Posted Friday, Sep 11, 2009, 8:40 am in Emplotee News
The Race to the Chase is down to one, 300 miles and 400 laps of fast and furious action in the Chevy Rock & Roll 400 at the .75-mile oval of Richmond (Va.) International Raceway.
Eight spots remain to be settled in the 2009 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup and 11 drivers are mathematically in contention. The top 12 in points after Saturday night’s race will compete for the season championship and the Sprint Cup in the final 10 races of the season.
Dodge’s Chase hopes lie on the shoulders of Richard Petty Motorsports’ Kasey Kahne and Penske Racing’s Kurt Busch. Entering Saturday‘s event, Kahne is sixth in points while Busch is one point behind in seventh.
Here are the Chase scenarios for Kahne and Busch:
Kahne is currently 96 points ahead of 13th place. He clinches a spot in the Chase if he finishes 21st or better or 23rd or better and leads a lap.
Busch is currently 95 points ahead of 13th place and clinches a spot in the Chase if he finishes 20th or better or 22nd or better and leads a lap.
After Saturday night’s race, the 12 drivers that qualify for the Chase will have their season point totals “reset” to 5,000. Drivers also get 10 bonus points for each race victory during the “regular season”—the 26 races preceding the Chase.
All seven Dodge teams are assured berths in the top 35 in car owner points and assured berths in Saturday night’s race. Dodge has 17 wins at Richmond including three since the manufacturer returned to NASCAR’s premier series in 2001.
The 2009 Chase for the Championship begins next weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and concludes on Nov. 22 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Kasey Kahne (No. 9 Budweiser Dodge Charger) climbed five positions from 11th to sixth in the point standings with his win at Atlanta. In 11 previous races at RIR, Kahne has posted one win (spring, 2005), two top-five and five top-10 finishes. Kahne’s current point position—sixth—is his highest since the spring event post-Bristol, Tenn.
“Well, I heard a lot of people say that they counted myself or the 9 team out of making the Chase,” Kahne said. “Maybe after Atlanta, we changed a few people’s minds. Other than a race here or there, we have been pretty consistent so I am really not sure why that was. We missed the setup at Bristol and maybe that’s why, but we will just head to Richmond and race our race. The pit stops have been awesome and the overall communication between everyone on the Budweiser Team has been great.”
Kurt Bush (No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger) looks to slow a two-race slide that has seen the 2004 NSCS champion drop three positions in the driver standings over the last three races. Busch’s slide to seventh has erased a once comfortable margin of 275 points ahead of 13th as recent as three races ago heading into Michigan. With an average finishing position of 18.71 in 17 Richmond starts, Busch has scored top-10 finishes in three of his last five races at Richmond. Busch won there in 2005.
“The overwhelming attitude for a lot of teams will be to do whatever it takes to win there on Saturday night,” Busch said. We’re still in that group looking to clinch a Chase spot, so we’ll have to continuously be looking at the point situation throughout the race. Hopefully we can put ourselves in a position up front to really go after a win at the end of the race.”
NASCAR Sprint Cup driver points
(points from 13th place)
1. Tony Stewart, 3,694 (+637)
2. Jeff Gordon, 3,457 (400)
3. Jimmie Johnson, 3,404 (347)
4. Denny Hamlin, 3,296 (239)
5. Carl Edwards, 3,162 (105)
6. Kasey Kahne, 3,153 (96)
7. Kurt Busch, 3,152 (95)
8. Juan Montoya, 3,145 (88)
9. Ryan Newman, 3,138 (81)
10. Mark Martin, 3,126 (69)
11. Greg Biffle, 3,125 (68)
12. Matt Kenseth, 3,077 (20)
Other Notes
Reed Sorenson (No. 43 Reynolds Wrap Dodge Charger) will join Richard Petty and AJ Allmendinger (No. 44 PVA.org Dodge Charger) plus others for the NASCAR Foundation track walk at noon Saturday at Richmond. Proceeds go to the Paralyzed Veterans of America.
Elliott Sadler (No. 19 Insignia/Best Buy Dodge) is tied with Tony Stewart for the longest active DNF streak (48 races) of drivers that have competed in every race.
