Dan Lowry 400 News and Notes

Who's Hot / Who's Not In Sprint Cup : Aaron's 499 Edition
Mike Lovecchio

Anything can – and as we saw Sunday – will happen at Talladega. The new car provided exciting racing for the fans and good runs for some drivers, but provided plenty of headaches for others. Wheelmen like Juan Pablo Montoya and Travis Kvapil had surprisingly strong finishes, while Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards’ days ended early with tire problems, more evidence that the superspeedway is more of a crapshoot than anything else.

With a wildcard like Talladega, it’s hard for some of the hotter drivers to stay out of trouble with the “Big One” lurking around every corner. With that in mind, come in and see who survived to stay on this week’s HOT list, as well as who could really go for a good run at Richmond this weekend.

HOT

Kyle Busch: The younger Busch is beginning to look like he did at the start of the season. After finishes of 17th and 38th at the short tracks, Busch has three consecutive Top 10s, including a win this weekend at Talladega that almost got away. A near crash that displayed his amazing car control skills, a controversial pass below the yellow line, and a last lap caution all went Kyle’s way in order for him to snag this week’s victory.

Jeff Burton: Can 12th place be considered bad? Talladega hadn’t been kind to Burton, who had only finished better than 25th once there in his last five races; but the veteran improved on that history this week. Burton’s 12th place run is his worst since race two at California, and his second lowest finish of the year. Not bad, huh?

Dale Earnhardt, Jr.: It was yet another Top 10 this week for the leading Hendrick Motorsports driver, who came up short in his bid to end a winless streak that’s now reached 71 races. Junior is entering a stretch of the schedule where he has traditionally run well, but while his 10th place finish this week was not the victory many fans were expecting, he should be one of the favorites this weekend at Richmond; Junior has 3 wins and 9 top 10s in his 17 starts at that track.

Denny Hamlin: Hamlin was one of the most consistent Gibbs cars this weekend and had a shot for the win before the final caution came out. Finishing 3rd, Hamlin now has four straight Top 5s and five consecutive finishes of 6th or better. He’s moved from 15th in points to 4th over the past four weeks.

Clint Bowyer: You may not have heard his name called out much at Talladega, but Bowyer ran a conservative race that resulted in a respectable 9th place run. The Kansas native is on fire right now, scoring six straight top 10s that have jumped him from 24th in points to 7th.

WARM

Juan Pablo Montoya: The Colombian nearly picked up his first Sprint Cup oval win and may just have pulled it off if it weren’t for a last lap caution. The second place run was Montoya’s only Top 10 this year, but his consistency of Top 20s in every race except for the opener has helped him sneak into 12th in points.

David Ragan: Earlier this season, Ragan admitted more comfort in the car could lead to more success on the track. So far, he’s proven more than comfortable in his second year on the circuit; Ragan ran consistently up front, finishing 4th for his best run since Richmond last Fall. The Roush Fenway driver’s now finished in the Top 15 in three of his last four starts.

David Gilliland: Gilliland and teammate Travis Kvapil have shown signs of life lately for Yates Racing. Skeptics may say the two ran strong at Talladega because of the team’s superspeedway program, but Gilliland has three consecutive top 15s and four in the last five races.

COLD

Reed Sorenson: Can things get any worse for Sorenson? After an accident and a 42nd place finish at Phoenix, the No. 41 had an engine failure on just lap 4 this week. Aside from a 24th at Texas three races ago, Sorenson has not finished better than 30th since Race 3.

Matt Kenseth: Nobody could have expected Kenseth to struggle so much this season. He has yet to crack the Top 10 in points, and with three finishes of 30th or worse in his last four races — including a blown tire early this weekend — he has dropped to 19th in the standings.

Kurt Busch: One Busch may be running well, but this one isn’t. An accident in the final stages this weekend relegated him to 39th, Busch’s fourth straight race of 20th or worse. Despite sitting in the Top 5 in points after two races, the No. 2 car now sits 20th.

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Crown Royal 400 preview
By Micah Roberts
VegasInsider.com

This Saturday night in the Capital of the Confederacy, a nationally televised audience will get to witness one of NASCAR’s wildest crowds on the circuit. Richmond’s three-quarter mile track will serve as the stage for what will turn out to be the best action adventure on Saturday night’s TV lineup. Because the track is relatively short, the drivers get to play a little bumper cars, which in turn gets a few drivers in hostile moods, which results in the crowd roaring with approval. The whole process really plays out well on TV.
Richmond is listed as a short track because of its dimensions, but it runs nothing like Bristol or Martinsville. Taking a cue from the crew chiefs, the best way to figure out who will do well this week is look at recent results from Phoenix and New Hampshire. The three tracks look nothing alike but the correlation between the three is very strong. If a team has success on one of them, chances are they’ll be good on the other two.

Each of the top running teams from Phoenix will likely bring the exact same chassis to Richmond. Jimmie Johnson won at Phoenix a few weeks ago for his first victory of the season. When including last seasons results from the six races at Phoenix, New Hampshire, and Richmond, you’ll see that Johnson has three more wins from that group and a worst finish of 6th. Johnson swept the Richmond races last season.

Johnson has shown some vulnerability this year, but only on the larger tracks, or rather, the tracks that didn’t run the Car of Tomorrow last season. The team has admitted that they are behind the likes of Joe Gibbs and Jack Roush in that area. The area that the Hendrick cars are still tops in the business is the flat mid-range tracks of Phoenix, New Hampshire, and Richmond. Those cars they dominated with last season are still in tact, better than everyone else, and are ready to roll again this week.

