Kurt Busch – Page 2

Watching NASCAR: The Chase Begins at Chicagoland

September 14, 2012 by Greg Quick 2 Comments

Richmond delivered on the promise of a wild race with racers dropping as much as 5 positions in the standings or rising as much as seven spots as a wild end to the regular season and now onto the race to the crown.

The culmination of the 26 races that comprise the qualifying round for the Chase seems like it went by in a flash, and no doubt that the drivers on the cusp that did not make the final cut as well as the ones that squeaked in will look back at the little things that either cost them or benefited them.

The final race prior to the Chase featured Jeff Gordon in a poorly handling car, falling a lap down and yet managing to qualify for the Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship by finishing second, edging out Kyle Busch for the last wild card sport. Busch finished 16th.

Clint Boyer, in a rain plagued race, and the field trailed Denny Hamlin for much of the race as he seemed to have the dominate ride vying with Dale Earnhardt Jr. for the lead. Late in the race there was some jockeying for the lead but Boyer bulled his way to the front and as they say, never looked back for the win. The top five was filled out with Mark Martin in third followed by Tony Stewart and Matt Kenseth.

Other interesting news is that NASCAR is considering providing a bonus for the regular season point’s leader. The reasoning can be seen quite clearly in the standings chart below where Greg Biffle finished first in points and yet is ranked fifth in the Chase.

This Week: Geico 400
Now the Chase begins with the Geico 400 at the 1.5 mile, tri-oval Chicagoland Speedway. As the Chase begins I am always interested in watching the drivers that are not involved because it often seems that they have as big an impact, intentionally or not, in the standings as everybody tries for the championship. Will somebody seek revenge on a earlier mixup harm a drivers chances in the next few races? I guess we will see.

Broadcast: Sept 16, 1 pm ET ESPN

Twitter

Sprint Cup Standings
1) Denny Hamlin
2) Jimmie Johnson -3
3) Tony Stewart -3
4) Brad Keselowski -3
5) Greg Biffle -6
6) Clint Bowyer -6
7) Dale Earnhardt Jr. -9
8 ) Matt Kenseth -9
9) Kevin Harvick -12
10) Martin Truex Jr. -12
11) Kasey Kahne -12
12) Jeff Gordon -12

Nationwide Series

Kevin Harvick has gotten the monkey off his back by breaking a 30 race losing streak by winning at Richmond, a track that he obviously likes as it is his sixth career win there. With a powerful car and some smooth driving he was a dominate car on the track for the bulk of the race only occasionally being challenged.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. tried to take a few shots but failed and then engaged in his own battle for second, edging out Kurt Busch for that position, with Busch taking third. The last two positions were taken by Denny Hamlin and Michael Annett.

This Week: Dollar General 300 powered by Coca-Cola

Broadcast: Sept. 15, 3 pm ET ESPN

Nationwide Standing
1) Elliott Sadler
2) Ricky Stenhouse Jr. -1
3) Austin Dillon -30
4) Sam Hornish Jr. -50
5) Justin Allgaier -95

Filed Under: Athlete to Follow, Chicagoland Speedway, Dale Earnhardt Jr., ESPN, Greg Biffle, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Kurt Busch, NASCAR, Nationwide Series, Sam Hornish Jr., Sprint Cup Series, Tony Stewart Tagged With: ESPN, NASCAR, Sprint Cup

Watching NASCAR: AdvoCare 500 Here We Come

August 31, 2012 by Greg Quick

AdvoCare 500

Bristol did not disappoint last weekend, we aside from a few drivers that missed the top groove that is. Fenders were bent, tempers flared and the standings got another bit of a shake up. Oh and there was a great late racing battle between Denny Hamlin and Carl Edwards.

The two were battling for some time when with 39 laps remaining Hamlin managed to pass Edwards and take the lead. While Edwards attempted to regain the lead he could never het that last ounce of speed to pass and ultimately he ran out of gas as a gable earlier in the race that had given him the lead backfired. The top five was filled out by Jimmie Johnson, who jumped back to second in the standings as well followed by Jeff George, Brian Vickers and Marcos Ambrose.

The lack of a top groove, sanded off despite the protests of the drivers met with differing opinions after the race but most of the ones that I read were mostly in the negative camp. I guess that this late in the season, when a crash can mean not making the Chase could have affected opinions as well.

