Jeff Gordon was named the first quarter winner of the 2007 Driver of the Year award. Gordon led the Nextel Cup Series points after the first eight races with only two finishes lower than fourth. Gordon had four poles, one win and three second-place finishes in the voting period.
RICHMOND, Va. – Jeff Gordon is on a roll and the only thing that may prevent it from continuing this weekend is his recent struggles at Richmond International Raceway. Gordon has won the past two Nextel Cup races and Hendrick Motorsports has won the first three races utilizing the “car of tomorrow” this season. The four-time champion has also opened up a 203-point lead in the points standings over second-place Jeff Burton. But entering tonight’s Jim Stewart 400 (7:30 p.m., Fox), Gordon has not finished better than 30th in his past four races at the track.
“I’ve liked this track and I’ve run well here in the past, but we’ve had such major brake issues the past four races. We’ve improved the aerodynamic, horsepower, grip over the last couple years that we’re going so much faster,” Gordon said. “For some reason, trying to maintain that speed throughout the race has caused used us, more so than some other guys, some major brake issues. “Not that we’re running out of brakes or don’t have enough brakes, we are building up pad on the rotor and it creates a vibration. The last three or four times we’ve been here, all I’ve had is a vibrating brake pedal and we could never work on the car.”
Denny Hamlin seems to have this Car of Tomorrow thing figured out. On Thursday night at Phoenix International Raceway, Hamlin qualified third for the Subway Fresh Fit 500 (8 p.m. ET Saturday, FOX), his third top-10 start in as many COT races. He led 125 laps at Martinsville, second only to Dale Earnhardt Jr. He finished third, after starting from the pole. He led 177 laps in the COT's debut at Bristol, second only to teammate Tony Stewart. But a fuel-pump issue slowed his effort and resulted in a 14th-place finish.
"The guys in the JGR [Joe Gibbs Racing] shop spent a ton of time and effort in preparing these cars and it is pretty clear they hit on something because we have been really strong," Hamlin said. "Really, only some random problems kept us or the 20 [Stewart] from winning at Bristol. "Then we were both good at Martinsville the next weekend so I do feel like we are ahead of the curve at the moment but this sport can change in a hurry. We know we need to keep working hard on these cars, and hopefully win one here."
Hamlin will start in a favorable position for victory at Phoenix. Three races from PIR have been won from the third starting spot, tied with second for most at the track.
Hamlin earned his first career pole at Phoenix, in just his sixth Nextel Cup start, when he took the controls of the No. 11 Chevrolet for the final seven races in 2005. He finished 13th in that race -- a missed lug nut ruined a possible top-five finish -- but was third in his most recent attempt there this past fall.
"Really, no track that we visit reminds me more of racing when I was younger than PIR. I spent my early career running flat tracks in Late Models and this track feels like that to me," Hamlin said. "Put us out there under the lights and you can't get any closer to the Late Models days than here at Phoenix and that is one of the reasons it's my favorite place to race."
Clint Bowyer feels he should have had a better ending to last spring's race at Texas Motor Speedway. “Well, we should have finished in the top 10 last spring but we got some help off of turn two on the last lap and I spun out. So that 19th-place finish doesn’t really reflect how we ran. The fall race was really good for us. I think we can go back there and have a top-five car and possibly race for a win. If I had to call a race for us to win, I think it’s going to be on a mile-and-a-half -- I really do.
In the season’s first six races, Bowyer has earned three top-10 finishes and has only finished outside the top 20 once. He currently enjoys a solid 14.5 starting average and a 14.2 finishing average. The 27-year-old driver has completed 2,020 of the 2,048 total laps run this season (98.63 percent) and is seventh in the championship point standings. Over those same six races last season, Bowyer’s average start was 29th coupled with an 18.8 finishing average. He was 16th in points at this time last year.
“Except for a couple of occasions, things have gone really well," Bowyer said. "Obviously, Las Vegas is a sore spot. I had a really good car and should have finished in the top five. Instead, we wound up wrecked and finished in the back. It’s been a good season so far and for the most part, things are going our way. Hopefully, we can keep Lady Luck on our side and try and control our own destiny.”
