This week, the Crappafoni Pictures crew is on hand in the heart of the Midwest, Chicagoland, for this week's edition of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, complete with Chicago-style hot dogs and pizza, washed down with copious amounts of the beverage of your choice. Enjoy!
THE GOOD
David Reutimann: as the race winner, he gets first billing. He was strong in practice, strong in qualifying, and got stronger as the race went on. He FINALLY won one that went the distance! Night time was obviously the right time for Reuty, as once he overtook Jeff Gordon for the lead, he checked out on the field. Good job Reuty!
Carl Edwards: like Reutimann, he got stronger as the race went on. He even led a lap during a round of green flag pit stops, gaining the five bonus points he sorely needed. This run is what he sorely needed in order to improve his tenuous chances of making the Chase.
Jeff Gordon: he was at the point until late in the race, when Reutimann took over the lead. He took advantage of points leader Kevin Harvick's misfortune (more on that later) and cut Harvick's lead to 103 points.
Clint Bowyer: after his misfortune at Daytona last week, he came into the race sorely needing a good run. He got it. He now sits in 12th place, 15 points ahead of Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Jamie McMurray: Cupcake started on the pole and stayed in the top 5 for the whole race. The McDonald's Chevrolet got a LOT of face time during the race, bringing cha-ching to McDonald's franchises throughout.
Jimmie Johnson: he led the first 93 laps of the race and ended up leading the most laps.
Honorable Mention: Kasey Kahne, Jeff Burton, Tony Stewart, Denny Hamlin, and Paul Menard.
THE BAD
Joe Nemechek: he drew the short stick this week at the start and parkers' meeting in the Todd Bodine Meeting Room. He ran a grand total of 20 laps before declaring himself done for the day.
Kevin Harvick: as good as he was at Daytona, he was equally as bad at Chicagoland. The 29 crew totally missed on the setup and no matter how hard they tried to adjust, the 29 car got worse as the race went on. At one point, the car lost significant fuel pressure and had to go to the garage to replace the entire fuel system. But once Harvick got back out, he was as fast as the leaders--too bad he was 16 laps down when he returned to the track. A sub-Good for gaining two positions through attrition.
THE UGLY
Jimmie Johnson: it's not common I put a guy in both the Good and Ugly categories, but tonight I must. His race went downhill after Lap 93, when he missed the committment line and lost the lead to McMurray. Then on Lap 138, he takes a slide through the grass when he got loose coming out of Turn 2. At the ensuing green flag, he restarts 24th. Then on Lap 174, he slapped the wall and had to pit, going three laps down.
Robby Gordon/Bill Elliott: Elliott cut a tire on Lap 180, hit the wall, and stopped into oncoming traffic. Gordon hit the brakes as hard as he could, but was unable to stop in time and T-boned Elliott. Fortunately both Gordon and Elliott were okay, but both drivers' days were ruined.
The race itself: it was a snoozefest, particuarly for the first 93 laps, when JJ threatened to run and hide from the field.
Those are my nominees for the race. Feel free to come in with yours!
Showing posts with label David Reutimann. Show all posts
Showing posts with label David Reutimann. Show all posts
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Monday, May 25, 2009
The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly -- Coca-Cola 600
After two exhausting days, the Crappafoni Pictures crew FINALLY serves you up a soggy, rain-soaked version of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, mid-Atlantic style.
THE GOOD
David Reutimann: as the winner of the race, he automatically gets first billing. He was running well all day, staying in the top 10 much of the day. Yes, it was a rain-shortened win, but NASCAR made the right decision to call the race, as more rain was on the way. He had a good car, and a bold gamble by crew chief Rodney Childers paid off. Childers instructed Reutimann to stay out on the last caution while a lot of other cars pitted. Now it pays off in Reutimann's first Cup win. He becomes the sixth driver to get his first Cup win at the 600. Good job David!
Ryan Newman: the pole sitter led the first two laps and overcame a pit road mistake to finish second. He was stout, other than that mistake.
Robby Gordon: his third place finish was his best result since Watkins Glen in 2005, when he finished second while driving for Richard Childress Racing. Like Reutimann, he stayed out while the leaders pitted and benefitted from the rain.