A side note in that ESPN was reporting yesterday that Matt Kenseth will be joining Joe Gibbs Racing next year. He is expected to take over the #20 car that is currently driven by Joey Logano.

This week: AdvoCare 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway

The teams will be racing in Atlanta this weekend on the Atlanta Motor Speedway’s 1.54 mile oval. As the Chase nears I expect that drivers on the cusp of making the Chase will bring an increased l

evel of aggression to the race, which should make for some good racing.

Broadcast: Sept 2, 6:30 pm ET ESPN

Twitter Handles

Sprint Cup Standings
1) Greg Biffle
2) Jimmie Johnson -11
3) Dale Earnhardt Jr. -15
4) Matt Kenseth -26
5) Martin Truex Jr. -52
6) Clint Boyer -55
7) Brad Keselowski -59
8 ) Denny Hamlin -75
9) Kevin Harvick -82
10) Tony Stewart -103

Joey Logano steadily moved up the pack last week in Bristol and took the lead with 34 laps to go and remain in front until the checkered flag was waved. It was not as easy as it sounds as after he passed Kevin Harvick for the lead he faced a strong push by Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who he managed to beat to the finish line.

There was a lot of banging during the race and a number of cautions, nine in all, that helped cause a number of lead changes as well as . On the last few laps the jockeying for position grew in intensity as seen by a collision between Trevor Bayne and Austin Dillon.

The top five was filled out by runner up Stenhouse Jr., Kyle Busch, Austin Dillon and Elliott Sadler. Danica Patrick, starting at the back of the pack managed a very respectable ninth place finish.

Next Up: NRA American Warrior 300

Broadcast: September 1, 6:30 pm ET ESPN

Nationwide Series Standings
1) Elliott Sadler
2) Ricky Stenhouse Jr. -19
3) Sam Hornish Jr. -28
4) Austin Dillon -35
5) Justin Allgaier -94

Filed Under: Athlete to Follow, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Danica Patrick, ESPN, Greg Biffle, Jimmie Johnson, Kurt Busch, NASCAR, Nationwide Series, Sprint Cup Series, Tony Stewart Tagged With: ESPN, NASCAR

Watching NASCAR: The Curves at Watkins Glen Beckon

August 10, 2012 by Greg Quick Leave a Comment

Watkins Glen

Last week at the Pocono Raceway’s Pennsylvania 400 was shrouded in tragedy as tragedy struck fans as a thunderstorm came through and a lighting strike caused the death of one fan and injured nine more. The storm also led to a shortened race, but of course that is of lesser importance. The storm and its aftermath has NASCAR examining its severe weather policy.

The race was won by Jeff Gordon, who crossed the finish line first for the first time this year. Is this the latest he has won a race since he joined NASCAR? I may have to look later to see. Anyway he benefited from the bad luck of others at the track.

The race was shortened to 98 laps due to the storm. But equally as important was the actions of his teammate Jimmie Johnson, who helped him in an unexpected manner by causing a pileup that included Matt Kenseth, Denny Hamlin and several other cars. This opened the hole that enabled Gordon to grab the lead.

The win provided a big boost for Gordon’s chances to participate in the Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship, although it is still too early to say if he will make it. The rest of the top five was filled in by Kasey Kahne, Martin Truex Jr., Brad Keselowski and Tony Stewart.

This week: Fingers Lake 355 at the Glen
It is back to the road courses this week, something that probably cheers Jeff Gordon as he has been traditionally strong at this type of race and still needs help getting into the chase. Held at Watkins Glen International the 2.45 mile course features seven turns over its route.

In other news it looks like a week after gaining approval for next year’s models, one of the major car companies, Dodge, has opted out of the NASCAR season in 2013. In some ways it is not a surprise, although I feel that it is a pity, since its one customer, Penske Racing, had said it was moving to Ford next season.

All the Twitter feeds you will need.

