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.
Showing posts with label homestead-miami speedway. Show all posts
Showing posts with label homestead-miami speedway. Show all posts
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Edwards Fastest in Final Homestead Practice
Edwards took only three laps in the session and must have felt pretty good with the car, opting to leave it alone until qualifying. With Stewart, his sessions rarely tell the story of how his car will perform on race day, but in this instance, you'd have to believe he wasn't happy with his final session.
Second fastest and with a lap speed of 170.913 mph, was Edward’s fellow Roush Fenway Racing teammate, David Ragan, and they were followed by Cole Whitt (170.063 mph), AJ Allmendinger (169.705) and Landon Cassill (169.609) was the fifth fastest.
Rounding out the top-ten fastest during “Happy Hour” were Martin Truex Jr. (169.465 mph, Clint Bowyer (169.306), Paul Menard (169.141), Dave Blaney (168.982) and Brad Keselowski (168.966) posting the tenth fastest lap speed.
Qualifying is up next for the teams later this afternoon at 2:40 PM (ET) and then they will return on Sunday for the 3:20 PM (ET) approximate start of the Ford 400 (with ESPN beginning their pre-race television coverage at 2:00 PM ET).
Practice Speeds
Earnhardt Jr Fastest in First Homestead Practice
The current series points leader, Carl Edwards, was second quickest with a lap speed of 172.678 mph, while second in the points, Tony Stewart, was 15th quickest with a lap speed of 171.249 mph.
Rounding out the top-ten quickest during practice were Matt Kenseth (172.298), Ryan Newman (172.068), Jimmie Johnson (172.013), Kasey Kahne (171.920), Landon Cassill (171.887), Jeff Gordon (171.674, Kevin Harvick (171.652) and Juan Pablo Montoya (171.581) posting the tenth quickest lap speed.
Following shortly after this session, the teams “Happy Hour” (final) practice session (the last series practice session of 2011) is scheduled to run from 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM (ET) with qualifying set to get underway at 2:40 PM (ET).
Practice Speeds
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Edwards Using Runner-up Texas Chassis This Week at Homestead
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| Edwards has a track best 5.7 average finish in 7 Homestead starts (Getty) |
Team: No. 99 Aflac Ford Fusion
Crew Chief: Bob Osborne
Chassis: RK-739 This car last raced at Texas this month & finished second
QUOTES
Carl Edwards on racing at Homestead-Miami Speedway: “I’m just excited to get in the race car this weekend. It’s a fun race track and we run very well there. The last few weeks we’ve run really well. To be a part of this championship battle is truly an honor. The team and I are all having fun with it, and we’re going to go to Homestead and give it everything we’ve got, and hopefully we can end up in victory lane again. That would be a heck of a way to end the season and win the championship.”
Crew chief Bob Osborne on racing at Homestead-Miami Speedway: “Going into Homestead we’re going to really stick to what got us in this position in the first place and that’s try to have the best race car possible and go run the best race we possibly can, and finish as high in the points as we can and try to beat that 14 team. Definitely last year’s race setup is going to apply directly to this year for us. We plan on starting right where we left off setup-wise and trying to improve that setup for this race at Homestead.”
FAST FACTS
* THE CHASE IS ON… Carl Edwards enters the final race of the season at Homestead leading the NASCAR Sprint Cup point standings by three points over Tony Stewart. He has earned one win, 18 top-five, 25 top-10 finishes and two poles this season.
* Carl Edwards will make his eighth NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start at Homestead-Miami Speedway in this weekend’s Ford 400. In his previous seven starts, Edwards has accumulated two wins, four top-five, six top-10 finishes and one pole.
* FOR THE RECORD…Edwards’ average start at Homestead is 13.4, his average finish is 5.7 which is the best of all active drivers. He has also led a total of 441 laps there, the most among active drivers. He has only finished outside the top 10 once in seven starts.
* IN THE LOOP… According to NASCAR’s Loop Statistics compiled over the last seven races at Homestead, Edwards has turned 173 of the track’s fastest laps, spent 1,379 laps in the top 15, and has a driver rating of 117.5, which leads all active drivers in these categories.
* ON THE TRACK…The Aflac team will be unloading chassis RK-739. This car last raced at Texas two weeks ago where Edwards led 14 laps and finished second.
* REWIND: HOMESTEAD 2010… Carl Edwards dominated the NASCAR Sprint Cup race and took home his second win of the season. Edwards started from the outside of the front row en route to leading 190 of the 267 laps and taking the checkered flag in the Ford 400.
