On Type Delay: The Heluva Good at The Glen

Back in the "old" days, when it came to road course racing, we could almost be sure to see the road course "ringers" in victory lane. Back in the sixties, Dan Gurney, for example, was the "King of the road," a sure winner at Riverside. Gurney's only NASCAR races were on road courses.Parnelli Jones and, before going full time in 2003, Robby Gordon were among other notable road course "ringers." It became a tradition for car owners and manufacturers in NASCAR to hire specialists for the road courses, as nobody expected drivers who ran most of their races on ovals to do well on road courses.

Although we still see teams that are outside the top twenty in points using "ringers" for road courses, those days are essentially gone. Today's top NASCAR drivers show the same kind of ability on road courses as they do on the ovals.

The ringers have the disadvantage of lack of experience in cars that weigh 3400 pounds and have engines capable of producing 800 horsepower. The cars most ringers race regularly weigh 600 to 1000 pounds less than the Cup cars. The open wheel specialists race cars that weigh half as much as the CoT.

Now, the Sprint Cup regulars have the advantage. Full time drivers like Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch, Marcos Ambrose, and Kasey Kahne will almost always outperform the part time ringers on road courses.

Well, enough of that, let's get on with the race.

Jimmie Johnson starts on the pole. He has yet to win a road course race in NASCAR, but that has never kept him from winning a Championship. He has made it clear that he is motivated to win today at Watkins Glen. Kurt Busch shares the front row, and soon passes Johnson for the lead. That number 2 car seems to have a lot of power, and Kurt Busch seems to be hitting his marks and braking points. There is almost a caution on lap 8 when Jeff Burton and Bobby Labonte make slight contact. Labonte spins, but is able to get his car going in the right direction again, avoiding the caution.

There is a caution on lap 17, due to debris on the track. Marcos Ambrose stays out, but most of everybody else pits. Tony Stewart calls for two spring rubbers and a wedge adjustment on both the left and right sides. He was obviously unhappy with the set up and had gained only one spot between the start of the race and the first caution. Jeff Burton, Dale Earnhardt, Jr, and Denny Hamlin are all ticketed for speeding on pit road, and have to start at the end of the longest line.

The restart is on lap 20, with Ambrose leading the field. Kasey Kahne is second, Reed Sorenson third, Kurt Busch, the first driver off of pit road is fourth, and Kyle Busch is fifth.

On lap 23, David Stremme goes into the grass at the "bus stop" chicane, and, as he tries to return to the track, makes contact with Kevin Harvick and Jeff Gordon. Gordon and Stremme are able to continue, but Harvick's car is wrecked, and he takes his car to the garage. David, I like you, but the pass in the grass only works if you have a set of skills similar to Kyle Busch's, and a car-set up that can handle it. Today, at least, you have neither. Anyway, the accident brings out a caution.

Restart on lap 26, with Marcos Ambrose in the lead, Kurt Busch second, Kyle Busch third, Jimmie Johnson fourth, and Boris Said fifth. Kurt Busch beats Ambrose for the lead, and then pits under green for fuel only on lap 29. Ambrose makes his first pit stop of the race, giving the lead to Jimmie Johnson. Tony Stewart has moved into the top five, apparently liking the changes made during the first caution. He is in third by lap 31.

Kyle Busch has been challenging Johnson for the lead since the restart, and passes him in turn 11 on lap 34. Tony Stewart takes second on lap 37, but Kyle Busch has a two second lead. On lap 41, the terrible luck that has been plaguing Dale Earnhardt, Jr all season, once again hits home as the brakes on the 88 car fail going into turn 10. Reed Sorenson happens to be on the outside of Earnhardt, and ends up in the gravel,as a result of contact, and Earnhardt hits the tire barrier. He is alright, as he exits the car, and Sorenson gets his car going and is able to rejoin this race. That was a scary moment, however, and once again the safety of the Cup car is demonstrated.

Restart on lap 45, with Kyle Busch in the lead, Tony Stewart is second, Johnson third, Biffle fourth, and Boris Said is fifth. Busch wins the restart, but Stewart catches him in the esses and passes him for the lead. Green flag pit stops begin as soon as the fuel window opens on lap 55. This is the money stop, no matter what else happens on the track. Everyone who gets fuel now, should be able to go to the end of the race. Tony Stewart and Juan Montoya, who is in second now, pit on lap 56, giving Kurt Busch the lead. Busch makes his final pit stop on lap 58. David Stremme has yet to pit, and takes the lead. Scott Speed is second, also going without pitting, Kyle Busch is third, Tony Stewart is fourth, and Marcos Ambrose is fifth. Busch, Stewart, and Ambrose have all made their final pit stop. Stremme pits on lap 60, and Scott Speed retains the lead until there is a huge accident on lap 61.

Kasey Kahne gets loose in turn 9 and bumps Sam Hornish,Jr. Hornish hits the tire barrier, and bounces back onto the track. At full speed, the 77 car looks like a whip as it collects the cars of Jeff Burton, and Jeff Gordon. Gordon's car goes head on into the rail. This accident is frightening even in slow motion, but all three drivers are able to exit their cars on their own. Hornish's car is completely wrecked, and Gordon's isn't much better. Burton's car also has heavy damage, and Jeff Burton is another driver who should be on the worst luck list for this season, as he has been involved in wrecks not of his own doing in the last five races. The race is red-flagged for clean up on lap 63. Clean up lasts nearly twenty minutes.

