New Hampshire Motor Speedway - Sylvania 300
Danni
RESULTS
1. Greg Biffle
5. Dale Jr.
15. David
25. Michael
When the rains finally moved out - does the monsoon season follow NASCAR? - it was time for racing! The Chase was on and though the 12-driver championship format can lead to excitement, sometimes I tire of constantly hearing about the same guys over and over again when other drivers deserve recognition. On Sunday, ESPN finally did something right! David was heading into New Hampshire with two top-10s and as a result he was given a positive interview immediately into the broadcast!
I also had to laugh because while David was talking in front of the team hauler, Mitch Lash, the #44 jackman who saluted us at Pocono in June, walked out of the doors and conveniently began drinking a Coke. I've seen him do this several times before - sponsorship opportunity? 
Come on, Coke... you know to want to.
There was some apprehension because the two cars starting on the front row - Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards - struggled in practice and everyone seems to like the idea of races beginning with smoke and twisted sheet metal. Edwards was able to overcome his problems, but Kyle was stuck with a car he could do nothing with. After several laps, it was easy to see why - the right side of his car was dragging the track and slamming down into every corner. I don't know how the heck he didn't crash it. Apparently, the sway bar bolt broke. Interesting.
David was having a better time and made his way forward, but unlike the past two weeks he wasn't fond of his car. It's also difficult to pass at the flat 1-miler and the lapped traffic really held him back. However, Ryan and the guys made some good adjustments and David was just able to miss a large crash that caused a red flag - Shawn was so excited he brought it up more than once.
Near the end of the race I was almost sure he would get three top-10 finishes in a row, but cars on fresher tires were too much to fend off. I know the team was disappointed with 15th, but the media and David's competitors are taking notice! There is now even talk of the #44 team in victory lane - a long stretch from last year when the question was, "Will they even make the race?" Even if a win isn't in their near future, I expect them to continue to impress!
Dale Jr. had another one of his typical days - run good in the beginning, lead laps in the middle, fall off. But this time the #88 team rallied back at the end for a great result. I'm just starting to worry about Junior. When I found out that Rick Hendrick was on the pit box to give advice, I was admittedly embarrassed. It's disturbing to me that in spite of everything Dale Jr. has been through this year, he still has trouble communicating with Tony Jr. While some fans would view Mr. Hendrick's presence as an honor, I feel like he's there because Junior needs to be babysat! Junior is losing his cool more often when things don't go exactly his way. He was leading by a good chunk over Greg Biffle when green flag stops commenced, but afterward he characteristically struggled with the handling of the car and fell like a rock. Whether it was a bad set of tires or not, Junior's Goodyear-bashing meltdown was somewhat humiliating. I know he's frustrated - with only one fuel-mileage win this season, it's got to be a let-down. But even though he's running so much better than last year, he's acting the same way. I thought he'd be happier at HMS! Yet now he seems more depressed than ever. He hardly smiles anymore. His interviews are painful to watch. I don't know. I've followed Dale Jr. for five years now and I've never quite seen him like this. Was Tony Jr. a mistake? Everyone with half a brain knows he's an excellent crew chief, but Junior treats him like crap. Mr. Hendrick sitting up there like a referee proves that.
So I'm not sure what's going on. I'm hoping that eventually Junior will just relax and drive the car. The drama will not help them win a championship, that's for sure. I hope Mr. Hendrick will calm June down, but it's Junior who has to figure out how to adjust his communication with his cousin.
Michael's performance was greatly improved. Although he finished much worse than the first race here - 25th compared to 2nd - he ran more competitively. Pit strategy helped the #55 get into the top-20 after the first caution and Michael was able to pass more cars to drive into the top-15. But slow pit stops put him back near 30th and he went a lap down after battling leader Dale Jr. for many laps. That always makes me cringe because he both slowing Junior down and putting himself at risk of getting crashed. I know why he does it, though - it's just tense for me to watch. With enough cars down a lap, he was able to make up spots again but ran out of time. I guess you have to finish in the top-30 before you get top-20s and top-10s, so as long as the #55 team continues to make steps forward, I'll be satisfied.
I was really glad to see Biffle win! He's a good guy and often gets overlooked at Roush Racing (by Roush himself, too
). His emotion in Victory Lane surprised me! It was a good way to start the Chase.
#44 Quotes of the Race
Near the end of the race when things got tense under caution.
Shawn: "If you ever clear these lapped cars, David, you'll get that 29 and 24."
David: "If I'm close enough to the 11 again, I'm gonna get him too."
Ryan: "Let the 11 know we're not racing for points."
David: "He [Hamlin] just body-slammed us down in the corner, freakin' just drove into the back of me, so... you know... whatever. It's coming back around - he better not slow up."
Shawn: "He did that 'cause I think he feels like you cut him off off of [Turn] 2 over there."
David: "Yeeaah, well... he would be mistaken."
Ryan: "Please keep your composure!"
David: "Oh, I have composure. Just ask him about the twenty other times he ran over me, so we still got a long way to get even. So, he needs to think about that. I'm cool, though, I'm not really mad!"
Ryan: "Yeah, 10-4. You're doing fine, man."
