Today may be only Wednesday as this post is being made, but there's even more madness to sort through in regards to the Chase standings.
The biggest insanity came with the announcement that Clint Bowyer was docked 25 points by NASCAR for a P4-level violation, according to the lovely rule book, in opening inspection after Chicagoland Speedway.
The reason: an illegal track bar. There were four sections that were discussed in the violation, so rather than try to explain them here myself, I'll gladly defer to an article written by MRN Radio's Pete Pistone. Each part of the violation is described there.
Bowyer was 19th in the MyAFibRisk.com 400, so he fell to 15th in the points. Even after Kevin Harvick's bad race, Bowyer is now behind the defending Sprint Cup champ in 16th after the penalty was figured in.
Of course, Michael Waltrip Racing -- a team in its final nine weeks of Sprint Cup competition -- is planning to appeal. When you go from only six points behind 12th to 31 back, there's nothing to lose when a chance to advance is at stake.
And while Harvick is still 22 behind Jeff Gordon, the important priority lies ahead for both drivers.
It clearly involves one word. Winning.
As good as Harvick has been this season -- he's finished in the top 10 in 22 of the 27 races -- it would figure the champ doesn't have nearly as much to worry about as Bowyer does despite the post-race shoving match he tried to get into with Jimmie Johnson at Chicagoland.
Bowyer hasn't won a Cup race since Charlotte in October of 2012, 104 races ago. With a deficit this large now, pending the outcome of the penalty appeal, even back-to-back top-5 runs may not help.
The driver of the No. 15 5-Hour Energy Toyota for MWR had his last top-5 run at Bristol last month and was third at Sonoma prior to that.
It's unfortunate the penalties were handed down at this point in the season, but favorites should never be played. NASCAR's rule book may be baffling even to those who cover the Sprint Cup series on a full-time basis, but when something's done wrong, there's no gray area when the right to hold a shiny checkered-flag trophy is on the line.
Follow Tom Zulewski on Twitter @Tomzsports.
Showing posts with label Clint Bowyer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Clint Bowyer. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 23, 2015
Saturday, September 12, 2015
Richmond race lineup and other notes
Denny Hamlin's knee injury may have been the highlight story of the week, but we've reached the weekend, so that means the final race of the 2015 Sprint Cup regular season is upon us from Richmond.
And from the "what else is new" department, the Joe Gibbs cars are well up toward the front of the field for the Federated Auto Parts 400 after qualifying Friday (the link to the full field is highlighted). Matt Kenseth joins pole winner Joey Logano on the front row, while Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski start behind them in Row 2.
Carl Edwards goes off seventh, but Hamlin didn't fare nearly as well, failing to get out of the first round of qualifying. He starts his No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota from 25th.
That got the brain cells going for me. Among past Richmond race winners, we didn't have to go back very far to find that one of Hamlin's teammates could give him a good scouting report on how to get to the front at the end from deep in the field.
Two years ago at the same fall race, Edwards won at RIR after he qualified 26th. Heck, Clint Bowyer starts from there tonight and he's got two Richmond wins himself, including one from 31st in the spring race of 2008.
It can happen. Just don't bet on it -- unless you're a serious fan of the guy in the 19 car.
And don't get too comfortable with any race-watching plans right away. Rain is in the forecast for tonight at Richmond, and a lot of it. Early reports are saying up to an inch of the wet stuff can be expected.
I'm not a meteorologist -- don't even claim to play one on the radio -- but that doesn't instill confidence racing is likely to happen tonight.
A one-day postponement isn't cause for major concern, but the TV folks aren't going to be too thrilled mainly because Sunday is the first full day of the National Football League season.
Many more eyes will likely gravitate toward the opening week of the NFL season instead of the final race to the Chase. There's a reason the fall Richmond race has been run on Saturday nights, and big, bad Momma Nature is showing us why.
And from the "what else is new" department, the Joe Gibbs cars are well up toward the front of the field for the Federated Auto Parts 400 after qualifying Friday (the link to the full field is highlighted). Matt Kenseth joins pole winner Joey Logano on the front row, while Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski start behind them in Row 2.
Carl Edwards goes off seventh, but Hamlin didn't fare nearly as well, failing to get out of the first round of qualifying. He starts his No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota from 25th.
