All I have to say is WOW! I know that NASCAR wants to get the races in on the day they are scheduled but, how many people in the Eastern and Central time zones stayed up for the race and how many people who had tickets to the race stayed to watch it? I bet most left and figured it was going to be run on Monday. How about NBC? I bet they weren’t very happy having to show a race that late at night with less than normal viewers for a holiday weekend race. NASCAR wants to be a family sport. I wonder how many young children got to stay up and watch that race.
QUAKER STATE 400
I’m just glad that Austin Dillon was able to walk away from the wreck he had at the end of the race. I got to see the video on Monday and I still can’t believe that he walked away. That goes to show that the safety initiatives NASCAR has implemented over the years are really paying off. Kudos to NASCAR in that respect and great to see that Austin only suffered a few bruises.
Jimmie Johnson: I am picking Jimmie to pick up his first win at Kentucky this weekend. Jimmie has finished in the top ten in each of the four races he has run at Kentucky and is due to break into the win column here. He has been the best of the best on these tracks all season and I don’t see anything changing this weekend.
Kyle Busch: Kyle has one win here and has also finished in the top ten in all four of his races at this track. Kyle has also lead more laps than any other driver and is really looking to get as many top five and ten finishes as he can get to try and make his way into the top thirty in points and qualify for the Chase.
Matt Kenseth: Matt won this race two years ago and is another of four drivers to finish in the top ten in all four of his starts here. Matt is already qualified for the Chase and now he just needs to get more consistent and win some more races. That will give this whole team confidence heading into the Chase when you really need to come away with all of your finishes in the top ten if you want to win a championship.
Jeff Gordon: Jeff is the last of the active drivers to finish in the top ten in all of his starts at Kentucky. His best finish here is fifth and he would love to get a win at this track in his last season in NASCAR. Jeff is running out of time to guarantee himself a spot in the Chase with a win and waiting to get in on points is very nerve wracking.
Brad Keselowski: Brad has won two of the four races he has run at this track and both of the Penske teams have had a lot of speed this year. Brad has had some problems with mechanical issues during the season which have taken him out of contention in numerous races this year. But, with two wins here, this team will come into the weekend with a lot of confidence that they can get the job done once again.
Kevin Harvick: Kevin’s best finish here is a seventh place finish that he picked up last season. His worst finish here is sixteenth and he has gotten better every time he comes to this track. Kevin has been the person to beat almost every race for a year and a half and this weekend he will once again be stout and have a car capable of winning this race.
Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Dale has two top five finishes at this track and has a lot of confidence after his dominating performance at Daytona last weekend. Dale can work on the handling of his car of the mile and a half tracks as they are where the majority of the races during the Chase are run. These are the tracks you need to run consistently well on during the Chase if you want to win the championship.
Martin Truex Jr.: Martin has been very good all season and he has really been good at this type of track. Martin is already qualified for the Chase and can work on the adjustments that they make to the car during the races. This team is capable of running with the top tier teams even though they are a single car team.
Kurt Busch: Kurt has finished in the top ten twice at this track and has had cars that are just as fast as Kevin Harvick has all year. Kurt doesn’t have anything to race for except wins as he has been very good on all types of tracks this season. Kurt has a legitimate shot at winning his second career championship.
Ryan Newman: Ryan has two top five finishes at Kentucky and needs to get a win before the Chase starts. The drivers who don’t have a win and are hoping to get in on points are sitting on the razor’s edge. They can have one or two bad races and get knocked out of Chase on points or when other drivers who don’t have a win get the win they need to get in the Chase. No one wants to go to Richmond hoping to make the Chase on points.
YAHOO! FANTASY NASCAR PICKS FOR KENTUCKY SPEEDWAY
Yahoo Driver Group A
- Jimmie Johnson
- Kyle Busch
Yahoo Driver Group B
- Kurt Busch
- Martin Truex Jr.
- Kasey Kahne
- Kyle Larson
Yahoo Driver Group C
- Danica Patrick
- Ryan Blaney
MY TOP-5 OVERALL AT KENTUCKY SPEEDWAY
- Jimmie Johnson
- Kyle Busch
- Kevin Harvick
- Brad Keselowski
- Matt Kenseth
Dark Horse: Kyle Larson
Stay Away From: Greg Biffle