Hendrick Motorsports entered this season with a few goals to check off. One, get that 200th win. Check. Two, win a bunch races after that. Check – it’s 2-for-2 since winning at Darlington for No. 200. Three, win an 11th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship. Obviously, that’s still in question.
But with the NASCAR Sprint Cup regular season at the midpoint after this Sunday’s race at Dover International Speedway, HMS has put itself in prime position.
Two drivers seem like locks, by virtue of a top-10 spot.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. ranks fourth in points, a healthy 67 points ahead of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup cutoff. With yet another top-10 finish, at Charlotte – his seventh in the previous eight races – Earnhardt now has nine top 10s in 2012. That’s more than any driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. He has completed all 3,888 laps this season, the only driver to do so.
Jimmie Johnson sits right behind his teammate in the standings, fifth overall and 37 points inside the Chase cutoff. The five-time champion has led 501 laps this season, more than any other driver.
Then there’s Kasey Kahne and Jeff Gordon, two drivers outside the top 10 but with very real Wild Card opportunities.
After race No. 26, the top 10 drivers earn berths in the 12-driver Chase. Spots 11 and 12 will go to those drivers outside the top 10 with the most wins. Currently, Kahne’s third in the Wild Card standings.
Kahne continued his torrid pace, winning his third Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte on Sunday – his sixth consecutive top-10 finish. Only two drivers have scored six consecutive top 10s this season: Kahne and Earnhardt. Kahne’s surge has launched him up the standings, from 31st before the streak to his current position of 15th.
Gordon likely needs a win to make the Chase. Bad luck has ravaged his season, and here’s the proof: Though he ranks 22nd in points, his 2012 Driver Rating of 88.1 ranks 13th.
Johnson likely holds Hendrick’s best shot at Dover this weekend. A six-time winner at Dover, Johnson boasts the track’s top pre-race Driver Rating (118.6). Another victory this Sunday and Johnson will tie NASCAR Hall of Famers Richard Petty and Bobby Allison on the all-time Dover wins list.
Invisible Monsters: Roush Fenway Quietly Dominating
Roush Fenway Racing driver Greg Biffle owns a win and has led the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points standings for 10 consecutive weeks. Think about that for a second. Last year’s champion, Tony Stewart, led the points for a total of three weeks and none of them consecutively.Matt Kenseth, another member of RFR, has occupied the second-place spot in the NSCS standings for the past three weeks. Oh yeah, he also won the Daytona 500.
Carl Edwards, the third stablemate, ranks 10th and hasn’t come close to hitting his stride of a season ago, when he finished second in the points.
They each have eight top-10 finishes apiece. And using the polarizing "if the season ended today" benchmark, all three would make the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
If dominance can be accomplished quietly, Roush Fenway Racing has done it.
And don’t expect it to stop any time soon. They flourish at the Monster Mile of Dover International Speedway. Kenseth won last year’s spring race there; "Concrete Carl" Edwards boasts the top average finish (7.3); and Biffle has two victories at the one-mile concrete track.
Last October, RFR’s Big Three all finished in the top 10, with Edwards leading the charge with a third-place run.
‘Anny’ Given Sunday: Truex Looks For Second Win At Home Track
Dover’s spring race in 2007 should’ve been run on June 3, the same date the 2012 edition is scheduled to run. But rain spoiled those plans, pushing it to Monday, June 4.A then-27-year-old Martin Truex Jr. had to wait another day for his first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series win. It was worth it, clearly, for the driver who then ran for Dale Earnhardt Inc.
Five years – and 179 races – have passed since Truex’s first and only win. This weekend, the long drought could end. Dover is the home track of Mayetta, N.J., native, and one of his best tracks.
Truex has won two of the last three Coors Light qualifying sessions run at the track (last spring's qualifying was rained out). He finished eighth in last spring’s Dover race. His Driver Rating of 88.1 makes Dover his sixth-best track.