That got the brain cells going for me. Among past Richmond race winners, we didn't have to go back very far to find that one of Hamlin's teammates could give him a good scouting report on how to get to the front at the end from deep in the field.
Two years ago at the same fall race, Edwards won at RIR after he qualified 26th. Heck, Clint Bowyer starts from there tonight and he's got two Richmond wins himself, including one from 31st in the spring race of 2008.
It can happen. Just don't bet on it -- unless you're a serious fan of the guy in the 19 car.
And don't get too comfortable with any race-watching plans right away. Rain is in the forecast for tonight at Richmond, and a lot of it. Early reports are saying up to an inch of the wet stuff can be expected.
I'm not a meteorologist -- don't even claim to play one on the radio -- but that doesn't instill confidence racing is likely to happen tonight.
A one-day postponement isn't cause for major concern, but the TV folks aren't going to be too thrilled mainly because Sunday is the first full day of the National Football League season.
Many more eyes will likely gravitate toward the opening week of the NFL season instead of the final race to the Chase. There's a reason the fall Richmond race has been run on Saturday nights, and big, bad Momma Nature is showing us why.
Wednesday, August 19, 2015
Michael Waltrip Racing spins into oblivion
The "Shot Heard 'Round the World" was one of Major League Baseball's iconic moments. Brooklyn Dodgers pitcher Ralph Branca gives up a three-run homer to Bobby Thomson, and the words were screamed into the public consciousness by New York Giants radio man Russ Hodges.
"The Giants Win the Pennant! The Giants Win the Pennant!"
That was in 1951. Fast forward nearly 62 years later, and the antithesis of that moment in NASCAR was spoken something like this:
"Got something wrong with your arm? Itch it!"
Clint Bowyer was the man who heard those words from the spotter's stand on a warm September night at Richmond International Raceway and ignited the mother of all stunning controversies that ended up with tragic consequences for everyone involved.
As of Wednesday, the two-year saga of Michael Waltrip Racing ended sadly with Bowyer announcing his departure from the team at the end of this season. The exit means MWR will not field any Sprint Cup teams on a full-time basis in 2016.
The biggest reason why came on that night at Richmond. It should have never come to this point.
To review: Bowyer spins with seven laps to go, basically untouched. The third member of MWR that season was Brian Vickers. He pitted after Bowyer's spin and knocked Jeff Gordon back just enough in the final running order to deny him a Chase berth.
Martin Truex Jr. got in on a tiebreaker, but the berth was taken away by NASCAR and given to Gordon. MWR was fined $300,000, all three drivers were docked 50 championship points before the Chase reset, and saddest of all, NAPA, which had been with Michael Waltrip as far back as 2001, pulled its sponsorship from the team.
No money coming in means no chance to compete effectively on or off the race track.
Waltrip didn't have a stellar career as a NASCAR driver, but he did win the Daytona 500 twice -- in 2001 and 2003. Only 10 of his fellow racers can make that claim in their careers.
As a race team owner, he was in a world of hurt from the jet fuel controversy at Daytona (ironically) in 2007. All three of the team's cars were found to have used an "illegal oxygenate fuel additive" to increase the cars' performance.
When the dust settled, Waltrip, David Reutimann and Dale Jarrett were all docked 100 points. That was small potatoes in comparison to Spingate.
If the sponsors go away, the speed demons don't get to play anymore. It's a cruel reality for which Michael Waltrip has only himself to blame.
Follow Tom Zulewski and add your comments on Twitter @Tomzsports.
Sunday, August 16, 2015
Chase stress hits overdrive for some
On a bright, beautiful Sunday afternoon at Michigan International Speedway, the Pure Michigan 400 was as much about the continuing dominance of the Joe Gibbs Racing cars as it was about those who were fighting for their lives to be eligible to be in the Chase for the 2015 Sprint Cup title.
We didn’t have a change at the top. Matt Kenseth was dominant on the 2-mile oval, leading 146 of 200 laps and cruising to his third win of the season.
But what we saw toward the lower parts of the pack at Michigan was how some drivers saw their collars get just a little bit tighter after running into trouble on the track.
Among the casualties was Clint Bowyer. As if he didn’t have enough distraction with the Michael Waltrip Racing team situation hanging like a dark cloud over his head, the affable Kansas native got together with Ryan Newman at lap 127, hitting the inside wall after a spin at Turn 4. The damage done was more than enough to force the No. 15 5-Hour Energy Toyota into a 41st-place finish.
