May 18, 2009

N'Wide: Lowe's entry list

The entry list for the Carquest Auto Parts 300 has been posted and it features a large field of 52 cars for 43 spots.

Our View: In addition to making it more difficult for the start and park operations, fantasy owners will hopefully get a chance to see Patrick Carpentier, Marc Davis and Peyton Sellers race.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. will run his own No. 5 and get the chance to extend his top-five streak at this track to three. For a complete list of drivers' finishes, check back on Tuesday.

Lowe's Cup entry list

The entry list for the Coca-Cola 600 has been posted and it features 46 cars for 43 slots.

Our View: In addition to the regulars, Bill Elliott will drive the No. 21, J.J. Yeley will drive the No. 41 Shana Mayfield entry, Mike Bliss will drive the No. 09 and David Starr will be in Trevor Boys' No. 06.

IRL: Tag team

"Tag," you're it. Alex Tagliani will replace Bruno Junquiera in the No. 36 Conquest Racing car, according to AutoRacingDaily.com. Tagliani was the final driver bumped from the field on Sunday by Ryan-Hunter Reay and he did not have an opportunity to attempt to re-qualify.

Our View: "It’s a shame that Alex got bumped out of the field at the end,” Junquiera said. “I knew coming into this that Alex is Conquest’s primary driver and that if something happened to the first car that I would likely give him my place and I completely understand it.”

That's a lot of understanding.

IRL: First female over the wall

Milka Duno won't be the only woman on her side of the wall when she comes in to pit. Jackman (make that jackwoman) Anna Chatten will be lifting the No. 23 Dreyer Reinbold entry for service, according to AutoRacingDaily.com.

Our View: It is believed she will be the first female, "over-the-wall" crew member. More power to her.

Stewart's better piece for the 600

Will Tony Stewart bring back his All-Star winning car for this week's Coke 600? According to crew chief Darian Grubb, there's a better car back at the shop.

Our View: "I think we have a better piece back at the shop," Grubb said after the conclusion of the All-Star race. "It's in the paint booth right now. They're finishing up the decals. We might bring this as a back up. But I think what we've got back at the shop is even better.

Lowe's results, last five races

Success predicts success. That's true in business and it's even more accurate in auto racing, so this week's top choices for your fantasy roster need to come from those drivers and teams who finish with the leaders on a consistent basis.

The biggest issue with that is, however, that the new body style has elevated parity to an extreme level and has made it difficult for drivers to string together long runs of top-10s together. It's true that last year, five drivers swept the top 10 in both Lowe's races—including the spring winner Kasey Kahne and fall's Jeff Burton—but no one has managed to run four or more solid results.

Four drivers have managed to earn three consecutive solid finishes, however, and they should become your starting spot for the Coca-Cola 600.

Kyle Busch leads the league with three straight top-fives. Add in a pair of victories and a second-place finish in the Nationwide Series during that same span, and he is certainly the hottest driver at Lowe's for the moment.

Kasey Kahne backed up last year's Coke 600 victory with a second last fall and he preceded it with an eighth in fall 2007. That gives him nearly as much momentum as Busch. In fact, when one factors in his victory in fall 2006, he has the best average finish during the last five Lowe's races.

Jeff Burton (with a worst finish of sixth in the last three races) and Jeff Gordon (with a worst of eighth) round out this list and gives you a variety of marquee and mid-cap drivers from which to choose.

Last Five Races

DriverAvg Finish2008.22008.12007.22007.12006.2
Kasey Kahne 7.00218231
Jeff Burton 7.60164243
Kyle Busch9.20433306
Tony Stewart 11.0011187613
Bobby Labonte 11.60171112135
David Stremme13.67

91715
Carl Edwards 14.003395158
Jimmie Johnson 14.2063914102
Dale Earnhardt Jr14.403651984
Jeff Gordon 15.608414124
Mark Martin 16.20915161130
Clint Bowyer18.20122522923
Casey Mears 18.40292921112
Dave Blaney 18.80271761826
Todd Bodine 19.00