Jeff Gordon finished 4th in both races last season and had a win at Phoenix. At New Hampshire, Gordon finished 2nd twice. His worst finish in the six races was a 10th at Phoenix. This year at Phoenix, Gordon finished 13th. Gordon has always had a tough time in Richmond. In 30 career starts he only has 16 top 10 finishes and has only won twice. The lack of success at Richmond, like the success he’s enjoyed at just about every other track, is much to the delight of the Richmond Rowdies. For some reason they like to see Gordon have a bad night of racing.

Since we’re discussing Richmond, Virginia we should mention a few Virginians that have a shot at winning this week. Denny Hamlin and Jeff Burton have are great candidates to win. Elliott Sadler is also from Virginia, but he doesn’t have much chance. Hamlin comes in with his Gibbs Toyota and has the third best average on the six tracks combined, behind Gordon and Johnson. At Phoenix this season, Hamlin finished a strong 3rd. Hamlin stands out this week because of his desire to win on his state soil. Last season he tried so hard to win and bring something positive to all Virginians after the horrific shootings on the campus of Virginia Tech. At both Martinsville and Richmond last season Hamlin finished 3rd and 6th in the four races. This season he has already crossed off Martinsville with a win there last month. This week, look for him to cross off Richmond as well.

Jeff Burton is a candidate to do well because of how well the Childress organization has collectively run on the flat mid-range tracks. They were already great with Kevin Harvick on these tracks before the COT. In 2006 Harvick won 4 of the 6 races run at Phoenix, New Hampshire, and Richmond. The COT program started a little slow last season but they were respectable until Clint Bowyer took the win at New Hampshire. In their first crack at it this season in Phoenix, two of the Childress drivers finished in the top 6 with Bowyer taking 2nd and Burton 6th.

Burton currently leads in points, but you can forget about him points racing. He hasn’t won in his home state since 1998, which is his one and only Richmond win. He knows he’ll have the car this week capable of winning and he wants it almost as bad as Hamlin does for the same reasons.

The Wild card for the Richmond race is Kyle Busch. He was instrumental in the Hendrick progression to their current dominance at Richmond. In both the old car and the COT, no one has been consistently better than Busch at Richmond. In six Richmond stats, he’s finished in the top 5 five times, including 2nd to Johnson in this race last year. On these flat tracks that we have bunched together as a group, Busch has been strong. He didn’t get a win on any of them last season because his teammates pigged most of them, but in 2006 he won at New Hampshire and in 2005 he won at Phoenix as a rookie. Could Richmond be next?

Carl Edwards brings Ford’s best shot at winning this week. He was 4th in Phoenix and will surely contend with all the top teams. Edwards teammate, Matt Kenseth, is someone that could use a good finish. Kenseth has done rather well at these tracks over his career posting wins at both Phoenix and Richmond. Last season, Kenseth had the best COT program among the Ford’s on these tracks. His first shot this year at Phoenix ended with a poor run due to an accident.

Mark Martin and Martin Truex Jr both had great runs at Phoenix which will have them fare well this week. Martin was 5th and Truex Jr was 8th. Like the Childress group, DEI got a late start of the COT, but as the season went on they were very competitive. Truex Jr finished 3rd and 5th in the two New Hampshire races and 7th in the fall Phoenix race. The No. 8 car that Dale Earnhardt Jr used to drive won three times in Richmond. The duo may not have enough to run with Hendrick or Gibbs this week, but they should a solid finish.

Over the last 10 years of analyzing the NASCAR and placing odds on who should do well, Richmond, Phoenix, and New Hampshire have been by far the easiest races for myself to calculate. The trends going into each race hold up so well and so perfect. Very rarely does something happen that wasn’t told or given mention to by looking at the stats and past races. Once in a while something crazy happens like Jeremy Mayfield winning at Richmond in 2004, but for the most part, these races hold pretty true.

TOP 5 finish Prediction:

#11 Denny Hamlin (7/1)
#48 Jimmie Johnson (5/1)
#31 Jeff Burton (18/1)
#07 Clint Bowyer (15/1)
#18 Kyle Busch (8/1)

Driver Highlights - Richmond
VegasInsider.com

Richmond International Raceway
Note: All driver statistics that follow are from Richmond International Raceway. The Loop Data statistics – Driver Rating, Average Running Position, etc. – in this release, however, cover the last six races at Richmond. NASCAR’s scoring loops began collecting data for statistical purposes in 2005.

Greg Biffle (No. 16 Dish Network Ford) 18/1

Two top fives, five top 10s; one pole
Average finish of 16.0
Average Running Position of 13.9, ninth-best
Driver Rating of 93.2, eighth-best
81 Fastest Laps Run, ninth-most
Average Green Flag Speed of 118.612 mph, seventh-fastest
1,744 (72.7%) Laps in the Top 15, fifth-most
113 Quality Passes (passes of cars in the top 15 under green), tied for ninth-most

Kurt Busch (No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge) 25/1

One win, two top fives, four top 10s
Average finish of 18.1
Average Running Position of 13.3, eighth-best
Driver Rating of 100.8, fifth-best
187 Fastest Laps Run, third-most
Average Green Flag Speed of 118.715 mph, fifth-fastest
1,574 (65.6%) Laps in the Top 15, sixth-most
136 Quality Passes (passes of cars in the top 15 under green), tied for third-most

Kyle Busch (No. 18 Pedigree Toyota) 8/1

Five top fives
Average finish of 6.2
Average Running Position of 7.8, third-best
Driver Rating of 109.0, third-best
163 Fastest Laps Run, fourth-most
Average Green Flag Speed of 118.779 mph, third-fastest
2,077 (86.5%) Laps in the Top 15, third-most
153 Quality Passes (passes of cars in the top 15 under green), second-most

Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88 AMP Energy/National Guard Chevrolet) 8/1

Three wins, seven top fives, nine top 10s
Average finish of 11.3
Average Running Position of 12.9, sixth-best
Driver Rating of 89.9, 10th-best
96 Fastest Laps Run, seventh-most
Series-high 334 Green Flag Passes
1,401 (58.4%) Laps in the Top 15, 10th-most
124 Quality Passes, eighth-most

Denny Hamlin (No. 11 FedEx Toyota) 7/1

Two top fives, three top 10s; one pole
Average finish of 6.5
Average Running Position of 6.0, second -best
Driver Rating of 111.3, second-best
58 Fastest Laps Run, tied for 10th-most
Average Green Flag Speed of 118.820 mph, second-fastest
Series-best percentage of Laps in the Top 15 – 98.1% for a total of 1,570
104 Quality Passes (average of 26.0 per race), fourth-best average

Kevin Harvick (No. 29 Shell/Pennzoil Chevrolet) 18/1

One win, four top fives, eight top 10s; one pole
Average finish of 12.1
Series-best Average Running Position of 5.6
Series-best Driver Rating of 121.2
Series-high 259 Fastest Laps Run
Series-fastest Average Green Flag Speed of 118.997
Series-high 2,267 (94.5%) Laps in the Top 15
Series-high 166 Quality Passes

Kasey Kahne (No. 9 Budweiser Dodge) 22/1

One win, two top fives, four top 10s; one pole
Average finish of 18.2
Average Running Position of 15.5, 10th-best
Driver Rating of 97.9, sixth-best
216 Fastest Laps Run, second-most
1,454 (60.6%) Laps in the Top 15, ninth-most
113 Quality Passes, tied for ninth-most

Ryan Newman (No. 12 Alltel Dodge) 25/1

One win, four top fives, seven top 10s; one pole
Average finish of 11.1
Average Running Position of 9.9, fifth-best
Driver Rating of 95.4, seventh-best
2,104 (87.7%) Laps in the Top 15, second-most
136 Quality Passes, tied for third-most

Tony Stewart (No. 20 Home Depot Toyota) 8/1

Three wins, six top fives, 12 top 10s
Average finish of 11.3
Average Running Position of 9.6, fourth-best
Driver Rating of 102.2, fourth-best
130 Fastest Laps Run, fifth-most
Average Green Flag Speed of 118.775, fourth-fastest
1,903 (79.3%) Laps in the Top 15, fourth-most
133 Quality Passes, fifth-most

Schrader to replace injured Franchitti in No. 40 at Richmond
April 29, 2008

CONCORD, N.C. (AP) -Ken Schrader will replace the injured Dario Franchitti in Saturday night's NASCAR race at Richmond International Raceway.

Franchitti broke his left ankle last Saturday in a hard crash at Talladega Superspeedway and was unable to race in Sunday's Sprint Cup event. He was replaced by David Stremme, who led laps in the No. 40 Dodge and was headed to a stellar finish until a 12-car wreck on the last lap relegated him to a 28th-place finish.

Because he's under contract as a test driver to Penske Racing, Stremme could not fill in for Franchitti beyond last Sunday. So Chip Ganassi Racing turned to Schrader, who did not have a ride lined up for Richmond.

Schrader qualified third at Talladega but finished 42nd. He'll be responsible for qualifying the No. 40 car for the race because it is not guaranteed a starting spot since it is outside the top 35 in points.

But with a solid run at Richmond, Schrader possibly could get the car inside the top 35. The car is currently 36th in the standings.

Schrader has 12 top-10 finishes in 44 previous starts.

Franchitti visited doctors in Indianapolis on Monday and will be fitted for a carbon fiber brace later this week. His driving status will be evaluated on a week-to-week basis, and the team already has had preliminary discussions with Sterling Marlin about driving at Darlington Raceway in two weeks.

Crown Royal Presents The Dan Lowry 400 PreQ

Denny Hamlin has been on a tear over the last five races recording a win (Martinsville) with four top 5 finishes, including back-to-back 3rd place runs. He ranks as the No. 1 driver on the PreQ forecast due in large part to his recent hot streak but he also runs very well at Richmond International Raceway. In four career starts at the track he has finished each in the top 15 with a pair of top 5 finishing for an average finish of 6th place. Hamlin is looking to gain even more in the point standings and is the early week favorite to take the checkered flag in the newly named Crown Royal Presents The Dan Lowry 400.

At the end of the Aaron’s 499 Jimmie Johnson was able to avoid losing even more spots after getting involved in a late race wreck. He was contending for a top 10 when he got caught up in the shenanigans but managed to keep the car straight and eek out a 13th place finish. He now heads to Richmond were he won both races last season although he has not had the greatest of luck at the track. The COT car has changed that luck, however, and he ranks just behind Hamlin on the PreQ forecast. Johnson has looked like the two-time defending champion over the last few events and should contend for the win this weekend.

Over the first nine races none has been more exciting to watch than Kyle Busch. Busch, how has historically run horribly at Talladega, can away with the win even after bouncing off a handful of cars. He has been nothing less than spectacular in the early part of the year and heads into Richmond with a strong historical record with an average finish of 6th place in six career starts. It is hard not to expect Busch to have a good day the way he had been running this season and there is no reason to expect that he won’t be up front when all is said and done this Saturday night.

After a solid, and unexpected, 2nd place finish at Talladega Juan Pablo Montoya moved into the top 12 in the point standings. We have been high on Montoya this year but still were not expecting him to produce this early in the season as his best tracks are yet to come. He will more than likely drop out of the top 12 this weekend as he has not had much luck at Richmond. In two starts last season Montoya finished outside the top 20 in each posting an average finish of 33rd place. It would be a good move to look elsewhere for this race.