Broadcast
12 pm ET ESPN

Sprint Cup Top 10
1) Dale Earnhardt Jr.
2) Matt Kenseth -5
3) Greg Biffle -6
4) Jimmie Johnson -8
5) Martin Truex Jr. -50
6) Tony Stewart -53
7) Brad Keselowski -54
8 ) Denny Hamlin -61
9) Kevin Harvick -63
10) Clint Boyer -65

Nationwide

Elliot Sadler is back on top, in more ways than one. He captured the victory flag at the US Cellular 250 last week and that win pushed him back into a stronger lead points position in the Nationwide Series. He appeared to have a dominating car from the little I saw of the race and he led for 60 laps but had to regain the lead numerous times to get the win.

Over the course of the race he was strongly challenged by Justin Allgaier, who finished in second, Allgaier’s best finish of the season, and a result that helped him stay a strong contender in the Nationwide Series. The top five was filled out with Sam Hornish Jr. in 3rd followed by Michael Annett and Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

Zippo 200 at the Glen

This Week: Zippo 200 at the Glen
This week the Nationwide drivers will also be tackling the road course at Watkins Glen in the Zippo 200 at the Glen. When Sprint challenged the road course in Sonoma earlier in the season Nationwide went elsewhere but this time fans of the sport can go to one site to watch both races.

Broadcast
Aug 11, 2pm ET ABC

Nationwide Cup Standings
1) Elliott Sadler
2) Austin Dillon -18
3) Ricky Stenhouse Jr. -21
4) Sam Hornish Jr. -34
5) Justin Allgaier -78

Filed Under: ABC, Athlete to Follow, Dale Earnhardt Jr., ESPN, Greg Biffle, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Kurt Busch, NASCAR, Nationwide Series, Sam Hornish Jr., Sprint Cup Series, Tony Stewart, Watkins Glen International Tagged With: NASCAR

Watching NASCAR: The Pocono’s Tricky Triangle Awaits

August 3, 2012 by Greg Quick Leave a Comment

Some changes at the top of the Sprint Cup last week as it roared into the Brickyard, and Jimmy Johnson once again showed his love for the track by dominating the race and winning there for the fourth time in his career. He and Jeff Gordon are now tied with four wins apiece at the Brickyaed, a race that has only been running for less than two decades.

Pocono's Tricky Triangle

Despite a very strong showing all race JJ found himself looking at the back of Greg Biffle’s ride after a caution as Biffle beat him out of the pits to take the lead. Biffle took two tires to JJ’s four. That only lasted a lap or so and even with a second caution he pretty much had clear sailing the rest of the race.

Points leader Matt Kenseth fell from the top spot after being taken out of the race in a late by Joey Logano, dropping him to 35th in the race as Dale Earnhardt Jr. secured the top spot for himself after a very steady first half of the season, driving wise. The top five was filled out with Kyle Busch in second, followed by Biffle, Earnhardt Jr. and Jeff Gordon.

Next Week-Pennsylvania 400
The teams will be out at Long Pond at the Pocono Raceway for the Pennsylvania 400. Run on the 2.5 mile tri-oval it should make for some fun, wide opening racing.

Broadcast
Aug. 5, 12 noon ET ESPN

Car News
It sounds like there will be a new look for the cars next year as NASCAR has approved the designs for next generation Chevrolet SS, Dodge Charger, Ford Fusion and Toyota Camry models that will be seen on the track next year.

While the issue of meeting aerodynamic standards was very important, the most interesting fact is that NASCAR, and the auto companies, are taking a step back to their roots. The next generation cars will look very much like the street models that are available to the general public, something that has been a thing of the past for some time. Looking forward to Daytona next year to see them.

Twitter– Instead of pointing to a number of Twitter addresses as we have in the past it seems to make much more sense just to send you to a site that appears to have consolidated a who’s who of racing twitter addresses instead. So head over here for a list.

Sprint Cup Standings
1) Dale Earnhardt Jr
2) Matt Kenseth -14
3) Greg Biffle -22
4) Jimmy Johnson -27
5) Denny Hamlin -64
6) Kevin Harvick -78
7) Martin Truex Jr. -78
8 ) Tony Stewart -79
9) Brad Keselowski -82
10) Clint Bowyer -88

Nationwide
There were several controversial issues at the Indy 250 last weekend, all having to do with something that on the face of it seems pretty innocuous, spinning your tires. At the start of the race it looked as if Kyle Busch jumped the start over pole winner Kasey Kahne to take the immediate lead but NASCAR ruled that Kahne was spinning his tires.

