Crappafoni Pictures presents to you, in super ultra high definition, this week's version of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, served California style, with tri-tip, fresh vegetables, and the best California wine money can buy. Enjoy!

THE GOOD

Jimmie Johnson: as the race winner, he gets automatic first billing. Home cooking was especially good to JJ this week. (He's from El Cajon, CA) He had such a dominant car, it didn't matter what position he was running, he automatically charged to the front. Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch, beware. He's BAAAAAAAACK.

Roush Fenway Racing: once again, this track was kind to them (aside from Jamie McMurray). Greg Biffle finished 2nd, Matt Kenseth finished 5th, Carl Edwards finished 6th, and David Ragan finished 13th. All Biffle has to do is start at Richmond and he's in the Chase.

Denny Hamlin: for the second consecutive week, he finished third. Another strong run for the #11 team. This gives them some breathing room as the circuit goes to Hamlin's home track. He is 93 points ahead of 13th place David Ragan. He should be able to make the Chase.  

Kevin Harvick: the #29 team had yet another strong top 5 finish. He started 33rd and didn't take long to charge to the front. This is easily the best this team has run at Fontana. Another case of home cooking being especially good to him (He's from Bakersfield, CA) This team is peaking at the right time. He WILL get a win at some point this season. At 160 points ahead of 13th, all he has to do is keep his car clean and have a solid finish and he's in the Chase.

David Reutimann: I've gotta give him some props. He had a strong car all weekend, starting 12th and finishing 8th. This was HUGE as his car hovered around 35th in owner points. Now he can breathe easier. He even led some laps in the race and got the five bonus points. Good job David!!

Kasey Kahne: he SORELY needed a good finish to keep his Chase hopes alive. He got it in the form of an eighth-place finish. He's in 14th place, 44 points behind Clint Bowyer for 12th place.

Honorable Mention: Kyle Busch, Clint Bowyer, Brian Vickers, AJ Allmendinger. 

THE BAD

Robby Gordon: he was nothing more than a field filler. About the only time he was mentioned was when he was in an accident or running slow. Zero laps in the top 10. Yeah, he was bad.

Ken Schrader: at this point in his career, another field filler. While I admire him for his desire to race, his days as a competitive driver are LONG GONE.

Kyle Petty: it's getting brutally painful to watch him race. His best bet would be to hire Terry Labonte full time in that car; at least Labonte has put that car in the top 20 this year.

Paul Menard: nary a single mention of him during the telecast. Should be nicknamed "The Phantom" because it's like he's not there, but his car is.

THE UGLY

None: this race was well-run; only two drivers were shown as out of the race: Joe Nemechek and Johnny Sauter.

Those are my nominees for the race. Feel free to come in with yours!  

The Crappafoni Pictures crew is at the nation's auto capital, Michigan, for a second helping of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, northern BBQ style. Enjoy your postrace meal!

THE GOOD

Carl Edwards: as the race winner, he gets first billing. He had the best car, and his pit crew gave him consistently quick pit stops. A special shout out goes to his Roush Fenway Racing teammates: David Ragan, Greg Biffle, Matt Kenseth, and Jamie McMurray. All five Roush Fenway drivers finished in the top 10. Good job, Cousin Carl and Roush Fenway!

Kyle Busch: for once (it only seems that way) he's not in the top spot. He did have a strong car and led 34 laps. But he didn't have quite enough for Edwards at the end; he thought he had "bad" tires.

Brian Vickers: early on, he looked like he was going to get Toyota's first win at Michigan. He started from the pole and led 21 laps. He spent all but ONE lap in the top 10, when he fell out during a round of green-flag pit stops.

Kevin Harvick: he started somewhere near downtown Detroit (Not really, but it seemed that way. He started 38th.) and worked his way up to an eighth place finish. He was easily the mover of the race, moving up 30 spots. He also gained three positions in the Chase. All in all, a very good points day for Happy and the #29 crew.

Elliott Sadler: he started third, and had a strong car much of the day. He was in the top 10 for 177 of the 200 laps. A very good run for E-Sad. Good job.

THE BAD

Marcos Ambrose: he blew an engine very early in the race and his day ended almost before it began. As the last place finisher, he gets this dubious slot.

Jeff Gordon: the #24 team is in freefall. A 42nd place finish leaves him in ninth place in the points standings, dropping three spots and his bubble is growing larger and larger.

Denny Hamlin: what looked to be a good points day went the other way when his engine blew with five laps to go. He now sits in the hot seat of 12th place in the Chase standings. Nice job of throwing your pit crew under the bus there, pal. I know you're frustrated and that you want to make the Chase oh so bad. The bright spot is that two of the last three tracks are at tracks where he runs well.

