Welcome to Off the Wall With…, where we ask your favorite drivers five questions that are… well, off the wall! We’ll check in with a different driver each week to get a peek into life outside the race car. This week, former Sprint Cup driver and current Sprint Cup dad Ward Burton stops by. What’s …
Did You Notice? What a difference a decade makes? In this slow off week, I figured we’d do something a little different to show how much NASCAR has changed in the past ten years. So I figured, with so much worry over Jimmie Johnson‘s seemingly limitless success as of late, why not take a look …
10. $450.00 for new shorts and driver’s suit, by Michael McDowell. (Uniforms and Work Clothes)
After starting 40th in the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, Ward Burton came on strong, finishing on the lead lap in 14th position. It was a wise decision by the team to have their best run of the season at a track that pays well: Burton collected $161,125 for the top-15 finish, nearly double the amount of his next highest payout. It was also the best finish for this single-car outfit in over two years.
Lowe’s Motor Speedway is a 1.5-mile oval that has a reputation for going fast and wrecking hard; Saturday night’s race proved no exception to that rule. As such, it’s time to take a look at how a myriad of non-Chasers performed under the lights in NASCAR’s hometown of Charlotte, N.C. Let’s take a look at Who’s Hot, and Who’s Not, non-Chase style…
0.579 – Jeff Gordon’s margin of victory over Clint Bowyer in the Bank of America 500.
Pat Tryson’s call to leave leader Kurt Busch out on the track during the final two cautions ultimately proved to the be the correct one.
The 1-mile flat track up in New Hampshire proved as difficult as ever to pass on Sunday, but that didn’t stop a resurgent Jeff Gordon from giving it a shot. His last lap battle with Denny Hamlin left the two side-by-side heading to the finish line; but in the end, Hamlin held on, squeaking out a win while sending out a statement that his team could pose a challenge to Hendrick’s Car of Tomorrow dominance. In the meantime, several storylines developed behind the two contenders, with late-race pit strategies, dropped jacks, and two-tire stops doing their best to separate the contenders from the pretenders as the Race to the Chase began its final 10-race stretch.
0.068 – Denny Hamlin’s margin of victory over Jeff Gordon at New Hampshire (in seconds).
10. Mark Martin: “I didn’t HAVE to win one, I get in the Shootout forever-which is handy, ’cause that’s how long I’m gonna race!”
After a two-year absence, Burton made his long-anticipated return to Nextel Cup competition in October at Martinsville. He started the race from the 35th position and had an eventful day.
Did the series of shakeups at Roush Racing the last two months cost Matt Kenseth his shot at the title?
