Chase Watch Phoenix: Who will win and get in?

Posted on February 27, 2014 by Staff Report

Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson are top contenders to win at Phoenix

With his victory in the Daytona 500, Dale Earnhardt Jr. was the first driver to all but clinch a berth in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. The 11-time Most Popular Driver has two wins at Phoenix International Raceway, one of eight drivers to have more than one trip to Victory Lane there.

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Two California drivers sit atop the winners’ list at PIR and should be the favorites to win their way into the Chase on Sunday at 3 p.m. ET on FOX.

Kevin Harvick and Jimmie Johnson are tied with four victories apiece at the Jewel in the Desert. Here are five drivers who could punch their ticket to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship playoff this weekend.

Kevin Harvick: With two wins in the last three races at the track, Harvick holds the second-best Driver Rating at the facility at 101.3 and is one of only two drivers to have a DR over 100. Half of Harvick’s 22 starts have ended in the top 10, and he has seven top-five finishes.

Jimmie Johnson: Tied with Harvick for the most wins at the facility, Johnson has the highest Driver Rating (116.7) of any driver at the track. Johnson has not won here since November of 2009 when he claimed his fourth victory in five races on the 1-mile oval. He leads all drivers with 14 top-five finishes in his 21 starts.

Carl Edwards: A two-time Phoenix winner, each of Edwards’s victories — in the fall of 2010 and the spring of 2013 — snapped a 70-race winless drought. It’s only been 11 races since his last win at Richmond last fall, but after a strong Daytona 500 that saw him lead late, he’ll be one to watch this weekend at a track where he’s third on the Driver Rating list at an even 100.0.

Jeff Gordon: Another two-time winner at Phoenix, Gordon has a record 20 top-10 finishes in 30 starts at the track. Gordon won from the Coors Light Pole in 2007, and his second victory in 2010 came from the 20th starting position so keep any eye on him even if he starts mid-pack. He’s fourth on the Driver Rating list at 99.4.

Tony Stewart: Although Stewart hasn’t won a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Phoenix since his rookie-of-the-year campaign in 1999, he’s fifth in Driver Rating (99.2) and has added inspiration this weekend. His racing hero and the reason for the No. 14 on his car, A.J. Foyt, will be in attendance as part of the Phoenix International Raceway’s 50th anniversary celebration. If you’re headed to the race, the two legends will appear together on Saturday at 11 a.m. Phoenix time at the track’s Roll Bar.

Go deeper: Check out NASCAR’s Phoenix Statistical Analysis for more stats and notes for Sunday’s The Profit on CNBC 500, Presented by Small Business Fueling America.

Heading into the second race of NASCAR’s regular season, here is how the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup standings look:

Pos.	Driver	Chase berth
1.	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	Winner: Daytona
2.	Denny Hamlin	2nd in points
3.	Brad Keselowski	3rd in points
4.	Jeff Gordon	4th in points
5.	Jimmie Johnson	5th in points
6.	Matt Kenseth	6th in points
7.	Ricky Stenhouse Jr.	7th in points
8.	Greg Biffle	8th in points
9.	Austin Dillon	9th in points
10.	Casey Mears	10th in points
11.	Joey Logano	11th in points
12.	Kevin Harvick	12th in points
13.	Jamie McMurray	13th in points
14.	Bobby Labonte	14th in points
15.	Reed Sorenson	15th in points
16.	Carl Edwards	16th in points

MORE:

READ: Earnhardt Jr. wins
wild Daytona 500

WATCH: Dale Jr.
in Victory Lane

WATCH: Danica, a dozen
others in Daytona pileup

READ: Official Daytona 500
race results

Posted on February 27, 2014 by Nascar

Bruce: New Chase format makes it easier to move on

As Dale Earnhardt Jr. flits about the country, stopping here and there to once more describe his actions of this past Sunday evening, work goes on elsewhere.

The 2014 Daytona 500 Victory Tour pulled into Phoenix today, the last stop on a weeklong trip that’s part media tour and part celebration.

Earnhardt Jr., 39, has had plenty to talk about. His victory in the season-opening race resurrected a career that less than two seasons ago bordered on irrelevance.

For almost any driver, a win in the biggest race of the year will do that.

For anyone named Earnhardt, a win in the biggest race of the year will certainly do that.

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His team and his cars had gotten better — last year’s fifth-place points finish was proof enough of that. But there were no wins, and if you’re not winning, well, what’s the point?

For everyone that didn’t win last week’s Daytona 500, the task is simply to regroup.

Drivers such as Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski and Jeff Gordon, who came oh-so-close only to be denied in that last 5-mile rush of adrenaline and horsepower.

Tony Stewart, Clint Bowyer and Martin Truex Jr., who saw their chances cruelly erased due to car problems.

The wrecked, the nearly wrecked and everyone in between.

Regroup. Reset. Move on.

Daytona dreams were dashed, but the circuit doesn’t stop.

Now it’s on to Phoenix. Then Las Vegas, Bristol and California. Martinsville, Texas and Darlington. Eight consecutive weeks to open the 2014 season and hopefully build a firm foundation that will carry them and their teams into the summer months.

