Race To The Chase: The 12th-Place Plot Thickens
One week down, nine to go, in the Race to the Chase — the 10-week stretch that precedes the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
And as NASCAR’s “playoffs”
approach, the pressure mounts for drivers patrolling the “bubble” area on either side of 12th place in the series standings.
Only the top 12 make the Chase, which encompasses the last 10 races of the season. Coming into Saturday night’s Coke Zero 400 Presented by Coca-Cola at Daytona International Speedway, the five drivers immediately outside the top 12 are within merely 128 points of 12th-place Kevin Harvick (No. 29 Reese’s Chevrolet).
Included in that group:
Former series champion Matt Kenseth (No. 17 R&L Carriers Ford) is 13th, 15 behind Harvick;
Two-time NASCAR Nationwide Series champion Martin Truex Jr. (No. 1 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet) in 14th, 71 out of 12th;
This year’s Daytona 500 champion Ryan Newman (No. 12 Alltel Dodge), now down to 15th in points, 111 behind Harvick.
Those all are surprises — but so are these: In 16th you’ll find Brian Vickers (No. 83 Red Bull Toyota) 113 behind Harvick, while David Ragan (No. 6 AAA Ford) is 17th, 128 back.
Of those five, the best bet to advance this week appears to be Newman, with his career-defining victory this past February only part of the reason.
Newman actually has the second-best Driver Rating at Daytona at 98.6, trailing only the 108.1 of Tony Stewart (No. 20 Home Depot Toyota). This key Loop Data statistic is based on the last seven events at the 2.5-mile tri-oval. During that span Newman’s average DIS finish has been 14.4.
In addition to winning the 500 this season, Newman finished third in 2006. His best finish in Daytona’s July race: 11th in ‘06.
