Chase Ends For Dale Earnhardt Jr

Dale Earnhardt Jr

He fought a strong battle but the 2007 chase for the cup ended for Dale Earnhardt Jr. with yet another blown engine. The finish of The Chevy Excitement 400 was just that, very exciting as Dale Jr., Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon and finally David Ragan tried their best to hunt down race winner Jimmie Johnson.

But even if Earnhardt finished first it would not have mattered because all the drivers ahead of him had locked up the first twelve positions to qualify for NASCAR'S version of a ten race play off. Jimmie Johnson has come on strong again just at the right time as his Lowes Chevy team is primed for a defense of his 2006 championship. Johnson will go into next weeks race at New Hampshire as the #1 seed in a very strong field of 12 cars and drivers.

Don't feel to bad for Dale Jr. because win or lose he still remains the most popular and most highly paid driver in the Cup garage. With the move to Hendrick Motor Sports in 2008 he has a strong future in a sport that his given him more than most can expect. Being a big Dale Jr. fan I myself can't wait for next year to start and see what he can do with an inherently stronger team.

Back to the chase, we have to keep our eyes on Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart and Carl Edwards as they seem to have the most momentum going into the championship run. Put your money on Johnson and Stewart to battle for the top prize that NASCAR has to offer because they have the two best teams, which is what you need for a chance to win the big prize. Who do you think will win? Drop me a line and give me your opinion.

Dale Earnhardt Jr

Gibbs Makes The Move To Toyota

Gibbs to Toyota

In a move that had been anticipated for several weeks, Joe Gibbs Racing has made it official and signed on to be the #1 team for Toyota. In 2008 Toyota will now have a top notch team to field it's Camry's with three of the best drivers on the Cup circuit, Tony Stewart, Denny Hamlin and newcomer Kyle Busch.

In what was characterised as a squeeze play from the Chevrolet stable, JGR sited the fact that it was tough for Chevy to support four of the top teams of the sport. With Hendrick, Childress and DEI in the mix, I guess the Gibbs organization felt the move would be the best long term deal for them. Obviously Toyota has deep pockets and needed a strong front running team with a winning history in the most competitive form of American motor racing.

This move now gives Toyota what it needs to win races and eventually a championship. The next thing JGR needs to do is sign Stewart and Hamlin to long term deals so that there will be no questions to be answered, either on a driver or sponsor level. The chemistry is there for a winning combination and in this writers opinion, JGR will be a bidding for the number 1 position within the next three years. Let me know what you think.

Gibbs to Toyota

Another Win for Johnson In Fontana

Jimmie Johnson

It was another stellar performance by Jimmie Johnson and his Lowes Chevy team as he scored his fifth and series leading victory at his home track in southern California. For the first half of the race he stood there lurking in the top five and then proceeded to take over past the half way point and cruise along to another victory for Hendrick Motor Sports.

This NASCAR Nextel Cup race had some descent racing among the front runners as this huge 2 mile oval boast three and four racing grooves. Dale Earnhardt Jr. found himself in the hunt early on but faded at the end and finished a disappointing fifth, all but eliminating him from the chase. With the final race next weekend in Richmond he will need a miracle to get in.

But once again Hendrick showed why they are the dominant team in the cup series as Johnson, Kyle Busch and Casey Mears all ran well. The only exception is points leader Jeff Gordon who struggled all night. Gordon will most likely see his points margin of over 400 points erased by the bonus system NASCAR has adopted and Johnson will lead going into the final ten races for the championship. Oh well, at least it's a Hendrick car unless another team can step up and give them a fight. Tony Stewart, are you listening? See you next week in Richmond.

Jimmie Johnson

Massa Wins F1 Grand Prix Of Turkey

With another dominant performance by team Ferrari, Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen finished one-two in what proved to be a very subdued race. As in most F1 contest the only passing came at the start and in the pit lane after each team showed their hand on fuel strategy. The only glaring event of the race was when championship points leader Lewis Hamilton had a right front tire blow and he had to limp back to the pits. Luckily he only lost two positions as he had his problem close to the pit entrance and not further down the track. He was able to salvage fifth place.

Ferrari's getting the better start they went into turn one nose to tail and The Ferrari's showed again that they were the cars to beat as Massa had the pole and Raikkonen started from the third position, but on the clean side of the grid. With both of thebasically stayed that way the balance of the race. Defending world champ Fernando Alonso started from grid spot number four but lost two places at the start to the BMW's. But with better pit strategy and his teammates bad luck, finished on the podium with a strong third place.

Maybe there will be a little more on the track action at the next event in Monza, but that is not likely to happen, as the cars tend to get spread apart very quickly on the high speed circuit. As in all the F1 events qualifying will get the most attention as the front runners will once again be vying for the ever important pole position. But congratulations to Felipe Massa and to Ferrari on a most impressive Grand Prix of Turkey as we head off to Monza were the Ferrari fans will be in abundance and as crazy as ever.

Massa Grand Prix of Turkey

Boring Race From Bristol?

Bristol

It what seemed to be anything but the usual Saturday night late August event from Bristol, this race seemed to be missing something. That something was the beating and banging of car bumpers and fenders that send cars flying and tempers flaring. In a nutshell I think I know what caused this phenomenon.

The new track configuration was the reason we had a gentleman's race in Thunder Valley. By making the track wider and flattening out the turns, cars were able to find two if not three racing grooves to get around the 1/2 mile oval. The bullring which once was Bristol Motor Speedway has now been made somewhat tame by the new layout.

You would not have predicted such a clean race based on the yellow flag filled Busch race that took place Friday night. But I guess Carl Edwards and his team had things figured out as they breezed to victory in this NASCAR main event. I wonder if the fans at the race were disappointed when they didn't see any fights, spins or helmets thrown?

But what I came away with from last nights race was satisfaction. I for one never liked all the yellow caution laps at Bristol and the race ending at about midnight. The racing was pure and the ability for the drivers to run high or low and be able to pass without some dirty work was refreshing. This race fan likes to see racing, and that's exactly what we saw at Bristol on Saturday night.

Bristol