Driver Notes & Quotes for Martinsville Goody's Fast Relief 500

Harvick first time winner at Martinsville in '11

KEVIN HARVICK ON WINNING AT MARTINSVILLE LAST YEAR: “For us it was good to get the win out of our way and getting those solid finishes over the last couple of years has been good for us. We felt like we have always run fairly well there, we just never could put together a complete day.Really, the spring race last year, when we won, we had a tough go at it in the first half of the race, and actually wrecked and got a car tore up and were able to fix it and keep ourselves on the lead lap and make our car a lot better as we went through into the second half of the race. You know, it all worked out in the end.So it’s a race track we feel confident at. All of our cars have run well there in the past. It’s really keeping yourself out of trouble and getting to the end and hopefully by the end of the day you’re in position to do something in the top-five.”

HARVICK CHASSIS CHOICE: Kevin Harvick will pilot Chassis No. 320 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable in this weekend’s Goody’s Fast Relief 500. This former No. 33 racer was transformed to a No. 29 entry during the off-season and will turn its first competitive laps as a Budweiser is Back Chevrolet during Friday’s opening practice session.

PAUL MENARD CHASSIS CHOICE: Paul Menard will pilot Chassis No. 349 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. This No. 27 Chevrolet was last seen on track at Martinsville in October 2011 where Menard finished 24th after starting in the 21st position.

JEFF BURTON CHASSIS CHOICE: Jeff Burton will race chassis No. 329 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable this weekend. This No. 31 Chevrolet, originally built in 2010, has seen significant track time over the last two seasons including Texas Motor Speedway in Nov. 2010 (started-16th, finished-36th), Bristol Motor Speedway in Aug. 2011 (started-21st, finished-15th) and New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Sept. 2011 (started-18th, finished-13th). Burton also tallied a top-five finish at Phoenix International Raceway last November, finishing fourth after starting 14th.

JEFF GORDON ON MARTINSVILLE: "The one place on the schedule that has changed the least is Martinsville. I believe the track, the setups and the tires have changed the least here compared to other tracks over the course of 20 seasons. And that’s where experience can really pay off. At other tracks, sometimes you have to reinvent yourself – along with how we reinvent the setups and the aero package that we’re racing – and that’s tough to do. The longer you’re in the sport, the tougher that is to do. Somebody like me – who has a lot of experience and who has also had success at a place like Martinsville – can continue to have that success because it’s not all about aerodynamics. It’s not about a spring and shock and sway bar combination that all of the sudden makes your car fly. I feel like Martinsville is that one place that I can go to every time and give good information back to the team to keep us fast throughout the race.”

JAMIE McMURRAY CHASSIS CHOICE: Chassis #1210. Crew Chief Kevin “Bono” Manion and the No.1 Belkin team will bring Chassis #1210 to Martinsville Speedway this weekend. This is a brand new chassis.

JUAN PABLO MONTOYA CHASSIS CHOICE: Chassis #1207. Crew Chief Chris Heroy and the No.42 Target team will bring Chassis #1207 to Martinsville Speedway this weekend. This is a brand new chassis.

JIMMIE JOHNSON ON MARTINSVILLE: “I do have a lot of success at Martinsville, but it took me a few tries to get it right. And since then, it’s been a very good track for me. I certainly want to get back to my winning ways there. But at a minimum, we always end up with a real strong finish. When I think of how close we were to victory last fall; it didn’t happen, but we led a lot of laps and was a factor in the end. I’m looking forward to going back and trying to win there again. Martinsville is really rhythm-based. That’s me as a driver, and really takes place at any track, but that is one of the tracks where the rhythm is so important and so specific. And I have a very good rhythm for the race in the long run and have always struggled a little bit with qualifying in the short-run rhythm there. I feel like I get better each year. I did get a pole there at one point and I hope to find that magic once again when we go back because qualifying is so important. But it really is a rhythm race track.”

JOHNSON CHASSIS CHOICE: Will return in the same car (chassis No. 653) that he finished 11th and second with in both Martinsville races last season.

KASEY KAHNE CHASSIS CHOICE: Crew chief Kenny Francis has selected Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 5-651. Built in 2011, Mark Martin drove this car in both Martinsville races last year, collecting a top-10 finish in April.

RYAN NEWMAN CHASSIS CHOICE: This will be the fifth start for Chassis No. 39-645, its first this season and its third start at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. The chassis made its first start last April at Martinsville, where Newman started second and finished 20th, two laps down. Newman led three laps and was in the top-10 for much of the first 300 laps of the 500-lap race, but a broken header pipe and a flat left-rear tire caused him to lose two laps. The next start for Chassis 39-645 was in July at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, where Newman started on the pole and led 119 of 301 laps en route to his 15th career Sprint Cup Series victory. The chassis returned to Loudon in September, when Newman again started on the pole and then led the first 62 laps before finishing a disappointing 25th. A cut tire with less than five laps remaining dropped Newman from 11th to 25th.

The last on-track action for this chassis came at Martinsville last fall. Newman led 41 laps and recovered from a late-race spin and made up 10 spots in the race’s final 25 laps to finish in the top-10. The car has been updated for the 2012 season and returns to action for the first time this weekend at Martinsville.

2 SHR winning cars: Newman NHMS, Stewart Martinsville

TONY STEWART CHASSIS CHOICE: No. 14-587 - This car made its debut in March 2010 at Martinsville, where it qualified fifth and finished 26th. Prior to Martinsville, Chassis No. 14-587 never turned a wheel on the racetrack. With a new body honed in the wind tunnel, it was tested at The Milwaukee Mile June 1 in preparation for its second career start in June at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon. There, Chassis No. 14-587 earned a hard-fought second-place finish, for after starting 25th, it fell to 33rd after a lap-36 pit miscue on the team’s first stop. Two late-race cautions allowed Stewart to regain his lost track position, and with a savvy two-tire pit call, Stewart wheeled Chassis No. 14-587 to pass second-place Kurt Busch on the penultimate lap.

The car returned to New Hampshire for the first event of the 10-race Chase for the Championship, where in its third career start, it qualified third before leading three times for 100 laps. But while leading with less than two laps to go, it ran out of fuel. Stewart coasted around the 1.058-mile oval for the final circuit of the 300-lap race and finished 24th, the last driver on the lead lap. Clint Bowyer, who served as Stewart’s primary competition for much of the race, wound up with the victory. Chassis No. 14-587 revisited Martinsville for round six of the Chase, where it qualified sixth and rallied back from two pitroad miscues during the race, but a flat right-front tire with less than 10 laps remaining relegated it to a 24th-place finish.

With another new body, this car made its first start of 2011 and fifth overall at Phoenix International Raceway in February. It started 18th and led four times for 59 laps before an ill-timed caution period late in the race jettisoned solid pit strategy and left it with a seventh-place finish. Chassis No. 14-587’s second start of 2011 came at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway back in April, where it qualified 31st and rallied its way to a ninth-place finish. The car sat idle until returning to Richmond in early September for it seventh career start, where it logged its third straight top-10 finish.

In its final start of 2011, Chassis No. 14-587 went out on top. The site was Martinsville in late October, where it started fourth, nearly fell off the lead lap midway through the 500-lap race, and overcame an unscheduled pit stop on lap 415 to replace a perceived flat tire. Stewart used Chassis No. 14-587 to rally his way from 20th to take the lead from five-time Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson on a restart with three laps to go. When the checkered flag dropped, Stewart had his third Sprint Cup win at Martinsville and was on his way to his third career Sprint Cup championship.

This weekend, Chassis No. 14-587 makes its ninth career start, its fourth at Martinsville and first of 2012 in Sunday’s Goody’s Fast Relief 500.

KURT BUSCH CHASSIS CHOICE: This weekend’s Goody’s Fast Relief 500 will be the first race of the 2012 season for this chassis. The No. 51 Phoenix Racing team competed with this chassis at a number of short-track races during the 2011 season. Prior to the 2011 season, this chassis was used by the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports team and driver Jeff Gordon.

