I’m sure you’ve heard that Tony Stewart did something this weekend that he hasn’t done in Nascar Cup racing since 2005 and that was qualify on pole (and this only his eleventh pole since he started in NSCS.) Whether his winning the pole translates into strong performance and victory remains to be seen, but it does show Stewart/Haas Racing is ready to continue flexing their muscle like they did in 2009 with strong performances from both the No. 14 and No. 39 teams. A couple of things stand out to this fan and need to be considered for the race this weekend at Texas Motor Speedway. First, I’m not so sure that qualifying on pole means too much of anything except a good pit selection and second, (as has been the case more than once this year,) even leading the most laps doesn’t prove anything either. Just looking back...

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Once again in the 2010 NASCAR season it didn’t matter who led the most laps, it only mattered who was leading when the checkered flag fell. This weekend at Phoenix International Raceway, it was an ecstatic and emotional Ryan Newman that entered into to Victory Lane after a long dry spell of seventy-seven races of no wins. It was the first for the No. 39 and the first for the No. 39 team, Ryan Newman and crew chief, Tony Gibson with Stewart/Haas Racing. I know you’ve heard it many times already since the end of the race, but, three drivers led over 100 laps and the best that any of those three did was finish third. Jimmie Johnson, Juan Montoya and Kyle Bush were the three drivers and at least two of the three were very disappointed with where they finished, (although with the luck Montoya has been having...

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Two interesting things make this year’s spring race at Phoenix International Raceway different.  The first is probably the most obvious and most visible.  That would be the return of the spoiler, which made its first appearance at Martinsville almost two weeks ago and it remains to be seen what kind of an effect it will have on the way the cars handle as we get to these larger tracks. The second change is not quite as visible but will make a difference all the same.  That would be the additional 63 laps that they’re running this year as opposed to the last time and they were there. History says a few perform better than others at the Phoenix International Raceway, but reality says anyone could win this year. Why do I say that’s important? Because it is a well known fact in the recent past, some drivers and teams...

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This weekend at Martinsville, could prove to be a totally different race than the expectations would have been should there have been qualifying. With the teams lining up for the race according to points, there’s no way of knowing how that is going to affect the outcome of the race.  The teams starting on the front row (Kevin Harvick and Matt Kenseth) didn’t necessarily exhibit that they had a good grip on performance for the Martinsville track.  In fact, Kevin Harvick made the statement that this could be the slowest qualifying front row for the race ever and I’m inclined to, at least, partially agree. A quick look at the lineup reveals teams that have been performing well so far this year but don’t necessarily run that well at Martinsville. From this fans view, what is interesting about starting order is that it makes a big difference because of...

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The Shelby American at Las Vegas was dominated from the first lap by Jeff Gordon and the #24 Hendrick team. A late race gamble to take two tires instead of four by crew chief, Steve Letarte, just didn’t quite work out and Jimmie Johnson ended up in Victory Lane, winning for the second week in a row while Jeff Gordon finished third behind Kevin Harvick. (Wasn’t that a surprise?) Now I know some are probably saying, “It figures, they win all the time… I’m already bored this season.”  While others could be saying, “Letarte just threw the race away for Jeff so Jimmie could win again.” I haven’t actually heard any of the above mentioned statements, but I don’t discount the fact that there are those that are, or have, uttered them since the race. Yeah, it’s true; Jimmie Johnson has won two out of the first three point...

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