|| *Comments on the 2011 AdvoCare 500:* View the most recent comment <#169> | Post a comment <#post> 1. Rusty posted: 09.03.2011 - 9:03 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) I think I may avoid this race. Don't want to have ESPN constantly updating us on the stupid Sprint Summer Showdown that nobody cares about. 2. 00andJoe posted: 09.03.2011 - 10:25 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Suppose you didn't care about the Winston Million, either... 3. potatosalad48 posted: 09.03.2011 - 11:31 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kasey Kahne wins his 22nd career pole and 2nd of the year. 4. 18fan posted: 09.03.2011 - 11:45 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Except for 2009, when he didn't win any poles, Kasey Kahne has now won at least two poles every year of his career, and every one of those years he either had 2, 4, or 6. 5. RCRandPenskeGuy posted: 09.04.2011 - 1:04 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Wow, had no idea Kasey had won that many poles. I've always thought of him as a good qualifier, but I'd have guessed he had about 15 poles right now. I never pay attention to how many poles a driver wins quite honestly, because that stat means nothing to me. 6. irony posted: 09.04.2011 - 6:16 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) This race will almost certainly have to be rescheduled. 48 hours of rain in the forecast. 7. RLB posted: 09.04.2011 - 7:03 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) to post #1 and 2 The differance in the original Winston Million(1985-97)is you had to win 3 of Cup's 4 Crown Jewel(Daytona 500,Southern 500,Winston 500,Coke 600) races just to get a Million dollar bonus,and that was only won twice in the 13 season's it was available(Bill Elliott in 1985 and Jeff Gordon in 1997). The Triple Crown(The Brickyard became a Crown Jewel race from it's inception in 1994,but wasn't an original member of the Winston Million) has only been genuinely achieved 7 times: LeeRoy Yarbrough in 1969(Daytona 500,World 600,Southern 500) David Pearson in 1976(Daytona 500,World 600,Southern 500) Bill Elliott in 1985(Daytona 500,Winston 500,Southern 500) Dale Jarrett in 1996(Daytona 500,Coke 600,Brickyard 400) Jeff Gordon in 1997(Daytona 500,Coke 600,Southern 500) Jeff Gordon in 1998(Coke 600,Brickyard 400,Southern 500) Jimmie Johnson in 2006(Daytona 500,Aaron's 499,Brickyard 400) If you include The Daytona night race,The Bristol Night race,and The Mother's day Souhern 500(2005-present)than there are several more. Example: Kyle Busch in 2008(Aaron's 499,Mother's Day Darlington 500,Daytona Night race) Another example: Jeff Gordon in 2004(Aaron's 499,Daytona Night,Brickyard 400) 8. RLB posted: 09.04.2011 - 7:08 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) #5 why are Pole's meaningless to you? it's just another facet to the makeup of what make's a great Motor Sport's driver. 9. NicoRosbergFan posted: 09.04.2011 - 8:25 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) RLB: Rick Mast won 4 poles. Patrick Carpentier won a pole. Ted Musgrave won 5 poles. None of them won a race. That is RCRandPenskeGuy's point. 10. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.04.2011 - 9:00 am Rate this comment: (0) (1) I am expecting a wild race. And by "wild", I mean something like somebody will dominate for about 100 laps, lose the handle, then get lapped like Truex in '09. I think the winner may not be mentioned for the first 250 laps. Kenseth anyone? 11. RLB posted: 09.04.2011 - 11:26 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) NicoRosbergFan:yeah, and Bill Rexford is the 1950 Cup champion, and Trevor Bayne and Derrike Cope both have Daytona 500 championship's, and Bobby Hillin jr.,Ron Bouchard,Lennie Pond, and Dick Brooks all have Talladega wins. counter point 12. 18fan posted: 09.04.2011 - 12:38 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) This will be Joey Logano's 100th career start. 13. RCRandPenskeGuy posted: 09.04.2011 - 12:56 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #8: Because it doesn't matter where you start, it matters where you finish. It's true that poles are probably nice for a driver to have on their resume, but I'm a lot more impressed with wins, top 5 and top 10 finishes. I've seen Bobby Labonte come from 37th and 39th starting spots to win at Atlanta, and Ward Burton did the same at Darlington. And to flip the coin over, I saw Dave Blaney win the pole at Loudon and turn into a non-factor come race day. Besides, poles don't really have much meaning anymore ever since NASCAR changed the Bud Shootout format (which turned it from a fun duel of the fastest qualifiers from the previous season into just a random gimmick race). 14. 00andJoe posted: 09.04.2011 - 1:08 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #37 sponsor: MDA 15. 18fan posted: 09.04.2011 - 3:11 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The only incentive to get the pole now is to have the #1 pit stall. 16. RLB posted: 09.04.2011 - 3:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) RCRandPenskeGuy: I know what you mean about winning being top prize, but i've always looked at winning the Pole being 2nd and leading the most laps 3rd in important's,but that's just me. 17. BON GORDON posted: 09.04.2011 - 5:12 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Post 6 is probably right. Tropical storm is coming from the south. Atlanta could get 5 inches or more of rain in the next two or three days. The race could be postponed. 18. LordLowe posted: 09.04.2011 - 5:43 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Why don't they put a dome around the track so we can avoid a situation like rain postponing the race. 19. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.04.2011 - 6:01 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Looking bleak for tonight. Hopefully we get a break long enough to dry the track and get some racing in. This prediction: "I think the winner may not be mentioned for the first 250 laps." by me is looking bad, we might not even get 200 laps in. 20. . posted: 09.04.2011 - 8:43 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) It amazes me that they're trying to get this in when there's only a small time they have to race and half of it is being spent drying the track off... 21. murb posted: 09.04.2011 - 8:52 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I love how ESPN's bottom line says, "Nationwide Series at Atlanta is currently in a rain delay." Classic ESPN... 22. murb posted: 09.04.2011 - 8:53 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I feel like it has potential to be a really fast, frantic race if it hopefully gets going tonight. As of right now, it looks like they'll at least get a few laps on the board. 23. Cooper posted: 09.04.2011 - 8:55 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "18. LordLowe posted: 09.04.11 - 5:43 pm" Carbon Monoxide Poisoning anyone? How about installing tarp on the inside walls that just roll out. Like baseball. But there just isn't a big enough incentive for these tracks to do anything. More time a fan is in the stands, more money they make from food sales. Also the longer the television broadcast, the more revenue from advertising. 24. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.04.2011 - 8:58 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Will we have a race end well past midnight? I remember being at Charlotte for the 600 one year until 2 in the morning. And they did this here once. Gordon won both times. His car is good. If we have an abbreviated race, I think he will win. Btw, if this were a day race, like it should be, they could have had all 500 miles in. 25. RCRandPenskeGuy posted: 09.04.2011 - 9:07 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Hopin' it doesn't rain any more so we can get this race in the books TONIGHT. 26. Rusty posted: 09.04.2011 - 9:20 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #2. No, I didn't.....this Sprint Summer Showdown thing is just a stupid promotion that ESPN is trying to make into a big deal. I didn't watch tonight just for that reason, but it is looking like there wasn't and won't be a race tonight. I may watch if it is on tommorrow since I'm off all day, but I'm going to try and ignore the stupid Showdown garbage. 27. murb posted: 09.04.2011 - 9:21 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Damn, I spoke too soon. It's raining again... 28. . posted: 09.04.2011 - 9:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Well that should end any chance of this race happening tonight. 29. Matt G posted: 09.04.2011 - 9:26 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Nascar should just call this right now. There's NO WAY they are getting this in tonight. As it is right now, they wouldn't be able to get it started until 11:00pm and that's assuming not another drop of rain falls on the track (and i can guarantee you that won't be the case). I know the forecast for tomorrow doesn't look too good either but this thing isn't happening tonight. 30. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.04.2011 - 9:28 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) 500 mile day race in the suffocating heat and humidity of Labor Day in the South. Almost feels right. Almost. 31. Matt G posted: 09.04.2011 - 9:32 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I know what you mean DSFF - On a track that eats tires too. Unfortunately the forecast for tomorrow calls for cool, damp, rainy conditions too so we probably won't see that. /sigh 32. . posted: 09.04.2011 - 9:32 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Nascar should just call this right now. There's NO WAY they are getting this in tonight." Have they really not already called it? I'd be amazed if they keep this going much longer. This is becoming a huge waste of time. 33. RCRandPenskeGuy posted: 09.04.2011 - 9:36 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Nascar should just call this right now." I agree. I really don't see them racing tonight. 34. jabber1990 posted: 09.04.2011 - 9:39 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) everyone wants a racetrack with a dome, I actually designed a track that was inside a building once, it had high ceilings and of course filters and a way for the air to escape. I mean they have parking garages not too sure about what to do about the sound, unless thats part of the challenge/ambiance of the track 35. RLB posted: 09.04.2011 - 9:49 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Post #30 Do you think Atlanta's Labor Day race is worthy of being a Crown Jewel since it's the only Atlanta race and since it's on Labor Day? 36. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.04.2011 - 9:50 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Domes wouldn't work due to the noise. Good call by NASCAR. It would just be futile to try to get it in tonight or tomorrow. I'm glad they won't torment us by keeping us hanging on to the inevitable for the next 24 hours. 