It is expected. The standings look weird. With bonus points from the Duels and the demo derby that was the Daytona 500, some wound up with more points than anticipated, and some got far less.
Sorry, but this column is arriving a day later than my usual Thursday date. Of course, it has something to do with the race that gives me the data to mess around with did not take place until Thursday. It is not my fault.
The sun was shining, at least on Sunday, the birds were singing, and joy was back in our hearts. A new NASCAR season is now upon us, and we could not be happier. We learned over the offseason that if a car gets too torn up that it can not be fixed in five minutes on pit road using original pieces, other than tons of tape, its gets parked.
Former NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion Mike Skinner and his wife, Angie, have been selected as the fourth quarter recipients of the National Motorsports Press Association’s Pocono Spirit Award.
With more than a month left in the old year, talk about the new is already starting to dominate. Tony Stewart is now retired, with Clint Bowyer no doubt thrilled at the chance to get back into quality equipment as his replacement.
So it ends. Another NASCAR season. A Hall of Fame career for Tony Stewart. The reign of a title sponsor. The wait for another seven-time champion, or a repeat champion, or maybe the crowning of the newest member of NASCAR royalty.
It sucks not to matter. Forty cars took to the track at Phoenix, and only six of them mattered. Not Jimmie Johnson or Carl Edwards. Both had already locked in a final four berth at Homestead, so they mattered not. Not Kyle Larson or Trevor Bayne, who spun early.
