Harvick wins Homestead Sat. practice 1

Kevin Harvick posted the quickest average speed in Homestead's Saturday first practice, with a speed of 163.194 mph during 24 laps.

Our View Along with his sixth-place qualification effort and five top-10s in six races on the progressive banks at Homestead, Harvick has to be considered a dark horse to win.

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Yahoo! Qualification Story – Homestead

In this week's Yahoo! preview, we told you that dark horses would run well this week. Guess what? There will be a lot of surprises at the front of the field, but do they have a chance to stay there? Find out what we think in this week's Yahoo! qualification story (.pdf).

Johnson wins Homestead pole

Jimmie Johnson gave notice early that he will be the driver to beat in both the Ford 400 and the championship by winning the pole for Sunday's race. His top speed was 173.919 mph.

Our View The team said they would not be conservative and we were skeptical. Sounds like they may just have meant that, but it's still hard to recommend a driver who needs only to finish in the first half of the field.

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Ku Busch tops Homestead practice

Kurt Busch set his fast lap late in the first session of practice with a speed of 173.433 mph, which was five-hundredths of a second faster than Juan Montoya.

Our View Busch has been hit-and-miss in five races since Homestead employed progressive banking. He's finished outside the top 35 three times and in the top five twice, which suggests he will have a great finish if he stays out of trouble.

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Homestead Chassis selections

Jayski.com has compiled a collection of some of the chasses for this week.

Our View Among those highlighted are Jimmie Johnson's as well as for dark horses Carl Edwards and Martin Truex Jr. This information could be one of the most important pieces of the puzzle this week in your last chance to gain ground on the competition.

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Montoya spins in practice 1

Juan Montoya got loose at the 23 minute mark of practice for the Ford 400 and spun out of turn four. He blew his tires, but did not do any damage to his primary car.

Our View Now Montoya knows where the edge is and he shouldn't step over it again. At the time of his spin, the No. 42 was second on the speed chart.

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Johnson signs five-year extension

Hendrick Motorsports has signed Jimmie Johnson to a five-year extension according to a press release. In addition, Lowe's has signed as the sponsor for the next three years.

Our View This comes as no surprise while Johnson is battling for his fourth consecutive championship. The strongest team in NASCAR should get only stronger with the security of this announcement.

McMurray lands with Earnhardt-Ganassi

On Thursday, Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing officially named Jamie McMurray as the replacement driver in the No. 1 that will be vacated by Martin Truex Jr. at the end of the season, according to a press release.

Our View Most of the pieces have fallen into place for next year. All that remains for drivers like Reed Sorenson and David Stremme are start and park or lightly-funded entries.

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Yahoo! Homestead Preview

The Ford 400 is your last chance to make up ground on your competition. Luckily, this race is traditionally kind to dark horses, so a little luck should go a long way. Check out our picks in this week's Yahoo! Preview (.pdf).

Inspection cleared at Phoenix

According to @dustinlong: #NASCAR ... Post-race inspection done and all clear. Engines to R&D shop: 48, 31, 17 ... Cars to R&D shop: 48, 5 and 17

Johnson wins Checker O'Reilly Auto Parts 500k

One week after getting caught up in an accident at Texas Motor Speedway, Jimmie Johnson made the statement that he would not roll over. He dominated and won the Checker O'Reilly Auto Parts 500k by Pennzoil, leading the most laps and earning maximum points.

Our View That makes it four wins in his last five Phoenix starts. Another Hendrick Motorsports driver, Mark Martin won the only race that Johnson missed.

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Phoenix pit stall selections

Jayski has posted the pit stall selections, and as expected Martin Truex Jr. took the final slot before pit exit.

Our View Other drivers with an opening in front of them are Kurt Busch, Jimmie Johnson and Kasey Kahne, so they should have an easy time exiting after their service. Drivers with openings behind them are Casey Mears, Greg Biffle, Kyle Busch and Mark Martin.

The other driver with a mathematical shot at leaving this race with the points' lead, Jeff Gordon is pitting directly behind Truex and if the No. 1 team has any trouble, he could inherit the best stall.

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Hamlin/Keselowski tangle late in Able Body Labor 200

Denny Hamlin and Brad Keselowski tangled for the third time this year in the Able Body Labor 200 at Phoenix International Raceway. In this pushing and shoving match, Hamlin came out on the short end of the stick and spun out of winning contention while Keselowski finished fifth. Hamlin finished 12th.

Our View The incident follows previous shunts at Dover International Speedway and Auto Club Speedway this season and one at Watkins Glen International last year between the two.

Eventually, tempers are going to completely spill over and unfortunately, there is liable to collateral damage among other drivers. Don't look for the two to get together in this week's Cup Checker O'Reilly Auto Parts 500k by Pennzoil, however, because Hamlin has vowed to take out his revenge in next week's Nationwide season finale.