- Roush Fenway Racing, Press Release
Harvick Looking Forward to One of his Favorite Tracks
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| Harvick has been one of the better drivers at Homestead |
No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet Impala
Race Notes and Quotes
This Week’s Budweiser Chevrolet at Homestead-Miami Speedway … Kevin Harvick will race chassis No. 373 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) stable. The No. 29 team has raced this car twice this season. Harvick finished 22nd in the car at Michigan International Speedway in August and scored a sixth-place finish in it at Charlotte Motor Speedway in October.
Meet Harvick … Following Harvick’s media teleconference on Tuesday he will participate in a fan question and answer session at the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, N.C., at approximately 4:30 p.m. NASCAR Hall of Fame guests are invited to participate in the event. Visit www.nascarhall.com for more details on how to attend.
At the Carwash … Prior to traveling to Homestead-Miami Speedway, Harvick will fly to Bristol, Conn., to participate in the ESPN Carwash. While there he’s scheduled to appear on a number of shows, including Mike and Mike in the Morning, SportsCenter and NASCAR Now.
Harvick at Homestead … In 10 starts at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Harvick has scored five top-fives and eight top-10 finishes. His average starting position at the 1.5-mile track is 13.2 and he holds a 7.9 average finish. Harvick’s best result at Homestead is second place, a finish he’s recorded twice (2003 and 2008). He’s led 116 laps at the track and completed 100 percent (2,674 of 2,674) of the laps run at Homestead in NSCS competition since 2001.
Last Time Around … Last November, Harvick started 28th and raced his way to a third-place finish at Homestead-Miami Speedway. He’s scored top-five finishes in the last three races at the track and has only finished outside the top 10 twice.
In the Loop … Harvick holds several impressive Loop Data statistics at Homestead, including: second in closers; second in drivers fastest early in a run; second in laps run in the top 15 (1,264); third in average running position (9.8); third in fastest on restarts; fourth in driver rating (102.8); fifth in green-flag speed; sixth in quality passes (243); sixth in speed in traffic; seventh in drivers fastest late in a run; eighth in laps led (58); and ninth in fastest laps run (62).
2011 at a Glance … With one race left in the 2011 season, Harvick has earned an impressive four wins, nine top-fives and 18 top-10 finishes. His average starting position is 18.8 and he holds an 11.6 average finish. Harvick currently sits third in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver point standings and is 51 markers back from first place.
Trucking it to the Finish … Harvick will close out the 2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) season aboard the No. 2 Hunt Brothers Pizza Chevrolet Silverado for Kevin Harvick Inc. in Friday night’s Ford 200 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The No. 2 Chevrolet team locked up the 2011 NCWTS owners championship with Harvick’s fourth Truck Series win of the season in the last race at Texas Motor Speedway and he is looking for win number five this weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway. SPEED will provide the live television coverage of Friday’s race starting at 8 p.m. ET. MRN Radio affiliates and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio will provide the radio broadcast.
KEVIN HARVICK QUOTES:
Why is Homestead-Miami Speedway one of your favorite tracks? “Homestead is one of those race tracks that you don’t know when it is going to stop aging. It seems like every time we return to the track it loses a little grip, which is a good thing. Since they repaved the track a few years back it has become one of my favorites. You can move all around trying to find a groove that works for you. There are a lot of different places where you can make your car work. For me it has been a lot of fun to race on.”
How does Homestead fit your driving style? “It’s just unique. You can charge turn one a little bit more than you can at most places, because as you get through the corner, the banking seems to get steeper all the way through, and you have options. You can run the top, you can run the bottom, you can run the middle, or you can split the middle-top or middle-bottom and make your car turn. It’s just a unique race track, and it seems to fit the guys that like to move around and make their cars work in different spots.”
- Richard Childress Racing, Press Release
Monday, November 14, 2011
Homestead-Miami Ford 400 Preview: Everything Points to Edwards
By Micah Roberts
VegasInsider.com
The dream race match-up is set!
Carl Edwards vs. Tony Stewart in Miami for all the marbles, trophies and accolades that come with winning a NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship. Edwards maintained his 3-point lead over Stewart with a runner-up finish last week at Phoenix while Stewart led the most laps and finished third.
This is the closest any two drivers have been heading into the final race of the season since the Chase format was implemented in 2004.
Tony Stewart has won two Championships while Edwards is searching for his first. Stewart has won four of the last nine races coming in while Edwards hasn’t won since Las Vegas in March.
While Stewart is emulating the wild card fever we’ve seen with recent champions in football like the Packers, and in baseball like Cardinals, Edwards has been the steadiest of all drivers with 18 top-five finishes to Stewart’s eight.
If we’re looking for who has the hot hand right now, it’s got to be Stewart. But if we look at who has the historical edge since the Homestead-Miami track has been reconfigured, it’s Edwards all day long.
