Has Marcos made his mark?

On the eve of his final Cup race weekend beginning, I figured it was a fine time for me to give my thoughts on Marcos Ambrose’s NASCAR career.

 

The raw numbers say the following:

•  22 starts in the Truck series, with one pole position and four top tens.
• 77 starts in Nationwide, four poles, 18 top tens and five wins (all on road courses).
• 226 starts in Cup, three poles, 46 top tens and two wins at the Glen.

But I honestly think you have to look beyond the stats here. Unlike other drivers who made the jump, Ambrose was more than willing to start at the bottom of the ladder and work his way up. That won him a few fans as pretty much everything he went on to achieve was down to his talent rather than a silver spoon. I believe he gained even more fans after the 2007 Montreal Busch series race where he was taken out towards the end of it having been the guy to beat all day. I reckon very few of us would have shrugged our shoulders and said ‘that’s racing’, let alone smiling, when the microphone got shoved under our face afterwards.

 

However, that is what Marcos did his entire career over here. In every interview, you knew he would say how happy he was to be racing in NASCAR at some point, something I liked to hear as I take that as meaning they’re having fun.

So what will I most remember about Marcos Ambrose in NASCAR?

Well, I could go with the obvious meeting at Sonoma on race morning, or his first win…but I think I’ll go with something a little less obvious; the Truck series race in Kansas back in 2006.

Ambrose started fourth that day, his best qualifying of the season to that point I believe…he didn’t stay there for long. Sweeping around the front row off the start, the Aussie showed for the first time that maybe he might get the hang of this ‘turning left only’ deal. It was such a surprise that the commentators didn’t realise it was Marcos until he’d crossed the line to lead the lap. In the end he finished up third, something I doubt many would have thought possible in his first season.

Other memorable racing moments for me include;

• His first Cup start at Watkins Glen in 2008. Coming from the back when qualifying was rained out, Ambrose dragged the Wood Bros #21 to finish third.
• His first night Bristol race in 2009 where he finished third, behind Kyle Busch (who became the first, and so far only, driver to win all three races in a weekend).
• Finally getting that long overdue win at Montreal in 2011…having been the recipient of a bonehead move by Jacques Villeneuve at turn 2 halfway through the race.
• And lastly, the battle with Brad Keselowski and Kyle Busch to see who would come out on top at Watkins Glen in 2012. 

If there is one thing that might be labelled as his legacy, it would be his prowess on the road courses. His career coincided with those races producing some of the best racing of the season. Now that could be down to the rules package, but it doesn’t matter; you knew that when those tracks rolled around, Marcos Ambrose was one guy you would have to contend with if you wanted to head home with the trophy.

 

Doing what he did best; giving it all on the road courses.

Darrell Waltrip believes Ambrose to be one of the best road course drivers he’s ever seen…now I’m sure people around the world will roll their eyes at that, but given the rarity of that type of racing in NASCAR, I can get where he’s coming from. So if raising the bar on the road courses while wearing his customary grin is all he’ll be remembered for, I’m ok with that.

Good luck back in the V8 Supercars, Marcos…hopefully the partnership with Roger Penske and DJR works out just fine.

The Difficult Third Album...

Apparently it's hard to keep the success rolling so, for this (third time to this race for me, hence the title) edition of the 'Lugnuts hit Sonoma', I changed a couple things in the lead up (or forced to in some cases);

- gone was the quick gas and go to Lyndon a few weeks prior to pick up a cheap US cell phone as I changed onto a plan so I had global roaming this time.

- gone was the BART trip to meet up with Kristen as Orbitz changed my flights and had me getting in around 8pm Thursday...four hours at Sea-Tac was rather dull though, you can only walk by the same shops so many times before it gets old. Kristen said she'd just pick me up directly from the airport this time.

- gone also was my chance of getting sick (sore throat, blocked nose) at the hotel as I decided to do that the Friday before leaving...yes, I probably could have done with a session from our resident Doctor although she may have heard my frustrated screaming anyway.

- and last, but not least, gone was my trusty backpack that I bought about a month after I arrived in New Zealand back in January 2003...it bit the dust over Christmas so I got a new one when I was home. That backpack was very well travelled having been to the Australian Grand Prix twice ('05 and '07), Sonoma twice ('06 and '10), Arizona, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, BC, Alberta and Alaska, not forgetting the Can-Ams visit to NZ back in '07 at Teretonga Raceway near Invercargill and a few stages of Rally Otago since the company I worked for sponsored it back then.

But enough stalling, on to 'the weekend that was'.

I had been waiting a little while Thursday evening for Kristen who told me that she was stuck in traffic. Then some texts flew around, followed by a phone call or two asking me precisely where I was. I told her that I got spat out in front of the US Airway signs...of course, I did neglect to mention departures while she was doing laps in the arrivals a level below. After...how can I put this?...freshening up (a month at Googa in High School made me an expert of the deodorant shower), I just followed the people out of the airport, I didn't even think about what level I was on :S

The less said about bathrooms the better...right, Kristen?

Heading to the track Friday we bemoaned about the lack of a World Cup to listen to on the radio, how Marcos probably wasn't going to win due to the pressure (I agreed with that...my initial trifecta pick was going to be Menard but Kristen said how you all left me my boy, aww), how ticked the double deuce team were that Brad won a points race before Kurt this year, and the reasons behind just why someone would make off with Kristen's Dale Jr emblem that had been on her car last year but now wasn't...more to come on that later actually (no, I didn't have anything to do with it. Well I did, but not how you're thinking!)

As most of you probably saw, Ambrose was using a special paint scheme for the race; he had the name of one child from each State of the USA who had been in and/or are still in hospital for an extended stay. First thing I saw while wandering around after Kristen had rushed off to the garage had me thinking that 'The King' was on a seriously tight budget if this was their hauler.

But no, this had the demo car that was going to unveil the paint scheme in VL later that day. After scoping out exactly who had their merchandise here this year, I made my way to my seat to click merrily away while cars were put on the ramp and hopefully appease Kristen after what happened last year when none of us saw her pushing the car down pitlane on raceday as we were all at driver introductions.

The good thing about sitting there on Friday is you never know who might come out of the media room.




The last one was when Marcos came out for the deal in VL...won't put up many of it but I can say that on Ambrose's facebook album, in one of the photos, you can see me in the background!



After Marcos' time there, and after practice was done, the new inductees, Allison and Jarrett took center stage before Jarrett stayed to help David Ragan unveil his Brickyard paint job (the 6, not the 11 obviously...the 11 would never pass inspection *laugh*).

Kristen has already been over the issues that Kurt had before qualifying so I won't rehash that other than reiterate how much of a shock it was that Joey stuck the thing on pole...I don't think even he knew how he managed it. To the stage for 'Trackside' then where (can we just give it to him already?) the leading RotY, Andy Lally as well as Ambrose were the guests. They moved the stage around so where I was standing last year would have meant I'd be behind the stage for this one yet where Melissa stood last year meant she was in front this time...so I stuck with Melissa and hoping my trusty boxing 'roo flag could entice Marcos to visit after his segment was over.