DALE EARNHARDT JR ON MARTINSVILLE: “I look forward going to Martinsville. I always have a lot of fun there. I think everybody really enjoys running there. It's a pretty fun track. We've had some good success there. I'm hoping to have a good race like we did last year and maybe have an opportunity to try to be in the battle for the win.”

EARNHARDT JR CHASSIS CHOICE: Crew chief Steve Letarte will unload Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 88-654 for this weekend's race at Martinsville Speedway. This will be the third time that Earnhardt has raced this car, which he drove last season to a second-place finish at Martinsville in April and a seventh-place finish in October at Martinsville.

CARL EDWARDS ON MARTINSVILLE: “The Roush Fenway Fords were fast at Bristol and fast at California, and we’re going to Martinsville to put a Ford in victory lane. It will be a huge accomplishment for me as a race car driver to get my first victory at Martinsville. We got a top-10 finish the last time we were there and as an organization we’ve put a lot of focus on our short-track program. We’ve got the best cars we’ve ever had.”

EDWARDS CHASSIS CHOICE: RK-791 - This car debuted at Martinsville last fall where it finished ninth.

MATT KENSETH ON MARTINSVILLE: “Martinsville is a challenging track because it’s easy to get caught up in things that are beyond your control and you need to make sure that you try and remain patient. I never like getting run into or running into others during the race but most times, things like that happen at short tracks like Martinsville, I think that’s the most challenging aspect of racing there. There’s not a lot of room to maneuver for position since we don’t really have an outside groove as an option. We have a special paint scheme this weekend honoring USMC Corporal Josh ‘JB’ Kerns and I really hope that we can earn a finish that would make him proud.”

KENSETH CREW CHIEF JIMMY FENNIG ON MARTINSVILLE: “Martinsville is a challenging short track for drivers because it’s a place where there is such limited room to pass since there aren’t long straightaways so qualifying and handling are two aspects that we’ll spend a lot of time on this weekend. The last time we raced here we got beat off the corners a bit so we will also work on making sure our No. 17 Ford has good drive off the corners. My plan is to work on race trim and then switch over to qualifying trim so that we can get a good session working with that set-up as well.”

KENSETH CHASSIS CHOICE: Primary: RK-790 (Last ran at Martinsville, Oct. 2011 FINISHED 31ST)

GREG BIFFLE ON MARTINSVILLE: “Believe it or not, I’m actually looking forward to Martinsville. We have a brand new, super light, great car for this weekend. We’ve been working on brake packages and we feel like we have a great brake package. We’ve actually qualified well, for the most part, in the past at Martinsville. I’m really excited about Martinsville, but even more excited for the week off after.”

BIFFLE CHASSIS CHOICE: Primary: RK-807 Brand new chassis; Backup: RK-759 Last ran Phoenix as the No. 6 – finished 33rd.

MARCOS AMBROSE CHASSIS CHOICE: The No. 9 RPM team has prepared chassis No. 754 for the 500-lap race at Martinsville Speedway. This DEWALT Ford Fusion ran in both Martinsville races last season.

ARIC ALMIROLA CHASSIS CHOICE: The No. 43 Smithfield Ford will be chassis number 736. The chassis was last used at Phoenix last November and the team finished sixth.

KYLE BUSCH ON MARTINSVILLE: “I didn’t used to like Martinsville but, ever since I started working with Dave (Rogers, crew chief), we feel like we get better every time we go there and we’re getting close to finally winning one. I’ve had some decent runs there, where I’ve felt like we’ve had a car to win and had a shot to win. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to get the track position toward the end of the race. Jeff (Gordon) is so good there, and Jimmie (Johnson) and Denny (Hamlin) are also good there. They’re probably the three most difficult guys to pass there because they know the place. They know how to get off the corner and how to roll the middle of the corner there. Everything is timing, and their stuff just works, whatever it is.” (NOTE: FOR SOME REASON, BUSCH'S PR PEOPLE HAVEN'T LISTED HIS CHASSIS THE LAST 2 WEEKS)

DENNY HAMLIN ON MARTINSVILLE: “I think we have a great chance to get back to victory lane at Martinsville. We have always been strong there and hopefully will be again this weekend. Darian (Grubb) and the FedEx guys have been giving me fast race cars each week and I think we’re close to another victory. I always enjoy going to Martinsville and being from Virginia, it’s good to get in front of the fans and run well.”

CLINT BOWYER ON MARTINSVILLE: “Martinsville is a great racetrack! I love that place as a driver and as a fan. It’s short track racing the way it should be. Track position is king at Martinsville. You talk about a place where qualifying is a big deal – Martinsville is it. You want to make sure you turn in a good lap on Saturday, because it’s hard to gain ground on race day!

BOWYER CHASSIS CHOICE: The No. 15 5-hour ENERGY team will race chassis No. 701 at Martinsville. Chassis No. 693 will serve as the backup. Both chassis are new in 2012.

BRIAN VICKERS CHASSIS CHOICE: Vickers will drive chassis 703 and chassis 694 will serve as a backup car. Neither has raced in 2012.

A.J. ALLMENDINGER CHASSIS CHOICE: and his Todd Gordon-led Penske Racing No. 22 Team will be racing their new "PRS-819" Shell-Pennzoil Dodge Charger this weekend at Martinsville. The "PRS-807" is the backup Dodge Charger for the "Double-Deuce" team. It was in the transporter serving as the backup at Phoenix and at Bristol, but has never seen any track time.

- From team PR releases

Final 2012 Bristol Food City 500 Driver Ratings Following All Practices

Micah Roberts’ Top 10 Driver Ratings
Food City 500
Bristol Motor Speedway
Sunday, March 18, 2012 - 10:16 am (PDT)

Rating    Driver     Odds      Practice 1   Qualified   Practice 2   Practice 3

 1. Kyle Busch 5/1                   10th            13th          2nd              2nd
Five time winner, including ‘11 spring race and four of his last six starts; new chassis this week.
 2. Brad Keselowski 15/1         23rd            5th           21st             4th
2011 fall winner; had a great final practice on long runs, using new chassis this week.
 3. Kasey Kahne 12/1              21st           10th           6th               5th
2007 runner-up; best average speeds in practice 3, best 10 consecutive lap average in practice 2.
 4. Jeff Gordon 10/1                  6th             4th          14th              9th
Five-time winner, the last coming in 2002; five top-5 finishes in last 11 starts
 5. Ryan Newman 25/1             5th             3rd            3rd              1st
2004 runner-up, his last top-5 finish. Stellar final practice with best 10 consecutive lap average.
 6. Greg Biffle 12/1                  11th             1st            4th             15th
11.8 average finish in 18 starts with no career short track wins; team is in a groove right now.
 7. A.J. Allmendinger 50/1        2nd             2nd           1st             17th
Outstanding two days of practices with fast average speeds; using new chassis this week.
 8. Martin Truex Jr. 25/1            9th           15th            5th              8th
2011 fall runner-up; had third fastest average speeds in final practice.
 9. Matt Kenseth 12/1               17th           21st           9th              9th
Two time winner with 6.2 average finish in last four starts; using new chassis this week.
10. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 25/1      15th           18th          12th            12th  
2004 winner with 11.7 average finish; second fastest average speeds in final practice.

Note: Kahne, Earnhardt Jr and Truex Jr’s fastest average speeds are based among all drivers that ran at least 60 laps in final practice. Jeff Burton ran a session high 108 laps, Jimmie Johnson 102.    

Odds courtesy of the Las Vegas Hilton Super Book.

Micah Roberts, a former sports book director, has been setting NASCAR lines in Las Vegas since 1995. For more Roberts insights and post-practice analysis on the race, go to VegasInsider.com, TheLinemakers.com or follow MicahRoberts7 on Twitter.
      

Betting Notes:
Kasey Kahne has been driving me nuts the last three weeks with his practices. His car has looked the best at Phoenix, Las Vegas and now Bristol. He didn’t fare well in either of the two previous races, but I still have to take a shot on him to win.

