(WOMR file photo)

As we enter the last weekend in May, the traditional start of summer, we will be feasting upon the greatest racing day of the year!

The morning  starts out with “The Greatest Spectacle In Racing”, the Indianapolis 500, from the hallowed grounds known as . . . → Read More: Memorial Weekend: The Greatest Racing Day Of The Year!]]>

(WOMR file photo)

As we enter the last weekend in May, the traditional start of summer, we will be feasting upon the greatest racing day of the year!

The Greatest Spectacle In Racing

The morning  starts out with “The Greatest Spectacle In Racing”, the Indianapolis 500, from the hallowed grounds known as the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.  This year there appears to be about 10 -12 drivers that have a legitimate shot at drinking the milk in Victory Lane.

Check out the starting line up for Sunday’s 97th running of the Indy 500.

You will notice that Team Penske has put all three of their drivers in the first two starting rows, as well as three of the four Andretti Autosport drivers!  On the pole is Team Penske’s Ryan Briscoe.  The next two drivers to fill out the front row comes from the Andretti Autosport stables, that being the new Godaddy.com driver from Toronto, James Hinchcliffe.  On the outside of row one is another driver for Andretti Autosport, Ryan Hunter-Reay.

On the inside second row, again from Andretti Autosport, is the owner’s son, and Mario’s grandson, Marco Andretti.  Lining up in the middle of the row is Team Penske’s Will Power, the winingest IndyCar driver in 2012.  On the outside of row two is anther Team Penske driver, and three-time Indy 500 winner, Helio Castoneves!

The biggest surprise of Indy qualifying, and a big dark horse for the race, was where one of the Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing drivers starts for the race.  The rookie, Josef Newgarden, put his car on the inside of row three.  The next two spots on the row three belong to KV Racing, the owners being Kevin Kalkovin and former IndyCar racer, Jimmy Vasser.  Those two KV Racing drivers are, the IndyCar veterans Tony Kanaan, and E.J. Viso.

Out of the starting 33 drivers, there are only 6 American drivers in the field!  The  American with the best shot of drinking the milk in Victory Lane this year most likely is Marco Andretti.  Having said that, there is the “Andretti Stigma”!  Both his father, Michael, and his grandfather, Mario, have been known to blister the rest of the field in many of their races at Indy, however, only Mario was able to drive into Victory Lane back in 1969.  That year Mario was driving for the legendary, “Mr. 500″, Andy Granatelli.

The one driver that I am keeping an eye on is rookie Bryan Clauson, driving the other Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing Indy car.  I have watched Bryan wheel midgets and sprint cars at Knoxville, Oscaloosa, and Belleville, off and on for the last five years, and he is a very talented race car driver.  He even had “a cup of coffee” in the Nationwide Series a couple of years ago with Chip Ganassi.  Even though Clauson is in Indy 500 this year, it is still with a small under-funded team, Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing, with really no chance of wining the Indy 500.  Nevertheless, he has his foot in the door, and this year could be his audition for a better team in the future!

My pick for the 2012 Indy 500 is three-time Indy 500 winner, Helio Castroneves!

The Night Cap

Not long after the conclusion of the Indy 500, the focus moves Southeast to the center of the NASCAR world, Charlotte, NC.  The longest race of the NASCAR season, the Coca Cola 600, will take the green flag at the Charlotte Motor Speedway late in the afternoon, and race late into the night.

Qualifying for the Coca Cola 600 will get under way this Thursday at 7 pm EST.  However, if the All-Star race was any indication as to who will be strong for the race, the following drivers and teams may be “letting the big dog eat” Sunday night!

The driver that is now a whole lot richer after his All-Star victory is  “Mr. Five-Time”, Jimmie Johnson.  Looking equally as strong Saturday night was his team-mate Dale Earnhardt, Jr., wining the fourth segment and finishing 5th overall.  “Blazingly Bad” Brad Keselowski finished second to Johnson in the “money segment”, as well as wining segment three.  Matt Kenseth finished third overall, but won the second segment.  As a note, ol Kylie Busch seemed to have a very strong horse, and therefore, do not count out “The Shrub” Sunday, either.

As a member of JUNIOR NATION, and seeing that the Hendrick Motorsports Diet Mtn. Dew #88 Chevy was a strong horse in all five segments, I am thinking that Dale Jr, has a very good chance to break out of his extremely long winless drought!   Go #88!