Could it be said that Martin Truex Jr. is feeling the heat? After assuming the No. 1 role for DEI this season Truex has been less than stellar. He has just two top 10s this season while averaging a 20th place finish through the first nine races. He is sitting 17th in the point standings and is in danger of dropping even further back as he has struggled at Richmond in his career. In four starts he has finished in the top 20 once with an average finish of 31st place. Truex must turn his season around quickly but it will not happen this weekend.

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Dan Lowry 400 Preview

Kyle Busch will be looking to make up more ground in the Sprint Cup Series driver standings when he takes to the track in Richmond on Saturday for the Dan Lowry 400.

So who the heck is this Dan Lowry? Well, the full title is actually the Crown Royal Presents the Dan Lowry 400, with Lowry the essay contest winner from Ohio who received the honor of having the race named after him. Last year the event was named after Jim Stewart from Louisiana, and another Jim (Johnson) picked up the race victory.

In fact, Johnson has won each of the last two races at Richmond International Raceway, but it's former teammate Busch that enters this weekend on a roll. Busch held off Juan Montoya to take the checkered flag in the Aaron's 499 at Talladega last Sunday, and in the process he moved to within 22 points of first place in the standings.

Denny Hamlin, David Ragan, and Brian Vickers rounded out the Top 5 at Talladega Superspeedway, while Travis Kvapil, Casey Mears, Ryan Newman, Clint Bowyer, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. also picked up Top-10 results. Points leader Jeff Burton wound up in 12th place in the Aaron's 499, while Johnson had to settle for only a 13th-place finish.

Greg Biffle was 18th at Talladega, while Jeff Gordon was 19th, Kasey Kahne was 23rd, and Kevin Harvick was 24th. Martin Truex Jr., Tony Stewart, and Kurt Busch were all involved in an accident and finished 37th through 39th, while Carl Edwards and Matt Kenseth ran into some problems too and ended up in 40th and 41st spot, respectively.

Burton still sits in first place in the driver standings despite his middling showing at Talladega, with Kyle Busch lurking in second place. Earnhardt Jr. is 79 points back of the leader in third place in the standings, while Hamlin jumped two spots to fourth. Johnson, Harvick, Bowyer, Biffle, Stewart, Edwards, Newman, and Montoya round out the current Top 12. Kahne fell two spots into 13th, and Gordon dropped down to 14th.

Gordon has two career Cup wins at Richmond, but they both came a long time ago - he won the Chevrolet Monte Carlo 400 in 2000, and the Pontiac Excitement 400 in 1996. Johnson also has two wins at Richmond (both in 2007), but Earnhardt Jr. and Stewart have each picked up three career victories at that track. Dale Jr.'s wins came in 2006, 2004, and 2000, while Stewart had his success at Richmond in 2002, 2001, and 1999.

Others with first-place finishes at Richmond in their Cup careers include Harvick, Kurt Busch, Kahne, Jeremy Mayfield, Newman, Kenseth, Mark Martin, and Joe Nemechek. As well, Burton visited victory lane at the track in the Select Batteries 400 back in 1998.

It's defending-champ Johnson, though, that has been pegged as the 5/1 Vegas favorite to win at Richmond this weekend. Hamlin and Kyle Busch are next on that list at 7/1 odds, with both Gordon and Earnhardt Jr. at 8/1 odds. Stewart is sitting at 9/1 odds to claim the Dan Lowry 400, with Edwards at 11/1, Bowyer at 14/1, and Burton at just 15/1.

Other top contenders and their odds to win at Richmond this weekend include Biffle (16/1), Kenseth (16/1), Harvick (18/1), Kahne (22/1), Martin (22/1), Kurt Busch (25/1), Newman (25/1), Mears (30/1), and McMurray (30/1). Martin Truex Jr. is pegged at 35/1.

On the Vegas futures list Earnhardt Jr. is still the 7/2 favorite to win the Sprint Cup this year, with Kyle Busch at 4/1, Johnson at 5/1, Edwards at 6/1, and both Gordon and Stewart at 7/1. Biffle sits just behind that group at 9/1 to win the series championship, with Burton and Hamlin both at 10/1, and Kenseth and Harvick each listed back at 12/1.

After racing at Richmond the drivers of the Sprint Cup Series will head to Darlington Raceway for the Dodge Challenger 500. That race will take place on May 10. The series will then move on to Lowe's Motor Speedway for an extended stay; they'll stage the Sprint All-Star Race on May 17 and then hang around for the Coca-Cola 600 on May 25.

Crown Royal 400 Driver Rating

Kevin Harvick tops this week’s Driver Rating rankings with a solid 121.2. Harvick leads six of NASCAR’s stats headed into Richmond: Driver Rating, Average Running Position, Fastest Laps Run, Average Green Flag Speed, Laps in the Top 15, and Quality Passes. “Richmond is one of my favorite racetracks,” said Harvick. “Richmond’s been very good to me in both the Nationwide Series and Sprint Cup Series. This is one of the dates on the calendar we look forward to. The drivers all like racing here because it’s the short track racing that we grew up on but we still have that speed.”

Denny Hamlin is the hottest driver on the circuit. He has four consecutive top 5s, and has finished in the top 15 in his last seven races. The bad news for the rest of the field is that he has also excelled at Richmond. Hamlin has run 98.1% of his Richmond laps in the Top 15. That’s an absurd figure and should assure you of his probable success at his hometown track this weekend.

