Darlington, The Lady in Black

NASCAR teams are going back to their roots this weekend when they visit Darlington Speedway, affectionatly known as "The Lady in Black." Darlington is known for leaving black stripes on the sides of cars whose drivers get too arrogant. She also likes to eat up tires like no other track on the circuit (though NASCAR is hoping a new racing surface will hinder that just a bit).

So who are the odds on favorites to win this weekend's Dodge Challenger 500? Let's find out!

Jeff Gordon, No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet (Hendrick Motorsports)

Last Week: 9th place finish in the Crown Royal presents the Dan Lowry 400

Career at Darlington: 11.8 Avg. Finish, 7 wins, 15 top 5's, 18 top 10's

Why he could win: No one bets against Jeff Gordon at Darlington Speedway, not nobody, not no how. Gordon is the modern day king at Darlington, a winner four consecutive Southern 500's from 1995 to 1999. And oh yeah, he's the defending winner of this event. If your betting in Las Vegas, Jeff Gordon is a good choice.

Jeff Burton, No. 31 AT&T Wireless Cherolet (Richard Childress Racing)

Last Week: 11th place finish in the Crown Royal presents the Dan Lowry 400

Career at Darlington: 11.5 Avg. Finish, 2 wins, 8 top 5's, 14 top 10's

Why he could win: Besides Jeff Gordon, Jeff Burton has been pretty darn good at Darlington as well. Remember when Gordon won the Winston Million? Who did he fight to win the Southern 500 that year? Jeff Burton. Don't bet against Jeff Burton, he might just surprise you.

Mark Martin, No. 8 U.S. Army Chevrolet (Dale Earnhardt, Inc.)

Last Week: 3rd place finish in the Crown Royal presents the Dan Lowry 400

Career at Darlington: 12.2 Avg. Finish, 1 win, 16 top 5's, 25 top 10's

Why he could win: Martin has been knocking on the door a lot lately. He probably should have won at Phoenix and had a car to win at Richmond but the cards didn't fall in the right places. At a track like Darlington experience matters, and if anyone's got the experience to win at Darlington, Mark Martin is the man to do it.

This week's underdog is the man that had the best seat in the house for the closest finish in NASCAR history, which just happaned to take place at Darlington...

Dave Blaney, No. 22 Caterpillar Toyota (Bill Davis Racing)

Last Week: 18th place finish in the Crown Royal presents the Dan Lowry 400

Career at Darlington: 24.3 Avg. Finish, 1 top 5, 1 top 10

Why he could win: Blaney's best career finish came here in 2003 when he watched Kurt Busch and Ricky Craven battle in the closest finish in NASCAR history. I don't suspect he will be able to repeat that great run this weekend (qualifying will just be a victory for this team) but I wouldn't be shocked if he finishes in the top 10.

Richmond thoughts and observations

Clint Bowyer stole the show Saturday night, squeezing by Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt Jr. during a late crash to take home the victory in the Dan Lowry 400 at Richmond International Raceway. It was Bowyer's second career victory, he was followed to the line by Busch, Mark Martin, Tony Stewart and Martin Truex Jr.

Thoughts and observations:

Its been a very long time since I've seen anyone dominate a race like Denny Hamlin did Saturday then fall short at the end. It had to be a major disappointment for Hamlin, who's hometown is basically a superb of Richmond. He's young, so I'm sure he'll get another shot at victory at Richmond.

Question: Why in the world did Denny Hamlin wait and let his tire blow rather then just pitting? He knew it was losing air, why not just pit and get the tire replaced? Instead, Hamlin let the tire blow and he ended up stopping on the track to draw a caution, which resulted in a two lap penalty. Not smart driving by any means.

The question on the lips of every NASCAR fan in America: Did Kyle Busch mean to wreck Dale Earnhardt Jr. on lap 298 or was it really just good, hard racing? I honestly don't know the answer to the question, and odds are the NASCAR world in general probably will never know. The fact is both men probably could have given each other a bit more room, so its hard to say really who was at fault, if anyone was.

I thought Talladega was last week, wasn't it? That monster crash that involved 11 cars was just ugly. Pretty much everyone involved was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Kenseth, Johnson, Montoya, Busch, McDowell, Sauter, Burton, Gilliland and more were involved. Carpentier got the worst of it, getting spun down into the entrance of turn three where he smacked the wall hard. Then the car, still spinning, went right back up into traffic. Ouch.