Truex is in the midst of a career year, residing in the top 10 in points ever since race No. 2 at Phoenix International Raceway. He has four top-five finishes this year and has led 303 laps, both highs since 2007 – the year of his Dover victory and an eventual Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup berth. Will this weekend be a happy anniversary?
Career Day: Keselowski Success At Dover Could Shake Things Up
In seven of the 12 tracks the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series has run thus far this season, Brad Keselowski has posted a career best finish.That figure includes, most recent, Charlotte Motor Speedway, where he finished a career-best fifth to inch closer to the top 10.
Another career weekend, and Keselowski would likely enter the top 10 (he’s currently only four points behind 10th-place Carl Edwards). That would send ripples throughout the NASCAR Sprint Cup standings.
Here’s what could happen: Keselowski, now the leader the in the Wild Card standings, could move into the top 10. Ryan Newman would then likely become the top Wild Card driver. Kasey Kahne, now on the outside looking in, would take the No. 2 Wild Card spot. And, if Edwards were to fall out of the top 10, he’d now be on the outside looking in.
There are lots of ‘ifs,’ that’s for sure. Those scenarios get even more questionable after a quick glance at Keselowski’s past history at Dover. In four starts, he has yet to finish in the top 10. His best finish was 13th in last year’s spring Dover race.
Rising From The Ashes: Busch Hopes Resurgence Begins At Site Of Last Win
Kurt Busch joined Phoenix Racing for the 2012 season, and questions soon followed. One stood above the others: Could his remarkable talent translate well with the small, single-car operation? Others splintered from there: Would he still be a title contender? Would he compete for wins? Would he decline?Bad luck has clouded any answers to the above questions. Busch has consistently encountered racing oddities: unfortunate accidents, car issues, late tire problems. Busch has only one top-10 finish (a ninth at Auto Club Speedway), and has finished on the lead lap in only three races.
But he has performed better lately – though his finishes might suggest otherwise. Despite finishing 20th or worse in each of the last three races, his Driver Rating over that span (79.2) ranks 17th among drivers who have started each race.
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Etc.
This weekend's NSCS race marks the final broadcast on FOX. TNT will follow with six races starting at Pocono. ESPN/ABC will broadcast the final 17. … Milestone Marker: Four-time NSCS champion, Jeff Gordon will attempt to post his 400th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series top-10 finish this weekend. He is fifth on the NSCS all-time top-10 finishes list with 399, behind fourth-place Dale Earnhardt with 428. … Dale Earnhardt Jr. will attempt to post his 100th NSCS top-five finish this weekend. He has made 24 starts at Dover, posting one win and four top fives. … Ryan Newman will attempt to post his 50th NSCS pole. Newman comes into Dover with the best average starting position among active drivers (9.9) … For the past six years, Dover International Speedway has partnered with Autism Speaks, and this weekend drivers across all three series have stepped up to raise awareness for the cause by featuring a decal of the Autism Speaks puzzle-piece logo on their cars/trucks. The event marks the first-ever autism-friendly NASCAR race and gives families an opportunity to experience a NASCAR race in an environment specifically designed for the enjoyment of children with autism. … The NASCAR industry is just nine days away from a major social media milestone as the recently announced partnership between NASCAR and Twitter officially kicks off for Pocono weekend with the launch of the new live event experience. Most active on Sunday, June 10, www.twitter.com/#NASCAR will feature a behind-the-scenes look at the sport from the people who make the sport go. Part editorial and part algorithmic, this new live event product will be a complementary experience to the race broadcast on TNT and will feature the best-of-the-best photos, information and more from Pocono.Stenhouse, Sadler Outstanding Points Battle Part II
Eleven races down and the sequel to last season’s epic points battle between Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Elliott Sadler is in full swing. Only 13 points separate the two rivals.Standings leader Stenhouse has seemed virtually invincible with three wins, seven top fives and nine top 10s, but last weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway the No. 6 team stumbled – finally. A broken drive shaft relegated Stenhouse to a 26th-place finish, the worst of his season. While second in the standings, Sadler capitalized, posting his sixth top five of the season to slash 21 points off his deficit.