The wins will come. This week or the next. Somewhere down the line. Good teams don’t go to seed overnight.

The hill isn’t as steep today, thanks to the newest version of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup format.

The "win and you’re in" format isn’t a guarantee, but it’s as close to foolproof as officials could make it when they were hammering out the details. For now, wins equal Chase berths, and until more than 16 different drivers squeeze out a win in the first 26 races, that will remain the case.

A season-opening setback isn’t a season-ending setback. It’s far too early for that. Starting the year 0-for-1 isn’t a concern. It’s when the needle begins to creep toward the 0-for-20 mark that the pressure will begin to build.

For drivers such as Hamlin, Keselowski, Gordon, Stewart, Bowyer, Truex Jr. and all those in between, another opportunity is just around the corner.

Kevin Harvick, involved in last week’s last-lap crash, is no slouch on the 1-mile layout at Phoenix International Raceway, having won two of the past three NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races there.

Carl Edwards is the defending champion of this week’s race. At least a dozen in the field this weekend have at least one win at PIR, including last week’s winner.

Earnhardt Jr. won the Daytona 500. But that’s only the start.

Forty-two others didn’t. But for many of them, their time is coming.

MORE:

READ: Earnhardt Jr. wins
wild Daytona 500

WATCH: Dale Jr.
in Victory Lane

WATCH: Danica, a dozen
others in Daytona pileup

READ: Official Daytona 500
race results

Posted on February 27, 2014 by Brad Norman

Can Junior win again?; Hamlin, Johnson the favorites

1. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88)

Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet

Standing: Earnhardt Jr. leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series standings with 48 points.
Past race: 1st at Daytona.
Season stats: 1 win, 1 top-five, 1 top-10.
Track history: At Phoenix, Earnhardt Jr.’s average finish is 17.8 and his average running position is 17.0 over the past eight years. In 23 career starts at Phoenix, he has two wins, six top-fives and 10 top-10s.
Quick hit: Earnhardt Jr.’s last win at Phoenix came in 2004. Hey, the whole 10-year-anniversary thing worked wonderfully at Daytona last week, and Junior notched two top-fives at the 1-mile track last year. Don’t count him out in going back-to-back to open the season.

2. Denny Hamlin (No. 11)

Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota

Standing: Hamlin is second in the standings with 43 points.
Past race: 2nd at Daytona.
Season stats: 1 top-five, 1 top-10.
Track history: At Phoenix, Hamlin’s average finish is 10.9 and his average running position is 11.7 over the past eight years. In 17 career starts at Phoenix, he has one win, eight top-fives, nine top-10s and one pole.
Quick hit: Hamlin’s average finish at Phoenix is second in the Sprint Cup Series to only Jimmie Johnson, and Johnson is other-worldly in the desert. Hamlin should open the season with consecutive top-fives for just the second time in his full-time Cup career.

3. Brad Keselowski (No. 2)

Penske Racing, Ford

Standing: Keselowski is third in the standings with 42 points.
Past race: 3rd at Daytona.
Season stats: 1 top-five, 1 top-10.
Track history: At Phoenix, Keselowski’s average finish is 17.1 and his average running position is 16.2 over the past eight years. In nine career starts at Phoenix, he has two top-fives and three top-10s.
Quick hit: Keselowski’s Phoenix success has come recently. With all of his career top-five and top-10 finishes coming over the past four races, there’s no reason to think the 2012 series champion won’t add on to either of those categories.

4. Jeff Gordon (No. 24)

Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet

Standing: Gordon is fourth in the standings with 40 points.
Past race: 4th at Daytona.
Season stats: 1 top-five, 1 top-10.
Track history: At Phoenix, Gordon’s average finish is 13.1 and his average running position is 10.5 over the past eight years. In 30 career starts at Phoenix, he has two wins, 10 top-fives, 20 top-10s and three poles.
Quick hit: Statistics alone suggest Gordon will record a top-10 Sunday. His outright desert dominance, though, is a thing of the past. The veteran once recorded five top-10s and 12 top-10s in a 13-race span. His past 10 races tell a different story — five top-10s, but three finishes of 25th or worse.

5. Jimmie Johnson (No. 48)

Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet

Standing: Johnson is fifth in the standings with 40 points.
Past race: 5th at Daytona.
Season stats: 1 top-five, 1 top-10.
Track history: At Phoenix, Johnson’s average finish is 6.1 and his average running position is 6.9 over the past eight years. In 21 career starts at Phoenix, he has four wins, 14 top-fives, 17 top-10s and two poles.
Quick hit: Six-Time is the best in the game at Phoenix. He’s the only driver to have a single-digit number in either his average finish or his average running position over the past eight years — and he has them in both categories. Anything less than a top-five would be surprising.

6. Matt Kenseth (No. 20)

Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota

Standing: Kenseth is sixth in the standings with 38 points.
Past race: 6th at Daytona.
Season stats: 1 top-10.
Track history: At Phoenix, Kenseth’s average finish is 17.3 and his average running position is 16.1 over the past eight years. In 23 career starts at Phoenix, he has one win, five top-fives, nine top-10s and one pole.
Quick hit: This 1-mile oval isn’t one of Kenseth’s best tracks, and his No. 20 team whiffed on the setup last year in a race that allowed Jimmie Johnson to claim a comfortable points margin heading into the series finale. The bad memories may linger, but at least the No. 20 team can tweak its approach.

7. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (No. 17)

Roush Fenway Racing, Ford

Standing: Stenhouse Jr. is seventh in the standings with 37 points.
Past race: 7th at Daytona.
Season stats: 1 top-10.
Track history: At Phoenix, Stenhouse Jr.’s average finish is 14.0 and his average running position is 19.0 over the past eight years. In two career starts at Phoenix, his best finish is 12th in 2013.
Quick hit: As a Sprint Cup sophomore, Stenhouse Jr. doesn’t have a lot of premier-level experience on most tracks. His showings at Phoenix last year, 12th and 16th, were among his most consistent. A top-10 is in the picture.

8. Greg Biffle (No. 16)

Roush Fenway Racing, Ford

Standing: Biffle is eighth in the standings with 37 points.
Past race: 8th at Daytona.
Season stats: 1 top-10.
Track history: At Phoenix, Biffle’s average finish is 13.8 and his average running position is 14.7 over the past eight years. In 20 career starts at Phoenix, he has five top-fives and seven top-10s.
Quick hit: Fords don’t have a great history at Phoenix, with two wins there in the past 17 races, but every one of the manufacturer’s wins at Phoenix since the turn of the century has come in a car owned by Jack Roush. Combine that with the No. 16 team’s desire to better its smaller-track program, and you’ve got a sleeper pick this weekend.

9. Austin Dillon (No. 3)

Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet

Standing: Dillon is ninth in the standings with 36 points.
Past race: 9th at Daytona.
Season stats: 1 top-10, 1 pole.
Track history: Dillon has not started a Sprint Cup Series race at Phoenix.
Quick hit: We know Dillon is good on the big tracks. What we don’t know is if his Nationwide Series success on short ovals will carry over in his rookie year. If he handles Phoenix with aplomb, Dillon could develop into a contender to make the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

10. Casey Mears (No. 10)

Germain Racing, Chevrolet

Standing: Mears is 10th in the standing with 34 points.
Past race: 10th at Daytona.
Season stats: 1 top-10.
Track history: At Phoenix, Mears’ average finish is 24.8 and his average running position is 24.5 over the past eight years. In 19 career starts at Phoenix, his best finish is 11th in 2008.
Quick hit: Phoenix requires more technical precision than Daytona, and Mears hasn’t recorded a top-10 in the desert yet. His best finish here since driving for Germain Racing is 14th, with five of his seven starts for the team resulting in finishes of worse than 20th.

11. Joey Logano (No. 22)

Penske Racing, Ford

Standing: Logano is 11th in the standings with 34 points.
Past race: 11th at Daytona.
Season stats: Best finish of 11th.
Track history: At Phoenix, Logano’s average finish is 17.1 and his average running position is 16.3 over the past eight years. In 10 career starts at Phoenix, he has one top-five and four top-10s.
Quick hit: Strangely, Logano has had issues at Phoenix. In 10 starts, he hasn’t finished twice, which is unusual at this type of track. When he doesn’t wreck or have engine issues, though, he has three top-10s — and an 11th — in his past five finishes.

12. Kevin Harvick (No. 4)

Stewart-Haas Racing, Chevrolet

Standing: Harvick is 12th in the standings with 31 points.
Past race: 13th at Daytona.
Season stats: Best finish of 13th.
Track history: At Phoenix, Harvick’s average finish is 11.1 and his average running position is 10.7 over the past eight years. In 22 career starts at Phoenix, he has four wins, seven top-fives and 11 top-10s.
Quick hit: Harvick has two wins and a runner-up finish in the past four Phoenix races. Moving to a new team shouldn’t slow that run, especially given Harvick’s confidence in his new No. 4 team and its engines.

13. Jamie McMurray (No. 1)

Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates, Chevrolet

Standing: McMurray is 13th in the standings with 30 points.
Past race: 14th at Daytona.
Season stats: Best finish of 14th.
Track history: At Phoenix, McMurray’s average finish is 21.1 and his average running position is 19.8 over the past eight years. In 21 career starts at Phoenix, he has one top-five and two top-10s.
Quick hit: This may be McMurray’s worst track on the circuit, with nine of his past 10 races here ending with one top-10 and five finishes outside the top 20.

14. Bobby Labonte (No. 52)

HScott Motorsports, Toyota

Standing: Labonte is 14th in the standings with 29 points.
Past race: 15th at Daytona.
Season stats: Best finish of 15th.
Track history: At Phoenix, Labonte’s average finish is 18.7 and his average running position is 21.9 over the past eight years. In 30 career starts at Phoenix, he has three top-fives and nine top-10s.
Quick hit: Labonte remains one of the sport’s most popular drivers, so fans should soak in his appearance here this week. The veteran is not racing at Phoenix, so he’ll certainly be out of the top 16 in the standings entering Las Vegas

15. Reed Sorenson (No. 36)

Tommy Baldwin Racing, Chevrolet

Standing: Sorenson is 15th in the standings with 28 points.
Past race: 16th at Daytona.
Season stats: Best finish of 16th.
Track history: At Phoenix, Sorenson’s average finish is 27.9 and his average running position is 27.9 over the past eight years. In nine career starts at Phoenix, his best finish is 12th in 2009.
Quick hit: Sorenson has nine starts at PIR, but only once since 2010 — that came last year, and was a 37th-place result. It’s not likely he can compete with the veterans who consistently tour the track twice a year.