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Edwards wins Able Body Labor 200

Carl Edwards easily pulled away from the field late in the Able Body Labor 200 to win over Kevin Harvick.

Our View Last week, Kyle Busch brought the momentum from his Nationwide victory into the Cup race and Edwards hopes to repeat that feat. But Roush-Fenway has not been exceptional on short, flat tracks, so doubling down will be challenging this week.

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Johnson posts single fast lap in Phoenix HH

Jimmie Johnson posted the single fastest lap of 132.348 mph in Happy Hour at Phoenix; since that was the only practice session this week, it was also the best of the day.

Our View Johnson also posted the second quickest average speed of 128.333 mph during 64 laps and with a solid third-place qualification effort, he is one of the favorites to win the Checker O'Reilly Auto Parts 500k by Pennzoil.

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Montoya wins Phoenix Happy Hour

Juan Montoya posted the quickest average speeds in Happy Hour at Phoenix, with a speed of 128.421 during 41 laps.

Our View Montoya has come on strong during the last two short, flat track races at New Hampshire and Martinsville, so he has to be considered a favorite for a top-10 at least.

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Yahoo! Qualification Story – Phoenix

The last two winners and three of the last five have started from the pole at Phoenix. Is that a good omen for Martin Truex Jr.? Find out what we think in this week's Yahoo! qualification story (.pdf).

Truex wins Phoenix pole

Martin Truex Jr. posted was one of less than a handful of drivers who posted his best time on lap one; a speed of 135.120 was good enough for the pole for the Checker O'Reilly Auto Parts 500k by Pennzoil.

Our View That makes him nearly a half mile per hour faster than second-place Kurt Busch, but qualification has not been his problem this year. After starting in the top 10 on 10 occasions this year, he has yet to finish better than 11th.

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Surprising Hornish tops Phoenix practice 1

Sam Hornish Jr. edged Kasey Kahne by four-hundredths of a second to land atop the speed chart in the first Cup practice session. His fastest lap was 133.884 mph.

Our View Hornish took a lot of criticism for last week's incident with points' leader Jimmie Johnson. The best way to silence the critics is by going fast, but if this holds up and Hornish actually qualifies in the front of the field, his competitor's will have to feel a little uneasy.

So far in 2009, Hornish has been crash-prone.

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Yahoo! Phoenix Preview

The Chase is back on after Jimmie Johnson crashed last week at Texas Motor Speedway, but don't expect him to roll over at Phoenix. Mark Martin is good enough on the short, flat tracks to make up a little more ground, however. Find some other strong picks in this week's Yahoo! Preview (.pdf).

Two out of three ain't bad: Busch wins Texas Nationwide

Kyle Busch hopes to be the first driver to win in all three of NASCAR's top divisions this week at Texas Motor Speedway. So far, so good; he won both the Camping World Truck Series and Nationwide Series races handily.

Our View Of course the Cup race is going to be much more difficult, but tune in on Sunday because history could be in the making.

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Reutimann fastest in Texas Sat. a.m. practice

David Reutimann posted the fastest single lap in the Saturday morning session for the Dickies 500 with a speed of 186.812 and his average speed was fifth-best with a 181.520 during 22 laps.

Our View The team spent part of this practice changing an oil cooler when a rock pinged off the bottom. If they successfully made the change and he is fast in Happy Hour, look for him to be a great dark horse.

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Stewart wins Texas Sat. a.m. practice

Tony Stewart posted the quickest average speed in the Saturday morning practice with a speed of 182.866 mph during 16 laps.

Our View He was actually second on the grid, but Joe Nemechek posted on four laps so he did not have any fall-off.

Stewart's fastest lap in this practice was second best and he qualified at the front of the field, so he has to be favored for a top-five in the Dickies 500.

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R Gordon has engine woes in Texas practice 2

Robby Gordon exited the track at the 15 minute mark of the second practice session amidst speculation that he might have a transmission problem.

Our View Gordon could use a little luck on the "cookie-cutter" tracks. In eight race this year on this track type, he has an average finish of 24.6 and only one top-10—a third that came by benefit of rain shortening the Coke 600.

It may be something as simple as an over-filled resevoir.

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Yahoo! Qualification Story – Texas

Texas Motor Speedway is one of the tracks on which starting position is important: 75 percent of the winners have come from the first four rows. See who we like in this week's Yahoo! qualification story (.pdf).

Burton slams wall in active Texas practice 1

Jeff Burton slammed the wall after a power steering line broke in the first practice session for the Dickies 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. Burton was one of more than a half dozen drivers who hit or scrapped the wall in this session.

Our View Burton's damage was the most significant, however, and he will roll out a back up car. "Go-or-go-home" driver Mike Bliss in the No. 09 also had to go to his second car.

