2005 Sylvania 300 in New Hampshire: The Chase for the NEXTEL Cup begins this week with the Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway. This relatively flat one mile oval is fast but passing opportunities are rare. Last year Kurt Busch won this race on his way to the Championship. Who has what it takes to win this weekend and get their Chase off to a fast start?
The Track: The 1.058 mile perfect oval that is New Hampshire International Speedway has only 12 degrees of banking in the corners. The straightaways measure 1,500 feet each to make this a true symmetrical oval. The flat corners can make passing difficult as there is usually only one groove.
Race Distance: 300 laps = 317 miles
The Big Picture: This is race number 27 of 36 and race 1 of 10 in The Chase. For ten drivers the Championship starts now, for the other 33 it's time to try to get some wins and salvage a disappointing season.
The current points top ten are: 1. Tony Stewart 5,050, 2. Greg Biffle 5,045, 3. Rusty Wallace 5,040, 4. Jimmie Johnson 5,035, 5. Kurt Busch 5,030, 6. Mark Martin 5,025, 7. Jeremy Mayfield 5,020, 8. Carl Edwards 5,015, 8. Matt Kenseth 5,015, 10. Ryan Newman, 5,010.
Storylines: The ten drivers that are battling for the Championship will get the most of the press this week but the equally interesting story is "What about the rest of the guys?"
Last week part-timer Tony Raines ended Jamie McMurray's chance to make the Chase. Last year Robby Gordon caused a crash in New Hampshire that took out three Chase contenders. The focus will be on how the rest of the pack effects the outcome. Should they be extra careful around the contenders or race like any other week?
Media Coverage: TV: TNT Sunday September 18th 12:30PM Eastern.
Radio: MRN and XM Satellite
Actual Race: 1:10PM Eastern
Posted Awards: $5,138,010
Last Year: In 2004 qualifying was rained out so the top ten Chasers started in the top en positions. Kurt Busch lead over half of the laps and this race was never really in doubt. Kurt used this win as a launching pad on his way to winning the 2004 Championship.
Predictions: Kurt Busch won both races here in 2004. Kurt also finished a strong second in New Hampshire when the NEXTEL Cup series visited here in July. Kurt also has momentum on his side from his dominating win in Richmond last week. Clearly Kurt is the man to beat this week.
The other hottest driver in NASCAR is Tony Stewart who, incidentally, is the driver that beat Kurt Busch to the checkers here in July. If this were horse racing I'd bet the Exacta, picking the 97 and the 20 to finish 1-2.
