| Upcoming Events in the World of NASCAR | | | | Tony Stewart are in the top 10 in driver's points. |
| Roughly three years ago, Indianapolis Motor | | | | Who's Not? |
| Speedway (IMS) was the site for a publicity show | | | | Could this be the second year in a row that Dale |
| down pitting the top NASCAR driver, Jeff Gordon, | | | | Earnhardt Inc. fails to put the most popular driver in |
| against one of the top Formula One drivers, Juan | | | | all of NASCAR in the Chase for the Championship? |
| Pablo Montoya. Each driver swapped cars for 7 laps | | | | Two years ago, DEI was considered one of the top |
| on the 2.6 mile road course through the Indy infield. | | | | teams in NASCAR. They dominated the restrictor |
| At the day's end, both drivers, especially Juan, and | | | | plate races and had successes at the short tracks. |
| teams gained a new found respect for the style of | | | | However, two years is miles away in the competitive |
| racing each series has to offer. | | | | world of NASCAR. |
| In two weeks, Jeff Gordon and the rest of the | | | | This season, DEI's top driver, Dale Earnhardt Jr, has |
| Nextel Cup boys return to Indianapolis Motor | | | | failed to win a single race. Not only is Earnhardt |
| Speedway for the Brickyard 400. Of the 36 races on | | | | winless, his average finish at restrictor plate races |
| the Nextel Cup circuit, The Brickyard 400 ranks in top | | | | thus far is 17th! Yesterday's 43rd place finish at |
| 5 favorite for many of the NASCAR drivers due to | | | | Pocono was the 5th race in a row that Dale finished |
| the rich racing history of IMS. | | | | 25th or worse. This recent string of poor |
| Of all current drivers with 2 or more career starts at | | | | performances has knocked Junior out of the top 10 |
| Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the favorite amongst | | | | in driver's points, and will possibly cause him to miss |
| female fans, Kasey Kahne, has had the most | | | | the 2006 Chase for the Championship. |
| success. In two starts at IMS, Kasey has an average | | | | Last Week's Headlines |
| finish of 3rd. | | | | Yesterday's Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono Raceway |
| Also expect the following drivers to do well next | | | | was chock full of the drama and action that has |
| week: | | | | made NASCAR one of the most beloved sports in |
| Tony Stewart - Average Finish 8th | | | | America. The fun started on lap 31 as Tony Stewart |
| Jeff Gordon - Average Finish 9th | | | | intentionally cut across the front of Clint Boyer's Jack |
| Kevin Harvick - Average Finish 9th | | | | Daniel's #07 car. Stewart's love tap was in retaliation |
| Next Week's Schedule: | | | | for Boyer forcing Stewart up high and into the wall |
| Nextel Cup off until August 6th @ Indianapolis Motor | | | | upon exiting turn 3. The end result of Stewart's tap |
| Speedway | | | | cost Carl Edwards a chance of having a successful |
| Busch Series: @ Gateway International Raceway | | | | day at Pocono (where he's already one twice), and |
| 7/29/06 - 10:00am NASCAR Busch Series Busch 250 | | | | most likely knocked Carl out of championship |
| Practice | | | | contention. |
| 7/29/06 - 03:30pm NASCAR Busch Series Busch 250 | | | | As one could imagine, Carl wasn't flashing his toothy |
| Qualifying | | | | grin at Tony the rest of the day. Instead Carl gave |
| 7/29/06 - 07:15pm NASCAR Busch Series Busch 250 | | | | Tony a love tap of his own while entering pit road. |
| Craftsman Truck Series off until August 6th @ | | | | The tap caused Tony to spin almost completely |
| Indianapolis Raceway Park | | | | around, and force NASCAR to black flag Edwards. |
| Who's Hot? | | | | The rest of the drivers maintained their poise, and |
| Yesterday at Pocono Raceway, all three Joe Gibbs | | | | battled the tough "Tro-Val" of Pocono. The |
| Racing drivers finished in the top eleven. What makes | | | | rain-canceled practice on Saturday caused troubles |
| this feat even more impressive is that two of the | | | | for most of the teams who use the practice set-up |
| three drivers, Denny Hamlin and J.J. Yeley, are | | | | the cars in race trim. The only team not affected |
| rookies. | | | | from the lack of practice was the #11 FedEx car |
| The "Tro-Val" of Pocono is not an easy beast to | | | | driven by Denny Hamlin. |
| tame even for veteran drivers. How then, might you | | | | Hamlin dominated the race from start to finish. He |
| ask, does a rookie driver dominate the two races at | | | | started the race in the pole position and relinquished |
| Pocono in his rookie season? The simple answer | | | | the lead only during pit-stop cycles. Denny's first place |
| would be to claim Denny Hamlin is the next great | | | | finish and 8th place standing in the points has made |
| superstar to come out of Virginia since Michael Vick. | | | | him a front runner for Rookie of the Year. |
| However, I believe the answer lies just a bit deeper. | | | | The ever-consistent Jimmie Johnson finished in the |
| For much of its existence, Joe Gibbs Racing has | | | | 6th spot. Jimmie has dominated the 2006 season and |
| essentially been a one-trick pony. Despite fielding | | | | has an average finish of 8th. His Hendrick teammates |
| multiple teams in the past, typically only one of the | | | | also faired well. Jeff Gordon took the checkered flag |
| teams would be noticeable come Sunday. I believe | | | | with a much-needed 3rd place finish while Brian |
| this season, JGR has expanded its stable and now | | | | Vickers finished in 4th. Gordon now sits 9th in points, |
| has the ability to produce multiple, competitive cars | | | | and currently qualifies for the Chase for the |
| every weekend. The proof is in the points. After | | | | Championship. |
| yesterday's Pennsylvania 500, both Denny Hamlin and | | | | |