Clint Bowyer

NASCAR Stocks (Power Rankings): Sadler Shakes It Up

I’m quite sure this is notoriety that Elliott Sadler would rather live without. Without meaning to, the driver for Gillett Evernham has muddled our “Top 10″ by initiating a crash at Dover that wadded up 6 of the top 12 point getters in the 2008.

For my part, it will be hard to hold that against the drivers involved. However, there’s no denying that the race to some degree altered the outcome and opened the door for the likes of Greg Biffle, Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon to move up.

Here’s how things shake out today:

#10- Kasey Kahne- (unchanged from last week)- of all the top runners collected in the lap 18 wreck, Kahne had the best finish at 31st. I guess he can take comfort that in the old car, his day would have likely been done. I don’t think this is the follow up that Kasey had in mind to his win at Lowe’s.

#9- Denny Hamlin- (down 3 from 6th)- Denny came darn close to falling out with his last place finish, the result of the “big one” at the “Monster Mile.” What helps Hamlin is 9th place standing in terms of average finish with a 15.2 for the season. Weird to think he was the “hot one” just a few weeks back.

#8- Jimmie Johnson- (unranked last week)- Good “comeback week” for Jimmie. The defending champ never really challenged for the win,  yet a 7th place finish cannot be ignored.

#7- Clint Bowyer- (down 2 spots from 5th)- It’s been a rough “go” for Bowyer since his win at Richmond. What helps his standing now is that win, as well as his 3 tops 5’s, and 7 top 10’s.

#6- Greg Biffle- (unranked last week)- What a run for Biffle! Not only did he dominate the front end of the race at Dover, he also had a strong effort at Lowe’s, leading us to believe is he is the “real deal” for breaking into the Chase this year, after an up-and-down 2007.

#5- Jeff Gordon- (up 2 spots from 7th)- He may not have broke into the win column yet for 2008, but let there be no doubt that the “Rainbow Warrior” has it going in the right direction as of late with an average finish of 8.0 over his last 5 races- 2nd among our top 10.

#4- Dale Earnhardt Jr.- (down 2 from 2nd)-  Like his teammate Gordon, Earnhardt is one of the top drivers without a win. Junebug’s 9 top 10’s ties him for second with Jeff Burton and Carl Edwards. Junebug’s 5 top 5’s puts him 4th behind Kyle Busch, Edwards and Gordon. The naysayers are silenced, let it be known that Junior belongs!

#3- Jeff Burton- (up 1 spot from 4th)- “Mr. Consistency” comes through once again with his 8th place finish at Dover. Thi guy knows how to finish a race, even if his is not the best one out there. Finishing matters, and there’s no one better at it than Burton.

#2- Carl Edwards- (up 1 spot from 3rd)- He’d be in 2nd in the points, were it not for the penalty at Las Vegas. “Cousin Carl” solidifies his place near the top with his 2nd place run Sunday. Look for the Busch- Edwards rivalry to last for years to come. These guys ain’t going anywhere.

#1- Kyle Busch- (unchanged)- Busch is starting to get a little separation from the field. With his Dover victory, “Shrub” is the undisputed leader in wins and holds a 142 point lead over Burton in the Sprint Cup standings. What’s weird is to think that his Sprint Cup car was not as good last weekend as his Nationwide car or his truck. Busch gave credit to the shop and the crew, reminding us that even in this sport, where the driver gets all the glory, teamwork still matters.

Falling out: Tony Stewart becomes a hard-luck casualty after finishing 41st.

Knocking On The Door: David Ragan is still contending with an average finish of 10.6 over his last 5 races…For all the talk of bad luck, Matt Kenseth still has 7 top 10’s to his credit…Don’t discount Ryan Newman, especially if he can put a streak together…Kevin Harvick is a survivor. He could use a hot streak right about now.

Dark horses: If Brian Vickers could avoid the errors, and if Jamie McMurray and Dave Blaney can keep it up, they just might find their stock rising all the way into the top 10.

We’re heading down the straights coming out of the first turn, a lot can happen between now and the finish line.

 

NASCAR Stocks (Top 10 Rankings): Movin’ Up, Goin’ Down

It’s a tight field in the top ten, and the ranks keep shifting. What I like about this season, is you never really know what’s going to happen. I was lucky enough to predict Kasey Kahne’s victory, but the truth is that there’s very little separation from driver to driver. Things are a little different this week, and I think you’ll be surprised where some guy landed.