Kyle Busch is the driver to beat not only because of his five wins at Bristol, but also because of his speed in Saturday’s practice. He’s got some power, especially on short runs, and if it comes down to Busch on re-start with 10 laps to go, he won’t be beat.

Because Busch’s odds are so low (5/1), it makes the betting equation a little more difficult. You can’t leave him out, but you also can’t deny how good some of the others like Kahne looked. In addition to Kahne, Brad Keselowski, A.J. Allmendinger and Martin Truex Jr look great and all of them have great prices. Ryan Newman and Dale Earnhardt Jr are even worth pondering a play.

Match-up of the week: Anyone against Tony Stewart
For some reason, this just isn’t one of Stewart’s best tracks. He’s only had three top-5 finishes in his last 20 starts and his only win came in 2001. His last three starts have seen him finish 28th, 19th and 27th.    

Final Daytona 500 Driver Ratings Following All Practice Sessions

Micah Roberts Driver Ratings
Daytona 500
Daytona International Speedway
Sunday, February 26, 2012 - 10:16 am (PDT)

Rating Driver    Odds       Qualified  Practice 3   Duels*  Shootout*

1. Tony Stewart 10/1            3rd           12th          1st          2nd
17 Daytona wins over career, but none in the Daytona 500; 2004 runner-up.

2. Jeff Gordon 12/1             16th          25th          8th          15th
Three-time winner, the last coming in 2004. Star performer in pre-season testing.

3. Jamie McMurray 18/1     19th         28th         10th          16th
2010 winner, three of six career wins have come in restrictor-plate races; brand new chassis.

4. Kurt Busch 25/1              28th         DNP         14th         17th
Three-time Daytona 500 runner-up; using winning '09 Talladega chassis driven by Keselowski.

5. Kyle Busch 10/1             14th         30th           7th           1st
Series best average running position of 12.3 over career at Daytona; brand new chassis.

6. Kevin Harvick 12/1        13th           8th            7th         22nd
2007 winner, also 2010 winner of summer race; brand new chassis this week.

7. Dale Earnhardt Jr 12/1     5th         42nd           2nd         20th
2004 winner, hasn't won any points race in his last 129 starts. Streak in jeopardy Sunday.

8. Denny Hamlin 20/1        31st         11th           17th          5th
Not his best track with 22.1 average finish, but pre-season test was encouraging sign.

9. Carl Edwards 12/1          1st           41st            5th           9th
No plate race wins, but getting close; using runner-up chassis from 2011 Daytona 500

10. Elliott Sadler 30/1        10th         13th           4th          DNP
Finished 11th or better from 2004-2009; using chassis ran by Burton in 2010-11.

* Results from Thursday's two Gatorade Duel qualifying races and last Saturday's Budweiser Shootout.

Note: Practice 3 was the busiest session with the most participants in race trim. The other six practices either were in qualifying trim or had minimal participation for fear of wrecking their primary car.

Odds courtesy of the LVH Super Book.

Micah Roberts, a former sports book director, has been setting NASCAR lines in Las Vegas since 1995. He can be reached at VegasInsider.com, TheLinemakers.com or Twitter: @MicahRoberts7


The Daytona 500 is a giant crap shoot that most professional bettors shy away from because of that uncertainty, but it's the Daytona 500, therefore wagers must be placed despite having little edge like might be obtained prior to other races. And with the uncertainty comes the possibility of hitting a bomb like Trevor Bayne at 100-to-1 last year.

Drivers that have high odds this week who are very capable of winning include Elliott Sadler (30/1 field), Marcos Ambrose (50/1) and Ricky Stenhouse (60/1). Sadler has been stellar in almost every Daytona 500 he's run, Ambrose has had a great speed weeks and Stenhouse is driving the same chassis that David Ragan drove to the winner's circle in the summer Daytona race last year.

Match-up play of the week:
Marcos Ambrose -110 vs Regan Smith: I've seen too much good out of Amrose over the last week to believe he'll be around late in the race and contend for the win.

Daytona 500 Cautions UNDER 9.5 (EV): Because of all the changes put in place to stop the two-car tandems and the spectacular wrecks we saw in the Bud Shootout, the first inclination is to think there will be a loty of wrecks Sunday. But the uncertainty may play into drivers being more cautious than ever and lead to less aggressive driving early on with the goal of staying on the track until the final three laps. Four of the last five Daytona 500's have had 9 cautions or less.



Final Daytona 500 Practice

Daytona 500 Driver Chassis Selections

OVER-UNDER Cautions is posted at 9.5 at LVH Super Book

#1-Jamie McMurray: Crew Chief Kevin "Bono" Manion and the #1 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats team will be bringing a brand new chassis, Chassis #1204, to Daytona International Speedway this weekend.

#2-Brad Keselowski: and the #2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger team will race chassis PRS-643 during Sunday's 54th running of the Daytona 500. This is a new chassis to the #2 fleet. Continuing one of the most-popular features of the "Blue Deuce" from 2011, the featured tag line on the rear bumper this weekend in Daytona will be "Driven to Greatness."

#6-Ricky Stenhouse Jr.: is driving primary chassis RK-689 which last ran at Daytona in July and won the race with David Ragan driving. The backup chassis will be RK-720.

#9-Marcos Ambrose: The #9 RPM team has prepared chassis No. 795 for the Daytona 500. This Stanley Ford Fusion is brand new this season and was tested in Daytona in January.

#10-Danica Patrick will driver Chassis No. 333, a brand new chassis that will make its debut during Daytona Speedweeks in preparation for the 54th Daytona 500 on Feb. 26.

Greg Biffle has had a great Daytona speed weeks (Getty) 

#16-Greg Biffle: is racing primary chassis RK-794 which is a brand new chassis, the backup chassis is RK-689, which last raced at Daytona in July and finished 18th.

#17-Matt Kenseth: will run primary chassis RK-741 which last run at Texas. This weekend at Daytona , Kenseth will pilot the #17 Best Buy Ford Fusion.

#18-Kyle Busch: Chassis No. 333 is a brand new chassis that will make its race debut in Sunday's Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway.

#20-Joey Logano: and the #20 Home Depot team will take chassis #293 to Daytona for the 500. The car has run previous restrictor-plate races in the past. Chassis #325 will serve at the team's backup for Daytona. It's the same car the team used in the Daytona test back in January.

#22-A.J. Allmendinger and his Todd Gordon-led Penske Racing #22 Team will be racing their "PRS-642" Shell-Pennzoil Dodge Charger in this week's action at Daytona. Thursday's qualifying race will mark its first time in racing competition.

#27-Paul Menard will pilot Chassis No. 338 from the RCR stable in the Daytona 500. This Chevy was a new addition to the RCR fleet for the 2011 season and saw superspeedway competition as Menard's #27 in the Daytona 500, at Talladega in April and at Daytona in July. The car was last seen on track at Talladega in October, entered as the #33 Chevy 100 Years Chevrolet where the team started third and went on to claim RCR's 100th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory. The #27 PEAK/Menards Chevy will carry a special paint scheme during Speedweeks at Daytona. "PEAK blue" and "Menards yellow" will don the Impala as the Sprint Cup Series kicks off the 2012 season.

#29-Kevin Harvick: will utilize Chassis No. 387 from the Richard Childress Racing stable for this weekend's Daytona 500. This is a brand new race car that saw its first on-track activity at DIS during preseason testing in January.

#31-Jeff Burton will race Chassis No. 296 from the RCR stable in the Daytona 500. This chassis, built in 2010 for RCR's #33 entry, competed in two superspeedway events in 2010 including the Talladega Superspeedway race in April (started-14th, finished-seventh) and the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway in July (started-15th, finished-17th). Ring Power and Louisiana Cat will be featured on the deck lid of the #31 Caterpillar Chevy for all Speedweeks 2012 events at Daytona International Speedway.