No one in the history of Cup racing at Homestead-Miami has come close to what Edwards has done on the track, which is average a finish of 5.7 in seven starts. He’s won two of the last three races there and is the favorite not only to win the Championship, but the clinching race itself, which would be a rare feat.
The Las Vegas Hilton Super Book posted Edwards as the -155 favorite to win the title over Stewart (+135). The Hilton had the two drivers pick ‘em last week and with Stewart not gaining at Phoenix and Edwards history on the track, a 3-point edge in this race is huge.
Stewart has had success on this track winning the first two races ever held on it, but that was under the old flat layout. In 2003, the track made the banking much steeper with speeds similar to what we see at Las Vegas. Since then a Roush driver has won six of the last seven Homestead races, including both of Edwards‘.
While the Roush drivers have been winning all of these races, Stewart has kind of been an also-ran with no top-five finishes in his last six starts there. Of course this is a complete different scenario for Stewart. No one is hotter than him right now and we also have to consider that Stewart didn’t have race hard in the 2005 race because he was winning the championship.
Last season we saw the mental game play a part and get to Denny Hamlin and in the last few weeks we’ve seen Tony Stewart be very vocal about telling Edwards how hard he's coming.
"We're going to make him sweat it out," Stewart said. "As far as I'm concerned, it's a dead heat going in there. I'm pumped. I wish I was going to Homestead tomorrow."
It remains to be seen if Edwards can be rattled mentally, but just based on his past success on the track it seems doubtful. If anything, the pressure of the moment could be what gets him like it would any athlete in any sport going for their first big championship. But he's taking it all in stride and not giving Stewart any bulletin board material.
"This is going to be a battle. I truly believe it's going to be a good race," Edwards said. "That place is magical for us. I really enjoy going there.
"I hope it comes down to the fastest guy winning the race."
Look for Edwards to race for the win and not chance anything by simply following Stewart around. He’ll have a good enough car to do it and if he can stay out of the way of jalopies and hobo's like Brian Vickers, he should have a car to get him there. His closest competitor in the race will likely be Matt Kenseth and Kevin Harvick.
Like Stewart in 2005, Jimmie Johnson hasn’t had to really compete at a high level in the last five Homestead races just because he was cautiously racing for a clinching finish to seal the deal on his championships. It would be nice to see the five-time champ reverse rolls with Edwards like last year when they both did celebratory burn-outs at the end of the race, kind of like a passing of the torch.
Top-5 Finish Prediction:
1) #99 Carl Edwards (6/1)
2) #17 Matt Kenseth (7/1)
3) #48 Jimmie Johnson (8/1)
4) #29 Kevin Harvick (12/1)
5) #14 Tony Stewart (10/1)
VegasInsider.com
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| Edwards last won in Vegas and is -155 favorite to win title at sports books |
Carl Edwards vs. Tony Stewart in Miami for all the marbles, trophies and accolades that come with winning a NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship. Edwards maintained his 3-point lead over Stewart with a runner-up finish last week at Phoenix while Stewart led the most laps and finished third.
This is the closest any two drivers have been heading into the final race of the season since the Chase format was implemented in 2004.
Tony Stewart has won two Championships while Edwards is searching for his first. Stewart has won four of the last nine races coming in while Edwards hasn’t won since Las Vegas in March.
While Stewart is emulating the wild card fever we’ve seen with recent champions in football like the Packers, and in baseball like Cardinals, Edwards has been the steadiest of all drivers with 18 top-five finishes to Stewart’s eight.
If we’re looking for who has the hot hand right now, it’s got to be Stewart. But if we look at who has the historical edge since the Homestead-Miami track has been reconfigured, it’s Edwards all day long.
No one in the history of Cup racing at Homestead-Miami has come close to what Edwards has done on the track, which is average a finish of 5.7 in seven starts. He’s won two of the last three races there and is the favorite not only to win the Championship, but the clinching race itself, which would be a rare feat.
The Las Vegas Hilton Super Book posted Edwards as the -155 favorite to win the title over Stewart (+135). The Hilton had the two drivers pick ‘em last week and with Stewart not gaining at Phoenix and Edwards history on the track, a 3-point edge in this race is huge.
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| Roush drivers have won six of the last seven at Homestead |
While the Roush drivers have been winning all of these races, Stewart has kind of been an also-ran with no top-five finishes in his last six starts there. Of course this is a complete different scenario for Stewart. No one is hotter than him right now and we also have to consider that Stewart didn’t have race hard in the 2005 race because he was winning the championship.
Last season we saw the mental game play a part and get to Denny Hamlin and in the last few weeks we’ve seen Tony Stewart be very vocal about telling Edwards how hard he's coming.