19
Denny Hamlin19.40162420928
Kevin Harvick 19.801314332118
Jamie McMurray 21.00523241934
Regan Smith21.002319


Reed Sorenson21.40152230436
Matt Kenseth 21.60417341214
Kurt Busch 21.80316263232
Martin Truex Jr22.401434171631
Greg Biffle 23.2072274337
Scott Riggs24.001928362017
Brian Vickers 24.20184246510
David Ragan24.7510124037
Sterling Marlin 25.00
31
3311
Ryan Newman 27.202121283927
A J Allmendinger27.2543201531
Sam Hornish Jr27.33221347

Elliott Sadler 28.00208413635
Tony Raines 28.00404831147
Michael Waltrip 28.802427104538
David Reutimann30.0032102949
David Gilliland31.602540253533
Robby Gordon 31.603043382225
Jeremy Mayfield 32.00

3925
Juan Montoya32.2534303728
Joe Nemechek 32.80374745269
Paul Menard33.2526412244


Last Five Years
Avg. Fin


DriverAvg. FinAvg. StartAttempts
Jimmie Johnson 7.706.5010
Jeff Burton 11.1021.5010
Bobby Labonte 12.5016.3010
Kasey Kahne 12.8010.9010
Carl Edwards 13.6718.789
Denny Hamlin16.2916.297
Tony Stewart 16.5017.8010
Mark Martin 16.7012.1010
Dale Earnhardt Jr16.7017.0010
Jamie McMurray 17.7021.6010
Casey Mears 18.2015.2010
Clint Bowyer18.3322.176
Greg Biffle 18.6019.3010
Jeremy Mayfield 18.8623.577
Matt Kenseth 19.0014.4010
Reed Sorenson19.5023.176
Martin Truex Jr20.0026.867
Kurt Busch 20.9019.4010
Regan Smith21.0033.002
Kyle Busch21.4017.2010
Jeff Gordon 21.4015.4010
David Stremme21.6021.805
Dave Blaney 22.2023.7810
Elliott Sadler 22.2010.0010
Joe Nemechek 22.3024.3810
Ryan Newman 23.209.5010
Kevin Harvick 23.4019.1010
David Ragan24.7515.504
Scott Riggs24.8015.2010
Brian Vickers 25.6016.5610
Robby Gordon 27.1027.9010
A J Allmendinger27.2530.754
Sam Hornish Jr27.3328.003
David Reutimann28.4025.005
Sterling Marlin 29.1327.888
Paul Menard29.4026.255
Michael Waltrip 29.7324.2211
David Gilliland31.6027.005
Todd Bodine 32.0014.002
Juan Montoya32.2530.504
Tony Raines 34.1338.338

May 17, 2009

Busch wins Camping World race

Third times the charm for Busch

For the third consecutive year, a NASCAR regular has made the overnight trip from the All-Star race in Charlotte to compete in a combination Camping World East/West race at Iowa Speedway. Kevin Harvick and Kasey Kahne failed to beat the lower division regulars, but Kyle Busch finally proved their master in the 2009 edition of the Long John Silver 200.

Our View: If anyone was going to do it, fantasy owners won't be surprised that Busch was the first. The Nationwide Series will head to Iowa for an inaugural race this year and Busch now has some seat time on that track. Brian Ickler and David Mayhew finished second and third.

2009 Indy 500 Lineup

Four grueling days of qualification are in the books and the field is set for the most prestigious race of the year.

We've known for a while that Helio Castroneves has the pole and over the course of his career, he's done a great job of finishing what he starts on this track.

John Andretti and Ryan Hunter-Reay provide the drama on bump day by becoming the last two drivers to make the field.

Notable others include all three female drivers. Danica Patrick qualified in 10th on the first day of time trials; Sarah Fisher made the show on day two in 21st and Milka Duno had to wait until the final day to know she was in the show in 31st.

