Kevin Harvick Holds Off a Late Charge From Kyle Busch to Win at Atlanta

         Kevin Harvick was able to hold off Kyle Busch late in the race to win his first NNS race of the season at Atlanta. Harvick reported to his team with thirty laps to go that he had a vibration caused by a loose wheel, but he decided to stay on track. The caution waved with only fourteen laps to go. This left Harvick with a chance to stop and change his tires. The race had only seven laps to go and Kyle Busch was coming hard on the restart, but Harvick had enough adjustments and tires to hold off for the victory. Harvick was the dominator of the race with 132 of 195 laps led, but the race almost ended like the past two years at Atlanta for Harvick with a dominating car and no trophy to show for it afterwards. Once again, the battle for the Drivers championship heated up. To add to that, the Owners Points battle stayed close. All in all, it was a pretty good race with a lot championship implications occurring during the race.

        Kyle Busch started on the pole. It was Busch's seventh pole of the NNS season and in the previous six he had captured the flag at the end of the race. The race went green and Busch was able to lead the first lap. Early on, Busch ran away from the field and it looked like he would be dominating once again. The race continued on until a rookie of the year contender had trouble on lap 34. Alex Bowman, who was running near the top 10, made an unscheduled pit stop. His car was smoking as it sat on pit road and his team started checking under the hood. The smoke was diagnosed as a engine problem and Bowman would not be able to return to the race. It was a short time after this that the first caution of the race waved on lap 36. Robert Richardson Jr. got loose exiting turn 2 and slid down the track. He slammed his front nose into the inside wall and slid back on track. Richardson was not hit by any other drivers, but he had a little bit of front end damage. Reed Sorenson received the lucky dog. This race was a little different in terms of strategy. Since the surface of Atlanta hasn't been paved since 1997, tires are key. Because of this, four tires would be a mainstay in the race. This was the case on the first caution as all the drivers who pitted took four tires. This would be interesting as the race entered the late stages because each pit crew knew what they would have to do, but they had to be perfect doing it.

         The race went back green once again and Austin Dillon was able to get by Kyle Busch on the restart. Busch fought back and was able to lead the lap, but Dillon continued to fight back. Their battle continued until the second caution of the race on lap 43. Kasey Kahne got loose in turn 3 and went for a slide. He went down the track, but all the drivers behind him were able to avoid. He was able to get his car stopped just at the exit of turn 4 and he did not have damage, but his all important tires were down. Nelson Piquet Jr. received damage when he went up the track trying to avoid the wreck and made contact with Travis Pastrana. Piquet's damage was not too significant. Jeff Green received the lucky dog. Kasey Kahne and Nelson Piquet Jr. were the only drivers to come to pit road during the caution. Like previously stated, Kahne had flattened all his tires and had a limited amount of sets. Luckily for him, NASCAR allowed his team to get an extra set since the previous set had only went four laps. This could be a key moment for Kahne at the end of the race. The race went back green and Kyle Busch jumped out to the lead on the restart. It was a short time after this that Kevin Harvick was able to reel Busch in and pass him for the lead on lap 60. Harvick immediately drove away from the field and proved he would be a dominator in the race. The race continued on until an Owners Points contender had trouble.

        Joey Logano, who was running second and driving the #22 that was at the top of the Owners Points standings, had trouble on lap 87. Logano lost a right front tire and slammed the outside wall in turn 2. He made it back around to pit road with a little bit of damage. His night would not be affected because his team was able to replace all four tires and send him back out on track. This led to the first round of green flag pit stops of the race on lap 90. Kevin Harvick cycled around to the lead after the stops with Joey Logano, who had just run into the wall, running second. It was a short time after this that the third caution of the race waved on lap 104. Debris was spotted on the backstretch of the track. Michael Annett received the lucky dog. All the drivers near the front decided to stay out and save their tires for later in the race. The race went back green once again and continued on until Kyle Busch would have some trouble.

        Around lap 120, Busch, who had fallen back after leading the early part of the race, made contact with the wall exiting turn 4. He had noticeable damage on the right rear, but a peculiar thing happened because of this damage. Busch actually started to pick up at least three tenths of a second a lap on the leader Harvick. He made his way to the top 4 and it would be interesting to see if the damage actually propelled him to the victory. This led to the second and final round of green flag pit stops of the race on lap 143. Kevin Harvick once again cycled to the lead with Joey Logano continuing to run in second. Harvick had enough fuel to make it to the finish and he had a nice, comfortable lead. The caution did not look like it would wave and Harvick would cruise to the win. The caution did not wave and scare Harvick immediately, but something else would.

        On lap 165 with thirty laps to go, Harvick reported to his team that he had a pretty serious vibration. He said that the vibration was probably caused by a loose left side wheel. If he pitted to replace the tire, his chances for victory were completely losT. If he did not pit, the tire could come completely off or even cause the nut to not allow another tire to be put on. If the caution waved and saved him, he would have a chance to replace the tire, but his lead would be gone and he would have to hold off Logano and Busch. It looked like Harvick was in a lose-lose situation in all three scenarios, but his team was going to let it play out. Harvick did not have to pit, but the fourth and final caution waved on lap 181. Jeff Green thought he had cleared Ken Butler on the frontstretch, but he wasn't and the two made contact. Green hit the wall nose first and then slammed the passenger side of his car hard into the outside wall. His car stopped in the entrance to turn 1 with heavy damage, but Green was okay. Brian Scott received the lucky dog. Now, the final bit of strategy would be used to end the race.

        Kevin Harvick, who now had a chance to replace the loose wheel, led the charge of nine lead lap drivers onto pit road. All nine of the drivers took four tires with Harvick coming out as the leader. He decided to take the inside line on the restart with Joey Logano on his outside. The green waved for the final time and Logano spun the tires. This left the battle for the win to Harvick, Kyle Busch, and Kasey Kahne. Kahne fell back early in the run, but Busch and Harvick began to battle hard. They stayed side by side for the first few laps after the restart, but Harvick was able to get out in front. Finally, the white flag waved for Harvick and Busch would have two chances to win. He dove hard into turn 1 and looked for the outside on Harvick. Busch got just a little loose and had to save it. This gave Harvick enough advantage to take to the line and win his second NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Atlanta. It was a very cool win for Harvick after having no NNS wins up to this point in the season.

        Kevin Harvick has been very consistent and good this year in both Cup and Nationwide, but he has been very quiet. He has two wins and sits fourth in the Cup standings, but not too many people are talking about him. This could give him an advantage as the series heads to the Chase in two races to grab hold of his first Cup championship. It was a pretty quiet day for most of the Nationwide regulars. Trevor Bayne finished sixth, Austin Dillon finished seventh, Regan Smith finished ninth, Justin Allgaier finished eleventh, Brian Vickers finished fifteenth, and Elliott Sadler finished eighteenth. Sam Hornish Jr. was the only regular to have a very good day with a third place finish. This allowed him to hold an advantage over Austin Dillon in the points, but it is still very slim with nine races to go. The Owners Points battle stayed close still. Kyle Busch finished second while Joey Logano finished sixth, but the #22 of Logano still holds the advantage. With these two battles staying as close as ever, it should be a good battle for the rest of the season. The series heads to the always action packed Richmond International Raceway. Will Brad Keselowski return and repeat at Richmond, will Nelson Piquet Jr. and Brian Scott have another kick boxing match after the race, or will a points contender move ever closer to a championship? We will have to find out next week.
(More Stats Down Below!)





Cautions:
1st Caution: Lap 36- Robert Richardson Jr. got loose exiting turn 2 and went for a spin down the track.

2nd Caution: Lap 43- Kasey Kahne got loose exiting turn 4 and went for a spin down the track. Nelson Piquet Jr. made contact with Travis Pastrana and received some damage while trying to avoid Kahne.

3rd Caution: Lap 104- Debris was spotted on the backstretch of the track.

4th Caution: Lap 181- Jeff Green made contact with Ken Butler after Green thought he was clear. Green slammed the outside wall hard twice and ended up stopped at the entrance to turn 1. Green was okay after the wreck.

Lucky Dogs:
1st Caution: Reed Sorenson
2nd Caution: Jeff Green
3rd Caution: Michael Annett
4th Caution: Brian Scott

Top 5 Finishers:
1st: Kevin Harvick
2nd: Kyle Busch
3rd: Sam Hornish Jr.
4th: Kasey Kahne
5th: Kyle Larson

Notables Not in Top 5:
6th: Joey Logano
8th: Austin Dillon
9th: Regan Smith
15th: Brian Vickers
17th: Travis Pastrana
18th: Elliott Sadler
34th: Alex Bowman




Credits:
-My Own Notes
-Statistics:
http://www.nascar.com/en_us/nationwide-series/leaderboard/leaderboard-live.html
http://racing-reference.info/race/2013_Great_Clips_Grit_Chips_300/B
-Image:
https://twitter.com/amsupdates/status/373995027065630720/photo/1

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Grabs His First Career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Pole at Atlanta

         With a time of 29.227 seconds (189.688 mph), Ricky Stenhouse Jr. grabbed his first career pole in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Stenhouse took the pole from his teammate, Carl Edwards, and was able to outlast runs from drivers like Kasey Kahne and A.J. Allmendinger to take the top spot. The session was filled with a good amount of surprises. A.J. Allmendinger will roll off 13th on Sunday with David Ragan one spot behind him in 14th. Other drivers will have to make their way from the back. Brad Keselowski, Greg Biffle, Kevin Harvick, and Kurt Busch will start 20th on back and a few of these drivers need a win to solidify their Chase spots. All in all, it was a competitive session that left a lot of questions heading into the penultimate round of the regular season.

