1. Who Is Going to Make The Chase?
Some people would save this for the end of their opinions, but this is my opinions and I am going to start with it. When we get to the final regular season race of the year, the odds of somebody making the Chase are always discussed. So far this year, Jimmie Johnson, Clint Bowyer, Kevin Harvick, Carl Edwards, Kyle Busch, and Matt Kenseth have clinched a top 10 Chase spot while Kasey Kahne has clinched at least a wild card spot. That leaves Dale Earnhardt Jr., Joey Logano, Greg Biffle, and Kurt Busch with unclinched top 10 spots. Martin Truex Jr. and Kasey Kahne currently hold the wild card spots. Plus, Jeff Gordon, Ryan Newman, Brad Keselowski, Jamie McMurray, and Paul Menard are still in contention for a wild card spot and possibly a top 10 spot. This all adds to the clinch scenarios, which I will not put in this article but will leave a link down below for you to check out. Right now, I believe Kasey Kahne will get into the top 10 barring all things happening to him. With that said, a lot of drivers would be in contention for a wild card spot. I also believe Dale Earnhardt Jr. will stay in the top 10. Then, I feel Joey Logano will stay in the top 10 as well. This leaves just the two wild card spots and a final top 10 spot to deal with. Right now after everything I have said, Ryan Newman and Martin Truex Jr. would be in prime position to take the two wild card spots. I think one of these two drivers will get a wild card spot, but the other will not. I think Jeff Gordon will find a way into the top 10 and Greg Biffle will fall out. This will give Biffle a wild card spot and Ryan Newman one as well. For each of these drivers to do this, Gordon would need to finish at least seven spots ahead of Kurt Busch, the 10th place driver in the championship right now. Ryan Newman would also have to finish at least 5 spots ahead of Martin Truex Jr., the wild card driver in front of him. It will be interesting for me to see if these picks turn out to come true.
2. Jeff Burton Out of the #31 at RCR In 2014
A piece of rather shocking news came out of the Richard Childress Racing camp during the week. Jeff Burton announced that he would not return to the the #31 in 2014 for RCR. I say this news was shocking because Childress recently stated that Burton and teammate, Paul Menard, would return to the team next year with Austin Dillon moving to the team as well. Now, Burton has made the announcement that the funds just weren't there for him to return to the team, but a new driver will be found to take over the ride. To me, I feel like it was a long time coming. Don't get me wrong. Jeff Burton is an amazing race car driver. If you have not had the wonderful opportunity to watch him lead all 300 laps in the 2000 Dura Lube 300 at New Hampshire, then you have not seen a race or a battle. I mean, Jeff Burton had to outlast lapped cars just so he wouldn't wreck and lose the race. But Burton has not been a front runner over the past few years. He has good finishes and runs, but he is not a race winning contender week in and week out like he used to be. I want him to be as successful as the next guy, but it seems like it is getting to the point in his career where he can still win, but his chances are rare and slim. I would love for him to get another chance, but the low amount of good rides and the large amount of young drivers to fill them, the rookies seem like the better choices than an older veteran.
3. Wild Card Spots: Good or Bad for The Chase?
I don't hear this brought up too much when Chase time comes around, but it is something I have always wanted to discuss since it was brought in as an aspect of the Chase. Since it was introduced in 2011, the wild card has allowed drivers who are out of the top 10 in points and have wins to be at the forefront of making the Chase for the Sprint Cup. Personally, I think it was a good move by NASCAR to introduce the wild card. For one, you give drivers and teams more reason to win races and compete during the regular season. Think about it. If you were say Paul Menard and you really had no chance to get close enough to be in the top 12, but you could win a race and be at the top of the list of making the Chase outside the top 10, wouldn't you try harder and compete more to win a race? I don't know about you, but I would. This allows better races for the fans during the regular season. Finally, you get a more tense aspect heading into the final regular season race of the season. If we did not have the wild card, the two drivers who have the wild card positions now might not be in contention for the top 12 heading into the Chase. With the wild card, drivers all the way back to at least 20th place have a chance to make the playoffs in the final race of the year. To me, I think the wild card is a good fit for the Chase.
4. Where Will Jeff Burton, Juan Pablo Montoya, and Ryan Newman Go for 2014?
Silly season has heated up lately with the release of a lot of drivers, but most of these drivers have not signed with another team yet. The first driver in this category is Jeff Burton. Burton announced he would not be in the #31 for Richard Childress next year. With the low amount of good rides available, it is unlikely that Burton will end up with a highly competitive team. I feel like he will end up at a team like Swan Racing or Tommy Baldwin Racing with RCR equipment. This would allow him to driver in at least decent equipment and still have a little bit of a chance to be competitive. The next driver in this category is Ryan Newman. Newman was released from his contract in 2014 with Stewart-Haas Racing after the team felt they could not run four cars. Newman has probably been the hottest commodity of this silly season. With teams like Furniture Row Racing and Richard Childress Racing needing drivers, Newman is in good position to get a good ride. I believe he will end up at Richard Childress Racing. The main reason is that Austin Dillon is coming to Cup next year and Paul Menard is a good driver, but he would need another veteran teammate to help him out in the training of Dillon. Newman would be the perfect guy for the job and he could also get wins for the team. The move would be a definite win-win situation for RCR. The final driver in this category is Juan Pablo Montoya. Montoya was released from his contract at Earnhardt Ganassi Racing for the 2014 season. For Montoya, the options are pretty good. The first of his two options would be to return to IndyCar. Montoya had talks with Andretti Autosport about a possible ride and it would be a good fit for him since he is a proven winner in the series. A second option would be to return to NASCAR. Montoya hasn't been horrible in his time in Cup, but he just doesn't have wins on ovals. If he did, he would be as hot a commodity as Newman. Nonetheless, I feel like he will end up racing in NASCAR next year for Furniture Row Racing. One reason is that he would be a very good fit. Since the team has had success with Kurt Busch this year and Montoya shares pretty much the same traits, the team understands how they could work with him. It has been a really interesting silly season and I am interested to see how it turns out in the end.
5. My Pick to Win
Earlier this year at Richmond, Kevin Harvick walked away with the win after passing Jeff Burton on the final restart. It was Harvick's first win of the year and it propelled him to another victory a few weeks later at Charlotte. This time around, though, I feel like a wrench will be thrown in the Chase with this driver's win. I am going with Clint Bowyer for the final round of the regular season. Bowyer is the best driver at Richmond over the last five races with a win to his credit. With a win Saturday, Bowyer could get some bonus points that could really come in handy during the Chase. If you don't like that pick, Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, Kasey Kahne, Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch, and Brad Keselowski are good picks. Once again, I thank you guys for reading my opinions and dealing with them on a weekly basis. Feel free to let me know your opinions on any of the topics I have talked about today. Plus, if you think my opinions are stupid, just let me know and we can discuss. As always, I will continue to fill you guys with all the NASCAR knowledge you can handle and even more. Stay classy as usual until we meet again.
Credits:
-Clinch Scenarios
http://www.nascar.com/en_us/news-media/articles/2013/09/02/nascar-sprint-cup-chase-clinching-scenarios-richmond.html
-Image:
http://dy.snimg.com/story-image/6/59/4503575/162547-650-366.jpg
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