gNA$hCAR Notes
Week 9 -- Talladega
Perhaps it is fitting that the Cup drivers had to qualify for this race on Dale Earnhardt's birthday, as this is a track that E Sr. basically owned during his career and that his son continues to shine on in the modern era. And perhaps too it is fitting that Kevin Harvick won the pole Friday in the car that used to be Big E's ride before... well, you know.
But that's where the parallels end. Earnhardt Jr. qualified a very un-Junior like 36th, along with DEI teammate Michael Waltrip (38th). And adding to the disappointment, Little E qualified LOWER than his half bro, Kerry (31st). But fear not, fans of Driver 8. This is 'Dega, where your hero always rises to the occasion.
GLENN'S TEN:
* Dale Earnhardt Jr. (winner) -- Don't let the disappointing qualifying effort mislead you. DEI puts everything it has into preparing for the restrictor tracks, and Junior has taken worse cars to Victory Lane here. He knows how to draft his way forward, as do his teammates who will work with him on race day. Besides, it's his turn after last year's beer can melee over the yellow-flag loss to Jeff Gordon. Still trying to dig out from his early points deficit and make the top 10, and this is his best shot at doing so.
REST OF THE TOP 10 (in no particular order):
* Jeff Gordon -- Last year's win was a "fluke" -- The Pepsi scheme usually seems to bring bad luck upon the #24. But I can't argue against Hendrick power at the restrictor tracks this year. They're on their game.
* Jimmie Johnson -- If someone's gonna steal a win this year, it might be the Lowe's bunch.
* Greg Biffle -- Biff got a raw deal in the pits last weekend. He and the rest of the Roushketeers will be in the top 10 all day.
* Kurt Busch -- If Earnhardt or Johnson fail to come through, this is my pick. Kurt has proved he has the power to win on the long tracks, but now he just needs to figure out how to get the track position on the final lap. (Hint: It's not chasing Junior or Gordon.)
* Kevin Harvick -- He's on the pole, but can he close the deal? Not quite, but he'll fare better than his teammates. Watch the other three all bite the dust before lap 150.
* Tony Stewart -- My dark horse. Which Tony will show up Sunday? More importantly, will Tony's car show up for a change?
* Mark Martin -- I'm starting to feel bad this is Martin's last season. He's a portrait of poise when it comes to working his way through the pack each week. Look for a top 5.
* Joe Nemechek -- Joe drives well at the big tracks. With Hendrick power under the hood he'll make some noise on Sunday.
* Michael Waltrip -- If Earnhardt Jr. gets to the front it will take a teammate's help. Mikey's the helper, but will he be able to hang on to the top 10 when things shake out?
Also watching: Elliott Sadler (Can he keep off his lid here for a change?)... Ryan Newman (Restrictor tracks have been uncharitable)... Ricky Rudd (Getting better and sat on pole here last year)... Casey Mears (One of the Ganassi guys has to carry the torch. Could it be the #41?)
Deserted in the desert
There's simply no delicate way to say this, so I'll just be blunt: That sucked! I'm not just talking about Kurt Busch winning the race, which is in itself enough to spoil the evening. I'm referring to my abysmal picks performance. I should have known I was in for a rough night when I had 7 of 10 in the show at midway. That was before mediocre drivers started using pit strategy to move forward, and the favorites started having problems. The result was one of my most "off" predictions in many moons.
...And speaking of moons, we didn't see too much of the almost-full moon that hung over Phoenix Saturday night, thanks to the cloud cover that dropped rain about two hours before the green flag fell. Luckily, the crews got the track dry and it stayed that way until the checkers fell.
GLENN'S TEN (2-for-10 -- Aaaaarrrrgghhh!!!):
* Jimmie Johnson (winner) -- 15th, Jimmie had the look of a winner early on, making slow yet steady progress forward. Then he got shuffled backward on pit stops and wound up in a scuffle with Tony Stewart and others late in the race. This ends a streak of 13 consecutive top 10's for the #48 bunch.
* Greg Biffle -- 41st, Got a piece of Mike Bliss on pit road and damaged the radiator. This after having the second strongest car before the mishap. Ended the night behind the wall.
