Fryer’s Five: Darlington

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The race-record 17 cautions aside, the Southern 500 was the third consecutive good race for NASCAR.

Because teams are still adjusting to the new asphalt – Saturday night’s race was the second Sprint Cup event since Darlington was repaved – there was no apparent strategy as drivers did their best to stay off the wall and give themselves a chance to be there at the finish. There didn’t seem to be a clear right answer when it came to pit strategy, and teams tried everything from no tires to four tires on different stops.

In the end, it was Mark Martin, who took no tires on his last stop, who held on for his first win at Darlington in 16 years. It moved him inside the top 12 and in contention for a spot in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship, proving that even though he insists he didn’t come back to win a title, he intends to make a run at the crown.

But there were tons of other happenings in Darlington, including the suspension of Jeremy Mayfield, which overshadowed the actual racing. Here’s five top storylines from the weekend:

1. Mayfield’s suspension: No matter what happens going forward, Mayfield will forever be the first driver to violate NASCAR’s toughened drug policy.

His indefinite suspension was announced roughly two hours before the start of Saturday night’s race, which Mayfield had failed to qualify for a day earlier. Kudos to NASCAR for its swift action in proving it is serious about this new policy.

But, it’s not that black and white.

Mayfield claims his failed test, which was taken a week earlier at Richmond, was a result of a negative reaction when an over-the-counter drug was mixed with a prescription drug. The gossip is that it was all allergy-related.

Problem is, NASCAR won’t say what he did beyond dismissing the failure as alcohol related.

That leaves a pretty dark cloud over Mayfield, who now is subjected to whispers and wonders of using and possibly abusing recreational drugs. There is no clear list as to what drivers can’t take under this new policy, and NASCAR reserves the right to test drivers for anything it wants.

A list does exist, however, for crew members and anyone who works on the car. In addition to the standard no-no’s – cocaine, heroin, marijuana, etc. – the list bans three different drugs classified under ephedrine, 13 different “narcotics” that include codeine and morphine, and 10 different benzodiazepines and barbiturates.

Benzodiazepines are found in common drugs that treat insomnia and anxiety. Ephedrine is often used to treat congestion, colds, flu, hay fever and allergies.

I don’t know what Mayfield tested positive for, and what little NASCAR has said on the subject is that it was a clear violation. The doctor who administers the program isn’t buying Mayfield’s explanation, either.

But, perception-wise, there’s still a big difference between a driver who climbs into his car high on cocaine and a driver who used a drug that contained an ingredient that NASCAR bans. If this isn’t an issue of hard drugs, NASCAR should say so and lift that cloud of suspicion from Mayfield.

Of course, he could clear it up himself and explain exactly what NASCAR believes he’s done.

Either way, his suspension isn’t the final word on this subject and doesn’t prove that NASCAR’s drug plan is perfect. After all, the sanctioning body first learned he had a positive result on Thursday, but still allowed Mayfield to participate in two Friday practices at Darlington and attempt to qualify for the Cup race while his “B” sample was analyzed for a second opinion.

I’d be stunned if NASCAR officials allowed him on track if they suspected he’d been driving under the influence of a street drug.

2. Here comes Hendrick Motorsports: No one had anything for Hendrick Motorsports in 2007, when the team won 18 of 36 races and staged a down-to-the-wire championship race between teammates Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon.

But team owner Rick Hendrick chalked a chunk of that domination up to luck, and promised the win total would go down in 2008. He was right, in large part to the strength of Joe Gibbs Racing, Carl Edwards and Gordon’s first winless season in 15 years.

Still, Hendrick claimed eight wins and Johnson won his third consecutive championship.

Now it seems the organization is back on its 2007 pace, as Martin’s win Saturday night was the fourth for a Hendrick driver this season. But, even more alarming to the competition, was that four of Hendrick’s five cars finished in the top-seven. Toss in Tony Stewart and Ryan Newman, who have a Hendrick alliance, and his stamp was on six of the first seven finishers.

What is it about Hendrick Motorsports that makes it so far superior to the competition? All the top owners spend; they all have great sponsors; they all have talented drivers; and they all have strong work forces.

So why can’t they knock Hendrick from the top?

I guess the answer comes down to people, and for whatever reason Hendrick’s people produce at a much higher level than everyone else. Figuring out why is the only way anyone is going to catch him this season.

3. Will Brad Keselowski soon be a free agent? Was anyone really surprised when Hendrick announced last week that Martin would return to the No. 5 car for a full season in 2010? Anyone besides Keselowski, that is?

Keselowski wants to race full-time in the Cup series next season, and he’d like to drive for Hendrick. But Martin’s decision to stay in the car now leaves Hendrick one seat short for the emerging Keselowski.

“I’m disappointed with any ride I don’t get at this point,” he said after his seventh-place finish at Darlington. “I sure would like to drive that car.”

And for a time, he figured he’d get his crack next season in a shared ride with Martin. But then Martin showed at the start of this season that he’s still at the top of his game, and when he started thinking full-time in 2010, there was no reason for Hendrick to pass on the opportunity. After all, Keselowski wasn’t exactly lighting the world on fire in his handful of Cup starts or his full-time job in the Nationwide Series.

Then came Keselowski’s breakthrough win at Talladega three races ago, and a strong run in Darlington, a place where most drivers at his experience level struggle.

So what happens next?

My guess is Hendrick will try to work a deal that creates a seat for Keselowski at Stewart-Haas Racing. Another option is helping JR Motorsports move to the Cup Series. And there’s probably a contingent of fans out there who believe Hendrick could just fire the under-producing Dale Earnhardt Jr. and give Keselowski that seat.

Either way, expect Hendrick to work overtime the next few months to figure out a solution for Keselowski. Eventually, Martin is really going to retire once and for all, and Hendrick will do his best to keep Keselowski as a long-term option.

4. Well done, young Joey: There was a point in Saturday night’s race when Joey Logano was out front and speculation began as to whether the rookie would pull off the surprise Darlington win.

But with Stewart in contention, I figured there was no way he wouldn’t do everything in his power to make sure Logano didn’t beat him to Darlington’s victory lane. It turned out to be for naught, as Stewart finished third to winner Martin, while Logano came in an impressive ninth.

Logano’s finish drew high praise from Stewart, who turned his seat over to the kid from Connecticut after a 10-year reign at Joe Gibbs Racing.

For Logano, the praise from Stewart must have felt like a victory in itself.

“To have Smoke happy with the way I ran with his old car, that’s a very big compliment,” Logano said. “They’re hard to get.”

It wasn’t too long ago when everyone was snickering at Logano’s lack of progress in the Cup Series. The 18-year-old is definitely in over his head this season, and NASCAR’s ban on testing has slowed his learning curve.

But he’s notched top-10 finishes in two of the past three races, which came at polar opposites Talladega and Darlington. Both tracks are among the most difficult in NASCAR, and Logano’s runs earned the rookie a respite from the criticism.

If he keeps up this pace of improvement, he’ll soon show why Gibbs was willing to promote him when the rest of the world said he wasn’t ready.

5. Kentucky Motor Speedway is running out of time for 2010: Bruton Smith wants to put his latest acquisition on the 2010 Sprint Cup Series schedule, and is willing to move a race from one of his seven other facilities to bring NASCAR’s top show into Kentucky.

But an antitrust lawsuit filed by the original owners of Kentucky Speedway stands in his way, because NASCAR is unwilling to consider any proposal while the suit remains active. Filed in 2005 against NASCAR and International Speedway Corp., the suit stems from the group’s inability to land a Cup race. The suit was dismissed last year, but is currently on appeal.

Smith last week called on the group to drop the appeal, alleging they have “a moral obligation” to the state of Kentucky to get out of the way of his plans to help Kentucky Motor Speedway finally get a race. Smith went one step further, though, by outing the two holdouts who are refusing to let the suit die.

In publicly naming businessmen Richard Duchossios and Richard Farmer, two of the five listed principals in the original ownership group, Smith is presumably hoping public pressure convinces them to walk away.

It’s doubtful that’s going to happen, and that’s a shame for Smith and the fans who so badly want to see a race in their backyard. See, time is running out on Kentucky gaining any consideration for 2010, and Smith needs this lawsuit to go away in the next two weeks or else Kentucky becomes a 2011 issue.

The original ownership group stands to gain nothing when Smith brings a race to the speedway, and continuing with this lawsuit is the only way those investors will recoup anything close to the $152 million they shelled out to build the Sparta track.

But how they think they’ll win anything is beyond me. NASCAR never asked them to build a race track, and this was never a case of “if you build it, they will come.” As crummy as it may seem, NASCAR has a bit of an “old boys network” and it doesn’t have to ever allow new membership. It’s NASCAR’s ball, court and rules, and that’s pretty clear upfront.

The Kentucky founders gambled, and lost, when they wrongfully assumed NASCAR would eventually relent and hand them a Cup race. They walked away from the politics last year by selling the speedway to Smith for $78.3 million, but their anger and frustration has kept the suit alive.

Now it’s time for them to get out of the way once and for all.