Month: November 2012

Latest NASCAR Fan’s View Podcast/article from Podcastnorm… I use Sony Sound Forge Audio Studio and Sony Vegas Movie Studio to make my productions and the following is an example of how good a tool they are… Want to know more? Keep on checking in with us right here…

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

*************************Two Buck Themes ad ****************************
MUSIC MAKES IT BETTER =>> Get 5 new themes, video tutorials each month for $10

******************************************************************************

When all is said and done this weekend at Homestead, one thing is certain – the Sprint Cup Champion will be crowned by the end of the race. That is about the only thing that is definite for the race this afternoon. After all of the “excitement” that transpired at Phoenix, one has to think this could prove to be an interesting race, but not necessarily for the actual Championship part.

You see, this fan is not one of those that is trying to keep people interested in the actual Chase between Jimmy Johnson and Brad Keselowski like a lot of the commentators have been most of the week. Most say Brad Keselowski has the Championship all but wrapped up even before the race starts and they could be correct. Unfortunately, my imagination runs a little different path than some.

You see, there are two ways of looking at the way the #48 has been performing this weekend and even I am not sure why. It could be that they just haven’t found the speed which would be sort of normal for the Hendrick Teams at Homestead. As far as I remember, they have never won a Cup race at Homestead and that could be why they just don’t appear to have a chance at taking the victory or the Championship. Then again, it could be the #48 is just playing head games, knowing they have the speed but not wanting to show it.

Yeah, it could all be part of a master plan to blow by all of the competition this afternoon and simply walk away with the win. Of course, if that is the plan, then they must be expecting Brad Keselowski to have an extremely bad day and they just want him to get frustrated as they walk away from all of the competition, hoping he will make a mistake or two that completely puts him out of the competition for the top spot in the Championship.

Ok, I know you’re all wondering if I’ve lost my mind or if I’m living in some dream world. Hey, I told you my imagination runs wild at times and even I have to admit this all sounds really far fetched. If the honest to goodness truth be known, I’m not so sure Jimmie Johnson or Brad Keselowski is going to finish near the front today. I know both are going to be trying their absolute best to take the win and the Championship but I also know there are some Fords and Toyotas that look like they have a better chance at winning. I’m not going to make any predictions as far as that’s concerned but I do know Homestead can be a place of big surprises and I’m not expecting everything to go as expected today.

Hey, it could even happen that Dale Jr, Kasey Kahne or even Jeff Gordon have better days than the top two in the Chase for the Championship but, in the end it is going to depend on where Brad Keselowski finishes compared to Jimmie Johnson. If Brad finishes 15th or better, no matter what else happens, he will be the Sprint Cup Champ for 2012 and give Roger Penske his first Cup Championship, something everyone in all of NASCAR believes he deserves. I can’t say I disagree with that in any way.

No matter what has been said by those involved in last weekend’s “disagreement” between the Gordon and Bowyer teams or what NASCAR has handed down as “punishment”, many fans are going to be interested in seeing what might go down between Clint and Jeff if and when they are close to each other on the track.

From my view, I don’t expect any more confrontations (at least not on the track today) and I expect Jeff Gordon to give Clint all the room he needs to get by especially if Bowyer is noticeably faster. I don’t think that means Jeff will lay down and die. He is much too competitive for that, but if he has a chance to pass Clint I do expect them both to be reasonable. I do hope they don’t accidently get into each other because that will definitely come under scrutiny and we all know NASCAR will be watching for any signs of payback especially since Jeff is on probation until the end of the year. As a side note and from this fan’s view, I do think they will put this all completely behind them but only time will tell.

The reality is, Clint Bowyer wants to finish ahead of Kasey Kahne and I don’t expect him to be looking for anything other than track position when it comes down to the race today. I think he will be doing all he can to win because that’s what it’s all about anyway. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t still some hard feelings between the #15 and #24 teams but there isn’t a lot either of them can do to change what has already been done either. Both will move on and who knows – they just might end up the best of friends (or not… )

See ya next time…
All views expressed are strictly the opinion of the writer
© November 18, 2012 – all rights reserved
Rusty Norman, Nascarfansview.com and Justafansview.com
All audio productions by www.podcastnorm.com and PodCastNorm Productions

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

*************************Two Buck Themes ad ****************************
MUSIC MAKES IT BETTER =>> Get 5 new themes, video tutorials each month for $10

******************************************************************************

Hardly anyone talks about anybody but the top two in the Chase anymore. That is, unless you consider the honorable mentions Clint Bowyer (and sometimes Kasey Kahne) get as a side note in just about any conversation about the Chase. Since Bowyer is 36 points behind the top two and Kahne 58, it probably is down to the two (at least from this fan’s view.)

