This Weekends NASCAR Sprint Cup series race takes the cars back to their birth place, or at least in theory. Michigan is the heart of the American automobile and where all the power of NASCAR derives from. Last season there were lots of grumbles from the suits at General Motors, Ford, and Dodge when Toyota joined the series. For years, these automobile executives have used the Michigan NASCAR races as a show of strength, sort of a Super Bowl for automobiles.
The performance of the Toyotas in both Michigan races were not awful, but it was terrible enough to have the suits snicker and gloat about how much muscle their American cars had over the foreigners. However, the funny thing is that the Toyota Camry on sale to the public is actually more American than the 3 competitors on the circuit. The Ford Fusion is assembled in Mexico, The Chevy Impala and Dodge Charger are both put together in Canada, with only the Dodge Avenger actually being put together in the good old USA. The Toyota Camry is made in Georgetown, Kentucky, a place that is about American as it gets.
Coming into this years race, the Toyota’s are a bit more confident considering their horses under the hood have powered the current Sprint Cup series point leader, Kyle Busch, to a series leading 4 wins. Ford and Dodge have dominated over the years at Michigan combining to win the last 13 races in a row. Chevrolet has been a no show, claiming only two Jeff Gordon wins since 1996, as their only opportunity to boast with the bow-tie among their colleagues.
It’ll really be interesting to watch the cringes from the upper brass in the luxury boxes above Michigan Speedway as Toyota makes a serious run for the win while crashing the big motor party. The Joe Gibbs trio of Busch, Tony Stewart, and Denny Hamlin will all be top contenders to win the race with an outside chance given to another Toyota driven by Red Bull Racing’s Brian Vickers.
The favorite for this weeks race is Carl Edwards’ Ford. Based on his performance at Michigan’s sister track in California and his two other wins on 1.5 mile tracks, he will be tough for anyone to challenge.
I'm still seeing instances of teams not being comfortable in their Car of Tomorrow on tracks that the car didn’t run on last season. There are only a few drivers that have shown consistency on all those tracks that are seeing the COT for the first time. Edwards and Busch lead the way as those having a huge edge over the others.
Two of the drivers that did very well in California back in February, yet have fallen off dramatically from their usual consistent dominance are Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson. They finished 2nd and 3rd at California, but have had some days since that look more reminiscent of a Petty team than Hendrick. They admittedly say they didn’t spend as much time and research for the COT on these type of tracks as they did last season when they feverishly prepared for the COT’s first run on the smaller tracks and it truly shows.
I already stated how big of a slump Chevy has been in at Michigan. The slump actually started one race before Johnson started his Cup career. In 12 races there, Johnson only has two top 5 finishes with a best of third coming in the fall race last season. Perhaps the change in car will be a benefit this season, but going winless in the 12 previous races is puzzling because of how similar California and Michigan are and also how dominant Johnson has been at California since winning there as a rookie.
Let’s stay with the trend of a Chevy not winning this week. The due theory is very overrated and if it was played consistently at Michigan and you were a betting man, your bankroll would have evaporated long ago when Bill Elliott took his Ford to the winners circle 6 of 8 races in the mid-eighties.
I really like the concept of seeing Toyota not only winning to the dismay of the American Auto Giants, but maybe even finishing 1-2. Tony Stewart impressed at Charlotte and finished 7th at California. Kyle Busch has been good everywhere, but just for fun we’ll mention his 4th place finish at California.
Happy Fathers Day
Finally, I'd like to wish all the Fathers a Happy Fathers day out there, including my own. It’s ironic once again that the Michigan race in the motor city happens to be on Fathers day because working on American muscle cars of the 60’s and 70’s was something that my father and I did often together.
He’d buy a wrecked GTO, bring it to the garage and go to work on it rebuilding the engine, transmission, body work, paint, and then regrettably for me, end up selling it for a profit. I loved those cars and hated to see them go, but looking back, I love those memories with my father spending countless hours in the garage night after night. He let me help at my leisure, never demanding help, and slowly in time, what looked like work became the most fun thing in my life.
It gave me a love for those muscle cars and in general an appreciation for anyone who could go faster than some one else in any type of motor racing.
It’s been a while, but every once in a while I get the urge to go the junkyard and pick out a mangled 68’ Camaro and drop it off at his garage and say, “Dad, let’s go to have some fun”.
