Track Smack: Loudon

The Winston Cup Series moves to New England -- one of the official tracks of Track Smack, but only because Rodman considers it home.

Pretty sappy weekend with Sauter and Harvick winning, eh?

Tim Packman: Why would you call it sappy? You can't see a good team have a good weekend? Especially after the year Richard Childress and the gang has been having. Heck, Robby Gordon represented with a top-10 effort, as well.

Marty Smith: Sappy for who? I thought it was awesome. I think for Sauter it was a huge confidence-builder. He's never done anything but win, and he'd been struggling pretty badly. He came into a boatload of pressure, too, with ACDelco having been so successful with Junior and Kev. As for Harvick, it was only a matter of time. That dude's got an inferno lit under his rear now.

Ryan Smithson: I was surprised both drivers have pulled themselves out of their ruts so quickly. It will definitely be a huge shot in the arm for both and it won't be their last win of the year.

Dave Rodman: Sappy? Johnny is a winner -- once he got his head back together, look out -- as I have said before, the kid could rip off three or four straight.

Marty Smith: Sauter won 10 races and the ASA championship last year -- as a freakin' rookie. That's awesome. And with Kev and his new crew obviously hitting on all eight, he could win a few here coming up.

Tim Packman: Sappy. What kind of a word is that to use in racing, anyhow? This is NASCAR, not the Hallmark Channel.

Marty Smith: Hallmark has a channel?

Tim Packman: You must have just basic cable, Marty.

	Johnny Sauter finally had something to grin about. Credit: Autostock

Marty Smith: Nope, DirecTV son. Love it, too, other than the fact that my receiver screws up all the time. I have to knock the crap out of it to get it back straight. Kinda like Rodman with a rental car.

Dave Rodman: It'd the only way. Might not fix it, but you feel a heckuva lot better.

Ryan Smithson: If not, Dave can always inject it with his diabetic needle. Or three. While hitting it with the rental car.

Dave Rodman: Harvick, since he is in Winston Cup land, could fall afoul of too many other pitfalls -- but then again, NHIS is a good track for him so he could just as easily win up here -- in fact, he's racing a truck, so he could win twice.

Ryan Smithson: I will be very impressed if Harvick is able to get back into the top 20 in standings. He's about 240 back of there.

Marty Smith: I won't be a bit surprised, Ryan. Listen to me when I tell you -- He's a new man, and a new driver, right now. He's fired up man. It's been a terrible year, and he's weathered the storm. Now, he couldn't be happier.

Dave Rodman: I think Kevin will get back to the top-15 -- but better than that will be a tough row to hoe.

Ryan Smithson: Rodman, you're crazy if you think Harvick can crack the top-15. He'd have to reel off a Gordon-1998-ish streak.

Even with the win, Harvick is still 28th in the standings. Credit: Autostock

Tim Packman: No way is he going to make the top-15 list by season's end.

Ryan Smithson: Marty -- on a scale of 1 to 10 -- how low was he at the lowest?

Marty Smith: It was pretty bad, man. I'd say 3-ish. He's crafty, though. He never let anyone know how bad it got to him. That deal at Martinsville nearly ate him alive.

Ryan Smithson: I can't believe the stories of him leaving RCR. Leaving the ultimate dream job.

Tim Packman: That's why they were just stories.

Marty Smith: He's under pressure you'll never understand, Ryan.

Ryan Smithson: I mean, like, where the hell would he go? Leave RCR for what?

Dave Rodman: Robert Yates Racing, maybe.

Tim Packman: Oh, I'm sure someone would love to have Kevin in their seat. Signing a sponsor would probably be much easier, too.

Johnny Sauter has a long way to go to catch Scott Riggs in the Busch Series Rookie of the Year chase. Credit: Autostock

Ryan Smithson: Marty -- No, about pressure, that is something no of us will ever experience. To us, pressure means getting to the grocery store before 10.

