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I walk away from today’s race in Kansas with the same reaction I frequently had with a former co-worker who just tended to babble on in unrelated cliches: Huh?
I should have known something was up when the answering machine at home featured a cryptic message from my brother-in-law Brad. He with an evil Beavis-n-Butthead laugh and a “watch what happens around lap 30″ remark. I’ll let you in on a little secret: we frequently have to TiVo the races because we’re usually in church when a race starts 10 am PST. Given the fact he returns home earlier than we do, we often get such messages when something good, interesting or downright bizarre happens. In today’s case, the latter occurred on cue.
In my mind, it ranks up there with the Busch race in Montreal as the weirdest race we’ve had all year. Everything started out the way you’d expect with all the usual suspects (Kenseth, the Busch boys) running up front and all the usual suspects (Michael Waltrip, Scott Riggs) fading back after qualifying well. Then, as promised, Junior inexplicably whacks Kyle Busch on lap 28 for no apparent reason. Now I am no real fan of the #5 Kellogg’s Chevy, but it looks fishy. Junior apologized later and took responsibility, but you really have to wonder if the guy who had nothing to lose felt like messing with the guy he replaces at HMS next year. It makes me wonder.
Then there was the 2nd red flag of the day, and the ensuing drama of Tony Stewart’s fuel supply. In my mind, you could have made an argument for finishing the race here. I knew that a resumption of the race would result in circus following it, but since Tony’s no favorite of mine, I didn’t fuss much about it. I got to watch my beloved Broncos get pummeled by the Colts and would get to see the finish in real time. Like I said, it was shaping up to be a weird day.
I can’t forget the Jeff Burton “I wasn’t messin’ with my car” flap. He got sent to the back because he was working on his car during a red flag- a NASCAR no-no. I like J.B., but he’s gotta be the worst actor in NASCAR. I’m not a big fan of Rusty Wallace as a commentator, but I got a laugh as Wallace shared about having one of his crew on sentry duty when he would do the same. Seriously Jeff, with all those cameras around, you need to plan your skullduggery better than that.
Sure enough, though the race would be shortened, we weren’t shortchanged on drama. Throughout the race we watched the lead get tossed around like the old baseball game of “Flip.” We had Matt Kenseth running hard and running well, Dave Blaney making some noise, Kurt Busch representing Penske and Dodge well in this race, Jimmie Johnson charging hard from the back, and Kansas’ favorite son Clint Bowyer looking like he could be a man of destiny. Let us also not forget that Tony Stewart was looking pretty good for a while there too.
The Tony and a whole gaggle of other participants set off a chain of events that greatly altered the outcome. Chasers Kyle Busch and Jeff Burton were already having a bad day. Smoke already had a bent up fender and there were questions about how the fender on the Home Depot Chevy would “travel.” Crew Chief turned commentator Andy Petree questioned the move by the #20 team to stay out, and by golly, Greg Zipandelli and Tony Stewart made the former Earnhardt pit boss look like a prophet. Sure enough, Tony seemed to slow down a bit, got hit by his old buddy (NOT) Kurt Busch and got taken out of the game, while collecting Carl Edwards in the process. Unlike yesterday, Tony wisely took a look around and declined comment. The picture of him throwing his steering wheel said quite enough.
Oh, but only if the drama ended there! You remember how things got nasty between Denny Hamlin and Paul Menard yesterday. It was followed with more drama between the 26-year-olds. On one of the restarts, we had 3-wide action between Menard, Hamlin and Jamie Mc Murray. Mc Murray on the inside, brushed Menard in the middle, who in turn, rammed Hamlin. Of course Hamlin’s people blamed Menard. It was his fault right? Sure (cough,cough- Nextel’s next nasty rivalry).
So, as the race nears the finish we have Kevin Harvick gutting out a tough day and yet running towards the front with company from fellow chasers Clint Bowyer, Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon. As the laps click away, it sure looks like Bowyer may have a shot at catching Mr. Hard Luck himself- Greg Biffle. Just as it looks like we’re gonna have a Dayonta style dogfight at the end, Juan Pablo Montoya brushes the wall. Caution comes out, darkness prevails, and Greg Biffle finishes under yellow. Or did he?
Of course there has to be more drama. For reasons unclear to me and a lot of other people, the #16 Aflac Ford cruises onto the infield grass. Some say Biffle was running out of gas and couldn’t finish under his own power. Others would say that the “frozen field” rule was in effect and this whole flap is immaterial. I’m not sure myself (after all, I am a fan and not an expert), but it gives those unhappy with the NASCAR governing body one more reason to complain about how such matters are handled.
Me? I was just glad to have it over, glad to see a face in Victory Lane we had not seen in a while, and glad to see the leaderboard shuffled just a little bit more.
Man, I need a nap.

