Viewer's Guide: Pocono

ATLANTA -- Sunday's Pocono 500 will mark the beginning of the second half of the 26-race stretch that will determine which drivers will make it into the first "Chase for the Nextel Cup."

If the "regular season" were to end today, 10 drivers would make it in. Perhaps more important is the gaggle of top-name drivers who would be on the outside looking in.

Drivers like Jamie McMurray, Kasey Kahne, Mark Martin, Rusty Wallace, Jeremy Mayfield and Dale Jarrett have some work to do just to get into the "Chase."

Tenth-place Ryan Newman has 1,596 points, 367 behind series leader Dale Earnhardt Jr. Drivers in positions 11th-15th are all within 101 points of Newman. McMurray is 64 behind Newman; 12th- place Kahne is 71 behind; Dover race winner Martin is in 13th, 75 back; Rusty Wallace is 14th, 91 back; and Dover polesitter Jeremy Mayfield is 15th, 101 behind Newman.

The FOX gang will take a closer look at the championship picture Sunday during their pre-race coverage. The network also hopes to speak to Martin and Kahne about last weekend's wild event at Dover.

Ask The Producer: This week's question comes from Daniel Westrick of Fort Wayne, Ind.:

NASCAR ON FOX  Visit FOXSports.com for NASCAR news

"On the on-board cameras, any time there is a crash or an accident or when rain or water gets on the camera, as soon as the car drives away, the debris/water is off the camera. How is it removed from the camera?"

NASCAR on FOX producer Neil Goldberg explains:

"The camera lens has a little film that runs on a spool in front of it. When this gets dirty the spool is triggered to advance though an RF signal (radio signal)."

Let your voice be heard: Each week, we'll pick one question to ask the producer of the FOX telecast. Why did they do things this way? Why did they talk to that driver? Any question that eats at you could be answered right here in the Viewer's Guide.

Send your questions to the e-mail box in this piece.

The Rant: This week, Mary McCluskey of Davie, Fla. spouts off on something she sees each week in the pre-race ceremonies:

"It was always a bone of contention with me, that during the opening prayer and the playing of 'The Star Spangled Banner', that the camera would always pick up a driver with his hat on. This year, not only are the hats off, for the most part, but the drivers are out of the cars too!

EMAIL Send Mark a question for "Ask The Producer" or your take for "The Rant"

This is absolutely a step in the right direction. Now we just need them to show the proper respect and not talk, especially when the camera is on them.

NASCAR is definitely a family-orientated sport, and the drivers, for the most part (nobody's perfect), are good role models. They need to set a good example for all those watching. It is a rare event to see a driver or crew member know and sing the words. Please brush up on the etiquette guys and show the respect which has been truly earned. You never know who is watching!"

Get in on the action: In "The Rant," we'll pick e-mails each week to argue about a TV coverage issue, be it a commentator's comment, a driver's comment, a pre-race feature -- basically anything you want to spout off about.

Come with an intelligent, passionate argument and you may see your take on NASCAR.COM.

	Ryan Newman

Quote of the week: "I ran out of talent coming down there to pit road and then got penalized for something, I'm not quite sure yet. I expected to stop on a dime when we've got a 3,400-pound race car. There was a big crash down in Turn 3. I don't know whose fault it was but it took out a bunch of cars and ours is junk. That's pretty much it." -- Ryan Newman talking about his rough day at Dover last weekend.

On to this weekend's busy schedule:

Nextel Cup Series: Pocono 500

Site: Long Pond, Pa.

Track: Pocono Raceway (2.5-mile triangle, 14-degree banking in Turn 1, 8-degree banking in Turn 2, 6-degree banking in Turn 3. Frontstretch: 3,740 feet. Backstretch: 3,055 feet. Shortstretch: 1,780 feet).

Race distance: 500 miles, 200 laps.

TV: Bud Pole Qualifying: SPEED, 3 p.m. ET Friday. Happy Hour: FX, 6:30 p.m. ET Saturday (tape-delayed). Race: FOX, 1 p.m. ET Sunday.

Last year Tony Stewart celebrates his 16th career Cup victory Play video A late-race caution allows Stewart to cruise to the win Play video Ken Schrader endures a scary moment early Play video

Last year: Tony Stewart got his first career Pocono victory, winning the 2003 Pocono 500 under caution for his first victory in 27 starts.