After the race resumes, under yellow, Scott Speed gives up the lead to make his final pit stop, giving Kyle Busch the point. Green flag on lap 67, with Tony Stewart second, Marcos Ambrose third, Greg Biffle fourth, and Montoya is fifth. Busch apparently feels that his car would be better starting in the outside lane, which turns out to be a mistake as Stewart gets by him in turn two. But Busch's car is very tight, and he has to lock his brakes up to make the turns. Ambrose takes second, and Biffle takes third in turn ten of lap 69. There is a caution on lap 71 as Elliott Sadler's tire falls apart after contact with Patrick Carpentier. None of the leaders pit, and they try to save as much fuel as they can during the caution period. We can hear Stewart shutting off his engine through the turns, and restarting it on the straight sections.

The broadcasters love this, as it adds more drama to the race. Do the leaders have enough fuel to finish the race? Their crew chiefs all report that it will be very close, some saying that they will be two laps short. This gives the end of the race another level of excitement.

Tony Stewart restarts the race on lap 73. Marcos Ambrose is second, and Greg Biffle, Kyle Busch, and Juan Montoya fill out the top five.

Carl Edwards gets into the top five on lap 74, and Kyle Busch passes Biffle for third. Edwards takes fourth from Biffle, and gets by Busch on lap 79, as Kyle gets loose in the esses.

With nine laps to go Stewart leads Ambrose by nearly two seconds. Ambrose tries to step things up a bit, while still conserving fuel. The booth bunnies are going out of their way to make Stewart fans nervous by talking about fuel and the possibility of running out of it. With six laps to go, Ambrose has caught up to Stewart, and the first two cars are two seconds ahead of the rest of the field. Ambrose can not quite catch the leader.

Stewart takes the white flag. All he has to do is get through this lap without running out of fuel, and he wins. He does win. This is his fifth victory in six years at Watkins Glen, and he now becomes the first NASCAR driver to have five wins at The Glen on his resume. Marcos Ambrose is second, Edwards third, Kyle Busch managed to hold onto fourth place, and Biffle takes fifth.

For some reason, the giant carton of Heluva Good Sour Cream Dip makes me want to go out and buy potato chips before I finish this post.

On Type Delay: Pennsylvania 500

The return of the Old Spice Candy Apple Red: I love that paint job. That is the paint job Tony Stewart's Old Spice car had when he raced in the Nationwide Series last year. For Pocono, in the Sprint Cup Series, that paint job is back.

The race was postponed from Sunday due to weather and wet track conditions. Those conditions have been resolved, the "weepers" on the track have been drained, and we are ready to race on a Monday. There are a surprising number of people in the stands for a Monday. Apparently, a lot of race fans used a sick day to be here.

Because of an accident during Saturday's practice session, Tony Stewart had to go to a back up car and will start at the rear of the field. No problem for Stewart, considering what he did at Pocono in June.

However, as the cars hit the track, their set ups are for the cooler weather that was predicted for Sunday. Since the race was postponed, and the weather is much warmer, every car will seem like it has a missed set up. There will be a competition caution around lap 20.

Jeff Gordon leads the field to the green flag. Jimmie Johnson, who started on the outside in second position, races Gordon for the lead, and leads the first lap. By lap ten, Stewart has moved up to 29th position, but then he reports tire problems, and pits on lap 13, going a lap down. The caution flies at the end of lap 20. Stewart gets the free pass.

Denny Hamlin takes the lead out of the pits. He maintains the lead. Dale Earnhardt, Jr started 22nd and is running around positions twenty sixth and twenty seventh. He makes a scheduled green flag pit stop on lap 50, and then the caution comes out, because of debris from Paul Menard's blown tire. The 88 car gets caught in the pits at the wrong time and goes a lap down, but he can stay out after the wave around and get back on the lead lap. Stewart's car still needs a lot of work, as he can't seem to get past the thirty fourth spot before he starts losing ground again. His crew makes some major changes in the pits.

Hamlin maintains the lead at the restart. Then there is a caution for debris on lap, because a caution light fell apart and landed on the track. The leaders stay out, and the cars from thirteenth position on back pit for tires and much needed adjustments. Hamlin still leads after the restart.

Finally, Stewart is able to start moving up. He gets up to twenty seventh position, so the adjustments are beginning to go in the right direction. Adjustments seem to be working for Dale Earnhardt, Jr, as well, as he has moved up to seventeenth position.

Green flag pit stops begin on lap 82, with the cars that didn't pit on the previous caution. When the pit stops cycle through, Hamlin is back in the lead, but Stewart has yet to pit, and is running in fourth position. He pits, and as he is leaving the pits, the caution comes out on lap 96, due to a spin by Bobby Labonte. Stewart manages to make it out of the pits under caution and stays on the lead lap. This turns out to be very fortuitous for Smoke, as the leaders pit, and Stewart stays out and takes seventh position. Yes, it's lucky, but we will take that kind of luck.

Stewart has four new tires, while most of the cars that pitted among the leaders took two. Kasey Kahne stayed out and will lead the field to the green flag. There is a lot of beating and banging on this restart. At the halfway point, it's Kahne first, Reutimann second, Kenseth third, the Tasmanian Devil, Marcos Ambrose is fourth, and Kurt Busch is fifth.

On lap 106, Jimmie Johnson reports that his engine has dropped a cylinder. He pits, and the crew quickly replaces a spark plug wire that has come lose, He gets off of pit road ahead of the leaders, staying on the lead lap. However, a few laps later, the leader, Kasey Kahne, passes him and puts him a lap down. Johnson is still having engine problems.

Hamlin restarted ninth after the last caution and makes it up to third place by lap 111. Now the 48 car is having problems maintaining minimum speed. The 14 car of Tony Stewart restarted in seventh, fell back, picked up again and is now in tenth position. Denny Hamlin moves up to second on lap 121.

