An in-depth look at Juan Pablo Montoya and how he might work on your fantasy NASCAR team for 2008.

Juan Pablo Montoya entered NASCAR in 2007 with an accomplished racing resume, but only one Cup start and a handful of other scattered stock car races. It was considered a great experiment by Chip Ganassi. Could an open wheel driver succeed in the less precise, more grueling world of stock car racing? Montoya answered that question with an emphatic yes. The bigger question now is, “Can he win on an oval?

He won his first race at the Mexico City Busch race in the first two months of the season. He scored his first Cup top 5 at Atlanta in race 4 and won his first Cup race at Sonoma in June. He also finished 2nd at the Brickyard 400 at a track where he won in Indy cars 7 years earlier. In the most telling sign that he had arrived as a stock car driver, Montoya got into a yelling and shoving match with Kevin Harvick the next week at Watkins Glen.

Overall Montoya’s season was a pretty typical rookie effort. He had some nice runs mixed in with several disappointing ones. He only had 4 DNF’s, all due to crashes, but did have 10 sub-30 finishes. He won a race, but everyone including Montoya conceded that real progress will be measured on the ovals.

The road courses were an obvious strength so it was no surprise when he won both the Mexico City and Sonoma races. Beyond those two races he also had nice runs at Atlanta, Texas, Indianapolis and Dover. Maybe the most impressive finish was his 8th place run at Martinsville. Few tracks pose a more physical challenge than the tiny paperclip-shaped track. The fact that Montoya survived the beating and banging and avoided the carnage to post a good finish is more impressive than winning a road course or running well on a wide open track like Atlanta or Texas.

Montoya quickly proved himself as a good qualifier. He had 8 top ten starts including a season best 2nd achieved at Indianapolis, Bristol and Dover. Whether by design or plain rookie inexperience, Montoya almost always dropped out of the top 10 in these races.

Aside from his obvious ability on road courses, Montoya also found success at 1.5 mile tracks, most notably Atlanta. He scored top tens in both the Busch and Cup series’. Texas and Indianapolis comprised his other speedway top tens.

Ganassi said he expects Montoya to make the Chase. Maybe that’s a source of motivation or inspiration for Montoya and his crew, but don’t count on it. Montoya’s driver rating was 67.7 for the 2007 season. He also only had 6 top 10 finishes. He needs to seriously improve both of those numbers (85.0 rating and 12-15 top 10’s) before the Chase is a real option.

Considering the equipment Ganassi has had in recent years, the Chase will not happen. Ganassi and the Dodges as a whole need serious improvement. While the speedway program improved, their short track CoT game was off. Now the CoT runs full time in 2008 and it’s hard to imagine the company catching any of the top teams car-wise.

Montoya is sure to improve in year two of stock car racing. His knowledge and comfort of the cars and what adjustments to ask for will allow for more consistent runs. The biggest concern for Montoya might be his aggressive, sometimes stubborn approach. The closer to the front he runs, the more respect and patience he will have to display. If he doesn’t heed to the other top drivers, he won’t last long up front before someone. Ganassi obviously disagrees, but Montoya is not ready to challenge the top drivers on a weekly basis and Ganassi doesn’t have the tools in place yet either. Improving his final point standing to the upper teens is possible. For the answer to the biggest question regarding an oval win, it’s a “not this year”.

See our complete Juan Pablo Montoya NASCAR Statistics.

An in-depth look at JJ Yeley and how he might work on your fantasy NASCAR team for 2008.

Quick, what’s the first word that comes to mind when JJ Yeley is mentioned? Crash? Wreck? Wadded sheetmetal? Maybe DNF? It’s an easy word association based on his Busch record and Cup starts entering 2007. But perception does not always match reality, and in 2007 Yeley went a long way towards erasing that image. His basic numbers didn’t change that much (1 top 5, 3 top 10’s compared to 0, 3 in 2006) but his point position improved dramatically from 29th to 21st. The biggest reason? His crash numbers went way down, which meant he was running for positions at the end of races instead of turning laps in a dented ride.

Life at Joe Gibbs Racing

Despite the noted improvement, Yeley’s future with Gibbs was set to expire. Maybe the first sign was the fact that Yeley had to find a different owner in order to race in the Busch Series. Later in the season rumors popped up about Yeley not having his contract renewed. Things didn’t help when Dale Earnhardt Jr was shopping his services to teams including Gibbs.

The rumors eventually became truth and after two seasons in the #18 with Joe Gibbs Racing, Yeley was replaced with Kyle Busch. From a competition standpoint it’s hard to blame Gibbs for the switch, because it’s clearly an upgrade. Yeley quickly found a ride with Gibbs’ satellite team Hall of Fame Racing in favor of outgoing driver Tony Raines. Like Busch hopping in the #18 car, Yeley is an upgrade over Raines in the #96 car.

