Third consecutive Indy win would immortalize JJ (cont'd)

3. Finally, over to O'Reilly Raceway Park. Which event there this weekend is more intriguing: Friday's Truck race, or Saturday's Nationwide event?

Mark Aumann: Well, before the Carl-Brad dustup, I would say the Truck race. They've had some outstanding events this season, and ORP is a tough little bullring that promotes a lot of beating and banging. But ... you almost have to tune in Saturday night to see if there's a sequel coming.

David Caraviello: Get your tickets now for Edwards-Keselowski IV: The Final (Hopefully) Confrontation! Think that spurred some purchases at the ORP ticket office?

• Busch leader of ORP pack
• Bodine aims to break through

Raygan Swan: Well after all the talk about retaliation I would say the Nationwide event, but Kevin Harvick is in the Truck race and he is always a good show. And you have Austin Dillon and all the other young guns who are always entertaining.

Mark Aumann: David, one of the great things about Indiana is how passionate folks there are about their racing. I'm certain ORP was going to get a great crowd, with or without the extracurricular activity. I love going to Indy, because I can find racing all over the state almost every night of the week.

Raygan Swan: If you haven't been there already, the hill over Turn 1 is a great place to watch the race.

David Caraviello: ORP is quite possibly the most underrated short track in the country. It gets so eclipsed by the big speedway during Brickyard week that it's easy to overlook, but the place puts on really good races. Mark's right -- we have the possibility of good shows both nights even without the potential for guys coming to blows.

Raygan Swan: Hey Mark, did you hear Gordon name-drop Kokomo this week? We are big-time there!

Mark Aumann: The Beach Boys sang about Kokomo. Except for some reason, it didn't match with what I remember about the town in Indiana.

Raygan Swan: No, of course not. But Tony Stewart still visits the Kokomo Speedway now and again during the race weekend.

Mark Aumann: Going back to ORP, the oil tanks behind the backstretch remind me of the "Thursday Night Thunder" series broadcasts. Man, I miss Larry Nuber.

David Caraviello: And all that corn! Couldn't get over it the first time I was there. Like a racing version of "Field of Dreams." You expect Ray Harroun to walk out of the stalks and ask to turn a few laps.

Mark Aumann: Bloomington, Gas City, Anderson, Fort Wayne ... Just so many great tracks and so many different kinds of racing in Indiana. My personal favorite may still be the three-quarter midgets.

David Caraviello: Anyway, the Trucks are a very intriguing series right now, with new blood like Aric Almirola and Timothy Peters still up there in the standings, and Austin Dillon breaking through. There's also an 18-year-old female, Johanna Long, who's going to make her debut in a Billy Ballew truck this weekend. And by the way, has anyone spotted the four-time series champion lately? What's become of Ron Hornaday?

Mark Aumann: Ron has had a run of some incredibly bad luck. It's amazing. Every time I turn on the TV, he's torn up. Weird. He wrecked a couple of times at Daytona, both in practice and the race, and never seemed to get untracked.

David Caraviello: Yeah, by this time last year he had already won like five times. I don't think he's won at all this year. A staggering difference.

Mark Aumann: Yeah, his win at ORP last year was the fourth in a string of five consecutive wins during the summer.

Raygan Swan: I think he's having crew chief problems, or at least that's how I see it. Ernie Cope is on the box this week replacing Doug George, which everyone thought would be a great fit because they raced in the Southwest tour years ago.

David Caraviello: For those wondering, Johanna Long usually races on circuits called the Blizzard Series and Miller Lite Series, neither of which I am very familiar with the particulars. She does have some nice finishes, but I will assume this is a big step up in class.

Raygan Swan: Thanks for checking on that David. I was wondering.

David Caraviello: Although it's too bad Menzer isn't here today. He'd be a big fan of anything called the Miller Lite Series. Probably has the schedule stuck to the mini-fridge in his Man Cave.