New Hampshire Motor Speedway - Lenox Industrial Tools 301
Danni
RESULTS
1. Kurt!
2. Michael!
4. Martin
7. Casey
16. Brian
19. David
24. Dale Jr.
Although it looks simple enough, New Hampshire is a very challenging track for both the drivers and the crew chiefs. With a rookie like Pat Carpentier on the pole, I'm sure a lot of people were expecting a disasterous start of the race, but Patrick was very impressive. He not only led the first lap, but three more afterwards! When he finally got passed by Kevin Harvick, he still maintained a top-10 run for quite some time.
Junior would eventually pass Harvick for the lead and drove around at the front for 29 circuits. Green flag pit stops began. Usually the leader waits some time before pitting, but there is a point when it's too long. It appeared that a combination of this and a prolonged stop dropped Dale considerably in the running order by the time the cycle ended.
The first caution came out when Dario Franchitti spun. I cringed to see that David was involved! It was ruled a racing incident - David went up slightly as Franchitti went down. I did feel for Franchitti because he was running right around 20th when it happened. However, the caution was a savior for Michael, who had been racing the leader hard to stay on the lead lap.
Then the wild pit strategy commenced. Casey stayed out, claiming that his car was perfect, and Brian also denied a pit stop to restart in 2nd. While the #83 struggled slightly with old tires, Casey shot away from the field and led for 53 laps before the next caution came out. It always makes me smile to see someone who get fired from his team perform so well - kind of like a "Look what you'll be missing!" statement.
It also helps in showcasing yourself to future rides.
With about 100 to go, none of our drivers were doing poorly. Michael was right around 25th - not stellar, but certainly better than the beginning of the year! David was in the top-20, while Kurt was just outside the top-10. It was also around this time that weather became another topic, as a large thundercell was making it's way toward the track. Liking where my guys were sitting, I had no issue with rain, but it kind of irritated me to think that the race didn't go green until 2:15 when it could have started at 1:30. But more on that in a later blog.
Everyone else was aware of the skies and it was pretty obvious as things picked up on the track. David nearly got wrecked by Aric Almirola but was saved when Jamie McMurray got into the back the #8 and shot him up the track. Almirola would later get spun by Kasey Kahne, bringing out another yellow. Interestingly enough, a handful of laps after the next restart, Kahne got turned around by Almirola! Now, I didn't hear anything from the booth about the apparent retaliation penalty, but Jayski's race rundown shows Almirola getting a safety violation penalty (no reason given) and coming to pit road on Lap 284, which was when the rain started.
So I have no idea what happened there.
The race began a long green flag run and tensions were high because nobody could make it all the way on fuel, yet no one wanted to pit for fear of rain. On Lap 271, a very strange incident occurred. Dale Jr. suddenly pulled down from the middle of the track in Turn 4 to dive onto pit lane when McMurray, who had been running low, plowed into the back of him, also taking out David Ragan as he tried to get by. I was disappointed and confused - what happened to the communication? It's common knowledge to indicate on the backstretch that you're going to pit that time by or have the spotter alert the others. It also was odd that Junior cut so sharply onto pit road, so much that he would have nearly hit the cone if he hadn't been wrecked. Matt Kenseth nearly ran into him as well. So even though McMurray took total blame for the crash (what else was he supposed to do... he wrecked Junior
), I saw plenty of things the #88 team did wrong. Ironically, McMurray ended up sustaining the most damage while Junior was able to finish on the lead lap.
So in an odd twist of fate, Dale Jr. thanked Michael for allowing him to win at Michigan by bringing out a caution that allowed Michael to pit for fuel and stay out in 2nd during the following caution some nine laps later. Kurt and Martin also took advantage of the Lap 271 yellow and also had enough fuel to complete the race, so they stayed out on Lap 280 as well - they restarted 1st and 4th, respectively. It was smart strategy and paid off even more when only two laps of racing occurred before the final caution came out when Clint Bowyer and Sam Hornish wrecked. The yellow was then prolonged when Juan Pablo Montoya decided he didn't like being raced and hooked Kyle Busch under caution, nearly taking out several other cars (including David) in the process. But sadly for Montoya, he wasn't good enough to not get involved in the crash himself, for Kyle turned the wheel the other way and hit the side of the #42, spinning him. I was infuriated with Montoya - they showed the entire span from the restart to the hook and I saw absolutely nothing wrong with what Kyle did. He didn't race Montoya rough! Ugh! I guess you could say that Kyle got the last laugh when NASCAR penalized Montoya two laps for rough driving, but Kyle was the one with the wrecked car.