        J.J. Yeley was the first driver on track. Yeley had an incident in practice and he decided to feel out his car during his lap, which caused his lap to be very slow. Early in the session, it was obvious that Kyle Busch was there to grab the pole. He blistered the first three drivers who went out in front of him and took the provisional pole. Drivers like Jimmie Johnson, Clint Bowyer, Kevin Harvick, and Kurt Busch were unable to best Busch's lap. In fact, Busch held the provisional pole until his teammate, Denny Hamlin, took it away seventeen drivers later. Matt Kenseth went out after Hamlin and qualified second, which gave Joe Gibbs Racing the 1-2-3 provisional spots up to that point in qualifying. Jeff Gordon quickly put an end to that with a second place run immediately after Kenseth. Hamlin stayed on the provisional pole until Carl Edwards was able to best his lap. This led to the first and only change in qualifying order in the session with Michael McDowell. McDowell was put on the five minute clock and he was unable to run a lap, but he is still in the race because only 43 drivers attempted to qualify. Edwards lap looked really good and he was able to hold off Juan Pablo Montoya and Martin Truex Jr. easily. It looked like he had the pole, but Ricky Stenhouse Jr. had something to say about that. He went out and ran the bottom of the track just like his owner, Jack Roush, told him to do. Stenhouse's lap looked nearly perfect and he took the top spot. Kasey Kahne and A.J. Allmendinger could not out do him and Stenhouse took his first career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series pole. It was a very historic day for Stenhouse and he will look to take his first pole to his first win.

        Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has had a very consistent year for a Sprint Cup Series rookie. Even though he does not have a top 10 finish, he has run solidly up front and has a season high finish of 11th at Daytona and Kansas earlier this year. Even though he has not really been in contention for a win, he has been doing what he should be doing and that is finishing races in the top 20. This qualifying session was a very good set up for the next to last race before the Chase. Jeff Gordon and Martin Truex Jr., who are both looking for Chase spots, qualified in the top 7 while Kurt Busch and Brad Keselowski, who are also looking for Chase spots, qualified outside the top 20. It should be interesting to see who sits in prime position to make it into the Chase before the series heads to the final regular season race of the season at Richmond. I would not recommend missing Sunday's race at Atlanta because it should be a constant battle for position and postseason glory.
(More Stats Down Below!)




Top 5 Qualifiers (With Times):
1st: Ricky Stenhouse Jr.     29.227 (189.688 mph)
2nd: Carl Edwards      29.330 (189.021 mph)
3rd: Juan Pablo Montoya     29.405 (188.539 mph)
4th: Denny Hamlin      29.406 (188.533 mph)
5th: Jeff Gordon     29.481 (188.053 mph)

Notables Not in Top 5 (With Times):
6th: Matt Kenseth     29.492 (187.983 mph)
8th: Dale Earnhardt Jr.    29.565 (187.519 mph) 
9th: Kyle Busch     29.570 (187.487 mph)
10th: Jimmie Johnson     29.572 (187.475 mph)
18th: Kasey Kahne     29.719 (186.547 mph)
21st: Danica Patrick     29.789 (186.109 mph) 
23rd: Brad Keselowski      29.851 (185.722 mph)
30th: Kevin Harvick      30.011 (184.732 mph)
32nd: Kurt Busch      30.049 (184.499 mph)

DNQs: None




Credits:
-My Own Notes
-Statistics:
http://www.nascar.com/en_us/sprint-cup-series/leaderboard/leaderboard-qualification.html
-Image:
http://espn.go.com/racing/nascar/cup/story/_/id/9617399/ricky-stenhouse-jr-claims-1st-career-sprint-cup-pole-atlanta

Matt Kenseth Holds Off a Late Charge From Kasey Kahne to Win at Bristol

         Matt Kenseth had just enough fuel and the Bristol high line to hold off Kasey Kahne to win his fifth race of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Kahne pitted during the next to last caution while Kenseth decided to stay on track and hold onto the lead. Kahne was able to easily get to get past Jeff Gordon and Juan Pablo Montoya after the final caution to get near Kenseth. Somehow, Kenseth held off the much faster Kahne and took the win. It was a big win for Kenseth as he now has the most wins for a Chase driver, but Kahne walks away with his third second place finish to Kenseth of the year. The race itself was very good. There were a lot of drivers hitting the wall, drivers wrecking into each other, and a lot of problems that gave some underdogs good finishes, like David Ragan's twelfth place finish. All in all, it was a very good Saturday night race at the “World's Fastest Half-Mile”.

       Denny Hamlin started on the pole. It was Hamlin's first pole of the year. The race went green and he was able to lead the first lap of the race. It was a short time after this that Kurt Busch took the lead from Hamlin on lap 23 in lap traffic. This led to the first caution of the race on lap 40. Ryan Truex, who was making his Sprint Cup debut, blew a tire entering turn 3 and slammed the outside wall. He had a good bit of damage and would not continue on in the race. David Stremme received the lucky dog. The strategy session started early in the race. The top 7 drivers stayed out with Jeff Gordon, Jeff Burton, Josh Wise, Joey Logano, Brian Vickers, and Casey Mears also staying out while Ryan Newman, Kasey Kahne, Brad Keselowski, and Aric Almirola led the charge to pit road. One of these contenders would have trouble. Brad Keselowski finished his stop and pulled out of his box. He was at an awkward angle behind Marcos Ambrose and had to carefully slide out. As he did, David Reutimann, who was two boxes in front of him, was pulling into his pit stall. Keselowski slammed into the left rear quarter panel of Reutimann's car. Keselowski was able to get back going without damage, but Reutimann had a good bit of damage and had to come back around to stop. It was a very good move for Keselowski to avoid getting damage, but Reutimann could not.

        The race went back green and Kurt Busch was able to jump out to the lead. It would be a short time before his race turned from great to horrible for him. On lap 77, Busch slowed down and lost the lead. He fell all the way back to fifth and finally came down pit road. He reported to his team that it was a loose wheel. His team replaced all four tires and sent him back out. His situation became even worse as he received a speeding penalty on pit road and had to make a pass through. It seemed like the situation could not get worse, but it would. He had ran too long on the loose wheel and the studs on his hub had become threaded. He had to report behind the wall and the team replaced the hub, but he was too many laps down to get a good finish. This led to the second caution of the race on lap 89. Kurt Busch, who had not went behind the wall yet, got loose in turn 1 and made contact with Josh Wise. Wise went up the track and slammed the outside wall. He received a good bit of damage and would not be a factor in the race anymore. Casey Mears received the lucky dog. Another strategy session occurred during this caution. Dale Earnhardt Jr., Clint Bowyer, Juan Pablo Montoya, Bobby Labonte, Paul Menard, Greg Biffle, and David Ragan did not pit while Ryan Newman, Aric Almirola, Kyle Busch, and others took two tires with all the others taking four tires. It would be interesting to see which strategy worked in the end.

        The race went back green once again and Kyle Busch's two tire move immediately looked bad. The car seemed very loose and he was sliding back. His loose race car would cost him. In turn 3 on lap 106, Busch got loose and went up the track. Joey Logano was there and the two drivers made contact causing Busch to get a good bit of rear damage and Logano to get a lot of front end damage. This resulted in the third caution of the race. Travis Kvapil received the lucky dog. This led to even more strategy during the caution. David Ragan, Kyle Busch, Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, and other drivers behind them came down pit road. Kyle Busch would receive a penalty for having too many men over the wall. The race went back green once again and Dale Earnhardt Jr. continued to lead the race. On lap 126, Clint Bowyer was finally able to get past Earnhardt Jr. to take the lead. Bowyer quickly got away from the field, but his race would suddenly get very bad. On lap 176, Bowyer made a move to the outside of Travis Kvapil in turn 4 and Kvapil went up the track. The two made contact and this sent Bowyer for a spin. He came to a stop on the frontstretch, but he was not out of the clear yet. Bobby Labonte was trying to avoid Bowyer, but he spun and slammed into Bowyer's door. Both drivers drove away with Labonte having much more damage than Bowyer. This resulted in the fourth caution of the race. David Gilliland received the lucky dog. Even more strategy was used during this caution period. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Denny Hamlin took two tires while the rest of the drivers took four tires. Joey Logano, Paul Menard, and David Ragan received speeding penalties on pit road. It would be interesting to see if they could get back to the front.