Kyle Busch may not be leading the Sprit Cup standings, but he is simply the most dominant NASCAR driver of the season. Busch leads all active drivers with seven wins spread across the three national series: Sprint Cup Series, Nationwide Series, and the Craftsman Truck Series. He is currently in the top 10 in each series’ point standings. It looks like we may be watching the creation of a legend

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Crown Royal 400 HOT! Sheet

In case you were wondering, yes, it is safe to put Mark Martin back on your fantasy roster. He will be back behind the wheel of the #8 car this weekend, and if he continues to do what he has done this season he’ll be a welcomed addition to your team. In his last four events, he has an 11th place average finish. Included in there are three top 10s. His most recent outing was at Phoenix where he led 68 laps and he cruised to a 5th place finish. He’s worth the pick up.

The number 7 seems to be the lucky one for Clint Bowyer. Of course, he has it displayed on his car. He is also in the 7th position in the standings right now. And, in his last three races, his average finish is … you guessed it, 7th. It hasn’t been that easy though as he has had to come from an average start of 30th in that span. But he has found a way to make his way to the front, and we think he’ll do it again Saturday night.

The stock is rising on Juan Pablo Montoya. He has finished inside the top 20 in every race this season with the exception of the Daytona 500. It has been good enough to lift him into the top 12 in the standings. He ran well in the lead pack at Talladega and nearly went to victory lane. Instead, the team settled for 2nd. They have run respectably on short tracks, so look for him to be a factor this weekend.

At the other end of the spectrum this week is Elliott Sadler. Although he did find a way to finally lead some laps last weekend at Talladega (3), he also found a way to get caught up in the final “big one”. The result was a second straight DNF and he officially was scored 29th. At Phoenix, he had an engine let go and went from the front row to 41st. He is heading back home, but we still can’t recommend him.

It has also been an awful run of two races for Reed Sorenson. In fact, shy of not making the show at all, you almost can’t get any worse. At Phoenix, he had his second best qualifying effort of the season (20th), but had it quickly forgotten as he was involved in a wreck that sent him home 42nd. Then at Talladega, he barely made it 10 miles and his engine gave way and he ended up in last place. Until things start swinging their way, stay away from him.

profantasysports.com

Driver Handicaps: Richmond

This weekend the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series heads to Richmond International Raceway for Saturday night's Crown Royal Presents The Dan Lowry 400. To help you make your fantasy racing picks, RacingOne brings you our weekly detailed look at some of the field for the 400-lap event.

Who's HOT at Richmond
# Jimmie Johnson swept both races in 2007.
# Kyle Busch leads all drivers with a 6.2 average finish.
# Richmond is Dale Earnhardt Jr's best track based on finishing average at 11.3 (tied with Bristol).
# Tony Stewart joins Earnhardt Jr. as the only active full-time drivers with three wins.
# 2006 September winner Kevin Harvick has the best average driver rating at Richmond at 121.2.
# Denny Hamlin has finished sixth or better in three of his four starts.
# Two-time winner Jeff Gordon is coming off two consecutive fourth-place finishes.

Keep an Eye on at Richmond
# Clint Bowyer has a 10.8 average finish in four Richmond starts.
# Mark Martin leads all drivers that are entered in this weekend's race with 23 top-10 finishes.
# Kurt Busch finished in the top 10 in both Richmond races in 2007.
# Greg Biffle has finished eighth or better in five of the last seven Richmond races.
# Richmond is the site of David Ragan's career-best Sprint Cup finish.
# Ryan Newman holds the best average finish among all drivers that have entered every races since 2002.

Richmond Rookie Report
None of the Raybestos Rookie of the Year candidates have made a Sprint Cup Series start at Richmond International Raceway. Sam Hornish, Jr. and Regan Smith are the only two out of the six Rookie contenders who have experience at Richmond; both have raced there in the Nationwide Series. Hornish, Jr. has one series start at RIR and ran only 16 laps before mechnical problems sidelined him. However, Smith's best finish in six Nationwide Series starts was 15th (November 2007). Rookie Standings

Qualifying Tidbits
There has been a different Coors Light Pole winner in the last 10 races at Richmond International Raceway. Brian Vickers set the current qualifying record (129.983 mph) in the May event in 2004. Hendrick Motorsports teammates Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson took the top spots in last year's two Sprint Cup Serie sraces at RIR. Before Johnson won from the pole in last year's September Richmond race, Kasey Kahne's win in the 2005 May race was the last time a driver won from the pole with 1992 the time before then. 58 Richmond races have been won from a top-five starting position

RacingOne Staff Picks

Jeff Wackerlin: Denny Hamlin
Pete Pistone: Tony Stewart
Rachael West: Jeff Gordon
Kym Opalenik: Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Top 20 Driver Notes - Ordered by Current Standings

1. Jeff Burton: Burton has competed in 27 Sprint Cup races at Richmond International Raceway, capturing one win, one pole and 12 top-10 finishes. His best RIR finish (ninth) in seven races with Richard Childress came in the second race in 2006. Burton has also made 21 starts in the Busch Series at RIR, capturing three poles, two wins and 12 top-10 finishes. This weekend, Burton will pilot the same chassis (No. 204) that he won the Bristol race with earlier this season.

2. Kyle Busch: Richmond International Raceway is Busch's best track based on his finishing average of 6.2. Prior to the September race last year, Busch rattled off five consecutive top-five finishes dating back to his first start in 2005. Richmond is also the site of Busch's first NASCAR win when he won the May 2004 Nationwide Series race. Busch, who will turn 23 on Friday, will look to celebrate his birthday with good runs in both NASCAR races at Richmond and an ASA Late Model event at Madison International Speedway on Sunday.