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Yahoo! Texas Preview

After last week's lottery in Talladega, it's time to get back to racing this week at Texas. Check out the favorites and dark horses in this week's Yahoo! Preview (.pdf).

Keselowski in, Stremme out of 12 for final 3

Despite wrecking his new teammate Kurt Busch (and most of the lead lap cars) on the final lap of last week's Amp Energy 500, Penske Racing has announced that Brad Keselowski will replace David Stremme in the No. 12 for the final three races of the season, according to FoxSports.com.

Our View In the last few weeks, he has been the inciter of several incidents in both the Nationwide and Cup series. Let's hope he calms down and learns to respect his fellow drivers in the coming events.

If he can show a little maturity, he could be one of the best values in the game.

Yahoo! Qualification Story – Talladega

Rain canceled qualification on Saturday and set the lineup by points. Jimmie Johnson will the first six rows of Chase contenders to the green for the Amp Energy 500.

Our View There was not a lot to say about qualification, but you will find our insight in this week's Yahoo! story.

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Crash-prone Edwards, Hornish already sustain damage at 'Dega

Barely eight minutes into practice, Sam Hornish Jr. and Carl Edwards slammed into one another in an accordion-style accident that was apparently started when Jeff Gordon was forced out of his drafting line.

Our View If you were listening to this morning's fantasy segment on SiriusXM radio, you would have head me predict that Sam Hornish Jr. and Carl Edwards would crash in the Amp Energy 500. It's not race time yet, but both drivers sustained crash damage in less than 10 laps.

Clint Bowyer was also spun off the track in the aftermath.

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Top-10 Avg. Running Position: Talladega #NASCAR

Average Running Position
Sum of driver position on each lap - divided by the laps run in the race.
Number of Races: 9
AMP Energy 500 Pre-Race
For point-paying races in current and past four years, at this track.
Talladega Superspeedway

Rank	Driver	Average Finish	Average Place
1	Joey Logano	9.0	12.9
2	Tony Stewart	14.0	13.3
3	Denny Hamlin	18.9	13.6
4	Juan Montoya	18.6	13.6
5	Kurt Busch	11.2	14.7
6	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	21.8	15.2
7	Matt Kenseth	16.4	15.6
8	Brian Vickers	16.8	15.8
9	David Ragan	14.0	16.0
10	Elliott Sadler	20.2	16.1

McGrew to crew Earnhardt

The "interim" has been removed from Lance McGrew's title. According to Hendrick Motorsports PR, he has been named crew chief for Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Our View Earnhardt believes he needs someone with a heavy hand to keep him in control; so far, McGrew has not been that personality but he knows where to work.

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Top-10 Driver Ratings: Talladega

Driver Rating
Formula combining the following categories: Wins, Finishes, Top-15 Finishes, Average Running Position While on Lead Lap, Average Speed Under Green, Fastest Lap, Led Most Laps, Lead-Lap Finish. Maximum: 150 points per race.
Number of Races: 9
AMP Energy 500 Pre-Race
For point-paying races in current and past four years, at this track.
Talladega Superspeedway

Rk.	Driver	Avg. Fin	Best Rating	Avg.
1	Brad Keselowski	1	98.9	98.9
2	Denny Hamlin	18.9	125	94.8
3	Tony Stewart	14	117.2	92.4
4	David Ragan	14	121.5	92.3
5	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	21.8	119	90.1
6	Brian Vickers	16.8	107.6	90.1
7	Joey Logano	9	88.8	88.8
8	Kurt Busch	11.2	107.3	87.7
9	Matt Kenseth	16.4	120.1	86
10	Jeff Gordon	20.6	135.5	85.9

Percentage Laps in top-10 and -5 at Talladega

The fewer drivers there are in front of your driver, the fewer there are to make a mistake.

Here is a list of the drivers who have spent the most time at the front of the pack:

