Bleacher Report - Articles by McCord Roberts

Homestead-Miami Final Practice: Childress Has Pair Of Hot-Rods

McCord Roberts — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 16:46:44 -0500

The Chase for the Championship comes to a close Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway with Jimmie Johnson looking to win an unprecedented fourth straight NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship. Johnson currently has a comfortable 108-point lead over second place Mark Martin which equates to the difference from first to 25th place.

During the final preparations for the race in Saturday’s practice sessions, both Martin and Johnson look to be equally up for the task for Sunday’s showdown. Johnson, who won the pole on Friday, was strong in both sessions running third fastest in the early session and seventh fastest during happy Hour.

Martin fared better Saturday having the fastest times in the first practice and third best in Happy hour giving the No. 5 Hendrick some semblance of hope that at least they know they’ll have one of the strongest cars on race day.

Both drivers are coming in with winning chassis’ as well. Johnson has the same car that he won with at Indianapolis and Martin brought his same car that won a Darlington and Chicagoland.

While the main story all week has centered around the two Hendrick Motorsports drivers battling for the Championship, two Richard Childress Racing drivers came out blazing during Happy Hour creating their own story and making them serious contenders to win the race itself.

Jeff Burton led Happy Hour with the fastest lap of 165.736 mph and close behind was teammate Kevin Harvick with the second fastest lap. Both drivers laid down the quick times in the early stages of the session.

Burton is looking continue his current hot streak on the season that has seen him finish in the top-10 in his last three races including a season best second-place last week at Phoenix. In his last 1.5-mile high banked track, run at Texas, Burton finished fifth.

Despite the good run at Texas, Burton’s team opted to bring a brand new chassis for this race and if this an indication to what may be in store for 2010 for RCR, missing the Chase likely will not occur again.

Harvick’s good run in practice shouldn’t come as too much of surprise, even though he did beat out the regular practice bully’s of Johnson and Martin. Harvick has finished in the top-10 in six of his last eight Miami starts, including last season’s best of second-place. This week he has brought the same chassis that finished fifth at Texas two weeks ago.

Both Harvick and Burton also put together the best average lap speeds during happy Hour which means Mark Martin may have a battle on his hands as he attempts to lead the most laps and win the race.

Top Speeds - Saturday’s First Practice Session:
1) Mark Martin 168.177 mph—AVG 30 laps @ 162.027
2) Denny Hamlin 167.884 mph—AVG 32 laps @ 161.119
3) Jimmie Johnson 167.863 mph—AVG 31 laps @ 161.497
4) Ryan Newman 167.822 mph—AVG 28 laps @ 161.046
5) Kyle Busch 167.811 mph—24 laps @ 161.554
Top Average speed: Kevin Harvick 24 laps @ 163.194
Most laps run: Brian Vickers 39

Top Speeds - Saturday’s Final Practice (Happy Hour)
1) Jeff Burton 165.736 mph—AVG 44 laps @ 161.439
2) Kevin Harvick 165.375—AVG 42 laps @ 161.293
3) Mark Martin 165.067 mph—AVG 47 laps @ 160.923
4) Martin Truex Jr 165.022 mph—AVG 48 laps @ 160.923
5) Ryan Newman 164.604 mph—AVG 50 laps @ 160.103

Top-10 Rated Drivers do Homestead-Miami based on final practices, recent performances on high banked 1.5-mile tracks, and current state of the team.
1) Mark Martin
2) Kevin Harvick
3) Kurt Busch
4) Jeff Burton
5) Jimmie Johnson
6) Ryan Newman
7) Denny Hamlin
8) Tony Stewart
9) Kyle Busch
10) Juan Pablo Montoya

Phoenix Happy Hour: Johnson and Martin Can't Shake Each Other

McCord Roberts — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 16:45:51 -0500

Any thoughts of Jimmie Johnson having any lingering affects from last weeks disastrous finish at Texas were quickly put to rest during Saturday’s Final Phoenix Practice in preparation for Sunday’s Checker O’Reilly Auto Parts 500.

NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series points leader laid out the fastest lap of 132.348 mph early in the practice and appears to be primed at taking care of business and increasing his 73 point lead in the Chase for the Championship.

Johnson has a conceivable chance of clinching the title at Phoenix this week with one race still to go, which would be an unprecedented fourth Championship in a row. However, with another poor performance and good runs by his Hendrick Motorsports teammates Mark Martin and Jeff Gordon, Johnson could also find himself leaving Phoenix third in points.

The later scenario seems very unlikely based on his past history at Phoenix that has never seen him finish worse than 15th with a current streak of six straight top-5 finishes that include three wins.

Johnson’s rocket this week is the same chassis he used while finishing second at Martinsville, a track that—while half the distance of Phoenix—is still relevant because of relatively no banking.

There are a few other drivers who have brought their Martinsville chassis as well, but most teams opted to go with their Chassis’ that ran at the combination of New Hampshire, Richmond, or the April Phoenix race, which are all flat tracks and similar in distance.

The top driver on the combined trio of similar tracks this year is Mark Martin who captured victories at Phoenix earlier this year and the last race held at New Hampshire. Martin brought the chassis with him that won those two races and was very quick in final practice with the second fastest lap just behind Johnson.

Martin can be expected to go all out on Sunday like we have seldom seem the cool, collective veteran who rarely pushes anything. He’s fighting for a chance at winning his first Cup Championship and is just 73 points behind. Should he finish the season where he’s at, it would be his fifth second-place finish over his great career.

The third fastest in Happy Hour was another Hendrick driver, but wasn’t Jeff Gordon. No, it was Dale Earnhardt Jr who brought the same chassis he ran with at New Hampshire that was running in fourth before being wrecked.

The positive for Junior Nation is that they are running very well of late with some of the newer formatted Hendrick chassis’ and he‘s a two-time winner at Phoenix. However, the negative of just not having any luck has outweighed the actual quality of how good his cars have been.

Juan Pablo Montoya had the 17th fastest single lap during happy Hour, but had the best overall average times for the session which should give him his best career finish on the track which is 16th.

Martin Truex Jr won the Pole on Friday and showed on Saturday that he isn’t just fast in qualifying-trim, but that his race set-up is equally as fast. He had the fourth fastest single lap time and the third fastest average speeds. Truex Jr has three top-10 Phoenix finishes over his career.

Last weeks winner, Kurt Busch, came up with the fifth best lap during Happy Hour, laying it down early like all the other top speeds of the day. Busch used the same Chassis this week that led 123 laps in his last two Phoenix starts. Busch has one Phoenix win over his career, along with one, a-hem, suspension for a traffic altercation outside the raceway in 2005.

One of the surprises of the day was how poorly Denny Hamlin ran with having only the 25th best lap. A lot was expected oh Hamlin because of how ell he did on the last runs at like-tracks by winning at Richmond and finishing second at New Hampshire. Hamlin also won on the short flat track of Martinsville just a few weeks ago giving reason to believe he’d be there contending with Johnson and Martin for the win this week.

Of the former Phoenix winners not mentioned, Jeff Burton came in with the sixth best speed, Jeff Gordon seventh, Tony Stewart 11th, Matt Kenseth 17th, Kevin Harvick 22nd, Kyle Busch 27th.

Top Speeds - Final Practice (Happy Hour)
1) Jimmie Johnson 132.348 mph - 64 laps @ 128.333
2) Mark Martin 132.275 mph - 68 laps @ 127.546
3) Dale Earnhardt Jr 132.018 mph - 41 laps @ 128.039
4) Martin Truex Jr 131.878 mph - 52 laps @ 128.210
5) Kurt Busch 131.868 mph - 61 laps @ 127.863

Top-10 Rated Drivers - Ratings based on Happy Hour, recent past performances on the tracks of New Hampshire, Phoenix, and Richmond along with the current state of the team.
1) Mark Martin
2) Jimmie Johnson
3) Kurt Busch
4) Jeff Gordon
5) Jeff Burton
6) Dale Earnhardt Jr
7) Denny Hamlin
8) Tony Stewart
9) Kyle Busch
10) Martin Truex Jr

Texas Practice: JJ Fastest, But Roush Stable Is On The Prowl

McCord Roberts — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 13:27:10 -0500

If Happy Hour is any indication of how the Texas NASCAR Sprint Cup race will be run on Sunday, then Jimmie Johnson is likely to widen his lead in the Chase for the Championship and quite possibly win his seventh race of the season.

Johnson laid down the fastest lap in Texas’ final practice session at 186.670 mph while running the second most laps with 49. After escaping Talladega with a gift sixth place finish while simply looking to just finish, Johnson looks like he wants to finish the last three races of the season with his guns-a-blazin’.

A great tool to use helping figure out who may run better than others is by referring to all the other similar track’s data using practices and what happened in the race itself. In Texas’ case, we have six similar instances this year of races run on 1.5 mile high banked tracks that include Las Vegas, Charlotte, Atlanta, and the first Texas race. The two most recent races run are the most likely indicators of the six as to how well Saturday’s practice times relate to a driver’s actual expected performance.

Without having to look at anything, Johnson stands out despite his practice times just because he’s, well, he’s Jimmie Johnson. Even though he won at Charlotte, the last like-track, he’s had his worst combined season of finishes on these type of tracks which should give hope to some of the others.

What may turn out to be more good news for the field is that Johnson is using that Charlotte rocket as his back-up car this week, opting to go with the chassis that won at Dover instead.

The driver that looked the most promising among those who haven’t done well on these type of tracks this season is Carl Edwards who had the second fastest lap in Happy Hour. He does have two top-5 finishes on these types this season, but Edwards just doesn’t get top-5’s, he gets wins on them and dominates, or at least he did.

Last season at Texas, he continued the Fenway-Roush dominance at Texas by sweeping the season giving him three career wins on the track. It also contributed to Roush’s beefy all-around performance at the track since it opened giving his stable seven wins in 17 races there.

These are supposed to be Roush-friendly tracks and always have been. Yet as the stars aligned in February, everything seemed to change. Roush ended up winning his first Daytona 500 ever, but in the process, sold his season’s soul to do it, or at least that how it looks.

Following Matt Kenseth’s two straight wins to start the season, it’s been one of the worst years ever for Roush.

There has never been a driver so dominant one year with nine wins, to the next having zero wins, while starting every event like Edwards is on the verge of. Greg Biffle won two races late last season and hasn’t won either. David Ragan has gone from barely missing the Chase last season to competing for 26th position in points with the likes of A.J. Allmendinger.

The lone bright spot since Kenseth’s run was the Jamie McMurray win last week, a driver who is in lame duck status. The taint on the bright spot was that the win gave no hope to a once strong program because it was in a restrictor plate race.

Somehow, some way, all things look to be better for Roush this week based on practice. Not only is Edwards second fastest, but Biffle came in fourth, Ragan sixth, McMurray 13th, and Kenseth 27th.

Kenseth’s times are always lousy and he never really puts any emphasis on them. What is encouraging was the nice run he had in the last Charlotte race where he finished second to Johnson as well as his fifth at Texas in the spring.

Denny Hamlin had the third fastest Happy Hour lap and the best average lap times while running his same chassis that led 54 laps at Charlotte last month before having engine problems.

Dale Earnhardt Jr looked solid in his final practice as he came in with the eighth best lap, but more encouraging for him is that he was fast in long runs having the best average lap times over the session. He ran 39 laps in his Kansas chassis, the one that led 41 laps before engine trouble, and has a car capable of winning on race day; something we haven’t been able to say too often this season. It was one of his best practices of 2009.

David Reutimann got off to a blazing start in Saturday’s first practice session by running the overall fastest lap of 186.812 mph on his first of 22 laps run. His fast times should come as no surprise because he’s been doing it all season on the high-banked 1.5 mile tracks.

Not only has Reutimann had great practices for these races, but he’s also turned into success in the actual race. In the six races run on the like-facilities, Reutimann has captured three of his five top-5 finishes, including the only win of his career in the rain-shortened Coca-Cola 600.

Top Speeds - Saturday’s Final Practice (Happy Hour):
1) Jimmie Johnson 186.670 mph - AVG 49 laps @ 179.239
2) Carl Edwards 186.265 mph - AVG 34 laps @ 179.479
3) Denny Hamlin 185.810 mph - AVG 29 laps @ 179.604
4) Greg Biffle 185.503 mph - AVG 31 laps @ 178.739
5) Bill Elliott 184.894 mph - AVG 33 laps @ 177.448

Top Speeds - Saturday’s First Practice:
1) David Reutimann 186.812 mph - AVG 22 laps @ 181.520
2) Tony Stewart 186.716 mph - AVG 16 laps @ 182.866
3) Juan Pablo Montoya 186.265 mph - AVG 11 laps @ 181.639
4) Kyle Busch 186.252 mph - AVG 32 laps @ 180.853
5) Kurt Busch 185.714 mph - AVG 28 laps @ 180.381

Top 10 Rated Drivers at Texas following all qualifying and practice sessions. Ratings based on those practices, recent results on similar tracks, and current state of the team.
1) Jimmie Johnson
2) Carl Edwards
3) Greg Biffle
4) Matt Kenseth
5) Denny Hamlin
6) Jeff Gordon
7) Dale Earnhardt Jr
8) Kyle Busch
9) Tony Stewart
10) Mark Martin

Yankees-Phillies Series: Top Five Most Interesting Stories

McCord Roberts — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 04:52:10 -0500

Some have been talked about, some haven't, and maybe some shouldn't. Whatever the case, these are my top moments in the 105th World Series played in the great game of baseball.

5. No Habla Ingles

Hideki Matsui using an interpreter to accept his World Series MVP award didn’t sit right with me and will leave a lasting image. We criticize immigrants from Mexico all the time, at least I do, for coming to our country and not knowing our language, let alone changing our public school teachers' curriculum to accommodate those that don’t speak English.

Granted, some get special passes because of their economic climate, but someone coming off of a $52 million deal to play in America should have better language skills.

If Yao Ming and Orlando Cepeda can learn to speak English in a short amount of time, so should Matsui, and that goes for Ichiro Suzuki as well. Their teammates say they know how to speak English, so why make us all go through a third party to understand your emotions after the greatest moment of your career?

Let us share that moment with you; we were all amazed by the feats of Godzilla on the biggest stage possible.

4. Core Four

Despite all the money spent on free agents over the years by the Yankees, the nucleus of veterans on the team were most responsible for winning their fifth World Series. Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada, Andy Pettitte, and Mariano Rivera came up together, won together, and still remain major contributors to the team.

It would have been nice to see Bernie Williams get another ring, showing everyone that the base of your team starts with the minor league operations.

