Leffler Leads Series Regulars Heading To Talladega
There has been a lot of talk about NASCAR Sprint Cup Series regulars Kyle Busch (No. 18 Z-Line Designs Toyota) and Carl Edwards (No. 60 Save A Lot Ford) competing full time in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. Why not? They are running 1-2 in the points standings.
But NASCAR Nationwide Series-only regulars Jason Leffler (No. 38 Great Clips Toyota) and a host of others have put together strong performances in the first seven races this season and currently maintain top-10 positions in the standings heading into the Aaron’s 312 this Saturday at Talladega Superspeedway.
In addition to Leffler, Brad Keselowski (No. 88 Klondike Chevrolet), Brendan Gaughan (No. 62 South Point Hotel & Casino Chevrolet), Justin Allgaier (No. 12 Verizon Wireless Dodge), Mike Bliss (No. 1 Miccosukee Indian Gaming & Resort Chevrolet) and Jason Keller (No. 27 Scott Shop Towels Ford) are in the top 10 in points. Knocking on the door in 11th and 12th, respectively, are Steve Wallace (No. 66 5-Hour Energy Drink Chevrolet) and Michael McDowell (No. 47 Tom’s Toyota), who are within 18 points of the top 10. Overall, six other series-only regulars are within Keller’s 10th-place standing.
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One of the hottest drivers on the circuit, Leffler may be better known as a late-season charger, but already his fourth-place standing suggests otherwise. His second-place finish in last weekend’s Bashas’ Supermarkets 200 at Phoenix International Raceway was his best finish since August 2005 at Bristol Motor Speedway. Leffler, who has two top fives and five top 10s through the first seven races this season, finished fourth last season at Talladega after leading seven laps. Last year, he entered the Aaron’s 312 eighth in the standings.
In its entirety, the seven series regulars make up the largest group of drivers represented in the top 10 at this stage of the season since 2004, when eight drivers were in the top 10 after seven races.
KHI Working For Car Owner Point Lead; Newman In No. 33
The No. 33 Kevin Harvick Inc. Chevrolet has had its share of drivers—in fact, Kevin Harvick, Tony Stewart and Kelly Bires—who have competed in the car this season. But that hasn’t led to any inconsistencies when keeping the car near the front of the point standings. The car is only nine points out of the point lead, behind the Joe Gibbs owned No. 18 Toyota. Six cars are within 77 points of the No. 18 machine.
Ryan Newman will be the fourth driver to compete this season in the No. 33, which has five top 10s and sat on the pole for the Camping World 300 at Daytona International Speedway. This will be Newman’s first NASCAR Nationwide Series race of 2009 and first time in a Nationwide race at Talladega. The last time Newman competed at a track for the first time in a NASCAR race other than the Sprint Cup Series, he won. Interestingly, it was also with KHI, when Newman picked up the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series victory last October at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
While KHI is second, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series owners hold first, four of the top five and seven of the top 10 spots in Nationwide owner points. The two other series-only regulars that hold spots are the No. 38 Braun Racing Toyota (eighth) and the No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet (ninth).
NASCAR Nationwide Series Car Owner Standings
Owner No. Points
1 Joe Gibbs 18 1,075
2 Delana Harvick 33 1,066
3 Jack Roush 60 1,028
4 Jack Roush 16 1,015
5 Richard Childress 29 1,014
6 Joe Gibbs 20 998
7 Jack Roush 6 949
8 Ralph Braun 38 932
9 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 88 898
10 Todd Braun 32 891
Seesaw Battle For Point Lead Continues At Talladega
Kyle Busch (No. 18 Z-Line Designs Toyota) and Carl Edwards (No. 60 Save A Lot Ford) have been through this game time and time again. This weekend at Talladega Superspeedway, they’ll continue their battle.
Busch is the new point leader by 47 points over Edwards heading into the Aaron’s 312 after taking the point lead from Edwards last weekend at Phoenix International Raceway. Neither driver had a perfect race — Busch lost two laps early before clawing his way back to 10th at the checkered flag, while Edwards lost time in the pits with mechanical problems and finished 33rd. That marked Edwards’ worst finish of the season, and only the 15th time in 148 starts he has finished lower than 30th.
