Queers4Gears.com founder Michael Myers returns to the NASCAR Web Show to discuss:

~ Plane carrying NASCAR drivers stuck in the mud at Concord Regional Airport.
~ Kurt Busch replaces Regan Smith at Furniture Row Racing.
~ Ricky Stenhouse Jr. preparing for Sprint Cup debut at Dover International Speedway.
~ Dover race predictions for Chase contenders.

Links Mentioned:
Queers4Gears.com

Think you know Dale Jr.? Maybe not after you see this gripping video aired on “CBS This Morning”.

In a moment of rivoting candor, Dale Earnhardt Jr. reads from a letter he wrote to his 16-year-old self.

It is a very moving letter that touches on fear, self-confidence, his relationship with mother, his relationship with his father, self-doubt and having fun to mention a few.

“Now you don’t have much of a connection with your mother, and your efforts in that regard are disappointing.”

Click here to tweet this quote

Few people, especially those that count themselves as part of the Junior Nation, have seen this side of Junior. This is must-see video for anyone that considers themselves a fan. This is #88 like you have NEVER seen him before.

Enjoy!

What did you think of the video? Feel free to leave your comments in the “Speak Your Mind” section below.

Have you heard of FanVision NASCAR?

Brad Keselowski Using FanVision Inside Car

With a FanVision® controller in your hand, you can access up to 8 in-car cameras, replays, a digital radio scanner, real-time statistics and more at every NASCAR Sprint Cup Series™ race.

To celebrate the beginning of the 2012 NASCAR Chase for the Sprint Cup and the launch of FanVision 2.0, the NASCAR Web Show is giving away (2) pair of FanVision NASCAR weekend rentals for ANY 2012 Chase race weekend.

(The contest has ended!)

Thanks to everyone who entered!

NOTE: Must be attending a 2012 Chase for the Sprint Cup event to participate. Contest ends at midnight EST on Wednesday, September 12th.

Click on the “Do It” button on the entry form below to get started.

Good Luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

LINKS MENTIONED

Fanvision NASCAR website
How to order FanVision NASCAR
Brad Keselowski USA Today Talking Your Tech interview

Richmond is the last stand for Jeff Gordon. It is either win or watch Kyle Busch take the last wildcard spot on point ranking.

Kyle Busch has a crazy 4.7 career average finish at Richmond and is a key reason he will likely claim the final 2012 Chase for the Sprint Cup wildcard.

Watch the video for the complete breakdown of all the wildcard scenario’s.

Kenyatta Houston is not only “Living the Dream”, he is rapping about it.

“Yatta Da Kaptain” is a seven year veteran NASCAR pit road athlete. His current gig is the front tire changer for Front Row Motorsports driver David Gilliland.

One of Kenyatta's most endearing qualities is his ability to connect with fans.

Feel free to ask Kenyatta a question or comment on his music in the comments section below.

(Enabling your photo in the comments section is easy click here.)

LINKS MENTIONED

Follow @YattaDaKaptain on Twitter
Like Da Kaptain on Facebook
Yatta Da Kaptain website
Follow @DavidGilliland on Twitter
Like David Gilliland on Facebook
Join Gilly’s Gang on David’s website
Follow @FrontRowNASCAR on Twitter
Like Front Row Motorsports on Facebook
MHP X-FIT Pit Crew website
Follow @MHPXFiT on Twitter

The Paralyzed Veterans of America Facebook Contest

Description from the Contest Facebook Page:

Prize Details
Paralyzed Veterans of America has teamed up with Pennzoil to give disabled veterans a chance to reconnect with their love of cars and restore their sense of freedom. Six finalists have been selected from hundreds of entries and are now competing to win one of three adapted vehicles.

LINKS MENTIONED
Follow Scott on Twitter
Scott’s Website

Only Bristol, Atlanta and Richmond remain for drivers to lock-up their spot in the 2012 Chase for the Sprint Cup.

I will breakdown the current top 20 drivers and their chances for making the Chase.