The success of the Yankees foundation should be somewhat of an inspiration to the Pittsburghs, San Diegos, Clevelands, and Floridas who continually go on this never-ending cycle of trading their existing young talent for newer, younger talent which they don’t want to sign to a deal when it's their time.

3. Managing 301

Joe Girardi didn't handle his pitching staff by the modern day baseball book and he deserves to be respected more than any other manager since Mayo Smith for the Detroit Tigers in 1968.

Despite all the tabloid experts and radio managers in New York criticizing Girardi, he made bold moves that went against the grain and it was a sight for sore eyes.

Setting a pitching rotation for the A.L.C.S. and World Series with his top pitchers getting three days rest and allowing him to use ace C.C. Sabathia in three starts if the series went seven was bold and brilliant. It was old school baseball at its best—going with your best and laying all your cards on the table.

In an ever bolder move, Girardi used legendary fireman Mariano Rivera to close out games beginning in the eighth inning. In a pivotal Game Two, he sent Rivera to close out the final two innings, unheard of in this age of modern relief pitching. In the clinching Game Six, with no save opportunity, Girardi sent him out again in the eighth just to seal the deal.

It was an old-school Dick Williams move with Rollie Fingers in the early '70s. Go to your best when it counts, whenever the situation, and get the win. It was refreshing, and at the same time, eye opening to managers around the league that have all followed the Tony LaRussa-Eckersley philosophy of only going with your big gun in the final inning in save opportunities.

2. Mayor Bloomberg

It was hilarious to watch New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg attempting to get airtime in the Yankees celebration as if he contributed to their success. It started in the ALCS finale where the Mayor attempted to be interviewed by Fox announcer Chris Rose during the celebration to no avail despite waiting in line behind everyone else.

His turn never came after just about everyone but the ball-boy got face time on camera. In the World Series finale, Bloomberg was there again, waiting his turn with Chris Rose and no one wanted to talk to him. You’d think that the Mayor would have gotten the hint the first time, but there he was waiting for his turn and it never happened.

Mayor Bloomberg looked like a total buffoon trying to get TV time even though he had plenty during his narrowly-elected third term in office. Obviously there was serious jealousy involved because of all the airtime Rudy Giuliani got in 2001 when the Mayor of New York was on air quite a bit during the Yankees-Diamondbacks World Series.

Maybe Bloomberg thought it was his right as Mayor, like others in the past, to talk about the Yankees. Sorry, Mr. Mayor, wrong year for the Mayor to be on point in the World Series.

No, the best Bloomberg for the Yankees still remains the first designated hitter ever, Ron Bloomberg. If he had been there, Chris Rose would definitely have handed the mic to him.

1. Epic Base Running

Johnny Damon getting a base hit with two outs in the top of the ninth in Game Four of a 4-4 game.

He started the rally that would lead to three runs and eventually win the game against the Phillies closer Brad Lidge.

But what he did after getting the hit will go down as one of the best displays of smart base-running in World Series history.

With Mark Teixeira at the plate and the infield shifted to the right side with him hitting left-handed, Damon would steal second base and then have the wherewithal to run for third base knowing that Phillies third baseman Pedro Feliz was covering second base and no one was covering third.

"I knew Feliz covered the bag, and I knew how he caught the ball," Damon said. "When I saw him right behind me, I thought, 'Man, I hope I'm still the Johnny Damon of 21 years old and not the 35-year-old guy.'"

It was the kind of smart heads-up base running that will go down in history, like Enos Slaughter's “Mad Dash" going from first to home on a base hit in the 1946 World Series.

The Yankees' ninth inning rally in Game Four to take the Series to a commanding 3-1 lead was spurred by Johnny Damon and made for a memorable series.

So that's it.

That's what I came away with. Jeter speaks for himself and he has almost become an expectant of excellence, so he doesn't stand out, as ridiculous as that sounds.

Alex Rodriguez? Maybe his contrived celebration and his pink chewing gum could stand out, but that memory will surely fade.

Pedro Martinez and the drama he created for himself would have ranked up there had he won a game, but he'll pass through as well with little memory reserved for him.

The Phillies Cliff Lee and Chase Utley made strong impressions, but my lasting memory will be a question as to why Phillies Manager Charlie Manual didn't go the route of Girardi with his rotation.

Chase Utley not coming through in key moments of Game Six stands out as much as his five home runs.

Three College Winners Vs Spread: Washington, UNLV, and Iowa

McCord Roberts — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 18:32:47 -0400

Week Eight College Football Plays

Washington +10 vs. Oregon

This game opened up Oregon -6 and was quickly bet up to -10 by the sharpest player in Las Vegas. It’s usually not wise to go against that type of play, but I liked Washington from the start on the basis of their home wins alone against ranked opponents like USC and Arizona, along with a near upset opening week vs. LSU.

Oregon has their high-octane QB Jeremiah Masoli back this week and are coming off a bye, but the combination of Washington’s fired up crowd, Jake Locker making big plays, and Oregon looking ahead to their big game in Eugene next week against USC makes this a great spot for Washington.

This also is worth a poke at taking the money line for a portion of the allotted wager.

UNLV pk @ New Mexico

UNLV has been winless on the road forever and are 0-2 this season. The Rebels just got pounded back to back weeks at home by the ranked team of BYU and Utah. Coach Mike Sanford is 7-17 in his career against the spread as a road team.

It doesn’t sound like the Rebels could beat anyone in any instance, does it?

Almost, but the one instance they should win on the road comes this week against the New Mexico Lobos who are 0-6 this season. A hungry team is tough to play, especially when you have your own issues, but sometimes really bad is just bad.

Iowa pk @ Michigan State

Everyone is so weary of taking a chance on Iowa as they head towards the Big-10 title. This is the last real hurdle for the Hawkeyes before their final test in Columbus against the struggling Buckeyes.

Last week everyone was betting against Iowa at Wisconsin and it was the wrong choice. This week it’s been the same type of pattern and should see similar results. The bet-against game will be in Columbus for all the marbles when Ohio State will be devalued and Iowa is then over-valued.

Charlotte Final Practices: Johnson's Speeds Way Beyond Second Fastest

McCord Roberts — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 20:23:29 -0400

Jimmie Johnson is at it again. During the final practice sessions for Saturday night’s NASCAR Banking 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Johnson set a blistering pace that no other driver had an answer for.

During the first session, Johnson wasn’t just good, he was off the charts good. His early lap of 187.162 mph was almost two mph faster than the second best time of teammate Mark Martin. That kind of speed differential rarely happens and is something he didn’t even do when he won an unprecedented five of six Charlotte races from off 2002 to 2005.

Greg Biffle was one of the drivers who was trying to keep pace with Johnson during the session—and did a decent job with the third best speed, noted that Johnson was just too quick in and out of turns three and four.

During Happy Hour, Johnson was just as good with the fastest lap of 185.478 mph early in the session followed once again by Martin with the second quickest lap. In just about all fazes of practice, Johnson dominated the day including having the best 10-lap average.

The chassis Johnson brought this week was the same one he led 17 laps with in Atlanta six weeks ago before having rear-end problems and finishing 36^th . In the primary practice using race trim, Johnson was also fastest then and not so coincidentally, Martin was the second fastest then too, but not by such a wide margin.

Johnson’s dominance didn’t extend to just Friday. He was fastest in limited practice Thursday night just before qualifying. where he won the pole too. In what may be the most dominant display of consistency by two teammates, Mark Martin finished second fastest in every session including sitting on the front row with Jimmie. This is only the second time all season that one driver has lead all three practice sessions, and definitely a first for a 1-2 exacta.

A few of the areas that Johnson didn’t reign supreme at were some longer average runs. In the first session Juan Pablo Montoya—using the new chassis that finished fourth at Kansas—had the best average speed while running only 17 laps.

The driver that made a nice impression as someone who may be able to challenge Johnson was Kyle Busch who had the best 20 lap average among all drivers in the first practice session while running 43 laps, the most among all drivers. During Happy Hour, Busch was able to run the fifth fastest lap.

Busch brought his fifth place Richmond chassis this week with hopes that they can get that car dialed in like it was Memorial Day Weekend when Busch led the most laps in the rain shortened Coca-Cola 600. Despite not running well on the sister track of Atlanta in September, Kyle may be back to being a contender to win on a 1.5-mile track and he does have history on his side in Charlotte. He’s on a streak that has seen him finish in the top-six in his last four starts.

Mark Martin leads all drivers with 17 top-five finishes at Charlotte and brought the car that he won at Michigan with. He’s looking to take all those great practice times to the winners circle at Charlotte for the fifth time in his career, while also retaking the points lead from Johnson.

Meanwhile, Kasey Kahne, who won on the sister track of Atlanta last month comes in with good, but not stellar practice times. When he won in Atlanta, it was almost the exact same scenario where he was good in practice, but showed no signs of looking like a winning car.

Kahne should be okay Saturday based on history. He has an average finish of 3.3 in his last three starts at Charlotte with three wins overall.

Tony Stewart brought his winning Kansas Chassis to Charlotte this week and his practice times are looking very similar to what he ran in Kansas with very good average speeds.

Ryan Newman is happy to be visiting Charlotte again because it’s the site of his best start and finish on 2009. He brought his Chicagoland car, which finished sixth there, and ran sixth quickest in Happy Hour.

Friday’s Early Practice Session:

1) Jimmie Johnson 187.162 mph - AVG 24 laps @ 182.204race

2) Mark Martin 185.790 mph - AVG 33 laps @ 181.445

3) Greg Biffle 185.242 mph - AVG 25 laps @ 180.620

4) Matt Kenseth 184.805 mph - AVG 32 laps @ 179.745

5) Denny Hamlin 184.786 mph - AVG 41 laps @ 181.382

Top average speed: Juan Pablo Montoya 17 laps @ 182.509

Most laps run: Kyle Busch - 43

Friday’s Final Practice (Happy H our)

1) Jimmie Johnson 185.478 mph - AVG 48 laps @ 181.094

2) Mark Martin 184.849 mph - AVG 44 laps @ 181.190

3) Denny Hamlin 184.685 mph - AVG 54 laps @ 181.033

4) Robby Gordon 184.237 mph - AVG 30 @ 180.198

5) Kyle Busch 183.974 mph - AVG 45 laps @ 181.211

Top average speed: Kyle Busch

Most laps run: Martin Truex Jr - 59

Top 10 Rated Drivers at Charlotte after all practice and qualifying sessions are completed. Rating will also consist of information from September’s Atlanta race along with other recent 1.5-mile races. Current state of the team will also have a slight bearing.

1) Jimmie Johnson

2) Mark Martin

3) Kyle Busch

4) Denny Hamlin

5) Kasey Kahne

6) Tony Stewart

7) Ryan Newman

8) Juan Pablo Montoya

9) Jeff Gordon

10) Greg Biffle

Four Big College Winners Vs. Spread: Texas, Notre Dame, Florida, and Iowa

McCord Roberts — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 15:33:39 -0400

Texas (5-0) -3 vs. Oklahoma (3-2): The Longhorns have won three of the four in this series covering all four games. The three wins Texas has over that span have all been by double digits. The Sooners are playing strictly for pride at this point while Texas is playing for a position in the BCS Championship game. Much more at stake here for Texas.

Texas hasn’t run the ball well this year and they’ll need a better performance then they had last week against lowly Colorado. Colt McCoy and Jordan Shipley should have enough offensive firepower to outscore a Sooner team still not in sync with Sam Bradford.

Notre Dame (4-1) +10 vs. USC (4-1): It’s never a good idea to bet against the Trojans but this looks like a nice spot for Notre Dame to pull off a possible upset. Notre Dame has lost seven straight to USC and six of the losses were by double digits. The last two meetings, Notre Dame got clubbed a combined 76-3.

The reason Notre Dame should do well this game rests with QB Jimmy Clausen, who can move the ball effectively against anyone. He’s averaging over 300 yards per game passing with 12 TD’s. USC will be piloted by a more comfortable Matt Barkley, but he’ll be forced to throw more in this game, which Pete Carroll would like to avoid. The home crowd will play a huge role in this game and rattle the freshman late.

Florida (5-0) -26 vs. Arkansas (3-2): The Razorbacks have a great offense, averaging 451 yards and 37 points per game. They’ll be heavily tested this week against the great Gators defense that is allowing only 6.4 points and 202 yards per game.

Florida will score in all areas of offense, defense, and special teams making the cover easy in this game. The Gators are 11-3 in their last 14 games at home against the spread.

Iowa (6-0) +3 @ Wisconsin (5-1): In a similar situation last season, Wisconsin was undefeated, lost to Ohio State and then got blown away by Iowa 38-16. This year, it’s the same thing as a deflated Badger team gets their first loss of the season and welcomes Iowa.

Iowa has won five of the last seven meetings in this series and has its hopes set in running the Big-10 table and getting a shot at the BCS Title game. Look for an inspired Iowa performance this week and play the money line.

California Happy Hour: Martin Fastest, Hamlin Stout

McCord Roberts — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 16:29:19 -0400

Saturday’s final practice sessions helped give a little more insight to who may win Sunday’s Pepsi 500 at California Speedway. The usual suspects, who seem to be there every week, are at it again this week.

Hendrick teammates Mark Martin and Jimmie Johnson showed off again in practice, each leading one the two Saturday sessions. Johnson was fastest in the first session which only ran 18 minutes because the track was running behind on the schedule due to fog on the track.

During Happy Hour, Mark Martin jumped out front early with the fast lap of 180.293 mph and no one could top him for the remainder of the hour. The current points leader and former winner on the track is showing everyone that he isn’t going anywhere in this chase.

Juan Pablo Montoya had a great day of practices and looks to be a contender again this week, not just for points, but for the actual win. He’s been knocking on the door too many times of late having cars nearly as good as the elite. Along with the great individual laps times, he was also fastest in average speeds during Happy Hour that ran at least 19 laps as he did.

What’s kind of surprising is that Martin, Johnson, and Montoya all brought their Indy Chassis’ this week as their primary car at California. First, it’s odd that all three who were the dominant drivers in that Indy race would all be thinking the same thing. Secondly, Indy’s is relatively flat with tight turns opposed to California’s sweeping turns with lots of room, yet minimal banking of 14 degrees for a track so big.

At Indy, Johnson won, Martin finished second, and Montoya had the best car of the day leading 116 laps, but was caught speeding on pit row taking what looked to be a sure win away from.

The surprise of the day came with the crew at Richard Childress Racing, They were able to place all four of their drivers within the top-16 during Happy Hour, highlighted by Casey Mears being second fastest and Kevin Harvick fourth.

