And the Beat Goes On…

What do Dale Earnhardt Jr., Denny Hamlin, Tony Stewart and Clint Bowyer have in common? They’re all, to one degree or another, on the bubble!

The way I see it, with just Atlanta and Richmond left before the Cup Chase participants are determined, two of these four will be in and two won’t…

Up front Junior is in the best position to make it since he’s sitting in 9th place on points and 10 drivers are in the Chase that way.

Tony Stewart is in 10th place 18 points behind Dale Jr. and 21 points ahead of 11th place Brad Keselowski (who mathematically makes the Chase with his 3 wins and being in the top 20 by finishing higher than 13th at Atlanta… At least that’s the way I’ve got it figured!). 

One point further back from Keselowski and residing in 12th place in the Chase is Clint Bowyer. Clint can make the Chase by either moving past Brad and either Tony or Junior into the top 10 on points or he has to continue leading Denny Hamlin in the points and wins either of the upcoming non-Chase races coupled with no other wins by Hamlin, Paul Menard, David Ragan or (with what’s becoming a very long shot) Marcos Ambrose. Of all these four drivers, Bowyer’s is the most tenuous situation but Hamlin has got to be sweating bullets too.

Of all these drivers, Denny showed the best at Bristol finishing in 7th, but he can’t take much solace in that. As stated above, if Menard, Ragan or possibly Ambrose can pull off a second win at either Atlanta or Richmond, then I’ll paraphrase Howard Cosell… “Down Goes Denny! Down Goes Denny!”

So who among this group has shown the best at Atlanta and Richmond in the past? Here’s what it looks like by the numbers:

Atlanta-

Tony Stewart in 24 starts has averaged an 11.58 finish with 3 wins.
Dale Jr. in 23 starts has averaged a 12.48 finish with 1 win.
Clint Bowyer in 10 starts has averaged a 15.5 finish without any wins.
Denny Hamlin in 11 starts has averaged an 18.46 finish without any wins.

I don’t see any distinct advantage for Hamlin or Bowyer or any disadvantage for Earnhardt or Stewart from Atlanta, so let’s say there aren’t any changes after that race. So it all boils down to Richmond… (and NASCAR gets just what they hoped for with their new Chase format, an interest generating finale to set the Chase field!)

Richmond-

Now it gets interesting on one of NASCAR’s old-time, iconic short tracks…

Richmond is Denny Hamlin’s home track and since Denny’s been in Cup racing only one driver (Kyle Busch) has shown better there… Denny Hamlin in 11 starts has averaged a 7.45 finish with 2 wins.

Surprisingly, Clint Bowyer comes in right behind Hamlin at Richmond! Clint Bowyer in 11 starts has averaged a 9.45 finish with 1 win.

Then, here comes Tony Stewart right behind Bowyer! Tony Stewart in 25 starts has averaged an 11.04 finish with 3 wins.

Dale Jr. hasn’t done too shabby at Richmond either coming in 10th best overall. Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 24 starts has averaged a 14.33 finish with 3 wins.

Looks like a shootout to me!

Considering how closely bunched these guys are, and with the knowledge that little things mean a lot when a person is under building stress, what else is going on that might weigh in to this determination?
Well, let’s see…

I’m hearing that Tony Stewart has been distracted this summer while manning his team owner duties putting together the Danica Patrick deal, but that’s done now… If this has been true, will Tony now shove aside everything else to concentrate on his racing and live up to his past champion status?

It’s been well chronicled that Clint Bowyer hasn’t signed a new contract with Richard Childress Racing and that’s got to be a constant burden right now. From what I’m hearing, Childress wants Clint to take a pay cut so Bowyer has been entertaining other offers. This economic climate certainly isn’t the best to be job hunting in… Just last week several NASCAR reporters had articles about Clint’s on-going contract problems, then he basically tanks it at Bristol…

Denny Hamlin and his team (primarily Hamlin and Crew Chief Mike Ford) have been at odds since the end of the 2010 season. I think it’s amazing the 11 team is anywhere near being in the 2011 Chase given these circumstances, but here they are and now it appears they all looked up and realized just where they are! Maybe the pressure’s suddenly going down on this team!