Carl Edwards: while he didn't lead a lap, he got stronger as the race went on. Would have been a factor had it not been for the rain, as the #99 crew had the car dialed in to the changing conditions.
Kyle Busch: he led the most laps in the race (173) and was stout for the first 200 laps or so.
Brian Vickers: he led 33 laps en route to a top 5 finish. He was at or near the front since the drop of the green flag.
Honorable Mention: Kasey Kahne, Juan Pablo Montoya, Matt Kenseth, Joey Logano.
THE BAD
Richard Childress Racing: they have been bad for a number of weeks now. Until they improve their performance, they will continue to be in the Bad category. When your best finishing driver is 25th (Jeff Burton), you deserve to be in this category.
Weather: it played havoc with both the Nationwide Series and Sprint Cup Series races. Fortunately, the NNS race was well past the halfway stage before weather played a factor. The Cup race was postponed to today, and weather was again a factor today, eventually cutting short the race.
THE UGLY
Kevin Harvick: even before he and Sam Hornish Jr made contact, Harvick was already backing up from the green flag. He and Hornish made incidental contact in lap 2, cutting a tire and forcing Harvick to the pits. He was never a factor and finished three laps down in 41st. When Tony Raines and Scott Riggs are outrunning you, you belong in the Ugly category. Raines even LED a lap!! HE got the five bonus points!! You're not making the Chase this year; start working towards 2010. Consider this year as a gigantic test session. Start throwing out some CRAZY set-ups to see if they work. Couldn't hurt; hell, it might even help! You're my driver through thick and thin, and it's all going to turn around at some point this season.
Those are my nominees for the race. Feel free to come in with yours!
THE GOOD
David Reutimann: as the winner of the race, he automatically gets first billing. He was running well all day, staying in the top 10 much of the day. Yes, it was a rain-shortened win, but NASCAR made the right decision to call the race, as more rain was on the way. He had a good car, and a bold gamble by crew chief Rodney Childers paid off. Childers instructed Reutimann to stay out on the last caution while a lot of other cars pitted. Now it pays off in Reutimann's first Cup win. He becomes the sixth driver to get his first Cup win at the 600. Good job David!
Ryan Newman: the pole sitter led the first two laps and overcame a pit road mistake to finish second. He was stout, other than that mistake.
Robby Gordon: his third place finish was his best result since Watkins Glen in 2005, when he finished second while driving for Richard Childress Racing. Like Reutimann, he stayed out while the leaders pitted and benefitted from the rain.
Carl Edwards: while he didn't lead a lap, he got stronger as the race went on. Would have been a factor had it not been for the rain, as the #99 crew had the car dialed in to the changing conditions.
Kyle Busch: he led the most laps in the race (173) and was stout for the first 200 laps or so.
Brian Vickers: he led 33 laps en route to a top 5 finish. He was at or near the front since the drop of the green flag.
Honorable Mention: Kasey Kahne, Juan Pablo Montoya, Matt Kenseth, Joey Logano.
THE BAD
Richard Childress Racing: they have been bad for a number of weeks now. Until they improve their performance, they will continue to be in the Bad category. When your best finishing driver is 25th (Jeff Burton), you deserve to be in this category.
Weather: it played havoc with both the Nationwide Series and Sprint Cup Series races. Fortunately, the NNS race was well past the halfway stage before weather played a factor. The Cup race was postponed to today, and weather was again a factor today, eventually cutting short the race.
THE UGLY
Kevin Harvick: even before he and Sam Hornish Jr made contact, Harvick was already backing up from the green flag. He and Hornish made incidental contact in lap 2, cutting a tire and forcing Harvick to the pits. He was never a factor and finished three laps down in 41st. When Tony Raines and Scott Riggs are outrunning you, you belong in the Ugly category. Raines even LED a lap!! HE got the five bonus points!! You're not making the Chase this year; start working towards 2010. Consider this year as a gigantic test session. Start throwing out some CRAZY set-ups to see if they work. Couldn't hurt; hell, it might even help! You're my driver through thick and thin, and it's all going to turn around at some point this season.
Those are my nominees for the race. Feel free to come in with yours!
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