They call Darlington the Lady in Black, but for at least some NASCAR fans, Saturday's 7 p.m. race on FOX will be about the lady in green. Yes, Danica Patrick will make her first appearance in the Sprint Cup series since the season-opening Daytona 500. This much we know because the No. 10 car owned by Tommy Baldwin Racing and Stewart-Haas Racing has been reserved for Patrick and is inside the top 35 in owners points.
For sure there are some Danica haters out there. She's become popular just as much for her appearance as for her driving skill. But as women face an uphill battle to break into a sport that is predominantly male, can she really be blamed for using all of her assets to bring in much needed sponsorship dollars?
Unfortunately, it's hard to blame her for that.
I say unfortunate because there are some talented male drivers out there who are having sponsorship issues. Can somebody tell me why a young handsome, well-spoken driver and 2011 Daytona 500 winner Trevor Bayne can't find a full-time sponsor? Or even former Sprint Cup champion Matt Kenseth, this year's Daytona 500 winner and a title contender again, has taken nearly one third of this season to find a regular full-time sponsor?
So, no, don't blame Danica for doing what she has to do. Ultimately, what she does on the track will matter - at least that's what we think. Whether that will be true or not remains to be seen.
As for how she will do Saturday night, Danica fans shouldn't come in with any big expectations. If she finishes inside the top 20, that would be a good accomplishment. If she finishes in the top 10, that wold be a big deal. Darlington is not kind to newcomers, so expect a big learning curve here.
As for the regular picks this week, here's a look at my top five:
Greg Biffle: The current points leader has two wins and five top 10s, so he's gotta be picked here.
Jimmie Johnson: Also two wins and he has yet to win this season, so he's really due for an appearance in Victory Lane.
Denny Hamlin: He doesn't have a ton of experience at Darlington with just six races, but he does have one win and an average finish of 6.5. And he normally drives a black car, so hey, the Lady in Black must like him.
Tony Stewart: This is one of two Sprint Cup tracks Stewart has not won on yet, so he'll be fired up to contend. He does have an average finish of 12.3 and three top fives at Darlington.
Kasey Kahne: He's had a string of good finishes now, including last week's fourth at Talladega. He does have the seventh-best driver rating and started on the pole last year, which shows he knows how to get around the 1.25-mile oval.
Coulda,shoulda, woulda: The numbers are jumping right out of the computer screen on this one, but couldn't pull the trigger here. Jeff Gordon has seven wins at Darlington and his team, Hendrick Racing, has 13 total victories. And the Hendrick team is still looking for that elusive 200th career Sprint Cup win. But just too much bad luck for the No. 24 this year to pick him this time.
ACCOUNTABILITY GROUP
Here's a look at how last week's picks fared at Talladega.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. - 9th. So much for my lock stock guaranteed absolutely without question can't miss winning prediction. The winless streak is now at 139 for those of you snoring at home.
Brad Keselowski: - 1st. OK, so I didn't give you a guarantee here, but that's two winners in a row I've given you.
Kevin Harvick - 25th. He was a contender again until getting caught up in a late accident.
Jimmie Johnson - 35th. He had a grenade engine, nothing more restricting than that at a plate track.
Juan Pablo Montoya - 32nd. Well, he didn't run into the jet dryer. Doesn't that count as a win?
Here's a look at my results after 10 races and 50 picks.
4 wins
12 top fives
8 top 10s
Grade for the week: B. We did get another winner this week as at least one of the Penske cars continued to run strong on a plate track. Engine woes and accidents put a damper on the rest of the day.
One Last Thing: Carl Edwards finished 31st last week at Talladega and dropped to 11th in the points standings. Edwards was the runner-up in for the championship last year and is trying to break a recent stretch of poor performances the following season by the previous year's runnerup. Denny Hamlin finished ninth last year, Mark Martin was 13th in 2010, and Edwards was 11th in 2009.
Showing posts with label Trevor Bayne. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Trevor Bayne. Show all posts
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Thursday, March 17, 2011
March Madness ... NASCAR style
A few things on this beautiful St. Patrick's Day before we get on to NASCAR's version of March Madness at Bristol Sunday.
On last Sunday's TV special on FOX about the Daytona 500: It would have been nice to have seen a little more done with Trevor Bayne, but in defense of Fox, there's no way they could have had him in a pool of potential winners. He was 300-1 odds in Vegas to win Daytona, so, if they had followed 10 drivers around, or even 20, they wouldn't have picked him. On the plus side, glad to see and hear the group Skillet's song 'Hero' featured early in the show.
On Carl Edwards' winning at Las Vegas two Sundays ago: It looks like Edwards has his groove back and if the team stays on track, it's going to be a contender for the Chase for the Championship. There was a little concern about Edwards doing his patented backflip off the race car on the pavement, but he did it just fine. Just wouldn't want to see him slip and fall awkwardly on the unforgiving pavement.
