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Pace Laps: For Many, The Final Chapter Begins

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*Sprint Cup: A Postseason Snapshot* After 26 long weeks, the field for the Chase for the Sprint Cup has been decided. Only one spot actually changed hands in Richmond, as Jeff Gordon passed Kyle Busch for twelfth place on the points chart and the final wild card. (Both Gordon and Busch had one win on the year, making points the deciding factor.) Now, as the series heads toward Chicago, the talk will inevitably turn towards that of title favorites among the twelve who make the final cut.

Gordon’s “Great Day” Really So Great? Why Wild Cards Are Not So Wild

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Those numbers, causing a ho-hum title race in the process were enough for NASCAR to make a change. The season-long process to pick a champion, in place since 1975 was scrapped the following year with the advent of the Chase for the Cup. The title was now to be settled among the top 10 drivers in points after 26 races of the season. But in just three years, after a couple high profile drivers and a defending champion failed to make the Chase the rules were expanded to include the top 12. But the ADD nature of NASCAR fans apparently was still not enraptured by that set of changes; at least, so it seemed because after the 2010 season, the “playoffs” endured a third major change. The point system that had been used for decades was scrapped for the one point per position system, while the Wild Card entries for the Chase were added. The race for the last two spots would certainly now come down to the last race and the uncertain nature of who would make the final 12 would obviously keep every single fan on the edge of their seat.

Mirror Driving: Kenseth’s Big Move, Wild Racing Ahead And Who’s Got A Title Edge

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*With his win at Atlanta, Denny Hamlin is guaranteed at least a tie for the top spot in the Chase. Given that Hamlin is currently a distant seventh in points, should this be the case?*

Amy: Um, the words “hell, no” come to mind… it’s a massive slap in the face to the guys who have been the best drivers all year long.
Tom: Hamlin’s pulling a Tony Stewart 2011 as we speak. What an awful summer of being completely irrelevant, but that’s the way this format works — he deserves it based on the rules given to all the teams in February.

ESPN Puts Themselves (Unintentionally) in a Dark Place at Atlanta

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Hello, race fans. Welcome back to Couch Potato Tuesday, where race broadcast criticism is the name of the game. This past week, the Sprint Cup, Nationwide and Camping World Truck Series were each at Atlanta Motor Speedway for 1,000 miles of racing and wearing tires down to the cords. Speaking of wearing down to the cords, I’m pretty sure that Trevor Bayne did quite a bit of that on Sunday night if his practice laps Saturday were any indication. His car seemed to be more at home at Lebanon Valley than Atlanta.

Also of note, we’re getting into college football season again. Countdown prior to both the Nationwide and Sprint Cup races was affected by games running long. I have no idea why ESPN thinks that it is a good idea to allot three hours per game. They have to run exceptionally fast in order to finish in that amount of time. At this point, ESPN literally has the power to dictate terms to schools about when they start games (the Tuesday night MAC and Sun Belt Conference events are just one example of this.) I’d suggest moving the start times up, but I guess they’d probably wait until next year to execute any changes.

Pace Laps: Setting the Chase Field, Selective Editing and Dillon Redux

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*Sprint Cup: 11 Drivers Locked Into Chase, but Things Still Up For Grabs* Sunday night’s AdvoCare 500 almost completely filled out the cast of characters for this year’s Chase for the Sprint Cup. The “almost” is important here. There was a fear earlier in the season that the top-10, plus the two Wild Cards, would be set weeks in advance and there wouldn’t really be much to race for in Richmond other than positioning. However, that is not the case.

The top-9 drivers are officially locked into the top-10 and can redeem their victories for bonus points. The exceptions here are Martin Truex, Jr. and Kevin Harvick, who, despite dominating portions of Sunday’s race, are both still winless. Denny Hamlin’s fourth win of the season Sunday means that he has earned 12 bonus points and at least a share of the points lead at the beginning of the Chase in Joliet.

Mirror Driving: The Bristol Verdict, Temper Temper And Silly Season Summary

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*After Bristol Motor Speedway made changes to the track over the summer, the track promoted racing closer to what fans saw prior to 2007. But did the track live up to the hype?*

Summer: Oh yeah. The helmet throw was enough for that to be a reality.
Kevin: I think it did. I wasn’t able to look away for both the Cup and Nationwide races, and in that regard I think the races were at least successful.
Mike N.: Closer to racing before the repave? No. Closer to before they put concrete down? Yes. It was different than we’ve seen there in the last 20 years. Prior to the concrete, they used to diamond the corners kind of like they did Saturday night. It was great racing.

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

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Was that “Old Bristol”? Or “New Old” Bristol? Or Old New…?

Does it matter? It was awesome! Helmet throws, finger wags, and everything in between were the staples of the night, and somehow Denny Hamlin found his way through all of it into Victory Lane. Saturday night short track racing at its finest.

How did Hamlin fair in our rankings? And did Tony Stewart’s helmet throw earn him any brownie points with our writers? Continue reading to find out…

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:

Seizing A NASCAR Window Of Opportunity

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Greg Biffle and Rodney Dangerfield have about as much in common as Lindsay Lohan and Barack Obama. One races cars for a living; the other was an actor/comedian. The driver would kill for any type of fan following; Dangerfield spent his career leaving legions of fans laughing. And though Dangerfield died a few years back, Biffle is very much alive and remains in the midst of his NASCAR career.

However, the two men remain tied together, if only through one simple phrase…

“I don’t get no respect.”