Burton Briefs and Johnson Pounces – SCI October 23 Issue
The next stop on the Nextel Cup schedule is Atlanta Motor Speedway
Holy shitoli; what just happened? Now, with only 4 races to go to decide the 2006 NASCAR Nextel Cup champion, we only have 100 points separating first and eighth positions. The next stop on the circuit is Atlanta Motor Speedway.
For the uninitiated, Atlanta is the fastest track on the NASCAR Nextel Cup schedule. It’s a 1 1/2 mile track modeled after Lowe’s Motor Speedway with the exception that it’s wider. The increased width allows drivers to carry more speed through corners and accelerate on straightaways to top speeds of 200 mph.
Next week Kasey Kahne is expected to continue his winning streak in Atlanta. In 5 starts at Atlanta, Kasey has recorded 1 win and 4 top-5 finishes. He also expects the following drivers to do well next week:
Carl Edwards – Average Finish 11th
Jimmie Johnson – Average Finish 12th
Dale Earnhardt Jr – Average Finish 12th
Tony Stewart – Average finish 13th
Hours for next week:
Nextel Cup: @ Atlanta Motor Speedway
10/27/06 – 07:10 pm NASCAR Nextel Cup Bass Pro Shops 500 Qualifying
10/28/06 – 12:05 pm NASCAR Nextel Cup Bass Pro Shops 500 Practice
10/29/06 – 02:55 pm NASCAR Nextel Bass Pro Shops 500 Cup
Busch Series: @ Memphis Motor Sports Park
10/27/06 – 04:00 pm NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Sam’s Town 250 Practice
10/28/06 – 10:05 am NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Sam’s Town 250 Qualifying
10/28/06 – 01:10 pm NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Sam’s Town 250
Craftsman Truck Series: @ Atlanta Motor Speedway
10/27/06 – 02:250 pm NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Easy Care Vehicle Service Contracts 200 Practice
10/28/06 – 01:05 pm NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Easy Care Vehicle Service Contracts 200 Qualifying
10/28/06 – 05:05 pm NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Easy Care Vehicle Service Contracts 200
Jimmie Johnson doesn’t sing the blues anymore!
Early in the Chase for the Championship, Jimmie Johnson stumbled and dug a monster hole. With the help of his team, and a little from Jeff Burton, Jimmie has come back one race at a time. Now the driver of the #48 Lowe’s Monte Carlo sits in third place with just 41 points behind.
For the last 5 races, Jimmie Johnson has been on a roll. His average results in that section have been tenth. This is a stark contrast to the average finish of 31st he posted in the first two Chase races. Three weeks ago, Jimmie came close to winning the UAW-Ford 500 at Talladega until his teammate Brian Vickers crashed him on the final lap. He continued his hot streak at Talladega with a second-place finish at Charlotte last week. What is better than the second; How about a first place finish at Martinsville?
Yesterday’s victory in the Subway 500 at Martinsville Speedway propelled Jimmie Johnson 4 spots in points. I am confident that winning at the track where just a few years ago a Hendrick Motorsports plane crashed into several Hendrick employees, including Ricky Hendrick, Rick Hendrick’s son, will serve to not only improve the team’s standing but also improve their morale. .
In a sport where the level of competition is so high, everyone on the team, from the guys in the shop to the driver on the track, must believe in themselves and their teammates. From the results of the last 5 weeks, it’s clear that Jimmie Johnson and the rest of his team have shrugged off the slump they suffered from early on and have regained their confidence.
Jeff Burton loses his lead
Just when everyone thought Jeff Burton was about to walk away with his first Nextel Cup championship, “Ice Man,” as he’s affectionately known by other drivers, thawed out a bit at Martinsville Speedway. Mechanical problems were to blame for Burton’s 42nd-place finish.
Jeff Burton’s cushion of 45 points prior to the Subway 500 at Martinsville Speedway is now 48 points behind leader Matt Kenseth. With races coming up in Atlanta, Texas, Phoenix and Homestead, Jeff has his work cut out for him. His average finish at the last 4 tracks is 15th, and an average of 15th doesn’t win you a championship.
However, fear not. Jeff has been defying the law of averages all season and he expects it to continue. The most interesting thing to watch in the coming weeks is whether Iceman can appear and heat up and not melt in the process.
Summary of Subway 500 at Martinsville Speedway
The Subway 500 at Martinsville Speedway turned out to be an action-packed crash-fest with 18 bonuses over 107 laps. I think it’s safe to say that drivers don’t appreciate crash fests as much as we do.
Just ask Dale Earnhardt Jr, who crashed in the waning laps of the Subway 500. Dale Jr was trying to take seventh position from Kasey Kahne when he drove into Turn 3 too hard and completed a beautiful 180-degree turn. . The mistake cost Jr. 17 spots.
The other drivers in the championship behaved as follows:
1. (Lead) Matt Kenseth’s mediocre day turned fantastic thanks in part to Jeff Burton finishing in 42nd place. Matt was able to take the championship lead with an 11th-place finish.
2. (-36 points) Kevin Harvick finished ninth and won it all. The Busch Series champion suffered early setbacks after getting caught up in a wreck on lap 231.
3. (-41 points) Jimmie Johnson moved up the boards 105 points by winning the Subway 500. Johnson had the dominant car on the day and led the most laps, including the longest count.
4. (-47 points) Denny Hamlin put on a spectacular show for the home crowd and bounced back from last week’s poor result with a second-place finish at Martinsville. Hamlin had a chance to win the race when he pushed Johnson down the track and pulled up alongside him. In the end, Hamlin’s car, which only ran on 7 cylinders, was not enough to overpower Jimmie Johnson.
5. (-48 points) Jeff Burton, suffered his first real loss of the Chase. The #31 Chevy Cingular’s engine blew a valve train on lap 244.
6. (-94 points) Dale Earnhardt Jr could be a real contender if he kept his cool in the waning laps of the Subway 500. After complaining for many laps about Kasey Kahne holding him back, Jr tried to get under Kahne and ended up spinning himself. What would have been a top 10 finish turned into a 22nd place very quickly.
7. (-96 points) Mark Martin’s day went pretty smooth until the final stretch of the Subway 500. That’s the win. Martin realized that he had a broken radiator that was leaking water. After making several pit stops to finish off with water, Martin dropped to 24th.
8. (-99 points) Kasey Kahne posted another top-10 finish with a seventh-place finish. This result, along with last week’s victory in Charlotte, has moved Kahne to within 100 points of the lead.
9. (-141 points) Jeff Gordon gained 75 points over the leader with a fifth-place finish. Gordon had a strong car that he led from the start until the sun started to rise. The #24 team couldn’t find the right settings to keep up with the changing track temperatures.
10. (-171 points) Kyle Busch ran strong for much of the day until a slam into the wall late in the race doomed him. As Kyle was trying to avoid one of the many spins in the race, he accidentally ran into the concrete barrier wall. The resulting damage dropped Kyle out of the top ten.