Micah Roberts Top 10 Driver Ratings
AAA Texas 500
Texas Motor Speedway
Sunday, November 6, 2011 - 12:16 pm (PDT)
Rating Driver Odds Practice 1 Lineup Practice 2 Practice 3
1. Matt Kenseth 7/1 9th 3rd 14th 7th
Two-time winner with track best 10-year average finish of 6.9; using same winning car from April.
2. Carl Edwards 7/1 2nd 7th 1st 8th
Three-time winner, best 10-consecutive average laps in final practice; using Charlotte chassis.
3. Tony Stewart 7/1 3rd 5th 8th 9th
2006 winner; last Texas top-five came five races ago; using Las Vegas-Atlanta-Kansas chassis.
4. Kevin Harvick 12/1 23rd 21st 13th 18th
12.9 average finish in 17 starts, good average speeds in practice; using brand new chassis.
5. Jimmie Johnson 7/1 21st 11th 12th 16th
2007 winner and runner-up in three races since; using winning Kansas chassis this week.
6. Jeff Gordon 8/1 28th 23rd 3rd 14th
2009 winner with no top-10s since (four starts); had a great early practice session Saturday.
7. Kasey Kahne 20/1 14th 9th 4th 1st
2006 winner with only one top-five finish since; practiced like he was in one of the Roush cars.
8. Greg Biffle 15/1 1st 1st 2nd 10th
2005 Texas winner; eighth or better in five of last six starts on track. Finished fourth in spring race.
9. Brad Keselowski 20/1 17th 8th 6th 28th
No top-10 finishes in six starts, but had fastest 10-consecutive lap average of day in practices.
10. Kurt Busch 20/1 10th 14th 11th 24th
2009 winner, struggled in practice, but is using proven chassis from Pocono (3rd) and Dover (1st).
Note: This is the second race of the season at Texas Motor Speedway. Matt Kenseth led 169 of 334 laps to win in the first race held April 9, 2011 beating Clint Bowyer by a whopping 8.315 seconds. Kenseth’s teammates, Biffle and Edwards, came in third and fourth respectively.
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 texas motor speedway. Show all posts
Showing posts with label texas motor speedway. Show all posts
Saturday, November 5, 2011
NASCAR Parks Kyle Busch for Entire Texas Weekend
Associated Press
NASCAR President Mike Helton announced the decision Saturday after a meeting with Busch and Joe Gibbs, his Sprint Cup and Nationwide car owner. Even under the policy of "Boys, have at it," NASCAR determined Busch went too far.
"The responsibility that over the past two or three seasons we've given back to the drivers came I think with a very clear understanding that there could be a line that got crossed," Helton said. "And as annoying as the comments that I've made personally in the past about we'll know it when we see it might have been, we saw it last night."
Busch left the NASCAR hauler through an exit away from the media.
"This is a tough situation for us and basically what we're trying to do is go through it the right way," Gibbs said. "Everybody here with our race team is trying to meet with everybody that was affected by this and obviously we've got a lot of work to do there and a lot of people to see. But we're going to be try to go through this and try to handle everything in the right way."
Gibbs said he met with Busch in the driver's motor home, but didn't share what was said.
"It's one of those personal conversations you have when a real tough situation like this comes up," Gibbs said.
Busch is the first driver since Robby Gordon in August 2007 to be parked for a Cup race for actions in another NASCAR race the same weekend.
Gordon wasn't allowed to drive in a 2007 Cup race at Pocono after an incident during the Nationwide race at Montreal.
Kevin Harvick, the owner of Hornaday's truck, was kept out of the Cup race in Martinsville in 2002 for actions related to a truck race there the previous day.
Hornaday was knocked out of Friday night's truck race on the 14th of 148 laps when Busch retaliated for contact between them by pushing the four-time champion into the wall. The trucks made contact after trying to go three-wide around a slower truck and both then brushed the wall.
Busch got behind Hornaday and kept pushing until the No. 33 truck wound up in the wall.
"I lost my cool, no doubt about it. I've been wrecked four weeks in a row, and I've had enough of it, and I retaliated," Busch said by his hauler after the wreck Friday night. "So it's certainly my fault for doing that. If everybody wants to say, 'Hornaday is racing for a championship, roll over,' that's not my fashion. That's not anybody else's fashion out here."
Hornaday dropped from third to fourth in points, his margin increasing from 15 to 48 with only one race left.
Busch and Harvick were fined and placed on probation for an altercation following the Cup race at Darlington in May.
The two made contact during that race and Harvick wrecked with teammate Clint Bowyer. Afterward, Harvick climbed from his car and threw a punch into Busch's window before Busch used his car to bump Harvick's out of the way.
Officials radioed each man's crew during a later race at Pocono, when Harvick forced Busch down the track while the two were fighting for position.
In May, Busch was ticketed in North Carolina for driving 128 mph in a 45 mph zone in a bright yellow 2012 Lexus. He later pleaded guilty to speeding and no contest to reckless and careless driving, and lost his driver's license for 45 days. He was fined $1,000, sentenced to 30 hours of community service and put on one year of unsupervised probation .
During the Cup race in Texas last fall, Busch was penalized three laps — the first for speeding on pit road and two more for flashing an obscene gesture through his windshield at the NASCAR official who signaled the infraction while standing in front of Busch's car.
Busch Wrecks Hornaday in Truck race
Friday, November 4, 2011
Biffle Fastest in Friday's First Practice Session at Texas
Biffle’s fellow Roush Fenway Racing teammate, Carl Edwards, was second fastest with a lap speed of 193.043 mph, and was followed by Tony Stewart (192.713 mph), Marcos Ambrose (192.472) and Regan Smith (192.383).
Rounding out the top-ten fastest during practice were Juan Pablo Montoya (192.253) , Kyle Busch (192.226), Trevor Bayne (192.041, Matt Kenseth (192.000) and Kurt Busch (191.904).
Because the teams have two practice sessions scheduled for tomorrow, most all of the times were done with qualifying trim.
The teams will return to the track a little later this afternoon for their 4:40 PM (ET) scheduled qualifying session, and then they will return to the track on Saturday for two more practice sessions (9:45 AM – 10:30 AM; “Happy Hour” 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM – ET).
The AAA Texas 500 is set to get underway approximately at 3:30 PM (ET) Sunday afternoon with ESPN beginning their (pre-race) television coverage at 2:00 PM (ET),
Texas Practice 1 Times
AAA Texas 500 Preview
By Micah Roberts
VegasInsider.com
We’ve got three races to go in NASCAR’s Chase for the Championship with Carl Edwards holding an 8-point lead over Tony Stewart. Martinsville became almost the type of wild card Talladega was with Brad Keselowski (-27 points) and Matt Kenseth (-36) getting shuffled back due to poor finishes despite running well throughout.
The big winner in the entire deal last week was Stewart who won his third race of the Chase, his only three wins of the entire season. The Las Vegas Hilton Super Book made a massive adjustment on Stewart going from 9-to-2 following Talladega to now being even money to win the title. Edwards went from a-160 favorite to -120 following Stewart’s win.
The big winner in all of this may have been Edwards, who finished ninth at Martinsville despite it not being one of his favorite tracks. Not only does he have an 8-point lead, but the final three races of the season are all tracks that he does exceptionally well at.
Beginning with this week’s race at Texas, Edwards has three wins there in 13 starts and finished third in the first race held there in April. To close the season out, all Edwards will have to do is run well at Phoenix and Homestead, two tracks that he won at to close the year out last season.
After getting his third win of the Chase and getting nearer to Edwards in points, Stewart laid down the gauntlet.
"He'd better be worried," Stewart said of Edwards, "that's all I can say. He's not going to have an easy three weeks."
Stewart finished 12th in the first Texas race, but it might be wiser to look at what he’s done more recently on the 1.5-mile tracks, preferably the high banked sister tracks of Atlanta and Charlotte. While winning on the flatter Chicago track to start the Chase, Stewart also finished eighth at Charlotte and third at Atlanta in the last two months.