This was repeated late in the race when Brad Keslowski, the leader at that point, appeared to spin his tires on a restart and Elliott Sadler shot past him for the lead. However on this ruling NASCAR said that while there was some spinning, it was not the cause of Elliott’s lead on the restart. This resulted in Sadler getting black flagged and finishing out of the top 10. He was notably upset after the race over the ruling and his Nationwide points lead was significantly whittled down as well.

Hornish finished second, Ty Dillon was third, Denny Hamlin was fourth and Austin Dillon fifth. Sadler continues to lead the series standings by one point over Austin Dillon.

Nationwide Standings
1) Elliott Sadler
2) Austin Dillon -1
3) Ricky Stenhouse Jr. -13
4) Sam Hornish Jr. -28
5) Justin Allgaier -75

It is starting to seem that Danica Patrick’s most familiar move on the track is hitting a wall, literally not figuratively. She accomplished this feat once again at the Indy 250 last weekend. Unlike a number of people I know I do not actively root against her, but it seems that this is an increasingly common result in her race, with wrecks at Daytona and elsewhere this season.

What makes this particular crash so interesting is that she has said that she is considering returning to the Indy 500 next season. This along with her expected promotion to the Sprint Cup Series and possibly running select Nationwide races as well. I have to wonder how well she will be accepted in the Sprint Cup Series if she continues to her crashing ways?

This Week-US Cellular 250
The Nationwide teams head to the Corn Belt in Iowa for the U.S. Cellular 250 presented by the Enlist Weed Control System at the Iowa Speedway. While also on a tri-oval like the Sprint race the following day, but several states away, this track is much smaller, coming in at .876 miles.

Broadcast
Aug.4, 7:30 pm ET ESPN2

Filed Under: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Danica Patrick, ESPN, Greg Biffle, Jimmie Johnson, Kurt Busch, NASCAR, Nationwide Series, Pocono Raceway, Sam Hornish Jr., Sprint Cup Series Tagged With: NASCAR, Nationwide, Sprint Cup

Watching NASCAR this week: Lenox Industrial Tools 301

July 13, 2012 by Greg Quick 2 Comments

There was a great finish last week at Daytona, with Tony Stewart making a last lap pass and then holding off a trailing gang of rivals to win his 18th race at the fabled track. Only Dale Earnhardt has more wins at Daytona. The win moved Stewart up 4 places in the driver standings.

The victory must have been even sweeter for Stewart since he was forced to start at the back of the pack due to a failed inspection, and it took him some time to fight his way to the front. He passed Matt Kenesth and then led to the finish. Jeff Burton managed to roar by Kenesth at the end for second followed by Joey Logano and then Ryan Newman.

There was some last minute prerace activity as NASCAR suspended driver AJ Allmendinger just prior to the race for failing a random drug test that he took on June 29, with NASCAR reporting that he had an illegal stimulant in his system. He has claimed that he does not take drugs and that there is an error in the test. Team Penske flew in Sam Hornish Jr in from Charlotte at the last minute, barely a half hour before the race started, to replace Allmendinger.

Since then Allmendinger has elected to bring in his own experts to test his “B” sample, something that is expected to happen next week at the earliest. If he fails he will face an indefinite suspension and need to take a program to get reinstated.

ESPN put up some interesting tidbits about the first half of the season and one that really jumped out at me was this one that points out how unimportant winning is compared to simply finishing. Brad Keselowski has three victories, five top-5s and eight top-10s this season, which is good for 9th currently. Kevin Harvick has zero wins, three top-5s and eight top-10s, but Harvick is 6th in the standings.

Lenox Industrial Tools 301
Next up is a trip to the New Hampshire Motor Speedway for the Lenox Industrial Tools 301 on a 1.05 mile, oval track. It is interestingly the largest sporting facility in New England and can seat 105,000 spectators. There is also a 1.6 mile road course on the site.

