Blog Auto Review

Mark Martin grabs the pole for the 54th time in his career.

Mark Martin proves every time he comes to the track, that you are never too old to go out and play with the boys.  At 53 years old Martin is the oldest full time driver in the NASCAR garage but you would never know it to talk to him.  His workout schedule is one that many of the younger drivers have a hard time keeping up with, and no matter what hes always got a smile on his face.  The biggest kid on the block will lead the field to the green flag, in his 840th start, for todays FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks at Dover International Speedway.

With conditions being very slick and getting worse as each driver ran their qualifying runs, Mark Martin knew it would be a challenge to remain the fastest car on the track as he was during the first round of practice.  After watching Jimmie Johnson get a little loose on his provisional run that had Johnson sitting on the pole as Martin began his run, he knew it wasnt going to be easy.

Ill never do that again, quipped Martin after his run. I anticipated the car being loose, but I didnt ask [crew chief] Rodney [Childers] if he tightened it up. I knew the conditions were looser than they were in our mock qualifying run [Friday], and I didnt want to ask him because I didnt want to be concerned.

I knew that I only had to make it one mile without wrecking, and I was going to drive to the limit and slightly beyond, and I felt like I did that. I wouldnt want to do that again. But I couldnt sit on these poles without the fastest race car, and MWR [Michael Waltrip Racing] and Rodney Childers in particular and the guys on our team are doing that.

Jonson knew he had set an excellent time, but he also felt that he had left a little bit of speed out there when he wiggled loose out of turns 2 and 4 and felt he just did not get all the power to thee ground.

The lap was pretty strong, Johnson said of his second-place run. I knew off the corner, off [Turns] 2 and 4, I just couldnt get the power down, being loose, and I left a little on the table. I felt it was more like a 10th [of a second], 10th and a half that I left out there, and Mark found five thousandths

Qualifyings never been my strong suit, but Ive been second a lot. But it is what it is. On the track, Ill just have to take care of it and do a little better job there.

The Hendrick cars in general made vast improvements over their speeds from the first practice session into the second.  At the end of the second round of practice the Hendrick cars of Gordon, Earnhardt Jr, and Jimmie Johnson sat 2,3,4 on the time sheets respectively.  Johnson will start on the outside of row 1 while Gordon and Jr will start 14th and 17th respectively.  Watch for these cars to make moves early and make their way to the front of the pack with the speeds they have shown they are capable of.

Ryan Newman, Clint Bowyer and Matt Kenseth round out the rest of the top 5 for the start of todays race.

Notable names not near the front of the pack are Tony Stewart who struggled in practice and will start the race back from the 29th position.  A.J. Allmendinger and Marcos Ambrose who have been running and qualifying well of late will start back in the 23rd and 21st positions respectively.

Related posts:

1. NASCAR Mark Martin Takes The Pole For Phoenix Hendricks Teams Look For Big Rebound
2. NASCAR Mark Martin Takes the Pole for Talladega Proving You Are Never Too Old to Go Fast
3. NASCAR Mark Martin Edges Out Trevor Bayne for the Pole at Daytona
4. NASCAR Mark Martin Leads the Field, Drivers Playing it Safe, Dale Jr Fastest in Practice
5. NASCAR Truex Jr Brings Home the Pole for the Third Chase Race of 2011 at Dover

When talking sports in Canada the usual topic I find at this time of year is Hockey.  Its playoff time so the fans are all wearing their team colors.  Living in the land of Maple Leaf blue and white I have seen very little of this activity over the past 7 years, but the feeling of playoff season abounds.  So instead of seeing the traditional Blue and White of the Maple Leafs around the city, what I see in stead is a cacophany of colours as support for every team that has made the play offs can be seen everywhere, in every bar, on every street corner, its obvious that it is playoff time in Hockey.

When traveling in the US however it is a different type of sport altogether that allows for interesting conversations in airports and restaurants.  NASCAR fans have the same passion for their sport as Canadians do about Hockey.  Although the team dynamic is much different between the 2 sports (43 teams at each race vs 2 teams on the ice at a time) the passion of the fans is hard to distinguish between the 2 sports.  With the obvious differnence between the 2 sports, one being winter and played on ice, while the other is a summer sport and plays out on asphalt, the similarities between the sports and their fans must not be over looked.

