladega and Charlotte behind him, but Dale Earnhardt Jr could have done without getting caught up in someone else’s mess last Sunday to finish 41st. Coming after a 21st place conclusion to Michigan, Junior needs some good fortune to come his way. Daytona is one place he might expect that.
Forget Earnhardt’s troubles, as it is Ryan Newman who is a top ten guy heading down the rabbit hole. He might have three Top Tens in his past ten, but five times he has been outside the Top 20. Mark Martin is 14th in the official standings, but lately he has averaging 17th. You need consistency or wins to make the Chase, and the 52 year old has not been accused of either this campaign.
Hey, it could be worse…unless your name is Juan Pablo Montoya. In more than half of the last ten events, the Columbian has finished in the back half of the pack. You can say he was consistent by finishing 22nd in California, but I’m sure that is not exactly the kind of result they were looking for.
The boys begin the ten race countdown to the Chase this Saturday night in Daytona.
Over the past 10 events…
Pos – (Official Pos) – Driver – Pts-(W-T5-T10)
1. (1) Carl Edwards – 359 pts – (0-6-8)
We might have an idea as to why he leads the standings.
2. (2) Kevin Harvick – 344 pts – (1-3-5)
Forget a dress like Prince William’s wife wears. I’m getting my wife a firesuit!
3. (8) Clint Bowyer – 338 pts – (0-3-6)
Heating up at about the right time.
4. (4) Kurt Busch – 334 pts – (1-3-5)
Started turning right and left the rest behind at Sonoma.
5. (3) Jimmie Johnson – 333 pts – (1-2-7)
Six straight; why not?
6. (6) Matt Kenseth – 326 pts – (2-3-5)
If you can forget about Daytona, Talladega, Richmond, and Darlington, he’s been great
7. (11) Denny Hamlin – 318 pts – (1-3-5)
I’m starting to see that whining equates into winning
8. (5) Kyle Busch – 317 pts – (1-4-4)
See above.
9. (9) Jeff Gordon – 310 pts – (1-4-4)
Half dozen Top Fives keeps him in the hunt.
10. (7) Dale Earnhardt Jr – 309 pts – (0-2-5)
Sometimes Lady Luck is with you, sometimes she aint no lady at all.
11. (13) Greg Biffle – 304 pts – (0-1-4)
Still in the running with just a single Top Five to his credit this season.
12. (12) Tony Stewart – 280 pts – (0-0-4)
It all started when Vickers got even.
13. (23) Joey Logano – 274 pts – (0-1-3)
Needs his next ten to be even better than his last ten.
14. (21) Marcos Ambrose – 272 pts – (0-2-4)
See above.
15. (10) Ryan Newman – 272 pts – (0-1-3)
Officially 10th, unofficially sinking like a stone.
16. (22) Brad Keselowski – 266 pts – (1-2-3)
3rd at Darlington, 1st at Kansas, 10th at Sonoma…and not much else.
17. (15) A.J. Allmendinger – 265 pts – (0-1-2)
Not quite ready for prime-time just yet, but it is coming.
18. (20) David Ragan – 263 pts – (0-2-3)
They might love logistics, but can’t be fond of where they sit here.
19. (14) Mark Martin – 262 pts – (0-1-3)
With time running out, this would be the time to go, daddy!
20. (18) Martin Truex Jr – 261 pts – (0-0-4)
He can be beaten, and on Sunday was beaten upon often.
21. (17) Paul Menard – 259 pts – (0-2-2)
Having his best season ever, but that’s not saying much.
22. (19) Kasey Kahne – 248 pts – (0-0-2)
11 wins with the AllState girls, none without. I’m just sayin’…
26. (16) Juan Pablo Montoya – 231 pts – (0-0-1)
Thornton can shove this ranking system between his nalgas.
Predicting A Winner At Daytona Takes More Luck Than Ever
This past February, all of we NASCAR fans were treated to the biggest surprise that the sport as a whole as ever seen as Trevor Bayne won the Daytona 500 in his first attempt and his second start overall tying Jamie McMurray for that feat when he won UAW-GM Quality 500 in 2002.