Then there’s NASCAR’s ultimate pressure cooker we all know as Dale Earnhardt Jr. I think the years of scrutiny have left Junior more or less immune to it all. With Dale Jr. the saying “It is what it is…” really fits. It’s been very interesting to hear Junior talking more about what he really wants as this year’s Chase draws near. In my opinion, this guy needs motivation on a much higher plain than what pushes the other drivers in NASCAR. Maybe having another chance, and the first in quite a while, at a NASCAR championship will build a real fire under him. Wouldn’t that be something?

Concerning the one-win drivers with a shot at the Chase if they can just win another race, all three won their first ever Sprint Cup race this year… Now really, what are the odds any one of them can pull off another win this season? I’ve got to say the odds are slim and none, but 2011 has been a very unusual year, so who knows?

The orchestra that is NASCAR is building to a pre-Chase crescendo! Whose songs will be played?

How do you see it playing out?

DW on Kyle Busch and Marcos Ambrose

This was recorded prior to last night's truck race so don't expect any commentary on the Sadler / Busch / Harvick deal, but DW has some very interesting statements about the 9 and 18 drivers...

That oughta stir the pot a little bit!

For The NASCAR “Purists” Lined Up Against Road Course Racing

The people deeply involved in NASCAR are the first to proudly point to the sport’s roots in bootlegging liquor runners driving their souped up cars over back country roads and at times racing away from the government revenuers… Check out these videos on NASCAR’s roots (yeah, I know the second one is a little long):

NASCAR’s Roots

History of NASCAR

CBS Sunday Morning show featuring Junior Johnson and Moonshiners

Moonshiners vs. Revenuers Reunion with Junior Johnson

Now think about this: If the bootleggers truly represent the beginning of stock car racing, and they only turned left, they’d have been in the ditch in no time… There’s a lesson in this for NASCAR…

A Look At NASCAR and Road Courses

I found an interesting article on NASCAR the other day written by Dustin Long who writes auto racing commentary for PilotOnline.com's Auto Racing Channel. Dustin also writes a regular column for SportsIllustrated.com.

This particular article, “Backseat Drivers Fan Council dishes on road courses & what races need to be shortened”, took a look at a couple of questions currently being bantered back and forth among NASCAR’s media and fans. In the article the members of The Backseat Drivers Fan Council were polled concerning their favorite types of tracks/racing and the results marked a surprising change in sentiment concerning road course racing. 65% of those polled had a middle of the road feeling about road course racing while 24% thought it’s the best form of racing and only 11% detested it. This is in sharp contrast to what fan’s thought of road course racing only a few years back when most didn’t care for it.

Here’s a sample of what these people had to say about road course racing:

1. Road courses are getting better but short tracks still rank up there. Mile-and-a-halves are the worst. (Note: Mile-and-a-halves are the worst and guess what… 5 of the 10 Chase races are on 1.5 mile tracks!)
2. Hate road course racing. The thought of one being valued enough to be in the chase makes me laugh. (Note: This person probably lives in the Charlotte area or is just an old curmudgeon!)
3. There is a need for road courses, if you're going to be a champion, you need to be able to navigate all types of tracks that NASCAR has to offer. (Note: Amen, brother!)
4. 10 years ago I never would have said this, but the road courses, along with Richmond/Bristol/Martinsville/Phoenix/Loudon are the best racing the Cup series has (aka any track that isn't a cookie cutter) (Note: See a trend developing?)
5. We see so little of it, I think we tend to romanticize it somewhat. Granted both road course races have been phenomenal this year, but in 2009, both were somewhat lackluster. They have their cycles. Just happens to be on an upswing. However, if there were 4-6 races per year on road courses, it would likely even out and we'd have a dud or two in the mix. Just like the 1.5 milers, sometimes it turns out to be a great show (Coke 600 this year), sometimes someone stinks up the joint (KY race this year). (Note: Not a Kyle Busch fan, fo sure!)
6. I don't mind 2 road courses but no more than that & keep them out of chase. (Another curmudgeon?)
7. NASCAR should only be on ovals!!! If they are trying to reduce costs, how about eliminating the need for a completely different car and setup for road courses!!! (Note: Yeah, forget about driving skill, just put the car on autopilot, sit back and snooze!)
8. Short tracks are still my favorite. It's more wheel to wheel. The road courses are exciting but they are more about pit strategy, track position and sensational wrecks. Give me a fall afternoon at Martinsville any day. (Note: At least this person didn’t bad mouth the road courses…)
9. Now that we only have the 2 car tango in the restrictor plate races, road course racing is quickly becoming my favorite - action (on and off the track), side by side racing, on the edge of your seat to see who can execute the turns. Still love short tracks the best, but as long as I can watch them on TV, I am starting to rank road courses up towards the top. (Note: This is an honest assessment. You notice the obvious disdain for the “two car tango restrictor plate races”?)
10. I used to hate road courses. I'm still not fond of them but I have to admit that the last couple has been pretty good. I even watched the Nationwide race on Saturday and I never would have done that before. (Note: I’m seeing a trend!)
11. With the destruction of good racing at Daytona, Talladega, and Bristol all sandwiched in between tons of cookie-cutter tracks, Sonoma and Watkins Glen are about the most fun there is now all year. (Note: The trend is established!)
12. It (road course racing) really has become the best. Great strategy, great racing. None of this clean air, aeropush or whatever. Just driving skill. (Note: I like this person!)

