2006 season recap
Speedracer drops to 4th (14 points out). Cousin Todd
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| Speedracer drops to 4th (14 points out). Cousin Todd remains the Leader. Slipchuck’s Jeff Gordon combined patience with a fast race car at Infineon Raceway to grab a record ninth road-course victory. NASCAR’s top “Road Warrior” started 11th in the 43-car field and took the lead for the first time on Lap 49 of the Dodge/Save Mart 350. It was only the third time since Gordon began racing full-time in NASCAR’s top series in 1993 that he has gone this deep into the season before winning. Speedracer’s Smoke would lose a cylinder and Robby would get his 4th DNF. Cousin Todd’s Greg Biffle gets his 4th top-5 and Throttle Rocket’s Kurt Busch gets his 3rd and also his 2nd Pole. Line-Pro’s Ryan Newman gets his 2nd top-5. Cousin Todd remains the LEADER (6th week / 46 points), 2) Line-Pro, 3) Slipchuck, 4) Speedracer, 5) Throttle Rocket, 6) Freak, 7) Big Ron, 8) Murph.
RACE NO. 17 – DAYTONA – 07/01/06 – “SPEEDRACER’S FAT-HEAD TONY WINS 2ND CONSECUTIVE PEPSI 400 – COUSIN TODD INCREASES THE LEAD” – Smokeless climbs the fence. Speedracer wins the day and continues to play tag with Slipchuck for 3rd place (8 points out). Line-Pro in 2nd (4 points out). Cousin Todd breaks into the 50’s and remains the Leader. Speedracer’s Tony Stewart’s slump is over, his shoulder is fine and his fence climbing is as good as ever. Stewart was back to his on-track dominance, winning at Daytona International Speedway by charging to the Lead with two laps to go. He then celebrated with his trademark climbing of the fence. Stewart, who led 85 of the 160 laps, was out front when Big Ron’s Johnson bumped into Bobby Labonte with 14 laps to go to bring out just the fourth caution in what had been an unusually calm race. It set up one final round of pit stops, and Stewart dropped all the way back to 10th on the restart. He was back out front when the race was stopped on the final lap for a debris caution, earning his 2nd win of the season and ending a slump that began six races ago when he broke his shoulder blade in an accident at Lowe’s. Slipchuck’s Gordon gets his 4th DNF. Murph’s Elliot Sadler gets his 2nd top-5 and Cousin Todd’s Kyle Busch gets his 5th. Throttle Rocket’s Kurt Busch gets his 4th top-5 and Matt, The Brat gets his 11th top-10. Cousin Todd remains the LEADER (7th week / 51 points), 2) Line-Pro, 3) Speedracer, 4) Slipchuck, 5) Throttle Rocket, 6) Freak, 7) Big Ron, 8) Murph. RACE NO. 18 – CHICAGO – 07/09/06 – “SLIPCHUCK’S GORDON SPINS KENSETH TO WIN AT CHICAGOLAND – LOG JAM FROM 1ST TO 4TH IN THE STANDINGS” – Slipchuck breaks into the 50’s as Whiney Boy punts Kenseth and moves her to 2nd (5 points out). Speedracer and Line-Pro tie for 3rd (6 points out). Cousin Todd remains the Leader. Slipchuck’s Jeff Gordon spun out Throttle Rocket’s Matt Kenseth with four laps to go, then held on to win at Chicagoland Speeway. Fans showered the track with debris after the race, an apparent protest of Gordon’s racing tactics. Gordon said he didn’t want to wreck Kenseth, but added that Kenseth was trying to block him. Kenseth dominated the second half of Sunday’s race and appeared to be headed to his third victory of the season, but a sudden surge from Gordon in the closing laps allowed him to catch Kenseth in Turn 2. Gordon then appeared to tap Kenseth’s rear bumper with his front bumper, spinning Kenseth and getting his 2nd victory of the season. Speedracer’s Junior gets his 6th top-5. Slipchuck’s Jeff Burton gets his 2nd Pole and his 4th top-5. Cousin Todd’s Kyle Busch gets