Perhaps even more of a surprise than the RCR stable doing well in practice was that Roush- Fenway drivers didn’t impress as they always have since the track opened in 1997. Roush has won a total of seven races on the track by five different drivers.

Carl Edwards and Matt Kenseth were good in the shortened first session, but in Happy Hour they didn’t show anything at all and were led by a fast lap of Jamie McMurray who was eighth fastest. It’s likely Edwards will be running for a top-5 in this race, but there’s also lots of evidence that suggest maybe he won’t.

Following a series-high nine wins in 2008, Edwards still is sitting on zero wins for 2009. After Roush had won the first two races of the season with Kenseth, including California, the entire team has clammed up with an output of zero wins.

It’s just practice, but it’s also just one of many signs of how far the entire team has fallen by not practicing well on a track they have always done well at.

Pole-sitter Denny Hamlin continued his strong run from Friday into Saturday’s sessions by being second fastest during the limited early practice and followed that up with a third during Happy Hour where he had the top average times among all drivers running at least 30 laps.

Jeff Gordon won the first race ever on this track and has three altogether. He finished second to Kenseth back in February and continues to run strong on these type of tracks, including the 1.5-mile tracks as well. He was ninth fastest in the early practice and sixth best in Happy Hour.

Saturday’s Final Practice (Happy Hour)

1) Mark Martin 180.293 mph - AVG 37 laps @ 174.036

2) Casey Mears 179.897 mph - AVG 40 laps @ 173.661

3) Denny Hamlin 179.252 mph - AVG 39 laps @ 175.034

4) Kevin Harvick 179.131 mph - AVG 33 laps @ 174.327

5) Ryan Newman 178.434 mph - AVG 33 laps @ 173.158

Saturday’s Early Practice (Ran only 18 minutes due to being behind schedule on the day because of early fog at the track):

1) Jimmie Johnson 180.655 mph - AVG 9 laps @ 176.940

2) Denny Hamlin 180.442 mph - AVG 8 laps @ 177.343

3) Juan Pablo Montoya 180.162 mph - AVG 13 laps @ 176.153

4) Kurt Busch 179.969 mph - AVG 18 laps @ 174.651

5) Mark Martin 179.807 mph - AVG 11 laps @ 176.728

TOP 5 Rated Drivers at California based on happy Hour, current state of team, recent past history at Cal, and this seasons performances on 1.5 and 2-mile tracks.

1) Denny Hamlin

2) Jimmie Johnson

3) Mark Martin

4) Jeff Gordon

5) Juan Pablo Montoya

6) Carl Edwards

7) Kurt Busch

8) Tony Stewart

9) Greg Biffle

10) Kevin Harvick

Kansas Happy Hour: Surprise, Johnson Tops Charts Again!

McCord Roberts — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 15:04:22 -0400

Jimmie Johnson has many in the NASCAR world saying, “oh no, here we go again” as the all-time leader in Chase wins (15) is running as well as ever in his quest for a fourth straight title.

At Kansas this week, you had better brace yourself, because Johnson is dialed in.

He had a dominant first session Saturday with the fastest lap time by a large margin along with the top average speed, a sign that he’ll be tough to chase down late if doesn’t encounter any issues on the track. During happy hour, he laid down the fastest lap at 172.983 mph early in the session and continued on with his great average times which were second best while running 47 laps.

Johnson won this race last season and has a total of five top-10 finishes in his seven career starts here. He brought his chassis from the last Atlanta race where he started third but finished 36th after suffering a broken axle. The car was brand new for that race and Johnson was fastest in the more relevant practice prior to the race. He’s only 10 points from Chase leader Mark Martin, and to the dismay of many, it’s possible he could take the lead for good this week.

Matt Kenseth is watching the Chase from afar for the first time since it was introduced, but Kansas has seemed to reinvigorate the slumping team. He finished fifth there last season and has led 98 laps over the last two seasons. He’s not usually a driver that tops the speed charts during practice, especially this season, but he looks very strong this weekend with great runs in both sessions Saturday. He was third fastest in both.

Juan Pablo Montoya brought a new chassis for this race, showing the seriousness of his organization in trying to improve upon their third place status in points. In the first session, Montoya had the 17th quickest lap but was second only to Johnson in average speeds. During happy hour Montoya laid down a big lap with the fourth fastest time and was fastest overall in average speeds even though he ran half the laps as most with only 23.

David Reutimann’s best runs this season have been on the one-and-a-half mile tracks and based on his practice runs Saturday, Kansas will be no different as he was fourth fastest in the first session and 11th in happy hour, where he ran the most laps of the late session with 64.

This season Ruetimann has finished fourth in Vegas, 11th at Texas, 12th at Chicago, and won the rain shortened Charlotte race. He was equally as good on the two mile tracks of California and Michigan this year, which, because of the similar banking are similar to the setup needed for Kansas. He may not win, but he should have a car capable of running near the top five this week.

Jeff Gordon has won twice at Kansas and has finished in the top five in his last two starts. Of all drivers with at least four starts on the track, Gordon leads with an average finish of 9.8. In the first session, Gordon was eighth quickest with great average times. During happy hour, Gordon came right back another great run with the sixth quickest lap.

Mark Martin is sitting on his seventh pole of the season this week using the chassis that he won with at Darlington and Chicagoland. Of all the one-and-a-half mile tracks, Chicago is probably the most similar to Kansas which may spell bad news for everyone chasing him this week. Martin was sluggish in the first practice with the 19th fastest lap, though he had great average times. During happy hour, he came on strong with the second fastest lap in the 20th minute and had the third best average times.

Clint Bowyer has an average finish of 7.7 in three starts at his home track and came out with the fifth quickest lap in happy hour. He brought the same chassis that finished 18th at Indianapolis.

Kasey Kahne was 10th quickest in the early session and 12th best in happy hour, but should be considered to be rated higher on the basis of his Atlanta win and finishing third at Chicago.

Top 5 - Saturday’s Early Practice Session:

1) Jimmie Johnson 173.388 mph - AVG 23 laps @ 168.765

2) Denny Hamlin 172.574 mph - AVG 22 laps @ 168.287

3) Matt Kenseth 172.552 mph - AVG 30 laps @ 168.037

4) David Reutimann 172.079 mph - AVG 32 laps @ 167.029

5) Tony Stewart 172.079 mph - AVG 8 laps @ 169.919

Best Average Speeds: Jimmie Johnson & Juan Pablo Montoya (min. 20 laps)

Top 5 - Saturday’s Final Practice (Happy Hour)

1) Jimmie Johnson 172.983 mph - AVG 47 laps @ 168.085

2) Mark Martin 172.855 mph - AVG 35 laps @ 167.083

3) Matt Kenseth 172.205 mph - AVG 38 laps @ 167.404

4) Juan Pablo Montoya 172.018 mph - AVG 23 laps @ 168.214

5) Clint Bowyer 171.161 mph - AVG 40 laps @ 167.349

Top 10 Rated Drivers at Kansas based on Saturday’s practice sessions, past performances at Kansas, Chicagoland, Michgan, and California, current state of team, with a mix 2009 runs on the one-and-a-half mile tracks.

1) Jimmie Johnson

2) Mark Martin

3) Jeff Gordon

4) Juan Pablo Montoya

5) Matt Kenseth

6) Denny Hamlin

7) Kasey Kahne

8) David Reutimann

9) Clint Bowyer

10) Brian Vickers

Adam Wainwright Could Lock Up NL Cy Young Award Friday with Win

McCord Roberts — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 03:55:21 -0400

The St. Louis Cardinals have already clinched their division but still have a lot to play for, beginning Friday at home against the Milwaukee Brewers. Getting the best record in the National League would be nice, but Friday’s game also takes on an individual twist as well, with Adam Wainwright taking the mound in a bid to clinch the N.L. Cy Young award.

Tony La Russa won’t admit it, but he’s always been one to help and do whatever he can to see his individual ball players achieve personal success. Throughout his career as manager, he’s done all he could to give all his players the opportunity to put up the best stats possible, even if traditional managing might have rested a player or taken a pitcher out earlier in a tight game.

In Chicago, La Russa let LaMarr Hoyt battle out of jams to lead the White Sox and gain the 1983 Cy Young award by leading the league in wins (24) despite Ron Guidry (21 wins) and Jack Morris (20 wins) having more strikeouts and a better ERA than Hoyt, with just a few less wins.

Even Hoyt’s teammate Richard Dotson, at 22-7 with a 3.22 ERA may have had a rightful claim to the hardware, but Hoyt was the workhorse who had only one more start and 20 more innings pitched than Dotson. Hoyt was the guy La Russa featured as the identity of who the Sox were.

In a similar scenario 26 years later this season, Wainwright is in a battle for the Cy Young with a teammate in Chris Carpenter. While Carpenter has the ERA title locked up, Wainwright has the power pitching numbers with strikeouts (204) and leads the league in wins with 19 along with having the third best ERA (2.58) in the league. On

Friday, Wainwright will go to the mound in an attempt to become baseball’s only 20-game winner and if he does so, he should lock up the Cy.

On Thursday, La Russa pulled Carpenter out of a blowout game after five innings where he hadn’t allowed a run. In the process, Carpenter also had a career day at the plate hitting a grand slam and driving in six runs, a third of his career RBI total now.

Carpenter also passed one of the all-time great hitting pitchers, Bob Gibson, for most RBI’s by a pitcher in a game. La Russa may have been saving the delicate Carpenter from further work, but another shutout might have strengthened his case for the Cy.

It likely wasn’t an intentional pull, but it may be likely that he knows Wainwright’s stats and impact to the Cardinals are still superior to Carpenter’s even if he would have pitched a shutout.

La Russa may have put Wainwright in the drivers seat all alone by putting him in the spotlight as he goes for his 20th win. Should he lose, well, he still has all his strikeouts, a great ERA, and leads the league in wins.

As for third place, last year's winner Tim Lincecum has had another solid season with his ERA and strikeouts but failed his team in big games late this season, most notably against the Dodgers.

He was no doubt the most dominant pitcher in the National League this season, but couldn’t put the wins in the standings consistently. Blame it on the offense, defense, or anything else, but when it came to pivotal times in time of need, Lincecum failed to make it happen.

Wainwright has done enough to satisfy all the needs of voters with statistics and what he means to the team. In the Cardinals drive for the division title, before it was a runaway, Wainwright was a catalyst getting 11 wins since the July 7.

La Russa has put the ball in his court and it’s Wainwright’s to take on Friday. If he does win, it would be La Russa’s fifth different Cy Young Award winner for three different teams.

It may not be fair, but a pitcher’s lasting image to indecisive writers who vote right after the regular season ends goes a long way in determining who wins. Lincecum fizzled, Carpenter excelled with the bat, and it remains to be seen what the lasting image of Wainwright will be, but we‘ll find out Friday.

Lions Will Roar in Chicago: Jay Cutler, Lovie Smith Leave Matt Forte Alone Again

McCord Roberts — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 18:00:33 -0400

In Las Vegas, the Bears are listed as 10 point favorites at home against the Lions. Both are fresh off their best games of the season, but are the Bears really that much better than Detroit?

If we look at what the Bears have done this season, it's a whole bunch of interceptions with the purpose of allowing Jay Cutler to become the superstar the Bears thought they traded for. In the process of doing so, they have completely abandoned the run, one of the strengths of their team coming into the season.

Last season Matt Forte accounted for over 2,000 yards of offense and now they're treating him like a journeyman in favor of Cutler's style of play. Why? What has Cutler accomplished?

Has he ever led his team to the playoffs? NO!

Has he ever had a winning record in any season? NO!

Could he win one game in the final three to clinch a playoff birth in 2008? NO!

Has he thrown a lot of bad passes in critical junctures of games? Ahhh, yes, he has done that.

Has he lost to several less talented teams on his home field over his career? Definitely, yes!

It shouldn't come as a surprise from Lovie Smith though—who lived and died with the erratic game of Rex Grossman until the media finally ran Grossman out, not Lovie. For some reason, Lovie thinks that Chicago should have a passing game, something that hasn't been part of Chicago's frigid cold fall months since Sid Luckman in the 1940's.

Is it really the luck of the draw with getting quarterbacks, or could it be by some educated design that the run and defense have always been staples in Chicago.

Here's how I see the game going this week.

The Bears will come in a little over-confident and it'll bite them right away as the refreshed Lions play loose and free on offense, defense, and special teams.

A healthy Kevin Smith, with Maurice Morris, should keep the chains moving taking pressure off of Matt Stafford. And just when the Bears are geared to stop the run, Calvin Johnson gets free for a long deep touchdown.

Oh my, the Lions strike first...emphatically!

The Bears try to answer, and actually use Forte a little bit with some success, but have to settle for a field goal after near interceptions from Cutler on 1st, 2nd, and 3rd downs stalling a good drive and settling for a field goal.

Not quite the answer Lovie was looking for, but he'll take it—Lions 7-3.

On the ensuing kickoff, Aaron Brown goes almost untouched for a touchdown. The Bears are stunned and find themselves down 14-3 before they even know what happened. And now it's up to Cutler to try and make something happen, lookout!

Over his career at Denver and in early sequences with Chicago, Cutler doesn't respond well when behind. He tries to show off his arm, you know the arm he claimed in Denver that was stronger than Elway's. Even if it was, why say it in that city? He then tries to squeeze one in a tight spot with two Lions draped over him and what do you know, picked off, and to make it fun let's just say it goes for six.

The Bears try to respond through the air again, and connect on a 50 yard pass down the sideline to Johnny Knox, but then as time is winding down in the half, a series of three incompletions happens again for the anxious Cutler and the field goal unit comes out.

At halftime the Bears are booed off the field as the Lions have a nice 21-6 lead. They try and regroup, but too much pressure and weight is on the QB to make anything happen.

The Lions play ball control with Smith taking time off the clock until he breaks the Bears back by finally shaking a DB going the distance. Smith has been getting past the front seven on occasions, but has been stopped by the secondary. Last week against the Redskins he had several runs that he nearly broke in the first half. This time he goes the distance—Lions 28-6.

The Lions go into conservative mode and take more time off the clock. The Bears are able to get another field goal, but the pressure is mounting and the fans are lining out of the stadium with their final boo's for Cutler.

After the stadium is nearly empty, the Lions give up a late TD pass to Cutler yet miss the two-point conversion, but it's game-set-match anyway, Lions win 28-15 and are now tied with the Bears and soon to be Packers for second place.

Good Lucks Lions!

Kasey Kahne Quickest at Dover Happy Hour

McCord Roberts — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 17:35:23 -0400

Kasey Kahne has never had a top-five finish at Dover and he‘s coming off a blown engine last week at New Hampshire, however, on Saturday he reeled in the fastest lap in happy hour making his chances look pretty good for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup race at Dover.

