NASCAR on TV this week

NASCAR Sprint Cup Power Rankings: Top 15 After Michigan-2

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Heartbreak may not even begin to describe what Jimmie Johnson felt after losing just one lap to go thanks to a blown engine. One man’s loss was another man’s gain, however, and Greg Biffle returned to Victory Lane for the second time this year. Meanwhile, Brad Keselowski’s strong run also brought him to the forefront of everyone’s minds as we head to the Chase for the Sprint Cup.

How did these three fair in our rankings? Did Biffle’s win vault him to the top? Keep reading to find out:

Justin Allgaier Post-Montreal: Deserving of a Cup Ride

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Justin Allgaier has to be getting frustrated.

Last weekend’s Nationwide Series event at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve saw the 26-year-old driver gain his first win of the 2012 season. That makes three straight seasons that he’s won in the series.

Following the victory, Allgaier sits fifth in overall points, 68 markers behind championship leader Elliott Sadler. His position follows finishes of third, fourth and sixth in the three previous years’ final standings. Many drivers would kill to have that kind of results, so, where does the frustration come into play?

Five Points to Ponder: Imaginary Feuds, Keselowski’s Accusations, and Villainizing Villeneuve

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*ONE: The Jr/Jeff Feud…Move Along, Nothing to See Here*

If anyone needs further proof as to how uneventful a race Michigan was, even with the multitude of Hendrick Motorsports engine failures, just take a look at how much of an issue was made of the supposed Jeff Gordon vs. Dale Earnhardt Jr. feud. In case one missed the race (or dozed off during it), there was a moment on lap 82 where Jeff Gordon’s radio stated that he should have wrecked his teammate in the No. 88. Later in the afternoon, when Gordon went behind the wall with engine troubles, he elaborated that he was upset with his teammate pulling a four-wide move in the first half of the event and a slide-job to follow.

Who’s Hot/Who’s Not: Michigan/Bristol Edition

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With drivers the caliber of Kyle Busch, Jeff Gordon, Carl Edwards and Ryan Newman fighting for the final wild card spot, many fans expected them all to get hot and combine to win a bunch of races before the Chase.

I was one of them. I guess I forgot why these teams were fighting for the second wild card spot in the first place: they haven’t been very good. Gordon earned a win (earned might not be the right word), and Newman has put together some decent runs, but with the sense of urgency high with only three races until the Chase, it doesn’t really seem like anyone wants the spot.

Tech Talk with Paul Wolfe – Going Into the Old, Familiar Bristol…Blind

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_Brad Keselowski has taken to Bristol Motor Speedway like a duck to water. After finishing in the teens in his first three races at the speedway, he has taken home the big trophy the last two times he raced there in the Cup series. Keselowski led 232 laps in the Spring race on his way to a dominating victory, including the final 111 laps of the race. Keselowski’s crew chief, Paul Wolfe has certainly had the concrete oval figured out, but the newly reconfigured track is going to throw a whole new set of circumstances at the No. 2 team. Keselowski did qualify in the top 10 in both of the races he won, which is going to be at more of a premium now that passing is going to be much harder thanks to the single groove race track facing teams as they return to Bristol for the Night Race._

Call of the Wild: Who Will Get the Two Coveted Chase Spots?

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It never fails to amaze me how quickly the NASCAR season passes despite its immense longevity. Perhaps this is just simply a function of the passing of time – I keep getting older despite my best intentions – but can there really only be three races left until we start the oft ballyhooed 2012 Chase? It only seems like yesterday the one-man wrecking crew Juan Pablo Montoya smacked into the jet dryer at Daytona during the Great American Race. He’s been hitting just about everything else too, since. Ah, good times.

But I digress from my main point – a common theme for my columns these last five years I’ll admit.

SPEED’s Action is Tops, While ESPN Needs to Expand Coverage

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Hello, race fans. Welcome back to Couch Potato Tuesday, where race telecast criticism is the main topic of discussion. I’m back from a one-week hiatus imposed because I was in Watkins Glen for the Sprint Cup weekend there, representing Frontstretch. While I was there, I had originally planned to gather information in order to completely update/replace the article I wrote back in 2009 that goes behind the scenes of ESPN’s telecasts. The idea was that since technology modernizes at a substantial rate these days, ESPN would have had to modernize their own setup as well. However, ESPN refused to allow me access to the TV Compound, or to interview anyone associated with the network’s NASCAR telecasts.