his 6th top-5. Throttle Rocket’s Matt Kenseth would be the Lap Leader. Line-Pro’s Hardick gets his 6th top-5. Cousin Todd remains the LEADER (8th week / 55 points), 2) Slipchuck, 3) Speedracer tie with Line-Pro, 5) Throttle Rocket, 6) Freak, 7) Big Ron, 8) Murph. RACE NO. 19 – NEW HAMPSHIRE – 07/16/06 – “COUSIN TODD’S BUSCH HOLDS ON IN O.T. FOR 1ST WIN OF ’06 – FREAK ROBBED OF TWO TOP-5’S” – Cousin Todd scores 2nd highest total of season with 14 and jumps to a big advantage. Slipchuck and Line-Pro tie for 2nd (18 points out). Freak and Throttle Rocket closing in on Speedracer. Cousin Todd remains the Leader. Cousin Todd’s Kyle Busch learned some hard lessons last year as a rookie in the Nextel Cup series. He put some of that knowledge to good use at New Hampshire International Speedway on the way to his first victory of the season. Busch drove hard and avoided the problems that brought out 11 caution flags and caused trouble for several of the top contenders. The last restart finally came on Lap 307. By that time, both Freak’s Carl Edwards and rookie Denny Hamlin had moved past Murph’s Elliot Sadler, but Busch easily pulled away from the challengers in the two-lap sprint to the finish. Speedracer’s Junior gets his 2nd DNF and Big Ron’s Michael Waltrip, his 4th. Murph’s Mark Martin would start his 600th race and get his 3rd top-5. Cousin Todd’s Greg Biffle gets his 5th top-5. Line-Pro’s Ryan Newman gets his 1st Pole of the season and Hardick gets his 7th top-5. Cousin Todd remains the LEADER (9th week / 69 points), 2) Slipchuck tie with Line-Pro, 4) Speedracer, 5) Throttle Rocket, 6) Freak, 7) Big Ron, 8) Murph. RACE NO. 20 – POCONO – 07/23/06 – “FREAK’S HAMLIN DOMINATES TO COMPLETE POCONO SWEEP – SMOKELESS PROVES AGAIN THAT HE IS A CLASSLESS A-HOLE” – Freak records 2nd win of season and takes over 5th, one point behind 4th place Speedracer. Slipchuck in 2nd (11 points out). Team Line-Pro in 3rd (15 points out). Team Cousin Todd remains the Leader. Freak’s Denny Hamlin completed the Pocono sweep blowing away the field for an easy victory that pushed the rookie into championship contention. While Hamlin was cruising around Pocono, teammate Speedracer’s Tony Stewart nearly self-destructed and his Junior took another hit in his pursuit of the Nextel Cup title. Smokeless was black-flagged for aggressive driving when he intentionally wrecked Freak’s Clint Bowyer. Stewart had been pushed up the track and against the wall by Bowyer, and angrily waved his hand out the window as the cars separated. He then swerved directly into the side of Bowyer’s car, sending it into a spin that would also collect Freak’s Carl Edward’s. (Now looking back on this, Tony Stewart may have cost me the Championship with his on track antics) Stewart took little blame for the accident with Bowyer, and instead ranted about the aggressiveness of today’s young drivers. Speedracer’s Junior suffers his 2nd DNF in a row and his 3rd of the season. Slipchuck’s Jeffy Boy gets his 6th top-5. Murph’s Elliot Sadler announces his move to Ray Evernham and his Jeremy Mayfield is without a ride. Throttle Rocket’s Kurt Busch gets his 5th top-5. Line-Pro’s Hardick gets his 8th top-5. Cousin Todd remains the LEADER (10th week / 69 points), 2)Slipchuck, 3) Line-Pro, 4) Speedracer, 5) Freak, 6) Throttle Rocket, 7) Big Ron, 8) Murph. RACE NO. 21 – INDY – 08/06/06 – “BIG RON’S JOHNSON FINALLY WINS BRICKYARD 400 – THREE-WAY WEEKEND TIE FOR FIRST” – Big Ron’s Jimmie Johnson records 4th win of season. Freak, Throttle Rocket and Line-Pro win the weekend with 5 points each. Freak moves into 4th. Slipchuck in 2nd (10 