How about that “Old Guy”, Mark Martin? Another pole starting position and that makes five on the year, so far, for the guy that wasn’t even supposed to be racing this year and who will be making his 1000th start in the Nascar Cup Series Saturday night in Thunder Valley.
I always find it interesting how Mark Martin talks about his qualifying experiences week in and week out. He doesn’t step out and say things like, “I think I left a little out there, I hope it holds up…” or, “Well, it was a good run but I think I could have gone a little faster…” No, he says things like, “I’ve never been so scared in my life, I can’t believe how fast that lap was…”, or “It is unbelievable how loose the car was; there’s no way that lap could have been that good… I can’t believe I’m on the pole.”
Now, don’t misunderstand what I am saying here. He never criticizes his crew chief, car owner or the team. He is always saying how hard they work and how good a car they’ve provided for him. It’s just that, (and I think this is the key), he is outside his comfort zone. To get the results he is getting, he is pressing the envelope of comfort he would like to be in — keeping it right on the edge — and getting those poles and victories shows that’s what it takes. (Not bad for an “Old Guy”. Hey, I can say that ’cause I am one.)
He may be enjoying what is going on for him this year, but he isn’t as “comfortable” as he would like to be. He also says the pressure of making the Chase is taking a little bit of the fun out of all the good stuff going on for him this year. Although he has had some bad luck during the year, he is performing well but, he also doesn’t want to waste all of these “good results” when he is so close to making the Chase. It is this fan’s opinion, once he definitely makes it into the Chase this year, his racing life in Nascar will once again be fun for Mark Martin.
Once again, I don’t think where someone qualified is going to tell too much about where they will finish. During qualifying, it definitely looked as though many were taken a bit by surprise by how slick the track was. It looked like many missed the setup on their qualifying runs. That makes it look even more like it will be a very exciting race because, the outside lane is going to prove very “racey”, also.
One thing that can be said about Bristol; you don’t pass that many people in the pits. This is one track that is a driver’s track. When you win at Bristol, it is usually because the driver did his job. That doesn’t mean the crews and what they do doesn’t matter. It simply means that if the crews give the driver a good car setup, the driver is more responsible for the end result. The crew still has to do their part, but, more passing is going to be done on the track “rather” than in the pits.
I disagree with the overall consensus that Kyle Bush is the strong favorite to win the Sharpie 500 this weekend. It is this fan’s opinion there is just too much that has been going wrong for him this year. He may have won the Truck race but look what happened to him in the Nationwide race. To win these days a lot has to go right. He has the same chance as anyone else to take the victory, but he also has the same chance as anyone else to have something go wrong not of their own making. At Bristol, anything –and I stress the word, a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g — can happen to change the outcome of the race.
Bristol is a track that demands a lot from the competitors and in particular the demand on their ability to endure mentally and physically throughout the race. This is a place that breeds short tempers and high emotions. That sometimes causes the drivers to react in ways that changes the whole outcome of the night for them and for those that happened to be in the wrong place at the right time.
The winner tonight could be a total surprise. It could be someone like Marcos Ambrose, David Reutimann or even Scott Speed. Actually, out of those three, I would probably pick Marcos Ambrose but he is a dark horse to me for tonight’s race.
Just looking at the last practice shows me some pretty strong possibilities for winners but it also gives a false impression. As always, the fastest single laps don’t mean that much in a race like this; it is the ones that can run the most consistent lap times on a regular basis and handle different lines on the track when they have to pass. In my opinion, that is the thing that will be the deciding factor in tonight’s race. Yes, track position is going to be important, but so is being able to pass when the need arises. That’s what makes tonight’s race hard to call.
I look at the Hendrick teams as possible winners tonight because they have been running strong all year just about everywhere. When I say Hendrick teams I also include the Stewart/Haas camp also. Now, the Roush cars are even looking good for tonight. Either Greg Biffle or Carl Edwards in particular could pull it off tonight. It just depends on what happens and when.
In fact, there are any number of individuals that could end up in Victory Lane tonight but unfortunately only one will. Do I think it will be one of the Bush brothers? No, not really. I think it’s going to be someone from the Hendrick camps. Only problem is, I’m not sure whether it will be Mark Martin or Jimmy Johnson. Even though I know Jeff Gordon, Dale Jr, Ryan Newman and Tony Stewart have an excellent chance for winning tonight, I’m going to go with a one two finish of Mark Martin and Jimmy Johnson…
Now, it’s up to you to figure out which one will be first and which one will be second. My choice is J J but, it could be M M … what do you think…
See ya next time …
Rusty
(all views expressed are strictly the opinion of the writer)
© August 22, 2009 – all rights reserved
Just A Fan’s View and Rusty Norman