Congratulations go out to Clint “Little Jack” Bowyer on his first ever Nextel Cup win, a pretty darn commanding performance at New Hampshire. As my son would say, the Jack Daniels’ #07 Chevy was “crazy fast.” Bowyer let Tony Stewart and Kyle Busch “borrow” the lead for a while, but I’ll be darned if the 07 didn’t have an answer every time. My 9 year old daughter has a theory that starting from pole position is a guaranteed jinx, and most days there is sufficient evidence to back her hypothesis (and you thought NASCAR fans couldn’t use big words). What we saw today bears out that Richard Childress Racing got Bowyer’s car figured out from the get-go. That’s just awesome teamwork. You could tell Clint was freaking out a little bit and hearing footsteps towards the end (I thought the poor guy was losing his marbles), you rarely heard a complaint about the condition of his car.

So much for my idea that the Chase might be a little boring. Bowyer’s first Cup victory proves that just one race can shake the whole picture. If ya didn’t think the 28 year old Emporia, Kansas native was the real deal before, you get it now. The deal is this guy is a pure racer. It’s like the Pettys said back in the day, “Racin’ is all we know.” Like the King, you won’t likely hear Bowyer talking up boating, fishing, golf, scuba diving, or any of the other pastimes of the Cup drivers, Bowyer lists racing (of course) as a hobby as well as……working on classic cars. This dude’s got NASCAR real bad.

Before going further, I want to gloat for a minute. In last night’s post, I predicted at least one victory for the 07 before the year was out. I’m feeling mighty vindicated right now, because I’m guessing I’ll blow a few of my prognostications before the season is out.

Bowyer’s a good guy, driving a good car for a good team. Get used to the camera Clint, and switch to decaff before your next win. There’ll be many more.

Other observations from New Hampshire:

1) The Chase guys represented pretty well. My boy Gordon took 2nd, Smoke pushed for and took the lead at times, Rowdy Busch overcame a ratty car to place top 5, and Jimmie wasn’t too bad either. This group is legit.

2) Carl Edwards showed some skill today. It might not be evident by his finish, but remember, he ran today in a back-up car.

3) Kurt Busch’s standing plummeted today. Word was the #2 Miller Lite Dodge ran on 7 cylinders. He kept it in the race though.

4) A message board buddy astutely pointed out that today was the first time in the Modern Era (1972- ) that all cars that started the race, finished it. I had no idea. There was a lot of swervin’ goin’ on, but David Blaney, Kevin Harvick, and Junior all kept the cars in the race. Is it possible that the spin outs AND the fact the cars avoided debilitating wrecks were in part due to the Car of Tomorrow? I suppose we’ll hear more about that from the Monday morning quarterbacks tomorrow.

5) This was a good chase race. I wasn’t real impressed with the Spring edition of the 2007 race at New Hampshire. There was some pit strategy, a little bit of rubbing, some good, hard driving and a race known more for its actual racing, and not for fist fights, wrecking, and grist for the “mill of bizzare conspiracy theories.” It was kind of refreshing.

That’s all for tonight. This week I’ll be pondering the question of how far is too far when supporting your driver or talking trash about another. Standards seem to be lacking and it sure causes some nasty scuffles.

C U soon.

It all starts tomorrow campers! The Chase is on beginning at Loudon, New Hampshire. All week long there’s been a load of buzz and speculation on what the final 10 races of the 2007 season hold in store.

I’ve got my swami turban on and heck my opinion counts for no less than Rusty Wallace, so here goes:

1) The primary battle for the Nextel Cup will come down to two teammates from HMS- Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon. My heart’s with Gordon, if I had to bet money, I’d go with Jimmie.

2) Tony Stewart, Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards will push these guys real hard and should not be counted out. Oh, count Kurt Busch in this group too.