#10- Kasey Kahne- (unranked last week)- Can a little confidence make that much difference? Apart of the reason, I predicted a Kahne win was the way he carried himself during his press conference after the All-Star win. He’s gone from acting like a top 15 driver to acting like a champion. Gillett Evernham has benefited greatly on Ray Evernham’s emphasis on the racing side of things. They keep this up, and we’ll see Elliott Sadler in the chase!

#9- Greg Biffle- (unranked last week)- The two week run at Lowe’s has been good for “The Biff” too. Except for Kahne’s Coca-Cola 600 win, Biffle is better across the board than the “9.”

#8- Tony Stewart- (unchanged from last week)- A flat tire was all that kept him from winning at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. But have no fear Smoke fans, it ain’t July yet, and history tells us that Stewart heats up with the weather. Statistically, the “Big Orange” is just ahead of Biffle in terms of average finish, 14.7 to 15.1.

#7- Jeff Gordon- (up 2 spots from 9th last week)- Based on the way he ran most of the race, I never would have imagined him here. The way Gordon’s talking right now, he’s the “anti-Kahne.” Take it easy Jeff, you’re getting better. Your average finish of 9.6 is 4th behind Kyle Busch, Junior, and Jeff Burton.

#6- Denny Hamlin- (down 3 spots from 3rd last week)- I’m quite sure some members of Junior Nation feel like Denny’s 24th place finish was just desserts after Hamlin swatted JRM driver Brad Keselowski in the Nationwide Series Saturday night. Hamlin’s starting to fade, but his 4th place standing in the points reminds us of what he’s accomplished up until recently.

#5- Clint Bowyer- (up 1 spot from 6th last week)- Bowyer’s been kind of quiet since the traveling NASCAR circus came to Concord, but 1 win, 3 top 5s, and 7 top 10s cannot be ignored.

#4- Jeff Burton- (up 1 spot from 5th last week)- “Mr. Consistency” racked up another top 10, 6th in Sunday’s marathon race. All race long, you kind of forget he’s around, then, the checkered flag drops, and by golly, there he is. Burton is 2nd in the points, and tied for 3rd in top 10s with Carl Edwards- both racers have 8.

#3- Carl Edwards- (down from 2nd last week)- Did Edwards really race Sunday? I gotta say that’s just about the quietest top 10 anyone’s ever run. I think Carl lucked up on attrition, but hey, it’s all about where you are at the end, and the Missourian managed to miss all the mid-race fireworks and kept gas in his car.

#2- Dale Earnhardt Jr.- (up 2 from 4th last week)- Give Junior props for not quitting on his team Sunday. It would have been a legendary finish if he could have come back from the wreck with J.J. Yeley to take the checkered. Kinda makes you think of Earnhardt’s old man, doesn’t it? The only drivers more consistent than Lil “E” have been Kyle Busch and Burton.

#1- Kyle Busch- (unchanged from last week)- Love him or hate him, you can’t ignore him. Give “Rowdy” props for fighting through mechanical problems to finish 3rd at Lowe’s behind Kahne and Biffle. I thought the altercation with Gordon was childish, but that doens’t affect the points, it just solidifies his standing as “NASCAR’s resident bad boy.” Still, Busch keeps running like a scared jackrabbit.

Falling Out- Sorry Johnson fans, Jimmie’s 38th place finish hurt him this week. He’ll be back. David Ragan didn’t last long in the top 10, BUT  Ragan’s 12th place run Sunday reinforces the idea he’s capable of running up front and staying there.

Ready to Strike- Kevin Harvick is actually 7th in points, a couple of good races and he’ll be back. I’d also keep my eyes open for runs by Matt Kenseth, and maybe even Juan Montoya.

Up next is the “Monster Mile”- Dover. Check out tomorrow’s preview as we bring you another edition of “Pull Those Belts Tight!”

    

 

Fearless Forecast: Deja Vu at Charlotte?

It has to be a match made in Heaven when a driver rocks at his sponsor’s track. Of course, conspiracy theorists who say NASCAR is rigged have a field day with the fact that Jimmie Johnson has 5 victories at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. It would also be too easy to predict the “48″ as the winner of the Coca-Cola 600, especially given that he’s won the holiday marathon race 3 times.

But I’m not going to….