* Jeff Gordon -- 12th, The curse of winning the pole rears its ugly head. Jeff never had a car capable of the win. He led a bit near the closing stages, but only because he stayed out on old tires.
* Rusty Wallace -- 36th, Rusty had a crappy race, precipitated by his backslide through the field before his crash with Ricky Rudd.
* Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- 4th, Junior didn't look like much of a factor until the end of the race. He just stayed out of trouble and snuck into the top 5. This is becoming his signature this season. Almost back to the top 10 in points, and Talladega is... next week!
* Kurt Busch -- 1st, Had the dominant car all night. He deserved to win, as much as I hate to say it. I liked the door-banging move past Jeff Gordon as he was making his final charge to the front. He says he got a little tight out of the turn. Yeah. Right. Martinsville wasn't that long ago. Busch is all class -- Did you catch the comment about Michael Waltrip in the post-race interview? They asked him what he thought about Mikey clinging so tenaciously to the chase for the lead: "Yeah, I couldn't believe that..." Like Mikey shouldn't have been there to begin with. Just another entry in Busch's foot-in-mouth quotebook.
* Tony Stewart -- 33rd, Tony couldn't buy a break. Got his front grill bashed in on pit road, which led to overheating issues. Never did get him fixed up, then he got caught up in the wreckage with Jimmie Johnson and some others late in the race. Finished 7 laps down.
* Matt Kenseth -- 42nd, Can we safely count Kenseth out of the championship hunt for 2005? The car was halfway decent until he blew a right front and plowed the wall.
* Mark Martin -- 16th, Could have been better if not for the pit strategy bids that left him mid-pack late when he had been in the top 10.
* Kevin Harvick -- 19th, Symptomatic of my bad luck tonight, Harvick was on pace to finish 9th or 10th until he ran out of gas on the last lap.
REST OF THE TOP 10:
* Michael Waltrip -- 2nd, Mikey wanted this one bad and almost had it. He got a little too friendly with the wall while trying to chase down Busch, brushing it twice. Best finish for the #15 in many moons, and it didn't come at a superspeedway.
* Jeff Burton -- 3rd, Should have gone with my intuition here. Best run in nearly two years at a track where he won twice with Roush.
* Brian Vickers -- 5th, Wouldn't have predicted this at all. Brian finally gets a decent finish in Cup. He contended for the win early. lack of experience and inferior team still are liabilities.
* Bobby Labonte -- 6th, I am still a doubting Thomas until I see more of these finishes. Good run nonetheless.
* Carl Edwards -- 7th, Got nearly three laps down and recovered after his solo spin and tire problem. Had it not been for that he might have been in Victory Lane instead of his teammate. Had the best car near the finish.
* Kyle Busch -- 8th, Hendrick's B-Team drivers both come through under the lights. Kyle led a few laps, thanks to tire strategy.
* Johnny Sauter -- 9th, ANY time you see the "Lethal Weapon's" name in the show you know it's been a brutal night for the oddsmakers.
* Joe Nemechek -- 10th, The Hendrick engines are getting Joe closer to the front row at the finish.
OTHER NOTABLES:
* Elliott Sadler -- 11th, His paint scheme turned to the dark side of the Force and got him a decent finish.
* Ryan Newman -- 14th, At least he didn't fall a lap down this time. Did his typical fade in the closing laps. Don't know if it's just the new Dodge Chargers that are giving him grief, new tires, impound/testing rules or what. This team just doesn't have the spark it had a couple of seasons ago.
Next week... Dale Jr. gets a chance to put his season back on the fast track at Talladega.
Week 8 -- Phoenix
Everything old is new again when it comes to this race. We're used to Phoenix by now, having seen it once a season for something like the last 16 years. But we've never seen it twice in one year, nor on a Saturday night under the lights. That's what ought to make this race something special as gNA$hCAR strives for more prime time action. Will this one turn out to be anything like the great short track night races at Bristol and Richmond? This track's a mile, but it has characteristics of a short track and a road course all rolled in to the higher speeds we're accustomed to on the speedways. Ought to be a good one.
Now... who will be in the top 10 when it's all over?
