Chevy showing no signs of slowing
Lee Spencer
FOXSports.com, Updated 22 hours ago STORY TOOLS:
CONCORD, N.H. - It was the same ol' story, same ol' song and dance at New Hampshire.
Another Car of Tomorrow race, another Chevrolet sweep. Denny Hamlin led an army of eight Chevy drivers to the finish line. The top five are all in the Chase Zone — including Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jimmie Johnson, sans crew chiefs.
That's just proves the strength of the Chevrolet contingent. It's not just about the cars, it's the quality of drivers, mechanics and management that make these teams roll.
Let's look at the GM key partners. Hendrick Motorsports has more engineers than some teams have employees. Although it took Joe Gibbs Racing 17 races to secure its first win this season, over the last seven years no other organization can tally three championships. Like Hendrick, Richard Childress Racing currently has three drivers in the Chase Zone. Both owners also boast six Cup titles. Dale Earnhardt Inc. is enjoying a huge resurgence under the direction of Max Siegel. Martin Truex Jr., who has finished worse than third just once in the last five races, is ready to adopt a leadership role once Junior departs for HMS.
And it's very doubtful 10 races from now when the Nextel Cup tour returns to New Hampshire that the complexion of the top 12 drivers who qualify for the Chase looks significantly different. It will be a bow-tie brigade in the postseason.
Matt Kenseth, who scored his 11th top-10 at New Hampshire, is the sole Ford among a sea of Chevrolets in the top five. He continues to be the perennial contender for both Roush-Fenway Racing and Ford. His RFR teammate Carl Edwards lost the lead and the opportunity for a win on Sunday after a costly 47.6-second stop on Lap 194 knocked him off the lead lap. Edwards salvaged a 13th-place finish and fortunately maintained his seventh-place position in the points.
Ryan Newman, the only Dodge out of 11 full-time teams to finish the Lenox Industrial Tools 300 in the top 10, sits 13th in the standings, 127 points behind 12th-place Earnhardt. His Penske teammate Kurt Busch is an additional 109 points behind Newman.
Even if NASCAR still upheld the rule that any driver within 400 points of the leader would qualify for the Chase, there's not a driver who would come close to meeting the criteria. With four wins, five poles, 11 top-fives and 15 top 10s, Gordon has amassed a 156-point lead over Hamlin. Sixth-place Tony Stewart already trails Gordon by 428-points.
For the remaining teams, the race will be on for maintaining a position among the top 25 to receive contingency money. The top 35 is locked in for now. Scott Riggs, who sits 36th in the standings, is 182 points south of 35th. Even if he won a race, led the most laps and scored 195 points, an owner ahead of him would have to park a car for Riggs to catch up. And that's not bloody likely.
As for the Team Toyota, two words: growing pains. It didn't take Toyota long to figure out the winning formula in the Craftsman Truck Series, but it's not truck teams its running against at the Nextel Cup level.
Sunday's winning crew chief Mike Ford said the No. 11 team's position in points allowed him to take a gamble in the race with two tires. We've seen similar scenarios played out by Chad Knaus — the Bobby Cox of NASCAR — who tested the limits and took chances he normally would have refrained from if the point situation was dire. With Knaus back at the shop, the No. 48 could establish a similar spark as was the case last February when the chief was on a NASCAR-imposed sabbatical. Imagine what Knaus and Stevie Letarte can concoct with a little extra time on their hands.
Yes, the rich get richer, and in NASCAR the strong persevere.
Lee Spencer
FOXSports.com, Updated 22 hours ago STORY TOOLS:
CONCORD, N.H. - It was the same ol' story, same ol' song and dance at New Hampshire.
Another Car of Tomorrow race, another Chevrolet sweep. Denny Hamlin led an army of eight Chevy drivers to the finish line. The top five are all in the Chase Zone — including Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jimmie Johnson, sans crew chiefs.
That's just proves the strength of the Chevrolet contingent. It's not just about the cars, it's the quality of drivers, mechanics and management that make these teams roll.
Let's look at the GM key partners. Hendrick Motorsports has more engineers than some teams have employees. Although it took Joe Gibbs Racing 17 races to secure its first win this season, over the last seven years no other organization can tally three championships. Like Hendrick, Richard Childress Racing currently has three drivers in the Chase Zone. Both owners also boast six Cup titles. Dale Earnhardt Inc. is enjoying a huge resurgence under the direction of Max Siegel. Martin Truex Jr., who has finished worse than third just once in the last five races, is ready to adopt a leadership role once Junior departs for HMS.
And it's very doubtful 10 races from now when the Nextel Cup tour returns to New Hampshire that the complexion of the top 12 drivers who qualify for the Chase looks significantly different. It will be a bow-tie brigade in the postseason.
Matt Kenseth, who scored his 11th top-10 at New Hampshire, is the sole Ford among a sea of Chevrolets in the top five. He continues to be the perennial contender for both Roush-Fenway Racing and Ford. His RFR teammate Carl Edwards lost the lead and the opportunity for a win on Sunday after a costly 47.6-second stop on Lap 194 knocked him off the lead lap. Edwards salvaged a 13th-place finish and fortunately maintained his seventh-place position in the points.
Ryan Newman, the only Dodge out of 11 full-time teams to finish the Lenox Industrial Tools 300 in the top 10, sits 13th in the standings, 127 points behind 12th-place Earnhardt. His Penske teammate Kurt Busch is an additional 109 points behind Newman.
Even if NASCAR still upheld the rule that any driver within 400 points of the leader would qualify for the Chase, there's not a driver who would come close to meeting the criteria. With four wins, five poles, 11 top-fives and 15 top 10s, Gordon has amassed a 156-point lead over Hamlin. Sixth-place Tony Stewart already trails Gordon by 428-points.
For the remaining teams, the race will be on for maintaining a position among the top 25 to receive contingency money. The top 35 is locked in for now. Scott Riggs, who sits 36th in the standings, is 182 points south of 35th. Even if he won a race, led the most laps and scored 195 points, an owner ahead of him would have to park a car for Riggs to catch up. And that's not bloody likely.
As for the Team Toyota, two words: growing pains. It didn't take Toyota long to figure out the winning formula in the Craftsman Truck Series, but it's not truck teams its running against at the Nextel Cup level.
Sunday's winning crew chief Mike Ford said the No. 11 team's position in points allowed him to take a gamble in the race with two tires. We've seen similar scenarios played out by Chad Knaus — the Bobby Cox of NASCAR — who tested the limits and took chances he normally would have refrained from if the point situation was dire. With Knaus back at the shop, the No. 48 could establish a similar spark as was the case last February when the chief was on a NASCAR-imposed sabbatical. Imagine what Knaus and Stevie Letarte can concoct with a little extra time on their hands.
Yes, the rich get richer, and in NASCAR the strong persevere.