Don’t get me wrong, Jimmie is in the mix big time. I, for one, do not think his mojo is completely gone, and I believe he will be top 5 for the 2008 season. By the same token, something in my gut tells me he’s not winning this one. As a matter of fact, I’m going to go out on a limb and say that the best Hendrick performance will come from Jeff Gordon. Johnson still has some bouts of inconsistency with getting the car set up just right for him. In fact, I’ll go as far as to say that Johnson may be the surest evidence how difficult this car is to get a handle on for driving. By the same token, it’s like Jeff Burton said on “NASCAR Confidential” yesterday- it’s still way early yet, and in due time, teams will get it figured out. As for Dale Jr., my opinion is that he’s pressing and still over-driving his cars, something that does not bode well for a 600-mile race.

Speaking of people who over-drive their cars, I will go on record once again this week by saying Kyle Busch will NOT win. Granted, it wasn’t his fault that Joe Gibbs’ experimental engine bailed on him and cost him the win in the All-Star race. I am also aware that “Shrub” said he would work to not push his car over the line. Saying it and doing it are two different things however.

I expect that Roush will be represented at or near the front. Matt Kenseth is too good to stay down long. Greg Biffle is coming off a good week. Carl Edwards is well, Carl Edwards- and he has a mastery of the mile and a half’s. David Ragan may also continue his unlikely run of looking good and running strong. This is, after all, a race known for producing first victories (such as last year’s Coke 600 winner Casey Mears).

Keep your eyes open for Childress boys. I’m not sure which one, if not all three drivers between Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton and Clint Bowyer will run well. I actually think this race favors Burton’s conservative approach. One if not all of these guys will run well.

But my pick does not come from this team…

My pick is a guy who’s running with a high level of confidence right now. He’s also a good one for not wearing out his equipment. He’s also been a multiple race winner here, sweeping the 2006 schedule at Lowe’s, and he was also last week’s All-Star race winner.

I’m going to go with Kasey Kahne.

Kahne’s had SOME good runs, though he’s had a hard time getting to the top five or victory lane. But just listen to his interviews, and you can tell he’s there in terms of his confidence. Your crew chief is important in a distance race like this, and I think the Enumclaw, Washington native’s pit boss, Kenny Francis has the perfect working relationship with his driver. The gutsy call from last week only enhances that relationship.

Of course, having former race strategist extrodinaire Ray Evernham as your owner certainly doesn’t hurt.

 

 

 

NASCAR Stocks: Headed for Turn Two

Let’s re-visit for a moment my Top Ten Power Poll from last week. Once again, here are the top drivers, in my not-so humble opinion (All-Star race- a non-points race is not factored in):

#1- Kyle Busch- Can’t argue with the wins and being a factor in EVERY race this season.

#2- Carl Edwards- He’d easily be #1 if not for Busch. A kinder, gentler Shrub.

#3- Denny Hamlin- Overshadowed by teammate Busch, he’s charging hard as of late.

#4- Dale Earnhardt Jr.- Only needs the wins to vault towards the top. Is not running bad races.

#5- Jeff Burton- Putting together his typical quietly solid season.

#6- Clint Bowyer- He’s on the verge of really breaking out. He’ll be here at the end of the day.

#7- Jimmie Johnson- This isn’t a bad position for the “sneaky fast” David Pearson-style.

#8- Tony Stewart- Like Johnson, he may only go upward. Look for upward movement in July.

#9- Jeff Gordon- Wow. I’m not sure he stays up here. He and his team just look out of sorts.

#10- David Ragan- “David Wreck-Um” has evolved. It’s gotta help he has good mentors at Roush.

 

Ready to Strike:

The wily vets (they run well, their equipment questionable)- Matt Kenseth (mainly a victime of bad luck),  Greg Biffle (like teammate Kenseth, the Edwards mojo hasn’t rubbed off), Bobby Labonte (he and Robbie Loomis have upgraded Petty’s team, but they’re not quite there yet), Dave Blaney (put him with an organization that’s not strapped for cash and he’s a top 15 easy), Kevin Harvick (his struggles are a mystery to me).

The young dudes: Ryan Newman (has real moments of brilliance, and others not-so), Kasey Kahne (he’ll get a lift from the All-Star win), Brian Vickers (can be really fantastic, and at other times as consistent as a paer cup in a wind storm), Juan Pablo Montoya (gives us some foreign intrigue), Martin Truex Jr. (just needs a little luck).

Up Next: “Pull Those Belts Tight!” Race Preview  (tomorrow), “Fearless Forecast” (Saturday), “Race Re-Cap” (Sunday), “Road To Glory” *Premier* (Monday).

 

What was Humpy thinking??

