S
stridsberry
Guest
I decided that since I had some time today, I would turn in my first quarter grade book for all 42 full-time Winston Cup drivers. I sorted the drivers first based on grade, then ordered them based on the current point standings. The way I gave the grades was based partly on this year's performance, partly on how it compares the driver and team's performance last year, and partly on my own "gut instinct" of what they deserved. The basic rundown is: seven drivers in the "A" range, eight in the "B" range, 13 in the "C" range, seven in the "D's", and six who have failed the course to date.
Class Valedictorians
Matt Kenseth: Seven straight top-9 finishes and the completion of all but one lap are the reasons he’s leading the points. Grade: A+
Dale Earnhardt Jr.: He’s been very strong to date, but one can’t help but think of what happened after a similar start last year. Grade: A
Jeff Gordon: The last four races have catapulted him right back into championship contention – again. Grade: A
Jimmie Johnson: He has the longest active streak of time in the top-10 in points – 41 straight races (sating back to last year). Grade: A-
Kevin Harvick: After a disappointing sophomore season, Kevin has very quietly assumed 6th place in points. Grade: A-
Ricky Craven: He’s fighting duel handicaps of driving for a single-car team that is one of only five Pontiac teams – and winning the battle. Grade: A-
Elliott Sadler: Elliott has five top-10 finishes in nine races. Last year, he only had a season total of seven – and that was a career best. Grade: A-
Good more often than not
Kurt Busch: A win and three 2nd-place finishes have been somewhat neutralized by three finishes of 28th or worse. Grade: B+
Michael Waltrip: For the first five races, he drove like a championship contender. He’s backslid a little since then, but is still 8th in points. Grade: B+
Bobby Labonte: It's been feast or famine for Bobby this year, as he is "only" eleventh in points despite a win and four top-5s. I'm sure he'll take that, though. Grade: B+
Tony Stewart: Unlike every other year, he started off with a bang, but has backslid since then. Grade: B
Robby Gordon: He’s making all the races, completing almost all the laps, and is very quietly in the 14th spot in points. Grade: B
Joe Nemechek: So far, he’s made the biggest improvement of anybody over last year’s final points position. Grade: B
Sterling Marlin: He’s not the most spectacular driver right now, but once again is easily the top Dodge driver. Grade: B-
Dale Jarrett: The Rockingham win is the only reason he’s in this range; he’s been fairly steady, but his best finish otherwise is 10th. Grade: B-
Greg Biffle: He’s been the most consistent rookie to date, and is 22nd in points despite DNQ’ing at Las Vegas. Grade: B-
Decent but unspectacular
Mark Martin: Four finishes of 26th or worse have negated his four top-7 finishes, and may also negate his chances at the championship. Grade: C+
Ricky Rudd: 19th in points may seem like a disappointment – but it’s five spots better than the Wood Brothers finished in owner points last year. Grade: C+
Terry Labonte: For once, his not-so-good finishes can’t be blamed on bad equipment – they can be blamed on bad luck. Grade: C+
Kenny Wallace: Talk about contrasting stats – his four top-20 finishes have come on the two shortest and two longest tracks on the circuit. Grade: C+
Ken Schrader: 35th place in points is deceiving, as this team is at least 150% better than it was at the end of last year. Grade: C+
Rusty Wallace: He runs strong in the first half of races, but doesn’t seem to be able to finish the job. The streak is now at 71. Grade: C
Jeff Burton: Martinsville is the one highlight of his season, as his career decline seems to be continuing. Grade: C
Ryan Newman: Qualifying is not a problem at all. With the exception of Texas, finishing is definitely a problem. Grade: C
Dave Blaney: In four races, he has fallen from 7th to 24th in points – and from at least a “B+” to here. Grade: C
Jimmy Spencer: James Smith was thought to be crazy when he said this team could finish in the top-20 in points – now, it’s an outside possibility. Grade: C
Steve Park: There were signs of potential in the first few races. Now, it’s back to the same thing as last year. Grade: C-
Jamie McMurray: This is a rookie team with, technically, a rookie driver. So I’m going to call this a “provisional” grade, since it will likely get much better. Grade: C-
Tony Raines: He’s made every race to date – as a rookie in an unsponsored car. That’s worth some bonus points in my grade book. Grade: C-
Can’t seem to find 2nd gear
Ward Burton: There have been flashes of competitiveness here and there, but he’s the lowest BDR car in points – and I never thought I’d have to say that. Grade: D+
Johnny Benson: Four races into the year, Johnny was a surprising sixth in points. He’s fallen an average of four spots a race since then. Grade: D+
Kyle Petty: He ran very well at Daytona and Talladega. The rest of the season has been a disappointment. Grade: D+
Jeremy Mayfield: The restrictor plate tracks have been fairly good to him. Too bad they only run those races four times a year. Grade: D
Jerry Nadeau: With the exception of Texas, he’s been constantly bitten by typical Jerry Nadeau luck. Grade: D
Casey Mears: It’s been a trying year for this rookie, but at least he’s managed to finish all but one race. Grade: D
Bill Elliott: He’s been in a slump for the last 24 races. Hopefully, for his sake, it ends sometime soon. Grade: D
Save the gas money and stay home
John Andretti: He’s had a few decent runs, but the bad finishes have more than compensated for them. Grade: F
Jeff Green: He was the best RCR car last year, and seemed to have momentum on his side. What happened to him? Grade: F
Todd Bodine: He finishes pretty good when the nose isn’t torn off the car. Too bad that only occurs once every six races. Grade: F