3. Dale Earnhardt Jr: Since winning his third Sprint Cup race at Richmond International Raceway in the 2006 May race, Earnhardt Jr. has gone on to finish 17th, 13th and 30th, respectively. In 17 starts, Junior has finished in the top-five seven times and the top-10 nine times. In 2004, Junior scored more points (924) on short-tracks than any other driver when he backed-up his second RIR win with a second-place finish in the September race. This weekend, Earnhardt will make his track debut with Hendrick Motorsports driving the same car (chassis No. 490) that finished seventh at Phoenix.

4. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin thrilled the home state crowd after battling Dale Earnhardt Jr. for the win in his first career Sprint Cup start at Richmond International Raceway in the 2006 May race. He wound up finishing second after leading 19 laps from the seventh position. In the fall race of 2006, he started from the pole and then went on to finish 15th. Last year, Hamlin finished third and sixth, respectively, to give him an overall average finish of 6.5. This weekend, Hamlin will return in the same car (chassis No. 166) that won at Martinsville in March.

5. Jimmie Johnson: Prior to this event last year, Richmond International Raceway was Johnson's worst track by finishing average at 21.2. He changed that stat by leading a combined 209 laps en route to victories in both races last year. The victories were his second and third top-10s at the track, and it lowered his finishing average to 17.8. Johnson's only DNF at Richmond came in the 2005 May race when his day ended with a trip to the backstretch inside retaining wall, which resulted in a 40th-place finish. This weekend, Johnson will return in the same chassis (No. 461) that won last season at Martinsville and Phoenix.

6. Kevin Harvick: In 14 starts at Richmond International Raceway, Harvick has finished in the top five four times. In the last six races at RIR, Harvick has combined to lead 599 laps en route to six consecutive top 10s, including a win in the 2006 September race. This weekend Harvick will race the same car (chassis No. 242) that finished 12th at Martinsville.

7. Clint Bowyer: Bowyer has posted four solid finishes of 12th or better in his four Sprint Cup starts at Richmond International Raceway. In fact, his 10.8 average finish ranks third among all drivers. This weekend, he will look for another good run at Richmond driving the same car (chassis No. 212) that finished second at Phoenix.

8. Greg Biffle: Prior to last season, Biffle finished eighth or better in five consecutive races at Richmond International Raceway. His best finish, of third, came in the September race in 2005. Biffle also has one win and three finishes of third or better in the Truck Series at RIR. This weekend, Biffle will shoot for his first top-10 with the new car at RIR in the same car (chassis No. 559) that finished 20th at Martinsville in March.

9. Tony Stewart: In his first of three Sprint Cup wins at Richmond International Raceway, Stewart led a dominating 333 of the 400 race laps on September 11, 1999. His last win there came in the 2002 spring race, and since then, he has finished in the top-five three times (including the September race last year, where he led 27 laps and finished second.)Stewart has also been successful in the Truck Series at RIR with two wins and a top-three finish in three starts. This weekend, Stewart will make his fifth start in chassis No. 161. This is the same car that started 12th and finished 14th at Phoenix last month.

10. Carl Edwards: Edwards captured his best Sprint Cup finish (sixth) at Richmond International Raceway in his first start at the track in 2004. His only other top-10 in six starts came in the 2006 May race when he came home seventh. This weekend, Edwards will have crew chief Bob Osborne back calling the shots after a six race suspension. He will also take to the track in a brand new chassis (No. 587) at Richmond.

11. Ryan Newman: Newman has the best average finish (11.1) among all the active drivers with one victory at Richmond International Raceway. His win in the 2003 September race is one of seven top-10s in 12 starts. Newman's most recent top-10 came in this event last year when he finished sixth. This weekend, Newman will debut chassis No. 561 in the Crown Royal Presents The Dan Lowry 400.

12. Juan Montoya: Out of two career starts, Montoya has yet to finish inside the top-20 at Richmond International Raceway. Last year in the event, he scored his best finish of 26th. Currently, Montoya is inside the Chase (top 12) for the first time in his NASCAR career. He is currently 12th. His previous best position was 15th after the fourth race of 2007, his rookie season. Montoya has 959 green flag passes this season, second most in the Sprint Cup Series.

13. Kasey Kahne: Richmond International Raceway is the site of Kahne’s first career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory, which in the spring of 2005. He started from the pole position and led 242 laps en route to victory. Kahne is coming off his fourth top 10 at Richmond International Raceway after finishing eighth last September. The finish lowered his overall average in to 18.2 in eight starts.

14. Jeff Gordon: In the last 15 races at Richmond International Raceway, Gordon has finished in the top-10 eight times, including a win in the 2000 fall race - his last of two victories at RIR. His best run at the track since 2004 came last year when he led a combined 305 laps en route to a pair of fourth-place finishes. In two of the last six races, Gordon has posted a DNF, most recently in the May 2006 race when an ignition problem relegated him to a 40th-place finish. In total, Gordon has finished in the top-five 12 times and in the top-10 18 times, and has led 1,059 laps. This weekend marks his 31st start on the .75-mile track. With his 7.1 starting average, Gordon has the best average among drivers who have started in five or more races at RIR. This average is bolstered by his five pole starts.

15. David Ragan: Richmond International Raceway is the site of Ragan's career-best Sprint Cup Series finish. Last September he started eighth and finished third for his third top five in 47 Cup series races. This weekend Ragan will drive a brand new car (chassis No. RK-573) in the Crown Royal Presents The Dan Lowry 400.

16. Brian Vickers: Vickers only qualified for one race at Richmond International Raceway in 2007 with Team Red Bull. His 24th-place finish in the Spetember gave him an overall average finish of 28.4. His previous six starts all came with Hendrick Motorsports where he captured one top 10 in 2004.