While we are viewing a television commercial, I just want to say that I like Pocono, and when I suggested that I would like to see Darlington as the longest track, it wasn't because of my preferences, but because I'm tired of hearing some fans and bloggers complaining about the lack of good racing at the longer tracks. I am enjoying this race so far, and having fun ignoring the clowns in the booth who insist that Stewart won't get better than a fifteenth place finish. A lot of people complain about clowns in the booth, but I think they are funny.

I would also like to enlighten my readers who may be wondering about the ending of the current Old Spice Swagger commercial with Tony Stewart. Back in his USAC days, Tony and his high school sweetheart, Krista, used to have to skip food in order to be able to pay for enough gas to get to the track at which Stewart was to race. Now, after Swagger, Tony has plenty of money and plenty of food.

Earnhardt, Jr is going sideways around every corner, and it is a nasty loose problem rather than productive drifting. But Junior is hanging in there staying away from serious damage from the walls. He is managing to stay around the twenty fifth position.

Green flag pit stops begin on lap 126 with Jamie McMurray. Kasey Kahne pits on lap 128. New leader Denny Hamlin pits on lap 131, as do Tony Stewart and Ryan Newman. Harvick stays out and gets a five point bonus for leading a lap, then pits on lap 134. Kahne retains the lead after the pit stops cycle through, and Johnson goes two laps down. After 136 laps, it's Kahne, Hamlin, Reutiman, Michael Waltrip, and Kurt Busch are in the top five, but Waltrip hasn't pitted yet, and, when he does, Jeff Gordon moves into the top five.

On lap 139, Denny Hamlin gets by Kasey Kahne for the lead. That's a green flag lead change without a caution being involved. Now the 48 team is speculating that they may be suffering from fuel contamination. If Darrell Waltrip were still racing, we might suspect what the problem is, but right now we have no idea.

David Ragan makes contact with the wall on lap 141 and brings out the caution. After the leaders pit, Hamlin comes off of pit road first, followed by Carl Edwards. I think these were two tire stops, but Kahne took four. Some cars stayed out, so the restart order will be Mark Martin first, Brian Vickers second, Jeff Burton third, Sam Hornish Jr is fourth, and Denny Hamlin is fifth. The restart was on lap 147. On lap 148, Jeff Gordon moves into the top five. Stewart and Newman are battling for twentieth spot, and we have no idea what happened there, because Johnson's engine problems were much more important.

Caution on lap 151, when Robby Gordon spins, and, with nowhere to go, David Stremme makes contact with him. The 48 car is the only car not on the lead lap so it gets the free pass. His team is still working on his engine in the pits. The previous pit stop, they changed the carbruator, and are now changing the spark plugs. We are reporting this because ESPN seems to believe that it is second in importance only to the commercials. The racing takes a distant third.

And, the reason I'm complaining is because Colorado Springs no longer has a radio station that carries the MRN play by play broadcasts, we have to rely on the television coverage, and ESPN makes it very difficult to consistently follow the race. At the same time I am complaining, I have to give ESPN credit for trying to cover all the racing throughout the field.

Restart on lap 153.Martin is first, Kurt Busch is second, Vickers is third. Kurt Busch takes the lead on lap 154.

Well, during the commercial, Robby Gordon tried to spin David Stremme by bumping his car into the rear end of Stremme's car. That doesn't work, so Gordon goes to pass Stremme high in turn two. Stremme apparently didn't care much for the bumping, and decides to show Gordon what it feels like. Gordon spins, and the caution flies. Both drivers get penalized five laps. Robby Gordon's penalty is for bumping a car under caution, Stremme's is for rough driving.

Commercial.

Restart on lap 160. Kurt Busch is first, Edwards second, Martin third, Gordon fourth, and Vickers is fifth.

Commercial.

During the commercial, Juan Montoya pits with 35 laps to go, and a caution comes out for debris. Montoya makes it out of the pits and stays on the lead lap. The leaders pit for what will be the final scheduled stop of the race, as fuel strategy should no longer be a factor. Great stops by teams that will gamble that there will be another caution by taking fuel only, and Earnhardt, Jr comes off of pit road first, followed by Tony Stewart, who gained seventeen positions in the pits.

Commercial.

The top five at the restart are unknown because we are not being told what it is. We can figure out that Sam Hornish Jr will restart third, Juan Montoya will restart fourth, Dale Jr is fifth and Stewart is sixth. Clint Bowyer, we are finally told, will lead the field to the restart with 31 laps to go, and Scott Speed is second. Hamlin took four tires and will restart back in seventeenth.

Wild stuff back in the field. Jeff Gordon, Mark Martin and Carl Edwards are having some funm racing among themselves for eleventh, twelfth, and thirteenth while Hamlin moves into the top ten. Kyle Busch is in a race with guys fighting for twentieth, and that is fun to watch as well. Reutimann gets into some trouble with 27 laps to go and brings out the caution. Great wheel work by Ryan Newman to avoid trouble in that wreck.

Clint Bowyer last got fuel with forty two laps to go. The 33 team is going to go for it, as they tell Bowyer to stay out and conserve fuel. This strategy seems iffy to me.

Jimmy Johnson gets the free pass and is back on the lead lap. Kyle Busch picked up some damage during that last wild restart, and also, apparently made contact with the 00 car of Reutimann while it was spinning, and is sitting in the pits getting repairs.