points out). Line-Pro in 3rd (12 points out). Cousin Todd remains the Leader. If Big Ron’s Jimmie Johnson wants to finally capture his first Nextel Cup championship, winning at Indianapolis Motor Speedway was a step in the right direction. Johnson pulled off a gritty win at the Brickyard, battling back from an early tire problem to take the lead, only to see it evaporate when a late debris caution bunched up the field. It dropped him from 1st to 8th and forced him to slice his way to the front in the final 14 laps. But he did it with ease and pulled away for his forth major victory of the season. Freak’s Clint Bowyer takes two tires and holds on for his 2nd top-5. Big Ron’s Bobby Labonte and Michael Waltrip would both DNF. Murph’s Mark Martin finally gets his 4th top-5. Cousin Todd’s team is struggling and he is leaving the door open to be challenged in the upcoming critical weeks. Throttle Rocket’s Matt Kenseth gets his 10th top-5. Line Pro’s Kasey Kahne took a hard hit in the wall on the last lap and drops four spots and out of the Chase, but Hardick gets his 9th top-5. Cousin Todd remains the LEADER (11th week / 71 points), 2) Slipchuck, 3) Line-Pro, 4) Freak, 5) Speedracer, 6) Throttle Rocket, 7) Big Ron, 8) Murph. RACE NO. 22 – THE GLEN – 08/13/06 – “LINE-PRO’S PERSISTENT HARVICK ENDS STEWART’S STREAK AT THE GLEN – SLIPCHUCK AND LINE-PRO CLOSE IN ON COUSIN TODD” – Line-Pro’s Harvick holds off Smokeless at the end, but Speedracer wins the weekend and regains 4th. Freak and Speedracer break the 50 point barrier. Slipchuck in 2nd (5 points out). Line-Pro in 3rd (6 points out). Cousin Todd remains the Leader. With a lot of skill and loads of luck, Line-Pro’s Kevin Harvick stole a road race at Watkins Glen International that seemed to be Throttle Rocket’s Kurt Busch’s from the start. Harvick, who moved into contention when Busch was penalized for pitting too soon midway through the 90-lap race, passed Speedracer’s Tony Stewart with three laps to go and won the caution-plagued AMD at the Glen. It was Harvick’s first road win and his second victory of the year driving for resurgent Richard Childress Racing. Freak’s “Young Guns” are the only Team to not have negative numbers. Speedracer’s Smokeless gets his 9th top-5 and Robby Gordon would get his first. Slipchuck’s Jamie McMurray would finally get his 3rd top-5. Murph’s Elliot Sadler announces he will be driving the #19 car and Jeremy Mayfield would start his DNQ streak. Cousin Todd’s Biff would finish a lap down and may have faded from Chase contention. Throttle Rocket’s Kurt Busch gets his 3rd Pole. Cousin Todd remains the LEADER (12th week / 70 points), 2) Slipchuck, 3) Line-Pro, 4) Speedracer, 5) Freak, 6) Throttle Rocket, 7) Big Ron, 8) Murph. RACE NO. 23 – MICHIGAN – 08/20/06 – “THROTTLE ROCKET’S KENSETH KEEPS GORDON AT BAY FOR 3RD WIN OF ’06 – SLIPCHUCK AND LINE-PRO SWITCH PLACES AGAIN” – Throttle Rocket’s Matt “The Brat” Kenseth gets nine points for the 3rd time this year. Speedracer regains 4th with three top-10’s (14 points out). Line-Pro in 2nd (6 points out). Slipchuck in 3rd (11 points out). Cousin Todd remains the Leader. Positions 1 thru 6 are up for grabs. It’s close this year. With Slipchuck’s Jeff Gordon closing in and the checkered flag in sight at Michigan International Speedway, Throttle Rocket’s Matt Kenseth was thinking about three races he could have won and didn’t. “What I thought of was Vegas, Bristol and Chicago because we were in a position to win all three of them and I got run into twice and passed once,” said Kenseth, who held on for his third Cup win of the season and the 13th of