"We're going to make him sweat it out," Stewart said. "As far as I'm concerned, it's a dead heat going in there. I'm pumped. I wish I was going to Homestead tomorrow."
 |
| Stewart has been playing Jedi mind tricks through reporters |
"This is going to be a battle. I truly believe it's going to be a good race," Edwards said. "That place is magical for us. I really enjoy going there.
"I hope it comes down to the fastest guy winning the race."
Look for Edwards to race for the win and not chance anything by simply following Stewart around. He’ll have a good enough car to do it and if he can stay out of the way of jalopies and hobo's like Brian Vickers, he should have a car to get him there. His closest competitor in the race will likely be Matt Kenseth and Kevin Harvick.
Like Stewart in 2005, Jimmie Johnson hasn’t had to really compete at a high level in the last five Homestead races just because he was cautiously racing for a clinching finish to seal the deal on his championships. It would be nice to see the five-time champ reverse rolls with Edwards like last year when they both did celebratory burn-outs at the end of the race, kind of like a passing of the torch.
Top-5 Finish Prediction:
1) #99 Carl Edwards (6/1)
2) #17 Matt Kenseth (7/1)
3) #48 Jimmie Johnson (8/1)
4) #29 Kevin Harvick (12/1)
5) #14 Tony Stewart (10/1)
Homestead-Miami Odds & Ends: Ford 400
At Homestead-Miami Speedway:
History
· Groundbreaking for Homestead-Miami Dade Motorsports Complex – as the track was originally named – began Aug. 24, 1993. The first race was a NASCAR Nationwide Series event on Nov. 5, 1995.
· The original configuration was a four-turn, rectangular oval based on Indianapolis Motor Speedway's layout.
· The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Homestead was held on Nov. 14, 1999.
· 2002 was the first season of the Championship Weekend at Homestead, with all three of NASCAR’s national series holding their season finale at the same track.
Notebook
· Since the inception of the position-based points system in 1975, only three drivers have made up a points deficit in the season finale: Richard Petty in 1979 (made up two points on Darrell Waltrip), Alan Kulwicki in 1992 (made up 30 points on Davey Allison) and Jimmie Johnson in 2010 (made up 15 points on Denny Hamlin).
· There have been 12 NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Homestead, one per season since 1999.
· Five drivers have competed in all 12 races: Jeff Burton, Jeff Gordon, Bobby Labonte, Elliott Sadler and Tony Stewart.
· David Green won the first pole, in 1999.
· Tony Stewart won the inaugural race, in 1999.
· There have been nine different pole winners. Kurt Busch, Kasey Kahne and Jimmie Johnson lead all drivers, with two.
· There have been eight different race winners, led by Greg Biffle, with three.
· Jack Roush has won seven races, most among owners.
· The race has been won from the pole twice: Bill Elliott (2001) and Kurt Busch (2002).
· The race has been won from a top-10 starting position in nine of 12 races.
· Denny Hamlin won in 2009 from the 38th starting position, the furthest back a race winner has started.
· Three active drivers have averaged a top-10 finish: Carl Edwards (5.7), Kevin Harvick (7.9) and A.J. Allmendinger (8.7).
Homestead-Miami Speedway Data
Race: 36 of 36 (11-20-11)
Track Size: 1.5 miles
Race Length: 267 laps/400.5 miles
· Banking/Corners: 18 - 20 degrees
· Banking/Straights: 4 degrees
· Frontstretch: 1,760 feet
· Backstretch: 1,760 feet
| Driver Rating at Homestead | |
|---|---|
| Carl Edwards | 117.5 |
| Martin Truex Jr. | 107.4 |
| Matt Kenseth | 105.7 |
| Kevin Harvick | 102.8 |
| Greg Biffle | 97.4 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 97.4 |
| Denny Hamlin | 92.5 |
| Kasey Kahne | 89.6 |
| Mark Martin | 89.6 |
| Jeff Gordon | 88.7 |
Note: Driver Rating compiled from 2005-11 races (six total) at Homestead-Miami.
Qualifying/Race Data
2010 pole winner: Kasey Kahne (176.904 mph, 30.525 seconds)
2010 race winner: Carl Edwards (126.585 mph, 11-21-10)
Track qualifying record: Jamie McMurray (181.111 mph, 29.816 seconds, 11-16-03)
Track race record: Tony Stewart (140.335 mph, 11-14-99)
NASCAR in Florida
· There have been 167 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in Florida.
· 165 drivers in NASCAR’s three national series have their home state recorded as Florida.