Driver	Top-10 Laps	%	Top-5	%	Possible Laps
Dale Earnhardt Jr	585	62%	399	42%	946
Denny Hamlin	567	60%	373	39%	946
Tony Stewart	469	50%	348	37%	946
Kyle Busch	418	44%	278	29%	946
Juan Montoya	411	43%	205	22%	946
David Ragan	398	42%	172	18%	946
Brian Vickers	305	40%	152	20%	754
Joey Logano	76	40%	35	19%	188
Elliott Sadler	379	40%	163	17%	946
Kurt Busch	358	38%	175	18%	946
Jimmie Johnson	337	36%	194	21%	946
Jeff Gordon	322	34%	211	22%	946
Martin Truex Jr	309	33%	159	17%	946
Matt Kenseth	292	31%	119	13%	946
Ryan Newman	284	30%	142	15%	946
David Stremme	224	30%	93	12%	756
Brad Keselowski	53	28%	12	6%	188
Reed Sorenson	264	28%	74	8%	946
Jeff Burton	260	27%	131	14%	946
Paul Menard	243	26%	127	13%	946
David Reutimann	238	25%	97	10%	946
Casey Mears	233	25%	89	9%	946
Kasey Kahne	196	21%	83	9%	946
Jamie McMurray	188	20%	107	11%	946
Michael Waltrip	149	20%	50	7%	754
Kevin Harvick	156	16%	61	6%	946
Marcos Ambrose	29	15%	5	3%	188
Greg Biffle	129	14%	77	8%	946
Sam Hornish Jr	49	13%	17	5%	376
Clint Bowyer	122	13%	32	3%	946
Joe Nemechek	117	12%	43	5%	946
Bobby Labonte	113	12%	43	5%	946
Tony Raines	60	11%	28	5%	570
Regan Smith	77	10%	19	3%	758
Carl Edwards	84	9%	24	3%	946
Dave Blaney	29	8%	11	3%	378
Scott Speed	11	6%	6	3%	188
Michael McDowell	11	6%	0	0%	188
John Andretti	11	3%	4	1%	376
Mark Martin	5	3%	3	2%	188
Robby Gordon	19	2%	6	1%	946
A J Allmendinger	1	0%	1	0%	376
Max Papis	0	0%	0	0%	188

BAM Racing due to return?

Beth Ann Morganthal Racing is developing a relationship with Warner Music Nashville that may allow them to return to the track competitively, according to their Web site. No details were given at this time.

Our View In this age of start and park operations, any attempt to be competitive is rewarded with consistent results in the 30s. Just look at John Andretti's effort this season.

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Allmendinger charged with DWI

A.J. Allmendinger failed a field sobriety test, according to ESPN.com, after blew a .08 on a Breathalyzer test. He immediately apologized for the incident and is taking full responsibility for it.

Our View According to unconfirmed sources, Richard Petty Motorsports expects to allow him to race this weekend at Talladega, where he finished 35th this spring.

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Yahoo! Talladega Preview

Go find your lucky quarter and prepare for this week's Amp Energy 500 at Talladega SuperSpeedway. Oh yeah, and read this preview that I wrote for Yahoo! Games (.pdf).

Martinsville Inspection Cleared

According to @dustinlong: Post-race inspection is done. All clear. Engines to R&D Center: Denny Hamlin, Jimmie Johnson and Kurt Busch; Cars to R&D center: Denny Hamlin, Kurt Busch, Jimmie Johnson and Mark Martin.

Hamlin wins in front of hometown crowd

Denny Hamlin held off Jimmie Johnson and Juan Montoya during a green-white-checkered finish to win his second race at Martinsville.

Our View Hamlin and Johnson have combined to win the last seven races and this spring they battled first and second with Johnson taking the victory.

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Yahoo! Qualification Story – Martinsville

Track position is critical on a short, flat track like Martinsville. Get our take on the top qualifiers in this week's Yahoo! qualification story (.pdf).

Hendrick Motorsports dominates Martinsville practice 1

Thee Hendrick Motorsports drivers sat atop the speed chart in practice for the Tums Fast Relief 500. Mark Martin posted a lap of 96.156, Jeff Gordon went 96.122 mph and Dale Earnhardt Jr. went 96.015 mph.

Our View Martin and Gordon come as no surprise—and if you read this week's Yahoo! fantasy preview, Earnhardt would not have been either.

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Hornish crashes in Martinsville practice 1

Sam Hornish Jr. crashed barely 15 minutes into the first practice session for the Tums Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway after apparently experiencing brake issues.

Our View With a best Martinsville finish of 28th at this track, Hornish wasn't on many fantasy owners radar screen to begin with.

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Waltrip involved in traffic accident

Michael Waltrip was involved in a traffic accident and cited for failure to yield the right of way to a motorcycle, according to WCNC.com. He was given and passed a field sobriety test.

Our View He blew a .06 on the breathalyzer, which was below the state limit of .08, but this unfortunately brings a 2007 incident back to mind in which he crashed his car and fled the scene of the accident. Charges for reckless driving and leaving the scene of an accident were brought against him for that incident, but those charges were later dropped.

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Three teams test at "Little Rock"

Three teams spent a day testing on the Martinsville-style short track at Rockingham Speedway. They included Sterling Marlin, John Andretti—and believe it or not—Jimmie Johnson.

Our View With five victories in the last six Martinsville races, you wouldn't think Johnson needed practice. Then again, this is one way he's kept his advantage.

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Yahoo! Martinsville Preview

Things are about to get interesting as NASCAR heads into back-to-back wild card weekends. Don't expect the Chasers to dominate this week like they did early in the playoffs, but for a list of strong dark horses check out this week's Yahoo! Preview (.pdf) to find out.