So the superspeedways have devolved to nearly the same level as the cookie-cutter 1.5 mile tracks… It appears road course racing is now considered equally as entertaining as short track racing! And we’ve only got two Cup races on road courses… Here’s the breakdown:
1-2 Mile long tracks – 11 for 15 races
1 Mile or less tracks – 6 for 12 races
Over 2 Mile tracks – 4 for 7 races
Road courses – 2 for 2 races

22 out of 36 races are on tracks the breed boredom… That’s 61% of all the races!

Considering the upswing in popularity concerning road course racing and the disdain for the cookie-cutter tracks as well as the growing disenchantment with the “two car tango” races at Daytona and Talladega, I believe NASCAR needs to not only stop introducing new cookie cutter tracks to the Cup schedule (Kentucky, Kansas, etc.), they need to remove at least a couple of Bruton Smith’s wonderful tracks (Only having one date for Kansas and Texas would be good for starters and fill

the newly opened dates with Road America [4 mile course in Elkhart Lake, WI] in the summer and the new F1 track in Austin Texas [3.4 mile Circuit of the Americas] just before the Chase).

So what if Smith throws a fit! Is NASCAR here to please Bruton or the fans? Knock the Fall Kansas Chase race off the schedule and run Sonoma in at that time. Early October in the San Francisco Bay Area is the best time for great weather there, and a road course as the fourth race in the Chase would really add some intrigue to the championship run.
Finally, if the popularity of NASCAR’s brand of road racing continues to grow with four road course races on the schedule, knock off one of the Pocono races and Indy’s 400 race (another couple of snoozers and yeah I know… Indy is such a big deal… Blah, blah, blah). This would get the total road course races up to 6.

NASCAR needs to regain its lost fan base. Taking boring race venues off the schedule and replacing them with good hard road course racing will go a long way toward retrieving those lost fans and I’m willing to wager moves such as these will bring many new fans into the sport.

Power to the fans!

Source: http://hamptonroads.com/2011/08/backseat-drivers-fan-council-dishes-road-courses-what-races-need-be-shortened

The Definition of a “Good Guy” in NASCAR

It comes as no surprise that Dale Earnhardt didn’t win the most popular driver award voted on each year by NASCAR fans until after his untimely death. Dale was a winner. He would do whatever it took within the confines of “clean racing” to get out front late in a race and hold on, even if the car he was driving wasn’t the fastest. While Dale Sr. is the best example of the point I’m going to make,

other drivers like Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and more recently Kyle Busch have also spent time in the not too liked climes among NASCAR fans. Why? Well these guys are all winners and in NASCAR, when you consistently win you’re stepping on the toes of 42 other drivers, teams and their fans. So in a round-about way, winners are the “Bad Guys” and conversely all the drivers who are consistently also-rans are the “Good Guys”.

The 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup season will long be remembered for the number of first time winners who have graced Victory Lane and for the variety (fifteen different winners to date) of drivers waving checkered flags. The “Good Guy” ranks have taken a major hit this year…

Marcos Ambrose, since moving to the US and NASCAR to pursue his passion for auto racing, has been considered a “Good Guy” for a lot of reasons, but in no small part it was due to the fact he had been winless in 104 starts at the Sprint Cup level.