17. Martin Truex Jr: A 31.0 finishing average at Richmond International Raceway is Truex Jr's worst finishing average on record. His 15th-place finish in the second race last season is his best to-date. This weekend will mark his fifth career start at the .75-mile tarck.

18. David Gilliland: Gilliland will be making his fourth career start at Richmond International Raceway with Yates Racing. His best finish came last September when he crossed the line in 22nd.

19. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth has competed in 16 Sprint Cup events at Richmond International Raceway, scoring one victory after leading 134 laps in the second event in 2002. With that win, Kenseth became the third person to visit victory lane at RIR after starting 25th or worse. His last of nine top-10s came in this event last year when he finished 10th after starting 28th. Kenseth's worst finish (38th) at RIR came in the 2006 May race after a brake rotor broke and punctured the oil pan on his No. 17 Ford. After two disappointing finishes in a row this season, Kenseth hopes a brand new car (chassis No. RK-574) will get him back on track.

20. Kurt Busch: Busch posted his first win, and first top-five at Richmond International Raceway in the 2005 September race after leading 185 laps with Roush Racing. In 2006, Busch finished 29th and 27th, respectively, in his first starts at the track with Penske Racing. He turned around his track performance with the team last year with respective finishes of fifth and ninth. On Saturday, Busch will pilot the same car (chassis No. PSC-551) that finished 23rd last month at Phoenix.

Racingone.com

Fantasy Picks 'N' Pans: Crown Royal 400
Cami Starr and Mike Neff

If you’re like many fantasy owners, last weekend’s race at Talladega left your team looking like it had seen better days. But as you try to regroup, beware; seeing Richmond on the schedule this week may not give you a warm and fuzzy feeling. Saturday night’s Crown Royal 400 offers both the excitement and headaches of short track racing, with the capacity to bump and bang mixed in with the multi-groove feeling of an intermediate track. But even though there are plenty of opportunities to pass there, know that qualifying well is the key to success when it comes to finding your way to Victory Lane. In the last ten Richmond races, the winner has started within the Top 10; so, pay special attention to qualifying if you have the opportunity to build your team on Saturday.

With that in mind, which drivers will help you get over the fantasy hangover from Talladega, and which ones will leave you reaching for more aspirin? Read this week’s Picks ‘N’ Pans to find out how you should put the Band Aids together to allow the restrictor plate wounds sufficient time — and points — to heal.

Cami’s Race Rewind:

It took an extra day to pull things off, but Jimmie Johnson was able to keep Hendrick Motorsports a perfect 4 and 0 in the CoT with his win in the rain delayed Crown Royal 400 at Richmond last year. With seven wins in eight races, there was no doubt HMS was on a roll at that point in the season; but seeing Johnson keep up the streak at Richmond was a bit of a surprise, especially considering he had just one other Top 10 at the Virginia short track in his 16 previous starts. Kevin Harvick appeared to have one of the cars to beat early on, leading a total of 105 laps in the race; but a mishap on pit road quickly took him out of contention. Jeff Gordon led the most laps (114) before ultimately finishing fourth, behind Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin. Kurt Busch rounded out the Top 5 finishers in last year’s event.

Mike’s Keys to the Race:

Richmond has been described as a short track on steroids. The facility is ¾ of a mile in length, but has enough banking in the corners to hold the speed that can be generated on its straightaways, making it almost like an intermediate track in many ways. The oval also offers quite a bit of racing room — cars can go two wide all of the way around the track — but they are just slow enough to be able to do some rubbing without totally taking their competitors out of contention.

Last year, the teams who had the new car configuration under control dominated both races at this track. Hendrick, Childress, Gibbs, and Penske all ran well, and expect to see Childress probably lead the way this weekend — with Gibbs tailing hot on their heels. After their 1-2-3 finish at Bristol, Burton, Harvick and Bowyer certainly will be tough to contend with, too; and you can’t count out Jimmie Johnson, who won both of the races at the speedway last year.

Mike’s Picks:

Crank ‘Em Up:

Kyle Busch has not won at Richmond, but that is about all he hasn’t done. With the exception of the Fall race last season, Busch has been a guaranteed Top 5 finisher at this track. In fact, two seconds, two fourths, and a fifth in the previous five races make Busch the best average finisher among active drivers at Richmond. Busch was second to Jimmie Johnson in this race last Spring, and is coming off of the win at Talladega which should produce some added momentum for the No. 18. The young hotshot may not bring the win home this weekend, but his chances are as good as anyone else’s with the way that team’s been running as of late.

Dale Earnhardt, Jr. was very strong at Talladega last week, but he was unfortunately damaged in the late race melee started by Tony Stewart. The end result was that his losing streak continued, even though the No. 88 is sitting third in the current point standings. But Junior now heads to another track that he has run quite well at during his Cup career; he has competed in 17 Cup races at Richmond, and only has two finishes worse than 20th and only five finishes out of the Top 15. With the success Hendrick Motorsports had at this track last season, expect to see Junior near the front once again on Saturday night.

Sit ‘Em Down:

If the season ended today, check this out: Juan Pablo Montoya would be in the Chase, all courtesy of his 12th place standing in the points. Montoya finished second at Talladega, and has by far been the shining star for Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates this year; that is the good news. Now, here’s the bad news: Montoya is heading to Richmond, where he ran like he was dragging an anchor last year. He finished 26th and 41st when Ganassi was actually running well on short tracks. Do not expect Montoya to improve much on those results based on the disarray that Ganassi currently finds itself in. JPM may be doing well this year, but this is not a weekend to have him in your lineup.

Brian Vickers is coming off a fifth place finish at Talladega last week; but will a trip to Richmond rain on his parade?

