All is not lost for Gordon. He and his No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet team just need a change of luck – of the kind teammates Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kasey Kahne have enjoyed over the past month.
Gordon admits qualifying for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup™ will come through trips to Victory Lane. He's 94 points behind current 10th-place Clint Bowyer but a single point outside the top 20 and "wild card" territory.
Following the season's 26th race on Sept. 8 at Richmond International Raceway, the Chase field will be set. The top 10 drivers in points automatically advance to the post season along with two competitors ranked 11th through 20th with the most wins.
Current "wild card" leaders are Brad Keselowski, 11th with two victories, and Ryan Newman, 13th with a single win. Kahne, who won the Coca-Cola 600, is 14th, a point behind Newman.
Eighth through 12th positions are separated by 17 points. A shake-up there would truly complicate the "wild card" picture. Three-time and defending champion Tony Stewart, eighth, counts two victories. Ninth-place Kyle Busch also has a win.
Gordon had lean years from 2008 through 2010, winning just once. But he bounced back last season with three victories and made the Chase for the seventh time. Given the circumstances, the 40-year-old California native must duplicate 2012 and has just 13 races to do so.
History is on Gordon's side. Gordon has won on every track comprising the summer schedule save Kentucky Speedway, which was added to the NASCAR Sprint Cup lineup a year ago. He's won both road races at Sonoma and Watkins Glen and is a five-time Indianapolis Brickyard 400 victor.
"We've had things out of our control this year," said Gordon, whose season-to-date Driver Rating ranks 12th despite his 21st-place points position. "We don't care about finishing top 15 or top 10 right now. That does nothing for us. We need wins."
Pocono: New Pavement, New Race Distance
Pocono Raceway is unlike any track on the NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule: Three distinctly different turns and three straightaways of varying lengths and top speeds.But this week, there are two new wrinkles. Pocono's surface has received its first new coat of asphalt since 1995. And for the first time in the track's history, neither 2012 race will be a 500-miler. Both Sunday's Pocono 400 and August's Pennsylvania 400 will be scheduled for 160 laps/400 miles over the 2.5-mile layout that became a part of NASCAR's premier series in 1974.
This also will be the first race since January's passing of Pocono founder Joseph "Doc" Mattioli. Each car in the starting field will carry a special decal in "Doc's" memory.
Goodyear Tire tests suggest the "new" Pocono can be summed up in one word: speed. Smooth is another description that comes to mind. Teams test Wednesday and Thursday in advance of the weekend's schedule.
Last year's Pocono 400 winner Jeff Gordon said crew chiefs can leave their notes at the shop. "I am definitely not thinking about being the defending champion of that race at all just because there is nothing to compare to with a repave," said Gordon, whose five wins are tied with Bill Elliott for the all-time Pocono lead. "I think there is very little that we're probably going to have in our set-up that would compare to what we had there last year."
Jimmie Johnson said repaving shouldn't be a radical departure from the past because the same kind of materials were used in both old and new asphalt.
"Normally, it's an edgy race track regardless of the tire that you come with on a new repave," said Johnson, whose two Pocono victories came in 2004. "It sounds like we didn't have that [during the test] and Pocono made sure they used the same mix, the same asphalt that we were racing on.
"I would imagine that it's going to be super smooth and really fast."
Greg Biffle won the track's August race in 2010. He looks forward to the new format and thinks the fans should too. "I think the racing being shortened to 400 miles will create some excitement with the fan," said the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points leader. "There will be more urgency to go and different strategy."
Biffle's Chase Hopes Secure: Title No Guarantee
History says current points leader Greg Biffle will qualify for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup™.Every driver ranked No. 1 regular season's midway point has reached the Chase. Only Jimmie Johnson in 2006 has gone on to win the championship.
Over the format's eight previous years, only two midway leaders have finished worse than fifth: Kyle Busch, 10th in 2008, and Tony Stewart, sixth in 2009. The last two mid-point leaders, Carl Edwards and Kevin Harvick, finished second and third respectively.