It did (I think *laugh*), and in my attempt to remove the lid from the pen, I dropped the bloody thing and my "oh bugger" comment may have clued him into my nationality...the shiny new Ambrose shirt could have done it as well I suppose. Anyway, we had a little chat where he said it was great I was there and it was good to see me. Yes, you read that right, I thought that *I* was supposed to be saying that to him! Bottom line is he signed the hero cards that Kristen snagged earlier (one's heading your way soon, Indy!) and I left the track with a smile that rivals Marcos' usual one.

Saturday dawned and opting for the KTS (Kristen's Taxi Service) saw us at the track around 8:30 where we encountered the lawn mowers. Considering I moved from a place where sheep outnumber people by a significant margin, I can't say I was as enthused about it as Kristen was but, even so, it was pretty funny to see. I went down to turn 7 for both practices, you could tell who was 'on it' and who was cruising just by the how much kerb (same deal as 'tyre' I'm afraid) they were using...

...or by how much they messed up their braking point.



Not a whole lot really happened on the 'lazy day' I think Kristen said, but CR did show up between practices so we were able to get some good openwheel talk going before Melissa turned up (I *knew* I should have stuck with my Vettel jinx pick, grrr!) having been delayed by a slow pitstop for fuel I believe it was. Rest of the day we watched the Nationwide race in the hotel, then went to dinner with Kristen's inspection buddy...that sounds wrong, um, don't read it like that please...who explained things like what gears the teams could use this weekend and why Kurt's car didn't pass inspection before qualifying. Alas, he could not tell me exactly why Ambrose had to use the rookie stripe in 2009 while Keselowski didn't in 2010 when both were ineligible for RotY honours in those respective years having run too many races the year before. He thought it had something to do with Brad running more than half a season while Marcos didn't however.

To Sunday then, where, after a fair bit of deliberation and a lightbulb moment by Melissa, I went to the track with Kristen again since she would be taking me back Sunday afternoon...little did we know the events that were to unfold. For some reason, the nearest Starbucks couldn't get my name right and insisted on spelling it with a 'i' instead of a 'y'...I suppose that's how they roll in San Rafael, Kristen found it somewhat more amusing than me, have to say *laugh*

We got to the track earlier than the previous two days (by over an hour). Jeff Gluck was doing a 'tweet-up' at 8am just behind VL and his guest today was my (apparently, if the 'Trackside' thing was anything to go by) good mate; Marcos Ambrose. Kristen, being the legend she is, snapped a once-in-a-lifetime photo of 'us Aussies'...well, for me it was, Marcos probably not so much.

Why yes, this is now my laptop background...am I not that predictable?

After that was done, I went for a wander down pitlane and bumped into both CR and Melissa. I elected to skip going to the stage for driver intros this year and waited for Kristen's texts keeping me up-to-date over when the #22 would come rolling down the pits. Of course, when it did, she wasn't looking my way, so I have a shot of her going off at Tony (she probably was actually since he likes to tease her), one of the officials.

I then went back to my seat to watch the rest of the pre-race stuff...didn't miss the intros in the end so I snapped a fair few drivers this year and, with the aid of photoshop, I can bring you the Sonoma edition of Juan Smurftoya!

I believe that Kristen will have a blow by blow account of raceday from her perspective and it's highly likely that you guys watching it on TV could keep up better than Melissa, CR and myself so I'll close with seven more pictures before my final blurb.

Joey leading them off on lap 1.

Kurt taking off on a restart.

Kurt taking the win...and Kristen can finally breathe again!

Now, last year we took a group photo of the four of us but that didn't happen this year so you'll have to make do with me, Melissa and CR...

Three quarters of our group...Kristen wouldn't let me photoshop her head in place of Bobby's.

...as the final member of our group ditched us for a postrace date with 'Vicky'!

The new line of 'Where's Wally?' books featuring our very own Kristen! She's in that melee somewhere...

CR and Melissa left, leaving me the recipient of one of the biggest bear hugs I've ever gotten in my life when Kristen was able to tear herself away from the festivities (I told her to take as much time as she wanted). The drive back...I'm not sure I could do it justice really. Only word I can come up with is 'surreal' which is still pretty poor. For some reason I'm reminded of the movie 'Almost Famous'...which I've never seen but, from what I gather off the wikipedia page, it's basically about someone who is trying to bask in the glow of others. That's kind of how I felt, but not really...does that make sense?

In case you were wondering, yes, she did pilfer some victory confetti...and yes, she gave me some.

However, it was very, very, cool to share in her elation with 'her guys' finally winning a points race when she was there, and on her home turf no less!

So that was the race experience, but it's not the end of the story if you've been eagle-eyed and see only six photos, not seven like I said. For there is a hobby shop where I live that has NASCAR stuff from a few years ago so when Kristen said about her missing car emblem and not wanting any #88 Dale Jr stuff, I said I'd have a look when I got back. They had quite a selection and, hiding beneath a group of Tony Stewart #20's and Mark Martin #6's car doohickeys, was a lonely old #8.

Quite possibly the only piece of Dale Jr merchandise I'll buy in my life.

It's not a very fair trade though for everything she's done; driving me everywhere for the last two years here, got Marcos to siggie my flag last year, honoured our verbal (written?) bet over the NHL Conference final, got me into Gluck's tweet-up with Ambrose, dragged an inspector to dinner with us and nabbed some confetti from Kurt's win (along with, I'm sure, a gazillion other things)...and all I get her in return is, in her words; "HOLY CRAP!!! IT'S A PERFECT REPLICA!!!"

Yeah, I don't get it either...I'll post it down this week though, Kristen :)

I don't think the race itself was as good as last years but, personally, the overall experience was better (sorry Jon, wish you were there, mate!)...so thanks hugely to Melissa, CR and Kristen for making it possible. Nicking the NHL slogan; this is what we live for!

TNQC and TNRC after Homestead

Well, going into the final weekend there were a couple of good storylines with my titles; could Jamie McMurray come from the clouds and pip his teammate for the QC? Could Kevin Harvick or Denny Hamlin do enough to knock off Jimmie Johnson in the RC?

Ultimately, Jamie Mac will be doing his best Captain Kirk impression of "Kaaaaaaaaaaaahne!" after the Washington Wonder stole maximum points in the final race, denying McMurray the four points he needed once Montoya bombed out. Carl Edwards was best of the rest with, in possibly the surprise of the year, AJ Allmendinger edging out Greg Biffle for 14th.

All up, 52 drivers scored points in qualifying (and three washouts)...and yes, I shall list them all. Congratulations to Juan Montoya and the #42 crew for, finally, shoving Johnson off his qualifying perch.

Juan Montoya was the qualifying master for 2010.