On Bob Osborne: It was nice to see Chester native Bob Osborne, Edwards' crew chief, so excited after the win. He's a tactician and sometimes not real emotional and that's been successful for him. He also knows how hard it is to win in NASCAR, so it was nice to see him enjoy the moment.
On Bristol: It's the opposite of Daytona, a short half-mile track, but it brings the same type of excitement and madness. It's a track where tempers often flare during the race. On more than one occasion drivers have thrown pieces of their uniforms (like helmets, or gloves) at the accident-causing drivers when they come back around during a yellow flag. It's a short track and tempers are bound to be short Sunday afternoon in Tennessee.
Last race's picks review and this week's top five picks:
1. Kyle Busch. 38th. Looked good early, then had a tire go down, then had a grenade engine.
2. Kurt Busch. 9th. Not a bad ride for the elder Busch in his hometown.
3. Jeff Gordon. 36th. Had all kind of issues all day.
4. A.J. Allmendinger. 19th. Took a Vegas gamble here and would have lost money.
5. Jimmie Johnson. 16th. Took the safe bet here and would have still lost money.
On to Bristol, Sunday, 1 p.m. on FOX
1. Tony Stewart. Has been in position to win each of the first three races, so he's due here.
2. Kurt Busch. Five wins here and not afraid to rattle somebody's cage.
3. Kyle Busch. Both Shrubs again? Well, Kyle won all three (Trucks, Nationwide and Sprint Cup) last year, so gotta pick him again.
4. Ryan Newman. He's fifth in points and grew up racing on dirt short tracks in all around the Midwest.
5. Dale Earnhardt Jr. He's making progress, and most importantly, has shown some patience early in races when his car has not been great. He could be ready for a breakthrough.
The possibly regrettable unpick: Carl Edwards. The car's been dynamite all three races. No reason to think it will be different in Bristol.
On last Sunday's TV special on FOX about the Daytona 500: It would have been nice to have seen a little more done with Trevor Bayne, but in defense of Fox, there's no way they could have had him in a pool of potential winners. He was 300-1 odds in Vegas to win Daytona, so, if they had followed 10 drivers around, or even 20, they wouldn't have picked him. On the plus side, glad to see and hear the group Skillet's song 'Hero' featured early in the show.
On Carl Edwards' winning at Las Vegas two Sundays ago: It looks like Edwards has his groove back and if the team stays on track, it's going to be a contender for the Chase for the Championship. There was a little concern about Edwards doing his patented backflip off the race car on the pavement, but he did it just fine. Just wouldn't want to see him slip and fall awkwardly on the unforgiving pavement.
On Bob Osborne: It was nice to see Chester native Bob Osborne, Edwards' crew chief, so excited after the win. He's a tactician and sometimes not real emotional and that's been successful for him. He also knows how hard it is to win in NASCAR, so it was nice to see him enjoy the moment.
On Bristol: It's the opposite of Daytona, a short half-mile track, but it brings the same type of excitement and madness. It's a track where tempers often flare during the race. On more than one occasion drivers have thrown pieces of their uniforms (like helmets, or gloves) at the accident-causing drivers when they come back around during a yellow flag. It's a short track and tempers are bound to be short Sunday afternoon in Tennessee.
Last race's picks review and this week's top five picks:
1. Kyle Busch. 38th. Looked good early, then had a tire go down, then had a grenade engine.
2. Kurt Busch. 9th. Not a bad ride for the elder Busch in his hometown.
3. Jeff Gordon. 36th. Had all kind of issues all day.
4. A.J. Allmendinger. 19th. Took a Vegas gamble here and would have lost money.
5. Jimmie Johnson. 16th. Took the safe bet here and would have still lost money.
On to Bristol, Sunday, 1 p.m. on FOX
1. Tony Stewart. Has been in position to win each of the first three races, so he's due here.
2. Kurt Busch. Five wins here and not afraid to rattle somebody's cage.
3. Kyle Busch. Both Shrubs again? Well, Kyle won all three (Trucks, Nationwide and Sprint Cup) last year, so gotta pick him again.
4. Ryan Newman. He's fifth in points and grew up racing on dirt short tracks in all around the Midwest.
5. Dale Earnhardt Jr. He's making progress, and most importantly, has shown some patience early in races when his car has not been great. He could be ready for a breakthrough.
The possibly regrettable unpick: Carl Edwards. The car's been dynamite all three races. No reason to think it will be different in Bristol.
Monday, February 21, 2011
A quick look at those Daytona records
Yes, it was a record-setting day at Sunday's Daytona 500. Here's a look at the marks that were broken.