37. murb posted: 09.04.2011 - 9:54 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Well, on the bright side, at least it will be a day race now. I agree, this Labor Day 500 at Atlanta absolutely needs to be a day race every year. It's much more of a challenge. 38. Bronco posted: 09.04.2011 - 10:05 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Would definitely like to see NASCAR make this a Saturday night race, move the Nationwide race to Friday night and the Truck event to some other open date on the schedule (late March or June?). As it is, this is the only Sunday night race on the schedule, which is odd. I would have liked it if NASCAR would have moved the race to a Sunday afternoon start rather than pushing it back two days, forcing some to miss it. #6 called it. 39. 00andJoe posted: 09.04.2011 - 10:21 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Bronco - the weather was no better Sunday afternoon, it was going to get drowned any way you sliced it. 40. murb posted: 09.04.2011 - 10:51 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Would definitely like to see NASCAR make this a Saturday night race" Personally, I think there are enough Saturday night races as it is. They need to make this one a normal Sunday afternoon race, just like the Darlington race always was on Labor Day weekend. 41. Matt G posted: 09.04.2011 - 11:05 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Just think Nascar, if you put this race in Darlington on Sunday afternoon like we all know it's supposed to be you would have gotten it in without a problem. Even mother nature is trying to convince you to do the right thing :-) 42. jabber1990 posted: 09.05.2011 - 9:06 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) #38, you do know the coke 600 is a Sunday night race right? 43. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.05.2011 - 1:17 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Here is a thought: How about a date swap with Darlington and Atlanta? The question is whether or not the notoriously fickle Atlanta fans would show up on Mother's Day weekend. People will point to 1986 when they tried to run The Winston on Mother's Day, but is was just an exhibition race that was still one year away from becoming a big deal. I seriously doubt this will happen due to NASCAR. But it is fun to think about. 44. Ryan posted: 09.05.2011 - 5:33 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) "I never pay attention to how many poles a driver wins quite honestly, because that stat means nothing to me." They really should think about giving a point to the pole winner. It would be win win for Nascar. They would make more money by more people coming to qualifying. They have always been about the Ca$h. "I think the winner may not be mentioned for the first 250 laps. Kenseth anyone?" Stewart or Jr. "Domes wouldn't work due to the noise. I would love to see someone build a half mile or 3/5 mile or 5/8, old Bristol or North Wilkesboro anyone?? And it being a dome. They have monster truck rally's and dirt bikes inside so they could make it happen. I would like to see them do it during my lifetime. "People will point to 1986 when they tried to run The Winston on Mother's Day, but is was just an exhibition race that was still one year away from becoming a big deal." You're right Earnhardt made that race to what it is today. He seemed to be in the spotlight at that race win or lose. '87- His duel with Elliott and the "pass" in the grass, '92- His duel with Kyle and Kyle and Allison at the line, '93- Snookering Martin not once(illegally), but twice to win and even Rick Mast battled hard in that race, and in '95- when he made it 3-wide in the new Silver Winston car with Waltrip and Gordon and him and Waltrip end up crashing hard in three and four. Dale's pursuit and hard luck at the Daytona 500 made it even bigger than it had gotten and to this day because of Dale's quest for that race drivers realize how important and how hard it is to win that race. 45. jr88fan posted: 09.05.2011 - 5:58 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) What would NASCAR do if it rains tomorrow? 46. Bronco posted: 09.05.2011 - 8:32 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "#38, you do know the coke 600 is a Sunday night race right?" The 600 ends in the night yes, but it usually starts around 5:30, and a good chunk of it is run under daylight conditions. This one was initially supposed to start at around 8, before NASCAR moved up the starting time by a half hour. 47. 00andJoe posted: 09.05.2011 - 9:28 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #45: Hello, Wednesday... Tuesday looks good weather-wise though. 48. NicoRosbergFan posted: 09.06.2011 - 6:49 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) NASCAR will cancel or move the race if it gets rained out again because Richmond is this Saturday. Looking at the forecast, I think God wants the season to end at Atlanta once again, and New Hampshire would be the first Chase race again. 49. jr88fan posted: 09.06.2011 - 7:42 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) if that happens, then chicagoland is gonna be a race worth watching... if i had cable. 50. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.06.2011 - 9:38 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) "I think God wants the season to end at Atlanta once again" That would be so cool. Although if they make it on Thanksgiving week it WILL be an attendance distaster. It won't be like Loudon in 2001 when they packed the place anyways. Our New England fans deserve a ton of credit. 51. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.06.2011 - 11:23 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) I hope those that stayed out get blown away. I really want to see new tires make a difference again. 52. Matt G posted: 09.06.2011 - 11:35 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) I'd say your wish has come true DSFF. If these first 30 laps are any indication, these tires will wear like old Darlington. 4 tires is probably the call EVERY time the caution waves. 53. Mr X posted: 09.06.2011 - 11:39 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) i'm not religous but thank god for tire wear, hopefully nascar can f**k off for a while and allow a long run to happen 54. Matt G posted: 09.06.2011 - 11:47 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Agree Mr. X. This will get very interesting if it's allowed to play out. 55. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.06.2011 - 12:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I'll be interested to see how short they make their fuel stops due to tires. Like Darlington and Rockingham, I don't see them making it without needing tires. 56. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.06.2011 - 12:04 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Did you guys see all those adjustment wrenches turning on that round of pit stops? Just about every car. This is a damn race! 57. Anonymous posted: 09.06.2011 - 12:13 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) How will NASCAR and/or his pit crew gyp Jeff this time? 58. TheTruthâ?¢ posted: 09.06.2011 - 12:26 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) NASCAR hasn't gypped Jeff out of a win. 59. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.06.2011 - 12:55 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Looks like Chad has found that magic wand. 60. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.06.2011 - 1:41 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) If "JJ Yeley: Sprint Cup Winner" happens, I may move to Bolivia. 61. 00andJoe posted: 09.06.2011 - 1:43 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I'm loving the call the 38 and 51 made. It totally bugs me that you hardly ever see "back of the pack" runners pull a joker from the deck - they just follow the leader like everyone else. Try something different now and again; they've done so. Yeah, they'll probably not get anything in the end because they'll likely have things clear up, but they have absolutely NOTHING to lose by staying out right now, so Take A Chance! 62. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.06.2011 - 1:55 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) It was definitely a good move by them. Brad eating Goldfish. Ha! 63. BLabonte47 posted: 09.06.2011 - 2:02 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) JJ Yeley winning this thing would be amazingly funny. Won't happen though. 64. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.06.2011 - 2:26 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) I didn't know Matt's voice had that many octaves! Lol 65. Bronco posted: 09.06.2011 - 2:56 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The "jackass" is the guy responsible for Clint's last win. 66. Talk4Tar posted: 09.06.2011 - 2:56 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I wonder if the added pressure making the 18 team seemingly crumble is any indication of how the Chase will go... 67. RCRandPenskeGuy posted: 09.06.2011 - 3:07 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) So far this has been a damn good race. Kind of reminds me of races from the early 2000's era. 68. jabber1990 posted: 09.06.2011 - 3:21 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) why did they stick the cones in the fence? how much braking do they use? and shouldn't they know how to drive on Atlanta? its there job 69. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.06.2011 - 3:28 pm Rate this comment: (1) (1) This has been one hell of a race. Will Jeff tie Bobby Allison with 85 wins today? 70. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.06.2011 - 3:39 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) That was a finish! The two best drivers with tires that were worn OUT sliding their way to the finish. That is your championship battle right there. 71. jabber1990 posted: 09.06.2011 - 3:39 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I thought Jeff Gordon broke the tie I was hoping for a photo-finish I was also hoping for winner #16 72. jabber1990 posted: 09.06.2011 - 3:41 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Jimmie is now the points leader, did he just win his 6th Championship? 73. RCRandPenskeGuy posted: 09.06.2011 - 3:41 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) That in my opinion, is why Jeff Gordon is the best driver overall since he entered the sport. He was fighting a loose racecar and still held off 5-time defending champion, JJ. Great to see two respectful drivers who can't easily be rattled duke it out for the win. Both Penske cars grab finishes in the top 6. I hoped for Brad to challenge for the win and the Sprint Summer Showdown bonus, but I'd rather see the team continue to put together good runs overall like they have over the past 6 weeks. More victories will come as long as they keep putting themselves in contention. 74. jabber1990 posted: 09.06.2011 - 3:43 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sprint you are all "sprint summer Showdown!" and then somebody who isnt eligible wins! take that! take that Sprint, ESPN, everyone who was all excited about it but I feel sorry for the fans who dont have a million dollars more 75. RCRandPenskeGuy posted: 09.06.2011 - 3:43 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) BTW, I'm aware JJ was fighting a loose car too, and deserves credit as well. In my opinion, JJ and Gordon will fight it out for the title. 