Working On My Redneck ™ » jimmie johnson

Bowyer Wins The Good Sam’s 500

Leon — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 23:58:13 +0000

(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!

Johnson Wins The Hollywood Casino 400 At Kansas

Leon — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 02:20:20 +0000

(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!

A Shakeup At Hendrick Motorsports

Leon — Wed, 24 Nov 2010 02:26:38 +0000

(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!

Jimmie Johnson Wins The 2010 Chase!

Leon — Wed, 24 Nov 2010 02:14:12 +0000

(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!

Hamlin Comes Out Of Texas With Guns A-Blazin!

Leon — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 21:34:36 +0000

(photo courtesy John Harrelson/Getty Images)

Denny Hamlin came out of “the wild west show” at Ft. Worth Sunday with his six shooters a smokin’ and shot right into the Sprint Cup points lead with just two races left in “The Chase”. Denny Hamlin held off Matt Kenseth in a three lap shootout at the Texas Motor Speedway for the victory in the AAA Texas 500 and his eighth win of the year, all the while leap frogging over the current four- time champion and points leader, Jimmie Johnson.

Johnson, who began the day 14 points ahead of Hamlin, exited Texas 33 points behind his rival after a ninth place finish featuring the controversial on-the-fly swap of his pit crew with that of Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jeff Gordon.

Meanwhile, remaining Chase contender Kevin Harvick managed a sixth-place finish to hold onto third in the championship, 59 points behind Hamlin. Harvick began the race 38 points behind Johnson in a three-for-all that will continue next Sunday at the 1-mile Phoenix International Raceway.

“You know, for me I’m going to race Phoenix as if I’m 33 behind, to be honest with you,” said Hamlin, who completed only the second two-race Cup sweep on TMS’ high-banked, 1.5-mile quad-oval. “There’s no comfortable margin going into Homestead because anything can happen. I need to just 100 percent stay focused, is all I can do.”

“Like I say, I’m not going to be conservative having the lead,” said Hamlin, driver of the #11 FedEx Office Toyota Camry. “I’m going to want to stretch that out before we get to Homestead. So that’s pretty much my mindset.”

Hamlin took the lead from Mark Martin for the final time on Lap 306 on a restart following the day’s eighth caution period. But a restart on Lap 332, after the race’s ninth and final caution, proved pivotal as Hamlin paired-off against Matt Kenseth.

“It was exciting,” said Hamlin, who had qualified a disappointing 30th on Friday. “I figured I had been pretty good on the top on restarts once we got our car tightened-up enough that I was pretty confident I would be OK. But restarts have been my Achilles Heel all Chase long, all year long. I just can’t seem to get it together.

“So I was able to side-draft the #17 (of Kenseth) enough on the front straightaway to keep beside him to where he couldn’t clear me off (Turn 2) and that was going to be very important. But when he cleared me in the middle of (Turns) 1 and 2, he did it by gassing up really aggressive and early, and I knew it was gong to be a hard time for him to exit the corner that way. He obviously ran out of racetrack and it opened up the door for us to cross over.

“For me, it was great to win a race that way. I love racing for a win like that. Any driver will tell you if there’s one guy you’re going to trust underneath you, it’s going to be Matt. For me, it was very gratifying to win a race that way.”

With just two races left on the schedule, NASCAR moves further out west to the Phoenix International Raceway this coming weekend. There will not be the luxury of “points racing” for the remaining races. The three remaining drivers in the hunt will have to race hard, and race for the win at all costs, if either of them want to become the 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup champion. The questions that has been asked all season will be answered in just two short weeks at the Ford Championship weekend at the Homestead-Miami race track.

Who will be the new sheriff in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series?

There were twelve drivers, now two races remaining, and still just one championship. Who will be the last man standing?

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

Halloween, Survival, And Talladega

Leon — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 15:45:43 +0000

(photo courtesy John Harrelson/Getty Images)

It is “wild card weekend” for NASCAR this week. The series travels to the longest track on the circuit, the Talladega Superspeedway. This the home to “the big one”, the one track where you are truly at the mercy of the drivers that surrounds you at any given point during the race! It reminds me of the old Steeler’s Wheel song, Stuck In The Middle With You, “clowns to left of me, jokers to the right, here I am, stuck in the middle with you!”

