NASCAR’s Generation 6 Cars are still a big ? even after Vegas
When the black and whites flew at Sin City, it was Matt Kenseth with Kasey Kahne next, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Jimmie Johnson, Junior, Martin Truex, Kevin Harvick and Paul Menard before what appeared to be a pretty decent crowd.
In Victory Lane Kenseth admitted that he was nervous because he thought that Kasey had the best car. He blurted, “But we were successful because we did our pit stops without any incidents.” Kahne didn’t exactly agree when he revealed, “I felt that Matt was going to beat us anyway. He was able to run better lines. All things considered, we still had a great day and lots of fun.”
After the race, Kezelowski wasn’t harsh on himself and his crew when he said, “We kept working on the pit stops. It was a good effort, and it was better than what we did in practice. But we just weren’t as fast as Kasey.” Kyle Busch said, “We had tire problems which resulted in having to claw our way back to the front.” Yet he thought that he did well on the short runs. And according to Carl Edwards, “It was knife edge racing all day!” A little dejected, consistent front runner Jimmie Johnson said, “We were flexy and I wish I had more at the end.” But JR seemed positive, “We had a real good race. I enjoyed the racetrack, and I’m pretty happy.” (more…)
The next race after the Daytona 500 is when the real NASCAR season starts, minus the hoopla and hype, and that’s when Carl Edwards’ storybook win at Phoenix broke his long 70-race drought. “I like running here and this means that we’re back. All I can say is that it was hard to stay positive after what we went through. It was just tough not to win during that long period,” exclaimed Edwards in victory lane. He went on to say, ” When I broke my cell phone today, I thought that it was going to be another bad (race) day. I’m glad I was wrong. I think that we’re really back!” Coincidentally, PIR is known for drivers breaking out of the slumps they’ve had over the years. No wonder Carl was nervous Sunday after he wrecked five race cars at Daytona.
Edwards’ victory was also the seventh win for Roush-Fenway at PIR. The driver’s crew chief, Jim Fennig, quipped, “We’re looking forward to the rest of the season!” Edwards on Fennig, “I’ve learned a lot from him. And next week’s race at Vegas will be the true test.” (more…)
Jimmie Johnson was the surprise winner of the Daytona 500 to everyone but himself
By Lou Modestino
The Daytona 500 became another coup for Jimmie Johnson, his second 500 win. “We had a great fast car and our game plan worked very well. So now everyone can buy a Chevy!” he exclaimed sporting a wide grin in victory lane. JJ also wished all fans who were injured by flying debris at the finish of Saturday’s Nationwide event “a speedy recovery.” Sunday’s win for JJ was his 61st Sprint Cup victory.
Johnson’s crew chief Chad Knaus was all smiles too when he said, “The Daytona 500 is a great thing for us. Being able to do this race today pleases me. Not bad for a guy from Rockford Speedway (Illinois)!” Meanwhile Fox color analyst Darrell Waltrip seemed surprised at JJ’s performance. “He had limited practice at Daytona. You just can’t ever count out the strategy of Chad Knaus.” And Hollywood Hotel announcer Chris Myers quipped, “The Hendrick Team is tops!” (more…)