Jack Sprague: A lot of torn up race cars, and a sponsor that may be in deep legal doo-doo. I’d want to stay home too. Grade: F
Mike Skinner: The two endangered tracks have been the highlights of a dismal, in-the-wall season. Grade: F
Larry Foyt: He’s already saving the gas money and staying home, so I can’t tell him to do that, now can I? Grade: F-
Class Valedictorians
Matt Kenseth: Seven straight top-9 finishes and the completion of all but one lap are the reasons he’s leading the points. Grade: A+
Dale Earnhardt Jr.: He’s been very strong to date, but one can’t help but think of what happened after a similar start last year. Grade: A
Jeff Gordon: The last four races have catapulted him right back into championship contention – again. Grade: A
Jimmie Johnson: He has the longest active streak of time in the top-10 in points – 41 straight races (sating back to last year). Grade: A-
Kevin Harvick: After a disappointing sophomore season, Kevin has very quietly assumed 6th place in points. Grade: A-
Ricky Craven: He’s fighting duel handicaps of driving for a single-car team that is one of only five Pontiac teams – and winning the battle. Grade: A-
Elliott Sadler: Elliott has five top-10 finishes in nine races. Last year, he only had a season total of seven – and that was a career best. Grade: A-
Good more often than not
Kurt Busch: A win and three 2nd-place finishes have been somewhat neutralized by three finishes of 28th or worse. Grade: B+
Michael Waltrip: For the first five races, he drove like a championship contender. He’s backslid a little since then, but is still 8th in points. Grade: B+
Bobby Labonte: It's been feast or famine for Bobby this year, as he is "only" eleventh in points despite a win and four top-5s. I'm sure he'll take that, though. Grade: B+
Tony Stewart: Unlike every other year, he started off with a bang, but has backslid since then. Grade: B
Robby Gordon: He’s making all the races, completing almost all the laps, and is very quietly in the 14th spot in points. Grade: B
Joe Nemechek: So far, he’s made the biggest improvement of anybody over last year’s final points position. Grade: B
Sterling Marlin: He’s not the most spectacular driver right now, but once again is easily the top Dodge driver. Grade: B-
Dale Jarrett: The Rockingham win is the only reason he’s in this range; he’s been fairly steady, but his best finish otherwise is 10th. Grade: B-
Greg Biffle: He’s been the most consistent rookie to date, and is 22nd in points despite DNQ’ing at Las Vegas. Grade: B-
Decent but unspectacular
Mark Martin: Four finishes of 26th or worse have negated his four top-7 finishes, and may also negate his chances at the championship. Grade: C+
Ricky Rudd: 19th in points may seem like a disappointment – but it’s five spots better than the Wood Brothers finished in owner points last year. Grade: C+
Terry Labonte: For once, his not-so-good finishes can’t be blamed on bad equipment – they can be blamed on bad luck. Grade: C+
Kenny Wallace: Talk about contrasting stats – his four top-20 finishes have come on the two shortest and two longest tracks on the circuit. Grade: C+
Ken Schrader: 35th place in points is deceiving, as this team is at least 150% better than it was at the end of last year. Grade: C+
Rusty Wallace: He runs strong in the first half of races, but doesn’t seem to be able to finish the job. The streak is now at 71. Grade: C
Jeff Burton: Martinsville is the one highlight of his season, as his career decline seems to be continuing. Grade: C
Ryan Newman: Qualifying is not a problem at all. With the exception of Texas, finishing is definitely a problem. Grade: C
Dave Blaney: In four races, he has fallen from 7th to 24th in points – and from at least a “B+” to here. Grade: C
Jimmy Spencer: James Smith was thought to be crazy when he said this team could finish in the top-20 in points – now, it’s an outside possibility. Grade: C
Steve Park: There were signs of potential in the first few races. Now, it’s back to the same thing as last year. Grade: C-
Jamie McMurray: This is a rookie team with, technically, a rookie driver. So I’m going to call this a “provisional” grade, since it will likely get much better. Grade: C-
Tony Raines: He’s made every race to date – as a rookie in an unsponsored car. That’s worth some bonus points in my grade book. Grade: C-
Can’t seem to find 2nd gear
Ward Burton: There have been flashes of competitiveness here and there, but he’s the lowest BDR car in points – and I never thought I’d have to say that. Grade: D+
Johnny Benson: Four races into the year, Johnny was a surprising sixth in points. He’s fallen an average of four spots a race since then. Grade: D+
Kyle Petty: He ran very well at Daytona and Talladega. The rest of the season has been a disappointment. Grade: D+
Jeremy Mayfield: The restrictor plate tracks have been fairly good to him. Too bad they only run those races four times a year. Grade: D
Jerry Nadeau: With the exception of Texas, he’s been constantly bitten by typical Jerry Nadeau luck. Grade: D
Casey Mears: It’s been a trying year for this rookie, but at least he’s managed to finish all but one race. Grade: D
Bill Elliott: He’s been in a slump for the last 24 races. Hopefully, for his sake, it ends sometime soon. Grade: D
Save the gas money and stay home
John Andretti: He’s had a few decent runs, but the bad finishes have more than compensated for them. Grade: F
Jeff Green: He was the best RCR car last year, and seemed to have momentum on his side. What happened to him? Grade: F
Todd Bodine: He finishes pretty good when the nose isn’t torn off the car. Too bad that only occurs once every six races. Grade: F
Jack Sprague: A lot of torn up race cars, and a sponsor that may be in deep legal doo-doo. I’d want to stay home too. Grade: F
Mike Skinner: The two endangered tracks have been the highlights of a dismal, in-the-wall season. Grade: F
Larry Foyt: He’s already saving the gas money and staying home, so I can’t tell him to do that, now can I? Grade: F-