I am going to assume that Humpy had a better vision than a reality after the mess that was, the Burnout Competition.

In the first annual event, drivers had to get a tire smoking, tear jerking, shredding start, make two complete 360 “donuts”, then, smoke through “Victory Lane” a little ways past the start/finish line.

Greg Biffle and Kyle Busch were the only ones who actually followed the rules.  Clint Bowyer gave an encore after completing, but he did not come to a complete stop in Victory Lane, so he got docked 5 seconds.

I am still trying to comprehend what in the world Jimmie Johnson was thinking.  He said in an “after-burnout” interview he was trying to knock down all the cones.  He did get an event-record 20 seconds in penalties.

Greg Biffle was the overall winner.  He got 10-grand donated to his foundation.

A good idea gone bad for Humpy.  The fans didn’t really enjoy it as much as thought at first.  The rules confused the fans and drivers.  If they indeed decide to have a Second Annual, I would suggest they just make it a free-style format, and let the fans decide the winner based on croud volume.

Consistency is Key

This year for the Sprint Cup Series, consistency is all around us. AJ Allmendinger in the number 84 Red Bull Toyota is finally making races, Hendrick Motorsports is starting to have consistent top tens each week. Jeff Gordon and his DuPont team seems to be picking things up. Don’t forget the sport’s most popular driver who is still third in points after Saturday’s race at Darlington. And Kyle Busch, who is a winning machine right now.

Jim’s Race Re-Cap….

UNOFFICIAL SPRINT CUP POINTS AFTER DODGE CHALLENGER 500

#	DRIVER	CAR	POINTS
1	Kyle Busch	18	1495
2	Jeff Burton	31	1477
3	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	88	1391
4	Clint Bowyer	07	1372
5	Kevin Harvick	29	1350
6	Denny Hamlin	11	1349
7	Jimmie Johnson	48	1318
8	Tony Stewart	20	1297
9	Greg Biffle	16	1269
10	Carl Edwards	99	1230

Tony Stewart wins at Darlington

After multiple tries to tame the “Lady In Black,” today was the day for Tony Stewart.  Tony Stewart pulled away from Clint Bowyer, the Nationwide Series Points Leader who now leads by 112 points over Kyle Busch in the unofficial points standings. After Tony Stewart crossed the finish line with four-fifths of a second lead of Clint Bowyer, he broke his career winless drought at Darlington.

“It’s this team behind us and this team at Joe Gibbs Racing,” Stewart said. “We just took it easy in the beginning and tried to bide our time and take care of the car and take care of the tires and have something for them when we came to the end.”

Mark Martin brought out the caution on the restart with 3 laps to go when he stalled his car, triggering a six car pile up on the front stretch.

Carl Edwards experienced more bad luck this weekend, blowing a tire on just the second lap of the race, ending the night earlier than expected.

“They dropped the green, and I was ready to race,” said the defending series champion, who finished 43rd as the first car out. “I got loose and hit the wall. I guess I cut a tire down. . . That was a bad mistake, and I learned my lesson there.”

The race had eight leaders.  Stewart led the most with 90 laps, Matt Kenseth had 35, Bowyer with 13, Rowdy led a total of 6 laps, Kelly Bires led 2 laps, and Ambrose, Ragan, and Jeff Burton all led one lap.

After 8 cautions, a green-white-checkered finish, and 11 lead changes, the headline reads, “Tony tames Darlington.”

NASCAR Stocks: The Top 10- Moving Up, Going Down

Races like we had in Richmond really make this mor art than science. The stats that are sued to hel determine performance will never reflect that Denny Hamlin and Dale Jr. were the class of the field. But because this is MY system, I’ll do it how I see fit.

There’ll be some changes this week.  

#10- Ryan Newman (unranked last week)- “Rocket” fought his way back with a 6th place finish at Richmond. Newman has sown signs of life the last two weeks, and his recent results are good enough to bump Greg Biffle- who’s weaker in average finish, has no wins and has the same number of top 10s as Newman. Ya have to like this guy, so maybe I’m biased. The dude never complains, no matter how bad things are.

#9- Kevin Harvick (up 1 from 9th)- “Happy” is hangin’ tough. His presence in my top 10 with teammates Clint Bowyer and Jeff Burton is a testament to the depth at Richard Childress- quietly putting them in a league with Hendrick and Gibbs.

#8- Jimmie Johnson (down 3 from 5th)- A 30th place finish will hurt you, no matter how good you are. trust me, I still maintain Johnson will be a top 5 by season’s end, he’s just been in the wrong place at the wrong time. Still, he’s too good to stay down long.

