Homestead thoughts
Congratulations to Jimmie Johnson for winning his third-straight Sprint Cup Championship. He's only the second driver to win three Cup championships in a row. Cale Yarborough was the first to do so back in 1978, 30 years ago.
I have one beef about the post-race festivities. You would think that after such a long season for us devoted race fans that sit down each week to watch racing, that they would have allowed us viewers at home to see Johnson's burnout. But they didn't. We got back from commercial break to see him standing up on his car. Thanks a lot.
Congratulations to my man, Clint Bowyer, for winning his first Nationwide Series Championship. Seriously, did NASCAR just want Carl Edwards to win the championship with that late-race caution flag? With 9 laps to go, they threw the caution and said someone got into the wall but never showed who or how bad it was. Or maybe they did and I just missed it.
All I've got to say is thank God for teammates. Scott Wimmer was behind him on the restart and helped a lot in staving off the cars behind Bowyer.
Twice a bridesmaid this year for Carl Edwards. Despite his nine wins in the Sprint Cup and seven wins in the Nationwide Series, he managed to finish second in the point standings in both series. He was so close to winning the championship in each though. He's probably the only person wishing that there were one more weekend of racing.
Here are some other random thoughts of the weekend:
-- Dale Earnhardt Junior is his own worst enemy. He stalled the car on pit road and had to be pushed to get it restarted. On the restart, he had to start last car on the lead lap. Then, with about 18 laps remaining in the race he had a brake caliper break, ending his day and also a visit at the Waldorf Astoria in New York for the NASCAR banquet. Junior finished the race in 41st position. Hopefully he will have a better season next year.
-- After the amazing first half of the season that Kyle Busch had, I am happy that he made it to the top-ten in the point standings. I am looking forward to his speech at the NASCAR banquet.
-- It's fitting that Kurt Busch blew more tires for the season finale race. At least he and his team are consistent. On top of blowing tires, he got penalized for a commitment cone violation, too fast entering pit road, too fast exiting pit road and pitting too soon. I guess if you're going to break a rule, you might as well go big.
What did you think of the racing/results of this past weekend?
Chaser stats, Homestead preview and my pick
Here's a look at the Chasers going into the race this weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway (stats provided by NASCAR):
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1 - Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet) 6561 points, 2008 Rundown:
• Seven wins, 15 top fives, 22 top 10s
• Average finish of 10.4
• Led 28 races for 1,953 laps
Homestead-Miami Speedway Outlook:
• Driver Rating of 85.0
• Two top fives, five top 10s; one pole
• Average finish of 13.4
• Finished seventh last season
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2 - Carl Edwards (No. 99 Office Depot Ford) 6420 points, 2008 Rundown:
• Eight wins, 18 top fives, 26 top 10s
• Average finish of 9.7
• Led 20 races for 1,125 laps
Homestead-Miami Speedway Outlook:
• Driver Rating of 107.2
• Two top fives, three top 10s; one pole
• Average finish of 7.8
• Finished fifth last season
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3 - Greg Biffle (No. 16 3M Ford) 6358 points, 2008 Rundown:
• Two wins, 12 top fives, 17 top 10s
• Average finish of 12.7
• Led 20 races for 465 laps
Homestead-Miami Speedway Outlook:
• Driver Rating of 111.0
• Three wins
• Average finish of 12.7
• Finished 13th last season
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4 - Jeff Burton (No. 31 AT&T Mobility Chevrolet) 6292 points, 2008 Rundown:
• Two wins, seven top fives, 18 top 10s
• Average finish of 11.7
• Led 11 races for 140 laps
Homestead-Miami Speedway Outlook:
• Driver Rating of 84.4
• Three top fives, four top 10s
• Average finish of 13.1
• Finished eighth last season
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5 - Kevin Harvick (No. 29 Shell/Pennzoil Chevrolet) 6233 points, 2008 Rundown:
• Six top fives, 18 top 10s
• Average finish of 12.7
• Led seven races for 191 laps
Homestead-Miami Speedway Outlook:
• Driver Rating of 88.4
• Two top fives, five top 10s
• Average finish of 10.1
• Finished 19th last season
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6 - Clint Bowyer (No. 07 Jack Daniel's Chevrolet) 6266 points, 2008 Rundown:
• One win, six top fives, 16 top 10s
• Average finish of 14.3
• Led six races for 188 laps
Homestead-Miami Speedway Outlook:
• Driver Rating of 84.4
• One top 10
• Average finish of 24.5 in two races
• Finished 39th last season
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7 - Jeff Gordon (No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet) 6151 points, 2008 Rundown:
• 12 top fives, 18 top 10s
• Average finish of 14.8
• Led 19 races for 431 laps
Homestead-Miami Speedway Outlook:
• Driver Rating of 92.8
• Four top fives, seven top 10s
• Average finish of 10.6
• Finished fourth last season
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8 - Matt Kenseth (No. 14 DEWALT Ford) 6091 points, 2008 Rundown:
• Nine top fives, 20 top 10s
• Average finish of 16.2
• Led 18 races for 531 laps
Homestead-Miami Speedway Outlook:
• Driver Rating of 115.6
• One win, two top fives, three top 10s
• Average finish of 20.0
• Won last season's Homestead race
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9 - Denny Hamlin (No. 11 FedEx Toyota) 6090 points, 2008 Rundown:
• One win, 12 top fives, 18 top 10s
• Average finish of 15.5
• Led 15 races for 766 laps
Homestead-Miami Speedway Outlook:
• Driver Rating of 81.8
• Two top fives
• Average finish of 13.0
• Finished third last season
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10 - Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88 AMP Energy/National Guard Chevrol) 6087 points, 2008 Rundown:
• One win, 10 top fives, 16 top 10s
• Average finish of 13.3
• Led 22 races for 896 laps
Homestead-Miami Speedway Outlook:
• Driver Rating of 68.7
• Average finish of 21.3
• Finished 36th last season
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11 - Kyle Busch (No. 18 M&M's Toyota) 6080 points, 2008 Rundown:
• Eight wins, 17 top fives, 21 top 10s
• Average finish of 12.3
• Led 23 races for 1,673 laps
Homestead-Miami Speedway Outlook:
• Driver Rating of 76.6
• Average finish of 33.0
• Finished 20th last season
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12 - Denny Hamlin (No. 11 FedEx Toyota) 6059 points, 2008 Rundown:
• One win, 10 top fives, 15 top 10s
• Average finish of 15.1
• Led 14 races for 622 laps
Homestead-Miami Speedway Outlook:
• Driver Rating of 81.0
• Two wins, three top fives, four top 10s
• Average finish of 12.2
• Finished 30th last season
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