· There have been 10 race winners from Florida in NASCAR’s three national series:
| Driver | NSCS | NNS | NCWTS |
| Bobby Allison | 84 | 2 | 0 |
| Fireball Roberts | 33 | 0 | 0 |
| LeeRoy Yarbrough | 14 | 0 | 0 |
| Marshall Teague | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| Joe Nemechek | 4 | 16 | 0 |
| David Reutimann | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Bobby Johns | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Shorty Rollins | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Rick Wilson | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Aric Almirola | 0 | 1 | 2 |
Homestead-Miami Storylines: Only 3 Points Separates The Leaders
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| Edwards is a -155 favorite in Vegas to win title |
Three points. After 35 races, more than 10,000 laps and 13,000 miles run, only three points separate first and second going into the final race of the season, at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Under the previous points system, that roughly translates to 13 points, making it the third-closest margin going into the final race since the inception of the position-based points system in 1975.
Two superstars still in contention. One – the points leader Carl Edwards – eyes his first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship. Tony Stewart’s the other. A 2011 championship would give Stewart three NASCAR Sprint Cup titles, and put him on a rarified level of NASCAR greats.
One championship. The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship has had one home in each of the last five years – that of Jimmie Johnson. There will be a new champion in 2011, one that will likely remain TBD until the final lap of Sunday’s Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
And here’s a fascinating thought: The “Walk Off Win” factor. If Edwards wins Sunday, he’s the champion. If Stewart wins Sunday, he’s the champion.
The scenarios are many, depending on where Edwards and Stewart eventually finish. But a win would guarantee a title for both. Also, if Edwards finishes ahead of Stewart, he’ll win a championship. The bright side for Stewart: he owns the tie-breaker (most wins), so he needs only to tie Edwards to win his third championship.
For the first time since 2008, all three of NASCAR’s national series’ championships will be decided at the season finale at Homestead.
In the NASCAR Nationwide Series, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. looks primed to win his first series championship. But it’s not over yet. Elliott Sadler is still mathematically eligible for the title, though he needs a stellar finish and lots of help in the form of a poor finish by Stenhouse in Saturday’s Ford 300.
In the NASCAR Camping World Series, three drivers remain in the mix: Austin Dillon, Johnny Sauter and James Buescher. Dillon, the front-runner, needs to finish 16th or better in Friday’s Ford 200 to become the youngest champion in series history.
NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
Edwards Vs. Stewart: An Epic Matchup
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| Stewart has 4 wins in 9 Chase races (Getty) |
Carl Edwards: A picture of consistency, Edwards owns series-best numbers in top fives (18) and top 10s (25). But the reason he owns the points lead: his win at Las Vegas Motor Speedway earlier this season. Both Edwards and Stewart have scored the exact same amount of points over the first nine Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup races (356), but Edwards holds his scant three-point edge thanks to the three Chase bonus points he earned for his win at Las Vegas.
If Edwards holds on to his lead, he’ll join Bobby Labonte as the only two drivers to win both the NASCAR Nationwide Series and NASCAR Sprint Cup championships.
History is on his side. There have been only three season-finale comebacks since 1975. In 1979, Richard Petty overcame a two-point deficit to overtake Darrell Waltrip; in 1992, Alan Kulwicki erased Davey Allison’s 30-point lead in the finale; and last season, Jimmie Johnson trailed Denny Hamlin by 15 points, but came back to win his fifth consecutive championship.
Another reason for optimism: His success rate at Homestead is practically unmatched. He has two wins, four top fives and six top 10s in seven Homestead starts. He owns the top average finish (5.7) and the top Driver Rating (117.5). He hasn’t finished outside the top 10 since his first visit to the track, a 14th-place run in 2004.
Tony Stewart: Here are the names of those drivers with three series championship: David Pearson, Cale Yarborough, Lee Petty and Darrell Waltrip. All are either in the NASCAR Hall of Fame, or will be inducted in January. Stewart can join that list be wiping away a three-point deficit on Sunday.
Stewart already boasts this unique statistic: He’s the only driver to win a series championship under the Chase (2005) and pre-Chase (2002) formats. Now he looks to add another unique accolade, that of driver-owner champion. The last driver-owner to win a series championship was Alan Kulwicki in 1992.
At Homestead, Stewart has two wins, three top fives and six top 10s in 12 starts. His two wins came in the first two race at Homestead, in 1999 and 2000.
One shared characteristic: Grace under pressure. Edwards’ last two finishes: second and second. Stewart’s last two finishes: first and third. Both have an average finish of 2.0 in the last two races. They have performed their best when the season was on the line.
Shot Callers: Osborne, Grubb Vital To Championship Hopes
Though Carl Edwards and Tony Stewart will share much of the spotlight throughout Ford Championship Weekend at Homestead, crew chiefs Bob Osborne (Edwards) and Darian Grubb (Stewart) just might prove as vital to the championship hopes.
