8 – THE DERRICK. / The News-Herald Wednesday, April 02, 2014
FEUD OF THE WEEK
WHAT’S ON TAP?
Ken Willis has been covering NAS-CAR for The Daytona Beach News-Journal for 27 years. Reach him at [email protected]
FEUD OF THE WEEK
QUESTIONS & ATTITUDECompelling questions ...
and maybe a few actual answers
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ONLINE EXTRAS
FEEDBACKDo you have questions orcomments about NASCAR This Week? Contact Godwin Kelly at [email protected] or Ken Willis at [email protected]
WEEKLY DRIVER RANKINGS — BASED ON BEHAVIOR AND PERFORMANCE
CUP POINTS
HOT TOPICS: 3 ISSUES GENERATING A BUZZ
Godwin Kelly is the Daytona Beach News-Journal’s motorsports editor and has covered NASCAR for 30 years. Reach him at [email protected]
GODWIN’S TEXAS PICKS
AP/MIKE MCCARN
Kez wanted to make Kurt a hood ornament, even without a hood.
Whose side do we take in the Kurt Busch-Brad Keselowski dust-up?
Here at NASCAR This Week, we’re high on both guys because they stir the pot in two different but effec-tive ways: Kez knows that NASCAR’s popularity was largely built on driver confl ict, and if given a chance, he’ll do his part for the Boys in Promotions. Kurt isn’t quite as calculated, but just seems to have a knack of being in the right place at the right time. And, of course, he’s prone to anger, which will make this so much more fun when Kez gets his payback.
Will this pass, or simmer until a later boil?
In racing, things are always on sim-mer. Kez’s post-Martinsville tweets suggest he’s calmed down and realizes Kurt didn’t intentionally wreck him, but that, too, is possibly calculated. You can’t publicly target a guy for payback, then pay him back and hope to avoid a penalty from upstairs. Nice move on Kez’s part.
Will Texas give us our fi rst two-time winner of 2014?
Mr. Hunch thinks Joey Logano will make it seven straight different win-ners to open the year, but also knows Matt Kenseth is ripening for victory. We also know both guys would look wonderfully awkward in Texas Motor Speedway’s cowboy hat that goes to the winner.
JUNIOR EARNHARDTBack in stride,
it appears
CARLEDWARDSLeading the Ford Cup
MATTKENSETHMr. Steady
again
JEFFGORDON
Still in points-collection
mode
JIMMIE JOHNSON
Gotta happen soon, right?
BRADKESELOWSKIAnger equals horsepower
KURTBUSCH
Yes, next to Kez for a
reason
JOEYLOGANO
This week’s winner at
Texas
KYLEBUSCH
Follows Lo-gano to stripe
TONYSTEWARTTexans love a guy with a
limp
There were several interesting dynamics in the outcome of Sunday’s STP 500 at Martinsville Speedway, but the most intriguing was that Hen-drick Motorsports was beat by a stock car built by Hendrick Motorsports.
Kurt Busch won in the No. 41 Stewart-Haas Rac-ing Chevrolet, a stock car prepped from its front to rear bumpers by Rick Hendrick’s race team, whose drivers fi nished second (Jimmie Johnson) and third (Dale Earnhardt Jr.).
From Victory Lane, Busch rubbed it in a bit with this tease, “If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em.”
Johnson and Busch have fi nished fi rst and sec-ond in a race seven times in their careers. Johnson has won four of those head-to-head battles.
This was a stinging loss for Rick Hendrick, who won his fi rst Cup race as a car owner 30 years ago at Martinsville.
With 40 laps to go, it looked like Johnson would be the sure winner. Instead, Busch, who had not won at Martinsville in 12 years, came up to challenge Johnson (eight Martinsville wins) and wrestled away the lead. It was only the sixth outing for the No. 41 machine.
Even with the heartbreak of coming up short for their car owner, Earnhardt and Johnson said they won’t complain to Hendrick about getting beat by their own equipment.
“I look at it as an opportunity to learn more,”
Earnhardt said of the Hendrick/Stewart Haas relationship. “I look at it as an opportunity to understand new ideas. It’s a good partnership that works both ways.”