If there is one track on the NASCAR circuit that embodies the roots of NASCAR, it is without a doubt Darlington Raceway, site of this Saturday night’s Cup race. The first race was run at Darlington on Labor Day weekend, 1950 and it was called the Southern 500. That race was run on the same weekend for the next 54 years until coming to a close in 2004.
The move irritated many traditionalists, not just because of losing the date, but because of the wound it made, how symbolic it was, and the lack of success that Labor Day weekend date has now on the track it calls home. Just like the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants after the 1957 baseball season, Darlington’s Southern 500 was moved to California. It gave the loyalists another reason to dislike this expansion age of NASCAR and long for the days when they could see a Cup nearly every few week within 600 of where they lived. Unlike the Dodgers and Giants, who turned out to be one of the most profitable teams in baseball and in the Dodgers case, one of the winningest, California’s NASCAR dates have been a flop.
The California dates do not sell out despite the facility having one of the smallest seating capacities on tour with 90,000. Was it worth it? The objective for NASCAR was to take charge of the number two market and turn them all into rabid fans, just like ones that attended twice a year at Darlington. The France family must have figured that if they hit the top markets enough with their races that TV ratings will go up in those areas during the 34 weeks they aren’t running there. If the ratings are up, then they can charge more for their next Network contract.
Southern California people are a much different breed than those on the South and North Carolina borders and they surely are not going to have the reverence put into each race there as those in the Southeast. In Southern Cal, they really don’t care about the races, whether it stays or goes, whereas, “The Lady in Black” at Darlington was always treated with dignity, respect, and as a part of everyone’s family.
This week the teams will get a real treat on the Day before Mother’s Day. The Gritty shell filled sandpaper asphalt that had become a staple of the tracks’ features has now been replaced by a brand new smooth, modern age asphalt. Tires should last much longer which changes the whole complexion of how the race will be driven.
I always liked Darlington because the track became an equalizer and was just as important to know how to run as it was to have a great set-up and good driver. Certain drivers got it, and others didn’t. Dale Earnhardt Jr, never seemed to get it at Darlington. He may not have ever had the best car there, but he surely wasn’t patient enough from the beginning of a run with fresh tires. Again, these are just my own observations from watching lap times over the years there. I have never actually ever heard anyone criticize him for that. Junior would be ultra fast from the beginning and then tail off miserably for the last half of the run because he wore his tires out too quickly. Rusty Wallace started 43 races at Darlington with great cars and never won because he couldn’t hold back early on for the sake of being better late in the runs.
None of that “saving tire stuff” matters anymore because the surface is much different and those strategies that some of the best Darlington drivers like Dale Earnhardt, David Pearson, and Jeff Gordon used will not be as valuable.
So what should be the key component in identifying who will do the best this week? They used the Car of Tomorrow at this race last year with Jeff Gordon winning for the 7th time in his career there. Denny Hamlin led the most laps and finished 2nd while Jimmie Johnson, a two time winner there, led the most laps for the last 100 miles. It’s more likely that the top finishers this week will resemble what we have seen for the entire season of races, excluding the plate races, which means that Carl Edwards, Denny Hamlin, and Kyle Busch will be at the forefront once again.
Dale Earnhardt Jr fits the current criteria and will have a great shot at besting his Darlington best of 4th because of the new surface.
I'll go with a 1-2-3 of No. 99, No. 11, and No. 88, with a strong look at Mark Martin in the No. 8 going for his first win there since 1993.
All I want to know is, where can I get a "Jordan Barber" graffiti shirt?
There was this shirt I kept seeing on this kid who was a Latino version of "Turtle" from "Entourage" that I couldn't take my eyes off during the Home Run Derby; and better yet, the TV wouldn't allow me to take my eyes off of it because he kept jumping onto my TV using a Domincan Republic flag as a towell to wipe off the foreheads of ballplayers in the middle of their competition.
Was this Pedro Martinez' little brother or someone's little brother?
Is this Kid "Jordan the Barber"?
Does he do all of the Dominican players haircuts? Did he do that fancy job on Manny Ramirez and Vlad Gurrerro"? If so, the blatant attempt at free advertising could have an adverse affect in the San Pedro De Macoris market.
If he did Bartolo Clon's sweet dome, that's another story, because that look is Fresh!
I believe Posse rule number 1 is to look cool at all times with rolling with the dude that has the bankroll. Whoever this kid came with should have explained to him that you don't roll anywhere with airbrush graffiti shirts.
All kidding aside, The kid looked like he had the time of his life. That's all that matters! I think I'm just jealous it wasn't me.