Well, all that changed yesterday on the Watkins Glen road course. The two-time Australian Super V8 champion had finally tasted victory at the world’s foremost stock car racing level. Marcos thus joined Trevor Bayne, Regan Smith, David Ragan and Paul Menard as a first time winner this season. That’s all fine and dandy, but boys you’ve all put your “Good Guy” standing in dire jeopardy. Since everyone likes first time winners, if you’ll all just calm down now and forget about winning again, you should be all right…

With four races left to qualify for the Chase, Marcos Ambrose has, by virtue of his first win, vaulted to 22nd in the 2011 Chase standings, only one measly point away from a three-way tie with Juan Pablo Montoya and Martin Truex, Jr. for 20th place. If he shows well in these last four races, there’s an outside chance he could make the Chase if he happens to post one more win and improves his point total into a top twenty standing.

This is the beauty of the new Chase format. As it stands today, Denny Hamlin, Paul Menard, Marcos and David Ragan all have one win and are either in or within striking distance of the top twenty. There should be a real scramble between these one-win drivers before it’s over.

Brad Keselowski now appears to be a lock for the Chase as his 1st place finish at Pocono (giving Brad two wins on the season) and now his 2nd place finish at the Glen have pushed the Blue Deuce all the way up to 14th in the Chase standings.

If any of this group of four happens to swipe another win (which would either solidify their position in the top twenty or get them into it) then that driver and team would almost be assured of a spot in the Chase and a chance at the championship. The problem is Menard, Ragan and now Ambrose will risk slamming their “Good Guy” rating into the dirt with that next win…

One of the Hazards Playing Golf in Florida

This is why you shouldn't go looking for the golf balls hit 'Out of Bounds' in Florida!!!

THIS IS NOT A PYTHON!

This is a 15 foot Eastern Diamondback rattlesnake - the largest ever caught on record, in fact.

The snake was found near the St. Augustine outlet, in a new KB homes subdivision just south of Jacksonville FL.

A little research revealed the following:

One bite from a snake of this size would contain enough venom to kill over 40 full grown men.

The head of this snake alone is larger than the hand of a normal sized man.

A bite from those fangs would be comparable to being stabbed by two curved, 1/4 inch diameter screwdrivers. The knife being used to draw out the fangs for the picture has a blade around 6 inches long.

The snake is estimated to have weighed over 170 pounds. (How much do you weigh?)

Notice the girth of this snake as compared to the cop's leg in the picture up above (and he is not a small man).

Snakes this size can easily swallow a 2 year-old child (and dogs, pigs, etc).

A rattlesnake this size has an approximately 5 1/2 foot accurate striking distance. (The distance for an average size rattlesnake is about 2 feet . )

This snake has probably been alive since George Bush Sr. was President.

Now just ask yourself these questions: What has this snake been feeding on and where are its offspring?

NOTE: This is not my handy work. I received this in my email today from some snowbird Canadian friends of mine who live in Florida from November through April...

If the Chase started today, here are your twelve Chasers for 2011 (by order of points and wild card standings):

Carl Edwards, Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch, Kurt Busch, Kevin Harvick, Matt Kenseth, Jeff Gordon, Ryan Newman, Tony Stewart and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. are in on points while Brad Keselowski (ranked 18th with two wins) and Denny Hamlin (ranked 11th with one win) are in by virtue of the new “wild card” format.

Here’s the list of 2010’s twelve Cup “Chase for the Championship” drivers (alphabetically):

Greg Biffle, Clint Bowyer, Jeff Burton, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Jeff Gordon, Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth and Tony Stewart.

So after 21 races and with five more to go before the Chase drivers are actually determined, three new faces may be in the run for the Cup Championship this year. Of those three, fan favorite Dale Earnhardt, Jr. may face the toughest task as he attempts to hang onto 10th place in the points standings with a total of 641. His 9th place finish last Sunday at Pocono solidified his hold on 10th as he currently has a 23 point lead over Denny Hamlin and a 41 point advantage over Clint Bowyer (the next closest driver in points without a victory this season). Tony Stewart is only one point ahead of Dale Jr. at 642, and we’re all waiting for his famous summer time drive to begin. If things don’t work out, Tony may fall out of contention too. Of the remaining 5 racing venues this Sunday’s race on the Watkins Glen road course probably presents the greatest challenge to Jr. and the greatest opportunity to Tony. With Stewart usually doing a good job on road courses, Dale Jr.’s stated many times how much he dislikes the road course races. He simply must put those thoughts aside if he expects to do some meaningful racing this fall. On the other hand, Dale’s done fairly well at Michigan, Bristol, Atlanta and Richmond in the past, although if we take his 2010 performances on those tracks when he finished 26th at the Glen, 19th at Michigan, 13th at Bristol, 22nd at Atlanta and 34th at Richmond, it becomes obvious he’s going to have to step it up considerably if he hopes to make the Chase this season.

