Tick, Tock, Tick, Tock…..

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STORY LINES:

1.  BIFLE WINS TWO IN A ROW:

2.  ALMINDINGER OUT OF #84 ON 2009: (ESPN Sports)

3.  MAYFIELD TEST #42 @ LOWES: (scenedaily)

4.  BUSCH IS “DEAD” LAST- 210 POINTS OUT OF LEAD:

5.  KESELOWSKI MAKES CUP DEBUT @ LOWES IN #25 GODADY.COM: (hendrick motorsports)

6.  ROBBY GORDON AND DEI MERGER??? (winston-journal)

7.  WALTRIP COULD ADD A 4TH TEAM:

Could we be seeing another repeat of last year’s Chase??  Remember last year when Jimmie Johnson won 4 of the 10 Chase races.  Well, Greg Bifle has won the first two  back-to-back!!!!  Bifle is starting to show the same kind of dominance that Jimmie Johnson’s team showed last year!!  He has come from the back of the pack to now be considered a favorite!!  The Rousch-Fenway 3M #16 Ford Fusion has really stepped up their game when it counts!  The first two races have been on one mile tracks, however vastly different in their configuration.  Louden is a FLAT one mile track, unlike Dover which is a highly banked, extremely fast, and a self-cleaning, racing facility!!!  It would appear to this reporter that the #16 3M teams has their one mile program where it needs to be.  However, do they have the rest of their program fine tuned to the caliber needed to take the championship home!!!!  Stay tuned for eight more weekends!!!!

 

The race for the Chase is slowly “thining out the herd”!  It is this reporter’s view that the race has narrowed to nine teams now that have a reasonable chance to capture the championship this year.  It appears that the #18 M&M’s JGR team is facing “extinction”!    It is also this reporter’s opinion that the #11 FedEx JGR team is on the “endangered species” list!  Likewise, the #17 Dewalt Rousch-Fenway team is closely following the previously mentioned teams! All three teams NEED  to run exceptionally strong in the final 8 races to have a remote chance to win the championship.  In fact, it is time for the “true contenders” to separate themselves from the “pretenders”!! 

 

If you got something for ’em, NOW is the time you got to let the “BIG DOG EAT”!!!!!

THE CHASE STANDINGS:

1.  EDWARDS

2.  JOHNSON-10

     BIFLE-10

4.  BURTON-82

5.  HARVICK-101

6.  BOWYER-106

7.  STEWART-113

8.  GORDON-118

9.  EARNHARDT-129

10. KENSETH-167

11. HAMLIN-193

12. BUSCH-210

 

This week is Kansas and more will face elimination!!!!  Who will prevail???  Who will fail???? 

 

What do you think?

 

GETCHA FOUR FRESH GOODYEARS, A FULL TANK OF SUNOCO FUEL, A LITTLE WEDGE, AND MAYBE A SPRING RUBBER.  BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY…….PULL THOSE BELTS TIGHT ONE MORE TIME, AND LET’S GO RACIN’ BOYS!!!!!

The Chase Begins

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THIS WEEKS STORY LINES:

 

1.  JIMMIE JOHNSON  WINS AT RICHMOND: ( jayski Richmond results)

2.  JOEY LOGANO MAKES SECOND ATTEMP AT CUP DEBUT: ( nascar.com)

3.  GILLETTE-EVERNHAM SUES ROBBY GORDON: ( Winston-Salem Journal)

4.  SCOTT SPEED TESTING WITH RED BULL RACING:( www.jayski.com )

5.  RED BULL RACING POSSIBLY WITH 3 TEAMS: ( espn.tv )

6.  JAY FREYE STILL IN LIMBO: ( espn.tv )

7.  DODGE NOT TO SUPPORT THE TRUCK SERIES: ( www.jayski.com )

8.  NATIONWIDE SERIES TESTS COT AT RICHMOND: ( Scenedaily.com )

 

The first 26 races have been ran and the contenders for the Chase are set in stone!!!  The scores have been adjusted for the winning bonus points and the REAL race is about to begin!!  From the outside looking in, one might view this championship as a three horse race between TLVW, aka Kylie Busch, Jimmie Johnson, and Cousin Carl, aka Carl Edwards.  But don’t be fooled, my friends, there are TWELVE capable teams that can take this championship home!! 

 

There was much hype and anticipation before the season started about the Henrick Motorsports Dale Jr. #88 AMP/NATIONAL GUARD/MOUNTAIN DEW team!  They quickly came out of the box and won the first two races at Speedweeks in Daytona.  They were very consistant in their finishes through the first 20 races.  Although they only won one race, they were a top 5 team and every week.  However since that win at Michigan, the #88 team has experienced some bad finishes resulting from some bad decisions.  Does the #88 team have what it takes to wrestle the top spot away and take the trophy home after Homestead????

 

The Joe Gibbs Home Depot #20 is lurking back in eighth place and has had a VERY sub-par year!!  They have yet to post a victory this season!  That team was a dominating team in the very early part of the season leading lots of laps, but couldn’t close the deal and bring a win home.  Has the magic vanished with Zippy and THE SMOKER, aka Tony Stewart?????  Can they gather it up and “win one for the Gipper”?????

 

What about the #24 Dupont Chevy????  They too have fallen on hard times!!!  They have not been to the winners circle in 2008.  Does La Tarte and Gordon have anything for the three horse team at the top?? 

 

Well these and many more questions are about to be answered in the next ten races, my friends!!  This is where the contenders separate themselves from the pretenders!!  This is where you see the talent and desire come together to lead them to their goal…………The Sprint Cup Trophy!!!!  

COMMENTARY:

As the picture above shows, the sun is starting to set in the West.  It is time to dig down deep and see if you got anything for the leaders!  The  twelve race teams in the Chase have got to go to the front NOW, if they can!!!  After twenty- six weeks of the week in and week out grind of BIG TIME RACIN’, this is where we see which team has what it takes to get it done!!  Will the Joe Gibbs #18 Toyota prevail?  Can the #48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevy continue to add to their momentum?  Can the #99 Office Depot Ford continue in their winning ways?  Or will a spoiler like the #88 AMP/National Guard/ Mountain Dew Chevy driven by JR be the Sprint Cup Champion??  Could a really long shot get hot and steal the championship away from the favorites??? 

 These questions and many more are about to be answered in the next ten weeks!!

So pull those belts tight, make sure that the steering wheel is on straight, getcha four fresh Goodyears, a full tank of that Sunoco fuel, step on the loud pedal, let the big dawg eat, AND LET’S GO RACIN’ BOYS!!!!