I have always found Chicago to be a bizarre place for a NASCAR race. From the marketing end, you always want to have your product in every big market. Chicago is huge, it’s undeniable; if NASCAR had a chance to get a race there they were going to make it happen.
The only problem I have with it is that each time I visit Chicago, I never meet anyone who likes NASCAR. I don’t venture too much outside of the city, but the people I talk to at the many sports bars I frequent don’t care for it. They like baseball, football, hockey, and sometimes basketball if they get free tickets. This is in no way a perfect scientific survey, it’s just an observation from my time in Chicago with sports fans. They just don’t care about auto racing.
So then I ask, “Why is the track sold out for every event then?”
They reply with, “It’s not us selling it out, it’s all the red-necks from Carbondale and the back woods people from Indiana and Kentucky driving Northward.”
Later I look at a map and see just how close all these places are to each other. Living in Las Vegas, it’s hard to relate because the only thing close to us within a three hour drive is lovely Baker, California. In Joliet, Chicago, a three hour drive radius spans access to several million people. Race fans in Davenport, Iowa make the trip in 2 hours. Indianapolis is about 3 hours away. Milwaukee is only 2 hours away.
So while the actual Chicagoan may not like NASCAR, the Chicagoland area is flocked to by many from the surrounding cities and states. The Midwesterners love NASCAR. Because it’s a once a year thing they can make a trip out of it and see their beloved Cubs as well. Most in that area are either Cubs or Cardinals fans but have also found a fond spot for NASCAR.
After a long discussion with this Southsider he finally says, “If I want to watch it, I’ll just check it out on TV, it’s not like it’s a ball game and you have to be there to get the experience.”
We took a sip from our draft of Pabst and agreed to disagree. There was going to be no talking this guy into seeing something that maybe he was missing. The northern city folk are a tough sell. New York city is pretty much the same thing. Los Angeles has sprinkles of fans throughout but they still don’t go to the races there because they say there is just too much else to do outside in So Cal.
Maybe NASCAR is still a Southern thing in spirit and in hospitality. The folks from the big cities don’t have time for BBQ’s after races. They’re too busy to go to the track early and make some breakfast on the grill. How about spending an entire day with your family and friends?
The culture that is represented at a NASCAR Cup race is what the race is all about. Most of what makes a NASCAR race great has nothing to with the race itself. If it was just about the race, you could watch it on TV. It’s about the people, the people that come from all over the country to gather with each other. While I love many things about big cities, the grass roots approach can’t be duplicated and can’t be beat. That something that combines friendliness and a small town feel is something that NASCAR brings to each race.
Other than that, the only thing I could sell the inner city Chicago sports fan on going to the race besides the beers and brauts is that Bears Head Coach Lovie Smith is going to be the Grand Marshall for the race. Da-Bears!
As for the race action itself on the track, this will be the seventh race run at the Joliet track. The race also kicks off the 2nd half of the season where there will be an 8 race dash to make the Chase for the Championship. The top 12 drivers will make the chase making it a mad scramble over the course of that stretch for drivers sitting 13th through 19th. The diversity of the final 8 race tracks is what really makes it exciting. We have a road course, a bull ring, a funky whatever you want call Pocono track, a couple cookie cutters, and then of course the Brickyard.
Weeks Rank Season In Last Driver Driver Pts Wins Top 12 Week Rating
1. Jeff Gordon 2,773 4 18 1 110.3 2. Denny Hamlin 2,496 1 16 2 99.2 3. Matt Kenseth 2,390 1 16 3 93.8 4. Jimmie Johnson 2,366 4 17 4 109.3 5. Jeff Burton 2,345 1 18 5 91.7 6. Carl Edwards 2,308 1 15 7 93.8 7. Tony Stewart 2,234 0 15 6 99.5 8. Kyle Busch 2,190 1 16 10 96.0 9. Kevin Harvick 2,172 1 17 8 85.2 10. Martin Truex Jr. 2,157 1 6 9 87.6 11. Clint Bowyer 2,142 0 16 11 83.2 12. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 2,040 0 6 12 94.5 __________________________________________________ ______
Top drivers OUTSIDE looking IN to the CHASE
13. Jamie McMurray 1,991 14. Ryan Newman 1,979 15. Kurt Busch 1,919 16. Greg Biffle 1,836 17. J.J. Yeley 1,804 18. Mark Martin 1,774 19. Casey Mears 1,761