Clint Bowyer leads the field to the restart with 21 laps to go. Montoya is second, Sam Hornish Jr is third, Kasey Kahne is fourth and Tony Stewart is fifth. The restart is wild, Kurt Busch gets by Stewart, and so does Denny Hamlin. Hamlin gets by Busch, and takes fifth. Cars are going four wide going into turn one, and, of course, there is a big crash involving Reed Sorenson, Joey Logano, David Ragan, and Bobby Labonte. The running order, under caution, with seventeen to go, has Bowyer in the lead, Hornish second, Kahne third, Montoya fourth, Hamlin fifth, and Kenseth is sixth. Hamlin seems to be the booth's favorite to win at this time.

Kurt Busch is lining up in seventh, and Tony Stewart seems to be in eighth. Brian Vickers will restart in ninth with fourteen laps to go. Earnhard, Jr will restart tenth.

At the restart, Kenseth makes a move around Kahne, Kurt Busch gets shuffled way back. Jimmie Johnson gains twelve positions in one lap. In the melee, Montoya and Kahne make contact, Kahne falls back and Montoya maintains well enough to move into third by the time the smoke clears. With thirteen laps to go, Hamlin is challenging Bowyer for the lead, and with ten laps to go Hamlin takes the lead. Montoya moves into second with nine laps to go. With eight to go, Kurt Busch, Jeff Gordon, and Jimmie Johnson are battling for tenth, while Tony Stewart passes Matt Kenseth for eighth. Mark Martin had a great restart a few laps previously, and is running in seventh. with 5 laps to go Kasey Kahne and Sam Hornish Jr are having a terrific battle for fourth, and Brian Vickers is about to take fifth. With four laps to go, Hamlin leads Montoya by nearly a second, Bowyer is still third, Hornish is fourth, and Kahne is fifth.

Three laps to go, and Gordon gets the eighth spot from Stewart. There is just too much good racing going on to watch it all, and this is mainly due to the double file restarts.

Hamlin takes the white flag, Montoya is second. Martin and Vickers are racing furiously for sixth place, one trying to stay in the top twelve, the other trying to make it into the top twelve. Hamlin wins. Montoya finishes second for his first top five finish of the season. Bowyer is third. Sam Hornish, Jr is fourth for his best finish ever in NASCAR. Kasey Kahne takes fifth, and Brian Vickers held of Mark Martin to take sixth. The top ten are filled out by Jeff Gordon, eighth, Kurt Busch, ninth, and Tony Stewart, tenth.

The number fourteen team did a great job of getting a bad car together and pulling a tenth place finish from what could have been a very bad day. The 48 team's day could have been worse, but it also could have been better. They finished thirteenth.

Denny Hamlin is very emotional, still in mourning over the death of his grandmother a few days ago. Hamlin did a great job being able to put aside a personal tragedy to concentrate on racing. Seriously, I need tissues.

My pick fives really sucked this week, but that is a different story, This was a pretty good race at Pocono, especially toward the end. The aggressive racing throughout the field continued long after the restarts, and the importance of making the cut for the Chase for the Championship is made very clear.

ESPN is getting much better at covering the racing throughout the field, although it is still a little jerky, lacking transition, but we feel they are very close to getting the hang of it. Just as the racing gets better, so will the coverage. Good job to all the drivers and to ESPN for providing us with a very good show.

A Different View

"Major League Baseball players don't play in Triple A baseball games, so why do NASCAR Cup drivers compete in the Nationwide Series?"

That is one of the questions we see on various forums, blogs, and news journals pertaining to the participation of NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. There are several premises, however, in that question that are wrong.

The first flawed premise is the assumption that NASCAR is structured in the same way as professional baseball. It isn't. The teams in baseball are franchises of Major League Baseball, while the teams in NASCAR are, at all levels, fully and independently owned private businesses. The players and the team owners in baseball are employees of Major League Baseball, while the team owners and drivers in NASCAR are not employees of NASCAR.

Major League Baseball can regulate the manner in which new players are recruited, and how much they get paid. NASCAR can not. Major League Baseball teams can not put their players in pads and helmets and play football against the Pittsburgh Steelers. NASCAR team owners can build or own cars for ARCA, Rolex Grand Am, American Le Mans Series, Indy Racing League, or even USAC, if they wished, and put their "Sprint Cup" driver in any of those cars at any time.

One logical comparison, if one must be made, is that while baseball teams use their affiliated Triple A teams for training and remedial training of their players, and NASCAR team owners often use the Nationwide Series to give their drivers "seat time" on certain tracks. Another comparison is that professional baseball players work their way up through the ranks to play in Major League, in order to learn the rules and the style of play, while NASCAR drivers must also gain experience and learn the rules in order to get a license to race on the superspeedways.

The major flaw in the statement that opened this item is that "Major League baseball players don't play in Triple A games."

If one actually follows Major League Baseball, one would know that players are "sent down" to and "called up" from Triple A teams on a nearly weekly basis. So Major League players often do find themselves playing on a Triple A team.

If the NASCAR Nationwide Series were a Triple A team to the Sprint Cup Series, some of the comparisons may be viable, but it isn't. Minor League sports events are not broadcast live on national television. The closest comparison would be that the NASCAR Camping World East/West Series is the Triple A of NASCAR. The Camping World Truck Series, the Nationwide Series, and the Sprint Cup Series are all different organizations in the major leagues of NASCAR, that feature different types of racing. The Truck Series is the sprint racing division of the major leagues. The Nationwide Series is the challenge racing division, and the Sprint Cup Series is the endurance division. This is more akin to the Midget, Sprint, and Triple Crown divisions of USAC than it is to the different levels of baseball.