SPEAKING OF JJJohnson led 296 of 500 laps at Martinsville, only
to see defeat snatched from the jaws of victory. He has been in position several times to win this season, only to have fate and circumstances lead him to defeat.
“I’ve got to fi gure something out,” Johnson said of his recent run of bad luck. “Last year, I felt like some got away that I defi nitely had control of and was disappointed in myself on some of that. ... We left a lot of wins on the table last year for sure. To-day, I couldn’t have done any more. I just got beat. You’re going to have those, too.”
VELVET TAP DANCEJamie McMurray’s No. 1 Chevy went hard into
the wall after contact with Earnhardt’s No. 88 Chevy. McMurray had to choose his words wisely when speaking of the sport’s Most Popular Driver. “He barely got into me, and you hope that wouldn’t happen and he would get off of you, but he didn’t,” McMurray said. “I went around and got into the wall pretty hard. It’s just unfortunate.”
All in the family
Getty Images/JEFF ZELEVANSKYWhen you think “friends and family,” you think Kurt Busch. OK, at least family.
Winner: Jimmie JohnsonRest of the top fi ve: Tony Stewart, Brad Keselowski, Carl Edwards, Matt KensethDark horse: David Ragan
Disappointment: Denny HamlinFirst one out: Joey LoganoDon’t be surprised if: Johnson fi nally wins and becomes the seventh winner in seven races.
AP/MIKE MCCARN
Jimmie in helmet, prepared to crash Victory Lane.
Kurt vs. Kez: Who’s your money on, if they square off?GODSPEAK: This is no UFC-quality matchup. You would see a lot of pushin’ and shovin’ and scratchin’ and kickin’. And, no clear winner.KEN’S CALL: We know Kez is good with his tweeting thumbs, but not sure about fi sts. This might look like a pillow fi ght between stuffed pandas.We know it’s coming, but when does Jimmie get his win?GODSPEAK: The “Six Pack” is capable of win-ning any week, so this week at Texas sounds about right.KEN’S CALL: I’m gonna say next week at Dar-lington.
KURTBUSCH
BRAD KESELOWSKI
Brad Keselowski vs. Kurt Busch: Busch crushed the front end of Kesel-owski’s Ford during the fi rst pit stop. “Thanks, Kurt. Appreciate it, bud,” Keselowski said after the contact.Godwin Kelly gives his take: “Busch won the race, and Keselowski limped home 38th and only poured hot salt on that fresh wound, so Texas could be interesting.”
Sprint CupDuck Commander 500Site: Texas Motor SpeedwaySchedule: Friday, practice (Fox Sports 1, 6 p.m.). Saturday, practice (Fox Sports 1, 10:30 a.m.), qualifying (Fox Sports 2, 3:10 p.m.). Sunday, race (Fox, coverage starts at 2:30 p.m., green fl ag at 3:16 p.m.)
NationwideO’Reilly Auto Parts 300 Site: Texas Motor SpeedwaySchedule: Saturday, race (ESPN2, 8 p.m.)
1. Earnhardt Jr. ................................... —2. Edwards ........................................ -103. Kyle Busch ....................................-384. Keselowski ....................................-395. Kurt Busch .................................... -816. Harvick ..........................................-927. Kenseth ........................................... -98. Gordon ........................................... -119. Johnson ........................................ -1810. Logano ........................................-4011. Dillon ............................................-4812. Newman ...................................... -5313. Menard ........................................-5914. Hamlin .........................................-6214. Vickers .........................................-6216. Ambrose......................................-6517. Stewart ........................................ -7318. Allmendinger .............................. -7519. Bowyer ........................................ -7720. Biffl e ........................................... -7821. Larson ......................................... -7922. Mears .......................................... -8123. Kahne ..........................................-8224. McMurray ................................... -8725. Stenhouse Jr............................... -9126. Almirola ......................................-9527. Allgaier .......................................-11828. Truex Jr. .................................... -12229. Patrick ...................................... -12330. Sorenson .................................. -12631. Annett ........................................ -13932. Whitt...........................................-14133. Gilliland ..................................... -14233. Ragan ........................................ -14235. Bowman ................................... -15436. Wise .......................................... -16837. Truex ......................................... -18038. Kvapil ........................................ -18239. Kligerman ..................................-19140. B. Labonte ................................ -198
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