Crown Royal 400 Preview

The month of May is a great one for racing enthusiasts of all breeds. It’s a month that begins with the singing of “My Old Kentucky Home” at the Kentucky Derby and ends with Jim Nabors belting out “Back Home Again in Indiana” before the green flag at the Indy 500. No matter what kind of racing you like, the month of May is a great one.

Even though all eyes in the world of horse racing will be on Churchill Downs this Saturday, all eyes of fans of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will convene at Richmond International Raceway for the running of the Crown Royal presents the Russ Friedman 400.

Too many articles and opinions have flown around the web and the airwaves surrounding last week’s (insert your own adjective here) finish at Talladega. All I can say is, to quote Rascal Flatts, “I’m Movin’ On”. Here’s a short look at some of the drivers and stories that you’ll be sure to hear about if you tune in tomorrow evening for the race from Richmond.

1. How many different replays and opinions will we hear about Talladega on the practice, qualifying and pre-race shows from Richmond?

My guess to the above quandary is too many times to count. We all get the point, some people hate plate racing, still more despise Talladega, and we all know NASCAR’s stance on the issue—nothing is changing anytime soon.

Carl Edwards took an unwanted field trip last weekend into the fence at Talladega in the much talked about finish

So here’s a thought to everyone; drop it, let it go, forget abou

t it. This week’s race is in Richmond where I doubt we’ll see a car fly into a catch fence or a wreck that takes out half the field. This week is in Richmond. Let’s keep our focus on Richmond, and re-visit Talladega in October when the series returns there.

2. Will Mark Martin continue his great runs at short tracks?

Because what’s one of these previews without Mark Martin? Plus, I have to satisfy my “Markaholic” audience, who went away from Talladega extremely angry and irritated.

"The Big One" took out Mark and teammate Jeff Gordon. I doubt we'll see carnage like this tomorrow evening.

Mark Martin has finished 6^th, 7^th and first at short tracks on the 2009 schedule already. Guess which car he’s bringing to Richmond? If you guessed the same car that won at Phoenix, you’d be right.

If we rewind to last year’s Crown Royal 400 we’d see Mark Martin in the US Army Chevy sitting in third place for most of the night. He qualified second and finished third in a race dominated by Denny Hamlin and won by Clint Bowyer.

Mark finished third at Richmond last season in the #8 US Army Chevy

I normally don’t put my neck on the line and predict a winner, but this weekend it’d be safe to put your money down on this old pony—to use a horse racing reference. He’s my odds on favorite to take the checkers and keep a perfect record with a car he’s only raced once.

3. Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt Jr return to the place where they got together racing for the win last year…Will either of those two be back in contention for the win tomorrow?

If Kyle Busch wasn’t public enemy number one following last May’s get together with NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver, he quickly became it. Although my take on the incident was much different than those of the “Jr. Nation,” the NASCAR Nation was in uproar after the event. Since then “Rowdy” Busch has been one of the most hated characters in all of NASCAR.

Did I mention that the two were racing for the top spot with two laps left when they got together and ran up the track in turn three last season? Well, following a late race battle at Richmond last spring, I once again ask if either of these two will be able to get their cars headed in the right direction and contend for the win.

4. Kurt Busch is the points leader for the first time in four years. Will he retain the points lead, and who will move into and out of the top 12 at Richmond?

The top 12 is constantly changing and moving, especially after last weekend’s crap shoot at Talladega. Ryan Newman claims the 13^th spot this weekend, and he has made a charge from the 32^nd spot just five races ago. We all know that Mark Martin made a climb just like Newman’s, but after finishing last at Talladega Mark has fallen to 18^th.

According to NASCAR.com statistics, since the “Chase” format began, at least 60 to 80 percent of the field in the “Chase” are in qualifying position after Richmond, which consequently holds the final race before the “Chase” begins. (http://www.nascar.com/2009/news/features/04/30/numbers.cup.richmond.rnewman/index.html) In its inaugural year though, Mark Martin was outside the top ten and worked his way into “Chase” contention by the time it started.

Kurt Busch leads the points, and although that title really only matters after the final race of the season, I wonder how long he’ll be able to hold on to the top spot with Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson nipping at his heels. Busch has been a pleasant surprise this season, will he continue to run well throughout the month of May? We’ll get our first answer tomorrow evening.

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Tune in tomorrow evening for the Crown Royal 400 from Richmond. We’ll see if the first time I’ve ever made a bold prediction for the winner comes true, and how many of my other stories are major headlines during the race. I look forward to giving you folks a race recap on Sunday or Monday—and this time I’ll make sure my VCR is working!

Have a great Friday and don’t forget to tune into the NASCAR Busch Series race from Richmond this evening as Mark Martin looks for yet another Busch Series win. Could Mark pull off the sweep?