3) This year’s chase will put Martin Truex and Clint Bowyer on the map- so to speak. I had no idea who Truex was when this season started. I do now.

4) I really like Jeff Burton but I just don’t know if he can be better than top 10.

5) Clint Bowyer will win a race before the year’s over.

6) Due to his success this season, Denny Hamlin may steal some more of the young female vote from Kasey Kahne.

7) The Rushville Rocket in the #20 Home Depot Chevy will win one more race in a Chevy before moveing on to Toyota in 2008.

We may end up forgetting that Kevin Harvick is even in the Chase. Still a good racer though. Same for Matt Kenseth.

9) Dale Earnhardt, Jr. will still keep stealing the spotlight away from the Chase. Not his fault. He will win a race before this year’s over. Could be at Mardi Gras, I mean Talledega.

10) Tony may win tomorrow at New Hampshire. He was crazy fast yesterday. Big Shrub and Jimmie may have something for him.

11) A Toyota will win one race before it’s over in 2007- thanks to either Brian Vickers or David “The Beak” Reutimann.

12) And the winner of the 2007 Nextel Cup is………Jimmie Johnson in a repeat.

It’s chase time! This is new to me. I find a lot of old school NASCAR fans who really hate the idea, but on first glance, I like it. Think about it, up until the finish of the Chevy Rock ‘n’ Roll 400, Jeff Gordon was cruising along with a nice, fat lead. Suddenly, on the basis of wins, Jimmie Johnson is suddenly ahead of him, and from here on out, I don’t think the Rainbow Warrior will be mailing it in.
I’m looking forward to wide open crazy racing over the last 10 of 2007- ya know, the kind of racing we saw on the final laps of last night’s race at Richmond. It was cool to see the likes of Junior, Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson going toe-to-toe. In the field, we have:

Jimmie Johnson, #48 Lowe’s Chevrolet. He’s behaving like a guy who wants a repeat of 2006. Week after week, he’s a contender. Johnson had a mid-season slump, but he’s sure running right now.

Jeff Gordon, #24 Du Pont Chevrolet.. My personal favorite. A 5th Nextel Cup seems like a fitting finish for a guy who just became a dad, and has been behaving like a real leader out there. All you folks who have been labeling Gordon a whiner must admit he has been vocal in his praise of other winning drivers, and he’s taken responsiblity for the mistakes he’s made. Gordon’s first four Cups came from 1995, 1997, 1998 & 2001.

Tony Stewart, #20 Home Depot Chevrolet. Smoke’s recent performance has done nothing to tarnish his image as a strong second half driver. With his recent wins (especially at his beloved Indianapolis) and strong finishes, all the conterversy seems to have faded into the past. He’s going great, just when he needs to. Smoke has two Cups to his credit from 2002 & 2005.

Kurt Busch, #2 Miller Lite Dodge. The big blue beer can has just been flying as of late. Was he unstoppable at Pocono and Michigan, or what? It’s been a slight surprise to see him kind of back away at the end of the last two races. No doubt, he’s represented Penske and Dodge well. “Big Shrub” is looking for Nextel Cup number two, winning his first in 2004.

Carl Edwards, #99 Office Depot Ford. The King of Concrete is sure to win at least one title this year. As far as I’m concerned, the mockery he’s made of the point standings in the NASCAR Busch Series makes a case for the chase. As good as he is, it’s easy to forget he’s a young guy, and this is only his second chase. It might be kinda cool to see a back flip in response to a 2007 Nextel Cup presentation.

Kyle Busch, #5 Kellogg’s Chevrolet. By no less than Kyle Petty (who’s probably seen a race or two), “Little Shrub” has been called the best young racer in NASCAR today. He definitely reinforced the notion with a dominating performance in the Busch race at Richmond Friday night. For Kyle, a Nextel Cup title would be a fitting swan song for the Hendrick Motorsports driver headed next year to the Joe Gibbs’ Racing team.

Denny Hamlin, #11 Fed Ex Chevrolet. Denny has done nothing but make noise (99% positive noise) since coming on board in 2006. He’s been racking up wins here and there, and along with Tony Stewart, gives JGR a powerful 1-2 punch. Don’t count him out. His chase opponents sure aren’t.

