With only two races to go until the Chase for the Championship, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series heads to Auto Club Speedway of Southern California for the Pepsi 500. As the regular season winds down, all eyes will be on Matt Kenseth, Denny Hamlin, Clint Bowyer, David Ragan and Kasey Kahne as they battle to lock themselves into the Chase. At a track that has drawn much criticism throughout its existence, fans and teams will also be keeping an eye on the weather. Last year, the daytime high was 115 degrees, making it a miserable weekend for drivers and fans. Luckily though, things are much cooler this season, allowing both fans and drivers to enjoy a warm, but not too warm, summer night in Southern California. Here are some drivers to watch on Sunday night.
On October 20, 2007, Joey Logano won the Toyota All-Star Showdown, a non-points all-star event for NASCAR's lower series. Now, less than a year later, and only with a handful of starts in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, 18 year old Joey Logano will move up to motorsports' highest level of racing, taking over driving duties in the #20 Joe Gibbs Racing Home Depot Toyota beginning in the 2009 season. Once called "the real deal" by veteran driver Mark Martin, Logano will have his work cut out for him, as he looks to gain experience on the track, while also gaining the respect of his fellow competitors. Though he has had significant success throughout his racing career, Logano will have to face a steep learning curve that could show his championship potential, or could make him another "also ran".
In what was a battle until the end, the Sharpie 500 provided some of the most action packed racing seen this season, but ultimately it was Carl Edwards who was able to take his #99 Office Depot Ford to victory lane at Bristol Motor Speedway. This would be the sixth victory of the season for Edwards, who was the defending race champion from 2007. Edwards started from the pole on Saturday night, but ran in the second place position most of the race after Kyle Busch took the lead on lap 55 in his #18 M&Ms Toyota. The drivers battled for the lead as the race wound down, and with 31 to go, Edwards was able to use the "bump and run" on Busch to regain the lead and capture the victory.
On Tuesday, NASCAR released the 2009 schedules for the Sprint Cup Series, the Nationwide Series, and the Craftsman Truck Series, finally putting to rest any rumors of major changes for the upcoming season. There were some date changes in all three series, as well as a race in both the Nationwide Series and the Craftsman Truck Series being moved to new tracks. Overall, the schedule released by NASCAR is what many teams, tracks, and fans had anticipated, though the announcement does come as a blow to Bruton Smith, who was attempting to realign the schedule and add dates at some of his company's tracks.
In the final laps of the 3M Performance 400 on Sunday, Edwards had series leader Kyle Busch in his rear view mirror. The only thing going through his head was not to get beat on a restart, something the Busch can easily do to any driver. He got a strong restart, took off from the field and drove his way to his fifth Sprint Cup series victory of 2008. The victory comes after battling his way through the pack from his 27th starting position. Edward's victory on Sunday is an example of the strong performance he and his team has had all season. All of Edward's victories have shown that he has what it takes to become a Sprint Cup Series Champion and could accomplish that feat this season.
With only four races left until the Chase, the NASCAR Sprint Cup season visits Michigan International Speedway this weekend for the 3M Performance 400. Things are heating up in the battle for the twelve Chase position and those drivers on the bubble are looking for strong runs to solidify their place in NASCAR's post season. As always, Roush Fenway Racing will be a force to be reckoned with, capturing six victories in the last thirteen races. There will be many keys to capturing a victory at the track. Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the race in Michigan earlier this year with fuel mileage (and a little luck). A great fuel strategy may be the key to winning the race. With pit strategy, there is also track position, which is vital at this track. One mistake made and a driver will be struggling for the rest of the night. As such, here are some drivers to watch Sunday.
On Sunday, in the Centurion at the Glen, Michael McDowell did the one thing that no race car driver should do: he purposely wrecked a fellow competitor in retaliation for a previous on-track incident with David Gilliland. The bump that McDowell gave Gilliland was enough to start a vicious nine car wreck that sent Bobby Labonte to the hospital for further evaluation. As of Tuesday, NASCAR did not penalize either McDowell or Gilliland for the altercation, yet many critics argue that McDowell got off easy after causing damage in the range of one million dollars. If NASCAR is as serious about safety as it says it is, it should have done more to penalize McDowell and discourage others from on-track retribution.
After starting from the pole, Kyle Busch dominated the Centurion Boats at The Glen and took his #18 M&Ms Toyota to victory lane for the eighth time this season, sweeping both road course events in the 2008 Sprint Cup Series schedule. The victory in New York secured his first place berth when the Chase begins in five weeks. Pit strategy was a major factor in Kyle Busch's, as he acquired the lead on lap thirty, after he chased Dale Earnhardt Jr. since the second lap of the race. Tony Stewart was the only driver that was able to battle with Busch for the victory, but in the end, the #20 Home Depot Toyota simply didn't have enough, and had to settle with a second place victory.
With only five races to go until the Chase for the Sprint Cup, it is a good time to evaluate the drivers who can battle their way into twelve man field, or who can give up their place in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series post season. As long as they have consistent runs in the next five races, the drivers who are currently in the top six in the standings are virtually locked into the Chase, while the bottom six can still lose their spot. There are even some potential surprises that can happen before the Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, the first race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship. Carl Edwards chased Jimmie Johnson to a second place finish last week at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. This weekend, Carl Edwards battled his fellow drivers, and the rain, but in the end was able to take his #99 Office Depot Ford to victory lane in the Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500. This would be Edward's fourth victory this season; a victory using an "experimental" setup that crew chief Bob Osborn came up with. Edwards, who qualified fifteenth, ran in the top ten most of the race and was able to solidify his victory with excellent fuel strategy. The turning point of the race came when Carl Edwards, and the rest of the leaders, pitted before the red flag, giving them the fuel strategy to get them to the end of the race. The trip to victory lane would allow Edwards to move up to third in the standings, behind Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