Live coverage of the Samsung 500 from Texas Motor Speedway will take the green flag Sunday, April 15 beginning at 1:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). The race will be televised live on FOX and broadcast worldwide on the Performance Racing Network and Sirius Satellite Radio. Qualifying for the seventh of 36 points-paying races on the 2007 NEXTEL Cup schedule will be televised live on SPEED Friday, April 13 at 5 p.m. EDT.
Now it is time for that feature of the week, Spot the Loonie. This week we are asking you to consider the Atlanta Falcon coaching candidates that are being mentioned or have popped up from the dark corner of my mind. Remember it is your job to spot the Loonie. Feel free to call in as soon as you have spotted the loonie.
1) Atlanta will check out Oklahoma’s Bob Stoops who supposedly is high on Atlanta’s wish list. But I don't think he is the loonie.
2) Atlanta will check out former head coach Steve Mariucci who should be considered simply for his past successes. Mariucci’s ties to the Packers Mike Holmgren made him a prime catch in the eyes of the 49ers, who were motivated to end a losing streak against Green Bay. The 49ers had three consecutive defeats to the Packers, two of them in the postseason. In Mariucci, the Niners believed they had somebody who could beat the Packers at their own game.
When the Jets hired Mangini away from Bill Belichick last January, they were in the midst of a six-game losing streak against the Patriots, their A.F.C. East rival and the dominant team of this decade. Today the Jets are preparing for a playoff game on Sunday. Mariucci's name has risen to the top again. Mariucci has the San Francisco pedigree that Blank and McKay are tapped into and has tasted success with the Patriots and Jets to boot. But is he a loonie?
3) Atlanta will check out Mike Martz, who transformed Jon Kitna into a 4,200-yard passer, and should be considered simply for his past successand for his offensive brilliance. Of course, Martz can’t afford to ask for total control and definitely needs a talented defensive coordinator in order to be successful.
Lions offensive coordinator Mike Martz stopped short of taking his name out of the running for potential head coaching vacancies this winter, but he did say he feels "certain" he'll be back in Detroit next year. When asked " Are you going to be here next year?", Martz responded, "Oh, sure. Yeah. I feel certain that I'll be here. Who knows?". Those are words that sound a lot like a loonie.
4) From dark recesses in my mind the name Jimmy Johnson has popped up. This makes sense to me because Arthur Blank could have talked to Jimmy during the season personally since Jimmy is a FOX and NFL broadcaster without it raising su####ions. A smart businessman does not fire a coach without already having a replacement in hand. I don't like Arthur's style, but he has a history of making fast decisions. And he has proven himself a smart business man with Home Depot.
Jimmy could be announced tommorrow. He was crazy enough to coach under Jerry Jones. And he is used to coaching questionable characters at "the U" and in Dallas. I may be out on a limb here but it makes sense to me. Call it a seventh sense if you want to. But I'm feeling it. Ladies and gentleman, Jimmy Johnson is a loonie.
Despite recent improvements in the past four games by the Atlanta defense, the pass D still ranks 25th in the NFL. And this week there is no weak replacement quarterback named Chris Weinke on the opposite side of the ball. Yes, there is a replacement, but he's not weak. Jeff Garcia has proven to be anything but that.
The Eagles still bring the 3rd best pass offense into Sundays game that kicks off at 4:00 p.m. eastern on FOX. Can the Falcons step up and stop it? I doubt it. Indeed, in my opinion the pass D is likely to be the log that breaks Mora's back.
The Philadelphia Eagles passing game is averaging 250 yards each contest while the Atlanta defense gives up 220 yards per game. So, I look for the Eagles to get around 240 yards off of the Falcons. That will likely give the Eagles the offensive edge and allow them to win the game. My prediction, Eagles 21 Falcons 19. Oh yes, and, unfortunately in my opinion, Mora gets fired.
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