| Upcoming Events in the World of NASCAR | | | | Championship? Next week, NASCAR heads to |
| We NASCAR fans are patriots at heart. And there's | | | | Daytona for the Pepsi 400 where Jeff Gordon has |
| no better way to celebrate the birth of our nation | | | | been dominate. In 28 races at Daytona, Jeff has 6 |
| than at the most beloved track in all of NASCAR, | | | | wins, 11 top 5 finishes, and 16 top 10 finishes. For the |
| Daytona International Speedway. The beaches of | | | | math challenged, that means on average Gordon |
| Daytona were already a destination for motor sports | | | | finishes in the top 10 in over half the races. If Gordon |
| enthusiasts before Bill France Sr decided to host the | | | | wants to qualify for NASCAR's Nextel Cup Chase for |
| first NASCAR event there in 1947. Twelve years | | | | the Championship, he'll need to maintain his average |
| later, the track that we all know and love, Daytona | | | | at Daytona and finish with another top 10. |
| International Speedway opened and hosted its first | | | | Who's Not? |
| event drawing 41,000 people. | | | | The dates have changed, but the faces have not in |
| Next week, the NASCAR Nextel Cup teams head to | | | | this week's Who's Not section. Suffering from |
| Daytona to perform their craft in front of a crowd | | | | mechanical failures late in the race, Tony Stewart |
| of 175,000+. Expect the Hendrick boys to dominate. | | | | gave up position after position to finish 28th in |
| Of all current drivers with 4 or more career starts at | | | | yesterday's Dodge/Save Mart 300. The 28th place |
| Daytona, Jimmie Johnson (average finish of 6th) and | | | | finished booted Tony further down in the points to |
| Jeff Gordon (average finish of 13th) both lead the | | | | 7th place only 23 points in front of Jeff Gordon and |
| pack. | | | | 70 points in front of 10th place driver Kevin Harvick. |
| Also expect the following drivers to do well next | | | | There can't be anything more frustrating for a driver |
| week: | | | | than running in the top 5 for much of the day to end |
| Other drivers to note: | | | | up with a mechanical failure that seals your fate in |
| Dale Earnhardt Jr - Average Finish 14th Kevin Harvick | | | | the race. While yesterday's 28th place finish wasn't |
| - Average Finish 16th Dale Jarrett - Average Finish | | | | Tony's fault, it can't help to boost the driver's nor the |
| 16th | | | | team's confidence. Let's face it, the Home Depot |
| Next Week's Schedule: | | | | team has been on a backwards slide since the |
| Nextel Cup: @ Daytona International Speedway (all | | | | All-Star break. In 4 of the last 5 races, the #20 team |
| times in EST) 6/29/06 - 2:10pm NASCAR Nextel Cup | | | | has finished 25th or worst. That's hardly satisfactory |
| Pepsi 400 Practice 6/30/06 - 04:35pm NASCAR | | | | for a team coming off of a 2005 championship |
| Nextel Cup Pepsi 400 Qualifying 7/01/06 - 07:55pm | | | | season. |
| NASCAR Nextel Pepsi 400 | | | | However, Tony didn't earn the nicknames "Smoke" |
| Busch Series: @ Daytona International Speedway (all | | | | or "Tiger" for lying down and giving up. He is still in |
| times EST) 6/29/06 - 05:10pm NASCAR Busch Series | | | | the top 10 (barely), and has plenty of time to get |
| Winn-Dixie 250 presented by PepsiCo Practice 6/30 | | | | back on track before the Chase for the |
| 06 - 01:05pm NASCAR Busch Series Winn-Dixie 250 | | | | Championship. All teams go through a dry-spell in any |
| presented by PepsiCo Qualifying 6/30/06 - 08:00pm | | | | season. I'm sure Tony prefers having his dry-spell |
| NASCAR Busch Series Winn-Dixie 250 presented by | | | | now while he still has time to recover. |
| PepsiCo | | | | Last Week's Headlines |
| Craftsman Truck Series: @ Kansas Speedway (all | | | | I know what you're thinking, why is NASCAR at a |
| times in Central) 6/30/06 - 12:30pm NASCAR | | | | road course? Because road courses do not offer up |
| Craftsman Truck Series O'REILLY AUTO PARTS 250 | | | | the same passing lanes as an oval track, some |
| Practice 6/30/06 - 05:00pm NASCAR Craftsman | | | | NASCAR fans are bored by road course racing. What |
| Truck Series O'REILLY AUTO PARTS 250 Qualifying | | | | these fans fail to recognize is that road course races |
| 7/01/06 - 02:15pm NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series | | | | help vindicate NASCAR drivers to the rest of the |
| O'REILLY AUTO PARTS 250 | | | | racing world. |
| Who's Hot? | | | | I find it interesting to see how the gun-slinging road |
| We've been ragging on Jeff Gordon hard of late. Of | | | | course mercenaries like Boris Said stack up to the |
| course, he's probably been ragging on himself too. | | | | NASCAR Nextel Cup regulars like Jeff and Robby |
| After a lackluster start to the 2006 season that had | | | | Gordon. Make no doubt about it, the gunslingers |
| him 11th in points, Gordon finally has tasted victory | | | | come to Infineon Raceway hungry! Many see the |
| lane for the first time in yesterday's Dodge/Save | | | | typical NASCAR driver as a lame duck maneuvering |
| Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway. Gordon's win | | | | blindly through the twists and turns of the course |
| yesterday is his 9th career win at a road course | | | | waiting to be overtaken by an aggressive Boris Said |
| making him the most decorated road course driver in | | | | with a "nothing to loose" attitude. |
| NASCAR's history. | | | | Despite the expert talent of the hired help, it always |
| After starting 11th, Gordon was able to rocket | | | | seems the top NASCAR regulars always prevail. |
| himself through the field and take over the top | | | | Yesterday's Dodge/Save mart 350 was no exception. |
| position in just 50 laps. The entire #24 DuPont team | | | | The last portion of the race was completely |
| was solid throughout the entire race. Jeff never | | | | dominated by NASCAR drivers Terry Labonte, Jeff |
| missed a mark, never spun out, restarted perfectly | | | | Gordon, and Tony Stewart. While Boris Said flirted |
| after every caution while his team posted some of | | | | with the top 5, he and the other road course |
| the fastest times of the day on pit road. This kind of | | | | veterans never challenged for the lead. |
| a performance is reminiscent of Gordon during his | | | | Other notable finishers were Carl Edwards (6th) and |
| previous championship seasons. | | | | Greg Biffle (4th). Each needed solid finishes to make |
| The big question is can Gordon and his team maintain | | | | a run at the top 10 in points. Biffle currently sits in |
| this championship form as they head into the | | | | 9th place and Edwards is 73 points out of 10th. |
| remaining 10 races before the Chase for the | | | | |