Heading to Dover this weekend, the competition looks to get even closer. Stenhouse finished fourth and Sadler finished sixth in this event last season. Stenhouse has made four series starts at Dover, posting two top fives with an average finish of 9.5; while Sadler has made eight series starts at Dover, posting three top 10s with an average finish of 14.9.
And let’s not forget, Austin Dillon is lurking in third place, 28 points out of first. Dillon, the 2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion and current NASCAR Nationwide Series Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings leader, is the highest-ranked rookie in the points since David Ragan in 2007. He’ll be making his series track debut on Saturday.
Double-Duty Drivers Try Their Luck At Dover
After a white-hot start to the season that saw three NNS and one NCWTS driver championship contenders win three of the first four races, double-duty drivers seem to have realized the gauntlet had been thrown. Over the last seven NNS races, double-duty drivers have won five. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.’s win at Texas is the last victory by a non-Cup driver at a combination event this year.Among those double-duty wins, Joey Logano has three. The former NASCAR K&N Pro Series East champion will be in the No. 18 Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing at Dover. He’s been second twice among his six series races at the Monster Mile – where he made his NASCAR national series debut in this race in 2006, finishing sixth. Logano’s teammate Brian Scott will be pulling double-duty, as well, participating in the NCWTS race Friday afternoon. Scott posted his sole NASCAR national series victory at Dover in the NCWTS in 2009.
Kurt Busch, the other full-time Cup series driver of note, has one of the double-duty wins this year, which also was the inaugural Nationwide Series victory for Kyle Busch Motorsports. He’ll be in the No. 54 at Dover, where his younger brother has three wins, tied for most among all series drivers.
Full-time NCWTS drivers Brendan Gaughan, James Buescher and Parker Kligerman will also be competing in the 5-Hour Energy 200 on Saturday. Gaughan has been driving part-time in the series for Richard Childress Racing in the No. 33 Chevrolet. He has made four series career starts at Dover with an average finish of 15.0. Buescher is driving for Turner Motorsports. He has one start at Dover, last fall, where he finished eighth. Westport, Conn., native Parker Kligerman, who was eighth in his series season debut two weeks ago at Iowa, will be in the No. 22 Penske Racing Dodge this week in Brad Keselowski’s stead. This will be Kligerman’s second series start of the season and his track debut at Dover.
The ‘Other’ Truex Looks To Make Most Of Big-Stage Opportunity
Ryan Truex, 20, won back-to-back titles, in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East, wrapping each of them up at his home track at Dover. But the Mayetta, N.J., native is still chasing a full-time ride in the series and capitalizing on this weekend’s opportunity at Dover might be another step in that direction.Truex has had limited NASCAR Nationwide Series starts over the last three seasons and this year has four starts for three different teams. His best finishes have come with Joe Gibbs Racing, where he’s registered five of his six career top 10s, including his career-best fourth-place finish at Richmond last September. Truex will be driving the No. 20 Toyota for JGR this weekend. Last fall, Truex started fifth and finished eighth for JGR at the Monster Mile.
Watch for Truex to contend this weekend. He has a pre-race Driver Rating of 96.0 (10th-best in the series), which is better than both standings leader Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Elliott Sadler.
NASCAR Nationwide Series, Etc.
Danica Patrick is a career-best ninth in the standings and makes her second NNS go-round at Dover this weekend. She also finished sixth in the K&N Pro Series East event in 2010 prior to her NNS track debut, where she was 35th. Patrick has a 2012 season-to-date Driver Rating of 74.5 (13th best in the series) after 11 races. … Brad Sweet gets another turn in the No. 38 Turner Motorsports Chevrolet. He shares the ride with his World of Outlaws boss Kasey Kahne, who won the Coca-Cola 600 last Sunday night at CMS. … Kevin Lepage, from Shelburne, Vt., races near home this weekend. He won his first NNS pole at Dover in 1998. … Tim Bainey Jr. makes his series debut at Dover. He also made his first NCWTS start there in 2009, finishing a career-best 15th. Bainey, 34, is from Phillipsburg, Pa. … The manufacturers’ title continues to stay close after the first 11 races with Toyota in the lead with 67 points, followed by Chevrolet (64 points), Ford (59 points) and Dodge (52 points).Dover, 2012 Season Share Common Thread: Competitive Balance
The 2012 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season and Dover International Speedway are mirror images of each other and here’s why:Justin Lofton became the fifth different winner in the first five races, capturing the checkered flag at Charlotte Motor Speedway – earning the first series victory for Eddie Sharp Racing. The last season in which there were five winners in the first five races was 2005. The season’s winners also include three first-time winners: Lofton, John King (Daytona) and James Buescher (Kansas).