First, a look at the current standings courtesy of racing-reference.info. If you have not been to this site, it is worthy of a bookmark. (click on image to enlarge)

NASCAR Sprint Cup Standings as of 08/20/2012

Chase selection rules: Top 10 in points are automatic qualifiers. (2) wildcard selections based on most wins. Must be top 20 in points to qualify for wildcard. Once the field is set, points will be reset to 2000 for each driver with a 3 point bonus for each win. * Wildcards not credited with bonus points for wins.

Put your thinking cap on, this could get hairy!

The Top Ten

Greg Biffle (In the Big Show)

Opportunity: With a 129 point lead on 11th place Kasey Kahne, “The Biff” is locked-in on points. Biff capitalized on an opportunity by stealing away 6 points from Jimmie Johnson at Michigan. Read my post Could 6 Points Cost Jimmie Johnson A Sixth Sprint Cup Championship? for a breakdown on how the Biff capitalized.

Risk: Losing bonus points to other top 10 Chase drivers.

Matt Kenseth (In the Big Show)

Opportunity: Only 20 points back from his teammate Greg Biffle has Matt Kenseth locked-in on points. Capturing more bonus points in the last 3 races.

Risk: With only one win, Kenseth could use more than the 3 accrued bonus points.

Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (In the Big Show)

Opportunity: Carbon copy of Matt Kenseth’s situation. Capturing more bonus points in the last 3 races.

Risk: With only one win, Junior could use more than the 3 accrued bonus points. Junior spoke about “pressure to perform” to NASCAR media members after the Michigan race. Succumbing to the pressure cooker of rising expectations could derail Junior’s bid for the title.

Jimmie Johnson (In the Big Show)

Opportunity: Shares highest bonus points (9) with Tony Stewart & Brad Keselowski with three wins each. Safely locked-in on points and just looking to pad bonus points with wins.

Risk: Losing bonus points to other top 10 Chase drivers. Which is exactly what happened at Michigan. An opportunity cost of 6 points to Biffle and 3 points to the rest of Chase field. See my breakdown of how the Michigan loss could have title implications.

Brad Keselowski (In the Big Show)

Opportunity: Shares highest bonus points (9) with Tony Stewart & Jimmie Johnson with three wins each. Safely locked-in on points and just looking to pad bonus points with wins.

Risk: Losing bonus points to other top 10 Chase drivers.

Martin Truex, Jr. (In the danger zone)

Opportunity: Highest point driver with zero wins. A 69 point cushion over 11th place Kasey Kahne is a reasonable lead with only 3 races remaining. One top 5 might do the trick. A win will lock Martin in. But Truex has more “risk” than “opportunity”.

Risk: No wins equals no bonus points. With only 48 points maximum per race, an early exit with only single digit point accumulation could wipe out most of point cushion with no current wins to fall back on. Finishing the last three races outside the top 20 could spell disaster. Already behind, he also risks losing even more bonus points to other top 10 Chase drivers.

Clint Bowyer (In the Big Show)

Opportunity: A 63 point cushion and one win should punch Bowyer’s Chase ticket. Capturing more bonus points in the last 3 races.

Risk: Losing bonus points to other top 10 Chase drivers or catastrophic collapse in last 3 races.

Kevin Harvick (In the danger zone)

Opportunity: With a 44 point cushion over Kahne, Harvick needs to average no worse than 14 spots behind Kasey over the final three races. One top 5 might do the trick. A win will lock Happy in. Harvick also has more “risk” than “opportunity”. Kevin does have a consolation prize waiting at home in son Keelan if he misses the Chase.

Risks: Plenty! Zero wins, fewest top 5′s and top 10′s among Chase contenders. Like Truex Jr., no wins equals no bonus points. With only 48 points maximum per race, an early exit with only single digit point accumulation could wipe out entire point cushion with no current wins to fall back on. Finishing the last three races outside the top 20 could spell disaster. Already behind, he also risks losing even more bonus points to other top 10 Chase drivers. If Harvick falters, Team RCR is at risk of missing the Chase.

Tony Stewart (In the Big Show)

Opportunity: Shares highest bonus points (9) with Brad K. & Jimmie Johnson with three wins each. Safely locked-in on wins and just looking to pad bonus points with wins.

Risk: Not much. Losing bonus points to other top 10 Chase drivers.