his career. Kenseth easily kept four-time NASCAR champion Gordon at bay in the final laps of the GFS Marketplace 400 by conscientiously taking care of his tires after his final pit stop. And although Gordon appeared to have a faster car at the end this time, he ran out of time and finished 10 car-lengths behind Kenseth’s No. 17 Roush racing Ford. Speedracer’s Smokeless works his way up for his 10th top-5. Smokeless has yet to apologize to Bowyer and Edwards. Top-10’s from Speedracer’s Junior and Reed Sorenson. Slipchuck’s Jeff Burton DNF’s for the first time this season. Murph’s Elliot Sadler gets his 5th top-10 of the season and the 1st in the No. 19 Evernham ride. Mark gets his 5th top-5. Cousin Todd falters again and is letting the pack catch up. Throttle Rocket’s Kurt Busch would have the worst car of his career under him. Line-Pro’s Kasey Kahne is back in business and gets his 7th top-5. Cousin Todd remains the LEADER (13th week / 71 points), 2) Line-Pro, 3) Slipchuck, 4) Speedracer, 5) Freak, 6) Throttle Rocket, 7) Big Ron, 8) Murph. RACE NO. 24 – BRISTOL – 08/26/06 – “THROTTLE ROCKET’S KENSETH WINS TWO IN A ROW AND CLINCHES CHASE SPOT WITH BRISTOL VICTORY – SLIPCHUCK AND LINE-PRO SWITCH PLACES AGAIN” – Throttle Rocket’s Matt Kenseth gets his 4th win of the season and second in a row and moves T.R. into 5th (23 points out). Slipchuck regains 2nd (10 points out). Line-Pro drops to 3rd (11 points out). Freak falling like a rock to 6th (24 points out). Cousin Todd remains the Leader. Throttle Rocket’s Matt Kenseth continued his momentum-building run toward the Chase, pulling off a weekend sweep at Bristol Motor Speedway by winning the Sharpie 500. His 4th win of the season clinched him a spot in NASCAR’s 10-race playoff format. Speedracer’s Tony Stewart got hot midway through the summer last year and streaked to his second Nextel Cup title. Now Kenseth, winner of three consecutive NASCAR races, hopes to do the same. Kenseth passed leader Speedracer’s Dale Earnhardt, Jr. with a little more than 50 laps to go, running him down and sliding past when Earnhardt appeared to slow coming out of the fourth turn. There was no looking back from there for Kenseth, the 2003 series champion. The Mid-Atlantic NASCAR Points Challenge Teams met at Slipchuck and Charlie’s house to watch the Bristol race. Thanks again Slipchuck. Speedracer’s Junior gets his 7th top-5. Slipchuck’s Jeffy Boy looked good and battles Scott Riggs for his 9th top-5. Cousin Todd pulls into a big lead again with top-5’s from Kyle (8) and Scott Riggs (1). Cousin Todd remains the LEADER (14th week / 76 points), 2) Slipchuck, 3) Line-Pro, 4) Speedracer, 5) Throttle Rocket, 6) Freak, 7) Big Ron, 8) Murph. RACE NO. 25 – CALIFORNIA – 09/03/06 – “LINE-PRO’S KAHNE WINS AT CALIFORNIA AND INCHES CLOSER TO THE CHASE – TEAM FREAK WINS THE WEEKEND AND REGAINS 4TH – SLIPCHUCK AND LINE-PRO SWITCH PLACES YET AGAIN”- Line Pro’s Kasey Kahne overcame a speeding penalty and later made a two-tire pit stop for his 5th win. Throttle Rocket’s Matt Kenseth takes over the Points lead from Big Ron’s Johnson. Line-Pro regains 2nd (5 points out). Slipchuck drops to 3rd (6 points out). They are both putting pressure on Cousin Todd, who remains the Leader. Line-Pro’s Kasey Kahne knew exactly what he needed to do in the race at California Speedway. “I came here telling myself, “You’ve got to win. You’ve got to win. You have to go out there and lead laps,“ Kahne said. The 26-year-old Cup star managed both in the Sony HD 500, earning his series-leading fifth win of the season and closing in on a spot in the Chase with one race