        The race went back green and Carl Edwards was able to jump to the front of the field. He ran away from the field and held the lead until the fifth caution on lap 201. Tony Raines went up the track in turn 4 and made slight contact with Jimmie Johnson. Neither driver received too much damage. Dave Blaney received the lucky dog. Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon pitted with some other drivers. Gordon, who was running third, had to pit because the temperatures were rising in his car. The race went back green once again and Carl Edwards jumped out to the lead. It would be short lived as Matt Kenseth got by him on lap 236. A short time after this, the sixth caution waved on lap 256. Debris was spotted on the backstretch of the track. David Stremme received the lucky dog. Another strategy session occurred during the caution. Paul Menard and Kyle Busch stayed on track while Dale Earnhardt Jr., Juan Pablo Montoya, and others took two tires with the other drivers taking four tires. The leader before the stops, Matt Kenseth, was caught speeding on pit road and would have to go to the back. It would be interesting to see if he makes it back to the front. 

        The race went back green and Paul Menard jumped out to the lead. He did a good job holding onto the lead considering he did not pit, but he lost the lead to Carl Edwards on lap 323. This led to the seventh caution of the race on lap 333. David Gilliland and Bobby Labonte made contact on track and left some debris in turn 3. David Gilliland received the lucky dog. Strategy once again began to pick up during the caution. Kevin Harvick, Matt Kenseth, David Reutimann, and Clint Bowyer took two tires while the other lead lap cars took four tires. Juan Pablo Montoya was caught speeding on pit road and would have to move to the back. The race went back green and Kevin Harvick was able to get away a little bit, but Carl Edwards caught up and took the lead. It was a short time after this that the eighth caution waved on lap 358. Brian Vickers bumped David Reutimann entering turn 4 and caused Reutimann to spin. Reutimann made sight contact with the wall and went down to the middle of the track. Jimmie Johnson had nowhere to go and hit him in the back. Both drivers received a good bit of damage. Casey Mears received the lucky dog. Strategy once again was the main theme of the caution period. Kevin Harvick, Juan Pablo Montoya, Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, and others decided to come down pit road. The race went back green and Carl Edwards once again jumped out to the lead. This led to the ninth caution of the race on lap 374. Juan Pablo Montoya bumped David Stremme entering turn 1. Stremme went up the track and hit Jeff Burton causing Burton to spin down track. He did not hit any cars and did not tap the wall. Travis Kvapil received the lucky dog. No strategy occurred during the caution and the race went back green. On the restart, a contender would have trouble.

       Carl Edwards fell back a little on the restart and then he really started to fall back. He reported to his team that he had a possible broken valve spring. He eventually slowed enough that he went to pit road. His team decided that the engine was finished and he did not return to the race. It was very costly considering how good Edwards had been and now Matt Kenseth, who had a speeding penalty earlier, took the lead. The race went a little while before the tenth caution on lap 438. Debris was spotted on the frontstretch of the track. The final bit of strategy occurred during this caution. Kasey Kahne, Martin Truex Jr., Kevin Harvick, Ryan Newman, and others pitted while Matt Kenseth, Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and others stayed on track. Now, it was a fuel strategy race and only the drivers who pitted during this caution knew they could make it. 

        The race went back green and it was a very short time before the eleventh and final caution of the race on lap 446. Brian Vickers went up the track on Denny Hamlin on the frontstretch and Hamlin's tire blew. Entering turn 1, Hamlin had no control over his car and he went up the track and hit Ryan Newman. This caused Brad Keselowski, Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr., David Stremme, Ken Schrader, and Casey Mears to pile up in the corner. Most of the drivers had huge amounts of damage and would not return to the race. Aric Almirola received the lucky dog. The amount of debris on the track led NASCAR to throw the red flag to allow the track to be cleaned. It was brought in after a short time and the final race to the checkered flag would begin.

        The race went back green for the final time and Matt Kenseth jumped out to the lead, but Kasey Kahne was coming. Kahne moved from fourth to second in a short time after the green flag. With only thirty laps to go, Kahne moved close to Kenseth and the two began to battle for the win. Kahne was much faster with new tires and plenty of fuel, but Kenseth was holding him off well. With only ten laps to go, Kenseth still held the lead from Kahne. Kahne could get up next to him and try to pass, but he couldn't complete the move. Finally, the white flag waved and Kenseth looked to hold the lead. Kahne tried to spin him, but he couldn't get to the bumper and Kenseth sailed to the win. It was a nice insurance win for Kenseth, but Kahne could have used it to make sure he gets a wild card.

        Matt Kenseth has been very dominant this year. He already has clinched his spot for the Chase and has five wins that could put him at the top of the standings for the Chase. Kasey Kahne needed that win for his wild card hopes, but he moved to eighth and looks like he will be able to use his two wins for bonus points in the Chase. It was definitely a struggle for Jimmie Johnson again. He ended up finishing 36th after the contact with David Reutimann. He lost some more points, but he is still the points leader and is locked into the Chase. Once again, the wild card battle heated up. Joey Logano moved into the top 10 and Brad Keselowski fell out of the top 10. Ryan Newman and Martin Truex Jr. took the wild card spots heading into the Chase. With two chances left to win before the Chase, this battle is sure to get even more dicey. The series heads to Atlanta Motor Speedway next week. Will Denny Hamlin repeat, will Kasey Kahne avenge his third second place finish to Matt Kenseth of the season, or will a person outside of the top 10 move into it? We will have to find out next week.
(More Stats Down Below!)




Cautions:
1st Caution: Lap 40- Ryan Truex blew a tire entering turn 3 and slammed the outside wall.

2nd Caution: Lap 89- Kurt Busch got loose in turn 1 and made contact with Josh Wise. Wise slammed the outside wall due to the contact. 

3rd Caution: Lap 106- Kyle Busch got loose in turn 3 and went up the track. Joey Logano was there and the two drivers made contact.

4th Caution: Lap 176- Travis Kvapil tapped Clint Bowyer in turn 4 and sent him for a spin. Bobby Labonte spun while trying to avoid Bowyer and slammed into him. 

5th Caution: Lap 201- Tony Raines went up the track in turn 4 and made slight contact with Jimmie Johnson.

6th Caution: Lap 256- Debris was spotted on the backstretch of the track.

7th Caution: Lap 333- David Gilliland and Bobby Labonte made contact which left debris on track.

8th Caution: Lap 358- Brian Vickers bumped David Reutimann entering turn 4 and caused him to spin. Reutimann made slight contact with the wall and Jimmie Johnson slammed into his back.

9th Caution: Lap 374- Juan Pablo Montoya bumped David Stremme entering turn 1. Stremme went up track and made contact with Jeff Burton causing Burton to spin down track.

10th Caution: Lap 438-  Debris was spotted on the frontstretch of the track.

11th Caution: Lap 446- Brian Vickers went up the track on Denny Hamlin on the frontstretch and blew his tire. Hamlin went into turn 1 and went up the track. He made contact with Ryan Newman and Brad Keselowski, Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr., David Stremme, Ken Schrader, and Casey Mears got involved.

Lucky Dogs:
1st Caution: David Stremme
2nd Caution: Casey Mears 
3rd Caution: Travis Kvapil
4th Caution: David Gilliland
5th Caution: Dave Blaney
6th Caution: David Stremme
7th Caution: David Gilliland
8th Caution: Casey Mears
9th Caution: Travis Kvapil
10th Caution: Jeff Burton
11th Caution: Aric Almirola

Top 5 Finishers:
1st: Matt Kenseth
2nd: Kasey Kahne
3rd: Juan Pablo Montoya
4th: Brian Vickers
5th: Joey Logano

Notables Not in Top 5:
7th: Jeff Gordon
10th: Dale Earnhardt Jr.
11th: Kyle Busch
14th: Clint Bowyer
26th: Danica Patrick
30th: Brad Keselowski
31st: Kurt Busch
34th: Kevin Harvick
35th: Martin Truex Jr.
36th: Jimmie Johnson
39th: Carl Edwards




Credits:
-My Own Notes
-Statistics:
http://www.nascar.com/en_us/sprint-cup-series/leaderboard/leaderboard-live.html
http://racing-reference.info/race/2013_Irwin_Tools_Night_Race/W
-Image:
http://d3s695o1g63xqg.cloudfront.net/gLl7c15lM4.jpg

Kyle Busch Dominates and Wins His Sixth NNS Race This Season When Starting on the Pole at Bristol

        After leading 228 of the 250 laps, Kyle Busch took his ninth win of the season in the NASCAR Nationwide Series and his sixth win when he started on the pole. He held the lead from Brad Keselowski on the final restart and was able to hold a late charge from Keselowski to win the race. Busch fell back in a little traffic during the middle part of the race, but he took the lead from Kyle Larson for the second and final lead change of the race. Busch was also the fastest car on the track for most of the race. The race was not without its spills and thrills. Because the high line was the best lane, many drivers drove too hard and made contact with the wall. Plus, some tempers flared when two drivers got together. All in all, it was a good race to watch some amazing Bristol night racing.