Kahne ran the fastest lap of 152.014 on his third lap during the final practice session at Dover and is looking to elevate himself in the Chase for the Championship along with just having simply a good run at Dover.

In 11 starts at Dover, Kahne has done much worse than better. He’s had seven finishes out of the top 20 as opposed to finishing only four times in the top 20. The great practice run that saw him 14th best in the early session and finish best in happy hour ought to be encouraging for a team that hasn’t fared well in Delaware. In his first run this season, Kahne finished sixth.

Juan Pablo Montoya is debuting a chassis this week, again, and whatever the team is doing is making him better. Where was all that technique throughout the season? All of a sudden, Montoya is one of the major players every week.

Montoya was the second fastest in both sessions on Saturday and has baffled many around the garage how he can be so good, so quick, and so timely since making the chase and excelling throughout the chase in Jimmie Johnson fashion.

Following the two heavyweights of Happy Hour, Joey Logano joined Mark Martin, Jimmie Johnson, Greg Biffle, and Kurt Busch as the top performers of the day.

This is the track where Logano made his NASCAR debut in the Nationwide series and to make it special they brought a brand new car.

Kurt Busch, despite no input from lame duck crew chief Pat Tryson, is running a brand new chassis. It would seem that a top contender for the title would need their chief in a new scheme of any kind, but team Miller Lite appears to be pretty good with the change.

Mark Martin is bringing the same chassis that brought him victory at Darlington. He finished 10th earlier this season at Dover and could be the driver to beat again.

Top Speeds at Dover Happy Hour:

1) Kasey Kahe 152.014 mph—AVG 37 laps @ 149.048

2) Juan Pablo Montoya 151.502 mph—AVG 37 laps @ 148.399

3) Joey Logano 151.057 mph—AVG 49 laps @ 148.415

4) Mark Martin 151.013 mph—49 laps @ 149.309

5) Jimmie Johnson 150.981 mph—53 laps @ 148.528

6) Greg Biffle 150.981 mph—44 laps @ 148.416

7) Kurt Busch 150.031 mph—56 laps @ 148.416

Top 10 Rated Drivers at Dover based on final two Dover practices, runs earlier tin the season at Dover, and current state of organization.

1) Greg Biffle

2) Jimmie Johnson

3) Kasey Kahne

4) Kurt Busch

5) Juan Pablo Montoya

6) Ryan Newman

7) Mark Martin

8) Kyle Busch

9) Carl Edwards

10) Jeff Gordon

Montoya Blazing Fast in Every Loudon Practice Session

McCord Roberts — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 16:23:37 -0400

On Friday Juan Pablo Montoya won his second pole position of the season and also the second of his career. Saturday, Montoya picked up right where he left off during the final practice sessions in preparation for Sunday’s Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

Montoya not only led Friday’s early practice geared towards qualifying—then took the pole, but he carried those blazing speeds into Saturday and was fastest in both sessions. In each practice, Montoya was the only driver to pass he 130 mph barrier on a lap. During happy hour he laid down the quickest lap of the day at 130.376 mph.

Montoya brought a brand new chassis this week and with it, became the only driver this season to sweep all three practice sessions prior to any given race, a rarity considering race conditions on separate days and having two different set-ups in race and qualifying trim.

Montoya will look to improve upon his career average of 20th at New Hampshire in the first race of the Chase on Sunday. His 12th place finish in the June race was already a vast improvement over what he did in his first two seasons on the track, and now with the beast of a car he has this week, he should be able to improve upon his best even further.

Kurt Busch is a three time winner in New Hampshire and was very impressive in Saturday’s practices. He was seventh fastest in the early session while running the most laps and then came out in happy hour and was second fastest behind Montoya while running the third most laps. Busch brought the same chassis that a great run in the June race finishing third.

It should come as little surprise that points leader Mark Martin had a great pair of practices because he brought the same chassis that won at Phoenix earlier this year which was also run last week at Richmond finishing fourth.

The correlation between Phoenix, New Hampshire, and Richmond has always been strong over the years with several drivers winning multiple races during a year on those tracks using the same chassis for each. Despite the three tracks being vastly different in configuration, the length and banking make them similar in crew chiefs minds.

Martin’s teammate, Jimmie Johnson, has also been the beneficiary of having dominant rides on all three tracks over his career. He brought the same chassis from June’s race that led the most laps before the rain came. During practice, Johnson showed that his car is just as good now as it was then with the fifth fastest lap in each session while running the most laps of the day.

Martin Truex Jr brought a brand new car, just like his teammate Juan Pablo Montoya and the results were very similar in practice. He was second fastest in the early session and third fastest in happy hour.

Loudon has traditionally been one of Truex’s best tracks. His poor finish in June ended a streak of four consecutive top-10 finishes on the track. He’s a great dark horse this week to spoil the Chase party.

Other drivers that had great runs Saturday who aren’t in the Chase were Kevin Harvick and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Harvick had the ninth fastest lap in happy hour using the same car that was very racey last week in Richmond. The best sign for a good run from Harvick was that he had the third best average times in the final session.

Earnhardt Jr was sixth fastest during happy hour using the same chassis that ran 13th in June’s race. The positive note for Junior is that his car was been able to run completive speeds with the leaders, something hasn’t happened very much in practice for him all season.

Final Practice session (Happy Hour)

1) Juan Pablo Montoya 130.376 mph - AVG 39 laps @ 128.337

2) Kurt Busch 129.843 mph - AVG 61 laps @ 128.035

3) Martin Truex Jr 129.843 mph - AVG 45 laps @ 128.270

4) Mark Martin 129.820 mph - AVG 56 laps @ 128.004

5) Jimmie Johnson 129.758 mph - AVG 67 laps @ 127.955

Second Practice session:

1) Juan Pablo Monyoya 130.131 mph - AVG 33 laps @ 128.208

2) Martin Truex Jr 129.922 mph - AVG 31 laps @ 127.590

3) Mark Martin 129.688 mph - AVG 43 laps @ 128.053

4) David Stremme 129.639 mph - AVG 32 laps @ 126.453

5) Jimmie Johnson 129.595 mph - AVG 46 laps @ 128.037

TOP 10 Rated Drivers for New Hampshire based on Saturday’s practice sessions, current state of team, last weeks Richmond race, with a mix of Phoenix and June’s Loudon race.

1) Jimmie Johnson

2) Juan Pablo Montoya

3) Kurt Busch

4) Mark Martin

5) Denny Hamlin

6) Tony Stewart

7) Martin Truex Jr

8) Jeff Gordon

9) Kevin Harvick

10 Dale Earnhardt Jr

Jets Calling Out The Pats: Are You Sure You Want That?

McCord Roberts — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 19:38:00 -0400

Japan’s great Admiral, Isoroku Yamamoto, is said to have made the statement, "I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve," immediately following their attack on Pearl Harbor.

This week the New York Jets have freely, and openly, sent a message to the Patriots through the media. Whether it turns out to be the same fate suffered by Yamamoto’s squad, has yet to be seen, but it sure is making the game seem much more interesting now.

“It’s to the point where enough is enough,” said New York Jets free-safety Kerry Rhodes.

“You go out from the first quarter on, from the first play on, and try to embarrass them,” Rhodes said. “Not just go out there and try to win, try to embarrass them. Try to make them feel bad when they leave here. We don’t want to just beat them. We want to send a message to them, ‘We’re not backing down from you and we expect to win this game, and it’s not going to be luck, it’s not going to be a mistake.’ ”

He also said that the Jets Defense would hit Tom Brady more than six times, the number of times that Brady was hit this past Monday night by the Buffalo Bills defense.

The Rhodes comments were made a day after new Head Coach Rex Ryan talked very positive in an emphatic manner that his Jets aren’t going to be bullied around anymore by the Patriots who have put a Beat-down on the Jets eight straight games at the Meadowlands.

“Talk is cheap,” Brady said Wednesday, referring to Ryan without even knowing what Rhodes said.

Patriots head coach Bill Belichik has shown Patriots the article and left it at that. None of the players had much to say regarding Rhodes comments.

You have to like the inspiration and motivation before games, but I don’t think it turns out too well for teams that call out the Patriots. It seems to make them stronger and more focused crusading with a common goal, yet not speaking about it and as a unit.

Remember Anthony Smith? He used to play the safety for Pittsburgh Steelers. In 2007 he guaranteed a victory against the Patriots in Foxboro. Brady responded with 399 yards and four touchdowns in the Patriots 34-13 win.

The most memorable moment, or response to bold statements, was when Brady threw one of his bombs, or the final nail in the coffin.

He proceeded to run down field towards the end-zone, found Smith after he‘d been burned, and gave him some choice words not meant for reporters. Brady yelled the message out personally to Smith, as if to say, “this how I‘ll call you out, on the field!”

I haven‘t heard much from Smith of late, but I‘m sure he‘ll think twice before making a statement against anyone, let alone the Patriots.

Perhaps this is the best way to get a team riddled with losses to change their psyche, but no one wants to be that guy that gets punked in front of millions by Brady. I guess those are the sacrifices that must be made if you’re trying change an overall mind set. The other way sure wasn’t working.

Jets Call Out Patriots: Good Or Bad Idea?

McCord Roberts — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 02:22:17 -0400

This week, the New York Jets have freely, and openly, sent a message to the New England Patriots through the media. Whether it turns out to be the same fate suffered by Yamamoto’s squad has yet to be seen, but it sure is making the game seem much more interesting now.

“It’s to the point where enough is enough,” said New York Jets free-safety Kerry Rhodes.

He also said that the Jets Defense would hit Tom Brady more than six times, the number of times that Brady was hit this past Monday night by the Buffalo Bills defense.

“Talk is cheap,” Brady said Wednesday, referring to Ryan without even knowing what Rhodes said.

Patriots head coach Bill Belichik has shown Patriots the article and left it at that. None of the players had much to say regarding Rhodes comments.

Remember Anthony Smith? He used to play the safety for Pittsburgh Steelers. In 2007, he guaranteed a victory against the Patriots in Foxboro. Brady responded with 399 yards and four Touchdowns in the Patriots 34-13 win.

The most memorable moment, or response to bold statements, was when Brady threw one of his bombs; the final nail in the coffin.

I haven‘t heard much from Smith of late, but I‘m sure he‘ll think twice before making a statement against anyone, let alone the Patriots.

Perhaps this is the best way to get a team riddled with losses to change their psyche, but no one wants to be that guy that gets punked in front of millions by Brady. I guess those are the sacrifices that must be made if you’re trying to change an overall mind set. The other way sure wasn’t working.

Buckeyes Crowd To Make the Difference Against USC

McCord Roberts — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 01:43:55 -0400

The Buckeyes got a nice wake up call last week with a scare against Navy. The Columbus faithful have had this game circled since getting buried 35-3 in Los Angeles last year.

The Buckeye faithful feel that since USC lost most of it’s defense from last year as well as their starting QB to the NFL, that they’ll be just fine at home with their own seasoned QB running a swanky new offense.

Apparently, Las Vegas doesn’t agree with Columbus. The game originally opened up as USC a -3 point favorite on an early line two months ago raising a few eyebrows that such a young team would be favored in Columbus. The combination of the occurrences from last week in each of their games made the opening line on Monday -7 where it has stayed all week.

USC reloads every year and they showed it last week with Freshman QB Matt Barkley leading the charge with 56 points against San Jose State. The greatest stat of the week involves USC and Pete Carroll in their last nine games against the Big 10 that has seen the Trojans win and cover all nine. In all nine instances, USC won by double digits.

On a positive note for Ohio State, their 12th man, the fans—all 106,000 of them get to rattle a freshman QB. No matter what Barkley says to shrug off the daunting task of calling plays in front of what is arguably the most hostile crowd in College Football, he’ll still be affected. He may have all the tools and make up to make him great down the road, but not in his first road game as a collegian, and not there.

This is only the third time the Buckeyes have been a home dog under Jim Tressel’s watch and overall, Tressel is 55-8 at home. With the spread being relevant this week getting +7, only two times has a Tressel team been beaten by double-digits (11 and 12) at home.

There lots of reasons why USC should be favored, but I’ll base my choice of Ohio State winning the game on my faith in the crowd to do their job and create easy opportunities for Buckeye scores by letting the Freshman have it. He's bound to have a few mistakes and in agame like this, sometimes taht's all it takes is a few turnovers on your side of the field.

This game is under the lights which means most of the older alumni and supporters stay home because night games bring out the freakiest of freaks in Columbus. They‘d rather not get caught up I the drunken craze that goes on before and after a big night game in Columbus, so they give them away to younger friends of the family.

Another positive is that the Columbus Fire Department is already on alert with extra staffing for the anticipated Columbus ritual of burning couches in the streets. Yes, that’s couches, as in what most of us sit in to watch TV.

After big wins in games of this magnitude, the entire city goes nuts and they pull couches off their porches, and sometimes bring out from inside their homes, and set them on fire in the streets.

Needless to say, there haven’t been many big wins the last few years for the Buckeyes that have excited Buckeye Nation to get the ritual started again, but if Firemen are standing by for a burn-fest, that’s a good enough sign for me.

Ohio State 24, USC 16

Richmond Practice: Montoya Fastest, Hamlin Looks Best

McCord Roberts — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 17:06:02 -0400

Juan Pablo Montoya was the fastest in Friday’s final practice session for Saturday Night’s Chevy Rock & Roll 400 at Richmond. Montoya reeled out the quickest speed of 124.412 mph near the end of the session while in qualifying trim.

Prior to the changes set up for qualifying, Montoya still had solid times in the few laps he ran. During the first session, Montoya 13th quickest while running 47 laps in race trim. All Montoya has to do is finish 18th or better Saturday and he’ll make his goal come to fruition by qualifying for the Chase to the Championship.

If looking at his career average finish at Richmond of 27th, it may seem a bit dicey. However, he’s brought the same chassis he raced to a Richmond career best of 10th in May.

Richmond’s weekend schedule of events is similar to what Atlanta did last week with two practice sessions followed by qualifying all in one day. Because most drivers used the final session for the qualifying set-up, it can be treated like a normal race schedule first practice.

The most telling practice this week in regards to how they may run in race conditions was the first practice. There a few exceptions such as drivers that ran more than 30 laps during happy hour like Kasey Kahne, Denny Hamlin, and Tony Stewart.

In the first practice almost everyone was in race trim and ran several laps. The fastest or those drivers was Greg Biffle followed by Kyle Busch and Clint Bowyer.

Biffle brought a brand new chassis for this week and hopes to clinch a position in the Chase. He could take matters into his own hands by finishing 11th or better and make it regardless of what anyone else does.

