The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly -- 2010 Heluva Good! Snacks 400

This week, the Crappafoni Pictures crew is in the rolling hills of Upstate New York for this week's version of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, complete with LOTS of snacks from the race sponsor, washed down with plenty of Coke Zero. Enjoy!

THE GOOD

Juan Pablo Montoya: dominant doesn't even begin to describe his performance today. Every time he got in front he checked out on the field. He took the lead at Lap 5 and dominated from there, leading 78 of the final 86 laps. Everyone else was racing for second place today. This was one of the most dominant performances this year. He becomes the first foreign-born driver with multiple Sprint Cup wins. (He also won at Sonoma in 2007.)

Kurt Busch: he was strong all day, and the Blue Deuce got stronger as the day went on. Although he didn't lead a lap, he finished a career-best second place on a road course. He improved in the standings for the Chase.

Marcos Ambrose: it looked like he had something for Montoya, as he took the lead at one point and led for eight laps in the race. He faded near the end and lost second place to Kurt Busch due to a tire going down in the final lap.

AJ Allmendinger: he was in the top 10 pretty much the whole day. The 43 car was strong when they unloaded, strong in practice and qualifying, and strong on race day. This on the heels of the Dinger signing a multi-year extension with RPM. All in all, a great week for AJ.

Carl Edwards: he won his first career pole on a road course. Although he never led, he was in the top 10 for pretty much the entire race. Don't look now, but I think this team is starting to find its groove. I think a win is in the not too distant future.

Kyle Busch: although he was listed starting 10th, he had to drop to the rear of the field due to a loose part near the gear box. The 18 crew was able to tighten it through some improvisation just before the green flag dropped. He was able to make his way through the field all the way to an 8th place finish. (He ended up starting 42nd.)

Honorable Mention: Jamie McMurray, Tony Stewart, Jeff Burton, Jeff Gordon, and Kevin Harvick.

THE BAD

Greg Biffle: although he started seventh, he quickly moved backwards and was never a factor. DISCLAIMER: Road courses are not one of Biffle's strengths. He'll be at a track much more friendly to him and his Roush teammates next week.

Jimmie Johnson: he started ninth but like Biffle, was never a factor. Since winning at Sonoma, this team is in the throes of a horrible slump, with just one top 10 since, last week at Pocono, where Johnson finished 10th. He did get mentioned once, when he crashed and collected Denny Hamlin in the process, ruining a possible top 10 for Hamlin.

THE UGLY

None. By all standards, this was a pretty tame race at the Glen this year. Actually I do have to give an Ugly to ESPN for its coverage and giving Carl Edwards more face time.

Those are my nominees for the week. Feel free to come in with yours.

Gas and Go--The Glen

I usually have my Gas and Go blog up on the Wednesday before the race. Unfortunately, due to extenuating circumstances, the Gas and Go for The Glen is up today. I will give you my short takes and insights into the serpentine road course at Watkins Glen, better known as The Glen.

1. The Glen has a rich racing history that started in 1948 with the first post-World War II road course race held in the United States on October 2nd of that year. For the next five years, fans would turn up in huge numbers to watch the top drivers in American sports car racing.
2. The first NASCAR race held at the Glen was in 1957. Buck Baker won the race, and Fireball Roberts finished second. True international competition began the following year with the first Formula Libre race.
3. Formula One raced at the Glen from 1961 through 1980. Innes Ireland won the inaugural U.S. Grand Prix. Alan Jones won the final F1 race held at the Glen.
4. The Glen fell into disrepair over the next few years as a result of financial difficulties, leading to the track's sale to Corning Enterprises in 1983. Corning Enterprises then formed a partnership with International Speedway Corporation, forming Watkins Glen International.
5. On July 7, 1984, the Glen reopened with Al Holbert, Derek Bell, and Jim Adams winning the inaugural Camel Continental race. In 1986, NASCAR made its return to the Glen, with the late Tim Richmond winning. Since then, the race has been one of NASCAR's most popular.
6. Thinking of you: Steve Park (2000 winner at The Glen).
7. Mark Martin, Jeff Gordon, and Tony Stewart are maestros at the Glen. Martin won three straight Glen races in the early 1990's. Gordon and Stewart lead all Cup drivers in wins at the Glen with four.
8. Look for strong runs from Marcos Ambrose, Robby Gordon, Juan Pablo Montoya, Tony Stewart, pole sitter Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, and Jeff Gordon.

Predicted Race Winner: Marcos Ambrose. The popular Aussie breaks through and gets that first Cup win.

Many thanks to www.nascar.com and www.theglen.com for the information I cited.