For Yeley’s part, he was never going to get more attention than Tony Stewart or Denny Hamlin and probably didn’t get the full chance to prove himself in the #18. Now he will get similar equipment, but probably more exclusive attention from the team.

Life after Joe Gibbs Racing

Hall of Fame Racing (HoF Racing) has access to a lot of tools that other small teams typically don’t. First their alignment with Gibbs’ vast resources and data is a huge step up. They also get technical support from the parent company, which is a huge benefit towards the CoT.

The other big factor will come from Hall of Fame’s switch to Toyota. The Camry promises great horsepower, deep pockets from Toyota and the motivation to improve on last year’s embarrassing debut. It’s a pretty compelling argument for Yeley and HoF Racing to better their 2007 numbers.

It’s a critical season for HoF Racing, and as a result Yeley might have additional pressure to perform. Their primary sponsor Texas Instruments DLP is one of the highest profile sponsors in NASCAR. After two honeymoon seasons, DLP might demand to see some real return on their investment. That poses a few questions to Jeff Moorad, Tom Garfinkel, and Tom Davin the new principal owners of HoF. How much time does Yeley get to adjust to the new team? Will they again opt for a road course ringer like Ron Fellows to ensure top results? Do they have plans to expand to a second car to leverage more testing and information gathering?

JJ Yeley’s strong tracks for 2008

Yeley has the chance to bring HoF to a new level. If he can take advantage of the support from Toyota and Gibbs, bettering his 1 top 5 and 3 top 10’s is certain. Yeley’s greatest strength is at tracks like Loudon, Richmond and his and the team’s home track Phoenix. This type of track requires fine car control, exactly the kind Yeley developed in his USAC and IRL days. With the strong competition for top 20 spots, repeating his 21st points position is really the most the team can hope for. Even that would mark a four spot jump for HoF over last year’s 25th owners points result. Yeley has a lot of tools at his disposal, the question is how will he use them?

See our complete JJ Yeley NASCAR Statistics.

An in-depth look at Gillett Evernham Motorsports and how their drivers might work on your fantasy NASCAR team for 2008.

2007: What Happened

After a breakthrough 2006, Evernham Motorsports tumbled out of the Chase, went winless and didn’t dust itself off until it was too late. Top driver Kasey Kahne didn’t win a race, scored his first top 5 in August and had only 8 top 10’s all season. He was usually fast on Fridays, but would sink like a mob-hit victim in concrete shoes on Sundays.

The season began on a good note. Kasey Kahne and Elliott Sadler both scored top 10’s at Daytona. After missing the 2006 Daytona 500 Scott Riggs, by virtue of his top 35 owner points position made the race and finished 37th. Restrictor plate races had been a hole in the team in past seasons, but the results marked progress. Surprisingly the problems began the following week on an intermediate track and perpetuated for the rest of the season.

Meanwhile Elliott Sadler avoided trouble but with poor handling cars on a weekly basis, he was merely turning laps. He hovered around the top 20 all year.

2007: What Went Well

Evernham was able to at least solve some of the issues on the #9 car and by late summer Kahne was again running in the top ten. His best effort came at Bristol when he dominated. Winning the pole, leading 305 laps and finishing 2nd to Carl Edwards. Of his 8 top ten finishes, 6 came in the final 12 races, including four on intermediate tracks.

Since his rookie year, Kahne has also been one of the best qualifiers in Cup. That continued in 2007 when he scored two poles and had an average start of 14.3.

Following a recent trend in NASCAR Evernham brought George Gillett on as an investor. With the new capital, Evernham pledged to return to the racing aspects of the business. It’s a long term solution that one hand puts Evernham in a position where he is most effective-in the shop. On the other hand, Evernham’s entire business philosophy was to build the company so that it wouldn’t be so reliant on one or two individuals. Additional revenue is also on its way in the form of new sponsorship for 2008. Budweiser and Best Buy will cover Kahne and Sadler’s respective cars.

2007: What Went Wrong

How much time do you have? The team went winless, no driver made the Chase, all three cars combined to lead a meager 336 laps, Scott Riggs struggled to qualify, all three teams were penalized for cheating at Daytona.

Kahne and Riggs began the year with resounding bangs. The problem was that the bangs came from crashes, blown engines and banging their heads on the wall in frustration. By race #5 Riggs had dropped from the safety zone of the top 35 and Kahne sat in 35th. Kahne eventually clawed his way back to respectability, but Riggs spent the rest of the season chasing the ground they had gained in 2006. The result was Riggs walking away from the team for a ride at Haas CNC, while Evernham hired open wheel driver Patrick Carpentier to fill the #10 car’s seat.

Elliott Sadler had a forgettable season as well. His 25th place finish and measly two top tens was his worst effort since 2000. He did have a great car at Bristol until a flat tire spoiled his fun. Team director Josh Browne was let go after the season, marking a fresh start for 2008.