Kyle Busch needs a lot more help, but has to feel confident coming to a track where he has the best average finish of anyone (6th) and where he claimed one of his four wins this season. Busch brought a chassis that finished 23rd at Michigan, kind of a perplexing move since he won in the spring at Richmond. Why not bring that car?

However, the last time they did something that appeared awkward like that and not bringing the winning chassis from the Spring, he won at Bristol a few weeks ago. He needs to gain 17 points on Vickers and 37 on Kenseth to make the Chase. It should be fun watching him try.

Clint Bowyer had the third best average times in the first practice among drivers that ran at least 35 laps. Bowyer’s may be a bit more impressive than first and second best times of Kevin Harvick and Mark just because he ran many more laps than they did with 62.

Bowyer won the spring Bristol race last year thanks to some hard racing in front of him while he was running third. In all, Bowyer has been brilliant at Richmond with an average finish of 10th. Bowyer brought his Chicagoland chassis that he finished ninth with.

Virginia native Denny Hamlin was as good as ever in both practices running a total of 109 laps between the two sessions. In the first practice he had the fifth best time then he ran a ton of laps in the final practice with top speeds and then put his qualifying trim on and was sixth quickest overall.

Hamlin has had at least two instances where he probably should have won on his home track, but has still had quality runs in just about every one of his seven starts. Only Kyle Busch has a better Richmond average finish than Hamlin’s at 9.6. Look for Hamlin to let it all hang out and go for the win to better his position in the Chase, but more importantly to him, get that elusive Richmond win.

Tony Stewart was the King of Richmond when he first arrived, winning as a rookie and then two other times giving him three wins in his first seven starts at the track. Since then, he hasn’t won any, but he has run very well getting second place in three of his last four races there.

Stewart ran the second most laps (76) in the first practice and was 12th quickest. During happy hour, Stewart ran 47 more laps and had the 11th best time while in qualifying trim. Stewart will be in the same race mode as Hamlin looking to move up the Chase ladder for start position by getting a win.

Jimmie Johnson has been hit or miss at Richmond. Despite winning there in three of the last five races, he has only one other top-10 finish there in his 15 career starts. Four top-10’s for Jimmie Johnson at any track would be considered struggling, as would his 18th average finish position.

Fortunately for Johnson, he looks to be trending upward at Richmond even though he finished 36th there in the spring. Based on what he’s done on the similar set-ups required at Phoenix and New Hampshire since the COT was introduced, not many are better.

Johnson was second fastest in happy hour while in qualifying trim and 11th best in the first practice while running the most laps (79). Johnson brought the same chassis that he ran with at Richmond in the spring.

Brian Vickers needs to gain 21 points on Kenseth to get the final Chase position while attempting to hold off Busch. Tough task, especially when considering his average finish position of 27th throughout his career on the track. The good news for Vickers is that he a solid 15th place finish in the spring, his best run there since he was a rookie with and 8th.

The bad news for Vickers, other than Busch, is that both his practice sessions went poorly in race trim and qualifying trim. It’s quite unusual for Vickers to struggle in qualifying trim, but he was only able to mange the 21st quickest lap in happy hour. In the first session, he was only 36th quickest running 69 laps.

Fortunately, the Red Bull team does have the luxury to tinker some more in the garage prior to the race, but they won’t be able to test it until the race.

Mike Bliss had two good practice sessions in the No. 71 despite running limited laps. Bliss only gets brought up just because of the fact that the car he’s driving this week was bought from the Richard Childress stable of cars. Richmond has been one of the better tracks for Childress in both the old car, and the COT.

The regular driver of the No. 71, David Gilliland, is filling in for Robby Gordon in the No. 7 while Gordon takes the NASCAR race weekend off so he can participate in the off-road event in Primm, Nevada.

First Richmond Practice—Top 5 Speeds

1. Joe Nememchek 122.867 mph—AVG 12 laps @ 120.325

2. Greg Biffle 122.594 mph—AVG 60 laps @ 117.378

3. Kyle Busch 122.482 mph—AVG 48 laps @ 118.464

4. Clint Bowyer 122.410 mph—AVG 62 laps @ 118.533

5. Denny Hamlin 122.288 mph—AVG 53 laps @ 118.197

Best Average Speed among drivers running at least 35 laps: Kevin Harvick 39 Laps @ 118.699

Most laps run: 79 each by Ryan Newman (10th) and Jimmie Johnson (11th)

Final Richmond Practice (Happy Hour)—Top 5 Speeds:

1. Juan Pablo Montoya 124.412 mph - AVG 12 laps @ 121.414

2. Jimmie Johnson 124.390 mph - AVG 14 laps @ 121.301

3. Mark Martin 124.218 mph - AVG 11 laps @ 122.013

4. Jeff Gordon 124.836 mph - AVG 33 laps @ 117.536

5. Kasey Kahne 123.836 mph - AVG 58 laps @ 117.536

Best Average Speed among drivers running at least 30 laps: David Reutimann 34 Laps @ 119.119

Most laps run: 64 by Jeff Burton (22nd fastest)

Top 10 Rated drivers for Richmond based on First Practice session, some of Happy Hour, current state of team, and a mix of the three 2009 races at Phoenix, New Hampshire, and Richmond:

1) Denny Hamlin

2) Tony Stewart

3) Clint Bowyer

4) Jimmie Johnson

5) Kyle Busch

6) Greg Biffle

7) Ryan Newman

8) Mark Martin

9) Jeff Gordon

10) Kevin Harvick

Atlanta Practice: Junior's Finally Got a Hendrick Car This Week

McCord Roberts — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 15:25:53 -0400

This week’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race goes under the lights in Atlanta Sunday for the second to last race until the Chase to Championship begins September 20 in New Hampshire.

This will be the second time the series has visited in Atlanta with the first coming in early March where Kurt Busch thoroughly dominated in what still is his only win of the season.

The practice sessions for the March’s Atlanta race were run in the traditional sense with a Friday practice, then qualifying, and two Saturday practices.

This time around, there was no practice on Friday with all activity taking place on Saturday prior to Sunday night’s race in what Atlanta Motor Speedway is calling an experiment.

Saturday’s events began with an hour and half practice session with most teams running in race trim. In the Final practice session, teams mixed up the session with both race trim and qualifying trim for another hour and a half. In the unusual format, their qualifying session will be the final time in their car before the actual race.

The qualifying being so late, with no practice afterwards, could make things difficult early on in the race for the teams that had good practice runs because no matter how precise the notes were for a good set-up, it still takes some tinkering to get perfect from race trim to qualifying trim.

With no practice following qualifying, the tinkering will have to come during the race. Needless to say, there definitely is some added pressure on the crews this week.

Another major factor the crews have to deal with is the track’s temperature change from practice to race day conditions which will drastically change because the start time for Sunday’s race is just before 8 pm. The likely result will be more grip, which the drivers will like, but it’s still an unknown which means there will be a lot of guessing in the set-up early on.

At the very end of the final practice session, Juan Pablo Montoya reeled off the fastest lap of 180.105 mph while in qualifying trim driving his favorite car, the one that nearly won at Indy and finished second at Pocono. However, the session was over and didn't officially count. Nearly every driver used the final moments of final practice to make their qualifying trim runs.

Prior to the late switch for qualifying trim, Ryan Newman had been fastest while in race trim and did so very early. As the heat slicked up the track, all the times for the final practice were much slower than the first session.

During the first session, Jimmie Johnson ran 41 laps with a top speed of 182.807 mph while in race trim using a brand new chassis made special for this race. Just about every team that matters used the first session somewhat in the same fashion like they normally use happy hour for. They ran lots of laps and used the cooler conditions as more of a simulator for what they may see on race day.

Mark Martin, Denny Hamlin, Tony Stewart, and Kurt Busch rounded out the top-5 fastest laps following Johnson in the first session.

Martin had some trouble the last time they visited Atlanta despite sitting on the pole, but was very fast during both sessions Saturday while in both race and qualifying trim. The car he’s using this week is the same one that won at Darlington and Chicagoland.

Kurt Busch had a real good morning session, but struggled in the afternoon practice saying his car had no grip. He’s bringing the same chassis that he won with in March’s Atlanta race and it’s likely the cooler conditions will get Busch’s car right on race day.

Jeff Gordon had a great first practice with the third fastest average speeds among all drivers to run at least 30 laps. The high banked 1.5-mile tracks have been his best all around combined runs this season capturing a second in Atlanta and a win at Texas.

The second fastest average times in the first practice belonged to Montoya, while the best average speed among those running at least 30 laps belonged to Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Junior brought a brand new chassis and his average times finally make him look like he’s driving a Hendrick car. In the final session, he finished with the 11th fastest time.

Based on how good he looks lap after lap in the longer runs, Junior might have his best opportunity to win a race this season. Should he win, it might be the most fireworks Atlanta has seen since General Sherman marched through there 145 years ago.

First Practice - Top 5 Speeds (more relevant practice)

1. Jimmie Johnson 182.807 mph - AVG 41 laps @ 173.00

2. Mark Martin 182.507 mph - AVG 55 laps @ 172.319

3. Denny Hamlin 181.729 mph - AVG 40 laps @ 172.707

4. Tony Stewart 181.699 mph - AVG 50 laps @ 170.780

5. Kurt Busch 181.639 mph - AVG 39 laps @ 171.954

Final Practice - Top 5 Speeds

1. Ryan Newman 179.866 mph - AVG 25 laps @ 173.041

2. Mark Martin 179.802 mph - AVG 7 laps @ 178.513

3. Brian Vickers 179.330 mph - AVG 41 laps @ 171.983

4. Clint Bowyer 179.278 mph - AVG 12 laps @ 175.955

5. Jeff Gordon 179.272 mph - AVG 20 laps @ 173.010

Top 10 Rated drivers for Sunday night’s Atlanta race heavily based on Saturday’s first practice session, mixed in with the final session, chassis selections, current state of team, and 1.5-mile performances in 2009.

1. Jeff Gordon

2. Mark Martin

3. Kurt Busch

4. Jimmie Johnson

5. Juan Pablo Montoya

6. Carl Edwards

7. Denny Hamlin

8. Dale Earnhardt Jr

9. Brian Vickers

10. Ryan Newman

Johnson Paces Bristol Happy: Shooting For First Win

McCord Roberts — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 16:50:37 -0400

Jimmie Johnson doesn’t have a Bristol win among his 43 career NASCAR Sprint Cup wins, but after Friday’s final practice sessions for Saturday night’s Sharpie 500, he may well be on his way to crossing Bristol off his small list of tracks he’s never won at.

Johnson paced Happy Hour with a fast lap of 123.316 mph late in the session followed by Mark Martin, Marcos Ambrose, Jeff Gordon, and Greg Biffle to round out the top five.

Throughout the day during both practices, the track was extremely slick with several drivers almost hitting the wall coming out of the turns.

This will be the fifth race run on the new layout of Bristol. The banking was decreased by six degrees and in the process, it created an outside groove that that had never been there before. In the past, the only way to pass a stubborn driver in front of a faster car on the bottom was to bump him out of the way.

Those type of days appear to be gone, or at least, diminished somewhat. Even though it’s still difficult to pass making start position as critical as it ever was, the additional groove has made the drivers less antsy, which in turn has lessoned the famous Bristol road rage.

The one change for this race that might see some good old fashioned Bristol Road Rage that we didn’t see as much of in the first four races since the change is the double-file restart. The bottom of the track is still the preferred spot, so the battle on each restart should be interesting to see.

Some of the top teams brought their Dover chassis’ from May rather than their March Bristol chassis’. The banking and grooves make it now similar to Dover in weight placement set-up despite Dover being twice as big in distance.

One of the few drivers to bring their Bristol chassis from the March race was Jimmie Johnson, who finished third in the Spring tying his best career Bristol finish. The choice must have been a tough one for crew chief Chad Knaus since Johnson won at Dover in May in a different car.

Greg Biffle, who was fifth fastest in Friday’s Happy Hour, was one of the others to bring his Chassis from March’s Bristol race. However, the Dover connection is there because it’s the same chassis he won at Dover with last year in the fall. Biffle qualified well at Bristol in the spring but had engine trouble and finished 39th. Biffle should contend for the win Saturday night.

On an on going trend over the last few weeks has been the continued performance of Joey Logano in practice. He’s running with the upper-echelon of drivers and getting great times in single lap and average times. Friday was no different as he ran equally well on the high and low side for the seventh best overall time.

Meanwhile, as Logano runs well, his teammate, Kyle Busch, continues to struggle with his car. Busch wasn’t happy at all in either practice session and almost flattened the back end while getting loose around one of the turns.

The real mystery with Busch is why the team didn’t bring their winning chassis from the March Bristol race. They chose to bring their Phoenix car, which they ran well in, but the banking difference between the two tracks is pretty substantial.

It doesn’t look like Busch is equipped to run his best this week and the timing couldn’t be worse for him as he has only three races left to make up 70 points and make the chase.

Tony Stewart didn’t have a good practice at all, at least on the clock, and was 32^nd quickest. On several occasions this season, Stewart has practiced much more than just being fast and his times on paper have suffered. However, when it comes to race day, Stewart has his game face on and usually gets himself a top-5.

Stewart ran the most laps in Happy Hour by a substantial margin, running 99 laps and used the majority of both practice sessions in race trim.

Final Bristol Practice (Happy Hour)

1) Jimmie Johnson 123.316 mph - AVG 20 laps @ 120.856

2) Mark Martin 122.874 mph - AVG 6 laps @ 122.145

3) Marcos Ambrose 122.874 mph - AVG 46 laps @ 118.567

4) Jeff Gordon 122.858 mph - AVG 42 laps @ 117.119

5) Greg Biffle 122.803 mph - AVG 64 laps @ 117.598

6) Joey Logano 122.693 mph - AVG 64 laps @ 117.946

7) Scott Speed 122.646 mph - AVG 49 laps @ 118.266

8) David Reutimann 122.552 mph - AVG 46 laps @ 117.831

9) David Gilliland 122.435 mph - AVG 23 laps @ 118.653

10) Kurt Busch 122.435 mph - AVG 56 laps @ 117.711

First Bristol Practice Session

1) Martin Truex Jr 122.014 mph - AVG 65 laps @ 118.464

2) David Gilliland 121.798 mph - AVG 69 laps @ 117.548

3) Clint Bowyer 121.651 mph - AVG 73 laps @ 117.764

4) Aric Almirola 121.628 mph - AVG 25 laps @ 118.606

5) Scott Speed 121.605 mph - AVG 48 laps @ 117.226

Top 10 Driver Ratings at Bristol following all practices sessions (not qualifying), with a mix or the last four Bristol races, the last three Dover races, and current state of the team.