#33-Elliott Sadler: will pilot Chassis No. 238 from the RCR stable. This former #31 racer received a new body over the season after competing in the 2010 and 2011 Budweiser Shootouts with driver Jeff Burton, posting 12th and eighth-place finishes, respectively. The #33 will be sponsored by General Mills and Kroger at Daytona.

#36-Dave Blaney and the #36 Ollie's Bargain Outlet team will compete with the No. 331 chassis. The chassis is a brand new chassis made by Richard Childress Racing. TBR tested the chassis at Daytona International Speedway in January.

#39-Ryan Newman Chassis No. 39-701 is a brand new racecar that has only been tested in the wind tunnel. The Gatorade Duel will mark its first race of any kind, and the Daytona 500 will mark its first points-paying race.

#42-Juan Pablo Montoya: crew chief Chris 'Sunshine' Heroy and the #42 Target team will be racing chassis #1117 in the Daytona 500. This is the same chassis that Montoya drove to a 15th place finish during the fall race at Talladega Superspeedway last year.

#43-Aric Almirola:: The #43 Richard Petty Motorsports team has prepared chassis No. 722 for the Daytona 500. This is not the same car the team tested at the speedway in January, but it is the same Smithfield Helping Hungry Homes Ford Fusion that the #43 team ran in every restrictor plate event last season.

Kurt Busch is a live dog at 25/1 to win (Getty)

#51-Kurt Busch Chassis No. 553, Busch tested this chassis in January at Daytona International Speedway and turned a lap of 206.058 mph. This is the samecar that Brad Keselowski drove to victory in April 2009 at Talladega. It was his first career victory and remains the only Sprint Cup Series win for Phoenix Racing.

#55-Mark Martin: The #55 Aaron's Dream Machine is racing chassis No. 687 this weekend at Daytona, the first race appearance for the car. Chassis No. 710, also a new chassis will serve as the backup.

#99-Carl Edwards the #99 Fastenal team will be unloading chassis RK-712 at Daytona, the same car which finished second in the Daytona 500 last year.

- compiled by Jayski.com

Final Homestead-Miami Driver Ratings Following All Practices

Micah Roberts Top 10 Driver Ratings
Ford 400
Homestead-Miami Speedway
Sunday, November 20, 2011 - 12:16 pm (PDT)

Rating    Driver     Odds       Practice 1   Practice 2   Qualified   Texas*

 1. Carl Edwards 9/2                 2nd            1st              1st          2nd
Two-time winner with a track best 5.7 average finish in seven starts; using Texas chassis.
 2. Matt Kenseth 6/1                 3rd            15th             6th          4th
2007 winner with two wins on 1.5-mile tracks in 2011; using Texas chassis this week.
 3. Kevin Harvick 6/1                 9th           18th             21st       13th  
Two-time runner with a 7.9 average finish in 10 starts; using sixth-place Charlotte car.
 4. Tony Stewart 4/1                15th            28th            15th        1st
Two-time winner under old configuration, no top-5s since 2004; using eighth-place Charlotte car.
 5. Jeff Gordon 10/1                  8th            12th             7th         6th
One of two Cup tracks that he’s never won on; owns an 11.8 average finish in 12 starts.
 6. Jimmie Johnson 8/1             5th            14th             9th        14th
Two-time runner-up; one of only five tracks he‘s never won on. Using Charlotte chassis.
 7. Ryan Newman 40/1              4th            26th            14th       16th
Career best finish of sixth came his rookie season in 2002; good practices Saturday in race trim.
 8. Greg Biffle 15/1                   14th           11th              8th         5th
Three-time winner from 2004-06; will be using 15th-place Charlotte chassis from October.
 9. Brad Keselowski 30/1          25th           10th             5th         24th
Career best of 13th last season, had a great practice Saturday; will be using new chassis.
10. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 40/1       1st             23rd            11th        7th
Has never finished better than 13th in 11 starts; strong practice suggests it could be career day.

* Results from the November 6, 2011 race at Texas Motor Speedway, the last race run on a high-banked 1.5-mile track. Although the track configuration of Texas and Homestead are not similar, the set-up requirements for the cars are.
     
Odds courtesy of the Las Vegas Hilton Super Book.

Micah Roberts, a former race and sports Director, has been setting NASCAR lines in Las Vegas since 1995. For more Roberts insights and post-practice analysis on the race, go to VegasInsider.com or follow MicahRoberts7 on Twitter.

Driver Notes & Quotes for Kansas Hollywood Casino 400

Greg Biffle finished 1st or 3rd in four of the last five Kansas races (Getty)

GREG BIFFLE ON KANSAS: “Kansas is a unique track that I have always enjoyed racing at. I think I enjoy it because I’ve run well there. We were able to win there last year and finished third there the two years before that. We got our only win of the 2007 season at Kansas too, so we know we can get to victory lane there if we don’t have anything go wrong. We’re working really hard on all fronts to do everything we can to get the No. 16 Ford into the winner’s circle. We have Sherwin-Williams on the car this week which is the same paint scheme we took to victory lane in Kansas last year.”

CARL EDWARDS ON RACING AT KANSAS: “There is absolutely nothing better than racing in front of your family and friends at your hometown track this weekend at Kansas Speedway. A win there would mean the world to me. We are going into Kansas tied for the lead with seven races to go and we are coming off a good finish at Dover. We’d like to build on that lead and Kansas would be the perfect track to do that.”

FOR THE RECORD…Edwards will make his ninth Cup start at Kansas Speedway this weekend. In his previous starts, Edwards has three top-five and six top-10 finishes. His average start is 20.5 and his average finish is 11.4. His best finish (second) came in 2008.

HOME TRACK… Edwards is a native of, and currently resides in Columbia, Mo. Only 130 miles away, he considers Kansas Speedway his home track in the Sprint Cup Series.

EDWARDS CHASSIS CHOICE: The Aflac team will be bringing chassis RK-732 to Kansas. This car most recently raced at Pocono in August where Edwards finished seventh.

Matt Kenseth using ninth-place Atlanta car (Getty)

MATT KENSETH ON KANSAS: “Kansas and Chicago are a lot alike when you look at 1.5-mile tracks, and I thought that we had a really strong car in Chicago a few weeks ago, so I’m looking forward to a great run this weekend at Kansas. The thing about Kansas that makes it a little different is the pavement, and how the surface has started to wear out, which is a good thing for us when we’re racing. It’s important to have good balance on new tires in order for our Crown Royal Ford to still be good at the end of a run. We work hard to make sure that our car drives well throughout the entire run at Kansas, and if we can do that and continue our great work on pit road, we should have a strong finish Sunday.”

KENSETH CREW CHIEF JIMMY FENNIG ON THEIR KANSAS CAR: “The car we’re bringing this weekend to Kansas was last run at Atlanta where it was a brand new chassis in our rotation. When we raced at Kansas earlier this season, we were able to finish sixth, and I expect us to have a good run this weekend there. Kansas is a track where we typically see cars be aero-tight since it can be difficult to pass at. Kansas and Chicago are similar tracks and I feel that we had a strong car at Chicago so hopefully we can translate that success into our car for this weekend at Kansas.”

DENNY HAMLIN ON HOW HE FEELS ABOUT HEADING BACK TO KANSAS: “I’m looking forward to it. We ran really strong in the Kansas race in the spring and really 1.5-mile tracks in general have been good to us here lately as far as our performance. We look forward to going back to them. It’s the normal type races of what we have during the season Tracks like Dover and New Hampshire these past two weeks have kind of been one off race tracks where you really can’t get a good feel for where your program is at.”

Kyle Busch is using Chicagoland car this week (Getty)

KYLE BUSCH ON CHANGES HE'S SEEN AT KANSAS: “Kansas is a typical cookie-cutter-type race track that we always call a mile-and-a-halfs that have that layout. It’s got older asphalt now, but that’s going to change for next year. The surface has matured a little bit over the years. It’s a race track where you can move all over the place. You can go from the bottom all the way to the top. Typically, when we repave these places you’re always stuck to the bottom. It’s the fastest way around. The shortest way around. Sometimes there’s not a lot of grip. It’s got good age to it. It’s got some character. There are definitely some things about it that are different than other race tracks that we go to and that’s what the drivers like. We don’t want to see a Charlotte, a Texas and Atlanta all the same. They’re all so different. But, yet from the naked eye looking above, they’re all laid out the same. So, you would think that they drive the same, but they’re completely different.”