       Kyle Busch started on the pole. It was his sixth NNS pole of the season. The race went green and Busch immediately jumped out to the lead and was able to lead the first lap. Early in the race, we found out what the race would be like. Brian Scott, who was running near the front, hit the wall in turn 3 while Kyle Larson hit the wall in turn 2. Both drivers continued on, but it was obvious the wall would take a lot of prisoners. The race went a short while before the first contender had trouble. Alex Bowman came down pit road on lap 34. He had made contact with the wall, but he pitted due to an even more severe problem. His car was shutting off during the race and the team decided to change the carburetor. This put him a lot of laps down and he did not have a chance for a good finish. This led to the first caution of the race on lap 65. Debris was spotted on the track in turn 2. Drew Herring received the lucky dog. This is where strategy became a part in the race. Most of the lead lap drivers decided to pit for four tires and fuel while Kyle Busch, the leader, decided to stay on track. It would be interesting to see if this move paid off for him.

        The race went back green and Kyle Busch was able to jump out ahead of the drivers who pitted.  The race continued on until the second caution on lap 106. Nelson Piquet Jr. got loose in turn 3 and went for a slide. He went down the track and almost clipped Elliott Sadler, but both drivers got away from near disaster. Piquet was able to get back going after he righted his car. Drew Herring received the lucky dog. More strategy was used during this caution flag. Kyle Larson decided to stay out with Trevor Bayne and Brian Scott taking two tires and the rest of the lead lap drivers taking four tires. This gave Kyle Larson the lead on the restart. The race went back green and Larson immediately jumped out to the lead. It seemed like he could hold it, but Kyle Busch was coming. On lap 129, Kyle Busch got to Larson and made a daring pass. The two leaders went three wide with Reed Sorenson crossing the line and somehow, Busch made contact with Sorenson and didn't hit the wall. The amazing thing was that he took the lead while making this move. A few laps later, an championship and race contender would have trouble.

        On lap 131, Regan Smith came to pit road. Since the restart, he had reported a vibration on his car and it got to where he could not handle it. The team replaced all four tires and found out that a wheel had cracked and caused the vibration. This unscheduled stop left Smith a few laps down and without a chance to get back in contention. This led to the third caution of the race on lap 153. Mike Bliss and Drew Herring made contact on the backstretch. This caused Herring to spin and slam hard into the inside wall. His car went back up the track, but he was not hit by any other drivers. His car was destroyed and he was forced to get out and take the mandatory ride to the infield care center. Before he would do this, he would express his displeasure. As Mike Bliss came by, Herring pointed his finger at him and pointed towards the infield where they would talk about it later. The situation did not result in a fight, but Herring was not happy. No drivers received the lucky dog. A final bit of strategy happened during this caution. Kyle Busch, Brad Keselowski, Kasey Kahne, and Justin Allgaier stayed on track while the rest of the lead lap drivers pitted for four tires. The race went back green and Kyle Busch once again jumped out to the lead. It was an interesting restart as Regan Smith went high and got into the wall. He was running real slow on track and drivers were going three wide past him. As they were doing this, Jeremy Clements got loose and made slight contact with the wall, but was able to continue on. At the same time, the fourth and final caution came out on lap 167. Brian Vickers went up the track and hit the wall in turn 4. He slid down the track and clipped Parker Kligerman. Kligerman slammed the outside wall and then hit the inside wall while Vickers stopped next to the inside wall. Both cars were destroyed, but Vickers would get out a little later even though he had no chance for a good finish. Elliott Sadler received the lucky dog. A final bit of strategy was used during this caution. Justin Allgaier and Kasey Kahne stopped with Elliott Sadler. This would be the last restart of the race and it would be interesting to see who jumped out to the lead.

        The race went back green for the final time and Kyle Busch got away from the field with Brad Keselowski behind him. As the race progressed, Busch entered lap traffic and Keselowski came very close to Busch. When he got close, he slipped up a little bit and Busch was able to get away once again. The drivers behind them were still beating and banging. The caution would not wave again and Kyle Busch cruised to the win. He did his new style of burnout with his body hanging outside of the car. It was a big win for Busch as he had won the Truck Series race on Wednesday and will look to sweep the weekend.

        What can you say about Kyle Busch. If he starts out front, he is going to win the race. Usually, he does that in really dominating fashion and this race was no different. The main story line after the race was the amount of championship contenders who had trouble. Regan Smith fell back after a cracked wheel, Brian Vickers wrecked late in the race, Elliott Sadler started way back and didn't move up well, and Sam Hornish Jr. was running on seven cylinders for most of the race. The only two drivers who had decent days were Justin Allgaier and Austin Dillon. Even through all that, Sam Hornish Jr. was able to hold onto his points lead. Plus, the Owners Points battle heated up again. The #54 team moved within sixteen points of the #22 team. If Kyle Busch wins a couple more races, the owners points championship could be his. The series two points battles should heat up as the series heads to the Atlanta Motor Speedway. Will Kyle Busch go back to back, will Brad Keselowski return to victory lane in the #22, or will a points contender solidify his name as the leader? We will have to find out next Saturday night.
(More Stats Down Below!)




Cautions:
1st Caution: Lap 65- Debris was spotted on the track in turn 2.

2nd Caution: Lap 106- Nelson Piquet Jr. got loose in turn 3 and went for a slide down the track. He did not hit the wall or any other cars.

3rd Caution: Lap 153- Mike Bliss and Drew Herring made contact on the backstretch which caused Herring to slide down the track and slam the inside wall.

4th Caution: Lap 167- Brian Vickers went up the track and made contact with the wall in turn 4. He slid down track and clipped Parker Kligerman causing him to slam the outside wall.

Lucky Dogs:
1st Caution: Drew Herring
2nd Caution: Drew Herring
3rd Caution: None
4th Caution: Elliott Sadler

Top 5 Finishers:
1st: Kyle Busch
2nd: Brad Keselowski
3rd: Austin Dillon
4th: Justin Allgaier
5th: Kyle Larson

Notables Not in Top 5:
8th: Kasey Kahne
10th: Elliott Sadler
12th: Travis Pastrana
13th: Sam Hornish Jr.
21st: Regan Smith
33rd: Alex Bowman
34th: Brian Vickers
35th: Parker Kligerman




Credits:
-My Own Notes
-Statistics:
http://www.nascar.com/en_us/nationwide-series/leaderboard/leaderboard-live.html
http://racing-reference.info/race/2013_Food_City_250/B
-Image:
http://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/43542b05a66c205b0c60b93c0d6024827552012d/ttl=120&r=x404&c=534x401/local/-/media/USATODAY/test/2013/08/23/1377309471000-082313-kyle-busch.jpg

My Thoughts: Bristol

        This week, we head to the greatest half mile oval in the world known as Bristol Motor Speedway. One thing we always know heading into the night race at Bristol is that fights are going to happen and tempers are going to flare. In this installment, we are going to talk about some tempers flaring in the spring race, one driver being told he can not race for the rest of the season, one driver given a ride for 12 of the final 13 races, and another driver moving to Cup in 2014. Let us not waste any more time and get started.

1. Denny Hamlin Vs. Joey Logano
       The most talked about event of the first part of the season was the extreme situation between Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano. The situation began to heat up when Hamlin wrecked Logano at Bristol while Logano was running at or near the front. Logano was not happy with Hamlin and the two shared words at the end of the race while crew members pushed and shoved. A week later, the situation completely erupted at Auto Club. Coming to the checkered flag, Hamlin and Logano once again wrecked going for the win. This time it would end up much worse than a rivalry. Hamlin spun towards the inside wall and slammed it. His car lifted off the ground and came to a stop. He jumped out of the car, but he was in a lot of pain. He had hurt his back and would miss a bunch of races. Now, we head back to the same track with Hamlin starting on the pole. I personally think this rivalry could spark up again, but I definitely don't want it to. Hamlin has barely recovered from his back injury and needs to take it slow before paying him back. If it does happen again, it could be a very hostile and angry situation.

2. Tony Stewart Out For Rest of Season
       The Tony Stewart saga has been going on for about three weeks now. Since he broke his leg in a sprint car crash, everybody has been wondering how long he would be gone and who would drive the car during this time. Now, we know both, but I want to talk about them separately. It was announced that Stewart would not return to his ride for the rest of the season. He will most likely be ready in time for preseason testing in January of 2014. To me, I think this is a good idea for the team. I know it is a sad situation that Stewart is in, but the team is handling this the right way. If you put him back in this year, you could shorten his career and cause him to lose a lot of wins. Since they are waiting, it gives him the proper amount of time to heal and make sure he is ready. Plus, the team is not making moves without him. According to practice yesterday, Stewart has a radio at his house that allows him to communicate with the team. Now that is pretty cool and innovative.