However, if I was a betting man, I would put the farm in the back seat of the #48 Lowe’s Chevy!  In the final segment, the money race, Johnson was just too fast for the competition to deal with Saturday night.  I think that “Mr. Five-Time” is back!

I would like to leave you with just one thought

This weekend let us not forget what this holiday is really all about.  It is a time that we should all be grateful to, and remember all of, our brothers, sisters, fathers, mothers, and grandparents who fought for our freedom so that we could enjoy this weekend of the greatest racing of the year!

TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!

Check out this Kieth Urban video and listen to the lyrics!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJLcClIH72o

(WOMR file photo)

It would appear that Hendrick Motorsports, in particular Jimmie Johnson, is thawing out, and emerging from the winter freeze.  Two races in a row have found the HMS Lowe’s #48 Chevy driving into Victory Lane, Darlington and last night the All-Star race at Charlotte.

In beating Brad Keselowski to . . . → Read More: Johnson Is A Million Dollars Richer!]]>

(WOMR file photo)

It would appear that Hendrick Motorsports, in particular Jimmie Johnson, is thawing out, and emerging from the winter freeze.  Two races in a row have found the HMS Lowe’s #48 Chevy driving into Victory Lane, Darlington and last night the All-Star race at Charlotte.

In beating Brad Keselowski to the finish of the Sprint All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway by .841 seconds, Johnson won the exhibition event for the third time — tying Dale Earnhardt and Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jeff Gordon for most victories in the event.

The All-Star Race win and accompanying seven-figure first prize ended a spectacular eight days for Johnson, who delivered victory #200 to owner Rick Hendrick May 12 at Darlington and on Thursday night cheered his crew to its first victory in the Sprint Pit Crew Challenge in Charlotte, N.C.

All told, Johnson won $1,071,340 for his third win in 11 All-Star starts.

“It means a ton to me,” Johnson said of tying Earnhardt and Gordon. “Those are two of the greatest drivers that have ever been in a stock car. I want to set my goals high, and I want to be considered one of the best to sit in a stock car, and the only way you can do that is by winning big races and piling up those stats.”

The All-Star Race victory was the seventh as a car owner for Hendrick, who sat on the window ledge and took a ride on Johnson’s winning Chevrolet after the race.

“That was the dumbest thing I’ve ever done in racing,” quipped Hendrick, who caught his foot in the dash while straddling the window.

All-Star race format review

Reviewing the All-Star race I thought that it was, somewhat dull, not the normally exciting race as in years gone by.  I truly hope that Bruton Smith and associates will tweak the format to create a little more excitement, like some of the past All-Star races.  Most notably is the very first night All-Star race back in 1992.  The last 1/2 of a lap with the duels between Dale Earnhardt, Sr. and Kyle Petty dueling in turn four, and the actual finish with Kyle Petty and Davey Allison dueling at the finish line for the win was an actual “on the edge of your seat” finish!  That kind of hard racing is what this race has been noted for.  Unfortunately that level of intensity never matriculated last night!

Coke 600 prediction

Having critiqued the All-Star race, I will turn to my attention towards my prediction for the Coke 600.  It is my opinion that you  must beware of two HMS cars.  The most likely to return to Victory Lane, Sunday night, will be the winner of the All-Star race last night, “Mr.Five-Time”, Jimmie Johnson.  However, another HMS car was equally fast throughout the five segment format last night.  It was the 2012 ol dark horse, and favorite son of JUNIOR NATION, Dale Earnhardt,Jr.

It will be quite interesting to see the strategies that will unfold in the longest race of the NASCAR season next Sunday night at the Charlotte Motor Speedway.

TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!

(WOMR file photo)

It took 16 races, spanning seven months, before Jimmie Johnson and Rick Hendrick were able to win another Sprint Cup race, and climb the summit for the organization’s 200th win.  Who would ever thought that Hendrick Motorsports would not notch a victory in the 2012 season until the eleventh . . . → Read More: Johnson Wins The Bojangles Southern 500 At Darlington]]>

(WOMR file photo)

It took 16 races, spanning seven months, before Jimmie Johnson and Rick Hendrick were able to win another Sprint Cup race, and climb the summit for the organization’s 200th win.  Who would ever thought that Hendrick Motorsports would not notch a victory in the 2012 season until the eleventh race of the year?  Who would ever have thought that either Jimmie Johnson, or Jeff Gordon would be winless in the first ten races of the season?  The answer to both of those questions are that nobody would have bet the farm that HMS, Jimmie Johnson, or Jeff Gordon would be winless in their first ten tries this season!

