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Jimmie Johnson Wins Tums 500 at Martinsville

By: Keith Bloemendaal

Jimmie Johnson won again at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday, padding his lead in his bid for a third straight title with four races to go.

The two-time defending series champion led 339 laps as he and his Hendrick Motorsports teammates dominated once more on the oldest, smallest and trickiest circuit in the Sprint Cup Series.

Johnson won the fall race at this track for the third consecutive time. It was his fifth career victory on the 0.526-mile oval and fourth in the last five races.

“It’s just been good to me,” he said.

Teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished second, followed by Carl Edwards and Jeff Gordon, giving Hendrick three of the top four spots. The 1-2 finish was the 23rd for the multicar team and third at Martinsville.

“I didn’t have anything for Jimmie,” Earnhardt said. “That car was so awesome.”

Johnson increased his lead from 69 points over Jeff Burton to 149 over Greg Biffle. Burton started second and finished 17th.

As they had in the spring, when they combined to lead 371 laps, Johnson and Gordon set the pace all day with Gordon leading 57 laps. Earnhardt made it a three-car Hendrick party near the front and, unlike in the spring, Johnson this time managed to close the deal.

In March, Denny Hamlin won on pit strategy.

Johnson led seven times in all, passing Gordon for the top spot with 209 laps to go. He then made quick work of Matt Kenseth, who stayed out on the track under caution with 38 to go.

Johnson heads to Atlanta with the largest points lead in the history of the Chase at this point. He’s not ready, however, to start thinking about another title.

“It’s getting closer,” he said. “It’s still not time.”

The day was shaping up as a great one for Jamie McMurray, who started 20th and climbed into contention quickly. He was running fourth with about 100 laps to go when his car suddenly slowed on the backstretch. He drove it directly to his garage and wound up 38th.

Popularity: 100% [?]

FavoriteTeamWear asks: Would the Points Race Be Different Without Chase Points?

After watching Kyle Busch fall to 12th in Sprint Cup Chase points over the last 2 weeks, I can't help but wonder where the chasers would be without the Chase setup. I did some research on this, and found that the points race would be different.

Chase Points After Dover:

Rank	Driver	Points	Behind Leader
1	Carl Edwards	5390	-------
2	Jimmie Johnson	5380	-10
3	Greg Biffle	5380	-10
4	Jeff Burton	5308	-82
5	Kevin Harvick	5289	-101
6	Clint Bowyer	5284	-106
7	Tony Stewart	5277	-113
8	Jeff Gordon	5272	-118
9	Dale Earnhardt Jr	5261	-129
10	Matt Kenseth	5123	-167
11	Denny Hamlin	5197	-193
12	Kyle Busch	5180	-210

While I believe everyone in the Chase still has a chance to win the Championship, Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin really need to get their acts together to get there.

Dale Earnhardt Jr has fallen significantly, but still has a chance if he can win Talledega and Texas, which he historically runs well at for both.

All in all, the Sprint Chase For The Cup is still up for grabs, and any of the teams still have a chance to win it, or to throw it away.

In contrast, let us look at the points if there was no Chase Points:

Rank	Driver	Points	Behind Leader
1	Carl Edwards	4011	----
2	Kyle Busch	3978	-33
3	Jimmie Johnson	3916	-95
4	Dale Earnhardt Jr	3739	-272
5	Jeff Burton	3682	-329
6	Greg Biffle	3660	-351
7	Kevin Harvick	3572	-439
8	Tony Stewart	3562	-449
9	Jeff Gordon	3493	-518
10	Denny Hamlin	3422	-589
11	Clint Bowyer	3390	-621
12	Matt Kenseth	3355	-656

As you can see, this would be a much different chase, had the points not been realigned with 10 races to go. It would only be a 3 car race at this point, a Ford, a Toyota, and a Chevrolet. Also, three teams: Rousch, Gibbs, and Hendrick.

Kyle Busch would obviously be in better shape.

Looking at the top three, Jimmie Johnson would have more work to do to win a historical Championship for him (3 in a row). Kyle Busch would only be 33 points behind leader Carl Edwards, showing the benefits of having such a strong season.

Dale Earnhardt Jr, and everyone behind him could almost be counted out, making it a three car race.

I can't help but wonder, is the Chase For The Cup really more exciting, or is it unfair to those having raced so well all season, only to fall back from 1st to 12th after 2 races.

What do you think? Is the Chase setup better?

Popularity: 51% [?]

Greg Biffle Wins 2 In A Row:

By: Keith Bloemendaal

While Greg Biffle wins his second in a row, Kyle Busch is falling further away.

I was traveling this weekend and was forced to listen to the race on MRN radio. I actually forgot how much fun this can be. I used to listen to the race on the radio more often when traveling. Now that I have young children, I don't travel as often. We spent the weekend at the beach to finish summer officially.

I can only imagine at this point, how exciting it was to be watching the finish to this race! As it was coming down to the finishing laps, the radio announcers' voices were cracking and high pitched with excitement, and I found myself turning the volume up louder and louder. So, if you find yourself in a position where you are on the road during the race, try listening to it on MRN or PRN radio networks. You will probably enjoy it.

Jack Rousch must of been sitting on the edge of his seat as well. With Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth, and Greg Biffle all trading paint for the win at the Monster Mile, I wonder who Rousch was rooting for. Maybe he simply rooted for the three NOT to wreck each other. I can't help but wonder, though, could he be rooting for Biffle in the 3M car?