16. Carl Edwards (No. 99)

Roush Fenway Racing, Ford

Standing: Edwards is 16th in the standings with 28 points.
Past race: 17th at Daytona.
Season stats: Best finish of 17th.
Track history: At Phoenix, Edwards’ average finish is 10.9 and his average running position is 12.7 over the past eight years. In 19 career starts at Phoenix, he has two wins, seven top-fives, 11 top-10s and three poles.
Quick hit: When Edwards does well at Phoenix, he really does well. He won this event last year (and won the fall race in 2010), and 10 of his 19 career starts have resulted in finishes of seventh or better. He’s a good fantasy play, and a good bet to shoot up in the standings next week, too.

MORE:

READ: Earnhardt Jr. wins
wild Daytona 500

WATCH: Dale Jr.
in Victory Lane

WATCH: Danica, a dozen
others in Daytona pileup

READ: Official Daytona 500
race results

Posted on February 26, 2014 by

In the iconic number’s Cup return, it’s only fitting Dale Jr. won the race

Late Sunday night, after a rain-delayed marathon of a Daytona 500 had finally come to an end, Austin Dillon was standing next to his car on pit road answering questions about his ninth-place finish when the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series rookie abruptly stopped speaking in mid-sentence. He turned and looked at the sight of Rick Hendrick sitting on the window ledge of Dale Earnhardt Jr.‘s race car, the two of them zipping down the frontstretch toward Victory Lane.

"Very cool for Dale Jr." Dillon said. "That’s awesome, man."

Indeed, it was. It was one thing for the No. 3 car to return to NASCAR’s top level for the first time in 13 seasons, driven by the grandson of Dale Earnhardt’s former car owner. It was another thing for Earnhardt Jr. to win the sport’s biggest race in an event that rain pushed into prime time. It was something else for both of those to happen together, on the same night, in a perfect confluence of past and present at Daytona International Speedway.

"I think that’s awesome to have the 3 back and the 88 win the race," Dillon said, referring to Earnhardt’s car number. "That’s very cool." The No. 3 led the first lap and the No. 88 led the final one, bringing full circle a race loaded with significance for two drivers whose personal relationship helped make the return of the elder Earnhardt’s former number a reality.

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It was Earnhardt whom Dillon called to first ask for permission to bring the No. 3 back to the sport’s top level. It was Earnhardt, shaped by the loss of his father, who provided advice and mentorship to Dillon as the younger driver climbed the ladder through the sport’s national divisions. Together they helped engineer a near-seamless return for one of NASCAR’s most iconic car numbers, which Dillon drove to the Coors Light Pole last weekend and to a top-10 finish Sunday night.

And for all of it to be capped by Earnhardt Jr. winning his second Daytona 500 a decade after his first — there was something poetic about it, something unmistakable even amid the brightness of NASCAR’s most popular driver winning NASCAR’s biggest race.

"I’m really happy for Junior, because he’s really handled this whole bringing the 3 back with so much class and elegance," Gil Martin, Dillon’s crew chief, said in the garage after the race. "He’s supported the whole thing the whole time when other people haven’t. He’s been probably one of the No. 1 supporters of this whole thing, and that says a lot about him. And I think it says a lot that he knows so much about this sport and the history of it. So for him to win (Sunday night) — if we couldn’t win, I couldn’t think of a better candidate."

Dillon had been the talk of the first half of Speedweeks, and not just by bringing back the No. 3, but by being fast in it — the 23-year-old won the pole in the same car that had topped the board in testing a month earlier. He led the first lap, dropped back in the field, and weathered an adventurous night before surging to ninth at the end. Meanwhile, Earnhardt was at the front, engaged in a riveting duel with a handful of other contenders, the threat of looming inclement weather leading all of them to brawl lap after lap like it was the final circuit of the race. Third-place Brad Keselowski called it perhaps the hardest-fought Daytona 500 ever, and from the outside, it certainly looked like it.

At the end, though, Earnhardt simply was too much, at last snapping that spate of runner-up finishes at Daytona — three in the past four years — with a trip to Victory Lane to match the one he made in 2004. Parked on pit road, Dillon watched the ensuing celebration unfold, a smile on his face. The No. 3 had started it, the No. 88 had finished it, and given all the connections between the drivers involved, it all added up to perfect.

"I think there’s a lot of special things from (Sunday night)," said Richie Gilmore, chief operating officer at Earnhardt Childress Engines, and a former executive at Dale Earnhardt Inc. — the team founded by the elder Earnhardt, and where Dale Jr. started his career. "The 3 coming back was a big night. Junior getting the win, I think it very special for a lot of things."