Denny Hamlin, currently 11th in the points standings with one win on the season, is our next bubble boy. The danger to him being knocked out of the Chase comes from the other two one win drivers currently residing in 11th through 20th in the points standings. If Paul Menard or David Ragan can come up with a second win on any of the last five race tracks (and Denny goes winless), they will almost certainly assure themselves of a spot in the Chase. Then there are the other drivers (most notably Greg Biffle with 597 points, Mark Martin with 567 points, Kasey Kahne with 566 points and A.J. Allmendinger with 562 points) who have an outside chance at making the Chase on points. Last season on these five remaining “regular season” courses here’s how the three “Bubble Boys” and each of the other drivers in the top twenty performed using the 2011 points rewards system:

Driver-----------W. Glen----Michigan----Bristol----Atlanta----Richmond---Total Pts---Wins
Stewart------------37------------31-------------18--------45-------------28-----------801--------1 (Atl)
Earnhardt, Jr.-----18------------25-------------31--------22-------------10-----------747--------0
Hamlin -------------7-----------43--------------10---------2-------------45-----------725--------1 (Rch)
Bowyer------------12-----------31--------------41--------37------------39-----------760---------0
Biffle--------------20-----------41--------------36---------8-------------14-----------716---------0
Menard-----------28------------9---------------23---------9-------------18-----------674---------0
Martin-------------26-----------16--------------22--------23------------24-----------678---------0
Kahne-------------27-----------30--------------39--------13------------15-----------690----------0
Allmendinger---40------------27--------------13--------26------------36-----------704----------0
Keselowski-----24------------10---------------25-------19-------------29-----------665----------0
Ragan------------19-----------34---------------14-------25-------------21-----------669-----------0
Logano-----------11----------34---------------26--------17------------40------------676----------0

Given these circumstances, with Dale faltering, Clint Bowyer will slide right in there and the current drivers in as wild cards (Hamlin and Keselowski) will remain the same.

I suppose there’s the outside chance that someone will pop-up and win two of these final five pre-Chase races, but what are the odds of that happening, especially in a year where two drivers share the win lead this season with 3. Remember last season? JJ had 5 wins and Hamlin had 6 before the start of the Chase. That’s not happening in 2011.


Can Tony and Jr. maintain their position? A big part of that story will be determined this Sunday.
****************************************************

I want to throw something out there for your comments as well... First, check out this video taken at the end of the Iowa Nationwide race last Saturday night and pay particular attention to the discussion between Carl Edwards and Ricky Stenhouse Jr.'s crew chief.

These two guys were racing hard against each other causing many to wonder about them being on the same team... Then yesterday in Charlotte Stenhouse was questioned about what happened...

Q: It appeared you were pretty mad in the car at Iowa

STENHOUSE: “I was mad. I wasn’t mad that he ran into us coming off of turn 4. It goes a little deeper than that. He gave me the finger going down the backstraightaway and that’s kind of what fired me up. We’ll handle it. It was hard racing. We’ll talk about it. He thinks I’m maybe a little too aggressive, but I think coming from sprint cars, that’s just my style, that’s just how I raced.’’

Q: What about your crew chief saying you think Edwards hates you

STENHOUSE: “That might be a little bit much. Carl has helped me out in my career. It’s good racing with him. I don’t think, as of late he’s had a Nationwide car in our company be up there competing with him. Right now we’ve got three Nationwide cars that are all really fast. I think it’s just a product of everybody running hard and running up front. It gets a little frustrating sometimes.’’

Q: You’re running for a championship and Edwards isn’t, does that make it tougher to swallow that gets into you and could cost you a title?

STENHOUSE: “I really wasn’t thinking about the championship at that point. My crew chief reminded me that we were racing for a championship. I didn’t have a problem with him getting into us. I think that’s part of racing. We’ve all done it growing up. You’ve got to do what you’ve got to do to win. At that moment I think we had the fastest race car and for him to get back by us and start leading some more laps, he did what he had to do. It worked out for him. I kind of leaned on him going back by, so it’s just something that happens in racing. It makes it good for the fans.’’