GLENN'S TEN:
* Jimmie Johnson (winner) -- No reason, except that the law of averages says he's due for another win. Greg Biffle and Jeff Gordon can't be the only two-timers this season!
REST OF THE TOP 10 (in no particular order):
* Greg Biffle -- This guy's starting to scare me. Could we be seeing another Roush championship run in the making? Comes off a huge win at Texas and a victory Friday night in the Busch race here.
* Jeff Gordon -- Still trying for his first career victory at this track. He'll have to wait a bit longer, but he is on the pole for the first time.
* Rusty Wallace -- I just have a feeling he'll be in the top 10.
* Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- Won the last Cup race held at this track. Still clawing his way up in the points, so this one is important.
* Kurt Busch -- It's close to home (Vegas) so why not? Needs to recover from streak of bad weeks and will.
* Tony Stewart -- At home in the darkness.
* Matt Kenseth -- Waiting for the 2003 champ to turn it up. He's on the fringes of oblivion in the points chase.
* Mark Martin -- Mark working magic in his final season. Maybe I've had him pegged all wrong.
* Kevin Harvick -- Another nightowl. Ran well here Friday.
ALSO WATCHING: Carl Edwards (Been slumping after hot start)... Jeff Burton (Has won here before and usually runs well)... Sterling Marlin (More 2-tire strategy now that he's making noise in the points?)... Ryan Newman (I've got a bad feeling about this).
Nine races, nine winners
Greg Biffle ran away with the race in Texas on Sunday. Yawn. He started dead last in his backup car and roared through the field to dominate the competition, leading the most laps en route to his second victory of the season. Ho-hum. Forgive me for not dancing in the aisles over Bif's big win, but the Biffster is boring. He's finally living up to his potential as a decent driver, but like all of Roush's racers it's all about business first, personality second. I know that Biffle fans would say so what, we'll take business and a winning way any day over some jokester like Kenny Wallace or Michael Waltrip who rarely find their way to the top 10, let alone victory lane. I guess I just wish the Biffles, Busches and Kenseths of the Roush camp were a little more interesting to watch while they're dominating the competition. Think Carl Edwards could teach the Biffster to do some backflips?
GLENN'S TEN (3-for-10... I stunk!):
* Kasey Kahne (winner) -- 35th, Kasey ruined his chances when something broke on his car and he spun hard into the wall inside of 80 laps to go. He had one of the strongest cars in the field yet never led.
* Jeff Gordon -- 15th, The #24 crew fixed a lot of problems with the car and ran strong early, but then Jeff faded and nearly went a lap down at one point.
* Jimmie Johnson -- 3rd, No matter how mediocre a day he has, Johnson always seems to find a way to the front by the checkers. That's why he'll be champion at the end of the season. He fell a bit shy of second on Sunday.
* Kurt Busch -- 7th, He stayed out of trouble for a change and got a decent finish.
* Matt Kenseth -- 18th, Thought Kenseth might be a contender, but the car went soft late in the race.
* Elliott Sadler -- 28th, Defending race champ struggled all day, then had mechanical troubles.
* Mark Martin -- 20th, What happened? He had a top 10 going.
* Tony Stewart -- 31st, Led a bunch of laps early, faded a bit, then the engine blew up with about 40 to go.
* Ryan Newman -- 16th, Typical Newman. He stuck pretty close to my scenario, except for the part where he led the first 50 laps -- he didn't. He went a lap down and took about 200 laps to get it back, then struggled up to where he finished. This was his 30th pole in 123 starts, and what does he have to show for it? Not enough.
* Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- 9th, Junior comes through for me at the track where he got his first career win. Made slow, steady progress to record another top 10. Up to 15th in points.
REST OF THE TOP 10:
* Greg Biffle -- 1st, I've already ragged on the Biffster, but I will say I knew I was in trouble not picking him after he'd passed about half the field by the time the third caution waved after lap 20. He deserved the win, even if it wasn't a particularly exciting one.
* Jamie McMurray -- 2nd, A country seldom heard from -- Gnassiland. He had nothing for Biffle, much like the rest of the field.
* Casey Mears -- 4th, I was rooting for Casey after the other Kasey crashed. Taking two tires on the final pit stop might have gotten him the lead, but it wasn't a race-winning move.
