Crew chief Greg Ives will rejoin Hendrick Motorsports following the 2014 NASCAR season to lead the No. 88 Sprint Cup Series team of driver Dale Earnhardt Jr.
I don’t normally put a lot of stock into the notion that statistics can accurately foretell who will win a race. There are far too many variables in a sport where luck, the actions of another driver and even Mother Nature can conjure up the unlikeliest of winners. But some statistics are difficult to ignore.
Buffalo, New York - The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Driver of the No. 5 Farmers Insurance Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet SS, Kasey Kahne, paid a visit to Western New York on Wednesday in preparation for the second and final road course race of the 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season at Watkins Glen International.
1. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski dominated the Nationwide race on Saturday and duplicated that feat on Sunday, leading 138 of 301 laps to win at New Hampshire. “Once again,” Keselowski said, “it’s time for the celebratory champagne. But there’s a big difference in breaking out the champagne and breaking open the champagne.
1. Jeff Gordon: Gordon overcame damage in an early wreck at Daytona and finished 12th, maintaining the points lead. He leads Dale Earnhardt, Jr. by 27, as Hendrick drivers occupy the top three spots.
1. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson finished tenth in the Quaker State 400, posting his 12th top 10 of the year. He is second in the points standings, 24 behind Jeff Gordon.
1. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson, winner of three of the last four races, posted a seventh at Sonoma, his 11th top 10 of the year. He is second in the points standings, 20 behind Jeff Gordon.
1. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson took the win at Michigan, snatching his third win in the last four races. It was his first win at Michigan, and he is now second in the points standings. “That’s right,” Johnson said. “My first win at Michigan. And that just goes to show that you can’t underestimate my greatness---in one race, I scored two ‘firsts.’
In search of his third straight win, Johnson finished sixth at Pocono despite an accident on pit road with Marcos Ambrose that left the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet with right-side damage. Johnson now sits fourth in the points standings, 23 behind Jeff Gordon.
Kasey Kahne, after being beaten and pounded with questions surrounding the lack of success that he’s had this season, vented some annoyance and anger during a media center appearance at Pocono Raceway this weekend.
