C-4 — NEwS JOURNAL — ApRiL 25, 2012

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KANSAS CITY, Kan. — It’s OK. It’s understandable. Dale Earnhardt Jr. doesn’t have to be the straw that stirs the Hendrick Motorsports drink. It would be great if he could deliver Rick Hendrick his suddenly long-awaited 200th Sprint Cup victory, but it isn’t necessary.

Earnhardt is still happy to be there.“I think that Jimmie (Johnson) and

Jeff (Gordon) will always carry a certain role in the company that I will probably never achieve just due to their being here so long and having that trust built up with Rick (Hendrick) and all the em-ployees, and their accomplishments, obviously,” he said. “I’ve never felt that was a disadvantage to me.

“I feel like I have everything they have, and I have the resources and the same ability to make everything I can out of the team.”

It pays off — In an age in which a handful of teams provide power for most of the starting fields, Jeff Gordon thinks Hendrick’s engine department is one of the keys behind the team’s historic success.

“While, I think, at times, the approach has been questioned on how Hendrick Motorsports goes about things, and building their own engines and chassis, now you really start to see it pay off,” Gor-don said. “You have been seeing it pay off for probably the last 10 or 12 years.”

If Mark Martin can do it — It’s a bit over-looked that Greg Biffle is 42 years old. After working his way up, Biffle never made his first Cup start until age 32.

Asked if he felt “some urgency” to win the championship this year, Biffle said, “I feel an urgency because I’m ready to win it, but that’s really about it. I feel great. I feel better than I ever have … with the way our team is and how competitive we are, and how I’m driv-ing the car and how I feel personally. I think anybody feels the urgency to want to win it, and obviously, someday I’m not going to be doing this anymore.”

Takes all kinds — The first of Tony Stewart’s two Kansas victories was won on fuel mileage, which was uncommon — no, nonexistent — during the early

years of his career. Stewart was once fond of saying he didn’t know how to save fuel.

“It was a battle between the driver and the crew chief,” Stewart said. “The crew chief (Greg Zipadelli) is yelling at you every lap to save fuel, but you’re not slowing down enough and he knows it because he’s looking at the stopwatch. When you’ve got guys behind you, you know you don’t want to give those spots up in case they happen to make it on fuel, so I tried to save as much fuel as I could and still hold guys off.

“We were able to take the chance be-cause we had nothing to lose. Not be-ing in the Chase that year gave us that opportunity to take the chance and go ahead and run for it.”

If you have a question or comment, write: NASCAR This Week, c/o The Gaston Gazette, P.O. Box 1538, Gastonia, NC 28053 or send an e-mail to mdutton@gastongazette.com. You can also send your NASCAR questions to Monte on Facebook at Facebook.com/monte-dutton and at Twitter.com/MonteDutton. Please specify you are submitting them for the NASCAR This Week page.

� It’s hard to believe that, in NASCAR’s history, cars carrying No. 11 have won one more race (199) than cars carrying No. 43 (198).� Richard Petty won 192 of his

200 Cup races in No. 43. The rest were in Nos. 41 and 42.� At Texas, Trevor Bayne’s Ford

brushed the wall. At Kansas, Clint Bowyer’s Toyota spun at the head of pit road. Those were the closest things to “crashes” in two races and 701 laps.� Not surprisingly, given a

combined five caution flags, both races were the fastest ever run at the two tracks.� Though many fans com-

plained that the race was boring, most drivers love the aging Kansas Speedway surface that is being replaced between now and the track’s October Sprint Cup date.� In response to driver

complaints, Kansas Speedway President Pat Warren said the track was in danger of severe problems and that repairs were unavoidable. He produced a three-by-five-inch chunk of pavement that he said had been dislodged from the surface during practice sessions.� For some reason, the post-

race “groundbreaking” for the resurfacing project involved the participation of U.S. Army tanks. Perhaps the chief purpose was for Brad Keselowski to get to ride around in one.� Nearly a quarter of the

way through the season, Chip Ganassi’s two Chevy entries continue to struggle. Juan Pablo Montoya is 16th, Jamie McMur-ray 19th. Considerable offseason changes haven’t kicked in, at least not yet.� It’s quite the coincidence

that two drivers have won twice. One, Tony Stewart, is the reigning champion. The other, Denny Hamlin, has the champion crew chief, Darian Grubb.

� Who’s hot: Jimmie Johnson hasn’t won a race yet, but he’s fi nished 12th or bet-ter in seven straight races. ... Denny Hamlin became the season’s second two-time winner, joining Tony Stewart.

� Who’s not: Clint Bowyer, a Kansas native, has never won at the track in his home state. Engine trouble relegated him to 36th place. ... Jeff Gordon fell to 18th in points after a 21st-place fi nish.

