A little survey here: Who thought Denny Hamlin would win four races in 2009 and post a top five in points? Who thought Kyle Busch would miss the Chase, rather than contend for a title? Yeah, me neither. I thought Hamlin was good, but I wasn’t expecting that kind of progress. As for Busch, I guess you have to expect there’s the potential for an “all or nothing at all” kind of season, but win four races and miss the Chase? No way.
Overall, you’d have to say Joe Gibbs Racing had a pretty good year. Between Busch, Hamlin and Joey Logano, the trio posted 9 wins. By the same token, it has to be frustrating to have as many mechanical issues as they seem to have for a top team, and all this youth, combined with all these strong personalities can make for a volatile mix. It’s long ways removed from the days of Tony Stewart (a one-man fireworks show), and Bobby Labonte.
Hamlin got a lot of people thinking after his assertion that he
wanted to be the guy to dethrone Jimmie Johnson. It was the kind of thing that made a person think, “I suppose it’s possible.” 2009 was something of a breakthrough year with a career high four victories. It seems that all Hamlin lacks is shaking loose of a few DNFs to make yet another jump in racing’s elite.
Some of his words, and some of his on-track behavior rub people the wrong way, but I give him credit for this: the boy is all about trying to win, and he doesn’t mess around about it. Of course, keeping his head about himself might help him steer of trouble a little more often. Every now and again, he just makes one of those moves that make you ask “What was he thinking?”
Joey Logano, considering his youth and lack of NASCAR experience, had a rather darn impressive rookie campaign. The 2009 Rookie Of The Year picked up his first “W” (yeah, it was dumb luck, but a win’s a win), and there can be little doubt he gained big time throughout the course of the ‘09 season.
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it here- I expect he’ll make another big step forward in 2010. It’s obvious he’s a quick learner, he’s got a racer’s mentality, and he’s got one of the best in the business up on top of his pit box in Greg Zipadelli to keep him steered right. As long as he doesn’t lose focus, or get too big-headed, I look for him to be a top 15 driver.
2009 was a tale of two seasons for Kyle Busch. In the
Nationwide Series, Busch dominated. When he didn’t win, he often finished as runner-up, and translated that dominance into a series title, his first. On the Cup side, Busch swept Bristol en route to four victories, but it seemed to be a case of all, or nothing at all, as there were just as many weeks he was fighting his car and finishing towards the back, of not failing to finish altogether.
The decision was made to replace Steve Addington as crew chief for Busch with veteran crew chief Dave Rogers, who’d proven quite proficient with Gibbs’ #20 car. It’s too early in the game to see how the new pairing is panning out.
There are some drivers a la Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Cale Yarborough who could take an evil car and whip it into submission. If nothing else, they just made the best of what they had. In the case of Kyle Busch, you can just see the whole show unravel if an ill-handling, rough running car can’t be adjusted.
Busch has proven he’s a winner, and he’s as fearless as a tower climber. Can he get the consistency back? Can Busch and Rogers develop the chemistry that Gibbs seemed to think was missing with Addington? Can Busch modify his “check ‘er or wreck ‘er” mentality while Roger and Company try to fix what’s wrong with an ailing car? These are the questions for the “18” team heading in to 2010.
With the talent and resources at Joe Gibbs Racing, the potential is there for the organization to become for the next decade what Hendrick Motorsports was in the last. The young bucks behind the wheel are still diamonds in the rough, it’s just a matter of being pliable enough to continue to grow and mature. The ball is in their court. As for J.D., Joe and company, it’s a matter of fine tuning and cutting down on those maddening mechanical failures that still seem to occur a bit too often for a team desiring to be the best.
The hunger is there. Hamlin’s declared what he’s after, you know it’s all about the win with Busch, and there hasn’t been a driver as hyped as Logano since the days of Jeff Gordon. It’s just a matter of fitting the pieces perfectly together.
And it may be just a matter of time.
PHOTO CREDITS- Denny Hamlin burnout and Joey Logano with Greg Zipadelli by Jerry Markland. Denny Hamlin posing after Richmond win by Todd Warshaw. Kyle Busch signing autographs by Rusty Jarrett. Photos courtesy of Getty Images for NASCAR.
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If it is true Kasey Kahne will be at JGR in 2011,I feel it could happen before that if the RPM/RY merger fizzles.I feel this merger may not work out because of the personalities involved.Too many ego’s from past times;however in these times,it just may have to work out for all parties to survive.
There seems to be some problems with the associate sponsors at RPM. A lot of them seem to have left if you look at their web site. Evernham still hasn’t been paid off from his being bought out. He’s still owed $25 million. With the pending departure of the cursed “bat wing” from the “world’s most perfect race car which doesn’t need any changes”, it’ll be interesting to see how it impacts Kahne, JGR, and everyone else in the garage. If going back to a spoiler and the brand change of the cars improves RPM’s and Kahne’s performance, he may have second thoughts about leaving.
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