The only thing that NASCAR is concerned about who races in which series is whether or not they qualify for the event, or if the driver is licensed to drive in the event. A suspended driver who is suspended due to NASCAR drug policy, for instance, is not licensed to participate in a NASCAR event, though that driver may participate in racing sanctioned by a different sanctioning body, such as ARCA or USAC.

In other words, a driver is a Sprint Cup driver if he qualifies for a Sprint Cup race, a Nationwide driver if he qualifies for a race in that series, or a Camping World Truck Series driver, if he qualifies for a Truck Series race. There is, otherwise, no official designation for a driver to race in a particular series.

The Nationwide Series is a challenge series because it gives drivers a chance to challenge, that is, to see how they measure up against, more experienced drivers. That is how it works in theory, and it often works out that way in practice. Unfortunately, since it is mainly the sponsors who determine who drives what car in the series, it is not perfect, nor is it possible for any up and coming driver to make a name for him- or herself in the series. These days, in reality, a driver almost has to have already made his or her name elsewhere. But that is not because there are Cup Series regulars participating in the Nationwide Series. Cup Series regulars race in the Nationwide Series because of the sponsors.

In nearly every race since the former Busch Series began in 1982, there has been at least one full time Cup driver participating. It wouldn't really be a challenge series if there were not Cup drivers involved. Furthermore, it is not necessary for a driver to win races or championships in the Nationwide series in order to become a Cup series driver.

How many drivers are in the Cup Series because of their performance in the Nationwide or Busch Series? Not very many. Jimmie Johnson, the three consecutive time Sprint Cup Champion, had only one win and sixteen top ten finishes in the Nationwide Series, out of 72 races, before he became a full time Sprint Cup driver. Joey Logano never even raced a full season in the Nationwide Series before he became a full time Sprint Cup driver. In fact, the only drivers I can think of who are or will soon be full time Sprint Cup drivers solely because of their performance in the Nationwide or Busch Series are Martin Truex, Jr, Kyle Busch, Brian Vickers, Brad Keselowski (not yet full time, but soon will be), Dale Earnhardt, Jr (or is part of it because of his name?), and Matt Kenseth. With the exception of Jeff Gordon, who had three Busch Series wins and 25 top tens out of sixty-one races, there is no other driver currently in the Sprint Cup series who had what would be called a notable record in the Nationwide or Busch Series. I may have missed some, so feel free to correct me in the comment section.

A few weeks ago, Jenna Fryer--the NASCAR beat reporter and gossip columnist for the Associated Press--was on NASCAR Now's "Monday Round Table" and suggested that NASCAR do away with the Nationwide Series. This would create a similar situation to what we had before 1982. There probably would be sixty to eighty teams show up on qualifying day for the Sprint Cup races. Those that consistently fail to qualify would soon drop out of NASCAR competition entirely, due to lack of the funds necessary to have a car that would be able to qualify. For those teams, the Nationwide Series is a good thing, just as the Busch Series was in 1982.

For the record, I don't agree with Jenna Fryer's suggestion, and am only mentioning it for the purpose of discussion.

One might very well ask, "If the Nationwide Series is part of the NASCAR big leagues, then why doesn't it have the prestige of the Sprint Cup Series?"

And that is a good question, but my guess is that it isn't because it doesn't have as many fans as the Sprint Cup Series. If the same number of fans followed the Nationwide Series as do the Cup Series, the level of prestige would be about the same, as would be the level of sponsorship. At any rate, it would be even more difficult to achieve those levels without the participation of popular Sprint Cup drivers.

Think about this: would the victory by Brad Keselowski in Saturdays US Cellular 250 have been as important or exciting if Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards weren't in the race? There is no way to be sure, but probably not. It is generally better for a Nationwide driver to win against Kyle Busch than it is to win against Kurtus Davis.

The Nationwide Series could be better, of course. It could, for instance, race only at tracks that are one mile in length or shorter. This would likely change the perception of the series from "Cup Light" to a series that has it's own unique identity. But the question remains, "would people watch it?"

Dirty Mouth?

Photo Credit: David Griffin/Nascar Scene

Allstate Insurance has announced they will not be renewing their contract to sponsor the Brickyard 400 next year. I can't blame them, because ESPN never once mentioned the name Allstate in association with the Brickyard 400. As old school race fans, we love the fact that it was referred to as the Brickyard 400 and not the Allstate 400, but the sponsor of a race at least deserves some mention, as in "The Brickyard 400 presented by Allstate Insurance."

This is not the first time ESPN has neglected a race sponsor. They did the same thing with MBNA at Dover a couple of years ago. If the race sponsor does not buy advertising on ESPN, then it is the broadcaster's prerogative to ignore that sponsor. But, one would think that there would be some common courtesy involved.

In the article featured on Chicago Tribune.com, Allstate did not mention ESPN:

"The contract was up and we're always reviewing our properties and how they perform," Allstate spokesman Raleigh Floyd said. "We enjoyed working with them, and the fans are probably the most loyal in sports, but our other sponsorships were just performing a little better."

Now, if only "Allstate Insurance" had been mentioned in association with the race, that would have shown the sponsorship to be performing a little better.

Allstate's departure opens the door to other sponsorship opportunities. After seeing Jimmie Johnson, his crew, his wife Chandra, and Miss Sprint Cup Monica Polumbo kissing the bricks, I imagined them all standing up afterwards with their lips coated with tire rubber, oil, and bits of speedy-dri, and thought "This would make a great Orbit commercial."

Think about it--Orbit would be making a big mistake to pass up this opportunity. They don't have to call it the "Clean Up Your Dirty Mouth 400" or anything like that. "Orbit Presents the Brickyard 400" would be just fine.