* Sterling Marlin -- 5th, Gnassi's vet completes the trifecta, using the two-tire strategy like his teammate Mears. Only difference was that Marlin hadn't been in a position to win. This was a better than could be expected finish.
* Michael Waltrip -- 6th, I ragged on Mikey earlier, but have to hand it to him for getting a good finish here.
* Ricky Rudd -- 8th, The Fatback Factor is starting to have an effect. Rudd's been running better lately. Now, when do we see him in Victory Lane again?
* Rusty Wallace -- 10th, A good day for veteran drivers. But let's hope we see the Blue Deuce back next week and not the puke yellow Kodak colors.
OTHER NOTABLES:
* Jeremy Mayfield -- 11th, The only one of the Evernham Dodges that didn't encounter problems. He led a bit at the beginning of the race, but went down a lap to Biffle at one stage.
* Jason Leffler -- 36th, At some point we have to stop making excuses for why he keeps getting into wrecks and come to the inevitable conclusion that he simply isn't very good.
* Bobby Labonte -- 38th, Another wreck not of his making. Gotta be wondering when the bad luck ends.
Next week... An early visit to the Arizona desert.
Week 7 -- Texas
Welcome to Texas, where everything's bigger including the racing action. This year the Texas Motor Speedway will host two races for the first time. We start off with the traditional April date, revisiting the site of Elliott Sadler's victory a year ago. The Labonte brothers will no doubt be in the spotlight Sunday when they race before the hometown fans, but I look for some other names to be among the top 10.
GLENN'S TEN:
* Kasey Kahne (winner) -- It has to happen eventually. Kasey keeps racking up those second places, so there's only one spot higher that he can finish. He was second here last year, and both the Evernham Dodges qualified well (2nd and 3rd) on Friday. The kid can't wait to get the monkey off his back, and this just might be where he finally does it.
REST OF THE TOP 10 (in no particular order):
* Jeff Gordon -- Jeff struggled in final practice, but he qualified 7th and ran well here last year before battery problems sunk his chance for a win. This is one of the tracks on which Gordon has never won, but that could change this year. I think he'll overcome his practice woes to have a good day Sunday.
* Jimmie Johnson -- He'll keep the string of top 10's alive.
* Kurt Busch -- If he doesn't get punted into the wall this week, he should be up near the front.
* Matt Kenseth -- What's happened to this bunch this season? Matt's starting to look like the new Jeff Burton in the Roush camp. He's starting a woeful 39th on Sunday. But I look for him to make his strong, silent move toward the front 10 before the end of the day.
* Elliott Sadler -- Gotta give him the incentive factor as the defending race champion.
* Mark Martin -- The swan song season continues.
* Tony Stewart -- Might not be loud about it, but he'll be in the top 10 at day's end.
* Ryan Newman -- Might just hang on to make the show, but it will only be after leading the first 50 laps, then having a stupid pit road problem that keeps him a lap down for 200 laps before he makes it up with too few to go before the finish.
* Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- Junior is slowly turning around his season. I'm nervous about this pick, but he did finish top 10 in this race last year and needs another good finish. A good run at a speedway would be a huge confidence booster.
ALSO WATCHING: ...Ricky Rudd (starts 5th and has been making steady improvement.) ... Greg Biffle (relegated to the rear of the field after a practice crash. Can he come all the way to the front in a backup car?) ...Carl Edwards (I had a hard time not picking him, but he could make a good showing. Probably happy to be off the short tracks.)
A sweeter victory for Hendrick
Back in October, Jimmie Johnson won at Martinsville unaware that a plane carrying members of the Hendrick Motorsports organization had crashed during the race, claiming the lives of 10 people. There were no Victory Lane celebrations that day. On Sunday, Hendrick finally got the celebration it couldn't have six months ago when another of its drivers, Jeff Gordon, found his way to the checkers in stirring fashion.
This was a typical caution-filled Martinsville race, and with the exception of Carl Edwards, most of my drivers performed well throughout the day. But alas, at the end of it I was only batting .500.
