Reed Sorenson Joins NASCAR Silly Season; Kyle Busch Battles Carl Edwards

Before we begin, get your popcorn ready, because the first weekly preview of the season will be tomorrow, as I give you an in-depth look at some of the big games on the college football schedule this opening weekend. 

If you aren't excited, check your pulse to make sure you are still alive.  And for a change, we actually have a surplus of interesting matchups in Week 1 to add to the excitement of the new season starting.

This entry, however, will be NASCAR-based.  There's just so much going on in the Sprint Cup garage.  We'll start with the week's big story, Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards giving the fans some post-race fireworks at Bristol on Saturday night.  Busch apparently never watched a race at Bristol as a child growing up in Las Vegas. 

The little bump that Edwards gave him was mild.  I've seen worse at Thunder Valley (and as a Rusty Wallace fan, let's just not go there for the sake of rehashing bad memories).   Plus, Kyle had a full 30 laps to get him back, and what does Carl do?

He pulls away for the win, and don't use the clean air/no traffic excuse because Busch had plenty of time to get back to his bumper.  Cousin Carl was just better on the last run. 

Then, frustrated over the fact someone is going to rain on his run to the Sprint Cup during the Chase, young Rowdy decided to retaliate on the cooldown lap.  Classy move there.  His immaturity never ceases to amaze me.

He dishes out the beating and banging almost every week, but the minute someone roughs him up, it's time to act like a spoiled brat.  Although you have to admit, Kyle calling Carl "Mr. Ed" was pretty funny.  In a series that has become devoid of any great rivalries, hopefully this is the start of something. 

The No. 18 and No. 99 are clearly the favorites heading into the Chase in a couple of weeks, as the two have combined to win 14 of the 24 races in 2008.  Let's hope that domination continues in the last 10 races, and these two can put on a duel for the ages to determine the 2008 series champion.

With frustration mounting in the fan base over common templates, the COT, and boring racing, NASCAR needs that to happen, even if it means the other 10 drivers in the Chase are basically ignored. 

Let me say this about the new Bristol: I love it.  Sure, there aren't as many cautions or wrecks (although we had that big one Saturday night where Clint Bowyer called Mikey "the worst driver in NASCAR" hahaha), but tempers still flare. 

And watching two cars run side-by-side on a .533-mile, high-banked bullring lap-after-lap without anybody giving an inch is exhilarating.  I can only imagine what it's like to be there in person.

Now that I think about it, this is 10 times better than watching a conveyor belt of cars on a one-groove racetrack like we saw at Thunder Valley for so many years. 

Reed Sorenson is officially heading to GEM in 2009, although it remains to be seen if he will drive a fourth car or take over for Carpentier.  Let's hope for the former, although that team has struggled to keep the No. 10 fully sponsored this year.

Adding another car, when the No. 10 barely can stay sponsored and is nowhere near the top 35, may be a poor choice.  I was a little surprised by this move.

Even though driving a Ganassi car in NASCAR is turning into a career-killing move,after Reed didn't get the fourth RCR ride, I figured he'd just return to the No. 41 for continuity's sake.

He's a young, seemingly talented, good-looking (not that I would know) driver, which I am sure fits the Target demographic.  But frustrated with the lack of progress at CGWFS, he makes a move across the Dodge camp to GEM.  A lateral move, I might add.

Kasey Kahne is head and shoulders above the rest of the Dodge drivers at times, and average at others, and we all know how much I think of Elliott Sadler as a driver.  GEM is an average team, and if Sorenson thinks he will experience a career revitalization with this move, he is sorely misguided. 

Challenging Sadler for the title of No. 2 man is possible, but not much more.  As for Ganassi's trainwreck, no one in their right mind, outside of losers like J.J. Yeley, would want to touch that team with a 10-foot stick.  I think Franchitti will get that ride for '09, assuming Chip can secure backing to compliment Wrigley for JPM with Texaco bolting. 

Speaking of JPM, he goes from very unhappy about the team's performance to the happiest guy in the world over the course of a few weeks.  I think Chip must have brainwashed him into staying, because Montoya can do a heck of a lot better.  He's like the Marge Simpson or Lois Griffin of the Sprint Cup garage. 