From a somewhat comfortable cushion as the 16th and last driver who would be in the Chase field, Bowyer saw a 50-point margin over Aric Almirola get sliced by more than half. With Almirola finishing 14th on Sunday, he gained a renewed sense of hope and closed the gap to just 23 points with still three races left to run.
As we’ve discussed with Kyle Busch – more on him shortly – there are no more mulligans left for anyone. It’s go time.
Adding to the pressure for Bowyer, Kasey Kahne saw a 15th-place finish turn into something more like a victory. He moved within 26 points of the last spot in the Chase field.
How good was Sunday’s result for Kahne? The No. 5 car had an average finish of 31st in the last six races, including 43rd at Pocono and 42nd at Watkins Glen.
Yet thanks to one competitor’s misfortune at Michigan, Kahne still has hope over the final three races before the Chase begins.
And then there’s Kyle Busch, who turned the misfortune of starting from the rear of the field (40th) after a Saturday practice crash into an 11th-place finish Sunday. He moved up a spot in the standings to 29th and increased his cushion on 31st from six to 23 points.
Even though Busch is weaving his way up the standings faster than a sprinter on a jet ski, there’s still one tiny part of the skeptical side of my brain that says the Las Vegas native won’t be able to keep up the pace.
So far, he’s proven everyone wrong, but any misstep – a wreck, pit road speeding penalty, blown engine, worn tire – could set all the momentum back into the mud.
And more importantly, anyone without a win in the top 30 who gets to Victory Lane over the next three races could spoil everything. Austin Dillon put a scare into some camps Sunday, leading 19 laps before finishing fourth.
But whatever happens from Bristol to Darlington to Richmond, the only guarantee is the final run to the Chase will require good working running shoes.
We didn’t have a change at the top. Matt Kenseth was dominant on the 2-mile oval, leading 146 of 200 laps and cruising to his third win of the season.
But what we saw toward the lower parts of the pack at Michigan was how some drivers saw their collars get just a little bit tighter after running into trouble on the track.
Among the casualties was Clint Bowyer. As if he didn’t have enough distraction with the Michael Waltrip Racing team situation hanging like a dark cloud over his head, the affable Kansas native got together with Ryan Newman at lap 127, hitting the inside wall after a spin at Turn 4. The damage done was more than enough to force the No. 15 5-Hour Energy Toyota into a 41st-place finish.
From a somewhat comfortable cushion as the 16th and last driver who would be in the Chase field, Bowyer saw a 50-point margin over Aric Almirola get sliced by more than half. With Almirola finishing 14th on Sunday, he gained a renewed sense of hope and closed the gap to just 23 points with still three races left to run.
As we’ve discussed with Kyle Busch – more on him shortly – there are no more mulligans left for anyone. It’s go time.
Adding to the pressure for Bowyer, Kasey Kahne saw a 15th-place finish turn into something more like a victory. He moved within 26 points of the last spot in the Chase field.
How good was Sunday’s result for Kahne? The No. 5 car had an average finish of 31st in the last six races, including 43rd at Pocono and 42nd at Watkins Glen.
Yet thanks to one competitor’s misfortune at Michigan, Kahne still has hope over the final three races before the Chase begins.
And then there’s Kyle Busch, who turned the misfortune of starting from the rear of the field (40th) after a Saturday practice crash into an 11th-place finish Sunday. He moved up a spot in the standings to 29th and increased his cushion on 31st from six to 23 points.
Even though Busch is weaving his way up the standings faster than a sprinter on a jet ski, there’s still one tiny part of the skeptical side of my brain that says the Las Vegas native won’t be able to keep up the pace.
So far, he’s proven everyone wrong, but any misstep – a wreck, pit road speeding penalty, blown engine, worn tire – could set all the momentum back into the mud.
And more importantly, anyone without a win in the top 30 who gets to Victory Lane over the next three races could spoil everything. Austin Dillon put a scare into some camps Sunday, leading 19 laps before finishing fourth.
But whatever happens from Bristol to Darlington to Richmond, the only guarantee is the final run to the Chase will require good working running shoes.