GLENN'S TEN (5-for-10):
* Jeff Gordon (winner) -- Winner! It looked like it might be a long day for Super G when he developed a tire vibration about 50 laps in and had to pit under green, leaving him three laps down. But the car was awesome (as the racers like to say) and he made up all three laps with the help of cautions by around lap 280. From there it was just a matter of picking off the sitting ducks, which he did with relative ease. He only led about the last 35 laps, including the final three after a restart in which he managed to hold off Kasey Kahne for career victory number 71. Back up to 6th in points. He needed this one.
* Jimmie Johnson -- 8th, Champions find a way to get good finishes under adversity. Jimmie isn't a champion yet, but this run from 37th keeps him atop the points standings. The car started awful (he was lapped twice) and got better throughout the race.
* Bobby Labonte -- 33rd, Labonte led some of the early laps until he developed engine problems. Another in a string of disappointments for the #18 team.
* Dale Jarrett -- 14th, About where he ran all day, except for when he used pit strategy to run in the top 5 briefly.
* Kurt Busch -- 19th, If you want the winning moment, it wasn't when Gordon passed Sterling Marlin to take the lead; it was when Gordon drove in deep into the turn and put Busch into the wall to bring out the caution as he was making his charge through the field. Busch may have had the car to beat if not for that. He was leading in the closing stages and outrunning everyone while Gordon was stuck in traffic. But then on the preceding caution the leaders got stuck in traffic behind cars that stayed out, and he couldn't get free of Gordon. Then they made contact and that was that. Gordon apologized later, but I can't think he was too disappointed about the outcome. Have to wonder if there will be some payback somewhere in the future.
* Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- 13th, The car was looking like a top 10 contender until he got into Mike Bliss (or vice-versa) and damaged his fender. Never was as good after that. Still, this will help his precarious points situation.
* Ryan Newman -- 4th, Ryan got roughed up on the opening lap when Scott Riggs got loose underneath him. He got penalized a lap for intentionally bringing out a caution, but eventually made it up and used pit strategy to take the lead with about 50 laps to go. Old tires couldn't hold off all the other frontrunners, however.
* Carl Edwards -- 38th, I think my original assessment that short tracks aren't his forté may be accurate. He spun out and got plowed by Hermie Sadler, puncturing the radiator. He was almost 180 laps down when he finally returned to the action.
* Rusty Wallace -- 5th, Rusty's downfall was the dreaded speeding penalty on pit road, which sent him to the end of the lead lap cars. He took the rest of the race to get caught up after having led early.
* Mark Martin -- 3rd, He says he hates Martinsville, but he ran darn well today. Was clearly a top 5 car.
REST OF THE TOP 10:
* Kasey Kahne -- 2nd, Another 2nd place finish for the kid. He was moving up on Gordon near the end, but three laps wasn't enough to do anything with him.
* Sterling Marlin -- 6th, Counting the weeks until the end of the season, when he will likely be out of the Coors Light Dodge. He stayed out on old tires to gain track position and led the race until Jeff Gordon tracked him down.
* Ricky Rudd -- 7th, Liked his car all day and it showed with the good run. Is he on track to end the winless drought soon?
* Elliott Sadler -- 9th, A popular finish in front of a hometown crowd.
* Joe Nemechek -- 10th, Front Row Joe finishes where he started.
OTHER NOTABLES:
* Jeremy Mayfield -- 15th, Shot him self in the foot with a penalty, but led a bunch of laps early. First time in 20 races he's led here.
* Scott Riggs -- 21st, Pole-sitter had a rough day.
* Tony Stewart -- 26th, I was going to kick myself for not picking him when he led the way early. He looked like the car to beat, leading the most laps, until the wheel came off (literally) inside 100 to go. He finished 7 laps down.
* Kyle Busch -- 39th, He tangled with Mike Bliss and didn't fare too well. He had been in the top 15.
Next week... Back to the cookie-cutter ovals at texas Motor Speedway.
Week 6 -- Martinsville
This weekend we get more short-trackin' action with the shortest track on the Nextel Cup circuit, Martinsville Speedway in Virginia. This place doesn't have the allure of Bristol, but the half-mile "paperclip" nonetheless offers plenty of challenges. We will remember that this was the race where Rusty Wallace snapped his three-year winless streak, and the track's poor condition took its toll on Jeff Gordon's car when a loose piece of concrete bounded up and pulverized one of Jeff's front fenders. The track was repaired after that race, and now is in superb shape.