What you need to know
The Race: Chevy Rock & Roll 400
The Place: Richmond (Va.) International Raceway The Date: Saturday, Sept. 12
The Time: 7:45 p.m. (ET)
The Track: .75-mile
The Distance: 400 miles/300 laps Television: ESPN, 7 p.m. (EDT)
__________________
Rick
Nitro Year: 2007 (1 of 113,000 sold)
Nitro Model: R/T 4X4 Stone White
CAT-BACK Exhaust, CAI, Projector Head Lamps
Fully-Equipped w/all factory options
Richmond International Raceway’s (RIR) three quarter of a mile, oval racetrack is one of the country’s best tracks. The track is fast and racecars are always in view of all spectators. What I like best about the track is the fact that as a spectator you can actually get up and walk around the track during the race—as long as you don’t stop and get too close to the fence line to view the racing, the event staff will allow you to continue your journey. Walking around when the cars are racing just 50 feet away from you, well that’s an experience that you don’t get anywhere else. Tonight’s race has many story lines: the race to get into the Chase; Denny Hamlin’s win at his home racetrack; Dodge having two teams in the Chase; but the biggest news is the fact there will only be three Dodge Boys next year—as Richard Petty Motorsports (RPM) moves to Fords.
Tonight’s racing began after a little rain pushed through the area and delayed the start of the race by several minutes. But soon racing was underway, and all night you got the feeling that the drivers competing for the Chase Championship, especially those on the bubble were trying to push things softly. Don’t drive on the very edge of the envelope instead; be ready for your competitor’s mistake and then make your move. The ultimate tight rope situation involved the competition between Kyle Busch and Brian Vickers, they would battle each other all night and at the checkered flag it would be Kyle Busch finding himself on the outside of the Chase field.
It was Denny Hamlin’s night. He was up front the entire evening, and nothing short of his car blowing up or getting caught up in a crash, was going to stop him from winning this year. Not long ago, Denny use to be one of the 100,000 plus spectators in the grandstands—cheering on this favorite drivers. He has wanted this win for a while and although close at times, something would always happen. Tonight he closed the deal winning the Chevy Rock-n-Rock 400 at RIR.
Kasey Kahne (#9 Budweiser, Charger) and Kurt Busch (#2 Miller Lite, Charger), the two key Dodge sponsored race teams of RPM and Penske, just wanted to secure themselves in the Chase. Stay away from any potential accidents—make it through the evening as clean as possible, finish with a top 15 finish or better and all would be well. The fact is both did better than that. In the final laps of the race, Kurt had his car dialed in and was closing on Denny—finishing a strong second. Kasey was further back in the field, but he finished well ahead of where he needed to be to secure his spot in the Chase Championship. As the checkered flag fell here’s where all the Dodge Boys finished this evening:
By far the biggest news coming out this week was the news RPM racing are moving to Fords in 2010, what? The King moving his team’s stable over to race for the Blue Oval? Say this isn’t so—please! It’s being called a “business decision”, well that’s a polite way of saying—we were offered more money to change manufacturers. We all know that the economy has been bad; Chrysler has gone bankrupt, has reemerged—times are very bleak at the factories, and the HQ building is empty of personnel. When asked to comment on the RPM’s 2010 race plans, Mike Accavitti said: “Dodge’s plan — to be a championship contender in 2010 with Penske Racing and a solid lineup of drivers — has not changed. We remain firmly focused on our objectives to be the leading manufacturer in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, win races and compete for the Sprint Cup at the right level.” (Associated Press). But having only one company sponsored team with three race cars in its stable isn’t going to cut it—not in today’s NASCAR. Maybe, back in 1969 it would have—this was the last time Richard Petty himself drove a Ford—briefly I might add.
Finally, there is yet another blow to a Dodge race team—it’s been confirmed this week that Pat Tryson, the crew chief of Kurt Busch’s, #2 Miller Lite Dodge will be leaving at the end of this year for Michael Waltrip Racing and Toyota.
So, next year we’ll have less Chrysler products on the track. Less A++ crew chiefs, less top drivers—yep, all is going well. I’m a die-hard Chrysler fanatic—who is in charge of NASCAR planning for the new Chrysler? Who allowed Kasey to fall back into the Ford camp—think of all the advertising that has gone down the drain? If this keeps up there will be no competitive race teams on Saturday’s and Sunday’s—this merger of Fiat-Chrysler better get rolling at the local dealerships, and on the racetracks! Or the new company might find itself on the outside of automobile industry all together—sooner than it thinks!
For now, let’s take solace in the fact we have two highly competitive Dodge teams in the 2009 Chase. With 10 races remaining maybe one of them can climb to the top, and be crowned Sprint Cup Champion for 2009.
Posted Monday, Sep 14, 2009, 10:01 am in Employee News
Dodge will be represented by Kurt Busch and Kasey Kahne in the 12-driver Chase for the Championship field that will compete for the Sprint Cup over the final 10 races of the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season. Busch finished second and Kahne 12th in Saturday night’s Chevy Rock & Roll 400 at Richmond International Speedway to lock up their berths.
The points havebeen reset at 5,000 for each of the 12 drivers plus 10 bonus points for each win. The leader heading into the first event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway next week will be Mark Martin with 5,040 points after receiving 40 bonus points for four wins so far this season. Kahnestarts with 5,020 (two wins) and Busch 5,010 (one win).
