Earnhardt Jr. Moves Into The Top 12

After a six week stint hovering outside the top 12, Dale Earnhardt Jr. finally moved back into a coveted Chase position with a fourth-place finish at Daytona. He is now 11th.

His momentum might carry him even higher. Earnhardt has finished inside the top 10 in three of the last four races, and in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, last Friday returned to Victory Lane for the first time since 2008.

Chandra and Jimmie Johnson welcomed a baby girl Wednesday, July 7 at 1:44 p.m. ET in Charlotte, NC. She weighed 6 lbs., 14 oz. and measured 19.5″ long. Dad offered that she is absolutely beautiful and affectionately referred to her as “Baby J” as the proud parents have yet to decide on a name. While commenting that sleep was at a minimum last night, he is extremely happy about getting to spend time with his girls before leaving for the race weekend in Chicago.

Series Hits Half Way Points

With 18 races complete, the series has reached its halfway point, and it has been a storyline-filled first half.

Two news tweaks were introduced over the first half. The spoiler was re-introduced to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series car, starting with race No. 5 at Martinsville Speedway. Also, the multiple attempts at a green-white-checkered finish rule was implemented at the season’s start. Thus far, seven races have ended with a GWC finish, three of them with multiple attempts.

The competition over the first 18 races has been tight, especially so at Talladega, which saw a NASCAR record 88 lead changes among 29 drivers.

Here are some more competition numbers:
7 different race winners
12 different Coors Light Pole winners
46 drivers led at least one lap
31 drivers have scored at least one Top 10 this year
Average Margin of Victory of 1.294 seconds
11 races with an MOV under 1 second
Average of 12 leaders per race
Average of 28 lead changes per race
Average of 43 green flag passes for the lead all along the track (highest through 18 races since the inception of Loop Data in 2005)
Average of 3,613 green flag passes per race (highest through 18 races since the inception of Loop Data in 2005)
50% of the cars finished on the lead lap
78% of the cars were running at the finish

SHOW #117 – We recap the wreck-fest at Daytona where nearly half the field was wiped out, preview Chicagoland, ask the question is Kevin Harvick a legit championship contender and more. Hosted by Kerry Murphey and Paul Northrop

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CREDITS:
Hosts: Kerry Murphey & Paul Northrop
Production: Kerry Murphey
Music: Radium Sound
Voice Over: Thomas Moog

Harvick’s Surprising Dominance Continues

There was no way to predict this from Harvick. Zero. None.

Last year, he was out of sight, and literally out of mind. And maybe out of a team. After 18 races in 2009, Harvick was 26th in points, out of any consideration for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, and likely to leave the only team he has known – Richard Childress Racing.

Fast forward one year. Everything’s different. Harvick has won twice, is the points leader by a hefty margin over Jeff Gordon (212 points) and recently signed a contract extension with RCR.

There’s no reason to think it’ll end any time soon. Harvick is strong at Chicagoland, scoring wins in the track’s first two races — 2001 and 2002.

Speaking of Which, How About RCR?
On the topic of “what a difference a year makes,” Richard Childress Racing as a whole continues its rebirth season.

Last year, these were the final points positions for the then four-car operation: 15th (Bowyer), 17th (Jeff Burton), 19th (Kevin Harvick) and 21st (Casey Mears).

This season, the organization made it a point to improve. It has. Returning to a three-car operation, RCR now has two cars in the top 12 (points leader Harvick and Burton in eighth), and one just outside (Bowyer, in 14th).