Indeed, Earnhardt Jr. was key in helping to build public support for the return of the No. 3, his immediate blessing removing perhaps the biggest potential road block to its reappearance at the sport’s top level. To Dillon, the number had always been something of a family heirloom — Childress had used it in his driving days, and Austin had worn it on his baseball jersey before embarking upon championship campaigns on the Camping World Truck and Nationwide Series. On qualifying day, Dillon embraced the idea of him and Earnhardt potentially sweeping the front row. That didn’t happen, so the two drivers bookended Speedweeks instead.

"That is pretty cool. That is really cool," added Mike Dillon, Austin’s father and RCR’s general manager. "Especially the way that Junior could have made or broken this deal. He’s really been supportive. I’m probably happier for him winning the race, because he really has supported this. Because he could have made a difference in how everybody else accepted this, and probably whether or not we brought it back. That is cool that he won the race."

The significance wasn’t lost on Earnhardt Jr., who said he thought about holding up three fingers as he rolled down the straightaway celebrating his victory. He decided not to, wanting the spotlight to remain on people like Hendrick and his crew chief, Steve Letarte. Even so, Earnhardt’s ease with his father’s old number being back on the race track was evident, particularly in the wake of his biggest race win in a decade.

"It felt so comfortable all week for that number to be back," Earnhardt said. "I’m happy with that situation. I’m happy for Austin. You guys (in the media) have gotten to know him over the last couple years. He’s got a great head on his shoulders. He appreciates the history of the number. He appreciates not only what it meant as an Earnhardt fan, but what it meant for his family. It means something entirely unique to him separate of my father. I appreciate that, and I’m happy for him and Richard. They’re really enjoying that experience together. That’s got to be something special, grandfather and grandson, to be able to do that together. I’m very comfortable. I had not thought about it once all week, because it just seems right."

It’s easy to see why. According to Gilmore, Earnhardt and Dillon have a solid rapport that stems not just from the rookie driver turning to a close family friend for advice, but also the veteran’s willingness to act as the kind of mentor he himself sorely needed following his father’s fatal crash at Daytona in 2001.

"I think he and Austin have a great relationship," Gilmore said. "… Junior is going to be 40 this year, and it’s something for him to take that role and give him advice. Junior, he lost his dad at a time when Junior was looking for advice. He had just gotten into the sport, and we were here, and I remember Junior going out and talking about his dad, and telling him that his race car was pushing. (Earnhardt Sr.) told him, ‘It ain’t pushing. It’s air.’ Listening to their conversations, he didn’t have all that time, and I know he enjoys telling Austin those things and mentoring him, and the other young kids in this garage. I think he likes that senior role."

Mike Dillon, himself a former national-series driver who made one Cup start, can see it as well. "Austin communicates with (Earnhardt) a lot, about a lot of different things about the business," he said. "And I tell him to call those guys and ask them, because they’ve gone through it and made the mistakes, so why wouldn’t he use them? If you’ve got him there, and if they’re willing to talk to you and help you, why wouldn’t you use them?"

For all the goodwill that flowed through the garage area Sunday night, there was still some dissatisfaction in the RCR camp, which had consistently the fastest cars of Speedweeks yet did not win a race. In the Daytona 500, Paul Menard and Ryan Newman were caught up in crashes — the latter after some contact with Dillon — and Martin Truex Jr., whose Furniture Row Racing team is a Childress affiliate, lost an engine before a six-hour rain delay pushed the bulk of the event into the evening.

So in the end, Dillon was the team’s lone remaining hope. And yet, with Earnhardt spinning donuts and the crowd erupting in jubilance, it would have been difficult to imagine a more fitting conclusion Sunday night even if the draft had somehow swept that No. 3 car to victory.

"I almost think if the 3 would have won (Sunday night), it would have been like when Junior first got in it — too much pressure, too quick," Gilmore said. "I think what Austin’s talked about a lot is, ‘I’m a rookie this year, and if I finish top 15 in points, that’s my goal.’ He’s got realistic goals, and is a real smart kid, and I think that might have been too much pressure too quick."

Dillon certainly seemed content with it all. "It was a great finish. Dale Jr. and won, and (I got) a top 10. I’m really happy," he said. From start to finish, these Speedweeks at Daytona were all about two drivers and two organizations bound together by a single number, and the end result was a celebration in which both sides took immense satisfaction — even if only one of them could win.

"I don’t think," Gilmore said, "you could ask for a better night."

MORE:

READ: Earnhardt Jr. wins
wild Daytona 500

WATCH: Dale Jr.
in Victory Lane

WATCH: Danica, a dozen
others in Daytona pileup

READ: Official Daytona 500
race results

Posted on February 26, 2014 by Jason Lofing

Kenny Humpe heads to victory as a race-ending wreck unfolds in Turn Three.

Fresh off his incredible hot streak to close the NASCAR iRacing Pro Series, Kenny Humpe got his NASCAR PEAK Antifreeze Series Powered by iRacing.com season off to a fast start by winning the season-opener at Daytona International Speedway. Humpe had to survive a green-white-checker finish which was cut short by a wreck in the middle of the pack. Brandon Kettelle finished second followed by Danny Hansen and Thomas Lewandowski, who seemed to have a shot at the win before the yellow flew. Brian Schoenburg rounded-out the top five.