BUSCH ON LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING KANSAS AGAIN: “I think we need to be better than I have run there before. Dave (Rogers, crew chief) and all the guys in the shop have worked really hard to be as prepared as possible for Kansas. We were much better at Chicago this year, even though our results didn’t show it, and the guys went to work to bring an even better car to Kansas this weekend and it’s a very similar layout to Chicago. The banking is just a little bit different but, other than that, it’s really similar. I’ve had some success with JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing) and Hendrick (Motorsports) in the Nationwide Series there, and I’m hoping, with a little more experience and knowledge, I can do that in the Cup car at Kansas, as well. This weekend would be a great time to get it figured out and, hopefully, have a good solid top-five day with our M&M’s Camry.”

BUSCH CHASSIS CHOICE: This chassis will make its second-ever start in Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City. This chassis made its debut in the first race of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup last month at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill. After qualifying a solid ninth and running within the top-10 all race long, Busch ran out of gas with just two laps remaining, forcing him to come to pit road for a splash of gas and led to a disappointing 22nd-place finish.

Harvick is using runner-up Chicagoland chassis (Getty)

KEVIN HARVICK ON KANSAS: “I think when you look at the facility itself (Kansas Speedway), when you look at the surrounding area, there are not too many places that we go to that have built around the race track like this particular track. From a fan standpoint, when you look at the race track, there are things to do and places to go, so that part of it is good. The race track itself is a lot like a lot of the other race tracks we go to as far as the race track shape and size, so that doesn’t really set it aside from a lot of other places. The one thing that does set it aside is the way that the race track has aged, which is a good thing. You look at Charlotte, those types of race tracks, the asphalt has not changed much over the years and this particular race track, the tires wear out, it gets slick and the cars start to slide around, which makes the racing groove move up, which it has done here over the past couple of years so that part of it has changed a little bit differently than a lot of the mile-and-a-half tracks.

“I think the competition level is so even. I don’t think you’re going to see anybody come in here and dominate like you have before, as far as just taking off and running away. You’re going to be consistent and solid and it’s just a matter of keeping yourself in it until you get to the last couple of races and if you can keep yourself in contention, hopefully you’ve eliminated most of the other guys in the Chase.”

HARVICK CHASSIS CHOICE: Kevin Harvick will race chassis No. 378 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. The team utilized this car at Chicagoland Speedway to earn a second-place finish last month.

Stewart is using his dominant Vegas car this week (Getty)

TONY STEWART, NO. 14 OFFICE DEPOT/MOBIL 1 CHEVROLET – 3RD IN STANDINGS: “It seems like in the last couple of years it (Kansas Speedway) has really come around. It’s seasoned and it’s gotten to where we can get off the bottom and move around the racetrack more. That’s what you want as a driver. That’s what the teams want. You don’t want to be stuck following guys and not being able to move around and pass. It just makes you confident that you know you have options when you go into the corner where you can help yourself out as a driver. It makes this place a lot more fun to race when you’re able to move around and find different grooves.”

STEWART CHASSIS CHOICE: This car debuted in May 2010 in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway. It qualified 26th and finished 15th in its maiden race. It saw extensive wind-tunnel time before returning to action in late July for the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. There, it qualified 15th and
ran most of the race at the lower end of the top-10. But a savvy two-tire pit call on the team’s final stop allowed it to rally to a fifth-place finish. Chassis No. 14-591 spent the rest of the 2010 season as a backup, and in the off-season, it received a new body and logged many hours in the wind tunnel.

The Kobalt Tools 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway was its third career start and first of 2011. It was impressive, as Stewart dominated, leading four times for a race-high 163 laps. He opened up a four-second advantage until a pit road miscue derailed the perfect outing and left him second when the checkered flag dropped. Its next start came in May’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte, where it was poised to finish in the top-10 until engine woes late in the race dropped it to a 17th-place finish. Chassis No. 14-591’s next outing came in a test July 9 at Kentucky Speedway in Sparta. It returned to racing Labor Day weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway, where after starting 20th, rallied to an impressive third-place finish, gaining 8.5 seconds on eventual winner Jeff Gordon in the final 10 laps. The Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas will mark Chassis No. 14-591’s sixth career start and fourth this season.

JIMMIE JOHNSON ON KANSAS: “The track’s (Kansas Speedway) lost a ton of grip and it’s heading toward Atlanta from a grip standpoint. There are lots of grooves to race on and cars don’t really wear the tire off. I’m going to go out on a limb and say it could be a fuel mileage race but I don’t really want to think about it from that standpoint.”

JOHNSON CHASSIS CHOICE: Johnson will drive chassis No. 681 in Sunday’s race. He crossed the line 10th in that chassis at Chicagoland Speedway in September. Johnson finished second in backup chassis No. 650 at Atlanta Motor Speedway in September.

JEFF GORDON ON KANSAS: “This has been a great track for us and I can’t wait for this weekend’s race. I hope we run like we did earlier this year. If so, it gives us a chance to make up some points. I feel like Kansas is where we really turned the corner this year with our 1.5-mile program. We ran really strong and I felt like we had a shot at winning that race. I guess we are somewhat fortunate (with seven races remaining in the Chase to the NASCAR Sprint Cup). We’ve had only one good race out of three, but we’re down only 19 points. That doesn’t have to be made up in one event. Seven races is a lot of races. But every race is important. It doesn’t matter what track you are going to and what your past experience or stats are there. It’s all about what you do these next seven weeks. That’s all it boils down to. And I think this No. 24 team is strong enough to put a string of seven good races together.”

DALE EARNHARDT JR. ON KANSAS: “We kind of struggled in that race, but the car ended up not being too bad. I don’t know if we could have caught Brad (Keselowski) there at the end, but we had to do what we had to do at that point. I was happy with the second-place finish, but I do think we need to qualify better so we won’t have to deal with the dirty air. The aero balance on the car can be frustrating being so far back.”

RYAN NEWMAN ON KANSAS: “Kansas is quite a bit different with the asphalt. The seams are the same as in the asphalt, I guess you could say. The way we have to cut them and work them, cars can be pretty sensitive there. Charlotte is a totally different animal with the banking and the speed and the tire combination that we have at that racetrack. I look forward to both of them. We had a decent car at Kansas in the first race and never got track position and the improvements we made in the car and the team at Chicago, I look forward to going back to a mile-and-a-half racetrack because that had been one of our weaknesses and I feel like it is one of our strengths right now.”

RYAN NEWMAN CHASSIS CHOICE: This will be the fourth start for Chassis No. 39-677 this season and the first start for the chassis at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City. The chassis made its first start in July at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where Newman started 23rd and finished 12th. The next start for Chassis 39-677 was in August at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, where Newman started third and finished fifth. The last on-track appearance for this chassis came in September at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill., where Newman started fourth and led 18 laps en route to an eighth-place result.

Clint Bowyer is hoping for some home-cooking this week

CLINT BOWYER ON KANSAS: “Kansas is a great market. They earned a second date. Beyond that, it’s just a great place for a fan to go watch a race. There’s so much to do around the race track within walking distance, malls, shopping centers and a ton of restaurants. There’s going to be a casino on property next year. So many things have happened to that area because of the race track. Everyone around there is proud of what it’s become. It’s just a long week (with additional pressure) because that’s where I’m from. A lot of my personal and dirt team sponsors are based in that area too. It’s a long busy week and it’s important to reach out and help all those people that support us throughout the season.”

BOWYER CHASSIS CHOICE: Clint Bowyer will pilot chassis No. 371 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable this weekend. This Chevrolet Impala, built new last month, was utilized at Chicagoland Speedway in September when Bowyer drove it to a top-10 finish of seventh after starting 21st.