Biffle leads Roush Fenway Racing teammate Matt Kenseth by a single point entering Sunday's Pocono 400 presented by #NASCAR. Kenseth could take over the No. 1 position by finishing as few as two positions higher than Biffle depending upon how lap leader bonus points fall. Biffle has been the leader for 11 consecutive races beginning March 11 in Las Vegas.
The first 13 races of the 2012 season have seen nine different winners from five teams and all four manufacturers. The list of winning drivers from a year ago who haven't won is lengthy. It includes Edwards, Harvick, Jeff Gordon, Kurt Busch, Clint Bowyer, David Ragan, Marcos Ambrose, Paul Menard, Regan Smith and Trevor Bayne.
Edwards' 2011 Proving A Tough Act To Follow
Carl Edwards, who finished in a points tie with NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Tony Stewart to finish the 2011 season, fell out of the top 10 at Dover after a 26th-place finish, his third finish of the year outside the top 25.Now 12th, Edwards would miss the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup if the season ended today. But it doesn't. So no need to fret just yet.
One mild worry – and it could be completely coincidental – is that Edwards is following an unfortunate pattern suffered by championship runner-ups. The season after the runner-up campaign has often trended downward.
In 2011, Denny Hamlin finished ninth after his runner-up finish in 2010. Prior to that, Mark Martin went from second to 13th; Edwards, himself, went from second in 2008 to 11th in 2009; Jeff Gordon went from second in 2007 to seventh in 2008.
Not since Matt Kenseth in 2006-07 has a championship runner-up followed up with a points finish in the top five.
But the NSCS is only at the halfway point of the season, and Edwards has some favorites coming up – notably this weekend at Pocono Raceway.
Edwards has two wins at Pocono, including one in his first visit in June of 2005. His pre-race Driver Rating of 98.4 at Pocono ranks sixth in the series.
Nothing Tricky About It For Hamlin
Denny Hamlin doesn't understand the nickname "Tricky Triangle." Pocono's unique layout, with three corners (all of them different) and three straightaways has given some drivers fits – hence the alliterative Tricky Triangle moniker.But not Hamlin. In his first visit to the 2.5-mile track, Hamlin won the pole and won the race. In his second visit, he did the same. In all, Hamlin has four victories, one short of the all-time lead, and has boasted double-digit laps led figures in each of the last five races.
His Driver Rating at Pocono – 118.6 – is tops in the series. His average finish of 9.7 is second-best, and would likely be better if not for some bad luck in last year's Pocono events. Though he led the most laps in each race, his finishes were 19th (mechanical issues) and 15th (pit road issue), respectively.
Hamlin, with new crew chief Darian Grubb, has excelled this season. Currently fourth in points, Hamlin is tied for the series lead in wins (two) and has six top fives and seven top 10s.
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Etc.
Launching this weekend and built to support the live TNT race broadcast, a new Twitter experience will give #NASCAR fans a complementary insider's view of the action as it unfolds on the track and on Twitter. During a race, when fans click on #NASCAR, search for #NASCAR on twitter.com or visit twitter.com/#NASCAR, they'll reach a new Twitter experience where they will see the most relevant tweets from their favorite NASCAR drivers, NASCAR families, teams, commentators, celebrities and other racing fans and personalities. ... NASCAR will honor sailors representing the US Navy Operational Support Center (NOSC) Lehigh Valley on Sunday at Pocono Raceway through an initiative called "Troops to the Track," which invites active duty, wounded warriors, veterans, and military families to races throughout the year for NASCAR-style VIP experiences. The program is part of the "NASCAR Unites – An American Salute" patriotic initiative involving the NASCAR community and fans during a six-week summer period between Memorial Day and Independence Day weekend to support U.S. military families. More information can be found at NASCAR.com/Unites. … Milestone Watch: Ryan Newman continues the hunt to become the ninth driver to reach 50 Coors Light Poles. He has two poles at Pocono, most recently in 2007. … Jeff Gordon looks to become the fifth driver to reach 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series top-10 finishes. … David Gilliland will make his 200th NSCS start.Richard Childress Racing Back On Top In More Ways Than One
Capitalizing on wins and consistency is the key to championships and Richard Childress Racing's Elliott Sadler has done just that. Twelve races into the season and Sadler has regained the standings lead.Leaving Iowa a few weeks ago, it looked as though Roush Fenway Racing's Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was about to pull away from Sadler, but bad luck struck quickly and two consecutive finishes outside the top 25 later, Sadler has assumed the standings lead for the first time since Richmond.