Nevertheless, Saturday night Jimmie Johnson won the Bojangles Southern 500 at the Darlington Raceway, stopping the 16 race winless streak that both Johnson and HMS had to endure, spanning over the tail end of the 20112 season and through the first 10 races of 2012.

“I want to thank all of the drivers,” team owner Rick Hendrick said, “all of the crew chiefs, and you (Jeff Hammond) and Darrell (Waltrip) and Geoff Bodine and everybody else. I can’t believe we won 200 of these things. I can’t believe it took this long after 199. I want to remember all those folks we lost. And everybody that helped this thing happen. Brad Paisley is in his bus on the way here and we’ll have a big party.”

It was Johnson’s 56th career victory.

“What a day,” Johnson, who led a race-best 133 laps, said after embracing Hendrick in Victory Lane. “There was a lot of drama. This race is so special, so great.

“Oh without a doubt. You have got to love that man (Rick Hendrick), he just said 200 is great but let’s goget 250. So that tells you where his head is, I love it. Oh man, what a day. Very fast race car. I want to thank Chad (Knaus, crew chief) and everybody at Hendrick Motorsports for an awesome race car. The Kobalt Tools Chevy was bad fast. We had a little pit thing that went awry earlier in the race, but we still worked our way back up there. Had a great race car and won the race.”

We are nearing the halfway point in “the regular season” of racing.  There are several key players that have to “let the dogs out”, if they have any hopes in making the Chase.  They only way for some of those marquee drivers to get into the Chase is to secure  a few wins before the Sun sets on Richmond in September!  The said marquee drivers include, but are not limited to, Jeff Gordon, Kasey Kahne, Ryan Newman, and Carl Edwards!

It is time to let the big dog eat!

The NASCAR crowd has two weeks to enjoy all the festivities that surround Memorial Day and the Coke 600.  There is the, The Pit Crew Challenge, the Camping World Truck Series race Friday night, followed by the gala of the fan favorite Sprint cup  All-Star race Saturday night.

This Saturday night is when “the Stars come out, and the gloves come off “, and to the winner goes all the spoils a $1,000,000 pay-day at Charlotte Motor Speedway!  It is also the day when not many of the race cars will be able to be driven up on the haulers, because of that $1,000,00 payday, some of the race cars will be in various stages of wrecked, crumpled, and mangled sheet metal!

Check out the unofficial results from the Bojangles Southern 500.

After eleven races here is the official Sprint Cup standings.

TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!

(WOMR file photo)

The Goody’s Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway illustrated to all the fans why short track racing is so action packed.  For most of the race, however, the race was conducted under green flag conditions.  Nevertheless, in the closing laps Martinsville provided the fans with some spills and thrills!  . . . → Read More: Newman Survives The Goody’s Fast Relief 500]]>

(WOMR file photo)

The Goody’s Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway illustrated to all the fans why short track racing is so action packed.  For most of the race, however, the race was conducted under green flag conditions.  Nevertheless, in the closing laps Martinsville provided the fans with some spills and thrills!  In what started out to be a brilliant inside move by Clint Bowyer, resulted in a game changing disaster for Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, and Clint Bowyer.  Thereby, handing the Goody’s Fast Relief 500 victory to a lurking Ryan Newman.

It looked like the Goody’s Fast Relief 500 was going to be a Hendrick Motorsports victory day at Martinsville,  that was until the first green-white-checkered attempt.  Up until that point Jeff Gordon led for 322 of the 500 laps at Martinsville.  It was quite apparent that Rick Hendrick was going to celebrate his 200th Sprint Cup victory, absent the bonzai move by Clint Bowyer on the first attempt to the green-white-checkered!

On that first green-white-checkered attempt, Gordon and Johnson stayed out and restarted with old tires, about 132 laps on those tires.  The remaining top ten cars bailed out, and  dropped into the pits to “slip on a new pair of shoes”, ie, four fresh Goodyears underneath the chassis, for the mad dash to the finish.