MARK MARTIN ON KANSAS: “The best thing to me about going to Kansas is that it’s real close to Batesville, Ark. I have a lot of fans that make the drive up there to support me and this team and that means a lot to me. I feel like our intermediate program is getting better and better. We’ve gotten top-10s in two of our last three intermediate races. Hopefully we can give them a show this weekend and get a good finish out of it.”

JUAN PABLO MONTOYA ON KANSAS: “We hope to get things back on track this weekend in Kansas. If you look at our season to this point and last year, we’ve had good runs, but the finishes aren’t there. It has been like that. We have had good speed, but bad finishes for one reason or another. We run out of gas, we pit and everyone stays out, or they make it and we don’t. Jim (Pohlman) is now getting comfortable. It’s not an easy transition but now he is relaxing and getting in the zone, and things are going to turn around and get better.”

PAUL MENARD ON KANSAS: “We felt like we let one get away there (Kansas Speedway) last year. If I remember right, last Fall the No. 16 won the race and he was really fast. Everyone else was kind of racing for second-place. When we came in for our last pit stop, we didn’t have a good one and fell back quite a bit because of that. We felt we let one get away there. By the time we get to qualifying, we’ve gone through practice and figured out how we want the car to drive off into the corner. If you can do that, you usually can qualify pretty well by arcing it out and turning the wheel.”

MENARD CHASSIS CHOICE: Paul Menard will pilot Chassis No. 379 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. This is a brand new No. 27 Chevrolet Impala that will turn its first laps during opening practice on Friday at Kansas Speedway.

JEFF BURTON ON KANSAS: “I think we’ve always had good race cars at Kansas (Speedway), we’ve just always had something go wrong. I feel really good about going there and I really enjoy the race track. I think it’s a great track and as it has gotten older, it’s become a much, much better track to race on. I have really high expectations going there. It’s your typical 1.5-mile speedway where dynamics are very important. Although, it’s not a real high-banked or high-speed race track, the grip goes away and it gets slick. It’s not a place that you tend to run wide open during qualifying. It’s a track that you have to be aggressive on. It’s not a cookie cutter, high grip, new pavement type of race track.”

BURTON CHASSIS CHOICE: Jeff Burton will pilot chassis No. 367 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. This Caterpillar Chevrolet is a recent addition to the fleet and ran for the first time at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in July where Burton started 13th and finished 35th after facing electrical issues in the closing laps. It later ran at Atlanta Motor Speedway in September, where Burton started 27th and climbed through the field to post a 13th-place finish.

REGAN SMITH ON KANSAS: “Once again we (Furniture Row Racing) will be showcasing the Farm American paint scheme on our No. 78 Chevrolet. What better place to pay tribute to our farmers and ranchers than in the Heartland of America. We’ve been on a consistent pace the past four races, scoring four straight top-20s. While we like the consistency and staying away from trouble and mechanical issues, we would like to see the final results improve to top-15s and top-10s. I feel we can do that at Kansas since we have a solid intermediate track program. Kansas is the first of four remaining races on mile-and-a-half tracks. A good performance Sunday will not only give us a lift, but also help us prepare for the other 1.5 ovals.”

JAMIE MCMURRAY ON KANSAS: “I am looking forward to going back to Kansas again. I think our team has made some progress on our cars since our first trip there in June. We ran good a Chicago a couple of weeks ago before we had a motor problem and the two tracks are very similar so we hope we can have our Chevrolet running strong again. This is also the closest track to Bass Pro Shops headquarters in Springfield, Mo. and we always want to put on a good show for all of the guests that we will have on hand this weekend.”

Kurt Busch dominated first Kansas race (Getty)

KURT BUSCH ON KANSAS:“I don’t know what it is about the Kansas track. The year that I won the championship, I finished sixth and that had been the highlight so far. It’s a flat mile-and-a-half that reminds me of Las Vegas when it was built and flat. It’s just a tough combination. If you’re just a tick off, you feel like you play catch-up most of the weekend and if you unload fast, you’re tough to chase down.”

BUSCH CREW CHIEF STEVE ADDINGTON ON THEIR KANSAS CAR: “This is a sister car to our ‘758’ that we won Dover with last weekend. Since the last time out, we’ve gone back and completely redone this car with our latest stuff. It’ll be a good car for Kansas and we can’t wait to get back out there. We’re heading in there with the attitude that we have some unfinished business to take care of this time around.”

BRAD KESELOWSKI ON KANSAS: “Wow. So much has happened this year since we won at Kansas, but I don’t want the significance of that win lost in the fact that we won two more races and made the Chase. That win at Kansas was special because we knew we were doing the right things to be successful, but just didn’t get the luck needed to win. Winning at Kansas was a validation, of sorts, and it was definitely the catalyst for what we were able to accomplish as the summer months wore on. We won the race on fuel mileage, but we had a very fast car throughout the race. We ran in the top-10 most of the day. With a fast Miller Lite Dodge and good fuel mileage, I’m confident about our chances this weekend.”

KESELOWSKI CHASSIS CHOICE: The No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger team will race chassis PRS-753 during Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway. Keselowski last raced this chassis to a third-place finish at Michigan International Speedway in August.

DAVID RAGAN ON KANSAS: “We always look to improve at tracks from the first event there and Kansas is a track that really fits our program. Our engines run well there and our cars are fast. Drew and I are going to work hard to try and grab another win for our UPS team.”

RAGAN CHASSIS CHOICE: Primary: RK-730 Last ran Kansas – finished 13th; Backup: RK-711 Last ran Darlington – finished 21st

Final Dover AAA 400 Driver Rating Following All Practices and Q Sessions

Micah Roberts Driver Ratings
AAA 400
Dover International Speedway
Sunday, October 2, 2011 - 11:16 am (PDT)

Rating  Driver  Odds          Practice 1   Practice 2   Qualified   Dover*

1. Jeff Gordon 8/1               4th            2nd             34th      17th
Three-time winner; strong practices and dominating Bristol race make him the favorite.
2. Matt Kenseth 10/1         2nd           20th            18th       1st
Two-time winner; using the same chassis this week that he won with in May Dover race.
3. Jimmie Johnson 6/1        7th           12th             6th        9th
Six-time winner, the last coming in 2010; using chassis that finished second at Michigan.
4. Kyle Busch 6/1               5th           11th             5th        4th
Two-time winner with six other finishes of sixth or better; using winning Kentucky chassis.
5. Carl Edwards 7/1            3rd          16th              4th        7th
2007 winner and track best 7.6 average finish; using fourth-place Chicagoland chassis.
6. Kevin Harvick 15/1       16th         18th             22nd     10th
Career best of third in 2006. Has led 134 laps in 21 starts; using winning Charlotte chassis.
7. Mark Martin 30/1         15th          1st              17th      2nd
Four-time winner, the last coming in 2004; 11.4 average finsh in last 20 starts.
8. Brad Keselowski 15/1    6th         22nd             15th      13th
Rated high on the basis of his Bristol win where notes from that race should translate well.
9. Kurt Busch 12/1           12th         14th              2nd       14th
Five top-five finishes, including three in his last five starts; using third-place Pocono car.
10. Martin Truex Jr. 30/1 8th          33rd             1st          8th
Captured his only career win at Dover in 2007; had a strong runner-up finish at Bristol.

* Results from the May 15, 2011 FedEx 400 at Dover.

Note: Results from the August 27, 2011 race at Bristol can also be used as a barometer for Sunday's race. Although, Bristol is half the size of Dover, the two concrete tracks each have multiple grooves and similar banking.

Odds courtesy of the Las Vegas Hilton Super Book.

Micah Roberts, a former race and sports book director, has been setting NASCAR lines in Las Vegas since 1995. For more of Roberts' insights and post-practice analysis on the race, go to VegasInsider.com or follow MicahRoberts7 on Twitter.