Kasey Kahne: he needed a strong finish to solidify his Chase chances. He didn't get it. His car was uncharacteristically bad. In fact, he was off the track for a period of time. When he returned, he was nearly 40 laps down. A 40th place finish just made his bubble a little larger.

THE UGLY

Marcos Ambrose: hate to put him in this category, but I must. We hardly knew ye. He was done so early, he could have been called The Phantom Race Car Driver. All part of the pitfalls of a Cup rookie--he runs very well one week and very bad the next.

Jeff Gordon: unless the #24 team can get out of the death spiral they're in now, they'll be on the outside looking in. While I think they will, they're no lock to be in the Chase.

Those are my nominees for the race. Feel free to come in with yours!   

Crappafoni Pictures presents in high-definition this week's spaghetti western version of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, Philly Cheesesteak Sandwich style.

THE GOOD

Carl Edwards: as the race winner, he automatically gets first billing. Used great pit strategy before the rain delay, and banking on the full race being run. It was, and as a result, Edwards won his fourth race of the year. Good job, Cousin Carl!

Kevin Harvick: overcame a first-lap crash with Field Filler Joe Nemechek (more on him in a later blog) that sent him to 42nd place. Harvick kept battling, and as the race wore on, his car kept getting better and better. May have got a win if not for Field Filler Joe. Also used great pit strategy and a bit of luck at the end (Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. running out of gas late) to finish fourth.

Tony Stewart: Smoke's car also got better as the race went on. Like Edwards and Harvick, Smoke pitted just before the rain delay. A solid and much needed second place finish.

David Ragan: for awhile it looked like he was going to get his first Cup win. Carl Edwards kept that from happening. A very good finish for the second year Roush Fenway driver.

Clint Bowyer: he also pitted just before the rain delay. Like his teammate Harvick, he got stronger as the race wore on. He started 30th; he finished just out of the top 5, in sixth.

Mark Martin: led the most laps, but was also snakebit by pit strategy. He battled back from having to pit late in the race to finish 8th. More on Martin's pit crew later.

Honorable Mention: Jimmie Johnson, Kasey Kahne, Jamie McMurray, Jeff Gordon.

THE BAD

Michael Waltrip: as the last-place driver, he gets automatic billing. He did lead a lap very early in the race, gaining five bonus points before his engine gave up the ghost.

Mark Martin's pit crew: their issues singlehandedly cost Martin the race. Martin had the car to beat; he led the most laps in the race but on three separate pit stops, the crew had issues. They were definitely off their game.

Joe Nemechek: talk about one guy that was definitely off his game! Field Filler Joe tangled with Harvick on Lap 1, then later on he tangled with Paul Menard in a crash that knocked both drivers out of the race. Yeah, he was that bad. Happy, DON'T qualify next to Field Filler Joe at the next race.

THE UGLY

The rain: fortunately it didn't stay long enough to call the race. But it did make for some pretty interesting strategy.

Joe Nemechek: yes, Field Filler Joe was that bad, and he was that ugly. At least he did take responsibility for both crashes.

Juan Pablo Montoya: blown engine. Enough said. At least he had the smarts to exit along a service road.

Those are my nominees for the week. Feel free to come in with yours!!

This week, Crappafoni Pictures brings you an Independence Day celebration of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, grilled BBQ style and served with all the fixin's and the beverage of your choice. Enjoy!

THE GOOD

Kyle Busch: as the race winner, he gets first billing. An extra good for him for coming back from 37th to win. While he had a strong car all race, his car was the best at the end.

Carl Edwards: almost became first billing in this blog. Narrowly lost a drag race with Kyle Busch on the final lap.

Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: had a very strong car throughout the race, and between he and teammate Jeff Gordon, led 96 of the 162 laps in the race.

Mark Martin: his signing with Hendrick Motorsports must have buoyed his confidence, as he finished solidly in the top 5.

Patrick Carpentier: came out of nowhere to finish in the top 10, his first career top 10 on a superspeedway. Of the open wheelers, he seems to be adapting to NASCAR the best.

Joe Nemechek: Front Row Joe scored a HUGE top 5 finish, finishing fifth. It was huge not only for himself, but his team, as they were outside the top 35 in points and had to race their way in.

Honorable Mention: Johnny Sauter, David Ragan, Regan Smith.

THE BAD

Greg Biffle: as the 43rd place finisher, he gets the dubious first billing.

Jon Wood: had to race his way in and very early took his #21 Ford to the garage for major repairs. He returned to finish 7 laps down. He was actually running with the main pack after the major repairs and setup. Could the Wood Brothers go under in NASCAR's ever changing economic landscape?

THE UGLY

The Big One: this happened when Jimmie Johnson spun on the backstretch and collected several cars, among them David Reutimann, who tied a NASCAR record with FIVE free passes, eventually getting back on the lead lap. The cruel irony: Reutimann was back on the lead lap at the time of the accident.  

