Fast Facts
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Next Race: Goody’s Headache Relief Shot 500
The Place: Martinsville Speedway
The Date: Sunday, Oct. 26
The Time: 1:30 p.m. (ET)
TV: ESPN, 1 p.m. (ET)
Radio: MRN, Sirius XM Ch. 90
Distance: 263 miles (500 laps)
NASCAR Nationwide Series
Next Race: O’Reilly Auto Parts Challenge
The Place: Texas Motor Speedway
The Date: Saturday, Nov. 1
The Time: 3:30 p.m. (ET)
TV: ESPN2, 3:30 p.m. (ET)
Radio: PRN, Sirius XM Ch. 90
Distance: 300 miles (200 laps)
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Next Race: Kroger 200
The Place: Martinsville Speedway
The Date: Saturday, Oct. 25
The Time: 1:30 p.m. (ET)
TV: FOX, 1 p.m. (ET)
Radio: MRN, Sirius XM Ch. 90
Distance: 105.2 miles (200 laps)
Almost There: Welcome to the Eliminator Round
Before we get into the nitty gritty of this storyline-rich round, a quick primer of the Eliminator Round – the final hurdle before the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Only eight drivers remain in championship contention as the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup kicks off its Eliminator Round with the Goody’s Headache Relief Shot 500 at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday (1:30 p.m. ET on ESPN).
Points for the remaining drivers in the Chase – Joey Logano, Brad Keselowski, Kevin Harvick, Ryan Newman, Carl Edwards, Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth, and Denny Hamlin – have been reset to 4,000. Following Martinsville, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will visit Texas Motor Speedway (Nov. 2, 3 p.m. ET on ESPN) and conclude the Eliminator Round at Phoenix International Raceway (Nov. 9, 3 p.m. ET on ESPN). Like the previous two Chase segments, a win by a championship-eligible driver guarantees advancement to Homestead. The four winless championship-qualifying drivers lowest in points will be “eliminated” after Phoenix. The advancing four drivers left in NASCAR’s Playoffs will move on to the one-race Championship Round at Homestead-Miami Speedway (Nov. 16, 3 p.m. ET on ESPN).
No driver without Chase eligibility has won a race so far in NASCAR’s playoffs. Four drivers – Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jimmie Johnson, and Kasey Kahne were knocked out of the Chase following Talladega. Six-time series champion Johnson led the most laps (84) at the Alabama track, but he was unable to close the race and defend his 2013 title. Of the final eight drivers, Jeff Gordon (four: 2001, 1998, 1997, 1995), Brad Keselowski (one: 2012) and Matt Kenseth (one: 2003) have previously won series championships.
Team Penske Tandem in Title Contention with Four Races Left
Here is a trivia question that is likely to stump fellow NASCAR fans around the water cooler:
Q: Which of the remaining eight Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup contenders has not won a race at the final four tracks?
A: Brad Keselowski
The No. 2 Miller Lite Ford Fusion driver claims 14 wins in the last four seasons, second only to Jimmie Johnson’s 16. He leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with six victories this season, but has never visited victory lane at Martinsville, Texas, Phoenix, or Homestead. Contributing to Keselowski’s win total is his 37 starts at the four tracks are the fewest of any remaining Chase driver. He will look to change his luck in Sunday’s Goody’s Headache Relief Shot 500 at Martinsville Speedway (1:30 p.m. ET on ESPN).
Keselowski has been strong at the paper clip in his career with five top-10 results in nine starts, including a fourth-place showing in the 2013 Martinsville fall race. He finished 38th at the Virginia track in March, but placed no worse than ninth in his previous four starts there.
Looking further ahead, Keselowski owns just four top fives and eight top 10s in 28 career starts with a 17.3 average finish at the last three Chase tracks.
When Keselowski won the 2012 NSCS Championship, he came up clutch with sixth-place finishes at Martinsville and Phoenix, and a runner-up finish at Texas, before taking home the title with a 15th-place showing at Homestead.
Arguably the most impressive driver in the Chase so far has been Keselowski’s Team Penske shop mate Joey Logano, who ranks second in the series with five wins this season, including two so far during NASCAR’s playoffs. He became the first driver ever to log top-five finishes in the first five Chase races. The 24-year-old has one victory (Texas, 4/7/14), eight top fives and 13 top 10s in 39 careers starts at the final four tracks. Sunday, he will attempt to improve on his fourth-place Martinsville finish in March.
Hamlin in Position for Championship Run
Persevering his way through the regular season and the first two rounds of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, Denny Hamlin finds himself in the perfect situation for a championship run.