Driver Chassis Selections for New Hampshire Sylvania 300

Note: Not all teams list their chassis selection in their PR releases

New car for Keselowski this week at Loudon (getty)

Jamie McMurray: The #1 AXE team will bring chassis #1116 to New Hampshire Motor Speedway this weekend. This will be the first time that this brand new car hits the track during the 2011 season.

Brad Keselowski: will race chassis PRS-761 during Sunday's Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway (NHMS). This is a new chassis to the #2 fleet.

David Ragan: Primary: RK-759 Last ran Pocono - finished 34th; Backup: RK-747 Last ran Martinsville - finished eighth

Mark Martin: Crew chief Lance McGrew has chosen Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 5-695 for Sunday's race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. This is a brand new chassis that never has been raced or tested.

Marcos Ambrose: The #9 RPM team has prepared chassis No. 743 for the 317.4-mile event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. This DEWALT Ford Fusion was run previously this season at California, Charlotte and Michigan.

Stewart brought his runner-up Loudon car from July (Getty)

Tony Stewart: Chassis No. 14-637: This car made its debut in April at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway, where it experienced some teething problems, qualifying 28th and finishing 34th with a broken rear-end gear. Prior to Martinsville, Chassis No. 14-637 was tested March 14 at the half-mile Little Rock Speedway in Rockingham, N.C. The July race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon marked the car's second career start, where it qualified second and led twice for 48 laps before finishing .773 of a second behind his teammate, Ryan Newman. It saw track time again during a Goodyear Tire Test at Phoenix International Raceway Aug. 29-30. Chassis No. 14-637 returns to New Hampshire for its third career start with this weekend's Sylvania 300.

Matt Kenseth: Primary: RK-751 (last raced at Bristol)

Kyle Busch: Chassis No. 315: This chassis will make its third-ever start in Sunday's Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon. In its first outing in July's Brickyard 400 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Busch started a distant 29th but still managed to bring home a respectable 10th-place finish. In its most recent out last month at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Busch started 17th but went on to score his fourth win of the season in the Pure Michigan 400.

Kurt Busch: and his Steve Addington-led Penske Racing "Double-Deuce" team will be racing their "PRS-761" Shell-Pennzoil Dodge Charger this weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. "It's a brand new Shell-Pennzoil Dodge Charger" offered crew chief Addington.

Paul Menard: will pilot Chassis No. 341 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. This #27 Chevrolet Impala was a brand new addition to the RCR fleet for the 2011 season and was last seen in competition at New Hampshire Motor Speedway (July) where Menard started ninth and finished 24th.

Harvick has two wins in the car he's using this week (Getty)

Kevin Harvick: will race chassis No. 332 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) stable. This is same car he drove to Victory Lane at Martinsville Speedway in March and Richmond International Raceway earlier this month. Harvick also racked up finishes of fourth at Phoenix International Raceway (2/27), 12th at RIR (4/30) and 21st at NHMS (7/17) in this #29 Chevrolet Impala.

Jeff Burton: will pilot chassis No. 329 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable in this weekend's Sylvania 300. This #31 Chevrolet Impala finished 15th at Bristol Motor Speedway in August. Built new for the 2010 season, Burton also drove this Caterpillar Chevrolet to a 36th-place finish after being involved in an accident at Texas Motor Speedway in November.

Clint Bowyer: will pilot chassis No. 324 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable this weekend at "The Magic Mile." This Chevrolet Impala, built new in 2011, saw action earlier this season at Las Vegas Motor Speedway where Bowyer started 28th and finished 15th.

Dave Blaney: will pilot the No. 293 chassis this weekend. TBR purchased the chassis from Richard Childress Racing. Jeff Burton drove the chassis prior to its debut with TBR. Blaney drove the chassis at Kentucky Speedway and Indianapolis Motor Speedway earlier this year. Stephen Leicht also piloted the chassis this season at Richmond International Raceway September 10th.

Newman rolls out same car that won in July (Getty)

Ryan Newman: Chassis No. 39-645: This will be the third start for Chassis No. 39-645 this season and the second start for the chassis at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon. The chassis made its first start at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway in April. Newman qualified on the outside of the front row and, for the first 327 laps, looked to be a sure bet for another top-10 finish, or even a contender for the win. However, Newman's good fortunes came undone on lap 328, thanks to a broken header pipe that sapped his car's horsepower for the rest of the race, and a flat left-rear tire that sent him for a spin off turn three a little later in the race. Those events conspired to put Newman two laps down and relegated him to a 20th-place finish at the .526-mile paperclip-shaped oval. Next up for the chassis was a stop at New Hampshire in July. Newman & Company dominated the weekend at Loudon as he qualified on the pole and then led six times for a race-high 119 laps in his No. 39 Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) Chevrolet en route to his 15th career victory, his third at New Hampshire and his second career win with SHR.

Juan Pablo Montoya: Crew Chief Jim Pohlman and the #42 team are bringing chassis #1110 to New Hampshire Motor Speedway this weekend. This will be the third run of the season for this chassis after it was previously driven to a fourth-place finish at Martinsville Speedway in April and in the first event of 2011 at NHMS in July.

A.J. Allmendinger: The #43 RPM team has prepared chassis No. 729 for this weekend's event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. This Best Buy Ford has been run previously this season at Phoenix, Martinsville Speedway, Darlington Raceway and both Pocono Raceway events.

Jimmie Johnson: will pilot brand new chassis No. 689 in Sunday's event. Johnson finished 31st in backup chassis No. 590 at Richmond International Raceway in September.

Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Crew chief Steve Letarte and the #88 team will unload Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 88-694 this weekend at New Hampshire. This is a brand new chassis that has not been raced.

Carl Edwards: RK-782 - Last ran at Loudon in July, finished 13th

- compiled by Jayski.com

New Hampshire Sylvania 300 Preview

By Micah Roberts
VegasInsider.com

From the front row to finishing 1-2 at New Hampshire in July (Getty)

Race 2 of NASCAR's Chase for the Championship takes us to Loudon, New Hampshire for some flat-track racing. This will be the second time the series has stopped at the one-mile facility. Ryan Newman and Tony Stewart had a 1-2 finish in July which gives us a lot to work with when breaking down who might do well this week.

In addition to the July race, we can also reference Phoenix and both Richmond races to get a read on who the top drivers might be this week. Although none of the three tracks have the same layout, the banking and short distances are similar which means that if certain teams do well on one track, they’re likely to do the same on the other.

Even though Martinsville is half the distance of New Hampshire, we’re seeing a lot more teams incorporate their chassis set-up -- and sometimes the actual car -- from there to the three other tracks just because of the banking, or lack thereof.

We also can put a lot more weight into what we just saw two weeks at Richmond because it is the most recent run, a race won by Kevin Harvick with Carl Edwards and Jeff Gordon in tow.

However, based on how this wild season has gone with five first-time winners and 14 different drivers taking the checkers, it could be argued that past trends mean as little as they ever have.

It’s almost a crap shoot every week and it doesn’t help that this years ridiculous practice schedule with only two practice sessions happening and both come before qualifying. It’s become harder than ever to weed out the good practice times in race trim from those in qualifying trim. The fastest 10-consecutive lap stat helps, but there is nothing like having a ’Real’ Happy Hour where all the cars have their optimum set-up ready to race.

What we have now is teams getting their cars set perfect for race conditions and then having to reset it for qualifying. Even though they have notes to re-set the car back up that was the best during practice, it’s almost impossible to get it back as perfect after resetting it for qualifying. It’s like starting all over again and they don’t have a practice to show that they got it back correct, they have to make the changes needed during the race.

If anything, I think the practice schedule has a lot to do with all the parity we’re seeing right now.

Kevin Harvick is bringing a very strong car this week (Getty)

However, we're in luck this week as we have the traditional schedule of practices. The first practice session will be held before qualifying, which will be used almost exclusively in qualifying trim. On Saturday, we have two sets of practices which will be used for race trim only. Those who are good in practice will be able to roll the exact same set-up out onto the track.

Kevin Harvick leads a list of drivers who should be keyed on this week just because of the car he's using. The 2006 New Hampshire winner will be using a chassis that most recently won at Richmond, which also happened to win at Martinsville. All flat tracks, and they account for half of his season wins.