Mark Martin's gotta be itching to win a race, he's had cars capable of winning at Phoenix and at Richmond now. If he keeps that up its only going to be a matter of time before the No. 8 U.S. Army Chevrolet ends up in victory lane.

Clint Bowyer proved that just hanging around and keeping your nose clean can pay off. When Busch and Earnhardt Jr. got together, Bowyer saw his opening and grabbed it, taking the lead for the first time all night. I bet if he could win every race that way, he'd gladly take it.

Former NASCAR Sprint Cup Champions Matt Kenseth and Kurt Busch have got to be wondering what is wrong. Kenseth has finished 30th or worse in four of his last five starts. Busch on the other hand hasn't had a top 10 since finishing second in the Daytona 500 in February (he also hasn't finished in the top 20 since Bristol and only has 9 laps led all year). Kenseth is 22nd in points, Busch sits 24th.

The top 35 battle didn't change any this week, much like last week. The first car in is Sam Hornish Jr. in the No. 77 Mobil 1 Dodge. The first driver out, on the other hand, is Dave Blaney in the No. 22 Caterpillar Toyota.

NASCAR set to rock Richmond

The rowdy boys from NASCAR are set to invade Richmond International Raceway this weekend for the first of two annual events held at the track. Richmond always seems to produce good races with close finishes and I am confident this weekend's event will be no exception.

So who do I like to win this weekend's Crown Royal Presents the Dan Lowry 400? Well...

Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet (Hendrick Motorsports)
Last Week: 13th place finish in the Aaron's 499
Career at Richmond: 17.8 Avg. Finish, 2 wins, 3 top 5's, 3 top 10's
Why he could win: Johnson dominated at Richmond in 2007, winning both races at the short track last year. If he is able to run as well this year as he did last year everyone else is going to have a hard time catching him.

Tony Stewart, No. 20 The Home Depot Toyota (Joe Gibbs Racing)
Last Week: 38th place finish in the Aaron's 499
Career at Richmond: 11.3 Avg. Finish, 3 wins, 6 top 5's, 12 top 10's
Why he could win: Early in Tony's career Richmond was his house. Between 1999 and 2002 Tony won 3 out of 6 races held at the track. That's a 50% winning percentage! Tony's overdue for another trip to victory lane and Richmond might just be the place to do it.

Greg Biffle, No. 16 DISH Network Ford (Roush-Fenway Racing)
Last Week: 18th place finish in the Aaron's 499
Career at Richmond: 16.0 Avg. Finish, 2 top 5's, 5 top 10's
Why he could win: Besides Carl Edwards, Greg Biffle has been the most consistent driver out of the Roush-Fenway camp in 2008. For some reason I feel like this weekend might be Biffle's weekend, so look for him up front.

This week's underdog is someone who had a great run here last year and a great run last week:

David Ragan, No 6 AAA Insurance Ford (Roush-Fenway Racing)
Last Week: 4th place finish in the Aaron's 499
Career at Richmond: 11.5 Avg. Finish, 1 top 5, 1 top 10
Why he could win: Ragan had an amazing run at Richmond last fall, coming home in 3rd place. As the race got into its closing laps Ragan's car came alive and he started passing everyone on the track. He might have had a shot at Johnson but he just ran out of time. Maybe after last week's run at Talladega he might have another great run left in him.

Talladega thoughts and observations

Kyle Busch survivied a wild day Sunday at Talladega Superspeedway to win the Aaron's 499, his first win at the fastest track on the NASCAR circuit. Following him to the finish line were Columbian Juan Pablo Montoya and Busch's teammate Denny Hamlin.

Thoughts and observations

When I picked Kyle as one of my three possible winners on Thursday, it was based totally on his performance at Daytona in February. He proved that his performance at Daytona was no fluke Sunday, coming back from a lap down to win the race. That's an impressive performance if I do say so myself.

What a great job by second year drivers Juan Pablo Montoya and David Ragan. Both came home with impressive top 5 finishes. It's not like they just appeared at the front at the end of the race either, both drivers were regular faces at the front of the field most of the day. Montoya's run actually pushed him into the top 12 in points. Does anyone else wonder if he can maintain that position?