Joey Logano is taking over the No. 20 car next year.  The writing was on the wall ever since Stewart bought into Haas and Logano was impressive in his initial Nationwide attempts.  He will drive a second Home Depot car at Richmond, and will apparently be behind the wheel of the No. 96 a few times as well between now and the end of the year. 

I'm excited: now we'll be able to tell if it was J.J.'s fault that the No. 96 fell out of the top 35 or if the team is really that bad.  As for what to expect from Logano in 2009, his performance has started to lag on the Nationwide side in recent weeks, especially in the companion events. 

But two road courses (Bristol and ORP) over the course of a month is no easy stretch.  This guy is super talented, but you have to remember he is only 18.  Making the Chase is iffy in my opinion, but at least he will have Zippy and the rest of the battle-tested No. 20 team there to guide him through a successful rookie campaign.  Just keep him away from Hamlin and Rowdy before their negative attitudes rub off on JGR's newest toy.

I get the opinion Clint Bowyer is not happy with being jettisoned to the Cheerios car at RCR in 2009.  He goes from being sponsored by Jack Daniel's to a company that will put the Trix Rabbit and L.C. Leprechaun on the hood (let's face it, Clint fits the image of a party boy).

Kids will love it, pit rats (in other words, the pretty ladies looking for a rich man and easy life) won't.  Plus, he is likely going to have to qualify on time for the first five races of 2009.  And beloved crew chief Gil Martin gets to stay behind to make sure Casey Mears just brings the car home in one piece. 

Speaking of RCR, the boss' grandson, Austin Dillon, will make his Nationwide debut at Richmond next week in the No. 21 car.  Dillon has been running the Camping World East Series using the No. 3 that Richard first utilized as an owner/driver in the 70s and was later made famous by the Intimidator himself.

This begs the question: is Richard Childress planning to finally bring the 3 out of mothballs when his grandson moves to Sprint Cup a few years down the line?  Hopefully not.  I have no problem with Childress bringing back the number.  Either use it or give it back to NASCAR.

Just not with an unproven youngster, Childress' grandfather was an average Cup driver and father Mike a below average Nationwide driver.  What makes them think he is the next great thing at RCR anyways?  The number should go to a proven veteran, preferably Jeff Burton. 

Harvick has already lived with the burden of replacing Earnhardt, so asking him to use the No. 3 would be unfair.  Bowyer hasn't established himself enough yet, and while Mears will be driving a black-and-white car, he isn't deserving of the number. 

Plus, Jack Daniel's is partial to No. 07 (or 7).  I seem to recall Earnhardt saying back in the late 90s that if anything happened to him or he retired, the current Cup driver he felt most fit to take his place was Burton.  At that point in time, Burton was an emerging star in the 99 car. 

Nearly a decade later, and he is one of the most respected, outspoken, and successful drivers in Sprint Cup.  If anyone at RCR should be besieged with the number 3, it's Jeff Burton. 

And finally, NASCAR announced today a new format for the Budweiser Shootout.  Basically, winning poles will be of no use in qualifying for this event, which makes sense, seeing how Anheuser-Busch competitor Coors sponsors the pole award.

The top six teams from each manufacturer, based on the prior season's owner points, will be invited to the event. 

In principle, this is almost like a second All-Star event.  In years past, we've seen some monumental pole day surprises, and as a result, the following season's Shootout has been blessed with such household names as Loy Allen, Chuck Bown, and Greg Sacks. 

Who wants to see 30th place drivers in an exhibition race, who are only there because of one quick lap from a season of thousands of circuits? 

Now the problem: Tony Stewart and Ryan Newman will be left out.  NASCAR should include a clause to continue allowing former winners a provisional into the event, so we can at least see the No. 14 make its debut a week earlier than anticipated. 

If NASCAR wanted to make this even more interesting, they should award points to each car based on finishing position, and the six teams representing the manufacturer with the highest points total are rewarded financially.

In an age where the manufacturer of a car to the fan in the stands becomes less and less relevant thanks to essentially common templates, this should inject some life back into the Toyota vs. Chevy vs. Ford vs. Dodge battle, if for one night only each season.