Next stop on the Nextel Cup Schedule is Daytona International SpeedwayWe NASCAR fans are patriots at heart. And there's no better way to celebrate the birth of our nation than at the most beloved track in all of NASCAR, Daytona International Speedway. The beaches of Daytona were already a destination for motor sports enthusiasts before Bill France Sr decided to host the first NASCAR event there in 1947. Twelve years later, the track that we all know and love, Daytona International Speedway opened and hosted its first event drawing 41,000 people.
Next week, the NASCAR Nextel Cup teams head to Daytona to perform their craft in front of a crowd of 175,000+. Of all drivers with two or more starts at Daytona, Clint Boyer has the best average finish of 11th. Expect Clint to build on his strong season thus far with a strong finish at Daytona. He currently ranks 11th in points and has an average running position of 16th for the season.
Other drivers to note:
Jimmie Johnson - Average finish of 12th
Dale Earnhardt Jr - Average finish of 13th
Kevin Harvick - Average finish of 15th
Jeff Gordon - Average finish of 15th
Next Week's Schedule (all times EST):
Nextel Cup: @ Daytona International Speedway on TNT
07/05/07 - 06:40pm NASCAR Nextel Cup Pepsi 400 Practice
07/06/07 - 04:10pm NASCAR Nextel Cup Pepsi 400 Qualifying
07/07/07 - 02:00pm NASCAR Nextel Cup Pepsi 400
Busch Series: @ Daytona International Speedway on ESPN2
07/05/07 - 05:30pm NASCAR Nextel Cup Winn-Dixie 250 presented by PepsiCo Practice
07/06/07 - 01:05pm NASCAR Nextel Cup Winn-Dixie 250 presented by PepsiCo Qualifying
07/06/07 - 08:00pm NASCAR Nextel Cup Winn-Dixie 250 presented by PepsiCo
Craftsman Truck Series off until July 14th @ Kentucky Speedway See complete 2007 NASCAR Schedule Denny Hamlin Captures First Win of 2007!.068 seconds is all the separated 1st place finisher Denny Hamlin from Jeff Gordon when the checkered flag waved in yesterday's Lenox Industrial Tools 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway. The hottest young star in NASCAR did all he could do to hold off the legendary driver in the final laps. ``You see Jeff coming and you're trying your best to not be the guy who chokes at the end. I was all over the track those last two laps. I was basically just trying not to give up the bottom'' said Hamlin.
The win came as a result of a gutsy call made by crew chief Mike Ford. Ford experimented earlier in the race by taking 2 tires in a pit stop. ``You know, two tires worked for us earlier (in the race) and we kind of made a note that anything inside of 120 laps to go we were going to do two'' said Hamlin.
If Hamlin is to be a legitimate contender in the Chase, he and his team need to continue to capitalize on gutsy calls. The seeding for the Chase for the Championship are based on race wins, and this is the first for Hamlin this year. Meanwhile, Hendrick drivers Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson each have 4.
With over 472 points separating Hamlin from 12th place, it is highly unlikely that he will miss the Chase. So if I were you Denny, I'd go balls to the wall and try to win them all! Shop for NASCAR merchandise DEI is on Fire! Isn't it odd how in the midst of Dale Earnhardt Inc losing it's top driver that the organization can somehow start churning out top 10 finishes on a weekly basis? Dale Earnhardt Jr cited one of his reasons for leaving DEI was to race for a team who has a legitimate shot at winning a championship.
Since announcing his move to Hendrick Motorsports next year, Earnhardt Jr has an average finish of 7th which ranks forth overall for NASCAR Nextel Cup drivers over that same period. Earnhardt's teammate, Martin Truex Jr, also has a top 10 average finish over that same period. The recent successes of both drivers have each currently qualifying for the Chase for the Championship.
Did it literally take an earthquake of largest proportion in the history of NASCAR to shake free the monkey wrench that was clogging DEI's gears? Or is the recent success just purely coincidental? Only time will tell. But if the string of top 10's stays alive, Earnhardt Jr could have his legitimate shot at winning a title this year racing for DEI. Shop NASCAR merchandise Lenox Tools 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway RecapNew Hampshire, along with other low-banked tracks like Martinsville, has a lot of similarities to road course races like the one raced last week at Sonoma. To win at a low-banked track, a driver doesn't necessarily have to have the best equipment; instead he has to have the best strategy.
Strategy is what earned Denny Hamlin his first win of 2007 yesterday in the Lenox Tools 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway.
Mired back in 6th position most of the day, Hamlin struggled to keep up with the other top cars of the day. Electing in the final pit stop of the day to take two tires as opposed to the four that every other contender took, Hamlin found himself out in front and having to hang on for the ride his life to win.
It all came down to the closing two laps with Jeff Gordon charging hard. Denny was driving franticly doing all he could to keep his car out in front. If the race had gone for just one more lap, Hamlin would have finished second. Instead, he edged Gordon out by .068 seconds (about 1/2 car length) and took the checkered flag.
Other top drivers faired as follows:
Dale Earnhardt Jr continued his bid to qualify for the Chase for the Championship. Jr finished 4th yesterday at New Hampshire and currently sits 12th in points (127pts ahead of 13th). Could Jr win a championship his last year racing for DEI?!?!?
Martin Truex Jr is starting to emerge as a true competitor week in and week out. Since winning at Dover, Truex has an average finish of 6th including his 3rd place finish yesterday at New Hampshire. More importantly, it seems the fire has been ignited deep down in Truex once again; yesterday's 3rd place finish just wasn't good enough for him. Truex now sits 10th in points.
Reigning champion, Jimmie Johnson, had a typical day finishing in 5th place. It seems the 100 point deduction and loss of crew chief Chad Knaus did little to slow down Jimmie's bid for a championship repeat.
Tony Stewart had a quiet 12th place finish. The two-time former champion now sits securely in 6th position in points. See complete 2007 NASCAR Schedule
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