#7- Carl Edwards (unchanged)- The circuit leader in wins (3) didn’t hurt himself with his 7th at Richmond. That’s more than I can say for his image, which took a hit in the Carpentier incident.

#6- Tony Stewart (up 2 spots from 8th)- Smoke just barely cleared Edwards, but that 4th Saturday night, helped him in this tight pack of drivers. Stewart really needs a win. I think it will come soon.

#5- Jeff Burton (down 2 from 3rd)- It’s a shame, because this guy’s remarkably consistent. Nonetheless, there are guys making just a little more noise. I feel perfectly justified in ranking J.B. where he is below the guys that I think have been perhaps a little more daring.

#4- Dale Earnhardt Jr. (unchanged)- Junior’s finish obviously doesn’t reflect how good he was. Same story for Denny Hamlin. The win will come soon enough, I just hope he doesn’t press too hard.

#3- Denny Hamlin (down 1 spot from 2nd)- What a bummer! Denny should have won Saturday, a victim of the worst luck. Even with this 24th at RIR, Hamlin’s average finish of 7.2 over the last 5 races is second only to….

#2- Clint Bowyer (up 4 from 6th)- Bowyer is the hot pick of hot week. He’s been hanging around like a stalker for the last several weeks, and he finally got that elusive first win of 2008. Bowyer has an average finish of 6.4 over the last 5 races, best on the Sprint Cup tour. Bowyer’s 7 top 10s ties him with Junior and the #1 guy….

#1- Kyle Busch (unchanged)- Shrub is also #1 a new category “Most Hated Driver in NASCAR.” He’s helping elevate the likes of Tony Stewart and Robby Gordon to sainthood. No matter what you think of him personally, his 6 top 5s are easily the best at the Cup level. People, get over the incident- that was racin’. If he just keep his fool  mouth shut, he might be able to give the new title up.

I just can’t dismis Busch’s talent and performance- hopefully proving to you that this Jeff Gordon fan is not guilty of bias.

Ready to Strike- The aforementioned Gordon showed life at Richmond. Kasey Kahne continues to hang around. Greg Biffle may be down is far from over.

What will happen next? There’s only one way to find out.

 

Race Re-Cap: Rumble In Richmond

I suspect this scene will be happening in a hotel somewhere tonight. “Yeah, I’d like to get a room for one night.” “Uh, my name, Butz. Seymour Butz.” Kyle Busch’s mug is going to be hard to hide, but he’d better do what he can to mask his identity until he gets of Virginia after his fender bender with Dale Earnhardt Jr. late in the Crown Royal Presents the Dan Lowry 400 in Richmond, Virginia. The anger I’m seeing is just about frying my computer.

You can’t blame Junior Nation for being mad. Junebug looked like he was a winner after Denny Hamlin’s tire went flat. Up until the point of impact, it was a good old-fashioned bump ‘n’ grind short track drag race between Earnhardt and Busch. Then it happened. The “18″ and “88″ collided, sending Earnhardt spinning off into another disappointing finish, and opening the door to victory for Clint Bowyer, who picked up his 2nd career NASCAR Sprint Cup win.

Everybody has their own opinion about the “incident” and I’ve got my own, which I will keep to myself. Let me just say it was a bummer to see two of the best cars in the field (Hamlin and Junior) finish outside the top 5 after the night they had.

Earlier today, I said it would be either Hamlin or Junior that would win. For about 373 laps, Hamlin was proving me right. Everything Denny needed from his car in terms of a set-up he had. It was setting up to be a feel good story that would have only been eclipsed by Earnhardt ending his victory drought: the local boy wins near his hometown of Chesterfield, Virginia. Hamlin and crew chief Mike Ford were simpatico, and then that danged tire went down, opening a Pandora’s box for what would happen next.

I find it a little hard to be angry at Denny, but it’s too bad he didn’t get off the track for new tires once he knew the tire was going down. At the end of the day, I think he would have ended up at the same place. Hamlin has been hot up until now, but there’s no doubt we were exposed to Denny’s Achilles’ heel.  The #11 FedEx has this maddening tendency to beat itself with silly mistakes. Don’t get me wrong, the tire wasn’t his fault, but not getting off the track sooner was- whether it was Hamlin’s decision or Ford’s.

