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1. My Expectations for Kyle Larson
I managed to hold onto this topic for all of the offseason and now I am ready to talk about it. I want to talk to you guys about my expectations for Kyle Larson this year. If you recall, Larson made the jump from sprint cars to stock cars to start the 2012 season. He ran extremely well in NASCAR's K&N East Series before moving to the Nationwide Series in 2013. He ran well for Turner-Scott Motorsports and Chip Ganassi decided to give him the opportunity to drive his Cup car in 2014 to run for rookie of the year honors. I, honestly, believe he will do okay this year. He ran extremely well on every track in the Nationwide Series last year and that bodes well for his future. The one thing that bothers me about Larson is his inexperience. Yes, I have heard everybody say he is ready for Cup competition, but I don't see it. He has no wins in NASCAR's two series before Cup and he only has one full season of Nationwide racing preparation. To me, that is not enough for someone to make it at Cup level. Yes, some people made the jump to Cup without really any experience and were extremely successful. Guys like Kasey Kahne, Jimmie Johnson, and others ran very little in the lower series of NASCAR, but they have been successful at the highest level in Cup. I don't know, but I might just be proven wrong as Larson goes out on track and, possibly, dominates the rookie of the year battle this year.
2. My Expectations for Austin Dillon
Here is a second topic I am have been waiting out on. I also want to talk to you guys about my expectations for Austin Dillon this year. If you recall, Dillon burst onto the NASCAR scene in 2010 in Trucks. He won two races and returned in 2011 to take the Truck title. He moved to Nationwide competition and in 2013, he was able to take his first Nationwide championship before making the jump to Cup in 2014. Not to mention, Dillon is the grandson of Richard Childress, which adds to the pressure he felt and feels. I see this year as being a great one for Dillon. He is my pick to win the rookie of the year battle and I feel he will surprise some people this year. My only problem is the added pressure he has received by driving the number three. People have, honestly, made it a bigger deal than it should be. Yes, Dale Earnhardt Sr. piloted the car to some great moments, but it is really just a number. Yes, Earnhardt fans pretty much live by using the number three, but it shouldn't be a complete representation of Earnhardt. Still, the media has made story after story about Dillon in the three and he has faced constant scrutiny, which could cause him to struggle slightly. But he does have the most experience compared to all the rookies and he looks very good heading into the season. This could be a breakout season for Dillon and it could be one of the better rookie seasons we have seen in recent memory.
3. Will Jimmie Johnson Win Back to Back Sprint Cup Championships?
We haven't even started the season yet, but I want to talk about this while everyone has a clear slate starting 2014. Will Jimmie Johnson win back to back Sprint Cup championships? If you recall, Johnson won five straight titles from 2006-2010 before winning his sixth title last year. That championship put him within one championship of both Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt Sr. I, honestly, feel like this year he will not win a Sprint Cup title. I know, that is a pretty crazy prediction, but here is my reasoning. First, the new Chase system does not look to be in his favor. Yes, he has won a title with pretty much every Chase system. Still, this system opens the door for more drivers. In fact, Dale Earnhardt Jr. would have won the 2013 title had the new system been used. That just seems to take away from Johnson's chances to win the title. Secondly and finally, Johnson seems to be struggling a lot during Speedweeks. No, the weeks leading up to Daytona aren't the best judge for how a season will go, but they are what we watch to start the season. In two races thus far at Daytona, Johnson has wrecked hard in both. In the Sprint Unlimited, he slammed the inside wall hard in an incident that was pretty much his own doing. In his respective Duel, he ran out of gas and the field began to wreck around him. This means he will start the 500 from the back and he will be in his third car at Daytona. That, to me, just looks like it will take a toll in terms of his championship chances. Still, don't count Johnson out, but don't put him at the top of your list yet.
4. Two Sprint Cup Cars Flip During Speedweeks; What Will We See in the 500?
Before the annual Daytona 500 was even remotely close to getting under way, we saw two crazy wrecks for the Cup Series in practice. The first wreck occurred in Wednesday afternoon practice. Joey Logano and Matt Kenseth made contact in the trioval and Kenseth clipped Paul Menard. Menard went straight up track and clipped Parker Kligerman. Kligerman went up in the air and piled into the catch fence. He rolled along the outside retaining wall before landing on his roof and sliding to the entrance of pit road. He came to a stop on track on his lid, but he was okay. The second crazy wreck occurred in the second Duel on Thursday night. Jimmie Johnson ran out of gas and Jamie McMurray ran into him in the chaos. Cars went sliding everywhere heading to the line and David Ragan made contact with Clint Bowyer. Bowyer went flying through the air and did a complete 360 before landing flat on his wheels. He rolled through the pits and came to a stop just on the edge of his pit box. Both of the cars were completely destroyed, but both drivers were okay. This brings me to my question for this topic. Will we see a crazy wreck like those in the Daytona 500? I don't think we will. The main reason I feel this way is because these were two freak accidents. NASCAR has done so much lately to make sure cars will stay on the ground like adding roof flaps, making the spoiler a little bit smaller, and just making sure the car is aerodynamically safe enough to keep it on the ground. It would take huge contact in the side for anybody to get close to flipping in the 500, in my opinion. Still, we can't predict anything about the 500 and we might just see a crazier wreck than either one of those wrecks.
5. Austin Dillon on Cup Pole at Daytona; Will We See the Number 3 in Victory Lane Again?
The driver and car we talked about all offseason has made its mark on Daytona once again. One Sunday ago, Austin Dillon took the number 3 to the top of the qualifying board and grabbed the pole for the fifty sixth annual Daytona 500. If you recall, Richard Childress handed his grandson the opportunity to drive the number 3 in Cup this year. Dillon is Childress's grandson, but he has completely proved he deserves this opportunity. This brings me to my question for this topic. Will we see the number 3 in victory lane again this year? I, honestly, believe he will. The main reason is they have been so fast thus far at Daytona. They were at the top of the board in Preseason Thunder, Daytona 500 practice, and even in qualifying one week ago. They have been absolutely lights out and I believe he could win the 500 today. I know, that seems a bit outlandish, but who really knows? I mean, Michael Annett or even Joe Nemechek could win this race. The 500 is utterly unpredictable, but I also believe he could win in a fuel strategy situation. I know people don't like those fuel mileage races and don't believe they prove drivers are winners, but they show up as wins in the record book. Plus, he might even have a chance at some of the small track races like Bristol and Martinsville. I, honestly, believe Austin Dillon will be a legitimate contender in Cup for a good little while.
6. My Pick to Win
Well, we are back to this point again. After close to three months without races, I can now pick who I think will win the race every single week from now until the end of the year. Hopefully, my picks stay a little bit accurate, but I am sure I will miss the pick a few races throughout the year. The first race for this year is of course the 2014 Daytona 500. It is extremely hard to predict this race because great drivers like Jimmie Johnson and Matt Kenseth can win it, but underdog drivers like Trevor Bayne and Derrike Cope have also won the 500. This year, I am not even going to try and pick the winner, but I will give you guys some drivers to look at. The obvious choices to pick are Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth, Denny Hamlin, Kasey Kahne, and Kevin Harvick, but I do have some underdog picks to look at. Make sure you follow guys like Michael Annett, Josh Wise, David Ragan, David Gilliland, and Trevor Bayne, who will be up at the front most of the race. Just based on these predictions, you guys know this race is completely unpredictable. I hope to write about the race for you guys so look for that tonight after the race finishes. Well, I am extremely pumped about this year's Daytona 500 along with this season and I hope the race is absolutely amazing. That is all I have and until we meet again.
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