Indy 500 Lineup


StartDriverAvg. FinAvg. StartAttempts
1Helio Castroneves6.755.638
2Ryan Briscoe12.6711.333
3Dario Franchitti9.4011.405
4Graham Rahal33.0013.001
5Scott Dixon9.676.506
6Tony Kanaan12.433.717
7Mario Moraes18.0028.001
8Marco Andretti9.6714.003
9Will Power13.0023.001
10Danica Patrick10.506.754
11Alex Lloyd25.0019.001
12Raphael Matos


13Paul Tracy2.0029.001
14Vitor Meira7.0012.176
15Justin Wilson27.0016.001
16Hideki Mutoh7.009.001
17Ed Carpenter15.0015.605
18Dan Wheldon10.175.676
19Anthony Foyt IV17.5024.502
20Scott Sharp16.279.0911
21Sarah Fisher26.5718.297
22Davey Hamilton12.3816.138
23Robert Doornbos


24Townsend Bell16.0013.502
25Oriol Servia11.0025.001
26Tomas Scheckter18.0010.717
27Mike Conway


28John Andretti23.0022.502
29E J Viso26.0026.001
30Bruno Junqueira18.2010.405
31Milka Duno25.0028.002
32Nelson Phillippe


33Ryan Hunter-Reay6.0020.001
DNQAlex Tagliani


DNQBuddy Lazier11.2317.7713
DNQStanton Barrett


IRL: Three fail to qualify for 500

Alex Tagliani, Buddy Lazier and Stanton Barrett failed to qualify for the Indy 500.

Our View: None of these drivers were likely to make it onto your roster, but that doesn't reduce the sting to their fans.

IRL: Indy 500 field is set

In a dramatic Bump Day, John Andretti and Ryan Hunter-Reay became the last two drivers to qualify for the Indy 500. RacingOne.com has the complete grid posted.

Our View: Andretti may have had the biggest up and down day after getting bumped on numerous occasions. He finally settled into 28th on the grid in the final minutes.

Ku Busch's post All-Star race comments

“It was really a good effort all the way around for this Miller Lite Dodge team." Busch said. "I felt that the way that our car took off on green flag runs, the car just took too long to get going. That’s a big mystery to us for sure and it’s not anything you want in a 10-lap shootout. Overall, I thought that we had the best car on a 20-lap run, but that doesn’t pay the big bucks tonight. We finished third, but that doesn’t mean anything. If anything, we learned some things for next weekend’s (Coca-Cola) 600 that hopefully we can apply and make our Miller Lite Dodge better."

Our View: Busch had a top-five car for most of the evening and his fantasy owners should be happy that he ended the day in third. Pushing the issue only leads to misery—just ask his brother Kyle, Ryan Newman or Jeff Gordon. Kurt's patient attitude should make him a good value in the 600.

Truck: Gilliland Lowe's report

The Racer's Group has entered a car or truck in every race at Lowe's during the All-Star/Coke 600 weekends. David Gilliland has already posted one top-10 finish with a sixth in the North Carolina Education Lottery 200 Camping World Truck Series race and his comments can be found at Motorsport.com.

Our View: Gilliland started the season with such promise and has fallen on hard times lately. This could be what it takes to restore some confidence to the team, but he is still a long way from being recommended in the Coke 600.

France defends NASCAR

A transcript from Brian France's press conference at Lowe's, in which he defends NASCAR's drug policy, can be found at Motorsport.com.

Our View: It's the usual defense of the policy—and the usual "missing of the point." No one is saying NASCAR doesn't have the right and need to test drivers, but there is no reason on earth for them not to tell drivers what they are testing for.

IRL: More notes from day 9

Motorsport.com has published their own set of day nine notes from the third day of qualification.

Our View: Among other things, you will find out that Tomas Scheckter's car has been painted a "luscious sea-blue livery for his new sponsor Mona-Vie." Now there's some need to know information.

IRL: Duno betters time

Milka Duno has bettered her qualification time at Indy with a speed of 221.106, which places her 32nd on the grid. If she had posted that time on Saturday, she would have landed 25th.

Our View: This certainly improves her odds of starting the Indy 500, and that will mean that three female drivers make the show. Danica Patrick and Sarah Fisher are comfortably in the show.

