In the double nickel running of the Great American Race, with the first female ever to start from the pole, here is what else was surprising and not surprising from the 2013 Daytona 500.
Denny Hamlin, driver of the No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing, has learned plenty of lessons from last season as well as the off season. And he intends to take every bit of that new learning right into the 2013 season.
Joe Gibbs Racing is next on our list to preview for the 2013 season. In 2013, JGR will field the No.11, No.18, and No.20 Toyota Camry’s for drivers Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch, and Matt Kenseth, respectively.
While the spot light is on new NASCAR champ Brad Keselowski and the other Chase drivers during the Vegas Championship Week celebrations, the generosity and caring of NASCAR has also taken center stage throughout the festivities.
Brad Keselowski: Keselowski finished 15th atHomestead, well ahead of a faltering Jimmie Johnson, and earned his first Sprint Cup championship. Keselowski finished 39 points ahead of Clint Bowyer and 40 ahead of Johnson.
In the next to the last race on the one miler in the Valley of the Sun, here is what was surprising and not surprising in the 25th annual Advocare 500 at Phoenix International Raceway.
Keselowski took charge of the point standings with a win at Phoenix, while Jimmie Johnson crashed hard into the wall late. With one race remaining, Keselowski leads Johnson by 22 points.
Johnson passed Brad Keselowski with two laps to go at Texas and pulled away to win at Texas, his second consecutive win in the Chase. Johnson extended his lead in the point standings, and now holds a seven point edge on Keselowski.
Johnson started on the pole at Martinsville and captured a huge win, his sixth at the .526-mile track. Johnson passed Brad Keselowski with about 20 laps to go, and held off Kyle Busch down the stretch. He now leads the points standings with a two-point edge over Brad Keselowski.