Another that-a-boy should go out to Yates Racing and driver Travis Kvapil. With sponsorship from Northern Tool + Equipment, Kvapil raced a smart, safe race and came home 6th, his best finish of the young season. More runs like that and he should have fulltime sponsorship on that car in no time flat.

Another bad week for Matt Kenseth. Another early crash ended any shot Matt had at being a threat Sunday. That wreck caust Matt another four spots in the standings, dropping him all the way to 19th in the points.

Other victims of bad luck (aka the big one(s)) this weekend: Martin Truex Jr., Joe Nemechek, Kasey Kahne, Tony Stewart (who led the most laps), David Stremme, Regan Smith, Kevin Harvick, Elliott Sadler, Kurt Busch, Bobby Labonte, A.J. Allmendinger and i'm sure i'm missing a few.

I was highly impressed with Joe Nemechek and his pole winning run, until I remembered he had a qualifying setup in the car when most of the other field didn't. Still, that pole run will help the team and qualifies Nemechek for the Shootout (or whatever it will be called) in 2009.

Tough, tough break for Dario Franchitti and the entire No. 40 Chip Gannassi Racing team on Saturday. Incase you missed it, Franchitti broke his right ankle in a hard crash during the Nationwide race Saturday. It's likely he will miss as much as a month, maybe more, depending on the seriousness of the injury. Too bad they can't have David Stremme, who just signed a test driver contract with Roger Penske, drive the car like he did this weekend at Talladega. Before he wrecked on the last lap of the race Stremme was a threat to win the race (he actually pushed Montoya to second, where he ended up finishing).

Another woman made a big statement over the weekend in the world of motorsports. Ashley Force, daughter of NHRA Funny Car legend John Force, beat her own father to win her first NHRA Funny Car final, becoming the first woman to win a Funny Car final in the history of the NHRA. Ashley is not the first woman to have success in the NHRA, Shirley Muldowney won three NHRA Top Fuel drag racing championships (1977, 1980, 1982). She was the first woman to win any major racing championship (that i'm aware of) in the United States.

Not much change in the weekly Top 35 report. Everyone that was in entering this week stayed in. 61 points seperate Regan Smith's No. 01 Dale Earnhardt Inc. Chevrolet from the No. 40 Chip Gannassi Racing Dodge in 36th.

Talladega Nights (Ok, so not really)

NASCAR is in Alabama this week, the home of Talladega Superspeedway and this week's race, the Aaron's 499. Talladega is an interesting track, speeds are fast and mistakes lead to wrecks seen no where else. So who is a likely choice to win this weekend? Well, lets see...

Tony Stewart, No. 20 Home Depot Toyota (Joe Gibbs Racing)

Last Week: 14th place finish in the Subway Fresh Fit 500

Career at Talladega: 12.6 Avg. Finish, 8 top 5's, 11 top 10's

Why he could win: Stewart has six straight second place finishes at Talladega. The phrase "Always a brides maid and never a bride" certainly fits the bill. I'd say he has the best chance to win out of anyone on the circuit.

Dale Earnhardt Jr., No. 88 Amp Energy/National Guard Chevrolet (Hendrick Motorsports)

Last Week: 7th place finish in the Subway Fresh Fit 500

Career at Talladega: 14.3 Avg. Finish, 5 wins, 7 top 5's, 9 top 10's

Why he could win: Earnhardt Jr. is the modern day king of restrictor plate racing. 5 wins at Talladega is just scratching the surface. Could he finally end this winless drought?

Kyle Busch, No. 18 M&M's Toyota (Joe Gibbs Racing)

Last Week: 10th place finish in the Subway Fresh Fit 500

Career at Talladega: 31.7 Avg. Finish, 0 top 5's, 0 top 10's

Why he could win: I'm basing this pick totally on his performance at Daytona in February. If he is able to reproduce that run then I would hate to be in one of those other 42 cars on the track.

This week's underdog is a former winner at the track in the not to distant past:

Brian Vickers, No. 83 Red Bull Toyota (Red Bull Racing)

Last Week: 25th place finish in the Subway Fresh Fit 500

Career at Talladega: 21.3 Avg. Finish, 1 win, 2 top 5's, 3 top 10's

Why he could win: Everyone remembers Brian Vickers' lone win, he took out his own teammate at the time along with Dale Jr. to win here two years ago in the fall. But the fact is he got himself in that position by driving a smart race, so don't be surprised to see him running close to the front by races end.

