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    From The Marbles

    Which driver needs a win most in 2012? (Besides HIM.)

    By Jay Busbee | From The Marbles – Fri, Feb 10, 2012 9:42 AM EST

    Kevin Harvick outruns Dale Earnhardt Jr. at Martinsville / Getty Images

    In 2011, 17 different Sprint Cup regulars won a race, with three of them (Tony Stewart, Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch) accounting for more than a third of the season's races by themselves. That leaves an awful lot of guys who didn't reach the checkered flag first. Some of them probably never really expected to get there; others had it snagged right out from under them at the last instant. Let's take a look at which drivers most desperately need a win in 2012.

    1. Joey Logano. What? Ranking someone ahead of Earnhardt? Absolutely. No driver in NASCAR faces more pressure to hang onto his ride than Logano right now. Junior could lose for the next three years straight and still have his seat.

    2. Dale Earnhardt Jr. Come on. You know about the 129-race losing streak. What more do we need to say? Everything is in place for him to win. Of course, we've said that before.

    3. Martin Truex Jr. He's got an even longer losing streak than Junior, one that dates back to 2007. In a contract year, it's high time for him to level up.

    4. Greg Biffle. While his Roush brethren are tearing up the standings, he hasn't quite kept pace. Time for The Biff to rejoin the ranks of the Chasers.

    5. Juan Pablo Montoya. He had a brief stint of respectability a couple years back, but team disarray and unexplainable slides have hurt his standing. He needs to prove he's as good as he thinks he is.

    6. AJ Allmendinger. There'll be some growing pains with a new team, but Allmendinger has all the pieces in place to start capitalizing on all the promise he's shown.

    7. Jeff Burton. After a horrendous early 2011, Burton started turning his year around, and needs to prove that he just hit a rough patch, not that his days are numbered.

    8. Jamie McMurray. Like his teammate Montoya, McMurray has to reassert himself; he's got Chase-level talent, but it seems to come and go with the tide.

    9. David Reutimann. Ushered to the sidelines because of his age, Reutimann could bolster his rep with a victory for his new team.

    10. Bobby Labonte. One more win for the old champion would be a fine way to bookend a career.

    Your turn. Which Sprint Cup regular most desperately needs a win, and which of the guys above will win one this year?

    Watch Full Count!
     
