Happy Harvick Bests Junior at the Moment of Truth ...
NASCAR
Wh’appen?
We usually consider the Great Martinsville the Great SnoozeFest. In general, one dominant car outruns the pack over the last fifty laps, and that’s that … but not yesterday.
Early misfortune swamped many of the notables. Hamlin and Newman experienced engine troubles … Johnson suffered an excruciating pit road penalty … T-Stew ran as a non-factor … Jeff Gordon simply did not have enough car. Yet we still ended up with a thriller …
With thirty laps remaining, many believed that Killer (Kyle Busch) would finally get the job done in the Big Series, holding a firm lead over the chasers with a good car. Harvick, as usual, lurked in the foreground, yet as a pleasant surprise, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., unexpectedly ran at P3 and seemed to be in position for a decent finish.
But for the whimsical flirtations with fate …
A late caution sets up a restart with 29 laps to go, and more importantly, places P3 Junior on the curb just behind Killer at P1. Junior slips past Harvick on the green, swiftly sucks up to Killer’s rear bumper in short order, and then stuns the racing world at Lap 480 by shedding his sheepish image before actually giving the 18 the hook. Killer’s bobble allows Junior to flash past into the lead … and one would actually think that the Kingdom had finally arrived on Earth as the Martinsville Thunderdome exploded into apoplexy. The 88 actually gaps the furious Busch, and Earnhardt Nation collectively grabs a gearshift …
Would it last? Hope springs eternal. The irrepressible Harvick, never one to let an opportunity slip away, presses his way past Killer into P2 and then lays the heavy pressure on Earnhardt as the race winds down. Junior masterfully weaves his way through the backmarkers, leaving his fans awash with fantasy, yet with only four to go, Little E overdrives the 88 out of Turn 3, breaking loose the back end. Junior quickly catches up with the loose condition, but his momentary bobble leaves Harvick with just enough room to slip past and claim his second consecutive victory on the Series circuit.
The Latest Unplesantness: The Carnage Left by Truex's (56) Stuck Throttle.
As Harvick celebrates a truly deserving victory, both Junior and Killer bemoan just what could have been. Did Junior make a mistake at the moment of truth? In our opinion … YES! A smoother drive in those closing laps would have forced Harvick to attempt an outside pass … not a mean feat at the Paper Clip … yet Junior panicked under pressure and tried to use his gas pedal to outrun Happy. Harvick didn’t outrun Junior … he simply picked up the scraps over a racer still not accustomed to late race scenarios. Harvick scooped up the cookies, Junior was left to his nightmares, and we all received our money’s worth. Even if it was only Monopoly money.
Formula 1
As Singapore swiftly approaches this weekend, the F1 Circus released a stream of news that will keep folks chatting for days on end …
- The racing world gagged on its sushi after learning that Red Bull Racing (Vettel) ran away at Melbourne without the need of KERS, the fabulous technology that gathers energy from braking and stores the same for future use as added horsepower. Many enthusiasts shook their heads in disbelief until rumors emerged suggesting that Red Bull has figured out how to use brake energy in some double-secret, small scale way to improve performance. If such is the case, RBR’s not giving away any clues … while running circles around its clueless competition.
- Creative genius Adrian Newey of Red Bull Racing dusts off McLaren’s success at Melbourne simply as the latter’s shameless copying of its own exhaust design. In true form, McLaren only grins in response. Techno-copy crime exists as standard fare in F1 … its part of the evolutionary framework inherent in the sport … yet heads still turn when the Great Oz (Newey) cries foul. More spice for the soup, we say …
Looks Like Kimi Wants Some ...
Another global stunner: Former F1 WC Kimi Raikkonen announced his intent to race for American Kyle Busch in the NASCAR Camping World Series. What? Kimi in the tin top trucks? Are you kidding us? Furthermore, Kimi’s bringing his own pot of money along to finance his entry and hopeful promotion deep into NASCAR. Given woeful prior attempts by open wheelers to break into American tin tops (T-Stew and JPM remain the most reputed examples), Kimi’s foray into the trucks stands as the correct approach. As racing fans already know, the days of big shot A.J Foyt stepping into a stock car and winning the D500 are long past … it simply cannot be done in the modern context. Today’s tin top drivers are much too skilled for such a splash. Kimi shows us some brains by his willingness to learn the ropes with the trucks, and then surely NNS, before risking any embarrassment with a Sprint Cup ride.
