A new week, a new numero uno. That’s life in the early season with an abbreviated body of work to draw from. I mean, do you dock a guy a like Kenseth at Las Vegas or Kyle Busch at Daytona if the day ends early due to circumstances beyond their control? What do you do with a David Reutimann- who sits 4th in the points, has an average finish of 10.0, but you still feel like you need to see another top 10 before you jump on the bandwagon? Decisions, decisions.
The good news for fans is the only rankings that matter are posted by NASCAR. I just do this for fun, because I- like most other writers- enjoy making lists for the purpose of discussion and debate. Most of you enjoy reading them, because either you like seeing if your favorite driver made it, and if they didn’t- I provide the enjoyment of letting you excoriate me over my omission.
Ah yes, the joys of the First Amendment.
So here’s this week’s B.D.S. Top 10- powered by copious amounts of caffeine:
#10- David Reutimann- I wrestled with this one. Vickers? Or Beak? Reutimann has the higher “average finish” (10.0 versus 19.0), but throw out the Daytona 500, and Vicker’s average is 9th, and Reutimann’s is well, 9th. BUT Buzzy’s Boy has a top 5. So here Reutimann sits for now. He’s sure come a long way from the “go or go home” days.
#9- Tony Stewart- Smoke gets a mulligan for his 26th at Sin City. Can’t be a stud every week. He’s still off to a remarkable start considering all the changes. A rebound will help convince this observer that Stewart is not trending down.
#8- Carl Edwards- If the current trend holds, Edwards will be one of the drivers giving up their top 10 to a Labonte, Vickers or Kahne. On the other hand, it could be worse- teammates Kenseth and Ragan would have been more than happy with a 17th at Vegas. Atlanta has been good to Edwards, so for you Cousin Carl fans, here’s hoping he has a better week.
#7- Kevin Harvick- Happy’s average finish of 17.3 is lower than Michael Waltrip’s 16.3 and Bobby Labonte’s 15.7, but throw out the 38th at Fontana, and Harvick looks much better. Nobody gets more from his car than Harvick. He can take piece that is a piece and do something good with it.
#6- Kurt Busch- I know what you’re thinking. How can Busch be ranked this high
after a 23rd at his hometown track? His strength. The Blue Deuce has an average finish of 12.7, which puts the elder Busch ahead of everyone else ranked beneath him, except for…..Reutimann??? It sure does. That’s my story and I’m stickin’ to it.
#5- Greg Biffle- Following up a 4th at Fontana with a 7th at Las Vegas further makes the case that his solid run last season was no fluke. Mechanical issues flustered Biff’s Sunday in the desert, but his top 10 was the best finish of any Roush driver (well, unless you count the Hall of Fame/Yates/ Roush connection for Labonte).
#4- Clint Bowyer- Well, look what we have here. So far, Clint has run 4th, 19th and 2nd. The “33″ is now second in the season’s point standings. Besides Bowyer, only Kyle Busch and Matt Kenseth can boast of two top 5s. He also led 9 laps before giving way to Kyle Busch.
#3- Matt Kenseth- I don’t know what would be a bigger heartbreak- watching your season opening victory streak end by finishing dead last, or missing out on that 3rd straight win at the finish line. Hmmm….what happened to Kenseth Sunday was worse. Further adding to the pain is that the bum engine wasn’t his fault. That’s racin’.
#2- Jeff Gordon- With an average finish of 7.0, one could easily argue Gordon deserves the #1 spot. After all, the 4-time champ’s worst finish is a perfectly respectable 13th at Daytona. He also led 17 laps at the “Diamond In The Desert.”
AND THE NEW NUMBER ONE IS…..
#1- Kyle Busch- How can it not be given to him? Yeah, yeah, yeah, he’s 6th in the points. It’s because Shrub got collected at Daytona that he finished 41st in the Great American Race. Since then, he’s run 3rd and 1st. Dude’s been a force to reckon with in EVERY race so far this season. So Kyle Busch is #1 without qualification or apology. Some have compared the rowdy one to Dale Earnhardt. I’m thinking he’s a little more Cale Yarborough. If my life depends on a win, I want this guy driving for me.
FALLING OUT
Jimmie Johnson…..yeah, he was dominant early, but the day was a cluster by Jimmie standards with the pit box skid and the late wreck. He’ll be back, he’ll be back. Denny Hamlin…a 6th place finish sandwiched between a 26th and 22nd won’t get it.
READY TO STRIKE
Brian Vickers- he almost got in this week. Another good race, and he’ll be too hard to ignore. Kasey Kahne- gradually, he’s getting better, as his teammates (Reed Sorenson and A.J. Allmendinger in particular) trend in the other direction. Jamie McMurray- he could be forecasted every week as a dark horse and it wouldn’t be a bad pick. Bobby Labonte- he’s proving he’s not ready for pasture yet, and now “Texas” is headed to his wheel house…..Atlanta, where Labonte has collected 6 of his 21 Cup career victories.
PHOTO CREDITS- Busch at Vegas by s54901, Busch Brothers by amanda480743, Jeff Gordon with daughter Ella is also by s54901. Click on the hyperlinks or visit flickr.com to see more.