Midway through the season Evernham admitted he allowed the team to go in the wrong direction for too long. He immediately regained more control of the daily racing operations and the results came quickly. He also conceded his relationship with development driver Erin Crocker may have stolen his attention from the Cup program.

2008 Outlook

Which way will GEM go in ‘08? Given that it’s an even year, Kasey Kahne figures to have a nice season. In ‘04 and ‘06 Kahne averaged 12.5 top 5’s and 16.5 top 10’s. In ‘05 and ‘07 his averages were 3 top 5’s and 8 top 10’s. Given the small sample size it says two things. One, it’s probably not a very reliable predictor, but also that Evernham has typically been slow to adapt to changes. 2005 was the introduction of the new aero-package and 2007 was the CoT. 2008 is another year of change with the CoT going full time plus Dodge’s introduction of a new engine midseason. That means Kahne sustaining success is no sure thing. He is still growing as a driver, but his wheelhouse for success stems from intermediate tracks. This program is more reliant on equipment than any other piece of the NASCAR schedule. That means his success is more closely tied to GEM than Sadler’s or Carpentier’s might be. His best speedway tracks are Atlanta, Michigan, and Lowe’s, but he is also a front runner at Bristol, Darlington and especially Richmond. Obviously a lot rests on the speedway program, but Kahne should win at least one race and challenge for a Chase spot.

Sadler is an excellent plate racer at both Talladega and Daytona. Other strong tracks include Bristol, Texas, Dover and Lowe’s. He’s also an underrated road racer. Wins aren’t quite in his grasp, but he has proven top tens are realistic. In 18 career starts in serpentine tracks he has 5 top tens.

Improving 13 spots in the points is a lofty goal, especially coming off a down year for the team. Sadler is a good enough driver that if GEM hits the setup with the CoT, he could win a race this year. That would be a welcome sight. His last win came at the fall Fontana race in 2004.

For Carpentier, 2008 will be strictly a foundation building exercise. He will have to qualify on speed for the first 5 races. Even if he does pull that off, accumulating enough points to crack the top 35 is a major challenge. Road courses are a no-brainer, but beyond that the season will be a struggle.

After working on spotlighting car #18 in the Car Number Countdown to the Daytona 500 I thought I’d share a little with you about the only pay-to-play internet fantasy game I’ve ever played in. The name of the game is Pay The Fan and they have both a NASCAR Racing division and NFL Football division. Dale Jarrett is the co-owner of this site with Terry Bradshaw and I personally played in the racing division game last year. I didn’t do all that great, but I had a great time. Last year was the game’s inaugural season, and it was only a partial season consisting of the Chase races. So, the 2008 season will be the first time players will have the chance to play an entire race season! Last year the winner in the racing division took home the grand prize of $150,000 for a ten race game. Second place won $75,000 and third place took home $50,000. There were prize amounts all the way back to the 22nd spot at $1,000 for their finish. For the 2008 season they will have over $700,000 in payouts! Part of the payouts are weekly prizes of $5,000 to be split between the top 3 finishers for that week! So even if you’re not leading the game over the course of the season, everyone has the chance to win a part of at least one of the weekly $5,000 prizes! Also, Dale Jarrett himself posts expert advice before each race as the season goes along!

Help a Brother Out!

So, while I KNOW you’re playing our Champs, Chumps & Sleepers game to try and win that Dale Jarrett prize package, I highly encourage you to play Dale Jarrett’s Pay The Fan fantasy game too! Please, since I know you want to help me out, if you decide to join Pay The Fan consider doing me a favor and be referred by me. To do so, either click on the logo above, or this link, or just go to PayTheFan.com and enter “739″ as a Referral Code when you sign up!

Once you’re signed up, be sure to visit the “Leagues” section (simliar to our “Groups” sections in the Champs, Chumps & Sleepers game) and click on the “Find” tab. From there, search for and join us in the public league that I’ve created: OneBadWheel.com – Statistics for Racing Junkies” In that game I am “Team OneBadWheel.com” and Darren will also be registering a team as well [will update post with his name once I know it].
THANKS!

An in-depth look at Reed Sorenson and how he might work on your fantasy NASCAR team for 2008.

Reed Sorenson’s official website touts him as “a star of the future”. That’s a pretty accurate description and “future” also keeps things in the right perspective. Sorenson is entering his third full time season in Cup, and while it might be easy to say it’s a critical season, it’s easy to forget a few things.