Q: Do you look at what Edwards did differently from what Brad Keselowski did to you at Indy because one is a teammate and one isn’t?

STENHOUSE: “In the Brad deal at Indianapolis, I was mad, but I really wasn’t mad that he ran us up the race track. Like I said, when you don’t have the fastest car, you have to do something to win and Brad did what he had to do to win. I was just more mad that we didn’t win. I wasn’t mad about how it happened. I think that’s part of racing. If I was in Brad’s situation, I would have done the same thing. But teammate? I know Jack would probably say that is a little much.’’

After the race Edwards said that he has to stand his ground even if it's against a teammate, saying "Sometimes, it's not all roses."

Now I start to wonder... If Edwards had bailed on RFR, either Trevor Bayne or Ricky Stenhouse Jr. were lined up to step right into the vacated RFR Cup car. Have things been said that we're not privy to? Trevor and Ricky both had to have their hopes up and then Carl put the whammy on them. Based on what I've seen, if I had to choose the young Roush-Fenway driver with the most upside between Bayne and Stenhouse, I think I'd run with Mississippi over Tennessee. If this seeming RFR in-house feud continues could Stenhouse be on the move? Here's what he's currently thinking according to ESPN.com's David Newton:

Stenhouse said he has no definitive plan other than he'd like to run a full Nationwide schedule for Roush and part-time Cup schedule.

Stenhouse mentioned that Richard Petty Motorsports, which gets chassis and engines from RFR, might be looking to expand.

"I don't want to jump in too early (in Cup) and get in over my head," he said.

So the thought about moving on is there...

Think he'd drive a Toyota?

Sources:
http://hamptonroads.com/2011/08/stenhouse-explains-feelings-edwards-onefinger-salute-edwards-gave-him-iowa

http://espn.go.com/racing/nascar/nationwide/story/_/id/6847861/roush-fenway-racing-ricky-stenhouse-jr-carl-edwards-clear-air

Okay, NASCAR fans... What's Being Said?

Ten photos gleaned from around the NASCAR media sites. What are these people saying / thinking?

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

There ya go... Have at it!

Bad Brad Is a Lucky Young Man...

While practicing on Road Atlanta in preparation for Watkins Glen in a couple of weeks Brad Keselowski's brakes gave out while he entered turn one at 155 MPH. Here are a few shots (taken by Jimmie Johnson) of the site, the non-safer barrier that Brad ran into at about 100 MPH and the wreck.

Quite a long run before the wall became a problem...

Definitely not a Safer Barrier...

The Blue Deuce sure took it hard...

The following pics are of Brad's leg injuries... He was airlifted by helicopter to Atlanta Medical Center where no broken bones were found. Released this evening from the hospital, Brad's expected to be behind the wheel this weekend at Pocono...

Not a pretty sight...

No, the doctors didn't insert a grapefruit in Brad's ankle.

A question came up concerning NASCAR not allowing teams to practice on the tracks where they will actually be racing. The NASCAR tracks have been forced to become much safer. So here is an up and coming young driver who needs to practice and is out on an unsafe track. Brad Keselowski was very lucky today...

The Luck of the Polish?

More Numbers!

We are kept well-aware of the points leaders, but here are some leaders you don’t normally keep tabs on:

2011’s Top 10 Finishers… Wins and top finishes

1. Kyle Busch with 3 wins, 10 top 5’s and 12 top 10’s

2. Kevin Harvick with 3 wins, 6 top 5’s and 10

3. Matt Kenseth with 2 wins, 7 and 11

4. Jeff Gordon with 2, 7 and 9

5. Carl Edwards with 1, 10 and 13

6. Jimmie Johnson with 1, 7 and 12

7. Ryan Newman with 1, 6 and 9

8. Kurt Busch with 1, 4 and 11

9. Denny Hamlin with 1, 4 and 7

10. Paul Menard with 1, 4 and 6

2011’s Top 10 Driver’s Completing the Most Laps

This is not only a measure of a driver but also of the equipment and the racing team as a whole…

1. Kurt Busch with 5,746 laps completed

2. Jimmie Johnson with 5,729

3. Juan Montoya with 5,723

4. Ryan Newman with 5,703

5. Bobby Labonte with 5,692

6. Tony Stewart with 5,690

7. Dale Earnhardt, Jr. with 5,681

8. Greg Biffle with 5,666

9. Denny Hamlin with 5,636

9. Clint Bowyer with 5,636

There's one single car team up above (Bobby Labonte with JTG Daugherty) but they're really affiliated with Michael Waltrip Racing so most of the major Cup team owners are represented here.