Denny Hamlin (In the Big Show)

Opportunity: For Denny it is all about the 2 wins. Safely locked-in on wins and just looking to pad bonus points with wins. His point lead should be sufficient if a one-win driver adds a second win. Trumping Hamlin on wins for a wildcard spot is mathematically impossible for two one-win drivers with only 3 races remaining.

Risk: Losing bonus points to other top 10 Chase drivers.

The Wildcard Race

Kasey Kahne (In the Big Show)

Opportunity: Safe to say with 2 wins and plenty of momentum, Kahne is a wildcard lock with a chance at an automatic birth. The automatic birth is critical for Kahne to receive bonus points for his 2 wins.

Risk: A bonus point double whammy: losing bonus points to the top 10 Chase drivers and not getting his own bonus points as a wildcard selection.

Carl Edwards (Must win situation)

Opportunity: Win Baby Win! The other slim option is a catastrophic points finish for Kevin Harvick, Tony Stewart or Denny Hamlin allowing Edwards to squeak into the top 10 in points for an automatic bid. He is currently 38 & 39 points behind Hamlin & Stewart respectively.

Risk: No wins in the final 3 races means no Chase. Another win by either Ryan Newman, Kyle Busch, Jeff Gordon, Marcos Ambrose or Joey Logano will likely end Carl Edwards chances.

Ryan Newman (Controls his own destiny)

Opportunity: Ryan Newman currently leads the solo win group with a precarious 11 point lead over Kyle Busch. He leads Gordon by a more respectable 30 points. Controls his own destiny with a win in the next 3 races.

Risk: A win by Edwards, Busch, Gordon, Ambrose or Logano could seal his fate.

Kyle Busch (Win or beat Newman)

Opportunity: Kyle’s best hope is for another win. KyBu could enter the Chase through the back-door by passing Newman in points. At 11 points back, a very possible scenario.

Risk: Wins by Edwards, Newman, Gordon, Ambrose or Logano could seal his fate.

Paul Menard (On the outside looking in)

Opportunities: Unlike Edwards, Menard’s points ranking creates the need to win twice. Although one win and a 20 point surge over Busch & Newman would do the trick. A tall order indeed!

Risk: Having to win twice in the next 3 weeks. He has 2 single race winners ahead of him in points. Zero top-5′s and only one top 10 on the season does not bode well for a final hour surge. Nothing short of a miracle will place Paul Menard in the dirty dozen.

Jeff Gordon (Must win situation)

Opportunities: The unlikely Pocono win gave no. 24 a chance. A slim chance. Unlike Newman and KyBu, points will not help Jeff Gordon. It is either win or watch your Hendrick teammates race for the title. Period!

Risks: No win equals no Chase. Wins by either Newman or Busch would force Gordon to win the other 2 races. The only way Jeff controls his own destiny is taking 2 of 3. Unlikely, but this is Jeff Gordon we are talking about so anything is possible.

Marcos Ambrose & Joey Logano (Must win situation)

Opportunities: See Jeff Gordon above. It is win or bust. Points are irrelevant.

Risk: For both drivers, controlling their own destiny means taking 2 of the final 3 checkered flags. A win by Gordon, Busch or Newman would force either driver to win the other 2 races.

Jamie McMurray & Jeff Burton (Maybe next year)

Opportunities: Simple math, win twice or game over.

Risks: The slim odds of winning twice in three weeks. Would miss the Chase even if it were a baker’s dozen. They are both on the outside looking in, maybe next year.

What do you think? Leave your comments below.

How important were the last 6 laps of the Pure Michigan 400?

The full impact of Jimmie Johnson losing the Pure Michigan 400 to Greg Biffle may not be known until the checkered flag on November 18th at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

In this post I will attempt to explain.

Under the 2011 Chase for the Sprint Cup points revision, when the Chase begins, points are reset to 2000 and drivers are awarded 3 points for each win.

Two important points to ponder here.

1) Jimmie Johnson spotted Greg Biffle 6 points.

Here is the breakdown: instead of Johnson having accrued 12 bonus points for 4 wins and Biffle having 3 points for 1 win, Johnson remains at 3 wins worth 9 bonus points while Biffle now has 6 points for his 2 wins.

