- Kurt Busch has momentum going into the 600, coming off his win at the All-Star Race last weekend. However, he has never had a top 10 finish in the 600. This track is not one of his better tracks.
- On the other hand, Jimmie Johnson practically OWNS this track. He should have had one more win in 2002, but he overshot his pit on the final pit stop of the 2002 race, giving the victory to his future Hendrick Motorsports teammate Mark Martin. In that race, it was Martin's superior conditioning that enabled him to stay alert those last 100 miles.
- Johnson is the only driver to ever win at Charlotte on a last-lap pass, passing Bobby Labonte with 100 yards to go in the 2005 Coca-Cola 600.
- Hendrick Motorsports has won 8 of the past 14 races overall at Charlotte, four in the 600: Johnson from 2003-2005 (3 in a row) and Casey Mears in 2007 for his only Cup win.
- I'll stop blathering on about Hendrick Motorsports/Jimmie Johnson, and go a different direction. David Reutimann's first career victory last year made him the sixth driver to get his first win in the 600-mile race: David Pearson (1961), Jeff Gordon (1994), Bobby Labonte (1995), Matt Kenseth (2000), and Casey Mears (2007) were the others.
- Thinking of you: Bill Frances Sr and Jr, Richard Petty, Junior Johnson, and the late Dale Earnhardt. (The five charter NASCAR Hall of Fame inductees.)
- Look for the usual suspects to run up front: Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton, and Matt Kenseth.
Predicted Race Winner: Denny Hamlin. This guy is a threat to win every week; it doesn't matter the kind of track or the track conditions. He's finally learning how to be consistent, and not overdrive the car. He's always had the talent, but not always the consistency. He leads a JGR 1-2 finish with Kyle Busch finishing second. The rest of the top 5: 3) Johnson; 4) Kenseth; 5) David Reutimann.
That's my Gas and Go for Charlotte. Feel free to read and comment.
Information courtesy of www.nascar.com and www.racing-reference.info.
4 comments:
Hey Jon!
Hope you're all set to enjoy a long Memorial Day Weekend there in Central Cal!
I'm going to take exception to your choice to win the 600. I'm thinkin' somebody is going to put Denny into the wall. I'm not professing drama, but who knows?
BTW, who would you like to see sponser Kevin in the future? I understand Shell/Pennzoil is pulling out.
Thanks Jon!
Hey Dwindy!
I'm SO looking forward to the long weekend! As far as Denny, you can't put him into the wall if you can't catch him first! As for Kevin, I've heard three possible scenarios: 1) Budweiser leaves Kasey Kahne and goes to the #29; 2) Budweiser goes to the #33, with General Mills going to the #29; 3) Mobil 1 going to the #29. But I've also heard a major Fortune 500 company not currently involved in NASCAR could go to the #29. Shell/Pennzoil is going to the new #22 team of Kurt Busch next season. Brad Keselowski will go to the #2, and either Sam Hornish or Justin Allgaier could go to the #12.
Good stuff, Jon.
A lot of Toyotas qualified in the top-10 for the 600. I see the race stretching out between HMS and JGR, with the win due to a superior last pit stop. And, nobdy's crew is as fast as Kyle's!
Gene, thanks. I've noticed that the Toyotas qualify well every week. I do have Kyle finishing second to his teammate Denny Hamlin. While I think Kyle can win and is capable of winning a Cup championship, his temper is the key factor in winning a championship. Basically, if he allows his temper to get the best of him, it will keep him from winning a championship. But there is no doubt he will win a lot of races.
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