A lot went on at Pocono on Friday as the Sprint Cup cars took to the track for both of their only practice sessions. With NASCAR allowing for different gear ratios that would allow for shifting again at the uniquely shaped race track everyone would expect that to be  a hot topic, but it wasn’t the only hot topic.

[media-credit id=18 align=”alignright” width=”240″][/media-credit]First, it was not surprising that the fastest car in happy hour was Denny Hamlin followed by Brian Vickers, Carl Edwards, Brad Keselowski and Jimmie Johnson.

One hot topic that came up was the “secret fining” of Ryan Newman for reportedly hitting Juan Pablo Montoya in the NASCAR trailer during a meeting. There are denials from NASCAR and of course this leads to credibility issues when they’re not transparent. I’ll leave this to others to work on. I was not the person that was apparently lied to when NASCAR spokesperson’s were asked about fines for incidents the weekend of Darlington.

The day started out with a brief statement by Richard Childress regarding his altercation with Kyle Busch in Kansas and the subsequent heavy fine levied by NASCAR. Childress only made a statement and allowed for no questions. I hurried off to the media center because Kyle Busch was in there and frankly he was getting grilled.

Kyle was asked if he had a “respect issue” in the garage and if it has an effect on him. In part he said, “ It makes your day a little bit easier.  Makes your job a little bit easier.  I’ve been able to have good conversations and talk to people outside the race car or at driver intros or stuff  like that.  Whether it’s the case that they’re not being true to my face — I don’t know, I can’t read that.  I’m not in people’s minds.  If you’re mad at me, you’ll have to tell me.”  I thought that was a bit interesting.

When asked if he felt he was wearing the “black hat” he responded, “I’m not sure that there’s really any hats to be worn here.  The black hat deal…the villain type thing, I’m not sure that I really did a whole lot to bring that back upon myself.  I feel like I’ve acted in the utmost respect to every case that’s come up my way and has been thrown in front of me.  I’ve tried to do it with dignity and class and I feel like that comes from people wearing white hats… not black.”

So Busch feels it was a total misunderstanding and mentioned that he gave Childress’ driver a “congratulatory tap”. He went on to say,  “There was no malicious intent to be involved in hurting or damaging a RCR (Richard Childress Racing) vehicle.”

I was able to ask a few drivers about fuel mileage and whether it was as difficult as managing your tires. The answers differed somewhat and look for  a further story on that topic soon on www.speedwaymedia.com

What I really found interesting was how satisfied Dale Earnhardt Jr. is with just about everything. When he was in his press conference he was very relaxed and was even more so during the practice sessions where he was doing pretty well. I was impressed with his candor regarding being a car owner and what happened when Denny Hamlin and Brad Keselwoski had a run in at Charlotte when Keselwoski drove for Earnhardt’s JR Motorsports. Earnhardt said, “When Denny and Brad were being idiots at Charlotte that one race and banging into each other’s fenders and stuff it really upset me. I was in another car and I went up there and ran into Denny.” The good thing about that entire thing was that he had a very big smile on his face.

The weather forecast has changed a bit so hopefully we’ll get qualifying and racing in tomorrow and Sunday

[media-credit id=18 align=”alignright” width=”220″][/media-credit]This week, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series heads to the first state to list their web site URL on their state license plate.

Pocono provides high speed action, three unique turns as opposed to the traditional four, and the longest straightaway in NASCAR. Although, it has been criticized as of late from many in the racing world for not only being far too long of a race, but there has also been concerns of the overall safety of the track.

You may recall last seasons’ races at Pocono ending with a couple violent wrecks, one involving Kasey Kahne climbing the wall and obliterating several hedges on the outside of the track. The other, one of the most vicious wrecks I have witnessed with Elliot Sadler slamming the wall at the entrance of the Tunnel Turn and subsequently sending his engine flying from his ravaged race car.

I have had the pleasure of visiting Pocono International Raceway, and might I say that the folks in Long Pond were quite hospitable in my particular case.

I would like to give Pocono International Raceway and the Mattioli Family Kudos this week for their efforts making Pocono Raceway the largest solar-powered sports facility in the world. Following last year’s race in June, PIR began a project to satisfy the entire energy consumption for the track, as well as help to power an additional 1,000 homes. By December 2010, the 25 acre solar module facility was fully operational and had already produced over 1,000,000 kilowatt hours of electricity. Being that my career (besides providing readers less than helpful NASCAR picks each week) happens to be in the energy industry, this story really hits home for me.

Kansas Recap

Another race and another Top 5 for my pick of the week was the story from Kansas. I will have to admit that submitting my picks before qualifying does get me nervous from time to time, but never as much as it did last week.

My Dark Horse last week started the race in the 26th spot, and couldn’t manage to improve his spot in the end either. A.J. Allmendinger had a rough go of it last Sunday, fighting a loose race car for all 400 miles. Allmendinger flirted with the Top 15 just after the midway point in the race, but never really contended to bring me points for a Top 10 finish as a Dark Horse.

I did have a high-quality pick in my pick of the week as Jeff Gordon drove his Drive to End Hunger Chevy to a fourth place finish. Gordon had me second-guessing my pick following his qualifying efforts on Saturday, putting his #24 machine in 22nd spot; however he put my indecision to rest quickly following the green flag. Gordon flew into the tenth spot just 22 laps into the 267 and never really looked back from there. It took Gordon just 118 laps to reach the Top 5, and reached a race high second place on lap 171. The #24 would end up in the fuel-mileage game at the end, and would eventually finish fourth. Kudos to me for another Top 5.

Pocono Pics

This week, I have decided to go with a driver who is very familiar with Victory Lane at PIR. For my winner pick, I am going with a guy who has finished outside the Top 10 only twice in ten starts at the Tricky Triangle. As a Rookie, he swept the pole in both races at Pocono, and went on to win both races. Denny Hamlin is my winner pick this week not only for his history at Pocono, but for his strong finish last week at Kansas. Coming off a third place finish last week, Hamlin will be hungry to improve his chances of making the Chase – sitting in 11th currently with no wins on the season. Hamlin won this race last June, and is no stranger to the front of the field at Pocono.

Juan Pablo Montoya seems to have something when it comes to high speeds. With the Long Pond Straight, NASCAR Sprint Cup cars can reach speeds topping 205 mph. Montoya started outside pole last week at Kansas, and I expect him to be towards the front again this week. Pocono seems to cater to drivers who start near the front, and Juan has laid down some fantastic qualifying laps this year. He has three Top-10’s, including a runner up finish in 2009, in his last four starts at Pocono, so this week look for him to surprise you Sunday Afternoon.

On a side note, I would like to say Happy Fathers Day to all the dads who read my column each week. And in honor of my father, I will add in a bit for his favorite driver Tony Stewart. Watching the show from Eldora this past Wednesday night brought me back to my days of going to Brewerton and Fulton Speedways in Upstate New York. My dad introduced me to the sport of racing with Quarter-Midgets and hometown tracks at a young age, and has given me a sport that I will continue to enjoy for days to come. So Kudos to Smoke on yet another successful Prelude To A Dream, and Kudos to you dad for introducing me to one of the most joyful parts of my life.

Until next week, you stay classy NASCAR NATION!!!