Johnson’s future point advantage over Biffle as it stands now is only 3 points rather than 9 points had JJ’s motor not expired and assuming he went on to win the race. Of course he spotted the remaining Chase field 3 points as well.

2) Win total is the tie-breaker.

If we have a repeat of last year and have two drivers tied after the Homestead-Miami checkers, the tiebreaker is win total.

Missing out on a Michigan win keeps “5-time” tied with Brad Keselowski and Tony Stewart with 3 wins each. And Tony Stewart no doubt knows how important each win is considering his 5 wins last year trumped Carl Edwards solo win and earned him the tie-break and his third Sprint Cup Championship.

Greg Biffle’s win also allowed him to gain ground in the Victory Lane club with two wins.

Check out the Bass Pro Shops – Fall Hunting Classic Sale Online by September 3rd! (aff. link)

With an insanely tight points battle this year, the opportunity cost of 6 points and a win could realistically be the margin of victory… or the margin of defeat.

What is a lap worth? We know the final 6 laps of the Pure Michigan 400 were worth one point each!

But we may not know the real impact of the Pure Michigan 400 until November.

As always, your comments are welcomed below. Do you think the Michigan race will impact the 2012 Sprint Cup Championship?

photo credit: PDA.PHOTO via photo pin cc

• THE GRAND PRIZE: The Grand Prize Winner will receive a Penske Racing VIP Experience comprised of four tickets to the 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series All-Star Race in Charlotte or four tickets to a 2013 U.S. domestic IZOD IndyCar Series race other than the Indianapolis 500–mile race or qualifications, at Grand Prize winner’s choice, “hot” passes for the All-Star race (subject to race venue requirements) or for the same IZOD IndyCar Series race as the tickets, per Grand Prize winner’s choice, autographed team merchandise and a tour of the Penske Racing facility in Mooresville, NC hosted by a Penske Racing driver by October 1, 2013, selected by Sweepstakes Entity.
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Win Coca-Cola/Carmike Cinema Swag!

What’s not to like about:

~ Coca-Cola racing family collectible cups.

~ All expenses paid trip for two to the 2013 Daytona 500. (see contest rules below)

~ Coca-Cola and Carmike Cinema swag. ( check it out right over there ==>)

The 2012 Coca-Cola racing family featured drivers are: Jeff Burton, Greg Biffle, Tony Stewart, Ryan Newman and Danica Patrick.

Gotta love free stuff! Let’s take a look at each promotion.

The good folks at Coca-Cola and Carmike Cinema have teamed up to give NASCAR fans an opportunity to win tickets to the 2013 Daytona 500. Yep!

GRAND PRIZE: The opportunity for winner and a guest to attend the NASCAR Nationwide Series race and the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series DAYTONA 500® at Daytona International Speedway® on Saturday, February 23, 2013 and Sunday, February 24, 2013.

10 FIRST PRIZES: An autographed NASCAR and Coca-Cola Racing Family Flag

To enter and win, you have to visit a Carmike Cinema location before September 30!

Click here to view complete rules for the sweepstakes.

The Coca-Cola Carmike 2012 NASCAR program offers fans the opportunity to purchase Coca-Cola Racing Family collectible cups exclusively at Carmike Cinemas. With each purchase, Coca-Cola and Carmike will make a donation to the USO to help support our troops and their families!

Coca-Cola racing family collectible cups are available at Carmike Cinema’s for a limited time. Now through September 30th or until supply runs out.

This is a great opportunity for NASCAR fans to catch a movie, collect a cup and support our troops all at the same time.

Find a Carmike Cinema in your area.

Earn up to 10 entries below. Deadline for swag giveaway is 12:01am on 8/25/12 so enter NOW!

Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: The prize was provided by Coca-Cola. Neither Coca-Cola nor its program partners (NASCAR + Carmike Cinemas) are sponsors, administrators, or involved in any other way with this giveaway. All opinions expressed in the post are my own and not those of The Coca-Cola Company or aforementioned partners. Winner to be chosen by Degree 31 via Rafflecopter.