The SuperSpeedway Power Rankings – AAA 400 at Dover

Posted on May 31, 2017 by jameskuch

1 Martin Truex Jr. (LW 2)

Just like last year, he dominated the 600. Unlike last year he didn’t take the checker flag. This dude leads all drivers with 16 playoff points and is the current 1 seed in the playoff standings. Martin is not going away anytime soon. He’s got a nice little history with Dover too!

2 Brad Keselowski (LW 1)

It’s fun when Brad has a Facebook Live and feud with Kyle Busch in the same day. I just wish he would complete the full race first.

3 Kyle Larson (LW 3)

I’m so sorry. This week was all my fault, Kyle. I won’t pick you to win for awhile.

4 Kevin Harvick (LW 4)

Alright, Kevin. It’s time to become a first-time Ford race winner. That’s the only thing left on the 2017 resume.

5 Jimmie Johnson (LW 6)

If Jimmie wins Dover, he’s going to the top of the rankings. I’m just warning you. He is the real Dover Monster.

6 Kyle Busch (LW 7)

Rowdy is slowly climbing. His All-Star win was a nice escape but another close call at the 600 had KB bumming again. Wins are coming.

7 Jamie McMurray (LW 5)

I don’t feel good about moving Jamie Mac down two spots. This is not taking away from his great season. He needs a win but his consistency should be noted.

8 Chase Elliott (LW 8)

It was a rough week for the some of our Power Ranking main stays. The Brad/Chase crash really bummed out The SuperSpeedway team, as race fans. It’s too early in the race to lose two big hitters.

9 Joey Logano (LW 9)

Joey is sitting 14th in the playoff standings. The way the Penske cars seems to be sliding, that encumbered win could be really costly.

10 Denny Hamlin (LW NR)

Denny takes back the 10th spot from Ryan Blaney. The way these guys are going, they will be wrestling for this spot for awhile.

Also considered

Austin Dillon, Ryan Blaney, Kurt Busch, The Dover Monster

Episode 15 — Austin Dillon is a First Time Winner

Posted on May 31, 2017 by Eric Young

– Recap of the Coca Cola 600

-Austin Dillon is a first-time winner

-Significance of seeing the 3 back in victory lane?

-Did the VHT help? Overall, how was the race?

-Winners and losers on the day?

Discussion

-Kyle Busch’s Post-Race Press Conference (Audio: 12 seconds)

-Do we have an issue with this?

-Brad’s Tweet: Not sure how or when “hating losing” got defined in this manner, but I’m pretty sure it’s the wrong way…

-Sherry Pollex also going after Kyle

-The playoffs

-Childress has two teams in, Roush 1, JGR 0.

-Is anyone secure without two wins this year?

-Other racing

-Monaco Grand Prix and Indy 500 – did we watch? Thoughts?

-Scott Dixon’s crash discussion

– Image of Helio going under Dixon

Preview AAA 400 @ Dover

-Eric’s Pick: Chase Elliott

-James’ Pick: Jamie McMurray

Episode 14 — Not a Slow News Week

Posted on May 25, 2017 by Eric Young

Show Notes:

– Recap of the Monster Energy All-Star Race

Kyle Busch gets the monkey off his back
Option Tires – What worked/didn’t
Format and Keselowski issue

-Overall thoughts of the race?

-Why is the Open always the best racing?

– Erik Jones Move

No real winners or losers in this event

-News of the week:

– Hall of Fame Class

– 2018 Schedule

– Roval

– It’s Indy 500 week!

Do you watch and if so what do you watch for?

Monaco?

– Red Horse Racing shuts down

-James: Watched Arca at Toledo – Harrison Burton is fantastic!