Tez's NASCAR Qualifying championship - full field:
1 - Juan Montoya, 122 points (3 poles)
2 - Jamie McMurray, 119 points (4 poles)
3 - Kurt Busch, 101 points (2 poles)
4 - Ryan Newman, 95 points (1 pole)
5 - Kasey Kahne, 91 points (4 poles)
6 - Jimmie Johnson, 90 points (2 poles)
7 - Clint Bowyer, 88 points
=8 - Jeff Gordon, 79 points (1 pole)
=8 - Mark Martin, points (1 pole)
10 - Tony Stewart, 75 points (2 poles)
11 - David Reutimann, 74 points
12 - Kyle Busch, 67 points (2 poles)

13 - Carl Edwards, 807 points (3 poles)
14 - AJ Allmendinger, 677 points (1 pole)
15 - Greg Biffle, 640 points
16 - Martin Truex Jr, 606 points (1 pole)
17 - Joey Logano, 563 points (1 pole)
18 - Denny Hamlin, 515 points (2 poles)
19 - Dale Earnhardt Jr, 487 points (1 pole)
20 - Jeff Burton, 465 points
21 - Paul Menard, 462 points
22 - Sam Hornish Jr, 415 points
23 - Matt Kenseth, 378 points
24 - Marcos Ambrose, 357 points
25 - Elliott Sadler, 348 points (1 pole)
26 - David Ragan, 320 points
27 - Brad Keselowski, 309 points (1 pole)
28 - Kevin Harvick, 285 points
29 - Regan Smith, 271 points
30 - Scott Speed, 199 points
31 - Casey Mears, 147 points
32 - Dave Blaney, 136 points
33 - Joe Nemechek, 130 points
34 - Bill Elliott, 96 points
35 - Reed Sorenson, 81 points
36 - Brian Vickers, 78 points
37 - Aric Almirola, 75 points
38 - Bobby Labonte, 69 points
39 - Michael McDowell, 41 points
40 - Jeff Fuller, 30 points
=41 - Boris Said, 12 points
=41 - Michael Waltrip, 12 points
=41 - JJ Yeley, 12 points
44 - Robby Gordon, 10 points
45 - Chad McCumbee, 9 points
46 - Landon Cassill, 6 points
=47 - David Gilliland, 3 points
=47 - Jeff Green, 3 points
=49 - Trevor Bayne, 1 point
=49 - Mike Bliss, 1 point
=49 - Patrick Carpentier, 1 point
=49 - Travis Kvapil, 1 point

Now for the RC. 48 drivers scored points...which was an omen in the end as, by dint of finishing ahead of his chief rivals, Jimmie secures the 2010 TNRC. Even allowing my 'half points' system to be scrapped and full points awarded every Chase race, he still would have done it so don't grumble about that. Like his teammate did in the QC, Matt Kenseth ran away in the end over Mark Martin for 13th. So congrats to Jimmie Johnson and the whole 48 team on, yet another, great year.

Jimmie Johnson racks up another RC.

Tez's NASCAR Race Championship - full field:
1 - Jimmie Johnson, 138.5 points (6 wins)
2 - Kevin Harvick, 126 points (3 wins)
3 - Denny Hamlin, 117.5 points (8 wins)
4 - Carl Edwards, 82 points (2 wins)
5 - Greg Biffle, 81.5 points (2 wins)
6 - Clint Bowyer, 78 points (2 wins)
7 - Jamie McMurray, 72 points (3 wins)
8 - Tony Stewart, 69 points (2 wins)
9 - Kyle Busch, 64 points (3 wins)
10 - Kurt Busch, 55 points (2 wins)
11 - Jeff Gordon, 50 points
12 - Jeff Burton, 39 points

13 - Matt Kenseth, 762 points
14 - Mark Martin, 665 points
15 - Joey Logano, 643.5 points
16 - Juan Montoya, 611.5 points (1 win)
17 - Ryan Newman, 555.5 points (1 win)
18 - Kasey Kahne, 539.5 points
19 - David Reutimann, 519 points (1 win)
20 - AJ Allmendinger, 438.5 points
21 - Martin Truex Jr, 417.5 points
22 - Dale Earnhardt Jr, 393 points
23 - Paul Menard, 384 points
24 - David Ragan, 286.5 points
25 - Marcos Ambrose, 264.5 points
26 - Brad Keselowski, 196 points
27 - Regan Smith, 189.5 points
28 - Sam Hornish Jr, 151 points
29 - Elliott Sadler, 143 points
30 - Scott Speed, 142.5 points
31 - Aric Almirola, 106.5 points
32 - Reed Sorenson, 102 points
33 - Brian Vickers, 99 points
34 - Robby Gordon, 75 points
35 - Mike Bliss, 51 points
36 - Bobby Labonte, 49.5 points
37 - Bill Elliott, 45 points
38 - Casey Mears, 28.5 points
39 - Trevor Bayne, 24 points
40 - David Gilliland, 16 points
41 - Boris Said, 15 points
=42 - Steve Park, 12 points
=42 - Ken Schrader, 12 points
44 - Kevin Conway, 9 points
45 - Jan Magnussen, 7.5 points
=46 - Patrick Carpentier, 6 points
=46 - Chad McCumbee, 6 points
48 - Hermie Sadler, 0.5 points

Thus endeth the 2010 TN titles...whether I tweak it in the offseason is up for debate.

TNQC and TNRC after Lowe's

Jeff Gordon's been heading in the right direction from last post (ninth to fifth) while Kurt Busch appears to be in freefall (fourth to eighth) at the moment. After storming to his fourth pole position last week at Fontana, Jamie McMurray nips past his teammate at the top of the table while the only guy to win this title is seemingly lurking back in fourth with five rounds to go.

Kasey Kahne, Kyle Busch and Kurt Busch get the nod over Jimmie Johnson, Mark Martin and Ryan Newman respectively by dint of having more pole positions.

Tez's NASCAR Qualifying Championship - Chase field after 5 rounds:
1 - Jamie McMurray, 65 points
2 - Juan Montoya, 63 points
=3 - Kasey Kahne, 55 points
=3 - Jimmie Johnson, 55 points
5 - Jeff Gordon, 51 points
=6 - Kyle Busch, 48 points
=6 - Mark Martin, 48 points
=8 - Kurt Busch, 43 points
=8 - Ryan Newman, 43 points
10 - Tony Stewart, 38 points
11 - Clint Bowyer, 37 points
12 - David Reutimann, 27 points

The EGR duo are still the ones to beat at this stage.

With his front row effort at Lowe's, Carl Edwards sneaks out a bit of a lead over Martin Truex Jr for 13th while only AJ Allmendiger, Greg Biffle and Joey Logano seem to be the only other drivers capable of spoiling Carl's party.

To the RC then where, with back-to-back third place finishes, Jimmie Johnson extends his lead over Kevin Harvick and Denny Hamlin. The biggest movers though are the last two winners as Tony Stewart jumps up from 11th to sixth while Jamie McMurray now sits fourth. Again, like in the QC, Kurt Busch has dropped back from last time (from fifth to ninth).