“Once the second pit stop was over, I was able to choose the right line at the right time and found myself leading the front pack,” said Humpe. “I got lucky with the final caution to come out as I was was pretty much a sitting duck out front on that last lap.”

“I was able to choose the right line at the right time and found myself leading the front pack,” – Kenny Humpe

Sitting duck might have been a slight exaggeration, but there was no question Hansen and Lewandowski had a big run going when the yellow came out. “Man if that thing would have went green I think I could have won it, but it could have gone far worse, you can’t complain about third,” said Hansen after his career-best NASCAR Peak Antifreeze Series finish.

“I was able to choose the right line at the right time and found myself leading the front pack,” – Kenny Humpe

After biding his time and showing great patience during the first two runs of the race, Humpe made his move after the last pit stop. With 33 laps to go, Humpe drafted his way to the front of the lead pack, where he would remain for most of the remaining circuits.

Humpe’s biggest threat for the win came from Kettelle, who used a perfectly-timed slingshot move — aided by the draft of Byron Daley — to take the lead with 22 to go. Unfortunately for Kettelle, he made his move to the front far too soon and Humpe used the same exact move to retake the lead seven laps later.

With 11 laps left, it was Daley’s turn to try Humpe on the outside. Daley made his move off of Turn Two and looked to side-draft Humpe to gain some momentum, causing Humpe to make his one mistake of the online race. When Daley made his move, Humpe moved up the track in an attempt to throw off his run, but it did not work and Kettelle, who was running behind Humpe at the time, took advantage and put Humpe in the middle of three wide for the lead.

Luckily for Humpe, Hansen decided to push him and not Daley, allowing Humpe to maintain his track position and slot back in line on the inside. Then, with only seven laps to go, Humpe used the same move as earlier to pass Kettelle for the lead. He would never look back.

A lap later, the first caution flag of the night flew when Lewandowski made slight contact with Brad Davies, sending Davies spinning up the track and collecting over half of the 15 lead-lap cars running in the lead pack.

The wreck set up a two lap sprint to the finish. Hansen timed the restart well, but Humpe and Kettelle got their cars attached in a tandem draft before Hansen could team-up with Lewandowski. However, once Hansen and Lewandowski hooked-up off of Turn Two and they quickly started reeling-in the two leaders down the backstretch. By the end of the backstretch, Hansen was on Kettelle’s bumper and made a move to the outside entering Turn Three. Shortly after that, Hansen’s hopes were extinguished when a four-wide battle into Turn Three farther back in the pack set off another massive crash, ending the race under the caution flag.

It was a bad day to be a former champion of the series as both Tyler Hudson and Ray Alfalla found trouble. Alfalla’s trouble was self-induced, as a pit road speeding penalty caused him to lose the lead draft. Alfalla’s day was made better by the wrecks, though twenty-first still has to be disappointing for a former Daytona race winner. Hudson ran up front for most of the race, but was involved in the first big crash. The damage to his car was too severe to continue, leading to a fortieth place finish for the defending champ. While it was a challenging day for both, remember that there is one drop week in the series so the two champions are not by any means out of the running for the 2014 title.

With the only restrictor plate race of the season in the rear view mirror, the “real” season gets underway at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in two weeks. The tough 1.5 mile track will show who is ready to contend for the 2014 championship and who still has some work to do. Expect Alfalla and Hudson to rebound from their tough first week, but Humpe, who feasted on the 1.5 milers in the NASCAR iRacing Pro Series, should be strong as well.

Be sure to tune-in to iRacing Live in two weeks’ time to catch Round Two of the 2014 NASCAR PEAK Antifreeze Series from Las Vegas!

Posted on February 26, 2014 by Staff Report

NASCAR Chairman and CEO ‘thrilled’ with competitive Speedweeks, looks forward to Coors Light Pole Qualifying at Phoenix

NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France told SiriusXM NASCAR’s Tradin’ Paint on Monday that the sanctioning body was "thrilled that we got off to a good start" after a competitive Daytona Speedweeks.

"Our fans were the big winners (Sunday) night," France said. "I’m thankful we got everything in and things played out the way that they did."

After a six-plus hour rain delay, NASCAR Air Titan technology allowed drivers to get back on track and complete the Daytona 500. France said, "When we resumed, the racing got a lot harder for everybody."

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With a new playoff format rewarding winning in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, new standards for racing were set at Daytona International Speedway. NASCAR Loop Data showed new track bests for green flag passes (11,977) and green flag passes for the lead (177). The old marks were 9,574 and 170, respectively.

"Our greatest moments (have been) by drivers who did what they needed to do to win races," France said. "Our job is to provide a rules package and format that incentivizes that, to bring that out."

"That was two-, three-wide the entire way. For Dale (Earnhardt Jr.) to have mixed it up — there were a lot of lead changes late in that race — to win against probably the top 10 or 15 guys in the business, that was about as determined an effort as I’ve seen. Unbelievable on his part."

France compared Earnhardt Jr.’s efforts to Tony Stewart‘s 2011 Chase. In the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Stewart beat Carl Edwards for his third Sprint Cup title.