Sorenson celebrates his 22nd birthday two weeks before the Daytona 500. Most drivers don’t make it to the top level of NASCAR until their mid 20’s. That sets up the second point. His fellow 2006 rookies, Martin Truex, Denny Hamlin, Clint Bowyer and even JJ Yeley are all older and had more racing experience prior to Cup. To compare Sorenson against their progress and accomplishments is a little unfair. One is a project while the other is closer to a finished product. It would be like expecting a rookie quarterback to have as much immediate success as a running back or linebacker. It’s not a fair comparison. Last year no one expected David Ragan to be Juan Pablo Montoya’s equal, so why would Sorenson be any match initially for a two-time Busch champion like Truex or drivers like Hamlin and Bowyer that had 5 or 6 more years of experience? The other factor is harder to gauge, but the cars Sorenson drives at Ganassi are typically inferior to the ones at Gibbs, DEI or RCR.

Another important point is that almost every young driver has other veteran drivers to lean on for advice and guidance. Last year Sorenson had David Stremme and Montoya as teammates, both inexperienced at the Cup level. Sorenson has never had an elder driver on his team.

With all of that said, it is fair to measure Sorenson’s progress and see if he is actually improving. The answer to that question does not hold much hope. His point position improved, but his overall numbers didn’t improve very much. He had fewer laps led, fewer laps completed, more DNF’s and a higher average finish than 2007. He had some nice moments like his pole win at Indy and his three top five finishes, but typically Sorenson was struggling with wrecks and finishing races. His consistency was a major problem. He had consecutive top 20 finishes twice last year. Otherwise the season looked like a graph of a volatile stock with huge peaks and valleys.

Team Ganassi posted improvements in their speedway program in 2007, which Sorenson took advantage of at places like Atlanta and especially Indianapolis. At the Brickyard 400, Sorenson won the pole, ran in the top 10 all day and finished 5th. Teammate Montoya also finished 2nd. Intermediate tracks are Sorenson’s obvious strength.

If the Sprint Cup only ran at Atlanta Sorenson might be a champ. The Peachtree, Georgia native has three top tens and one top five in four career races. He finished 9th and 3rd in the 2007 races.

Ganassi’s gains on speedways did not translate to the CoT. Sorenson had one top ten finish (fall Talladega) in 17 CoT races. Part of this can relate to Sorenson’s weakness at road courses and short tracks, but equipment is also a factor. The equipment quality is one of the biggest questions for Sorenson and Ganassi entering 2008. Manufacturer Dodge is in flux, and the level of support it can offer its teams is the lowest of the four NASCAR manufacturers.

Whether the equipment improves or not, Sorenson must display better skill in avoiding accidents. He had seven finishes of 40th or worse. That’s an indication of not only wrecking (13 crashes and 4 crash-induced DNF’s) but wrecking early. Think about this for a second: JJ Yeley is known for crashing, and his 17 wrecks in 2006 were most in Cup. In Yeley’s second season he reduced that number to a respectable 9. Sorenson’s numbers have stayed high over the same period (mind you Sorenson is 9 years younger than Yeley). This is the biggest weakness for Sorenson and if it doesn’t improve, the quality of his cars is a non-issue.

Sorenson is also still looking for his first top ten finish at a track one mile and under. He has had some decent runs at places like Dover and Loudon, but didn’t score the finishes.

All of this is not to say Sorenson is a bust or will never make it at the Cup level. He has an excellent chance to be a good driver for a long time. The point is more to temper expectations and show that his breakthrough might still be a few years away. Not every young driver will be Kyle Busch and instantly ascend to elite driver status.

So what does this mean for 2008? Improving his overall consistency is priority number one. Reducing his crashes to 9 or 10 opens the door for a huge gain in points. If he took four sub-40th place finishes and turned them into three 20th place finishes, that’s an increase of at least 240 points. It doesn’t sound like much, but that was the difference between Sorenson’s 22nd place finish and 18th place. The other areas that need tuning, like short tracks and road courses, will come with more experience. He has run well at these kinds of tracks in the Busch Series, so it’s only a matter of time and comfort. Sorenson is a talented driver and could have a breakout season. The Chase is out of reach, but cracking double digit top tens and a top 20 points finish are two good goals. It might not show up this year, but Sorenson is someone to keep an eye on in the future.

See our complete Reed Sorenson NASCAR Statistics.

An in-depth look at David Ragan and how he might work on your fantasy NASCAR team for 2008.

“We had a rookie out there that was kind of a dart with no feathers out there.” That was Tony Stewart’s assessment of David Ragan’s first Cup race in 2006. After a full 2007 season under his belt, Ragan is quickly gaining respect at NASCAR’s top level. That ascent will continue in 2008 as he looks to take advantage of Roush Racing’s top notch equipment.

Considering the circumstances, Ragan was bound to struggle in 2007. He had two prior Cup races, one being featherless dart debacle at Martinsville. He inherited the famous #6 car from the very legend that made the car famous, Mark Martin. He was also driving for one of the top teams in NASCAR, Roush Racing, that had won 33 races and 2 championships from 2003-2006. Few drivers would instantly flourish in that setup.