Tez's NASCAR Race Championship - Chase field after 5 rounds:
1 - Jimmie Johnson, 85.5 points
2 - Kevin Harvick, 68 points
3 - Denny Hamlin, 67 points
4 - Jamie McMurray, 53 points
5 - Kyle Busch, 45 points
6 - Tony Stewart, 43 points
7 - Greg Biffle, 40.5 points
8 - Clint Bowyer, 36 points
9 - Kurt Busch, 34.5 points
10 - Carl Edwards, 32 points
11 - Jeff Gordon, 31 points
12 - Jeff Burton, 28 points

Vader's got the inside line over the rest, headed up by Happy.

Matt Kenseth is still more than a race ahead of Juan Montoya for 13th but he needs to look behind him as Mark Martin and Joey Logano are closing in on the Columbian.

With five weekends left, both titles are still up for grabs...although the other guys better figure out a way to beat Jimmie in the RC if they want it to stay that way.

TNQC and TNRC after Kansas

I wonder what odds you would have been given that Loudon would be the most exciting race of the Chase...or would you have been laughed out the door?

Anyway, three weekends down and while it's a familiar name on top in the RC, it's EGR leading the way in the QC. Juan Montoya has been 'the man' thus far and has opened up a small lead over Jamie McMurray. Jimmie Johnson, who's had a stranglehold on this thing from when I first started it back in 2007, has been somewhat quiet and sits sixth.

Tez's NASCAR Qualifying Championship - Chase field after 3 rounds:
1 - Juan Montoya, 46 points
2 - Jamie McMurray, 41 points
3 - Kasey Kahne, 37 points
4 - Kurt Busch, 34 points
5 - Tony Stewart, 33 points
6 - Jimmie Johnson, 31 points
7 - Kyle Busch, 29 points
8 - Ryan Newman, 27 points
9 - Jeff Gordon, 26 points
10 - Clint Bowyer, 24 points
11 - Mark Martin, 22 points
12 - David Reutimann, 19 points

Carl Edwards is hanging on to 13th but AJ Allmendinger is making a charge. Truex, Biffle, Logano and Hamlin seem to be the only other ones capable of getting there.

To the RC where, despite having an ordinary day at New Hampshire, Johnson was back in the lead after his win a week later at Dover. The main reason was that, like I've done with all races under 400 miles in length, he only lost 10.5 points on the field rather than the full 20. The biggest loser compared to the real points has to be Jeff Gordon who is 9th in mine while Greg Biffle is the big winner and sits 4th. Also, Jamie McMurray is hanging on in 7th, not bad for a bloke who didn't actually make the official Chase.

Tez's NASCAR Race Championship - Chase field after 3 rounds:
1 - Jimmie Johnson, 57.5 points
2 - Kevin Harvick, 48 points
3 - Denny Hamlin, 45 points
4 - Greg Biffle, 29.5 points
5 - Kurt Busch, 28.5 points
6 - Kyle Busch, 27 points
7 - Jamie McMurray, 26 points
8 - Carl Edwards, 23 points
9 - Jeff Gordon, 21 points
10 - Jeff Burton, 20 points
11 - Tony Stewart, 19 points
12 - Clint Bowyer, 15 points

It's not looking brilliant for the other 11 guys...but both Martinsville and Pheonix, while being good tracks for Jimmie, are also half pointers so we'll see. Outside the Chase, Matt Kenseth is looking good for 13th, more than a full race in front of Montoya in 14th.

Chase fields for the TNC's

Ok, now that the first 26 rounds are done, we have the only 12 guys in with a shot to win the titles. In a rather dull twist, the QC dozen stayed the same after Bristol while Clint Bowyer snuck past Matt Kenseth in the RC. Ultimately, Jimmie Johnson ended up with the lead after 26 rounds of qualifying but it's Jamie McMurray who ranks first having scored the most pole positions. The RC saw Kevin Harvick unable to be caught after his win in Michigan and, coupled with his three wins, he and Denny Hamlin lead the way as we head to Loudon.

So to the resets then.

Tez's NASCAR Qualifying Championship - chase field with bonus points:
1 - Jamie McMurray, 12 points (3 poles)
=2 - Kurt Busch, 8 points (2 poles)
=2 - Kyle Busch, 8 points (2 poles)
=2 - Kasey Kahne, 8 points (2 poles)
=2 - Juan Montoya, 8 points (2 poles)
=2 - Tony Stewart, 8 points (2 poles)
=7 - Jimmie Johnson, 4 points (1 pole)
=7 - Mark Martin, 4 points (1 pole)
=7 - Ryan Newman, 4 points (1 pole)
=10 - Clint Bowyer, 0 points
=10 - Jeff Gordon, 0 points
=10 - David Reutimann, 0 points

The battle for 13th appears to be a seven man one with Carl Edwards holding onto it right now but I'd give down to Greg Biffle (95 points behind) in 19th a shot.


Tez's NASCAR Race Championship - chase field with bonus points:
=1 - Denny Hamlin, 24 points (6 wins)
=1 - Kevin Harvick, 24 points (3 wins + 12 bonus)
3 - Jimmie Johnson, 20 points (5 wins)
4 - Kyle Busch, 12 points (3 wins)
=5 - Kurt Busch, 8 points (2 wins)
=5 - Jamie McMurray, 8 points (2 wins)
=7 - Greg Biffle, 4 points (1 win)
=7 - Tony Stewart, 4 points (1 win)
=9 - Clint Bowyer, 0 points
=9 - Jeff Burton, 0 points
=9 - Carl Edwards, 0 points
=9 - Jeff Gordon, 0 points

Kenseth sits 13th, with Juan Montoya, Kasey Kahne and Mark Martin possibly being the only ones capable of knocking him off.

Remember, the points for the Chase guys now switch to the old CART system (20, 16, 14, 12, 10, 8, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1) with a bonus point for actually winning the race/nabbing pole position and half points for the races at Loudon, Martinsville and Phoenix as neither reach 400 miles.

Rookie, Sophomore, uh...Veteran?

Lap 16 at Spa-francorchamps might just have been the pivotal point of the 2010 F1 season. With Fernando Alonso having a shocker, Jenson Button's McLaren was running second and was being stalked by Sebastian Vettel in the Red Bull. Jenson covered the inside so Vettel flicked hard to the left, lost control and speared into the sidepod of the reigning World Champ. That left Lewis Hamilton and Mark Webber to pick up the pieces as the points went from five guys within a race win to just those two.

McLaren were not amused and Red Bull boss, Christian Horner, responded back to the criticism over Vettel's driving, "He is a great racing driver, he is still a very young guy and it is easy to be very critical on somebody who is relatively inexperienced - but for sure he will learn a lot from what happened."

That got me thinking...how much experience do you need to shake off being labelled inexperienced; five seasons, ten, two, where is the cutoff?

I think it depends on exactly what type of experience you're talking about. Taking Red Bull as the example, Mark Webber started in F1 back in 2002 while Vettel came onto the scene in 2007 (for 8 races with BMW and Toro Rosso). However, both guys didn't have topline equipment until 2009, so one could claim that Webber was just as new at racing at the front as Vettel was, despite the five seasons' difference from when they made their debut.

Racing incident or a rookie mistake by someone who should know better?

