The Last Raceday of 2009!

Ok...so I'm a little late in posting. My 3 readers were all out of town today anyway, so nobody noticed.
It all comes down to this race. Homestea-Miami weekend. Ron Hornaday wins his 4th Trucks Championship. Kyle Busch won his 1st Nationwide Championship.
And it looks like Jimmie Johnson will win his unprecedented 4th consecutive Sprint Cup Championship.
I'd like to see Mark Martin pull off a miracle and win the race and the Championship, but I don't think it's gonna happen.
My predictions for today:
3). Jimmie Johnson
2). Mark Martin
1). Tony Stewart....and, yes, I am cheating because Tony is leading right now at the 82nd lap.

It has been a fun, but long, season. I am looking forward to a couple of months away from the track. I will fill my time with basketball, football and hockey...plus getting to hang with Sandy and the boys!

Have a great offseason and have a great Thanksgiving and Merry Christmas! See you in 2010 on Ridin' Shotgun!

And then there were two....

The Valley of the Sun...Phoenix, Arizona. There are two races remaining in the 2009 race for the Sprint Cup. After last weekend's incredible outcome, there is now a points chase again. When Jimmie Johnson was spun out by Sam Hornish on the 3rd lap of last week's race in Texas, the damage done to Jimmie's number 48 cost him 111 points in the chase. So now, Mark Martin, Jeff Gordon are within distance and Kurt Busch, coming of the win at Texas, has an outside chance. Jimmie didn't qualify well in Texas, so he started the race in the wrong place. Had he not been in the middle of the pack, he wouldn't have been near any of the marginal drivers who weekly cause accidents. He rectified that with a great qualifying session on Friday. He will start 3rd and, I imagine, will quickly get himself to the front to lead a bunch of laps. He does very well in Phoenix. Mark Martin won the spring race here, so if he can get the season sweep, things could be very interesting in Homestead next weekend.
Today's race is called the Checker O'Reilly Auto Parts 500. You may be thinking, "Hmmm...since this is a 1 mile track and they are only running 312 laps today, how could it be the Checker O'Reilly Auto Parts 500?" Great question. The 500 is kilometers. Why, you ask? I guess that's what Google is for. Today's race will be a pit strategy race, and no one is better than Chad Knaus...so.....
Predictions for today:
3). Jeff Gordon
2). Mark Martin
1). Jimmie Johnson
And I think this is how the Chase will finish next week in Homestead.
Have a great Raceday!

3 to go...

We're back in the great state of Texas this weekend for the 2nd time this season with the 8th race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup. Jimmie Johnson has pretty much sewed up his 4th consecutive Cup. With a win today, he can clinch the Cup. The Phoenix and Homestead folks are both pulling for him to finish 43rd, so the Cup can be awarded at their tracks, but Jimmie is very strong here in Texas and the 48 team will not beat themselves. His record breaking performance has been remarkable. In my humble opinion, his lack of personality takes some of the luster off the wins. He's a nice guy, but seems so corporate and robotic. His crew chief, Chad Knaus, has more personality and co-hosts one of our weekly programs, Nascar Performance. He shows off a bit of his personality on that show, and shows even more when the "red light" is off. He's a really funny guy who, self admittedly, has no life outside the track. He eats, breathes, sleeps and lives racing. I guess that's why he's about to win his 4th Cup in a row.
Today's race is the last 500 mile contest of the season. Today's weather will be overcast all day, so the grip should be good with multi-groove racing all day long. Kyle Busch has won twice already this weekend winning the truck race on Friday night and the Nationwide race Saturday afternoon. Now while my dislike of Kyle Busch is well documented here on Ridin' Shotgun, I honestly would like to see him sweep the weekend with a win today. I know that's like a Red Sox fan rooting for the Yankees to win the World Series, but I would like to see him do his trademark bow from a third vehicle in three days.
My predictions for today:
3). Greg Biffle
2). Mark Martin
1). Kyle Busch
Have a great Raceday!

There's racing this weekend?