As the green flag flew, both Gordon and Johnson being on old tires, didn’t get the best of restarts, allowing Bowyer to gas it up and dive for inside lane going into turn #1.  Unfortunately, there was not enough room for all three cars to enter the turn and successfully exit the turn still facing forward.  There is that old say that eight tires are better than four.  Well, Bowyer was testing a new theory that twelve tires should be better than four!

Well, that theory still needs some more testing, at least at Martinsville!

After all the smoke cleared and the yellow flag flew, Newman was leading the pack with “The Dinger”, A.J. Allmendinger, in second.  Meanwhile, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. had sliced his way through the spinning and wrecking Johnson, Gordon, and Bowyer to be in third place!

The victory for Newman was his first of the 2012 season, his first at Martinsville, and his 16th win of his career.  It was also the third victory in the first six races of the 2012 season for Stewart-Haas Racing.

Note to Sprint cup drivers:

One must remember that when racing at the short tracks of NASCAR, Bristol, Martinsville, and Richmond, there are a few things to keep in mind.  When checking in at those track’s pit gates, you must check your feelings, your ego and your weapon with the pit steward.  That way you won’t get your feeling hurt, or get your ego bruised, and ultimately won’t try to murder that driver who is going to hurt your feelings, bruise your ego, and crumple the sheet metal of your race car!

Check out the unofficial results of the Goody’s Fast Relief 500.

Check out the Sprint Cup standings after the Goody’s Fast Relief 500.

PS Look who is now in second place in the Sprint Cup standings………………..JUNIOR!

TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!

Nevertheless, I have chosen . . . → Read More: Las Vegas Motor Speedway: A Pit Reporter’s View]]>

I know that it is a little late, however, things got hung up at the video editor’s processing room!  After all, I am still a rookie at trying to add a new dimension for my readers.  If these video additions work out, I may incorporate them into  weekly adventure!

Nevertheless, I have chosen to add this little bit of video from the NASCAR weekend at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway for your enjoyment, bloopers and all!  Who knows I could have a weekly blooper segment, since it is sometimes very hard to stay focused and prepared in from of the video camera!

It is my first experiment with using video to complement/augment/supplement my articles.  Hopefully, I will become more adept at compiling, editing, and producing some rather interesting video segments for you, the readers!

So check my first foray at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, into the NASCAR garage/pit road video!

TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WaJ_VO7lrpQ

WOMR file photo)

Remember all the noise about the Hendrick Motorsports #48 Lowe’s Chevy, and their slightly modified C-posts that was discovered when crew chief Chad Knaus presented their car for tech inspection prior to the Daytona 500 practice about 10 days ago?  Well, the verdict is in!

NASCAR . . . → Read More: Chad Knaus Busted, Again!]]>

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NASCAR has spoken!

Remember all the noise about the Hendrick Motorsports #48 Lowe’s Chevy, and their slightly modified C-posts that was discovered when crew chief Chad Knaus presented their car for tech inspection prior to the Daytona 500 practice about 10 days ago?  Well, the verdict is in!

NASCAR has slapped Chad Knaus with a cool $100,00 dollar fine, as well as being suspended for 6 races.  additionally, NASCAR has penalized Hendrick Motorsports with a 25 point driver and owner penalty.

Johnson finished in 42nd place after Monday’s second lap crashfest, scoring just 2 points for his Daytona 500 effort.  That means that the #48 Lowe’s Chevy comes into the Phoenix race having a -23 points in the column to try to overcome!  That is not starting off the 2012 race season with a bang!  Therefore Johnson’s drive for a sixth Sprint Cup championship has started off with a sizable hurdle to overcome from the get-go!

Team owner, Rick Hendrick, stated that he will appeal the NASCAR sanctions.

What are your thoughts regarding Chad Knaus and the whole #48 Lowe’s race team’s penalty at Daytona?

TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!

(WOMR file photo)

I just returned back to my hometown after witnessing a very exciting finish to the Good Sam’s 500 at the Talladega Superspeedway last weekend.  As the staff there at the track says , “SIZE DOES MATTER”!  After all it is not just another race track, this is Talladega!