-The XFINITY series hit the second of three straight road courses Saturday at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course near Columbus, and Regan Smith scored his ideal payback after his dustup with Ty Dillon, bumping Alex Tagliani out of the way in the closing laps and winning the Nationwide Children's Hospital 200.
Best lesson from the moment: Instead of letting the frustration of past injustice tear him up inside, Smith did what he had to do to get his car to the checkered flag first. Dillon was still a factor late, finishing third, but any gain on those at the top of the standings is a good gain.
Smith is fourth in the standings and trails Chase Elliott by 26 points, while Dillon is one point further up the line in second place.
-And from the "I should have paid attention" department: Kyle Busch denied Ryan Blaney another victory, this time in Saturday's Camping World Truck Series race at Michigan. The final margin was only .157 seconds, but it was an encore that probably felt like light years away to Blaney.
The kid shook off his disappointment of Indianapolis and won at Iowa. With the series hitting Bristol in rapid-fire fashion Wednesday night, it gives Blaney the ideal scenario. If he's on the entry list, don't be surprised if the young man finds a way to get himself back in the winning groove once more.
Followers and comments are welcome on Twitter @Tomzsports.
NEXT WEEK'S RACES
Bristol Motor Speedway (.533-mile oval), Bristol, Tenn.
-SPRINT CUP: Irwin Tools Night Race, Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m, PT, NBC Sports Network. Radio: SiriusXM Channel 90 or your local PRN Radio affiliate.
Race distance: 500 laps, 266.5 miles
2014 champion: Joey Logano
-XFINITY SERIES: Food City 300, Friday, 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. PT, NBC Sports Network. Radio: SiriusXM Channel 90 or your local PRN Radio affiliate.
Race distance: 300 laps, 159.9 miles.
2014 champion: Ryan Blaney
-CAMPING WORLD TRUCK SERIES: UNOH 200 presented by ZLoop, Wednesday, 8:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. PT, Fox Sports 1. Radio: SiriusXM Channel 90 or your local MRN Radio affiliate.
Race distance: 200 laps, 106.6 miles
2014 champion: Brad Keselowski
Wednesday, August 12, 2015
Who's got best shot at Chase?
With all the talk of Kyle Busch's run from physical therapy to the top 30 in points, it obscured the drivers who are trying to get into the mix for the Chase themselves.
Four wins for Busch in seven weeks certainly can't be ignored, but I'm on the lookout for those who are in desperation mode with only four races to run until the top 16 start the Chase to the 2015 Sprint Cup.
Right now, there are five spots open for those with the big doughnut in the win column. Busch is in the Chase, but he's only six points to the good. As we discussed here after the 18 made the field with a runner-up run at Watkins Glen, things can change in a heartbeat.
Busch was 43rd at Michigan in June, but won at Indianapolis with the new high-drag rules package in the cars. With the package set to go for the 2-mile oval in the Irish Hills west of Detroit -- more air ducts are being mandated to counter the heat issues drivers had to deal with previously -- we're officially in go mode.
And since Busch isn't in the most secure position for the Chase, it only adds to the tension for the non-winners making their runs.
Here's a look at the group in positions 12 through 16 who would fill the field via the current standings:
-Jamie McMurray (23 points ahead of 16th): Has only one top-5 run at Michigan, but finished seventh when they raced there in June. Since then, his best finish has been 11th at Sonoma and was 40th at the Glen. Definitely the wrong time to slump, and he may be secretly looking to put a hex on Busch so he slips back out of the top 30 by Richmond.
Hey, a driver can dream.
-Denny Hamlin (+19): Was 11th in the rain at Michigan and followed up with top-5 runs in three of four races (third at Daytona and Kentucky, fifth at Indianapolis), but has finished 22nd and 27th in the last two weeks.
Hamlin does have two wins at Michigan, but an average finish of 22.1 since the June race in 2011.
-Paul Menard (+10): A serious longshot to make the Chase on a win. The Richard Childress Racing driver has led one lap all year, and that makes Ryan Newman's run from last year look like Richard Petty.
Just to clarify that point: Newman led 41 laps, yet missed the championship by a half-second.
Menard was eighth at Michigan in June, but hasn't been in the top 10 since.
-Jeff Gordon (+8): The four-time champ has been shut out of the win column only three times, but it would be depressing if he missed the Chase in his final season.
