Well it is down to two races to go in the chase. Still too close to call. Can any of the other chase drivers rally up enough gusto to take the lead away from Johnson? Well??? Any body??? How about Gordon?? How about JR.?? How about Hamlin?? Think Kenseth?? What about Harvick??
Ok, we know Stewart will be up front again rubbing in the humiliation of the chase drivers not being able to catch him right?? Well it is about time for at least 3 to 5 of the drivers to take off the binders and lay it all on the line to make a formidable champoinship showing this week end. Can they do it??
Lets look at it this way. The ten drivers are in the chase no matter where they finish in Homestead so they are all safe. They are going to be on the stage getting fat checks, give a speech, and ad lib with a joke at the banquet. Now one driver gets the fattest check. Why not get gutsy for the last two races and be real racers wanting to win a race. Who knows one besides Johnson might win this chase. Of course, that is a risky adventure but hey it might be fun. Why give Stewart all the fun racing??
The drivers owe it to their fans to race like race car drivers. The race teams and owners owe it to their drivers and fans to provide a car capable of winning races even against Stewart. Zippy does it week end and out for Stewart and he is not in the chase. Don't even want to hear Stewart is not under the pressure of a chase cop out.
The question again is who is up to the challenge??? Who is going to put the pedal to the metal and take the lead??? Any body??? Hello???
Good questions. Much as I dislike the guy, Johnson's been real strong lately. As you know, Harvick's on my list right now, so here's to seeing his engine die on lap 1. Several guys are pretty much done for (Kahne, Martin, Busch, Burton), but if I had to pick any one of them to have a great day, it'd probably be Kasey Kahne. He was great at TMS until his engine gave up on him. Gordon's been "there" lately, but I haven't really seen him contend for victories lately, as long as we don't get talking about Atlanta. Kenseth's been relatively consistent, and of course ... Harvick ...
Denny Hamlin's got a long career ahead of him. To be in contention for the Cup with two to go must be a dream come true for a rookie. I'm going to go ahead and toss my two cents out there. Kenseth leads Hamlin at day's end by about 20 points, Johnson about 10 points behind Hamlin.
nphotogr .... I don't suppose the prerequisite thing for Johnson to do now is just to remain conistent and calm. Let his driving do the talking for him and just don't be lured into making any mistakes as concentration is of parallell importance to him now , more so than ever before ! He can't afford to screw this up now and disappoint all his fans. He'd never be able to live it down.
Last edited by tophatal on November 8th at 12:59 PM.
You are certainly correct on Johnson. I would imagine Johnson is going to follow suit in this race compared to his other races. Get up front fast and stay out of the pack where usually a crash is waiting to happen.
Chad Knause is going to have to stay on top of the car tweaks and track conditions so that Johnson will not have any unpleasant surprises.
The rest of the chase drivers I would hope will have the wick turned up in their cars to charge to the front depending on the crews having the car set up to win, not flounder. Based on their prior results, that may not happen.
Of course we can't count out Stewart mixing it up at the front even though he is not in the chase.
I will be down in Florida for a few days so porbably will not have a chance to get internet access untill I get back but I will be watching the next two races though.
Last edited by nphotogr on November 8th at 1:34 PM.
Great read! Good questions too. Of course, I'm a Jr. and Smoke fan, so I want Jr. to win the championship. I have also enjoyed watching the other chasers getting 'smoked' by Tony. :-)
Good to hear from you. Yes it would be pandemonium in the streets if Jr. could clinch this title. I certainly hope he is in good shape now and Eury Jr. has a good car for him the last two races. Of course Smoke is going to have a ball doing what he does too.Winning and dominating.
Sorry for a short reply but had honey do chores to get done. Now I am Back.
Yep I would love to see the pandemonium in the streets if Jr. wins the chase and this race this week end. If that happens, I know they will have to pry you off the light poles in your neighborhood.I would imagine I will probably be up a few poles my self.
Last edited by nphotogr on November 8th at 7:16 PM.
Many years ago as a young un in Brownsville, Fla.,I had a neighbor hood friend with a dry sense of humor and could come up with some pretty funny stuff and never crack a smile. Any chance that might be you????
nphotogr ..... As strange as this season is begnning to turn out. It's got me thinking as to what might've happened had Stewart qualified for the Chase , as I've no doubt that he'd be running away with the lead at this moment in time. Whatever NASCAR chooses to do in the future with regard to tinkering with its procedures I hope that they'll take into consideration the necessicity to equate things and make their points system a lot more fairer.
nphotogr: probably not. I've lived in Connecticut all my life. By most accounts, I'm still a young guy. My bitterness and sarcasm comes from the love of seeing others smile and laugh.
Thanks for the thought, but I'm afraid I'm not the person you're thinking of.
Johnson needs to have really bad luck at the beginning of the race and the next four, namely Kenseth will have to at least have a top 5. The others have a good shot also, esp. Harvick who has had some good runs.
Where you at??? I need you input on the end of the season, or are you just as disgusted as I am at the outcome??? Come on 2007 Season and "You've got it - - -TOYOTA !!!!!!!!! (What can I say, I'm a WaltripManiac ?!?!!!)
Avid auto racing fan and former racing participant for over 40 years. Enjoy all forms of auto racing but found NASCAR sanction to be my favorite followed by GTP and INDY cars. Have raced in SCCA, NHRA, Stock Car, and Modified sanctions in the past.
Getting up in years has regulated me to being a spectator but still find it exciting to go to the races and enjoy the hoopala surrounding the pre and post race festivities. Also find Nature Photography to be a relaxing form of enjoyment and get quite a few opportunities traveling around the country to the races to use my cameras at the tracks and nature preserves.
