The Left Turn

NASCAR heads for Kentucky for the Quaker State 400

Trey Campbell
Jul 12, 2019, 6:01 am
Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images

This week, NASCAR heads for the Bluegrass state for the Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Motor Speedway. This track is a 1.5 mile tri-oval with tightly banked corners of seventeen and fourteen degrees. Back in 2010, NASCAR announced that it would add this track to the schedule and while it was met with much intrigue then, this track has provided much more tame racing than many would expect. Back in 2015, it was announced that this track would be repaved and reconfigured to fix some of the track's issues with moisture. After this repave, the part of the track that was most affected was turn three. This part of the track is easily the most challenging as there have been multiple incidents on this corner. This should be were all the action is come saturday.

Last week at Daytona,part-time driver Justin Haley pulled off arguably the biggest upset in NASCAR history as he was able to claim his first career win after the rain ended the race prematurely. Driving for newly formed Spire Motorsports, he was able to avoid the big wreck that claimed 18 cars and take the lead right before the rain came. Many would label this victory as a fluke considering he only led one lap but it is important to note that he was running around the lead pack before the last caution.

Another facet fans took issue with was how this team came about in the first place. Back in the off-season, owners TJ Puchyr and Jeff Dickerson purchased the charter from Furniture Row racing and announced that they would be the newest team on the grid. This charter ensured that the team would be assured a spot in each of the thirty-six races in 2019 as opposed to open teams that do not have a charter and are not assured a spot. Many also thought that the team's victory had no bearing on the regular season considering that neither Haley or the team would be eligible for the playoffs. When not racing in the Cup Series, Haley is an Xfinity series regular so that is where he collects his driver points making him only eligible to compete for a championship in that series. Overall, while this wouldn't happen in almost any other circumstance, I think that it is pretty neat to see a new driver go to victory lane for his first win. While I will agree that NASCAR's new charter method is severely flawed in every way, you can't really blame Sprie Motorsports for taking advantage of this and finding success. I wish them the best for the remainder of 2019.

Going into this weekend, the driver that I have winning this weekend is Martin Truex Jr. Over the last two races here, Truex has won both of them. In both of those starts, Truex has lead sixty percent of the laps run here so it's clear this track is basically Truex's playground. While I think that the new aero package may change things up a little bit, I still see Truex winning because of how well he has qualified here as well. Since 2017, he hasn't started worse than second and with Qualifying meaning as much as it does I think he should have no issue with that as well. He will be tough to beat come Saturday night.

(All stats and information used in this article is brought to you by the good folks at driveraverages.com and Racing-Reference.com the best website for all NASCAR stats).

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The Left Turn

NASCAR is back for the 2020 Daytona 500

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After three months of waiting, the time has finally come for the great american race, the Daytona 500. This will be the 61st running of NASCAR's crown jewel and while there were many changes to the landscape of the sport in the off-season, the slate is now cleaned for each driver.

This will be the final Daytona 500 for the current car they are running as next season they will switch to the "next gen" model which will be VASTLY different than the car we will be seeing on Sunday. This is important because now teams will be able to maximize the current cars they have now before they become obsolete in 2021. Many team owners have done a good job of taking advantage of this including team JTG Daugherty Racing as they were able to reach a deal with Hendrick Motorsports allowing them more resources that they didn't have last year. These include pit crew support and engines as well. The team has really reaped the benefits of this as their new driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr went on to claim the pole on Sunday.

We will see if this will improve parity and if we will see any new winners in 2020.

Another major storyline coming into this new season is the rookie class. Over the last couple of years, NASCAR's rookie class has not been as strong as fans would like it to be, but this year is a completely different story. Drivers Christopher Bell, Cole Custer and Tyler Reddick have all been promoted to the cup series in 2020. This has been long overdue as they have all shown excellent promise by outrunning multiple Cup racing stars who frequently race in the Xfinity series. While Reddick is the only one of the three to win a championship, they have all won a combined 34 races over the last three years.

Tyler Reddick will move to the #8 Caterpillar Chevy for Richard Childress racing 2020 replacing Daniel Hemric. Many fans believe that adding the young driver will revitalize the slumping team as he finished ninth last year in his second Cup Series start at Kansas. Reddick is easily the most accomplished as he has won back to back NASCAR Xfinity Championships. Overall, if he can translate his success to the Cup series he will for sure be one to watch this year.