Preview Coke 600 and Indy 500

-Charlotte using skicky stuff in upper groove. Same as Bristol did

Episode 13 — All Star Race Preview

Posted on May 25, 2017 by Eric Young

Show Notes:

All-Star Race discussion

Format? Do we even care at this point?
http://www.nascar.com/en_us/news-media/articles/2017/4/11/monster-energy-all-star-race-101-format-explained-tv-info-times.html
Where would we like to see an All-Star Race?
- Should it travel each year?
Favorite All-Star memories
- There have actually been some great moments
- 85 Waltrip over Rusty
- 92 One Hot Night
- 97 T-Rex
- 00 Rookie Dale Jr. Wins
- 01 The Rain Crash – Gordon Comes back to win in backup
- 05 The Busch Bros. Crash – Martin Wins
- 09 Stewart gets first win as owner – Launch of double file restarts
- Long Gap to today

Best NASCAR Social Media Accounts we should all follow

James 5
Eric 5

Stay Tuned for James’ Power Rankings coming Thursday

Episode 12 — Get Well Aric Almirola

Posted on May 25, 2017 by Eric Young

Show Notes:

– Recap of the Go Bowling 400 at Kansas:

Aric Almarola Crash Reaction
- Initial reaction to crash and thoughts when they had to cut him out
- Danica Comments vs Joey

-Overall thoughts of the race?

-Big losers on the day?

-Big winners on the day?

-News of the week:

– Coke 600 Adds a fourth stage

– Good/Bad – We share our thoughts and debate

– More changes

Preview Monster Energy All-Star Race

The SuperSpeedway Power Rankings – All-Star/Coke 600

Posted on May 18, 2017 by jameskuch

1 Brad Keselowski (LW 1)

Led zero laps in Kansas but walked away with another great run, finishing second. I don’t have the heart to bump him from the top spot. He’s just too good.

2 Martin Truex Jr. (LW 4)

From the Big One at Talladega to the Big Won in Kansas. Martin is no joke and that 78 team is no sleeper. They are a legit title contender. Let’s see if he stinks up the 600 again this year. You could call the four stages, in Charlotte, the “Martin Rule.”

3 Kyle Larson (LW 2)

The fire that was the start of 2017 has cooled for Kyle. But another top 10 at Kansas? He’ll take it. Look out for this guy in Charlotte.

4 Kevin Harvick (LW 8)

Here’s your big mover of the week! Not just because of his third place finish, but because everyone in front of him had issues and opened the door. I feel like the 4 team is oh so close to winning in that Ford.

5 Jamie McMurray (LW 7)

Ol Jamie Mac is not going away. He notched another top 10 in Kansas and has had some great success in Charlotte over the years. Is this the car to watch the next two weeks?

6 Jimmie Johnson (LW 3)

He’s not slumping. He’s not slumping. He’s not slumping… Sorry, I still need to remind myself because the 80+ wins and seven titles isn’t enough.

7 Kyle Busch (LW 9)

If he ever wins this year it won’t be soon enough. Sorry fans. It’s coming soon.

8 Chase Elliott (LW 5)

Kudos to Jeff Gordon for calling out the 24 team on the pit exit that ruined Chase’s day. You know he’s got some ties to the 24 car, right?

9 Joey Logano (LW 6)

Who would have thought his win in Richmond would be the start of a really hard slide? Side note: I’m really glad Aric is OK after that wreck. Wow.

10 Ryan Blaney (LW NR)

Ryan is going to be fighting for this 10th spot all season. I was really hoping he would seal the deal in Kansas. If this kid figures it out, look out.

Also considered

Clint Bowyer, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Denny Hamlin, Michael McDowell, The NASCAR Safety Team (Nice job guys)

Episode 11 — NASCAR Attendance Woes

Posted on May 12, 2017 by Eric Young

Show Notes:

Attendance issues?

Cause for concern?
What can NASCAR do to get the numbers back?
Talladega looked awesome

Why we find restrictor plate racing so much fun

Battle right until the end. It’s almost never a runaway.
Talladega just feels like NASCAR, right?

Penalties/Encumbered Finishes

Should NASCAR take the win away if the winner is caught cheating?

Fanatics looking to change tent model

-Where can we be found on social media?