Edwards was able to better Stewart on average just a little on the two sister tracks getting a third and fifth-place finish respectively.
Edwards also has his Las Vegas win from early in the season to go off which runs similar to Texas. Ironically, Edwards got that win due to some back luck in the pits on Stewart’s final stop. Stewart had that race thoroughly dominated and is using the same car this week.
“Texas is one of our strong points," said Edwards. "I feel really good about going there, especially the way our Roush Fenway Fords run there.Texas is different than any track we go to just because of the atmosphere. It’s one of the biggest races of the year. The fans, sponsors and drivers all know it, there is a lot on the line and there is a lot of pride in winning a race there.”
The winner of the first Texas race this season, who also won at Charlotte three weeks ago, was Matt Kenseth. Despite his chances of winning a second championship appearing to be gone, Kenseth should run as one of the favorites this week based on his recent and past history at Texas, not to mention he's using the same winning chassis from Charlotte.
No one has more consistent at Texas than Kenseth. Along with his two wins, he also has four runner-up finishes keeping in line with a long standing tradition of Jack Roush cars running well in the Lone Star state. A Roush driver won the first two races ever held there and since then has visited the winner’s circle with three other drivers.
Denny Hamlin swept both Texas races last season, but he hasn’t been a real contender in any 1.5-mile tracks this season. Jimmie Johnson got his only Texas win in 2007 and has had three runner-up finishes since, but hasn’t finished better than eighth in his last two starts. he's be using his winning Kansas chassi this week. Look for Jeff Gordon to well on the basis of his Atlanta win.
Top-5 Finish Prediction:
1) #17 Matt Kenseth (7/1)
2) #99 Carl Edwards (6/1)
3) #14 Tony Stewart (8/1)
4) #18 Kyle Busch (8/1)
5) #24 Jeff Gordon (8/1)
VegasInsider.com
 |
| Only three races to go until we see someone new hoisting the trophy (Getty) |
The big winner in the entire deal last week was Stewart who won his third race of the Chase, his only three wins of the entire season. The Las Vegas Hilton Super Book made a massive adjustment on Stewart going from 9-to-2 following Talladega to now being even money to win the title. Edwards went from a-160 favorite to -120 following Stewart’s win.
The big winner in all of this may have been Edwards, who finished ninth at Martinsville despite it not being one of his favorite tracks. Not only does he have an 8-point lead, but the final three races of the season are all tracks that he does exceptionally well at.
Beginning with this week’s race at Texas, Edwards has three wins there in 13 starts and finished third in the first race held there in April. To close the season out, all Edwards will have to do is run well at Phoenix and Homestead, two tracks that he won at to close the year out last season.
After getting his third win of the Chase and getting nearer to Edwards in points, Stewart laid down the gauntlet.
"He'd better be worried," Stewart said of Edwards, "that's all I can say. He's not going to have an easy three weeks."
 |
| Stewart's charging hard and has a great car this week (Getty) |
Edwards was able to better Stewart on average just a little on the two sister tracks getting a third and fifth-place finish respectively.
Edwards also has his Las Vegas win from early in the season to go off which runs similar to Texas. Ironically, Edwards got that win due to some back luck in the pits on Stewart’s final stop. Stewart had that race thoroughly dominated and is using the same car this week.
“Texas is one of our strong points," said Edwards. "I feel really good about going there, especially the way our Roush Fenway Fords run there.Texas is different than any track we go to just because of the atmosphere. It’s one of the biggest races of the year. The fans, sponsors and drivers all know it, there is a lot on the line and there is a lot of pride in winning a race there.”
The winner of the first Texas race this season, who also won at Charlotte three weeks ago, was Matt Kenseth. Despite his chances of winning a second championship appearing to be gone, Kenseth should run as one of the favorites this week based on his recent and past history at Texas, not to mention he's using the same winning chassis from Charlotte.
No one has more consistent at Texas than Kenseth. Along with his two wins, he also has four runner-up finishes keeping in line with a long standing tradition of Jack Roush cars running well in the Lone Star state. A Roush driver won the first two races ever held there and since then has visited the winner’s circle with three other drivers.
Denny Hamlin swept both Texas races last season, but he hasn’t been a real contender in any 1.5-mile tracks this season. Jimmie Johnson got his only Texas win in 2007 and has had three runner-up finishes since, but hasn’t finished better than eighth in his last two starts. he's be using his winning Kansas chassi this week. Look for Jeff Gordon to well on the basis of his Atlanta win.
Top-5 Finish Prediction:
1) #17 Matt Kenseth (7/1)
2) #99 Carl Edwards (6/1)
3) #14 Tony Stewart (8/1)
4) #18 Kyle Busch (8/1)
5) #24 Jeff Gordon (8/1)
Driver Chassis Selections for Texas
Note: Not all teams their their chassis selections in PR release
#1-Jamie McMurray: Crew chief Kevin "Bono" Manion and the #1 Bass Pro Shops/ Tracker Boats team will be bringing chassis #1104 to Texas Motor Speedway this weekend. This chassis was previously used at Dover in October, Michigan (June and August), and Charlotte (Coke 600, and All-star).
#2-Brad Keselowski: will race chassis PRS-805 during Sunday's AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. This is a new chassis to the #2 fleet.
#6-David Ragan: Primary: RK-777 Last ran Chicago - finished 11th; Backup: RK-711 Last ran Darlington - finished 21st
#5-Mark Martin: Crew chief Lance McGrew has chosen Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 5-625 for Sunday's race in Texas. This is the same chassis Martin drove to a 12th-place finish at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway in March, a runner-up finish at Dover (Del.) International Speedway in May and 18th-place result at Pocono Raceway in June.
#9-Marcos Ambrose: The #9 RPM team has prepared chassis No. 735 for the 500-mile event at Texas Motor Speedway. This DEWALT Ford Fusion was run previously this season at Texas, Charlotte and Atlanta.
#14-Tony Stewart: Chassis No. 14-591: 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 offseason, 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 September stop at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City marked Chassis No. 14-591's sixth career start. It had a strong race, running second to eventual winner Jimmie Johnson for much of the 272-lap contest, but a series of late-race issues conspired for a disappointing 15th-place finish. The car returns to action this weekend at Texas, where it will make its fifth start this season and second in the Chase.
#17-Matt Kenseth: Primary: RK-741 (last run at Charlotte)
#18-Kyle Busch: Chassis No. 322: This is a brand new chassis that will make its on track debut in Sunday's AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth.
#22-Kurt Busch: will be racing "Monster Masher" at Texas this weekend. The "PRS-758" AAA Dodge Charger has an impeccable record. Busch debuted the car in the August race at Pocono, where he started fifth and finished third. In its last time at the track, Busch started on the outside pole and won the Oct. 2 AAA 400 at Dover International Speedway. "Monster Masher" came from the suggestion of Busch's girlfriend Patricia Driscoll's six-year-old son, Houston.
#27-Paul Menard: will pilot chassis No. 379 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. This No. 27 Chevrolet Impala was a brand new addition to the RCR fleet for the 2011 season and was last seen on track at Kansas Speedway in October, where Menard started sixth and finished 12th.
#29-Kevin Harvick: will race chassis No. 381 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. This is a brand new racer that will see its first on-track activity this weekend at Texas Motor Speedway.
#31-Jeff Burton: will pilot chassis No. 372 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable in Sunday's AAA Texas 500. This Caterpillar Chevrolet Impala is a recent addition to the fleet, posting an 18th-place finish at Charlotte Motor Speedway last month in its lone on-track appearance.
#33-Clint Bowyer: will pilot chassis No. 371 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable this weekend. This Chevrolet Impala, built new in September, has been utilized twice during this season's Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. The first time it saw action was at Chicagoland Speedway in September when Bowyer drove it to a top-10 finish of seventh after starting 21st and the second time was last month as Bowyer brought home another seventh-place finish after starting 24th at Kansas Speedway.
