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Below Average Performances Hinder The Racing Seasonn
| There are some excellent racers that have left quite an impression during the 2009 Sprint Cup season following thirteen races. Making NASCAR news is a small group of top-ranking drivers. Stewart-Haas Racing drivers Tony Stewart and Ryan Newman have exceeded preseason estimations. David Reutimann, a driver for Michael Waltrip Racing, is having a career-defining season, with a recent victory at the Lowe's Motor Speedway. There is little separating him from the top twelve.nnAlthough a part-time driver in the Sprint Cup, Brad Keselowski has become a first-time winner in 2009. He won at Talladega driving for Phoenix Racing, and independent team owned by James Finch.nnOther pleasant surprises include former open-wheel icons Juan Pablo Montoya and Sam Hornish Jr, both showing definite improvement since the 2008 season.nnOf course, while there are some notable performers, we have seen some drivers and teams fall well below their expectations.nnIt seems that Dale Earnhardt Jr holds the top spot for disappointments of 2009. When Earnhardt Jr first arrived at Hendrick Motorsports in 2008, he was the strongest of the four-car outfit. However, as the season progressed, other teams caught up, and Earnhardt Jr began to lag behind. He has yet to recapture the magic he and Tony Eury Jr found in the early months of the 2008 campaign. In fact, Rick Hendrick replaced Tony Eury Jr with Lance McGrew. McGrew will serve as the interim crew chief for Dale Earnhardt Jr.nnDespite his efforts, Earnhardt Jr has struggled to carry his burden; in the midst of his struggles, this burden seems like too much to bear. NASCAR's top driver is in a race to improve his performance to avoid continued negative press.nnKevin Harvick, who was a qualifying driver in the Chase for the Championship between 2006 and 2008, also won six competitions during that time. However, Harvick is now in the midst of his worst season since he went through a bad driving period in 2002. At this point, Harvick, who hasn't had a win since the 2007 Daytona 500, has enormous odds against a fourth appearance in the Chase for the Championship.nnHarvick is not the only driver from his stables mired in mediocrity. Fellow members of the Richard Childress Racing team have not fared very well over the last year, especially Clint Bowyer. Despite a great start to the 2009 season, Bowyer has not been able to crack the top ten in the seven races leading up to the Pocono 500. Jeff Burton is consistent as usual, but it is obvious that the performance is off with that team . Casey Mears had a poor opening to the racing season, but he's obtained two top ten finishes in the last four races.nnRoush Fenway Racing driver David Ragan ranks high as another disappointing performer, rivaling even Earnhardt Jr and Harvick. It seems the NASCAR news is getting grimmer. It was suggested that Ragan was the most improved driver of 2008, but he has since become a diminished racer. With a thirteenth place finish at 2008 championships, NASCAR news and racing analysts were forecasting that Ragan would join the ranks of drivers competing in the Sprint Cup championships. The unfortunate part is that Ragan has only managed to finish one race out of thirteen in the top ten. Something is definitely up with this team.nnFor Carl Edwards, a teammate of Ragan, the 2008 season was crowned with a Sprint series-high nine races. After thirteen consecutive losses, Edwards has not been able to perform his signature celebratory back flip. Regardless of the fact that Edwards is currently numbered among the top twelve in the championship ratings, most insiders were expecting more from him and others in the No. 99 group. |
About the Author
I, like many others, am interested in the experience of NASCAR racing and keep up on NASCAR news items when I can. Writing about NASCAR offers some adde dimensions.n
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