Hockey fans come from all walks of life, rich, poor and in between.  So do NASCAR fans.  Hockey is played on ice, but the venue is always shaped in an oval.  NASCAR races on ovals. with the exception of road courses twice a year to remind the drivers that they can turn to the right sometimes.  Hockey fans love their beer, so do NASCAR fans.  Hockey players slap the rubber around the rink, NASCAR drivers burn rubber all around the track.  The biggest money making team in the league (the Toronto Maple Leafs) have not made the playoffs in 7 years and have not won a Stanley Cup since 1967, the biggest money earner in the sport of NASCAR, Dale Earnhardt Jr., has not won a race in 133 starts, way back in 2008, and yet in both cases, the fans always feel that next year will be different.

In the case of either sport I find, as I travel around the continent, that you can start up a conversation to pass the time with strangers simply by noticing their team colours.  It helps pass the time while sitting around in airports and bus stations, with all kinds of interesting people.  You see a guy in a Flyers jersy walking through the airport and say So man howd your team do last night? and you can prepare to spend at least the next 15 minutes in conversation with someone who can tell you every detail about the game the njight before.  Walk up to ANY NASCAR fan wearing a shirt, or a jacket and ask Howd you driver do on Sunday? and you can prepare to spend at least the next 30 min discussing everything that happened on the track the Sunday before, and how the points race is shaking out as well.

Now for those of you who live North of the Border like myself, NASCAR is a sport that is carried by the TV networks only when there is no Hockey being televised.  Most Nationwide races get relegated to the late night re-plays while Hockey is shown live.  It is hard as a racing fan to watch another sports take precident over your favourite, but then again, Hockey Is Canadas unofficial national sport. (Lacrosse is the official sport really??)  At Least theres no Hockey on Sunday afternoons.

And when it comes to game time/race time traditions, I find that there is almost no difference in how you prepare.  Make sure the beers are cold and the snacks are at the ready, because in both sports if you happen to leave the room for any reason, you might just miss something important on the screen, who slammed who into the boards, or who slammed who into the wall.

The best part about Hockey and NASCAR and the way their seasons play out is that while one is in playoffs (NASCAR in the Fall and Hockey in the spring) the other sport is just getting started.  The fans CAN actually watch both sports and not have to worry about conflicting schedules (with the previous mentioned Nationwide late night re-plays aside).

As a Canadian travelling around to watch NASCAR races it has been said that I should have my Canadian Citizenship revoked since I would rather watch racing than Hockey. In fact if you ask my kids who their favourite sports starts are, they will tell you Tony Stewart, Dale Jr., and Jimmie Johnson.  And if you ask them about Hockey they will look at you with quizzical looks on their faces and sayHockey?? I play that outside on my rollerblades sometimes.

While both sports have their version of The Redneck Fan (Canadiennes Fans in Hockey and Kyle Busch fans in NASCAR) they appeal to almost everyone because of the speed of the action onteh screen.  Anything can happen at any time, and the excitement in the voices of the announcers will bring you running from any room in the house to the television when something big does go down.

In the end, I live being a Canadian NASCAR fan.  Although the only hockey that makes it on my television is during the 3 month long NASCAR off season, I do still keep abreast of where my home town team is in the stats (not hard when they are at the bottom most of the time).  So for those racing fans out there who are having trouble dealing with the pre-emtion of our sport to the Hockey playoffs, relax, once they are over the only thing left will be NASCAR.

Related posts:

1. Whoever said hockey was safer than racing?
2. 2010 Chevrolet Equinox: 3 hockey bag test
3. Red Bull Racing plays pond hockey in Quebec
4. NASCAR Edwards Takes the Pole, Top Chasers Start Deep in the Field and Travis Pastrana Enters the NASCAR World
5. NASCAR How to Deal with Racing Withdrawl.

Aric Almirola accepting the Coor Light Pole award for setting the pace at the Coca ~ Cola 600 in Charlotte.

Its a grueling 600 miles of racing.  A marathon of endurance that starts in the heat of the day and finishes under the lights at night.  A true test of both driver and crew chief as the driver holds on to his car, that hopefully his crew chief has made the right changes on throughout the day to keep it under him, and that together they have kept it together to be in the right place at the end.

Aric Almirola will lead the field to start the Coca~Cola 600 this afternoon in Charlotte North Carolina.  This is the first time the #43 car has held the pole in Charlotte since Richard Petty drove it there himself, 46 years ago.  That fact however does not put a damper on the spirit or the smile of The King.