The trio of Eliminator Round tracks – Martinsville, Texas and Phoenix are three of his best courses. All he has to do is win a race at one of those venues and he automatically advances to the Championship at Homestead where he boasts two victories and is the defending winner. If not, he can still move on to Homestead by accumulating more points in the Eliminator Round than four winless Chase-contending drivers.
Hamlin gets his first crack at winning in Sunday’s Goody’s Headache Relief Shot 500 at Martinsville (1:30 p.m. ET on ESPN). The No. 11 FedEx Toyota driver owns four victories at “The Paper Clip” – tied with Pocono for his most at any track. Additionally, he boasts nine top-five and 13 top-10 finishes at the track located 130 miles from his hometown of Chesterfield, Virginia.
Although he has the third-fewest starts (52) of the remaining eight drivers at the Eliminator Round tracks, Hamlin’s seven wins rank second to only Jeff Gordon’s 11, accumulated over 101 starts. The 34-year-old also claims the highest average finish (10.3) and second-best driver rating (100.1). He owns two wins at Texas and one at Phoenix.
“It’s a huge opportunity for us,” said Hamlin of his opportunity to advance with a win at Martinsville. “As average as our team has been this year, we go into a short track where horsepower doesn’t matter, aero doesn’t matter, it’s about driver and mechanical setup. I feel like that’s our strong suit with our team.”
Still Alive In His Drive for Five, Gordon Goes For Ninth Win at Martinsville
After surviving the unpredictability of Talladega to advance to the Eliminator Round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, Jeff Gordon travels to a welcoming site this weekend in his quest for his fifth NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship – Martinsville Speedway.
Gordon will go for his ninth win at the .526-mile oval in Sunday’s Goody’s Headache Relief Shot 500 (1:30 p.m. ET on ESPN). Currently, the No. 24 Chevrolet driver ranks tied with Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson for its wins lead among active drivers.
An added bonus?
By visiting Victory Lane on Sunday, Gordon would automatically advance to the Championship Round race at Homestead-Miami.
Standing in his way at Martinsville is a contingent of Chase contenders who have also previously won there – Denny Hamlin (four victories), Ryan Newman (one), and Kevin Harvick (one).
Gordon captured the checkered flag in last fall’s race at Martinsville and boasts a gaudy 27 top fives (62.8%) and 34 tops 10s (79.1%) in 43 starts at “The Paper Clip.”
If he is able to clinch the 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship, Gordon’s 13-year period between titles will defeat Terry Labonte’s record 12-year dry spell. His 92 career NSCS wins rank third on the all-time list.
Consistency Key for Kenseth, Newman
No win, no problem.
Matt Kenseth and Ryan Newman have both moved on to the Eliminator Round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup although neither has won a race all season. Instead they have navigated their way through the field with consistent high finishes all season.
Coming off a seven-victory 2013 season, Kenseth hasn’t been able to match his winning ways. Still, he ranks third in the NASCAR Sprint Series in both top-five (12) and top-10 (19) finishes. Facing elimination at Talladega on Sunday, sitting one point behind the cutoff line, Kenseth ironically teamed up with rival Brad Keselowski at the end of the race, drafting with him to a second-place finish.
Newman ranks ninth on the Sprint Cup circuit this season with 14 top-10 finishes. Although he has posted just three top-five efforts, he has stayed out of major trouble with only two finishes worse than 30th. The Richard Childress Racing driver has taken his consistency to a new level during the Chase as the only driver with top-10 performances in all three Eliminator Round races. Dating back to the August Atlanta race, Newman claims six top-10 efforts in his last eight starts. “Rocket Man” made a run at his first victory this weekend at Talladega, leading with ten laps remaining, but was eventually passed by Keselowski who blocked him on his way to the win. Newman ended up finishing fifth.
Advancing to the Championship Round race at Homestead-Miami Speedway without a win in the Eliminator Round will be a tough proposition for any Chase-contending driver. Three of the four Championship Round spots can be filled by drivers who win during the Eliminator Round.
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Etc.
Milestone Watch: Kurt Busch finished seventh at Talladega last Sunday, his 199th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series top-10 finish. With his next top 10, he’ll become the 31st driver to reach 200 top-10 finishes. … Hendrick Motorsports is still waiting for its 200th NSCS Coors Light Pole (its last came at Michigan in August (Jeff Gordon). Martinsville might be a good spot to get it; the team has 17 poles there, tied with Richmond and Charlotte as its most prolific track in terms of poles. … David Ragan will run a special paint scheme this weekend at Martinsville to honor NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee Wendell Scott, who also drove the No. 34 car during his career. … Testing Update: Five teams will test at Homestead-Miami Speedway next Tuesday and Wednesday (Oct. 28-29): Stewart Haas Racing, Hendrick Motorsports, Team Penske, Roush Fenway Racing, and Joe Gibbs Racing.
