THE LEFT TURN
NASCAR: Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 preview and predictions
Jun 5, 2020, 2:25 pm
THE LEFT TURN
The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Hampton, Georgia for the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500. Originally this race was slated to be run in March as the teams were all set to go at the racetrack but it was discovered that a track attendant had tested positive for coronavirus and the race was cancelled. While there was a plan in place to complete the race without fans and without practice and qualifying, those were quickly scrapped and the race was cancelled. It will be good to see the race finally get made up as NASCAR returns slightly to normal. In this race it will be expected that we see a lot of cars that are spread out all around the track, similarly to what we saw at Charlotte. With this track having a much rougher surface though, there will definitely be a more difficult path to victory lane.
Last week, Brad Keselowski captured his thirty-second career victory after getting around the crashing cars of Joey Logano and Chase Elliott in turns three and four with three laps to go. He was able to fend off Clint Bowyer for his second win of the season. After the race, Elliott and Logano were involved in a somewhat heated discussion. When it was all settled, Logano was none too pleased with Elliott and his reluctance to own up to the incident, which he didn't. It was fairly odd seeing the most popular driver in the sport in Chase Elliott make not only the mistake of wrecking Logano, but to not own up to it and apologize. Especially considering how many times he has been run over during the course of his four-year career. It will be interesting to see if this escalates going forward.
Needless to say, Brad Keselowski was more than likely one of the few drivers out there that was happy with the way things ended as he once again found himself in the right place at the right time for the second time in 2020 as he went on to capture another victory. Even though it was sort of a slow start for the Michigander, Brad has really come alive in these last few weeks. While the circumstances might have seemed lucky, he has been almost flawless ever since the return from break. Aside from a thirteenth place finish at Darlington, Brad has yet to finish outside of the top ten. He is beginning to establish himself as a real threat for the title. I look for Brad to be one to watch on Sunday as well considering he has won two of the last three races here.
The big headline this week was the announcement that NASCAR will be returning to Nashville Superspeedway next season. This came as a surprise considering the hype surrounding neighboring track the Nashville Fairgrounds. There was talk that the sport would return to the legendary short-track and it is still entirely possible as NASCAR hopes that ticket sales for the race at the Superspeedway can help fund the renovations needed to bring the sport to the short-track. Over the course of its history, Nashville Superspeedway has only held races for the truck and Xfinity series and will now host cup races for the first time.
While the people of Nashville will certainly be happy to see a race back in their area, it comes at a price as Dover International Raceway will lose one of its dates. This could become common practice for a lot of tracks that have two dates as more than likely Nashville won't be the only new track on the schedule next season. Overall, I am extremely surprised that this track is getting the call up to the Cup Series considering there hasn't been a race there since 2011. But it will be good to see NASCAR get back to one of it's most popular markets and hopefully in the future we can potentially see a double header with the short-track. I look forward to seeing what the new tracks will be in July when NASCAR makes the announcement.
The driver I have winning this week is Clint Bowyer. Over the last few weeks, Bowyer has been extremely fast but something has happened that has ruined his day. After last week's second place finish at Bristol, I think that Clint Bowyer is due for a victory. As we all know, there is a lot of speculation going around about Clint's future in the sport, many already have him transitioning to the booth next season at Fox with Jeff Gordon and Mike Joy. I believe there is still some wins on the table for this veteran and this track would make the most sense for one. Over the last two races there, Bowyer has an average finish of fourth place, so we know he can run up front. Another thing to look out for is where Bowyer will be starting come Sunday as he rolls off fifth. At a place like Atlanta, track position is key, and he will have that working to his advantage. I look for Bowyer to take the #14 Rush Trucking Mustang back to victory lane and finally ending his winless streak.
All stats and information used in this article are brought to you by the good folks at driveraverages.com and Racing-Reference.com the best websites for all NASCAR stats)
The Houston Rockets face a major test Friday night as they host the Oklahoma City Thunder, who enter the matchup riding an 11-game road winning streak.
Houston (50-27) sits second in the Western Conference and has been dominant on the boards, leading the conference with 48.8 rebounds per game behind Alperen Sengun’s 10.5 per contest. The Rockets have also been red-hot, winning eight of their last ten while averaging 122.1 points per game.
The Thunder (64-12) hold the best record in the West and have been nearly unstoppable, winning 10 straight overall while outscoring opponents by nearly 20 points per game in that stretch. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander continues to play at an MVP level, averaging 32.8 points, 6.3 assists, and 1.7 steals per game.
Houston will need a big night from Jalen Green, who’s averaging 21.5 points, to keep pace with an OKC team that ranks among the league’s best in efficiency on both ends. The Thunder’s ability to limit turnovers and their defensive pressure could be a deciding factor.
With playoff seeding on the line, expect an intense battle between the top two teams in the West.
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