3. Mark Martin Replacing Tony Stewart For 12 Races
        For the past three weeks, we have been wondering who would replace Tony Stewart as he is out. Now, we know the answer. Since he is out for the rest of the year, Mark Martin will take over for 12 races and Austin Dillon will jump in the car at Talladega. I don't care as much about the Dillon move as the Martin move. If I had to rank good moves in my memory of watching NASCAR, this is definitely near the top of the list. Not only do you get a driver who can win, but you get one who knows something about racing. Since Martin has been at Michael Waltrip Racing, the team has really improved and shown a lot of strength with him behind the wheel. Now, he heads to Stewart-Haas Racing who need help getting Ryan Newman in the Chase and I don't have to say anything more about Danica Patrick. With his help, their future looks really bright and they still have a chance for the Owners Points title.

4. Austin Dillon Moving to Cup In 2014
        It was definitely a busy week for the elder Dillon boy. First, it was announced that he will driver for Tony Stewart in one race and then it was announced he will drive full time for Richard Childress in Cup in 2014. Personally, I have a few differing opinions on the move. First, I think it is a good move. Childress has done a good job in grooming the elder of the two Dillon boys to make sure he is good before jumping to Cup. He is a Truck champion and is contending for the Nationwide championship this year. Another thing is that Dillon has good connections with other drivers. Tony Stewart and many others think he has a good future and that can go a long way in helping him. But there are some bad things for him now. The first thing is that he doesn't really have a stable teammate next year. Paul Menard is an okay driver, but he is not good in leading others. Jeff Burton has a lot of experience and wins, but he just hasn't been winning or running up front every week lately. A final bad thing is the number he is probably going to use. Childress is most likely going to put Dillon in Dale Earnhardt's famous number 3 for next season. This has been a definite topic of conversation since he has been on the Sprint Cup radar. Some people like the move, others don't really care, and others are about as mad as you can get about it. Personally it is just a number. Yes, it is a representation of a great racer, but we shouldn't have to remember him by his number. I am going to remember Jimmie Johnson for the great things he has done, but not the number 48. It just seems like to me people get too wound up about the subject. The only thing Dillon could have trouble with in the number three is that people will expect a lot from him. If you jump in the Intimidator's car, you are expected to drive as good as the Intimidator. To me, that is the only problem Dillon could have with driving the three.

5. My Pick to Win
        Last time the series went to Bristol at night, Denny Hamlin walked away with the victory. He isn't a bad pick since he is on the pole, but I think I'm going to go with someone else. I am going to go with Kurt Busch. Busch qualified up front and has been at or near the top of the practice charts all weekend. If you don't like that pick, Denny Hamlin, Jimmie Johnson, Kasey Kahne, Carl Edwards, and Kyle Busch are good picks. Once again, I hope you guys enjoyed reading my opinions. If you have a differing opinion than mine, just let me know know what you think down below. As always, I will continue to talk with you guys and write as much as possible.






Credits:
-Image:
http://dy.snimg.com/story-image/5/43/4075692/113149-650-366.jpg

Kyle Busch Grabs His Fifth Pole of the NNS Season at Bristol

        With a time of 15.354 seconds (124.971 mph), Kyle Busch was able to win his fifth pole of the NNS season and thirty second career NNS pole. It has been a common theme for Busch this season and in his career. He does a good job at getting the pole and goes on to win the race, but he will have a lot of competition tonight at the “World's Fastest Half-Mile”. The session was probably the most interesting session of the year. There was a lot of competition for the pole, drivers spinning out and hitting the wall, and some others just flat running into the wall. Plus, there was a rain delay that almost ended the session. All in all, if you wanted to watch one qualifying session this year, it would definitely have to be this one.

      Martin Roy was the first driver on track. Tony Raines or Brad Teague (there have been conflicting reports of who was in the car) was scheduled to go out first, but the car was not ready and he went on the five minute clock. Roy ran a slow lap and would go on to miss the race. Raines or Teague went out second and ran a very slow lap, but he is locked into the field and will not miss the race. It was a very short time before Carl Long had the first incident of the day on his second lap. Coming into turn 2, Long got really loose and started to spin. He tried to save it, but his car backed into the outside wall and slid along the wall. He had a good amount of damage and he will miss the race. Immediately after this, the qualifying session entered a rain delay. The session stayed under delay for a little while, but it was able to get back going. Matt DiBenedetto was the second change in the qualifying order. He was also put on the five minute clock, but he was able to get on track and run a lap that put him in the race. Shortly after this, Mike Wallace was the third change in qualifying order. He had a problem in practice and had to go to a back-up car, but he was able to run a lap. David Starr had the second incident of the session on his second lap. Coming to the start/finish line to complete his first lap, his car began to smoke and it slowed down due to a possibly busted oil line. Because he had only run one lap and had to qualify on time, he missed the race. Josh Wise also had trouble on the second lap of his run. He hit the wall in turn 3 and received a little bit of damage, but it wasn't too bad and he is in the race. After him, Chad Hackenbracht was the fourth change in the qualifying order. He was scheduled to go in front of Wise, but he was given some time before he ran his lap. Throughout the session, the pole had switched back and forth between drivers, but Kyle Busch changed that. He went out and took the pole at a very quick pace with eight cars left to go. Kyle Larson, Justin Allgaier, Ty Dillon, and Brian Scott all gave good runs at him, but Busch took the pole for the Food City 250.

        If you are a stickler for statistics, like I am, then you will like this stat. If you are not a Kyle Busch fan, like I am, you probably won't. In the five races Kyle Busch has started on the pole in the NASCAR Nationwide Series this year, he has won all five. Even with this stat, there are a lot of drivers that can unseat him in the field. You have Kasey Kahne, Brad Keselowski, Austin Dillon, Regan Smith, and they guy Busch had a battle with to win at the Bristol race earlier this year, Kyle Larson. I would not recommend missing this race because tempers are going to flare, drivers are going to battle it out for the win, and drivers are sure to wreck on the track. The race is about to begin on ESPN and once again, I hope you don't miss it.
(More Stats Down Below!)





Top 5 Qualifiers (With Times):
1st: Kyle Busch    15.354 (124.971 mph)
2nd: Brian Scott     15.366 (124.873 mph)
3rd: Ty Dillon    15.368 (124.857 mph)
4th: Justin Allgaier     15.382 (124.743 mph)
5th: Kyle Larson     15.393 (124.654 mph)

Notables Not in Top 5 (With Times):
6th: Austin Dillon    15.474 (124.002 mph)
7th: Regan Smith     15.521 (123.626 mph)
9th: Brian Vickers     15.526 (123.586 mph)
11th: Travis Pastrana     15.552 (123.380 mph)
13th: Sam Hornish Jr.    15.557 (123.340 mph)
15th: Brad Keselowski    15.565 (123.277 mph)
16th: Kasey Kahne     15.582 (123.142 mph)

Go-or-Go Homers (With Times):
12th: Drew Herring    15.555 (123.356 mph)
17th: Cole Whitt    15.587 (123.103 mph)
19th: Kenny Wallace     15.630 (122.764 mph)
20th: Brendan Gaughan     15.642 (122.670 mph)
23rd: Kevin Swindell     15.697 (122.240 mph)
27th: Ryan Reed    15.733 (121.960 mph)
32nd: Josh Wise     15.810 (121.366 mph)
33rd: Matt DiBenedetto     15.895 (120.717 mph)
34th: Chase Miller     15.909 (120.611 mph)
40th: J.J. Yeley     15.950 (120.301 mph)
41st: Joey Gase     15.951 (120.293 mph)
42nd: Kevin Lepage     15.968 (120.165 mph)
43rd: David Starr     15.988 (120.015 mph)
44th: Carl Long    16.025 (119.738 mph)
45th: Michael McDowell    16.080 (119.328 mph)
46th: Mike Harmon     16.373 (117.193 mph)
47th: Martin Roy    16.498 (116.305 mph)
48th: Morgan Shepherd    16.585 (115.695 mph)

DNQs: Joey Gase, Kevin Lepage, David Starr, Carl Long, Michael McDowell, Mike Harmon, Martin Roy, and Morgan Shepherd




Credits:
-My Own Notes
-Statistics:
http://www.nascar.com/en_us/nationwide-series/leaderboard/leaderboard-qualification.html
http://racing-reference.info/getqualify/2013-23/B
-Image:
https://twitter.com/NASCAR_NNS/status/371025621326888960/photo/1

Joey Logano Starts and Finishes First En Route To His First Win of the Season at Michigan

         Joey Logano was blazing fast in qualifying to grab the pole and had enough fuel to win his first race of the season at Michigan. With 4 laps to go, Mark Martin, the leader of the race, ran out of gas and surrendered the lead to Logano. Logano was on the edge of running out of gas, but he had enough and Kevin Harvick was not able to chase him down. It was a great triumph for Logano, but Mark Martin came so close to a win, but did not. As his career goes on, his chances to win disappear, but he might have another chance soon. Hendrick Motorsports had another disappointing day. Even though Kasey Kahne finished seventh, Jimmie Johnson lost an engine and finished way back, Dale Earnhardt Jr. blew a tire and hit the wall, and Jeff Gordon did not have a race winning car and finished seventeenth. Michigan has been an Achilles heel for the team, but their record at other tracks really helps take away the sting. All in all, it was a very eventful race and one that had a rare winner.