So is that why the Australian has been more consistant this year than last, because he has those extra years? Maybe, maybe not. Two other 'big name' guys also started in 2007; Lewis Hamilton and Robert Kubica (ok, Bob had six starts in 2006 after Villeneuve left the team) and while Lewis missed out on nabbing the title in that year with a rookie error at Japan, he made up for it by winning it in 2008. Kubica meanwhile got a semi-topline car in 2008 with the BMW. It wasn't on the pace of the Ferrari or McLaren everywhere, only at a few tracks, yet that didn't stop Robert from taking the title fight, mathematically anyway, up to the second last race.

No then, perhaps that isn't the reason why Sebastian has been hot and cold in 2010. And the pressure can't be it either since I'd wager Hamilton was under more in 2008 than Vettel is this year (he's not considered 'baby Schumi' for nothing). Nor really can age as Lewis and Robert both were mighty consistant in 2008 when they were the same age, 23, as Sebastian is now...and they had less races under their belts.

Back to the original question then; just what defines being called an experienced racecar driver? Personally, I think that in F1, it's either four years or two with a great team, whatever arrives first.

Which means, Mr Horner, that I don't believe you can use that excuse with Vettel since he's at that point now. Basically, Mark's done the better job thus far this season, despite everyone saying Vettel would blow his doors off just like he did in the points last year. Either that or Sebastian is just trying too hard, which isn't an excuse either as I presume the team have more than enough resources to deal with that situation...if not, they can always phone Kristen I guess *laugh*

So what do you reckon the changeover point in NASCAR is, when does the guy behind the wheel become a grizzled veteran driver?

Better late than never...the TNC's are back!

As I mentioned on Gene's blog, I wasn't intending on doing these this year...mainly since I'm lazy and keeping it up to date could be a pain in the butt *laugh*

Righto, the rules I guess:

- Both titles for 26 rounds use an old V8 Supercar points system which only awarded the top 17 finishers (72, 60, 51, 45, 39, 36, 33, 30, 27, 24, 18, 15, 12, 9, 6, 3, 1).

- Once the Chase guys are set, those 12 use the old CART points (20, 16, 14, 12, 10, 8, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1). The remaining drivers use the V8 points, but these 12 are excluded from them (hypothetically, the 'winner' of a Chase race who isn't in the Chase could have actually finished 13th on the track).

- Washouts in qualifying don't count towards the QC, while any races less than 400 miles (couldn't even get that right in my comment...sorry, Gene) or don't get to 75% distance only get half points.

- Bonus points for wins/poles are 4 x however many you start the Chase with. If a Chase guy wins a Chase race, they get an additional point (so 21 or 11 depending on race distance).

- Leader after 26 rounds get 4 bonus points per round they clinched (eg: Harvick couldn't be topped in the RC after race 23, so he will get an additonal 12 points when we start...not counting his wins).

I think that's it, so here are the top 20 of each.

Tez's NASCAR Qualifying Championship - after round 24:
1 - Jimmie Johnson, 723 points (1 pole)
2 - Juan Montoya, 654 points (2 poles)
3 - Kasey Kahne, 609 points (2 poles)
4 - Kurt Busch, 585 points (2 poles)
5 - Ryan Newman, 524 points (1 pole)
6 - Jamie McMurray, 520 points (3 poles)
7 - Jeff Gordon, 510 points
8 - Tony Stewart, 508 points (2 poles)
9 - Kyle Busch, 475 points (2 poles)
10 - Mark Martin, 474 points (1 pole)
11 - Clint Bowyer, 381 points
12 - David Reutimann, 370 points
13 - Martin Truex Jr, 306 points (1 pole)
14 - Dale Earnhardt Jr, 295 points (1 pole)
=15 - Joey Logano, 289 points (1 pole)
=15 - Greg Biffle, 289 points
17 - Carl Edwards, 273 points (1 pole)
18 - Sam Hornish Jr, 273 points
19 - AJ Allmendinger, 257 points (1 pole)
20 - Jeff Burton, 231 points

Interesting stat, considering his record of poles/start, Dale Jr was leading this after 9 rounds. Another nice point is that all the pole winners are in the top 20. Other notables; Hamlin is 21st on 227, Harvick 22nd on 219 and Patrick Carpentier brings up the back of the field in 42nd with a solitary point. So with two rounds left, the top six are all safe (Jeff and Tony are a handful of points off so they're pretty much locked in too, just not officially) while Bowyer and Reutimann will be looking over their shoulders if either have a poor effort at Atlanta.


To the RC where, as I said, Kevin Harvick clinched the pre-race title before last week after his win at Michigan. While 11 of my guys are in top 12 of the actual points, their positions are a bit changed up.

Tez's NASCAR Race Championship - after race 24:
1 - Kevin Harvick, 765 points (3 wins)
2 - Denny Hamlin, 563.5 points (5 wins)
3 - Kurt Busch, 544.5 points (2 wins)
4 - Jimmie Johnson, 495 points (5 wins)
5 - Jeff Gordon, 486 points
6 - Kyle Busch, 473.5 points (3 wins)
7 - Carl Edwards, 468 points
8 - Greg Biffle, 452 points (1 win)
=9 - Jeff Burton, 450 points
=9 - Tony Stewart, 450 points
11 - Jamie McMurray, 425.5 points (2 wins)
12 - Matt Kenseth, 393 points
13 - Clint Bowyer, 384.5 points
14 - Juan Montoya, 348 points (1 win)
15 - Kasey Kahne, 346 points
16 - Mark Martin, 321 points
17 - David Reutimann, 298 points (1 win)
18 - Joey Logano, 255 points
19 - Dale Earnhardt Jr, 246 points
20 - Ryan Newman, 230 points (1 win)

As with the QC, no one who isn't listed above has won a race this year. The anomly with my Chase is, obviously, Jamie McMurray...but having won two of the biggest races, I think it would be fitting if he can sneak in. Harvick's tally outstrips Jimmie's QC points, despite there being eight half point races (so far...Richmond is the last before the Chase starts) which doesn't affect the QC...I can almost picture Jon doing cartwheels *laugh*

All in all, 40 drivers have scored points, with Bobby Labonte and Bill Elliott tied on three points at the bottom. With two to go, down to Mark Martin sit (barely in Mark's case) only a race behind for the battle for the last Chase spot.

The Silly Season Gets Kick-started Again

First it was the Kasey Kahne to Hendrick Motorsports announcement in April. That was followed up by the "will he, won't he" saga of Brian Vickers (ever racing again) and Elliott Sadler (staying at Petty). Lately it's been what Red Bull will do with the #82 and who Bobby Labonte is going to be driving for each week. And now, a new name has been thrown into the ring.

JTG Daugherty's announcement yesterday (as fireball posted) that, after five seasons by years end, they will part ways with Marcos Ambrose was a shock to me - although not to other people...don't you hate being out of the loop? - since I just figured he'd stay until the end of his contract next year. However, while the reasons given were simply a case of wanting to go in different directions, that means all we have is speculation.