Despite the long odds, Ragan showed why Jack Roush picked him for the #6 car. A top five in the Daytona 500, a great 3rd place showing at Richmond and a 23rd place finish in the points. Ragan also finished 5th in the Busch series on his way to Rookie of the Year.

Ragan’s biggest downfall in 2007 was wrecks. His 22 crashes were most in Cup in 2007. For reference, the median number among drivers was 12. He only had 4 DNF’s, but the crashes played a major part in his 13 sub-30 finishes.

2008 presents lots of reason for optimism for Ragan. The high crash number is bound to come down with more seat time. More experience also means he’ll be in better position to take advantage of Roush’s equipment. Last year was a subpar year by Roush’s normal standards, but this year should see improvement. The company has always had strong speedway cars and with the full transition to the CoT, their expertise will come to the forefront more than last year. For Ragan, that could mean large improvement. Last year he only led 2 laps and had a mere 16 lead lap finishes (interestingly more than fellow rookie Juan Pablo Montoya). Both of those numbers should spike. The intermediate program is often the toughest type of track for a rookie anyway, so better cars and more experience in year two is a good combination.

In his short time, Ragan has already proven a quality restrictor plate race. Beyond his 5th and 12th places runs at Daytona, he also had a 17th at Talladega, plus a 4th place in the Talladega Busch race. While some people will say plate racing is a lot of luck, it is a pretty unique discipline that requires patience, finesse and the intelligence and vision to avoid developing wrecks. Besides, what race doesn’t involve some level of luck? It wouldn’t be a complete shock to see Ragan run well right out of the gate at Daytona. Other places that he could stand out at include Texas, Charlotte and Fontana.

When it comes to analyzing David Ragan, the biggest thing to remember is that he’s 22. He had two top fives in 2007, and doubling that tally is realistic. The competition will increase the higher he climbs on the track, so wins and challenging for a Chase spot is a little premature. More reasonable goals would be 4 top 5’s, 6-7 top 10’s and improving on his 15 top 20’s. A top 20 final point standing is definitely within reach. The progress will come in 2008, but Ragan has already proven that he is more than a dart with no feathers.

See our complete David Ragan NASCAR Statistics.

Score one for Chip Ganassi Racing With Felix Sabates which, with its No. 01 Telmex Lexus-Riley Daytona Prototype on Sunday, captured the first of Speedweek’s string of big races held annually at Daytona International Speedway.

And score 1-2-3 for NASCAR, as each of the top three finishing cars in the Rolex 24 At Daytona were co-driven by stock car regulars.

Ganassi/Sabates drivers Juan Pablo Montoya, Dario Franchitti, Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas shared driving duties throughout their 2,474-mile (695-lap) journey in the Rolex 24, which began the almost nonstop Speedweeks racing action that closes this year with the 50th running of Daytona 500 on Feb. 17. Montoya and Franchitti both drive for Ganassi/Sabates in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

Winning his third Rolex 24 title in a row, Ganassi nonetheless started looking forward.

“It’s a great start but we’ve got a lot of work ahead of us this year and I’d like to get a few more wins at Daytona before the year is out,” Ganassi said, referring to NASCAR’s upcoming races at Daytona and his team’s Dodges that will be driven by Montoya, Franchitti and Reed Sorensen.

The runner-up car Sunday also featured NASCAR flavor, as two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson teamed with Jimmy Vasser and 2007 Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series driving champions Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty to finish two laps behind in the No. 99 Lowe’s Home Improvement/GAINSCO Auto Insurance Pontiac-Riley.

“I truly love this event,” Johnson said afterward of his fourth Rolex 24 appearance in five years. “I wish we could’ve won.

Johnson, though one of the fastest drivers on the track in the overnight rain, was nevertheless more concerned about what might be if he didn’t keep his car between the lines.

“These guys had a job to do and I would hate that I’d keep them from winning a championship this year,” Johnson said. “I was pretty focused on just keeping the car out of trouble and bringing it home safely.

In third place was the No. 9 Toshiba Pontiac-Riley from Penske-Taylor Racing, with 2004 NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Kurt Busch sharing the wheel with Helio Castroneves and Ryan Briscoe.

Montoya became the first driver to win his first two Rolex 24 races and joined Mario Andretti and Dan Gurney as the only drivers to have won the Rolex 24 along with at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup and Formula One race.

Regardless of past success, Montoya was a bit nervous toward race end.

“For the race’s last 25 minutes the three of us (Franchitti, Montoya, Rojas) were in the motor home just sitting around, waiting,” Montoya said. “Not waiting to win, but to break down.

Ganassi praised Franchitti’s professionalism, singling out the driver’s nighttime stints which involved driving on tires he’d never before experienced.

“I had no way to know what would happen when I went out on them,” Franchitti said. “I just worked into the lap times we needed over the first three or four laps I was in the car. It was pretty interesting to say the least.