Then the rain began pouring down. From looking at the radar, it was clear that NASCAR would call the race and I wasn't surprised at how quickly it happened. I was thrilled for Kurt and Michael because they really needed finishes like these. Unfortunately, the bad weather prevented much of a post-race (except for the monstrosity that was the NASCAR.com one, but I won't even give them that attention). There is also some controversy about the top-3, which included JJ Yeley, a driver who has struggled tremendously this year. People are saying they only finished so well because of the rain. While it is true that they may not have finished 1st, 2nd and 3rd without the rain, they were pretty much guaranteeed top-5s because they had enough fuel while everyone else had to pit. So it wasn't a rain race - just another fuel mileage race. And no, just because several of my drivers benefitted as a result does not make me like mileage races! But they played the game that has become NASCAR this year so they deserve to be where they finished!
Some of the drivers got hurt by the fuel strategy, including Brian and David. Brian took two tires while David took four and though their finishes are not bad, they were both running better. David was his typical strong and steady self and it was great to see the #44 team back in regular form!
Everyone benefitted in the point standings, especially Martin, who got very close to the Chase, and Michael, who made a leap up the ladder and is now a solid 152 points ahead of 36th in owner standings! Hopefully both will continue the good runs and good luck and make big strides in the coming weeks.
#44 Quotes of the Race
During a caution.
Ryan: "All right, nice and smooth. Use long gears. How are you feeling? All right?"
David: "10-4."
Ryan: "We'll be staying out. I don't know if you need a drink or something."
David: "Yeah, like you'd let me stop if I needed a drink!"
Ryan: "No, I'll send Nate [possibly Nathan Kennedy, a mechanic on the team] to give you one! [Pause] Nice job, man. You're doing great."
POINT STANDINGS
1. Kyle Busch
3. Dale Jr. -144
14. Martin -551 (-71 from the Chase)
16. Brian -593 (-113 from the Chase)
18. Kurt -702
23. Casey -839
27. David -1000
29. Michael -1075
1. Kurt!
2. Michael!
4. Martin
7. Casey
16. Brian
19. David
24. Dale Jr.
Although it looks simple enough, New Hampshire is a very challenging track for both the drivers and the crew chiefs. With a rookie like Pat Carpentier on the pole, I'm sure a lot of people were expecting a disasterous start of the race, but Patrick was very impressive. He not only led the first lap, but three more afterwards! When he finally got passed by Kevin Harvick, he still maintained a top-10 run for quite some time.
Junior would eventually pass Harvick for the lead and drove around at the front for 29 circuits. Green flag pit stops began. Usually the leader waits some time before pitting, but there is a point when it's too long. It appeared that a combination of this and a prolonged stop dropped Dale considerably in the running order by the time the cycle ended.
The first caution came out when Dario Franchitti spun. I cringed to see that David was involved! It was ruled a racing incident - David went up slightly as Franchitti went down. I did feel for Franchitti because he was running right around 20th when it happened. However, the caution was a savior for Michael, who had been racing the leader hard to stay on the lead lap.
Then the wild pit strategy commenced. Casey stayed out, claiming that his car was perfect, and Brian also denied a pit stop to restart in 2nd. While the #83 struggled slightly with old tires, Casey shot away from the field and led for 53 laps before the next caution came out. It always makes me smile to see someone who get fired from his team perform so well - kind of like a "Look what you'll be missing!" statement.
It also helps in showcasing yourself to future rides.With about 100 to go, none of our drivers were doing poorly. Michael was right around 25th - not stellar, but certainly better than the beginning of the year! David was in the top-20, while Kurt was just outside the top-10. It was also around this time that weather became another topic, as a large thundercell was making it's way toward the track. Liking where my guys were sitting, I had no issue with rain, but it kind of irritated me to think that the race didn't go green until 2:15 when it could have started at 1:30. But more on that in a later blog.