-Website address: www.thesuperspeedway.wordpress.com

-Podcasts will be found on there as well.

-Find us on iTunes, Google Play and Soundcloud

Episode 10 — Danica Patrick Goes to Victory Lane

Posted on May 12, 2017 by Eric Young

Quick explanation of format

Recap, News and Preview will be Tuesdays
You get more pods! We will be doing some of our fun topics later in the week. Like our Hall of Fame discussion, Nascar Games, Power Rankings, etc.

– Recap of the Geico 500 at Talladega Superspeedway:

-Danica Patrick goes to victory lane

-Ricky Stenhouse gets the win.

-Is this a real win for Ricky?

-Overall thoughts of the race?

-Big losers on the day?

-Big winners on the day?

-Interesting takeaways from the weekend:

-Ricky’s dad tried to climb the fence on the backstretch and was taken away by security: http://www.espn.com/racing/nascar/story/_/id/19333698

-In the ARCA race Saturday, the car driven by Shane Lee, car 22, was the same car Sterling Marlin drove in the 2002 Daytona 500 when he climbed out of his car on the backstretch and tried to pull out his fender.

News since we last were on:

Logano – Huge penalty
Penske Penalty issues for both cars this year.
Dale Jr. was right?
Are they just pushing the envelope?

Preview Go Bowling 400

Favorites
Can KB get it done?
James’ pick: Kyle Busch
Eric’s pick: Jimmie Johnson

The SuperSpeedway Power Rankings – Kansas

Posted on May 10, 2017 by jameskuch

1 +2 Brad Keselowski

Battled through the big one and survived with a top 10. He was also your stage one winner. Is Brad the best restrictor plate racer on the circuit?

2 -1 Kyle Larson

Finished 12^th at Talladega after having issues early. He’s struggled at Kansas but has also reached a new level this year. This week will be a good test, much like the rest of the season to this point.

3 +3 Jimmie Johnson

Was in position to steal another win at Talladega before sliding to 8th. He’s good at Kansas. Who am I kidding? He’s good everywhere.

4 -2 Martin Truex Jr.

Big one victim.

5 -1 Chase Elliott

Ditto. Did you see the camera angle of him grinding the wall like Tony Hawk? Awesome.

6 -1 Joey Logano

Ditto again. Bonus bad luck. His Richmond win will no longer count for the playoffs.

7 +2 Jamie McMurray

I’m not ready to rank him higher than 7^th,but his second place run at Talladega was a great reminder of how good he is on the plate tracks.

8 -1 Kevin Harvick

Was in the big one but stuck around till the end. I’m starting to get itchy waiting for the 4 car to get to victory lane.

9 NR Kyle Busch

KB had it in the bag! How often are we going to say that this year? By the way, he’s a world-beater at Kansas. Fantasy players take note.

10 NR Denny Hamlin

What a day for JGR! Led a ton of laps and didn’t get the win. Denny did get a stage win, however.

Also considered

Clint Bowyer, Kurt Busch, Spongebob Squarepants, Cole Whitt, Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

Episode 9 — Jimmie Johnson Can’t See!

Posted on May 3, 2017 by Eric Young

Episode 9 Show Notes:

-Richmond Recap:

-Joey and James get the win

-Overall thoughts on the race?

-Biggest losers on the day

-Jimmie Johnson?

-Audio (1:25) Jimmie and Dale address run in on Podcast

-Biggest winners on the day

-Commitment line violations. Thoughts?

-Audio (:48) Nascar Senior VP of Competition Scott Miller talks about violations

-James 1st Power Rankings

-Travis Pastrana returning to NASCAR in the truck series

-NASCAR video games

-Discuss current offerings

-Is NASCAR underserved in the gaming market?

-MIS adding weeklong entertainment:

-Restrictor plate racing

-Is it good or bad? Why?

-Do real fans want to see the wrecks?

Preview: Talladega

-Who will be at the top?

-Winner Prediction:

-Eric: Kevin Harvick

-James: Brad Keselowski