Receiving similar praise from IndyCar Series driver Ryan Briscoe was Kurt Busch, likewise initiated into a different sort of racing in foreign conditions.

“Here I was, doing 200 mph in the wet and at night on the banks. I was grinning ear to ear,” Busch said. “I’m going to ask my wife for permission to do this again next year.

NASCAR drivers not only figured prominently in the race’s top three finishing positions but throughout the grueling sports car race. A rundown follows:

A.J. ALLMENDINGER – The No. 6 Michael Shank Racing Ford-Riley was in the race lead until a suspension part broke just after dawn Sunday. Allmendinger, along with Burt Frisselle, Ian James and John Pew finished 14th overall.

BORIS SAID – The No. 50 Blackforest Mustang Cobra GT of Said, John Farano, Carl Jensen and John Cloud broke at about 9 p.m. Saturday but returned Sunday morning after extensive repairs. It finished in 54th place.

JOHN ANDRETTI – The No. 03 Vision Racing Porsche-Crawford with co-drivers Vitor Miera, Anthony Foyt IV, Ed Carpenter and Tony George finished 25th overall.

MICHAEL MCDOWELL – The No. 09 Spirit of Daytona Porsche-Coyote with co-drivers Guy Cosmo, Marc-Antoine Camirand finished 15th.

MAX PAPIS – No. 72 Autohaus Motorsports Pontiac GXP.R with co-drivers Lawson Aschenbach, Tim Lewis Jr. and Craig Stanton finished 30th.

ANDY LALLY – No. 66 TRG Porsche GT3 Cup with co-drivers Bryce Miller, Ted Ballou and Richard Westbrook finished 10th overall and second in GT class.

COLIN BRAUN – No. 61 AIM Autosport Ford-Riley with co-drivers Mark Wilkins, Brian Frisselle and Andrew Ranger led the race with Braun at the wheel but later experienced mechanical difficulties during Ranger’s following shift and was soon withdrawn from the race. It finished 48th.

JOEY HAND – The No. 23 Ruby Tuesday Porsche-Crawford led the race Sunday morning with Hand in the driver’s seat but suffered terminal engine problems before he ended his shift. The driving team of Hand, Bill Auberlen, Patrick Long and Andy Wallace finished 36th.

An in-depth look at Robby Gordon and how he might work on your fantasy NASCAR team for 2008.

Robby Gordon the racer

The name Robby Gordon is a lightning rod in NASCAR circles. To many fans it means a reckless driver that can’t seem to stay out of the way. To others he is one of the best pure racecar drivers in motorsports. The truth is somewhere in the middle. One thing that sometimes goes unnoticed is how far he has come as a driver/owner.

His inaugural 2005 season was an utter disaster, but 2006 saw great improvement. This past year didn’t have the dramatic gains, but he did jump from 30th to 26th in the final point standings.

Robby Gordon the owner

While Gordon the racer is often controversial and inconsistent, Gordon the owner has enjoyed an impressive run. The move to Ford worked well. He went from an also-ran in the Chevy pecking order to one of four teams at Ford that all get support from Roush Racing. He only suffered one engine failure, a huge improvement from his two years with Chevy (11 blown engines). Another credit to Gordon the owner is how well he does in the sponsorship game. At a time when several large teams can’t keep all of their cars sponsored, Gordon has secured sponsors for his team. That is no longer a small detail. He also entered two cars at Watkins Glen showing signs that the company is nearing expansion (admittedly it was mostly a PR stunt featuring Marcos Ambrose). They are all signs that the company is in good shape for the long term.

Robby Gordon and the CoT

The Ford Racing alignment means he should get good support for the CoT. It will be interesting to see how a small operation like RGM does with the CoT. Building two fleets of cars really hurt the team in 2007, but now the team can consolidate its resources. Whether that effort will show up in 2008 or future years remains to be seen.

Robby Gordon at road courses

Gordon will be a favorite to win at road tracks no matter what type of car. He was the class of the field at Sonoma (110.9 driver rating) only to get shuffled back by fuel strategy. His aggressive style is not always popular with his competitors, but is exciting to watch from a fan’s perspective. The way he uses the entire road course, including the dirt, makes one wonder if Gordon should simply bring his Hummer H2 off-road car to Sonoma or The Glen.

Robby Gordon on other tracks

Aside from the obvious road course strength, Gordon has also enjoyed nice runs at places like Talladega, Dover and Loudon. He has good car control and is willing to try different race lines in hopes of speed. The dominant trait of Gordon is his aggressiveness. Squeezing his car into a tight spot sometimes gains him an extra spot or finds him the right line in the draft. It also can lead to worse consequences.