Neither have won a series championship in their career, but success has followed the two technical wizards throughout their NASCAR career. Grubb won the Daytona 500 with driver Jimmie Johnson in 2006, subbing for suspended Chad Knaus. Osborne has 18 wins in his NASCAR Sprint Cup career, with a best championship finish of second in 2008.
Both championship contending crew chiefs will be guests on NASCAR’s national teleconference on Tuesday at 1 p.m. ET.
End Of An Era: Johnson Unprecedented Reign Ends
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| We'll never see 5 in a row again (Getty) |
But what an unbelievable run it was.
Johnson’s five consecutive title-winning seasons has never been accomplished before. And likely will never happen again. During that span, from 2006-2010, Johnson captured 35 of his 55 career victories. He won in all manners, with his last also his most impressive – erasing a 15-point deficit in the last race to overtake Denny Hamlin at Homestead.
So now what? Pride, in the form of a top-five championship finish, is on the line. Since Johnson joined the series fulltime in 2002, he has finished in the top five each season. That streak is teetering. He currently sits fifth in points, but is only two points ahead of sixth-place Matt Kenseth going into Homestead.
Magic Number: 19
When Kasey Kahne crossed the finish line as the checkered waved at Phoenix, it marked the 18th different winner of 2011.
The record for most different winners in a season is 19, most recently in 2001.
There’s one race left, and a number of drivers could help match the record. Most notable of the group is Greg Biffle, who has a series-high three wins at Homestead but remains winless in 2011.
Other winners from 2010 who remain winless in 2011: Jamie McMurray, Juan Pablo Montoya and David Reutimann.
Major Milestones On Deck
Some rather notable milestones on tap for Homestead in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series:
- Mark Martin will makes his 830th, which will give him sole possession of fifth on the all-time series starts list.
- Kurt Busch will make his 400th series start, the 48th driver to do so.
- Hendrick Motorsports continues its quest for 200 series victories.
- Ryan Newman continues his attempt to become the ninth driver to 50 career poles.
- NASCAR Media Services
Las Vegas Hilton Super Book Odds to Win Homestead-Miami Ford 400
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| Might there be only one burnout Sunday at Homestead? Edwards is 9/2 |
HOMESTEAD-MIAMI SPEEDWAY
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2011
CARL EDWARDS 9-2
JIMMIE JOHNSON 8
KYLE BUSCH 12
JEFF GORDON 10
MATT KENSETH 6
KEVIN HARVICK 6
DENNY HAMLIN 20
KURT BUSCH 25
TONY STEWART 4
DALE EARNHARDT JR 40
GREG BIFFLE 15
KASEY KAHNE 15
CLINT BOWYER 30
RYAN NEWMAN 40
BRAD KESELOWSKI 30
JOEY LOGANO 60
MARTIN TRUEX JR 50
DAVID RAGAN 30
JUAN MONTOYA 60
MARK MARTIN 50
JEFF BURTON 50
JAMIE McMURRAY 75
BRIAN VICKERS 75
DAVID REUTIMANN 75
PAUL MENARD 60
AJ ALLMENDINGER 30
MARCOS AMBROSE 60
REGAN SMITH 200
TREVOR BAYNE 200
FIELD 300
Saturday, May 7, 2011
Regan Smith Shocks the NASCAR World, Holds on to Win at Darlington
Sporting News Wire Services
DARLINGTON, S.C. -- Nearly three years after a NASCAR ruling denied him his first Sprint Cup victory, Regan Smith finally got the elusive win.
After staying out on old tires, Smith held off Carl Edwards to win Saturday night's Showtime Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway in a dramatic green-white-checkered-flag finish.
Get your Winner's gear!
Smith crossed the finish line .196 seconds ahead of runner-up Edwards.
"This is the Southern 500 -- we're not supposed to win this thing," an incredulous Smith radioed to his crew after the race.
Brad Keselowski, also on old tires, finished third, with pole-sitter Kasey Kahne running fourth and Ryan Newman fifth.
The victory was redemption for Smith, who was deprived of an apparent victory at Talladega in 2008 when he was penalized for passing Tony Stewart below the yellow out-of-bounds line that separates the racing surface from the apron.
After a final round of green-flag pit stops, Edwards, the Cup points leader, passed Kahne for the lead as the cars sped into Turn 1. Edwards was comfortably in front when Jeff Burton's engine blew and oiled the track with 10 laps left, causing the 10th caution of the night.
After Smith, Keselowski and Stewart stayed out, taking the top three spots under caution, Edwards climbed to second after a restart on Lap 363 of the scheduled 367-lap race. The previous caution, however, was only a prelude to a wild three-wide wreck involving Clint Bowyer, Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch later that same lap. That set up the two-lap sprint as the race went to overtime, with Edwards and Smith taking the green flag side-by-side.