Ambrose drove for Ford in his V8 Supercar days. Ford also unlocked the door for him to come into NASCAR in 2006 (was still up to him to open it and walk through though). As Brad Daugherty said in his interview on NASCAR Now yesterday, while we all believe the #47 is part of MWR, they aren't really. Which therefore means they're a second year team, still finding their feet in the Cup series whereas, perhaps, Marcos desires results now.

Now, the technical alliance with MWR meant they needed to switch from Ford to Toyota and while this made a lot of sense in late 2008 (after all, Kyle won a bunch of races that year), it might not be the best option now. Why? Well, it's a bit complex really. The Chevy seems to be the best car in the field (whether it's down to having the majority of top teams or it's just the 'easiest' to set up, I don't know), Ford appears to be making big strides with their new engine package and the Dodges, despite only fielding three fulltime cars, are stunningly quick when the setup is spot on.

That leaves Toyota in a bit of a bind (my thoughts only). Yes Denny and Kyle have been on fire at times this year, and yes Reutimann scored a hugely popular win at Chicago...but what about the rest? Truex has shown flashes of brilliance at times, Red Bull haven't been the same since Vickers was forced out while Ambrose has been fluctuating between having solid races, mechanical issues or crashes.

I don't think anyone can say the Marcos Ambrose of 2009 wasn't a surprise. Not only was he a rookie, but no one really thought he'd do a whole lot on the ovals...well, it took him half a dozen races to chuck that theory out the window. Had things gone his way, the Aussie could easily have wins at Bristol, Sonoma, Watkins Glen and Homestead on his resume before we started 2010. But, that didn't happen and while last year he was certainly the second best 'MWR' driver, he did, at times, prove to be better than Reutimann.

But that all changed with the signing of Truex (again, just my opinion). Here was a driver who has won Nationwide titles, won a Cup race, been in the Chase...in other words, a proven talent behind the wheel. So that meant Marcos was demoted to being third in line, and that's a situation that is rather difficult to get out of. Basically, Ambrose made the only real choice he could; fly the nest.

However, there is a problem here (and yes, I didn't really like writing this next part but they are the facts).

While most agree that the Aussie is a PR dream with his huge smile and how his sponsors adore him, what exactly has he done? He has 3 pole positions (1 Truck, 2 Nationwide) and a pair of wins in the Nationwide series, neither on an oval. He led more laps at this years Sonoma race (35 I believe) than he did all of last year and, unlike a Paul Menard, he doesn't bring any sponsors with him. That's not exactly lighting the racing world on fire when you put it like that, is it? His one saving grace is that while his statistics don't back it up, he is a very handy little driver as he proved last year and if he's given the right environment, he would probably flourish.

It's just that finding that right environment is so often the hard part...

Tez's Sonoma Weekend Report

**Ok, I won't be putting all my pictures up...this will be far too long as it is just with the ones I've picked**

Since Kristen nicked the race and qualifying titles, this shall have to suffice :P

I suppose that's as good a place to start really. For the second time in my life, I catch a plane to hook up with people I've only previously known online. Worked out just fine the first attempt, so I figured I'd approach it the same way in the hope that, unlike the song by Split Enz, history does repeat. And, lo and behold, from the instant Kristen laughed off my rant about the BART tunnels cutting my phone coverage at the critical moment, to the look she gave me that basically said "is that it? Where's the rest of your luggage?", I had a good feeling this weekend was going to be a classic (as I said at the time; if I can last two weeks out of that same backpack, five days is easy).

Being a morning person, much to the chagrin of my girlfriend who prefers to sleep until the crack of noon at the earliest, getting up at six on Friday didn't bother me much. After picking up RA6AN and dumping some of our stuff at the hotel, we ventured out for qualifying day. RA6AN and I were seated right alongside Victory Circle, so we had a pretty good view of the haulers and we were able to snap some shots of unsuspecting people (none as good as that shot of Chad though)...eventually, after we realised who the heck they were and got the cameras ready in time *rolls eyes*

Rick Hendrick being inducted.

The defending race winner.

The prerace favourite.

The Brew Crew going through their final checks before qualifying.

Clint must like getting his photo snapped...saw him a few times.

Who'd have picked Joey to be the highest finishing JGR driver?

Jeff giving tips to the rookie...maybe on the bump and run?

Yes, I was hoping Jeff turned to his left as well but he never did...the nearly shaved head next to him was Jan Magnussen by the way. And yes, that is our very own Kristen in the Blue Deuce shot. She claims she heard someone calling her name which is why she turned around...I say she saw Dale Jr and was wondering if anyone would notice if she bolted off after him ;)

We moved down towards the flag stand for qualifying which was rather strange for me since I assumed that, since he's from California, Jimmie 'Vader' Johnson (I'm sticking to the Yahoo! nicknames for them now) would have gotten cheered when he went to the top of the timesheets but the roar when Kasey knocked him off left me scratching my head before RA6AN said he's from the wrong part of California. It was around this time that my 'Team Kiwi Racing' shirt got recognised and we chatted to the people behind AmbroseChick's twitter (I think I'm still part of that group on nascar.com actually) which was a very cool deal.

After deciding to go early again on Saturday - Kristen picking my weakness and stopping for coffee - I wandered, which soon became staggered, up the hill to turn two since I wanted to snap some pikkies of the cars coming through there at relatively slow speeds. We didn't stay for the West Series race in the end and managed to catch the last 20 odd laps of the Nationwide race from Road America once Jon got booked in.

Speed leads Truex and Hornish up the hill.

David and Jimmie heading to three.

Ambrose starting a hot lap.

An RCR and MWR truck minus the trailers.

Last shot was from the hotel on Friday night while the one before it is what I was hoping would happen Sunday afternoon (it was taken during Friday practice) *sigh*

The link (told you I'd find it, guys!) and photo below probably won't make a lot of sense since they both really were "you had to be there" moments we talked about on the way to dinner Saturday night.

The boys from 'Top Gear' discuss the Hyundai Genesis.

The morning after Marcos announced he was heading over the Pacific.

Sunday dawned and, again, taking the offer of Starbucks in the morning, I arrived at the track with Kristen. After the hardest working non-payroll person in the Penske organisation went off to the garage, Jon and I went out onto pitlane, passing the time by chatting to a few of the many Aussies in attendence - it almost felt like a V8 Supercar race for me - before meeting up with RA6AN and Hoosier who managed to not get as sunburnt as us at Pebble Beach the day before...it must be all those trees that litter the golf courses. Just before that, Kristen gave us a world class tour of Kurt's pit area which was highly impressive.

I'll confess to not taking many shots during the race since I figured that, between the four of us, we'd have enough photos over the course of the three days so I'll just put up two; my boxing kangaroo flag on the start/finish line during the prerace and the race winner taking the chequered flag.

It brought him luck for a while...and it got on 'Trackside'!

Jimmie ticking off a place he hadn't won at before.

Now, I want you to take a good look at that group photo that Kristen posted on her race day blog. See my smile and wonder if that's how I really felt? Well, the photo below I took in my hotel room (with the aid of the camera timer of course) after Jon and I had got back is a better reflection of my feelings I reckon...they say a picture is worth a thousand words but I'm pretty sure this has just one; bugger.