POINT STANDINGS
1. Carl Edwards
4. Dale Jr. -50
----
13. Kasey Kahne
24. David -632 (-76 from 20th)
30. Michael -1080 (+79 from 36th in owner points)
1. Greg Biffle
5. Dale Jr.
15. David
25. Michael
When the rains finally moved out - does the monsoon season follow NASCAR? - it was time for racing! The Chase was on and though the 12-driver championship format can lead to excitement, sometimes I tire of constantly hearing about the same guys over and over again when other drivers deserve recognition. On Sunday, ESPN finally did something right! David was heading into New Hampshire with two top-10s and as a result he was given a positive interview immediately into the broadcast!
I also had to laugh because while David was talking in front of the team hauler, Mitch Lash, the #44 jackman who saluted us at Pocono in June, walked out of the doors and conveniently began drinking a Coke. I've seen him do this several times before - sponsorship opportunity? Come on, Coke... you know to want to.There was some apprehension because the two cars starting on the front row - Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards - struggled in practice and everyone seems to like the idea of races beginning with smoke and twisted sheet metal. Edwards was able to overcome his problems, but Kyle was stuck with a car he could do nothing with. After several laps, it was easy to see why - the right side of his car was dragging the track and slamming down into every corner. I don't know how the heck he didn't crash it. Apparently, the sway bar bolt broke. Interesting.
David was having a better time and made his way forward, but unlike the past two weeks he wasn't fond of his car. It's also difficult to pass at the flat 1-miler and the lapped traffic really held him back. However, Ryan and the guys made some good adjustments and David was just able to miss a large crash that caused a red flag - Shawn was so excited he brought it up more than once.
Near the end of the race I was almost sure he would get three top-10 finishes in a row, but cars on fresher tires were too much to fend off. I know the team was disappointed with 15th, but the media and David's competitors are taking notice! There is now even talk of the #44 team in victory lane - a long stretch from last year when the question was, "Will they even make the race?" Even if a win isn't in their near future, I expect them to continue to impress!Dale Jr. had another one of his typical days - run good in the beginning, lead laps in the middle, fall off. But this time the #88 team rallied back at the end for a great result. I'm just starting to worry about Junior. When I found out that Rick Hendrick was on the pit box to give advice, I was admittedly embarrassed. It's disturbing to me that in spite of everything Dale Jr. has been through this year, he still has trouble communicating with Tony Jr. While some fans would view Mr. Hendrick's presence as an honor, I feel like he's there because Junior needs to be babysat! Junior is losing his cool more often when things don't go exactly his way. He was leading by a good chunk over Greg Biffle when green flag stops commenced, but afterward he characteristically struggled with the handling of the car and fell like a rock. Whether it was a bad set of tires or not, Junior's Goodyear-bashing meltdown was somewhat humiliating. I know he's frustrated - with only one fuel-mileage win this season, it's got to be a let-down. But even though he's running so much better than last year, he's acting the same way. I thought he'd be happier at HMS! Yet now he seems more depressed than ever. He hardly smiles anymore. His interviews are painful to watch. I don't know. I've followed Dale Jr. for five years now and I've never quite seen him like this. Was Tony Jr. a mistake? Everyone with half a brain knows he's an excellent crew chief, but Junior treats him like crap. Mr. Hendrick sitting up there like a referee proves that.
So I'm not sure what's going on. I'm hoping that eventually Junior will just relax and drive the car. The drama will not help them win a championship, that's for sure. I hope Mr. Hendrick will calm June down, but it's Junior who has to figure out how to adjust his communication with his cousin.
Michael's performance was greatly improved. Although he finished much worse than the first race here - 25th compared to 2nd - he ran more competitively. Pit strategy helped the #55 get into the top-20 after the first caution and Michael was able to pass more cars to drive into the top-15. But slow pit stops put him back near 30th and he went a lap down after battling leader Dale Jr. for many laps. That always makes me cringe because he both slowing Junior down and putting himself at risk of getting crashed. I know why he does it, though - it's just tense for me to watch. With enough cars down a lap, he was able to make up spots again but ran out of time. I guess you have to finish in the top-30 before you get top-20s and top-10s, so as long as the #55 team continues to make steps forward, I'll be satisfied.
I was really glad to see Biffle win! He's a good guy and often gets overlooked at Roush Racing (by Roush himself, too
). His emotion in Victory Lane surprised me! It was a good way to start the Chase.#44 Quotes of the Race
Near the end of the race when things got tense under caution.
Shawn: "If you ever clear these lapped cars, David, you'll get that 29 and 24."
David: "If I'm close enough to the 11 again, I'm gonna get him too."
Ryan: "Let the 11 know we're not racing for points."
David: "He [Hamlin] just body-slammed us down in the corner, freakin' just drove into the back of me, so... you know... whatever. It's coming back around - he better not slow up."
Shawn: "He did that 'cause I think he feels like you cut him off off of [Turn] 2 over there."
David: "Yeeaah, well... he would be mistaken."
Ryan: "Please keep your composure!"
David: "Oh, I have composure. Just ask him about the twenty other times he ran over me, so we still got a long way to get even. So, he needs to think about that. I'm cool, though, I'm not really mad!"
Ryan: "Yeah, 10-4. You're doing fine, man."
POINT STANDINGS
1. Carl Edwards
4. Dale Jr. -50
----
13. Kasey Kahne
24. David -632 (-76 from 20th)
30. Michael -1080 (+79 from 36th in owner points)