Much like last year with Stewart and Edwards, the drama is pretty thick for the competition between Johnson and Keselowski but this weekend at Phoenix could prove to make things a little more interesting. Jimmie Johnson will be starting 24th and Keselowski 14th and, though it isn’t likely, either one or both of them could have a bad race and it could actually tighten up the standings and put both Kahne and Bowyer back in the hunt for the finale at Homestead next weekend.

In all honesty (at least from this fan’s view) it would take both of the two points leaders having not just a bad day, but a terrible day. The chances of both of them having that kind of day is about zero and none but, one of them could and make next week all the more uneventful. Let’s just say one of them (and I really don’t care which one you insert at this point) has an unexpected failure and finishes somewhere around 35th or so. The outlook for the race at Homestead would be more about who finishes second and third instead of all the focus being on which one might be number one. Do you think that would put a crimp in the excitement and attendance? Unfortunately, this fan thinks it would…

Sure I know the chances of it happening that way probably don’t even enter into the realm of possibility in most people’s minds and there are good reasons for that. I can’t even say I think it is that possible but, I do understand there is at least the slightest chance of either Jimmie Johnson or Brad Keselowski having an unusually bad race.

You see, I like to think about the most outrageous possibilities happening simply because I know they can. Not because they’re likely, but because they’re unlikely. Besides, we’ve all seen some very interesting things happen during runs for Championships and last year is a prime example. I mean who would have thought last years battel would come down to a tie-breaker?

Yeah I know this sounds a little far-fetched but I also know this could be the weekend in the Chase that neither Johnson or Keselowski wins the race. In fact, Kyle Bush looks to be the most likely but I’m not ready to hand it to him on the platter yet. With the way his luck has been running this year, it is quite possible he could drop to the back like a rock after the green flag drops. Now, I don’t think Kyle thinks too much about what might happen (since everything that could go wrong probably has this year) but he probably isn’t quite thinking he’ll be pulling into Victory Lane just yet either. All he knows for sure is that he is sitting on the pole with a new track record and had the fastest speeds during the practice sessions, too. After that, even Kyle will admit anything could happen to his chances of winning (although they do look very good for him at the moment.)

As I’ve mentioned more than once this year, there’s something to be said for “racing luck” and he’s had his share of it this year (along with several others.) Of course you know I’m talking about “bad” racing luck as opposed to that other kind, don’t you? He and several others have certainly had a lot of it in 2012. (Don’t worry… I’m not going to go through that list again – I’m sure you all have it memorized by now.)

The way I see it (and maybe I should add, at least from my view) is there are two or three ways this race is going to go down. The first is that a non-Chaser is going to win (and I’m not assuming it will be Kyle Bush.) Aric Almirola, Kurt Bush, Paul Menard and Regan Smith have all had their moments this weekend and, depending on how things pan out at the end of the day any one of them could end up in Victory Lane.

A second possibility is that someone other than the top two in the Chase will win and there are several to choose from. Unfortunately, it is not easy to pick just one over the others. Clint Bowyer, Matt Kenseth, Kasey Kahne, Jeff Gordon and Denny Hamlin are all possible winners and I really can’t rule out Martin Truex Jr or Tony Stewart either. In fact, any of the twelve Chasers have a chance even though I don’t expect it.

I do expect the race this afternoon to be a fuel mileage race even though I’m expecting more than a few cautions. It has been pretty obvious during the practice sessions that staying in the black worked much better that drifting into the grey. (Of course you all know I talking about staying in the groove, right? … Right.)

Oh… and that third possibility? That’s easy. Brad Keselowski finishes ahead of Jimmie Johnson, makes up all the necessary points and we go to Homestead with them in a tie or only separated by a couple of points…

See ya next time…
All views expressed are strictly the opinion of the writer
© November 11, 2012 – all rights reserved
Rusty Norman, Nascarfansview.com and Justafansview.com
All audio productions by www.podcastnorm.com and PodCastNorm Productions