Final 2011 Brickyard 400 Preview

            After two packed days of on-track action, the field is set for the 18^th running of the Brickyard 400. Leading the field to the green flag will be David Ragan and Kasey Kahne. Ragan bumped Jimmie Johnson from the pole position on Saturday with a speed of 182.944mph, and then Kasey Kahne claimed the second spot with a speed of 182.927mph.

                                                     
                                                      Starting line-up

1- #6 David Ragan

2- #4 Kasey Kahne

3- #48 Jimmie Johnson

4-#22 Kurt Busch

5- #2 Brad Keselowski

6- #43 A.J. Allmendinger

7- #42 Juan Pablo Montoya

8- #24 Jeff Gordon         

9- #17 Matt Kenseth

10- #99 Carl Edwards

11- #13 Casey Mears

12- #5 Mark Martin

13- #31 Jeff Burton

14- # 11 Denny Hamlin

15- #27 Paul Menard

16- #1 Jamie McMurray

17- #47 Bobby Labonte

18- #16 Greg Bifle

19- #29 Kevin Harvick

20- #20 Joey Logano

21-#9 Marcos Ambrose

22-#99 Dale Earnhardt Jr.

23-#39 Ryan Newman

24-# 14 Tony Stewart

25-# 21 Trevor Bayne

26-# 33 Clint Bowyer

27-# 78 Regan Smith

28-# 00 David Reutimann

29-# 18 Kyle Busch

30-#56 Martin Truex Jr.

31-#83 Brian Vickers

32-#51 Landon Cassill

33-#36 Dave Blaney

34-#37 Scott Speed

35-#66 Michael McDowell

36-#87 Joe Nemechek

37-#34 David Gilliland

38-#60 Mike Skinner

39-#71 Andy Lally

40-#50 T.J. Bell

41-#7 Robby Gordon

42-#32 Mike Bliss

43-#23 Terry Labonte

             I’m extremely excited to see my favorite Allmendinger starting 6^th. I had not seen him even hit 180mph in practice on Friday or Saturday. Then he comes out and goes 182.445mph. I know he’s been working on his race setup, so he’ll be a contendor on Sunday.

                
            In my earlier preview I gave six drivers who I thought would be the biggest threats to win. Those drivers were: Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Carl Edwards, and Juan Pablo Montoya. After seeing how everybody did in practice and where they’ll be starting, I would remove Tony Stewart and Kevin Harvick. Both are starting towards the back of the field

                
            I would then put in Matt Kenseth and Greg Bifle. These two are driving Fords and are a part of the Roush-Fenway Racing team. This is the same team as pole-sitter David Ragan and points leader Carl Edwards. Roush has never won at Indy, but this is the best chance they’ve ever had.  

                
            The significance of these guys driving Fords is the engine in their cars, the FR9. This new engine is able to perform at higher temperatures than other manufacture’s engines, which is vital at Indy with temperatures expected to be in the 90’s on Sunday. Plus all the extra horsepower that’s needed to get down the front and back stretch.

                
            So if I had to pick one driver to win who would I pick? My heart says Jeff Gordon or Jimmie Johnson (or Allmendinger!), but my brain is saying Kenseth or Edwards. I’ll go with Kenseth as the favorite and Allmendinger as the underdog.

                
            Be sure to tune into the race! Green flag is at 1:20 EST on ESPN. Look for my girlfriend, brother, and me on TV too, we’re sitting at the end of Turn 4.

Sprint Cup at Half-way Point: Part 1

            The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series has hit the halfway point. 18 races have been completed, and 18 are left to go to decide the champion of the 2011 season. Seven races have been completed since I last wrote about the Sprint Cup series, and a lot has happened in those couple months.

               

            Carl Edwards has been the points leader almost the entire season, but after the race at Daytona two weeks ago, Kevin Harvick took over the lead. Then Kyle Busch won the inaugural race at Kentucky Speedway last Sunday and took over the points lead from Harvick.

                Top ten in points, with amount of wins in parenthesis:

1. Kyle Busch (3)

2. Kevin Harvick (1)

3. Carl Edwards (3)

4. Kurt Busch (1)

5. Jimmie Johnson (1)

6. Matt Kenseth (2)

7. Jeff Gordon (2)

8. Dale Earnhardt Jr.

9. Ryan Newman

10. Denny Hamlin (1)

                The next eleven in points:

11. Tony Stewart

12. Clint Bowyer

13. Juan Pablo Montoya

14. Greg Bifle

15. David Ragan (1)

16. Paul Menard

17. Kasey Kahne

18. A.J. Allmendinger

19. Mark Martin

20. Joey Logano

21. Brad Keselowski (1)

               

            I threw in the 21^st place driver because of the new "Wildcard" rule for the Chase for the Sprint Cup, NASCAR's playoff system.The top 10 drivers in the points standing after the 26th race are in the Chase. Then the two drivers outside the top 10 but inside the top 20 that have the most wins will also be in the Chase. If Brad K. can get into the top 20 then he will be eligible for the Chase, along with David Ragan.

               

            A big change in the points standings since the last time I covered the Sprint Cup Series has been the declining performance of Dale Earnhardt Jr. At one point, Jr. was 3^rd in points, now he’s 8^th. In the past four races he’s finished 19^th or worse, including a 30^th place finish last race. The one race Jr. is winning? The 2011 Sprint Cup’s Most Popular Driver Contest!

               

            But for every driver moving back, one has to be moving forward. That driver would be Jeff Gordon. Gordon has been on a tear since his win at Pocono last month. Since the Pocono race he’s finished 2^nd, 6^th, 10^th, and 17^th (those finishes are not chronological). He’s moved from 13^th to 7^th and with 2 wins this season he’s basically a lock for the Chase.

               

Jeff Gordon celebrating at Pocono

               

            If you recall, I made some very bold predictions for what would happen over the course of 15 races until the Chase. I said that Tony Stewart, Ryan Newman, and Kurt Busch would all need to step it up to make the Chase. That is holding truth for Stewart and Newman, who sit 11^th and 9^th in points, respectively. Neither driver has any wins, nor has any driven appeared to be able to compete for a win. Kurt Busch is the one I whiffed in. Busch got a win at Sonoma and sits comfortably at 4^th in the standings.

               

Ryan Newman and Tony Stewart, at a much happier time.

           
             I also said that Denny Hamlin, Jeff Gordon, and Greg Bifle would be looking to break into the Top 10. Again, I went 2 for 3. Hamlin has one win and sits 10^th in points, and you already know about Gordon. Bifle has looked very mediocre in the past couple races, and I have no idea why. In the past four races he’s averaged a 19.5 finishing position.

               

            A lot of folks are freaking out about how "human" Jimmie Johnson has looked recently. The five-time champion is lacking in the win column compared to past years but there is no reason to lose faith in him. He has won five straight titles, and is still my favorite to win the 2011 Championship and make it six-straight.
            
            A.J. Allmendinger, my favorite driver, has gone off the deep end quickly. He had one good race at Sonoma, but besides that he’s finished nowhere near the front of the pack. At one point, this guy had a real chance to make the Chase. I’m not so sure now. He is always good at Indy though, and you can't count him out at Watkins Glen (a road course).