Robby Gordon the crasher

The major consequence of his aggressiveness is crashing. Gordon crashes. A lot. 16 incidents were second only to rookie David Ragan. Only one crash resulted in a DNF, but he had 13 finishes of 30th or worse, meaning he was turning a lot laps in a banged up car. This is the biggest opportunity for improvement.

You can also count on Gordon for at least one major incident during the season. To Gordon’s credit he likes variety in his clashes. From the ‘05 Helmet Toss, Foamgate ‘06 and who can forget his wild adventure in the Montreal Busch race. It’s not every day you see someone celebrate a black flag with a burnout. Amusing antics for fans, but they never help Gordon. Last year’s escapade cost him the Cup race at Pocono.

Robby Gordon for 2008

What does 2008 hold for Gordon the driver? The Chase is unrealistic, but he is capable of improving on his points finish. A few things have to happen first. He must reduce the number of crashes. The engines improved in 2007, now it’s time for Gordon to keep the car in one piece to take advantage of a strong engine program.

Gordon also must take the first step of securing his starting position. Toyota teams will all be stronger, meaning his guaranteed top 35 spot is under assault. Gordon has to get off to a solid start and build a points cushion. Once the car is safely in the top 35 he can turn up the aggressiveness.

There is quite a variance in how Gordon’s year might go down. The high end is a win, and three to four top tens with one top five as a reasonable expectation. He hasn’t won a race since 2003, but a win is always possible at the two road courses. The other scenario sees Gordon struggle at intermediate tracks and he hovers in the 30’s. Either option will be sure to include excitement and controversy. All in a day’s work for Gordon.

An in-depth look at Elliott Sadler and how he might work on your fantasy NASCAR team for 2008.

Gillett Evernham Motorsports’ 2007 season definitely emphasized the sad in Sadler. After joining the season midway through the 2006 season, the team had high hopes entering 2007. Unfortunately things got off course during offseason testing and the team spent the entire season righting the ship. As a result Sadler spent the year fighting ill-handling cars and experiencing his worst points finish since his second season in 2000. His 59.8 driver rating was 25th best and sums up a season with only 2 top ten finishes.

No where to go but up?

Things will certainly improve for Sadler and the team in 2008, but the big question is how much improvement? Obviously this hinges on GEM’s progress with the CoT and if they have resolved their intermediate track issues. Sadler made the Chase in 2004 and was in a great position to match that feat in 2005 before the bottom fell out and he hasn’t threatened for a Chase spot since.

Evernham’s cars have traditionally excelled on the intermediate tracks, not to mention qualifying, and both should play to Sadler’s strengths as a driver. He qualified pretty well in 2007, but quickly fell back in the races. With improved cars this year Sadler could actually take advantage of his starting position (17.4 since 2006). Texas is one of the better speedway tracks for Sadler and could be a spot where Evernham makes strides in 2008. Sadler is also an excellent plate racer at both Talladega and Daytona. And don’t think his plate success was only with Yates power. He finished 6th at the Daytona 500 and led 25 laps at the fall Talladega race before a late crash. Evernham, and Dodge in general, have made significant gains on restrictor plate tracks.

Elliott Sadlers best tracks

Two of Sadler’s better tracks might surprise you. He’s an underrated road racer. Wins aren’t quite in his grasp at Sonoma or Watkins Glen, but he has proven top tens are realistic. In 18 career starts in serpentine tracks he has 5 top tens. Sonoma is actually his strongest track based on average finish (15.4). He also tends to run well at tricky places like Dover, Bristol and Darlington.

Elliott Sadler’s new crew chief

New crew chief/team director/guy with clipboard and headset on pit box Rodney Childers moves over from the #10 team. He replaces Josh Browne, who is probably best known for getting suspended for the Daytona 500 for rules infractions (he’s also a very reliable placekicker). Childers previously worked with Scott Riggs for the last three years and helped Riggs to a nice 2006 season.

Is 2008 Elliott Sadler’s season?

This is a big year for Sadler. 7 out of his 9 seasons have finished with a points standing in the 20’s, yet he’s not that far removed from his breakout 2004 season when he finished 9th and won two races. This is his tenth full time season and at age 33 he’s in his supposed prime. He is capable of good runs at almost any type of track, but the key will be knocking out consistent results. At this point in his career arc he might be in the Dale Jarrett late bloomer mold (compare Elliott Sadler with Dale Jarrett’s numbers through 9 seasons and there are similarities), or go the way of the dodo like a Jeremy Mayfield.

Improving 13 spots in the points is a lofty goal, especially coming off a down year for the team. Sadler is a good enough driver that if GEM hits the setup with the CoT, he could win a race this year. That would be a welcome sight. His last win came at the fall Fontana race in 2004. A reasonable expectation is an improvement over the last two years but not quite to his 2004 level. How about a points finish in the high teens with 2 top 5’s and 9 top tens.