California native Cole Custer will be driving the #41 Haas Automation Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas racing as he will be replacing Daniel Suarez. This comes as no surprise considering his connections to the race team as his Dad, Joe Custer is the team president. While many people have been quick to bring this up, it doesn't take away from the immense talent this young man has. Last season, Cole won seven races and was very close to claiming the championship after a fierce battle with Reddick at Homestead. Overall, I also believe that Cole will be going into one of the better situations as he will be driving in championship winning equipment as well. I look for Custer to really make a splash this year.

While both of these drivers are extremely talented, I believe that Christopher Bell is the best of the three and will win rookie of the year. The Norman, Oklahoma phenom will be driving the #95 Toyota Camry for Bob Leavine and the Leavine Family Racing team. Unlike the other two, Bell has yet to make a Cup Series start but don't let that fool you, no one could be more prepared for the big time than this young man. Overall, I believe that he is the most polished prospect that the sport has seen since Tony Stewart considering both their backgrounds in Dirt Racing. This could explain why Joe Gibbs and his team has been so instrumental in moving Christopher's career forward considering Stewart also drove for him from 1999 to the end of 2008 when he would form his own team the next season. I think Coach Gibbs sees a lot in this young man and that's why he is spending a lot of money and resources on a partnership with Leavine Family Racing. Look for Bell to be contending for wins and championships for decades to come.

While one of those three drivers are easily the favorites to take Rookie Of The Year, another driver who is finally getting his shot at the highest level is John-Hunter Nemechek. Son of NASCAR vetran Joe Nemechek, racing has been in this young man's blood since even before he was even born, you had to figure that this young man was destined to be where he is today. While he isn't driving for a big money team in front row racing, he has been rather impressive. Last year at Texas he was in the top twenty to top fifteen throughout the day. If the young man can keep this up his name could come up for a promotion to another team. Look for Nemechek to surprise some folks this year.

Aside from this year's stacked rookie class, there will also be plenty of new faces in new places. One of the biggest announcements this year was Ricky Stenhouse Jr and Chris Buescher switching rides at Roush Racing and JTG Daugherty Racing. This came as a big surprise last season as Stenhouse had re-signed with Roush to remain in the #17 Fastenal Ford but after he struggled for most of the season, the hall of fame car owner decided to go in a different direction so they brought in their former developmental driver Chris Buescher. To counter this move, car owners Tad and Jodi Geschickter decided to bring in Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Another big move this year was Matt DiBenedetto moving to the Wood brothers to replace the retiring Paul Menard in the legendary #21 Ford Mustang. This was a popular move among NASCAR fans as he will continue to try and move his budding career forward. It will be interesting to see how these drivers will do at their new teams.

While there were many changes easily the biggest storyline this year is Jimmie Johnson and his announcement that 2020 will be his final season in NASCAR before retiring. Over the course of his 18-year career, it's hard to find anyone with a better resume. He has 83 wins and most importantly seven championships. He has experienced his fair share of success here at Daytona as well as he has won the 500 twice back in 2006 and 2013. While during his prime, Jimmie wasn't always the most popular one thing remains, Jimmie was the best to ever do it. In his final Daytona 500, Jimmie is who I am picking to win. Over the course of speedweeks Jimmie has been pretty quick as he posted speeds in the top four in both rounds one and two. Of all the drivers in the field, Johnson easily is the most experienced and that should definitely help him in the long run. Look for Jimmie Johnson to go out on top in his final daytona 500.

One darkhorse driver to watch out for is Ricky Stenhouse Jr. As I mentioned earlier, Ricky is having a week to remember as he went on to claim his third career pole on Sunday and was a lap away from winning one of winning one of the Duel qualifying races as well. I look for him to have a good race and if he can keep up his momentum a good season as well. It will be fun to watch as he tries to capture his first Daytona 500 victory from the front row on sunday.

(All stats and information used in this article is brought to you by the good folks at driveraverages.com and Racing-Reference.com the best website for all NASCAR stats).

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