It also helps siding with Harvick this week knowing that he loves racing on these types of tracks.

"I always look forward to going to New Hampshire, " Harvick said earlier this week. "I like that type of track because it’s flat, similar to the tracks out west where I started my racing career. There’s a lot of braking. You have to really work on getting your car through the center of the corner and still have the forward drive you need up off the corner.”

Jeff Gordon has three Loudon wins over his career in 33 starts with his last win coming during his magical year of 1998. Since 2004, he’s been runner-up on four separate occasions and hasn’t finished worse than 15th. On the basis of his strong Richmond run recently, his Phoenix win and his current form everywhere, Gordon should be considered one of the favorites to win this week.

Gordon's 11th-place run in July may not looks so strong, but there was way more to the story in that race.

“We had a fast car that day," said Gordon, "and I’m really looking forward to going back there this weekend. Even after losing the lap because of the battery change, we were still able to work our way up through traffic pretty well. I wasn’t able to run any blowers (because of the electrical issues) and I think that’s what blew the right front at the end of the race. Hopefully, we don’t have any issues like that Sunday.

Denny Hamlin didn’t have a good run at Richmond two weeks ago, a track where he has always dominated, but he did show up for the last Loudon race with a third-place finish. He was also runner-up in the first Richmond race. In 11 starts on the track, Hamlin has finished in the top-10 eight times with a win in 2007.

Hamlin's goal will be to start his weekend off strong in qualifying trim.

"New Hampshire can be a tricky place to pass so we’ll be looking to qualify close to the front because that goes a long way at this track," explained Hamlin. "We know we need to be running in the top-five or top-10 all day to be in position at the end.”

Jimmie Johnson is a three-time winner at New Hampshire with the last win coming in the spring race last season. In 19 starts he’s finished 15th or better in 17 of them. This is the time that Johnson is supposed to turn it on like he has every year. No one has more Chase wins than Johnson.

Ryan Newman was strong in the first Loudon race this year and it gave him his third career New Hampshire win. He's always done well on the track over his career, but doesn't exactly know why.

“New Hampshire has always been a good place for me, I’m not a hundred percent sure why. It’s the place of my first win, when I hadn’t won in a long while, 70 some races. I won again there. This past July we were able to qualify and finish 1-2 at Stewart-Haas. It’s a fun race, it’s a very finesse racetrack."

Tony Stewart settled for his fourth runner-up finish at New Hampshire since his last win in 2005. Stewart has two career wins on the track. Because of how good Stewart and Newman were the last time around, they should be again considered top candidates to win.

Top 5 Finish Prediction:
1) #29 Kevin Harvick (7/1)
2) #14 Tony Stewart (6/1)
3) #48 Jimmie Johnson (5/1)
4) #24 Jeff Gordon (6/1)
5) #39 Ryan Newman (15/1)

Driver Chassis Selections for Geico 400 at Chicagoland Speedway

Note: Not all teams list their selections in their PR release

Keselowski starts the Chase off with a brand new car (Getty)

Jamie McMurray: Crew Chief Kevin "Bono" Manion has elected to bring chassis #1112 to Chicagoland Speedway this weekend. This is the second race of 2011 for this chassis after it ran at Indianapolis in July, coming home with a fourth-place finish.

Brad Keselowski: will race chassis PRS-760 during Sunday's Geico 400 at Chicagoland Speedway. This is a new chassis to the No. 2 fleet.

David Ragan: Primary: RK-777 Last ran Michigan - finished 12th; Backup: RK-711 Last ran Darlington - finished 21st

Mark Martin: Crew chief Lance McGrew has chosen Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 5-679 for Sunday's race at Chicagoland Speedway. This is the same chassis Martin drove to an eighth-place finish at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in July.

Marcos Ambrose: The #9 RPM team has prepared chassis No. 703 for the 400.5-mile race at Chicagoland Speedway. This DEWALT Ford Fusion was previously run this season at Kansas and Indianapolis.

Tony Stewart: Chassis No. 14-640: This car debuted in May at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway where it enjoyed a solid outing, qualifying ninth and leading six laps before finishing seventh. It spent time in the wind tunnel afterward and made its second career start at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway in June. There, it qualified 15th and moved its way into the top-five by lap 124, only to be felled two laps later when Stewart reported that he had lost third gear. The balky transmission prevented Stewart from getting up to speed quickly on restarts, which conspired to leave Chassis No. 14-640 in 21st place when the checkered flag dropped. The car returned to Pocono in August where it rallied from its 28th-place starting spot and a flat left-front tire on lap 92 that at one point had Stewart a lap down to finish on the lead lap in 11th. Chassis No. 14-640 returns to action this weekend at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill., for the Geico 400.

Matt Kenseth: RK-741 (Last run at Michigan)

Kyle Busch: Chassis No. 326: This is a brand new chassis that is slated to see action for the first time in Sunday's Geico 400 at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill.

Busch Brothers: Kurt in Loudon car, Kyle in new ride (Getty)

Kurt Busch: and his Steve Addington-led Penske Racing "Double-Deuce" team will be racing their "PRS-756" Shell-Pennzoil Dodge Charger this weekend at Chicagoland Speedway. "It's the car that we raced at Loudon back in July," offered crew chief Addington. "We started fourth, led a bunch of laps and were running fifth on the final lap when we ran out of fuel. We had to coast to a 10th-place finish. That's the only time we've raced this car and have really been looking forward to bringing it back out again."

Paul Menard: will pilot Chassis No. 326 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. This #27 Chevy Impala was a brand new addition to the RCR fleet for the 2011 season and was last seen in competition at Michigan International Speedway (August) where Menard started 11th and finished 26th. This racer also saw time at Bristol Motor Speedway (March) where he started fourth and finished fifth, The Sprint Showdown (May) where he started third and was running second when he was hit on the restart, relegating him to an 11th-place finish and at Michigan International Speedway in June, where Menard started ninth and finished fourth.

Kevin Harvick: will race chassis No. 378 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) stable. This is a brand new race car that will see its first on-track action at Chicagoland.

Jeff Burton: will race chassis No. 355 primary from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. Built new for the 2011 season, this #31 racer was first put through its first competitive paces at Darlington Raceway in May. Burton was on his way to posting a top-10 finish until the engine on the Caterpillar Chevrolet expired with just fewer than 20 laps remaining and resulted in a disappointing 33rd-place finish. In addition, this yellow and black machine was run at Kansas in June where it finished 25th.

Clint Bowyer: will pilot chassis No. 371 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable this weekend at Chicagoland Speedway. This is a brand new #33 Chevy Impala that will turn its first laps during opening practice on Friday.

Juan Pablo Montoya: Crew Chief Jim Pohlman and the #42 team are bringing chassis #1105 to Chicagoland this weekend, marking the seventh race of the season for this chassis. Montoya previously ran this car at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Kentucky Speedway, Kansas Speedway, Darlington Raceway, Texas Motor Speedway, and Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Allmendinger gets new car, Ambrose in Kansas car (Getty)

A.J. Allmendinger: The #43 Richard Petty Motorsports team has prepared chassis No. 783 for this weekend's event at Chicagoland Speedway. This Best Buy Ford is a brand new car and has not been run previously this season.

Bobby Labonte: Crew chief Frank Kerr has decided to bring the chassis Labonte raced at Kentucky Speedway and Charlotte Motor Speedway earlier this season to the 1.5-mile tri-oval.

Jimmie Johnson: will pilot chassis No. 681 in Sunday's event. He last drove that car to a 19th-place finish at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in July. Johnson finished second in backup chassis No. 650 at Atlanta Motor Speedway in September.

Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: Crew chief Steve Letarte and the #88 team will unload Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 88-668 this weekend at Chicago. Earnhardt most recently raced this chassis to a ninth-place finish at Pocono Raceway in August. This chassis first saw action at Michigan International Speedway in June.

Carl Edwards: RK-788 - New car

- compiled by Jayski.com