F1: Mosley vows "no compromise"

"We've had an interesting meeting, an exchange of views, but nothing has come out of it," Max Mosley said following a meeting with the Formula One Teams Association in London, according to Motorsport.com.

Our View: The arrogance of a "no compromise" statement is countered somewhat by the confusion over why owners think the need to spend more than $60 million. It's hard to take a side in this dogfight.

Stewart on his All-Star win

Tony Stewart met with reporters after the All-Star race and described his last couple of laps.

I've said this 50 times since I got in the car: I can't believe he gave me the bottom. We got a run on him two laps before and got a run off of 2 at the bottom, got beside him. I overdrove it in 3 and just got down there and got loose trying to clear him, and he was able to get back by us. And then he went to the bottom in 1 and 2 the next lap.

I don't think he was great down there, but he was good enough, I think, to hold us off. But the next lap we go back through there and we got a run off of 4 on him.

I was prepared to go at least to the middle or to the top and run somewhere different because I knew I wasn't going to be able to follow him through there again.

And on the entry he ran up high, and I was like: Wow, I can't believe he's giving me the bottom again. I got down there, got in the gas real quick and got by. And it was the best the car was all night. Darian made a handful of adjustments on that last caution and, man, did it wake that car up.

It just was stuck those last 10 laps. We were as good as the guys in front of us. We were just in traffic with them. And I'm confident even if Jeff didn't have a problem or Jimmie didn't have a problem around us, that we had a shot at running with those guys.

I don't know if we would have got by those two, but Ryan Newman was probably the guy that should have been in Victory Lane tonight. He got a tire cut and had to come get it fixed.
But, man, it was just awesome to finally get into Victory Lane here with a group of guys that have been looking at this for a long time.

Dover renovation completed

It was the last NASCAR track to modernize its pits to 43 slots, but the renovation on Dover International Speedway is now complete, according to SceneDaily.com.

Our View: Not only does Dover have 43 stalls, each of them are longer than last year and pit lane is wider. This will have a significant impact on fantasy owners since qualification in the back will not be quite as bad as before. Since Dover is a rhythm track, however, qualification cannot be completely discounted.

Gale goes Canadian

Kevin Harvick, Inc. driver Cale Gale will compete in most of the NASCAR Canada races this year, campaigning for Farewell Racing, according to SceneDaily.com.

Our View: Harvick summed it up best, "Cale is a very talented young driver who needs seat time," Harvick said in a news release. "When FRI approached us with the opportunity for Cale to drive for them, we saw it as a win-win."

F1: Lola announces 2010 intentions

While Ferrari, Renault and other race teams are threatening to exit Formula 1 in response to a proposed salary cap, British car maker Lola announced its intention to return to the sport in 2010, according to Formula1.com.

Our View: The salary cap brouhaha sounds like a tempest in a teapot and even if the major makers carry through on their threat to pull out, the head to head competition is liable to improve.

IRL: Tracy may run more races in 2009

Paul Tracy may run additional races in 2009 for KV Racing, according to IndyCar.com. He will start the Indy 500 in 13th, which has generated interest in the fiery Canadian.

Our View: For the moment, the focus is on the Canadian road races and that fits Tracy's skill set best. If he makes the starts, he could be a great value.

May 16, 2009

2009 All-Star Results

Smoke 'em if you got 'em. It was only a matter of time before Tony Stewart became a winner as the owner of his own team and it doesn't matter one little bit that this was an exhibition race.

After the race, second-place finisher Matt Kenseth told reporters that Stewart "rolled by me like I was tied to a tree," and it was sheer determination that got him to the lead.

Kurt Busch, Denny Hamlin and Carl Edwards rounded out the top five after relatively quiet nights.

Fan vote winner Joey Logano advanced from 21st to eighth, which has to have improved his confidence as his rookie campaign nears the mid-season mark.

Unfortunately, the drivers with the dominant cars all sustained crash damage and were not in contention at the end. Jimmie Johnson pounded the wall in the final segment in a single car incident, while Kyle Busch and Jeff Gordon got together only three laps into the 10-lap shootout.