    • del
      del  •  Mesa, Arizona  •  2 months ago
      Joey Logano,love to see him win
    • shifter88
      shifter88  •  Wichita, Kansas  •  3 months ago
      Bobby Labonte winning would be amazing, but if i had my pick for a win for the ages it would ken schrader winning a race at the cup level..... they would tear the grandstands down
      • 07VET
        07VET 3 months ago
        he has. 4 times
      • aginn
        aginn 3 months ago
        ken schrader loves to race. i bet he raced tricycles as a young child. i am still hoping to get back to his dirt track again someday and maybe get the privilidge of shaking his hand.
    • yahoo user
      yahoo user  •  Albany, New York  •  3 months ago
      I WOULD LIKE TO SEE BOBBY L. WIN ONE. JUST FOR THE GIPPER!!!!!
    • Joe
      Joe  •  Tucker, Georgia  •  3 months ago
      "He needs to prove he's as good as he thinks he is." Truest statement about ol Juan Problem Montoya ever typed.
      • A Yahoo! User 3 months ago
        it's that open wheel attitude that he just cant shed. They all have it.
    • pilgrim88
      pilgrim88  •  Charlotte, North Carolina  •  3 months ago
      Bobby Labonte is a class act and still a good enough driver to win he was in
      a better car ,he's a better driver than most of the guys driving for the big name big sponser teams
    • Michael
      Michael  •  3 months ago
      how long are the Jr fans going to keep support him? As a member of a great race team and great equipment - he doesn't seem have the skill or drive to win consistantly - he is less than mediocre.
      • aginn
        aginn 3 months ago
        another keyboard driver. so how many races have you won while running your trap?
      • Mitchell
        Mitchell 3 months ago
        Why do you care how long we support him? I will support him till he retires. True sports fans don't just change who they support. I don't understand why Jr. seems to bother some people. I realize some of his fans are drooling idiots but he seems to be a great guy.
    • Air Cntrl
      Air Cntrl  •  San Diego, California  •  3 months ago
      All drivers need a win. Period. Now that that has been said:
      A lot of people hate this guy, but Kurt needs a win. If he can win in sub-par equipment, while keeping his head during the bad times (which are coming his way this season), and extend his ten year winning streak, it would go a long way to re-shaping his image and should cement himself as one of the top drivers in the sport.
      As for Jr., yep he needs a win. But, as was correctly pointed out, no matter how long his losing streak goes on he will always have a ride because he is a cash cow.
      Logano has been hyped as the second coming for the last few years. If he does not live up to this hype and either win a race or make the Chase, I believe he is out of the #20.
      Burton, after the miserable season last year, needs to win but more importantly he needs to have better finishes and be consistent.
      • aginn
        aginn 3 months ago
        sub par equipment? where are you coming from? was tony stewart in sub par equipment? bush's cars are being built by hendrick the same as stewarts.
      • Air Cntrl
        Air Cntrl 3 months ago
        True. However, how long did it take to finally gain a foothold as a winning team? He had a great crew behind him also. At this point, the #51 is not on the same playing field when it comes to crew members as other top-notch teams such as Hendrick and Penske. Also the money is not there also. The team does not have a big time sponsor as Tony/Ryan did; Office Depot, Burger King etc.
        Hey, I am a Kurt fan. What I am trying to get across is that if he can keep his head together when things are going bad; where he can take that ill-handling car (without freaking/cursing out his crew chief, he will show that if he wins he will be one of the best in the sport.
    • angel
      angel  •  New York, New York  •  3 months ago
      Like to see JR. win
    • Paul
      Paul  •  Wetumpka, Alabama  •  3 months ago
      Mark Martin
      • Kurt
        Kurt 3 months ago
        from jasmine hills nice paul you know talent
    • NostraChronus
      NostraChronus  •  New York, New York  •  3 months ago
      I'd add Clint Bowyer to that list, not because he personally needs to win a race but because it would be a statement made by his team to show they've arrived on the scene.
    • SHO-NUFF
      SHO-NUFF  •  Springfield, Georgia  •  3 months ago
      My question is, can't Yahoo find someone else, instead of this idiot, to write this blog?
    • Roger
      Roger  •  Reidsville, North Carolina  •  3 months ago
      It never ceases to amaze me why anyone would care where the most mediocre driver in Nascar history (Junior) finishes. One win in the past 5-6 years and that one was controversial. Give me a break. If his last name was not Earnhardt he would be lucky to be pumping gas somewhere.
    • J-Sab
      J-Sab  •  Erie, Pennsylvania  •  3 months ago
      I'm as big as a Reutimann fan as any, but let's be real here. He isn't winning in that garbage TBR equipment. If he was actually using the same equipment as Danica, that'd be a different story.
    • poorhouse
      poorhouse  •  Charlotte, North Carolina  •  3 months ago
      YOU CAN PUT OVER FIFTY DRIVERS WHO NEED A WIN ON THAT LIST!
    • dog earred
      dog earred  •  Grand Rapids, Michigan  •  3 months ago
      Man I get tired of the "busbee" stupidity with these lame articles of "speculation". NAPCAR has MORE than 10 drivers who NEED to win for crying out loud. Isn't that why they ALL try to make the field???
    • A Yahoo! User  •  Chaska, Minnesota  •  3 months ago
      Mark Martin needs to break out a little agression perhaps to spark some spirit in his veins and win 1 or maybe more this season!!
    • BILL
      BILL  •  3 months ago
      Busbee, does your heart beat only for Jr? Give it a rest already.
    • budman
      budman  •  3 months ago
      the most popular driver has 3 wins in seven years.how many do the busch boys have?
    • Bryan B
      Bryan B  •  Johnson City, Tennessee  •  3 months ago
      Biffle should not be 4th on this list. Remember 2010 when he was the first Ford driver to win, and was the only Roush driver to win until Carl swept the last 2 races. He needs a win, but not that desperately, especially since he and 3M just signed a 3 yr extension to stay with Roush. Allmendinger, Montoya, McMurray and Burton need a win way more than the Bif. Allmendinger has to win to prove he deserves the 22 ride. Montoya and McMurray both need to win and show consistency to show that Ganassi/Earnhardt is more than just field filler and that they can compete with the big teams. Burton needs a win because his slim chance at ever winning a championship is swiftly closing, and his days at RCR are numbered with the dillon's being streamlined to cup rides. Reutimann shouldn't even be on the list simply because of his age. He most likely won't ever get a half-way decent ride ever again. Clint Bowyer should be on the list since he's now the number 1 driver for an organization at MWR. Mark Martin should be on the list simply because he needs to win the Daytona 500. Easily the most deserving driver to have never won it yet.
    • Kurt
      Kurt  •  Louisville, Kentucky  •  3 months ago
      can you spell suck its easy. earnhardt look it up in websters there's a pic of him
     Post a comment

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