Dover has a similar stat. The "Monster Mile" has hosted 11 different winners in the last 12 races held at the concrete raceway, including five first-time winners: Jason Leffler (2003), Chad Chaffin (2004), Scott Speed (2008), Brian Scott (2009), Aric Almirola (2010).
So, that begs the question: Who has the best chance of becoming the sixth first-time winner in the Lucas Oil 200 on Friday to keep the streak alive?
Five drivers inside the top 10 remain winless – Ty Dillon, Parker Kligerman, Jason White, Nelson Piquet Jr. and Joey Coulter.
Dillon – who leads the Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings – arguably leads the charge as the favorite to become number six at Dover. Dillon comes into the weekend with five consecutive top-10 finishes, but has never raced at the Monster Mile.
‘Autism Speaks’ Close To Home For Terry Cook
Red Horse Racing’s two trucks will be sporting the increasingly popular blue Autism Speaks puzzle pieces this weekend at Dover, with good reason: General Manager Terry Cook deals with the disease on a daily basis.Cook’s battle began when doctors told him that his son, Cody, displayed symptoms of autism – making him another member of the NASCAR family that had a personal stake in spreading awareness about the disorder.
Cody was just 18 months old when he was diagnosed with Pervasive Developmental Disorder – Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS). His doctors lauded Terry and his wife, Amy East, a former ESPN pit road commentator during the old truck series days, for bringing him in as soon as he started showing signs.
Ever since, early intervention has been the key message the Cooks have spread when raising autism awareness.
Before he hung up his helmet in 2009, Cook used his platform as a successful NCWTS driver to educate others. The No. 60 Toyota he drove for Wyler Racing in 2008’s O’Reilly Auto Parts 250 featured a special Autism Speaks paint job, and the six-time winner also carried the blue puzzle piece on his hood in 2009’s race when driving for HT Motorsports. He was one of the first of many NASCAR drivers who have since raced with the special paint scheme.
Name Game: Burton Does Family Proud During Rookie Season
It’s clear Jeb Burton has racing in his blood.Sure, the Burton name gives him away – but so does his confidence and skill behind the wheel of a race truck. His results over his first four starts in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series speak for themselves – the John Doe moniker could be attached for all that mattered.
The 19-year-old who grew up on racing’s biggest stage is making a splash of his own in his first season driving in one of NASCAR’s national series.
Burton picked up Sunoco Rookie of the Race in his career-best eighth-place finish nearly two weeks ago at Charlotte. His first top-10 result in the No. 27 State Water Heaters Chevrolet came on the heels of the worst performance of his young career at Kansas, where he was wrecked out of the field to end 36th.
It is noteworthy that Kansas is the only of Burton’s four races in which he did not end on the lead lap. All of those finishes were in the top 15, to boot.
His eighth-place result at Charlotte was no fluke, either, as he ran more than half of the laps in the top 15 (55.2%) and climbed as high as third. The Sunoco Rookie of the Year contender shot five spots up the overall points standings to 20th.
Burton will now look to Dover, and continuing the success of the Burton name at the one-mile track. His father, Ward, had six combined top 10s at Dover during his NASCAR Sprint Cup and NASCAR Nationwide Series career. His uncle, Jeff, twice won at Dover, once in NSCS competition and once in NNS. Both wins came in 2006.
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