1) Greg Biffle

2) Jimmie Johnson

3) Kurt Busch

4) Jeff Gordon

5) Tony Stewart

6) Clint Bowyer

7) Denny Hamlin

8) Ryan Newman

9) Mark Martin

10) Carl Edwards

I Was Legend: Is Smoltz Another Aging Athlete Who Doesn't Know When To Quit?

McCord Roberts — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 04:53:51 -0400

Early yesterday, John Smoltz agreed to a deal with the St. Louis Cardinals, giving the 42-year old former Cy Young award winner a chance to show he isn’t finished yet.

Tony La Russa's club is hoping he can still contribute down the stretch in a pennant race for the current NL Central leaders.

There were reports that several teams such as the Dodgers, Tigers, Marlins, and Rangers were interested in possibly signing the former ace, but the Cardinals got him once he cleared waivers.

Perhaps, the interest from teams around the league, even though they saw him struggle in Boston where he was 2-5 with an 8.33 ERA in eight starts, was because they believe he can come around after getting some more innings.

Maybe the Cardinals feel that his Boston starts were more like a spring training exercise, to work out the kinks after missing most of the 2008 season due to injury.

Smoltz missed most of 2009, and when he came back to a foreign league with different strike zones and hitters, he struggled. Those would at least be the logical, positive excuses that would help justify the signing.

Perhaps, getting him back into the National League where he’s likely to be more comfortable, can get Smoltz back to resembling the future Hall of Famer everyone had admired and respected over the last 20 seasons.

Smoltz showed in Boston that he still had some velocity, but he got himself into so much trouble with a lack of control, and gave up too many big innings to opposing teams in most of his starts. It’s possible that his confidence was completely shattered, in part due to the injury, and also because of the enormous pressure and expectations placed on himself.

With having the ultimate reality check of being told a team didn’t want him anymore and getting released, he’s realized the humility of it all, and yet still wants to continue. Things can’t get any worse, or can they?

For a star athlete at the level of Smoltz’s caliber, the hardest thing for many of them to do is realize when it really is over. Imagine being the best of the best at your craft since a child, and garnering all the personal awards, recognitions, titles, and then all of a sudden your body quits on you. It’s a cruel torture that father time plays.

However, the past glory and all those years still linger, and the brain tells you that you can still get people out and be close to what you were a mere three seasons ago.

We see this in all sports where stars linger on long after their best days are gone; and unfortunately, those times are some of the lasting memories we have of them which somewhat taints their overall performance. It’s almost like an asterisk should be put on those last seasons for players that just say “age,” under all the stats that in no way resemble any of their other years.

For every John Elway riding off in the sunset with back to back Super Bowl's where we never saw him in weakened shadow of his former self, there’s players like Moses Malone, Joe Namath, Brett Favre, and Steve Carlton who think they can keep going because they were so good in their prime, that there is a belief that even if they have dropped a level, they’re NOW on par with everyone else, the mere mortals of the sport.

In Steve Carlton’s case, there was nothing more difficult than watching the four-time Cy Young award winner with over 4,100 strikeouts play for five different teams in his final two seasons. Lefty’s great moments in baseball history will always stand out and will always be considered one of the best ever. But those seasons in 1986 and 1987, where he got beat down by everyone, until it finally sunk in his head early in 1988 that he can’t get people out, are a lasting memory.

Hopefully, John Smoltz can gain his confidence back, throw some strikes and help the Cardinals out.

The last image we have of him right now is getting thrashed in Yankee Stadium, while leading, in a high intensity rivalry game. Seeing him stand alone on that mound before the 5^th inning came to a close, waiting to hand the ball off to the manager as the Red Sox made the pitching change, we could almost read his mind as he had all his emotions come together at once.

So, evidently, he thinks he can pitch again.

We all would like to hope there is a happy ending to this story because of what a great competitor and class player he’s been throughout his career. A fairy tale end would be contributing in the Cardinals quest for another Championship, pitching six solid innings in spot starts, and helping get tough right-handers out in a critical bullpen moments.

Somehow, as history shows us with players like Smoltz in that category of injured and aged, the fairy tale ending never quite works out. He’s been given the opportunities because of his past, his name, and selling his desire to prospective teams. If it doesn’t work out in St. Louis, that may be it, even if he still wants to play.

Vickers and Martin Fastest In Final Michigan Practices

McCord Roberts — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 15:40:28 -0400

The final two practice sessions run Saturday as a prep for Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Michigan International Speedway gave somewhat of a preview of who will do well in the race. Most of the drivers who ran well in the first Michigan race in June had a good showing, with a couple shining much brighter than they did then.

One of the surprises from all the teams that ran well in June was that other than Carl Edwards and Greg Biffle, most have brought different chassis’ than they ran then. A portion of the teams have brought their Chicago chassis from the July race. Though the tracks are different in length, the banking in and out of the turns are similar. Others have either brought brand new rides and in a few cases, some have their Indy or Pocono cars.

The star of the day was Brian Vickers who has had some success on these type of horsepower tracks this year, but yet the team still opted to go with a brand new chassis in hopes of attacking the last four races in the race to the chase a bettering their current status of 14^th and 96 points behind.

The decision looks to have paid off because if just comparing the June practice times to this weekends. Vickers was fast throughout the June Michigan practices, netted the pole, but finished only ninth, which is the main statistic they look to improve upon this week.

This week, Vickers looks much faster and better suited to captured Red Bull Racing’s first win and more importantly, chop their deficit in the Chase.

In the first session Vickers ran the quickest lap early on and went on to have the second best average speeds among drivers running at least 15 laps. He ended up getting 27 laps in and showed that he should be really good in the critical Michigan long runs.

During Happy Hour, Vickers laid down his quickest lap early which was second fastest overall. Overall, Vickers ran the most laps combined between the two sessions and was consistently fast throughout.

Mark Martin was fastest at Michigan in June’s Happy Hour and won the race. This week, Martin is once again fastest in Happy Hour as he’ll be attempting to win the sixth Michigan race of his career. Martin, surprisingly, didn’t bring his winning chassis from June, but rather his Indy chassis that finished second. For whatever reason that caused the change, this team is dialed in once again and will contend for the win.

Jimmie Johnson had the best car in June’s race leading the most laps, but his team brought his eighth-place Chicagoland chassis. He was a faster in practice this time around, but equally good in average times. Michigan has seen Johnson have the best car on a few occasions, but can never seal the deal. It remains one of the few tracks Johnson has yet to win at.

While Johnson will be running hard for win to get bonus points in the Chase, Juan Pablo Montoya will be taking it easy and keeping his goals modest with gaining a high top-10 finish. However, his car looks good enough to contend for the win this week.

Montoya was third-fastest in the first session, but the most attractive stat of all in practice was his average times, and Montoya was faster than anyone in all combined average laps from both practices. He brought his second place finishing Pocono chassis and used notes from their sixth place Michigan finish in June to reset it. Should Montoya win, it would be his second career Michigan win, with the other coming in Champ Cars.

Carl Edwards has the best average finish at Michigan among all divers, but his speeds were less than what he did in June when he finished fourth. Happy Birthday Carl!

Greg Biffle looked to have one of the best cars in June when he battled Johnson for the win for the final 10 laps, but struggled in both sessions today despite bringing the exact same chassis. Chances are based on their past at Michigan, Biffle’s team will make the needed changes to be better as the race goes on.

Jeff Gordon had a strong final practice in average laps times between both sessions where he came close to Montoya’s times. The most consistent area of Gordon’s 2009 campaign has been on the 1.5-mile and two-mile tracks. At Michigan in June, Gordon didn’t lead a lap, but he did finish second. He’s in that comfortable mode right now where he could let it all hang out for bonus Chase points and go for the win.

Dale Earnhardt Jr brought the chassis he ran at Indy and Pocono this week to Michigan and had a great Happy Hour with the eighth quickest lap. He ran 36 laps and was very competitive with the leaders in average lap speeds.

Kyle Busch is starting 39^th and needs to have a good run to help erase his 56 point deficit in the Race to the Chase where he sits in 13^th. Busch brought himself a chassis for this race in hopes of breathing some fresh air into the garage, but unlike Vickers, Busch’s practice times Saturday didn’t show much improvement from their June Michigan practice.

This may be a race where Busch has to bite the bullet and shoot for a top-15 finish rather than push the car more than it can do. He still has Bristol and Richmond coming up where he should run well considering he won their in the spring, so the best thing to do right now is points race, stay out of trouble, and stay out on a caution to lead a lap gaining five points.

Saturday Happy Hour: Top 5 Speeds

1) Mark Martin 181.717 mph - AVG 37 laps @ 175.414

2) Brian Vickers 181.621 mph - AVG 46 laps @ 176.653

3) David Ragan 180.519 mph - AVG 39 laps @ 175.650

4) David Stremme 180.451 mph - AVG 30 laps @ 175.286

5) Jimmie Johnson 180.419 mph - AVG 38 laps @ 176.650

Saturday’s First Practice: Top 5 Speeds

1) Brian Vickers 184.909 mph - AVG 27 laps @ 178.063

2) Tony Stewart 184.838 mph - AVG 18 laps @ 177.364

3) Juan Pablo Montoya 184.696 mph - AVG 13 laps @ 179.395

4) Joey Logano 184.544 mph - AVG 22 laps @ 177.939

5) Mark Martin 184.488 mph - AVG 22 laps @ 175.202

Top 10 Driver Rating for this weeks Michigan race following all practice and qualifying sessions with a slight mix of June’s Michigan race, current team situation, and overall Michigan track history.

1) Jimmie Johnson

2) Mark Martin

3) Brian Vickers

4) Juan Pablo Montoya

5) Jeff Gordon

6) Carl Edwards

7) Kurt Busch

8) Tony Stewart

9) Clint Bowyer

10) Greg Biffle

Ryan Newman Finds No. 1 Spot at Michigan Practice, Kasey Kahne Loses an Engine

McCord Roberts — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 14:24:51 -0400

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series' first practice session Friday at Michigan International Speedway was primarily used for qualifying set-ups as the teams get prepared to qualify for Sunday’s CarFax 400.

Ryan Newman topped the first practice with a speed of 189.155 mph and he did so very early in practice. Newman ran only seven laps in practice, which suggests the No. 39 team is pretty happy about what they have set up for Friday’s qualifying.

The majority of the top speeds mirrored the June Michigan race’s first practice. Most of the drivers who were primed and set for that race found themselves in the top 10 as well this week. The overall speeds were slightly better this time around, but the names remain the same.

If things are similar and equal to June as the first practice may suggest, we could only be so lucky because the late race drama of Jimmie Johnson, Greg Biffle, and Mark Martin was a classic.

Johnson had the ninth fastest lap this time around after setting the top time in June‘s first practice. Martin, who eventually won the June race and had the fastest Happy Hour times before the race, reeled off the sixth fastest lap. Martin only qualified 32nd in that June race but ended up winning, making his starting position the furthest back to win at Michigan.

Brian Vickers, the pole-sitter in June, had the tenth fastest lap this time around after being second fastest in the first practice back in June. Despite a good finish in the first race and more at other horsepower tracks, Vickers and the Red Bull team opted to go with a brand new chassis this week hoping to be better in the their Chase run.

The only issue in practice came from Kasey Kahne who lost an engine early on that had to be replaced. This is definitely not the type of start Kahne was looking for considering his fall from the Chase last season in the same situation as he headed to Michigan with four races remaining. Kahne’s back-to-back 40th-place finishes last season, beginning with Michigan, sunk his chances of holding on to a top-12 spot and missed the Chase for the fourth time in his five year career.

Friday’s Top-Five Fastest Practice Speeds

1) Ryan Newman 189.155 mph - AVG 7 laps @ 186.703

2) Joey Logano 187.169 mph - AVG 9 laps @ 185.351

3) Juan Pablo Montoya 187.144 - AVG 8 laps @ 184.646

4) Martin Truex Jr 186.144 - AVG 10 laps @ 184.877

5) Carl Edwards 186.640 - AVG 11 laps @ 182.941\

Who's In and Who's Out: Odds To Make the Chase

McCord Roberts — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 16:19:11 -0400

With only four races remaining until the Chase for the Championship, there are only six drivers who are firmly entrenched at being one of the final 12 drivers eligible for NASCAR’s version of the playoffs.

Although no one has clinched, for the sake of making odds on who will make the Chase, let’s start with the drivers currently positioned seventh through 12th in the points because the driver in seventh, Juan Pablo Montoya, is only 154 points ahead of the 13th-place driver, who is outside looking in—Kyle Busch.

Montoya’s point position is very unsafe at this juncture and by no means does he have a guarantee that he'll get in. In a very unlikely but possible situation, if Montoya were to finish last this week at Michigan and Busch won the race, Busch would move past Montoya with more points.

Multiply those possible scenarios, extreme as they may be, with the reality of what may happen based on their current runs, how they ran on the next four races earlier in the year, a little bit of the past track history, and there should be plenty of data to make quality educated guesses for those 10 drivers vying for the final six positions in the Chase.

7. Juan Pablo Montoya (1/15), 2781 pts

He has steadily climbed up the charts on the basis of his nine straight top-12 finishes coming into Michigan and doesn‘t look to be see a drop in performance any time soon as he‘s made it clear his team is in a conservative mode in an attempt to make the chase.

Looking at his runs earlier this season on the four tracks remaining in the chase, Montoya should be in good shape. His worst run of the four was in Atlanta with a 27th, but settled nicely at Richmond with a 10th, a ninth at Bristol, and sixth at Michigan.

His past history while driving a Dodge in his first two years can be thrown out because they aren’t relative to his current situation. Even more unrelated are his second and first place wins at Michigan while driving Champ Cars.

You won’t make much money betting on Montoya to get in because he s the clear cut favorite to win among the ten.

8. Kasey Kahne (9/2), 2754 pts

Despite Kahne’s point position thus far, his past history down the stretch is what makes him a good candidate to NOT make the chase among the current top-12.

Who can forget Kahne’s melt down last season when he was in almost the identical situation sitting in eighth with four races to go and went Michigan and Bristol and finished 40th in each. He was all but doomed at that point despite running eighth at California and a lackluster 19th at Richmond.

What Kahne does have going for him right now is quality consistent runs of late finishing in the top-10 over five of his last seven races. Kahne also finished in the top-10 earlier this year in three of the four coming up with his worst run coming at Richmond with a 29th.

If it weren’t for his history of meltdowns, his current state of the team would merit lower odds, but making the Chase only once in his five years coupled with his massive lay-downs in 2004 and 2008 make that history more true than what he is currently doing now.