Captain Has Set Sail: Penske’s Tight Ship Is Title Bound
Four of the last six NASCAR Nationwide Series owner titles have been won by the Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) organization. From 2008-12, in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, week-in and week-out the JGR teams have been the ones to beat. But last season all that changed.
In 2012, Roger Penske, the owner of Team Penske, famously known as ‘The Captain,’ decided to create what he calls, ‘a farm team’ in the NASCAR Nationwide Series to groom young talent and further progress his whole organization’s NASCAR program. With the addition of young talented superstars like Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano and Ryan Blaney his vision has become reality. Penske won the NASCAR Nationwide Series owner title in 2013 and is on pace to go back-to-back, effectively dethroning Gibbs from his owner title dominance.
Penske’s No. 22 Ford Mustang team guided by the tutelage of crew chief Jeremy Bullins has a 31 point lead over Gibb’s No. 54 Toyota Camry team. Penske’s No. 22 Ford team can clinch the series owner title by finishing in the next three races: sixth or better without leading any laps, seventh or better leading one lap or eighth or better having led the most laps in each event.
Penske sums it up best about their recent success.
“It’s the human capital,” said Roger Penske. “It’s the people that we’ve been able to attract as we got some speed and we got some success. We’re able to bring people in, the key people on the team are folks who have come up through the organization, and I think that’s been key.”
Dillon, Buescher Are Sunoco Rookies with Big Potential
Three Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidates have won this season – Chase Elliott (Darlington, Texas, Chicago), Ty Dillon (Indianapolis), and Chris Buescher (Mid-Ohio). While the spotlight has mostly rested on Chase Elliott and his successes, below is a look at the other two rookies this season that have visited Victory Lane.
Ty Dillon – Is currently sixth in the series driver standings, and second in the Sunoco ROY standings. Dillon has had an outstanding season posting one win (Indianapolis), six top fives, 22 top 10s, and three poles. His average finish this season in 30 starts is 9.6. Dillon’s season-to-date Loop Data stats also speak to his successful season. He ranks fifth in the series in Driver Rating (98.7), seventh in Average Running Position (9.580), and fifth in Laps in the Top 15 (4,898 laps; 89.9%). Dillon’s series career-best finishes at the three remaining tracks: Texas (ninth); Phoenix (10th) and Homestead-Miami (14th).
Chris Buescher – Is currently seventh in the series driver standings, and third in the Sunoco ROY standings. In Buescher’s 29 starts (missed Daytona in Feb.) he posted one win (Mid-Ohio), four top fives, and 13 top 10s. His average finish this season in 29 starts is 12.9. Buescher’s season-to-date Loop Data stats have him ranked ninth in all three Loop categories: Driver Rating (88.4), Average Running Position (9.580), and Laps in the Top 15 (4,090 laps; 76.7%). Buescher’s series career-best finishes at the three remaining tracks: Texas (17th); Phoenix (15th) and he will make his series track debut at Homestead-Miami.
Battle for 10th: Former Truck Champ Buescher Tries To Hold Off Rookie Kwasniewski
There are three races left for 2012 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series champion James Buescher and NASCAR K&N Pro Series East (2013) and West (2012) Series champion Dylan Kwasniewski to battle it out for the final top 10 spot in the NASCAR Nationwide Series driver standings. Buescher, in 10th, holds a nine point lead on 11th-place Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidate Kwasniewski.
James Buescher, a NASCAR national series champion and former winner in the NASCAR Nationwide Series (Daytona-1; 2012), joined car owner Robby Benton and RAB Racing’s No. 99 Toyota team in 2014 with the opportunity to run a full schedule and compete for a championship. In 30 starts this season he has posted two top 10s and an average finish of 17.7. If Buescher can hold on to his 10th-place standings position this season, it will be RAB Racing’s second-best finish in the series standings in the organization’s history; behind Kenny Wallace’s seventh in 2011.
But Buescher will have his work cut out for him; Kwasniewski’s rookie season has produced three top 10s and an average finish of 17.9.
The drivers have produced similar performances this season, but the NASCAR season-to-date Loop Data points to Kwasniewski over Buescher in a few categories. For instance, Kwasniewski (79.3) ranks higher than Buescher (75.9) in driver rating. In average running position, the splits favor Kwasniewski (15.340) over Buescher (16.370).
These final three tracks will decide who grabs 10th in the standings this season. Buescher has made five starts at Texas posting a pole and an avg. finish of 19.0. He also has made seven series starts at Phoenix posting an average finish of 19.3 and he has just one start at Homestead where he finished 14th. Kwasniewski will be making his series debut at Homestead in the final race of the season and will be returning for just his second start at Texas and Phoenix where he finished 14th and 13th, respectively.