Results
FinishStartDriverLapsStatusAvg Fin *
115Tony Stewart100Running7.55
23Matt Kenseth100Running6.44
32Kurt Busch100Running12.13
418Denny Hamlin100Running16.50
514Carl Edwards100Running11.20
65Mark Martin100Running12.91
713Kyle Busch100Running18.60
821Joey Logano100Running8.00
920Jamie McMurray100Running19.43
104Dale Earnhardt Jr100Running7.80
117Bobby Labonte100Running13.12
1217Clint Bowyer100Running21.50
131Jimmie Johnson100Running6.00
148Kasey Kahne100Running13.14
159Kevin Harvick100Running11.67
1619Sam Hornish Jr100Running11.50
1710Brad Keselowski100Running17.00
1812Ryan Newman93Accident8.88
196Jeff Gordon92Accident11.33
2016Jeff Burton85Engine17.44
2111Greg Biffle71Accident16.00

* Avg. Fin includes "Showdown" results unless a driver advanced into All-Star portion.

Shootout Results

F1: Monaco Quotes

Formula1.com has posted team and driver quotes for the Monaco Grand Prix.

Our View: “Monaco is my favorite circuit," said Lewis Hamilton. "The sensation you get from racing up the hill at 175mph, trying to make as straight a line as possible between the barriers while just shaving them with the walls of the tires is unbelievable." Along with the Indy 500 and Coke 600, this is one of the biggest days in auto racing.

2009 Shootout Results

Sam Hornish Jr. is making a career out of advancing into the All-Star race. Can another transferee win?

Jamie McMurray finished second and advanced. Joey Logano received the fan vote to advance into the All-Star race.



Results

FinishStartDriver
18Sam Hornish Jr.
230Jamie McMurray
33David Stremme
413David Reutimann
519Joey Logano
66Martin Truex Jr
710A J Allmendinger
87David Ragan
932Robby Gordon
1014Marcos Ambrose
114Dave Blaney
1211Juan Montoya
1323Casey Mears
1428Michael Waltrip
1522David Gilliland
1616Bill Elliott
1724Paul Menard
1834Reed Sorenson
1920Scott Speed
2021Joe Nemechek
219Max Papis
2233J J Yeley
2315Dexter Bean
2435Tony Raines
255Scott Riggs
2612Mike Wallace
2726Todd Bodine
2817Derrike Cope
2925Mike Garvey
3029David Starr
3118Norm Benning
321Kirk Shelmerdine
3327Elliott Sadler
3431Brian Vickers
352Carl Long


All-Star Results

IRL: Day 9 report

IndyCar.com has posted the trackside report for day 9 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Our View: This was the third day of qualifying and it provided fantasy owners with a full field of hopefuls. Qualification was dramatic as Stanton Barrett narrowly missed qualifying in the last two corners as the last car to go out on track.

IRL: Junqueira enters 500

Bruno Junqueira will be a last minute entry for the Indy 500, according to IndyCar.com.

Our View: This deal came together at the last minute with Conquest Racing and sponsorship from All Sport Drink. Junqueira sat on the pole for the 2002 Indy 500, but he'll have to qualify on bump day this year since he was unable to make an attempt on Saturday.

Almirola wants back in

Aric Almirola has been wandering around the garage area at Lowe's, wondering how he can get back in a NASCAR Cup ride, according to SceneDaily.com.

Our View: Almirola is a solid mid-cap pick, especially on the short tracks so it would be nice to see Dale Earnhardt, Inc. get a sponsor and field the No. 8.

IRL: Day 8 report

IndyCar.com has posted the trackside report for day 8 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Our View: Mike Conway's health and Tomas Scheckter's return to the track highlight this report.

IRL: Indy 500 full

The Indy 500 will be full as 33 cars have qualified and now the bumping will begin.

Our View: Only a handful of cars will go home, but this is one of the most emotional races of the year to miss.

Free Jeremy?

Dustin Long reports via Twitter that a plane just flew over the track with a banner reading "Free Jeremy."

Our View: That pretty much says it all.

Ragan confused by slow start

David Ragan is confused and a little frustrated by his slow start to 2009, according to SceneDaily.com.