The . . . → Read More: Bowyer Wins The Good Sam’s 500]]>

(WOMR file photo)

I just returned back to my hometown after witnessing a very exciting finish to the Good Sam’s 500 at the Talladega Superspeedway last weekend.  As the staff there at the track says , “SIZE DOES MATTER”!  After all it is not just another race track, this is Talladega!

The weather started out on the cool side for  the Sprint Cup practice and session on Friday.  The weather on Saturday for the Cup qualifying and the Camping World Trucks race was a little warmer.  However, on Sunday the weather was superb!

As the green flag was dropped, there were two strategies that unfolded throughout the race.  One strategy was to run up front all day and race hard for the lead.  The other strategy, and not a strategy that I would use if I were racing at Talladega, was to fall back to the back of the pack to try to avoid “the big one”.  The latter strategy has some validity, nevertheless, you are at the mercy of the tempo of the race.  Laying back in the back of the pack, you are held hostage to the tempo of the race, ie., yellow flags, close proximity to probable wrecks,  and ultimately the ability to weave your way to the front when “it is time to go”.

All four of the Hendrick Motorsports race car teams choose to “lay back” and make their charge to the front in the very late stages of the race.  Unfortunately, all four teams were caught back in the pack when three wrecks happened in the final 20 laps.

The pairing of Junior and Johnson led only a combined two laps Sunday, spending much of the race in the rear of the field in an attempt to avoid trouble. Johnson suffered a scare with about 25 laps remaining when Andy Lally caromed off his car and up into the wall, but the damage to his vehicle was minor. The real problems came at the end, when the drivers dealt with their own individual difficulties, and a flurry of cautions didn’t provide them enough of an opportunity to climb back up through the field.

“Whenever we thought they were getting a little bit crazy, we’d move into the safe areas and we rode there most of the day with a lot of other people doing the same thing,” Earnhardt said. “Then at the end, we had a lot of cautions late. We wanted to try to work our way toward the front in the last 20 laps. The cautions kept coming out, and we ran over some debris and we had to come to pit road. We just didn’t have the track position at the end to make a run with two laps to go. Just not enough time.”

It didn’t help that the water in Johnson’s engine-cooling system climbed perilously high. NASCAR lowered pressure-relief valve settings in the cars this week in a tacit attempt to break up some of the two-car drafting. Push for too long, and risk engine overheating and failure. Johnson found himself trying to play the role of pusher while also dealing with debris on his car’s front end — a recipe for overheating.

“We planned our strategy like we had hoped to,” Johnson said. “And on that last restart at the end, we had some issues with my car overheating. That last caution that came out, I got some trash and grass and stuff on the grille of the car. We were out of sequence the way we were lined up. I was going to push Junior, and I had to be in the lead the way we had the debris on the grille. And then as we went to make our switch, the pack was organized and with the [final-laps] situation, there’s not a lot of time to get organized, and we lost our momentum there, and got to the outside and kind of stalled out up on the top, and finished far worse than we had hoped to.”

Clint Bowyer surged past Richard Childress Racing teammate Jeff Burton through the tri-oval on the final lap at Talladega Superspeedway to win Sunday’s Good Sam Club 500.  Bowyer, who will leave RCR for Michael Waltrip Racing next season, beat Burton to the start/finish line by .018 seconds to record his first victory of the season and the fifth of his career. The win was the 100th in the Sprint Cup Series for team owner Richard Childress.

On a two-lap run to the finish that followed the ninth caution of the race, Bowyer, the defending winner of the race, pushed Burton to a lead of more than 20 car lengths over the pack that was chasing them. That gave Bowyer the luxury of a slingshot move past Burton in the tri-oval. Bowyer nosed ahead 1,200 feet from the finish line and held on?barely.

“Whenever you leave here not wrecked, you ought to be happy, but at the same time, I’m heartbroke we didn’t win the race,” said Burton, who recorded his first top-five finish in more than a year. “Having said all of that, I don’t know what I would have done different.

“Honestly, I thought he made his move too early. I kind of gave him the bottom, because you tend to be able to pull them back to you better when you’re on their right rear quarter panel. He made his move really early, I thought. I thought I’d be able to pull back to him, but he had a lot of momentum when he made the move.”

Bowyer realized he was taking his shot early but decided to seize the moment when Burton gave him the inside line.