#35-Dave Blaney: will compete in the No. 297 chassis this weekend. TBR purchased the chassis from Richard Childress Racing this season. Paul Menard drove the chassis prior to TBR.
#39-Ryan Newman: Chassis No. 39-686: This will be just the second start for Chassis No. 39-686 as it made its debut three weeks ago in the Bank of America 500 at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway. In that race, Newman started sixth, led six laps and finished a solid 10th.
#42-Juan Pablo Montoya: Jim Pohlman and the #42 Target team are bringing chassis # 1119 to Texas this weekend. This chassis was previously run at Charlotte (October), where he started 32nd and rallied to a 14th place finish.
#43-A.J. Allmendinger: The #43 RPM team has prepared chassis No. 710 for this weekend's event at Texas Motor Speedway. This Immortals/ Best Buy Ford has been previously run this season at Texas, Charlotte, Atlanta, Indianapolis and Dover.
#48-Jimmie Johnson: last drove primary chassis No. 681 to victory lane at Kansas Speedway earlier this month. Backup chassis No. 669 finished second at Michigan International Speedway in August and at Dover International Speedway in October.
#56-Martin Truex, Jr.: The #56 team will debut a new chassis Sunday at Texas.
#88-Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: This weekend at Texas, crew chief Steve Letarte will unload Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 88-668. Earnhardt last raced this chassis to a third-place finish at Chicagoland Speedway in September.
#99-Carl Edwards: RK-739 Last ran at Charlotte, finished third
- compiled by Jayski.com
 |
| Busch is using a great car this week |
#2-Brad Keselowski: will race chassis PRS-805 during Sunday's AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. This is a new chassis to the #2 fleet.
#6-David Ragan: Primary: RK-777 Last ran Chicago - finished 11th; Backup: RK-711 Last ran Darlington - finished 21st
#5-Mark Martin: Crew chief Lance McGrew has chosen Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 5-625 for Sunday's race in Texas. This is the same chassis Martin drove to a 12th-place finish at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway in March, a runner-up finish at Dover (Del.) International Speedway in May and 18th-place result at Pocono Raceway in June.
#9-Marcos Ambrose: The #9 RPM team has prepared chassis No. 735 for the 500-mile event at Texas Motor Speedway. This DEWALT Ford Fusion was run previously this season at Texas, Charlotte and Atlanta.
#14-Tony Stewart: Chassis No. 14-591: 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 offseason, 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 September stop at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City marked Chassis No. 14-591's sixth career start. It had a strong race, running second to eventual winner Jimmie Johnson for much of the 272-lap contest, but a series of late-race issues conspired for a disappointing 15th-place finish. The car returns to action this weekend at Texas, where it will make its fifth start this season and second in the Chase.
#17-Matt Kenseth: Primary: RK-741 (last run at Charlotte)
#18-Kyle Busch: Chassis No. 322: This is a brand new chassis that will make its on track debut in Sunday's AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth.
#22-Kurt Busch: will be racing "Monster Masher" at Texas this weekend. The "PRS-758" AAA Dodge Charger has an impeccable record. Busch debuted the car in the August race at Pocono, where he started fifth and finished third. In its last time at the track, Busch started on the outside pole and won the Oct. 2 AAA 400 at Dover International Speedway. "Monster Masher" came from the suggestion of Busch's girlfriend Patricia Driscoll's six-year-old son, Houston.
#27-Paul Menard: will pilot chassis No. 379 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. This No. 27 Chevrolet Impala was a brand new addition to the RCR fleet for the 2011 season and was last seen on track at Kansas Speedway in October, where Menard started sixth and finished 12th.
#29-Kevin Harvick: will race chassis No. 381 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. This is a brand new racer that will see its first on-track activity this weekend at Texas Motor Speedway.
#31-Jeff Burton: will pilot chassis No. 372 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable in Sunday's AAA Texas 500. This Caterpillar Chevrolet Impala is a recent addition to the fleet, posting an 18th-place finish at Charlotte Motor Speedway last month in its lone on-track appearance.
#33-Clint Bowyer: will pilot chassis No. 371 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable this weekend. This Chevrolet Impala, built new in September, has been utilized twice during this season's Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. The first time it saw action was at Chicagoland Speedway in September when Bowyer drove it to a top-10 finish of seventh after starting 21st and the second time was last month as Bowyer brought home another seventh-place finish after starting 24th at Kansas Speedway.
#35-Dave Blaney: will compete in the No. 297 chassis this weekend. TBR purchased the chassis from Richard Childress Racing this season. Paul Menard drove the chassis prior to TBR.
#39-Ryan Newman: Chassis No. 39-686: This will be just the second start for Chassis No. 39-686 as it made its debut three weeks ago in the Bank of America 500 at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway. In that race, Newman started sixth, led six laps and finished a solid 10th.
#42-Juan Pablo Montoya: Jim Pohlman and the #42 Target team are bringing chassis # 1119 to Texas this weekend. This chassis was previously run at Charlotte (October), where he started 32nd and rallied to a 14th place finish.
#43-A.J. Allmendinger: The #43 RPM team has prepared chassis No. 710 for this weekend's event at Texas Motor Speedway. This Immortals/ Best Buy Ford has been previously run this season at Texas, Charlotte, Atlanta, Indianapolis and Dover.
 |
| Johnson is using his winning Kansas car this week (Getty) |
#56-Martin Truex, Jr.: The #56 team will debut a new chassis Sunday at Texas.
#88-Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: This weekend at Texas, crew chief Steve Letarte will unload Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 88-668. Earnhardt last raced this chassis to a third-place finish at Chicagoland Speedway in September.
#99-Carl Edwards: RK-739 Last ran at Charlotte, finished third
- compiled by Jayski.com
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Johnson Bringing Winning Kansas Chassis to Texas
MYLOWE’S LOUNGE: Johnson will drive the No. 48 MyLowe’s paint scheme in Texas. MyLowe’s is an integrated online tool on Lowes.com that helps keep track of everything in your home. Users will never have to remember paint colors, warranty information or room dimensions again. When using the My Lowe’s card, purchases will all automatically upload to the users MyLowe’s site and can be customized from there.
In addition, this weekend fans will have the opportunity to visit the MyLowes lounge located in the Midway at Texas Motor Speedway. Fans will play Jimmie Johnson’s new video game Jimmie Johnson’s Anything With An Engine, currently available for purchase on major gaming consoles.
JIMMIE JOHNSON FOUNDATION/LOWE’S TOOLBOX FOR EDUCATION CHAMPIONS GRANTS: Jimmie and Chandra Johnson will be in Oklahoma Thursday for a special event to announce the recipients of the 2011 Jimmie Johnson Foundation/Lowe’s Toolbox for Education Champions Grants. For the third year, the Jimmie Johnson Foundation and Lowe’s Toolbox for Education initiative have partnered to award grants in the areas where Johnson and his wife grew up and currently reside.
RACE NOTES
Texas Motor Speedway
• Johnson has made 16 Sprint Cup Series starts at Texas Motor Speedway, where he has one win, seven top-five and 12 top-10 finishes.
• Johnson has completed 96.2% (5150 of 5354) of competition laps at the 1.5-mile track and has led 118.
• He has an average start and finish of 9.1 and 9.9.
Chassis
• Backup chassis No. 669 finished second at Michigan International Speedway in August and at Dover International Speedway in October.
JIMMIE JOHNSON QUOTE
TALK ABOUT HEADING TO TEXAS THIS WEEKEND: “Texas is a great track. It’s really challenging. The corner exits creep up on you and you are carrying a ton of speed and it’s a narrow transition from the exit of the turn onto the straights. The track has widened out a lot, so we can race all over. Texas Motor Speedway does an awesome job promoting our sport, and that race; and the fan base is there and they are excited to see us. So, I’m excited to go back to Texas.”
