Defending Sprint Cup champion Kevin Harvick was sixth, just ahead of SHR team mates Kurt Busch and Danica Patrick, with Hendrick pair Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon rounding out the top ten.
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Kenseth, who now must win Sunday’s race at always tense Talladega if he is to advance in the Chase, on Friday was asked if he would have done anything different at Kansas. If there’s a caution in the two-lap overtime period, the running order will be frozen, with the leader being declared the victor.
Kenseth has one win (2012) at Talladega Superspeedway. A few of these predictions will be bolder than others.
NASCAR chief racing development officer Steve O’Donnell says the procedural change to one attempt at a green-flag finish is an effort to balance “exciting finishes and safety”.
Matt Kenseth is 25 points out of eighth place and has to still be fuming about an over-zealous Joey Logano wrecking him late at Kansas while he was leading.
What to Watch For: Timothy Peters tries to win at Talladega for the second consecutive season. Brad made a big move [toward the end of the race], and I think that was because we’re sharing data up and down the pit road during the race, and I think [we] will get together and look at what are the things that worked and what didn’t. There are obviously a huge number of mathematical scenarios that involve all of the other drivers, but no matter what, Hamlin cannot have a bad race.
“I think the Chase format was designed to create tension, to create competition and certainly pressure on the teams and the drivers”, Penske said.
“It makes it a lot easier on the driver to do his job and fend off challenges and get the vehicle to the front in the first place”.
Site: Talladega, Alabama. Schedule: Friday, practice (NBC Sports Network, 2-3 p.m., 4:30-5:30 p.m.); Saturday, qualifying (NBC Sports Network, 4-6 p.m.); Sunday, race, 2:30 p.m. (NBC Sports Network, 2-6 p.m.).
Programming also includes legendary NASCAR broadcaster Ken Squier returning to voice a special feature on the 500 most unsafe miles on the NASCAR circuit. Talladega is the track where Keselowski won his first Sprint Cup Series race, if it can be the site of his next victory, he will simply move on to the next Chase round.
“We’re taking the same auto we won with earlier this year, so it’s got great speed and we feel confident”.
Following the race, Logano described the incident as “hard racing” and insists he didn’t dump Kenseth. “And so you hope that you’ve got two good finishes to rely on and that you can absorb a bump and a scrape in Talladega and still advance”. That debate was reignited at the Kansas Speedway last Sunday. “I did everything I could do to win the race”. “The Chase is going to give you these kind of results”.
“Well”, Kenseth, a five-race victor this year, said, “I wouldn’t have done anything differently because I didn’t do anything wrong”. (31st) and Richard Childress Racing’s Ryan Newman (32nd).
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Earnhardt won the spring race by getting to the front and staying there, as he usually does in the restrictor-plate races.
