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Turning Left: THE MOTORSPORTS REPORT-Part 2
By Charlie 0 Mallonee September 11, 2007 |
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The Race for the Chase Is Over & The Chase for the Cup Is On! The Race for the Chase ended Saturday night in Richmond, Virginia on a ¾-mile track in the Cars of Tomorrow. The COT type cars are here to stay but is a ¾-mile track the right venue for the final race of qualifying for the NASCAR Championship? I think not. No offense to the people of Richmond, but the final Race for the Chase event should be held on a speedway that is at least 1.5-miles long. Michigan, California, Daytona, Texas, Las Vegas, Lowe’s, Pocono or even Indianapolis would be venues that are more appropriate. A track where speed is on the edge and durability is a constant enemy. To set the Final 12 on a short track just does not sit well with me. How about you – what do you think? As long as I’m on a roll – I am not wild about Homestead as the track for the final race of the season. It just does not thrill me. If the first race of the season is on a “Super Speedway”, why isn’t the last race of the season on the same type of track? The race itself lacked drama. The Top 12 coming into the race finished in the Top 12. Dale Earnhardt Jr. gave his No. 8 a good run, but his DEI engine gave out … again. Junior finished 30th and out of the Top 12 Chasers. Jimmie Johnson won his sixth race of the season and took the top seed in “the Chase”. The No. 48 team has regained its momentum and is the odds on favorite to win the championship. Here are the Top 12 Chasers: NASCAR NEXTEL CUP SERIES TOP 12 Position, Driver, Post Richmond, Wins, Post Chase 1 –Jimmie Johnson 3439 (6) 5060 2 –Jeff Gordon 3849 (4) 5040 3 –Tony Stewart 3537 (3) 5030 4 –Carl Edwards 3372 (2) 5020 5 –Kurt Busch 3160 (2) 5020 6 –Denny Hamlin 3490 (1) 5010 7 –Martin Truex Jr. 3160 (1) 5010 8 –Matt Kenseth 3430 (1) 5010 9 –Kyle Busch 3302 (1) 5010 10–Jeff Burton 3328 (1) 5010 11–Kevin Harvick 3155 (1) 5010 12–Clint Bowyer 3179 (0) 5000 The Chase Reset points refer to the points allotted to the Top 12 Chasers after the seeding. The season is now 10 races long. For the Chasers, they will be concerned about scoring points and finishing every race. For the rest of the field (the RoFers), they will be going for broke. The RoFers will be going for the wins to prove they are just a good as the Chasers. The RoFers will also be sure not to cut the Chasers any slack. It’s no fun to be on the outside looking in and misery loves company … especially in NASCAR. The Chase format is not perfect. It is better than what NASCAR had before where a champion could be crowned without really winning any races. So, let’s go racin’ boys! This week the series returns to New Hampshire – a track this reporter hates. This track has taken the lives of some good men and does not provide the best racing show on its tight one-mile plus surface with its minimal 11º banking. ABC provides the pictures beginning at 10:00 am PDT/1:00 pm EDT |
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