76. Baker posted: 09.06.2011 - 3:52 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Finally a good run for Tony Stewart to let me know he at least still has something. He's still doomed in the chase, but I like that he can still get Top 10s and 5s. I was watching the ticker from work. How did he go from 7th on lap 321 all the way to 3rd at the finish? Great run by Keselowski again! Kid is growing on me. He's keeping his nose clean these days and you cannot deny the improvement after this stretch. 77. Schroeder51 posted: 09.06.2011 - 4:06 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Dammit, why did I have to miss this one? 78. Mr X posted: 09.06.2011 - 4:40 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Why did we give up a date here?????? 79. Raycer posted: 09.06.2011 - 4:44 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Atlanta has IMO the best racing of the 1.5 mile tracks. Let's just hope they don't repave the track. 80. Mr X posted: 09.06.2011 - 4:45 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Other then a few too many cautions, some of which weren't anyones mistake, they were rain, this was racing perfection, Up there with Phoenix, and Martinsville for the best race so far this year. 81. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.06.2011 - 4:56 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The Sprint Showdown was pretty lame. K-Y took a huge nosedive as he usually does when he has the opportunity to do something big. Menard and Ambrose, as expected, were invisible, and Brad was at best a 4th place car, not bad for him considering he never really liked his car, but he was never a threat up front. If they really want it to be a big deal, they need to take a bit of page from the old Winston Million. Instead of arbitrarily having the winners of the previous 5 races eligible, have the winners of the crown jewels (the Daytona 500, the Southern 500, the Coke 600, and the Brickyard 400) instead. IO know this year it woud have been even lamer than it already was with Regan Smith (good driver, underfunded equipment), Harvick (his best run in 3 months which still wasn't a threat), Menard (as mentioned before, invisible), and Bayne who might not have even been in this race (I think the Woods may have put a car out there for a shot at $1 million). But this year was a once in a generation fluke with the crown jewels. Also, the cha$e race is really lame. It is pretty much set. Stewart just needs to finish about 20th, and that is if Brad wins, for Brad to get in the Top 10 and open up another wild card spot. Funny thing is the Top 12 are gonna get in. All that will really be on the line is an additional 3 points for the reseeding. Bowyer took himself right out of it. Granted he didn't have much of a shot, but he made sure he wouldn't have one. You guys know me, I would blame JPM for the hurricanes we've been having if I could, but that was all Clint's fault. That was just frustration. Looks to me like he gave up on the season and on RCR once and for all. Still say JJ is the Cup favorite. They were terrible to start, then almost won the damn thing. And I still say Gordon and Kenseth are the next best. 82. 00andJoe posted: 09.06.2011 - 5:02 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Was it just me, or did ESPN show the entire last green flag run (and then some) without any commercial breaks? 83. DXC posted: 09.06.2011 - 5:07 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) They probably used up all of the commercials during the rain delays. 84. Talk4Tar posted: 09.06.2011 - 5:16 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "take that Sprint, ESPN, everyone who was all excited about it" YEAH! Suck it, company and TV network who invest millions of dollars a year into a sport we all love! Douchebags! Figures Brad runs in the Nationwide car and his performance nosedives! Kidding of course, but it was nice to see the 2 team be able to rebound from a marginal car and work it in to a solid finish. He may not get to use his bonus points in the chase, but if they keep overcoming bad starts and getting solid finishes, he could be there at the end in Homestead. Regardless, locking himself into the Chase (even with a Wildcard) and Kurt Busch also locking himself in is a huge testament to the HUGE turnaround the Penske Racing crew has been able to achieve. Being a native of Michigan seeing one of our drivers in Chase is awesome. Michigan is overwhelmed with talent who rarely seem to get a fair shake in NASCAR. Outside of Johnny Benson and Benny Parsons (say whatever you want North Carolina, BP got his start in the Mitten!) so many Michigan drivers have come close to major success in NASCAR, but have been excluded from true success. As someone who got to see him from the start, I'm stoked to see Brad locked into the Chase with an outside chance at the title. 85. hyperacti posted: 09.06.2011 - 5:16 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #85! 86. Talon64 posted: 09.06.2011 - 5:30 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Officially, Jeff Gordon's 85th career Cup win is the new record for the most modern era wins (1972-present). Unofficially, he ties Bobby Allison for the mark. After winning only once in the previous 3 seasons combined, Jeff picks up his 3rd win of 2011. It's the 13th time in 19 seasons he's won at least 3 times, which includes a stretch of 11 consecutive years from 1995 to 2005 (71 wins, more than the next 3 drivers COMBINED). Atlanta becomes the 9th different track that Jeff Gordon's won at 5 times or more, but it's his first win there since 2003 (2 runner-up finishes inbetween). It's his 15th top 5 in 38 starts there (12.2 avg fin). Jimmie Johnson finishes 2nd for the third time this season and 2nd time in the last 3 races (33rd of his career). It's his 6th top 5 and 7th top 10 in the last 8 races, including 5 straight top 10's in a row. It's his 2nd straight top 3 finish at Atlanta and his 11th top 5 in 20 starts there (10.0 avg fin, the 12th track where has an avg fin of 10th or better). Tony Stewart picks up just his 3rd top 5 of the season (all top 3's, though) but it gives him 13 consecutive seasons with at least 10 top 10's. It's his 10th top 5 in 25 Atlanta starts (11.2 avg fin). Kurt Busch gets just his 2nd top 10 in the last 6 races, but both are top 5 finishes. It's his first top 5 at Atlanta that isn't a victory, his 4th in 21 starts there (17.4 avg fin). Carl Edwards finishes in the top 5 for the first time in 7 races, but hasn't finished better than 5th in the last 9. It's his 2nd straight top 5 at Atlanta following finishes of 37th and 39th, and 8th in 14 career starts there (13.6 avg fin). Brad Keselowski's podium streak ends at 4 races, but he extends his top 10 streak to 5 races and now has 10 on the season (6 in his first 62 starts, 10 in the last 16). It's his first top 10 in 3 Atlanta starts, but would've been his 2nd if it weren't for Carl Edwards' insatiable bloodlust claiming yet another victim on the track. Kevin Harvick gets just his 2nd top 10 in the last 8 races, and hasn't had a top 5 in the last 11. It's just his 7th top 10 in 21 starts at the track where he got his 1st career Cup win at back in 2001 (19.9 avg fin) but his 5th in the last 7 races there. After going 4 straight races without a top 10 to fall from 10th to 14th in pts, Denny Hamlin picks up his 2nd straight top 10 finish to move into 12th. It's the 3rd time this year he's had back-to-back top 10's but has yet to string together 3 in a row. It's just his 4th top 10 in 12 Atlanta starts (17.5 avg fin) but the 4th straight race there that he's led laps. Matt Kenseth finishes in the top 10 for a 3rd straight race (but it's the 3rd straight race he led laps and should've had a top 5). It's his 13th top 10 in 23 Atlanta starts, his most top 10's at a track that he hasn't won at yet (12.9 avg fin). AJ Allmendinger finishes in the top 12 for a 4th straight race, including 2 top 10's. Since Greg Irwin jumped aboard as the #43 CC, Allmendinger has a 13.7 average finish in 6 races (17.1 avg fin in first 19 races of the season). It's just his 2nd top 10 in 7 Atlanta starts but hasn't finished outside of the top 20 there (14.4 avg fin). In 11th, Brian Vickers just missed out on his first top 10 in 10 races. 87. potatosalad48 posted: 09.06.2011 - 5:35 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Man, that was a hell of a race. Both drivers were on worn tires with loose cars and the both held on to make the last 10 laps amazing. All I saw was the last 60 laps, but they were awesome. 88. Talon64 posted: 09.06.2011 - 5:49 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Here's the clinch scenarios at Richmond for drivers currently holding Chase spots (figured out by myself as the best to my abilities): Dale Earnhardt Jr. can clinch a top 10 spot by finishing 20th, 21st if he leads a lap or 22nd if he leads the most laps. Tony Stewart clinches if he finishes 18th, 19th if he leads a lap or 20nd if he leads the most laps. Denny Hamlin can only clinch a spot if he wins at Richmond; a 6th place finish would ensure he stays 12th in points. Paul Menard can clinch a Chase spot if he wins at Richmond; already being top 20 in points, he would unseat Denny Hamlin for a wild card spot on the strength of 2 wins. And here's the situation for the guys who need help to make it in: Everyone from 13th to 18th in the standings can still make the Chase if they win Richmond and can move ahead of Denny Hamlin in the standings. Here's where they'll need Hamlin to finish no better than to move ahead, assuming they don't lead the most laps and score 47 points: AJ Allmendinger: Hamlin finishes 9th, 10th if he leads a lap and 11th if he leads the most laps. Clint Bowyer: Hamlin finishes 10th, 11th if lap led and 12th if most laps led Greg Biffle: Hamlin finishes 25th, 26th if lap led and 27th if most laps led Martin Truex Jr.: Hamlin finishes 30th, 31st if lap led and 32nd if most laps led Kasey Kahne: Denny Hamlin finishes 39th, 40th if lap led and 41st if most laps led Joey Logano: Denny Hamlin finishes dead last while Joey leads the most laps. Marcos Ambrose and David Ragan can make the Chase if either one picks up a 2nd win and cracks the top 20 in points. Ambrose needs to win and have Paul Menard, who's 20th in pts, finish no better than 4th, 5th if he leads a lap and 6th if he leads the most laps. Ragan needs Menard to finish 17th, 18th if he leads a lap and 19th if he leads the most laps. Mark Martin and Juan Pablo Montoya are no longer eligible to make the Chase; even if either one wins at Richmond they won't be able to overtake Denny Hamlin in the points standings. 89. 