The fame of the #43 car is not lost on the young Almirola.  He knows how iconic this car and number are in the sport.

Its been a huge honor for me from Day 1 to be able to come to this organization, Almirola said. Im not just driving for Richard Petty Motorsports. Im driving the 43 car, probably the most iconic car in the history of our sport.

For him [Petty] to allow me to do that, for him to ask me to do that, its just really special, and its a big honor to put that 43 car back on top of the board. To see it over there in Victory Lane and get our picture taken and all that stuff is really cool. I know its only qualifying we want to be able to do that after the race but its a start.

Were happy with our car, Almirola said. Our [Ford] is pretty fast. Im happy with the balance of our car, and its so hot right now that I dont know that well learn a whole lot, so we worked on some things trying to maximize getting on and off pit road and getting ready for [Sunday] night.

I think the speed in our cars has always been there, its just about executing, and thats the one thing Mike has really focused on is just execution trying to get all of the little parts and pieces and things, he said. Hes said it from day one that hes gotten [here] that its about executing. Everybody is so good, and our competition is so tough, that if you dont execute all the little small things, theyll jump up and bite you. So I feel like as far as speed has gone, weve had really fast race cars, its just about executing all the little things.

Marcos Ambrose will start 2nd in todays race.

To make things even better for the RPM team, Almirolas teammate, Aussie Marcos Ambrose will start beside him on the front row in the #9 Dewalt Tools Ford. Ambrose was asked about where he sits for the start of the race after Saturdays practice in the 90 degree temperatures.  Although by race time the temperatures will be different and the track will be a completely different animal Ambrose seemed to be confident that he will perform well.

Were not proving anything, and were not going to race in these conditions, Ambrose said. This place always feels the worst in the heat of the day. We had a really good Saturday night [in the All-Star Race] and we had a good qualifying session and good first practice [Saturday] morning, so we dont need to be getting ourselves off base. It would be nice to feel like youre at the top of the time sheet going into [Sunday] nights race, but I think if youre on top of [Saturdays] sheet, youre probably not going to be that good when the sun goes down.

Richard Petty was tickled pink that his #43 car was on the pole again, and that his team swept the front row for the start of the Coca ~ Cola 600.

Team Owner Richard Petty could not be more proud of the accomplishments of his driver, and feels that they will easily prove themselves on the track in more than just the way they qualified.

Even though its just qualifying, the seven-time champion said, its still a big deal for us.

If everything lines up, then you can wind up being a winner, Petty said. The best thing to do is be up front all the time, and eventually youre going to win some races. Our problem from time to time has not been how good we run, its how good we finish. We have not been as consistent as what were supposed to be. If we were more consistent, then we would be up front a lot more.

Related posts:

1. NASCAR Montoya Leads the Field at Richmond Under The Lights.
2. NASCAR Mark Martin Leads the Field, Drivers Playing it Safe, Dale Jr Fastest in Practice
3. NASCAR Hendricks Leads the Field as Gordon Takes the Pole, Drivers Comment on The 2 Car Push
4. NASCAR Biffle Wins in Texas After Passing Johnson During the Longest Green Flag Run Ever
5. NASCAR Kenseth Wins Another With Martin Runner Up as Late Race Call Wins The Race

Dale Earnhardt Jr does a celebration burnout after his win in the Quicken Loans 400 at MIS ending his 4 year winless streak.

4 years ago almost to the day was the last time we saw Dale Earnhardt Jr in Victory lane.  4 long years of self doubt and frustration washed away as he dominated the race.  4 years of fans feeling as if they had to defend their driver, all erased.  A new slated has been drawn and Jr has found more confidence in his team.  As he stood in victory lane he announced to the world that he is a contender for the championship  and that no one should count him out just yet.

After setting the 2nd fastest time in first practice on Friday, Jrs car was never outside the top 10 in speeds.  Qualifying only 17th however had the fans a little bit nervous.  Couple that with a Goodyear mandated tire change because of the newly paved surface causing possible racing issues, which threw off the balance of a lot of cars, Jrs included and this could have been a recipe for disaster instead of a trip to victory lane.  Steve Letarte, known for being an excellent cheerleader, never lost focus, and never let Jr lose focus either.  They came in early on the first caution and made whole sale changes to the car to get it where Jr liked it.  There was an improvement as Jr restarted 37th and drover forward through the field, but it wasnt perfect.  On the second caution Jr came in again and this time Letarte hit on something that made it work.  It was a whole new ball game as Jr drove his way from 14th all the way to the front of the field, allowing him to lead the most laps (95 laps lead) and win the race.