The contrast from last week’s race at the circuits shortest and slowest race track, this week NASCAR rolls into Talladega Superspeedway the longest and most unpredictable race track couldn’t be more dramatic! The “aftermath” of this Sunday’s race will be equally as dramatic! At sunset on Halloween, the race results will give us a more precise picture of who will be the 2010 Sprint cup champion.

Last week all three of “the contenders”, Jimmie Johnson, Danny Hamlin, and Kevin Harvick were talking about being successful at Martinsville, Hamlin even pulled off an old Mohammad Ali prediction of a win at Martinsville! Fortunately, Hamlin was able to back up his prediction, just as Ali of old would do!

However, this week comes the Talladega Superspeedway and “the three contenders” are now talking of just surviving. None of the trio has a particularly sterling record at this track. However Harvick did win there earlier this year, but that is his first Talladega win in 19 Cup starts. He has accumulated only four top-fives and eight top-10s. Harvick’s average starting positions is 22.2, while his average finishing position at the Alabama oval is 15.5

Hamlin has only raced at Talladega nine times. He has three top fives and no wins. His starting average if 16.0, while his finishing average is 19.3.

And this is a track where Johnson, who seems to have an advantage at almost every track in the Chase, has often come up short. In 17 starts, the four-time defending Cup champion has one win, four top-fives and seven top-10s. He average start is 9.9, but his average finish is 17.8.

It seems Harvick may have the biggest advantage at Talladega, based on the fact that he has been running at the finish of all of his 19 starts. JJ has finished just 10 of 17 and Hamlin seven of nine.

The key at Talladega is to somehow avoid the inevitable big wreck that usually takes out or badly damaged anywhere from 10 to 20 cars sometime during the race.

This year’s AMP Energy 500 is running on Halloween. The drivers might find out that this Sunday they might have to dive into their bag of tricks in order to receive a treat!

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

See you at Talladega!

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

This video could be the Talladega theme song this weekend, enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMAIsqvTh7g

Hamlin Wins The Tums Fast Relief 500

Leon — Sun, 24 Oct 2010 22:39:41 +0000

(photo courtesy Leon Hammack)

With just five races to go at the start of Sunday’s Tums Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway, time is a commodity that is extremely valuable to these race teams. Time can either be working with you, or be the biggest detriment, and work vigorously against you. Time is running out!

Therefore, there is no time like the present time to make your move!

YES FOLKS, IT IS NOW SHOWTIME!

With the completion of the Tums Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville, the Chase is now officially half way through. In the first five races, there have been five different winners. Nevertheless, it has boiled down to a three horse race between Jimmie Johnson, Denny Hamlin, and Kevin Harvick.

Sunday the Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship tightened up significantly as Denny Hamlin won the race, finished four spots of point leader Jimmie Johnson, and worked his way to within six points of the Chase leader, Jimmie Johnson in the standings. With the victory at Martinsville, goes the coveted Martinsville grandfather clock. Hamlin has now accumulated four of those classic time pieces. In fact, there are only two drivers who have won the last nine races at Martinsville, Jimmie Johnson and Denny Hamlin.

Kevin Harvick, third in points, finished third in Sunday’s Tums Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday. He heads to next weekend’s race at Talladega Superspeedway, the sixth race in the 10-race Chase, just 62 behind Chase leader Johnson.

Here is the unofficial results of the Tums Fast Relief 500.

Next on the schedule for the Sprint Cup drivers is the biggest track on the circuit, the 2.66 mile long tri-oval, the Talladega Superspeedway, where anything can and usually does happen! This track is the delight of gearheads, throttle-jockies, and rednecks alike. Where the pack of 43 cars act like a swarm of bees that are perched for attack!

On Tuesday WOMR will be packing up and heading out for the AMP 500 at Talladega. It is Halloween weekend and the track officials are billing the weekend as “Hallodega”! So WOMR is gathering up all his Lynard Skynard, .38 Special, Molley Hachet, the Charlie Daniels Band, and the Allman Brothers tunes in the ol iPod to help pass the time on the plane trip across the country to Atlanta.

See you from the Talladega Superpeedway next weekend!

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

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

“The Biff” Wins The Price Chopper 400

Leon — Sun, 03 Oct 2010 22:59:28 +0000

(photo courtesy nascar.com)

For the race fans who were praying for a tightening in The Chase standings, your wish has been granted. With Greg Biffle’s victory and Tony Stewart’s good showing in the Price Chopper 400, there are nine drivers within 101 points! Tony Stewart’s 4th place finish moved him to within 127 points of the new Chase leader, Jimmie Johnson.