Sadler finished seventh this past weekend at Dover, posting a series-leading 10th top-10 finish. Now 12 points separate Sadler and Stenhouse, but Sadler isn't blind to his competition's resiliency and prowess.
"We know as a team that the No. 6 car (Stenhouse) is really going to run good week in and week out," Sadler said. "We just have to keep our performance up, but we know the No. 6 isn't going to have problems every day."
Sadler is correct. Prior to a 26th at Charlotte and 32nd at Dover, Stenhouse had rallied off three wins and a series-leading seven top fives.
Thus far, Sadler e has a season-to-date Driver Rating of 110.0, two poles, two wins and six top fives.
Sadler's RCR teammates, Ty and Austin Dillon, also have starring roles. Ty, younger brother of Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidate Austin, finished eighth in his series debut. Not to be outdone, Austin finished sixth and also moved into the championship picture. He sits third in the standings, 14 points behind Sadler and only two behind Stenhouse.
Dynamic Duo: Logano And Stevens Have Taken Off
Lately, it seems like all Joey Logano and Adam Stevens can do is win.The Joe Gibbs Racing duo has been teamed together in the NASCAR Nationwide Series since Jason Ratcliff, former NNS crew chief, was promoted to the No. 20 Toyota team in the NSCS. While most transitional periods have their rough times, this one has quickly gotten off the ground.
"Working with Adam has been great; he is doing an awesome job." Logano said. "Our communication is right where it needs to be and a lot of that has to do with last year. We struggled a little bit and we were really able to diagnose some of the things we can do better as a team and make our cars better."
Dating back to Daytona in 2011, the pair has competed in 29 NNS races together, posting five wins, three poles and an average finish of 8.3.
Joe Gibbs is in search of his fourth owners' championship, which would tie him for the most all-time with Richard Childress. Gibbs currently has three, second-most, tied with William Baumgardener.
Logano and Stevens have been keys in the JGR initiative of seeking an owners' championship this season. The No. 18 team was sixth in the owner standings after Logano and Stevens' first win of the year at Auto Club Speedway. It then moved up to third after a second win at Talladega. JGR teammate Denny Hamlin's win at Charlotte in the No. 18 pushed the team past the No. 2 Richard Childress Racing team into first place, and Logano's Dover win has increased the No. 18's first-place advantage to 34 points.
Logano's victory at Dover was his 13th career NNS win, tying him for 22nd on the all-time NNS wins list with NASCAR Hall of Famer Darrell Waltrip and two-time NNS champion Martin Truex Jr. Among drivers with more than 10 wins in the NNS, Logano has the 13th-best all-time winning percentage in the series with a 13.2%. Logano (@joeylogano) participated in the NASCAR CAM Video Teleconference on Tuesday, June 6. Click here for teleconference audio.
NASCAR Nationwide Series, Etc.