Kahne, Edwards and Harvick took turns out front during the second half of the race after Busch made an unscheduled pit stop.
Busch had led 78 laps when a vibration forced him to the pits on Lap 205. A caution for Jimmie Johnson's spin on the frontstretch trapped Busch a lap down. The driver of the No. 18 didn't get the lap back until he received a free pass as the highest scored lapped car for a restart on Lap 244.
Busch had worked his way up to 12th before NASCAR called the ninth caution of the race on Lap 280 for debris on the backstretch.
Darlington Results
Harvick vs Busch
Sure, Kyle Busch intentionally spun out Kevin Harvick, but was this not expected at some point? Busch has been pretty quiet about the matter, but he still owes Harvick for parking him in the season finale at Homestead last year. That may not have been the reason Busch did it, but for Harvick to act all shocked after giving Busch some taps just prior to their incident is kind of ridiculous on his behalf. As if Harvick's the only driver who can enforce? Harvick's been doing it for years, but it's a problem when someone punts him?
What's hard to understand is how their relationship eroded so quickly. They used to hang out together, wives and all, with the Harvick's getting Kyle Busch and his soon to be wife Samantha involved in Twitter. They used to tweet nice photos of each other having dinner. It was NASCAR's two bad boys teaming together, or so it seemed until Homestead.
I'm just wondering what happened between the two that caused Harvick to be so harsh on and off the track at Homestead. We should have expected that these two drivers personalities could not co-exist as friends on and off the track. Lucky for us, we get to watch this all unfold, all season long.
When the race ended and they played cat and mouse, I thought we we're going to see a good one, especially when Harvick jumped out of his car. I just wish that Kyle would have got out of his car and seen a scrap happen, but Harvick brought his gas man along, a huge hulking kind of guy, where Busch didn't have anyone from his own team there. Why would he get out, so the two bully's in the school yard could have one hold him and the other gut punch him repeatedly? That's not cowardly, that's smart.
Plus, really, who's the coward here, the guy strapped to his seat and getting punches thrown his way or the guy throwing the punches with his helmet on? Doesn't really matter, it was all cool!
Busch ramming Harvick's driver-less car on pit road into the wall, just as Harvick was trying to take a swing inside Busch's window was a classic scene.
NASCAR likely will fine Busch for that pit road incident, and they'd be justified in doing so. That could have been a dangerous situation if someone was walking by not paying attention, but who could not pay attention to what was going on with them. Even while Regan Smith was making his victory lap, all eyes were focused on pit road.
NASCAR executives are probably high-fivin' each other with no cameras around because this is what they want, two of their biggest stars feuding. The internet has blown up across the country with NASCAR being the trending topic and NASCAR will be in the news all week, not for Regan Smith winning his first race, but two stars going at it.
I feel bad for Smith that his moment was kind of upstaged, but not bad enough to wish the ordeal didn't happen.
A few lucky bettors in Las Vegas could care less about what happened with the Harvick & Busch show as Regan Smith closed on the Las Vegas Hilton's board at 500-to-1. No comment as of yet on how many bettors actually laid cash down on Smith, but there were bound to be a few for small amounts.
Just like all the other sports, people like to bet a little to win a lot. In all my years behind the counter I've seen bettors take their $5 and bet the biggest long shots in car races saying, "You never know, anything's possible," and usually I'd reply to myself, "Yes, I do know, you have no shot". Well on this day, it was that bettors day to know, congrats.
So far we've had a 100-to-1 shot with Trevor Bayne winning at Daytona and now this. What's next? If a single car team with a limited bduget can win at the toughest track on the circuit, than anything is possible like the man said.
Links to More Kyle and Harvick Stuff
Busch and Harvick Clash After The Showtime Southern 500 - SBNation.com
Harvick Punches Busch at Darlington - Yahoo.com
Newman vs Montoya? OMG! That's So Yesterday - Charlotte Observer
Harvick & Busch May Note Be Docked For Points - Virginia Pilot
 |
| Regan Smith gets first career win; pays off 500/1 in Vegas |
After staying out on old tires, Smith held off Carl Edwards to win Saturday night's Showtime Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway in a dramatic green-white-checkered-flag finish.
Get your Winner's gear!
Smith crossed the finish line .196 seconds ahead of runner-up Edwards.
"This is the Southern 500 -- we're not supposed to win this thing," an incredulous Smith radioed to his crew after the race.
Brad Keselowski, also on old tires, finished third, with pole-sitter Kasey Kahne running fourth and Ryan Newman fifth.
The victory was redemption for Smith, who was deprived of an apparent victory at Talladega in 2008 when he was penalized for passing Tony Stewart below the yellow out-of-bounds line that separates the racing surface from the apron.