- GMR Live Marketing for Team Lowe’s Racing, Press Release
Keselowski Needs Best Career Finish at Texas to Stay in Chase Hunt
 |
| Brad Keselowski finished 18th in the spring Texas race (Getty) |
No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger
AAA Texas 500
Texas Motor Speedway
November 6, 2011
TV: ESPN at 3:00 PM ET Radio: PRN/Sirius Channel 90 at 2:00 PM ET
No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger News and Notes
* · This Week’s Charger… The No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger team will race chassis PRS-805 during Sunday’s AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. This is a new chassis to the No. 2 fleet.
* · No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge in 2011… After 33 points-paying events, Keselowski and the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger team are ranked fourth in the 2011 Chase for the Championship standings. Keselowski sits 27 points behind leader Carl Edwards following a 17th-place finish in the Tums Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway last Sunday afternoon.
* · Texas Firsts… Keselowski made his first Cup Series start at TMS in November of 2008. After starting the race from the 37th position, the then 24-year-old Keselowski raced his way to a respectable 19th-place finishing position. In November of the following year, Keselowski made his first NASCAR start with Penske Racing at TMS, as he finished 35th in that race. Additionally, in the 2011 spring race at TMS, Keselowski led 32 laps – his first laps led at the track – before finishing 18th.
* · Cheers To Chasing Greatness… The featured tag line on the rear bumper of the “Blue Deuce” this weekend in Texas will be “Cheers To Chasing Greatness.” Keselowski continues to battle for the Cup Series championship, which would be a “great” accomplishment in his first season driving the iconic car.
* · Deuces Wild… When Brad wins a race during the 2011 Chase for the Championship, two lucky fans will win their own “man cave,” compliments of Miller Lite. The man cave gear includes a “kegerator,” a dart board, Miller Lite neon sign, a basketball game and pub furniture. Visit MillerLite.com/Brad to enter.
* · The Rest is History… Penske Racing made its first Cup Series start at TMS during the track’s inaugural event in 1997. In 50 combined Cup Series starts at the venue, the organization has garnered two wins (Ryan Newman – 2003 and Kurt Busch – 2009), three poles and nine top-five finishes.
Brad Keselowski on racing at Texas Motor Speedway: “Texas really is a unique racetrack and a unique layout. From above it looks like any normal 1.5-mile track, but the transitions into and off of the corners are quite a bit different than Charlotte, Las Vegas or any of the other mile-and-a-halfs. There is a lot of banking into the corners, which means you can carry a lot of speed in and to the center of the turns, but you lose that speed on exit as the track flattens out. It’s difficult because normally you can carry the same amount of grip and speed on both corner entry and corner exit. You have to adjust accordingly and sometimes that’s hard to do at 180 miles per hour. It’s easy to find yourself in trouble, especially off of Turn 2.”
Brad Keselowski on his fourth-place position in the Chase with three races remaining: “We put ourselves in position to have a great day at Martinsville on Sunday, but that wasn’t in the cards. That’s what happens late in a race on a short track. We took a hit in the points, but this team has been the underdog all year long. We’re not going to stop doing the things that put us in this position. Twenty seven points is not insurmountable. We’re going to need a little help, but there are guys that are due to have something go wrong over these last three races. At the end of the day, we have speed in our cars and that will win out more often than not.”
Crew chief Paul Wolfe on Texas Motor Speedway: “Texas is a place with a lot of unique characteristics. The track has bumps in Turn 2 and has aged to where grip becomes a big factor late into a run. We want to set the car up to run the bottom of the track, but yet, still have the flexibility to run various lines through the corners. This is a new car for us this weekend – a new specification that we’ve developed at Penske Racing. We’ve rolled out several new cars during the Chase and have been very happy with their performance. Brad has shown that he knows how to get around these 1.5-mile tracks and I think we’ll have a solid weekend at Texas.”
- Penske Racing, Press Release
Jeff Gordon Looking For Another Cowboy Hat from Texas
Friday night, live on “Trackside” on Speed, Gordon’s personal 2010 Z06 Chevrolet Corvette will be given away to one of these three finalists of the 2011 raffle: Fred Baker of Florida, Ira Feldman of New York or Jay Nadal of Florida. Nearly $500,000 in proceeds raised from the program will benefit the Jeff Gordon Children’s Foundation’s efforts to support the research and treatment needs of pediatric cancer patients.
“This is always a cool day for me when I get to hand over the keys to my Corvette,” said Gordon. “While it usually occurs this weekend in Texas, this is the first time the winner is not yet known.
“I appreciate Speed’s support of the Foundation through the years, and for the opportunity to determine the winner live on one of their shows.”
On Sunday, Gordon hopes he is the winner – and recipient of a cowboy hat and six-shooters – of the AAA Texas 500. In 21 starts in The Lone Star state, Gordon has a lone win (2009), two poles (2008 and 2009), seven top-fives and nine top-10’s.
“This place has really turned into a fantastic track,” said Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Drive To End Hunger Chevrolet. “When we first came here, it was a really, really challenging race track. It was fast and the transitions were really abrupt.
“It was hard to just stay out of the wall.
“But as the surface has worn and as we’ve gotten the cars handling better, it’s become one of the premier tracks. It’s always been one of the premier facilities, but the race track itself has really come into its own and made great racing, as well.”
Results-wise, Texas has always been hit or miss for the No. 24 team. Gordon’s career started with four finishes of 25th or worse before he reeled off four consecutive top-five finishes. Recently, that elusive victory in 2009 was his fifth top-10 in six races, but Gordon has not had a top-10 since.
“I don’t go into a race with any expectations based on recent results,” said Gordon. “Once we get the green flag, I’ll see what my car does in (turns) one and two.
“Then I’ll go to turns three and four and see what it does there. I’ll evaluate it as the race goes on and try to provide (crew chief) Alan Gustafson with the best information so he can make the right adjustments.”
Which could earn Gustafson at least a tip from Gordon’s (new cowboy?) hat in Victory Lane.
- Performance PR Plus, Press Release
Texas Odds & Ends: AAA Texas 500
At Texas Motor Speedway:
History
· Construction began in 1995.
· The first NASCAR race was a NASCAR Nationwide Series event on April 5, 1997.
· The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was on April 6, 1997.
Notebook
· There have been 21 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Texas Motor Speedway, one per season from 1997 through 2004 and two races per year since 2005.
· Four drivers have competed in all 21 Texas races: Jeff Burton, Jeff Gordon, Bobby Labonte and Mark Martin.
· Jeremy Mayfield was the first pole winner, in 1998. Qualifying for the inaugural race in 1997 was canceled.
· Jeff Burton won the first NASCAR Sprint Cup race.
· 15 drivers have scored poles, led by Dale Earnhardt Jr., Bobby Labonte, Ryan Newman and Jeff Gordon with two.
· 16 drivers have won races, led by Carl Edwards, with three. Denny Hamlin and Jeff Burton each have two wins.
· 15 of 21 races have been won from a top-10 starting position. Only one has been won from the pole (Kasey Kahne in 2006).
· Matt Kenseth started 31st en route to his victory at Texas in 2002, the deepest in the field that a race winner has started. Kenseth started fourth and won earlier this season at Texas.
· Both Jeff Burton (1999) and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2000) scored their first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series win at Texas, and 2011 Daytona 500 winner Trevor Bayne made his first series start at Texas (11/07/10). Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup competitor Brad Keselowski also made his first career start at Texas (11/2/08).
· Martin Truex Jr. (11/04/07)and David Ragan (04/09/11) scored their first series poles at Texas.
· Matt Kenseth (9.0), Denny Hamlin (9.3) and Jimmie Johnson (9.9) are the only three active drivers to average a top-10 finish.
· Roush Fenway Racing leads all owners in victories, with eight. Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports have three wins each.
· There has been two season sweeps, by Carl Edwards in 2008 and Denny Hamlin in 2010.
Texas Motor Speedway Data
Race #: 34 of 36 (10-30-11)
Track Size: 1.5 miles
Race Length: 501 miles
· Banking/corners: 24 degrees
· Banking/straights: 5 degrees
· Frontstretch: 2,250 feet
· Backstretch: 1,330 feet
Note: Driver Rating compiled from 2005-2011 races (13 total) at Texas.