On Type Delay: The Brickyard 400

Indianapolis Motor Speedway is so big, that even if the stands are only half full, there are still 125,000 fans attending. To put things in perspective, for Sunday's Brickyard 400,. the stands were only half full, but there were still enough fans in attendence to nearly double the amount of fans at a Chicago Cubs game.

Of course last year's NASCAR version of Formula 1's 2005 US Gran Prix "Tiregate" made many fans cold to stock car racing at IMS, or else there would have been a few more in the stands. Or maybe not. Due to the state of the economy at this time, many people who would have been there probably had other priorities, and just didn't have the money to attend.

At any rate, there is always a lot of pre-race hype whenever there is a race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, which turned 100 this year. There is a lot of work for NASCAR and Goodyear to do to regain the confidence of race fans in that the disaster of last year can be left behind. And the tires were what all the pre-race hype was all about this year. Driver after driver, and many crew chiefs were interviewed on the subject, and all had high praise for what Goodyear has done to improve the tires. They even ventured that Goodyear's research on tire development because of last year's fiasco could improve racing overall.

It's cool that they are broadcasting the driver introductions. Dale Earnhardt, Jr gets the loudest cheers, followed by Bill Elliot and Tony Stewart. Jimmie Johnson gets cheered more loudly than does Jeff Gordon, who claims Indiana as his home state. Interesting. Near silence for Sam Hornish, Jr, who is an Indianapolis 500 winner and three time IRL champion. There don't seem to be many open wheel fans at IMS today.

So we put last year behind us as the race begins and before the first lap is finished, Robby Gordon spins out and the race is under caution. Elliott Sadler's car is smoking, and black flagged. Martin is officially scored as the race leader and restarts the field on lap five.

Martin's car gets a little loose on the restart, and Montoya passes him for the lead. Dale Earnhardt, Jr moves into second, but Martin regains that position a few laps later.

This is a good indication that the changes made on behalf of Junior a few weeks ago may be paying off. While Montoya checks out on the rest of the field, Junior is able to stay in or near the top five. This is the best we've seen the #88 car perform all season.

Green flag pit stops begin on lap 30. Everybody takes four tires and fuel. Kurt Busch has to return to the pits for a loose wheel, and falls back to 35th position, one lap down. After all the pits stops are completed, Montoya maintains the lead by a little over two seconds.

On lap 45, it looks like Denny Hamlin is out of the race, for all practical purposes, with a broken drive shaft.

On lap 59 the caution flies after Kyle Busch loses a right front tire and hits the wall. He takes his car to the garage. We are witnessing a tranformation in the works as Kyle is interviewed while they are working on his car. The kid is trying to improve his image, and if he keeps it up, he just may do that. It is always interesting to watch a driver mature before our eyes, and is just another good reason to be a NASCAR fan.

Restart on lap 63, with Montoya still in the lead. Mark Martin is second, followed by Brian Vickers, Greg Biffle, and Jimmie Johnson. Tony Stewart is sixth, and after the green flag waves, gets into a great race for fifth with Johnson that lasts for several laps. It's too bad we can't see that battle as it continues. It makes us wish TNT was still carrying the broadcast race coverage.

The battle for fifth between Stewart and Johnson continues until green flag pit stops begin on lap 90. After the pit stops cycle through, Montoya leads Martin by five and a half seconds. Brian Vickers is third, Jimmie Johnson is fourth, and Tony Stewart is fifth. Now a battle for third ensues between Vickers and Johnson. Stewart is playing it safe, holding his position and enjoying the view of the racing in front of him, as he saves fuel and his car.

Why do we want to watch a race that is basically a single file parade? My reason is that there is still a lot that can happen. Since the middle of the 1950's, NASCAR at the Grand National (Cup) level has been as much about endurance and stamina as it has been about racing, with all the 400 and 500 mile races on its schedule. Anything can happen. There could, for instance be another caution, and with the lead lap double file restart, the top positions could be shaken up. Or something else can happen, like the race leader getting a pass through penalty for speeding on pit road.

And that is what happens. Montoya enjoys a routine pit stop, which should be the last of the race, on lap 126, and gets cited for speeding on pit road. This means he will have to serve a pass through penalty. Although I'm not much for conspiracy theories, those fans who subscribe to the Hendrick Conspiracy will have a heyday with this. Does anyone actually use the word "heyday" anymore? And what does it actually mean?

Oh, my, on lap 128, Dale Earnhardt, Jr's engine literally explodes as he is making his entrance to the pits. This is very sad as Junior has been running mostly in the top seven all day, having a great race day. Now it appears that Teresa Earnhardt has had access to the Hendrick garage is has been sabotaging engines again, or maybe it's Tony Eury, Jr--who is still a Hendrick employee, but secretly still works for Teresa--has been doing her dirty work for her.

Okay, I'm just making things up, but the demise of Junior's engine will provide even more fodder for the conspiracy theorists. Junior says he might have let the clutch slip as he was down shifting and over-revved the engine.

It takes a while to clean up the oil spilled from the engine of the 88 car, and pit road is closed. The restart finally comes on lap 137. Mark Martin is in the lead, Johnson second, Greg Biffle is third, Tony Stewart fourth, and Brian Vickers is fifth. Montoya restarts in twelfth. Johnson quickly gets by Martin and takes the lead.