Scott Riggs snapped up his first career pole here on Friday. But who will prevail at the end of the Advance Auto Parts 500?
GLENN'S TEN:
* Jeff Gordon (winner) -- I believe in Jeff, despite the fact he's starting 16th. If he can avoid the kind of bad luck he had at Bristol last week (cutting a tire with about five laps to go) he should find a way to the front at a track that has been very kind to him over the years.
THE REST OF THE TOP 10 (in no particular order):
* Jimmie Johnson -- It just doesn't make sense to pick against Mr. Consistency.
* Bobby Labonte -- He won the truck race Saturday. His Cup success hasn't been good so far this year, but this is a track where that could easily change. He's starting 6th, ahead of teammate Tony Stewart. A good omen.
* Dale Jarrett -- Starts 32nd, but he has been showing his old ability to stay out of trouble and move toward the front. This is a track that favors veterans and rewards patience.
* Kurt Busch -- Like Jimmie Johnson, he's finding ways to get the job done. He has a knack for short tracks and will be looking to bounce back after being taken out in a crash at Bristol.
* Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- Has to dig himself out of a 26th-place starting spot, but he's good on these short tracks. Needs another run like Bristol to make a move in the points.
* Ryan Newman -- Barely missed the pole. Which Ryan will show up this week? The one who runs up front all day or the one who loses a couple laps early due to something stupid like cut tires and spends half the race trying to dig himself out? I'm hoping the former.
* Carl Edwards -- Starting 36th. Maybe the short tracks aren't his forté, but I'm gambling that he'll have a good race to make up for last week's early woes.
* Rusty Wallace -- Defending race champion has to be motivated. Something will happen to screw him out of the win, however. Trust me on this. Still, I think he'll sneak into the top 10.
* Mark Martin -- Giving yet another nod to experience.
ALSO WATCHING: Tony Stewart (starts 7th and may make me sorry I didn't pick him)... Kevin Harvick (showed last week that he knows how to win. Can he make it two in a row?)
Harvick finally wins one
Who says that crime doesn't pay? The same week that Kevin Harvick's crew chief, Todd Barrier, starts his suspension for tampering with the #29's fuel tank during a qualifying run, the team responds by driving into Victory Lane at Bristol. Maybe Harvick should go without his crew chief every week!
This year's Food City 500 lived up to its reputation, delivering lots of lead changes and wrecks. Apart from the guys who got caught up in the crashes, my predictions looked halfway decent.
GLENN'S TEN (5-for-10... halfway!):
* Jeff Gordon (winner) -- 15th, One word: Tires. Make it two words: Bad tires. Jeff got down a couple of laps after his first tire problem. He made up both laps and had worked his way up to fourth before he cut another tire within about five laps of the finish. Good thing there were lots of cars many laps down.
* Rusty Wallace -- 13th, Rusty was on a rail early, leading a good chuink of the first 200 laps. But when he had his own tire issues and got two laps down on a caution, he never rebounded like Gordon was able to do.
* Kurt Busch -- 35th, What a tough way to end his spring Bristol win streak. He was on pace to get a top 10, but then Jeff Burton got turned around by Jimmie Johnson and Busch barreled head-on into him. A very scary crash, but the worst of it seemed to be that Busch got the wind knocked out of him. Wrong place, wrong time.
* Ryan Newman -- 30th, Ryan found the wall and spent some time in the garage. Another frustrating Bristol finish.
* Elliott Sadler -- 2nd, Started on the pole but didn't make much noise until the last couple hundred laps. Then he used some good pit stops to work his way back into contention.
* Kevin Harvick -- 1st, Talk about shooting himself in the foot! With his crew chief out on suspension, Harvick also lost a good qualifying spot and went to the back with carburetor problems. He also was penalized (sent to the end of the line) for heading to pit road under a red flag. Nonetheless, he overcame all the adversity with a dominant car and skillful driving. I wonder if this will be the start of a comeback for "Happy". He's solidly in the top 5 in points.