        Joey Logano started on the pole. It was his first pole of the 2013 season and put him in the Sprint Unlimited. The race went green and Kurt Busch was able to get past Logano to lead the first lap of the race. The first lap was not without incident as the first caution of the race waved. Clint Bowyer got loose underneath Denny Hamlin exiting turn 4. Bowyer slid down the track and went through the grass, but he did not hit anything and was able to continue on after replacing his tires. No drivers received the lucky dog. The strategy started early in the race. Jimmie Johnson, who had to start at the back of the field because of a practice crash, came down to get fuel. He was hoping for a break to get track position and he might do it. The race went back green and Joey Logano did better on this restart. He got past Kurt Busch and took the lead. It was a short time before the second caution of the race waved on lap 8. David Reutimann got out of the groove and went up the track in turn 2. He slammed the outside wall and received a good bit of damage. No drivers received the lucky dog. Another session of strategy occurred. Jimmie Johnson, Austin Dillon, Trevor Bayne, Brendan Gaughan, and others came down pit road. The race went back green and the race went a short time until the third caution on lap 13. Austin Dillon got loose in turn 3 and went up the track. J.J. Yeley was there and the two made contact. Both went up and hit the wall. Yeley ended up backwards along the outside wall while Dillon slid down to the grass. Both had a little bit of damage and Yeley would not return to the race. David Reutimann, who had wrecked earlier, received the lucky dog. Kasey Kahne, Marcos Ambrose, and others pitted to end the strategy for a while. After 3 cautions in 13 laps, the cautions would stay away for a little while.

       The race went back green and Joey Logano jumped out to the lead. He held onto the lead and began to enter lap traffic twenty laps laps later. On lap 33, Kurt Busch was able to get past Logano for the lead due to the lap traffic. Shortly after this, the first round of green flag pit stops of the race began on lap 38. Kurt Busch finally pitted on lap 43 and surrendered the lead to Dale Earnhardt Jr. Earnhardt pitted on the next lap and gave the lead to Jimmie Johnson with Kasey Kahne running second. Both of these drivers pitted and gave the lead to Dale Earnhardt Jr. Earnhardt had only taken two tires and moved up front. Kurt Busch, who had been leading, lost a lot of spots and ended up in traffic. Shortly after this, a race contender and championship leader would have trouble. Jimmie Johnson went down pit road on lap 57. His team checked under the hood and sent him back on track. Johnson just rode down on the apron and didn't get up to speed. He reported to his team that his engine was gone and his race was finished. It was a tough break and he would end up finishing in 40th place. This gave drivers a real advantage for a win and it would be interesting to see who would.

        The race continued on until the fourth caution on lap 71. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. blew a right front tire in turn 1 and slammed the outside wall. He received a lot of damage on the right side, but would continue on. Bobby Labonte received the lucky dog. Another strategy session happened during the caution. Most of the drivers came down to take two tires while Jeff Burton, Juan Pablo Montoya, and others took four tires. Denny Hamlin also decided to stay on track and take the lead. The race went back green and Hamlin was able to stay in the lead. On lap 78, Kurt Busch took the lead away and held it until the fifth caution on lap 106. Debris was spotted on the backstretch of the track. Mark Martin received the lucky dog. Another strategy session happened. Greg Biffle, Kyle Busch, Brad Keselowski, and others took two tires while Kurt Busch, Kevin Harvick, and others took four tires. This put Biffle in  the lead and gave him his first lead of the day. The race went back green and he jumped out to the lead. He was able to lead until the sixth caution came out on lap 135. The cause of the caution was a race contender having trouble.

        Dale Earnhardt Jr., who was running seventh, blew a tire in turn 2 and slammed the outside wall. Had had a good amount of damage and had to report to pit road. He would fall down a lot of laps and would not have a chance to win. Danica Patrick received the lucky dog. Most of the drivers took two tires while Jeff Burton and others took four tires. The race went back green and Joey Logano jumped out to the lead. The race continued on until the seventh caution on lap 149. Bobby Labonte got loose exiting turn 4. He went for a slide down the track, but he did not hit anything and continued on after replacing the tires on his car. Jamie McMurray received the lucky dog. Kyle Busch, Brad Keselowski, Mark Martin, and others decided to come down pit road.  They probably couldn't make it from here, but some would at least try.

        The race went back green and Joey Logano continued to lead. He held onto the lead until the eighth caution waved on lap 157. Kyle Busch got loose in turn 2 and went for a spin. He backed into the outside wall and had a good bit of damage. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. received the lucky dog. A final bit of strategy was used during this caution. Joey Logano, Kevin Harvick, Greg Biffle, and others took two tires and fuel while Ryan Newman, Carl Edwards, Jeff Burton, and others took just fuel. Brad Keselowski, David Ragan, Mark Martin, and Aric Almirola stayed out on track. This handed the lead to Brad Keselowski for the restart. The race went back green and Keselowski was able to hold the lead on the restart. He was looking to make it the rest of the way on fuel, but the ninth and final caution came out on lap 173. Kyle Busch got loose in turn 4 and spun down the racetrack. He ended up in the grass and didn't get damage, but his day ended up worse. This is where the strategy ended and the drivers were set for the end of the race. Brad Keselowski and Aric Almirola decided to play it safe and come get fuel while Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth, and others came down to make sure they could make it. This handed the lead to Mark Martin, who had decided to stay out. He would have to last fifty laps and only time would tell if he could.

        The race went back green and Joey Logano made a move on the leaders, Mark Martin and Kevin Harvick. They were three wide going into turn 1, but Mark Martin came out on top with Joey Logano in second and Kevin Harvick running third. The drivers continued to battle behind Martin and he was able to get away. Eventually, Logano made up time, but Martin was still leading. All he had to do was save enough fuel to stay up front. With four laps to go, Martin found out that he had not saved enough and ran out of gas. This handed the lead to Joey Logano, but he was unsure if he had enough fuel. Logano took the white flag with Kevin Harvick behind him. Logano did have enough fuel and took his first checkered flag of 2013. It was a desperately needed win for Logano that could put him in the Chase, but it was also a terrible race for some other drivers on the Chase edge.

        Joey Logano has had a pretty rough year in terms of points. He had a chance to win at Bristol, but he was spun out by Denny Hamlin. At Auto Club, Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano ended up wrecked when Logano had a chance to win. Plus, he had twenty five points taken away due to an infraction early in the season. Now, he has a win that could add to his wild card hopes. Some other drivers also moved up the points leaderboard. Kasey Kahne moved up to eleventh after having an accident at Watkins Glens that caused him to fall to thirteenth in points. Kurt Busch moved into ninth in points, but he still doesn't have a win and needs one badly. Some drivers also lost a lot of points. Dale Earnhardt Jr. fell to seventh after having trouble during the race. Jeff Gordon fell back in the wild card battle after finishing seventeenth. It should be a crazy battle with only three races left. The action picks up even more with the series heading to Bristol next week. Will Kasey Kahne win both races at Bristol in a year, will Denny Hamlin win two Bristol night races in a row, or will another driver advance his Chase hopes? We will have to wait until next Saturday night to find out.
(More Stats Down Below!)




Cautions:
1st Caution: Lap 1- Clint Bowyer got loose exiting turn 4 and spun down the track.

2nd Caution: Lap 8- David Reutimann got out of the groove in turn 2 and slammed the outside wall.

3rd Caution: Lap 13- Austin Dillon got loose in turn 3 and made contact with J.J. Yeley. Both drivers slammed the wall and had some damage.

4th Caution: Lap 71- Ricky Stenhouse Jr. blew a tire in turn 1 and slammed the outside wall.

5th Caution: Lap 106- Debris was spotted on the backstretch of the track.

6th Caution: Lap 135- Dale Earnhardt Jr. blew a tire in turn 2 and slammed the outside wall.

7th Caution: Lap 149- Bobby Labonte got loose in turn 4 and went for a spin down the track.

8th Caution: Lap 157- Kyle Busch got loose in turn 2 and backed into the outside wall.

9th Caution: Lap 173- Kyle Busch got loose in turn 4 and spun down the racetrack.

