Time can bring us many wonderful memories, but it comes with change. Most of us are not all that fond of change. Once we watched the likes of Richard Petty, David Pearson, Dale Earnhardt and the Alabama Gang take to the track, to thrill us with their exploits. That was then. Time changed that.
Kenseth took advantage of Kevin Harvick’s fuel misfortune to take the Sylvania 300 at Loudon. The win kept Kenseth atop the points standings and guaranteed his spot in the next round of the Chase.
Dammit. Other than for Matt Kenseth, that was probably the most used term from Sunday’s action at New Hampshire. Kenseth led three times at Loudon, but it was those final three laps that really mattered as the former champ locked his way into the next round of the Chase.
Posting the fastest lap of Friday’s time trials late in the final round of knockout qualifying at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Carl Edwards knockedKevin Harvick off the pole for Sunday’s Sylvania 300, the second race in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
There is hot, and there is hot. Hot could be winning the opening race of the Chase, securing a berth in the next round, and allowing two races to tinker and prepare for Charlotte. However, after a spin on just the second lap in Chicago, the result was as much a credit to the performance of crew chief Dave Rogers as it was to the driver, Denny Hamlin.
Hamlin roared back from last place to win the Chase opener at Chicagoland. Hamlin automatically advances to the second round of the Chase, which begins at Dover on October 4th.
Chicago. The opening race of the Chase. Sixteen drivers would continue the quest, one very likely locking his way into the next round, some setting themselves up with fine starts while others...not so much.
In the first race of the 10-race Chase to the championship here is what was surprising and not surprising from 15th Annual myAFibRisk.com 400 at Chicagoland Speedway.
So it begins. Sixteen drivers, each trying to avoid being one of the four eliminated from contention for the championship after each round of three races.