I know you guys have been waiting on that one, Earnhardt radioed to his crew after crossing the finish line. I know I have.

Jr was glowing in victory circle, but he gave all the praise to his team, his crew chief, and to his fans who have stuck with him through all of the ups and downs since his last win, which was also right here in Michigan.

Jr raises the trophy in Victory Circle after the Quicken Loans 400 at MIS

Winning races is all you ever want, Earnhardt said in Victory Lane. You work real hard to get there, and Ive got to thank [team owner] Rick Hendrick, the whole organization, really, for sticking with me.

They could have picked another route, but they stuck with me, and were back in Victory Lane. I appreciate everybodys support Rick, the company, the fans, my team everybody.

The worst feeling, riding around there with 15 laps to go, Earnhardt admitted. I kept wondering what was going to happen, how you were going to lose. Those last 15 laps couldnt go by fast enough. I was in there, just going crazy. Im looking all around the race track, looking for debris around the next corner. I just knew I was going to come around the next corner and see a big piece of metal laying in the middle of the race track.

I was just waiting for something to happen. That was terrifying, to be honest with you. I kept thinking of Steve and the team and about how hard all of us have worked, and about how we deserved to win and how we should win and I was hoping it would happen for everybody.

Teammate Jimmie Johnson had high praise for Jr after the race.

Jimmie Johnson climbs into his car before the start of the Quicken Loans 400

This is so great. Im just proud of Junior. Hes been chipping away at it for a while especially this year, Johnson said after congratulating Earnhardt in Victory Lane. The communication and the camaraderie between he and Stevie and throughout our shop, I should say, has been amazing. Internally, weve seen this coming. Im just happy for him to get this off his back now.

That will shut anybody up who has had anything to say. Theres only one way you really want to win and thats by kicking everybodys ass. And thats what he did today.

And so did Jeff Gordon, another Hendrick Teammate.

Its amazing for the sport, Gordon said. You know its going to be everywhere. Its going to be headlines and its going to get a lot of attention as it should. I mean, he won. He did a great job, and he deserves all the credit in the world for it.

Second place finisher, Tony Stewart, who is known for his sarcastic remarks and comments was obviously tired of answering question about Jr breaking the drought hd this to say.

Its no different than anybody else that does it its not a national holiday, guys, Stewart said. This morning they were celebrating the fourth anniversary of his last win, so I guess were all in a state of mourning now, cause hes broke that string now, so I wonder what were all supposed to think.

Matt Kenseth prepares to enter his car before the race.

Matt Kenseth, who finished third and remains 1st in points by 4 over Earnhardt Jr, was much more gracious in his comments about his long time friend and racing adversary.

This year you could see it going to be a matter of time, Kenseth said. Theyve really been the guys that No. 88 has had a ton of speed. They havent always gotten the finishes [because of] circumstances, but theyve been battling up there in the top five each and every week. Theyve finished every lap.

Im really happy for him to get that win. The championship part, I think theyre definitely a contender. Theyve been right up there in the mix each and every race, no matter what size or shape the race track. I think theyre definitely, at this point in the season, one of the favorites.

Whatever you may think about Dale Earnhardt Jr, anyone can see that he has held grace under pressure the entire time since his last win.  Rarely did he show his frustrations, and when he did it was obvious that he was doing his best to hold it all in.  That is why his fans have stuck with him and never doubted that this day would arrive.

Next week we head to Sonoma California for the first road course of the season.  Expect a different result for sure as Marcos Ambrose, after feeling his fame for being the fastest man in NASCAR after taking the pole in Michigan, returns to his element with his new found confidence.

Related posts:

1. NASCAR Kyle Busch Wins in Richmond, Earnhardt Jr Takes Second on Track and in Points
2. NASCAR Biffle Takes The Pole in Michigan for the Pure Michigan 400
3. NASCAR Kurt Busch Takes His Third Pole In A Row at Michigan
4. NASCAR Ambrose Sets a Record Pace In Michigan Tire Issues May Cause Problems
5. NASCAR Kesolowski Earns Second Career Win, Earnhardts Fuel Gamble Plays Better