In addition to presenting at the CMT Awards in Nashville this week, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. will take his sprint car to Eagle, Neb., for his first race of the year. … On June 7, Travis Pastrana takes some hot laps around Texas Motor Speedway with motorsports legend and 1967 Daytona 500 winner Mario Andretti. … Mike Wallace heads home to St. Louis to visit family and friends and watch his son Matt race Late Models at Lebanon I-44 Speedway, the same track on which Mike started his NASCAR career as track champion. … Jason Bowles plans on taking his No. 81 MacDonald Motorsports team out on the lake before the upcoming 16-week stretch that begins June 16 in Michigan. … Michael Annett has become an avid bowler in the last year and will work on his game this week. … Justin Allgaier (who celebrates his 26th birthday on June 6), Austin Dillon, Danica Patrick and Kenny Wallace are NNS drivers who will participate in Tony Stewart's Prelude to the Dream dirt Late Model race at Eldora Speedway on Wednesday. The annual charity event this year benefits Feed the Children. … Corey LaJoie, son of two-time NNS champion Randy, picked up a popular win last Saturday night at historic Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, N.C. – his first career win and the fifth different winner in five NASCAR K&N Pro Series East races. The series is right back at it this Saturday at Gresham Motorsports Park in Jefferson, Ga. Hendrick Motorsports' Chase Elliott leads the points by 16 over LaJoie and 20 over Rev Racing rookie Kyle Larson, in his first year with the NASCAR Drive for Diversity initiative.Winless Streak Done, Bodine Readies For Favorite Track
There is no such thing as a lock in NASCAR competition. But Todd Bodine as a winner comes pretty close at Texas Motor Speedway, which hosts Friday night's WinStar World Casino 400.Bodine, who broke a 38-race winless drought last week at Dover International Speedway, has won six times at the 1.5-mile Ft. Worth track – more than any other NASCAR national series driver. Last year was only the second since joining the series fulltime in 2004 that Bodine failed to win in the Lone Star State.
Friday's race will be the first for Bodine at Texas in anything but a Germain Racing-prepared truck. What began as a one-race deal for Daytona has Bodine likely seeking a third title with Red Horse Racing. He's sixth in the points standings, 37 behind leader Justin Lofton.
Five of Bodine's Texas wins have come in the spring, the track's longest race (167 laps, 250.5 miles). "I think we are able to wear everyone else out on the long runs. That's where I excel," Bodine said.
Tough Odds Beating This Three Of A Kind
Three drivers – Bodine, Brendan Gaughan and Ron Hornaday Jr. – are the best of the best at Texas Motor Speedway. The trio has won 13 of the last 20 races held at the Fort Worth track.Bodine and Hornaday have combined for five victories in the track's most recent eight races. Gaughan won a then-unprecedented four consecutive races at the Texas track in 2002-03. Hornaday initially experienced frustration in Texas, requiring 11 starts to get to Victory Lane in June 2008. He won that year's fall race, as well, and is the defending winner of the WinStar World Casino 400. Bodine won four of six starts from 2004-07 and is the last driver to win from the pole (2007). Gaughan is the only one of the three with a Texas-winning team. He'll drive the No. 2 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet that carried Kevin Harvick to victory last November.
The winner of the Texas spring race has gone on to become the series champion four times. Bodine did it most recently in 2010.
Rookie Winner Wouldn't Be Unprecedented In Texas
This could be the week that Ty Dillon puts an exclamation point on what became a record-setting consistency streak June 1 at Dover.The 20-year-old Dillon, sixth at Dover, has opened the 2012 season with six consecutive top-10 finishes. He'd shared the previous record with the late Ricky Hendrick set in 2001.
Dillon may be a freshman – and racing at Texas Motor Speedway for the first time – but he'll benefit by following in the footsteps of older brother Austin Dillon. The elder Dillon finished second to Harvick last November as he rolled to the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship.
Austin Dillon finished third in his 2008 Texas debut that also featured his first of a rookie record seven poles. He led three of his four starts for 67 laps.
Rookie Kenny Irwin Jr. won the WinStar World Casino 400 debut in 1997 followed by first-year contenders Boris Said and Rick Crawford. Travis Kvapil won the 2001 spring race as a rookie and Gaughan swept both races the following season in his debut as a full-time series competitor.
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