NASCAR Sprint Cup: 10 Drivers Who Will Be the Most Disappointed in 2012

NASCAR is on the brink of beginning what I think will be its best season. Coming off of the best battle for a championship in motorsports history, NASCAR has plenty of momentum.

If that isn’t enough to help NASCAR’s ratings in 2012, the addition of the most popular driver in racing will be. Danica Patrick signed with Stewart Haas Racing and will race the No. 10 GoDaddy.com Chevy in the Great American Race.

With NASCAR entering what could be its best season yet, the question is: Who will be the drivers competing for the championship in 2012?

There are numerous magazines and websites predicting who will be the winners this season. I am writing to predict who will be the losers in 2012.

When I use the word “losers” I do not mean the driver and the team will finish No. 40 or worse every week. I am referring to the drivers and teams who are expecting to compete for a spot in the Chase, but will come up short.

This list is based upon changes to a driver’s situation from the 2011 season, changes in the team personal, and most of all, my own opinion.

I did not use any scientific study to come up with this list. But each season often begins with high expectations for a driver and ends with dissatisfaction from his team.

Denny Hamlin and the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing team is a good example from last season. I am using what I have seen in the past to help predict the future.

Here is a list of 10 drivers I think will have the most disappointing season in 2012.

Kurt Busch

Kurt Busch finds himself in a much different position than he was in last year.

In 2011, Busch raced for one of the most powerful teams in NASCAR, Penske Racing. But Busch and Penske Racing decided to go their separate ways at the end of last season.

Now Busch finds himself in the No. 51 Phoenix Racing Chevy. Racing for Penske Racing and Phoenix Racing are as different as black and white. Busch will have his engines supplied by Hendricks Motorsports, but that will not be enough to keep him competitive in 2012.

Busch won two races in 2011, but I do not see him repeating as a race winner in 2012. Busch will miss out on the Chase and finish near the No. 20 position in the final points standings.

Brad Keselowski

Brad Keselowski is a terrific driver. He proved that in 2011 when he won three races.

The reason Keselowski is on this list is because of the success he had last season. Keselowski finished fifth in the 2011 points standings, and many fans believe he will climb higher in 2012. I do not see that happening.

Keselowski will have a good season in 2012 and will win a race, but he will not meet or exceed his expectations, causing the 2012 season to be a disappointment.

I think Keselowski benefited from having Kurt Busch as a teammate. The two shared information and Keselowski was the one that benefited the most.

This season Keselowski will be the lead driver for Penske Racing. I think it will take Keselowski a year to figure out his new role and he will fight for one of the last positions in the Chase.

Clint Bowyer

Clint Bowyer left Richard Childress Racing to be a member of Michael Waltrip Racing in 2012. Bowyer’s new team is up-and-coming, but they lack the resources and the power that Richard Childress Racing has.

Bowyer will have two good teammates to work with in Martin Truex Jr. and Mark Martin, but I think equipment will be his major downfall.

Bowyer will compete at the tracks where he has had success in the past, and he might even win a race, but he will come up short in his efforts to make the Chase in 2012.

Greg Biffle

Greg Biffle has to be one of the most unlucky drivers I have seen in NASCAR. I cannot count how many times I watched Biffle drive the best car in the field, lead the most laps, and finish in the garage with a blown engine.

I am starting to wonder if it is bad luck or if Biffle has something to do with the engines blowing up.

At one time fans could argue that Biffle was the leader of the Roush Fenway Racing team. That is not the case anymore.

Carl Edwards is no doubt the leader of the Roush Fenway Racing team. Matt Kenseth is a close second. Biffle is an important part of Roush Fenway Racing ,but I think the best equipment will go to Edwards and Kenseth.

Biffle will have his moments of success in 2012, but he will not be consistent enough to make the Chase. I think Biffle will finish the season No. 15 in the points.

Jeff Gordon

When a writer includes the name Jeff Gordon on any list associated with failure, there is sure to be backlash from the fans. Before you start bashing me, hear me out.

Gordon will be one of the best drivers in 2012. The reason he is on this list is because of where the No. 24 team expects to finish in the point standings in 2012 and where I think they will finish.

Gordon will win races in 2012 and improve on his record as the driver with the third-most wins in NASCAR history.

Gordon comes into the season expecting to compete for the championship. Whenever Gordon is the driver of your car, that is what you expect. I do not think Gordon will come close to the championship in 2012.

For the longest time, Jimmie Johnson and Gordon have been the leaders of the Hendricks Motorsports teams. I think this year Johnson and his new teammate Kasey Kahne will be the cars in the Hendricks’ garage competing for the championship.

Gordon will finish the season 10th in points and be very disappointed.

Jeff Burton

Jeff Burton has been slowly declining in the NASCAR Sprint Cup division for the past few years. He is 44 years old and some have to wonder how much longer he will continue to race.

Burton will be competitive at tracks like Richmond, because he always seems to fair well there. But he will not have any consistent success in 2012, which will leave him on the outside of the Chase.

I think Burton will finish in the No. 18 position in the points in 2012. There is just too much competition and Burton is not the driver he used to be.

Ryan Newman

Ryan Newman has made the Chase in two of his three seasons at Stewart Haas Racing. That in itself is quite an accomplishment for a driver on a brand new team.

I do not think Newman will make it 3-out-of-4.

Newman is one of the streakiest drivers in NASCAR. When he gets on a roll, he can be very competitive. But  when he slumps, he can be a disappointment. I think Newman will be disappointed in 2012.

He finished No. 10 in the point standings last season, and with NASCAR champion Tony Stewart as a boss/teammate, Newman must be thinking of competing for the championship in 2012.

I don’t think it will happen because of the competition. Drivers who had disappointing seasons in 2011 will be hungry to take away some of the spots in the Chase.

I think Newman will be one of the drivers who made the Chase in 2011, but will not return in 2012.

Juan Pablo Montoya

Juan Pablo Montoya is one of the best drivers in the world. The problem is he lets his emotions get the best of him too many times out on the track.

I think many of the drivers are tired of having Montoya wreck their cars. I know I am tired of seeing it.

Montoya will not receive much room on the track like other drivers do. If he tries to cut off other drivers, I think he will end up in the wall.

For that reason, Montoya will have a disappointing season in 2012. He will spend more time in the garage explaining how the wreck was not his fault than he will in the top 12 of the point standings.

David Reutimann

When Clint Bowyer and Mark Martin came to Michael Waltrip Racing, David Reutimann was left without a car to drive in 2012. Reutimann signed to drive the No. 36 car for Tommy Baldwin Racing.

Reutimann will find it hard to compete in inferior equipment. Reutimann used to be one of the better drivers on the mile-and-a-half tracks.

I think he will drop off significantly in 2012. Reutimann will finish in the No. 28 spot in the points and wishing he was still at Michael Waltrip Racing.

David Ragan

David Ragan is another driver who went from one of NASCAR’s elite teams to one of the teams just trying to compete each week.

Ragan was released by Roush Fenway Racing and signed with Front Row Motorsports. Regan Smith has had some success at Front Row, but not nearly enough to make the Chase.

I do not think Ragan will have success at Front Row Motorsports like he did at Roush Fenway Racing. He will be lucky to win a race in 2012, and I think he will finish No. 26 in the points.

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