remaining. Not even a penalty for speeding on pit road halfway through the 250-lap race could stop Kahne, who fell back briefly to 24th. His No. 9 Evernham Motorsports Dodge stuck with the leaders and, thanks to a two-tire pit stop on Lap 176 that got him up to second, Kahne was in position to drive past Speedracer’s Junior. Kahne out-dueled new teammate Murph’s Elliot Sadler to regain the top spot on Lap 197. Speedracer’s Reed Sorenson looked like he might pull off the win, but ran out of gas. Slipchuck’s Jeffy Boy gets his 10th top-5. Throttle Rocket’s Kurt Busch gets his 3rd Pole and 2nd in a row. Matt Kenseth takes over the Nextel Points lead. Line-Pro’s Kasey Kahne needed, and got, maximum points (9) for the race. Cousin Todd remains the LEADER (15th week / 77 points), 2) Line-Pro, 3) Slipchuck, 4) Freak, 5) Speedracer, 6) Throttle Rocket, 7) Big Ron, 8) Murph. RACE NO. 26 – RICHMOND – 09/09/06 – “LINE-PRO’S HARVICK BEGINS TITLE QUEST BY WINNING AT RICHMOND- SMOKELESS IS CHASELESS” – Line-Pro’s Harvick makes a 3-wide pass on Cousin Todd’s Kyle with one lap to go for the win. Speedracer’s Tony Stewart is out of the Chase, but took it like a man and was surprisingly cordial in the post-race interview. Throttle Rocket’s Matt Kenseth retains the Lead going into the Chase. Line-Pro remains 2nd (4 points out). Slipchuck remains 3rd (15 points out). Cousin Todd remains the Leader. Line-Pro’s Kevin Harvick rocked – in Victory Lane. Speedreacer’s Tony Stewart – rolled right out of the Chase. Harvick completed a weekend sweep at Richmond with a victory in the Chevy Rock & Roll 400 – the race that set the field for the 10-race Chase for the Nextel Cup. Line-Pro’s Kasey Kahne, who came into the race 11th in the standings, benefited from Stewart’s downfall to claim the final Chase position. Kahne finished third – behind Harvick and Cousin Todd’s Kyle Busch – to get NASCAR’s leading winner into the Chase. Harvick is suddenly the dark horse of this title pursuit. Needing only to finish 40th or better to make the Chase, he could have been conservative at Richmond. But that’s not his style, and he ran for the win instead of the points. Murph has a lot to be proud of having Mark Martin do what he needed to do and get his 6th top-5. Cousin Todd’s Kyle Busch would lead the most laps for the 2nd time and gets his 9th top-5. Line-Pro’s Kasey needed, and got a good finish to enter the Chase and gets his 9th top-5. Cousin Todd remains the LEADER (16th week / 85 points), 2) Line-Pro, 3) Slipchuck, 4) Freak, 5) Speedracer, 6) Throttle Rocket, 7) Big Ron, 8) Murph. RACE NO. 27 – NEW HAMPSHIRE – 09/17/06 – “LINE-PRO’S HARVICK CRUISES & TAKES POINTS LEAD AT LOUDON – NEWS FLASH –AFTER 16 CONSECUTIVE WEEKS, COUSIN TODD KNOCKED FROM THE LEAD” – Line-Pro’s Hardick makes two in a row after dominating at New Hampshire and takes over the Mid-Atlantic Points Challenge lead. Line-Pro becomes the Leader. Cousin Todd’s team is failing him and he falls to 2nd (7 points out). Slipchuck remains 3rd (16 points out). Line-Pro’s Kevin Harvick turned New Hampshire International Speedway into his personal playground, dominating the race to take the early lead in NASCAR’s Chase for the Nextel Cup. Harvick, who started from the pole and paced almost every practice session, led 196 of 300 laps to run away with the first round of the 10-race Chase. He moved to the top of the points standings for the first time in his career, and holds a 35-point lead over Freak’s rookie, Denny Hamlin, who finished 4th and gets his 5th top-5 and Brian Vickers gets his 4th. Big Ron’s Johnson would hit the wall early and falls