Marcos gave it his all, but came up empty in the end.

However, I've moved beyond it now. I am very proud that Marcos took the fight to Vader since it had all the makings of another Phoenix 2009 Autumn (hey, I still write 'tyre', you're not getting me to call it 'Fall') race until then.

The story doesn't end there for who should I run into at SFO but Mr M. Waltrip. Had a very brief chat with Mikey since our lines were moving in the opposite direction, he just gave me a rueful nod and a "thought we had it" before I wished his teams all the best for next week...even me with my limited knowledge on personalities could tell he was still crushed over the ending (heck, so am I!).

I'll close with this; I thoroughly enjoyed going to this race in 2006, no question about that. But the 2010 version was so much more special as I went with three amazing NASCAR fans that I have no issues at all adding to my met-in-real-life-so-they're-not-only-online-anymore friends list. Thank you Kristen, RA6AN and Jon for making a very cool weekend even better.

And that is why, despite my having a sore throat (remind me to never use the air conditioners in that place again), despite my legs feeling like lead and despite my boy fluffing the best chance he's had yet to win a Cup race, my smile in the group shot was 100% genuine.

Swapping more than paint

Jeff Gordon and Marcos Ambrose.

One a bonafide NASCAR star, the other just getting into his stride having rebooted his career for the third time. Including Ambrose's V8 Supercar stats, they have racked up 110 wins and six championships in their careers between them.

So we're talking about two pretty handy racing drivers.

Last week at the Watkins Glen tyre test, Polaris met Southern Cross (for all you Astronomy buffs out there) as Gordon handed Ambrose the keys to his #24 Dupont Chevrolet while Ambrose did the same with his #47 Little Debbies Toyota...don't worry, they both cleared it with the manufacturers.

Jeff should be old hat at this since he did a similar thing around a decade ago with Montoya's F1 car at Indy but I don't think Marcos has experienced swapping cars - paint, words and ends, yes, but not cars - before, so I'm sure behind his cheshire cat grin there would have been a tiny pang of worry.

After climbing out, the Aussie had this to say: “There’s probably only a handful of people in the world that can say they drove Jeff Gordon’s race car. It was a real thrill for me. I will never forget it. He’s a pretty small guy, he’s not that tall and he’s got a narrow waist. I wasn’t that comfortable in the car, but I was squeezing in that bad boy no matter how hard I had to try.”

“It was remarkable how similar in feel they were. There were differences of course between the two. I’m glad I could help him if he needed it to get around that place. I’m no expert. I’m just out there driving a race car. Just to be asked in the first place was a massive thrill for me. I will never forget it.”

He did have one regret though; no one managed to take a photo of him in the #24.

As for Gordon, he reckoned he finally figured out Marcos' secret on road courses: “I learned two things there at the test. One is that when Marcos Ambrose goes really fast through the road courses, it’s not his race car. He’s just really fast. He got in my car and went really fast. I got in his car and went slow. It was just basically that Marcos is fast and that we’ve got really good power. That’s what I learned. Our Chevys haven't been as good as we felt like they needed to be so just gathering information plus I like Marcos. He's a good guy and a heck of a road course racer.”

Now, before we all get excited over this and rumours start circulating about Rick scoping out someone to replace Jeff when he finally chooses to hang up his helmet, I don't think this was anything more than two drivers just wanting a chance to do something a touch different and I'm sure the respect each have for the other probably went up a notch.

Besides, as Marcos said, there are very few people on the planet who can lay claim to have driven Jeff Gordon's race car...even if it was just for a handful of laps.

The Ambrose Angle - 2010

Well, after my brilliant predictions last year where I said Marcos would be lucky to finish in the top 25 by the end of the season, I'm not sure exactly how accurate this will be either.

Oh well.

They say that drivers are only as good as their last race...so that means either 35th (Homestead) or a DNF (Dubai 24 hours) for the Aussie, but that doesn't really tell the whole story. Ignoring Dubai since that has no impact on NASCAR, Ambrose qualified third at Miami and made short work of the eventual champion by passing Jimmie around lap ten. That's when, first a punctured Goodyear, and then mechanical gremlins struck the #47 Camry forcing Marcos to pootle around some 15 laps off the pace despite having one of the fastest cars in the field. But it doesn't end there either as a couple weeks before that at Texas, he was looking good for a top five but asked too much of his fuel and wound up 11th.

Marcos himself has said his goals are to win races and make the Chase in 2010, something he admits in the next sentence is a tall order. Yet his performances on tracks no one really thought he'd do a whole lot on (you don't get much more diverse than Bristol, Talladega and Pocono for the ovals) says that he could have a pretty good shot at it. Having Truex join MWR will boost JTG Daugherty as well since, despite being an exceptionally good marketing man, Michael Waltrip didn't really push Marcos to produce his best on those weekends that Reutimann struggled.

Marcos will be hoping to repeat his late-2009 pace to get off on the right foot in 2010.

But enough about his teammates, exactly what do I think will Marcos Ambrose do in 2010?

Well, it would be quite easy for me to say that he'll win since he has more seat time now and those road courses are coming up in the middle of the year...but I reckon he might win before then.

Yes, that's right. I believe that Ambrose will do what Montoya has yet to do; win on an oval (possibly as early as the Las Vegas race). I'm not quite as confident as he is to predict he'll make the Chase, however if MWR and JTG Daugherty have their reliability issues sorted (and Denny Hamlin doesn't decide to play steamroller again), he would have a good shot at it.

All in all, if he can improve upon 2009 and finish in the top 15, I'll be a very happy man.

TNQC & TNRC - Chase results

I'm sure everyone has been waiting for this with baited breath...the Chase results of both the TNQC and TNRC. I will put up the rest of the points later (someone switched the sugar for salt at work today. Never try coffee with salt, you won't like it, bleah).

Tez's NASCAR Qualifying Championship - final Chase standings:

1 - Jimmie Johnson, 127 points (4 poles)
2 - Mark Martin, 124 points (7 poles)
3 - Jeff Gordon, 96 points (1 pole)
4 - Martin Truex Jr, 86 points (3 poles)
5 - Kasey Kahne, 84 points
6 - Juan Montoya, 81 points (2 poles)
7 - Ryan Newman, 77 points (2 poles)
8 - Greg Biffle, 76 points
9 - Kurt Busch, 72 points
10 - David Reutimann, 61 points (2 poles)
11 - Kyle Busch, 58 points (1 pole)
12 - Brian Vickers, 55 points (6 poles)

So, after tieing for the most poles coming into the Chase, Vickers bombed out big time while Johnson continued on his merry way in being undefeated in the QC since I started it in 2007. Special mention must go to Truex who, after a big finish, managed to snag the best non-HMS spot as well as Martin who would have pipped Johnson had he managed to outqualify him at Homestead but it just wasn't to be.