The Big One, Part II: THIS one happened on Lap 162 and it involved Michael Waltrip, Travis Kvapil, Sam Hornish Jr., and Dave Blaney. TBO, Part II ended the race with Kyle Busch being declared the winner.

TNT's "coverage": while I liked the split screen, there were several instances that they could have cut away from the commercials to report events on the track. One such instance involved Kyle Busch dropping off the pace to 37th at one point.

It is that time of the week where you, Joe Six-Pack Fan, can call out those idiots, malcontents, ingrates, and general all around bad guys for their behavior that so #### you off. Looking around the world of sports, there are PLENTY of sports figures that have earned the dubious distinction of being thrown Under The Bus this week. I have some sports personalities.

NASCAR

Juan Pablo Montoya: his tete-a-tete with Kyle Busch earned him a trip to NASCAR's equivalent of the principal's office, aka The Big Red Hauler. (Not to be confused with Big Red, one of JPM's sponsors) I will come correct on putting Kyle Busch in the Ugly category of an earlier blog, The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly. I will make up for it by throwing JPM Under The Bus.

Tony Stewart's Pit Crew: why on earth did they change two tires when they knew that rain was coming on the horizon? Especially when gas only was working. The crew cost Smoke a possible win. And as a result, Zippy and Company get thrown Under The Bus.

Jamie McMurray: I hate to do this to such a good guy, but I must. It appeared he had plenty of room to go around Dale Earnhardt, Jr. as Junior was entering the pits for his final pit stop. J-Mac plowed into him, tearing up his own vehicle and as he slid to the bottom of the track, he clipped his teammate David Ragan. Ragan lost control and hit the wall, ending HIS day. For being inattentive at an inopportune time, J-Mac goes Under The Bus.

NBA

Shaq: he dissed Kobe Bryant in a freestyle rap at a recent outing at a nightclub in New York City. The Big Chicken#### did this after last week's Who Would You Throw Under The Bus? was posted. Shaq's not escaping. Shaq, where were you when the Finals were being played? WATCHING IT ON TV, like millions of other Americans. Where was Kobe? PLAYING in the Finals. Shaq, grow the hell up. You won a ring without Kobe; give it a rest already. As if Kobe doesn't need any more motivation, this will fuel his fire even more to win a title without you. Shaq, and in the meantime, you get thrown Under The Bus.

Memphis Grizzlies: yes, you got O.J. Mayo. But you paid a pretty steep price to get him. You gave up Kevin Love, Mike Miller, Brian Cardinal, and another player. Meanwhile, the Minnesota Timberwolves improved themselves by getting a fundamentally sound player in Love, a sharpshooter in Miller, and a couple of other serviceable bigs that will add depth to the Wolves' bench. When you allow Kevin McHale to fleece you, it will get you thrown Under The Bus every single time.

NFL

New York Giants: they got rid of the Hefty Lefty, Jared Lorenzen. They got rid of the WRONG QB. They should have got rid of Anthony Wright. For getting rid of the wrong QB, the G-men get thrown Under The Bus.

Houston Texans: it's going to take me a VERY long time to be able to root for this team again. They so screwed up David Carr while he was there he's shot mentally. They NEVER gave him a decent running game and a decent O-line while he was there. They allowed him to be a human pinata. Then AFTER they unceremoniously dump him in favor of Matt Schaub, they FINALLY work on building up a running game and an O-line. If the football gods are listening, the Texans won't win a Super Bowl while Robert McNair owns the team. In the meantime, the Texans get thrown Under The Bus.

MLB

Houston Astros: for allowing the Shawn Chacon/Ed Wade drama to reach new heights. This is one of the most dysfunctional teams in MLB. Drayton McLane needs to sell this team to a local group that WANTS to win. Chacon gets thrown Under The Bus for attacking Wade physically for refusing his orders/requests. Wade gets thrown Under The Bus for escalating the incident. Who's next?

TENNIS

Justin Gimelstob: he called Anna Kournikova a b***h and a #### and said some sexually charged remarks towards her involving his brother. Kournikova, to her credit, is taking the high road. Gimelstob, to his credit, took full responsibility for his remarks and apologized. However, you can't unring that bell. For his egregious lapse in judgment and for putting both feet in his mouth, Gimelstob gets thrown Under The Bus.

Ana Ivanovic: she lost early at Wimbledon. There goes LOTS of guys' reasons to watch Wimbledon in the first place. She's HOT. It wouldn't be so bad if she weren't the #1 seed. But she's the top seed and to lose in the second round IS reason to be thrown Under The Bus.

Those are my nominees for this week. Feel free to come on in with yours!