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1. Ten Winners in Twelve Races: Is One Win Still Enough?
This topic dates back to the start of the season and a little bit thanks to the offseason. If you recall, NASCAR overhauled the Chase system before the start of this year and moved it to sixteen drivers. The Chase will be made up of sixteen winners throughout the season and if sixteen drivers don't win, then the rest of the Chase line-up will be set based on points. If more than sixteen drivers win, then amount of wins and points position will help determine the Chase line-up. After a third of the season, we sit on the edge of more than sixteen different winners. In twelve races, ten drivers have went to victory lane with Joey Logano and Kevin Harvick being the only two drivers to repeat. Here is the golden question for the rest of the season. Will we see more than sixteen different winners in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series this year? I, honestly, think we are approaching it. Listen to these guys who haven't won yet this year. Matt Kenseth, Kasey Kahne, Tony Stewart, Ryan Newman, Brian Vickers, Greg Biffle, Clint Bowyer, and a good many others have not won yet. Listen, that is seven drivers to add to the ten already and that will mean seventeen different winners. Along with that, each of these guys have a legitimate shot to win. In fact, Stewart won at Dover last year. Kasey Kahne won at Pocono last year, where the series heads next week. Greg Biffle won at Michigan where the series heads in two weeks. Ryan Newman won at Indianapolis a year ago where the series heads in about a month. Matt Kenseth won at Kentucky and the second race at New Hampshire last year and the series heads to both of those tracks in the near future. Finally, Brian Vickers won the first race at New Hampshire last year and the series heads there soon. It seems like, to me, these guys all have a shot in the coming weeks to continue to win races at all these tracks. Plus, throw in the curveball at Daytona where a driver could sneak into the Chase. There are so many possibilities and don't be surprised if a driver needs more than one win to make it in the Chase this season.
2. Jimmie Johnson: How Many Races Can He Win This Year?
Last week at Charlotte, all the talk was about how Jimmie Johnson had not won a race through eleven to start the 2014 season. Media personnel and a good many broadcasters were wondering if Johnson would even win this year. Well, he shut them all up at Charlotte. He went out and dominated NASCAR's longest race, known as the Coca-Cola 600, and he now has a win to his credit this season. That practically puts him in the Chase and after so many concerns of him not winning, everyone is talking about him winning a whole lot more this year. I want to put my opinions into that talk in the form of this question. How many races will Johnson win this year? I only think Johnson will have the opportunity to win three races this year when all is said and done. I know that sounds outlandish because the last time Johnson won less than three races was in 2011, but hear me out. I just spoke above how we could see a crazy amount of winners this year. Well, with all those winners, it seems like three wins would be a lot and could lead to a championship. I think Johnson's other two wins will come at either one of the Pocono races and either one of the Dover races. Johnson has been the king at both of those tracks recently and I feel like he will win at least one race at both. Still, don't expect Johnson to slow down on winning. The six time Cup champion has been known to rattle off some wins during his career and he could jump into a rhythm. With all that in mind, expect Jimmie Johnson to visit victory lane a couple more times and be a contender for the championship.
3. Tony Stewart: Will He Win a Race This Season?
Today's overall theme of winning continues with this topic about Tony Stewart. Stewart's problems last year have been discussed and discussed to the point of everyone knowing what happened in the sprint car crash last year. I won't bore you guys with that, but I want to talk about something else. Stewart won at Dover on this weekend last year and he cemented that he would be a championship factor. All that changed when the wreck happened and he was out for the rest of the season. To start this year, he seemingly hasn't been the same driver thanks to that wreck. He seems to be unable to find the right set-up in his car and he has just been struggling all year. Well, here is my question for Stewart. Is he going to win a race this season in NASCAR's highest series? I, honestly, don't think he will win a race this year. The main reason is that he isn't one hundred percent yet after the broken leg he suffered last year. I read an article yesterday discussing that and it seems like Stewart still has to regain some strength. Don't get me wrong, though. Stewart can still driver the wheels off a race car. I don't doubt that, but I do doubt his health this early in the season. The one thing that might hand him a win this season is the stretch of races we are entering. The summer series of races is Tony Stewart's favorite time of year. He loves to race at tracks like Pocono, New Hampshire, Sonoma, Daytona, Indianapolis, and a good many others. I think he could very well steal a win at one of those tracks, but I don't believe he will have the fastest car in those races. Hopefully, I'm wrong about Stewart not winning this year and he can take his car to victory lane and to a Chase berth come Chase time.
4. Dover: Is It the Hardest NASCAR Circuit Today?
I have heard this theme for the entire weekend it seems like at Dover. Rick Allen, Phil Parsons, and Michael Waltrip mentioned several times during the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race that Dover is a tough track to grab a hold on. Dave Burns, Dale Jarrett, and Andy Petree mentioned several times during NASCAR Nationwide Series qualifying and the race that Dover is a very loose race track and one lone spot of sun on track will change how the car runs. The same has been said throughout Cup practice and qualifying as well. Well, here is my question. Is Dover the hardest NASCAR circuit today? After watching all kinds of Dover racing this weekend, it is near the top of my list. I still consider Darlington to be the hardest. Every single driver puts it in the wall at Darlington at least once during the race. Now, don't get me wrong again. Dover is a really hard track because some of the best in the sport have had trouble there. I mentioned in the introduction that drivers like Clint Bowyer, Joey Logano, Tony Stewart, and other great drivers have had problems there in just the recent few years. It is a very tough track and it is deserving of the nickname “The Monster Mile”. I think today the Cup guys are going to have their hands full. The track is going to be a tough one today because I have looked at the weather and the sun is going to be shining all afternoon in Dover. That means the track is going to be very loose and the drivers are going to be complaining all afternoon. It seems like we are going to see a good race today and I am excited for another Dover shootout.
5. My Pick to Win
Along the same lines as Dover being a difficult track on the NASCAR circuit, a winner is tough to come by in some cases. Look at both races last year. In the spring, Jimmie Johnson was going to be the winner for sure on the final restart, but he jumped out ahead of Juan Pablo Montoya and he received a penalty that took him out of contention for the win. Montoya then moved into position to win the race, but Tony Stewart flew past him in the final laps to take the win. In the fall, Jimmie Johnson was out front in the last thirty laps, but he wasn't the guy with the best tires. Dale Earnhardt Jr. had the best tires of the front runners and he was close to passing Johnson one time, but Johnson was able to run away and take the win he had lost just a few months before. I feel today's race will be the same way. There will be a guy who is most likely going to win the race, but something happens and the driver with the best opportunity will take the win. Still, though, there are some guys I am going to look at as possible winners. Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kasey Kahne, Joey Logano, Brad Keselowski, Denny Hamlin, and Tony Stewart are good picks to win today's race at Dover. Also, look at Ryan Newman and A.J. Allmendinger as a couple of underdog drivers who could steal the win this afternoon. I am pretty excited for this race today and, unfortunately, I won't be able to write about. I will be watching it, though, to see what happens when NASCAR's best take on “The Monster Mile”. Well, that is all for me today and until we meet again.
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