Bowyer

“ f l lik h hi h

Dale Earnhardt Jr. thinks he has what it takes to win

By Monte DuttonNASCAR This Week

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — For the longest time, the only Toyota team that has really mattered in NASCAR has been the one owned by Joe Gibbs. Thanks to Denny Hamlin, in terms of actually reaching victory lane, it’s still the case.

Hamlin won the STP 400 at Kansas Speedway in one of the Gibbs Toyotas. The victory was Hamlin’s 19th. One of Michael Waltrip Racing’s drivers, Martin Truex Jr., is second in the Sprint Cup standings. He dominated the race but had to settle for second.

JGR has 95 victories in its history, 37 since casting its lot with Toyota in 2008. MWR has two victories. In terms of victories, Toyota’s success still begins and ends with Gibbs and, in 2012 to date, Hamlin.

Hamlin won at the expense of Truex, who otherwise dominated the race.

“There were times during that race where I kept look-ing at the ‘56’ (Truex) and thinking that it was so supe-rior to the field,” Hamlin said. “We needed two kinds of changes, and we got both of them.”

Hamlin explained that part of the change in the

balance of power was due to adjustments by crew chief Darian Grubb, and part was due to a change in weather conditions. The sun came out near the end of a blustery Kansas day, and that’s when Hamlin’s Toyota surged and Truex’s faded. According to Truex, though, the chief problem he had was a set of tires, not sunshine.

Regardless, Hamlin became the second driver to win more than once in the season’s first eight races. He and the reigning champion, Tony Stewart, have each won twice.

“You know, at the end, it’s a no-lose situation for (me) because I’m a fan of Martin’s (Truex Jr.), I’m a fan of Michael Waltrip (Racing), and they’ve really done some great things with that program,” Hamlin said. “But my job is to win for my guys and really drive as hard as I can to get them those wins, because they’re so hard to come by now (and) you have to just do everything you can.

“I knew he (Truex) was driving his heart out as well as I was driving mine. … It was a good day for Toyota because Michael Waltrip Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing have got a bond that’s working better and better together, obvi-ously, with the common engine package and everything, so we’re starting to see these Toyotas start to make a run.”

Denny Gets It DoneWith Grubb, Denny Hamlin has two Cup wins already

DENNY HAMLIN SPRINT CUP SERIES No. 11 FEDEX TOYOTA

Sprint CupRichmond 400,7 p.m., Saturday

Nationwide SeriesVirginia 529 College Savings 250, 7 p.m., Friday

Truck SeriesNC Education Lottery 200, 7:30 p.m., May 18

VERSUS

Oh, it wasn’t really a feud, but Truex and owner Waltrip were at cross-purposes when describing Truex’s late decline in the STP 400. Truex blamed his runner-up finish, after dominating most of the Kansas Speedway race, on a bad set of tires. Waltrip, a TV commentator, told the Fox audience that the emerging sun changed track conditions and hurt Truex’s Toyota.

NASCAR This Week’s Monte Dutton gives his take: “Maybe Waltrip, concentrating on his TV duties, wasn’t fully informed. Maybe he was reluctant to criticize Goodyear. Either way, it was a tough loss for the improving team.”

It’s Now Ram...OK?There are no longer any Dodge entries in the

Camping World Truck Series. Officially, Brad Keselowski finished third at Kansas Speedway in a Ram. Chrysler Group LLC rebranded its truck as “Ram.” The decision actually took place in October 2009, according to a news release earlier this year. “Creating a stand-alone identity for Ram Trucks allows the company to concentrate on the capability and durability demands of commercial and recreational truck buyers, while giving the company the opportunity to define an all-new spirit and life for Dodge cars, minivans and SUVs focused on performance and personality and amplifying the youthfulness of the Dodge brand,” according to the release. Got that?

MARTIN TRUEX JR. VS. MICHAEL WALTRIPTruex Jr. Waltrip

What’s In A Number?The illustrious drivers who have won Cup races in

cars carrying No. 11 are Cale Yarborough (55 wins), Ned Jarrett (49), Darrell Waltrip (43), Denny Hamlin (19), Junior Johnson (11), Bill Elliott (6), Geoff Bodine (4), Terry Labonte (4), Bobby Allison (3), Buddy Baker (2), A.J. Foyt (1), Mario Andretti (1) and Parnelli Jones (1).