With four laps to go, Johnson is negotiating lapped traffic, and Martin is catching him. This could be a great finish. Martin will not let up, so Johnson can't let up. This final laps race was worth waiting for. With one lap to go Martin has caught Johnson several times, especially coming out of turn two, but Johnson has held him off every time. Martin has one more chance coming out of turn two of the final lap. Johnson holds on to the lead, and becomes the first driver to kiss the bricks two years in a row.

There was a great battle for third between Biffle and Stewart during that final lap, but we didn't get to see it because ESPN isn't TNT. Stewart prevailed and finished third, Biffle fourth--a great effort for his team. Brian Vickers was fifth, followed by Harvick, Kahne, Reutimann, Jeff Gordon, and Matt Kenseth. Montoya, who lost the race because of a tiny little mistake, finished eleventh. Denny Hamlin finished thirty-fifth, Kyle Busch thirty-eighth, and Kurt Busch finished twenty-seventh, all of whom were in the top twelve. The race for the cut for the Chase has been shaken up and is tighter than ever.

It wasn't the most exciting race in the world, but it held our attention. This was actually the first real race at IMS with the Sprint Cup car, or COT, as most people call it. I don't count last year, because we never got to see what the car would do on a long green flag run. This race was clean and green, for the most part, and we saw that the COT has the same problems with closing and passing as did the aero car. But we must remember that the Sprint Cup car is still a work in progress, and the racing may be better next year. Personally, I think the racing would be better if, aside from the road courses and the RP tracks, the longest track on which the Cup cars raced was Darlington, but we know that won't happen. Meanwhile, we must be patient.

Sprint Cup Off-Weeks Can Be Fun (Corrected)

It's almost like being in the off-season without the angst. Instead of three months, over which withdrawal symptoms set in, it is, after all, only one week.

The activity on most of the NASCAR fans forums has died down a bit, without a Cup race about which to speculate. What talk there is, is about the Mayfield Saga, great soap opera material if there ever was any. It pits conspiracy theorists against rationalists, and leaves the rest of us wondering how it got to be this way. Monte Dutton wrote a very concise and clear assessment of the situation on NASCAR This Week, entitled "Stinking Contest." Dutton points out what the whole thing boils down to in very few words:

It seems like middle ground is impossible now. Either Mayfield is an addict in denial, or he's the target of a vast conspiracy. Either he's Leonardo DiCaprio in "The Basketball Diaries" or he's Cary Grant in "North by Northwest." Now it's in the lawyer's hands, and they're going to hurl words like haymakers.

Personally, I wonder if Mayfield had accepted NASCAR's terms first, then began his quest to clear his name later, it might have been easier on both him and NASCAR. But, if you know anything about Mayfield's history, that is not the way he rolls.

While we are on the NASCAR This Week page, let me draw your attention to the Guest Column, written by yours truly. While I don't think I really deserve to be on the same page as Monte Dutton, I can't help but to feel honored by being there. An opportunity for shameless self-promotion never escapes me, however.

Can you believe that Kyle Busch has done nothing to piss anybody off this week? Wait, the Nationwide race hasn't been run yet. It will be run at one of my favorite tracks, Gateway. This is a 1.25 mile track similar in shape to the beloved Darlington Raceway. Though Gateway is similar in shape, the banking is flatter, and turns one and two,at the narrow end are more like turn three and at Pocono than turns three and four at Darlington. It should make for an interesting race, with Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Kevin Harvick, and Reed Sorenson being the only Cup drivers in the mix. For those who can't wait for Kyle Busch to do something to send them off in a fit of rage, it is a must see.

The Truck Series is always fun. It is also easy to lose track of, since it doesn't run every week. Kentucky Motor Speedway is the venue, and the local fans are very loyal. This is probably the largest stand alone crowd the series will see on its schedule, and the drivers will certainly put on a good show.

Kevin Harvick has let it be known that he wants out of the final year of his contract with Richard Childress Racing. The common feeling among sports writers is that he is looking for a seat with Stewart Haas Racing. That is not too far-fetched, as Tony Stewart and the Harvicks (aka Kevlana) have a long and tightly knit friendship. With GM pulling support from Kevin Harvick Incorporated, an association with SHR would give KHI better resources through their own association with Hendrick Motor Sports.

However, Stewart himself, though saying that SHR could field a third team, has not definitively said that they would field one in 2010. Childress has said that he will hold Harvick to his contract, and that Harvick's sponsor, Shell Pennzoil, is staying with RCR. Though this sounds similar to what J.D. Gibbs said about Stewart leaving last year, we are going to stick our neck out and say that Harvick going to SHR in 2010 ain't gonna happen. If we are wrong, then we are two for two on "important" silly season stuff, and we prove that we never learn.

Maybe, this weekend has given us a chance to get our writing chops back, and we can come out of our slump. There is always something to write about concerning NASCAR, and,though we usually like to find something about which nobody else is writing, we are sure to find many fun topics.

But whether we find something new to write about or not, we are going to have fun this weekend, and we hope that all our friends have fun as well. Even if Kyle doesn't piss us off.

On Type Delay: The Chicagoland Lifelock 500

Every time there is a race at one of the intermediate tracks--the 1.5 or 2 mile tracks with relatively flat banking--I always hope that maybe, this time, we will see some racing for the lead. They always seem to allow the driver who takes the lead pull out way ahead of the rest of the field. On tracks that are nice and wide, like Chicagoland, there are few cautions that would tighten the field back up.

The characteristics that allow side by side racing for the lead don't seem to be the characteristics of these so-called "cookie cutter" tracks. It was difficult to pass for the lead with the aero-car that NASCAR Cup teams used until 2008. The hope was that the different aerodynamics and the parity built into what is now the Sprint Cup car would solve some of those problems. So far it hasn't, but we should remember that the new car is still a work in progress. That is why we hope that each race at a certain track would be better than the one before it.