1995z71 posted: 09.06.2011 - 5:51 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I thought Dale Earnhradt won the Winston Million also at Talladega in 2000 90. Anonymous posted: 09.06.2011 - 5:51 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Jeff Gordon just drove a Hall of Fame race. Footage of the final 10 laps of this race should be placed in Gordon's future Hall of Fame display. Shame that he lost at the Brickyard because of stupid fuel strategy by a crappy car, and lost at Bristol because of blatant cheating, otherwise he would have made 2 fans a lot of money. Seriously, whoever had Jeff Gordon as their guy at Bristol must still be cussing out Brad Keselowski. 91. joey2448 posted: 09.06.2011 - 5:59 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Yea buddy!!! I tell you what, JG is on a roll right now! Drive for five is on! I'm gonna say that Jimmie spent about 85% of the final lap sideways. Y'all better enjoy this track while you can, cuz it'll have to be repaved eventually (like Daytona). I'm guessing this asphalt will probably last another five years or so... 92. Rusty posted: 09.06.2011 - 6:03 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Glad nobody won the Sprint Showdown crap. Also glad to see Addington and Kurt make the right adjustments and come on strong late for a change. It seemed like once again they went the wrong way midway through the race and Kurt dropped like a rock, they got it right late and ran 3rd the entire final run until Tony came from nowhere to pass him on the last lap and he got 4th. The Chase is all but set at this point. It appears our 12 will be Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth, Kurt Busch, Brad Keselowski, Tony Stewart, Ryan Newman, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kevin Harvick. The only ways things can change are..... -Tony Stewart or Dale Jr. wreck early and have a really bad finish at Richmond and Brad gets into the top 10. Opening up a wild card spot, most likely for Paul Menard. This would make things interesting as guys like Kasey Kahne, AJ Allmendinger, Clint Bowyer, etc. are in a win and get in scenario -Menard can lock himself into the chase if he wins at Richmond, it would give him the second wild card over Denny Hamlin. But it's tough to imagine that. -If Denny Hamlin has a bad enough night and someone right behind him in points wins, that can knock him out and them in. AJ Allmendinger and Clint Bowyer appear to be the only ones poised to do this. So in reality, for those guys who aren't in the top 12 all they can do is go all out for the win Saturday night and hope things fall in their favor. I would bet on the 12 men listed staying as our 2010 Chasers. But you never know, one blown engine or mistake that leads to a wreck can change everything for someone like Tony or Dale Jr. By the way, I'm amazed that Dale Jr. has managed to stick in the top 10 for as long as he has. Over the last 11 race he has only one top 10 finish and an average finish of 19.5, he also has a decent enough lead over Brad Keselowski to have a mediocre finish and still back his way in. 93. Talon64 posted: 09.06.2011 - 6:03 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Mark Martin and Juan Pablo Montoya are no longer eligible to make the Chase; even if either one wins at Richmond they won't be able to overtake Denny Hamlin in the points standings." Wrong about that, they can still make it in if Brad Keselowski cracks the top 10 in points and they win Richmond. I'll have those scenarios up in a bit... 94. hyperacti posted: 09.06.2011 - 6:03 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Mark Martin is still eligible. He needs to win, and on top of that, needs Brad Keselowski to unseat Tony Stewart for 10th in the points. Any other driver ahead of Mark with 0 wins can also count on this method if they were to win at Richmond as well. 95. hyperacti posted: 09.06.2011 - 6:06 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Marcos Ambrose can also still get in if he wins and passed Paul Menard in the standings. This is exciting as heck lol, there are some 10 drivers still eligible (albeit remotely) that can get in, but simply winning Richmond would change it all 96. Mr X posted: 09.06.2011 - 6:08 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Everyone needs to go to nascar.com and watch Tony Stewart's press pass interview, he said that if Atlanta Motor Speedway is repaved, he would personally shoot Ed Clark the track owner. All hail Tony Stewart for saying this. 97. Rusty posted: 09.06.2011 - 6:08 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Mark Martin and Juan Pablo Montoya are no longer eligible to make the Chase; even if either one wins at Richmond they won't be able to overtake Denny Hamlin in the points standings. " Not true actually. If Brad Keselowski gets into the top 10 and one of Mark or Juan win at Richmond, they would get the 2nd wild card spot with Denny Hamlin. So while they are longshots, they still have a shot at making the Chase. The only drivers who have no chance to make the chase are the drivers who are too far behind 20th in points to get in after Richmond. Everyone else has a chance. 98. hyperacti posted: 09.06.2011 - 6:12 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) So the top 23 (!!!) drivers in points are all either locked in or fighting to get in. In one single race. I can't even describe how phenomenal that is, I'm really digging this wildcard rule right now. More than half the field at Richmond will be racing for a chase spot or chase points. Insanity. 99. Talon64 posted: 09.06.2011 - 6:12 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Alright, here's the scenarios if Brad Keselowski can make it into the top 10 in points at Richmond: Whomever of Tony Stewart or Dale Earnhardt Jr. gets knocked out, they can only get a wild card Chase berth if Juan Pablo Montoya knocks Paul Menard out of the top 20 in points (7 point gap, so 8 positions ahead of Menard without including lap led bonus points) while nobody else in the top 20 wins a race. That'd leave Denny Hamlin as the only race winner 11th-20th. AJ Allmendinger, Clint Bowyer, Greg Biffle, Martin Truex Jr., Kasey Kahne, Joey Logano and Mark Martin can make the Chase if they win at Richmond. Marcos Ambrose and David Ragan can make the Chase if they knock Paul Menard out of the top 20, which wouldn't require them to actually win the race; Ambrose would need to finish 7 positions ahead of Menard and 1 spot ahead of JPM, while Ragan needs to finish 20 spots ahead of Menard and 13 spots ahead of JPM. Paul Menard would make the Chase if he finishes no worse than 3rd while nobody else in the top 20 in points wins a race. 100. Thomas posted: 09.06.2011 - 6:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) A sign of how wild and unpredictable this season has been is that with their top 10 finishes today, Johnson and Keselowski tied Bowyer and Edwards for the longest streak of consecutive top 10 finishes at 5. Normally there are at least a couple of drivers that put together longer streaks than that. 101. Bronco posted: 09.06.2011 - 6:31 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Amazing finish, two of the best were going at and nearly wrecking the final 10 laps. I laughed at how Bowyer automatically blamed JPM for the wreck when he was the one who attempted a failed slide job. As I mentioned earlier, that's no way to talk about a guy who helped him get his last win. His 5th DNF of the year his the most he has ever had in one season, 4 of them are due to crashes. Martin Truex ran strong in this race and for the third straight year, failed to finish in the top 10. He is the anti-closer IMO. Looks like the chase will be the top 12 yet again. I don't see anyone from 13th or worse winning and sneaking in to the chase, so the Richmond winner will probably come from someone already in the top 10. Dale Jr's team should be embarassed with their run today, finishing 19th at one of their driver's best tracks. Lucky for them they are able to finish in the top 20 week in and week out which is what has kept them in top 10 after all their summer troubles. It used to be that he was a lock to lead laps and finish in the top 10 at places like Bristol, Atlanta and Richmond. Now that's not the case. After all the hype about the Sprint Showdown, no one won it. I would have at least liked to see them pro-rate the prize money based on finishing position to the highest ranked eligible driver. The wildcard rule is a joke, I hate the fact that guys well outside the top 10 and even top 20 are still thinking of ways to get into the chase and fight for a championship. 102. 00andJoe posted: 09.06.2011 - 6:39 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) To The Back: Greg Biffle (#16) engine change, Mike Skinner (#36) driver change, Dave Blaney (#60) driver change, David Starr (#95) missed drivers meeting. 103. 00andJoe posted: 09.06.2011 - 6:40 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Let's give a shout-out to the 46 team, too; they picked up some sponsorship and attempted the full race, almost making it (shame they didn't). Also, since I haven't seen it mentioned here yet, Dave Blaney and Mike Skinner switched rides Tuesday morning, as Blaney came down with a case of kidney stones and wasn't up to running the race. So he took the S&P Germain #60, with Skinner running the TBR car. Speaking of the #60 - why a Chevrolet for this race? Anyone wanna take bets that Travis Kvapil has just lost his second ride of the year? 104. 00andJoe posted: 09.06.2011 - 7:06 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Looks like the chase will be the top 12 yet again. I don't see anyone from 13th or worse winning and sneaking in to the chase, so the Richmond winner will probably come from someone already in the top 10." The catch is if Brad bumps Junior out of the top 10 (plausible) and Menard doesn't get bumped out of the top 20 (or Ambrose does the bumping) you get Menard (or Ambrose) as the second wild card... Ragan's toast. 105. Anonymous posted: 09.06.2011 - 7:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Dale Jr. resigns with Hendrick and what does he get? A crappy car. Hendrick will not give Jr. race winning cars and Dale Jr. made the worst mistake of his career resigning with him. 106. 