2009 Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at The Glen - Watkins Glen International

2009 Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at The Glen Preview:

This Sunday the Sprint Cup stars will visit picturesque Watkins Glen New York for the 2009 Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at The Glen. While the seven road course ringers such as P.J. Jones, Ron Fellows and Boris Said will get a fair amount of attention NASCAR regulars Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart are really the top threats to visit Victory Lane.

Tickets:

Speedway ticket office 866-461-RACE or 607-535-2481

Buy online from TicketsNow (direct link)

The Track:

Watkins Glen is a 2.45 mile 11 turn road course. This picturesque race track features some dramatic elevation changes and the dreaded "Inner Loop" which is a chicane at the end of the backstretch which never fails to confound a few drivers every year.

Race Distance:

90 laps = 220.5 miles

The Big Picture:

Tony Stewart continues to lead and the top four positions didn't change as a result of last week's Pocono race.

At the other end of the top twelve Greg Biffle slipped one spot to twelfth overall but he still holds on to a Chase spot. Kyle Busch is now thirteenth overall 99 points behind Biffle.

The top twelve:

1. Tony Stewart
2. Jimmie Johnson -197
3. Jeff Gordon -199
4. Kurt Busch -437
5. Denny Hamlin -475
6. Carl Edwards - 523
7. Kasey Kahne -546
8. Juan Montoya -557
9. Ryan Newman -561
10. Mark Martin -566
11. Matt Kenseth -624
12. Greg Biffle -625

Storylines:

Just two drivers account for eight of the last twelve race winners at Watkins Glen. Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart have four wins each dating back to 1997.

Seven road course specialists including Ron Fellows, Boris Said, Max Papis, Patrick Carpentier, P.J. Jones, Brian Simo and Andy Lally will attempt to break through with a win. However the last road race ace to win a NASCAR Sprint Cup race was Mark Donohue who won at Riverside in 1973.

While the media makes a lot of noise about the interlopers I'd rather put my money on Gordon and Stewart.

Media Coverage:

TV: ESPN Sunday, August 9th, 1:00PM Eastern.

Radio: MRN and SIRIUS Satellite

Actual Race: 2:05PM Eastern

Recent Events:

2008 Polesitter: Kyle Busch

2008 Winner: Kyle Busch

Last Year:

In 2008 Kyle Busch continued his strong season by completing the road course sweep for the year.

This race was marred by a major incident on the front stretch. With eight laps to go there were some extremely hard hits as David Gilliland was taken out by Michael McDowell. Gilliland bounced off the outside wall and then was hit broadside by Bobby Labonte and others.

In all nine cars were involved and a red flag came out for the cleanup.

Predictions:

There are a short list of NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers that can truly be considered a threat to win on a road course. Jeff Gordon, Mark Martin, Tony Stewart and Robby Gordon typically top the list of usual road racing suspects.

Looking at the list of recent Watkins Glen winners one name stands out. Tony Stewart won four of the last seven Watkins Glen races and finished second each of the last two years. Leading the points and returning to a track he excels at makes him a great pick this week.

For my backup pick this week I am going with the old timer. Mark Martin won three in a row here from 1993-1995. He has always been fast in Watkins Glen and is having a great 2009. Mark could find himself at the top of the heap on Sunday afternoon.