Off weekend thoughts and observations

While the boys in the Sprint Cup Series took the weekend off (well, most of them anyway) the Nationwide Series was busy tearing up the streets in Mexico at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez during the Corona Mexico 200. Kyle Busch earned his third straight victory in the Nationwide Series, holding off Tazmanian Marcos Ambrose and roadcourse ringer Scott Pruett.

Off weekend thoughts and observations

Ok, we get it Kyle, you can win in anything that has four wheels. You've won in the Cup Series, Nationwide Series, and Craftsman Truck Series this year. Let someone else win, would ya?

Was anyone else a little surprised at just how upset Boris Said got with Marcos Ambrose after Ambrose wrecked him on Sunday? Boris going over and actually apologizing to Ambrose's crew chief for the car he's gonna wreck in the future is mind blowing. If that actually ends up happening you know NASCAR will be mighty upset with Boris.

You've gotta think Carl Edwards is getting tired of all this double dipping. When's the last time Carl took a weekend off during the NASCAR season?

Speaking of Carl, him going into that Office Depot in Mexico and NO ONE knowing who he was, well that was just hilarious. I'm sure Office Depot was just a little embarrased by that little video.

Way to go Danica Patrick!!!! I'm a huge fan of women in racing, we need more of it, and Danica winning the Indy Japan 300 is a big step in proving that women can drive just as good as any man can.

Oh boy oh boy oh boy oh boy Talladega is next week!!!

Anyone wanna buy some NASCAR diecast? I've got a bunch i'm looking to get rid of.

If anyone can make it out to the ARCA Carolina 500 in Rockingham in early May, do so. If I could take the time off and go I would, because that is going to be one heck of a show. It will be the first major race at Rockingham since new owner Andy Hillenburg bought the track. Here's hoping with a little bit of work Andy can bring NASCAR back to the old oval.

Phoenix thoughts and observations

Jimmie Johnson earned his first win of the 2008 season and the first for Hendrick Motorsports Saturday by gambling on fuel mileage at Phoenix in the Subway Fresh Fit 500. He bested Clint Bowyer, the only other driver to take a gamble on fuel mileage, by over 7 seconds to earn his second straight win at Phoenix.

Thoughts and observations

I must admit, that was not the way I expected Hendrick Motorsports to earn their first victory of the 2008 season. Having to resort to fuel mileage is something Hendrick doesn't usually do with its top tier drivers (Johnson, Gordon and now Earnhardt Jr.) but they have done it with guys like Casey Mears last year (who was just trying to win a race).

What a heart breaker that finish must have been for Mark Martin and Dale Earnhardt Inc. That No. 8 team looked to have the car to beat in the late stages of the race but they just couldn't make it on fuel. That might have been Mark's best shot at winning another race before he finally calls it a career (whenever that may be).

An impressive Dodge front row turned out to be, well, not so impressive by the end of the race. Both Ryan Newman and Elliott Sadler ended up with DNF's after having engine issues. I wonder if Elliott Sadler will ever return to the form he had with Robert Yates those couple of years...

With Chip Ganassi threatening changes within his race teams if things don't change, what happens? Reed Sorenson wrecks, again. While probably not his fault, the fact is he has torn up plenty of equipment. I'm having a hard time figuring out why he still has a ride in the No. 41 frankly.

Another strong run for Jeff Burton as he continues to build a good points lead. If he keeps this up i'd have a hard time betting against him in the later stages of the season.

Speaking of strong runs, Dale Earnhardt Jr. just keeps racking up the top 10's. You've gotta know that a win is right around the corner for Jr. and the No. 88 bunch. Talladega is up next in two weeks, anyone wanna place bets on who the favorite is there?

Not a good week for Matt Kenseth and the No. 17 DEWALT Ford. He sits outside the top 12 in points and really needs a good run in two weeks at Talladega.

Oh, before I forget, FINALLY one of my picks managed to win a race! Am I just that good? No, not really. I just make educated guesses on the facts of the racetrack and who's been good their in the recent past.

Checking on the battle for 35th place in the points, a good run by David Reutimann gets him back into the Top 35 in owner points but punts J.J. Yeley and the No. 96 Toyota out of the Top 35. Everything else pretty much stays the same.