Stewart "just refused to lose that championship," France said. "Had to win the race to win it all, and he did. Went from last to first. That’s still one of the great performances I’ve ever seen, but (Earnhardt Jr.’s performance in the Daytona 500) was very close to that."

The new NASCAR Chase Grid rewards 16 race winners in the first 26 events who are also in the top 30 in points with a berth in the playoffs. France said the new format ratcheted up the intensity in the season-opening race.

Earnhardt "had more determination than anybody else on that night," France said of NASCAR’s 11-time Most Popular Driver who claimed his second Great American Race win and likely a berth in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. "He gets to let it loose. He can go after wins … He can go be aggressive as he wants. That’s a cool thing for our fans."

"We expect contact, especially on short tracks or all over the place when it’s late in the race and you have a faster car, we expect for drivers to do what it takes to win races and you saw that a lot," France said. "This win-and-get-in is going to change the way people race."

And the competition isn’t limited to race day. While rain shortened Coors Light Pole Qualifying in the NASCAR Nationwide Series and canceled Keystone Light Pole Qualifying in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, France looks forward to the new group qualifying format on the one-mile oval at Phoenix International Raceway this weekend.

"It’ll be on full display in Phoenix this weekend," France said. "It adds a whole other dimension. We really like it. I think the fans can appreciate that. It’s just more action. All the cars are out there. You’re trying to run the fastest lap. On the other hand, you’ve got to know that tires and strategy at different stages are going to determine (the pole-sitter)."

Close competition was the hallmark of the first weekend of points racing. In the Camping World Truck Series Nextera Energy Resources 250 on Friday, Kyle Busch beat Timothy Peters by .016 seconds, the eighth closest finish in series history and closest series finish at Daytona. In Saturday’s Nationwide Series DRIVE4COPD 300, the .013-second differential between winner Regan Smith and Brad Keselowski was the seventh closest finish in series history and second closest series finish at the World Center of Racing.

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Posted on February 26, 2014 by Zack Albert

Drive for Diversity product leads Mexico Toyota Series back to track

The start of the 2014 season has already had plenty of "pinch me" moments for NASCAR Next driver Daniel Suarez. It’s part of why the 22-year-old from Monterrey, Mexico, reacted the way he did after notching two victories in a three-day stretch this month in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East.

"I feel like this is a dream," Suarez said, moments after winning the UNOH Battle at the Beach on Feb. 18 at Daytona International Speedway.

Dreaming or not, the new reality for Suarez is a blazing-hot start to the year, capitalizing on the dramatic progress he made over the latter half of 2013 with the Rev Racing team. The product of the NASCAR Drive for Diversity initiative competes full-time in the K&N East tour, where he wound up third in the championship standings last year, and in the NASCAR Mexico Toyota Series, where he was the runner-up in the season-long fight.

"I really feel like we’re going to be one team to beat in 2014."

— Daniel Suarez

Spanning back to last year’s triumph in the Mexico Series’ season finale in Mexico City, Suarez carries a three-race win streak in NASCAR touring series events heading into Friday night’s Mexico Series opener at Phoenix International Raceway. While springing out of the starting gate in 2014 means plenty, Suarez is quick to offer his gratitude for merely the chance to be behind the wheel.

"I just feel lucky to be part of this, to have this opportunity," Suarez said. "I feel like many drivers in Mexico wish to have this kind of opportunity … so I want to try to do my best in everything I do in every race. Just trying to win all we can."

The way Suarez closed last season seemed to signal bigger things to come in 2014. He finished among the top three in six of the final eight races, including four runner-up finishes, to become the highest-finishing international driver in the standings in K&N Pro Series East history. For Suarez, the key to improvement on the track was becoming more fluent in his communication skills to relay information to his No. 6 Toyota team.

"The English in my second language at the beginning of 2013 was difficult to get the right communication with my crew to put the race car in the right line," Suarez said. "I feel like in the first half of last year, we all learned a lot together. Everyone on the team with the No. 6, we know each other really well. I feel like this communication is getting better and better, and that’s why I think we closed very strong in 2013, and we’re opening 2014 the same way."

It’s a long way from the 11-year-old who first got the itch to race when a friend by chance invited him to test a go-cart. The development hasn’t been lost on team owner Max Siegel, a strong proponent of NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity program. Thanks to the stellar start, Siegel says, his driver hasn’t lacked for confidence, either.

"Number one, he’s been extremely focused on being a professional — not just a professional race car driver," Siegel said. "So I see him studying the culture of the garage, the NASCAR culture and soaking it all in. To me, I see him thriving. It’s been impressive to see his commitment on the track, off the track, and just the maturity each week. I’m really excited where he is right now."

Suarez’s second season begins this weekend with the Mexico Toyota Series opener. He took up residency in Charlotte, N.C., a little more than two years ago to be closer to NASCAR’s hub for teams and personnel, but the rigors of running a 16-race K&N East Series schedule concurrent with a 15-race schedule closer to his home country have put his frequent-flyer ability to the test.

Tricky travel logistics aside, it’s just another wrinkle to the opportunity that’s become a dream-like reality.