9. Ryan Newman (6/5), 2727 pts

It’s been over three years since Newman has made the chase and the way he‘s sliding, he may make it four. After a disastrous first four races of the 2009 campaign, Newman’s team put it all together over the next ten races compiling five top-fives and another three top-10s.

However, over the last seven races, Newman has struggled and has finished 14th or worse in seven of his last eight races—not the kind of streak a driver wants heading into their most pivotal stretch of the season. The silver lining through the streak is that Newman has been able to avoid the awful finishes and has taken what the car has given.

Newman ran very well at Richmond and Bristol with mediocre runs in Atlanta and Michigan. He should be in good enough shape to accumulate enough points and make the chase.

10. Greg Biffle (4/7), 2718 pts

He was in the exact same position last season and took the bull by the horns and sealed the deal with great runs at Michigan and Fontana. Biffle didn’t have any wins at this junction on 2008 either, but went charging into the Chase full of steam and won the first two Chase races and eventually finished third overall.

Michigan and Atlanta are traditionally good tracks for Biffle and the Roush-Fenway set-up. If he can avoid trouble like he had at Bristol this year and run just a little better at Richmond he should make it with no problem.

11. Mark Martin (1/5), 2716 pts

It’s an absolute mystery how Martin is even in this position to be fighting for a spot with four races to go. He leads the series with four wins, but his point position lies with his feast or famine finishes in the other 18 races where he’s had six finishes of 31st or worse.

Should he make the Chase, his four wins at this juncture would start the Chase with him in first place. NASCAR Nation, and the entire sports world for that matter, would be the sentimental choice to win his first Championship and do so as a 50-year-old. You just can’t make up fairy tales like that.

Martin runs well on all the tracks, and might even be one of the best cars this season at Michigan and Richmond. He ran well at Bristol this year as well, but struggled in Atlanta despite sitting on the pole there. Look for Martin to make it and grab another win either at Michigan or Richmond to increase his lead to start the Chase.

12. Matt Kenseth (8/1), 2685 pts

If there is one driver coming in the Race to the Chase that looks the ugliest, it’s Kenseth. Take away his first two wins to start the season and Kenseth has an awful record of two top-fives and another four top-10 finishes since.

He is limping down the stretch and looks like a wounded gazelle in the Serengeti, and we know what happens to them. His last few weeks have looked similar to Newman’s, nothing too bad, but nothing too good. Unlike Newman, Kenseth doesn’t have those great runs on the tracks coming up that will require him to perform well in order to get in.

He’s always been good on most of these tracks in the past, and has never missed a Chase, but something has definitely gone south with the team since week three. He is the longest shot of the current drivers in to make it.

13. Kye Busch (8/5), 2627 pts (-58 behind)

What a difference a year makes. In 2008, Busch led in points for the final 17 weeks just before the Chase started. This season, Busch has to make a run just to get in. Last week, Busch got his first top-5 finish since winning at Richmond the first week of May. It’s amazing that he’s not further back.

The positive note for Busch is that the few places he did run well at this year are coming up in the next four races which includes wins at Bristol and Richmond. If Busch can swallow his pride a little and points race at Michigan and Atlanta with the goal of finishing well and not running all out, which has gotten him in trouble all season, he should make the Chase.

The likeliest driver that Busch could prey on would be Kenseth. He needs to take it one race at a time, but that is easier said than done for Busch who does things his way once the helmet goes on.

14. Brian Vickers (25/1), 2589 pts (-96 behind)

Considered a long shot, but an outside chance based on his team’s ability to run like one of the best at Michigan and the 1.5-mile track of Atlanta where his horsepower is matched with anyone.

Vickers' biggest issue will be Bristol and Richmond where collective over the last two seasons he has had some rough times. The one positive from those two tracks for Vickers may be how well they ran in May at Richmond where Vickers 15th place finish was his best there since his rookie season.

He has to run well, maybe a top-five, at Michigan this week to have a legitimate shot at making it. He has a lot of ground to make up and has to be better than most of the drivers ahead of him. Tall task, improbable, yes, but not impossible.

15. Clint Bowyer (8/1), 2586 pts (-99 behind)

He’s played this game before and knows how to win. Last season he was 20 points behind at the same juncture and calmly raced himself into the Chase by points racing. Bowyer wasn’t spectacular anywhere, but averaged a finish of 12th over those final four races and made it.

Over his last four races this season, Bowyer has been playing the same game and has averaged a ninth place finish. In the four races remaining that he needs to get in, Bowyer has an average finish of 11th. To make it, Bowyer may have to step it up a little and can do so at the tracks he has traditionally done well at like Richmond and Bristol.

If someone like Kahne falters down the stretch, just like he did last year, Bowyer will be there to scoop up the position, just like he did last year.

16. David Reutimann (500/1), 2530 pts (-155 behind)

There isn’t much confidence in him getting in, but he does have a chance on paper. His chances are severely diminished because of his past performances on the tracks coming up. He would have to have a succession of top-fives, lead some laps, and get help from the other current contenders. Based on what he’s done this season, it’s not likely to happen.

The way the odds are stacked with all expected scenarios and probabilities, It looks like Kyle Busch is in and Kenseth is out. A longer shot, but highly possible, would have Bowyer making it with Kahne out.

Ambrose Sweeps Fastest Times in Final Practices at the Glen

McCord Roberts — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 15:22:10 -0400

After Saturday’s final practice sessions for Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup series race at the road course of Watkins Glen, a few drivers have stood out over the rest with consistent spectacular times during both sessions.

The top road course practice times don’t necessarily produce the winner two times a year, but they do give a great indication of who should be running in the top-10 and at least compete for the win.

The star of the day was Australian Marcos Ambrose who was fastest in both of Saturday’s practices. After running 12 laps with the third best average speed in the first session, Ambrose came out in Happy Hour, ran the fastest laps, and then parked his car after only eight laps signaling that they were good to go for Sunday’s race.

Ambrose has run close to the same practice times In his last two Cup road course races, including this seasons Sonoma race, but this race will be the first time that he won’t have to start from the rear. Because of a great qualifying session, Ambrose will start fourth which surely help his cause to gaining his first career Cup win.

Despite his poor start position in the last two road races, Ambrose still managed to finish third in both. Considering that 16 of the 26 Watkins Glen winners have started within the top four, Ambrose practice times look all the more attractive in making him a top candidate to win this week.

Sunday’s pole sitter, Jimmie Johnson, was third fastest in the early session and second during happy hour. Johnson has never won a road course event among his 43 career victories, but looks to have his best opportunity ever.

In all 15 of Johnson’s career road starts, he has never been so crisp and clean, while being so fast, during practice while maneuvering both right and left turns.

Kurt Busch impressed a lot of the teams in the garage with his practices on Friday and Saturday. Busch was fastest in the first session Friday and sixth in Saturday’s happy hour. In the first session Saturday,

Busch had the 12th fastest lap but ran the most laps with the second fastest average times. Between both sessions, no one ran more laps than Busch for the day which means the team should be dialed in for long runs, something road courses present more than most.

Busch has never won a road course race, but his start position at second coupled with his great two days of practice, and stellar long run times make him a great candidate to get that first road win.

Juan Pablo Montoya had a great day of practices coming in fourth quickest early and tenth during happy hour running 19 laps. His one and only career Cup win came on the road course of Sonoma, not to mention he is one of the hottest drivers on the tour.

The guy won Monte Carlo, come on, who can say that?

That accomplishment alone should separate status levels altogether. However, Montoya is playing the NASCAR points race at the moment and is very focused on the making the chase with only five races remaining.

If it came push to shove late in the race, it’s likely Montoya makes that move to get the win, but the way the team has been talking, they just want a top five and the points that come with it.

Tony Stewart has the best seven year resume at Watkins Glen of anyone in track history. He had sluggish times on Friday, but came out solid with a 14th best early and then seventh fastest in happy hour.

His four wins and two second-place finishes over that seven year span give him more clout for this race as a candidate to win than any of the top drivers in practice.

The key to race is likely to be who becomes the luckiest during their green flag pit stops. There should only be two stops required which means that someone who comes in early just before an ill-timed caution, which always seems to happen, will have position over those who haven’t pitted.

It’s such a long haul around the track that no one up front wants to be that guy stuck out late. Look for early pit stops before their 30 to 35 lap possibility, and then trying to stretch out that final fuel stop to the maximum possibility to avoid being caught in a pickle. Easier said than done, but that looks to be the common strategy.

Based on the practices with the amount of laps run, drivers like Johnson and Busch stand out as ones who will be really good on that final stretch if in position.

Watkins Glen Top Happy Hour Speeds:

1) Marcos Ambrose 123.021 mph - AVG: 8 laps @ 122.556

2) Jimmie Johnson 122.483 mph - AVG 23 laps @ 121.614

3) Denny Hamlin 122.189 mph - AVG 20 laps @ 121.346

4) Carl Edwards 122.149 mph - AVG 19 laps @ 121.221

5) Boris Said 122.096 mph - AVG 26 laps @ 120.849

6) Kurt Busch 121.963 mph - AVG 26 laps @ 121.370

7) Tony Stewart 121.961 mph - AVG 22 laps @ 121.273

Saturday’s First Practice Speeds:

1) Marcos Ambrose 122.643 mph - AVG 12 laps @ 121.213

2) Sam Hornish Jr 122.379 mph - AVG 15 laps @ 120.890

3) Jimmie Johnson 122.335 mph - AVG 16 laps @ 121.614

4) Juan Pablo Montoya 122.317 mph - AVG 17 laps @ 121.169

5) Max Papis 122.267 mph - AVG 11 laps @ 121.130

Top Rated drivers far as candidates to win Sunday’s Watkins Glen race based on this weekend’s practice, past performances at the Glen, a mix of Sonoma, and current state of their team.

1) Kurt Busch

2) Tony Stewart

3) Jimmie Johnson

4) Marcos Ambrose

5) Juan Pablo Montoya

6) Kyle Busch

7) Jeff Gordon

8) Denny Hamlin

9) Kevin Harvick

10) Carl Edwards

Penske Trio Tops First Practice at The Glen

McCord Roberts — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 14:05:33 -0400

The first practice session for Sunday’s Helluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at The Glen was used for several purposes by 46 drivers entered to make the 43 car field. For the top teams, they used the majority of the practice session to get a good feel for a race day set-up, while most of the hired guns and the go-or-go home entries used the session to get the best possible set-up in qualifying trim with hopes of making the field.

The top story of practice was how fast the trio of Penske Racing drivers were, not only in race trim, but later in qualifying trim as well. Kurt Busch topped the charts with a fast lap of 124.362 mph. Prior to the changeover, Busch was running with top-five times and then captured the top time overall in qualifying trim.

Sam Hornish Jr., not known for his road prowess despite coming from IndyCars, was extremely fast in the early part of the session while in race trim and settled in with the eighth quickest lap of practice. Last season was Hornish Jr.’s one and only Cup run at The Glen, where he finished 32nd. In this season’s Sonoma race, he finished 38th, so the No. 77 team should be very happy about their run.

David Stremme wasn’t as good as Hornish Jr. early on in practice, but did come out with a strong run late with the sixth fastest lap.

Richard Childress Racing came out strong in qualifying trim late and got the third fastest lap with Kevin Harvick and the fifth fastest with Casey Mears. For Harvick, the 2006 Watkins Glen winner, things have been looking much better. After not cracking the top 15 since Darlington in May, Harvick has had finishes of sixth and twelfth in his last two starts.

Coming in with the second-fastest lap of the day was Denny Hamlin, who grabbed the that time with only a few minutes remaining in practice. Hamlin has never finished outside of the top 10 at The Glen in his three career starts and has a Mexico City Nationwide series road course win under his belt to boot.

The fastest of the majority of the first session was Jimmie Johnson. Johnson settled in with the seventh fastest lap while most of the top cars were running in race trim. Though Johnson has never won on either of the NASCAR Sprint Cup series road courses, he has become progressively better each and every time out.

At Sonoma in June, the more technical of the two road courses, Johnson finished a very impressive fourth. At Watkins Glen, Johnson has three top fives in his last six races run there with a best of third in 2007.

Last year's winner, Kyle Busch, ran the fourth fastest lap late in practice while hanging around in the top-15 for much of the session in race trim. With only five races to go in the Race to the Chase with Busch outside looking in at the moment, there’s no need to express how important this race is for him.

What will be interesting to see is if he actually changes some of his aggressive tendencies for the sake of accumulating critical points. Not quite sure he has the makeup to pints race yet, but he’d be taking an awful big gamble if he didn’t alter something pretty quick.

Three of the favorites to win this week are Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon, and Juan Pablo Montoya. Montoya had the 11th fastest lap while running only seven laps total. Gordon was 14th fastest, recording 12 laps.

Stewart turned 15 laps, but could only muster the 34th fastest lap overall. Despite the times, it’s safe to say by race time Stewart will be just fine. At Sonoma this year with his new team, Stewart finished second. At The Glen, he has dominated in the last seven years there like no one else ever capturing four wins and two second place runs over that span.

Of the top hired guns during practice, Max Papis was quickest with the 18th best lap while Boris Said was 23rd. Ron Fellows, who likely has more laps on the track than anyone, settled in a disappointing 33rd driving James Finch’s No. 09 Chevy.

Qualifying is set for Friday at 3:10 p.m. ET with the two final practice sessions scheduled for Saturday beginning at 12:00 p.m. ET.

Johnson Fastest in Final Pocono Practice Sessions

McCord Roberts — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 15:09:03 -0400

Hendrick Motorsports continued their strong runs in Saturday’s practice sessions for Sunday’s Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500.

In Friday’s session while in qualifying trim, all four Hendrick drivers topped the charts in consecutive fashion and carried that momentum into in Saturday with hopes of a great run on Sunday.

Jimmie Johnson brought the same chassis he finished seventh with at Pocono in June, and was better in practice this time around. Johnson led both practice sessions Saturday with not only the fastest lap in each session, but also the best average times of anyone that ran twenty laps.

Johnson is looking like he has his best chance of winning at Pocono since sweeping the season in 2004.

Johnson’s teammates, Mark Martin, Dale Earnhardt Jr, and Jeff Gordon, all had great sessions on Saturday as well. Of the three, Martin was the closest to Johnson in speeds. He had a great average speed in happy hour along with the third fastest single lap.

After a great run last week on the similar track of Indianapolis, Martin could be dialed in for his first ever Pocono win. In 45 Pocono starts over his career, Martin has six second place finishes—the most any driver has at one track without winning.