At the very least, the last two weeks have changed who people may think can win the Chase for the Cup. Or has it? Could it be Greg Biffle wins his first championship? Carl Edwards or Jimmie Johnson? And you can't count Dale Earnhardt Jr out yet, two of his best tracts, Talledega and Texas, are coming up. Also, Jeff Burton could be a sleeper in this Chase.

Personally, I think any predictions at this point would be foolish, who can predict the Chase when it is this close?

Popularity: 33% [?]

NASCAR’s Jeff Gordon Spins The Fastest Lap For The Dover Race

By Keith Bloemendaal

Jeff Gordon spins the fast lap in qualifying today at Dover International Speedway for the Camping World RV 400 with a time of 22.921 and a speed of 157.061mph.

Earlier this year, Gordon started 7th at the Monster and finished 5th. Over the last 2 years he has finished in the top 12 at Dover for every race. Over Jeff Gordon's career, he has 4 wins, and 14 top 5's at the Monster Mile.

Coming into this race Jeff Gordon is 11th in Chase points, 99 points behind leaders Carl Edwards and Jimmie Johnson. Interesting facts to ponder:

no winner of the Dover Chase race has gone on to win the Cup Series championship during the Chase era,

and perhaps even more importantly, no Chase leader has entered Dover with the points lead and held it after the checkered flag.

The rest of the top 10 Qualifiers (bold indicates chase drivers):

1. Jeff Gordon
2. Mark Martin
3. Denny Hamlin
4. Kurt Busch
5. Greg Biffle
6. Clint Bowyer
7. David Gilliland
8. Matt Kenseth
9. Jamie McMurray
10. Dale Earnhardt Jr

Other Chase Drivers Qualified:

• Kyle Busch 11th
• Jimmie Johnson 20th
• Jeff Burton 21st
• Carl Edwards 22nd
• Kevin Harvick 24th
• Tony Stewart 33rd

Looking at these qualifying positions, Jimmie Johnson and Carl Edwards will be working hard to get to the front if they want to protect the shared lead they have now.

In June of this year, Kyle Busch won the Best Buy 400 with Carl Edwards and who else but, GREG BIFFLE running 3rd! Make sure you watch this race, I am sure there will be some action, points position changes, and who knows, maybe Kyle Busch will end up in the wall or put someone in the wall!

Popularity: 34% [?]

Jimmie Johnson 3Peat – Is it Sprint Cup History in the Making?

By: Keith Bloemendaal

For some reason, I had been thinking this was going to be Kyle Busch or Carl Edwards year to win the Cup. It is easy to wrapped up in what is happening now, and forget about the other 12 drivers in the Chase for the Cup. How can we rule out Jimmie Johnson?

Johnson repeated his championship run last year, putting his name up there with a handful of GREAT drivers including Dale Earnhardt Sr, David Pearson, Richard Petty, and Jeff Gordon just to name a few who repeated championship seasons.

This alone is an accomplishment which makes him a driver to be remembered in NASCAR history.  Repeating a Sprint Cup Championship is no easy feat, especially in this era of racing, when the competition has never been more intense. NASCAR drivers are getting younger, faster and more clever. Some people think once a driver reaches 30 he has past his prime.

Sprint Cup drivers like Kyle Busch and Kasey Kahne are emerging at very young ages while just next season 18 year old Joey Legano will drive the #20 Home Depot Chevrolet for Joe Gibbs Racing.

So, if Jimmie Johnson were to 3peat his name would only be mentioned with one other driver, Cale Yarborough. Can he do it? We will find out over the next 11 races, but I can guarantee you Johnson thinks he can, I think he can, thousands of other fans think he can, even a handful of so called NASCAR experts think he can. But, that doesn't mean it will happen.

Just in case you forgot, Johnson was 6th in points after the California race last year. It was his unbelievable 4 wins in a row out of the last 5 races in the Chase that earned him his championship last year. He won at Martinsville, then Atlanta, then Texas, then Phoenix and finished 7th at Miami-Homestead to beat Jeff Gordon by 77 points. Yes, 4 races in a row! If Jimmie Johnson can come on that strong for the finish this year, he WILL 3peat!

What do you think, can anyone beat Kyle Busch, or Carl Edwards? Can Jimmie Johnson 3peat? What about one of the other 9 drivers that will be in the chase? Leave a comment to let us know your opinion.

Popularity: 54% [?]

Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards Get Probation for Post Race Activities

By: Keith Bloemendaal

NASCAR announced today that it has placed Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 car, and Carl Edwards, driver of the #99 car, on probation for the next six races in the Sprint Cup Series. This comes as a result of their on-track incident Saturday night after the checkered flag had already waved, signaling the end of the race at Bristol.

According to NASCAR, Busch and Edwards violated Section 12-4-A (actions detrimental to stock car racing; hitting another competitor's car after the race had concluded) of the 2008 NASCAR rule book.

This shows the immaturity of the young Busch, as I watched this unfold on TV Saturday night, I rewound my DVR several times to see Carl's bump and run move. From my view, Carl was not excessive in his move, and was obviously being held up by the 18 car of Kyle Busch. Edwards could have easily put Busch in the wall, but opted to lightly tap the back of Kyle's M&M's Toyota to slide him out of the way. And we all know, if Kyle was fast enough, he would have done the same to Carl.

The real offenses came after the race, when Kyle hit the 99 car several times after the race, then Edwards retaliated and spun the 18 car on the track.

I think the penalty is fair, and if Carl would have left it alone after Kyle Busch bumped him, it would just be Kyle Busch on probation from NASCAR for the next 6 races.

The six race penalty will be tough on both racers as this will last 4 races into the Chase for the Cup. And both will have to be on there best behavior on the track (before, during and after the race).

Popularity: 57% [?]

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