"All of it’s getting better," Suarez said, "and I really feel like we’re going to be one team to beat in 2014."

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READ: Official Daytona 500
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Posted on February 26, 2014 by Staff Report

FORT WORTH, Texas (Feb. 26, 2014) – Newly crowned Daytona 500 champion Dale Earnhardt Jr. received a rousing Texas-sized welcome Tuesday as he was greeted by more than 1,000 members of “Junior Nation” at the iconic Scholz Garten restaurant in the state capital of Austin to celebrate his thrilling victory in NASCAR’s marquee season-opening race.

Fans, arriving as early as 9 a.m. CT and more than seven hours before his appearance, packed the outside commons area and lined the streets and garage decks of downtown Austin as the two-time Daytona 500 champion received a wild ovation while driving the city streets and arriving in a Duck Commander 500-wrapped Team Texas stock car.

For Earnhardt Jr., the reception he continuously receives when visiting the Lone Star State – even when it is more than 200 miles from Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth – is rewarding even to NASCAR’s 11-time most popular driver.

“There are a lot of things I like about Texas Motor Speedway,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “One of the things I like about TMS, and this is genuine, is the fan support.

“When we first built that race track, to be frank, we (NASCAR) were struggling west of the Mississippi to really draw crowds. For whatever reason, when they built this race track, people really latched on to it. It’s been a great market for us. It’s been very successful. There’s a great staff out there that does a lot of cutting-edge stuff and does a lot of unique promotion that you don’t see at other places. It makes it a lot of fun to come here. Especially when the fans show their support to the track itself, it makes you want to race in front of them. It makes you excited to be here when they’re, in turn, excited to see you.”

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Earnhardt Jr., who has been showered with praise for his thrilling victory in the 56thDaytona 500, may have received his most unique reward of the week. The Daughters of the Republic of Texas President Karen Thompson presented him with the Texas flag that flew over Texas’ most iconic landmark – The Alamo – the same day as his victory in the Daytona 500.

The presentation of the flag was part of a fan friendly event where he posed for photos with fans from a radio promotion, signed a slew of autographs and participated in a Q&A session where he shared his thoughts on relishing his second Daytona 500 triumph.

"When I won it early, it was a huge shock," Earnhardt Jr. said of winning his first Daytona 500 in 2004. "The feeling that I had wasn’t really joy. It was more relief that I got it out of the way. Then, after another couple years, you wonder if you’ll ever win another one. As those years have turned into 10 years, you’ve really got to wonder if you’ll ever feel that again."

Earnhardt Jr.’s visit to Austin has been part of a whirlwind Daytona 500 Champion’s Tour by NASCAR. His appearance in the Lone Star State came on the heels of media tours in New York and Bristol, Conn., that included an appearance on “The Late Show with David Letterman” and a stop at ESPN’s broadcast headquarters, respectively, and continued today in Los Angeles.

Fans were not the only ones packing into Scholz Garten, as all the major media outlets from Austin, as well others traveling from San Antonio and Waco, took advantage of Earnhardt Jr.’s visit.

Despite being on the turf of Formula One’s new venue in Austin, Circuit of the Americas, Earnhardt Jr. reminded racing fans and the media which motorsports series in the United States and which track in the state of Texas provides the most intense racing action.

“I’m here to tell people that they (fans) need to see us race because we put on a better show and as exciting as it is to have Formula One back in the United States, NASCAR is where it’s at,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “NASCAR is the best motorsports in the country for sure and possibly in the world. To see the best show they need to come to Texas (Motor Speedway).”

Legendary Formula One driver Michael Schumacher provided a reason for Earnhardt Jr. to keep tabs on the global series in the past, but since his departure from Ferrari he has found little reason to follow the series.

“He was considered one of the best race-car drivers the world has ever seen,” Earnhardt Jr. said of Schumacher. “I definitely followed it back then, but ever since then I’ve not had a personality really intrigue me that runs in that sport. When it comes to sports, even in baseball, basketball, or football, it’s the individuals that I latch onto. I pull for particular people to do well. I haven’t found the one that I relate to yet.”

Earnhardt Jr.’s next visit to Texas will be in the more familiar confines of Dallas/Fort Worth when he returns to Texas Motor Speedway for the Duck Commander 500 NASCAR Sprint
Cup Series race on Sunday, April 6.

Posted on February 26, 2014 by Staff Report

Each week an expert will answer a tech question on GarageCam presented by Mobil 1

RELATED: Mobil 1 Technology Center

Each week the host of NASCAR.com’s GarageCam presented by Mobil 1 will take an automotive technology question and get it answered by the experts in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series garage.

Last week in Daytona, host Matthew Dillner asked Jay Guarneri, a member of the No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing team for Danica Patrick: How many times does oil get changed on a race car?

Watch the video above to hear the answer, and be sure to tune in to GarageCam presented by Mobil 1 this week in Phoenix and see another question answered.

Nationwide Series GarageCam, presented by Mobil 1: 12:30 p.m. ET, Friday, Feb. 28. (Watch here)

Sprint Cup Series GarageCam, presented by Mobil 1: 1:30 p.m. ET, Friday, Feb. 28. (Watch here)

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