NASCAR Nationwide Series Etc.
Blake Koch will pilot the No. 44 Celsius Flo Fusion Camry at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Koch is teaming up with Grammy nominated and multi-award winning hip-hop artist, Flo Rida to promote Flo Rida’s new workout powder, Celsius Flo Fusion. Flo Rida will serve as the Honorary Starter for the Ford EcoBoost 300. … Voting for the 2014 NASCAR Nationwide Series Most Popular Driver Awards kicked off Thursday, Oct. 9. This season, fans not only can vote for their favorite driver (www.NASCAR.com/mostpopulardriver ), but also their favorite moment at www.NASCAR.com/nnstopmoment until Ford Championship weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Title Race Tightens With Four to Go
Nineteen points separated defending champion Matt Crafton from ThorSport teammate Johnny Sauter heading into Talladega Speedway. Now that margin has tightened, but with new faces in the hunt. Former NASCAR Next drivers Ryan Blaney (-16 points) and Darrell Wallace Jr. (-28) loom close behind Crafton, overtaking the second and third spots respectively, following top-10 finishes at the Alabama track.
Blaney, who led the standings from the end of the Eldora race until his 21st-place showing at Michigan, heads to the Kroger 200 (1:30 p.m. on FOX Sports 1) riding a streak of three top-10 performances. He finished third at Talladega to gain 11 points on Crafton, who took 14th.
“This is a long (four)-race stretch to Homestead here, and I told our guys, ‘If we have weeks like this, we’re gonna be right there at Homestead,’” Blaney said.
Wallace has been one of the hottest drivers in the series after starting the season off slowly. Since the fifth race at Dover, he has climbed from 11th to third in the standings behind the strength of two wins and four runner-up finishes. His 107.4 driver rating is the highest among NCWTS regulars.
Darrell Wallace Jr. Keeps Championship Hopes Alive
With four races left in the 2014 season, Darrell Wallace Jr. may be peaking at the right time. In the last four races, Wallace has earned four consecutive top-10 finishes, vaulting from fifth to third in the standings – 28 points behind NASCAR Camping World Truck Series leader Matt Crafton.
The NASCAR Next and Drive for Diversity alum will try to further cut into Crafton’s lead in this Saturday’s Kroger 200 at Martinsville Speedway (1:30 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1). Wallace captured his first career checkered flag last year at Martinsville where he became the first African-American driver since NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee Wendell Scott to win a NASCAR national series race (12/01/63 at Jacksonville).
Wallace will pay tribute to Scott by driving the No. 34 Toyota Tundra in honor of him. The 20-year-old normally drives the No. 54 truck for Kyle Busch Motorsports.
“It’s an honor to run the No. 34 Toyota Tundra at Martinsville,” Wallace said. “I got my first win at Martinsville and the historical significance of that win and to be so close to Wendell Scott’s hometown was a really cool bonus to getting my first win. The Scott family has followed my career since I ran the NASCAR Drive for Diversity program for Rev Racing, and I’ve kept a relationship with the family over the years.”
Homecoming for Burton and Peters
Virginia natives Timothy Peters and Jeb Burton return home to the Old Dominion State and the track at which it all started for Saturday’s Kroger 200 at Martinsville Speedway (1:30 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1).
Both drivers launched their NASCAR Camping World Truck Series careers at the .526-mile oval, Burton making his first ever start in 2012 and Peters in 2005.
Burton has since earned one win and seven pole awards, including his first pole, at Martinsville in 2013. Meanwhile, Peters, who earned his first victory at Martinsville in 2009, has tallied an additional seven wins and five top-10 finishes in the NCWTS final standings.
Fresh off a visit to Victory Lane at Talladega, Peters will go for his third straight top-five finish on Saturday. In 17 Martinsville starts, Peters claims five top-five and 11 top-10 finishes. He currently ranks fifth in the series standings.
ThorSport driver Burton has picked up some momentum lately with two top-10 finishes in his last four starts. He boasts two top-five results in four starts at Martinsville. At the moment, Burton occupies the ninth spot in the NCWTS standings.
The last Virginia native to win a NCWTS race at Martinsville was Denny Hamlin on Oct. 27, 2012.
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Etc.
Sunoco Rookie of the Year contender Ben Kennedy returns to his best track on the circuit, owning an average finish of 3.5 following third and fourth place finishes in two career starts at Martinsville … Cole Custer, the youngest race winner in NASCAR national series history, is back in action this weekend and will run a special Breast Cancer Awareness paint scheme in support of the annual Ken Schrader Racing PINK Campaign.
Sources: NASCAR PR