Gordon celebrated with frontstretch burnouts that resulted in his No. 24 Chevrolet being pelted by beer cans and debris, just as Logano’s was Sunday. “I could be working on a boat, could be going out at 3 in the morning, banging ice off the thing when it’s freezing up”. “Per the rule book, it sorted out and I finished second”.
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“Don’t ask me if I meant to do it. For all intents and purposes, I’m still alive to win the Cup”. “It seems driving down the straightaway trying to pass cars even in practice, it just seems really tight”.
But cleaning up the cloud surrounding Harvick is just one part of the problem. You have to continue to try to let it play out. Those guys wrecked the first time. “Obviously, the situation with the restart was what it was”.
“Kevin Harvick’s actions were fishy”, Gordon said.
“One of my crew members came over and said, ‘Did you touch the wall?’ And I said, ‘I don’t think so.’ And then they said, ‘Well, there’s a scuff on the right side.’ So I guess I was a little closer than I thought I was”.
“We maintained the speed on the caution”. Carl Edwards is 15/1. “I can’t talk about it now because I think we just have too much work ahead of us”.
“Things happen in the heat of battle”.
“We want the big trophy at the end of the year”, he said. “He’s already locked in (for the Chase Eliminator Round)”. But those two bad ones were in the Chase (New Hampshire and Dover). Uneasy lies the crown upon the reigning champion…
Andy Cagle writes about NASCAR in a weekly column.
No surprise that Talladega’s TV rating was a positive 2.6, with 4.2 million viewers.
Of the eight drivers remaining in the Chase, Gordon is statistically the strongest at Martinsville. Officials are also considering future races in Mexico City and St. Louis. NBC put Talladega on its cable cousin to drive more viewers there.
In the final two races of the previous round, defending champion Kevin Harvick and Joey Logano helped themselves with debatable moves.
The Penske driver is coming off a three-race win streak and didn’t hesitate to bring his Chase momentum to the series oldest active track.
Drivers will start their engines Sunday at 1:15 p.m.
He can certainly relate when the fan derision stems from preventing a Dale Earnhardt Jr. appearance in victory lane at Talladega Superspeedway.
Yes, Joey Logano, has arrived. Jeff Gordon, 6. Kyle Busch, 7.
The four drivers eliminated after Talladega were Dale Earnhardt Jr., Denny Hamlin, Matt Kenseth and Ryan Newman….Earnhardt won this race last fall, his first career Sprint Cup triumph at Martinsville.
Mayfield led the first 97 laps of the race before cutting a tire which caused him to spin out.
It’s on to Martinsville this weekend for a 500 lapper at the famed “paperclip” short track.
Gordon last won a title in 2001, but was a serious threat last season before he was eliminated from the Chase at Phoenix, the cutoff race. Kyle Busch indicated this week that Logano will have to look over his shoulder during this third round of the Chase.
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Matt Kenseth has been upset with Logano since the October 17 race at Kansas, where Logano spun Kenseth as he passed him for the victory.
