Many are jumping to conclusions in
NASCAR in 2008. The car of today is amazing! Hendrick Motorsports is slumping! Roush is the new king! Folks, we're only three
weeks into a 38-week schedule… Give it time.
Saying that the Hendrick Motorsports
(HMS) "dream team" is in a slump can be compared to many that said last year that Rudy Giuliani had the Republican nominee
in the bag. A lot can happen in 38 weeks, and the only way to find out what will happen is too stayed tuned.
While a lot can and will happen, a
lot has taken place thus far in the 2008 season. I believe many questions were answered in the first three events. After its
abysmal 2007 inaugural season in the Sprint Cup Series, Toyota has rebounded quite
nicely in 2008, leading more laps in three races than in all of '07. And with the addition of Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) to Toyota's
11-car stable, a Gibbs driver, Kyle Busch, led points after the second race of the year at California.
As of now, there are
four Toyotas in the top 20 in the Cup point standings. Going along with the title of this article, it's true that it is early,
but I believe we've seen enough out of the Toyota camp to say that they have rebounded quite nicely. If Michael Waltrip
Racing's three entries stay where they are in owner points for the next two weeks, they'll get a nice prize -- a guaranteed
spot into Sprint Cup races, something all three teams found themselves fighting to do during the entire 2007 season.
After the first three
races of FOX's broadcasts, they showed the Sprint Cup point standings. I must say, some of the names in the top 12 in points
shocked me. After the season-opening Daytona 500, we had Ryan Newman leading points, Reed Sorenson fifth, Robby Gordon ninth,
and Brian Vickers (in a Toyota) twelfth. Gordon had a 100-point fine for an illegal
nose on his Dodge. He has appealed since and got the 100 points back.
Even after this third
race of the year, it's still anyone's guess as to who will make up the 12 drivers in the Chase for the Sprint Cup come September.
After three races in 2007, five of the top 12 did not make the Chase, one being Mark Martin who only ran in 24 events. However,
in 2006, seven of the top 10 drivers that were in the top 10 after Las Vegas were
still there after Race 26 at Richmond.
Another
question about this season was the car of today and how it will affect the racing we see. All three events so far were the
first laps on each track the new car has seen. The first repeat race will be at Bristol.
At Daytona, there were 42 lead changes among 16 drivers. In 2007, there were 14 among only 9 drivers.
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At the Auto Club Speedway's
24-hour racing marathon this season, there were 33 lead changes among 15 drivers, compared to 2007's race that saw 28 lead
changes among 12 drivers. While the numbers at Fontana didn't increase as much from '07 to '08 like they did for the Daytona
500, there are many that say that the competitiveness that we witnessed from California and again last Sunday at Las Vegas
are signs of things to come with the new car.
Following this Sunday's
event at the Atlanta Motor Speedway, there will be only one race out of the next six that is at a track where the Cup Series
hasn't raced the new car (Texas).
At all other venues -- Bristol, Martinsville,
Phoenix, Talladega, and Richmond,
teams have had experience with the newer, more bulky machine.
Give it another few weeks
till people start whining about how Dale Earnhardt Jr. hasn't won in a Hendrick Motorsports vehicle....
2006 StockCar Review.