Everyone else was aware of the skies and it was pretty obvious as things picked up on the track. David nearly got wrecked by Aric Almirola but was saved when Jamie McMurray got into the back the #8 and shot him up the track. Almirola would later get spun by Kasey Kahne, bringing out another yellow. Interestingly enough, a handful of laps after the next restart, Kahne got turned around by Almirola! Now, I didn't hear anything from the booth about the apparent retaliation penalty, but Jayski's race rundown shows Almirola getting a safety violation penalty (no reason given) and coming to pit road on Lap 284, which was when the rain started.
So I have no idea what happened there.The race began a long green flag run and tensions were high because nobody could make it all the way on fuel, yet no one wanted to pit for fear of rain. On Lap 271, a very strange incident occurred. Dale Jr. suddenly pulled down from the middle of the track in Turn 4 to dive onto pit lane when McMurray, who had been running low, plowed into the back of him, also taking out David Ragan as he tried to get by. I was disappointed and confused - what happened to the communication? It's common knowledge to indicate on the backstretch that you're going to pit that time by or have the spotter alert the others. It also was odd that Junior cut so sharply onto pit road, so much that he would have nearly hit the cone if he hadn't been wrecked. Matt Kenseth nearly ran into him as well. So even though McMurray took total blame for the crash (what else was he supposed to do... he wrecked Junior
), I saw plenty of things the #88 team did wrong. Ironically, McMurray ended up sustaining the most damage while Junior was able to finish on the lead lap.So in an odd twist of fate, Dale Jr. thanked Michael for allowing him to win at Michigan by bringing out a caution that allowed Michael to pit for fuel and stay out in 2nd during the following caution some nine laps later. Kurt and Martin also took advantage of the Lap 271 yellow and also had enough fuel to complete the race, so they stayed out on Lap 280 as well - they restarted 1st and 4th, respectively. It was smart strategy and paid off even more when only two laps of racing occurred before the final caution came out when Clint Bowyer and Sam Hornish wrecked. The yellow was then prolonged when Juan Pablo Montoya decided he didn't like being raced and hooked Kyle Busch under caution, nearly taking out several other cars (including David) in the process. But sadly for Montoya, he wasn't good enough to not get involved in the crash himself, for Kyle turned the wheel the other way and hit the side of the #42, spinning him. I was infuriated with Montoya - they showed the entire span from the restart to the hook and I saw absolutely nothing wrong with what Kyle did. He didn't race Montoya rough! Ugh! I guess you could say that Kyle got the last laugh when NASCAR penalized Montoya two laps for rough driving, but Kyle was the one with the wrecked car.
Then the rain began pouring down. From looking at the radar, it was clear that NASCAR would call the race and I wasn't surprised at how quickly it happened. I was thrilled for Kurt and Michael because they really needed finishes like these. Unfortunately, the bad weather prevented much of a post-race (except for the monstrosity that was the NASCAR.com one, but I won't even give them that attention). There is also some controversy about the top-3, which included JJ Yeley, a driver who has struggled tremendously this year. People are saying they only finished so well because of the rain. While it is true that they may not have finished 1st, 2nd and 3rd without the rain, they were pretty much guaranteeed top-5s because they had enough fuel while everyone else had to pit. So it wasn't a rain race - just another fuel mileage race. And no, just because several of my drivers benefitted as a result does not make me like mileage races! But they played the game that has become NASCAR this year so they deserve to be where they finished!
Some of the drivers got hurt by the fuel strategy, including Brian and David. Brian took two tires while David took four and though their finishes are not bad, they were both running better. David was his typical strong and steady self and it was great to see the #44 team back in regular form!
Everyone benefitted in the point standings, especially Martin, who got very close to the Chase, and Michael, who made a leap up the ladder and is now a solid 152 points ahead of 36th in owner standings! Hopefully both will continue the good runs and good luck and make big strides in the coming weeks.
#44 Quotes of the Race
During a caution.
Ryan: "All right, nice and smooth. Use long gears. How are you feeling? All right?"
David: "10-4."
Ryan: "We'll be staying out. I don't know if you need a drink or something."
David: "Yeah, like you'd let me stop if I needed a drink!"
Ryan: "No, I'll send Nate [possibly Nathan Kennedy, a mechanic on the team] to give you one! [Pause] Nice job, man. You're doing great."
POINT STANDINGS
1. Kyle Busch
3. Dale Jr. -144
14. Martin -551 (-71 from the Chase)
16. Brian -593 (-113 from the Chase)
18. Kurt -702
23. Casey -839
27. David -1000
29. Michael -1075
