2009 Allstate 400 At The Brickyard

2009 Allstate 400 at The Brickyard:

This weekend the 2009 Allstate 400 at The Brickyard rolls off at the legendary Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Last year this was the worst race of the year as NASCAR had to throw a caution every nine laps due to tire problems. Does Goodyear have their problems resolved or will one of the biggest hyped races in NASCAR flop once again?

Tickets:

Speedway ticket office 317-492-6700 or 800-822-INDY

The Track:

Indianapolis Motor Speedway's 2.5 mile rectangle is one of the most famous race courses in the world. Unfortunately it wasn't built for stock cars as it has only 9 degrees of banking in the four distinct corners and very long straightaways. This makes passing very difficult and track position is everything. As a result, this fast, flat track isn't a great place for stock car racing.

Race Distance:

160 Laps = 400 Miles

The Big Picture:

Two weeks ago at Chicagoland Speedway Mark Martin picked up the victory and climbed back into the top twelve. Martin replaced Greg Biffle who is now ten points behind twelfth place Matt Kenseth.

At the other end of the points the top four remain unchanged. Tony Stewart has a sizable lead over Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Kurt Busch.

The top twelve are now:

1. Tony Stewart
2. Jeff Gordon -175
3. Jimmie Johnson -212
4. Kurt Busch -358
5. Denny Hamlin -427
6. Carl Edwards - 446
7. Ryan Newman -499
8. Kasey Kahne -548
9. Juan Montoya -563
10. Kyle Busch -586
11. Mark Martin -588
12. Matt Kenseth -589

Storylines:

Goodyear's tires ruined this race last year. Because of that, tires will be the only thing people are talking about this week. Since last year's fiasco, Goodyear has conducted seven tire tests at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. 30 teams have logged more 13,000 miles on the 2.5-mile track.

Do they have all of last year's problems resolved? The results from the tests have been positive. The drivers believe that Goodyear has the problems licked but only 400 miles of real race conditions will tell for sure.

Media Coverage:

TV: ESPN Sunday, July 26th, 1:00PM Eastern.

Actual Race: 2:10PM Eastern

Recent Events:

2008 Winner: Jimmie Johnson

2008 Polesitter: Jimmie Johnson

Last Year:

The 2008 Brickyard 400 will be known for one thing, tire problems. The problem was that Indianapolis Motor Speedway was ground down to smooth out the surface and increase the overall grip levels. As a result of the grinding the newly abrasive surface was chewing up tires.

NASCAR started the race with competition cautions every 15 laps and it still wasn't enough to keep the drivers from having tire problems. By lap 64 NASCAR was throwing the caution every nine laps to try to head off crashes.

This race was painful to watch. Jimmie Johnson won but mp one much noticed given all of the problems.

Predictions:

Given the history of this track in order to pick the winner in this race you need to also consider who you think could win the championship. Seven times the driver that won the Brickyard 400 went on to win the Cup.

Tony Stewart is a two-time winner at The Brickard. He won this event in 2005 and then again in 2007 so he clearly knows his way around this big 2.5 mile rectangle. Stewart comes into this weekend leading the points with two wins under his belt so far in 2009. Tony Stewart has to be considered a favorite on Sunday.

For my backup this week I am not going too far out on a limb. Jeff Gordon is a four-time Brickyard 400 winner. He is also having a great 2009 and sits second in points. Gordon is due to revisit Victory Lane and this weekend is a great chance for him to close on Tony in the points.