Driver Rating at Texas Matt Kenseth 105.2 Tony Stewart 102.9 Greg Biffle 100.3 Jimmie Johnson 98.8 Carl Edwards 98.3 Denny Hamlin 97.8 Kyle Busch 97.5 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 93.1 Clint Bowyer 92.4 Kurt Busch 92.0
Qualifying/Race Data
2010 pole winner: Elliott Sadler (195.397 mph, 27.636 seconds)
2010 race winner: Denny Hamlin, 140.456 mph, 11-07-10)
Track qualifying record: Brian Vickers (196.235 mph, 27.518 seconds,
11-03-06)
Track race record: Carl Edwards (151.055 mph, 11-06-05)
NASCAR in Texas
- There have been 30 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in Texas.
- 74 drivers in NASCAR’s three national series (all-time) have their home state recorded as Texas.
- There have been eight race winners from Texas in NASCAR’s three national series:
| Driver | NSCS | NNS | NCWTS |
| Terry Labonte | 22 | 11 | 1 |
| Bobby Labonte | 21 | 10 | 1 |
| A.J. Foyt | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| Billy Wade | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Bobby Hillin Jr. | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Johnny Rutherford | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| David Starr | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Colin Braun | 0 | 0 | 1 |
AAA Texas 500 Storylines
 |
| Still only one win (Vegas) for Edwards on the season. |
Stewart let the world know that he was aiming for points leader Carl Edwards, whose lead shrunk to eight points. Stewart’s third Chase of 2011 moved him to second, cutting the lead to single digits, and inching closer to a possible third NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship.
The Victory Lane quote heard ‘round the world: "Carl Edwards had better be real worried. That's all I've got to say. He's not going to sleep for the next three weeks."
Three races remain until the champion is crowned, with a bout at Texas Motor Speedway up next – Sunday, the AAA Texas 500.
Three races also remain in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, which comes off two consecutive open weeks. In Saturday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Challenge at Texas, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. hopes to hold off charging Elliott Sadler.
Two races remain in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, and a stout effort by Austin Dillon at Martinsville last Saturday has put him ever closer to his first championship. He’ll look to increase an 11-point lead over James Buescher in Friday’s WinStar World Casino 350K at Texas.
NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
That’s Odd: Smoke vs. Edwards
 |
| Stewart laid down the challenge to Edwards, is he afraid? |
This budding feud has some juice behind it. Consider these two marquee drivers “The Odd Couple Of NASCAR.” Tony’s Burger King. Carl’s Subway. Tony’s outspoken, with little worry about being politically correct. Carl’s a sponsor’s dream, always quick to flash a smile. Last week at Martinsville, when asked what NASCAR personality he’d be for Halloween, Tony said anyone sponsored by a beer company, so it could match what he’s drinking. Carl’s probably in a gym as you read this.
This will get interesting.
Stewart Aims For Third Title, History
If Stewart can overcome his eight-point deficit, he would become first owner/driver since Alan Kulwicki in 1992 to win a NASCAR Sprint Cup title. Maybe more impressively, he would join Cale Yarborough, Lee Petty, Darrell Waltrip and David Pearson with three championships. Everyone on that list is either a NASCAR Hall of Famer or a NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee.
Stewart won at Texas in 2006, and finished 12th there earlier this season.
Stewart has a better average finish at Texas than Edwards with a 13.2 compared to Edwards 16.5
Edwards’ Chase: Lemons Into Lemonade
Martinsville was the second consecutive race where Carl Edwards viewed a subpar finish as a victory. After a safe effort at Talladega led to an 11th-place finish, Edwards finished ninth after an adventurous Martinsville race. He breathed a sigh of relief after both.
Good news for him: He leads by eight. Better news: Two of his best tracks await: Texas and Homestead.
Edwards started second and finished third at Texas earlier this season. With a series-leading three wins, Texas joins Atlanta as Edwards most prolific track.
Cream of the Crop: Chase Drivers Successful At Texas
 |
| Hamlin swept Texas last season, 15th in the spring (Getty) |
Keselowski’s best finish at Texas is 14th and he finished 18th there earlier this season; Harvick’s best finish is third, and he finished 20th earlier this season; Busch’s best finish is second, and he finished 16th earlier this season.
Denny Hamlin swept both races last season, and Matt Kenseth won at Texas earlier this season.
Full Circle? Dale Earnhardt Jr. Hopes To End Drought At Scene Of First Win
Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s win drought stands at 126, but Texas offers a storybook opportunity for its end.
On April 2, 2000 at Texas Motor Speedway, Earnhardt nabbed his first NASCAR Sprint Cup victory. He’s been strong there throughout his career, with an average finish of 14.5. He finished ninth at Texas earlier this season.
- NASCAR Media Services
Las Vegas Hilton Super Book Odds to Win AAA Texas 500
 |
| Add caption |
TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2011
CARL EDWARDS 7
JIMMIE JOHNSON 7
KYLE BUSCH 8
JEFF GORDON 8
MATT KENSETH 7
KEVIN HARVICK 12
DENNY HAMLIN 12
KURT BUSCH 20
TONY STEWART 7
DALE EARNHARDT JR 30
GREG BIFFLE 15
KASEY KAHNE 20
CLINT BOWYER 20
RYAN NEWMAN 30
BRAD KESELOWSKI 20
JOEY LOGANO 50
MARTIN TRUEX JR 50
DAVID RAGAN 30
JUAN MONTOYA 50
MARK MARTIN 40
JEFF BURTON 60
JAMIE McMURRAY 75
BRIAN VICKERS 60
DAVID REUTIMANN 60
PAUL MENARD 60
AJ ALLMENDINGER 60
MARCOS AMBROSE 60
REGAN SMITH 200
TREVOR BAYNE 300
FIELD 500
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Kenseth Wins at Texas; Ends 76-race Winless Streak
Associated Press
FORT WORTH — Matt Kenseth had a dominating run at Texas, breaking a 76-race NASCAR Sprint Cup winless streak Saturday night.
Kenseth led 169 of 334 laps at the 11/2-mile, high-banked track for his 19th career victory, his first since California in February 2009. Since his other win at Texas in 2002, Kenseth had four runner-up finishes, including last fall behind Denny Hamlin, and six other top-10 finishes at the track.
This time, the No. 17 Roush Fenway Ford was only trailing late behind Tony Stewart and Kurt Busch when both of those drivers were out of sequence on stops and trying to stretch fuel in hopes of catching a caution. Lucky for Kenseth, there were no yellow flags at the wrong time.
Kenseth went back ahead to stay with 13 laps to go when Busch had to make his final stop and give up a 8.2-second lead. Kenseth finished 8.315 seconds ahead of Clint Bowyer.
Texas Results
 |
| Kenseth had not won since February of 2009 at Fontana (Getty) |
Kenseth led 169 of 334 laps at the 11/2-mile, high-banked track for his 19th career victory, his first since California in February 2009. Since his other win at Texas in 2002, Kenseth had four runner-up finishes, including last fall behind Denny Hamlin, and six other top-10 finishes at the track.
This time, the No. 17 Roush Fenway Ford was only trailing late behind Tony Stewart and Kurt Busch when both of those drivers were out of sequence on stops and trying to stretch fuel in hopes of catching a caution. Lucky for Kenseth, there were no yellow flags at the wrong time.
Kenseth went back ahead to stay with 13 laps to go when Busch had to make his final stop and give up a 8.2-second lead. Kenseth finished 8.315 seconds ahead of Clint Bowyer.
Texas Results
Friday, April 8, 2011
Final Texas Driver Ratings Following All Practice Sessions: Roush Should Lead The Way
Micah Roberts Top 10 Driver Ratings
Samsung Mobile 500
Texas Motor Speedway
Saturday, April 9, 2011 - 4:46 pm (PDT)
Rating Driver Odds Practice 1 Practice 2 Qualified Vegas 11*
1. Carl Edwards 9/2 15th 3rd 2nd 1st
Three-time Texas winner; no top-fives in 9 other races. Using new chassis this week.
