This weekend Stewart-Haas Racing not only qualified 1-2 to start the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Lenox Industrial Tools 301 at Loudon, but they also finished the race 1-2, in the same order they qualified. A feat I’m not sure I’ve ever seen before. (Disclaimer: That I recall off the top of my head.) [Ah... Pocono 2006, Hamlin/Ku Busch.]
Over the weekend, Ryan Newman won the pole for the NASCAR Cup race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, and he ended up sharing the front row with is boss/teammate Tony Stewart. Newman and Stewart fans everywhere seemed pretty pleased.
But as driver fans can attest to, when your driver does something that sparks your imagination, it’s usually a one-up deal. I can’t say how many times pole-sitters win a race, but this was one of those times as Ryan Newman took the checkered flag and Tony Stewart pulled in 2nd at the end of the race that the happy fans turned to victorious giddy fans.
Now, Ryan Newman fans are pretty damn happy.
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The race itself is a huge chess match of tire strategy and fuel mileage on a race track that’s purportedly known for being difficult to pass on. I think it’s one of the best tracks there is for a race. The banking of the track doesn’t allow for all-out turn entry or drafting potentials or what not. This is a skill-test like no other at a classic paper-clip shaped 1.058-mile track.
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We’re only three weeks going, into the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season and some are saying how folks are already in trouble for contending for the championship. Despite the apparent fact that it “looks” like bad finishes hurt more than they used to under the old points system, think again. Mathematically, it is true that getting 1 point out of 43 is worse than 34 out of 185. 1 point is roughly 2% of 43 while 34 is 18% of 185. But I think we have to take a few things into account when we start looking at the points system and some folks spots in the standings: It’s about overall performance at this stage of the game.
Albeit, we have Bobby Labonte, David Gilliland and Paul Menard in the top-12 (no disrespect meant) of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points standings but we have Jimmie Johnson in 13th, who jumped 12 spots to get there and Kevin Harvick is now in 22nd in the points standings, having jumped 15 spots to get there, despite his weekend at Phoenix.
Do you know who the biggest gainer was last week? Jeff Gordon jumped 21 spots in the standings with his win at Phoenix and is now in 5th place in the driver standings.
Right now, the points system, as tight as it may appear to be, is accenting the volatility of good and bad finishes from race to race. But as the season wears on and we’re 10 races into the 2011 NASCAR season, you’ll start to see things settle down. Much like a race itself where the middle laps are paced laps and drivers have settled in, waiting for the time to start pushing.
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