Pit Picks Review – Samsung 500 (Texas)
Gordon wins at Texas for the first time in 17 attempts
First off I just want to apologize to those that look forward to seeing the Pit Picks every week prior to the race. I surprisingly received several emails wondering where they this week. Unfortunately life outside of my little interweb hobby got in the way. I’m taking classes here and there on top of work, and had my major assignment and 2 tests to do this past week, then went to visit my folks for the weekend as they just got back from Cuba (yes, I’m jealous…I need a tan), so I didn’t get a chance to post my picks on here.
The story of the week has to be Jeff Gordon ending winless streaks both overall (48 races) and at Texas (17 races). Gordon has now won in the Cup series at every active track except Homestead-Miami. Carl Edwards was in position to win his third straight Texas race in the late stages, but his team faultered on a pit stop, and gave the lead to Gordon who held off teammate Jimmie Johnson for the victory.
Another week off is on tap for the Easter holiday. I just want to wish everyone a Happy Easter, especially to those for which it means something more than chocolate eggs and bunnies.
Group 1 – Jeff Gordon(6) & Kyle Busch(8)
In the early going of this season, no one can touch Gordon’s consistency. I used him again this week after he nailed down the outside front row starting position, since eventual Texas winners tend to qualify in the top 10. He finally ended his winless streak and was top point getter on the week. Busch apparently caused his own demise (I didn’t see the race…had batting practice in the afternoon) by bumping another car and managing to cut down his own tire.
Group 2 – David Reutimann(8), Ryan Newman(8), Denny Hamlin(7), Kurt Busch(7)
I used Reutimann for the first time as a group 2 driver this week, since he was starting on the pole and almost assured to lead a lap and basically get a 5 position bonus. He managed a solid 11th place finish and still sits inside the top 12, despite a pit penalty which possibly prevented him from a shot at a win. I also used my first Newman start after back to back top 10s on the short tracks. It looks like Newman’s bad luck is over and he should be able to work his way up the standings. A 15th place finish this week is definitely acceptable, after a run of terrible performances to start the year. Hamlin and Busch finished 12th and 8th respectively, but I have other tracks I want to run them at, so they were left on the bench this week.
Group 3 – Bobby Labonte(8), AJ Allmendinger(5)
Neither driver managed to do much in this race, with AJ finishing 34th, several laps down and Labonte 40th, off the track at the finish. Thankfully the other group 3 ‘favourite’, Ambrose, also had a miserable day, so I didn’t lose much ground to anyone that went with the popular choices here. Allmendinger’s schedule is close to being extended yet again, as it’s hard to park a car that’s 15th in points. Other teams have already expressed an interest in him, including one of the Big 4. I may just have to be a little more selective from here on out with those 5 starts.
Recap
- Points for this race: 279 (Gordon, Reutimann, Newman, Labonte)
- Most Possible Points: 367 (Gordon (Kenseth qual), Stewart, Ku. Busch (Reutimann, Ragan qual), Hornish Jr.)
- Season Points : 2063
- Current Place : 1st
- Lead over 2nd : 176
- Overall Percentile : 99th (901 overall)
Photo Credit: Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images for NASCAR
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