Our View: Ragan ended 2008 with seven top-15s in the last eight races and it appeared he would carry that momentum over into this season when he finished sixth in the Daytona 500. Since then, however, he's earned only one more top-15 in 10 starts and has an average finish of 26.4. Wait for his fortunes to improve before adding him to your roster.

No provision for appeal in NASCAR drug policy

Brian France has said NASCAR won't consider an appeal policy for their drug test, according to SceneDaily.com.

Our View: And NASCAR wonders why their popularity with fans is eroding; it's this "we're smarter than God" attitude that just sort of rubs folks the wrong way. While the policy is laudable and necessary, it's hard to imaging the sanctioning body is so arrogant that they can't conceive of making a mistake.

IRL: 30 cars qualified

John Andretti and Milka Duno waved off their qualification attempt and the Indy 500 has 30 drivers qualified so far with a little less than two hours remaining in Saturday's session.

Our View: After a wet start that delayed time trials, every driver who wanted to go out early has, but look for activity to pick up in the final 45 minutes or so. The track is now open for practice.

IRL: Day three qualification underway

The track has dried and day three qualification is underway. Looks like there will be enough time to get a full field before the end of the day.

Our View: The first two drivers on track were E.J. Viso and Townsend Bell. It's important to have a good time on Saturday in case qualification is rained out on Sunday—the final scheduled day for time trials.

Truck: North Carolina Education Lottery 200 Results

Ron Hornaday Jr. continues to pad his record in the Camping World Truck Series by earning his 40th victory. The inactive Jack Sprague sits at 28, while Mike Skinner is two further back with 26. Hornaday had a sizeable advantage at the end of the race, but a big reason for that was because Kyle Busch got penalized by NASCAR for rough driving after he crashed then-leader Colin Braun.

Skinner has the second most Truck victories, but Friday night was a rough one for the veteran. He tried to make a questionable pass on Johnny Sauter on the front stretch midway through the event and slammed the wall. As soon as he contacted the concrete, T.J. Bell piled in and sent the No. 5 truck tumbling toward turn one. Thank goodness NASCAR requires these things to get built to rigid standards.

Results
FinishStartDriverLapsLaps LedStatusAvg Fin
13Ron Hornaday Jr13429Running8.20
21Kyle Busch134
Running4.60
35Matt Crafton13411Running6.57
420Ryan Newman134
Running4.00
59Terry Cook134
Running8.43
619David Gilliland134
Running6.00
715David Starr134
Running16.00
812Tayler Malsam134
Running8.00
910Stacy Compton134
Running18.50
1028Dennis Setzer134
Running11.00
1111Rick Crawford134
Running10.29
1214James Buescher134
Running12.00
1318Johnny Sauter134
Running13.00
1422Jason White134
Running20.00
158Chad McCumbee13417Running12.50
1621Brian Ickler133
Running16.00
1732Mario Gosselin133
Running17.00
1834Ryan Hackett133
Running18.00
1933Ben Stancil131
Running19.00
2035Chris Jones131
Running20.00
217Brian Scott129
Running28.00
2230Brent Raymer128
Running22.00
236Johnny Benson Jr128
Running15.40
2427Norm Benning126
Running24.00
254Todd Bodine977Accident15.67
2617Colin Braun8843Accident20.50
2724Mike Bliss53
Engine22.00
2823Brandon Knupp43
Engine28.00
292Mike Skinner3427Accident19.83
3016T J Bell34
Accident19.50
3113Timothy Peters24
Accident27.75
3226Marc Mitchell14
Quit28.00
3329Johnny Chapman9
Quit31.00
3436John Jackson9
Quit34.00
3525Donnie Neuenberger 6
Quit30.00
3631Chris Fontaine4
Quit36.00

Rain everywhere

Rain has slowed activity in Indianapolis and Charlotte both. Qualification for the Indy 500 is on hold, but hopefully tonight's All-Star activity will go as planned.

Our View: For that matter, the World of Outlaws Late Model race in Lawrenceburg, Ill. has been canceled by rain. It's hard to be a race fan some weeks.

