For a host of reasons, there’s a lot of intrigue surrounding this race. We’re counting down to the chase, and several of the familiar faces are in serious jeopardy. Kyle Busch, the most notable among these, is in 14th. Clint Bowyer sits 150 points out. Though they’re in at the moment, Greg Biffle, Matt Kenseth and Mark Martin have looked quite vulnerable- opening the door for a new look championship chase.
Kasey Kahne is very much in the mix after a rough 2007 and an inconsistent 2008. Juan Pablo Montoya is turning heads with a new found consistency. I don’t think I’m going out on a limb in saying that Ryan Newman and Kurt Busch are enjoying a return to relevance. Though vilified by critics, this race at this track matters. Some guys who could really use a win have done so at Long Pond. Carl Edwards won last summer and in 2005. Kasey Kahne was a June race winner in 2008. Hard luck Denny Hamlin swept Pocono in 2006.
TRACK FACTS
NASCAR Cup competition came to Pocono on August 4, 1974. “The King” was
king that day as Richard Petty raced off to victory lane.
Unlike cubish Indianapolis, Pocono is a triangular track, some call it a “roval.” At turn one, you’ve got 14 degrees of banking to launch you on to a stretch that measures 3,o55 feet. At turn two, it’s 8 degrees of banking taking you in to a short stretch of 1,780 feet before taking on turn 3 with 6 degrees of banking that ushers you in to another long stretch of 3,740 feet. No doubt Pocono Raceway is right there with Darlington for funky configurations.
TOP PERFORMANCES
Kasey Kahne holds the qualifying record with a lap of 52.164 seconds (172.533 mph) for the June, 2004 race. The fastest race run here was by Rusty Wallace in July of 1996 in 3 hours, 27 minutes and 3 seconds, meaning this race is a long one unless shortened by rain, and that does tend to happen what seems like an unusual amount.
Bill Elliott holds the track record for wins with 5. Tim Richmond, Rusty Wallace, Darrell Waltrip and Jeff Gordon have 4 wins each.
Elliott and Ken Schrader each have 5 career poles for the most at Pocono. 13 of 62 races at the track have been won from P-1. 44 of 62 winners have come from the top 10 in the starting grid.
A Pocono record 13 caution flags have waved twice and once there was only 1 yellow flag waved. A record 42 drivers finished the rain-shortened spring, 2007 won by Jeff Gordon, in July of 1982, only 18 drivers were around at the end as Bobby Allison led the way to the checkered flag.
TUNING IN
ESPN starts coverage Sunday, August 2, 2009 at 1:00 PM Eastern, 10:00 AM Pacific. The green flag waves at 2:18 PM Eastern, 11:18 AM Pacific. Allen Bestwick, Rusty Wallace and Brad Daugherty are your studio hosts. Dr. Jerry Punch handles the lap-by-lap with commentary from Dale Jarrett and Andy Petree. Dave Burns, Mike Massaro, Shannon Spake and Jamie Little server as pit reporters.
MRN and Sirius Satellite offer radio coverage.
WHO’S GONNA WIN?
If you didn’t catch my post yesterday, I have taken to calling Tony Stewart,
Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon and Mark Martin “The Four Wheelmen.” Consideration of a pick to win starts, and may very well end right here. Stewart got his first 2009 win here, Gordon is the active track wins leader, Johnson is the defending champion and Mark Martin has finished second at Pocono a heart-wrenching six times. Martin also topped the speed chart in practice, with Johnson just behind him. In fact, HMS and Hendrick-affiliated SHR put drivers in 6 of the top 7 spots.
There are others that merit a serious look. You could make yourself look good by going for an “upset special” with a flat track master like Denny Hamlin or by going with a Dale Earnhardt Jr.- who once again unloaded a good car with a top five practice run.
Kyle Busch starts out the weekend with a solid car. Crew chief Steve Addington is pleased with the piece so far. Lord knows, Kyle needs it. Greg Biffle needs a good week, and he also placed top 10 in practice. Start and parker Dave Blaney also clocked a top 10 practice lap, as did Sam Hornish Jr.
The Michael Waltrip cars had a rough morning, and that doesn’t bode well for another potential dark horse, David Reutimann. Beak finished third in June, and sitting 68 points out of 12th, he really needs another result like. Brian Vickers site even further back, so the recent run of sweet finishes he had needs to continue.
Let’s also not forget Dodge boys Kurt Busch and Kasey Kahne have a winning combination of wins at Pocono to go with favorable starting positions.
Whittling the list down, these names jump out at me. Stewart, Johnson, Martin and Gordon are pretty obvious. History says Carl Edwards could get his first 2009 win in this race, but I’m more inclined to go with Greg Biffle.
So, do I want to be upset-minded, or do I want to go with a safe pick? I think I’m going to go with a little of both. I’m going with a driver who doesn’t HAVE to win, but really WANTS to win. He’s safely inside the top 12, but I think this driver wants more than that. He wants momentum.
He has the equipment, the crew chief and the know-how to get it done. I’m saying that the NASCAR Sprint Cup tour gets its 12th different winner at Pocono Raceway.
That winner will be……Carl Edwards.
He won here last summer, took second behind Stewart in June, and though he’s not on his “A” game at the moment, I don’t Edwards being rattled like some of the others might.In spite of some ill-fated stunts, Edwards is a smart racer and he’s also had success in playing the fuel mileage game- something that tends to come in handy in a place like Pocono.
PHOTO CREDITS- Courtesy of Getty Images for NASCAR. Stewart and Johnson by Doug Pensinger, Stewart in car by Rusty Jarrett, Martin’s car by Geoff Burke.