Give props to Clint Bowyer for the win. Bowyer’s finish serves as the new “Exhibit A” as to why one should never give up. The #07 Chevy hung around in the spirit and tradition of David Pearson to emerge a victor. Given how things played out, it seems fitting that a guy that nobody seems to truly dislike comes out with the win.

My “Rocky Balboa” Award will be shared by Jeff Gordon and Kevin Harvick. Gordon started 43rd, but fought and clawed his way towards the front- giving him a decent end to what was a horrid weekend for his team. Harvick did a great job of hanging tough and staying hungry, even though it seemed apparent his car had recurring issues.

In addition to be bummed for Hamlin and Earnhardt, I was also bummed for Patrick Carpentier. He qualified well and was doing a good job of gaining on-the-job experience until he got collected in a big-time way in what started out as the Dave Blaney-J.J. Yeley incident. Talk about being in the wrong place at the wrong time!

We saw good racing tonight- it’s too bad it finished like this. While I lean more towards a “race incident” opinion on the Earnhardt-Busch affair, there can be no question Kyle Busch has found himself on the same unfortunate path his older brother Kurt took a way years back. After tonight, I’m quite sure his list of detractors has increased exponentially, and further mars the reputation of one of NASCAR’s most talented young drivers. Give credit to Junior for handling the post-race T.V. interview with grace, there’s no question his entire demeanor was heavy with disappointment. Nobody would have blamed him for running over to Busch and popping him, but that’s never been his style, and I’m proud of him for it.

Wouldn’t it have been cool if Mark Martin had won? Whatever he’s got in that car he ran in Phoenix and this place, he needs to bottle that up!

It also would have been fun for Bobby Labonte to pull out a win in the “Speed Racer” Dodge. 

As for Busch, well…..for my part I like his driving and I don’t think he’s half the jerk some think he is. BUT tonight’s incident won’t help his case or mine.

For every driver and fan disappointed by tonight’s finish, there is always the new hope brought by the promise of another week at the “Dark Lady” of Darlington. If it goes next week like it’s been going lately- it’s gonna be a show and a half. 

Fearless Forecast: The Winner At Richmond Will Be….

Let’s be scientific about this. I respect all 43 guys in the field, but let’s be real- we can eliminate 15 drivers right off the top. we’re talking about the guys in the line-up who’ve never won a Cup race. That includes the likes of David Ragan, Reed Sorenson and Patrick Carpentier-who did put forward good qualifying efforts. To me, this place is just a little too tough for a guy to get his first win. This whittles the field down to 28.

Then there’s the guys, that while capable, just don’t have the equipment to win. There’s about another 4 guys here who’ve won races, but because of things like funding and equipment- they have as much chance as a kerosene cat in Hell with gasoline boxers on. Kyle Petty, Sterling Marlin, and Joe Nemechek are among the racers that fall into this category. OK- now we’re down to 24.

Among the 43 entries are guy who just don’t win at short tracks. This includes all the Roush Fenway guys. I’m not sure what’s missing in their “Car of Today” short track program, but something’s missing. The you’ve got guys like Michael Waltrip, who is to Super Speedways like Boris Said is to road courses. I find 8 drivers in this group- taking the possibilities down to 16. Hard charger Kyle Busch is also in this group. He’ too aggressive on short tracks. You need some patience to win here.

Let’s not forget about the “luck factor.” There’s always somebody out there at any given time who arejust unlucky. Tony Stewart is having a run of bad luck. Bobby Labonte is another one. Overall, this group of guys number 4, so now we have 12 drivers to pick from.

Among the drivers who are left are guys who have the best chance of winning today. Guys who are “in their element” in Richmond. I’m talking about Kevin Harvick and Clint Bowyer from RCR, Mark Martin from DEI, Kasey Kahne from Gillett Evernham, Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. from HMS (Jeff Gordon is one of my “bad luck” guys), and Ryan Newman from Penske- as well as Denny Hamlin from Joe Gibbs.

Frankly, it comes down to two guys- Denny Hamlin and Junior. Earnhardt has won 3 races at Richmond, and he’s been good enough to win this year, even though he hasn’t broken the spell. Now, I know that Hamlin is going to try to win from the pole- which isn’t easy. I also know the the “law of averages” are against a weekend sweep and he won last night. Yet there’s an “X” factor in all of this, I think the “11′ car has it. So in light of that, I predict…

DENNY HAMLIN WILL WIN AT RICHMOND- fulfilling his dream of winning at home. The odds may be a bit long, but that’s why we call it the “fearless forecast.”

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