Lucky Dogs:
1st Caution: None
2nd Caution: None
3rd Caution: David Reutimann
4th Caution: Bobby Labonte
5th Caution: Mark Martin
6th Caution: Danica Patrick
7th Caution: Jamie McMurray
8th Caution: Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
9th Caution: David Stremme

Top 5 Finishers:
1st: Joey Logano
2nd: Kevin Harvick
3rd: Kurt Busch
4th: Paul Menard
5th: Clint Bowyer

Notables Not in Top 5:
7th: Kasey Kahne
9th: Greg Biffle
12th: Brad Keselowski
15th: Matt Kenseth
17th: Jeff Gordon
23rd: Danica Patrick
31st: Kyle Busch
36th: Dale Earnhardt Jr.
40th: Jimmie Johnson




Credits:
-My Own Notes
-Statistics:
http://www.nascar.com/en_us/sprint-cup-series/leaderboard/leaderboard-live.html
http://racing-reference.info/race/2013_Pure_Michigan_400/W
-Image:
http://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/0d4519c36912e02804d455cb343ec05357a7e7a6/c=1094-187-4583-2805&r=x404&c=534x401/local/-/media/USATODAY/test/2013/08/18/1376858368000-USP-20130818-pjca-aw3-273.JPG

A.J. Allmendinger Dominates and Wins In the Inaugural Event at Mid-Ohio

        A.J. Allmendinger led 73 of 94 laps as he won the inaugural event at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. It was Allmendinger's second victory of the year in only two starts. But it almost didn't happen. A late race caution led to a green-white-checkered and the #22 team didn't know if they would have enough fuel. He did and went on to victory lane. It was another dominating day for Penske Racing. The team completed the road course sweep this year with a win in all three events and Sam Hornish Jr. took the points lead with a third place finish. The #22 also took the owners points lead with problems for Owen Kelly on the final lap. If the team's momentum keeps up, we could be looking at championships for both. It was definitely a crazy first race at Mid-Ohio with a lot of beating, banging, tempers flaring, and drivers going of course. If you were looking for a fantastic race start to finish, this was the one for you.

        Michael McDowell started on the pole. It was his second career pole in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. The race went green and he was able to lead the first lap, but it was not without incident. Coming into turn 5 on the first lap, Nelson Piquet Jr. tired to make a move underneath Kyle Larson, but he did not have enough room. The two made contact which sent Larson into the tire barrier.  Larson had a good amount of damage and went three laps down while repairing it. On lap 9, A.J. Allmendinger took the lead for the first time from Michael McDowell. Marcos Ambrose, Trevor Bayne, and Austin Dillon were very impressive early in the race. Because the three drivers had obligations in Michigan, they missed qualifying and had to start at the back of the field. It would be interesting to see if these three race contenders would make it to the front and contend for the win. The race continued on until the first caution on lap 20. Jeffrey Earnhardt got loose exiting turn 5 and went off track in the grass. Alex Kennedy received the lucky dog. This led to strategy becoming a part in the race. All the drivers who pitted took four tires and fuel while Max Papis and Austin Dillon decided to stay on track. It would be very interesting to see which strategy would work.

        The race went back green and Max Papis was surprisingly able to hold onto the lead. Austin Dillon fell back to third, but he was still running pretty well. Sam Hornish Jr. was able to take the lead on lap 27 and Dillon and Papis began to fall back. It was a short time before the second caution of the race waved on lap 28. Elliott Sadler made contact with Regan Smith in turn 5 causing Smith to spin and stop on track. Ron Fellows also left the track, but he was able to continue on. Ryan Ellis received the lucky dog. Max Papis, Austin Dillon, Regan Smith, Elliott Sadler, and Brian Scott pitted. Papis and Dillon had not pitted during the race while Sadler and Smith had to repair some damage from their incident. The race went back green and went a couple laps before the third caution on lap 31. Marcos Ambrose and Justin Allgaier were racing very hard in the first few corners. Finally, they ran out of racing surface and Ambrose bumped Allgaier in turn 9. Allgaier spun off track, but was able to get back going. He did not receive any damage, but he lost a lot of spots. Ryan Ellis received the lucky dog. The race went back green and continued until the fourth caution waved on lap 38. Nelson Piquet Jr. dove underneath Parker Kligerman coming into turn 2 and got loose. Piquet went around and ended up at the edge of the grass. Kligerman got away, but Piquet did not get away quick enough before the caution waved. Kyle Larson, who Piquet wrecked earlier, received the lucky dog. The race went back green and continued on until the fifth caution on lap 45. Alex Kennedy got loose exiting turn 8 and went off track causing him to get stuck in the sand. Anthony Gandon also went off track in turn 9, but he continued on. Kyle Larson received the lucky dog. The cautions ended for a little while, but they would be back along with pit stops.

        The race went back green and it was a short time before Brian Vickers would have trouble. Vickers had to come down pit road because he had a cut tire. He got four tires and fuel and went back on track. This pretty much cemented him going for three stops and if everything worked out, he could have a good finish. This led to the first round of green flag pit stops on lap 57. Max Papis cycled to the lead with Austin Dillon running second. The reason they could wait on pitting is because they had pitted later than most of the leaders. Papis pitted on lap 59, which handed the lead to Dillon. Dillon pitted on lap 60 with Nelson Piquet Jr., who pitted on lap 39. Justin Allgaier took the lead from Dillon. One driver would have trouble during the stops. Elliott Sadler, who is a championship contender, was caught speeding on pit road and had to make a pass through. Allgaier pitted on lap 61 and surrendered the lead to Chad Hackenbracht, who was trying to stay out a little bit. It was only a lap before Trevor Bayne would have trouble. On lap 62, Nelson Piquet Jr., who had run into a good many drivers, dove hard into turn 4 underneath Bayne and hit him. This caused Bayne to spin on track. He got back going and the caution did not wave. It was a lap after this that the sixth caution waved on lap 63. Kenny Habul had trouble underneath Justin Allgaier in turn 2. The two made contact and went off track. Allgaier was able to get back on track, but Habul hit a sign and drug the debris on track. Reed Sorenson also stopped on track due to engine problems. Anthony Gandon received the lucky dog. Chad Hackenbracht pitted, which surrendered the lead to A.J. Allmendinger. The race would become really crazy and head to the finish. 

        The race went back green and the first lap on the restart was really crazy. Parker Kligerman went off track in turn 4, but continued on. Nelson Piquet Jr. bumped Regan Smith in turn 5 and sent him for a spin, but he got back going. Michael Annett bumped Austin Dillon in the stack up and sent him for a spin. Ron Fellows received a huge amount of damage after hitting Dillon, but both drivers got back going. Kyle Kelley went for a spin in turn 12, but was able to get back going. In all of this, the caution did not wave and the race continued on. It was a short time after this that Trevor Bayne would have more trouble on lap 70. He went off track in turn 8 and got stuck in the sand. It looked like the caution would have to wave again, but Bayne was able to get unstuck and get back going. A short time after this, Marcos Ambrose had trouble on lap 73. Owen Kelly made contact with him in turn 2 and sent Ambrose for a spin. He was able to get back going before the caution waved. Through all this, A.J. Allmendinger streaked away and looked like he would take the win. There were a few other bumps on track, but the caution did not wave and there were only two laps to go. All A.J. had to do was make it to the white flag, but Kenny Habul would change that. Habul spun and went off track in turn 11. This resulted in the seventh and final caution on lap 89. No drivers received the lucky dog. Just like that, Allmendinger did not have a lead and would have to outlast at least one green-white-checkered. A few drivers pitted, but the leaders stayed out on track. Plus, nobody knew if they could make it on fuel. It would be an interesting finish.

        The race went back green for the final time and the action started to pick up. They made it to turn 12 before Nelson Piquet Jr. ran out of gas and pulled off course. The caution did not wave and Piquet's day would end without finishing. The white flag finally came out and A.J. Allmendinger was in the lead. Coming into turn 1 on the final lap, Owen Kelly, who was running up front, ran off track in turn 1. He was able to get back going, but he lost a lot of spots. Allmendinger had to make sure he was good on fuel and make it back around. He did and won his second race of the NASCAR Nationwide Series season. But the race was not over yet. Parker Kligerman dumped Marcos Ambrose on the cool down lap because of his actions in the race. Kyle Larson also dumped Max Papis on the cool down lap because of his actions. This was all for post race altercations and Allmendinger could celebrate.