Neither driver has won at Talladega, at least in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, and the track hasn’t been the most kind to them in the past. Despite winning last April’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race, Busch averages a 27.5 finish there. Edwards has two finishes below 30th.
While Busch has two victories and they’ve combined for four poles (Edwards with three of those) this season, neither is guaranteed the point lead exiting the weekend. David Ragan (No. 6 Discount Tire Ford) mathematically has the chance to move into first or second.
Junior Nation In Full Force
The Junior Nation will be in full force when it comes to this weekend’s races at Talladega Superspeedway.
In addition to his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series endeavors, Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 5 Go Daddy Chevrolet) will also compete in the NASCAR Nationwide Series for Rick Hendrick. The Aaron’s 312 will be the fourth start for Earnhardt in the NASCAR Nationwide Series this season.
Though he has five victories in Sprint Cup competition, the former Nationwide Series champion only has series victory in six starts.
Meanwhile, Earnhardt’s car will be competing and also look to continue moving up the charts. Brad Keselowski (No. 88 Klondike Chevrolet) is still seeking his first victory of the season and has moved into the top five in points.
Rookies Still Running Well
NASCAR Nationwide Series Raybestos Rookie of the Year candidates continue to impress heading into the Aaron’s 312 at Talladega Superspeedway.
Among those in the top 10 in the series point standings are Brendan Gaughan (No. 62 South Point Hotel & Casino Chevrolet) and Justin Allgaier (No. 12 Verizon Wireless Dodge). However, Allgaier continues to lead the rookie standings by three (76-73) over Gaughan after seven races. Following Phoenix, Michael McDowell (No. 47 Tom’s Toyota) moved into third in the rookie standings, one point ahead of Scott Lagasse Jr. (No. 11 America’s Incredible Pizza Company Toyota).
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Last season, only one rookie, Patrick Carpentier, finished in the top 10 at Talladega.
NASCAR Nationwide Series Raybestos Rookie Standings
Rk / Driver Team Points 1 Justin Allgaier Penske 76 2 Brendan Gaughan RWR 73 3 Michael McDowell JTG-D 64 4 Scott Lagasse Jr. CJM 63 5 Michael Annett Germain 55 6 John West Townley RAB 48 7 Ken Butler III R3 26 8 Peyton Sellers CM 7 9 Marc Davis MDM 6 10 Erik Darnell* RFR 0 *First race not until Richmond 5/1
NNS-Only Drivers Vie For Talladega Victory
Three NASCAR Nationwide Series-only regulars should make a major play at stealing a win from a double duty NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver.
Chief among them are Joe Nemechek, Mike Bliss and Brad Keselowski. All three have solid recent statistics at Talladega.
Nemechek has two wins at the high-banked Alabama mainstay, but hasn’t raced there since 2005. In that 2005 race, Nemechek started second and ran well, but finished just 29th thanks to an accident. His statistics in that race, though, show a much better performance than his finish would suggest. In the 2005 edition, Nemechek had a Driver Rating of 100.8, an Average Running Position of 11.6 and ran 68.3% of the laps among the top 15.
Bliss should also be a major threat to visit Victory Lane. Last season, he started second and finished seventh. In 2007, after a 31st-place starting position, he worked his way through the field to finish 14th. Over those two races, Bliss has a Driver Rating of 93.1, an Average Running Position of 12.8 and a Laps in the Top 15 percentage of 66.2.
Keselowski, after a rough start to the season that saw three consecutive finishes outside the top 20, has now posted three consecutive third-place finishes. He has only one Talladega start in his career, but his performance was a solid one. Like Nemechek, his Talladega finish fails to tell the whole story.
Last season, Keselowski finished 23rd after starting fifth. But in the race, he earned a Driver Rating of 87.3, an Average Running Position of 16.1, had three Fastest Laps Run and a Laps in the top 15 percentage of 48.7.
If he can stay out of trouble, Steve Wallace may also be a factor. Wallace has had two career Talladega starts, both of which were DNFs because of accidents. Still, his stats are solid there. In the last two Talladega races, Wallace has a Driver Rating of 85.5, an Average Running Position of 16.0 and a Laps in the Top 15 percentage of 55.3.
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