The Roush-Fenway Racing driver of the #16 Sherwin-Williams Ford took the lead on lap 206 of the 267-lap of the Price Chopper 400 presented by Kraft, during a final round of green flag pits stop with 37 laps to go and held it to the end. Biffle beat second-place Jimmie Johnson by over 7 seconds, giving him his second victory of the year and his first in the Chase.

“Once we got our car adjusted we were off and set sail,” Biffle said. “The thing was really fast. I didn’t think even if there were more cautions that they would catch us. I was even saving a little bit out there at the end.”

Jimmie Johnson assumed the points lead with his finish, as pre-race leader Denny Hamlin finished 12th. Johnson heads to Auto Club Speedway next week eight points ahead of Hamlin.

Here is the unofficial race results of the Price Chopper 400.

After the Price Chopper 400, the Case standings got a little tighter. For a full picture of the standings check out the following link. Here is the standings in “The Chase” after the Price Chopper 400 at the Kansas Speedway.

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

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

Johnson Wins The AAA 400

Leon — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 03:27:13 +0000

(photo courtesy Leon Hammack)

After the race last week at Louden, at which Johnson finished 25th, the other eleven Chase contenders were thinking that Jimmie Johnson and the whole Hendrick Motorsports #48 Lowe’s Chevy was vulnerable. With the victory Sunday in the AAA 400 at Dover, WOMR is wondering what those eleven race teams are thinking now?

Johnson, who has won the past four championships, passed Kyle Busch for the lead with 63 laps to go and went on to earn an easy victory in the AAA 400 at Dover International Speedway on Sunday. The victory was the sixth of the season and first in the Chase for Johnson and his # 48 Hendrick Motorsports team.

Johnson, the polesitter, moved from sixth to second in points with the victory. He is 35 behind the leader, Denny Hamlin, heading to next week’s race at Kansas Speedway.

“I may not look a lot excited right now,” Johnson said, “but there’s this huge weight off my shoulders that we were able to win a race in the Chase, rebound from last weekend, and we’re in the middle of this thing and I’m really, really excited.

“I’m excited about what we have ahead. Last weekend; anything can happen. I know Talladega is out there. We did a great job today. We’re in the right position but we’ve got to keep this Impala fast and be there after Talladega. That’s the goal. So we did the best thing possible. I’ve very, very excited about today. At some point hopefully my wife and my daughter will show up; I thought they might be here now and I can’t wait to celebrate this moment with them too.”

Just when some people thought that Jimmie Johnson and the #48 Lowe’s Chevy was not hitting on all eight cylinders, they have just had a rude awakening!

HEEEE’S BAAAAACK!!

Here is the unofficial results of the AAA 400 at Dover.

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

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

Johnson Wins The Pole For The AAA 400

Leon — Sat, 25 Sep 2010 17:26:19 +0000

(photo courtesy Al Bello/Getty Images)

On Friday afternoon Jimmie Johnson secured the pole position for the AAA 400 at Dover International Speedway. The four-time and reigning champion’s fast lap was at 155.736 mph. The pole was the third of the season for Johnson, who has won five races in 2010.

“This is certainly a step in the right direction for momentum,” Johnson said. “Last weekend we ran much better than where we finished. It stinks that we finished where we did but there is nothing we can really do about it and to come out this weekend and qualify on the pole just starts the weekend off on the right foot. And it really creates a good situation for us in the race having that first pit stall.

“Track position is very, very important here. It seems to be more important as each weekend and each year goes by. We just learn more about the cars and make them more equal and the aero deficit that you’re in being one position back; just one position back is enough to keep you from running the lap times you need to.

“So, it’s all small little steps now and track position is one of the few big steps left in our sport. And the best way to get that track position is by qualifying on the front row or up front, and we did that. Hopefully we can maintain that track position throughout the race and have a good finish.”

Here is the official starting lineup for the AAA 400 at Dover Sunday.

PS As Saturday’s first Sprint Cup practice session started, Kevin Harvick and Denny Hamlin had an on-track run in. That on track run-in spilled over into the garage area and those two drivers and crew chiefs were involved in a very heated discussion.

It is speculated that Harvick was standing up for his team mate, Clint Bowyer. Both Kurt Busch and Denny Hamlin had lambasted Clint Bowyer’s team regarding the RCR fines and penalty from Louden last week.

Is Kevin Harvick fueling a feud with Denny Hamlin?

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