Schrader to run WoO Late Models

Ken Schrader might not have a NASCAR ride for the moment, but he'll be racing on Memorial Day. He joins the World of Outlaws Late Model series for a tripleheader at US 36 Raceway, 34 Raceway and Charter Raceway from 5/22 through 5/24, according to the WoOLateModels Web site.

Our View: You can't keep Schrader out of a car, and it's great to see him competing in a major series such as this.

May 15, 2009

Truck: Hornaday wins at Lowe's

Ron Hornaday used new tires late in the Lowe's race and held off Kyle Busch to win a crash-marred Camping World Truck Series race. It was his 40th Truck victory.

Our View: Notable others included Ryan Newman, which we predicted before the start of the race, and Matt Crafton in third.

Truck: Point-leader Skinner takes hard hit

The Camping World Truck Series points' leader Mike Skinner took a vicious hit after he tried to make a questionable pass on Johnny Sauter on lap 35 of the Lowe's race and spun in front of T.J. Bell. Skinner ended up on his lid.

Our View: He'll take a huge hit in the standings, but Skinner keyed the mike and told the crew he was o.k. before exiting the truck.

All-Star Race Lineup

No one is particularly surprised that Jimmie Johnson won the pole for Saturday night's All-Star race. Even with a curveball of a pit stop and three-lap qualification format, the cream rises to the top.

Kurt Busch in second and Matt Kenseth in third were the only drivers to break up the Hendrick Motorsports juggernaut at the top of the grid, however, since Dale Earnhardt Jr., Mark Martin and Jeff Gordon settled into positions fourth through sixth. All of these drivers had flawless qualification sessions.

The same could not be said about Greg Biffle, Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards and Jeff Burton who were penalized for a variety of reasons. Tony Stewart forgot the team was changing four tires and had to back up to complete service and Denny Hamlin broke a transmission, which contributed to their poor starting spots.

All-Star Lineup
StartDriverAvg. StartAvg. FinAttempts
1Jimmie Johnson10.715.007
2Kurt Busch7.5713.437
3Matt Kenseth8.257.008
4Dale Earnhardt Jr13.447.569
5Mark Martin8.3813.2421
6Jeff Gordon8.7110.8817
7Bobby Labonte8.8113.2516
8Kasey Kahne12.0013.006
9Kevin Harvick7.7511.258
10Brad Keselowski


11Greg Biffle8.8015.176
12Ryan Newman9.007.577
13Kyle Busch4.7521.504
14Carl Edwards10.0012.754
15Tony Stewart11.408.2010
16Jeff Burton12.0017.2917
17Clint Bowyer16.3324.673
18Denny Hamlin10.0020.673

All-Star qualification penalties

The following drivers earned penalties in All-Star qualification: Greg Biffle (5 seconds for a loose lugnut), Kyle Busch (5 seconds for a loose lugnut), Carl Edwards (15 seconds for three loose lugnuts) and Jeff Burton (20 second for speeding on pit road).

Our View: To win the pole in All-Star qualification, a driver has to have a perfect stop as well as a fast car.

Johnson wins All-Star pole

Jimmie Johnson set the fastest time in All-Star qualification, with a time of 121.42 seconds.

Our View: Johnson continues to own this track. He's the closest thing to a must have for your fantasy All-Star lineup.

Truck: Lowe's lineup

FoxSports.com has posted the starting lineup for the Lowe's Camping World Truck Series race.

Our View: There are some fast Trucks up front, but Ryan Newman and David Gilliland on row 10 cannot be completely ignored.

Showdown qualification canceled

Qualification for the Sprint Showdown has been canceled and the field will be set based on how the drivers drew for time trials.

Our View: This sprint race can be dramatic and now that fast cars will be sprinkled throughout the field, it's going to get even more exciting.

Truck qualification rained out

Craftsman Truck Series qualification has been rained out, so Friday night's event will be set by points.

Our View: That puts Kyle Busch on the pole, and if you didn't think he was a favorite already, his odds just improved. He won this race back-to-back in 2005/2006. Click here for the average finish during the last five years.