Martin Truex, Jr., #1 Bass Pro Chevrolet. Thanks to Truex, Dale Earnhardt Inc. has representaion in the Chase. He hasn’t been around all that long, but don’t forget he was a two-time (2004 & 2005) winner of the Busch Series title not all that long ago. A Cup would sure cement Truex as a leader at DEI.

Matt Kenseth, #17 De Walt Ford. The 2003 winner of the Nextel Cup has flown under the radar this year. It seems like the only time I hear much about him is when he’s complaining about how his car is running. But, by golly, here he is. He does have one victory to his credit (the 1st race at Fontana this year), and his appearance among the list is testament to his consistency.

Jeff Burton, #31 AT&T Chevrolet. J.B. is one of three Richard Childress Racing drivers in the chase. He’s had some real ups and downs, but somehow, he’s here. The victory at Texas was a great moment for the pride of South Boston, Virginia in 2007.

Kevin Harvick, #29 Pennzoil Chevrolet. The 2nd member of the RCR team in the chase. Kevin had to race smartly last night to weave his way in. The winner of the Daytona 500 and All-Star Weekend managed to thread the needle on what seemed like every crash. There must have been some nervous moments when he had all that grass caught in his grill, but “Happy Harv” made it through.

Clint Bowyer, #07 Jack Daniels Chevrolet. If you’ve read articles or seen stories about him, you know this guy could easily be the face of NASCAR. The Kansan has a certain middle-American charm, and he is a car guy through and through- complete with an oval track in his back yard- something to do when he’s not restoring cars. It’s hard to believe that as good as Bowyer is, he hasn’t won anything at this level yet.

This is a very impressive field. I think that due to consistency- you have to rate Stewart, Gordon, Johnson and maybe even Hamlin as favorite to take it. The Busch Brothers, Edwards, Kenseth and Truex are racers poised to pounce should the favorites fall off, and goodness knows they could. The 2007 road has had it share of potholes for Bowyer, Harvick and Burton , but there’s a reason races are run on tracks and not paper.

This will be a good one. Stick around.

Admit it, like me, you thought Jimmie Johnson’s chances of a repeat championship were slim. Sunday night, the driver of the Lowe’s 48 Chevy gave NASCAR nation a wake-up call with his victory at the California Speedway.

To me, the 31-year-old native of El Cajon may very well be the most underrated driver in the Nextel Cup Series. A champion? Underrated? Yes. Think about it. A sports card shop owner once told me Dale Earnhardt sells 70% of the NASCAR memorabilia that’s sold. In spite of having no championship trophies at NASCAR’s top level, you can still see why- between the name, a decent number of wins (17), and the country boy charm. Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart are likely a distant 2nd and 3rd respectively. Where’s Jimmie on the list? Really, who argues passionately for or against this guy? Very few.

In a way, I don’t get it. Now I’m no authority on male sexiness, but he seems like a good looking guy to me. Winning? He and Tony are running neck and neck on wins and the Rushville Rocket’s been around longer. It doesn’t add up.

I’m guessing that as long as he’s winning and Chandra still loves him- Jimmie crack corn and he don’t care. I will say this though, his HMS teammate Gordon better wake his sleepy self up or we’ll see Jimmie Johnson holding another cup. THE Cup.

Other random reflections:

Burning Busch. Give Kyle Busch props. He just doesn’t quit, and as long as he’s not acting liking a child, he’s running near the front. Kyle Petty sure thinks a lot of him, and at times, you can see why.

The Michael Waltrip fireworks show. I’m just glad he got out of there o.k. A similar fire killed Glen Roberts 40-some-odd years ago. Mikey owes his fire suit to Fireball Roberts.

What happened to Kurt? The man just disappeared! His race car just went to hell on him!

Poor Newman. He’s all but out now. Personally, I think his luck is worse than Junior’s.

Old School Strong. Good to see old school drivers Jeff Burton and Bobby Labonte run well. These guys need to get more wins.

Earth to Harvick? This guy just had a horrific night. His Chase position is shaky, and he just couldn’t get his car to cooperate Sunday.

Junior…hanging by athread.the more I get to know about this guy, the more of a class act I think he is. He’s done everything he can, but will it be enough? I hope so, but……

Stay Tuned.