00andJoe posted: 09.06.2011 - 7:42 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Owners' standings by highest finishing car: 1. Hendrick, 1017 2. Gibbs, 1016 3. Roush, 1005 4. Childress, 953 5. Penske, 932 6. Stewart-Haas, 877 7. Petty, 817 8. Red Bull, 776 9. Earnhardt-Ganassi, 768 10. Michael Waltrip, 751 11. Furniture Row, 563 12. JTG-Daughtery, 515 13. Front Row, 470 14. Phoenix, 447 15. Germain, 360 16. Baldwin, 356 17. Stoddard, 348 18. TRG, 337 19. Robby Gordon, 274 20. Wood Brothers, 238 21. Gunselman, 152 22. Whitney, 113 23. Parsons, 98 24. NEMCO, 94 25. Inception, 56 26. Leavine, 47 27. Rusty Wallace, 24 28. Falk, 20 29. K-Automotive, 9 107. Talon64 posted: 09.06.2011 - 7:43 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) yeah Dale Jr. at HMS has started to stink of Jamie and Roush for a while now. Sometimes you can put a good driver with a good team but it just doesn't work out. Hopefully there's some out clauses in the contract for both sides. lol 108. LordLowe posted: 09.06.2011 - 8:21 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I don't think its Dale Jr's car that is the Problem I think it is Dale Jr he has lost the fire & desire to race for quite a while now 109. Rusty posted: 09.06.2011 - 8:35 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "So the top 23 (!!!) drivers in points are all either locked in or fighting to get in. In one single race. I can't even describe how phenomenal that is, I'm really digging this wildcard rule right now. More than half the field at Richmond will be racing for a chase spot or chase points. Insanity. " While everyone in the top 23 in points is either in or has a chance to get in, it's not really that dramatic. IMO, the only way we see a change in our current 12 is if Brad jumps into the top 10. Then either Menard or Ambrose (maybe Ragan if he has a good enough run) would steal the wild card. But those guys 13th-23rd should be taking every gamble and doing every little thing they can to win this race becuase every single one of those guys HAVE to win to just have a chance of getting enough help to make it in (except Menard, Ambrose or Ragan who technically don't HAVE to win to get in). Dale Jr. and Tony Stewart just have to have solid smooth nights and they should be fine. Hamlin needs to hope that neither Menard, Ambrose or Ragan win (he won't need to hope that hard...). He also needs to hope neither Allmendinger, Bowyer, Biffle, Truex, Kahne or Logano don't win and finish far enough ahead of him to take the second wild card spot (Again, he won't need to have THAT hard...). I feel comfortable that the 12 guys we have now will be the 12 chasers of 2011, but who knows at Richmond. One dumb move early in the race could take out Stewart or Jr. and change absolutely everything. 110. Rusty posted: 09.06.2011 - 8:44 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Also wanted to point out that JJ Yeley led 15 laps in this race, which is the most he's ever led in a Cup race. His previous best was 9 at Bristol in 2007. 111. 00andJoe posted: 09.06.2011 - 8:52 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Richmond entry list is out. 46 cars: -Stremme in the #30 -Bliss is listed in the #32 -Stephen Leicht in the #35 -The #37 is TBA -Kvapil in the #38 and Yeley in the #55 -Bell in the #50 112. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.06.2011 - 8:59 pm Rate this comment: (0) (2) For those that missed it, it will re-air on ESPN2 at 11PM tonight. It is worth watching if just for those last 10 laps. ESPN's rain delayed telecasts are so much better. First of all, they shut down that stupid infield studio. I hate the breaks in the telecast when they send it down to Brad and Rusty so they can see who can spout the highest number of annoying racing cliches in a short period of time. Secondly, since they know the only people watching are actual race fans, they don't play up as much artificial drama BS. And there are a few things I want to clarify here. Jeff Gordon is a living legend. He has already carved his face on NASCAR's Mount Rushmore, and he ain't through yet. He also put NASCAR on Madison Avenue, for better or worse, with his celebrity lifestyle. But can we please stop this whole "Jeff paved the way for people not from the South to be successful in NASCAR" of "Jeff paved the way for open wheel converts" or "Jeff paved the way for rookies to be given top dollar equipment" crap. To listen to the "you are witnessing history" crowd, you would think he is the first person ever in NASCAR to do these things. He made his first Winston Cup start in the famous Hooter's 500, the last race of the 1992 season. Let's take a look at some of the things that had happened by that point: The championship that would ultimately be decided that day was won by Alan Kulwicki, a Wisconsin native with an engineering degree that ran his own team and had climbed the ranks to the very top. 3 years earlier, the '89 Winston Cup was won by a Mid Westerner named Rusty Wallace. He was from Missouri. The ROY that year was "young gun" Dick Trickle from the Mid West. A year later, Earnhardt barely won the Winston Cup over the new elite driver, Mark Martin from Arkansas that made his name on the Mid Western short tracks. Also, in that race, one of the ten best drivers at the time was a hard charging, rough around the edges guy named Ernie Irvan. He was from (wait for it..... wait for it.....) CALIFORNIA!! When Davey Allison tragically died the next year, opening up a spot in the top Ford ride at the time, they went after Ernie Irvan from CALIFORNIA!! But best of all, the organization Jeff drove for, Hendrick Motorsports, once employed a driver named Tim Richmond. He was from a wealthy Ohio family, and he cut his teeth in (wait for it..... wait for it.....) sprint cars in Indiana!! He even drove in the Indy 500 a few times before coming to NASCAR. By the time Jeff made his first start, they had already made a movie based on Tim's rise through the NASCAR ranks with the biggest movie star of the day, Tom Cruise. One last thing, he wasn't the first rookie to be given high dollar equipment. In 1979, team owner Rod Osterlund (from California!) had a team that he poured a lot of money in from his real estate ventures back west. The crew members were outrageously young and inexperienced, but it was a "money ride". He put a 28 year old (considered young at the time) rookie in his car that was VERY rough around the edges. So that was not unprecedented. Again, Jeff is a legend, and it is an honor to watch him race. The show he was able to put on at the end was a performance not many people can do (and yes, Kyle Busch is in the "couldn't do that" list). He deserves every accolade as a driver for his dominance and longevity in an era where both are fleeting. But lets not get carried away here. Let's not give him "Earnhardt Syndrome" where we try to attach sainthood to him. Like Dale was, Jeff is a race car driver with a ton of racing talent, a ton of racing smarts, a will to win that trumps everything else, the willingness to be ruthless when the time calls for it (the difference being Jeff always trys to play this down while Dale always played it up), and somebody who always wants more no matter how much has already been accomplished. 113. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.06.2011 - 9:12 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) "I don't think its Dale Jr's car that is the Problem I think it is Dale Jr he has lost the fire & desire to race for quite a while now" I agree. Obviously he has racing talent, you don't win 15 races in 5 years ('00-'04) without it. And Rick has thrown everything he has at that 88 team (does anyone else still think June looks funny in that 88 car?). This mediocrity has slugged on for so long now, I think the answer is more far reaching than "the chemistry isn't there" or "he isn't comfortable yet". Brad K had no chemistry or comfort at Penske last year. That got fixed after Richmond this year. Dale Jarrett had no comfort or chemistry at Yates for his first year there. That got fixed. Darrell had no comfort or chemistry his first year in the Tide car. That got fixed. He just has the look of somebody who doesn't want to be there. And the sound. His interviews are depressing. It is like his mind is a million miles away. I know he is a low key guy, but his pre race interviews remind me of somebody about to get their yearly physical. His wild popularity will never make sense to me. And I am North Carolina born and bred! 114. 18fan posted: 09.06.2011 - 9:25 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Will it be a flag-to-flag reair on ESPN2? Anyway, although the 48 rebounded from nearly being a lap down, I think Jeff Gordon is now definitely the favorite to unseat Jimmie. 115. 00andJoe posted: 09.06.2011 - 9:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) For better or for worse (and to be quite blunt) the reason Dale Jr is popular is because he's...-Dale- -Earnhardt- -Junior-. It's not even just because he's named Earnhardt, or because he's the Son of Earnhardt. He's -Dale Jr- and, thus, everybody who was a fan of Dale Sr sees what they want to see (the Second Coming of Saint Dale) instead of what there is. You'll notice that nobody (well, comparatively at least...) ever cheered for Kerry Earnhardt, and Jeffrey Earnhardt would probably get a quizzical look and a "who?" from most race fans if you mentioned him. In a nutshell: Dale Jr was hyped, Dale Jr lived the hype, Dale Jr...was burnt out by the hype and now just wants to go home and have a quiet Bud with his friends, instead of racing under the glare of the media circus. But he can't. Because he's -Dale Jr-. Honestly, it makes me feel bad for the guy. 116. TheTruthâ?¢ posted: 09.06.2011 - 9:34 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) "Shame that he lost at the Brickyard because of stupid fuel strategy by a crappy car, and lost at Bristol because of blatant cheating" blatant cheating which everyone has been exploiting for years... it's just more obvious at Bristol. by the way, Truex finished 2nd ahead of Jeff Gordon without the "blatant cheating" you speak of 117. Anonymous posted: 09.06.2011 - 9:52 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) This is the most laps JJ Yeley has ever led in a Sprint cup race, how strange... 118. 12345Dude posted: 09.06.2011 - 10:13 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Yeah I feel awful for Dale Jr. Always being compared to his father. Then again I would love to race, race cars for millions of dollars. I still think his depression and his negative 10 million self confidence are whats hurting him. Also how did all of you guys catch this race? Did you take a sick day? I wish they wouldn't of taken a date from Atlanta. It's so much better than Kentucky. It's one of the best tracks they have. There are a million tracks like Kentucky. 119. 12345Dude posted: 09.06.2011 - 10:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I'm also really interested if Paul Menard can make the chase. it will happen if Brad finishes in the top 10. "For better or for worse (and to be quite blunt) the reason Dale Jr is popular is because he's...-Dale- -Earnhardt- -Junior-. It's not even just because he's named Earnhardt, or because he's the Son of Earnhardt. He's -Dale Jr- and, thus, everybody who was a fan of Dale Sr sees what they want to see (the Second Coming of Saint Dale) instead of what there is. You'll notice that nobody (well, comparatively at least...) ever cheered for Kerry Earnhardt, and Jeffrey Earnhardt would probably get a quizzical look and a "who?" from most race fans if you mentioned him. In a nutshell: Dale Jr was hyped, Dale Jr lived the hype, Dale Jr...was burnt out by the hype and now just wants to go home and have a quiet Bud with his friends, instead of racing under the glare of the media circus. But he can't. Because he's -Dale Jr-. Honestly, it makes me feel bad for the guy." Yeah that's true. But this guy is REALLY popular. That can't be just because of being Dale's son. I've never really understanded why he's so popular. All of you guys laugh, but if Scott Speed would of turned into a chase driver. He would be just as popular as Junior. And yes that's the dude with the purse. I'm surprised Dale hasn't lost his popularity, while he's been doing so bad. Surprised people are so patient. 