After a final round of green-flag pit stops, Edwards, the Cup points leader, passed Kahne for the lead as the cars sped into Turn 1. Edwards was comfortably in front when Jeff Burton's engine blew and oiled the track with 10 laps left, causing the 10th caution of the night.
After Smith, Keselowski and Stewart stayed out, taking the top three spots under caution, Edwards climbed to second after a restart on Lap 363 of the scheduled 367-lap race. The previous caution, however, was only a prelude to a wild three-wide wreck involving Clint Bowyer, Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch later that same lap. That set up the two-lap sprint as the race went to overtime, with Edwards and Smith taking the green flag side-by-side.
Kahne, Edwards and Harvick took turns out front during the second half of the race after Busch made an unscheduled pit stop.
Busch had led 78 laps when a vibration forced him to the pits on Lap 205. A caution for Jimmie Johnson's spin on the frontstretch trapped Busch a lap down. The driver of the No. 18 didn't get the lap back until he received a free pass as the highest scored lapped car for a restart on Lap 244.
Busch had worked his way up to 12th before NASCAR called the ninth caution of the race on Lap 280 for debris on the backstretch.
Darlington Results
Harvick vs Busch
 |
| This is what Harvick did to Busch last year at Homestead |
Sure, Kyle Busch intentionally spun out Kevin Harvick, but was this not expected at some point? Busch has been pretty quiet about the matter, but he still owes Harvick for parking him in the season finale at Homestead last year. That may not have been the reason Busch did it, but for Harvick to act all shocked after giving Busch some taps just prior to their incident is kind of ridiculous on his behalf. As if Harvick's the only driver who can enforce? Harvick's been doing it for years, but it's a problem when someone punts him?
What's hard to understand is how their relationship eroded so quickly. They used to hang out together, wives and all, with the Harvick's getting Kyle Busch and his soon to be wife Samantha involved in Twitter. They used to tweet nice photos of each other having dinner. It was NASCAR's two bad boys teaming together, or so it seemed until Homestead.
I'm just wondering what happened between the two that caused Harvick to be so harsh on and off the track at Homestead. We should have expected that these two drivers personalities could not co-exist as friends on and off the track. Lucky for us, we get to watch this all unfold, all season long.
When the race ended and they played cat and mouse, I thought we we're going to see a good one, especially when Harvick jumped out of his car. I just wish that Kyle would have got out of his car and seen a scrap happen, but Harvick brought his gas man along, a huge hulking kind of guy, where Busch didn't have anyone from his own team there. Why would he get out, so the two bully's in the school yard could have one hold him and the other gut punch him repeatedly? That's not cowardly, that's smart.
Plus, really, who's the coward here, the guy strapped to his seat and getting punches thrown his way or the guy throwing the punches with his helmet on? Doesn't really matter, it was all cool!
Busch ramming Harvick's driver-less car on pit road into the wall, just as Harvick was trying to take a swing inside Busch's window was a classic scene.
NASCAR likely will fine Busch for that pit road incident, and they'd be justified in doing so. That could have been a dangerous situation if someone was walking by not paying attention, but who could not pay attention to what was going on with them. Even while Regan Smith was making his victory lap, all eyes were focused on pit road.
NASCAR executives are probably high-fivin' each other with no cameras around because this is what they want, two of their biggest stars feuding. The internet has blown up across the country with NASCAR being the trending topic and NASCAR will be in the news all week, not for Regan Smith winning his first race, but two stars going at it.
I feel bad for Smith that his moment was kind of upstaged, but not bad enough to wish the ordeal didn't happen.
A few lucky bettors in Las Vegas could care less about what happened with the Harvick & Busch show as Regan Smith closed on the Las Vegas Hilton's board at 500-to-1. No comment as of yet on how many bettors actually laid cash down on Smith, but there were bound to be a few for small amounts.
Just like all the other sports, people like to bet a little to win a lot. In all my years behind the counter I've seen bettors take their $5 and bet the biggest long shots in car races saying, "You never know, anything's possible," and usually I'd reply to myself, "Yes, I do know, you have no shot". Well on this day, it was that bettors day to know, congrats.
So far we've had a 100-to-1 shot with Trevor Bayne winning at Daytona and now this. What's next? If a single car team with a limited bduget can win at the toughest track on the circuit, than anything is possible like the man said.
Links to More Kyle and Harvick Stuff
Busch and Harvick Clash After The Showtime Southern 500 - SBNation.com
Harvick Punches Busch at Darlington - Yahoo.com
Newman vs Montoya? OMG! That's So Yesterday - Charlotte Observer
Harvick & Busch May Note Be Docked For Points - Virginia Pilot
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