Marty Smith: Right, Ryan. So don't try to understand what Kev was going through and why he might want to leave. Who knows if he really wanted to or not? But if he did, that's his deal. We have no right to judge.

Tim Packman: That's not pressure, Ryan. Buying groceries is just part of existing. If that pressures you, you need to chill out some. You're way to young for that to get to you.

Ryan Smithson: Marty, I was definitely trying to understand his thought process during the whole Martinsville thing. Sports sociology is a fascinating thing.

Marty Smith: I took a class in that at Radford. It doesn't help me very much as a writer.

Who is still realistically in the Winston Cup title chase?

Marty Smith: I'll go out on a limb and say that the top six in points could still win it all. Rusty's sixth, 171 points out. That's doable if he wins five times.

Tony Stewart is just 157 points behind Sterling Marlin. Credit: Autostock

Tim Packman: I like that the battle is the closest it's been in years for the top-10 spots. But, Marlin and Stewart are entering the strong point of their season. Martin has been consistent and Jimmie Johnson has just not let up since the start. But, Rusty can still figure in the mix with five good races with some good luck for the rest, I think.

Ryan Smithson: Only four guys -- Marlin, Martin, Gordon and Stewart.

Dave Rodman: The top-10 guys right now -- but the difference is a bad race now means you just about drop out of the deal, because your momentum tailspins and if the leader keeps trucking on with less races to catch up your goose is cooked.

Ryan Smithson: To get into the title chase, Rusty has got to start leading some laps and scoring some top-3 runs. He has not done either one of those.

Dave Rodman: The more races that go by, the less and less likely it is that the lead dogs are gonna falter.

Marty Smith: I'd say the next five races will decide it. This stretch of the summer is always crucial.

	Rusty Wallace (left) and Jeff Burton are both winless in 2002. Credit: Autostock

Tim Packman: Marlin's lead has shrunk in the last four races. But, he still maintains I know that Lee McCall can rally those boys to maintain and gain on that lead.

Ryan Smithson: Well, Marlin will back in gear in a month. But the next few races for Marlin won't be pretty.

Marty Smith: Think about it. The crew guys are still remotely fresh. Come October, those boys are gonna be struggling.

Ryan Smithson: Marty, the title is always decided in late July and early August.

Marty Smith: Good work, Smithson. You just said precisely the same thing I did. Nice analysis.

Ryan Smithson: Imitation is the highest form of....

Marty Smith: Ridicule.

Tim Packman: Kissing butt?

Marty Smith: Rodman. You alive son?

Dave Rodman: Being a slack-jawed buffoon.

So, Mike Skinner didn't win at Chicagoland. Y'all got any more brilliant picks for New Hampshire?

Marty Smith: I was right last week.

Tim Packman: For once.

Marty Smith: More than you can say.

Ryan Smithson: I am gonna pick Jeff Gordon again. It seems to jinx him.

	Gordon: Nearing a year Credit: Autostock

Tim Packman: Ryan, heads out on the limb once again.

Tim Packman: Marty, I have been right four times more than you have this year.

Marty Smith: I'll go with Jeff Burton. He's always good there.

Tim Packman: I think it's time for Ricky Craven to get that hometown victory.

Dave Rodman: Hmmm. Robby Gordon was charmed once. We'll see what kind of groove he can get in going back to a place he really likes -- because he has been pretty good at a number of places this season.

Tim Packman: Craven won in Busch and Busch North there. Now, he needs to seal the deal at NHIS. Problem is, if he does his fans will rip out the grandstands.

	Ricky Craven: King of New England Credit: Autostock

Marty Smith: Son, they'd tear the grand stand down if Craven won in Loudon.

Ryan Smithson: They'd also tear it down if Craven won and his car was too low and NASCAR disallowed the win.

Dave Rodman: You know that ain't gonna happen -- but he might lose 180 points, though. Pepsi seat cushions would have nothing on the steel rain that would fly up here.

Marty Smith: Live Free or Die.

Track Smack appears every Wednesday on NASCAR.com. The opinions expressed here are solely those of the participants.

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