120. Smokefan05 posted: 09.06.2011 - 10:24 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Watched the race but people have mostly said what i wanted to say, so i'm not going to repeat it. But on to other things: "Why did we give up a date here??????" No one showed up??????? "Y'all better enjoy this track while you can, cuz it'll have to be repaved eventually (like Daytona). I'm guessing this asphalt will probably last another five years or so..." Unless the surface starts to break apart then yes it'll last about another 5 years. But AMS is going to be re-paved IN OUR LIVE TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! "Everyone needs to go to nascar.com and watch Tony Stewart's press pass interview, he said that if Atlanta Motor Speedway is repaved, he would personally shoot Ed Clark the track owner. All hail Tony Stewart for saying this." Yeah, especially when he acted like a big baby after Goodyear brought a "pathetic racing tire" to AMS. That raced wasn't as horrible as people think it was (Tony I'm talking to you boyo), Its going to be re-paved weither you, me or anyones else endlessly complain about it. ITS GOING TO HAPPEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Post #115 i agree 100%. When Jr. was interviewed by the host of NASCAR RaceHub he said "i'm in the middle of my racing carrer." Uh, no your not. Your about out the door if you ask me, I'll honestly be suprised if Jr. lastes his 7 year contract at HMS. Rick can do whatever he wants to the team but he NEEDS to get the driver fixed. 121. . posted: 09.06.2011 - 10:35 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #82 - They went entire runs with no commercials at Pocono also after the rain delay. 122. Matt G posted: 09.06.2011 - 10:36 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Races like this are why I still watch Nascar - Because a battle between two NASCAR legends who have NINE CHAMPIONSHIPS BETWEEN THEM (and will probably have more before their career is over) on an old worn out high speed track where both drivers have to MANHANDLE their machine and EARN every inch they get still carries more positives than all the B.S. NASCAR has jammed down our throats over the last 15 years have negatives. I know we had to wait until Tuesday to see this but for me, it was worth it. 123. Bronco posted: 09.06.2011 - 11:31 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "I don't think its Dale Jr's car that is the Problem I think it is Dale Jr he has lost the fire & desire to race for quite a while now" I disagree. After 25 races last year, Dale was 19th in points, with no hope of making the chase. Mark Martin drives for the same team with the same crew chief this year - where is he in points? 19th, and the only shot he has at the chase is a gimmicky wild card scenario that likely won't happen. To me, that explains volumes about the quality (or lack thereof) of HMS's fourth team, and vindicates Dale's struggles from 2009-2010. If an 18 time race winner and a 40 time race winner both can't get anything out of it, then I don't expect much better from Kahne next year. I expect him to stay in the 13th-20th zone that has largely defined his career. Also, I'd like to point out how Mark has been involved in a ton of wrecks this year, more than ever before. He spun Kyle in the Bud Shootout, took out Gilliland and Newman at the 600, ran Dale Jr into the wall at Michigan, triggered the big one at Daytona, took himself out last at Bristol, punted Regan Smith in this race. 124. RCRandPenskeGuy posted: 09.06.2011 - 11:53 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I don't think Bowyer likes Montoya too much (and neither do I). In last year's Sprint Showdown, he went on a tirade on his radio about him driving stupid in that race. But... the wreck today was NOT JPM's fault. Clint took himself out with an attempted slide job. I haven't seen anyone here trying to make Jeff Gordon into something he's not. We've just been pointing out that he's been the best since his entrance into the sport, just like Dale Earnhardt was the best from his overall performance from his entrance into the sport, and just like Jimmie Johnson has been the best since his entry into the sport. Bottom line is, all three drivers beat all of their peers for much of their careers and are legends. Jeff and Dale thrived even after losing their best crew chiefs and going through team reconstruction, which tells me that their driving played more of a part into their career rather than having great equipment. Only difference is, Dale also had to shuffle between TEAMS when he started out while Jeff has been with HMS from Day One. So it's pretty obvious Dale had more adversity. The question whether or not Jimmie can still have success after going through team changes remains to be seen because he's had the same team around him for his entire career. That would actually be something interesting to see. CAN he win championships without Chad Knaus? I don't talk about Dale Jr much, seeing as I hardly ever have anything good to say about him, but out of all the people that just quit performing, he is the only one I can't find the answer for. When he started off with DEI, he performed great out of the box, winning multiple races every year from '00-'04. But since then, he has just three wins and one top 5 points finish. It is interesting hearing people's take on what happened, because it doesn't seem far from the truth. 125. BON GORDON posted: 09.06.2011 - 11:58 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Way to go BIG DADDY!!!! WIN #85!!!!! Dare i say the Greatest driver of the modern era...at least in my opinion. 126. LordLowe posted: 09.07.2011 - 2:05 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) You know after so many years you would think the teams that are opposing Jimmie Johnson would have been able to find a weakness by now and end his championship reign. It has not yet materialized and Johnson may be on his way to his 6th straight title 127. 00andJoe posted: 09.07.2011 - 2:26 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Also, I'd like to point out how Mark has been involved in a ton of wrecks this year, more than ever before. He spun Kyle in the Bud Shootout, took out Gilliland and Newman at the 600, ran Dale Jr into the wall at Michigan, triggered the big one at Daytona, took himself out last at Bristol, punted Regan Smith in this race." You know, I'd been noticing that too. It sounds strange even to me (after all, this -is- Mark Martin we're talking about!) but could that be because he's overdriving his equipment trying to wring everything out of it and getting in trouble because of it? Bizzare as that would be, it would be better than the alternative - that, frankly, he's gotten too old to be out there... 128. The Ost posted: 09.07.2011 - 2:31 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Great racing by two of the best in recent history, in machines that were wearing out. That's motor racing. 129. NicoRosbergFan posted: 09.07.2011 - 6:25 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Think of how this sounds (see lead change/lap leader chart): Jeff Gordon passed Mike Skinner with 38 laps to go and held off Jimmie Johnson to win the Advocare 500 at Atlanta. Strange mix of 90s and 00s. :) 130. NicoRosbergFan posted: 09.07.2011 - 6:30 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) The worst thing that can happen to a driver is to lose the passion to drive. Dale Jr. has heard so much about his father for ten years. He knows he ain't his father, and I think that to be compared to his father almost daily for over 10 years has depressed. It would depress me if people talked to me to me about a deceased relative for ten years. On a lighter note: YIPPEE! #85! Here's to hoping Hendrick will keep the cars coming until Jeff gets to 100! 131. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.07.2011 - 9:26 am Rate this comment: (0) (2) "Because a battle between two NASCAR legends who have NINE CHAMPIONSHIPS BETWEEN THEM (and will probably have more before their career is over)" I think there will be more combined Cups by the time this YEAR is over. Those two are the clear title favorites at this point. "I haven't seen anyone here trying to make Jeff Gordon into something he's not." They haven't here, but the media is making him into a pioneer. "Only difference is, Dale also had to shuffle between TEAMS when he started out while Jeff has been with HMS from Day One." And that is why, despite Jeff's undeniable greatness, I think Dale is the best of the modern era, and all time. Plus RCR, with the exception of the first 2/3 of 1987 (when Dale won 11 of the first 22 races including wins at Michigan AND Pocono), never had anything like what Jeff has had. Imagine if Rod Osterlund had decided to stick with NASCAR like Rick did, continuing to pour money into his team, staying on the cutting edge, and building an empire like Rick did for Dale to race for over his 22 seasons, and got a top notch engine builder. I think he would have passed Pearson's win total. And God knows how many championships. After winning his first title in '80 in his second season (still hasn't been done), the next five years were basically throwaways. He was just trying to get his feet back under him as he played ride roulette. It wasn't until the last few races of 1985 that he really regained his footing on a team, and that led to a ten year stretch of pure domination. But Jeff's trump card is that out of this world stretch from '95-'99. In a FIVE YEAR STRETCH he ALMOST AVERAGED TEN WINS PER SEASON!!!! Over 5 years!! I know his equipment was great, but that doesn't account for THAT! He absolutely drove a stake through the hearts of his competitors in that run. For those of us that watched it at the time, there is no way you can hear "NASCAR in the mid to late 90s" without seeing visions of rainbows. You just can't. "When he started off with DEI, he performed great out of the box, winning multiple races every year from '00-'04. But since then, he has just three wins and one top 5 points finish. It is interesting hearing people's take on what happened, because it doesn't seem far from the truth." My take: June never really was into NASCAR as far as letting it consume him. But through 2004 he always had an ass buster he had to answer to. Between his Dad while he was here, then Tony Sr, he had to focus and let it consume him or else he would have hell to pay. In '05 Tony Sr stepped down, and it has been mediocrity at best, and mostly pure embarrassment. Fear is what makes June go fast. 132. RCRandPenskeGuy posted: 09.07.2011 - 2:31 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Think of how this sounds (see lead change/lap leader chart): Jeff Gordon passed Mike Skinner with 38 laps to go and held off Jimmie Johnson to win the Advocare 500 at Atlanta. Strange mix of 90s and 00s." Ain't that the truth. I'm hoping this race is the start of NASCAR returning to as good of racing as we had in that era. I'm not hoping for it to happen all at once, but this race was an excellent