2. Matt Kenseth 20/1 8th 16th 4th 11th
Since winning in 2002, has a track best 7.7 average finish; debuts new car this week.
3. Tony Stewart 12/1 2nd 12th 26th 2nd
2006 winner is using a chassis that never finished outside of top-10 in four 2010 starts.
4. Jimmie Johnson 6/1 7th 38th 6th 16th
2007 winner; average finish of 10.1 in 15 starts. Using runner-up Fontana car this week.
5. Clint Bowyer 25/1 9th 11th 3rd 15th
14.5 average finish in 10 starts, career best of 4th in 2008; new car this week.
6. Kevin Harvick 8/1 23rd 27th 29th 17th
12.4 average finish in 16 starts; using chassis that finished fourth twice at Pocono in 2010.
7. Greg Biffle 15/1 5th 30th 9th 28th
2005 winner; finished in the top-10 in last five Texas starts. Led 224 laps in the fall Texas race.
8. Juan Montoya 30/1 3rd 14th 14th 3rd
Fast average speeds in both practices; using third-place Las Vegas chassis this week.
9. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 20/1 13th 13th 28th 8th
2000 winner, his first career Cup victory; third fastest 10 consecutive lap average in final practice.
10. Denny Hamlin 8/1 20th 7th 23rd 7th
Swept both races last season; leads all active drivers with an 8.8 average finish at Texas.
* Results from the March 6, 2011 race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway are relevant because similar set-ups are required for Texas.
Note: Only two scheduled practice sessions with qualifying held on Friday night.
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.
STARTING LINEUP
DRIVER QUOTES FROM FRIDAY AT TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
JIMMIE JOHNSON ON HOW HE PRACTICED THURSDAY: “Yesterday was kind of tough with the tire allotment that we have — figuring out the best strategy. We elected to go with qualifying trim yesterday and worked on that through the entire session. We’ll see how today goes. In qualifying, it’s a little different because now today we’ll just focus on race runs and then in my head mentally I have to switch over to qualifying at the end of the day. It’s a challenge finding the right rhythm as a driver and trying to maximize the amount of tires you have and how the teams choose to use them with these split practice sessions and limited amount of tires we have. At the end of the day we’ll have learned a lot more. I think we’re off to a decent start.”
CLINT BOWYER ON QUALIFYING THIRD: “Actually, yesterday the air conditioner shorted out, ’bout burnt my head up (LAUGHS). Something happened, there was a little fire out of it. Real proud of Shane Wilson (crew chief) and all these guys on the Cheerios / Hamburger Chevrolet. Brought me a new hot rod. Fast. Looking forward to the race tomorrow night. I wasn’t expecting that in qualifying. Richard (Childress, team owner) came on the radio there and told me ‘Hey, Carl (Edwards) ran the outside, run right there in the middle. You need to try it.’ I did and it was a pretty good lap so pretty excited about it.”
“When I rolled down the back straightaway, I was surprised at how much sun was in turn three. Pretty excited about the lap. It was a good lap for us."
KYLE BUSCH THOUGHTS ON QUALIFYING 11TH: “It’s a far cry from where we were yesterday, but unfortunately it’s not going to be fast enough today to get us where we want to be, but overall we felt like the Interstate Batteries Camry was really good. We posted a good time. But apparently there are going to be guys that are going to go faster than us. Our draw hurt us a little bit. We weren’t fast yesterday, but we got a lot better today. Looking forward to the race. It’s great to be here in Texas in front of the hometown crowd with Interstate Batteries. I’m pumped about that.”
KASEY KAHNE ON STARTING 13TH AND HOW HE FEELS ABOUT SATURDAY'S RACE: “I just blew turn three. I actually had a really good lap going, I drove in too hard and gave up a lot of time. The car felt really good, the engine and everything felt really good. I just screwed up.”
“Hopefully practice was good enough today and we’ll be fast tomorrow — we’ll see.”
JEFF GORDON ON HAVING TO ADJUST THE CAR WITH CHANGING RACE CONDITIONS: "Yes, you just have to completely throw the dice at the setup and hope that you get it close. That’s kind of the box that we’re in when we don’t get to be on the track at the time of day that we’re going to be racing. It’s more of a guessing game. I still think the cars that are strong during the day are going to be strong at night. You just want to maybe have a few more adjustable components in the car to be able to change in case the conditions are much more different than you think they are.”
CARL EDWARDS ON WHAT IT WILL TAKE TO WIN SATURDAY: “We are going to have to keep doing what we have been doing. The car is good. We just got done with some qualifying trim runs and it seems pretty fast. Texas is fun. It is a fun place to race and they pay a ton if you win which is great (laughter). This afternoon we get to go for that shotgun which has definitely eluded us. We have been second in qualifying here but Bob and I want to win that shotgun so we can fight over it. I don’t know who would get it, me or him. That is the first step here, to qualify well and then 500 miles at night. It will be a little bit different racing in conditions we haven’t practiced in yet so that will be interesting. It is fun to race here. I am glad to go, ready to go, glad to be here.”
DENNY HAMLIN ON PRESSURE TO DO WELL THIS WEEK: “I’m pretty sure we’re going to run well. Finishing well is the part that we haven’t done as well this year as we’ve done in years past. It is so early and we are close to where we are last year. We’re not quite, because we won Martinsville last year at this point. For me, the panic level is not that high, but it is creeping there because ultimately it’s not about the number of points that you’re behind 10th at this point, it’s how many guys separate you from that. In my head, I know that we’re going to run well — I know that for a fact, it’s just whether we finish well is going to be the question mark. To do that, all the other aspects of the race team that we have to have together.”
Samsung Mobile 500
Texas Motor Speedway
Saturday, April 9, 2011 - 4:46 pm (PDT)
Rating Driver Odds Practice 1 Practice 2 Qualified Vegas 11*
1. Carl Edwards 9/2 15th 3rd 2nd 1st
Three-time Texas winner; no top-fives in 9 other races. Using new chassis this week.
2. Matt Kenseth 20/1 8th 16th 4th 11th
Since winning in 2002, has a track best 7.7 average finish; debuts new car this week.
3. Tony Stewart 12/1 2nd 12th 26th 2nd
2006 winner is using a chassis that never finished outside of top-10 in four 2010 starts.
4. Jimmie Johnson 6/1 7th 38th 6th 16th
2007 winner; average finish of 10.1 in 15 starts. Using runner-up Fontana car this week.
5. Clint Bowyer 25/1 9th 11th 3rd 15th
14.5 average finish in 10 starts, career best of 4th in 2008; new car this week.
6. Kevin Harvick 8/1 23rd 27th 29th 17th
12.4 average finish in 16 starts; using chassis that finished fourth twice at Pocono in 2010.
7. Greg Biffle 15/1 5th 30th 9th 28th
2005 winner; finished in the top-10 in last five Texas starts. Led 224 laps in the fall Texas race.
8. Juan Montoya 30/1 3rd 14th 14th 3rd
Fast average speeds in both practices; using third-place Las Vegas chassis this week.
9. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 20/1 13th 13th 28th 8th
2000 winner, his first career Cup victory; third fastest 10 consecutive lap average in final practice.
10. Denny Hamlin 8/1 20th 7th 23rd 7th
Swept both races last season; leads all active drivers with an 8.8 average finish at Texas.
* Results from the March 6, 2011 race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway are relevant because similar set-ups are required for Texas.
Note: Only two scheduled practice sessions with qualifying held on Friday night.
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.
