The 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season is off to a competitive start as we have seen five different winners in the first five races. That trend could continue Sunday.
There are three drivers who dominate Martinsville Speedway, and have yet to win this year. Continue reading Martinsville’s Big Three
Jimmie Johnson loves Auto Club Raceway. It is close to home for the El Cajon, Calif. native, and he is a five-time winner at the track. He also has finished in the top-10 in nine of the last 10 races. By the way, seven of those top-10 finishes were top-three finishes. In addition, Johnson has led 716 laps in the last ten races at Auto Club Raceway, the most out of anyone. In other words, Johnson owns this track.
Johnson has yet to win a race this year, and all signs say that the six-time Sprint Cup Series champion will score his sixth career win at the track. However, this is March, a month synonymous with madness and upsets. Continue reading Auto Club 400 Preview: Six-time looks for sixth win at Auto Club
Bristol Motor Speedway has become synonymous with road rage. As former NASCAR champion, and current analyst on ESPN Dale Jarrett said, “Only one driver will leave Bristol happy.”
Every race seems to have conflict. Last year’s Food City 500 saw Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano scuffle after the race. Hamlin found himself again in the ring in the last race at Bristol.Hamlin triggered a multi-car pileup after his car shot up the track into Kevin Harvick. Hamlin said it was a cut tire that caused him to shoot up the track, but Harvick did not see it that way on the track. Harvick parked in front of Hamlin, exited his car, and stormed over to Hamlin’s car. NASCAR officials had to separate Harvick and the drivers’ pit crews.
Over the years, fans have seen hotheads like Harvick, and Tony Stewart lose their cool, but also drivers like Jimmie Johnson have been caught up in Bristol fever too. Even the female drivers succumb to Bristol fever, as Danica Patrick gave Regan Smith a finger wag in 2012. Now the question is who will lose their cool this year? Will an old rivalry be renewed, such as Kyle Busch vs. Brad Keselowski? Or will Kasey Kahne finally snap? Bristol fever is contagious, and you never know who it will take a hold of next.
Kyle Busch is easily one of the best NASCAR drivers out there right now. Busch has particularly dominated the Nationwide and Truck Series. For instance, he is the all-time wins leader in the Nationwide Series with 64 career wins and counting. However, his home track has eluded him.
Believe it or not, Busch does not have a Nationwide Series win at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. His average finish is 19.8 in the last 10 races there. Busch finished 30th or worse on four of those occasions including three wrecks. This is surprising considering he has a win at the track he despises most: Kansas.
Last season, Busch came so close to getting the monkey off his back. He led 13 laps, but finished second to Sam Hornish Jr., who clearly had the car to beat that day. Hornish led a race-high 114 laps.
Is this the year? Perhaps. Odds are that he will win one before he retires. After all, he was able to find victory lane at Vegas in the Cup Series in 2009. Busch is off to a good start, as he posted the second fastest lap in the opening practice for Saturday’s Boyd Gaming 300.
The NASCAR Nationwide Series races at Phoenix International Raceway has not started yet, and the script appears to have been already set. Fans will expect the finish to be decided by one of the Sprint Cup Series drivers in the event. Last season, the Cup guys won 24 of the 27 companion weekend races on the schedule.
Kyle Busch is the favorite, as he has four victories, and seven top 10 finishes in the last nine Nationwide races he entered at Phoenix. Kevin Harvick, Matt Kenseth, and Brad Keselowski are expected to be Busch’s main threats. Keselowski has been fast all weekend, claiming both Coors Light pole awards, and Harvick has won two of the last three Sprint Cup races at Phoenix.
However, there are two drivers that fans and their competition should keep an eye on in today’s race. The first one is Brian Scott. Yes, the same Scott who wrecked many of Joe Gibbs’ race cars. Since Phoenix International Raceway was reconfigured in 2011, Scott has excelled at this track. With the exception of his first lap crash in November of 2011, Scott has never finished outside the top 15, including two top 10 finishes. He also won a truck race at Phoenix in 2012. Last season, Scott showed a tremendous amount of improvement. He finished 2013 with three top five finishes, 13 top 10’s, and a seventh place finish in the standings, all were career highs. Maybe all he needed was a change of scenery. He moved from Joe Gibbs Racing to Richard Childress Racing in 2013. Scott will line up second in today’s race.
Another driver to keep an eye on will be rookie Dylan Kwasniewski. After crashing in two cars in his first visit to the track, Kwasniewski bounced back with two runner-up finishes in the 2012 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West races at the track. The rookie stole headlines last weekend by winning the pole at Daytona. Now, Kwasniewski will look to build on his early season momentum, and prove he belongs in the Nationwide Series.
The Pace Car 