Dale Earnhardt Jr ran the fifth fastest lap in happy hour as his team continues their uphill battle. New crew chief Lance McGrew brought the same chassis they ran last week at Indy, which was the first car built from scratch since he took he over.

The changes are obvious in his speeds and Junior may finally have a real Hendrick car to contend with this week.

Last week's heart break story, Juan Pablo Montoya, had the sixth quickest lap in happy hour along with stellar average lap times, continuing the pace he set last week. With the tracks of Pocono and Indy being so similar, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Montoya run equally as well as last week.

The biggest improvement from the last time NASCAR visited Pocono was the performance of the Childress cars.

Kevin Harvick was second fastest in happy hour while Clint Bowyer was second quickest in the early practice session. None of the Childress drivers are close to making the chase with six races to go, but a good run this week could make things interesting down the stretch.

This is the first sign all season that Harvick, who is looking to change teams after the season, has looked like a legitimate candidate to win based on practice.

The strongest Ford of the day belonged to Carl Edwards, who won this race last season and finished second in the June Pocono race. Edwards was third quickest in the early session and hopes to continue his steady performance en route to the chase, where he is still looking for his first win of the season.

June’s Pocono winner, Tony Stewart, is looking to duplicate his accomplishment in all facets Sunday. In the June race, Stewart was on the pole but relegated to the rear due to wrecking his car in the first practice.

This week, Stewart sits on the pole due to points because of qualifying being rained out, and was affected by a case of déjà vu—he wrecked his primary car early in the first practice session and will again be racing with a back-up, starting in the rear for Sunday’s race.

However, in June’s race, Stewart was quite strong in the back-up during practice. In Saturday’s happy hour, Stewart had just the twenty-sixth fastest lap.

Saturday’s Early Practice Session - Top Speeds

1) No. 48 Jimmie Johnson 167.292 mph - AVG 20 laps @ 159.314

2) No. 33 Clint Bowyer 166.334 - AVG 20 laps @ 160.829

3) No. 99 Carl Edwards 165.911 - AVG 16 laps @ 162.230

4) No. 24 Jeff Gordon 165.908 - AVG 16 laps @ 161.886

5) No. 29 Kevin Harvick 165.810 - AVG 20 laps @ 158.487

Happy Hour: Final Practice Session - Top Speeds

1) No. 48 Jimmie Johnson 165.795 - AVG 24 laps @ 162.896

2) No. 29 Kevin Harvick 165.417 - AVG 21 laps @ 161.998

3) No. 5 Mark Martin 165.189 - AVG 28 laps @ 162.385

4) No. 44 A.J. Allmendinger 164.932 - AVG 31 laps @ 161.808

5) No. 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr 164.893 - AVG 24 laps @ 161.470

Top 10 rated drivers for Pocono based on Practice with a mix of Indy and past Pocono practice and results.

1) Jimmie Johnson

2) Mark Martin

3) Jeff Gordon

4) Juan Pablo Montoya

5) Kasey Kahne

6) Clint Bowyer

7) Ryan Newman

8) Tony Stewart

9) Kevin Harvick

10) Carl Edwards

Hendrick Tops The Charts In First Pocono Practice While Qualifying Rains

McCord Roberts — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 21:37:41 -0400

As the clouds were forming, it quickly became apparent that the first practice session would be all that happened on Friday for this weeks Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500 race weekend at Pocono. After the first session, rain came abound and the lineup was set by points giving Tony Stewart his second start upfront of the season at Pocono.

In June Stewart won the first Pocono race of the season off the pole, but it wasn’t all that simple for Stewart because he wrecked his primary car and was relegated to the back of the pack with his back up car. Despite the major inconvenience, Stewart went on to win a fuel mileage race with the back up car and became unofficially the furthest back starter to win the win the race.

The official worst starting position to win a race was in June of 2005 where Carl Edwards won the first of his two career Pocono wins with a 29th starting spot.

The first practice session was used primarily as a practice for qualifying with most teams using their qualifying set-up. The top times of the day were from the stables of Hendrick Motorsports, not just one or two drivers, but all four.

Mark Martin was again fastest in practice just as he was last week at Indianapolis and was likely on pace to win his fifth pole of the season. After running only four laps, Martin reeled off his fastest speed of 169,354 mph on his final lap run which was over a whole mph faster than his teammate Jimmie Jonson.

Following Johnson was Dale Earnhardt Jr and Jeff Gordon with former Hendrick driver Kyle Busch just behind in fifth. Stewart-Haas teammates Tony Stewart and Ryan Newman were sixth and seventh fastest in the session continuing their stellar run from last month.

Ryan Newman had arguably the best combined practice sessions last June prior to the first Pocono race. Stewart was strong also in both his primary and backup cars during the session.

The only Ford to crack the top 11 was Greg Biffle who has been the top performer at the combined like-tracks of Indy and Pocono. Biffle has a strong practice at Pocono that turned into an eleventh there and than finished fourth last week at Indy.

Biffle’s teammate, Edwards, was 24th fastest in practice, but looks to get his first win of the season in the same chassis that he finished second with at Pocono last June. Edwards is a two-time Pocono winner and right there for the ripe plucking of a win should Stewart have ran out of fuel in the final laps of that June race.

The Hendrick four atop the charts should come as little surprise considering how strong they all were at both Pocono and last week at Indy. Last week at Indy, Johnson and Martin finished one-two with Gordon in ninth.

Johnson will bringing his Pocono chassis that he finished seventh in while Earnhardt Jr will be bringing the same chassis he ran with last week at Indy. Junior was highly competitive for the better part of that race in the first chassis built entirely by new crew chief Larry McGrew,

Saturday’s practice sessions will give a better glimpse as to who will be good for Sunday’s race. The first session begins at 10:00 am with happy hour immediately following at 11:20 am (EST).

Practice No. 1 Top Five Speeds

1) No.5 Mark Martin 169.354 (four laps)

2) No.48 Jimmie Johnson 167.604 (three laps)

3) No.88 Dale Eranhadt Jr 167.470 (three laps)

4) No.24 Jeff Gordon 166.799 (three laps)

5) No.18 Kyle Busch 166.257 (16 laps)

Jimmie Johnson Captures Third Brickyard 400 Win: First Ever Back-to-Back

McCord Roberts — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 17:33:30 -0400

Jimmie Johnson won his third Brickyard 400 Sunday and became the only driver ever to win back to back NASCAR races on the famed track of Indianapolis Motor Speedway celebrating it’s centennial anniversary.

Johnson parlayed a great week of practice along with some luck, and misfortune by Juan Pablo Montoya, to gain his third win of the 2009 season.

Juan Pablo Montoya had led three separate times for116 laps of the 160 but was caught for speeding late in the race on pit road making him lose position and come into pit road for a mandatory stop. Johnson, who had been within the top five for much of the day was the beneficiary of Montoya’s speeding.

A caution had come out just after the final scheduled pits stops and when they restarted, Johnson dragged raced leader Mark Martin down the front-stretch to get first position and with fresh air in front of him, Johnson sealed the deal for the final 25 laps.

Montoya, the 2000 Indy 500 winner, led the most laps but wasn’t very happy about the penalty for speeding. He told his crew that he “swore on his kids life” that he wasn’t speeding and called out NASCAR President Mike Helton to review the pit road speeds.

Pole sitter Mark Martin gave a valiant effort in the late stages, but Johnson was too good off of turn four to make up for Martin’s advantage on turn two.

Following Johnson and Martin's one-two Hendrick finish was two-time Brickyard 400 winner and current points leader Tony Stewart, Greg Biffle, and Brian Vickers.

Montoya eventually finished eleventh and continued his consistent run during the race for the chase, but he wasn’t happy by any means.

The race is in the books and if there is any silver lining in anything, Montoya gets a chance to prove himself once again at the similar layout of Pocono next week with what was a stout car for Indy.

Newman Fastest In Happy Hour; Johnson and Edwards Look Better

McCord Roberts — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 19:28:32 -0400

There were originally two practice sessions scheduled Saturday for Sunday’s All-State 400 at the Brickyard, but due to a lengthy rain delay prior to qualifying, one session was cut short leaving only happy hour as a means for the drivers and teams to get their final race trims straight.

Many of the teams in Friday’s practice session utilized those two sessions keying primarily on their qualifying trim knowing they still had two sessions on Saturday to get their race set-up. Needless to say there was a mad scramble for many of the teams to get prepared and tinker for the final time until race day, in particular to do so early on in the session because the track temperature at that time was closest to race day conditions.

Right out of the gate, Jimmie Johnson and Carl Edwards laid down the two fastest laps early in happy hour. They were the only two drivers to crack speeds of 176 until a few more much later in practice when the track was cooler and faster.

Before Saturday’s qualifying not many would have been surprised by either running so fast, but after Edwards came in with a qualifying lap time that only five others drivers were worse than, things weren’t so upbeat in the Edwards camp.

The two drivers are also linked as being the only drivers that have finished in the top-10 during the last four combined consecutive races of Pocono and Indianapolis. Because of the similarities in banking, turns, and long straight-aways, the teams that are dialed for one track are generally good on the other.

Tony Stewart falls into the Pocono-Indy category as well, however it isn’t for excellence in four straight races, it’s simply for winning the last one.

Stewart’s Pocono coupled with his great qualifying session, and 11th fastest lap in happy hour times make him one of the favorites to win Sunday. Being from Indiana and a two-time winner on the track is a small bonus as well. The last driver to win at Pocono and Indy back to back was Bill Elliott in 2002.

Pole sitter Mark Martin ran the fifth quickest lap late in the session, but more importantly had great average lap times early and throughout. Martin will be looking for his first Indy win ever in 15 career starts. His best finish has been second place.

Ryan Newman is an Indiana native just like his boss, Tony Stewart, had the fastest lap overall in happy hour.

Prior to gaining the top speed, Newman still was sitting fourth for most of practice in conditions closer to race time. Newman also fit’s the profile of having a great all around Pocono race last month in both practice and the race itself with a fifth.

Jeff Gordon is another Indiana native, depending on what race he’s running, who had a good final practice with the twelfth fastest lap and fast average lap times. The four-time Brickyard 400 winner has the look of a winner this week just like he did prior to his Brickyard wins in 2001 and 2004 when he didn’t dazzle anyone then after practices.

Kasey Kahne finished ninth fastest in practice and continued his momentum from Friday’s late practice where he was third fastest.

Kahne finished 15th at Pocono in June, but didn’t have the practice times like he has this week. If we go back to last season, Kahne joined Edwards and Johnson as the only drivers to finish in the top-10 in all three races of Indy-Pocono. In each one of those races, each one of the three drivers captured a win. Kahne looks like he should be in that top tier category this week.

Denny Hamlin started his career out by sweeping Pocono in 2006, but hasn’t captured anymore there since despite having cars capable. This week at Indy, Hamlin had the best overall average lap times in happy hour, a huge stat for showing who will be the best equipped on long runs. He ran the second quickest lap in the final minutes of practice.

He was equally spectacular, if not better, in Pocono’s practice sessions but failed to capitalize as he fell out early.

Top 10 Happy Hour Times:

1) #39 Ryan Newman 176.706 mph—AVG 37 laps @ 172.875

2) #11 Denny Hamlin 176.678 mph—AVG 38 laps @ 173.719

3) #48 Jimmie Johnson 176.571 mph—AVG 39 laps @ 172.668

4) #99 Carl Edwards 176.571 mph—AVG 35 laps @ 172.585

5) #5 Mark Martin 176.049 mph—AVG 39 laps @ 173.056

6) #83 Brian Vickers 176.012 mph—AVG 37 laps @ 172.776

7) #20 Joey Logano 175.871 mph—AVG 43 laps @ 172.777

8) #18 Kyle Busch 175.829 mph—AVG 22 laps @ 173.467

9) #9 Kasey Kahne 175.757 mph—AVG 43 laps @ 172.829

10) #16 Greg Biffle 175.517 mph—AVG 38 laps @ 172.725

Top Rated Drivers for All-State 400 at The Brickyard following all Indy practice and qualifying sessions using a slight mix of recent history at Pocono and Indy:

1) #48 Jimmie Johnson

2) #99 Carl Edwards

3) #14 Tony Stewart

4) #11 Denny Hamlin

5) #39 Ryan Newman

6) #5 Mark Martin

7) #9 Kasey Kahne

8) #24 Jeff Gordon

9) #42 Juan Pablo Montoya

10) #18 Kyle Busch

Mark Martin Wins Brickyard Pole; Fourth Of 2009

McCord Roberts — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 16:00:49 -0400

After being nearly four hours delayed, qualifying for Sunday’s All-State 400 at the Brickyard was a case of all the youngsters not being able to catch the old man.

Mark Martin set the pace early in qualifying with a blistering lap of 49.44 seconds and joked on his headset to his team that he might have hit 49.00 flat if he weren’t so old. Martin won his fourth pole of the season and first ever at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Martin is one of only four drivers to race in all previous 15 NASCAR races run at the Brickyard. His best career finish was second in 1998 and has a total of nine top-10 finishes in the 15 races. His best start position previously was second which he did twice, once last season and the other back in 1996.

Starting on the front row outside of Martin will be Juan Pablo Montoya who came in with the second fastest lap of 49.78 seconds. The 2000 Indy 500 Champion had a spectacular first day of practice on Friday in both qualifying and race trim set-ups and was able to keep the momentum going in qualifying.

The most pleasant surprise of the day for many was finally seeing Dale Earnhardt Jr qualify well with the third best time of 49.84. Earnhardt Jr ran the fast lap in a brand new car, the first completely re-hauled chassis by his new crew chief Lance McGrew. Junior has been fighting stomach sickness for the last two days and there is a possibility that Brad Keselowski may have practice the car if he’s not feeling better, and possibly be ready for Sunday as a fill in driver.

Former Brickyard 400 winner, Bill Elliott qualified fourth and David Reutimann rounded out the top-5 with a strong lap to start fifth.

This seasons top pole winner, Brian Vickers will start sixth and he’ll be followed by two-time Brickyard 400 winner and current points leader, Tony Stewart. Kasey Kahne, Reed Sorenson, and Clint Bowyer finish out the top-10 start positions.

Last seasons winner, and two-time Brickyard 400 winner Jimmie Johnson will start 16^th, while his teammate and four time Brickyard winner Jeff Gordon starts 22^nd.

The two surprisingly poor qualifiers of the day were Kurt Busch and Carl Edwards who came in a with disappointing 40^th and 41^st best time. Edwards plainly said, “It’s bad, but optimistically added, “ luckily, we were faster than that in race trim yesterday“.

Final practice sessions are scheduled to begin shortly after qualifying which should be further telling in who will be the top contender to win on Sunday.