STARTING LINEUP
DRIVER QUOTES FROM FRIDAY AT TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
 |
| Johnson using his runner-up Fontana chassis at Texas |
CLINT BOWYER ON QUALIFYING THIRD: “Actually, yesterday the air conditioner shorted out, ’bout burnt my head up (LAUGHS). Something happened, there was a little fire out of it. Real proud of Shane Wilson (crew chief) and all these guys on the Cheerios / Hamburger Chevrolet. Brought me a new hot rod. Fast. Looking forward to the race tomorrow night. I wasn’t expecting that in qualifying. Richard (Childress, team owner) came on the radio there and told me ‘Hey, Carl (Edwards) ran the outside, run right there in the middle. You need to try it.’ I did and it was a pretty good lap so pretty excited about it.”
“When I rolled down the back straightaway, I was surprised at how much sun was in turn three. Pretty excited about the lap. It was a good lap for us."
KYLE BUSCH THOUGHTS ON QUALIFYING 11TH: “It’s a far cry from where we were yesterday, but unfortunately it’s not going to be fast enough today to get us where we want to be, but overall we felt like the Interstate Batteries Camry was really good. We posted a good time. But apparently there are going to be guys that are going to go faster than us. Our draw hurt us a little bit. We weren’t fast yesterday, but we got a lot better today. Looking forward to the race. It’s great to be here in Texas in front of the hometown crowd with Interstate Batteries. I’m pumped about that.”
KASEY KAHNE ON STARTING 13TH AND HOW HE FEELS ABOUT SATURDAY'S RACE: “I just blew turn three. I actually had a really good lap going, I drove in too hard and gave up a lot of time. The car felt really good, the engine and everything felt really good. I just screwed up.”
“Hopefully practice was good enough today and we’ll be fast tomorrow — we’ll see.”
 |
| Gordon has Dupont on the hood |
CARL EDWARDS ON WHAT IT WILL TAKE TO WIN SATURDAY: “We are going to have to keep doing what we have been doing. The car is good. We just got done with some qualifying trim runs and it seems pretty fast. Texas is fun. It is a fun place to race and they pay a ton if you win which is great (laughter). This afternoon we get to go for that shotgun which has definitely eluded us. We have been second in qualifying here but Bob and I want to win that shotgun so we can fight over it. I don’t know who would get it, me or him. That is the first step here, to qualify well and then 500 miles at night. It will be a little bit different racing in conditions we haven’t practiced in yet so that will be interesting. It is fun to race here. I am glad to go, ready to go, glad to be here.”
DENNY HAMLIN ON PRESSURE TO DO WELL THIS WEEK: “I’m pretty sure we’re going to run well. Finishing well is the part that we haven’t done as well this year as we’ve done in years past. It is so early and we are close to where we are last year. We’re not quite, because we won Martinsville last year at this point. For me, the panic level is not that high, but it is creeping there because ultimately it’s not about the number of points that you’re behind 10th at this point, it’s how many guys separate you from that. In my head, I know that we’re going to run well — I know that for a fact, it’s just whether we finish well is going to be the question mark. To do that, all the other aspects of the race team that we have to have together.”
Kasey Kahne Fastest in Final Texas Practice
By Jeff Gluck
SBNation.com
Kasey Kahne led the final Sprint Cup Series practice on Friday afternoon at Texas Motor Speedway, topping the charts with a fast lap of 183.899 mph.
Kahne bested Paul Menard (183.892) in a 90-minute practice session that saw many drivers work only on race trim and not the upcoming qualifying session later this evening.
The fastest drivers in the session, though, did work on qualifying: Carl Edwards was third-fastest, followed by Kurt Busch and Regan Smith.
Roush Fenway Racing's David Ragan – who led Thursday's practice session – was sixth, ahead of Denny Hamlin, Marcos Ambrose, Mark Martin and AJ Allmendinger.
There were no incidents during the practice session, which wasn't televised due to Speed's coverage of the Barrett Jackson auction.
Sprint Cup Series qualifying is scheduled to begin at 6:40 p.m. Eastern time (5:40 p.m. local time). Qualifying order will mostly be based on Thursday's practice session, which saw the fastest speeds.
Practice 1 & 2 times
SBNation.com
Kahne bested Paul Menard (183.892) in a 90-minute practice session that saw many drivers work only on race trim and not the upcoming qualifying session later this evening.
The fastest drivers in the session, though, did work on qualifying: Carl Edwards was third-fastest, followed by Kurt Busch and Regan Smith.
Roush Fenway Racing's David Ragan – who led Thursday's practice session – was sixth, ahead of Denny Hamlin, Marcos Ambrose, Mark Martin and AJ Allmendinger.
There were no incidents during the practice session, which wasn't televised due to Speed's coverage of the Barrett Jackson auction.
Sprint Cup Series qualifying is scheduled to begin at 6:40 p.m. Eastern time (5:40 p.m. local time). Qualifying order will mostly be based on Thursday's practice session, which saw the fastest speeds.
Practice 1 & 2 times
Driver Chassis Selections For Samsung Mobile 500 at Texas
Note: Not all teams list their chassis information in their press releases
1. Kyle Busch: Equaled best finish (third) in 12 starts in this event last year; 12.2 average finish and 286 laps led in six starts with Joe Gibbs Racing; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 283) that he last finished 32nd with in its last two starts (Texas and Homestead).
2. Carl Edwards: Three-time winner; Leads all drivers in laps led (344) in the six races with the COT; Crashes in two of the last three events have raised his finishing average to 17.7 in 12 starts; Won the first race of the season on a 1.5-mile track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway; Will debut a new chassis (No. 748) in the Samsung Mobile 500.
3. Jimmie Johnson: Finished second in last three spring events; Winner of the fall race in 2007; Led 39 laps in this event last year; Only finishes outside the top 15 in 15 starts is a pair of 38th-place finishes; 11.3 average finish in the six races with the COT; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 650) that he finished second with last month at Auto Club Speedway.
4. Kurt Busch: Winner of the 2009 fall race; Finished fourth in this event last year; 24th-place finish last fall snapped a streak of three consecutive top-10s; Five top-10s in 10 starts with Penske Racing; 16.8 average finish and 92 laps led in the six races with the COT; Will return in the same car (chassis No. PRS-744) that he finished ninth with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
5. Kevin Harvick: Coming off third consecutive, and eighth overall, top 10 with a sixth-place finish last fall; Has only led five laps in 16 starts; Fourth-best average finish (10.5) in the six races with the COT; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 309) that he posted fourth-places finishes with on both races at Pocono Raceway in 2010.
6. Ryan Newman: 14.5 average finish in four starts with Stewart-Haas; Posted one win and three top 10s in previous 11 starts with Penske Racing; Has yet to lead a lap in last six starts.
7. Juan Pablo Montoya: 25.1 average finish in eight starts; Last top 10 came in the 2009 spring race; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 1105) that he finished third with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
8. Dale Earnhardt Jr: Has one pole and an average finish of 17.0 in six starts with Hendrick Motorsports; Finished eighth in this event last year; Posted one win and seven top-10s in previous 11 starts with Dale Earnhardt, Inc; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 617) that he finished eighth with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
9. Matt Kenseth: Coming off 11th top 10 in 17 starts; 20th-place finish in this event last year snapped a streak of six consecutive top 10s; Third-best average finish (8.0) in the six races with the COT; Won the pole and finished 11th in the first race on 1.5-mile track (Las Vegas) this season; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 741) in the Samsung Mobile 500.
10. Mark Martin: 4.8 average finish in four starts with Hendrick Motorsports; Third-place finish last fall was 11th top 10 in 20 starts; Won the 1998 race with Roush Racing; Second-best average finish (6.5) in the six races with the COT.
11. Tony Stewart: Won the pole and led 74 laps in this event last year until a crash took him out of contention; 13.3 average finish in four starts with Stewart-Haas; Posted one win and eight top 10s in previous 14 starts with Joe Gibbs Racing; Led 163 laps and finished second in first race of the season on a 1.5-mile track (Las Vegas).
12. Jeff Gordon: Led a race-high 124 laps in this event last year before a crash relegated him to a 31st-place finish; Last of nine top 10s was a win in the 2009 spring race; 21.2 average finish in the six races with the COT.