Last race: Martin managed to avoid one massive pileup, got a break when runaway leader Kahne crashed, and ended a long losing streak in a bizarre race Sunday at Dover International Speedway.

Potential storyline: Mayfield has earned two of three premier series victories at Pocono's spring races, in 1998 and 2000.

"I'm not sure what it is [about Pocono]," Mayfield said. "It's one of the places early in my career that I adapted to really quick. My confidence level, I guess you could say, is up every time I walk in the gate."

No wonder. In both Pocono victories, he passed a legend en route to victory.

In 1998, he got by three-time champion Darrell Waltrip for the lead with 20 laps to go. In 2000, on the last turn of the last lap, he nudged the car driven by seven-time champion Dale Earnhardt and slipped by to take the lead.

The 2000 victory "is the story of my career it seems like and definitely the highlight of my career," Mayfield said.

Point to ponder: Polesitters at Pocono have won nine races; 31 of 52 premier series races at Pocono have been won from the first four starting positions.

Busch Series: Federated Auto Parts 300

Site: Lebanon, Tenn.

Track: Nashville Superspeedway (1.333-mile oval, 14-degree banking in turns. Frontstretch: 2,494 feet. Backstretch: 2,203 feet).

Race distance: 300 miles, 225 laps.

TV: Busch Pole Qualifying: SPEED, 6 p.m. ET Friday. Race: FX, 7: 30 p.m. ET Saturday.

Last race Scott Riggs celebrates his second win of 2004 Play video Riggs barely avoids a car spinning on the track Play video Tempers start to flare early in Nashville Play video

Last year: Scott Riggs won a four-lap duel with David Green to win the Trace Adkins Chrome 300 at Nashville Superspeedway for his second Busch Series win of 2003.

Last race: Greg Biffle outdueled a dominant David Green and Martin Truex Jr. to win the rain-delayed and caution-filled MBNA 200 at Dover International Speedway on Monday.

Potential storyline: Bobby Hamilton Jr. leads all drivers at Nashville in most starts in the top five (four), top-five finishes (three) and top 10s (four, tied with Scott Wimmer).

He's also led during all six races held at the track, for a total of 233 laps, both of which are also tops at the facility. Hamilton's best finish at the track is a second in June 2002.

Point to ponder: With his 14th-place finish in the June 2003 race at Nashville Superspeedway, Jason Keller (No. 22 Miller High Life Ford) became the first and only NASCAR Busch Series driver to pass the $7 million mark in career winnings. Keller has since passed the $8 million plateau.

Craftsman Truck Series: O'Reilly 400k

Site: Fort Worth, Texas

Track: Texas Motor Speedway (1.5-mile oval, 24-degree banking in turns. Frontstretch: 2,250 feet. Backstretch: 1,330 feet).

Race distance: 250.5 miles, 167 laps.

TV: Race: SPEED, 9 p.m. ET Friday.

Last year Gaughan passes the Roush teammates for the victory Play video Shawna's all-female pit crew makes its first stop Play video Rick Crawford spins with less than 20 laps to go Play video

Last year: Brendan Gaughan became just the second driver in NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series history to win three consecutive races at the same racetrack when he won the 2003 O'Reilly 400 at Texas Motor Speedway.

Last race: Chaffin found Victory Lane for the first time after winning the Craftsman Truck Series MBNA America 200 last Friday at Dover.

Potential storyline: Rick Crawford, one of two competitors to have competed in all 12 Texas events -- the other is Terry Cook -- can become the first NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series driver to complete 3,000 miles on the same track.

With 2,802 miles in the book, Crawford needs 132 laps to reach the milestone. Crawford also has led six of 12 races held at the track, the most by any driver. Crawford's best result was a second-place finish in the fall 2001 event.

Point to ponder: Greg Biffle clinched the 2000 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series championship at Texas Motor Speedway with a 25th- place finish. That's the only time in nine seasons the title has been decided prior to the season's final race.

Mark Spoor is an interactive producer of NASCAR.COM. The Domino's Viewers Guide appears each Thursday during race weeks.