Third consecutive Indy win would immortalize JJ

1. It's Track Smack, Indy edition. Last year, Jimmie Johnson became the first driver to win back-to-back races at the Brickyard 400. How big an accomplishment would three in a row be?

Mark Aumann: Pretty damn impressive. It's never been done in the history of the place, in any discipline, dating back to 1909. Helio Castroneves had the last chance to do it in the Indianapolis 500, and before that, Al Unser won back-to-back races in 1970 and 1971.

David Caraviello: It would probably be the biggest thing he's done outside of four straight championships, if it comes to fruition. Heck, if he wins Sunday, that would be four out of five, too. Given how ridiculously difficult that race track is, given the level of team and driver that typically contend and win there, three in a row makes a pretty big statement.

Raygan Swan: I think three in a row would put him in a class all by himself, but more important it would put him in the prestigious group of racers who have won four times at Indianapolis: Mears, Foyt, Unser, Gordon, etc. Either way, it's an amazing accomplishment.

Mark Aumann: You think about the names synonymous with the place -- Mauri Rose, Bill Vukovich, A.J. Foyt, Johnny Rutherford, Al Unser, Rick Mears. None of them ever had that kind of success in that span. Although Vukovich had won two in a row and was leading in the third when he was killed there.

David Caraviello: Wow, Mark. I meant to check the IndyCar side of it and never got around to it -- wasn't aware that it hadn't been done there, either. Schumacher didn't win three straight when Formula One was competing at the place, did he? Can't imagine, given the circuit's brief run there.

Raygan Swan: David, you're right about the difficulty level of the track. The list of winners of the Brickyard 400 isn't that long and we haven't seen many repeat winners, so that tells me once a driver figures it out like JJ they can continue to find success.

David Caraviello: I will say this, Jimmie probably needs an asterisk next to his 2008 victory. That was when the tires failed and NASCAR had to issue competition cautions every 10 laps or so, so the race essentially became a big game of pit stop bingo. Not quite a fair test of racing ability. But everyone competed under the same conditions, arduous as they were.

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Mark Aumann: To answer your F1 question, Schumacher won there in 2000 and 2001, but Rubens Barrichello won in 2002. Schumacher then won again in 2003, followed by Barrichello in 2004. Gotta love Wikipedia!

David Caraviello: There you go. Knew Aumann would be all over that. But Mark, don't spoil the myth. I had a vision of you pulling the official race reports straight from a file cabinet in the cabin.

Mark Aumann: Ha! No, the Indy 500 history is all locked up between the ears, for the most part. Donald Davidson, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway historian, is one of my heroes.

David Caraviello: Oh man, I'm a big fan of that guy too. One of the perks of being in Indy during race week is being able to listen to Donald on the radio. Guy can answer the most arcane questions about the speedway. He also narrates the movie in the museum, which is worth your time.

Raygan Swan: Ah, to have the age and wisdom of a relic like Mark Aumann.

Mark Aumann: Oh, to have the impetuousness of youth that is Raygan Swan. I went to see a closed-circuit broadcast of the 1970 Indy 500, which would be well before you were born, Raygs. And perhaps even David.

David Caraviello: But anyway, back to Jimmie. I know a lot of NASCAR fans get tired of hearing about the Indy mystique, but let's face it, it's a very real thing. To win there means a great deal beyond just that day and time. It's flat out the most difficult race track on the Sprint Cup tour, and for Johnson to have dominated it over the last few years -- because really, that's what he's done in winning three of four -- speaks volumes about his ability. I mean, people like to drone on about how he's a product of the Chase or whatever, but nobody lucks into winning at Indy. Johnson's run at that place only cements how good he is, whether people want to admit it or not.

Raygan Swan: I was wondering if Rick Mears gave him any pointers a while back when the two took a ride around the track. Mears seems to be one of Johnson's idols, and they talked about how it took the No. 48 a couple of years to learn the track. Before that he either won or crashed, seemingly.

David Caraviello: You're right, Raygan. Before this run, Jimmie's most memorable Indy moment was sitting dazed on the pit wall after a fiery crash there. But he certainly has the place figured out. Three in a row at the Brickyard would be a bigger feat than most people would give it credit for.

Mark Aumann: You know, we made a big deal last year about how the Brickyard seems to forecast champions, since eight of the past 12 race winners have gone on to take the title. But if it always seems to come down to Jimmie and Tony Stewart every year, that's pretty easy. But Indy is an incredibly hard place, it's no surprise that the trophy has gone to the sport's top drivers. It's just so hard to pass there. It's narrow and the corners require a preciseness. It's the guy who can get track position near the end of the race, and has the best handling car, who usually pulls off the win.