The Team Red Bull Toyotas of Brian Vickers and Scott Speed are on the front row at the start of the race. Speed falls back, but Vickers takes the lead and opens a gap between himself and the rest of the field. Johnson quickly takes second, and begins to gain on Vickers. Vickers holds the lead for ten laps before Johnson passes him. Johnson soon has a two second lead over the rest of the field, and begins lapping cars by lap 30. There is a caution for debris around lap 39.

Mark Martin comes out of the pits first, and Johnson loses six positions on pit road. Brian Vickers comes out second. Restart on lap 44. He started in the fourteenth position, and it didn't seem to take him long at all to get to the front. Johnson's car is still pretty strong, and he gets back into third place in no time at all, a benefit of the double file restart. Other cars that seem strong are those of Brian Vickers, Paul Menard, Dale Earnhardt, Jr, Kurt Busch, Kasey Kahne, Clint Bowyer, and Tony Stewart. Most of the others seem to be having handling problems of one sort or another. Kyle Busch has big problems as he hits brushes the wall and knocks the rear end of his car out of alignment. But his car is not the only car that meets the wall on the curving backstretch.

Green flag pit stops begin after lap 89, and after they cycle through, Martin retains the lead and continues to lap slower cars. There are a lot of problems on pit road, and many cars lose position, due to penalties and pit errors.

Caution for debris on lap 131. All the lead lap cars hit pit road. At the restart on lap 136, the top five are Mark Martin, Jimmie Johnson, Kasey Kahne, and Tony Stewart.

On lap 165, the top five are Martin, Johnson, Kahne, Stewart, and Vickers. Hamlin takes fifth a few laps later, and Vickers falls back to seventh. Green flag pit stops begin on lap 185. Stewart almost hits AJ Allmendinger's car as he is leaving his pit box, and Allmendinger is enterint his, but disaster is barely avoided. When the pit stops cycle through, it's Martin, Johnson, Hamlin, Kahne, and Stewart in the top five. Kyle Busch's team reports that the 18 car has dropped a cylinder. He is having a very bad night.

Paint jobs that look very cool under the lights: the 24, 14, and 99 cars.

Caution for debris on lap 211. Everybody pits, and this might be within the window to make this the final pit stop. Martin barely beats Johnson off of pit road. Stewart's crew drops a lug nut and he falls back to fifteenth. At the restart on lap 215, it's Martin, Johnson, Hamlin, and Kahne in the top four.

On lap 219, Sam Hornish Jr hits the wall and brings out the caution. The top five at the restart are Martin, Johnson, Vickers, Hamlin, and Kahne at the restart with 44 laps to go.

Johnson beats Martin on the restart, and takes the lead. Further back in the field, Earnhardt, Jr slides up the track and makes contact with Menard. Paul Menard's car brushes the wall, cuts a tire, and turns hard left, collecting a couple of other cars, including the unfortunate #31 car of Jeff Burton, and bringing out the caution once again. Jeff Burton does not like the double file restart.

At the restart with 35 laps to go, Johnson takes the outside lane, and after racing with Martin for a quarter of a lap, pulls out ahead of the pack. Vickers moves into second. Martin is third, Hamlin is fourth, and Kahne is fifth. Keselowski, who started twenty-ninth, now moves into the top ten.

With 25 laps to go, it's Johnson, Vickers, Martin, Hamlin, Kahne, Bowyer, Kurt Busch, Jeff Gordon, Carl Edwards, and Brad Keselowski in the top ten. Caution with 21 to go after David Reutimann brushes the wall. Most of the cars on the lead lap from the eighth position on back pit. The restart is with 16 to go, with Johnson leading, followed by Vickers, Hamlin, Martin, Kahne and Bowyer. Vickers beats Johnson on the restart, Hamlin moves up and is racing wheel to wheel for the lead. This is exciting. Vickers gets a little into Hamlin, and Martin gets the opportunity to move by the leaders and takes the lead. Jimmie Johnson and Kurt Busch are having a battle for sixth that is taking casualties. Johnson gets into Busch and Busch retaliates, causing more damage to the 2 car than the 48 car. Newman and Stewart take advantage of the shanannigans and move into fifth and sixth.

With nine to go, the engine in Kyle Busch's car finally gives out, and the caution comes out once again. The restart with four to go has Mark Martin in the lead, Gordon second, Kahne third, Hamlin fourth, and Stewart fifth. Martin gets a great restart, and opens a gap on Gordon. Kahne races Gordon for second, takes it momentarily, then Gordon takes it back. Stewart moves into fourth. At the checkers, it's Martin, Jeff Gordon, Kahne, Stewart and Hamlin in the top five. Newman, Bowyer, Johnson, Edwards, and Juan Montoya fill out the top ten.

By finishing 1-2, in the same order they did at the Michigan Lifelock 400, Mark Martin and Jeff Gordon get to split a $1,000,000 bonus. In addition, a lucky fan got a $1,000,000 check from Lifelock. I wish I had signed up for Lifelock. Now the fees will go up and I will never be able to afford them.

Mark Martin gets his fourth victory of the season. If he is in the top twelve in points after Richmond, in September, at this point in time he is the leader in Chase Bonus points, with 40. I'm starting to agree with the writers like Terry Blount who suggest that NASCAR needs to add yet another ten championship points for a win. That would eliminate the possibility that a driver with the most wins would miss the Chase. It is scary to think about the backlash that would come about if Martin doesn't make the Chase now. There would probably be riots.