pandr
07-18-2012, 04:40 PM
Rewind: Hendrick vs. Gibbs?
By Jim Utter - charlotteobserver
Sunday, Jul. 15, 2012
Looking back at the Lenox Industrial Tools 301:
Observations
This season's Sprint Cup Series championship battle sure seems to be shaping up as another Hendrick Motorsports vs. Joe Gibbs Racing battle, much like 2010. Tony Stewart certainly will be in the mix he's already won three times but as far as consistency goes, JGR's Denny Hamlin is looking very stout as is Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. at HMS. And regardless of the format, consistency still wins championships.
If the black cloud ever lifted over Kyle Busch and his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing team this season, that group would also be a strong contender. Busch was again fast on Sunday, leading the first 66 laps of the race. But a pit road speeding penalty and slow stop knocked him out of contention. Busch has the speed to win, he just can't seem to get to the finish of races lately and in position to use it.
It's only mid-July and drivers are already experiencing problems dealing with the excessive heat in races. Granted it was unusually hot for the New England area but this doesn't bode well for the rest of the summer.
Notes
Gordon didn't like finish or tire
Jeff Gordon wasn't pleased with his finish or with the Goodyear's tire selection this weekend at New Hampshire.
Gordon finished sixth not a bad finish, but for a driver who desperately needs wins to make the Chase, it's not going to help. Gordon remains 17th in the series standings.
We've got to be up there battling for wins if we are going to make this Chase, he said. At the beginning I thought we were equally as good as anybody. From that second run on, it just went downhill.
Gordon also hopes Goodyear makes a tire change before the fall race. Goodyear has got to go back to the drawing board, he said. I'm hoping they can come up with something a little bit better than this.
Not a great day for Ford
Sunday's race wasn't very good for the Ford camp and series points leader Matt Kenseth.
Kenseth finished 13th and still leads the standings with a 16-point advantage over Dale Earnhardt Jr. Greg Biffle was the only Ford driver to finish in the top 10, finishing ninth. Carl Edwards, who finished runner-up in the title race last season, was 18th.
It seems we struggle here as a company a little, but we were pretty good in the beginning, Kenseth said. We could never get it good enough to run with the real good guys, so then its really about pit stop strategy and restarts.
Penske stands with driver for now
Team owner Roger Penske said Sunday he will wait until A.J. Allemendinger receives the results of his 'B' test before making any decisions on the driver's future.
You know, I've said it before, I'm more concerned about him as an individual than the situation, Penske said. The situation will take care of itself.
Allmendinger was temporarily suspended last weekend after failing a random drug test. If his 'B' sample is also positive, he will be indefinitely suspended from NASCAR.
Penske said if Allmendinger's 'B' sample is clean, he will return to the No. 22 Dodge immediately.
3 keys to victory
1. Kasey Kahne was fast all weekend, getting off to a good start by qualifying second for the race.
2. Kahne stayed with Hamlin all day. He was right behind Hamlin after the first round of green-flag stops, behind Hamlin following pit stops on Lap 90, behind Hamlin after the second round of green-flag stops and right behind Hamlin again after pit stops on Lap 191.
3. When Hamlin took four tires on the final stop, Kahne's team got him out ahead of everyone who took two, and he grabbed the lead for the first and only time on Lap 236.
Turning point
All the lead-lap cars pitted a final time on Lap 235, but while almost all took just two new tires, Hamlin stopped for four. Kahne then ran out to a big lead.
Things would have been different if
Kyle Busch didn't get caught speeding on pit road. He led the first 66 laps of the race but when making his first pit stop, he was too fast entering and his team had a slow stop. He ended up 16th.
C/p Thats Racin
By Jim Utter - charlotteobserver
Sunday, Jul. 15, 2012
Looking back at the Lenox Industrial Tools 301:
Observations
This season's Sprint Cup Series championship battle sure seems to be shaping up as another Hendrick Motorsports vs. Joe Gibbs Racing battle, much like 2010. Tony Stewart certainly will be in the mix he's already won three times but as far as consistency goes, JGR's Denny Hamlin is looking very stout as is Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. at HMS. And regardless of the format, consistency still wins championships.
If the black cloud ever lifted over Kyle Busch and his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing team this season, that group would also be a strong contender. Busch was again fast on Sunday, leading the first 66 laps of the race. But a pit road speeding penalty and slow stop knocked him out of contention. Busch has the speed to win, he just can't seem to get to the finish of races lately and in position to use it.
It's only mid-July and drivers are already experiencing problems dealing with the excessive heat in races. Granted it was unusually hot for the New England area but this doesn't bode well for the rest of the summer.
Notes
Gordon didn't like finish or tire
Jeff Gordon wasn't pleased with his finish or with the Goodyear's tire selection this weekend at New Hampshire.
Gordon finished sixth not a bad finish, but for a driver who desperately needs wins to make the Chase, it's not going to help. Gordon remains 17th in the series standings.
We've got to be up there battling for wins if we are going to make this Chase, he said. At the beginning I thought we were equally as good as anybody. From that second run on, it just went downhill.
Gordon also hopes Goodyear makes a tire change before the fall race. Goodyear has got to go back to the drawing board, he said. I'm hoping they can come up with something a little bit better than this.
Not a great day for Ford
Sunday's race wasn't very good for the Ford camp and series points leader Matt Kenseth.
Kenseth finished 13th and still leads the standings with a 16-point advantage over Dale Earnhardt Jr. Greg Biffle was the only Ford driver to finish in the top 10, finishing ninth. Carl Edwards, who finished runner-up in the title race last season, was 18th.
It seems we struggle here as a company a little, but we were pretty good in the beginning, Kenseth said. We could never get it good enough to run with the real good guys, so then its really about pit stop strategy and restarts.
Penske stands with driver for now
Team owner Roger Penske said Sunday he will wait until A.J. Allemendinger receives the results of his 'B' test before making any decisions on the driver's future.
You know, I've said it before, I'm more concerned about him as an individual than the situation, Penske said. The situation will take care of itself.
Allmendinger was temporarily suspended last weekend after failing a random drug test. If his 'B' sample is also positive, he will be indefinitely suspended from NASCAR.
Penske said if Allmendinger's 'B' sample is clean, he will return to the No. 22 Dodge immediately.
3 keys to victory
1. Kasey Kahne was fast all weekend, getting off to a good start by qualifying second for the race.
2. Kahne stayed with Hamlin all day. He was right behind Hamlin after the first round of green-flag stops, behind Hamlin following pit stops on Lap 90, behind Hamlin after the second round of green-flag stops and right behind Hamlin again after pit stops on Lap 191.
3. When Hamlin took four tires on the final stop, Kahne's team got him out ahead of everyone who took two, and he grabbed the lead for the first and only time on Lap 236.
Turning point
All the lead-lap cars pitted a final time on Lap 235, but while almost all took just two new tires, Hamlin stopped for four. Kahne then ran out to a big lead.
Things would have been different if
Kyle Busch didn't get caught speeding on pit road. He led the first 66 laps of the race but when making his first pit stop, he was too fast entering and his team had a slow stop. He ended up 16th.
C/p Thats Racin