1 – Jeff Gordon (No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet)
• Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 118.9
2009 Rundown
• One top five, two top 10s
• Average finish of 7.0
• Led all three races for a total of 95 laps
Atlanta Motor Speedway Outlook:
• Four wins, 13 top fives, 21 top 10s; two poles
• Average finish of 12.7
• Finished ninth in October
• Led 20 of 33 races for 1,051 laps
Season-To-Date Loop Data Highlight
• Series-best Average Running Position of 6.2

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2 – Clint Bowyer (No. 33 Cheerios/Hamburger Helper Chevrolet)
• Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 80.9
2009 Rundown
• Two top fives
• Average finish of 8.3
• Led one race for nine laps
Atlanta Motor Speedway Outlook:
• Three top 10s
• Average finish of 15.0
• Finished 20th in October
• Led two of six races for 54 laps
Season-To-Date Loop Data Highlight
• 351 Green Flag Passes, fifth-most

3 – Matt Kenseth (No. 17 DEWALT Ford)
• Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 90.7
2009 Rundown
• Two wins
• Average finish of 15.0
• Led two races for 91 laps
Atlanta Motor Speedway Outlook:
• Seven top fives, 11 top 10s
• Average finish of 13.9
• Finished fourth at Atlanta in October
• Led five of 18 races for 188 laps
Season-To-Date Loop Data Highlight
• 33 Fastest Laps Run, fifth-most

4 – Greg Biffle (No. 16 3M Ford)
• Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 97.3
2009 Rundown
• One top five, two top 10s
• Average finish of 10.3
• Led two races for 56 laps
Atlanta Motor Speedway Outlook:
• Three top fives, seven top 10s; one pole
• Average finish of 14.4
• Finished 10th in October
• Led seven of 12 races for 289 laps
Season-To-Date Loop Data Highlight
• Series-high 90 Fastest Laps Run

5 – David Reutimann (No. 00 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota)
• Season-to-Date Driver Rating: 78.8
2009 Rundown
• One top 10
• Average finish of 10.0
Atlanta Motor Speedway Outlook:
• Average finish of 29.3 in three races
• Finished 28th in October
Season-To-Date Loop Data Highlight
• 359 Green Flag Passes, third-most

Continue reading “NASCAR Cup Series Top 12: Week 4”

NASCAR CAMPING WORLD TRUCK SERIES

Kyle Busch Looks For 4th AMS Win In Trucks

The series heads to Atlanta Motor Speedway for the American Commercial Lines 200 on Saturday. The 1.54-mile track is familiar territory for Kyle Busch. He is the defending race winner, with additional wins in October of 2005 and 2007.

Four other former winners are expected to compete; Mike Skinner (March 2007), Todd Bodine (March 2006), Mike Bliss (October 2006), and Ron Hornaday Jr. (March 2005).

AMS is Ballew’s House – Literally

Billy Ballew, owner of the No. 15 and No. 51 Toyotas, has owned a condominium at Atlanta Motor Speedway since 1994, and it’s been a house of celebration the last two years. Ballew has visited Victory Lane with driver Kyle Busch each year. For both races, sponsors, family, friends and crew members gathered at the condo for a race-viewing party.

“The success we’ve had at the track with Kyle Busch is phenomenal, and to me, winning there is bigger than winning the Indianapolis 500,” Ballew said. “I’ve enjoyed the bird’s eye view of the wins we’ve had there.”

Continue reading “Atlanta Story Lines: Truck Series”

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES

Seems Like Old Times: Gordon Back On Top Of Standings

Four-time series champion Jeff Gordon has parleyed three weeks of consistency into a return to the top of the NASCAR Sprint Cup standings. Finishes of 13th (Daytona 500), second (Auto Club Speedway) and sixth (Las Vegas) have him in the lead for the first time since Oct. 28, 2007.
On the other hand, Jeff Gordon’s winless streak has reached 44 races. Atlanta looks like a potential place to end that skein; Gordon has four AMS victories, second-best among active drivers.

Milestone Marker: Atlanta Set To Host 100th NSCS Race
Atlanta Motor Speedway is starting its 50th season of hosting the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series but since there were three events back in 1961, Sunday’s Kobalt Tools 500 will be the 100th race in the series.

Busch Back In Form

Forget last year’s late-season slump that took Kyle Busch out of championship contention during the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. Busch comes into Atlanta off of an impressive victory this past Sunday at Las Vegas. He also has won win in both the NASCAR Nationwide Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, via a same-day sweep at Auto Club Speedway on Feb. 21.

Atlanta is a special place for Busch. Last spring, his victory was the first for Toyota in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. It also was the first of eight series wins for Busch.

Continue reading “Atlanta Story Lines: NASCAR Cup Series”

It seems in just the last few weeks, if you are a member of Twitter, and are a NASCAR fan, you have discovered the excitement of both on race day. The Final Lap has been on Twitter for a while now, and up until recently it was just a few comments here and there about NASCAR back and forth.

The real magic happens now when you follow anyone who is also interested in the sport, either in their bio description, or if they simply Tweet about it. Then on race day, while you are watching, you have this massive community making comments, learning, keeping you up to date and more. It really is an amazing thing.

Here’s how it works after you have a good group of followers, any comment you make about the race, be sure to include this in your Tweet…#nascar. By doing this, it also goes to everyone else interested in the race as well. You will ultimately gain a following using the #nascar, and making interesting comments about the race.  The community feeling is really quite remarkable.

I cover this sport for a living, and I come away each week with a deeper understanding of the unfolding race than I did before.  The reason is because I get opinions and comments from all angles, like from fans, media, heck even the drivers like Max Papis (@maxpapis) who is very active on Twitter.  We even heard about his flight home to North Carolina on Jimmie Johnson’s private jet, now that is insider access!  This is only one component of interaction on race day.

I also discovered going from Twitter, over to real-time discussion boards, who are mostly the same people that are on Twitter as well. A great example of this is at markmartin.com and nascarview.com. I’m sure there are many others out there, but all of these tools certainly make NASCAR a faster paced, and interesting place on the web.

There are various aspects of the NASCAR Twitter Community, slowly drivers and race tracks are getting on board, so we created a Twitter Guide to NASCAR Drivers and Tracks.  There are also many other types of followers which we will add to the list soon, like Media Members, Bloggers, Fans, Official NASCAR Tweets, Crew Members, PR Folks, and more.

RELATED LINKS:

–NASCAR EMBRACES TWITTER
–Twitter Guide to NASCAR Drivers and Tracks
-Twitter.com/thefinallap

Continue reading “NASCAR, Twitter Explode Together”

NSCS Shelby 427 Recap: Kyle Busch Rallies For Hometown Las Vegas Win
By Reid Spencer
Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service

LAS VEGAS (March 1, 2009) — So the last shall be first, and the first last.

PHOTO: CIA STOCK PHOTO

For biblical scholars, that was Matthew 20:16. For NASCAR fans, it was Sunday’s Shelby 427 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Starting from the rear of the field because of an engine change during Friday’s practice session, pole winner and Las Vegas native Kyle Busch worked his way to the front throughout a race punctuated with a record 14 caution periods and streaked to a .411-second victory, his first of the season and his first at Las Vegas.

Matt Kenseth, first in the series standings entering the race, finished last, after his engine blew six laps into the race. That ended Kenseth’s bid to become the first driver to win the first three races in a Cup season.

Continue reading “Kyle Busch is hometown winner at Las Vegas”