Top 35 Owner Points Countdown: Four Down, One to Go
The developing picture of the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will become clearer at the conclusion of the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway on March 22.
That’s when the use of last year’s final car owner points to determine the top 35 weekly guaranteed starting spots ends. Starting at Martinsville Speedway March 29, the current owner points determine the top 35 guarantees.
And so, during this off-week for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, the “bubble” is big news looking ahead to Bristol.
The reason for that, is this: Some major NASCAR names are hovering way-too-close to the cut-off, starting with the out-of-retirement Mark Martin (No. 5 Kellogg’s/Carquest Chevrolet) whose Hendrick Motorsports team sits in 35th this week, merely nine points ahead of the 36th-place team owned by Chip Ganassi, the No. 8 Cub Cadet Chevrolet driven by Aric Almirola.
(A footnote: Martin drove the No. 8 last year for Dale Earnhardt Inc.)
Some other teams in potential bubble trouble:
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The No. 39 U.S. Army Chevrolet owned by Tony Stewart and driven by Ryan Newman, 32nd in car owner points, a surprising development to say the least;
The No. 82 Red Bull Toyota owned by Dietrich Mateschitz and driven by former Formula One racer Scott Speed, a Raybestos Rookie of the Year candidate, is 37th.
And the No. 20 Home Depot Toyota owned by Joe Gibbs and driven by Joey Logano — arguably the favorite in the rookie of the year competition — is 33rd in the standings.
Now, consider the “Bristol factor.”
The half-mile high-banked oval is notorious for incidents that can quickly ruin one’s chances of winning. With the top 35 situation in play, Bristol quickly becomes even more worrisome.
Nothing like an off-week to let the nerves simmer.
Busch Brothers Post Back-To-Back Wins For Second Consecutive Year
Kurt and Kyle Busch have posted back-to-back NASCAR Sprint Cup Series wins for the second consecutive year.
In the series’ two most recent events, Kyle, 23, (No. 18 M&M’s Toyota) won at Las Vegas Motor Speedway March 1 where the brothers were also the top-two qualifiers, while Kurt, 30, (No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge) won at Atlanta Motor Speedway on March 8.
The brothers also posted consecutive wins in 2008. Kyle won at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif., followed by Kurt winning at New Hampshire the following week.
So far as the sibling rivalry goes, Kurt, the 2004 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion, still has the upper hand in the race wins category with 19, compared to Kyle’s 13.
Both have won at the series’ next stop at Bristol Motor Speedway, but only Kurt has also won at Martinsville.
In fact, Kurt scored his first career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series win in 2002 at Bristol. His second career win came at Martinsville. He has also won pole awards at both tracks.
But while younger brother Kyle was on a roll last year with a dominating eight wins, Kurt had only one, at New Hampshire in June.
“This was big,” Kurt said of the comeback victory. “I have to thank my Miller Lite guys… this car was unbelievable.
“We had great calls by (crew chief Pat Tryson) and our engineering staff. Penske power is back. This feels awesome.”
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He also topped his hat to Kyle.
“I’ve got to hold up my end of the bargain because Kyle is on a tear right now,” Kurt said. “I’m real proud of him. Real happy for him. “
Penske Has Change Of Heart
After watching Kurt Busch go to Victory Lane at Atlanta, car owner Roger Penske admitted a change of heart over the newly instituted NASCAR test ban at any NASCAR-sanctioned track.
“I think over the offseason I complained about not having testing, but (now) I’m glad we didn’t because we worked on some of the (other) things we needed (to work on).”
Meanwhile, Penske also observed that the new NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race car is demonstrating an important intended benefit. With a fleet of Dodge race cars in their shop, the team raced the same car within seven days with great success.
Game Plan For Cracking Top 35: Keep It Simple
A simple philosophy is paying dividends for a start-up NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team: qualify for the races and then finish them.
That’s the goal for the new full-time effort of team owner Kevin Buckler and the No. 71 Capital Window/TRG Motorsports Chevrolet team.
Driver David Gilliland is teaming nicely with crew chief Slugger Labbe. The No. 71 has made only three of the four races thus far, all with driver Gilliland. Nonetheless, the entry is 34th in car owner points, ahead of a number of higher-profile teams, including that of living legend Mark Martin.
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