a lap down. Slipchuck’s Jeff Gordon had a good car all day and gets his 11th top-5. Line-Pro’s Hardick is red hot and gets the 10 maximum weekend points with his 1st pole and his 4th win of the season and his second in a row. Line-Pro takes over as the LEADER (1st week / 90 points), 2) Cousin Todd, 3) Slipchuck, 4) Freak, 5) Speedracer, 6) Throttle Rocket, 7) Big Ron, 8) Murph. RACE NO. 28 – DOVER – 09-24-06 – “SLIPCHUCK’S BURTON FINDS WAY BACK TO VICTORY LANE AT DOVER AND VAULTS HER INTO THE LEAD – SMOKELESS TAKES KAHNE OUT OF THE CHASE – BUSCH AND HARDICK FALTER – THREE TEAMS HAVE 2 DNF’S EACH” – The Points shuffle heats up as Slipchuck’s win from Jeff Burton and top-5 from Jeff Gordon gives her command of the Mid-Atlantic Points Challenge Lead. Line-Pro and Cousin Todd let everyone else back into the Points hunt. Line-Pro had DNF’s from Kasey Kahne and Kevin Harvick and falls to 2nd (2 points out). Cousin Todd had DNF’s from Kyle Busch and Scott Riggs and falls to 3rd (5 points out). Slipchuck and Line-Pro seem to be the favorites for the Championship. Slipchuck’s Jeff Burton’s winless streak is over. Burton finally led the lap that matters, finding his way back to Victory Lane at Dover International Speedway after a thrilling late battle with Throttle Rocket’s Matt Kenseth. The win parked Burton in the lead of NASCAR’s Chase for the championship and ended his 175-race winless streak. Burton nipped at Kenseth’s bumper in the waning laps, ducked beneath him, pulled side-by-side and still kept falling just behind. It wasn’t until six laps were left that Burton finally scooted by with the critical pass. Freak’s Poster Boy Carl Edwards gets his 9th top-5. Speedracer’s Tony Stewart did just what he was hoping he would never do. He took out a contender for the Cup. What rotten luck for both him and Kasey Kahne. Big Ron’s One Eye Brow Boy would have another lackluster race. Slipchuck’s Jeff Gordon looks tough and gets his 1st Pole and his 12th top-5. A lot of people are betting on Gordon for the Championship. Despite other dismal results, Cousin Todd’s Greg Biffle gets his 6th top-5. Slipchuck takes over as the LEADER (1st week / 83 points), 2) Line-Pro, 3) Cousin Todd, 4) Freak, 5) Throttle Rocket, 6) Speedracer, 7) Big Ron, 8) Murph. RACE NO. 29 – KANSAS – 10/01/06 – “SPEEDRACER’S SMOKELESS CROSSES FINISH LINE ON FUMES FOR VICTORY AT KANSAS – TEAM COUSIN TODD RALLIES & WINS THE DAY – REGAINS THE POINTS LEAD – 10 POINT SPREAD 1ST TO 4TH “ – The Points shuffle gets even tighter as Cousin Todd rallies and wins the weekend with 6 points and regains command of the Mid-Atlantic Points Challenge lead. Slipchuck’s two top-5’s would be wiped out by 2 DNF’s as she loses a point and falls to 2nd (2 points out). Line-Pro also loses a point and falls to 3rd (4 points out). Freak gains 4 points and remains 4th (10 points out). Speedracer’s Tony Stewart prefers winning races on raw speed, not fuel strategy. At least he had enough time to savor the experience as he puttered across the finish line to win the Banquet 400. “I got to see the checkered flag for a really long time for once,” said Stewart, who ran out of gas on the last lap, but had built up such a big lead that he was able to coast to victory. After being eliminated from championship contention last month, Stewart and his crew were free to gamble on gas in the closing laps of the race at Kansas Speedway. It paid off – but just barely. Stewart’s tank ran dry on the last lap and he crawled across the finish line to win. Download 417.52 Kb. Share with your friends:
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