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Five Points to Ponder: Keselowski, Road Courses and “Real Racing”

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*ONE: Brad Keselowski Speaks the Truth on “Real Racing”*

Anyone that wasn’t thrilled with Sunday’s finish likely doesn’t have a pulse. Whether a fan had a dog in the Busch/Keselowski/Ambrose finale or not, the beating, banging, and sheer unpredictability of the last lap was easily the most compelling end to any race NASCAR has seen in 2012, and the best finish the Glen has seen since Kurt Busch and Robby Gordon off-roaded their way to the checkered flag in the 2006 Nationwide race.

Who’s Hot/Who’s Not in NASCAR: Watkins Glen/Michigan Edition

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The ending to Sunday’s race at Watkins Glen wasn’t like anything I’d ever seen before. It brought back memories of my favorite video game as a kid — Super Mario Kart for Super Nintendo. The ending was so chaotic it didn’t seem real.

Kyle Busch had the win and the second wild card spot locked up when he began slipping in oil during the final two laps, allowing Brad Keselowski and Marcos Ambrose to close in. Keselowski spun Busch in the esses (green shell) and along with Ambrose, drove through the grass in the bus stop (shortcut).

Edwards’ Cup Troubles Benefit Nationwide Teammate Stenhouse

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Asked this past week at Pocono why he would be making his first Nationwide Series start of the year some six months into the season, Carl Edwards gave the expected answer: “It gives me a chance to have some fun and we can practice something we want to try on the Cup car.” But when asked if he’d be running any more races in 2012 after seven consecutive seasons of full-time double duty, Edwards remarked “This one just came up. There is the other factor that Ricky [Stenhouse] and those guys wanted someone at the road course to bounce information off of.”

There’s two facts to be taken from that statement. One, this race came about spontaneously, with longtime Cup sponsor Subway being the one to foot the bill for the Saturday race.

Did You Notice? … AJ’s Sigh Of Relief?, No Dodging This Bullet And Kyle’s Crisis

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*Did You Notice?…* Dodge’s departure from the sport dashes expansion dreams? In the past few months, the manufacturer has been linked with Furniture Row Racing, looking to add a a second car with driver Kurt Busch; Andretti Autosport, exploring the option of debuting a team in 2013; and Richard Petty Motorsports, whose funding from Dodge could have spearheaded co-owner Andy Murstein’s desire to build from two cars to three. It’s clear, despite the loss of Penske Racing that Dodge had options; they just clearly didn’t like any of them. Why?

“Really this issue started many, many years ago as we consolidated down to one team,” explained SRT’s Ralph Gilles, President Of Racing and Technology. “We had a very, I would say, an elegant situation with the Penske group, having a one-stop shop, an engine, everything, a very high quality team to work with.”

Who’s Hot/Who’s Not in NASCAR: Pocono/Watkins Glen Edition

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It could be argued that Jeff Gordon deserved to be in Victory Lane several times in 2012, but Sunday wasn’t one of them. When Jimmie Johnson’s car broke loose because of a flat tire on a late restart and a wreck ensued, Gordon just happened to be the first car to make it through the smoke and was awarded the win when the skies opened up minutes later.

It was a lot of luck for a driver who hadn’t had any luck at all before Sunday. From flat tires, to accidents, to blown engines, the first half of the season had it all for the No. 24 team. As Gordon said in Victory Lane, “I think this is the one that makes up for all the ones that have gotten away.”

Nationwide Series Breakdown: U.S. Cellular 250

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Oh, what a difference a week can make.

Following a late-race (and hotly-debated) black flag while leading at last weekend’s Indiana 250 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway that relegated the championship points leader to 15th and a mere one-point standings lead over Austin Dillon, Elliott Sadler took to Iowa Speedway Saturday, August 4, with a vengeance. After starting from the pole, Sadler took the race lead from Justin Allgaier late in the going, leading 60 laps en route to his third win of the 2012 season.

“They are not taking the championship from us!” cried Sadler after crossing the line by about a second over Allgaier. He should have plenty to cheer about — following his race win and a disappointing showing from Dillon, the Richard Childress Racing driver gave himself some much-needed breathing room in the points standings, increasing his lead to 18.

The Insignificance of Dodge’s Absence from 2013’s First Test

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There’s nothing surprising behind the announcement that Dodge won’t be taking part in the first test for the Cup Series’ 2013 race cars at Martinsville next week. Penske Racing’s on the way out of the Dodge camp after this season, a swirling rumor about the Andrettis coming from IndyCar to NASCAR proved fruitless, and there’s hardly a rosy relationship between the manufacturer and journeyman Robby Gordon. The same Robby Gordon that made the Daytona 500 as an underdog Dodge entry, and got no subsequent engine help despite making all but a plea for a Penske motor in his post-Duel press conference.

Fact of the matter is, there’s no sign whatsoever that Dodge has made any progress on finding a new flagship Cup team since Penske announced their defection back to Ford. The chances of Dodge being unrepresented in the 2013 Daytona 500 are not miniscule.

NASCAR Weekly Fan Q & A: What Happens To ‘Dinger Now?

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As I write this introductory sentence, AJ Allmendinger is less than 24 hours removed from the conclusion to his career with Penske Racing. So let’s not waste any time getting to what all of you, including *James Stenton* from _Manassas, VA_ are asking this Thursday:

*So what does AJ do now? Who’s going to sign him for 2013, if anyone? And will we ever know what he tested positive for?*

James, it’s a little early to place AJ with somebody else. But what I can tell you is on the NASCAR side, based on the Road To Recovery program’s timeline the earliest we’ll see him eligible for competition is February’s 2013 Daytona 500. In between will be a rough summer and fall, filled with the sport’s step-by-step rehabilitation and personal transition as the driver also goes through a divorce.