Busch ran in the top five most of the night and challenged race winner Denny Hamlin for the lead over the final 14 laps. It was Busch’s seventh top-five and 14th top-10 finish of the season.
“We did what we needed to do tonight to make the Chase,” said Busch. “It was a conservative race setup for us. We put ourselves up front to try and stay out of trouble. We finally found something that the car liked during the race and I’m so proud of our guys. It was really a good run for us tonight and exactly what we needed heading into the Chase.
“It came down to the 26th race and we did the job tonight to fight our way into the final 10 races. We did it. I’m so proud of everyone on this Miller Lite Dodge. They fought hard all year to put us in a position that we’re in tonight. The four years that I’ve been at Penske, we’ve made half of the Chase races and I’m proud of everyone that played a role.
“It gave us a more comfortable feeling to run in the top five all night and try to stay out of trouble. To be in contention to win like that at the end and have great pit stops all night, it shows we’re ready. We’ve got some questions marks, but we’ll sort them out when we get there. It’s a moral victory for the team. It gives us a shot at the championship. We’re only 30 points behind. It’s a whole different game now.”
Pat Tryson, who will be leaving the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge team at the end of the season as crew chief, is looking forward to the first two stops (New Hampshire and Dover) in the 10-race Chase.
“We had a good car all night,” Tryson said. “I wish we had a little something more for the 11 car (Hamlin). It was a nice solid night to make the Chase. Now we can go after that championship. If it wasn’t for a couple of wrecks, we would have been locked in (the Chase) a couple of races ago. That stuff happens. We’verun well all year. Hopefully, we can go give them a run for their money. The first two are good tracks for us. So if we can get out good, we’ll see what happens.”
Kahne was never in trouble during the night, but the No. 9 Budweiser Dodge Charger didn’t handle as well as it did the previous week at Atlanta when Kahne picked up his second win on the season and built a comfortable cushion in the Chase standings.
Kahnestarted fifth and ran in the top 20 throughout the night, finishing 15th.
“It feels great to make it in the Chase,” said Kahne. “We wanted to run a little better tonight, but we did enough to make it into the Chase. I’m proud of everyone on this Budweiser Dodge team. Kenny (Francis, crew chief) called a great race and put us in position to stay up front and not get caught up in someone else’s mess. I’m happy for all the guys that work so hard to put our Budweiser Dodge in a position to make the Chase. It’s a great feeling.”
Francis said the Budweiser Dodge was a handful. “We were just too loose off the corner all night,” he said. “We could never get it to where we liked it, but we kept chasing it and got it to the point where we were about a top-10 car. We made some gains on it, but more importantly, we did what we had to do to make the Chase.
“We’re in the Chase. It’s a real relief for everyone to make it. It’s big for the whole organization at RPM and Dodge and Budweiser and all our partners. We’re just looking forward to putting together some good runs the next 10 races and give them all we got.”
Sam HornishJr. posted his second top-10 finish of the season at RIR. He started 33rd but had worked his way into the top 10 by lap 170 and remained there the rest of the race. He ran as high as fifthand settled for eighth at the checkered flag. Hornish finished sixth in the spring event.
“It was a good night for this Mobil 1 Dodge team,” Hornish said. “We had to come from the back and were able to get another top-10 finish. We had a tough pit stall and had a few problems getting out just based on where people were running on the track. The Mobil 1 crew did an outstanding job and I’m proud of our entire team effort tonight.”
Sprint Cup Chase Standings:
1. Mark Martin 5,040
2. Tony Stewart 5,030
3. Jimmie Johnson 5,030
4. Denny Hamlin 5,020
5. Kasey Kahne 5,020
6. Jeff Gordon 5,010
7. Kurt Busch 5,010
8. Brian Vickers 5,010
9. Carl Edwards 5,000
10. Ryan Newman 5,000
11. Juan Montoya 5,000
12. Greg Biffle 5,000
Race Results, Chevy Rock & Roll 400:
1. Denny Hamlin
2. Kurt Busch
3. Jeff Gordon
4. Mark Martin
5. Kyle Busch
6. Clint Bowyer
7. Brian Vickers
8. Sam Hornish Jr.
9. Kevin Harvick
10. Ryan Newman
Other Dodge Drivers:
12. Kasey Kahne
16. Reed Sorenson
23. AJ Allmendinger
26. David Stremme
34. Elliott Sadler
__________________
Rick
Nitro Year: 2007 (1 of 113,000 sold)
Nitro Model: R/T 4X4 Stone White
CAT-BACK Exhaust, CAI, Projector Head Lamps
Fully-Equipped w/all factory options
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