* Jimmie Johnson -- 6th, Can we call it a bad day when Johnson finishes outside the top 5? He kept the car clean all day until he got sandwiched against the wall by Michael Waltrip late in the race. He came in for four tires and repairs and worked his way back to a good finish. He might have given Harvick a run to the checkers if not for the mishap. Now 96 points in front of the field.
* Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- 4th, Had a very quiet run to the top 5. Avoided trouble and had a decent car. Needed this one to save what's looking so far like a bad season.
* Tony Stewart -- 3rd, had a top 10 car all day. He benefitted from Matt Kenseth's and Jeff Gordon's bad fortune late in the race.
* Mark Martin -- 31st, Got caught up in the 14-car pileup and spent many laps behind the wall. Car looked average before then.
REST OF THE TOP 10:
* Dale Jarrett -- 5th, I almost picked him. Nice to see him in the top 5 again (and in the points chase!)
* Travis Kvapil -- 7th, Rookie backs up a good qualifying run with a decent finish. Best of the Penske cars.
* Kyle Petty -- 8th, !!! First top 10 since Talladega, October 2002. Don't expect this sort of performance the rest of the season.
* Greg Biffle -- 9th, Should have taken tires with 75 laps to go. Everyone else did, hence this finish. Greg had the car to beat otherwise.
* Scott Riggs -- 10th, Solid run. This guy is making a little noise this season.
OTHER NOTABLES:
* Kasey Kahne -- 14th, At least he finished this year.
* Matt Kenseth -- 16th, Made a Kenseth-like run to the lead and looked like a contender for a top five, but then he had a tire problem while running third late in the race.
* Carl Edwards -- 26th, Suffered damage very early in the race and lost a lot of laps under repair, but what a recovery. Everyone else's misfortune contributed to a half-decent day.
* Bobby Hamilton Jr. -- 39th, Blames himself for triggering the 14-car crash that took out a share of the contenders. I don't know that it was really his fault, but that's a classy move to not point fingers at others.
Next week... More short-track action at Martinsville.
Week 5 -- Bristol
I'm a little belated with this week's predictions because I went out to the local dirt track last night and just about froze sitting in the bleachers watching the action. It took me all night just to thaw out. But rest assured that even though the race is in progress as I write thiss, I have no idea what the standings are (which will probably be reflected in my wildly inaccurate prediction, but here goes anyway...)
It is perhaps fitting that I spent last night watching the quarter-mile fender-bending, because it is a preview of the type of action we usually see at Bristol. I love this race, as do most gNA$hCAR fans. We'd all probably love it a lot more if Kurt Busch didn't keep winning. Keep in mind that this is a good track for first-time winners, as the tight racing often takes out even the best cars.
GLENN'S TEN:
* Jeff Gordon (winner) -- Jeff's having one of those streaky seasons: win at Daytona, engine woes at California, in the show at Vegas, wrecked on the first lap at Atlanta -- so it would figure that this should be an "on" week for him at one of his good tracks. Wouldn't be surprised to see him dominate the race, but even if not, I'd expect him to be near the front all afternoon.
REST OF THE TOP 10 (in no particular order):
* Rusty Wallace -- Most wins here of any active driver (9). If he's going to notch another win, this is a place to do it.
* Kurt Busch -- Looking for fourth spring race in a row. Streaks all end eventually.
* Ryan Newman -- Has shown he can run well here. Now can he stay out of trouble?
* Elliott Sadler -- Last guy to win a spring Bristol race before Busch started his domination.
* Kevin Harvick -- Has had short track success.
* Jimmie Johnson -- I'm a little nervous about this, but it's hard to argue with a guy who has been on such a dominant streak of top-fives,
* Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- His season has stunk worse than burnt rubber so far, but I've got a hunch this is where he might turn things around.
* Tony Stewart -- Might sneak in.
* Mark Martin -- Can he come to the front from 34th. Yes. With a little pit strategy.
Also watching: Matt Kenseth (Always a threat)... Jamie McMurray (Will make the show just because I didn't pick him)... Dale Jarrett (Might surprise)... Greg Biffle (I think he's due for bad luck)... Carl Edwards (Coming off Atlanta win, but starts 42nd).