13. Paul Menard: Coming off best finish in 10th; 23.6 average finish in nine starts; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 351) in the Samsung Mobile 500.
14. AJ Allmendinger: 22.7 average finish in six starts; Best finish came in the 2009 fall race in 10th; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 752) in the Samsung Mobile 500.
15. Kasey Kahne: Finished 13th last fall in first track start with Team Red Bull; Won the 2006 spring race with Evernham Motorsports; Last top 10 (fifth) came in this event last year with Richard Petty Motorsports.
16. Clint Bowyer: Coming off fifth top 10 in 10 starts; Finished 36th in this event last year after a crash took him out of contention; Will pilot a new car (chassis No. 350) in the Samsung Mobile 500.
17. Martin Truex Jr: Finished ninth in this event last year in first track start with Michael Waltrip Racing; Four previous top 10s came with Dale Earnhardt, Inc.
18. David Ragan: Coming off first top 10 in eight starts; 22.1 average finish; Will pilot a new car (chassis No. 750) in the Samsung Mobile 500.
19. Denny Hamlin: Won both races last season; 8.8 average finish in 11 starts; Best average finish (6.3) in the six races with the COT.
20. Greg Biffle: Coming off fifth consecutive top 10; Winner of the 2005 spring race; 612 laps led in 14 starts; Sixth-best average finish (11.7) in the six races with the COT; Will pilot a new car (chassis No. 749) in the Samsung Mobile 500.
Notable Drivers Outside the Top 20
Bobby Labonte: Last of five top-10s came in this event in 2006 with Petty Enterprises; 25.3 average finish in last 10 races; Will make track debut with JTG-Daugherty Racing.
Jamie McMurray: Last of six top 10s (third) came in the 2008 fall race with Roush Racing; 23.0 average finish in first two track starts behind the wheel of an Earnhardt-Ganassi Chevrolet in 2010; 20.2 average finish in the six races with the COT: Will return in the same car (chassis No. 1102) that he finished 27th with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Brian Vickers: Has yet to post a top 10 in 12 starts; 21.6 average finish in seven starts with Team Red Bull.
Brad Keselowski: Has yet to post a top 10 in five starts; Best finish came in this event last year in 14th; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 745) that he finished 26th with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
David Reutimann: Won the pole for the 2009 spring race; Engine problems in three races have raised his finishing average to 24.7 in seven starts; Best finish came in the 2008 fall race in 10th.
Joey Logano: Coming off first top 10 (fourth) in five starts after leading 30 laps; 24.2 average finish; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 297) that he finished 23rd with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway after a late-race tire violation.
Jeff Burton: Winner of the inaugural and 2007 spring race; Has posted six top-10s with Richard Childress Racing; 14.2 average finish in the six races with the COT; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 344) that he finished 21st with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
 |
| Busch not bringing one of his better cars this week |
2. Carl Edwards: Three-time winner; Leads all drivers in laps led (344) in the six races with the COT; Crashes in two of the last three events have raised his finishing average to 17.7 in 12 starts; Won the first race of the season on a 1.5-mile track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway; Will debut a new chassis (No. 748) in the Samsung Mobile 500.
3. Jimmie Johnson: Finished second in last three spring events; Winner of the fall race in 2007; Led 39 laps in this event last year; Only finishes outside the top 15 in 15 starts is a pair of 38th-place finishes; 11.3 average finish in the six races with the COT; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 650) that he finished second with last month at Auto Club Speedway.
4. Kurt Busch: Winner of the 2009 fall race; Finished fourth in this event last year; 24th-place finish last fall snapped a streak of three consecutive top-10s; Five top-10s in 10 starts with Penske Racing; 16.8 average finish and 92 laps led in the six races with the COT; Will return in the same car (chassis No. PRS-744) that he finished ninth with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
 |
| Harvick going for 3 wins in a row using 2010 Pocono car |
6. Ryan Newman: 14.5 average finish in four starts with Stewart-Haas; Posted one win and three top 10s in previous 11 starts with Penske Racing; Has yet to lead a lap in last six starts.
7. Juan Pablo Montoya: 25.1 average finish in eight starts; Last top 10 came in the 2009 spring race; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 1105) that he finished third with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
8. Dale Earnhardt Jr: Has one pole and an average finish of 17.0 in six starts with Hendrick Motorsports; Finished eighth in this event last year; Posted one win and seven top-10s in previous 11 starts with Dale Earnhardt, Inc; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 617) that he finished eighth with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
9. Matt Kenseth: Coming off 11th top 10 in 17 starts; 20th-place finish in this event last year snapped a streak of six consecutive top 10s; Third-best average finish (8.0) in the six races with the COT; Won the pole and finished 11th in the first race on 1.5-mile track (Las Vegas) this season; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 741) in the Samsung Mobile 500.
10. Mark Martin: 4.8 average finish in four starts with Hendrick Motorsports; Third-place finish last fall was 11th top 10 in 20 starts; Won the 1998 race with Roush Racing; Second-best average finish (6.5) in the six races with the COT.
 |
| Stewart was 2nd fastest in practice |
12. Jeff Gordon: Led a race-high 124 laps in this event last year before a crash relegated him to a 31st-place finish; Last of nine top 10s was a win in the 2009 spring race; 21.2 average finish in the six races with the COT.
13. Paul Menard: Coming off best finish in 10th; 23.6 average finish in nine starts; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 351) in the Samsung Mobile 500.
14. AJ Allmendinger: 22.7 average finish in six starts; Best finish came in the 2009 fall race in 10th; Will debut a new car (chassis No. 752) in the Samsung Mobile 500.
15. Kasey Kahne: Finished 13th last fall in first track start with Team Red Bull; Won the 2006 spring race with Evernham Motorsports; Last top 10 (fifth) came in this event last year with Richard Petty Motorsports.
16. Clint Bowyer: Coming off fifth top 10 in 10 starts; Finished 36th in this event last year after a crash took him out of contention; Will pilot a new car (chassis No. 350) in the Samsung Mobile 500.
17. Martin Truex Jr: Finished ninth in this event last year in first track start with Michael Waltrip Racing; Four previous top 10s came with Dale Earnhardt, Inc.
 |
| Ragan topped the charts in Thursday's practice |
19. Denny Hamlin: Won both races last season; 8.8 average finish in 11 starts; Best average finish (6.3) in the six races with the COT.
20. Greg Biffle: Coming off fifth consecutive top 10; Winner of the 2005 spring race; 612 laps led in 14 starts; Sixth-best average finish (11.7) in the six races with the COT; Will pilot a new car (chassis No. 749) in the Samsung Mobile 500.
Notable Drivers Outside the Top 20
Bobby Labonte: Last of five top-10s came in this event in 2006 with Petty Enterprises; 25.3 average finish in last 10 races; Will make track debut with JTG-Daugherty Racing.
Jamie McMurray: Last of six top 10s (third) came in the 2008 fall race with Roush Racing; 23.0 average finish in first two track starts behind the wheel of an Earnhardt-Ganassi Chevrolet in 2010; 20.2 average finish in the six races with the COT: Will return in the same car (chassis No. 1102) that he finished 27th with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Brian Vickers: Has yet to post a top 10 in 12 starts; 21.6 average finish in seven starts with Team Red Bull.
Brad Keselowski: Has yet to post a top 10 in five starts; Best finish came in this event last year in 14th; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 745) that he finished 26th with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
David Reutimann: Won the pole for the 2009 spring race; Engine problems in three races have raised his finishing average to 24.7 in seven starts; Best finish came in the 2008 fall race in 10th.
Joey Logano: Coming off first top 10 (fourth) in five starts after leading 30 laps; 24.2 average finish; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 297) that he finished 23rd with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway after a late-race tire violation.
Jeff Burton: Winner of the inaugural and 2007 spring race; Has posted six top-10s with Richard Childress Racing; 14.2 average finish in the six races with the COT; Will return in the same car (chassis No. 344) that he finished 21st with at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)