Boogity Boogity Boogity...It's Time for NASCAR!
By Ryan Frisco
128 Days. When the green flag flies at Daytona Motor Speedway February 24th, 2013, Brad Keselowski will have had 128 days to celebrate his first Sprint Cup Championship in his already illustrious young career. Jimmie Johnson will have had 128 days to wonder why his quest for a sixth championship ended prematurely. Clint Bowyer will have had 128 days to stew over a controversial altercation with Jeff Gordon that ended the slim hope he had at a cup. When the green flag flies, they start all over again.
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| Photo Cred www.1045theteam.com |
I know many people aren’t a fan of Nascar, and don’t qualify it as a sport. And that’s a subject we’ll tackle at another time (see Showcase Showdown in the future). But for those who love Nascar like I do, you know what the others are missing out on.
So we begin again. What’s in store for 2013? More controversy? It wouldn’t be racin’ if there weren’t. Dramatic endings? At least 10 G-W-C (Green-White-Checkered) finishes. Another surprise champion? We’ll have to wait and see. Let’s start the season off by taking a look through last year’s Top 10.
1. Brad Keselowski – Bad Brad. This kid is the new face of Nascar. He’s a winning, tweeting machine. Kes isn’t afraid to challenge anyone toe to toe on the track. With eight wins the past two seasons, he has made the impossible possible, bringing Penske Racing their first championship at racings highest level. Expect more of the same from Brad. He’s not going away anytime soon.
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| Photo Cred www.bleacherreport.com |
2. Clint Bowyer – Clint’s run last season was improbable. The dude wasn’t even in the conversation and ended up second in the points! If only a certain past champion hadn’t ruined his run in the second to last race of the season… Clint has proven Michael Waltrip Racing to be a legit title contender. Expect Clint to be in the mix again next year when it counts; and tell Jeff Gordon to watch out when he sees that yellow #15 car in his rearview.
3. Jimmie Johnson – After a somewhat average season in 2011, Johnson was back to his usual antics last year, winning five races and dominating much like Tom Brady or the New York Yankees. Starts to get old. Jimmie did add some off track excitement which was nice. After five championships in a row, he has now been beat out two years in a row. Johnson has a goal of eight, so his work is cut out for him. Competition has never been better. He will run well this season, but I’m thinking a top three might even be out of the question in the 2013 campaign.
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| Photo Cred www.hendrickmotorsports.com |
4. Kasey Kahne – Gotta love this kid. After switching to the best team in Nascar (Hendrick Motorsports) Kahne had a worse start to the season than even he could have dreamed. After six races, Kasey was mired in 31st in the point standings. That doesn’t happen to Hendrick cars. The team pulled together though, and Kasey Kahne was the hottest driver over the spring and summer. He drove his way into the chase with two wins and worked his way to fourth in the standings, his best finish yet. This team is rolling now. Kahne could very well be the team holding that trophy at the end of the year, and they will most definitely be in the mix.
5. Greg Biffle – The Bif proved last year he can be a title contender. He held the point lead for 11 weeks in the spring. His consistency was very Kensethesque. Too bad it didn’t carry into the Chase. He did okay. He was consistently good, just not consistently great, which is what it takes to make a championship. Time to take the next step this year, and prove you truly are a TITLE contender.
6. Denny Hamlin – Denny had one of those roller coaster seasons. He was great at times. He was okay at times. He was not there at times. Five wins is great. A championship would be better. Let’s even it out next year and make it count.
7. Matt Kenseth – It was a good year for Kenseth. Pretty consistent as usual, led the points for a bit here and there. Three wins. Just average for him, which was good enough in 2003; not 2012. I’m excited to see what happens with Matt making a huge team change to Joe Gibbs Racing. He’ll be in the mix.
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| Photo Cred www.espn.go.com |
8. Kevin Harvick – The Closer didn’t do much closing out this season, except for the season itself. The win at Phoenix was nice, but pretty much the season’s only bright spot. Harvick has the tools to be a champ, but needs to do much better at being there at the end this year.
9. Tony Stewart – Tony had a few nice runs, and for much of the early season, it looked as if he’d be in place to defend his title. It was not to be, as this chase was the complete opposite of the previous season’s five win chase. Again, the potential is there, but you have to wonder if Tony is past his prime now.
10. Jeff Gordon – An amazing run to make the chase highlighted a dismal season by Gordon. He’s shown flashes of his younger self this season, but everyone is still asking; Does he have what it takes to win another championship? Plus, he’s fresh off a very controversial move at the Phoenix race where he took out Clint Bowyer purposely. Jeff needs to restore his image this year. I think he has a shot at one more. Just not this year.
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