Motor Sports Weekly News

By: Drew Hierwarter

Well, that was a slam-bang affair at Richmond International Raceway on Saturday night. Beatin’ and bangin’, frammin’ and bammin’, whatever you want to call it, it was desperate measures for a desperate time.

The near record number of caution flags in the awkwardly named “Wonderful Pistachios 400” was an indication of how hard some combatants, er, competitors were trying to make something, anything happen to get themselves in to the rarified air of the vaunted “Chase”!

Most of those who were trying the hardest had only the slimmest of chances to get in. They really needed bad things to happen to good teams if they were to have any chance at all.

And in the end, after all of the hype by the TV guys giving us all of the possible scenarios over and over, after all of the crumpled body panels, and after all of the frayed nerves and fried tempers, nothing changed.

The same 12 guys who were going to be in the Chase before the race started, were the ones who were in the Chase at race’s end.

All of the power house teams are represented in the 2011 edition of the Chase for the Championship. Three from Hendrick Motor Sports, two from Joe Gibbs Racing, two from Stewart-Haas Racing, two from Penske South, two from Jack Roush, and one from Richard Childress Racing.

All of the drivers in the Chase have won at least one race in 2011 save for two, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Tony Stewart. Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick have the most wins at 4 each.

Next weekend, the Chase officially starts at Chicagoland Speedway. Things should be considerably calmer at this “cookie-cutter” mile and a half.  The big injustice of the Chase format is that the focus now shifts almost entirely to those twelve teams competing for the championship. To the nearly complete exclusion of the 31 others in each race who still have plenty to race for.

Some of the biggest surprises and most excitement just may come out of that gang of 31.