By Monte DuttonNASCAR This Week

Johnson

8º/Front2º/Backstretch

8ºBanking inturns 1-4

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Distance:............... 0.750-mile ovalLength of frontstretch:. ....1,290 ft.Length of backstretch:. .......860 ft.Miles/Laps: .....300 mi. = 400 laps

April 28 Sept. 8

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RICHMOND DATARICHMOND DATA

Race: Richmond 400Where: Richmond (Va.) International Raceway (.75 mi.), 400 laps/300 miles.When: Saturday, April 28.Last year’s winner: Kyle Busch, Toyota.Qualifying record: Brian Vickers, Chevy, 129.983 mph, May 14, 2004.Race record: Dale Jarrett, Ford, 109.047 mph, Sept. 6, 1997.Last week: One Toyota driver, Denny Hamlin, tracked down another, Martin Truex Jr., and led the final 31 laps of Kansas Speedway’s STP 400. Hamlin joined Tony Stewart as the second driver to win two of the season’s first eight races.

Race: Virginia 529 College Savings 250Where: Richmond (Va.) International Raceway (.75 mi.), 250 laps/187.5 miles.When: Friday, April 27.Last year’s winner: Denny Hamlin, Toyota.Qualifying record: Kyle Busch, Chevy, 129.348 mph, May 14, 2004.Race record: Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 108.415 mph, April 29, 2011.Last race: Reigning champion Ricky Stenhouse Jr. picked up his second victory of the season and took second place in the standings with a victory at Texas Motor Speedway. Stenhouse’s Ford took the checkered flag ahead of the Chevys of Paul Menard and Kasey Kahne.

Race: North Carolina Education Lottery 200Where: Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord, N.C. (1.5 mi.), 134 laps/201 miles.When: Friday, May 18.Last year’s winner: Kyle Busch, Toyota.Qualifying record: Mike Skinner, Toyota, 183.051 mph, May 19, 2005.Race record: Kyle Busch, Chevy, 124.845 mph, May 19, 2006.Last week: James Buescher, in a Chevy, passed Brad Keselowski’s Ram late in the Kansas Speedway event. Points leader Timothy Peters, in a Toyota, managed to take second, with Keselowski third and Nelson Piquet Jr., in a Chevy, finished fourth.

2012 POINTS STANDINGSSprint Cup Series Pts.1. Greg Biffle 3122. Martin Truex Jr. - 153. Matt Kenseth - 174. Dale Earnhardt Jr. - 215. Denny Hamlin - 236. Kevin Harvick - 257. Jimmie Johnson - 378. Tony Stewart - 479. Carl Edwards - 6110. Ryan Newman - 6311. Clint Bowyer - 8512. Joey Logano - 91

Nationwide Series1. Elliott Sadler 2472. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. - 43. Austin Dillon - 204. Sam Hornish Jr. - 545. Michael Annett - 646. Cole Whitt - 657. Trevor Bayne - 678. Tayler Malsam - 84 Justin Allgaier - 8410. Mike Bliss - 100

Camping World Truck Series1. Timothy Peters 1632. James Buescher - 43. Justin Lofton - 114. Ty Dillon - 145. Nelson Piquet Jr. - 236. Parker Kligerman - 267. Ron Hornday Jr. - 348. John King - 399. Jason White - 4310. Matt Crafton - 48

John Clark/NASCAR This WeekDenny Hamlin has taken over as the flagship car for Gibbs Racing with two Cup wins this season. Hamlin won Sunday after Martin Truex Jr. lost the lead.

SPRINT CUP NATIONWIDE CAMPING WORLD TRUCK

Bristol Boost With A Mile?NASCAR This Week welcomes letters to the

editor, but please be aware that we have room for only a few each week. We’ll do our best to select the best, but individual replies are impos-sible due to the bulk of mail received. Please do not send stamped and self-addressed envelopes with your letters, which should be addressed to: NASCAR This Week, The Gaston Gazette, P.O. Box 1538, Gastonia, N.C. 28053. Questions can also be sent by email, Facebook and Twitter (see directions at the top of this page).

Dear NASCAR This Week,I read what you had written as to why the

attendance was low at Bristol. You want to know how to improve the attendance at Bristol? Add another mile to it. Personally, I don’t care to watch the short-track races. Why? Because it puts a hardship on the drivers who are back (in) the field. If you start way back in the pack, you play well to get to the front. Short tracks aren’t an equal opportunity per (se).

I would rather watch races on the big tracks. I know if my driver starts back in the pack, he has a lot of chances to come to the front if he has a fast pit crew. At Bristol no matter how good your car is and how proficient your pit crew is, (if) you start way back, you’ll have a better chance at winning the lottery than getting to the front. To me, short tracks and road courses are … useless ...

W. LangleyMount Holly, N.C.

Thanks for letting us know how you feel. Many fans love the short tracks, though. Upward mobility isn’t as hard as you think, though. It’s not impossible. Kyle Busch won at Richmond last year after starting 20th.