“He kind of moved up off of [Turn] 4, and I knew it was too early to go, but it was going to be a drag race, and it would give us both a shot at it,” Bowyer said. “He worked so well with me all day long. You hate that it comes down to that, but it is what it is, and you owe it to your team and your sponsors to go out and win the race.

“Unfortunately, it came down to that situation, but — trust me — I was prepared to push him to the win, no matter what the cost was, if we’d have had people breathing down our necks. It just wasn’t meant to be for him. He’s been a great teammate, and I’ve learned a lot from him — but he’s already won a lot of races [21], and I’ve only won five.”

Dave Blaney, pushed by Brad Keselowski, ran third, with Keselowski taking the flag in fourth in a race that saw only five drivers in the Chase for the Sprint Cup finish in the top 24. Keselowski gained three positions to third in the Chase standings.

 Red Bull Racing teammates Brian Vickers and Kasey Kahne finished fifth and six, followed by Chase drivers Tony Stewart and Denny Hamlin.  Michael Waltrip Racing teammates Michael Waltrip and Martin Truex Jr. completed the top 10.

Here is the unofficial results of the Good Sam’s 500 from Talladega Superspeedway.

Here is the Chase standings following the Good Sam’s 500.

Twelve drivers, now four races, one championship, who will be the last man standing?

TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!

(WOMR file photo)

Stop me if you have heard this one before! 

Jimmie Johnson won the Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway, and thereby, leaping from fifth in the Chase standings to assume the third place in those same standings, only 4 points out of the lead.  Sunday Johnson thoroughly dominated the . . . → Read More: Johnson Wins The Hollywood Casino 400 At Kansas]]>

(WOMR file photo)

Stop me if you have heard this one before! 

Jimmie Johnson won the Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway, and thereby, leaping from fifth in the Chase standings to assume the third place in those same standings, only 4 points out of the lead.  Sunday Johnson thoroughly dominated the race by leading 197 of the scheduled 267 laps of the Hollywood Casino 400.

Nevertheless, it is very fortunate for Johnson that the race ended when it did.  Kasey Kahne was rapidly closing the gap that Johnson had amassed.  In fact, Johnson’s winning margin over Kahne was a mere .548 seconds!

Johnson and his race team will head to Charlotte Motor Speedway for next week’s race only four points behind leader Carl Edwards, who finished fifth Sunday, and three behind Kevin Harvick, who was sixth at Kansas.

“This sport is so tough,” Johnson said. “Look at all the second places we have this year, we have been close but just have not got the job done. We were glad to get the win done today. Big win for Mr. Hendrick, #199 and also Chevrolet winning the Manufacturing Championship, couldn’t do without all them and all the great people at Lowes’, they have been behind us since day one. We did our job today and hopefully we can do it six or seven more times.”

Two weeks ago Johnson seemed so vulnerable, limping home after an extremely poor finish at New Hampshire that left him 10th in points, his lowest Chase standing ever. Even more worrisome, he had gone one full year with only a single race win, that coming way back at Talladega in the spring, and was showing very little of the killer instinct that had left opponents trembling and mistake-prone over the final stages of playoffs past. For the first time, his championship reign looked shaky.  There appeared to be some kryptonite in the garage area! For the first time, you wondered if someone other than the familiar Jimmie Johnson standing on that stage in South Florida in late November, clutching that sterling silver cup.

It was only natural, given the presence of this new points format that no one really had a feel for, given Johnson’s seeming inability to unleash a tsunami of race victories he had used to inundate challengers so often in the past. This wasn’t about being a “naysayer,” or doubting the abilities of Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus, or considering the #48 team out of it, or anything as simple-minded as that. It was about knowing how Johnson has won championships in the past, seeing his results at a time of year when he’s usually at his best and wondering if the man they call Five-Time (for now) had “anything for ‘em” in order to seize title number 6.

Nevertheless, it would appear that the HMS #48 Lowe’s Chevy is poised to make it’s ever so familiar charge in the last ten races of the season, the Chase, to capitalize on an unprecedented sixth championship in a row!  Jimmie Johnson is back, although quite honestly, Jimmie and Chad never really went anywhere!  The Lowe’s #48 Chevy race team is back in full stride, and more importantly, in familiarly championship form!

Here is the unofficial results of the Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas.

After the fourth race in the Chase here is the standings of the Chase for The Cup.

What are your thoughts on Jimmie Jonson becoming Mr. Six-Time?

TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!

(photo courtesy Leon Hammack)

On Tuesday Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports, announced a multi-team shakeup for 2011.  Hendrick cited the reason for the shakeup was due to a lack of performance.

Here is the scorecard for 2011:  Steve Letarte, who has been crew chief for Jeff Gordon for the last five . . . → Read More: A Shakeup At Hendrick Motorsports]]>

(photo courtesy Leon Hammack)

On Tuesday Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports, announced a multi-team shakeup for 2011.  Hendrick cited the reason for the shakeup was due to a lack of performance.

Here is the scorecard for 2011:  Steve Letarte, who has been crew chief for Jeff Gordon for the last five seasons, will move over to the team of Dale Earnhardt Jr.  Lance McGrew, who has been on Earnhardt’s pit box since May of 2009, will be paired with Mark Martin next year.

Earnhardt has won just one Sprint Cup race since arriving at HMS in 2008. He qualified for the Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship that season but finished 12th in the 12-driver field.

Alan Gustafson, who has been Martin’s crew chief the last two seasons, moves to Gordon’s team.

The only driver left unaffected is Jimmie Johnson, who, with crew chief Chad Knaus, just won his fifth straight Sprint Cup championship.

“This will improve us as an organization, across the board,” Hendrick said in the statement. “We had a championship season, but we weren’t where we wanted and needed to be with all four teams. We’ve made the right adjustments, and I’m excited to go racing with this lineup.”

In addition, the Gordon and Martin teams will be fielded out of the same facility, now known as the 5/24 shop. Earnhardt and Johnson will be in the 48/88 shop. Previously the 24 and 48 cars were built in the same building, and the 5 and 88 were together.  A major shift of emphasis at HMS!

The other three drivers were winless, and only Gordon made the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship, finishing ninth in the final standings.

What is your take on the shakeup at Hendrick Motorsports?

TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!

(photo courtesy Jason Smith/Getty Images)

As it turned out Sunday, the Hendrick Motorsports #48 Lowe’s Chevy made the fewest mistakes of the final three contenders during the race.  By finishing second Sunday in the Ford 400 at the Homestead-Miami Speedway, Johnson secured his unprecedented fifth consecutive Sprint Cup championship!

Johnson, who started . . . → Read More: Jimmie Johnson Wins The 2010 Chase!]]>

(photo courtesy Jason Smith/Getty Images)

As it turned out Sunday, the Hendrick Motorsports #48 Lowe’s Chevy made the fewest mistakes of the final three contenders during the race.  By finishing second Sunday in the Ford 400 at the Homestead-Miami Speedway, Johnson secured his unprecedented fifth consecutive Sprint Cup championship!

Johnson, who started the day second in points – 15 behind Denny Hamlin – won by 39 points over Hamlin, who finished 14th.

Forty-one points back was third-place Kevin Harvick, who also finished third in the race.

“Can’t say enough about Jimmie,” Johnson’s crew chief, Chad Knaus, said.

“Finally, finally,” Johnson will get the respect he deserves, Knaus said.

Edwards, who led a race-best 189 laps, won his second straight race. The margin of victory over Johnson was 1.6 seconds.

“I’m so proud to be in this position,” Johnson said. “I think we showed this year what this team is made of.”

Hamlin said no way what happened to him and his hopes on Sunday were indicative of the quality of his team.

“Obviously, I’m disappointed,” Hamlin said. “Just circumstances.”

Hamlin, who started the race 36th on the starting grid, ran into those circumstances early. On lap 24, he slid up the track and into Greg Biffle and was forced into the infield grass on the back stretch.  Hamlin kept his car off the wall but suffered a damaged front splitter. He also lost track position and appeared to be in serious Chase trouble.

He said his car never ran the same after the Biffle incident.

So it is that Jimmie Johnson defied all odds to capture his fifth consecutive Sprint Cup championship.  He is now firmly in the company of greatness.  There are only two drivers that have won more Sprint Cup championships than Johnson, Richard petty and Dale Earnhardt, Sr. with seven championships each!

For the last ten weeks WOMR has been asking the one question that has been resounding over and over each week throughout NASCAR:

“Who will be the last man standing?”

We now know the answer, it is Jimmie Johnson!

What is your view on the 2010 Chase?

TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!