Broadcast
July 15 at 12 noon ET TNT

Sprint Cup Standings
1) Matt Kenseth
2) Dale Earnhardt Jr. -25
3) Greg Biffle -44
4) Jimmie Johnson -58
5) Tony Stewart -90
6) Kevin Harvick -90
7) Denny Hamlin -92
8) Martin Truex Jr. -92
9) Brad Keselowski -103
10) Clint Bowyer -104

Nationwide

Kurt Busch won last week in Daytona with a tremendous finish in a race that had 42 lead changes, more than its fair share of crashes and must have delighted any fan that watched. His car looked like it was about to blow at any second over the last few laps and he managed to reach the front of a greatly diminished field with a lap to go and then held on for dear life. The top five was filled out by Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Michael Ammett, Austin Dillon and Joey Logano.

Broadcast
July 14, 2:30 pm ET ESPN

F.W. Webb 200
This week Nationwide will be featured in a shorter race in New Hampshire, the F.W. Webb 200. This may be old hand and I have just missed it but Nationwide is providing a nice behinds the scene view of teams activities with garagecam Head over here to take a look.

Nationwide Series Standings
1) Elliott Sadler
2) Austin Dillon -8
3) Ricky Stenhouse Jr. -18
4) Sam Hornish Jr. -35
5) Justin Allgaier -72

Filed Under: Athlete to Follow, Dale Earnhardt Jr., ESPN, Greg Biffle, Kurt Busch, NASCAR, Nationwide Series, New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Sam Hornish Jr., Tony Stewart Tagged With: NASCAR, Nationwide

Watching NASCAR this Weekend: Coke Zero 400

July 6, 2012 by Greg Quick 4 Comments

Driving a second car does not keep Brad Keselowski in second place. Despite destroying his primary car in a practice round last week in Kentucky and yet he managed to drive the backup to victory, something that you very rarely see.

Not only did he win but he led the last 55 laps but he did it with a limited gas supply in earning his third victory of the season. Kyle Busch looked very strong early but a bump into the wall and the resulting damage ruined any chance he had of a win. The top five for the week was filled out by Kasey Kahne in second followed by Denny Hamlin, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jeff Gordon.

Next up- Coke Zero 400 Powered by Coca-Cola
This week the teams are back at a place they are very familiar with, Daytona for the Coke Zero 400 Powered by Coca-Cola. Not much that can be sad about the track that fans do not already know. It is a 2.5 mile tri-oval and if my math is correct this race marks the half way point in the season. The leader board is very tight and we will probably expand it to the top ten next week.

I did catch an interesting piece over at ESPN about a proposal to include mandatory cautions in races to add excitement. Burton Smith, a billionaire track promoter said that the inclusion would make the races more exciting, something that he believes long stretches of green flag racing is not. NASCRA official seem very cold to the idea, at least right now.

Broadcast
July 7 6:30 ET TNT

Sprint Cup Standings
1) Matt Kenseth
2) Dale Earnhardt Jr. -11
3) Jimmie Johnson -23
4) Greg Biffle –25
5) Denny Hamlin -68

Nationwide Series
The Nationwide race last week was an up and down day for Austin Dillon. He was absolutely dominating in the race, winning his first Nationwide Series race by leading it for 192 out of 200 laps. The win enabled him to take over the leader board from Elliott Sadler, at least for a very short while.

A look below at the point’s leader shows that Dillon fell out of the points lead. The reason for this was a six point penalty because his car failed an inspection following the race last week for having a car that was too low. The top five of the race was filled out by Kurt Busch in second with Kevin Harvick, Michael Annett and Justin Allgaier filling out the remaining positions.

This Week: Subway Jalapeno 250 powered by Coca-Cola

Broadcast
July 6, 7 pm ET ESPN

Nationwide Series Standings
1) Elliott Sadler
2) Austin Dillon -4
3) Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
4) Sam Hornish Jr. -31
5) Justin Allgaier -71

Filed Under: Athlete to Follow, Dale Earnhardt Jr., ESPN, Greg Biffle, Kurt Busch, NASCAR, Sam Hornish Jr. Tagged With: Daytona, NASCAR

Watching NASCAR: The Chase Begins at Chicagoland

Watching NASCAR: AdvoCare 500 Here We Come

Watching NASCAR: The Curves at Watkins Glen Beckon

Watching NASCAR: The Pocono’s Tricky Triangle Awaits

Watching NASCAR this week: Lenox Industrial Tools 301

Watching NASCAR this Weekend: Coke Zero 400

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