Tez's NASCAR Race Championship - final Chase standings:

1 - Jimmie Johnson, 135 points (7 wins)
2 - Mark Martin, 102 points (5 wins)
3 - Jeff Gordon, 92 points (1 win)
4 - Denny Hamlin, 86 points (4 wins)
5 - Kurt Busch, 86 points (2 wins)
6 - Tony Stewart, 77.5 points (4 wins)
7 - Matt Kenseth, 74 points (2 wins)
8 - Juan Montoya, 72 points
9 - Kasey Kahne, 69.5 points (2 wins)
10 - Greg Biffle, 64 points
11 - Carl Edwards, 44 points
12 - Brian Vickers, 41.5 points (1 win)

Well, Johnson and Vickers bookend these standings as well while the defending champ, Edwards, will be quite disappointed he didn't finish higher. Kenseth made the most of his bumping of Newman from the real Chase by nabbing seventh due to Montoya's dismal race at Homestead while Hamlin got the nod over Busch for fourth due to winning more races.

Congratulations to Jimmie Johnson, Chad Knaus and the entire #48 crew as they swept both titles for the second time in three years.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and New Year...less than a month until the season kicks off again! :)

The 2009 Motorsport Awards...well, the ones that count anyway

Okey dokey, let's get this thing done...yeah, I know what you're thinking and trust me, I already know so here's the apology; I'm sorry for posting this before the final round of the V8 Supercars is raced.

Rookie of the Year - a reasonably tough choice in the end to be honest as I'm not going to go with logic and, instead, give it to the man who won it last year (albeit in a lower category); Joey Logano. Not only did he have big shoes to fill by stepping into the car that Tony Stewart drove for a decade, he also had the weight of expectation resting on those young shoulders with all the whispers about him being 'the next great thing'. He got off to a slow start, but soon found his groove to put in several strong races, including his win at Loudon. A possible threat to make the Chase next year.

Best Race of the Year - the Indycars at Kentucky. A spine-tingling duel for the win between Ryan Briscoe and Ed Carpenter that lasted the final 10 laps fully justified the mid-season changes to make the oval races more exciting. The final F1 race along with the Bristol night race went close...but not quite close enough.

Qualifier of the Year - Sebastian Vettel knew he had to pull out all stops at Japan to keep his slim hopes alive for winning the championship. He didn't do a whole lot of laps since he was saving his engine but he still easily planted his Red Bull Renault on pole, then set about winning the race the next day.

Team of the Year - Brawn GP for winning both the drivers' and constructors' title after only becoming a team a few weeks prior to the season starting.

Pit Crew of the Year - Brawn GP gets the nod for this as well. Many times Jenson found himself behind a driver, only for his crew to squeak him ahead at the pitstops. Often times it's those vital tenths of a second that win or lose you the championship.

Driver of the Year - Dario Franchitti. Having spent a year trying to make it in NASCAR, he eventually went back to the thing he's best at; winning races, and the title, in Indycar.

Person of the Year - Rick Hendrick...1, 2 and 3 in the points, nuff said?


And now the fun ones -

Personality of the Year - Valentino Rossi. The charismatic Italian just keeps on keeping on in the MotoGP series. His sense of humour can be rather difficult to follow at times but no one can doubt that he is one of a kind.

Crash of the Year - Nelson Phillipe and Will Power at the Sonoma Indycar race during practice. Yes, the Talladega crashes were more spectacular, but nowhere near as horrifying.

Surprise of the Year - that Marcos Ambrose didn't win my RotY award! No, seriously I am giving it to Marcos for his stunning drive at Bristol in March...the first glimpse we got that he was more than just a road course guy.

Miracle of the Year - that, for the third straight year, winning the Daytona 500 seems to be a jinx on that driver. Do you think we could get a petition going demanding Jimmie win it next year just to see if it really is a jinx?

Worst Looking Car Livery of the Year - Jeff Gordon's 'Transformers 2' car at Lowe's. I'm sorry, but Jeff Gordon...as the decepticons...the evil guys? Come on, give me a break!

Bone-headed Overtaking Attempt of the Year - a tough category as there were a few good candidates (Hamlin wrecking both Reutimann and Ambrose on his way to winning at Pocono and Scott Dixon at the start of the Indycar race at Sonoma spring to mind) but it's going to Jarno Trulli. The Italian thought he'd take advantage of Adrian Sutil at the Brazilian GP when Sutil slowed as Kimi had no front wing in front of him. Alas, Jarno didn't get the memo about there being no vision out of the side and back of a F1 car as its mirrors are nothing more than token gestures. So it was no great surprise when he ended up on the grass before careering back on to the track, slamming into Sutil and taking them both out on turn 4...of lap 1. Trulli then had another brainfade as he proceeded to blame Sutil for the whole thing for the remainder of the season.

The Dental School Award (aka, the award that made the most jaws drop) - Matt Crafton decided the only way he could make points up on Ron Hornaday at Gateway was to barge his way to the front. First he took out Todd Bodine when Todd blocked on a restart, then, after I'm sure most people went "he won't do that again" did the same thing to Hornaday. NASCAR gave him a penalty for rough driving...possibly the easiest decision the officials made this year.

The 'Carved from Stone' Award (aka the person that stood up when the heat was on) - might be a touch early, but it's going to Jamie Whincup. Not only did he have to put up with all the talk about what he'd be doing in 2010, he also had to race with a team who knew they were switching manufacturers for the next season. Despite that, he looks set to repeat as V8 Supercar champion.

The 'Red Bull' Award (since it gives you wings) - Quite a few people clearly wanted to win this award but it came down to three (sorry Matt Kenseth but you missed out); Joey Logano, Carl Edwards and Ryan Newman. In the end, I went with Mr Newman for his acrobatics at Talladega. hopefully the US Army will redeem him some frequent flyer points :)

The Lucky Bugger Award - Carl Edwards for being in the right place at the right time when Marcos Ambrose made his one and only mistake at Montreal.

And that's all she wrote for 2009...let me know of any candidates I may have missed :)

The Aussie is staying!

At least, for a little while. This is straight from the article on Yahoo! Australia:


Australian driver Marcos Ambrose has cemented his place in the competitive US NASCAR series with a new two-year deal. Ambrose, who was at the centre of a controversial and spectacular multi-car collision last weekend, is secure after an agreement between his JTG Daugherty Racing outfit and the Michael Waltrip Racing stable.

The two companies agreed that they would operate in partnership under a technical alliance for 2010-11. Ambrose said he was encouraged by the continuity that this deal brings to his racing program. He said he had already gained a lot from the relationship as part of an impressive first season in the top-flight NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

JTG Daugherty Racing operates out of the Michael Waltrip Racing facility in Cornelius, North Carolina, with engineering and mechanical responsibilities all fully-integrated into the MWR operation.

"It's great news that we have realigned with MWR," Ambrose said. "We've been very successful this year and we even came close to winning a race or two. We've been solid in the points all season long and this was just our first year working together as a full-time Cup operation. We are really looking forward to 2010 and continuing our work with MWR."


This is great news and I hope that Marcos escapes the dreaded 'sophomore slump' next year :)