Raygan Swan: And while Jimmie has it figured out and I give him credit for all three wins, tires and all, I really think Montoya had the race won last year had he not gotten caught speeding. Then again, it may have come down to those two, Johnson and JPM. But at the Brickyard you have to drive a perfect race to win.

David Caraviello: That you do. And yes, Mark, I was born in 1970. But what is this closed-circuit TV thing you speak of?

2. Should Carl Edwards expect retaliation from Brad Keselowski this week at Indianapolis? And would Keselowski be justified in dishing it out?

Mark Aumann: No. And yes. I don't think Brad will do it this week. I think he'll file it away for a time when it's unexpected. Plus, he can't afford to lose any more ground to Edwards in the standings. In addition to losing the race and tearing up the car, Keselowski gave up a ton of points with that finish.

David Caraviello: In this era, it seems like anything can be justified. And if you're Brad, sure, absolutely you've got to be thinking about putting Edwards in the wall if you ever find yourself in a similar situation. But it may take a while to get there. Of course, they are racing together twice this weekend ...

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Raygan Swan: I have so many thoughts on this matter and they go in different directions. I think back to Talladega when Carl flew and then Atlanta when Brad flew and now we are back to square one. I think Brad needs to leave it alone before NASCAR reacts and ruins the show that Brad spoke of after the wreck at Dega.

David Caraviello: Well, I don't know if Talladega exactly fits with the rest of these episodes. That really was guys racing for position and trying to hold lines. That was obviously not an intentional takeout like we saw at Atlanta and again Saturday night. Can't lump all three of those together.

Mark Aumann: You know, I was thinking about what I'd do if I were Brad. I'd almost forget about retaliation in the Nationwide Series. But if Carl were close to making the Chase, say at Richmond, I might just decide to put him in the fence for the hell of it. That would be a whole lot more damaging to Carl's season than running into him at ORP.

David Caraviello: At some point, doesn't somebody have to be the bigger man here? I mean, Brad already owns the moral high ground, to a certain degree. If he comes out and says, "That's not the way to race, and I'm not going to do it," it would send a very strong message. I realize turning the other cheek isn't popular in this sport, but not only might it end this continuous game of chicken, it might get people thinking about what racing really is.

Raygan Swan: And I hate to be the safety police on the subject but Jeff Gordon made a good point yesterday by saying these cars aren't infallible despite all of the touted safety technologies. Wrecking someone on the frontstretch at high speeds is going to get someone hurt.

David Caraviello: Unfortunately, Raygan, I think people have long taken for granted the sight of drivers walking away from crumpled race cars.

Mark Aumann: Raygs, that's still the thing that bothers me most. I'm incredibly impressed that these guys can walk away from wrecks that make me hold my breath. At the same time, this is a dangerous sport and we've seen tragedy in the past and will no doubt see it again.

Raygan Swan: Going back to Talladega, Brad admitted he moved Carl out of the way for the win, and afterward said that's what the fans want to see, contact. It's not so different in my opinion. The last thing I need to say about Brad is it cracks me up how he has gone from No. 1 jerk in the garage being dumped by Denny Hamlin and criticized by Jeff Burton to a victim who needs saving from his father?

David Caraviello: That's not what Keselowski said at all, actually. Here's what he said after Talladega: "He blocked, and I wasn't going to go below. I don't want to wreck the guy, but you're forced in that situation. There was nothing else that I could do." Talladega was a situation completely born of the yellow line at the bottom of the race track, and irrelevant here. And I don't care if you think the guy's a jerk or not -- nobody deserves to get treated this way.

Mark Aumann: Talladega was more a matter of Carl driving with the mirrors in an attempt to block Brad. Once he swerved down in front of Brad, there wasn't much he could do. Just like Tony Stewart and Kyle Busch at Daytona. The weird thing now is who do fans hate worse: Carl or Brad? It's hard to know, based on the responses to the stories on the site.

Raygan Swan: I don't know, I like The Carl! He asks about my kid, earning huge brownie points with a new mom!

David Caraviello: Too bad Humpy's not still at Charlotte. He'd have a squared circle set up for October, and this would get settled once and for all! As it stands, we might have to wait for the next round of Wii boxing at Bristol.

Mark Aumann: Hey, anybody who can put a stuffed shark on a flatbed trailer could come up with a promotion for this one.

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?

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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.