Brian Vickers had a very strong run again at Talladega this past weekend. He has been outstanding this year for Team Red Bull, emerging as the fourth best Toyota driver in the series besides the Joe Gibbs brigade. However, Vickers’ history at Richmond has been less than stellar. His first trip to the track resulted in an eighth place finish, but that is the lonely shining point by far in his career. In the subsequent six races, in fact, Vickers has two 24th place finishes, and the other four are 32nd or worse. The youngster may still pull off a surprising finish this weekend; but more than likely, he will be back in the pack and not scoring anyone valuable fantasy points.

Roll The Dice:

Jeff Gordon is not in the Top 12 in points, and therefore eligible for a Roll The Dice selection this week. Needless to say, you have to get a jump on Gordon if you’re at all allowed to in your fantasy league. gordon’s record is not great at Richmond with an average finish of 19.7, but he’s won two times at the track, finishing in the Top 10 60% of the time in his 30 races. With two fourth place finishes at the track last season, expect to get another quality start out of Gordon this weekend.

Cami’s Picks:

Crank ‘Em Up:

After a rocky start to the season, Denny Hamlin has caught fire in the last five races, scoring one win and no finish lower than sixth place. Currently fourth in the standings, he now heads to his home state track looking to keep that rocket-like momentum going. It’s a good spot for him to be in; while Hamlin’s yet to find Victory Lane at the track, he has had plenty of success there. In four starts, Hamlin has three finishes of sixth or better and just one finish outside the Top 10, a 15th place effort in the Fall of 2006 when his No. 11 was down on power in the closing laps. The combination of his recent success, his past results at Richmond, and his desire to win in front of his friends and family are a perfect storm for a big night from Hamlin this weekend.

Kevin Harvick hasn’t always performed well at Richmond; but with six straight Top 10s, including a win in 2006, it’s obvious he has the hang of things now. After running off four straight Top 10s early in the season, Harvick has run into a stumbling block in these last four races; but all that means is that Richmond couldn’t have come at a better time for the team, as they work to both maintain and improve their spot in the Top 10. Harvick was one of the top lap leaders in this race last year, and look for him to be near the front again this Saturday night.

Sit ‘Em Down:

With just one Top 10 finish in the last seven races, Martin Truex, Jr. has seen his position in the standings continue to slide on down. Currently 17th in the standings, Truex heads to Richmond looking for his first Top 10 ever at the Virginia short track. In four career starts, the closest he has come was a 15th place finish in the 2007 Fall race; but two finishes of 40th or worse on his resume give him a dismal average finish of 31st, and should earn him a place on the bench this weekend.

This weekend, Jamie McMurray will be toting the race sponsor’s name on his No. 26 Ford — but he will need a lot more luck than that if he plans to pull off a good finish this Saturday night. After pulling off back-to-back Top 10s in the Fall of 2004 and Spring of 2005, McMurray has gone cold at Richmond; he’s scored three finishes of 38th or worse in the last five races here. Firmly on the hot seat earlier this season, the veteran cooled down some of his critics with an eighth place finish at Martinsville; since then, though, the No. 26 hasn’t been able to match that success. Don’t bank on them doing that anytime soon, either.

Roll The Dice:

One driver hoping a trip to Richmond will help him turn things around is Kasey Kahne. Kahne started the year with five Top 10s in the first six races, but in the last three events, he has yet to crack the Top 15. At Richmond, Kahne has been hot and cold. He has four Top 10s in his eight career starts, including a dominating first career win there in 2005. He was eighth here in the Fall of 2007; given the potential he showed early in the season and his past record at Richmond, Kahne is definitely worth the gamble to repeat that effort come Saturday night.

frontstretch.com

Hometown favorite wins Cup pole in Richmond

Richmond, VA (Sports Network) - Chesterfield, VA native Denny Hamlin won the pole for Saturday night's Crown Royal presents the Dan Lowry 400 at the Richmond International Raceway. The No.11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota driver circled the 0.750-mile short track in 21.395 seconds (126.198 m.p.h.).

The pole victory was Hamlin's first of the season, second at RIR and sixth of his Sprint Cup career.

"Richmond, I mean, that is in the woods of my hometown right there, 15 minutes away," said Hamlin. "And so, yeah, I'm going to have a lot of friends and family out there. So everyone knows that this is my Indy."

Starting on the front row with Hamlin will be veteran Mark Martin, who posted a time of 21.423 seconds.

Martin Truex Jr. (21.456) and rookie Patrick Carpentier (21.458) will make up row two.

At the top of the charts are points leader Jeff Burton, two-time winner Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Hamlin. The four drivers are within 100 points of each other and the way they are performing are seemingly pretty safe to make the "Chase." All four have at least six top-10s to their credit with "Junior" leading the way with a series-high seven.

Two-time defending series champion Jimmie Johnson leads the second group of four drivers (also Kevin Harvick, Clint Bowyer and Greg Biffle) who are between 102 and 199 points behind Burton.

However, the race for the final four positions is a free-for-all in which at least 10 drivers are contenders, including Tony Stewart, Carl Edwards and Jeff Gordon.

And that list of 18 drivers doesn't include such perennial "Chase" drivers as Matt Kenseth or Kurt Busch. Driving the No.17 Roush Fenway Racing Ford, Kenseth has never missed the "Chase" while Busch won the it all in 2004 and has qualified for the "playoffs" in three of four years.

Other drivers of note and their starting positions: Juan Pablo Montoya (sixth), Kyle Busch (seventh), Kasey Kahne (ninth), Harvick (11th), Johnson (12th), Stewart (15th), Edwards (19th), Earnhardt Jr. (22nd), Gordon (28th) and Burton (33rd).

The race is scheduled to drop the green flag on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. (et).