Youngest winner - Trevor Bayne, 20 years, one day. The previous youngest winner was Jeff Gordon when he was 25.
Lead changes - 74. Significant in that the former record was 60 lead changes and was set in 1974.
Number of leaders - For the second straight year this mark fell, with 22 different leaders Sunday, compared to 21 last year.
Caution flags - There were 16 Sunday, which led to a record-tying 60 caution flags.
Years between Daytona victories for a team - The last time the Woods Brothers had a car win the Daytona 500 was in 1976 when David Pearson beat Richard Petty to the line in a famous last-lap battle. That makes it 35 years between Daytona 500 victories. This is not an official record, but considering most teams racing today weren't even in existence 35 years ago, it's safe to say this is a record, too.
Youngest winner - Trevor Bayne, 20 years, one day. The previous youngest winner was Jeff Gordon when he was 25.
Lead changes - 74. Significant in that the former record was 60 lead changes and was set in 1974.
Number of leaders - For the second straight year this mark fell, with 22 different leaders Sunday, compared to 21 last year.
Caution flags - There were 16 Sunday, which led to a record-tying 60 caution flags.
Years between Daytona victories for a team - The last time the Woods Brothers had a car win the Daytona 500 was in 1976 when David Pearson beat Richard Petty to the line in a famous last-lap battle. That makes it 35 years between Daytona 500 victories. This is not an official record, but considering most teams racing today weren't even in existence 35 years ago, it's safe to say this is a record, too.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
The Daytona 500 a remarkable reminder.
Some may say Sunday was the best Daytona 500 ever? Probably not. Was it well worth, watching? Definitely yes.
There were a record number of lead changes, a record number of yellow flags (the four hours even for us faithful was a bit long), and a record for the youngest winner.
But maybe the best part was not that Trevor Bayne, at age 20, was the youngest winner. It was that a part-time team, the history-rich Wood Brothers, could put together a good enough package to win certainly America's biggest race, and let's face it, the world's biggest race.
Just look at it this way. The big budget teams like Hendrick, Roush and Childress certainly were favorites to have a winner. But Bayne winning is comparable to the Los Angeles Clippers winning the NBA title, or maybe the Detroit Lions winning the Super Bowl, or maybe the Pittsburgh Pirates (well no, let's not go too far here), maybe the Washington Nationals winning the World Series, or if Butler had beaten Duke for the NCAA basketball championship last spring.
What also told you volumes about the young Bayne, is how many other drivers and pit crew members congratulated him after the win. If there were some jealous losers, they were certainly in the minority. The fact that Bayne's victory was so well received is a testament to his attitude at such a young age. It's something a lot of veteran drivers should look at and at least try to imitate.
Earlier in the race, when eventual second-place finisher Carl Edwards got on the radio during a yellow flag and tried to hook up with Bayne, the rookie mentioned his car was too fast to go out front in the 2x2 pairings as he was pulling away from would be helpers. It turns out that worked to his advantage in those crucial final two laps. They could catch him, but they couldn't pass him. He hugged that yellow line all the way around to the checkered flag for his first Sprint Cup win in just his second Sprint Cup race.
Remarkable and a reminder that the underdogs can still win.
There were a record number of lead changes, a record number of yellow flags (the four hours even for us faithful was a bit long), and a record for the youngest winner.
But maybe the best part was not that Trevor Bayne, at age 20, was the youngest winner. It was that a part-time team, the history-rich Wood Brothers, could put together a good enough package to win certainly America's biggest race, and let's face it, the world's biggest race.
Just look at it this way. The big budget teams like Hendrick, Roush and Childress certainly were favorites to have a winner. But Bayne winning is comparable to the Los Angeles Clippers winning the NBA title, or maybe the Detroit Lions winning the Super Bowl, or maybe the Pittsburgh Pirates (well no, let's not go too far here), maybe the Washington Nationals winning the World Series, or if Butler had beaten Duke for the NCAA basketball championship last spring.
What also told you volumes about the young Bayne, is how many other drivers and pit crew members congratulated him after the win. If there were some jealous losers, they were certainly in the minority. The fact that Bayne's victory was so well received is a testament to his attitude at such a young age. It's something a lot of veteran drivers should look at and at least try to imitate.
Earlier in the race, when eventual second-place finisher Carl Edwards got on the radio during a yellow flag and tried to hook up with Bayne, the rookie mentioned his car was too fast to go out front in the 2x2 pairings as he was pulling away from would be helpers. It turns out that worked to his advantage in those crucial final two laps. They could catch him, but they couldn't pass him. He hugged that yellow line all the way around to the checkered flag for his first Sprint Cup win in just his second Sprint Cup race.
Remarkable and a reminder that the underdogs can still win.
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