start. "Dale Jr. has heard so much about his father for ten years. He knows he ain't his father, and I think that to be compared to his father almost daily for over 10 years has depressed. It would depress me if people talked to me to me about a deceased relative for ten years." I couldn't agree more with this point. I imagine it must be tough for him to have to hear the media ask him about his father every week for that long. It would be safe to say, I wouldn't be a very happy person either if I had to hear about that for the rest of my life. I've never been in the situation before, so I'll never know what it's like. "Imagine if Rod Osterlund had decided to stick with NASCAR like Rick did, continuing to pour money into his team, staying on the cutting edge, and building an empire like Rick did for Dale to race for over his 22 seasons, and got a top notch engine builder. I think he would have passed Pearson's win total. And God knows how many championships." I always can't help but think how many more races and titles he'd have won if that had been the case. Looking at how RCR has done since 2000, it hasn't been bad by any means, but the only time they contended for another title was last year. As a side note, I hate to admit it, but I'm kind of disappointed in Jeff Burton's overall performance with them. In '06, when he started running near the front again, I expected more of a resurgence to the point where he was in the late 90's. And his performance this year has been awful. "My take: June never really was into NASCAR as far as letting it consume him. But through 2004 he always had an ass buster he had to answer to. Between his Dad while he was here, then Tony Sr, he had to focus and let it consume him or else he would have hell to pay. In '05 Tony Sr stepped down, and it has been mediocrity at best, and mostly pure embarrassment. Fear is what makes June go fast." Interesting. That actually makes sense given his best run lasted until '04, and Tony Sr left at the end of '04. I enjoy hearing theories on things like this, even if most of it is speculation. 133. Vickers83fan posted: 09.07.2011 - 4:11 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Great to see Yeley lead 15 Laps. I Wish Front Row Motorsports can put Yeley in the 38 and Kvapil in the 55 because Yeley has been better in the 38 than Kvapil. 134. Baker posted: 09.07.2011 - 4:27 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) 12 Championships belong to the Top 4 finishers of the race. 135. Talon64 posted: 09.07.2011 - 4:47 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) If you just look at the top 4 finishers, you'd think this was a race from 2002-2004. btw, in 3 of Jeff Gordon's last 6 wins Jimmie Johnson's finished 2nd, and top 4 in 5 of them. "Looking at how RCR has done since 2000, it hasn't been bad by any means, but the only time they contended for another title was last year." Kevin Harvick had a shot in 2006, 90 points out going into Homestead. Had a blown engine at Dover and ended up 4 laps down at Atlanta for some reason, but a couple of mediocre runs at Kansas and Charlotte are what hurt him the most IMO. 136. Spen posted: 09.07.2011 - 6:49 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) He finished four laps down because they were just plain slow that day. Skipping practice to run a Busch race in Memphis (after he'd already clinched the title!) probably didn't help him much. 137. 00andJoe posted: 09.07.2011 - 7:15 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Interesting. That actually makes sense given his best run lasted until '04, and Tony Sr left at the end of '04. I enjoy hearing theories on things like this, even if most of it is speculation. " IIRC, didn't Dale Jr not get along very well (=understatment, as I recall) with Teresa as well? Seeing his father's race team crumbling around his ears with all of jack he could do about it couldn't possibly have helped. That leads me to another theory, adding on to my above: Dale Jr is a Catch-22. He can win if he's confident in his equipment, but he has to win to be confident, because if his equipment is no good, he'll start thinking he's no good either (= lack of self-confidence). In DEI's glory years, that was no problem, but when the team started circling the drain his equipment went downhill, and he convinced himself that he wasn't up to it anymore; and, ever since, that's been the case, because even with Hendrick's cubic dollars, the 25/88 has been Hendrick's redheaded stepchild (only promoted from the D-team to the C-team with the 5's struggles lately) ever since...oh geez...wasn't Tim Richmond the last driver to be consistently competitive in the 25 (now 88)? If he could manage to win a couple of races in close proximity to each other, you might well see the "old Junior" come back - he'd be confident again that he could win, and, thus, the wins would come. But. Also, regarding DSFF's comment about not understanding Junior's popularity, I think he's already hit the mark without even realising it. When he entered the sport, Dale Jr quickly became "all things to all people"; he partied hard all night long, appealing to the younger folk, then the next morning would (depending on the day) be either in a deer stand or in church, with the approval of NASCAR's traditional fans. Women saw him as an "aw shucks" Southern gentleman type who wasn't hard on the eyes either, sponsors saw how he could pitch a product while looking good on the screen, and on top of it all: he could win. So you already had the seeds of popularity there; but, getting to my point, then came February 2001. And all the fans of Dale Sr...suddenly had Dale Jr as the only remaining link to their hero. And thus they clamped onto him like a pit bull with a juicy fresh T-bone steak, and they haven't let go since, since, if they let go, they'd be letting go of Senior... As a (slight) aside, it'd be interesting to wonder "what if" with regards to Kerry Earnhardt. Might he have gotten a DEI ride if the Seniors Two (Dale and Tony) had been in full control of the team instead of the crapsack that was FitzBradshaw? Hmm... 138. 00andJoe posted: 09.07.2011 - 7:17 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Richmond entry list update: Blaney in the #35, Leicht in the #36. 139. 00andJoe posted: 09.07.2011 - 7:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) And, in the news, RCR and KHI are merging; while Rockingham has, indeed, received a Truck Series race for 2012. 140. Talon64 posted: 09.07.2011 - 7:28 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "He finished four laps down because they were just plain slow that day. Skipping practice to run a Busch race in Memphis (after he'd already clinched the title!) probably didn't help him much." I was thinking that he just sucked, but couldn't remember for sure. Harvick's best seasons seem to coincide with his best years in NNS. Especially 2003, 2006 and 2010 (last year was his best year driving for KHI). Not that I think there's any causality there, it's RCR's terrible inconsistency in Cup that's been the issue for years. 141. Jacob posted: 09.07.2011 - 8:18 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "105. Anonymous posted: 09.06.11 - 7:14 pm Dale Jr. resigns with Hendrick and what does he get? A crappy car. Hendrick will not give Jr. race winning cars and Dale Jr. made the worst mistake of his career resigning with him." Maybe Dale Jr. is a lazy turdball who has no drive or passion anymore. 142. Talon64 posted: 09.07.2011 - 9:03 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Milestones/Records (other than 85): Carl Edwards' 81st career top 5 moves him alone into 43rd all time, 28th in the modern era. Jeff Gordon's 391st career top 10 moves him alone past Darrell Waltrip into 5th all time, 3rd in the modern era. Denny Hamlin's 106th career top 10 ties him with JD McDuffie for 61st all time, and stays 39th in the modern era. Kasey Kahne's 22nd career pole ties him with Dale Earnhardt and Ernie Irvan for 30th all time, 19th in the modern era. 143. Talon64 posted: 09.07.2011 - 9:05 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) oh, and Jimmie Johnson tied Ned Jarrett for most career starts at 352. Greg Biffle and Jamie McMurray moved past John Sears into a tie for 68th all time by themselves. Mike Skinner moved past Ricky Craven into 81st all time in starts with 279. Clint Bowyer tied Fireball Roberts and Rick Wilson for 110th all time with 206 starts. 144. 00andJoe posted: 09.07.2011 - 9:10 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Clint Bowyer, Fireball Roberts and Rick Wilson? Not three names you expect to see associated with each other! 145. Smokefan05 posted: 09.07.2011 - 9:16 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Harvick's best seasons seem to coincide with his best years in NNS. Especially 2003, 2006 and 2010 (last year was his best year driving for KHI). Not that I think there's any causality there, it's RCR's terrible inconsistency in Cup that's been the issue for years." I've said this before, for the 3 years Robby was there, 2 years they sucked, and 1 year they were good enough to win races. I think the inconsistency bothered Robby to a point but that wasn't the main factor in him leaving. 146. LordLowe posted: 09.08.2011 - 1:14 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) I think one day Dale Jr will finally snap and Renounce the sport his fans and his father and leave NASCAR forever. 147. Cooper posted: 09.08.2011 - 2:45 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Cooper's interesting fact of the race: --The 35 lead changes in this race is the most at Atlanta since 1999. You don't have to look this up because I already did. 148. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.08.2011 - 4:51 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "He finished four laps down because they were just plain slow that day. Skipping practice to run a Busch race in Memphis (after he'd already clinched the title!) probably didn't help him much." Exactly, that was one of the dumbest decisions ever. Atlanta had been a bad track for him for quite while. Ever since his miracle win in 2001, he had been plain bad there. But he skipped final practice, went to Memphis, and ran like shit at Atlanta. Worst of all, at the other two 1.5 mile track races after that (Texas and Homestead) he finished Top 5. But that is just how a lot of the modern drivers treat this sport. People like him and Kyle really think an NWide or Truck win is the same as a Cup win. "Seeing his father's race team crumbling around his ears with all of jack he could do about it couldn't possibly have helped." I think DEI was a lot better than people give it credit for. The problem was once June left, all that sponsorship money went with him. Look at what Truex did in 2007, and compare that to all his years since. 