Happy Hour: Intrigue abound
For the record, I thought Brad Keselowski was at fault in Saturday's Nationwide race. That said, why is it that Cup drivers feel the need to pull out the "Cup" card whenever they tangle with a Nationwide regular?
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"A lot of it is he doesn't have a lot of Cup experience, but that's OK, he's getting there," Hamlin said after the race. "But once he starts to get out there on Sunday and see how to race, he'll realize that in his younger years he didn't do it the right way."
Seems to me that the purpose of the Nationwide Series is to give drivers experience, and that if you want to race guys with Cup experience, you need to stick to the Cup Series.
Just sayin'.
Now onto the mailbag:
You snooze, you lose
Jay I predict this to be a very boring chase. I'm over it already.
Andrew
Indianapolis
Seriously? You're over the possibility of a 50-year-old legend winning his first title? You're over the possibility of a driver winning four straight titles for the first time in NASCAR's history. You're over the possibility of a Juan Pablo Montoya becoming NASCAR's first foreign-born champion?
Maybe it's the sportswriter in me that roots for great stories, but for me this Chase is chock full of intrigue.
Advantage: Johnson?
As a fan of neither driver I very much agree with Greg Biffle about Jimmie Johnson having a distinct advantage at Dover because of the tire testing he did. It's the same as someone getting to run an obstacle course a few times before any one else gets to see it, that guy also has a big advantage over all the rest. NASCAR should change this policy to make it fair to everyone.
Tom Clancy
Spring Hill, Fla.
Let's get all the facts on the table. First off, there is a rotation of drivers who do tire tests for Goodyear throughout the season. Johnson just happen to draw Dover.
But as he pointed out prior to Sunday's race, he wasn't among those who tested at Indianapolis earlier this year and he wound up winning the race.
Second, the tire Johnson tested at Dover was not the tire Goodyear ultimately brought to Sunday's race.
And third, Johnson won at Dover in the spring race, too.
"Even with the different tire, it seems we have ended up with the same setup we had here in the spring," Johnson said prior to Sunday's race. "At times, there is no doubt [the test] is helpful for me. There is no doubt that it is helpful for certain levels of engineering. It is nice to go to the track and get in the rhythm of things, but, we came back with the same stuff we had in the spring."
Was the test an advantage for Johnson? Maybe, but that's not going to be the reason why he'll be a threat to win the title and Biffle won't.
By the way, love your books.
Jay, this is more a comment on your article than a question. As a long Time Bill Elliott fan and a Kasey Kahne fan since he drove in the Busch series for Yates, I think Kahne is trapped.
George Gillett purchased Kasey Kahne's Dodge team from Ray Evernham in 2007.
(Getty)
You hit the nail on the head about the Gillett's. Kahne stood a good chance of stardom and success under Evernham and I felt as soon as he sold his soul to the devil, Kasey was done. Look at what the Gilletts HAVEN'T accomplished! The Montreal Canadiens never won a championship under Gillett ownership. That's unheard of.
The Gilletts are about the money and NEVER the sport. I would love to see Kasey at Stewart Haas Racing. He will never be a championship contender as long as the Gilletts or even Richard Petty have control of him.
John Thull
Mansfiled, Ohio
While I agree that Kahne needs a change of scenery, I do think it's to NASCAR's detriment that there are barely a handful of teams where he can reach his potential.
I don't believe bundling up all the talent in only a few organizations is good for the sport. Just look back at the 2007 Chase, when the suspense of a potentially captivating playoff battle was stamped out by the lovefest that was Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon.
Richard Childress predicted a few years ago that the Sprint Cup Series would eventually be comprised of four or five "superteams" fielding all 43 cars. Childress tends to be a fortune teller in all things economical in the sport. Let's hope he's wrong about this or, before he's proven right, NASCAR steps in to correct a potentially troubling trend.
This and that …
Jay: Can you please tell Juan Pablo Montoya to have a beer. He still has champagne bubbles floating around in his head. Did he really think that Mark Martin was going to just move over and let him win the race at New Hampshire? Would he not have done the same thing to Mark Martin if he was leading the race and Martin was running in second? It's called "racing" not "follow the leader" like in F1. You're in NASCAR now, Juan. Get with the program!
Sheri Bradnam
Welland, Ontario, Canada
Say what you will about Juan – and I'm still scratching my head over his post-race comments at New Hampshire – but dude has flipped the switch. He is no longer that Cinderella story who's trying to hang around as long as possible. He's a legit championship contender, more so right now than Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart and Carl Edwards.
I don't think Montoya will win it this season, but I will give him serious consideration when making my prediction for 2010.
Jay, I have to agree with you on the Jeff Gordon comment last week. I am not or never have been a Gordon fan but for some unholy reason my 7-year-old son has decided that this is his guy. Last year when Hendricks came to test at the Milwaukee Mile my son had to go. He sat in the sun and heat just to get a glimpse of Jeff. When the engines stopped he would scream Jeff's name and every time Jeff would turn and wave at him. Talk about making a little kid's day. I have never been a fan but this guy is a class act.
Jeff Dorow
Milwaukee
Last call …
If you take the number of races Jeff Gordon has been in, the number of laps he has led, the races he did not finish, divide them by the number of other drivers, you will clearly see that Jeff should have 8 championships now.
William Small
