2010 AAA 400 at Dover International Speedway:
When we left New Hampshire it looked like Clint Bowyer would be a legitimate contender for the Championship. On Wednesday NASCAR docked him 150 Championship points after his car failed post-race inspection. NASCAR also suspended his crew chief and his car chief for six races each.
This effectively ends Clint Bowyer's 2010 Chase dreams.
Tickets:
The Track:
On a typical race day in Dover you'll see a number of different strategies play out. The race can be won by charging hard all day, by laying back and saving your tires for the end, or even by playing the fuel mileage game. You just never know what Dover will bring.
Race Distance:
The Big Picture:
The top twelve are:
- Denny Hamlin
- Kevin Harvick -45
- Kyle Busch -62
- Jeff Gordon -75
- Kurt Busch -86
- Jimmie Johnson -92
- Carl Edwards -95
- Greg Biffle -108
- Jeff Burton -112
- Tony Stewart -124
- Matt Kenseth -136
- Clint Bowyer -185
Storylines:
Last week Clint Bowyer leaped from twelfth all the way to second in points and was starting to look like a legitimate contender for the Championship.
On Wednesday NASCAR dropped the bomb that Bowyer's car failed post-race inspection and docked the team 150 driver and owner points. In addition NASCAR suspended Bowyer's crew chief and car chief for six races each. Per NASCAR policy the race win will stand.
Bowyer is once again twelfth in points and now will need a miracle to win the 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup title.
Media Coverage:
Radio: MRN and SIRIUS Satellite
Actual Race: 1:10 PM Eastern
Recent Events:
2009 Winner: Jimmie Johnson
2009 Polesitter: Jimmie Johnson
Last Year:
The big story of the race came early when Joey Logano was involved in an ugly wreck. Logano spun down onto the grass in turn three and back up across the track in front of heavy traffic. He hit the outside wall and then Reed Sorenson got into his passenger door. This caused Logano's car to tumble violently. Logano barrel-rolled seven and a half times before the car settled back down onto its wheels.
This was one of the ugliest wrecks of 2009 but NASCAR's safety features all did their jobs and Joey Logano was able to walk away.
Predictions:
My backup pick is Kenseth's Roush-Fenway teammate Greg Biffle. Biffle has not finished worse than third here in five of the last six Dover races and has only been outside the top eight twice since he won in Dover way back in the Spring of 2005. Biffle makes a great pick again this week.