2006 was by far June's best post-Pops year, and 2005 was torpedoed by the the infamous crew swap (which was June and Tony Jr's idea, but somehow Teresa takes all the blame for that). They definitely weren't falling apart. June was just mad because nobody was there to put heir arm around him every second of the day and say "it's OK". He got that at HMS. He also hasn't run worth a shit there. I'm telling ya, he needs a ballbuster for a crew chief. "Dale Jr. resigns with Hendrick and what does he get? A crappy car. Hendrick will not give Jr. race winning cars and Dale Jr. made the worst mistake of his career resigning with him" They gave June the old #24 team in the same shop as the 48 team. Rick submarined Mark's 2010 season to give their engineer to June (who did jack shit with him). He has no excuse. 149. LordLowe posted: 09.08.2011 - 5:05 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Even Allmendinger (though the points don't reflect this) has had a better year then Dale Jr 150. RCRandPenskeGuy posted: 09.08.2011 - 11:36 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Kevin Harvick had a shot in 2006, 90 points out going into Homestead." You're right Talon, Harvick did have a mathematical shot at the title that year but I don't think anyone was going to beat Jimmie and Matt. I probably should have said, "within legitimate striking distance" instead of "contended". At least last year there was a chance he could pounce over Jimmie and Denny to win it if both had a mediocre day (like that will ever happen to Jimmie when he's about to win a title, lol). "IIRC, didn't Dale Jr not get along very well (=understatment, as I recall) with Teresa as well?" Yes. This is what supposedly caused him to leave DEI, after Teresa commented on how Dale needed to decide whether or not he wanted to be a celebrity or racecar driver. IMO, those comments now seem prophetic. I had NO IDEA AJ Allmendinger was 13th in points. He has six top 10 finishes but only one top 5, and has been quiet all year about his finishes, which is why this snuck up on me just now. Landon Cassill recorded his third best finish (22nd) of 2011, behind his 12th place result at Michigan in June and his 20th at Indy in July. 151. 18fan posted: 09.09.2011 - 1:56 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Allmendinger has quietly racked up 15 top 15 finishes and 19 top 20s in 25 races, so he's been consistent. Not very impressive or flashy, but consistent and he's done a better job of not tearing up equipment and finishing races. Watch out for him at Dover, he easily could've won last fall, was extremely good last spring, and this spring ran top 5 most of the race and was in 8th when his engine blew. 152. Scott B posted: 09.09.2011 - 11:53 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) Erik Darnell will be attempting to qualify the #37 for Front Row at Richmond. 153. Evan posted: 09.09.2011 - 12:32 pm Rate this comment: (3) (1) Jeff finally bested Johnson at his own game...I was gratified to see this one. Finally Jeff proves he is a better driver than Jimmie at least in this race on the result sheet. 154. DaleSrFanForever posted: 09.09.2011 - 10:38 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) ZOMG! Mark Martin talking about the recent rash of wrecks he has been involved in: "With the way the racing has become today, the double-file restarts, how equal the cars are, it's pushed everyone to really a whole different level of driving then it used to. So part of that requires less sportsmanship and more me, more selfishness and less sportsmanship," Martin said. "I'm falling right in there with the gang. The deal with Dale Jr. was a complete and total accident, and I took responsibility for that accident. I thought that I was going to get off the corner ahead of him and he got there sooner than I thought he would. I'll just say again, these restarts, they're getting pretty tough. "I'm not going to be run into. I'm not going to be run into. I don't run into people and people aren't going to get away with running into me." Wow. Where is the real Mark? It's about time he takes this attitude. It's 21 years too late, but better late than never I guess. He kept losing titles in the '90s by always being the nice, considerate guy while Dale Earnhardt, then Jeff Gordon bullied their way to Cup after Cup. 155. RCRandPenskeGuy posted: 09.09.2011 - 11:49 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Not to mention it's also why he lost to Greg Biffle at Homestead in 2005, and the DAYTONA 500 to Harvick in 2007. Being a nice guy is respectable and honorable in life itself, but taking that to the race track, you're going to be taken advantage of. 156. cjs3872 posted: 09.24.2011 - 7:02 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Guys, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. has not been the same driver since NASCAR went to the gear ratio rule in 2005. Earnhardt's seemingly rapid decline can be traced to that. What was happening was that Earnhardt's team was one of those running really low gear ratios, along with the Hendrick teams of Gordon and Johnson, and those three dominated most of the 2004 season, though because of the Chase, none of those three ended up winning the title that year. Meanwhile, Joe Gibbs Racing struggled that year because they weren't running those low gears, anticipating a change for 2005, and of course, Tony Stewart runs away with the championship that year, due to his team not having to make those changes, along with some major choking with the Roush teams, especially that of Greg Biffle. Roush actually had the best cars that year, with every one of his five teams winning at least once, but Stewart had the championship know-how, and that's what carried him through, much like last year's title fight between Johnson, Denny Hamlin, and Kevin Harvick. Of those three, Johnson's cars were the weakest, he knew how to win a Cup title, something the others didn't know how to do. Also, with this win, Jeff Gordon set a new modern-era wins record, adding that to the modern record for poles, which he broke in 2007, and the modern record for top fives, which he broke just a week earlier at Bristol. Of the five major career records for the modern-era, Gordon now holds three of them. The other two are held by Ricky Rudd (starts) and Mark Martin (top 10s). Interestingly, Martin broke the record for top 10 finishes in the modern era in this year's Daytona 500, meaning that the three most important modern-era career records, wins, top 5 finishes, and top 10 finishes, were all broken this year, and by drivers currently at Hendrick Motorsports. Two of those records that were broken this year were held by the father of another current Hendrick Motorsports driver, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., as Dale Earnhardt, Sr. had held the modern record for most top 5 finishes since 2000, and the modern record for the most top 10 finishes since 1999, I believe. when Earnhardt set those particular records, they belonged to Darrell Waltrip, who at one time, held the modern-era record in all five major statistical categories at the same time. Now, with Jeff Gordon's 85th win, he doesn't hold any modern-era records. 157. the_man posted: 10.08.2011 - 10:15 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) David Ragan on a 35th place finish: "'At first I thought it was the transmission or something like that because it just vibrated so bad and still had decent power, but I shut it off and I saw smoke. Obviously, I got back in here and half of the block is gone where a rod or something threw it, so it's very unfortunate. We had a top-five to top-10 car today, but sometimes things happen. We'd have to look at the points and see how it's going to shake out. I bet there's still a mathematical chance that we could win Richmond and get into the top 20 and make the Chase, and that's certainly the mindset we're going to have. We're not going to give up no matter what. We can still have a great season. There are five or six tracks coming up where we'll be a threat to win at, but this is going to make it a lot harder.' 158. Ed posted: 01.16.2012 - 8:45 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) 147. Cooper posted: 09.08.11 - 2:45 pm "Cooper's interesting fact of the race: --The 35 lead changes in this race is the most at Atlanta since 1999." You know which past champion won that race? Mr. Atlanta himself, Bobby Labonte. 159. Daniel posted: 05.21.2012 - 3:18 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) In using fastest 43: #37 Tony Raines Out using fastest 43: #71 Andy Lally 160. Robert Nelson posted: 07.13.2012 - 12:00 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) F1 points Kyle Busch 238 Jimmie Johnson 193 Carl Edwards 189 161. #24Fan posted: 07.26.2014 - 11:48 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Johnson goes sideways can't get it done Career Win #85 Jeff Gordon 3rd on Nascar's All-Time Win List. 162. someone posted: 08.30.2014 - 12:43 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) i wonder if this race would still be one of the best races of the 2010's is johnson won intead of gordon... 163. NestieTheKid posted: 08.31.2014 - 3:15 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Jeff Gordon had to pass Mike Skinner to win this race. 164. Gordon7timeWinstonCupchamp posted: 02.10.2016 - 7:49 pm Rate this comment: (0) (3) First time Nascar goes here only once a year. And guess who won? 165. Truth posted: 10.05.2016 - 7:41 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) This race proves that when you get down to it, with with the same exact cars handling exactly alike, and driving under the same conditions, leaving everything up to only the driver, Jeff Gordon is the superior driver. And as far as I'm concerned he always was the superior driver. Jimmie Johnson has benefitted greatly from never changing teams, crew chiefs, equipment, having his pit crew changed at the drop of hat just for him (but GOD FORBID would they ever do that to someone else it were the other way around [i.e. Gordon swapping his lackluster crew for Johnson's if Gordon was in a title fight]), and most of all, NASCAR tinkering/messing/changing the point systems around. It's all really a smokescreen that makes Jimmie appear great on paper, but in reality Jimmie could never do things Jeff could do in a race car. 166. ACM88 posted: 05.25.2018 - 8:17 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Mike skinners final NASCAR start that he finished 167. RaceFanX posted: 12.18.2018 - 9:21 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Jeff Gordon wins at Atlanta for the fifth and final time. This was his first win at the track in eight years. This was also his second win with the AARP Drive to End Hunger colors on his #24 Chevrolet. 168. Rich posted: 08.07.2020 - 2:53 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The commentators were Allen Bestwick, Andy Petree and Dale Jarrett. The pit road reporters were Dr. Jerry Punch, Dave Burns, Vince Welch and Jamie Little. 169. BroadcastingBrothers posted: 02.28.2021 - 11:49 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) DC | Dave Blaney | 36 | Collective Soul/Golden Corral | Tommy Baldwin, Jr. | Chevrolet DC | Mike Skinner | 60 | Big Red | Germain Racing | Chevrolet ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *Post a comment:* Your comment may not appear immediately - all comments must be approved by the moderator. Name: Comment: