Cup RACE thread --- Kansas

I'm loving that one of my drivers stole the win, but I don't have the hate for Hambone that so many others do even though he did call my favorite driver a hack. I actually have to give him credit for doing the right thing and going for the win even if he did come up short. He definitely had the car to beat all day even with the steering problems which my guess played a factor into bumping into Wallace. Some fans say he was stupid for not letting Wallace win the race because he owns part of the team and because he was in a good points standing. That would be race manipulation if he deliberately did that and we all know how much fans frown on that and a good reason for NASCAR to change the rule that owning a team and driving for another team would be considered a conflict of interest and would not be allowed. No matter how many points you have that can all change with one bad race so if you have a chance to win you have to go for it. If I were a team owner and my driver deliberately let a car they owned win a race, I would fire them immediately and if I were a sponsor of said driver, I would pull my sponsorship immediately if they were not fired. Now lets go watch either the 5, 24, or 9 win this championship. :D
 
Man, I am the odd man out here. I think everyone is giving Denny a little too much of a hard time. He's racing for the win and that move was pretty tame racing for the win compared to some of the other stuff we have seen that was defended like when Larson used Chase up at the Glen in 22 just for example. Also - I can't imagine how harsh the critics would have been had it appeared that he let Bubba win that race. I will say I am surprised at how bummed Denny was after the race.

As for Chase, this was obviously a great win and an example of what this team can do when they execute all weekend and I'm happy to continue to see this more aggressive version of Chase. I don't think he's ever going to rack up a 6-7 win season in this car but he will get his as he has this year when the team puts weekends together like this.

As great as it was for Chase to get this win, I am still concerned that Chevy does not have the raw speed to win a title. Team Penske owned New Hampshire and the Toyotas looked poised to sweep the top-5 yesterday. I will be exceptionally shocked if it's not a Ford or Toyota winning the title but here's hoping I guess. Awesome job to Chase.......I just wish he'd lose the mustache. LOL.
Hast bubba said in the past he didn’t want him to let him and wanted to earn it?
 
Bubba is at least consistent with the move. It’s his go to at all times. Taking it is how you earn it with him.
 
Now that I've settled in, here are my takeaways from attending the race.

*Byron was terrible for the majority of the race. The second to last pit stop, they spent an extended amount of time in the pits and seemed to make some good adjustments. Then on the final pit stop I believe, he went with 2 tires and gained some track position and was able to keep it for the most part due to the short final couple of green flag runs. I'll take a 9th, but I feel like his performance has gone down a bit at Kansas.
*The good thing about watching in person is that you don't have to hear the booth yapping about playoffs, so you actually forget about the playoff picture and can just enjoy the race as a single race. With Denny's move that ultimately cost Wallace the race, I hadn't even thought about the potential playoff implications it had until I read the race thread.
*Perhaps it had a bit to do with the sun and the warmer weather, but I was amazed when I went to the bathroom and noticed so many people just hanging out, sitting and laying down under the stands, while the race was in progress. I guess there are many people who go to the races that aren't fans, but it was just odd to see so many people casually hanging out under the bleachers, missing the race. We did notice someone being attended to while we were walking to our seats, then my Dad had to help someone who passed out in the restroom. After that, there was another person that needed help. Even though it was forecasted, I think that people were caught off guard by the warmer weather.
*My assessment was that the race was exciting, and significantly better than it was in May. The experience was as it usually is. There's just something about being at the track that makes life seem not so crazy. Already excited for next May!
 
Chase was in the top 5 all day. Probably had nothing for Denny, but I think he could go heads up against the rest of the Toyotas. You had just better hope the chain gang doesn't find another tenth or two in the next few weeks. The gap is narrowing.
Chase was okay....I think you are being generous. Hell of a time of year to be narrowing a gap. Maybe get Rudy on that splitter again or something? That should be a quick fix. Don't tell Jeffy. He hates it when his team's integrity is called into question.
 
Absolutely gutted for the 38 team. They are continually punching above their weight. Zane and Bergenty are a heck of a combo and looking forward to seeing what they can do.
 
Chase was 9th at the restartView attachment 87817
I will say as this win has "aged" a few days for me I am a little tired of the narrative that this win was a gift. I don't think any wins at this level are a gift. Maybe Byron's 500 win this year could be categorized as that but Chase drove the wheels off that car and went out there and took it. I have defended Denny a lot here but this time to me he is crossing the line on how much he is complaining about not winning having the best car. In case he has not noticed the best car rarely seems to win in NASCAR. Chase had the best car in the Spring IMO and lost because his crew choked it away.

Overall I guess I am a little irritated that many voice criticism Chase's way for not being aggressive enough and not winning enough and here he goes out and is ultra-aggressive and takes a win away from better cars only for people to say it was a "gift."

Oh well, there will always be critics. The worst thing I have hears about this win though is that Chase says he hates the mustache but they have been running well since he started growing it so it's here to stay as long as he keeps running well. I guess if he keeps running like this I can tolerate it but I've received about 5 texts with the "porn star 'stache" reference. LOL.
 
Chase was okay....I think you are being generous. Hell of a time of year to be narrowing a gap. Maybe get Rudy on that splitter again or something? That should be a quick fix. Don't tell Jeffy. He hates it when his team's integrity is called into question.
What I found interesting about Chase at Kansas this past weekend compared to other weekends was that it was the first time in a while that his feedback on the radio was "I'm good but the balance could be better." They were loose for a lot of the race and kept making it better but Chase said it was never where he wanted it. He said if they could give him more to lean on he would have been better and been able to hang more with the Toyotas on the long run. It's encouraging because he normally says "the balance is good and I am burning up the right rear."
 
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