        If you think of the last year for A.J. Allmendinger, it has been the worst and best roller coaster possible. In July of 2012, he was suspended by NASCAR for violating the drug policy. He finished the road for recovery program, but he did not have a ride in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series anymore. This year, Roger Penske had him run the Indianapolis 500 for him. He did well and had a chance to win, but he still finished in the top 10. Penske had Allmendinger run the race at Road America for him, which he won. Now, Penske had him run at Mid-Ohio and he comes home with a win again. From suspended to winning, A.J. could be looking at a full time ride with this consistency. The points battle also heated up. Austin Dillon fell to fourth in the standings while Sam Hornish Jr. went to the points lead. The top 5 is only separated by eighteen points with positions 2 through 5 separated by a measly five points. It should be very interesting as the series heads to the final stretch of races. The owners points battle also heated up as the #22 passed the #54 team for the lead. With only 11 races left, these battles should get even closer. The series moves from a 2.25 mile road course to the half mile oval known as Bristol Motor Speedway. Will Kyle Busch win his second of the year at Bristol, will Kyle Larson avenge his close finish with Busch for the win, or will another driver win and help his points chances? We will have to find out next Friday night.
(More Stats Down Below!)




Cautions:
1st Caution: Lap 20- Jeffrey Earnhardt got loose exiting turn 5 and went off track.

2nd Caution: Lap 28- Elliott Sadler made contact with Regan Smith in turn 5 and caused Smith to spin. Ron Fellows also went off track.

3rd Caution: Lap 31- Marcos Ambrose bumped Justin Allgaier in turn 9 and caused Allgaier to spin off track.

4th Caution: Lap 38- Nelson Piquet Jr. dove underneath Parker Kligerman in turn 2. The two made contact and Piquet went for a spin.

5th Caution: Lap 45- Alex Kennedy got loose exiting turn 8 and went off track. Anthony Gandon also went off track in turn 9.

6th Caution: Lap 63- Kenny Habul made contact with Justin Allgaier in turn 2. Both drivers went off track and Habul hit a sign, which left debris on track. Reed Sorenson also stopped on track due to engine problems.

7th Caution: Lap 89- Kenny Habul spun and went off track in turn 11.

Lucky Dogs:
1st Caution: Alex Kennedy
2nd Caution: Ryan Ellis
3rd Caution: Ryan Ellis
4th Caution: Kyle Larson
5th Caution: Kyle Larson
6th Caution: Anthony Gandon
7th Caution: None

Top 5 Finishers:
1st: A.J. Allmendinger
2nd: Michael McDowell
3rd: Sam Hornish Jr.
4th: Max Papis
5th: Brian Vickers

Notables Not in Top 5:
6th: Elliott Sadler
7th: Marcos Ambrose
9th: Trevor Bayne
15th: Regan Smith
21st: Austin Dillon
25th: Ron Fellows 
31st: Travis Pastrana




Credits:
-My Own Notes
-Statistics:
http://www.nascar.com/en_us/nationwide-series/leaderboard/leaderboard-live.html
http://racing-reference.info/race/2013_Nationwide_Childrens_Hospital_200/B
-Image:
https://twitter.com/RACERmag/status/368858962180841473/photo/1

My Thoughts: Michigan

        This week's edition of My Thoughts heads to one of the fastest tracks on the circuit, Michigan International Speedway. A lot of news broke this week including one driver replacing an injured one, one driver gaining a ride for next year, and one driver losing his ride for next year. Plus, we talk about Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Greg Biffle. Finally, we talk about my pick to win. Let's not waste anymore time and get started. 

1. Greg Biffle's Recent Dominance at MIS 
       If you have watched the past two races at MIS or looked at the post-race results, then you know that Greg Biffle came out on top in both. Both times he came pretty much out of nowhere late to take the victory. After Mark Martin wrecked in August of 2012, Biffle was able to lead and win. In June of this year, the Hendrick Motorsports drivers ended up wrecked after leading much of the race and Biffle went on to win. Personally, I like Biffle in victory lane. It is a welcomed change and is a pretty cool thing to see. Plus, it helps further Ford's hold on the Michigan International Speedway. If you ask, me Biffle could take three in a row if something goes his way.

2. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
       What else do I have to say? Whenever we go to Michigan International Speedway, everybody talks about his win in 2008 and his win in 2012 that broke a winless streak that went back to his previous win in 2008. Now, it seems like every time the series heads to MIS he is the pick to win and if he doesn't win everybody gets ticked off. Personally, I don't think it is that big of a deal. In 2008, Junior would have ran out of gas coming to the line if Kasey Kahne hadn't pushed him on the frontstretch coming to the checkers. That is a lot of bias because I like Kahne, but I still think he would have ran out of gas. Finally, I think Junior deserves more wins, but it beats all how he has to win every race. I could only imagine if he wins at Talladega again. That place would erupt and it might be set on fire. Hopefully not because it is one of the best tracks on the circuit. Anyway, I just think Junior deserves more wins, but MIS should not be built up as his next win.

3. Austin Dillon Replaces Tony Stewart
        Since Tony Stewart broke his leg in a sprint car crash in Iowa, there has been a lot of debate about who should drive his car. Last week, Max Papis took the reins and did a pretty good job. This week, it was announced that Austin Dillon would take over for the weekend. To be honest, I was a little bit surprised by this. One reason is that Stewart is taking Kevin Harvick from RCR. I just don't think Richard Childress would be into allowing his grandson to race for a team that he was losing his best driver to. The second reason is the competition the two teams are in. Dillon could easily get information from SHR to give to RCR. According to qualifying yesterday afternoon, Stewart-Haas isn't allowing Dillon to view too much of their information. This is a good idea, but I still would not put him in my ride. Finally, I feel like there are much more deserving drivers for the ride. You have Regan Smith for one. He has driven to victory lane in a Chevy in Cup and has done well this year in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. You have Landon Cassill. Cassill was really good at Michigan in 2011 and has Gen-6 experience. Finally, you have an underdog pick in Elliott Sadler. Sadler has Cup experience, but he is a Toyota driver and doesn't have any experience this year. I think Stewart-Haas knows what they are doing, but I could think of a few drivers who could do a better job or even be a better fit.

4. Brian Vickers Gets a Job at Michael Waltrip Racing
        On Tuesday, it was announced that Brian Vickers would run full time in the #55 for Michael Waltrip Racing in 2014 and 2015. Plus, he would receive full sponsorship from Aaron's for both seasons. I have a few positive and negative thoughts about the news. One positive thing is that Vickers has deserved this opportunity for a while. Ever since he had a blood clot in the middle of the 2010 season, his future has been in jeopardy. In 2011, it was announced that Red Bull Racing would leave the sport and he would not have a ride at all. He was able to get a part time ride with Michael Waltrip and a full year deal with Joe Gibbs Racing in the NASCAR Nationwide Series for this season. Vickers made sure he would get the ride with a win at New Hampshire in the #55 this year. Now, his future is set and he is in a good ride. A final positive thing is that MWR now has three cars that can win the title. With the #55 running part time schedules with select drivers, they only had a chance to win the owners points championship. Now, the #55 can win the drivers championship along with the other two MWR cars of Clint Bowyer and Martin Truex Jr. But there is one negative thing. The negative thing is that Mark Martin will not be driving the #55 next year. Martin has been the veteran of the team and has showed the other two drivers at MWR the ropes. Now, they really don't have a veteran presence and this could spell disaster if a situation can not be handled right. Personally, I think the positive things of this move outweigh the negative things.

5. Juan Pablo Montoya Out at EGR
        Surprising news also came out on Tuesday. It was announced that Juan Pablo Montoya would not return to the #42 at EGR. In my opinion, this is a move that has been developing for a while. Montoya has been pretty good at road course races, which was expected, but he has not really improved on ovals. Since there are only two road course races a year in the series, ovals are top priority. Montoya has been decent at oval tracks, but he has no wins and hasn't really been in contention for the Chase. But I still think this was a dumb call for the team. The first reason is who they might replace him with. The team has Kyle Larson  and they seem like they want him in the car next year. That is absolutely the craziest thing I have ever heard. Larson has virtually no experience in cars and they expect him to race in Cup with only one year in Nationwide? They have lost there minds. But this could be a good move. If the team is looking to get Ryan Newman, I think this is one of the best calls in a while. Newman could work really well with Jamie McMurray, the other driver at EGR, and he has a lot of championship experience and victory lane experience. Plus, he has sponsorship and could put the team on the map. Newman is a good move for next year, but Larson is a bad move with his experience.

6. My Pick To Win
        If you take a look at the previous two races at Michigan, Greg Biffle is on top of the results with the win. Like last week, I am going with another crazy pick. I am going with Kasey Kahne. I know, that probably holds no weight since he is my favorite driver. But even though he is starting well back in the field, he has been really fast in practice and had a good car before wrecking last time at Michigan. If you don't like that pick, Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Joey Logano, Greg Biffle, and Kevin Harvick are good picks as well. I hope you guys enjoyed the second installment of My Thoughts as we head to Michigan. As always, if you feel my opinions are stupid, let me know. I would love to hear your opinions and see what you think on the matter.




Credits:
-Image:
http://cdn2-b.examiner.com/sites/default/files/styles/large_lightbox/hash/69/11/69118c6af08003a258f0a4b9d645ec40.jpg?itok=sxmccwX2