Gordon has four top 10s in the last six weeks, but the two that weren't were a 42nd at Indy and 41st last week at Watkins Glen. He is the defending champ of this weekend's race.
-Ryan Newman (+1): As discussed previously, Newman isn't a master of leading laps, and you need them if you want to be in Victory Lane. This year's total: 19, none since Kentucky.
Newman's last win was at the 2013 Brickyard 400. He led 45 laps that day and hasn't come remotely close to that number since.
-Clint Bowyer (the man on the bubble): As long as no non-winner sees Victory Lane in the next four weeks, he'll be fine.
Bowyer has rebounded with three straight top 10s since a 34th at Loudon. With Carl Edwards already in the win column, his next closest challenger for that last Chase spot is Aric Almirola, but he's 50 points behind.
Almirola isn't alone in the fight to get into the Chase. Anyone inside the top 30 not named Kyle Busch can change their fate by getting to Victory Lane at Michigan, Bristol, Darlington or Richmond.
Once the field is set, it's all about surviving and advancing. Time to bring it on.
Tom Zulewski has covered many forms of motor sports in his 18-year career in journalism. Followers and comments are welcome on Twitter @Tomzsports.
Four wins for Busch in seven weeks certainly can't be ignored, but I'm on the lookout for those who are in desperation mode with only four races to run until the top 16 start the Chase to the 2015 Sprint Cup.
Right now, there are five spots open for those with the big doughnut in the win column. Busch is in the Chase, but he's only six points to the good. As we discussed here after the 18 made the field with a runner-up run at Watkins Glen, things can change in a heartbeat.
Busch was 43rd at Michigan in June, but won at Indianapolis with the new high-drag rules package in the cars. With the package set to go for the 2-mile oval in the Irish Hills west of Detroit -- more air ducts are being mandated to counter the heat issues drivers had to deal with previously -- we're officially in go mode.
And since Busch isn't in the most secure position for the Chase, it only adds to the tension for the non-winners making their runs.
Here's a look at the group in positions 12 through 16 who would fill the field via the current standings:
-Jamie McMurray (23 points ahead of 16th): Has only one top-5 run at Michigan, but finished seventh when they raced there in June. Since then, his best finish has been 11th at Sonoma and was 40th at the Glen. Definitely the wrong time to slump, and he may be secretly looking to put a hex on Busch so he slips back out of the top 30 by Richmond.
Hey, a driver can dream.
-Denny Hamlin (+19): Was 11th in the rain at Michigan and followed up with top-5 runs in three of four races (third at Daytona and Kentucky, fifth at Indianapolis), but has finished 22nd and 27th in the last two weeks.
Hamlin does have two wins at Michigan, but an average finish of 22.1 since the June race in 2011.
-Paul Menard (+10): A serious longshot to make the Chase on a win. The Richard Childress Racing driver has led one lap all year, and that makes Ryan Newman's run from last year look like Richard Petty.
Just to clarify that point: Newman led 41 laps, yet missed the championship by a half-second.
Menard was eighth at Michigan in June, but hasn't been in the top 10 since.
-Jeff Gordon (+8): The four-time champ has been shut out of the win column only three times, but it would be depressing if he missed the Chase in his final season.
Gordon has four top 10s in the last six weeks, but the two that weren't were a 42nd at Indy and 41st last week at Watkins Glen. He is the defending champ of this weekend's race.
-Ryan Newman (+1): As discussed previously, Newman isn't a master of leading laps, and you need them if you want to be in Victory Lane. This year's total: 19, none since Kentucky.
Newman's last win was at the 2013 Brickyard 400. He led 45 laps that day and hasn't come remotely close to that number since.
-Clint Bowyer (the man on the bubble): As long as no non-winner sees Victory Lane in the next four weeks, he'll be fine.
Bowyer has rebounded with three straight top 10s since a 34th at Loudon. With Carl Edwards already in the win column, his next closest challenger for that last Chase spot is Aric Almirola, but he's 50 points behind.
Almirola isn't alone in the fight to get into the Chase. Anyone inside the top 30 not named Kyle Busch can change their fate by getting to Victory Lane at Michigan, Bristol, Darlington or Richmond.
Once the field is set, it's all about surviving and advancing. Time to bring it on.
Tom Zulewski has covered many forms of motor sports in his 18-year career in journalism. Followers and comments are welcome on Twitter @Tomzsports.
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