This weekend in Las Vegas is going to be interesting to say the least; that is, if practice and qualifying reflect anything at all about how the race will go. The Fords are looking just as strong as they did last weekend in Phoenix and, from this fan’s view, I reckon it remains to be seen if they perform at the level they practiced and qualified at, (unlike what happened at Phoenix.)
It’s not that just the Roush Fords look strong, but, all of the Fords look like they have a few more horses hooked up to the track and could make the day miserable for the Chevys and Toyotas, (and, of course, those Penske Dodges, too.)
Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not willing to put all of my cards on the table yet, but I do agree with many others, the Fords are going to be hard to beat unless something unexpected happens to them along the way. But wait a minute, didn’t many think exactly that way last week and isn’t this still NASCAR? Oh and an additional thought about that NASCAR thing; haven’t we been conditioned to expect the unexpected? (Yeah, that’s what I thought you’d say.)
How about Marcos Ambrose qualifying outside pole next to Matt Kenseth? Has anyone wondered about the Richard Petty Motorsports teams besides me? They are looking better every weekend and I still think either Marcos or AJ will end up in Victory Lane sometime this season (or maybe both will and just maybe, more than once.)
The new points system has definitely put an interesting slant on the way things are shaking out so far after the first two races. Just look at where some of the Chasers from last season are right now. Some are definitely having a hard time adjusting to the smaller points allotments and the time it takes to move back up after a bad week. It is still to soon to tell how it will affect the overall way things wring out simply because things usually do get mixed up fairly regularly during the first few races of the season. One thing to keep in mind though, if people like Kevin Harvick and Jeff Burton continue having bad weeks, they may just have to qualify on time after the first five weeks are over. That being said, it adds a bit of pressure to them, but it doesn’t mean they will be considered one of the “go or go homers.” Although, should something happen during qualifying runs after the first five races, it may make things very interesting. (Can anyone say David Ragan?)
Kyle Bush is at the number one position in points followed by his brother, Kurt, in the second position. AJ Almendinger is in fourth place, which not bad for RPM or AJ either. With Marcos also qualifying well and running well this weekend, I guess we’ll see how things go for them.
Personally, it wouldn’t bother me at all if Marcos Ambrose pulls off the unexpected and ends the day in Victory Lane. Not only would it be a good thing for him but also for Richard Petty Motorsports and I think they both would feel good about taking a trophy home. You can call me an old softy if you want but, I would like to see them have a good year. After what Richard Petty had to endure at the end of last year, it would definitely be another “Feel Good” moment on the 2011 season, (at least for me, and a few others I know.)
As far as the track at Vegas, it’s just not predictable. Just because somebody runs well on Friday and Saturday doesn’t mean they will have the same results on Sunday. The track just changes over the weekend and sometimes those changes are completely unexpected and have nothing obvious to do with weather or temperature. More than one team has gone into a Sunday race at Vegas with high hopes and come away disappointed just because they thought they had it figured out from practice and qualifying.
This weekend at Vegas is going to be another great weekend of racing in NASCAR Cup. I don’t know how you feel about it, but from this fan’s view, I expect to see a lot of action on the track and in the pits and I’ll be watching what happens on every one of those double file restarts throughout the day.
If they run the way they did in qualifying and practice, I just hope the Fords don’t make the race to boring… (that just doesn’t sound like Vegas to me… does it to you?)
See ya next time… Rusty
All views expressed are strictly the opinion of the writer
© March 05, 2011 – all rights reserved
Rusty Norman and Nascarfansview.com
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