2011’s Top 10 with Most Laps Led (% of Total Laps Run)

Who are the front runners?

1. Kyle Busch with 1,069 (19.57%)

2. Kurt Busch with 510 (8.8%)

3. Jimmie Johnson with 493 (8.61%)

4. Carl Edwards with 429 (7.76%)

5. Matt Kenseth with 375 (6.67%)

6. Tony Stewart with 340 (5.98%)

7. Denny Hamlin with 321 (5.70%)

8. Jeff Gordon with 301 (5.43%)

9. Ryan Newman with 262 (4.65%)

10. Clint Bowyer with 262 (4.59%)

I find it interesting that Kyle isn’t in the top 10 concerning laps completed but here he is with more than double the total on laps led as compared to the second place laps led driver, his brother Kurt, and that darn near 20% of the laps Kyle has driven have been while leading the pack. Ah yes, those Busch boys like clean air…

2011’s Top 10 in Highest Average Driver Rating

The rating formula is based on 3 sections of statistics (Primary [Finish, Average Running Position, Average Speed, and Fastest Lap], Fixed Bonus Points [Win, Top 15 Finish, Led Most Laps, Lead Lap Finish, Average Running Position better than 10.0, Average Running Position better than 6.0 and Average Running Position better than 2.0] and Variable Bonus Points [Green Flag Fastest Laps, Green Flag Laps Led and Green Flag Laps on Track]) on a per race basis. A perfect race rating is 150.0 while the poorest rating is 23.3.

I think this is a little complicated… But, here are the leaders through 20 races in 2011:

1. Kyle Busch - 107.46

2. Carl Edwards - 99.76

3. Kurt Busch – 98.20

4. Jimmie Johnson – 96.51

5. Matt Kenseth – 94.76

6. Jeff Gordon – 93.53

7. Denny Hamlin – 91.96

8. Kevin Harvick – 90.97

9. Tony Stewart – 90.87

10. Kasey Kahne – 90.44

2011’s Top 10 Finishers versus Starting Position (with 20 starts)

Which drivers consistently improve their track position from where they start? Or better yet, in this day and age of ever more important pit strategy: Which teams are making the right calls? Another way of looking at this is which drivers don’t do too well in qualifying and thus start back in the pack with plenty of room for improvement!

1. Kevin Harvick – Average Start – 18.95, Average Finish – 11.50, Net +7.45

2. David Gilliland – Start – 33.35, Finish 26.20 – Net +7.15

3. Matt Kenseth – 17.80, 11.60, +6.20

4. Dale Earnhardt, Jr. – 19.70, 14.10, +5.60

5. Dave Blaney – 35.20, 29.80, +5.40

6. Kyle Busch – 15.95, 11.75, +4.20

7. Tony Stewart – 17.10, 14.25, +2.85

8. Jimmie Johnson – 13.80, 11.15, +2.65

9. Greg Biffle – 17.85, 16.40, +1.45

10. Carl Edwards – 11.00, 10.75, +0.25

And finally, 2011’s Top 10 Money Makers (20 Starts)

I like the average dollars earned per start versus the total earnings… Evidently Carl has done well on the higher paying racing venues since he’s averaging close to $40,000 more than second place Matt Kenseth per start. (I guess second place at the 500 will do that for you!)

If I had included Trevor Bayne he’d have come in second since he’s averaging $218,956 in 11 Cup starts thanks to winning at Daytona!

1. Carl Edwards – Total - $4,394,800, Ave. per Start - $219.740

2. Matt Kenseth – 3,623,342, 181,167

3. Kevin Harvick – 3,593,657, 179,683

4. Kyle Busch – 3,569,025, 178,451

5. Jimmie Johnson – 3,470,286, 173,514

6. Kurt Busch – 3,416,026, 170,801

7. Jeff Gordon – 3,389,008, 169,450

8. Clint Bowyer – 3,279,140, 163,957

9. Denny Hamlin – 3,182,976, 159,149

10. Tony Stewart – 3,138,390, 156,920

 So you be the judge… Who’s doing the best job so far this season?