Wow! Fresh off a 5 day ocean cruise to Mexico and I am so relaxed! It was fantastic! I am currently in Brownwood, TX visiting some friends with Sandy. I fly back to Nashville on Monday.
I hear there's a race in Talladega this weekend. I have been so out of touch, I really don't know much about what's been going on in the NASCAR world. I did hear that qualifying got rained out, so Jimmie Johnson will be on the pole. I have a feeling that this is Jimmie's title again.
Have a great raceday!

Martinsville...but I'm not really here.

Martinsville, VA...Race #6 in the Chase. Jimmie Johnson is rolling towards his 4th straight Sprint Cup Championship with a 90 point lead. This race is one of the most entertaining with it being the shortest track on the circuit, beating, banging, trading paint...but can I tell you...I've already checked out in my head. This time tomorrow I'll be heading towards a large Carnival Cruise ship in Galveston, TX to spend 5 days with my lovely wife. We'll have two ports stops in Mexico. One of the stops in Cozumel where I plan to scuba dive with some sea turtles. I am so excited, I can hardly wait.
Ok, back to racing. Yesterday's practices were rained out, so nobody has had a lot of track time. Ryan Newman took the pole on Friday. Pit selection and position is so big here. This race and next week's race in Talladega will be the two races that are really wild cards in the Chase. You could be having the best day of your racing career and get punted into the fence or caught up in "The Big One" and have your day ruined. I am still holding out hope for Mark Martin or Tony Stewart. Heck, I'd even take Jeff Gordon at this point. To me, this chase is kind of like the last presidential election. No matter what the outcome, it will be historic. Whether Obama was elected as the first African American or we had the first woman Vice President, it would be historic.
Well, if Jimmie wins the cup, it will be the first time someone has won 4 in a row. If Mark Martin wins, it will be his first Cup after coming in 2nd so many times. If Tony wins, it will be his first as an owner/driver and third over all. If Jeff wins, it will be his 5th Championship, but first Sprint Cup. Oh, I am tingly with anticipation!
There is no way to predict how this one will come out, but here goes anyway:
3). Mark Martin
2). Jeff Burton
1). Jeff Gordon
Have a great Raceday...I will update next week with stories of a great vacation...I won't be in Talladega, but I will still keep you posted on the Chase for the Sprint Cup.

Last Lowe's...

Lowe's became the track sponsor for the Concord, NC (Charlotte) track in 1999. They have ended their agreement to sponsor the track, so today's race will be the final race at the Lowe's Motor Speedway. If anybody out there has a few million bucks laying around, I think Bruton Smith, the track owner, would love to talk to you about some sponsorship.
Tonight's race begins at 7:25 Eastern time...the sun will be setting and the temperature will be dropping. It may even hit a low of the high 30's. That will give the track a lot of grip...except for the icy parts.
Jimmie Johnson is on a tear...like always. He took over the points lead from Mark Martin last week with his win in Fontana, CA. Mark Martin is by no means out of the race, though. He is only 12 points back, followed by Juan Pablo Montoya who's 58 points back and Tony Stewart who is 84 points back. I think one of those 4 are the only ones who can claim the title this year now. And the 48 team is hitting on all cylinders right now, so there is no reason to believe they won't capture their 4th consecutive title.
Crap. I'm not Jimmie fan, but, wow, what a team. They just keep plowing and overcoming until they snatch that trophy year after year after year! Jimmie has been dominant again this week at the "home" track for most of the Cup teams. He had the top speed in all the practices and took the pole with the 3rd fastest time ever.
My predictions (actually, my hopes) for tonight's race:
3). Jimmie Johnson
2). Mark Martin
1). Juan Pablo Montoya
Have a great race night everybody!

Fontucky...

That's the nickname a lot of folks give Fontana, CA. I like being in California. The weather has been great and I got a day off yesterday, so I spent some time by the pool, went and watched a couple of movies and then had dinner with some old TBN friends. It was a great day!
Race 4 of the Chase is today and Denny Hamlin is on the pole. The word in the garage is Denny is the favorite for today.
My predictions:
3). Greg Biffle
2). Jimmie Johnson
1). Denny Hamlin
Have a great raceday!