See our complete Elliott Sadler NASCAR Statistics.

Soon, NASCAR team transporters will embark on their late-January trek across plains, mountains and deserts – an annual cross-country pilgrimage crucial to a fast start.

For NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NASCAR Nationwide Series teams, the western swing of NASCAR Preseason Thunder – the sport’s annual preseason test sessions – extends some recent learning curves.

Next week, both series test at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, with the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series also testing at California Speedway. Both series are fresh off preseason sessions at Daytona International Speedway; now they head west.

“It’s another test that the teams weighed in on as one of the six NASCAR-sanction tests,” said NASCAR Sprint Cup Director John Darby of next week’s schedule. “Yes, they’re in preparation for the start of the season, but this is plain-old, let-the-teams-go-test.

Such normalcy is heartening, Darby adds, since NASCAR’s new car debuts fulltime with the 50th Daytona 500 on Feb. 17. NASCAR Sprint Cup teams ran 16 of 36 events in 2007 with the new car – NASCAR now-generation race car – and next week’s tests represent some of its final preparations for fulltime competition.

“The good part of it is we’re not all worried about it,” Darby said, citing extensive new-car testing in the past. “All that’s behind us.

NASCAR Sprint Cup teams will test Monday, Jan. 28 and Tuesday, Jan. 29 at Las Vegas, and Thursday, Jan. 31 and Friday, Feb. 1 at California. NASCAR Nationwide Series teams will test Wednesday, Jan. 30 and Thursday, Jan. 31 at Las Vegas. Times are 9 a.m. until 5 p.m., with a noon-1 p.m. lunch break each day, except for Thursday, Jan. 31 at California, when NASCAR Sprint Cup teams test from 9 a.m. until 9 p.m. That day’s schedule includes a dinner break from 5-6 p.m.

“I’m not aware of anybody that’s going to switch out the cars,” Darby said, between West Coast sessions. “I think everybody’s gearing-up to bring two cars to Las Vegas and California. And that is a good part about the new car.

According to Darby, teams can adjust their schedules at California, running two sessions on Thursday and Friday, or three Thursday and one Friday, if they prefer.

“They can mix and match it any way they want as long as they run four of the five sessions,” he said.

NASCAR Sprint Cup teams also can use Wednesday’s travel day as a garage work day at California, prior to taking the track Thursday morning.

“The garage at California will be open to the teams for maintenance and prepping the cars,” Darby said. “If someone needs to change an engine and fix shocks and things like that, the garage will be open for them to work.

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES INTERVIEW SCHEDULES (Tentative and subject to change)

The schedule for each day’s media availability at Las Vegas and California follows. All interviews will take place in both tracks’ infield media centers. All times are Pacific (PT). Teleconference capability and transcripts will be available for each midday interview session. Audio will be available at NASCAR’s media-only web site – www.nascarmedia.com.

Monday, Jan. 28 (at Las Vegas)

Lunch – Dale Earnhardt Jr., noon-12:15 p.m.; Sam Hornish, 12:15-12:30 p.m.; Denny Hamlin, 12:30-12:45 p.m., and Carl Edwards, 12:45-1 p.m.

Tuesday, Jan. 29 (at Las Vegas)

Lunch – Patrick Carpentier, noon-12:15 p.m.; Jimmie Johnson, 12:15-12:30 p.m.; Kasey Kahne, 12:30-12:45 p.m., and Kyle Busch, 12:45-1 p.m.

Thursday, Jan. 31 (at California)

Lunch – Kevin Harvick, noon-12:15 p.m.; Jimmie Johnson, 12:15-12:30 p.m.; David Gilliland 12:30-12:45 p.m., and TBD, 12:45-1 p.m.

Friday, Feb. 1 (at California)

Lunch – Matt Kenseth, noon-12:15 p.m.; Dario Franchitti, 12:15-12:30 p.m.; Clint Bowyer, 12:30-12:45 p.m., and Martin Truex Jr., 12:45-1 p.m.

NOTE: Jeff Gordon will be available at 5:30 p.m. (PT) Monday, Jan. 28 in the Las Vegas infield media center; also at 5:30 p.m. (PT) Thursday, Jan. 31 in the California infield media center. Neither is a teleconference availability.

Fast Facts

Session I: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams at Las Vegas Motor Speedway – Monday, Jan. 28 through Tuesday, Jan. 29

Session II: NASCAR Nationwide Series teams at Las Vegas – Wednesday, Jan. 30 through Thursday, Jan. 31

Session III: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams at California Speedway – Thursday, Jan. 31 through Friday, Feb. 1

What: NASCAR Preseason Thunder testing

Track Layouts: Las Vegas (1.5-mile tri-oval); California (2-mile oval).

Times: Session I and II – 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. Session III – 9 a.m. until 9 p.m. on Jan. 31; 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. on Feb. 1