After a quick two-month off-season, NASCAR
is back on track later this week with Daytona 500 qualifying and the Budweiser
Shootout -- the two events kicking off Speedweeks at Daytona International
Speedway.
The 2010 NASCAR season begins with many storylines, most notably the new rule
adjustments to change the present Sprint Cup Series car and ease up some on-
track rules for drivers. Danica Patrick's foray into stock car racing will
make for plenty of headlines in the early season as well.
As the season progresses, much attention will be focused on Jimmie Johnson's
bid for an unprecedented fifth straight Cup championship. Will Johnson's
dynasty continue, or will someone dethrone him this year?
HAVE AT IT BOYS
Next week's season-opening Daytona 500 could be the best one in recent memory,
thanks in part to NASCAR relaxing on its bump-drafting rules at Daytona as
well as Talladega Superspeedway. Drivers once again will be allowed to bump
draft each other throughout the high-banked turns at both tracks. NASCAR
revised the rules for drivers to make racing more competitive and enjoyable
for the fans.
"We are going to open it up, because we want to see what you want to see --
more contact," NASCAR chairman Brian France said. "This is a contact sport. We
want to see drivers mixing it up. We want to see the emotion of the world's
best drivers just as much as everybody else does, and that is the goal for
2010 and beyond.
NASCAR also will increase the size of the restrictor plate for Daytona this
time around. The plate restricts airflow from the carburetor to the engine and
therefore reduces the car's speed. The larger holes on the plate now will give
drivers more horsepower.
The transition from the rear wing to the spoiler on the current Cup car will
occur later in the season. NASCAR recently held a test session with the
spoiler at Texas, and a full-field test is scheduled in late March at
Charlotte.
Teams have raised concerns about the wing due to its reduced downforce on the
cars. The spoiler was used on the previous cars.
NASCAR hopes to have the spoiler back on the car in time for the April race at
Texas.
DANICA'S DEBUT
Get ready for Danica-mania. Patrick -- IndyCar's biggest star -- will capture
many of the headlines in NASCAR this year, as she runs a partial Nationwide
schedule for Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s team JR Motorsports.
Patrick is scheduled to kick off her 12-race Nationwide schedule February 20
at California, but her series debut could come in the Feb. 13 season-opener at
Daytona. How well she performs in Saturday's ARCA event at Daytona will
determine if she runs in the Nationwide event there the following week.
For quite some time, NASCAR savored the possibility that Patrick would make a
transition into their sport, given her enormous popularity on and off the
track, as well as her wide marketability. Patrick's stardom likely will help
NASCAR's efforts to raise television ratings and boost ticket sales at the
tracks.
HIGH FIVE?
Last year, Johnson made NASCAR history by becoming the first driver to win
four consecutive Cup championships. He had a sensational performance in the
chase for the title, finishing 141 points ahead of runner-up and Hendrick
Motorsports teammate Mark Martin.
Johnson once again enters the season as a favorite to win the championship.
"We've had an amazing run of four years," Johnson said. "We certainly want to
keep it up, keep it going. I feel very good with the fact that our team is
intact and together."
With all members of the No.48 team, including crew chief Chad Knaus, returning
for another season, it raises the question -- can anyone spoil Johnson's
"drive for five?"
NEXT IN LINE
Johnson may be the guy to beat, but several drivers have a genuine shot of
taking the title away from him.
In 2009, Rick Hendrick arguably had his best year as a NASCAR team owner, with
Johnson, Martin and Jeff Gordon finishing 1-2-3, respectively, in points.
Despite turning 51 years old last month, Martin is showing no signs of slowing
down.
"I feel really good about, and certainly better than I did a year ago, as I
wondered how it was going to work out on the race track. If they gave me a
trophy for having fun, I would have the won the championship last year."
Martin notched five wins in his first season with Hendrick this past year.
Time may be running out for Gordon. The four-time Cup champion has only one
victory to his credit since the end of the 2007 season. If Gordon's ailing
back continues to be an issue, it may hinder his efforts for a fifth title.
"If we are going to be a factor in the championship, we have to win more
races," Gordon said. Last season, we were very competitive everywhere we went,
but along the way, we lost what we had or the competition caught up to us.
This year, we want to reverse that and put ourselves in position to win more
races. The fire and desire are still there, as are the tools and resources to
get the job done."
Look for Dale Earnhardt Jr. to rebound this year. NASCAR's most popular driver
finished a disappointing 25th in points and failed to make it into victory
lane last season. Hendrick said in November he intends to make Earnhardt
Jr. his number-one priority.
Crew chief Lance McGrew will continue to guide Earnhardt Jr.'s efforts this
year. McGrew served in the role on an interim basis for a majority of last
season, but Hendrick recently elevated him to full-time.
"We have made a number of changes, but you are sitting here with a bunch of
anxiety as you don't know what will work," Earnhardt Jr. said. "None of us
want to go through another year like we had last year. Lance seems optimistic
as to how they have changed."
During the offseason, Denny Hamlin has been regarded as Johnson's biggest
threat. Hamlin scored a career-high four wins last year, including a victory
in the season finale at Homestead. He was the only driver from Joe Gibbs Racing
to make the chase this past season.
"A year ago, I said I didn't want to be a contender anymore, I wanted to be a
champion," Hamlin said. "I was sick of expectations without results. (Last
season) we did well, but we didn't have the reliability to win the
championship. I know how to do it, and now we will be executing it."
Hamlin recently tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee while
playing basketball. The JGR driver does not expect the ACL injury to affect
his driving, and he plans to have surgery to repair it at the end of the
season.
The Busch brothers will be a factor as well this year. Kurt finished fourth in
the chase, while younger brother Kyle came up eight points short of making the
playoffs last season. Kyle hopes to get back to his winning ways with new crew
chief Dave Rogers at JGR, while his former crew chief, Steve Addington, has
moved over to Penske Racing to guide Kurt's efforts.
Tony Stewart should have another impressive season after winning four races in
his first year as driver and owner. Juan Pablo Montoya, Ryan Newman and Carl
Edwards -- all of whom made the chase in '09 -- likely will be in the title
hunt again this year.
NEW RIDES
Martin Truex Jr.'s move to Michael Waltrip Racing highlights the driver changes
in NASCAR's top-tier series this year. Truex will drive the No.56 Toyota for
Waltrip, with Kurt Busch's former crew chief, Pat Tryson, on board with the
team. Waltrip, meanwhile, will run a partial schedule in the No.51 car,
starting with the Daytona 500.
Truex, a two-time Nationwide Series champion, drove for Dale Earnhardt Inc.
from 2006-08 and remained with the team last year when it merged with Chip
Ganassi's organization and became Earnhardt Ganassi Racing. He qualified for
the chase in 2007, finishing 11th in points.
"I think it's going to be an easier transition than I thought," Truex said.
"Everybody at MWR has welcomed me with open arms. They've been very good to
work with, very straightforward, very fair, and a lot of fun. It's really
going well so far."
Jamie McMurray takes over Truex's seat in the No.1 Chevrolet at EGR. McMurray
spent the past four seasons with Roush Fenway Racing.
Former Richard Childress Racing driver Casey Mears landed a ride with startup
team Keyed-Up Motorsports. Mears drove for RCR last year, but became a free
agent at the end of the season when sponsorship could not be found for his
team in the upcoming campaign.
Brad Keselowski could make some noise in his first full-season in Cup, driving
the No.12 Dodge for Penske Racing. Keselowski and Hamlin had an ongoing feud
in Nationwide last year, and that might spill over into the Cup ranks this
season.
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