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[/media-credit]As we come to the Coke Zero 400, what are some things we need to look out for and what are some things that we shouldn’t look out for? Well, #1 would be Michael Waltrip because he isn’t racing this weekend. That will bring a sigh of relief to many drivers as he caused two wrecks that day including the one that took out most of the top contenders. 2. A person who usually wins a lot. This race will come down to the wire and you never know who will win until that one car crosses the finish line. Sure, Johnson won at Talladega, but that was just luck.
Another thing we used to see at just Talladega and now appears in both is hanging out in the back until a certain amount of laps to go. Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson are pretty notorious for doing so and in 2007 they got the job done at Talladega. However; you can’t lose your draft partner otherwise it’s going to be a long night for many Sprint Cup Series drivers.
I know that I talked about surprises, but I’ll have to pick the driver who has the most momentum coming into Daytona. It is a toss up between Jeff Gordon and Kurt Busch, but I have to go with the 24. Reason? He’s actually won a plate race and Busch hasn’t yet, but who knows! Busch may surprise me, but it takes experience and strategy to win this race! Who are you guys picking? Comment below!
NASCAR K&N: NASCAR Penalizes No. 20 Team 100 Points For Rules Violation At Infineon; Once Again Don’t Blame The Driver
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[/media-credit]The last thing the defending champion in NASCAR’s K&N Pro Series West division needed to hear on Tuesday from NASCAR, was that he was being penalized for a rules violation which occurred during a post-race inspection on June 25 at Infineon Raceway.
Eric Holmes, who drives the No. 20 Napa Auto Parts sponsored Toyota for Bill McAnally racing, was docked 100 championship points after his car was found to be in violation of Sections 12-1 (actions detrimental to stock car racing); 12-4-I (car, car parts, components and/or equipment used do not conform to NASCAR rules); and 20C-5.10.1A.
Car owner Bill McAnally was also penalized 100 championship owner points, as was his crew chief Duane Knorr, who was fined $5,000; suspended from NASCAR until the fine is paid; placed on NASCAR probation for the next two (2) NASCAR K&N Pro Series West events; and placed on NASCAR probation until July 13, 2011.
When I first heard the news that he and his team were penalized for an illegal carburetor, (Carburetor Eligibility: The carburetor must remain as supplied by the NASCAR-approved supplier – Unapproved carburetor modification to the carburetor main body) of the 2011 NASCAR rule book. I sat back and thought about each and every driver who has ever found themselves in this same predicament, all the way from the Whelan to NASCAR top-four touring series.
To many times whenever a team is penalized for a rules violation, the fans are quick to put the blame on the driver with some outlandish and abusive insults as if he was the one who put the car together. NASCAR as we know is a sport that goes through many rule changes, and when you look at each everyone it’s amazing how a crew chief or team owner can ever keep up with all of them. Mistakes can be made during the set-up of a car, and just like life itself there is such a thing as human error.
Now for the record I am not trying to defend or make a case about what happened with Holmes car during the construction phase, but just trying to shed some light on what the driver has to face come the next race date. The penalties couldn’t have come at worse time for Holmes and the No. 20 Napa team, especially when you take into consideration that Holmes has always been a good ambassador for the sport, and at the same time earning the respect from his fellow competitors and fans for his sportsmanship and demeanor around the venue on race day.
With the amount of points taken away, the violation is consistent with what is given out in these situations in the NASCAR Touring Series, which will make it harder for Holmes to repeat as the defending champion of the series. Unlike the 2008 season when the Escalon, California native had already won three races in his first six starts, along with leading the point standings and eventually winning his first of three West series championship.
Holmes found his team struggling early on this season with only one top-five, while leading a total of 22 laps which is below his career average, and is not the path to follow if he expected to become a back-to-back champion in NASCAR’s lower tier touring series.
Heading to Toyota Speedway at Irwindale for this weekend’s race, Holmes will still be one the pre-race favorites to win the So. Toyota Dealers 200 despite being 358 markers behind point’s leader Greg Pursley because of the penalty. The team has also decided not to appeal the penalty, but instead wants to put this behind them and focus on the remainder of the season.
